Space Tourism

Space tourism is an interesting topic among aviators because it's said to be the career of the future. The idea of the first space tourists to orbit started in the 1990's.  The first space tourist was Dennis Tito, on April 28, 2001.  There were many hurdles through the journey.  First Dennis was going to be sent to the space station Mir through a company called MirCorp, but this station was deorbited before the flight.  At this point Space Adventure Ltd. helped send him to the ISS (Seedhouse, 2014).  Tito not only paid $20 million for the trip, but trained just as an astronaut at that time would. It was a quite tedious process.

The FAA n.d. has put in regulations so that the risk towards individuals who wish to partake in space tourism are mitigated.  Also, the the FAA expects the space tourism company to inform the individual that there are some risks involved.  This involves, but is not limited too providing safety information and acquiring a license to conduct a launch.  Finally, the systems in place must be proven before passengers are allowed to board.  These regulations were developed in 2004 (FAA, n.d.). I feel that these regulations are  adequately restrictive.  The industry is not over regulated and it provides an ability to grow.

We are on the brink of space tourism becoming more and more of the norm.  I believe space tourism will first be  acquired by the rich, as has already been proven.  As the industry becomes more stable the price may come down so that your average consumer can take the trip for the price of a vacation.  This will only come after launches are deemed to be very successful with a limited risk.  As risk comes down so will price. From my perspective this will not be a transportation alternative, but moreover selling an experience, such as the Maid of the Mist at Niagara Falls.

Virgin Galactic has set form the qualifications they feel are appropriate for their pilots.  This includes U.S. citizenship, a current FAA commercial pilots license and medical, degree level qualification in a relevant technical field, graduate of a recognized test pilot school, with at least two and a half years of post-graduate experience, diverse flying background with a minimum of 3,000 hours flying, to include considerable experience of large multi-engine aircraft and high-performance fast jet aircraft and low lift-to-drag experience in complex aircraft, operational experience in an aerospace aviation project or business, and preference given to those with experience in spaceflight, commercial flight operations or flight instruction (NBC, 2013).

References:

Seedhouse, E. (2014, October 31). Encyclopedia britannica. Space Tourism. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/topic/space-tourism

FAA. (n.d.). New regulations govern private human space flight requirements for crew and space flight participants. Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved from http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ast/human_space_flight_reqs/

NBC. (2011, April 13). Dozens apply for space pilot jobs. NBC News. Retrieved from http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2011/04/13/6466987-dozens-apply-for-space-pilot-jobs

Germanwings Flight 4U9525 Crash

On a clear March day, an Airbus A320 crashed into the Alps carrying 150 souls.  This plane was not brought down due to a mechanical failure nor due to weather.  Andrea Lubitz, a 28 year old, low hour first officer decided to purposefully direct the A320 into the ground as a suicide.  He locked the cockpit door and watched as the plane careened toward the ground.  He took not only his own life, but all aboard that fateful day.  Lubitz struggled with depression although did not provide any of this information to his employer (Engel & Zang, 2015).  This may have been due too him looking out for his possible career demise.  After the accident a note was found written from his psychiatrist.  This note explained that Andrea Lubitz was not fit to fly.

Another similar accident was the crash of Japan Airlines Flight 350.  On final approach Captain Seiji Katagiri pulled the thrust reversers causing the DC-8 to crash into Tokyo Bay.  Of the 174 souls onboard, only 24 died.  This was in part to the First Officer and Flight Engineer regaining partial control of the aircraft (Wrigley, 2014).  The pilot actually snuck off the seen posing as a "businessman" on the flight. He was later arrested, but was actually found "not guilty", due to insanity (Wrigley, 2014).  The flight crew told investigators he had been acting weird leading up to the crash.  

An airline pilot has to undergo a medical evaluation once to twice a year depending on the persons age.  The depth of this evaluation is quite minimal and lacks some necessary points.  In order to create a safer aviation environment it may be beneficial to have a required more in depth psychiatric exam at certain intervals.  Possibly, a second opinion from another doctor to provide another layer of "checks".  The idea is not to make it impossible to get a medical, but also make sure there are no serious underlying issue that a regular medical evaluation would not catch.  If an issue did arise or a pilot feels he has a problem, then he should not be flying.  Although, the FAA could require the airline to hold his position for a certain interval, so he is not fired.  This may provide a time of healing for the depressed pilot and more safety in the industry.  

The biggest issue with a liberalized depression issue is that no airline wants to admit or broadcast that it has depressed pilots in its staff.  The FAA and airlines would have to work together in order to shed a positive light on the situation.  They would have to show the benefits for providing help and continued employment to pilots who are depressed.  On another note airlines aren't going to want to spend money or time on a pilot that can't fly at the moment.  So discussions would have to be settled on this issue as well.  If this plan works though, the skies will be much safer.  

References

Engel, P. & Zhang, B. (2015, March 30). Here's everything we know about the crash of germanwings flight 9525. Business Insider. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/everything-we-know-about-germanwings-flight-9525-2015-3

Wrigley, S. (2014, September 16). Pilot suicides: fact vs fiction. Fear of Landing The Art Of Not Hitting The Ground. Retrieved  from http://fearoflanding.com/accidents/pilot-suicides-fact-vs-fiction/

Personal Introduction

My interest in aviation began when I was very young.  My mother had decided to become a flight attendant for Northwest Airlines and thus began my aviation adventure.  She spoke of all the interesting places she traveled and I knew that tone day I would find a way to experience that for myself.
I am an Aviation Flight Technology major with the anticipation of graduating in December of 2016.
The path I have chosen to travel is currently the airlines.  After flight instructing I hope to fly with a company such as Endeavor or Express jet. Then, when I gain enough experience I would like to transition to a major carrier, such as Delta Airlines.  Hopefully, I will have a long healthy carrier with Delta and retire as a senior Captain.