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NEWS

Gulf Air takes delivery of first connectivity-enabled aircraft
Gulf Air has taken delivery of its first aircraft retrofitted with Panasonic Avionics' in-flight, high-speed broadband Internet, mobile connectivity and live television system.
The carrier signed up for the Ku-band satellite-based solution for its entire fleet during the Paris air show.
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Back-up crew minimized casualties on blazing Tu-154
The fire started in the cabin, air flow from the emergency exits intensified it, leading to the collapse of the airframe within 17m. Russian investigators believe the presence of a reserve crew on a Kolavia Tupolev Tu-154B destroyed in a ground fire minimized the number of fatalities during a slow and confused evacuation. The aircraft suffered a generator fault after starting its engines, having been pushed back for taxiing at Surgut, and electrical arcing set the trijet's cabin ablaze. Of 10 emergency exits, six were equipped with escape slides; the other four were overwing. Eight of these were opened, all except the rearmost door on the left and a forward cabin door on the right.
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Southwest suggests possible Plan B for pilot-integration issue
Southwest Airlines has proposed an alternate plan regarding the integration of seniority lists for Southwest and AirTran Airways pilots as the two carriers continue to merge operations. If the pilots fail to reach a mutual agreement and turn down an initial proposal, Southwest may have to execute Plan B, which involves canceling a full integration of the two carriers, AirTran's union leaders told pilots in a presentation. "If we receive a 'no' vote, it means that we cannot execute the original integration plan and we will have to reset," Southwest spokesman Paul Flaningan said.
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Regulators approve slot swap between Delta and US Airways
Delta Air Lines will gain control of about half of the flights at New York's LaGuardia Airport by trading takeoff and landing slots with US Airways at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The slot swap has been approved by federal regulators. "Delta clearly wants to own the New York market, and they're doing what they have to do to get there," said Helane Becker, an analyst at Dahlman Rose & Co. "Doing this transaction with US Airways has been a long time coming."
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Air Canada's survival is seen as hinging on low-cost division
Air Canada is planning to launch a low-cost subsidiary to prevent the decline of passengers as rivals make gains on leisure routes. Meanwhile, the carrier is bracing for a strike by its flight attendants. The union representing the flight attendants said it's "ready to return to the table" to keep Air Canada flying.
Link

AA overstates labor-cost disparity, flight attendants say
The union representing American Airlines' flight attendants is disputing the carrier's statements that its labor costs are the highest in the industry. "The cost disparity had turned to zero because of the contract increases" by American's rivals, said Dan Akins, an economic adviser for the Association of Professional Flight Attendants. By mid-2011, "the flight-attendant-contract costs of other carriers were equivalent to those at American." However, American spokeswoman Missy Cousino says the costs include benefits as well as salary. "Continental and Southwest might have increased flight-attendant pay, but they don't have comparable benefits like retiree medical. ... American's flight attendants continue to be among the most highly compensated in the industry, including a benefits package no other airline matches," she said.
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TSA delays screening of all cargo aboard airplanes
The Transportation Security Administration has pushed back the deadline for screening all air cargo amid opposition from the International Air Cargo Association. "We fully recognize its intention to enhance existing air cargo security programs but it is showing the foresight to listen to, and work with, the industry towards this objective," said the group's chairman, Michael Steen. "This is the result of TSA requesting comment from the air cargo industry on the feasibility of a December 31st 2011 deadline and its careful consideration of the advice it received." The cargo-screening requirement was a recommendation from the 9/11 Commission.
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EU airline-ticket websites will face tougher rules
The European Union is working to strengthen rules governing airline-ticket websites. For example, changes ban "pre-ticked boxes" that require consumers to opt out of some services, such as car rentals and travel insurance. The rules would also require the sites to improve transparency on prices and additional fees.
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Virgin America aircraft will receive Wi-Fi connection upgrade
Gogo will be installing its next-generation ATG-4 service on Virgin America planes starting in the first half of 2012, improving onboard Wi-Fi capacity by about four times the current efficiency. The airline also will launch its Red IFE system in late 2012, having selected Lufthansa Systems' BoardConnect platform as its technology partner.
Link

P&W & Rolls form new engine JV, restructure IAE partnership
Engine giants Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce are forming a new joint venture to develop engines for next-generation mid-size aircraft in a deal that restructures their long-standing International Aero Engines partnership. Under the multi-faceted deal, P&W is buying Rolls’ share of the two engine companies’ IAE joint venture company for $1.5 billion, it was announced late Wednesday.
Link

ANZ’s Fyfe: Taxes and rules hurt vulnerable airlines
Air New Zealand (ANZ) CEO Rob Fyfe has warned that approximately half of air travel is discretionary, making airlines highly vulnerable to the health of the economy as well as external events and shocks.
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Abdulmutallab pleads guilty to attempted A330 bombing
The criminal trial of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab in a US federal court in Detroit ended on just its second day Wednesday when the defendant abruptly declared his guilt on all counts, explaining in a detailed statement how he tried to bring down a Northwest Airlines A330 en route from Amsterdam to Detroit on Dec. 25, 2009.
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Other News

Qantas (QF) is expected to disrupt travel plans of some 20,000 passengers Thursday and Friday, due to labor disputes.

Boeing delivered the first 747-8 freighter to Cargolux (CV) Wednesday at a ceremony in Everett, Wash., that took place several weeks later than planned. Though it is the launch customer for the aircraft, CV last month declined to accept delivery, citing performance shortfalls.

SAS Scandinavian Airlines will launch 21 new destinations beginning with the 2012 summer schedule.

Boeing and Italy's SELEX Systemi Integrati signed a memorandum of collaboration to work toward compatibility of global air traffic management systems, with a particular focus on ensuring that the US's NextGen ATC initiative and Europe's Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) program are congruent.

ST Aerospace Technologies (Xiamen), the joint venture between ST Aerospace and Xiamen Aviation Industry Co., opened a $78 million engine MRO facility in Xiamen. It has the capacity to do work on 300 engines annually, the company said. It will initially provide MRO and total support for CFM56-7B and CFM56-5B engines powering Boeing 737NGs and Airbus A320s.

Iberia last week conducted its first commercial flight powered by biofuel, using an Airbus A320 from Madrid to Barcelona. The flight utilized a mixture of 75% conventional A-1 jet fuel and 25% biofuel derived from camelina.

Raytheon has partnered with AirDat LLC and Metron Aviation to develop solutions for the FAA’s NextGen weather programs. The team will address two of the major FAA programs, NextGen Network Enabled Weather and NextGen Weather Processor.

Emirates Airline will launch daily Boeing 777 Dubai service to Dallas/Ft. Worth (Feb. 2) and Seattle Tacoma (March 1).

Allegiant Airlines will launch 2X-weekly Moline, Ill.-Orlando Sanford service Feb. 17.

GOL and Aerolineas Argentinas have signed an MOU to begin a codeshare agreement.

SkyWork Airlines will launch 12X-weekly Berne-Cologne services next summer, as well 3X-weekly BRN-Nice service. It will increase 4X-weekly BRN-Barcelona service to daily and 5X-weekly BRN-Vienna service to 10X-weekly.



AVIATION QUOTE

If you want to grow old as a pilot, you’ve got to know when to push it, and when to back off.

— Chuck Yeager.



ON THIS DATE

October 13th

---In 1931... Canadian pilot Godfrey Dean performs the 1st loop in an autogyro, at Willow Field, near Philadelphia.

---In 1964… The first production Learjet, a Model 23, was delivered.

---In 1972…a Uruguayan Air Force Fairchild FH-227 crashes in the Andes. Survivors resort to eating dead passengers before their rescue two months later. The movie “Alive,” is based on this incident.

---In 1976…Midway Airlines is founded.



DAILY VIDEO





EDITOR’S CHOICE


Image ©2011, Jeff Swearingen



HUMOR

Taxi Testy

While taxiing the crew of a US Air flight departing for Ft. Lauderdale made a wrong turn and came nose to nose with a United 727.

The irate female ground controller lashed out at the US Air crew, screaming:

"US Air 2771, where are you going? I told you to turn right onto Charlie taxiway! You turned right on Delta! Stop right there. I know it's difficult for you to tell the difference between C's and D's, but get it right

Continuing her tirade to the embarrassed crew, she was now shouting hysterically:

"God, you've screwed everything up! It'll take forever to sort this out! You stay right there and don't move till I tell you to! You can expect progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour and I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I tell you, and how I tell you! You got that, US Air 2771?"

"Yes ma'am," the humbled crew responded.

Naturally the ground control frequency went terribly silent after the verbal bashing of US Air 2771

Nobody wanted to engage the irate ground controller in her current state. Tension in every cockpit at LGA was running high.

Then an unknown pilot broke the silence and asked, "Wasn't I married to you once?"



TRIVIA

General Trivia

1. What did Lieutenant Petr Nikolaevich Nesterov of the Imperial Russian Army do to assure himself a place in aviation History?

2. What is a Cessna Titan?

3. What was the first type of civilian airplane to be equipped with an autothrottle system(No, the Flight Engineer doesn’t qualify)?

4. A conventional spin can develop to the ______if the airplane is stalled with the slip-skid-ball positioned to the _____.
a. right, right
b. right, left
c. left, right
d. left, left

5. True or False. Pilots operating in Canada generally advised not to use the standard 45-degree entry into the traffic pattern of non-towered airports.

1. What did Lieutenant Petr Nikolaevich Nesterov of the Imperial Russian Army do to assure himself a place in aviation History?
Flew the first loop

2. What is a Cessna Titan?
Double Prop

3. What was the first type of civilian airplane to be equipped with an autothrottle system(No, the Flight Engineer doesn’t qualify)?
Me262

4. A conventional spin can develop to the ______if the airplane is stalled with the slip-skid-ball positioned to the _____.
c. left, right


5. True or False. Pilots operating in Canada generally advised not to use the standard 45-degree entry into the traffic pattern of non-towered airports.
False

ANSWERS

1. Flying a Nieuport IV monoplane near Kiev on 27 AUG 1913, Nesterov was the first pilot to perform the inside loop.

2. The Cessna 404 Titan is slightly larger, more-powerful evolution of the Cessna 402 cabin-class twin. It can seat up to 10 passengers and has geared, turbocharged, 375 horsepower Teledyne Continental Engines (GTSIO-520-M).

3. Safe Flight Instrument Corporation introduced AutoPower in a Douglas DC-3 in 1956. Then as now the system automatically adjusted throttle position to maintain as specified indicated airspeed.

4. (b) and (c). Airplanes initiate spinning in a direction opposite to the direction of the ball.

5. True. The Canadian AIM advises pilots to approach the runway on the upwind leg (on the opposite side of the runway to the downwind leg), cross the runway at pattern altitude, and enter the downwind leg at midfield.