Emissions Trading Scheme

EU ETS is the European Union and Emissions Trading Scheme.  According to The European Commission was launched in 2005 it is a way to limit greenhouse gasses.  Emissions are given off in factories and power plants.  Each airline is required to keep record of emissions given off for each flight and turn the information in at the end of the year.  Every airline is given an allowance to cover, but if they go over they are fined heavily.  The EU ETS not only effects aviation in a major way, but covers all businesses in Europe.  Carbon Trust states "it covers 45% of EU emissions, including energy intensive sectors and approximately 12,000 installations".  This will have a large impact on aircraft flying to Europe from a money standpoint.  Airlines for America (A4A) estimates it will cost U.S. Airlines between  $1.3 and 3 billion by 2020.

The US is upset about the implementation of the ET ETS because it has been a "diversion of ICAO's energies".  US among other countries are trying to work with the EU to come together in coming up with something that is not so significant.  On November 2nd the US joined in passing a resolution in ICAO that approved opposition to the ETS.  21 countries including China, India, Japan and the United States opposed the application of the ETS to their airlines.  The US government is trying to fight with other countries in court, while trying to come in the middle with the EU to come up with a solution.  In 2009 the Airlines of America used the EU claiming that ETS is a violation of customary international law.  


According to Centre for Aviation ICAO is developing global framework for market based measures.  Pretty much no one is happy with the current EU ETS, ICAO is in the middle of it and has to come up with a solution to get the majority in agreement.  The Centre of Aviation states "The technical study will be completed by the end of this month and ICAO’s work in 2012 will be dedicated to the identification and development of a framework for market-based measures and a global scheme."  


My response to the EU ETS is a little over board.  Too think that will cost billions (over years) all for something that can not be prevented.  It says something when 21 countries are opposed to the ETS.  I feel like its a scam for the EU to get money.  It would be different if we had a solution to get rid of the emissions but technology has not got that far yet.  I think the EU just needs to sit back and relax and realize how big of an impact this will have not only on the world airline industry, but also businesses and factories who this will affect as well.


I have mixed feelings on how ICAO should handle global aviation emissions.  You cant treat every place the same because its not.  More emissions will be given off according to the location.  The hotter it is more emissions will be given off, so how can you treat Africa and the Middle East where it is hot pretty much all year long to somewhere cold.  ICAO is in a tough situation to handle global aviation emissions.  But I believe ICAO should implement greener flying.  With newer aircraft coming out giving out less emissions just let technology come and be patient, I believe ICAO should invest into alternative ways for fuel i.e algae, soybeans, corn.  We will never be able to get rid of emissions but investing into greener flying, it will make our world a cleaner place. 
  

Flying Cheap

My specific job and company in the aviation industry that I would like to end up at is Delta Airlines.  My dream job is flying the Boeing 777.  The 700-300ER is my favorite airplane even though at the current moment no American Airline has the 300's yet.  I am open to moving but flying out of DTW would be perfect.  Even though routes change all the time, flying the 777 from DTW to HKG (Hong Kong) and flying the ATL-JNB (Johannesburg) is my goal.  According to FlightAware the DTW-HKG route ranges from 15-16 hours, and the ATL-JNB route is around the same time.


According to Ask Captain Captains on the Delta 777 make a base annual salary of $220,000 and on average the first officer depending on his seniority will make about half of that.  Every airline has around the same pay, but all of it depends upon where you are on the seniority list.  Delta who merged with Northwest in 2009 was the Worlds largest airline until the recent merger of United and Continental.  Northwest used to be my favorite airline but since its recent merger, Delta is my favorite.  The reason Delta is my favorite airline besides the fact that it has a DTW hub, is the variety in aircraft, Delta flies both Airbus and Boeing.  I love the wide bodies of the A330,B767,B777 and the B744.


The concerns I have with Delta and specifically flying the B777, by the time I make my way up there which could be over 20 years is who even knows if the B777 will still be in production, with the aviation manufacturing business in a boom at the moment creating better fuel efficient airplanes no even knows for sure which aircraft will be in production.  My other concern is just the industry itself, when it comes to Delta, just 10 years ago American Airlines was the largest Airline and now there bankrupt and could eventually merge with someone or just go totally under.  The Airlines industry is so hard to predict, with new airlines on the move there will always be movement and mergers in the industry.


In the Colgan accident there was many ways in which a lack of professionalism was demonstrated.  1 being the pilots were not mentally ready for the job at hand.  In the cockpit voice recorded you heard the pilots talking and joking around which you could tell they were not mentally in the cockpit.  Another way a lack of professionalism was demonstrated was on the management side, they are scheduling these pilots to the point that they were not physically ready.  Both pilots were flying on barely any sleep and were fatigued to the max.  The pilots and management side did not understand fatigue and how dangerous it is.  Some 50 lives could have been saved if pilots and management showed any lack of professionalism.


Two ways I plan to expand my level of professionalism once I am hired is to stay connected.  If your getting into aviation its because you love it.  In order to expand my level of professionalism is to stay in touch with the industry through blogs, news and Aviation articles, the industry is changing everyday and if you don't stay connected you will soon be out of touch when it comes to Aviation.  Another way I am going to expand my level of professionalism at Delta is to enhance myself with every opportunity to be involved with the Airline.  Voluntary involvement in Delta is a key to professionalism, ASAP (Aviation Safety Action Program) is a good voluntary program to expand my professionalism to improve our number one thing in aviation, Safety!

Airline Industry

In 2009 Delta and Northwest decided to come as one.  According to Delta's website it took $500 million in investments to make this happen.  Challenges that occurred during this process included painting over 80 Northwest Aircraft combing the hubs.  Northwest hubs were Detroit, Minnesota among others, were combined with Deltas hubs of Atlanta and JFK.  Delta is the worlds largest airline and according to Deltas website employees over 70,000 employees worldwide.  Some challenges from the pilots perspective, is Delta and Northwest pilots did minor things differently, such as items on the checklist.  I have spoken to many old Northwest pilots who believe that Northwest was more strict as an employer.  But that could be just a bias answer.  In my opinion the benefits outweigh the consequences between the merger.  


United and Continentals merger is one very similar to the one between Delta and Northwest.  Its a major shift in the airline industry as two of the major legacy carriers combine into one.  The United/Continental merger happened in 2010, and like most mergers the first decision must be made as too which name to use.  Usually the name chosen is the one with the best reputation (which is everything in aviation).  The most difficult part for the pilots in the merger is how there seniority will be infected especially for the Continental pilots.  According to iam141 the seniority for the airline is by the date you were hired no matter which airline you got hired by, whether it was United or Continental and implement them together.  Like the Delta/Northwest merger I also believe that the United/Continental merger will eventually be a beneficial one.


The future of American Airlines is not looking too bright at the current moment.  In November of 2011 American Airlines filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.  The thing that lead to bankruptcy for American Airlines is just bad business.  American Airlines has a very old fleet and very old flight crew.  According to Aviation Blogs Dallas News the average age of American Airlines pilots is 51.6 years old.  American has 560 pilots that are over the age of 60, and with the new FAA rules of mandatory retirement at 65, American is really going to be a shortage of pilots in the next 5-7 years.  Theirs rumors rumbling around the industry and maybe merging with Delta or merging with JetBlue.  I predict that American is in just such a huge financial whole that they will eventually merging with somebody if not more than one airline.  I think that due to the age of their pilots and airplanes, they will have to make some type of merger or they will be in a world of hurt.    


I believe these mergers throughout history will have a huge affect on our future.  As a pilot standpoint I think all these mergers maybe hurting the pilots now with all the adjusting going on in the industry, but once all the smoke settles down and all the airlines get settled down, I believe it will strongly benefit pilots and management students.  With the 65 year old mandatory retirement and such senior crews on American and Delta, in the next 5-10 years airlines will have to a hire a ton of pilots, which is great for us!

Commercial Aircraft Manufacturing

Boeing 787 is a long haul wide body aircraft that is currently being operated for ANA.  According to Boeing the first flight was December 2009.  The Boeing 787 is configured to hold 200-300 people.  The thing that makes the 787 different than previous aircraft, is that its 20% more fuel efficient than aircraft similar to its size, the Boeing 787 is made of 50% composites.  Airbus A380 is the largest commercial airliner in the world.  As of December 2011 The Airbus Company has reported 67 in operation.  The A380 was introduced by Singapore Airlines on October 25 2007.  The Boeing 747-8 has two different models, the 747-8F for Cargo and the 747-8I which is for commercial.  The 747-8F is out and being operated for a multiple of cargo carriers, the 747-8I is coming out sometime early this year.  What makes this aircraft different then what Boeing is used to making is the 747-8 will be the longest airplane ever made, and is more fuel efficient saving the airlines money.  Airbus is coming out with a A350 to try and compete with Boeing with its 777 and 787.  The A350 is currently not out and not supposed to come out for a while.  The first flight is "supposed" to be sometime in 2014.  Airbus is having a fit with this aircraft as potential customers have already rejected there supposed model.  The Airbus A350 is similar with all of these aircraft as it is made of composites, which will make it lighter saving the airline money.


I see Boeing leading in the commercial jet manufacturing.  Since Boeing has introduced the 787 after it took awhile I believe its going to "take off" the customers have giving nothing but good reviews for the new aircraft.  Boeing is also coming out with the 747-8I shortly, which I believe airlines will fall in love with.  Airbus is taking off their A340's out of production and have got nothing but bad reviews for there new aircraft (A350).  Not to mention Airbus is a European company where as Boeing is American.


China is trying to make a aircraft manufacturer called China Aviation Industries Corporation (AVIC-I).  According AIN Online they debuted a 56seat turbo prop at the Dubai Airshow this year called the MA600.  


I do not feel AVIC will be a competitor of Boeing and Airbus, at least not for a long time.  I feel that Boeing and Airbus have such a big head start on AVIC that it will take along time in order to compete with them.  Boeing and Airbus have been manufacturing aircraft for almost 80 years.  But I do believe China has money and power and with those two combinations, who knows what can happen!

FAA Final Rule on Pilot Fatigue

After reading the FAA press release, the key point that I believe will have the largest impact on safety in the industry is the 10-hour minimum rest period.  The new rule mandates that pilots must have an opportunity of eight hours of "uninterrupted" sleep.  This is a two-hour increase over old rules.  I believe this will have the largest impact on safety because pilots will be able to get an extra hour or 2 hours of extra sleep.  Pilots will now have the opportunity to wake up and maybe get a workout in or eat some food before they go on there day.  I work at a hotel and I see every morning pilots walking out the door with a cup a coffee and look half a sleep.  In my opinion there is nothing worst then waking up and knowing that you are going to be tired through out the day.  With this new rule, pilots will have the opportunity to get there full proper amount of sleep and wake up with the attitude of not being sleeping or fatigued.  


Previous regulations stated a minimum of 8-hours rest period, with this new regulation, it will increase the rest period by 2 hours.  Which doesn't sound much, but it also states that  pilots must have an opportunity for eight hours of uninterrupted sleep within the 10-hour rest period.  I'm sure every pilot is going to be absolutely thrilled that this new regulation passed!  


According to USA Today Travel the FAA estimates the change will cost the airlines nearly $300 million over 10 years.  An airline trades group estimates it could cost $2 billion more each year.  The second figure seems high in my mind, but the FAA estimate I totally agree with.  Due to the new regulations and preferably the 10-hour minimum rest will have airlines scattering to hire pilots, managers and dispatchers.  Due to this new regulation airlines will have to hire more pilots to fill in the slots of just the new 2 hour adjustment from the old regulation.  USA Today Travel also states that Pilots will be flying shorter routes to accommodate the new rules.  This is have a huge impact on the industry, but also very beneficial for future pilots.  Airlines will have to lower there minimums to get pilots hired in the next 2 years.


I agree with the exemption of cargo carriers from the new regulations.  If cargo carriers were covered in the new regulations all cargo carriers would go bankrupt and that would include UPS and FedEx.  Cargo carriers primarily fly at night and most of the time fly at the last minute.  The new regulations is huge with limiting pilots from back to back shifts from a night shift to a morning shift.  Cargo carriers would have to hire so many pilots in order to follow these regulations it would run them into the ground.  My solution to the fatigue issues that continue to exist within the cargo industry is to hire more pilots (not as much as airlines will require to) and implement the Fatigue Risk Management System so pilots are aware of there situation.  Instead of having them on call for 48 hours straight, limit it to a day at a time, improve there facilities, maybe put some beds where they can catch up on sleep at the facility instead of driving home.  I believe improving the facilities and not having the pilots on call for so long will improve safety and limit fatigue in the cargo industry.

Introduction Blog

I have always loved aviation ever since I can remember.  I have a family friend that has been flying for Delta/Northwest for over 20 years, is currently flying the 757.  I have always had an interest in airplanes and can usually name the type of plane in the sky.
Im planning on graduating in the fall and will have a little more time to finish up all of my ratings.  I have always wanted to be a commercial pilot, but the way the industry is (like a crazy roller coaster) I may be leaning more toward corporate after I build my hours.
My favorite airplane is the Boeing 777-300ER which no American air carrier has at the current moment, but the thing that interests me the most is the size of the 777 engines, which is the largest and most powerful in the world putting out over 115,000lbs of torque which is truly unbelievable.