The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched investigators to California to investigate the crash of a small plane that was found yesterday that appears to be the aircraft piloted by adventurer Steve Fossett. The Bellanca 8KCAB (N240R) has been missing since September 3, 2007, when the pilot departed Yerington, Nevada for a local flight.
The wreckage was located at about 10,000 feet of elevation in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in the vicinity of Mammoth Lakes, California. Senior Investigator Georgia Struhsaker has been designated Investigator-in-Charge for this accident.
She will be assisted by two other NTSB investigators and by the Federal Aviation Administration.
NTSB Chairman Mark V. Rosenker is accompanying the team and will serve as principal spokesman for the on-scene investigation.
Terry Williams is the press officer traveling with the team.
Fonte: NTSB 03/10/2008.
sexta-feira, 3 de outubro de 2008
Moskovia An-12 crashed after fire damaged aileron controls
Russian investigators have concluded that the Moskovia Airlines Antonov An-12 which crashed near Chelyabinsk earlier this year had suffered loss of roll stability following fire damage to aileron controls.
All nine occupants of the aircraft, bound for Perm, were killed as it struck the ground while attempting to return to Chelyabink Airport shortly after departure on 26 May.
While ignition of electrical wiring in the freight hold is suspected to have caused the fire, the Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) admits that it is unable to pinpoint the precise source or location.
The fire is thought to have caused heat damage to mechanical controls in the region of frames 23-25 in the freight cabin, and MAK believes these subsequently broke under tensile loading.
Electrical power distribution systems and other equipment were badly damaged by fire following the crash and MAK says it has "not been possible" to locate a primary cause of ignition, or the precise point at which the fire started.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
All nine occupants of the aircraft, bound for Perm, were killed as it struck the ground while attempting to return to Chelyabink Airport shortly after departure on 26 May.
While ignition of electrical wiring in the freight hold is suspected to have caused the fire, the Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) admits that it is unable to pinpoint the precise source or location.
The fire is thought to have caused heat damage to mechanical controls in the region of frames 23-25 in the freight cabin, and MAK believes these subsequently broke under tensile loading.
Electrical power distribution systems and other equipment were badly damaged by fire following the crash and MAK says it has "not been possible" to locate a primary cause of ignition, or the precise point at which the fire started.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
Injuries as severe turbulence hits second CAL 747-400
Twenty-one occupants on board a China Airlines Boeing 747-400 have been injured in a severe turbulence incident, the second involving CAL in less than two weeks.
The Taiwanese aircraft had departed Hong Kong at 11:50, with 147 passengers and 18 crew, operating flight CI641 to Bangkok.
It encountered turbulence in Thai airspace at 13:59. CAL says there was no warning, and says 16 passengers and five crew members were subsequently injured.
Engineers checked the 747 after it landed in Bangkok at 14:23. CAL says it will fly back to Taipei once it has passed inspection.
The airline has identified the jet as being registered B-18202.
Flight's ACAS database lists the 747 as an 11-year old aircraft, with Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, owned by the carrier.
CAL suffered a separate severe turbulence incident on 20 September when about 30 people were injured on board another 747-400.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
The Taiwanese aircraft had departed Hong Kong at 11:50, with 147 passengers and 18 crew, operating flight CI641 to Bangkok.
It encountered turbulence in Thai airspace at 13:59. CAL says there was no warning, and says 16 passengers and five crew members were subsequently injured.
Engineers checked the 747 after it landed in Bangkok at 14:23. CAL says it will fly back to Taipei once it has passed inspection.
The airline has identified the jet as being registered B-18202.
Flight's ACAS database lists the 747 as an 11-year old aircraft, with Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, owned by the carrier.
CAL suffered a separate severe turbulence incident on 20 September when about 30 people were injured on board another 747-400.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
Light aircraft makes emergency landing in Shannon (Citation)
A light aircraft with five people on board has made an emergency landing at Shannon airport this morning.
The Citation plane is understood to have suffered hydraulic problems while travelling from Gander Airport in Newfoundland to La Bourgeois in Paris.
All the passengers disembarked safely after the aircraft landed safely in Shannon.
No disruption was caused to other flights at the airport.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/ireland/light-aircraft-makes-emergency-landing-in-shannon-13992422.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
The Citation plane is understood to have suffered hydraulic problems while travelling from Gander Airport in Newfoundland to La Bourgeois in Paris.
All the passengers disembarked safely after the aircraft landed safely in Shannon.
No disruption was caused to other flights at the airport.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/ireland/light-aircraft-makes-emergency-landing-in-shannon-13992422.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
Medevac Pilots Ordered To Take Test
Earlier Policy Changed Ability For Pilots To Practice
BALTIMORE -- The WBAL TV 11 News I-Team has learned that Maryland State Police aviation command has ordered all Medevac pilots to complete an instrument landing competency test before they can resume flying.
The order for the test is in conjunction with in-flight checks of glide slope equipment in each helicopter. A glide slope assists in the pilots decent onto a landing zone.
The order followed last weekend's helicopter crash that killed four people. The pilot of Trooper 2, Stephen Bunker, 59, had told the tower at Andrews Air Force Base that he was having trouble capturing his glide slope -- or in common terms, acquiring the radio signal that provides guidance to the runway.
Bunker's service record and performance are part of the National Transportation and Safety Board's investigation.
But pilots who recently flew Trooper 2 told investigators that the aircraft's instruments were functioning normally. The helicopter had also just undergone a 100-hour inspection.
Several aviation experts who asked not to be quoted because of the ongoing investigation are questioning whether Bunker was flying too low for his glide slope to engage, I-Team reporter David Collins said.
According to the NTSB, Andrews recorded the helicopter flying at 700 feet within three miles of the runway. Experts told 11 News that's too low and too close to start an instrument approach. They said the pilot should have begun the process seven miles out and at least at 1,000 feet.
A neighbor of Walker Mill Regional Park told investigators he spotted the helicopter flying below the cloud ceiling. The NTSB said that just before the crash there were scattered clouds at 200 feet.
The NTSB determined the helicopter's first point of impact was the top of an 80-foot tree.
Experts pointed out that Bunker had other equipment on board indicating his altitude, and they also questioned whether the Andrews control tower provided a warning. The NTSB is also looking into air traffic control training.
In a memorandum dated Nov. 27, 2007, state police aviation unit commander Maj. A.J. McAndrew spelled out policy changes in the pilot training plan.
The four-page document said, in part, that due to the aviation command's current helicopter fleet maintenance situation, it is the intent of the new training plan to reduce flight time and provide more structured and consistent training.
The memo said, "Pilots will no longer fly with each other at the section level for instrument currency," meaning that pilots couldn't practice instrument landings like they used to whenever the opportunity presented itself.
Experts said the policy change could mean the difference between being proficient at instrument landing and just passing a required test to stay current to Federal Aviation Administration regulations.
The memo informed pilots that aviation command would be leasing a flight simulator from American Helicopters Inc., saying, "The simulator, although not specific to the Dauphine aircraft cockpit, will be utilized in a pinch for training current and new pilots on instrument procedures."
Maryland State Police spokesman Greg Shipley said that policy changes to pilot training has made the program stronger, more structured, consistent and better.
State police also said that pilots are encouraged to practice instrument landing whenever they have the opportunity, and if they feel weak in any particular area, they are encouraged to go in and work with an instructor.
http://www.wbaltv.com/news/17610615/detail.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
BALTIMORE -- The WBAL TV 11 News I-Team has learned that Maryland State Police aviation command has ordered all Medevac pilots to complete an instrument landing competency test before they can resume flying.
The order for the test is in conjunction with in-flight checks of glide slope equipment in each helicopter. A glide slope assists in the pilots decent onto a landing zone.
The order followed last weekend's helicopter crash that killed four people. The pilot of Trooper 2, Stephen Bunker, 59, had told the tower at Andrews Air Force Base that he was having trouble capturing his glide slope -- or in common terms, acquiring the radio signal that provides guidance to the runway.
Bunker's service record and performance are part of the National Transportation and Safety Board's investigation.
But pilots who recently flew Trooper 2 told investigators that the aircraft's instruments were functioning normally. The helicopter had also just undergone a 100-hour inspection.
Several aviation experts who asked not to be quoted because of the ongoing investigation are questioning whether Bunker was flying too low for his glide slope to engage, I-Team reporter David Collins said.
According to the NTSB, Andrews recorded the helicopter flying at 700 feet within three miles of the runway. Experts told 11 News that's too low and too close to start an instrument approach. They said the pilot should have begun the process seven miles out and at least at 1,000 feet.
A neighbor of Walker Mill Regional Park told investigators he spotted the helicopter flying below the cloud ceiling. The NTSB said that just before the crash there were scattered clouds at 200 feet.
The NTSB determined the helicopter's first point of impact was the top of an 80-foot tree.
Experts pointed out that Bunker had other equipment on board indicating his altitude, and they also questioned whether the Andrews control tower provided a warning. The NTSB is also looking into air traffic control training.
In a memorandum dated Nov. 27, 2007, state police aviation unit commander Maj. A.J. McAndrew spelled out policy changes in the pilot training plan.
The four-page document said, in part, that due to the aviation command's current helicopter fleet maintenance situation, it is the intent of the new training plan to reduce flight time and provide more structured and consistent training.
The memo said, "Pilots will no longer fly with each other at the section level for instrument currency," meaning that pilots couldn't practice instrument landings like they used to whenever the opportunity presented itself.
Experts said the policy change could mean the difference between being proficient at instrument landing and just passing a required test to stay current to Federal Aviation Administration regulations.
The memo informed pilots that aviation command would be leasing a flight simulator from American Helicopters Inc., saying, "The simulator, although not specific to the Dauphine aircraft cockpit, will be utilized in a pinch for training current and new pilots on instrument procedures."
Maryland State Police spokesman Greg Shipley said that policy changes to pilot training has made the program stronger, more structured, consistent and better.
State police also said that pilots are encouraged to practice instrument landing whenever they have the opportunity, and if they feel weak in any particular area, they are encouraged to go in and work with an instructor.
http://www.wbaltv.com/news/17610615/detail.html
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
KD-Avia crew reported flap problem before gear-up landing
Preliminary information indicates that the KD-Avia Boeing 737-300 which performed a gear-up landing at Kaliningrad yesterday had aborted its initial approach because of a flap problem.
Russia's federal air transport authority Rosaviatsia states that, at 22:02, as the jet approached Kaliningrad's Khrabrovo Airport from Barcelona, the crew reported the aircraft's flaps had not deployed.
The 737 aborted the approach and began circling for a second attempt and, at 22:06, the crew advised that the flaps had extended.
Emergency services were alerted at 22:15 to prepare for the aircraft's arrival. The jet landed, with its undercarriage retracted, three minutes later.
Neither Rosaviatsia nor the Russian Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) has given any indication as to the reason why the 737's gear was not lowered.
Although the accident badly damaged the aircraft and resulted in the closure of the airport for several hours, none of the 144 passengers and crew was injured.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
Russia's federal air transport authority Rosaviatsia states that, at 22:02, as the jet approached Kaliningrad's Khrabrovo Airport from Barcelona, the crew reported the aircraft's flaps had not deployed.
The 737 aborted the approach and began circling for a second attempt and, at 22:06, the crew advised that the flaps had extended.
Emergency services were alerted at 22:15 to prepare for the aircraft's arrival. The jet landed, with its undercarriage retracted, three minutes later.
Neither Rosaviatsia nor the Russian Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) has given any indication as to the reason why the 737's gear was not lowered.
Although the accident badly damaged the aircraft and resulted in the closure of the airport for several hours, none of the 144 passengers and crew was injured.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 03/10/2008.
FAA Says American Eagle Violated Weight, Balance Restrictions
Airline Confirms Planes Flew Out Of Envelope
The Federal Aviation Administration has determined regional airline American Eagle flew its planes in violation of federal weight and balance guidelines at least 19 times in the past five months, according to an ABC News report.
Citing 'sources in the aviation industry,' ABC states the FAA's investigation began after the airline self-reported two incidents in which planes took of outside of the accepted weight and balance envelope. No incidents occurred due to the apparent violations, though everyone agrees it's a very serious matter.
"When you talk about the performance for weight and balance it is critical, it will get you killed, which is why it's so strictly controlled," said Jack Eppard of the Air Line Pilots Association.
A concern on all aircraft -- as private pilots can attest to -- weight and balance is particularly important on smaller regional aircraft, which due to their size are more sensitive to improper loading than larger airliners. Overloading and an out-of-range aft CG were cited as contributing factors to the January 2003 downing on takeoff of an US Airways Express/Air Midwest Beechcraft 1900D in Charlotte, NC, that killed all 21 persons onboard and injured one person on the ground.
American Eagle admits there were "several cases" of planes flying in violation of weight and balance guidelines. Airlines spokeswoman Andrea Huguely said the faults were due to discrepancies between manual baggage loading lists, and the computer program used to calculate weight and balance restrictions on the planes.
When asked whether those problems could pose a safety issue, Huguely disconcertingly replied "I don't know"... before adding the airline's planes have redundant safety systems in place, "and we feel as though we always fly safe planes."
Sources within the FAA tell ABC the agency is now determining whether to impose any fines or penalties on American Eagle... though an agency spokesman had no official comment.
"We don't comment on ongoing investigations which may or may not result in enforcement actions. When enforcement actions are taken, that information is available to the public," said spokesman Roland Herwig.
This isn't the first time this year the American Airlines regional subsidiary has been at odds with a federal agency. As ANN reported, in August a TSA inspector reported he was able to gain access to seven of nine parked American Eagle planes on the ground at O'Hare International... by grabbing the fragile air temperature probes on the outside of the fuselages to pull himself up to unlocked doors.
The airline delayed 40 flights to check for damage, after its own employees observed the inspector, and warned maintenance officials. The TSA later retaliated against the airline, stating it "consistently found problems" with American Eagle at ORD and that it planned to impose fines.
FMI: www.aa.com, www.faa.gov
aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 02/10/2008.
The Federal Aviation Administration has determined regional airline American Eagle flew its planes in violation of federal weight and balance guidelines at least 19 times in the past five months, according to an ABC News report.
Citing 'sources in the aviation industry,' ABC states the FAA's investigation began after the airline self-reported two incidents in which planes took of outside of the accepted weight and balance envelope. No incidents occurred due to the apparent violations, though everyone agrees it's a very serious matter.
"When you talk about the performance for weight and balance it is critical, it will get you killed, which is why it's so strictly controlled," said Jack Eppard of the Air Line Pilots Association.
A concern on all aircraft -- as private pilots can attest to -- weight and balance is particularly important on smaller regional aircraft, which due to their size are more sensitive to improper loading than larger airliners. Overloading and an out-of-range aft CG were cited as contributing factors to the January 2003 downing on takeoff of an US Airways Express/Air Midwest Beechcraft 1900D in Charlotte, NC, that killed all 21 persons onboard and injured one person on the ground.
American Eagle admits there were "several cases" of planes flying in violation of weight and balance guidelines. Airlines spokeswoman Andrea Huguely said the faults were due to discrepancies between manual baggage loading lists, and the computer program used to calculate weight and balance restrictions on the planes.
When asked whether those problems could pose a safety issue, Huguely disconcertingly replied "I don't know"... before adding the airline's planes have redundant safety systems in place, "and we feel as though we always fly safe planes."
Sources within the FAA tell ABC the agency is now determining whether to impose any fines or penalties on American Eagle... though an agency spokesman had no official comment.
"We don't comment on ongoing investigations which may or may not result in enforcement actions. When enforcement actions are taken, that information is available to the public," said spokesman Roland Herwig.
This isn't the first time this year the American Airlines regional subsidiary has been at odds with a federal agency. As ANN reported, in August a TSA inspector reported he was able to gain access to seven of nine parked American Eagle planes on the ground at O'Hare International... by grabbing the fragile air temperature probes on the outside of the fuselages to pull himself up to unlocked doors.
The airline delayed 40 flights to check for damage, after its own employees observed the inspector, and warned maintenance officials. The TSA later retaliated against the airline, stating it "consistently found problems" with American Eagle at ORD and that it planned to impose fines.
FMI: www.aa.com, www.faa.gov
aero-news.net
Fonte: Flight Safety Information 02/10/2008.
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