Sоurсеѕ оf Infоrmаtiоn оn Aviation

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We live in the information аgе.  Thе mоѕt important rеѕоurсе thаt аnуоnе саn hаvе iѕ infоrmаtiоn. Thе Internet is thе biggest source оf information thаt wе сurrеntlу hаvе аnd it covers almost every tорiс. Most companies, individuals, organisations, institutions and оthеr grоuрѕ have some sort оf wеb рrеѕеnсе whеrе they share infоrmаtiоn about thеmѕеlvеѕ, thеir intеrеѕtѕ аnd thеir аrеаѕ оf expertise. Since the Internet dоеѕ nоt have moderators to сhесk оn all соntеnt thаt iѕ роѕtеd online, thеrе is сurrеntlу a lоt оf miѕlеаding, even dangerous information ассеѕѕiblе tо all. 

Sinсе aviation iѕ a highlу ѕеnѕitivе undеrtаking, it iѕ еxtrеmеlу imроrtаnt tо ensure thаt аll thе infоrmаtiоn that thоѕе wоrking in thе induѕtrу соnѕumе is ассurаtе. This iѕ оnlу роѕѕiblе bу еnѕuring thаt your sources оf infоrmаtiоn аrе rеliаblе, professional and can bе trusted. Pilоtѕ, еnginееrѕ, flight аttеndаntѕ, аir trаffiс соntrоllеrѕ and оthеr grоund crew need to keep themselves uр tо date оn nаtiоnаl аnd international аviаtiоn iѕѕuеѕ.

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With thе Intеrnеt however, it is imроrtаnt tо соnѕtаntlу соuntеr check infоrmаtiоn аѕ ѕоmе sources will be gооd tоdау аnd fаil thе credibility test thе nеxt day. Until a particular ѕоurсе has рrоvеd rеliаblе оvеr timе, frequent сhесkѕ аnd соuntеr сhесkѕ must bе соnduсtеd. With constantly changing rules аnd rеgulаtiоnѕ, it iѕ imроrtаnt to mаkе ѕurе you hаvе the lаtеѕt and mоѕt ассurаtе infоrmаtiоn.  National Airworthiness Authorities and Regulatorty bodies are good places to start for accurate information.

Rеliаblе news сhаnnеlѕ аrе another excellent source of аviаtiоn infоrmаtiоn. Thоugh thеу mау not hаvе еxtеnѕivе infоrmаtiоn especially оn whаt thеу might соnѕidеr tо bе minоr issues, thеу will keep уоu updated on mаjоr аviаtiоn related hарреningѕ аrоund thе world. Dереnding оn thе rероrtѕ indicated, уоu might nееd tо confirm thе ѕtоrу аѕ there аrе sometimes errors mаdе by jоurnаliѕtѕ when reporting.

Those involved in Aviation must be prepared to access reliable and approved data before acting. 

Aviation Leasure

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Thеrе аrе vеrу many реорlе whо are tоdау taking up аviаtiоn as a leisure орtiоn. Flуing and engineering еnthuѕiаѕtѕ have gоnе into аviаtiоn аѕ сlubѕ, tеаmѕ аnd individuals lооking tо еnjоу thе thrills thаt thе ѕkiеѕ have tо offer. All аrоund the world there аrе people еngаgеd in аviаtiоn at diffеrеnt lеvеlѕ аnd in diffеrеnt wауѕ. Thеrе аrе those who take оn flying аѕ рilоtѕ рurеlу lооking to hаvе a good timе thrоugh adventures аnd tоurѕ. Othеrѕ are involved in thе engineering ѕidе оf aviation and аrе соnѕtаntlу working оn planes during thеir frее timе. Wе have others ѕtill who соllесt аviаtiоn mеmоrаbiliа and tоуѕ. Thеѕе collectors will sometime trаvеl tо far оff places in рurѕuit of whаt thеу соnѕidеr an imроrtаnt рiесе оf аviаtiоn. Alоng with соllесting items, аviаtiоn рhоtоgrарhеrѕ аrе аnоthеr grоuр interested in aviation for purely recreational рurроѕеѕ.

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Even though those еngаgеd in аviаtiоn fоr lеiѕurе tаkе it uр for commercial (non-transport) рurроѕеѕ, mаnу of them making money from it. Thеrе аrе mаnу рilоtѕ whо begin flуing fоr fun and еnd up as non-piloting guidеѕ on flуing tоurѕ for example. Having flown оvеr сеrtаin areas fоr a long timе thеу become experts оn various interesting aspects of thеѕе places. Pеорlе lооking to go оn tours оf ѕuсh рlасеѕ will lооk for аn еxреriеnсеd Commerical Organisation with a guide whо iѕ knоwlеdgеаblе аnd infоrmеd аbоut thе location.

Collectors and photographers hаvе also mаnаgеd tо mаkе ѕоmе mоnеу frоm thеir hоbbiеѕ in аviаtiоn. Thеrе are those who have ѕоld рiсturеѕ, itеmѕ аnd tоуѕ thаt аrе соnѕidеrеd classics. Even thоugh thе mаin аim iѕ nоt tо соllесt thе tоуѕ аnd items for sale, there аrе оссаѕiоnѕ whеn an irrеѕiѕtiblе оffеr will соmе аlоng. Photographers hаvе more орроrtunitiеѕ tо mаkе regular income from thеir hоbbу thоugh thеу will оftеn make lеѕѕ mоnеу аѕ соmраrеd tо thе other аviаtiоn enthusiasts.

Aviаtiоn as a lеiѕurе орtiоn рrоvidеѕ thrillѕ, challenges аnd opportunities thаt fеw оthеr hоbbiеѕ саn afford. A gооd рlасе tо gеt ѕtаrtеd iѕ bу finding оthеr аviаtiоn еnthuѕiаѕtѕ nеаr уоu аnd gеtting tо knоw what kind оf activities thеу are invоlvеd in. You саn thеn еxресt tо hаvе lоtѕ of fun as уоu join thе wоrld оf recreational aviation.

The Greening of Air Transport

Air traffic is expected to double every fifteen years.

'Green Energy'

Economic and technological advancements will make air travel even more common as we move into the near future. Aircraft contribute to 2% of all carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere and 10% of all transport related emissions.  This huge emission of greenhouse gases into the air has already contributed greatly to global warming.

The amount of irreplaceable fossil fuels consumed per passenger/flight needs to be reduced drastically to reduce the amount of greenhouses gases emitted into the atmosphere.

This can be actualised through various methods:

Modern aircraft design - Future aircraft design will have a clear emphasis on reduction of fuel-burn reduction and noise reduction.

• Highly matured flow, load and noise-control technologies can be used not only to improve security but increase the aerodynamic efficiency of fuel consumption.
• The design of fins and wings can be optimised to reduce friction drag and achieve a performance increase in cruise conditions.
• Technologies that mitigate airframe noise during landing, which is generated on the flaps and undercarriage and through the mutual interaction of both, should be employed in design.
• Vibrations in the undercarriage area that are caused by highly unsteady or in-homogeneous inflow can be considered to reduce noise pollution.
• The ever evolving technologies rule leads to inevitability of more fuel efficient engines. More efficient engines will reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released to the environment.

Use of BioFuel - Biofuels are made of renewable resources and can be used to lower the level of emissions.

• Biofuels can be engineered to remove aromatics or sulfur which can result in a substantial reduction in carbon monoxide and other hydrocarbon emissions.  If surveys are to be believed, BioFuels can achieve an 80% reduction in emissions.
• Interestingly, BioFuels can be grown/engineered with a higher calorific value than petroleum fuel - producing more 'bang' for the 'buck'!

Introduction of 'Electric' Aircraft – Electrical energy is both a clean and renewable source of energy.  We have all recently witnessed the first round the world trip by the Solar Impulse (https://www.solarimpulse.com/adventure).

• Rechargeable batteries can be used to replace fuel as a source of aircraft power.  If the recharging of these batteries is combined with renewable sources such as solar or wind, the vast majority of emissions associated with powered flight can removed.
• Maybe this technology can be borrowed from the dynamic development of electric cars.  No doubt there are current limitation imposed by weight, longevity and durability however the technology is there to be developed.
• Potentially, battery endurance can be improved in-transit and supplemented by including solar energy engineering in the airplane. Solar panels can be fitted on the plane and help recharge the batteries in the air (or on the ground in suitable climates). 

As the population continues to grow, if the technology can support it, the future of transportation will may be through the air.  ALready we see that the advancement in social, economic and political environments is heralding the highest level of air transport in history. Unless checked, this increase will continue to contribute to the increase in global warming.

The Greening of Air Transport will help to check the rise in harmful emissions into our atmosphere.

Modern Trends in Aviation security

Hostile activities around the world have led to the additional prioritisation of passengers’ security in the aviation industry.

Airport Security

The increasing threat of attacks on passengers, facilities or aircraft - especially with miniature hidden explosives - has led to the growing need for error free mechanisms to curb occurrences.

Air travel continues to be the most safe form or transport.  Huge number of people travel safely every day however airports and operators are taking are taking advantage ofsophisticated technologies to try and ensure the high level of safety continues. 

All major airports globally now use Explosive Detecting Systems.  EDS work on tomography computing technology that is able to detect any explosive products in passengers’ luggage. The detection aspects are enabled through the targeted used of x-rays able to give a visual representation of specific materials in, for example, a passengers’ bag.  Improvements in this type of technology allow the scanning operator to detect and give an alarm if the presence of any specific fluids and gases are found. The laser based variant of the EDS cleverly uses lasers to screen large luggage and provide a safety analysis as quickly as three seconds. Explosive Detection Systems are a large and crucial part of the threat detection and removal process

In the modern age, operators of aircraft and airports, manage their operation through the use of sophisticated computer systems.  This leads to fantastic advancements in safety and efficiency however , any breach in the software can lead to grave consequences. This risk has been increased by the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) culture where passengers are allowed to bring their phones, laptops or tablets on board. External equipment is very difficult to track and secure and so the threat of malicious transmissions is increased. 

Security Reduces Hacking

Fortunately, robust cyber security standards are employed by airports and airlines to curb these risks. Airline systems are installed with powerful firewalls that filter all software requests in the airline systems. Furthermore, encrypted transmission between the aircraft and the airport control room is being adopted to prevent cases of information leakage or adverse input.

In a spreading trend airports are investing in new and advanced systems that track passengers’ travel history and identity. Sophisticated finger print technology has long being used to counter check passengers database held information and the one on their passport. Advanced biometric systems have introduced the use of iris scanners that scans the eyes biological properties and the information matched with the existing data. Face recognition software is also gaining traction in some airport to achieve the same aim. These techniques help to ensure known people cannot board aircraft on falsified documentation.

As always there is a fantastic rate of innovation in the aviation industry which will continue to be deployed as it becomes available, hopefully continuing the positive modern trend in aviation security.  

The future of Air Transport

Last year, more than 3 billion people were transported by air - wow! 

Air Transport

That means that about 44% of the entire global human population travelled by air!

It is predicted that by 2050, this could increase to about 70% of the worlds population. To meet this incredible increase, the airlines and aircraft of the future will be developed to handle the increased pressure that will be brought about by this change. Aircraft will inevitably need to be faster, more efficient, eco-friendly and safer. As always, Engineers are working on designing and developing  aircraft that will meet rise to these challenges.

The launch of the Concorde over four decades ago provided a glimpse of what the future of could have looked like. As we all know, Concorde was eventually retired due to safety reasons, but the evolving technology has demonstrated that it is possible to provide supersonic flight with comfort and style.  Moving into the future there is no doubt that supersonic commercial flight will return and will no longer be restricted to military aircraft. 

The 'Heavy' cost of battery power

With air transport expected to increase seven fold in the next 50 years, there will undoubtedly be an increase in greenhouse gas emissions with the current technologies. Powered aircraft of the future will need new innovations to combat this increase.  A popular current methodology for the reduction of harmful emissions form powered aircraft is with electrically powered aircraft.

A significant barrier to this though is the energy capacity (or the weight associated with capacity) of the batteries themselves. Theoretically, batteries needed to power aircraft of the future will need to have an energy density of 500 watt-hours per kilogram, with a ratio of power cell to overall mass of between 0.7-0.8. Recent innovations have edged toward achieving this goal. In 1994, Lithium-ion batteries were capable of achieving energy densities of 113wh/kg. Two decades later, a lithium-ion battery had the capacity of about 300Wh/kg. It is therefore reasonable to suppose that by 2050, engineering innovations will have created a battery with over 500Wh/kg energy density.

No doubt that future aircraft will have technologies in place as standard that seem like science fiction at present. But to achieve these ambitious goals for the increase in air capacity, extensive engineering research will have to be carried out. That notwithstanding, recent strides and the continual dedication of the Engineering community have shone a positive light towards the realisation of these goals. 

Aviation Hazards

Hazards come in all shapes and sizes

Today, flying is one of the most common and convenient methods of transportation. Aviation is the art and science of taking to the skies. It is all about designing, production and maintenance of aircraft. There are some people who have even adopted flying as a hobby. It is a fun activity but it requires extra care. Aviation safety is all about avoiding flight failures and plane crashes. There are multiple hazards which could cause such accidents.

These hazards need to be addressed critically before flying:

Foreign Object Damage

Any foreign object can be hazardous during the flight. It includes any technical error during manufacturing or repair. Any debris like dust or stones on the runway also acts as foreign object debris.

Misleading and Lack of Information

At times, the maps and charts used during the flights are misleading which can de-track the plane and can cause damage. In the same way, when information provided by the flight or ground control is not accurate then it can cause damage or even crashes.

Lightning

Per year average two planes crash because of lightning. It so happens that at times lightning occurs without any prediction which is very dangerous. Research has shown that the effect of lightning on the metal coated planes is very disastrous so it is very unsafe to fly in lightening and thundering.

Today, flying is one of the most common and famous methods of transportation. Aviation is the art and science of flying an aircraft. It is all about designing, production and maintenance of aircraft. There are some people who have even adopted flying as a hobby. It is a fun activity but it requires extra care. Aviation safety is all about avoiding flight failures and plane crashes. There are multiple hazards which could cause such accidents. These hazards need to be addressed critically before flying:

Component Failure

Component failure can be a result of multiple factors. For instance, there could be any technical error, foreign object debris, fuel starvation, any of these factors could cause an engine to fail. That is why a proper maintenance is crucial otherwise some serious damage can occur.

Human Factors

One of the most common cause of crashes and accidents is human error. It happens many times that the individual flying makes any error by mistake.  Special training sessions and programs are there to train people in this area. All people who adopt it as a hobby, fly professionally or work in Engineering need proper training. But despite all this, there is always a room for human error. People make mistakes which cost them a little too much and at times it can also be fatal.

Human Factors - What You Need to Know

Human Factors have many complex aspects

In industry, the study of human factors is also known as Ergonomics. It is a study of how people behave psychologically and physically with respect to any particular situation, product or service. It is mainly about fitting people to the job they are doing. It focuses on the work environment and items such as the design and function of workstations, controls, displays, safety devices, tools and lighting to fit the employee's physical requirements, capabilities, and limitations to ensure his/her health and well being. To make your employees more efficient and to reduce risk of failure, it is very important to consider these factors. Especially when you are structuring and designing the work you need to make sure that it is comfortable for the people. There are certain principles which need to be considered in this aspect:

·         Safety

·         Comfort

·         Ease of use

·         Productivity and performance

·         Aesthetics

Organisational Perspective

In different organizations, human factors are considered to enhance the productivity and performance of employees. Organizational policies, procedures and structures are included in this. These are designed in such a way that they could fit a job with the person who is performing it.

Cognitive Perspective

Cognitive Ergonomics answers the question that how the mind processes the information. How it takes input and convert it into an output. It's mainly about an interaction between humans and data. It can include signs and signals, visibility, retention of data etc.  Humans are susceptible to failure if they are tired, distracted or unhappy.  Failure could lead to the compromise of a work activity, detracting from the safety or the organisation and product/activity.

Physical Perspective

The physical perspective of ergonomics or human factors is all about tools and things. Its main focus is on the physical dimensions i.e. how people use different instruments and tools and how comfortable they are with them.

Ignoring the Human Factors at Workplace

For the success of any organisation, it is very important to consider human factors. The work environment is supposed to be comfortable for the end users who are actually working there. When these human factors are ignored they cause many health and safety issues. For instance, if the chair is too low and it's not an appropriate level with the desk. In this case, your back is not supported and your neck is tilted which could cause pain. Similarly, the use of upward sloping keyboard and sitting somewhere too long can also cause discomfort. In order to avoid all these situations you need to consider the human factors when you design a job. 

Safety in the Workplace

Safety encompasses everyone, it is a circular feedback loop

Workplace health and safety is very important employees as well as for employer. One of the major responsibility of management is to ensure the safety of its workers. Employees perform their tasks well when they are working in a safe and healthy environment. There are certain steps which can be taken to ensure the safety of people at a workplace. These include:

·         Understand the benefits of providing safe and healthy work environment. It is beneficial     not only for business but also for community, families and employees

·         Understand your role and responsibility in making a workplace safe and healthy

·         Arrange training sessions

·         Make sure that the equipment used in the organization is safe and secure

·         Provide care for people who are working in extreme conditions e.g. inside boiler rooms

·         Address the workplace safety hazards

·         Try to find the best solutions for safety issues

·         Create a culture of open communication so that people could communicate safety concerns easily

·         Make sure that you fulfil all the laws and regulations of workplace safety

Workplace safety benefits employee and employer both which is why everyone should take care of it.

Employee Awareness

Violent acts and fights between workers could damage the reputation of a company and violate the safety clause of an organization. Management needs to communicate to their employees that what kind of behaviour is not acceptable. Some organizations even arrange sessions where they train people to stay calm in case of any conflicting situation. This ensures the safety of your employees and it also protects the image of your company.

Health & Safety Programmes

Health and safety programs are implemented to avoid any accident or injury at a workplace. These programs are actually designed to educate people. It tells them about the benefits of taking safety measures and the disadvantages of avoiding such measures. For instance, these programs give information that how much it will cost to the organization if any safety clause is breached. This cost-benefit analysis enables the management to be extra careful about health and safety issues.

Health & Safety Hazards

Hazards are any potentially dangerous substances or behaviours that could cause harm to the employees. It may include any dangerous chemical substance used in factories, it can also include any dangerous contagious disease or it may be any violent employee who harms other employees. For instance, in any chemical industry where employees are subjected to dangerous gases like carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide, management should provide extra safety measures.

Health and safety measures are not a joke. People should be very careful about it. It not only harms the individuals but it also cost a lot of money and distorts the company's reputation as well. When safe and healthy work environment is not provided, people get demotivated. It affects their productivity and performance as well. Which eventually leads to a low-profit margin of the company. So to maintain a reputation in a market and to run a business properly, it is necessary to provide a safe and healthy environment to the employees.

The S76 Type Certificate is Approved within EASA!

On the 25th February 2015 EASA confirmed that the Sikorsky S76 had officially been assigned a Type Certificate:

This paves the way for the new S76 'D' into the country...watch this space!

The Earnest Shackleton Departs for South Georgia!

Three Helicopters Loaded (flown) onto the Shackleton safely. Now they are en route from Falklands to South Georgia! Fingers crossed the guys don't have too rough seas.

Additions to the A2B Aero Part M Approval

A2B Aero Ltd is excited to announce further additions to the EASA Part M Approval.

Our new Airworthiness Management Capabilities include:
 

• Airbus Helicopters AS350
• Airbus Helicopters AS355
• Airbus Helicopters AS365
• Airbus Helicopters EC120
• Airbus Helicopters EC135
• Airbus Helicopters EC145
• Airbus Helicopters EC155
• MBB BO 105
• Bell 429
• Bell 206
• Bell 407
• MD900 Series
• Sikorsky S76 Series
• AW/AB 139

We are also able to issue/recommend ARC's under the Subpart I privilege.