Singapore Airlines – No Detail Is Too Small [video]

This Airline Goes Nowhere [video]

Cheer Up! Now There’s An App That Tells You If Your Plane Will Crash

Gizmodo reported –

More than just being a $0.99 novelty, though, ‘Am I Going Down’ is a good case study in human irrationality. Most nervous flyers are probably dimly aware that they’re at far greater risk driving or walking or shovelling snow, but there’s something emotionally terrifying about plane crashes that captures our imagination.

Read about the ‘Am I Going Down’ app HERE.

 

 

Cool Site – FlightRadar24.com

With FlightRadar24.com, you can follow almost any plane that is in the air worldwide on a Google-type map. The plane locations are updated on the map in real time (or with a 5 minute delay). Zoom in and the aircraft’s progress can be easily followed. Click on the plane’s icon and vital information about it (plane type, airline, destination, origination, altitude, speed, etc.) is displayed in the sidebar. Very cool!

Check out FlightRadar24.com

 

The Future of Air Travel According to Ziggy [comic]

original source

Did Computer Virus Cause Airliner Crash?

MSNBC reported –

Authorities investigating the 2008 crash of Spanair flight 5022 have discovered a central computer system used to monitor technical problems in the aircraft was infected with malware. An internal report issued by the airline revealed the infected computer failed to detect three technical problems with the aircraft, which if detected, may have prevented the plane from taking off, according to reports in the Spanish newspaper, El Pais. Flight 5022 crashed just after takeoff from Madrid-Barajas International Airport two years ago today, killing 154 and leaving only 18 survivors. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board reported in a preliminary investigation that the plane had taken off with its flaps and slats retracted — and that no audible alarm had been heard to warn of this because the systems delivering power to the take-off warning system failed. Two earlier events had not been reported by the automated system. The malware on the Spanair computer has been identified as a type of Trojan horse. It could have entered the airline’s system in a number of ways, according to Jamz Yaneeza, head threat researcher at Trend Micro. Some of the most likely ways are through third party devices such as USB sticks, Yaneeza said, which were responsible for the International Space Station virus infection in 2008, or through a remote VPN connection that may not have the same protection as a computer within the enterprise network. Opening just one malicious file on a single computer is all it takes to infect an entire system. “Any computer that is connected to a network is vulnerable to a malware infection,” O. Sami Saydjari, president of Cyber Defense Agency, told TechNewsDaily. “Standards have not been set to protect critical infrastructure.” An incident like this could happen again, and most likely will, according to Saydjari. A judge has ordered Spanair to provide all of the computer’s logs from the days before and after the crash.The final report from crash investigators is not due to be presented until December.

original source

Last Words From Cockpit Voice Recordings

This page catalogs the last words from airliner cockpit voice recorders. It has crashes from 1962 to present. Click on the date of each crash to view the complete transcript.

Go to Last Words.

Airline Installs Pay Toilets

The Age .com.au reports –

One of Europe’s biggest discount airlines, Ryanair, will charge passengers to use on-board toilets. The Irish airline is planning to make its toilets coin-operated, forcing passengers to fork out £1 ($1.65) or €1 ($1.45) every time they want to spend a penny in the sky. The extra charges, which come on top of separate fees for check-in baggage and snacks, will coincide with the reduction of some toilet facilities on Ryanair planes. “By charging for the toilets we are hoping to change passenger behaviour so that they use the bathroom before or after the flight,” Ryanair spokesman Stephen McNamara told the Daily Mail.

What I’m wondering is – what if you don’t have money for the facilities?

Continue reading HERE.

Atlanta’s Mile High Club

Image  joining the Mile High Club in this little rinky-dink airplane. But, I guess, the price is right.

Mile High Atlanta’s website states –

We will take you up to over 5,280 feet above the earth’s surface so you have the opportunity to join the exclusive “Mile High Club.”  For only $379.00 per couple, you and “your significant other” will have a one hour flight in a Piper Cherokee Six designed exclusively for this purpose.

Sign up now!