De : "Curt Lewis" Date : 20/04/2009 13:15 A : Objet : [flightsafety] Flight Safety Information (20APR09-092) Flight Safety Information (20APR09-092) _______________________________________ *Gunman holds crew on passenger jet in Jamaica *Cessna 208 Accident (Venezuela) *Boeing parks new cargo jets in desert *Southwest flight returns to Islip after passenger threat *Inbound air cargo poses screening challenges to TSA **************************************** Gunman holds crew on passenger jet in Jamaica KINGSTON (Reuters) – A gunman, described as "mentally challenged," was holding five crew members on a commercial jet in Montego Bay, Jamaica, on Monday after all passengers on the aircraft were released, authorities said. A Montego Bay police officer said a shot had been fired after the gunman, who had demanded to be flown to Cuba, breached security about 10 p.m. local time on Sunday (0300 GMT Monday) to force his way aboard the CanJet charter flight at Sangster International Airport. The officer said no one had been wounded. Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding and his national security minister, Dwight Nelson, arrived in Montego Bay early on Monday to take charge of the situation in the Caribbean nation's prime tourist resort, Information Minister Daryl Vaz told reporters. He said the suspect, believed to be armed with a handgun, was a Jamaican national about 20 years old and that his father was among those hoping to negotiate the release of the CanJet crew members. Vaz said the would-be hijacker seemed to suffer from "mental challenges," but he did not elaborate. "Originally, his demands were to be flown to Cuba because the flight actually was going to Cuba and then back to Halifax. That really was his demand," Vaz said in an interview with CNN. "Thank God, there are no injuries in terms of the passengers and that the hijacking is that of a mentally challenged youngster and not anything else that will be any cause of concern in terms of an international incident," Vaz added. CanJet said the incident aboard Flight 918, which carried 182 passengers and crew, occurred after it made a scheduled landing in the Caribbean tourist resort en route from Halifax, Nova Scotia. "All passengers have been safely removed from the aircraft, but CanJet crew and the armed man remain on board. Our understanding is that no harm has come to anyone remaining on board and ... there has been no damage to the aircraft," the company said in a statement on its website. "Our priority at this time is well-being of the passengers and crew who were involved in the incident," said the company, which operates a fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090420/ts_nm/us_jamaica_hostages ************* Cessna 208 Accident (Venezuela) Status: Preliminary Date: 17 APR 2009 Time: 15:32 Type: Cessna 208B Grand Caravan Operator: Línea Turística Aereotuy - LTA Registration: YV1181 C/n / msn: 208B-0695 First flight: Engines: 1 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-114A Crew: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 Passengers: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 9 Total: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 11 Airplane damage: Written off Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: Canaima Airport (CAJ) (Venezuela) Phase: Takeoff (TOF) Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Canaima Airport (CAJ/SVCN), Venezuela Destination airport: Porlamar-del Caribe Santiago Mariño International Airport (PMV/SVMG), Venezuela Narrative: The Aereotuy plane carrying 8 tourists crashed shortly after leaving Canaima bound for Isla Margarita. Apparently an engine failed on take off. One 6 year old boy died, and at least three passengers were badly injured. (aviation-safety.net) *************** Boeing parks new cargo jets in desert Boeing Co. has parked two new 777 freighters in the desert for China Southern Airlines Co. because of slumping cargo demand, and Air France-KLM Group may mothball a new jet as well, officials for the carriers said. The storage of the widebody aircraft, which cost about $257 million apiece at list price, represents a new development as the current recession weighs on passenger and cargo traffic. Airlines typically park only older and less-efficient jetliners in desert locations such as Arizona, where there's enough space and the hot, dry conditions hamper corrosion. China Southern hasn't yet accepted the 777s, which were stored by Boeing, an airline executive said Friday from Guangzhou. Air France said it may park the plane it's due to get next month. Chicago-based Boeing, which gets paid when planes are delivered, declined to comment on whether new aircraft have been put in storage and said it's working on schedules. "A wave of next-generation aircraft could be parked over the next few quarters," Patrick McCarthy, an FBR Capital Markets analyst, said in a research note yesterday. "This is a marked shift." While older models put into storage may never leave the desert, more fuel-efficient jets should enter service, he said. http://www.philly.com/inquirer/business/20090420_Boeing_parks_new_cargo_jets _in_desert.html *************** Southwest flight returns to Islip after passenger threat A Southwest Airlines flight headed to West Palm Beach from Long Island MacArthur Airport turned around after one passenger threatened another, claiming to have a gun, a MacArthur spokeswoman said Sunday. Southwest Airlines Flight 1552 took off shortly after 9 a.m. Saturday and a few minutes later a passenger became disruptive, MacArthur spokeswoman Catherine Green said. The male passenger threatened another person on the flight, saying he was carrying a gun, Green said. MacArthur police and Suffolk police met the plane on the runway when it returned to MacArthur and found no gun on board, Green said. The man who made the threat, whose name was not released, was arrested after the incident, Green said. It was unknown whether the man was charged, but Suffolk police said last night the FBI was involved in the investigation. http://www.newsday.com/news/local/suffolk/ny-liair2012674509apr19,0,5992580. story *************** Inbound air cargo poses screening challenges to TSA Challenges in developing screening requirements for air cargo inbound from foreign countries is thwarting the US Transportation Security Administration's (TSA's) efforts to meet a legislative mandate requiring all freight on passenger aircraft to be screened by 2010. US legislation passed in 2007 required the country's Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish a system to physically screen 50% of cargo transported on passenger aircraft by February 2009 and 100% of such cargo by August 2010. The TSA, a component of the DHS, is responsible for implementing the system. Significant efforts to reach the 100% mark are ongoing, says a spokeswoman for the agency, which has achieved 100% screening of cargo on narrowbody passenger aircraft. She confirms, however, that the TSA does not expect to meet the August 2010 deadline for screening 100% of all cargo on passenger aircraft. The TSA "cannot implement a security regimen in a foreign country without extensive, cooperative planning with - and acceptance by - our international partners", explains the TSA spokeswoman. About 44% of cargo transported to and from the US on passenger flights is inbound from a foreign country. However, the TSA is not pinpointing the countries that are posing screening challenges. "For security reasons, we cannot point out any one country or region which we are having issues with," says the spokeswoman. "Any passenger airline carrying cargo into the US has to adhere to both the security rules of the country of departure as well as the security programs issued by TSA and our inspector force insures compliance with those requirements." During a recent workshop in Seattle, the Air Cargo Management Group (ACMG) consultancy addressed the problems associated with screening inbound international flights. "Many countries see unilateral US security requirements as a violation of national sovereignty," says the ACMG, noting: "No broad-based multi-lateral international approach to air cargo security exists." Furthermore, says the ACMG, some experts say 100% screening reduces security relative to a risk-based approach that would focus resources on high-risk shipments. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** "Flight Safety Information" is a free service of: Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC (Targeting Safety & Risk Management) curt@curt-lewis.com www.curt-lewis.com www.fsinfo.org PH: 817-303-9096 Cell: 817-845-3983 Fax: 682-292-0835 Curt Lewis & Associates, LLC is a multi-discipline technical and scientific consulting firm specializing in aviation and industrial safety. Our specialties are aviation litigation support, aviation/airport safety programs, accident investigation, safety & quality assessments/audits, system safety, human factors, Safety Management Systems (SMS) assessment/implementation & training, safety/quality training & risk management, and airfield/heliport lighting products.