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Written by Airman 1st Class David Dobrydney 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs Sunday, 23 August 2009 10:06

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Airmen take pride in the electronic devices that allow them to listen to their favorite music, see distant targets or identify the movements of an enemy force.

But one Airman assigned here used modern technology recently to witness something a little different and a lot more personal.

Tech. Sgt. Rafael Garcia, 379th Expeditionary Mission Support Group, witnessed the birth of his third child, and he did so without leaving his post in Southwest Asia.

Instead, he saw the birth live via webcam while his wife was 6,000 miles away.

Sergeant Garcia is deployed from Ramstein Air Base, Germany, and prior to the start of his deployment in May, he had taken his wife back to the United States to be with her family during the pregnancy.

In order not to be left out of the preparations for the new child, he set up a webcam link in his room.

"Mainly, I was just following her status through the months," Sergeant Garcia said. "She would tell me through the webcam how her doctor appointments were going. Overall it was just like me being there."

The impending birth was no secret in Sergeant Garcia's office. His supervisor, Master Sgt. Nicolas Navarro, said Sergeant Garcia told his co-workers that Mrs. Garcia was going to have a baby when he first arrived. 

"We'd always ask at our weekly meetings how his wife was doing," said Sergeant Navarro, deployed here from Hickam AFB, Hawaii. "It was just part of being good wingmen to make sure that his family was in good hands and everything was going smoothly."

Sergeant Garcia's co-workers also were impressed at the webcam link-up.

"I thought it was just fantastic that he was able to see his wife, even though he couldn't physically be there," Sergeant Navarro said. "Staying connected accomplishes two things.  If a service member knows their family is doing well it makes it easier to concentrate on accomplishing the mission, and if the family knows they're fine they worry a little less about their deployed loved one."

As the big day drew near, Sergeant Garcia asked his wife to find out if the webcam could be placed in the operating room during the birth itself.
"(The hospital) tested it out on their end and said we could have the laptop there during the procedure," Sergeant Garcia said. "The hospital staff said this was a first for them to have someone watch a birth using a webcam."

Mrs. Garcia was scheduled for a cesarean section Aug. 12 but she went into labor earlier than expected.

"Fortunately, I was in my room already when she went into labor," Sergeant Garcia said. "I always keep my computer on and she actually contacted me through the webcam to tell me."

While Sergeant Garcia waited in his room, Mrs. Garcia went to the hospital. 

"About 45 minutes later she called me through the webcam to tell me she was having the C-section," he said. "I stayed up through the night until almost 3 a.m. local time. I saw the whole procedure." 

All went well and Sergeant Garcia's daughter entered the world Aug. 10.

Sergeant Garcia is grateful for the technology that allowed him to see the birth of his first daughter from across two continents.

"It was amazing; there are really no other words to explain it," he said. "I don't know how many Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen or Marines would have the opportunity to do something like this but I consider myself one of the lucky ones. I encourage everybody to take advantage of technology if they have family functions like anniversaries or birthdays back home.  This is a perfect way to stay in touch."

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Written by PRNewswire Saturday, 22 August 2009 20:24

President Obama arrives for a much-deserved vacation on Martha's Vineyard today, but he'll be greeted by a message from FlyersRights.org reminding him of his support for the Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights.

"We're closer to protecting airline passengers than ever before," said Kate Hanni, who founded 26,000-member FlyersRights.org after she and her family were stuck on the tarmac in Austin for 9 hours in 2006.

"We're coming to Martha's Vineyard to remind the President of his co-sponsorship of the legislation when he was a Senator and to ask him to support us as President."

The bipartisan Boxer-Snowe Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights was approved unanimously by the Senate Commerce Committee in July, and is expected to be taken up by the Senate next month.

Besides allowing passengers to get off stranded aircraft after 3 hours on the tarmac, it would require airlines to provide adequate food, water, toilet facilities and temperature controls.

In addition, noted Hanni, "The bill will shine the light on the airlines' hidden nickel-and-dime fees and charges, and force the airlines to inform you if the flight you're about to book is chronically delayed or cancelled."

Hanni credited her group's progress this year to a number of recent high-profile tarmac delays, including 278 flights stuck on the tarmac for longer than 3 hours in June alone, nearly 10 every day.

The spot will air on cable television on Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket and Cape Cod throughout the week of the First Family's visit.

The text of the ad, which includes photos of actual tarmac strandings and headlines describing some of the worst such incidents, reads as follows:

"Mr. President, my name is Kate Hanni. I founded FlyersRights.org after my family and I were stranded on the tarmac in 2006 for 9 hours. Since then, it's happened to passengers on at least 3,000 flights. Imagine what it's like: no food, no water, toilets overflowing. As a Senator, you co-sponsored the Airline Passengers Bill of Rights. Please, sir, urge Congress to pass it. And sign it into law. Enough is enough." Link to Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYHQByjtnAY

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Written by Boeing Friday, 21 August 2009 22:31

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Aug. 21, 2009 -- When Space Shuttle Discovery takes off from the Kennedy Space Center for the International Space Station on Aug. 25, it will be carrying 31,694 pounds of life support and science equipment -- a complex payload that was prepared and processed by employees of The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA].

Boeing provides NASA with payload processing services for the shuttle and the space station under the Checkout, Assembly and Payload Processing Services (CAPPS) contract. For the upcoming STS-128 mission, Boeing employees prepared the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM), a pressurized "moving van" that will be temporarily installed to the station.

"The CAPPS team takes great pride in the work we perform for our NASA customer," said Mark Jager, CAPPS program manager. "Preparing the module for launch and the safe delivery of the MPLM are critical steps toward completing assembly of the Space Station."

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Written by TWC Aviation, Inc Friday, 21 August 2009 21:58

Van Nuys, California (PRWEB) August 21, 2009 -- TWC Aviation, Inc., a recognized leader in private aviation services, this month celebrates the one-year anniversary of its move to Van Nuys Airport (VNY). TWC Aviation moved to the new custom-built office and hangar complex after outgrowing its previous headquarters at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank.

Featuring state-of-the-art technologies and a 45,000-square-foot hangar, TWC Aviation's Van Nuys headquarters is designed to support 24-hour worldwide operations while providing world- class amenities to aircraft owners and charter clients. Since the August 2008 move, the company has added nine aircraft to its FAA Air Carrier Certificate, including a Gulfstream G550 ultra-long range jet.

"The move to Van Nuys Airport was part of our long-term growth strategy and an investment in our future that is already paying off," says Andrew Richmond, President of TWC Aviation. "With 26 jets now in our managed fleet, and our successful worldwide jet charter business, we're perfectly positioned to continue our expansion and provide unsurpassed service to our customers."

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Written by Fraport AG Friday, 21 August 2009 21:48

Fraport AG described today's decision from the Hesse Adminstrative High Court (VGH) in Kassel "a great day for the German air transportation industry and the future of the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region". In an initial statement, Fraport executive board chairman Dr. Wilhelm Bender said that the VGH decision stressed the overwhelming public interest in the expansion of Germany's central air transportation hub. Expansion of Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is not only a national task for securing the future viability and competitiveness of Germany as a strong aviation base but will also guarantee the economic prosperity of the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main region, which is strongly affected by the current economic and financial crisis.

Bender underscored that Fraport was "fully on schedule" with airport capacity expansion and that the envisaged opening of the new Runway Northwest for the 2011 Winter Timetable was a "realistic target". Bender stated: "Our motto is: Full steam ahead for airport expansion. With this biggest private investment project in Europe, we are stimulating the construction industry in the short-term. Thus, we are contributing actively to overcome the economic crisis, secure and create new jobs, and strengthen the economic prowess of the region where more than 300,000 people depend on the airport for their livelihood."

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Written by American Airlines Friday, 21 August 2009 21:47

American Airlines, a founding member of the oneworld(R) alliance, along with its regional partner American Eagle continue to grow their schedule in South Florida. This is beyond the schedule additions previously announced for November 2009 at Miami International Airport (MIA).

Effective Feb. 11 from MIA, American will begin a third daily flight to Lima, Peru, and a fourth daily flight to San Jose, Costa Rica. There will be an eighth flight operating twice weekly to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Additionally, American will add a second daily flight from Fort Lauderdale International Airport to Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

In June 2010, a fourth daily flight from MIA to Kingston Jamaica, will be added, and the two daily flights currently operating to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, will see an upgrade in equipment from the current 148-seat Boeing 737 to the 188-seat Boeing 757.

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Written by ExpressJet Holdings, Inc Friday, 21 August 2009 21:42

ExpressJet is pleased with the announcement made by Department of Transportation's Secretary, Ray LaHood, today stating the ExpressJet crew was not at fault and in fact, they repeatedly tried to gain permission to deplane the passengers at the airport. ExpressJet and Continental have a long standing relationship of cooperation with the Department of Transportation (DOT) on passenger rights. ExpressJet was one of the few regional airlines that voluntarily participated in the DOT's task force on developing contingency plans during extended tarmac delays. Read more... Lockheed Martin-Built JCSAT-12 Satellite Successfully Launched for SKY Perfect JSAT PDF | Print | E-mail Written by Lockheed Martin Friday, 21 August 2009 19:41 NEWTOWN, Pa., Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The JCSAT-12 communications satellite, designed and built by Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) for SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation (SKY Perfect JSAT) of Japan, was successfully launched today from Kourou, French Guiana. Lift-off occurred at 6:09 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) aboard an Ariane 5-ECA launch vehicle provided by Arianespace of Evry, France. Initial contact with the satellite was confirmed at 7:17 p.m. EDT from Lockheed Martin's satellite tracking station in Uralla, Australia.   JCSAT-12 is a high-power hybrid satellite consisting of 30 active Ku-band transponders and 12 active C-band transponders that will provide broadcast and broadband services to Japan, Oceania, the Asia-Pacific region and Hawaii. JCSAT-12 is designed for a minimum service life of 15 years and will serve as a back up satellite for other SKY Perfect satellites following in-orbit check of all systems. The spacecraft was delivered to the launch site in Kourou 22 1/2 months after the contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin.   JCSAT-12 marks the 38th Lockheed Martin-built A2100 spacecraft and the fifth delivered to SKY Perfect JSAT. Lockheed Martin delivered JCSAT-9 through JCSAT-11 and N-SAT-110. The company is currently manufacturing JCSAT-110R, which is scheduled to launch in 2011, and JCSAT-13, which is planned for delivery in 2011 with a launch date to be announced at a later time.   "The Lockheed Martin team's ability to maintain program schedule throughout all phases of design, engineering and test was instrumental in our being able to deliver JCSAT-12 to the launch site in less than 23 months," said Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems General Manager Marshall Byrd. "We're extremely pleased that our trusted partner, SKY Perfect JSAT, will be able to fulfill their business plan requirements and efficiently implement additional backup satellite service for their customers."   The Lockheed Martin A2100 geosynchronous spacecraft series is designed to meet a wide variety of telecommunications needs including Ka-band broadband and broadcast services, fixed satellite services in C-band and Ku-band, high-power direct broadcast services using the Ku-band frequency spectrum and mobile satellite services using UHF, L-band, and S-band payloads. The A2100's modular design features a reduction in parts, simplified construction, increased on-orbit reliability and reduced weight and cost.   The A2100 spacecraft's design accommodates a large range of communication payloads. This design modularity enables the A2100 spacecraft to be configured for missions other than communication. The A2100 design has been adapted for geostationary earth orbit (GEO)-based earth observing missions and is the baselined platform for Lockheed Martin's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite Series-R (GOES-R) program. In addition, the A2100 serves as the platform for critical government communications programs, including the Advanced Extremely High Frequency and Mobile User Objective System satellites. The A2100 also serves as the spacecraft platform for Lockheed Martin's GPS III program. NASA Launches New Technology: An Inflatable Heat Shield PDF | Print | E-mail Written by NASA Tuesday, 18 August 2009 15:02 WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. -- A successful NASA flight test Monday demonstrated how a spacecraft returning to Earth can use an inflatable heat shield to slow and protect itself as it enters the atmosphere at hypersonic speeds. The Inflatable Re-entry Vehicle Experiment, or IRVE, was vacuum-packed into a 15-inch diameter payload "shroud" and launched on a small sounding rocket from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Va., at 8:52 a.m. EDT. The 10-foot diameter heat shield, made of several layers of silicone-coated industrial fabric, inflated with nitrogen to a mushroom shape in space several minutes after liftoff. The Black Brant 9 rocket took approximately four minutes to lift the experiment to an altitude of 131 miles. Less than a minute later it was released from its cover and started inflating on schedule at 124 miles up. The inflation of the shield took less than 90 seconds. "Our inflation system, which is essentially a glorified scuba tank, worked flawlessly and so did the flexible aeroshell," said Neil Cheatwood, IRVE principal investigator and chief scientist for the Hypersonics Project at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. "We're really excited today because this is the first time anyone has successfully flown an inflatable reentry vehicle." Read more... MOSCOW, August 18 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Defense Ministry and the Sukhoi aircraft maker signed on Tuesday a contract on the delivery of 64 Su fighters to the Russian Air Force. PDF | Print | E-mail Written by RIA Novosti Tuesday, 18 August 2009 14:49 MOSCOW, August 18 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Defense Ministry and the Sukhoi aircraft maker signed on Tuesday a contract on the delivery of 64 Su fighters to the Russian Air Force. The contract, signed during the MAKS-2009 air show in Zhukovsky near Moscow, stipulates the delivery of 48 Su-35 by 2015, and 12 Su-27SM and four Su-30M2 multirole fighters by 2011. The value of the contract was not disclosed, but according to open sources, the cost of a Su-35 fighter, billed as "4++ generation using fifth-generation technology," is estimated at up to $65 million. The head of Vnesheconombank (VEB), Vladimir Dmitriyev, announced at the air show on Tuesday that the national development bank would grant Sukhoi a 3.5 billion-ruble ($109 million) loan to start mass production of Su-35 jets. Read more... 17th Air Force officials host military exchange from Africa PDF | Print | E-mail Written by Tech. Sgt. Alec Lloyd - 17th Air Force Tuesday, 18 August 2009 14:36 RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AFNS)  -- The 17th Air Force officials here took another step forward in building meaningful relationships with African nations when it hosted a visit by a delegation of officers West African nation to an American base in Germany in August. Led by Maj. Souleymane Ouedraogo, the Ouagadougou Airport base commander from Burkina Faso, the group of three military officers spent a week studying security practices at Ramstein, Vogelweh and Spangdahlem air bases in Germany. Also known as U.S. Air Forces Africa, 17th Air Force collaborated with the various security forces squadrons to provide demonstrations of entrance security, flightline procedures, arms room protocols, canine training and overall base security command and control.  "You can tell that they came here to learn," said Master Sgt. Mike Lund of the 86th Security Forces Squadron. "They are asking all the right questions." The delegation was included in Army Gen. William "Kip" Ward's meeting with 17th Air Force members Aug. 11. The commander of U.S. Africa Command made a point of welcoming the delegation during his remarks. Read more...   Obama pledges support for troops, veterans PDF | Print | E-mail Written by Donna Miles - AFPS Tuesday, 18 August 2009 14:33 WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- America's men and women in uniform have done their duty and fulfilled every responsibility that's been asked of them, President Barack Obama said Aug. 17. "And now," he said, "a grateful nation must fulfill ours." Obama offered high praise for the troops, calling them the heart and soul of the world's best military during a speech at the Veterans of Foreign Wars' annual convention in Phoenix. "It's not the powerful weapons that make our military the strongest in the world. It's not the sophisticated systems that make us the most advanced," he told the veterans. "No, the true strength of our military lies in the spirit and skill of our men and women in uniform." Read more...     Aloha! Air Canada to launch the only non-stop flights between Calgary and Hawaii PDF | Print | E-mail Written by Air Canada Tuesday, 18 August 2009 14:31 CALGARY, Aug. 18 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada announced today that beginning December 5, 2009, it will launch the only non-stop, seasonal service between Calgary and Hawaii.     "We are pleased to launch the only non-stop flights from Calgary to both Honolulu and Maui this winter, saving more than two and a half hours of trip time in each direction when compared to flying over other routings," said Marcel Forget, Vice President, Network Planning, Air Canada. "We expect this new service to be particularly popular with Albertans looking to escape winter and enjoy the tropical Hawaiian islands. Air Canada's new Calgary-Hawaii flights are also timed for convenient connections to and from Edmonton and other points in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Toronto and points across eastern Canada." Read more...   Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing by Apollo 11 and the central role played by Avro Arrow engineers PDF | Print | E-mail Written by Canadian Air & Space Museum Monday, 20 July 2009 09:40 TORONTO, ONTARIO, MEDIA ADVISORY--(Marketwire - July 20, 2009) - On July 20th, The Canadian Air and Space Museum celebrates the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing by Apollo 11 and the vital contributions of Canadians to this important milestone: * Did you know a Canadian, Owen Maynard, was in charge of NASA's Lunar Module Program and played a key role in the design of the lunar module? * Did you know Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin thanked two former Avro Arrow engineers for their contributions in helping to make the voyage of Apollo 11 a resounding success? * Did you know that more than 25 engineers left for NASA following the Avro Arrow cancellation in 1959 and made an indelible mark on the manned space program?   Who: * Canadian Astronaut Roberta Bondar * Original six Canadian Astronaut Bjarni Tryggvason * Avro Arrow Chief Design Engineer Jim Floyd * Chris Gainor, author, Arrows to the Moon * Toronto City Councilor Maria Augimeri * Rod Jones, Executive Director, Ontario Aerospace Council (OAC) * Canadian aerospace legends, test pilots, industry representatives * Messages from Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin and Apollo 15 commander, David Scott, and Harrison Ford What: * Discover the pivotal role Avro Arrow engineers played regarding manned spaceflight and the Apollo 11 mission * Hear and see audio and video images (including of the Apollo program) not seen in 40 years, some of which were thought to no longer exist * Hear for the first time in 40 years Canadian Owen Maynard, former Head of NASA's Lunar Module Program and Avro Arrow Engineer discuss his design of the Apollo Lunar Module * Launch of Canadian Air and Space Pioneers Award WHAT ELSE: A static display of Canadian built aircraft WHEN: Monday, July 20, 2009, 10:00 a.m. WHERE: The Hangar building located directly behind the Canadian Air & Space Museum at 75 Carl Hall Road, Downsview Park, Toronto, ON. M3K 2E1 Photo Opportunity: Astronauts, planes and stars.     More Articles... Aurora Excalibur UAS Makes First Flight Korean Air Increases Seats From Canada SEE CIRRUS AIRCRAFT AT AN UPCOMING EVENT NEAR YOU Crash survivors return after 30 years Page 1 of 10 Start Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next End