Airbus Proposes Flight Deck Toilets
Pilot unions object to Airbus’s proposal to equip at least some of its aircraft with flight deck toilets. The plan is to put an open biffy behind the captain’s seat so that single-pilot operations can flow smoothly during long haul flights on Extended Minimum Crew Operations (eMCO) protocols. Airbus is aggressively pursuing the technological and practical solutions to reducing the manpower required in its aircraft, particularly on the really long flights its latest wide bodies are designed to fly. Under eMCO, a lone pilot will be on the flight deck for up to three hours and any need to disrupt the slumber of the one or two other pilots would mess up their crew rest mandate compliance. The planemaker and European regulator EASA have looked at a full range of alternatives to deal with nature’s inevitable call and rejected things like diapers and diet or fluid restrictions as impractical.
Unleaded Fuel Sales Prompt Warnings
High-octane unleaded fuel is available at three California airports and industry groups are cautioning against misfueling errors. General Aviation Modifications Inc.’s (GAMI’s) G100UL is on sale for aircraft with the required STCs at Reid-Hillview and Watsonville Airports and Swift Fuels is conducting a trial of its 100R fuel for flight-school Cessna 172s at San Carlos Airport. Swift’s fuel has received an STC for late model 172s and is applying for an ASTM International fuel specification. GAMI is skipping the ASTM paperwork. Both the Eliminate Aviation Gasoline Lead Emissions group and the National Air Transportation Association have published warning about not mixing GAMI’s fuel with Swift’s 94UL, which is available at several airports in California. G100UL is fully fungible with 100LL.
