Still Building the Dreamliner
Still Building the Dreamliner, originally uploaded by Craig Damlo.
Despite the image and title, this post is not about the 787 but is instead a rant (so fair warning). First, I will point out that those of us in the aerospace industry are not surprised at all with the delays that have plagued Boeing's 787. Almost all new aircraft are late and one with so many new technologies is bound to have problems in development. But I have to say that I'm happy to see that Boeing has not adopted the modern electronic/software ethos to push items out the door and update them later. We have all experienced getting new products that require updates out of the box before you can use them. This drives me insane. I could just imagine during the first commercial flight of a new airplane and the pilots would have to connect to the internet to update the firmware if they planned to use the landing gear because the aircraft manufacturer wasn't ready when they shipped the first plane.
Rich Dogs Breathe Easy
From my in-depth study of modern society—through TV reality shows—I know that it's the children of the rich that live the easiest lives with the most comfort. And now their pets get the safest travel (they are already getting the most luxurious travel). I've talked here about Pet Airways and asked if pets get oxygen in the event of the loss of cabin pressure, and they didn't. Now 4 Paws Aviation is offering supplemental oxygen hoods for dogs; well, dogs that fly on private jets anyway! These hoods still won't help my dogs who are down in the cargo area because you can only carry this onto a private jet at this point. Then, you would need to don it on the dog (after you have donned your own mask first) after a loss of cabin pressure. I've only flown with my dogs once in the cargo hold, but I still wish there was some way of ensuring that they would be able to continue to breathe in the event of a loss of cabin pressure.
787 First Flight and Mob Mentality
I know I'm about a week behind on this post as far as coverage of the first flight of The Boeing Company's 787, but I'm sure everyone has read enough and seen enough pictures of it already. I want to talk about the crowd and the fun of going to see the first flight. I had some what of a vested interest in seeing this plane fly because I have been working on parts for it for the better part of the last four years. I had fun watching it fly. My wife, Sherri, also came with me and she had fun, too, despite not being into aerospace. So what is it that can make watching an empty airplane take off in the cold drizzle so much fun? For me, it could easily have been that I am an aerospace nerd and had a vested interested in seeing it fly, but that doesn't explain why Sherri had a good time. It could have also been the incredible spot we got to watch it from. But, I think it really was the same reason people gather torches and storm the castle: good ol' fashioned mob mentality.
Do Animals Get Oxygen?
Here is an interesting company, Pet Airways, that is starting in these questionable economic times. If they succeed, they could prove out two economic principles: 1) people will pay for a service that they desire, and 2) the rich are never affected by down economic times. Though, on this second one, I have a feeling the rich that are unaffected by the down economy fly on private jets and bring their pets on their planes. But that wasn't actually my interest in this company; my question is, do they provide the animals protection in the event of loss of cabin pressure, i.e., do the pets get oxygen? And so I asked them.
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