The Aircraft Thread!

[Glideslope]

Now will the JD issue indictments against Boeing executives and the leaders of the FAA. ? a2

Boeing's 'culture of concealment' led to fatal 737 Max crashes, report finds

Preliminary findings conclude Boeing ‘jeopardized the safety of the flying public’ in its attempts to get Max approved by regulators

www.theguardian.com

I think the possibility is growing daily. While it pains me exponentially, I see no other starting point for Boeing at this point other than criminal prosecution. Unfortunately, I’m concerned there could be intense external pressure on DOJ Leadership to not file.

We could very well be witnessing the end of an American Institution.
“Power Corrupts. Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely.”

 

[hawkeye_a]

Stumbled across this new safety video from Qantas. I really liked it....

 

[Glideslope]

Stumbled across this new safety video from Qantas. I really liked it....

Nice find. I remember the Flying Art 744 very well. ?

 

[CooperBox]

Stumbled across this new safety video from Qantas. I really liked it....

Thanks for this, I enjoyed it. I especially loved the comment, "World leaders in aviation innovation.....in-flight bathroom and even seat belts!"
I wonder how many passengers had a real 'bath' during their flights?? A visit to the WC and washy-hands no doubt.

 

[Glideslope]

Airbus is considering a reduction in A320 production to 34-36 a month. Not good. This will be almost a 50% reduction in production. It's representative of a 70% reduction in air travel. Most likely means the Max will never fly or see a production restart either, IMO. GE Aviation laying off 50% of it's workforce as well last week is extraordinarily concerning.

They are looking 2 yrs out with this decision, and that is with the pandemic resolved within 1.5 yrs (optimistic IMO.) I'm afraid we are going back to a period of air travel becoming a luxury for the average customer for a long, long time, with very different Business Models. My thoughts are with all my friends still in the industry.

To all the CEO's that participated in the over expansion resulting in a race to the bottom in fares, I say, screw you. Sure, you could not have predicted this, but neither was it necessary to blatantly neglect to hold back prudent cash reserves. If and when we recover from this I hope we see some reintroduction in regulations concerning airline business models.

 

[Glideslope]

Moving beyond the A320 now. This is the most nervous I've been in my 45 years of aviation. This from a company who has their act together no less. I can only imagine the dread at Boeing right now. We will not recognize the industry that emerges from this when that time arrives....

Airbus cut production rates by a third - Leeham News and Analysis

By Scott Hamilton April 8, 2020, © Leeham News: Airbus today said it will cut production of the A320, A330, and A350 lines due to COVID-19. The new rates are: A320 to rate 40 per month (from 60-63);... Read More

leehamnews.com

 

[CooperBox]

HERE's a wonderful little tale from the master of the mystery genre that will surely appeal to many aviation enthusiasts. It certainly did to me.
Enjoy!

 

[Juicy Box]

Active military (if it has an F, A, C, T, or some other letter in name...)

Two decades ago, I was a crew chief on the A-10 Warthog for seven years. I was in the same squadron that won The Air Force Worldwide Gunnery Competition (or "Gunsmoke" as many called it) in the early 90's.

That Gunsmoke competition was pretty interesting because IIRC it was the first time that the A-10 was allowed to participate, and it won. This wasn't suppose to happen, as it was supposed to be won by the expensive and much fancier airframes like the F-16. When the A-10 won the competition, a lot of the USAF brass were upset about this, and they ended up discontinuing Gunsmoke.

While there isn't a Air Force wide competition anymore, Gunsmoke lives one with Hawgsmoke, which is similar to Gunsmoke, but just with A-10s.

Air Shows

I only attended a few AirShows, but I did attend one airshow in the 90's that had a F-117 Nighthawk, which was interesting enough, but it also crashed during the AirShow a few 100 meters away, which was crazy.

 

[Glideslope]

Two decades ago, I was a crew chief on the A-10 Warthog for seven years. I was in the same squadron that won The Air Force Worldwide Gunnery Competition (or "Gunsmoke" as many called it) in the early 90's.

That Gunsmoke competition was pretty interesting because IIRC it was the first time that the A-10 was allowed to participate, and it won. This wasn't suppose to happen, as it was supposed to be won by the expensive and much fancier airframes like the F-16. When the A-10 won the competition, a lot of the USAF brass were upset about this, and they ended up discontinuing Gunsmoke.

While there isn't a Air Force wide competition anymore, Gunsmoke lives one with Hawgsmoke, which is similar to Gunsmoke, but just with A-10s.


I only attended a few AirShows, but I did attend one airshow in the 90's that had a F-117 Nighthawk, which was interesting enough, but it also crashed during the AirShow a few 100 meters away, which was crazy.

At the time of that crash I was doing some consulting with the 174th in NY. The mentioned F-117 had performed at the Syracuse Air Show the day prior. I watched that display, and it's departure for Baltimore. Was the 50th Anniversary of the USAF and the Thunderbirds put on one of the best displays I've ever watched (and I've watched quite a few,) I vividly remember hearing about the crash on the 15th. Was a lot of heat at first on the ground crew from the ANG base that were assigned to it in Syracuse. They were cleared fairly quickly as the failed ruddervator on the 117 that separated was not serviced. Those were the good old days there. All the pilots sit in box's driving Reapers these days. Important role no doubt, but I could have never flown that type of mission if drones were "a thing" back in my days.

 

[Nütztjanix]

I'm not a pilot, but I've always been fascinated by aircraft.

My favourite one is still the Boeing 747-8I. Always loved the Jumbo ?

And, of course, the Space Shuttle orbiter - but that's only one half aircraft, the other half being a rocket/spaceship. Nevertheless, a marvelous piece of engineering!

 

[Glideslope]

I'm not a pilot, but I've always been fascinated by aircraft.

My favourite one is still the Boeing 747-8I. Always loved the Jumbo ?

And, of course, the Space Shuttle orbiter - but that's only one half aircraft, the other half being a rocket/spaceship. Nevertheless, a marvelous piece of engineering!

I agree on the 748-i. You're fortunate as you'll still be seeing them with LH in your home country for a while to come. The Space Shuttle is something I'm not that familiar with. No more so then the average person.

The only part of it I have done some in depth research on was the development of the Thermal Tiles by NASA and Lockheed's Space Division. Rockwell ended up being the manufacturer of it, but the exterior Thermal Tile System was all Lockheed.

 

[Nütztjanix]

I agree on the 748-i. You're fortunate as you'll still be seeing them with LH in your home country for a while to come.

Yeah. Also, I really like the Lufthansa livery. It's clean and minimalistic.

The Space Shuttle is something I'm not that familiar with. No more so then the average person.

The only part of it I have done some in depth research on was the development of the Thermal Tiles by NASA and Lockheed's Space Division. Rockwell ended up being the manufacturer of it, but the exterior Thermal Tile System was all Lockheed.

I consider myself at least a bit more knowledgeable on the STS than the average person. Not because I work(ed) on it, but because I've always been deeply fascinated by human spaceflight, and with the STS in particular. So I read everything I could find on it, spent hours on the Kennedy Media Gallery and various official and non-official NASA websites. If you have any questions, I might be able to answer them or at least tell you where to look for answers ?

 

[Glideslope]

Yeah. Also, I really like the Lufthansa livery. It's clean and minimalistic.



I consider myself at least a bit more knowledgeable on the STS than the average person. Not because I work(ed) on it, but because I've always been deeply fascinated by human spaceflight, and with the STS in particular. So I read everything I could find on it, spent hours on the Kennedy Media Gallery and various official and non-official NASA websites. If you have any questions, I might be able to answer them or at least tell you where to look for answers ?

Thank you for the offer. I'll try to come up with something.

 

[Allyance]

America
In 1914, Hammondsport native and aviation pioneer, Glenn Curtiss, announced that he would build an airplane intended to be the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Considering that the first successful motorized air flight was just eleven years earlier in 1903, it was an extraordinarily bold goal. The America was the very first multi-engine flying boat ever made.

The above pictures are of a replica built from the original plans by the volunteers of the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum. The engines are the original engines. The plane tried to fly that summer, but the original engines didn't have enough power, they were waiting for two other original engines being rebuilt. It flew the next summer with the rebuilt engines.

To see many other great planes by Curtiss and others go to https://glennhcurtissmuseum.org

 

[AshleyPomeroy]

In 1914, Hammondsport native and aviation pioneer, Glenn Curtiss, announced that he would build an airplane intended to be the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Considering that the first successful motorized air flight was just eleven years earlier in 1903, it was an extraordinarily bold goal.

I've always felt a little sorry for Alcock and Brown. Partially because their achievement tends to be overshadowed by Lindberg's solo flight eight years later, partially because life was not kind to them. Alcock was killed in an air crash six months after they crossed the Atlantic, Brown's only son died during the Second World War - his Mosquito crashed in the Netherlands - and Brown himself passed away only a few years later.

It took them sixteen hours and they almost died; nowadays it takes sixteen hours to travel from London to Perth and the risk is vastly, vastly lower. Fabric planes and iron men.

Regarding aviation in general I'm naturally stoic but the state of the world depresses me. Last October I went on holiday to Hong Kong, which involved a twelve-hour flight from Heathrow. My dad was stationed in Hong Kong by the Royal Navy back in the late 1960s and I've always wanted to see it with my own eyes, viz:

The flight was £450! My mind still hasn't adjusted to the fact that a flight half-way across the world in a giant airliner (an A380 in this case; BA also flies 777's on the same route, sadly not the 747 any more) only costs £450. Truly we live in an age of plenty.

It worries me that when flights resume they will be much more expensive, permanently so; it's melancholic because the environment consequences of ultra-cheap long-haul air travel are probably terrible, and so a reduction in passenger numbers is good for the planet, but fewer passengers probably means higher ticket prices. I don't want to go back to the 1980s, when the average British person could afford one package holiday in Spain once a year, and the likes of New York or Hong Kong were something you either went without, or something you saved up for years.

 

[Glideslope]

View attachment 905494 View attachment 905495
America
In 1914, Hammondsport native and aviation pioneer, Glenn Curtiss, announced that he would build an airplane intended to be the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Considering that the first successful motorized air flight was just eleven years earlier in 1903, it was an extraordinarily bold goal. The America was the very first multi-engine flying boat ever made.

The above pictures are of a replica built from the original plans by the volunteers of the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum. The engines are the original engines. The plane tried to fly that summer, but the original engines didn't have enough power, they were waiting for two other original engines being rebuilt. It flew the next summer with the rebuilt engines.

View attachment 905496

To see many other great planes by Curtiss and others go to https://glennhcurtissmuseum.org

Outstanding post. Thanks for sharing. It’s been a looooong time since I’ve been to the Curtiss Museum. So much history there. ?

 

[jparker402]

Ones that I flew:

Not smart enough to get them in the right order, though!

 

[a2jack]

Air Lines And Boeing Hit.

Berkshire sells entire stakes in U.S. airlines: Buffett

Berkshire Hathaway Inc <BRKa.N> sold its entire stakes in the four largest U.S. airlines in April, Chairman Warren Buffett said Saturday at the company's annual meeting, saying "the world has changed" for the aviation industry.

www.reuters.com

 

[Glideslope]

Air Lines And Boeing Hit.

Berkshire sells entire stakes in U.S. airlines: Buffett

Berkshire Hathaway Inc <BRKa.N> sold its entire stakes in the four largest U.S. airlines in April, Chairman Warren Buffett said Saturday at the company's annual meeting, saying "the world has changed" for the aviation industry.

www.reuters.com

Airlines are running out of places to park their planes. I'm also concerned about the huge Leasing Companies. Especially IAG.

TBO we are still at the beginning of this. Air Travel will once again be a luxury item. The days of overcapacity and fare wars (which contributed to this) are gone for at least a decade or longer. Boeing is going to move all 787 production to Charleston. I believe it's down to 5-6 a month now. 777X is in serious trouble, and we know the Max story.

It's going to be tougher on Airbus though IMO. The geopolitical dynamics of their production being spread throughout the EU is making it a very device topic as to who is laid off. They have great aircraft, but can't sell them.

I think Boeing will survive though. I think it was smart of them not to take the Govt. money and raise the $25 billion on their own through their Bond Sales. It shows there is still wide spread confidence in a smaller leaner Boeing down the road, and keeps the Feds from owning a percentage of the company.

Only time will tell. It really is the ultimate nightmare scenario. I have friends in allot of pain currently. One good friend is a furloughed FO on a 777 for AA and just missed the early retirement package by 6m. They sent me some pics of KPIT wall to wall with AA 737's and A320's. Just shows the scale of the crisis that AA is having to park 50 frames at KPIT.

Sucks.

 

[LizKat]

EDIT: welp... they scrubbed it at last minute. 24-hour recycle program initiated. "When in doubt... go home"..

-----------
The Atlas V USS-7 launch at Cape Canaveral hasn't been scrubbed yet although has been rescheduled a couple times, current launch time is about ten minutes away if the weather window holds... live streaming on youtube. Last update on weather issues indicates problems w/ high winds and some cumulus clouds

More info

An Atlas V rocket sends a secret US space plane into orbit [Updated]

The weather was lousy on Saturday morning.

arstechnica.com

 

[Glideslope]

EDIT: welp... they scrubbed it at last minute. 24-hour recycle program initiated. "When in doubt... go home"..

-----------
The Atlas V USS-7 launch at Cape Canaveral hasn't been scrubbed yet although has been rescheduled a couple times, current launch time is about ten minutes away if the weather window holds... live streaming on youtube. Last update on weather issues indicates problems w/ high winds and some cumulus clouds

More info

An Atlas V rocket sends a secret US space plane into orbit [Updated]

The weather was lousy on Saturday morning.

arstechnica.com

It’s up there now. I’m saying 900 Day Mission. ?

 

[Nütztjanix]

So we do count rockets (or rather spacecraft in general) as aircraft?
Well, I really, really would have loved to witness a Saturn V launch - must have been extremely impressive.

 

[LizKat]

So we do count rockets (or rather spacecraft in general) as aircraft?

I dunno but we have to take turns keeping a thread with wings on it alive somehow even if hardly anything is flying just for fun during the global Covid-19 adventures.

So... "you're welcome"...
[automerge]1589752368[/automerge]

It’s up there now. I’m saying 900 Day Mission. ?

Yeah all by its lonesome... no need to refine the odds on whether a crew member will require (or be able to perform!) major surgery during the flight. It's all down to the more or less usual, i.e. can the software be patched from the ground if needed.

 

[LizKat]

A Cessna might not seem like model of choice for getting on with look-ma-no-pilot flying, but it's happening anyway. The article was interesting but as is often the case with Ars Technica pieces, some of the comments are hilarious.

This plane flies itself—we went for a ride

Xwing is testing a Cessna that's controlled from the ground, not the cockpit.

arstechnica.com

For instance... re the comments:

 

[Glideslope]

A Cessna might not seem like model of choice for getting on with look-ma-no-pilot flying, but it's happening anyway. The article was interesting but as is often the case with Ars Technica pieces, some of the comments are hilarious.

This plane flies itself—we went for a ride

Xwing is testing a Cessna that's controlled from the ground, not the cockpit.

arstechnica.com

For instance... re the comments:

View attachment 946744

I read this. I agree Ars always has cheeky comments. ?