Flight Safety Information December 26, 2016 - No. 257 In This Issue Russia blames crash of military plane with 92 aboard on pilot error or technical problems, not terrorism Russia mourns 92 killed in Black Sea jet crash, hunts for black box. Girl, 10, dies after suffering cardiac arrest on Canadian flight to London Pillsbury: Global, Top-Ranked, Non-Stop Service EgyptAir resumes cargo flights to Moscow over a year after Russian plane crash Russia Grounds Its Newest Airliner Over Safety Concerns U.S., Europe to Work on Enhanced Satellite Navigation for Aircraft Russian Aviation Authority to Make Decision on Future Use of Tu-154 Aircraft Third MRJ90 flight test aircraft arrives in US TSA Rule: You Won't Be Able to Board an Airplane with Driver's Licenses from these 9 States 'Something lagging' in Air India staff commitment: Aviation Minister Raju FAA Releases New Part 23 2016 Was One of the Safest Years in Aviation History Iran to finalize aircraft deal with ATR next week GOVERNMENT TO AIRLINES: USE GAGAN GPS OR FACE CONSEQUENCES (India) New technology speeds pilot, air traffic controller communication Boeing Delivers Its 500th Dreamliner: Is the Troubled Jet Back on Track? Trump's plunge into fighter-jet finances takes flak from experts RESEARCH STUDY SURVEY Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship Graduate Research Survey Russia blames crash of military plane with 92 aboard on pilot error or technical problems, not terrorism On Monday, Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said that the crash of a Russian Tu-154 transport plane in the Black Sea on Christmas Day was likely due to pilot error or technical failure. On Sunday, Sokolov had said Russia was investigating the "entire spectrum" of possible causes, including terrorism. The 92 people on board the Russian Defense Ministry plane included members of the world-renowned Russian army choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble, and a well-known charity doctor. There are believed to be no survivors, though more than 3,000 people, including 100 divers, were searching off the coast of Sochi late Sunday and early Monday, using powerful spotlights, drones, helicopters submarines, and 32 ships. They have recovered at least 11 bodies. The airplane had been traveling to the Hemeimeem air base in Syria, where Russian troops and fighter jets aiding Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are stationed. The Alexandrov Ensemble had planned to perform a New Year's concert for the Russian troops. Russian President Vladimir Putin declared Monday a national day of mourning. http://theweek.com/speedreads/669405/russia-blames-crash-military-plane-92-aboard-pilot-error- technical-problems-not-terrorism Back to Top Russia mourns 92 killed in Black Sea jet crash, hunts for black box Russia held a national day of mourning on Monday, a day after a Syria-bound military plane crashed into the Black Sea killing all 92 people on board, and expanded a search operation to try to recover passengers' bodies and the jet's black box. The plane, a Russian Defense Ministry TU-154, was carrying dozens of Red Army Choir singers, dancers and orchestra members to Syria where they were meant to entertain Russian troops in the run-up to the New Year. Nine Russian reporters were also on board as well as military servicemen and Elizaveta Glinka, a prominent member of President Vladimir Putin's advisory human rights council. Flags were flown at half-mast on Monday, mourners placed flowers at the airport in Sochi, southern Russia, where the plane took off from, and in front of the Moscow headquarters of the Russian Army's Alexandrov song and dance troupe. Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov told reporters on Monday that pilot error or a technical fault were the most likely explanations for the tragedy. "The main versions (for the crash) do not include the idea of a terrorist act," Sokolov told a news conference in Sochi, the RIA news agency reported. "So we are working on the assumption that the reasons for the catastrophe could have been technical or a pilot error." The jet, a Soviet-era Tupolev plane built in 1983, had been carrying 84 passengers and eight crew members. Major-General Igor Konashenkov, a Defense Ministry spokesman, said on Monday that 11 bodies had been recovered so far and that a huge sea and air search operation involving around 3,500 people was being expanded. Kremlin: 'Terrorist act' not among prime theories for Black Sea plane crash Thirty nine ships, five helicopters, a drone, and more than 100 divers were involved, he said, and soldiers were scouring the Black Sea coastline as well. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-airplane-idUSKBN14F0DG Back to Top Girl, 10, dies after suffering cardiac arrest on Canadian flight to London The emergency happened on an Air Canada flight from Toronto to London Heathrow A 10-year-old girl has died after suffering a cardiac arrest on a transatlantic flight to London. The child, who was reportedly with three adult siblings, was travelling on board Air Canada flight AC-868 from Toronto to London Heathrow at the time. After reporting the emergency to air traffic controllers, the crew diverted the plane to Shannon airport in Ireland, where emergency services met them on arrival at 7.40pm on Saturday. #AC868, Toronto-London, diverted to Shannon earlier with a medical emergency. https://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/ac868#bfb7e3f ... The child was taken to University Hospital Limerick, where she was later pronounced dead. Two doctors and a nurse were on board the flight to treat the girl, as well as a ground-based medical support network, the airline said. Air Canada said it was assisting the family involved. "We are deeply saddened by this situation and we are doing all we can to assist the family in these tragic circumstances," Peter Fitzpatrick, an airline spokesman, said, according to Toronto Star. The coroner's office had been informed and a post-mortem examination would be carried out, the Irish Sun reported. The Boeing 787 flight, which had 230 passengers on board, later continued its journey to London at 9.20pm. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/25/girl-10-dies-suffering-cardiac-arrest-canadian-flight- london/ Back to Top Back to Top EgyptAir resumes cargo flights to Moscow over a year after Russian plane crash In recent months, a number of European airlines also resumed direct flights to the popular South Sinai tourist destination, including Turkish, Belgian and Polish companies. (YouTube)In recent months, a number of European airlines also resumed direct flights to the popular South Sinai tourist destination, including Turkish, Belgian and Polish companies. (YouTube) EgyptAir cargo service flight flew to Moscow for the first time since the downing of a Russian airliner in Egypt, which was followed by a suspension of flights between the two countries for more than a year, state new agency MENA reported on Friday. According to informed sources in the country's flagship airliner EgyptAir, the company's EgyptAir Cargo flight flew to Russia's capital Moscow carrying 40 tonnes of fruit and vegetables, MENA said. The sources added that the trip was based on a signed protocol with the Russian authorities for the delivery of the products, adding that it is expected that other flights would continue to make the trip in the upcoming period. Several foreign airlines have imposed travel bans on flights to Sharm El-Sheikh after a Russian passenger jet crashed over Sinai in October 2015, killing all 224 people on board, most of them holidaymakers. The Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility for the crash, saying it had smuggled a bomb on board. However, Egypt has not concluded its investigations into the cause of the crash. Since the deadly incident, Egypt has been implementing new, tighter security measures at all its airports. In recent months, a number of European airlines also resumed direct flights to the popular South Sinai tourist destination, including Turkish, Belgian and Polish companies. On Wednesday, Russia's President Vladimir Putin told Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi during a telephone call that Russian flights to Egypt would soon resume. Negotiations between the two countries to resume Russian flights to Egypt have been ongoing for months, with multiple visits by Russian security services to Egyptian airports to monitor changes implemented by Cairo. http://www.albawaba.com/business/egyptair-resumes-cargo-flights-moscow-over-year-after-russian- plane-crash-918646 Back to Top Russia Grounds Its Newest Airliner Over Safety Concerns A Sukhoi Superjet 100 taking off at a Paris air show in June 2011. A regional carrier in Russia, IrAero, reported finding metal fatigue in a tail section of a new Sukhoi Superjet, the latest setback for the plane. Credit Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg News MOSCOW - Russian aviation authorities have grounded the country's fleet of its newest model of civilian airliner, the Sukhoi Superjet 100. Metal fatigue, a problem usually associated with older airplanes, was discovered in the tail section of a new Sukhoi plane, the Russian regulator Rosaviatsia said Friday. The grounding was the latest setback for the Russian jet, which has already had a rough introduction. The plane model is important as a test of whether Russia's military aerospace prowess can translate into a successful civilian product. The manufacturer, Sukhoi, is best known as the maker of military jets now flying over Syria. Most other Russian-made civilian jets, once a workhorse fleet of wide- and narrow-body planes, are flown only by regional airlines, and the aging planes are plagued by safety problems. After the latest announcement, the Russian national airline Aeroflot, a major Sukhoi customer, on Saturday canceled 21 flights scheduled on domestic routes during the busy holiday season. Rosaviatsia ordered the planes grounded pending inspections after a regional carrier, IrAero, reported finding metal fatigue in a component in the tail wings of one plane, according to Regnum, a nongovernmental Russian news agency. The agency grounded the fleet to determine whether similar problems were appearing in other planes, most of which have been flying for only a few years. Sukhoi said in a statement that it inspecting the entire fleet "to support airworthiness of the civilian Sukhoi planes." The defect "of one element of the tail portion" could not cause a crash, but "all the same airlines must check this model of aircraft," the company said. Aeroflot said in a statement that flights on Sukhoi jets had been canceled for "technical reasons." Although Aeroflot is Russia's national flag carrier, it has been a reluctant customer of Russia's domestic airplane manufacturers. It has instead tried to solidify its reputation with customers at home and abroad by flying mostly Boeing and Airbus planes. But amid Russia's political tensions with the West, the company has come under political pressure to support domestic manufacturers. As of March, Aeroflot had 29 Sukhoi planes. Aeroflot has also ordered 50 planes of a new midrange Russian model still under development, the Irkut MS-21, which is made by United Aircraft Corporation, also a Russian company. Safety concerns with the Superjet, Russia's first post-Soviet passenger plane, emerged soon after its introduction in 2008. Embarrassingly, dozens of employees at the Sukhoi plant in Siberia were discovered to have faked their university engineering diplomas. Then, in 2012, a Superjet crashed into a mountain in Indonesia during a sales demonstration flight carrying 37 aviation executives and journalists, and eight crew members, killing all aboard. An investigation cited pilot error. Aeroflot says the plane is now safe. While the grounding was a setback for the model, it also indicated vigilance by Russian aviation regulators. It came just days after European regulators certified a long-range version of the Sukhoi Superjet for flights in the European Union. The plane is made in a joint venture with European aerospace suppliers, including Thales, a French avionics company, and Safran, an engine maker. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/24/business/russia-grounds-sukhoi-superjet-safety- concerns.html?_r=0 Back to Top U.S., Europe to Work on Enhanced Satellite Navigation for Aircraft Planes would receive signals simultaneously from U.S. and European systems, resulting in safer skies Navigation satellites for Galileo, Europe's Global Positioning System, are launched from French Guiana in November. Eighteen of the Galileo's planned 30 satellites are in orbit. By ANDY PASZTOR Aviation authorities are moving to improve the accuracy and reliability of satellite navigation by enabling aircraft in the future to simultaneously rely on separate orbiting systems run by the U.S. and Europe. Such proposed changes, recently endorsed by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration's top outside technical advisers, set the stage for major shifts in how pilots will use space systems for precise position data and flight routes. The upshot would be safer skies because of more exact information about locations of planes and reduced likelihood of gaps or hacking of signals by making more satellites available to users. For the first time, formal plans envision airliners, business jets and even some private planes processing signals at the same time from both Global Positioning System satellites operated by the U.S. Air Force and Europe's still-unfinished Galileo constellation. By taking preliminary steps to develop joint standards, U.S. and European experts are moving toward installation of common equipment over roughly the next decade on both sides of the Atlantic. They say the move provides added protection against satellite malfunctions, hostile jamming and other potential hazards that could disrupt ubiquitous, space-based navigation signals that are essential to the aviation industry. "It is a big deal, and we're trying to move quickly" to establish a joint schedule for setting technical standards for interoperable aircraft receivers, according to consultant George Ligler, one of the U.S. technical experts leading the effort. "It would make the entire global navigation satellite system more robust," he said in an interview following a meeting of the FAA advisory group's top policy committee in Washington last week. Ultimately, some experts predict the strategy could help strapped government budgets by reducing the need for GPS and Galileo-currently operating more than half of its proposed fleet-to launch spare satellites into orbit or take other steps to assure signal redundancy. In effect, the aim is to have each satellite system serve as a backup for the other. "Pretty much everybody would like to have it," Mr. Ligler said, adding that it could take until 2025 or 2027 until standards are adopted and common receivers are manufactured and installed on large numbers of airliners. Some industry officials have advocated a faster phase-in of such equipment. Currently, there is no production of technology certified for routine aircraft use that is able to receive signals from both constellations at the same time. In a statement, the European Global Satellite Navigation Systems Agency, which runs the civilian- controlled Galileo constellation, said it and the European Union have committed to work with the U.S. to develop prototype receivers intended to rely on multiple constellations. After more than 15 years of development and various setbacks, 18 of Galileo's proposed 30 satellites are now in orbit. Newer than the GPS fleet, the system aims to provide more precise location information for aviation and many other users. The current discussions with the U.S. don't entail common emergency search and rescue signals. Progress on satellite-based navigation upgrades could be blocked by engineering challenges or continued delays by the two sides swapping detailed technical specifications. The timetable approved by the U.S. panel calls for final approval of minimum operation standards by 2022, but work schedules and progress benchmarks still have to be coordinated with European counterparts. Europe's Arianespace Sees Satellites Take Giant Leap into Small Steps Galileo Satellites Launched Into Wrong Orbits Industry experts have predicted it could take half a dozen years for widespread adoption of the anticipated receivers. The FAA and European safety officials would have to take action to make that happen. U.S. aviation officials have considered negotiating similar agreements with China and Russia, each of which have their own satellite systems for airborne navigation. But American experts have complained those governments balked at divulging technical data needed to pursue common arrangements. China and Russia have been working since mid-2015 to make their systems more compatible with each other. Before either can sign firm cooperation agreements with GPS, however, U.S. authorities are insisting on compliance with a broad "scorecard" of commitments to transparency and information sharing. "It's fair to say we have almost no data on the Chinese system," Mr. Ligler said. And for Russia's evolving satellite constellation called GLONASS, which is switching to new frequencies, he said, "we don't have the details of what the new signal structure will be." Satellite navigation systems are sources of national pride and military capability, with certain operational variables considered classified. The GPS consists of 31 satellites able to transmit radio signals from specially designed orbits more than 12,000 miles above the Earth. Every user is guaranteed to have access to signals from at least four satellites at any instant. Despite updates and revised designs intended to protect the constellation from interference, experts continue to worry about jamming and what is called "spoofing" of GPS signals, when phony messages are sent potentially confusing users. While proposed U.S.-European standards are being developed, other global satellite systems such as Aireon LLC are slated to be deployed to expand real-time surveillance. Backed by a number of air-traffic control providers from Canada and Europe, Aireon will use 66 low-Earth orbit satellites to allow controllers to reduce separation between aircraft and help airlines more effectively avoid bad weather. http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-and-europe-to-work-on-enhanced-satellite-navigation-for-aircraft- 1482429122 Back to Top Russian Aviation Authority to Make Decision on Future Use of Tu-154 Aircraft RUSSIA - Topic: Tu-154 Crash in Black Sea (67) 0 29771 Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russian aviation governing body and the Ministry of Transport will make decision on the further service of Tu-154 planes. MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian aviation governing body and the Ministry of Transport will have to decide whether to decommission the Tu-154 aircraft, one of which was involved in a deadly Sunday crash over the Black Sea, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday. No Evidence of Terror Attack on Tu-154 Plane Yet, Four Leads Being Investigated - FSB On Sunday, Russian Tu-154 plane heading to Hmeymim airbase in Syria's Latakia crashed in the Black Sea. The aircraft was carrying musicians of the Alexandrov Ensemble, the official choir of the Russian army, as well as military personnel and reporters, to congratulate servicemen at the base on the New Year. All 92 people on board are feared dead. "This is the question for our aviation authority and the Ministry of Transport," Peskov said, when asked about the further service of Tu-154 planes. On Sunday, Russian Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov said that it would be "premature" to decommission the aircraft. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the crashed Tu-154 aircraft was built in 1983 and spent 6,689 hours in flight. The recent technical maintenance of the plane was conducted in September 2016. https://sputniknews.com/russia/201612261049003094-russia-plane-crash-tu-154/ Back to Top Third MRJ90 flight test aircraft arrives in US Three MRJ90 flight test aircraft at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington. Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. A third Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. MRJ90 flight test aircraft has arrived in the US, where the majority of MRJ90 flight testing is taking place. The aircraft took off from Nagoya, Japan Dec. 14 and -- after stops in Guam, the Marshall Islands, Honolulu and San Jose, California -- arrived Dec. 19 at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, from where the MRJ90 flight test program in the US is based. Total flight distance was 14,000 km and total flight time was 20 hours and 10 minutes. One more MRJ90 flight test aircraft is expected to arrive in the US soon. The four US-based MRJ90 aircraft will be utilized in an expedited flight testing program. Mitsubishi Aircraft is aiming to certify the MRJ90 in the first half of 2018 and deliver an MRJ90 to launch customer All Nippon Airways (ANA) for entry into service in the second half of 2018. A fifth MRJ90 flight test aircraft will remain in Japan. In total, Mitsubishi Aircraft plans 2,500 hours of flight testing to gain certification. http://atwonline.com/manufacturers/third-mrj90-flight-test-aircraft-arrives-us Back to Top TSA Rule: You Won't Be Able to Board an Airplane with Driver's Licenses from these 9 States Why institute a policy that might make flying more stressful? With 2017 around the corner, it's a good time for a reminder that starting in 2018, the Transportation Security Administration will no longer accept state ID cards or driver's licenses from nine states as proof of identification. Flyers with driver's licenses from Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Washington will need an alternative form of ID, like a passport or military ID. In December, the Department of Homeland Security announced they would start posting signs at airports alerting travelers to the change in TSA procedure that might disrupt more than a few travel plans. Why institute a policy that might make flying more stressful? In a statement, DHS explained that the change is an outcome of the REAL ID law passed by Congress in 2005. It created minimum criteria for state-issued licenses used as proof of ID. "States have made considerable progress in meeting this key recommendation of the 9/11 Commission and every state has a more secure driver's license today than before the passage of the Act," DHS writes on the website. So far, the nine states listed above have failed to achieve compliance with the REAL ID standards, according to DHS. http://www.alternet.org/right-wing/tsa-rule-you-wont-be-able-board-airplane-drivers-licenses-these-9- states Back to Top 'Something lagging' in Air India staff commitment: Aviation Minister Raju While acknowledging that it has done better in the last fiscal, Raju emphasised on the need to ensure more cohesiveness at Air India. Sending out a stern message to Air India staff, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju has said "something is lagging" when it comes to commitment shown by them compared with rival airlines. While acknowledging that Air India, which turned operationally profitable last fiscal, has "done better", the minister emphasised on the need to ensure more cohesiveness at the national carrier. The national carrier, staying afloat on a bailout package extended by the central government, is making efforts to improve its financial position, including by way of cost optimisation measures, capacity addition and introduction of new flights. Raju, who has been generally supportive of Air India which has often drawn flak from various quarters, is of the view that the carrier has definitely done better but there is always scope for improvement. "The cohesiveness still has to be built in (at Air India)... you have the advantage of different types of airlines, competition is there," Raju told PTI in an interview. "Commitment shown by some of their staff and the commitment shown by Air India staff, there is still something lagging." Asked whether such a situation arises out of complacency in certain quarters that there is job security at Air India, the minister said jobs are assured only as long as the institution exists. It is a good airline and has served the country well, he noted, but "see everywhere job is assured if that institution is there. If the institution goes, what happens to your job?" Air India still has a debt burden of around Rs 44,000 crore even as it posted an operating profit of Rs 105 crore in the last financial year -- for the first time in a decade. The operational profit came mainly on the back of lower fuel cost and higher passenger numbers. "Everyone will wish them well, it is a good airline, it served the country well, its financial books are bad and it needs to improve on. They have to develop strategies. They are on the right track and we wish them a happy, good, meaningful year ahead," the minister said. The national airline is surviving on a Rs 30,000-crore bailout extended by the government and it runs till 2020-21. http://www.dnaindia.com/money/report-something-lagging-in-air-india-staff-commitment-aviation- minister-raju-2286446 Back to Top FAA Releases New Part 23 The revamped regulations are expected to promote aviation product development worldwide. The FAA's newly updated Part 23 overhauls the airworthiness standards for GA airplanes weighing less than 19,000 pounds with 19 or fewer seats. The FAA issued its final version of an updated Part 23 that overhauls the airworthiness standards for general aviation airplanes weighing less than 19,000 pounds with 19 or fewer seats. The agency, as well as the industry, hopes the new rule reduces the time needed to economically move safety-enhancing technologies for small airplanes into the marketplace. Because the new rule is part of a global effort to develop common certification standards, it is expected to remove regulatory barriers and promote the acceptance of airplanes and products worldwide. The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) called the new rule "a true breakthrough for the light end of the general aviation sector. Rather than having to comply with overly prescriptive design requirements, manufacturers will now be able to more nimbly respond in a cost-effective manner through performance-based airworthiness safety rules and consensus standards for compliance." GAMA President and CEO Pete Bunce said, "The Part 23 rewrite would not have been possible without the dedication and tireless efforts of many in industry and the FAA, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the U.S. Office of Management and Budget ..." The agency updated the rule in response to the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, the Small Airplane Revitalization Act of 2013 and recommendations from the FAA's 2013 Part 23 Reorganization Aviation Rulemaking Committee. The new Part 23 becomes effective eight months from its publication in the Federal Register. http://www.flyingmag.com/faa-releases-new-part-23 Back to Top 2016 Was One of the Safest Years in Aviation History Despite a series of high-profile crashes, this was actually one of the safest years to ?y. The memory of the Colombia plane crash that claimed 71 lives, including most of a Brazilian soccer team, is still fresh in our minds-enough that to say this year was one of the safest in modern aviation history almost seems gaudy. But the numbers don't lie: According to the Aviation Safety Network, a crashdata website funded by the Flight Safety Foundation (an international and independent nonprofit organization that tracks crash data), 18 civilian airplane accidents accounted for 320 deaths worldwide in 2016. The only year with fewer deaths was 2013, as The Telegraph reported, with 265. The good news? Global air travel continues to get safer, in part thanks to tech upgrades to airplanes, better safety procedures, and increased collaboration among nations to improve aviation infrastructure in developing countries. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration credits these changes to the Commercial Aviation Safety Team, a governmentindustry coop formed in 1998, tasked with reducing the commercial aviation fatality rate in the United States by 80 percent by 2008. (They broke their own goal, dropping rates to 83 percent.) We shouldn't just look at the number of crashes or deaths-the number of passengers flying each year matters, too: In 1970, when the World Bank started tracking the movement of people by air, 310 million passengers took commercial flights worldwide. In 2016, that figure should exceed 3.5 billion. Good news for fliers: The overall rate of commercial flight crashes is dropping. In 1970, when the World Bank started tracking the movement of people by air, 310 million passengers took commercial flights worldwide. In 2016, that figure exceeded 3.5 billion. Factoring in this staggering growth, the odds of dying in a crash have been on the decline. This year, the rate of planecrash fatalities was just one out of every 10,937,500 passengers. The only year with slightly safer odds was-again -2013, when it was one out every 11,501,886 passengers. These numbers are based on commercial (nonmilitary) planes certified to carry 14 or more passengers. One variable that can dramatically skew a year's safety record is sabotage-a hijacking, a suicidal pilot, an attack by artillery. Aviation Safety Network's database offers two separate data points each year, with and without those outliers. If the security events are tossed out, 2015 was actually the safest year, with just 186 deaths. But the Germanwings crash (the plane was intentionally brought down by the captain) in March 2015 and the Metrojet crash (brought down by a bomb) in October of that year raised the total air travel deaths to 560. Never have there been more people in the sky, and yet there were fewer deaths in the 2000s than in all previous decades in modern aviation history. Even the 691 lost lives on commercial jets in 2014-a year riddled with highprofile crashes, including AirAsia, Air Algerie, and two Malaysia Airlines ?ights-pales in comparison to every year in the 1970s. Every year in that decade saw more than 1,000 planecrash casualties, with 1972 being the deadliest year, claiming 2,373 lives. While a year will occasionally spike in the charts, the overall rate of crashes and death by commercial flight is trending downward. As governments continue to collaborate on improving safety standards and as airlines across the globe take delivery of new aircraft with better technology, the forecast calls for continually improving safety in the skies. Bring it on, 2017. http://www.cntraveler.com/story/2016-was-one-of-the-safest-years-in-aviation-history Back to Top Iran to finalize aircraft deal with ATR next week Iran's flag carrier Iran Air is expected to finalize an aircraft purchase deal with ATR the next week, Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan, Iran's deputy minister of roads and urban development, said. Representatives from the French-Italian aircraft manufacturer will visit Tehran Dec. 28 to hold a final round of negotiations with Iran Air, Fakhrieh Kashan said, IRIB news agency reported Dec. 26. The Iranian airline is allowed to buy 40 planes from ATR, he said, adding that Iran Air will pay 15 percent of the needed fund and 85 percent will be provided by foreign financers. Fakhrieh Kashan also said that the Iranian flag carrier will purchase eight new aircraft by March 2017, including one A320 and two A330 planes from Airbus as well as five ATR aircraft. Earlier on Dec. 11, Iran Air finalized a long awaited contract with Boeing, the US aircraft manufacturer, to purchase 80 passenger planes. http://en.trend.az/iran/business/2702822.html Back to Top GOVERNMENT TO AIRLINES: USE GAGAN GPS OR FACE CONSEQUENCES (India) Airlines will have to shell out Rs 1-2 crore per craft to install GAGAN. DGCA issued warning during a meeting with stakeholders held earlier this week The government has warned domestic airlines of `consequences' if they did not adopt the Rs 774 crore GPS-Aided Geo Aug mented Navigation system. The warning came during a meeting called by the DGCA earlier this week with all stakeholders, including the airlines, who have not availed of the system even 18 months after its launch.Jointly developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Airports Authority of India (AAI), at an investment of Rs 774 crore, the GAGAN system was officially launched by Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju in July last year. It is said to make airline operations more efficient and cut down costs as it reduces separation between aircraft, increases air safety and fuel efficiency. The National Civil Aviation Policy, announced by the government in June, makes it mandatory for all aircraft registered in India from January 1, 2019 to be GAGAN-enabled. A notice issued by the DGCA dated December 19 stated that most aircraft registered in India are still not equipped with this technology. "This assumes significance as many airlines and operators have placed orders for many more aircraft which may not be equipped with necessary airborne equipment and thus not be GAGANcompliant," DGCA director general B S Bhullar said. However, in order for the domestic airlines to availing of the GAGAN system, they would have to make their aircraft GAGAN-compliant, which would entail a huge investment on their part. A DGCA source said that while smaller aircraft like ATRs and Bombardiers which are currently in the Indian carriers' fleet are already equipped with the GAGAN system, bigger planes such as the Airbus A320, A330, Boeing 737, B777 and B 787s, among others, need to be retrofitted. Eight major domestic carriers - Air India, Air India Express, Jet Airways, JetLite, IndiGo, SpiceJet, GoAir, Vistara and AirAsia - have a total of 427 such planes currently in service. "An airline will have to shell out as much as Rs 1-2 crore per aircraft to install the GAGAN system. Going by the number of planes that need to be retrofitted, the minimum investment will be at least Rs 400 crore," the source said. According to an ISRO spokesperson, GAGAN's GEO footprint extends from Africa to Australia and has expansion capability for seamless navigation services across the region. "GAGAN provides the additional accuracy, availability, and integrity necessary for all phases of flight, from en route through approach for all qualified airports," the spokesperson said. The system is inter-operable with other international satellite based tracking systems such as the WAAS (US), EGNOS (Europe) and MSAD (Japan). http://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/mumbai/other/government-to-airlines-use-gagan-gps-or-face- consequences/articleshow/56177266.cms Back to Top New technology speeds pilot, air traffic controller communication The view of O'Hare out of the air traffic controller tower. Air traffic controllers at O'Hare International Airport's tower are using a new technology, called Data Comm, that improves communication between air traffic controllers and pilots. It's clear skies at O'Hare International Airport, but there's a thunderstorm elsewhere in the Midwest. As passengers blithely board their plane, air traffic control is on the radio with pilot Chuck Stewart. The Federal Aviation Administration estimates Data Comm will save airlines more than $10 billion over 30 years by reducing delays that result in efficiencies like using less fuel. The change is expected to cut operating costs by about $1 billion for the FAA. Installing Data Comm at 56 towers across the U.S. is costing $741 million. "United 2145, we've got a new clearance for you," is the message. "'Oh darn!'" Stewart says (or possibly something saltier). That's because even a slight flight plan deviation can lead to lost time, spent fuel and a cranky cabin. Relief is coming. As of this month, control towers at 56 U.S. airports will possess a new FAA "Data Comm" system that sends flight instructions digitally to waiting aircraft, reducing the worst kind of delays -- the ones when you're already embedded in the plane. But while airports are ready, airlines are still installing the technology in jets. Between 15 and 20 percent nationwide are equipped and "numbers will continue to grow," FAA Data Communications Program Manager Jesse Wijntjes said at a recent event showcasing the system. Here, about 10 percent of flights are outfitted with Data Comm at O'Hare International Airport, and nearly 35 percent are ready at Midway International Airport. The switch-over will save time from the get-go as controllers can send departure instructions electronically instead of radioing information. It also eliminates time lags caused by reroutes. Typically, pilots write down the changes manually, read the information back to controllers, enter it into flight management computers, then check with airline dispatchers. The process can stretch from 15 to 30 minutes. The snags snowball if multiple controllers are issuing reroutes over the radio to myriad pilots. Captain Rey Angula, a United Airlines pilot, explains how the installation of Data Comm will speed communications between air traffic controllers and pilots by transmitting instructions digitally. For passengers, the fallout ranges from a plane losing its place in the takeoff line to missing the chance to be airborne before storms ground flights. "In the Data Comm world, (instructions are) sent to multiple airplanes at a time, as many times as needed. That is the real holy grail for the program," Wijntjes said. Transmitting digital instructions also reduces the potential for human error at O'Hare where radio congestion is chronic, controller Dan Carrico said. He recounted a conversation between a pilot and controller on a reroute necessitated by bad weather in Milwaukee. The controller listed a number of "fixes" or points in the sky that the pilot needed to hit. The pilot read back the fixes but missed one to the north nicknamed "Toews." The controller caught the mistake, but if it hadn't been rectified "the consequences could have been catastrophic. You would have had a loss of separation, which is when two airplanes get too close together," said Carrico, a National Air Traffic Controllers Association union representative. For carriers, "there's a whole heck of a lot of time saved, and that's the bottom line for us," United Airlines' Stewart said. He cited the example of two airplanes readying for takeoff at Newark International Airport. Before leaving, reroutes were required. The jet with Data Comm was climbing as the jet without lagged in limbo while pilots updated. Air traffic controllers at O'Hare International Airport's tower are using a new technology, called Data Comm, that speeds up communication between air traffic controllers like Tim Kiefer and pilots. Data Comm is part of NextGen, an FAA modernization program that uses satellites to guide planes instead of radar. Will every airplane apply it? Data Comm costs are anywhere from zero to $100,000 per jet, depending how old the plane is. Older models aren't expected to upgrade, nor are small, personal aircraft, although business jets are converting. In 2017, the FAA plans to start equipping control centers that handle high-altitude flights with Data Comm. Will it replace air traffic controllers? A new Federal Aviation Administration program called Data Comm will improve communications between air traffic controllers in the tower at O'Hare International Airport, reducing delays. A new Federal Aviation Administration program called Data Comm will improve communications between air traffic controllers in the tower at O'Hare International Airport, reducing delays. - Daniel White | Staff Photographer "Radios are never going to go away," Stewart said. "Often when you see efficiencies, safety will degrade," Carrico said. "In this case, safety is increased." One more thing Why name a fix Toews? The name refers to Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews and, yes, local controllers are big fans of the hockey team. Gridlock alert Illinois tollway officials promise mainline widening of the Jane Addams Tollway (I-90) will finish by Sunday. But a new diverging diamond intersection at Elmhurst Road and I-90 along with a westbound entrance ramp and eastbound exit ramp will debut in 2017. The same goes for a westbound I-90 entrance ramp at Roselle Road, and an eastbound exit at I-90 and Barrington Road. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20161226/news/161229338/ Back to Top Boeing Delivers Its 500th Dreamliner: Is the Troubled Jet Back on Track? The 787 is the fastest-selling wide-body jet in history, but it has also caused big headaches -- and even bigger losses -- for Boeing. Earlier this week, Boeing (NYSE:BA) delivered its 500th 787 Dreamliner, just a little more than five years after the first delivery. As the company proudly noted in its press release, the 787 has reached 500 deliveries faster than any other wide-body aircraft family in history. BOEING JUST DELIVERED ITS 500TH 787 DREAMLINER. IMAGE SOURCE: THE MOTLEY FOOL. It hasn't been an easy road, though. In the grand scheme of things, the 787 program has been a disaster for Boeing. At this point in the program's history, Boeing has racked up tens of billions of dollars of losses from developing the Dreamliner and building the first 500 planes. Fortunately, the profitability of Dreamliner production has been improving steadily for the past few years. That's a hopeful sign for the program's future. That said, Boeing also faces some potential pitfalls in the coming years. The Dreamliner has been a costly mess The Dreamliner's problems started nearly a decade ago. While the company planned for a relatively quick development process, the project was beset by more than half a dozen delays, pushing the first delivery from 2008 all the way to late 2011. Boeing was forced to compensate customers for the significant delays. In the meantime, development costs soared far beyond projections. Boeing has never publicly revealed the actual cost of developing the 787 Dreamliner family, but one analysis puts the development cost overrun at $10 billion as of 2011. G BOEING LOST HUGE SUMS OF MONEY ON THE FIRST SEVERAL DOZEN DREAMLINERS IT BUILT. IMAGE SOURCE: BOEING. To make matters worse, the entire worldwide Dreamliner fleet was grounded for three months in early 2013 after the lithium-ion battery packs kept catching fire. This led to costly delivery delays, warranty repairs, and penalties. Finally, it initially cost far more than expected to build each 787. Production costs have been declining steadily, but Boeing's deferred production costs -- essentially the cumulative cash losses that Boeing has incurred from building Dreamliners -- peaked at nearly $30 billion earlier this year. Boeing is finally building 787s profitably On the bright side, profitability for the Dreamliner program has improved dramatically just in the past two years. From early 2014 to early 2015, deferred production costs for the 787 rose by $3.8 billion. In the following year, deferred production costs rose by $1.7 billion. However, in Q3 2016, deferred production costs started to decline, as Boeing is now building Dreamliners for less than the average selling price. Thus, Boeing has been improving the profitability of 787 production by more than $2 billion annually since 2014. That progress will slow in the next few years, but Boeing still has a lot of room to improve the Dreamliner program's profitability, primarily through improvements in the product mix and pricing, along with scheduled supplier cost reductions. Boeing plans to recoup the remaining $27 billion or so in deferred production costs over the course of the next 800 Dreamliner deliveries. Most analysts doubt that it will be able to achieve that level of cost improvement, though. Fortunately, if Boeing ultimately sells significantly more than 1,300 Dreamliners, it should be able to recover all of its deferred production costs sooner or later. Indeed, the more airplanes it can sell, the better the 787 program's lifetime profitability will be. But sales are slowing -- will they rebound? No matter how many Dreamliners Boeing manages to sell over the model's lifetime, the program will have been a bad investment due to all of the cost overruns over the past decade. However, those are sunk costs. At this point, investors just want to see Boeing wring out as much profit from the Dreamliner lineup as possible over the next 15 years or so. SELLING MORE DREAMLINERS WILL IMPROVE THE PROGRAM'S ULTIMATE PROFITABILITY. IMAGE SOURCE: BOEING. Order volume has declined in the past few years, though. Whereas Boeing received 182 net orders for the 787 in 2013, it brought in just 41 net orders in 2014 and 71 in 2015. As of Dec. 20, it had received only 70 net orders for the 787 family in 2016. Boeing still has an order backlog of more than 700 Dreamliners. However, it is now building about 144 787s annually, whereas orders have been coming in at half that rate. In the long run, that's not sustainable. Unless order activity rebounds, Boeing will have to cut production at some point in the early 2020s. Right now, many major airlines outside the U.S. are struggling. The strong dollar, sluggish demand -- which has been hampered by terrorist activity in key tourist cities -- and rising oil prices are all cutting into earnings. Not surprisingly, airlines are thinking twice about ordering new airplanes. Even U.S. airlines are starting to face profit pressure and are deferring some aircraft deliveries. Nevertheless, the long-run outlook for the Dreamliner is still bright. There was a glut of aircraft production in the late 1990s and early 2000s, so a lot of small and medium widebodies will reach retirement age beginning around 2020. As a result, Boeing could start to get a lot of replacement orders in the next few years, even if airlines aren't expanding their fleets as quickly. Finally, aircraft orders are cyclical. Wide-body demand is weak today, but investors shouldn't mistake that for a long-term trend. As the global economy grows and billions of people enter the middle class over the next few decades, airlines will need to dramatically expand their fleets. The recent order slowdown is probably just a blip on the radar. It would be foolish to expect completely smooth sailing for the 787 Dreamliner going forward. But Boeing has made a lot of progress getting it on an acceptable profit trajectory. Now it just has to work hard to find more buyers for its revolutionary plane. http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/12/24/boeing-delivers-500th-dreamliner-back-on-track.aspx Back to Top Trump's plunge into fighter-jet finances takes flak from experts An F-35 jet arrives at its operational base at Hill Air Force Base, in northern Utah, in 2015. (Rick Bowmer/AP) By leaping into a debate about Lockheed's F-35 fighter and the previous-generation F-18 from Boeing, President-elect Trump appeared to short-circuit a process meant to have rigorous decision-making about Pentagon needs and an absence of political influence. President-elect Donald Trump upended years of Pentagon procurement planning with a tweet announcing he had asked Boeing to price an upgrade of its F-18 Super Hornet jet that could replace Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35, the most expensive U.S. weapon system ever. "Based on the tremendous cost and cost overruns of the Lockheed Martin F-35, I have asked Boeing to price-out a comparable F-18 Super Hornet!" Trump said Thursday in a post on Twitter. That probably isn't possible. Lockheed's $379 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is intended to be the mainstay of the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, replacing several older planes including early models of Boeing's F-18. Advanced development of the F-35 started in 2001, and Lockheed is planning to build more than 3,000 of the aircraft for the U.S. and allied forces, a project that will create tens of thousands of jobs at factories across the country and overseas. In his trademark, 140-characters-or-less style, Trump did more than pit two iconic U.S. companies against each other: He sidelined decades of policy and practice in how the government spends billions of dollars annually on military hardware. Moreover, by plunging himself personally into the complex arena of government contracting, Trump appeared to short-circuit a process that requires rigorous decision-making about what the Pentagon needs, an effort to create a level playing field, reviews by experts in defense policy and military hardware and congressional oversight. Trump's comments were "bizarre," Richard Aboulafia, a military-aircraft analyst with the Teal Group, said in an email. "The Navy remains the only U.S. customer for the Super Hornet, while the Marines are completely dependent on F-35Bs and the Air Force is sticking with the F-35A," he said. "Thus, Trump's tweet is both late to the game and completely irrelevant." The exact impact of Trump's tweet wasn't immediately clear. The Defense Department has scaled back purchases of the F/A-18E/F model, which lacks stealth and other high-tech capabilities of the F-35, and would require extensive design changes to be comparable to the newer plane. The Pentagon had requested just two F-18 Super Hornets for the fiscal year that began in October, though Congress has indicated in spending bills that it would like to buy at least 12 more. Trump also didn't provide enough information to assess what role he'd want a new Boeing bid to play controlling what he claims are out-of-control costs. If carried out into an actual acquisition program that survived court challenges and opposition from the Texas congressional delegation, where much of the F-35 is assembled, the move would accomplish for Boeing what it could not achieve in a head-to-head competition - win a piece of the Joint Strike Fighter program it lost to Lockheed Martin back in the 2001 selection. Trump's tweet notwithstanding, there were clear military reasons for the Pentagon to go with the F-35. The Air Force, which plans to buy 1,763 of the F-35A model jets, would not fly Boeing's minimally stealthy "fourth-generation" Super Hornet, which is designed for aircraft-carrier operations. The Marines decided against buying the Super Hornet "and instead waited for the F-35B, in part because the F/A-18E/F" is a conventional takeoff aircraft and the Corps "prefers aircraft capable of vertical operations," said the Congressional Research Service in a July report. Loren Thompson, a defense analyst with the Lexington Institute who has followed the program since Lockheed Martin beat Boeing in the winner-take-all contract, said, "Mr. Trump needs to understand all the costs of substituting one plane for the other." Super Hornets "require escort aircraft to compensate for their lack of stealth" and capability to gather, fuse and distribute data from weapons sensors, he said. Even the Navy's initial doubts about the aircraft-carrier version of the F-35 "disappeared after a series of very successful sea trials for the new fighter," he added. The Navy's current plan is to rely on the F-35 during the opening days of a conflict "because it is invisible to enemy radar, and then shift over to use of Super Hornets," Thompson said. Moreover, "Boeing offered a stealthier version of the F/A-18 in 2013 that did not gain traction with the Navy or other customers," Byron Callan, a defense analyst with Capital Alpha Partners said in a note to clients. "The F/A-18 could not be used on Navy amphibious ships whereas the F-35B can." Since the Air Force does not operate F/A-18s "there would be costs to integrate that type into its inventory," he wrote. In an emailed statement, Boeing spokesman Todd Blecher said the company, which assembles the F/A-18 in St. Louis, is "committed to working with the president-elect and his administration to provide the best capability, deliverability and affordability across all Boeing products and services to meet our national security needs." Trump's repeated frustrations with the F-35's costs have been echoed by others. The F-35 program has had $81 billion in obligations for the last 10 fiscal years. Yet it has also had repeated challenges, with defense officials saying recently it would need as much as $500 million extra to finish its development phase. From inadequate wing strength in some models to delays in live-fire testing of the jet's gun system for attacking ground targets and enemy jets in dogfights, the F-35's travails have provoked outrage on Capitol Hill. But with few, if any, alternatives to the jet's technological prowess, the program continues. Lockheed last month received a $1.28 billion Pentagon down payment to continue production of the jet while negotiations continue on a contract valued at up to $7.19 billion for 90 aircraft, the biggest order yet. "Beyond the program itself, we believe Trump's tweets are a message to the broader contractor community to keep costs down," Seth Seifman, an analyst at JPMorgan Chase, said in a report. "How persistently and comprehensively the new administration will reinforce this message remains unclear." In a sign of how spread out the F-35 program is, that latest down payment will fund work on the F-35 in Fort Worth, Texas; El Segundo, Calif.; Orlando, Fla.; Nashua, N.H., Baltimore; Nagoya, Japan; and Warton in the U.K., according to the Pentagon. While the development and sale of the F-35 is a global effort, some U.S. allies have backed out of the program, at least for now. Canada recently announced it would seek to buy F-18s to upgrade its fighter fleet, six years after former Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the country would buy 65 F-35s and begin deploying them by 2019. Now, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government wants to wait before it commits to the latest-generation fighters, using current inventory and the F-18s well into the 2020s. In the U.S., the fiscal 2017 defense authorization would allow an additional $9.9 billion for the F-35 this fiscal year. The total includes $3.3 billion in funding for the Navy and Marine Corps versions and modifications, and $4.8 billion for the Air Force F-35 variant and modifications. Trump summoned the chief executives of both companies to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Wednesday, as well as a group of top Pentagon officials, to discuss the costs of the F-35 program and also Boeing's proposed replacement for Air Force One, the presidential aircraft. Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg said he told Trump the new Air Force One would be built for less than $4 billion, less than what Trump said the plane would cost. Lockheed CEO Marillyn Hewson said in a statement after the meeting that she had assured Trump the company would continue efforts to reduce the F-35's costs. She didn't announce any new promises. When asked about the president-elect's latest missive, Lockheed spokesman William Phelps said the company had no comment. http://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/trumps-fighter-jet-proposal-takes-flak-from- experts/ Back to Top RESEARCH STUDY SURVEY Hello, I'm Dr. Tim Holt and I'm currently the Program Chair for Aeronautics and an Associate Professor with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, AZ. In this position I'm responsible for faculty, curriculum, course updates, course alignment, etc... Furthermore, I teach undergraduate courses in aeronautics, safety, unmanned systems, and airport management for the Bachelor of Science in Aeronautics program. To this day, there are no reported statistics of general aviation pilots that have survived hypoxia during normal flight operations. More often than not there are tales of pilots getting themselves into a hypoxic situation and not surviving; rarely do people hear of those that survive. This leaves the aviation community unsure of the common circumstances that these pilots find themselves that create a hypoxic state, as well as whether or not that reported the occurrence to the proper establishments. The data collected from this survey issued to general aviation pilots, will hopefully give insight as to how best to prevent these occurrences from happening, as well as promote a healthy safety culture to report these events. It is with this in mind that we decided to embark on this research study. This survey is completely anonymous and individual responses will not be recorded. It should only take 5- 10 minutes to complete. The link to the survey will provide you the Informed Consent and contact information of the researchers involved in the study. Thank you in advance, it's truly appreciated. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GAHYPOXIA Back to Top Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship The Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship was established by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) to shape the next generation of aviation researchers, honoring the late Najeeb Elias Halaby, an eminent aviator and administrator, for his vision and more than five decades of extraordinary contributions to aviation (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/halabyfellowship.pdf). The Fellowship The recipient of a Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship will spend three months (in 2017 or early 2018) in residence with NCAR's Aviation Weather Research Program, which Mr. Halaby was instrumental in establishing in the 1980s. As the nation's leader in addressing aviation weather research, NCAR plays a unique role in meeting user needs by transferring research results to operations through its Research Application Laboratory (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/). The Fellow will conduct research broadly aimed at improving the integration of weather into decision support tools for enhanced mitigation of weather sensitivities (e.g., weather impact avoidance) and management of air traffic. The Fellowship will provide: * a monthly stipend for three months, including temporary living expenses * round-trip travel expenses to and from Boulder, CO * travel to a conference to present results * page charges for one publication of key results Eligibility and Application The Halaby Fellowship targets graduate students (late Masters or early PhD level) enrolled in an aviation- relevant department or program of a domestic or international university. Interested candidates should have advanced research skills, far-reaching vision, and dedication to get things accomplished. Consideration for this Fellowship will be given to candidates based on the following submitted material: * Curriculum vitae * Proposal (maximum five pages) presenting the research to be conducted at NCAR, the anticipated outcome of that, and how the proposed effort ties into the candidate's ongoing graduate research project(s) * Contact information for three references (one of which should be the student's primary advisor) NCAR will accept applications for the Halaby Fellowship each year. Email Applications by February 28, 2017 to halabyfellowship@ucar.edu Back to Top Graduate Research Survey HI! My name is Amber L. Hulsey, A.B.D. and I am currently working on my dissertation for my Ph.D. entitled, "Human Trafficking: Flying Under the Radar." My dissertation examines the extent to which human trafficking occurs by air as a mode of transportation compared to land and sea. Additionally, the study examines the actions that can be taken to combat human trafficking into and within the United States. The theoretical lens to which this study uses is Human Security Theory. This survey is completely anonymous, has undergone Institutional Review Board and has been approved. If you have any questions or would like to contact me for any reason, please email me at amber.hulsey@usm.edu. The survey will be open from December 7- December 21st. Please share this on all social media accounts, with your friends, family, and with your colleagues. Upon completion of this study, I will share the findings with various government and NGO's to aid in eradicating human trafficking. Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HTinUSA Thank you so much for taking the time to complete this survey and more importantly, for helping aid in the research to combat human trafficking by air. Curt Lewis