The world of aviation is getting a little older year by year and that is no different that the Federal Aviation Administration. I was interested to read the following press release sent by the FAA. Aviation has become one of the safest ways to travel and the reason is for agencies such as the FAA. They have suffered some recent bad press with the air traffic controllers and other debacles, but for the most part they have done a good job of keeping our skies safe for all. For you enjoyment we have reproduced the release of theirs here.
(WASHINGTON) – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration today marked the 75th anniversary of federal air traffic control as American aviation experiences its safest period ever. Since its inception with 15 workers operating in just three control centers in 1936, the agency has become a world leader, pioneering safety improvements and developing new technology to speed up flights, save fuel and improve safety.
“The United States has the safest air transportation system in the world. But as the last 75 years show, we will never stop working to make our system even safer,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
“As a pilot, I am in awe of the aviation safety and technological advancements that have been made in the last 75 years,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. “NextGen represents the next milestone in aviation innovation. The FAA is committed to transforming our national airspace system so passengers can reach their destinations even more safely and more efficiently than they do today.”
Federal air traffic control began on July 6, 1936, when the Bureau of Air Commerce took over the operation of the first airway traffic control centers at Newark, N.J., Chicago and Cleveland. Faced with a growing demand for air travel, the 15 employees who made up the original group of controllers took radio position reports from pilots to plot the progress of each flight, providing no separation services. At the time, the fastest plane in the commercial fleet was the Douglas DC-3, which could fly coast-to-coast in about 17 hours while carrying 21 passengers.
Since then, the air traffic system has expanded from three control centers to include 131 federal stand-alone airport traffic control towers, 132 towers for terminal area approach control, 29 stand-alone terminal radar approach controls and 21 en route traffic control centers. The number of controllers has grown from 15 to more than 15,000, a workforce that handles an average of 50,000 flights each day. The DC-3 has given way to jet aircraft that can carry hundreds of passengers and fly from New York to Los Angeles in about five hours.
The FAA continues to pioneer new technologies that will make air traffic control safer and more efficient. The Next Generation Air Transportation System, or NextGen, will transform air traffic control in the U.S. from a system of ground-based radars to one based on satellites. In parts of the country, controllers already are beginning to track aircraft via satellites with a state-of-the-art system called Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast, or ADS-B. ADS-B will be available nationwide in 2013 and will enable more direct routes, saving time and money while also lowering the industry’s environmental footprint.
This month the FAA will celebrate the 75th anniversary of federal air traffic control by highlighting advancements in air traffic controller training, NextGen, how the FAA handles convective summer weather and aviation infrastructure improvements.
For more information on the air traffic control anniversary, follow the FAA on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FAA.
The FAA recently released this information regarding the crackdown on the use of laser pointers being pointed at aircraft. I thought it would benefit our readers here for this to be posted.
WASHINGTON – Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Randy Babbitt announced today that the FAA will begin to impose civil penalties against people who point a laser into the cockpit of an aircraft.
“Our top priority is protecting the safety of the traveling public. We will not hesitate to take tough action against anyone who threatens the safety of our passengers, pilots and air transportation system,” said Secretary LaHood.
“Shining a laser into the cockpit of an aircraft is not a joke. These lasers can temporarily blind a pilot and make it impossible to safely land the aircraft, jeopardizing the safety of the passengers and people on the ground,” said FAA Administrator Babbitt.
The FAA released a legal interpretation, which finds that directing a laser beam into an aircraft cockpit could interfere with a flight crew performing its duties while operating an aircraft, a violation of Federal Aviation Regulations. In the past, the FAA has taken enforcement action under this regulation against passengers physically on-board an aircraft who interfere with crewmembers.
Today’s interpretation reflects the fact that pointing a laser at an aircraft from the ground could seriously impair a pilot’s vision and interfere with the flight crew’s ability to safely handle its responsibilities.
The maximum civil penalty the FAA can impose on an individual for violating the FAA’s regulations that prohibit interfering with a flight crew is $11,000 per violation.
This year, pilots have reported more than 1,100 incidents nationwide of lasers being pointed at aircraft. Laser event reports have steadily increased since the FAA created a formal reporting system in 2005 to collect information from pilots. Reports rose from nearly 300 in 2005 to 1,527 in 2009 and 2,836 in 2010.
In 2010, Los Angeles International Airport recorded the highest number of laser events in the country for an individual airport with 102 reports, and the greater Los Angeles area tallied nearly twice that number, with 201 reports. Chicago O’Hare International Airport was a close second, with 98 reports, and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport tied for the third highest number of laser events for the year with 80 each.
So far this year, the Phoenix and Dallas-Fort Worth areas each have recorded more than 45 laser events. The Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Houston areas each have recorded more than 30 laser events.
The increase in reports is likely due to a number of factors, including greater awareness and outreach to pilots to encourage reporting; the availability of inexpensive laser devices on the Internet; stronger power levels that enable lasers to hit aircraft at higher altitudes; and the introduction of green lasers, which are more easily seen than red lasers.
Some cities and states have laws making it illegal to shine lasers at aircraft and, in many cases, people can face federal charges. The FAA is prepared to work with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to assist with criminal prosecutions arising under those laws.
Legislation that would criminalize purposefully aiming a laser device at an aircraft is currently pending in Congress. The Senate included this language in the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act, which it passed on Feb. 17, 2011. On Feb. 28, the House of Representatives passed legislation that would enact a similar penalty for shining lasers at aircraft. Both bills are awaiting further action.
It seems we continue to be dealing with the world in turmoil with the problems in the middle east, the economic troubles that ave hit our industry and now we have the issues coming out of Japan with the latest in the earthquake that has devastated the country and its people. I wanted to take a moment and ask that everyone give some aid or assistance to the people of Japan as they all try to dig out of the rubble that was caused by the earthquake and resulting tsunami. One company that I have worked with in the past is helping do all they can by helping to Save The Children.
This week I was contacted by the folks at Save The Children with the situation as they have been briefed about the children of Japan:
“We estimate that up to 100,000 children are displaced. Many children are staying in over 2,000 evacuation centers, some of which have no electricity or running water. Aftershocks still continue, as well as risks of further earthquakes and tsunamis. Children are in urgent need of psychosocial support so that they can deal with the events they have and continue to experience.”
Obviously, many people are faced with challenges and they are going to be facing these challenges for some time. We are seeing that the people of Haiti are continuing to have those same challenges now more than a year after their devastating earthquake. Japan has better infrastructure but they still have to recover and that takes effort, and of course donations.
I would love to have Save The Children meet their goal of $5Million for the relief and program for the children of Japan. You can do this very simply by going to the site and providing your support. You can also do this very simply by texting “JAPAN” to 20222 using your cell phone. This will allow you to donate as little as $10 to their efforts.
Take a moment and give your thoughts and well wishes to those in Japan dealing with the devastation and if you can give them some monetary support.
There are many ways that you can speak to us here at the Corporate Jet Insider. We at Corporate Jet insider are one way of contacting our corporate offices at L&L International too. We can be contacted most easily by calling us or contacting us on the contact page. We can also be contacted using the blog here by leaving a comment in any of the blog posts as though go right to our inbox. I also spoke earlier about our Facebook page and how it can be used to contact us and to interact with our company.
I also wanted to talk about Twitter. If you follow us over at Twitter, we will follow you back so that we may interact that way. As you may or may not know if two parties follow each other on Twitter, they can then sent direct messages to each other. We would be happy to take your direct message and make sure it gets into the hands of those that need to respond. That works as well with our live chat feature on the corporate site. Finally, if you want to sign up to receive the company newsletter and email, you can do that on our regular corporate site. Signing up with our email can get you company information and other industry news and information and the world of business aviation. Talk to us!
photo via derrickkwa
We have been working diligently over here at Corporate Jet Insider to make our online presence more dynamic and we are using Facebook to help us with that new experience You can join us on Facebook to get some of our blog postings here and get a chance to see some of our inventory and we will be interacting there as well as here in the corporate blog.
We have updated Facebook to the brand new update that they began last week. We can now interact with our followers by commenting on your Facebook page or talking with you directly as a corporate jet insider or as the L&L International company. If you have questions about our company or if you have questions or comments about our company blog, you can interact with us there on the Facebook page as well.
Finally, if you want to learn more about our company or if you want someone to contact you to get your own personal agent to help you with buying or selling or leasing a corporate jet or business jet, you can ask for assistance on the Facebook page and we will be happy to contact you via that medium. At L&L International we are doing all we can to make your business aviation experience the best it can be.
I was just discussing funding of the FAA and how the business aviation industry works with those issues through the fuel tax and not through usage fees. It seems that they will need to dip into the fuel tax to fund a problem they are having with their Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). The problem is in the software of the new system. AIN recently reported the issues with the NextGen as it stated:
“the FAA’s new, $2.1 billion en route automation modernization (Eram) computer system, originally scheduled to be operational at all 20 air route traffic control centers (ARTCC) last year, could incur repair costs for the agency of up to $500 million.”
This is a set back for the agency and can mean some difficulties for the industry going forward. The full report from the DOT Inspector General was sent to Congress.
The technology that we currently use is more than 30 years old and is in need of replacement. The current system is being replaced by Lockheed Martin. It was also reported that in July, the IG found that subsequent operational testing at the St. Louis ARTCC raised more than 15,000 software issues, requiring a continuing estimated $12 million per month to troubleshoot and repair–at the FAA’s expense. This is not good news for the FAA budget, and it is not putting a lot of confidence in the new system set to replace its older counterpart.
Just following along with the news about Santa and his travels. The FAA released this information this week:
WASHINGTON – Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safety inspectors at the North Pole certified Santa One, the reindeer-powered sleigh piloted by Santa Claus, for its Christmas Eve round-the-world delivery mission.
Santa One, led by Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, is outfitted with new satellite-based NextGen technology, which will allow Santa to deliver more toys to more children with improved safety and efficiency.
“Children around the world will get their gifts on time, regardless of the weather, thanks to NextGen,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “We’re proud to say NextGen is bringing Santa Claus to town.”
Rudolph’s red nose has been outfitted with avionics that will broadcast Santa One’s position via satellites to air traffic controllers around the world with improved accuracy, integrity and reliability.
“Santa’s cockpit display will help improve his situational awareness by showing him and his reindeer flight crew their precise location in relation to other aircraft, bad weather and terrain,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. “NextGen will help make this an extra-safe Christmas Eve.”
The sleigh’s onboard systems have been upgraded with state-of-the-art, NextGen technology that will allow Santa One to maintain cruising altitude for as long as possible before making a continuous descent into cities and towns around the world. While maneuvering on rooftops, an advanced, onboard runway safety system will help reduce the risk of incursions between the sleigh and chimneys.
Santa’s reindeer-powered sleigh is already energy-efficient, but the NextGen technologies will further reduce Santa One’s carbon hoofprint. The shorter, faster routings means that Rudolph and the other reindeer will consume less hay, resulting in fewer greenhouse gases.
Unlike any other pilot, Santa has special permission from the FAA to fly thousands of domestic and international short-haul and long-range flights in one night. In keeping with the FAA’s science-based proposal to give pilots more rest, Santa will arrange his flight plan based on his circadian rhythm. Mrs. Claus also assured FAA safety inspectors that she’ll make sure he gets plenty of rest before the flight on Christmas Eve.
Follow Santa’s progress on Christmas Eve at the NORAD Tracks Santa website: www.noradsanta.org
See how NextGen is going to improve the safety and efficiency of Santa’s rooftop descents: http://www.faa.gov/go/santa
I traveled two weeks ago to Maui, Hawaii for a quick getaway week with my wife. It was a chance to get away without the kids in school, a chance to recharge the batteries and a chance for some sun on my face until after winter here in the rocky mountains. As a small business owner and the CEO and head of my own destiny, these trips can be a time crunch when setting aside time for business to be accomplished. My wife warned me she didn’t want to spend our time away with me hooked into the resort WIFI and being on my phone the entire trip. I have to say that I am impressed with the cell phone service that the Hawaiian islands have and their connectivity.
From where I live and the way I traveled, using miles earned during the year for a free trip, it takes about 8-12 hours of travel time to get from portal to portal. 12 hours in my business can be thousands of dollars in earned income and even more in potential business. I have difficulty getting any work done stuffed into a commercial airline economy seat while opening a laptop and trying to make a desk out of the few cubic feet offered. It makes for poor working conditions which also makes for poor work product.
Another issue I have doing work while traveling has to do with the privacy and security of doing work while traveling. You never know who is reading over your should and never know who is interested i “what you do for a living,” often spending time what you are doing with the nosy neighbor sitting next to you. On this trip at least I had a sleeping wife next to me that only needed a shoulder to sleep on. You can imagine how easy it was to work in that condition.
Finally, technology is only as good as your conditions allow. There was no WIFI on this flight, I ran out of power only a couple hours into the flight and no phone calls can be made easily to business contacts or others while in flight. It’s like lost time you can never get back and each hour that goes back runs up the losses associated with the trip.
Private aircraft eliminate many of these problems. I have been on a private jet where there was a private desk separate from the sleeping area. It had power outlets for my equipment, desk space for papers and books, WIFI and plenty of ways to speak to clients and business contacts through phone connections. It is a worker’s dream space while traveling. The space is as good as any private corner office. This increases the productivity and the quality of the product while making it safe. After all, private jets are just that, private.
There is a man down the street from my house that has the best looking garage in the neighborhood. He has one of those special floors that is painted with that special speckled paint and inside that garage is a couple of the family cars. Those cars are the best kept cars I have ever seen. The are always washed, always clean inside, and I got a peak under the hood a few times when speaking to him and the engines look like the day they came off the showroom floor. Those vehicles are the pride and joy of their owner and they would be the best vehicle to buy no matter their age. The point of the story is your private jet can also be the best buy no matter their age if you maintain them like my neighbor does his vehicles.
There are plenty of maintained private jets on the market. They have been kept up to date with all of the minimum requirements under the regulations. They never go above what the regulations require but they have been “maintained”. The business aircraft or the private jet that has been cared for properly will be the best aircraft on the market and will carry the best value. Meeting just the minimum requirements will keep your records up to date and will pass any inspection, but give me the private jet that has been cared for like the neighbor down the street. The aircraft that is always cleaned and polished, the one that has all the best of equipment that can be installed, all records of maintenance and well kept records as well as damage and repairs. All of this well done and well maintained principles make these aircraft carry their value and exceed most baseline values of other aircraft. Make sure you care for your aircraft and it will care for you when it comes to time to sell. Which business aircraft or private jet would you put at the top of your list?
I was recently reading about the Citation X from Cessna and its future. It will be released at the end of next year and is scheduled to be in service full time in 2013. Cessna is not giving us all of the details as yet but as I understand it the new Citation X will be faster than its current version and will use less fuel on a standard trip. This is good news for the folks at Cessna since announcing that they would not bring to market the larger Citation Columbus. They are putting the Citation X at the top of the heap and are relying on it to carry them as its flagship jet.
The Citation X is looking to turn out to be the new technological wonder of Cessna as well as I have heard tell it is “iPhone like” in the Cabin Management System. It is also going to be enabled with the Aircell phone and Internet services domestically.
Mark Huber explained it best over at AIN:
The interactive touch-screen controller at each seat, about the size of an iPhone, has a built-in Internet browser (Internet service required) and controls digital audio and video (a Blu-ray player sits in the forward closet), lights, window shades, cabin temperature, interactive moving map and cabin diagnostics. Texts can be sent from seat to seat and the VIP controls can be designated to any seat in the cabin.
It appears you can update Twitter and your Facebook status all from the seat in the Cessna. I’m looking forward to seeing this come out next year and I think this will be seen as a must have jet for the future. Great job Cessna and Jack Pelton! You are giving us all something to think about from the Cessna family again.
