All 20 personnel on board a military cargo plane that crashed in Georgia were killed, Turkey's defense minister says. The plane had taken off from Azerbaijan and was on its way back to Turkey on Tuesday when it crashed close to the Azerbaijani border.

For the airplane + red aurora + big dipper fans. 😍

Holy coronal mass ejection! I think these are the most amazing auroras I’ve seen in 45 years in Alaska! Taken from Diamond Ridge, Homer, Alaska, looking all directions. #auroras #NorthernLights

The Federal Aviation Administration is completely in thrall to DOT. The FAA Admin is nothing more than Sean Duffy’s assistant at this point. He must be back in the office waiting for the boss to let him speak.

My head just exploded.

In 2018, then-Congressman Duffy voted for ADS-B waivers for the military in civilian airspace. NextGen, the ATC upgrade, was part of the FAA plan under Buttigieg (& dated to 2003). DCA is a federal airport. Congress wanted it busy, DOD wanted helo routes. Duffy has lost the plot on what matters.

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I can not stress enough how wrong it is to politicize flight safety. Last summer at OshKosh FAA Admin Bedford said no one in the Biden admin cared about aviation; now we have this from Duffy. This attitude turns safety into a concept to be owned for political gain. It’s dangerous & pathetic.

They were already working mandatory overtime & using outdated equipment in one of the most stressful jobs in the country. This sort of response is amateurish and unacceptable. I am so sick of this sort of language from DOT.

Good Lord. Absolute textbook politicization of flight safety. It doesn’t get more blatant, or appalling, then this. Also, does the FAA still have an administrator or has Bryan Bedford just given his job to Duffy?

Sure, Sean.

Shocking.

In the century leading up to 1975, nearly 6000 freighters went down in the Great Lakes. The Edmund Fitzgerald was the last. The last. In 50 years, not a single commercial freighter has been lost in the Great Lakes. Why? It's NOAA. Of course it's NOAA.

Aviation is a really complex industry that does a lot of things and aircraft operate under a myriad of rules that are not always obvious. Saying you want to shut down airports that serve private jets means practically any airport in America. It’s all very intermingled & can’t be simplified.

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I wrote this. If you want a fuller look at backstory on ATC and federal politics, please give it a read.

Using aviation safety for political gain is nothing new but man, this takes the cake.

Do I say all the ways in which this is wrong or just roll my eyes and move on? Also, really Politico? WTF? www.politico.com/news/2025/11...

If you need me I will be listening to The Killers “Lawyers, Guns & Money” cover on loop youtu.be/tWrdK1MZEW0?...

I think in our analysis you trust us to take a position but at least analyze the alternative. In this case there is no alternative. There is no political advantage to this deal. None.

You can have enormous frustration over the fact that air traffic controllers have to work with no pay, and already were understaffed, while at the same time being furious about Dens caving on healthcare costs. (I am.) & if you think reopening the govt fixes ATC, you haven’t been paying attention.

Meanwhile, FAA and NTSB employees - including all air traffic controllers & the investigators down in KY working to understand what happened to the UPS MD-11, are not getting paid. What is wrong with these people? Why are they pretending that everything is okay?

Opening the government with no concessions from GOP merely to alleviate airline cancellations - when Congress has been dragging its feet for years on chronic FAA staffing issues - is a lame ass choice. Also, doing it while the House refuses to work is appalling.

Delta approaching 500 mainline cancels today, 14% of its operations. Nearly a third of Southwest ops delayed (likely means cxls later in the day). "Just like a winter storm" is a cute description of the FAA cuts, but it is on top of an actual winter storm, and will last for many days.

Remind me again why a book about the historic politicization of the FAA is not going to be of interest to the American public. (If I end up having to self publish this thing, which I am working on now, I hope you will but it.)

There is a cascade of stresses being put on the national airspace system. Anyone who know anything about aviation knows what a cascade can do.

None of this is a surprise. Congress, including when Duffy was a congressman, is aware of staffing issues at the FAA (which extend far beyond ATC). This sort of thing is amply documented. Fund the agency so it can staff for every position, and STOP ACTING SURPRISED.

If you think this makes life easier for controllers, you are wrong. The line of air carriers is one thing, plus whatever the heck could pop up out in this mess without proper separation is another. (Remember the Black Hawk?) We need the govt open. The House needs to return to work. Now.

This is a really interesting comparison. I highly recommend “The Cult of We” by Eliot Brown & Maureen Farrell. It’s a very compelling investigation of how We Work fooled so many investors & surfed a wave of dollars on a concept with no actual value or substance.

This is going to snarl air traffic today! LaGuardia (LGA) facing air traffic controller staffing issues. Flights out of Nashville to LGA being held on ground, likely elsewhere in country, as well.

Loving today's news that the mysterious "fedora man" outside the Louvre heist was actually a 15-year-old museum visitor who dresses like a 1940s French detective all the time, just because. apnews.com/article/louv...

It must be exhausting to be an air traffic controller. You have a very stressful job. You’re understaffed & have to work overtime. The govt shuts down & you don’t get paid. And then when Congress (ahem, GOP members) refuse to do their jobs, you will have to save the damn country. Again.

You would not believe the number of questions I have about this.

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Few people are better positioned than Don Brown to point you toward realistic info on what's happening with ATC right now. Follow @gettheflick.bsky.social for informed, no-BS guidance.

1. From CVR, checklists & briefings were all done. 2. T/O roll uneventful thru speed callouts. 3. 37 secs after T/O thrust called for, repeating bell sounded & continued for next 25 secs until CVR stopped. Crew tried in this time to gain control of aircraft. /1 (Start at ~3 mins for all this.)

Important to read from Nathaniel Herz. www.northernjournal.com/typhoons-and... #akleg

Follow @jfallows.bsky.social if you are looking for ATC updates (and a ton of other aviation news/commentary - why aren't you following him already?!)

If you are dealing with a lapse in SNAP benefits in Alaska: The Food Bank of Alaska has a list of food resources - for Anchorage & Mat-Su here's a list of hot meals and food pantry hours: foodbankofalaska.org/hubfs/Websit...

Holy crap. Why in the world should air traffic controllers (or any other unpaid federal employee) keep going to work?

Five staffers in library let go due to budget woes - including the teen librarian. www.goskagit.com/anacortes/yo...

Across Alaska, public schools are often the safest buildings where people can take shelter during disasters. After decades of state neglect, however, some have become emergencies themselves. (Via KYUK.org)

Says he told the union head to get the controllers to go to work. NATCA is walking a fine line here. It continues to visibly (and strongly) support Duffy, but doing that while supporting members has to be getting tricky.

I am not the only one who would like to see this data or know what it consists of. Also - who is on “our safety team” at the FAA?

He is claiming this decision entirely as his own. It is as if the FAA administrator does not exist. This is a perfect example of a politician wrapping themselves in the mantle of flight safety for professional gain. And yes, I regard him as a politician & not public servant.

One thing I hope folks are starting to understand is that ATC is a big complex issue. This is my latest on it, from Tuesday, and only a tiny part of what I’m researching about the history of politics & the FAA. I’m glad we are talking about this. leehamnews.com/2025/11/04/a...

It’s my birthday. My wish is for joy.

I do not think traffic reductions at 40 airports are going to magically solve ATC staffing issues & reduce the stress on overworked & unpaid controllers. I do believe it highlights that controllers are suffering. It forces politicians & pax to consider them. It’s shines a spotlight.

I have studied every single secretary of transportation but this guy is really a piece of work.