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March 24, 2009

FAA Issues Emergency AD For Sikorsky S-92 Helicopters

Requires Immediate Replacement Of Gearbox Filter Bowl Mounting Studs

As expected, on Tuesday the Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency airworthiness directive (EAD) grounding all Sikorsky S-92 medium-lift transport helicopters, until titanium mounting studs on the gearbox filter bowl assembly can be swapped out with steel components.

First Delta II Launch Was Also A GPS Flight

A United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket successfully launched the Air Force's Global Positioning Satellite IIR-20(M) into orbit from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 17A at 4:34 am EDT. This was the 47th successful GPS launch for the Delta II in its storied 20-year history.

Inventor Of G-Suit Dies Was 97

Aero-News has learned Earl Wood, M.D., Ph.D., the Mayo Clinic investigator credited with inventing the high-altitude pressure suit worn by pilots and astronauts, died March 18 in Rochester, MN. He was 97.

Hey, If It's Up There Anyway...

A Washington State Patrol aircraft in the skies over Olympia this weekend helped bust a group of "taggers," people spraying graffiti on a freeway noise mitigation wall.

Also Fitted To F-15 Strike Eagles, A-10s

The B-1 Lancer, one of the most versatile aircraft in the Air Force arsenal, is now even more lethal. This lethality is not due to bigger bombs in its bomb bay, but to a small torpedo-shaped pod stuck to the plane's underbelly.

Mission Is Contingent On Budget Cuts At Both Agencies

NASA and the European Space Agency have selected 10 proposals for science instruments to fly aboard a spacecraft that will study the sun from a unique vantage point in space. The European-led mission, called the Solar Orbiter, will be positioned about one-fourth the distance Earth is from the sun. The location ultimately will enhance the ability for scientists worldwide to forecast space weather.

Alaska Airlines Suspends Northern Alaska Flights Due To Volcanic Ash

Redoubt Blows Its Top, Passengers Stay On Ground

Alaska Airlines canceled passenger flights in and out of the Alaska cities of Fairbanks, Bethel, Prudhoe Bay, Nome, Kotzebue and Barrow on Monday, due to continued volcanic ash caused by Sunday night's eruption of Mt. Redoubt.

Lessons Of Flight 1549: The NTSB And FAA Weigh In

ANN Daily Touch N Go: 03.24.09 (ANN's Short-Form Daily News Program) ANN Daily Aero-Briefing: 03.24.09 (ANN's Long-Form Daily News Program) ANN Special Feature -- Lessons Of Flight 1549: 03.24.09 (ANN Special Report, with congressional testimony from Robert Zumwalt III, member of the National Transportation S

Previously Employed With Volo Aviation as QC Coordinator

The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) announced this week the hiring of Michael E. France as its new manager, regulatory affairs.

FA Claimed Dirty Pictures Kept Her On The Ground

A lawsuit by a former flight attendant against United Airlines has been settled out of court.

ANN Daily Aero-Briefing: 03.24.09

Volcanic ash cancels flights over Alaska.
There's a new boss at Hawker Beechcraft.
And Canada says Sikorsky's bulletin doesn't go far enough.

ANN Daily Touch-And-Go: 03.24.09

Volcanic ash cancels flights over Alaska.
There's a new boss at Hawker Beechcraft.
And Canada says Sikorsky's bulletin doesn't go far enough.

More AERO-Casts

ANN Special Feature: Lessons from Flight 1549, Part V: NTSB, FAA - 03.24.09

The US House Aviation Subcommittee gets an update on the investigation into The Miracle on the Hudson from Robert Zumwalt III, member of the National Transportation Safety Board, and the FAA's Asso

More AERO-Casts

Aero-TV: Oshkosh Veterans -- A Lifetime Of Homebuilding

The MacMahans Talk Biplanes... At Oshkosh 2008!

Miss Muffet may seem like an unlikely name for a proud biplane, but if you listen to the MacMahans a bit, the name makes perfect sense. The owners of a beautiful blue and red 1941 Boeing A75N1 (PT17) Stearman, the two seat trainer bipe is powered by a Lycoming R680-4P-B4 and has received lavish care over the years from the MacMahan family. Back for its second year since a complete restoration, the proud Boeing Stearman drew admiring glances from thousands of pilots who came upon it... and devoutly wished for one just like it.

More Videos

Sikorsky Says S-92 Operators Complying With Gearbox SB

Calls For Replacement Of Titanium Oil Bowl Studs With Steel Parts

As the threat of a worldwide grounding of all S-92 helicopters looms, Sikorsky Aircraft noted Monday the majority of the global S-92 helicopter fleet already has complied with the company's notice to retrofit the aircraft's gearbox oil bowl with steel mounting studs... and expects "close to 100 percent compliance by the end of this week."

Gusting Winds, Possible Wind Shear May Have Been Factors

Global cargo giant FedEx mourned the loss of two of its own Monday, one day after the fatal landing accident of a company MD-11F at Tokyo's Narita International Airport. Captain Kevin Kyle Mosley, 54, and First Officer Anthony Stephen Pino, 49, were killed when their trijet landed hard on runway 34L at NRT early Monday morning.

The MacMahans Talk Biplanes... At Oshkosh 2008!

State Department Appointee Expresses Misgivings About Proposal

Statements recently made by President Barack Obama, as well as a California congresswoman leaving her job for a position in the US State Department, have left officials in Poland at something of a loss.

FAA Implements Second Phase Of Houston Airspace Changes

Includes New Approach Routes, Inclement Weather Procedure

On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration announced it has implemented new airspace procedures in Houston designed to move aircraft in and out of the busy area more smoothly, helping alleviate air traffic congestion.

Protectionist Measure Would Halt Trans-Atlantic Alliances

Officials in the European Union are calling the bluff of protectionist interests in the US Congress.

In Happier News... The UPA Works! (NASA Thinks)

NASA reports astronauts Joseph Acaba and Richard Arnold ended the STS-119 mission's third spacewalk at 6:04 pm Eastern Time Monday.

24 Aircraft To Be Used In Border Patrol, Training Missions

Embraer confirmed Monday signing the Ecuadorian Air Force (FAE) for the sale of 24 Super Tucano turboprop aircraft, through a contract that was finalized last year. The single-turboprop, tandem-seat airplanes will be used on border patrol missions and for pilot training. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in late 2009.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Is Tired Of Corporate "Vilification"

With business aviation interest groups pushing back against this year's bizjet-bashing craze in Washington, it looks as though a big corporation is joining the movement.

FAA Approves New Use For Otherwise Empty Space

Aircraft cabin interior supplier B/E Aerospace announced recently it has received a Federal Aviation Administration Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for the installation of its Overhead Flight Crew Rest (OFCR) on British Airways' Boeing 777-200ER aircraft. The FAA STC is also validated by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The OFCR STC was obtained by B/E Aerospace's integration and reconfiguration business unit (FSI) based in Marysville, WA.

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (03.24.09)

Aero-Linx!

The Skyhawk Association is an affiliation of individuals who have flown, maintained, (or who simply love) the "A-4 Skyhawk"; and who are dedicated to the perpetuation of the legend, history, traditions, and camaraderie associated with the greatest attack aircraft ever built.

Aero-Terms!

Baily's beads (often spelled Bailey's beads) are bead-like bursts of light that appear about 15 seconds before and after totality during a solar eclipse. Baily's beads are caused by light shining through valleys on the edge of the moon. They were named for the British astronomer Francis Baily (1774-1844), one of the founders of the Royal Astronomical Society.

"When I hear the constant vilification of corporate America, I personally don’t understand it. I would ask a lot of our folks in government to stop doing it because I think it's hurting our country."

Source: JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon. With business aviation interest groups pushing back against this year's bizjet-bashing craze in Washington, it looks as though a big corporation is joining the movement. ABC News reports JPMorgan Chase is considering spending $138 million to buy new corporate jets and a hangar to house them, and keeping Washington's nose out of things by returning $25 billion in government bailout funds.