Flight Safety Information May 28, 2010 - No. 106 In This Issue Jet engine failures overseas prompt 'urgent' NTSB recommendation 4-month trial into 2000 Concorde crash wraps up Collision averted at Mumbai airport with just 1.8km to spare Indian Pilots Want Air Safety Changes Helicopter 'check flight' crash kills instructor, injures trainee Satellite-based air traffic control system mandatory by 2020 Volcanic ash shuts down Guatemala City airport Delta flight makes emergency return to Ga. airport Final rule mandates ADS-B equipage by 2020 Hawaiian extends CEO contract Delta to hire 300 pilots Rotor manufacture agrees to pay children of flight nurse $5.6 million ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jet engine failures overseas prompt 'urgent' NTSB recommendation here Washington (CNN) -- The failure of General Electric engines on four jet aircraft overseas during the past two years has prompted the National Transportation Safety Board to issue an "urgent" recommendation to increase inspections of the engines on U.S. aircraft. None of the incidents resulted in crashes, injuries or fatalities. But in all four cases, engine parts penetrated the engine housing. Such "uncontained engine failures" are particularly dangerous because flying engine parts could puncture fuel or hydraulic lines, damage flight surfaces or even penetrate the fuselage and injure passengers. At issue are General Electric CF6-45/50 series jet engines, older engines found on a small number of jets. FAA officials said 373 of the engines are in service in the United States, on a fewer, but unknown, number of planes. The engines are used on some Airbus A300s, Boeing 747s, DC-10s, MD-10s and U.S. Air Force KC-10s. A GE spokeswoman said most of the engines are used on cargo planes. On four occasions, the NTSB said, a rotor imbalance caused rotor disks to fail, leading to the uncontained engine failures. FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said the FAA is aware of the problem and issued a rule in March requiring inspections of the engines within 50 flights, and repeat inspections every 175 flights thereafter. It also is working on a rule that would add testing of the rotor disks for cracks. But on Thursday, the NTSB issued its urgent recommendation, saying the FAA should require inspections every 15 flights until the disks can be replaced with improved parts. The FAA said the action "will maintain the safety of the fleet," and that it will decide whether to alter the inspection schedule after completing examinations of the engines involved in the recent incidents. GE spokeswoman Deborah Case said GE issued a service bulletin last August advising operators to inspect and monitor the engines. The NTSB recommendation follows these four incidents: -- July 4, 2008: A Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) Boeing 747-300 experienced an engine failure after takeoff from Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. -- March 26, 2009: An Arrow Cargo McDonnell Douglas DC-10F, about 30 minutes after takeoff from Manaus, Brazil, experienced loss of oil pressure in one engine. The pilots shut down the engine and diverted to Medellin, Colombia. -- December 17, 2009: A Jett8 Airlines Cargo Boeing 747-200F was passing through 7,000 feet when the crew members heard a muffled explosion. With one engine losing oil pressure, the airplane returned to land at Changi, Singapore. -- April 10, 2010: An ACT Cargo Airbus A300B4 experienced an engine failure while accelerating for takeoff at Manama, Bahrain. The crew declared an emergency, aborted the takeoff, activated the fire-suppression system, and evacuated the airplane. The NTSB is participating in or leading investigations of the four incidents. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 4-month trial into 2000 Concorde crash wraps up PARIS (AP) - A French court is wrapping up a 4-month-long trial into what caused the crash of a Concorde supersonic jet a decade ago. Continental Airlines Inc. and two of its employees are accused of manslaughter. All 109 people aboard and four people on the ground were killed in the June 2000 crash near Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport. Investigators say a Continental jet dropped a metal strip onto the runway before the Air France Concorde took off. They say the runway debris gashed the plane's tire, sending pieces of rubber into the fuel tanks and sparking a fire. Continental denies any responsibility. A verdict is expected later this year. The Concorde program, which hosted legions of rich and famous passengers, was taken out of service in 2003. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Collision averted at Mumbai airport with just 1.8km to spare MUMBAI: After the Mangalore Air India Express air crash, the Spice Jet tyre burst and the Air India go-around at Patna airport, it was Mumbai's turn to witness a runway incursion on Wednesday night. An IndiGo Airbus 320 jet entered a runway when a Jet Airways Boeing 737 aircraft, cleared to land there, was about 1.8km from touchdown at an altitude of 400 feet. Seeing the potentially fatal positioning of the two aircraft, the air traffic controller instructed the Boeing 737 to abort landing and the day was saved when the Jet aircraft swished past the IndiGo plane at an altitude of over 1,000 feet. Both flights put together had around 230 passengers. At 9.04pm, the Jet B737 commander initiated a go-around or what is called a missed approach. It's a procedure where a landing approach is discontinued and the aircraft climbs up to a holding point and seeks fresh permission from the air traffic controller to approach the runway and land. The DGCA is investigating the incident. The events that led to the runway incursion had to do with a portion of lights on taxi track N1, which had a technical problem and were working intermittently. "IndiGo flight 6E 415 to Bangalore left the domestic terminal apron and was instructed to go down runway 14, the secondary runway, which was not in use at that time. From there, it was to take a left turn into taxiway N1 to go to the start of runway 27 from where it was supposed to take-off," said Mumbai airport general manager, air traffic control, M G Junghare. "However, for some reason, instead of taking the left turn into the taxiway, it went straight ahead and entered the point of intersection between the secondary runway 14-32 and main runway 09-27," he added. Around the same time, Jet Airways flight 9W 616 from Kolkata was cleared for landing on main runway 27 and was on its final approach. "The Jet aircraft was 1 nautical mile (a little more than 1.8km) from touchdown point at an altitude of 400 feet when the tower controller instructed its commander to do a go-around," said a source. It was only when the Jet B737 swished past safely over the IndiGo A320 that the air traffic controller breathed a sigh of relief. "It is a normal practice to perform a go-around in such cases," said a Jet Airways spokesperson. While taxiway lights are blue, runway lights are yellow in colour. A lighted board, saying 'Runway 27-09', also warns pilots about the runway ahead. "After that one could hear the controllers admonishing the IndiGo commander asking him why he entered the runway. The commander said that the taxiway onto which he had to turn did not have its lights on," said a commander who was on groud, operating another flight that night. IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh said that intitial reports say that the A320 had only approached the runway intersection. "After going on runway 14, the aircraft overshot taxiway N1 as there were no lights on that taxiway," Ghosh said. "The moment our pilots realized that they had overshot the taxiway, they brought the aircraft to a halt. The aircraft did not enter runway 27 but stopped short of it. The air traffic controller told the pilot to hold position and then sent a follow-me vehicle to take it to runway 27 for take-off," he added. A Mumbai International Airport Pvt Ltd (MIAL) spokesperson said: "As a stretch of lights on taxiway N1 was working intermittently because of circuit problems we had informed the air traffic control and a follow-me vehicle was being provided for aircraft taking that route." He added that before the IndiGo A320 aircraft, two planes went by the same route with the help of ground vehicles and so did other aircraft which went after this incident. "Whether the controllers informed the IndiGo commander about the taxiway lights or the commander chose not to take the follow-me vehicle is not known," he added. The incident again brings to focus the urgent need for a surface movement radar (SMR) in Mumbai airport. It tracks the movement of aircraft, vehicle and personnel on ground on runways, taxiway and operational area, thus proving to be a great ground safety aid, especially in low-visibility conditions. Ironically, though the SMR equipment has been procured, it has not yet been commissioned despite DGCA's recommendation to install it following the near-miss incident involving President Pratibha Patil's IAF squadron last year. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Mumbai/Collision-averted-at-Mumbai-airport-with-just-18km-to-spare/articleshow/5983003.cms Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Indian Pilots Want Air Safety Changes India's pilots are raising concerns about the nation's air safety guidelines in the wake of the Air India Express crash last weekend, saying the government needs to address issues like scheduling, airport modernization and what they consider ill-advised incentives to carry out "soft" landings on short airstrips. Those are all issues that a new aviation advisory panel is likely to consider. While Air India has said both the captain and co-pilot of Flight IX-812 were well-rested, some aviators are concerned the current scheduling rules are too lax. In 2007, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation - India's aviation regulator - tightened the rest rules to ensure pilots had more time off between lengthy or tiring assignments, like roundtrip international flights. But then, the next year, the DGCA rolled back those rules. Two Indian pilots who spoke to India Real Time on condition of anonymity said this was done for commercial reasons: heavy demand for pilots in the growing aviation sector meant airlines couldn't afford to give pilots as much rest, they said. "We don't have the best rest possible," one of the two pilots said. "There needs to be a scientific research process to determine how much rest we should be getting." Pradeep Deshpande, a pilot and spokesman for the Indian Pilots Guild, a union representing about 350 Air India pilots, said the group plans to push regulators to revise the so-called "Flight and Duty Time Limitations" to avoid certain scenarios where pilots can end up jet-lagged. One example: when a pilot flies a round-trip international flight at night, arrives back home in India the next morning, then has to fly the same route the day after that. The DGCA's current director general has already promised to evaluate the mandatory rest rules, Mr. Deshpande said. New rules to determine the rest pilots need should count activities such as layovers and simulation training as on-duty time, he said. One of the Indian aviators also noted that there is pressure on pilots - from within their companies and from the DGCA - to do more "soft landings," in which the aircraft land smoothly on the tarmac and travels more slowly across the runway after landing. Such landings, while more comfortable for passengers, are more dangerous on hilltop runways with limited spillover areas, like the "table top" runway at Mangalore, the pilot said. So-called "hard landings," while more jarring for passengers, can be safer because there is more friction that helps the plane stop faster. There's no evidence thus far to suggest the pilot in Saturday's crash was attempting a soft landing. He may have just approached the runway too quickly and landed too far beyond a safe touch-down point or there could have been another reason for the crash. Representatives of the DGCA and the Civil Aviation Ministry did not respond to requests for comment. http://blogs.wsj.com/ [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103443325317&s=6053&e=001s0-hWAaY-gHhVLOThzz2-UBE75T8lRMMQr0LDg92ayHsM4YtzUIBjBMmu8G9e4chO7qt787DrOagryiAV-KJeacCUck9ybpiN-09UIt4XIHnjGoofAqwy47RK7-NidfMRZzHAw1X5z4ugUu2OMvDcO0omoUcA88Gifwou8ZwE31XvVmVFQz0Cv4tGI_oTsBptUVmRfXVBHrgkbLowXFfrA==] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Helicopter 'check flight' crash kills instructor, injures trainee Pair were doing stall maneuver in Boxborough BOXBOROUGH - A helicopter crash that killed a federal aviation inspector and injured his student this week in Boxborough occurred when the two were practicing a maneuver that simulates an engine stall, and the engine was cut but did not restart, officials said yesterday. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash. Police and fire personnel responded at about 4:48 p.m. Wednesday to the crash in woods near 300 Beaver Brook Road, Boxborough police said in a statement. The Schweizer 269C-1 was en route from Norwood, Sergeant Warren O'Brien told the Globe Wednesday night. The student had exited the helicopter and was conscious. She was airlifted to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, police said. The inspector died in the crash. A government official identified him as Michael J. Wheeler, 58, of Watertown, N.Y. The official said Wheeler, who had an FAA rating both as a flight instructor and an aviation safety inspector, was on a "check flight'' to test the woman's response to different scenarios in the air when the helicopter crashed. Bridget Serchak, a spokeswoman for the NTSB, said in an e-mail that the helicopter, supplied by Blue Hill Helicopters of Norwood, took off from Norwood Memorial Airport. The weather was clear with a light wind at the time of the crash, Serchak said, and there was no distress call or postcrash fire. Serchak said the NTSB is looking into the helicopter's maintenance records. Michael Wheeler's wife, Barbara, said in a telephone interview that her husband began flying at age 16. "Some people are lucky in life to find out young about a passion,'' she said. "Flying was his passion.'' She said Wheeler joined the Army at 18 and served as a helicopter pilot in Vietnam. He spent 21 years in the Army and later worked for Air Methods, a medical services and supply company based in Colorado. http://www.boston.com/ [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103443325317&s=6053&e=001s0-hWAaY-gExV7jv_hXccynrfmBl_TCk3mp3tXyXTn0GqCYQoGugtSXZDH9XERo_O7chN3MsK2se8DTZuAr1lqQ4Vh_84LLNe2qU6xuyOqkzYV3bhCIMzg==] Back to Top [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103443325317&s=6053&e=001s0-hWAaY-gFwlR4CRkDmTTQRlTIZBfBty4mR3Bgkl_4ZkLSR69AqiWNn7nxHLN_bp6F8bvYzpWuXtmobrdlrumPUqOJhFz2s] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Satellite-based air traffic control system mandatory by 2020 Federal officials announced Thursday that aircraft operators have until 2020 to get on board with new NextGen satellite technology that is expected to drastically improve the safety and efficiency of air travel. Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast - or ADS-B - refers to the satellite-based air-traffic tracking, navigation and communication system that will replace the current, radar-dependent one first implemented during the 1940s. The deadline publicized Thursday means that aircraft must be equipped to transmit their position via ADS-B by 2020. At that point, the ground stations that will relay that information will have been installed for seven years. ADS-B will cost between $2.1 billion and $4.1 billion in public and private funding by the time it is fully implemented, Federal Aviation Administrator Randy Babbitt said. The system could reduce air travel times by 5 percent, save 1 billion gallons in fuel annually and provide other benefits stemming from the enhanced efficiency of ADS-B-equipped aircraft, Babbitt said. "(Airlines) do see the business case," Babbitt said. "We can appreciate the difficult economic times airlines have been through. It's been a tough economic two or three years for them, and the capital expenditure is going to be difficult, and I think that's the core of their concern." Babbitt spoke from Washington, D.C., during a joint telephone news conference with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Babbitt visited Atlantic City for the Air Traffic Control Association convention Wednesday, when the FAA also announced $4.4 billion worth of contracts for the continued development of the Next Generation Air Transportation System during the next decade. ADS-B is a component of NextGen. The FAA initiative encompasses multiple, interdependent technologies expected to enhance the safety and efficiency of air travel. FAA developed NextGen at the William J. Hughes Technical Center at Atlantic City International Airport in Egg Harbor Township, its primary research site. The system continuously updates data on weather and an aircraft's speed, altitude and position relative to others. Pilots and air-traffic controllers depend on that information, but the 12 seconds it takes for data to refresh under the current system is a long time, given the speed of air travel, Babbitt said. http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/ [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103443325317&s=6053&e=001s0-hWAaY-gFt64Shs-A8zL3WPjtzUKltXJ03jrFY2gdbnx4i7mpWfz18ydIagGn8L9NHgi2k7Hs4LRywk2aGL5YB01hYUPR46VmN0OPpwa6IGOrFAza8OMAgmsd4hXw3] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Volcanic ash shuts down Guatemala City airport GUATEMALA CITY (AP) - Authorities closed Guatemala's international airport Thursday after the nearby Pacaya volcano showered as much as 3 inches (8 centimeters) of ash over parts of the city. La Aurora airport would be closed at least until noon Friday, and possibly longer, said Angel Perez, a spokesman for the Central American country's Civil Aeronautics Office. The volcano is about 15 miles (25 kilometers) south of the Guatemalan capital. Two to three inches of ash accumulated on streets in some southern parts of the city, and officials imposed limits on trucks and motorcycles to help speed up traffic slowed by the ash. The government urged residents not to leave their homes unless there was an urgent need, and issued a state-of-disaster declaration, making it easier to disburse funds to deal with the problem. Two villages near the peak were evacuated, with dozen of residents taken to shelters or relatives' homes to wait out the eruption, said David de Leon a spokesman for the national disaster committee. Local media reported that volcanic rock fell on the evacuated villages, smashing car windshields. Eruptions began several days ago. The most active of Guatemala's 32 volcanos, Pacaya has been intermittently erupting since 1966, and tourists frequently visit areas near three lava flows formed in eruptions between 1989 and 1991. In 1998, the 8,373-foot (2,552-meter) volcano twice spewed plumes of ash, forcing evacuations and shutting down the airport in Guatemala City. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Delta flight makes emergency return to Ga. airport ATLANTA (AP) -A Delta flight to Los Angeles safely made an emergency landing in Atlanta after the pilot reported possible engine trouble. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said Delta Flight 125 departed Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on Thursday around 4:45 p.m. Delta spokeswoman Heather Faulkner said the captain saw an indicator light alerting him to possible trouble with an engine on takeoff. He decided to return to Atlanta. The plane circled over the metro Atlanta area to burn off extra fuel before landing at 5:10 p.m. Delta and the FAA are investigating the cause of the suspected engine problem. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Final rule mandates ADS-B equipage by 2020 A final rule on requirements for new aircraft tracking technology was unveiled today by the US Department of Transportation (DOT) requiring the use of automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) in airline cockpits and on the ground by 2020. "It will allow aircraft to be tracked with greater proficiency and accuracy," says DOT Secretary Ray LaHood. "Ultimately ADS-B will allow pilots and controllers to see the same information and get the same information on their screens. It works even in low visibility conditions. The bottom line is the next generation is here." ADS-B technology relies on satellite transmission rather than radar technology affording pilots and ground controllers access to the same information. Pilots will be able to see where they are in relation to other aircraft or bad weather at night and in poor visibility. It will enable them to plan safe, more efficient routes. The rule requires that by 2020 aircraft flying in certain airspace broadcast their positions via ADS-B and that the broadcast signals meet specific requirements in terms of accuracy, integrity, power and latency, according to the FAA. "The Next Generation is aviation's future," says FAA administrator Randy Babbitt. "It's a step across the threshhold that we've been waiting a long time for." Nationwide rollout of ADS-B ground stations is to be completed by 2013. Airlines will have until 2020 to equip fleets with the avionics required under the new rule. Though financial investment will be required from the airlines, Babbitt says he doesn't expect any pushback, and the industry has spent a lot of time in determining the need to expand NextGen technologies aggressively. Despite the "difficult economic times" the airline industry has faced Babbit says carriers "do see the business case" for ADS-B. The Air Transport Association of America (ATA), which represents major US airlines, remains unconvinced. It says it is "carefully reviewing" the new rule that is estimated to cost the cost between $2.5 billion and $6.2 billion for implementation. "ATA has said repeatedly that any rule requiring this type of equipage and expense must be based on a solid business case in which the true benefits and real costs are fully understood and justified," says ATA President James May. "We are hopeful that our FAA regulatory evaluation supporting the rule will be made available soon in order to facilitate our review." Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hawaiian extends CEO contract Hawaiian Airlines has extended the contract of current CEO Mark Dunkerley by three years. "Mark's leadership of Hawaiian through some extraordinary times has been exemplary and the Board is pleased that he will continue to lead our company through key phases of expansion in the coming years," says Hawaiian Holdings board chairman Lawrence Hershfield. Hawaiian plans to add up to 27 new Airbus aircraft into its fleet by the end of this decade. Hawaiian is leasing three A330s that are joining the fleet this year, and has signed a purchase agreement with Airbus to acquire seven A330s and six A350-800 aircraft as well as purchase rights for an additional five A330s and six A350s. Dunkerley has been with the carrier since 2003. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Delta to hire 300 pilots Delta Air Lines Inc. is upsizing a plan to hire new pilots later this year as the carrier gets a better gauge on future demand needs. The world's largest airline is also tinkering with its aircraft mix, planning next year to bring back as many as two dozen aircraft that were parked in California's Mojave Desert because of recession-driven capacity cuts. Delta officials are careful to say their plans to add more pilots and shuffle the fleet are not an indication of an expansion of service, as its net total of aircraft is still expected to decrease. But an airline analyst said the moves could give the carrier added flexibility as early signs of recovery for the industry continue. Atlanta-based Delta (NYSE: DAL) now plans to hire about 300 new pilots, up from the 240 it announced earlier this month, Delta spokeswoman Gina Laughlin confirmed to Atlanta Business Chronicle. The carrier also confirmed it would return to service next year no more than 25 jets it had been storing in the desert. Just how many planes returned to service, and when, depends on passenger demand, Delta said. "We continue to manage capacity and take advantage of one of the great benefits of our merger - a diverse and flexible fleet that allows us to use the right aircraft in the right market, whether that's by day of week, time of day or time of year," Laughlin said, referring to Delta's 2008 acquisition of Northwest Airlines Corp. The past three years have been brutal for the nation's airlines, which battled historic fuel prices and a precipitous decline in passenger demand with the fallout of Wall Street's collapse. The airlines, including Delta, slashed capacity as a result and more than 200 pilots accepted buyouts. But air travel has seen a rebound since bottoming out in May 2009. On May 4, Delta announced its plan to hire new aviators as it moves to restore some previously cut flight schedules and increases the use of wide-body airliners. The airline is also hiring to replace pilots expected to retire over the next year. "With this announcement of hiring comes the opportunity for furlough bypass pilots to return to Delta and for other pilots who desire employment with us, the opportunity to join our ranks," Delta Senior Vice President Steve Dickson said in a May 4 memo to pilots. The new pilots will come aboard sometime in the fall, and ensure Delta will be fully staffed come summer 2011. The world's largest airline is also juggling its fleet. The carrier previously announced it would remove 86 less-efficient jets from service this year. These include a total of 65 regional jets and turboprops, as well as older DC-9s and Boeing 757s. But Delta confirmed to the Chronicle it would return to service in 2011 no more than 25 aircraft - including an undetermined number of MD-90s, 757s and Boeing 767s - that were parked in the California desert because of recession-driven capacity cuts. Laughlin said the planes were stored with the intent of returning them to service upon a return in passenger demand. These changes come on top of previously announced acquisitions of two Boeing 737-800s and seven used MD-90s. Delta has curtailed capital expenses to conserve cash and has been tight with capacity to keep load factors and yields high. Capacity remains essentially flat this summer compared to last year. Robert Mann, airline analyst with R.W. Mann & Co. in New York, said the moves to bring wide-body jets back into service and add more pilots than originally indicated suggests new capacity for the future. That capacity, he said, could be the restoration of service for some routes that have been cut or reduced, or the restart of routes Delta planned to begin before the economic collapse. "The bringing back of pilots and aircraft seems to suggest new flying," Mann said. Delta reported a net loss of $256 million in the first quarter, a 68 percent improvement from its nearly $800 million loss in the first quarter of 2009. Revenues climbed 2 percent to $6.85 billion, bolstered by ancillary fees such as those for checked bags. The airline has stressed it would be diligent to adjust capacity to protect improving yields and has said summertime advance bookings have looked promising. Delta CEO Richard Anderson has said he expects Delta to be "solidly profitable" in the second quarter ending June 30. According to the International Air Transport Association, demand for first- and business-class seats grew 7.6 percent and 7.4 percent, respectively, during the first quarter of the year. Growth in both seat types has been keyed by improvement in business-related travel, as leisure passengers remain somewhat fickle. Still, the industry is well off pre-recession levels of demand and ticket yields. The industry, Mann said, needs more front cabin sales. Leisure travel likely won't improve significantly with high unemployment lingering. "It looks as if corporate demand is improving, but it's unclear whether [business travelers are] willing to buy back yet into the business cabin," Mann said. Atlanta Business Chronicle Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Rotor manufacture agrees to pay children of flight nurse $5.6 million A lawsuit filed on behalf of two children of an Avon flight nurse killed in a Decature County medical helicopter crash has ended in a $5.6 million settlement. Sandra Pearson, 38, was killed along with pilot Roger Warren, 43, and paramedic and base manager Wade Weston, 38, when the rotor came off their Bell 206 Longranger before it crashed in a field outside Burney, about 40 miles southeast of Indianapolis, in August 2008. The National Bank of Indianapolis sued several defendants on behalf of Pearson's estate, but the settlement is with Bell Helicopter Textron, which manufactured the rotor blade. The National Transportation Safety Board found that the flawed main rotor blade had broken apart just after take-off. The settlement money will be deposited into trust accounts for Pearson's young children until they turn 18. A Hendricks County probate judge approved the settlement Wednesday. The lawsuit was filed in Marion Superior Court. The family of a flight nurse killed in a Decatur County medical helicopter crash in August has filed a lawsuit seeking compensation for her death. Sandra Pearson, 38, was killed along with pilot Roger Warren, 43, and paramedic and base manager Wade Weston, 38, when the rotor came off their Bell 206 Longranger before it crashed in a field outside Burney, about 40 miles southeast of Indianapolis. The lawsuit, filed late last week in Marion Superior Court, names as defendants Rolls-Royce, the helicopter's engine maker; Decatur County REMC, the utility responsible for maintaining power lines in the area; Rushville Memorial Hospital, which dispatched the helicopter; and Bell Helicopter Textron, the rotor manufacturer. Attorneys hired by National Bank of Indianapolis filed the lawsuit on behalf of Pearson's two children, Gabrielle, 8, and Garrett, 10. http://blogs.indystar.com/crime/2010/05/rotor_manufactu.html [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103443325317&s=6053&e=001s0-hWAaY-gFrlM_M1jf_qR0ITMjaPOOi3YD1jWOwCSWXAIEQgdzK1eJBmrrLZ4UT5xC5YcaF462njbHX5XUzS15eBBaFU9hg8VNup5LnqdJm84lW6O4YoDUwop2_-JP8V0rSqI0qddHIBe1n7GSHMV_wYwWj6EkxHgqtU9NzyRc=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC