Tanker 910 dropping it’s load over the Zaca Fire, July 2007.

It carries up to 12,000 gallons of water or fire retardant in an exterior belly-mounted tank, which can be released in eight seconds. The aircraft is currently registered as N450AX but was originally delivered to National Airlines in 1975, then subsequently flew for Pan Am, American Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Omni Air International before being converted for fire fighting purposes. It can apply a line of fire retardant 300 feet wide by 1 mile long.

Tanker 910 experienced its first serious incident on June 25, 2007. While fighting a fire near Tehachapi, California, the aircraft was in a left bank turning from base to final when it encountered severe turbulence and the left wing dropped. It struck several trees before the pilots were able to power out of it and make an emergency landing. An investigation showed that the aircraft suffered significant damage to the left wing.

Here’s a link to a video showing it fighting the Arrowhead Fire today: http://video.knbc.com/player/?id=170479

Pretty amazing
~Capt’n Chris

Filed under: Videos | |

In This Episode:

• The Crash of a Predator UAV in New Mexico
  USAToday.Com Article
  Air Force Predator Fact Sheet
• The Safety Aspects of the Emerging Space Tourism Industry
  USAToday.Com Article

Music
Jimmy Golding - Rocket to the Moon
Barry Mc Cabe - Rollin

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In This Episode:

• The Eclipse Concept Jet - This thing is like chocolate for the eyes!
  Click here for the ECJ Website
• The Bureaucracy that is the FAA - Join me as we talk about why it takes so long for the FAA to get anything done. I play part of a speech by Newt Gingrich on the subject of the bureaucratic inefficiencies of the government.
• Introducing our Newest Contributor: ATIS Man!!! - I’ve learned how to synthesize a digital ATIS voice and have turned it into some real fun!

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Carol Anne Gotbaum in Police CustodyIgnorance seems to be everywhere. Countless times on the evening news we here about people getting beaten and robbed in broad day light, all the while surrounded by bystanders who do absolutely nothing. If you still don’t believe me just read this winner:

91-Year-Old Beating Victim Calls Bystanders ‘Low-Class’

So it’s no surprise I guess that so many people just kept on walking by Carol Anne Gotbaum in Phoenix International Airport on September 28 as she just screamed in vain, alone.

People heard “I’m not a terrorist!!!” over and over, labeled her as loony and kept on walking. What she was really saying was “I need help!” but no one wanted to or bothered to interpret that from her screams. Finally when TSA agents did approach her, I assume she was labeled as such by them too because their action’s judged by the video reflected as much. Of course the airport police showed up shortly there after and simply ‘followed procedure…’ That involved 4(?) cops pouncing on Mrs. Gotbaum, and proceeding to drag her to the worst possible place - A holding cell, but to her it was probably a dungeon in the belly of a big ominous metropolitan superstructure lacking of feelings or emotions. No one did anything to comfort her - It’s all just ‘procedure’ anymore anyway, right?

This is clearly a case of a person in trouble, not a person who was any kind of real threat. She’s a middle aged mother of 3 for God sakes- Not a terrorist, as Mrs. Gotbaum tried to say so hard in vain.

If people just cared a little more, maybe just went out of their way that day in the airport, I predict Mrs. Gotbaum could have gotten out of there even before the police showed up. Her husband thinks so too-

You can read the CNN article regarding that here.

I would have approached Mrs. Gotbaum with a caring tone, a respectful attitude, and a willingness to help, but that’s just me. Call me too sensitive, or call me whatever you want.

But definitely don’t call me ignorant.
~Capt’n Chris

Filed under: Editorials | |

President Bush at O’Hare in 2001From the way it looks, 2007 will be the worst year for delays and cancellations of any on record. 28% of flights in the first seven months were delayed, cancelled or diverted.

Back on July 6th of this year I wrote an article entitled Summer 2007 To Be Worst EVER For Delays! Near the end of that article I predicted that if the airlines didn’t do something themselves about all these problems, the government would.

So, it’s no surprise that recently President Bush directed aviation officials and regulators to reduce air traffic delays by next summer so we don’t get a repeat of this one. Last month Bush enlisted Transportation Secretary Mary Peters to work with the industry and report back by year-end with some solutions. Possibilities such as government-mandated flight reductions, capacity caps and congestion pricing are all being studied.

Although very premature at this point, I still think we should at least examine the prospect of another possibility- Could the airline industry ever face complete re-regulation? Or at least a re-regulated state of existence to the extent that the government would have a larger role in controlling what the airlines do then it does now, but not quite what it had when the industry was a regulated entity?

Alright, I’ll go first…
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Sure that’s a possibility (I’m no expert, I just point the plane) but personally I don’t think the government really wants to regulate the airline industry again, and here’s a few reasons why.

• A large preoccupation in the Middle East with it’s associated capital expenditures and government resource requirements
• A much stronger national environment today arguing in favor of less government is more
• A lot of pressure from the airline lobby

With the worst year on record so far with delays and their resulting customer unhappiness, I thought re-regulation would be an interesting prospect to at least take a look at. Either way, 2007 is sure to be a benchmark for all future measurements of airline performance.

~Capt’n Chris

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