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| Predicting the Weather: Always a Tricky Business | back to top |  |
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Challenges As Deadline Looms For Weather Service Consolidation
A proposal to consolidate aviation weather service units is under consideration and a September report by the Government Accountability Office says that the National Weather Service (NWS) and the FAA have yet to properly address key challenges even though the interagency agreement will expire at the end of the month. The proposed restructuring considers changing the way aviation weather services are provided at en route centers, but the GAO states "it is not yet clear whether and how these changes will be implemented." In 2005, the FAA requested that the NWS consolidate sites and reduce personnel costs while providing 24/7 service. NWS' subsequent proposals were rejected by the FAA "because the costs were too high," according to the GAO, and the latest proposal would move weather service from roughly 21 locations, to two. When the GAO found that the latest proposal lacked performance measures starting with a baseline of the current system's performance, the FAA generated five measures and NWS proposed eight more. The GAO has found that the agencies have failed to establish a performance baseline for nine of those measures. The GAO maintains that without baseline measures, the NWS and the FAA may find themselves in a poor position to measure the success or failure of any changes. As always, the GAO has recommendations.
The GAO is now recommending that the Departments of Commerce and Transportation "document baseline performance for several measures, and take steps to address challenges." Before the agencies can move forward, says the GAO, they must "immediately identify the current level of performance," establish performance measures, define a common outcome, finalize requirements for aviation weather services at en route centers, ensure alignment with NextGen initiatives, and address implementation challenges. Read the full report here. |
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| Safety I: Reacting in the Moment | back to top | |
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Baja Bush Pilots Rise To The Call In Hurricane's Wake
Hurricane Jimena slammed into mid-Baja roughly two weeks ago, damaging buildings, destroying infrastructure and disrupting water, power and telephone services, while blocking streets and impairing relief efforts. Now the Baja Bush Pilots are seeking resources to help fill the void. The group, originally formed by Arnold Senterfitt, who in the mid-1960s mapped airports in the region, has now organized in recent years to transport supplies when disaster strikes the region. The group is currently seeking donations of clothing, shelter, medication, foods and water purification. The work is critical and time-sensitive. But the greatest needs are constantly shifting. The group is doing its best to keep their web site updated as they arrange to fly supplies into Mulege airstrip, which was in the path of the storm and last week offered about 2,200 feet of usable runway.
The pilots are working with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is aware of the group's relief efforts, to smooth the border crossing process when dates and times may be pushed off their filed dates due to the nature of the flights. Aside from the orchestration of relief flights, the Baja Bush Pilots have faced other challenges. The Mexican government recently indicated it would reserve fuel for local rescue missions. Toward that end, the pilots were seeking members last week that could provide aircraft with large enough tanks that they could be used to shuttle fuel.
9/11 '09, And The 'News' That Halted Traffic At Reagan National
CNN provoked a 22-minute ground halt at Reagan National Airport Friday morning when it broadcast a story that shots had been fired amid elevated Coast Guard activity on the Potomac River shortly after President Obama's motorcade had passed through the area on historically sensitive 9/11, 2009. The news agency later reported that it had confirmed the events were all part of a Coast Guard training exercise. It was later discovered that the words "bang, bang, bang, bang" and "we have expended 10 rounds" had been heard by CNN over police scanners that the news agency monitors. Following that, the news organization observed and eventually broadcast video footage of U.S. Coast Guard vessels behaving in what might be described as excited fashion on the Potomac. The final complication came when CNN sought comment from the Coast Guard and was told by a spokeswoman that she was unaware of activity in that area. Then, going with what they heard and saw, CNN went live on cable television to announce that the Coast Guard had reported shots fired and aired their footage of the elevated Coast Guard boat activity on the Potomac. That report then influenced authorities to take action at Reagan National, where a ground halt was put into effect from 10:08 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. CNN says it received a Coast Guard e-mail at 11:09 a.m. confirming that the event was a training exercise. In the aftermath, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs took aim at CNN. CNN stood its ground.
In a statement, CNN said, "Given the circumstances, it would have been irresponsible not to report on what we were hearing and seeing. As with any breaking news story, information is often fluid, and CNN updated the story with the official explanation from the Coast Guard as soon as it was provided." |
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| Safety II: Day-to-Day Vigilance | back to top | |
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GA Groups React To Potential New TSA Administrator, Erroll Southers
Erroll Southers has been selected by the Obama administration to be the fifth administrator of the Transportation Security Administration. The TSA was formed "immediately following the tragedies of Sept. 11," 2001, and now employs roughly 50,000 people. It is charged with (among other things) overseeing security at some 450 U.S. airports. Erroll, who is a former FBI agent, currently serves as an assistant chief for the Los Angeles World Airports Police Department's Office of Homeland Security and Intelligence. The National Air Transportation Association was one of the first aviation groups to respond to the administration's selection, saying through its president, James K. Coyne, that "Southers' vast experience with homeland security and terrorism will serve him well as the next administrator of the TSA." NATA "looks forward to working with Mr. Southers on critical security issues facing the general aviation industry and the airline services community." AOPA president Craig Fuller also said he "looks forward to a continuing dialog with the administrator once he takes office to ensure the security process is transparent, and to make sure the TSA recognizes the nation's pilot population as an asset in its ongoing efforts to enhance security."
Southers also serves as associate director at the Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events at the University of Southern California, where he previously served as adjunct professor. Southers formerly served as deputy director of homeland security for the state of California.
Flying Into Bagram? Soon Worry Less About Birds
It's likely not a top concern for pilots, but it ranks among them, and so Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, is slated to receive the first bird radar system deployed in a war zone, DeTect Inc., maker of the MERLIN Bird Radar system, announced last week. By the end of 2009, the system is set to be deployed and operational, providing real-time 3-D hazardous bird activity monitoring through 360 degrees of airspace out to 8 miles. What the system detects, it then provides as automated warnings to controllers and pilots. DeTect originally developed its system for the Air Force and NASA and now has more than 50 mobile units operating in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Africa and New Zealand, both for aviation safety and bird control applications. The U.S. Air Force actually purchased its first MERLIN radar system in 2003 and now has six systems installed at its facilities in the U.S. Aside from its "first" status, the Bagram system is something a little bit special.
Thanks to its working environment, the mobile military version of the MERLIN bird-detection system includes multiple dual-redundant systems, Kevlar-reinforced structures and "Milspec off-road construction," according to DeTect. The company claims its less-militarized versions have found enough peaceful applications to make the MERLN system the "most widely used bird radar technology in the world." |
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| News Briefs | back to top | |
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Piloted Aircraft Become UAV Simulators
As if to prove that technology tends to come full circle, the Air Force is now using piloted aircraft as simulators to train pilots of UAVs. "We're using a manned aircraft to simulate an unmanned aircraft," said CAP-U.S. Air Force Commander Col. Bill Ward. The Air Force has installed a "Predator Ball" under the wing of a CAP Cessna 182, giving the four-place single the ability to pretend it's a Predator or Reaper UAV ready to mix it up with insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. All the actual UAVs are busy doing that and that's left a "critical training gap" for Army and Marine personnel learning how to use the drones. "The Surrogate Predator (as the CAP 182 is known) is the solution," said Maj. Matt Martin, chief of the Predator/Reaper Ops Branch of Air Combat Command at Langley Air Force Base, Va.
With the pod in place, the 182 has the "capability of locking onto a target and tracking it" a CAP news release says. But since the Cessna lacks any other refinements, it's role is that of camera platform, using the pod to stream live video to the trainees as they sort out their battlefield priorities. There will, of course, be extra training required to teach CAP pilots how to make their aircraft behave appropriately."Basically, we will imitate being a Predator," said CAP Capt. David Lewis, one of six pilots initially selected for training. Assuming it all goes well, Lewis says mimicking UAVs will be "the next big thing for CAP in homeland security and the defense of our country."
Midland International Airport To Host CAF Retro USO "AIRSHO"
The Commemorative Air Force will on the weekend of Oct. 10 host at its headquarters in Midland, Texas, the CAF AIRSHO that will take visitors "back in time to the mid-1940s." More than 100 aircraft, ranging from early vintage designs to examples of today's American military, will be complemented by Bob Hope and Bing Crosby impersonators and Andrews Sisters-style music performed live along with the United States Army Band from Fort Bliss. The event is meant to provoke "the glamour and excitement of the WWII USO shows" while giving attendees open access to the fighter and bomber ramps and the opportunity to get up close and personal with many of the 156 aircraft that CAF members have restored and maintained as keepsakes of American history. According to the CAF, "It will evoke a spirit of patriotism reminiscent of the 1940s, a period remembered and celebrated as 'When America was at its finest.'"
The CAF's AIRSHO is sponsored this year by Western National Bank. The CAF is a non-profit educational association formed of some 9,000 members and a fleet of 156 aircraft distributed through 74 units based in 27 states. |
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| The Top Reporter on Our Crack Staff ... Is You! | back to top | |
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AVweb's Newstips Address ...
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Our best stories start with you. If you've heard something 200,000 pilots might want to know about, tell us. Submit news tips
via email to
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| Opinion & Commentary | back to top | |
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AVweb Insider Blog: "Bang, Bang"
AVweb Insider Blog: The Victor Dustup
Read Paul's comments (and add your own) at the AVweb Insider blog. |
Being first to break a story isn't always the best way to be first in service to your audience. AVweb's Glenn Pew reflects on the pressures that led a major and respected news outlet like CNN
to misreport a training exercise as potential terrorist activity on the anniversary of the World Trade Center attack.
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| AVweb Media: Look, Listen, Laugh and Learn | back to top | |
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Exclusive Video: Victor Bomber Take-Off — Hero or Hoax?Original, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos At an air show, an old Handley Page Victor bomber was supposed to do a taxiby photo op. Instead, it took off. The explanation? The co-pilot accidentally firewalled the throttles. Really? You be the judge.
Exclusive Video: Avro Lancaster Bomber TourOriginal, Exclusive Videos from AVweb | Reader-Submitted & Viral Videos With only two left flying, the Avro Lancaster is among the rarest of the rare of World War II aircraft. AVweb recently toured one when it appeared at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh.
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| Your Favorite FBOs | back to top | |
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FBO of the Week: Henderson Executive Airport (KHND, Henderson, NV)
Nominate an FBO | Rules | Tips | Questions | Winning FBOs
AVweb's "FBO of the Week" ribbon goes to the FBO at Henderson Executive Airport (KHND) in Henderson, Nevada.
AVweb reader Michael Gibbs explains how some things that happen in Vegas don't stay in Vegas — they end up on AVweb as beaming accolades:
As I pulled into a transient parking space at Henderson airport, a van pulled up before I had the engine shut down. Before I got out of the airplane, it was tied down, and the driver [of the van] was asking if I needed ground transportation. "A cab to the strip would be nice," I mentioned, noticing that my luggage was already in the van. At the terminal, I was pleased to learn that they'd fill my O2 bottle for less than half what I'm charged at home. I came out of the restroom to find the cab waiting, and I was on my way. When I returned to the airport, the plane was topped off, the O2 was filled, and they gave me a lift back to the plane. A warm welcome, a friendly, helpful staff, beautiful facilities — heck, even Las Vegas approach rolled out the red carpet. What's not to like?
Keep those nominations coming. For complete contest rules, click here.
AVweb is actively seeking out the best FBOs in the country and another one, submitted by you, will be spotlighted here next Monday! |
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| The Lighter Side of Flight | back to top | |
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Short Final
Approach:
Me (sincerely, since I'd never been there before):
Approach:
Larry O'Donnell
Ralph Martin |
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| Names Behind the News | back to top | |
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Meet the AVwebFlash TeamAVwebFlash is a weekly summary of the latest news, articles, products, features, and events featured on AVweb, the internet's aviation magazine and news service.
The AVwebFlash team is:
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