Enjoy!

Strange how often words are used we don't really know what they mean as they are subject to individual definition. Everybody tells me to "enjoy" this or the other (enjoy your meal, enjoy your day, enjoy the ride, enjoy, enjoy, enjoy). I have started to give a provocative answer and often say: "How is that done?"

"How is done what?" most people ask. How is "enjoying" done, I normally reply. Can you explain to me exactly how this famous "enjoying" works? Obviously nobody can give me a user's guide on how to enjoy. The same applies to more statements such as "being proud". How does "being proud" exactly work? Everybody can explain how to walk, how to swim, how to open a file on a computer etc. But people fail if they have to explain how to enjoy or how to be proud (or how to love...). Strange that we use words so much that we obviously can't explain...

My dad once said when we ate an ice cream (I tend to eat them quite fast): You don't enjoy it!

I said: "no? So how do I enjoy it then?". My dad said I would have to just suck off the top layer on the spoon, let it it melt in the mouth, then suck another layer off etc.

My answer: "If that is enjoying, I'd rather just eat it." 

The wise men of Gotham

Sometimes the Swiss legal system astonishes me: Yesterday the federal court (highest juridiction body of the country) decided that shops at gas stations are no longer allowed to sell certain groceries for 24 hours a day. This was to protect the staff so they don't have to work 24 hour shifts. The problem is that the gas stations are still allowed to sell gas 24 hours per day and to operate their Bistrot and Cafe corners. In other words they still sell sandwiches, bread, drinks and sweets. They are just not allowed to sell Spaghetti or Rice... So the staff will still have to work 24 hour shifts for the shops that stay open 24 hours a day. Makes a lot of sense, not so?

It's done

After some weeks of administrative work we have now achieved what is probably a milestone in ANI history. The company was operated since 1996 as what we call an "individual company". This is the legal form of a business and means amongst other that there is a single owner and he is 100% liable with his personal money.
As from now, the ANI operates as a Limited Company with a (small) board of directors and from a different head office:
Air Navigation Institute GmbH
Haldenstrasse 1
CH-6340 Baar
Switzerland

I am happy to present Erik Wirz as a new member of the board. He has a huge background as an senior executive. His track reccord includes 
positions like, Director for Compaq in Houston, vice President for CA in London/Barcelona among others.  He owns 5% of the ANI shares, I own the other 95%. I will act as the chairman of the board and obviously as the Master of Ceremony (a.k.a Managing Director).
For customers there is absolutely no change, everything remains the same. It's only an internal administrative change.
Recently I was often asked by customers for a company number or for a VAT number and could not provide one, as for individual companies registry with a number is not mandatory and training is not subject to VAT in Switzerland. Both issues are now no longer there. ANI training is still not subject to VAT but we have a VAT number.

Phone and Fax numbers in Baar can be found on the main ANI website. The old numbers are also valid as we still have the branch office in Interlaken.

ANI goes Nespresso

For those who have attended a course at the Interlaken location you will remember that coffee was always taken from that dreadful machine with the keycard. The coffee was dreadful. So I have now bought a Nespresso machine as the hard working students deserve a decent coffee.

Busy summer

Hello All,

Now that the football (!) world cup is over, we can re-focus on less important things, right? We have completed a very good advanced course in Pezinok, using the training facilities of ASAP. Participants from Switzerland (skyguide), United States (MITRE), Hungary (Hungarocontrol), Slovenia (Sloveniacontrol), Slovakia (LPS), Norway (Avinor), Russia (Federal State Unitary Enterprise) and ASAP themselves went through the criteria in APV Baro-VNAV, APV SBAS, RNP AR and Helicopter PinS approach and departures. This was a very interesting course creating a lot of interaction and feedback also back to the IFPP. Click here for some Photo impressions. Thanks Vladimir for the great pictures. After that, another class in PBN/RNAV was held in Tokyo and right now the next basic PANS-OPS course has started.

That's the report from the frontline. Gotta go to the class :-)

...and it's FOOTBALL, not Soccer!

Dear Americans,

All advanced material now available as distance learning

I had the APV Baro-VNAV as a distance learning/online course available for quite a while now. It was purchased by various organisations for a total of 16 procedure designers so far and produced amazing results as far as I am concerned. Obviously distant learning is a good concept especially for flight procedure designer with experience. So I have produced packages for SBAS VNAV, RNP AR and Helicopter PinS Approach and Departures. That means that all level 3 material is now available for distant/online learning.
Of course you can still attend advanced classroom courses if you prefer the interaction (or the chicken wings at the Brasserie 17 in Interlaken) ;-)

Discounted Flight

I keep getting these emails from the airlines I use the most, advertising their specials with low fare in economy class. Okay, that may be great for occasional travelers but I always think: Aren't economy tickets ALREADY cheap enough?? I mean an economy ticket on a long haul is normally not even self-sufficient. An airline actually finances the flight mainly with cargo and with premium tickets in first and business classes. Maybe it's just me but as somebody who flies an awful lot and pay premium fares all the time (I know - it's my personal choice, nobody forces me to do that) I always wonder why they don't make such offers for their customers who pay the expensive tickets. They seem to aim at occasional travelers, cold customers if you want. Would it not be more efficient to please the premium customers who give the airline repetitive business?