Forty years ago this month, the world held its breath in awe as the biggest passenger jet took to the skies. With a wingspan stretching nearly 70 yards, and its massive ‘big fan’ engines, the Boeing 747 seemed so vast that many who came to watch the maiden flight in Washington doubted it could get off the ground. But this giant icon of the aviation age took to the air with such mind-boggling ease, it left few in any doubt that the era of mass international travel had arrived. The ‘jumbo jet’, which was

two-and-a-half times bigger than any existing airliner of its time, made intercontinental travel possible for millions of people who had never even been inside an airport before. At the time, flying was the preserve of the rich and

famous. Now, it was within reach of the working man. Fares plummeted because of the economies of scale offered by a bigger plane - airlines could now fit far more passengers onboard. The “Everyman Plane,” as it was dubbed, has been so successful that four different versions of the 747 have been produced over the past three decades since the plane was first introduced. More than 1,200 747s have been delivered since Pan Am became the fi rst airliner to put the jet into service on its New York-to-London route in 1970. Among the most noteworthy 747s were the two delivered in 1990 to serve as the United States’ official presidential air transport - Air Force One. The 747 dream was the brainchild of

American entrepreneur Juan Trippe, the founder of Pan American Airlines. He was convinced fl ying should be available to everyone and wanted Boeing to build an aircraft that was much bigger than the 707s of the day. It was this ingenious craft that made international air travel possible for many more, and it truly could be said that Trippe was the father of international air travel.

The Port Authority announced a coalition to urge federal funding for an immediate overhaul of 1950s-era air traffi c control technology at a news conference on Feb. 25th in New York City. The news conference followed a Port Authority symposium featuring leaders of the region’s airline, business, travel and tourism industries discussing NextGen air traffi c technology. The symposium took a comprehensive look at the reasons behind air traffi c congestion and delays, how the issue impacts the region’s

economy, and how to advocate for a speedy fix by implementing NextGen, which works like an advanced GPS system that helps air traffic controllers move more aircraft more efficiently.

In the meantime, the New York-area skies have seen a huge traffi c bump over the past two decades—including a 48 percent increase between 1994 and 2004. So the FAA has set out to coax new efficiency from old technology. To help reorganize this airspace, the FAA called on Mitre, a Beltway R&D firm that works exclusively for the government. Mitre’s scientists and mathematicians, in cooperation with some of the region’s air traffi c controllers, are completely rethinking the fl ow of aircraft in and out of New York City. Current fl ight patterns evolved like a rabbit warren, with additions tacked on to an existing architecture. As airports grew busier and airplanes started fl ying higher and faster, that architecture became increasingly ineffi cient. The plan, the unfortunately named New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia Metropolitan Area Airspace Redesign, aims to bring order to the air. Think of it as a redrawn map of the roadways in the sky. While planes used to chugin and out of the city on a few packed roads, the redesign spreads out the aircraft by adding new arrival posts (exit ramps), departure gates (on-ramps), and takeoff headings (streets leading up to the intercity highways). But the biggest move will be making the space for all these additions. Mitre’s proposal is to extend the boundaries of this airborne city into a 31,180-square-mile area that stretches from Philadelphia to Albany to Montauk. The FAA started implementing the fi rst part of the plan - the new takeoff headings - in December

PRINCETON, NJ, February 17, 2009 – NAI Global today named Brian Pinnola at NAI Long Island in Melville, New York, to the NAI Global Elite, a group comprised of the organization’s top performers and top producers. Pinnola qualifi ed as a Top Producer based on production in 2008. Brian began his career 25 years ago with Bagnato Realty Services, the predecessor fi rm to NAI Long Island, and has specialized in the JFK Airport offi ce and warehouse market working with airlines, custom house brokers, freight forwarders, trucking companies, and all airport businesses. His father Andy Pinnola was a 36 year Port

Authority of New York and New Jersey employee in administration at Building 141. In 2001, Joseph Maffi a began working on Pinnola’s team, and they expanded their scope of services to include airports throughout the United States. Pinnola’s team has closed transactions at BWI, CVG, IND, LAX, ORD, SFO and is currently working at PVD. At JFK, they are the exclusive leasing agents for over 35 buildings comprising 650,000 square feet. At the 2009 NAI Global Convention in Las Vegas, Pinnola hosted and inaugurated the NAI Airports and Seaports Group with colleagues from NAI who service the major U.S. international airports. The NAI Airports and Seaports Group will provide seamless worldwide services using local professionals for all airport and seaport related businesses. NAI Global is the world’s premier network of commercial real estate fi rms and one of the largest real estate service providers worldwide. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, NAI Global manages a network of 5,000 professionals and 325 offi ces in 55 countries. NAI professionals complete over $45 billion in transactions annually. Since 1978, NAI Global clients have built their businesses on the power of NAI’s expanding network.

Recently, a group of Newark International Airport Airline Managers Council members attended a luncheon hosted by the Foundation of Children’s Hospital of New Jersey at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center to thank NIAAMCO for its loyal support. For the 10th straight year NIAAMCO has donated the proceeds of its annual fundraising dinner to the hospital. These multi-year gifts now total nearly $500,000 and have supported a

wide variety of programs and services at CHNJ, all of them with one common goal: giving hope and healing to the smallest and sickest patients in the region in an environment of compassion and medical excellence. NIAAMOC has helped CHNJ kids by supporting various hospital programs such as: Children’s Cardiac Services and Education, renovation to parts of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), a dedicated NICU ambulance, a dedicated Pediatric Pharmacy,