What does ethics in the aviation profession mean to you?

  8.2 Air Traffic Control Entities             Air traffic control is divided amongst different sectors. Each piece of the puzzle plays an important role in managing air travel and its safety. The two entities I want to focus on are the terminal radar approach control (TRACON) and air traffic control tower (ATCT). TRACON supports air traffic management by handling departing and approaching aircraft within its space. “TRACONs are FAA facilities that house air traffic controllers who use radar displays and radios to guide aircraft approaching and departing airports generally within a 30- to 50-mile radius up to 10,000 feet, as well as aircraft that may be flying over that airspace (Radar Approach, 2019).” A TRACON is different from an ATCT first because there can be multiple ATCT’s within a TRACON’s radius so they operate on a further scale. Secondly though an ATCT is handling departing and approaching, they do not handle takeo...

  7.2 The Airport and the Environment             Noise pollution is defined as harmful or annoying levels of noise, as from airplanes, industry etc. “Noise pollution impacts millions of people on a daily basis. The most common health problem it causes is Noise Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL). Exposure to loud noise can also cause high blood pressure, heart disease, sleep disturbances, and stress. These health problems can affect all age groups, especially children. Many children who live near noisy airports or streets have been found to suffer from stress and other problems, such as impairments in memory, attention level, and reading skill (National Geographic Society, 2019).” This is a huge concern for airport managers, due to the fact that it puts those nearby the airports at risk for health problems.             There are a few mitigation strategies that can be implemen...

  Legislative Acts 6.2 There have been many legislative acts that have shaped the way our society runs today. When it comes to aviation there is no difference. These acts have shaped the way we operate within the aviation industry mostly in a positive way. The act I would like to focus on is The Federal Aviation Act of 1958. This act allowed the creation of the Federal Aviation Agency, “to provide for the regulation and promotion of civil aviation in such manner as to best foster its development and safety, and to provide for the safe and efficient use of the airspace by both civil and military aircraft, and for other purposes (Federal Aviation Act, 2022).” This was extremely beneficial to the aviation industry as a whole because it provided a safer approach to the newly expanding industry. Even today this act is still used, but now called the Federal Aviation Administration. To this day they are still responsible for safer travel within the air and without it, I feel as if the...

  Humans are prone to many factors capable of limiting performance. This applies to everyday life however I want to shift gears primarily towards the aviation industry. The NBAA defines human factors in aviation as, “the study of the relationships between people and their activities through the systemic application of the human sciences, integrated within the framework of system engineering. Within the context of aviation, that study includes the interactions among aviation personnel, their environments and equipment (Crew Resource Management, 2022).” One specific factor that must be prevented is fatigue. In simple terms fatigue is feeling tired or for better words a lack of energy. This can be extremely detrimental to performance which is why there are specific duty/rest guidelines that should be followed to mitigate this problem. Now some may wonder exactly how fatigue could play a role in aviation. The best way I can describe this is in an example. Within my job we have someth...

       Since the birth of aviation, commercial flight has grown immensely. With the growth, also comes security issues. Since the incident of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, aviation security how been a primary concern in the United States, and TSA has made a great effort to increase the amount of security worldwide. There are plenty of ways they do this, and some may believe it’s simple but it’s actually integrated with 20 components that we call Layers of Security.      The threat I want to talk about is the access terrorists have to airlines, and prohibited items allowed on a commercial flight. In the past this has been a huge issue and in the paragraph above is a perfect example of why this cannot be allowed. Layers of Security have effectively mitigated this threat by implementing a no-fly list and passenger pre-screening. According to the FBI the no fly-list, “prohibits an individual who may present a threat to civil aviation or national security f...

Have you ever wondered how an aircraft would return to the ground without a proper landing system? It wouldn’t be pretty, you could take the risk and potentially get away with it, however if this were the case there would always be some sort of damage to the body of the aircraft. The landing system is necessary when it comes to a safe takeoff and landing. Landing systems contribute to the taxi, takeoff and landing of the aircraft.   It does this by using the struts which absorb the shock of landing and taxiing, and also using differential breaking in order to navigate left or right while on the ground. If a retractable landing system failed to function it could lead to an unsafe landing. This could happen due to the hydraulic system failing preventing the landing gears to drop down from the body of the airplane. This occurrence has happened in the past and pilots must perform what is known as a “belly landing.” This situation is not ideal and can lead to damage to the aircraft, “...

       When talking about environmental factors, and the impact it has on aviation performance, you must first narrow it down to a single factor. For this I want to focus on wind and how It plays into flight. There are three different classifications in which you should have a broad understanding of. These are headwind, tailwind and the crosswind. Gusts of wind from different directions can cause very dangerous flying conditions depending on the severity. “Landing in crosswinds and tailwinds make takeoff and landing more challenging and at times can mean it is not possible to attempt either. Every aircraft has set limits for takeoff and landing in a cross wind and is not permitted to operate if conditions exceed those limits (2019).” In some situations, wind can actually be beneficial to the pilot. An example of this is saving fuel while in a tailwind. This happens because less power is required to fly the aircraft while on path to its destination.    Pil...