Boeing has another full week of 787 tests
Trying to meet the June 28 target date for its first flight, Boeing is subjecting the Dreamliner to a full week of tests.
VP Pat Shanahan, the general manager of Boeing’s commercial airplane programs, is set to hold a flight readiness review in Everett, Wash., on Saturday.
That 48-hour procedure will push ZA001 through a continuous series of final system checkouts using a software load developed to address minor issues that arose during the first two test phases — factory and intermediate gauntlet.
Cessna furloughs started Monday
The airlines aren’t the only ones feeling the pinch of the economy. Starting Monday, Cessna will give workers a four week furlough.
Some areas aren’t affected, such as the service center, parts, technical support and sales, said Cessna spokesman Doug Oliver.
But “for the most part, it’s a general companywide four-week furlough,” Oliver said.
Cessna also distributed 60-day notices Friday — part of the latest round of layoffs. Last week, Cessna told employees it would reduce its work force by another 1,300 people.
Pilot’s death may spark debate on retirement age
With the death of the Continental Airlines pilot last week, a new debate could begin anew regarding a pilot’s retirement age.
“This is going to bring attention back to the issue,” said Shirley Phillips, a former pilot trainer and an aviation professor at Daniel Webster College, “but it’s such a rare event that it wouldn’t be justified to go back to the age 60.”
