14 OCT 2009 _______________________________________ *China Balloon Crash Kills Four Tourists *Plane diverted to Nashville airport; man arrested *FAA approves helicopter-warning system *United Airlines pilots union elects 1st female leader *NTSB to review crash of organ transplant plane *************************************** China Balloon Crash Kills Four Tourists BEIJING (AP) -- A hot air balloon crashed in a southern Chinese resort town Wednesday, killing four Dutch tourists, state media said. A fifth Dutch passenger and two Chinese balloon operators were injured in the accident Wednesday morning near Yangshuo in the Guangxi region, the official Xinhua News Agency said. Xinhua said the pilots lost control of the balloon shortly after take off and it caught fire while about 150 meters (490 feet) above ground. The report said three men and one woman were killed but did not give additional information about their identities. Balloon tours of the area, which is famous for its dramatic limestone peaks, have become popular in the last few years. A press officer with the Dutch Embassy in Beijing said the consulate in the southern city of Guangzhou had been informed of the accident and has sent staff to the scene. She was not immediately able to confirm the death toll or other details and asked that her name not be used in line with embassy policy. *************** Plane diverted to Nashville airport; man arrested Affidavit says he was disorderly Nashville International Airport police had to shackle an unruly passenger at the wrists and ankles to get him off a Delta airliner after it made an unscheduled landing here Tuesday, officials said. According to an affidavit, Paul Marchuk III, 22, of Canton, Ga., is being charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after witnesses said he would not allow the person sitting next to him to leave her seat to use the restroom. "The suspect kept telling her that his blood would be on her and he was not going to let her leave no matter what happened," the affidavit said. Several passengers physically restrained Marchuk and he tried to bite one of them on the leg, the affidavit said. "Before they got over Nashville, the captain elected to divert the plane and land because of the unruly passenger," said Delta spokesman Anthony Black in Atlanta. When airport security officers boarded the plane about noon, Marchuk refused to cooperate with them, they said. He was chained and removed from the aircraft. The Boeing 757 was en route from Seattle to Atlanta. The plane had 178 passengers and a six-person crew on board. It left Seattle about 6 a.m. Tuesday and arrived in Atlanta about 3:15 p.m. Eastern time, about an hour and a half late, Black said. Nashville International Airport spokeswoman Emily Richard said no one was hurt during the incident. Richard said airport police had not completed a report and will release it today. Richard said she did not know whether Marchuk was quoting Bible passages before being subdued by the other passengers. That had been reported earlier. "It's extremely rare for a captain to divert a plane like that," Delta spokesman Black said. "It might happen a handful of times, like five or six, a year." Delta flies more than 2 million flights a year, he said. The decision to remove a passenger from a flight is made by the crew, he added. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20091014/NEWS03/910140411/2066/Plane+diver ted+to+Nashville+airport++man+arrested *************** FAA approves helicopter-warning system PHOENIX (AP) -- Defense contractor Honeywell International Inc. said Tuesday the Federal Aviation Administration approved its latest ground-warning system for helicopters, which is designed to help pilots prevent ground collisons and hitting towers. Honeywell ( HON - news - people ) said its Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System helps pilots to navigate when flying in changing weather with poor visibility. It said more than 1,300 helicopters are flying with its system on board. Honeywell's aerospace business is based in Phoenix. http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/10/13/business-industrials-us-honeywell- international-faa-approval_6996053.html *************** United Airlines pilots union elects 1st female leader Election of Capt. Wendy Morse as chairman and Garry Kravit as vice chairman seen as union members favoring cooperation over confrontation United Airlines pilots opted for cooperation over confrontation Tuesday as they shook up union leadership, electing Capt. Wendy Morse chairman and Capt. Garry Kravit vice chairman. Morse will be the first woman to head the Air Line Pilots Association, traditionally United's most powerful union. She takes office Jan. 1, joining United's board shortly thereafter. She narrowly defeated the incumbent, Capt. Steve Wallach, who built on his reputation as a firebrand in an unsuccessful campaign to oust United CEO Glenn Tilton. The union's clout was further diminished after United won a restraining order against it in 2008 for allegedly encouraging a "sick-out" by junior pilots. Wallach wasn't available for an interview. Morse and Kravit will take over the union in the midst of highly charged contract talks, through which rank-and-file pilots expect to regain much of the salary they sacrificed to keep United aloft during its three-year bankruptcy stay this decade. But last year's court ruling also means pilots can't pressure management by refusing overtime or sticking to the letter of their contract rules, as they did during the 2000 contract talks that culminated in the so-called summer of hell, when flight delays were rampant. "While there is a change in leadership, there is no change in our collective resolve to bring about industry-leading career security, wages and working conditions," said Morse in a statement. Doug McKeen, United's senior vice president of labor relations, welcomed Morse to her new post, saying the nation's No. 3 carrier was willing "to work with labor leaders toward mutually beneficial outcomes." People who know Morse, a 24-year United veteran and a Boeing 777 captain based in Chicago, say she is a consummate insider with a detailed knowledge of the labor issues separating the union and management, and the political skills to broker deals. She has maintained a low profile within United despite holding senior leadership roles at the union for the past decade, serving as vice chairman and on its negotiating committee. "She's a big behind-scenes person," said a United pilot who asked not to be identified. "Now she's front and center. And she has someone who likes to be front and center as her vice chairman. It should be interesting to see how that plays out." Still, Morse's last-minute entry into the union election surprised many pilots. Kravit, another longtime union leader with an activist streak, also ran for the chairman post. He positioned himself through a Web site and videos as a candidate who would bring "positive change." http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-tue-united-morse-uauaoct14,0,1846 898.story?track=rss *************** NTSB to review crash of organ transplant plane WASHINGTON (AP) - The National Transportation Safety Board is set to determine the cause of a 2007 crash that killed six people when their plane slammed into Lake Michigan off Wisconsin's coast. The NTSB planned to discuss the crash on Wednesday. The twin-engine Cessna was carrying a four-member medical team, two pilots and a human organ for a transplant operation in Michigan when it took off from Milwaukee's General Mitchell International Airport. In a separate matter, the NTSB is also expected to discuss a 2007 pipe explosion that killed two and injured seven people in Mississippi. ***************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC