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TO THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES:With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the Senate to ratification, I transmit herewith the Protocol Supplementary to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft (the “Beijing Protocol”), adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization International Conference on Air Law (Diplomatic Conference on Aviation Security) in Beijing on September 10, 2010, and signed by the United States on that same date.  I also transmit, for the information of the Senate, the report of the Department of State with respect to the Beijing Protocol.The Beijing Protocol is an important...

TO THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES:With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the Senate to ratification, I transmit herewith the Convention on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Relating to International Civil Aviation (the “Beijing Convention”), adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization International Conference on Air Law (Diplomatic Conference on Aviation Security) in Beijing on September 10, 2010, and signed by the United States on that same date.  I also transmit, for the information of the Senate, the report of the Department of State with respect to the Beijing Convention.The Beijing Convention is an important component of international efforts to prevent...

Vladimir Putin today vowed to create a son of Concordski - a jinxed Soviet airliner now in the scrapyard - to fly VIPs around the world. He is basing his ambitious vision of new luxury passenger high speed jet on the fearsome Tu-160 nuclear bomber which sends shivers throughout the West. The Kremlin leader wants a civilian version of the long range strategic bomber to earn roubles to support the low-flying Russian economy. The Tu-144, nicknamed Concordski and made by Tupolev, became a laughing stock in the Soviet era, and never rivalled the Anglo-French Concorde which had a successful lifespan...

After a Dubai-bound Emirates jetliner from Thiruvananthapuram crash-landed in Dubai international airport on Wednesday, an amateur video has surfaced on social media which shows some passengers trying to save their belongings rather than their lives. Moments after all 300 passengers and crew were evacuated safely, an intense blaze engulfed the already-smoked-filled plane, killing a firefighter. It also brought the world's busiest international airport to a grinding halt for several hours. Source: Twitter In the video, a passenger can be heard shouting "laptop, laptop" even as others try to get their bags from the overhead storage bins before they evacuate the...

Iran and its airlines are nearing a tentative agreement to buy about 100 Boeing Co. jets following the easing of trade sanctions, according to people briefed on the discussions. The Islamic Republic is expected to buy jets directly from the U.S. plane maker in what would be one of the highest-profile deals between a U.S. company and Tehran since the West lifted nuclear sanctions on the country in January. It could also lease Boeing-made aircraft as part of a broader fleet renewal effort that includes acquiring Airbus Group SE planes, according to one of the people briefed on the discussions....

Speaking at the Wichita Aero Club on Monday evening, Aerion Corp. chairman Brian Barents said that “we are on the verge of a new supersonic age” in air travel. Aerion, in partnership with Airbus, is developing the Mach 1.5+ AS2 supersonic business jet (SSBJ), which is now expected to be certified in 2023. Final assembly is likely to be conducted in the U.S., he revealed. The company’s market studies suggest a demand for 600 SSBJs over 20 years, even at the three-engine AS2’s $120 million price point and with a restriction that the aircraft be operated at subsonic speeds over...

A senior U.S. Air Force officer says Russian bombers’ increasing probes of skies near Europe pose a risk to commercial air safety. Lt. Gen. Stephen Wilson said Friday that Russian bombers are not following international norms when flying near Britain, the Baltics or Scandinavia. He said Russian bombers that have approached European airspace as tensions have risen in the last year are not filing flight plans, using their transponders or communicating with air traffic controllers. …

Why is Russia's new supersonic biz-jet concept painted camouflage? Russia's Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI) -- think NASA's Langley Research Centre -- is working on a new supersonic business jet. (See here for Russian-language news release issued earlier today.) Sukhoi and Tupolev of course have been working on this idea for decades, of course, but this one will be a little different. It's supposed to fly quietly enough that it can operate over populated areas, unlike the supersonic Concorde, for instance. That's all very interesting in a Bond-villain-plot-vehicle-way, but that's not why we're posting on this blog. We'd really just like...

Norwegian Air has signed deals valued at $21.5 billion for 222 Boeing Co. and Airbus single-aisle aircraft, the carrier said Wednesday. The carrier ordered 100 of Boeing's new 737 MAX jets and 22 of Boeing's existing 737 aircraft. Its Boeing's largest order ever from a European airline, Boeing said. The Boeing order is valued at $11.4 billion at list prices, though airlines negotiate discounts, especially on large orders like this one.

Airbus halts production of long-haul A340 plane AFP | Nov 10, 2011, 06.07PM IST PARIS: European planemaker Airbus said today it was abandoning production of its A340 long-haul four-engine aircraft, which failed to compete with Boeing's 777. "We have accepted reality. We have not sold any A340s for nearly two years," Airbus finance director Hans Peter Ring said during a presentation on the third-quarter results of Airbus parent company EADS. The abandoning of the programme will allow Airbus to write back into its books a provision of 192 million euros ($261 million) it had made on the programme. The A340...

New IAI "taxibot" to save airlines billions The taxibot tows planes from the passenger gate to the runway, so the planes needn't run their engines. 3 February 11 20:27, The Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1) passenger jet towing vehicle, capable of handling even the largest planes in service, has successful completed a series of trials. The "taxibot" tows planes from passenger gate to the runway, rendering it unnecessary for the planes to operate their jet engines. IAI estimates the cost of the taxibot at $3 million, and the company expects to sell 1,500 taxibots to airlines by 2020....

In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, the federal government was ready to investigate solutions to nearly every terrorist threat to civilian aviation. Nearly 10 years later, there has been a subtle shift away from some high-tech solutions to real but low-probability threats. In the case of shoulder-launched missiles aimed at commercial airliners, the government has changed tactics from gadgetry to policy; the White House and Congress this year quietly stopped funding laser-jamming equipment that could scramble missiles as they track the heat of aircraft.

Most of us will probably never pull a Steven Slater: curse out a customer, grab a drink and leave our place of employment in a blaze of glory. But let’s face it, we’ve all had the urge. Slater, a flight attendant on JetBlue, instantly became a folk hero in many people’s eyes Monday after he grabbed a microphone and ranted at a passenger who had refused to apologize for hitting Slater with some luggage. Slater then grabbed a beer from the galley and fled the plane via the emergency exit chute. “How many of us can honestly say we haven’t...

Iran plane crash kills at least 17 The Russian-made airliner, with about 160 passengers, slides off a runway and into a wall during an emergency landing, officials say. Borzou Daragahi July 24, 2009 Reporting from Beirut -- A Russian-made airliner skidded off a runway and hit a wall at an airport in eastern Iran today, killing at least 17 people, Iranian state television and official news agencies reported. It was the nation's second fatal air accident in 10 days. Aria Airlines Flight 1525 from Tehran slid off the runway at Iran's second-largest city, Mashhad, during an emergency landing, state media...

Plane flies despite safety problem Reuters | Tuesday, 12 June 2007 A pilot told nervous passengers travelling with a low-cost Spanish airline that nearly half the seats on their plane were out of use due to a safety problem but it was nothing to worry about, a Spanish newspaper reported. As passengers took their seats on the Lisbon to Madrid flight operated by Vueling Airlines on Sunday they noticed that all but three of the 32 rows on one side of the plane were taped off, according to an El Mundo reporter among the travellers. The captain told them on...

PICTURE: Ad hoardings reveal India’s competitive streak An email circulated between airline staff purports to show just how far India’s airlines are willing to go in the battle for passengers. The email includes a photo of a Jet Airways advertising hoarding bearing the tagline “We’ve changed” in a bid to woo travelers aboard. In an apparent game of one-upmanship, rivals Kingfisher erected a similar hoarding above the Jet Airways advert claiming “We made them change”. Not to be outdone, both adverts are trumped with an announcement by carrier Go Air which claims: “We’ve not changed – we’re still the smartest...

Original Title: Who ordered the destruction of 'Rus'?Russian aces ask help from the president of RussiaSoon the precision flying group 'Rus' - one of the best in the world - may be deactivated. Is this a NATO plot? Or the army's slackness?V. Troyanov, who crashed our Su-27 on Lithuania, did it out of inexperience: this year the combat pilot had only 14 hours of flight training. Our aerial borders are watched by NATO aces who have 2-3 thousand flying hours. Compared to them, our Russian combat pilots are but 'green horns'. We have an excellent flight school in Vyazma, which...

TWO GROUND-to-air MISSILES of Soviet manufacture, of type SAM 18, imported into Europe remain untraceable. Acquired in 2002 by a group of French and Algerian islamists near the Maffia tchetchene, these weapons are in the center of a terrorist project aiming at cutting down a civil aircraft near an airport of the Hexagon. Until now, Bruguière judge, who inquires into this cell of radical islamists, suspected them of having prepared attacks chemical or bacteriological in Paris. But the testimony of a high person in charge for Al-Qaida held in Jordan revealed that this group involved in Tchétchénie had other...

China's skies are getting busier. The country is no longer just a lucrative market for long time rivals Boeing and Airbus. Major helicopter manufacturers are also keen to jump into China's aviation sector. Bell Helicopter believes that the country's huge market potential and manufacturing opportunities hold great promise, even though actual returns may be a long time coming. Two new Bell 206 L-4 helicopters were recently delivered to Beijing Capital General Aviation Co (BCGA). BCGA plans to buy another three to four Bell helicopters by 2008, BCGA officials say. The Texas-based company has signed a collaborative manufacturing agreement with Hafei...

MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. (AFPN) -- Civil Air Patrol’s national capital wing is helping the Air Force test its new visual warning system for pilots, a security measure set to become operational over the Washington, D.C., area on May 21, officials said. The system signals pilots who fly into the D.C. area’s air defense identification zone with low-level laser beams in an alternating red-red-green light sequence to alert them they are flying without approval in designated airspace. Pilots who receive the warning must immediately contact local air traffic control and fly their aircraft out of the no-fly zone. The...