Bleak Future for Indian Aviation with little signs of recovery

Jet Airways' ostrich like attitude, its promoter's reluctance and subsequent delay in relinquishing control did not help Jet. Today, it is staring at a fault of $109 million which has to be paid by all means by March 28, 2019 to the HSBC Bank Middle East.

source http://www.ncairways.co/aviation/aviation-sector/

Jet Airways flight suffers bird hit before landing in Mumbai

India Elect 2019: Dates, Schedule, Constituency-wise details, For Your Info

Here is a comprehensive report on all key data associated with Lok Sabha election 2019. Poll dates, schedules,

source http://www.ncairways.co/india-news/lok-sabha-election-2019-all-dates-full-schedule-constituency-wise-details-all-you-need-to-know/

Atlas 767 crash probe strives to comprehend pitch upset

US investigators probing the Atlas Air Boeing 767-300 freighter crash have yet to explain fully the initiating circumstances behind the elevator deflection which pushed the aircraft into a fatal dive on approach to Houston. Crucially the National Transportation Safety Board has shifted its immediate emphasis, through the unusual decision to amend its phrasing while detailing […]

source http://www.ncairways.co/aviation/atlas-767-crash-probe-strives-to-comprehend-pitch-upset/

Piece Found At Ethiopian Airlines Crash Site Shows Jet Was Set To Dive

A screw-like device found in the wreckage of the Boeing 737 Max that crashed last Sunday in Ethiopia indicates the plane was configured to dive. This evidence prompted U.S. regulators to ground the model.

Federal Aviation Administration chief Daniel Elwell on Wednesday cited unspecified evidence found at the crash scene as part of the justification for the agency to reverse course and temporarily halt flights of Boeing’s largest selling aircraft. Up until then, American regulators had held off as nation after nation had grounded the plane, Boeing’s best-selling jet model.

The piece of evidence was a so-called jackscrew, used to set the trim that raises and lowers the plane’s nose, according to the person, who requested anonymity to discuss the inquiry.

A preliminary review of the device and how it was configured at the time of the crash indicated that it was set to push down the nose, according to the person, who wasn’t authorized to speak publicly about the investigation.

The jackscrew, combined with a newly obtained satellite flight track of the plane, convinced the FAA that there were similarities to the Oct. 29 crash of the same Max model off the coast of Indonesia. In the earlier accident, a safety feature on the Boeing aircraft was repeatedly trying to put the plane into a dive as a result of a malfunction.

All 157 people aboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 died early Sunday shortly after the plane took off. The pilot reported an unspecified problem and was trying to return to the airport. The plane crashed near Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital. The plane’s crash-proof recorders have been sent to France to be analyzed.

The discovery of the jackscrew was earlier reported by NBC News.

Separately, the New York Times reported that doomed Ethiopian Airlines plane was in trouble almost immediately after takeoff as it lurched up and down by hundreds of feet at a time. The captain of the Boeing Co. 737 Max 8 asked in a panicky voice to turn back only three minutes into the flight as the plane accelerated to abnormal speeds, the newspaper reported, citing a person who reviewed the jet’s air traffic communications.

(Except for the headline and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New energy and climate plan stresses focus on solar power

The plan includes extensions on measures to incentivise large-scale solar farms. Photo: Jonathan Borg

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Malta will increase its focus on solar energy under a new 2030 plan though development policies and lack of available land could hamper the shift.

The draft National Energy and Climate Plan, newly published for public consultation, lays out the government’s strategy for the next decade under the EU’s long-term climate goals and Paris Agreement commitments.

It lays out key objectives for Malta of a 19% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a 13% share of renewable energy in final energy consumption by 2030.

Building on a move towards solar energy generation in the current renewable energy plan, the draft document includes extensions on measures to incentivise large-scale solar farms and rooftop photovoltaic panels. It suggests that solar output could reach a 260 megawatt peak by 2030 – implying a total footprint of about 3.4 square kilometres – compared to a planned 160 megawatts and a 2.7 square-kilometre footprint in 2020.

This would contribute to between 30 and 40% of Malta’s renewable energy contribution while heating and cooling – primarily heat pumps – will contribute 40 to 54%.

Waste-to-energy electricity generation from the major incinerator planned to be completed by 2023 is expected to contribute only “a relatively small share”.

Prioritisation of PV systems, however, could, according to the plan, be hampered by the rapid decrease in the land available for solar farm developments, pushing up costs.

Between 30 and 40% of Malta’s renewable energy contribution

Moreover, planning policies encouraging the development of apartment blocks pose further problems both because of the reduction of available roof space and also by the increase in overshadowing.

The plan warns that interest in investment in renewable energy appears to be waning, with real estate investment being prioritised due to its shorter payback period and perceived longer-term benefits.

It points to the low take-up on the government’s second competitive call for large-scale solar installations, where the total bids amounted to just half of the capacity on offer.

The plan proposes discussions with banks to include incentives for the installation of PVs and solar water heaters in loan policies, as well as incentive schemes for developers and real estate agents.

It also proposes building on the government’s communal photovoltaic farm project at the site Il-Fiddien, allowing people without access to a private roof to buy into the shift.

Also stressed is the importance of solar water heaters, with the government aiming to provide support for the installation of 1,500 systems every year in the next decade ‒ compared to 400 a year under previous plans ‒ although it notes that the past few years have seen a downward trend in such systems as preferences move to PV panels.

The draft plan does not include any assessment of the impact the planned policies and measures are projected to have, stating only that this analysis will be included in the final plan that must be submitted to the European Commission by the end of the year.

The plan, which is open to public consultation until April 10, also includes the government’s 2030 measures on energy security, internal energy market, energy efficiency and research, innovation and competitiveness.

PICTURES: Third test MC-21 lifts off on maiden flight

Russian airframer Irkut has commenced flight-testing with a third MC-21-300, which lifted off from its Irkutsk assembly centre on 16 March. Aircraft MC0004, bearing the number 73054, conducted a 1h 30min maiden flight, says the manufacturer, reaching an altitude of 3,500m and speeds of around 240kt. Two crew members were on board the aircraft which […]

source http://www.ncairways.co/aviation/pictures-third-test-mc-21-lifts-off-on-maiden-flight/