Latest Posts – Page 120
Why do aircraft still have ashtrays in the lavatory?
We’ve all seen this in the toilets of commercial aircraft: a large no-smoking sign with a plainly marked ashtray underneath. Obviously airlines who allow in-flight smoking have ashtrays as a part of the standard model. But are there any of those left? The US banned smoking on domestic flights in 1990 and soon followed up…
Read more… 14 Dec 12
A Visit to Blackpool ATC
Visit ATC Day is an annual event coordinated by the Airspace and Safety Initiative in the US, allowing pilots to sign up for tours at Air Traffic Control units around the country. This year, the event was held with events in October and November. I couldn’t make the Prestwick date but I was lucky enough…
Read more… 7 Dec 12
Concorde Crash, Spitfires and KFC all in today’s Aviation News
Today’s good news is that the criminal case against Continental and its mechanic have been dropped. Criminal charges can only hamper air accident investigations, which need to focus on how to avoid issues degenerating into fatal crashes, rather than looking to allocate blame. BBC News – Concorde crash: Continental Airlines killings verdict quashed A French…
Read more… 30 Nov 12
Five Things I Never Knew About Lasers
1 Lasers have many legitimate uses in airspace. Everyone else probably already knew this but with all the press about lasers in cockpits, I wondered whether the US and the UK would end up as a blanket ban on laser beams in (potential) airspace. I wasn’t aware that lasers are regularly used to signal aircraft.…
Read more… 23 Nov 12
Turning into the Dead Engine
The two pilots were co-owners of VH-CNZ. She was a commercial pilot with over 10,000 hours, 600 of them on type. One blog post at the time said that she was a flight instructor. He was a private pilot with just over 2,500 hours and 120 on type. VH-CNZ was a Piper Twin Comanche which…
Read more… 16 Nov 12
Aviation Entertainment
Some times, there’s just too many fun links to get down to work. Here’s a collection of new websites I was reading / watching when I should have been writing you a new post… Landing short and checking out my balance in my Wild West Aircraft Highlander (Just Aircraft) Rockwell Collins brings head-up flying to…
Read more… 9 Nov 12
Accident Analysis
KLM 1673 Veers Off the Runway with Full Right Rudder
On the 28th of November 2004, a Boeing B737 ran off the runway at Barcelona Airport. The weather had been good at Barcelona that evening. The flight crew agreed to land…
Social Media Influencers Weigh Down Aircraft
The fatal crash at Scottsdale Arizona took place directly after take-off. The passengers were a self-proclaimed crowd of social media influencers. The jet-setting influencer who had organised the flight, had…
Demystifying
Someone has to write the TAF
It turns out that there a person sitting there deciding what the weather is going to do. Which seems obvious, except that I had somehow never asked msyelf who “someone”…
The Pilots, the Probes, and the AF447 Verdict
On the 21st of May 2026, the Paris Court of Appeal convicted Airbus and Air France of involuntary manslaughter for their roles in the crash of Air France flight 447,…
History
The CIA's Shark Screen
Today we have a guest post from the CIA! In their archives, researching something completely different, I found the answer to a question I never thought to ask. I immediately…
The First Jet to Land on an Aircraft Carrier (Deliberately)
“The Vampire was the first jet to land on a moving aircraft carrier deliberately.” This quote from Airshow Luke, our MC at the Legacy of Liberty airshow, made me almost…
Fun Stuff
Petrified, Petrified, Petrified
There’s been some interesting reporting in the UK media about a “near disaster” over Canary Wharf involving the captain having to intervene (the horror!) after air data systems failed on…
Aviation Stories You Might Have Missed
I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season. This week, I’ve put together a compilation of interesting items in the press that you might have missed while enjoying…
