Bloomberg has a lengthy, general-interest article about the weather-related problems faced by aircraft flying between the northern and southern hemisphere (i.e. AF447): Violent weather in the region can approximate the supercells that spawn tornadoes in the U.S., which exceed altitudes of 50,000 feet, NOAA’s [Pat] Slattery said. “We are eons ahead in forecasting convective storms [...]
Entries from June 2009
June 15, 2009
American’s ‘green’ test flight canceled; may be rescheduled
Last week, we reported AA’s plans to test fuel-saving measures using satellite navigation on a B767 flight from CDG to MIA. According to the Dallas Morning News, that test was canceled due to mechanical problems with the plane. On his “Airline Biz” blog, DMN reporter Eric Torbinson implies he has heard from the airline that [...]
June 15, 2009
Utah lawmakers, NATCA resist ERAM test
From the Associated Press: Utah’s two U.S. senators are urging the Federal Aviation Administration to hold off testing a new computer system at a Salt Lake City air traffic control center that guides planes across portions of eight states. Republican Sens. Bob Bennett and Orrin Hatch wrote FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt on June 11, asking [...]
June 15, 2009
FAA approves use of Flint Hills UAS in broader, but still restricted airspace
From the Associated Press: Federal Aviation Administration officials have given approval for flights of an unmanned aerial vehicle near a National Guard range in central Kansas. The approval means the Flint Hills Solutions Aerosonde UAV will be allowed to fly over Crisis City, which is part of the Great Plains Joint Training Center located near [...]
June 14, 2009
NATCA: “We’re quite hopeful about NextGen”
The Dallas Morning News had a catch-all, general interest article about the status of NextGen. Here are some quotes: Aviation consultant Michael Boyd: “Capt. Babbitt isn’t going to run the FAA – it is going to run him. I have no confidence this is going to work. The public is simply being bamboozled by the [...]
June 14, 2009
EXPLAINER: Everything you ever wanted to know about SESAR
Aviation Week’s David Esler has a very well-researched and in-depth article about SESAR, the European Union’s version of NextGen. It provides a lot of detail about how the two approaches differ (one example: NextGen implementation is being driven by the federal government, while SESAR is being driven by industry partnerships), and also examines questions of [...]
June 11, 2009
LAX gets runway status lights; system partially complete
From the Los Angeles Times: Federal and local officials will unveil a new warning system today that is designed to stop runway incursions that for years have endangered planes taxiing to and from terminals at Los Angeles International Airport. [..] [Los Angeles World Airports Executive Director Gina Marie] Lindsey said the Board of Airport Commissioners [...]
June 10, 2009
Randy Babbitt: “NextGen is not moving fast enough”
At a speech before the RTCA, recently confirmed FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt offered some of his views on NextGen: The only way we’re going to get rotation on this is by making sure the parties are at the table, making sure that their voices are heard. That’s the way I intend to keep it. Decisions [...]
June 8, 2009
What does AF447 crash mean for the future of oceanic communications and surveillance?
In the wake of the crash of the Air France A330 into the South Atlantic, a number of outlets have begun speculating on whether this could lead to a push for improved oceanic communications and surveillance. One summary comes from the Associated Press: The plane’s disappearance has prompted calls for the U.S. and other countries [...]
June 8, 2009
AA sees fuel savings “if we can get the regulators and rules out of the way”
In a Chicago Tribune article about Thursday’s AIRE demo flight, American Airlines captain and spokesman Brian Will had this to say: “For years, we’ve had all this great equipment on the airplanes, but we are not able to use a lot of these things because of what essentially are speed bumps caused by an outdated [...]
June 8, 2009
American Airlines flying CDG-MIA demo under AIRE initiative
From the Miami Herald: Thursday’s flight will use GPS signals virtually all the way, instead of conventional ground-based radio navigation beacons. A similar Paris-Miami flight by Air France is scheduled for Tuesday, according to the FAA — but the French airline could not be reached for comment. Brian Will, an American Airlines captain, described the [...]
June 4, 2009
More on workforce development: reader comment
Elizabeth, one of our readers, had this to say in response to our recent entry about education and workforce development issues in the aviation sector: While I agree that the aviation industry is going to be struggling because of the lack of upcoming students, there needs to be more of an effort to recruit recent [...]
June 2, 2009
Young people avoiding aviation careers, forum presenters say
Aviation International News has a wrap-up of the New Jersey State Aviation Forum that was held at Newark airport last month, focusing on gaps in aviation education: “The whole aviation industry is balanced on the head of a pin,” said Mike Stoddard, president of the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Coalition. “The people who made aviation what it [...]
June 2, 2009
Runway incursion at CLT; ASDE-X alerts controllers
The NTSB has released an incident report about a runway incursion between a CRJ-200 and a Pilatus PC-12 that happened at Charlotte-Douglas airport last week: At about 10:17 a.m. on May 29, a PSA Airlines CRJ-200 regional jet operated as US Airways Express flight 2390, was cleared for takeoff on runway 18L. After the regional [...]
