Also: New Amelia Search, B737 Flap Falls Off, SUN ‘n FUN Unveiling, F-16 Record
Captain Sully Sullenberger, the pilot who saved 155 people by safely landing an A320 in the Hudson River, has come forward with his thoughts on Trump’s pick to head the FAA: “We all deserve better.” The nominee has made some highly questionable comments regarding pilot experience requirements. The British Counter Terrorism Policing South East unit has charged four people following their arrest for trespassing into the RAF Brize Norton airbase and causing £7 million ($9.5 million) worth of damage to two military Airbus A330 MRTT multi-role Voyager aircraft. They were charged on July 2, 2025, with conspiracy to enter a prohibited place knowingly for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK, and conspiracy to commit criminal damage. Retired American space shuttle Discovery has gotten tied into Preside
While broadband has become very much the default internet connection everywhere from homes to offices and coffee shops, there are still a lot of places where a high-speed connection is not available, or you're stuck tethering to your phone with only one "civilization bar" to get your Aero-News. ANN goes through a lot of trouble to make the graphics flashy and cool and an integral part of the story. But let's face it, they're bandwidth-intensive. So here are a couple of thoughts on how to get the most out of Aero-News in the least amount of time.
Discrete Code
As used in the Air Traffic Control Radar Beacon System (ATCRBS), any one of the 4096 selectable Mode 3/A aircraft transponder codes except those ending in zero zero; e.g., discrete codes: 0010, 1201, 2317, 7777; nondiscrete codes: 0100, 1200, 7700. Nondiscrete codes are normally reserved for radar facilities that are not equipped with discrete decoding capability and for other purposes such as emergencies (7700), VFR aircraft (1200), etc.
“About nine decades ago, Amelia Earhart was recruited to Purdue, and the university president later worked with her to prepare an aircraft for her historic flight around the world. Today, as a team of experts try again to locate the plane, the Boilermaker spirit of exploration lives on.”
Source: Purdue President Mung Chiang, discussing Purdue’s Research Foundation and Archaeological Legacy Institute are joining the search for the lost aircraft of aviation icon and former university flight instructor Amelia Earhart. The expedition will begin in November 2025 by sending teams to a potential wreckage location in the Pacific.
FAA Completes Project to Prevent More Comms Outages at Newark Airport
The FAA has completed a key fiber optic upgrade at Newark Liberty International Airport, installing a new communications line to prevent further outages like the ones that disrupted operations earlier this year. The new system, announced on July 3, replaces the old single-line connection between Newark and the Philadelphia Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) center.
Evaluations In UAE’s Desert Environment For Commercial Deployment
Air taxi developer Archer announced the successful first flight of its Midnight aircraft at Al Bateen Executive Airport (AZI/OMAD) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, representing the first test of the aircraft’s performance in the hot, humid, and dusty desert environment of the Gulf state where Archer plans to soon begin commercial deployment.
House Reaffirms Senate Revision, Heading For President’s Signature
The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) welcomed the 218-214 vote in the U.S. House on July3 to pass the Senate’s revision of the budget reconciliation bill containing multiple initiatives to promote the growth, safety and sustainability of the U.S. aviation industry.
Carrier To Become Launch Operator of Latest-Gen Single-Aisle
Australian airline Qantas Airways will become the launch operator in the Asia-Pacific Region of the Airbus A231XLR, when the aircraft will be delivered from the assembly line in Finkenwerder, Hamburg, Germany,
Advanced Degree Run In Partnership With Brazilian ITA
Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer announced it has opened scholarship applications for the new edition of its Master of Science in Aeronautical Engineering Program, a career advancement initiative conducted in partnership with the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (ITA). It offers an initial monthly stipend of R$5,000 to students accepted into the program.
US CBP Receives Tenth of Fifteen Modified UH-60L Black Hawks
In a recent transfer of ownership ceremony, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) took delivery of its tenth UH-60L Black Hawk from the US Army. The service modified each helicopter before delivery, swapping the avionics, radios, and fuel tanks to meet CBP’s needs.