The US Department of Transportation has proposed new rules to reverse a five-decade ban on overland supersonic flights, driven by advancements in quiet supersonic technology like NASA's X-59 aircraft. This move aims to enable a new era of faster air travel while addressing noise concerns, with final rules expected by mid-2027.
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin experienced a major setback as its New Glenn rocket exploded during an engine-firing test at a launch pad in Florida, raising concerns about its ability to compete with SpaceX in the commercial space race.
'...because that protects their aviation industry.' 'The Boeing 787 is one of the most widely-flown wide-body aircraft in the world, and Airbus is running neck-and-neck with Boeing.' 'Airbus is not going to let an opportunity like this pass.' 'If a software problem with the 787 is confirmed, they will use it to increase their own orders.'
'A lot of people feel there is pressure on the AAIB not to go against Boeing or GE -- both enormous American companies.' 'If the AAIB implicates Boeing or GE, it will impact their sales.' 'If their sales are impacted, jobs are lost in the United States. No government would willingly do that.'
An Air India flight from Bengaluru carrying 160 passengers made an emergency landing at Delhi airport due to a suspected engine fire, while another Air India aircraft suffered a tail strike in Bengaluru.
An Air Canada plane collided with a ground vehicle at La Guardia Airport, resulting in a ground stop and significant flight disruptions, impacting travel plans for countless passengers.
An Air Canada Express flight collided with a fire truck while landing at New York's LaGuardia airport late on Sunday night, killing the pilot and co-pilot and injuring at least 13 people, including firefighters.
Air India's first refurbished Boeing 787-8 aircraft has landed in Delhi, marking a milestone in the airline's USD 400 million investment plan to upgrade its wide-body fleet. The aircraft features comprehensive interior upgrades, including new seats and in-flight entertainment systems.
The DGCA has asked airlines to inspect the fuel switch locking system in their Boeing 787 and 737 planes after a preliminary probe report into the Air India crash found that the switches were cut off before the accident.
'In the inspections, no issues were found with the said locking mechanism.'
It added that as per international protocols under the International Civil Aviation Organisation, all information on the investigation will be provided by the government of India.
Air India replaced the Throttle Control Module (TCM) of the crashed Boeing 787-8 plane twice in the last six years following a directive from Boeing in 2019, sources said on Sunday. The replacement of the TCM twice -- in 2019 and 2023 -- was mentioned in the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's (AAIB) preliminary probe report into the crash that was released on Saturday.
'In multi-pilot operations, no critical switch can be moved without the other pilot's consent.'
Air India completed inspections of fuel control switches on its Boeing 787 planes following a DGCA directive after a preliminary report on a recent crash. No issues were found.
'A Mayday at 600-800 feet followed by descent to 450 feet suggests the pilot still had control.'
'Visualise those 15 to 18 seconds: Fully loaded aircraft, pilot manually controlling with both hands (no autopilot immediately after takeoff), looking forward while switches are behind.'
Pilot groups have accused the AAIB of portraying the pilots as responsible for the incident, with vague and selective presentation of cockpit conversations.
Despite the failure, Musk emphasised that the mission yielded valuable data and outlined an accelerated launch schedule going forward.
'The switch can't be shut off by an accidental brush of the hand, but needs effort, conscious physical action to operate it.' 'Was it the software of the aeroplane that caused the switch to turn off?' 'Was it the hardware of the aeroplane?' 'Was it both software and hardware put together?'
Italian news agency ANSA said the flight was diverted following a request from American Airlines for security checks related to a "suspected bomb threat".
United, American snap code share deals, in compliance with US regulator's ruling
The Elon Musk-headed SpaceX's newest Starship exploded ahead of a routine engine test in Texas, leading to a complete loss of the aircraft and damage to the immediate area surrounding the stand, the company has said.
'The tone of the preliminary report creates a narrative towards pilot error. This is wrong.' 'Selected conversation has been divulged. It's not as if the pilots did not speak anything else in the cockpit.'
'Earlier, the NTSB was actively flagging technical issues with Boeing. But now, the narrative is shifting toward 'human error'.' 'That term is often misunderstood -- it could mean pilots, engineers, refueling staff -- anyone.' 'But this framing ('human error') conveniently steers the conversation away from mechanical or design faults.'
The Boeing 787-8 aircraft -- VT-ANB -- was 11.5 years old and had flown for more than 41,000 hours, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
'When there are glaring errors in the report, how can you trust anything in it?'
'Who tried engine relight?' 'If the first officer was the one flying at takeoff, the captain may have taken control immediately post-thrust loss.' 'But the AAIB report doesn't clarify any of this.'
'If anything happened out of the normal, there would be instantaneous ECAM, EICAS warnings, the master caution or master warnings going off.' 'It would be like a Christmas tree in the cockpit if things start going wrong.'
A medical transport jet with a child patient and five others aboard crashed and sparked a large fire in a neighbourhood of Philadelphia on Friday.
A preliminary investigation into the Air India Flight 171 crash in Ahmedabad reveals that both fuel switches were cut off before the crash, followed by pilot confusion. The report also indicates that fuel samples were satisfactory and no immediate action is recommended for Boeing 787-8 operators.
After the mid-air collision over the Potomac river in Washington, DC, authorities said that they no longer expect to find any survivors, and efforts have shifted to a recovery mission, according to DC Fire and EMS Chief John Donnelly, according to a report by CNN.
The outage comes as a result of the failure of the Notice to Air Missions system, which alerts pilots and other personnel about airborne issues and other delays at airports across the country.
A child sitting near the window was reportedly pulled by the suction, and his shirt was torn off.
DGCA's move seeks to ban perfumes for pilots as they have alcohol and can affect the results of breathanalyser tests. But the FAA and EASA have different standards, says senior journalist Shobha John.
According to FlightAware, a flight tracking company, more than 9,500 flights within, into or out of the United States were delayed and more than 1,300 were cancelled due to the system failure.
According to FlightAware, a flight tracking company, more than 9,500 flights within, into or out of the United States were delayed and more than 1,300 were cancelled due to the system failure.
A continuation of the highest standard by the FAA will be a relief for Indian airlines especially the Tata group which intends to increase Air India flights on India-US routes. US aviation watchdog Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has completed the audit of India's aviation regulator DGCA. Sources said that the FAA team was satisfied with the work and changes in regulations by India and is likely to maintain a Category 1 status rating under its International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme.
'We have informed the government multiple times that the situation in the US and India are different.' 'Here, there will be a 500 MHz gap in the frequencies which will safely allow aviation without interference.'
Recently, there have been technical mishaps, including an electrical fire and a brake problem, involving the aircraft.
SpiceJet is the only Boeing 737 MAX operator in India, with 13 aircraft of the type in its fleet and a total of 205 planes on order.
