12 JUN 2009 _______________________________________ *NBAA Chief Praises Obama's Choice For NTSB *Air France chief: Early A330 findings are not conclusive *LA airport unveils new runway safety system *FAA's Babbitt Testifies In Senate Hearings *NTSB probes jet design in Hudson landing *Senator: FAA must require full pilot-training histories *Antonov 32 Accident (India) *Cockpit fire forces Australian Jetstar A330 to divert *Regional jet makes safe emergency landing *FAA: Use Constant Descents for Nonprecision Apps *Indonesia suffers second military helicopter crash *Colgan to alter training and fatigue management policies *American forced to cancel NextGen test flight *FAA casts doubt over simulator training for ditching *7 Ways to Annoy a Flight Attendant ***************************************** NBAA Chief Praises Obama's Choice For NTSB Says Hersman Understands Business Aviation National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) President and CEO Ed Bolen today commended the Obama Administration for nominating Deborah A. P. Hersman as chair of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). "NBAA applauds President Obama's nomination of Debbie Hersman as NTSB chair," Bolen said. "Debbie has a good understanding of business aviation; she knows that our industry has long recognized that safety is Job One, and that we are constantly working to build upon our already strong safety record. Debbie has always had an open door to NBAA and its Members, and we have effectively partnered with her on a number of initiatives to enhance safety. We look forward to continuing our work with Debbie and her colleagues at the NTSB." Hersman was sworn in as the 35th member of the NTSB on June 21, 2004. Since her appointment to the board, Hersman has been the member on scene at more than a dozen major transportation accidents, including several high-profile business aviation incidents. Before joining the NTSB, Hersman was a senior professional staff member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation from 1999 to 2004, where she was responsible for the legislative agenda and policy initiatives affecting surface transportation issues. Prior to that appointment, she served as staff director and senior legislative aide to Representative Bob Wise (D-WV-2) from 1992 to 1999. Her nomination as NTSB chair is subject to approval by the U.S. Senate. FMI: www.ntsb.gov, www.whitehouse.gov, www.nbaa.org aero-news.net ************** Air France chief: Early A330 findings are not conclusive Air France chief executive Pierre-Henri Gourgeon has stressed that no firm connection has been established between last week's loss of an Airbus A330 and the pitot system of the jet. Speaking during an event originally intended to focus on the state of the air transport industry, Gourgeon said that parties "cannot assume any link" between the pitot system and the cause of the accident. He says Air France, which had experienced a number of incidents involving airspeed fluctuations, started replacing the pitot components on 29 May, as soon as it received the parts stock. Gourgeon confirms that the replacement programme had been "stepped up" following the observation of speed measurement problems in ACARS messages transmitted automatically from the aircraft shortly before it crashed in the South Atlantic. Air France also points out that European safety authorities maintain that the A330 and A340 are airworthy with "any one of the three types of existing sensors". French pilots have raised concerns over operating unmodified aircraft since the loss of flight AF447 on 1 June. Air France last year informed its flight crews of a "significant number of incidents" involving its A330/340 fleet during high-altitude cruise in conditions of icing or turbulence. In a memorandum it detailed symptoms including incorrect indicated airspeed, discrepancies between the airspeed on primary displays and standby instruments, electronic messages, autothrust or autopilot disengagement, and stall warnings. Crews were told that, during the incidents, there was no reported evidence of overspeed or stall indications, despite the warnings. The carrier urged its pilots to be aware and to proceed with caution in similar circumstances. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** LA airport unveils new runway safety system LOS ANGELES (AP) – A new warning system designed to prevent runway accidents was unveiled Thursday at Los Angeles International Airport, which has been plagued for years by close calls and other safety violations on its runways and taxiways. The $7 million runway status lights system relies on radar and red lights on the pavement of one runway and eight taxiways to tell pilots when it is safe to cross or take off. The lights blink on if the ground radar detects a potential conflict between two planes or an aircraft and a vehicle. Once the lights are on, pilots and motorists traveling on airport roads must obtain clearance from air traffic controllers before proceeding. Federal Aviation Administration officials said the lights, which began operating in April, provide critical safety improvements at the airport, which for eight years had the most runway safety violations in the nation. The airport has four parallel runways with associated taxiways. "This system has proved that it is highly effective in preventing potentially dangerous runway incidents from occurring," Wes Timmons, the FAA's director of runway safety, said. The lights, which were first tested at San Diego and Dallas-Fort Worth airports, have been shown to reduce runway incursions, the FAA said. The number of close calls at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport dropped from 10 in the 2 1/2 years before the lights were installed to three during the 2 1/2 years after they came on. The FAA planned to install the safety lights at about 20 other airports across the country. Los Angeles airport officials said they decided to pay for the system with airport revenue rather than wait for federal money so it could start operating about three years earlier than would have been possible otherwise. There has been no decision on whether to add the warning system to the airport's other three runways and their taxiways. **************** FAA's Babbitt Testifies In Senate Hearings Investigation of Colgan Air Flight 3407 Focuses On Training, Records North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan (D), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee's Aviation Subcommittee (pictured right), Wednesday called on the FAA to "immediately" begin the process of changing a rule that can allow airlines to hire pilots without checking their training history beyond five years. Dorgan made the demand at a hearing of the Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety and Security called to examine regional airline safety. The hearing was prompted by allegations of improper training, pilot fatigue, and other problems that may have contributed to the Colgan Air flight 3704 crash near Buffalo February 12th. USA Today reports that in 8 of the 9 major accidents involving regional airlines over the past 10 years, at least one pilot had failed more than one checkride. The Pilot Records Improvement Act of 1996 requires regional carriers to check for failed checkrides in the previous 5 years, but according to the report, many of the pilots involved had busted a checkride outside that 5 year window. "We need to fix that and fix that soon," Dorgan said. "There is no reason that you can learn everything there is to know about the airplane, but not the pilot." In his prepared remarks, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt told the committee: "On January 12, 2009, the FAA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding upgraded training standards for pilots, flight attendants and dispatchers." "The aviation industry has moved to performance-based training rather than prescriptive training to reflect that the way people learn has changed," Babbitt (shown below, right) said. "New technology, particularly simulators, allows high-fidelity training for events that we never could have trained to in the past using an aircraft, e.g., stall recovery. We now have qualitative measures to measure actual transfer of knowledge. We can determine proficiency based on performance, not just on the number of hours of training. While the major airlines are already doing this type of training, our proposed rule incorporates best practices and tools so that all operators will use the upgraded standards." He went on to address the Pilot Records Improvement Act, saying the FAA recommends that airlines go beyond the 5 year statutory requirement. "PRIA requires carriers to obtain a limited waiver from prospective pilots allowing for the release of information concerning their current airman certificate and associated type ratings and limitations, current airman medical certificates, including any limitations, and summaries of closed FAA legal enforcement actions resulting in a finding by the Administrator of a violation that was not subsequently overturned. Although PRIA does not require carriers to obtain a release from prospective pilots for the entirety of the pilot’s airman certification file, including Notices of Disapproval for flight checks for certificates and ratings, FAA guidance suggests to potential employers that they may find this additional information helpful in evaluating the pilot. In order to obtain this additional information, a carrier must obtain a Privacy Act waiver from the pilot-applicant." The remarks were Babbitt's first official statements on these issues since being named to his post 3 weeks ago. The bottom line is that the FAA recommends that regional carries request all records pertinent to a pilot's qualifications, but they must ask for permission from the pilots to check those records and have not made the practice mandatory. There was some finger-pointing at the hearing as well. As previously reported by ANN, acting NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker told the subcommittee the safety board has previously recommended that the FAA address the pilot records issue, as well as several other areas germane to the crash. Babbitt responded that the NTSB makes hundreds of recommendations, and that sometimes they require technology that does not exist or would take years to implement. Still, Babbitt said, when the FAA does not act on a recommendation, it has "an obligation to explain to the NTSB and the public why we don't adopt it." FMI: www.faa.gov, www.ntsb.gov aero-news.net *************** NTSB probes jet design in Hudson landing By Alan Levin, USA TODAY WASHINGTON — Typical airline pilots cannot be expected to land a powerless jet in water softly enough to prevent the kind of major damage that occurred on Flight 1549, government and industry experts testified Wednesday. "If you are being presented with this situation for the first time in your life, it is going to be an extremely demanding task," said Gene Arnold, a Federal Aviation Administration test pilot. In its second day of hearings into the dramatic ditching of a US Airways jet on the Hudson River Jan. 15, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) focused on how jets are designed to withstand water landings and whether those designs are adequate. U.S. and European regulators require that airliners be capable of withstanding a water ditching and float. But the Airbus A320 hit the water so hard that the rear of jet was ruptured, allowing water to flood in. The water blocked rear exits and rendered two of the four life rafts unusable. The reason for the damage was that aircraft are designed to be landed on water only after lengthy, careful preparation, not after a hectic emergency such as the pilots on Flight 1549 faced. It's also easier to make a soft landing with engine power, but birds had heavily damaged both of Flight 1549's engines shortly after it took off from LaGuardia Airport in New York. Flight 1549 hit the water several times harder than the jet was designed to withstand. The instructions for how to land on water in an emergency were on the last page of the US Airways emergency checklist and the pilots did not have enough time to finish the checklist. But even if they had followed the water touchdown procedures, it would have been difficult, several witnesses at the hearing testified. When asked whether a normal airline pilot could be expected to make a soft landing on water, a top Airbus official said it was doubtful. "I believe the answer is no," said Capt. Hugues Van Der Stichel, the Airbus vice president of Experimental Flight Test. "It is a demanding task." Van Der Stichel and others said it would help pilots if they could practice such water landings in a simulator. Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger testified Tuesday that he had not practiced a ditching in the simulator. But Sullenberger had been a licensed glider pilot for more than 30 years. The performance of Sullenberger and co-pilot Jeffrey Skiles was laudable, said Capt. Terry Lutz, an Airbus test pilot. It was "remarkable" that the pair had time to attempt to restart each of their damaged engines during the 3 ˝ minutes of the emergency, Lutz said. They also were able to take several key actions, such as switching on a backup power system, within seconds of hitting birds. Airbus officials said that they were pleased with the performance of the A320, part of a family of popular midsized jets. Despite the impact and damage to the jet, it stayed afloat long enough for all the passengers to escape, they said. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-06-10-ntsb-hudson-hearing_N.htm **************** Senator: FAA must require full pilot-training histories By Alan Levin, USA TODAY WASHINGTON — A senator on Wednesday demanded that aviation regulators close a loophole that can allow pilots to go to work at an airline without disclosing previous flight test failures. Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., chairman of the Commerce Committee's aviation panel, called on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to "immediately" begin the process of changing the rule. "We need to fix that and fix that soon," Dorgan said. "There is no reason that you can learn everything there is to know about the airplane, but not the pilot." Randy Babbitt, the newly appointed FAA chief, testified at the hearing that he agreed with Dorgan and would fix the problem. Dorgan was speaking at a hearing called to examine regional airline safety in the wake of disclosures last month about potential poor training, pilot fatigue and low pilot pay at the carrier that suffered a crash Feb. 12 near Buffalo, killing 50 people. The pilot when the turboprop went out of control had failed five piloting tests, but carrier Colgan Air knew about only two of the failures. USA TODAY reported Monday that the accident was not unique. At least one of the pilots involved in eight of the nine major accidents on regional airlines in the past 10 years had previously failed multiple "check rides," according to accident records. Nearly all of the accidents were caused by pilot mistakes. Check rides test flying skills. Under the 1996 Pilot Records Improvement Act, airlines must check a prospective pilot's record at other carriers during the past five years. The law does not require checks of tests performed by FAA inspectors or before the five-year period. The previous failures by the Colgan pilot had occurred before he worked at an airline. The FAA is studying whether it can write rules requiring broader record checks by airlines or whether the changes would need to be made by Congress, spokeswoman Laura Brown said. The agency already urges airlines to request the information from pilot applicants, which is permissible under current law. Senators criticized regional airlines at the hearing. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said the Colgan crash is "chilling to everyone — and if you have had a loved one on that plane, it is beyond chilling." http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-06-10-ntsb_N.htm *************** Antonov 32 Accident (India) Status: Preliminary Date: 08 JUN 2009 Type: Antonov 32 Operator: Indian Air Force Registration: C/n / msn: First flight: Crew: Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 7 Passengers: Fatalities: 6 / Occupants: 6 Total: Fatalities: 13 / Occupants: 13 Airplane damage: Missing Location: Rinchi village in West Siang district (India) Phase: En route (ENR) Nature: Military Departure airport: Machuka Advanced Landing Ground, India Destination airport: Mohanbari Air Base (MOH/VEMN), India Narrative: An Indian Air Force An-32 transport plane crashed in a mountainous area near Rinchi village in the West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. All seven IAF crew members and six Army personnel were killed. The aircraft took off from the Machuka Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) in West Siang district at 14:00 after dropping Army supplies. The airplane was en route to Mohanbari when it went missing. The wreckage was found two days later. (aviation-safety.net) *************** Cockpit fire forces Australian Jetstar A330 to divert An Airbus A330-200 operated by Australian low-cost carrier Jetstar was diverted to Guam after a cockpit fire. The aircraft was flying between Osaka Kansai airport and the Gold Coast. Crew extinguished the fire approximately three hours and 50mins into the flight, the airline says in a statement.The aircraft plane landed in Guam at 02:20 today. There were 186 passengers, four infants, and 13 crew - nine cabin crew and four pilots - aboard the aircraft. The majority of passengers are Japanese, with a handful of other nationalities. There are no reports of injuries. The fire occurred in the right-hand cockpit window area, leaving a blackened window. Jetstar says it was caused by the electrical connector part of a cockpit window heater. Among the youngest of Jetstar's six A330-200s, the aircraft joined the fleet in 2007. Its registration is VH-EBF. After the aircraft landed without incident in Guam, the passengers "disembarked normally", a Jetstar spokeswoman says from Melbourne where the carrier is based. They are now staying hotels in Guam and waiting for another Jetstar A330-200 that has been dispatched from Sydney, she says. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) says it has commenced an investigation. It also says it has notified the US National Transportation Safety Board and the France's Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses (BEA). Source: Air Transport Intelligence news ***** Date: 11-JUN-2009 Time: 220 Type: Airbus A330-200 Operator: JetStar Registration: VH-EBF C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 203 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Unknown Location: Guam - Guam Phase: En route Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: CNX Destination airport: OOL Narrative: The airline says almost four hours into the flight, smoke was seen in the cockpit and moments later the right hand cockpit window caught fire. Jetstar says technical crew extinguished the fire which was contained to the cockpit only. The aircraft landed without incident at Guam International Airport at 2.20am (AEST) Australian time. (aviation-safety.net) **************** Regional jet makes safe emergency landing A commercial flight had to make an emergency landing at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport when landing gear malfunctioned, officials reported. All onboard Delta Flight 5414 from Columbus to Atlanta are safe, Hartsfield spokesman John Kennedy said. The small aircraft, an ASA regional jet, landed sometime before 7 p.m., Kennedy said. ASA jets typically operate as commuter carriers for Atlanta-based Delta Airlines. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/printedition/2009/06/12/landing0612.html ***** Date: 11-JUN-2009 Time: 18:40 Type: Canadair RJ200 Operator: Atlantic Southeast Airlines Registration: C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 22 Airplane damage: Unknown Location: Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, GA (ATL/KATL) - United States of America Phase: Landing Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Columbus Metropolitan, ga (KCSG) Destination airport: Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, GA (ATL/KATL) Narrative: Flight DL5414 from Columbus had problems lowering the landing gear during the approach to Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, GA (ATL) at 17:52. The airplane entered a holding pattern at 4000-5000 feet and eventually performed a safe emergency landing on runway 27R. It appears that the CRJ200 suffered a left hand main landing gear collapse on landing. (aviation-safety.net) ***************** FAA: Use Constant Descents for Nonprecision Apps The FAA recently issued a Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO 09011) to provide guidance for Part 121 and 135 operators about the importance of using a constant angle of descent when conducting nonprecision instrument approaches. It issued the alert because a Part 121 operator conducting a nonprecision approach at night in IMC failed to control the descent rate and subsequently crashed short of the runway. “During a nonprecision approach procedure, the descent from the final approach altitude to the MDA requires disciplined piloting technique and increased situational awareness to accommodate the pilot workload during this segment of the approach,” according to the SAFO. Because other factors such as multiple step-downs and nighttime operations can add complexity, “operators should evaluate and, if necessary, implement appropriate procedures to reduce workload issues applicable to nonprecision approaches. The FAA said such procedures should include the use of vertical navigation (Vnav) or a constant angle of descent on the final approach segment. The alert also includes recommendations for operators to update their training programs and operating procedures with respect to the information in the SAFO. http://www.ainonline.com/news/single-news-page/article/faa-use-constant-desc ents-for-nonprecision-apps/ ***************** Indonesia suffers second military helicopter crash JAKARTA, June 12 (Reuters) - An Indonesian military helicopter has crashed south of the capital Jakarta, killing four people and injuring three, an air force spokesman said on Friday, the second such crash this week. The Puma H-3306 helicopter had been on a test flight after maintenance when it crashed at a military base in Bogor, West Java, air force spokesman Bambang Soelistyo said by telephone. On Monday, three people, including a high ranking special forces officer, were killed in a separate crash of a Bolco type helicopter near Cianjur, in West Java. Indonesia has a poor air safety record for both military and civilian aircraft. More than 100 people died after a C-130 Hercules military transport plane crashed in East Java last month. Defence Minister Juwono Sudarsono said last month that maintenance should be 20 to 25 percent of the military budget but was below 10 percent due to limited resources. http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSJAK406623 *************** Colgan to alter training and fatigue management policies US regional carrier Colgan Air is revising its remedial training and pilot monitoring programme for employees who have demonstrated difficulty during training or flight checks following the crash of one of the carrier's Bombardier Q400 aircraft on 12 February of this year. The aircraft stalled and went out of control on approach to Buffalo, New York, crashing into a house about 9km (5nm) from the airport. Colgan is formalising its existing remedial training programme and plans to monitor pilots who have failed training elements or flight checks for one year regardless of how quickly a rating or certification is regained, carrier vice president of safety and regulatory compliance Dan Morgan tells ATI. Morgan says the new scheme is still in development, but is likely to be introduced at the end of the summer. The captain involved in the crash earned four FAA certificate disapprovals, of which three occurred before his employment with Colgan. However, the captain disclosed only one of his three prior failed checkrides on his job application. At Colgan the pilot was initially disapproved when he was upgrading to captain on the Saab 340, which included an evaluation for obtaining his airline transport pilot's certificate (ATC). With additional training, the captain subsequently passed each of the flight tests and was issued the rating or certificate. The captain also passed six checkrides in the sixteen months prior to the crash. Concerns raised about pilot fatigue in the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) investigation of the crash have resulted in a decision by Colgan to revise its fatigue management policies. Fatigue is being investigated as both the captain and first officer involved in the crash commuted to work from out of state. The captain logged into the crew scheduling computer system on the day of the accident at 3:00 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. The first officer commuted to Newark on an overnight flight the night before the crash and sent and received text messages periodically on the day of the incident. While Colgan did not provide pilots with specific guidance about fatigue management before the crash beyond covering its fatigue policy in ground school, the carrier issued an operations bulletin on crewmember fatigue on 29 April. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news **************** American forced to cancel NextGen test flight American Airlines has postponed a test flight to demonstrate next generation avionics technologies originally scheduled for 11 June due to an issue with the aircraft. Originally the carrier planned to operate a Boeing 767 from Charles De Gaulle to Miami performing several functions including single-engine taxi on departure and arrival, continuous climb out and descent, optimised routing over water and a tailored arrival. The carrier says its flight department is working to reschedule the flight, but no specific date has been identified. The cancelled flight was the launch of a two-month trial by American to test its future air navigation system aircraft upgrade that includes a global positioning update to the flight management system and changes to the flight management computer that allow for the automatic downlink of an aircraft's position through controller pilot datalink communication. Fourteen of the carrier's 767s have been upgraded with the system, which costs roughly $2.2 per aircraft. The two month tests cover American 777 flights from London Heathrow to Miami largely focusing on oceanic optimisation and tailored arrivals. Flights from Madrid to Miami operated with 777s will also join testing later this month. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** FAA casts doubt over simulator training for ditching US authorities remain unconvinced that simulator training for aircraft ditching in water would be effective for pilots in dealing with those scenarios. The agency gave that assessment during the second day of a three-day hearing examining the circumstances of the forced landing of a US Airways Airbus A320 into New York's Hudson River on 15 January. Both Airbus and US Airways are referring to the incident as a forced landing on water rather than a ditching, reasoning that a ditching is planned, and the crew has enough time to complete the relevant procedures. FAA flight test pilot of the agency's Seattle certification office Gene Arnold told National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators that significant variables are associated with aircraft performing water landings including sea states, winds and aircraft configuration. Attempting to simulate those variables could actually produce degradation of actual conditions, says Arnold. He believes attempting to create those scenarios in simulators would be "prescriptive and not valuable to the pilot". Airbus experimental test pilot Captain Terry Lutz noted some work performed in simulators after the Hudson landing to recreate the event showed a "monolithic presentation" in the simulator. On the approach to water in the simulation there were no waves, wakes, boats or buildings, he explains. Airbus during the first day of hearings expressed similar concerns about simulator fidelity in attempting to create water landings, noting it could likely result in negative training for pilots. Also during the hearings US Airways revealed it was considering changing procedures to maximize the effectiveness of aircraft life lines that keep passengers tethered to wing after a ditching. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** 7 Ways to Annoy a Flight Attendant Our anonymous flight attendant has worked for a well-known commercial airline for 12 years. She dishes on what irritates her most in passenger behavior.Bettmann/Corbis 1. Bring your pet on the plane and then act like an animal. Over the years, I've seen a pet on a passenger's lap, a pet tucked into a seatback pocket, and a pet loose in the aisle (I nearly hit one with my beverage cart). All of this is against federal regulations. People tell me how well-behaved their pet is, but they can't follow the rules themselves! Your pet must stay in its carrier while you're on the plane. Yes, even if you've paid a "pet-in-cabin" fee. 2. Shove your bag into the first bin you see and then walk to your seat in the back of the plane. You think you're clever, I know. You expect to grab your bag on your way out of the plane, but you're selfishly inconveniencing others. I can't lie and say we flight attendants don't take some small satisfaction when we tell you, "We couldn't identify the bag's owner, so we sent it to cargo." It's a security issue, for real. Carry-ons need to stay near their owners! So don't look so shocked when we say, "The signs will direct you to baggage claim. You can pick up your bag there." 3. Think that because you're on an airplane you're off-duty as a parent. Stop expecting us to have spare diapers, formula, medicine, toys, playing cards, or batteries for DVD players or Game Boys. It's an airplane, not a 7-11. Take your kid to the restroom before you board. Leave the dry cereal and Legos at home and bring snacks and toys for your kids that won't make a horrible mess. 4. Drag on an oversize bag that's too heavy for you to lift by yourself. I won't be compensated for any injuries I might sustain if I heft your bag into the overhead compartment for you. (And other passengers shouldn't have to step up and take the risk either.) The guideline is simple: You pack it, you stack it. Try this at home as a test (and this is to you ladies, especially): After you've packed your bag, put on the shoes you plan to wear on the plane and see if you can lift your bag and place it on top of your refrigerator. You can't? Pay the fee and check the bag. 5. Gripe that you haven't been seated in a roomy exit-row seat. The exit rows weren't created as a reward for people who are tall, overweight, or just plain nice. They were designed to help passengers get out of the plane in an emergency. The people seated in an exit row must be able to see and speak clearly, open the emergency door, and help others. I prefer to see uniformed military, firefighters, law-enforcement officers, or off-duty pilots and flight attendants sitting in those seats. While the gate agent may assign exit-row seats first, the flight attendant makes the final determination about who gets to sit in them. And the quality of our choices is one of the frequent concerns of Federal Aviation Administration officials when they audit airlines for safety practices. So please don't complain. I'm just doing my job. 6. Act like you don't know the meaning of the words "under the seat in front of you." Someday I will be muttering "under the seat in front of you" in the old-age home for flight attendants. What is it that you don't understand? To be clear, items should not be stowed behind your calves, under your feet like a footstool, in the open seat next to you, or in your lap. It's under the seat in front of you. And it applies to everything you carry on board. Items stored carelessly can trip others, or dislodge during takeoff and get lost, or inconvenience others. And while I'm on the topic: Please don't wrap your purse (or umbrella strap) around your ankle to keep from forgetting it. What will happen in an emergency, when every second counts and there's no time to disentangle yourself from your precious bag? Will you drag it ball-and-chain-style down the aisle of a burning plane? 7. Whine about the high price of flying. When I hear people complain about coach airfares, I know they're not keeping up with the news. Fares have rarely been cheaper. In recent years, it's not uncommon for you to be able to cross the continent for under $130 each way, with a maximum of one layover. It's a bargain! At that price, you're barely paying for the fuel to get your body there—never mind the cost of shipping your 50 pounds of gear. You're already on the gravy plane. People point to first class ticket holders and want to know why they don't get the same treatment. Wake up folks: You're getting a great deal. If you want even more, pay more! http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-28078669;_ylc=X3oDMTF2YWJnM21wBF9TAzI3MT YxNDkEX3MDMjcxOTQ4MQRzZWMDZnAtdG9kYXltb2QEc2xrA2Fubm95YXR0ZW5kYW50LTYtMi0wOQ -- ************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC