Flight Safety Information - October 12, 2021 No. 205 In This Issue : Cessna 340A - Fatal Accident (California) : Beechcraft 58TC Baron - Fatal Accident (Colorado) : Piper PA-34-220T Seneca V - Fatal Accident (Germany) : Southwest, airline pilots union deny claims that anti-vaccine walkouts prompted cancellations : No Air Force Pilots Leave Military This Year as Career Path to Airlines Clogged by Pandemic (Korea) : Set for Aggressive Growth, Alaska Airlines Begins Hiring Pilots Again : AOPA’S Air Safety Institute Releases 31st Joseph T. Nall Report : Brazil's Embraer sells 100 aircraft to NetJets, shares rise : HAI Offering New, Lower-cost SMS Program : Constant Aviation Honored as First MRO to Attain WYVERN’s Highest Safety Management System Ranking : Airbus Clocked Just 1 New Aircraft Order In September : Airbus airplane that flies higher than planes and lower than satellites completes 18-day flight : OmniSMS - Maximize your SMS Investment : PhD - Graduate Research Survey Request (1) Cessna 340A - Fatal Accident (California) Date: 11-OCT-2021 Time: 12:14 Type: Cessna 340A Owner/operator: Samarth Aviation LLC Registration: N7022G MSN: 340A0695 Fatalities: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 Other fatalities: 1 Aircraft damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Category: Accident Location: NNE of Gillespie Field Airport (SEE/KSEE), San Diego/El Cajon, CA - United States of America Phase: Approach Nature: Private Departure airport: Yuma MCAS/Yuma International Airport, AZ (YUM/KNYL) Destination airport: Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport, CA (MYF/KMYF) Investigating agency: NTSB Narrative: A Cessna 340A was destroyed by fire and impact with a UPS delivery car and residential structures north-northeast of Gillespie Field Airport (SEE/KSEE), San Diego/El Cajon, California. The pilot sustained fatal injuries. Number of airplane occupants is currently unconfirmed. A UPS delivery driver was fatally injured and two people on the ground sustained serious burn injuries https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/268478 Beechcraft 58TC Baron - Fatal Accident (Colorado) Date: 11-OCT-2021 Time: 08:57 Type: Beechcraft 58TC Baron Owner/operator: Cannon Oil And Gas Well Services Inc Registration: N6748V * MSN: TK-120 Fatalities: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 Other fatalities: 0 Aircraft damage: Substantial Location: Castle Peak area near Jerry Creek Reservoirs, Mesa County, CO - United States of America Phase: En route Nature: Unknown Departure airport: Delta-Blake Field, CO (KAJZ) Destination airport: Rock Springs-Sweetwater County Airport, WY (RKS/KRKS) Narrative: The aircraft sustained substantial damage subsequent to impact with mountainous terrain in the Castle Peak area near Jerry Creek Reservoirs, Mesa County, north of the point of departure at Blake Field Airport (AJZ/KAJZ), Delta, Colorado. The sole pilot onboard the twin engine airplane received fatal injuries. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/268480 Piper PA-34-220T Seneca V - Fatal Accident (Germany) Date: 11-OCT-2021 Time: 08:24 Type: Piper PA-34-220T Seneca V Owner/operator: Private Registration: D-GLMP MSN: 3449348 Fatalities: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 Other fatalities: 0 Aircraft damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: near fortress ruins Löwenburg, Königswinter, North Rhine Westphalia - Germany Phase: En route Nature: Private Departure airport: Bonn-Hangelar Airfield (BNJ/EDKB) Destination airport: Hamburg Narrative: A Piper PA-34-220T Seneca V crashed in foggy weather conditions near the fortress ruins Löwenburg, Königswinter, North Rhine Westphalia. Both occupants were killed and the aircraft was destroyed. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/268471 Southwest, airline pilots union deny claims that anti-vaccine walkouts prompted cancellations Southwest Airlines said its thousands of recent flight cancellations “were not a result of employee demonstrations.” The president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, which has taken legal action to temporarily block the company’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, called claims about a pilot walkout or sickout “false” and said the union is forbidden to take such actions. Flight disruptions such as bad weather can have a cascading effect and lead to many more delays and cancellations. In separate statements to the press, Southwest Airlines and the union representing its pilots denied the widespread internet rumors that claimed the airline canceled thousands of flights because crew members walked off the job or called in sick to protest the company’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Southwest canceled more than 1,000 flights scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 10, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking service, even as competing airlines called off relatively few flights. Between the evening of Friday, Oct. 8, and the morning of Monday, Oct. 11, the Dallas-based airline dropped more than 2,000 flights nationwide, the Dallas Morning News reported. The airline said that air traffic control issues and weather challenges in Florida disrupted flights on Oct. 8, setting off a cascade of cancellations and delays nationwide that compounded as the airline scrambled to recover from crews, aircrafts and customers that were displaced. But the cancellations occurred shortly after the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association petitioned a court to temporarily block the company’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, prompting speculation among some social media users that the flights were dropped not because of bad weather or other issues, but because Southwest pilots staged a walkout or sickout in a protest against the mandate. The unsubstantiated posts were flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.) An Oct. 10 tweet claiming Southwest Airlines cancellations were due to pilot walkouts in protest of a COVID-19 vaccine mandate. "Countless Southwest Airlines employees have walked out of their jobs to oppose the vaccine mandate, causing operations to effectively shut down," said one Oct. 10 tweet. "Southwest is canceling flights and blaming the weather because their employees are saying NO to the authoritarian vaccine mandate," said another post on Instagram. "Pilots are using their sick time before they are terminated on Nov. 24 due to the (vaccine) mandate," said a post on Facebook. The posts received hundreds of thousands of engagements across Facebook and Instagram, according to CrowdTangle, a social media insights tool. They were buoyed by conservative influencers such as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who tweeted that the cancellations were President Joe Biden’s "vaccine mandate at work." (The CNBC report Cruz shared with his tweet included a statement from a Southwest spokesperson calling that rumor "inaccurate" and "unfounded.") But the posts were refuted by several key groups, including the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association. The union said in an Oct. 9 statement, "We can say with confidence that our pilots are not participating in any official or unofficial job actions." In a second statement Oct. 10, the union’s president, Casey Murray, addressed the rumors more directly: "There are false claims of job actions by Southwest pilots currently gaining traction on social media and making their way into mainstream news. I can say with certainty that there are no work slowdowns or sickouts either related to the recent mandatory vaccine mandate or otherwise. Under the (Railway Labor Act), our Union is forbidden from taking job action to resolve labor disputes under these circumstances. SWAPA has not authorized, and will not condone, any job action. "SWA has claimed that the immediate causes of this weekend’s meltdown were staffing at Jacksonville Center and weather in the southeast U.S., but what was a minor temporary event for other carriers devastated Southwest Airlines because our operation has become brittle and subject to massive failures under the slightest pressure." The union said Oct. 5 that it is not against vaccines, but it decided to take legal action against Southwest’s requirement because the airline made the decision without negotiating. Murray told the Dallas Morning News that the data showed that pilot sick rates during the heavy cancellation days were "exactly in line with where they were all summer with the same kind of operational disasters." "The weekend challenges were not a result of employee demonstrations, as some have reported," Southwest Airlines added in an Oct. 11 statement to PolitiFact. The airline said its operations were returning to normal. It pinned the weekend cancellations on the weather and air traffic control issues in Florida the evening of Oct. 8, saying the combination "created significant flight disruptions throughout our network and we spent the weekend working to recover from the high number of displaced crews, aircraft, and customers." Similarly, the Federal Aviation Administration tweeted that there have been no air traffic staffing shortages reported since Oct. 8 — contradicting related social media rumors, which claimed air traffic controllers had also staged walkouts or sickouts to protest the vaccine mandates. An FAA spokesperson told PolitiFact that any staffing issues would be seen on the agency’s website.’ The FAA’s tweet said the problems the evening of Oct. 8 were "due to widespread severe weather, military training, & limited staffing in one area of the Jacksonville en route center." The chief operating officer of the Jacksonville Aviation Authority also refuted the rumor about a walkout led by air traffic controllers in an internal email, which was obtained by a local reporter. The COO said the Jacksonville staff was limited Oct. 8 because of a combination of controllers who were on normal, approved leave, or at home because they had just been vaccinated. On Twitter, Southwest initially attributed the dropped flights to "(air traffic control) issues and disruptive weather," although other airlines did not have to cancel nearly as many flights. In an Oct. 10 memo to Southwest employees, Alan Kasher, Southwest’s executive vice president of daily operations, described a domino effect triggered by the problems from that evening. In this frame grab from cellphone video, passengers look for information on their flights on Oct. 10, 2021, at Dallas Love Field. (AP) A delay or a cancellation in one place can cause a delay or a cancellation elsewhere, as pilots, flight attendants and planes get displaced and struggle to stay on schedule. That can snowball to create further staffing shortages as flight crews time out and can’t operate planned flights. There are fewer flight options than usual to reroute crews and passengers who encounter problems, Kasher said. Southwest had been slated to run its highest number of scheduled flights on Oct. 10 since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the Dallas Morning News reported. After the disruptions on Oct. 8, the airline cancelled more than 800 flights on Oct. 9, and then over 1,000 on Oct. 10. Similar issues plagued airlines over the summer. Social media users claimed that widespread cancellations from Spirit Airlines and American Airlines in August were the result of walkouts from crew members protesting the vaccine mandates. PolitiFact rated those claims False. Our ruling A tweet said, "Countless Southwest Airlines employees have walked out of their jobs to oppose the vaccine mandate, causing operations to effectively shut down." The claim — along with other variations circulating online — is unsubstantiated. Southwest and the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association denied that Southwest pilots led any such walkout or sickout to protest the vaccine mandate. They attributed the flight cancellations to other factors, including bad weather and other issues on Friday that prompted a wave of cancellations. Without evidence, we rate this claim False. https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/oct/11/tweets/southwest-airline-pilots-union-deny-claims-anti-va/ No Air Force Pilots Leave Military This Year as Career Path to Airlines Clogged by Pandemic (Korea) SEOUL, Oct. 12 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of Air Force pilots who applied for discharge this year turned out to be zero since their career shift to private airlines became almost impossible due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the data that Rep. Kim Min-ki of the ruling Democratic Party received from the South Korean Air Force, the number of expert-level pilots who applied for discharge to get a job at a private airline next year was zero. The number of expert-level pilots who applied for discharge last year to get a job at private airlines this year stood at seven. This figure was far lower than the 113 reported a year earlier. The attrition of military pilots to private airlines has been regarded as one of the chronic problems facing the Korean Air Force as every year, about 100 to 130 expert-level pilots typically opt to work at private airlines after being discharged from military service. Expert-level pilots are those with eight to 17 years of experience. After undergoing tactical training for a certain period of time, they can carry out independent tactical operations and act as flight instructors for novice level pilots. http://koreabizwire.com/no-air-force-pilots-leave-military-this-year-as-career-path-to-airlines-clogged-by-pandemic/201442 Set for Aggressive Growth, Alaska Airlines Begins Hiring Pilots Again Oct. 9—Pushing forward with an aggressive growth plan, Alaska Airlines has recalled all its pilots who had taken long-term leave during the pandemic, and this week it began training its first class of newly hired pilots since the downturn hit. "We are growing our airline back from the deep cuts we made in 2020," Capt. John Ladner, Alaska's vice president of flight operations, wrote in a memo sent to pilots Wednesday. In an interview Friday, he said the airline hopes to hire about 170 new pilots by year's end. Ladner laid out in his memo the brisk schedule for adding Boeing 737 MAXs to the Alaska fleet over the next six years. To ramp up pilot training on those aircraft, he said, two new MAX simulators will be ready for training next year to supplement the single MAX simulator Alaska operates now. Alaska has just taken delivery of its seventh Boeing MAX and will take five more by year-end and another 63 over the following two years. It has a total of 93 MAXs on order with options to buy 52 more that it expects to add by 2026. With those additions, next year Alaska's fleet will climb back above its pre-pandemic level of 237 jets. By the end of 2023, Alaska will have a fleet of 251 jets, and if it exercises all the MAX purchase options it will have more than 300 jets by the end of 2025. Back from long leave Last year more than 900 Alaska pilots chose to take extended leave to avoid furloughs. In an agreement with the pilots' union, the Air Line Pilots Association, management allowed pilots to sign up for leave varying from three months to more than two years with pay set at about 60% of normal wages and full benefits. That deal allowed management to recall pilots with 45 days' notice, to provide flexibility if air travel levels recovered. Now that's happened on U.S. domestic routes. International Air Transport Association data shows U.S. domestic air traffic in July had recovered to just over 92% of its level in the same month in 2019. Airlines are hoping that a dip in August traffic, as the delta coronavirus variant surged, will be temporary. Alaska has now recalled all pilots who were on extended leave, and they "will be back within the next several weeks," Ladner's memo states. With all the captains having been recalled by the end of the summer, the pilots returning now are some of the airline's most senior first officers. Some haven't flown for more than a year and all must undergo mandatory simulator training before resuming passenger service. Meanwhile, the first new-hire class in over a year and a half started training Monday. This was a class of 10 pilots who will fly Alaska's Airbus jets. Ladner said he expects an additional class of new hires will start every week through the end of the year. To match the rapid ramp-up in training activity, Ladner told the pilots the airline has purchased two new 737 MAX full-motion simulators that will be installed at Boeing's training facility in Longacres. Capt. Jeff Severns, Alaska's managing director of flight operations training, said it generally takes about 18 months from the beginning of construction of a flight simulator to it being ready for training. These sophisticated machines must be finely tuned to incorporate Boeing's data software and cockpit configuration hardware, customized to replicate a specific jet in the Alaska fleet with Alaska-specific equipment. He said Alaska was able to buy two in an advance-build stage from Montreal-based simulator maker CAE, so that they can be ready for training about a year from now. Additionally, Alaska has acquired two simpler 737 MAX Flight Training Devices, which provide a cockpit-like setup where a pilot sits before a pilot display and controls, without the full motion. These will be ready for training use in the second quarter of 2022, said Severns. And because Alaska pilots also fly the older model Boeing 737NGs, the airline has also bought a full-flight 737NG simulator from Southwest Airlines. Alaska is currently converting that machine at Longacres so that it simulates the 737-800 its pilots fly, rather than the 737-700 flown by Southwest. That simulator should be ready by December. To fulfill pilot training needs before the new simulators are ready, Alaska has leased Airbus and Boeing simulators in Dallas and Phoenix. Pilot contract talks between Alaska management and the pilots' union are currently deadlocked. At the end of last month, management filed for mediation with the National Mediation Board, which can be a lengthy process. Alaska will report its third-quarter earnings on Oct. 21 and will lay out its growth plans in some detail then. https://www.aviationpros.com/airlines/news/21241731/set-for-aggressive-growth-alaska-airlines-begins-hiring-pilots-again AOPA’S Air Safety Institute Releases 31st Joseph T. Nall Report The 31st Nall Report notes a decrease in total accidents during 2019. The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Air Safety Institute (ASI) has released its 31st edition of the Joseph T. Nall Report. The report’s digital platform provides near real-time accident data that are updated on a rolling 30-day cycle, accelerating the analysis process, and allowing for the most current snapshot of general aviation safety performance. The 31st Nall Report notes a decrease in total accidents during 2019. However, the overall accident rates rose during 2019 due to a reduction in flight hours, resulting in a total accident rate of 4.88 per 100,000 hours and a fatal accident rate of 0.88 per 100,000 hours. The report shows an improvement for non-commercial helicopter accidents, which after spiking for two years decreased slightly with the fatal accident rate declining to 0.98 and the total accident rate decreasing to 5.68. “Another area where we see improvement is the commercial fixed-wing total accident rate, which decreased for the second year in a row,” said Robert Geske, ASI’s Manager of Aviation Safety Analysis. “The commercial fixed-wing fatal accident rate remains low and largely unchanged.” ASI’s summaries for a given period provide insight and comparisons of selected dates versus previous years. Review the summaries for a detailed analysis of trends and rates for non-commercial and commercial fixed-wing operations, non-commercial and commercial helicopter operations, and sport/experimental operations. The report is available at www.aopa.org. https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/business-general-aviation/press-release/21241540/aopas-air-safety-institute-releases-31st-joseph-t-nall-report Brazil's Embraer sells 100 aircraft to NetJets, shares rise SAO PAULO, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Embraer (EMBR3.SA) has signed a deal valued at more than $1.2 billion to sell an additional 100 aircraft to NetJets, the Brazilian planemaker said on Monday, sending its shares higher. Embraer said it expects to deliver the Phenom 300E jets from the second quarter of 2023. NetJets is a U.S. company that offers shared ownership of private business jets. Brazil-traded shares in Embraer were up 6% at 26.25 reais in early afternoon trading, outperforming the broader Bovespa stock index (.BVSP), which rose 0.70%. NetJets, owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), plans to use the new aircraft in its U.S. and European operations, Embraer said. The deal also includes a "comprehensive" service contract, according to Embraer. A securities filing said Embraer's agreement with NetJets is the second phase of a 2010 deal in which the U.S. company acquired 50 Phenom planes with an option to purchase an additional 75 aircraft. Analysts at Guide Investimentos said the deal is positive for Embraer as it marks an operational resumption for the company, which was hit by the pandemic. https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/brazils-embraer-sells-100-aircraft-netjets-shares-rise-2021-10-11/ HAI Offering New, Lower-cost SMS Program On Monday at NBAA-BACE, the Helicopter Association International (HAI, Booth 3830) announced a safety management system (SMS) software program designed for small operators and others with cost concerns. The HAI SMS program meets the requirements set forth in the NTSB “Most Wanted List” proposal for operators that carry passengers. It is also available to member companies that do not carry passengers for hire. Open to HAI operator members in good standing, the program is the result of a membership survey in which a significant number of respondents requested turnkey SMS support programs, including ways to make an SMS easier to implement and track. “One of the most exciting elements of the HAI SMS program is how quickly and efficiently it will help to improve safety across operations,” said HAI president and CEO James Viola. HAI chose three software providers for the program: the Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF) of Washington, D.C.; Baldwin Safety and Compliance of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina; and Wyvern of Nashua, New Hampshire. “Signing up for the program through one of these providers should save most of our members more money than the cost of their HAI membership. I cannot imagine any HAI member not being interested in improving their safety program while saving money at the same time,” said Viola. Both Baldwin and Wyvern offer aviation safety action program (ASAP) reporting modules on their servers for companies participating in ACSF’s third-party–managed ASAP program. ACSF can then access the ASAP reports and conduct event review committee (ERC) meetings with the participating company and the FAA. ASAP is a voluntary, self-reporting program that identifies and reduces possible flight safety concerns and mitigates risk. The ACSF SMS tool is a simple and secure web-based product that helps helicopter operators easily manage their SMS needs by documenting aviation safety data, performing risk assessments, assigning corrective actions, and exporting ASAP reports to the FAA. ACSF, Baldwin, and Wyvern will offer HAI members significant discounts on their traditional subscription rates. “Some of the proposal evaluators were actually concerned that the programs had been scaled back to produce these rates, but each of these programs is the same, fully functional software solution they offer other customers,” said Chris Hill, manager of the HAI SMS program. Additionally, some of the rates are scalable depending on the needs of each operator, allowing for additional aircraft, users, or premium services. However, the program rates are available only to new SMS software subscribers and will not apply to existing customers of these programs. Each of the packages offered through the program allows users to verify their compliance with current and future international and domestic regulations. While the FAA does not currently require SMS programs for all operators, HAI and the NTSB have recommended that helicopter operators develop and adopt a safety reporting system that allows for the collection of data, analysis, and corrective action where necessary. The program packages also offer training, self-auditing capabilities, gap analysis, reporting capabilities, and user-support services. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2021-10-11/hai-offering-new-lower-cost-sms-program Constant Aviation Honored as First MRO to Attain WYVERN’s Highest Safety Management System Ranking WYVERN Level 4 SMS Certification Unprecedented in MRO Industry Constant Aviation, WYVERN and MRO Insider Collaborate to Enhance MRO SMS Visibility and Adoption Industry-wide Constant Aviation is the first independent maintenance, repair and overhaul business (MRO) to receive SMS Level 4 certification from WYVERN Ltd., a recognized leader in aviation safety risk management and training. CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Constant Aviation today announced that it has become the first independent maintenance, repair and overhaul business (MRO) to receive SMS Level 4 certification from WYVERN Ltd., a recognized leader in aviation safety risk management and training. The rating is specific to MRO Safety Management Systems (SMS), and Level 4-rated MROs have a fully effective SMS. “Overall, we want to work with WYVERN and industry-leading MROs such as Constant to generate enhanced visibility around the importance of SMS to motivate more MROs to strive for full adoption.” Tweet this Additionally, Constant Aviation’s functional SMS had been accepted by the FAA in April 2021, making it only the fourth MRO overall out of the more than 4,500 maintenance organizations nationally to achieve that designation. “The recognition by WYVERN of our Safety Management System affirms our dedication to making the highest standards of safety part of our daily operations,” said David H. Davies, Chief Executive Officer, Constant Aviation. “This achievement is made possible by ensuring that all of our team members have the skills, training, resources and conditions they need to ensure their safety, the safety of the flight crews and the safety of the passengers who fly on the aircraft entrusted to us.” Based on WYVERN’s SMS Certification criteria, recognized by regulators and international organizations around the world, Constant Aviation will be ranked in the top tier of MROs in an app-based searchable network of maintenance providers maintained by MRO Insider. “WYVERN’s SMS ratings will now be featured prominently within an MRO’s profile on the MRO Insider platform,” said Andy Nixon, Founder and President of MRO Insider. “Overall, we want to work with WYVERN and industry-leading MROs such as Constant to generate enhanced visibility around the importance of SMS to motivate more MROs to strive for full adoption.” Sonnie Bates, WYVERN’s CEO, said, “Recognizing Constant Aviation as the first MRO to attain our SMS Level 4 rating, together with our partnership with MRO Insider to clearly identify the SMS standing of each MRO, promotes WYVERN’s mission to elevate safety and security worldwide. Applying our well-established SMS evaluation tools in the MRO segment empowers owners and operators to make MRO selections holistically and instills confidence that they are partnering with a world-class aircraft maintenance organization.” About Aviation Safety Management Systems Safety Management System (SMS) data have been maintained by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) since 1997. Analyses of these data demonstrate that SMS programs help mitigate aviation safety risk. As a result, the SMS concept has become the standard for safety programs in aviation worldwide. Although SMSs are optional for Constant Aviation and other maintenance and repair organizations (MRO)s, they increasingly are requested by both domestic customers and foreign certificate holders. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 5 SMS Program, established in 2015, provides aviation organizations with systematic procedures, practices and policies to manage safety risk. Constant Aviation has progressed through the program’s three levels: Active Applicant, Active Participant and Active Conformant. Having gained Active Conformant status, coupled with other progressive SMS achievements, has merited Constant Aviation receiving WYVERN’s first-ever SMS Level 4 certification specific to MROs. About Constant Aviation Constant Aviation specializes in aircraft and engine maintenance, major repairs, avionics, interiors and paint. In addition, it offers mobile response services through its AOG division, and accessory and composite services through its Nextant Aerospace division. With more than 15 years of expertise in a comprehensive array of business jet airframes, Constant Aviation has raised the bar in aircraft maintenance expectations by focusing on quality, always. For more information, visit https://www.constantaviation.com/ or call 216.261.7119. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter. About WYVERN WYVERN Ltd is the leader in aviation safety risk management and training. Building on its 30-year reputation for delivering value to the aviation community, WYVERN ensures operational excellence through its flagship Wingman and Flight Leader Programs. WYVERN’s EXACT Program is a comprehensive and professional safety certification program for UAS end-users and operators. WYVERN’s Safety Leader Training Course™ provides the education and training that enables professionals to skillfully achieve operational excellence in any aviation organization. Learn more about WYVERN here. About MRO Insider MRO Insider is the only platform in business aviation that allows users to solicit multiple quotes for maintenance. The network of service providers includes AOG, scheduled airframe and engine maintenance, avionics, paint, interior, detailing and more. The MRO Insider app allows users to ‘ping’ AOG, detailing, parts providers, and equipment based on the current aircraft location, eliminating the phone call process and email process altogether. The platform currently has over 2200 registered tail numbers, along with over 230 provider locations. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211011005642/en/Constant-Aviation-Honored-as-First-MRO-to-Attain-WYVERN%E2%80%99s-Highest-Safety-Management-System-Ranking Airbus Clocked Just 1 New Aircraft Order In September Airbus has revealed its order and delivery outcomes for the month of September. The planemaker struggled to make new orders, with just one new aircraft booked during the month. It did manage to get 40 aircraft delivered, six of which were widebodies, but is still below its target output for the year as a whole. Just one sale for Airbus European planemaker Airbus has had a tough September, with just one new order secured. This is quite a dip compared to its August performance, when the planemaker booked orders for 102 aircraft – its best month for sales since the start of the crisis. However, there have been months when it has reported zero new orders, so it’s certainly not its worst month for sales. The type of aircraft sold is unusual too. Airbus’ sole order for September was for an A319neo for a private customer. It’s the first A319neo order of 2021, and only the 70th ever ordered at all. To date, just three A319neos have been delivered to customers, all of the ACJ319neo corporate/private jet iteration. The A319neo is a pretty niche aircraft. In terms of capacity, it is on a similar footing as the cheaper and highly efficient A220-300. While it does excel in its range compared to the former C-Series, the A220 is butchering sales of the baby neo, and has seen a weak orderbook to date. As a private jet, the A319neo is a superb option, however. Its additional fuel tanks can increase its range to 12,500 kilometers (7,767 miles), and its wide, spacious cabin gives private customers plenty of room to play with for their luxury interior designs. That doesn’t mean we won’t see a commercial airline flying the A319neo. Spirit Airlines has orders in for 31 of the type, and is the biggest commercial customer for the plane at present. Two are destined for Air Cote D’Ivoire, and 30 are sold to as-yet-undisclosed customers. A respectable month for deliveries Despite things being slow on the sale side, Airbus has kept a decent pace with new aircraft deliveries in September. In total, 40 aircraft were delivered to 25 different customers in September 2021. Predictably, most were narrowbody aircraft, with 34 delivered. On the regional aircraft side, Airbus delivered a total of four A220-300s, two of which went to all A220 operator airBaltic. Air France received its very first A220, while Air Tanzania took one. From the A320 family, 30 total aircraft were delivered. Most were A320neos, with 20 leaving the Airbus factory. Customers included Spirit Airlines, Frontier, IndiGo, Go First, British Airways, and China Eastern. Nine A321neos were delivered, including for American Airlines, SAS, Wizz Air, and ANA. One A321ceo also left the factory, heading to Delta Air Lines. On the widebody side, six aircraft went to their owners during September. Four A330s left, three of which were -900neos, two for Lion Air and one for Air Belgium. The A330ceo was for Airbus Defense and Space. These were accompanied by two A350-900s, both of which went to Japan Airlines. Although delivery figures are healthy, they are below where Airbus wants to see them. The planemaker is targeting output of at least 40 A320 family aircraft for the rest of the year, so has some ground to make up in this respect. In total, to meet its targets, Airbus needs to deliver 176 more aircraft before the year is out – an average of 58 to 59 per month through the final quarter. With passenger demand undergoing its typical seasonal slump, airlines might be less willing to take new aircraft through the fourth quarter. On the other hand, with travel restrictions easing, airlines could see a bumper winter season, so the jury is still out on whether Airbus will meet its goals. https://simpleflying.com/airbus-1-order-september-2021/ Handout photo issued by Airbus of its Zephyr plane. The Aerospace giant has tested the solar-powered aircraft that it hopes can bring the internet to some of the billions of unconnected people around the world. The company said that its Zephyr, which resembles an unmanned glider but with two small propellers, could soon be spending around six months in the air at a time. Airbus airplane that flies higher than planes and lower than satellites completes 18-day flight A solar-powered airplane that should soon bring the internet to some of the most rural areas in the world has been tested by Airbus, the aerospace giant said this afternoon. Its Zephyr model, which resembles an unmanned glider but with two small propellers, could soon be spending around six months in the air at a time. The aerospace manufacturer has already run its first test flights in civilian airspace, clocking up a total of 36 days in the air across just two flights. When airborne, the Zephyr lives in the stratosphere – flying higher than planes, and lower than satellites. It will be cheaper than a satellite, more environmentally friendly – as it runs on solar power – easier to control, and can be landed and repurposed for a different mission. But the 18-day trips are only the start, said Jana Rosenmann, head of unmanned aerial systems at Airbus. We have ambitions to be going for periods of months, up to six months. “Our batteries are really performing extremely well. I think we’re confident right now about (reaching) three months and I would say that going for six months on this air vehicle would not be a problem.” “Have we proved that operationally? No, not yet. But all the steps we have been doing in our lab tests are clearly indicating that we are on a very good path.” She added: “I think it’s got a huge potential to reach people that traditionally you’re not going to reach with fibre (broadband), there really isn’t a limit to it. “There isn’t really a limit to reaching the unconnected population today, which is a vast community.” According to Unicef data from 2020, two-thirds of school-age children around the world, around 1.3bn people, do not have internet connections in their homes. This is preventing them from competing in the modern economy and isolating them from the world, Unicef said. The Zephyr can also have military uses, and the second of the two flights was done for the UK’s Ministry of Defence. The company is also pitching it for use in disaster zones, and other areas where real-time information is needed. https://www.cityam.com/airbus-airplane-that-flies-higher-than-planes-and-lower-than-satellites-completes-18-day-flight/ PhD - Graduate Research Survey Request (1) Calling All Pilots (and Non-Pilots) My name is Kurt Reesman and I am an Adult Education Ph.D. candidate teaching in the Department of Aviation at Auburn University. I invite you to participate in my research study entitled Training the Emerging Pilot Workforce: Does Generation and Gender Influence Curriculum Development? With your help, I will learn more about the following three questions: 1. Do non-pilots and pilots have different learning styles or preferences? 2. Do pilots in the Baby Boomer, Generation X, Generation Y (Millennials), and Generation Z generations have learning styles or preferences that differ from each other? 3. Do male pilots and female pilots have different learning styles or preferences? You may participate if you are 18 years or older. I am asking that you take 5-10 minutes of your time to complete an anonymous, on-line survey that asks you to provide basic demographic information and then answer 44 questions that only have 2 possible answers each. These questions are from the Felder and Solomon Index of Learning Styles questionnaire. If you are interested and eligible to participate, click the link below to begin the survey. If you would like to know more information, or have any questions about this study, you can send an email to Kurt Reesman at klr0051@auburn.edu or my advisor, Dr. James Witte at witteje@auburn.edu. Thank you for your consideration, Kurt Reesman, Lt Col, USAF (retired) Ph.D. Candidate / Lecturer Department of Aviation Auburn University Survey Link: https://auburn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_88HSBAVREFUHLE1 Curt Lewis