FAA Wanted Inspections of 737s. Did Jet with Hole Get One?
from The Christian Science Monitor
In May, just two months before a Southwest plane developed a hole in its fuselage during flight, the Federal Aviation Administration issued new regulations that required far more detailed inspections of Boeing 737 fuselages "for any chafing or crack in the fuselage skin." More

Senate Panel Approves Air Safety
from The Buffalo News
A key Senate committee Tuesday approved a bill that includes several aviation safety provisions stemming from the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 in Clarence Center, which claimed 50 lives in February. The bill, which reauthorizes Federal Aviation Administration operations for the next two years, calls for an independent study of scientific research on pilot fatigue—and requires that the findings be included in the FAA’s upcoming new flight-time and duty-time rules for pilots. More

Boeing, Airbus Face Market Headwinds
from Forbes
The 787 is the world's fastest-selling airliner and Boeing had targeted a first flight for late this month. The program is now two years behind schedule and further delays to deliveries are inevitable--putting Boeing's hopes of consolidating its lead over the forthcoming Airbus A350 increasingly under threat. More

Aviation Should Aim to Use 80 Percent Biofuels, Report Claims
from New Energy Focus
In the study, entitled 'Green Skies Thinking', right wing think-tank Policy Exchange advocates the introduction of an EU Sustainable Bio-Jet Fuel Blending Mandate to be introduced by 2020, requiring a rising proportion of jet fuel to come from, or be blended with, sustainable bio-jet fuels. More

Bomb Testing Lab Strengthens Aviation Security
from CNN
In Atlantic City, N.J., a bomb maker pieces together an improvised explosive device that looks like an innocuous stack of DVDs. But this bomb maker isn't a terrorist. He is a U.S. government employee trying to beat terrorists at their own game. More

Aviation Regulation Enforcement is Lax
from Lancaster Eagle Gazette
The primary purpose of the Federal Aviation Administration is the assurance of safety in both private and commercial civil aeronautics. To accomplish this mission, it has promulgated many regulations from the Office of Aviation Safety. More

Virgin Atlantic Backs Biofuels
from Logistics Manager
Virgin Atlantic has welcomed the UK think tank Policy Exchange’s statement that sustainable biofuels should be used to cut emissions in the aviation industry. The airline was the first to use biofuel to fly its commercial aircraft between London Heathrow and Amsterdam in February 2008. More

Florida School to Offer New Aviation Doctoral Programs
from News Journal Online
The area’s first two doctoral degree programs have gotten approval from a regional accrediting body, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University announced this morning. Embry-Riddle will offer Ph.D. programs in aviation and engineering physics starting in 2010, school officials said. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools approved both programs this month. ERAU officials believe the aviation Ph.D. will be the first of its kind in the world. More