Flight Safety Information June 23, 2010 - No. 124 In This Issue U.S. Air-Collision Alerts Top 200 Since New Monitoring Began Pilots punished for failing to stay alert during flights Dr. Earl Weener...named to NTSB post IATA seals partnership with Ukraine Watchdog: FAA's NextGen at risk Two US Airways planes damaged in ground mishap Report: Passengers kept on jet for hours in Conn ERAU Graduate Survey... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ U.S. Air-Collision Alerts Top 200 Since New Monitoring Began June 23 (Bloomberg) -- Alarms sounded in the cockpits of a Continental Airlines Inc. plane carrying 100 people and a Gulfstream II business jet, warning the pilots that they were headed for a collision more than 24,000 feet over Maryland. The Continental pilot, bound for Newark, New Jersey, pushed down the Boeing Co. 737-800 to avoid a crash, the National Transportation Safety Board said. A controller's error had put the planes within 300 feet of colliding, violating rules that aircraft remain at least 1,000 feet apart, the NTSB said. The Maryland incident on March 25 is among more than 200 reports collected in the three months after the U.S. stepped up scrutiny of close calls in the air. While the safety board said most cases involved "no actual hazard," it homed in on five incidents investigators said were serious and may have gone undetected without a disclosure rule that took effect March 8. The five events were "probably the biggest surprise" from the new monitoring, John DiLisi, the NTSB's deputy director of aviation safety, said in an interview. "Aircraft got so close together that evasive action was required. This is the type of serious incident we should be immediately notified about." The close calls in March, April and May have triggered Federal Aviation Administration investigations, said spokeswoman Alison Duquette. The agency also formed a group with air-traffic controllers that met for the first time this month to examine possible changes in training or procedures, she said. "We take these incidents seriously," said Doug Church, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, a Washington-based union for the control-tower workers. The rate for the most egregious violations of FAA separation standards rose to 3.31 per million controller commands in the eight months through May 31, up from 2.44 in the full year ending Sept. 30, 2009, according to the agency. The FAA has found no common theme in the NTSB's five incidents, Duquette said. Regulators are examining cockpit-alert reports with an industry-agency team that seeks safety improvements, Peggy Gilligan, the FAA's safety chief, told reporters June 15. The March 8 rule requires that the NTSB be notified when cockpit alarms sound and crew action is needed to avoid a "substantial risk of collision." The NTSB, which is independent of the FAA, investigates accidents and makes non- binding recommendations. Airlines Objected The board proposed the rule in 2008, after concluding it may not have been hearing about all near-collisions. Airlines, small-plane operators and pilots objected at the time that filing reports would be burdensome or unnecessary. In addition to the Continental incident above Worton, Maryland, the NTSB is investigating near collisions above Chicago; San Francisco; Burbank, California; and Anchorage, Alaska. An Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica SA E135 operated by AMR Corp.'s American Eagle came within 300 feet of a King Air 300 turboprop after takeoff April 21 from Chicago O'Hare International Airport, according to an NTSB report. A cockpit alarm instructed the Eagle crew to take evasive action after an error in the control tower, the report found. Eight days later, a Bombardier Inc. CL-600-2B19 regional jet operated by SkyWest Inc. received an alert to take evasive action while turning at 1,500 feet to land at Burbank, an NTSB report said. A TV news helicopter was approaching head-on at 1,200 feet, according to the report. 'Cooperating Fully' Houston-based Continental is "cooperating fully" with the investigation, spokeswoman Christen David said. American Eagle shared internal reports with the board, said Andrea Huguely, spokeswoman for the Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier. SkyWest crews are trained in avoidance procedures and the incident "demonstrates that proficiency," said Marissa Snow, a spokeswoman for the St. George, Utah-based airline. The NTSB previously disclosed two probes triggered by the rule. In one case, a US Airways Group Inc. jet came within 100 feet of a cargo plane in Anchorage, Alaska on May 21. In the other, a UAL Corp. United Airlines Boeing Co. 777-222 came within 200 feet of a small aircraft after takeoff March 27 from San Francisco. Pilots are alerted by an aircraft's Traffic Collision and Avoidance System. The technology has been required by the government since 1993 after incidents such as a 1986 crash over Cerritos, California, that killed 82 people. The devices are made by Honeywell International Inc., Rockwell Collins Inc. and Aviation Communication & Surveillance Systems, a joint venture of L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. and Thales SA. 'Climb, Climb Now' The units use radio signals and the transponders of nearby aircraft to give pilots a cockpit display and a succession of warnings from a buzzer, a red light and aural commands to "descend, descend" or "climb, climb now." Not all alerts signal a real risk of a collision because the devices can't read the intent of pilots, said Bill Voss, president of the non-profit Flight Safety Foundation in Alexandria, Virginia. A pilot executing a pre-arranged plan to climb quickly through the path of crossing traffic may trigger an alert, even though there is no danger, he said. Airlines remain unhappy with the reporting requirement, said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents Delta Air Lines Inc., AMR's American Airlines and United Airlines. Carriers may spend as many as 15 hours gathering information on an alert, duplicating data the FAA collects in voluntary programs, he said. "Why is the NTSB getting into the business of data collection?" Castelveter said. "It's onerous and burdensome." Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Pilots punished for failing to stay alert during flights Tokyo: The Japanese government has punished four pilots of Skymark Airlines for failing to stay alert during commercial flights between April 2009 and February 2010. A co-pilot who took photos of three chief pilots on six separate flights in violation of the aviation law will be barred from flight duty for 60 days, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism said yesterday. The three captains have each been subjected to a 20-day flying ban, the ministry said. The co-pilot has been dismissed by the budget airline. The ministry also issued a warning to another captain and co-pilot at Skymark who failed to input altitude data into an auto-pilot system, with the result that they flew their aircraft at a higher altitude than instructed by air traffic control in March this year. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dr. Earl Weener named to NTSB post Earl Weener has been named as the newest member of the National Transportation Safety Board A Sherwood resident who spent much of his career working for The Boeing Co. has been named the newest member of the National Transportation Safety Board. On Tuesday, June 22, the U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed the appointment of Dr. Earl Weener to the prestigious five-member board. The board is responsible not only for making safety recommendations aimed at preventing transportation accidents, but also for investigating civil aviation, railroad, highway, marine and pipeline mishaps. Weener, who turns 65 June 23, said he was pleased by the appointment. "We've been waiting for it for several months," he said. "It was delightful." Weener has lived in Sherwood since 2005. He holds a degree in aerospace engineering and is a fellow at the Flight Safety Foundation. He spent 24 years at Boeing where he served as chief engineer in the commercial airplane portion of the company. Weener was a leader in industry initiative to improve runway safety along with reducing ground accidents and injuries. He has received several awards, including the Honeywell Bendix Trophy for Aviation Safety. "Over the course of his career, Dr. Weener has established himself as a national leader in commercial aviation safety," said Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat who pushed for Weener's appointment. "His work has reduced aviation accident rates and helped make air travel safer for all of us." Weener will fill the term of former NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker, who resigned last summer. While that appointment lasts until the end of the year, Weener recently received a letter from the White House confirming his reappointment to the board through 2015, he said. In March, Weener traveled to Washington, D.C., for Capitol Hill hearings on his new position. He was introduced at the hearings by Merkley, who urged Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-Texas) to consider recommending Weener to be the nominee for the open Republican seat on the NTSB. "It was interesting," said Weener. "You never know what they're going to ask." However, the two-hour hearing went well, he said, and as a result he'll be moving to the nation's capital soon. That means saying goodbye to his family in Sherwood, including his son, Jeff, and his wife, Katrina, along with his grandchildren, Megan and Robert, who attend Edy Ridge Elementary School. "We're in the process of packing," Weener said. "It's been about an 11 months in the making." http://www.sherwoodgazette.com Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IATA seals partnership with Ukraine KIEV, Ukraine 21 June 2010. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) formalized a strategic partnership with the Ministry of Transport of Ukraine and the State Aviation Administration of Ukraine with the signing of a Memorandum of Intention (MoI) for seven specific areas of cooperation: aviation safety; security; technology; airport infrastructure; air navigation; ground handling, and training. The MoI was signed in Kiev by IATA director general and chief executive officer Giovanni Bisignani, and UkraineTransport Deputy Minister and Chairman of the State Aviation Administration Anatolii Kolisnyk. "An effective air transport sector is a critical element of a nation's competitiveness. IATA's global standards and technical expertise can contribute significantly to the development of safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible aviation in Ukraine. This MoI gives us a strong framework to contribute to building an even more competitive Ukraine air transport sector, with the benefits being spread across the economy," Bisignani says. Specific points addressed in Bisignani's dialogue with Transport Minister Kostiantyn Efymenko and Deputy Minister Kolisnyk included improving safety, simplifying the business, and infrastructure charges. Improving safety Ukraine has made progress to improve safety but many challenges remain, IATA officials say. The country has been a Category 2 state for five years under the US Federal Aviation Administration International Safety Assessment Program. "The safety record has improved but more needs to be done," Bisignani says. "We must accelerate the work to bring safety oversight in line with the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) is already delivering significant benefits by improving safety. Both Aerosvit and Ukrainian International Airlines are on the IOSA registry. I look forward to exploring further ways to expand the use of all IATA's auditing programs in Ukraine, including making IOSA a national requirement." Simplifying the business IATA's Simplifying the business program aims to improve service levels and reduce costs. "Ukraine International has led the implementation of new technologies for passenger handling in the country. Aerosvit has stepped up its work and is on track to reach the 100 percent bar-coded boarding pass year-end deadline," Bisignani notes. Infrastructure charges Ukraine's airport and air traffic control rates remain high and are not cost based. "Ukraine's system is one of the most expensive in Europe and remains one of the least productive," Bisignani says. "This undermines the competitiveness of Ukraine. We need immediate reform. It is time to begin a new ere of consultation and transparency in line with ICAO guidelines. The government can no longer treat aviation -- including air traffic management -- as a cash cow. "Ukraine's economy is growing again, which will lead to an improved aviation market," he continues. The agreement "opens the door to even broader cooperation between Ukraine and IATA. It is our hope that the government can quickly address the challenges of safety and infrastructure. IATA brings global standards and expertise that will help ensure that aviation in Ukraine continues to develop and improve its competitiveness." http://www.militaryaerospace.com Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Watchdog: FAA's NextGen at risk The US DOT's office of inspector general has issued a report critical of the FAA's performance in launching the next generation air transportation system (NextGen). "Not taking timely action on these issues now could delay FAA's plans to transition to NextGen," writes Lou Dixon, DOT's principal assistant inspector general (IG) in the 16 June report. FAA through NextGen is planning to create an air traffic system by 2025 that can handle three times more traffic and at the same time reduce its operating costs, in part by replacing today's ground-based air traffic control with a satellite-based system, a move that in theory will allow it to eliminate many of its radar facilities. "Since [NextGen] began in 2005, we have repeatedly reported on the cost and schedule risks and operational and management challenges NextGen faces," says Dixon of the $40 billion programme. "These concerns prompted us to identify NextGen as one of the Department's top management challenges." In the assessment, requested by the leadership of the US House aviation subcommittee, the OIG says the FAA has not yet established "firm requirements" to help guide its cost and schedule estimates for ongoing projects or new acquisitions under the programme. For example, of the 51 decision points that were to be made in fiscal year 2009 as laid out in the agency's most recent roadmap, only 11 were made. Open items that could impact the 2025 transition to NextGen include an investment decision on a NextGen weather processor, deciding the responsibilities and level of automation for pilots and controllers in the new system and determining which FAA facilities should be consolidated. Further, projects aimed at demonstrating NextGen benefits for the user community in the mid-term (2012-2018) "lack coordination and are not outcome-based", says the IG, noting that the FAA needs to develop sufficient data to establish a path for certifying new systems and must set "realistic expectations" for what can be achieved in the mid-term. Dixon says the agency must also work more closely with partner agencies, particularly the Department of Defence (DoD) to determine if military technologies like satellite-based precision landing systems might be applicable to NextGen. Along with a plan to review and identify DoD technologies that might be applicable, recommendations to the FAA include conducting an assessment of risks associated with implementing multiple NextGen capabilities concurrently in the mid-term and assessing safety and implementation risks of mixed-equipage operations. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103507305917&s=6053&e=001dwqcfzLqj8B19IhxU3Eko4tceGrS6TwzDNwp8rVl7MEx6URm8CTpXyMhA8k1-Q0zj3iosX52Bh7o6uLkhms4P9VRj_gqSPHl] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Two US Airways planes damaged in ground mishap Worker backed jet into Airbus WARWICK, R.I. - The wing of a small jet pushing back from a gate hit another jet, causing minor damage early yesterday at T.F. Green Airport, federal aviation officials said. A US Airways Embraer 175 jet was being pushed back from Gate 2 at 6:05 a.m. when its right wingtip hit an exhaust unit on the body of another US Airways jet, an Airbus 320 that was parked at Gate 3, said Arlene Salac, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration. "It's a minor incident,'' said Salac. The airline will be required to file a report on the incident with the agency, she said. The Embraer was carrying 36 people when it struck the larger, empty plane. The impact slightly damaged both planes, but no one was injured, officials said. The Embraer 175 was in use for US Airways Express Flight 3315 and bound for Philadelphia. It was being pushed away from the gate by an airline employee when it hit the parked Airbus, which was scheduled to be used for Flight 815 to Charlotte, N.C., airport spokeswoman Patti Goldstein said. "The employee that was pushing the aircraft pushed it too closely to an aircraft that was parked at the next gate,'' she said. "It was a mishap.'' Neither plane was powered at the time, Goldstein said. That suggests it was a "very low-speed incident,'' said Morgan Durrant, a spokesman for US Airways. One of the Philadelphia-bound plane's wings was damaged. The tail of the other plane was damaged, Durrant said. Goldstein described the damage as minor. Both flights were canceled, and passengers were put on other flights. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating, as is the airline, Durrant said. http://www.boston.com/ Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Report: Passengers kept on jet for hours in Conn. WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. (AP) - Passengers on a Virgin Atlantic Airways flight say they were kept on a hot plane without food or water for more than four hours at Connecticut's Bradley International Airport. Passengers told CNN that Tuesday night's ordeal began when they were diverted to Bradley because of bad weather during a flight from London to Newark, N.J. They say they landed at about 8:20 p.m. and were kept on the plane until about 1 a.m. Wednesday. Passengers told the news network that people were yelling and screaming. They say at least three people fainted and were taken away in ambulances. The aircraft was carrying 300 passengers and 14 crew. A Virgin Atlantic spokeswoman said Wednesday that the airline apologizes for any inconvenience. She says passengers will be bused to Newark. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ERAU Graduate Survey FSI Readers: Hi, my name is Josh Jackson and I'm working on my Graduate Capstone Project (GCP) for Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. I would appreciate it if you could complete 10 question survey. My topic is the new Passenger Bill or Rights and how the three-hour tarmac rule will impact travelers. The survey can be found at the following link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/tarmac [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103507305917&s=6053&e=001dwqcfzLqj8CRD75RWiDlVzWBAFzUssAtTXa8NLqakPKJVFpwFQfGHPWuA09FgujnioYU2HwJdUIRQgsJbmZepC5kLwRmWrI1JXtAvNeXVl9z19uhKkxHBAHeM_iEuAZCBWWaXyQ-pVE=] Thank you, Josh Very Respectfully, JOSHUA A. JACKSON, MAJ, USAFR 313th KC-135/R Flight Test Lackland AFB, TX 78236 Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC