Reading Time: 5 minutes As time runs out on the current FAA authorization – set to expire March 31 – Congress debates the contents of the next FAA Reauthorization bill, and the FAA is under fire.  A recent spate of criticism has prompted lawmakers across the board to demand major reform in the agency. Democrats call some FAA rules […]

Reading Time: 2 minutes Changi Airport handled a record 55.4 million passengers last year, a 2.5 per cent increase from 2014. The number of aircraft take-offs and landings grew by 1.4 per cent year-on-year to 346,330. December was an especially busy month with 5.29 million passenger movements recorded, the highest ever for any single month since the airport opened in […]

Reading Time: < 1 minute Vietnam-based low-cost carrier (LCC) Vietjet Air reported a 2015 revenue of VND10.9 trillion ($490.7 million), up 34.5% from VND8.1 trillion in 2014. The airline said the revenue increase was achieved “despite increasing challenges in the wake of the ASEAN Open Skies policy.” The result was lower than the VND13.8 trillion forecast at the start of […]

Reading Time: 2 minutes Mecaer Aviation Group (MAG) announced it has successfully validated their luxury interior for the Bell 429 with Russian authorities (IAC-AR). MAG developed and branded the MAGnificent for the Bell 429 under an EASA STC in 2015. Since, MAG has applied for various validations around the globe including Russia. Validations scheduled and applied for were determined […]

Reading Time: 2 minutes The Single European Sky ATM Research Joint Undertaking (SESAR JU) has released a study analyzing the projected use and capacity of VHF Digital Link Mode 2 (VDL Mode 2) for data communications between aircraft and ground automation systems. According to the report’s main findings, VDL Mode 2 over a single frequency has already reached its […]

Reading Time: 2 minutes Saudi Arabia’s main airline said it’s planning to sell as much as SAR5 billion (US$1.3 billion) of Islamic bonds in the second quarter to refinance loans and buy planes, becoming the latest issuer in the kingdom to tap debt markets for cash amid an oil slump. The carrier known as Saudia is in negotiations with […]

Reading Time: < 1 minute As long as Mother Nature and other factors cooperate, the first Boeing 737 MAX aircraft is expected to take to the skies over Washington on Friday, January 29. The 737 MAX has received over 3,000 orders from more than 60 customers worldwide.  Although the Airbus A320neo has received more orders than the MAX program, the […]

Reading Time: 6 minutes Many students beginning their training often ask the question “is the iPad the right tool for me in my flight training?” There are many schools of thought on the use of technology during flight training and I couldn’t possibly cover all of them, so rather than try, I will stick with how we recommend the […]

Reading Time: < 1 minute Airlines are launching new routes for the 2016.  Hong Kong Airlines begins 3X-weekly Airbus A320 service to Phnom Penh Feb. 27. It began 3X-weekly Hong Kong-Gold Coast-Cairns Jan. 8. Hong Kong Airlines increased Hong Kong-Tianjin service to 2X-daily. Blue Air begins 2X-weekly Hamburg-Bucharest Boeing 737 service March 29. Ryanair adds daily London STN-Timisoara Nov. 1. […]

Reading Time: 3 minutes More than 8,000 flights were canceled in the US over the weekend, according to flight tracking site FlightAware, as a major snowstorm hit the Mid-Atlantic region. FlightAware reported more than 3,000 canceled flights on Friday, Jan. 22, when the storm began. Disruptions continued on Monday, Jan. 25, as 1,920 flights were canceled in the US […]