Takeoffs and Landings

Delta Air Lines said that it plans to scrap its Memphis, Tennessee, hub in September, cutting 230 jobs and scaling back flights to make the location profitable. Delta plans to drop to about 60 flights a day in September from almost 300 daily flights when Memphis was a hub for Northwest Airlines, which was bought by Delta in 2008.

The carrier said in a memo to staff that rising fuel costs and the heavy use of 50-seat regional planes that have become more costly to operate have made Memphis an unprofitable hub. The job cuts, involving airport customer service and Delta Cargo workers, are effective from September 3, the memo said.

Larry Cox, president and chief executive of the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority, said Memphis airport was looking to attract other airlines. Southwest Airlines said last month it plans new flights to Memphis in November. Given the proximity of Memphis to Atlanta, Delta's headquarters city and its biggest hub, the move was not unexpected, Cox said. "The silver lining is that we'll probably get more airline service from other carriers like Southwest that were reluctant to get in here," Cox added.

Delta spokesman Anthony Black said Memphis would remain one of Delta's top 10 departure stations but would no longer be a hub. Workers affected by the cuts will have the opportunity to take positions in other locations, he said.

Reuters

This entry was posted on June 5, 2013 at 2:41 PM and has received 19 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

A plan by American Airlines' parent AMR to exit bankruptcy and merge with US Airways is coming under fire from the US Department of Justice over nearly USD$20 million in severance pay earmarked for outgoing boss Tom Horton.

In court papers filed in US Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, US Trustee Tracy Hope Davis, the department's official charged with regulating bankruptcy cases in the New York region, said the severance deal for AMR's chief executive violates bankruptcy law..

Full Story - AirWise

This entry was posted on May 29, 2013 at 1:18 PM and has received 23 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

The sun this week unleashed a series of X-flares, classified among the most intense solar activity, that each became the most energetic of the year until the next one; none were directed toward earth but that may change next week with possible effects for aviation.

The Space Weather Prediction Center is watching the activity for potential disruption of space-based communication systems and ground-based electronics. Aviation activities most susceptible to the flares include aircraft communication. If affected, scientists say we would see it first with aircraft flying near the poles. The increase in solar storm activity was predicted years ago and AVweb sat with a specialist to talk about its affects on GA.

Full Story - AVweb

This entry was posted on May 16, 2013 at 2:42 PM and has received 41 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

The regional airliner was climbing past 9,000 feet when its compasses went haywire, leading pilots several miles off course until a flight attendant persuaded a passenger in row 9 to switch off an Apple iPhone.

"The timing of the cellphone being turned off coincided with the moment where our heading problem was solved," the unidentified co-pilot told NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System about the 2011 incident. The plane landed safely.

The FAA in January appointed an advisory committee from the airline and technology industries to recommend whether or how to broaden electronics use in planes. The agency will consider the committee's recommendations, which are expected in July, it said in a statement.

Full Story - BloombergNews

This entry was posted on May 15, 2013 at 1:16 PM and has received 50 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

Honda Aircraft communicated that it will need at least another year for the certification of the HA-420, the business jet manufactured by the subsidiary of Honda Motor Company, by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States.

The timeline initially provided the achievement of the certification in the first half of this year, following to the approval of the GE Honda HF120 engines by the FAA, and the first deliveries by December. However, the GE Honda Aero Engines, the joint venture between GE Aviation and Honda Aero which manufactures the propulsors of the plane, will not receive the go-ahead of the US' agency for civil aviation by the third or fourth quarter of 2013.

Full Story - AvioNews

This entry was posted on May 9, 2013 at 11:41 AM and has received 47 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

On Monday 29 April 2013 Virgin Galactic completed the first rocket-powered flight of its space vehicle, SpaceShipTwo (SS2). The test, conducted by teams from Scaled Composites (the American aerospace company, part of the Northrop Grumman group, which manufactured the SS2) and Virgin Galactic, officially marks the entrance into the final phase of vehicle testing prior to commercial service from Spaceport America in New Mexico.

Upon reaching 47,000 feet (about 14,300 metres) altitude and approximately 45 minutes into the flight, SS2 was released from WK2. After cross-checking data and verifying stable control, the pilots triggered ignition of the rocket motor. At this point, SS2 was propelled forward and upward to a maximum altitude of 55,000 feet (almost 16,800 metres). The entire engine burn lasted 16 seconds, as planned. During this time, SS2 went supersonic, achieving Mach 1.2.

Full Story - AvioNews

This entry was posted on April 30, 2013 at 1:13 PM and has received 62 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

The Federal Aviation Administration gave formal approval on Thursday for a new lithium-ion battery system for Boeing Co's 787 Dreamliner, ending a three-month ban and clearing airlines to fly the plane with passengers again.

The FAA's "airworthiness directive" technically applies just to United Airlines, which so far is the only U.S. carrier with the new high-tech jet, but it will set the standard that regulators in Japan, Europe and elsewhere will follow. Other U.S. carriers with 787s on order will eventually come under the new rule.

The FAA pegged the cost of repairing United's six jets at about $2.8 million.

Full Story - Reuters

This entry was posted on April 25, 2013 at 1:38 PM and has received 51 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

The FAA has expanded the list of medical conditions that can be evaluated by an aviation medical examiner instead of requiring a special issuance and an FAA review, EAA reported last week. Under a new FAA policy, applicants with arthritis, glaucoma, hypertension, pre-diabetes, and several other common conditions, are eligible for the simplified process. Further diagnoses are expected to be announced in the coming months, EAA said. Dr. Greg Pinnell of the EAA Aeromedical Advisory Council will explain the changes in an online webinar scheduled for Wednesday at 7 p.m. Central Time. The webinar is free to all, you need not be an EAA member. The video will be archived on EAA's site for later viewing. Meanwhile, the leaders of both EAA and AOPA have said recently that a proposal last year to the FAA that would have eliminated the third-class medical requirement for many private pilots has stalled.

As reported last week, EAA chairman Jack Pelton said the outlook is "pessimistic" for the exemption to get passed, but he will continue working to change the third-class requirements. Later in the week, AOPA President Craig Fuller also said support for the exemption is flagging. "High-level FAA staffers told us the exemption was not a priority for the agency," he said. More than 16,000 pilots and organizations have filed comments online about the proposal.

AVweb

This entry was posted on April 16, 2013 at 3:52 PM and has received 58 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

Boeing has a "good plan" to fix the battery problem that has grounded its 787 Dreamliner jets since January, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said on Friday. LaHood said he wants to ensure the Dreamliner is safe before allowing the planes back in the air, and no decision had been made on commercial flights.

"They're doing the tests now, and we've agreed with the tests that they're doing. And when they complete the tests, they'll give us the information and we'll make a decision," LaHood said at the U.S. Export-Import Bank's annual conference in Washington.

The statements came as Boeing was close to completing tests of a revamped lithium-ion battery system designed to prevent the overheating or fire that occurred on two jets in January, prompting regulators to ban all 50 of the jets in service from flying.

Full Story - Reuters

This entry was posted on April 5, 2013 at 2:45 PM and has received 67 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

US Airways Chairman and CEO Doug Parker says he will utilize American Airlines' legacy systems when integrating the two airlines once they merge.

"Our goal is to keep all of that in place [at American] and just overlay it on the smaller airline," Parker said last week at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Aviation Summit in Washington. "Once you get the integration done, you can always go back and optimize," he added.

This method contrasts with Parker's 2005 merger of America West Airlines and US Airways, when he retained the systems he used at America West and overlaid them on US Airways'.

Parker says his change of heart is informed, in part, by discussions he recently had with Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson, who considers his "adopt and go" strategy as a key to Delta's 2008 integration of Northwest Airlines.

Full Story - Aviation Week

This entry was posted on April 2, 2013 at 4:57 PM and has received 81 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.