Guest Alan Epstein is Pratt & Whitney’s Vice President of Technology & Environment. We talk about the PurePower family of geared turbofan (GTF) jet engines: how long the technology has been around, what the GTF is trying to achieve, propulsive and thermal efficiency, biofuel, technology push versus pull, and more. Alan even has his own “grill the geeks” question!

The week’s aviation news:

• WestJet departs from past with regional plan
• WestJet Sees C$2 Billion Regional-Flight Market for Canada, U.S.
• Southwest Airlines’ new cabin design adds six extra seats

David’s Aircraft of the Week is the Sikorsky S-61L.

In this week’s Australia Desk report: More A380 cracking issues for Qantas to keep an eye on, Australian Army grounds Blackhawk fleet as a precautionary measure, China Southern establishes the “Canton Route” – Sydney to London, Air Asia X announces extra services to Sydney, Virgin Australia add A330s to the Melbourne – Sydney route.

Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

This week on Across the Pond, Pieter talks to Paul Fowler from Enstone Flying Club, about the Club and the airfield. Set in Oxfordshire, a stunningly beautiful part of the UK, Paul tells us about the history of the airfield and its residents and what its like to fly in this part of the world. Enstone Airfield has some great residents and has a fabulous community relationship, many others could learn from.

You can find Enstone on Facebook and YouTube and you can find Paul Fowler on Twitter and LinkedIn. Pieter can be found on Twitter as @Nascothornet or XTP Media’s Facebook Page.

Mentioned in the episode:

• Chris Manno’s new JetHead Live Podcast, which you can find on iTunes.
• Screenprints of airport runway patterns from NOMO Design

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Bill English is a commercial pilot, multi and instrument CFI, and he’s flown corporate, charter, and was an air traffic controller in Boston and NY. Bill has written for IFR Magazine and worked on procedures design and internal investigations for the FAA. Currently, Bill is a National Transportation Safety Board Investigator in Charge, in the Major Aviation Investigations Division.

The week’s aviation news:

• With Stratolaunch project, Paul Allen makes a big bet on commercial spaceflight
• Boeing 737 MAX Logs First Firm Order from Launch Customer Southwest Airlines
• TSA chief in favor of advocates at all airports
• Gun from passenger’s bag in Atlanta airport accidentally fired

In this week’s Australia Desk report: Snow at Christmas?? Surely not! We’re having a beach BBQ for this report! Air New Zealand’s financial losses spell bad news for staff numbers and routes to Europe, Air Pacific doing better financially than last year, Virgin Australia catching up to Qantas in customer satisfaction ratings – Tiger Airways came last….again. The final Australia Desk for 2011 finishes with some messages of thanks and best wishes for 2012.

Find more from Grant and Steve at the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

This week on Across the Pond, Pieter Johnson talks to Mark Maiden, the presenter of The Maiden Flight Podcast. Mark is a student pilot in Dublin, Ireland and explains what is required to gain a private license in Ireland. We hear aboiut some lessons learned in finding a flying school, airsickness and having the throttle on the left hand side of the pilot. Its a worthy listen if you are learning to fly.

Mentioned in the episode:

• Stratolaunch Systems
• CH-Aviation
• Qantas: The Unliking of an Iconic Australian Brand (video)
• Max Trescott Trends Aloft
• Twas The Night Before Christmas — Aviation Style

Bonus:

• Santa & F-104 Midair!

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Our guest this episode is industry researcher and analyst Henry Harteveldt. He’s a Co-founder of Atmosphere Research Group where he will head up the airlline and travel practice of this research and advisory firm that will look at ecommerce, distribution, marketing and operations planning for airlines, hotel companies, travel agencies, GDS companies, and marketing agencies. Henry is also Chairman of the Association of Travel Marketing Executives and can be found on Twitter at @hharteveldt.

The week’s aviation news:

• How 9/11 really changed flying for consumers
• 737 MAX Was No Surprise, Airbus Says
• Southwest not one of the carriers that have Boeing 737 MAX on order
• Low-Cost Carriers Jockey For Position On National, LaGuardia Slot Auction
• US Airways takes preliminary look at A321neo
• Fliers’ saggy pants, skimpy garb test airlines

Steve and Grant recorded the Australia Desk Report on location at Coldstream Aerodrome (YCEM) where they had their mobile studio set up for the Australia Centre for Mission Aviation Discovery Day. Find them on the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

This week on Across the Pond, Pieter Johnson talks to Brian Burrage, co-founder of the Vickers Viscount Network and an ex Rolls Royce Dart Engineer. Brian tells us about the success of the Viscount as Britain’s best post war selling turboprop airliner, being sold world-wide with over 400 being produced. None are left flying but the Viscount Network aims to keep the aircraft awareness high through a fabulous website, talks and visits to the remaining airframes. You can find Pieter Johnson on Twitter at @Nascothornet.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Post photo: N7406 c/n 104 built for Capita Airlines and seen here in June 1962 operating for United. Credit Brian Burridge.

Post photo: The Plane Crazy crew live on location. Can you name them?

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Our guest this episode is Stephanie Gehman, the Manager of Marketing and Customer Service at Harrisburg International Airport (MDT). We talk about current airport issues and how this one competes with larger airports in the region. Follow them on Twitter at @HIAairport.

Steve Visscher and Grant McHerron from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast have another great Australia Desk Report.

In his Across the Pond segment Pieter Johnson talks with Tim Robinson, Editor of the Royal Aeronautical Society’s magazine Aerospace International about the effects of the UK Strategic Defence Review, where draconian cuts have been made to the Defence budget. Follow Tim on Twitter at @RAeSTimR, and Pieter at @Nascothornet.

The week’s aviation news:

• Boeing admission partly absolves Southwest
• Again, Air Controller Sleeps On Job
• Seven-year-old boy buys fighter jet on eBay
• The ultimate garden ‘hit’ – a restored Harrier jet
• Amsterdam launches high-tech baggage handling system
• Gulfstream Jet Crashed Testing Engine Failure, Agency Says

Mentions:

• The The Crew Lounge Podcast
• Child Aviation Restraint System
• Flightlevel390
• Decision Height
• Ryan’s Travels & Photos

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Chad Trautvetter is the online news editor for Aviation International News (AIN) and also the editor of AINalerts, AIN’s twice a week electronic publication. Chad really knows General and Business Aviation, and just returned from the Sun n’ Fun International Fly-In & Expo at Lakeland, Florida. Follow AIN on Twitter at @AINonline and Chad at @AIN_SkyWriter.

David brings teaches us some aviation history, and Steve and Grant from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast present their Australia Desk Report.

The week’s aviation news:

• Sun ‘n Fun picks up, carries on
• Cirrus Dismisses ‘Counter Offer’ Speculation
• Southwest In-Flight Fuselage Rupture
• Gulfstream G650 crashes in New Mexico, leaving four people dead
• Business-jet owners win U.S. House vote to keep flight secrecy
• New study: Tarmac rule fuels flight cancellations

Mention:

• The Crew Lounge Podcast

Follow our Twitter lists for some seriously great content by some of the best folks in aviation:

• http://twitter.com/airplanegeeks/hosts for podcast hosts and contributors.

• http://twitter.com/airplanegeeks/guests for guests on the Airplane Geeks podcast who tweet.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Shashank Nigam, CEO of Simpliflying, is just back from the Loyalty 2011 conference and we talk about how airline loyalty programs measure success and how they work within the airline and with other groups like Communications. We also cover airline use of social media and how they are starting to segment and target customers, and link loyalty programs to social media. Shashank explains how airlines need to step up from social media being about a conversation to being about specific people.

We also have aviation news from the past week, The Australia Desk Report by Steve and Grant from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and Pieter Johnson his Across the Pond segment.

The week’s aviation news:

• First production F-35A Takes Off
• Oil shock threatens airline recovery
• Vibrating cockpit seat proposed for pilot alerts
• The Martin Jetpack
• Southwest pilots OK ‘AirTran transition agreement’
• Boeing Defeats EADS for $35 Billion Air Force Tanker Program

Mentions:

• Flip.to Hotels, restaurants, and airlines leveraging social networks.
• New Zealand Red Cross

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Jillian Gustafson, Board member of the National Air Disaster Alliance/Foundation joins the geeks as this episode’s guest. Members of the organization include air crash survivors, family members, aviation professionals and those who support the founding goals – Safety, Security, Survivability, and Support for Victims’ Families. Jillian tweets as @planesafeorg, and also blogs for the group.

We also have the aviation news from the past week, Steve and Grant’s Australia Desk Report, and Pieter Johnson with his Across the Pond segment.

The week’s aviation news:

• Southwest orders bigger jets; Are Hawaii, Caribbean next?
• Delta Boosts First-Class Seats 13% for Business Fliers
• Aviation committee looks into navigation, babies on laps
• DOT Applauds Future of Aviation Advisory Committee (FAAC) Recommendations
• FAA routinely misses airline inspection deadlines
• Best Careers 2011: Commercial Pilot
• Dreamliner’s woes pile up

Mentions:

• Kids Fly Safe
• DOT’s Aviation Child Safety Points are not adequate to NTSB
• NORAD Tracks Santa

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Happy holidays to all our listeners!

Post photo courtesy Kids Fly Safe.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Our guest this episode is Captain Steve Fulton. As a pilot at Alaska Airlines, Steve helped develop the world’s first Required Navigation Performance (RNP) procedure, and he was a principal author of the RNP RNAV criteria in the FAA Advisory Circular on this topic. Steve is now a Technical Fellow with GE Aviation, and a co-founder of what was formerly Naverus now GE PBN Services.

Graphic courtesy GE Aviation. To learn more about RNP and what it means for the airline industry and for the environment, see these videos:

• GE’s RNP path implementation at Bradley Airport in Connecticut
• Animation of RNP path vs. ground-based navigation path

We also have the aviation news from the past week, Steve and Grant’s Australia Desk Report, and Pieter Johnson with his Across the Pond segment.

The week’s aviation news:

• Verdict in Concorde crash called ‘chilling’
• Southwest’s Performance Problem: How to Fix Those Late Arrivals
• Plane makers eye Persian Gulf buyers for luxury jets

Mentions:

• TarmacLimits.com The impact of tree-hour tarmac delay rules and fines on passenger travel time and welfare.

• AirlinesAngel has a passion for aviation, with specific interest in the areas of customer focus and social media.

• Safety Is Mandatory video by jetBlue employees, and featuring listener Stephen.

• Desert Pilot Podcast Stories from a Commercial Land & Sea Pilot/ATC student.

• JSF engine too big for regular transport at sea from the Navy Times.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Jason Paur joins as guest. He’s a contributing writer for Wired.com where Jason posts to the Autopia blog. Find Jason on Twitter as @jasonpaur. We talk about the week’s aviation news and some of Jason’s recent articles, including Exclusive: We Fly An Electric Airplane and SpaceShipTwo First Glide Flight Details From The Pilot.

The week’s aviation news:

• Airlines haven’t been this profitable since 1978
• Southwest Airlines decides fee for inflight Internet service: $5
• U.S., Japan sign a tentative ‘open skies’ deal
• Follow the Money: Pork-Powered Pig Preps for Flight

Mentions:

• I Hate Ryanair
• Flightstar Sportplanes
• Flight Design USA
• Yuneec
• Detroit, Willow-Run Cargo Operations

Also see Steve and Grant’s Australia Desk archive and their Flight Time Radio segments.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Rafael Marquez blogs at I Love Planes and tweets as @rafaelmarquez. Rafael and Gavin Werbeloff discuss the weeks aviation news with Max, Rob, David, and Dan. We also have Dan’s interview with David Cush, the CEO of Virgin America, David’s This Week in Aviation, and the Australia Desk report by Steve and Grant from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast. Gavin reports on the recent San Francisco Fleet Week Air Show. (His photo above.)

The week’s aviation news:

• Planes Don’t Kill People — Plane Exhaust Does
• UAE-Canada trade war escalates
• Report urging use of drones raises questions about fighter jet deal
• Deal with pilots would let Southwest fly bigger 737s, making long routes viable
• NATCA- FAA Collaboration Results in Positive Changes to National Airspace System

Mentions:

• Gavin’s San Francisco Fleet Week Air Show photos
• Will Fly For Food
• Hey! with Dane Golden
• San Francisco Fleet Week Air Show Photos by Gavin Werbeloff
• AirShowFan.com Bernardo Malfitano’s aviation photography site.
• paper.li
• Commemorative Air Force
• Seat Guru
• ExpertFlyer

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Mary Kirby, the “Runway Girl” returns as our guest to talk about airlines using social media to generate revenue, the future for inflight connectivity, Aircell’s business aviation strategy, and more. Mary blogs on FlightGlobal as RunwayGirl, follow her on Twitter, and be sure to visit RunwayGirlMaryKirby’s Channel on YouTube.

The week’s aviation news:

• Air Canada forges deal with United
• U.S., Japanese Airlines Win Approval for Alliance
• Southwest Wants Into Washington National
• Commercial rocketplane takes first gliding flight test
• Israel to pay $2.7B for F-35I jets

Mentions:

• SimpliFlying
• MySkyStatus by Lufthansa
• The official Frontier Airlines customer service assist Twitter account, FrontierCare
• Aircell for BizAv on Twitter
• Dragons of Thin Air: The Less Concise Fear of Flying Course

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Steven Frischling, who goes by “Fish,” writes the Flying with Fish blog and is the founder of The Travel Strategist which helps businesses use travel effectively and efficiently. David has a few more field interviews from the Oceana Airshow and Steve and Grant from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast have their Australia Desk report.

The week’s aviation news:

• Bombardier to launch new large business jet
• EADS To Rule On Airbus A320 Neo Decision
• Iraq offered new F-16s with older missiles
• Eurocopter X3 begins testing; company calls it a turboprop-helicopter hybrid

On airline consolidations:

• United is merged: CEO Smisek is ready to take on the world
• Southwest to buy AirTran for $1.42 billion
• Rival mergers put new pressure on American Airlines
• Avoiding the Reset Button

Mentions:

• Spirit of Wenatchee, Home of Miss Veedol
• Airspeed Podcast

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Ashley Moore is Founder and President of The Aviation PR Group, which helps aviation businesses find their niche audience through marketing, public relations and communications. She’s an Embry-Riddle graduate, was associate editor for Professional Pilot Magazine, and she worked for NATA representing the interests of GA airports, FBOs and other aviation businesses.

We also have a special appearance by our new listener Harriat. We touch on just a few of her many aviation adventures.

The week’s aviation news:

• JetBlue memo questions flight attendant’s motive
• Southwest May Add Bigger 737 Jet for Busiest Routes
• Delta airline unveils option for customers to book flights on Facebook
• 5 social media lessons for Air Canada
• Russia, NORAD complete joint air defense drills
• GCI executive recalls plane crash that killed Ted Stevens
• Will pilotless aircraft be safer in flight?

Mentions:

• Speculation over delay of Air Force tanker contracts heats up – An interview with Richard Aboulafia

To listen to Podapalooza 2010 from EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, view event photos, and see all the aviation podcasts represented, visit these sites:

• Pilots Journey Podcast
• Mile High Flyers Podcast
• Student Pilot Podcast

Winners of the World Airport Data iPhone app giveaway:

• Kevin Heistermann
• Ben Stephens
• Stuart Stevenson

Listeners Harriet and Micah taken before their second helicopter flight out in Alberta in 2009:

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Gavin Werbeloff is a long time aviation enthusiast who tweets as travel_buddha. He’s active on the online aero community, initially through fleetbuzz and then flyertalk, and he’s written a few pieces for travelcrisis.com.

The week’s aviation news:

• Only Two Bids for KC-X — US Aerospace/Antonov is OUT
• Report: Skywest might be interested in Comair
• Regional airlines SkyWest, ExpressJet agree to join
• July traffic rose 3.4 pct at Southwest Airlines
• Airbus A350 gets Asian boost as Cathay endorses jet
• Zimbabwe officials spark ‘unnecessary panic’ over London to Harare plane ‘accident drill’
• School Launches Aging Aircraft Maintenance Site

Mentions:

• Aging Aircraft Education & Training
• The World Airport Data app for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. (Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later)
• Addison Schonland’s IAGblog Podcasts
• FlightMemory

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Our guest this episode is Chris Manno, an airline captain, teacher at Embry-Riddle University and sometimes at Texas Christian University, and writer of the JetHead blog. He also cartoons about life at the airline over at FlightcrewZoo.

We have a special appearance by Christopher White, Director of Public Relations for AirTran Airways. Chris was with us way back in Episode 48 to talk about AirTran’s inflight WiFi. This episode, Chris contributes to the discussion about the recent Southwest and AirTran videos “poking fun” at each other:

• Southwest Airlines Commercial: Battle Cry
• AirTran Video: Skip the Stampede

The week’s aviation news:

• AirTran Jabs at Southwest Air With a Cow Herding Ad
• W.T.O. Affirms Ruling of Improper Airbus Aid
• Airline Safety Bill Passes US Senate; 3407 Families Celebrate
• U.S. Senate passes $34.5B aviation bill aimed at updating air-traffic-control system, safety rules
• Dead Tired
• When Will Foreigners Be Able to Own US Airlines? Not Anytime Soon
• Pentagon Develops Plan to Buy New Air Force One Fleet

As ususal, we have our This Week in Aviation history lesson and the report from the Australia Desk.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Mary Kirby (aka, RunwayGirl) from Flight Global joins in a discussion of the week’s aviation news, the airline seat debacle, and inflight entertainment and connectivity. Mary is a recognized authority on these topics and brings insight you won’t find elsewhere.

• JAL Picks American, but Delta’s Hardly a Loser in This Tussle
• U.S. grants oneworld airline alliance antitrust immunity
• Michael O’Leary challenges Stelios to a “Chariots of Fire” race around Trafalgar Square
• Director Kevin Smith doesn’t like getting kicked off Southwest Airlines flight
• Take a Peek Inside the 747-8 Test Plane
• Airport body scans defy Islamic law
• U.S. ‘Star Wars’ laser plane successfully shoots down ballistic missile for first time

David Vanderhoof has another This Week in Aviation, and Steve Visscher and Grant McHerron from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast have their Australia Desk report.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Guest Martin Rottler talks about aviation education and how exposure to flying affects academic performance by young students. Martin is an airline business junkie, and an FAA licensed commercial pilot for single and multi-engine aircraft, a CFI, and he holds an Instrument Rating. Currently, Martin is a graduate student working on a Master’s Degree at the University of North Dakota. He blogs at http://martinrottler.com/.

• Military compassion helps Haiti
• Air Force, FAA use Russian aircraft to move mobile air traffic control tower to Haiti
• Schwartz: Tanker Fixed Price May Change
• USAF Chief Scientist Looking To Change Game
• American Airlines parent AMR closes dire decade with $1.47 billion loss for 2009
• Southwest posts Q4 profit as costs drop
• Southwest CEO: Energy is bigger than healthcare
• United CEO: There will be another airline merger
• JAL Bankruptcy Filing Sets Off Reorganization and State-Led Bailout
• NASA Announces Designs for Personal Flying Suit
• CES: AR.Drone helicopter controllable by iPhone
• Al Qaeda linked to rogue aviation network

David Vanderhoof has another This Week in Aviation, Steve Visscher and Virtual Grant McHerron from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast have their Australia Desk report, and Court has another Whiskey Tango Foxtrot segment.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

We have the week’s aviation news and our report from the Airplane Geeks Australia Desk. David Vanderhoof joins us for his This Week in Aviation history lesson, Dan Webb interviews Gary Kelly, the CEO of Southwest Airlines, and we have some listener mail.

The news:

• Airbus Loans Toward A380 Jumbo Faulted in WTO Ruling
• Boeing’s tanker bid may gain from WTO ruling on Airbus
• Zapping things from the sky: Airborne Boeing laser blasts ground target
• Airline losses ‘hit $1bn a month’
• Lufthansa, JetBlue Launch Code Share
• Evergreen Aviation 747 drops retardant on California wildfires
• Drunk pilot: Where have you hidden the runway?

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave us voice mail at (812) 757-4252.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

This episode’s guest is Mike Friesen, Principal at Leading Strategies, a provider of  consulting services and coaching for aviation executives, particularly in the airport industry. He’s also a former U.S. military pilot, having flown the F-4 Phantom and the F-15.

We talk about aviation news from the past week and we have a report from the Airplane Geeks Australia Desk (which is expecially amusing this time). We also have our This Week in Aviation history lesson from David Vanderhoof, and some listener mail.

The news:

• Seatbacks in Position and Empty, Please
• NTSB calls for new air traffic rules over Hudson River
• FAA: Southwest operating 40-plus 737s with uncertified parts
• National Business Travel Association International Convention & Exposition
• Cliff Notes: Seven key items from today’s 787 announcement
• Virgin America’s Second Quarter Results Show Improvement

A photo of the Etrich Taube, the airplane mentioned in David’s This Week in Aviation segment as the first aerial bombardment of a city by a fixed wing aircraft, can be found in Wikipedia.

The photo above is of our own Dan Webb at the National Business Travel Association International Convention & Exposition. It was taken when he wasn’t collecting free junk.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave us voice mail at (812) 757-4252.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Evan, from the Evan Flys website, joins Dan, Rob, and Max to prove that airplane geeks come in all sizes and ages. Evan has a passion for aviation, especially warbird aviators and airshow performers. In fact, he’s interviewed a number of them, he can be heard on Flight Line Internet Radio, and he writes a monthly column for Atlantic Flyer magazine.

• SWA ‘seriously considering’ Canada/Mexico/Caribbean flying in 2011
• Government clears air crew in recent runway stranding
• Eclipse Aviation purchase approved
• Flight Delay Predictor Saves Airport Time and Hassle
• NTSB Needs to Re-Admit NATCA to Investigation
• What’s up with the naked unruly fliers? and Man Strips Naked On Plane, Punches Lady In Face
• Fly kid grounded

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave us voice mail at (812) 757-4252.

This episode’s opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. Visit his site at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.