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We talk with an airport planner who also co-founded an organization for innovation in aviation. In the news, we discuss a very old paper travel voucher and how the airline reacted when it surfaced, a study of bacteria and fungus in the terminal and on aircraft, expensive refrigerators for Air Force One, and a donation by nine airlines to the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum. We also look at BA and their latest change to the passenger experience in short-haul flights, the Qantas challenge to Airbus and Boeing, and a conversation with the Chief of the Air Traffic Control Division at Robert Gray Army Airfield about ATIS.

Guest

Chris Groh is an airport planner who works with airports of all sizes across the country, but his specialty is general aviation airports and even more specifically, smaller general aviation airports. As an airport planner, Chris acts as an extension of the airport’s staff, and he helps them think about the future while they focus on the day-to-day operations.

Chris says that GA airports are always fun because the staff is usually smaller, but so are the budgets so projects have to be carefully prioritized and typically require more creative solutions.

Chris co-founded an organization for innovation in aviation called Runway.VC. It attempts to broaden and freely distribute the conversations about aviation technology to a wide audience. It also seeks to facilitate networking and real-time interaction between professionals who are interested in the future of aviation but may not have access to conferences and other channels of discussions about innovation in aviation.  Besides online activities, Runway.VC has plans for local meetups across the country. Chris also hosts his own podcast about the future of aviation.

Visit the Runway.VC and Kutchins & Groh websites, listen to the Runway.VC podcast, and follow @runwayvc and @chrisgroh on Twitter.

Aviation News

A United Airlines Passenger Found a ‘Forever’ Travel Voucher From 1998. Here’s How United Responded

John Walker booked a United Airlines flight from Nashville to Sacramento 20 years ago, but wasn’t able to go. Recently, he discovered the $378 printed ticket voucher, dated December 31, 1998. He read the fine print, which said the ticket could, “forever be applied toward the purchase of another domestic non-refundable ticket, for the customer named on the ticket.”

Germs in airplane cabins are bad, but it’s even worse at the airport terminal

In their “Germs at the Airport” report, Insurancequotes.com says they “conducted 18 tests across six surfaces from three major U.S. airports and airline flights. We sent our swabs to the lab and found the average number of viable bacteria and fungal cells per square inch, or colony-forming units (CFU), to see how clean traveling really is.”

Air Force One’s new refrigerators will cost taxpayers $24 million

The U.S. Air Force has awarded Boeing a contract for $23,657,671 to replace two of the 1990 vintage chiller units on Air Force One. The Air Force says additional cold food storage is needed “to support onboard personnel for an extended period of time, without having to restock while abroad.”

Nine airlines donate $28 million to Air and Space Museum for makeover

Nine commercial airlines have joined to donate $28 million to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum to support the renovation of the “America by Air” exhibition.

Across the Pond

With all the talk about ultra long-haul flights and Brian’s “short trip across to the UK,” Pieter looks at BA and their latest change to the passenger experience in short haul flights. Pieter then reflects on the Qantas challenge to Airbus and Boeing on the “Kangaroo Route.”

Brabazon Named Lecture 2017 – Turnaround, Technology and the Future of Travel Alan Joyce – Royal Aeronautical Society Lecture – Audio Download:

Airlines probed over ‘confusing’ seating policy

Mentioned

PaxEx Podcast #54: Catering giant serves up wisdom on compliance with Mark Naylor, Head of Compliance for Gate Gourmet in Oceania. Gate Gourmet is the world’s largest provider of airline catering and onboard products and services.

Snowies and their admirers causing problems at Portland Jetport

Silencing a sonic boom would help a Concorde replacement

Credit

Intro music courtesy Brother Love from his Album Of The Year CD. Outtro by Bruno Misonne from The Sound of Flaps.