Ionising radiation is a permanent feature of the upper atmosphere, where the protection we take for granted on the surface is significantly thinner. At airlines’ cruising altitude, particles periodically ejected by the sun and cosmic radiation coursing through the universe are 100 times more potent than down below. Still, the exposure for every extra-long trip across the globe is roughly equivalent to 1 X-ray. That is, except for 2 regions: the poles. The planet’s magnetic field helps to minimise radiation for most latitudes, but that shield tends to dissipate at extreme north and south. Airline employees are already the most vulnerable to workplace radiation, but the growing number of polar and long-haul routes may make the hazard worse. <br/>
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Bombardier will investigate after planes built by the company crashed in Nepal Monday and Sunday in Iran, killing roughly 60 people combined. The planes have been identified as the Q400 turboprop in the Nepal crash, which is built in Toronto, and a Challenger business jet in the Iranian crash. A senior investigator and a field service representative will depart Tuesday morning to Nepal, said a spokesperson for Bombardier. “It (Q400) has been designed to be robust and reliable in consideration to high cycle demands of regional airlines,” the spokesperson said. Mark Masluch, director of Communications and Public Affairs for Bombardier called the back-to-back crashes an “unfortunate coincidence,” adding that it would be “inappropriate” to comment on any links between the two accidents. <br/>
Airlines have pre-emptively canceled nearly 1,135 flights for Tuesday and another 133 for Wednesday, as of 5 pm ET Monday. The wave of cancellations come ahead of the third nor’easter that's expected to hit the region in as many weeks. Hardest hit was Boston, where two-thirds of Tuesday's flights had been canceled as of Monday afternoon. About half had already been grounded at the airports serving Hartford, Conn., and Providence, R.I. More cancellations – possibly hundreds more – were likely as airlines further braced for a storm that could bring up to 2 feet of snow to eastern New England. Monday, about 290 flights had been canceled nationwide; at least a third of those came as airlines canceled late-day flights bound for New England and the Northeast to prevent planes from becoming stuck. <br/>
India grounded all Airbus narrow-body planes powered by the latest Pratt & Whitney engines, taking unilateral action to remove the aircraft from the country’s skies after a series of in-flight incidents. A320neos with even one Pratt engine featuring a seal found to cause vibrations are no longer allowed to fly, India’s DGCA said Monday. The action is at odds with EASA, the primary regulator for Airbus planes, which repeated guidance that the jets are safe if they have a single affected turbine. The Indian move immediately grounded 8 aircraft at IndiGo and 3 at GoAirlines. It comes after 3 in-service shutdowns of aircraft with one PW1100 engine featuring the seal, 2 of which occurred in the past week, according to the DGCA. The glitch with the so called knife-edge compressor seal is the latest in a series of expensive problems for Pratt. <br/>