31 DEC 2009 _______________________________________ *US Airways Jet Blows Tire, Lands Safely in Texas *Passenger jet makes emergency landing in Bermuda *Maintenance alert triggers JetBlue diversion to Bermuda *Inquiry opens into Wizz A320 overrun at snowy Kiev *Six die and pilot fighting for life after PNG plane crash *New Seats May Have Saved Lives in Jamaica Crash *El Al, Air France jets nearly collided over Serbia: inquiry *NTSB Joins Bahamian Falcon 20 Investigation *Pilots Union Faults Feds for Lack of Terror Alert *CIA defends its intelligence sharing on attempted airplane bomber *Civil suits mounting in deadly helicopter crash that killed 8 including Jonesville man *IATA's chief stresses need for improved security **************************************** US Airways Jet Blows Tire, Lands Safely in Texas The plane landed safely after blowing a tire out on take off. (News 4 WOAI) US Airways regional jet lands safely in San Antonio after blowing a tire during takeoff Authorities say a US Airways regional jet has landed safely at San Antonio International Airport after blowing a tire during takeoff and circling for an hour to burn off fuel. There were no reported injuries to any of the 87 people onboard the Wednesday afternoon flight. U.S. Airways spokeswoman Valerie Wunder says a nose wheel blew on the Mesa Air express flight to Phoenix and the crew decided to return to San Antonio as a precaution. Mesa Air operates regional flights for U.S. Airways and other large carriers. Emergency personnel and equipment rushed to the aircraft after it came to a stop. The plane was then towed to a gate at the terminal and passengers were put on other flights. http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=9450949 ************** Passenger jet makes emergency landing in Bermuda jetblue_a320_f-wwid_ham_090217 A JetBlue Airways passenger jet on a flight from Aruba to Boston made a precautionary emergency landing in Bermuda on Tuesday after a cockpit light indicated possible smoke in a rear cargo bin, an airline spokesperson said yesterday. Flight 774 from Aruba to Boston, an Airbus A320 carrying 63 passengers, diverted to the Atlantic island as a precaution due to the "maintenance issue," JetBlue spokesperson Alison Croyle said in a statement sent to Reuters. "An indication light in the cockpit came on suggestive of possible smoke in the aft cargo bin," Croyle said. She denied an earlier report by Bermuda's Royal Gazette newspaper, which quoted a local Bermuda fire service officer as saying the pilot of the plane had told the control tower smoke was detected in the cockpit coming from the flight controls. "There was not smoke in the cockpit at any time," Croyle said. She added that after the plane landed safely, a maintenance inspection cleared the aircraft and it later continued on its flight to Boston. The Royal Gazette said the airport deployed fire trucks and an ambulance for the landing. http://www.theage.com.au/travel/travel-news/passenger-jet-makes-emergency-la nding-in-bermuda-20091231-lkdt.html ***************** Maintenance alert triggers JetBlue diversion to Bermuda An Airbus A320 operated by JetBlue Airways diverted to LF Wade International airport in Bermuda on 29 December due to a maintenance issue. The aircraft was on a scheduled flight from Aruba to Boston. JetBlue says pilots diverted to Bermuda after they received an indication of possible smoke in the aft cargo compartment. The aircraft remained in Bermuda for about two hours while maintenance inspected and cleared the aircraft. JetBlue says 63 passengers were onboard the Airbus narrowbody. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** Inquiry opens into Wizz A320 overrun at snowy Kiev http://blog.kievukraine.info/uploaded_images/5950-785770.jpg Ukrainian investigators have opened an inquiry into a runway overrun at Kiev involving a Wizz Air Airbus A320. The aircraft, operating flight WU930 from Venice Treviso, slid off the runway during landing at 23:37 yesterday, says the carrier. None of those on board was injured, and occupants disembarked via stairs. The Ukrainian ministry of transport says the twin-jet was carrying 154 passengers and six crew. It indicates that the aircraft's engines suffered fan damage. Wizz Air says its Ukrainian division has sent an investigation team to assist the inquiry and adds: "The company has informed the Ukrainian civil aviation authority and will fully co-operate in investigating the causes of the incident." Kiev Borispol Airport has been suffering from heavy snow which has disrupted operations. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news ************* Six die and pilot fighting for life after PNG plane crash SIX people, including two children, are dead and an Australian pilot is fighting for his life in hospital after their Cessna light plane crashed in Papua New Guinea. Australian pilot Richard Leahy, who runs Kiunga Aviation, was flying the plane on Wednesday when the engine caught fire above mountainous terrain of Morobe Province, on PNG's northwest coast. Mr Leahy, 68, survived the crash but is fighting for his life in a Brisbane hospital, where he is being treated for severe burns. According to the Pacific Wrecks website, Mr Leahy was born in Sydney but lives in Lae, not far from the crash site. The plane had departed from Nadzab and was flying to the Baindoang airstrip when it crashed. Nicholas Leahy, Richard's son, told AAP his father had reported "a loss of all pressure and total engine failure". "He's in the trauma ward of the Royal Brisbane Hospital," Nicholas said. "He's got third degree burns to 47 per cent of his body and he's got a fracture in his spine." The passengers were all PNG citizens. There were four adults and two children. The deadly crash comes five months after the Airline PNG Twin Otter tragedy in the Kokoda on August 11 that claimed 13 lives, including nine Australians on their way to trek the Kokoda Track. Morobe provincial police commander Peter Guinness, police and medical officers were flown to the accident site yesterday to retrieve the remains and wreckage, The National newspaper reported. "The plane was completely shattered and we could not do much." No immediate cause for the crash has been offered because conditions in the area were considered fine. "We will wait for the Civil Aviation Authority to do their investigation," he said. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/six-die-and-pilot-fighting-for-life-after-p ng-plane-crash/story-e6frf7jo-1225814987793?from=public_rss ****** Date: 30-DEC-2009 Time: ~6:15am Type: Cessna A185E Skywagon Operator: Kiunga Aviation Registration: P2-MJL C/n / msn: 18501947 Fatalities: Fatalities: 6 / Occupants: 7 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: Sarawaget mountain ranges, Morobe province - Papua New Guinea Phase: En route Nature: Passenger Departure airport: Lae Nadzab Airport - AYNZ Destination airport: Baindoang Airstrip Narrative: After an engine fire the Cessna crashed in mountainous terrain. Six occupants were killed and the pilot sustained serious injuries. New Seats May Have Saved Lives in Jamaica Crash (aviation-safety.net) ******************** New Seats May Have Saved Lives in Jamaica Crash http://media.nbcdfw.com/images/410*307/122309AA-Jamaica-Crash.jpg Investigators say the seats on an American Airlines flight that crashed after landing in Kingston, Jamaica, last week may be one reason why everyone got out alive. The plane skidded off the end of a runway, jumped a fence, crashed onto a beach and broke into three pieces. But all 154 people on board survived. The American Airlines 737-800 was only 8 years old, and it was equipped with newer 16G seats, which are designed to withstand forces up to 16 times the force of gravity in a crash. "That may have contributed to the 100-percent survivability factor," said Col. Oscar Derby, Jamaica's director general of Civil Aviation. Derby said there are no indications that any of the seats collapsed or broke loose from the floor. Dallas-based aviation safety consultant Denny Kelly said seat failures are a leading cause of injuries and deaths in airplane crashes. "They collapse, and then people tumble forward, and they can hit their head on the seat in front of them," Kelly said. This would not the first time 16G seats helped passengers live through a crash. Investigators believe they helped prevent deaths in the crash of Air France Flight 358 in Toronto in 2005. The Federal Aviation Administration mandated the new 16G seats on all new airplanes starting this fall. Airlines are not required to retrofit older planes. But many airlines have upgraded the seats on their own because the newer seats are lighter, which saves fuel. And many seat manufacturers have already changed their production lines to accommodate the FAA requirements for newer aircraft. A spokesperson for the Air Transport Association, an airline industry trade group, said its survey of U.S. airlines recently showed that more than 90 percent of seats on commercial planes used for domestic flights are now 16G seats. http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/business/New-Seats-May-Have-Saved-Lives-in-AA331- Crash-80371392.html **************** El Al, Air France jets nearly collided over Serbia: inquiry An El Al jet nearly collided with an Air France plane over Belgrade earlier this week following an error by the French airliner's crew, Serbia's civil aviation authority said Wednesday. An investigation of the incident on Monday had shown the Air France Airbus 318 and the Israeli carrier's Boeing 777 missed came within 300 meters (328 yards) of each other after the French crew failed to observe instructions given by air traffic control, Serbia's Directorate for Civil Aviation said. "The French jet crew correctly repeated instructions to descend the airliner to 35,000 feet but, due to still unknown reasons, continued to descend the plane below the requested and approved altitude" above Belgrade, said a statement by the directorate carried by the Beta news agency. It added that a possible collision was by "timely intervention by an air traffic controller" and the French crew halted their descent. The El Al flight was carrying 120 passengers en route from Tel Aviv to New York, while the Air France plan was flying from Paris to Sofia. http://news.malaysia.msn.com/business/article.aspx?cp-documentid=3769633 **************** NTSB Joins Bahamian Falcon 20 Investigation Dassault Falcon (Mystere) 20D aircraft picture The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) yesterday said it had sent a representative to assist Bahamian authorities investigating the still-mysterious crash of a U.S.-registered Falcon 20D on Dec. 17. N28RK, which was owned by Wells Fargo and operated by FL Aviation group, a charter outfit in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., had reportedly departed the Dominican Republic for Ft. Lauderdale Executive Airport and was flying at FL280 over Bahamian territory when it disappeared from radar. A call to FL Aviation yesterday produced no information about the aircraft, crew or flight. Meanwhile, FlightAware tracking, along with posted accounts on accident bulletin boards indicate that the Falcon was operating with a crew of two and making 360 knots when it came to grief. The airplane impacted about 12 miles east of Matthew Town in Great Inagua in the Bahamas. Bulletin boards posted by discussion groups cite some reports of the airplane descending in a fireball, and at least one posting by an airline pilot stated that he had witnessed the event. It is believed that law enforcement authorities are also interested in details surrounding the accident flight. Ralph Hicks is the U.S. accredited representative assigned to the Bahamian investigation. The Bahamians are expected to release any official information related to the accident. http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=busav&id=ne ws/BAHAM123009.xml&headline=NTSB%20Joins%20Bahamian%20Falcon%2020%20Investig ation ***************** Pilots Union Faults Feds for Lack of Terror Alert The pilots union at American Airlines says federal officials failed to notify crews on planes in the United States about the attempted terror attack aboard a Northwest jet on Christmas Day. The Allied Pilots Association said Wednesday it would lobby Congress to require that federal officials notify all flights in the air - no matter where the flights started - as soon as they learn of a possible attack on another plane. Federal officials said they limited immediate notification of the Dec. 25 bombing attempt to crews on U.S.-bound flights from Europe because they were considered to face the greatest danger. The Transportation Security Administration said after a young Nigerian man tried to explode a device on a Northwest jet from Amsterdam to Detroit, it "immediately" arranged a conference call with the Federal Aviation Administration and other agencies. "Based on intelligence information at that time, a strategic, risk-based decision was made to notify all 128 flights inbound from Europe," said TSA spokeswoman Sterling Payne. The American Airlines pilots union said the TSA was slow to react to the Detroit incident and should have immediately passed information about it to all airborne flights. "They hadn't determined at that point if this was a sole actor or part of a broader plot," said Mike Karn, an American pilot and the union's security chairman. Karn said if pilots of planes everywhere had known of the attempt on another jet, they could have imposed security measures such as limiting passengers' movement and preventing them from congregating near the cockpit or lavatories. He said it was illogical to limit immediate notification to planes on certain routes. The four jetliners, including two American Airlines aircraft, that were seized by hijackers during the September 2001 terror attacks were flying within the United States. In 1995, authorities stopped a plan by terrorists to blow up 12 airliners flying from Asia to the U.S. http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=9451418 ***************** CIA defends its intelligence sharing on attempted airplane bomber WASHINGTON, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The Central Intelligence Agency Wednesday defended its effort to share intelligence on a failed plot of a Nigerian to bomb a U.S. airline flight. CIA spokesman Paul Gimigliano told reporters that the agency learned of Abdulmutallab's possible radical thoughts and activities from his father in November who came to the U.S. embassy in Nigeria and sought help to find his son. After receiving the information, the CIA worked with the embassy to "ensure he was in the government's terrorist database --including mention of his possible extremist connections in Yemen," and forward his background to the National Counterterrorism Center, which is in charge of compiling and integrating intelligence from various U.S. agencies, said Gimigliano. "This agency, like others in our government, is reviewing all data to which it had access -- not just what we ourselves may have collected -- to determine if more could have been done to stop Abdulmutallab," he added. Despite warning in advance, the suspect managed to obtain a visa to the U.S. and got aboard a Delta/Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam, the Netherlands, to Detroit, Michigan, on Dec. 25,with an explosive device attached to his body. The failed bombing plot shocked the U.S. that has spent 40 billion U.S. dollars to upgrade aviation security since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks when three U.S. international flights were hijacked and exploded. President Barack Obama has ordered reviews in the security screening procedure at airports and in the terrorist watch list that includes names of persons who are suspected of having links with terrorist groups. He also conceded that a mix of human and systematic failure has contributed to this potential catastrophic incident, which he considered "totally unacceptable." http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-12/31/content_12731959.htm **************** Civil suits mounting in deadly helicopter crash that killed 8 including Jonesville man HOUMA, La. - The relatives of two dead oilfield workers have filed suit in state court against a helicopter transport company and two other businesses, blaming them for a nearly year-old crash that killed eight people. The relatives of Randy Tarpley, of Jonesville, and Joey Rivero, of Bridge City, have filed suit. Tarpley and Rivero, along with Allen Boudreaux, of Ama, Andrew Moricio and Ezequiel Cantu of Morgan City, Charles W. Nelson of Pensacola, Fla., Thomas E. Ballenger of Eufaula, Ala. and Vyarl W. Martin of Hurst, Texas, were killed when their offshore oil platform-bound helicopter crashed in a marsh. The helicopter's owner, PHI Inc., which flies oilfield workers offshore, is named as a defendant along with the manufacturer of the aircraft, Sikorsky, and the maker of the windshield, Aeronautical Accessories. Both suits allege a defective windshield caused the helicopter to crash in a remote Terrebonne Parish marsh Jan. 4. One also claims the aircraft struck a bird, contributing to the crash. The two pilots and six workers on board were killed. A lone survivor was critically injured. According to The Courier, the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation into the crash continues. http://www.thetowntalk.com/article/20091230/NEWS01/91230007 *************** IATA's chief stresses need for improved security IATA is encouraging security officials to keep increased pat-downs in security checks temporary, and has alerted US government officials that a complete overhaul of security management is necessary. In the first unified industry response to the 25 December attempt by a Nigerian national to destroy a Delta Air Lines Airbus A330 with explosives, IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani told the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that the air transport system "cannot support 100% pat-down searches over the long term". Bisignani says the failed attempt in part emphasised the need for effective cooperation and information sharing among intelligence agencies. During a 29 December update on the government's examination of the thwarted attempt, US President Barack Obama acknowledged wide reports that the suspect's father warned US officials about his son's extremist views. "It now appears that weeks ago this information was passed to a component of our intelligence community, but was not effectively distributed so as to get the suspect's name on a no-fly list," says Obama. "This preliminary information that has surfaced in the last 24 hours raises some serious concerns." Bisignani stresses to DHS that "instead of looking for bad things-nail clippers and rogue bottles of shampoo-security systems need to focus on finding bad people. Adding new hardware to an old system will not deliver the results we need". The head of IATA says it is time for governments to invest in processes to develop check points that combine the best screening technology and intelligence gathering. "ICAO and governments must work together to make such a process a reality with global harmonization and data-sharing," says Bisignani. President Obama, meanwhile, says he expects to receive preliminary findings from a comprehensive review he ordered of US security oversight on 31 December. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC