The Air Current Archive
What is The Air Current?
The Air Current (TAC) is a subscription-based news and information service for the global aerospace and aviation industry. Our value proposition is based on both depth and exclusivity. Our focus is on reporting actionable, newsworthy intelligence and digging deeper into global strategic trends and their broader implications for global aviation and aerospace.
TAC actively leverages deep relationships and extensive industry knowledge to provide a greater level of insight into the business of flying. TAC doesn’t seek to replicate or follow the reporting of other organizations nor does it aim to be a repository for the day’s news.
- 2020.12.10: Emerging markets both spur and limit Embraer’s E3 turboprop potential
- 2020.12.02: Embraer wants a turboprop, but needs a partner to let it be itself
- 2020.12.01: FAA grants Boeing first post-grounding 737 Max airworthiness certificates
- 2020.11.24: An unexpected competitive box awaits Embraer’s E3 turboprop
- 2020.11.18: Lessons of DC-10 grounding pave way for 737 Max return
- 2020.11.12: Electric flying advances to the mainstream as Tecnam joins the race
- 2020.11.02: Even our willingness to fly is partisan
- 2020.10.28: All-new Boeing jet is vaporware, but 5G Max revamp comes to light
- 2020.10.27: Breaking the statistical link between COVID-19 cases and air travel demand
- 2020.10.21: 737 Max recertification risks becoming pawn in U.S.-China fight
- 2020.10.14: Furloughs, aircraft retirements put a ceiling on airline recovery
- 2020.10.07: COVID can’t keep passengers away from flying forever, but the economy can
- 2020.10.06: Moving Boeing’s 787 to South Carolina was a dozen years in the making
- 2020.09.24: Understanding the industry-transforming dynamics behind Airbus’s hydrogen Moonshot
- 2020.09.21: Germany plays economic architect to stabilize its aerospace industry
- 2020.09.15: Six months into the pandemic, it’s even worse for airlines than we thought
- 2020.09.08: Scarce quality data on 787 skins as FAA peels back onion on Boeing
- 2020.09.02: Fall is here for airlines and business travelers aren’t
- 2020.08.27: Boeing yanks eight 787s from service over structural issue
- 2020.08.17: Aircraft out of storage and into the frying pan
- 2020.08.01: Boeing’s long and inevitable road to South Carolina
- 2020.07.28: Airlines seek 2019 rebound, but fares are missing link to recovery
- 2020.07.23: Colliding interests will force engine makers into a new business model
- 2020.07.16: Coronavirus shreds the engine maker business model
- 2020.07.09: U.S. airlines are having a knife fight on a life raft
- 2020.07.02: Spike in coronavirus cases reveal signs of stalling U.S. air travel recovery
- 2020.06.24: Surging coronavirus infection rates aren’t slowing U.S. air travel rebound, yet
- 2020.06.19: The hard and frustrating math behind airline pilot furloughs and buyouts
- 2020.06.17: Boeing, Spirit disband engineering teams designing Aerion supersonic business jet
- 2020.06.11: Boeing’s 737 Max software done, but regulators plot more changes after jet’s return
- 2020.06.08: Airlines stare down simulator logjam once pilot furloughs hit
- 2020.05.29: Business travel lags leisure early in coronavirus air travel recovery
- 2020.05.27: The Mitsubishi SpaceJet — as we know it today — is dead
- 2020.05.20: The Airbus A220 and Embraer E2 will reshape airline competition after coronavirus
- 2020.05.14: Mitsubishi moves its SpaceJet off the launch pad and into limbo
- 2020.05.07: The case against the Airbus A220 and Embraer E2
- 2020.05.06: Boeing closes the door on Embraer, opens one for Mitsubishi
- 2020.05.01: Embraer can survive solo, but outlook mixed after Boeing breakup
- 2020.04.28: The end of Boeing Brasil Commercial and the re-birth of Embraer into the unknown
- 2020.04.24: Time and money, not gimmicks, are going to get people flying again
- 2020.04.23: Coronavirus will force airlines to make familiar asks of pilots to stay afloat
- 2020.04.21: Airbus and Boeing hustle to keep airplanes flowing to a collapsed market
- 2020.04.16: The airlines are staring down a slow and uneven recovery from coronavirus
- 2020.04.09: The airplanes that have survived the aviation apocalypse
- 2020.04.07: The uncertain future for Boeing’s twin 787 assembly lines in Washington and South Carolina
- 2020.03.31: Confusion among U.S. airlines as airplanes fly virtually empty to get bailout funds
- 2020.03.27: As coronavirus empties the sky of passenger planes, air cargo marches on
- 2020.03.23: U.S. regional airlines will play crucial role for big carriers after coronavirus
- 2020.03.19: The financial crisis brewing in the supply chain underneath the world’s airlines
- 2020.03.16: Coronavirus plunges aviation into singular event, traditional recovery models useless
- 2020.03.14: Coronavirus pushes U.S. airlines to the brink of some form of shutdown
- 2020.03.10: As coronavirus pummels air travel, lessons from 9/11 on what may come next
- 2020.03.06: A jittery industry begins to question if business travel will rebound after coronavirus
- 2020.03.03: Once scarce, coronavirus creates a glut of unneeded airliners
- 2020.03.02: Coronavirus is seizing the engine of global commercial aviation
- 2020.02.20: How Southwest has adapted to life without the 737 Max
- 2020.02.18: Decade-old Boeing concept may get new life in dogfight with A321XLR
- 2020.02.12: FAA Administrator outlines final gantlet to return 737 Max to service
- 2020.02.10: Coronavirus nearly severs U.S.-China airlink, but history suggests quick recovery
- 2020.01.30: Boeing collapses NMA and FSA into a single search for its next airplane
- 2020.01.28: Boeing needs 777X for far more than just fighting Airbus
- 2020.01.22: New Boeing CEO says the future has to wait
- 2020.01.17: Simulators at the center of the Boeing’s future put spotlight on systemic issues
- 2020.01.07: Signs of acceleration from China and Comac at the start of a new decade
- 2019.12.23: New Boeing CEO tasked with fixing rifts he and the board helped cultivate
- 2019.12.19: Supply chain built on promise of 737 Max bumper crop braces for shutdown
- 2019.12.12: Pilot procedure confusion adds new complication to Boeing 737 Max return
- 2019.11.26: Boeing 737 Max re-certification likely to slide into 2020, Ryanair model faces new ‘design issue’
- 2019.11.22: Transport Canada safety official urges removal of MCAS from 737 Max
- 2019.11.21: The DC-10, 737 Max and the struggle to polish a tarnished airplane
- 2019.11.15: FAA pushes back on “pressure” to return Boeing 737 Max to service
- 2019.11.08: Southwest wants a small airplane from Boeing or Airbus and that could reshape aviation
- 2019.11.03: Emergency Autoland puts Garmin on the bleeding edge of autonomous flying
- 2019.10.28: Boeing’s NMA in doubt as airlines take fresh look at 737 Max & 757 replacement
- 2019.10.18: New document in 737 Max investigation points to chaos, pressure in MCAS development
- 2019.10.15: Searching for 40-year old lessons for Boeing in the grounding of the DC-10
- 2019.10.08: Checklists come into focus as pace-setter for 737 Max return
- 2019.09.29: Exploring the vast Earth Microsoft has created for Flight Simulator 2020
- 2019.09.20: The end of Embraer and the beginning of Boeing Brasil Commercial
- 2019.09.12: Neeleman plans jump on Moxy with outgoing Azul E-Jets
- 2019.09.09: Newcomers De Havilland and Mitsubishi find themselves dwarfed by their suppliers
- 2019.08.14: Boeing ‘mothballing’ development of ultra-long range 777X
- 2019.08.13: Visual Approach: What’s on a transatlantic wide body?
- 2019.08.09: Unraveling the dynamics behind Delta’s regional airline consolidation
- 2019.07.25: October brings first prospect of 737 Max cancellations
- 2019.07.15: Visual Approach: The Redemption of the 757
- 2019.07.11: The 737 Max’s return risks accidentally breaking the aviation industry
- 2019.06.27: FAA and Boeing initially disagreed on severity of “catastrophic” 737 Max software glitch
- 2019.06.26: Inseparable allies, Japan and Boeing, now find themselves in competition
- 2019.06.23: Visual Approach: Can the A321XLR Replace Wide-Body Aircraft Across the Atlantic?
- 2019.06.12: Airbus set for Paris Air Show launch of A321XLR
- 2019.06.04: Mitsubishi in advanced negotiations to acquire Bombardier’s CRJ program
- 2019.05.30: Boeing chases range frontier on 787 and 777X to win Air New Zealand, Qantas deals
- 2019.05.29: Airbus makes a case for disruptive stability in the A321XLR
- 2019.05.16: Inside Boeing: Sadness, frustration, anger, uncertainty & focus after 737 Max crashes
- 2019.05.09: Mitsubishi faces a rising monopoly as the sun sets on Bombardier
- 2019.04.30: Japan and Mitsubishi find their path together for MRJ certification
- 2019.04.23: 737 Max grounding tests Southwest’s relationship with Boeing
- 2019.04.15: Understanding the formula behind how Delta buys airplanes
- 2019.04.10: JetBlue doesn’t think flying to London is all that radical
- 2019.04.05: Boeing throttles back on 737 output as suppliers were speeding up
- 2019.04.04: Vestigial design issue clouds 737 Max crash investigations
- 2019.04.03: 737 Max grounding threatens to unravel the aviation certification world order
- 2019.03.27: Boeing details changes to MCAS and training for 737 Max
- 2019.03.19: 737 Max airlines take cover under the wing of a black swan
- 2019.03.12: The world pulls the Andon Cord on the 737 Max
- 2019.03.10: China’s aviation regulator orders grounding of 737 Max
- 2019.03.07: Bell wants to lead the revolution that’s trying to kill it
- 2019.02.28: Rolls-Royce withdrawal may signal fast-approaching Boeing 797 engine pick
- 2019.02.25: What the shape of Boeing’s 7J7 tells us about the 797
- 2019.02.13: Airbus will end A380 superjumbo production in 2021
- 2019.02.13: Airbus and Rolls-Royce plot Ultrafan for A350neo
- 2019.02.12: Rolls-Royce and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year
- 2019.02.05: Aerion’s supersonic journey leads it to Boeing’s doorstep
- 2019.02.01: Boeing 787 deal in jeopardy, too, as Emirates weighs killing A380 for A330neo
- 2019.01.28: Suppliers at arm’s length as Boeing heads for 797 decision
- 2019.01.25: Trump Administration memo opens door to mass sickout by ATC
- 2019.01.17: Airbus makes room for the A220 in Alabama and beyond
- 2019.01.14: Airbus throws its weight behind (and on top of) the A220 supply chain
- 2019.01.10: KC-46 delivery comes with an asterisk and a lesson for 797
- 2019.01.07: Apple iPhone Xs and Boeing 777X have the same problem
- 2019.01.04: The first GE9X engines find a home on 777X
- 2018.12.26: Pat Shanahan’s sharp turn from tactics to strategy
- 2018.12.21: Mitsubishi and Bombardier trade legal barbs over recruitment and trade secrets
- 2018.12.14: A tempest rages around Boeing’s quiet island outpost in China
- 2018.12.12: Tracing the origins of Boeing’s ‘Diamond’ from Apollo to NMA
- 2018.12.05: China and Russia soften on CR929 tech transfer requirement
- 2018.11.29: Southwest is adding new angle of attack indicators to its 737 Max fleet
- 2018.11.29: Supersupplier Collins Aerospace begins life counterbalancing a superduopoly
- 2018.11.21: Airbus wages psychological warfare with its same decades-long strategy
- 2018.11.19: Boeing CEO disputes MCAS details “intentionally withheld” from airlines
- 2018.11.13: What is the Boeing 737 Max Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System?
- 2018.11.12: Bombardier’s market exit is nearly complete
- 2018.11.08: Viking Air to acquire Dash 8-Q400 program from Bombardier
- 2018.11.07: Boeing issues 737 Max fleet bulletin on AoA warning after Lion Air crash
- 2018.11.06: Airbus caps 2010s with A330-800 first flight
- 2018.11.04: Launching The Air Current for China
- 2018.10.31: The linchpin technology behind Boeing’s 797
- 2018.10.29: The perilous unreliability of Lion Air documents floating through social media
- 2018.10.22: Embraer and Bombardier set to navigate redrawn supply lines
- 2018.10.16: A complicated strategic future for Bombardier and Embraer business jets
- 2018.10.12: Singapore, Qantas and solving the unsexy problems of ultra long-haul flying
- 2018.10.10: Leonardo to launch CR929 composite fuselage venture for Comac
- 2018.10.05: How the 777X’s folding wing tips work
- 2018.10.04: Document details scope & ambition of Boeing-Embraer joint venture
- 2018.10.01: Southwest & Emirates close the book on the planes that built their airlines
- 2018.09.25: The surprisingly fast growth of the Africa-China airlink
- 2018.09.20: The plan to merge Republic and Trans States is near death
- 2018.09.17: Boeing has a clear path to picking engines, offering, launching the NMA
- 2018.09.13: Airbus, Eric Schulz and the strategic rejection of outsiders
- 2018.09.11: Comac looks to new shapes for its own future NMA
- 2018.09.06: Beyond the carrier deck: A glimpse at the 777X folding wingtip
- 2018.09.14: Mapping China’s expansive African aviation infrastructure projects
- 2018.08.30: Boeing shows off longer legs for 737 Max 10
- 2018.08.29: Echoes of 1997 production meltdown in 737 pileup
- 2018.08.29: Alaska adds another Amazon HQ2 city to its network
- 2018.08.22: Pilot shortage is the X factor in Boeing’s NMA deliberation
- 2018.08.14: Asking the right questions after a Q400 is stolen
- 2018.08.11: Final radio call from stolen Horizon Air Q400
- 2018.08.07: Revisiting The Sporty Game 36 years later
- 2018.08.01: Republic Airways is nearing a deal to buy Trans States
- 2018.07.31: New rules from China set to worsen the global pilot shortage
- 2018.07.25: Bombardier’s CEO on strategic survival and rising with Airbus
- 2018.07.19: Boeing looks to FedEx to expand NMA business case
- 2018.07.17: Airbus XLR stalks Boeing NMA at Farnborough
- 2018.07.15: Boeing Gov. Relations Chief: We’re done at the ITC
- 2018.07.14: Farnborough Preview: How one day a decade ago changed everything
- 2018.07.11: Ghosts of JetBlue and Bombardier haunt, but seal, first A220 deal
- 2018.07.09: Boeing’s quest for NMA steers it away from its history
- 2018.07.09: Tracking 30 years of falling airline ticket prices
- 2018.07.04: Embraer and Boeing ready to unveil commercial joint venture
- 2018.06.26: Engine trio has due date for Boeing NMA proposals
- 2018.05.11: What Boeing wants in Embraer also makes merging with it extremely difficult
- 2018.04.14: British Airways and the allure of Norwegian’s throttleable business
- 2018.04.08: Boeing, Embraer and the new superduopoly
- 2018.03.12: This is Boeing’s NMA
- 2018.03.09: China’s ARJ21 should scare Boeing and Airbus