Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai, slated to eventually replace Dubai International, has gained certification for civil aviation… ie. passenger operations.
The UAE’s first railway
As the UAE is rapidly building a freight railroad, Etihad Rail, The National takes a look back at the first railroad to operate in the country.
Toyota Land Cruiser History
Nifty article on the history of the Toyota Land Cruiser. Toward the end it focuses more on the European spec Prado, but still quite informative.
Righting the Costa Concordia
Slick video on how they will right (via a process called parbuckling) the Costa Concordia cruise liner that ran aground last year.
Self-Driving Cars and Creative Destruction
There will be untold amounts of creative destruction as self driving cars take over our automotive transit.
FAA Flight Training Requirement
A six-fold increase in the number of training hours required before a pilot can fly a commercial airplane. Seemingly triggered by the Asiana Fligh 214 crash.
The Driverless Carriage
Great article in the Wall Street Journal on the ongoing development of self-driving cars. A couple points:
- The firsthand account from a reporter in 1897 of his first drive in a horseless carriage is priceless.
- Google is merely tinkering with self-driving cars… Ford, Volvo, Audi, Mercedes are already implementing this in Europe
- The US government needs to, at the very least, get out of the way of the automakers on this one. Ideally they’d be looking at ways to be steering our infrastructure spending toward the impending revolution of self-driving cars.
Make no mistake, self-driving cars are the way of the future. People aren’t going to give up the autonomy afforded to them by automobiles in favor of trains, planes, bikes, etc. Those modes of transportation serve their purposes, but day-in-day-out family life requires an automobile. Self-driving cars will reduce accidents, increase transportation network efficiency, increase fuel efficiency, and redeem millions of hours of lost commute time. It’s the natural next step for our transportation infrasatructure. Think about the movies “Minority Report” or “I, Robot” for a glimpse of the way automobiles will serve us in the future.
A final thought. I don’t trust Google on this one. They want to be at the front of the self-driving car market in America for ulterior motives. They aren’t trying to make the transportation infrastructure more efficient, they are trying to collect more data on your lifestyle habits so they can sell more advertising.
Asiana Flight 214 Too Slow
According to the NTSB, the Asiana flight was traveling significantly below the speed required to make the correct landing.
Asiana Flight 214 Crash
A Boeing 777 crashed upon landing at San Francisco International yesterday. 2 people died and there were numerous injuriies. This is the second crash of a 777 since it’s introduction in 1994 and the first 2 fatalities. Remarkable how safe aircraft have become. It will be interesting to watch the investigation unfold.
DHS Preclearance in Abu Dhabi
So the big todo lately, at least as it relates to my home country and my current city of residence, is the Department of Homeland Security’s new preclearance facility in Abu Dhabi. Full disclosure, I’ve got coworkers that are working on the upgrade projects to make this happen, so I’m a bit biased in my opinion on this one.
The article says that DHS is considering and planning this facility but the airport is already renovating their terminal to faiclitate this. The crux of the argument against it seems to be an unfair advantage for Etihad over the US air carriers. My opinion, let the American carriers start serving Abu Dhabi before they whine and complain.