Flight Safety Information May 6, 2010 - No. 088 In This Issue Tu-154 crash inquiry questions Polish state Yak-40 crew US Airways 1549 Investigation Concludes With 34 Safety Recommendations Indian Pilots Test Positive For Alcohol... Investigators Closing In on Black Box of French Jet FAA Proposes Civil Penalty Against Atlas Air Florida Tech starts helicopter program... BEA yet to confirm possible refinement of AF447 search FAA orders Q400 wire harness inspections... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tu-154 crash inquiry questions Polish state Yak-40 crew Investigators attempting to explain the crash of the Polish presidential Tupolev Tu-154 at Smolensk are interviewing the crew of a Yakovlev Yak-40 from the same presidential squadron which successfully landed ahead of the ill-fated jet. Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee adds that a working group is still filtering the Tu-154's cockpit-voice recorder to eliminate extraneous noise and identify parts of the conversation record. The Polish prosecutor general's office states that the Yak-40 crew transmitted a warning by radio to the Tu-154 pilots regarding the worsening weather conditions at Smolensk. Another aircraft, an Ilyushin Il-76, had also conducted test approaches at Smolensk "a few tens of minutes" beforehand, the office adds, before departing. While the precise time difference has yet to be determined, the office says it was long enough to "exclude the hypothesis" that the Tu-154 was affected by wake turbulence. The prosecutor's office says the inquiry is studying personal data devices - such as mobile phones, cameras and laptop computers - retrieved from the wreckage to see whether they contain valuable information pertaining to the 10 April accident, and to check whether there was any risk of electronic interference with the Tu-154's systems. Although the aircraft was delayed in its departure from Warsaw, evidence indicates the Tu-154 was prepared properly and was in "good working order", and that the aircraft's fuel was in line with standards. The prosecutor's office also says there is "no reason to question" the modification work performed by the Samara-based Aviakor plant before the aircraft was returned to Poland last December. Both pilots knew the Russian language "sufficiently", it says, adding that the crew had undergone strict training. But the office says that it would be "premature", based on evidence so far received, to reject - or accept - the conclusion that the crew's actions contributed directly to the accident. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ US Airways 1549 Investigation Concludes With 34 Safety Recommendations Crew Actions And Safety Equipment Credited With Saving Passengers' Lives The NTSB has issues its probable cause report for US Airways flight 1549, in which a US Airways A320 jetliner bound for Charlotte was ditched into the Hudson River after striking a flock of Canada geese shortly after departing New York's LaGuardia Airport. All of the 150 passengers and five crewmembers survived. The NTSB determined that "the probable cause of this accident was the ingestion of large birds into each engine, which resulted in an almost total loss of thrust in both engines and the subsequent ditching on the Hudson River. Contributing to the fuselage damage and resulting unavailability of the aft slide/rafts were (1) the Federal Aviation Administration's approval of ditching certification without determining whether pilots could attain the ditching parameters without engine thrust, (2) the lack of industry flight crew training and guidance on ditching techniques, and (3) the captain's resulting difficulty maintaining his intended airspeed on final approach due to the task saturation resulting from the emergency situation." In addition to the decisions and actions of the flight crewmembers, overwater safety equipment likely saved lives that might have otherwise been lost to drowning, the NTSB said. The board met Tuesday to conclude its 15-month investigation into the January 15, 2009, accident. Though it wasn't required on the New York to Charlotte flight, the A320 was certified for Extended Over Water (EOW) operations, meaning it carried forward slide/rafts and other specialized safety gear. Investigators said that, had the airplane not been so equipped, many of the 64 occupants of those rafts would likely have been submerged in the 41-degree Hudson River, potentially causing a phenomenon called "cold shock," which can lead to drowning in as little as five minutes. Good visibility, calm waters, and proximity of passenger ferries, which rescued everyone on flight 1549 within 20 minutes, were other post-accident factors the Safety Board credited with the survival of all aboard the aircraft. "Once the birds and the airplane collided and the accident became inevitable, so many things went right," said NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman. "This is a great example of the professionalism of the crewmembers, air traffic controllers and emergency responders who all played a role in preserving the safety of everyone aboard." The report adopted by the Safety Board Tuesday validated the Captain's decision to ditch into the Hudson River saying that it "provided the highest probability that the accident would be survivable." Contributing to the survivability of the accident was the crew resource management between the captain and first officer, which allowed them to maintain control of the airplane, increasing the survivability of the impact with the water. In addressing the hazards that birds pose to aircraft of all sizes, the report noted that most bird strike events occur within 500 feet of the ground while flight 1549 struck geese at 2700 feet. Investigators said that this difference demonstrates that "bird strike hazards to commercial aircraft are not limited to any predictable scenario." Concluding that engine screens or changes to design would not be a viable solution to protect against bird ingestion events on commercial jetliners, the Board made it clear that the potential for significant damage from encounters with birds remains a challenge to the aviation community. As part of its extensive examination into the behavior of the passengers and crewmembers from the time the plane left the gate at LaGuardia to the moment the last person was rescued in the river, the Board noted that since most of the passengers indicated that they had not paid attention to the preflight oral safety briefing, "more creative and effective methods of conveying safety information to passengers" was needed. Survival factors investigators also found that passengers had significant problems in donning the life vests that were stowed under each seat. The Board made 35 safety recommendations on engine and aircraft certification standards, checklist design, flight crew training, airport wildlife mitigation, cabin safety equipment, and preflight passenger briefings. "I believe the safety recommendations that have come out of this investigation have an extraordinary origin -- a very serious accident in which everyone survived," said Chairman Hersman (pictured). "Even in an accident where everyone survives, there are lessons learned and areas that could use improvement. Our report today takes these lessons learned so that, if our recommendations are implemented, every passenger and crewmember may have the opportunity to benefit from the advances in safety." Among the other recommendations from the NTSB: Require manufacturers of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 25-certificated aircraft to develop a checklist and procedure for a dual-engine failure occurring at a low altitude. Require 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121, Part 135, and Part 91 Subpart K operators to include a dual-engine failure scenario occurring at a low altitude in initial and recurrent ground and simulator training designed to improve pilots' critical-thinking, task-shedding, decision-making, and workload-management skills. Require Airbus operators to amend the ditching portion of the Engine Dual Failure checklist and any other applicable checklists to include a step to select the ground proximity warning system and terrain alerts to OFF during the final descent. Require Airbus operators to expand the angle-of-attack-protection envelope limitations ground school training to inform pilots about alpha-protection mode features while in normal law that can affect the pitch response of the airplane. Require applicants for aircraft certification to demonstrate that their ditching parameters can be attained without engine power by pilots without the use of exceptional skill or strength. Require, on all new and in-service transport-category airplanes, that cabin safety equipment be stowed in locations that ensure that life rafts and/or slide/rafts remain accessible and that sufficient capacity is available for all occupants after a ditching. Require Airbus to redesign the frame 65 vertical beam on A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes to lessen the likelihood that it will intrude into the cabin during a ditching or gear-up landing and Airbus operators to incorporate these changes on their airplanes. The NTSB also recommends that the U.S. Department of Agriculture "(d)evelop and implement, in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration, innovative technologies that can be installed on aircraft that would reduce the likelihood of a bird strike." FMI: www.ntsb.gov/Publictn/2010/AAR1003.htm Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Indian Pilots Test Positive For Alcohol 39 Found To Have Been Drinking Before Flight Last Year 39 pilots and co-pilots in India tested positive for alcohol in pre-flight breathalizer screening last year, according to India's Civil Aviation Authority. "39 cases have been reported to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) from January 2009 to December 2009, where pilots or co-pilots were found to have consumed alcohol during pre-flight breath-analyzer test," said Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said in a written statement Tuesday. The Indian news service PTI reports that the flight crew members had been disciplined in accordance with that country's civil aviation regulations. The rules require that pilots who do not pass the breathalizer test before flight should be grounded for at least four weeks. Employers may also impose disciplinary action in such cases. The standard in India is 12 hours between alcohol consumption and flight. FMI: http://civilaviation.nic.in [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103367213167&s=6053&e=001goHFERvHDD1f0zyUQ8xkzN7FcUzKTLdwFOYz7P3A2AjEa4uI4iSzrxH9rRUKAk9J9xT1JNO5_DDYkwIsev-qdkjbUM1K11wU-vUNxZ3LDff24AZQZu1MKA==] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Investigators Closing In on Black Box of French Jet PARIS - French naval investigators using new, state-of-the-art software, believe they have pinpointed the location of at least one of the "black box" flight recorders of an Air France jet that crashed almost a year ago in the mid-Atlantic, French officials said Thursday. The investigators used the software to re-analyze sonar recordings that were made in the weeks following the crash, when the box's "pingers" were still sending out signals, said Stéphanie Prunier, a spokeswoman for the French Defense Ministry. Previous analyses of those recordings had failed to pick up those signals. "We don't know exactly where they are, but we have significantly narrowed the area" to within about 2 square miles, she said. Air France Flight 447 went down in heavy thunderstorms on June 1 during a flight to Paris from Rio de Janeiro. All 228 passengers and crew members were killed. Sea searches last year recovered more than 600 pieces of debris and 51 bodies from the ocean, but the black boxes and the bulk of the wreckage were not found. Without the flight recorders, investigators have said it might never be possible to determine the cause of the disaster. So far, the main source of information about what happened has been a series of messages sent automatically from the plane to a maintenance base, which indicated there was a malfunction of the plane's airspeed sensors. Speaking on French radio, Luc Chatel, a government spokesman, advised "extreme caution" about the news, saying that it remained uncertain whether the flight recorders could be retrieved from the rugged ocean floor, which at some points is almost three miles deep. If the searchers succeed, he said, "it would be obviously very good news for us, but particularly for the victims' families and for us all because we have been waiting for nearly a year to find out what really happened." Defense Ministry officials informed France's transport minister, Dominique Bussereau, of the discovery on Wednesday night, Ms. Prunier said. Mr. Bussereau then contacted Jean-Paul Troadec, the head of France's air accident investigation bureau. Martine del Bono, a spokeswoman for Mr. Troadec, said the bureau was studying the navy's analysis of the recordings in the hope of verifying their findings. "As in every investigation, we remain cautious," she said. "But we are crossing our fingers." Once the location is confirmed, work can begin to try and retrieve them from the ocean floor. A Norwegian search boat equipped with three remote-controlled submarines has been at sea since Monday, part of a final effort to find the wreckage of the plane, an Airbus A330. A previous three-week hunt of the 1,200-square-mile search zone ended last month without success. The new software was provided by the French company, Thales, which was also the manufacturer of the doomed plane's airspeed sensors. The sensors malfunctioned in the minutes preceding the accident and investigators believe that their failure probably played a role in the crash. So far, the French government, Air France and Airbus have spent nearly $40 million searching for the wreckage. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/07/world/europe/07crash.html [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103367213167&s=6053&e=001goHFERvHDD1oyYXtA1wiMIvEkHw_XjhZBPWhbRQSH7su30QfakqIxgmm_rHzxCtfb9Ac5lMbgf5Ps6yJZjyYo63KMh993HywY1axfcbGgulGxQPuzt9WoyROgU1yMGYiAXN4_oDQ18q6-9Nx2dZs0MxBqwfLPZ7Fl6YHOz_Hsjw=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA Proposes Civil Penalty Against Atlas Air By ANDY PASZTOR The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday proposed a $572,000 civil penalty against Atlas Air Inc. for allegedly haphazard aircraft maintenance, as government and industry officials disclosed the agency also has increased overall regulatory surveillance of the cargo carrier. The FAA on Wednesday alleged that the Purchase, N.Y., carrier used substandard procedures and repeatedly violated federal safety rules and industrywide maintenance standards when making repairs to two Boeing 747 jumbo jets about a year ago, Since then, these officials said, agency inspectors have stepped up oversight of the airline's maintenance practices as well as broader operational and safety issues. The agency alleged that Atlas improperly replaced a cockpit window on one aircraft, and then flew the plane 49 times in violation of federal airworthiness rules. Pilots reported that the improperly installed window suffered pressurization leaks during at least eight of those trips, according to the agency. According to the agency's enforcement letter to the company, mechanics "made about 10 log entries purporting to deal" with the leak but failed to resolve the problem. The second set of issues, which also occurred in the spring of 2009, concern an allegedly improper access door installed on an engine pylon of another Boeing 747. According to the FAA's enforcement letter, Atlas Air mechanics fabricated a replacement part from aluminum sheet metal that didn't meet safety standards, and then attached it to the pylon with aeronautical tape. On each of the next three flights, according to the FAA, the part flew off and was replaced in the same manner. In addition to using a substandard part, the FAA alleged that Atlas wasn't authorized to fly the aircraft with a missing access door on the pylon. An industry spokeswoman declined to comment on changes in FAA oversight. An Atlas spokesman said the company believes it hasn't violated any rules and "we intend to vigorously defend these allegations." The spokesman also said Atlas was "disappointed" that the FAA opted to make the enforcement case public instead of discussing the matter further. He added that the company "isn't aware of any special inspections" by the FAA. Atlas Air is a unit of Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc. The parent company manages and operates a fleet of 28 Boeing 747 jets, and expects to receive 12 of Boeing Co.'s next-generation 747-8 freighters starting in 2011. On Wednesday, the company announced first-quarter revenue of $295.2 million and record net income of $33.8 million, or $1.30 a diluted share, nearly 45% higher than $23.4 million in the year-ago quarter. The Pentagon is one of the airline's large customers, and U.S.military officials also have some oversight responsibility. During an earnings conference call Wednesday, Atlas said it sees military flights growing about 10% this year, partly reflecting the steady buildup of troops and armored trucks in Afghanistan. The airline has 30 days to appeal the proposed penalty. An Atlas jet created a sensation approaching Miami International Airport in February, when a 17-foot chunk of composite material, used to cover some flight-control surfaces on one of its wings, broke off and plummeted to the ground. It fell into a shopping-mall parking lot shortly before noon, but nobody was hurt. http://online.wsj.com/ [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103367213167&s=6053&e=001goHFERvHDD0E3yo81S32yGBzcjULMG-an4ggjv5j31c_voYDacZnDhlstSMlEReI3BcbXqNuOq1Ugl95d-XBUMgIeMPy5QyZ] [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103367213167&s=6053&e=001goHFERvHDD0E3yo81S32yGBzcjULMG-an4ggjv5j31c_voYDacZnDhlstSMlEReI3BcbXqNuOq1Ugl95d-XBUMgIeMPy5QyZ] Back to Top [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103367213167&s=6053&e=001goHFERvHDD0E3yo81S32yGBzcjULMG-an4ggjv5j31c_voYDacZnDhlstSMlEReI3BcbXqNuOq1Ugl95d-XBUMgIeMPy5QyZ] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Florida Tech starts helicopter program TITUSVILLE - Florida Tech students interested in becoming helicopter pilots will able to enroll in a combined program of university aviation education and helicopter flight training beginning in the fall. Melbourne-based Florida Tech and Titusville-based Bristow Academy announced plans this week to start a partnership to offer the program, which will provide students a four-year university degree and specialized helicopter pilot ratings as a commercial and instrument helicopter pilot. Florida Tech officials expect the program will be especially attractive to Florida Tech College of Aeronautics students who are military veterans who served in the period following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Those veterans could be eligible under the new Post-9-11 GI Bill for benefits to fully fund this combined program. College of Aeronautics associate professor Steve Cusick, a former Navy helicopter pilot and head of the college's new helicopter program, said the value of that benefit to veterans could be $200,000 for the four-year program. The helicopter training also will be available to Army ROTC students and to other Florida Tech students, regardless of veteran eligibility, Cusick said. The program initially is expected to begin with about 10 students, but Cusick said it could grow to 50 over time. "We're very excited about this," he said. "I think it's going to be a world-class program. We expect it to grow substantially." Graduates typically would get a degree in aviation management, with a helicopter concentration. Nick Mayhew, general manager of the Bristow Academy's Titusville operation, said he expects to hire an additional instructor at the academy for every four to five students who enroll. Helicopter flight training will take place at Space Coast Regional Airport in Titusville. Cusick said only a handful of universities currently have programs focusing on training helicopter pilots, among them, the University of North Dakota and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's campus in Prescott, Ariz. http://www.floridatoday.com/ [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103367213167&s=6053&e=001goHFERvHDD3xG574_xDsB8UtqNg8WanlL2bkN359yUvEtFGvcF8ou36hwC1yutE7UYRprXeusIOM5ddJmtteQ2W388--I7NMn-LOkdHM7Jq6Le0FXxZXng==] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ BEA yet to confirm possible refinement of AF447 search French investigation agency Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses (BEA) has yet to confirm indications that the search zone for the wreckage of an Air France Airbus A330 has been substantially refined. The BEA says it is aware of reports, citing French defence ministry officials, suggesting that the zone could be narrowed to 25km² following new analysis of signals detected last year by a nuclear submarine, the Emeraude, recruited to search for flight AF447. This re-interpretation of the signals could mean the search area, which has encompassed over 3,000km², could be reduced to a region measuring 5km by 5km. But the BEA, which has been backing an extended search for the flight recorders north of AF447's last known position over the South Atlantic, has yet to confirm the information formally. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA orders Q400 wire harness inspections Bombardier says US operators of Q400 aircraft had been "proactive" in upgrading their fleets even before the US FAA issued an airworthiness directive (AD) on the turboprop aircraft. The FAA AD issued last week is aimed at preventing hazardous stalling when an aircraft is operating under icing conditions. In October 2009, the Canadian manufacturer issued a service bulletin to Q400 operators advising them to inspect and replace as needed AOA sensors (Angle of Attack vanes). Transport Canada issued an airworthiness directive in February mandating inspection and replacements where required. The FAA investigation revealed that wire harnesses located along the wings could chafe, leading to overheating and an AC generator failure. The AC generators provide power to the anti-icing heaters. If the generators fail, it could cause loss of heat to both engine inlets which in turn could lead to loss of power in both engines during icing conditions. This can be fixed by replacing or repairing chafed or damaged wiring or Teflon tubing. "There have not been any incidents of AOA (Angle of Attack Vanes) sensors failing on the Q400," according to Bombardier. "Even so Bombardier responded quickly and effectively to support the fleet and the safety and reliability of the fleet." The Q400 came under the microscope following a fatal Colgan Air crash last year during icing conditions. Since then, FAA and industry officials have called from more training to ensure that pilots can operate safely in adverse weather conditions. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC