The United Nations has historically accepted the Kármán line as the boundary of space. And while the U.S. government has been reticent to agree to a specific height, people who fly above an altitude of 60 miles (100 km) typically earn astronaut wings from the Federal Aviation Administration. Even the Ansari X-prize chose the Kármán line as the benchmark height required to win its $10 million prize, which was claimed when Burt Rutan’s SpaceShipOne became the first privately-built spacecraft to carry a crew back in 2004.
Tag: flight crew
How are slots allotted to airlines for operation form an Airport?
With the increase in air traffic at the major airports in the country, the capacity of many airports has been constrained. Therefore to ensure most efficient use use of airport infrastructure and in order to maximise the benefits to the greatest number of airport users, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) has a policy for allocation of constrained or limited airport capacity to airlines and other aircraft operators, through a transparent and equitable mechanism so as to ensure viable airport and air transport operations.
Upgrading your Preflight and Inflight Briefing.
In aviation, as flight crew we have to make Go- No Go decision from mountain of information available to us. The goal is to use briefing process to discuss the situation with crew and avoid making a mistake.
Suicide – Murder in Air: Should air-travellers be worried?
Wall Street Journal citing US officials investigating the Eastern China B737-800 crash in March 22 suggests that someone in cockpit gave control inputs which sent the plane into steep dive crashing at remote hill and killing everyone on board. If confirmed by NTSB this would be the third major disaster attributed to pilot suicide- murder. This includes German Wings flight in 2015 that was flown into French hills by co-pilot and Mozambique Airlines flight in Nov 2013. Reoccurrence of such incidents has highlighted the worry of air travellers for the safety. Should they be worried or scared to step into the aircraft for their future travel.
World Pilots day
Dear Pilots, Thank you to all those who make aviation a reality. Without your skills and dedication, the world would be a hard place to travel and explore. Pilots of the world are truly people worth looking up to. And on this day I thank you for your dedication and hard work thousands of feet above the rest of us. Blue skies and Happy World Pilots Day.
Thunderstorms
Thunderstorms are one of the most beautiful atmospheric phenomenon. As a pilot, however, thunderstorms are one of the most hazardous conditions you can encounter. Thunderstorms can produce severe turbulence, low level wind shear, low ceilings and visibilities, hail and lightning. Each of these hazards can be difficult to cope with; if all these conditions arrive at once, it can be disastrous. Understanding basic thunderstorm formation and structure can help you make safe decisions.
What Pilots should know about GNSS signal jamming or spoofing..
Satellite Positioning Systems like GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Gallileo can be the target of various attacks from basic jamming to more sophisticated spoofing of signals or even hard kill of satellites. While Jamming makes the GNSS unusable , Spoofing is a sophisticated form of RF interference which makes the receiver believe it is at false location.
Beyond the Control: Is Helicopter Operation More Risky?
The preliminary finding of the tri-service investigation into the fatal crash of the Mi-17V5, which led to the death of all 14 who were on board, including Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, has ruled out mechanical failure, sabotage or negligence as the cause of the accident. The inquiry team said the accident was a result of the helicopter entering into the clouds due to an unexpected change in the weather conditions in the valley in Tamil Nadu, where it crashed. The change of weather led to spatial disorientation of the pilot resulting in a controlled flight into terrain (CFIT), a statement issued by the defence ministry has said.
HAND OF GOD
Most pilots are sometimes faced with an emergent situation wherein the responses need to be prompt, correct and precise. A first-hand ditching story by Islander aircraft pilot of Indian Navy.
Career as an Aerospace Engineer
Engineering as a career has attracted students in India in a big way and a large number of aspirants taking the engineering exams are testimony to this fact. Engineering is a multi-disciplined field with new disciplines and branches being added with the advancement of science and technology. Though a large number of students appear for different engineering exams not many are aware of the various career options that engineering as a profession offers.