More details and some seizures on the sanctions on Russian Commercial assets outside of Russia.

 

A few days ago I had Blogged about the problams the sanctions are causing  commercial Aviation and 

the leasser that have leased airplanes and parts to the Russian Airlines, I saw this in my email and snagged it.  I am still in specific airplane school, I will probably throw up a post on Saturday about it.

Lessors with Western-built aircraft in the hands of Russian operators face few good options on how to manage their exposed assets—from challenging repossession logistics to uncertainty over whether operators can make payments or secure aftermarket support. 

European Union (EU) sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine require lessors to cut ties with Russian operators by March 28. Affected companies, including dozens of lessors based in Ireland that dominate the aircraft leasing landscape, have little choice but to comply. But stopping sales of parts or new aircraft—which the sanctions also require—is far easier than trying to repossess assets in the customer’s hands. 

“[Given] current airspace and border closures, we question whether any aircraft will exit” Russia, J.P. Morgan Chase analysts wrote in a March 3 research note following an investor conference the company hosted. “We don’t believe Russia will simply allow Aeroflot or S7, for example, to fly aircraft out of the country to Western jurisdictions simply because leases have been canceled.” 

Airspace bans have removed many formerly friendly destinations from Russian airlines’ route maps. In the process, many logical spots for neutral-ground aircraft seizures are gone as well. The situation means lessors must pounce when aircraft are in the remaining markets left open to Russian operators.  

Avolon repossessed one of its Boeing 737-800s on lease to Aeroflot subsidiary Podeba when the aircraft was in Istanbul on Feb. 27, the Irish Times reported. Russian operators, including S7 and Smartavia, are responding by cutting all international flying, even to places not affected by airspace closures.  

The scenario could put airframe and engine maintenance shops in the spotlight. One lessor told J.P. Morgan chase analysts that it had four Russian customer airframes in heavy checks outside the country. 

Lessors not subject to sanctions still face significant hurdles. Broad sanctions are limiting Russia’s access to the global financial system, making routine payments difficult, if not impossible.  

“[The] suspension of certain Russian banks’ access to SWIFT, the universally used international bank messaging system that facilitates interbank transfers, could disrupt rent and loan payments owed lessors by their Russia-based airline customers,” Moody’s said in a March 4 research note. 

“[While] some Russian airlines may be able to remit lease payments through China, the ability to move U.S. dollars directly from Russia appears next to impossible,” J.P. Morgan Chase said. 

Aviation Week Fleet Discovery shows that Russian airlines lease about 670 large transport aircraft—those certified for 19 or more seats—from lessors based outside Russia. At least 100 more belong to lessors with Russian roots and subsidiaries based outside the country.  

Another major concern is that the West’s major aircraft and engine manufacturers have ceased aftermarket support for Russian operators, either voluntarily or due to sanctions. Without access to around-the-clock technical support, spare parts sales, and foreign airframe and engine maintenance services, Russian airlines planning to operate Airbus, ATR, Boeing, Bombardier (MHI RJ Aviation) or Embraer aircraft for any length of time seemingly face an uphill struggle.  

Two-thirds of the 1,259 aircraft in Russian scheduled and non-scheduled operators’ fleets were built by Airbus, ATR, Boeing, Bombardier (MHI RJ Aviation) or Embraer. Losing access to international markets and any drop in a booming domestic sector will create excess capacity—and open the door for parts cannibalization within sub-fleets. But long-term operation without support probably will require securing parts on the black market, similar to how airlines in targeted countries such as Iran evade Western sanctions to keep their Airbus and Boeing aircraft flying. 

While lessors would likely welcome swift and simple repossessions, staggered returns offers some ancillary benefits. Hundreds of available aircraft hitting the market within a short time could put a dent in lease rates, for instance. Getting a few out at a time, however—particularly high-demand narrowbodies—would help satisfy rising demand for lift in many regions that are in traffic-recovery mode. 

“Should a lessor succeed in repossessing an in-demand aircraft in the immediate term, demand from airlines ahead of the all-important summer peak would likely prove robust, given the degree to which many of the world’s airlines are clamoring for incremental lift currently,” J.P. Morgan said, citing one viewpoint expressed at its investor conference.

 

"We Must Stop The Western Environmentalist that Made the Ukraine Invasion Possible"

 

 I snagged this from "PragerU" and Dennis Prager.  The article is from him, the cartoons are from my collection of cartoons on my 'puter. 

 

 

No. 1: The NATO excuse. A widely offered explanation for the Russian invasion of Ukraine is that Russia -- which at this time essentially means President Vladimir Putin -- fears the expansion of NATO to its borders, especially Ukraine. The argument is often presented as an analogy: How would the United States react if Mexico had a mutual defense pact with Russia and received weapons from Russia?

 

A second explanation is that Russia is "paranoid" as a result of its having been devastated by the invasions of Napoleon's France in the 19th century and Hitler's Germany in the 20th. This was the excuse that many professional excuse makers made for the Soviet Union's shooting down -- without any warning -- Korean Air Lines flight 007 in 1983, killing all 269 passengers and crew.

"The Russians are paranoid" became a widespread explanation. Seymour Hersh, the best-known New York Times investigative reporter for decades, wrote a book on the shooting down of KAL 007. As described in a 1986 New York Times book review, "On the Soviet side, writes Mr. Hersh, there was paranoia."

When I was a graduate student at Columbia University's Russian Institute, I regularly encountered the "paranoid" explanation for Soviet/Russian policies. It struck me then, and even more so now, as pathologic or false, or both. Russia is by far the largest country on Earth, spanning approximately one-ninth of all the world's land surface. When that fact is combined with Russia's vast nuclear weaponry, the "paranoia" explanation for Russian aggression is rendered absurd.

It is even more absurd when one considers the countries Russia allegedly fears will invade them. Which one of their Western-border countries --Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Moldova, Belarus, Ukraine -- is likely to invade Russia? Wasn't every one of them invaded by Russia? Shouldn't every one of them be paranoid?

 

We'll end the "paranoid" discussion with this rule of history: Generally speaking, wars are either between two police states or between a police state and a free state. And the latter are nearly always initiated or provoked by the police state. Russia has nothing to fear from its neighbors. Its neighbors have plenty to fear from Russia.

2. America is watching, not intervening.

I know of no American, on the Right or the Left, who has called for sending the U.S. military into Ukraine. But every American should feel awful -- morally and as an American -- about America sitting by and watching the first major invasion of a peaceful country since Hitler and Stalin. One reason is that since World War II, the weaker nations of the world have all held onto the hope that should they be attacked by a stronger nation, Americans would come to their aid.

America is aiding Ukraine with arms and economic sanctions, but as I watch peaceful Ukraine devoured by aggressive Russia, I can't help but think that it appears that evil will triumph -- and lead to more evil on Earth. I have never agreed with the throwaway line, "America is not the world's policeman." Does the world not need a policeman? And if not America, who? China? Russia? The U.N.?

If the strongest boy in high school, one whom the weakest boys and girls looked to for protection, decided one day to watch rather than to protect them as they were beaten by the school bully, even if there was good reason for the lack of intervention, wouldn't that be a very sad day? And wouldn't it affect the way the protector saw himself?

Most Americans see themselves as protectors of the weak against bully nations. This is the first time in our lifetime that America has abandoned that role.

No. 3: A comedian is the world's most courageous political leader. By general consensus among the world's media and world's nations, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is the most courageous leader in the world today.

 

For many people, this is particularly remarkable since Zelenskyy's professional background is that of a comedian. It strikes most people as amazing that a comedian turns out to be the world's most inspiring leader.

 

That, of course, was the reason so many dismissed Donald Trump when he ran for president: "He has no political experience, he's just a wealthy real estate developer." However, that real estate developer also turned out to be the most courageous leader in the world. Honest haters of Trump must at least acknowledge his courage -- just as supporters must acknowledge his lack of a filter between his brain and his mouth.

It was Trump who had the courage to demand that our NATO allies live up to their obligations with regard to military spending. Ironically, thanks to Putin, the NATO countries are finally doing so. It was Trump who uncovered a deep state of corruption in nearly every major American governmental institution. It was Trump who took on the mainstream media, regarded by half of America as little better than Pravda, the Soviet newspaper. It was Trump who had the courage to do what president after president and Congress after Congress called for but never acted on: moving the American embassy in Israel to Israel's capital city, Jerusalem. He did this despite the opposition of almost every world leader and his own State Department. If that's not courage, what is?

And it remains a fact that Putin did not invade Ukraine while Trump was president. Putin feared Trump. Neither Putin nor anyone else fears President Joe Biden.

It is therefore not at all surprising that a comedian is the world's most courageous leader. It is surprising that people still think a lifelong political career produces leaders. Biden is a lifelong politician and, as his behavior during COVID-19 showed, may well be the least courageous president in American history.

 4. Western environmentalists made the invasion possible. It is overwhelmingly likely that American and European environmentalists made the Russian invasion of Ukraine possible. Under Trump, America became energy independent and was even able to supply Europe with energy. But the environmental movement, which dominates the Democratic Party and nearly every Western European country, has made Russia the major supplier of natural gas to Europe, and especially to the most important country on the European continent, Germany.

The environmentalist movement uses climate change to achieve its primary objectives: undoing of the West's economic foundations, reshaping the Western way of life, dismantling capitalism and transferring wealth to the Third World. They will pursue these aims at any cost -- whether crippling inflation, energy blackouts, even the strengthening of Russia and China.

If you really believe climate change poses an "existential threat" to human life, there is no price too high to pay in order to eliminate fossil fuel-based energy. That includes empowering and enriching evil men.

 

Some goings on here at Casa De Garabaldi

 

    I am still in Specific Airplane School, we are in Engines and Pneumatic Systems right now, they use the fire-hose approach, they spray the knowledge on us and we test every couple of days  reminds me of AIT

And some more Pics...

   Just a few pics I took while the class is in session.

I also picked up my pistol out of layaway

       I had picked up a CZ75C "Compact" it is a 9mm pistol The Czech-Republic made compact variant of the legendary CZ-75, these particular 9x19mm chambered pistols were an Israeli contract order. Note the additional slide markings of the Massada and Menora image.

 Supposedly these were issued to park rangers at the Masada Park which is where the historic Masada Fortress is located. The odd thing is the misspelling of Massada on the slide, leading some to believe these might be fakes; intentionally made up to be some sort of rare surplus pistol. However, most collectors do believe these to be real genuine Israeli handguns. One interesting feature on these Massada pistols is that they use a dual recoil spring setup, unlike other CZ compacts. (GRH)

      I wanted a CZ for a long time and wished that I had bought  a CZ75 back when I was stationed in Germany now I have one although it is a compact.  I had a heck of a time finding any real info on the pistol.  The Ergonomics feel really good, almost like my baby Beretta...before i lost it in that durn canoe accident.....*sniff*.

  And finally Gas prices are climbing faster than Hunter Biden's hands on some hooker.   Elections have consequences and we are getting burned again by the feckless behavior of Xiden in the Whitehouse.

"HootersAir" A Dream that took Flight......For A Little While

Now my friend Mack who went by the tongue in cheek moniker "Merchant of Death"  is a very good friend, excellent sportsman, and a purveyor of that store that has ladies that dress in nice outfits and serves good wings, we always go there everytime I go to visit him and we also go to my local wing place when he comes over here.  When we go to his wing place, all the ladies have his beverage of choice waiting and know him by name and he has sold most of them their EDC's so they think highly and well of him and that is reciprocated by him.  Mack is a class act, I just don't tell him that or his head would swell, but I figured I would do an article of his favorite wing place when they had their own airline, my employer painted the planes back in the day before I started there, I saw the pictures on the wall in the paint shop of all the unique planes we had done and "HootersAir" was one of them.

 

Each HootersAir flight featured two waitresses who couldn’t serve drinks or food.

It may sound like a bad joke, but yes, Hooters Air was definitely a real airline and, yes, it was owned by that restaurant. You know the one — with the scantily clad waitresses and the pretty good hot wings. So, how exactly did a slightly questionable restaurant chain start and successfully operate an airline, at least for the approximately three years it was in business?

Founded in 2003, Hooters Air was operated by Pace Airlines, which the restaurant chain creator owned as well (Pace Airlines, by the way, is out of business now, too, ceasing all operations in 2009). The airline started as a way to drum up business for the restaurant, but then people actually flew it, with the airline’s primary demographic being golfers flying to Myrtle Beach (where the airline was based), before Hooters Air expanded to reach other popular destinations throughout the entire country. 

                                                        Hooters Commercial

Believe it or not, Hooters Air wasn’t known for particularly bad service and it offered direct flights at a low cost (many flights were a flat rate of $129, one-way). Seats offered a generous 34-inch pitch and a business-class-style seating arrangement. Alongside the traditionally attired flight crew, Hooters Girls would help out the flight attendants, though they were prevented from serving the drinks and free meals available to passengers on all flights over an hour. Since the Hooters Girls did not have FAA certification or even basic training, they couldn’t push food carts or operate any equipment, including hospitality equipment, aboard the aircraft, so they ended up doing more entertainment-type tasks, like hosting trivia. 

 Over time, Hooters Air, operating a small fleet of Boeing 737-200, 737-300 and 757-200 aircraft, expanded to reach 15 total destinations including popular Florida cities, Newark, Myrtle Beach, Denver, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Houston, Puerto Rico and small markets in select Midwestern states. 

 

                                                          N750WL B757-200 with Rolls-Royce Engines

Many of the airline’s small destinations touted the extra travelers the airline brought to the regions, bolstering the areas’ economies. 

 

                                           B737-200 with JT8D TurboFans

Despite the airline being ripe for jokes from all angles, there were other issues that lead to Hooters Air costing Hooters of America over $40 million.

 

The downward projection began in 2005, when the airline announced it would end its service to Rockford, Illinois, outside of Chicago, in 2006, due to competition from United Airlines on its route from Denver. 

After that, in early 2006, all commercial services stopped. Charter services continued through April 2006, at which point Hooters Air canceled all public charter services and refunded passenger tickets. 

Hooters Air blamed its demise on fuel costs following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which both hit in 2005. Other factors could’ve been the airline’s founding shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, at which point air travel was down overall. Additionally, it faced new competition from other low-cost airlines coming onto the market, such as Southwest. 

Regardless of the reason, the Hooters brand went back to what it did best (even though most who experienced Hooters Air, both crew and passengers alike, don’t necessarily have anything negative to say about their flight experiences with the airline). Focusing on beer and wings, Hooters went on to expand its brand in the United States and beyond, seeing success despite its little financial hiccup called Hooters Air. 

 

 

Monday Music "If Today Is Your Last Day" By Nickleback

 

I am continuing my string of "bugaloo" songs.  This discussion was started in the "Monster Hunter Nation, Hunters Unite", back in November of 2019? it is a Facebook group with enthusiast of the ILOH "International Lord of Hate" A.K.A Larry Correia.  We were talking about what song would we use if we looked out of our window or glanced at our security camera and saw this.....

One of the alphabet bois lining up to take down your house...What would be your "Valhalla" song and you would set it up to play as you load up magazines set up the Tannerite Rover, turn on the water irrigation system and fill it with gasoline instead of water and prepare yourself.

 I figured it would scar the alphabet boys if they come busting in and hearing a song about people having a good time and standing up for themselves and having the best music from the best decade and  playing  it Loud will scar the Alphabet Boi's as they force the stack through the door, because they will be exposed to good music for the first time unlike the crap they listen to now sipping their soi latte's and comparing notes on the latest soyburger recipes and who wears the best manbuns in the team.

 

 

Dark Horse is the sixth studio album by the Canadian rock band Nickelback, released on November 17, 2008 in Europe and the next day elsewhere. It is the follow-up to their multi-platinum selling All the Right Reasons (2005). It was co-produced by the band and producer and songwriter Robert John "Mutt" Lange, known for working with such acts as Foreigner, AC/DC, Bryan Adams, Def Leppard and Shania Twain. Dark Horse sold 326,000 in its first week and debuted at number 2 in the US. More than a year after its release, the album did not leave the Top 100 on the Billboard 200. In its 91st week, the album peaked at number 46 for the week of August 28, 2010.  From 9 October, the album stayed at number 71 for 97 consecutive weeks  The album spent 125 consecutive weeks inside the Billboard 200.  On the week of November 29, 2014, Dark Horse re-entered the Billboard 200 at number 195, more than six years after the album's release.

It was ranked at number 191 on Billboard's 200 Albums of the Decade.  It is also the band's fourth straight Multi-Platinum selling album in the United States. As of 2010, the album has sold 3 million copies in the United States and 5 million copies worldwide. The album was originally going to be entitled Burn It To The Ground. 

 

"If Today Was Your Last Day" is the third single from Nickelback's sixth studio album Dark Horse. It was originally planned as the first single, to hit all U.S. radio formats September 30, 2008,but was scrapped as the first single in favour of "Gotta Be Somebody". Instead it was released on March 31, 2009. It was produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange, who produced the entire album. The song was released as a digital download in the U.S. on November 11. "If Today Was Your Last Day" was released in the UK on June 15. The song was performed live for the first time on May 22 at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

In the US, the song has sold over 1,500,000 downloads, as of February 2010. According to Roadrunner Records UK, the song is "dynamically swelling our bank accounts". The song has also apparently been around with Nickelback for a while, but had never been finished. The song received Gold certification in Australia.

Lead vocalist/guitarist Chad Kroeger has mentioned the song as his personal favorite from Dark Horse. He had described the middle part of the song as "very motivational, and very positive".

The song was used for promotional videos in the Winter Olympics in 2010, and was used as the closing song during NHL Tonight's 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs coverage. 

 

The music video was shot with director Nigel Dick in March 2009. Performance portions of the video were shot at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska and in New York City. The other portion was shot in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The music video premiered on 23 April. In the beginning, two white teenage boys dressed in black seem to be up to some sort of shady business in Philadelphia. They record their journey on a camcorder. They carry mysterious black bags with them which seem to possibly be filled with illegal stuff. In the end, they stand on top of a bridge ready to carry out their plan. They open the bags, but only harmless colorful pieces of paper with quotes from the song such as "Forgive your Enemy," "It's Never Too Late," "Call a Friend and Reminisce" and "Fall in Love" fall over the people beneath them. This inspires two women to hand out coats with messages similar to those on the colored paper, a well-dressed man to hand money to everyone he meets, an arguing couple make up and a man arguing with presumably his boss to quit. All of the quotes refer to lines in the song "If Today Was Your Last Day". 

 

 

What the Restrictions mean for the Russian market and the commercial Aviation

  I got this in my email, and posted it, it is something to think about how the sanctions are affecting Russia and the commercial sector of the aviation market.  I am still in airplane school learning about my favorite Boeing.

Credit: Joepriesaviation.net

The air transport industry and its suppliers have been hoping for a much better year in 2022. Needless to say, 2020 was the sector’s worst in history, and 2021 turned out to be better but not as good as hoped, since the recovery took longer and suffered many setbacks. Severely bruised and highly indebted, airlines in many parts of the world have been betting on the upcoming summer season for good cash flow and the beginning of balance-sheet repair.

The coronavirus pandemic is not over yet, rebuilding capacity is expensive, and now the industry is facing its next major crisis: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. For now, it is not nearly as severe as the global health crisis, and its effects vary greatly by subsector and geography. The depth of the effect on commercial aviation will depend on how long the invasion continues and how much aggression escalates. Although nothing can be said with any certainty at this stage, some consequences are discernible already.

Russian airlines have been hit hardest. They are banned from many international markets, and lessors might repossess large parts of their fleets, a measure announced as a consequence of Western sanctions against Russia. About half of the commercial aircraft fleet in Russia is leased; according to the Aviation Week Fleet Discovery database, Aeroflot Russian Airlines leases essentially its entire fleet. Some aircraft are owned and financed by Russian lessors, but the list of international lessors that have placed aircraft with Aeroflot and its low-cost affiliate, Pobeda, reads like the who’s who of the sector: AerCap, Avolon, BOC Aviation, Dubai Aerospace, Goshawk, SMBC Aviation Capital and many others. Of course, sanctions on the export to Russia of aviation products like spare parts will soon make operating even the owned fleet challenging, if not impossible.

Lessors are taking a hit, but the exposure to the Russian airline market is generally not that high. AerCap, which leases some 100 aircraft to Aeroflot and Pobeda, says Russia comprises about 5% of its portfolio. Nonetheless, the whole process will surely be painful for everyone involved unless there is a quick resolution.

Similarly, Russia is not a major market for Western European airlines even in normal times. The coronavirus pandemic has further reduced traffic, in part because the EU has not certified Russia’s Sputnik vaccine and so severe travel restrictions remain in place for Russians.

Building up long-haul capacity to Asia will become more problematic and expensive for European, Asian and North American airlines with the closure of Siberian airspace that is routinely used for flights from North America to Southeast Asia and China or from Japan to Europe. Some connections may become unviable—Finnair has canceled services to some destinations as a consequence. Some will involve significantly longer flight times to avoid Russian airspace and thus incur higher costs. On the other hand, airlines will no longer have to pay the expensive overflight fees.

Much like for traffic to Russia, the effect on U.S. and European long-haul operators is lighter than it would have been in pre-pandemic times, as their Asia operations are still much smaller in proportion to their remaining networks.

But that does not mean the effects on operating costs can be ignored. Indirect consequences must be taken into account, especially the steep rise in the price of oil.

On the manufacturing side, Airbus and Boeing have relatively little exposure to orders from Russian carriers; their combined backlog is 89 aircraft. However, Aeroflot is due to take delivery of six Airbus A350s each in 2022 and 2023, a significant part of production at currently very low rates. Similarly, AirBridge Cargo has four Boeing 777Fs scheduled for delivery this year and another two in 2023. UTAir’s Boeing 737-8s are to be handed over starting in 2024, according to Fleet Discovery. But there is time to reallocate the aircraft if necessary.

Russia is an important supplier of raw materials, however. Aircraft- and engine-makers say they have taken the precaution of stocking up, but disruption could occur, particularly as Boeing and Airbus ramp up production.

The United Aircraft Corp.’s MC-21 is an entirely different story. Due to sanctions imposed before the invasion of Ukraine, the aircraft has undergone major changes from Western to Russian suppliers, adding several years to the development timetable. The first MC-21 was expected to be delivered by mid-2022—with Pratt & Whitney PW1400G engines. Whether that will still be possible remains to be seen. The indigenous Aviadvigatel PD-14 powerplant is slated to be certified this year, but first deliveries are not expected before 2024.

 

Stepped up FAA scruitiny on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner Post Production Process.

 

I got this from Aviation World and Technology Report.  I wasn't aware that the 787 was under scrutiny

like the 737 Max was, this was new to me, I thought the "Dreamliner " program wasn't having any issues after they got the batteries problem worked out.  From what i had heard, the plane is a good plane from my friends that actually work on the planes.

Stepped-up FAA scrutiny of Boeing’s 787 post-production process will extend beyond resumption of deliveries, as the regulator plans to handle individual aircraft inspections and issuance of paperwork required to finalize customer handovers.

The agency says it plans to inspect 787s and issue airworthiness certificates until it is satisfied that: “Boeing’s quality control and manufacturing processes consistently produce 787s that meet FAA design standards,” Boeing’s aircraft-by-aircraft rework plan is in working, and its “delivery processes are stable.” It adds: “This will allow the agency to confirm the effectiveness of measures Boeing has undertaken to improve the 787 manufacturing process” (AW&ST Dec. 6-18, 2021, p. 14).

• Deliveries remain on hold
• It is unclear when deliveries will resume

The FAA’s plan, communicated to Boeing and confirmed by the agency Feb. 15, is the latest example of the shift toward retaining certification and airworthiness approval functions that the FAA often delegates. But unlike many delegated functions—such as compiling certification test data—the delivery process is both frequent and highly visible, making it an attractive one to take over to help spotlight the FAA’s firmer stance with applicants, notably Boeing.

Improving the delegation process work has been a focus of U.S. lawmakers and the agency in the wake of two fatal Boeing 737 MAX accidents caused in part by ineffective oversight (AW&ST March 9-22, 2020, p. 46). A year-old law mandates that the FAA retain some tasks it had previously delegated and review others before handing them over to company staffers working in FAA-designated Organization Designation Authorization units or otherwise representing applicants.

Final predelivery inspections should not reveal major problems. Effective internal procedures and competent regulatory oversight is supposed to catch any systemic issues before aircraft reach the predelivery stage.

“Deliveries can be target-rich if you want to find fault,” a former FAA employee and aircraft certification specialist tells Aviation Week. “All airplanes arrive at the delivery centers with rework, ‘use as is’ nonconformities, etc. Sometimes big numbers [of items are flagged], but it’s often random stuff.”

Assuming the routinely delegated role of final inspections and certificate issuances checks several boxes for the regulator. It gives FAA inspectors one final opportunity to ensure that rework Boeing must conduct meets agency standards, ensures the aircraft comply with Boeing’s type design and provides a chance to catch any unexpected issues that may crop up.

The FAA’s decision to conduct final 787 predelivery procedures mirrors its process on the 737 MAX. The agency took over final inspections and issuance of 737 MAX certificates when deliveries restarted in December 2020 after a 21-month pause, and the FAA continues to do the work.

Agency inspectors will conduct final inspections and issue paperwork required for each 787 delivery when customer handovers resume, the FAA said Feb. 15, following a precedent set on the 737 MAX by retaining a largely routine task usually delegated to the manufacturer.

A customer has not flown off with a new 787 since mid-2021, and issuance of airworthiness certificates—which the FAA assumed for a few airframes as part of stepped-up oversight on the program—stopped even earlier. The manufacturer slowed new-aircraft production and has been working with the FAA to find common ground on how to tackle a series of production-quality issues that require rework on all 110 aircraft that have been built but not delivered.

Developing a process to determine just how much work is needed, the type of work required and on which aircraft has proven challenging. Most of the lingering issues are related to tiny gaps between fuselage sections and around doors that must be identified, quantified and, if necessary, repaired before delivery.

Spirit AeroSystems says issues affecting the parts it provides—including the 787 nose section, or Section 41—have been identified, and its employees have corrected issues on about 40% of the stored inventory.

“We’ve been through all the engineering analysis, and we’ve completed that, and we know now what changes we need to make to production going forward,” Spirit CEO Tom Gentile said on the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call Feb. 2. “In terms of the rework, again, we’ve also identified the rework that needs to be done, and we will complete that rework as we get access to those aircraft.”

Neither Boeing nor the FAA will discuss when 787 deliveries will resume. Weeks ago, an early second-quarter time frame seemed in play.

During American Airlines’ fourth-quarter earnings call on Jan. 20, Chief Financial Officer Derek Kerr said the airline is slated to take its next 787 delivery in mid-April—adding that the date had been “locked in for several months” (AW&ST Feb. 7-20, p. 26). The delivery was one of 13 that American said it expected to add in 2022, including four in time for the peak summer season.

During Boeing’s fourth-quarter earnings call Jan. 26, CEO Dave Calhoun declined to comment on a specific delivery resumption date, but he suggested that Kerr’s comments were accurate.

“The customers know everything that we do,” Calhoun said. “We share the same regulator. They are in our factories looking at the airplanes every day. So they know exactly what’s going on and where it is.”

Three weeks later, on Feb. 18, American revealed in an internal memo later made public that it now expects just 10 787 deliveries in 2022 and four in 2023. American revised its summer schedule, “reducing our flying versus our prior plans due to Boeing’s continued inability to deliver our 787-8 aircraft,” the memo states. American’s new schedule suspends service on three existing intercontinental routes, cuts frequencies on a fourth and delays the launch of a new one.

“We still have tremendous confidence in the aircraft and will continue to work with Boeing on their delivery,” the memo says. “In addition, as previously stated, Boeing has advised us that they will compensate us for their inability to deliver the aircraft.”

American’s memo does not provide any details on an updated 787 delivery schedule.

 

Russia Doesn't have Air superiority in the Ukraine.

 

I snagged this from another one of my 3rd party reports I get in my work email, I am still in B757 School, and we are getting deeper into the plane and how the systems interface.

Pentagon

Credit: U.S. government

[UPDATED]—The Russian military does not have air superiority in Ukraine, with the U.S. Defense Department assessing that Ukrainian command and control has remained intact and the country is still operating air defenses and aircraft, a senior Pentagon official said Feb. 27.

Though Russian momentum has continued to slow in areas, more than two-thirds of the forces Moscow assembled near Ukraine’s borders have now entered the country. This total is a substantial increase from two days before, when the Defense Department said just one-third of Russian forces had crossed the border.

As of the morning of Feb. 27, the U.S. military assesses that Russia has fired more than 320 short- and medium-range ballistic missiles, along with cruise missiles, at Ukrainian military targets. There are indications that some of the missiles have failed to launch. The official would not give a specific number of how many, though it is not a majority. The Pentagon also would not say how many Russian aircraft have participated in the invasion, just that it is more than the 75 that flew in the initial incursion on Feb. 23.

“By and large, the bulk of the targets continue to be military related, targeting Ukrainian defensive capabilities, targeting their supply and logistics capability, targeting their air and missile defense ... yesterday [this] included trying to hit aircraft on the ground, trying to target physically where they know Ukrainian armed forces are located,” the official says. 

The U.S. has observed civilian infrastructure and residential areas impacted by the missile strikes, though the official would not say if they were intentionally targeted. The official said Russia appears to be adopting siege tactics on cities to the northeast of Kyiv after having trouble capturing and holding territory. This has included increased rocket attacks in urban areas.

“When you adopt siege tactics, which any student of military tactics or strategy in history will tell you, ... it increases the likelihood of collateral damage to civilian infrastructure as well as to civilian life,” the official said. “Because a siege basically becomes an all-out effort to take a city without regard to civilian infrastructure. So that’s worrying.”

Despite the barrages, Ukrainian air and missile defenses are working but have been degraded, the official said. U.S. surveillance has observed Ukrainian missile launches, though the Pentagon did not comment on a reported ballistic missile attack on a Russian military airfield across the northern border.

There are Ukrainian aircraft in the air that are engaging and denying access to Russian aircraft, the official said. Air defenses “continue to be viable ... they have, clearly, some of their defensive capabilities and that would include air and missile defense,” he said.

The resistance has slowed much of Russia’s advance, especially closer to the capital city of Kiev and across northern Ukraine. The official said on Feb. 26 that the resistance is greater than what the U.S. believes Russia anticipated, and there are indications that the Russians “are increasingly frustrated by their lack of momentum over the last 24 hours.”

Russian forces are also targeting a hydroelectric plant farther west both through conventional attacks and cyberattacks. This is part of a broader effort by Russia to claim infrastructure. Despite this cyberattack, the U.S. said Russia has not fully used its cyber and electronic warfare capabilities in Ukraine.

The Pentagon has assessed Russia’s invasion is largely focusing on three axes: from Crimea in the south, from the west toward the city of Kharkiv and from the northern border with Belarus to Kyiv. The approach to Kyiv has largely slowed so far as Ukrainian forces have fought back. 

“They are not advancing as far or as fast as we believe we expected they would do that,” the official says. “A good indicator of that is no population centers have been taken.”

Russia still has a lot of operational advantages, despite significant problems with logistics and sustainment, the official says. It is still early in the operation, and Russia can learn from what has happened so far and adapt its tactics.

“This is a major, major conventional operation,” the official says. “That is rare in recent Russian history. They simply don’t have a lot of experience moving on another nation state at this level of complexity and size.”

 

"AN225 The DREAM" destroyed by the Russian Invasion

 I had clipped this off the daily reports I get off my work email from various 3rd party sources, not my 

employer.  If this is true, it is a shame and another strike against the Russians for their invasion of the Ukraine.  I had Blogged about the AN 225 before back in 2014.

 

 

Ukrainian aircraft maker Antonov deferred comment after multiple officials and news outlets reported that the An-225 Mriya heavy airlifter was destroyed during fighting at an airport near Kyiv.

The world’s largest aircraft had been parked at Antonov International Airport near Kyiv when the Russian invasion began on Feb. 24. The airport has been the scene of continued fighting since a Russian air assault attacked the base later that day. 

“Currently, until the An-225 has been inspected by experts, we cannot report on the technical condition of the aircraft. Stay tuned for further official announcement,” Antonov said in a tweet on Feb. 27.

Radio Liberty, a U.S. government-funded media outlet, reported on Feb. 27 the An-225 had been destroyed during fighting at the airport, citing two anonymous sources within Antonov. 

A video purportedly showing a destroyed hangar on the base circulated on social media, which also claimed that the An-225 had been destroyed when a bomb hit the facility. The video could not be verified, but several government channels–including the Twitter accounts of the Ukrainian government and the deputy prime minister–echoed the information that the An-225 had been destroyed. 

Despite the reports, Antonov itself seemed unsure about the aircraft’s current status.

 The An-225 was built by the Soviet Union to ferry the Buran space shuttle, but was converted into an outsized cargo lifter for Antonov International Airlines. Its nickname, which means “Dream” in Ukrainian, spoke to the national and even international interest in the unique six-engine aircraft throughout its service life.

 

                                                       AN225 "The Dream"

Quick Note on what is going on.

   Well I started Specific Airplane School today and it is Boeing 757 School and we have a mix from several different groups in the class. I found out a tidbit that I didn't know and I thought I knew a bunch of little things about the Boeing 757,   It started out as a proposal for a Boeing 727-300....Instead of 3 engines...it would have 2 engines....Eastern Airlines was the Proposed Launch Customer for the new Plane and it had proposed Rolls Royce Engines. That is why the proposed plane was in the "HockeyStick" livery of Eastern Airline.(The conventional tail shown is in Delta colors who is the single largest operator of the B757 in the world)

And they would eliminate the 3rd crewmember in the cockpit....submitted the proposal to the FAA(Friends Against Aviation).....The FAA looked at the proposal.....analyzed it and basically told Boeing..." Sorry Charlie, Try again.." So With the B767 already in preproduction, they borrowed a bunch of components from the B767 program and proposed the B757 to the FAA for approval and Voila! my favorite Boeing was born.....In a nutshell, LOL

On a different note, My SWAG came in from the Monster Hunter Nation Group, I was of course excited, not sure where I'm going to put the stickers, if I still had my toolbox at work, that would be a no-brainer...but now....I don't know.....Still looked cool though.