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Airline Tax Could Fund French Airport Rail Line
A plan for an express rail service from Paris to Charles de Gaulle airport is close to being finalized and may be funded from new taxes on airline tickets, France's transport minister told Le Figaro newspaper. About EUR€400 million (USD$533.32 million) out of the total EUR€1.7 billion needed to fund the project could come from a new ticket tax, Frederic Cuvillier was quoted as saying, adding that a decision would be taken in the next few weeks. "Such a tax would not be out of the question," he said.
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TUI Travel Ups Carbon Reduction Target
British travel firm TUI Travel has raised its carbon reduction target after its airlines hit an initial goal to cut carbon dioxide usage by 6 percent two years early. The world's largest tour operator, which owns six European airlines including Britain's Thomson Airways, on Monday said it now aims to reduce CO2 usage across its carriers by 9 percent in the six years to 2014.
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Singapore Master Plan Includes Airport Extension
The Singapore government has unveiled a master plan to double capacity at Southeast Asia's busiest airport, build a new waterfront city, move its massive port and relocate a military airbase to free up land for development. The plan announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong follows mounting discontent in one of the world's wealthiest nations over an influx of foreign workers and expatriates blamed for a range of problems - from strained infrastructure to among the highest living costs in Asia. In an annual National Day address, Lee sought to allay those fears, elaborating on a trove of long-term plans that appear intended to counter a growing voter backlash against the People's Action Party (PAP) that has ruled Singapore for more than half a century.
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Kenya Air Passenger Numbers Back To Normal
Passenger traffic is back to normal at Kenya Airways after a fire at Nairobi airport caused havoc for passengers and dented revenues, chief executive Titus Naikuni said on Monday. The blaze in the early hours of August 7 destroyed the international arrivals building, forcing east Africa's fourth-busiest airport to close temporarily. White tents dotted around the airport now act as temporary lounges. Naikuni last Monday said Kenya Airways had by then lost about USD$4 million revenue as many flights were cancelled at Jomo Kenyatta Airport.
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MRJ supplier says first flight delayed to end-2014
A supplier to the Mitsubishi regional jet (MRJ) has confirmed that the Japanese aircraft programme has been delayed, and that the first flight of the aircraft has been pushed back a year to end-2014. The source, from Taiwan's Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC), which is designing and making slats, flaps, belly fairings, rudder and horizontal stabiliser rotating blades for the MRJ, says it has so far only delivered the metallic slats to Mitsubishi Aircraft. The other parts, all made of composites, are undergoing certification and will only be progressively delivered to Mitsubishi from next March, he says. "We understand that the first flight has been delayed a year to end-2014, and the aircraft will only be delivered to customers at the end of 2015," says the source.
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CSeries entry into service could fall into 2015: Analyst
Entry into service for Bombardier's CSeries could be delayed to the first quarter of 2015, according to a new report by Montreal-based National Bank analyst Cameron Doerksen. "Clearly the time to get to first flight has taken longer than Bombardier had anticipated," he says. "Following on that, it's my best guess that the flight test program will take them longer than they anticipate." The 2015 target assumes an about four-month delay from September 2014 - a third of the year-long flight test program - based on the two-month delay for the first flight from the end of June - a third of the original six-month delay announced in November 2012 - Doerksen adds.
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CSeries undertakes low-speed taxi tests
Bombardier's CSeries is undergoing taxi trials as the Canadian airframer edges closer to the twinjet type's maiden flight. The manufacturer has released video images of the aircraft conducting low-speed taxiing at Montreal's Mirabel airport on 16 August.

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Indian launch cancelled over fuel leak
The return-to-flight launch of the Indian Geostationary Launch Vehicle (GSLV) was scrubbed due to a leak in the second stage fuel system, according to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). It was to be the return-to-flight of the GSLV II, an enlarged and refined version of the less-powerful Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle. Though the GSLV has attempted launches a total of six times, the latest marks only the second attempt to launch GSLV II. The first attempt, in 2010, ended in failure.
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AIDC, Lockheed iron out details of Taiwan F-16 upgrade
With Taiwan's push for 66 new F-16 C/D fighters in limbo, its state-owned aerospace firm is working towards securing a definitive agreement with Lockheed Martin on the upgrade of the country's fleet of 144 F-16 A/Bs by the end of the year. "We're now in discussions. The modifications will be done at our hangars, it seems Lockheed will do the design, development and testing, while we will do the hands-on modifications," says Lee Chung-Huang, vice-president of the Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation's (AIDC) military business development. "We're now talking about the schedule and scope of the upgrade."
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American-US Airways mergers would make passengers happier, carriers healthier
According to U.S. government data, average air fares are lower than they were 15 years ago when adjusted for inflation but over the past six years, they have shown modest increases primarily because of a 40% hike in the cost of fuel. George Hobica, president of AirfareWatchdog, said if American Airlines and US Airways merged, the combination would benefit both carriers financially and ultimately make for happier passengers. "I think the benefit to consumers is that they'll be flying in newer planes and we won't see another bankruptcy," he said.
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Supplier error that caused 787 extinguisher issue corrected
Boeing said Friday that a defect in engine fire extinguishers for its new 787 jets occurred during manufacturing of the bottles at a supplier’s facility and the issue was being fixed. Boeing has told airlines to inspect the extinguishers and given them directions for fixing improperly configured fire-suppression systems. The company identified the supplier as Kidde, a division of United Technologies. United Technologies spokesman Daniel Coulom said that an assembly error affected “a limited number” of fire-extinguisher bottles. “The error has been corrected, and we are working with Boeing and the airlines to complete the necessary inspections, which we expect will be completed over the next few days,” he said.
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German researchers study effect of bugs on wing drag
Sometimes you’re the airplane, sometimes you’re the bug. Unfortunately for the insects, research aimed at improving the fuel efficiency of airliners is smashing a lot of bugs during low-altitude flights over Germany. Wings coated in bug guts are less efficient than those that are not coated in bug guts, and the goal is to gain a better understanding of how wing design can be modified to minimize the number of insects that get splattered as a plane ascends after take-off. “The numerous insects that encounter the front portions of the wings hinder the development of large laminar-flow, low-friction areas on the wing, rendering the effort to save fuel by using laminar flow ineffective,” Dominic Gloß of the German Aerospace Center said in a statement. Gloß is part of a team of researchers coating an Airbus A320 in bugs by flying just 50 feet above the runway at the Magdeburg-Cochstedt airport in central Germany. Laminar flow is the aerodynamic phenomenon engineers use to minimize turbulence in airflow next to the wing’s surface. Less turbulence means less drag. Less drag means greater efficiency. But laminar flow is highly susceptible to irregularities on the wing surface. In extreme cases, even rain drops have been known to adversely affect the flow.
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Channel Island carrier Aurigny commits to an Embraer E-195
Guernsey-based regional carrier Aurigny is to acquire its first jet, an Embraer E-195, so it can replace capacity lost by Flybe’s London Gatwick-Guernsey exit. “Following the States of Guernsey’s decision to act as guarantors for the purchase of an aircraft and Treasury & Resources approval of the airline’s business case, the board of Aurigny has entered into an initial agreement with Embraer, the Brazilian regional aircraft manufacturer, to purchase a new aircraft to be delivered in mid-2014,” Aurigny said in a statement. Aurigny uses ATR 42s, ATR 72s and Britten Norman Trislanders to connect the Channel Islands of Guernsey, Jersey and Alderney and link them with destinations in the UK and Continental Europe.
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Personal drones spark privacy concerns
It's now possible to own a drone - often for less than $300 - and a growing number of people are purchasing the flying machines to play games, record video, and perform stunts. But the rise of personal drones worries civil liberties experts, who say they can be used for spying or mayhem, as well. "Drones make it possible to invade privacy without even trespassing," said Amie Stepanovich, a surveillance expert at the Electronic Privacy Information Center. "This is a real concern."
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Lockheed hasn't given up on F-35 for South Korea
Saying it has not received official word that the contest is over, Lockheed Martin says it will continue to push for its F-35 fighter jet to be picked by South Korea to replace an aging fleet. There have been reports that South Korea cut the plane from the list because of cost, a move that would leave only the Boeing F-15. "Lockheed Martin has not received an official notification from the Republic of Korea regarding the results of the price bidding for the F-X Program," the company said in a statement.
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Weapons technology unveiled at Taipei exhibition
The recent 12th Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition drew a wide range of companies showcasing their products, though fewer U.S. firms than in the past. Among the weapons that were demonstrated were a range of drones, new ships being designed for Taiwan's Navy, and portable rocket launchers.
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Aviation Quote

Spaceflight will never tolerate carelessness, incapacity, and neglect. Somewhere, somehow, we screwed up. It could have been in design, build, or test. Whatever it was, we should have caught it. We were too gung ho about the schedule and we locked out all of the problems we saw each day in our work. Every element of the program was in trouble and so were we. The simulators were not working, Mission Control was behind in virtually every area, and the flight and test procedures changed daily. Nothing we did had any shelf life. Not one of us stood up and said, ‘Dammit, stop!’ I don’t know what Thompson’s committee will find as the cause, but I know what I find. We are the cause! We were not ready! We did not do our job. We were rolling the dice, hoping that things would come together by launch day, when in our hearts we knew it would take a miracle. We were pushing the schedule and betting that the Cape would slip before we did.

From this day forward, Flight Control will be known by two words: ‘Tough’ and ‘Competent.’ Tough means we are forever accountable for what we do or what we fail to do. We will never again compromise our responsibilities. Every time we walk into Mission Control we will know what we stand for. Competent means we will never take anything for granted. We will never be found short in our knowledge and in our skills. Mission Control will be perfect. When you leave this meeting today you will go to your office and the first thing you will do there is to write ‘Tough and Competent’ on your blackboards. It will never be erased. Each day when you enter the room these words will remind you of the price paid by Grissom, White, and Chaffee. These words are the price of admission to the ranks of Mission Control.

— Gene Kranz, NASA Flight Director, address to flight control team on the Monday morning following the Apollo 1 disaster. Since known as the Kranz Dictum. 30 January 1967.

On This Date

--- In 1901... The Wright brothers leave Kitty Hawk, N.C., at the end of their second season of testing gliders and return to Dayton, Ohio.

--- In 1908... The Wright Flyer built for flight trials before the U.S. Army arrives at Fort Meyer, near Washington, D.C., eight days ahead of schedule. Before trials begin, tests to check transportability, another stipulation, start.

--- In 1910... The first U.S. Army experiments with firing a rifle from an airplane takes place when Lt. Jacob Earl Fickel conducts firing trials from a Curtiss biplane piloted by Curtiss himself.

---In 1913... French aviator Adolphe Pégoud carries out the first parachute descent ever made whereby the parachute is deployed before the pilot leaves the airplane.

---In 1919... The first regularly scheduled passenger service by airship begins in Berlin with a Zeppelin LX 120 Bodenese.

---In 1963…First flight of the BAC 1-11.

---In 1970…First flight of the Sikorsky S-67 Blackhawk.

---In 1978…British Aerospace Sea Harrier XZ450.

---In 1986…The General Electric GE-36 propfan engine makes its first test flight. A hybrid between a turbofan and a turboprop, also known as an unducted fan, a number of factors from noise issues to falling fuel prices eventually lead to the abandonment of the program before ever being delivered, despite impressive gains in fuel economy.

---In 1977…he Voyager 2 unmanned interplanetary spacecraft is launched aboard a Titan IIIE/Centaur rocket from Cape Canaveral, tasked mainly with photographing Venus, Neptune and Saturn. As of today, Voyager 2 is still beaming messages back to Earth from 12 hrs 47 mins 58 secs of light-travel time from Earth.

---In 1986…first test-flight of a propfan engine, the General Electric GE-36.

---In 2008… A Spanair McDonnell Douglas MD-82 aircraft, flight number JK 5022, crashed with 165 passengers and nine crew members on board moments after takeoff at Madrid's Barajas Airport on a scheduled flight to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. 18 of the 172 on board survived. Initially 19 people survived, but one person died in hospital three days after the crash.

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Humor

Warning Signs

Top Ten Warning Signs for you to have your helmet on; your flack-jacket zipped and the collar turned up, and you have checked your ammo pouches; tightened your safety harness; and loosened the flap on your holster.

10. When a Sergeant says, "Trust me, sir."

9. When a Lieutenant says, "Based on my experience."

8. When a Captain says, "I was just thinking."

7. When a Major says, "The general wants,"

6. When a Colonel says, "I am just thinking of the troops."

5. When a General says, "Damn near anything in combat."

4. When the President says, "Its a limited deployment and
the forces will be home by Christmas. Trust me."

3. When an Artillery guy says, "It's a precision munition."

2. When a civilian says, "The soldiers just don't understand."

1. When a pilot says, "Watch this."

Trivia

General Trivia

1. 1. The Douglas DC-3 has been known as the Gooney Bird, Old Methuselah, the Dizzy Three, the Placid Plodder, and other nicknames. It also has been called the Dakota (primarily by the British). What is the origin of that name?

2. True or False; The Wright brothers made their first powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903.

3. The Lomcevak, which loosely translated from Czechoslovakian means headache or hangover, is an aerobatic maneuver during which the airplane tumbles head over heels about the pitch (lateral) axis while moving in a lateral direction. How does a pilot execute such a maneuver?

4. How many beds are aboard a Boeing 747 built to be used as Air Force One?

5. The first airplane used by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, the 3600th Air Demonstration Unit, was the
A. F-84F Thunderstreak.
B. F-84G Thunderjet.
C. F-86 Sabre.
D. F-100 Super Sabre.

6. Where did the first air traffic controller work, and how did he control traffic?