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The incoming chair of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee said on Thursday that the Federal Aviation Administration must take actions to modernize air traffic control systems. Senator Ted Cruz said at a hearing on air traffic issues that he plans to "focus heavily" on the status of U.S. airspace when he takes over next year. "The status quo of how the FAA modernizes our ATC is unacceptable," Cruz said. "We are stuck with technology that is outdated almost as soon as it is introduced into the airspace." Cruz said he plans to look at "the status of the airspace and what changes may be necessary to enhance its efficiency and reliability." A computer outage to a key pilot alerting system in January 2023 disrupted 11,000 flights and forced a halt to all U.S. passenger airlines' departing traffic for almost two hours, the first such action since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The Government Accountability Office in September said the FAA must take "urgent action" to address aging air traffic control systems. GAO said the FAA determined that 51 of its 138 systems are unsustainable, citing 17 of those "unsustainable systems" as especially concerning and another 54 were potentially unsustainable. However, the FAA does not plan to complete modernization projects for many systems for at least a decade. A union representing air traffic controllers said on Thursday that many facilities "are plagued by leaking roofs, flooding basements that contain electronic systems, broken-down elevators and HVAC systems, and chronically backed-up bathroom toilets."<br/>

The head of the Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Whitaker, announced on Thursday that he is stepping down at the end of the President Biden’s term, leaving the agency without crucial leadership as ongoing safety challenges and questions about oversight of Boeing persist. Whitaker’s resignation comes just over a year into his five-year term that, if it had been fulfilled, would have spanned President-elect Donald J. Trump’s second administration. The length of the appointment is meant to provide stability and minimize political interference within the nation’s premier aviation safety agency. “This past year, air travel rebounded to near record highs but cancellations were at record lows — a testament to your excellence and dedication,” Whitaker wrote in a message to the agency’s employees. “It is not just me who recognizes what you do — the tens of the thousands of people who fly every day do, too.” Whitaker is stepping down just as the deputy administrator, Katie Thomson, is also departing, leaving an unexpected leadership void atop an agency that has struggled in recent years to find a leader willing to complete the five-year appointment. He is leaving as the safety regulator contends with a number of issues: the nation’s crumbling aviation infrastructure, the persistent problem of near collisions between commercial planes and manufacturing problems at Boeing. The storied plane maker’s 737 Max 8 jets were involved in two crashes during Trump’s first term, killing 346 people. And just months into Whitaker’s tenure, on Jan. 5, the door plug of an Alaska Airlines plane — a different 737 Max model — blew off in during a flight. The agency has increased the number of on-site inspectors in the company’s factories, along with slowing their production of commercial jets to allow closer scrutiny of their production.<br/>

US airlines are gearing up to acquire their first Airbus A321XLRs, after the FAA recently certificated the variant of the 4,700nm (8,704km)-range jet powered by CFM International Leap-1A turbofans. American Airlines and JetBlue Airways each say they expect to receive their first A321XLRs in 2025. JetBlue is more specific, saying it anticipates acquiring the first in autumn 2025 and to close next year with two in its fleet. United Airlines, meanwhile, has said it expects to receive its first A321XLR in early 2026 and to use the jets to replace its Boeing 757s. Those three airlines are the only US carriers holding orders for the long-range Airbus narrowbody. The aircraft has been marketed by Airbus as a middle-market jet adept at economically flying long-range routes that connect secondary cities – a mission that had similarly been targeted by Boeing with its out-of-production 757. Europe’s aviation regulator EASA certificated the Leap-1A-powered A321XLR in July. The FAA followed with its own validation of the aircraft, also only with the Leap-1A, in October. The type entered service on 14 October when Iberia operated an A321XLR from Madrid to Boston.<br/>

A U.S. senator has called for mysterious drones spotted flying at night over sensitive areas in New Jersey and other parts of the Mid-Atlantic region to be “shot down, if necessary,” even as it remains unclear who owns the unmanned aircraft. “We should be doing some very urgent intelligence analysis and take them out of the skies, especially if they’re flying over airports or military bases,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said Thursday, as concerns about the drones spread across Capitol Hill. People in the New York region are also concerned that the drones may be sharing airspace with commercial airlines, he said, demanding more transparency from the Biden administration. The White House said Thursday that a review of the reported sightings shows that many of them are actually manned aircraft being flown lawfully. White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said there were no reported sightings in any restricted airspace. He said the U.S. Coast Guard has not uncovered any foreign involvement from coastal vessels. “We have no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or a public safety threat, or have a foreign nexus,” Kirby said, echoing statements from the Pentagon and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy.<br/>

New York City area airports are bracing for record-breaking passenger numbers in 2025 as air travel continues to surge past pre-pandemic levels, fueled by growing demand and a rebound in international travel. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey — the bi-state agency which runs the metro-area’s air and seaports — expects 150m passengers to pass through its airports next year, Libby McCarthy, the agency’s CFO, said at a board meeting on Thursday. In 2025, the agency can expect “a record year across the board in improvement in activities,” McCarthy said, speaking about airport traffic and passengers using the PATH trains, which connect Manhattan to northern New Jersey. The anticipated surge coincides with ongoing overhaul projects at the region’s major commercial airports. Newark Liberty International Airport is undergoing a major four-decade redevelopment, including building a new international terminal. Meanwhile, JFK International Airport is undergoing a $19b overhaul, including a new Terminal One and expansions of Terminals 4 and 8. Aviation upgrades represent $16b of the Port Authority’s capital plan, the largest single segment, a budget presentation at the meeting said. <br/>

Colombian investigators are recommending prohibition of an improved take-off climb procedure if tailwind conditions are likely, following the accident involving a departing Aerosucre Boeing 727-200 freighter at Bogota. The aircraft’s prolonged take-off run from runway 14L resulted in its striking the ILS localiser antenna, some 300m beyond the runway end, as well as a 6.4m pole located in a parking lot another 173m further on. It managed to climb away, despite sustaining wing and undercarriage damage, and subsequently returned to land on runway 14R.<br/>While the Colombian accident investigation authority DIACC has yet to reach conclusions on the 10 November occurrence, it has pointed out that the 727 can conduct an improved procedure to enhance take-off and climb performance at high-altitude airports. This involves setting maximum thrust and using higher speeds for rotation and initial climb, ensuring a wider safety margin, better stability and optimum lift-to-drag ratio. But the speed increase means the procedure also demands more runway length, especially if aircraft are operating at high weights, conducting a rolling take-off, or departing in hot-and-high conditions.<br/>

Syria will represent an opportunity for international airlines when the country stabilises and when carriers undertake their risk assessments of airspace safety and security, the head of the International Air Transport Association said. However, it is still “too early” to assess the situation and global airlines will continue to monitor developments in the country over the next few months, Willie Walsh, director general of Iata, said. “Depending on what happens, obviously, but if the situation in Syria stabilises, then I think that would be seen by most people as being an opportunity for the industry,” Walsh said. “We will monitor the situation closely, but I think it's too early for us to call what will happen in Syria, we will need to monitor that probably over a period of months. But the general view is that it should be seen as a positive and an opportunity. But it clearly will depend on what actually happens in the country.”<br/>

A 33-year-old Australian man was arrested for allegedly committing mischief by fire with intent to cause damage to property at Changi Airport on Dec 12. The police were alerted to the incident involving a violent male passenger at around 2.15am. It took place in a holding room at Terminal 2, the police said. The man was reportedly agitated and verbally abusive towards auxiliary police officers after being denied a cigarette. Before the police arrived, he allegedly removed curtain blinds and set them on fire using a lighter, threatening to spread the fire if his demand was not met. Officers from the Airport Police Division managed to extinguish the fire. During the incident, the man also sprayed at the officers with a fire extinguisher. He was subsequently arrested. The man is expected to be charged on Dec 13 for mischief by fire with intent to cause damage. If convicted, he could face up to seven years in jail or a fine, or both. Investigations into other potential criminal offences are ongoing.<br/>

Boeing said on Thursday it plans to spend $1b to support increased production of its 787 Dreamliner widebody jets, as the U.S. planemaker works to meet an earlier output target of 10 a month by 2026.<br/>Boeing plans to expand operations at its Charleston County, South Carolina, facility with the $1b investment in infrastructure upgrades and the creation of 500 new jobs over five years, the planemaker said in a joint announcement with the South Carolina Department of Commerce. The investment and expansion lay the groundwork for "potential future rate increases driven by market demand," Boeing said. The U.S. planemaker faces pressure from European rival Airbus which has announced plans to raise output of its competing A350 to 12 a month by 2028. After a prolonged lull, demand for widebody planes is accelerating sharply as airlines renew capacity as demand grows for international travel. Boeing is trying to ramp up plane output to generate needed cash, after a crippling strike this autumn halted production of all but its Dreamliner jets. Boeing's announcement reaffirms an earlier target of 10 Dreamliner jets a month announced during a company investor day in 2022. Hitting that rate would be a steep climb for the planemaker, given existing production levels and challenges as Boeing wrestles with manufacturing quality problems. Boeing has been trying to bring 787 production back to a rate of five a month by the end of 2024, after scaling back output earlier this year due to supply-chain delays in getting seats and heat exchangers. Boeing has said its 787 production rate was five per month during the last quarter of 2023.<br/>

Since a crippling strike at many of Boeing's U.S. plane factories ended more than a month ago, progress ramping up production of its best-selling 737 MAX jet has been deliberately slow. Safety inspectors inside the 737 MAX factory outside Seattle laboriously scoured half-constructed planes for flaws they may have missed during the seven-week work stoppage. Other workers poured over manuals to restore their expired safety licenses. The factory was initially so lifeless in mid-November that one employee left early because the bins of fasteners he was tasked with replenishing weren't being used, according to a source inside the plant. The result: no new 737 MAX plane has been completed. Boeing said on Tuesday that it had restarted MAX production last week, as first reported by Reuters. Boeing's cautious approach, following criticism that the planemaker for years rushed production, has garnered praise from regulators and some airline CEOs. But it also has some smaller suppliers who cut jobs or operating hours during the strike hesitating to staff-up again, creating further uncertainty in an already fragile supply chain, according to three suppliers, one analyst and an industry source. Both Boeing and rival Airbus have struggled to meet production goals due to supply chain delays. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg in October told analysts he was anticipating a bumpy return from the supply chain post strike. Parts that used to take a day to be finished at a processing shop now take a week, one supplier told Reuters.<br/>

Air-taxi maker Archer Aviation said Thursday it has raised $430m in fresh capital, part of which will be used to develop a hybrid aircraft with defense tech company Anduril Industries. Shares of Archer were down 4% in early trading. Existing investors United Airlines and Stellantis as well as new backers such as Wellington Management and Abu Dhabi investment holding company 2PointZero participated in the fundraising, which was through an equity offering. Anduril, which was founded by entrepreneur Palmer Luckey, and Archer said the aircraft would target a potential "program of record" — a government approved and authorized acquisition program — from the Pentagon. The companies did not disclose any details of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, including its target entry-into-service date or the investment involved. "With Anduril by our side, and this new influx of capital, we will accelerate the development and deployment of advanced aerospace technologies at scale," said Archer Aviation CEO Adam Goldstein. Industry executives have said U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's planned government efficiency drive involving Tesla CEO Elon Musk could lead to more joint projects between big defense contractors and smaller tech firms in areas such as artificial intelligence, drones and uncrewed submarines. The latest fundraising also comes when the electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) industry faces a cash crunch as technological and regulatory hurdles weigh on the sector, though analysts have said Archer is among the best-positioned to operate long enough to at least achieve certification.<br/>

The transport ministry said Friday it will conduct a flight demonstration of a commercial-level air taxi model this week as part of a government project to introduce the urban air mobility (UAM) industry in the country. The ministry will demonstrate the operation of the S-4 model built by U.S. electric aircraft manufacturer Joby Aviation at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute's aviation center in Goheung, about 330 kilometers south of Seoul, on Saturday. The demonstration is part of the K-UAM Grand Challenge, a government-led demonstration program that will test UAM vehicle safety and traffic management capabilities for commercial services. The deployment of the S-4, capable of carrying a pilot and up to four passengers, will mark the first use of a commercial-level UAM aircraft in the country. The demonstration will include testing with UAM operational technologies, such as those involving flight management and air traffic, developed by a consortium formed by SK Telecom, Korea Airports and Hanwha Systems<br/>