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Airbus continues to refine designs for seats
Airbus has filed patent applications for several innovative seat designs. The popularity of slimline seats has soared in recent years.
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Comac on verge of starting C919 final assembly
Comac is expecting to start final assembly of its first C919 flight test aircraft at the end of the month. In an exclusive tour of its in-construction final assembly centre near Shanghai’s Pudong International airport, Comac showed Flightglobal the first C919 forward fuselage produced. The part, manufactured by Jiangxi Hongdu Aviation Industry, is also the first major C919 structure delivered to the airframer. The aluminium-lithium alloy structure is housed at the sub assembly hangar, as the airframer awaits delivery of the aircraft’s mid fuselage, mid-aft fuselage and nose. The first of these parts have all rolled off the respective manufacturers’ production lines.
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Icelandic Volcanic Eruption Pouring Lava, No Ash
A fissure eruption near Iceland's Bárðarbunga volcano was still spouting lava on Monday but no ash, a day after an eruption that briefly caused the country to raise its ash alert to its highest level. Iceland's largest volcanic system - 190 km long and up to 25 km wide (118 miles by 15.5 miles) - has been hit by thousands of earthquakes over the last two weeks, putting scientists on high alert. "The fissure eruption is continuing at a stable level," Iceland's Meteorological Office said in a statement. "No explosive activity is observed, the eruption remains an effusive lava eruption."
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Icelandic volcanic ash alert status raised
The Icelandic Meteorological Office has again raised its alert status for the risk of atmospheric contamination by volcanic ash. The measure comes as a result of increased seismic activity near the Bárðarbunga and Trölladyngja volcanoes in central Iceland, both of which are on the northern edge of the Vatnajökul glacial region. Eurocontrol's Network Operations Portal (NOP) has published a release stating: "The aviation alert status of the Icelandic volcano Bárðarbunga has been changed to code orange (lava eruption in progress). At the moment there is no ash cloud observed."
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MH370: Satphone data points to earlier southern turn
Data from a failed phone call to the Boeing 777-200ER that went missing while operating flight MH370 on 8 March is pointing towards the aircraft turning south earlier than thought. Speaking at a press conference following talks with his Malaysian and Chinese counterparts on 28 August, Australia’s infrastructure minister Warren Truss revealed that after the 777 disappeared from radar, ground staff from the airline tried to call the aircraft’s satellite phone. “Now, that was unsuccessful, but the detailed research that's being done now has been able to identify, or trace, that phone call and help to position the aircraft and the direction it was travelling,” he says.
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Philippines Foils Car-Bomb Plot At Manila Airport
The Philippines on Monday foiled a bid to plant car-bombs at Manila airport and a nearby shopping mall, authorities said. The motive for the bomb plot was not immediately clear but in the past such attacks in Manila and other parts of the largely Christian Philippines have been blamed on al Qaeda-linked Islamist militants from the Abu Sayyaf group. Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) found improvised explosive devices in a parking area at the airport. Three men were arrested but no details were released pending investigation. Airport authorities went on full alert.
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Troubles mount for UK’s PremiAir as CAA suspends licence
Mystery surrounds the fate of one of the UK’s oldest business aviation providers, after the country's regulator suspended its Air Operator Certificate and the firm was apparently locked out of its base. PremiAir Aviation Services (PAS) – which traces its roots back more than 30 years to McAlpine Aviation Services – operates a helicopter charter, management and engineering business from Blackbushe airport, to the west of London. However, despite repeated attempts to contact the Blackbushe office, no-one from the company was answering calls. The UK Civil Aviation Authority confirms in a licensing update issued on 26 August that PAS’s licence was suspended effective 22 July. However, the CAA declines to specify a reason for the move.
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Poor Response To Ebola Causing Needless Deaths
The world's "disastrously inadequate response" to West Africa's Ebola outbreak means many people are dying needlessly, the head of the World Bank said on Monday, as Nigeria confirmed another case of the virus. In a newspaper editorial, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said Western healthcare facilities would easily be able to contain the disease, and urged wealthy nations to share the knowledge and resources to help African countries tackle it. "The crisis we are watching unfold derives less from the virus itself and more from deadly and misinformed biases that have led to a disastrously inadequate response to the outbreak," Kim wrote in the Washington Post. "Many are dying needlessly," read the editorial, co-written by Harvard University professor Paul Farmer, with whom Kim founded Partners In Health, a charity that works for better healthcare in poorer countries.
LinkAirlines
Air Canada CEO: Higher taxes could affect Toronto hub
Calin Rovinescu, the CEO of Air Canada, said Ontario's plan to hike fuel taxes by 148% will stall a plan to turn the Toronto airport into a global hub. "We're trying to build a world-class business and we cannot do it competitively with these regressive forms of taxation," he said.
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American appoints first female chief pilot at DFW
American Airlines tapped Capt. Kathi Durst as chief pilot of Dallas/Fort Worth Airport. Durst is the first female pilot to fill the leadership role. "Kathi brings strong leadership skills, experience and a high standard of professionalism with her to serve the pilots of DFW," said Capt. Jim Dees, director of flight at DFW for American.
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Emirates Not Interested In Qantas Investment
Emirates is not interested in investing in the international operations of Qantas, according to the Dubai-based carrier's chief commercial officer. In the biggest restructuring since Qantas was privatized two decades ago, the airline is hiving off its international arm from its domestic business. The move will allow a foreign airline to take up to a 49 percent stake - up from the previous 35 percent limit - and analysts had suggested that alliance partner Emirates could be interested. But Emirates' CCO Thierry Antinori said that doesn't fit with the airline's strategy.
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Lion Air crew castigated in Bali crash final report
The final report into the crash of a Lion Air Boeing 737-800 aircraft on short finals to land at Denpasar's Ngurah Rai International airport on 13 April 2013 has identified several safety issues around the skill of the pilots and the carrier's emergency response procedures. The National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC) report retains the same chronology as the preliminary report issued in May 2013. As with the earlier report, it highlights the failure of the captain and first officer to communicate effectively prior to impacting the water. The final report also refers to CCTV footage, which shows the extent of the rainy weather immediately prior to the crash, which prevented the flight crew from seeing the runway. The first officer, who was flying, mentioned that the runway was not in sight as the aircraft descended through 900ft on final approach after an uneventful flight from Bandung. Although the aircraft's automated systems issued a "minimum" warning at 550ft, the crew disengaged the autopilot and autothrottle, and continued the descent flying manually.
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Discussion
Khazanah outlines MAS restructuring plan
Khazanah Nasional has released a 12-point restructuring plan aimed at bringing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) back from the brink of collapse and returning it to profitability. At the core of its plan is to delist the flag carrier and create a new company with a competitive operational structure and workforce. This will be done through staggered injections of MYR6 billion ($976.7 million) from the majority shareholder over a three-year period. The Malaysian sovereign wealth fund says it is targeting to delist MAS by end 2014 and to migrate the relevant operations, assets and liabilities to the new company by 1 July 2015. During this period, group chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya will continue to lead the old MAS, as will the board. Khazanah has meanwhile started the search for a new chief executive, expected to be announced by the end of the year.
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Nok Air Sees Lower Q3 Net Loss
Thailand's second-largest budget carrier, Nok Air, expects its net loss in the third quarter will be lower than the second and aims to make profit in the fourth quarter due to rising passenger numbers. As political unrest dampened tourism and travel demand, Nok Air has suffered like other carriers but forecast a turnaround in the second half as the political situation calms. Nok Air's average cabin factor is expected to hit 79-80 percent this year, lower than the 85 percent last year, due to the impact of the country's domestic political unrest, chief executive Patee Sarasin told reporters.
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Norwegian Air CEO pleads his case
Throughout the course of history, open competition has driven commercial organizations to innovate new products, services and technologies that give consumers greater choices for better products at greater value. In the United States, this simple principle has fueled the world’s largest economy that consistently delivers superior offerings to American consumers and to the world. Market competition within any industry results in innovation, lower prices, and greater customer service. Simply put, competition is good for consumers and it’s good for industry: It drives us all to be better. The airline industry is no exception. We at Norwegian Air International – a lower fare European airline– have been seeking to enter the U.S. marketplace with new services and provide traveling consumers what they want and, indeed, deserve: superior customer service, affordable fares, point-to-point service between the U.S. and Europe, and all on brand new aircraft. We are seeking to provide travelers an option currently unavailable to them – a truly high level of customer-oriented service in new transatlantic markets coupled with lower fares and more competition.
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Southwest is adding more parking spaces at Love Field
Southwest Airlines is adding around 900 more parking spaces at Dallas Love Field ahead of the expiration of the Wright Amendment on Oct. 13. A car wash and rental car facility on Mockingbird Lane were leveled to make way for a new parking lot. "We are expanding the area on Mockingbird to help accommodate the anticipated passenger growth at Love Field," said Brandy King, a spokeswoman for the carrier.
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Xiamen Airlines takes delivery of first 787-8
Xiamen Airlines has taken delivery of its first Boeing 787-8 aircraft, making it the third Chinese carrier to receive the type. The carrier plans to use the type on long-haul routes to Europe, North America, and Australia, says Boeing in a statement. The carrier has orders for six 787s.
LinkMilitary
Israel shoots down Syrian UAV
The Israeli air force (IAF) shot down a Syrian air force unmanned air vehicle (UAV) when it entered Israeli airspace on 31 August, according to local sources. According to foreign sources, the IAF shot down an Iranian-made Yasir UAV with a Raytheon Patriot surface-to-air missile after it crossed the border into Israeli territory. They also allege the aircraft was being used to gather data on rebel forces in Syria.
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New Delhi approves Apache buy, cancels long-running tender
The Indian ministry of defence has cleared the procurement of attack and heavy-lift helicopters for the nation’s air force, while also cancelling a decade-long effort to acquire 197 reconnaissance and surveillance (RSH) rotorcraft. The attack and heavy-lift procurement is cumulatively worth an estimated $2 billion, while the abandoned RSH buy was worth $1 billion. In a decision taken on 29 August, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) – led by defence minister Arun Jaitley – cleared the purchase of 22 Boeing AH-64E Apache and 15 CH-47F Chinook helicopters.
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RAF's first A400M Atlas completes maiden flight
The UK Royal Air Force has moved one step closer to receiving its first Airbus Defence & Space A400M Atlas airlifter, after the aircraft successfully completed its maiden flight in Spain on 30 August. Aircraft MSN15 was piloted by British test pilot Ed Strongman. The aircraft took off from Seville at 14:25 local time, returning 5h 5min later.
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US military seeking replacement V-22 engines
The US military has put out a call for drop-in replacement engines to power all variants of its Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft. A request for information (RFI) released on 26 August seeks information from industry “on alternative power plant solutions capable of powering all MV/CV-22 (all models) Osprey as well as any foreign military sales aircraft in a safe, reliable, cost-effective and sustainable manner which demonstrate a best value to the government.” Navy Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) is leading the effort to identify potential replacements for the Rolls-Royce AE-1107C engines that power all V-22s operated by the Marine Corps and US Air Force, according to the solicitation. The solicitation does not specifically mention the Rolls-Royce engine.
LinkCorporate
Gulfstream issues service bulletin on gust locks after fatal GIV crash
Initial reports into a 31 May fatal Gulfstream GIV crash in Bedford, Massachusetts has led the airframer to issue a service bulletin warning pilots to ensure the flying control gust locks are not engaged before the start of the take-off run. The US National Transportation Safety Board says the aircraft failed to take off at Bedford, overrunning the end of the runway into a gulley and killing all six people on board. The jet’s gust locks were found to be disengaged, but it is believed during the take-off run they were engaged. This locks the elevator in the down position, and the rest of the flying controls in a neutral position.
LinkGeneral Aviation
Kan. plant delivers 10,000th Cessna single-engine plane
Cessna Aircraft's Independence, Kan., manufacturing facility delivered its 10,000th single-engine aircraft since 1996. The aircraft, a Cessna Skyhawk, carries a custom paint scheme noting that it is the 10,000th delivery. Virginia's Liberty University accepted the plane for use as a training aircraft.
LinkOff The Beaten Path
Aerospace-themed amusement parks coming to China
Fighter-jet manufacturer Aviation Industry Corp. of China will create five or six amusement parks in China with an aerospace theme. The parks, which may cost up to 120 billion yuan, could launch in Shaanxi, Sichuan, Jiangsu and Guangdong. The facilities will feature aircraft design incubators, flight simulators, aviation technology exhibitions, an aviation museum and themed hotels.
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Aviation Quote
A recession is when you have to tighten your belt; depression is when you have no belt to tighten. When you've lost your trousers - you're in the airline business.
— Sir Adam Thomson
On This Date
---In 1858... Samuel King introduces the 1st dragline in America. It is a long rope attached to the basket, which helps to stabilize altitude by dragging on the ground when the balloon is flying very low.
---In 1891... The 1st parachute descent by a Canadian woman is made when Nellie Lamount jumps from a hot-air balloon during a fair in Quebec.
---In 1910... Blanche Scott, the 1st woman pilot in the United States, makes a solo flight at Lake Keuka, Hammondsport.
---In 1942…First flight of the Hawker Tempest.
---In 1949…First flight of the De Havilland Venom.
---In 1998…Swissair Flight 111, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11, crashed into the sea near Halifax, Nova Scotia in Canada, due to smoke in the cockpit caused by insulation burning in the shell. All 229 people on board perished.
---In 1998…First flight of the Boeing 717.
---In 2008…ExpressJet Airlines ended operations as an independent carrier.
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Editor’s Choice
Humor
Federal Aviation Agency, Washington 25, D.C
Gentlemen: I was asked to make a written statement concerning certain events that occurred yesterday. First of all, I would like to thank that very nice FAA man who took my student pilot's license and told me I wouldn't need it any more. I guess that means that you're giving me my full-fledged pilot's license. You should watch that fellow though, after I told him all of this he seemed quite nervous and his hand was shaking. Anyway, here is what happened.
The weather had been kind of bad since last week, when I soloed. but on the day in question I was not about to let low ceilings and visibility, and a slight freezing drizzle, deter me >From another exciting experience at the controls of an airplane. I was pretty proud of my accomplishment, and I had invited my neighbor to go with me since I planned to fly to a town about two hundred miles away where I knew of an excellent restaurant that served absolutely wonderful char coaled steaks and the greatest martinis. On the way to the airport my neighbor was a little concerned about the weather but I assured him once again about the steaks and martinis that we would soon be enjoying and he seemed much happier. When we arrived at the airport the freezing drizzle had stopped, as I already knew from my ground school meteorology it would. There were only a few snowflakes. I checked the weather and I was assured that it was solid IFR. I was delighted. But when I talked to the local operator I found out that my regular airplane, a Piper J-4 Cub, was down for repairs. You could imagine my disappointment. Just then a friendly, intelligent line boy suggested that I take another airplane, which I immediately saw was very sleek and looked much easier to fly. I think that he called it a Aztec C, also made by Piper. I didn't have a tail wheel, but I didn't say anything because I was in a hurry. Oh yes, it had a spare engine for some reason. We climbed in and I began looking for an ignition switch. Now, I don't want to get anyone in trouble, but it shouldn't be necessary to get the airplane manual just to find out how to start an airplane. That's ridiculous. I never saw sow many dials and needles and knobs, handles and switches. As we both know, confidentially, they have simplified this in the J-4 Cub. I forgot to mention that I did file a flight plan, and those people were so nice. When I told them I was flying an Aztec they said it was all right to go direct via Victor-435, a local superhighway, all the way. These fellows deserve a lot credit. They told me a lot of other things too, but everybody has problems with red tape. The take-off was one of my best and I carefully left the pattern just the way the book style says it should be done. The tower operator told me to contact Department Control Radar but that seemed kind of silly since I knew where I was going. There must have been some kind of emergency because, all of a sudden, a lot of airline pilots began yelling at the same time and made such a racket that I just turned off the radio. You'd think that those professionals would be better trained. Anyway, I climbed up into a few little flat clouds, cumulus type, at three hundred feet, but Highway 435 was right under me and, since I knew it was straight east to the town where we were going to have drinks and dinner, I just went on up into the solid overcast. After all, it was snowing so hard by now that it was a waste of time to watch the ground. This was a bad thing to do, I realized. My neighbor undoubtedly wanted to see the scenery, especially the mountains all around us, but everybody has to be disappointed sometime and we pilots have to make the best of it, don't we? It was pretty smooth flying and, except for the ice that seemed to be forming here and there, especially on the windshield, there wasn't much to see. I will say that I handled the controls quite easily for a pilot with only six hours. My computer and pencils fell out of my shirt pocket once in a while but these phenomenon sometime occur I am told. I don't expect you to believe this, but my pocket watch was standing straight up on its chain. That was pretty funny and asked my neighbor to look but he just kept staring ahead with sort of a glassy look in his eyes and I figured that he was afraid of height like all non-pilots are. By the way, something was wrong with the altimeter, it kept winding and unwinding all the time. Finally, I decided we had flown about long enough to be where we were going, since I had worked it out on the computer. I am a whiz at that computer, but something must have gone wrong with it since when I came down to look for the airport there wasn't anything there except mountains. These weather people sure had been wrong, too. It was real marginal conditions with a ceiling of about one hundred feet. You just can't trust anybody in this business except yourself, right? Why, there were even thunderstorms going on with occasional bolt of lightning. I decided that my neighbor should see how beautiful it was and the way it seemed to turn that fog all yellow, but I guess he was asleep, having gotten over his fear of height, and I didn't want to wake him up. Anyway, just then an emergency occurred because the engine quit. It really didn't worry me since I had just read the manual and I knew right where the other ignition switch was. I just fired up the other engine and we kept right on going. This business of having two engines is really a safety factor. If one quits the other is right there ready to go. Maybe all airplanes should have two engines. You might look into this. As pilot in command, I take my responsibilities very seriously. It was apparent that I would have to go down lower and keep a sharp eye in such bad weather. I was glad my neighbor was asleep because it was pretty dark under the clouds and if it hadn't been for the lightning flashes it would have been hard to navigate. Also, it was hard to read road signs through the ice on the windshield. Several cars ran off the road when we passed and you can sure see what they mean about flying being a lot safer than driving. To make a long story short, I finally spotted an airport that I knew right away was pretty close to town and, since we were already late for cocktails and dinner, I decided to land there. It was an Air Force Base so I knew it had plenty of runway and I could already see a lot of colored lights flashing in the control tower so I knew that we were welcome. Somebody had told me that you could always talk to these military people on the international emergency frequency so I tried it but you wouldn't believe the language that I heard. These people ought to be straightened out by somebody and I would like to complain, as a taxpayer. Evidently there were expecting somebody to come in and land because they kept talking about some god damn stupid son-of-a-***** up in that fog. I wanted to be helpful so I landed on the ramp to be out of the way in case that other fellow needed the runway. A lot of people came running out waving at us. It was pretty evident that they had never seen an Aztec C before. One fellow, some General with a pretty nasty temper, was real mad about something. I tried to explain to him in a reasonable manner that I didn't think the tower operator should be swearing at that guy up there, but his face was so red that I think he must have a drinking problem. Well, that's about all I caught a bus back home because the weather really got bad, but my neighbor stayed at the hospital there. He can't make a statement yet because he's still not awake. Poor fellow, he must have the flu, or something. Let me know if you need anything else, and please send my new license airmail, special delivery. Very, truly yours,
Trivia
General
1. Why is the action of moving an airplane on the ground under its own power called taxiing?
2. What US-built, twin engine airplane was or has been in continuous production longer than any other?
3. True or false, as a pilot proceeds north, circles of latitude become smaller.
4. During WW2, small black bombs were painted on the nose below the cockpit to denote how many bombing missions a particular bomber had completed. What was the significance of nose markings that were small black camels?
5. Whose personal airplanes were named Immelman I, Immelman II and Immelman III?
6. A pilot flying close to and above a stratified cloud layer sees the sharply defined shadow of his airplane encircled by rainbow-like rings. This phenomenon is called???
Airbus has filed patent applications for several innovative seat designs. The popularity of slimline seats has soared in recent years.
