Tank Timer is a tool for pilots who want to monitor fuel consumption during flight. I haven’t looked at myself – the Cirrus does a pretty good job of reminding you when to change tanks and tracking fuel consumption – but back when I used fly PA28s, this app might have been very useful.
A local newspaper in Hazleton (Pennsylvania) has reported that a luxury twin-engine Rockwell Sabreliner jet parked at the Hazleton Municipal Airport has not paid $625 or five months worth of aircraft parking fees and that the airport manager has responded by ordering fuel trucks to be parked around the aircraft to prevent it from taking off.
That move came after two pilots arrived at the airport with documents showing they were hired to fly the aircraft to St. Louis (Missouri) for refurbishment on behalf of someone in Pittsburgh who had made a $35,000 deposit for the refurbishment.
However, just who owns the aircraft and is thus responsible for paying the airport fees is not exactly unclear. According to FAA records (which are often not be up-to-date), a lawyer bought the aircraft in 2005 for $2.6 million through a corporation formed with a former mayor of the town and apparently the corporation still owns the aircraft with its office address being the same as that of the lawyer’s law firm. The problem is the lawyer is now sitting in prison for paying $2.8 million in bribes to judges and had agreed to forfeit the jet as part of a plea agreement. His law firm has also stated that he has had nothing to do with the jet for two or three years – meaning he has no intention of paying the fees.
Meanwhile, the person in Pittsburgh who attempted to have the jet flown out shares the same last name as a Pittsburgh real estate developer who wants to build a massive airport in the area and whose firm the lawyer is a former principle of while the former mayor of the town still remains a principle of.
As for the jet itself sitting at the Hazleton Municipal Airport, it would not be a good idea for any pilot to try and start a jet engined aircraft surrounded by fuel trucks but it looks like at least the airport has a pretty good shot at collecting those fees! After all, it’s a $2.6 million jet that someone obviously now wants while the fees owed are just $625.
The Harborough Mail has reported that the world’s only flying Cold War-era Avro Vulcan XH558 bomber recently spotted in the skies above Harborough again after 15 years and £7 million was spent to restore it to airworthy condition at Bruntinghtorpe by the Sky Trust.
Picture by Chris Jenkins
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the history of British military aviation, the Avro Vulcan Bomber was used by the RAF from 1956 to 1984 and was very much part of the country’s nuclear weapons program. The Avro Vulcan XH558, also known as The Spirit Of Great Britain, was the twelfth Vulcan built and first flew in 1960 before being converted into a B2 Maritime Radar Reconnaissance, then into an air-to-air refueling aircraft and finally back into its original configuration when it was used as an RAF display aircraft from 1986 until 1992. Eventually, Avro Vulcan XH558 was restored to flying condition by charitable donations and funds from the UK Lottery’s Heritage Fund and continues to make appearances at important events.
The Vulcan is now based at Robin Hood Airport Doncaster/Sheffield but if you want to have the chance to see it again or for the first time, the aircraft will be making a special appearance at the Victory Show in Cosby on Sunday, September 9. The two day Victory Show will be held over a 100 acre site that will be filled with re-enactments from several theaters during World War II but the return of the Vulcan to the show for the first time since 2009 promises to be a highlight of the event.
Tonight from 9:00 to 10:00 pm, BBC4 will air part two of Jet! When Britain Ruled the Skies (part 1 aired last week and is also available on the BBC iPlayer here). The documentary is well worth watching as it examines advances in British aviation during the 1950s and 1960s by taking a look at the design and technology behind military planes like the Vulcan bomber and the Meteor jet fighter.
Episode one took a look at how the achievements came during a time of national austerity and will also pay tribute to some of the test pilots who paid the ultimate price to advance both British aviation and the jet age. For any non-UK based readers or those who missed the episode, I should note that someone has already uploaded it onto YouTube. Hence, you don’t have to stay up late to watch it but be warned, I am sure the copyright police will soon find and have it pulled from YouTube!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmV6_INb_p0&w=480]
With that in mind and should you miss episode two, I am sure it will also be uploaded onto YouTube within a few days.
Two Sundays ago, there were four separate laser pen attacks on passenger aircraft near Leeds Bradford Airport at Yeadon in West Yorkshire. Specifically, the Wharfedale Observer reported that police received reports of laser pens being shone from the 
Horsforth area at 10:28 pm, the Ackworth or Featherstone area at 10:50 pm, the Huddersfield or Dewsbury area at 11:55 pm and Bradford at 11:59 pm. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is carrying out an investigation of each incident while the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) is leading the call for tough action and wants to see stronger regulations on laser pens in general.
The BBC later reported the arrest of a 14 year old after a laser pen was repeatedly pointed at the West Yorkshire Police helicopter in what sounds like a separate incident. The boy has since been released on bail pending further inquiries.
Of course and for pilots, it goes without saying as to how dangerous a laser pen attack can be while trying to fly an aircraft as it can lead to temporary blindness. Richard Toomer of BALPA has been quoted as saying:
People who do this maliciously – or even through ignorance – are playing Russian roulette with people’s lives
Moreover, a quick search on Amazon.co.uk reveals plenty of laser pens available for between £1 to £5 give or take – meaning its all too easy and cheap for a minor to get a hold of one.
The good news is that the number of laser pen attacks on aircraft flying into Leeds-Bradford Airport has fallen since a change in the law that now makes it a criminal offence but that airport remains one of the worst-hit airports in the UK as according to CAA figures, there have been 22 incidents up until June. And while that’s down from 80 during the whole of 2011, its still too high.
Nevertheless, Police said crew on board the police helicopter in the West Yorkshire attack was able to use specialist equipment to direct officers on the ground to an address in Bradford where they made an arrest – meaning those who abuse laser pens should be on notice that they can be tracked down and arrested.
Buttons . . . check. Dials . . . check. Switches . . . check. Little colored lights . . . check.
— The Bill Waterson comic character Calvin of “Calvin and Hobbes” fame….