In a press conference today, National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman released preliminary findings from the NTSB's ongoing investigation into the Jan. 7, 2013, Boeing 787 battery fire in Boston. "We have not ruled anything out as a potential factor in the battery fire; there are still many questions to be answered," Hersman said.

Noting that there was a B-787 battery incident in Japan on Jan. 16, 2013, which is being investigated by the Japan Transport Safety Board, Hersman said, "One of these events alone is serious; two of them in close proximity, especially in an airplane model with only about 100,000 flight hours, underscores the importance of getting to the root cause of these incidents."

The investigation revealed that the battery in the B-787 fire in Boston showed signs of short circuiting, and had indications of thermal runaway, a situation in which a significant temperature increase can initiate a destructive chain reaction.

Chairman Hersman also expressed concerns about the adequacy of the systems to prevent such a fire from occurring. "The investigation will include an evaluation of how a fault that resulted in a battery fire could have defeated the safeguards in place to guard against that," said Hersman. "As we learn more in this investigation, we will make recommendations for needed improvements to prevent a recurrence."

Investigators developed the following timeline of the events on Jan. 7, which was released at today's briefing:

10:06 am EST - Aircraft arrived at gate in Boston from Narita, Japan
10:32 am - Cleaning and maintenance crew noticed smoke in cabin
10:35 am - Mechanic noted flames coming from APU battery in aft electronics bay
10:37 am - Airport Rescue & Fire Fighting notified
10:40 am - Fire and rescue personnel arrive on scene
12:19 pm - Fire and rescue personnel report event was "controlled"

The batteries were manufactured by GS Yuasa for the Thales electrical installation and are unique to the Boeing 787. The same battery model is used for the main airplane battery and for the battery that is used to start the auxiliary power unit, which is the one that caught fire in Boston.

Radiographic examinations of the incident battery and an exemplar battery were conducted at an independent test facility. The digital radiographs, or computed tomography (CT) scans, generated from these examinations allowed NTSB investigators to document the internal condition of the battery prior to disassembling it.

Ongoing lab work includes an examination of the battery elements with a scanning-electron microscope and energy-dispersive spectroscopy to analyze the elemental constituents of the electrodes to identify contaminants or defects.

NTSB Press Release

Bombardier has quietly released new pictures taken in early January showing that it has attached the tail and landing gear to the first CSeries flight test vehicle (FTV-1) and inducted the fuselages of FTV-2 and FTV-3 into final assembly.

The set of four pictures posted to a social media site managed by Bombardier offer the most vivid update of the narrowbody's progress since early November, when the first flight of the CSeries was delayed from late December to no later than June 2013.

The assembly process "is going well and we're going to fly before the end of June 2013," Bombardier says, declining further elaboration.

Little information about the CSeries assembly process has been released since Bombardier announced the delay, even as Air Baltic firmed an order for 10 CS300s in December and an undisclosed carrier in the Americas committed to buy up to 30 aircraft.

GKN announced on 14 January delivering the first set of winglets for the CSeries, and the latest photos reveal that only of them had been attached to the wing.

The Pratt & Whitney PW1500G geared turbofans also were still missing from the twinjet when the undated pictures were taken, but they are expected to be delivered to Bombardier shortly.

Much progress was still visible on FTV-1 compared to the last time Bombardier released pictures of the aircraft on 15 October. The aircraft now has doors and windows installed, along with what appears to be an air data sensor near the nose of the aircraft.

Eurocopter delivered another very strong performance in 2012, with an all-time record turnover of 6.3 billion euros. The company’s second high record in bookings value marks a return to pre-crisis levels. This places Eurocopter in a strong position to benefit from its broad helicopter portfolio evolution, along with the expansion in services and a growing global footprint.

A strong growth in services and the 475 rotorcraft delivered last year generated a new turnover high of 6.3 billion euros – 15 percent more than in 2011, when the Group reached a previous record of 5.4 billion euros. With a cumulated average growth rate of nine percent since 2006, Eurocopter is delivering one of the most impressive success stories in the European industry. Milestones in 2012 included deliveries of the first enhanced AS350 B3e version and the initial latest-generation EC130 T2 helicopter – both members of Eurocopter’s popular Ecureuil family; along with the 500th EC145 delivery. Eurocopter also provided the first A350 jetliner passenger door set, underscoring its innovative composite technology production capabilities.

Eurocopter’s consolidated order intake in 2012 totaled 469 net bookings, representing a value of 5.4 billion euros and marking the company’s third consecutive yearly increase since 2010. Sales were paced by the Ecureuil/Fennec/EC130 family with 249 bookings and the EC135/EC145 families with 144 bookings; while the Super Puma family remained strong last year, backed by significant bookings from the oil and gas sector – including a framework contract for 16 EC225s with the Milestone Aviation Group leasing company, and a first contract for the new AS332C1e – placed by Starlite Aviation.

“Eurocopter took new steps during 2012 as we transitioned from being a helicopter manufacturer to becoming a true vertical-lift mission solutions provider, supported by the modernization of our product line while also providing a more comprehensive services offer and growing the global footprint,” said President & CEO Lutz Bertling. “A key contributor to our 2012 achievements was the dedication of Eurocopter employees – who are a determining factor in the company’s success.”

Consolidated turnover
Helicopter deliveries represented 49 percent of Eurocopter’s 2012 consolidated turnover, while services continued to play an increasing role by accounting for 42 percent of the total. Other activities represented the remaining nine percent.

Bookings by product range
Successes in key helicopter product lines drove the 2012 sales growth, led by the Ecureuil/Fennec/EC130 series:

• Eureuil/Fennec/EC130 family: 249
• EC145: 81
• EC135: 63
• Super Puma/Cougar EC225/EC725 family: 37
• EC175: 19
• Dauphin/Panther/ EC155 Family: 11
• EC120 Colibri: 9

Eurocopter’s services activity now accounts for 47 percent of the total bookings, thus paving the way for future growth of this business.

2012 highlights
Product line evolution was at the heart of Eurocopter’s achievements in 2012, including the enhanced EC130 T2 and EC145 T2 helicopters’ highly successful commercial launch, the go-ahead and first order for the new Super Puma AS332 C1e; maiden flight of the no. 1 production EC175 that demonstrated its unrivalled performance; and a highly successful U.S. tour for the hybrid X3 demonstrator aircraft.

In the military sector, 2012 highlights involved Eurocopter’s delivery of the initial NH90 TTH Tactical Transport Helicopter qualified in the Final Operational Configuration, received by the French and Belgian Armies; and the first final-configuration “Step B” version of the NH90 NFH NATO Fregat Helicopter, delivered to the Netherlands and the French Navy. Four German Army Tiger support helicopters were deployed to Afghanistan in the ASGARD (Afghanistan Stabilization German Army Rapid Deployment) version, and Germany received an on-time delivery of the NH90 TTH in its medical evacuation configuration for deployment in Afghanistan in 2013; while five Italian Army Aviation NH90 TTHs were positioned in Afghanistan during 2012.

Eurocopter’s focus on services also paid off last year, with key milestones including the installation of five new full-flight simulators, bringing the worldwide total to 20; establishment of an engine maintenance training center in Mexico with Turbomeca; an extension of the logistics and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) network with an oil and gas industry support center opened in Perth, Australia; the expansion of global helicopter maintenance capabilities; and improvement of the Eurocopter Japan affiliate’s capacity with a brand new facility at Kobe Airport.

Major helicopter upgrade milestones in 2012 were Eurocopter’s initial delivery of the mission-enhanced Puma Mk2 to the U.K. Ministry of Defence, and handover of the first improved CH-53GA for the German armed forces.

Eurocopter has continued to develop its MRO capabilities through the Vector sister company, increasing its international footprint and offering new solutions – including an AS332 Super Puma upgrade, leasing and support offer.

2013 flight plan
Eurocopter’s focus in the coming year will be on program execution, with the company mastering its continued production ramp-up as deliveries are to increase by more than 15 percent in 2013. Goals include sustaining the delivery pace for Super Puma, Ecureuil, NH90 and Tiger helicopters, as well as preparing the EC175’s ramp-up. As optimization is a priority for
Eurocopter in 2013, the emphasis will be on lean products, lean processes, lean culture and lean foundation.

The advanced vertical-lift solutions also are 2013 priorities, as Eurocopter pursues concept validation and launch of the product application for its X3 hybrid aircraft; and advances the X4’s development as the first member in its next-generation family concept, to be followed by the X6 and X9 at less than two-year intervals for each.

To continue delivering on its strategy as a mission solutions provider, priorities in support and services for 2013 include a full range of MRO services to be developed for complete helicopters; the evolution of maintenance and overhaul capabilities on non-Eurocopter products that include both rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft; further expansions in training; and the creation of new, innovative services. Vector will significantly contribute to this deployment, developing solutions for multi-platform fleet operators and addressing specific market segments.

As a result, Eurocopter is laying the foundation to continue its growth story.

About Eurocopter
Established in 1992, the Franco-German-Spanish Eurocopter Group is a division of EADS, a world leader in aerospace and defense-related services. The Eurocopter Group employs approximately 22,000 people. In 2012, Eurocopter confirmed its position as the world’s No. 1 helicopter manufacturer with a turnover of 6.3 billion Euros, orders for 469 new helicopters and a 44 percent market share in the civil and parapublic sectors. Overall, the Group’s helicopters account for 33 percent of the worldwide civil and parapublic fleet. Eurocopter’s strong international presence is ensured by its subsidiaries and participations in 21 countries. Eurocopter’s worldwide network of service centers, training facilities, distributors and certified agents supports more than 2,900 customers. There are currently more than 11,780 Eurocopter helicopters in service in 148 countries. Eurocopter offers the most comprehensive civil and military helicopter range in the world and is fully committed to safety as the most important aspect of its business.

Press Release

After the safety video on Hobbit theme, Air New Zealand prepared another funny safety message for all the passengers.

Boeing is in difficulties with the problems of the entire B787 fleet that was declared grounded by the FAA last week, while Airbus just present the Annual press conference 2013 on the 17th January 2013, here below the main points and the video of the conference.

In the Boeing website you can also find a page where you can find the Frequently Asked Questions about the situation of the 787, another interesting article can be read Huffingtonpost, where Paul Brady wrote about the impact that have the 787 grounding.

Huffingtonpost Paul Brady - 787 Grounded: More Than 1,000 Flights Impacted As Pressure On Boeing, FAA Mounts

The accident of AF 447 the 1st June 2009, changed a lot of things, before that tragic event nobody could imagine that a modern Airbus 330 could be in stall at 35'000 feet and the pilots couldn't recover from that situation.

At the end of the investigation, everyone was concerned about the training that both pilots had in their careers and also EASA and FAA where very concerned to the evolution of the present and future pilots. With such a innovative aircraft like the Aibus family, the two agency plus some aviation specialist, underline the importance of a good training but not a training software-oriented, because of this some associations had prepared some new training programs.

As many people sustained that simulators can't give to the pilots the real feeling that can happen during a high altitude stall, so these associations like CAE had organized together with a acrobatic flight school, Aviation Performance Solutions (www.apstraining.com) in Mesa, Arizona together with some important airlines (KLM, Air France) and very important flight schools, Oxford Flight Academy. On this ab-inito course, you can use an Extra 300 and experience the acrobatic flight and some particular figures to understand the forces that you could feel.
Other schools are preparing those courses for airlines pilots, to help them to recover those feeling that they might need in extreme situations, another important document you can find on the FAA training section, FAA has in fact a strong believe that those "training problem" can be solve and had publish a document of 443 pages, where they also refer to a study of Royal Aeronautical Society, that I suggest you to read. 

Swiss International Air Lines Ltd. said it will consider ordering Boeing Co. (BA)’s 747-8 as a potential replacement for its aging Airbus SAS A340s, following the lead of parent Deutsche Lufthansa AG (LHA), the model’s first customer.

Swiss could choose to scale up the wide-body fleet to add capacity as part of a fleet overhaul, with the 747 offering 362 seats in the layout chosen by Lufthansa, versus 219 in its own A340-300s. Boeing’s 777 and the new Airbus A350 are also in the running, Chief Executive Officer Harry Hohmeister said.

“We want to substitute our A340 fleet at some point,” he said in an interview in Frankfurt, where Lufthansa has its hub. “We’d rather grow with bigger planes. For Swiss, the A380 is hardly an option, but we’ll look at the Boeing 747-8 and 777 and the Airbus A350. We’ll have to see what makes sense.”

Basel-based Swiss has 13 A340s in its fleet, offering eight seats in first class, 47 in business and 164 in economy and used on routes including Zurich to Beijing, Tokyo, Shanghai, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Lufthansa’s 747-8s have eight seats in first, 92 in business and 262 in coach.

(Bloomberg website)

The first AA aircraft is ready with the new livery choose by the company. As you can see it's a drastic change from the previous one with a big American flag on the vertical stabilizer, the first aircraft was a B737-823 registration N908NN that was delivered to the company on 19/11/2012.

Definilety it wasn't a good week for Boeing and especially for their last aircraft, the Boeing 787-800.
In fact in the last days many aircraft had emergency related to some different problems, battery, fuel, ect.
The last one did make the FAA to ground the fleet of around 50 in the world. 

Boeing shares fell 3.4% today and are down another 2.1% in after-market trading.

Also EASA released Statement on their website: