by Gad on January 11, 2010
Today, Jan 10th 2010 marks the centennial of the Dominguez Air Meet. The first flight west of the Rockies happened here a hundred years ago as well as a number of then-world records broken. This event was also the 1st major aviation event in the US.
We have written about this landmark event in the 3rd part of our “Aviation History” Series back in September.
The U.S. Postal Service will unveil a postmark cancellation stamp commemorating the air meet’s centennial.
The Dominguez Rancho Adobe Museum is really leading the pack in giving this event its due and is doing a year-long series of events on the air-meet. As part of the series, on June 12th, there will be a re-creation of the air meet with hot air balloons, antique airplanes and other aviation exhibits displayed.
AOPA is participating in an event on Jan 14th in Carson, CA.
For more information, check out the schedule of events at http://dominguezrancho.org/2010-2/
by Gad on January 6, 2010
On Rich Karlgaard’s blog – digital rules – yesterday the Forbes publisher named his 10 predictions for 2010. Number one on that list is that private aviation will make a comeback.
Here’s the prediction:
Hurt by the Great Recession and Congressional cheap shots, new corporate jet sales fell about 40% in 2009. But the economy is healing, stocks are up and shareholders have lost their lynch-mob mood. The bad news is that commercial air travel convenience is sure to worsen–just when you thought it couldn’t get worse–in light of new security threats. (Are you ready to be seated and belted during the entire last hour of flight? Looking forward to those full-body scans with possible radiation risks?) Businesses will quietly return to private aviation.
We agree with the analysis. So long as we live with the constant threat of terrorism, airline travel never be convenient and will most probably get even worse than it is now after the Christmas day terrorist attempt.
Unfortunately, the lynch-mob mentality will take longer to diffuse. Business is already slowly but surely returning to private aviation – it will be interesting to see how attitudes towards private aviation change in 2010. This lynch-mob mentality is our industry’s greatest enemy.
Gad Barnea – CEO – FlyMiwok, Inc.
by Gad on January 4, 2010
On New Year’s Day, low tides caused by the blue moon unraveled one of the earliest British aircraft and the first Vickers production aircraft on an Antarctic icescape.
The Vickers monoplane was built in 1911 and was ditched in 1914 after a short career in the air and a slightly longer career as a tractor.
The airplane was transported from Britain to Australia, where it crashed during a demo flight which was to also be its last flight. The crash damaged the airplane so badly that the wings had to be removed.
Sir Mawson then converted the airplane to a “tractor”, kept the propeller, attached skis controlled by the rudder and a specially designed tail and hoped to break world longest taxi record.
Unfortunately, the engine could not operate in the subzero temperatures and the airplane was ditched in Cape Denison in 1914.
Apparently, three teams of conservationists and scientists have used magnetic imaging equipment, without success, since 1996 to try to find the fuselage.
Mr Jensen, the chairman of the Mawson’s Huts Foundation, said: “It was probably one chance in a million that these conditions just allowed us to spot it.”
I guess it’s one of those things that happen once in a blue moon.
by Gad on January 1, 2010
Jeffrey Harris – the CFTC’s chief economist is leaving the CFTC and returning to academia. This is unfortunate. Since his appointment in 2007, Harris was a sane voice in the CFTC that looked at facts and economic fundamentals rather than populist sentiment. He made the courageous (and correct) claim in 2008 that speculation was not the driving force behind rapidly rising commodity prices.
One can only speculate [pun intended] on why Mr. Harris is leaving just before the CFTC is supposedly getting ready to issue major regulation limiting “speculation”, but it would not surprise me if the commission’s direction – which has already started adversely affecting global commodities trading – played a role.
We have covered the potential ramifications of excessive CFTC regulation and its affects on fuel prices (especially with regards to aviation) many times in this blog. If Harris’ departure foretells the kind of regulation we (and others) warned against, 2010 might very well see increased volatility in commodity prices (including oil) and a weakening of the global position of US commodities markets – the best regulated and most transparent [or least opaque - depending on how you want to see it..] markets in the world.
Gad Barnea – CEO – FlyMiwok, Inc.
