ATC Privatization

General aviation has spoken against the privatization of ATC because it causes limited pricing power to support itself. ATC system might prioritize certain air traffic over general aviation. The big airliners would have more control over it and general aviation would have increased fees. So it may slow down some of the general aviation traffic which is what the airliners may want.

American, Southwest and FedEx said that a “cooperation groveled  by a broad of industry leaders would move faster than the FAA to modernize its equipment and create more efficient ATC system” (AVWEB, 2015)  The airliners would have more to gain from this due to lower fees so the airliners are for the privatization of ATC. 

ATC is privatized in the following countries;  Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand and United Kingdom. From what I gathered, the private ATC control seems to be efficient and has not caused any damage. If we were to convert to private ATC, it would be a long process but the process has already started a little bit. As of now, the bill is in motion and if congress votes yes to the bill and the bill passes the FAA would have to set the law in motion. This may take a very long time. I do think this would be safe and efficient. If it seems to be working other countries  so why not? I don't think it would become any less safe to fly. It would just be another way for the companies to make money. I think having the power to change with technology is more important. 

(n.d.). Retrieved December 6, 2015, from http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Airlines-Push-For-ATC-Privatization-225300-1.html

GA Medical Reform

General aviation medial reform is trying to get pilots to fly without the requirement of renewing a third class medical. If the Pilots Bills of Right 2 passes, once you get your third class medical certificate you would not need to renew it. If you got your medical certificate in past ten years then you also don't have to renew it. Of course, there are other things the pilot would have to do like 1. Complete an online aeromedical course every four years. 2. If something was wrong with your health, you would just have to get it checkout by a physicians and log it in your logbook. 3.If a condition already exists then you would have take care of that before any of this applies to you (EAA, 2015). At the moment this medical reform is a bill then it will go the House os Representatives then the president will have to sign off on the bill before it becomes a law. 

One of the many good things that may come out of the bill is the fact older pilots will be able to fly without having any restrictions. We all know how expensive it is to go thru flight school and to me it seems like waste when something minimal can ruin your dreams. One of the negative things is obviously the fact that, some pilot may abuse it and not report any serious conditions but I think that will be a rare case. Pilots hold themselves to a higher standard and know the risks of flying when unfit to fly. Overall, I do think this reform is necessary because I think it would benefit the pilots and the government a lot. Both sides would be saving money. If this bill passes then it would be doing more good than bad. 

Chinese Competitor to Airbus and Boeing

C919 has been in production since 2008, it is set to start service in 2016. Without the FAA certification C919 can only fly in China and some Asian and African countries (Reuters, 2015). The FAA has been looking at Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) work since 2010, and still hasn't approved of the aircraft. Some say it is because approving it would jeopardize the economy of Airbus and Boeing so FAA is delaying the process. I honestly don’t know if the FAA will certify C919 but I don't see why they wouldn’t. Most of the aircrafts parts are from overseas. I feel like the only reason it wouldn't get certified because of the  “Made in China” label. 

If the FAA does certify the C919, the US carries will definitely have challenges for example the aircraft is very similar to the Airbus320 and Boeing737. China recently ordered $38 billion worth of aircrafts from Boeing which includes 190 of the B737(Bloomberg, 2015). China’s aviation industry is booming and are in need of aircrafts, if the C919 gets approved by the FAA then China might not buy that many aircrafts from Boeing or Airbus.  In terms of the public perception, I feel like as along the aircraft is safe it shouldn't be an issue. The only issue I can foresee is the fact America is losing business. 

Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China(COMAC) is a owned by the Chinese government and the government also owns the Chinese airlines. This situation is ideal for them to make and sell the aircrafts. They will never run out of money plus the aviation industry in China rising right now. So considering everything COMAC is set up very well. If the aircraft were to receive FAA certification then of course it would be competition for the other companies but I don't see it happening for a while. Once C919 gets certified, it would take another several years to see how the aircraft is doing and it would take some time for the COMAC to build the reputation to Airbus and Boeing. So far, I don't think Boeing or Airbus reacted to the rollout but both companies know that the C919 is far from being on the same level as them. 

References: 

Exclusive - China-made regional jet set for delivery, but no U.S. certification. (2015, October 21). Retrieved November 7, 2015, from http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/10/21/uk-china-aircraft-arj21-exclusive-idUKKCN0SF30K20151021

China takes on Boeing, Airbus with new passenger jet - CNN.com. (n.d.). Retrieved November 7, 2015, from http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/02/asia/china-new-c919-passenger-jet/

Boeing Lands $38 Billion Jet Order From Chinese Airlines. (n.d.). Retrieved November 7, 2015, from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-23/china-signs-deal-to-buy-300-boeing-aircraft-xinhua-reports

Aviation Organization

Joining any association that relates to your career is very important because you are surrounding yourself  with people who have the same ambitions, interests and goals as you. There is a lot of information and advice out there and the best way to get involved is to join the many organizations like The Air line Pilot Association (ALPA), Women in Aviation International (WAI), Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). There are many more associations in the aviation industry but these are a few good ones that stuck out to me. 

Women in aviation is an international nonprofit organization for both men and women. The members include all aspects of the industry from student pilots ,commercial pilots ,cooperate pilots,  air traffic controllers, aviation industry teachers, airport managers, aircraft maintenance  etc. The mission of this organization is to promote women to join the aviation world. They aim to help with looking for jobs, have chapter meetings to help keep you updated in the industry,offer many educational tips via books, magazines, videos. They also offer many great scholarships for both women and men. 

Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association mission is to protect our freedom to fly. The organization speaks for the members in aviation issues, educates, flight to keep aviation available for all. The members have aviation attorneys for your convince. Send out a monthly magazine with updated aviation news and tips. One of the best things about being a member is they have a lot of online training classes. I’ve personally used some of the online training for classes at Eastern.This is probably one of the most important organizations to join as a pilot. 

Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. (n.d.). Retrieved November 3, 2015, from http://www.aopa.org/

Women in Aviation, International Official Site. (n.d.). Retrieved October 31, 2015, from https://www.wai.org/

Global Airlines

Emirates, Etihad and Qatar are leading in the international aviation industry right now but it is because those companies are receiving around 42$ billion in government subsidies(The Daily Signal, 2015). By receiving this money the gulf carriers are violating the open skies agreement. The sprit of the open skies is letting each carrier determine the cost, routes and frequency of the flight but receiving money allows them to not base anything on the market value.US airlines like Delta, American Airlines and United have also received around $71.5 billion in government subsidies according research done by Etihad. The US airlines received money after 9/11 to make up for the loss in the industry. 

The import export bank’s purpose is to export aircraft goods to other countries. They pretty much give loans to companies to purchase the aircrafts.  The buyer gets a lower interest rate since the buyer is not paying the full amount for the aircraft. Emirates received close to $3.7 billion from Ex-Im and Etihad received close to $1.3 billion. Allowing them to purchase these boeings at low loan allows them use the leftover money for other investments. 

Do I think all this is fair? Yes and no, It’s not fair because you are screwing over other companies to make money by receiving government subsidies allowing you have routes no what matter what the market value is but at the end of day it is a business and the companies are doing what they have to do to be the best and make the most money. I feel like it sounds a little childish to say that they are not playing fair because it is a business. 

References: 

Gulf Airlines Win Big With Subsidies, Taxpayer-Backed Loans. (2015, April 13). Retrieved October 28, 2015, from http://dailysignal.com/2015/04/13/bank-rolled-how-foreign-airlines-win-big-with-government-subsidies-and-u-s-taxpayer-backed-loans/

Etihad Airways: U.S. airlines get billions in government help, too. (n.d.). Retrieved October 28, 2015, from http://aviationblog.dallasnews.com/2015/05/etihad-airways-u-s-airlines-get-billions-in-government-help-too.html/

Cargo

After the Colgan accident, the public did not feel safe flying because of the reason of the accident being pilot error due to fatigue. They changed the amount of hours a pilot can work.I feel like congress made that decision for the public eye. So the people feel safe flying again.  The new regulation for passenger carrier pilots limits to either 8 during the day, 9 hours at night, and at least 10 hours off between flights, allowing for 8 hours of sleep. The old regulation allowed pilots to have 8 hours off between working to the max of 16 hours. Another regulation change was the amount of hours you need to fly as commercial pilot, the new rule stated you need 1500 hours whereas before the new regulation you needed 250 hours.  

 The reason for the new regulations is definitely because of money. According to CBS, it’s going to cost the industry $297 million over ten years, when they changed the rules. If cargo was included in that then it would cost about $214 million more (CBS news, 2011). I believe another reason is also to show the public it is safe to fly. The public doesn't care about the cargo pilots since they wont be flying in those aircrafts. 

 I honestly think that the 1500 hour rule is ridiculous for passenger pilots but if you are applying that rule to commercial pilots. It should be applied to cargo pilots as well.If the FAA feels it is necessary for the other pilots to have 1500 hours before flying commercially  then it needs to be necessary for cargo. They may not have passengers but they can still crash and kill civilians or themselves even. The amount of hours working should be the same for cargo and passenger carriers. Fatigue is fatigue no matter who or what is on the aircraft you are flying. 

I don't honestly see it affecting my future career as a pilot.Mostly because I was never interested in going the cargo route. Most cargo companies want a lot of experience before flying huge aircrafts. I think by the time I get that experience flying bigger aircrafts I will be around 1500 hours anyways the hour rule shouldn't effect me too much. 

References:

Tumulty, B. (2014, February 11). 5 years after N.Y. crash, some airline safety progress. Retrieved October 15, 2015, from http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/11/colgan-air-crash-prompts-safety-regulations/5372353/

Feds extend pilots' rest time to avoid fatigue. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2015, from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/feds-extend-pilots-rest-time-to-avoid-fatigue/

Flying Cheap

Being new to the aviation industry, the documentary “Flying Cheap” gave me a lot of good information. Past graduates from EMU have talked about what flying for the regionals is like. They talked about what a regular day is like and it sounded tough but watching it was an eye opener. As they were speaking about the living conditions and low wages, they seemed to kind of laugh about it because they know it is ridiculous but they are willing to do whatever it takes to be a captain of a major airliner. These are very tough conditions for aspiring young professionals, who are paying off student debt and joining a job that pays around $20 an hour is not very appealing. This is one of the reasons why there is a pilot shortage.

Thats great news for someone like me who is a student aspiring to be a pilot. Knowing that there are and will most likely continue to have job openings is encouraging. What doesn't sound too good is the fact I need 1500 hours to be in regionals. I feel like the 1500 rule should be lowered. The rule was followed by Colgan accident the pilots had well over 1500 hours. I honestly don't understand why that rule was placed.Its almost like one bad apple is ruined it for others. If the FAA were to lower the hours and the regional carriers paid more, the job would sound more appealing and more students would be willing to fill all the empty first officer seats. Endeavor Air is paying 20,000 bonus over the course of a year and hiring about 50 a month in the near future (Airline pilot central, 2015) Some companies are already making the right changes now its time for the FAA. 

There is some sort of organization for all the different fields in the aviation industry. Air traffic controllers have The National Air Traffic Controllers (NATCA). General Aviation Manufactures Association (GAMA) is for the manufactures. The pilots have Air Line Pilot Association (ALPA). Dispatchers have Air Transport Dispatchers Association (ATDA). 

Professionalism is when you are in the work environment and should be able to use your best judgement to make the right decision not of you only but also for everyone involved. In order to do that, you must be skillful, trained properly, be able to communicate with others and be polished. Sounds really cheesy but be the best you can be. I do believe that the lack of pay for the regional pilots shows a lack of professionalism from the management. If you are paying your employee next to nothing and showing them that they don't really matter. The result is going to be dangerous as we saw in the documentary. Colgan representative said that they were unaware of the fact the captain failed multiple check rides which is huge lack of professionalism management wise. The captain lacked judgment doing the weight and balance. There were many things that caused the Colgan accident. Going from here, once Im employed I plan on maintaining professionalism by going beyond what is required for me to fly the plane. If I feel something is not right, I need to do something about it since the lives of many people are in my hands. 

References: 

The Coming U.S. Pilot Shortage Is Real. (2015, February 16). Retrieved October 10, 2015, from http://aviationweek.com/commercial-aviation/coming-us-pilot-shortage-real

AIRLINE PILOT CENTRAL. (n.d.). Retrieved October 11, 2015, from http://www.airlinepilotcentral.com/airlines/regional/endeavor_air

UAVs

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are controlled by remotes or pre programed flight plans. Most of us use the term drones for UAV’s. There are multiple uses for UAVs commercially and military. Used commercially for aerial photos, film making, farming, land surveying and hurricane hunting. The FAA does regulate the use of drones and  gives interested flyers two options to obtain the approval from the FAA. 1) Section 333 Exemption; allowing you to exemption in accordance with civil certificate waiver and section 333. This only allows you to operate in low risk area. 2) Special Airworthiness Certificate; which requires you to able to describe everything in detail about the aircraft and you must show you intent to fly and where you plan on flying (FAA,2015). The FAA’s main goal is safety so naturally when there are things flying in the sky you must have rules to maintain safety. 

I absolutely think that UAVs will be integrated into the NAS. It would be ridiculous not to. I know there are obstacles to be able to do that but the outcome of doing it will be worth it. We are already putting good use to them by saving money economically and environmentally.From what I read, it seems like this is going to happen sooner than later.  Some of the obstacles could be the perception from the public knowing that the air space allows manned and unmanned flying. Another problem would be how air traffic controller would be able to communicate with the drone operators. 

Using drones in the military, I'm sure saved many lives. They use drones like Predator and Reaper with missiles to destroy and spy all while operating from miles away(National Geographic 2013). They use smaller drones for cameras and with special sensors to detect chemicals and other harmful materials. Again, using drones is saving money for the military and its good for the environment since the military isn't using fuel for the jets. Ethically, I’m not sure what is right but if the current method is helping the military save lives then we should continue to use drones. 

I found a couple links for jobs postings with UAVs: 

 http://www.indeed.com/cmp/AUV-Flight-Services/jobs/Uas-Pilot-0905421b1a30de05?sjdu=QwrRXKrqZ3CNX5W-O9jEvZM5h6XTCZdXkvKFVritS2WmxOni-bQqMmI0-2h0-6tE-znVJEAI2kWHzLZvRngpHIVLMM0wjZ30EvyAZmvpZqoJ95uhKsQlBajr2fL_edx6

2.  http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/25/news/drone-pilot-degree/

References:

1.  Unmanned Flight. (n.d.). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/03/unmanned-flight/horgan-text

2.   What Role Should the FAA Play in Regulating Civilian Drones? (n.d.). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from http://www.govtech.com/products/What-Role-Should-the-FAA-Play-in-Regulating-Civilian-Drones.html

3.  Civil Operations (Non-Governmental). (n.d.). Retrieved October 6, 2015, from https://www.faa.gov/uas/civil_operations/

Space Tourism

Space tourism is traveling into space for recreational reasons. The idea of space traveling really caught on when Dennis Tito was the world’s first private space tourist in 2001. Tito paid 20 million to travel to the space station. Since then, few others have also made the same journey. The idea of space tourism attracts many but only a few can afford it which makes it hard for the industry to grow. The cost will never be cheap enough for it to be a common thing among the population. I don't ever see it being a means of transportation but I guess people said that about airplanes 100 years ago. So who knows? I would like to see it go into that direction because that would be mean more jobs for pilots. 

In 1984 Ronald Reagan signs a commercial space launch act saying that private aircrafts can go into space. Once space tourism was starting to develop rules and laws were put in mostly are for safety concerns. The current regulations say the passenger must sign saying they are aware of the risks and thats all the regulations are when it comes to passengers(FAA,2007). Virgin Galactic has the passengers go thru a three day training before the flight (Virgin Galactic,2015).  The flight crew must go thru training but it is not as extensive as it should be which is why I think as the industry grows the regulations will also change. The pilots for Galactic are very well trained. Most have flown many different kinds of aircrafts and have over 5000 hours. Like I've said as the space industry expands, flying for space tourism might be more accessible for common aviation folks with the right training of course. 

References: 

Astronaut Training - Virgin Galactic. (n.d.). Retrieved September 27, 2015.

http://www.virgingalactic.com/human-spaceflight/training/

Office of Commercial Space Transportation. (n.d.). Retrieved September 27, 2015.

http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ast/

Mike Wall, SPACE.com Senior Writer. (n.d.). First Space Tourist: How a U.S. Millionaire Bought a Ticket to Orbit | Private Spaceflight & Space Tourism | NASA, Russia & International Space Station | Space.com. Retrieved September 28, 2015.

http://www.space.com/11492-space-tourism-pioneer-dennis-tito.html

Pilots and Depression - Trend or Isolated Incidents?

German-wings Flight 9525 was on its way to Germany from Spain on March 24th 2015. After approaching the assigned cruise altitude, the co pilot Andreas Lubitz intentionally started to descend. In ten minutes, the aircraft dropped 38,000 feet and crashed in the French Alps. Andreas Lubitz was told he was told by his doctor that he should be working, he failed to report this information to his employer. Lubitz had previously been treated for having suicide thoughts. In 2009, he took a leave  from flight training due to depression. German-wings was aware of the previous mental illness. Another incident that involved a mental illness was on a Jet blue flight 191 from New York to Las Vegas. The pilot had a mental breakdown during the flight and the co pilot had to do a emergency landing. Both these situations tell us that pilot may have been aware of the illness and are not reporting the issue. 

The FAA requires the pilot to pass the medical exam once a year if you are under the age of 40. The examiner needs to perform more of an extensive exam and maybe have multiple doctors opinions. Since mental illness is something that is not hard to test for.FAA and the airliners need find a way to make it easier for the pilot to admit to having a mental illness. No one wants to admit to being depressed or other mental illnesses, especially if your job is on the line. FAA and  the airliners need to show the pilot that there is a positive side to reporting a mental illness. Ultimately it is the pilots responsibly to report but the FAA and airliners need to find other solution as well since the current method is showing some room for unsafe situations. 

References: 

(n.d.). Retrieved September 20, 2015, from http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/mar/28/jetblue-passengers-pilot-breakdown-osbon

We Have No Way to Screen Every Pilot for Mental Illness. (n.d.). Retrieved September 20, 2015, from http://www.wired.com/2015/03/no-way-screen-every-pilot-mental-illness/

About Ramya

Currently a senior planning on graduating within the next year.  I will have all my required Flight school courses completed by April 2015 but unfortunately my flight hours will not be completed. I attended Washtenaw Community College for two years to take my pre reqs so I'm behind on my flight hours. My interest in aviation honestly started when I was looking into different programs EMU offered. Flight school caught my eye, went on flight lesson to see if I enjoyed it and of course, loved it! 

I'm very new to the aviation industry but with what I know so far, I'm looking to flying for private companies. I know in order to get there I will need to be a flight instructor  but I know that is something I will not be good at. I'm currently looking into how to earn more hours without being a instructor. I'm hoping some the guest speakers can talk about their experience with being a flight instructor or some advise on finding other ways to build my flight hours. Since I started this program recently, any information to help me become a pilot is greatly appreciated.