New directions for Airport Collaborative Decision Making (CDM)

What exactly is CDM? Collaborative Decision Making (CDM) is not a new concept. It is being practiced to a certain degree both in the US and in Europe, focus being on en-route in the former and airports in the latter. Mature as the concept may be, surprisingly we still see experts who seem to believe… Continue reading New directions for Airport Collaborative Decision Making (CDM)

Anniversary – First radar system deployed at Budapest-Ferihegy airport

50 year anniversary on 6 May 2009 Those who visit Budapest Ferihegy airport these days see a very different facility from what it had been in 1959. If arriving on one of the low fare carriers, you do pass through the original terminal (Terminal 1) but it has changed quite a bit even though an… Continue reading Anniversary – First radar system deployed at Budapest-Ferihegy airport

Visiting an office with a view

Familiarization flight with Transavia One of the countless drawbacks of 9/11, a few of you may have realized, is that even for air traffic controllers it has become increasingly difficult to visit a cockpit of an airliner, indeed most of the airlines adopted a closed cockpit door policy. I used to take every opportunity to… Continue reading Visiting an office with a view

Bird Strike: Operator’s Checklist

News from EUROCONTROL’s aviation safety knowledge base SKYbrary This is the time of year when birds all over Europe take to the air to start their journey south. Though they are the ultimate examples of Free Flight, migratory birds follow centuries old routes, resting at centuries old landing places, without much regard for their latter… Continue reading Bird Strike: Operator’s Checklist

Are you sure it is better to fly high?

Continuing the theme of the difference between what is commonly assumed in Aviation and the facts, let’s just think about cruise altitude. Everyone knows that aircraft fly high for reasons of efficiency, not to mention community noise. But is this always right? For years I cringed as colleagues harangued controllers, insisting that they simply had… Continue reading Are you sure it is better to fly high?

Interesting people, unusual flight plans…

Rob Mead – Long-way turn from Yellowstone to Seattle What were you dreaming of becoming when you were a kid? Actually… I did not dream of anything in particular. I put passion into everything I did, wanted to be good in what I did… I always felt that life was going in a good direction… Continue reading Interesting people, unusual flight plans…

Anniversary – First European STC for CPDLC on VDL Mode 2

5 year anniversary on 12 April 2010 The issuance of a Supplementary Type Certificate (STC) is not normally an event that we commemorate years later… except of course if the STC is the first instance in Europe of Controller Pilot Digital Link Communications (CPDLC) using VDL Mode 2 being approved on an aircraft type. I… Continue reading Anniversary – First European STC for CPDLC on VDL Mode 2

Bodyguarding – I'm armed, what could go wrong?

In fact, it is so obvious. Search Google for bodyguard courses and focus on promotional videos posted by the different companies providing the service. Mostly, the first thing you see is a firing range, students in position and drawing, loading and firing in some tactical manner. As the video continues, people demonstrate firing techniques from… Continue reading Bodyguarding – I'm armed, what could go wrong?

The Ascent of Money. A financial history of the world.

By Niall Ferguson Publisher: Allen Lane – Penguin Books ISBN – 978-1-846-14106-5 Perhaps it is unfortunate to talk about the ascent of money these days but it is exactly masterpieces like Niall Ferguson’s that you would want to read at times like these. The author, tagged as “the most brilliant British historian of his generation”,… Continue reading The Ascent of Money. A financial history of the world.