28 JAN 2008 _______________________________________ *Southwest 737 Slides Off Pavement At GEG *Passenger jet hits calf at Indonesian airport *Alaska Governor Announces Aviation Safety Plan *CASA 212 crashes in Indonesia *Flannery Named President Of US Airways Express **************************************** Southwest 737 Slides Off Pavement At GEG Incident Closes Airport Sunday Afternoon All 118 passengers and five crewmembers onboard a Southwest Airlines 737 are safe, after the plane apparently slid off a snow-slicked taxiway after landing at Washington's Spokane International Airport (GEG) Sunday afternoon. The Associated Press reports Flight 485, inbound from Portland, OR, was taxiing to the gate at around 1:40 pm when the plane's nosegear departed the snow-covered taxiway. That account differed from one passenger's statements, however. Tad Dixon told Spokane television station KREM-2 the aircraft slid off the runway on landing. "As we touched down and were trying to brake, the plane started to slide sideways and sure enough, we slid off the end of the runway," Dixon said, talking on his cell phone while still onboard the stricken plane. "Everyone came to a roaring applause that we were safe." Another passenger emailed the station, writing "one Alaska Air jet did land behind us" immediately after the incident, "and stopped in time to avoid crashing into our plane." Airport spokesman Todd Woodard told The Spokesman-Review newspaper heavy snow had been falling in the area since Saturday afternoon, and at the time of the incident a half-inch of wet snow covered the ground. "We don't have any ice on the runway; we were pretty vigilant about that," Woodard added. The skidding plane did take out several runway lights. The airport closed to inbound and outbound traffic until crews were able to move the stricken jet. Flights resumed shortly after 5:00 pm. Southwest spokesperson Brandy King said an inspection of the plane didn't show any apparent damage, but the plane would remain grounded until a more-thorough investigation could be conducted. The airline suspended its operations at GEG for the rest of the day. Mechanical failure is not suspected to be a factor in the incident, King added. FMI: www.spokaneairports.com, www.southwest.com aero-news.net *************** Passenger jet hits calf at Indonesian airport JAKARTA, January 28 (RIA Novosti) - A passenger plane collided with a calf on an airport runway in Indonesia's eastern province of Papua, the country's Antara news agency reported on Monday. The Boeing 737 was carrying 141 people, none of whom were injured in the accident. Herson, the head of Merauke Airport said: "The calf was running fast from the Jati village which is located to the east of the airport, so the plane could not avoid hitting it." The plane's left engine was damaged in the collision. Merauke airport, which handles around 20 domestic flights daily, has not been fully fenced due to funding problems, the airport chief said. Locals have been repeatedly urged to "guard their cattle properly so that the animals do not trespass the airport area," he said. A similar incident occurred in 2005, when a relief plane hit a cow on Indonesia's Sumatra Island. Banda Aceh Airport was subsequently closed for several hours. http://en.rian.ru/world/20080128/97840595.html **************** Alaska Governor Announces Aviation Safety Plan Avionics Funding Bills Pending In Legislature Alaska Governor Sarah Palin unveiled Saturday details of a new aviation safety initiative. With seven times the licensed pilots of any other state, Alaska also has the highest accident rate nationwide. Bad weather and harsh terrain contribute significantly to that statistic, according to the State of Alaska website. The administration's plan is a multi-departmental effort that includes a bill that will establish a new loan program in the Department of Commerce, Community & Economic Development. Under this program, low interest loans will be available for the purchase and installation of advanced satellite-based aircraft avionics. Governor Palin's plan to improve aviation safety is a critical component of the Federal Aviation Administration's plan to invest over $400 million dollars in the installation, operation and maintenance of the ground stations as part of its "Capstone" aviation safety program. ANN recently reported on the FAA's request for the State of Alaska to provide $34 million to outfit 4,000 aircraft with Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast (ADS-B) avionics over the next five years. Pilots flying such equipped aircraft will be able to view their exact position, groundspeed, position relative to altitude and terrain, course, destination, and position relative to other such equipped aircraft. Real-time weather condition information will also be available, providing invaluable assistance in avoiding weather-related accidents. "In addition to reducing aircraft accidents, such equipped aircraft will offer safer access to rural communities," Governor Palin said. "This new technology will also increase the safety and effectiveness of medical evacuations and search-and-rescue operations." Creating new digital maps of the entire state is another safety effort. These maps, used by the new avionics, will feature accurate height and depth data of physical terrain that will be incorporated into the FAA's terrain models. The Department of Military and Veterans Affairs is also working with The Medallion Foundation to provide updated map data in flight simulators. This allows pilots to receive very accurate and realistic training for flying in Alaska's rugged environment. House Bill 340 and Senate Bill 249 are pending in the Alaska Legislature to establish the avionics loan program. FMI: www.gov.state.ak.us; www.faa.gov aero-news.net *************** CASA 212 crashes in Indonesia A CASA 212 cargo aircraft being operated on a domestic flight in Indonesia crashed on 26 January in Borneo, reportedly killing all three people on board. Indonesia's state-run Antara news agency says the aircraft was being operated by small carrier Dirgantara Air Service, or DAS. It says the aircraft departed Juwata airport in Tarakan at 08:10 and was headed for Long Ampung in Malinau, in the province of East Kalimantan on the island of Borneo. Wreckage was later spotted near the intended destination airport and Antara says the two pilots and one mechanic on board were all killed. Until the crash the carrier's fleet comprised eight CASA 212s which were built under licence by Indonesian Aerospace, according to Flight's ACAS database. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news ************** Flannery Named President Of US Airways Express US Airways on Jan. 25 named VP-Financial Analysis Dion Flannery president of US Airways Express to succeed Robert Martens, who has announced plans to re-enter retirement. Flannery, 41, will assume responsibility for oversight of Piedmont and PSA and will also oversee the regional affiliates that operate under the US Airways Express brand. Reporting to him will be PSA President Keith Houk and Piedmont President Steve Farrow. Flannery, meanwhile, will report to Chief Operating Officer Robert Isom. Martens came out of retirement last year to lead the airline (DAILY, April 4) and, US Airways said, to help find a successor who could lead the carrier in the longer term. He will remain with the company while Flannery transitions into his new role. Aviation Daily ****************