UK’s safety board will have huge impact on North Sea helos

Canso is the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization

With a clean sheet and no drag from concerns about commonality with an existing fleet, Bombardier was able to enlist its pilots, engineers, customers and supplier base to come up with a fresh new environment for the flight deck of the CSeries, the company's largest aircraft to date and its first fully fly-by-wire design. It remains to be seen how airline pilots will respond to the new design when deliveries of the CS100 begin in 2015, but a recent “flight” in the company's engineering simulator reveals a cockpit designed specifically with them in mind.

Aeronautical Radio of Thailand Ltd., known as Aerothai, is a state enterprise with about 90% owned by the government and 10% by the airlines. It is operated on a cost-recovery basis as a non-profit organization. Any annual surplus is returned to airlines, and they are also charged for any deficit. The organization was founded by airlines in 1948, and the government acquired a majority stake in 1963. It now has about 2,800 employees.

The maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) industry is gearing up to service an increasing number of airliners employing a much higher share of composite materials. The introduction of the Boeing 787, the Airbus A350 and—less expectedly—the A320neo and the 737 MAX is causing MRO service providers to invest in new equipment and technician training. The changes, however, remain evolutionary rather than revolutionary, as many MROs have developed a high level of expertise since the 1970s.

Returning damaged 787 to service was a key early test

As composite structures become larger, more integrated and more critical, guaranteeing the integrity of a major repair when the aircraft returns to service is a growing imperative. Research into methods of checking repairs in situ could pave the way for wider structural health monitoring.

Very Large Aircraft debate seems to leave A380s showing poorly