Latest news with #airSafety
The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says $12.5bn for air safety upgrades isn't nearly enough: ‘We need it now'
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned Wednesday that his department is in dire need of funding for air safety upgrades mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Duffy insisted the FAA allocation in the spending package recently approved by the House of Representatives is not enough. 'They put $12.5 billion into the 'big, beautiful bill' that's going to go towards this infrastructure project. That won't be enough,' the secretary said at a press conference. 'I know the Senate is going to look, can they find money to put into this bill, but we are going to need them to fully fund this project,' he urgently added. The secretary also spoke about improving Newark Liberty International Airport following significant delays and cancellations that led to chaos in the midst of outages and a shortage of air traffic controllers. Duffy clashed with Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency earlier this year as they targeted for cuts already inadequate numbers of air traffic controllers. They were offered buyout letters the day before the deadly air crash at Reagan National Airport that killed 67 people. Musk later pleaded with retired controllers to return to work. Investigations into aviation accidents have followed a series of fatal air crashes and communication failures. On several occasions, Duffy has argued that understaffing and outdated technology are behind the recent rash of incidents, and that significant funding is needed. 'We need it all up front. That's a big ask for the Congress to give us the money all up front. That is necessary if we're going to be successful at this project,' he said. 'And again, you can't make us go through years of permits for laying new fiber. We need it now. ' Duff added: 'I think Democrats and Republicans are going to agree that, yes, with certain guardrails around giving you relief on permitting, and giving you the money up front with those guardrails, I think they're going to buy into that idea.' President Donald Trump has stated that he supports an overhaul of the U.S. aviation sector, as well as a restructuring of the requirements for air traffic controllers. Duffy said he hopes to install new equipment, including new telecom, radar, and radio systems, as well as updates to the front and back ends of the operations. Earlier this month, Duffy outlined a plan to recruit and retain air traffic controllers, which includes retirement incentives for eligible employees to remain in their posts longer as policies change.
New York Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
‘The Rehearsal' Argues That Cringe Comedy Can Save Lives
The second season of 'The Rehearsal,' Nathan Fielder's ambitious exercise in comic social experimentation, ended on Sunday on HBO. It focused on one topic — air safety — but did so with an astounding array of props and stunts, including replica airport terminals, cloned dogs, a fake singing contest and enormous, breastfeeding puppets. James Poniewozik, chief TV critic for The Times, and Alissa Wilkinson, a Times movie critic, discussed all of the above and more. Spoilers and some simulations of Fielder's simulations follow. JAMES PONIEWOZIK Alissa, the last time we convened to discuss a Nathan Fielder project, 'The Curse,' it ended with his jaw-dropping ascent into the air. Today we're talking Season 2 of 'The Rehearsal' and I will not bury the lead: Our boy flew a damn passenger jet. I will say that the ending, which reveals that Fielder has been moonlighting as a commercial jet pilot, caught me by surprise (though not eagle-eyed Redditors, who noted weeks ago that Fielder had obtained a commercial pilot's license). It also assuaged my worries that this audacious premise would fizzle out. The previews for this season suggested that it might build to Fielder bringing his ideas before a congressional subcommittee. Instead, that scene proved be a rehearsal, and the host only managed an awkward meeting with one actual representative, Steve Cohen of Tennessee. Turned out there was nowhere to go from there but up. I don't know if the final flight of 'The Rehearsal' proved the thesis — essentially, that cringe comedy can save lives. But just as Season 1 was a striking exploration of how to live with doubt and regret, Season 2's high-concept stunts, and its combination of social commentary and personal (quasi) revelation, suggest that what might have been a one-off is in fact a spectacularly repeatable format. How well did it work for you? Please be Blunt. I'm Allears. ALISSA WILKINSON Co-pilot Blunt here, clocking in for duty. Or whatever pilots say. That finale was wild. Something I deeply love about this series is my inability, at almost any moment, to know whether something I am watching is 'real' or not. The congressional hearing, as you noted, is a rehearsal, but by the time we got to that point in that episode I would have believed almost anything. I actually had to Google whether Fielder had in fact worked on 'Canadian Idol.' (He did.) But what is reality, anyhow, am I right? [Stares into the middle distance for a moment.] I mean, who is Nathan Fielder? The version of him on the show is not the 'real' guy, sure — he's playing a version of himself — which means those revelations aren't necessarily 'real' either. On the other hand, everyone appearing in nonfiction footage is, on some level, performing as a character. Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger, narrating his own story in his memoir, the basis of the third episode, is constructing a character. Those people who tell Fielder they don't have any feelings about their partner canoodling with another actor: They're playing a character. The people auditioning for 'Wings of Voice,' the show's fake singing competition, are definitely playing characters. Everyone is performing as a character, full stop. As a result of all the existential dithering built into the concept of the show, I didn't know until the end that Fielder had really flown the jet — maybe this, too, was an elaborate setup. The bottomless pile of HBO money that he kept touting throughout the preceding episodes made me really wonder. (I'm still about 2 percent uncertain.) But at least as far as the season is concerned, he really, uh, landed the plane. Until the finale, I wasn't quite as certain that this season was as coherent as the previous one. I think that last episode managed to pull it all together with dizzying deftness. But I'm curious: What do you think it all means? PONIEWOZIK Whether XYZ 'really happened' in 'The Rehearsal' is something I can't know, nor do I especially care — any more than I do in a 'based on a true story' series like 'Baby Reindeer.' But the season was about something very real — deadly air disasters and the human dynamics that might contribute to them. I don't know how aviation experts would judge Fielder's diagnoses or his methods. (Though he notes that training to fly a passenger jet involves 'the ultimate rehearsal,' in an enormous, Fielderian simulator.) But I could not avoid thinking of the show when I read an analysis of January's fatal midair collision in Washington, D.C., which looked at — among other factors — the communication between the helicopter pilot and co-pilot. I'm not actually sure that the climactic voyage, though gobsmacking, did more to prove Fielder's real-world point than the season had already. That's fine; I do not need Nathan Fielder to end air-travel fatalities in six episodes of TV. What the season did argue, in its strange, hilarious way, was that the human desire to avoid discomfort is narcotically powerful, even dangerous. This focus on avoidance is where the personal story line — and boy, we need to get into this — connects, I think. The final episodes take a turn, as Fielder (all together: or at least his character!) faces the suggestion that he might be neurodivergent. (He notes that 'The Rehearsal' has resonated with people on the spectrum, and he has said he's researched Asperger's syndrome as part of his work.) In the end, he chooses not to pursue an answer, continues flying and concludes that if you're in the cockpit, 'you must be fine.' It's an old move of Fielder's going back to 'Nathan for You,' to portray his character as having blind spots as much as his subjects do. But I don't think he's ever done it quite so poignantly. After undertaking a yearslong project on the lure of denial, he still can't listen to his internal co-pilot. WILKINSON From the very start of the show, I found myself thinking it was sort of a dramatization, or maybe unpacking, of two mental experiences that can be unsettling. One is dissociation, the feeling that everything around you is unreal, and you're disconnected from it. The other is Asperger's, which for some can manifest as the feeling of always observing the world rather than being part of it. The 'rehearsal' impulse seems like a literalist way to cope with those sensations: replaying and trying out social situations in the hopes of navigating them properly. But it has also felt like a way for Fielder — or his character, anyhow — to actually have 'normal' experiences that seem mysterious and out of reach. The funniest part of the finale for me is when he notes that his flight instructors say he was the worst student they'd ever had, and that they made him log many more hours in the cockpit than usual before he was allowed to get in the air. Even here, he has to practice and practice and practice. Once he's in the air, though, he is at peace. He's literally up above it all, looking down and observing. Obviously you and I both were thinking about 'The Curse' here, but that's got to be on purpose, right? There's an element in both shows of grasping so tightly to social experience down on earth and then, up in the air, finding a kind of serenity, a place where the confusing social demands that Fielder experiences evaporate for a while. That's why the very ending, with Fielder refusing to answer his doctor's phone call and instead watching the singer from his fake reality show belting out Evanescence's 'Bring Me to Life,' the song from Sullenberger's memoir, was really quite poignant. The arc of this season has Fielder being 'reborn' as a weird little baby and trying to live someone else's life to get inside his head, then exploring romance and trying to discern why people do what they do in love. He is kind of doing an interpretive dance to the lyrics of the Evanescence hit ('Breathe into me and make me real / Bring me to life'), in the form of a very expensive TV extravaganza. To borrow from an internet meme: Men will literally learn to pilot a jet and make an HBO show rather than go to therapy? PONIEWOZIK What do people ask when there's an airplane disaster? 'Did they find the black box?' The flight recorder — it is actually orange — is the impregnable device designed to survive a crash. Crack it open, reveal its secrets, and you might understand what happened and why. This terrible thing might at least make sense. To Fielder's 'Rehearsal' persona, all human behavior is a black box. This challenges him, in personal interactions, in performing magic, even in acting on 'The Curse.' But it also, maybe, advantages him. If every human interaction has to be unpacked, decoded, replicated to be understood, perhaps you can notice dynamics that others might overlook. One thing the second season has in common with the first is the question, as I wrote in my Season 1 review: 'Is it ever possible to truly understand another person?' This is the project of Episode 3, maybe the most magnificently batty and hilarious thing I will see on TV all year, in which Fielder speed-runs Sullenberger's life. Recall that in Season 1, he time-lapsed the raising of a child; here, he one-ups himself by becoming the child. I don't think any of us will forget seeing a shaven Fielder gulp milk gushing from the breast of a 'mother' puppet the size of a 'Game of Thrones' giant. But there's more to the episode than shock comedy. It's an attempt to understand the most intangible experiences: maternal love, romantic lust and the love of music, which, after all, is no more than waves on the air. Seeing baby Nathan's colossal mother lumber into his nursery felt like getting a glimpse of the Punch-and-Judy show of human life as seen through his eyes. This perspective may make him an outsider, but it might also be what makes him such an effective puppeteer. WILKINSON This reminds me, immodestly, of what I wrote about the show after the first season's finale aired. I think it's the rare TV show that consciously tries to make viewers aware of and uncomfortable with their own positioning as audience members, in a way that often is reserved for weird experimental documentaries. We're used to objectifying characters onscreen, to assuming we know who they are and how they tick from a few lines of expository dialogue and character-creating details, something the first season actively, textually confronts. 'Our reactions' to the show, I wrote, 'whatever they are, can be an excellent reminder that we know much less about others than we think we do.' I'm struck by how much that's a theme in this second season, too. The raw vulnerability of the auditions for 'Wings of Voice,' the censorship saga with Paramount+, the creepy multiroom set in which we can watch five (fake) couples get it on and contemplate what actors do, the eruption of squicked-out reactions after baby Nathan breastfeeds — they're all designed to make viewers aware of being participants in the whole entertainment thing. That makes us notice our feelings. Which seems like something Fielder isn't all that comfortable with, and thus what he's most interested in. Empathy is probably best defined as the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Actors tend to understand it well, precisely because they inhabit that black box through rehearsal. But it's hard to empathize with an object you've reduced to inputs and outputs. It seems like Fielder (or, well, 'Fielder') is probing that here. PONIEWOZIK 'The Rehearsal' inspires a lot of big thoughts, Alissa, but we shouldn't overlook how remarkable it is as a production. There was so much stuff packed into one six-episode season! I mean, the Sully episode itself also had Fielder curating the life experiences of a cloned dog so that it would have the same personality as its forebear. There was a reality show! A replica airport! And, I reiterate, he flew a whole jet plane! To what end? I think a lot about A.I. these days. Who doesn't, right? And A.I. models — apologies to actual tech experts for this thumbnail description — operate on the principle that if you throw enough resources at enough data, you can create a simulacrum of anything, even, ultimately, the mind. What is 'The Rehearsal' if not man-made artificial intelligence? It is a D.I.Y., analog effort to do what A.I. does, to run through simulations and permutations to achieve a workable approximation of reality. It is a monumental act of faith that one person — at least, one with a writing and production staff and HBO's budget — can do the math on all the variables of the cosmos. It's Borgesian, all these 1:1 scale maps of human experience, this belief that one dedicated, obsessed person can master all the butterfly-wing currents of circumstance. Nathan Fielder may be a very weird person. But in this respect, 'The Rehearsal' might be the most human show on TV. WILKINSON You're so right — I mean, Fielder stealth-promoted the show by actually bartending for a bit at the real Alligator Lounge in Brooklyn (which, before this show, was best known as the place that gives you an entire free pizza when you order a beer!). If there's a more human-connection place than a bar, I don't know what it is. And honestly, a show like 'The Rehearsal' is one of the reasons I know that A.I., no matter its future capabilities as a writer some day, is just not going to be as good as a great (or even pretty good) artist. The mark of great art, for me, is that it invites the audience into an exploration of something they've never thought about before. At this juncture, A.I., by definition, works with what's been previously done. There is next to nothing about 'The Rehearsal' that feels like some other show I've seen before. I can barely fathom how Fielder came up with it. I have no idea how, if it's renewed, he'll come up with a third season. But that's what I said last time.
Zawya
23-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Nigeria takes leadership of African sub regional aviation safety organisation
Nigeria has emerged the Chairman, Banjul Accord Group (BAG), a West African sub-regional organization with 7 member states poised toward enhanced air safety and regulations for safer skies. Speaking at the 4th Council of Ministers at the ongoing 18 BAG meeting on Thursday in Abuja, the immediate past Chairman of the Banjul Accord Group, who is also the Minister of Transport and Aviation for Sierra Leone, Amb. Alhaji Fanday Turay commended the role Nigeria has played in improving air safety among BAG states and the sub-region in general. He explained that 'as I reflect on the activities of BAG, Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation.(BAGASOO) and Banjul Accord Group Accident Investigation Agency (BAGAIA), I take immense pride in the significant and positive contributions these institutions have made towards enhancing aviation safety and security in our region. 'The resilience, innovation and unity that characterized our collective efforts have been truly commendable. On behalf of His Excellency, the President and the government of Sierra Leone, I wish to reaffirm our unwavering commitment to the implementation of BAG agreement and the sustainable realization of a Single Africa Àir Transport Market (SAATM) within our region.' 'This commitment was clearly demonstrated during the SAATM pilot implementation project hosted in Freetown on the 29th to 30th of July, 2024. The event culminated in the issuance of a communique calling for accelerated action in implementing the Yamoussoukro decision, particularly through the group's multilateral Air Service Agreement. 'Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, Sierra Leone's aviation safety and security readiness stand at 71 and 72% respectively, following a Carlos Universal Security Audit and Universal Safety Oversight Audit programme in 2023. 'These achievements are the result of the dedication and diligence of my ministry and the Civil Aviation Authority and the valuable support of stakeholders across the BAG member states'. Turay further stated that 'flying from Sierra Leone to Nigeria, or to Liberia, for example, is a 45-minute flight; flying to the Gambia is about two hours. But sometimes, or most of the times, you may end up spending the day before getting to these destinations. 'So we need to come in and support each other, and we should also try to have policies in place which would encourage businesses or airlines to fly into our countries,' he said. The minister noted further that 'we, as a founding member, remain deeply committed to the values and objectives of the group. We continue to play a leading role by currently serving as Chairman of the Standing Committee, Chairman of the BAGASOO Technical Committee on Finance and Administration, and Chairman of the high-level committee on the institutionalization of BAG Secretariat, further demonstrating our commitment to the success of the Organization. 'I am therefore honored to hand over the Chairmanship of the Council of Ministers to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and to my brother, Honorable Minister Festus Keyamo. 'This transition comes at a pivotal time as we work towards finalizing the institutionalization of the BAG Secretariat and domestication of air services across our region,' Turay stated While responding, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo expressed Nigeria's commitment to ensuring the instrumentality of enhanced air transport connectivity among BAG member states. He said Nigeria, as a member of the BAG from its inception, has continued to make valuable contributions to the secretariat work and its activities including supporting the ideals and aspirations of BAG and achievement of its strategic objectives, in collaboration with other member states. 'The Nigeria civil aviation policy is centered on liberalization and Public-Private-Partnerships Initiative. These have resulted in huge investments in the nation's airports infrastructure and services, increased capacity utilization and phenomenal increase in the number of domestic operators as well as the domestic and international traffic.' Keyamo noted that 'Nigeria is fully committed to working with Member States and support the implementation of the objectives of the Banjul Accord Group formed in 1997 for the acceleration and implementation of the Yamoussoukro Declaration and to promote co-operation through the States in the areas of safety, security oversight, air navigation and air transport etc. *In view of the current achievement by BAG through its Multilateral instruments, the Banjul Accord Group Aviation Safety Oversight Organisation (BAGASOO) and the Banjul Accord Group Accident Investigation Agency (BAGAIA) in the areas of aviation safety, security and economic development as I mentioned during the opening ceremony, BAG states should be prepared to take more concerted efforts for more investments in the provision of infrastructure and facilities for safe, secure, environmentally friendly and sustainable civil aviation. 'I wish to reiterate that Nigeria will continue to sustain the support being given to the sub-region to attract investment, tourism and continued growth,' he stated. Also speaking before handover, Cape Verde Minister for Tourism and Transport, Jose Luis SA Nogueirs said his country was in full support of Single African Air Transport market (SAATM). He said, 'we support the need for SAATM as a means to ensure that we can develop the connectivity for African market,' he noted. Five Ministers under the Banjul Accord Group member states attended the meeting, and a former Minister of Aviation in Nigeria, Mallam Isah Yuguda, was also in attendance. Copyright © 2022 Nigerian Tribune Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Fox News
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Family of pilot killed in DC midair crash calls for air safety reforms, thanks Trump admin for swift action
The family of Sam Lilley, a pilot killed in the deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and a Black Hawk helicopter near Washington, D.C., earlier this year, is speaking out and hoping to turn grief into action. "We [want to] make sure that no other family has to go through the loss that our family and the other 66 families have gone through," said Tim Lilley, Sam's father and a pilot himself. The January crash near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) claimed the lives of all 67 people aboard both aircraft. Since the incident, the Lilley family has called for changes to air safety protocols, particularly regarding military and commercial flight coordination near the Pentagon. Tim Lilley argues long-standing problems at Reagan National, from outdated systems to risky procedures, contributed to the tragedy. "It only takes a minute to look at the procedure going out of the Pentagon and know you should not have a helicopter circling east of the Pentagon while there's aircraft, commercial aircraft, on approach to runway 19 at broader Reagan," he said. He recalled previous conversations with his son about the complexity of flying into the area. "Sam and I talked quite a bit about the flights into DCA and Ronald Reagan International and the challenges that come with that," he said. Their concerns echo broader issues facing the aviation industry. A New York Times report after the crash highlighted understaffing at the Reagan control tower, and a lawsuit claims the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) improperly discarded qualified air traffic controller applicants based on race. Tim Lilley also expressed concern about outdated air traffic control technology. "The system just can't keep up with what's going on. This thing was designed decades and decades ago," he said. Despite the tragedy, the Lilleys are hopeful about efforts underway to fix what's broken. They credit Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for moving quickly after the crash. "Secretary Duffy, he gets it," Tim said. "We met with him just a few days after the accident. Everything that we asked for, he's taking action on. I asked him to do this at the speed of business and not the speed of government, and he's really coming through." The Department of Transportation unveiled a sweeping three-year framework to modernize the nation's air traffic control system. The proposal released Thursday includes upgraded radar, new telecommunications networks, and six new air traffic control centers nationwide. Sam's family expressed gratitude for the administration's support. "I just really [want to] thank President Trump for his leadership in putting forth this program," said Tim, who stressed that aviation safety is not a partisan issue. "Every family deserves to know that their loved one is on a commercial aircraft that's [going to] get there safely," Tim said. "This goes both sides of the aisle. We're just looking for support from everybody. I think all Americans deserve safe skies." Even as changes begin, the Lilley family says their advocacy is just beginning. "We are in this for the long haul," said Sam's stepmother, Sheri Lilley. "Tim and I are adamant that we want to make the name Sam Lilley synonymous with aviation safety."
