Air traffic

Prof. Muriel Médard speaks with NBC Boston reporter Raul Martinez about 5G technologies and helps demystify the concerns surrounding 5G networks and airline safety.

A report by researchers from MIT’s International Center for Air Transportation finds that there should not be any changes to flight paths over Massachusetts towns, reports the AP. The researchers found “any alternative pattern would affect more people than the current paths, creating safety issues and a problem for air traffic controllers.”

Research Scientist Ashley Nunes speaks to Marco Werman of PRI’s The World about the proposed privatization of air-traffic control in the U.S., and how countries like Canada have successfully transitioned to a private system. When airlines pay less for air-traffic control services, “the price that the airline passes along to the passenger is also lower,” explains Nunes. 

In an article for The Atlantic, Ashley Nunes, a research scientist with MIT’s Center for Transportation and Logistics, examines a proposal to privatize the air-traffic control system in the U.S. Nunes explains that, “reforming how air-traffic services are delivered is worthwhile—but not without costs, and those costs are important to understand and address.”

Ashley Nunes, a research scientist at the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics, examines President Trump’s proposal to privatize air traffic control in an article for The Washington Post. Nunes explains that the proposal may be difficult to pass, noting that many lawmakers are, “hesitant to cede regulatory authority — akin to political power — to others.”

MIT researchers have developed an algorithm that could reduce how long planes wait before takeoff, reports Lee Moran for The Huffington Post.  The formula allows air traffic controllers to use data on weather conditions and runway traffic to “hold airplanes at the gate, which would help avoid congestion.”

A study by researchers from MIT and Dartmouth finds that new regulations meant to reduce passenger delays on flights have instead increased them, reports Christopher Elliott for Fortune. “Each minute of time saved waiting on the tarmac translates into roughly three minutes of total passenger delay, according to the research,” Elliott explains. 

A study by researchers from MIT and Dartmouth finds that an airline tarmac rule may lead to more delays, reports Hugo Martin for The Los Angeles Times. The study finds that airlines are “more likely to cancel flights that are delayed to avoid being fined by the Department of Transportation, thus creating more passenger delays.”

Melissa Lott writes for Scientific American about a study by researchers from MIT and Cambridge University that estimated the number of early deaths attributable to air pollution from U.K. airports. Lott explains that the “researchers found that an estimated 110 early deaths occur in the United Kingdom each year due to airport emissions.”

Prof. John Hansman speaks with AP reporter Rodrique Ngowi following the crash of a Germanwings flight about how it is it unlikely that a similar situation could occur on an aircraft operated by an American carrier. U.S. safety procedures require that two people to be in the airline’s cockpit “in case the remaining pilot becomes incapacitated," Hansman explains. 

MIT engineers have “developed an algorithm that shows the relationship between luggage weight and fuel consumption,” writes Heather Hansman for Popular Science. The researchers found that reducing each person’s luggage by 11 pounds would save one percent of fuel consumption.