The lighter end of Flight International each week is our Straight & Level column. Here's the latest one from our 2 October issue.
The new battle of Pearl Harbor
Is the US Navy about to succeed where the Japanese imperial navy failed in destroying a piece of Pearl Harbor that survived the 1941 attack?
The Pacific Aviation Museum, based in one of the hangars at Ford Island that remained intact after the raid, is up in arms about plans to cover the Naval Air Station's runway and adjoining land with 60,000 photovoltaic panels.
The runway was used by the air station from 1921 to 1961, and the move is part of a Navy commitment to source 25% of its electrical power from renewable sources by 2025.
The museum's directors say the project would "violate hallowed ground" - ground it compares to other US historic battle sites such as Gettysburg or the Alamo.
Missing airport
The republic of San Marino has launched its own aviation registry, promising "first-class services to all aircraft and helicopter owners, operators and financial institutions
which existing offshore and traditional civil aviation authorities can't match".
Just don't try flying your San Marino-registered aircraft into its new home. The tiny enclave does not have an airport and
has to use nearby Rimini - in Italy - instead.
Olympic veteran
Torben Andersen, from Denmark, was delighted to pick up an Olympic memento when in the UK - a die-cast model of the "wonderful Concorde". However, he writes: "Who
came up with the idea of Concorde as an official Olympics souvenir: an aircraft that has been out of production for 33 years and retired in 2003? Surely there must be more recent UK aircraft designs that are worth celebrating?"
Er... sadly, Torben, no.
Curse of awards
Bad timing? Days after announcing it was merging its European point-to-point services with low-cost subsidiary Germanwings, Lufthansa was named best short-haul leisure airline by posh holiday magazine Condé Nast Traveller.
We wonder if the readers who voted for Lufty's "outstanding on-board product" of free food and drinks and generous bag allowance will look so kindly on Germanwings' rather more cheap and cheerful offering.
Yuckspeak #971
From a GA Telesis press release: "The aircraft will enter the disassembly production line next week" = "We're scrapping them".
We're in the dark
"While most passengers like
the current windows very much we believe that some will be more comfortable with a slightly darker window. According to our passenger survey, more than 85% answered for 'exceeded' or 'fully met' about Damnability."
We think ANA means dimmability, but damnability is such a damn fine word.
Western attitude
Saudi Arabia is no longer in the Middle East; it is in Western Asia, according to Korean Air, which is launching services to the kingdom. It seems Western Asia is a less Eurocentric term for the region.
Joke of the weak
Teams from EADS and BAE
are deciding on a name for the merged entity. Presumably
they are putting their 'eads together.
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