Author Archives: Nicolas

About Nicolas

Sophomore

Aviation Business Administration

**Nicolas** – Intern with Montreal International Airport, Finance Department
**Major:** Aviation Business Administration
**Hometown:** Montreal, Canada
**Campus Involvement:** Airport Management Club, National Business Aviation Administration, International Student Programing Council and student assistant in the College of Business
**Why I chose Embry-Riddle:** Its worldwide reputation, opportunities and everyone’s love for aviation

A Day in a Full-Motion Flight Simulator Center

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Have you ever been on the flight deck of a full-motion flight simulator? You would probably see very little difference between the simulator and the real machine.

Flightdeck of the Bombardier Challenger 300

Flightdeck of the Bombardier Challenger 300

I had the opportunity to visit a full-motion flight simulator center in Dorval, QC. CAE, a Montreal-based flight simulator manufacturer, has one of their training facility near the Montreal -Trudeau International Airport. While I was on site, I toured the facility and flew on two different types of aircraft, the Challenger 300 and the Global Express.

CAE_L3_BBD

My instructor of the Challenger aircraft was a retired fighter jet pilot of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). He explained to me how the simulator worked. Newer generations of simulators use electric motion while the older ones use hydraulic motion. The ancient simulators require more maintenance than the modern simulators. Some use software while others hardware (real part from an aircraft). For example, the main screens which are the  primary-flight display (PFD) and the multi-function display (MFD) is usually replaced by  a computer instead of the real part from the plane.

Bombardier Challenger 605

Bombardier Challenger 605

For the flight on the Challenger, we planned a trip from Montreal (YUL) to New York (JFK). On the second flight, I was assigned a different instructor. I did an IFR and a VFR traffic pattern on the Global Express. I logged 1.0 hour in the Challenger and 0.5 hour in the Global as flight training device.

When you land, the sensation in the cabin is the same as during a real landing. The sounds of the cabin shaking are realistic. You can feel the forces when you apply more pressure on the brakes. It is remarkable how it feels the same as the real business aircraft.

I also visited the facility which included various flight simulators, as well as conference rooms, and small oral rooms similar to what we have on campus. After being hired by an airline or a private company, pilots will start training on simulators before they can fly the aircraft for real. Even though they cost thousands of dollars to operate per hour, it is still cheaper than flying a real airplane.

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

End of Class, Research Paper, Interviews, Exams

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Next Sunday, during Spring Break, I will finish my first class of the spring semester. I am taking Organizational Behavior (MGMT 317) online. I have a lot of work to do before I can finally rest for a week.

First, for my online class, I have to write a final report of 15 pages on an aviation company and discuss the topics in the modules we saw over the nine-week course. I also have to complete a weekly discussion with my classmates. Finally, there is an open book final exam consisting of multiple choice, true or false, short answer, and essay questions. This is all due on Sunday at 11:59PM, yay!

I also have two interviews this week for internship positions for the summer. I hope to get answers back quickly so I can plan my summer accordingly. One of the companies that I applied to is based in Montreal, so I won’t need to find a place to live since I will live with my family at home. The other organization I am interviewing with is not located close to home so I will have to temporary housing for three months. Most of the companies proceed like this. They will help you to find housing close to the headquarters, but you are on your own to pay your living expenses.

Finally, I have to prepare for tests if I do not want to study a lot over the break. I have a Managerial Accounting and a Corporate Finance midterm on the week right after vacation.

A few weeks ago, my professor in my Airport Management class told us that we would not have an in class final exam. He does things differently then my other professors. We do take home assignments throughout the semester and will have a large final group project that will account for most of our grade. We will also have a take home final exam. I like to explore different ways to learn. In this class, we don’t have to memorize material to do well on the exams since there are none. Our assignments work with real life aviation examples. For the final project, we will play the role of the manager of San Diego International Airport (SAN). We will have to prepare a SWOT analysis to determine if we can keep the airport in its current location or take action to develop a brand new airport. I didn’t know that the airport operates with a single runway and welcomes more than 20 million passengers every year.

Well, I have to go back to work on my final report!

Until next time!

Nicolas

 

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

 

The Daytona 500 Weekend

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Two weekends ago was the race weekend! Even though it is my second year living in Daytona Beach, I had never been to a race at the Daytona International Speedway. I had the opportunity to attend both races, the Xfinity Series Race, and the famous Daytona 500 race. My Dad and one of my uncle flew down to the Sunshine State for the event.

Daytona 500

Daytona 500

On Saturday morning, I toured the Sprint Cup Garage and Pit Road. It was my second time touring the garage and pit. The last time I went to a race was in 2011 at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas for the Formula 1 race. It is interesting because you can see everyone who is involved to make a race happen.It is not only the driver of the car that does all the job. Every member of the team has a different task to perform to ensure the team’s success in a race.

Joey Lugano's Ford Fusion in the garage

Joey Logano’s Ford Fusion in the garage

In the afternoon was the Xfinity Series Race. It consists of 120 laps and 300 miles. I just had the chance to see the first 30 laps has we had to go back to the hotel for dinner. At that time, I was already excited for the Daytona 500 the next morning. We ate dinner in the same room that Joey Logano of Team Penske did. I was not expecting that! Joey delivered a short speech and talked about some of the aspects of the race. For example, you don’t want to be to close to the car in front of you because it could give them a push forward.

Sunday was the big day. Before the race, we went down on the asphalt on the actual race track. It was impressive to see how inclined the road was at some places. We were even allowed to write on the yellow painted lines on the side of the track. There was a concert on the track before the start of the race. After the pre-race festivities, the National Anthem began and ended with the USAF Thunderbirds.

The Thunderbirds!

The Thunderbirds!

I thought overall that the race was long. It is 200 laps over a distance of 500 miles. I enjoyed the beginning of the race because I did not know to expect. However, I got bored in the middle of the race because nothing was happening, cars weren’t passing each other and there was not much action happening. I would say the last 20 laps were the most exciting, and they are the ones that I payed most attention to. The last lap was spectacular as nobody expected that Denny Hamlin would win. I enjoyed my first race weekend and hope to attend more those races in the future.

Until next time!

Nicolas

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

 

Flying All Over America – Part 2

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I hope you guys enjoyed Part 1 of my long trip across the United States. In the second part, I will cover the rest of the trip from San Francisco to Orlando with a connecting stop in Minneapolis.

Due to our long delay back in Atlanta, we had less time to spend at San Francisco International Airport than expected. We used our time wisely to walk around the terminal/concourse. Below is a gallery of the pictures of some of the planes we saw:

After our quick tour, we boarded the plane for Minneapolis. Shortly after takeoff, we were served complimentary beverages and snacks, and I ordered the new Luvo chicken wrap the airline made available at 30,00 feet in the past few weeks. It was very good! For the remaining duration of the flight, I worked on homework while listening to music. I also took pictures of the outside sceneries over Utah and Wyoming.

Ski station over the state of Wyoming

A ski station over the state of Wyoming.

Somewhere over Wyoming!

Somewhere over Wyoming!

Arrived in MSP, I thought it felt like when I arrive in Montreal! It is cold and there is snow. Ironically, it was colder in Atlanta than in Minneapolis. Jack showed me a cool place in Concourse D. We went up in an observatory over the terminal where we can see the airline’s ramp operations. Our plane from California landed about half an hour earlier so we were fortunate to have more time to explore the airport of Minneapolis. It was my first time at MSP so my friend showed me around (close to the whole airport). It was night by the time we landed so I couldn’t take any photos due to the reflection in the windows.

Last leg of the day: MSP to MCO.

Last leg of the day: MSP to MCO.

For the last leg of the trip to the Sunshine State, we both got upgraded to First Class. The plane was quite empty where there were even 2 front seats that were unoccupied and all most of the Comfort+ seats empty. It is the first time of the day that I started to get tired after a long day. I was happy to have made through the whole day. I actually thought I would be tired after the long transcontinental flight from ATL to SFO, but I wasn’t.

Upgraded to First Class on our flight between MSP and MCO. For dinner was a tomato basil soup, followed by a salmon with basmati rice, and a toffee almond cookie for dessert.

Upgraded to First Class on our flight between MSP and MCO. For dinner was a tomato basil soup, followed by salmon with basmati rice, and a toffee almond cookie for dessert.

Since 6:00AM of that morning flight, I have kept most of the complimentary snacks the flight attendants passed around. I had quite a large collection by the last flight!

I accumulated many snacks over the day!

I accumulated many snacks over the day!

Overall, we had flown 5,500 miles while sitting around 17 hours on an aircraft during a timespan of 18 hours. That is a lot of flying! We calculated that we paid less than 30 cents per minute (~$17 per hour) to fly around the country in one day! It was definitely worth it! I hope I will fly again this year on a crazier trip than this one if possible!

On our way back to Florida after a long day of flying!

On our way back to Florida after a long day of flying!

Until next time!

Nicolas

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

Flying All Over America – Part 1

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Hello!

This past Saturday, I flew over 21 states over the United States in less than 24 hours. I did this long trip with my friend Jack, who is also a student journal writer for Embry-Riddle. What was the purpose of this trip? We wanted to fly together just for fun. We would also accumulate more than 5,000 miles on this long journey.

Here was our planned itinerary: Orlando (MCO) – Atlanta (ATL) – San Francisco (SFO) – Minneapolis (MSP) – Orlando (MCO). In Part 1 of this exciting story, I will cover the flight segments until SFO. The remaining two flights until we land in MCO will be covered in Part 2.

Long flight ahead: ATL to SFO.

Long flight ahead: ATL to SFO.

Our day started very early has we had to drive to catch a 6:00AM flight in Orlando. The first flight to Atlanta was just over an hour from wheels up to touchdown. The thing I like about early morning flights is that you can see the sunrise from above.

When we arrived at the busiest airport of the world, we did not have much time to connect to for our next flight. Fortunately, our arriving flight and our departing flight were in the same concourse, so we did not have to take the Plane Train.

For the transcontinental flight to San Francisco, we were onboard a Boeing 767-300ER with one of Delta’s international configuration featuring lie-flat beds. I wished we got upgraded to the front cabin! We were seated in the first row of Comfort+ at an exit row, so we had plenty of legroom and space to walk around during the duration of the flight.

Delta has a crew base in SFO and uses this aircraft (B767-300ER) for transcontinental flights to New York-JFK and Atlanta.

Delta has a crew base in SFO and uses this aircraft (B767-300ER) for transcontinental flights to New York-JFK and Atlanta.

All the passengers were settled in their seat for an on-time departure when the captain announced a delay due to a problem with the main door. The door could not close and maintenance had to replace a part. The missing part of the door took a long time to arrive at the aircraft and it lead to a delay of about an hour before we got cleared for pushback.

My friend Jack and I are discussing with the flight crew while we were waiting for maintenance to repair a part on the main door.

My friend Jack and I are discussing with the flight crew while we were waiting for maintenance to repair a part on the main door.

In the mean time, we were granted permission by one of the flight attendants to go check out the flight deck. We spent about 45 minute talking with the first officer about aviation. The time went by fast and we returned to our seats because the airplane was ready to leave the gate.

The first officer's notes before the flight.

The first officer’s notes before the flight.

During the flight, we worked on a project for our Airline-Airport Operations class. We had to select an airport or airline and write a report on it. We were actually productive on that flight and did homework! As we approached the state of California, the flight attendants made a trivia to the passengers asking four questions related to the Super Bowl. The folks who got the most right answers would win a bottle of wine (I wished the question would be related on Delta!).

The attendants on our flight to SFO made a trivia with questions related to the Super Bowl. The passengers who got the correct answers got a bottle of wine!

The flight attendants on our flight to SFO made a trivia with questions related to the Super Bowl.

When we booked the trip at the beginning of the semester, we did not know it was during the Super Bowl weekend. At first, we thought the airport in San Francisco would be crowded, but it was not! At least for the time we were there.

Story to follow in Part 2!

Nicolas

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

Tour of the Bombardier CSeries

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On December 18, I had the opportunity to tour the Bombardier Facility in Mirabel, Canada, where the CRJ and the CSeries is built. It was a huge day for the company as they announced the certification of their new aircraft, the CS100. I was invited to the event as a media with AirwaysNews.

Program leaders on the CSeries program, along with government representatives of Canada held a press conference in the morning to announce the new jet’s certification. The multinational also announced that the first CS100 will be delivered to launch customer, Swiss International Air Lines, in the first half of 2016. The larger variant, the CS300, is scheduled to get certificated in the next six months and deliveries will begin in the second half of the year.

CS300

The Bombardier CS300.

Following the press release, the media was allowed to tour the new aircraft. I first visited the CS300. As I entered by the main door of the aircraft, I thought the cabin was very long. Once in service, this aircraft will seat a maximum of 160 passengers. The plane did not have any seats in the cabin because it was one of the testing flight. It was filled with various equipment and computers to monitor different components during flights.

I then boarded the CS100, which looked like a usual aircraft with seats installed. I headed to the flight deck to see the new technology the plane had to offer. It included side sticks instead of the regular yokes found on other plane. It was very impressive!

Flight deck of the CS100 aircraft.

Flight deck of the CS100 aircraft.

The CSeries is designed in a 3-2 configuration in economy class and 2-2 in first class. I particularly enjoy this configuration because only 20% of the seats in economy are middle seats. Everybody hates middle seats. I personally prefer a window seat because I like to enjoy the view! I think the cabin looks similar in size to Delta’s Boeing 717-200.

Inside the cabin of the CS100.

Inside the cabin of the CS100.

The aircraft offers large overhead bins to accommodate the large number of carry bags passengers board with them these days. The pivot bins enable passengers to store the bags sideways instead of flat in the overhead compartments. The CSeries has also a modern galley and modern restrooms to accommodate the passengers.

The pivot bins can support four carry-on bags.

The pivot bins can support four carry-on bags.

I really enjoyed spending half a day at the Bombardier facility in Mirabel. I knew I was going to attend the press conference, but it I didn’t know the media would be allowed to tour the new aircraft! You can read my full story and see more pictures on AirwaysNews.com.

Until next time!

Nicolas

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

A New Semester Is Taking Off

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Hello readers!

We have just started the spring semester and it’s almost February. The first few days of classes are never too busy. The professors usually go over the course syllabus, schedule, exams (oh no!), and other important things relevant to the class. For most of us, after the first week, we start to learn new material and get our first assignments. Winter break is now over and the work load starts to kick-in!

This semester, I am taking 6 classes including an online class. My schedule is very even; I am taking two classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and three classes on the other days.

I start the beginning of each week with International Aviation Management (BA 426). I already had the professor before so I know what to expect in the class and how she teaches. We started to learn some history on aviation worldwide, such as the first airmail routes, aviation during wars, and different international policies.

After my morning class, I go home for a short period of time, and then head back to campus for my last class of the day, Corporate Finance  (BA 332). As I get closer to school, I usually see an American Eagle CRJ 900 land! Like my BA 426 class, I already took the professor for this class. I took Dr. J’s Macroeconomics class during my first semester of college. He is one of my favorite professors I have taken at Embry-Riddle.

The next day is a busier day as I attend three classes in a row. I start with Airport Management (BA 310). During our last class, we took a short field trip to the AMS building close to the flight line. The building offers a great view of the Daytona International Airport. Our assignment consisted of finding different objects on the field. It was an easy assignment!

After that, I have an elective class, Airline-Airport Operations (BA 327). This class is a mix of Airline Management and Airport Management classes. We learn how airlines and airports work with each other in the industry.

My last class on campus is Managerial Accounting (BA 312). It is usually the class students take after Financial Accounting. It is not my favorite class at this time, but maybe it’ll change by the end of the semester, we never know.

The online class I am taking is Organizational Behavior (MGMT 317). There were no more seats available on the class offered on campus, so I decided to take it through the Worldwide campus. I took an online class last summer and it’s pretty much the same format than the class I’m currently taking. During this semester, I’ll write a story to describe the differences between online and regular classes. They both have their ups and downs.

On my next blog, I will go over some interesting events I attended during the winter break. Hope everyone has a great week!

Nicolas

Contact the author at berniern@my.erau.edu

A Quick Winter Vacation Update

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Happy New Year Folks!

Here is a quick update on my winter break. After the Christmas celebrations, my family and I flew to South Florida. My parents rented a condo in the Palm Beach area until March. We spent about a week there and I felt like home since Daytona Beach is only 190 miles up north.

During my stay in Florida, I went to the BB&T in Sunrise to watch the hockey game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Florida Panthers. This classic matchup happens annually before the end of the year.

This game is very special for both teams. This game happens at the end of the year because there are many Eastern Canadian hockey fans that fly to South Florida to enjoy the warm weather. The arena is usually filled up when the Canadiens are in town. However, the attendance is of only about 50% on average during other regular season games.

During the National Anthem before puck drop, there were more fans singing the “Oh Canada” than the US Anthem! The Canadian National Anthem was even sang in French. I would actually say there are more Canadiens fans in the stands than the local team. There are a lot of noise and cheers when the Canadiens score a goal. Way more than the Panthers!

We ended up losing the game, but it was still fun to be there!

A few days before New Year’s Eve, some of our Texan friends came to visit us for a few days in Florida. I haven’t seen the family for the past year in a half. The last time I saw them before I moved back to Montreal, after I graduated college in San Antonio. It was great to spend some time with them even though it was only for a few days. We played golf and celebrated the beginning of 2016 with them!

One night, we all ate dinner at “Chez L’Épicier,” a French Canadian restaurant owned by a reputed chef. Even some of the waiters spoke French! Below is a picture of one of the dessert they have on their menu. It is called “The Club Sandwich.” Carved pieces of cake replace the sandwich, fried pieces of pineapple act as the fries, and shredded honeydew melon plays the role of the coleslaw. It was delicious!

The Club Sandwich

The Club Sandwich

I’m currently writing this story at 33,000 feet above sea level on my way to Canada. I will spend the end of the week up north before returning to Daytona. I plan to see my friends and go ski in the cold weather!

Until next time!

Nicolas

2015 Stories: Delta SkyMiles Medallion Benefits

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Over the past year, I flew a lot on Delta Air Lines. I boarded 35 flights with the air carrier and half of those flights were to Atlanta. “How come have you been to Atlanta so many times this year?” my friends ask me. I actually never visited Atlanta in my whole life. I have only been through the airport to connect to my next flight.

I started to accumulate all my blading passes!

I started to accumulate all my boarding passes!

For those who did not know, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is home of Delta and is the busiest airport in the world. It will welcome its 100th million passenger of the of the year, by the end of December.

Since the beginning of 2015, I have accumulated numerous flights and miles with Delta, and over Thanksgiving break, I got my first frequent flyer status! I became Silver Medallion with Delta and at the same time, SkyTeam® Elite, since the airline is in the SkyTeam® alliance.

There are many great benefits that come along with the status, but first, lets discuss how to reach the status. To become Silver (lowest status), a customer needs 25,000 Qualification Miles (MQMs) or 30 Qualification Segments (MQSs). Customers also need to spend more than $3,000 every year with Delta. Those numbers increase by a lot for the other upper level statuses.

There are many advantages of being Silver Medallion® with Delta. Here are some of them.

The first perk is to be able to be added for free to the upgrade list for a First Class seat. Who doesn’t like to fly upfront with wider seats and greater legroom?

It is often rare to get upgraded as a Silver. One time, I was 39/41 on the upgrade list and there were only four seats available. There is another option if you want to have extra legroom and sip beer, wine, or spirits and snack on premium snacks. At time of check-in, you can select a Comfort+™ seat if there is availability. These seats are located between First Class and Main Cabin. A passenger upgrading its seat to Comfort+™ will spend up to $55 on a one-way flight between Daytona Beach and Atlanta.

Passengers also benefit from 2 extra miles per dollar spent. For example, if my roundtrip ticket from Daytona Beach to Atlanta was $800, I would get 1,600 bonus miles added to the amount of base miles for the trip.

One of my favorite (favourite for my Canadian readers) perk is the waived baggage fees. You can get a checked-baggage free of charge. This saves $50 round-trip per person.

At the airport, passengers can enjoy expedited check-in using the Sky Priority lane. Customers can also benefit from priority boarding and the order depends on the seat selected:

  • PREM: First Class customers
  • SKY: Delta Comfort+™
  • Zone 1: Silver Medallion®
  • Zone 2: Main Cabin

Now you know the main benefits of having a Silver status with Delta Air Lines. If you travel a lot, flying with the same airline might lead you to a frequent flyer status!

Until next time!

Nicolas

 

It’s a Wrap!

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The 2015 Fall semester has just ended! After a stressful week and a half of studying and testing, you can now relax for more than a month until school starts again in mid-January! If you did not know, ERAU has added an extra week of break this year compared to the previous years.

My last final was on Tuesday and it had a speech. As I mentioned in a post in October, Speech is definitely not my easiest and favorite class since I am shy and dislike public speaking. My last final consisted of an impromptu speech. The professor makes you pick a few topics from a bag. You decide which topic you want to talk about and you have three minutes to prepare to present in front of the class. Trust me, it goes by very fast. The subject I selected was for communities to be more bicycles friendly. Can we find peace? I just had the time to write the few key points I wanted to talk about that it was already my turn to get up to the podium. About half way through my speech, I ran out of ideas and paused for about 25 seconds without knowing what to say. Then my professor suggested me that I could just sum up my speech. I felt so bad about my speech when I back to my seat. I got my grade a few days later and I did not do bad at all to my surprise! I was happy about it.

I was lucky to get to spend the rest of the week in warm Florida before heading back home in the cold for most of the break. Hey there is no snow yet at least! I will spend some time during Christmas Eve and Christmas to see my extended family, which I do not see often. A few days later, my family and I will board a plane bound to the Sunshine State to spend a week and a half in the West Palm Beach area. We rented a condo until March! I will definitely head there some time with my friends next semester. Just before the New Year, there is always a hockey game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, FL. We bought ticket to watch the game. It is interesting to see that there are more fans cheering for Montreal than the local team. That is because many Canadians travel to Southern Florida to escape the cold winter.

After New Year, I have decided that I will go back to Canada for a few days since we will still have two weeks of vacation before school starts. When I come back to Daytona before classes start, I might go visit the Carolina Aviation Museum with my friend Jack. The Airbus A320 that safely landed in the Hudson River in January 2009 sits at the museum. Can’t wait to see it!

Sunset from above on my flight from Fort Lauderdale to Atlanta.

Sunset from above on my flight from Fort Lauderdale to Atlanta.

Well I’m about to board my next flight to Montreal. Now, I would like you to sit back, relax, and enjoy this month of deserved vacation. Come back well rested to Daytona Beach in January and be ready to start the next semester!

Until next time!

Nicolas