For September–October 2017 Flight Safety Australia asks whether electric aircraft are a fad or the future of aviation. The Australian and international experts we spoke to agree electric propulsion in some form is definitely coming and will bring distinct safety challenges and benefits.
Any aircraft technology will need engineers to keep it airworthy. In Peeling the onion: the qualities of a chief engineer, contributor Roger Alder offers light-hearted but insightful analysis on the demands of a job that is, by definition, safety critical. Dirty secrets lifts the lid on so-called mudguard organisations. The metaphor applies to organisations that are superficially impressive, ‘shiny on top’, but less impressive beneath the surface. In Drift, shift and crash contributor Adrian Park looks at the subtle build up to a horrifying loss of control on an air cargo flight.
There’s also an important story for IFR pilots using CNS/ATM technology about the differences between a baro-VNAV approach and the more common LNAV+V. Understanding the differences and limitations could be the difference between landing and impacting the ground.
Thomas P. Turner makes a sobering case that hours and experience count for nothing against the insidious threat of complacency, a theme continued in general aviation pilot Kreisha Ballantyne’s story on how low-time pilots can put the most experience into every flying hour.
The edition also examines skill decay among cabin crew and highlights regulatory action against the minority of drone fliers who cause nuisance and danger to others.
The popular quiz and reader-submitted close calls round out a packed edition.
Don’t forget there are two ways to keep up-to-date with Flight Safety Australia’s coverage of all the latest aviation safety news and issues. Download the magazine tablet app from the App Store or from Google Play and enjoy the interactive bi-monthly magazine experience, complete with video and audio. Once you’ve downloaded the issue, you can read it offline at your leisure. And for daily aviation safety updates, as well as all the bi-monthly magazine articles, subscribe to the magazine’s news site: www.flightsafetyaustralia.com
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