Blog Archives
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How’s LGA Doing?
By Steve Smith - Tuesday November 6, 2012
We spent a solid 12 hours either inside our hotel room updating this e-newsletter or inside the Orlando Convention Center last week the day after Hurricane Sandy hit, in particular the NYC area. When we finally headed to dinner, we were prepared for the worst, but hadn’t seen anything of the devastation. Later that night, we saw this picture on an aviation Web site that questioned whether the image of a gate at LaGuardia Airport was faked. By the next day, it clearly wasn’t. LGA was closed for much of last week. We saw first-hand proof ourselves that the airport was back in business Thursday night when our flight to ORD shared the same luggage carousel as a flight from LGA. From the images we saw, we immediately wondered what the... -
At NBAA 2012, Cautious Optimism Persists
By Brad McAllister - Tuesday October 30, 2012Attendance seemed down slightly on opening day, probably due somewhat to the temporary TFR in affect for Obama's shortened visit to Florida ... and mostly due to superstorm Sandy, which blasted the East Coast on Monday and Tuesday causing thousands of commercial flight cancellations. For many FBOs I spoke with at the National Business Aviation Association's (NBAA) 65th annual meeting and convention in Orlando this week, fuel sales and aircraft activity has not yet returned to pre-recession levels. That said, aircraft service companies are cautiosly optimistic for the near-term, and operators that have diversified their service offerings say the additional profit centers have helped supplement the decline in activity in recent... -
Technical Culture
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Tuesday October 30, 2012Technical proficiency within an organization has to do with the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) of those who work within that organization. Do they have the requisite KSA to execute, technically, on delivering the product or service that the organization promises to provide to its customers? If so, then the Technical Culture within the organization is likely strong, provided that two other elements exist: training and effective standard operating procedures (SOPs). Training is critical so that everyone, from line services to customer service representatives, can grow their expertise and keep up with current developments in the field. Effective standard operating procedures are developed by expert people and ensure efficiency... -
Southwest Labor Troubles
By Steve Smith - Tuesday October 30, 2012A couple of weeks ago Southwest Airlines named Randy Babbitt to a newly created position as its vice president of labor relations. The former FAA administrator certainly knows the airline business. In addition to his work at the FAA, Babbitt was a pilot and served as the president and CEO of the Air Line Pilots Association. SWA has been in the news lately over labor negotiations with its ground handlers. The airline and its Transport Workers Union asked for help from federal mediators as talks stalled. In blog for Aviation Week posted earlier this month, Andrew Compart reports that the stalemate is connected with a memo sent to employees last December by CEO Gary Kelly. “We have a cost challenge, and it is one that looms large... -
Does An Air Traffic Tower’s Looks Matter?
By John Goglia - Tuesday October 30, 2012
My first job as a mechanic was with United at JFK. But we would regularly be sent over to LaGuardia to work on aircraft. It was 1964 and those were heady days in the borough of Queens. On the drive from JFK we would look over at the futuristic buildings rising on the grounds of the New York’s World’s Fair. Once on the ramp, we were greeted by the Jetson-looking air traffic control tower, which was also completed in 1964, just in time for the World’s Fair that year. Looking up from working on the ramp and seeing that tower made aviation’s future seem bright and hopeful to the young mechanic that I was. I have to say I miss that old tower. Landing at LaGuardia is just not the same. On my near weekly trips to NY – I co-teach two... -
BTC Aviation Training Program Suspension Update
By Ronald Donner - Thursday October 25, 2012Last year news of Blackhawk Technical College’s long-time A&P program suspension and possible closure hit many area people hard, myself included. This is the aviation maintenance school I attended and where I received my FAA A&P Certificate. This program located in Janesville, Wisconsin, began in 1939 and was certificated by the then CAA for aircraft maintenance training 10 years later. Growing up in the state of Wisconsin and interested in aviation the word was, if you wanted to go to A&P school go to Janesville – it’s the best! I’m told the decision to place the aviation program in suspension came as a surprise to everyone; the local community, school instructors, and the aviation community. It’s not my intention to dive... -
The Insider's Culture
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday October 24, 2012The Insider’s culture pays attention to internal customers and the relationships between and among them. But what exactly does this mean? An organization that pays attention to the relationships between and among internal customers is basically interested in making sure that the people who work within that company (the employees) have productive, positive relationships. The description of a regional airport somewhere in Texas perhaps best demonstrates the Insider’s culture. (The name of the airport will be changed so as not to put the organization on the spot, even though the example is complimentary). Employees at Don’t Mess with Texas Airport (DMTA) regularly receive training in areas related to conflict, communication... -
Push Backs Without the Pushback? (VIDEO)
By Steve Smith - Tuesday October 23, 2012We’ve been following a number of ventures that promise to do a push back without the pushback. Although equipment makers, ranging from a joint venture between Honeywell and Safran and another one that joins L-3 and Crane as well as a stand-alone by WheelTug, may be using different methods all are working toward allowing aircraft to maneuver at the gate without ground support equipment. The end result? Reduced ground time and lower fuel use. In this Bloomberg article , for example, United says it burns through $25,000 worth of jet fuel a minute. “You could have tug-less airports,” said Ian Davies, chief of engineering and maintenance for discount airline EasyJet. “It might fundamentally change how we operate in... -
Life Sentence For Baggage Handler
By John Goglia - Tuesday October 23, 2012
Three cheers for New York Federal District Court Judge Nicholas Garaufis for sentencing a baggage handler at John F. Kennedy International Airport to life in prison for running a drug-smuggling ring at the airport. As reported by the New York Times , not only was baggage handler Victor Bourne found guilty of smuggling cocaine, he was also found guilty of removing wing panels from passenger jets to access the cocaine “which actions could have brought the plane down during flight.” There is no question that a baggage handler has no business dismantling a wing panel for any reason, let alone to carry out cocaine smuggling activities. It’s frightening to think what damage he could have done and the consequences it could have had... -
Citing Thomas Sowell
By Ralph Hood - Wednesday October 17, 2012Thomas Sowell is without a doubt one of the great economists of our country. He explains things so simply. “I have never understood,” he wrote,” why it is ‘greed’ to want to keep the money you’ve earned, but not greed to want to take away the money somebody else has earned.” Right now, the Obama administration wants to take away money by fining — you can call it a user tax if you wish, but I call it a fine — every flight of a corporate jet. Obama has used Air Force One freely. Obviously, he likes it. No doubt he could explain that it is necessary to help him run the country. So, why can’t he appreciate the fact that corporate jets help run corporations? Is it possible that he doesn’t believe the CEO of General...
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