Good afternoon. Thanks for inviting me, Nick [Sabatini]. I always appreciate the opportunity to speak with the people on the front lines, especially the ones who are responsible for the tremendous safety record we’ve been able to establish. 24 months without a fatality. That’s one we’re going to be telling our grandkids about.
So, even with the record on one hand, we need to be absolutely frank about other events. The agency as a whole is taking quite a few hits. Parts of AVS have been at or near the center of some of that. Our other large organizations are in there too, case in point DFW TRACON.
What really stings about most of this is that some of the biggest wounds have been self-inflicted. It’s one thing to make a mistake and then be called upon to account for it. We understand that, and as aviation professionals, we expect it. But to knowingly sidestep the rules — well, I think we’d all agree that’s unacceptable at any level.
But I’m here to remind you of what I think should be obvious. Keep your chins up. Don’t let a few bad actors ruin your day. Your colleagues throughout the agency believe in you, and they stand by the work you do. I know I do. As a line pilot, I saw your work up close and personal.
Sometimes, more up close and personal than I’d have preferred, but that’s only because I am the greatest pilot in the world, and I’ve never made a mistake.
Kidding aside, the work of AVS is first rate. I think it. I believe it. And I see it every day. The reports I get from the industry about your professionalism confirm what I’m saying. The situation with the whistle blowers needed to be addressed, and it is. But not for one second did I think that it was representative of this entire organization. Not in the least.
As I hope you’ve discussed a bit over the course of this conference, we’re in the process of issuing a statement of the FAA’s commitment to safety. Let me say up front that our mission hasn’t changed, and it’s not going to. Safety first. This new policy statement reemphasizes the FAA’s commitment to safety. Over the years, policy statements sometimes collect dust, but we can’t afford to let that happen to this one. Our safety record, and your role in it, is without question.
But I want to draw your attention to the statement’s emphasis on your roles in communicating with employees to keep the paramount focus on safety. It’s something we need to make a priority. We have hurt ourselves by not communicating in an effective and timely manner with those who have raised safety concerns. Communication needs to start at the top all the way to the bottom. It needs to start at the bottom all the way to the top. This is about service to America. Safety is what they expect, and it’s what we’re going to deliver.
I came across an article the other day about something that’s near and dear to my heart. Fast cars. I went from the Academy into F-14s, and then I went to Top Gun. I bought a Corvette along the way — getting that before I got married was a better idea than I realized.
Back to the article. It was about street-legal racing. There’s a guy in Portland, Oregon, who has a car that’s dusting the Corvettes, the Carreras, the Mustangs. This guy, John Wayland, has a souped-up car that goes from zero to 60 in about 3 seconds.
This guy’s car is so fast that other racers look for a way to avoid being next to him in the queue. They know they can’t win.
Wayland calls this car the “White Zombie.” It’s a 72 Datsun. If you remember those little pieces of … history, they are a boxy economy sedan. What’s more, Wayland’s doesn’t burn a drop of gas.
It’s an electric car with two forklift motors and thirty-six 12-volt storage batteries crammed into the back seat and trunk. I think a turbo Carrera goes for about 110 grand, give or take. Wayland bought his Datsun used for $585. He beats just about everything off the line because those electric motors go from a dead stop to top speed a whole lot faster than any gas powered V-8 you can find.
But what really struck me in all this is the way the other racers viewed him. They avoided going head to head. When that didn’t work, they said he was unsafe. Then they tried to get the regulations for racing changed just to exclude the White Zombie. Then they said it just wasn’t fair. You know, watching a Viper scream out of the chute while a barely audible $585 Datsun blows by. Now you know what it takes to make a Viper cry.
But at its most basic level, what the gas-powered racers were doing was trying to keep the paradigm from shifting. They wanted it the old way — where they were comfortable and were the winners.
We’re at virtually the same spot. You know, at Oshkosh, I was looking at the electric powered airplanes. But as I’ve said before, aviation is always evolving. This is an industry that mutates and changes form every few years. The changes we’re in the middle of, I think few of us would have expected. Where was light sport 10 years ago? Did any of us think that VLJs would be the hot ticket? None of us expected 9/11, and the move to mid-size aircraft surprised a lot of us. If you pick up the Wall Street Journal, you’ll find more ads for time-share aircraft than you will time-share vacation homes. And then there’s the price of gas.
What I’m getting at is the need for us as an agency — and AVS in particular — to always keep ahead of the bow wave of change. Be ready to anticipate, and accept, new paradigms. Engines are changing. The use of composites is reshaping how hulls are built. The price of gas is changing what we fly and how we fly it.
I’ll leave it at this. This is the organization that gets the first look at the White Zombies of aviation. I’m thanking you for the professionalism you’ve shown up to this point, and I’m asking you to be vigilant as the next big thing comes along.
I know the events of the spring have made it difficult for you, and we do have some changes to make to ensure we improve our oversight. But our basic approach of SMS principles, data sharing, partnership, collaboration and voluntary disclosures is solid and we need to keep that balance regardless.
We’re going to have another hearing next month, and we’ve got some OSC issues to address, as does the ATO.
No doubt some of you will feel like you are being second-guessed, and some of you may have people who’ve never moved away from the approaches we’d been taking.
That said, we need to get things back in balance while also addressing the changes we need to make to remain a world-class organization.
That requires leadership, and I am depending on you to provide it. You are part of a great legacy of 50 years of safety. Two years accident-free. Fewer GA accidents than ever. Nearly seven years since the last large transport fatal accident.
Those are figures to be proud of, and I thank you for your role. But we all know the system is not perfect. So let’s not be complacent. Let’s strive for better results. Let’s be ready for industry changes. Let’s continue our work together by providing the leadership to keep this agency moving forward.
Thank you.
Fonte: FAA 29/08/2008.
sexta-feira, 29 de agosto de 2008
Jet makes emergency landing at Sky Harbor
An Alaska Airlines jet safely made an emergency landing Wednesday night at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport after a warning indicated a potential fire.Investigators say there were no signs indicating an actual fire.
The pilots on flight 639 responded to a flashing light, indicating a possible fire in the auxiliary power unit of the Boeing 737, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said.
The flight from Phoenix to Seattle returned safely to Sky Harbor at 7:18 p.m., and the 141 passengers were put on another flight that landed in Seattle shortly before midnight, Alaska Airlines spokesman Paul McElroy said.
Five crew members were also on board.The total flight delay was about two hours.
The FAA was still investigating the matter on Thursday.
http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2008/08/28/20080828abrk-alaskaflight.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
The pilots on flight 639 responded to a flashing light, indicating a possible fire in the auxiliary power unit of the Boeing 737, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said.
The flight from Phoenix to Seattle returned safely to Sky Harbor at 7:18 p.m., and the 141 passengers were put on another flight that landed in Seattle shortly before midnight, Alaska Airlines spokesman Paul McElroy said.
Five crew members were also on board.The total flight delay was about two hours.
The FAA was still investigating the matter on Thursday.
http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2008/08/28/20080828abrk-alaskaflight.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
BRS Chalks Up 214th Parachute Save
Pilot Pulls 'Chute After Losing Control In Severe Weather Without wading too deep into the controversy among many pilots about equipping aircraft with emergency parachutes, let's just say there's one pilot in Germany who was very happy to have one onboard when he felt there were no other options.
And he joins 213 others.Ballistic Recovery Systems, manufacturer of whole-aircraft emergency parachute systems, announced Thursday it was notified of an aircraft accident in Germany on Monday, August 25, where its parachute recovery system saved the life of its pilot.
The pilot of an FK14 Polaris light aircraft reportedly lost aerodynamic control of his aircraft upon encountering severe weather near the city of Cologne, Germany.
Realizing he was in a deteriorating situation, he elected to deploy his installed BRS emergency parachute system.The pilot subsequently landed in a grove of trees and walked away with only a sight scratch to his face.
The incident marks the 214th documented life saved by the patented BRS parachute system."Once again, I am extremely proud of the BRS team whose concerted efforts made such a difference to this pilot and his family," said BRS CEO Larry Williams.
"We are indeed privileged to work for a company that has designed, manufactured, and sold such a product which has saved so many lives through the years!"Since 1981, BRS has delivered more than 29,000 parachute systems to aircraft owners worldwide, including over 3,500 systems on FAA-certificated aircraft such as the Cirrus Design SR20 and SR22 manufactured in Duluth, MN.
A BRS chute will also come standard on Cirrus' upcoming SRS light-sport aircraft... which, as ANN has reported, is derived from the Fk14 Polaris.
FMI: www.brsparachutes.com aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
And he joins 213 others.Ballistic Recovery Systems, manufacturer of whole-aircraft emergency parachute systems, announced Thursday it was notified of an aircraft accident in Germany on Monday, August 25, where its parachute recovery system saved the life of its pilot.
The pilot of an FK14 Polaris light aircraft reportedly lost aerodynamic control of his aircraft upon encountering severe weather near the city of Cologne, Germany.
Realizing he was in a deteriorating situation, he elected to deploy his installed BRS emergency parachute system.The pilot subsequently landed in a grove of trees and walked away with only a sight scratch to his face.
The incident marks the 214th documented life saved by the patented BRS parachute system."Once again, I am extremely proud of the BRS team whose concerted efforts made such a difference to this pilot and his family," said BRS CEO Larry Williams.
"We are indeed privileged to work for a company that has designed, manufactured, and sold such a product which has saved so many lives through the years!"Since 1981, BRS has delivered more than 29,000 parachute systems to aircraft owners worldwide, including over 3,500 systems on FAA-certificated aircraft such as the Cirrus Design SR20 and SR22 manufactured in Duluth, MN.
A BRS chute will also come standard on Cirrus' upcoming SRS light-sport aircraft... which, as ANN has reported, is derived from the Fk14 Polaris.
FMI: www.brsparachutes.com aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Itek 737's recorders badly damaged: investigators
Russian investigators examining the flight recorders from the Itek Air Boeing 737-200 which crashed in Kyrgyzstan have found that both devices were badly damaged in the accident.
The 737 crashed on 24 August while attempting to return to the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, a few minutes after departing for Tehran. An intense fire consumed the aircraft.Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) is attempting to retrieve information from the flight-data and cockpit-voice recorders.But it states: "During the dismantling of the recorders' protective casing, the tape-recording mechanisms were found to have significant damage."Work is being carried out on the damaged media to read the data.
"MAK has not drawn any conclusions about the accident but says investigators are continuing to assess information from radar data and other sources. Twenty-five of the 90 occupants of the jet survived the accident.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
The 737 crashed on 24 August while attempting to return to the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, a few minutes after departing for Tehran. An intense fire consumed the aircraft.Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) is attempting to retrieve information from the flight-data and cockpit-voice recorders.But it states: "During the dismantling of the recorders' protective casing, the tape-recording mechanisms were found to have significant damage."Work is being carried out on the damaged media to read the data.
"MAK has not drawn any conclusions about the accident but says investigators are continuing to assess information from radar data and other sources. Twenty-five of the 90 occupants of the jet survived the accident.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Air France 747 slides off Montreal runway; no injuries
An Air France jumbo jet carrying more than 500 passengers and crew slid off a Montreal runway while landing Tuesday night, but there were no injuries, an airport spokeswoman said.
The Boeing 747 arriving at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport from Paris at about 6 p.m. ET came to a stop with its nose wheel in the grass by the tarmac, Stephanie Lepage said.
"It slid off the runway, but it's a minor situation and the crew members reported that there were no injured passengers," Lepage told CBC News. "We transported all the passengers through the terminal with the passenger transporter vehicle."
There was no apparent damage to the aircraft, most of which sat on its landing gear on the runway. Only the nose landing wheels were off the runway.
Air France released a statement Tuesday night saying it had opened an investigation and is co-operating with local authorities to determine the cause of the incident.
Federal Transportation Safety Board spokesman Julie Leroux said an investigation is underway, but she gave no other details.
An Air France plane skidded off a runway at Toronto's Pearson airport in 2005 and burst into flames. All 297 passengers and 12 crew members survived, suffering only minor injuries after the plane skidded into a ravine.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2008/08/27/air-france.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
The Boeing 747 arriving at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport from Paris at about 6 p.m. ET came to a stop with its nose wheel in the grass by the tarmac, Stephanie Lepage said.
"It slid off the runway, but it's a minor situation and the crew members reported that there were no injured passengers," Lepage told CBC News. "We transported all the passengers through the terminal with the passenger transporter vehicle."
There was no apparent damage to the aircraft, most of which sat on its landing gear on the runway. Only the nose landing wheels were off the runway.
Air France released a statement Tuesday night saying it had opened an investigation and is co-operating with local authorities to determine the cause of the incident.
Federal Transportation Safety Board spokesman Julie Leroux said an investigation is underway, but she gave no other details.
An Air France plane skidded off a runway at Toronto's Pearson airport in 2005 and burst into flames. All 297 passengers and 12 crew members survived, suffering only minor injuries after the plane skidded into a ravine.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2008/08/27/air-france.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
United Tech says tests world's fastest helicopter
BOSTON, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Diversified U.S. manufacturer United Technologies Corp, the world's second-largest helicopter maker, conducted the first test flight on Wednesday of what it called the world's fastest helicopter.
The prototype X2 aircraft has an estimated cruising speed of 250 knots, or 288 miles per hour (464 kmph), and has been in development since June 2005, United Tech's Sikorsky unit said.
The fastest helicopters on the market today top out at about 180 knots, or 207 miles per hour (333 kmph), according to Sikorsky officials. Textron Inc's V-22 Osprey tilt- rotor aircraft, which takes off and lands like a helicopter but flies like an airplane, cruises at about 275 knots, or 316 miles per hour (509 kmph).
In its first 30-minute test flight in Horseheads, New York, about 200 miles (320 km) northwest of New York City, the pilot did not attempt to bring the aircraft to its top speed, keeping it to 20 knots, or 23 miles per hour (37 kmph). It is common industry practice to test new aircraft at slower speeds first, said Jim Kagdis, the program manager over the X2 at Sikorsky. He said the company planned to test the aircraft's top speed by next year.
Kagdis estimated it could be another five to eight years before the aircraft is commercially available.
The X2 helicopter features two main rotors atop the cabin, which spin in opposite directions. That both neutralizes the spinning force applied to a traditional single-main-rotor helicopter and provides a speed boost.
Using the two opposing rotors also eliminates the need for the sideways tail rotor used to stabilize traditional helicopters. Instead of that sideways tail rotor, Sikorsky has added a third, backwards-facing tail rotor that provides additional speed.
The world's largest helicopter maker is Eurocopter, a unit of EADS NV. Other helicopter makers include Italy's AgustaWestland, a unit of defense company Finmeccanica SpA, Boeing Co and Textron's Bell unit.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/7756815
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
The prototype X2 aircraft has an estimated cruising speed of 250 knots, or 288 miles per hour (464 kmph), and has been in development since June 2005, United Tech's Sikorsky unit said.
The fastest helicopters on the market today top out at about 180 knots, or 207 miles per hour (333 kmph), according to Sikorsky officials. Textron Inc's V-22 Osprey tilt- rotor aircraft, which takes off and lands like a helicopter but flies like an airplane, cruises at about 275 knots, or 316 miles per hour (509 kmph).
In its first 30-minute test flight in Horseheads, New York, about 200 miles (320 km) northwest of New York City, the pilot did not attempt to bring the aircraft to its top speed, keeping it to 20 knots, or 23 miles per hour (37 kmph). It is common industry practice to test new aircraft at slower speeds first, said Jim Kagdis, the program manager over the X2 at Sikorsky. He said the company planned to test the aircraft's top speed by next year.
Kagdis estimated it could be another five to eight years before the aircraft is commercially available.
The X2 helicopter features two main rotors atop the cabin, which spin in opposite directions. That both neutralizes the spinning force applied to a traditional single-main-rotor helicopter and provides a speed boost.
Using the two opposing rotors also eliminates the need for the sideways tail rotor used to stabilize traditional helicopters. Instead of that sideways tail rotor, Sikorsky has added a third, backwards-facing tail rotor that provides additional speed.
The world's largest helicopter maker is Eurocopter, a unit of EADS NV. Other helicopter makers include Italy's AgustaWestland, a unit of defense company Finmeccanica SpA, Boeing Co and Textron's Bell unit.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/7756815
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
NTSB Issues 'Safety Alert' To Pilots On Flying Near Thunderstorms
Remember: ATC Is NOT Required To Advise You Of Wx
Citing a recent spate of investigations identifying several accidents that appear to at least partly attributable to in-flight encounters with severe weather, the National Transportation Safety Board has posted a "Safety Alert" telling pilots to be extra cautious about their surroundings, especially when they see towering cumulus.
In the alert, the NTSB cites four examples of recent accidents in which aircraft on IFR flight plans entered areas of severe weather, with no advance warning from air traffic controllers. One of the accidents cited -- though not by name -- is the April 2006 loss near Ludville, GA of a Cessna 210A flown by legendary test pilot Scott Crossfield.
"These accidents have all involved aircraft operating under instrument flight rules and in contact with air traffic controllers," notes the NTSB in bullet points. "Investigations show that pilots were either not advised about areas of severe weather ahead or were given incomplete information...
Each pilot had readily available alternatives that, if utilized, would have likely prevented the accident."
The NTSB notes ATC is not required to provide weather information to pilots operating under instrument flight rules. Furthermore, the weather information available to enroute controllers is limited to radar depictions of areas of severe precipitation. While those echoes are often an indicator of intense thunderstorm activity, they're not foolproof.
That said, the Board notes a better effort should be made to advise pilots when they're flying close to areas of severe weather... though the NTSB falls short of suggesting controllers should be held responsible for not warning pilots of severe weather.
"Severe weather avoidance is primarily your responsibility," the Board writes. "The primary job of ATC is to keep IFR aircraft separated. When their workload permits, controllers are also required to provide additional services such as weather advisories, and, upon pilot request, suggested headings to avoid radar-displayed precipitation."
The complete SA includes information about the classification of thunderstorms, and how to interpret ATC weather advisories.
It behooves anyone who regularly flies IFR -- make that ANY pilot, VFR or IFR, and especially if you fly at night -- to review the NTSB's SA. It's available at the top of the NTSB home page, as well as at the FMI link below.
FMI: http://ntsb.gov/alerts/SA_011.pdf aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Citing a recent spate of investigations identifying several accidents that appear to at least partly attributable to in-flight encounters with severe weather, the National Transportation Safety Board has posted a "Safety Alert" telling pilots to be extra cautious about their surroundings, especially when they see towering cumulus.
In the alert, the NTSB cites four examples of recent accidents in which aircraft on IFR flight plans entered areas of severe weather, with no advance warning from air traffic controllers. One of the accidents cited -- though not by name -- is the April 2006 loss near Ludville, GA of a Cessna 210A flown by legendary test pilot Scott Crossfield.
"These accidents have all involved aircraft operating under instrument flight rules and in contact with air traffic controllers," notes the NTSB in bullet points. "Investigations show that pilots were either not advised about areas of severe weather ahead or were given incomplete information...
Each pilot had readily available alternatives that, if utilized, would have likely prevented the accident."
The NTSB notes ATC is not required to provide weather information to pilots operating under instrument flight rules. Furthermore, the weather information available to enroute controllers is limited to radar depictions of areas of severe precipitation. While those echoes are often an indicator of intense thunderstorm activity, they're not foolproof.
That said, the Board notes a better effort should be made to advise pilots when they're flying close to areas of severe weather... though the NTSB falls short of suggesting controllers should be held responsible for not warning pilots of severe weather.
"Severe weather avoidance is primarily your responsibility," the Board writes. "The primary job of ATC is to keep IFR aircraft separated. When their workload permits, controllers are also required to provide additional services such as weather advisories, and, upon pilot request, suggested headings to avoid radar-displayed precipitation."
The complete SA includes information about the classification of thunderstorms, and how to interpret ATC weather advisories.
It behooves anyone who regularly flies IFR -- make that ANY pilot, VFR or IFR, and especially if you fly at night -- to review the NTSB's SA. It's available at the top of the NTSB home page, as well as at the FMI link below.
FMI: http://ntsb.gov/alerts/SA_011.pdf aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Hijacked plane passengers released
Sudanese rebels release 87 passengers on a Libyan airstrip, but the crew remain on-board
Hijackers have released 87 passengers from a Boeing 737 seized on Tuesday shortly after taking off from the Darfur region, but are still holding the eight crew members hostage, the Libyan aviation authority said today.
The plane, which had been en route to the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, was taken over by suspected Darfur rebels and diverted to a second world war airstrip in Kufra, a remote town in the Libyan Sahara desert.
Sudan's foreign ministry called the hijacking an "irresponsible terrorist act" and said they wanted the hijackers to be extradited.
The Kufra airport director, Khaled Sasiya, said he spoke to one of the hijackers, who identified himself as Yassin and said they were from the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), led by Abdel Wahid al-Nur. But a spokesman for the movement denied any involvement. Yahia Bolad said the group had "no relation to this act".
Libyan officials said the passengers were released yesterday. There have been reports the hijackers demanded fuel and maps to fly to Paris.
Bernard Kouchner, the French foreign minister, told Europe-1 radio that the SLM leader, who lives in Paris, denied he was in contact with the hijackers. "He says he doesn't know these people and that he absolutely refuses to use such methods," Kouchner said. "It's not his way. He's rather a peaceful man."
The hijacked airliner belonged to a private company, Sun Air, the Sudanese civil aviation authority said in a statement carried by the Sudan Media Center, which has close links to the government.
The Kufra airport director said the hijacker he spoke to told him that the poor air-conditioning system on the plane was creating breathing problems and that some passengers had fainted.
An airpot security official said among the passengers were former rebels who have become members of the Transitional Darfur Regional Authority, an interim government body. The authority is responsible for implementing a peace agreement reached in 2006 between the government and one of the rebel factions.
There was conflicting information about the hijackers' identities and how many there were.
A Libyan official at the Kufra airport said on Tuesday that there were 10 hijackers belonging to a Darfur rebel group. The official Sudanese news agency, SUNA, reported Wednesday that Sun Air put the number of the hijackers at four.
Sudan's consul in Kufra, Mohammed al-Bila Othman, told Suna there were about 500 security and police personnel at the airport as well as ambulances and firefighting vehicles.
The chief of police of the southern Darfur province, Major General Fathul-Rahamn Othman, told Suna that the hijacking aimed to "destabilize security".
Darfur's ethnic African rebels have been fighting the Arab-led Khartoum government since 2003 in a conflict the UN says has killed up to 300,000 people and driven 2.5 million from their homes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/aug/27/sudan?gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Hijackers have released 87 passengers from a Boeing 737 seized on Tuesday shortly after taking off from the Darfur region, but are still holding the eight crew members hostage, the Libyan aviation authority said today.
The plane, which had been en route to the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, was taken over by suspected Darfur rebels and diverted to a second world war airstrip in Kufra, a remote town in the Libyan Sahara desert.
Sudan's foreign ministry called the hijacking an "irresponsible terrorist act" and said they wanted the hijackers to be extradited.
The Kufra airport director, Khaled Sasiya, said he spoke to one of the hijackers, who identified himself as Yassin and said they were from the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), led by Abdel Wahid al-Nur. But a spokesman for the movement denied any involvement. Yahia Bolad said the group had "no relation to this act".
Libyan officials said the passengers were released yesterday. There have been reports the hijackers demanded fuel and maps to fly to Paris.
Bernard Kouchner, the French foreign minister, told Europe-1 radio that the SLM leader, who lives in Paris, denied he was in contact with the hijackers. "He says he doesn't know these people and that he absolutely refuses to use such methods," Kouchner said. "It's not his way. He's rather a peaceful man."
The hijacked airliner belonged to a private company, Sun Air, the Sudanese civil aviation authority said in a statement carried by the Sudan Media Center, which has close links to the government.
The Kufra airport director said the hijacker he spoke to told him that the poor air-conditioning system on the plane was creating breathing problems and that some passengers had fainted.
An airpot security official said among the passengers were former rebels who have become members of the Transitional Darfur Regional Authority, an interim government body. The authority is responsible for implementing a peace agreement reached in 2006 between the government and one of the rebel factions.
There was conflicting information about the hijackers' identities and how many there were.
A Libyan official at the Kufra airport said on Tuesday that there were 10 hijackers belonging to a Darfur rebel group. The official Sudanese news agency, SUNA, reported Wednesday that Sun Air put the number of the hijackers at four.
Sudan's consul in Kufra, Mohammed al-Bila Othman, told Suna there were about 500 security and police personnel at the airport as well as ambulances and firefighting vehicles.
The chief of police of the southern Darfur province, Major General Fathul-Rahamn Othman, told Suna that the hijacking aimed to "destabilize security".
Darfur's ethnic African rebels have been fighting the Arab-led Khartoum government since 2003 in a conflict the UN says has killed up to 300,000 people and driven 2.5 million from their homes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/aug/27/sudan?gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Hijacked Sudanese Airliner Lands In Libya
Captors' Motives Unknown At This Time
Very little hard information is known at this moment... but CNN reports a Sudanese airliner was hijacked shortly after taking off from Nyala in the country's war-torn Darfur region Tuesday.
The airliner has since landed in Kifra, Libya, according to media reports. At this point, it's not known how many passengers are onboard the plane, or what the hijacker-or-hijackers' intentions may be.
Such hijackings are not uncommon. In 2007, two Sudanese flights were hijacked. One later landed safely in Khartoum, the plane's original destination; the second diverted to Chad, where it also made a safe landing.
In both cases, the hijackers were taken into custody and no passengers were harmed.
In at least one of those cases, the hijackers said they wanted to bring international attention to the situation in Darfur, where a violent ethnic and tribal war has raged for over five years between Sudanese officials, and a number of rebel groups.
FMI: www.caaofsudan.org/ENGLISH/tender_r.htm
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Very little hard information is known at this moment... but CNN reports a Sudanese airliner was hijacked shortly after taking off from Nyala in the country's war-torn Darfur region Tuesday.
The airliner has since landed in Kifra, Libya, according to media reports. At this point, it's not known how many passengers are onboard the plane, or what the hijacker-or-hijackers' intentions may be.
Such hijackings are not uncommon. In 2007, two Sudanese flights were hijacked. One later landed safely in Khartoum, the plane's original destination; the second diverted to Chad, where it also made a safe landing.
In both cases, the hijackers were taken into custody and no passengers were harmed.
In at least one of those cases, the hijackers said they wanted to bring international attention to the situation in Darfur, where a violent ethnic and tribal war has raged for over five years between Sudanese officials, and a number of rebel groups.
FMI: www.caaofsudan.org/ENGLISH/tender_r.htm
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Meltdown: Communications Failure Leads To Ground Delays Nationwide
FAA Facility In Atlanta Unable To Receive Flight Plans
Computer problems at a flight control center near Atlanta, GA have snagged flights nationwide, leading to widespread delays throughout the air traffic control network.
The center, located in the Atlanta suburb of Hampton, had a communication link failure in the network about 1:30 pm EDT, said FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen. The center handles instrument flight plans filed for aircraft departing from airports in the eastern portion of the United States.
"As a result, all the flight plans for any instrument flights nationwide are having to be processed through a similar facility in Salt Lake City," Bergen told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "So that's slowing things down."
Initially, the problem impacted transcontinental routes -- those flights requiring coordination between both centers. However, the ripple effect has since spread nationwide, affecting all flights.
Bergan stressed the problems are not affecting safety of planes already in the air, or on approach to land. However, the time lag in releasing IFR flights has led to delays as long as 90 minutes on the ground in Atlanta, as well as already-congested airports around New York City, and in Chicago.
Storms in the vicinity of several large commercial airports, including ATL, are also compounding the problems. It's possible those 90-minute delays could stretch out for hours, and likely result in cancelled flights.
FMI: www.fly.faa.gov aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
Computer problems at a flight control center near Atlanta, GA have snagged flights nationwide, leading to widespread delays throughout the air traffic control network.
The center, located in the Atlanta suburb of Hampton, had a communication link failure in the network about 1:30 pm EDT, said FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen. The center handles instrument flight plans filed for aircraft departing from airports in the eastern portion of the United States.
"As a result, all the flight plans for any instrument flights nationwide are having to be processed through a similar facility in Salt Lake City," Bergen told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "So that's slowing things down."
Initially, the problem impacted transcontinental routes -- those flights requiring coordination between both centers. However, the ripple effect has since spread nationwide, affecting all flights.
Bergan stressed the problems are not affecting safety of planes already in the air, or on approach to land. However, the time lag in releasing IFR flights has led to delays as long as 90 minutes on the ground in Atlanta, as well as already-congested airports around New York City, and in Chicago.
Storms in the vicinity of several large commercial airports, including ATL, are also compounding the problems. It's possible those 90-minute delays could stretch out for hours, and likely result in cancelled flights.
FMI: www.fly.faa.gov aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 29/08/2008.
NTSB TO OPEN PUBLIC DOCKET ON 2007 MIDAIR CRASH INVOLVING TWO NEWS HELICOPTERS IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
August 26, 2008
Washington, DC -- As part of the ongoing investigation of a midair collision involving two news helicopters in Phoenix, Arizona, the National Transportation Safety Board will open a public docket containing factual reports for this investigation on Thursday, August 28, 2008, at 11:00 a.m.
On July 27, 2007 two news helicopters collided in midair while covering a police pursuit in Phoenix, Arizona. The commercial pilots of both helicopters and one photojournalist in each helicopter sustained fatal injuries.
The information being released is factual in nature and does not provide any analysis. It will include investigative group factual reports and other documents. Additional material will be added to the docket as it becomes available. Analysis of the accident, along with conclusions and a determination of probable cause, will come at a later date when the final report on the investigation is completed.
The docket material will be available on the NTSB website at www.ntsb.gov in the FIOA electronic reading room.
Washington, DC 20594
August 26, 2008
Washington, DC -- As part of the ongoing investigation of a midair collision involving two news helicopters in Phoenix, Arizona, the National Transportation Safety Board will open a public docket containing factual reports for this investigation on Thursday, August 28, 2008, at 11:00 a.m.
On July 27, 2007 two news helicopters collided in midair while covering a police pursuit in Phoenix, Arizona. The commercial pilots of both helicopters and one photojournalist in each helicopter sustained fatal injuries.
The information being released is factual in nature and does not provide any analysis. It will include investigative group factual reports and other documents. Additional material will be added to the docket as it becomes available. Analysis of the accident, along with conclusions and a determination of probable cause, will come at a later date when the final report on the investigation is completed.
The docket material will be available on the NTSB website at www.ntsb.gov in the FIOA electronic reading room.
terça-feira, 26 de agosto de 2008
NTSB SENDS TEAM TO INVESTIGATE PLANE CRASH NEAR
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
August 23, 2008
The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched a team to investigate an airplane accident in a remote area about 3 miles south of the Canyonlands Field Airport (CNY) near Moab, Utah. The Beech A100 King Air (N601PC) crashed at about 6:15 p.m. MDT last night.
The airplane was destroyed by fire. Several fatalities have been reported.NTSB Investigator Tealeye Corneyo has been designated as Investigator-in-Charge and will lead the two-member team.
Fonte: NTSB Advisory 26/08/2008.
Washington, DC 20594
August 23, 2008
The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched a team to investigate an airplane accident in a remote area about 3 miles south of the Canyonlands Field Airport (CNY) near Moab, Utah. The Beech A100 King Air (N601PC) crashed at about 6:15 p.m. MDT last night.
The airplane was destroyed by fire. Several fatalities have been reported.NTSB Investigator Tealeye Corneyo has been designated as Investigator-in-Charge and will lead the two-member team.
Fonte: NTSB Advisory 26/08/2008.
NTSB SENDS TEAM TO GUATEMALA TO ASSIST WITH CESSNA AIRCRAFT
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
August 24, 2008
The National Transportation Safety Board will be sending a team of investigators to Cabanas, Zacapa, Guatemala, to assist in the investigation of today's accident in which a Cessna CE-208 turboprop (Guatemalan reg. unknown), crashed during a forced landing. The airplane was being operated by Aereo Ruta Maya airlines. Multiple injuries and fatalities have been reported.
There are also reports that several U.S. citizens were on the flight.NTSB Acting Chairman Mark V. Rosenker has designated senior air safety investigator Luke Schiada as the U.S. Accredited Representative. The U.S. team will also include technical advisors from the FAA and the Cessna Aircraft Company.
Fonte: NTSB Advisory 24/08/2008.
Washington, DC 20594
August 24, 2008
The National Transportation Safety Board will be sending a team of investigators to Cabanas, Zacapa, Guatemala, to assist in the investigation of today's accident in which a Cessna CE-208 turboprop (Guatemalan reg. unknown), crashed during a forced landing. The airplane was being operated by Aereo Ruta Maya airlines. Multiple injuries and fatalities have been reported.
There are also reports that several U.S. citizens were on the flight.NTSB Acting Chairman Mark V. Rosenker has designated senior air safety investigator Luke Schiada as the U.S. Accredited Representative. The U.S. team will also include technical advisors from the FAA and the Cessna Aircraft Company.
Fonte: NTSB Advisory 24/08/2008.
Mid-flight scare as Ryanair jet makes emergency landing
Arctic explorer Pen Hadow and his family were among scores of British holidaymakers who thought they were “going to die” when the Ryanair jet in which they were travelling was forced to make an emergency landing in France late last night.
Sixteen people were hospitalised and treated with ear problems after the plane, en route from England to Spain, was forced to land at Limoges International Airport in western France as a "safety precaution", following the loss of cabin pressure.
Mr Hadow, who became the first man to walk solo and unsupported from the northern coast of Canada to the North Pole in 2003, was on board the flight, from Bristol to Barcelona-Girona, along with his wife, Mary, and their son and daughter.
He said there was a loud sound as the cabin pressure dropped and there was a “sudden drop in temperature and a rush of cold air” as the plane plummeted.
“You think to yourself: God, is there a hole in the aircraft? It actually felt like somebody had opened a door in the back of the aircraft,” he said.
Mr Hadow, whose son was one of those taken to hospital, said a number of oxygen masks inside the plane had failed and many of the passengers appeared to be in shock.
"I would say some people thought we were going to die - that is how frightening it was. The woman sitting in the seats in front of us was whimpering," he said.
He added some people had cried with relief when the plane landed safely, while others had clapped.
A Ryanair spokeswoman said flight staff had followed the correct procedures.
"Ryanair confirms that the FR9336 from Bristol airport to Barcelona Girona airport on the evening of August 25 experienced an inflight depressurisation incident which caused the oxygen masks on board to deploy," she said.
"As a safety precaution the captain descended and diverted the aircraft to Limoges Airport at approximately 23.30 local French time.
"All 168 passengers disembarked safely upon landing. A total of 16 passengers together with five accompanying family members have transferred, at their request, to a local hospital complaining of ear ache."
The spokeswoman said a replacement aircraft would take passengers on to Spain this morning.
It is the second passenger scare in a week for the Dublin-based budget airline. On Friday, a live gun cartridge was reportedly found by a passenger on board a plane which was about to take off from Dublin airport. The plane was evacuated immediately.
It also comes amid troubled times for the aviation industry.
Last week a Spanair jet, which was packed with families bound for holidays on the Canary Islands, crashed during take-off, killing 154 people on board and badly injuring 18.
And Australia’s major airline Qantas, encountered problems when a Boeing 747 flying from London to Melbourne was forced to make an emergency landing in Manila last month after an oxygen cylinder exploded mid-air, ripping a massive hold in the jumbo jet’s fuselage. None of the 346 passengers or 19 crew were injured.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/news/article4610209.ece
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Sixteen people were hospitalised and treated with ear problems after the plane, en route from England to Spain, was forced to land at Limoges International Airport in western France as a "safety precaution", following the loss of cabin pressure.
Mr Hadow, who became the first man to walk solo and unsupported from the northern coast of Canada to the North Pole in 2003, was on board the flight, from Bristol to Barcelona-Girona, along with his wife, Mary, and their son and daughter.
He said there was a loud sound as the cabin pressure dropped and there was a “sudden drop in temperature and a rush of cold air” as the plane plummeted.
“You think to yourself: God, is there a hole in the aircraft? It actually felt like somebody had opened a door in the back of the aircraft,” he said.
Mr Hadow, whose son was one of those taken to hospital, said a number of oxygen masks inside the plane had failed and many of the passengers appeared to be in shock.
"I would say some people thought we were going to die - that is how frightening it was. The woman sitting in the seats in front of us was whimpering," he said.
He added some people had cried with relief when the plane landed safely, while others had clapped.
A Ryanair spokeswoman said flight staff had followed the correct procedures.
"Ryanair confirms that the FR9336 from Bristol airport to Barcelona Girona airport on the evening of August 25 experienced an inflight depressurisation incident which caused the oxygen masks on board to deploy," she said.
"As a safety precaution the captain descended and diverted the aircraft to Limoges Airport at approximately 23.30 local French time.
"All 168 passengers disembarked safely upon landing. A total of 16 passengers together with five accompanying family members have transferred, at their request, to a local hospital complaining of ear ache."
The spokeswoman said a replacement aircraft would take passengers on to Spain this morning.
It is the second passenger scare in a week for the Dublin-based budget airline. On Friday, a live gun cartridge was reportedly found by a passenger on board a plane which was about to take off from Dublin airport. The plane was evacuated immediately.
It also comes amid troubled times for the aviation industry.
Last week a Spanair jet, which was packed with families bound for holidays on the Canary Islands, crashed during take-off, killing 154 people on board and badly injuring 18.
And Australia’s major airline Qantas, encountered problems when a Boeing 747 flying from London to Melbourne was forced to make an emergency landing in Manila last month after an oxygen cylinder exploded mid-air, ripping a massive hold in the jumbo jet’s fuselage. None of the 346 passengers or 19 crew were injured.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/news/article4610209.ece
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Canadian Regional Carrier Removes Life Vests From Planes
Saves Less Than 100 Lbs Per Plane... But Every Little Bit Helps
Let's imagine for a minute that you own a major airline. If there was a piece of equipment onboard your planes that adds weight, but is seldom used -- and may be of dubious assistance if it is called upon -- might it be prudent to remove that equipment, in order to save those pounds and, by extension, even a small bit of fuel?
Air Canada's regional affiliate, Jazz, says yes... but some object to what the carrier recently removed from its planes: the life vests.
Transport Canada says the airline is within its rights. The regulations allow airliners to fly over water without life vests, as long as those flights fly within 50 nautical miles of the shore. Jazz altered several routes along the eastern coast of Canada and the United States to comply with the rule.
"We operate within Transport Canada regulations and in this case we're within their regulations for operations over water," Jazz spokesperson Debra Williams told The Toronto Star.
The planes will still be equipped with floatation seat cushions, which passengers may strap themselves to in order to keep afloat. But Tom Hinton, formerly director for aviation at Canada's Transportation Safety Board, says those cushions have "always been a kind of a Plan B," and weren't meant to be the primary means of survival.
"It's standard that any airplane has to be evacuated within a couple of minutes and if you've got everybody standing up in the aisles trying to tear up their seat cushion, and carry it under their arms, and get out a hatch, it's really going to slow things down," said Hinton, now a consultant on aviation safety.
"The person has to hold on to it and the difficulty there is if the water is cold ... you can't hang on very long before your fingers and your hands won't respond," he adds.
In comparison, life vests are designed to keep the wearer's head above water, so they can breathe. But Hinton admits that's little comfort, given the cold waters Jazz flights operate over. "[I]t's not likely you're going to drown, but the issue is the time spent in the water and how much body heat you lose before you die of hypothermia," he says.
Each life vest weighs just over one pound... so figure about an 85 lbs. savings on a 75-seat aircraft. That's not a lot... but in this age when airlines are desperately fighting to recoup losses wherever they can, even a miniscule savings is worthwhile for the airlines.
"When you're trying to save every bit of money you can to make the airline more productive, every bit counts," Hinton said.
Rotman School of Management professor Joseph D'Cruz has studied the airline industry for 25 years. He estimates at most, Jazz will save about two percent in its fuel costs by ditching the life vests, and taking other weight-saving steps such as carrying less water for passengers.
Jazz's action "says to me that the financial circumstances of the airline industry are in such disarray that a 1 percent cost is being considered worthwhile," says D'Cruz. "I think accumulatively, it's making air travel a relatively unpleasant experience."
FMI: www.flyjazz.ca
aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Let's imagine for a minute that you own a major airline. If there was a piece of equipment onboard your planes that adds weight, but is seldom used -- and may be of dubious assistance if it is called upon -- might it be prudent to remove that equipment, in order to save those pounds and, by extension, even a small bit of fuel?
Air Canada's regional affiliate, Jazz, says yes... but some object to what the carrier recently removed from its planes: the life vests.
Transport Canada says the airline is within its rights. The regulations allow airliners to fly over water without life vests, as long as those flights fly within 50 nautical miles of the shore. Jazz altered several routes along the eastern coast of Canada and the United States to comply with the rule.
"We operate within Transport Canada regulations and in this case we're within their regulations for operations over water," Jazz spokesperson Debra Williams told The Toronto Star.
The planes will still be equipped with floatation seat cushions, which passengers may strap themselves to in order to keep afloat. But Tom Hinton, formerly director for aviation at Canada's Transportation Safety Board, says those cushions have "always been a kind of a Plan B," and weren't meant to be the primary means of survival.
"It's standard that any airplane has to be evacuated within a couple of minutes and if you've got everybody standing up in the aisles trying to tear up their seat cushion, and carry it under their arms, and get out a hatch, it's really going to slow things down," said Hinton, now a consultant on aviation safety.
"The person has to hold on to it and the difficulty there is if the water is cold ... you can't hang on very long before your fingers and your hands won't respond," he adds.
In comparison, life vests are designed to keep the wearer's head above water, so they can breathe. But Hinton admits that's little comfort, given the cold waters Jazz flights operate over. "[I]t's not likely you're going to drown, but the issue is the time spent in the water and how much body heat you lose before you die of hypothermia," he says.
Each life vest weighs just over one pound... so figure about an 85 lbs. savings on a 75-seat aircraft. That's not a lot... but in this age when airlines are desperately fighting to recoup losses wherever they can, even a miniscule savings is worthwhile for the airlines.
"When you're trying to save every bit of money you can to make the airline more productive, every bit counts," Hinton said.
Rotman School of Management professor Joseph D'Cruz has studied the airline industry for 25 years. He estimates at most, Jazz will save about two percent in its fuel costs by ditching the life vests, and taking other weight-saving steps such as carrying less water for passengers.
Jazz's action "says to me that the financial circumstances of the airline industry are in such disarray that a 1 percent cost is being considered worthwhile," says D'Cruz. "I think accumulatively, it's making air travel a relatively unpleasant experience."
FMI: www.flyjazz.ca
aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Spanish jet makes unscheduled landing
Spanair MD-82 makes unscheduled landing at airport in southern Spain
Incident comes just five days after Spanair MD-82 crashed at Madrid's airport
Death toll from Wednesday's crash now 154
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- A Spanair MD-82 jet made an unscheduled landing at an airport in southern Spain Sunday, just five days after another MD-82 operated by the airline crashed at Madrid's airport killing 154 people, Spain's airport authority said.
The plane landed safely at Malaga, a major airport on the Spanish mainland's southern coast, after the pilot radioed air traffic controllers reporting a problem in flight, the officials said.
The flight originated in Barcelona and was bound for Lanzarote on Spain's Canary Islands.
Flight JKK 2565 was carrying 141 passengers who were taken to a Malaga hotel while the plane was being examined, according to Barcelona newspaper El Periodico.
It appeared to be a charter, rather than a regularly scheduled flight, a Spanair telephone operator told CNN, referring the call to the company's charter line, which did not immediately answer.
The death toll from Wednesday's crash rose to 154 Friday after one of 19 people who initially survived died in a hospital.
That flight, which crashed on take-off from Madrid, was bound for Las Palmas, a major city on one of the Canary Islands.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Incident comes just five days after Spanair MD-82 crashed at Madrid's airport
Death toll from Wednesday's crash now 154
MADRID, Spain (CNN) -- A Spanair MD-82 jet made an unscheduled landing at an airport in southern Spain Sunday, just five days after another MD-82 operated by the airline crashed at Madrid's airport killing 154 people, Spain's airport authority said.
The plane landed safely at Malaga, a major airport on the Spanish mainland's southern coast, after the pilot radioed air traffic controllers reporting a problem in flight, the officials said.
The flight originated in Barcelona and was bound for Lanzarote on Spain's Canary Islands.
Flight JKK 2565 was carrying 141 passengers who were taken to a Malaga hotel while the plane was being examined, according to Barcelona newspaper El Periodico.
It appeared to be a charter, rather than a regularly scheduled flight, a Spanair telephone operator told CNN, referring the call to the company's charter line, which did not immediately answer.
The death toll from Wednesday's crash rose to 154 Friday after one of 19 people who initially survived died in a hospital.
That flight, which crashed on take-off from Madrid, was bound for Las Palmas, a major city on one of the Canary Islands.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
10 dead, including 5 Americans in Guatemala air crash
GUATEMALA CITY (AFP) — Ten people, including five US citizens, were killed and four others were injured Sunday when a propeller aircraft crashed on a hill near El Puente, in eastern Guatemala, officials said.
"The accident happened on a hill near this village when the TG-JES flight crashed for unknown reasons. According to preliminary information at least 14 people were aboard," said Volunteer Fire Department spokesman Carlos Salazar.
Nine Americans and five Guatemalans were traveling aboard the aircraft, said Civil Aeronautics Agency director Juan Jose Carlos.
Five of the fatalities were US citizens, the other five were Guatemalans, including the pilot and co-pilot, he added.
The four survivors, all Americans, were flown to Guatemala City hospitals, Salazar said.
The aircraft, belonging to Aeroruta Maya company, was flying from the Guatemala City suburb of La Aurora to El Estor, in northern Izabal department, when it crashed on a hill near El Puente, in eastern Zacapa department.
Aeroruta Maya manager Richard Calloway said the pilot landed on a flat area but apparently lost control when the aircraft hit a pothole.
"The airplane did not explode on landing, but later. Spilled fuel on the ground caught fire. Otherwise nobody would have survived," Calloway told reporters after he returned from the accident site.
A preliminary report by the Civil Aeronautics Agency said the pilot reported some mechanical failure before radio contact broke off at 1540 GMT.
Calloway said the airplane was a single-engine, Cessna Caravan 208 with a capacity for 12 passengers and two crew members. It was five or six years old and had all safety inspections up to date.
One of the survivors, 19-year-old Sarah Jensen, told reporters her parents, brother and other Americans on the flight had just arrived in Guatemala from the US state of Wisconsin to take part in a US government-run humanitarian program in Guatemala.
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iJFUX7TpJLE9oNSTGRW74j_IrkXw
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
"The accident happened on a hill near this village when the TG-JES flight crashed for unknown reasons. According to preliminary information at least 14 people were aboard," said Volunteer Fire Department spokesman Carlos Salazar.
Nine Americans and five Guatemalans were traveling aboard the aircraft, said Civil Aeronautics Agency director Juan Jose Carlos.
Five of the fatalities were US citizens, the other five were Guatemalans, including the pilot and co-pilot, he added.
The four survivors, all Americans, were flown to Guatemala City hospitals, Salazar said.
The aircraft, belonging to Aeroruta Maya company, was flying from the Guatemala City suburb of La Aurora to El Estor, in northern Izabal department, when it crashed on a hill near El Puente, in eastern Zacapa department.
Aeroruta Maya manager Richard Calloway said the pilot landed on a flat area but apparently lost control when the aircraft hit a pothole.
"The airplane did not explode on landing, but later. Spilled fuel on the ground caught fire. Otherwise nobody would have survived," Calloway told reporters after he returned from the accident site.
A preliminary report by the Civil Aeronautics Agency said the pilot reported some mechanical failure before radio contact broke off at 1540 GMT.
Calloway said the airplane was a single-engine, Cessna Caravan 208 with a capacity for 12 passengers and two crew members. It was five or six years old and had all safety inspections up to date.
One of the survivors, 19-year-old Sarah Jensen, told reporters her parents, brother and other Americans on the flight had just arrived in Guatemala from the US state of Wisconsin to take part in a US government-run humanitarian program in Guatemala.
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iJFUX7TpJLE9oNSTGRW74j_IrkXw
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Kyrgyz plane crash kills 65
BISHKEK (Reuters) - Sixty-five people, including members of a teenage basketball team, died on Sunday when a Kyrgyz airliner crashed in a ball of flames shortly after take-off from the Central Asian state's main airport.
"There are 25 survivors," Emergencies Minister Kamchibek Tashiyev told Reuters. He said there had been a total of 90 passengers and crew members aboard the Boeing 737-200.
The plane, owned by local private carrier Itek-Air, was chartered by an Iranian company and bound for Tehran.
A spokesman for the Manas airport has earlier said the plane reported a technical problem shortly after it had taken off at 2030 (10:30 a.m. EDT) and tried to return to the airport.
Kyrgyz officials, including Prime Minister Igor Chudinov, rushed to the airport for an emergency meeting.
Chudinov said afterwards that initial reports suggested the plane had suffered a sudden loss of cabin pressure, causing the pilot to request an emergency landing.
A government official told reporters that 17 teenagers, a basketball team from a local sports school, were on board. He said seven of them survived and were in hospital.
Police sealed off the crash site, close to the Manas airport runway. Part of the airport is used by the U.S. military as a base to supply the international force fighting Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.
Airport employees who had seen the wreckage said the tail was the only part of the fuselage still intact.
Transport Minister Nurlan Sulaimanov said the plane, built in 1979, was in good shape and had been inspected only two months ago.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
"There are 25 survivors," Emergencies Minister Kamchibek Tashiyev told Reuters. He said there had been a total of 90 passengers and crew members aboard the Boeing 737-200.
The plane, owned by local private carrier Itek-Air, was chartered by an Iranian company and bound for Tehran.
A spokesman for the Manas airport has earlier said the plane reported a technical problem shortly after it had taken off at 2030 (10:30 a.m. EDT) and tried to return to the airport.
Kyrgyz officials, including Prime Minister Igor Chudinov, rushed to the airport for an emergency meeting.
Chudinov said afterwards that initial reports suggested the plane had suffered a sudden loss of cabin pressure, causing the pilot to request an emergency landing.
A government official told reporters that 17 teenagers, a basketball team from a local sports school, were on board. He said seven of them survived and were in hospital.
Police sealed off the crash site, close to the Manas airport runway. Part of the airport is used by the U.S. military as a base to supply the international force fighting Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.
Airport employees who had seen the wreckage said the tail was the only part of the fuselage still intact.
Transport Minister Nurlan Sulaimanov said the plane, built in 1979, was in good shape and had been inspected only two months ago.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Guatemala plane crash kills 10 including Americans
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — A small plane crashed in a field in eastern Guatemala on Sunday, killing 10 people, including five Americans, aviation and army officials said.
The Cessna Caravan 208 was on route to the town of El Estor when it crashed in a field of crops about 60 miles (100 kilometers) east of Guatemala.
Eight passengers were killed, along with the Guatemalan pilot and co-pilot, Civil Aviation official Jose Carlos said.
He said five of the passengers killed were Americans, but nationalities of the other three had not been determined.
Four other Americans on board were injured and were being airlifted to a hospital in the capital. Carlos did not know the hometowns of the Americans.
Aero Ruta Maya, the airline operating the plane, said only 12 people were on the plane, including the pilots, a discrepancy that could not immediately be resolved.
Joanne de Bickford, who said she was the daughter of the airline's owner and was helping manage the crisis, confirmed there were Americans on board. She said the airline did not know how many people died.
The army provided a list of passengers, but the names appeared to be garbled. The U.S. Embassy did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
The Cessna Caravan 208 was on route to the town of El Estor when it crashed in a field of crops about 60 miles (100 kilometers) east of Guatemala.
Eight passengers were killed, along with the Guatemalan pilot and co-pilot, Civil Aviation official Jose Carlos said.
He said five of the passengers killed were Americans, but nationalities of the other three had not been determined.
Four other Americans on board were injured and were being airlifted to a hospital in the capital. Carlos did not know the hometowns of the Americans.
Aero Ruta Maya, the airline operating the plane, said only 12 people were on the plane, including the pilots, a discrepancy that could not immediately be resolved.
Joanne de Bickford, who said she was the daughter of the airline's owner and was helping manage the crisis, confirmed there were Americans on board. She said the airline did not know how many people died.
The army provided a list of passengers, but the names appeared to be garbled. The U.S. Embassy did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Plane crashes in Kyrgyz capital
Itek Air is one of the many airlines banned from the EU
A passenger plane has crashed shortly after take-off from Kyrgyzstan's capital, Bishkek, killing a large number of those on board.
The head of Kyrgyzstan's civil aviation authority said that out of about 90 passengers and crew, only about 20 people have survived.
The Itek Air Boeing 737 took off bound for Mashhad, in north-eastern Iran, but turned round some 10 minutes later.
An airport spokeswoman said the crew had reported a technical problem.
The plane was returning to Bishkek airport but crashed before it could land, the spokeswoman said.
Officials from a nearby US base said they were trying to help with the rescue effort.
"At the moment rescue teams, fire brigades and medics are rushing to the crash site," a spokeswoman for the US air base located in Manas, 30km (20 miles) from Bishkek, told Russia's RIA news agency.
Uncertainty
There was confusion over the number of people on board - with reports ranging from 83 to 123.
They were understood to include a Kyrgyz school basketball team.
Prime Minister Igor Chudinov said 51 of the passengers were foreigners, including people from China, Turkey, Iran and Canada.
It was not clear what had caused the plane to crash.
The prime minister said the pilot had survived, but "it is difficult to talk to him right now".
Airport employees said the fuselage of the plane was destroyed by flames and only the tail remained intact.
Yelena Bayalinova, spokeswoman for the Kyrgyz health ministry, told the Interfax news agency that many victims of the crash had suffered burns, and that some were in critical condition.
The plane belonged to Itek Air, a Kyrgyz company, but was reportedly operated by Iran Aseman Airlines.
Itek Air is on a list of airlines banned from EU airspace because of fears over safety standards.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7580107.stm
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
A passenger plane has crashed shortly after take-off from Kyrgyzstan's capital, Bishkek, killing a large number of those on board.
The head of Kyrgyzstan's civil aviation authority said that out of about 90 passengers and crew, only about 20 people have survived.
The Itek Air Boeing 737 took off bound for Mashhad, in north-eastern Iran, but turned round some 10 minutes later.
An airport spokeswoman said the crew had reported a technical problem.
The plane was returning to Bishkek airport but crashed before it could land, the spokeswoman said.
Officials from a nearby US base said they were trying to help with the rescue effort.
"At the moment rescue teams, fire brigades and medics are rushing to the crash site," a spokeswoman for the US air base located in Manas, 30km (20 miles) from Bishkek, told Russia's RIA news agency.
Uncertainty
There was confusion over the number of people on board - with reports ranging from 83 to 123.
They were understood to include a Kyrgyz school basketball team.
Prime Minister Igor Chudinov said 51 of the passengers were foreigners, including people from China, Turkey, Iran and Canada.
It was not clear what had caused the plane to crash.
The prime minister said the pilot had survived, but "it is difficult to talk to him right now".
Airport employees said the fuselage of the plane was destroyed by flames and only the tail remained intact.
Yelena Bayalinova, spokeswoman for the Kyrgyz health ministry, told the Interfax news agency that many victims of the crash had suffered burns, and that some were in critical condition.
The plane belonged to Itek Air, a Kyrgyz company, but was reportedly operated by Iran Aseman Airlines.
Itek Air is on a list of airlines banned from EU airspace because of fears over safety standards.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7580107.stm
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Mid-flight bomb scare forces emergency landing
A Swiss International Air Lines plane was forced to make an emergency landing on Saturday after a bomb threat was made against the flight. The Zurich to Malaga flight was overflying France when the pilot was informed a threat had been made via the Swiss offices.
The Airbus A321 turned around and landed safely at Geneva airport.
A spokesman for the airport said no one was injured during the landing.
The 142 passengers and six crew left the airplane on slides and were taken to a waiting room. The airplane was then moved from the runway for checks by bomb disposal experts but no explosive devices were found.
A replacement flight was scheduled for later in the evening.
The airport runway had to be closed for an hour and a half, with eight flights cancelled or rerouted to Lyon.
http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/news/travel/Mid_flight_bomb_scare_forces_emergency_landing.html?siteSect=414&sid=9598915&cKey=1219566767000&ty=nd
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
The Airbus A321 turned around and landed safely at Geneva airport.
A spokesman for the airport said no one was injured during the landing.
The 142 passengers and six crew left the airplane on slides and were taken to a waiting room. The airplane was then moved from the runway for checks by bomb disposal experts but no explosive devices were found.
A replacement flight was scheduled for later in the evening.
The airport runway had to be closed for an hour and a half, with eight flights cancelled or rerouted to Lyon.
http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/news/travel/Mid_flight_bomb_scare_forces_emergency_landing.html?siteSect=414&sid=9598915&cKey=1219566767000&ty=nd
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Engine trouble forces jetliner back to SFO airport
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Chicago-bound United Airlines flight was forced to return to San Francisco International Airport early Saturday after running into engine trouble.
United flight 158 carrying 249 passengers and crew members landed safely about 30 minutes after takeoff after one of its engine compressors stalled, said UAL spokeswoman Robin Urbanski. The pilot was able to turn the plane around and return to the airport, flying on the aircraft's second engine.
Smoke entered the cabin after the plane landed and the engines were shut down, Urbanski said. The airline was investigating the source of the smoke. There were no reported injuries.
The airline provided overnight accommodation to the passengers and arranged flights for them Saturday.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
United flight 158 carrying 249 passengers and crew members landed safely about 30 minutes after takeoff after one of its engine compressors stalled, said UAL spokeswoman Robin Urbanski. The pilot was able to turn the plane around and return to the airport, flying on the aircraft's second engine.
Smoke entered the cabin after the plane landed and the engines were shut down, Urbanski said. The airline was investigating the source of the smoke. There were no reported injuries.
The airline provided overnight accommodation to the passengers and arranged flights for them Saturday.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Mechanic quizzed over Spain air crash
Police and investigators probe deadly plane crash in Madrid
Mechanic who cleared the plane for takeoff questioned
Spanair official told AP it had no details of the man's testimony
MADRID, Spain (AP) -- Police and investigators probing the deadly plane crash in Madrid have questioned the mechanic who cleared the plane for takeoff after tending to a minor mechanical problem, the airline said Saturday.
Spanair said the mechanic dealt with a problem in an air temperature gauge that forced the pilot to abandon a first attempt to take off. About an hour later, when the MD-82 finally did take off, it crashed near the end of the runway, burning and largely disintegrating. A total of 153 of the 172 people aboard were killed.
The newspaper El Pais quoted unnamed sources close to the investigation as saying that during two sessions of testimony Friday -- first with police and then with crash investigators -- the mechanic insisted that the gauge malfunction was a minor glitch which had nothing to do with Wednesday's crash.
A Spanair official told The Associated Press on Saturday it had no details of the man's testimony, but reiterated that the mechanical problem did not cause the crash. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, citing company rules.
Aviation experts have told The AP this problem probably did not cause the crash.
All 19 survivors of the crash remained hospitalized Saturday, two of them in critical condition. The worst off was a 31-year-old woman with burns to 72 percent of her body. Her husband died in the crash but her six-year-old son survived. Watch as Spain deals with tragedy »
Only 50 bodies have been identified so far. Many were burned beyond recognition and forensic teams have been using DNA techniques for identification. Watch moment of silence »
Spanair said the mechanic dealt with the gauge problem by essentially turning the device off, and said this was an accepted procedure because the gauge was not an absolutely essential piece of equipment.
But the head of Spanish civil aviation, Manuel Bautista, told the AP in an interview Friday that the gauge should be closely examined to see if it did contribute to the accident.
Bautista said a combination of failures likely caused the disaster.
"A problem with a temperature sensor may not matter at all, or it can be very important, depending on what other circumstances accompany it," Bautista said. "We will have to see what other issues were present."
Relatives of people who died in the crash met Friday night with Spanair representatives and complained angrily that the company was not providing any information on what might have caused the crash.
Some said their loved ones had sent them cell phone text messages saying that had tried to get off the plane after the mechanical problem emerged, but were not allowed to. Spanair declined to comment on this Saturday.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Mechanic who cleared the plane for takeoff questioned
Spanair official told AP it had no details of the man's testimony
MADRID, Spain (AP) -- Police and investigators probing the deadly plane crash in Madrid have questioned the mechanic who cleared the plane for takeoff after tending to a minor mechanical problem, the airline said Saturday.
Spanair said the mechanic dealt with a problem in an air temperature gauge that forced the pilot to abandon a first attempt to take off. About an hour later, when the MD-82 finally did take off, it crashed near the end of the runway, burning and largely disintegrating. A total of 153 of the 172 people aboard were killed.
The newspaper El Pais quoted unnamed sources close to the investigation as saying that during two sessions of testimony Friday -- first with police and then with crash investigators -- the mechanic insisted that the gauge malfunction was a minor glitch which had nothing to do with Wednesday's crash.
A Spanair official told The Associated Press on Saturday it had no details of the man's testimony, but reiterated that the mechanical problem did not cause the crash. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, citing company rules.
Aviation experts have told The AP this problem probably did not cause the crash.
All 19 survivors of the crash remained hospitalized Saturday, two of them in critical condition. The worst off was a 31-year-old woman with burns to 72 percent of her body. Her husband died in the crash but her six-year-old son survived. Watch as Spain deals with tragedy »
Only 50 bodies have been identified so far. Many were burned beyond recognition and forensic teams have been using DNA techniques for identification. Watch moment of silence »
Spanair said the mechanic dealt with the gauge problem by essentially turning the device off, and said this was an accepted procedure because the gauge was not an absolutely essential piece of equipment.
But the head of Spanish civil aviation, Manuel Bautista, told the AP in an interview Friday that the gauge should be closely examined to see if it did contribute to the accident.
Bautista said a combination of failures likely caused the disaster.
"A problem with a temperature sensor may not matter at all, or it can be very important, depending on what other circumstances accompany it," Bautista said. "We will have to see what other issues were present."
Relatives of people who died in the crash met Friday night with Spanair representatives and complained angrily that the company was not providing any information on what might have caused the crash.
Some said their loved ones had sent them cell phone text messages saying that had tried to get off the plane after the mechanical problem emerged, but were not allowed to. Spanair declined to comment on this Saturday.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
10 People From Cedar City Killed in Moab Plane Crash
Victims Were from Red Canyon Aesthetics and Medical Spa
MOAB, Utah (AP) -- Ten people died in the fiery crash of a twin-engine plane near the Canyonlands Field airport in southeastern Utah, the Grand County sheriff said Saturday.
The plane was fully engulfed in flames when emergency responders arrived Friday night at the site about 2 miles from the airport. There were no survivors, Sheriff James Nyland said, adding all of the victims were from Cedar City, Utah.
Nyland said the plane took off from Canyonlands Field, near Arches National Park and about 18 miles northwest of Moab. The National Transportation Safety Board was expected at the scene Saturday.
Lt. Steve White told radio station KCYN in Moab that the plane "pancaked" after skidding along the ground.
Nyland said the victims included the director of Red Canyon Aesthetics & Medical Spa, a dermatology clinic headquartered in Cedar City, clinic staff and the pilot.
He identified the victims as David White, the pilot; Dr. Lansing Ellsworth, the clinic director; David Goddard; Mandy Johnson; Marcie Tillery, 29; Valerie Imlay, 52; Keith Shumway, 29; Dallon Ellsworth, 24; Camie Vigil, 25; and Cecilee Goddard, 25.
Lansing Ellsworth had recently initiated a monthly skin clinic in Moab, Nyland said.
Red Canyon Aesthetics has seven clinics in Utah, two in Nevada and one in Page, Ariz., according to the company's Web site.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
MOAB, Utah (AP) -- Ten people died in the fiery crash of a twin-engine plane near the Canyonlands Field airport in southeastern Utah, the Grand County sheriff said Saturday.
The plane was fully engulfed in flames when emergency responders arrived Friday night at the site about 2 miles from the airport. There were no survivors, Sheriff James Nyland said, adding all of the victims were from Cedar City, Utah.
Nyland said the plane took off from Canyonlands Field, near Arches National Park and about 18 miles northwest of Moab. The National Transportation Safety Board was expected at the scene Saturday.
Lt. Steve White told radio station KCYN in Moab that the plane "pancaked" after skidding along the ground.
Nyland said the victims included the director of Red Canyon Aesthetics & Medical Spa, a dermatology clinic headquartered in Cedar City, clinic staff and the pilot.
He identified the victims as David White, the pilot; Dr. Lansing Ellsworth, the clinic director; David Goddard; Mandy Johnson; Marcie Tillery, 29; Valerie Imlay, 52; Keith Shumway, 29; Dallon Ellsworth, 24; Camie Vigil, 25; and Cecilee Goddard, 25.
Lansing Ellsworth had recently initiated a monthly skin clinic in Moab, Nyland said.
Red Canyon Aesthetics has seven clinics in Utah, two in Nevada and one in Page, Ariz., according to the company's Web site.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
NTSB: Firefighting chopper lost power before crash
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — An initial investigation into a deadly helicopter crash that killed nine people in Northern California earlier this month has found that the chopper's main rotor lost power during takeoff.
The Sikorsky S-61N helicopter hit trees after losing power and fell out of the air over the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, according to a preliminary crash report released Thursday by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Investigators analyzed wreckage recovered from the crash site to determine that the rotor malfunctioned, an NTSB spokeswoman said. The agency reported earlier that witnesses said the helicopter took off more slowly than normal before slamming into a hillside.
The report says the firefighting aircraft came to rest on its left side before bursting into flames. Four of the 13 people on board survived with various injuries.
A fire-damaged voice-data recorder salvaged from the burned aircraft was sent to its British manufacturer, which determined that both the cockpit voice recording and flight data contained on the device were still intact, NTSB spokeswoman Bridget Serchak said. The agency plans to analyze the data in the coming weeks, she said.
The helicopter was ferrying firefighters away from a remote mountain site on the front lines of a stubborn wildfire when it crashed the evening of Aug. 5.
Worsening weather conditions forecast for the area prompted the decision to fly about 50 firefighters out of the Trinity Alps Wilderness.
The helicopter had completed two trips and just refueled before it picked up the third group and made the ill-fated takeoff. At the time of the accident, visibility was good enough that the pilots did not need to rely on instruments to make the flight, the NTSB report said.
The two-month-old wildfire the firefighters were battling before the crash was 84 percent contained Thursday after charring more than 44 square miles.
The blaze is part of a series of fires sparked by a massive lightning storm in late June that have burned more than 400 square miles across the Shasta-Trinity forest.
Farther north in the Klamath National Forest, a 70-square-mile blaze started by the same storm was still just 35 percent contained. The fire was burning in a remote section of the forest and did not threaten any inhabited areas, fire officials said.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gFIWHk_LNnWphE623gxDThKBn8PQD92N034O0
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
The Sikorsky S-61N helicopter hit trees after losing power and fell out of the air over the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, according to a preliminary crash report released Thursday by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Investigators analyzed wreckage recovered from the crash site to determine that the rotor malfunctioned, an NTSB spokeswoman said. The agency reported earlier that witnesses said the helicopter took off more slowly than normal before slamming into a hillside.
The report says the firefighting aircraft came to rest on its left side before bursting into flames. Four of the 13 people on board survived with various injuries.
A fire-damaged voice-data recorder salvaged from the burned aircraft was sent to its British manufacturer, which determined that both the cockpit voice recording and flight data contained on the device were still intact, NTSB spokeswoman Bridget Serchak said. The agency plans to analyze the data in the coming weeks, she said.
The helicopter was ferrying firefighters away from a remote mountain site on the front lines of a stubborn wildfire when it crashed the evening of Aug. 5.
Worsening weather conditions forecast for the area prompted the decision to fly about 50 firefighters out of the Trinity Alps Wilderness.
The helicopter had completed two trips and just refueled before it picked up the third group and made the ill-fated takeoff. At the time of the accident, visibility was good enough that the pilots did not need to rely on instruments to make the flight, the NTSB report said.
The two-month-old wildfire the firefighters were battling before the crash was 84 percent contained Thursday after charring more than 44 square miles.
The blaze is part of a series of fires sparked by a massive lightning storm in late June that have burned more than 400 square miles across the Shasta-Trinity forest.
Farther north in the Klamath National Forest, a 70-square-mile blaze started by the same storm was still just 35 percent contained. The fire was burning in a remote section of the forest and did not threaten any inhabited areas, fire officials said.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gFIWHk_LNnWphE623gxDThKBn8PQD92N034O0
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 26/08/2008.
Spanair: Crashed MD-82 delayed by temperature gauge repair
Spanair says an outside temperature indicator was the focus of the technical problem which initially delayed the departure of the Boeing MD-82 involved in yesterday's accident at Madrid.
The aircraft, bound for Las Palmas, had been scheduled to depart at 13:00 but returned to the gate after the crew reported a technical fault.
A spokeswoman for Spanair says that the captain reported a "damaged exterior temperature indicator" which was subsequently "repaired according to normal procedures".
Spanair does not believe the aircraft was in an abnormal condition during the subsequent fatal attempt at departure at around 14:45.
All but 19 of the 172 passengers and crew on board the aircraft were killed after it left the runway during take-off, broke up and was consumed by fire.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Informations 26/08/2008.
The aircraft, bound for Las Palmas, had been scheduled to depart at 13:00 but returned to the gate after the crew reported a technical fault.
A spokeswoman for Spanair says that the captain reported a "damaged exterior temperature indicator" which was subsequently "repaired according to normal procedures".
Spanair does not believe the aircraft was in an abnormal condition during the subsequent fatal attempt at departure at around 14:45.
All but 19 of the 172 passengers and crew on board the aircraft were killed after it left the runway during take-off, broke up and was consumed by fire.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Informations 26/08/2008.
quinta-feira, 21 de agosto de 2008
AAIB: final report issued on HS-748 runway overrun at Guernsey
The U.K. AAIB released the final report of their investigation into a serious incident at Guernsey Airport in March 2006.
The HS-748 aircraft was landing at Guernsey at the end of a two-sector cargo service from Coventry and Jersey. The Category I ILS approach on Runway 27 at Guernsey was flown in weather conditions that were poor but acceptable for making the approach and there was ample fuel on board for a diversion. The aircraft was seen to touch down between 400 and 550 meters from the 'stop' end of the runway and overran by some 145 meters onto the grass beyond the paved surface. There were no injuries.
Investigation by the AAIB revealed no aircraft or runway deficiencies to account for the overrun.
During the final approach and landing there were substantial divergences from the company Operations Manual.
This operator had previously been the subject of close monitoring by the CAA over a sustained period and its Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) was later suspended.
The investigation identified the following causal factors:
(i) The flight crew did not comply with the Standard Operating Procedures for a Category I ILS.
(ii) The commander’s decision to land or go around was delayed significantly beyond the intersection of the Decision Altitude and the ILS glide slope.
(iii) After landing, the crew did not immediately apply maximum braking or withdraw the flight fine pitch stops, as advised in the Operations Manual.
(iv) The operator’s training staff lacked knowledge of the Standard Operating Procedures.
The investigation identified the following contributory factor:
(i) Close monitoring by the CAA had not revealed the depth of the lack of knowledge of Standard Operating Procedures within the operator’s flight operations department until after this incident.
(AAIB)
aviation-safety.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 21/08/2008.
The HS-748 aircraft was landing at Guernsey at the end of a two-sector cargo service from Coventry and Jersey. The Category I ILS approach on Runway 27 at Guernsey was flown in weather conditions that were poor but acceptable for making the approach and there was ample fuel on board for a diversion. The aircraft was seen to touch down between 400 and 550 meters from the 'stop' end of the runway and overran by some 145 meters onto the grass beyond the paved surface. There were no injuries.
Investigation by the AAIB revealed no aircraft or runway deficiencies to account for the overrun.
During the final approach and landing there were substantial divergences from the company Operations Manual.
This operator had previously been the subject of close monitoring by the CAA over a sustained period and its Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) was later suspended.
The investigation identified the following causal factors:
(i) The flight crew did not comply with the Standard Operating Procedures for a Category I ILS.
(ii) The commander’s decision to land or go around was delayed significantly beyond the intersection of the Decision Altitude and the ILS glide slope.
(iii) After landing, the crew did not immediately apply maximum braking or withdraw the flight fine pitch stops, as advised in the Operations Manual.
(iv) The operator’s training staff lacked knowledge of the Standard Operating Procedures.
The investigation identified the following contributory factor:
(i) Close monitoring by the CAA had not revealed the depth of the lack of knowledge of Standard Operating Procedures within the operator’s flight operations department until after this incident.
(AAIB)
aviation-safety.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 21/08/2008.
Spain mourns as air disaster probe continues
Investigators continue to probe cause of air disaster at Madrid's Barajas Airport
MD-82 crashed while taking off, killing 153 people; 19 people survived
(CNN) -- Spain declared three days of mourning Thursday as investigators continued probing what caused a passenger jet to crash on takeoff in Madrid, killing 153 people.
Passengers said they saw flames and then heard an explosion moments before Spanair Flight JK5022, carrying 172 people, crashed at Madrid's Barajas Airport Wednesday afternoon.
There were 19 survivors, including two infants, Development Minister Magdalena Alvarez said. All were being treated at a hospital, Alvaraez said. Watch as the wounded arrive at a hospital »
Speculation Thursday centered on a plane part that had to be fixed after the flight first tried to take off.
Javier Mendoza, a spokesman for Spanair, said that the plane had overheating problems with its air intake valve, located beneath the cockpit, during its initial takeoff, in comments reported by The Associated Press.
The flight had originally been scheduled to depart at 1 p.m. local time.
The plane returned to the gate and the valve was fixed by technicians turning it off, said Mendoza, explaining that this was standard procedure.
He added that it was uncertain whether the valve was linked to the subsequent crash.
The United States National Transportation Safety Board is sending an investigation team to Madrid because the aircraft, a twin-engined MD-82, is American-made, NTSB spokesman Keith Holloway said.
In Madrid, where mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon called for three days of mourning beginning, thousands observed a five-minute silence at 12 p.m. local time Thursday.
The city of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands -- where the plane was headed -- also has declared three days of mourning.
The Spanish flag at the Olympics has flown at half mast, while the Spanish football team wore black armbands for its friendly match against Denmark last night.
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero cut short a vacation to arrive at the airport Wednesday evening to speak to families of the victims and offer his condolences.
"The government will do all it can to support the families in this difficult situation," he said. "The whole government, logically, is affected, very affected, as are all Spanish citizens, by this tragedy." Watch as relatives of survivors start arriving at the airport »
The flight was bound for Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, two hours away, when it left the runway.
Local officials said one of the plane's two engines caught fire before it came to rest in a gully about 2:45 p.m. local time.
The crash sent up a plume of smoke visible from several kilometers away. At the time of the crash, weather conditions were hot and clear.
A survivor told Spain's ABC newspaper that she and other passengers heard an explosion as the plane was taking off.
"She said they could see the fire, ... and then it was not even a minute or so they heard [something] blow up," reporter Carlota Fomina told CNN. "They were about 200 meters [660 feet] in the air, and then they were landing but not crashing. They were landing, like, little by little; it was not like they [fell] down suddenly." Watch smoke rising from airport »
The plane was carrying 162 passengers, four non-working crew members and six working crew members, Spanair said. After contacting families, the airline published the names of those aboard on its Web site.
The aircraft was carrying seven passengers from Lufthansa Flight 2554, according to the airline. Spanair, a low-cost airline that has a flight-sharing agreement with Lufthansa, is owned by SAS Scandinavian Airlines.
Barajas Airport closed after the crash but reopened more than two hours later, allowing a limited number of takeoffs and landings, an airport official said. See a map of the airport »
Barajas airport, eight miles (13 km) northeast of central Madrid, is Spain's busiest, handling more than 40 million passengers a year.
In December 2006, two men died after a bomb attack at the airport which the Spanish government blamed on the Basque separatist group ETA.
The fatal crash was the first at the airport since December 1983, when 93 people were killed as two Spanish airliners collided.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/21/plane.crash.madrid/index.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 21/08/2008.
MD-82 crashed while taking off, killing 153 people; 19 people survived
(CNN) -- Spain declared three days of mourning Thursday as investigators continued probing what caused a passenger jet to crash on takeoff in Madrid, killing 153 people.
Passengers said they saw flames and then heard an explosion moments before Spanair Flight JK5022, carrying 172 people, crashed at Madrid's Barajas Airport Wednesday afternoon.
There were 19 survivors, including two infants, Development Minister Magdalena Alvarez said. All were being treated at a hospital, Alvaraez said. Watch as the wounded arrive at a hospital »
Speculation Thursday centered on a plane part that had to be fixed after the flight first tried to take off.
Javier Mendoza, a spokesman for Spanair, said that the plane had overheating problems with its air intake valve, located beneath the cockpit, during its initial takeoff, in comments reported by The Associated Press.
The flight had originally been scheduled to depart at 1 p.m. local time.
The plane returned to the gate and the valve was fixed by technicians turning it off, said Mendoza, explaining that this was standard procedure.
He added that it was uncertain whether the valve was linked to the subsequent crash.
The United States National Transportation Safety Board is sending an investigation team to Madrid because the aircraft, a twin-engined MD-82, is American-made, NTSB spokesman Keith Holloway said.
In Madrid, where mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon called for three days of mourning beginning, thousands observed a five-minute silence at 12 p.m. local time Thursday.
The city of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands -- where the plane was headed -- also has declared three days of mourning.
The Spanish flag at the Olympics has flown at half mast, while the Spanish football team wore black armbands for its friendly match against Denmark last night.
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero cut short a vacation to arrive at the airport Wednesday evening to speak to families of the victims and offer his condolences.
"The government will do all it can to support the families in this difficult situation," he said. "The whole government, logically, is affected, very affected, as are all Spanish citizens, by this tragedy." Watch as relatives of survivors start arriving at the airport »
The flight was bound for Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, two hours away, when it left the runway.
Local officials said one of the plane's two engines caught fire before it came to rest in a gully about 2:45 p.m. local time.
The crash sent up a plume of smoke visible from several kilometers away. At the time of the crash, weather conditions were hot and clear.
A survivor told Spain's ABC newspaper that she and other passengers heard an explosion as the plane was taking off.
"She said they could see the fire, ... and then it was not even a minute or so they heard [something] blow up," reporter Carlota Fomina told CNN. "They were about 200 meters [660 feet] in the air, and then they were landing but not crashing. They were landing, like, little by little; it was not like they [fell] down suddenly." Watch smoke rising from airport »
The plane was carrying 162 passengers, four non-working crew members and six working crew members, Spanair said. After contacting families, the airline published the names of those aboard on its Web site.
The aircraft was carrying seven passengers from Lufthansa Flight 2554, according to the airline. Spanair, a low-cost airline that has a flight-sharing agreement with Lufthansa, is owned by SAS Scandinavian Airlines.
Barajas Airport closed after the crash but reopened more than two hours later, allowing a limited number of takeoffs and landings, an airport official said. See a map of the airport »
Barajas airport, eight miles (13 km) northeast of central Madrid, is Spain's busiest, handling more than 40 million passengers a year.
In December 2006, two men died after a bomb attack at the airport which the Spanish government blamed on the Basque separatist group ETA.
The fatal crash was the first at the airport since December 1983, when 93 people were killed as two Spanish airliners collided.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/08/21/plane.crash.madrid/index.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 21/08/2008.
Reports Of Casualties Following Spanair MD82 Overrun
Plane Aborted First Takeoff, Returned For Maintenance
ANN REALTIME REPORTING 08.20.08 1130 EDT: Authorities say at least 45 passengers were lost Wednesday when a Spanair MD-82 overran the runway on takeoff from Madrid Barajas International Airport.
Witness reports to CNN indicate Flight 5022 to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands suffered an unknown explosion during takeoff, and skidded off Runway 36R. Thick smoke still poured from the wreckage one hour after the crash.
Local media states the aircraft had aborted a previous takeoff attempt, and returned to the gate for maintenance. The flight then departed, about one hour past its scheduled time.
Scandinavian flag carrier SAS, which owns Spanair, confirmed the crash.
"Spanair regrets to confirm that its flight number JK 5022 from Madrid to Las Palmas de Gran Canarias was involved in an accident at Madrid, at 14.45 hours local time today," the airline said in a statement. "Spanair is doing everything possible to assist the Spanish authorities at this difficult time. Spanair will provide further information as soon as it becomes available."
The Associated Press quotes Spanish emergency ministers stating at least 20 of the reported 166 passengers and crew onboard were killed, and 57 were injured.
"It is a certain catastrophe," one unnamed official with SAMUR, Madrid's emergency response force, told the AP.
The flight was operating as a codeshare for Lufthansa.
ANN will update this story as more information becomes available.
FMI: www.spanair.com
aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 21/08/2008.
ANN REALTIME REPORTING 08.20.08 1130 EDT: Authorities say at least 45 passengers were lost Wednesday when a Spanair MD-82 overran the runway on takeoff from Madrid Barajas International Airport.
Witness reports to CNN indicate Flight 5022 to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands suffered an unknown explosion during takeoff, and skidded off Runway 36R. Thick smoke still poured from the wreckage one hour after the crash.
Local media states the aircraft had aborted a previous takeoff attempt, and returned to the gate for maintenance. The flight then departed, about one hour past its scheduled time.
Scandinavian flag carrier SAS, which owns Spanair, confirmed the crash.
"Spanair regrets to confirm that its flight number JK 5022 from Madrid to Las Palmas de Gran Canarias was involved in an accident at Madrid, at 14.45 hours local time today," the airline said in a statement. "Spanair is doing everything possible to assist the Spanish authorities at this difficult time. Spanair will provide further information as soon as it becomes available."
The Associated Press quotes Spanish emergency ministers stating at least 20 of the reported 166 passengers and crew onboard were killed, and 57 were injured.
"It is a certain catastrophe," one unnamed official with SAMUR, Madrid's emergency response force, told the AP.
The flight was operating as a codeshare for Lufthansa.
ANN will update this story as more information becomes available.
FMI: www.spanair.com
aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 21/08/2008.
terça-feira, 19 de agosto de 2008
UPDATE ON NTSB INVESTIGATION OF THE AUGUST 5 SHASTA-TRINITY FOREST HELICOPTER CRASH
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
August 15, 2008
Washington, DC - The following is an update on the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation of the Shasta-Trinity Forest helicopter crash near Weaverville, California on August 5, 2008, which killed 9 of the 13 persons aboard.The helicopter was a Sikorsky S-61N, registration number N612AZ, manufactured in 1964.
The NTSB team has departed the Redding area. A ten-member group, including investigators from the NTSB, the U.S. Forest Service, Sikorsky and General Electric, traveled to Portland, Oregon this week to examine the engines, which were flown there on Monday.
That examination is on-going.The helicopter had taken on fuel immediately before the sortie that included the accident flight.
Fuel samples from the truck that serviced the aircraft have been obtained and will be tested.
Interviews with firefighters who witnessed the accident have concluded. They consistently reported that the helicopter lifted off slower than they would have expected before striking trees and crashing more than 100 yards from the lift off point.
The helicopter's cockpit voice recorder arrived at NTSB headquarters Saturday morning, August 9.
Upon examination, it was discovered that the solid state chips had been damaged by heat, and it was determined that the best way to try to extract information from the chips without further damaging them would be to use the facilities of the United Kingdom-based manufacturer, Penny and Giles.
Because officials of that company were unavailable to assist investigators this week, the recorder will be taken to England by an NTSB investigator next week.
The aircraft's maintenance records and records of the pilot's work history continue to be examined.
The captain had about 20,000 hours of total flight time and the first officer had 3,000 hours of civilian flight time.
Fonte: NTSB 19/08/2008.
Washington, DC 20594
August 15, 2008
Washington, DC - The following is an update on the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation of the Shasta-Trinity Forest helicopter crash near Weaverville, California on August 5, 2008, which killed 9 of the 13 persons aboard.The helicopter was a Sikorsky S-61N, registration number N612AZ, manufactured in 1964.
The NTSB team has departed the Redding area. A ten-member group, including investigators from the NTSB, the U.S. Forest Service, Sikorsky and General Electric, traveled to Portland, Oregon this week to examine the engines, which were flown there on Monday.
That examination is on-going.The helicopter had taken on fuel immediately before the sortie that included the accident flight.
Fuel samples from the truck that serviced the aircraft have been obtained and will be tested.
Interviews with firefighters who witnessed the accident have concluded. They consistently reported that the helicopter lifted off slower than they would have expected before striking trees and crashing more than 100 yards from the lift off point.
The helicopter's cockpit voice recorder arrived at NTSB headquarters Saturday morning, August 9.
Upon examination, it was discovered that the solid state chips had been damaged by heat, and it was determined that the best way to try to extract information from the chips without further damaging them would be to use the facilities of the United Kingdom-based manufacturer, Penny and Giles.
Because officials of that company were unavailable to assist investigators this week, the recorder will be taken to England by an NTSB investigator next week.
The aircraft's maintenance records and records of the pilot's work history continue to be examined.
The captain had about 20,000 hours of total flight time and the first officer had 3,000 hours of civilian flight time.
Fonte: NTSB 19/08/2008.
Taiwan ASC issues final report on TCAS event
The Taiwanese Aviation Safety Council concluded their investigation into the near collision between a Boeing 757 and a Boeing 777 off Jeju Island, Korea.
They concluded that:
ICN control made a non-standard call and gave a confusing instruction to the EF306 during its descent when passing FL340. EF306 flight crew did not fully comprehend the ATC instructions, failed to confirm the instructions and stopped descending at 33,800 ft. Both parties did not apply standard radiotelephony procedures and phraseologies. These anomalies contributed to the TCAS event between EF306 and TG659. The EF306 flight crew did not complete the TCAS RA standard operation procedures and commenced an excessive high rate descent. The induced negative G-force resulted in the occupants’ injury.
There are other 8 findings related to risk which include : The EF306 flight crew did not adequately exhibit good CRM performance in this occurrence, South Sector Radar Control(SSRC) momentarily missed monitoring the approaching situations developed between EF306 and TG659 while concentrating on the radar identification of other aircraft, SSRC did not comply with ATC/TCAS operating procedures and the limited human capability during a sudden occurrence of abnormal situation who was paying attention continuously to a large number of aircraft in a relatively broad service area which was B576 that applying Reduced Vertical Separation Method(RVSM) operations. In addition, most of the injured passenger did not have their seat belts fastened and lost their protection while the fasten seat best sign was still on, the cabin crewmembers did not provide timely injury information to the flight crew, that would have allowed the flight crew to request sufficient medical assistance before landing and the controllers did not aware the importance of the number of injuries and the need for more ambulances to meet the flight upon landing. This caused the necessary number of ambulances to arrive at the airport with delay.
(ASC)
(aviation-safety.net)
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
They concluded that:
ICN control made a non-standard call and gave a confusing instruction to the EF306 during its descent when passing FL340. EF306 flight crew did not fully comprehend the ATC instructions, failed to confirm the instructions and stopped descending at 33,800 ft. Both parties did not apply standard radiotelephony procedures and phraseologies. These anomalies contributed to the TCAS event between EF306 and TG659. The EF306 flight crew did not complete the TCAS RA standard operation procedures and commenced an excessive high rate descent. The induced negative G-force resulted in the occupants’ injury.
There are other 8 findings related to risk which include : The EF306 flight crew did not adequately exhibit good CRM performance in this occurrence, South Sector Radar Control(SSRC) momentarily missed monitoring the approaching situations developed between EF306 and TG659 while concentrating on the radar identification of other aircraft, SSRC did not comply with ATC/TCAS operating procedures and the limited human capability during a sudden occurrence of abnormal situation who was paying attention continuously to a large number of aircraft in a relatively broad service area which was B576 that applying Reduced Vertical Separation Method(RVSM) operations. In addition, most of the injured passenger did not have their seat belts fastened and lost their protection while the fasten seat best sign was still on, the cabin crewmembers did not provide timely injury information to the flight crew, that would have allowed the flight crew to request sufficient medical assistance before landing and the controllers did not aware the importance of the number of injuries and the need for more ambulances to meet the flight upon landing. This caused the necessary number of ambulances to arrive at the airport with delay.
(ASC)
(aviation-safety.net)
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Excessive TCAS evasion injured 20 on Taiwanese 757: inquiry
Taiwanese investigators have found that a Boeing 757's unnecessarily fierce descent during a collision-avoidance maneuver injured 20 people on board the jet, four of them seriously.
Three passengers were left with broken bones and a fourth was knocked unconscious as the pilot put the Far Easten Air Transport aircraft into a dive which, at one point, exceeded 12,000ft/min. Ten other passengers and six flight attendants suffered light injuries and interior cabin fittings were damaged.
During the maneuver, a response to a 'descend' command from the TCAS collision-avoidance system, the aircraft was subjected to negative forces of up to 1.06g for about 4s, followed by positive 2.48g for 2s as the pilot arrested the descent and leveled.
Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council, in its inquiry into the 16 November 2006 incident, has concluded that the evasive action was "excessive" and that a properly-executed standard response to the TCAS alert would have sufficed.
The 757 had been approaching Jeju in Korea along airway B576 when an Inchon area controller instructed it to descend from FL390 to FL310. As the jet neared FL340 the controller realized it could conflict with a Thai Airways International Boeing 777-300 cruising at FL340 in the opposite direction.
With the jets separated by 12.2nm (22.6km) horizontally, and just 51ft vertically, both aircrews received initial traffic advisories warning of one another's presence. The controller, also aware of the potential threat, started instructing the 757 to halt its descent before he realized the aircraft had already passed below FL340, and decided to let it continue. The 757's crew, however, did not comprehend the mixed message and leveled the aircraft at FL338.
Thirteen seconds after the traffic advisory the TCAS ordered simultaneous collision-avoidance commands, telling the 757 pilots to descend and the 777 crew to climb.
"The [757's] flight crew did not complete the TCAS resolution advisory standard operation procedures and commenced an excessive high-rate descent," says the ASC inquiry. "The induced negative g-force resulted in the occupants' injury."
It states that maintaining a normal 1,500ft/min descent rate would have provided enough vertical clearance between the aircraft, and points out that the controller was also resolving the conflict in the horizontal plane by instructing the 777 to make a right turn. At their closest point of approach the two aircraft had 0.85nm lateral and 2,611ft vertical separation.
Although the 757's crew had illuminated the seat-belt sign a few minutes before the encounter, several passengers were still moving around the cabin either to reach the washrooms or purchase duty-free goods.
"Most of the injured passengers lost their protection because their seat-belts were not fastened while the 'fasten seat-belt' sign was still on," says the ASC.
Investigators have stressed that the original conflict arose partly from the use of non-standard phraseology and a failure, both by the 757 pilots and the controller, to follow proper TCAS procedures.
Although Taipei-based Far Eastern Air Transport started introducing improved TCAS and crew resource management training, the airline suspended operations in May after running into financial problems.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Three passengers were left with broken bones and a fourth was knocked unconscious as the pilot put the Far Easten Air Transport aircraft into a dive which, at one point, exceeded 12,000ft/min. Ten other passengers and six flight attendants suffered light injuries and interior cabin fittings were damaged.
During the maneuver, a response to a 'descend' command from the TCAS collision-avoidance system, the aircraft was subjected to negative forces of up to 1.06g for about 4s, followed by positive 2.48g for 2s as the pilot arrested the descent and leveled.
Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council, in its inquiry into the 16 November 2006 incident, has concluded that the evasive action was "excessive" and that a properly-executed standard response to the TCAS alert would have sufficed.
The 757 had been approaching Jeju in Korea along airway B576 when an Inchon area controller instructed it to descend from FL390 to FL310. As the jet neared FL340 the controller realized it could conflict with a Thai Airways International Boeing 777-300 cruising at FL340 in the opposite direction.
With the jets separated by 12.2nm (22.6km) horizontally, and just 51ft vertically, both aircrews received initial traffic advisories warning of one another's presence. The controller, also aware of the potential threat, started instructing the 757 to halt its descent before he realized the aircraft had already passed below FL340, and decided to let it continue. The 757's crew, however, did not comprehend the mixed message and leveled the aircraft at FL338.
Thirteen seconds after the traffic advisory the TCAS ordered simultaneous collision-avoidance commands, telling the 757 pilots to descend and the 777 crew to climb.
"The [757's] flight crew did not complete the TCAS resolution advisory standard operation procedures and commenced an excessive high-rate descent," says the ASC inquiry. "The induced negative g-force resulted in the occupants' injury."
It states that maintaining a normal 1,500ft/min descent rate would have provided enough vertical clearance between the aircraft, and points out that the controller was also resolving the conflict in the horizontal plane by instructing the 777 to make a right turn. At their closest point of approach the two aircraft had 0.85nm lateral and 2,611ft vertical separation.
Although the 757's crew had illuminated the seat-belt sign a few minutes before the encounter, several passengers were still moving around the cabin either to reach the washrooms or purchase duty-free goods.
"Most of the injured passengers lost their protection because their seat-belts were not fastened while the 'fasten seat-belt' sign was still on," says the ASC.
Investigators have stressed that the original conflict arose partly from the use of non-standard phraseology and a failure, both by the 757 pilots and the controller, to follow proper TCAS procedures.
Although Taipei-based Far Eastern Air Transport started introducing improved TCAS and crew resource management training, the airline suspended operations in May after running into financial problems.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Faulty GPS units lethal for pilots, Dick Smith tells transport minister
AVIATOR Dick Smith has urged the federal Government to warn pilots that a GPS unit used in a fatal crash near Benalla, Victoria, in 2004 can default to the "dead reckoning", or simulator mode, if there is a problem with the aerial.
Mr. Smith said this was contrary to Australian Transport Safety Bureau findings that the GPS unit needed manual inputs for it to fly in the dead reckoning mode.
"An experienced professional pilot, John Chew, has found that this is completely wrong," he said in a letter to Transport Minister Anthony Albanese. "In fact, the GPS will fly a complete approach in the dead reckoning mode, which (depending on the wind) will replicate exactly the approach made by the accident aircraft."
Evidence given at an inquest into the crash last week suggested pilot Kerry Endicott was led by a malfunctioning GPS system to believe he was about to land at an airport when he crashed into a tree-lined ridge in heavy fog. Endicott, who died along with his five passengers, was also not warned by aircraft controllers he was about 30km off course.
Timber company director Robert Henderson, his daughter Jacquie, her husband and RAAF helicopter pilot Alan Stark, friend Belinda Andrews and Qantas jumbo jet pilot Geoff Brockie were killed in the July 28 crash.
Coroner Paresa Spanos heard it was likely that the satellite signals to the twin-engine plane's GPS had failed and the system went into "dead reckoning" and would have informed the pilot he was on course to land safely just before he crashed.
Counsel assisting the coroner, John Langmead, told the court Endicott received "erroneous information" from his GPS but he should have also seen warnings from the system that it had lost satellite signals.
The court heard the pilot had been flying off course since leaving Sydney's Bankstown Airport earlier that morning and air traffic controllers were notified of this divergence through a Route Adherence Monitoring alert system.
But air traffic controllers failed to notify Endicott he was off course on the second and third of three occasions the alarm was set off during the flight.
The Henderson family disputes assertions that Endicott would ignore warnings from a malfunctioning GPS and believes the inquiry should focus on the role of the air traffic controllers.
Mr Smith, who was prevented from giving evidence, acknowledged that Airservices Australia had taken steps to issue an alert when an aircraft strayed from its track by a particular tolerance.
But he said it had still not fixed "the vertical problem", when an aircraft descended from controlled to uncontrolled airspace below the lowest safe altitude.
He said his experience with the Australian Advanced Australia Air Traffic System was that its software could be modified to give controllers an alarm when an aircraft descended below a safe altitude.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24181481-23349,00.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Mr. Smith said this was contrary to Australian Transport Safety Bureau findings that the GPS unit needed manual inputs for it to fly in the dead reckoning mode.
"An experienced professional pilot, John Chew, has found that this is completely wrong," he said in a letter to Transport Minister Anthony Albanese. "In fact, the GPS will fly a complete approach in the dead reckoning mode, which (depending on the wind) will replicate exactly the approach made by the accident aircraft."
Evidence given at an inquest into the crash last week suggested pilot Kerry Endicott was led by a malfunctioning GPS system to believe he was about to land at an airport when he crashed into a tree-lined ridge in heavy fog. Endicott, who died along with his five passengers, was also not warned by aircraft controllers he was about 30km off course.
Timber company director Robert Henderson, his daughter Jacquie, her husband and RAAF helicopter pilot Alan Stark, friend Belinda Andrews and Qantas jumbo jet pilot Geoff Brockie were killed in the July 28 crash.
Coroner Paresa Spanos heard it was likely that the satellite signals to the twin-engine plane's GPS had failed and the system went into "dead reckoning" and would have informed the pilot he was on course to land safely just before he crashed.
Counsel assisting the coroner, John Langmead, told the court Endicott received "erroneous information" from his GPS but he should have also seen warnings from the system that it had lost satellite signals.
The court heard the pilot had been flying off course since leaving Sydney's Bankstown Airport earlier that morning and air traffic controllers were notified of this divergence through a Route Adherence Monitoring alert system.
But air traffic controllers failed to notify Endicott he was off course on the second and third of three occasions the alarm was set off during the flight.
The Henderson family disputes assertions that Endicott would ignore warnings from a malfunctioning GPS and believes the inquiry should focus on the role of the air traffic controllers.
Mr Smith, who was prevented from giving evidence, acknowledged that Airservices Australia had taken steps to issue an alert when an aircraft strayed from its track by a particular tolerance.
But he said it had still not fixed "the vertical problem", when an aircraft descended from controlled to uncontrolled airspace below the lowest safe altitude.
He said his experience with the Australian Advanced Australia Air Traffic System was that its software could be modified to give controllers an alarm when an aircraft descended below a safe altitude.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24181481-23349,00.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Small panel falls off Qantas jet en route to Singapore
SYDNEY (AFP) — Australia's largest airline Qantas revealed a small body panel fell off a jet en route to Singapore Friday, the latest malfunction to beset the carrier in recent weeks.
Routine checks on the Boeing 747-400 found the engine access panel was missing after it arrived at Singapore's Changi Airport, a Qantas spokeswoman said.
"This had absolutely no flight safety implications," she told AFP.
The non-structural panel, which measured 30 x 30 centimeters (12 x 12 inches), was replaced and the flight continued to London, she added.
The incident comes after weeks of embarrassing malfunctions for the airline, including a mid-air blast, believed to be caused by an exploding oxygen bottle, which blew a hole into the fuselage of a plane last month and forced an emergency landing in Manila.
On Wednesday, a B747-300 landed without incident despite the power in one of its four engines reducing to idle on approach into Auckland airport.
The following day, a Qantas Boeing 767 experienced an hydraulic failure, which affected its steering as it landed at Sydney airport and left a trail of hydraulic fluid on the runway, forcing its temporary closure.
Earlier this week, Qantas pulled six planes from service after it found that a maintenance procedure, reportedly designed to stop cracking in the forward pressure bulkhead, had been omitted.
Qantas, which next month will take delivery of the first of its new 20 super-jumbo Airbus A380s, has said while recent events had hurt its reputation, it is probably still the safest airline in the world.
Qantas, known as the "Flying Kangaroo," has never lost a jet plane to an accident.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), which is undertaking several reviews of Qantas' safety and maintenance, said Friday that if it found any problems it would require Qantas to take action.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Routine checks on the Boeing 747-400 found the engine access panel was missing after it arrived at Singapore's Changi Airport, a Qantas spokeswoman said.
"This had absolutely no flight safety implications," she told AFP.
The non-structural panel, which measured 30 x 30 centimeters (12 x 12 inches), was replaced and the flight continued to London, she added.
The incident comes after weeks of embarrassing malfunctions for the airline, including a mid-air blast, believed to be caused by an exploding oxygen bottle, which blew a hole into the fuselage of a plane last month and forced an emergency landing in Manila.
On Wednesday, a B747-300 landed without incident despite the power in one of its four engines reducing to idle on approach into Auckland airport.
The following day, a Qantas Boeing 767 experienced an hydraulic failure, which affected its steering as it landed at Sydney airport and left a trail of hydraulic fluid on the runway, forcing its temporary closure.
Earlier this week, Qantas pulled six planes from service after it found that a maintenance procedure, reportedly designed to stop cracking in the forward pressure bulkhead, had been omitted.
Qantas, which next month will take delivery of the first of its new 20 super-jumbo Airbus A380s, has said while recent events had hurt its reputation, it is probably still the safest airline in the world.
Qantas, known as the "Flying Kangaroo," has never lost a jet plane to an accident.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), which is undertaking several reviews of Qantas' safety and maintenance, said Friday that if it found any problems it would require Qantas to take action.
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Obama plane crash scare was serious
WASHINGTON: The pilot of Barack Obama's chartered campaign plane declared an emergency and requested crash equipment at the site of an unscheduled landing last month.
Control tower tapes reveal that the July 7 incident, which ended safely, was more serious than previously thought.
The Democratic White House hopeful and 50 others including campaign staff and journalists were aboard the twin-engined Midwest Airlines MD-81 when its pilot detected problems with pitch controls, which keep the aircraft level in flight.
The plane had just departed Chicago en route to North Carolina but was forced to make an unscheduled landing in the midwestern city of St Louis, Missouri due to the mechanical problems.
At the time, the pilot told passengers they were never in danger, and the Federal Aviation Administration said no emergency had been declared.
But according to the tapes, 41 seconds after discovering he no longer had full control of the plane, the pilot told an air traffic controller, “at this time we would like to declare an emergency, and also have CFR (crash equipment) standing by in St Louis,” ABC News said.
Asked which runway he wanted to use, the pilot replied, “Well, which one is the longest?” then added, “We have Senator Obama on board the aircraft and his campaign.”
Over the plane intercom system the pilot told passengers there was “a little bit of controllability issue, in terms of our ability to control the aircraft in the pitch, which is the nose up and nose down mode,” according to ABC.
However, after a rapid descent from 32,000 feet, the pilot suddenly regained pitch control at 10,000 feet, ABC said.
An inspection on the ground revealed that the rear emergency evacuation slide had deployed inside the tail cone during flight, the National Transportation Safety Board said at the time. It is still investigating the incident.
After the plane landed safely, Senator Obama said that everything had “seemed under control, the pilots knew what they were doing”.
“Anytime a pilot says that something's not working the way it's supposed to, then, you know, you make sure you tighten your seatbelt,” he told reporters.
The charter jet was reportedly filling in for senator Obama's larger campaign plane, which at the time was being refitted for the general election.
AFP
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Control tower tapes reveal that the July 7 incident, which ended safely, was more serious than previously thought.
The Democratic White House hopeful and 50 others including campaign staff and journalists were aboard the twin-engined Midwest Airlines MD-81 when its pilot detected problems with pitch controls, which keep the aircraft level in flight.
The plane had just departed Chicago en route to North Carolina but was forced to make an unscheduled landing in the midwestern city of St Louis, Missouri due to the mechanical problems.
At the time, the pilot told passengers they were never in danger, and the Federal Aviation Administration said no emergency had been declared.
But according to the tapes, 41 seconds after discovering he no longer had full control of the plane, the pilot told an air traffic controller, “at this time we would like to declare an emergency, and also have CFR (crash equipment) standing by in St Louis,” ABC News said.
Asked which runway he wanted to use, the pilot replied, “Well, which one is the longest?” then added, “We have Senator Obama on board the aircraft and his campaign.”
Over the plane intercom system the pilot told passengers there was “a little bit of controllability issue, in terms of our ability to control the aircraft in the pitch, which is the nose up and nose down mode,” according to ABC.
However, after a rapid descent from 32,000 feet, the pilot suddenly regained pitch control at 10,000 feet, ABC said.
An inspection on the ground revealed that the rear emergency evacuation slide had deployed inside the tail cone during flight, the National Transportation Safety Board said at the time. It is still investigating the incident.
After the plane landed safely, Senator Obama said that everything had “seemed under control, the pilots knew what they were doing”.
“Anytime a pilot says that something's not working the way it's supposed to, then, you know, you make sure you tighten your seatbelt,” he told reporters.
The charter jet was reportedly filling in for senator Obama's larger campaign plane, which at the time was being refitted for the general election.
AFP
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
FAA proposes replacement of P&W 4000-series electronic engine controls
The FAA is proposing that US operators of 730 PW4000-series engines with 94in (239cm) fan diameter inspect, identify and, over time, replace certain defective electronic engine controls (EEC) on each engine.
Aircraft models powered by PW4000 engines with those diameters include Airbus A300s/A310s, and Boeing MD-11, 767-200s/300s and 747-400s.
The proposed airworthiness directive, issued today, is the result of a May 2006 in-flight shutdown of a Pratt & Whitney PW4152 turbofan due to defective EEC pulse-width modulator (PWM) microcircuits that degraded over time, says the FAA.
Investigators determined that the dual redundant circuits were defective when built and both failed over time due to thermal cycling within the certified operating temperature range of the engines.
"Based on a risk analysis provided by P&W which we reviewed and concurred, this condition, if not corrected, could result in uncommanded in-flight engine shutdowns, which could result in loss of thrust and prevent continued safe flight or landing," says FAA.
The FAA says the defective PWMs "are the result of a change from the original PWM design introduced by a single microcircuit supplier before 1993", adding that the manufacturer returned to the previous, correct designs between 1993 and 1994.
The FAA estimates the work will take one work-hour per engine to inspect, categorize, and mark each of the 730 EECs, and one work-hour per engine to replace as many 730 EECs over a period of one to six years, depending on the results of the inspections. Estimated total cost to U.S. operators of $467,200.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Aircraft models powered by PW4000 engines with those diameters include Airbus A300s/A310s, and Boeing MD-11, 767-200s/300s and 747-400s.
The proposed airworthiness directive, issued today, is the result of a May 2006 in-flight shutdown of a Pratt & Whitney PW4152 turbofan due to defective EEC pulse-width modulator (PWM) microcircuits that degraded over time, says the FAA.
Investigators determined that the dual redundant circuits were defective when built and both failed over time due to thermal cycling within the certified operating temperature range of the engines.
"Based on a risk analysis provided by P&W which we reviewed and concurred, this condition, if not corrected, could result in uncommanded in-flight engine shutdowns, which could result in loss of thrust and prevent continued safe flight or landing," says FAA.
The FAA says the defective PWMs "are the result of a change from the original PWM design introduced by a single microcircuit supplier before 1993", adding that the manufacturer returned to the previous, correct designs between 1993 and 1994.
The FAA estimates the work will take one work-hour per engine to inspect, categorize, and mark each of the 730 EECs, and one work-hour per engine to replace as many 730 EECs over a period of one to six years, depending on the results of the inspections. Estimated total cost to U.S. operators of $467,200.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Calif. fire airplane makes emergency landing
REDDING, Calif. (AP) —A firefighting airplane under contract to the U.S. Forest Service made an emergency landing at the Redding airport when its landing gear failed.
The Forest Service says there were no injuries.
A pilot and a Forest Service firefighting coordinator were on board the twin-engine Aero Commander owned by Utah-based Kolob Canyons Air Service.
The pilot discovered the nose landing gear had not retracted after takeoff Wednesday afternoon. The plane's nose struck the tarmac as it landed.
The Forest Service is assessing the damage and investigating the incident.
The plane was assigned to fighting wildfires west of Redding.
The incident comes after nine fire personnel died and four were injured in an Aug. 5 helicopter crash near another complex of blazes west of Redding.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_10203694
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
The Forest Service says there were no injuries.
A pilot and a Forest Service firefighting coordinator were on board the twin-engine Aero Commander owned by Utah-based Kolob Canyons Air Service.
The pilot discovered the nose landing gear had not retracted after takeoff Wednesday afternoon. The plane's nose struck the tarmac as it landed.
The Forest Service is assessing the damage and investigating the incident.
The plane was assigned to fighting wildfires west of Redding.
The incident comes after nine fire personnel died and four were injured in an Aug. 5 helicopter crash near another complex of blazes west of Redding.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_10203694
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
Air investigators 'set priorities to maximize safety improvements'
AIR safety investigators receive 8000 reports each year on accidents and incidents among aircraft flying in, to or from Australia.
But unlike the media, which often assumes every technical problem is a safety breach, Australian Transport Safety Bureau staff must sift through and decide which reports are worthy of investigations.
A quick look at the bureau's weekly summaries shows how daunting a task this can be.
The summary for the week ending August 1 is 15 pages long and includes everything from malfunctioning autopilots on jumbo jets, lightning strikes to 737s, to defective landing gear and bird strikes on small aircraft.
"Everything that gets reported to us is basically assessed against the Act and regulations in terms of whether it meets the definition of a transport safety matter," ATSB aviation safety investigation director Julian Walsh said this week.
"Everything is recorded in our database ... If it's in our weekly summary, it's something we've assessed as being an accident or incident. In rough terms last year, I think we had about 8000 of those."
Mr. Walsh said ATSB prioritized and made judgments about which investigations would be most valuable from a safety viewpoint.
He said the board narrowed down the number of investigations to about 80 each year.
Priorities included fare-paying passenger operations and fatal accidents.
"There's a hierarchy of what we investigate starting with high-capacity regular public transport to low-capacity RPT, charter, and it works down the list to No7 or eight, which is sport and high-risk recreation activity," he said.
"I don't say we never investigate (that category) but we're less likely to do those."
Not on the ATSB's agenda are minor technical failures, even in big aircraft.
This explains why some "safety" breaches reported by the media in the past two weeks are not under investigation.
"Those sorts of things are reported to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority," he said.
"If there's some sort of maintenance defect, or a component that's got some sort of failure, that all gets reported through their system."
A recent hydraulic failure on a Manila-bound Boeing 767 had come under this category.
The failure involved a cracked component that had been quickly replaced and the aircraft returned to service.
"When we're only resourced to do the 80 investigations, how much real safety value are we going to get out of doing an investigation of that nature?" he said.
"The reality is we're not going to enhance the system significantly by looking at those sorts of things. I wouldn't want to underplay any sort of occurrence, but these sorts of technical things do happen and you would expect these minor things to be happening, with the level of airline activity around the world."
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24181430-23349,00.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
But unlike the media, which often assumes every technical problem is a safety breach, Australian Transport Safety Bureau staff must sift through and decide which reports are worthy of investigations.
A quick look at the bureau's weekly summaries shows how daunting a task this can be.
The summary for the week ending August 1 is 15 pages long and includes everything from malfunctioning autopilots on jumbo jets, lightning strikes to 737s, to defective landing gear and bird strikes on small aircraft.
"Everything that gets reported to us is basically assessed against the Act and regulations in terms of whether it meets the definition of a transport safety matter," ATSB aviation safety investigation director Julian Walsh said this week.
"Everything is recorded in our database ... If it's in our weekly summary, it's something we've assessed as being an accident or incident. In rough terms last year, I think we had about 8000 of those."
Mr. Walsh said ATSB prioritized and made judgments about which investigations would be most valuable from a safety viewpoint.
He said the board narrowed down the number of investigations to about 80 each year.
Priorities included fare-paying passenger operations and fatal accidents.
"There's a hierarchy of what we investigate starting with high-capacity regular public transport to low-capacity RPT, charter, and it works down the list to No7 or eight, which is sport and high-risk recreation activity," he said.
"I don't say we never investigate (that category) but we're less likely to do those."
Not on the ATSB's agenda are minor technical failures, even in big aircraft.
This explains why some "safety" breaches reported by the media in the past two weeks are not under investigation.
"Those sorts of things are reported to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority," he said.
"If there's some sort of maintenance defect, or a component that's got some sort of failure, that all gets reported through their system."
A recent hydraulic failure on a Manila-bound Boeing 767 had come under this category.
The failure involved a cracked component that had been quickly replaced and the aircraft returned to service.
"When we're only resourced to do the 80 investigations, how much real safety value are we going to get out of doing an investigation of that nature?" he said.
"The reality is we're not going to enhance the system significantly by looking at those sorts of things. I wouldn't want to underplay any sort of occurrence, but these sorts of technical things do happen and you would expect these minor things to be happening, with the level of airline activity around the world."
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24181430-23349,00.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 19/08/2008.
ASDE-X Commissioning Detroit Metro Wayne
Thank you, and good afternoon, everyone.
I’m pleased to be here in Detroit, and I’d like to thank the Congressman and Lester Robinson for their work in making this day possible.
Today, I’m proud to announce that the FAA has chosen Detroit Metro as one of the key locations to help advance modern runway safety technology. The advances that are taking place here will serve as the building blocks for the next level of aviation safety.
The landscape of aviation is changing right before our very eyes. High fuel prices, capacity cuts and layoffs are but the latest chapter in an ever-changing story, but as you look at it in the long term, it’s a story of transition.
No one knows yet how all these changes are going to play out, but I think one thing is clear.
While five of the top 15 airports are reporting declining passenger numbers, Detroit just reported a 3 percent increase for the first five months of the year.
While other airports are fretting about the next carrier to announce service cutbacks, the Detroit Metropolitan area is retaining air service schedules.
With these increases, I’m pleased to announce that Detroit Metro has become the 13th and latest airport in the nation to deploy the ground-breaking runway safety system called ASDE-X.
It helps ensure the highest possible levels of safety by using sensors around the airfield to detect plane and vehicle movements on the runways.
It was developed with a major goal in mind — to reduce the most serious kinds of runway incursions. This is an issue that I take very seriously. This is one that really does keep me up at night. About a year ago, I issued a challenge — a call to action — to the entire aviation industry — the controllers, the pilots, the airlines — to join with the FAA and let’s stop runway incursions.
So far it’s paying off. Serious runway mishaps are at an all-time low. But as Detroit knows, now is not the time to take our foot off the accelerator. We can’t be satisfied or complacent.
The county was eager to work with us to get ASDE-X up and running.
It was brought in at the end of June, and while safety was our primary goal, the system provides great efficiency benefits as well. It saves time. It saves fuel. And it saves money.
That’s music to everyone’s ears.
With this technology firmly in place, I’m pleased to announce another reason ASDE-X is so important here in Detroit. This is the first airport where the FAA will leverage ASDE-X to operate a new system to land aircraft more quickly and safely.
It’s called PRM-A, Precision Runway Monitor-Alternate.
Using some of the sophisticated features of ASDE-X, it gives controllers an eye in the sky to see the precise location of airplanes out as far as 10 miles, thereby allowing pilots to bring them in side by side on parallel runways at the same time. Once again, it’s safe, it saves money, and it works.
Here’s another critical tool that’s coming this way — runway status lights. They’re like traffic signals that tell a pilot when the runways are occupied and when they’re clear.
The advances that are being made here reflect the modernization efforts happening across the country. We are harnessing technology and converting it into more usable capacity and greater safety.
Initiatives such as ASDE-X and PRM-A are parts of our Next Generation Air Transportation System — a comprehensive strategy to reduce delays, improve airport management and maximize safety and efficiency.
JFK and Phoenix are next on this year’s list for ASDE-X. By 2009, it’ll be at seven more airports, including Logan, Newark, and LAX. By 2011, all of the 35 major airports will have it.
We brought the system here now because Detroit depends on more than just the auto industry. You rely on aviation too. And if planes don’t move because of bad weather or congestion, the economy doesn’t move, and that’s unacceptable.
That’s why the FAA is committed to strengthening and improving capacity and safety. Detroit has to be a part of that endeavor.
The investments in cutting-edge aviation technology are setting the stage for a stronger, safer system that keeps our nation and this city at the forefront of aviation.
I want to thank Congressman Knollenberg for his support of our capital programs. I also want to acknowledge our managers, the controllers, technicians and engineers, for implementing these cutting-edge technologies and helping us improve safety and capacity. Thank you.
Fonte: FAA 19/08/2008.
I’m pleased to be here in Detroit, and I’d like to thank the Congressman and Lester Robinson for their work in making this day possible.
Today, I’m proud to announce that the FAA has chosen Detroit Metro as one of the key locations to help advance modern runway safety technology. The advances that are taking place here will serve as the building blocks for the next level of aviation safety.
The landscape of aviation is changing right before our very eyes. High fuel prices, capacity cuts and layoffs are but the latest chapter in an ever-changing story, but as you look at it in the long term, it’s a story of transition.
No one knows yet how all these changes are going to play out, but I think one thing is clear.
While five of the top 15 airports are reporting declining passenger numbers, Detroit just reported a 3 percent increase for the first five months of the year.
While other airports are fretting about the next carrier to announce service cutbacks, the Detroit Metropolitan area is retaining air service schedules.
With these increases, I’m pleased to announce that Detroit Metro has become the 13th and latest airport in the nation to deploy the ground-breaking runway safety system called ASDE-X.
It helps ensure the highest possible levels of safety by using sensors around the airfield to detect plane and vehicle movements on the runways.
It was developed with a major goal in mind — to reduce the most serious kinds of runway incursions. This is an issue that I take very seriously. This is one that really does keep me up at night. About a year ago, I issued a challenge — a call to action — to the entire aviation industry — the controllers, the pilots, the airlines — to join with the FAA and let’s stop runway incursions.
So far it’s paying off. Serious runway mishaps are at an all-time low. But as Detroit knows, now is not the time to take our foot off the accelerator. We can’t be satisfied or complacent.
The county was eager to work with us to get ASDE-X up and running.
It was brought in at the end of June, and while safety was our primary goal, the system provides great efficiency benefits as well. It saves time. It saves fuel. And it saves money.
That’s music to everyone’s ears.
With this technology firmly in place, I’m pleased to announce another reason ASDE-X is so important here in Detroit. This is the first airport where the FAA will leverage ASDE-X to operate a new system to land aircraft more quickly and safely.
It’s called PRM-A, Precision Runway Monitor-Alternate.
Using some of the sophisticated features of ASDE-X, it gives controllers an eye in the sky to see the precise location of airplanes out as far as 10 miles, thereby allowing pilots to bring them in side by side on parallel runways at the same time. Once again, it’s safe, it saves money, and it works.
Here’s another critical tool that’s coming this way — runway status lights. They’re like traffic signals that tell a pilot when the runways are occupied and when they’re clear.
The advances that are being made here reflect the modernization efforts happening across the country. We are harnessing technology and converting it into more usable capacity and greater safety.
Initiatives such as ASDE-X and PRM-A are parts of our Next Generation Air Transportation System — a comprehensive strategy to reduce delays, improve airport management and maximize safety and efficiency.
JFK and Phoenix are next on this year’s list for ASDE-X. By 2009, it’ll be at seven more airports, including Logan, Newark, and LAX. By 2011, all of the 35 major airports will have it.
We brought the system here now because Detroit depends on more than just the auto industry. You rely on aviation too. And if planes don’t move because of bad weather or congestion, the economy doesn’t move, and that’s unacceptable.
That’s why the FAA is committed to strengthening and improving capacity and safety. Detroit has to be a part of that endeavor.
The investments in cutting-edge aviation technology are setting the stage for a stronger, safer system that keeps our nation and this city at the forefront of aviation.
I want to thank Congressman Knollenberg for his support of our capital programs. I also want to acknowledge our managers, the controllers, technicians and engineers, for implementing these cutting-edge technologies and helping us improve safety and capacity. Thank you.
Fonte: FAA 19/08/2008.
FAA Seeks Penalties Against American Airlines for Deferred Maintenance, Other Violations
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today announced actions totaling $7.1 million in civil penalties against American Airlines for improperly deferring maintenance on safety-related equipment and deficiencies with its drug and alcohol testing programs and exit lighting inspections.
The FAA asserts that in December 2007, American used the wrong provisions of its Minimum Equipment List (MEL) to return two MD-83 aircraft to service after pilots had reported problems, and flew the planes 58 times in violation of FAA regulations. The MEL contains components and systems without which the aircraft may operate safely under specific limitations, as proven by the operator or manufacturer.
On December 11 and 12, American operated the first MD-83 on eight flights in airspace it should have been restricted from after maintenance on part of the autopilot system was improperly deferred. An FAA inspector discovered the improper deferral and informed the airline, however American flew the plane on 10 more revenue flights until the problem was fixed on December 17.
In another incident, the autopilot disconnected during a landing by the same aircraft on December 21. American technicians did not check for the actual problem, and instead deferred maintenance using an inappropriate MEL item. The plane flew another 36 passenger-carrying flights during December 21-31. Airline maintenance later discovered the fault was in a radio altimeter – not the autopilot.
For the violations involving this MD-83, the FAA is proposing a $4.1 million civil penalty.
A different MD-83 experienced an autopilot disconnect on December 27. Although American mechanics correctly diagnosed the problem, they again deferred maintenance under the wrong item of the MEL. As a result, the aircraft operated on four revenue flights without a fully functioning autopilot. The FAA is proposing a $325,000 civil penalty in this instance.
The FAA believes the large total amount of the fine for these violations is appropriate because American Airlines was aware that appropriate repairs were needed, and instead deferred maintenance. In intentionally continuing to fly the aircraft, the carrier did not follow important safety regulations intended to protect passengers and crew.
Also, in May of this year the FAA proposed civil penalties in the amount of $2.7 million in civil penalties against American for alleged past deficiencies in its drug and alcohol testing programs and for allegedly operating aircraft in past years without timely inspections of emergency escape path lighting systems. The amount included $1.7 million civil penalty for the testing program violations and $1 million for the lighting inspection violations.
American Airlines will have the opportunity to respond to the proposed civil penalties.
Fonte: FAA 19/08/2008.
The FAA asserts that in December 2007, American used the wrong provisions of its Minimum Equipment List (MEL) to return two MD-83 aircraft to service after pilots had reported problems, and flew the planes 58 times in violation of FAA regulations. The MEL contains components and systems without which the aircraft may operate safely under specific limitations, as proven by the operator or manufacturer.
On December 11 and 12, American operated the first MD-83 on eight flights in airspace it should have been restricted from after maintenance on part of the autopilot system was improperly deferred. An FAA inspector discovered the improper deferral and informed the airline, however American flew the plane on 10 more revenue flights until the problem was fixed on December 17.
In another incident, the autopilot disconnected during a landing by the same aircraft on December 21. American technicians did not check for the actual problem, and instead deferred maintenance using an inappropriate MEL item. The plane flew another 36 passenger-carrying flights during December 21-31. Airline maintenance later discovered the fault was in a radio altimeter – not the autopilot.
For the violations involving this MD-83, the FAA is proposing a $4.1 million civil penalty.
A different MD-83 experienced an autopilot disconnect on December 27. Although American mechanics correctly diagnosed the problem, they again deferred maintenance under the wrong item of the MEL. As a result, the aircraft operated on four revenue flights without a fully functioning autopilot. The FAA is proposing a $325,000 civil penalty in this instance.
The FAA believes the large total amount of the fine for these violations is appropriate because American Airlines was aware that appropriate repairs were needed, and instead deferred maintenance. In intentionally continuing to fly the aircraft, the carrier did not follow important safety regulations intended to protect passengers and crew.
Also, in May of this year the FAA proposed civil penalties in the amount of $2.7 million in civil penalties against American for alleged past deficiencies in its drug and alcohol testing programs and for allegedly operating aircraft in past years without timely inspections of emergency escape path lighting systems. The amount included $1.7 million civil penalty for the testing program violations and $1 million for the lighting inspection violations.
American Airlines will have the opportunity to respond to the proposed civil penalties.
Fonte: FAA 19/08/2008.
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