Flight Safety Information August 2, 2010 - No. 153 In This Issue FAA finds Mexico does not meet ICAO safety.standards Crews in Pakistan find voice, flight data recorders FAA: Plane flies too close to Continental jet Three killed in second Alaska air crash in a week Crashed MD-11F caught fire after impact SIA 777 in wing-tip clash at Beijing Capital Denver overrun spurs crosswind scrutiny by NTSB US Congress passes FAA extension and new safety directives Accident Investigation ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA finds Mexico does not meet ICAO safety standards The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced that Mexico is not in compliance with international safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), following an assessment of the country's civil aviation authority. As a result, the United States is downgrading Mexico from a Category 1 to Category 2 rating. As part of the FAA's International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) program, the agency assesses the civil aviation authorities of all countries with air carriers that operate or have applied to fly to the United States and makes that information available to the public. The assessments determine whether or not foreign civil aviation authorities are meeting ICAO safety standards, not FAA regulations. With the IASA Category 2 rating, Mexican air carriers cannot establish new service to the United States, although they are allowed to maintain existing service. While Mexico has been responsive to the FAA's findings and has made significant improvements in recent months, it was unable to fully comply with all of the international safety standards. However, under the leadership of Director General Hector Gonzalez Weeks, Mexico continues to make progress. The FAA is committed to working closely with the Mexican government and providing technical assistance to help Mexico regain its Category 1 rating. A Category 1 rating means the country's civil aviation authority complies with ICAO standards. A Category 2 rating means a country either lacks laws or regulations necessary to oversee air carriers in accordance with international standards, or that its civil aviation authority - equivalent to the FAA for aviation safety matters - is deficient in one or more areas, such as technical expertise, trained personnel, record-keeping or inspection procedures. Countries with air carriers that fly to the United States must adhere to the safety standards of ICAO, the United Nations' technical agency for aviation that establishes international standards and recommended practices for aircraft operations and maintenance. www.aviation-safety.net [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103593122928&s=6053&e=0011IORfRfve8SkPGtas-qhJFitKd45mrfdcBrmQT0q9fSsAZCQfVe2GfRJPJQhVfztkZ9omrSMPsrYBxdSKEu3PkrZhEO0nS_N83JhG6_VuiTssaqPDjJu6SU6fqOArtiS] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Crews in Pakistan find voice, flight data recorders (CNN) A Pakistani official carries the black box from the crashed Airblue passenger plane at the Margalla Hills on the outskirts of Islamabad on July 31, 2010. The data recorders will be sent to Europe The crash investigation could take months Pakistan is enduring its annual monsoon season Islamabad, Pakistan -- The data recorders for the plane that crashed and killed 152 people in Pakistan have been found, a government official said Saturday. Junaid Amin, the head of Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority, told CNN the plane's voice and the flight data recorders have been found at the crash site. He says the analysis of the data and completing the crash investigation could take several months. Amin said the items will be sent to Germany or France since Pakistan doesn't have facilities to perform the analyses. The Airblue plane was headed to Islamabad from the sea port city of Karachi on Wednesday when it crashed in a hillside while trying to land. Pakistan observed a day of mourning Thursday for victims of the accident - the worst passenger plane crash on Pakistani soil. Officials do not know if weather played a factor in the crash Wednesday. Pakistan is in the midst of the annual monsoon season, when rain sweeps across the subcontinent from June until September. The deadliest crash involving a Pakistani airline occurred in September 1992, when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus crashed into a mountain in Nepal, killing all 167 people on board, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported. The Airbus A321 was carrying 146 passengers and six crew members, the airline said. The U.S. Embassy in Pakistan said two of the people aboard were American citizens. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA: Plane flies too close to Continental jet (AP) The Federal Aviation Administration says a small plane got too close to a Continental jet as it was approaching Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport. No one was injured. But FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford says the Continental Express Flight 2979 jet had to climb 300 feet to avoid the single-engine experimental aircraft on Friday afternoon. Lunsford says the Continental jet passed over the small plane and landed normally. He says the Continental pilot estimated he came within 100 feet of the small aircraft. Lunsford says the pilot of the small plane says the navigation equipment wasn't working properly. Continental's website says Flight 2979 was flying to Houston from Kansas City. The FAA is investigating. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Three killed in second Alaska air crash in a week WASHINGTON (AFP) - Three people are dead after a twin-engine cargo plane crashed Sunday in Denali National Park in the US state of Alaska, the National Parks Service said. It was the second fatal crash involving a transport plane in Alaska in less than a week. In a statement, the parks service said the aircraft crashed into the south-facing slope of Mount Healy, within a mile (1.6 kilometers) of the park headquarters, at approximately 3:00 pm local time (2300 GMT). "There were three people reported to be on board. It appears as if there were no survivors," the statement said. No names were released, pending notification of next of kin. The aircraft was identified as a Fairchild C-123 registered to All West Freight company in Delta Junction, Alaska. The crash ignited a wildfire, which has now been contained. On Wednesday, a US military C-17 Globemaster cargo plane crashed during a training mission at the Elmendorf base near Alaska's biggest city Anchorage, killing all four crew members aboard. Witnesses to Sunday's crash reported seeing a plume of smoke near the Denali Park airstrip. "It looked like he was flying kind of low, and he banked hard to the left and went straight down we saw the fire ball come up from the back side of the mountains," Brent Stache, a visitor from Wisconsin told KTVA-CBS 11 News. "If you can imagine a big jet crashing and all the airplane fuel starting on fire and going straight up in the air." The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration were notified, and federal investigators were expected at the scene on Monday. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Crashed MD-11F caught fire after impact: Saudi inquiry Preliminary information on the Lufthansa Cargo Boeing MD-11 freighter crash at Riyadh last week indicates that the fire resulted from the impact of the aircraft with the runway. The aircraft, arriving at King Khaled International Airport's runway 33L, struck the ground hard, damaging the undercarriage, and slid to a halt into the dust along the left side of the landing strip. In a statement disclosing initial findings from the 27 July accident, Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Civil Aviation appears to rule out a fire on board the tri-jet before it touched down. It says the "impact of the aircraft with the runway surface led to the fire". The GACA also says that the crash resulted in a state of alert at the airport and the mobilisation of rescue services, but does not indicate that the aircraft had declared any emergency beforehand. The GACA says that the flight recorders from the MD-11F were retrieved and that efforts are under way to analyse the data contained in them. It says that a report will be issued "outlining the circumstances of the incident upon completion of a full investigation". Lufthansa says its logistics operation will only be marginally affected by the loss of the aircraft because, following a resurgence in the freight market, the cargo division is reintroducing aircraft which had been taken out of service during the downturn. "In the second half of the year, two more of the four decommissioned freighters willbe brought back into service," says the company. Lufthansa Cargo is expecting a "substantially positive" operating result for the full year 2010. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103593122928&s=6053&e=0011IORfRfve8TsQVQRMwHwB1AM1U5LR2-3dm-rFAXXq7yy7IQ8zCO3fBd-GWRWolMgb7RYAuoWgZ-_ZOw7PfaRJCMMN59PaI-H] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SIA 777 in wing-tip clash at Beijing Capital A Singapore Airlines (SIA) Boeing 777-200 has collided with a stationary aircraft at Beijing Capital International Airport while taxiing today. The 777's right wing-tip struck the tail of another aircraft while it was taxiing out to the runway for departure, says an SIA spokesman. Reports say it collided with an Air China Boeing 737-800. No injuries were reported in the incident. The 777 was returned to the gate and the flight was subsequently cancelled, adds the spokesman. "An assessment is being carried out," he says. All 248 passengers on board the flight were provided with accommodation in Beijing. SIA has not elaborated on the cause of the incident. Flight SQ803 had been scheduled to depart at 08:45, according to SIA's website. Meteorological data from Beijing Capital at this time recorded mist and low-visibility conditions. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Denver overrun spurs crosswind scrutiny by NTSB US safety officials are urging the FAA to improve how crosswind data is collected and shared with pilots at airports downwind of mountainous terrain. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) today formalised recommendations stemming from its investigation into the December 2008 Continental Airlines Boeing 737-500 overrun at Denver International airport. NTSB determined the main cause of the overrun of Runway 34R was the captain not properly controlling the aircraft for the extreme and unexpected crosswind conditions during the takeoff run. But the board also stressed that when the pilots received takeoff clearance they were advised of a 26kt (48km/h) crosswind when data available to controllers that is not typically supplied to pilots showed the winds were stronger. NTSB says a study conducted by the National Centre for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) showed mountain wave conditions were present at the time of the accident, resulting in strong, localised westerly winds with intermittent gusts as high as 45kt that crossed the aircraft's path during takeoff ground roll. As a result the NTSB is recommending that FAA conduct research into mountain wave conditions at airports subject to those circumstances including Denver, Colorado Springs, Anchorage, Salt Lake City and Reno. The board concludes that existing low level windshear alert systems (LLWAS) at airports could supply a better understanding of mountain wave conditions, but the ability of those systems to alert air traffic control to gusts or crosswinds could be improved. NTSB is urging FAA to archive all LLWAS data obtained from airports experiencing mountain wave conditions and make the information available for use the in the potential development of an improved LLWAS algorithm for crosswind and gusty wind alerts. The board also states that airport wind displayed on the controller's ribbon display terminal at the time of the accident would have shown 35kt winds from the west with 40kt (74km/h) gusts. Continental's maximum crosswind speed is 33kt (61km/h) during takeoff and Boeing's recommendation is 40kt (70km/h). But controllers did not display that information and were not required to do so, says NTSB, which adds no established criteria exists for controllers to supply alternate wind information to pilots. Given those circumstances NTSB recommends that FAA should require air traffic controllers at airports with multiple sources of wind information to provide pilots with the maximum wind component a pilot could encounter. Another conclusion reached by NTSB is that the Denver air traffic control tower's runway selection policy doesn't account for crosswind components when selecting a runway configuration. The board believes FAA should require towers to develop written runway selection programmes that factor in current and developing wind conditions when considering operational advantage in runway selection. NTSB has sent a total of 14 recommendations to FAA resulting from its investigation into the Continental overrun, including a recommendation that aircraft manufacturers develop type-specific, maximum crosswind takeoff limitations. Other suggestions pertain to crosswind training for pilots and cockpit seat upgrades. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ US Congress passes FAA extension and new safety directives Both the US Senate and the House of Representatives have approved an extension of current operating and spending authority for the FAA, adding a number of safety provisions aimed specifically at commuter and regional airlines. The measure extends FAA funding through 30 September. This is the 15th extension of the agency's authorisation since 2007. The House passed its version of FAA Reauthorisation in 2009 and the Senate passed a version this year, but the two sides need to reconcile their differences for the full Congress to pass legislation. "It's unfortunate that we must pass another extension and we need to get long-term reauthorisation in place when we return in September," says Representative Tom Petri. "But I am pleased that important safety provisions are part of this extension. These much needed improvements will strengthen aviation safety, particularly related to regional airlines and provide one level of safety." Lawmakers took particular interest in the safety of regional carriers following the fatal crash of a Colgan Air Bombardier Q400 in 2009, that highlighted deficiencies in background checks and pilot training. The legislation calls for improved training as recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board, addressing pilot fatigue and strengthening minimal requirements for receiving an airline transport pilot certificate (ATP). The FAA will be asked to create a comprehensive pilot record database that will enable carriers to track and review pilot work histories. The legislation will also require carriers to disclose the name of each carrier that provides a specific segment of a flight. "We believe that moving these safety reforms right now, as part of the extension act, is simply the right thing to do," says James Oberstar, chair of the House Committee of Transportation and Infrastructure. "We view these safety provisions as just a preview of a very strong comprehensive aviation package that this Congress will deliver for the American public people." Senator Jay Rockefeller says that the extension represents a "big step forward in improving safety in the skies" and notes his commitment to push for passage of the bill. "Improving airline safety for American travellers has always been one of my top priorities." Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CL&A Logo [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103593122928&s=6053&e=0011IORfRfve8RuKuwqrvupPBvOlk-YDWDlyUjzuXWCcUWxkB09f7EYOf90x5JmVmtYXTVQD8NULQk-JxWZBSYsacayOzUMsqu-uLfXGHaxOv90HC1QCRaabg==] Accident Investigation If you are unfortunate to have an accident, Curt Lewis & Associates, LLC can conduct a private investigation to determine the direct and indirect causes of your accident. We can also guide you through the investigative process if the NTSB or OSHA should become involved and provide legal guidance. Furthermore, we can develop new procedures and training to prevent the accident from happening again. If an accident should occur, a pre-accident plan can reduce the cost of investigation as well as provide guidance and instruction to your employees. Curt Lewis & Associates, LLC can develop one for you consisting of directions on what to do in the following moments after an accident to conducting an in-house investigation to determine the cause. Additionally, we can train your employees on not only how to initiate the pre-accident plan, but on all emergency procedures that might occur in your business. www.curt-lewis.com [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103593122928&s=6053&e=0011IORfRfve8RuKuwqrvupPBvOlk-YDWDlyUjzuXWCcUWxkB09f7EYOf90x5JmVmtYXTVQD8NULQk-JxWZBSYsacayOzUMsqu-uLfXGHaxOv90HC1QCRaabg==] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ helo [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103593122928&s=6053&e=0011IORfRfve8SGOmNYCHTYh8zzEUy-PTQS9g8yWAlvfHqcvhi9J2p27F34mr4gmyYwKv75Gw0gq6vuIS-3fKK1XwaYUMpvS9JyMiH_GafR9crZqIXJRzswaQ==] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC