Airplane Geeks Podcast

Guest Edward (Ned) Russell is an airline reporter at Flightglobal. We talk about the American Airlines / US Airways merger and the DOJ antitrust suit. Also, the CSeries in China, airline capacity increases on the West Coast, and airline strategy based around considerations like anciliatory fees, airfare pricing, new more efficient aircraft, and route planning. We also get an update on the Delta refinery. Ned has been a reporter for seven years, covering aviation throughout but only full-time since 2012 with Flightglobal. Prior to joining Flightglobal, Ned wrote for Project Finance Magazine in New York and FinanceAsia in Hong Kong. He began his writing career with a profile of the then brand new Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok for Airliners Magazine. Follow Ned on Twitter as @e_russell. The Week’s Aviation News: American Airlines’ record profit could hurt merger plans AMR Corporation Reports Third Quarter Net Profit Of $530 Million, Excluding Reorganization And Special Items Bombardier identifies Chinese company as secret buyer of CSeries aircraft Two Boeing 747s almost crash midair after all four pilots failed to follow instructions UK Airprox Board report [PDF] FBI Investigating Laser Pointer at LGA FBI assigns terrorism unit to investigate laser attacks on pilots David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: The Mooney M20, report provided by listener Tilman Hierath from the above the ground blog. Post photo above is of a M20L PFM that Tilman took at his home base of Strausberg (EDAY), just outside of Berlin, Germany. It is one of the very rare Mooneys with a Porsche engine. In this week’s Australia Desk: It’s that time of year again and we’re not just meaning Spring’s inevitable hayfever allergy attacks: Yes, it’s the Qantas AGM once again! Joyce forecasts red for Qantas this year as yields are expected to drop 3% across the board (no sign of increases in travellers post election). Speaking of kangaroos, flying and red: a roo hopped into one of Melbourne airport’s concourse shopping areas, forcing Steve to ask if he’d just skipped through security. At least Qantas has been able to get another shiny new 737-800 for their fleet, making it their 68th so far. Scoot is going to start flights between Singapore and Perth with introductory fares of $88 plus taxes, fees and ancillary charges which no doubt will include baggage, check-in (with or without sabre), seating, food, drink, air, etc. etc. etc. Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week we talk to Matt Falcus about his new book Airlines of the USA, which charts the history of the majority of the airlines that have plied their trade in the USA from the start of aviation flying through to present day. The book lists the mergers and losses of some of the greats and also manages to tell the story of the smaller airlines as well. See Matt’s Airport Spotting blog. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Mentioned: NYCAviation.com FAA webpage: Laser Hazards & Effects Reaching for the Skies – The Adventures of Flight (Episode 02) [Air Venture at 4:45, Bob Hoover at 19:11, Captain Brian Walpole at 40:40.] Mysterious arrows protect aviators Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.  

Guest Bill Palmer is an A330 captain for a major international airline, and author of “Understanding Air France 447,” available in paperback and as an eBook. Bill was a member the A330 development team introducing the airplane to his airline’s fleet, and was lead author and editor for the airline’s A330 systems manual. He’s also written many A330 training publications, served as an airplane and simulator instructor, check airman, and designated examiner. Bill is an Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University graduate, holds a BS in Aeronautical Science, and an ATP with type ratings in A320, A330, B757/767, B777, DC10, and commercial glider and flight engineer-turbojet ratings. We talk about the facts of the Air France 447 accident, including the events in the cockpit, the difficulty locating the flight recorders, and the messages sent from the maintenance computer. Bill describes “automation addiction,” a tired flight crew, and the “startle factor” at play here. We talk about high altitude stall training, practice with the flight director automation turned off, and of course lessons learned and changes that resulted from the investigation. You can get Understanding Air France 447 in paperback or as an eBook through Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, the Apple bookstore, and at the book’s companion website: UnderstandingAF447.com. Bill’s personal blog is Trend Vector and you can follow him on Twitter as @wfpalmer. Photo credit: Air France A330-200 F-GZCP lands at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport by Pawel Kierzkowski. The Week’s Aviation News: Boeing Unveils its Jumbo Killer Suit claims United Airlines’ frequent flier rewards are rigged Mooney Sold to the Chinese Mooney Aviation to again manufacture planes Airlines Cash In on Every Inch, Even the Jammed Bins Overhead Mercury Astronaut Scott Carpenter Dies 1957 Vickers Armstrong V745D “Viscount” Serial 233 N7471 of the Mid Atlantic Air Museum (www.MAAM.org) David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: The Vickers Viscount, reported by listener Ray Williams. Jetstar 787-8, VH-VKA, on short final for runway 34 at Melbourne on October 9th (Image by Steven Pam – www.smartshots.com.au ) In this week’s Australia Desk: Steve and Grant were on hand at Melbourne International Airport for this report as Jetstar’s first Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, VH-VKA (c/n 36227), arrived at the end of her delivery flight from the USA.  Although not the first Dreamliner to operate commercially in Australia (that honour went to Air India), VKA is the first of type on the Australian civil aircraft register and the first of 14 being delivered to Jetstar over the next two years.  Qantas will also be taking delivery of 787-9 aircraft in coming years.  The aircraft touched down smoothly on runway 34, despite very high winds, and was welcomed with a traditional water cannon salute before making its way to the Qantas Maintenance Centre for a more formal ceremony with Qantas and Jetstar management, local and federal politicians, and a large group of staff in attendance. In this report, we speak to Jetstar Australia/New Zealand CEO David Hall about his vision for the this new aircraft type, and the process the airline went through to have it certified for Australian commercial use. See also: Melbourne Aircraft Spotters on Facebook Coverage on PCDU Facebook page, including video & Grant’s radio interview. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: Pieter Johnson talks to Francois De Watteville, a design engineer who created the AGA-33 and presented it to the Paris Air Show. Francois is not an aircraft designer but turned his hand to aircraft design for the purposes of creating an airliner after travelling regularly across the Atlantic, that was efficient. Find out why and how you may be able to help prove the concept. Mentioned: Fairbanks International Airport gate Best airports for a long layover ‘Flying blind’: Passenger lands plane after pilot collapses at controls Opening[...]

Guest Randy Brooks is an active Upset Prevention and Recovery Training (UPRT) instructor and also manages flight training operations at the Aviation Performance Solutions (APS) Texas location. We talk about how Upset Prevention and Recovery Training grew from the awareness that loss of control in flight was the biggest threat in aviation, and the formation of the International Committee for Aviation Training in Extended Envelopes. Part of the problem of loss of control in flight is handled through better simulators, but with training in actual aircraft, pilots are presented with a higher perception of risk. In this environment, human learning actually shifts to a different part of the brain – the part used in actual flight emergencies. UPRT is related to aerobatics. Think of acrobatics as precision maneuvering with a known outcome. UPRT, on the other hand, can be characterized as non-precision maneuvering to correct an unknown condition. Randy holds an Airline Transport Pilot rating with over 12,500 hours of flight time in over 100 different aircraft. He was a professional airshow pilot, Director of Operations for the Red Baron Squadron, a formation aerobatic team with seven Stearmans. At Eclipse, he was Manager of Emergency Situation Training and Director of Customer Training and piloted the single-engined Eclipse Concept Jet prototype at Oshkosh in 2007. Follow Aviation Performance Solutions on Twitter and Facebook. See also: APS Upset Recovery Saves Lives APS A4 Skyhawk on Take-Off APS A4 Jet Upset Training Encounter Upset Recovery Training Revisited by CAE and APS The Week’s Aviation News: Furloughing FAA Inspectors And NTSB Investigators May Violate International Aviation Treaty A Tired Pilot is a Tired Pilot Garmin Announces First GPS Watch for Aviators Bombardier Safety Standdown   Tom’s Cozy David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: This week listener Tom Brusehaver provides the history of the Cozy Mk 4. Cozy Aircraft Unofficial Cozy Builders Web Site Tom’s Cozy Page In this week’s Australia Desk: Grant’s getting all nautical thanks to his recent interviews in Sydney for the International Fleet Review but Steve’s choice of music may give the wrong impression (or was that in the bloopers?). The dynamic roo-eaters then go on to discuss a recent coroner’s report that gives a damning indictment of CASA following a joy flight accident. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week we are joined by Tony Bishop from e-Go aeroplanes who have designed and are manufacturing a sleek new innovative general aviation aircraft. More e-Go on Facebook, the Yahoo Group, flickr, and Vimeo. Mentioned: New lounge for Star Alliance at LAX. Santa Monica (SMO) Crazies at it Again and AOPA AND IT’S FUTURE by Arthus Rosen. and these on Ballistic Recovery parachutes: FAA Accident Aircraft Technical Operations: Ballistic Parachute System Familiarization ASTM 2316 (Standard Specification for Airframe Emergency Parachutes) FAA Special Conditions, Ballistic Recovery Systems, Modified for Small General Aviation Airplanes  [Federal Register: January 19, 1994]

Learjet 85 Guest Matthew Purton is the Commercial Jet Sales Director for Air Charter Service (ACS), which provides charters for the freight, executive, and commercial segments of the market. We talk about how air charter works, industry consolidation, where the aircraft for charter come from, and how a charter broker provides value to charter customers. We also look at what kinds of people make good charter brokers,  job opportunities in the aircraft charter industry (reach out to hr@aircharter.co.uk if you are interested), and the impact of large numbers of new, more efficient narrowbody aircraft entering service in the coming years. The Week’s Aviation News: Social media crisis management at British Airways Apple maps flaws directs drivers to cross runway at Anchorage EU stands firm on aviation emissions position South Korean AF Derails F-X Phase 3 Choice Of F-15 F7U-1 CVB-41 1941 David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: Vought F7U Cutlass In this week’s Australia Desk: It’s that time of the year again and Grant’s found Steve to be more animated than ever, especially as his team has won the AFL Grand Final. Confused? How do you think Grant feels having to talk football with Steve? QantasLink’s 14th 717 is experiencing life after death having been resurrected from a desert graveyard. TigerAir opens Sydney to Perth transcontinental flights (while Grant proposes a new value add service: pay extra to pre-register your complaint in the queue for faster processing.) Meanwhile, Kathy Mexted has been making us all jealous by representing PCDU for a media flight on an MRH90 “Taipan” helicopter as part of the International Fleet Review being held in Sydney. Visit our Facebook page to see a few of her photos plus shots Grant took on HMS Daring, a guided missile destroyer from the UK. Iberia Maintenance Shop In this week’s Across the Pond segment: Returning to the Madrid maintenance facility of Iberia this week, we talk to Diego Lopez-Salazar from AeroPodcast, who was lucky enough to get a tour of the facility, including the engine testing room. Diego then contemplates traveling with Iberia to Mexico on the very aircraft type (A340) he saw in pieces. Mentioned: Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) Fact Sheet (PDF) Flying and Technology blog, Here We Go Again ‘Say Souls On Board,’ and Other Secrets of the Skies Brunswick’s Kestrel Aircraft struggling to pay workers, rent Kestrel Aircraft’s financial struggles not unique for airplane manufacturing startups Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Guest Carl Valeri is a commercial pilot and a flight instructor. He is also a prolific creator of aviation content. The broad appeal of his Aviation Careers Podcast goes beyond those looking for career advice. Its interesting to learn about what the jobs of others are like. We talk about airline furloughs and seniority lists, things to think about when considering flying for a different airline, the age/seniority situation and what that means after an airline merger. Carl talks about how the Sun N Fun activities support and promote aviation. It’s not just the annual event. Sun N Fun radio broadcasts great interviews year round at Sun N Fun Radio. Find Carl at the Aviation Careers Podcast (@FlyingCareers on Twitter), the Stuck Mic Avcast (@StuckMicAvCast on Twitter) and the ExpertAviator.com blog (@ExpertAviator on Twitter). The Week’s Aviation News: New, stretched Dreamliner takes off for first time Boeing Flies First 787-9 Dreamliner Risk of Flight Delays Returns as FAA Weighs Furloughs Why are some airlines better at saving fuel than others? U.S. domestic airline fuel efficiency ranking, 2010 F.A.A. Nears New Rules on Devices David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: The so you want to be a Historian?  Since David will be celebrating Thanksgiving with his family on October 14.  He didn’t want to leave the show without a segment so this is where you come in.  We are looking to have you write a 1000 word history segment on the Aircraft, Helicopter, Blimp or space craft of your choice.  Here’s your chance to get that airplane you always wanted that David hasn’t done yet.  So here’s the requirements: A subject that hasn’t been done Minimum of 800 words maximum of 1200 words Provide your references Proper Spelling and Grammar Must be submitted to theGeeks@airplanegeeks.com by October 9th, 2013 So let’s see them. David will choose one to record for the episode.  The others we’ll either post or maybe use them in later episodes. Good Luck Future Airplane Geeks Historians. In this week’s Australia Desk: Steve and Grant have finally finished running around to various events in Australia (for now ) and have (finally!) put together a “real” Australia Desk. They quickly review a few headlines before settling down to discuss a recent AirProx between two Qantas A330s. Qantas A330s in loss of separation incident Qantas planes’ mid-air near-miss investigated All that plus a shout-out to Aunt Benet’s piloting skills and news that Grant’s appearing in the latest Australian Pilot magazine from AOPA. Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. Iberia Maintenance In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week our contributor from Spain Diego Lopez Salazar from AeroPodcast takes us behind the scenes at the Iberia Maintenance facility at Madrid Airport. In the first of two segments we hear all about seeing an A340 stripped down to its barest minimums, who owns the aircrafts tyres and how quickly emergency chutes are deployed. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Listener Story: Listener Micah, our Main(e) man, recorded a story he calls, “Fifteen Thirty At 2-O’clock.” Crew – Morotai, 1944 from listener Doug Betts. Doug’s father (highlighted) flew 52 missions in a B-24 of the 307th Bomb Group, The Long Rangers. Mentioned: NASA History Program Office U.S. pilot scares off Iranians with ‘Top Gun’-worthy stunt Institute for Women of Aviation Worldwide Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Benet Wilson returns to talk aviation: what to expect at this year’s AOPA Summit and what will be replacing the Summit in 2014, her flight training and the support from other aviators, even  flying with children where Benet offers some suggestions based on her experience with her child (the “Princess of Planes”). Also, irritating things that passengers do on planes and Strange But True Aviation News. Benet is the Social Media/eNewsletters Editor for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). She blogs at Aviation Queen and is AvQueenBenet on Twitter. The Week’s Aviation News: United says it will honor ‘free’ tickets sold by mistake AOPA announces new focus on grassroots events in 2014 UPS Pilots Got Descent Warning, Says NTSB USAF Weighs Scrapping KC-10, A-10 Fleets Bombardier’s CSeries jet takes off on maiden flight Should Babies Be Banned From First Class? David Venderhoof’s Airplane of the Week: Voyager 1, the world’s first Interstellar ship. Launched in 1977 with a “Golden Record,”  Voyager 1 has finally left the solar system and entered deep space. @NASAVoyager is the official account for NASA’s twin Voyager 1 & 2 spacecraft. In this week’s Australia Desk: At the recent AusFly event, Grant and Ben Jones caught up with Dick Smith (an Australian entrepreneur, pilot and adventurer) and Ryan Campbell (the youngest person to fly around the world) to record a quick chat about their trips around the world & how Dick advised Ryan. Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week we talk to AeroBlogger Rohit Rao about the latest airline news and developments in India. This includes Air India’s first flights with the B787 to Australia, Spice Jet’s international expansion and novel seat booking system and the launch of yet another new airline in the region, Air Costa. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Mentioned: Benet’s post: Why Child-Free Zones Are Not A Bad Idea A Common Sense Solution to Slow Airplane Boarding by Joel Peterson, Chairman, JetBlue Airways National Weather Service upgrades could improve aviation forecasts within the year Winging It – The Making of the Canadair Challenger [Kindle Edition] ATPL Dictionary The World’s Top 100 Airports | 2013 Doolittle Raiders’ final toast ceremony to take place at Air Force museum Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

  Guest Brent Owens is a professional pilot, a flight operations manager in a large corporate flight department, an EAA Technical Counselor and an EAA Flight Advisor. He writes about general aviation topics on his two blogs, the  I Fly Blog and Fixed Wing Buddha, which helps new and existing aviators deal with the biggest hurdle of flying – the money. Brent has been flying for almost 30 years with just under 10,000 hours. He flies a Falcon 2000 professionally and has owned an Ercoupe and a Bucker Jungster I. He currently flies a Van’s RV-8, which he built. We talk about learning to fly without spending too much money and building your own airplane. The news: United Airlines to recall all remaining furloughed pilots Future of commuter aviation expected to take flight soon (China) Can airshows come back? – Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Flight Options Parent Buys FlexJet Sykipot Now Targeting US Civil Aviation Sector Schweizer SGS 2-32 Glider David’s Aircraft of the Week: Schweizer SGS 2-32 and variants. Jason Smart with his training aircraft In this week’s Across the Pond segment: Jason Smart like many people went through the range of emotions when he set out to learn to fly. But it did not all turn out to be easy to achieve and took some hard work, dedication and a little humour. Jason joins Pieter to talk about his story and humorous look at the journey in his book ‘Take Your Wings and Fly – A Journey Through a Private Pilots License’. Also available through The Red Quest and Destin World. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast.  Mentioned: TANNKOSH Hahnweid JPL Solar System Ambassadors Program Northern Utah Aircraft Navigation Arrows Circa Early 20th Century Two bomber crash sites located in Natrona County – 90 Casper Army Air Field planes crashed between 1942 and 1945 Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.  

We take the day off on account of the Labor Day holiday, but still provide you with aviation content: Rob had some in great rides at Oshkosh this year, including one in a Bell Helicopter UH-1 Huey and he tells us about that. He has a conversation with Rick Welch, administrative director of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation based at Hampton, GA. Welch is a former Army Huey pilot himself. David flew in the Collings Foundation B-24J and he tells us about that and speaks with Chief Pilot Jim Harley and also volunteer Carl Reese , who pilots the B-24 and Fifi, their B-29. Then we have a little “sneak behind the curtain” with a recording from last episode’s post-show where David provided a little more insight into his B-24 ride. David’s Airplane of the Week is the Predator, then he and Max announce their new podcast, The UAV Digest, devoted exclusevely to unmanned aerial vehicles and systems. Steve and Grant are back home after the Aviation Careers Expo and bring us an extended Australia Desk report and interviews with Andrew Rankin, General Manager of Strategy and Business Development, Aviation Australia, Jody Kitchen from CTC Training, and Trevor Ryan, Flight Safety Training, Aviation Australia. Listener Ray Williams produced a great piece titled “Surviving the Desert — The Crash of G-ALDN” about a Handley Page HP.81 Hermes IV passenger plane accident. Some resources concerning the accident: Official Report of crash BBC Program Information – Includes Len Smee bomber crash and Bob Langley’s Wartime experience Chat about the BBC program from PpRuNe Article from Flight 24 Oct 1952 Amiot AAC-1 Toucan Article with info on the case of beer dropped Dismissal of Captain and Navigator Suspension of Captain’s and Navigator’s licences Quote on Bob Langley’s “resignation” from BOAC from the book Atl-98 Carvair: A Comprehensive History of the Aircraft and All 21 Airframes Diary of a Hermes flight on the London-Tripoli-Kano-Lagos-Accra Route Listener Micah produced the flight story “Thirty Angels or Flight Level Erica.” Rob in the Huey Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

This episode we focus on the listener mail we have received over the past few weeks. Topics include: Going into debt to pay for flight training. Listeners Dima and Jesus meeting up and touring Barcelona Tower. Items from Episode 261 on the Iridium satellite constellation: Where you can call to test your satellite phone, and why you should. CalSky.com, where you can get Iridium flare and other alerts. Via Patrick Wiggins, NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador to Utah Jason’s 5-part series on the F-8 Crusader Digital Fly By Wire Program: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5. The Da Vinci Codex On Flight at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. “HahnKosh” Use of Personal Electronic Devices on airplanes. F-16′s in the Texas sky. Why Sully is Wrong when it comes to flight time requirements. Troubles at Ryanair, at least the pilots think so. UK’s Channel 4 Dispatches Ryanair: secrets from the cockpit programme. (Only viewable in certain countries.) 1950′s and 60′s airliners. Listeners Jesus and Dima The week’s aviation news: No One Wants To Be A Drone Pilot, U.S. Air Force Discovers AOPA Chooses a New President and CEO Northrop Eyes ‘Really Large’ Unmanned Airships For Freight Fatal crash grounds offshore Super Pumas David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: the Piper Cherokee. In this week’s Australia Desk: It’s the Sabre Chicken! Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: Tim Robinson Editor of Aerospace, joins Pieter to talk about the refresh of the magazine and what can be found in the new edition as well as the resources around the world from the Royal Aeronautical Society. They also discuss the upcoming aerospace career fair in London in November. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

F-22 pilot Rob Burgon talks to us about fighter performance, engines, thrust vectoring nozzles, and more. Also, his Red Flag experience and how he earned the call sign “Shotz,” and the move from Holloman AFB to Tyndall AFB as the 7th Fighter Squadron shuts down. Tally One is Rob’s new blog, a place to share the fighter jet experience, and for others to share their stories too. He’s even created the Tally One Store with aviation apparel. Returning guest Henry Harteveldt talks to us about the Justice Department civil lawsuit blocking the proposed merger between American Airlines and US Airways. The week’s aviation news: U.S., Filing Suit, Moves to Block Airline Merger US Department of Justice Gets a Cranky Jackass Award for Its Lawsuit to Stop the US Airways/American Merger Airline Chart Calls Mergers ‘The New Holy Grail’ (includes a link to the Complaint.) David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: the C-130 Hercules. In this week’s Australia Desk: Grant spent the week vacationing in Bali, Indonesia, and while this is enough to make the rest of us jealous, he did take the time to compile some notes on the flights he took to get there, flying on Virgin Australia in business class. In other news, Jetstar & Qantas announce that Melbourne will be the base for their 787 Dreamliner fleets, no doubt taking up residence in the former maintenance centre that Qantas closed down recently. United Airlines announced this week that their regular 747 services from the US to Sydney & Melbourne will be replaced from April next year with 777’s.   This represents a slight decrease in seat capacity on these very competitive routes, but somewhat balanced by the anticipated improvement to comfort and service, and no doubt operating costs to the airline. Steve & Grant will be in Brisbane this weekend thanks to Aviation Australia for the annual Careers Expo.  If you’re in the Brisbane area, drop by and say hello! In this week’s Across the Pond segment: Taking time out from his vacation Frenchez Pietersz from AviationPlatform joins us to update us on developments in Holland and France with Air France and KLM looking to make significant savings across the group. One of the areas of focus is maintenance and changes are being made to the use of facilities for heavy maintenance and C-checks across the world. LinkedIn, Facebook. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Mentioned: Captain Jason Dahl Scholarship Fund More details are at FlyerTalk David’s F-22 Photo Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Guest Matt Desch is the CEO of Iridium Communications, the world’s largest satellite system with almost 650,000 customers around the globe. Matt is a commercial/instrument/multi rated pilot and owns a Cessna T210. He also volunteers as a member of the Board of Trustees for AOPA, and flies for Angel Flight as well. The $3 Billion Iridium NEXT program is set to launch 81 new satellites in a low-earth orbit constellation that will include ADS-B receivers to support the NextGen navigation system. These satellites will relay aircraft signals into the air traffic controllers in real-time to enable world-wide navigation. This will allow, for example, vastly reduced aircraft separation over the Atlantic, yielding and more efficient flights.  The service will be provided through Aireon, a joint venture between Iridium and Nav Canada. Find Iridium on Twitter as @IridiumComm and on Facebook. Matt tweets as @IridiumBoss. The week’s aviation news: NJ Man Faces Fine for Disrupting Airport Satellite Stricter FAA Pilot Training Rules Won’t Improve Safety Navy’s Big Surprise: Carrier Drone to Make a Comeback David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: the Air Tractor AT-502. Grant and Steve In this week’s Australia Desk: It’s Edition 200 of the Australia Desk! First Boeing 787 in Jetstar livery rolls out of the Everett paint shop. Worldwide Saber Reservation System crash takes Virgin Australia down with it. A Virgin B737 collides with a Jetstar A320 during pushback at Melbourne Airport – up to $2million damage. The New Zealand Government has issued a travel warning concerning flights taken in Tonga on board the Chinese produced MA60 turboprop aircraft, citing safety concerns. Ryan Campbell continues his Teen World Flight, leaving the USA & Canada and touching down in Reykjavic, Iceland.  He’s heading to the UK and Europe from there.  Track his aircraft – VH-OLS. AOPA Australia are holding a Safety Seminar in Perth on August 31st & September 1st at the Royal Aero Club of Western Australia, at Jandakot Airport.  Highly recommended for local pilots. Here’s to the next 200 Aus Desks! Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week we continue our discussion with Oussama Salah on the Middle East and North Africa. We conclude the discussion on cargo and how a new airport should be built to fully integrate into the whole road, rail and sea transportation system. We also discuss the ‘evolutionary’ low cost versus full fair process with the news that FlyDubai is bringing Business Class into its existing low cost fleet. www.linkedin.com/in/oussamasalah www.oussamastake.blogspot.com Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. DC-10 Water Tanker drop by Stephen Tornblom Mentioned: Spidertracks Heavens-Above (Real-time satellite, ISS, and Space Shuttle orbital pass information, maps, and star charts. Find Iridium Flares.) Paul Filmer P-8 Poseidon fires first Harpoon anti-ship missile People Angrily Tweet At United Airlines Parody Account Thinking It’s Real, Parody Account Hilariously Responds Why You Can’t Use Phones on a Plane (must watch video) Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Guests Martt Clupper from the AirPigz blog and Martin Rottler, a faculty lecturer at The Ohio State University’s Center for Aviation Studies join Rob to tell us about the just completed EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh. We talk about the planes, the people, the airshows, and some of the innovations. We hear about the essence of what AirVenture is all about. Also in this episode is Rob’s interview with Michimasa Fujino, President & CEO, Honda Aircraft Company. Skip Stewart looking down the runway on his knife edge takeoff! The week’s aviation news: Beechcraft lands nearly $1.4 billion deal Why Boeing Is Buying Up Older 747s Airbus Tanker Jet’s Fuel-Boom Bug Confounds Australian Air Force NASA WB-57 David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: the WB-57F Canberra. In this week’s Australia Desk: Bas Scheffers represented the PCDU team at Oshkosh. He caught up with Ryan Cambell, the 19 year old flying solo around the world. Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. Courtesy Emirates In this week’s Across the Pond segment: We return to look at the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) this week with Oussama Salah our expert from the region. We discuss how the gulf carriers continue to grow and how air cargo fits into the plan. This is the first of a two part segment which will conclude next episode. See Oussama’s Take and circle Oussama on Google+ Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Sorrell SNS-7 Hiperbipe by Mike Butorac at the Boundary Bay Airshow Mentioned: Open-source airplane could cost just $15,000 More Speedbird Strats Children of the Magenta Paul Filmer Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Bill Barry, NASA Chief Historian joins us as our guest to tell us about the NASA History Program Office. We talk about the NASA History Publications available in hard copy and electronic formats, some of the interesting publications coming out soon, and how NASA captures then makes available historical information. Follow the History Program Office on Twitter at @NASAHistory and visit them on Facebook. The week’s aviation news: Southwest 737 Nose Gear Collapse at LGA Landing gear maker says hasn’t been asked to join Southwest probe China grounds world’s first CAKE DRONES over fears they might fall on someone’s head as novelty delivery service goes from sweet to sour FAA certifies first 2 drones, commercial operations expected to start later this summer Lockheed, Pentagon reach deal on 71 more F-35s David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week: The Fairey Gannet. See XT752: The worlds last flying Fairey Gannet T5. In this week’s Australia Desk: A research project at Melbourne’s Swinburne University into human performance factors is looking at ways to track pilots eyes while at work in the cockpit, as a method of assessing potential information overload situations. TigerAir launching Multi Crew Pilot Licence (MPL) training programme in conjunction with CAE Oxford in Melbourne and Singapore. Fiji Airways announces an increased profit and increased passenger numbers following its recent re-branding from Air Pacific. Indonesia confirms the purchase of a further five ex-RAAF C-130H aircraft, folliwng the donation by Australia of four aircraft. Aviation Australia is holding their annual Aviation Careers Expo at the Brisbane Airport facility on Queensland on August 24th. We highly recommend this expo to local listeners keen to begin and aviation career, specifically in engineering or as cabin crew. Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: On Across The Pond this week, we travel down to South Africa to talk to Simon Burnham, a Commercial pilot flying in one of the most interesting and spectacular regions of the world. Hear what the flying challenges are in this region as well as what Simon suggests to new pilots before getting on the airline gravy train. See Durban Aviation Centre. Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Mentioned: The Ten Scariest Aircraft Landings Caught On Video Courthouse New Service on Delta Boeing 707 and 777.mov Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Lt Col Bryan Allen is a MAFFS-qualified pilot with the 146th Airlift Wing, California Air National Guard, Channel Islands Air National Guard Station. MAFFS is the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System, the equipment that can be quickly inserted into a C-130 military cargo transport to turn it into an air tanker to fight wildfires. With a shrinking commercial aerial firefighting fleet, MAFFS provides the additional capacity often needed to protect life and property when a wildfire breaks out. We talk about how MAFFS works, the C-130 aircraft utilized, and the different units that have MAFFS capability. The selection process for MAFFS qualification is very rigorous and we learn about the extensive training required. The 146th Airlift Wing is on Twitter at @146AirliftWing and on Facebook. Be sure to also take a look at the MAFFS – Air Expeditionary Group 2013 Facebook page, and the MAFFS 4 Papoose Incident West Fork Complex Colorado video. Awesome flying by these guys! The week’s aviation news: Air Force Drone Crash Closes Florida Highway United’s new winglet design for planes expected to save millions U.S. Authorities Prepare to Order 787 ELT Inspections Bonus: Scott Spangler brings us a pre-view of AirVenture 2013, including Janet the Gannet: World’s Only Flying Fairey Gannet T5 Landing at Oshkosh. XF-84H Thunderscreech David Vanderhoof’s Aircraft of the Week is the The XF-84H Thunderscreech, the loudest aircraft ever built! Hear it on Youtube. RAAF C-130J, A97-460, over Sydney Harbour last week. Photo courtesy of Nigel Pittaway In this week’s Australia Desk: Steve is feeling a tad below par this week after coming off eight years of night shift into early morning starts, and editing of this week’s segment was interrupted when his son, Chris, ended up in the local hospital after a basketball training accident. Despite all this fun, we managed to get a few stories out. In the news - Plans for a new large scale private airport in southern Queensland begin to take shape with both major airlines expressing interest in the project. Some of the local residents in the area are less impressed with claims that the local government has fast tracked the project with little scrutiny. Airfield of dreams built for gas boom Locals ‘left out’ over Wellcamp airport The RAAF’s 37 Squadron last week celebrated their 70th anniversary in style with a two ship C-130J formation flight over Sydney. PCDU’s Kathy Mexted was along for the ride and interviews will be in the next PCDU episode. An Australian team from the University of Queensland is heading to Norway to test out their latest scramjet design. The test flight, although short, is expected to reach speeds of up to mach 8. Aussie Scramjet to unlock hypsersonic travel secrets Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. Neil preparing for his first overnight adventure as PIC In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week on Across The Pond, Pieter welcomes back Neil Bradon, our adopted British pilot flying in the USA. Since we last talked to Neil he has literally ‘lived the dream’, flying to international airports and Air Force air bases. Now through relocating from Arizona to Oregon he tells us about the change in flying style and his forthcoming visit to the worlds largest air venture. Visit Neil’s adventure at his blog Flying Tin. Mentioned: MAFFS (Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System) Kevin Garrison Aviation Careers Podcast Former pilot’s animation re-creates Saturday’s SFO crash Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Guest Kevin Hiatt is the CEO and President of the Flight Safety Foundation, an independent, non-profit, international organization engaged in research, auditing, education, advocacy and publishing to improve aviation safety. The Foundation’s mission is to pursue the continuous improvement of global aviation safety and the prevention of accidents. Before joining the Foundation, Kevin was the Vice President for Corporate Safety and Security at World Airways, and before that Kevin was with Delta Air Lines for 26 years in a variety of positions, including Chief Pilot at the Atlanta International Pilot Crew Base. We talk about the Asiana Flight 214 accident, how airliners have become more safe and how they might be made even safer. We touch on the dependency on automation, video capture in the cockpit, recording radio transmissions at small airports, upcoming Foundation events, drones in the airspace, and more. Also, Kevin tells us about the new Legal Advisory Committee and the Safety Protection Task Force, seeking to protect the data from an accident so it is used only to improve aviation safety, and not as evidence in criminal court. See the Flight Safety Foundation on the Web, on Twitter, and on Facebook. The week’s aviation news: Rear-facing aircraft seats ‘safer’ Three-point harnesses in the fray following Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash Navy, Northrop Score Historic First With (Mostly) Successful X-47B Drone Carrier Landings Video: Unmanned X-47B Makes First Carrier Landing – Very Successfully! In this week’s Australia Desk: Several times each year, in cities all around the country, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) conducts open briefings for pilots and other interested parties which cover all the latest updates on rule changes, legislative changes, policies and so on. On the night of recording, Grant had just returned from one such briefing and brings us a report on what was covered. Of particular interest was the proposed changes to pilots licenses which, among many other things, will allow CASA to directly license “recreational” pilots with a license similar to the US sport pilot license. We discuss how this change might affect the current issuer of these licenses, the Recreational Aviation Association of Australia, which is in a poor state at present. In other news, Qantas has announced that it is looking very carefully at the latest fire related issues affecting the 787 fleet, with delivery of its own Dreamliner airframes not far away. Jetstar awaits probe into 787 Dreamliner fire at Heathrow The Royal Australian Navy has formally commissioned the new fleet of of MHR-90 “Taipan” helicopters, and reactivating 808 Squadron in the process. Navy commissions 808SQN and MRH 90 helicopter Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124. Australia Desk archives can be found at www.australiadesk.net. In this week’s Across the Pond segment: This week we look at the UK Airshow circuit after the loss of the US attendees through sequestration. It appears that the attending displays have stepped up to the challenge. Pieter discusses with Gareth Stringer, if the UK and Europe are being spoilt by the momentous displays being put on by the display pilots, an F16 Shootout and the RAF Typhoon burning up the skies. (We also wish we could bring David over as he would surely enjoy the spectacle). Airshow Review – Scorcher! RAF Waddington International Airshow 2013 Find Pieter on Twitter as @Nascothornet, on Facebook at XTPMedia, and at the Aviation Xtended podcast. Mentioned: Advances made in jetliner safety FAA Fact Sheet – Improvements to Aircraft Survivability Airline Pilot Guy – Asiana 214 Little black box could be key for small airports (Portland Press Herald) Invisible Intelligence LLC Foundation Launches New Legal Advisory Committee World’s Shortest Scheduled Flight Du[...]