Flight Safety Information September 22, 2015 - No. 188 In This Issue Pilot ejects safely in fighter jet crash southwest of Fresno American Airlines jet from Charlotte diverted after striking bird American Airlines plane has mishap at San Diego airport Aircraft lands safely at Gatwick after declaring emergency over the English Channel Plane stupid: Record 67 people try and bring guns with them onto US aircraft during 9/11 anniversary NTSB: Pilots in Colorado plane crash that killed 4 lacked ratings United Express flight was delayed by pilots' 'disagreement' A Driver's License Won't Get You Through Airport Security If You Live in These States PROS 2015 TRAINING Boeing 'planning China factory' VistaJet Launches Private Jet Charter Service in China FLY Leasing sells 12 older aircraft for $240 million The battle of aircraft manufacterers at its peak Is It Possible to Design a Personal Airplane So Simple That Anyone Could Fly It? Icon Thinks So Can Pope Francis save Alitalia? Killer Radiation: How to Protect Martian Astronauts iSMS - Safety Management System Training Upcoming Events JOBS AVAILABLE (New Positions) Pilot ejects safely in fighter jet crash southwest of Fresno A military pilot ejected safely from a fighter jet before it crashed near a naval air base in central California, officials said Monday. The F/A-18E Super Hornet was based at Lemoore Naval Air Station, about 40 miles southwest of Fresno. Lemoore officials reported that the plane crashed around 3:55 p.m. PT, in an unoccupied field near the base. The pilot was reported in good condition, authorities said. There were no immediate reports of damage or other injuries in the crash, which was under investigation. The crash site is located just east of the Kings-Fresno county line, about two miles west of the naval air station, Adam Barresi, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol, told the Hanford (Calif.) Sentinel. The pilot reportedly parachuted to the ground, landed and walked over to emergency responders who were on scene, according to Kings County Fire Chief Bill Lynch. The last crash near Lemoore took place in April 2011, when an F/A-18F Super Hornet crashed on private farmland just west of the base, the Sentinel reported. That crash killed Navy pilot Lt. Matthew Ira Lowe and weapon systems officer Lt. Nathan Hollingsworth Williams, who were training for an air show. An investigation revealed that the aviators crashed just nine seconds after beginning a maneuver called the loaded roll. The maneuver was removed from demonstration flights following the crash. In March 2010, two fighter jet pilots from Lemoore survived when their jets collided over the northern Nevada desert. The crash, which took place during a training mission, happened east of Fallon Naval Air Station, The Fresno Bee reported. One pilot landed his jet at the Fallon base about 15 minutes after the collision. The other pilot ejected safely before his jet crashed in a remote area of the base. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/09/21/fighter-jet-crash/72599794/ Back to Top American Airlines jet from Charlotte diverted after striking bird An American Airlines jet struck a bird after leaving Charlotte Douglas Airport, forcing the plane to be diverted to Philadelphia. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- An American Airlines flight from Charlotte Douglas International Airport en route to Bradley International Airport in Connecticut was diverted to Philadelphia after the aircraft struck a bird mid-flight, according to American Airlines. The airliner confirmed the report with WCNC shortly after 8:15 p.m. American Airlines flight 1889 departed from Charlotte at approximately 4:30 p.m. with 114 passengers and five crew members. An American spokesperson told WCNC that no passengers or crew were injured during the incident and the plane landed safely in Philadelphia. The aircraft was taken out of service and is being evaluated by maintenance. http://www.wcnc.com/story/news/local/2015/09/21/american-airlines-jet-from- charlotte-diverted-after-striking-bird/72596200/ Back to Top American Airlines plane has mishap at San Diego airport SAN DIEGO - An American Airlines emergency slide accidentally deployed from an airplane parked at San Diego International Airport Sunday afternoon, airport authorities said Monday. A crew member accidentally deployed the aircraft's emergency slide on the right side of the plane Sunday at 1:40 p.m., airport spokeswoman Rebecca Bloomfield said. The slide came to a rest on the Gate Gourmet truck's front loading platform. No passengers were aboard the plane and no one was injured, according to Bloomfield. A picture of the mishap was posted on an Instragram account by Fher PrzRangel with the message "American Airlines #fail." It was unknown where the airplane was headed and how long it took for the slide to be replaced. http://fox5sandiego.com/2015/09/21/american-airlines-plane-has-mishap-at-san-diego- airport/ Back to Top Aircraft lands safely at Gatwick after declaring emergency over the English Channel AN AIRCRAFT has made a safe landing at Gatwick after declaring an emergency while flying over the English Channel this morning. Germania Airline flight ST1938 declared the emergency at about 8.30am. The plane had departed from Norwich International Airport at 7.48am and was due to reach Palma in Majorca at 11.08am. Website www.airlive.net reported that the plane had landed safely at Gatwick at 8.48am. http://www.dover-express.co.uk/Aircraft-lands-safely-Gatwick-declaring- emergency/story-27844681-detail/story.html#ixzz3mT2gSHEz Back to Top Plane stupid: Record 67 people try and bring guns with them onto US aircraft during 9/11 anniversary week * Ten passengers were caught with loaded guns on the 9/11 anniversary * One passenger tried to board a flight carrying explosive black powder * Others were carrying ninja throwing stars or concealed knives * The Transportation Security Administration also found 19 stun guns The Transportation Security Administration intercepted 67 firearms in passengers' carry- on bags as they attempted to board flights during the anniversary week of 9/11. The TSA said the passengers were ignoring regulations which prevent them from bringing firearms and explosives into the cabins of aircraft. Of the guns intercepted, 56 were loaded and 26 had a round chambered. Officials did not say whether the loaded weapons with a round in their chambers had their safety catches engaged, although some handguns such as the popular Glock do not have an additional safety switch. The TSA has released images of some of the firearms that people tried to bring with them into the cabin of passenger jets due to fly across the United States on the anniversary week of the 9/11 terror attacks The TSA has released images of some of the firearms that people tried to bring with them into the cabin of passenger jets due to fly across the United States on the anniversary week of the 9/11 terror attacks One passenger tried to carry onboard 16 ounces of black powder which can be used to make bombs One passenger tried to carry onboard 16 ounces of black powder which can be used to make bombs TSA agents also intercepted 19 stun guns, while one passenger wanted to bring 16 ounces of black powder - which is a form of explosive - with him in the cabin. Passengers are not allowed to bring black powder onto an aircraft, whether on their carry-on or checked-in baggage. Two passengers were found to have concealed belt buckle knives and one individual thought he could carry his ninja death throwing stars with him in the aircraft. On the anniversary of 9/11, TSA agents found two firearms in Denver International Airport, with another in Colorado Springs. Other guns were found in Minneapolis, Indianapolis, Knoxville, Nashville, Phoenix, Dallas Fort Worth and one in Anchorage. All of the ten weapons recovered on the 9/11 anniversary were loaded. Other passengers had deadly belt-buckle knives concealed within their belts, pictured, According to the TSA, passengers can bring their firearms with them onto commercial flights as long as they declare the weapons beforehand, and check them into the cargo luggage in an appropriate hardened carry case. According to the TSA: 'When packed properly, ammunition can be transported in your checked baggage, but it is never permissible to pack ammo in your carry-on bag. 'You can travel with your firearms in checked baggage, but they must first be declared to the airline. 'Firearm possession laws vary by state and locality. Travelers should familiarize themselves with state and local firearm laws for each point of travel prior to departure. The passenger can face a penalty as high as $11,000. This is a friendly reminder to please leave these items at home. Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions; that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.' http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3244418/Plane-stupid-Record-67-people-try- bring-guns-aircraft-9-11-anniversary-week.html#ixzz3mT0I59sx Back to Top NTSB: Pilots in Colorado plane crash that killed 4 lacked ratings Federal investigators say the two pilots of a twin-engine plane that crashed this month in southwest Colorado, killing all four aboard, were not qualified to be flying the aircraft. The National Transportation Safety Board also said in a preliminary report the pilots were not rated to be using the plane's instruments, which were needed Sept. 5 when the Cessna 310 went down near Silverton. "Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident," the NTSB report said. Authorities have not said who was flying the plane the day of the crash but identified all four aboard as Californians heading to Amarillo, Texas. The NTSB report says, however, the pilots were rated to be flying only a single-engine plane and without instruments. Harold Joseph Raggio and Steven Dale Wilkinson, both of Newberry Springs, Calif., were killed in the crash. Rosalinda Leslie of Hesperia, Calif., and Michael Lyle Riley of Barstow, Calif., also were killed. The crash site was in rugged alpine terrain at an elevation of approximately 11,500 feet, inaccessible from road or trail, the San Juan County Sheriff's Office said. Authorities believe the plane crashed at high speed. Raggio's daughter told The Denver Post after the crash that her 71-year-old father was a former Marine pilot who flew jets in two Vietnam tours and survived a helicopter crash after being shot out of the sky. The NTSB did not say when their final report on the crash would be complete. http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_28854091/ntsb-pilots-colorado-plane-crash-that- killed-4 Back to Top United Express flight was delayed by pilots' 'disagreement' A weekend flight on United Express was delayed for five hours in Lubbock, Texas, after the pilots got into a "disagreement" and were unavailable to fly the plane, according to the airline. A spokesman for ExpressJet, the regional carrier that operated the plane, said Monday reports indicated that police were called. Airport police did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. Flight 4453 to Houston was "delayed due to crew availability," said the ExpressJet spokesman, Jarek Beem. "There was a disagreement among crew members. There was no fight ... there was no physical altercation thankfully." Beem said he didn't have more details about the nature of the dispute, and he declined to identify the pilots. The one-hour flight departed Saturday evening after a new crew was flown in from Houston, he said. The ExpressJet spokesman said he was not sure whether the first crew faced disciplinary action, adding that the airline was still investigating the incident, which was first reported by travel blogger Gary Leff. The same pilots were supposed to fly from Houston to Lubbock's Preston Smith International Airport, then make a return trip to Houston after a half-hour stop. But the first flight ran nearly an hour late, according to tracking service FlightAware.com. Beem said there was a mechanical issue with the Embraer twin-engine jet before it left Houston. Regional carriers like ExpressJet employ their own pilots to operate flights under contract to the big airlines. Atlanta-based ExpressJet operates about 1,500 daily flights as United Express, American Eagle and Delta Connection. A United Airlines spokeswoman said the carrier joined ExpressJet in apologizing to inconvenienced passengers but referred all questions to ExpressJet. http://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/business/national- business/article36055659.html#storylink=cpy Back to Top A Driver's License Won't Get You Through Airport Security If You Live in These States A TSA agent checks a traveler's identification at a special TSA Pre-check lane at Terminal C of the LaGuardia Airport on January 27, 2014 in New York City. You'll need a passport. If Steven Spielberg were to stop you on the street next year and invite you to star in his movie on the condition that leave right now for the airport without stopping at home, your opportunity at fame and fortune would be squandered if you happened to be a resident of New York, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Louisiana, or American Samoa. The reason: At some point in 2016-the precise date hasn't yet been announced-driver's licenses from those states will no longer be considered sufficient to clear airport security and board an airplane. This new policy is a result of the Real ID act, passed by Congress in 2005 as a counterterrorism measure to standardize the reliability and efficacy of personal identification. Unfortunately, the driver's licenses of that handful of states did not make the cut, failing to provide enough security features in the cards themselves or enough verification of identity and immigration status in the application processes. The Department of Homeland Security began rolling out Real ID in 2014. Phase one involved restricted government areas, and phases two and three concerned semi- restricted areas like nuclear power plants. But phase four touches federally regulated aircraft-and therefore will affect millions of people. When it rolls out officially for travelers, you won't have anything new to worry about if you're going abroad-you'll need a passport anyway. But if you're flying domestically, double check that your license makes the ID cut. http://time.com/money/4042896/drivers-license-airport-security-states-passport/ Back to Top Back to Top Boeing 'planning China factory': report Boeing aircraft models are seen at the Beijing International Aviation Expo in Beijing on September 17, 2015 Shanghai (AFP) - Plans for a Boeing factory in China have been submitted to the government in Beijing, state-run media reported Tuesday ahead of President Xi Jinping's US visit, where he will tour one of its plants. A Boeing factory in China would represent an about-turn in the US giant's strategy in the crucial market, where European rival Airbus has a final assembly operation for medium- range Airbus 320 aircraft in the northern port of Tianjin and plans to open a new completion and delivery centre for long-haul A-330s. A plan for the Boeing plant in Zhoushan, in the eastern province of Zhejiang, has been submitted to the State Council, China's cabinet, the Shanghai Securities News reported. The newspaper, which is run by the official news agency Xinhua, gave few details -- including who had put the proposal forward -- but said an update could be expected as early as this week. Xi is due to visit Boeing's main airplane factory in Washington state on Wednesday, before travelling in Washington DC the following day to meet President Barack Obama at the White House. The factory would be the centrepiece of a new aerospace industrial zone in Zhoushan, it added. China is expected to add 6,330 new aircraft worth $950 billion to its commercial fleet by 2034, Boeing said last month in its annual China Current Market Outlook. At the launch, Randy Tinseth, vice president of marketing at Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said that "Airbus has its way to address the Chinese market, we have our way... we have a different path". But he added that neither strategy was "right or wrong... we always keep our options open for the future". Bloomberg News reported earlier this month that Boeing was exploring whether to open a factory in China to perform tasks such as painting its top-selling 737 jetliners, which would be its first such facility outside the US. Boeing could not be reached immediately for comment. Zhoushan sits in the Yangtze river delta on the East China Sea and borders the commercial hub of Shanghai. http://news.yahoo.com/boeing-planning-china-factory-report-075506650.html Back to Top VistaJet Launches Private Jet Charter Service in China Chartering a private jet to China is easy, but flying privately between airports within the country can be challenging. To address this problem, the Swiss business-aviation provider VistaJet has partnered with China's Apex Air to provide point-to-point private air service throughout the country in a Chinese-registered Bombardier Challenger 850 managed and operated by Apex. VistaJet is the first international aviation charter company to offer this service. VistaJet officials say they plan to add at least one more China-based airplane later this year, and they will continue to expand the line to meet demand. The company has been working for months to secure all the partnerships and permissions required to launch the new service. The Challenger 850 can carry up to 14 passengers-with berths for seven-at speeds up to 528 mph over a range of 3,230 miles. (vistajet.com) http://robbreport.com/aviation/vistajet-launches-private-jet-charter-service- china#sthash.L4gSkB5K.dpuf Back to Top FLY Leasing sells 12 older aircraft for $240 million Ireland's FLY Leasing is selling 12 older aircraft from its portfolio for $240 million as the company continues its fleet renewal strategy. The aircraft will transfer individually to the unidentified new owner, with all transfers expected to be completed by the end of the year. FLY said the sale is expected to produce a $12 million pre-tax gain, and it expects to incur $3 million in non-cash charges relating to debt modification and curtailment costs. The company said the gain and associated expenses would be recognized on a pro rata basis at the time of each transfer. The sale is subject to the usual closing conditions. FLY CEO Colm Barrington said: "FLY is moving decisively to monetize older aircraft and to reinvest the capital into younger aircraft to drive higher return on equity. In total, this year we have sold-or contracted to sell-57 aircraft with an average of 13 years." He said FLY believes this is "the right time to rotate out of mid-life and older aircraft and to invest in younger models." The 12 aircraft have an average age of 13 years and the sale will produce approximately $80 million in cash. This is on top of a $35 million gain and $425 million in cash to be generated by a portfolio sale of 33 aircraft announced in June. FLY also completed the sale of a 22-year-old Boeing 747-400 aircraft earlier this month. FLY leases its aircraft under multi-year operating lease contracts to airlines across the globe. It is managed and serviced by US-based aircraft lease, management, and financing firm BBAM. http://atwonline.com/lessors/fly-leasing-sells-12-older-aircraft-240-million Back to Top The battle of aircraft manufactorers at its peak The stakes are very high. In Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Australia, the manufacturers are "slaughtering each other to win" the small and large airlines or the Mega Carriers. This August, always according to the data publicized by the two mega civil aircraft manufacturers, Airbus and Boeing, has been an extremely lucrative month. Both in terms of orders and deliveries of different types of aircraft. The European industry has literally flooded with orders for its constantly most popular type of aircraft, the A320. Of course we are speaking about the entire range of this type of aircraft, including the A320 neo and its various versions. So, there were 662 orders, with corresponding delivery of 315 aircraft. As for the A330 series, there were 83 orders and 61 deliveries. The new creation, A350, follows, in 3 versions and engines, which we have admired up close this year in Bourget, Paris, with nine (9) orders and four (4) deliveries. There is also the mega- aircraft A 380, with 17 deliveries, but without any orders during August. Of course, the fact that there were no orders or deliveries for the A340 shows that perhaps this type of aircraft has completed its course in the commercial stage. For its part, Boeing has the 737 series as its "crown jewel" in both orders and deliveries, for every version, from the 500 to the 800, 900 and now the 1000, and beyond, with 321 and 324 respectively, within August. Airbus has marked the end of the concept phase at aircraft level for its Beluga XL, the company's new-generation oversized transport aircraft based on the A330. There were no orders for BOE/747, but 11 were delivered. That shows that despite the improvements and the updated versions of the model, there is pressure at the manufacturer's "palmares" from newer aircraft types. Despite the above, Korean Air insists to the 747-8s version with a capacity of 368 passengers and enough orders for freighters of the above type. Surprisingly though, BOE/767 received 48 orders and had 12 deliveries. This type remains in the spotlight because with its successive versions, it has become an "object of desire" for companies and countries in Africa and South America, with a significant number of these type of aircraft to be utilized as cargo with new engines and increased range. And of course, there is the triple-seven BOE/777 series, in many versions, at its peak, its main "suitors" being the Gulf countries, namely the Emirates, ETIHAD and Qatar and being desired by the US giants as well. Therefore it had 54 orders and 66 deliveries in August. Naturally, BOE/777 has not yet said its final word, since a new version is about to be presented (the 777X, which will include two versions, the 777-8 and the 777-9), with folding wings for adjusting to the capacity of heavy traffic AIRPORTS and beyond. And the hour of the new creation of BOE has come. BOE/787 with carbon fibers, with versions and engines of varying capabilities, has reached 24 orders and 90 [yes, (90) deliveries], during August 2015. Because for the BOE / 787, which strongly competes for the title of the optimal per seat cost flying creation of the aircraft industry, its main competitor being the A 350 as it evolves gradually, its innovations are excellent. This will soon become the subject of one of our upcoming detailed articles, although we have originally talked about A 350 in one of our previous articles. Summarizing, with our information deriving directly from AIRBUS and BOEING, the total order number for August amounted to 754 for AIRBUS, with 397 deliveries. On the other hand, Boeing reached 447 and 503 respectively. The stakes are very high. In Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Australia, the manufacturers are "slaughtering each other to win" the small and large airlines or the Mega Carriers. That is a positive sign of growth for labor force employment, innovative technological engine developments, Hull materials, economy, speed, primarily safety, but also for the clear superiority of the air medium, compared to all other means of transport. High expectations, high targets, constant search for overcoming, for the passenger, the human and his chance of a universal communication. http://www.traveldailynews.com/columns/article/51346/the-battle-of-aircraft- manufactorers#sthash.CEIx8iFQ.dpuf Back to Top Is It Possible to Design a Personal Airplane So Simple That Anyone Could Fly It? Icon Thinks So Their folding-wing A5 aims to "democratize aviation" Personal flying transportation is coming. When we first looked in at the Icon A5, a folding-wing personal aircraft designed in a collaboration between multiple bodies including IDEO and Art Center College of Design, it was just a bunch of renderings and grainy images we assumed were Photoshopped. That was over five years ago, so let's look at what the resultant company, Icon Aircraft, has got today: It doesn't have to land on water, by the way; terra firm will also do. But perhaps what's most notable here is the business approach the company is taking, and how the UI design is a key part of that approach. Rather than going after wealthy folks who have already invested in pilot's licenses and already own Cessnas, Icon's mission is "to democratize aviation the same way that great brands like Apple, BMW, Ducati, or Oakley democratize their products: by fusing outstanding engineering with world-class consumer product design." To that end, they've designed the aircraft's crucial feedback-providing gauges to be closer to what you'd find in a passenger car rather than an Airbus. "A high goal for us is that there is a very intuitive user interface," Icon founder Kirk Hawkins told Bloomberg. In concert with the physical design of the craft itself, this makes the A5 easier to fly. As an example: * One [feature] is an easy-to-read Angle of Attack (AoA) gauge, a feature common to military aircraft but virtually unknown in civilian planes. In general terms it tells you how your wings are performing, or rather how much lift they're providing in whatever maneuver you're currently in. Keep the needle in the green zone, you're good; hit the yellow zone, and an audible alarm goes off to tell you to correct; hit the red, and you've stalled (i.e. there's no lift on the wings). At this point the plane starts to shake and protest physically-clearly something is wrong. * [Stalling is countered by] a Spin-Resistant Airframe.... A main danger of a stalled plane is that it can enter an uncontrolled spin should there be any yaw (lateral) movement-say, in a turn while on approach to land, which could result in a crash; 41 percent of pilot-related fatalities are due to stall/spin crashes. In the A5, you may stall-and Hawkins intentionally did during our flight (to my chagrin) to show me this feature-but you don't lose control or lift, and it's fairly difficult to enter a spin. (Or as I assumed might happen as a non-pilot, drop like a bowling ball.) For newer pilots, the ease of recovery is an obvious boon. That the A5 will see uptake is not in doubt; there are already 1,500 pre-orders logged. The craft doesn't require Jet A and can be filled up with ordinary premium unleaded at any gas station. Even more surprising is how little training is required: Just 20 hours, which Icon reckons you can complete in two weeks. There's no word on when they'll begin shipping, but their website indicates that those placing pre-orders now-i.e., at the end of the line-will receive their A5 in 2019. We imagine we'll start seeing A5 earlybirds cruising the Hudson River before then. http://www.core77.com/posts/40930/Is-It-Possible-to-Design-a-Personal-Airplane-So- Simple-That-Anyone-Could-Fly-It-Icon-Thinks-So Back to Top Can Pope Francis save Alitalia? The Pontiff is flying charter during his U.S.-Cuba tour minus many of the luxuries you'd expect. On Friday, Sept. 18, Alitalia announced that its CEO, Silvano Cassano, was leaving after less than a year on the job. Although the Italian flag carrier insisted that his departure wasn't related to its weak financial performance, it followed the Cassono news by posting a $148 million loss for the first half of 2015. Alitalia's prospects appeared to improve when Etihad Airways of Abu Dhabi bought 49%, and effective control, of the ailing airline last August as part of a $2 billion rescue plan. But since then, discounters Ryanair and easyJet are stealing customers in its former stronghold, regional and domestic flights. Alitalia is struggling to expand its share of high-fare business passengers flying long-haul routes between big cities. Under Cassano, a shipping and luxury goods veteran, the strategy stayed grounded on the tarmac. Despite its travails, Alitalia is benefiting from a godsend in papal publicity. The day after the shakeup at the top, Pope Francis boarded an Alitalia Airbus A330-200 for Havana at Rome's Flumicino Airport. Since then, the Pope's aircraft, festooned with the Papal shield to the side of the passenger door where the Pope emerges, loomed large in videos and photos as the Pope greeted Cuban President Raśl Castro and bestowed blessings on children on his much-awaited arrival in Havana. In fact, the Vatican doesn't have its own private aircraft. It charters the widebody jet from Alitalia for the Pope's intercontinental flights. The aircraft, christened the Raffaello Sanzio after the great late Renaissance painter who immortalized late Renaissance Popes, doesn't have an office, a conference room, or any of the special features found on Air Force One. It's the same as the planes used for normal commercial passengers, featuring 20 seats in the first class cabin, and 263 in coach. The Pope has a first class row to himself, while the heads of his secretariats occupy seats behind him. The coach area is packed with journalists from leading newspapers, magazines and TV networks around the globe, from CNN, to the AP, to Time, to Univision, the Italian daily La Stampa, and of course the Vatican weekly L'Osservatore Romano. Alitalia provides the Vatican with a heavily discounted charter rate, and the more than 200 journalists pay their own way. Hence, the expense to the Holy See is minimal. Big media covets those seats for good reason. As a matter of tradition, the Pope does not grant official interviews. The only time he mixes with journalists is on his trips, and Francis relishes the opportunity. The Pontiff regularly wanders into the coach cabin to dispense blessings, shake hands, and field questions. He even displays a rakish sense of humor. Asked about the secret source of his immense energy on a trip to Latin America in July, the Pope jabbed at the sensationalist media by quipping, "You'd like to say that I take drugs!" On the flight to Havana, a Univision reporter presented the Pontiff with a box of Argentinian-style empanadas. The Pope graciously shared the dish with everyone on the plane. On Tuesday, Pope Francis will arrive in the U.S., landing at Joint Base Andrews near Washington, DC, greeted by fanfare likely to dwarf the welcome of any of his predecessors. Alitalia needs help, and for any brand, what could be a better benediction than providing the vehicle for an historic apostolic journey? http://fortune.com/2015/09/20/pope-francis-alitalia-airplane/ Back to Top Killer Radiation: How to Protect Martian Astronauts A solar storm hurtles out towards Mars in this 2011 picture from NASA. Coincidentally, it happened around the same time the Mars Curiosity rover left Earth for the Red Planet. Credit: NASA/ESA/SOHO In "The Martian", Mark Watney deals with a lot of dangerous situations - food and communications being a couple of them. But what if his camp got hit by a solar storm? How could he protect himself in that situation? Solar eruptions can cause damage to people and spacecraft. The radiation that flows during these events can short-out sensitive electronics and give astronauts an overdose of radiation, if they're not careful. PHOTOS: Watching the Sunsets of Mars Through Robot Eyes We have a lot of warning systems set up at Earth to help our planet (and the satellites and astronauts in orbit) out, but Mars presents a special challenge: it's much further away. Radiation studies of the surface are only just beginning, so we don't know about long-term exposure levels. There are no people there (at least yet), but NASA and other space agencies have a fleet of spacecraft there carrying out observations to work out how best to protect them. Simply speaking, there are two kinds of solar eruptions. Solar flares are a quick flash that travel at the speed of light, taking eight minutes to reach Earth and at least 14 minutes to get to Mars. That's not a lot of time to scramble out of the way, says Alex Young, associate director for science in the heliophysics science division at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. "If I was going to be (an astronaut) on Mars, I would have some sort of monitor on Mars. I would be looking at the sun on Mars," Young told Discovery News. Young suggests a future mission - much like what is portrayed in "The Martian" - would include a telescope to keep an eye on what the sun is doing. ANALYSIS: How a Mission to Mars Could Kill You Then, if the astronauts saw trouble coming, they would go to radiation-resistant bunkers, such as underground structures or those built with radiation shielding. Water is one possibility, and there are also researchers at the NASA Langley Research Center investigating new radiation-resistant materials, such as nylon embedded with boron and nitrogen. Coronal mass ejections (CMEs), a second type of solar eruption, are clouds of particles that speed along quickly, taking a several hours to a few days to get to our planet. For Mars, there's 50 percent more warning, meaning it might take the fastest-moving CMEs 27 to 30 hours for the particles to get there. But they're higher-energy and longer lasting than the solar flare, which could lead to higher radiation exposure. While humans take shelter, for spacecraft in orbit it's best to shut non-essential functions off until the storm has passed, Young says. So far the approach seems successful, as colleague Antti Pulkkinen at Goddard says no Martian spacecraft has been totally disabled by the sun, yet. ANALYSIS: Mars Explorers Face Huge Radiation Problem "Spacecraft anomalies ("ghost" commands, bit flips etc) do occur and some of these are possibly due to space weather," he wrote in an e-mail to Discovery. "Why I am saying 'possibly' is that it is very difficult to say what was the definitive cause for experienced anomaly. We cannot go there and look under the hood to check what exactly was going on." http://news.discovery.com/space/killer-radiation-how-martian-astronauts-could-be- protected-150921.htm Back to Top iSMS - Safety Management System Training Back to Top Upcoming Events: Fundamentals of IS-BAO October 1, 2015 Farnborough, UK https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1661564 IS-BAO Auditing October 2, 2015 Farnborough, UK https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1661567 Fundamentals of IS-BAO November 2, 2015 Hong Kong, China https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1724162 IS-BAO Auditing November 3, 2015 Hong Kong, China https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1724176 BARS Auditor Training October 6-8, 2015 Dubai, United Arab Emirates http://flightsafety.org/bars/auditor-training OSHA & Aviation Ground Safety Training Course (ERAU) Oct. 19-23, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/cmas Aviation Safety Program Management Training Course (ERAU) Oct. 26-30, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/cmas Aircraft Accident Investigation Training Course (ERAU) Nov. 2-6, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/cmas Aviation Safety Management Systems (SMS) Seminar (ERAU) Nov. 17-19, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/sms Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Seminar (ERAU) Dec. 8-10, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/uas New HFACS workshop Las Vegas December 15 & 16 www.hfacs.com 'DTI QA & SMS Workshops are Back in Town!' (Toronto, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Melbourne FL, and YOUR town just contact us) www.dtitraining.com Back to Top JOBS AVAILABLE: Flight Training Human Factors Specialist Emirates www.emirates.com/careers Manager Group Safety Management Systems Virgin Australia Location: Brisbane, Australia http://careers.virginaustralia.com/cw/en/job/496413/manager-group-safety- management-systems Business Aviation Regional Sales Manager ARGUS International, Inc. https://home2.eease.adp.com/recruit/?id=18211162 Vice President Flight Operations FEDEX Express https://www.appone.com/MainInfoReq.asp?R_ID=1120042 Curt Lewis