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A helicopter that crashed into a Houston radio tower Sunday, killing all four people aboard and starting a fire below, was on an air tour flight when the accident occurred, the National Transportation Safety Board said Monday. The Robinson R44 helicopter struck the tower and crashed at around 7:51 p.m. Sunday, said the NTSB, which is investigating. The helicopter took off from Ellington Airport, which is in Houston, the NTSB said. Multiple people died as a helicopter crashed into a radio tower in Houston on Sunday. Houston Fire DepartmentThe scene of the helicopter crash Sunday.

Persons: Robinson, Brian Rutt, Jonathan French, ” Organizations: National Transportation Safety, NTSB, Ellington Airport, SBA Communications, . Houston Fire Department, Houston Fire Department SBA Communications Locations: Houston

☆ With misinformation swirling in Hurricane Helene’s wake, officials urge residents to ‘stop this conspiracy theory junk’
▼ + stars: | 2024-10-04 | by ( Michael Williams | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Presenting no evidence, Trump claimed earlier this week that the Biden administration, along with North Carolina’s Democratic Gov. Those rumors prompted many state and local officials – including other Republicans – to push back. North Carolina Lt. Gov. The few that aren’t are owned by states other than North Carolina.” That statement is directly contradicted by an earlier tweet from the North Carolina National Guard, which reported it had conducted 57 air missions and rescued more than 400 people. “I think what makes it particularly frustrating is clearly, in these times, social media could be an invaluable source of reliable information.”

Persons: Hurricane Helene, ”, David Harker, Harker, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Helene, Trump, Biden, Roy Cooper, Musk, ” Trump, –, Sen, Kevin Corbin, “, ” Corbin, Cooper, that’s, Deanne Criswell, Bill Lee, ” Lee, Mark Robinson, Robinson, Todd Hunt, Ron DeSantis, Ardis Watkins, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Greene, it’s, ” Harker Organizations: CNN — Local, Humanities, East Tennessee State University, North Carolina’s Democratic Gov, Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, Facebook, Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, National Guard, Tennessee Gov, Republican, Gov, North Carolina National Guard, “, Soldiers, Florida Gov, State Employees Association of North, Local, CNN, East Tennessee State Locations: United States, North Carolina, Tennessee, “ Florida, State Employees Association of North Carolina, North Georgia

☆ A deadly Houthi attack on Tel Aviv is forcing Israel to rethink its drone defenses
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Paul Iddon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Read previewThe Houthis' unprecedented July 19 drone attack against Tel Aviv from Yemen caught Israelis by surprise, piercing the country's battle-tested defenses and exposing vulnerabilities that the Yemen-based rebels were ready and willing to exploit. "This confirms that technology alone, even for one of the most advanced air defense systems in the world, is not enough to provide effective protection," Borsari said. "Firstly, the advanced Houthi drone was launched for the first time, following an atypical flight path that likely caught the Israelis off guard," Khoueiry told BI. Houthi Media Center via Getty Images'A more cunning approach'Following the deadly attack, the Israeli military promptly increased air patrols to protect Israeli airspace. "This means integrating low-tier air defense capabilities at scale, combining different types of effectors with an eye on cost-effectiveness," Borsari said.

Persons: —, Federico Borsari, Israel, Samad, Borsari, Freddy Khoueiry, RANE, Khoueiry, Yemen's, Sebastien Roblin, Roblin, harry IDF, CEPA's Borsari, Dome's Tamir, Tamir, RANE's Khoueiry Organizations: Service, Tel, Center for, Business, Eritrean, Technology, Houthi Media, Getty, Hodeidah, Red Sea, BI, Jordanian, US Navy, Navy Locations: Tel Aviv, Yemen, Red, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, East, North Africa, Eilat, Iran, Gulf of Aden, Gaza, Eritrea, Sudan, Saudi

☆ Russia's showing NATO its hand in the air war over Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-13 | by ( Sinéad Baker | Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

Experts told Business Insider the Ukraine war has underscored how some elements of modern air combat are radically changing. And in fights like Desert Storm and the Iraq War, the West established air superiority by taking out its opponent's air defenses. The Russian air force can't meet Western air forces air to air in a major attack without being "shot to pieces," Bronk said. "Nobody really wants an air war with Russia," said John Baum, a Mitchell Institute expert and retired US Air Force lieutenant colonel. "It is not a highly desirable thing, I think, from either side, to want to have this air war."

Persons: It's, Justin Bronk, hasn't, DIMITAR DILKOFF, Bronk, Andrew Curtis, Mark Cancian, Guy Snodgrass, Hoshang, Giorgio Di Mizio, David Allvin, it's, James Hecker, NATO hadn't, " Hecker, that's, Maxim Shemetov, Fabian Hinz, Riivo Valge, Mattias Eken, They're, Paula Bronstein, Anthony Sweeney, US Army Cancian, REUTERS Lockheed Martin, Timothy Wright, disaggregation, Schmuelgen Jarmo Lindberg, Evelyn Hockstein Valge, John Baum Organizations: Kyiv, NATO, Business, Royal United Services Institute, Western, Getty, US Air Force, Storm, Marine, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Russian Defense Ministry Press, AP Russia, AP, Hudson Institute nonresident, International Institute for Strategic Studies, REUTERS, RAND Corp, Patriots, US Army, West, Patriot, Ukraine, REUTERS Lockheed, Finnish Defense Forces, Eurofighter Typhoons, Mitchell Institute Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Russian, AFP, Iraq, Europe, West, Afghanistan, Baltic, Western Europe, Estonian, Finnish, Finland, Washington

☆ F-16s headed to Ukraine this summer will face their most dangerous battlefield ever
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Ukraine is slated to receive its much-anticipated fleet of F-16 fighter jets this summer. AdvertisementThe long-awaited delivery of F-16s to Ukraine is on the horizon, and these advanced American-made fighter jets can't come soon enough for its forces. The fighter jets are expected to arrive at some point this summer, reportedly as early as June. Romanian air force F-16 fighter planes fly above the Baza 86 military air base, outside Fetesti, Romania, Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. US Air Force F-16's stand ready with bombs loaded to take off during the first daylight attack to liberate Kuwait in 1991.

Persons: —, Falcon, SAMs, Alexandru, Egypt —, John Baum, Russia —, Baum, KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV Russia's, Tannehill, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mark Rutte, Peter Dejong Organizations: Service, Russia's, Rygge Air Force Base, OLE BERG, Getty, NATO, Kyiv, Israeli Air Force, AP, US Air Force, Operation, Allied Force, Yugoslavia, Air Force, Defense Technical Information, Reuters, Storm, Russia, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, US Navy, SA, Russian, AIM, INA Locations: Ukraine, Balkans, Kyiv, Romania, Norway, AFP, — Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Europe, Lebanon's, Israel, Yom, Romanian, Fetesti, Storm, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Afghanistan, Islamic, Kuwait, Russian, Zhukovsky, Moscow, Bekaa, East, Syria, Russia, Ukrainian, Eindhoven, Rzeszow, Jasionka, Poland, Crimean

☆ Emirates is dealing with a 30,000 bag backlog as it grovels to customers about its handling of Dubai floods
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewEmirates, the Middle East's largest airline, is still trying to return 30,000 leftover bags to customers affected by the torrential rains and flooding that brought Dubai Airport to a standstill last week. Related storyTo accommodate disrupted passengers, Emirates said it had secured 12,000 hotel rooms and issued 250,000 meal vouchers. AdvertisementDespite the chaos and a government warning telling people to stay at home, Emirates flight attendants in Dubai were also told to report for duty. The airline officially resumed regular flight operations at Dubai Airport on Saturday, but warned it would still take several days to clear the backlog. In a sign of its growing popularity, the number of passengers traveling to Dubai Airport increased by 31.7% in the last year.

Persons: —, Tim Clark, Clark, GIUSEPPE CACACE Organizations: Service, Emirates, Dubai, Business, Reuters, Dubai Airport, Air Missions, PTI, United Locations: Emirates, Dubai, UAE, United Arab Emirates, Gulf

☆ Russia seems to be OK with sacrificing its planes over Ukraine to achieve a bigger prize, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia seems to be more heavily using its air force for glide bomb attacks, the ISW said. The ISW had previously released an assessment on Monday that suggested Ukraine's reported successes had caused Russia's air force to scale back its flights. Experts warned that it would be devastating for Ukraine if Russia continued to be able to do this. Russia using glide bombs near Avdiivka may be why Ukraine has been able to shoot down so many Russian jets, experts previously told Business Insider. Russian aircraft need to fly higher to launch them, giving Ukraine's weaponry more time to target and hit them, they said.

Persons: That's, —, Russian Su, ISW, Ukraine's Organizations: Service, Ukraine, Washington DC, New York Times, Russian Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Russian, Avdiivka

☆ US, South Korean warplanes kick off joint air drills
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A U.S. Air Force B-52 strategic bomber, C-17 aircraft along with South Korea's Air Force F-35As take part in a joint drill, South Korea, December 20, 2022. The annual drills, called Vigilant Defense, will run until Friday, featuring variants of the F-35 stealth fighter from both the United States and South Korea, among other aircraft, South Korea's Air Force said. The drills are aimed at improving interoperability between the two militaries by performing major air missions such as air-to-surface live fire drills, defensive counter air operation and other emergency training. "We will maintain the best combat readiness to immediately respond to and strongly punish any provocation by the enemy through an intense training simulating an actual situation," South Korea's military said in a statement. North Korea has long condemned joint drills between the United States and South Korea as a rehearsal for invasion and proof of hostile policies by Washington and Seoul.

Persons: Choe Son Hui, Soo, hyang Choi, Lincoln Organizations: U.S . Air Force, South Korea's Air Force, The Defence Ministry, Rights, South Korea, Vigilant Defense, Korea's Air Force, North Korean Foreign, Thomson Locations: South Korea, Rights SEOUL, United States, South, North Korea, Russia, Moscow, Pyongyang, Korea, Washington, Seoul

But two months after President Joe Biden announced US support for training Ukrainian pilots on F-16s, there remain a number of critical details to work out. It is also still unclear which countries will commit F-16s to the training program – and to Ukraine itself once the program is finished. The training program will be for Ukraine and “also for other countries who are transitioning to the fourth generation fighter jets,” she said. The number of Ukrainian pilots set to be trained is also still being determined, but the Air Force memo recommended a pool of 10-12 participants. “The United States will not be the holdup in ensuring that this F-16 training can get under way.”

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Joe Biden, Biden, ”, Kajsa Ollongren, “, Strategic Communications John Kirby, ’ skillset, Jake Sullivan Organizations: Washington CNN, CNN, Denmark’s Ministry of Defense, Skrydstrup Fighter Base, Dutch Ministry of Defense, Dutch Defense, NATO, National Security, Strategic Communications, Vasco Cotovio, US Air Force, The Air Force, Morris Air National Guard Base, Force, Yahoo, an Air Force, Air Force, Ukraine’s Air Force, American, Russian, National Locations: Ukraine, Denmark, Romania, American, Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Fort Sill, Oklahoma, Europe, Tucson , Arizona, Soviet, United States

☆ Ukraine needs American-made F-16s if it's going to stop Russia's invasion once and for all, a defense expert says. NATO now seems to be giving in.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ukraine could finally get the F-16 fighter jets it's been begging for. Still, the jets are vital for Ukraine's war efforts, defense experts told Insider, giving Kyiv the firepower it needs to bolster its current and future fleets. Ukraine sees the fighter jets as indispensable, Jones said, and it is thinking on a longer-term basis than friendly nations in the West. "The sooner we get fighters into the hands of Ukraine's combat-experienced fighter pilots, the greater Ukraine's chances of success," Deptula said. Matthew LotzThe debate over whether to send F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine has lasted months.

☆ The stealth F-22 Raptor's days are numbered, and the Air Force is officially looking for designs for the fighter jet's next-gen replacement
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Air Force is officially seeking designs for the next-gen fighter to replace the F-22 Raptor. "We will lose that edge if we don't move forward now," Frank Kendall, Air Force secretary, said. "No one does this better than the US Air Force, but we will lose that edge if we don't move forward now." There are two of these sixth-generation projects currently underway, one for the Air Force and the other for the Navy. The Air Force has pushed for the retirement of some earlier F-22s, but it has received pushback from Congress.

National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby declined to comment specifically on the possibility of the US sending F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, but said broadly that the US has been forward-looking about “future capabilities” and needs. US lawmakers and congressional staffers have joined in the F-16 lobbying campaign, urging the administration to provide the jets so that Ukraine can establish control over its skies. US allies with F-16s could conduct training for Ukrainian fighter pilots, or the aircraft’s manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, could carry out training as a private contractor. Without the jets, Ukraine is having to improvise, officials say. The Russian jets have largely been staying behind Russian defensive lines, making them difficult for Ukraine to target with shorter-range systems like NASAMs.

☆ China's defence spending increases have been 'reasonable' - parliament spokesman
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING, March 4 (Reuters) - China's defence spending as a share of gross domestic product has been kept basically stable for many years, with the increases "moderate" and "reasonable", the spokesman of the country's parliament said on Saturday. "The modernisation of China's military will not pose a threat to any country," Wang Chao, spokesman for the National People's Congress, told reporters. Wang was asked at a news conference by how much China's defence budget would increase this year, and whether any increase would be larger than in previous years. The spending figure will be officially unveiled in the national budget to be released on Sunday at the start of this year's annual meeting of parliament. China staged war games near Taiwan in August to express anger at the visit to Taipei of then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

☆ FAA chief tells Senate that new procedures will avoid repeat of outage that halted U.S. flights
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Leslie Josephs | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Senate Commerce Committee hearing comes amid growing safety concerns about aviation safety after several close calls involving major U.S. airlines. The system failed when a contractor unintentionally deleted files during an update, the FAA has said. "After the incident, we implemented a synchronization delay to ensure that bad data from a database cannot affect a backup database," Nolen said in prepared remarks ahead of the hearing. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, the committee's highest-ranking Republican, pressed Nolen on improvements to the NOTAM system: "Can a single screwup ground air traffic nationwide?" Nolen replied: "Could I sit here and tell you there will never be an issue on the NOTAM system?

☆ FAA chief gets grilled by Congress for recent airline groundings and safety concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Gregory Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

In a letter to Congress in early February, the FAA said it plans to dramatically accelerate replacing its outdated Notice To Air Missions (NOTAM) safety system, whose failure led to a nationwide air travel grounding in January. A contractor working for the FAA unintentionally deleted files related to the key pilot safety system, the FAA said. The near collisions have also raised concerns that the FAA’s safety systems may be insufficient. “Can I sit here today and tell you that there will never be another issue on the NOTAM system? That near collision happened after air traffic controllers cleared the FedEx Boeing 767 to land on Austin’s Runway 18 Left, according to the FAA.

☆ U.S. FAA says update will prevent 'bad data' from corrupting key database
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Last month, the FAA told lawmakers it had revoked access to a pilot messaging database by contractor personnel who unintentionally deleted files in the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) database. The NOTAM system provides pilots, flight crews and other users of U.S. airspace with critical safety notices. "We expect that a significant portion of the modernization work will be complete by mid-2025. Nolen's testimony said on Jan. 10, the NOTAM system became unreliable and technical experts sought to address the issue by switching to a NOTAM backup database. The FAA will need support from Congress to fund FAA "modernization needs," Nolen's testimony says.

New York CNN —The Federal Aviation Administration plans to dramatically accelerate replacing the safety system whose failure led to a nationwide air travel grounding earlier this month. The 30-year-old NOTAM, or Notice to Air Missions, system provides potential flight hazard information to pilots and air traffic controllers. The FAA said it now requires “at least two individuals to be present during the maintenance” of the NOTAM system. Still, it’s another critical tool for air safety. It was the first nationwide grounding of the nation’s air traffic system in 20 years, since the days following the September 11 attacks.

☆ U.S. Lawmakers press FAA chief on computer outage, nationwide ground stop
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

On Wednesday, the FAA told lawmakers it had revoked access to a pilot messaging database by contractor personnel involved in a file deletion that disrupted more than 11,000 flights on Jan. 11. FAA plans to respond by Friday to a detailed letter lawmakers sent earlier this month asking questions about the investigation, Larsen said. The FAA identified to lawmakers the contractor involved as Bethesda-based Spatial Front. "All personnel from Spatial Front directly involved in the deletion have lost access to FAA buildings and systems while we complete our investigation," the FAA email said. The FAA said the deletion had occurred while personnel were working "to correct synchronization between the live primary database and a backup database."

☆ House Republican opposes Biden pick to run FAA
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Republicans have said Biden's nominee Phil Washington needs a waiver because he does not qualify as a civilian under the law. You can only run on autopilot so long before you run out of gas, you wake up and your over Utah," said Representative Sam Graves, a Republican who heads the committee overseeing the FAA. Graves said the FAA needs to fill key leadership positions and said Washington does not have enough aviation experience to serve as FAA administrator. Before being named to run the Denver Airport in 2021 did not have any significant aviation experience, Republicans complain. Congress plans to take up the issue and whether the FAA needs more money to modernize various computer systems this year.

☆ U.S. FAA revokes access to system for contractors involved in computer outage
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The FAA in an email to lawmakers seen by Reuters identified the contractor involved as Bethesda-based Spatial Front. "All personnel from Spatial Front directly involved in the deletion have lost access to FAA buildings and systems while we complete our investigation," the FAA email to lawmakers said. The NOTAM system provides pilots, flight crews and other users of U.S. airspace with critical safety notices. "The recent NOTAM system meltdown highlighted a huge vulnerability in our air transportation system and underscores the need to address the leadership vacuum at FAA," said House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves. Earlier in the day, the FAA said some NOTAM users reported slower response times but said the system remained "online and operational."

☆ U.S. FAA: some aviation computer system users experiencing slower response times
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said Wednesday that the some users of a pilot messaging database that failed earlier this month are reporting slower response times, but the issue is not impacting flights. The FAA said the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system "is online and operational. Some users have reported slower response times due to high demand, but there have been no reports of impact to flight operations." The NOTAM system failure prompted a nationwide groundstop on Jan. 11 that disrupted more than 11,000 flights. Reporting by David ShepardsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ FAA says problem that grounded all U.S. flights happened when files were unintentionally deleted
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Phil-Helsel-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Phil Helsel | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Last week’s massive flight disruption that grounded thousands of planes was caused after “contract personnel unintentionally deleted files,” the Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday. On Jan. 11, the FAA halted all departures nationwide after an outage to the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system. The FAA said in a statement that the files were deleted by accident as the contractors were "working to correct synchronization between the live primary database and a backup database." The NOTAM system sends pilots vital information they need to fly. On Jan. 11, the FAA sent out a tweet at 7:20 a.m. ordering the airlines to pause all domestic departures until 9 a.m.

☆ U.S. House eyes creating task force on flawed aviation computer system
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The outage of the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) database prompted the Jan. 11 nationwide groundstop of U.S. passenger traffic, the first since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The NOTAM system provides pilots, flight crews and other users of U.S. airspace with critical safety notices. The FAA next week plans to hold a briefing for House lawmakers. There are two separate databases including a 30-year-old system known as the U.S. NOTAM System" based in Oklahoma City being phased out in favor of the newer "Federal NOTAM system" based in Atlantic City, the sources said. Last week, the corruption occurred in the US NOTAM system, which then infiltrated the federal NOTAM database.

☆ U.S. FAA says 'unintentionally deleted files' prompted computer outage
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Thursday a preliminary review found that contract personnel "unintentionally deleted files" disrupting a key computer system and prompting a nationwide groundstop on Jan. 11 that disrupted more than 11,000 flights. The FAA said the issue occurred while personnel were working "to correct synchronization between the live primary database and a backup database." The NOTAM system provides pilots, flight crews and other users of U.S. airspace with critical safety notices. The system outage occurred on Jan. 10, but the FAA groundstop was not issued until the following morning. Last week, a group of more than 120 U.S. lawmakers told the FAA that the computer outage was "completely unacceptable" and demanded the agency explain how it will avoid future incidents.

☆ FAA says contractor unintentionally deleted files before outage disrupted thousands of flights
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Leslie Josephs | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

"A preliminary FAA review of last week's outage of the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system determined that contract personnel unintentionally deleted files while working to correct synchronization between the live primary database and a backup database," the FAA said. The FAA reiterated that it hasn't found evidence of a cyberattack or "malicious intent" and that it is still investigating what occurred. Lawmakers from both parties demanded answers about technology vulnerabilities in the U.S. aviation system. Airline executives complained about inadequate funding and staffing for the FAA. "Hopefully this will be the call to our political leaders in Washington that we need to do better."

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