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Internet-a-Gogo for Some Airlines
In just a few weeks, passengers may be able to use Wi-Fi on some airliners. The service is called Gogo by Aircell and will cost $9.95 for short flights and $12.95 for flights over three hours. The first to incorporate this service will be American Airlines. One important caveat: Gogo is a data-only system and will not allow phone calls and will filter all services that allow voice conversations to be made over the Internet.
Click here for more information from Walt Mossberg.
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United drops TED
United’s TED (United without the U-N-I) is the airline’s “low fare” fleet of A320’s. I never completely understood the point of TED, but United is now dropping it. This effects close to 70 airplanes and a loss of as many as 1,200 jobs in response to the high cost of fuel. This is the second large cutback United has made in the past two months. These reductions amount to fifteen percent of United’s fleet. They are in addition to thirty grounded aircraft announced in April and hundreds of management job cuts. United predicts to spend more than $3B more on fuel than last year. United is trying hard to keep their head above water, but it’s not looking good. It seems they are really hoping for a merger with another airline. I’m not sure who would be interested, especially since Continental Airlines practically told them to take a hike.
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Thielert Has Students Biting Their Nails
Thielert, who produces the diesel engine for Diamond’s Twinstar, has filed for bankruptcy the day after ousting Chief Financial Officer, Frank Thielerton on April 23rd. For years, the company looked promising having bought out Superior Air Parts and striking deals with Diamond and Cessna, but was recently accused for writing false invoices for fictitious sales in a scheme designed to pump up share prices and secure loans.
The problem for many students undergoing flight training, such as myself is that Diamond’s Twinstar is very unique and sophisticated. It has become a popular multi-engine trainer and requires special parts and inspections. My flight school currently has two DA42’s, one being down for the next few months because of multiple engine failures, while the other is 50 hours away from having the gearbox shipped back to Germany. With the company already in bankruptcy and shares worth zilch it could collapse at any time. For me, this means that I have approximately two weeks to cram the finishing touches on my Commercial multi-engine training before the Twinstar enters the unknown.
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Dassault Aviation Lands $1B Deal With NetJets
On Monday, Dassault Aviation signed a deal worth over $1 Billion USD with NetJets, owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. The order is for thirty Dassault Falcon 2000 LX model aircraft to be delivered over the next eight years, starting in September 2008. This is a bold move despite the high oil prices and the gloomy economic slow down for business travel. Dassault’s LX series airplanes have undergone a few minor changes including winglets, that provide approximately 7% fuel savings. However, the cost of winglets for a Falcon can be nearly $1M USD. An operator would need to fly the airplane for years before seeing any benefit. Even with a few improvements, this large cabin fleet burns a considerable amount of jet fuel and today’s crude oil price hit $127.77 per barrel and continues to rise. With these kinds of prices, I wouldn’t be surprised if NetJets decides to cancel after taking delivery of so many and going with a more fuel efficient Cessna.
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JetBlue Sued Over Flight Spent on Toilet
A New York man, Gokhan Mutlu was denied a seat on a JetBlue flight before a flight attendant offered to give up her seat and fly in the airline employee “jump seat.” After an hour in flight, the off duty flight attendant complained to one of the pilots that she was uncomfortable. Mutlu said he would sit in the jump seat, but the pilot became aggravated and told him that the jump seat is for airline employees only and that he should “hang out” in the bathroom, on the toilet, for the remainder of the five hour flight. Mutlu is suing JetBlue for $2M USD because the flight experienced turbulence and he had no seat belt while on the toilet, claiming he was scared and humiliated.
If this is true, then Mutlu will definitely get something out of this lawsuit. I do not believe he will win the full amount he is suing for, but I don’t blame him for being angry. I would not want to pay for spending four hours in a lavatory on an airplane. I wonder if he was still offered his meal and beverage?
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Toyota invests $96M into Mitsubishi Regional Jet Project
Toyota Motor Corp. announced they will be investing $96 million US Dollars (taking 10% ownership interest) into a project to develop a mid-size passenger aircraft by Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation, a new unit of Mitsubishi Industries. The idea is to develop a fuel-efficient, 70-90 seat regional jet; nicknamed the “MRJ” (Mitsubishi Regional Jet). It will compete with Brazil’s Embraer and Canada’s Bombardier fleets. The plane is scheduled to fly in the year 2013.
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FedEx F-16
An even faster way to deliver…
This FedEx F-16 Fighter was created by Cody.
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United Airlines Plans to Launch Non-stop Service to Dubai and Moscow
United has announced their plans to offer non-stop passenger and cargo flights from Washington-Dulles to Dubai and Moscow. Dubai is a fast growing Middle Eastern trade port, an important IT and financial services hub and an immense real estate haven featuring exotic man built islands! Dubai will be served using United’s Boeing 777 aircraft.
Moscow is Russia’s important financial and scientific research center. Moscow has an increasing amount of tourism and United airlines has decided to invest in this opportunity to transport passengers and cargo to Russia’s prime hot spot. Moscow will be served using the Boeing 767 aircraft.
- United 976 IAD-DXB 10:02pm - 6:50pm (the next day)
- United 977 DXB-IAD 11:30pm - 6:44am (the next day)
- United 964 IAD-DME 4:45pm - 9:30am (the next day)
- United 965 DME-IAD 11:20am - 3:35pm
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New Orleans Lakefront Airport: Post Katrina
On February 10, 1934 New Orleans Lakefront Airport came into existence and was nicknamed “the Air Hub of the Americas.” The airport was built next to the Industrial Canal, on a man-made peninsula jutting into Lake Pontchartrain. To make land available for this elaborate project, the Orleans Levee Board used a 10,000 foot retaining wall into the lake and used over six million cubic yards of fill to raise the airport above the water. 18R is the main runway, with a length of 6,895 it is routinely used by Boeing 737’s, C-130’s, and on occassion C-17’s and C-5’s. It is located eight miles east of New Orleans International. New Orleans Lakefront Airport remains the busiest General Aviation airport in Louisiana, even post Katrina.
The airport suffered damage of elephantine proportions due to an immense 18 to 20 ft. storm surge during Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. To date, the airport is still being reconstructed no thanks to FEMA who is delaying any real progress while they decide if a building is worth salvaging or tearing down. The airport is several years from being anywhere near Pre-Katrina status. Several hangars had to be torn down and others sustained massive damage. Million Air is now operating out of a portable trailer as well as Flightline First, while they try and reconstruct their facilities. It has been a slow, painful ongoing process still years away from completion.
The damage is not scaring away many corporate high rollers. The airport houses everything from Gulfstream’s to Cessna 150’s on a daily basis. The historic terminal building once contained two restaurants, lounges, the Governor’s office, casino and flight schools. If you look at it today, it is a painful eye sore. The hurricane picked it apart. The terminal is scheduled to start renovation in late 2008.
I will continue to post updates on the airport’s progress.
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The transition to Glass-Panel displays
I learned to fly on old fashioned steam instruments in a C150 and Piper Warrior just years ago, but when I began my instrument rating I was introduced to the Garmin 430 GPS. It is a sophisticated and costly little device (near $10,000 installed) that will display all the information one could ever ask for and so much more. It will display everything from your TAS (True Airspeed) and GS (Ground speed) to your current position and approach procedures. I learned to fly instruments using a VOR with the assistance of this device, which was a great introduction to glass-panels without substituting the challenging good old fashioned VOR navigation.
After passing my Instrument ride I was quickly introduced to the wonderful world of multi-engine flying. The flight school I attended had two Diamond Twinstars (DA42) equipped with the Garmin 1000 GPS. The 1000 model is completely glass and consists of one or two Primary Flight Displays (PFD) or in either 10 or 12″ sizes and one Multi-function Flight Display (MFD) in your choice or 10, 12 or 15″ sizes. In my case, the DA42 consisted of two 12″ screens, one Primary Flight Display and a Multi-function Flight Display. My first thought was how much this system added the base price of the airplane. The answer is an additional $25,000! That is a big ouch, but there are some very big advantages. The G1000 incorporates everything the smaller Garmin systems do, plus an auto pilot, FADEC (Full Authority Digital Engine Controls), Topographic relative terrain and obstruction clearance mapping to enhance situational awareness and safety, Traffic awareness, NEXRAD weather, XM radio, and hundreds of other features.
Flying with the G1000 took approximately three flights to get use to when transitioning from the Garmin 430/530 GPS models. It would take considerably more lessons for someone with no Garmin experience to become adaquate, but once you do it becomes second nature. I believe it’s easier to scan the information without one’s eyes moving across the hardware that separates conventional instruments and the data they present.
My favorite feature of the G1000 is the radio transmission playback button. If you fly, then you know it can be easy to miss a call from ATC and asking them to repeat can irritate them. If you hear a transmission and you find yourself asking “Was that call for me?” or “Did he say 2,000 or 3,000 ft.” then simply push the playback button and hear the last call. If you repeatably push the playback button the recording continues to go further back. This comes in handy, all the time. 
In conclusion, I can’t find a reason why I would not choose the glass-panel display over the conventional steam instrument setup. If you lose power, including the emergency battery, then backup instruments that are not connected to the G1000 are available.
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