Flight Safety Information July 11, 2016 - No. 134 In This Issue Boeing, Airbus Clash Over Runway Safety System DENVER-BOUND DELTA AIRLINES FLIGHT DIVERTED TO TULSA Three aircraft nearly ram into balloons (Indonesia) Boeing 787-8 Inflight Engine shutdown Pilots forced to land a plane 'blind' after HAILSTONES severely damage both windshields New FAA Policy Encourages the Use of Safety Equipment Air traffic controllers question safety of O'Hare runway rotation Delta Airlines flight lands at Ellsworth Air Force Base by mistake NCAA suspends three pilots for drinking on duty (Nigeria) Russia Brags That It Can Detect And Track New F-35 Stealth Jet Boeing Says If Congress Blocks Its Iran Jet Deal, Rivals' Should Be Halted Too Boeing Sees $5.9 Trillion Airplane Market Despite Recent Turmoil Tiny crew delivers first set of massive 777 landing gear Air New Zealand 'shafted' elderly pilots over Airbus training Former fighter pilot, Dorothy Olsen, honored in Washington on 100th birthday Mitsubishi Eyes 'Expedited' Flight Test Schedule Bombardier CS300 Aircraft Awarded Type Certification by Transport Canada ATR Projects Need For 2,800 Regional Turboprops By 2035 ERAU Worldwide to expand online degree options ISASI 2016, Reykjavik, Iceland...17 to 20 October, 2016 Boeing, Airbus Clash Over Runway Safety System Aircraft makers disagree about need to require feature that helps prevent runway overruns An Ecuadorean airline Tame plane overran the runway in April. By ANDY PASZTOR LONDON-Leaders of Boeing Co. and Airbus Group SE like to say they don't compete over safety, and that message is likely to reverberate throughout the international air show that begins Monday at a suburban airport near here. But crash experts believe that isn't the case when it comes to devising ways to prevent one of the most common types of airliner accidents: planes rolling off the sides or ends of runways during landings. Runway excursions, as they are called, have been the first or second most frequent category of commercial-aviation accidents world-wide for well over 15 years, prompting a series of maneuvers by both companies to try to grab the lead in combating the hazards. These runway events don't result in the largest number of fatalities, though they can end with everything from collapsed landing gears to fractured fuselages. By some measures, sliding off a strip causes roughly one-fifth of all global airline accidents that produce substantial aircraft damage. The two leading jet makers remain at loggerheads about a fundamental point: the need for joint U.S.- European technical standards to enhance pilot awareness about the dangers of touching down too fast or too far down a runway. Since 2009, Airbus has marketed a proprietary system, now installed on about 430 airliners, that automatically assesses speed, altitude, flight-control settings, runway topography, winds and parameters eight times per second. The goal is to warn pilots beforehand that they likely won't be able to safely stop on a runway, and automatically exert maximum braking force on the ground when necessary. Chicago-based Boeing hasn't developed its own offering, but is working with partners. What had been a behind-the-scenes tussle is now becoming more public, because Airbus and European aviation authorities are stepping up efforts to promote common standards and new runway safeguards. In an interview last month, Patrick Ky, executive director of the European Aviation Safety Agency, said Airbus initially asked it to mandate its proprietary technology. Mr. Ky said EASA told Airbus it wasn't going to mandate its technology. But EASA is pushing ahead with a rule that is likely to require installation of some new unspecified technology, at least on the production line, according to Mr. Ky. European technical advisers to EASA, meanwhile, expect to issue detailed engineering standards in this area by February. U.S. regulators have responded by arguing that at this point, any international standard runs the risk of being skewed to unfairly benefit Airbus. "We haven't been convinced a standard is necessary," said Bruce DeCleene, a manager at the Federal Aviation Administration. "We have a lot of airplanes that already have" various runway excursion protections on board, without waiting for FAA mandates, he said on the sidelines of an industry conference last month. A Boeing spokesman said "we endorse a coordinated, international approach," but regulations "should not prescribe one technology or another" to achieve safety goals. Fallout from the friction, according to people familiar with the details, has roiled suppliers and other segments of the industry torn about what direction to take. Honeywell International Corp., for example, has a competing warning system that also is in the marketplace and has been voluntarily adopted by some carriers on certain Boeing models. Last month, Lou Volchansky, an FAA technical manager, said the FAA isn't likely to follow Europe's lead because "this is something that's not on a safety critical path." But Mr. Volchansky added that the FAA does "recognize the need for" runway-excursion protections, and U.S. carriers can embrace the Airbus solution as long as they get necessary approvals. http://www.wsj.com/articles/boeing-airbus-clash-over-safety-system-1468198041 Back to Top DENVER-BOUND DELTA AIRLINES FLIGHT DIVERTED TO TULSA AFTER SEVERAL PASSENGERS GET SICK WITH CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING A Denver-bound Delta Airlines flight from Atlanta was diverted to Tulsa Saturday after at least a dozen passengers became ill due to carbon monoxide ingestion, KJRH (Tulsa) is reporting. At about 3:00 p.m. Central Time on Saturday, between 12 and 15 passengers on Delta flight 1817 began complaining of headache, nausea, and dizziness - sure signs of carbon monoxide poisoning. The captain made the decision to land the plane, and at about 3:30 p.m., the aircraft was on the ground in Tulsa. Dylan Doyle, who was on his way to Denver to see his girlfriend, was one of the 150 or so passengers on the flight (Doyle didn't get sick). He described how his fellow passengers, on seeing other passengers get sick, started to freak out. "As people started seeing other people freaking out everybody just kind of went into a panic." Once on the ground in Tulsa, emergency crews began treating the sickened passengers. Tulsa Fire Captain Stan May said that, once the sickened passengers got some fresh air and some oxygen from emergency medical personnel, they improved immediately. "We arrived, assisted with evaluating 12 patients who had complained of or were showing symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning," Still, they were taken to an area hospital to be evaluated, just to be on the safe side. They were all found to have had elevated carbon monoxide levels in the blood. Another passenger was also treated for hypertension. While glad that his fellow passengers got the treatment they needed, Doyle is not at all pleased with how Delta handled the passengers who weren't sick. They were all evacuated from the plane and forced to wait in the Tulsa airport for several hours, without their luggage and with no information about what was going to happen next. "So everyone is just sitting here quarantined and they're not telling us anything and it's getting to the point where people, tensions are running high." By late Saturday night - several hours after having been diverted - Doyle and his fellow passengers were put on another flight to Denver. And although he was glad to be allowed to finally leave, Doyle is not impressed with the way Delta handled the situation. KWTV (Oklahoma City) reports that Tulsa fire crews inspected the aircraft and weren't able to detect elevated carbon monoxide levels. The plane will be taken to a Delta maintenance facility where it can be further inspected by aircraft technicians. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas that, among other sources, can be produced by the burning of fossil fuels (such as jet fuel, or gasoline in your car). It can be toxic to humans in concentrations as low as 35 parts per million. This is not the first time that a passenger flight has been diverted due to passengers possibly getting sick from carbon monoxide poisoning. Back in June 2015, according to the L.A. Times, a Denver-bound flight from Los Angeles was diverted to Grand Junction, Colorado, after passengers began showing signs of carbon monoxide poisoning. At least one passenger vomited, and several others reported headaches, nausea and dizziness. All of the sick passengers were treated and quickly recovered, and the remaining passengers were put on another plane to their destination. In a statement, Delta Airlines said the safety and security of its passengers and crew are its top priority. http://www.inquisitr.com/3293644/denver-bound-united-airlines-flight-diverted-to-tulsa-after-several- passengers-get-sick/ Back to Top Three aircraft nearly ram into balloons (Indonesia) An Airbus A320 from budget carrier Citilink takes off at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali on June 1.(Antara/Nyoman Budhiana) During Idul Fitri celebrations, some revelers like to release big balloons to make big wishes. They appear to be oblivious, however, to the risk the balloons pose to air traffic, as suggested by recent reports of aircraft narrowly avoiding collision. "Adi Sutjipto airbase air traffic control reported at least three disturbances to flights due to the release of balloons on Saturday," airbase spokesman Maj. Sus Giyanto was quoted as saying by Tempo.co. An AirAsia pilot flying the Yogyakarta-Kualanamu route reported to the controller that his aircraft, at an altitude of at 18,000 feet, nearly collided with two balloons flying only 10 meters away at 9:25 a.m. Another balloon was seen reaching around 30,000 feet. The balloons, powered by fire and measuring 5 meters in diameter and 10 meters in height, can reach altitudes of 35,000 feet. In addition to AirAsia, the crews of two Citilink aircraft reported much the same sighting in the sky over Godean, Sleman, north of Surakarta, at altitudes of 9,000 feet and 17,000 feet, respectively. Adi Sutjipto airbase operations chief Col. Indan Gilang Buldansyah advised people not to release such balloons, since they could disrupt flights and cause accidents. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/07/10/three-aircraft-nearly-ram-into-balloons.html Back to Top Boeing 787-8 Inflight Engine shutdown Date: 09-JUL-2016 Time: 14:08 Type: Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner Owner/operator: Qatar Airways Registration: A7-BCT C/n / msn: 38338 / 266 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 254 Airplane damage: None Location: Bucharest Henri Coanda International Airport (OTP/LROP) - Romania Phase: En route Nature: Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Oslo Gardermoen Airport / Norway (OSL/ENGM) Destination airport: Doha Hamad International Airport / Qatar (DOH/OTHH) Narrative: The aircraft operated on a flight from Oslo to Doha when the right engine overheats.The crew shut down the engine and decided to divert to Bucharest.the aircraft landed safely and none of 254 occupants on board were injured. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=188579 Back to Top Pilots forced to land a plane 'blind' after HAILSTONES severely damage both windshields * China Southern Airlines plane was travelling from Guangzhou on July 9 * Flight CZ3483 landed at its final destination, Chengdu, safely that evening * Although the aircraft was severely damaged, no injuries were reported A China Southern Airlines plane was severely damaged during a hail storm as it descended towards its destination of Chengdu. The battering by hailstones caused multiple cracks across both windshields, obliterating the view and forcing the pilots to fly virtually 'blind'. Fortunately, the crew managed to land the aircraft safely at the Chinese airport and there were no injuries reported. Both windshields of the China Southern Airlines plane were severely damaged during a hail storm as it descended towards its destination of Chengdu The nose of the plane had most of its paint stripped off by the hailstones with the metal bodywork showing According to AV Herald, the Airbus A320 was travelling from Guangzhou to Chengdu on July 9. Flight CZ3483 encountered the hail storm as it descended towards the southern Chinese city. AV Herald described the windshield as having become 'basically opaque'. This meant the pilots had to navigate using their instruments rather than by sight. As well as damage to the windshields, the hail stones stripped off the paint from the nose of the plane. The leading edge of the left engine fan was also severely damaged. Airline crew were able to land the aircraft safely and it arrived at Chengdu Airport at 7.51pm local time. China Southern Airlines released a statement via the company's Weibo account, China's equivalent of Twitter. It read: 'On July 9, a China Southern Airlines B-9931 A320 aircraft, flight CZ3483 travelling from Guangzhou to Chengdu, took off from Guangzhou Baiyun Airport at 18.05. It arrived at 19.51 in Chengdu Shuangliu Airport. 'After the plane landed, maintenance staff checked over the plane and established that the radar cover on the front of the plane, both pilot windshields and parts of the body of the plane were damaged. 'Their initial investigation concluded that the damage was as a result of hail stones mid-flight. 'The plane is parked at the airport for repair. 'Flights scheduled for the aircraft have now been assigned to other planes.' http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3684136/Pilots-forced-land-plane-blind- HAILSTONES-severely-damage-windshields.html Back to Top New FAA Policy Encourages the Use of Safety Equipment Agency to streamline approval process for a wide variety of safety-enhancing gear. A new FAA policy statement will make it easier for pilots to access flight safety equipment. In an effort to encourage the use of non-required safety equipment in general aviation airplanes and helicopters, the FAA has taken further steps to make the installation of such equipment less expensive to the end user. Previously all equipment installed in the airplane had to through arduous certification processes, making the barriers of bringing new equipment to market very expensive. The intent of a new policy statement, named Approval of Non-Required Safety Enhancing Equipment (NORSEE), which was published earlier this spring, is to allow a greater number of pilots access to equipment that makes flying safer but where a failure condition of the equipment is minor. The policy statement is an expansion of the simplified design approval and installation requirements for angle of attack (AOA) indicators, which was published in 2014. But NORSEE goes far beyond the initial focus on AOA, which helps pilots recognize an imminent stalled condition. Equipment under the new policy includes traffic advisory systems, terrain awareness and warning systems, attitude indicators, fire-extinguishing systems, autopilot or stability augmentation systems and more. Equipment approved under NORSEE will be published on the FAA's website. http://www.flyingmag.com/new-faa-policy-encourages-use-safety-equipment Back to Top Air traffic controllers question safety of O'Hare runway rotation A jet passes over Hillside Drive in Bensenville as it prepares to land at O'Hare International Airport. Officials hope a new runway rotation plan will bring noise relief at night for residents, but some current and former air traffic controllers have concerns. Months of negotiations culminated Wednesday in the debut of an overnight runway rotation test at O'Hare International Airport intended to give sleepless residents relief by distributing jet noise across the region. The rare experiment comes after pressure from thousands fed up with the din, and it represents an unprecedented collaboration of Chicago, the suburbs and Federal Aviation Administration. Too bad some of the folks in charge of landing the airplanes aren't on board. I spoke with one current and two retired air traffic controllers who think elements of the rotation, such as removing longer runways on certain weeks, pose risks and could cause problems for pilots. Every operation at O'Hare is safe, FAA administrators counter. The runway rotation, which is voluntary, changes weekly. Parallel and diagonal ones will be in the mix as well as 10,801- and 13,000-foot-long behemoths and shorter runways ranging from 7,500 to 9,600 feet. If someone had asked their opinion, the controllers say, they would have advised the Chicago Department of Aviation to always keep one runway of at least 10,000 feet open overnight, as was the custom to accommodate aircraft like cargo planes loaded with freight. "The reality is, those jets require those runways," said Guy Lieser, a retired air traffic controller and pilot. "There will be issues with heavy jets, especially if there's bad weather and the runways are slicker." FAA officials did not directly comment on controllers' concerns. "As the test of the city's nighttime rotation plan moves forward, we will continue to work closely with the Department of Aviation to ensure safe operations and thorough coordination of the city's procedures," FAA spokesman Tony Molinaro said. The rotation is a six-month test and will be evaluated at its conclusion. While the region sleeps, FedEx, UPS and foreign cargo jets keep O'Hare humming. Concerns raised by Lieser and the other controllers include: * Big jets denied a long runway could overshoot a short one or might have to divert to another airport. * The city requests two hours' notice if a pilot requires O'Hare's longest runway, 10-Left/28-Right, stretching 13,000 feet. Not every arriving pilot will be able to comply with the two-hour rule, controllers said. And when closed runways open up in the middle of the night with maintenance workers out on the airfield, it could compromise safety, * Departing pilots who need extra length could end up waiting until more runways open in the early morning, sources said. That could be an unwelcome wake-up call for neighborhoods some weeks. * Using a single runway for takeoffs and landings, which occurs about four weeks out of the 12-week rotation, is less efficient and adds an unnecessary risk. The city's aviation department deferred to the FAA on the issue. "We always make sure that every operation is a safe operation," Molinaro said. The O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission, which spearheaded the rotation, said FAA authorities thoroughly vetted the plan. "FAA management has been extensively involved and issued the approval for the test," noise commission Chairwoman and Mount Prospect Mayor Arlene Juracek said. "This appears to be a union/management issue at the FAA." What happens next? Despite his reservations, Lieser said O'Hare controllers "working this traffic are the best in the world, bar none. They'll do it exactly right and get it done." http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20160711/news/160719899/ Back to Top Delta Airlines flight lands at Ellsworth Air Force Base by mistake Joan Lowy, The Associated Press WASHINGTON - A Delta Air Lines jetliner with 130 passengers on board landed at the wrong airport in South Dakota Thursday evening, said a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the incident. The Delta A320 landed at Ellsworth Air Force Base at 8:42 p.m. Central Time Thursday, when its destination was an airport in Rapid City, board spokesman Peter Knudson said Friday. Ellsworth is about 10 miles due north of Rapid City Regional Airport. The two airports have runways that are oriented nearly identically to the compass, from northwest to southeast. Delta Flight 2845 had departed from Minneapolis. Delta has contacted the passengers "and offered a gesture of apology for the inconvenience," the airline said in a statement. The crew has been taken off-duty while NTSB investigates, the statement said. "Delta will fully cooperate with that investigation and has already begun an internal review of its own," it added. The Air Force said in a statement that said base officials "followed the proper procedures to address the situation" and ensured the safety of those at the base and passengers. The base did not immediately respond to a request for information about the specific procedures and whether air traffic controllers at the base where in contact with the pilot and authorized the landing. Landings at wrong airports by commercial pilots, while unusual, are still more common than many passengers may realize or airlines would like to acknowledge. An Associated Press search two years ago of government safety data and news reports since the early 1990s found at least 150 flights in which U.S. commercial passenger and cargo planes have either landed at the wrong airport or started to land and realized their mistake in time. Of the 35 documented wrong landings, at least 23 occurred at airports with shorter runways, creating potential safety issues. In most cases, the pilots were cleared by controllers to fly based on what they could see rather than relying on automation. Many incidents occurred at night, with pilots reporting they were attracted by the runway lights of the first airport they saw during descent. Some pilots said they disregarded navigation equipment that showed their planes slightly off course because the information didn't match what they were seeing out their windows - a runway straight ahead. On Jan. 12, 2014, the pilots of a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 stopped their plane just short of a ravine at the end of a short runway in Hollister, Missouri, when they had meant to land on a runway twice as long at nearby Branson. A few months earlier, an Atlas Air Boeing 747 freighter landed at the tiny Jabara Airport in Wichita, Kansas, instead of McConnell Air Force Base about eight miles away. The runway is considered 3,000 feet less than ideal for the plane, one of the largest in the world. It took about 10 hours to turn the plane around and ready it for takeoff again. A nearby highway was shut down as a safety precaution. http://www.airforcetimes.com/story/military/2016/07/08/delta-airlines-flight-lands-ellsworth-air-force- base-mistake/86867262/ Back to Top NCAA suspends three pilots for drinking on duty (Nigeria) The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended three pilots for taking alcohol before operating their flights. The authority said they are to undergo psychiatric evaluation before rejoining the service. Sam Adurogboye, acting general manager, public relations, NCAA, disclosed this while speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos. The NCAA had withdrawn the licenses of the three pilots and placed them on a three-month suspension for breaching civil aviation regulations in the country. According to the rules, a pilot is prohibited from taking alcohol for at least three hours before flight time. Adurogboye noted that such act could compromise the safety of their passengers, adding that the NCAA was very vigilant in ensuring strict compliance to safety rules. "It is very clear. They are to be off duty for three months. While on suspension, they are to be made to go through psychiatric evaluation before rejoining the service," he said. Adurogboye advised airline operators and pilots to abide by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs), warning that offenders would be visited with severe penalties. (NAN) http://www.tv360nigeria.com/ncaa-suspends-three-pilots-drinking-duty/ Back to Top Russia Brags That It Can Detect And Track New F-35 Stealth Jet Lieutenant General Jon Davis, the top Marine in charge of aviation, watches as a Marine Corps pilot prepares to land an F-35B aboard the USS Wasp during testing off the coast of North Carolina May 26, 2105. REUTERS Moscow-run news agencies are touting Russia's ability to undermine the U.S.'s F-35 stealth fighter jet, but the Pentagon is not worried. Sputnik News, headquartered in Moscow, reported earlier this week that Russia has three radar stations that can detect and track the fifth-generation jet. The article, titled "I See You," says that Russian technology can undermines the F-35's core strength of stealth. "The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is the most advanced aircraft in the Pentagon's arsenal," Sputnik News says. "Russia's powerful over-the-horizon Podsolnukh (Sunflower) radar is capable of detecting and tracking the stealth fifth-generation plane or any other fighter jet that was designed to avoid detection," Sputnik said. Despite Russia's assertions, the Pentagon is confident in the F-35's ability to perform in combat. "Don't believe the hype," Joe DellaVedova, a spokesperson for the Joint Strike Fighter program office, told The Daily Caller News Foundation in an email. While it is possible that Russia's radar can detect and even track the F-35 - no stealth jet can perfectly evade radar all the time - the Pentagon is not concerned about Russia's radar power because the F-35 can interrupt multiple parts of the enemy's attack. When China claimed in February that they could track the F-22 Raptor, National Interest wrote that "stealth is not a cloak of invisibility, after all. Stealth technology simply delays detection and tracking." Even if Russia's Sunflower radar is capable of detecting or tracking the plane, the stealth fighter has enough other capabilities to be effective in defensive or offensive scenarios. Like other advanced systems, the F-35's value is determined by how well it breaks up what the military calls the enemy's "kill chain." All attacks follow the kill chain structure. Shooting at something is only one part of the total attack. Offensive strikes always start with identifying the target, restricting and tracking its movement. Radar is one of the key tools used for identifying and tracking targets. Only when the target is stable can the attack move on to aiming, firing and ensuring the target is down. The beauty of the kill chain, at least for defensive purposes, is that if you break just one link, your enemy can't kill you. "Tracking is only one piece of the kill chain," DellaVedova said. "The F-35 is well-equipped to disrupt, disable and destroy various links in the chain." Russia claims to have three Sunflower radar stations. Two are in near the Pacific Ocean, on the Sea of Okhotsk and the Sea of Japan, and one is near the Caspian Sea. RT News, also a Russian-owned outlet, reports that by 2017, Russia will have two more stations in the Baltic and Black seas. The United Kingdom was the first country to join the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Program, and just received its first jets last week. Other program members include several European countries, Canada, Turkey, Australia and Japan. http://dailycaller.com/2016/07/08/russia-brags-that-it-can-detect-and-track-new-f-35-stealth- jet/#ixzz4E621Rckk Back to Top Boeing Says If Congress Blocks Its Iran Jet Deal, Rivals' Should Be Halted Too Some members of Congress are vehemently against selling commercial airliners to Iran A Boeing Co. 737 Max aircraft is prepared ahead of the Farnborough International Airshow 2016 in Farnborough, U.K. LONDON- Boeing's commercial jetliner chief said Sunday that if its deal to sell Iran passenger aircraft is blocked by the U.S. Congress, all other U.S. companies that supply to its rivals should be prohibited as well. Ray Conner, the chief executive of Boeing's commercial jetliner unit, said in a media presentation Sunday on the eve of the biennial Farnborough Air Show outside of London that any effort to legislatively block its 80-jet deal with Iran Air shouldn't unfairly disadvantage the plane maker against its rivals. The U.S. House of Representatives last week passed amendments that would block the use of Department of Treasury funds for granting licenses for export or re-export of commercial passenger aircraft and their parts and services as enabled by the six-nation Iran Nuclear Deal. A further amendment would prohibit any U.S. financial institution from participating the export of passenger aircraft to Iran. Airbus has said it, too, requires Washington's approval to export airliners to Iran because the planes involve U.S.-made parts. The global business of selling jetliners means U.S. firms such as engine makers and providers of other components contribute significantly to the designs of Boeing's biggest rivals like Europe's Airbus Group SE. Airbus in January signed a cooperation agreement for 118 jetliners for Iran's airlines. The amendments passed last week by the House "will be between Congress and the administration and we'll follow the lead of which the government tells us what we can do and what we can't do," Mr. Conner said. "If we're not allowed to go forward, then sure as heck no other U.S. company should be allowed to go forward either. That would mean any other U.S. supplier to any other manufacturer." Boeing's deal, worth $17.6 billion at list prices, has drawn vehement opposition from members of Congress who believe that delivering commercial aircraft to the Islamic Republic's airlines would be equivalent of bolstering its armed forces and its sponsorship of terrorism. Iran has sought to modernize its decrepit fleet of airliners, decimated by years of sanctions that prohibited it from acquiring new jets or buying spare parts from their manufacturers. The promise of renewed airlines in the Islamic Republic has been used as a significant incentive to enticing Iran to abide by the terms of the nuclear deal, which went into effect in January. http://www.wsj.com/articles/boeing-says-if-congress-blocks-its-iran-jet-deal-rivals-should-be-halted-too- 1468167871 Back to Top Boeing Sees $5.9 Trillion Airplane Market Despite Recent Turmoil 'Middle of market' aircraft will drive demand, company says Brexit, commodities crash won't hurt sales over long term Airlines will order new planes valued at $5.9 trillion over the next two decades to keep pace with rising air travel as more people take to the skies in emerging nations such as China, according to a Boeing Co. forecast. Looking past recent economic turmoil from Brexit to a commodities crash that has spooked aerospace investors, Boeing boosted its long-term forecast 4.1 percent from a year earlier, predicting total sales of 39,620 jetliners across the industry. "The aviation sector will continue to see long-term growth with the commercial fleet doubling in size," despite the recent events affecting financial markets, Randy Tinseth, vice president of marketing for Boeing's commercial airplanes division, said in a statement. The planemaker expects passenger traffic to grow 4.8 percent a year, close to the sector's historic 5 percent average. About $3 trillion of the projected orders will come from single-aisle aircraft such as Boeing's 737-800 and Airbus Group SE's A320, according to Boeing's commercial market outlook. About 28,140 new airplanes will be needed in that segment, with low-cost carriers and emerging markets continuing to drive growth. Demand Shift The U.S. planemaker said it also expects to see a wave of wide-body orders next decade as airlines replace the twin-aisle jets that ferry travelers across the Pacific and on other long-range routes. The company sees demand shifting from the largest long-haul jets, such as its 747 jetliner, to smaller aircraft. Boeing expects sales to be concentrated in the 200- to 300-seat segment of the market, where the company sees demand for 5,100 wide-body jets. The planemaker is studying a new family of aircraft targeting much of this segment, which it has dubbed the middle of the market. The manufacturer lowered a forecast of medium wide-body orders by 1.4 percent to 3,470 from a year earlier, and trimmed anticipated sales of very large aircraft such as the Airbus A380 superjumbo by 1.9 percent to 530 sales. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-07-11/boeing-sees-5-9-trillion-airplane-market-despite- recent-turmoil?cmpid=yhoo.headline&yptr=yahoo Back to Top Tiny crew delivers first set of massive 777 landing gear Todd Brokaw, lead mechanic at Hroux-Devtek in Everett, works on the second set of 777 landing gear in the company's final-assembly facility. Hroux-Devtek is headquartered in Longueuil, Quebec. (Mike Siegel/The Seattle Times) At a new facility in Everett, Canadian supplier Héroux-Devtek has completed its first set of 777-300ER landing gear for delivery to Boeing, ahead of its contract to make the 777X landing gear. How many people does it take to finish putting together in Everett the landing gear delivered to Boeing for its large twinjet 777? The answer is two mechanics. Plus a quality inspector to check their work and a site leader for overall supervision. Total workforce, four. A small Canadian company in 2013 beat out giant incumbent supplier United Technologies for the contract to build the landing gear for Boeing's large twinjet 777 and also for the new 777X. Héroux-Devtek, headquartered in Longueuil, Quebec, makes the parts in various Canadian plants, assembles them in Strongsville, Ohio, and finishes them in a new facility north of Boeing's Everett assembly plant. On Monday, Héroux-Devtek delivers to Boeing its first assembled landing gear set, consisting of two six- wheeled main landing gear "trucks" and the two-wheel nose gear. In the 20,000-square-foot Everett facility, the mechanics connect the single piece of forged titanium called the truck beam - the axles for the wheels are threaded through it - to the vertical legs of the landing gear, each of which is a pair of steel telescoping cylinders called shock struts. Then they install the carbon brakes and the massive 52-inch-diameter tires. In the process, they "dress" the gear with intricate bundles of electrical wiring and sensors. Company executives will celebrate the achievement in a news conference Tuesday at the Farnborough Air Show. Two guys A main landing-gear truck weighs 7.5 tons and, with the telescoping legs compressed, stands 14 foot 9 inches tall. The complete set has to support the weight of a full 777 airplane, which maxes out at an easy-to- remember 777,000 pounds, or almost 390 tons. That first ship set of landing gear was entirely put together by employees Leonel Hernandez and Todd Brokaw. Quality inspector Richard Peters and site leader Justin Smith complete the workforce. This tiny team has lots of experience working on 777 landing gear. Smith worked at various companies supplying parts of the 777 gear. The others all previously worked at the United Technologies landing-gear facility down the road. The four started last December in an empty leased space - with 40-foot-high ceilings and a reinforced concrete floor to hold the weight - and set up their workshop for maximum efficiency. "It was a great opportunity for all four of us to be at a startup and do something to this level," Smith said. That opportunity arose in 2013, when Boeing's then-Chief Executive Jim McNerney warned that suppliers who didn't play ball would be put on a "no-fly list." So when United Technologies refused the price cuts Boeing demanded as part of its push to lower costs, it was knocked out as 777 landing-gear supplier. Héroux-Devtek had previously made only parts for landing gear and some smaller complete gears for military and business jets. The Canadian government's Industrial Regional Benefits program helped it win the Boeing contract to build, for the first time, something tremendously bigger. That federal program requires arms suppliers like Boeing to make investments in Canada equal in value to any defense and security contracts awarded. Canada is currently considering buying F/A-18 jet fighters from Boeing. Ramping up For now, United Technologies will continue to supply most of the 777 landing gear as Héroux-Devtek slowly and carefully ramps up. The Canadian firm will make just six more ship sets this year. "This is such a critical piece of the airplane, you can't afford to have any issues," said Smith. Boeing has been monitoring the work every step of the way. After it flight-tests that first set of gear, the equipment will be taken off the plane, torn apart and examined in minute detail. But next year Héroux-Devtek should be making most of the 777 gear, and in early 2018 will take over the work completely from United Technologies - which will continue to make the landing gear for the 737, 747 and 767 jets. (French supplier Messier-Dowty, now called Safran Landing Systems, supplies the landing gear for the 787 Dreamliner.) Boeing is relying on Héroux-Devtek to move smoothly from its initial experience of building the gear for the current 777-300ER passenger jet and the 777F freighter models to doing the same for its forthcoming new 777X version. The landing gear for the new bigger jet will have a few significant differences, Smith said. The truck beam will be forged from a different titanium alloy. And a couple of components at the top of today's landing gear for the 777X will be machined as a single piece. The first 777X will be assembled in 2018 and flown the following year. Before then, Héroux-Devtek needs to have its manufacturing process ironed out, perfected and ramped up. Héroux-Devtek has a total workforce of about 1,400, with about 240 employees in the U.S. Between 75 and 100 people are dedicated to the 777 program. Smith said that at peak production, the Everett workforce will swell to ... just 10 people. Boeing certainly has bought the efficiency its supply-chain managers demanded. http://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/tiny-crew-delivers-first-set-of-massive-777- landing-gear/ Back to Top Air New Zealand 'shafted' elderly pilots over Airbus training Older Air New Zealand pilots who failed Airbus conversion courses claim they were discriminated against. It was an inglorious end to John's* decades-long flying career. He was already over-age when the International Civil Aviation Organisation ruled in late 2014 that pilots 65 and over could not serve in any capacity on international flights, so had no choice but to give up his career co-piloting Boeing 777s on long haul routes. He took up an offer from Air New Zealand to retrain on the Airbus A320, captaining domestic and trans- Tasman flights. New Zealand and Australia have no mandatory retirement age and human rights legislation prohibits discrimination on the grounds of age. Air NZ pilots transferring from Boeing aircraft to the new Airbus planes, pictured, have had to undergo training courses. There are concerns about the failure rate. But the company had recently reduced its A320 training course content and scope, and it soon became apparent to John there would be no extensions for those who were struggling with the workings of the Airbus, which is completely different to a Boeing. "Because I had flown Boeings all my life, there's quite a lot of re-learning to be done. We all knew that, we knew it was going to be tough and we put the hard yards in," John said. "I was told by Air NZ that we would get a standard course. We got 10 simulator duties, whereas the course before us got 15. "The daily [instructor] write-ups were such, I thought 'shit, they're going to shaft me on this', and they did. They refused to give me any further training. There was no other option but to resign. It's one hell of a way to end a career." It's understood that of 12 pilots aged over 65 who sat the course in late 2014 and early last year, only two passed. "It was used as a culling exercise," John said, adding that he believed he and his older colleagues were set up to fail so that younger pilots could be brought through the ranks. "To be tipped out because of dirty politics, it's pretty hard to take." Material obtained from the Civil Aviation Authority under the Official Information Act shows that those who failed the training chose to retire, were on long-term sick leave or lost their medical clearances. Both Air NZ and the CAA refused to provide figures on overall pass rates. The CAA said the numbers were provided in confidence. The national carrier has 1430 pilots across its jet and regional fleets, about 14 of whom are over 65. The airline did not respond to the allegations of discrimination. David Morgan, chief of flight operations and safety, said in a statement: "Our A320 pilot training/conversion programme is world class, rigorous in its detail and approved by the CAA." Many of the officers who failed had flown for Air NZ for decades and were decorated ex-Air Force pilots. "To say we find ourselves shamed by the experience is an understatement," John said. It's an issue that is confronting industries worldwide as baby boomers pass retirement age and companies struggle to get older employees to retire without discriminating against them. It's argued by some in aviation that pilots' performance declines with age, but the Aerospace Medical Association says there is insufficient evidence to support any age limit. Some countries are raising the mandatory retirement age in response to a drastic pilot shortage - the US raised the limit from 60 to 65 in 2009 and in 2015 Japan allowed pilots to keep flying until they turn 68. It's not the first time Air NZ has found itself accused of ageism. In a landmark case in 2009, the Supreme Court upheld the appeal of pilot David McAlister, who claimed the airline had discriminated against him by saying at 60 he was too old to be a pilot-in-command. In 2011, it was reported that eight pilots were suing the airline for millions, claiming they retired or were demoted between 2003 and 2006 without being told that international rules were changing, which would have allowed them to continue until 65. The case settled out of court in 2013. John said he and his colleagues were now considering a lawsuit and experts predict many more. Employment lawyer Jim Roberts, who represented the pilots in the 2011 case, said he expected more people would take action under human rights legislation rather than in the Employment Relations Authority as remedies seemed to be about 10 times greater. "If you can establish something that looks like discrimination it's pretty much treated as discrimination and it puts the onus on the other party to prove that it's not." 'A THREAT TO FLIGHT SAFETY' Morgan said the safety and security of passengers was paramount "and we make no apology for maintaining high standards in our pilot training programme". The insinuation being that anyone who fails isn't up to scratch. But others say it's the training that's not good enough. An "Aviation Related Concern" complaint sent to the CAA last year - filed anonymously to "avoid retribution" - was damning of the "poor ground training of the Air NZ Airbus A320 type rating ground course". It said the failure rate of older pilots was evidence of the low quality of the training. "Considering all these pilots were very experienced and deemed competent pilots on the Air NZ Boeing fleets, for so many to not succeed is clear evidence that there are serious training quality issues," the complaint said. It listed a number of "deficiencies" around manuals, teaching methodology and instructor skills and said the course footprint had been reduced by about 30 per cent from its original form, reducing it to a "box ticking exercise". This resulted in a "significant number of pilots being released [to fly passengers] without a full technical understanding or familiarity of the A320 operation and procedures," the complaint said. "This deficiency has the potential of crews mishandling non-normal procedures and is a threat to flight safety." But the CAA dismissed the complaint. A spokesman said an investigation found "no valid safety concerns" and the A320 courses were of a similar or greater length to those overseas. If a slightly higher failure rate was apparent, the spokesman said, "it would seemingly indicate that the operator was maintaining standards". But an Air NZ pilot in his 50s believes the A320 training is insufficient, requiring only about 20 hours of actual flying compared to around 100 hours for his initial command training. "Boeing and Airbus are completely poles part in technology, their logic. You've got to go right back to basics and re-learn all over again. "For a guy who has flown a Boeing for 30-plus years, there's certain habits formed and it's difficult to pick up the new logic." The pilot believed Air NZ had used the training as a way of "weeding out" older staff. "Some instructors are brilliant, one in particular is absolutely diabolical. All they have to do is bring out the bad cop and you're sure to have issues. "These guys aren't being given the chance to make the grade, they're not being given the training. It's a culling for sure." 'CREAMING IT' But not all pilots have sympathy for their older colleagues. One told Fairfax in 2011 the refusal of pilots in their 60s to quit was hampering the career prospects of younger pilots and causing headaches for Air NZ. He claimed they didn't want to retire because their jobs were so lucrative - captains of 747s and 777s earning between $200,000 and $300,000 a year. "The company can't make a redundancy package attractive enough to encourage older pilots to leave. It's all about the money. They're creaming it," he said. Tim Robinson, president of the Airline Pilots Association, said pilot promotions were based on seniority. "The younger guys are always at the bottom of the list and have to work their way up, so there's always that little bit of jealousy." Robinson said older pilots who'd always flown Boeings might find Airbus training difficult, but generally they were offered more training where needed. The union had litigated on behalf of senior pilots in the past, he said, to ensure their rights were upheld as international age restrictions changed. But sources say the union has been reluctant to get involved in claims because of the conflict of interest with its younger members. "For younger pilots to get command, they've pretty much got to wait for someone to die. They want those roles, those captains positions, and they know if they can't be forcibly retired they will have to wait even longer," a source said. Irene King, former head of the Aviation Industry Association, said there was data coming out of the US showing some pilots older than 65 were having performance issues, so she wasn't surprised that several failed the A320 training. "My experience is that [Air NZ] have simulator instructors putting them through pretty rigorous routines and they have a pretty standard level of performance and you either come up to the standard or you don't. "Some people just cannot move from old technology to new technology." But John believes it's not an even playing field. During observational flights on Airbus aircraft, he noticed that pilots who'd already completed their training had a similar error rate to him. "It was nothing reflecting directly on flight safety, but perhaps had the potential to." He said there was no reason why he and the others who failed couldn't have continued flying for a few more years. "There are enough checks and balances with medicals, simulators, aircraft refreshers, we are looked at more or less nine times a year," he said. "The trainers said my airmanship - the ability to keep the aircraft and its crew safe - was beyond reproach. They said it was great but everything else was a write-up for failure." If the case goes to court, "it will revolve around what they think of the person who failed [the training] versus what the person thought". He said he and his colleagues didn't expect much public support. "The public will say 'oh they're too old to fly now' but nothing could be further from the truth." Most pilots realised when the were no longer fit to fly and quit before that happened, he said, as no-one wanted to endanger lives. "I think I was up to it, and I know a lot of other people were, but because of the attitude of Air NZ we were just hung out to dry." http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/81195647/elderly-pilots-claim-air-new-zealand-shafted-them-over- airbus-training Back to Top Former fighter pilot, Dorothy Olsen, honored in Washington on 100th birthday JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - Dorothy Olsen was one of the first women in history trained to fly American military aircraft. A 100th birthday celebration Sunday at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state was held in her honor. Olsen primarily flew fighter aircraft from 1943 through the end of World War II, her son Kim said for an interview with the U.S. Air Force. "She was qualified on everything the Army flew, as well as some Navy planes," Kim said. He noted her favorites were the P-51 and P-38 fighters. "She felt bombers were like driving buses." According to the Air Force interview, Olsen wanted to fly since she was a child. She took lessons in a Piper Cub and signed up to serve with the Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASP, as soon as she heard about the program. "I loved every minute of it," she said. Dorothy was born in Woodburn, Oregon, and attended air shows at the Oregon State Fair, according to HistoryLink. After the war ended, she returned to the Pacific Northwest, married a Washington State Patrol officer and moved to University Place. She shared one of her favorite memories during the Air Force interview: flying a P-38 at night over Coolidge, Arizona. She caused a stir when she buzzed the field and "woke the whole town up." Only around 1,000 women were fighter pilots during World War II. The state of Washington was well represented in the effort, according to HistoryLink. Thirty-eight pilots in the WASP program were killed in training or on mission flights. Since the women pilots were not actually in the military, they had no benefits, not even burial coverage. For a number of those killed, fellow pilots contributed to ship the body home for burial. Often another pilot would accompany the body to the deceased pilot's hometown. http://www.kiro7.com/news/local/female-fighter-pilot-honored-on-100th-birthday/394361176 Back to Top Mitsubishi Eyes 'Expedited' Flight Test Schedule Mitsubishi plans to ferry the MRJ test airplane, FTA 1, to the U.S. for the balance of its flight testing. Mitsubishi Aircraft hopes to advance the start of flight testing of the first MRJ90 in the U.S. from the fourth quarter of this year to some time in the summer, raising the possibility that it could gain certification as much as two months earlier than the official delivery target of mid-2018. Speaking with AIN ahead of the Farnborough Airshow, Mitsubishi Aircraft head of strategic marketing Hideyuki Kamiya reported that since MRJ FTA-1 resumed flight testing in Japan in February and FTA-2 flew for the first time in May, results have proved encouraging enough to consider ferrying the airplane to the U.S. ahead of schedule. "To expedite to the summer, if we continue to see flight testing go smoothly, and if we get approval [from the U.S. FAA and Japan's JCAB], it's not such a difficult target I think," said Kamiya. Mitsubishi (Chalet D7, Outdoor Exhibit 7) flew the first flight-test aircraft three times last November before withdrawing the machine from operation to incorporate planned structural and systems changes. In late January, Mitsubishi revealed details of the strengthening modifications, deemed necessary after static test results begun in May 2015 indicated a weakness in the airframe and wing attachment. As a result, it installed additional "plates" to reinforce parts on the center wing box. Mitsubishi then changed the design for the production airplanes to account for more robust structure. Other improvements incorporated during the pause in flight-testing included software updates. However, Kamiya contradicted reports that Mitsubishi needed to perform structural reinforcement of the landing gear. "After initial taxi tests, we knew we needed to adjust a sensor," he said. "But it was really not a big deal." After flying 22 test missions with FTA-1 by early May, Mitsubishi expressed eagerness to start flying out of Moses Lake, Washington, as soon as possible, allowing it to take full advantage of the area's more favorable flying conditions, lack of airspace congestion and unfettered access to the airport's runways due to a lack of scheduled service there. In Japan, the airplane could fly at most twice a day, explained Kamiya, because of the congested skies and often-inclement weather the company regularly encounters. Other testing sites in the U.S. include Gunnison-Crested Butte Regional Airport in Colorado for high- altitude takeoff and landing trials, Roswell International Air Center in New Mexico for special runway testing and McKinley Climatic Laboratory in Florida for extreme environment testing. All told, Mitsubishi plans to ferry four of the five flight test articles to the U.S., while the fifth, FTA-5- painted in the livery of launch customer ANA-performs autopilot testing in Japan. As FTV 1 and 2 perform functional and performance testing, plans call for FTA-3 to test flight characteristics and avionics and for FTA-4 to perform interior, noise and anti-icing trials. Processing of flight test data will take place at Mitsubishi's engineering center in Seattle, established last August in collaboration with locally based Aerospace Testing Engineering & Certification (AeroTEC) specifically to administer MRJ testing in the U.S. Kamiya said early fuel burn tests validated claimed consumption rates, and that the test pilots reported that handling characteristics have proved "better" than what they experienced in the simulator. European Goal From a marketing perspective, Kamiya confirmed that Europe stands as a prime target for Mitsubishi. As of May holding firm orders for 223 airplanes, 170 of which came from U.S. airlines, Mitsubishi continues to work with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)-as well as the FAA-in anticipation of an eventual presence in Europe. Its first sale there remains elusive, however. Kamiya explained that prospective customers have indicated they want to wait for Mitsubishi to disclose more flight test results before making any firm decisions. "This is not only the case with European airlines," said Kamiya. However, he acknowledged that the proposed 100-seat MRJ100X largely emerged as a product from European demand. In the U.S., scope clause language in mainline pilot contracts continues to limit airplanes at regional airlines to below the maximum takeoff weight of the MRJ90, which U.S. airlines have expressed a desire to configure in a dual-class, 76-passenger cabin layout. (Mitsubishi lists the MRJ90's standard single-class capacity at 88 passengers.) If scope clauses in the U.S. do not loosen in time for planned first deliveries of the MRJ90 in the second half of 2018, Mitsubishi's two biggest customers-SkyWest and Trans States Airlines-can exercise rights to convert their orders to the lighter MRJ70. However, Mitsubishi's schedules call for certification of that airplane roughly a year after its target for the MRJ90, meaning yet another delivery delay for the U.S. customers. Of course, Mitsubishi now stands liable for four major delays of the MRJ90, the most recent of which moved planned certification from the second quarter of 2017 to the second quarter of 2018. Confirming the latest delivery-schedule revision in late December, Mitsubishi acknowledged that a new program review reflected additions to and revisions of original test items, as well as its joint engineering work with U.S. partners aimed at ensuring a "better-integrated" aircraft. The review resulted in a new MRJ development structure intended to ensure "prompt execution" of all activities, with roles and responsibilities assigned among three engineering bases in the twocountries. Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Aircraft looks after type certification documentation and coordination with airworthiness authorities, flight tests, manufacturing preparation and customer support. In the U.S., the Seattle Engineering Center has taken over design development and responsibility for innovating technological"solutions." This fourth MRJ delay, which follows discussions with U.S. partner AeroTec, allowed for at least a two- month test schedule buffer. U.S. flight tests and support, including data analysis and report writing, take places at AeroTec's Moses Lake Test Center at Grant County International Airport in Washington state. AeroTec provides data analysis, FAA certification and flight-testing services to manufacturers like Honeywell and Lockheed Martin and aircraft modification companies such as Aviation Partners Boeing and RaisbeckEngineering. After consulting AeroTec, Mitsubishi took what it characterized as a more realistic approach to scheduling the MRJ flight-test program. Discussions had stimulated caution last year as the manufacturer approached the MRJ's flight readiness. A thorough review identified a number of different items added to pre-flight- testwork. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/air-transport/2016-07-10/mitsubishi-eyes-expedited-flight-test- schedule Back to Top Bombardier CS300 Aircraft Awarded Type Certification by Transport Canada Delivery of first aircraft to airBaltic is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2016 MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - Jul 11, 2016) - Farnborough International Airshow - Bombardier Commercial Aircraft announced today that its CS300 aircraft has been awarded Type Certification by Transport Canada. Delivery of the first CS300 airliner to airBaltic of Latvia is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2016; the aircraft is currently in production at the C Series production facility in Mirabel, Québec. The approval follows the CS100 aircraft Type Certification awarded by Transport Canada and validations for that aircraft model by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The CS100 aircraft will enter revenue service with Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) on July 15, 2016. "The CS300 aircraft certification process was very straightforward because of the over 99 per cent commonality with the CS100 model," said Robert Dewar, Vice President, C Series Aircraft Program, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. "The C Series flight test program covered more than 5,000 hours and most of the data obtained covered both models. "We are delighted that operators will be getting C Series aircraft that have exceeded expectations, in particular on airfield performance," Mr. Dewar added. "We can now confirm a range improvement in excess of 20 per cent out of hot-and-high airports such as Denver, Mexico City or Lhasa." "Obtaining the CS300 Type Certification is another validation of the sustained efforts deployed by Bombardier employees and our many valued suppliers," said François Caza, Vice President, Product Development and Chief Engineer and Head of Bombardier's Design Approval Organization. "Their contributions have ensured that we have all-new, best-in-class aircraft that will serve operators well for many years to come." About C Series Aircraft The C Series is the only aircraft optimized for the 100- to 150-seat market segment, which drives the aircraft's phenomenal economic proposition and performance, opening up new opportunities for single- aisle aircraft operation. Comprised of the CS100 and the larger CS300 aircraft, the C Series family represents the fusion of performance and technology. The result is aircraft that deliver unmatched performance and economics in the 100- to 150-seat market segment and an 18 per cent lower cost per passenger, making them the ideal candidates to complement larger single-aisle aircraft. Airlines can now operate routes that were previously not profitable or even possible. Bombardier has created a new standard in cabin design and flexibility to ensure an unrivalled passenger experience. The aircraft's larger seats, overhead bins and windows deliver a widebody feel that offers passengers unparalleled comfort in a single-aisle cabin. The CS100 and the CS300 aircraft have over 99 per cent parts commonality as well as the same pilot type rating. The groundbreaking Pratt & Whitney PurePower® PW1500G engine, combined with the aircraft's advanced aerodynamics, delivers reduced fuel burn, noise, and emissions - making the C Series the most community-friendly aircraft. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/bombardier-cs300-aircraft-awarded-type-080437840.html Back to Top ATR Projects Need For 2,800 Regional Turboprops By 2035 FARNBOROUGH, ENGLAND - Regional airliner manufacturer, ATR is projecting a need for as many as 2,800 regional turboprops as the aircraft are used to open more routes across the globe. Using a new outlook model which studies route creation, the company claims that airlines have used ATR aircraft to open routes to 460 new destinations since 2010, generating new services at a rate of 2.9% per annum. The company predicts that with an average growth of 3% growth in gross domestic product across the globe, it forecasts heightened route growth of near 4% over the next 20 years, boosting regional turboprop demands needs from 2,100 aircraft in service today, to as many as 3,900 in 2035. Of those additional 2,800 aircraft, 1,000 of those will be replacement aircraft. Much of this growth is likely to come from an expansion of routes in countries such as China and India claims Zuzana Hrnkova, ATR's vice-president of marketing. "We have predictions over 3,000 routes opening over the next 20 years, this is a conservative estimate and will require 900 new turboprops," said Hrnkova. Of the 2,800 aircraft required, some 2,200 aircraft will be for 61-80 seat aircraft like the ATR-72, while a not insignificant 600 - could be for 50-seat turboprops like the ATR-42, much fewer of which are traditionally sold compared to its larger brethren, the ATR-72. Hrnkova believes that that the smaller aircraft will be used to replace the current generation of 30-seat airliners such as Embraer Brasilas, Saab 340s, Jetstream 41s, and the smaller older Bombardier Dash-8s. The company points out that with no new generation 30-seat airliners in development, operators are likely to want to upscale to an aircraft like the ATR-42. Meanwhile, the company is working to boost the aircraft's capabilities, particularly in poor weather. ATR is installing what it calls its Clearvision System, which combines the previously announced enhanced vision system (EVS) with a synthetic 3D terrain model from a database to produce a blended combined vision system (CVS) view that can be blended and viewed through Elbit's Skylens head-wearable display allowing pilots to see through poor weather and build an understanding of the situation around them. "This will enhance the ATR for low visibility operations, and it extends the operational flexibility of the airlines," said Hrnkova. "Difficult weather conditions due to fog can generate delays, diversions or cancellations and this impacts the airlines...this represents additional costs." ATR believes that investment in such technology could help reduce the numbers of weather related delays and cancellations. The Clearvision capability is due to be certified in 2017 and will be introduced to the market in 2018 when the Standard 3 build of the -600's avionics suite is certified. The same avionics suite update will also introduce Required Navigation Performance (RNP AR) technology improving the navigation capabilities of the aircraft. Air New Zealand will be the launch customer for the RNP AR capability. www.aviationweek.com Back to Top ERAU Worldwide to expand online degree options Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's Worldwide campus, headquartered in Daytona Beach, is adding to its academic offerings with new online degrees in homeland security, project management, aviation maintenance and aerospace engineering. The school will adopt its existing Bachelor of Science in Homeland Security program in an online format. The program is designed so that "graduates meet the changing national threats to security or commerce," John Griffith of the Department of Security, Emergency Response and Interdisciplinary Studies, said in a statement. The new online program will educate students on performing risk analyses and authoring emergency management plans, among other security essentials. Graduates will be primed for careers with the federal or state government, universities, the military or the private sector. ERAU Worldwide is also rolling out an online Bachelor of Science in Project Management, a degree track that will give students project management experience that can be translated into technology, health care, global infrastructure, renewable energy and finance. Enrollment for the program opened July 1. Additionally, the university has developed an online Master of Aviation Maintenance degree program for students interested in becoming supervisors and managers of aviation maintenance programs. The program, which also debuted at the start of the month, will expose students to both practical experience and the tenets of aviation safety. Students will cover the theories and concepts of human factors as well as mechanical and structural factors, system safety and maintenance-related safety practices. The new online offerings will be rounded out by a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering degree, which will allow students to steer their careers into the aerospace industry or focus on research and development. The master's degree program, which will kick off in January, will require students complete 30 credits and master coursework on aerospace structures and composites. http://www.news-journalonline.com/article/20160710/NEWS/160719958/0/search Back to Top ISASI 2016, Reykjavik, Iceland 17 to 20 October, 2016 The International Society of Air Safety Investigators (ISASI) will hold their 47th annual seminar at the Grand Hotel Reykjavik, Iceland, from the 17 to 20 October 2016. The seminar theme is: "Every link is important" Papers will address this theme in conjunction with other contemporary matters on aviation safety investigation, including recent case studies, new investigation methods and aviation safety trends or developments. Registration and details of the main seminar, tutorial and companion programmes are available at www.esasi.eu/isasi-2016. We look forward to seeing you in Iceland Curt Lewis