Flight Safety Information December 22, 2016 - No. 254 In This Issue DUTCH PILOTS ASSOC. WORRIED ABOUT AVIATION SAFETY IN BUDGET CULTURE Malaysia Airlines flight from London returns to Heathrow after technical issue Gatwick and London City Airport flights delayed as heavy fog threatens Christmas travel plans Pillsbury: Global, Top-Ranked, Non-Stop Service Baines Simmons Partners with CGE Risk Management to Offer Two Collaborative Courses Navy P-8 aircraft damaged in towing accident on Okinawa Heroin worth Rs170m seized from PIA aircraft UK government is considering a drone pilot test Korean Air Pilots Strike, Disrupting Asia, Mideast Routes How 'Plastic' Planes Make Jet Travel Better The Gulfstream G600 Jet Passes First Flight with Flying Colors Trump Meets Boeing and Lockheed Executives After Assailing Them on Jet Costs 'SMALL DRONE' RESEARCH RESEARCH STUDY SURVEY Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship Graduate Research Survey DUTCH PILOTS ASSOC. WORRIED ABOUT AVIATION SAFETY IN BUDGET CULTURE Cockpit of Air France A380 F-HPJC / Flickr Dutch pilots association VNV is worried that aviation safety falls below budgeting interests on the priority lists of especially low-cost airlines, a spokesperson said to NRC. The association calls for measures to improve safety in air traffic. According to the VNV, budget airlines in particular do not have a proper safety culture - their pilots don't get enough rest and are often tired when they have to work. It is often the case at budget airlines that pilots work on a zero-hour contract or as freelancer. These pilots are afraid of losing their job if they complain about safety, and therefore rather keep quiet about their concerns. "These companies have to make safety a priority rather than cost", a VNV spokesperson said to thenewspaper. They call on budget airlines to give their pilots permanent contracts. "Then the pilots gain a sense of control. For large companies like KLM it is already so." This call is in response to a study published by the London School of Economics last week, according to NRC. The study found that 58 percent of European pilots are sometimes tired when they fly. Of the over 7 thousand surveyed pilots, only a third were confident in their employer's safety policy. The study also found that particularly pilots working for freight- or budget airlines suffer from fatigue. http://nltimes.nl/2016/12/21/dutch-pilots-assoc-worried-aviation-safety-budget-culture Back to Top Malaysia Airlines flight from London returns to Heathrow after technical issue A Malaysia Airlines flight from London to Kuala Lumpur returned to Heathrow just hours after departure after it experienced a technical defect on one of its doors. In a travel advisory on its website, the airline said the MH1 flight that took off from Heathrow on Wednesday night "experienced a technical defect on one of its Airbus A380 doors while inflight over Germany." The noise and vibration from the door was of no immediate risk, it said, adding that the captain decided to return to Heathrow in the interest of passenger safety. The aircraft, an Airbus A380-800, will be evaluated by engineering staff and Airbus technical staff, Malaysia Airlines said. According to a tweet by Flightradar monitoring web site, MH1 returned to Heathrow four hours after departure. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-malaysia-airlines-london-idUSKBN14B08N Back to Top Gatwick and London City Airport flights delayed as heavy fog threatens Christmas travel plans Festive travel plans face being thrown into chaos as Heathrow, Gatwick and London City Airport all struggle to cope with the weather London airports have been hit with delays as fog shrouds the capital this morning. Festive travel plans face being thrown into chaos as Heathrow, Gatwick and London City Airport all struggle to cope with the weather. The fog disruption comes as Britain braced itself for the arrival of Storm Barbara, which is set to batter the country with strong winds A spokesperson for Heathrow said some early-morning flights had been pushed back and there could be knock-on delays throughout the day - but there are no cancellations yet. British Airways said on its official Twitter feed it was aware of fog affecting flights at all three London airports and advised passengers to check their flight status online. A statement on BA's website said: "Fog across parts of southern England is affecting some flights to and from London's airports today. Flights from Heathrow, Gatwick and London City are delayed due to the weather this morning "For safety reasons, Air Traffic Control has to allow greater space between landing aircraft in fog or during periods of low visibility, and this will mean a reduced number of aircraft being allowed to land each hour. "We are sorry for the difficulties caused by the poor weather and will do all we can to minimise the effect it has on our operations." A spokeswoman for Gatwick said "about five or six" flights were diverted to other airports on Wednesday night due to fog and maintenance work on a runway. She said normal service resumed by Thursday morning and they were taking diverted flights from London City. The heavy fog comes as Britain braces itself for the arrival of Storm Barbara, which is set to batter the country with strong winds. Scotland is predicted to be worst hit by the weather, with gusts of up to 90mph in places. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/2458319/heathrow-gatwick-london-city-airport-flights- delayed-fog-christmas-travel/ Back to Top Back to Top Baines Simmons Partners with CGE Risk Management to Offer Two Collaborative Courses Air Partner's aviation safety consultancy division Baines Simmons has partnered with CGE Risk Management, the leading provider of barrier based risk management solutions, to offer two collaborative courses on Bow Tie training services. The courses are offered as part of Baines Simmons' suite of Safety Risk Management courses and are entitled "Successfully Applying BowTieXP in Aviation Organisations" and "Barrier Management with BowTieXP, IncidentXP and AuditXP". CGE Risk's renowned BowTieXP Risk Assessment software toolset offers a next generation solution to assessing, visualising and treating an organisation's risks using the market leading Bow Tie methodology and barrier based risk management approach. Intuitive, accessible, communicative and comprehensive, BowTieXP has become a popular choice for proactive risk owning organisations across numerous sectors. "Successfully Applying BowTieXP in Aviation Organisations" is a Practitioner level training course aimed at enabling course participants to create effective Bow Ties, bespoke to their own aviation operations, within the BowTieXP software. As well as training delegates in basic software functionality, the course delivers an industry specific understanding of Bow Tie development best practice, barrier based risk management thinking and the ways in which well-constructed Bow Ties complement and enhance an organisation's Safety Management System (SMS). Following on from this first course, "Barrier Management with BowTieXP, IncidentXP and AuditXP" takes delegates through the next steps in effectively managing risk and improving safety performance using barrier thinking and the BowTieXP software family. This recently launched course refreshes the principles of BowTieXP before demonstrating how to breathe life, accuracy and rigour into Bow Ties by binding them to an organisation's reporting, investigating, auditing and assurance activities. IncidentXP takes the Bow Tie methodology and overlays structured incident and accident investigation capabilities. This leading-edge software allows occurrences to be mapped, assessed and managed within the single, coherent language of an organisation's Bow Ties, making the whole process more efficient, effective and auditable. AuditXP uses the same single Bow Tie language to help organisations proactively seek information and evidence for barrier effectiveness in a targeted manner. Combined, these three packages become a powerful aid to accountable decision-makers by providing an organisation with a holistic and tangible visualisation of its risks and the effectiveness of its defences. Both courses are overseen by Mark Townend, a safety management consultant with specialties in risk assessment, safety performance, error management and SMS improvement. Mark, formerly a serving Regular Officer in the British Army for 13 years, has helped many organisations successfully integrate the Bow Tie risk assessment methodology into their SMS and realise its numerous benefits using CGE Risk Management's BowTieXP software. Mark says: "The BowTieXP software family is a popular choice for aviation organisations keen to mature their approach to risk management by proactively analysing hazards and rigorously measuring the performance of required controls. However, to fully realise the benefits CGE's BowTieXP toolset offers across the organisation, you must have competent users. These two courses have been designed to ensure all participants fully get to grips with the software's wide ranging capabilities and smoothly integrate them into their organisation's working SMS." The next "Successfully Applying BowTieXP in Aviation Organisations" and "Barrier Management with BowTieXP, IncidentXP and AuditXP" courses will take place on 14-15 February 2017 and 16-17 February 2017 respectively, both at the Aviation Safety Academy at Fairoaks Airport, Surrey. For more information, please email training@bainessimmons.com or call +44 (0)1276 859 519 to speak to one of our Training Advisers. Alternatively, in-company training is also available for those unable to make the courses held at the Academy. http://www.aviationpros.com/press_release/12289440/baines-simmons-partners-with- cge-risk-management-to-offer-two-collaborative-courses Back to Top Navy P-8 aircraft damaged in towing accident on Okinawa TOKYO - A Navy P-8 maritime surveillance aircraft sustained damage after striking a tow truck at Kadena Air Base. The aircraft was being pulled by the small truck at about 5:45 a.m. Monday for normal maintenance when the incident occurred, Navy officials said Wednesday. The hit caused minor damage to the aircraft's nose gear and lower fuselage, a Navy statement said. "There were no injuries, and the investigation of this minor incident is ongoing at this time," the statement said. Japanese broadcaster NHK reported that the incident was initially labeled a Class A mishap, which U.S. officials could not confirm Wednesday. The military defines a Class A mishap as an incident involving either $2 million or more in damages, a death or permanent disability. However, preliminary mishap reports can change significantly upon further investigation and damage assessment. The P-8 accident made national news in Japan on Wednesday after a more serious incident earlier this month. On Dec. 12, a Marine Osprey went down in shallow waters off Okinawa, leaving the aircraft in pieces. The helicopter-plane hybrid had been practicing nighttime air refueling at sea when it damaged a propeller when a heavy hose was severed. https://www.stripes.com/news/navy-p-8-aircraft-damaged-in-towing-accident-on- okinawa-1.445480 Back to Top Heroin worth Rs170m seized from PIA aircraft KARACHI: The Pakistan Customs on Wednesday claimed to have recovered 17kg of heroin worth Rs170 million from a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft, which was ready to take off for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Initial investigations of the federal body suggested the "involvement of officers" of the national flag carrier in "repeated attempts to smuggle the drugs." In a press conference, Pakistan Customs officers also negated the PIA claims that the heroin was recovered by its staff with the help of Pakistan Customs and Anti-Narcotics Force. They said a similar attempt was foiled in May 2016 when they recovered 27kg heroin in nine cotton bags from a PIA aircraft. "The PIA [personnel] don't have any authority to search any plane," Director Zahid Khokar of Pakistan Customs told reporters. "It's wrong to say that the PIA had any contribution in that success. The plane was ready to take off for Saudi Arabia and it was delayed only [due to] our reports. Total worth of [the drugs] in international market stands at around Rs170m. "We will look into all aspects. The CCTV footage is being acquired to watch movement of the people and those who entered the aircraft. We are confident to reach them sooner or later," added Mr Khokar. https://www.dawn.com/news/1303728/heroin-worth-rs170m-seized-from-pia-aircraft Back to Top UK government is considering a drone pilot test It would be similar to a driver's theory exam. The UK government is considering a "knowledge or situational awareness test" for all British drone owners, similar to a driving theory examination. The proposed quiz could be voluntary, according to the Department for Transport, or mandatory as part of a new drone registration system. It was referenced in a new consultation drawn up to keep casual pilots in check, while encouraging drone research by the private sector. "The safety of other airspace users and the general public is dependent on leisure drone users adhering to the rules and understanding the risks," ministers argue. Among the new proposals is an online registration scheme that pilots would need to complete for quadcopters weighing 250 grams or more. (The same weight threshold would be applied to the theoretical test.) For reference, the foldable DJI Mavic and GoPro Karma drones weigh 743 grams and 1 kilogram respectively. You would need to register before your first flight and, most likely, pay a small fee for the privilege. The necessary form would be accessible online, the government suggests, or filled out during the acquisition of your drone. The government would then give you a registration number and send out reminders when it's time for renewal. The government is also interested in electronic tagging, but admits that the required technology "is not yet readily available, or of a size that can be fitted on to a drone." Until such a system is achievable, minsters are considering an app that pilots would need to use before each flight. Starting in "one or two geographical areas," this software would log your intention to fly and then send a summary with perceived hazards, such as nearby commercial airspace or power lines. "Through the pilots the government could assess whether such a mandatory requirement could benefit safety, security, privacy and enforcement." Other proposals include more testing facilities for small businesses. These could take the form of "Drone Innovation Zones," in quiet, rural areas, formal regional test sites or a national drone testing centre, similar to the Wales UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) Environment in Aberporth. The government is also interested in stronger geo-fencing -- software-enabled restrictions on where you can fly -- and mandating a copy of the Civil Aviation Authority's "Dronecode" in quadcopter packaging. None of these ideas have been finalised just yet. The government has simply recognised problems with drone ownership in the UK and put forth proposals which it thinks would mitigate them. Some are more practical than others, which is why ministers have published them as a consultation; experts, including pilots and manufacturers, are now free to come forward and give their feedback before they're taken further. https://www.engadget.com/2016/12/21/uk-government-drone-test-registration/ Back to Top Korean Air Pilots Strike, Disrupting Asia, Mideast Routes Some flights on the airline's major Asian and Middle Eastern routes will be disrupted Korean Air Lines planes at Incheon International Airport, near Seoul, South Korea. SEOUL-Unionized pilots at Korean Air Lines Co. went on strike Thursday for the first time in 11 years, disrupting some flights on the airline's major Asian and Middle Eastern routes. The pilots entered the 10-day strike after talks with management broke down, following nearly a year of wage negotiations. 'A strike is not our end goal. But the company's proposal for a pay raise is too little for us to accept.' -A union leader "A strike is not our end goal. But the company's proposal for a pay raise is too little for us to accept," a union leader said. Over the next 10 days, the strike is expected to lead to the cancellation of as many as 150 passenger and cargo flights on the carrier's domestic and international routes, including to Hong Kong, Dubai and Tokyo, according to the transport ministry. Korean Air said disruptions will be limited and that more than 90% of flights scheduled for the next 10 days will be unaffected. "We're diverting passengers on the affected flights to other routes to their destinations. We will also make sure no year-end cargo are delayed," a company spokesman said. A complete work stoppage by pilots is prohibited under Korean law. Airlines are categorized as one of the country's critical industries, meaning that at least 80% of a company's international flight operations and half of local flights must be maintained even during strikes. Korean Air accounts for about 40% of the country's international flight operations. The strike comes as more Korean pilots are moving to China, where demand for aviators is outpacing supply and airlines are luring experienced pilots from overseas with competitive compensation packages. In 2015, more than 120 pilots left Korean Air-seven times the number for the year before, according to the company, with nearly half moving to China. The flood of departing Korean pilots has prompted greater demand for higher wages among those who stay. Korean Air's union, of which about two-thirds of the carrier's 2,700 pilots are members, has threatened to strike since February, demanding a 29% pay raise instead of the 1.9% increase proposed by the company. The union is open to fresh talks with the company, but if no wage deal is reached by the end of December, the pilot strike would be extended for another 10 days, a union leader said. A spokesman for Korean Air said the pilots' demands are unacceptable, as the wage gap between pilots and other staff is already wide. The strike marks the carrier's first labor action since 2005, when a four-day pilot strike resulted in a loss of 67 billion won ($56 million) from canceled flights and other service disruptions. That action spurred the government to order pilots back to work amid concerns over damage to the economy and passenger inconvenience. As air-route networks rapidly expand to serve Asia's burgeoning middle classes, the region is forecast to need 226,000 new pilots in the next 20 years-more than Europe, North America and Africa combined, according to aircraft manufacturer Boeing Co. Asiana Airlines Inc., Korean Air's domestic rival, lost 61 pilots to Chinese and other airlines in 2015, double the number for the prior year. http://www.wsj.com/articles/korean-air-pilots-go-on-strike-for-first-time-in-11-years- 1482371858 Back to Top How 'Plastic' Planes Make Jet Travel Better (A Boeing 787 in flight: British Airways) Thousands of new jetliners already in service or on order will make a huge difference in how you feel after a long flight. Here's the technology behind the comfort. Even though air travel is safer than ever and in many cases cheaper than 10 or 20 years ago, travelers love to complain about its agonies, usually citing cramped and narrow seats, crying babies, chatty seat mates, and armrest wars. But other factors contribute much more to feelings of distress, especially on longer flights. The silent "killers" are altitude sickness and dehydration. These come on you gradually and usually most people don't even know what hit them, blaming their discomfort on "jet lag". I was reminded of this recently over dinner with my mother-in-law. On longer flights, she experiences difficulty breathing and a mild headache, symptoms I've experienced myself. But help is on the way in the form of new commercial airliners constructed in large part of high-tech materials, including carbon-reinforced plastics. The science behind air travel discomfort In a study entitled "Effect of Aircraft-Cabin Altitude on Passenger Discomfort" in the New England Journal of Medicine, the authors write that people who "travel to terrestrial altitudes above 6500 feet experience acute mountain sickness, a syndrome characterized by symptoms of headache, nausea, vomiting, anorexia, lassitude, and sleep disturbance." The researchers call this "Acute Mountain Syndrome." The ill effects are even more pronounced the older you are. And no wonder. When you're flying at 38,000 feet on a conventional aircraft, the cabin is pressurized at 8,000 feet, the same equivalent altitude as Bogota, Colombia or the Beaver Creek ski resort in Colorado's Rocky Mountains. But two newer airplane models, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the Airbus A350, are pressurized to 6,000 feet, which makes a huge difference on passenger comfort, as I discovered on some recent flights. Not long ago I flew from San Jose, California to London nonstop on a British Airways 787- 9 (a larger version of the original 787-8) on a 10-hour flight and soon after I had an opportunity to fly on an even longer leg from the Airbus factory in Toulouse, France to Singapore, nonstop on a Singapore Airlines Airbus A350 delivery flight (it just happened to be Airbus' 10,000 airframe). Breathing problems? No. Dry eyes and nasal passages? Didn't happen. On both flights, after the meal service I fell into a deep sleep and only woke minutes before landing, feeling incredibly refreshed. After returning from Singapore, I wanted a deeper understanding of the technology behind these new planes. I had read some articles on the subject, but they left questions unanswered. Exactly how do these new planes manage to create a more comfortable cabin environment, and why didn't earlier models achieve these benefits? So I called Boeing to find out, and the company put me in touch with Blake Emery, Director, Differentiation Strategy, and Kent Craver, Regional Director, Cabin Experience and Revenue Analysis. The answer? Plastics. Specifically, carbon-reinforced plastic composites. But it's more complicated than that as I soon learned. "Pressure drop oh pressure drop. You gonna feel it" Flying at an "internal altitude" of 8,000 feet means your heart and lungs must work harder to supply oxygen to your vital organs than at sea level, causing fatigue and shortness of breath. It's one reason why champion marathon runners hail from high- altitude locales: their stronger lungs and hearts give them an advantage. Not just running, but even sleeping at higher altitude becomes more difficult (have you ever experienced, on a ski trip, waking up in the middle of the night gasping for breath?). As your high school physics teacher may have explained, air flows from high pressure to low pressure, and atmospheric pressure goes down as altitude increases. As a plane climbs to 35,000-40,000 feet and the pressure outside the plane goes down, the pressure inside the plane, set at a more comfortable lower altitude, becomes higher relative to the outside. So the higher cabin air pressure pushes out trying to equalize with the lower outside pressure (air pressure flows from high to low). When airplane designers further increase the interior air pressure to achieve a more comfortable cabin, as with the 787, that puts even more stress on the plane's structure. If that structure is made of metal, the continual bending and flexing of the metal weakens it. But plastic doesn't care if you add pressure on it or flex it. More humidity means more comfort, up to a point Next, humidity. I had wondered how these new planes managed to maintain higher cabin humidity levels. (I even asked an airline engineer I was flying with to explain this but he couldn't come up with an answer.) Are there humidifiers on board? No. It's us. We passengers generate cabin humidity as we breathe and perspire. To reduce aridity, the 787 and A350 retain inside the cabin more of the humidity generated by passengers. They do this by regulating how much humidity is expelled outside the plane. In fact, the crew can program the 787's optimal humidity levels depending on the number of passengers on board (the more passengers, the greater the cabin humidity, and the more cabin air is expelled). "The outside air at 35,000 feet has near zero humidity," Emery explained, "But too much humidity inside the cabin is as bad as too little. Think how tired you feel when the humidity is at 100 percent on a hot day." Why don't older planes keep more human-produced humidity inside the plane, you ask? I did too. According to Boeing's Craver, "humidity can be detrimental. Metal corrodes," eventually weakening aircraft structures and requiring repairs. "But carbon fiber doesn't care if it gets wet." The 787 offers some other interesting features to increase passenger comfort. Larger windows, higher cabin ceilings, an advanced air filtration system, and software designed to suppress wind gusts to ensure a smoother ride. "It's not just one item, it's all of them together as a system," Craver added. Eventually all planes will offer the same benefits, but it'll take a couple of decades. There are 810 firm orders for the A350 (Singapore Airlines alone has 67 on order) and over 1,200 for the 787. Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines recently began nonstop 16-hour flights between San Francisco and Singapore using A350 jets (coincidentally the same 10,000th delivery I was on) and in 2018 will be flying 18 hours nonstop from LA and New York to Singapore using a longer-range A350 variant. Although sitting in an airplane for 18 hours is not "fun" for most people (I know, I've done it), it'll be a lot more pleasurable in one of these new jets. Anyone wishing to arrive in better shape will do themselves a favor by doing a little research while booking airfares. To find out which routes the 787 and A350 fly, visit Boeing's 787 Flight Tracker or Google's A350 flight listings. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/george-hobica/how-plastic-planes-make- j_b_13771222.html Back to Top The Gulfstream G600 Jet Passes First Flight with Flying Colors Gulfstream G600 completed its first test flight, having successfully taken off and touched down at Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport in Savannah, Ga. After flying through the air with the greatest of ease, the Gulfstream G600 completed its very first test flight, having successfully taken off and touched down at Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport in Savannah, Ga., on December 17. One of Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation's latest jets, first announced in 2014, the long-range aircraft can cover up to 7,135 miles at a cruising speed of Mach .85 and features a wing design and engine configuration that is up to 23-percent more efficient than its competitors. The cabin, measuring almost 6.5 feet in height and close to 8 feet in width, is also touted as the longest in its class and accommodates up to 19 passengers in seats that are more than 2 feet wide. And the interior, accented by 14 panoramic windows, can be customized to include four separate living spaces with 10 layout selections available. The travelling environment is further enhanced with 100-percent fresh air introduced every two minutes and a cabin altitude set at 4,850 feet, even while at a maximum height of 51,000 feet. And pilots are also pampered, as the cockpit features Gulfstream's Symmetry Flight Deck with active control sidesticks, 10 touchscreen interfaces, and a heads-up display. The roundtrip trial run lasted 2 hours and 53 minutes and was conducted by the company's test pilots Scott Martin and Todd Abler along with engineer Nathaniel Rutland. Deliveries of the G600 will commence in 2018. (gulfstream.com) http://robbreport.com/aviation/gulfstream-g600-jet-passes-first-flight-flying-colors Back to Top Trump Meets Boeing and Lockheed Executives After Assailing Them on Jet Costs Marillyn A. Hewson, left, the chief executive of Lockheed Martin, met with Donald J. Trump, the president-elect, at his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago on Wednesday. Credit Kevin D. Liles for The New York Times After attacking Boeing and Lockheed Martin on Twitter over the costs of military contracts, President-elect Donald J. Trump met Wednesday with the chief executives of the two aerospace companies, saying his goal was to try to "bring costs down." Mr. Trump said he was mainly concerned about Lockheed Martin's new F-35 fighter jet, which, at $400 billion for 2,400 jets, "is very, very expensive." Asked if he had won any concessions in the meeting, he said, "We're just beginning, it's a dance." "We're going to get the costs down," he added, "and we're going to get it done beautifully." Mr. Trump said he also was "looking to cut a tremendous amount of money" from a Boeing program to build new Air Force One planes that provide mobile command centers for the president. Boeing has received only a $170 million contract to study initial concepts. But Mr. Trump asserted in a Twitter post on Dec. 6 that the estimated costs were "out of control, more than $4 billion," adding, "Cancel order!" Mr. Trump met first on Wednesday with Dennis A. Muilenburg, Boeing's chief executive, followed by Lockheed's chief executive, Marillyn A. Hewson, and Pentagon officials with models of the F-35 jets. The meetings took place at Mr. Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla. Mr. Muilenburg told reporters after the meeting that he had given Mr. Trump "my personal commitment" that Boeing would build new Air Force One planes for less than the $4 billion estimate that Mr. Trump had cited. "It was a terrific conversation," Mr. Muilenburg said. Ms. Hewson released a statement saying that she and Mr. Trump had had "a productive meeting" and that she had briefed him on the company's progress in lowering the fighter jets' cost. Cost increases have bedeviled both the Bush and Obama administrations since the F-35 program began in 2001. It was conceived as an affordable way to build three versions of a strike fighter, one each for the Air Force, the Navy and the Marines. But it proved more complicated to tailor each variant for its service, and costs ballooned. Lockheed has built 200 of the jets so far, and Pentagon officials contend that the program has stabilized since it was restructured in 2011. But if Mr. Trump insists on cuts, military analysts said, the Pentagon could end up building far fewer jets than planned. Military analysts have said that the bulk of the cost of building new Air Force One jets would come from developing complex communications and protective systems, including antimissile defenses and shielding to protect against the electromagnetic effects of a nuclear blast. Mr. Muilenburg, the Boeing executive, said he and Mr. Trump discussed other topics, which neither identified publicly. Boeing officials have expressed concern that Mr. Trump's talk of tariffs on imports from China could prompt the Chinese to retaliate by buying more jets from Boeing's European rival, Airbus. Boeing also would like to see Mr. Trump support its plans to sell $16.6 billion in jets to Iran and keep providing guaranteed financing for other sales. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/21/business/donald-trump-boeing-lockheed.html Back to Top 'SMALL DRONE' RESEARCH I'm conducting a research project on small Visual Line-of-Sight (VLOS) remotely-piloted aircraft (RPA)/Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations. The project is investigating the piloting strategies used in operating a small (up to 2kg gross weight) VLOS rotary-wing or multi-rotor drone. If you are 18 years or over and have any experience operating a small drone for recreational or professional purposes, you are invited to participate in the study. If you would like to participate, you will be asked to complete an on-line protocol which involves a consent form, demographic questionnaire and the small VLOS drone version of EXPERTise 2.0, a situational judgement test. The study takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. You will need to complete the study using a desktop computer or laptop/notebook with at least a 17 inch monitor or screen. The preferred internet browser for completing the study is Google Chrome. Firefox and Safari are also suitable. To access the study, please go the following website: https://expertise.mq.edu.au/Participant/Account/Login The access details for the study are: Organisation code: Small Drone 2 Project: Small drone Study 2b 2017 Participants who complete the study will go into a draw to win an iPad mini 4. If you have any questions, please contact me at renshawp@hotmail.com or Prof Mark Wiggins at mark.wiggins@mq.edu.au Thank you for your interest. Peter Renshaw Macquarie University Sydney, Australia Back to Top RESEARCH STUDY SURVEY Hello, I'm Dr. Tim Holt and I'm currently the Program Chair for Aeronautics and an Associate Professor with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, AZ. In this position I'm responsible for faculty, curriculum, course updates, course alignment, etc... Furthermore, I teach undergraduate courses in aeronautics, safety, unmanned systems, and airport management for the Bachelor of Science in Aeronautics program. To this day, there are no reported statistics of general aviation pilots that have survived hypoxia during normal flight operations. More often than not there are tales of pilots getting themselves into a hypoxic situation and not surviving; rarely do people hear of those that survive. This leaves the aviation community unsure of the common circumstances that these pilots find themselves that create a hypoxic state, as well as whether or not that reported the occurrence to the proper establishments. The data collected from this survey issued to general aviation pilots, will hopefully give insight as to how best to prevent these occurrences from happening, as well as promote a healthy safety culture to report these events. It is with this in mind that we decided to embark on this research study. This survey is completely anonymous and individual responses will not be recorded. It should only take 5-10 minutes to complete. The link to the survey will provide you the Informed Consent and contact information of the researchers involved in the study. Thank you in advance, it's truly appreciated. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GAHYPOXIA Back to Top Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship The Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship was established by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) to shape the next generation of aviation researchers, honoring the late Najeeb Elias Halaby, an eminent aviator and administrator, for his vision and more than five decades of extraordinary contributions to aviation (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/halabyfellowship.pdf). The Fellowship The recipient of a Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship will spend three months (in 2017 or early 2018) in residence with NCAR's Aviation Weather Research Program, which Mr. Halaby was instrumental in establishing in the 1980s. As the nation's leader in addressing aviation weather research, NCAR plays a unique role in meeting user needs by transferring research results to operations through its Research Application Laboratory (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/). The Fellow will conduct research broadly aimed at improving the integration of weather into decision support tools for enhanced mitigation of weather sensitivities (e.g., weather impact avoidance) and management of air traffic. The Fellowship will provide: * a monthly stipend for three months, including temporary living expenses * round-trip travel expenses to and from Boulder, CO * travel to a conference to present results * page charges for one publication of key results Eligibility and Application The Halaby Fellowship targets graduate students (late Masters or early PhD level) enrolled in an aviation-relevant department or program of a domestic or international university. Interested candidates should have advanced research skills, far-reaching vision, and dedication to get things accomplished. Consideration for this Fellowship will be given to candidates based on the following submitted material: * Curriculum vitae * Proposal (maximum five pages) presenting the research to be conducted at NCAR, the anticipated outcome of that, and how the proposed effort ties into the candidate's ongoing graduate research project(s) * Contact information for three references (one of which should be the student's primary advisor) NCAR will accept applications for the Halaby Fellowship each year. Email Applications by February 28, 2017 to halabyfellowship@ucar.edu Back to Top Graduate Research Survey HI! My name is Amber L. Hulsey, A.B.D. and I am currently working on my dissertation for my Ph.D. entitled, "Human Trafficking: Flying Under the Radar." My dissertation examines the extent to which human trafficking occurs by air as a mode of transportation compared to land and sea. Additionally, the study examines the actions that can be taken to combat human trafficking into and within the United States. The theoretical lens to which this study uses is Human Security Theory. This survey is completely anonymous, has undergone Institutional Review Board and has been approved. If you have any questions or would like to contact me for any reason, please email me at amber.hulsey@usm.edu. The survey will be open from December 7- December 21st. Please share this on all social media accounts, with your friends, family, and with your colleagues. Upon completion of this study, I will share the findings with various government and NGO's to aid in eradicating human trafficking. Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HTinUSA Thank you so much for taking the time to complete this survey and more importantly, for helping aid in the research to combat human trafficking by air. Curt Lewis