FedEx Has Money for Shareholders, but Not for Pilots

The FedEx pilot base responded to the company's $1 billion share buyback with derision, noting that the company remains in negotiations over an updated contract since 2021. FedEx will engage in the accelerated share repurchase agreement as "part of its commitment to enhance capital returns to stockholders", according to the Air Line Pilots Association release. Captain Billy Wilson, chair of the FedEx ALPA Master Executive Council, compared the decision to similar air carriers, noting that "American, Delta, United, and, most recently, Southwest have made the right choice to invest in their pilot employees with solid contracts."

Upcoming 2024 Tour Marks Doc’s Eighth Season Since Its Restoration

The 2024 B-29 Doc History Restored Tour will kick off with a season-opening weekend March 8-10 in Wichita and will coincide with the B-29 Doc & WSU Tech Foundation Pull a Plane event, which is scheduled for Saturday, March 9. “The upcoming 2024 tour not only marks Doc’s eighth season since its restoration in 2016 but also launches a year-long tribute commemorating the 80th anniversary of when Doc was built by the Boeing Company in Wichita in 1944,” said Josh Wells, B-29 Doc executive director.

Air Carrier Moves to Show WWII Vets Europe for 80th D-Day Anniversary

American Airlines has embarked on an Honor Flight program to show World War II veterans their old battlefields in the European Theater to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of the Normandy Landings. The charter flight will see vets brought along on a 9-day group flight, starting off from Dallas, Texas on a Boeing 787 to Paris, where the group will spend 2 nights. From there, a bus ride to Normandy will follow, allowing attendees a chance to see the pivotal battlefield with their own eyes once again.

Spring Cleaning Will Result in Distributed Bases Throughout WWII Stomping Grounds

The Air Force is planning a return to the pacific isle of Tinian, a US territory 118 miles from Guam. The interesting news set off some buzz, with astute readers noting with a passage in the recently passed National Defense Authorization Act that provides about $79 million dollars for Tinian's spring cleaning. Phase 1 of airfield development will see $26 million of that funding, bringing the North Airfield and surrounding facilities back to life. $21 million will go towards improving the fueling facilities, adding new fuel tanks and pipelines.

Spirit Airlines Provides Room to Grow for Moritz Conrads

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University profiled one of its alumni to show just what can happen in the span of a few years, showing Moritz “Mo” Conrads where he stands today, a senior maintenance manager at Spirit Airlines. Beginning his tenure with Spirit in 2016, Conrads cut his teeth as an AMT from the start, showing determination and a supportive attitude as he sought to mentor and recruit fellow techs to the carrier.

New Engines, New Planes, Fresh Equipment Bolsters Taiwanese Regional

Mandarin Airlines got its first new production ATR 72-600 in quite some time, with another 5 on track for delivery throughout next year. The order for a half-dozen aircraft was solidified at the Paris Air Show earlier this year, when Mandarin agreed to buy 6 brand-new ATR 72s.

Also: Drone Defense, VelocityOne Flightdeck, NASA Turbofan Engine, Block 5 MQ-9A

Sierra Space's "Dream Chaser", the "world's only commercial spaceplane", has begun its final testing phase ahead of planned operations in 2024. Dream Chaser nestled into the NASA test facility to join Sierra's cargo module, the Shooting Star. Both will be unified in a launch stack for testing in the coming weeks, evaluating their resilience to forces, vibration, and wear. Airspeeder's 2023 EXA Series Championship saw the last of its 3-car races finish this month, capping off the 2023 season with a win to Zephtali Walsh. The win capped off the "world's inaugura

As Soon As The Tailwheel Touched The Ground, The Airplane Swung Hard To The Right

On December 26. 2023, about 1225 mountain standard time, an experimental amateur-built Glasair SH2, N29TT, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Prescott, Arizona. The pilot was uninjured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot reported that after an uneventful wheel landing on runway 21L, he held the tail off the ground until the airplane had decelerated to about 30 mph. As soon as the tailwheel touched the ground, the airplane swung hard to the right, ground looped, and came to rest on the runway edge.

From 2019 (YouTube Version): Celebrating Women In Aviation At AirVenture 2019

WomenVenture is largest gathering of passionate female aviators and aviation enthusiasts, held each year during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh since 2008. 2019 marked the 12th year for the celebration. Activities included a networking social, annual group photo with more than 1,000 women on Boeing Plaza, and a ‘Power Lunch’ with keynote speaker U.S. Air Force Col. Kim “Killer Chick” Campbell. Since 2008, EAA WomenVenture has offered the opp

Aero Linx: EUROCONTROL EUROCONTROL is a pan-European, civil-military organization dedicated to supporting European aviation. We are committed to the European Union’s vision for a Single European Sky. We support our Member States and our civil and military stakeholders (including air navigation service providers, airspace users, airports, and aircraft/equipment manufacturers) in a joint effort to make aviation in Europe safer, more efficient, more cost-effective and with a minimal environmental impact.

Aero Linx: Corporate Angel Network (CAN)  Corporate Angel Network (CAN) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to help cancer patients access the best treatment centers in the United States by arranging free travel on corporate aircraft. Business jet travel makes it possible for patients, especially those in locations with minimal airline access, to travel to specialized medical centers. Whether a patient is traveling for surgery, clinical trial, or a second opinion, CAN aims to reduce a patient’s physical, emotional and financial stress by providing a seat on a corporate flight.

Transmitting In The Blind A transmission from one station to other stations in circumstances where two-way communication cannot be established, but where it is believed that the called stations may be able to receive the transmission.

“The upcoming 2024 tour not only marks Doc’s eighth season since its restoration in 2016 but also launches a year-long tribute commemorating the 80th anniversary of when Doc was built by the Boeing Company in Wichita in 1944. The skilled workforce in Wichita – led by women known as “Rosie the Riveters” – built 1,644 B-29 aircraft during World War II. B-29 Doc is one of those iconic aircraft built in the Air Capital of the World and we are honored to continue to keep the legacy alive of those who designed, built, flew and maintained these machines to project freedom.” Source: osh Wells, B-29 Doc executive director, in remarks made as the B-29 Doc folks announced the start of their 2024 flying s