Dear Members,

We are currently working on some changes in our publications. A first step was taken today: As of now, our membership magazine VC Info will be published digitally. The online version makes it faster and more up-to-date and it also saves us money. In the coming months, we will be working on some adjustments and tweaking a few structures to keep our communications state of the art.

There is also some flight safety news: The VC Airport Check 2020 has been published. The positive trend shows that our work for more safety in air traffic pays off. We will continue to work undiminished to make sure this trend stays in the green. Because passengers have a right to fly safely just as we all have a right to work in a safe environment, in normal times as well as during a pandemic.

In addition, we have the following topics this time:

• VC supports the European Drone Forum - Win a ticket
• Sattelbergalm-Seminar: Safety - Leadership - Human Factors
• Safe landings with Airbus aircraft

You can also find more current news on our social media channels on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Enjoy the read!

VC Info in new digital format

Our member magazine VC Info is no longer published in printed form, but online. We have decided to take this step for several reasons:

• On the one hand, we want to keep the format technically up to date. A digital version offers more options to present information in a modern format with the possibility to include links, pictures or videos.
• Secondly, we can pick up on current developments more quickly and are therefore more up-to-date in terms of content.
• Thirdly - and this point helps us in our efforts to use membership fees as efficiently as possible, especially in times of Corona crisis - the digital format saves costs for printing and delivery.

The new website vcinfo.vcockpit.de (in German only) presents the current contents in a new layout, as you are used to from news pages. In addition, a complete edition of VC Info is also available for download as a PDF file, so that you can save it and read it even without internet access.

We hope that by making this change we are fulfilling the wishes for transparent association work and up-to-date information and we are looking forward to your feedback to presse@vcockpit.de.

VC Airport Check: Safety level increases again

Flight safety must remain a top priority in our work, even during Corona. For this reason, AG AGE has put all safety related conditions and equipment of German airports under close scrutiny in the VC Airport Check 2020.

Above all, it can be said that despite the already high level of safety at German airports, various measures have led to further improvements in the average score this year. Beyond this trend, in our exchange with the airports we have also noticed many efforts to improve safety with measures that are not assessed in the Airport Check.

All results can be found on our website
www.vc-flughafencheck.de (in German only).

European Drone Forum - Win a ticket

"From Vision to Reality - Next Level of UAS Operations" is this year's heading for the European Drone Conference that will take place in Berlin on 12 October 2020. The conference will be attended by experts from politics and industry. Our AG UAS+ will contribute VC's view on the topic of safety management.

VC's Flight Safety department is giving away an online ticket for members. If you are interested, please send an email with the keyword "European Drone Forum Online Ticket" to presse@vcockpit.de by 20 September. The winner will then be drawn from all entries.

Find more information at www.eudroneforum.org.

Please send questions or comments to aguasplus@vcockpit.de.

Workshop: Safety - Leadership - Human Factors

The advanced training workshop recommended by the VC takes place from 23 to 27 November 2020 at the Sattelbergalm in Tirol. It offers pilots and other interested persons a practice-oriented and intensive training to improve leadership and communications skills. A special focus will be put on behaviour in crises.

The training has been held several times a year since 2004 and has been continuously improved through evaluations in recent years. It is supervised by Flight Captain Ralf Nitsche, member of VC AG QUAT. This event is recommended in cooperation with Berlitz as an approved sponsor for the implementation of training measures. It is recognized as educational leave in Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and Berlin.

More information on our new VC Info website: vcinfo.vcockpit.de (in German only).

Airbus Safety First Magazine: A Focus on the Landing Flare

Several cases of nose gear first or hard landings were reported to Airbus over the last 2 years. Two of those cases are discussed in the current article "A Focus on the Landing Flare" in the Airbus Safety First Magazine. In addition to explaining the correct landing technique, the article also discusses technical questions about the flare with fly-by-wire controls, autothrust and the roles of PF and PM.

Jetpack Hazard

The crew of American Airlines Flight 1997 recently made an unusual encounter. During their approach into Los Angeles they saw someone flying next to them with a jetpack at an altitude of 3000 ft and an estimated distance of almost 300 meters. The airman or woman was able to escape. Further information including a radio communications recording at the OPS Group.