The archive
Aviation stories, reporting and analysis.
1413 published articles across news, aircraft, airlines, airports, history and technical aviation.
24 shown / 1413 total
The Functioning of PAPI Lights
At night, you might notice many lights on the tarmac of an airport. All of them have a specific function to help guide traffic on ground and/or in the air. The PAPI lights are one of these lights. What are PAPI lights? No, PAPI is not…
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FAA Grounds Multiple Boeing 777 Aircraft
Following the engine failure of United's 777 last week, the FAA has requested an immediate grounding of all Boeing 777 aircraft equipped with the Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines. The particular engine comes with hollow fan blades, which…
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What happens when lightning strikes an airplane?
Lightning is an extremely dangerous phenomenon that takes place on earth. About 100 lightning bolts strike the Earth's surface every second which is about 8 million per day and 3 billion each year. These numbers may sound frightening…
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Static Discharge |VS| St. Elmo’s Fire
Pilots see static discharges dancing on their windscreens fairly often. As a passenger, you might be surprised or even concerned at the display. It can be very impressive, but it’s completely harmless. Let’s take a closer look at one of…
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What Are Your Traveling Options During COVID-19?
Some of you may want to go on a vacation, because you are used to traveling. Traveling could be your passion, your favorite hobby, something you cannot give up in. We've decided to write a list of destinations, where it is possible to…
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Boeing 777 Engine Falls Apart Over Denver
This Saturday, a United Airlines flight experienced a severe engine failure shortly after taking off from Denver International Airport. The aircraft was performing flight UA328, a daily scheduled flight from Denver to Honolulu when the…
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Predictive Analytics in Airport Operations
Like in many aspects of life, looking ahead brings you further than looking back. Depending on someone’s personality, a person may belong more to the “keeper” kind of persons while others are more open for change. Some like to improve…
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Wings: Until They Break
The wings are the most relevant parts of an airplane. They maintain the flight by the reaction forces against the air. Now, talking about the wing as a structural part of a plane, this is taken to the limit. Civil structures are tested,…
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What It Takes to Land the U-2?
Ever thought of an aircraft that lands on two wheels? Well, look no further than the U-2. The Lockheed U-2 is a high altitude reconnaissance aircraft and arguably the most well-known of them. Built for one sole reason that is to fly so…
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The Origins of Aviation & Airlines
For anything in this life, there is a beginning. For aviation the beginning is considered to be a little different and unique, simply because, who in the ancient times ever thought that humans can fly?! Since humans first observed the…
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The APU: The Hidden Engine
How many turbine engines are on an Airbus A320? Two, right? Would you believe three? How about a Boeing 747? Four engines? Wrong again. A 747 has Five turbine engines! Hiding inside the tail of almost every airliner is an extra engine…
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De-icing Airplanes
Airplanes are machines that need special requirements to properly work. Technicians make a lot of effort in order for every single aircraft be capable of flying, in fact, all the people on board rely on them - on their work, because…
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How Covid-19 Let The Flights Drop
Covid-19 has completely changed the world. While some industries are profiting or at least not being affected as much, aviation and tourism is suffering like nobody else. While the number of passenger flights was close to 45 million in…
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Uncertain Future For The 777x
Background Information Boeing’s latest aircraft, the 777-9x, is part of the new generation of twin-engine widebody jets and was first announced in 2013 in response to the Airbus A350. The flagship aircraft is marketed as the world's…
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NACA
Have you ever wondered about the beginning of one of the most important aeronautical research institution? NACA, stands for: “National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics”, it's an agency founded on March 3, 1915 in the United States to…
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The Most Dangerous Airports to Land On
Have you ever thought about landings? Do you think it is complicated? Well, being it's the pilot's job, he/she should be able to handle it. As a matter of fact, landing is not that challenging, but there are some airports where you need…
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Busiest Airports in the World
This article is not covid related, maybe it's better we take a little break. Many of you have already flown, or have been to an airport not just for the intention of flying, probably for spotting or just to pick up your relatives. Have…
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Worst Airport Disaster Ever
Car accidents happen everyday, thus are quite common. But what about the most reliable means of transport - airplanes? They could crash as well, but those accidents don‘t happen as often. Let me tell you about the worst disaster in…
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What Materials Are Used In Building Aircraft?
Modern aircraft have come a long way in terms of design and building materials. Engineers have discovered new metal and carbon-based alloys that have excellent properties for uses in aviation. Let’s take a detailed look at these…
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Will You Feel Safer Knowing That the Crew on Your Flight Are All Vaccinated?
Since the first vaccine against COVID19 appeared, all countries around the world were managing to compete to vaccinate their citizens. Airlines too, some airlines thought about vaccinating all of their work force and specially those who…
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TBO: Trajectory-Based Operations
After the article about A-CDM ( A irport C ollaborative D ecision M aking), focussing on improving the overall airport performance at one specific airport, the next step is to focus on the bigger picture, away from just one single…
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