Flight Safety Information June 24, 2016 - No. 124 In This Issue Black boxes from crashed EgyptAir flight will go to France for repair EgyptAir recorders to go to France after data downloads fail Flight Safety Foundation Releases ADS-B Safety Study Aviation agency to warn North Korea on GPS jamming FAA Medical Examiners Review Mental-Health 'Firewalls' Opinion: Flight Department Audits Can Make the Good Better Stratolaunch Systems set to Launch World's Biggest Aircraft SAMCO Receives Authorized Maintenance Organization Approval for Bombardier C Series Aircraft Why Aren't There More Female Airline Pilots? Boeing boss says commercial jet demand strengthening Longest Flight Gets Biggest Jet as A380 Serves Dubai-Auckland Southwest Airlines to postpone delivery of 67 Boeing jets Aviation Specialties Unlimited (ASU) obtains FAA aviation safety inspector training contract SaudiGulf Airlines granted license for Saudi domestic flights Uganda Airlines to Fly Again LETU TO HOST FREE AVIATION DAY AT MCKINNEY NATIONAL AIRPORT JULY 9 ARGUS Charter Operator Flash Survey PhD Research Survey (I) PhD Research Survey (II) Black boxes from crashed EgyptAir flight will go to France for repair A flight recorder retrieved from the crashed EgyptAir flight MS804 is seen in this undated picture issued June 17, 2016. Egyptian investigators said on Thursday they would take the memory chips from the black boxes of crashed EgyptAir flight MS804 to France next week for repairs. The Egyptian investigation committee said in a statement that France's BEA accident investigators would help to remove salt deposits from the chips before they were returned to Egypt for analysis that is crucial to unravelling what caused the Airbus A320 to crash. EgyptAir flight MS804 spiralled down into the Mediterranean early on May 19 on its way from Paris to Cairo, killing all 66 people on board. With little debris and no bodies recovered, investigators hope analysis of the black boxes will help them piece together what happened in the final half hour of the flight. But the plane is believed to have crashed in the deepest part of the Mediterranean and the black boxes, which were recovered last week, were found badly damaged. Egyptian investigators have been attempting for days to repair the memory chips, allowing them to begin transcribing and analysing the recordings and data. The Egyptian investigators also said that French forensics experts would be arriving in Egypt to help retrieve human remains as a specialist ship attempts to map the wreckage. So far, only a few remains have been retrieved and sent for DNA testing. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-egyptair-airplane-idUSKCN0Z92C8 Back to Top EgyptAir recorders to go to France after data downloads fail The black boxes from the doomed EgyptAir flight that went down into the Mediterranean last month, killing 66 people, will travel to France for examination after efforts to extract needed data failed, according to various reports. The Guardian credits the information to U.S. and Egyptian officials. The electronic boards of the records will be flown next week to the headquarters of the aviation investigation accident bureau near Paris, The Guardian reported. While in France, the boards will be repaired, salt from the ocean removed, and they will be repaired to Cairo where the hope is that they can be studied successfully, according to the Guardian. The recorders contain conversations between the pilots and technical parameters from the flight, and could provide some enlightenment to the mystery of what caused the flight to go down, the BBC reported. Egyptian investigators have been trying to inspect and remove salt from about 200 electrical paths to make sure that the circuitry is working well enough to allow the download of accurate data, the FlightGlobal website reported. The recorders, also known as black boxes, were extensively damaged when EgyptAir Flight 804 traveling from Paris to Cairo plunged into the sea on May 19. French and U.S. investigators have overseen the effort to extract information from the recorders. The recorders were made by Honeywell, a U.S. company. The plane, an A320, is made by Airbus, which is based in France. The black box memory units typically provide investigators with critical data, including the pilots' conversations, details about how the plane's engines, navigation systems, and auto- pilot were working, and even information about smoke alarms. The pilots made no distress call before the crash, and no group has claimed to have brought down the aircraft. Radar data showed the aircraft had made violent moves after cruising normally in clear skies, plummeting from 38,000 feet to 15,000 feet. It disappeared when it was at an altitude of about 10,000 feet. Leaked flight data indicated a sensor had detected smoke in a lavatory and a fault in two of the plane's cockpit windows in the final moments of the flight. Egypt's civil aviation minister, Sherif Fathi, has said that terrorism is a more probable cause than equipment failure or some other catastrophic event. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/06/23/egyptair-recorders-go-france-data- downloads/86312780/ Back to Top Flight Safety Foundation Releases ADS-B Safety Study The foundation investigated the challenges and benefits of implementing space-based ADS-B networks, calling the technology a "game changer" for aviation safety. A report recently released by the Flight Safety Foundation touted the safety benefits of ADS-B. The Flight Safety Foundation this week released a study investigating the application of space- based ADS-B networks that provide global coverage of near-real-time flight surveillance. In addition to identifying the safety benefits of ADS-B and challenges of implementation, the study assessed its role in addressing existing and future challenges in aviation. FSF determined that space-based ADS-B could eliminate numerous challenges in remote and oceanic airspace, including lack of surveillance, flight trajectory monitoring that's limited to every 30 minutes, and ATC and pilot workloads hampered by inefficient traffic management strategies. The study also addressed potential benefits for locating missing "black box" data; enhancing planning and situational awareness in conflict zones and volcanic ash clouds; and reducing risk for aircraft flying within adjacent flight information regions (FIRs). "The ability to provide near-real-time global surveillance is a game changer for the aviation industry," says Greg Marshall, vice president, global programs for Flight Safety Foundation. "This type of innovative capability comes along once in a generation. I think we can all agree, it is always safer when the controller knows exactly where the plane is, 100 percent of the time." A copy of the "Benefits Analysis of Space-Based ADS-B" study can be downloaded on FSF's website. http://www.flyingmag.com/flight-safety-foundation-releases-ads-b-safety-study Back to Top Aviation agency to warn North Korea on GPS jamming Jamming operations by North targeted at aircraft navigation systems in South The International Civil Aviation Organization decided earlier this month to send a formal warning to North Korea regarding the country's GPS jamming activity, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported Thursday. The ICAO, the United Nations' aviation regulatory agency, decided at its 208th board meeting - held in Montreal, Canada, from May 16 through June 17 - to send a letter to Pyongyang warning against further active use of GPS jamming equipment causing disruptions in South Korea. The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based worldwide navigation system which relies upon a constellation of orbiting satellites built, launched, and maintained by the United States military. The technology is openly available to anyone with a GPS receiver unit. GPS receivers are essentially specialized radio receivers. The receivers determine their location on the Earth by receiving radio signals from three or more GPS satellites. Because they rely on radio signals, GPS receivers - like all types of radio receivers including mobile phones - are susceptible to interference and jamming. GPS receivers are used for geolocation and other functions in aircraft, automobile navigation systems, boats, mobile phones, handheld GPS receivers used by the military, and in many other devices. Jamming is the act of intentionally disrupting or inhibiting a radio signal from reaching the intended receivers. By broadcasting a stronger signal on the same frequency as the signal from the GPS system, a jamming transmitter can prevent a GPS receiver from distinguishing the signals from the GPS satellites. This effectively drowns out the GPS signal and inhibits the GPS receiver from determining its location. Jamming is considered a hostile act and a form of electronic warfare (EW). It can be used to block radio broadcasts and communications as well as interfere with signals used by equipment such as GPS navigation systems and other electronics which rely on sending and receiving radio signals. South Korea has been concerned with North Korea's jamming activity for years. In 2011, South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Sung-hwan met with the secretary general of the ICAO to seek the agency's help urging North Korea to cease its GPS disruptions. North Korea began conducting GPS jamming operations by 2010 and has caused at least four rounds of disruptions to GPS signals in South Korea since then. The most recent disruptions occurred in March and April of this year. According to the South Korean military, the GPS jamming signals from the North targeted aircraft navigation systems, affecting as many as 926 planes. South Korean and other aircraft, however, were able to continue navigating despite GPS signal disruptions due to also being equipped with the older Inertial Navigation System (INS). The INS does not rely on any signals from outside the aircraft and thus is not vulnerable to jamming. There has been at least one instance, though, of an aircraft being forced to land due to GPS jamming by North Korea. According to South Korea's Chosun Ilbo, in March 2011 an RC-7B aircraft belonging to the U.S. military in Korea made an emergency landing 45 minutes after takeoff due to disruption of its GPS system by jamming signals originating near Haeju and Kaesong in North Korea. North Korea is believed to possess fixed and mobile GPS jamming equipment operated by units of the Korean People's Army. During the most recent round of disruptions, jamming signals reportedly originated from locations near the cities of Kaesong, Kumgang, Yonan, Pyongyang, and Haeju. https://www.nknews.org/2016/06/aviation-agency-to-warn-north-korea-on-gps-jamming/ Back to Top FAA Medical Examiners Review Mental-Health 'Firewalls' The FAA and its aviation medical examiners-physicians who evaluate commercial airline pilots every six months to one year-are considering several options to break through actual or perceived "firewalls" that prevent them from alerting airlines when they observe potential mental health issues during routine or special examinations. The action comes as the agency moves to implement recommendations from its Pilot Fitness aviation rulemaking committee (ARC) formed in the wake of the Germanwings crash in March 2015 to assess pilot mental health issues. The ARC did not call for new psychological testing for pilots but rather a strengthening of existing airline internal pilot help programs and self- reporting. Along with helping airlines to share best practices in that area, the FAA also initiated enhanced training for its corps of aviation medical examiners (AME), physicians who provide pilots with medical certifications, to help them spot warning signs of mental illness. The FAA will upgrade training for its medical examiners to spot potential psychological issues in pilots, but does not plan to introduce specific testing "We have to do more to remove the stigma around mental illness," said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta on June 9 when discussing the FAA's response to the ARC. "The best way to reduce risk is to encourage pilots to voluntarily report issues. Most conditions are treatable." In the Germanwings crash, the co-pilot locked the captain out of the cockpit during cruise flight and commanded the AirbusA320 autopilot to descend from cruise altitude into the French Alps, killing all on board despite repeated attempts by the captain to reenter the cockpit. The copilot had been suffering from severe mental health issues that-due to privacy laws and the pilot's lack of voluntary disclosure-were known to private doctors, but not to the German civil aviation regulator or Germanwings parent company, Lufthansa Group. In its final report on the accident, the French aviation safety agency BEA called for the World Health Organization and the European Union to develop guidelines for member countries to set "clear rules" for when doctor-patient confidentiality should be breached to inform authorities "when a specific patient's health is very likely to impact public safety." A European task force launched after the Germanwings crash also called for a review of national regulations to find the correct balance between patient confidentiality and protection of public safety. In the U.S., similar confidentiality concerns and reporting requirements vary by state, and licensing and specialty boards cloud the issue. There is no national standard for physicians to follow. Based on the recommendations of the ARC, the FAA asked the Aerospace Medical Association (ASMA), the trade group representing doctors in the aerospace field, "to consider addressing the issue of professional reporting responsibilities on a national basis." ASMA, a member of the American Medical Association (AMA), discussed potential national mental health reporting standards for doctors during the AMA's annual meeting June 11-15 in Chicago. "The ARC felt that we needed something at the national level to encourage private practitioners to come forward," says Michael Berry, the FAA's deputy federal air surgeon. Depending on ASMA's actions, Berry says AMA could study the issue further or ask the U.S. Congress to take action. During their required medical examinations with AMEs, airline pilots must self-disclose mental health and other physiological issues from the past three years. While some airlines do perform certain psychological tests on pilot candidates during the hiring process, Berry says those tests are meant more for personality compatibility with the airline rather than a spot check for major psychological illnesses. In the U.S., airline pilots under age 40 must receive a first-class medical check every year, and those age 40 or older must pass the checks every six months. Based on his or her assessment of the pilot's self-disclosure form and the pilot's general condition, the AME may ask for additional tests or defer the application to the FAA's Office of Aerospace Medicine. Berry concedes that AMEs do not administer any formal psychological testing during a pilot's recurring medical checks, but do take note of trends nonetheless. "They get a gestalt of that individual," he says. "If [the AME] doesn't do that, he or she is not doing their job." Berry says the FAA has traditionally not shared its mental health concerns about a particular pilot with the pilot's airline. "We think we should," he says. While an airline will eventually find out indirectly about a problem if a pilot fails his or her six- month or yearly medical examination, Berry says the FAA is considering processes for quicker notification. "If we are examining a pilot's ability to hold a medical certification in between that time, and if we find out that something [has happened], can we let the airline know that we are examining the pilot's medical credentials? We're looking at that and we are trying to make sure we are on firm legal underpinnings [to disclose the information]," he says. www.aviationweek.com Back to Top Opinion: Flight Department Audits Can Make the Good Better Separating the good from the others William Garvey Washington Measuring Up Because he wanted to attend the funeral of a friend's father-and had to be back that same evening to debate the former mayor who wanted his job-U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone opted for the only practical means to do both, a chartered aircraft. A fretful flier, on this day Wellstone unknowingly had reason to be wary. Oh, he knew the weather at the destination was marginal, but given good equipment, judgment, skill and experience, the risks were manageable. However, even though the airplane was solid, the latter three attributes were questionable when applied to the pilots whose paths to the King Air A100's flight deck were sketchy. The captain, who was hired the previous year, had worked most of the preceding decade as a registered nurse, a calling answered after spending 17 months in prison for mail and wire fraud. Prior to that, he had a brief stint as a copilot for a regional, though his two sets of logbooks contradicted each other on many details and a certified flight instructor said only one contained his actual signature. Meanwhile, the copilot withheld from his employer the fact that he'd been fired from a skydiving outfit after failing to qualify flying a Cessna 182 and had resigned as an instructor in training at an airline because he was unable to master systems and procedures for the AirbusA320. Fellow pilots and other charter company personnel indicated that both men often exhibited potentially serious performance deficiencies during flight operations. After examining the evidence attendant to the Oct. 25, 2004, approach-to-landing crash that killed Wellstone, his wife, daughter, three aides and crew, the NTSB concluded the pilots apparently let the airplane slow until stalling at an altitude too low for recovery. The tragedy was not without precedent. Five years earlier, another A100 operated by the charter outfit crashed while landing in fog in Colorado, killing the pilot and a passenger. Because of that earlier accident, among other reasons, the company was given a DNQ-"does not qualify"-for any rating by ARGUS International, whose various services include evaluating the performance, policies, structure and personnel of charter and scheduled carriers, as well as business flight departments. When the Minneapolis Star Tribune noted the DNQ in covering the Wellstone crash, the charter company sued ARGUS, challenging both its audit process and the ratings' worth-and lost. After that, ARGUS founder/CEO Joe Moeggenberg said his audit business boomed. Why would an operator invite auditor oversight? The International Air Transportation Association demands periodic audits of its airline members. Business aircraft operators use audits to help identify areas that could be made safer or more efficient. Some charter customers demand audits of any operator seeking their business. And a good audit can help to serve as a differentiator from less competent competitors. John Grillo, president and a founder of Executive Fliteways, a business jet management and charter operator based at MacArthur Airport, Ronkonkoma, New York, says of audits: "It's always good to have a second set of eyes looking over your shoulder. I just wish we didn't have them looking six or seven times a year." He says that in addition to ARGUS, which gave Executive Fliteways its highest rating, the operation undergoes periodic, multiday audits by Wyvern Consulting Ltd. and several Fortune 500 companies. Also, it is one of two companies to meet the Air Charter Safety Foundation's highest standard and was the second charter firm to meet the International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO). While all the audits are unique, many elements overlap. Despite those high endorsements, however, he says some customers "are under the impression that just because the FAA awarded them air carrier certificates, all [charter] companies are equal" and thus price becomes the differentiator. "But that's not true, not even close," Grillo says. David McKay, president of United States Aircraft Insurance Group, agrees and says he's "very supportive" of audits. In fact his company, which insures private and commercial operations, offers a 5% discount for customers who achieve and maintain IS-BAO registry, or whose pilots undergo simulator training twice annually, or implement a flight operations quality assurance program. Those doing all three get 15% off. Still, even well-considered and intended standards can be circumvented. The pilots who were among the seven killed when their Gulfstream IV crashed during a failed takeoff from Hanscom Field in Bedford, Massachusetts, on May 31, 2014, had achieved IS-BAO registry for their operation. And yet it was their failure to conduct control checks-among several things they habitually ignored, NTSB discovered-that caused the gust control lock to remain in place and ultimately led to disaster. "You really can't audit against stupid," Moeggenberg observes. "You can't audit against pilots making mistakes." www.aviationweek.com Back to Top Stratolaunch Systems set to Launch World's Biggest Aircraft Stratolaunch Systems, a unit of Microsoft co-owner Paul Allen's Vulcan aerospace, is all set to reveal the world's biggest airplane in the coming months. The herculean air-craft, which is almost as big as a football field, is custom built to launch satellites into the orbit. Allen plans to position the plane in a manner by which satellites can be quickly and directly delivered into very precise orbits, without launch range scheduling issues and weather-related delays. The Stratolaunch is a twin-fuselage craft that integrates engines, landing gear and other such parts from a couple of Boeing 747 jets coupled with a frame, wings and skin handmade of lightweight composites. It has wingspan of 385ft, and fuselage length of 238ft. Weighing at a massive 5, 44,311kg, the craft can reach a maximum speed of 450knots (roughly 850km/hr). The plane is designed to carry a rocket and payload with a combined weight of up to 550,000 pounds. Initially, when the plane was announced in 2011, Elon musk's Space X was hired to provide one of its Falcon rockets to catapult low and medium class payloads into orbit after they were dropped by the Stratolaunch carrier aircraft. But the companies fell out and Orbital ATK was approached for a booster rocket. But this too fell through due to technical issues. Now that the aircraft is almost complete, the company is in talks with numerous rocket firms to forge a partnership that would provide them with launch services for small and medium- sized satellites. Almost 75% of the assembly work is complete, with only the engines, landing gear and one tail section yet to be installed, which they expect to accomplish by the end of this year. Commercial services of the airplane are expected to commence by 2020. http://www.siliconindia.com/news/business/Stratolaunch-Systems-set-to-Launch-Worlds- Biggest-Aircraft-nid-196349-cid-3.html Back to Top SAMCO Receives Authorized Maintenance Organization Approval for Bombardier C Series Aircraft - Will provide maintenance services for C Series aircraft in Europe and surrounding regions MONTRÉAL, QUÉBEC--(Marketwired - June 23, 2016) - Bombardier Commercial Aircraft announced today that its Authorized Service Facility (ASF), SAMCO Aircraft Maintenance B.V. has received its C Series aircraft Part 145 base maintenance approval from the Civil Aviation Authority, The Netherlands. This approval recognizes SAMCO as the first Part 145 Aircraft Maintenance Organization (AMO) in the world, outside of Bombardier's own manufacturing facilities. SAMCO will provide maintenance services on C Series aircraft based in Europe and the surrounding regions. "We are delighted with our Part 145 approval and with the distinction of being the first Bombardier C Series aircraft ASF in the world," said Constant van Schaik, Chief Executive Officer, SAMCO. "With our AMO approval, SAMCO can now provide line and base maintenance, and Continuing Airworthiness Management Organization (CAMO) services to operators of Bombardier's C Series aircraft. In the future -- when the aircraft are due for heavy checks -- we will be ready to assist with such services as well." "SAMCO has been working diligently towards obtaining its Part 145 approval for the C Series aircraft since being selected by Bombardier as an ASF in June 2015, and we are thrilled with this accomplishment," said Todd Young, Vice President and General Manager, Customer Services, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. "SAMCO has been working closely with us as we prepare for the first delivery and entry-into-service of the C Series aircraft in the coming weeks, and we look forward to the ongoing collaboration." SAMCO also provides aircraft maintenance services on Q Series aircraft as part of Bombardier's global network of strategically located ASFs. About C Series Aircraft The C Series family of aircraft, representing the fusion of performance and technology, is a 100 per cent all-new design that offers operators up to US $13 million extra value per aircraft. By focusing on the 100- to 150-seat market segment, Bombardier has designed the C Series aircraft to deliver unparalleled economic advantage to operators and to open up new opportunities for single-aisle aircraft operations. By employing advanced materials, state-of-the-art technologies and advanced aerodynamics, combined with the groundbreaking Pratt & Whitney PurePower® PW1500G engine, the C Series aircraft is delivering a greater-than 10 per cent unit cost advantage compared to similarly-sized, re-engined aircraft. In addition to delivering best-in-class economics with the C Series aircraft, Bombardier has placed considerable emphasis on cabin design to ensure a superior passenger experience. The aircraft offers 19-inch-wide seats that set a new industry standard, large overhead bins that accommodate a carry-on bag for each passenger, and the largest windows in the single-aisle market. Together these attributes create a widebody feel that offers passengers an unparalleled level of comfort. The game-changing C Series aircraft offers the best-in-class environmental scorecard and is the quietest in-production commercial jet in its class. With a combination of outstanding short- field capability and a maximum range of up to 3,300 NM (6,112 km), the C Series aircraft is uniquely positioned for varied types of operations. About SAMCO Aircraft Maintenance B.V. Established in 1987 as an independent third-party maintenance provider for a complete range of regional jet and turboprop aircraft, SAMCO's modern, fully equipped facility provides a vast array of aircraft maintenance activities, including heavy base maintenance checks, line maintenance, logistic support, continuing airworthiness, structural repairs, and structural & avionics modification programs. SAMCO Aircraft Maintenance has an EASA part 21 DOA approval for the design of minor changes and repairs on the aircraft. SAMCO was first appointed as an ASF for the Q Series aircraft in 2009. News and information are available at www.samco.aero. About Bombardier Bombardier is the world's leading manufacturer of both planes and trains. Looking far ahead while delivering today, Bombardier is evolving mobility worldwide by answering the call for more efficient, sustainable and enjoyable transportation everywhere. Our vehicles, services and, most of all, our employees are what make us a global leader in transportation. Bombardier is headquartered in Montréal, Canada. Our shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (BBD) and we are listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index. In the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, we posted revenues of $18.2 billion. News and information are available at bombardier.com or follow us on Twitter @Bombardier http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/samco-receives-authorized-maintenance- organization-approval-bombardier-c-series-aircraft-2137164.htm Back to Top Why Aren't There More Female Airline Pilots? This High-Flying Woman Is Breaking Boundaries It's a sad fact, but women in the aviation industry is a rarity. Cara King has worked as both a pilot and on the business side of the male-dominated aviation industry. Courtesy of Cara King. Think about it: when was the last time you were on a plane and heard a female pilot's voice? It's a sad fact, but women in the aviation industry is a rarity. The Air Line Pilots Association, which represents pilots at major and regional carriers in the United States and Canada, says that women make up just 5% of its 53,000 members. Globally, it's even worse - only 4,000 of the 130,000 airline pilots are women, according to the International Society of Women Airline Pilots. And it's not much better for women in the executive ranks of aviation. "It's a boys' game," Marcia Ferranto, chief executive of WTS International, an advocacy group for women in transportation, told the Boston Globe. But those statistics didn't let Cara King hold her back from becoming an aviatrix and seeking a high-flying career that has taken her from the cockpit to the business side of the industry. King is an aviation sales adviser with XOJET - an on-demand private jet charter company that is revolutionizing the way people fly privately - a pilot, and a skydiver. King skydives with her husband Cameron. Courtesy of Cara King. "After graduating high school, I got accepted to a couple good colleges and decided not to go to any of them," King says. "I sat down with my parents in tears and said, 'I don't even know what I want to do. I don't want to waste your money. I don't want to go to college, I want to travel.'" At some point during those travels, a friend asked King to go skydiving in Florida - and she got hooked. But a year after becoming a licensed skydiving instructor, she realized it wouldn't work as a long-term career plan. And that's when the lightbulb went off: Aviation was the answer. http://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2016/06/23/why-arent-there-more-female- airline-pilots-this-high-flying-woman-is-breaking-boundaries/#4c4151053f96 Back to Top Boeing boss says commercial jet demand strengthening The Boeing logo is seen at their headquarters in Chicago, in this April 24, 2013 file photo. REUTERS/Jim Young/File Photo Demand for passenger jets is strengthening, Boeing Co (BA.N) chief Dennis Muilenbeurg was quoted as saying on Thursday in an interview with French newspaper Le Figaro. "In commercial aviation, demand is not dipping, on the contrary," he said in text that was written in French. "We reckon that over the coming 20 years, growth in air transport demand will generate demand for 38,000 new planes. To deal with that, we plan to increase deliveries again from about 750 planes in 2016 to more than 900 in five years time. BDS, our aerospace and security division, is doing well too." http://www.reuters.com/article/us-boeing-chief-idUSKCN0Z90GV Back to Top Longest Flight Gets Biggest Jet as A380 Serves Dubai-Auckland * Emirates to replace Boeing 777 with Airbus superjumbo * Switch will make 224 further seats available per trip The world's longest scheduled air service, spanning the 8,824 miles between Dubai and Auckland, is to be operated by the world's biggest passenger jet as Gulf carrier Emirates almost doubles capacity on the route. Upgrading the daily operation to Airbus Group SE A380s from Boeing Co. 777-200LRs from from Oct. 30 will lift the seat count to 490 per flight from 266. The move reflects the high level of demand since the service was introduced in March, Emirates said Thursday in a statement. The largest long-haul airline prefers to open new routes with modestly sized wide-bodies before considering the A380 double-decker. Auckland is beyond the range of the 350-seat 777-300ER, the mainstay of the fleet, but reachable with the smaller -200LR, as well as the four-engine A380. The outbound Auckland flight takes 17 hours and 15 minutes and the return just under 16 hours. Emirates has now taken delivery of 80 A380s, and last month ordered two more, lifting its backlog for the model to 64. Doha-Auckland Mideast rival Qatar Airways will snatch the distance record by 200 miles in February when it too adds flights to Auckland. The service was put back from December following Airbus A350 delivery delays that mean 777s earmarked for the service won't be free as envisaged. The leading Gulf carriers are adding performance-stretching destinations after largely exhausting the potential for new links between the biggest cities. Their hubs at a natural crossroads between Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas also attract enough transfer passengers to make marginal services viable. Singapore Airlines Ltd. is likely to regain the longest-flight title with the reintroduction of direct services to the New York area once Airbus makes a lighter version of the A350-900 available in 2018. The Asian carrier once flew the 19-hour, 9,500-mile route using a four-engine Airbus A340-500 with 100 business seats before scrapping the service in 2013 after it proved unviable. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-06-23/longest-flight-gets-biggest-jet-as- a380-serves-dubai-auckland Back to Top Southwest Airlines to postpone delivery of 67 Boeing jets Southwest Airlines planes are seen at LAX airport in Los Angeles, California, United States, October 22, 2015. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson Southwest Airlines Co (LUV.N) will push back the delivery of 67 Boeing Co (BA.N) 737 MAX 8 aircraft by up to six years, delaying $1.9 billion of spending, the airline said Thursday. The budget airline said it postponed the new deliveries to the 2023-25 timeframe to manage its capital spending. It also said in an investor presentation that the revenue environment remained "challenging." Shares of Boeing and Southwest fell after the announcement, which raised concern among investors about how long planemakers such as the Chicago-based planemaker can sustain demand for new jets, following years of orders that have created a sizeable production backlog. Southwest shares retraced much of their losses in later trading, while Boeing was up as part of a broad market rally linked to optimism that Britain would remain in the European Union. [.N] "We don't see one airline having an impact on Boeing's current plans for narrowbody production," said RBC Capital Markets analyst Robert Stallard in a research note. However, he said the news was not assuring to investors. "Having a well known, well run customer like Southwest deferring aircraft is likely to prompt concern that there are others to follow," Stallard said. Boeing shares dipped after the news but were up more than 1 percent at the New York Stock Exchange's close. In a statement, a Boeing spokesman said, "We continue to see healthy demand in the single- aisle market, with the Next-Generation 737 sold out of positions and the MAX sold out through 2021 ...We were also able to find a mutually-beneficial way to sequence the growth of Southwest's 737 fleet over the long term." The new schedule does not change Southwest's debut as the first operator of the MAX 8 aircraft next year. Southwest shares fell as much 5.1 percent in afternoon trading but were only down 1.7 percent at the close. Dallas-based Southwest earlier said it moved up plans to retire its classic Boeing 737 jets to the third quarter of 2017 from 2018. The move was in part aimed at resolving uncertainty about U.S.-mandated pilot training for flying those aircraft and their next-generation model, the 737 MAX. Stallard said the early retirements suggest that airlines' move to fly older, less efficient planes while fuel was cheap "has potentially run its course, with oil back at $50." Southwest said Thursday it would advance six orders for 737-800 planes to next year from 2018 to help cover these early retirements. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-southwest-boeing-delivery-idUSKCN0Z920H Back to Top Aviation Specialties Unlimited (ASU) obtains FAA aviation safety inspector training contract For the third time Aviation Specialties Unlimited, (ASU) was selected as the company that will train the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Aviation Safety Inspectors (ASI) on the use of night vision goggles (NVGs). ASU will provide both initial training and recurrent training to FAA ASI's beginning on July 23, 2016. During the previous two contracts awarded to ASU, the company conducted 1,015 flight hours and 956 academic hours of training. ASU provided initial training to 87 ASI's and recurrent training to 70 ASI's. "Our pilots' unmatched experience and depth of knowledge will provide great value to the FAA," said chief pilot and director of training Justin Watlington. "Our flight instructors have 30 years or more experience in aviation and NVGs and have been with ASU for more than a decade and have worked with the FAA's POI's, ASI test pilots and managers during two previous NVG training contract awards. "They have flown and trained with NVGs around the world in the most extreme environments including remote mountains, tropics, deserts, and even the Arctic. They have also flown in many capacities including search and rescue, emergency medical, firefighting, agricultural and combat." ASU's training will take place in Boise, Idaho in the high desert mountains and in remote areas where low-light conditions made it ideal for training. ASU has trained pilots and crews from around the world that fly in extreme conditions for unique missions. FAA ASI's will receive eight hours of ground school training, 1.5 hours of aircraft familiarization and 10 hours of flight training using NVGs. "Our ultimate goal with anyone flying NVGs is to increase safety. If even one life is saved because of the proper use of NVG's, then we have accomplished our goal. We have heard countless stories of lives saved, criminals apprehended, and lost people found because of NVGs. We are honored to work with the FAA on ASU's third NVG contract award and look forward to working with their aviation professionals once more," said Watlington. ASU has sold and serviced NVGs for more than 20 years, has modified almost 1,000 FAA certified aircraft worldwide and has trained more than 6,000 people. ASU will begin scheduling training session immediately. ASU will be at booth 404 at the annual Airborne Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) annual convention held in Savannah, Georgia July 20 to 22, 2016. http://www.verticalmag.com/news/article/ASU-obtains-FAA-aviation-safety-inspector-training- contract Back to Top SaudiGulf Airlines granted license for Saudi domestic flights Saudi Arabia has granted SaudiGulf Airlines a license to operate domestic flights within the kingdom. (Al Arabiya) Saudi Arabia has granted SaudiGulf Airlines a license to operate domestic flights within the kingdom, the first such award in a long-planned liberalization of the aviation market, state news agency SPA reported. SaudiGulf, based in the eastern city of Dammam, received regulatory approvals from Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) on June 9 and was granted its air operator certificate in a formal ceremony in Riyadh on Wednesday night. Previously, only national carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines and budget operator National Air Services were allowed to serve a domestic market of about 27 million people. Foreign carriers could fly in and out of Saudi Arabia, but not within the country. The Saudi authorities began accepting applications to allow other airlines to operate internal flights in 2012 and SaudiGulf, owned by the Abdel Hadi Al-Qahtani & Sons group, had initially planned to start operating internal flights in 2014. The "Arab News" website reported that SaudiGulf will begin domestic flights in September and expects to start international flights to Dubai by the end of the year. Representatives of SaudiGulf were not available for immediate comment on Thursday. Qatar Airways, through its subsidiary for the Saudi market, Al Maha Airways, also received an initial carrier licence in 2012 but has yet to be given final approval to operate flights in the kingdom. http://english.alarabiya.net/en/business/aviation-and-transport/2016/06/23/SaudiGulf- Airlines-granted-license-for-Saudi-domestic-flights.html Back to Top Uganda Airlines to Fly Again, Says Museveni Kampala - After nearly two decades in limbo, Uganda Airlines, a national carrier, could fly again after President Museveni, in his first address to the new Cabinet yesterday termed the lack of a national airline "a big shame," criticising Kenyan, Ethiopia and South African "brothers" for ditching the comradeship and instead opting to exploit Ugandans. The president directed the new Minister for Works and Transport to conclude discussions with investors to help Uganda start a national airline as a matter of urgency. "Ugandan travellers are suffering because of, apparently, not having a national airline," Mr Museveni said, reading from a prepared statement. "I thought that our brothers in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, etc. having airlines would serve all of us. That, however, is apparently not the case," he said. The Uganda Airlines, which was established in May 1976 under the Idi Amin government, was in 2001 liquated over heavy debts that stood at a tune of more than $6m (about Shs21b). The debt had been reduced from $12m (42.8b). http://allafrica.com/stories/201606240046.html Back to Top LETU TO HOST FREE AVIATION DAY AT MCKINNEY NATIONAL AIRPORT JULY 9 (Longview, Texas) - LeTourneau University is hosting a day of exploring careers in the aviation industry for high school students from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 9, at its educational center at the McKinney National Airport, 1500 Industrial Blvd. in McKinney. The event will feature free airplane rides, on a first-come, first-served basis, for high school students with parental permission. Display aircraft will include an LETU Citabria, an aircraft from DFW-based regional carrier Envoy Airlines, an aircraft from Wichita, Kansas-based manufacturer Cessna, and an air ambulance from the McKinney-based First Flight. The Aircraft Owners and Pilot Association (AOPA) also plans to bring an aircraft for display. To register for this free event, go to www.letu.edu/McKinney. For more information, contact Cullen Hippler, student services coordinator, at (214) 932-1169 or send an email to cullenmathewwhippler@letu.edu. LeTourneau University offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs across a range of disciplines and delivery models at LETU's residential campus in Longview, Texas, and in hybrid and fully online options at centers in Dallas, Houston and McKinney. For additional information, visit www.letu.edu. Back to Top ARGUS Charter Operator Flash Survey Dear Air Charter Operators, We are asking for your help in collecting some quick metrics to assess revenue vs. non- revenue flight activity within the charter industry. This is a very short one-question survey that will take less than a minute of your time! Survey Link: http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07ecqh07moiomz0q4d/start Back to Top PhD Research Survey (I) Cranfield University Research: Do you or have you worked in aerospace design, manufacturing, or test engineering? My name is Steve Daniels, PhD researcher at Cranfield University, and ground crew for Lightning T-5 XS458. As part of my PhD, I am investigating how many aircraft design professionals have had some form of flying experience, and what effect this may have. If you currently work, or have previously worked in aerospace design, manufacturing, or test engineering (e.g: Conceptual Design, Aerospace Engineering Consultancy, Structural Engineering, Systems/Sub-Assembly Engineering, Computational Fluid Dynamics, Tooling Design, Flight Testing) I'd be grateful if you could spare some time to complete the survey by following the link below. If you know of anyone working in these areas who might also be interested, please share the link: https://cranfielduniversity.eu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_82LinCFK4OdpEJn This research has been approved by the University's ethics committee, and will not record sensitive personal or commercial data. If you have any queries or comments, I welcome any contact at - s.daniels@cranfield.ac.uk Back to Top PhD Research Survey (II) Survey Link: https://cranfielduniversity.eu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_d4IlfWhuMW3RgRn Curt Lewis