Hangar Utopia
from Aviation Week
Imagine walking into a white-walled hangar with floors resembling polished grey granite. The shiny floor reflects sunlight cascading through rooftop windows/panels, obviating the need for fluorescent lights. Picture this comfortable space, where four large private jets undergo light maintenance, the electricity always is free and the maintenance staff is happier and healthier. Welcome to Hangar 25, the first LEED Platinum-rated aviation maintenance hangar in the U.S. More

Johnson Controls Issues Green Air RFP
from The Transnational
Continuing its drive for environmental sustainability, Johnson Controls issued a request for proposals that seeks airline commitments to honor specified emissions reduction targets. The company's partner on the initiative, Tri-Pen Management Corp., called the RFP a first of its kind. Contracts would require airlines to disclose a carbon footprint at the opening of the contract term and commit to reducing it by a certain percentage before the end of the term. More

FAA Administrator Nominee Gets Strong Airline Support
from The Wall Street Journal
The White House announced that Randolph "Randy" Babbitt, a second-generation pilot-union leader turned aviation consultant, will be nominated to head the Federal Aviation Administration, at a time of turmoil for the agency as well as the airlines it regulates. A former labor activist versed in the politics and economics of the industry, Babbitt's union credentials stretch back to the bitter employee-management battles that helped bring down Eastern Airlines decades ago. Babbitt, 62, served two terms as head of the country's largest commercial-pilot union during the 1990s, before becoming an aviation industry consultant and serving on various government panels. More

Jet Fuel Prices May Soar 15 Percent from April 1
from Economic Times
Starting today, aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices are expected to go up by at least 15 percent. Two independent sources in private carriers told the Economic Times that they have got feelers from oil marketing companies about the impending rise in ATF prices. The rise will confirm the trend of increasing ATF prices which, after an incessant fall since September, rose marginally on March 15. "However, the increase will be steep this time around," said an official with a private airline. More

Kansas City International Airport Slated for Electric Vehicles
from The Kansas City Star
A U.S.-British consortium has chosen Kansas City International Airport in Kansas City, Mo., for a green technology project — an assembly plant for all-electric powered delivery vans employing 200 people. The facility and support operations are expected to occupy existing airport buildings, according to officials briefed on the endeavor, code-named "Project High Voltage." The battery-powered vehicles are expected to have a range of 100 miles, a top speed of 50 mph and a payload of up to 16,280 pounds. More

Carbon Sciences Mimics Mother Nature, Turns CO2 Into Fuel
from CleanTech Brief
Santa Barbara, Calif.-based technology company Carbon Sciences doesn't do anything Mother Nature can't do – it just does it several million years faster. What the company does is change carbon dioxide into fuel by means of a biocatalytic process – the kind of process, says Carbon Sciences president and COO Byron Elton, which occurs naturally. More

Losing Altitude
from The Boston Globe
Being in a waterfront community with no shortage of wind, Winthrop, Mass., officials were optimistic the town would be a key cog in Massachusetts' goal of becoming a leader in wind power. Private investors in green technology and the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust were also keen on Winthrop. But harnessing wind power has been a struggle for Winthrop. More

Boning Up on Airport Noise
from The East Hampton Star
James Brundige, the manager of the East Hampton Airport in New York, and Matthew O’Brien, the airport operations supervisor and noise abatement officer, were invited to be speakers at a recent University of California symposium on airport noise and air quality. The two men have been involved in addressing aircraft noise, which has prompted complaints from East Hampton Airport neighbors as well as those across Long Island, N.Y., who live under flight paths. More