federal aviation administration

After causing a stir by mysteriously grounding its new Airbus A321neo planes on Monday, United Airlines wants people to know the decision has nothing to do with safety and isn’t even that exciting. Rather, it has to do with the aircrafts’ “No Smoking” signs, which are required by a 1990 law to be operated by the flight crew.Former NASA Astronaut Leland Melvin on the “Overview Effect”That’s not the case on the A321neo, which has software that keeps the “No Smoking” sign turned on continuously during flights, like many…

Photo: SOPA Images / Contributor (Getty Images)At the beginning of 2023, TikTok was one of the weirdest and most delightful places on the internet. An app with a reputation for memes and 30-second dances had become the front page of the internet, and it seemed TikTok was only getting better as the platform matured. A year later, TikTok’s growth finally appears to have plateaued, and while the app is still a cultural behemoth, there’s a surprising truth lurking in the app’s success: TikTok is in trouble. In a bid to spread…

Celebrities don’t like Jack Sweeney. For the past few years, the University of Central Florida junior has run several social media accounts that track planes and helicopters owned by billionaires, oligarchs, and other members of the ruling class using publicly available flight records from the Federal Aviation Administration. It bothered Elon Musk so much that he specifically changed X/Twitter’s policies to ban Sweeney’s account. Now, Taylor Swift is taking the baton from Musk. The pop star is threatening to sue Sweeney…

During its most recent flight, Virgin Galactic’s carrier aircraft dropped an alignment pin which helps in the mating process between the mothership and the spaceplane. The company is investigating the issue, which could potentially delay its upcoming mission.Alex Winter on Innovative Horror Movies Virgin Galactic discovered that the pin had detached from the launch pylon of the mothership, VMS Eve, during a post-flight review of the Galactic 06 mission and in turn notified the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the…

Michael Whitaker, nominee to be the next administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), testifies during a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing on Capitol Hill October 4, 2023 in Washington, DC. The FAA has been without a Senate-confirmed administrator for 18 months. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)Drew Angerer | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesWASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration has "boots on the ground" at Boeing's 737 Max factory — and will keep them there…

By CLAIRE RUSH and DAVID KOENIG (Associated Press) PORTLAND, Ore. — United Airlines said Monday it found loose bolts and other “installation issues” on a part of some Boeing 737 Max 9 jets that were inspected after a mid-flight blowout on a similar Alaska Airlines jet on Friday. The inspections are focused on plugs used to seal an area set aside for extra emergency doors that are not required on United and Alaska Max 9s. “Since we began preliminary inspections on Saturday, we have found instances that appear to relate to…

NASA’s supersonic experimental plane—the linchpin of the agency’s Quesst mission—is set to roll out of its warehouse in the California desert next week. We’re gassed for the big moment: the X-59 has been in development for six years, and, if successful, it will demonstrate supersonic flight without sonic booms.Let’s Eat a Chocolate Xbox ControllerThe 99-foot-long (30-meter) plane is just 14 feet (4.27 meters) tall, making it look needle-like from the side. The single-engine jet will have a cruise altitude of 55,000 feet…

If you’ve boarded a plan recently, you probably already know how to turn on Airplane Mode, but did you know what airplane mode is? You probably know that it shut your WiFi off, that’s one of the most immediately noticeable effects, but what else does it do? In short, it is designed to turn off all of the features of your phone that might interfere with the various sensors and measurement devices your plane uses. Whether you have one of the best Android phones or the latest iPhone, airplane mode will be relatively the…

The Transportation Department committed to taking a “very light touch approach” under the White House’s regulatory plan for novel space activities during a Senate hearing on Wednesday. Senators asked Kelvin Coleman, the Federal Aviation Administration’s associate administrator for commercial space transportation, how the agency planned to keep up with regulating crewed and transportation missions in orbit when launch licenses take such a long time. But Coleman said launch licenses require a lot of analysis of safety and…

Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ private space venture, is ready to fly its New Shepard rocket again after over a year of being grounded. The company this week announced the rocket’s first cargo mission since its booster went up in flames in a liftoff malfunction back in September 2022.Google’s AI Isn’t a Gimmick, It’s the Future | AI UnlockedOn Tuesday, Blue Origin revealed that it’s targeting a launch window that opens on Monday, December 18, for New Shepard’s liftoff. The NS-24 mission will carry 33 science and research…