Flight Safety Information May 20, 2013 - No. 101 In This Issue Turkey Balloon Accident: 2 Killed, 23 Injured In Mid-Air Collision (Video) Airways Express jet makes belly landing Fighter jet crashes into sea off Taiwan Airline executive appointed as FAA deputy administrator Air India pilots get a dressing down for not dressing up Fifth FAA-Conforming HondaJet Achieves First Flight Annual SMS Audit Results Released Bizjet Training Stable As Helicopter Instruction Surges FlightSafety Wins KC-46 Training Contract Singapore's Changi Airport Seeks Growth With Gold, Tuna Private Space Plane Arrives in California for Key Flight Tests Turkey Balloon Accident: 2 Killed, 23 Injured In Mid-Air Collision Hot air balloon crash in Turkey - Cappadocia - kills 2 - injures 23 ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- Two hot air balloons collided mid-air during a sightseeing tour of volcanic rock formations in Turkey on Monday, causing one of them to crash to the ground, officials said. One Brazilian tourist was killed while 24 other people on board were injured. The ascending balloon struck another balloon's wicker basket above it, causing a tear that sent it plunging to the ground, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. The passengers on board the balloon that crashed were mostly tourists from Asia, Spain and Brazil, according to Abdurrahman Savas, the governor of Nevsehir province. Many had fractured bones and one of them, an elderly passenger, was in serious condition. The balloons were flying above scenic canyons and volcanic cones of the Cappadocia region, a popular tourist destination some 300 kilometers (190 miles) from the capital, Ankara. Cappadocia is famed for its "fairy chimney" volcanic cones and its subterranean cities carved out of soft stone. It was the second fatal accident in Cappadocia since balloon sightseeing tours were launched there more than a decade ago. In 2009, a British tourist died when two balloons also collided mid-air. In February, a balloon caught fire and crashed in Egypt, killing 19 tourists. Back to Top Airways Express jet makes belly landing Emergency personnel spray foam on the fuselage of a US Airways Express commuter plane after it made a belly landing Saturday morning at Newark Liberty International Airport. NEWARK, N.J (AP) - An airline official says a US Airways Express flight with 34 people aboard was forced to make a belly landing at Newark International Airport after experiencing landing gear trouble. No injuries were reported. US Airways spokesman Davien Anderson says a turboprop plane that left Philadelphia shortly before 11 p.m. Friday landed safely at Newark with its landing gear retracted at about 1 a.m. Saturday. Anderson says the flight, being operated by Piedmont Airlines, was carrying 31 passengers and three crew members. He says the plane circled Newark in a holding pattern while working to get the gear down. After several failed attempts, the plane landed on its belly. Anderson says the passengers were evacuated to the terminal by bus. He says US Airways is cooperating with the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the incident. Back to Top Fighter jet crashes into sea off Taiwan TAIPEI, May 20 (Xinhua) -- A Mirage 2000 fighter jet, which was on a flight training mission, crashed into waters off northwest county Hsinchu in Taiwan Monday morning, according to local media reports. Two pilots have been rescued following an ejection from the craft before the crash. The cause of the crash is still under investigation. The latest accident came five days after an F-16 fighter jet crashed during a routine training in waters near southwest Taiwan's Chiayi County. The pilot was also rescued during the May 15 crash. Back to Top Airline executive appointed as FAA deputy administrator Former airline executive Michael G. Whitaker, who most recently served as a consultant to a company that operates India's largest domestic airline, has been tapped by President Barack Obama to fill the deputy administrator's post at the FAA. The White House announced Whitaker's appointment, among others, on May 15. "We are pleased the president has appointed someone who has spent so much of his career in the aviation industry to fill the role of deputy FAA administrator," said AOPA President Craig Fuller. "Michael Whitaker's extensive experience in the airline industry, both in the United States and abroad, gives him an excellent understanding of the national air transportation system, particularly the issues facing commercial air carriers. We look forward to sharing the general aviation perspective with him and working together for the good of all segments of the aviation community." Whitaker, according to a summary of his career released by the White House, worked for Trans World Airlines from 1991 to 1994 as general counsel for regulatory and international affairs, and held various posts at United Airlines from 1994 to 2009, where he became senior vice president for alliances, international, and regulatory affairs. Whitaker served from 2009 to 2011 as an executive for InterGlobe Enterprises, a transportation management company that operates, among other interests, IndiGo, described on the company's website as India's largest and fastest-growing airline. He was a board member and consultant to InterGlobe from 2011 to 2012. Whitaker earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Louisville, and a law degree from Georgetown University. http://www.aopa.org/advocacy/articles/2013/130516airline-executive-appointed-as-faa- deputy-administrato.html Back to Top Air India pilots get a dressing down for not dressing up A senior Air India (AI) commander has written to airline pilots to "dress smartly" while expressing his displeasure with the shabby dressing of pilots, which he says has left a poor impression of the airline. "The respect our colleagues will command depends on the impression which each one of us creates where ever we go. In the better airlines such as Singapore and Emirates, there is a strict code of behaviour and dress. So please dress smartly," wrote Captain V Kulkarni, chief of flight safety, AI Express in a letter to senior commanders. On April 19, HT had reported that many AI pilots had been brazenly flouting the operational manual and dress code keeping long hair, ponytails and beards. "Please remember that we are the face of the airline and our behaviour and appearance is a reflection of the airline," he said. "Remember, when outstation on layover, we are there on duty and not on a vacation," the senior pilot wrote. Kulkarni pointed out that at out stations during layover, pilots would visit hotel restaurants in "inappropriate dress such as rubber slippers, track pants, shabby soiled T-shirts, etc." "Also, when there is no flight for a couple of days, they are seen in a disheveled, unshaven state. The respect we get depends on how we behave, our manners and general bearing and appearance." "Dress should be appropriate to the occasion i.e. where formals are required formals should be worn, otherwise smart casuals such as jeans or Khakis (not the torn, ripped and extremely discoloured variety), smart T-shirt or half sleeved shirt with shoes are better suited to public places in a hotel such as lounges, bars or restaurants," he wrote. http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Air-India-pilots-get-a-dressing- down-for-not-dressing-up/Article1-1062773.aspx Back to Top Fifth FAA-Conforming HondaJet Achieves First Flight Honda Aircraft Company's fifth FAA-conforming HondaJet achieved its first flight on May 16, 2013. HondaJet Program Approaches Final Phase of Flight Testing GREENSBORO, N.C. - Honda Aircraft Company today announced that its fifth Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) conforming HondaJet, equipped with a production interior matching the final customer aircraft, successfully completed its first flight on May 16, 2013 at the company's world headquarters in Greensboro, N.C. With this achievement, the HondaJet program approaches the final phase of flight testing as the company advances toward FAA aircraft certification of the world's most advanced light jet. "An aircraft's first flight is an important and emotional milestone," said Honda Aircraft Company President and CEO Michimasa Fujino. "This is especially true for our fifth FAA- conforming HondaJet. This aircraft is equipped with a production interior and options, and it will anchor the final leg of our flight test program. From inside and out, this HondaJet matches the final configuration of a customer aircraft." The light jet lifted off at 3:00 p.m. EDT from the Piedmont Triad International Airport (KGSO). During the 60-minute flight, the aircraft performed very smoothly with an initial climb to 12,000 feet, reaching a top speed of 300 Knots True Air Speed (KTAS). Howard Judd, pilot-in-command, and Stefan Johansson, co-pilot, completed several checks during the flight, including low and high speed handling characteristics, avionics and system functionality including the stall protection system. Data gathered during the flight was transmitted in real time to the company's on-site flight test telemetry operations for analysis. This aircraft will be used for function and reliability (F&R) testing. F&R testing will simulate in-service flight operations of the aircraft. It has a production interior with standard lavatory and options including a side-facing seat, and will be used for interior and cabin systems tests. Future testing on the aircraft will also analyze the controller-pilot data link communications (CPDLC). The fifth conforming HondaJet features the signature HondaJet paint scheme in a special edition blue and pearl white finish with a metallic gold stripe, an artistic moniker to signify the plane's unique role to the program. The cabin's color palette is parchment, a pale beige base that is one of two interior color options available on the HondaJet. Since 2010, Honda Aircraft has developed and produced six FAA-conforming HondaJets. Four active flight test aircraft include: * First conforming aircraft - aerodynamics, performance, and stability and control testing * Third conforming aircraft - mechanical system testing * Fourth conforming aircraft - avionics and electrical testing * Fifth conforming aircraft - function and reliability (F&R) testing; and cabin system and interior, and options testing Two ground test aircraft include: * Second conforming aircraft - structural testing and retired from the ground test program in 2012 after successfully completing all ultimate load testing, European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) bird strike test, and seat attachment test * Sixth conforming aircraft - structural testing and joined the program in October 2012; currently being used for static testing and damage tolerance testing "Our flight test fleet maintains a very active schedule and continues to complete milestones for FAA certification flight testing," said Fujino. The HondaJet is priced at $4.5 million (€3.41 million), and its design incorporates advanced technologies and concepts. The HondaJet patented Over-The-Wing Engine Mount (OTWEM) configuration, natural-laminar flow wing and fuselage nose and composite fuselage were developed from long-term research activities. These innovations combine to make the HondaJet the fastest, most spacious and most fuel-efficient jet in its class. About HondaJet HondaJet is the world's most advanced light business jet aircraft, with best-in-class advantages in performance, comfort, quality and efficiency. The HondaJet is the fastest, highest-flying, quietest, and most fuel-efficient jet in its class. The HondaJet incorporates many technological innovations in aviation design, including the unique Over-The-Wing Engine Mount (OTWEM) configuration that dramatically improves performance and fuel efficiency by reducing aerodynamic drag. OTWEM design also reduces cabin sound, minimizes ground-detected noise, and allows for the roomiest cabin in class, the largest baggage capacity, and a fully serviceable private aft lavatory. The HondaJet is powered by two highly fuel-efficient GE Honda HF120 turbofan jet engines, and is equipped with the most sophisticated glass flight deck available in any light business jet, a Honda- customized Garmin® G3000 next-generation all-glass avionics system composed of three 14-inch landscape-format displays and dual touch-screen controllers. The HondaJet is Honda's first commercial aircraft and lives up to the company's reputation for superior performance, efficiency, quality and value. For more information, visit www.hondajet.com. Honda Aircraft Company Honda Aircraft Company, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Honda Motor Co., Inc., was founded in 2006 though has its heritage in more than 20 years of groundbreaking aeronautical research and development. At Honda Aircraft's world headquarters in North Carolina, the birthplace of aviation, the company's associates work in more than 500,000 square feet of state-of-the-art R&D, manufacturing and administration headquarter buildings to develop, produce, market and support the HondaJet with HondaJet dealers. The challenging spirit upon which Mr. Soichiro Honda founded Honda Motor Co., Ltd. is alive today as Honda Aircraft fulfills one of Honda's long-standing dreams to advance human mobility skyward. http://www.heraldonline.com/2013/05/20/4875026/fifth-faa-conforming- hondajet.html#storylink=cpy Back to Top Back to Top Bizjet Training Stable As Helicopter Instruction Surges S-92 simulator Sikorsky and FlightSafety International will deploy new S-92 flight simulators in Norway, Brazil, Southeast Asia and the U.S. Gulf Coast to serve the deepwater oil and gas market. In parallel with global business jet sales, pilot training activity is, for the most part, stable and growing somewhat, particularly in new markets. At the same time, flight-training providers are reporting unprecedented growth in the civil helicopter sector, with much of this being driven by a surge in demand for rotorcraft support in the booming offshore oil and gas industries, plus the deployment of new-generation helicopter simulator technology. Here at the EBACE show this week, FlightSafety International (FSI) is announcing that it has received EASA approval for its new Gulfstream G650 flight simulators in Savannah, Georgia. Earlier this year, FSI's Embraer Legacy 650 simulator in St. Louis, Missouri, was qualified by EASA, FAA and Brazil's ANAC aviation authority. Meanwhile, CAE's Bombardier Challenger 604/605 simulator in Dubai has been blessed by EASA, as well as regulatory authorities in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and the U.S. The Falcon 7X and Falcon 2000 EASy trainers at CAE's Burgess Hill facility near London Gatwick Airport also got the EASA all-clear for the new Dassault Falcon EASy II avionics package. But beyond these developments in the bizjet arena, the action in training and simulation is almost all helicopters. With oil and gas rigs moving further offshore, as much as 200 or more miles, and the requirement to ferry 15 to 20 workers at a time, demand is spiking for larger, long-range transport helicopters such as the Sikorsky S-92, Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma and AgustaWestland AW189, which is expected to be certified this year. Going Offshore "We are seeing tremendous growth and opportunity in the helicopter training market, especially in offshore oil operations," said FSI communications vice president Steve Phillips. "The large fleet operators are looking to have simulators located close to their bases. In addition, the number of flight crews per helicopter tends to be much greater than it is with fixed-wing aircraft. [The operators] are much less willing to have their pilots and technicians travel to get their training." In March, FSI and Sikorsky announced six new simulators for the civil rotary-wing market. Four of the new trainers are S-92, and are to be deployed in Norway, Brazil and Southeast Asia-all new helicopter-centric training facilities-as well as in Lafayette, Louisiana, on the U.S. Gulf Coast. FSI currently offers S-92 training at its Farnborough facility in the UK and in West Palm Beach, Florida. CAE (Booth 372) is building an AW189 for its Rotorsim joint venture with AgustaWestland and has announced plans for an S-92 flight simulator in a new facility in Stavanger, Norway, as well as an interchangeable cockpit S-92/EC225 trainer for São Paulo, Brazil. "Brazil is exploding, and there's always a lot of activity in the North Sea," said Rob Lewis, CAE's vice president and general manager for business aviation, helicopter and maintenance training. "The helicopter training market has a better near-term outlook than in business aviation. We're very bullish on the opportunities." The Montreal, Canada-based group recently installed the first civil helicopter level-D flight simulator in Asia, an S-76 model at its Zhuhai Flight Training Center joint venture with China Southern Airlines. The manufacturer also has positioned an S-76 device in São Paulo, together with Brazilian partner Líder Aviação, the largest helicopter operator in Brazil. A new AW139 simulator at Rotorsim in Sesto Calende, Italy, recently received level-D approval from Italian authority ENAC. The AW139 and two S-76s represent the first full-motion versions of CAE's 3000 Series helicopter simulation technology. The most striking design feature is a direct-projection dome display (rather than traditional collimation), coupled with a helicopter-specific visual database. The display bowl, which enables a vertical field of view of 80 degrees by 210 degrees horizontal, can present a seamless image out the cockpit windows as well as through the "chin window" beneath the pilot's feet. "Customers wanted a larger field of view, especially in the vertical, so they could see the landing," explained Peter Cobb, CAE global operations leader for helicopter training. According to Cobb, the 3000 Series whole-cockpit vibration platform represents a completely new, all-electric design to go with the electric six-degrees-of-freedom simulator motion system. FlightSafety (Booth 471) has opted for glass-mirror displays, which Phillips claimed, "provide superior optical performance, sharper image clarity and long-term reliability, and are night-vision capable." The glass technology derives from FSI's acquisition four years ago of Glass Mountain Optics in Austin, Texas. According to the company, the true collimated images they present are free of visible distortions and artifacts out to mirror edge and "ground rush" distortion in the bottom field of view. FlightSafety's new level-D AW139 simulator in Lafayette is equipped with a glass-mirror display. FSI's Eurocopter EC135 simulator in Dallas, Texas, is now FAA-qualified for night-vision- goggle (NVG) training. The New York-based company also moved its S-76B simulator from West Palm Beach to Dallas. Less than five years ago, FSI and CAE, between them, had only a handful of helicopter simulators. By next year, they will each have more than 20 fielded worldwide. Instructional Innovation for Bizjet Training On the bizjet training side, Phillips expects "modest growth" to continue throughout 2013. "The market in Europe for FlightSafety's training is stable. The addition of the Falcon 7X at our Paris center has had a positive impact," he told AIN. About half of training for Europe-based business aircraft operators is now conducted at FSI's locations in Farnborough and Paris, compared with a few years ago when perhaps 70 percent traveled to the US. Training of Middle East customers "has increased by more than 30 percent in the last five years," Phillips said. "The majority of courses are for Gulfstream operators." Worldwide, market leader FSI has about three times as many bizjet simulators as second- place CAE. However, CAE offers more training sites outside North America. Innovation in business aviation training recently has been more focused on instructional technique than technology. FSI, for example, is now using an approach called "operational day flow," which concentrates training sessions on city pairs to which the operator is likely to fly. "It introduces the pilot to all the required knowledge through a series of defined flight plans and city pairs," explained Phillips. "It presents information related to the procedures and tasks that a pilot needs to be able to safely accomplish by phase of flight rather than being introduced to the information one system at a time. Each initial ground school training period is delivered using a defined flight and city pair, with the instructor using FSI's Matrix or other media toolsets to demonstrate the procedure and tasks that are the training objectives for that phase of flight. We currently offer this program for approximately 20 aircraft and will continue to expand it in the future." Real-life scenarios have become part of several CAE business aircraft courses using an evidence-based training approach called RealCase. Instructors present a case study of a situation derived from actual incident reports on the aircraft type for which they are training. Students are challenged to identify the root cause and proper course of action to safely manage the problem. CAE is also emphasizing specialized training for dealing with stall and unusual attitude situations in flight. They expanded its partnership with Advanced Performance Solutions (APS) in Mesa, Arizona, for a second U.S. upset prevention and recovery training (UPRT) location, which began operating this spring in Dallas. APS also launched its first European "all-attitude" training program in the Netherlands at Seppe Airport in Bosschenhoofd. All three APS sites feature a combination of ground school, in-flight training using aerobatic aircraft and simulator sessions at nearby CAE facilities. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ebace-convention-news/2013-05-20/bizjet- training-stable-helicopter-instruction-surges Back to Top FlightSafety Wins KC-46 Training Contract WASHINGTON - FlightSafety has won the contract to provide the training system for the US Air Force's new tanker, the service announced today. "FlightSafety will be awarded a $78,369,818 fixed-price-incentive firm and firm-fixed- price contract for engineering, manufacturing and development of the KC-46 Aircrew Training System, including delivery of courseware and simulator-based training systems," the Air Force announced. The contract comes with an initial obligation of $1 million, with the remaining amount to be incrementally funded. The first systems are expected to arrive in February 2016, with final delivery due by 2026. "This is a vital step in the development of KC-46A," Maj. Gen. John Thompson, program executive officer and program director for the KC-46, said in an Air Force press release. "We have reached an award that is the product of a disciplined, meticulous and transparent source selection and delivers real value for the warfighter." The fixed-price nature of the contract is in line with the program's recent history. Prime contractor Boeing is signed to a contract which caps the government's liability at $4.9 billion, requiring the company to cover any overruns. "Everyone recognizes the need to get value for our money," Thompson said in the release. "Strong competition clearly benefits the taxpayer and, I think, benefits our industry partners as well. Effectively managing costs and schedule puts everyone in a winning situation." The KC-46 has been identified as a key modernization program by Air Force officials. It aims to produce 179 new planes to replace the aging KC-135 tanker fleet, with 18 tankers delivered by 2017 and completion of production in 2027. Bids for the aircrew training system (ATS), the primary training simulator for the Boeing- designed tanker, were first solicited in May 2012 with an award expected that August. Since then, the date had slipped first to December and then February. "FlightSafety is pleased and proud to have been awarded the KC-46 Aircrew Training System contract," Bruce Whitman, president & CEO, wrote in a statement. "FlightSafety has the experience and expertise required to provide KC-46 crews with the highest quality training system using our proven advanced technology training devices, visual systems, and highly effective courseware. All of us with FlightSafety are honored to support those who serve to protect our freedom at home and around the world." The company will design and manufacture "Weapon System, Boom Operator, and Part Task Trainers" at its 375,000-square-foot Oklahoma facility, built in 2011, according to the statement. Four other companies - CAE, L-3, Lockheed Martin and Boeing - competed for the contract. "Boeing was notified today by the U.S. Air Force we were not selected for the KC-46 Aircrew Training System contract award," Alma Dayawon, Boeing spokeswoman, wrote in a statement. "We are disappointed with this decision, as we submitted a competitive, advantage-rich offering that would have been supported by our extensive training expertise and history of strong performance, and await debrief from the Air Force. Boeing remains committed to delivering 18 KC-46s by 2017." "We are disappointed we were not selected by the Air Force for the KC-46 ATS program," Chris Stellwag, spokesman for CAE, said. "We made a competitive bid and we look forward to doing business with the Air Force and the other US services moving forward as they look to increase the amount of synthetic training that they do." "Lockheed Martin is disappointed that the U.S. Air Force has not selected us for the KC-46 Aircrew Training System contract," Scott Lusk, Lockheed spokesman, wrote in a statement. "We believe we presented a highly competitive and affordable solution and will await the Air Force's de-brief to gain insight into why we were not selected. At the same time, we remain fully committed to providing superior training for F-35, F-22, F-15, F16, C-5 and C-130 airmen, ensuring their mission readiness worldwide." http://www.defensenews.com/article/20130501/TSJ/305010015/FlightSafety-Wins-KC- 46-Training-Contract?odyssey=nav%7Chead Back to Top Singapore's Changi Airport Seeks Growth With Gold, Tuna Changi Airport, Southeast Asia's largest freight airfield, plans to attract more gold bars, tuna and vaccines to Singapore as it seeks to increase handling of high-value cargo to make up for slowing trade. The airport may process 7 percent more cargo by volume for pharmaceutical products such as vaccine and test drugs, as well as perishable goods including tuna and meat this year, James Fong, assistant vice president of cargo and logistics development at Changi Airport Group (Singapore) Pte. Drugs are one of the three biggest items handled by value, he said. "An underlying demand for these things is growing with the rise of the Asian middle class," Fong said in a May 15 interview. "People want higher-value, higher-quality food. Demand in North Asia is growing fast." The airport is offering 50 percent rebates on landing fees since the start of the year to help cargo airlines struggling with lower demand amid sluggish economies in the U.S. and Europe. Changi is enticing carriers of high-yield cargo with a tax-free maximum-security vault to store valuable art, gold and gems, as well as Southeast Asia's biggest refrigerated facilities for perishable goods. Economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region will boost household incomes, increasing the need for higher-quality food and luxury items, Fong said. The size of the middle class may jump almost fivefold in 20 years, according to Airbus SAS. Global Trade Airlines haul about $5 trillion of cargo annually, accounting for a third of global trade by value, according to International Air Transport Association. The global cargo market may increase 2.7 percent this year, benefiting Asian carriers the most as they are the biggest operators, according to IATA. The industry shrank 2 percent in 2012 for a second consecutive year, and airlines were filling less than half of their cargo capacity because of weak demand in the U.S. and Europe, according to the group. Changi Airport handled 434,000 tons of cargo in the first quarter, 2.2 percent less than a year earlier. Air freight may recover next year, Fong said. "With a more affluent population, cargo should pick up," said Siyi Lim, an OCBC Investment Research analyst in Singapore. "The increase may not be pronounced yet because it takes time to ramp up. The factors are there but it ultimately comes down to costs. It depends on how competitive Changi wants to be." Fine Arts Singapore Freeport opened in 2010 as a free-trade zone and offers maximum-security storage services with direct access to Changi Airport for valuables including wines, fine arts, diamonds and gold. The facility will expand as all the space has been leased. Full-year growth in handling such valuable goods is expected to reach about 16 percent, helped by a 55 percent surge in the first quarter, Fong said. Changi Airport has the region's biggest facility to handle all goods that require different temperatures, ranging from frozen meat to flowers and vaccines, Fong said. Coolport, the 8,000 square-meter (86,000 square-foot) facility operated by ground handler SATS Ltd. (SATS), has rooms with temperatures ranging from minus 28 degrees Celsius (minus 18 Fahrenheit) to plus 19 degrees. The area handles about 18,000 tons of goods a month. It is Southeast Asia's only such facility certified under international standards. SATS shares climbed as much as 0.9 percent, before closing unchanged at S$3.23 in Singapore. A second temperature-controlled center run by Dnata, another ground handler at Changi Airport, is expected to open later this year, Fong said. Indonesian Tuna The ability to handle fresh produce at Changi Airport has helped attract business for transshipment of seafood and meat products from Australia and New Zealand to north Asia and Europe, Fong said. The airport mainly handles seafood from Indonesia that is flown to Japan and China, he said. "A lot of tuna in Japan is shipped from Indonesia," Fong said. "Those go to the famous fish market in Tokyo, they auction it and it comes back again at a higher price." Shipping lines including Maersk Line (MAERSKB) have won cargo business from airlines amid the global slowdown as customers sought to cut costs when transporting items such as notebooks, televisions and wine. There are signs that some shippers may be turning to airfreight as the industry tests new methods, Fong said. "Speed is our biggest selling point," IATA Director General Tony Tyler said in December. "But it comes with a price that is many times more expensive than shipping by sea." The airport is working with an unspecified airline and meat producers in New Zealand to ship meat by both air and sea to cut the transport time by about half, Fong said. Meat is now typically transported by ship alone and takes about a month from New Zealand to Europe, he said. "For perishable goods, the longer you are in the mode of transport, the lesser value you'll get by the time you get to the destination," Fong said. The new offering is "something we're quite excited about because we see more shift this way." http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-19/singapore-s-changi-airport-seeks-growth- with-gold-tuna.html Back to Top Private Space Plane Arrives in California for Key Flight Tests SNC's Dream Chaser test flight craft is hauled across the bed of Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center on May 15, 2013. A private space plane has arrived at a NASA facility in California to undergo tests that will help vet its ability to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station. A test version of the Dream Chaser space plane arrived at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in southern California on Wednesday (May 15) aboard a flatbed truck, wrapped in a protective white caul for the overland journey from Colorado. Engineers will put the Dream Chaser through its paces at Dryden, testing out its flight and runway landing systems, NASA officials said. The vehicle will be towed down a runway by a truck, for example, to validate the Dream Chaser's brakes and tires. [Meet the Dream Chaser Space Planet (Photos)] A heavy-lift helicopter will also carry the vehicle aloft, allowing engineers to examine the loads the space plane will experience during flight. Such "captive-carry" tests will lead up to a free-flight trial planned for later this year, in which the Dream Chaser will return to Earth on its own after being released by the chopper. "This will be the first full-scale flight test of the Dream Chaser lifting body and will demonstrate the unique capability of our spacecraft to land on a runway," Jim Voss, vice president of space exploration systems at the Sierra Nevada Corp., which built Dream Chaser, said in a statement. "Other flight tests will follow to validate the aerodynamic data used to control the vehicle in the atmosphere when it returns from space," Voss added. "This is a huge step forward for the SNC and NASA teams towards providing our nation with safe and reliable transportation to the International Space Station." Colorado-based Sierra Nevada is one of a handful of companies that hope to fly astronauts to and from the orbiting lab for NASA, which wants private American vehicles to fill the void left by the retirement of its iconic space shuttle program in 2011. SpaceX and Boeing are also in the running. Each is developing a capsule - in SpaceX's case, a manned version of its Dragon spacecraft, which has already completed two contracted robotic cargo runs to the station for NASA. Boeing calls its capsule design the CST-100. NASA hopes at least one of these commercial vehicles is up and running by 2017. Until this happens, the space agency will remain dependent on Russian Soyuz vehicles to fly its astronauts. The seven-passenger Dream Chaser looks a bit like a miniature space shuttle. It's about 29.5 feet (9 meters) long and has a wingspan of 22.9 feet (7 m). For comparison, NASA's space shuttle was 122 feet (37 m) long, with a wingspan of 78 feet (24 m). NASA chief Charles Bolden will be at Dryden next Wednesday (May 22) to get an up-close look at the Dream Chaser, space agency officials said. Space.com Curt Lewis