The Good Old B52: America’s Veteran Bomber

The Good Old B52: America’s Veteran Bomber

Despite more sophisticated aircrafts, the B52 jet powered strategic bomber has been in active service since 1955. While much of it is attributed to the USAF teams that have maintained the aircraft, the main reason has been superior performance at sub supersonic speeds and relatively low operating costs. The B52 is slated to be in active service until 2040, 85 years since its commissioning.

Even before the production of B-36 started, the requirement for a bomber with a larger operational radius and greater speed was issued. The B52 was primarily meant for deterrent missions during the cold war era and designed as a high-level nuclear bomber that could take on the Soviet Union. That however became difficult with the arrival of SAM missiles. That was when B52 took on the role of a low-level bomber.

… Continue Reading

5 Steps to Becoming a Pilot

Think you don't have the money or the time to learn to fly? Training to be a pilot can mean expensive instruction fees, high gas prices and maintenance charges, and it can require many hours of flight time. But becoming a pilot doesn't have to be out of reach. By planning ahead and making strategic decisions, anyone can become a licensed pilot. Just follow these steps:

1. Research, research, research Many aspects of the student pilot process require you to do your homework, and with all of the information available on the internet there is no excuse for you to spend a penny more than you have to. By accessing free pilot resources online (at FAA.org, for example) you will save on the cost of expensive printed materials. And if you do enough studying on your own you may not need to pay for ground school to pass the pilot's test.

… Continue Reading

Airline Cabin & Air Quality

TOPIC: Airline Cabin & Air Quality

GOAL: To learn about the quality of airline cabin air and water systems

Level: Medium

Exercise #1: Read about airline cabin air and water quality then proceed to Exercise #2

It wasn’t that long ago when passengers were permitted to smoke on board commercial flights. You might remember the imaginary ‘boundary’ that separated the smoking and non-smoking sections of the cabin. During the days of in-flight smoking, air recirculation filters removed almost all tobacco smoke particles from the cabin. Now that smoking is banned, do today’s cabins offer the freshest and healthiest environment possible? Not so, at least according to a number of recent newspaper articles, which have also raised public concerns regarding the cleanliness of onboard water systems.

… Continue Reading

Green Airlines (Environmentally friendly Airlines)

I. Read the small paragraph about aviation industry giants operating in environmentally responsible ways and pick out words in bold that have the same meaning as the following:

1. a. forward-thinking
2. b. recycling policies
3. c. sustainable aircraft
4. d. environmentally conscious
5. e. emissions trading
6. f. a global economic downturn
7. g. zero-emission
8. h. recycling program

It seems as though the recent bad economics of the airline business and the 1.global economic recession have contributed to more 2.environmentally responsible behavior and have caused some industry associations, airports and major airlines to be more 3.progressive and concerned about going green both, in the air and on the ground.

… Continue Reading

The Difference Between Its and It’s

TOPIC: The difference between Its and It’s

GOAL: To learn about the proper use of Its and It’s

Level: Difficult

Exercise #1: Read about the use of Its and It’s and then proceed to Exercise #2

There is often confusion between its and it's.  If you delve deeper into this issue, you will see that there is good reason for the confusion.  In spelling, the only difference between “its” and “it’s” is the apostrophe. In meaning the differences are much more significant. However, if you just want to know what is right, the basic rule is very simple:

… Continue Reading

Crisis Management

TOPIC: CRISIS MANAGEMENT

LEVEL: DIFFICULT

Crisis management (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crisis_management ) is a relatively new field of management that has gained major importance over the last years and made its way into corporate structures – airline structures included. Successful crisis management requires forecasting potential crises and planning how to address them, identifying the causes and nature of the current crisis, utilizing strategies to minimize the impact and stimulating recovery.

… Continue Reading

Aviation Quiz

AVIATION QUIZ

1. Many people have broken the sound barrier while driving. Who was the first person to break it in a level flight?

a) Chuck Yeager

b) Scott Crossfield

c) Wilbur Wright

d) Neil Armstrong

2. What do you hear when somebody says something while you are travelling faster than the speed of sound?

a) Nothing at all

b) A sonic boom

c) Since you are travelling faster than the speed of sound you hear words back words

d) You hear what is being said because the air inside the aircraft is travelling at the same speed as you.

3. What Does ICAO stand for?

a) International Civil Aviation Organization

b) Intense Civil Aviation Operations

c) Interstate Civil Aviation Organization

d) Interstate Civil Aviation Operations

… Continue Reading

Innovative Airlines

TOPIC: INNOVATIVE AIRLINES

LEVEL: easy

1. Read the text about some of the innovative ideas in aviation business following links for additional reading material.

 Innovative ideas in aviation business, as experience shows, can either be a great source of income or a never-ending source of criticism. Lately many airlines have been focusing on “innovative ideas” that would help them climb out of recession (http://www.eyefortravel.com/news/airlines/ryanair-responds-criticism-stresses-its-customer-service ), and they hardly had anything to do with their customers’ comfort. 2010, however, looks very promising, with a few brilliant ideas that might actually fly.

… Continue Reading

How Air Force One Works

Air Force One is a prominent symbol of the United States in general and the office of the presidency in particular. Whenever the president travels overseas or across the country, he takes his high-tech deluxe jumbo jet with him. On September 11th, the president's plane showed that it was much more than an executive jet — it became a mobile bunker when all ground positions seemed vulnerable to attack.

In this edition of HowStuffWorks, we'll see what sets Air Force One apart from other planes, and we'll find out what it takes to send the president around the world. With all of the things that Air Force One carries, it's no wonder the media calls it the "flying White House."

… Continue Reading

Airline Staffing

TOPIC: AIRLINE STAFFING TRENDS

LEVEL: DIFFICULT

Read the introductory text about the new airline staffing trends and the general employment situation in the airline industry. Follow links to get access to additional material.

Air travel is no longer romanticized as something glamorous, stewardesses are now called “flight attendants” and you will hardly see anyone dressing up for a flight.

Some airlines hiring former police officers or fire fighters as crew members – is yet another sign of the changing times. http://news.travel.aol.com/2010/08/06/jetblue-recruiting-new-york-cops-and-fire-fighters-as-flight-att/

… Continue Reading