briefs

The battle over the FAA Reauthorization Bill’s privatization language has reached a sort of desperate deal-making stage but there’s no guarantee the latest gambit will work. A week after the White House refused to endorse a one-year moratorium on air traffic control privatization, a bipartisan group of senators has asked FAA Administrator Marion Blakey to […]

A London newspaper put a retired RAF transport pilot in a simulator after a night on the town (click “More” below) following an incident involving three British Airways crew members whose alleged partying left their passengers with the hangover. The 55 passengers were transferred to other flights after the pilot, first officer and a female […]

Congratulations and an AVweb hat go out to Kenneth Steamer, this week’s AVscoop winner. Submit news tips via email to newstips@avweb.com. Rules and information are at https://avweb.com/contact/newstips.html.

_______COLUMNS Say Again? #30: The Little Big FlickWhen confused about what you should be doing, it helps to have the big picture. AVweb’s Don Brown freely admits he doesn’t always have The Big Flick to help him understand why ATC is being run the way it is. But he wonders if those running it (or […]

It seems to be the time of year that folks are in the mood to make lists, and airline pilots are getting onto some of them. AVweb told you last month that a federal report found a job as a commercial pilot to be one of the top 10 most dangerous jobs in the U.S. […]

In a statement issued last Friday, the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum responded to a recent petition that said the museum’s exhibit of the Enola Gay fails to address the “disturbing issues” raised by the use of the atomic bomb. The museum’s statement includes the full text of the display label, and notes: […]

With Australia’s airspace about to undergo radical change as of Nov. 27, controversy over the new rules is intensifying. Aviation industry experts have raised concerns about the change, which will make the system more like the one in the U.S. Air traffic controllers say the new system will pose a significant safety risk. Pilots complain […]

Yesterday marked two years since American Airlines Flight 587, an Airbus A300-600, crashed in Belle Harbor, N.Y., killing all 260 people on board and five on the ground. The NTSB released an update this week on its investigation, saying it has tested a bolt like those in the A300-600 tail fin, and the bolt did […]

With time running out for this session of the U.S. Senate — scheduled to adjourn on Nov. 21 — pressure is building to get some action on the FAA reauthorization bill, which has stalled over the last week or so. NBAA, an advocate for passing the bill, on Tuesday urged its members to contact their […]

On Monday, the U.S. Senate voted to let cargo pilots carry firearms and stun guns in the cockpit. The measure would amend the law already in effect that allows pilots of passenger airlines to participate in the Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO) program administered by the Transportation Security Administration. The vote comes on the heels […]