NewsAir Asia QZ8501
Pings detected from QZ8501 recorder
Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency (Barsanas) says that searchers have detected pings consistent with the flight data and cockpit voice recorders of the crashed Indonesia AirAsia flight QZ8501. The recorders are believed to be located in or near the Airbus A320 aircraft's tail section, which was found 30 kilometres from the aircraft’s last known coordinates. Barsanas warns that recovering the flight recorders and tail will take time, with silt greatly reducing visibility near the tail. It is not clear if the recorders are still within the tail section, or broke free when the aircraft's fuselage came apart.
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AirAsia Crash Makes Stronger Case For Ejectable Black Boxes
A long-delayed proposal to outfit commercial airliners with ejectable flight data recorders may have a better chance of being adopted following the AirAsia crash in the Java Sea, according to people familiar with ICAO discussions. The idea, which would equip commercial flights with data recorders that detach from the plane and float in water rather than sink, has bounced around ICAO committees for years and is back on the agenda at its High-Level Safety Conference in February, the first of its kind in five years. ICAO wants to develop a global system to improve aircraft tracking and ensure accident sites are found quickly as part of its response to the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines MH370 last year.
LinkCommercial
Indonesia Cracks Down On Cheap Fares To Boost Safety
Indonesia's transport ministry has cracked down on the sale of cheap tickets for domestic flights to ensure airlines do not cut corners on safety, just over a week after AirAsia QZ8501 crashed into the Java Sea. The decision to tighten the rules on bargain fares came into effect on December 30, two days after flight QZ8501 crashed en route from Surabaya to Singapore. The transport ministry has raised the ticket price floor for economy class domestic flights. The ministry hopes the new rule will help airlines increase their profit margins so they can spend more on safety.
LinkAirlines
Aer Lingus chairman takes on executive responsibility
Air Lingus chairman Colm Barrington has assumed, with immediate effect, executive responsibility for strategic matters as the airline confirms that chief executive Christoph Mueller is to leave earlier than previously planned. Mueller, who is moving to the top job at Malaysia Airlines, had been due to exit Aer Lingus in May, but the departure date has been brought forward to 28 February, confirms the Irish flag carrier.
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American Airlines to unveil new uniforms
American Airlines plans to unveil new uniforms for employees starting later this month. The charcoal gray uniforms mark a departure from the navy blue uniforms employees currently wear. Fashion designers Isaac Franco and Ken Kaufman designed the uniforms. "The charcoal gray uniform color allows for easy mixing and matching while maintaining a cohesive, elegant look," the carrier said in its employee newsletter.
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Cyprus Air Could Close If Aid Ruled Illegal
Cyprus Airways could face closure if the European Commission rules it illegally received state aid in 2012 and 2013, the Cypriot transport minister said. Cyprus Airways, which is government controlled, was offered state assistance of EUR€103 million (USD$121 million) in total over different occasions in 2012 and early 2013, prompting an investigation by the European Commission. "Any decision rendering that (assistance) illegal means the company would have to return the money... there will be no choice but to suspend its operation," transport minister Marios Demetriades told reporters.
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Hawaiian accommodates record number of passengers in 2014
Hawaiian Airlines flew 2.6% more passengers in 2014 compared to the prior year, setting a new record for the carrier. Hawaiian transported 10.2 million passengers in 2014. The carrier gave its 10 millionth passenger a present of 250,000 frequent flyer miles.
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JetBlue releases video series to enhance customer experience
JetBlue Airways has released a video series on flight etiquette to help ensure a pleasurable travel experience for all customers. "In our Flight Etiquette videos, we're not telling people how to behave, but rather asking how they would react to these certain situations," said Chan Tran Huth, JetBlue brand analyst.
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JetBlue expands service from Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
JetBlue is adding more flights from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. The low-cost carrier said Wednesday that it will launch nonstop daily service to Detroit and Cleveland from Fort Lauderdale on April 30.
LinkAirports
Dallas Love Field traffic soared in Nov.
Passenger traffic at Dallas Love Field soared 37% in November, the first full month after the Wright amendment expired. Meanwhile, passenger traffic at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport rose 1% in November.
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Fla. airport to cut back shuttle service due to construction
Shuttle service at Tampa International Airport in Florida will be reduced to allow for construction projects to proceed. The airport is undergoing a $943 million renovation that is slated for completion in 2017.
LinkMilitary
US DoD confirms two F-35 squadrons will be based in UK
The US Department of Defense has confirmed it will place two squadrons of its Lockheed Martin F-35s at RAF Lakenheath, marking the first confirmed European basing of American Joint Strike Fighters. The RAF base in Suffolk will house two US squadrons in order to maintain the USA’s air power presence in the UK. The fighters are expected to be on-station around 2020. “Today we announce that we will permanently place the F-35 in Europe,” Derek Chollet, Assistant Secretary of Defense for international security affairs at the DoD, told a press briefing at the Pentagon on 8 January. “The presence of the F-35 at Lakenheath will allow for greater training and wider support,” he adds.
LinkRegulatory
FAA issues new SMS rule for U.S. carriers
The Federal Aviation Administration has issued a final rule to mandate that domestic passenger and cargo airlines implement safety-management systems by 2018. The requirement is intended to ensure that airlines are gathering and analyzing data to reveal safety risks. "This is the next step in an ongoing process to find an ever better level of safety," said Airlines for America President and CEO Nicholas Calio. A4A members adopted this approach prior to the rule being issued.
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Aviation Quote
All the calculations show it can't work. There's only one thing to do: make it work.
— Pierre Georges Latécoère
On This Date
---In 1793... Frenchman Jean-Pierre Blanchard in Philadelphia makes the first manned free balloon ascent in America in a hydrogen balloon.
---In 1839…South African Thomas Henderson first measures the distance to a star (Alpha Centauri) other than the Sun.
---In 1923... The first flight of a practical gyroplane or rotocraft is made by Juan de la Cierva’s C-3 Autogiro, which is flown by Spenser Gomes in Madrid, Spain.
---In 1941…The first flight of the Avro Lancaster.
---In 1943…First flight of the Lockheed Constellation prototype NX67900.
---In 1955…The Vickers Valiant enters operational service with No. 138 Squadron RAF.
---In 1958…In his state-of-the-Union message, President Eisenhower reported: "In recognition of the need for single control in some of our most advanced development projects, the Secretary of Defense has already decided to concentrate into one organization all antimissile and satellite technology undertaken within the Department of Defense."
---In 1962…First flight of the Hawker Siddeley Trident.
---In 1963…First flight of the Yakovlev Yak-36.
---In 1975…Golden West Airlines Flight 261, a De Havilland Twin Otter DHC-6 (registered N6383) collides in mid-air with a Cessna 150 (N11421) over Whittier, California, killing a total of 26 people between the two aircraft. It is suspected that the pilot of the Twin Otter was blinded by the late, low sun.
---In 1997…Comair Flight 3272 crashes 18 miles away from its destination of Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. The Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia (registered N265CA) experienced ice on the wings, which sent the aircraft into an uncontrolled dive, killing all 29 on-board.
---In 1986…the UK Defense Secretary, Michael Heseltine, resigns amidst a political furor over the future of Westland Helicopters. Two weeks later, Leon Brittan, the Trade and Industry Secretary, will also resign.
---In 1990…64th U.S. manned space mission STS 32 (Columbia 10) launches into orbit.
---In 2007…An AerianTur-M Antonov An-26 (ER-26068) operating into Balad Air Base in Iraq crashes a mile and a half short of the runway, with one survivor among the 35 people aboard. Though visibility was poor and it was already their second landing attempt, some eyewitnesses report seeing the aircraft being shot down by a missile.
---In 2011…Iran Air Flight 277, crashes while performing a go-around at Urmia Airport killing 77 of the 106 people aboard, and injuring 26 people. A total of 28 people survived. The aircraft involved in the accident was a Boeing 727-286Adv.
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