U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Thursday the Trump administration will take steps to boost air traffic controller hiring after a series of recent safety incidents again raised questions about a persistent staffing shortage. The FAA will open its hiring window to become an air traffic controller through March 17, will increase starting salaries by 30% for candidates who go to the FAA training academy and will speed the time-to-hire by cutting more than four months off the old process. A persistent shortage of controllers has delayed flights. At many facilities, controllers are working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks to cover shifts. Duffy said he was reconsidering rules that had allowed air traffic control supervisors to reduce staffing at Washington's Reagan National Airport before a fatal Army helicopter-plane collision that killed 67 people in January. The FAA is about 3,500 fully certified air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing levels and has about 10% fewer controllers than it did in 2012. The FAA fired 350 probationary workers this month including some with safety-related positions. Duffy insisted that the agency eliminated no jobs critical for safety. USDOT withdrew a retirement offer made to controllers. This week, a bipartisan group of three U.S. senators called for new funding to boost air traffic control staffing, speed training of new controllers and provide new incentives to retain aviation workers.<br/>
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Elon Musk said Thursday that he’s sending his Starlink satellite internet terminals to the Federal Aviation Administration while saying, without providing evidence, that current technology poses a risk to air travel safety. The billionaire and top advisor to President Donald Trump, who has been tasked with cutting costs throughout the federal government, posted the claims on his social media platform, X. Executives at major airlines told CNBC on Thursday that they do not see risks to air travel safety because of the FAA’s technology. The FAA, which regulates Musk’s company SpaceX, didn’t immediately comment but earlier this week said it has been testing Starlink technology in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and in Alaska. The White House referred a request for comment to the FAA. The FAA “has been considering the use of Starlink since the prior administration to increase reliability at remote sites, including in Alaska,” the agency said Monday. “This week, the FAA is testing one terminal at its facility in Atlantic City and two terminals at non-safety critical sites in Alaska.” The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that the FAA is close to canceling a contract with Verizon for new communication technology for air traffic control and giving it instead to Musk’s Starlink. Musk said Thursday on X: a “Verizon communication system to air traffic control is breaking down very rapidly.” Verizon said in a statement that “the FAA systems currently in place are run by L3Harris and not Verizon.” He later corrected himself and said that L3Harris is responsible for the “rapidly declining” system. <br/>
A man in the US has been sentenced to 33 months in prison after performing a “lewd” assault on an airport security officer. George Stevens, 38, of South Carolina, pleaded guilty to interference with security screening personnel and assault of a federal officer. According to court documents, the incident occurred on July 15, 2023, at Indianapolis International Airport. Stevens was stopped by a Transportation Security Officer (TSO) and was given a pat-down. After first complying it seems Stevens became more irate and appeared drunk. He called the TSO a “freak” four times before repeating “I don’t have nothing” and “I’m just trying to get home”. After “shaking his buttocks” at the guards he then stripped off his jeans to expose his bum and genitals. On removing his underwear he then started “forcibly pressing it into the supervisor’s face”, according to the US Attorney’s Office. “The entirety of Stevens’ lewd assault occurred in full view of the travelling public, including families with small children, who were attempting to navigate the security checkpoint and get to their flights.”<br/>
The federal government has taken administrative steps to obtain full control over a massive Russian cargo plane parked in Toronto, which Ottawa hopes to use to generate financial support for Ukraine. "This looks like it's the government gearing up for its forfeiture of that aircraft," said William Pellerin, an Ottawa-based trade lawyer with the firm McMillan LLP. He said he expects the government "to move very quickly on this forfeiture" by seeking a court order to make the plane the property of the Crown. In June 2023, the federal government officially seized an aircraft that had been sitting on the tarmac at Toronto's Pearson International Airport since February 2022. The plane hasn't moved in the 25 months since. The Russian-registered Antonov AN-124 is owned by the firm Volga-Dneper, which Canada has sanctioned. It is one of the largest aircraft in the world and Ottawa fears Russia could use it to deliver military supplies to support its war on Ukraine. In June 2023, Ottawa issued a formal cabinet order to seize the plane, ahead of a formal court process to have it forfeited to the Crown. At that point, Moscow warned that relations with Canada were "on the verge of being severed." Months later, Ottawa has effectively retracted its original cabinet order and revised it so that it applies to foreign subsidiaries of the Volga-Dneper company. That means the federal government is sanctioning corporate subsidiaries based in Ireland and the Netherlands, as well as individuals the Canadian government suspects of "ownership interests" in the airplane. The changes appear in an order-in-council as well as a formal gazette notice, both of which were dated Feb. 14.<br/>
Germany's Munich and Hamburg airports were hit by strikes by public sector union Verdi on Thursday and Friday, with airlines cancelling about 80% of flights in Munich. Munich, Germany's second-largest hub, said in a statement on its website that there was a risk that even more flights could be cancelled and that passengers planning to travel through Munich should contact their airlines. Verdi has staged several walk-outs in Germany since wage negotiations kicked off in January. The union said that staff at Hamburg airport's operator, as well as at services including at maintenance, IT, security and baggage handling would not work during the two days. German airport association ADV said that the strikes, as well as similar airport walk-outs in Duesseldorf and Cologne earlier this week, were disrupting travel plans of almost 300,000 passengers. "Two-day strikes that cut off German metropolitan regions from international air travel go far beyond what could qualify as token strikes," ADV said.<br/>
Nearly 450 staff members working at Heathrow Airport are set to vote on strike action over pay in an effort to match what peers at Gatwick are receiving. Unite, which represents workers across all sectors in the UK and Ireland, announced that passenger assistance workers are being balloted for strike action over their pay. Almost 450 Wilson James workers at Heathrow, who provide assistance to passengers with restricted mobility, will have until 20 March to vote on the strike action. Unite said the workers are “angry” at being paid an average of 9.5% less than Wilson James staff at Gatwick Airport performing the same role. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “There is absolutely no justification for Wilson James paying its Heathrow workers significantly less than its Gatwick staff doing the same job. Both Wilson James and Heathrow are extremely wealthy. The money is there to close the pay gap – Unite will support our members 100% to ensure that happens.” The union said that strike action would affect passenger assistance services across the entire airport.<br/>
A second runway at Gatwick Airport has been backed by government, providing measures to reduce noise are put in place. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said she was "minded to approve" the expansion. Some MPs, local authorities and residents are strongly opposed. The airport wants to move its northern runway, which is currently only used for taxiing or as a back up, and make it operational by the end of the decade. The transport secretary's support does not guarantee the expansion will go ahead as it would still need planning permission. If permission is granted, work would start almost immediately, the BBC understands. The GBP2.2b expansion will be funded through private investment. "I am issuing a minded to approve decision that provides some additional time to seek views from all parties on the provisions, prior to a final decision," Alexander said in a written ministerial statement on Tuesday. Gatwick has until 24 April to respond to demands for it to include measures, such as noise mitigation and having a proportion of passengers travelling to the airport via public transport, in its overall plans before a final decision will be made in October.<br/>
China's ambassador to Australia said on Friday his country had no reason to apologise for the military drills it conducted in international waters between Australia and New Zealand that forced at least 49 flights to change path. Both Australia and New Zealand have raised concerns with Beijing on the rare live-fire drills in the Tasman Sea last week, saying they did not receive adequate notice from China's navy. Ambassador Xiao Qian said China's navy conducted drills that complied with international law and gave advance notice following international practices. "I don't see there is any reason why the Chinese side should feel sorry about that, or even to think about to apologise for that," Xiao told national broadcaster ABC News in an interview. "Different countries have different practice and based on the nature of the drill, size of the drill, and the scope of the drill, my view is that the Chinese naval certification advice was appropriate." Xiao said the drills did not pose any threat to Australia, one of its largest trading partners, and suggested Canberra should expect more Chinese ships sailing in the region in the future. "As a major power in this region, as a country that has so many things to look after, it is normal for China to send their vessels to different parts of the region to conduct various kinds of activities," Xiao told ABC News. A frigate, cruiser and replenishment vessel that formed the Chinese navy task group has continued west on Friday, across the Great Australian Bight, the New Zealand Defence Force said.<br/>
Several Chinese builders of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plants are postponing start up as a lack of government policy guidance restrains them from marketing the fuel domestically or exporting it. Reuters reported last May that companies were investing more than $1b to build China's first plants to turn waste cooking oil into aviation fuel for export and for domestic demand once Beijing requires its use to cut emissions. However, Beijing has yet to announce the mandatory use of the lower-carbon fuel for the world's second-largest aviation fuel market, disappointing industry expectations. Companies were hoping that by the end of 2024 the government would issue requirements for 2% to 5% of SAF mixed with traditional jet kerosene by 2030. Privately led Tianzhou New Energy and Jinshang Environmental Protection Tech, which are each building SAF plants in southwestern Sichuan province, have pushed-back target dates for first production, company executives said. Tianzhou aims to start test operations at its plant in Weiyuan in the second half of 2025 versus an earlier target of the end of 2024, said a senior company official who asked not to be identified, citing changes in construction schedules as a factor in addition to policy uncertainty. The site is set to process 200,000 metric tons per year of used cooking oil into SAF, or about 4,300 barrels per day. Jinshang Chairman Ye Bin said the trial of its 500,000 tpy plant in Chengdu would be delayed for about three months from its original start time. "Original plan was to complete mechanical construction by the end of this year and test run the facility in (the first quarter) of 2026," Ye said.<br/>
Boeing and other top aerospace firms are scouring their supply chains to determine their exposure to a major fire last week at a Philadelphia-area parts factory that has set off alarm bells across the industry, people familiar with the matter said. The days-long fire at SPS Technologies' century-old factory could put pressure on the industry's already strapped supply chain. GE Aerospace and others are now trying to figure out who can replace the factory's lost production and also identify who has spare parts, the people said. Both Boeing and France's Safran contacted suppliers asking about the potential effects, according to letters seen by Reuters. The fire, which caused no fatalities, is the latest in a string of supply setbacks in aerospace. This stadium-sized facility was crucial to the production of key parts, and some analysts warned that its loss could further strain the industry's ability to boost output. SPS products include titanium fasteners of the kind used to assemble carbon-fiber jets like the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350. Some fasteners produced at the factory are also highly specialized and not easily sourced by other manufacturers, analysts and industry executives said. Boeing and European rival Airbus were already facing supply snags as they try to boost airplane output. "There's only so much inventory of this out there, and that something's going to have to change really fast to avoid potential (problems) that could affect production rates," said AeroDynamic Advisory Managing Director Kevin Michaels. In a letter sent to suppliers following the February 17 fire seen by Reuters, Boeing asked the companies whether they regularly used parts from the SPS factory, located in Jenkintown, and to explain the impact if SPS could not ship parts that were ordered.<br/>
Embraer expects to increase aircraft deliveries by up to 18% this year, it said on Thursday, reaching as many as 240 commercial and executive jets as it continues to lift output to meet strong demand. Despite supply chain disruptions, the world's third-largest planemaker - which delivered 203 jets last year - has been raising annual deliveries since 2021, marking a recovery from the pandemic-related downturn. The Brazilian company's outlook for this year places commercial aviation deliveries at between 77 and 85 aircraft, up from 73 in 2024. Business jet deliveries are estimated to hit between 145 and 155, up from last year's 130. "We could have had even better guidance, to be honest. Our guidance is within the limits of supply chain bottlenecks," CE Francisco Gomes Neto told Reuters after quarterly results. Planemakers overall, including larger rivals Airbus and Boeing, have struggled in recent years with supply chain snags, such as a shortage of engines, that affected output plans and delayed deliveries. Gomes Neto said the scenario has been improving, noting that although some constraints remain, Embraer should be able to better spread out production in 2025, taking some pressure off the seasonally busier fourth quarter. The higher annual deliveries should also lead to an expansion in revenues, which were projected at between $7.0b and $7.5b in 2025, after reaching $6.39b last year. Embraer, whose focus is on up to 150-seat single-aisle aircraft, has been experiencing solid demand for its jets and solidified itself as a market darling, with shares near all-time highs after more than doubling in value last year.<br/>