Anthony On Aviation: July 2015

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Boeing Sees Need For 558,000 Pilots - I don't

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Boeing-Sees-Need-For-558000-Pilots-224493-1.html

Saturday, July 18, 2015

NASA space equipment to be displayed, astronaut keynote speaker at Veterans Day Celebration - News - The Cullman Times

http://m.cullmantimes.com/news/nasa-space-equipment-to-be-displayed-astronaut-keynote-speaker-at/article_603c062a-2cfc-11e5-81aa-ebbba56a862b.html?mode=jqm

Monday, July 13, 2015

Playboy Model Sues Airline Over Cockpit Selfies. Poor girl. She looks like she is really being abused. She only realized it later.

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Playboy Model Sues Airline Over Cockpit Selfies
// Aero-News Network

Pilot And Copilot Have Been Fired From Aerolineas Argentinas First, there were the cockpit selfies of Playboy model Victoria Xipolitakis posing with the pilot and copilot of an Aerolineas Argentinas airplane reportedly taken during takeoff and landing ... with at least one showing the model touching the airliner's controls.
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Saturday, July 11, 2015

The Russian Air Force is falling out of the sky

http://theweek.com/articles/565028/russian-air-force-falling-sky

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Evil plane seat design would ruin whatever good remains of air travel [feedly]

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Evil plane seat design would ruin whatever good remains of air travel
// The Verge

Viewed from above, a sitting human being looks like a T-block from Tetris. The shoulders jut to the sides, and the legs protrude forward in a narrow line. It's not the most efficient shape in Tetris, a game in which the goal is to fill all space with Tetris blocks, but fortunately humans aren't pieces in a video game. Or they weren't, until now.

Zodiac Seats France sees this human tessellation as opportunity. The airline seat manufacturer has patented with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) the "Economy Class Cabin Hexagon," a truly nightmarish idea that lives somewhere between Saw and The Twilight Zone. Basically, the idea is to take the middle seat — already the worst seat on a flight — and turn it around 180 degrees so as to maximize space.

The patent is full of dystopian illustrations. Let's start with Figure 1:

You may notice that, with this configuration, your in-flight infotainment screen will be supplemented with persistent eye contact from your neighbors. Please also note where hands rest — easier to see now that we've added color:

That's right, this patent is pro-butt touching. Rampant butt touching. Let's put that in a pullquote to really emphasize the point.

Rampant butt touching

Figure 2, providing us another angle of this compact craziness, is just a little more reserved with its inter-row public displays of affection, implying top-of-the-leg and handholding instead (again, we've added color for the sake of clarity). Take this time to picture yourself in this situation. Now picture yourself having to get up and go to the bathroom in this Brave New Setup. Now imagine turbulence.

Having the patent doesn't mean that Zodiac Seats will make this, mind you, but it does mean that someone (or a group of someones) had to first think of this idea, create the patent, get approval within the company, and then submit it for approval to an international organizational body on the off chance someone one day thought, "Sure, let's try this." Because true darkness lies within us all.

Related Video: The better way to board a plane
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Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Fwd: "Pilot Insights – Who’s Flying?" - FAASafety.gov

	FAA Safety Team \| Safer Skies Through Education
Pilot Insights – Who's Flying? Notice Number: NOTC6069 Tell me if this situation sounds familiar: You are flying with a friend in her aircraft. All is well until you set up for landing and hear ATIS is calling for some strong gusty crosswinds. Although you have more total flight time than your friend, she has a lot more experience in this particular plane. Not dissuaded by the rough winds, your friend executes a safe, albeit scary landing. After exiting the runway, you each say, "I never would have done that if I was by myself, but I figured you knew what you were doing." Or maybe you can identify with this situation: During a flight with your buddy in the left seat, you notice that he seems engrossed in his iPad. You then realize that the plane has wandered off course and altitude a bit, so you nudge it back to wings-level. Your partner notices your action, but does not say anything. After a while, you again notice the aircraft veer off course, and you correct it a second time. A few minutes later, Center asks if you are on your requested heading and altitude, since you seem to be straying from your intended flight path and are no longer at your hemispheric altitude. After a bit of embarrassed radio conversation, the airplane is back on desired heading and altitude. The two of you then look at each other and simultaneously say, "I thought you were flying!" These two situations highlight the importance of determining who's really in charge during a flight. Let's start by reviewing some common misconceptions about pilot in command (PIC) time. Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) section 1.1defines Pilot in Command, while section 61.51 describes who can log PIC time. According to 14 CFR section 1.1: Pilot in commandmeans the person who: (1) Has final authority and responsibility for the operation and safety of the flight; (2) Has been designated as pilot in command before or during the flight; and (3) Holds the appropriate category, class, and type rating, if appropriate, for the conduct of the flight. Note that nothing in this definition relates to actually manipulating the controls. 14 CFR section 61.51, on the other hand, deals with logging PIC time, and it states in part, that a person can log PIC time: (e) (i) When the pilot is the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which the pilot is rated, or has sport pilot privileges for that category and class of aircraft, if the aircraft class rating is appropriate… So, there is a bit of conflict between who logs PIC time, and who acts as PIC. For the purpose of this discussion, I want to concentrate on "who's in charge here?" In both of these situations, we need to address who has "the final authority" and who has been "designated as PIC." I often think that when two pilots fly together, the topic does not come up because one or both pilots may feel embarrassed or intimidated to mention it. After all, the PIC is the person responsible to the FAA and the insurance company if something goes wrong. And secondly, when declaring who is PIC, you are agreeing that in an emergency, that person will be telling the other what to do. Hmm. That could be touchy. Here is how I handle that. Whether I am flying with a friend I know well, or with someone I just met, we agree — on the ground — who will be in command. In our pre-flight briefing, we agree on our destination and what we plan to do while enroute. And of course we agree on who is PIC. Then there is the question of who is actually in charge of manipulating the controls: PIC, or the non-PIC. Obviously, the person who is actually flying needs to be qualified to do so, but again, both of you need to agree on this. A conversation such as this can provide a simple solution: "Would you take the plane for a minute?" "Sure. I've got it." "Right. You have the plane." Then, when you are ready to take the plane back: "OK, I've got the plane again." "Roger, you have the plane" "I have it." A little communication goes a long way in preventing that, "Oh, I thought you were flying" situation. Christopher Hope, Master CFI 2015 FAASTeam Representative of the Year To contact the author, go to: http://www.chrishopefaaflightinstructor.com/ For more information on the GA Awards program go to http://www.generalaviationawards.org/