19 JAN 2009 _______________________________________ *Downed jet lifted from ice-laden Hudson River *Cockpit Tape Reveals Thumps, Engine Loss and a ‘Mayday’ *Plane's recorders lend support hero pilot's story *NTSB Interviews Reveal Details Of US Airways 1549 Ditching *Delta 767-332ER Diversion/Hydraulic Loss (LHR) *B737-800 Engine Fire (India) *Bird-hit caused plane to make emergency landing (India) *Airbus A320 Bird Strike/Engine Shut Down (Mexico) *Airbus A321 Bird Strike/Engine Shut down (Turkey) *AIBN releases report on ATR-42 serious icing incident *Denver Woman Sentenced For Making Airline Bomb Threat *British Government Approves Third Heathrow Runway *Mystery surrounds Air NZ plane crashTamara McLean *ANZ A320 pitched up and stalled before crash: investigator *Michael Griffin Steps Down As NASA Administrator *EASA to publish scientific data on flight-time limitation ***************************************** Downed jet lifted from ice-laden Hudson River NEW YORK (AP) - The airliner that was piloted to a safe emergency landing in the Hudson River was hoisted from the ice-laden current and placed on a barge, and its two "black box" data recorders were sent to investigators in Washington. Workers swarmed around the barge and its battered cargo - moored next to a seawall just a couple of blocks from the World Trade Center site - on Sunday morning as federal aviation investigators met. The US Airways plane was slowly lifted from the frigid water at the southern tip of Manhattan late Saturday, exposing its shredded underbelly that dropped pieces of metal as a crane maneuvered it in the darkness. The National Transportation Safety Board planned to brief reporters on the status of the investigation at 4 p.m. Sunday. NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said investigators hoped to move the barge and plane on Sunday. Before that could be done, he said, fuel had to be drained from the tank in the plane's right wing. Officials refused to say where in New Jersey the plane would be taken when it is towed away, saying investigators wanted to do their work undisturbed. Any decision on whether to release the waterlogged luggage to passengers would come from the airline, they said. Although the area was barricaded, the spectacle attracted dozens of Sunday morning strollers and tourists who snapped pictures of the wreckage in gently falling snow. US Airways Capt. Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger, speaking to National Transportation Safety Board investigators Saturday for the first time, said he made a split-second decision to put the airliner down in the river rather than risk a "catastrophic" crash in a populated area of New York City or New Jersey after a collision with birds shut down both engines. Police and Coast Guard boats patrolled the water Sunday morning around the barge holding the plane, its damaged right jet engine clearly visible. Divers still have to find the plane's left engine in the river, but have an idea where to look. A sonar team has identified an object directly below the crash site, upstream between mid-Manhattan and New Jersey, the NTSB said. Investigators initially thought both engines had been shorn off, but divers realized Saturday one was still attached and they had missed it in the murky river water. The NTSB said radar data confirmed that the aircraft crossed the path of a group of "primary targets," almost certainly birds, as Flight 1549 climbed over the Bronx after taking off from LaGuardia Airport. Those targets had not been on the radar screen of the air traffic controller who approved the departure to Charlotte, N.C., NTSB board member Kitty Higgins said. Sullenberger recounted seeing his windshield filled with big, dark-brown birds. "His instinct was to duck," Higgins said, recounting their interview. Then there was a thump, the smell of burning birds, and silence as both aircraft engines cut out. After the impact, Sullenberger told investigators he immediately took over flying from his co-pilot and decided it would be too dangerous to attempt a landing at the smaller Teterboro Airport in New Jersey. "We can't do it," he told air traffic controllers. "We're gonna be in the Hudson." "Brace! Brace! Head down!" the flight attendants shouted to the passengers. Security cameras on a Manhattan pier captured the Airbus A320 as it descended in a controlled glide, then threw up spray as it slid across the river on its belly. Two flight attendants likened it to a hard landing - nothing more. There was one impact, no bounce, then a gradual deceleration. It all happened so fast, the crew never threw the aircraft's "ditch switch," which seals off vents in the fuselage to make it more seaworthy. Hoisting the water-filled craft, estimated to weigh 1 million pounds, took a few hours Saturday but was preceded by hours of preparation. Divers went into the water to thread five large slings around the plane and through holes they drilled in the wings. The conditions were treacherous, with the temperature dipping to 6 degrees and giant chunks of ice forming around the plane by midday. Divers were sprayed with hot water during breaks on shore. After a day struggling with the icy water and the immense weight of the craft, the mood on the shoreline in lower Manhattan turned festive with the successful operation. Following the long work to secure the plane, people shook hands and investigators took snapshots, while police helicopters hovered overhead. Investigators on the barge circled the dented jetliner, examining the damage. An emergency slide still hung from the plane, and a compartment door was open, with luggage still visible inside. A gash extended from the base of the plane toward the windows. And in places, the skin of the aircraft was simply gone. http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090118/D95POBM81.html **************** Cockpit Tape Reveals Thumps, Engine Loss and a ‘Mayday’ The cockpit voice recording from the plane that landed in the Hudson River on Thursday captured both the sound of an impact on the US Airways jet, presumably by birds, and the efforts of a crew that was going through what a senior investigator called a “very calm, collected exercise,” even though they were gliding lower and had no way to reach a runway. The Army Corps of Engineers searched the Hudson Saturday for an engine from Flight 1549. It may provide evidence on whether the plane hit birds. More Photos » The plane lost thrust in both engines soon after takeoff, and never reached an altitude above 3,200 feet, officials of the National Transportation Safety Board said on Sunday. “About 90 seconds after takeoff, the captain remarks about birds,” said Kathryn O. Higgins, a member of the agency who was assigned to the scene, characterizing what could be heard on the cockpit voice recording. The recording was played in the board’s laboratory in Washington on Sunday and described to her. “One second later, the cockpit voice recorder recorded the sound of thumps and a rapid decrease in engine sounds,” she said. The recorder helped illustrate how the crew departed from the usual script once they realized their dire circumstances. Usually, one pilot flies the plane and the other works the radios, but in this case, it was Captain Chesley B. Sullenberger III doing both, while the first officer, Jeffrey B. Skiles, rushed to try to accomplish a “restart” checklist. But even if the engines could have been restarted, he had very little time: Flight 1549 ditched into the river three and a half minutes after the engines lost power. The voice recorder also captured the captain declaring “Mayday,” but the tape of air-to-ground communications did not, possibly because he said the word before he pressed the button on the microphone that would begin a radio transmission. Still, Ms. Higgins said, when she listened to that tape, “It was a very routine conversation, that’s how I would characterize it. I was more nervous than they appeared to be, listening to it.” Typically, the air-to-ground tape is released by the Federal Aviation Administration within weeks of an incident; the safety board generally releases a transcript of cockpit voice recordings in a few months. On first examination, the two recorders, which were recovered from the plane early Sunday, confirmed details given by the cockpit crew in interviews, she said. Robert Benzon, the safety board investigator in charge, described the cockpit conversation as calm and collected. He said that an initial look at the right engine, the only one still attached to the plane, showed a few dents on the cowling but not much damage to the fan blades at the front. But foreign objects can sometimes do greater damage deeper inside the engine, he said. As the plane was hauled out of the water late Saturday in Battery Park City, where it had been moored, the right engine showed debris that “looked like grunge to me,” he said, but that might have been mud or seaweed, rather than bird remains. The search for the left engine, which is believed to be in the general area of where the plane landed, has been delayed by ice in the river. Ms. Higgins said that New York Police Department searchers had a “positive hit” on an object on the river bottom that was the right size to be an engine, and was in a plausible spot, but that using better sonar or a remote-controlled camera would probably have to wait because of heavy ice. They marked the spot for exploration, she said. The police, she said, were “quite familiar with the bottom out there,” and that they had not seen this object before. The police, however, seemed less certain that the “hit” was the engine. Progress on examining the plane has been slow because the deck of the barge where it is being kept is slippery with ice and fuel, Mr. Benzon said. The fuel tank in the right wing has a small leak, and investigators and salvagers decided to empty it before moving the barge. The plane took off with about 3,000 gallons of jet fuel aboard, although some of it was burned during the 91 seconds the engines ran. The now-familiar images of passengers standing on the wings, waiting for boats to rescue them, raised the question of whether the plane, an Airbus A320, carried enough life rafts. Mr. Benzon said that there was room for all the passengers on the emergency slides, which in a water landing become rafts. Ms. Higgins said one reason everyone survived was that the plane carried “very senior flight attendants.” All were in their 50s, according to US Airways. “This is a testament to experienced women doing their jobs, because they were, and it worked,” said Ms. Higgins, who began working for the federal government in 1969. On Sunday night, the US Airways plane gleamed under the lights as it rested on the barge, which was tied up at Battery Park City. The windows from the wing exits were missing, the right front door hung askew and a deflated slide from a rear door trailed from the plane’s body. The heavy hum of a tugboat’s diesel engine was a reminder that this was an accident scene, not a surreal sculpture. Ms. Higgins, asked if the plane would every fly again, said, “Only in the movies.” http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/19/nyregion/19plane.html?ref=nyregion **************** Plane's recorders lend support hero pilot's story AP – U.S. Airways flight 1549, an Airbus A320 that made an emergency landing Thursday in the Hudson River … The pilot, Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, credited with helping save the lives of all 155 people aboard, reports that the plane has hit birds and lost both engines shortly after investigators heard "the sound of thumps and a rapid decrease in engine sounds," National Transportation Safety Board member Kitty Higgins said. Sullenberger then discussed alternate landings at New Jersey airports before deciding to attempt a river landing, she said. Ninety seconds before ditching the plane, he told passengers to "brace for impact" and informs controllers "they will be in the Hudson River," Higgins said. The dispatches on the cockpit voice recorder were described as "a very calm, collected exercise," Robert Benzon, a veteran safety board investigator, said Sunday **************** NTSB Interviews Reveal Details Of US Airways 1549 Ditching Flight Recorders Recovered, Sent To DC For Evaluation Workers successfully raised the wrecked hulk of US airways Flight 1549 from the Hudson River Saturday night, placing it on a barge for transport to a suitable location for further examination. The A320's left engine, which was sheared off by the impact of the water landing, has been located on the river's bottom by sonar. Recovery of the engine from the icy waters is expected to commence as soon as possible. ABC News reports investigators have also located the plane's "black boxes" -- the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder -- and sent them off to the National Transportation Safety Board's Washington, DC labs for analysis. As ANN reported, US Airways Flight 1549 ditched in the Hudson River last Thursday after losing power from both engines simultaneously minutes after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport. Although the investigation is just getting underway, interviews with the crew and passengers have revealed much about their harrowing experience. Describing the series of events leading to the airliner's ditching, NTSB spokesperson Kitty Higgins said that First Officer Jeffrey Skiles was doing the flying as the plane took off from New York's LaGuardia Airport just before 3:30 pm last Thursday. As the Airbus climbed through 3,000 feet, Skiles noticed a formation of birds to starboard. Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger looked up just in time to see big, dark brown birds filling the windscreen. Sullenberger said his first instinct was to... "duck." Next, the crew smelled something burning and then both engines lost power. A flight attendant said the eerie silence was "like being in a library." It was then that Sullenberger took the controls and weighed his options. The pilot declared an emergency, telling controllers, "We have lost thrust in both engines; we are turning back to LaGuardia," but soon realized returning was not feasible. "The Captain decided no, too low, too slow, too many buildings, too populated an area," Higgins said. Another alternative Sullenberger considered was a small airport near Teterboro, NJ. "It was farther away," said Higgins. "He'd never been there, didn't think he could make it and was concerned that if he didn't make it, it was also a populated area ... the consequences would have been catastrophic." The best choice soon became clear. The captain told controllers, "We're gonna be in the Hudson." Higgins said, "He made a decision to land near a vessel to improve chances for recovery." Just prior to settling into the water, Sullenberger told his passengers to "brace for impact," as flight attendants called out, "Brace, brace, heads down." A flight attendant said the impact felt like a hard landing with no bounce. Flight attendants recalled shouting to passengers, "Leave everything, come forward, put on life vests." Then they opened the forward doors and deployed the evacuation slides - which also function as life rafts. A flight attendant was able to manually inflate one of the slides that did not automatically inflate. Sullenberger lauded the performance of his courageous crew. "He could not be more happy that everyone got off the plane safely," said Higgins. FMI: www.ntsb.gov aero-news.net *************** Delta 767-332ER Diversion/Hydraulic Loss (LHR) Date: 18-JAN-2009 Time: abt 1:00 pm Type: Boeing 767-332ER Operator: Delta Airlines Registration: N179DN C/n / msn: 25144/350 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Airplane damage: None Location: London - LHR - United Kingdom Phase: En route Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: VCE Destination airport: JFK Narrative: The flight DL151 dumped fuel and diverted to London Heathrow (UK) after the crew received an EICAS message indicating rapidly dropping hydraulics fluid quantity in one of the hydraulics systems. The landing about 2 hours after the onset of the hydraulics failure was safe. The aircraft continued to JFK at 5.29 pm. Sources: http://avherald.com/h?article=4139787e&opt=0 (aviation-safety.net) **************** B737-800 Engine Fire (India) Date: 17-JAN-2009 Time: 6:30 am loca Type: Boeing 737-800 Operator: JetLite Registration: C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 46 Airplane damage: Minor Location: Kolkata (Calcutta) - India Phase: Take off Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: CCU Destination airport: GAU Narrative: The flight S2-361 declared emergency and returned to Kolkata after the left hand engine caught fire shortly after liftoff. The crew shut the engine down and activated the fire extinguisher, which stopped the fire. The landing (reportedly two minutes after liftoff) was safe. Witnesses on the ground reported seeing smoke and flames coming from the engine. The cause of the engine fire has not yet been determined. Sources: http://aviation.deveshagarwal.com/2009/01/jetlite-boeing-737-800-returns-to. html (aviation-safety.net) *************** Bird-hit caused plane to make emergency landing Kolkata: Passengers of a JetLite flight taking off from the Kolkata airport had a narrow escape on Saturday after a vulture smashed into one of its engines. This happened a day after a passenger plane was forced to crashland on the Hudson river in the US after it hit a flock of geese. After being alerted by the traffic controller, JetLite pilot Ajay Keri sought emergency landing and requested the traffic controllers for more airspace to enable a slow turn for a safer landing approach. Meanwhile, emergency procedures were under way on the ground. The fire engines rushed to a spot close to the landing point. Ambulances also rushed to the spot. "Every ground personnel was on alert mode," said an airport official. Back in the sky, the pilot aligned the aircraft with the runway, scanned the instrument panel, murmured a prayer and made for the landing strip. Minutes later, the wheels touched down softly, belying the danger the plane had been in when it was airborne. Though the fire had already been doused by automated fire extinguishing system (AFES), no one was taking any chances. The passengers were soon herded into buses and taken to the terminal. They were later accommodated in an Air India flight that took off at 10 am. "The incident that happened today should never happen. Though chances of two birds striking both the engines are remote, it cannot be ruled out completely. If a plane encounters a flock of birds during takeoff, the unforseen can happen. It can then be disastrous," an airline pilot said, adding that there have been several close calls in the past and had been reported to AAI. AAI officials admitted they have had such pleas and have tried to act on the situation by urging nearby municipalities to clear the garbage. "Some action has happened but there is need for more," an official said. Garbage continues to be dumped at make-shift markets around the airport. Butcher shops and dhabas are a problem too. At the airport, 22 contracted staffs work in the bird section, using various means to scare away the uninvited winged guests. "Our worry is at dawn and dusk when bird movement is highest. Dawn is the busiest time as it is also the peak traffic hour," a bird section staff said. That's exactly what the bird hit happened on Saturday. http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOIKM&log in=default&AW=1232278266859 *************** Airbus A320 Bird Strike/Engine Shut Down (Mexico) Date: 16-JAN-2009 Time: 15:20 Type: Airbus A320-214 Operator: Interjet Registration: C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 110 Airplane damage: Minor Location: Guadalajara - Mexico Phase: Initial climb Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: GDL Destination airport: SJD Narrative: The flight 4O-809 struck a vulture with its left engine while departing, forcing the crew to shut the engine down and return to Guadalajara. Passengers reported, that the airplane shook after the bird was ingested and the smell of burned feathers developed in the cabin. Sources: http://avherald.com/h?article=41389739&opt=0 (aviation-safetynet) *************** Airbus A321 Bird Strike/Engine Shut down (Turkey) Date: 16-JAN-2009 Time: ca 05:45 Type: Airbus A321-231 Operator: Lufthansa Registration: D-AISB C/n / msn: 1080 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 140 Airplane damage: Minor Location: Istanbul - Turkey Phase: Initial climb Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: IST Destination airport: FRA Narrative: Flight LH3345 suffered a bird strike in the nr.1 engine shortly after takeoff from Atatürk Airport, forcing the crew to shut the engine down. The flight returned to the airport for an emergency landing 12 minutes after takeoff. (aviation-safety.net) ************** AIBN releases report on ATR-42 serious icing incident The Accident Investigation Board Norway (AIBN) released the final report of their investigation into a serious incident involving an ATR-42 in September 2005. The crew experienced uncommanded roll movements in icing conditions. The AIBN has uncovered several latent contributing factors and safety problems in this investigation. These safety problems can roughly be subdivided into four groups: - Operation of this aircraft type in icing conditions - Serious deficiencies in the company’s quality system and flight safety programme - Insufficient follow-up and rule enforcement on the part of the CAA-N after it had disclosed serious deficiencies in the quality system and flight safety programme in its flight operations inspections of the company over several years prior to the incident. - The company was assigned two new tendered routes despite the deficiencies in its safety management persisting. (AIBN) (aviation-safety.net) ************** Denver Woman Sentenced For Making Airline Bomb Threat Ordered To Three Years' Supervised Probation - With No Alcohol A Denver woman who made a bomb threat to Southwest Airlines last April has been sentenced in US District Court, Acting United States Attorney David Gaouette and FBI Special Agent in Charge James Davis announced. Terrice Gay Hutchinson, 53, of Denver, CO, was sentenced Thursday by US District Court Judge Robert E. Blackburn to 3 years of supervised probation. Hutchinson was also ordered by Judge Blackburn not to drink alcohol during her supervised probation, according to the US Department of Justice. On April 17, 2008, Hutchinson made the threat via a telephone call to Southwest Airlines. She stated that her husband was a passenger booked on a flight from Denver to Las Vegas, had a bomb and was planning to blow up the airplane. Both Southwest and the FBI investigated the report, finding that there was no bomb. Acting US Attorney David Gaouette said, "Threats must be taken very seriously by law enforcement, and when they are falsely made, those who break the law will be pursued and prosecuted to the fullest extent the law allows." Hutchinson was indicted for the threat by a federal grand jury in Denver on June 16, 2008, and pled guilty before then Chief US District Court Judge Edward W. Nottingham on October 10, 2008. FBI Special Agent in Charge James Davis said, "The FBI will continue to aggressively investigate and seek prosecution in matters such as this one. The FBI appreciates the professional manner in which the airline, their personnel, DIA, TSA, and the Assistant United States Attorneys worked with our Agents to bring this matter to a successful resolution." FMI: www.southwest.com, www.fbi.gov aero-news.net *************** British Government Approves Third Heathrow Runway Completion Not Expected Until 2019 At The Earliest Despite strong opposition from environmental groups, the British government gave approval last week for the construction of a third runway at London's Heathrow Airport. Although the project won't be completed until 2019, officials state the move to increase capacity is necessary to compete as a major European destination. Speaking before Parliament, British Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon said, "Doing nothing at Heathrow would allow extra capacity at other hub airports like Frankfurt and Schiphol (Amsterdam) and Charles de Gaulle (Paris). Doing nothing will damage our economy and have no impact whatsoever on climate change." Hoon said advancements in aircraft technology will effect an overall reduction in noise levels and pollution, even with the third runway. But one aspect of the project that has drawn huge opposition is the necessary demolition of residential areas to clear an area for expansion. Councilor Ray Puddifoot, whose borough of Hillingdon includes the areas to be razed, said, "It is devastating for the people that live there, for the homes, the jobs, for the schools. It's an immense decision, a totally unnecessary decision. This is (Prime Minister) Gordon Brown sucking up to business, and he's doing it at the expense of people, and at the expense of the environment." Numerous detractors of the project have vowed to fight it in court, including London Mayor Boris Johnson, more than 40 parliamentarians, and the environmental group Greenpeace. CNN reports Greenpeace bought up a tract of land in the intended expansion area, and announced a plan to divide it into tiny portions to be sold to supporters worldwide, slowing down the project with a log jam of legal challenges. As ANN reported, Unite union members have supported the third runway, arguing that it will mean increased job security for current airport workers and new jobs for thousands more. Joint general secretary Derek Simpson said, "There can be no further delay in the modernization of Heathrow, the UK's only international hub airport. Heathrow should be the jewel in our crown but it is falling behind world class standards. "We know that the expansion of Heathrow is not an easy decision. People are concerned for the environment and their quality of life. But we sincerely believe that Heathrow's modernization is the only way to reduce aircraft emissions and cut disruption." FMI: www.heathrowairport.com aero-news.net *************** Mystery surrounds Air NZ plane crashTamara McLean Crash investigators say it will still be some weeks before they know the cause of an Air New Zealand plane crash off the coast of France that left seven people dead. The bodies of four New Zealanders killed in the crash are enroute home accompanied by family members and Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe. The body of a fifth New Zealander has not been recovered. Mr Fyfe said he met with chief prosecutor Jean-Pierre Dreno overnight to seek an update on the investigation. "He made it quite clear to me that there are several more weeks of detailed analysis required before the investigating team has a clear idea of a likely cause," Mr Fyfe said. "He reiterated his comments over the weekend that investigators are clear on the flight path and the fact that power was applied to the aircraft's engines but how or why is not known at this stage." Meanwhile, more details of the crash off France's southern coast on November 27 have been revealed in the first public report of information in the aircraft's black box. Mr Dreno told New Zealand television the pilots "were having a lot of difficulty controlling the plane" and that in their last seconds "they were screaming" as they hit the water. The Airbus 320 had surged steeply upwards as it was descending, a move too sharp for the aircraft to recover from. "First (the plane) goes up, then fell on its side, then it entered the sea... very quickly... with much force," Mr Dreno told TV3. Perpignan officials are planning a memorial for the dead, which include two German flight crew. The bodies of the New Zealanders are expected to arrive home at 11am (0900 AEDT) on Tuesday and be given a private ceremony in an Air New Zealand hangar. http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-world/mystery-surrounds-air-nz-plane -crash-20090119-7k63.html **************** ANZ A320 pitched up and stalled before crash: investigator The probe into the November crash of an Air New Zealand (ANZ) Airbus A320 in France is focusing on an apparent surge of engine power during the final approach which caused the aircraft to pitch up and stall. Head of the investigation, Jean-Pierre Dreno, told New Zealand's TV3 television that the cockpit crew were struggling to control the A320 during its final approach to Perpignan before the aircraft crashed into the Mediterranean Sea. Describing the final seconds of the flight, Dreno said data retrieved from the flight data recorder (FDR) showed the aircraft first pitched up suddenly before it fell "on its side" into the sea. He said it all happened "very quickly". Dreno also revealed that the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) captured sounds from the crew in the final moments of the flight, adding of the pilots that "they screamed". The aircraft crashed on 27 November as it was coming in for a landing after carrying out a pre-delivery test flight. ANZ was preparing to take the aircraft back off lease from Germany's XL Airways and the crash killed all seven people on board including five New Zealanders. French investigators initially found they were not able to retrieve data from the CVR or FDR but the manufacturer Honeywell was able to successfully retrieve the data earlier this month. The French Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses (BEA) began analysing information from the devices last week. ANZ is cautioning, however, that French authorities "still do not know the cause of the A320 accident". CEO Rob Fyfe says he met with chief prosecutor Dreno yesterday to seek an update on the investigation and "he made it quite clear to me that there are several more weeks of detailed analysis required before the investigating team has a clear idea of a likely cause". Fyfe adds: "He reiterated his comments over the weekend that investigators are clear on the flight path and the fact that power was applied to the aircraft's engines but how or why is not known at this stage, and that he is concerned by speculation fuelled by media reports." Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** Michael Griffin Steps Down As NASA Administrator Farewell Message Broadcast Live To Employees Michael Griffin, head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration since 2005, said goodbye to fellow employees Friday in a live broadcast from NASA headquarters in Washington, DC. Griffin congratulated workers for their success in restoring the public's trust in NASA after the tragic loss of the space shuttle Columbia in 2003. "Nothing, nothing in the world, is harder than picking yourself up after a cataclysm . . . and moving forward, and we've done it," he said. Although Griffin wanted to continue as NASA Administrator under the new presidential administration, Griffin submitted his resignation several weeks ago when it became apparent that he and President-Elect Obama had very different ideas about the direction NASA should be headed in the future. "If you can't support the agenda, then the proper thing to do is to leave," Griffin said. "There are many different things you could do with a $17.5-billion NASA civil space program. But what we can't do is squabble and fight." Although some have questioned the wisdom of changing administrators at this time, Griffin urged NASA workers to support whoever is chosen as his successor, the Los Angeles Times reports. "NASA will look great whether we're asked to return to the moon and establish a permanent presence there and go to Mars, as I think we ought to be asked to do, or whether we're asked to carry out some other task," Griffin said. NASA Associate Administrator Christopher Scolese will oversee operations in the interim until a new administrator is appointed. As ANN reported last week, retired Air Force Major General Jonathan Scott Gration is currently the odds-on favorite to fill the role. FMI: www.nasa.gov aero-news.net *************** EASA to publish scientific data on flight-time limitation Medical and scientific data from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is to be released this week, identifying areas for improvement to European flight-time limitation law. Pilots have considered scientific input vital to the revision of flight-time regulations, but obtaining the data has been a difficult task. A spokeswoman for EASA confirms that a study will be published in the second half of this week, but declines to reveal any recommendations contained in it. European Cockpit Association (ECA) representatives are welcoming the move, which the organisation says is required under the new EU-OPS regulation. "This regulation also mandates the European Commission to 'draw up and submit proposals without delay to amend the relevant technical provisions on the basis of this evaluation'," says an ECA statement. It adds that the 38,000 pilots it represents "await with interest" the publication of EASA's medical and scientific evaluation and the plans to implement results "without delay". Source: Air Transport Intelligence news ***************