News
787 Probe Puts Spotlight on Battery Charger
US National Transportation Safety Board investigators will travel to Arizona based Securaplane Technologies, which makes battery chargers used on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, to test and examine the charger. Fiona Greig, a spokeswoman for Securaplane, said the company had been invited to "contribute to the investigation process" and planned to fully support it. "In line with the NTSB's practices, however, it would not be helpful to that investigation to comment further," she said in a statement. Securaplane, a unit of Britain's Meggit, first began working on the charger in 2004, but suffered millions of dollars of damages in November 2006 after a lithium-ion battery used in testing exploded and sparked a fire that burned an administration building to the ground.
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NTSB: JAL battery did not overcharge; ANA, JAL cancel 787 flights to Jan. 28
The battery used to start the auxiliary power unit (APU) on the Japan Airlines (JAL) Boeing 787 that caught fire did not overcharge, according to the US National Transportation Safety Board. In a detailed third update on its investigation into the Jan. 7 fire aboard the JAL Dreamliner while it was parked at Boston Logan Airport, NTSB said examination of flight recorder data indicates the APU battery did not exceed its designed voltage of 32 volts. The lithium ion battery has become a focus area of the JAL investigation and another investigation into a separate Jan. 16 incident involving an All Nippon Airways (ANA) 787, which had to make an emergency landing in Japan and also appears to have suffered a battery malfunction.
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ANA Cancels 171 More Flights Over Grounded 787s
All Nippon Airways said on Monday it has cancelled 151 domestic and 26 international flights scheduled for January 23-28 after the grounding of the carrier's Boeing 787 Dreamliners, affecting more than 21,000 passengers. The cancellations add to the 72 flights scheduled for January 19-22 that ANA called off last week.
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London Heathrow Cancels More Flights Over Snow
London's Heathrow airport cancelled 10 percent of flights on Monday, a day after it cut its capacity by a fifth, and said services could face further delays with more snowfall expected. Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport, said it had cut around 130 flights - most operated by British Airways - from its schedule on Monday to allow more space between aircraft because of low visibility. "Many airports have plenty of spare runway capacity so aircraft can be spaced out more during low visibility without causing delays and cancellations. Because Heathrow operates at almost full capacity, there is simply no room to reschedule the delayed flights," a Heathrow spokesman said.
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Snow Causes Frankfurt Flight Cancellations
Passengers suffered delays and flight cancellations on Monday at Frankfurt airport, Europe's third busiest, after freezing rain had forced the airport to shut late on Sunday. About 300 of the 1,200 scheduled arrivals and departures are expected to be cancelled, a spokesman for airport operator Fraport said. On Sunday, 445 flights out of 1,170 were cancelled.
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TSA to remove ‘naked body’ scanners from all US airports
US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will begin removing all body scanner machines that show naked images of people. The machines have caused a public outcry about privacy invasion. Rapiscan, which makes the backscatter airport body scanner machines, failed to meet a congressionally mandated deadline to upgrade the technology with software that protects individual privacy. New scanners show any suspect objects on a humanoid image rather than on a scan of a real human body.
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Gulf Air to cut workforce by one-third in restructuring plan
Bahrain-based Gulf Air, which announced a major restructuring plan last week, will cut its workforce by one-third. The Bahraini national carrier is targeting a 24% decrease in costs by year end and is reducing its fleet from 35 to 26 aircraft. While it will keep some widebody aircraft, it will increase regional services using the Airbus A320 family. Gulf Air has dropped eight destinations—comprising Dhaka, Kathmandu, Colombo, Copenhagen, Rome, Kabul, Aden and Erbil—from its network.
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GE Aviation posts double-digit revenue growth in 2012
The aviation segment of General Electric (GE) recorded a $3.75 billion profit for full-year 2012, up 7% year-over-year on a 6% increase in revenues to $19.99 billion. For the fourth quarter, the business segment’s profits grew 22% from the prior year’s quarter to $1.04 billion on an 11% jump in revenues to $5.47 billion. “We ended the year with a strong quarter despite the mixed global economic environment,” GE chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt said. “The outlook for developed markets remains uncertain, but we are seeing growth in China and the resource-rich countries. With our largest backlog in history and a substantial amount of cash generated by our businesses in the fourth quarter, we have great momentum going into 2013.”
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How Boeing took output and order spoils in 2012
Boeing has stolen Airbus's delivery crown after Toulouse's near-decade on top in a clean sweep that also saw the US airframer become top dog in the order stakes. Although Airbus's output rose by 10% in 2012 to a record 588 deliveries, its US rival surpassed the European airframer's tally by 13 aircraft. Boeing's total of 601 deliveries represents its second-highest airliner output ever, and is just 14 units shy of the record 620 shipments it completed in 1999. That high-water mark in airliner output was set as Boeing integrated the production of MD-80/90 and MD-11 aircraft at the now defunct Long Beach civil plant in California shortly after the merger with McDonnell Douglas.
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Airbus unconvinced over further A350 stretch
Airbus appears to be dismissing the possibility of a further stretch to the A350, despite the capacity gap between the A350-1000 and the A380. The A350-1000 will be capable of seating 350 passengers in a typical three-class configuration, according to the airframer. High-density arrangements could lift this to 440. Its A380 has a 525-seat layout, although some carriers have fitted low-density layouts of just over 400 seats.
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AgustaWestland, Embraer plan Brazil helicopter assembly line
AgustaWestland looks set to cash in on an oil-driven Brazilian helicopter sales bonanza through a joint venture with Embraer that could lead to production of its rotorcraft in the country. The two airframers have signed a memorandum of understanding which, if a final agreement is reached, would see the establishment of an assembly line in Brazil building helicopters for both the domestic and wider Latin American markets. Civil and military models are both being looked at by the partners - initially the AW139, AW189 and AW149 - but they have pointed principally to the offshore oil and gas market, which is set to boom with the development of massive oil fields in the Santos Basin, 250km (135nm) east of Rio de Janeiro.
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Other News
AR & AF @ KMIA: An investigation has been launched after an Aerolineas Argentinas Airbus A340 and an Air France Boeing 777-300 collided at Miami International Airport. The incident happened Jan. 18. There were no injuries, but both aircraft were damaged. According to the US National Transportation Safety Board, which has launched an investigation, the wingtip of the A340 struck the stabilizer of the 777.
Australia’s Fair Work Commission has ruled in Qantas’ favor on an arbitration case with the Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA). The ruling brings to a close the industrial disputes with three unions that began in 2011. Qantas has already reached resolutions with the Transport Workers’ Union and the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association. AIPA had claimed that Qantas terms and conditions would apply to other Qantas Group entities, including subsidiary Jetstar. In 2011, Qantas grounded its entire domestic and international fleet in a move designed to force the Australian government to end a nine-month industrial dispute with three key unions over pay and security. Fair Work Australia was called into terminate the strike action.
Island Air, the Hawaiian carrier, has signed a letter of agreement with an undisclosed buyer for the purchase of the company. Island Air president Les Murashige said he was hopeful the new ownership would be in place within the next six to eight weeks. “This is a great opportunity for the future of the company,” Murashige said. “The company has gone through a number of challenges recently and a new owner will bring a fresh perspective.” Murashige was elected president of Island Air in October 2012 following the launch of a new brand, including a new logo mark and “refreshed aircraft design.” The carrier took delivery of its first ATR 72 at the end of November and will take delivery of additional aircraft through 2013. It operates 331 weekly flights between the islands of O’ahu, Maui, West Maui, Lana’i, Kaua’i and the Big Island of Hawai’i.
Etihad Airways has unveiled plans to serve Amsterdam and expand its codeshare cooperation with KLM. Etihad CEO James Hogan said the airline will launch a daily Amsterdam-Abu Dhabi service this summer. Flights will be operated by a two-class A330-200. Etihad already serves 17 European cities including Brussels, Dublin, Frankfurt, Geneva, London and Paris. The Abu Dhabi-based carrier has already detailed plans to add Sao Paulo, Washington DC and Ho Chi Minh City in 2013. “We are delighted that Amsterdam will become a part Etihad Airways’ global network from 15 May,” Hogan said. Etihad’s codeshare partner KLM is also planning to step up its flights to daily from the summer, taking the partners to two daily frequencies. KLM and Etihad also detailed plans to expand the codeshare, which was first announced in October 2012. The airlines already cooperate on KLM’s flights to Billund, Cardiff, Newcastle, Oslo and Stavanger, as well as Etihad’s Colombo, Islamabad, Lahore, Melbourne and Sydney flights.
US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-led group has launched a six-month study of portable electronic devices (PEDs). The study, which will review current inflight PED policies and procedures, will “determine when these devices can be used safely during flight.” It will not consider the use of cell phones for voice communications during flight as that is prohibited by the US Federal Communications Commission. FAA currently requires aircraft operators to determine that radio frequency interference from PEDs is not a flight safety risk before authorizing them for use during certain phases of flight. “The group’s goal is to help operators decide if they can allow more widespread use of electronic devices in today’s aircraft and make sure tomorrow’s aircraft designs are protected from interference,” FAA said in a statement. The first meeting will review public comments—which were requested in August 2012—and examine issues including testing methods used by aircraft operators use to determine the safety of PEDs. The group includes representatives from the mobile technology and aviation manufacturing industries, pilot and flight attendant groups, airlines, passenger associations and other government agencies.
Ryanair will launch 2X-weekly London Stansted-Kefalonia service April 1. Kefalonia is Ryanair's sixth Greek destination from Stansted.
Frontier Airlines will launch Trenton service to Atlanta (4X-weekly, April, Chicago Midway (6X-weekly, April
Delta Air Lines will launch 3X-weekly Los Angeles-Seattle service operated by SkyWest Airlines Bombardier CRJ900s April 8.
AirTran Airways will launch daily Denver-Los Cabos service March 10.
Aviation Quote
Never let an airplane take you somewhere you brain didn't get to five minutes earlier.
Anonymous
On This Date
---In 1952…The de Havilland Comet 1 became the first turbojet-powered civil airliner to be awarded a certificate of airworthiness.
---In 1958…Austral Lineas Aereas is founded.
---In 1965…U.S. launches TIROS 9 weather satellite.
---In 1969…Orbiting Solar Observatory 5 launched into earth orbit.
---In 1970…Pan Am introduces the Boeing 747.
---In 1970…The Boeing 747 enters service with TWA.
---In 1971... A US Navy P-3C Orion lands in Patuxent River, Maryland, after a flight of 15 hours 21 minutes from Atsugi, Japan, setting a nonstop distance record for a turboprop-powered aircraft of 7,010 miles.
---In 1975…Landsat 2, an Earth Resources Technology Satellite, launched.
---In 1982…An F/A-18 Hornet makes a fully automated landing, its autopilot linked to a ground radar at the Naval Air Test Center Patuxent River.
---In 1992…Space Shuttle STS-42 (Discovery 15) launches into space.
---In 1993…Norwegian Air Shuttle is founded.
---In 1997…Space Shuttle Atlantis Returns to Earth, Successful.
---In 1998…First flight of the Boeing 737-600.
---In 2000…Vandenburg Launch Pad Demolished.
Daily Video
Editor’s Choice
Humor
Golfing
One fine and glorious morning, Capt. Heavy about to enjoy his days off, leans over his bed and kisses his wife on the cheek. Slapping her firmly on the bottom, he says "I'm off to the Links to play 9 holes." "Promise me you'll only play 9!" she demands. "Absolutely, my love." he assures her. Meeting up with his mates at the local course they head out to the first tee. Just past midday our golfers show up at the clubhouse for a few pints. Things get a little carried away and after a couple of beers this gaggle of buxom young ladies turn up . As luck would have it, our Captain hits it off with this young, blonde-haired, blue-eyed sweetheart and before you know it she's inviting him back to her place for some snoggin'. A wild and passionate afternoon unfolds and they eventually fall asleep in one another arms. Later, he jumps out of bed and looks at his watch. "Oh my GAWD!!! It's four thirty!!!" "Gotta run love" he tells her and shoots out the door struggling to get dressed.
Driving home, he can't quite come up with a believable story' for his wife. "What am I going to tell her?" he asks himself. "Stuff it. We've been married to long for stories. I'll just tell her the truth and hope she understands." Shooting through the front door, his wife immediately demands, "Where have you been?"
"Sweetheart, I think you should sit down. At first I thought I'd just make something up but we've been together so long I've decided to simply tell you straight out what happened."
"I'm listening" she says.
"Well, I met up with the boys for 9 holes and we finished just after midday. After that we went into the clubhouse for a couple of beers where I met this gorgeous young blonde who invited me back to her place for a wild afternoon of lovemaking. After which we fell asleep. It wasn't till late in the day I awoke and realized the time. I'm soooooo sorry my darling. Can you ever forgive me?"
She sat back in her chair and looked him straight in the eye and said, "You lying bastard. You played 18 holes. Didn't you?"
Trivia
Aviation in Movies and TV
A movie or TV show will be listed, list the aircraft (there may be more than one)
1. Capricorn One – Hal Holbrook, Elliot Gould, James Brolin (ready for this) OJ Simpson.
2. Black Sheep Squadron
3. The Great Santini – Robert Duval
4. Airwolf
5. Star Trek IV – The Voyage Home
6. Magnum PI
7. Iron Eagle – Lou Gossett Jr.
8. Top Gun – Tom Cruise, Tom Skerritt
9. Die Another Day – James Bond – Pierce Brosnan and Halle Berry
10. Thunderball – James Bond – Sean Connery
JLAmber wrote:In today's video, was Endeavour on fire as she stopped and, if so, is that normal?
