ATA and FAA announce Better Way award winners.
Press Release Summary:
Jointly sponsored by FAA and ATA, Non-Destructive Better Way award recognizes team of government and airline industry individuals who worked to advance inspection or testing of aircraft structure, components, or systems. Recipients include Jeffrey Kollgaard, John Linn, David Messner, and Jeffrey Thompson from Boeing; John Bohler, David Piotrowski, and Richard Watkins from Delta Air Lines; Russell Jones from FAA; Andre Lamarre from Olympus Inc; and Dorsey Perkins from Southwest Airlines.
Original Press Release:
FAA-ATA "Better Way" Award Winners Announced
Award Presented at 51st Annual NDT Forum
WASHINGTON, Sept. 24, 2008 - The Air Transport Association of America (ATA), the industry trade organization for the leading U.S. airlines, in association with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), today recognized the recipients of the 2008 FAA-ATA Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) "Better Way" award.
The "Better Way" award recognizes a team of government and airline industry individuals who together worked to advance inspection or testing of aircraft structure, components or systems. This award, jointly sponsored by the FAA and ATA, was presented today at the ATA Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) Forum in Seattle, Wash.
Industry and government professionals recognized with this prestigious award are: Jeffrey Kollgaard, John Linn, David Messner and Jeffrey Thompson from Boeing; John Bohler, David Piotrowski and Richard Watkins from Delta Air Lines; Russell "Rusty" Jones from the FAA; Andre Lamarre from Olympus Inc.; and Dorsey Perkins from Southwest Airlines.
The winning team was recognized for its efforts regarding "Scribe Line Inspection Using Phased Array Ultrasonics." Boeing teamed with Olympus to investigate the use of Phased Array Ultrasonics as a method of inspecting the fuselage lap splice without stripping paint.
With coordination from Southwest Airlines and the FAA, this technique was validated on the Boeing 737, and then expanded as a general procedure by Boeing. Delta Air Lines personnel helped validate this technique on newer Boeing aircraft and today this technique is used for the 747, 757 and 767 aircraft.
"We congratulate this year's winning team for its outstanding work in the advancement of critical fuselage inspections," said ATA President and CEO James C. May. "Scribe line cracking is a formidable problem and paint removal for inspection is labor intensive. The accomplishment recognized today demonstrates the importance of the industry's need to continue such innovative, collaborative efforts."
ATA airline members and their affiliates transport more than 90 percent of all U.S. airline passenger and cargo traffic. For additional information about the industry, visit www.airlines.org.
CONTACT: Victoria Day
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Elizabeth Merida
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