08 NOV 2007 _______________________________________ *EASA, Transport Canada Officials Assert Q400s Are Safe *Qantas Closely Monitoring Dreamliner Progress *Fatigue key to mistakes among pilots *Arrests in US airport badge scam *Cargo plane crashes at Khartoum airport, no casualties *Nationwide investigates airplane malfunction *US FAA INSPECTORS COMING TO BULGARIA IN DECEMBER 2007 *************************************** EASA, Transport Canada Officials Assert Q400s Are Safe Say Latest Gear-Related Incident Not Due To A Design Flaw A joint meeting between representatives of the European Aviation Safety Agency, Transport Canada, planemaker Bombardier and component manufacturer Goodrich determined Wednesday an October 27 incident involving a Scandinavian Airlines Dash 8 Q400 turboprop was not caused by a design flaw in the aircraft's right maingear assembly. As ANN reported, EASA invited representatives of those companies -- as well as airworthiness authorities from Denmark, Sweden, and Norway -- to discuss the decision by Scandinavian authorities to decertify the Q400 for operations in those countries. In a release to ANN, EASA states those authorities will "reissue the Certificates of Airworthiness relevant to this aircraft type in the coming days." The Q400 came under fire from Scandinavian authorities following three nearly-identical right main landing gear failures involving SAS Q400s in less than two months, resulting in emergency landings. Separate investigations by the Danish government determined the first two incidents -- in Aalborg, Denmark on September 9, followed by another failure in Vilnius, Lithuania three days later -- were caused by a corroded bolt in each plane's landing gear assembly. However, a preliminary report on a third incident on October 27 suggests that failure was caused by a loose rubber O-ring, which jammed and kept the gear leg from extending. Wednesday's meeting also confirmed that the two earlier incidents were not related to the October 27 incident. The Agency's Executive Director Patrick Goudou welcomed the spirit of cooperation of all participants, as "a good example of European and transatlantic cooperation in the area of aviation safety." It's unlikely the meeting's findings will change how SAS views the Q400, however. The carrier has permanently grounded its 27-ship fleet. FMI: www.bombardier.com, www.flysas.com, www.easa.eu.int aero-news.net ************** Qantas Closely Monitoring Dreamliner Progress Says Six-Month Delay Is Acceptable, But Any Longer Poses A Problem Once bitten, twice shy... but still optimistic. That's how Qantas CEO Geoff Dixon characterized the Australian airline's attitude towards Boeing's announcement of a six-month, production-related delay to its 787 Dreamliner program. "Six months we can deal with," Dixon told the Chicago Tribune. "Anything longer will certainly make our life more difficult." Qantas is familiar with the impact production delays can have on eagerly-awaited new aircraft. The carrier has suffered through a 22-month delay in receiving its first Airbus A380 superjumbo; Qantas now expects to receive its first A380 next August. The carrier has learned how to deal with such delays... namely, by placing staff close to the planemaker, to keep the pressure on and protect its $12 billion investment. "We monitor this in Toulouse and in Seattle all the time," Dixon said last month. "Boeing has been quite open with us. They do appear confident that there will only be a six-month delay. But I'd be lying not to say that we have our concerns." Qantas has the largest single order for Dreamliners to date, with 65 planes. The Australian airline is slated to have 15 787s in its fleet by 2009 -- planes it will use to further international expansion plans for low-cost subsidiary Jetstar. Some doubt Boeing's ambitious schedule. Teal Group analyst Richard Aboulafia calls the planemaker's chances of meeting its latest schedule "minimal," noting Boeing would need to build more widebody airliners in a year than it has ever done, "all the while figuring out the learning curve, production curve. I think it's a little tough to believe in." Dixon also has some doubts, though he remains cautiously optimistic. "It's a very, very quick wind up," he acknowledged, adding Qantas is working on a contingency plan in the event a second delay is announced. "That shouldn't be read as the fact that we do think there will be delays," Dixon said. "But we would be remiss not to have contingencies." For the moment, Boeing has largely avoided having to negotiate compensation for airlines waiting for the 787... though that situation will change quickly if a second delay is announced. "If there's going to be further delays, undoubtedly there would be further penalties involved," JSA Research aerospace analyst Paul Nisbet told the Tribune. Dreamliner program spokeswoman Yvonne Leach dismissed talk of possible concessions as "premature." As for Qantas' plans to watch over Boeing's collective shoulders, Leach said it's SOP for larger customers to place engineers on the ground to keep watch on the assembly process. "They, like other airlines, are here as part of our natural process for starting up a production line," Leach said. One point Dixon is unhappy with Boeing on, is the planemaker's reluctance to lock down a final design for a larger version of the Dreamliner, dubbed the 787-10. But he has a backup plan -- the planned -1000 version of the Airbus 350XWB. The Qantas chief said the airline is in "serious discussions" with Airbus for a large XWB order. "Everything points to it being an aircraft with enough size and range to be very important for not just us but quite a number of airlines," Dixon said of the A350. FMI: www.qantas.com, www.boeing.com, www.airbus.com aero-news.net *************** Fatigue key to mistakes among pilots WORK RULES FOR PILOTS Pilots can fly up to eight hours a day. • A workday, which includes flight preparation time on the ground, can extend up to 16 hours. • Federal rules require eight hours off each day, but don't address how much sleep a pilot should receive. • Pilots can fly up to 100 hours per month on domestic flights. Source: Federal Aviation Administration By Alan Levin and Brad Heath, USA TODAY WASHINGTON — Hundreds of pilots, mechanics and air-traffic controllers reported that fatigue led them to make mistakes on the job, including six cases where pilots fell asleep in midflight, a USA TODAY analysis of safety records since 2003 shows. The reports show that crews flew to the wrong altitude, botched landings and missed radio calls, according to an aviation safety database compiled by NASA. In one case, a pilot and co-pilot fell asleep while descending toward Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C., the NASA records say. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will address the issue of fatigue Thursday at its annual hearing to adopt its "most wanted" safety enhancements. While the incidents represent only a small percentage of the more than 40 million airline flights during the period, the NTSB has linked pilot fatigue to 10 commercial aviation accidents. The crashes, all since 1993, killed 260 people. Pilot unions say fatigue is one of the top safety threats in aviation. The incidents are partially the result of changes in work rules imposed by financially troubled airlines that have put added pressures on pilots to fly longer hours, unions say. "We see these as signs of pushing pilots to go beyond their limits," said Capt. John Prater, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, the nation's largest pilot's union. The NTSB has for two decades called on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to tighten restrictions on how many hours pilots can work each day. Airline crews can work up to 16 hours a day, possibly more if a flight is delayed. Research by the NTSB and others shows sharply higher risks of pilot mistakes and accidents after long shifts or periods without normal sleep. The FAA has tried several times to revise pilot work rules since the 1990s, but the efforts failed each time under opposition from airlines and pilot unions. Airlines recognize that tired pilots are not effective and have devoted considerable resources to the issue, said Basil Barimo, vice president of operations and safety at the Air Transport Association, the carriers' Washington trade group. In recent years, most carriers have boosted fatigue training and strengthened policies allowing pilots to decline to fly if they feel tired, Barimo said. Frontier Airlines acknowledged Wednesday that two of its pilots fell asleep on a 2004 red-eye flight from Baltimore to Denver. One pilot awoke to "frantic calls" from a controller, according to a report on the incident in the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System. The NASA system contains 750 incidents since 2003 in which aviation workers cited fatigue-related incidents. Pilots were involved in 650 of those cases. USA TODAY also found four additional cases in which pilots reported falling asleep. None caused an accident. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-11-07-airfatigue_N.htm ************** Arrests in US airport badge scam Tighter airport security measures have been introduced since 9/11 More than 100 workers at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport have been found with fake security passes, officials have said. Authorities said 110 of the badges issued to a contracting company did not match their owners. A total of 23 illegal immigrants were arrested and accused of using the fake badges to work in secure areas. The US has tried to introduce rigorous security measures at airports since the attacks of 11 September 2001. FBI checks Of those arrested, 21 are from Mexico and two from Guatemala, the Associated Press new agency reported. The case concerns workers employed by Ideal Staffing Solutions, which contracted work for carriers including United Airlines, KLM and Qantas. Applications for the 110 fake badges used social security numbers that did not exist or belonged to other people, some of them dead. One worker is said to have told investigators he was asked to rummage through a box of about 20 airport security passes and pick one with a picture that looked like him. The office of Cook County State's attorney has issued more than 100 arrest warrants in the case. Since the 9/11 attacks, the US aviation department has implemented rigorous screening of everyone allowed access to secure areas, including fingerprinting, an FBI criminal check and a security threat assessment. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7084338.stm *************** Cargo plane crashes at Khartoum airport, no casualties KHARTOUM (Reuters) - A cargo plane crash landed and caught fire at Khartoum airport but no one was killed, civil aviation officials said on Thursday. The Antonov 12 cargo plane belonging to the privately owned Juba Air Cargo company took off for the south Sudan capital of Juba but due to technical problems had to return to Khartoum, officials said. "The plane landed outside the civilian airport close to the military airport," a Sudanese Civil Aviation official told Reuters. "It is burnt but all the crew are well," he added. Planes often crash in Sudan's crowded airports. Without roads in much of the country, much cargo travels by air. A massive humanitarian and United Nations and African Union peacekeeping operations in Sudan means traffic at airports has greatly increased in recent years. Many of the planes in Sudan are old and maintenance is sometimes poor. http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN824322.html *************** Nationwide investigates airplane malfunction Nationwide Airlines management says a full investigation is already underway following the incident in which an engine separated from the wing of one of their aircraft at Cape Town International Airport. Several flights to Cape Town were diverted to George Airport. Nationwide Airlines spokesperson Charmaine Thome says all their flights are now operating normally. "Nationwide flight CE 723 departed Cape Town on schedule at 15h50. At take off, it was reported that the right hand engine separated from the wing. We still don't have facts as to why this occurred and we are investigating this currently,” says Thome. http://www.sabcnews.com/south_africa/general/0,2172,158833,00.html ***** Status: Preliminary Date: 07 NOV 2007 Time: ca 15:50 Type: Boeing 737-230 Operator: Nationwide Airlines Registration: ZS-OEZ ? C/n / msn: 22118/704 First flight: 1981 Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney JT8D-15 Crew: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Passengers: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Total: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 106 Airplane damage: Unknown Location: Cape Town International Airport (CPT) (South Africa) Phase: Takeoff Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Cape Town International Airport (CPT/FACT), South Africa Destination airport: Johannesburg International Airport (JNB/FAJS), South Africa Flightnumber: 723 Narrative: Nationwide Flight CE723 departed from Cape Town (CPT) on schedule at 15:50. At take-off it was reported that the right hand engine separated from the wing. The aircraft continued to climb out. The aircraft returned and landed at Cape Town International Airport without further incident. No passengers or crew were injured. Unconfirmed reports indicate that ZS-OEZ was the airplane involved in the mishap. (aviation-safety.net) *************** US FAA INSPECTORS COMING TO BULGARIA IN DECEMBER 2007 Inspectors from the United States Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) will be coming to Bulgaria in December 2007 to assess the safety and security of the country’s airports and airlines, US ambassador John Beyrle said on November 6. The inspectors will decide whether Bulgaria should be recommended for “category one” approval which would open the way for direct air services between the US and Bulgaria. Beyrle was speaking at a discussion hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bulgaria on the theme of Bulgaria’s first year as a member of the European Union. He said that the US was committed to intensive co-operation with Bulgaria in key areas. These included energy diversity and security, so that Bulgaria would be less dependent on a single source for oil and gas, intellectual property protection – Beyrle said that Bulgaria had made tremendous progress in this regard, but this needed to be sustained – aviation safety, and defence procurement, where Beyrle called for decisions to be made according to interests of national security rather than for private or political reasons. Also on the theme of aviation safety, Bulgaria’s European Affairs Minister Gergana Grancharova referred to the safeguard clause imposed against Bulgaria on EU accession that excluded the country from full status in the aviation field. She said that she believed that there would soon be “good news” in regard to this exclusion. http://www.sofiaecho.com/article/us-faa-inspectors-coming-to-bulgaria-in-dec ember-2007/id_25972/catid_66 ******************* Curt Lewis, PE, CSP WEB: www.fsinfo.org