A Cessna 172B pilot in Mexico had to save his plane after his airplane propeller detached in flight. Yes, detached. Plonk. You can see the action from the cockpit in this video, including the exhilaration and relief of the passengers at the end. "I've never felt death so near," says one of the women who was travelling in the back. "Our propeller fell," repeats the copilot after getting out of the plane, which landed successfully on a road. Skip to the end to see the Cessna'… (gizmodo.com) More...
Washington - The first test flight of a commercial spacecraft to the International Space Station could happen in late March, Nasa said on Thursday. The Dragon spacecraft, owned by US company SpaceX, could launch no earlier than March 20 but a more fixed date would follow in the next couple of weeks, Nasa spokesperson Mike Suffredini told reporters. (www.news24.com) More...
A southern California flight school owner faces the loss of his two-year-old business, along with the Cessna 172 he rented to a well-known customer. The Jan. 20 seizure of N5283E and arrest of Lino Rodriguez-Chavez by border patrol agents marked the fourth arrest and seizure of a light aircraft involved in the smuggling of people, rather than drugs, since 2010. (www.aopa.org) More...
All Nippon Airways had to cancel two of its first long-haul Boeing 787 flights on a new route between Tokyo and Frankfurt because of software glitches. ANA spokeswoman Jean Saito says the Tokyo-based airline canceled a Jan. 26 flight out of Frankfurt due to a malfunction of the flaps system and a Monday flight out of Tokyo because of an error in the software that monitors aircraft controls. (abcnews.go.com) More...
NEW YORK (AP) — Police say a Transportation Security Administration agent stole $5,000 in cash from a passenger's jacket as he was going through security at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the latest in a string of thefts that has embarrassed the agency. (news.yahoo.com) More...
787: She is drop-dead gorgeous, she has all the "right" friends, and all the boys want to date her. 767: He isn't terribly smart, or good-looking, or popular, or talented. 777: He's the family overachiever. 747: Quiet and studious, she tends to keep to herself. (www.flightglobal.com) More...
The first flight from Houston to Cuba in more than half a century took off from Bush Intercontinental Airport Thursday morning, but it's not the start of a trend - at least for now. The 80 passengers aboard the Boeing 737 asked airport and charter officals not to release information about them. Marazul Charters arranged the flight. Almost a year after receiving authorization from the federal government to offer flights to the Caribbean nation, the Houston Airport System is still trying to entice… (www.chron.com) More...
Air Berlin (AB) has received the green light to join the oneworld alliance March 20 after completing a review by British Airways (BA), which is sponsoring its entry. (atwonline.com) More...
After the recent squawk "We don't need no stinkin' Airforce", I thought we all could use a good reminder of what the mighty flying Men and Women do for this country. Maybe this will work its way to Washington where a little change in perspective is needed most... Be sure to watch it on full screen with the volume all the way up. Our Airforce is loud and proud - we should be too. (www.youtube.com) More...
The FAA Modernization and Safety Improvement Act of 2012, more commonly known as the Reauthorization Bill, has passed in congress. It changes air travel in a number of positive ways, providing you with additional rights during your flight. Here's what you need to know. (lifehacker.com) More...
LAN Airlines’ latest fleet plan reduces its 2012 Boeing 787 deliveries to just two aircraft and defers three 787s previously expected this year to 2014. The carrier also revised its Boeing 767 delivery schedule, with two additional 767s added to an established delivery schedule that expected five deliveries in 2012 and two more in 2013. (www.aviationweek.com) More...
Following the copilot's collapse with nausea from oil fumes in the cockpit air on an Air Berlin flight from Milan Malpensa to Dusseldorf in November, German accident investigator [sent] a blood sample from the copilot [to check for the presence of] tri-ortho-cresyl phosphate (TOCP), a chemical constituent of the anti-wear additives in aircraft engine oil. The tests proved positive, the BFU has reported. There was indeed TOCP in the copilot's blood... (www.flightglobal.com) More...
Whether it’s a rubber chicken, a pig or a red-ribbon streamer, the pitot tube cover is a critical piece of equipment that is sometimes ignored or forgotten by pilots. Designed to prevent debris or bugs from entering the pitot tube while the airplane is parked, this cover takes seconds to put on and remove. Omitting this step could have serious repercussions. (www.flyingmag.com) More...
William Carroll couldn't believe what he was seeing. People packed in tight around the entrance. At the appointed time, the crowd rushed forward, pushing and shoving, looking ready to trample anyone who dawdled. Employees made repeated announcements trying to control the situation. It was just like Black Friday at Wal-Mart, he thought. Mr. Carroll was simply trying to board a Jan. 5 flight back home to Southern California from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. And the precious gift people… (online.wsj.com) More...
Building on last Friday's post about unlocking customers to evaluate competing airframer's products, I wanted to look a bit closer at the changes Airbus and Boeing made to develop their respective second generation 777s and A340s. For Boeing, the aircraft maker would evolve the 777-200ER and -300 into the the 777-300ER, -200LR and freighter, while Airbus would take its A340-300 and -200 to become the A340-500 and -600. (www.flightglobal.com) More...
On Wednesday, while speaking at the Aero Club of Washington, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood was asked about a statement he made in December when issuing the FAA's new rule on pilot flight and duty time. This new rule carved-out cargo carriers from mandatory implementation, but allows them to opt-in to the rule voluntarily (avstop.com) More...
"On May 6 2011, the newly branded United Continental Boeing 737-800 Registration Tail Number N12221 rolled out of the paint shop at Greenville, Mississippi with her new livery, and pilots, ready for take-off. Instead, they should have called a plumber!" From the law offices of Countryman & McDaniel at LAX; cargolaw.com. You have to scroll down the page a bit but the story and photos are spine-tingling. Wonderful website, too. (www.cargolaw.com) More...
