Sean Broderick covers aviation safety, MRO, and the hardware side of the airline business from Aviation Week Network's Washington, D.C. office.
Broderick's aviation career started in 1991, working for Airbus in Toulouse. His industry experience includes four years with an aviation consultancy, where he helped launch a U.S. Part 121 carrier; 12 years with the American Association of Airport Executives, where he served as editor of Airport Magazine; and 20 years in full- and part-time roles with Aviation Week writing primarily about safety and the aftermarket.
Broderick was named the 2020 Aerospace Journalist of the Year by the Aerospace Media Awards. He also shared in a 2020 Neal Award for Best News Coverage with Aviation Week Network colleagues. Broderick and Aviation Week colleague John Croft shared the 2015 Flight Safety International Cecil A. Brownlow Publication Award recognizing "significant contributions by journalists to aviation safety awareness."
He graduated from James Madison University with a B.S. in Communications ('91) and earned an M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications ('13) from West Virginia University.
A new FAA safety alert spotlights the risk of inadvertently activating the go-around mode on Boeing 757s and 767s, urging operators and training providers to make sure pilots are aware of the scenario and its role in the 2019 fatal accident of an Atlas Air 767.
The FAA plans to implement new training and several revised processes that ensure issues flagged by its maintenance inspectors are both accurately identified and properly addressed through safety systems.
As operators expand their go-green efforts, pushback against the use-and-discard pattern that underpins much of the new spare-parts business could grow.