ALPA Prez Ambrosi Applauds Congressional Boeing Oversight

On April 17, 2024, in response to recent U.S. Senate hearings scrutinizing Boeing's safety practices, Captain Jason Ambrosi, president of the Air Line Pilots Association International, expressed strong support for the oversight efforts. The hearings, spearheaded by Senators Maria Cantwell of Washington and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, addressed concerns over Boeing's handling of safety protocols in their manufacturing processes and whistleblower treatments.

Alaska and Horizon Jets End Grounded for an Hour

Alaska Airlines was given a brief ground stop by the FAA, lasting from 10:50 eastern to just about an hour later on April 17th. The culprit? A computer system "upgrade" that messed with their flight planning capability. In a statement to the media, Alaska Airlines said "This morning we experienced an issue while performing an upgrade to the system that calculates our weight and balance," only adding that the knock-on effects of the pause would affect flights throughout the day.  

AAR Breaks Ground on New MRO Facility on Oklahoma City

In a significant development for the aviation MRO industry, AAR Corporation has commenced the expansion of its maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility in Oklahoma City. The groundbreaking ceremony, held Monday morning, was attended by over 150 representatives from AAR, Alaska Airlines, state and local government, and partner organizations. The new three-bay facility, adjacent to AAR's existing site at Will Rogers World Airport, is set to provide an additional 80,000+ square feet of hangar and warehouse space.