--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4400007 Date: 04/02/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 07:17am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: News-119 Florida jet evacuated after fake bomb threat FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - April 1, 1998 1:13 p.m. - More than 100 people were evacuated from a Southwest Airlines jet because of a bomb scare Wednesday, but nothing was found during a search of the aircraft, officials said. "It was a hoax," said a spokeswoman at Southwest's headquarters in Dallas. A spokeswoman at the Federal Aviation Administration regional headquarters in Atlanta and officials at Florida's Fort Lauderdale/ Hollywood Airport said a threat had been made to Southwest Flight 750 and the plane was searched in Fort Lauderdale after it arrived from Tampa. The 96 passengers and five crew were cleared from the flight and bomb dogs searched luggage on the airport tarmac. FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the plane had been cleared to resume service. An airport spokesman said federal regulations barred him from releasing any other details about the incident. ------------------------------------------------------------------- The Associated Press/Rick Rycroft The press release said that a Boeing 747 jumbo jetliner would be flying under the Sydney Harbor Bridge in Australia. When Associated Press photographer Rick Rycroft arrived to record the scene he saw a "jet" made of 45 plywood sheets sitting on a barge, and "flying" under the harbor bridge. The replica was built by students at the University of Sydney's Department of Aeronautical Engineering, and you guessed it, the plane flew under the bridge on April 1 ... "April Fool's Day." By Christopher Elliott ------------------------------------------------------------------- Ever board a flight that went nowhere? Maybe the plane just rolled out onto the runway and then returned to the gate, or worse still, it never even moved? Happens all the time. Although neither the Department of Transportation nor the Federal Aviation Administration collect statistics on mechanical delays, experience tells us that roughly 5 percent of all scheduled flights are hampered by some kind of "technical" trouble. Just look at an airline's delay numbers, discount the weather, and you've got a good idea of the kind of havoc mechanical problems can wreak on a carrier's schedule. Mechanical Semantics None among us would be in favor of taking off with broken engines or flaps. But is that usually what they're talking about when they tell us our flight has been grounded because of mechanical trouble? Often it's not. It seems carriers have begun adopting a very generous definition of "mechanical" trouble. When an apologetic flight attendant gets on the PA system and announces that you're stuck because the aircraft is "experiencing mechanical problems," it might be that it's an aircraft other than yours that's, in fact, having trouble. Or the problem might not be the kind that you would think would ground a plane - a clogged toilet, perhaps, or a button that's not illuminating. Airline insiders say carriers have canceled flights for every- thing from a broken coffeemaker to wet glue under the windshield to rather vague (read nonexistent) "engine irregularities." "They call it mechanical trouble," says Frank Kogen, president and chief operating officer for corporate travel agency Advanced Travel Management in New York. "But it isn't. Not the way we think of it." Well then, what is it? It could be a couple of things. According to Paul Hudson, executive director of the Aviation Consumer Action Project, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., "there's an interest in exaggerating mechanical delays, be- cause they're excluded from on-time performance statistics kept by the FAA." So if a plane is running late, just call it a mechanical delay and it won't go on the airline's record. Heck, cancel the flight - it won't matter. Convenient Excuse Airlines routinely ice underbooked flights for "mechanical" rea- sons and send travelers out on a later flight. What the airline won't tell you is that your plane works just fine. It's another aircraft - perhaps one that's got more passengers on it - that's broken. "It's a joke," admits an American Airlines crewmember, who will remain nameless so she can keep her job. "We're telling passengers that the flight is canceled because of a mechanical problem, but what we really should be saying is that their plane is needed elsewhere." If you're still a skeptic, I invite you to check out the "departures" screen on your next layover in Denver or Atlanta. Try this on a day when the weather is quiet and there are few passen- gers in the terminal. Saturdays and Sundays are best. Now count the number of cancellations and ask yourself: what are the odds of that many flights succumbing to mechanical trouble at the same time? On a layover in Dallas last week, with the weather clear as a bell, I saw a whole column of cancellations. Unless there's a sabo- teur at work at DFW, I figured this was prime example of airline cancellation greed. Worst Offenders Which airlines have a lot of dubious cancellations? Charters are the worst, mostly because they only operate a limited number of aircraft. For them, a "mechanical" problem can be something as in- significant as a stopped-up toilet. Not every airline pulls this stuff. Last year, after one of its flights from New York to London broke down, British Airways offered to re-book the stranded passengers. Only one traveler, who happened to be related to a flight attendant, refused to go. He wasn't in any hurry, he said, and would gladly take the flight once it was fixed. He ended up being the lone passenger on the Boeing 747. "It was a little embarrassing, to be honest, having only one passenger on that flight," says British Airways spokeswoman Margie Vodopia. Her carrier's rule is simple. It operates the flights whether they're overbooked or underbooked. I like that policy. What should you do if your flight is canceled? Dealing With Delays Know your rights. Mechanical trouble is the carrier's responsibility. The airline still has to get you to your destination and usually must cover meals and lodging if you're stuck somewhere longer than you planned. Get a copy of the rules and don't be afraid to use them. One good place to find the rules is the Web site 1travel.com. Avoid cancellation-prone times. Weekends are prime cancellation time. Try to stay away from evening flights, which are the ones likeliest to fly (or, as the case may be, not fly) with a couple of passengers. Bigger is better. Stick with the largest car- riers. Even if your flight is canned, chances are you'll end up get- ting to your destination the same day, instead of having to wait. Your patience might be tested with a smaller airline or a charter. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4400008 Date: 04/02/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 07:31am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: History 31 corrected History 31 Modified :) January 6, 1979. The 388th Tactical Fighter Wing at Hill AFB, Utah, receives the first operational General Dynamics F-16A fighters. The first Air Force Reserve F-16s are delivered to the 419th TFW at Hill on January 28, 1984. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * March 9 1979. Forrest Dines, a Delta Air Lines Captain, retires after 33 years of service. His last flight was non-stop from London to Atlanta. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * June 12, 1979. Pilot/cyclist Bryan Allen makes the first human- powered flight across the English Channel in the Gossamer Albatross. July 9, 1979. The Voyager 2 space probe, launched in 1977, flies within 399,560 miles of Jupiter's cloud tops. Voyager 2 will pass Neptune in 1989. :) :) :) :) --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4400009 Date: 04/02/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 10:58am \/To: LIONEL BINNIE (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: news-876 LIONEL, In a message dated 03-26-98 you wrote ... > JS> Indies. I believe he was awarded the George Medal for the mapping of > JS> Imperial Airways routes in India. > > probably not the George Medal" I don't _think_ that was around until > WWII, and then was a civilian decoration that approximated to the VC. Don't know WHEN he won it but he did.... He retired from DeHaviland in 1939 and when war started became a Group Captain in the RAF. Was some kind of expert on accidents. For Fighters and gliders. > But early pilots? I was taught to fly on open cockpit Tiger Moths by an > ex-RFC pilot. The then head of the Hamble airline school near > Southampton used to come over and I would get freebie flights in the > back seat as they did dog-fights over Langston Harbour just east of > Portsmouth. Great stuff: we had a sailplane instructor as well who used > to wear his old RFC wings. Freddy also held many early glider and sailplane records. Remember he was a pilot before the RFC was formed. I believe he said his license numbber was 14 or there about. I asked once how much flying time he had. He said the first 14 or 15 years he was not required to keep a log book after that he logged between 35 and 40,000 hours.. Freddy died of a brain hemorrhage in fall of 1954 on the way to Denver. He and his wife, Doty were touring the US at their leisure... -=* Jim Sanders *=- === * MsgView V1.13 [R028] * Six a-turning and Four a-burning... B-36 --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4400010 Date: 04/02/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 11:13am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: Aviation history 34 September 24, 1987. The Air Force's Thunderbirds fly for a crowd of 5,000 in Beijing. It has been nearly forty years since a US com- bat aircraft flew over and landed on Chinese soil. January 1, 1988. SAC changes its missile crew assignment policy to permit mixed male/female crews in Minuteman and Peacekeeper launch facilities. January 20, 1988. The 100th and final B-1B bomber rolls off the line at Rockwell's plant in Palmdale. February 10, 1988. The 2,000th F-16 fighter built is accepted by Singapore. March 3, 1988. The Pioneer 8 solar orbiter, which was launched November 8, 1968, with a six-month life expectancy, is finally de- clared defunct. May 23, 1988. The Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey, the world's first production tiltrotor aircraft, is rolled out at Bell Helicopter Textron's plant in Arlington, Tex. August 2, 1988. As evidence of thawing superpower relations, US Secretary of Defense Frank C. Carlucci is given the opportunity to inspect the Soviet Tu-160 "Blackjack" strategic bomber during a visit to Kubinka AB, near Moscow. September 29, 1988. Launch of the space shuttle Discovery ends the long stand-down of the US manned space program in the wake of the Challenger disaster. October 25, 1988. A US Navy S-3 Viking antisubmarine warfare aircraft from the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) is given a $21 parking ticket after the crew overshoots a runway at a base in southern England and lands on a public road. November 6, 1988. The Air Force launches its last Martin Marietta Titan 34D booster from Vandenberg AFB, Calif. It carries a classified payload. November 7, 1988. The U.S. Postal Service issues a sixty-five- cent commemorative stamp bearing the likeness of Gen. H.H. Arnold in ceremonies at the Arnold Engineering and Development Center at Arnold AFB, Tenn. November 10, 1988. The Air Force reveals the existence of the Lockheed F-117A Stealth fighter, operational since 1983. November 12, 1988. Soviet cosmonauts Vladimir Titov and Musa Manarov break the world space endurance record as they remain on board the space station Mir ("peace") for their 326th day in orbit. November 19, 1988. Boeing KC-135R tanker crews from the 19th Air Refueling Wing (Robins AFB, Ga.), 340th ARW (Altus AFB, Okla.), 319th Bomb Wing (Grand Forks AFB, N.D.), and 384th BW (McConnell AFB, Kan.) set sixteen class time-to-climb records in flights from Robins AFB. Nine of the records still stand. November 22, 1988. Northrop and the Air Force roll out the B-2 stealth bomber at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif. November 30, 1988. The Soviets roll out the An-225 transport, the world's largest airplane. December 9, 1988. The first Sierra Research/de Havilland Canada E-9A airborne telemetry data relay aircraft is delivered to the Air Force's 475th Weapons Evaluation Group at Tyndall AFB, Fla. December 29, 1988. The first operational dual-role (air superi- ority and deep interdiction) McDonnell Douglas F-15E fighter is delivered to the Air Force. January 4, 1989. Two Libyan MiG-23 "Flogger" fighters, display- ing hostile intentions, are shot down over international waters by an element of US Navy F-14 Tomcats operating from the carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-67). February 14, 1989. The first McDonnell Douglas Delta II space booster is launched from Cape Canaveral AFS, Fla. The 128-foot-tall rocket boosts the first operational NS-7 Navstar Block II Global Positioning System satellite into orbit. February 16, 1989. Northrop completes the 3,806th and final air- craft in the F-5/T-38 series. The milestone aircraft, an F-5E, will later be delivered to Singapore. March 1, 1989. The first General Dynamics F-16A modified under the Air Force's air defense fighter program is delivered to the Air National Guard's 114th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron at Kingsley Field, Ore. March 19, 1989. Bell pilot Dorman Canon and Boeing pilot Dick Balzer make the first flight of the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey at Bell Helicopter Textron's Flight Research Center in Arlington, Tex. March 21, 1989. NASA completes the flight test of the Mission Adaptive Wing, a modification to the advanced fighter technology integration (AFTI) F-111 that allows the curvature of the aircraft's leading and trailing edges to be varied in flight. The MAW completes 144.9 hours on fifty-nine flights. March 30, 1989. Fairchild delivers the first of 10 C-26A opera- tional support aircraft to the Air National Guard's 147th Fighter- Interceptor Group at Ellington ANGB, Tex. The C-26 is the military version of the Metro III commuter aircraft. April 17, 1989. Lockheed delivers the fiftieth and last C-5B Galaxy transport to the Air Force in ceremonies at Marietta, Ga. April 17-18, 1989. Lockheed pilots Jerry Hoyt and Ron Williams set sixteen class time-to-climb and altitude records in separate flights in a NASA U-2C at the Dryden Flight Research Facility at Edwards AFB, Calif. The thirty-two-year-old aircraft, which was loaned to NASA in 1971, is retired to a museum after the flights. The records still stand. May 4, 1989. Air Force Maj. Mark C. Lee releases the Magellan probe from the payload bay of the space shuttle orbiter Atlantis during the first day of the four-day STS-30 space mission. The twenty-one-foot-tall, 7,604-pound Magellan probe is designed to map Venus with its synthetic aperture radar. May 22, 1989. Donald B. Rice becomes Secretary of the Air Force. June 10, 1989. Capt. Jacquelyn S. Parker becomes the first fe- male pilot to graduate from the Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards AFB. End of Part 34 === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4400011 Date: 04/03/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 07:00am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: News-120 Japanese pilots complain about U.S. warplanes TOKYO - April 2, 1998 2:37 p.m. EST -- Accusing Japan of ignor- ing their concerns, three Japanese pilot unions declared Thursday that they will take their complaints about close encounters with American warplanes directly to U.S. authorities. The unions say Japanese commercial airliners have had three close calls with U.S. military jets in Japanese airspace since September. None of the airliners was forced to take evasive action and no one was injured. But the commercial pilots say the incidents were dangerous, prompting their unions to petition the Japanese government for an investigation. All three unions were turned down, said Kazuhiro Kawamoto, president of the Flight Crew Union of Japan. "We are dissatisfied with the response from the government," said Kawamoto, a Boeing 747 captain at All Nippon Airways Co. "This should be taken care of by Japanese authorities, but we will meet with the Americans." Kawamoto said the three unions, whose 6,800 members represent all Japanese commercial pilots, will hand their petition to officials from the U.S. Embassy and the U.S. military. The U.S. Air Force refused to comment. "All flight operations are governed by stringent regulations," said Master Sgt. Dan McCarthy, an Air Force spokesman. The unions stressed that they weren't calling for the departure of the 47,000 U.S. troops in Japan, just new rules to keep fighters away from commercial air routes. The petitions describe three separate incidents in which cockpit alarms -- called Airborne Collision Avoidance Systems -- warned pilots that they were on a collision course with another aircraft. The ACAS sounds when two aircraft are on course to collide within 40 seconds. -------------------------------------------------------------------- FAA urged to prohibit laptop recharging on flights NEW YORK - April 2, 1998 1:49 p.m. EST -- A group of battery makers is urging the Federal Aviation Administration to prohibit airline passengers from recharging laptop computers, saying they may start a fire. The concern involves electric outlets that several airlines have installed allowing flyers to recharge laptops at their seats or keep them running without draining the battery. The outlets are found primarily in first-class or business-class. In a letter this month to the FAA, a trade group that represents rechargeable battery makers said the devices can cause the batteries to become overcharged, vent pungent fumes and even catch fire. The dangers are highest with older batteries or when a mismatch exists between the type battery and adapter. "We would not have urged the FAA to halt this practice if we didn't feel there was a danger. Our caution is based on common sense," said Norman England, head of the Portable Rechargeable Battery Association. The group does not oppose the use of battery-powered equipment on flights, just the use of rechargers. In addition, it said it is not aware of any dangerous incident that has occurred because of onboard recharging. An FAA spokeswoman did not immediately return a phone call seek- ing comment. But The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that FAA officials are conducting what they call a "high-priority" safety review. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4400012 Date: 04/03/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 07:01am \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: Aviation history 35 June 14, 1989. The first Martin Marietta Titan IV heavy-lift space booster is successfully launched from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral AFS. The booster, nearly twenty stories tall, carries a classified military payload. July 6, 1989. The nation's highest civilian award, the Presi- dential Medal of Freedom, is presented to retired Air Force Gen. James H. Doolittle in White House ceremonies. July 6, 1989. The 169th and last MGM-31 Pershing 1A intermed- iate-range ballistic missile is destroyed at the Longhorn Army Ammunition Plant near Karnack, Tex., under the terms of the intermediate nuclear forces (INF) treaty. July 17, 1989. Northrop Chief Test Pilot Bruce Hinds and Air Force Col. Richard Couch, director of the B-2 Combined Test Force, make the first flight of the Northrop B-2A advanced technology bom- ber, flying from Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, to the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB. August 2, 1989. The Navy successfully carries out the first undersea launch of the Lockheed UGM-133A Trident II (D5) sea-launched ballistic missile. The missile is launched from USS Tennessee (SSBN-734) while cruising off Florida. August 6, 1989. As further evidence of the thaw in US-Soviet relations, two MiG-29 fighters and the giant An-225 transport land and refuel at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, on their way to an air show in Canada. August 8-13, 1989. The thirtieth mission in the US space shuttle program is carried out, as the crew of five service astronauts launches a classified payload from the orbiter Columbia. It is the longest military shuttle flight to date. August 24, 1989. The Voyager 2 space probe completes its grand tour of the solar system as the 1,787-pound vehicle passes within 3,000 miles of Neptune. Voyager 2 was launched in August 1977. September 14, 1989. The Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor air- craft achieves its first conversion from helicopter mode to airplane mode while in flight. September 15, 1989. McDonnell Douglas delivers the 500th AH-64 Apache helicopter to the US Army at the company's plant in Mesa, Ariz. October 1, 1989. Air Force Gen. Hansford T. Johnson, pinning on his fourth star and assuming command of US Transportation Command and MAC, becomes the first Air Force Academy graduate to attain the rank of full general. He is a member of the Academy's first graduat- ing class of 1959. October 3, 1989. The last of thirty-seven Lockheed U-2R/TR-1A/B high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft is delivered to the Air Force. October 4, 1989. A crew from the 60th Military Airlift Wing, Travis AFB, Calif., lands a Lockheed C-5B transport at McMurdo Station in Antarctica. This is the first time an aircraft so large has landed on the ice continent. The C-5B, carrying seventy-two passengers and 168,000 pounds of cargo (including two fully as- sembled Bell UH-1N helicopters), lands without skis. October 7, 1989. Wayne Handley sets the recognized US record for longest inverted flat spin with the most rotations (sixty-seven) in a Pitts Special acrobatic aircraft at Salinas, Calif. December 3, 1989. Solar Max, the first satellite to be repaired in orbit, is destroyed as it reenters the atmosphere over Sri Lanka. December 14, 1989. MAC approves a policy change that will allow female aircrew members to serve on C-130 and C-141 air-drop\ missions. December 20, 1989. Operation Just Cause begins in Panama. The Air Force plays a major role, ranging from airlift, airdrops, and aerial refueling to bringing Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega to the US. In Just Cause, the Lockheed F-117A Stealth fighter is used opera- tionally for the first time. January 25, 1990. The Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" high-altitude, high-speed reconnaissance aircraft is retired from SAC service in ceremonies at Beale AFB, Calif. SR-71 crews flew more than sixty- five million miles, half at speeds above Mach 3. January 31, 1990. Coronet Cove, the Air National Guard's rota- tional deployments to defend the Panama Canal, ends after more than eleven years. More than 13,000 sorties, totaling 16,959 hours, had been flown since the operation began. February 21, 1990. The Air Force returns to dual-track pilot training. The team of McDonnell Douglas, Beech, and Quintron is selected over two other teams to provide the Tanker/Transport Train- ing System. This turnkey operation will train pilots going on to fly "heavies" using the T-1A Jayhawk. March 1, 1990. The Rockwell/MBB X-31A Enhanced Fighter Maneuver- ability (EFM) demonstrator rolls out at Rockwell's facility at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif. A joint venture between the US and West Germany, the X-31 is designed to prove technologies that will allow close-in aerial combat beyond normal flying parameters. March 6, 1990. Lt. Col. Ed Yielding (pilot) and Lt. Col. J.T. Vida (reconnaissance systems officer) set four speed records, in- cluding a transcontinental mark of 2,112.52 mph (one hour, eight minutes, seventeen seconds elapsed time) over the 2,404.05-statute- mile course from Oxnard, Calif., to Salisbury, Md., on, what was at the time, the last Air Force flight of the Lockheed SR-71. March 26, 1990. Grumman rolls out the first production-standard version of the improved F-14D Tomcat for the US Navy at its plant in Calverton, Long Island, N.Y. April 2, 1990. Air Force pilot Maj. Erwin "Bud" Jenschke demon- strates in-flight thrust reversing for the first time while flying the McDonnell Douglas NF-15B S/MTD (STOL/Maneuvering Technology Demonstrator) aircraft over Edwards AFB, Calif. April 4, 1990. McDonnell Douglas turns over the last of sixty KC-10A Extender tanker/cargo aircraft to the Air Force at its plant in Long Beach, Calif. End of Part 35 === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F4500000 Date: 04/02/98 From: NAT POTTER Time: 06:29pm \/To: JOHN FAERBER (Read 0 times) Subj: New Seatbelt Rule JF>What reaction do the rest of you have about the new seatbelt rule? JF>My feeling is that you should be able to take it off if you JF>so desire, but if a person is injured as a result, then JF>they cannot sue for damages. IMHO....I think pax should wear their seat belt AT ALL TIMES!!!!! JF>Would this seem to be a fair rule? Don't know if the airlines could be so protected as such????? and.... 6:29PM 04/02/98 =*= KASIYH & HAGWW!!!! Bro Nap *:-<) X CMPQwk 1.42 1395 X2+ _ Air Force motto: "I'd fly to Iraq to smoke a camel!" --- Maximus/2 3.01 * Origin: The Politically Incorrect! (1:106/1010)