All Opinion articles – Page 6
-
OpinionHow to recover from flying as the world recovers from Covid-19
While not flying is clearly painful for airline crews, the enforced downtime may offer the opportunity to reset tired bodies and minds.
-
OpinionWhy crisis means 2020 is the year of freighters and preighters
Chris Seymour, head of market analysis at Ascend by Cirium, looks at how the cargo market has coped during the pandemic
-
OpinionWhy Big Data will be key to successful airline recovery
Analysing travellers’ behaviour online to gauge demand is the way forward for network planners, as new research has found
-
OpinionPilots must adapt and overcome to deal with grief of job loss
Flightcrew may not realise it, but dealing with the aftermath of redundancy in the Covid-19 age requires a whole new set of skills as they wait for an opportunity to return to the skies.
-
OpinionFinance availability may hold key to shape of delivery recovery
The year 2020 is set to be a catastrophe for the commercial aerospace sector, as airliner shipments collapse to the lowest levels since the mid-2000s. And right now the prospects for 2021 are not looking a whole lot rosier.
-
OpinionWill commoditised sales of the F-16 fighter work?
The Pentagon’s plan to offer a commoditised version of the Lockheed Martin F-16 could help propel the world’s best-selling fighter aircraft to new heights, but it remains to be seen if foreign customers will put aside their fondness of fancy custom features.
-
OpinionHow career ‘flightplan’ will help crews navigate downturn
Modern airliner design is based on redundancy of safety-critical components like hydraulic or electrical systems. For now, you will also find two pilots in the cockpit for much the same reason. Highly trained, constantly checked and equipped with a myriad of skills, pilots are having a hard time of it at present. But it is worth remembering that some of these skills – leadership, complex problem solving, communication – are entirely transferable and highly sought-after.
-
OpinionBusiness aviation boom? Data says otherwise
Do not believe the hype. The crisis has not been as much of a boom for the sector as some operators would have you believe, argues Brian Foley
-
OpinionNewest start-ups might hold recipe for real tech advancement
In recent weeks, a slew of aerospace start-ups unveiled ambitious plans to develop aerospace technologies aimed at slashing emissions and allowing autonomous flight.
-
OpinionPay and perks may be reduced, but being a pilot remains a labour of love
Although commercial aviation is currently being battered by the coronavirus crisis, there are plenty who still regard flying for a living as the best job in the world.
-
OpinionBoeing’s challenge to address the reputational crisis around Max brand
Seattle’s marketing strategy is in the spotlight amid renewed speculation about its commitment to the name. But is a rebrand the right solution?
-
OpinionReturning to the cockpit is not without risk, but it is a manageable one
While many pilots believe they are born aviators, prolonged downtime means refresher training is essential before recommencing flight operations.
-
OpinionWhy 777X certification could be just part of Max crisis collateral damage
Alarming details that emerged in the aftermath of the 737 Max grounding about Boeing’s behaviour during the certification process has created a crisis of confidence unparalleled in the aviation industry. And no one – not just Seattle – should underestimate the extent of mistrust and the time it could take to heal the deep wounds.
-
OpinionWhy Virgin Galactic is still attracting investment despite continued losses
Having taken 15 years and counting to get its rocketplanes in service, Virgin Galactic is now talking about supersonic jet travel; don’t book a flight just yet, but keep an eye on the share price
-
OpinionSafety must not be allowed to slip during the ‘new normal’
Aviation safety depends in part on a stable operating environment, but a pandemic and growing geopolitical tension will undermine some longstanding assumptions
-
OpinionNext generation of pilots may be another casualty of coronavirus clampdown
Closed and sterile cockpits could be required to deal with Covid-19, but this may remove a source of inspiration for future aviators
-
OpinionThe art of reinvention is vital for ‘discarded’ flightcrew
The downturn hitting airlines across the globe will mean fewer pilots will be required in the short term, but for those made redundant, there are always choices.
-
OpinionLogic behind bad decisions underpins Smartwings 737 incident
Although an airline captain’s decision to proceed on a flight from Greece to Prague with just one engine may seem incomprehensible from the outside, his reasoning is likely to be all-too familiar
-
OpinionScale of Covid collapse raises questions about what comes next
Consider this: On a Friday in July 2019, 11 airlines operated 66 flights from Washington DC to New York City-area airports. Fast forward: on Friday 17 July, carriers operated just 15 flights on those routes.
-
OpinionBidding goodbye to BA’s ‘Queen of the Skies’
While BA’s move to retire its fleet of 747s because of coronavirus makes perfect sense, the business of aviation runs on romance as well as jet fuel