Flight Safety Information August 8, 2017 - No. 158 In This Issue Incident: Lingus A320 at London on Aug 6th 2017, bird strike Incident: Med-View B763 at Ilorin on Aug 5th 2017, rejected takeoff due to bird strike Incident: Lufthansa A388 near Montreal on Aug 2nd 2017, fire in cabin EVAS - Cockpit Smoke Protection (Video) AI flight in US denied take-off over seat belt tags Cabin Air Safety Act aimed at cleaning the air in the air Alaska volcano sends up ash cloud; aircraft warning issued FAA's Data Comm Progress Belies Criticism Over NextGen Aviation struggles with 50-year-old maintenance training regulation Qatar Airways to start using new air routes Drone pilots reminded to stay grounded during firefighting operations Pilotless planes could save airlines billions. But would anyone fly? Pilotless Transport Aircraft by 2025 says UBS Delta's replacement for the jumbo jet has arrived Airlines will consume a quarter of the world's carbon budget by 2050 Cool Guy Elon Musk Casually Drops Animation of World's Most Powerful Rocket (Video) CHC Safety 7 Quality Summit - 2017 (September 27-29; Grapevine, TX) GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY RESULTS Position:...Head, Global Aviation Data Management ISASI 2017, San Diego CA...August 22 - 24. 2017 Incident: Lingus A320 at London on Aug 6th 2017, bird strike An Aer Lingus Airbus A320-200, registration EI-DEL performing flight EI-911 from London Gatwick,EN (UK) to Knock (Ireland), departed Gatwick's runway 26L but was struck by a bird. The crew continued the flight, climbed to FL340 but subsequently decided to divert to Dublin (Ireland) as result of the bird strike. The aircraft landed safely on Dublin's runway 28. The airline reported a bird impacted the aircraft some time after takeoff from Gatwick, the crew decided to divert to Dublin as a precaution. The passengers were bussed to Knock. http://avherald.com/h?article=4acad5cb&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Med-View B763 at Ilorin on Aug 5th 2017, rejected takeoff due to bird strike A Med-View Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration 5N-BQN performing flight VL-3128 from Ilorin (Nigeria) to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) with 222 pilgrims, was accelerating for takeoff from Ilorin when the crew rejected takeoff due to a bird strike. The aircraft slowed safely and returned to the apron. The airline reported the aircraft struck a flock of birds prompting the crew to abort the flight. The pilgrims were taken to Jeddah the following day. http://avherald.com/h?article=4acad44d&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Lufthansa A388 near Montreal on Aug 2nd 2017, fire in cabin A Lufthansa Airbus A380-800, registration D-AIMI performing flight LH-440 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Houston Intercontinental,TX (USA), was enroute at FL380 near Montreal,QC (Canada) when a battery fire broke out in the cabin of the aircraft, which was extinguished by cabin crew. The aircraft continued to Houston for a safe landing about 4 hours later. The FAA confirmed on Monday Aug 7th 2017, that there had been an in-cabin battery incident. On Friday Aug 4th the FAA had advised that they were not (yet) aware of such an occurrence. The FAA added on Monday that they are working with Lufthansa to find out more details about the occurrence. A passenger in the aft cabin reported the aircraft was enroute near Montreal when a fire alarm triggered and smell of smoke developed in the cabin. The captain announced a short circuit had triggered a fire in the cabin, later reported that a silicon battery had been wedged into a seat of the business class causing a short circuit and a fire of the battery. The passenger reported everything except the exit signs went dark, only sirenes could be heard. Obviously vents were opened, an air rush exiting the cabin could be felt. Flight attendants battled the fire with fire extinguishers. After the fire was out the captain announced, that there had been no damage to the aircraft, hence they were able to continue to Houston. http://avherald.com/h?article=4acacb9f&opt=0 Back to Top Back to Top AI flight in US denied take-off over seat belt tags * A large number of belts on seats of the Delhi-bound Boeing-777 were without the mandatory tags * This was not a security issue * This is an instance of impractical or irrelevant stipulations being imposed by FAA, an AI spokesperson said NEW DELHI: The American air safety regulator on Friday stopped an Air India aircraft to take off as scheduled from Chicago for India due to missing tag numbers from several seat belts. The surprise check by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) found a large number of belts on seats of the Delhi-bound Boeing-777 (VT-ALK) without the mandatory tags bearing their technical standard order (TSO) number. Though not a safety issue, FAA did not allow the plane - which was booked to capacity - to take off. Air India had another B-777 parked in nearby New York's John F Kennedy Airport. The airline took out some seat belts from this plane (VT-ALJ) and flew them to Chicago on a Delta flight. Once there, these belts were installed on the seats of the AI plane at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. This 342-seater plane then took off for Delhi after a delay of more than eight hours on Friday after its schedule take-off time of 1.30 pm. As many as 44 passenger seats and 12 flight attendant seats had to be declared unserviceable for this journey due to their missing TSO tags. Clearly, AI is not happy. An airline spokesman said: "The seat belts were perfectly fine. Only some had tags worn out. This is an instance of impractical or irrelevant stipulations being imposed on Air India by FAA. However, we would take necessary action to ensure such things don't recur. A lot of new seat belts have been ordered." A senior AI official said that FAA is subjecting the Maharaja's aircraft to stringent checks at all the stations it flies to - New York JFK and Newark, Chicago, Washington and San Francisco. "The checks have intensified in the recent past. While technically FAA was correct in pointing out the missing TSO tags, we told them that new seat belts have been ordered and the old ones will be replaced very soon. Still the aircraft was not allowed to take off till we got some belts from another of our aircraft in New York," said the official. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/ai-flight-in-us-denied-take-off-over-seat-belt-tags/articleshow/59936622.cms Back to Top Cabin Air Safety Act aimed at cleaning the air in the air It's not all that unusual these days to hear stories of "fume events" or incidents where unusual "odors in the cabin" have caused flights to be delayed, rerouted or to make emergency landings. In January, 2017, seven flight attendants were taken to the hospital after a fume event on an American Airlines flight that landed in Orlando. According to news reports, that Airbus A330 had experienced two previous fume events before that. Last week, a JetBlue plane on its way to Florida from California had to land instead in Oklahoma City due to an unknown odor that was coming from the cockpit. Ambulances met the plane and medics gave oxygen to some of the passengers who were having trouble breathing. Stories like this grab headlines, but airline crew members have been worried about, reporting and complaining about a wide variety of health concerns - everything from light- headedness and dizziness to vomiting and memory impairment - related to contaminated air on airplanes for years. There's been some disagreement in the aviation community over whether or not toxic cabin air is a real problem. According to Airlines for America (A4A), "Frequent studies over the years have consistently concluded that cabin air meets or exceeds health and safety standards, as aircraft have highly efficient environmental control systems that filter air as it is recirculated through the aircraft cabin." A4A also notes that "In a report that the Federal Aviation Administration provided to Congress two years ago, FAA expressly found risk of these issues to be extremely low, but confirmed that it would continue to monitor and sponsor research in this area." Rotation Still, a wide range of groups representing aviation workers, including the Allied Pilots Association, the International Union of Teamsters, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA and the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and others have come out in support of the Cabin Air Safety Act: legislation recently introduced (and amended to FAA reauthorization) to try to gain additional protection for crew members and airline passengers. "When your workplace is 30,000 feet above the ground, you can't step outside for a breath of fresh air," said APFA president Bob Ross in a statement. "Crew members and passengers must have a clean, healthy environment during air travel - and the Cabin Air Safety Act is a major step in the right direction." The proposed legislation was introduced by US Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Diane Feinstein (D-CA) and Edward J. Markey (D-MA), and cites academic research suggesting that in the last decade alone there have been approximately 20,000 "toxic fume events" on aircraft involving air that enters the cabin through the jet engines and then becomes contaminated with engine oil, exhaust, fuel fumes, de-icing fluids or ozone before mixing with air entering the cabin. The act calls for: Mandated pilot and flight attendant training regarding toxic fumes on aircraft; Rules requiring the FAA to record and monitor reports of fume events through a standardized form and public database; Assurance that thorough investigations will occur after fume events occur; and The introduction of carbon monoxide sensors on aircraft set to alarm based on national air quality standards. "Most Americans go to work with the expectation of breathing clean air, but until we achieve better standards for cabin air quality, flight attendants don't have this guarantee," said AFA International President Sara Nelson in a statement. "Lawmakers need to act to prevent Flight Attendants, pilots or passengers from suffering the effects of breathing toxic fumes in the cabin." https://runwaygirlnetwork.com/2017/08/07/cabin-air-safety-act-aimed-at-cleaning-the-air- in-the-air/ Back to Top Alaska volcano sends up ash cloud; aircraft warning issued ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - An Alaska volcano that has been erupting periodically for more than seven months sent up another ash cloud, prompting a warning to trans-continental aircraft. Bogoslof Volcano, in the Aleutian Islands about 850 miles (1,400 kilometers) southwest of Anchorage, erupted at 10 a.m. Monday and spewed ash for three hours until about 1 p.m. Satellite data showed the eruption rising above clouds at 1,500 feet (450 meters). A pilot later reported seeing the ash cloud at 32,000 feet (9,750 meters). Bogoslof Volcano is a cone-shape structure with its base 5,500 feet (1,675 meters) under water on the floor of the Bering Sea. The tip forms tiny Bogoslof Island, and previous eruptions have added or subtracted acreage. The volcano has erupted about 60 times since mid-December, said Dave Schneider, a U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist with the observatory, usually in spurts far less than three hours. Previous eruptions have been from vents under the sea. "We think this was still underwater today," Schneider said. Ash clouds above 20,000 feet (6,100 meters) can harm jet airliners traveling between Asia and North America on the Great Circle Route. Sharp volcanic ash can damage and even stop jet engines. Pilots warned of ash clouds fly over or around them to avoid engine damage. Satellite images in early afternoon showed a continuous ash cloud still attached to the volcano, according to the observatory. Winds pushed the cloud south. Ash was not expected to present a danger to Alaska communities. Low-level ash emissions may have continued. The observatory said seismic activity declined but remained above background levels and that emissions could intensify without warning. http://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/alaska-volcano-sends-up-ash-cloud-aircraft- warning-issued/ Back to Top FAA's Data Comm Progress Belies Criticism Over NextGen With Data Comm, pre-departure clearances are issued by text from the tower to a cockpit display. (Photo: FAA via Twitter) Pilots and controllers have used text messaging for more than one million flights under the FAA's Data Comm program, belying criticism that the agency's NextGen ATC modernization effort is a failure. The FAA and prime contractor Harris have provisioned 55 airport towers for data communications as the program moves to 20 centers that manage high-altitude traffic. On June 2, a Southwest Airlines flight departing from Minneapolis to Denver received its pre-departure clearance from the ATC tower by text instead of voice-marking the millionth such message, said Chris Collings, Harris's Data Comm program manager. The FAA claims the program is under budget and more than two years ahead of schedule, allowing it to deploy Data Comm at seven additional sites. It will provision the first new site-Joint Base Andrews in Maryland-this year, with the remaining six sites following during the first half of 2018, Collings said. In terms of the number of operations, Southwest is the leading user of 12 U.S. passenger and cargo airlines participating in the Data Comm program. Business aviation is also communicating with ATC towers by text messages; in June alone 4,000 business jet operations made use of the system, according to Collings. "The FAA, really through the feedback of the airlines was challenged to do it faster, and that helps with getting the crews familiar with using [Data Comm] and not having to figure out which airport has it and which one doesn't," Collings told AIN. "They set out a fairly aggressive roll-out schedule for last year and the majority of the towers hit all of those aggressive dates." Data Comm is a core program of the NextGen modernization effort, on which the FAA spent $7.4 billion between Fiscal Years 2004 and 2016, according to a November report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The FAA estimates it will spend $20.6 billion on NextGen through 2030, with the aviation industry paying $15 billion on equipment and training. The agency awarded Harris a seven-year, $332 million contract to perform Data Comm integration and engineering services in September 2012. The contract included 10 one-year options through September 2029. According to the GAO, the FAA has "divided capital investments for Data Comm into small segments." In its FY2018 budget submission, the agency requested $154 million for the program, which has been ongoing since 2012. Unlike automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), a NextGen core program for which airlines must equip by 2020, participation in Data Comm is voluntary. NextGen has come under fire from the Trump administration, which supports a proposal championed by House Transportation Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pennsylvania) to spin-off the ATC system from the FAA to a user-funded independent entity. Despite "billions and billions of tax dollars spent, and the many years of delays, we're still stuck with an ancient, broken, antiquated, horrible system that doesn't work...The previous administration spent over $7 billion trying to upgrade the system and totally failed," President Donald Trump declared on June 5. In a recent article published in The Air & Space Lawyer and distributed by the Transportation Committee, Schuster wrote of "billions of dollars squandered on 'ATC modernization,' deadlines missed and failed reforms." Thirteen years into the NextGen modernization "little has changed," he argued. "While there are pockets of progress where the FAA has partnered with the private sector on pilot programs and demonstrations, the agency has spent billions of dollars with little or no meaningful benefits that are demonstrated on a repeatable, consistent basis." Shuster's proposed ATC reform, however, faces Senate opposition. The FAA contends that services Data Comm provides will save aircraft operators more than $10 billion over the 30-year lifecycle of the program as well as $1 billion of its own operating costs. Airline captain Bret Peyton, who leads the Alaska Airlines' Data Comm effort, described the technology as "a great leap forward," in an article the airline posted on its website. "We've seen some tremendous success with Data Comm. Instead of talking with the tower to get pre-flight clearances, we use the text-messaging system to quickly receive key information," Peyton said. "It's also a time saver. Often at congested airports, our aircraft with Data Comm can skip ahead in line for takeoff and depart before other planes that don't have it." Alaska Airlines currently has 85 Data Comm-equipped Boeing 737s; another 40 airplanes will receive the upgrade by early 2019, the carrier said. Virgin America, part of Alaska Air Group, has 12 Data Comm-equipped Airbus aircraft. All new Boeing 737s and Airbus deliveries will have the system installed. Data Comm now moves fully into what is known as Segment 1, Phase 2 of the program to provision 20 air route traffic control centers that manage high-altitude, enroute traffic over the continental U.S. Already some needed infrastructure modifications have been made to the FAA's en route automation modernization (Eram) system at those centers-managed by Leidos since it acquired Eram from Lockheed Martin in August 2016. Plans call for rolling out data communications to three "key" enroute centers-Kansas City, Indianapolis and Memphis-in late 2018. These will test the system through March 2019; it will be installed at the 17 remaining centers through November 2019. "There's a lot of moving parts between the airlines and the FAA," Collings said. "I can say the partnership and the collaboration between the FAA and the airlines and the various vendors that are involved in this as well as the airframe manufacturers is tremendous. There's a whole lot of positive momentum on the FAA and the industry side to make this thing happen next year." https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/air-transport/2017-08-07/faas-data-comm- progress-belies-criticism-over-nextgen Back to Top Aviation struggles with 50-year-old maintenance training regulation Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations dictate what educational institutions teach aspiring aviation maintenance mechanics. The agency - saddled with the responsibility of keeping U.S. skies safe - rightly seeks to ensure that our future technicians obtain the proper training and experience before maintaining the aircraft. Unfortunately, FAA-dictated curriculum requirements have not been updated in more than five decades. In an age where technological advances are constantly driving innovation for safer and more efficient aircraft, schools are required to teach techniques for constructing and maintaining the now obviously antiquated, "Wright Flyer." Industry is left holding the bag, forced to retrain new graduates to ensure they can complete basic tasks required to maintain a modern, sophisticated aircraft. Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 147 governs aviation maintenance technician schools that hold an FAA certificate. The regulation was originally established under the Civil Aviation Administration and re- codified into 14 CFR in 1962. Since that time, neither the regulation, nor the subject areas it dictates be taught, have significantly changed. During the same time, the design regulations mandating the standards to which a civil aviation article must be certificated and maintained have changed innumerable times. These revisions have enhanced safety significantly; they also mandate more sophistication and knowledge in maintenance personnel. Widespread use of advanced materials and electronic operating systems, computers, high bypass propulsion systems, and "smart" aircraft did not exist in 1970 when minimum curriculum requirements were promulgated. Rapid advances in rotorcraft technology, unmanned aerial vehicles, glass panel light support aircraft, and the spread of electronics into every aspect of aircraft are therefore not addressed in FAA-approved training programs. Everyone agrees that part 147 is long-overdue for modernization. An Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee, made up of industry and FAA representatives, issued a December 2008 report with specific recommendations to update static minimum curriculum requirements. A 2003 Government Accountability Report (GAO) report called for updates, recognizing that: ...the required curriculum at aviation maintenance technician schools does not fully prepare [airframe and powerplant] A&P mechanics to work on commonly flown, technologically advanced commercial aircraft...today's modern aircraft require A&P mechanics to have a different set of skills than those being taught at aviation maintenance technician schools. Since A&P mechanics that are newly graduated from aviation maintenance technician schools lack the skills to work on modern aircraft, officials at some major airlines said they are reluctant to hire them directly from school. Outdated training mandates are more than an impediment; they hinder the aviation maintenance industry's economic growth. As the global aviation sector expands, economic forecasts predict that U.S. maintenance companies will be unable to meet increased demand because of a significant skilled worker shortage. To meet the need, training organization must produce better prepared aviation mechanics. In 2015, the FAA issued a part 147 notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). While a step in the right direction, industry took issue with several provisions of the proposal, calling for a less-prescriptive rule that would allow for competency-based programs and the freedom to cater training to industry needs. The Aviation Technician Education Council (ATEC) - along with fourteen other aviation trade organizations - decried the agency's continued reliance on class time at the expense of technical capability. The trade group also asked that the agency publish a rule free from specific subject area requirements that would pigeonhole the industry as technology advances, and mechanic certification testing standards change. Since the NPRM was issued nearly two years ago, an internal agency deadline to promulgate a rule has come and gone. While industry awaits a new regulation - one that expectantly provides opportunity for growth and innovation - schools continue to teach outdated curriculum and companies continue to spend exorbitant amounts of time turning new graduates into productive employees. ATEC is asking Congress and the FAA for action. Government must promulgate a rule - and soon - to ensure aviation maintenance technician schools teach industry realities and adequately prepare students for much-needed positions, to provide more attractive career paths for aircraft maintenance professionals, and to enhance an industry that already greatly benefits the public. Crystal Maguire is the executive director of the Aviation Technician Education Council (ATEC), a contributing writer to Aviation Week's Inside MRO, and operational manager for the Aerospace Maintenance Council, a nonprofit group that raises awareness about aviation maintenance technician careers through its annual Aerospace Maintenance Competition. http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/transportation/345631-aviation-struggles-with-50- year-old-maintenance-training Back to Top Qatar Airways to start using new air routes The Civil Aviation Authority has announced that Qatar Airways and international airlines will begin using the new air routes for their flights, which were approved following the extraordinary meeting of the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) Executive Council held last week. The ICAO Executive Council held an extraordinary session at its headquarters in Montreal, where it reviewed the State of Qatar's technical file on the negative impacts caused by the siege countries on aviation and air safety where emergency corridors have been facilitated to the aircraft (from and to Qatar) based on Article 54 of the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation of 1944. The Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority, H E Abdullah bin Nasser Turki Al Subaie, said yesterday that an important course for Qatar Airways has been activated across the international waters for which the UAE is responsible in the Arabian Gulf. He added that most of the routes requested by the State of Qatar from the International Civil Aviation Organization have been operated, whether in the Arabian Gulf or the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman. He revealed that the Civil Aviation Authority is currently considering new routes through international waters, which are supposed to be operated once approved by all parties, including ICAO. Al Subaie noted that the approval of the new routes was a great success for Qatar, given its ability to convince the International Civil Aviation Organization of the importance of compliance by the siege countries to the Chicago Convention. He said the new routes that have been approved would give more comfort and further security and safety of the aircrafts used. The meeting of the ICAO Executive Council had urged all Member States to comply with the Chicago Convention and its Annexes and to continue to cooperation in the areas of aviation safety, security, efficiency and sustainability of international civil aviation. https://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/08/08/2017/Qatar-Airways-to-start-using-new- air-routes Back to Top Drone pilots reminded to stay grounded during firefighting operations RENO, Nev. (News 4 & Fox 11) - Local authorities are reminding drone users to keep their devices grounded so they don't disrupt firefighting operations. A drone was spotted Sunday, interrupting air drops that were helping fight the Prater Fire in east Sparks. A drone also disrupted air operations battling the Minverva Fire in Plumas County, California. According to the U.S. Forest Service, there were more than 20 occasions in 2016 where someone flying an unauthorized drone forced the shut-down of aerial firefighting operations. Forest Service officials say firefighting aircraft typically fly at low altitudes, which could create the possibility for a mid-air collision with a drone. The Federal Aviation Administration typically puts temporary flight restrictions into place for disasters like wildfires, but people are advised to keep drones grounded even if restrictions aren't in place. To learn more about drones and wildfires, visit nifc.gov/drones/outreach. http://mynews4.com/news/local/drone-pilots-reminded-to-stay-grounded-during- firefighting-operations Back to Top Pilotless planes could save airlines billions. But would anyone fly? Taking pilots out of the cockpit could save airlines billions. But would anyone buy a ticket? The aviation industry could save $35 billion a year by moving to pilotless planes, according to a new report from UBS. Just one problem: The same report warns that only 17% of travelers are willing to fly without a pilot. UBS said that the technology required to operate remote-controlled planes could appear by 2025. Further advances beyond 2030 might result in automated business jets and helicopters, and finally commercial aircraft without pilots. "The technologies in development today will enable the aircraft to assist and back up the pilot in all the flight phases, removing the pilot from manual control and systems operations in all types of situations," the report said. Commercial flights already land with the assistance of on-board computers, and pilots manually fly the aircraft for only a few minutes on average. However, contrary to popular belief, airliners do not fly themselves, even when they're on autopilot. Pilots are continually monitoring and adjusting aircraft navigation and systems, communicating with air traffic control and preparing for the next phase of the flight. The UBS analysts said the transition to pilotless planes is likely to happen over many years. Cargo planes would likely be first to incorporate the new technology, with commercial flights being the last to go pilotless. The number of pilots needed for each flight could be reduced along the way. The shift has the potential to save the aviation industry huge amounts of money. Airlines typically employ 10 pilots per aircraft, and reducing their number would result in less spending on training, salaries and other staffing costs. It could also help alleviate an expected pilot shortage over the coming decades. An annual forecast released by Boeing last month said passenger and cargo airlines around the world are expected to buy 41,000 new airliners between 2017 and 2036. That means they will need to find and train 637,000 new pilots to fly them. Airlines in the Middle East and China, where air traffic is growing fast, are offering huge paychecks to attract more pilots and salaries in the U.S. are rising too. A move to pilotless planes would boost industry profitability, UBS said. Alternatively, if the cost savings were entirely passed to consumers, tickets could cost much less (11% cheaper in the U.S.). That would be about $40 a ticket, according to the $369 round trip average in the first half of 2016, which included $23 in fees. Still, there is likely to be major resistance to taking pilots out of the cockpit. A survey of 8,000 people commissioned by UBS found that 54% of respondents were unlikely to take a pilotless flight. Just 17% of respondents, who were from the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Australia, said they would buy the ticket. Major regulatory changes would also be required and any reduction in cockpit staffing would face huge opposition from pilots unions. Air traffic laws in most of the world require "four-eye-rule" in the cockpit. Two pilots should be present at all times, and if one of them needs to take a break, another member of the crew has to take his or her spot. http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/07/technology/business/pilotless-planes-passengers Back to Top Pilotless Transport Aircraft by 2025 says UBS A report by the Swiss financial services company, UBS says pilotless aircraft may take to the skies carrying cargo and passengers by 2025. The report estimates airlines would save $35 billion per year from decreased labor costs, reduced training expenses, improved fuel economy, and cheaper insurance. One big hedge on the arrival date for unmanned transport aircraft: the 2025 estimate provided by UBS is for technical feasibility only. Proposing a date by which such an aircraft would be acceptable to regulators and passengers calls for a higher degree of speculation. UBS discovered a significant minority of people would be willing to fly in an aircraft without a pilot today (46%) and surmised that public opinion may shift rapidly towards unpiloted aircraft when faced with reduced fares and evidence of improved safety. Although well beyond the horizon, pilotless aircraft are an appealing prospect for airlines bracing for the need to hire several hundred thousand new pilots in the next decade. Wages and training costs have been rapidly rising at regional U.S. airlines over the last several years as the major airlines have hired pilots from the regionals at unprecedented rates to cover increased air travel demand from economic expansion and a wave of retirements pushed back when the FAA raised the mandatory retirement age for Part 121 pilots. https://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Pilotless-Transport-Aircraft-by-2025-says-UBS- 229474-1.html Back to Top Delta's replacement for the jumbo jet has arrived Delta Airbus A350 (Delta's first Airbus A350-900.Flickr/Delta) On Sunday, Delta Air Lines took delivery of its very first next generation Airbus A350-900 airliner. Delta's first A350 arrived at its base in Atlanta just after 2:00 am on Sunday following a delivery flight from Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France. Upon arrival, the plane was greeted by a ceremonial water cannon salute before pulling up to a gate. The new wide-body jet is one of the 25 A350s Delta ordered in 2014 and is the first of five Airbus will deliver to the airline this year. In May, Delta announced that it is deferring delivery of 10 A350s by at least two to three years. The Airbus A350 entered service in early 2015 with Qatar Airways and is now in operation with roughly a dozen airlines around the world. However, Delta will be the aircraft's first operator in North America. Airbus A350 Delta (Water cannon salute.Flickr/Delta) With room for 306 passengers, Delta's A350s are expected to take over many of its trans- Pacific flights currently operated by its aging fleet of 747-400 jumbo jets. Delta's fleet of 747s, which were inherited from Northwest Airlines following their 2008 merger, has been in service an average of 26 years and is set to be retired at the end of the year. The A350-900 is powered by a pair of Rolls-Royce Trent XWB turbofan engines each producing 84,000 lbs. of thrust. The aircraft is optimized for efficient long-haul flying and boasts a range of 8,000 miles. https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/deltas-replacement-jumbo-jet-arrived- 185112875.html Back to Top Airlines will consume a quarter of the world's carbon budget by 2050 Madeleine Cuff Less than 18 percent of the world's population has stepped foot on an airplane. Air travel is still, to all intents and purposes, an activity only the privileged few have the luxury to enjoy. But that's all about to change, warned John Mandyck, chief sustainability officer at United Technologies Corporation (UTC), the multinational manufacturing giant responsible for a large chunk of the global market for aviation equipment, including its flagship Pratt & Whitney jet engines. "So many of us in the U.K. or in the U.S. take air travel for granted, but the fact of the matter is only a very small minority of the population is traveling by air today," he said. "That's all about to change. The forecast is that in the next 20 years air travel will double. Passenger numbers will double, and the number of commercial aircraft in the skies will double." There's no doubt the aviation industry is facing a massive challenge. This surge in growth expected over the next 20 years could push up carbon emissions to the point where one industry consumes a quarter of the world's carbon budget by 2050. Yet as almost every other sector faces increasing regulatory and social pressure to decarbonize, the likelihood of aviation winning special exemptions from policymakers and the public grows slimmer. As such the industry, working together under the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), already has promised to establish a scheme to deliver carbon-neutral growth after 2020. But the truth is that no one quite knows how the sector can meet growing demand while decarbonizing. No single technology or market, from biofuels to electric planes, is yet capable of promising guilt-free flight. Instead, CORSIA, as the ICAO scheme has been dubbed, focuses on establishing a carbon- offsetting scheme to neutralize emissions above 2020 levels. Although offset schemes are fraught with their own problems - chief among them concerns that without expert handling they can be vulnerable to double-counting or other mechanisms for exaggerating their effectiveness - they at least provide a clear incentive for airlines to avoid offset costs by curbing emissions as much as possible at the source. The forecast is that in the next 20 years air travel will double. Passenger numbers will double, and the number of commercial aircraft in the skies will double. All of which means the focus on efficiency is even more pronounced than usual in aviation circles at the moment. High fuel costs and the looming implementation of CORSIA means airlines are on the hunt for measures to slash fuel consumption that can kick in early in the next decade. That is good timing for UTC, which last year launched its Geared Turbofan jet engine. Twenty years and $11 billion in the making, UTC claims the Geared Turbofan is the "world's most fuel efficient jet engine," cutting 16 percent off an aircraft's average fuel burn. That's a "generational gain" in aircraft efficiency, said Mandyck: "If you can get 2 to 3 percent gain out of a jet engine is pretty good; to get 16 percent is huge." It also saves $1 million a year in fuel costs per airplane, which may explain why UTC has 8,000 engines on order already. With a production rate of around 400 a year, most of the new engines will hit the skies in the 2020s, when CORSIA is scheduled to be up and running, helping many airlines curb the impact of the new offset costs they will face. "These technologies are commercializing exactly at the right time and in the right place to support the public policy goals and environmental goals," Mandyck said. UTC - which makes vast quantities of other aviation equipment as well as engines - is also looking for efficiencies beyond the jet engine. Mandyck claimed electrifying other components on the plane, from landing gear to cockpit control systems, can make a big difference to an aircraft's weight, and therefore its fuel burn and emissions output. "In the past, an actuator, the device that for example moves the wing flaps, would have been hydraulically controlled," Mandyck explained. "That means you need a lot of oil, hoses and piping. We can reduce and eliminate all of that by making those electrically controlled." Energy efficiency takes flight But while improving the efficiency of aircraft is no doubt positive news for both airline operators and the planet, isn't there only so far this efficiency can go? Surely, if faced with the type of growth projections the aviation sector is confronting, it should be working on something more than incremental change? "I would argue that a 16 percent improvement in fuel efficiency is not incremental," Mandyck shot back. "That is revolutionary if you look back at the history of aviation." But, he conceded, it won't solve aviation's environmental problems on its own. "Clearly, more has to be done, and it is," Mandyck said. He said engineers at UTC are working on electric generation for planes, although he is skeptical that this will become a viable option in the near future. "We don't see technologies today that have the lift and the power that today's jet engine has, and depending on your fuel mix, if you don't have 100 percent renewable energy, the powering for the electric airplanes may not be competitive with the fuel efficiency of a jet engine," he argued. The famous Solar Impulse plane may have circumnavigated the globe using only solar power, but currently, hopes of delivering zero carbon flight at commercial scale face some pretty daunting technical challenges. While many airlines are experimenting with biofuels, scaling the market and ensuring jet biofuels are produced sustainably is a major challenge. "You have to weigh those considerations," Mandyck continued. "And when you are talking about batteries, you are talking about adding weight to the airplane, too. So that's the balance that has to be equated. It doesn't mean that in 20, 30, 50 years that airplanes are going to look much different - I expect they will, but for the near future what we see is gas turbine technology. We are trying to find ways to optimize that and we think we have with this new revolutionary design." What really could hold the key is biofuels, which Mandyck said hold "a lot of promise" if combined with gas turbine engines. But while many airlines are experimenting with biofuels, scaling the market and ensuring jet biofuels are produced sustainably is a major challenge. Waste-based biofuels might prove something of an answer, although one pioneer in the sector, James Hygate, admitted recently that supply is too limited for them to become a wholesale solution for the sector. This leaves the airline industry with some tough choices. It might make good business sense for the aviation sector to be boosting efficiency and cutting fuel consumption, but ultimately that can only take it so far. For Mandyck, at some point, the positives of air travel outweigh its environmental impacts. "I think we have to sit back and recognize what the global benefits are of aviation," he argued. "What purpose does it serve in connecting our economies, connection our cities, and recognizing that it is an integral part of our economy and finding ways to make sure that it can advance sustainably?" The trouble is, with more than 80 percent of the world's population moving ever closer to the boarding gate, cutting emissions to keep pace with the growth in demand well may turn out to be a race the industry just can't win. The question is, what happens then? https://www.greenbiz.com/article/airlines-will-consume-quarter-worlds-carbon-budget- 2050 Back to Top Cool Guy Elon Musk Casually Drops Animation of World's Most Powerful Rocket (Video) Image: Still via Elon Musk/Instagram The rollout for SpaceX's most powerful rocket, the Falcon Heavy, has been handled with a nearly concerning level of nonchalantness. On July 27th, Elon Musk announced on Twitter that its maiden voyage will be sometime this November. Now, the SpaceX founder and self- proclaimed Boring Person has released an animation showing the rocket launch on his Instagram. The humans enjoy social media, and so Elon does, too. "Lot that can go wrong in the November launch..." Musk cryptically wrote in the caption of the video, which appears to be a re-release of an animation that SpaceX first out in 2015. According to SpaceX, the Falcon Heavy-which it's touting as "the world's most powerful rocket"-will be able to lift 119,000 lb (over 54 metric tons) into orbit. It has three first- stage boosters that will be entirely reusable if all goes according to plan. Musk has previously said that he doesn't expect the first Falcon Heavy mission to reach orbit, which is not exactly the vote of confidence you'd like to hear for a giant rocket. But seeing as this maiden launch has already been plagued by delays (its was initially planned for 2013), it's probably good Musk is keeping our expectations tempered. On Twitter, Musk elaborated on some of the other details, like where the rocket will land after it launches from the recently-refurbished pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center. "Side booster rockets return to Cape Canaveral," he explained. "Center lands on droneship." While there's still a lot we don't know about the Falcon Heavy, one thing's for sure: we'll probably know more next time Ol' Musky's on one of his incoherent Twitter storms. http://gizmodo.com/cool-guy-elon-musk-casually-drops-new-animation-of-worl- 1797596728 Back to Top Back to Top GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY RESULTS Project completed: "Manual Flying Skills - Airline Procedures and their Effect on Pilot Proficiency" Dear fellow aviators, last year many of you took part in the Manual Flying Skills Online Survey, a core element of my MSc Air Safety Management thesis at City University of London. Now that the project is completed, I would like to say THANK YOU for your participation - based on your valuable contributions, I was able to use a broad data basis for my research. I have prepared a short presentation summarizing the key results of my research: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316738796_Presentation_Manual_Flying_Skills_- _Airline_Procedures_and_their_Effect_on_Pilot_Proficiency The complete paper can be found here: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316734587_Manual_Flying_Skills_- _Airline_Procedures_and_their_Effect_on_Pilot_Proficiency Feel free to share the links or to contact me via moritz.hanusch.1@city.ac.uk - I am looking forward to discussing my project's results with you and other interested flight safety professionals! Best regards, Moritz Hanusch Back to Top Position: Head, Global Aviation Data Management Overview Job ID: 7727 Position Category: Operational and/or Administrative Contract Duration: Permanent Location: Canada, Montreal Employment Type: Full Time - Permanent Travel Required: Yes Description Reporting to the Director, Safety, the incumbent will lead the Global Aviation Data Management (GADM) program. Responsibilities * Leading the management of the GADM portfolio of data analysis programs: - * Flight Data Connect, IATA's commercial flight data analysis product for airlines. * Flight Data Exchange, IATA's collection of global flight data and associated analysis in support of advocacy and safety enhancement. * Safety Trend Evaluation Analysis and Data Exchange System (STEADES), global aviation safety incident database and trend analysis to set safety performance targets and support risk reduction. * Ground Damage DataBase (GDDB), a key initiative supporting the IATA ground operations initiatives. * Data collection, collation, integrity and security program. * Develop GADM strategy according to the needs of the industry as approved through the IATA governance structure; * Assess and enhance program technical capabilities to meet industry needs and develop and implement the enhanced IT infrastructure; * Ensure the data programs remain sustainable through a combination of promoting commercial products such as Flight Data Connect and cost sharing initiatives of added value aggregate data analysis and presentation with industry stakeholders. * Lead the GADM team to ensure timely production of analysis and reports; * Manage the associated budgets for GADM (operational and project related); * Coordinate the analysis priorities with all other departments and the regions; * Deliver a strategy of communication and promotion of GADM with IATA members and across the industry; * Ensure effective implementation of quality principles to maintain ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification; * Represent IATA at relevant industry meetings and conferences; Qualifications and Skills * A comprehensive understanding of the value of data analysis to the enhancement of safety in the airline industry; * Ability to manage many complex technical aviation projects simultaneously * Airline safety management including data analysis experience; * Airline flight operations and/or management experience is desirable; * Understanding of quality system requirements; * Understanding of the challenges of performance/risk based management; * Advanced understanding of IT systems an asset; * Experience in global data management and sharing initiatives, with emphasis on aviation operational data management, would be an asset; * Demonstrate awareness of IATA's vision and mission, ensuring the broad perspective of the GADM is maintained; * Proven ability to present simple and/or complex issues clearly, credibly and effectively by using a communication style appropriate to the situation and at the highest executive levels; * Demonstrated organizational, analytical and interpersonal skills; understanding of aviation statistical analysis a plus; * Work collaboratively with a range of stake holders to achieve the goal of global industry benefit; * Demonstrate problem solving and creativity which lead to significant business improvement; * Extensive leadership experience in a culturally diverse environment and proficiency to motivate and encourage people in a positive manner to keep the team moving toward successful completion; * Candidates must possess and exhibit the following core IATA values: Be people and team oriented, focused on results, embrace innovation and change, and demonstrate leadership and personal integrity. * At the heart of IATA are our Values and Behaviors. We all have different personalities, styles and areas of expertise, but you'll recognize us by the consistent way we act and behave in line with our Values and Behaviors. We are looking for people who bring them to life in everything they do - they are: * Act with integrity and uphold our standards * Think strategically in support of the global big picture * Partner and manage to create high performing teams * Putting people first by acting with a simple human touch APPLY HERE Here at IATA we are proud of being a Diverse & Inclusive Organization - we have people from all over the world working in our offices, and we extend this to our recruiting practices. We are a meritocratic organization and an equal opportunity employer. Back to Top ISASI 2017, San Diego CA August 22 - 24. 2017 The International Society of Air Safety Investigators (ISASI) will hold their 48th annual seminar at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina from August 22 - 24, 2017. This year's theme is: "Investigations - Do They Really Make a Difference?" All up to date information including the link for registration and hotel reservations can be found at www.isasi.org. Dates to Remember Early Registration rate cut off is midnight July 5, 2017 PDT Seminar rate at the hotel will end on July 27. After that date there will be no guarantee that rooms will be available. We look forward to seeing many of you in San Diego Curt Lewis