Airline Industry

[Foggy]

Most excellent.

[RTH10260]

It's a press release but interesting cause battery powered aircraft

Joby Progresses to Next Phase of Aircraft Flight Test Program

MAY 02, 2024

Santa Cruz, CA, May 02, 2024 — Joby Aviation, Inc. (NYSE:JOBY), a company developing electric air taxis for commercial passenger service, today announced it has successfully completed its pre-production prototype flight test program and is now focused on the next phase of flight testing, during which the Company will use its production prototype aircraft to prepare for upcoming for-credit flight testing.

Joby first began flying full-scale pre-production prototype aircraft more than four years ago, and the Company’s two pre-production aircraft subsequently completed more than 1,500 flights, spanning a total distance of over 33,000 miles, including more than 100 flights with a pilot onboard. The second pre-production aircraft also completed the first electric air taxi exhibition flights in New York City, when it flew from the Manhattan Downtown Heliport over the Hudson River in November 2023.

“Over the course of this test program, our team has shown the world how real electric air taxis are, with tens of thousands of miles flown using today’s battery technology,” said JoeBen Bevirt, Founder and CEO of Joby. “Our pre-production aircraft were the second full-scale generation of Joby’s design, and their performance met or exceeded our predictions throughout the program, successfully achieving our targets for maximum range, speed, and a revolutionary acoustic footprint.”

“Successfully completing this rigorous test program has allowed us to proceed to ramp production with full confidence, the second of which rolled off the line at our production line in Marina, California, earlier this week. Learnings from the flight test program have been invaluable to our certification program and to the broader development of regulatory frameworks around electric VTOL aircraft, validating the performance, safety, and acoustics of our design while providing insight into daily operations and maintenance.”

In 2021, Joby demonstrated a flight of 154.6 statute miles on a single charge, including a vertical take-off and landing.

In 2022, Joby partnered with NASA to measure and confirm its aircraft’s revolutionary quiet acoustic footprint, which the Company believes will barely be heard in cruise flight against the ambient environment of cities. Joby also demonstrated speeds exceeding 200 miles per hour and flight at altitudes exceeding 10,000 feet above mean sea level.

In 2023, Joby expanded its flight test program to include flights with pilots on board the aircraft, as well as completing the first-ever exhibition flight of an electric air taxi in New York City. Joby also trained four U.S. Air Force pilots to become the first Air Force personnel to fly an eVTOL aircraft through a full flight profile, including the transition from vertical to wingborne flight, as sole pilot-in-command.

And in 2024, in partnership with the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”), Joby completed 31 pilot-on-board flights in two days, demonstrating the aircraft’s operational characteristics and precision landing capabilities.

James Denham, Joby Chief Test Pilot, commented: “Over the past four years, we thoroughly tested and studied our aircraft in flight, from precision landing and outwash to human factors. We often flew multiple flights per day, demonstrating our ability to fly in a wide variety of weather and operational conditions. As a result, we have the most experienced and professional eVTOL flight test team in the world, and I’m proud to be a part of this program.”

Joby’s second pre-production prototype aircraft will be used for research-and-development on future aviation technologies.

Joby’s electric air taxi is designed to carry a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 200 mph, offering high-speed mobility with a fraction of the noise produced by helicopters and zero operating emissions.



https://www.jobyaviation.com/news/joby- ... t-program/

[RTH10260]

[RTH10260]

Why This Hated Airline CEO Could Get A $100M Bonus

Morning Brew
21 Jun 2024

Ryanair is on track to compete with Delta to become the world’s biggest airline, yet its ticket prices are some of the lowest in the industry. How has Ryanair's low-cost business model become so profitable while pissing off its customers?

[Dr. Ken]

[RTH10260]

re above, gas bottle or ruptured tire?

2 workers killed, 1 seriously hurt in 'possible explosion' at Delta Air Lines' Atlanta maintenance facility
The incident took place at Delta Tech Ops' wheel and brake shop.

ByEmily Shapiro and Ayesha Ali
August 28, 2024, 12:29 AM

The incident had no impact on airport operations, according to airport officials.

Two workers were killed and one was seriously injured in what officials termed a "possible explosion" at Delta Air Lines' Atlanta Technical Operations Maintenance facility at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, according to Delta TechOps and first responders.

Delta TechOps said the Tuesday morning accident took place at its wheel and brake shop.

Responders to the "possible explosion" found "three Delta employees on the floor," and the medics said they tried to control "major bleeding," according to the Atlanta Fire and Rescue Department's incident report.



https://abcnews.go.com/US/2-workers-kil ... =113177151

[tek]

Tire, from what has been published.
a pilot's rumor forum is speculating that either the tire wasn't deflated before disassembly, or there was a crack or some other structural issue in the wheel.

[RTH10260]

Insight into the Alaska Airlies lost door incident:

Business Insider has it concise

A key Boeing mechanic who worked on 737 Max doors was on vacation on 2 critical days before the Alaska Airlines blowout

Pete Syme
Aug 27, 2024, 1:30 PM CEST

• One Boeing mechanic was usually the only one who worked on door plugs, he told NTSB investigators.
  The 35-year veteran was on vacation during critical work on the Alaska Airlines 737 Max.
  A trainee with limited experience filled in, according to NTSB transcripts.

https://www.businessinsider.com/boeing- ... nes-2024-8

Original lengthy article in the Seattle Times

Inside Boeing’s factory lapses that led to the Alaska Air blowout

Aug. 25, 2024 at 6:00 am Updated Aug. 25, 2024 at 6:00 am
Dominic Gates and Paige Cornwell Seattle Times staff reporters

The near-catastrophic midair blowout of a door-sized fuselage panel on an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 in January was caused by two distinct manufacturing errors by different crews on successive days last fall in Boeing’s assembly plant in Renton.

The first manufacturing lapse occurred within a four-hour window early Sept. 18. On the evening of the next day, in the space of about an hour, the second error was made by a different crew of mechanics, untrained to work on that fuselage panel, known as a door plug, according to federal investigative and internal Boeing records.

Boeing’s quality control system failed to catch the faulty work performed within those two windows.

The following detailed account of what happened as the MAX jet moved through the Renton factory — and of the characters now at the center of the investigation — is compiled from the transcripts of federal investigators’ interviews of a dozen Boeing workers, synchronized with an internal Boeing document obtained by The Seattle Times that tracked day-by-day the rework that led to the door plug lapses.



https://www.seattletimes.com/business/b ... r-blowout/

[RTH10260]

Boeing workers go on strike as White House calls for ‘good faith’ negotiations
US Pacific north-west region workers voted 96% in favor of the strike and walked off the job early on Friday

Michael Sainato
Fri 13 Sep 2024 12.43 EDT

Tens of thousands of Boeing workers walked off the job early on Friday after voting overwhelmingly to strike for higher pay, halting production of the planemaker’s strongest-selling jet as it wrestles with chronic output delays and mounting debt.

The company said on Friday it was ready to talk and “get back to the table to reach a new agreement” as striking workers picketed.

The newly installed Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg had pleaded with workers not to go on strike – the first since 2008 – ahead of the vote, saying the action would put the company’s “recovery in jeopardy”.

About 33,000 workers in Boeing’s US Pacific north-west region late on Thursday voted down a tentative agreement reached between their union and the company that included a 25% pay increase over four years. They voted in favor of a strike beginning on Friday at midnight Pacific time (7am GMT), which will halt production of the 737 Max.

Early on Friday afternoon, the White House said it was in contact with Boeing and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers representing the strikers and that it hoped they can reach a contract deal.

“We encourage them to negotiate in good faith – toward an agreement that gives employees the benefits they deserve and makes the company stronger,” the White House spokesperson Robyn Patterson said.

Boeing workers voted 94.6% to reject the agreement, and 96% in favor of striking.



https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... ion-strike

[RTH10260]

[RTH10260]

US officials say 40 airlines may be using Boeing 737s with suspect rudder parts
National Transportation Safety Board says operators could be unaware of components that may pose safety risks

Reuters
Tue 1 Oct 2024 00.58 CEST

The US National Transportation Safety Board on Monday said more than 40 foreign operators of Boeing 737 airplanes may be using planes with rudder components that may pose safety risks.

The NTSB last week issued urgent safety recommendations about the potential for a jammed rudder control system on some Boeing 737 airplanes after a February incident involving a United flight.

The NTSB also disclosed on Monday that it had learned that two foreign operators suffered similar incidents in 2019 involving rollout guidance actuators.

“We are concerned of the possibility that other airlines are unaware of the presence of these actuators on their 737 airplanes,” NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy said Monday in a letter to Federal Aviation Administration chief Mike Whitaker.

The NTSB is investigating an incident in which the rudder pedals on a United Boeing 737 Max 8 were “stuck” in the neutral position during a landing at Newark. There were no injuries to the 161 passengers and crew.

Boeing shares fell 2.7% on Monday.

The NTSB said 271 impact parts may be installed on in-service aircraft operated by at least 40 foreign air carriers; that 16 may still be installed on US-registered aircraft; and up to 75 may have been used in aftermarket installation.


https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... max-planes

[RTH10260]

Boeing withdraws 30% pay rise offer to striking workers amid stalemate
In third week of standoff, planemaker has no plans for further talks with union, which is seeking 40% increase

Jack Simpson , Michael Sainato and agencies
Wed 9 Oct 2024 11.27 CEST

Boeing has withdrawn a 30% pay offer for striking workers as talks between the company and unions reached a stalemate in the third week of a standoff over pay.

The US planemaker said it had removed its offer that would result in a pay increase by almost a third over four years for 33,000 US staff, with no further negotiations with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) planned.

Boeing and the union held their latest round of negotiations with federal mediators on Monday and Tuesday, but talks collapsed with both parties locked in an acrimonious stalemate showing no signs of being resolved soon, Reuters reported.

“Unfortunately, the union did not seriously consider our proposals,” the Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive, Stephanie Pope, said in a note to employees, calling the union’s demands “non-negotiable”. She said: “Further negotiations do not make sense at this point and our offer has been withdrawn.”

The IAM, which is demanding a 40% increase for staff, has accused Boeing of being “hell-bent on standing on the non-negotiated offer” proposed last month.

“‘One day longer, One day stronger’ is more than just a catchphrase. It’s our battle cry that we must all use as we stand together, united and defiant against one of the most powerful companies in the world. Stand strong, brothers and sisters. We are all in this together. Boeing may have started this fight, but the Machinists will finish it,” the union wrote to members.

The industrial action is the latest headache for executives at the aviation company this year, which began when a door panel blew out in mid-air on one of Boeing’s 737 Max 9s, shortly after it took off from Portland, Oregon in January.



https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... -stalemate

[RTH10260]