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The Secret to a Successful Digital Implementation
Digitizing B2B: The B2B eCommerce Podcast
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The Secret to a Successful Digital Implementation with April Braun
Jary Carter: Hello everybody and welcome to Digitizing B2B with Jary Carter. I'm here today with April Braun, director of marketing at Werner Electric. April, welcome to the podcast today.
April Braun: Thanks Jary!
Jary Carter: I'm so happy to have you. I'm really excited to talk with you. This spurred from a couple handful of conversations that you and I have had about B2B eCommerce. I've been really just impressed with your perspective, the depth of understanding you have and the journey that you've been on with B2B eCommerce, which you're doing now Warner. I guess before we get started, just to level set for folks, tell us a little bit about Werner.
April Braun: Thanks, Jary. Werner is really just, at the root, a B2B model. We're an electrical distributor. We're headquartered in Cottage Grove, Minnesota. We have six branches that span Minnesota and Wisconsin. Next year, we're going to be celebrating our hundredth anniversary, so we've been around for a little bit of time, and we've had tremendous growth. We have a little over 350 employees. I think there are a lot of businesses out there just like us. Like most distributors and even manufacturers to some extent, we have hundreds of suppliers, thousands of customers and tens and hundreds of thousands of products.
April Braun: The challenge that we have is that we've built this business over a series of time growing rapidly over the last five years, and doing stuff systematically is somewhat challenging for us. So, I have found through talking with lots of other folks in the same space and even other businesses that are very much like us. This is what's happening to a lot of the B2B businesses that are out there trying to figure out how to wrangle some of this stuff. So Werner I don't think is any different than many. We might be bigger. We might be smaller. But I think a lot of us are going through some of the same growing pains as our customers are needing more and the requirement for digitization is just becoming table stakes for B2B operation.
Jary Carter: I think you're absolutely right. I think you and I have talked about this, that there just needs to be a conversation going in the B2B eCommerce world. I think so many companies are really siloed and trying to figure this out on their own. I think you have a perspective about sharing what you've learned and allowing other people to do the same. I guess, let's maybe back up before we get into what you've done there at Werner, I'd love to just understand how you arrived to lead marketing there and what your background is.
April Braun: I have an interesting background. I haven't come here and lots of folks in distribution really have grown their roots here. I came from manufacturing for over 20 years. I worked for large publicly held companies, multi-million dollar global operations, from 3M, to Ford, Ingersoll Rand- this is where I have a varied background of Sales and Marketing and dabbled in finance and operations based off of different roles I've taken. And so really coming up through a different environment than distribution. I've worked with distribution my whole career, but I've never worked in distribution.
April Braun: This was really my opportunity to literally take bits and bits of everything that I've done over the last 20 years and apply it here. That to me was very exciting to be able to see it and be close to it and watch it come to fruition. In large companies, many times, you're a piece of something. Here, we've definitely learned, and I think we can talk about this. You need to work with others within the organization. It's a smaller organization so you really get to get deeper into some of it and really see the fruits of your labor. From that perspective, it's been really interesting to apply at the heart of everything that I've done no matter what.
April Braun: Now I'm in marketing. I started in sales, but at the heart has always been the customer. Really, that's what I'm passionate about, really understanding the customer, really looking to figure out what it is that makes them tick in the B2B space, which by the way is the only model I've been into. I've been in B2B most of my career with some exception at Ford where I was really trying to mark it out to the consumers based off of obviously a very consumer driven brand, but really just trying to understand what makes them tick, why they need to do business with us, what it is that can make their lives easier.
Jary Carter: I think you're interestingly poised. I mean, you have this background in sales, this background in marketing, a little bit of finance, a little bit of operations. I mean, you've got all of this experience in a lot of different areas. Now, that really poises you to lead some digital transformation and take the company down this journey. Can you walk us through that digital transformation journey you've been down since you joined the past couple of years?
April Braun: It's been fun! I just had a meeting this morning and we started to reflect on some of the things that we've been through just in the last six months. What's been interesting is my journey started with really just getting the lay of the land, and so spending some time within the business at our branches with our employee really trying to understand our company and who we are. I spent a lot of time with other distributors, so pretty neat industry where they have lots of industry associations where people want to share.
April Braun: I've not been in all industries that have been so willing and open to share. So taking advantage of that, meeting other folks within other distributors, both big and smaller than us. Then I really did start to take a look at our manufacturer partners and where they were just really trying to get this assessment of what needed to happen within the organization. Early on, right away, probably within my first 90 days, I assessed just the marketing organization that I was brought in to lead and really trying to figure out what the right roles were.
April Braun: I found that a lot of distributors had either just started investing in marketing or hadn't yet been investing, and so using them as a benchmark was not that easy, so I started to build up, especially modeling other businesses outside of the electrical distribution space, to take a look at what really leading marketing organizations are about, what types of roles, what types of talent that they're looking to bring in, and so really redefining and transforming marketing into what was traditional marketing.
April Braun: I happen to be blessed that I have a great team that really embraces change and wants to help the business grow through marketing and other efforts that they can drive. That was at the start of it. Now, what I've had since day one has been leadership support. The leadership was committed to transformation. In fact, that was very much what they wanted to know that I was capable of doing when bringing me into the organization is how can I help them reach their customers differently. I've been very lucky that I have not had to convince our leadership as to the direction that we needed to go.
April Braun: They were already bought in that the model of which we're working within today, very personal relationships, very hands on. It just isn't necessarily going to be realistic to what the customers need. They need information quickly. They need it when they want it. They need it when it's relevant to the project that they're working on. They may not need it between our hours of seven and five. They're changing and evolving, and so we need to change and evolve with them. I'm pretty fortunate that the leadership team already determined that when they brought me in.
April Braun: I think that's a big reason why I was brought into the organization, given my background and not that I was from electrical distribution. They were looking for something different and unique. Our journey, I started calling it from day one. It really began to take a look at who are our customers and what do they need from us? What do they care about us? Where are they buying? How are they acting? How do they need to do business with us? In distribution, sometimes I'm like manufacturing. They're varied. Today and in our model, we reach out to contractors who do projects, and we reach out to engineers who may be looking to upgrade a plant in the next year.
April Braun: Those particular customers behave differently. They have different values. They buy from us differently. They need different things, and so really trying to educate the organization on who the key customers are, what do they care about, and then really trying to figure out the best way to get the biggest bang for the buck. We were really looking for our shortest pot. If you take a look at all of the digital mediums that we could reach our customer, our website for instance, was eight years old. It was HTML- it couldn't be updated. I had to have a coder actually be able to make any changes from it.
April Braun: We knew that needed to be changed immediately. Social media, as an example, was a great way for us to reach the customers quickly and really inexpensively if you thoughtfully did it. We really reached out and started to take a look at being more effective in that realm. At the same time, we knew we had to re-platform our eCommerce. Our existing base is more of a web ordering portal, and we knew that wasn't going to be sustainable. At the same time, we were in parallel using a partner to basically identify the right software that we could do to upgrade our eCommerce experience.
April Braun: That journey itself, outside of some of the digital marketing upgrades and redefinition that we were doing within the organization, we launched a brand new website. Actually in July, we immediately got on social media. We started to do more relevant and effective email campaigns, but the eCommerce one has been, I think, one of the most complex because there are lots of choices in the market. We chose to find a project partner that would help us with the RFI so that we wouldn't get bombarded, and so we used a partner who actually went and put together a proposal based off of the business requirements.
April Braun: We've talked to lots of customers. We talked to people internally. We did benchmarking to create a list of business requirements. We took that to start exploring who we wanted to do business with, who we thought would make a good partner for us in our journey. I do know that a lot of other distributors and other folks that I had talked to in B2B, they really fell in love with a particular software and then tried to make it work for their business requirements. We were pretty adamant that we wanted to know what we were seeking before we sought out what was going to fit that need, and so we evaluated 25 different platforms.
April Braun: Quickly, we were able to get down to at least a dozen. Then from there, we started to take a look at capabilities and what really met what we were looking for. It really at the end came down to two. We built out a lot of demos. We did testimonials. We talked to the existing users, the existing customers. We really were trying to be comprehensive in our choice because it gets to be less about the technology and more about your ability to execute on it and the application of it. There's a lot to be said about just having a good partner to get you to implementation and understanding your business and understanding some of the challenges you're having.
April Braun: This digital journey for the last two years has, one, not been boring, and two, has just been something that's been extremely unique to our company. In fact, I would say that the initial efforts from modernizing our marketing to going to digital marketing, to really getting into digitization has really transformed itself into an overarching business transformation where our leadership has taken a very front seat approach to, "We need to more effectively go to market to meet our customers' needs." Ecom is just one of those things.
April Braun: That just happens to be eCommmerce has really set the stage for how we want to provide value to our customers differently, but it's really been a true journey and one that is certainly a marathon and not a sprint, because holy cow, I don't know that I would've passed out by mile marker one at this point. It's a lot of work, but very exciting.
Jary Carter: I feel like just hearing you talk about the last two years, my head is spinning a little bit on how much you've done. That feels like 10 years of work condensed into two years and a lot of different activities. I mean, I'm just surprised by the breadth of work that you've taken on. I mean, just this idea of all the marketing work that you've done, the technology changes that you're making, and then on top of that, a massive eCommerce re-platform and really sort of positioning yourself to get that piece right going forward.
Jary Carter: Out of all of this work that you've done, I'm sure April, you've skinned your knees along the way. I'm certain that you've probably had a ton of success. What have been some of the just the really key things that you've learned through this process?
April Braun: Thanks. Thanks for asking. I would say bumps and bruises heal, and so you have to be ready to take them on.
Jary Carter: (Laughter) I don't know whether that's positive or negative. You're saying there are bumps and bruises, but they do resolve themselves.
April Braun: Because you're learning the whole way. I mean, you have to embrace the business that you're in, and meet it where it is. You can have these grandiose ideas that you want to digitally deployed this whole new mechanism for customers to do business with you. It sounds really good and it sounds easy, but in application, it's not. There's a lot of challenges. Technology is just at the very tip of what challenges your business. There's cross departmental and cross functional needs to get a project like eCommerce out. I would say that many of our businesses have not been …
April Braun: They've not been designed to work that way, and not to the fault of those businesses. They've been created around silos, and this organization needs to achieve this. This organization independently needs to achieve this. Some of these projects are the first time that we really had to not just learn to work with one another, but to see each other's vantage points and to really rely on one another, and you're having shared goals for the first time. Some of the stuff that you need to get done is dependent on others doing it. I don't know that all of our organizations have been equipped to manage that as effectively.
April Braun: The faster you can figure that out, that not one person owns this transformation, not one person owns this journey, we're all in it together. We win together. We lose together. It's okay to say, "Hey, we don't actually know how to do this. We haven't done it before, so let's find somebody who can help us do that." I think admitting that is sometimes challenging to folks, especially in businesses the size of Werner, they've built this based off of who they are and what they've been able to do. They've done really, really well with the level of success that the company has seen.
April Braun: Now, to change that model and to suggest we have to do things differently is counter-intuitive, and so change management becomes this driving force. It's sometimes way less about the technology and more how the people within the business can actually embrace it or if they see it as a potential threat. That really impacts their need or interest to support it or to make it successful. I think that can't really be underestimated as to the impact that has. I think, sometimes it's making stuff take longer and then folks get discouraged.
April Braun: I think you have to be okay with you're going to get bumps and bruises. You have to be okay with stepping back and taking the time to explain to somebody that what we're doing and the changes that are happening by bringing digital and technology to our workplace and our environment is to benefit the customer. Ultimately, that benefits us as individuals who then can focus on different things that the customer needs from us. What I have found is in most of those conversations, the individuals are more … They'd rather work on the staff that brings more value to the customer.
April Braun: They don't want to chase down a delivery date. They don't want to chase down when the package went out. They don't want to chase down a price or a time to delivery. They would be happy if the customer had that information at their fingertips because the customer is still going to call with a more advanced question of, "Hey, how does this particular component interchange with this component, and how could I go about getting this achieved through buying something from you?" Those are the calls that people want to take and that's who we have equipped to take it.
April Braun: Instead, they're chasing down those very tactical things that a digital platform can give you, but if you don't know what that's gonna look like in the future because you haven't experienced it before, it can be really, really scary, and so understanding that and meeting the organization where they are, meeting employees where they are and giving them what they need to feel comfortable, I think, can't be underestimated, but it takes a lot of time. If you're really forcing yourself into, "We have to have this done in six months," think about the change management because if you don't allot for it, you may ineffectively skip over it. And I think that probably, it'll take you longer to implement in the long run.
April Braun: The last thing is, I really truly underestimated the value of IT. That seems counterintuitive when you talk about a technology project, but for us, our IT organization has done a good job. They make sure that we have computers. Our help desk is here. No matter what I have is a problem, they'll solve it. They'll make sure my phones are working, but application development and doing more customer facing, that's our B2C brother, and it had been doing it for a long time. In the B2B space, not so much. You can't underestimate the strong marriage between IT and Marketing.
April Braun: I've been to plenty of conferences that have figured it out because they are having IT leaders come at the same time as Marketing leaders. I just would say that this has not historically been a very strong partnership, not because you didn't want to, but because all of this hasn't been a necessity. Now, I do know plenty of organizations where there's actually animosity built up between the two organizations of IT and Marketing, and the sooner you can get over that and the sooner that you can identify yourselves as partners is going to help because they're interchangeable.
April Braun: In order for some of the customer facing applications to be delivered effectively, you have to have lots of organizations within the company part of it, but if your IT and your Marketing organizations are not aligned, you're going to have a much tougher time.
Jary Carter: This is so valuable. I mean, all the elements that you talked about in terms of change management, which has become a massive thread through every interview that I've given. So much so that, I mean, it is sticking out as the biggest challenge that people were talking about. The key learnings have been people underestimating the amount of change management that they were going to have to spend their time doing as part of digital transformation. This is not just a technology implementation. It's an entire business change, so much of this, what you're talking about it.
Jary Carter: It's interesting that you talked about this marriage between IT and marketing because, I think, that's another thing. You've brought this out in our previous conversations that it's not necessarily a natural marriage for Marketing and IT to talk to each other. I'm at least seeing that good IT departments are really starting to be sensitive in understanding the needs of the application development needs of the marketing organization, and good marketers are starting to become much more technical. I'm a lot of times on the phone with Marketing, and I feel like I'm talking with IT because of the fact that marketers are really stepping up their game in terms of their technology understanding.
Jary Carter: I've seen that within your team and within other organizations that the Marketing organizations are really getting well versed with technology, which is becoming incredibly valuable for the organization overall.
April Braun: Yes. It's the first time in my career, Jary, that I've seen Marketing leaders become IT leaders. I couldn't think of anything further from my career path 20 years ago as far as a direction you'd see marketers going. I only get the bad thing. I think, there's lots of ways to skin a cat, and you can attempt to do it either by learning it on your own or finding partnerships. I've seen plenty of organizations from the manufacturing perspective where they get frustrated with IT and so they just bring the resources in house within their own department and go around IT.
April Braun: I would say that's a longer path to take to, and so I would really suggest that you embrace it. You'll learn enough to keep up as a marketer. If you want to learn more, great. Leverage and rely on your IT partners who have technical capabilities and knowledge that will be valuable. I've actually spent a lot of time with CIOs and other technology leaders in other companies trying to figure some of this stuff out.
April Braun: Just so I could help the organization identify some of the gaps that we had from a competency perspective and technology skillset, I didn't ever intend to bring those folks within my organization from a marketing perspective. I just wanted the organization to have them so that we could be effective together. There's lots of ways to do it. I think, it's evident to me in talking with lots of different companies and different marketers and different technology leaders, IT leaders. I don't know that B2B has figured it out. I don't know that there is one cookie cutter approach that any one of us has figured out.
April Braun: The good news is that you can do it lots of different ways. The bad news is you can do it lots of different ways. I think that's what's been really challenging, and you got to figure out what's best for your organization, but the sooner you can figure out that IT is a critical partner, the better. Trying to circumvent them is not going to help, I think, from that perspective. And so there's lots of critical folks within the organization, and the change management comes at all different directions. Part of which is not just getting people to see the value of the technology, but also to understand that, who once maybe didn't seem like a partner needs to be a partner, and you gotta figure it out in order to be successful together.
Jary Carter: To some degree, I think about this like a marriage, right? I mean, you have two really different organizations, two different styles, communication, backgrounds, work backgrounds, and you're coming together for a common purpose, and you have to communicate. You have to learn the other's objectives and goals, and you really have to collaborate towards a common goal. That I think is what digital transformation has … It seems like it has really been a good forcing function for your organization to get the organization collaborating around goals and objectives centered around customer experience.
Jary Carter: I think, it is the customer experience that with all of this change management, it's about updating, refreshing the customer experience in a way that they want to be treated, in a way that they want to be interacted with through the purchase process and through the customer journey. It didn't seem like you had a large B2B eCommerce presence before you took on this larger eCommerce initiative. I talked to a lot of people who are on the fence about whether they should invest in B2B eCommerce or just continue down their current path of a very small or no digital footprint.
Jary Carter: I'm just curious what your advice would be to people in this process or that are considering making this investment.
April Braun: I think that's a fair assessment to say that it hasn't been a big part of our organization. I was brought in specifically to bring eCommerce to the business, and so I was surprised to find out that we have been doing it for over five years. Now, eCommerce, I think, would be a very loose term to call what we're doing. We have a web ordering portal. So many of the early adapters in the B2B, from what I could tell, decided early on they needed a mechanism for customers to be able to place orders. That, to me is, not B2B commerce.
April Braun: We have a web ordering portal where, yup, customers can go and place orders. In order for us to do what I would define as fully eCommerce, we had to really embrace and understand all the customer needs. It's more than just placing an order. It's getting information that helps them make their decision, but it's also transactional information that helps make their jobs easier. Being able to order online is just one piece of that. Now, if you have data issues and you have other problems that the customer can't find what you're selling, you're not making it any easier for them.
April Braun: That's really been our situation is we put a web ordering portal in place, which was, I wouldn't say an extension of our ERP, but it was tied to our ERP. In essence, our customers, if they wanted to order from us, really had to understand the language of our ERP in order to effectively find something. That's not a customer experience at all. That's an overlay of our ERP and our customer being able to order from it. If you're on the fence about, if you're in a B2B space, I would take a hard and fast look at your competitive landscape and see who's knocking at your door, and perhaps, obvious, one might be Amazon because that's who's knocking at most people store.
April Braun: But even aside from them, there are plenty of other folks who have built up business models probably in your space that doesn't require brick and mortar, may not even require a sales organization, may not require that relationship, but it provides the customer with what they need when they need it. I would say if you're on the fence, the reality of it is it's not going away. More and more people are buying online in their personal lives and that is bleeding into their business lives. They need information at their fingertips and everybody is doing more with less, and so technology is a way for us to build productivity and efficiencies for not only our own businesses but our customer's businesses.
April Braun: The sooner you can embrace that, the sooner that a justification of something to the magnitude of eCommerce will be easier to understand. I wouldn't say that it's a cost of doing business. I would say that it's a mandatory requirement to do business. I don't know what fence there is to be on unfortunately. Unless you're at the luxury of being able to retire in five years and sunset your company, then, I think, you might be safe to stay with your existing model. We've been in business for 100 years, and we plan to be in business for at least a hundred more.
April Braun: The customers who started doing business with us 60 plus years ago, their grandchildren are taking over. Some of their children are taking over. Unfortunately, they aren't looking to build a relationship with my account manager. They want to have information at their fingertips when it's appropriate. That might be uncomfortable for us, and most of us who have come in from the B2B space believe that that relationship is king. I am the first to say it certainly is. Everything we know about our customer, everything we provide to them is way more valuable than what an Amazon can do in a two-click purchase.
April Braun: The reality of it is their days are getting shorter. They're having to do more. We have to give them what they need in order to keep them as a customer. I think the decision might feel like a hard one and it certainly isn't, I think, an easy process, but I really think the harder decision is, "Do you want to stay in business or not?" That seems very harsh I think, but unfortunately, it feels to me like the reality of where we're heading. People want information. They want to be able to purchase whether it's for their home or whether it's for their business, and we need to be able to provide them a platform to do that in order to stay relevant and in order to continue to have that relationship with them.
Jary Carter: This is really great. I think that's a great closing perspective. It's interesting. I've been at a handful of companies where the person leading this initiative, companies that are a 100 to 300 million in revenue have been around for 50, 75 years, and the person walking me out at the end of the meeting says, "You know, if we don't do this, we're going to be out of business in five years." I mean, you saying that, that sounds really provocative, but that's not the first time I've heard that. That's actually a really common sentiment, I think, in the industry for people that are looking ahead at not just what Amazon is doing but what competitors are doing.
Jary Carter: Your industry may be growing at 10%, 12% or 5% or 20%, whatever that is, but the tectonic shifts that are happening underlying in that market of where people are buying, they're shifting pretty dramatically to where there's going to be over the next five years big winners and big losers in every industry, where you see distributors and manufacturers that get this right that are going to look more like technology companies in terms of growth. Companies that don't invest in this are going to go out of business.
Jary Carter: That's the perspective that we're seeing in the market is just that people that are getting this change management right across the organization are going to be the ones that are the big winners beyond the technology, getting the organization aligned for the future.
April Braun: I think our president had said it back to our organization. "You can choose to get disrupted or you can be the disruption." You got to decide which side of the fence you're going to be on, I guess.
Jary Carter: That's great. Well, with that, April, thank you so much for spending time with me today.
April Braun: Thanks, Jary.
Jary Carter: I really appreciate your perspective, and always a pleasure talking. Thanks.
April Braun: Thank you!
**Werner Electric is an independent electrical supply distributor that specializes in customizable solutions. Are you ready to take your eCommerce initiatives to the next level? Try our demo today.**
Werner Electric is an electrical distributor headquartered in Cottage Grove, Minnesota.
Digital transformation is not just a technology implementation- it's an entire business change, so change management is key.
IT is a critical partner in not only implementing a technology solution, but also collaborating with the internal team to provide a solution they can embrace.
April's advice: Ecommerce isn't the cost of doing business. It's a mandatory requirement to do business. Provide customers a platform that will give them what they want in order to stay relevant.
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Morning brief: Bifacial solar panels stay tariff-free, Musk's $775M payout, G.E. sells lighting business
Also in the brief: Solar-plus-storage microgrid project at the San Diego Blood Bank.
May 29, 2020 Eric Wesoff
G.E., with roots reaching back to Thomas Edison, is selling its lighting business.
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Court keeps tariff exclusion for bifacial panels: Solar companies can continue to import two-sided solar panels without a tariff, a trade court ruled on Wednesday. The Court of International Trade rejected the Trump administration's request to remove a preliminary junction on the U.S. Trade Representative's effort to put a tariff on bifacial solar panel imports. Judge Gary Katzmann named a series of missteps made by the USTR in its filing to impose the tariff. Source: Politico
Enel X North America installed a solar-plus-storage microgrid project at the San Diego Blood Bank. The solar-plus-storage system will allow the Blood Bank to generate and store renewable power, which it can deploy when energy demand and cost is higher. Amid the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic, the system will offer cost savings, allowing the organization to focus on the supply of blood to hospitals across the San Diego, Orange, Imperial, and Los Angeles counties, as well as providing antibody tests in the region's fight against Covid-19. Source: Enel X
G.E., with roots that reach back to Thomas Edison's lightbulb, sold its lighting business to Savant Systems, a home automation firm, for $250 million including assumption of liabilities, according to a source close to the deal. G.E. had sought to offload its lighting division for several years, as it focused on more profitable areas such as renewable energy and health care. G.E. traces its roots to Edison's experiments in his lab in Menlo Park, N.J. He was the first recipient of a U.S patent for an incandescent lamp in 1880. Sources: New York Times, Wall Street Journal
CEO Elon Musk lands ~$800 million payout from Tesla: Musk received the first tranche of his performance-based bonus for keeping Tesla's market cap at more than $100 billion on a 30-day and 180-day moving average as well as meeting some other conditions. This tranche allows the option of purchasing 1.7 million shares at $350 each. Today's Tesla stock price is ~$800. Source: Tesla SEC filing
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Deutsche Bank has been rewarded with The Lombard - Guido Carli Award as the Best Bank in Consumer Finance at the Milano Finanza Global Awards 2018 event, Tuesday June 12th at the Museum of Science and Technology Leonardo da Vinci in Milan. The Institute has won two other MF Innovation Prizes, respectively for the debit card product and for the financing and loans to private clients.
It is the 6th year in a row for the bank to receive the prestigious "Guido Carli" award, dedicated to those bankers who better incorporate the model of Renaissance men, who initiated the modern banking.
The award was assigned to crown a particularly successful 2017 for Deutsche Bank's consumer finance business, which a growth rate of 24% new issuing by Deutsche Bank Easy, the light banking division, more than twice the market average of 10,5% (As of Assofin 2017 vs 2016 excluding credit cards).
At the event, Deutsche Bank received two other prizes: the MF Innovation Award for debit cards product, for its "DB Card World", and the MF Innovation Awards for loan products to private clients, for "DB Easy Sorriso".
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Van's RV-6, N6GH: Accident occurred August 30, 2017 at Orange County Airport (KMGJ), Montgomery, New York
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Teterboro, New Jersey
Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf
Investigation Docket - National Transportation Safety Board: https://dms.ntsb.gov/pubdms
http://registry.faa.gov/N6GH
Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board
Location: Montgomery, NY
Accident Number: GAA17CA576
Date & Time: 08/30/2017, 1330 EDT
Registration: N6GH
Aircraft: HUNTER GEORGE RV 6
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Defining Event: Loss of control on ground
Injuries: 1 Minor
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Personal
According to the pilot in the tailwheel equipped, experimental amateur-built airplane, during the takeoff roll on runway 3, there was a slight crosswind and he was unable to maintain directional control of the airplane, possibly due to "wind shear." The airplane exited the left side of the runway and impacted the visual approach slope indicator (VASI) lights.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the aft fuselage bulkhead and the vertical stabilizer.
According to the METAR at the accident airport, about the time of the accident, the wind was variable at 3kts, the visibility was greater than 10 statute miles, and there were Few clouds at 3,800ft. The temperature was 72°F and the dew point was 57°F. Wind shear was not reported.
The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Certificate: Private
Age: 90, Male
Airplane Rating(s): Single-engine Land
Seat Occupied: Left
Other Aircraft Rating(s): None
Restraint Used: 3-point
Instrument Rating(s): None
Second Pilot Present: No
Instructor Rating(s): None
Toxicology Performed: No
Medical Certification: Class 3 With Waivers/Limitations
Last FAA Medical Exam: 03/29/2016
Occupational Pilot: No
Last Flight Review or Equivalent: 03/19/2016
Flight Time: (Estimated) 3048 hours (Total, all aircraft), 200 hours (Total, this make and model), 3048 hours (Pilot In Command, all aircraft)
Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information
Aircraft Manufacturer: HUNTER GEORGE
Model/Series: RV 6 UNDESIGNATED
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Amateur Built: Yes
Airworthiness Certificate: Experimental
Serial Number: AIRLANE III
Landing Gear Type: Tailwheel
Date/Type of Last Inspection: 10/01/2016, Condition
Certified Max Gross Wt.: 1700 lbs
Time Since Last Inspection:
Engines: 1 Reciprocating
Airframe Total Time: 200 Hours as of last inspection
Engine Manufacturer: LYCOMING
ELT: C91 installed, activated, aided in locating accident
Engine Model/Series: O-320-E2A
Registered Owner: On file
Rated Power: 160 hp
Operator: On file
Operating Certificate(s) Held: None
Meteorological Information and Flight Plan
Conditions at Accident Site: Visual Conditions
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: KMGJ, 365 ft msl
Observation Time: 1654 UTC
Distance from Accident Site: 0 Nautical Miles
Direction from Accident Site: 199°
Lowest Cloud Condition: Few / 3800 ft agl
Temperature/Dew Point: 22°C / 14°C
Lowest Ceiling:
Visibility: 10 Miles
Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: Light and Variable, Variable
Visibility (RVR):
Altimeter Setting: 29.96 inches Hg
Visibility (RVV):
Precipitation and Obscuration: No Obscuration; No Precipitation
Departure Point: Montgomery, NY (MGJ)
Type of Flight Plan Filed: None
Destination: Montgomery, NY (MGJ)
Type of Clearance: None
Departure Time: 1330 EDT
Type of Airspace: Class E
Airport: ORANGE COUNTY (MGJ)
Runway Surface Type: Asphalt
Airport Elevation: 364 ft
Runway Surface Condition: Dry
Runway Used: 03
IFR Approach: None
Runway Length/Width: 5006 ft / 100 ft
VFR Approach/Landing: None
Wreckage and Impact Information
Crew Injuries: 1 Minor
Passenger Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 1 Minor
Latitude, Longitude: 41.511944, -74.263611 (est)
MONTGOMERY - A 90-year-old New City man crashed his airplane at the Orange County Airport, suffering non-life threatening injuries, federal and state authorities said Thursday.
The plane struck runway lighting and flipped over while landing at the airport about 1:40 p.m. Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
The crash has been ruled an accident, the FAA said, and will be investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board for a probable cause. Those investigations can take months to a year to complete, though a preliminary report could become available in a couple of weeks, the FAA said.
The FAA identified the plane as a Van's RV-6, a two-seat, single engine plane that is sold as a kit and assembled by the owner.
FAA regulations define the plane as "an amateur-built aircraft," most of which has been fabricated and assembled by a person "solely for their own education or recreation."
The pilot's name has not been released by the FAA or the Orange County Sheriff's Office, which oversaw the initial investigation with assistance from the New York state Police Troop F in Middletown. Sheriff's Capt. Scott Hamill didn't return telephone calls for comment Thursday morning.
Trooper Steven Nevel said the pilot suffered cuts to his head. He was taken to the Orange Regional Medical Center in Walkill.
The airport moved the disabled aircraft to a nearby hangar for inspection by the FAA, which is part of the overall investigation.
There is no age limit to having a pilot's license, the FAA said in a statement.
"As long as a pilot can meet the medical requirements for the class of certificate that the pilot holds, he/she can fly," the agency said.
Original article can be found here: http://www.lohud.com
MONTGOMERY - A 90-year-old pilot was injured after his plane crashed at the Orange County Airport Wednesday afternoon, according to state police.
The man, from New City, was the only person on the plane, according to state police Spokesman Trooper Steven Nevel.
State police and emergency workers from Mobil Life Support Services were on scene as of about 2:20 p.m.
According to police, the man lost control of the plane on takeoff. The plane pulled left, hit an electronic marker box and flipped over.
The pilot suffered lacerations to the head and was taken to Orange Regional Medical Center in the Town of Wallkill.
The plane was removed from the runway after an investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Original article ➤ http://www.recordonline.com
MONTGOMERY – Authorities are investigating the crash of a small airplane at Orange County Airport in Montgomery Wednesday afternoon.
The plane overturned on the side of a runway after it struck a utility box on the edge of the pavement, said Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. Paul Arteta.
The pilot, a 90-year-old New City man, sustained a laceration to his forehead, he said.
The FAA was on the scene following the incident conducting an investigation.
State Police also assisted after the crash.
Original article ➤ http://www.midhudsonnews.com
Timestamp 8/30/2017 08:47:00 PM 0 comments
Airport director talks McCarran's capacity, goal of efficient passenger experience
Rosemary Vassiliadis, director of aviation, McCarran International Airport, speaks at a panel discussion at the Boyd Group International Aviation Forecast Summit at Wynn Las Vegas on Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017. She is flanked by Mark Thorpe, left, interim CEO Ontario International Airport Authority, and Scott Brockman, Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority.
A trio of airport executives addressed issues they're set to face, ones that could prevent them from spreading their wings and soaring.
Speaking at the International Aviation Forecast Summit at the Wynn Tuesday, Michael Boyd, chief executive officer of Boyd Group International, moderated a chat session featuring McCarran International Airport's Director of Aviation Rosemary Vassiliadis; Memphis-Shelby County Airport President and CEO Scott Brockman; and Ontario International Airport CEO Mark Thorpe, aired the problems the aviation industry is expected to face in the future.
Vassiliadis was on hand to explain what the biggest issues McCarran faces going forward.
"Besides terrorism? Capacity of the system," Vassiliadis said. "From the air all the way down to the ground."
McCarran is the eighth-busiest airport in the country, seeing a record 47.4 million visitors in 2016. The airport is on pace to break that count this year, as made evident by the all-time single-month record of 4.3 million visitors last month. The visitor count is 2.4 percent ahead of last year's record pace.
Getting ahead of possible problems, the construction of Terminal 3 at McCarran in 2012 has enabled it to stave off overcapacity for the next several years.
Aside from Terminal 3, the addition of a new roadway system and ramp are among other small upgrades that help McCarran run smoother.
Despite doing all they can to stay ahead of capacity, Vassiliadis said problems at other U.S. airports affect McCarran's daily workings as well.
"If there are timing issues at another airport, it affects us," she said. "We could meet capacity here at McCarran, but if the decline is in LaGuardia, if the decline is in LAX, it impacts our system and the entire day could be off.
"Airports have been very strong on the needs that we all have to have and even though I may have capacity now, I have to worry about the entire system."
With airports relying on ways to get in and out of the airport area quickly and smoothly, especially in Las Vegas where travelers want to land and get to their hotel as quickly as possible, having adequate travel modes is vital.
With McCarran having limited ways that travelers can go to and from the airport, additional modes have been studied.
From light rail to a monorail extension to elevated expressways, various options have been brought up as alternatives.
"We have a discretionary passenger — we're a destination airport … they want to come to Las Vegas," Vassiliadis said. If they are stuck at a light for several turns (after landing and heading to their hotel), and they can see their hotel, they don't know that (the travel could take that long).
"All they know is they took off from, say, Chicago at 2 p.m. and don't get to their hotel until 8 p.m. and that is all a part of the experience."
Beyond travel efficiencies, there are challenges to fund airport projects regarding passenger facility charges (PFC).
PFCs are fees added to airline tickets that raise money used to upgrade an airport that collects them, such as projects to increase traffic flow in and out of the airport.
The maximum PFC McCarran can charge is $4.50 per ticket. McCarran generated $85.6 million in PFCs in fiscal year 2016.
Airlines oppose PFCs because any added fee to a plane ticket can deter a passenger from flying. Despite that, the funds help pay for needed projects that end up benefiting the airport and air carriers.
One such project is the airport connector tunnel project that was completed in 1994, which was built using PFCs and not local tax dollars.
Despite the project creating an easier commute to and from the airport, it was initially contested by airlines because of the use of PFCs.
Now with the tunnel being a vital part of travel here, airline executives praise it.
"A Southwest executive says in his speech, thanks goodness we did that," she said. "Because that gives us that additional capacity of going in and out of the airport. We had one way going in and out of the airport before then."
Original article can be found here ➤ https://m.lasvegassun.com
New drone flight-school designed to boost local businesses
State College, Centre County, Pa. - Drones are the future of flight school and class at South Hills School of Business and Technology in State College is in session.
Jeff Stachowski, Outreach Coordinator for the South Hills School, said drones are transforming from toys into a key tool for businesses.
For the first time, the school is offering a pilot certification class for drones.
The program is designed for anyone who wants to use the device for business.
"Drones are being used for surveys, mapping, for civil engineering types of work," Stachowski said.
A set of six classes are available in September and October and will take place during evenings and weekends .
The instructor, Chuck Ferrell, said it's a hands-on course to learn the essentials of flying.
"Learn to fly, get your license and when you go out don't be a drone cowboy flying past people's windows," Ferrell said.
Ferrell added that with speeds up to 80 mph and hundreds of feet in the air, businesses may not realize the opportunities that come with drones.
"The 'a-ha!' moment is really coming to business that have gone 'ah-ha' we should use a drone, but they don't know how to use it yet," Ferrell said.
The course is $495.
Students will learn flying techniques and the rules set by the Federal Aviation Administration to be part of the National Airbase System.
"You have to take into consideration, what airports are nearby, what helipads are nearby," Ferrell said.
After 18 total hours of class students should know what it takes to earn certification for commercial drone use.
And Ferrel said he's excited to share the air with fellow flyers.
"To teach people to fly legally, responsibly, and ethically," Ferrell said.
For more information on the course and enrollment, email Jeff Stachowski at jstachowski@southhills.edu
Story and video ➤ http://www.wearecentralpa.com
Labels: Drones
Petition calls for airport board shake-up: Bridgeport Municipal Airport (KXBP), Wise County, Texas
A petition has been filed with the city of Bridgeport requesting the removal of Airport Board President Gaylon Rice and board member Butch Baker.
The petition, obtained by the Messenger through an open records request, alleges Rice and Baker are in violation of six rules or restrictions of the board, including "conflict of interest," "questionable ethics," "term lengths," "decisions that are not in the best interest of the airport," "favoritism of certain people" and "non FAA approved operations."
Eighteen signatures are on the petition, but four individuals wrote notes indicating their signatures pertain to "Gaylon only."
Dean Love, who filed the petition, did not return a call for comment by press time Tuesday.
Rice offered no comment when contacted by the Messenger Tuesday. Baker did not return a call for comment.
City Manager Jesica McEachern said Tuesday the city council was aware of the petition but added the document holds no legal merit. The council has the authority to appoint and remove members of the board, she said, and the petition will likely be considered by the council at a future meeting.
Original article can be found here ➤ http://www.wcmessenger.com
Air and ground attacks help limit Dunsmuir Fire to 49 acres
Aviation resources and ground crews, including hot shot crews, helped limit the Bradley Fire in Dunsmuir to 49 acres Tuesday on a hillside west of town.
A hand line and hose line were established around it, and hot shot crews from Trinity and Feather River staffed it throughout Tuesday night, according to incident commander trainee Drew Graham of the US Forest Service in Mount Shasta.
The plan for Wednesday, Graham said, is to "hold what we have" while "mopping up the perimeter and securing it so it will withstand any winds."
Three helicopters are available Wednesday, if needed in Dunsmuir or elsewhere in the area, Graham said. He said 275 personnel were returning to the Bradley Fire.
Smoke will continue to be visible for a while, and there may be pockets of fire inside the perimeter, "but we'll have people on it all the time," Graham said.
The fire that was first reported about 10 p.m. Monday started about two-tenths of a mile behind the Little League field in Dunsmuir and spread quickly uphill on steep terrain during a warm night with low relative humidity.
As many as four air tankers and four helicopters were used throughout the day Tuesday to drop retardant and water on the fire while ground crews created a line around it.
Graham, who is working with incident commander Todd Mack, said they are continuing to mitigate safety concerns because of snags and rolling rocks.
It was clarified Wednesday morning that there were no mandatory evacuations in Dunsmuir because of the fire. But the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office did issue evacuation warnings for residents along Simpson, Scarlett, Haven, and Goodsell roads Monday night.
Although the fire was reported to be only 25 percent contained, Graham said the fire's growth had been stopped, but there was still the potential for fire to get outside the perimeter.
If that were to happen, he said they are confident the resources are in place to quickly deal with it.
Resources involved have included Forest Service, CAL FIRE, Dunsmuir-Castella Fire Department, Mt. Shasta Fire Department, and Yreka Fire Department, along with hot shot crews from outside the area.
Story and video ➤ http://www.mtshastanews.com
Why not build an airport at sea? Long Beach bosses once wondered this
Yes, there were plenty of complaints about airport noise 50 years ago. It's not a new thing. Noise, air pollution, the all-around ever-present danger of jets falling from the sky. All those headaches made Long Beach look toward the sea as the solution to the problems in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Why not build an airport at sea, wondered the city bosses.
Well, it would be quite a ways out at sea, for one things. You haven't heard loud until you've disturbed the slumber of residents on the coast. It's one thing to put up with bellyaching of Bixby Knolls and Los Altos. It's quite another when the homeowners in Naples, the Peninsula and Belmont Shore get into the fray. And that's fair. Unlike the others, they didn't move next to an airport.
So the initial plans for an offshore airport called for it to be at least seven miles out, well past the breakwater.
The cost would be enormous. Just building a seven- or eight-mile road from town to the airport would be plenty, and then there would be the airport itself.
Still, dreamers dreamt, and as cities grew out to engulf airports that were once out in the sticks, airport designers looked for land at sea.
In 1971, the Federal Aviation Administration commissioned a report on the feasibility of building an offshore airport. Ralph M. Parson Co., which completed the study, said it could be done if planned properly and managed to not get rammed by, say, a big ship.
A study of the Long Beach offshore airport in particular, made by Quinton Engineers Ltd., again showed that the airport would be "technically feasible."
The Parsons engineers explored four offshore airport ideas from the one you've already thought of, which is just pouring dirt in the water until you have an island, to floating airports, in which floatable blocks of concrete or steel would be hauled out to the site where they would be assembled and anchored. The latter method would be the best, reported the report, although it had such drawbacks as "the entire structure may break up and/or sink."
So, we're talking somewhere between $7 billion and $13 billion, and this was back in 1971 when you could buy a lot for a billion dollars. It's the equivalent of $42 billion to $79 billion in today's dollars.
The cost could be mitigated in a few ways, including have passengers do all their check-in and other matters on land before driving out to the airport and, perhaps, there could be oil-drilling from the airport to bring in some dollars. But, as John Mansell, who was city manager in 1971, noted, "There's not enough oil all over the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to pay for it."
That's a bit of an exaggeration, but not by much. Paul Deats, a city councilman and chairman of the council's legislative committee, noted, "That represents every drop of oil that has been taken out of Signal Hill, and that's a lot of money." He added: "I don't think it would do this city one bit of good."
Mansell put the final kibash on the plan, saying that the city had no intention of developing the airport at sea and, at any rate, had never contemplated anything like the "gigantic proportions" of the proposed field.
Original article can be found here ➤ http://www.presstelegram.com
Watsonville Municipal Airport (KWVI) staffing shake-ups part of bold vision
WATSONVILLE >> The only public airport in Santa Cruz County is slated for a staffing shake-up that includes the creation of a new director position — part of a suite of changes that come as part of a city leaders' vision to develop the aviation asset into a major economic driver.
At its Aug. 29 meeting, the Watsonville City Council approved the creation of the position of Airport Director to oversee the Watsonville Municipal Airport. The director will manage all airport staff and report directly to the city manager.
Also upcoming for the airport: A new runway lighting system to update the current approach indicators that have been in place since 1976. In the works for the past five years, the council Tuesday accepted a $222,000 federal grant to fund the lighting and accepted a bid for the installation from Royal Electric Company.
Owned by the city, the Watsonville Municipal Airport is the only public airport in Santa Cruz County. It serves about 40 percent of the aviation needs in the Monterey Bay Area, according to data provided on its website. The airport houses more than 300 planes, and its primary business use is for agriculture, according to the site.
The past year has have brought a number of changes to the airport as part of Watsonville City Manager Charles Montoya's vision of developing the airport — which in recent years has struggled with debt — into one of the city's major economic drivers.
In December of 2016, the council voted to reclassify the airport from a division of the department of public works to its own department. Tuesday's staff changes come as part of that restructuring, according to a staff briefing.
In May, the council signed off on a development project to transform one of the airport's hangars into an aviation-themed destination with a craft brewery, restaurants and outdoor seating.
But not everyone is pleased by the airport's new flight plan. Knowlton Construction was served an eviction notice in the fall after 50 years of leasing airport property, according to owner Bill Knowlton.
And Granite Construction — one of the largest companies based in Santa Cruz County — announced plans to leave the airport earlier in August after nearly 100 years of use. It now plans to house its aviation operations out of Monterey Regional Airport, according to spokeswoman Jacque Fourchy.
"Our decision to exit the Watsonville airport was not easy given our nearly 100-year history with the airport but is in the best interest of the Company," Fourchy said in a statement. She did not respond to a request to clarify Granite's reason for the departure.
The public is invited to explore the airport Saturday at Wings Over Watsonville, an admission-free event featuring free flights for children ages 8 to 17 as well as introductory aircraft and helicopter rides, food, and an opportunity for pilots to showcase their own aircraft.
Story and comments ➤ http://www.santacruzsentinel.com
Greater Rochester International Airport (KROC) receives Federal Aviation Administration grant
The Greater Rochester International Airport has received a $1.2 million grant for improvements.
The Federal Aviation Administration grant will be used to rehabilitate an apron, enhance security, improve the drainage of storm water runoff and install apron flood lighting and fencing.
"The Rochester airport supports more than 10,000 jobs and adds more than $800 million to our local economy. It is vital that it remains a safe and reliable hub for the businesses and travelers that rely on it every day," said Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-Perinton, in a statement. "I'm proud to announce this major award to fund airport improvements that will help get goods and people where they need to go safely and efficiently."
In July the airport received a $1.1 million award from the U.S. Department of Transportation to reconstruct an existing deicing pad. Last year, the airport received a $1.9 million grant to build an 11,700-square-foot deicing containment facility.
Work continues on the airport's $60 million renovation to transform it into a state-of-the-art transportation center. The project broke ground in April.
Original article can be found here ➤ http://rbj.net
Educators: Cooperation, collaboration key to filling South Carolina aerospace jobs
Lockheed Martin pilot instructor Chad Luntz (right) shows Royal D'Cunha, a research engineer with the University of South Carolina's McNair Center for Aerospace Innovation and Research, how to operate a T-50A flight simulator on display Wednesday at the S.C. Aerospace Conference and Expo in Columbia.
COLUMBIA — With aerospace engineering courses under way in six South Carolina high schools this year, education experts at the South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo on Wednesday called for more collaboration with the industry to help prepare students for careers in the fast-growing field.
That includes mentoring teachers, letting educators know what specific skills the industry needs and having workers who are willing to visit classrooms to give first-hand accounts of the types of jobs that are available.
"It's one thing to hear about it, it's another thing to see the person who does the work every day," said Darrell Johnson, superintendent of Greenwood School District No. 5, where Emerald High is among the schools taking part in the new aerospace curriculum. "Students need to see real world opportunities."
The high school program is designed to appeal to students who are curious about the design and flight of aircraft and spacecraft vehicles. The curriculum, designed by the Southern Regional Education Board, consists of four courses: fundamentals of aerospace technology; advanced aerospace technology; aeronautics engineering application; and astronautics engineering applications.
Each school will receive $50,000 from the state Department of Education to cover startup costs.
Students taking the courses will be better prepared for training at the state's technical colleges for certificates in advanced manufacturing careers with companies like Lockheed Martin, which is moving production of its F-16 fighter jet to the S.C. Technology and Aviation Center in Greenville from Texas this year, and Boeing Co., which makes its 787 Dreamliner commercial airplanes in North Charleston.
Molly Spearman, the state's superintendent of education, said the program is already generating interest among students and other schools that want to participate. Spearman said she recently visited R.B. Stall High School in North Charleston, where the curriculum is being taught, and "was surprised to walk into a classroom where the students were on a simulator learning how to fly a plane."
"Their interest has been sparked, and we need to now supply a pathway for them all the way from elementary to high school so they can walk right into the technical training they need to be successful," she said.
For the curriculum to succeed, however, Spearman and others said they need the industry's feedback.
"We don't know it all," Spearman told industry leaders. "If we're going to get every child in the state ready, we need help. You have an open invitation to come into our schools."
Marty Conner Sr., associate superintendent of Orangeburg County Consolidated District No. 3, said interaction with industry leaders is important both for students and teachers.
"To have industry come in and provide mentorships to teachers who don't know what the industry needs — that is critical," Conner said, adding that industry also must help provide resources for classrooms.
"We have textbooks, but not equipment," he said.
South Carolina's aerospace industry employs about 55,000 people at an average wage of about $70,000 per year and has an annual economic impact of $19 billion. Steve Townes — who helped push for the high school curriculum as head of industry group SC Aerospace — told the conference that he expects the state's aerospace businesses will employ 200,000 people and top $35 billion in economic impact by 2027.
"We're the fastest-growing state in aerospace," said Townes, who is CEO of Greenville-based Ranger Aerospace.
Townes said the six high schools teaching aerospace courses is a good start, but not enough. He envisions 16 high schools with programs linked to each of the state's 16 technical colleges, with a coordinated curriculum between the two levels. He points to a new aeronautical training center at Trident Technical College as a "world class" example of the type of programs needed to fill the industry's employment pipeline.
Lockheed Martin is among the aerospace companies investing in technical college training. Don Erickson, site director for the defense contractor, said the company has been providing scholarship funds to Greenville Technical College since 2007 for the school's aviation maintenance and training facility.
"They're going to come in with high-paying entry-level jobs, working on something like an F-16 ... just doing cool stuff in aviation," Erickson said of students in the college's program.
Townes said the industry and educators need to do a better job of letting young people know about the opportunities in aerospace jobs throughout South Carolina.
"There is a huge premium in salary, benefits and future opportunities if you learn to work on or around airplanes," he said. "It's a cool industry. It's high tech."
Original article can be found here ➤ http://www.postandcourier.com
de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver Mk.I, N6LU, My Holdings Inc: Incident occurred August 25, 2017 - East Butterfly Lake, Alaska
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Anchorage, Alaska
Aircraft declared an emergency due to damage to #5 cylinder.
My Holdings Inc: http://registry.faa.gov/N6LU
Time: 19:00:00Z
Regis#: N6LU
Aircraft Make: DEHAVILLAND
Aircraft Model: DHC-2 MK.1 BEAVER
Event Type: INCIDENT
Highest Injury: NONE
Aircraft Missing: No
Damage: MINOR
Activity: COMMERCIAL
Flight Phase: EMERGENCY DESCENT (EMG)
Operation: 135
Aircraft Operator: TRAIL RIDGE AIR
Flight Number: UKN
City: EAST BUTTERFLY LAKE
Star Marianas Air, Piper PA-31-350, N4078J: Accident occurred August 30, 2017 at Saipan International Airport, Saipan Island, Mariana Islands
Additional Participating Entity:
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Honolulu, Hawaii
Aviation Accident Final Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf
http://registry.faa.gov/N4078J
Location: Saipan, MP
Date & Time: 08/30/2017, 1808 LCL
Registration: N4078J
Aircraft: PIPER PA 31
Defining Event: Birdstrike
Injuries: 7 None
Flight Conducted Under: Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter - Scheduled
The pilot reported that, during the initial climb, about 150 ft above the ground, while the landing gear were being retracted, the airplane impacted a flock of medium-sized birds. He noted that the landing gear unlock indicator remained illuminated and that the landing gear handle would not return to the up neutral position. No degradation of performance was noted, so the pilot chose to continue to his destination.
About 20 miles from the airport, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear but was unsuccessful. He contacted maintenance personnel on the ground and advised them of the landing gear issue. The ground maintenance personnel visually verified that the nose and right main landing gear (MLG) were down. The pilot performed the emergency gear extension checklist and noted little to no resistance on the hand pump. The pilot made multiple attempts to lower the landing gear without success. During the landing, the right MLG collapsed, and the left wing impacted the ground.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage.
Postaccident examination revealed snarge on both horizonal stabilizers, the left wing, and the fuselage and that the right inboard MLG door actuator hose had failed.
Probable Cause and Findings
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
Impact with multiple birds while retracting the landing gear, which resulted in the subsequent failure of the right inboard main landing gear door actuator hose and prevented the pilot from being able to extend the landing gear.
Hydraulic, main system - Failure (Cause)
Animal(s)/bird(s) - Effect on equipment (Cause)
History of Flight
Birdstrike (Defining event)
Approach-IFR final approach
Attempted remediation/recovery
Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)
Landing gear collapse
The pilot reported that during the initial climb, about 150 feet above the ground, while the landing gear was being retracted, the airplane impacted a flock of medium sized birds. He noted that the landing gear unlock indicator remained illuminated and the landing gear handle would not return to the up neutral position. No degradation of performance was noted, so the pilot choose to continue to his destination.
About 20 miles from the airport, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear, but was unsuccessful. He contacted maintenance personnel on the ground and advised them of the landing gear issue. The ground maintenance personnel visually verified that the nose and right main landing gear were down. The pilot performed the emergency gear extension checklist and noted little to no resistance on the hand pump. After multiple attempts to lower the landing gear, Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Support was requested. Soon after, the pilot received clearance to land.
During the landing the right main landing gear collapsed and the left wing impacted the ground.
A postaccident examination revealed snarge on both horizonal stabilizers, left wing, and fuselage. It was noted that the right inboard main landing gear door actuator hose had failed.
Certificate: Airline Transport
Airplane Rating(s): Multi-engine Land; Single-engine Land
Instrument Rating(s): Airplane
Medical Certification: Class 1 Without Waivers/Limitations
Occupational Pilot: Yes
Flight Time: 5847 hours (Total, all aircraft), 2005 hours (Total, this make and model), 5714 hours (Pilot In Command, all aircraft), 186 hours (Last 90 days, all aircraft), 128 hours (Last 30 days, all aircraft), 6 hours (Last 24 hours, all aircraft)
Aircraft Manufacturer: PIPER
Model/Series: PA 31 350
Amateur Built: No
Airworthiness Certificate: Normal
Serial Number: 31-8152057
Landing Gear Type: Retractable - Tricycle
Date/Type of Last Inspection: 08/02/2017, Continuous Airworthiness
Airframe Total Time: 9341.1 Hours at time of accident
ELT: C91A installed, activated, did not aid in locating accident
Engine Model/Series: TIO-540-J2BD
Registered Owner: Marianas Transportation Management Solutions Inc
Operator: Star Marianas Air, Inc.
Operating Certificate(s) Held: Commuter Air Carrier (135); On-demand Air Taxi (135)
Observation Facility, Elevation: PGSF, 10 ft msl
Direction from Accident Site: 97°
Lowest Ceiling: Broken / 11000 ft agl
Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: 6 knots, 200°
Departure Point: ROTA ISLAND, MP (GRO)
Type of Flight Plan Filed: IFR
Destination: Saipan, MP (GSN)
Departure Time: 1645 LCL
Type of Airspace: Class D
Airport: FRANCISCO C ADA/SAIPAN INTL (GSN)
VFR Approach/Landing: Full Stop; Straight-in
Crew Injuries: 2 None
Passenger Injuries: 5 None
Total Injuries: 7 None
Latitude, Longitude: 15.117778, 145.726111 (est) Additional Participating Entity:
Latitude, Longitude: 15.117778, 145.726111 (est)
A Star Marianas aircraft made a successful emergency landing on runway 24 at the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport on Wednesday. The plane was cleared off the runway on Friday afternoon.
Commonwealth Ports Authority Executive Director Chris Tenorio said they are still working on a report on the cause of the emergency landing and will issue their findings as soon as the report is complete. CPA is glad that no one was hurt, he added.
The aircraft, a Piper PA-31-350 Chieftain, had five passengers and two crewmembers onboard when it made an emergency landing at the Saipan airport due to malfunctioning landing gear.
The aircraft departed from Rota airport on a scheduled flight at 4:45 p.m., Wednesday.
In a press statement, Star Marianas said there were no injuries to any of the people on board and that the passengers commended the pilot, Jun Shimada, for doing an exceptional job of landing the plane smoothly.
Shimada reported experiencing multiple bird strikes just after he departed Rota and was retracting the aircraft's landing gear.
According to the pilot, the gear indicator light did not confirm that the gear had actually retracted and he also noted a decrease in his normal cruising airspeed.
As he was approaching Tinian, Shimada said the hydraulic pressure was insufficient when he attempted to extend the landing gear.
Shimada said he contacted the Star Marianas maintenance facility on Tinian and described his situation. The pilot then made several low passes that allowed the maintenance personnel to confirm that only the right gear was extended and that only partially.
After several attempts to lower the gear, he made the decision to continue the flight to Saipan and land on runway 24.
"The plane continued to fly for an additional 45 minutes to reduce its landing weight by using most of the fuel prior to landing. This also gave time for Saipan's Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting personnel to prepare for the emergency.
"Upon landing, the aircraft's right wheel was extended but the left main and nose wheels remained in the up position. This caused the aircraft's left wing to contact the ground as the aircraft slowed to a stop, sliding onto the grass just past the Delta taxiway."
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text:
Kelly Eyerman's global Ingram Micro journey
Amanda Sachtleben and Vera Alves 01 December, 2010 22:00
As a young girl Kelly Eyerman wanted to be an explorer, and in a sense she has done just that. The senior business manager of distributor Ingram Micro's Apple division grew up in Oregon and has since lived in other parts of the US and Europe before coming to New Zealand in 2007.
She had always been attracted to the prospect of travelling, so jumped at the chance to take a place in a high school exchange programme to France. Later she put her French-speaking skills to use with two summer internships at Ingram Industries (now Ingram Micro) in Belgium in 1990 and 1991.
"I was doing a business degree along with French literature [at the University of Oregon] and they had the internship in Brussels – [I was offered it] more because of my business studies and because I spoke French."
Eyerman returned in the US in 1992 to work full-time with Ingram, but a holiday here a decade later with her husband Christian sparked a major life change.
Touring around Wanaka in the South Island, the couple decided they would one day live in New Zealand. In 2007, Eyerman realised that dream and began working for Ingram's branch here the following year.
The couple originally planned to sail to New Zealand after buying a boat when living in Seattle, but Eyerman's pregnancy with twins put paid to that.
"We sold the boat and got on a plane instead," she says.
The family's first home in New Zealand was in Motueka, near Nelson, but they have now settled on a lifestyle block near Kumeu northwest of Auckland.
"I loved living in Europe in my early 20s, but now with a family, New Zealand is the best life," she says.
Having experienced a variety of cultures, she sees a closer relationship between the way New Zealanders live and work and how business is carried out in Europe, than she does with the culture in her homeland.
"New Zealand is a community and in [the IT] industry I see a lot of similarities with Europe. There is a high standard of work ethic here that I admire. But Kiwis work to live whereas in the States, they live to work. I like this 'European-like' style and it fits into my goal of having more work/life balance."
After nearly 20 years with Ingram, Eyerman has seen major changes take place in the company. One that stands out is the establishment of the logistics business at the heart of its business model today.
"In 2000 when the dotcom crash happened we had extra warehouse space and started a third party logistics operation. We were paying for space that wasn't being used at high capacity and we saw it as a great opportunity to offer our services to other companies, such as Microsoft, which took its retail business direct in 2000."
She has also observed significant change in the wider IT industry, saying being with Ingram Micro is the best place to witness such change.
"Being in distribution gives you a birds' eye view of the industry. From reseller partners to vendors, you get to see what's going on."
Eyerman stresses the importance of keeping up with technology movements to keep the channel successful.
"The technology is changing so quickly, you really need to be on top of your game to work with the vendors taking products to market and helping the resellers see how they can change and grow their businesses."
As well as a passion for the dynamic nature of IT, Eyerman is enthusiastic the purchasing side of her role, which also spans marketing and sales.
"When first choosing whether to go into marketing or purchasing, I had to think about how [my career] aligned with my personality," she says.
"While it seemed I liked marketing better, I found that a purchasing role would suit me as it was more around the numbers – which never lie."
Last month, Eyerman took on leadership of the Apple division Ingram Micro established when it became the second local distributor for the brand alongside Renaissance.
The role is familiar territory for her, having been business unit director for the company's US Mac division, where she oversaw purchasing, marketing and sales. She also worked in the US company's logistics division, managing supply chain management for the Apple brand.
She says there no typical daily routine now she has taken on the new role, but even with the change she aims to put customer service first.
"If customers are treated right, you will be successful, I always go for the win-win solution."
The couple's twins Trystan and Megan are now six years old, and they take up a lot of Eyerman's time outside work. She also manages to find time for gardening and to play golf, go swimming and do yoga. She used to be a surfer, but rarely gets the board out these days.
"When I am home, I focus on the family. I also have some help with the housekeeping and a very supportive husband. We have a lot of fun together and absolutely love living and working here in New Zealand."
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