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The hero pilot, Captain Sullenberger, who landed his Airbus 320 safely on the Hudson River, in New York, on Jan 15 2009 has retired after 30 years.

Captain Sullenberger, 59, officially retired at a private ceremony in Charlotte after flying his last commercial gig, Flight 1167 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida – landing 17 minutes ahead of schedule.

Captain Sullenberger also flew with the same co-pilot as during the Hudson landing of US Airways Flight 1549, First Officer Jeff Skiles. Also on board were some of the same passengers that were on Flight 1549 to celebrate his final flight.

If you don’t know the history of Flight 1549 and the amazing landing on the Hudson, check out the video below.

I have a sneaking suspicion that Ryan Air’s Fat Tax, Fly for Free, and pay to use the toilet are not 100% real.

These may be very clever marketing tools guaranteed to keep Ryan Air in the spotlight for a few months. One good quirky idea , a few press releases and hey presto News and Internet coverage worth more than any advertising…. And Free too!

I have no problem with Ryan Air. Every time I have flown with the, they were on time and the tickets cost less than €70 to the UK from Dublin. Last time in fact, Michael O’Leary himself was taking the tickets at the gate, as he was on the same flight to Gatwick. A Good Manager… Getting stuck in!

Once I was in Stansted and it was snowing. Other budget airlines were stating that “these flights are now cancelled please rebook online” , Ryan Air did not cancel and I flew home only 55 mins late.

Most Recently I found that classical music was being played while boarding. Quite a change for Ryan Air.

Overall the run a good service, some people have had bad experiences but what do you expect when your trip only cost a few quid.  They even have a mobile phone system which allows you to make and receive texts and phone calls in the air – however I could not make use of this, as the mobile in-flight system did not work for me, I tried it a few times and it just doesn’t work.

I fly again with Ryan Air in late September as I travel over to AdTech London. I expect my trip will be event free and on time…. If not, you will hear about it here.

By now the black boxes of Flight AF447 pinging divices have certainly stopped sending out locator information. The investigators know the general location of the crash, but due to the vast size of the search area and the fact that the ocean is miles deep in those locaions, the black box, if found would be of little use. It could be corroded and the combination of the salt water and pressure would probably destroy the box before it could be found.

Investigators into the AF447 crash have made primary results known, blaming the pitot tubes, saying that they probably froze over and gave incorrect data to the auto-pilot.

Either way, the issues will need to be looked into.

I’m flying on Air France soon, I’m not overly worried as the Airbus is a superb machine, however, if the blog is not updated in the next 3 weeks, It could be, because I can”t get decent internet connection from beyond the grave

Ryan Air boss Michael O’Leary has said he is looking into the possibility of letting passengers who stand up during flights, to fly for free. Apparently the flights targeted will be those of 30 minutes and less.

The plan would need to be approved by the Irish Aviation Authority but the setup would see passengers with seats similar to trams or buffet cars on trains.

Ryan Air are now the worlds biggest international carrier and reported an increase in recent passenger numbers.

I don’t understand why Ryan Air are thinking of doing this for free, I would have thought it would have been something like a 70% discount.

I simply cannot see this working. What about;
1) Seat belts – will there be any
2) That unbalancing jolt you get when you land
3) Emergency landings – Brace position?
4) Your life jacket is under your …. Seat?

I think some of the recent Ryan Air suggestions, such as the Fat Tax, charge for toilets etc. may have been a few very clever publicity stunts. Either that or they are very Interesting business models for the future of the airline … Let’s see!

There has been some speculation (including myself from day 1) that the rudder was a key element to the investigation of the air crash of Flight AF447. The tail was found last week and investigators are now reviewing whether or not the Airbus rudder was an issue. They are focusing on the part of the rudder which controls how much the rudder can move.  Normally, a limiter prevents the rudder from swinging or moving too far – at high speeds an incorrectly positioned rudder could sheer off.  There has been some speculation in the media that this Airbus had some issues regarding the rudder – I find this hard to believe, as any aircraft snag list which highlighted a rudder problem, you can be guaranteed that Air France would have brought the aircraft in for immediate repair.

[caption id="attachment_157" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Part of the Airbus Rudder / Vertical Stabiliser of Flight AF447"][/caption]

Technicians will be able to review the metal structure, looking for corrosion or metal sheer and may be able to deduce if the rudder failed on its own or if air speed was a factor.  There are many large bolts in the area of the vertical stabiliser and perhaps one of these failed – however if you look at the amount of the tail fin was recovered it actually is only the fin part and does not come near the area where the structure is housed and secured.

Other air crashes which had rudder problems include on famous case in Japan where a JAL Boeing 747SR lost part of its rudder and crashed into a mountain. Other cases include SilkAir Flight 185, American Airlines Flight 587.

There are now many vessels, including some from USA and France covering hundreds of square kilometers every day listening for the pingers on the black boxes and flight data recorders which will stop working in about 2 weeks.

The next 2 weeks will be vital in the search for clues to why this modern airliner crashed.
I am going to remain quiet on this subject until the next major update from Brazil.