Archive for December, 2009
Monday, December 21st, 2009
 The FAA reported in November 2009 that the LSA accident rate is “very compatible with what’s going on in the rest of the general aviation world,” according to Randy Babbit, the new FAA Administrator in Flight International.
This is nothing new for LSA enthusiasts, but should extinguish the aura of skeptism surrounding our beloved pastime. While each individual loss is tragic and heartbreaking, the statistical facts prove the fatalities are nothing out of the norm.
In the four-year period from August 2005 to June 2009, the LSAS experienced 12 fatal accidents, resulting in the loss of 18 lives. Altogether, 10 manufacturers were affected. In 2007, an unusually year of high sales and activity, the industry experienced 5 crashes and 8 fatalities. The other measured years had half or less.
Manufacturers and entire LSAS community are making constant strides and continuous efforts in providing safety measures throughout the industry and it show. And now the FAA stats are here to back them up.
Tags: aviation fatalities, FAA safety report, LSA sport safety, Randy Babbit
Posted in Light Sport Aircraft | No Comments »
Friday, December 18th, 2009
 Norwalk, CT-based Southern Air Holdings Inc. has hired former DHL Express exec Daniel McHugh to replace retiring founder James Neff. McHugh will take the helm of Southern Air, which charters cargo aircraft to government agencies and corporations from its hub at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in Alaska.
Neff founded Southern Air in 1999 and will remain on as a board member and stakeholder. “We have built a world class company by continuously providing exceptional cargo transport services to our clients at the lowest cost. We have done this while remaining committed to the highest safety standards.”
McHugh previously led DHL Express Asia Pacific, and before that was an investor with NYC-based Vietnam Partners LLC, which invests in the logistics sector.
Tags: cargo transport, CT, Danie McHugh, James Neff, new CEO, Norwalk, Souther Air Holdings, Ted Stevens Anchorage Airport
Posted in Commercial Aviation | No Comments »
Monday, December 14th, 2009
JetBlue is getting very, very friendly!
JetBlue, long considered the social media maven with nearly 1.5 million followers on Twitter…but what’s this? A measly 60k on Facebook??? This can’t be! So what’s the popular airline kid to do when they have no friends?
Easy, bribe them!
JetBlue is doing just so, and dang it, everyone is wishing they did it first, but will undoubtedly follow suit. Sooner rather than later, but we, the wannabes frantically friending JetBlue will end up the winners regardless.
Here’s the deal: JetBlue Facebook wants more friends, and to get them, they’re offering a carefully engineered campaign to add more – a lot more, quickly and with as much PR as possible.
A fan focused campaign, named buffet-style All-You-Can-Jet Fan Sweepstakes thrives on the age old gimmick of FREE STUFF. What’s old is new again!
 Become a facebook fan and you can win free round-trip tickets, comped airfaire and a vacation for you and — get this — three friends for 5 days and 4 nights. Or, the grand prize of unlimited free travel on JetBlue for a year. A YEAR!
Simple and easy: a marketing dream come true. Become a fan of JetBlue and submit a ballot via the JetBlue Sweeps Page tab.
JetBlue gets the friends they’re looking for, and we get the chance to dream a little dream of traveling on someone else’s dime.
Hey, that’s what friends are for, right? (Up to 73k at this posting…and counting!)
Tags: airline offers, All-You-Can-Jet Sweepstakes, FaceBook, JetBlue, Social Media, sweepstakes
Posted in Commercial Aviation, Marketing, Online Marketing | 2 Comments »
Friday, December 11th, 2009
 Talk about pressure:
With 15 pilot colleagues looking over his shoulder, Nicholas Plumer flawlessly rolled the airplane down the runway centerline. All smiles as he stepped out of the Frasca Cirrus SR22 simulator at the Learn to Fly Center at the 2009 AOPA Summit in Tampa, FL, he nodded to the spectators with confidence.
Plumer was one hundreds of pilots and non-pilots who demoed the simulators first-hand, thanks to Frasca who brought three such simulators to the Summit to inspire those non-pilots not already hooked on flying.
At AOPA Summit, flight simulator developers and operators discussed the cutting edge technology available for students and experienced pilots, with ground-based training devices. Flight simulators reduce the cost of training, and allow students to experience emergency situations from the safety of a classroom before entering the cockpit.
It seems staying grounded will get you up in the air sooner and better educated and prepared, so was the consensus at the AOPA Aviation Summit. With flight simulators, students can practice virtual flights, without the expense of avgas or even log time. In fact, a flight student can log up to 20 hours of intricate training without ever leaving the ground.
“And it’s totally awesome,” said several wannabe pilots as they exited the simulator to quickly search out where others were located at the convention. Check out the AOPA website for a complete wrap up of this year’s AOPA Aviation Summit.
Tags: 2009 Summit, AOPA, flight simulators, Frasca, Summit, Tampa aviation
Posted in General Aviation, Light Sport Aircraft | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, December 8th, 2009
 Yes, the current economy has been disastrous for the aviation industry – no avoiding it. But Diannae Ehler, General Manager of Stewart International Airport reported November 17, 2009 to the Stewart Airport Commission that despite the downturn, Stewart is holding its passenger numbers steady.
Stewart is predicted to end up serving 400,000 passengers for 2009, approximately 30,000 a month, according to Ehler, and these numbers have remained consistent throughout the year. Although respectable, these numbers are down from the peak of 900,000 a month in 2007, when the Port Authority of NY purchased the entity.
Poised for the economic recovery, Stewart is prepping to be ready for when airlines return and passengers return with them. They are marketing area restaurants and hotels, as well as the ideal location situated nicely in the quad-state area: NY, NJ, CT and PA.
In the mid-1990s, airlines significantly reduced their flights to Stewart, but the Port Authority is reaching out to recruit major airlines to return. To get the numbers up locally, the PA is conducting a business travel survey to learn how and when the local community is using the airport — or why they are not.
Airlines are filing for bankruptcy, nearly 150,000 full-time industry jobs lost, and an overwhelming sense of demise often seems inescapable. But wait — it’s not all doom and gloom! Here in the Hudson Valley, things are actually not so bad.
Tags: Hudson Valley aviation, New York, Newburgh, passengers, ridership, Stewart International Airport
Posted in Airport Marketing, Commercial Aviation, General Aviation | 1 Comment »
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