11 FEB 2008 _______________________________________ *NTSB Factual Notes Plane Was Overgross In May 2007 Accident *Indian aviation to adopt Safety Management System by January 2009 *Three more Indian airlines *Six killed in military plane crash in Colombia *Nepal renames key airport *Turbulence Workshop *************************************** NTSB Factual Notes Plane Was Overgross In May 2007 Accident Skydiving Plane Went Down South Of Kalispell, MT In its updated Factual report on the May 12, 2007 downing of a skydiving flight near Kalispell, MT, the National Transportation Safety Board notes there were no apparent structural or mechanical issues with the Cessna 182... but adds the plane was over gross weight, and barely within the acceptable aft CG envelope. The report does not state whether that condition resulted in the crash, which killed all five persons onboard. "It doesn't mean that they cannot fly if it's a few pounds over," NTSB Regional Director Debra Eckrote told The Great Falls Tribune. "It's just something that we note in the investigation. The center of gravity is what is more important in the accident sequence. In this particular case, he was still within the envelope (and) he was just slightly over gross weight." Investigators also found the engine's oil filler cap unattached, though its unknown whether that condition was a result of the crash. As ANN reported, the pilot and two tandem skydive teams were onboard the aircraft, which went down shortly after takeoff from Carson Field Airstrip (MT53) in Marion, MT. The plane was operated by Skydive Lost Prairie. Witnesses told the NTSB the plane was attempting to return to the runway, when the aircraft's left wing dipped and the plane impacted the ground. Company owner Fred Sand told the Tribune he would wait to see the Board's Probable Cause report to speculate on what led to the crash. "Because the probable cause hasn't been released, anything that anybody says is still speculation," Sand said. "It's still absolutely a mystery to me as to why this all happened." FMI: www.skydivelostprairie aero-news.net ************** Indian aviation to adopt Safety Management System by January 2009 Airlines in India are likely to adopt the Safety Management System (SMS) by January 2009. According to Kanu Gohain, Director General, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), SMS will be introduced for the airline industry in order to mitigate risk and attain optimal operational safety. "By January 2009, all existing airlines and upcoming ones will be required to follow SMS. It will be applicable to everyone, right from the top management to all employees down the rank. DGCA is not trying to police the service provider, but to rectify the loopholes in the current safety standards in aviation," said Gohain. Introduced by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), all regulatory bodies worldwide are currently implementing the system in their respective nations. Once the system is in place in India, airlines, airports and other players in the aviation industry will be required to follow a rigorous documentation system, wherein all guidelines, parameters and safety measures undertaken by them will be documented in a comprehensive manner. In case of airports, rules pertaining to runway inspection, runway friction level guarantee, etc, will have to be stringently executed and documented. DGCA will monitor the process and may even make unannounced inspections to check SMS implementation. Despite the inevitable financial repercussions, the aviation industry welcomed the move. Rajeev Nambiar, General Manager - India, Gulf Air, said, "The current endeavour of DGCA will ensure strict enforcement of safety regulations. Though SMS will increase the expenditure for airlines, in the long run, maintaining safety standards will only add to the business." R Sundaresan, Manager Sales - International, Jet Airways, said, "The expenditure for implementing SMS will be a one-time investment. Training the staff, documenting the methods adopted, supervising the efforts, etc., will definitely contribute to the airline's image and eventually, augment revenue." http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/articleDetails.aspx?id=2181§ionid=15&nam e=Aviation *************** Three more Indian airlines The Indian government has approved two new start-up passenger and cargo airlines, Avicore Aviation and ZAV Airways, while a UAE company wants to launch a third. Avicore will be based out of Nagpur and use B737s that can carry about 15-17 tonnes of freight. Kolkata-based ZAV is to buy two Bombardier-made CRJ-900s and two ATR 72-500s as well as six helicopters for heli-taxi services. Meanwhile, UAE-based Indian cargo rail operator ETA-Ascon is negotiating with jet manufacturers for equipment to start a new Indian airline. "We have started talking to Embraer, Bombardier and ATR to acquire 70-90 seater regional jets for the new airline in India," Syed M Salahuddin, managing director of Emirates Trading Agency-Associated Construction (ETA-Ascon) group, was quoted as saying in Gulf News. The company recently launched a cargo rail service (Railway Wagon) to move containers between Delhi and Bombay. http://www.impactpub.com.au/aircargo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view& id=1197&Itemid=60#begin *************** Six killed in military plane crash in Colombia BOGOTA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A military cargo plane crashed in southern Colombia Saturday, killing all six soldiers on board, the military said. The accident occurred at 9:00 a.m. (1400 GMT) when the aircraft was flying in bad weather en route from Florencia, capital of Caqueta province, to San Vicente del Caguan. A helicopter sent by the military spotted the wreckage of the plane in mountainous areas in Montanitas, but rescuers were unable to carry back the bodies of the victims due to bad weather and difficult terrain. The military said it would launch an investigation into the cause of the crash. ***** Date: 09-FEB-2008 Time: 09:00 Type: Piper PA-34-220T Seneca Operator: Ejército de Colombia Registration: EJC-110 C/n / msn: 34-8233158 Fatalities: Fatalities: 6 / Occupants: 6 Airplane damage: w/o Location: southern Colombia - Colombia Phase: ENR Nature: MIL Departure airport: Florencia Destination airport: San Vicente del Caguán Narrative: Flew into the side of a mountain. (aviation-safety.net) **************** Nepal renames key airport KATHMANDU - Nepal has renamed the airport that serves as the gateway to Mount Everest after late pioneer climbers Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary, the country’s tourism minister said on Monday. “The Lukla airport will now be known as the Tenzing-Hillary Airport. The cabinet approved the renaming of the airport on Sunday,” Tourism Minister Prithvi Subba Gurung told AFP. Set up with help from Hillary’s Himalayan Trust in 1964, Lukla airport, 140 kilometres northeast of Kathmandu, is one of the busiest in the country during the spring and autumn trekking and mountaineering seasons. “A part of the trail to reach the Everest Base Camp will also be named as Tenzing-Hillary route,” the minister said. Hillary, the modest New Zealand beekeeper who shot to global fame as the first person to climb Mount Everest, died last month, aged 88. Hillary and Norgay made history in May 1953 when they reached the summit of the 8,848-metre (29,028-foot) peak. After the historic Everest ascent, Hillary continued to assist Sherpas in Nepal’s remote Solokhumbu region, and was instrumental in helping build dozens of schools, hospitals and health centres there. Nepal’s government also plans to honour Hillary, who was knighted by Great Britain, with the Himalayan nation’s most prestigious award for his outstanding achievement. “We are discussing whether to honour Hillary with the Order of the Star of Nepal, for his contribution to Nepal,” Gurung said. The minister also said officials were considering renaming one of Nepal’s mountains as “Tenzing-Hillary peak." Ang Tshering Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, said the proposed peak was the 8,400 metre (27,558-foot) high Lhotse Shar, a part of the Lhotse massif near Everest. http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=703326 ************** *Turbulence Workshop* ------------------------------ Location: Halifax, Canada Start Date: 13 MAR 2008 at 0900 End Date: 14 MAR 2008 before 16.00 Fee: $750 USD ------------------------------ *Course Objectives* In recent years hundreds of injuries and three deaths have resulted from turbulence incidents in the United States. Last month, 20 people were injured by turbulence in North America alone; with these high profile encounters drawing the public's attention to its dangers. These incidents highlight the need for a greater understanding of turbulence and the ability to recognise patterns and associated conditions to help in reducing its impact. This workshop will improve knowledge of turbulence and develop practical interpretation skills of traditional and modern technologies, including satellite imagery and computer models, with an international focus. This workshop is aimed at encouraging participants to develop a systematic method of assessing weather trends and patterns which will aid in reducing its financial impact as well as improving safety. *Who should attend?* Pilots and dispatchers, supervisors, and training personnel of airlines, air charter, freight and cargo services, military, corporate, and government flight operations. *Course outline:* Turbulence (Low-Level, Turbulence In and Near Thunderstorms, Mountain Waves) High Altitude Meteorology and Jet streams Clear Air Turbulence Group Weather Flight Planning Exercises *Take home* Comprehensive course notebook Industry examples and solutions Flight Planning checklists and algorithms Certification of completion *Course duration, 2 days: *13 - 14 March 2008. *Course location: *Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. In-house available. ** *Course fee: *$750 USD; bulk rates available. *Course space:* Limited to 20 participants. ** *For more information please contact:* ** *John Dutcher* *Dutcher Safety & Meteorology Services * Toronto, Ontario, CANADA Mobile: +1 416 407 2454 E: dutchersms@gmail.com *http://www.johndutcher.com* ****************