Flight Safety Information May 17, 2010 - No. 096 In This Issue First non-Boeing pilots fly 787 Dreamliner Antonov 28 Accident (Suriname)... Crash investigators search for clues in Libya Antonov 24 Accident (Afghanistan)... Afghan plane disappears with 44 aboard Police probe bomb scare on Vancouver-bound airliner United Airlines B757 - small fire in cockpit China, S. Korea to Hold Meeting on Aviation Safety Former NTSB chief dies in hometown in Arkansas ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ First non-Boeing pilots fly 787 Dreamliner Capt. Mike Carriker (left), Boeing 787 chief test pilot, ANA Capt. Masayuki Ishii (center) and ANA Capt. Masami Tsukamoto exiting Boeing's first flight-test 787 Dreamliner airplane after a flight on Thursday, May 13, 2010. (Boeing) Two pilots from 787 Dreamliner launch customer All Nippon Airways Wednesday became the first non-Boeing pilots to fly the composite airliner. ANA pilots Masayuki Ishii, director of 787 pre-operations planning, and Capt. Masami Tsukamoto, manager of 787 pre-operations pilots, took the controls of Boeing's first test-flight 787 during the two-hour-and-40-minute flight over Washington state, Boeing said. "It was fantastic and an incredible experience," Ishii said in a news release. "ANA passengers are in for an incredible experience when they fly on the 787." "The flight was fantastic," Tsukamoto said. "I've been waiting for this day since we made the launch order, and today my dream came true." Both pilots performed multiple takeoffs and landings, along with other maneuvers that allowed them to feel the airplane's characteristics, Boeing said. It conducted the flight under a special airworthiness certificate from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. Boeing expects pilots such as Ishii and Tsukamoto, who are rated on the 777, to be able to become qualified as 787 pilots in as few as five days of training. Boeing pilots Mike Carriker, Boeing's 787 chief test pilot, and Christine Walsh, and Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 program, also were on board. "The flight was a customer demonstration for our launch customer's lead pilots to evaluate the 787," Fancher said in the news release. "We are extremely proud to have ANA on the flight, and have the opportunity to show what a great airplane the men and women of Boeing have created." Boeing is scheduled to deliver the first 787 to ANA in the fourth quarter of this year. http://blog.seattlepi.com/aerospace/archives/205838.asp [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103412640420&s=6053&e=001PKkn3FXp15Mrxf4T24A2ojltCtEN4sT6XzJQU4vWCMpUid6S4ihisN0LZ2HAxLhxMW5JjCJPfdJf70x1acuLly76I3EtR75wd2l0sRfHJi1bs7V6-NR98gOiRGS0ni-nJj56SJPylafudG_mTLAyne_hVDkR404O] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Antonov 28 Accident (Suriname) Status: Preliminary Date: 15 MAY 2010 Time: ca 15:10 Type: Antonov 28 Operator: Blue Wing Airlines Registration: C/n / msn: First flight: 1990 Crew: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 Passengers: Fatalities: 6 / Occupants: 6 Total: Fatalities: 8 / Occupants: 8 Airplane damage: Written off Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: 5 km (3.1 mls) NE of Poeketi (Suriname) Phase: En route (ENR) Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Godo Holo Airstrip (SMGH), Suriname Destination airport: Paramaribo-Zorg en Hoop Airport (ORG/SMZO), Suriname Narrative: An Antonov 28 passenger plane, operated by Blue Wing Airlines, crashed in a wooded area of eastern Suriname. The airplane, had left Godo Holo Airstrip on a domestic passenger flight to Paramaribo-Zorg en Hoop Airport (ORG). There were two crew members and six passengers on board. Media reports indicate that all eight on board were killed in the accident. www.aviation-safety.net [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103412640420&s=6053&e=001PKkn3FXp15MnozoE4NCorHeDUynsPcPkC4uEWkmsqydzA6ywRur0z7oDqSRGSMq2M5raE2mOrk2ELuuHieL-OI4fPHqqqRz1yzwYdmRWMjVLehZw0QBkB2sZoK7MoFj_] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Crash investigators search for clues in Libya TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) - Dutch and American crash investigators helped search for clues Sunday in the debris field of the airliner that slammed into the desert short of an airport runway in Libya's capital last week. Libyan authorities, meanwhile, determined that one of those found dead among the shattered wreckage was not a passenger but a Libyan airport worker who responded to the scene and died of a heart attack. The new information, however, did not alter the official casualty count from Wednesday's crash. All but one of the 104 people on board the flight from South Africa to the Libyan capital died. The sole survivor, 9-year-old Ruben van Assouw of the Netherlands, returned home Saturday without his parents and 11-year-old brother, who perished in the disaster. Most of those on board the Afriqiyah Airways jetliner were Dutch tourists. Lead Dutch investigator Daan Noort said Sunday that the difficult work of identifying bodies has started after relatives supplied DNA samples and other information to aid the process. He said the crash left some of the victims' bodies in pieces. "Some are whole bodies. Some are just parts," Noort said. Abdul-Rahman al-Amin, the airport worker who responded to the crash and collapsed amid the wreckage, was diabetic and had high blood pressure, said his cousin Abdul-Razzaq Bu Abdullah. He was taken to a hospital but could not be revived. Experts from France and South Africa also helping to determine the cause of the crash. The U.S. team includes officials from the National Transportation Safety Board, technical advisers from the Federal Aviation Administration and representatives of U.S. manufacturer General Electric, which made the plane's engines. The plane's black boxes - the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder - were recovered intact and have been sent to Paris for review. Naji Dhou, the head of the Libyan committee investigating the crash, told reporters Saturday that preliminary results indicate the plane had diverted about 4 degrees from the runway and landed about 400 yards in front of it. He said debris from the crash was scattered over a more than 8,000-square-foot (800-square-meter) area, but investigators had only covered a small fraction of that so far. He said there was no explosion until the plane hit the ground. Libya has ruled out terrorism as a possible cause of the crash, although the investigation is still under way. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Antonov 24 Accident (Afghanistan) Date: 17-MAY-2010 Time: ca 09:00 Type: Antonov 24 Operator: Pamir Airways Registration: C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: / Occupants: 43 Airplane damage: mis Location: Salang Pass - Afghanistan Phase: En route Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Kunduz Destination airport: Kabul Narrative: Missing on a flight from Kunduz to Kabul. Preliminary reports indicate that the plane carried 38 passengers and a crew of either three or five. www.aviation-safety.net [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103412640420&s=6053&e=001PKkn3FXp15MnozoE4NCorHeDUynsPcPkC4uEWkmsqydzA6ywRur0z7oDqSRGSMq2M5raE2mOrk2ELuuHieL-OI4fPHqqqRz1yzwYdmRWMjVLehZw0QBkB2sZoK7MoFj_] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Afghan plane disappears with 44 aboard (CNN) A plane disappeared in Afghanistan on Monday with 38 passengers and six crew aboard, a government official told CNN. The plane was en route from Kunduz to Kabul, Raz Mohammad Alami of theMinistry of Transport and Civil Aviation said. There were reports of a huge sound in the Salang Pass. The minister of transport and aviation and his deputy are en route there to investigate. [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103412640420&s=6053&e=001PKkn3FXp15Oge1TmJ7-72WDm6CTN-CohJjplJYMp9PdS9ZJmykmmMP0GWhgGZTWyv-_ntJbT8Q9FDDtMaptKx2Dz3kq8WjDo] Back to Top [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103412640420&s=6053&e=001PKkn3FXp15Oge1TmJ7-72WDm6CTN-CohJjplJYMp9PdS9ZJmykmmMP0GWhgGZTWyv-_ntJbT8Q9FDDtMaptKx2Dz3kq8WjDo] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Police probe bomb scare on Vancouver-bound airliner VANCOUVER, Canada (AFP)- Federal Canadian police investigated Sunday a "bomb hoax" that forced a Cathay Pacific airliner to be escorted into Vancouver airport by two fighter jets. The CF-18 Hornets were scrambled Saturday by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to intercept the Airbus A340 with 283 passengers and 14 crew on board after a threat was called in to authorities. The threat turned out to be a false alarm and Flight 838 landed safely at Vancouver International Airport after a dramatic few hours at the end of a long-haul journey from Hong Kong. Cathay Pacific said the "anonymous bomb threat" actually involved the return flight of the same aircraft to Hong Kong. Two-hundred and seventy-two passengers were booked on the return flight. Both flights "involved the same A340 aircraft," said the airline, describing the incident as a "bomb hoax." NORAD spokeswoman Holly Apostoliuk told AFP the fighter jets were scrambled "after information was received about a potential threat associated with the aircraft. "As a precaution NORAD fighters escorted the aircraft until it landed safely in Vancouver at about 1:40 pm Saturday," she said. The airliner was then "parked in a remote secure area of the airport for a thorough security search and further screening of the baggage on board," said Cathay Pacific in a statement, while passengers were taken off the flight. Local media, citing unnamed sources, said the threat was called in from a Vancouver pay phone, and may have been a prank. Police would not comment on the reports. The aircraft has since been cleared by authorities to depart for Hong Kong. "All necessary screening procedures were conducted," Corporal Sherrdean Turley, a spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, told reporters. "And there was no threat aboard the aircraft." "There was nothing of any concern on the plane, but when a bomb threat is received, we take that very seriously and our investigation will be continuing." Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Incident: United Airlines B752 near Washington on May 16th 2010, small fire in cockpit A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N510UA performing flight UA-27 from New York JFK,NY to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 105 passengers and 7 crew, was enroute at FL360 about 12nm southwest of Harrisburg,PA and 72nm northnortheast of Washington Dulles approximately 30 minutes into the flight, when the crew reported a small fire in the cockpit, which was quickly contained. The crew decided to divert to Washington Dulles, where the airplane landed safely 23 minutes later. The FAA reported, that a small fire was extinguished in the cockpit in flight. The landing runway was closed for 40 minutes while the airplane was being inspected. An investigation is under way. Passengers said, they noticed an electrical smell in the cabin, then flight attendants brought fire extinguishers from the rear of the airplane to the cockpit. http://avherald.com/h?article=42b9ab97&opt=0 Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ China, S. Korea to Hold Meeting on Aviation Safety South Korea's transport ministry said Monday that its officials will visit China this week to attend a bilateral meeting on aviation safety and cooperation as air traffic continues to rise between the two countries. The working-level meeting will start on Wednesday for two days in Beijing, where officials are expected to seek ways to cooperate in aviation safety, increase air traffic routes, and enhance traffic control measures, the Ministry of Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs said in a statement. In March, South Korea and China agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation in aviation safety and flight control efficiency measures by holding annual working-level talks and workshops, according to the ministry. http://english.cri.cn/6909/2010/05/17/45s570221.htm [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103412640420&s=6053&e=001PKkn3FXp15OUlVLJu9SC5vTLQvkM5blEp6w5Rjr047245HI91ULXSBBLaTROHI-Intu0d-XJIgHqmu3bFhmdQQCIpCx1EdV47RdQqWUrYK6Bd78Iv1htxRBnK6Cv3fpiEI-oLs4_0KcgVAWupcYDiW0Vg6Jng8ZI] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Former NTSB chief dies in hometown in Arkansas CLINTON, Ark.(AP) - Jim Burnett, the chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board for 10 years, has died at the age of 62 in his hometown of Clinton, Ark. Burnett was named to the NTSB in 1981 by then-President Ronald Reagan and served a full 10-year term as chairman, leaving the board in 1991. Bobby Ray Bradford, manager of Roller-McNutt Funeral Home at Clinton, said Burnett died Saturday at Ozark Health Nursing Center of complications from diabetes. Burnett was active in Republican Party affairs and had been a GOP national committeeman from Arkansas since 2004. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC