NewsAccidents/Incidents
British Airways Boeing 777 Declares Emergency And Dumps Fuel
A British Airways 777, flying from London Heathrow to New York JFK today, declared an emergency and returned to Heathrow. To reduce its weight, the plane entered a holding pattern and dumped fuel. At the time of writing, the aircraft has safely landed back in London Heathrow.
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S7 Boeing 737 Goes Around Twice Then Diverted Due To Faulty ILS
Last month, an S7 Sibir Airlines Boeing 737-800 had two go-arounds when trying to land at Chita in Russia before diverting to another airport. This unexpected encounter was due to a defective instrument landing system ILS.
LinkCommercial
EASA completes 737 Max test flights
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has completed its test flights of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft ahead of its possible recertification and return to service later this year. The test flights took place over the course of three days this week in Vancouver, Canada, due to coronavirus-related travel restrictions, the European regulatory agency says on 11 September. EASA did not say how many flights took place during that time, or what scenarios were tested.
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Warning from Airbus: voluntary departures might not be enough
Airbus has reportedly warned its staff about compulsory layoffs in fears that passenger traffic could be recovering from COVID-19 crisis slower than expected.
Guillame Faury, the Chief Executive of Airbus, in a general business update letter has allegedly warned his 130,000 employees that pursuing the voluntary redundancies could not be enough if the COVID-19 crisis continues to deepen, reported by Reuters in a statement.
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Ex-737 MAX executive: I don’t believe that there was mistake made
As the Joint Operations Evaluation Board (JOEB) begins its work in London to determine pilot training requirements for the Boeing 737 MAX, interviews with former executives who worked on the aircraft development shed some light on the way the company viewed its poster child product.
LinkAirlines
Finnair changes long-term planning unrecognizably
Finnair’s successful journey to financial growth and expansion went into survival mode in a very short time. The challenges caused by the COVID-19 forced the flag carrier of Finland to make radical changes in the company’s planning strategy.
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Brazil proposes a $376 million injection to Azul Airlines
Azul Airlines, a Brazil-based carrier, received an injection proposal from the Brazilian government that could dilute its stock by up to 15%.
The offer proposed by the Brazil Development Bank and a bank syndicate would aim to raise $376 million (R$ 2 billion) for Azul through debentures and stock warrants.
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Bamboo Airways Receives Its First Embraer E195
This morning Bamboo Airways posted an image to Twitter with the note saying, “Our Embraer 195 is home at Noi Bai Airport! Con Dao, here we come!!” This marks the first of two Embraer E195 jets being acquired by the airline from Great Dane Airlines.
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The Future Of Air France-KLM Is Uncertain
The survival of Air France-KLM is ‘not guaranteed,’ at least that’s what the Finance Minister of the Netherlands is saying. The government official made the remarks on Sunday in an interview with Dutch television.
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TAP Air Portugal Adds Six New Routes For Summer 2021
Not letting the current crisis detract from future, post-crisis planning, TAP Air Portugal is announcing six new routes for summer 2021. From the list of destinations, it appears that Portuguese holidaymakers will benefit most from the new routes.
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British Airways Tentatively Schedules A380 Flights From October
British Airways has begun tentatively scheduling in at least some of its A380s for service over the winter season. Routing information suggests at least six A380s could be in operation from October 25th onwards, four on transatlantic services to the US, and a pair flying down to Johannesburg. Here’s what you need to know about these flights.
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Airlines All Over The World Are Launching Flights To Nowhere
All over the world, there has been a rise in the number of flights on offer that go precisely nowhere. While some of these services never even leave the ground, others really do take off and are proving a hit with passengers.
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Which Airlines Have Turned A Profit So Far In 2020 ?
There’s no doubt that 2020 has been a challenging year for airlines. Most carriers are reporting heavy losses and making tough decisions about their future. Profits are simply out of the question. However, a handful of carriers have managed to turn a profit this year, despite the downturn, mainly by rapidly shifting their focus when the crisis hit. So which airlines have managed to buck the trend ?
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South African Airways Saga Continues As It Needs Funding Again
South African Airways has said that it needs additional funding by the end of the next week. The financial support will be used to continue its business rescue. The South African government has shown support for the plan. However, it has not said where it will get the money from.
LinkAirports
Europe Extends 80/20 Slot Rule Suspension For Winter Season
The European Commission has today made the announcement that many European airlines were waiting to hear. It has confirmed that it will be extending the waiver of the 80/20 slot rule through to the end of the winter season. This will protect airline’s slots until March 27th next year, avoiding unnecessary ghost flights and allowing carriers to plan their winter schedules.
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An-124 Arrives In San Francisco Carrying Three Fire Trucks
Fighting wildfires is no easy task. So, when the state of California needed some help to combat the devastating blazes, officials worked to get an Antonov An-124 in to carry three fire trucks, a support vehicle, and ten firefighters from New Jersey on September 12th.
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Acrylic barriers installed at LaGuardia to protect passengers and staff
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is in the process of installing new acrylic barriers at security checkpoints throughout LaGuardia Airport as part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
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Aviation Quote
An instructors knowledge is proportional to the mistakes he's made.
- Anonymous
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Trivia
General Trivia
1. What airplane produced by a well-known aircraft manufacturer was rejected by the U.S. Army in 1973 because it could be brought down by bow and arrow?
2. What is the largest, post-World War II, piston-powered, twin-engine airplane designed from scratch and produced exclusively as a general aviation airplane?
3. Why should every dedicated pilot fly at least once to KFFA?
4. Several types of liaison airplanes served the U.S. military during World War II. Best known of these were the first five, the L-1, L-2, L-3, L-4, and L-5. Can you identify these utilitarian “L-birds?”
5. Almost everyone has heard of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, but what is the Lightning II?
6. U.S. military flight-crew positions often have nicknames. What are the official positions of a boomer, a GAFO (pronounced GAY-fo), a raven, a GIB (pronounced gib), and a whizzo?
7. The Pratt & Whitney J58 (JT11D) engines that powered the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird use JP-7 fuel so inert that it could not be ignited with spark or ignition plugs. How was this exotic fuel ignited during engine start?
8. On November 13, 1942, and after having survived in a life raft in the western Pacific for 23 days, Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker, Col. Hans Adamson, and Pvt. John Bartek were found by the pilot of a Vought-Sikorsky Kingfisher, a U.S. Navy seaplane. What was so unusual about the subsequent rescue?
