Air Iceland raises the bar with avionics upgrade

The “when” may be in question, but the “what” is becoming clearer as NASA pushes ahead with research into future generations of civil transport aircraft. Not only do significant fuel-burn, emissions and noise reductions look increasingly feasible, but advanced computational tools are taking shape that will enable fast, efficient design and analysis of new aircraft.

NASA's loss is Boeing's gain, as former space shuttle program manager John Shannon retires to head up the company's International Space Station program. “It is really great to be back in an operational program again,” Shannon says. Not so great for his space-agency bosses, who continue to see rising stars bail out while Congress and the White House squabble over NASA's future.

FAA experts questioned battery safety in 2010

Seasons greetings from Iceland came early in 2012, carried aloft by seven jolly men in a newly upgraded Bombardier Dash 8 Q300. The aircraft, a maritime surveillance platform belonging to the Icelandic Coast Guard, flew for 8 hr. and 1,835 nm from Reykjavik to Moncton on Dec. 18 via a fuel stop in Goose Bay, Labrador. The goodwill mission aimed to help Toronto-based Field Aviation, the aircraft modification company that installed a new flight deck on TF-SIF, the Q300's Icelandic registration, in 2011.

The vote on Boeing Commercial Airplanes' proposed contract for 22,900 engineers and technical workers at factories in California, Oregon, Utah and Washington state will be pushed back about two weeks but union negotiators are still expected to recommend a “no” vote and ask for a strike. The Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (Speea) now expects to count ballots about Feb. 18. If union members reject Boeing's offer of a contract through 2016 and authorize a strike, picket lines could go up immediately.

Embraer seeks to diversify with addition of helicopters

Revamped regulations could alter aviation sector