Flight Safety Information May 19, 2010 - No. 098 In This Issue Experts: passengers in Polish cockpit before crash Airport safety recommendations after Indonesian B737 runway excursion Future pilots may not be up to snuff, NTSB warned FAA SAFO Focuses On Training For Icing Situations Fog hampers Afghan crash search Air France safety under scrutiny ahead of results FAA chief says air traffic upgrades are on their way Gulf Aviation Academy receives first global accreditation Disruptive passengers force Minneapolis-bound flight to return to Japan The Royal Aeronautical Society is pleased to announce a call for papers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Experts: passengers in Polish cockpit before crash MOSCOW (AP) - Officials investigating the plane crash that killed Poland's president and 95 others last month say the crew did not have regular training and that passengers were in the cockpit before the crash. There was no conclusion given about the cause of the crash on approach to the Russian city of Smolensk. Polish investigation envoy Edmund Klich said it was unclear whether the non-crew voices heard in recordings influenced the crew to land despite warnings of bad conditions and poor visibility. At a Wednesday news conference reporting preliminary investigation results, Russian Interstate Aviation Committee official Alexei Morozov said the crew was formed only a few days before the flight and had not had regular training on how to handle special flight situations. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Airport safety recommendations after Indonesian B737 runway excursion accident The Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC) issued their preliminary report regarding the runway excursion accident involving a Boeing 737. Seven safety recommendations were issued addressing various aspects of airport safety. On April 13, 2010 a Boeing 737-322 passenger plane, registered PK-MDE, sustained substantial damage in a runway excursion accident at Manokwari-Rendani Airport (MKW/WASR), Indonesia. All 103 passengers and seven crew members survived but ten sustained serious injuries. Merpati Flight MNA836 operated on a scheduled flight from Sorong-Dominique Edward Osok Airport (SOQ/WAXX). Departure was delayed for almost three hours due to heavy rain over Manokwari. On approach Rendani Radio informed the crew that the weather was continuous slight rain, visibility 3 kilometers, cloud overcast with cumulus-stratocumulus at 1,400 feet, temperature 24 degrees Celsius, QNH 1012 hectopascals. At 10:54 the crew reported that they were on final for runway 35. The controller informed them that the wind was calm, runway condition was wet and clear. The crew read back the wind condition and that the runway was clear, but did not mention the wet runway condition. The aircraft was observed to make a normal touchdown on the runway, about 120 meters from the approach end of runway 35. Witnesses on the ground and on board reported that engine reverser sound was not heard during landing roll. During the landing roll, the aircraft veered to the left about 140 meters from the end of runway 35, then overran the departure end of runway 35. It came to a stop 205 meters beyond the end of the runway in a narrow river; the Rendani River. The airport rescue and fire fighting unit was immediately deployed to assist the post-crash evacuation. Due to the steep terrain 155 meters from the end of runway 35, the rescuers had to turn back and use the airport's main road to reach the aircraft. The accident site was in an area of shallow muddy water surrounded by mangrove vegetation. Seven safety recommendations were issued: 1) The Directorate General Civil of Aviation (DGCA) should ensure that Merpati Nusantara Airlines Operational Specifications and other technical and operational safety requirements are met. 2) DGCA should urgently review the Rendani Airport, Manokwari runway complex, to ensure that the runway end safety areas (RESA) meet the dimension Standards prescribed in ICAO Annex 14. 3) DGCA should urgently review all airports involving Part 121 and 135 operations, to ensure that the runway end safety areas (RESA) meet the dimension Standards prescribed in ICAO Annex 14. 4) DGCA should urgently ensure that Indonesian airports equipped with visual approach slope guidance systems, maintain the equipment to a serviceable standard. 5) DGCA should review the procedures and equipment used by airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Services to ensure that they a) meet the minimum requirements, including timeliness, specified in ICAO Annex 14; and b) meet the requirements to cover the area up to 5 NM (8 Km) from the airport perimeter. 6) Merpati should review its technical and operational safety requirements to ensure they are implemented. 7) Merpati should review equipment used by airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Services at airports in its network, to ensure that they meet the minimum requirements for Boeing 737 aircraft. www.aviation-safety.net [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103418286146&s=6053&e=001doS8JBRbYurEJ-SU-3_NExzv31fd7PD-cLh2H7RvZCtg9AdFaVYgPXOTHNvzEStcMsMGdSs_bR5gW7TwliA6OdZk9baEu4nZy8P9_NO_UsC6IrDnvRjJ_GHpEHbNwky1] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Future pilots may not be up to snuff, NTSB warned WASHINGTON (AP) - There are signs that future airline pilots will be less experienced, less ethical and in short supply, a panel of experts told an aviation safety forum on Tuesday. While there are more pilots than there are airline jobs today, the reverse is likely to be true as airlines recover from the economic recession and begin hiring again, experts on pilot hiring and screening told the National Transportation Safety Board. The coming shortage may likely fall heaviest on regional airlines, who generally employ less-experienced pilots at lower salaries, they said. There are about 54,000 pilots working for major airlines, nearly 19,000 regional airline pilots and about 2,500 qualified pilots available for hire in the U.S. today, said aviation consultant Judy Tarver, a former pilot recruiter for American Airlines. She estimated that airlines will need to hire about 42,090 pilots over the next decade, due to retirements and anticipated industry growth. Panel members said there are far fewer military pilots leaving for jobs with airlines. Fewer college students say they want careers in aviation because they see it as an economic dead end, and airlines are increasingly having to compete with corporations for pilots. The comments came as the safety board began a three-day forum on how to get more pilots and air traffic controllers to consistently strive for a high-level of professionalism. The impetus for the forum is a series of high-profile incidents over the past year in which the conduct and judgment of pilots and controllers have been called into question, including the crash of a regional airliner near Buffalo, N.Y., that killed 50 people. The safety board said the crash occurred after the plane stalled because the pilot pulled back, instead of pushing forward, on a key piece of safety equipment. But they also cited a series of errors and unprofessional conduct by the pilot and first officer leading up to the accident. Paul Rice, a pilot and spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association, said he was skeptical that a willingness to break rules and flout authority among younger pilots is any different than past generations of young pilots. However, he said he shared the panel's concern that there will be a shortage of experienced pilots at regional airlines, which account for half of all domestic flights and are the only scheduled air service to about 400 communities. Roger Cohen, president of the Regional Airline Association, said any pilot shortage won't affect safety because pilots are trained, certified and tested. Airline travel today is safer than ever before, but the Buffalo crash and other incidents are warning signs that safety may be eroding because of an attitude of "casual compliance" by a minority of pilots, said Tony Kern, a former Air Force lieutenant colonel and author of five books on pilot performance. ___ Online: http://www.ntsb.gov Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA SAFO Focuses On Training For Icing Situations Better To Prepare Now Than When Ice Is Forming On The Wings A Safety Alert For Operators (SAFO) issued by the FAA this week encourages operators to ensure that all pertinent meteorological information is provided to flight crewmembers and dispatchers, both for preflight planning and in-flight decision making when the route of flight may be near areas of potentially hazardous weather conditions with a special emphasis on icing. On October 31, 1994, an accident involving an ATR-72 occurred while the airplane was en route from Indianapolis to Chicago. Post accident investigation concluded the likely presence of freezing drizzle aloft. Freezing drizzle and freezing rain aloft are considered synonymous with supercooled large droplets (SLD), i.e. those icing conditions containing droplets larger than those required to be demonstrated in aircraft icing certification criteria. SLD may result in ice formation beyond the capabilities of the airplane's ice protection system to provide adequate ice protection. While the flight crewmembers of the ATR-72 were not aware that the icing conditions they encountered could cause dramatic airplane control difficulties, they were aware of the presence of icing. As a result of the ATR-72 accident investigation, the NTSB expressed concerns that approved air carrier training programs may not fully address procedures, should flight into SLD conditions be encountered. The NTSB expressed concern about a lack of pertinent weather information dissemination to flight crewmembers and dispatchers as well. The SAFO states that safe operations during in-flight icing conditions requires flight crewmembers to be aware of the potential dangers of in-flight icing and under what conditions in-flight icing may be encountered. Knowing the type of in-flight icing and where in-flight icing might be encountered is essential to preflight planning and in-flight decision making, should severe icing be encountered. Information is available to both flight crewmembers and dispatchers through airman's meteorological information (AIRMET), significant meteorological information (SIGMET), Center Weather Advisories (CWA), Current Icing Potential (CIP), Forecast Icing Potential (FIP), and the hazardous in-flight weather advisory service (HIWAS). After the ATR-72 accident, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued several aircraft specific airworthiness directives (AD) concerning procedures to identify severe icing conditions, knowledge of the airplanes certification limits, and procedures to safely exit in-flight icing conditions when necessary. In September 1995, the FAA published a document entitled, "Roll Upset in Severe Icing," which describes icing conditions outside the airplane's certification icing envelope and provides information about the background, preventative measures, symptoms, and corrective measures on the hazards of roll upset associated with severe in-flight icing. The FAA recommends that directors of safety and directors of operations (part 121 and 135), as well as training managers for all operators of turbo prop aircraft are encouraged to review and amend, if required, flight crewmember and dispatcher training programs to include: A review of meteorological conditions likely to cause freezing drizzle and freezing rain aloft (SLD conditions). Identification of weather information sources and their use relative to in-flight icing. This should include use of AIRMET's, SIGMET's, CWA's, HIWAS and CIP/FIP information, as appropriate, for the flight crewmember's and dispatcher's pre-flight planning and in-flight decision making processes. Discussion of procedures, including company and ATC procedures, for pilot weather reports (PIREP) on severe icing to include reporting procedures, content and use of PIREP's. Discussion of information provided to flight crewmembers including identification of severe icing conditions associated with freezing rain and freezing drizzle, immediate exit procedures should severe icing conditions be encountered, and ATC procedures. A review of the FAA publication, "Roll Upset in Severe Icing". The SAFO was been developed in response to NTSB safety recommendations A-96-48, A-96-50, A-96-61 and A-96-67; and supersedes Flight Standards Information Bulletin for Air Transportation (FSAT) 97-03. FMI: http://www.faa.gov/ Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fog hampers Afghan crash search The aircraft is believed to have crashed in the Salang Pass on Monday while flying to Kabul [Reuters] Dense fog is hampering the efforts of rescuers searching for the wreckage of an Afghan passenger jet that crashed with 44 people on board, officials say. At least 70 rescue workers are searching on the ground but dense fog has continued to cover the area of the crash near the 12,700ft-high Salang Pass, a major route through the Hindu Kush mountains that connects Kabul, the capital, to the north. The Russian-made AN-24 aircraft, operated by Pamir Airways, a private Afghan airline, was flying from the northern city of Kunduz when it crashed about 100km from Kabul on Monday. Nato dispatched a fixed-wing aircraft to the last known position of the jet at the request of the Afghan government, but a spokesman said the aircraft had to turn back because of bad weather. The Afghan defence ministry also ordered the nation's air force to be on standby. Offcials said there was no immediate word on the passengers' fate, who included six foreigners. The British embassy in Kabul confirmed that three UK citizens were on the aircraft, but did not identify them. One American also was on board, a state department official in Washington said on condition of anonymity pending notification of family. The nationalities of the two other foreigners were not immediately available. 'Conditions bad' Al Jazeera's Hoda Abdel-Hamid, reporting from Kabul, said: "The conditions are bad. It's so foggy there is no rescue going on. Referring to the Nato force in Afghanistan - the International Security Assistance Force - she said: "Two Isaf helicopters are en route to the area. Other Isaf helicopters are also on standby ... to assist in any rescue effort." Colonel Nabiullah, who is in charge of the southern portion of the Salang Pass, said: "The only way they can search is on foot. The helicopters can't get in." Afghanistan's acting transport minister said the cause of the accident was not yet known. "We have to recover the black box to determine the cause," Mohammadullah Bataz said. "We cannot rule out any of the usual causes behind crashes; which could be bad weather, technical error, thunder and lightning or even terrorist attacks." Other officials blamed the weather for the crash. Pamir Airways is one of three major private airlines that operate mostly domestic routes across Afghanistan. It has daily flights to major Afghan cities and also operates flights to Dubai and Saudi Arabia for the Haj pilgrimage. According to its website, it uses Antonov An-24 type aircraft on all its Kunduz-to-Kabul flights. http://english.aljazeera.net/ Back to Top [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103418286146&s=6053&e=001doS8JBRbYurVxYuLSY_7rreproX-3Knr77MsdCIF7mCxMaCZN4AFFnw3IruIWMs_OA5dglBABocFWQHLH6WPsQ4YnOWv1lqA] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Air France safety under scrutiny ahead of results PARIS (AFP) - As Air France-KLM prepared to announce expected massive annual losses on Wednesday, a shock book added to the company's problems, attacking the safety record of Europe's biggest airline. The company was to hold a press conference later in the day at which it was expected to confirm losses of 1.3 billion euros (S$2.2 billion) between March 2009 and March 2010. But it was already on the front pages following the publication of "The Hidden Face of Air France", an investigation by journalist Fabrice Amedeo into what he sees as failures in Air France's management culture. Air France flights have fallen victim to several accidents in recent years and, according to the French daily Liberation, statistics compiled online rank its safety record as only the 65th best in the world. And, according to a tally compiled by the Swiss-based website "Aircraft Crashes Record Office", with 1,783 fatalities Air France has been the second most deadly airline for passengers, trailing only Russia's Aeroflot. Germany's Lufthansa, which is of similar size and age, is in 43rd place. In June last year Air France flight 447 from Rio to Paris broke apart and plunged into the Atlantic with the loss of all 228 people on board. The cause of the crash has not been officially confirmed, but investigators found that cockpit flight computers were receiving incorrect airspeed readings and Air France has since replaced speed probes on its other jets. "Air France has a fleet of ultramodern planes, and its pilots are among the best in the world ... but its safety statistics are those of a second division company," writes Amedeo in his book. "The problem appears not to be technical but cultural," he says, accusing the airline's executives of a "certain laxity" in responding to incidents and adapting their safety procedures. The company responded to Liberation's account of the book with a statement. "Air France's safety standards meet the most stringent requirements in the international aviation industry," it said. "Air France is continuously working on improving flight safety which has always been one of its main priorities." Air France shares were trading down 1.74 percent on the Paris exchange as markets awaited confirmation of the annual results, which were expected to be the company's worst since its 2004 merger with Dutch carrier KLM. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA chief says air traffic upgrades are on their way The promises of a better way to manage air traffic are becoming reality and will help travelers sooner than expected, Federal Aviation Administrator Randy Babbitt told airport executives meeting in Dallas Tuesday. A package of technology upgrades that are intended to cut flight delays and save fuel has served as a piņata for FAA critics as it has fallen behind schedule and gone over budget. But Babbitt told the American Association of Airport Executives that his efforts to accelerate the "NextGen" system by two years will see the bulk of the benefits beginning in 2016 instead of 2018. "Our aircraft use 19 billion pounds of kerosene annually," said Babbitt, a former airline pilot, consultant and head of the Air Line Pilots Association. "NextGen can save 5 percent - that's a billion gallons of fuel, and at $2 a gallon, it's $2 billion worth of savings a year." NextGen aims to replace radar as the FAA's primary way to see aircraft in the air and on the ground, helping to avoid collisions and to manage traffic more efficiently than the current system, which uses decades-old technology. The problem for the FAA is that each airline has taken a different approach to equipping its planes with the expensive boxes that talk with FAA's gear on the ground. Only about 30 percent of aircraft have the latest gear, "and we need to get to a tipping point" where enough planes have the gear that it becomes a necessity to compete, Babbitt said. That tipping point could happen at 50 percent of planes, he said. Getting all the gear on planes could cost $7 billion, and the FAA is weighing possible loan plans or incentives to get airlines on board, he said. "We haven't poured concrete into any one idea," he told reporters after his remarks. He acknowledged that as the industry consolidates it might become easier for remaining carriers to spend the required money "because there would be just three carriers making decisions instead of six." North Texas' carriers say they've invested heavily in NextGen technology. Fort Worth-based American AirlinesInc. has spent $400 million on making its fleet NextGen-capable. Dallas-based Southwest AirlinesCo. has spent $175 million to put the right equipment on its fleet. Their executives have voiced frustration at the FAA's pace of installing ground-based surveillance systems and implementing new air traffic control software. Air delays have fallen sharply over last year, though Babbitt and airline watchers credit reduced flying by airlines for most of the gains. "The summer is looking good" in terms of taming delays, he said. Babbitt also scolded airlines for scheduling too many flights at the nation's busiest airports. "The FAA is not going to become the scapegoat on those types of delays," he said, noting that pilots of delayed flights often blame air traffic control when they should be blaming their own schedulers. Babbitt said his staff is using published airline schedules to build models that show where delays are likely to happen to persuade carriers not to overschedule. "We think the best approach is to bring the nation's air traffic control system up to modern standards, not limit the traveling public's access to it," said Southwest spokeswoman Beth Harbin. "Demand drives carrier scheduling decisions," said David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents most major airlines, including American. "The FAA needs to focus on providing the air traffic management support that will enable carriers to meet periods of high demand." http://www.dallasnews.com/ Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gulf Aviation Academy receives first global accreditation in record time Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain, May 19, 2010 - Gulf Aviation Academy (GAA) has been awarded the highly-accredited and internationally recognized European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Part-147, to provide Aircraft Engineering Type training, and to conduct examinations in conformance with global aviation benchmarks. The Academy successfully completed the rigorous accreditation process--which typically takes up to one year in a record four months. GAA Chief Executive Officer, Tim Shattock, commented on the Academy's impressive achievement saying, "We are very pleased to win this landmark accreditation of the EASA-147, which reflects Gulf Aviation Academy's long-term commitment to providing only the highest quality aviation training solutions to our customers". Gulf Aviation Academy's Chief Technical Training Officer, Eng. Mahmood AbdulAziz Al Balooshi, who was responsible for overseeing the complete accreditation process, thanked the GAA staff for their diligence and tireless efforts in realizing this accomplishment, adding, "Unlike many aviation training facilities, GAA is an independent aviation training solutions provider, and has a distinct advantage in offering a wide scope of training services to third-party airlines. Furthermore, GAA's accreditation distinguishes the Academy as conforming to far more stringent guidelines, which ultimately helps our clients elevate their performance to their highest potential." The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is the centrepiece of the European Union's strategy for aviation safety, and promotes the highest common standards of safety and environmental protection in civil aviation. The EASA-147 process involves a complete operations assessment, including a personnel audit of management, support, and technical staff, in terms of academic and professional qualifications, years of experience, adequate training, quality assurance, and an interview process. All documentation and records must also comply with the strict EASA guidelines, as do all technical facilities, training classrooms, and training aids. Moreover, in order to qualify for the EASA-147, aviation training centres are required to show financial sustainability, which the Mumtalakat-backed Gulf Aviation Academy was able to clearly demonstrate. Gulf Aviation Academy will continue to benchmark against the highest industry standards and is currently pursuing further international accreditations with the UK Civil Aviation, and the Federal Aviation Authority. GAA's most recent milestone includes a BD4.8 million partnership with Tamkeen to provide training for 350 Bahraini aviation engineers and technicians; and with Gulf Technics for the guaranteed employment of those 350 engineers and technicians upon successful program completion. -Ends- About Gulf Aviation Academy (GAA): GAA, positioned as the future of commercial aviation training, is based in the Kingdom of Bahrain to serve the needs of airlines in the region and internationally. The academy, a fully-owned subsidiary of Mumtalakat, offers a comprehensive range of training programmes for all aviation staff including pilots, cabin crew and engineers. The training facility operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week with internationally qualified staff. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Disruptive passengers force Minneapolis-bound flight to return to Japan MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - A Delta Air Lines flight headed for Minneapolis returned to Japan because of some disruptive passengers. Delta says the Boeing 747 was three hours into a 13-hour flight Monday when the decision was made to turn back to Japan, where the passengers were removed by Japanese authorities. Narita International Airport police spokesman Keiji Shuto says two male passengers had locked themselves inside the airplane's restrooms for about an hour and refused to come out, prompting the attendants to force open the doors. Shuto says airline officials found at least one plastic bag containing an unidentified liquid. He says the men were questioned by Delta, but not arrested by police. Airport officials say the flight took off Tuesday after spending the night. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Royal Aeronautical Society is pleased to announce a call for papers for the 4th European Flight Test Safety Workshop. Call For Papers: 4th European Flight Test Safety Workshop Flight Test Professionals - skill sets, knowledge and experience critical to successful and safe test programs Tuesday 28 - Wednesday 29 September 2010 The history of flight testing is full of examples of both "professional" and "amateur" approaches to the subject. What makes the difference? This workshop's theme is an attempt to focus discussion on flight tests where the participants' skill sets, knowledge, and experience levels proved critical to safe and successful program completion. The scope of this annual conference is such that it will seek contributions that cover all current research, preference will be given to presentations that highlight test programs where the linkage between participants' backgrounds and the test outcome can be established and critical skills identified for the test professionals involved including test pilots, test engineers, or test technicians. Call for Papers Deadline: Monday 24 May 2010 The Organising Committee invites prosp ective authors to submit abstracts of original work for presentation at the Conference. Corporate Profiling Opportunities & Exhibition Space - For more information and details of sponsorship and exhibition opportunities please call Gemma Crabb on +44 (0)20 7670 4345 or email gemma.crabb@aerosociety.com. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~