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January 05, 2015

Airborne 01.05.15: Fly-In Gets FAA Refund, Harrelson Circling Globe, Korean Air Hijinks

Also: UAL Fined, AVW, Airlines Sue 'Legal' Website, Boeing Production, Airbus Heli SAIB

The Northwest EAA Fly-In in Arlington, Washington, received a late new year’s surprise. The FAA has decided to return fees once mandated for ATC services at the event. After a review, The FAA’s determined that the service provided during the Fly-in is not more than the usual service provided for the airport. However, they also said that if the Fly-in services do increase, the issue of levying charges will be reviewed. Last week we reported that Bill Harrelson had departed his home base in North Carolina on December 28 in an attempt to set a polar route around the world record in his in his purpose-built Lancair IV. Here’s an update on his progress... A former Korean Air exec

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Branson Signals Strong Commitment To Complete Virgin Galactic Mission

Branson: 'In Short – Was Virgin Galactic And Everything It Has Stood For And Dreamt Of Achieving, Really Worth It?'

A New Year's message from Richard Branson seems to indicate that he's bound and determined to stick the private space program out, despite the tragic loss of pilot Mike Alsbury, the serious injuries to Pete Siebold, and the destruction of the first SpaceShipTwo flight test vehicle. To many in such programs and especially for those of us who have been a part of this community for over a decade, the answer seems clear... but then again, few of us have the responsibilities borne by Branson....

It's Active, It's Passive, And It's Got A Big, Spinning Lasso

Scheduled for launch on Jan. 29, 2015, NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) instrument will measure the moisture lodged in Earth's soils with an unprecedented accuracy and resolution. The instrument's three main parts are a radar, a radiometer and the largest rotating mesh antenna ever deployed in space.

If Tuesday Is A No-Go, Friday Is The Next Open Slot For An ISS Launch/Rendezvous

No one said the rocket business was easy... but it can be downright tedious when you have to contend with Mother Nature. The next launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 to the ISS and the potential for their first landing of a robotically guided first stage at sea, could turn out to be a nail-biter. Meteorologists were calling for a 60 percent chance of acceptable conditions early Tuesday morning, Jan. 6, for the launch of the SpaceX cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station. The primary concern lies with thick clouds expected to develop over the Florida launch site at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station adjacent to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.