AvTalk Episode 208: The FAA says fly better

On this episode of AvTalk, the FAA tells pilots to fly better, ATC staffing is bad enough to allow slot waivers for this summer, and the 25 hour cockpit voice recorder is finally in progress. Plus, an update on the Flair Airlines 737 repossessions and Emirates debuts a refreshed livery. The FAA’s post-Safety Summit week The FAA issued a memo on Wednesday basically reminding pilots to fly better. On the same day, the organization also issued proposed rules for summer 2023 allowing airlines to return 10% of their slots at airports in New York and Washington DC without penalty, city the likelihood of dramatically increased delays if airlines operate as many flights as currently planned. And late last week, the FAA finally moved to require 25 hour cockpit voice recorders. Boeing reconfirms “next decade” approach to new airplane Boeing’s CFO Brian West, speaking at a Bank of America investors conference, reiterated that Boeing has no plans to begin developing a new airplane this decade. Instead the manufacturer is awaiting a step-change in efficiency of at least 20-30% before beginning development. Flair almost had more aircraft seized Lessors were trying to seize 11 of Flair’s aircraft, which would amount to half the airlines fleet, before part owner 777 Partners stepped in to cover lease payments. In Canada, where airlines must be Canadian controlled, this has raised some questions. News bites Air India Engineering, the state-owned MRO provider, is set to be privatized. Norse will head south for the winter in 2023, changing up its business model a bit. 787 deliveries have resumed. United and FlyDubai have filed for codeshares on some flights. Lufthansa’s A380 will make its commercial return on 1 June to Boston. Emirates gets a “new” livery. JetBlue gets ridiculously bad slots at Amsterdam, but they are slots. Really Cool Airlines The former CEO of Nok Air has a plan to launch an airline—a really cool airline. And it’ll be called: Really Cool Airlines! Thank you for listening! Thank you so much for listening to AvTalk! Like the podcast? Have suggestions for future shows? Let us know by leaving a review on iTunes. Reviews on iTunes not only help us make a better show, they help more people find the podcast! Want to send us additional feedback, just email us. And tell that friend who asked you for a podcast recommendation that AvTalk is the one they want to listen to next. Click here for a transcript of this episode.