28 OCT 2008 _______________________________________ *Problem with LAX landing system delays flights *Hawaiian Airlines announces acquisition of two new Airbus aircrafts *Incident: TAM A320 at Sao Paulo on Oct 27th 2008 *Airlines to lose over $5.2 bn: IATA *Air Wisconsin Airlines Corporation Names New Managing Director of Maintenance *Chilling details of a Seattle flight revealed *Nigeria: Hyat And the Politics of Aviation Parastatals' Relocation *UAE firm, Kwara partner on aviation academy (Nigeria) *US Airways eyes further fleet cuts in '09 and '10 *************************************** Problem with LAX landing system delays flights Incoming flights at LAX drop from 68 to 32 per hour in the early morning, triggering delays averaging nearly 40 minutes. The failure of an instrument landing system at Los Angeles International Airport amid dense fog Monday delayed inbound flights up to 90 minutes and cut the number of landings air traffic controllers could handle per hour by more than half, authorities said. The outage of the automated equipment represents the ninth radar and radio failure involving air traffic control facilities in Southern California since February -- the highest number of problems of their kind reported in the nation, air traffic controllers say. Instrument landing systems transmit radio signals that guide airplanes during bad weather when visibility is poor. On Monday morning, heavy fog hugged the local coastline, obscuring LAX. Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the automated landing system for the airport's northern runways began experiencing problems with its radio signal about 3 a.m. When the problem could not be fixed, he said, air traffic control shifted landings to the southern side of LAX about 6 a.m. and halted departures of aircraft bound for LAX from airports about an hour's flying time from Los Angeles, such as Oakland, San Francisco, San Diego, Las Vegas and Phoenix. Gregor said that landings at LAX were reduced from 68 to 32 per hour and dozens of aircraft remained on the ground before the fog lifted about 9:40 a.m. and normal flight operations resumed. The FAA estimated that the arrivals of 63 commercial flights were delayed an average of 37 minutes. Air traffic controllers said there were delays of up to 90 minutes in some cases. Gregor said the problem at LAX occurred in a part of the system that controls an airplane's glide slope or angle of descent during landings. He added that technicians were still trying to repair the equipment Monday afternoon. "This is unusual," Gregor said. "The equipment is incredibly reliable, but when it does go out, the impact can be obvious and widely felt by the traveling public." The FAA estimates that the agency's air traffic control equipment is in service 99.7% of the time across the nation. But air traffic controllers say they were concerned about the instrument landing system because there have been eight other radio- and radar-related malfunctions since February at airports and the Southern California control center, which guides aircraft through the region's busy skies. Those failures, they say, raised safety concerns for pilots, passengers and airports including LAX, Burbank, Van Nuys, John Wayne in Orange County, and San Diego International. "The number is unprecedented in the history of air traffic control in Southern California," said Mel Davis, an air traffic controller and local official for the National Air Traffic Control Assn., the controller's union. "I have been a controller for 22 years. Never in my experience have I seen more than one significant failure a year." Though noting that the "union leadership has a well-documented history of exaggeration," Gregor said the FAA does not dispute whether equipment failures occur, but only whether the number the association cites is unusual. "We have thousands of pieces of equipment in hundreds of facilities throughout California. It's quite a stretch to argue that a handful of unrelated incidents at different locations constitutes any kind of pattern," Gregor said. http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-airport28-2008oct2 8,0,954504.story *************** Hawaiian Airlines announces acquisition of two new Airbus aircrafts Hawaiian Airlines has announced the acquisition of two new wide-body Airbus A330-200 aircraft which the airline says will accelerate the start of the company's transition to a new Airbus fleet to 2011. The two jets are in addition to the agreement that Hawaiian announced earlier this year to purchase up to 24 new Airbus aircraft. Mark Dunkerley, the Hawaiian's president and CEO, says the additional aircraft underscore Hawaiian's commitment to future growth and to reaching new markets globally. He says this will be a huge plus for Hawaii travellers and for the long-term health and diversity of Hawaii's tourism industry. http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=42748 **************** Incident: TAM A320 at Sao Paulo on Oct 27th 2008, passengers demand to leave airplane after diversion A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A320-200, flight JJ3709 from Basilia,DF to Sao Paulo Congonhas,SP (Brazil), aborted two approach attempts to Congonhas Airport in Sao Paulo due to unfavourable weather conditions and subsequently diverted to Viracopos Airport about 45nm northwest of Congonhas Airport, where the airplane arrived safely. The airplane was refueled and prepared to fly to Congonhas again. TAM confirmed, that several passengers refused to continue to Congonhas and insisted to leave the airplane at Viracopos. Those passengers were brought to Congonhas Airport by bus, while the others flew on to Congonhas, where the airplane arrived safely on its third approach. http://avherald.com/h?article=40f090ba ************* Airlines to lose over $5.2 bn: IATA Global airline industry is expected to lose more than an estimated $5.2 billion this year as international passenger traffic has substantially declined despite a fall in oil prices by half. Airlines in the Asia-Pacific region, including India and China, experienced a sharp fall of 6.8 per cent in September compared with the same month last year. The latest figures were released by the International Air Transport Association at the Freedom Summit in Istanbul, which concluded on Sunday, with the global airline body asking governments to take urgent steps to help the industry and do away with archaic rules. "The deterioration in traffic is alarmingly fast-paced and widespread. We have not seen such a decline in passenger traffic since SARS in 2003," said IATA chief Giovanni Bisignani at the summit. "Even the good news that the oil price has fallen to half its July peak is not enough to offset the impact of the drop in demand. "At this rate, losses may be even deeper than our than our forecast of $5.2 billion," he said, adding that airlines in all major regions reported shrinking of passenger traffic. On the cargo front, the Asia-Pacific region's carriers reported a 10.6 per cent decline, the 'most alarming drop' experienced by the largest players in the market, the IATA said in its latest report. Up to August, the drop in international passenger traffic was isolated to Asia-Pacific carriers. "The economies of the region's two major growth markets-- China and India -- slowed and Japan saw industrial production drop five per cent, the IATA figures showed. The cargo market saw the 'worst decline since the technology bubble burst in 2001', the report said. Pointing out that the crisis facing the industry was deepening, the IATA director general and CEO said 'but unlike other companies, they are denied some basic commercial freedom-- access to markets and to global capital-- that could help them manage their business in this difficult time.' He said a 'web of 3,500 bilateral air service agreements' governing the international air transport 'denies market access until specifically agreed. And the ownership clauses that are contained in these agreements preclude merger across borders.' In this context, Bisignani pointed towards the banking industry and said it was accessing global capital and carrying out mergers. On the other hand, 'airlines are not asking for handouts (bailout packages). But today's crisis highlights the need for airlines to be able to run their businesses like normal global businesses,' he argued at the Freedom Summit which is being attended by government representatives of 15 countries, including India. At the summit, IATA circulated a paper for these governments to examine solutions within the bilateral system that could be quickly implemented to expand opportunities for airlines to access markets and global capital. http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2008/oct/27air1.htm ************** Air Wisconsin Airlines Corporation Names New Managing Director of Maintenance APPLETON, Wis., Oct 27, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Air Wisconsin Airlines Corporation today announced it has promoted Ed Baranowski to the position of managing director of maintenance, reporting directly to President and CEO James Rankin. In his new role as leader of the Maintenance Department, Baranowski will assume responsibility for all decisions relevant to airworthiness, serviceability, and flight safety, and will serve as Air Wisconsin's primary maintenance liaison with the FAA and other regulatory bodies. Additionally, Baranowski will be responsible for monitoring and measuring Air Wisconsin's operations to maximize cost effectiveness while ensuring operational reliability. "I am very excited to have Ed as a member of my direct team," noted Rankin. "Ed's leadership has been instrumental in moving our Maintenance Performance in the second half of 2008 to record setting levels. With his unique combination of leadership qualities and operational experience, I'm confident Ed will take our Maintenance group to even greater heights of operational excellence and economic efficiency." Baranowski brings extensive knowledge and experience to his new role. Since joining Air Wisconsin in 1984 as a line mechanic, Baranowski has assumed increasing responsibility in the positions of maintenance controller, maintenance planner, maintenance control manager, maintenance operations manager and, most recently, director of maintenance operations. Baranowski has also served as the co-chair of the Bombardier CRJ Structural Working Group and as a member of the Bombardier CRJ Technical Steering Committee. Additionally, since 1999, Baranowski has served as one of two business continuity coordinators, helping to lead and direct Air Wisconsin's Business Continuity and Recovery Plans. Baranowski, who was an A&P mechanic with Lewis University Aviation Services prior to joining Air Wisconsin, holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Aviation Maintenance Management from Lewis University, Romeoville, IL; an FAA Airframe and Powerplant License; and an Inspection Authorization (I.A.) Certificate. Air Wisconsin, the largest privately held regional airline in the United States, operates as US Airways Express, scheduling nearly 500 departures per day to 69 cities in 26 states and two Canadian provinces. The fleet includes 70 Canadair Regional Jets. Additionally, Air Wisconsin performs ground-handling services for United Express and Northwest Airlines at over 30 locations throughout the country. Additional information can be found at http://www.airwis.com. SOURCE Air Wisconsin Airlines Corporation ************** Chilling details of a Seattle flight revealed Powerless airliner barrels to landing The 185 passengers on an American Airlines 757 en route from Seattle to New York had no way of knowing the serious trouble their jet was in last month when the pilots switched to backup battery power because of a problem that occurred soon after takeoff. To read the NTSB's report online, see seattlepi.com/r1741. Those batteries supply power to the plane for only about 30 minutes. But nearly two hours later, with the jet in cruise flight over Michigan, the electrical systems in the cockpit and, then, the cabin began to fail because the batteries were drained. Without power, the plane's intercom went out and a flight attendant had to pass a note under the cockpit door to communicate with the crew. As Flight 268 made an emergency landing at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, vital systems to control the jet were not working, including some wing flaps. When the jet touched down, the engine thrust reversers did not work to slow the Boeing 757-200 and it barreled down the runway, leaving a long trail of skid marks as the pilot pushed hard on the brakes to try to stop. The jet did stop, finally, with all three main landing gear intentionally off the side of the pavement in the grass and the nose of the plane only 100 feet from the end of the blast pad pavement, which extends some 397 feet past the departure end of the runway. Although none of the passengers or seven crew members was injured, the full story of what happened on that Sept. 22 flight from Seattle was not known until this week, when the National Transportation Safety Board released a preliminary report. John Nance, an aviation safety expert in Tacoma and noted aviation author, said Friday that commercial jetliner pilots know the backup batteries will last only about 30 minutes. He was not familiar with the NTSB findings in this case, but he said he does not believe the pilots would have continued on with the flight if they had realized they were flying only with battery power. "They could not have known," he said. "I just can't imagine they knew they were on battery power and would have elected to continue with the flight." An American Airlines representative was not available for comment late Friday. The NTSB preliminary report gave this account of what happened: At some point after taking off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the plane experienced an apparent electrical problem and pilots used a reference handbook to troubleshoot. They turned the standby power selector to the "BAT" position, the safety board said. The handbook states that the battery will provide power for about 30 minutes. "The airplane system stabilized with several items inoperative and the captain contacted maintenance technical support and subsequently elected to continue the flight on battery power," the safety board said. The flight crew then reviewed procedures for recharging the main battery. "With the standby power selector in the BAT position, as selected by the flight crew, the main battery provided power to the hot battery bus, the battery bus, the AC standby bus and the DC standby bus," the safety board said. "In addition, the main battery charger was not receiving power and thus the battery was not being recharged. When main battery power was depleted, all four of the aforementioned buses became unpowered." About an hour and 40 minutes after the pilots switched to battery power, with the plane over western Michigan, cockpit instruments began to fail. The pilots decided to turn around and land at O'Hare. The public address system in the cabin went out, as did the interphone that allows the flight attendants to communicate with the pilots. "A flight attendant wrote a note and slipped it under the cockpit door to inform the flight crew of their communication problems," the report said. After the crew informed the flight attendants the plane was diverting to O'Hare, a flight attendant walked through the cabin to explain what was happening to each passenger. As a precaution, the pilots declared an emergency before landing. "As the airplane neared the runway on final approach, the flight crew discovered that the elevator and standby elevator trim systems were inoperative. The captain then assisted the first officer on the flight controls and the approach to land was continued. The systems required to slow the airplane on the runway appeared to indicate normal, and with the elevator control issues the flight crew did not want to perform a go-around to land on a longer runway. Pitch control of the airplane was difficult so the flight crew elected to stop the flap extension at 20 degrees. The touchdown was smooth despite the control issues, however, the thrust reversers and spoilers did not deploy. The captain attempted to manually deploy the thrust reversers, but still was not sure if they deployed. The captain was concerned about the brake functionality and accumulator pressure so he made one smooth application of the brakes, which did not 'perform well.' Due to obstructions off the end of the runway, the captain elected to veer the airplane off the left side of the runway into the grass." The report noted that as the plane landed some 2,500 feet down the runway, witnesses heard "loud pops." "Skid marks from the left main gear were evident near the point of touchdown and 165 feet further down the runway skid marks from the right main gear were present. These skid marks were visible for the entire length of the runway up until the airplane departed the pavement." After the 757 came to a stop, the flight crew was not able to shut the engines down with either the fuel cutoff valves or by extending the fire handles, the safety board said. The engines were subsequently shut down by depressing the fire handles. The safety board will eventually issue a final report and could make safety recommendations to the Federal Aviation Administration. Meanwhile, the incident remains under investigation by the safety board, the FAA and American Airlines. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/384988_jetscare25.html?source=mypi *************** Nigeria: Hyat And the Politics of Aviation Parastatals' Relocation Again, the Aviation sector of the nation's economy is being thrown into disarray, this time by the Ministry of Air Transportation, which has directed key parastatals to relocate their head offices toAbuja without adequate preparation for their workforce. Those particularly asked to move include the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB). While the management team of the regulatory agency, the NCAA, has shifted base to Abuja, leaving their subordinate to follow later, the AIB has also commenced phased movement of its staff to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Rather than brainstorm over issues that could enhance its accident prevention and investigation capabilities, AIB management is engrossed in complying with relocating its staff from Lagos. " The management has held its first meeting in the federal capital, and one of the issues discussed at the meeting presided over by the Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of the AIB, Dr. Sam Oduselu, was how to make the relocation a success. The agency is already working round the clock to ensure a smooth movement for its employees from Lagos," spokesman of the agency, Mr. Tunji Oketunbi said in a statement issued last week. Although a word has yet to come out of NAMA on its relocation, it was learnt that the development has weakened the morale of the workforce. As the relocation order takes effect, the morale of staff of other affected agencies had plummeted in the last few weeks preceding expiration of the order. Staff of affected parastatals currently worry over how they would be able to secure accommodation in Abuja. This is in view of past situation where their colleagues in other government ministries went through difficult times of accommodating themselves when the order was given by government for ministries and agencies to relocate to the capital city some two decades ago. "Right now, I don't have money, so how do I get myself accommodated in Abuja," one of the agencies' staff was heard bemoaning his fate last week. Vanguard discovered that the parastatals affected by the relocation order do not have the resources to execute it, and the Ministry of Air Transportation is also not in a position to finance what has become a priority project of the present dispensation in the ministry. It was learnt that the money required to facilitate the movement of staff of NCAA, for instance, is so much that the agency could run into the temptation of tampering with the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) funds which the Federal Government recently placed at its disposal, away from the ministry, all in the bid to meet up with the ministerial order. However, Vanguard learnt from presidency sources that the president himself had no fore-knowledge of the relocation order, perhaps he would have aborted it. Information has it that certain elements in the ministry arm-twisted the minister into consenting to the plot to move the parastatals to Abuja, despite obvious consequences of such a move. The impact of this is that, rather than concentrate on how safety and security could be enhanced in an industry that had been in the eye of the storm, following the fatal accidents that have trailed it in the last three years, staff of the affected parastatals are now engrossed in the task of relocating themselves, and perhaps, families to Abuja. This, according to experts, is not good for safety, as aviation workers are expected to be in the right frame of mind to avoid making costly mistakes. The question most observers are asking is why is this relocation coming at a time the Federal Government is working assiduously to position Lagos Airport as aviation hub in West Africa? Some have contended that why the case of NAMA and AIB is understandable, as they are still within the purview of the Ministry of Air Transportation in terms of supervision, that of the NCAA raises questions, considering the Civil Aviation Act of 2006 which gives the agency autonomy from the ministry. That the agency's director-general is still being summoned here and there by the minister puts a question mark on the supposed autonomy of the NCAA. At the moment, the director-general and his management team have relocated to Abuja in compliance with the ministerial directive. Under normal circumstances, the order shouldn't have come in the first place. For a long time, regulation in the Aviation industry in Nigeria was found wanting, culminating in the fatal crashes of 2005 and 2006. It was not until after this unfortunate era that sanity returned to aviation regulation in the country. Fears are now being expressed that the relocation of the NCAA, particularly, to Abuja, might affect its efficiency, and the fears appear to be justified, as the largest number of flights across the country on daily basis emanate from the Murtala Mohammed Airport in Lagos, which virtually all the domestic airlines use as their hub. Besides, more than 70 per cent of foreign airlines flying into the country come through the Lagos airport. Therefore, presence of the director-general at all times is a necessity to put inspectors and other key staff of the agency in check. According to experts, this, he cannot do away from the main centre of attraction. At present, only one runway (18R) still plays host to all domestic and foreign flights into and out of Lagos, due to the inability of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to complete work on the rehabilitation of the alternate runway (18L) started over two years ago. The close monitoring of flying activities at the airport by the NCAA requires the attention of the entire management of the agency who, by ministerial directive, have been moved to Abuja. It is the opinion of stakeholders that the ministry had never really added any value to air safety in the country. Officials of the ministry have often been accused of hijacking essential training meant for key professionals as air traffic controllers (ATCs), engineers, dispatchers, all for pecuniary benefits. It is interesting to note that the ministry had gone ahead to implement the relocation order despite criticisms from stakeholders who know the implication. Aviation Round Table (ART), a group of retired professionals in the Aviation industry, sees the relocation of the parastatals as a misplacement of priority, saying the energy being expended on the relocation should be diverted to filling the gaps in infrastructure and navigational facilities in the country's aviation sector. According to the group, the authorities should better concentrate efforts on improving safety in the airspace which many have considered deficient in many respects. NAMA, for instance, had often complained about inadequate finances to provide the requisite radio communications and en route navigational equipment for seamless flight operations. Lack of finance has prevented the agency from delivering the total radio coverage of Nigeria (TRACON) more than five years after it started the project. Therefore, the money the agency is expending on relocating its staff to Abuja could be invested in completion of the TRACON project to make the airspace safer for flight operations as well as guarantee national security. Besides, unions in the industry also believe the relocation of the parastatals would not do the industry any good, but will rather result in wastefulness of scarce resources. The National Union of Air Traffic Employees wants the Federal Government to deploy the money for the relocation to renewal of infrastructure at airports across the country and provide adequate training for key professionals in the industry, in efforts to raise safety level in the interest of airline operators and the travelling public. http://allafrica.com/stories/200810280223.html?page=2 *************** UAE firm, Kwara partner on aviation academy (Nigeria) The Kwara State Government will on Wednesday sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Horizon Aviation, a United Arab Emirates firm for the construction of its proposed aviation academy. Governor Bukola Saraki, who said this while speaking with journalists at the Presidential wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on Sunday, added that the Ilorin Cargo Airport, under construction, would be ready by December. According to him, when completed, the airport will attract 52 per cent of goods destined for the Lagos airport, adding that it would help reduce congestion at the Lagos airport. Saraki who exuded confidence that airlines would be attracted to the facility said that strategies were already in place to make it competitive He said, "Our cargo airport project is one of the two projects that we hope to complete by December, and it will give us the most modern cargo facility in the country, adequate for cold storage and we hope that that will stimulate 52 per cent of goods that are not destined for Lagos that come through Lagos." "Already, we have started discussing and we have the most modern facility around, and our rates will be lower and we believe that turn-around time will be higher. There is too much congestion here in Lagos because of the work load and all." The governor also hinted that the aviation academy, when completed, would reduce the rate at which Nigerians go out for pilot, aeronautic and other aviation-related trainings. He said, "Wednesday, we are signing the agreement, Memorandum of Understanding with the Chief Executive of Horizon Aviation from UAE in Ilorin. We believe that with that we will start the construction of the school and we believe that that will be a great stimulus to the aviation sector as you know, we also have a lot of Nigerians who are pilots. "I believe that by the time we start, we will crash the rate; they will come and stay here in Nigeria instead of going abroad, because the cost of training will be cheaper for them. Horizon, today is one of the fastest growing schools in the world." http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art200810280161692 ************** US Airways eyes further fleet cuts in '09 and '10 Star Alliance member US Airways has informed investors it plans to further cut its fleet in 2009 and 2010. In order to achieve a fourth quarter domestic mainline capacity reduction of 5% to 7% and a 2009 reduction of 4% to 6%, US Airways as previously announced is returning ten aircraft to lessors. This includes six Boeing 737-300 aircraft to be returned by the end of 2008 and four Airbus A320 aircraft to be returned in the first half of 2009. It has also cancelled the leases of two Airbus A330-200 widebody aircraft that had been scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2009. Furthermore, however, US Airways reveals in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange commission that it plans "to reduce additional aircraft in 2009 and 2010". Details of the fleet reduction plan for these two years have not been disclosed. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news **************