Flight Safety Information [October 28, 2020] [No. 218] In This Issue : Incident: Jetstar A320 at Brisbane on Oct 23rd 2020, rejected takeoff due to engine failure : ProSafeT - SMS, Quality & Audit Management Software : Global Leaders Fear Toll of Economic Duress on Aviation Safety : Qatar to investigate 'invasive' exams of women at Doha airport : Delta pilot from Rosemount who was arrested for intoxication before flight sentenced : Experts Scratching Their Heads Over New York TBM Accident : American Airlines cuts back flight attendant training after two instructors contract COVID-19 : FAA Developing Broader SMS Mandate for Part 135 and 145 : FAA Publishes Final AD on High-Wing Cessna Inspection : Accidents Edge Up in 2019: NTSB : Raytheon laying off 20,000 amid commercial aviation slide : Mitsubishi looking to hire 240 workers at Bridgeport airport : Heathrow loses claim to being Europe’s biggest airport : Aireon Expands Global Aviation Data Services : Japan's ANA Group retires 22 Boeing 777 jets, plans to cut or delay new orders : Virgin Galactic Hires Two New Pilots into its Pilot Corps : Fireside Partners Inc. Announce - New Emergency Response Program : Impact of COVID-19 on Aviation & Fatigue Survey (Round 1) : PIREP SURVEY Incident: Jetstar A320 at Brisbane on Oct 23rd 2020, rejected takeoff due to engine failure A Jetstar Airbus A320-200, registration VH-VFF performing flight JQ-930 from Brisbane,QL to Cairns,QL (Australia), was accelerating for takeoff from Brisbane's runway 01L when the crew received a right hand engine (V2527) stall indication at about 40 KIAS associated with a right yaw. The crew rejected takeoff and managed to stop the aircraft on the runway. Tower informed the crew they had seen a flash from the right hand engine, the crew of another aircraft reported seeing flames from the right hand engine. Emergency services attended to and inspected the aircraft, the aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron, where both engines were shut down. A visual inspection revealed debris in the tail pipe of the right hand engine. A borescopic inspection revealed damage to the tips of some compressor blades requiring the replacement of the engine. Australia's TSB opened a short investigation into the occurrence rated an incident. http://avherald.com/h?article=4de6b6c8&opt=0 Global Leaders Fear Toll of Economic Duress on Aviation Safety As the Covid-19 pandemic takes an economic toll on the airline industry, global leaders are wary about how financial stressors could erode safety. When airlines look at organizational changes, they must consider unintended consequences of those decisions, said Mark Searle, global director of safety for the International Air Transport Association (IATA), during the recent Flight Safety Foundation International Air Safety Summit. Safety leadership is critical through this time but could become vulnerable as organizations look to reduce headcount. “I would caution against it,” he said. Aviation has remained the safest form of mass transport, Searle asserted. “That hasn't come by accident. That has come by a lot of hard work and a lot of learning over the years. If we are not careful, then we forget our heritage,” he said, while acknowledging that businesses must remain sustainable. “It is the hardest job in the world to decide who's going to stay and who's going to go.” But a strong safety management system (SMS) relies on the ability for capturing and analyzing safety data. That, he said, “really requires a good feeding of the pool,” not just of flight data recorder information, but from personnel. “What's really critical during this crisis is that we reflect back and say what we've learned and understand how we are resilient in the future for future pandemics,” Searle said. “For me, SMS is really core. Please just be careful when you're looking at shedding headcounts in those areas, [or] you may regret it later on.” “Some airlines may not survive this crisis and they may come out quite differently,” Tay Tiang Guan, deputy director-general of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), agreed. “We as regulators have to be realistic about where the airlines are going to be. But it’s crucial that airlines maintain core capabilities.” He said new financial investors of distressed airlines might not have an aviation background and understand that safety must be part of the corporate culture. They might see easy decisions to remove a safety head or somebody running operations, he said. “The landscape of the future means you may not be the same as now. And the traditional role of safety oversight might not be the same going forward.” Tay added that, more broadly, the aviation ecosystem needs to be watched closely. With the financial stresses, whole companies important to the supply chain could disappear but whose absence might go unnoticed because airline activity is down. “But when we recover, we might find that we have some missing links in the supply chain or the ecosystem that would impede a smooth recovery,” he noted. The aviation community needs to collect information and analyze the extent that this may become a problem. “Every other day, you find one or two companies restructuring, or some may just go and disappear. So, we, we really have to watch over the next few months how this evolves,” said Tay. U.S. FAA associate administrator for aviation safety Ali Bahrami noted that “historically we have had tight oversight of operations that are going through those types of organizational changes, bankruptcies, and mergers.” In particular with the pandemic, regulators must closely engage with operators, as happens during industrywide discussions with safety groups such as the Commercial Aviation Safety Team.. Bahrami has been encouraged by the activity. “It's great to have the right people at the table, including the labor and others, to see what type of information we are getting and what needs to be done,” he said. “I have so much respect for our industry, for our people that are in this. We're going through some major issues, but I see the community coming together and really talking about these things.” https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/air-transport/2020-10-27/global-leaders-fear-toll-economic-duress-aviation-safety Qatar to investigate 'invasive' exams of women at Doha airport Qatar has said it will investigate allegations that women booked on 10 flights were subjected to invasive examinations at an airport in Doha. The women were checked for whether they had given birth after a baby was found in a bin at Hamad Airport on 2 October. Australian officials said 13 of its citizens and five women from other countries were taken off one plane, but not all were ultimately examined. Qatar's government apologised and said the baby was safe in medical care. It said the girl had been found in a plastic bag, buried under rubbish, prompting an "immediate search for the parents, including on flights in the vicinity of where the newborn was found". "While the aim of the urgently-decided search was to prevent the perpetrators of the horrible crime from escaping, the State of Qatar regrets any distress or infringement on the personal freedoms of any traveller caused by this action," a statement read. 'Grossly disturbing' strip-searches anger Australia The government had directed a "comprehensive, transparent investigation" into the incident, and said it would share the results with other countries. Australia said it was receiving assistance from Qatar and co-ordinating efforts with "two or three" other nations whose citizens were affected, but declined to say which ones. Australian alarm The invasive searches came to light this week after passengers contacted authorities in Australia. Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Wednesday that women on 10 flights had been subjected to examinations. Beyond the 13 Australians, she did not reveal the nationalities of other women affected. Australian media have previously reported that all adult women who had boarded one plane from Doha to Sydney were ordered to disembark. They were taken to an ambulance on the tarmac and told to remove their underwear before being examined. Many were distressed afterwards and had received health support from the Australian government, witnesses said. On Monday, Australia's foreign ministry said reports had indicated the incident was "beyond circumstances in which the women could give free and informed consent". But it declined to label it sexual assault while awaiting further details from Qatari officials. Opposition politicians in Australia have called it sexual assault. Australia has also referred the matter to its federal police. Australia's foreign department secretary Frances Adamson told a Senate hearing on Wednesday that an Australian diplomatic official had been on the flight heading to Sydney. She was not subjected to an exam, but reported the incident to the ministry immediately. "I was incredulous that this could have happened," Ms Adamson told the hearing. "This is not - by any standard - normal behaviour and the Qataris recognise that, are appalled by it, do not want it to happen again." In its statement, Qatar said it was committed to ensuring the safety, security and comfort of travellers transiting through the country. Doha's Hamad International Airport has remained open as a key transit hub for international travel amid the pandemic. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-54714472 Delta pilot from Rosemount who was arrested for intoxication before flight sentenced A Delta Air Line pilot who was arrested in July 2019 for being intoxicated before his scheduled flight out of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, was sentenced Tuesday. According to court records, Gabriel Lyle Schroeder, of Rosemount, will serve 30 days, the majority of which will be under home detention. He will also be required to spend one weekend in jail. Schroeder will then be placed under probation, which will include alcohol treatment. He pleaded guilty to attempting to operate an aircraft under the influence of alcohol. According to the criminal complaint, on July 30 at about 10:30 a.m., airport police detectives and the TSA assistant federal security director to law enforcement were conducting a random joint insider threat screening detail in Terminal 1 Known Crew Member (KCM) entrance. During the detail, a detective observed a Delta Air Lines pilot, later identified as Schroeder, approach the screening area before he stopped abruptly and appeared "surprised." A TSA supervisor approached Schroeder and informed him they were conducting additional screening. He asked Schroeder to place his bag on the table for screening and Schroeder reportedly told the TSA supervisor that he was "not ready" to be screened and left the area. The TSA supervisor reported the pilot's suspicious activity to TSA police due to concern that Schroeder may have had a prohibited item in his bag. Rosemount Delta pilot who was arrested for intoxication before flight charged After two detectives were unsuccessful in locating the pilot, they placed a request with dispatch to have Schroeder tracked by the KCM. When the detectives returned to the screening area, they found the pilot getting screened. A federal air marshal asked him where he had gone, and Schroeder stated he had gone to the Delta crew room to retrieve his iPad that he had allegedly forgotten. According to the complaint, the federal air marshal said Schroeder appeared very "nervous and deceptive." Dispatch informed one of the detectives that Schroeder had gone to the restrooms located on the tram level for approximately 27 seconds and that he, in fact, did not enter the Delta crew room. The detective and the federal air marshal entered the restroom and located an unopened 1.75-liter bottle of Phillips Vodka in the lone trash container. Detectives then made contact with the pilot in the cockpit of Airbus A321 at Gate G-3. The complaint states they witnessed the pilot in question seated in the First Officer's chair and operating a console of the aircraft while conversing with the Captain of the aircraft who was seated to Schroeder's left. Detectives noted there were already two passengers on board. After asking the pilot to speak with them, one of the detectives noticed Schroeder "started sweating and shaking." When asked, the pilot said he had last consumed alcohol three days prior. A detective reported he smelled the light odor of a consumed alcoholic beverage emanating from Schroeder's breath. In response to one of the detective's questions, Schroeder said he did not enter a restroom and that he only went to the Delta crew room. When questioned further by the detectives, he then said he "might" have gone to the restroom, but denied discarding a bottle of alcohol in the trash, according to the criminal complaint. A horizontal gaze nystagmus test was conducted on the pilot in question and detectives observed a lack of smooth pursuit in both eyes. A breath sample was given and Schroeder's reading was a .065 BAC. He was then placed under arrest and transported to the police operations center. The complaint goes on to say during his post-Miranda interview, Schroeder claimed ownership of the Phillips vodka bottle and further admitted that he left the screening checkpoint to discard the liquor bottle in the restroom trash because he "was embarrassed to have the bottle" in his possession. He also admitted he had consumed one can of beer and three vodka drinks at his house around 6 p.m. the night prior. The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Forensic Science Laboratory examined Schroeder's blood sample and determined he had an ethyl alcohol concentration of .027 in his system at 1:10 p.m. The BCA also performed a retrograde extrapolation and determined that at the time the pilot was in the cockpit, he had an ethanol concentration between .04 and .08. https://kstp.com/minnesota-news/delta-pilot-from-rosemount-who-was-arrested-for-intoxication-before-flight-sentenced/5907531/ Experts Scratching Their Heads Over New York TBM Accident Pilot made no distress call after claiming everything on the aircraft was fine. The TBM pilot reported everything was fine just moments before the accident. A Daher TBM 700, N965DM, departed Manchester, New Hampshire (KMHT), on October 2 at approximately 19 minutes past 10 am bound for Buffalo, New York (KBUF), some 374 miles to the west. The pilot, a prominent New York attorney, held a private pilot certificate with an instrument rating and filed an appropriate IFR flight plan for the Part 91 trip. The other person aboard was his niece. According to Flight Aware, approximately 25 minutes after takeoff, the aircraft leveled at its cruising altitude of FL280 and there it remained for another hour until it neared Buffalo. Then, for reasons as yet unknown, the pilot failed to check in with a Boston Center controller along the way when he was requested to do so, but did connect with a Buffalo controller directly when he was approximately 15 miles east of the airport and requested the ILS to Runway 23. The NTSB’s preliminary report indicates the aircraft was still level at FL280. The Buffalo Approach controller realized the TBM on an IFR flight plan simply popping up on his frequency at 28,000 feet was odd, so during the initial conversation, he queried the pilot wondering if everything on board the aircraft was OK. The pilot simply responded with, “Yes sir, everything’s fine.” The controller then asked the TBM pilot to descend to 8,000 feet and expect the ILS Runway 23 approach. The weather at Buffalo was reported as good VFR with a broken deck of clouds at 6,000 feet. According to the NTSB, shortly after the pilot apparently acknowledged the descent clearance, “the controller observed the airplane descending rapidly on radar and instructed the pilot to stop the descent at 10,000 feet. The pilot did not respond. The controller made several additional attempts to establish communications with the pilot, however, there were no further communications received from the pilot.” The aircraft crashed in a heavily wooded, swampy area near the town of Corfu, New York, at 10:45 am killing both occupants. A post-crash fire followed the impact. During the final three minutes of the flight, as the aircraft descended through 15,000 feet, it accelerated to a “radar-derived groundspeed of more than 340 knots,” as the rate of descent increased to at least 13,800 feet per minute. “The airplane made one right 360° turn before radar contact was lost.” The Board said, “Wreckage and components of the airplane were recovered from the surface of the terrain to a depth 15 feet below the surface. The smell of jet-A fuel was noted at the accident site by first responders. The airframe and engine components recovered from the accident site were retained for further examination.” Because of travel restrictions surrounding the ongoing pandemic, the NTSB did not travel to the scene of this accident. A final report may take approximately 18 months to complete. https://www.flyingmag.com/story/news/new-york-tbm-700-accident/ American Airlines cuts back flight attendant training after two instructors contract COVID-19 All classes are expected to start up again after Nov. 3, according to reports Travel and tourism industry hits a breaking point after a federal block on job cuts expired and congress struggles to reach a deal on a coronavirus relief package. American Airlines has scaled down its flight attendant training this week after two instructors tested positive for the coronavirus. The airline, based in Fort Worth, Texas, will continue to operate some required courses, a spokesperson for the airline told Fox News on Tuesday. American Airlines’ full training schedule is expected to start back up after Nov. 3, The Dallas Morning News reported. “The safety and well-being of our team members is our unwavering focus always and especially throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” American Airlines said in a statement. “Unfortunately, we recently had two team members at our Training and Conference Center test positive.” “Out of an abundance of caution, we’ve reduced flight attendant training and will only conduct operationally necessary training for the next week,” the airline added. “In these instances, classes will be led by trainers who have not been at the Training and Conference Center recently.” American Airlines said it requires employees to get temperature checks, wear masks inside and socially distance inside classrooms. “We also completed several rounds of electrostatic spraying using a hospital-grade disinfectant,” the airline said. Two American Airlines instructors contracted the coronavirus, which led the airline to cut back on some flight attendant training. According to the Dallas Morning News, flight attendants are required to do Federal Aviation Administration training every year. American Airlines conducts that training at its Training and Conference Center. American Airlines furloughed 19,000 employees at the beginning of October. According to a previous report, of those 19,000 employees, about 8,100 were flight attendants and about 1,600 were pilots. https://www.foxnews.com/travel/american-airlines-flight-attendant-trainers-coronavirus FAA Developing Broader SMS Mandate for Part 135 and 145 FAA Administrator Steve Dickson hopes the agency will have a proposed rule mandating safety management systems (SMS) for air taxi and air tour operators, repair stations, and PMA parts providers by second-quarter 2022, he said on Monday at the FAA's Virtual International Rotorcraft Safety Conference. The agency is also working on a separate rule mandating SMS for airports, he added. Dickson also used the occasion to encourage helicopter operators to voluntarily modernize their aircraft with crash-resistant fuel systems, seats, and structures. A former airline pilot, Dickson said the agency’s goal is to spread the safety record of Part 121 air carriers, which are required to have an SMS, downstream to the rest of aviation by moving “the ball forward in a collaborative way.” The safety systems employed by Part 121 carriers can be “progressively deployed” and scaled “throughout the aerospace industry," he said. “It's no secret that the airline industry in the U.S. is the gold standard when it comes to unprecedented safety levels. It’s the safest form of transportation in human history and one of the key elements to that the success story is the collaboration, partnership, and sharing of information and data between all stakeholders,” he said. Disckson further noted that the keys to successful SMS programs “are the practices of flight data monitoring and safety reporting using proactive, data-driven approaches to oversight that prioritize safety over all else and do it in a systematic way,” accompanied by a just culture. The ultimate benefit of ubiquitous SMS is the generation of data that can be used to prevent “what could be an accident or incident in the making” and encourage operators to “use flight data monitoring as feedback into their training programs and ideally make it part of a systematic SMS process,” Dickson said. That includes sharing data across organizations via FAA FAAST teams, industry workshops and organizations, and industry safety experts. He singled out the FAA’s Helicopter InfoShare program, which began meetings late last year, and the offshore energy’s Helicopter Safety Advisory Council, whose best practices are “easily adaptable to other helicopter sectors.” Additionally, he praised the work of the U.S. Helicopter Safety Team (USHST). Dickson stressed that a recommitment to safety was essential toward the goal of knocking down the helicopter fatal accident rate that has “remained roughly the same” for the last 15 years. Noting that 90 percent of all helicopter fatalities are caused by blunt force trauma, Dickson called on operators to voluntarily install crash-resistant seats and structures, as well as crash-resistant fuel tanks required on new production helicopters. “Thousands of helicopters in our legacy fleet aren't required to have these features. Why not consider retrofitting these upgrades now?” he asked. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2020-10-27/faa-developing-broader-sms-mandate-part-135-and-145 FAA Publishes Final AD on High-Wing Cessna Inspection The airworthiness directive goes into effect in November. Certain Cessna 172s are part of an AD requiring inspections at the strut attach fitting near the forward cabin doorpost. The FAA published its final AD on inspections for a long series of single-engine Textron Aviation (Cessna) aircraft. The airworthiness directive goes into effect on November 12, 2020. The AD was prompted by cracks found in the lower area of the forward cabin doorpost bulkhead, and it requires repeated inspections of the lower area of the forward cabin doorposts at the strut attach fitting for cracks, and the repairing of any cracks. The FAA has issued this AD to address an unsafe condition it has found on certain models. The original notice of proposed rulemaking on the AD was published in February 2018, with a supplemental NPRM published on May 29, 2020. According to the text of the AD: “The NPRM was prompted by reports of cracks in the lower area of the forward cabin doorpost bulkhead on more than four dozen Textron 100 and 200 airplanes. The NPRM proposed to require repetitively inspecting the lower area of the forward cabin doorposts at the strut attach fitting for cracks and repairing any cracks found by modifying the area with the applicable service kit. The SNPRM proposed to modify the estimated costs of the proposed AD, the repetitive inspection intervals, and the credit allowed for previous actions; clarify the inspection instructions for airplanes with the service kit installed; correct the contact information for obtaining the service information; and add a reporting requirement to collect the inspection results. The SNPRM also changed some of the model designations listed in the applicability in order to match the models as they are listed in the type certificate data sheet.” The list of affected models includes the following: Cessna 172N, 172P, 172Q, 172RG, F172N, F172P, FR172K, R172K, 182E, 182F, 182G, 182H, 182J, 182K, 182L, 182M, 182N, 182P, 182Q, 182R, T182, F182P, F182Q, FR182, R182, TR182, 206, P206, P206A, P206B, P206C, P206D, P206E, TP206A, TP206B, TP206C, TP206D, TP206E, U206, U206A, U206B, U206C, U206D, U206E, U206F, U206G, TU206A, TU206B, TU206C, TU206D, TU206E, TU206F, TU206G, 207, 207A, T207, T207A, 210-5 (205), 210-5A (205A), 210B, 210C, 210D, 210E, 210F, and T210F. https://www.flyingmag.com/story/aircraft/high-wing-cessna-airworthiness-directive/ Accidents Edge Up in 2019: NTSB The National Transportation Safety Board published its preliminary accident stats for 2019 that show both general aviation and the airlines with a slight increase in both total and fatal accidents. On-demand Part 135 operators saw a slight decline in accidents but an increase in the fatal rate. While the NTSB will conduct a more in-depth analysis of the figures in the near future, the early stats reveal an industry undergoing expansion—remember, this is through 2019—and, with that, a greater number of accidents. This time next year, the results of the massive 2020 downturn will likely paint a very different picture. For U.S. air carriers in both scheduled and non-scheduled service (under FAR Part 121), 2019 saw 40 total accidents (36 of those under scheduled service) with two fatal accidents resulting in four total fatalities. It is true that airlines flew more in 2019 than the year before, logging some 19.8 million flight hours (up from 19.3 million in 2018) and traveling almost 8.7 billion miles. Because there are so few Part 121 accidents overall, and a slight increase (from 31 total accidents in 2018 to 40), the overall accident rate “jumped” from 0.161 to 0.202 accidents per 100,000 flight hours. The fatal accident rate “doubled” from 0.005 to 0.01 per 100,000 flight hours, but these remain vanishingly low fatal rates. It’s worth remembering that there were no domestic fatalities on Part 121 air carriers in 2002, 2007-8, and from 2010 to 2017. Part 135 operations had 43 accidents in 2019, of which 13 involved fatalities; 34 people lost their lives. Unlike the scheduled airlines, Part 135 operators (mainly commuters) flew fewer hours in 2019. Commuter airlines flew 415,162 compared to 421,319 the year before, resulting in one of the worse accident rates per 100,000 hours (2.168) in the last two decades. Since 2000, final rates were higher only in 2000-2002, 2008, and 2016. On-demand Part 135 companies flew 3.76 million flight hours in 2019, down from 3.84 million in 2018, and recorded a total accident rate of 0.903 per 100,000 flight hours (down from 1.041 in 2018) but an increase in the fatal rate, which moved from 0.182 to 0.319 per 100,000 flight hours, the worst since 2008. Finally, for general aviation, while flight hours were up fractionally (21.8 million vs 21.7 in 2018), there were 55 fewer accidents (a total of 1,220) but more fatalities (406 on board, up from 376 in 2018), resulting in, predictably, a slight drop in overall accident rate, to 5.592 per 100,000 flight hours, but an increase in the fatal rate, to 1.069 (up from 1.025). Overall, the fatal accident rate in GA has hovered around 1 per 100K since 2015. Flight hours had been on steady increase since dropping below 20 million a year in 2013. https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/accidents-edge-up-in-2019-ntsb/ Raytheon laying off 20,000 amid commercial aviation slide WASHINGTON ― Raytheon Technologies is cutting 15,000 staff and 4,000 contractor positions, largely at the company’s Pratt & Whitney and Collins Aerospace divisions, due to decreased commercial aerospace sales from COVID-19 pandemic, CEO Greg Hayes said Tuesday on the company’s earnings call. The Waltham, Mass., aerospace giant is the latest company to announce losses since the pandemic has sent commercial aerospace companies reeling, costing them tens of thousands of jobs and millions in lost profits. Hayes projected the market segment wouldn’t get a sharp rebound, but instead see “a long, slow recovery,” over several years. “We don’t expect commercial air traffic to return to 2019 levels, until at least 2023. And that’s of course depending upon the timing of a widely distributed vaccine. In the near term, we expect a gradual recovery of commercial air traffic particularly given the recent spike in global cases [of coronavirus],” Hayes said. “As you know, we set aggressive targets in the first quarter to reduce costs by about $2 billion and to take actions to conserve about $4 billion in cash, making difficult but necessary actions to reduce headcount,” Hayes said. Only about 100 of the more than 6,000 Boeing workers to be laid off this week will come from its defense division. The ongoing personnel actions will reflect a 20 percent cut at both divisions, and include both temporary furloughs and a hiring freeze. In its merger with United Technologies in April, the company already planned to cut 1,000 jobs, mostly on its corporate side, Hayes said. The company is also reducing its infrastructure, which takes up 31 million square feet, by more than 20 percent ― beyond an earlier 10 percent goal for the merger. Hayes said that even after the pandemic subsides, it would continue to employ increased remote-work arrangements as part of a multiyear strategy to slash overhead. An announced aerospace-parts facility in western North Carolina is still in the works, as Hayes said the company would need the capacity when demand returns. “I think by the time this comes online in late 2023, we should see a kind of return to normalcy in commercial aerospace, and Pratt will be well positioned with a much lower cost, much more automated production facility,” he said. Travel restrictions and closures related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic hit CAE’s civil training and defense segments. But said the company CEO: “I think we have seen the bottom and we [are] starting to see the recovery." According to third-quarter numbers posted by Raytheon, Pratt & Whitney posted a $615 million loss in operating profit for the quarter versus a $520 million profit for the same period in 2019. Pratt’s military sales rose 11 percent, driven in part by production of the F-35 joint strike fighter. Collins managed to post an operating profit of $526 million for the quarter, but the number marked a 58 percent drop over the prior year. Raytheon’s commercial aftermarket business fell 51 percent at Pratt & Whitney and 52 percent at Collins Aerospace, while the company’s military side was up. Both Raytheon’s intelligence and space and missiles and defense segments offset some of the losses, as the company reported sales of $14.7 billion and an operating profit of $434 million for the quarter. Raytheon executives were upbeat on the defense business’s backlog of more than $70 billion, and for the quarter, the segment posted $928 million in classified bookings. https://www.defensenews.com/2020/10/27/raytheon-to-lay-off-20000-amid-commercial-aviation-slide/ Mitsubishi looking to hire 240 workers at Bridgeport airport BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. — Mitsubishi Heavy Industries plans to hire 240 full-time employees for its operations at the North Central West Virginia Airport. Gov. Jim Justice on Tuesday announced the jobs during a press conference at the airport. The additional workers will result in 750 employees working at the airport by next spring. North Central West Virginia Airport Director Rick Rock said Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has grown since closing acquiring manufacturer Bombardier earlier this year. “They had about 317 people working there (when the deal closed). At this moment, there are over 500,” he said. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ $550 million deal closed in June and included maintenance, support, refurbishment and marketing work for regional aircraft. “The regional aircraft that fly people around the United States. They come here to get their work done,” Rock said. “We’re hoping they’re just scratching the surface of their potential and they’ll see what a great place West Virginia is to do business. They’ll also see the quality and craftsmanship of the workforce here and they’ll continue to grow.” The airport is currently undergoing a $70 million renovation project, which includes filling two valleys adjacent to the existing runway, building a new terminal with access to West Virginia Route 279 and a new aerotech park. The project is slated to be complete in late 2023. https://wvmetronews.com/2020/10/27/mitsubishi-looking-to-hire-240-workers-at-bridgeport-airport/ Heathrow loses claim to being Europe’s biggest airport LONDON (AP) — London’s Heathrow Airport says it has lost its place as Europe’s busiest air hub to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris after the COVID-19 pandemic grounded flights and Britain failed to approve passenger testing that could scale back quarantine requirements. Heathrow said Wednesday that it expects passenger numbers to fall more than previously forecast this year and rebound more slowly in 2021. The airport now expects to serve 22.6 million passengers this year and 37.1 million in 2021, down from a June forecast of 29.2 million and 62.8 million. The forecast for this year represents at 72% drop from 2019. Commercial aviation plunged this year as governments implemented travel restrictions and passengers canceled flights amid efforts to control the spread of COVID-19. Some countries have sought to revive the market by implementing passenger testing regimes that reduce or eliminate the need for quarantines. Despite pressure from the travel industry, Britain still requires travelers from most countries to self-isolate for 14 days after arrival, making most business and leisure travel impractical. “The U.K.’s hub airport is no longer the busiest airport in Europe, competitors such as Charles de Gaulle have exceeded us in terms of passenger numbers as they benefit from a testing regime,” Heathrow said in a statement. “Without a rapid move to testing, the U.K. will fall even further behind its European competitors and the economic recovery will fail to get off the ground.” Heathrow on Wednesday reported a pre-tax loss of 1.52 billion pounds ($1.97 billion) for the first nine months of the year, compared with a loss of 76 million pounds in the same period of 2019. Revenue plunged 59% to 2.3 billion pounds. The number of passengers using Heathrow during those nine months fell 69% to 19 million. https://www.abc27.com/news/health/heathrow-loses-claim-to-being-europes-biggest-airport/ Aireon Expands Global Aviation Data Services AireonINSIGHTS, AireonSTREAM and AireonFLOW unlock the power of Aireon's ATS surveillance data for broader ATM use MCLEAN, Va., Oct. 28, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Aireon LLC (Aireon) announced the launch of three new commercial data products: AireonFLOW™, AireonINSIGHTS™ and AireonSTREAM™. These products aim to provide unique solutions to stakeholders in the aviation industry and beyond—significantly expanding the use cases of Aireon's high-fidelity, Air Traffic Services (ATS) surveillance-grade data to a global audience. This announcement marks the first time Aireon's global dataset will be available beyond its traditional ATS surveillance enhancement application from Aireon directly, a move that will offer exciting and innovative solutions to the broader Air Traffic Management (ATM) industry and beyond. "This is an exciting next step for Aireon in our mission to expand the implementation of single-source, high-fidelity data to a global audience," says Don Thoma, CEO, Aireon. "Since the Aireon system went live in 2018, our space-based ADS-B air traffic surveillance data has provided the first-ever solution for surveillance of aircraft in real time, anywhere on earth. With our new commercial products, we can leverage that data to help provide innovative solutions to challenges in aviation, across air traffic flow management, aircraft operations and more." Each product, while leveraging Aireon's high-fidelity data, has its own use cases for customers, such as Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs), aircraft and fleet operators, tracking systems, financial institutions, insurance companies and across the Air Traffic Management (ATM) industry as a whole. "The development of a robust commercial data services platform represents a natural evolution for Aireon," said Peter Cabooter, Vice President of Customer Services, Aireon. "To this day, Aireon provides the only independently certified, surveillance-quality, aircraft position data with global coverage. With the launch of these new products, customers will gain not only full transparency into this data, but will be able to leverage it for their unique needs from a single platform—eliminating the need to manage multiple, disparate data sources. This is truly going to be a revolutionary offering for the aviation industry and beyond." AireonFLOW AireonFLOW provides ANSPs and Air Traffic Flow Management (ATFM) providers with the only single source of gate-to-gate, high-fidelity ATS surveillance data. When combined with flight and airspace contextual information, AireonFLOW is able to offer users enhanced prediction capabilities within and beyond a country's Flight Information Region (FIR). AireonSTREAM AireonSTREAM provides gate-to-gate, surface-to-space, high-fidelity ATS surveillance data, combined with flight and airspace contextual information including infrastructure, weather, avionics, aircraft registry and schedule data to enhance tracking, situational awareness and analytical tools. This combination provides the only ATS surveillance-quality and complete flight position source available. The AireonSTREAM interface enables customers across the ATM industry to access both derived and contextual data, and the flexibility to integrate it into their own platform. AireonINSIGHTS AireonINSIGHTS provides users with a single-source feed of events and alerts for flights, including airport and airspace events, ongoing flight data, safety events, and location alerts to provide key performance indicators related to a flight's operational safety and efficiency. Rather than having this data come from varied, disparate data sources, AireonINSIGHTS offers the user a single source of high-fidelity flight information that can alert users in real-time. To learn more about Aireon's new products, please join us for a webinar detailing AireonFLOW, AireonSTREAM and AireonINSIGHTS on November 5th, 2020 from 8:30AM ET to 9:30AM ET. Register here. About Aireon Aireon operates the first ever, space-based air traffic surveillance system for Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) equipped aircraft throughout the entire globe. Aireon harnesses next-generation aviation surveillance technologies that were formerly ground-based and extends their reach throughout the world to significantly improve efficiency, enhance safety, reduce emissions and provide cost savings benefits to all stakeholders. Aireon's high-fidelity, low-latency surveillance data is available for various applications, allowing aerospace industry partners access to revolutionary data capabilities that enhance asset tracking, aircraft situational awareness and decision support analytical tools. In partnership with leading ANSPs from around the world, like NAV CANADA, Enav, NATS, the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and Naviair, as well as Iridium Communications, Aireon provides global, real-time, space-based aircraft data for enhanced air traffic surveillance, innovation and analytics. For more information, please visit www.aireon.com. https://www.insidenova.com/news/state/aireon-expands-global-aviation-data-services/article_272993e6-4680-586a-94ab-f7cbd3caee3e.html Japan's ANA Group retires 22 Boeing 777 jets, plans to cut or delay new orders Months after notching a blockbuster billion order for a dozen new 787 Dreamliners, Japan's All Nippon Airways says it will now cut or delay new aircraft orders and retire 22 of its older Boeing 777 widebody jets. ANA didn't say which aircraft orders it would reduce or delay as part of what it called "transformative measures to a new business model," but the Tokyo-based airline ordered 20 new Boeing 777Xs in 2014 and deliveries were to start in 2022. In late February, ANA also logged an order for 11 787-10s — the biggest Boeing-made Dreamliner made in South Carolina — and one 787-9 model, and acquired additional options for five more 787-9s, worth a total of more than $5 billion at list prices. ANA disclosed plans to overhaul its aircraft fleet after releasing financial results for the first six months of its fiscal 2020 year. The Tokyo-based longtime Boeing customer reported a $1.8 billion loss, blaming it on the Covid-19 pandemic. Boeing spokeswoman Jessica Kowal declined to comment on ANA's moves or status of its orders. Boeing will report its latest financial results on Wednesday and may have more to say about order and delivery deferrals, particularly about the 777X orders being delayed by several global airlines at that time. Further cuts to 777X orders or a slowing of the program would bring fresh heartaches for the hundreds of suppliers who've made huge investments in tools and manufacturing equipment to get ready for production. ANA's disclosure was the third instance in a week where major Boeing customers revealed plans to defer new aircraft deliveries, highlighting the Chicago-based jet maker's challenges after it slashed jet production, cut its dividend and executive pay, and eliminated 16,100 jobs across its Boeing Commercial Airplanes unit over the past few months. Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific said it was deferring a $7 billion order for 21 of Boeing's 777X jets beyond 2025. American Airlines said it reached a deal with Boeing allowing the deferral of 18 737 Max deliveries to 2023 and 2024. ANA was the launch customer for Boeing 787 Dreamliner and is the world's biggest operator of the jet. It flies all three variants of Boeing's widebody, ranging from 225 seats to more than 300 in the 787-10. Airbus didn't escape ANA cuts either. The Japanese airline is also retiring its Airbus A380 superjumbo double-decker as part of plans to retire 28 jets altogether. It offered no details about its remaining aircraft to be parked, but ANA does operate a fleet of 29 Airbus A320 family and 43 Boeing 737 single-aisle jets for its short-haul flights, according to airplanespotters.net. In perhaps a warning sign for developers and landlords, ANA said it also will reduce its commercial office space expenditures by downsizing and consolidating offices based on their respective usage levels because more of its employees are working remotely. https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2020/10/27/boeing-airline-ana-jet-orders-deferrals-777x-787s.html Virgin Galactic Hires Two New Pilots into its Pilot Corps Virgin Galactic today announced the appointment of two new pilots into its Pilot Corps, bringing the total number of pilots to eight. Jameel Janjua and Patrick Moran will be based at Spaceport America, New Mexico, and join the Virgin Galactic team as preparations for commercial service continue. Both will embark on an extensive training program before flying SpaceShipTwo. In addition to the Spaceship, the pilots will also train to fly the carrier aircraft, VMS Eve. VMS Eve provides a way for the pilots to fly simulated parts of the SpaceShipTwo flight trajectory, gaining valuable hands-on training. Other assignments for the pilots will include flying other company support aircraft, working mission control, flight planning, and support various detailed engineering and project roles across the company. While Jameel and Patrick will initially operate in a test pilot capacity, they, along with the rest of the Pilot Corps, will ultimately become the world’s first commercial Spaceship Pilots, flying Future Astronauts on their life-changing journey into space and back. Our Virgin Galactic Pilots serve an essential role in the flight experience of our Future Astronauts. The pilots will join the Future Astronauts at various points in their training program, helping emphasize and provide details about various key elements of their upcoming spaceflight. All pilots are ambassadors of the Virgin Galactic brand and will work to provide Future Astronauts with an out of this world adventure. Both Jameel and Patrick bring a wealth of aircraft flight and flight test experience; they were picked from a small group of specialized pilots who meet the strict criteria needed to be considered for the role of a Virgin Galactic Pilot. Each of them has flown in both military and commercial roles, involving training, operations and test, as well as flying passengers and managing crew. Jameel has completed over 4,000 flying hours in more than 45 different vehicles throughout his career, which spans over twenty years in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He completed exchange tours for the Royal Air Force and the U.S Air Force and is on the Board of Directors for the Society of Experimental Test Pilots {SETP}. Patrick served as a Pilot in the Marine Corps for twenty years, including roles as a test pilot, test pilot school instructor, and the lead government test pilot for Navy and Marine Corps versions of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. He then entered business aviation as a broker, consultant, and charter pilot, and joins Virgin Galactic with over 3,000 flight hours in 34 different aircraft. Dave Mackay, Virgin Galactic’s Chief Pilot said, “I am delighted to welcome Jameel Janjua and Pat Moran to the Virgin Galactic Pilot Corps. Jameel and Pat both come with a tremendous range and depth of experience of both military and civilian aviation, and test flying in particular. Their backgrounds, in addition to their accomplished interpersonal skills, will make them hugely valuable - particularly as we prepare for, and soon enter, commercial passenger operations. Virgin Galactic is fortunate to have secured the services of two such high calibre pilots, and we eagerly anticipate their contributions to the team as a whole.” Jameel Janjua said, "Helping to democratize space travel is a unique honour, and I am thrilled and humbled to be joining the Virgin Galactic Pilot Corps. With society on the cusp of opening space to all humankind, I cannot think of a more privileged role than to be a small part of the amazing team guiding people to their dreams and beyond. I am excited to join our Future Astronauts on their personal and insightful journeys and I’m looking forward to witnessing, first-hand, the variety of reactions these life-changing experiences will evoke. Patrick Moran said, “I am excited to join this fantastic team of talented pioneers leading the charge for commercial space travel and now in the final stages of its flight test program. As a flight instructor I loved to take people flying in the F/A-18 for the first time, to see their huge smiles as they climbed out of the cockpit. I can’t wait to share the experience of going to space with our Future Astronauts and to see their reactions as they step out of the spaceship and describe their views of Earth from space!” About Virgin Galactic Virgin Galactic is a vertically-integrated aerospace and space travel company, pioneering human spaceflight for private individuals and researchers, as well as a manufacturer of advanced air and space vehicles. Using its proprietary and reusable technologies and supported by a distinctive, Virgin-branded customer experience, it is developing a spaceflight system designed to offer customers a unique, multi-day, transformative experience. This culminates in a spaceflight that includes views of Earth from space and several minutes of weightlessness that will launch from Spaceport America, New Mexico. Virgin Galactic and The Spaceship Company believe that one of the most exciting and significant opportunities of our time lies in the commercial exploration of space and the development of technology that will change the way we travel across the globe in the future. Together we are opening access to space to change the world for good. http://spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=56493 Fireside Partners Inc. Announces New Emergency Response Program Providing an All-Inclusive System for Company Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Dover, Delaware – Fireside Partners Inc., an industry-leading, fully integrated emergency services provider, announces the launch of a new Emergency Response Program. The four-stage Program brings a holistic and unified approach to emergency response. Fireside Partners’ customers will have the resources, training, and tools to respond successfully, compassionately, and professionally. Going beyond a traditional Emergency Response Plan (ERP), Fireside’s Program provides a roadmap of progression to enhance crisis decision-making skills and advance emergency preparedness and response capabilities. The Program transforms the emergency response plan into a tactical roadmap to recovery. Comprised of four synchronous developmental stages, the transformation from a written plan to a fully capable Program is simple: • Stage 1 - Development: Build the foundation of your capability to respond to an emergency • Stage 2 - Alignment: Integration with your enterprise-level emergency and business continuity plans (BCP) • Stage 3 - Execution: Train your team with the interactive curriculum and experiential scenarios • Stage 4 - Readiness: Continual improvements and after-action evaluations Training and equipping employees, and testing an ERP is vital to emergency preparedness. Fireside Partners operates a robust Training Center that provides multiple training options including in-person, virtual, and hybrid environments. The state-of-the-art live studio and eLearning online courses ensure you are mission ready when it’s time to respond. Don Chupp, president and chief executive officer adds, “From our customer’s perspective, whatever they thought it meant to be prepared prior to the year 2020 certainly changed as the year evolved. A global pandemic, civil unrest, massive wildfires, hurricanes, and other emergencies present a need to respond to multiple, cascading events simultaneously. The most effective organizations, businesses, and niche operations take their responsibility to be prepared and effective very seriously. We rise to meet that responsibility with a single, yet powerful option; the Emergency Response Program.” To learn more about how the Program can benefit your organization, please visit www.firesideteam.com or contact Fireside Partners directly at 302.613.0012 or info@firesideteam.com. ### About Fireside Partners Inc. Fireside Partners Inc. is dedicated to building world-class Emergency Response Programs to instill confidence, resiliency, and readiness for high net worth/high visibility individuals and business concerns. Fireside delivers a broad array of services focused on prevention, preparedness, on-site support, and recovery. We help our customers protect their most important assets - their people and their good name. Learn more at www.firesideteam.com. Contact: Kevin Lucas Executive Support & Finance Administrator kevin.lucas@firesideteam.com (302) 613 0027 Impact of COVID-19 on Aviation & Fatigue Survey (Round 1) As a longitudinal survey, we will send you links to shorter follow-up surveys each month as the industry adapts to changes in regulations and public demand. For more information about the survey, please contact Dr. Cassie Hilditch at cassie.j.hilditch@nasa.gov or see below for FAQs. We thank you for your time and support of this survey addressing the effects of this unprecedented time in aviation history. All the best, Cassie Hilditch FAQs Overall purpose of the survey To assess the impact of operational changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic on fatigue in US commercial pilots. Any additional background on the study Discussions with airline representatives and pilots have highlighted several unique changes to operations as the industry attempts to adapt to reduced demand and travel restrictions. Many of these changes are unprecedented, therefore, understanding how they impact crew fatigue is important in order to manage the impact of such changes and potentially recommend safeguards to their implementation. Who will have access to the raw data? Only staff from NASA Ames Fatigue Countermeasures Research Laboratory approved by the Institutional Research Board will have access to the raw data. All data will be stored anonymously, with a unique ID code assigned to each participant to track responses over time. Who will make the final conclusions? NASA Ames Fatigue Countermeasures Research Laboratory staff will summarize and analyze the survey responses. Where will the information be published? We hope to publish the results as a NASA Technical Memorandum, and also in safety-focused peer-reviewed journals and industry newsletters to reach a wide range of audiences to maximize the learning opportunities from this survey. We also aim to present the results at relevant scientific and industry conferences where possible. Cassie J. Hilditch, PhD Senior Research Associate Fatigue Countermeasures Lab SJSU Research Foundation NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA 94035 PIREP SURVEY Greetings, Please consider participating in our online survey on PIREPs available at this link, https://fit.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6y8tcXQXgr1Q6lT. The survey will take approximately 10-minutes. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Florida Institute of Technology & Purdue University Dr. Debbie S. Carstens, PMP Graduate Program Chair & Professor, Aviation Human Factors College of Aeronautics|321.674.8820 Faculty Profile: https://www.fit.edu/faculty-profiles/2/debbie-carstens/ Curt Lewis