GA Medical Reform

The current agenda for the GA medical reform is to remove the need to renew pilots' third class medicals. This is an amendment to the Pilots' Bill of Rights 2 and was proposed by Joe Manchin and John Boozman. In doing this, anyone who has had their third class medical in the last 10 years will never have to get another when and those who have not had one will only need to go once. The only time you will need another is if a specific health condition occurs. Aside from that, the pilot will be required to see their own personal doctor every 4 years to make a note in their log book. (Tennyson, 2015)
This reform is currently a bill. It first needs to get voted through the committee, then similar versions will pass on to the Senate and the House to be discussed and voted on. As of November 18, there are 69 cosponsors in the Senate and 150 in the House. (Tennyson, 2015) The differences of the two will then need to be worked out and agreed upon before it makes its way to the president.
I think the biggest positive outcome from this bill being passed is that it can open the skies back up to pilots who were previously grounded and will help keep general aviation in motion. It will also be nice to not have to find an AME, as they are not found everywhere (I had to drive at least an hour away). Obviously the biggest downside of this would be the safety aspect. Someone may not have one of the specific health condition to have to go to the AME, but could still not be able to pass a medical anymore and they still continue to fly.
I personally do not think that the medical reform is necessary, it isn't that bad having to go in and get a medical. However it would be nice to save a little time and money and it would help continue the growth of the industry.


Tennyson, E. (2015, November 28). Closer than ever. Retrieved from http://www.aopa.org/News-and-Video/All-News/2015/November/18/Closer-than-ever

COMAC Competition?

I do not think that the C919 will receive FAA certification. While China is a major production country, most of the items that say "made in china" have a short life and come with a number of warnings. They are more quantity over quality. It also does not help that they already have a failed attempt to certify an aircraft, the ARJ-21, under their belt. For arguments sake, if the C919 did receive the certification, I do not think it would pose many problems for the U.S. carriers. In regards to the public perception, I feel that a majority of the people will not want to fly in an aircraft made in China because as I said above, the quality of their products is not that great. In terms of aircraft purchases, the only real upside is that the cost would be cheaper. However, the U.S. carriers needs to keep in mind the public perception and the possibility of losing passengers because they are flying a Chinese plane.
COMAC is the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China. They are a state owned limited liability company and were formed with the approval of the State Council along with six other corporations. (COMAC, 2015) The Chinese Government supports COMAC, they offer funding and the day the plane was pulled out, there were nearly 4,000 government officials in attendance. If they succeed it will only bring them in more money and what businessman doesn't want money. The airlines also back up COMAC, as they already have orders for around 500 aircraft, mostly from the Chinese carriers. (Newser, 2015) There are plans for a new plane, C929, which is similar to the 919 but a twin aisle and this is a joint effort with Russia. (Leeham, 2015)
Even if this aircraft received FAA certification, it is going to be quite a while before we can consider them a competitor with Boeing or Airbus, let alone any other company of no significance.
The response of Boeing and Airbus was to re-engine their planes, taking away the economic advantage from COMAC. (Leeham, 2015)


COMAC. (2015). Introduction. Retrieved from http://english.comac.cc/aboutus/introduction/

Leeham News and Comment. (2015, November 3). No fear of C919 for a generation. Retrieved from http://leehamnews.com/2015/11/04/no-fear-of-c919-for-a-generation/

Newser. (2015, November 2). China Just Rolled Out Its Answer to the Boeing 737. Retrieved from http://www.newser.com/story/215397/this-is-chinas-answer-to-boeing.html

Aviation Organizations

Joining aviation organizations is beneficial because they give you the opportunity to meet others who share the same interests and goals. Also, creating these relationships with other professionals can potentially open doors into other careers. A couple of important ones are AOPA, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, ALPA, Air Line Pilots Association and WIA, Women in Aviation.

The mission of AOPA is to protect our freedom to fly by

advocating on behalf of our members,

educating pilots, nonpilots, and policy makers alike,

supporting activities that ensure the long-term health of General Aviation,

fighting to keep General Aviation accessible to all, and

securing sufficient resources to ensure our success. (AOPA, n.d.)

They offer many services such as information centers, flight planning tools, insurance/ financing options and even keep you in the loop of current events in the industry with their monthly magazine. They offer courses to promote safety and keep your skill levels up to par.

ALPA's mission is to
"promote and champion all aspects of aviation safety throughout all segments of the aviation community; to represent, in both specific and general respects, the collective interests of all pilots in commercial aviation; to assist in collective bargaining activities on behalf of all pilots represented by the Association; to promote the health and welfare of the members of the Association before all governmental agencies; to be a strong, forceful advocate of the airline piloting profession, through all forms of media, and with the public at large; and to be the ultimate guardian and defender of the rights and privileges of the professional pilots who are members of the Association." (ALPA, n.d.)
The three critical services they offer are airline safety and security, representation and advocacy. They assist the NTSB in investigations and public hearings, they help maintain salary, benefits and working conditions and they also represent pilot views and promote legislation in favor of the union members.

WIA is a nonprofit organization that promotes the advancement of women in all aviation careers. In contradiction to their name, their help also extends to men in terms of offering scholarships and conferences and seminars. They also publish a monthly newsletter. (WIA, n.d.)

Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. (n.d.). Retrieved November 2, 2015, from http://www.aopa.org/

 

Women in Aviation, International Official Site. (n.d.). Retrieved November 2, 2015, from  https://www.wai.org/

 

Air Line Pilots Association. (n.d.). Retrieved November 2, 2015, from https://www.alpa.org