Our blog and welcome to it!

Welcome to Wheels Up, the weblog of Aircraft Data Fusion. We'll be getting under way in just a few moments. In the meantime, let's review the current situation.

The airline industry is currently undergoing change at a rate unknown throughout its history. Those of us who have spent our lives in this industry have seen it coming, and have been personally impacted in one way or another.

As a former pilot for Northwest Airlines, I have spent a great deal of time on various technology initiatives, always with the intent of improving the information flow between the aircraft and the enterprise. Think about it - the aircraft is the only thing in the airline industry that really makes any money. Yet it's the one part of the business that is disconnected from the overall enterprise network. In any other industry, this would be unacceptable. But in this industry, it's the way we've operated since the beginning.

This must change. It will change. Market forces dictate that it will change. The ability for airlines to maintain viability will rest on their using every possible bit of business intelligence and bring them to in creating competitive advantage. Doing this impacts everything: safety, delays, maintenance, fuel utilization, and of course profitability.

I founded Aircraft Data Fusion to help the industry navigate this transformation. Over my 30-plus years as a pilot, I have developed and refined a set of notions of how to use technology to streamline operations. I'd like to share some of those ideas here on this blog. Others you will be able to experience first hand through our products and services.