Flight Safety Information July 2, 2020 - No. 133 In This Issue Incident: Zimbabwe B762 at Bangkok on Jul 1st 2020, engine shut down in flight Incident: Garuda A333 at Makassar on Jul 1st 2020, runway excursion Incident: Easyjet Europe A320 near Berlin on Jul 1st 2020, cabin pressure problems Airbus A320-232 - Birdstrike (Netherlands) IFighter Jet Crash Kills Pilot in South Carolina, Air Force Says KAM AIR PASSES MAJOR INTERNATIONAL SAFETY AUDIT UAE aviation authorities consider return of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft FAA PROPOSES CORROSION AD FOR AEROSTAR TWINS Alaska Airlines will give 'yellow card' to passengers without masks Allegiant Air now requires passengers to wear face masks during entire flight El Al Suspends Operations Indefinitely Air New Zealand scraps idea of converting aircraft to cargo freighters JetBlue, pilots union reach agreement to avoid involuntary furloughs until May 2021 Boeing MAX Test Flight Triggers Fresh Buying Interest Virgin Galactic expects to receive key FAA license within next two spaceflights Online Unmanned Aircraft Systems from SCSI SCSI Slovenia Fall Course Series AVIATION SAFETY SURVEY GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Incident: Zimbabwe B762 at Bangkok on Jul 1st 2020, engine shut down in flight An Air Zimbabwe Boeing 767-200, registration Z-WPF performing repatriation flight from Bangkok (Thailand) to Islamabad (Pakistan) with 2 passengers and 17 crew, was enroute at FL340 about 150nm northwest of Bangkok about to enter Myanmar's Airspace when the crew shut the left hand engine (PW4056) down. The aircraft turned around, drifted down to FL210 and returned to Bangkok for a safe landing about 90 minutes after departure. The aircraft should have picked up about 180 additional passengers at Islamabad and carry them to Zimbabwe and South Africa. The airline reported the crew received an abnormal indication for the left hand engine and shut it down as a precaution. The aircraft carrying 17 crew and 2 passengers returned to Bangkok. The aircraft was on its flight to Islamabad to pick up another 180 passengers returning to South Africa and Zimbabwe. http://avherald.com/h?article=4d96a344&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Garuda A333 at Makassar on Jul 1st 2020, runway excursion during backtracking for departure A Garuda Indonesia Airbus A330-300, registration PK-GHD performing flight GA-613 from Makassar to Jakarta (Indonesia), was backtracking runway 03 for departure but went off runway at about 17:54L (10:54Z) and came to a stop with the nose and left main gear sunk into soft ground, only the right main gear remained on the paved surface. The aircraft had arrived on runway 03 as flight GA-610 from Jakarta and had taxied to the apron normally at about 16:05L (09:05Z). The aircraft subsequently taxied for departure as flight GA-613 when it went off paved surface near the threshold of runway 03 blocking runway 03/21. The airport reported the aircraft was backtracking the runway for departure and turning around to line up for takeoff when it skidded off the runway. http://avherald.com/h?article=4d9669c6&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Easyjet Europe A320 near Berlin on Jul 1st 2020, cabin pressure problems An Easyjet Europe Airbus A320-200, registration OE-IVC performing flight U2-4603 from Berlin Schoenefeld (Germany) to Thessaloniki (Greece), was climbing out of Berlin when the crew stopped the climb at FL150 but continued in the general direction to Thessaloniki. The aircraft crossed into Poland, attempted to climb but stopped again at about FL165, turned around at the Polish/Czech border about 180nm southeast of Berlin and returned to Berlin now descending to FL100. The aircraft landed safely back at Schoenefeld Airport about 90 minutes after departure. A replacement A320-200 registration OE-ICI reached Thessaloniki with a delay of 5 hours. The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Berlin about 9.5 hours after landing back. http://avherald.com/h?article=4d967b79&opt=0 Back to Top Airbus A320-232 - Birdstrike (Netherlands) Date: 01-JUL-2020 Time: 17:30 LT Type: Airbus A320-232 Owner/operator: Wizz Air Registration: HA-LWJ C/n / msn: 4683 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Other fatalities: 0 Aircraft damage: None Location: Eindhoven Airport (EIN/EHEH) - Netherlands Phase: Initial climb Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Eindhoven Airport (EIN/EHEH) Destination airport: Skopje International Airport (SKP/LWSK) Narrative: Wizz Air flight W67716 (callsign Wizzair 3769), an Airbus A320, suffered a bird strike on departure from Eindhoven Airport, the Netherlands. The aircraft took off from runway 21 at 17:29 hours local time and struck one or more birds at 500 feet altitude. The flight crew issued a Pan Pan call and requested a holding pattern to troubleshoot. They reported an unreliable airspeed indication. After consulting with their company, it was decided the aircraft could continue the flight to Skopje, North Macedonia. The flight left the holding after 15 minutes and proceeded towards their destination. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/237590 Back to Top Fighter Jet Crash Kills Pilot in South Carolina, Air Force Says The pilot was the only person on board the F-16CM Fighting Falcon jet, according to the Shaw Air Force Base. A military jet crashed at the Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina late Tuesday night, killing its pilot during a training exercise, the authorities said. Col. Lawrence T. Sullivan confirmed that the pilot had died in a Facebook video early Wednesday morning. He called the crash an "aircraft mishap." The pilot was the only person on board the jet, an F-16CM Fighting Falcon, when it crashed at 11:30 p.m., the base said in a statement. The pilot was taken to Prisma Health Tuomey Hospital for treatment, according to a local news outlet, WIS-TV. The name of the pilot was not released, pending notification of next of kin, Colonel Sullivan said. "Out of respect and consideration for the family, we ask for your patience and to avoid speculation until we release more information," he said. It was not immediately known what caused the crash, the base said, adding that the pilot was on a "routine training mission." Emergency crews could be seen at a base runway on Wednesday morning. The jet, a single-seat aircraft, was assigned to the 20th Fighter Wing. More than 6,000 active duty airmen are assigned to the Shaw Air Force Base, which is in Sumter, S.C., about 40 miles east of Columbia, according to a base spokeswoman. Last month, an Air Force pilot, First Lt. Kenneth Allen, 27, was killed when his fighter jet crashed in the North Sea off the northeast coast of England on a training mission. He had been stationed at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, a base in eastern England. And in May, an Air Force F-35A crashed during a landing at the Eglin Air Force Base in western Florida. The pilot successfully ejected from the plane, and was taken to a base hospital, according to officials. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/01/us/f16-shaw-afb-crash.html Back to Top KAM AIR PASSES MAJOR INTERNATIONAL SAFETY AUDIT Kabul based Kam Air has passed a major international safety audit and is now a 5-star safety accredited airline after satisfying more than 1000 parameters. The accreditation under the International Air Transport Association Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) provides a significant boost to the airline's safety rating. The IOSA certification audit is an internationally recognized and accepted evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline. The biennial safety audit is compulsory for IATA members and airlines that have completed the audit have a safety record almost four times better than those that have not. It covers eight key areas: corporate organization and management systems, flight operations, operational control - flight dispatch, aircraft engineering and maintenance, cabin operations, ground handling, cargo operations and operational security. AirlineRatings.com Editor-in-Chief Geoffrey Thomas congratulated Kam Air on this achievement. "Kam Air is a major part of the economic life of Afganistan," said Thomas. "This is an excellent outcome and will help promote travel to the region." Kam Air flies to a total of 15 destinations including 7 domestic destinations and 8 international destinations in 8 countries. https://www.airlineratings.com/news/kam-air-passes-major-international-safety-audit/ Back to Top UAE aviation authorities consider return of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft DUBAI: UAE aviation officials are considering the return of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft into the country's airspace months after the narrow-body jet was grounded after being involved in two fatal crashes. "The GCAA is closely working with the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA, Boeing and UAE Operators on B737 Max return to service since its grounding after two tragic accidents," Saif Mohammad Al-Suwaidi, Director General of the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), said in a statement. "We are in regular discussions with the FAA and Boeing on all aspects of the certification including design, test flights and training for the flight crew." Dubai budget carrier flydubai is the second biggest customer of the Boeing aircraft, and its fleet of 11 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and two Boeing 737 Max 9 were grounded when the GCAA banned them from flying on March 12, 2019. The US Federal Aviation Administration earlier finished recertification test flights on the 737 MAX, and evaluated Boeing's proposed changes to the automated flight control system on the aircraft that was implicated in the two fatal crash flights. "The GCAA is keeping a close coordination with other major regulators around the world to share information and benefit from their experience. The UAE approval process for the return of B737Max to service is dependent on the certification activities going on at the moment between the FAA and the Boeing," Al-Suwaidi said. "The GCAA is committed to ensuring highest standards of safety in the UAE skies and will work towards return to service of B737Max until acceptable safety standards are achieved." https://www.arabnews.com/node/1698641/business-economy Back to Top FAA PROPOSES CORROSION AD FOR AEROSTAR TWINS The FAA has proposed an airworthiness directive requiring inspections of several Aerostar Aircraft Corp. twin models for corrosion of elevator and aileron balance tubes and possible replacement of the tubes. The proposed AD, which affects an estimated 404 airplanes of Aerostar models PA-60-601P, PA-60-602P, and PA-60-700P, was prompted by reports of corrosion on the elevator and aileron balance tubes of a PA-60-601P. The balance tubes counteract the effects of cabin pressurization. Most Aerostar PA-60 airplanes have pressurized cabins, the AD says. "After the finding on the first airplane, Aerostar inspected four additional airplanes in the PA-60 fleet. Aerostar reported four out of these five airplanes had corrosion on both the aileron and elevator balance tubes," the FAA said, noting that the condition "could result in failure of the aileron and elevator balance tubes. This failure could cause the aileron and/or elevator balance tubes to jam and result in loss of control of the airplane." Procedures for the repetitive inspections that must be performed within 10 hours' time in service from the AD's effective date, and any necessary replacements, are described in Aerostar Service Bulletin SB600-138, dated August 30, 2018. Comments on the AD may be submitted until August 10 online or by mail to U.S. Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Please include "Docket No. FAA-2020-0574; Product Identifier 2019-CE-015-AD" at the beginning of your comments. https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all-news/2020/july/01/faa-proposes-corrosion-ad-for-aerostar-twins Back to Top Alaska Airlines will give 'yellow card' to passengers without masks Alaska Airlines announced that its flight attendants will issue a "yellow card" to any passenger who refuses to wear a mask. The card is a "final notice to comply with the policy." After that, the passenger might be barred from Alaska's flights, said a statement on the airline's website. As of Tuesday, all Alaska passengers will be asked at check-in to confirm they will wear a face covering while on board. Exceptions include children under 2; those who can't remove a mask without assistance; and those with disabilities or medical issues that make wearing a mask hazardous. A seated passenger will be allowed to adjust a mask to eat or drink. The airline will provide masks and sanitizer wipes to those who do not have their own https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/07/01/alaska-airlines-will-give-yellow-card-to-passengers-without-masks/ Back to Top Allegiant Air now requires passengers to wear face masks during entire flight • Coverings also required at ticket counter, gates and during boarding ORLANDO, Fla. - Allegiant Air is now requiring passengers to wear a face mask during the majority of their trip. As of Thursday, the airline is mandating travelers to keep their face covered during all phases of travel, including at ticket counters, in the gate area, during boarding and throughout the flight. Officials with Allegiant say travelers can either use their own mask or wear the one provided to all passengers inside their complimentary kits. Children under the age of 2 are exempt, as are passengers with certain medical conditions. Travelers who refuse to follow the new mask policy will not be allowed to fly with Allegiant. https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/07/02/allegiant-air-now-requires-passengers-to-wear-face-masks-during-entire-flight/ Back to Top El Al Suspends Operations Indefinitely El Al Israel Airlines has canceled all flights and suspended operations indefinitely. All flights, including passenger and cargo services, have been stopped. The announcement comes as the carrier reported massive losses over the first half of 2020 and after the airline's pilots refused to fly amid a labor crisis. El Al's CEO, Gonen Usiskhin, ordered all of the company's aircraft to return to Israel. The airline was planning to operate flights to Paris on Tuesday night and to New York on Wednesday before the cancelations were announced. While passengers originating in Tel Aviv have been rebooked onto other airlines, the airline has reportedly neglected to refund or rebook certain passengers in the United States, generating complaints with the U.S. Department of Transport against the airline. The Israeli flag carrier had in March already suspended regular services until at least July 31. But it had added cargo operations and kept some special services to stay in the air and retain a fraction of its workforce. Before shutting down operations completely, Tel Aviv had planned on operating to specific cities with special reroutes and new schedules throughout July, per its website. The airline would have operated a Tel Aviv-Paris-London-Tel Aviv routing on Sundays and Thursdays starting July 2, and it would have added flights exclusively to Paris on Tuesday from July 1. El Al would have flown outbound to Los Angeles on Fridays and back to Tel Aviv on Sundays from July 10 to Aug. 2, and it would have flown to New York with outbound and return services on alternating days from July 2 to July 30. But now none of those flights will be operating for the foreseeable future. El Al lost $140 million, or half a billion NIS, in the first quarter of 2020 alone, the company reported on Tuesday. The reported period for these losses is January to April, only about half of which time was affected by coronavirus shutdowns. With additional losses from the second quarter expected to pile up, especially with greater coronavirus impacts, the coronavirus crisis has delt the already-ailing airline a major blow. Airline revenue dropped 25% to $321 million due to the pandemic after foreigners were banned from entering Israel and returning nationals required to enter a 14-day quarantine. Operating losses grew 75% to $93 million. One important aspect that El Al is missing out on is the dropping price of oil. While for many airlines around the world the cheaper oil is a welcome bonus that is reducing losses and potentially keeping carriers afloat, El Al CFO Dganit Palti said that declining oil prices actually exacerbated El Al's loss because of hedging deals on fuel no longer considered effective, per Globes News. El Al is working on receiving state aid to keep operating, but it needs agreement from its employees, and their unions, in order to finalize any deal; it says that two offers are currently on the table. Israel's government maintains that El Al's problems have been around long before the pandemic, pointing to a bloated workforce, high salaries and a weak balance sheet. "The scope of the coronavirus crisis is something we have never seen, and no airline, no matter how strong, can survive without government assistance," said Usishkin. As financial losses piled up, the company's pilot union says that El Al has failed to meet its obligations. The dispute was heightened by El Al's refusal to transfer 30 Boeing 737 pilots to Boeing's larger 787 Dreamliner, per Haaretz, a commitment the airline had already made. Retraining pilots from the 737NG to the Dreamliner, which, unlike the MAX/Dreamliner pair, do not share many similar operating systems, would be expensive for El Al and would have added significant losses. Pilots would have needed time in simulators, which would have required 787 training pilots to be paid as well, and Dreamliners would have needed to be inspected before flight should they have been pulled out of service, adding additional costs. While El Al might have been able to boost revenue with Dreamliner cargo or special passenger flights, that extra money would probably not have canceled out extra training or maintenance fees, let alone gas or takeoff and landing charges at airports. "[Since] the administration of the company did not even respect the agreements that were signed with the union less than a month ago, the union had no choice but to arrive to the conclusion that the owners of the company are unable to save it from its situation," the union said in announcing its work halt, per KAN news. "El Al's pilots strongly demand that the board of directors fulfill their legal obligation and accept the Ministry of Finance plan to loan it $250 million," the pilots added. "The Ministry of Finance plan will improve the capital structure of the country more than a $400 million (bank) loan, which would only worsen the company's situation with no economic justification behind it other than protecting the controlling owners." "El Al's pilots will not be reconciled with a decision that prefers the benefit of the controlling owners over the benefit of the company, its customers and its employees," the pilots concluded. Since the Coronavirus crisis began, only about 100 pilots have continued work at El Al, while the rest have been on unpaid leave. The unpaid leave caused the pilots' annual salaries to plummet, adding to the tension between the union and airline management. Since El Al has suspended all its operations, the pilots that had remained on payroll will also be placed on unpaid leave. The carrier has also canceled some leases and returned a number of leased aircraft. It has given up rights to five Boeing 737-800s, and it reached a sale-and-lease-back agreement with a foreign company for an additional three 737-800s. https://airlinegeeks.com/2020/07/01/el-al-suspends-operations-indefinitely/ Back to Top Air New Zealand scraps idea of converting aircraft to cargo freighters Due to Covid-19 Air New Zealand's 777-200ER have been put into long term storage and may never fly with the airline again. Air New Zealand will not be converting any aircraft to freighters despite a Boeing specialist being given a border exemption to help work on the initiative. A recent dump of Covid-19 documents proactively released by the Government included a Cabinet paper requesting an exemption for a Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) employee and his family to enter New Zealand to provide "critical oversight" of Boeing aircraft safety issues. The paper said the man was working on a design change that would enable Air New Zealand aircraft to carry freight in passenger cabins which would significantly add to cargo capacity. "Any deferral of this work will negatively impact the financial position of Air New Zealand significantly and would create risks to ability of critical freight transport operators to continue to operate safely," it said. The man had unique knowledge in the field of Boeing aircraft safety issues that were critical to the regulatory oversight of both Air New Zealand and general aviation company Airwork, the paper said. He was also working on a design change supporting the emergency medical helicopters. Cabinet approved the exemption on April 21. An Air New Zealand spokeswoman on Wednesday said the airline "actively considered" converting aircraft to freighters several months ago, but after further analysis found the cargo demand wasn't there. "It is common for the airline to engage with the CAA early on to ensure buy-in for potential initiatives, and this was no different." Air New Zealand was not involved with the official application to Cabinet, she said. A CAA spokeswoman said its deputy chief executive aviation safety made the initial exemption request. The design work did not go beyond the concept phase and pertained to the certification and installation of changes to the cabin interior to support "limited cargo carriage", she said. "Other than reviewing how these types of modifications were being managed by other regulatory authorities, no detailed work commenced." Like most airlines Air New Zealand has been deeply affected by the impact of Covid-19 on air travel demand. The company recently said it was expecting a loss of up to $120 million for its 2020 financial year. Air New Zealand chief operating officer Cam Wallace in late March said its engineers were looking at modifying its Boeing 777 aircraft so it could get more cargo onto the passenger deck. The national carrier has eight 777-200ER (four owned, four leased) which have an average age of 14 years, and seven 777-300ER (four owned, three leased) with an average age of eight years. In late May Air New Zealand told shareholders it was grounding its 777-200ER and 777-300ER fleets until at least the end of 2020. The spokeswoman said its 777-300 fleet had been used intermittently to enhance its schedule but this would end in the coming weeks. Its 777-200ERs had been grounded "for some time", she said. South Africans are hoping to be able to catch a flight to Brisbane next Tuesday to get back home. It was proposing to send its eight 777-200ER aircraft to long-term storage, she said. "These were due to be replaced by the new 787s on order, so we may accelerate their planned retirement by a couple of years, although no firm decision has been made on this yet." No final decisions had been made around where the wider 777 fleet would be stored, she said. Some aircraft would go to Alice Springs, Australia and some may go to the United States, she said. Alice Springs in Australia's Northern Territory desert provides a dry, arid, low humidity environment ideal for the preservation of aircraft. The national carrier has indicated to analysts that its 777-200ERs may never fly again, resulting in an asset write-down worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Selling aircraft in the current market could prove difficult which may result in the aircraft being turned into scrap and sold for parts. Air freight market "very uncertain" The International Air Transport Association (IATA) on Wednesday said global air freight was up from record lows in April however, a market outlook was hard to predict. Global air freight markets in May showed a slight improvement in the air cargo market but capacity remained unable to meet demand as a result of the loss of belly cargo operations on passenger aircraft that had been parked. Global demand fell by 20 per cent in May compared to the previous year. That was an improvement from the 26 per cent year-on-year drop recorded in April. https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/122010088/air-new-zealand-scraps-idea-of-converting-aircraft-to-cargo-freighters Back to Top JetBlue, pilots union reach agreement to avoid involuntary furloughs until May 2021 • Airlines are under pressure to reduce costs as Covid-19 continues to hurt travel demand. • All U.S. airlines that took part of $25 billion in federal payroll grants and loans cannot furlough or lay off workers through Sept. 30. • The union didn't disclose details of the agreement but said it won't change pay rates. • JetBlue plane makes a flyover of New York City as a tribute to health care workers and first responders, as it seen from Weehawken in Jersey City on May 7, 2020. JetBlue Airways and the labor union that represents the airline's pilots have reached an agreement that avoids involuntary furloughs through April of next year, according to a union memo sent to pilots Wednesday. The JetBlue chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association voted to approve a letter of agreement that "protects all JetBlue pilots from involuntary furlough - under any circumstances - until May 1, 2021," said the union memo, which was seen by CNBC. The airline had about 3,600 pilots and more than 21,000 employees in total, according to its 2019 annual report. JetBlue didn't respond to a request for comment. The agreement comes as pressure is mounting on airlines to slash costs as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to hurt travel demand. The JetBlue pilots' union agreed to "short-term changes" with an "earlier snapback if demand for flying recovers," said the memo, but it was not immediately clear what that entailed. The memo said there won't be changes to collective bargaining agreement pay rates or "significant modifications" to work rules. "In this environment, this is the highest level of codified pilot protection in our industry to date," said the memo. "Airline pilots have been on the front lines of this public-health crisis and were part of the first wave of those directly impacted by the associated economic fallout," the union said in a statement to CNBC. Major U.S. passenger airlines accepted $25 billion in federal aid this spring that prohibits them from laying off or cutting the pay rates of workers through Sept. 30. Executives have warned they expect to need fewer employees and say they want to exhaust voluntary measures before turning to layoffs. American Airlines on Tuesday told employees that it expects to have up to 8,000 flight attendants more than it needs this fall. The airline had more than 25,000 flight attendants as of the end of last year. "While our surplus is evolving based on our schedule plans and the items I'll outline below, we expect to have an overage of between 7,000 and 8,000 flight attendants this fall," Jill Surdek, senior vice president of flight service said in a staff note. "This does not mean we'll furlough that many flight attendants, but it is an overage we will need to address. Our goal is to reduce this number as much as possible through voluntary options and working with the unions." The Fort Worth-based airline is also planning to close flight attendant bases in airports serving the Raleigh-Durham area and St. Louis, as revenue remains weak, Surdek said. The carrier is also shrinking several bases and reducing staffing on wide-body planes used for transcontinental and international routes. Delta Air Lines told pilots Friday that said will warn more than 2,500 of them this week about possible furloughs. The Atlanta-based carrier urged eligible pilots to take early retirement packages, which include partial pay in some cases for three years. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/01/jetblue-pilots-union-reach-agreement-to-avoid-furloughs-until-may-2021.html Back to Top Boeing MAX Test Flight Triggers Fresh Buying Interest Dow component Boeing Co. (BA) surged 14% off moving average support on Monday after initiating a series of recertification flights for the troubled 737-MAX jetliner. Those test flights, which will last for three days, are being closely monitored by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). As the flights began, the FAA reminded the public that they will lift the no-fly order "only after we are satisfied that the aircraft meets certification standards". However, reality struck home just before the NYSE closing bell when Reuters reported that Norwegian Air had cancelled 97 orders that included 92 737-MAX jetliners. It also filed legal action against the company, seeking to recover pre-delivery payments due to their negligence in crashing two planes. This type of news keeps plaguing upbeat reports about recertification, raising doubts about Boeing profits and revenues through the second half of 2020. Boeing Bearish View Bernstein analyst Douglas Harned reiterated their bearish view on the stock in a research report last week, noting, "we have seen potential for a recovery from Covid-19 as dependent on a medical solution to bring global travel levels back to normal." He finished with a highly skeptical outlook that "based on our assessment of the traffic outlook, combined with analyses by Bernstein's health care team, we believe the solution is farther out." Wall Street And Technical Outlook Wall Street consensus has missed the mark since the grounding in March 2019, maintaining 'Buy' ratings despite evidence the plane would stay on the ground due to a toxic corporate culture that culminated with the firing of CEO Dennis Muilenburg. Ratings have also held remarkably steady through this year's plunge into double digits, with 7 'Buy', 6 'Hold', and just 2 'Sell' recommendations, even though the stock has underperformed the Dow Industrial Average for months. Monday's euphoric buying pressure stalled within 5 points of resistance at the psychological 200 level, which Boeing has struggled to mount for the last three weeks. The aerospace giant now hopes to resume commercial service sometime in the fourth quarter but supply issues, highlighted by this week's Norwegian Airlines news, could hamper a return to profitability into 2021 or beyond. In turn, this makes the stock less attractive, even at the currently low valuation. https://www.yahoo.com/news/boeing-max-test-flight-triggers-153245474.html Back to Top Virgin Galactic expects to receive key FAA license within next two spaceflights • Virgin Galactic is steadily moving closer to flying customers to the edge of space, as it expects to clear remaining FAA milestones after one or two more rocket-powered test flights. • The company also has its own set of test objectives to complete, some of which it emphasized are separate from the FAA's milestones. • Vertical Research Partners analyst Darryl Genovesi told investors in a note on Tuesday that the firm expects Virgin Galactic's next major milestone will be its reveal of the spacecraft's cabin. Space tourism venture Virgin Galactic is steadily moving closer to flying customers to the edge of space, with the company expecting to clear remaining Federal Aviation Administration milestones after just one or two more rocket-powered test flights. Virgin Galactic completed its second glide flight test in New Mexico last week, a success that the company expects will allow it to once again fly to space. The company last conducted a spaceflight in February 2019, before Virgin Galactic moved its spacecraft from a testing facility in California's Mojave Desert to the company's operations center in New Mexico. The company has not said how many more test flights it will conduct before flying founder Sir Richard Branson, which will mark the beginning of commercial service. But Virgin Galactic told CNBC on Tuesday that, once it flies one or possibly two more rocket-powered test flights, it expects to pass the remaining FAA milestones needed for final regulatory approval to conduct regular spaceflights. As of May the company had cleared 24 of the FAA's 29 milestones toward the license. Virgin Galactic has its own set of test objectives to complete, which it emphasizes are in addition to the FAA's milestones. One of the objectives is to fly four of its employees as passengers on a spaceflight, in addition to the two pilots who control the spacecraft. Previously, Virgin Galactic has flown chief astronaut trainer Beth Moses as a passenger on a spaceflight - one of five employees, including four pilots, who have become FAA-recognized astronauts. The NASA revenue opportunity Vertical Research Partners analyst Darryl Genovesi told investors in a note on Tuesday that the firm expects Virgin Galactic's next major milestone will be its reveal of the spacecraft's cabin. Citing a call with CEO George Whitesides on Monday, Genovesi said that the cabin reveal will be "sooner rather than later in the summer," with the company expected to resume rocket-powered flights after that. Virgin Galactic shares rose 6% to close at $16.34. Vertical Research Partners reiterated its buy rating on the stock, with a $29 price target that implies shares will climb more than 80% from current levels. The company is also eyeing the possibility of flying NASA astronauts and researchers, which would be an additional source of revenue to its current list of more than 600 private-paying tourists. Genovesi said that his firm has "the sense that, altogether, NASA and other space agencies could send 100-200 people up annually on Virgin Galactic metal under this contract framework," with potentially "above-average pricing." The analyst forecast that, within a few years, flying passengers for government agencies like NASA "seems to us like a $50-100M average annual revenue opportunity" for Virgin Galactic. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/30/virgin-galactic-expects-to-receive-faa-license-within-next-two-flights.html TO ALL PROFESSIONAL PILOTS, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS, members of their Management, Regulators and related organizations (airplane, helicopter, civil or military) WE REQUEST YOUR SUPPORT FOR A JOINT AVIATION SAFETY SURVEY (JASS) ON: "AERONAUTICAL DECISION-MAKING, INCL. MONITORING & INTERVENTION IN PRACTICE" Dear aviation colleague, you are invited to participate in a research project conducted by the department of Psychology at City, University of London, which aims to elicit your views and thoughts on Aeronautical Decision-Making, including Monitoring and Intervention in normal operation,by which we mean routine line flights without any incidents or technical malfunctions. The questions deal with teamwork and decision-making issues in various Pilot-roles, e.g. the role of the Pilot Monitoring (PM), Pilot Flying (PF), Pilot in Command (PIC) and Co-Pilot, and respectively in the Air Traffic Controller (ATCO)-roles of the coordinating and radioing/radar ATCO as well as pilot's and controller's training and occupational picture. This survey is completely anonymous - no identifying information will be requested or collected - and all responses will be treated as strictly confidential. The survey is approved by City's research and ethics committee (Approval Code: ETH 1920-1414). The introductory section of the survey will provide you with further information and the informed consent. Please click here to access the survey or copy the survey-link below into your browser. https://cityunilondon.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6n7cxeunMyfy0fz By completing the questionnaire, you can - in addition to supporting aviation safety research - even do more good as we will donate a minimum of €2 for the first 1000 fully completed responses to the UNICEF COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund which helps to care for vulnerable children and communities all over the world. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us via email: aviationsafety@city.ac.uk or tom.becker.1@city.ac.uk or via phone: +49 172 7178780. We thank you very much in advance. Your support is truly appreciated. Best regards, Capt. Tom Becker Prof. Peter Ayton Back to Top GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Dear Participants, You are being asked to participate in a research study of your opinions and attitudes about stress and mental health. This research started almost two years ago. The purpose of this study is to examine mental health issues in aviation, specifically Part 121 airline pilots. During this study, you will be asked to complete a brief online survey about your opinions on various life circumstances, stress, and mental health topics. This study is expected to take approximately 15 minutes of your time. In order to participate, you must possess an FAA issued Airline Transport Certificate (ATP) and you must also be currently working as a pilot for a Part 121 air carrier that is headquartered within the United States. Participation in this study is voluntary and data will be collected anonymously, stored confidentially, and you may choose to opt out of the study at any time. We sincerely appreciate your consideration and time to complete our study, as it is another small but important step towards increasing safety in aviation. Please click on the link below to complete the survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7ZG6M6L For more information, please contact: Tanya Gatlin - Student Researcher Gatlint1@my.erau.edu 281-924-1336 Dr. Scott Winter - Faculty Advisor winte25e@erau.edu 386-226-6491 Curt Lewis