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GA flights have been banned into Reagan National since 9/11 but Fletcher’s flight managed to attain a waiver. Fletcher’s communication’s director (Hogan) speculated that despite the special circumstances of the flight and despite the failed transponder, ATC staff simply didn’t tell anyone on the ground in Washington that the governor was on his way. “It […]

Security Mandarins Ponder DC Panic… Pilot error has been ruled out and now the people who try to keep Washington, D.C., safe from terrorism will figure out among themselves what led them to scramble fighters and evacuate the Capitol last Wednesday for an airplane that never strayed an inch from its approved (and very well-documented) […]

If you ever wonder why the folks up front get the big bucks, consider the day at work American Airlines Capt. Catherine Mertz and First Officer Scott Palmer had when they tried to get their Fokker 100 full of passengers from La Guardia to Chicago last Sept. 4. The plane hit a flock of “large […]

Delta, which is publicly involved in very trying financial times, is eyeing up the pay packets of its pilots to help cut expenses. It wants its 7,200 pilots to cough up $800 million a year in concessions (an average pay cut of about $11,000 each) and analysts say that might not be enough. Meanwhile Air […]

Wage Rates Vary On The Lines… Given the climate of ensuing and/or continuing Chapter 11 filings among major carriers, a list of who pays what to fly which airplane becomes interesting and potentially volatile reading. Safely and routinely transporting many hundreds of passengers over many many hundreds of not always hospitable miles, ultimately translates to […]

AOPA was among the first to rally against the NPRM and demand public meetings. Spokesman Jeff Myers said the lost transcripts just seem like another example of the “folly” that surrounds the rule and the FAA’s seemingly dogged determination to implement it. “It’s sad and embarrassing and disappointing,” said Myers. He said that while all […]

Public Meeting Transcripts Lost… Some say it’s just incompetence but others are suggesting bad karma is to blame as the much-despised National Air Tour Safety Standards process hit another bump. It seems some of the meatiest of the one-on-one dialogue between opponents and the FAA will go unrecorded because the transcripts from part of a […]

Evacuations As Some Prepare To Pay Their Respects To Ronald Reagan Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher’s King Air 200 yesterday caused panic in Washington D.C. just hours before the expected arrival of the casket bearing former president Ronald Reagan. The aircraft was cleared to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) inside the Flight Restricted […]

While the FAA has rules about flying and drinking, those rules don’t apply in criminal court. So when an allegedly drunk pilot raised havoc in the skies above Philadelphia early this year, the case frustrated prosecutors who found that Pennsylvania is one of three states with no law against flying drunk. They tried to convince […]

The survey, which is posted at ARSA’s Web site, has a form for certificated repair stations and another form for non-certificated maintenance subcontractors. ARSA says participation is critical to its efforts to prevent the extension of drug and alcohol testing requirements. The deadline to participate is June 18. The FAA says the proposed changes are […]