Thursday, December 26, 2013

Fwd: "FAAST Blast" - FAASafety.gov



FAAST Blast
Notice Number: NOTC5108

FAAST Blast — Week of Dec 23 – Dec 29, 2013
Biweekly FAA Safety Briefing News Update

QR Codes Enhance AeroNav Charts
            Beginning with the October 17, 2013, print cycle, all AeroNav charting products began to feature Quick Response (QR) codes that points pilots to additional flight information sources. QR codes are the special box-shaped barcodes that, with the aid of a smartphone, can be scanned and have you directed to a specific website or email address. According to Eric Freed, FAA Enroute and Visual Charts Group Manager, "Each QR code will direct the pilot to a series of web-links that will provide easier access to important/updated flight information to be used during the flight planning process." These include Notices to Airmen (NOTAMs), Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs), and chart update bulletins. Check out this time- and space-saving tool on your next flight and as an aside, if, in the course of planning or executing your flight path, you happen to notice a wind turbine farm on your route, be sure to maintain a safe distance and beware of the potential hazard for shedding ice!
 
AD Revised for Various Aircraft with Wing Lift Struts
            Last week, the FAA issued a revision to Airworthiness Directive (AD) 99-01-05 that affects certain aircraft with wing lift struts and requires inspection and replacement procedures for corroded/cracked wing lift strut forks. The revised AD clarifies the FAA's intent of required actions if the seal on a sealed wing lift strut is ever improperly broken. The AD is effective January 14, 2014, and can be viewed here: http://go.usa.gov/ZDJ4.
 
Airman Testing Reform Update
            You may have heard about the Airman Certification Standards (ACS) project, but do you know what it's all about? How about its effect on the Practical Test Standards (PTS), or airman training requirements? To learn more about the collaborative efforts behind the ACS and its potential impact on you as an airman (or airman-in-training), see the special two-page Q&A on page 15 of the November/December 2013 issue (www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/) of FAA Safety Briefing magazine.  
 
Happy Holidays!
            Happy holidays from all of us on the FAA Safety Briefing staff. We wish you an enjoyable New Year and safe journeys in 2014! And just in case you're still looking for that last-minute gift, consider giving your favorite pilot or mechanic a free online subscription to FAA Safety Briefing. Just go to www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/, click on the subscribe link (green checkmark), and register your e-mail address. From there you'll find FAA Safety Briefing as a subscription option under the Flight Standards category. You (or your gift recipient) will get an email each time a new issue is available online. Cheers!
 







Saturday, December 14, 2013

The astounding athletic power of quadcopters - YouTube

Fwd: A LITTLE AIRPORT HUMOR



 

 

A LITTLE AIRPORT HUMOR

"Delta 351, you have traffic at 10 o'clock, 6 miles!"

Delta 351: "Give us another hint! We have digital watches!" 

 

________________________________________________________________________
Tower: "TWA 2341, for noise abatement turn right 45 Degrees."
TWA 2341: "Center, we are at 35,000 feet. How much noise can we make up here?"
Tower: "Sir, have you ever heard the noise a 747 makes when it hits a 727?"

 

__________________________________________________________\
_______________________________________
A student became lost during a solo cross-country flight. While attempting to locate the aircraft on radar, ATC asked, "What was your last known position?" 
Student: "When I was number one for takeoff."
________________________________________

 

A DC-10 had come in a little hot and thus had an exceedingly long roll out after touching down. San JoseTower Noted:
"American 751, make a hard right turn at the end of the runway, if you are able. If you are not able, take the Guadeloupe exit off Highway 101, make a right at the lights and return to the airport."
_________________________________________

 

A Pan Am 727 flight, waiting for start clearance in Munich , overheard the following:
Lufthansa (in German):
 "Ground, what is our start clearance time?"
Ground (in English): "If you want an answer you must speak in English."
Lufthansa (in English): "I am a German, flying a German airplane, in Germany . Why must I speak English?"
Unknown voice from another plane (in a beautiful British accent):"Because you lost the bloody war!" 

 


____________________________________________________________________________________
Tower: "Eastern 702, cleared for takeoff, contact Departure on frequency 124.7"
Eastern 702: "Tower, Eastern 702 switching to Departure. By the way, after we lifted off we saw some kind of dead animal on the far end of the runway."
Tower: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff behind Eastern 702, contact Departure on frequency 124.7. Did you copy that report from Eastern 702?" 
Continental 635: "Continental 635, cleared for takeoff, roger; and yes, we copied Eastern... We've already notified our caterers."
_________________________________________

 

One day the pilot of a Cherokee 180 was told by the tower to hold short of the active runway while a DC-8 landed. The DC-8 landed, rolled out, turned around, and taxied back past the Cherokee. Some quick-witted comedian in the DC-8 crew got on the radio and said, "What a cute little plane. Did you make it all by yourself?"
The Cherokee pilot, not about to let the insult go by, came back with a real zinger: "I made it out of DC-8 parts. Another landing like yours and I'll have enough parts for another one."
________________________________________

 

The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are renowned as a short-tempered lot. They not only expect one to know one's gate parking location, but how to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747) listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747, call sign Speedbird 206.
Speedbird 206:
 " Frankfurt , Speedbird 206! Clear of active runway."
Ground: "Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Al pha One-Seven."
The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a stop.

Ground:
 "Speedbird, do you not know where you are going?" 
Speedbird 206: "Stand by, Ground, I'm looking up our gate location now."
Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206, have you not been to Frankfurt before?"
Speedbird 206 (coolly): "Yes, twice in 1944, but it was dark, -- And I didn't land."
________________________________________
While taxiing at London 's Airport, the crew of a US Air flight departing for Ft. 

Lauderdale made a wrong turn and came nose to nose with a United 727..
An irate female ground controller lashed out at the
 US Air crew, screaming:"US Air 2771, where the hell are you going? I told you to turn right onto Charlie taxiway! You turned right on Delta! Stop right there. I know it's difficult for you to tell the difference between C and D, but get it right!"
Continuing her rage to the embarrassed crew, she was now shouting hysterically: "God! Now you've screwed everything up! It'll take forever to sort this out! You stay right there and don't move till I tell you to! You can expect progressive taxi instructions in about half an hour, and I want you to go exactly where I tell you, when I tell you, and how I tell you! You got that, US Air 2771?"
"Yes, ma'am,"
 the humbled crew responded. Naturally, the ground control communications frequency fell terribly silent after the verbal bashing of US Air 2771. Nobody wanted to chance engaging the irate ground controller in her current state of mind.. Tension in every cockpit out around Gatwick was definitely running high. Just then an unknown pilot broke the silence and keyed his microphone, asking: "Wasn't I married to you once?"

A gun is like a parachute. If you need one, and don't have one, you'll never need one again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Friday, December 13, 2013

Plane crash kills Hawaii official who verified Obama's birth

Fwd: "FAAST Blast" - FAASafety.gov




FAAST Blast
Notice Number: NOTC5097


FAAST Blast — Week of Dec 09 to Dec 15, 2013
Biweekly FAA Safety Briefing News Update


Small Plane Revitalization Plan Signed Into Law
            On November 27, 2013, President Obama signed into law the Small Airplane Revitalization Act (SARA). The bill gives the FAA until Dec. 15, 2015, to issue a final rule that advances the safety and continued development of small airplanes by adopting changes to 14 CFR part 23. Among the objectives of the future rule are to (1) establish a regulatory regime for small airplanes that will improve safety and reduce the regulatory cost burden for the FAA and the aviation industry, (2) establish broad, outcome-driven safety objectives that will spur innovation and technology adoption, (3) replace current, prescriptive requirements under part 23 with performance-based regulations, and (4) use consensus standards to clarify how the safety objectives of part 23 may be met using specific designs and technologies. To view the bill, go to: www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/hr1848/text
 
Airman Testing Web Page Updated
            The Airman Testing Standards Branch of the FAA's Regulatory Support Division launched a new web page that streamlines the process of getting information regarding airman testing. Some of the site's features include:
    A "What's New and Upcoming in Airman Testing" section;
    A "Submit an Airman Knowledge Test Question" button;
    A "Questions & Answer" section; and,
    A "Contact Us" button 
The site (http://www.faa.gov/training_testing/testing/) also includes a subscription feature which will notify you anytime there is an update to a handbook or the practical test standards.
 
The Basics of Buying a Bird
            How great would it be to buy that new airplane for the holidays? If you're in the market for buying a new or used aircraft, be sure to have a look at Sabrina Woods' article "From Aeronca to Zenair: The Basics of Buying a Bird" on page 18 of the Nov/Dec 2013 issue of FAA Safety Briefing. It is chock full of helpful tips to guide you during the buying process. Find it online at http://www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/.
Searching for that Last Minute Holiday Gift?
            Then consider signing up that pilot or mechanic on your holiday shopping list for a free digital subscription to FAA Safety Briefing. Just go to http://www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/ and click the green subscribe link at the top of the page. You'll be directed to enter contact and email information into the GovDelivery system which manages the subscription and provides reminder emails whenever a new issue is published.
 
Produced by the FAA Safety Briefing editors, http://www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/
Address questions or comments to: SafetyBriefing@faa.gov.
Follow us on Twitter @FAASafetyBrief or www.twitter.com/FAASafetyBrief







Tuesday, December 10, 2013

First video in history to capture the Moon rotating around Earth

Pilot v. Airline Case Goes To Supreme Court -

WestJet Christmas Miracle Video

http://www.neatorama.com/2013/12/10/WestJet-Christmas-WestJet Christmas Miracle Video ----  and Grades PostedMiracle/#!pwKBZ

N1278L Icing Encounter.wmv - YouTube

Christmas Trees 2010 - Putting Trees In Trucks - YouTube

Watch this helicopter pilot harvesting Christmas trees