cameras in the cockpit

J. Mac McClellan is one of my favorite aviation authors, writing both informational and sometimes humorous articles from the perspective of a professional airline pilot. Here's his latest post, by way of fltplan.com, regarding the idea of augmenting cockpit voice recorders (CVRs) with not just audio and system data, but video as well...

Video Cameras In The Cockpit

new runway crossing clearances / terminology

This is a big change in the way controllers will instruct aircraft to taxi. While it still remains to be seen how this change will play out from the perspective of efficiency as well as "getting used to the new regime", I feel that the "old" way of clearing aircraft to taxi was both non-specific as well as dangerous...

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New Runway Crossing Procedure
Notice Number: NOTC2372

Runway Crossing Procedure Change

Beginning June 30, 2010 , controllers will be required to issue explicit instructions to cross or hold short of each runway that intersects a taxi route.

"Taxi to" will no longer be used when issuing taxi instructions to an assigned take-off runway.

Instructions to cross a runway will be issued one at a time. Instructions to cross multiple runways will not be issued. An aircraft or vehicle must have crossed the previous runway before another runway crossing is issued.

This applies to any runway, including inactive or closed runways.

Changes will also be made to the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) and AIP to reflect the new procedures.

Never cross a hold line without explicit ATC instructions.
If in doubt ASK!

Reminder: You may not enter a runway unless you have been:

• instructed to cross that specific runway;
• cleared to take off from that runway; or
• instructed to position and hold on that specific runway.

See https://www.faasafety.gov/files/notices/2010/Jun/Runway_Crossing_Procedural_Change_FAAST_Blast.pdf for the Runway Safety notice. Click this next link for a video of the change. http://www.faa.gov/airports/runway_safety/news/current_events/taxi_to/media/TaxiTo_V3_3wPreloader.swf (You may have to copy and paste the links into your browser.)

For additional information, go to http://www.faa.gov/go/runwaysafety

another sr-71 crash story

this one is quite a good read, written by the pilot himself:

click here: SR-71 Blackbird breakup at Mach 3.18!

pitot static issue caused sr-71 crash

not a new article or a new set of findings, but still this should be of interest:

The Crash of SR-71 #953

Another friend's blog

This time I'm sending you over to Jack's blog, where you can read about his experiences studying abroa in China for a semester:

http://snapshotsfromchina.blogspot.com/

flying on "half & half"

Continental Airlines Flight Demonstrates Use of Sustainable Biofuels as Energy Source for Jet Travel

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=85779&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1241576&highlight=

Quoting...:

"The flight will operate with a biofuel blend, which consists of 50 percent biologically-derived fuel and 50 percent traditional jet fuel, in the No. 2 engine. This biofuel blend will result in a significant net decrease in carbon emissions relative to traditional jet fuel, as both jatropha and algae consume carbon during their lifecycles."

"The biofuel is a "drop-in" fuel, and no modifications to the aircraft or engine are necessary for the flight to operate. The biofuel meets and exceeds specifications necessary for jet fuel, including a flash point and a freezing point appropriate for use in aircraft."

Impressive... although unfortunately the article doesn't say what the results were- did the test engine provide enough power and keep the temps ok or not, etc etc.? still, the idea of a greener fuel with no hardware reconfiguration required is pretty amazing.

dark castle

happy new year all.

if you ever played Dark Castle on an ancient Mac (like, back in the mid 80s), this might interest you:

http://brandon.sternefamily.net/articles/darkcastle.php

it's a zipfile containing a mac emulator (that runs on windows), and a boot floppy and a hard drive image to load in the emulator. the hd image contains the dark castle executable.

this is the most maddeningly frustrating game of all time. i have never ever even coming close to winning. but for some reason, i'd keep coming back.

now if i could just find a decent color mac emulator to fire up system 7 on- then i could play Glider!!! (paper airplane game- you either know it, and love it- or you have no idea what i'm tlaking about).

also you can find lots of old mac abandonware games here

http://mac.the-underdogs.info/

2009 Federal Aviation Regulations Updates

The latest FAR updates can be obtained here:

http://www.asa2fly.com/files/updates/FARFC_Update2009.pdf

New pertinent changes since the 2009 books were published (!) include:

91.161- Rules regarding ADIZ training REQUIREMENT for VFR flights within 60 NM of DCA

61.23- Medical certificate duration (new 5 year rule for 3rd class privs under 40; new 1 yr rule for 1st class being used for ATP privs under 40- both "under 40" clauses are based on your age when the medical was issued)

Again, both of these updates are NOT in the current version of the 2009 FAR/AIM that is in print.

If you have not yet taken the "NEW" DC ADIZ training course (it was updated when the ADIZ went from "mickey mouse" shape -> 30 mi ring around DCA shape in August 2007), you can go here to do so:

http://www.faasafety.gov/gslac/ALC/course_catalog.aspx

You want the course named "Navigating the New DC ADIZ". If you are a FFC customer, please bring in a copy of your course completion certificate so that we can put it in your renter file.

flying friend's blog

btw if you are interested, head over to my friend "C's" flying blog- we were friends in college and she now lives nearby and is working on her commercial single engine rating... she and her husband own a G1000 172:

http://crazy4flying.blogspot.com/

latest movie reviews

I finally got around to watching a few movies lately, that have been on my list to watch for a long time... anyway- here's the scoop:

The Island- B. It's a great movie to watch if you like Scarlett Johansson. The camera isn't shy of her this time, unlike, oh say Lost in Translation. It has a decent plot- I am a sucker for decent sci-fi- although arguably the plot is 50% stolen from Logan's Run (or more?). It has a great car chase scene with the "railroad car axles" (if you see, or have seen, this scene, you know what I'm talking about). Also, apparently Cadillacs are still ridiculously expensive for what you get, as well as still unattractive, in the future.

Wanted- A-. Very fun movie, the viper car chase scene was great (are you sensing a theme?). Angelina is decent but not too overbearing with her amount of time on screen. The best part is getting to put yourself in the shoes of the main character and feel what he feels as he breaks out of his relatively ordinary life at the beginning. Standard "what comes around goes around" where the end of the 1st scene ends up being the same gimmick as the end of the last scene. Gee I didn't see that coming.

Hancock- C+. I didn't know what I was getting into here, besides some sort of standard Will Smith superhero movie, so I was a little surprised when the movie opened cold with Will already firmly seated in his superhero role- no discovery, no growth, no maturation- just BAM- he's a superhero, let's roll with it. It was, I dunno- eh. It was amusing to see a drunk superhero, I suppose.

I Am Legend (part 2 of the Will Smith double feature apparently)- B-. If you love apocalyptic/zombie/virus movies like Resident Evil, 28 Days Later, etc. then you will like this one. Watching Will play out his "last man on earth" role is fun in a Twilight Zone sort of way. There is not a lot of action in this movie however, and like any other in the genre, there are both leaps-of-faith and overlooking-of-plot-holes required in order to get to the end.

I am also 2/3rds of the way through the most recent Rambo movie (can I just call it Rambo 4? thanks). So far- ughhhh. Not enjoyable. It is a chore to watch. Even the action is just boring. I guess Sly has run out of charisma. Or is even that stretching it? I don't recommend this one at all. I will predict a solid "D" for this one.

Got any recommendations for me?

a slice of americana

from the washington post:

SC's Black Friday offers tax-free guns for all---

"COLUMBIA, S.C. -- TVs and laptops won't be the only hot items in South Carolina this Black Friday. The state is offering an unusual perk to shoppers: no sales tax on handguns, rifles and shotguns."

read it here.

Happy Thanksgiving

have a great day, go hang out with friends and have some turkey. this kind is even ok for my vegetarian and vegan friends.

Canadian ruling on airline seats for the obese

http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE4AJ8G020081120

"Obese have right to two airline seats" in Canada. This ruling comes on appeal, so it will probably stand for now. Aren't you really paying for a predefined volume of space, and not "room for one person" when you buy a ticket? Or do I have it backwards? I'm 6'1", and while I find airline seats to be quite uncomfortable for my height, I don't think that requiring them to provide a seat that actually has a seatback bend radius compatible with my spine makes sense.

I dunno, this one cuts both ways I guess. If you have seen Wall-E, at least this ruling seems like a step away from the lifestyle that the passengers on the Axiom enjoyed.... ughhh.

bang! welcome to the 19th century

Here's a super fun read- insert sarcasm here- detailing the estimated impact of an EMP (electromagnetic pulse) weapon unleashed by an unfriendly country on the US. This is a weapon with a lot more kick than the "toy" in the remake of Oceans Eleven...

What a Single Nuclear Warhead could Do (from the Wall Street Journal).

more cutbacks, this time in shipping

This just in from Fedex directly to my inbox (since I am a Fedex customer, once in a great while):

It's official: DHL is discontinuing its U.S. domestic-only air and ground services. If you've been shipping with DHL, choose FedEx to make the transition as smooth as possible for you, your suppliers and your customers.

Fedex has no qualms about spreading the word that one of its competitors is lopping off an arm of the business. It reminds me a bit of a famous quote (at least among a small circle of friends) from a former VP of mine. To paraphrase, he wanted us to dance on the bones of the dead children of our enemies. Oh, and poison their well too, I think. Yeah. That was interesting. Anyway,....

I had thought that DHL was subbing out a lot of its last-hop home delivery stuff anyway. Every now and then we'd welcome the equivalent of a delivery mercenary driving a van, dropping off DHL ground home deliveries back in Frederick- these guys didn't fly any company flags, i.e. they didn't have any logos on their truck or, er, "uniforms"... THESE guys were pretty rough around the edges.

airline baggage cost update

from the wsj:

"Based on our own estimate derived from consultations with industry executives and other sources, the cost to carry checked luggage comes to roughly $15 a bag."

"Today, most major airlines charge $15 each way to check one bag; $25 each way for a second bag; and as much as $125 each way for a third bag or any bag that weighs more than 50 pounds. Notable exceptions: Southwest Airlines Co. allows two free bags; JetBlue Airways Corp. and Alaska Air Group Inc. transport one bag free."

"United, for example, has said it expects to collect $275 million annually from the first- and second-bag fees. AirTran Airways, which will begin charging $15 to check one bag next week, said it expects to take in $50 million to $100 million annually in fees."

don't forget that earlier post I made, where united will gladly charge you "starting at $149/bag" for overnight service...

AA batteries save Detroit automakers!!

There's an article in the WSJ here about GM trying to save money.

"As part of a drive to cut $15 billion in costs, GM is no longer keeping the 562 [wall] clocks in working order, which will eliminate the expense of replacing and disposing of the clock's batteries and the cost of resetting them twice a year for daylight-saving time."

Seriously, this is their big idea? $1000 or $1500 in AA batteries, as well as an equivalent amount of labor cost (?) to adjust for the timechange twice a year?

Seriously, that's it???

For real???

let it... snow. ugh.

When i see shit like this, i think...

snowblower? $$$???
better house insulation? better windows?
(finally) get some good boots?
i dont have a truck, maybe i will _need_ one this winter.. what if?
maybe oil heat isn't the the cheapest way to go in the long run...?

but mostly i can't understand these people who get all fired up at the idea. "i cant wait for the first snow!" they say. "i hope it dumps six inches!". little do they know that they aren't eight years old anymore, and a magical plastering of the white stuff overnight is not going to get them out of school the following morning. or work. or ANYTHING. instead it is going to get them sweaty, tired, aching. gasping for hot breath in the acutely cold air. breaking out the brooms and the shovels. let's see if we can get to work safely. the logic baffles me, getting excited and hopeful for it.

this is why i like to live somewhere without snow, and then get on a plane and travel TO the snow, on purpose, should something come up, like an itch to ski up at 13,000 feet. that way, the snow really isn't an inconvenience, or at least certainly not a surprise- after all, in such a case, i _asked_ for it when i decided to fly to denver in the first place.

continuing my list, do i need snow tires or not? and i mean the real deal, with studs and all. what are the odds of it snowing so deep that travel will be made difficult? multiply this by the probability that i will HAVE to drive during that few hour window, or conversely the probability that i will WANT to drive...

this, is how my mind works. i'm a constant oddsmaker (or a bookie for people who like to overuse their lingo), measuring the likelihood of getting to actually put a snowblower to good use, versus the odds of having bought one and as a result, having the warmest and dryest winter on record. the snowblower then becoming a sign of my endless ability to guess things incorrectly. either way i would somehow end up feeling cheated, most likely.

UAL upgrade$ baggage handling offering$- via door-to-door delivery...

check it out here...

"Door-to-Door Baggage

Stop lugging your luggage around. Instead, send it ahead with Door-to-Door Baggage. Purchase this service at united.com, and FedEx Express will pick up your baggage from your home or office and ship it directly to your destination. Or if you prefer, you can drop off your baggage at a FedEx Office location or any other FedEx authorized shipping center. (FedEx Kinko's is now FedEx Office.)"

--STARTING at $149/bag.....--

okay... how much does it cost if i just bring my bag with me, like usual? oh, it's still free in most cases? hmm.