Flight Safety Information August 11, 2010 - No. 161 In This Issue Investigators to work scene of Alaska plane crash Wednesday New Guidelines Say Co-Pilots Need to Speak Up HK Government: Fuel Contamination Likely Cause Of Cathay Engine Malfunction The System Safety Handbook ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Investigators to work scene of Alaska plane crash Wednesday (CNN) -- Investigators will be on the scene Wednesday of a plane crash that killed former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens and four others. Autopsies on the victims are expected to be completed by the end of the day Wednesday. The plane flew into the side of a remote Alaska mountain on Monday night. Brutal terrain and bad weather on the remote Alaska mountain kept survivors waiting 12 hours for rescue after the crash, officials and witnesses said Tuesday. "The weather was very challenging for those responding," said Deborah Hersman, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board. Pilots flying over the crash site said the amphibious DeHavilland DHC-Z3T Otter flew into the side of the mountain, which has a 40-degree slope. The pilots didn't think anyone on board had survived, but four did. Eric Shade, one of the pilots who found the wreckage, said the plane appeared to have traveled at least 100 feet from the point of impact. "It was pretty smashed," Shade sad. "The wings were laying behind the fuselage on each side. I couldn't see the floats; the floats were underneath it. I couldn't see anything in the front of the airplane. From the window forward ... everything was gone." Shade said the doomed pilot's path didn't appear to make sense, given the location. "When you're flying down low, into stuff like this, you're flying in the hills -- in between the hills. You have to know where they're at," Shade said. "He flew into the side of the mountain. I have no idea how he got there." There was no fire on the scene, Hersman said at a news conference. The area was so rugged and rocky that rescuers airlifted in a physician with a satellite phone, and the doctor had to hike 1,000 feet to reach the site, she said. Five volunteers, including some with medical training, assisted and stabilized the survivors overnight, officials said. One of the survivors was outside the fuselage when the doctor arrived. "What we can say very clearly is there was a lot of selfless work that was done last night, and there were a lot of people who were applying their skills and also supporting those individuals who were trapped on the hillside," Hersman said. "Obviously, we don't know what would have happened if they had not been there, but we do thank the Lord that they were there." The cause of the crash was not known late Tuesday, but Maj. Guy Hayes of the Alaska National Guard said weather will certainly be considered. "Poor weather always remains a factor when you are out here ... weather can change drastically," Hayes told CNN. The crash claimed the lives of passengers both young and old. The Alaska Department of Public Safety identified the dead as Stevens, of Anchorage, Alaska; pilot Theron "Terry" Smith, 62, of Eagle River, Alaska; lobbyist William "Bill" Phillips Sr. of the Washington, D.C., area; GCI executive Dana Tindall, 48, of Anchorage, Alaska; and her daughter Corey Tindall, 16, of Anchorage, Alaska. The bodies have been recovered and sent to Anchorage. Injured were William "Willy" Phillips Jr., 13, son of Bill Phillips Sr.; Sean O'Keefe, 54; his son, Kevin O'Keefe; and lobbyist Jim Morhard, Alexandria, Virginia. Sean O'Keefe was listed in critical condition, and Kevin O'Keefe was in serious condition late Tuesday, said Kirsten Schultz, a spokeswoman for Providence Alaska Medical Center. The aircraft, on a fishing trip, crashed around 7 p.m. Monday about 17 miles north of Dillingham in the southwestern area of the state, authorities said. When the nine people onboard had not arrived at a camp on time, the search began. The pilot was not required to file a flight plan, authorities said. The Dillingham region, near the Bering Sea southwest of Anchorage, is rugged terrain surrounded by mountains. Because of its vast size, air travel is common in Alaska, often through perilous weather. Stevens expressed his own fears after a 1978 crash that killed his first wife and four others. "Plane crashes are the occupational hazard of Alaska politics," Stevens told The Washington Post in 1979. The Post added, "He said he often felt as if one's number had to come up eventually, and even though he had been a fighter pilot in World War II, the prospect of flying around in his campaign frightened him." In 1972, House Majority Leader Hale Boggs and U.S. Rep. Nick Begich were traveling in a plane that is thought to have crashed in Alaska. It was never found. Nick Begich was the father of one of Alaska's current U.S. senators, Mark Begich. Stevens, 86, was remembered Tuesday as a "lion who retreated before nothing" and for being a guiding light in the formation of the 49th state. Tributes poured in all day for the hard-nosed Stevens, 86, who was the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate's history and a champion for Alaska. "Though small of stature, Ted Stevens seemed larger than life. For he built Alaska. And stood for Alaska. And he fought for Alaskans," Gov. Sean Parnell said at a news conference. "How can we summarize six decades of service?" President Barack Obama extended his condolences to the families, including that of Stevens, who flew in support of the Flying Tigers in the Pacific Theater in World War II. "A decorated World War II veteran, Senator Ted Stevens devoted his career to serving the people of Alaska and fighting for our men and women in uniform," Obama said in a written statement. News of the latest crash reverberated across the state and country. Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate, said Stevens fought tenaciously for Alaska. "In our land of towering mountains and larger-than-life characters, none were larger than the man who in 2000 was voted Alaskan of the Century. This decorated World War II pilot was a warrior and a true champion of Alaska," Palin said in a statement. Stevens earned the nickname "Uncle Ted" and a reputation as one of the most effective of all pork-barrel lawmakers, a senator who funneled billions of federal dollars to his home state. His footprint can be seen all over Alaska. In Anchorage, where most people fly into the Alaska, a large sign proclaims "Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport." Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New Guidelines Say Co-Pilots Need to Speak Up (India) (Reuters) India's aviation regulator DGCA has been trying to improve the country's air safety. "Approach not stabilized! Go around Captain!" That is what a co-pilot needs to shout to the commander when there is a problem landing. The co-pilot has to speak loudly and be ready to take over controls if needed. More than two months after an Air India jetliner crash killed 158 passengers in the southern city of Mangalore, India's aviation regulator has new operational guidelines. The new procedures, which were issued Tuesday, emphasize the importance of co-pilots during emergencies. Under the new procedures from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, or DCGA, the co-pilot needs to shout two warnings to the commander if aircraft is in danger during its approach to the runway. If the commander doesn't listen, then the co - pilot has to take charge of all operational functions. Cockpit mutiny was recommended only in the most extreme cases though. The DGCA circular noted the new actions would happen "only in the case of total or subtle incapacitation of the commander... and also when the aircraft is at least 500 feet from the ground." Aviation experts said most airlines already manage their cockpits this way so the new guidelines are unlikely to improve air safety. "The DGCA, stating the same facts through a written advisory, won't make any difference to air-safety," said Y.N. Sharma, chief operating officer at New Delhi-based Chimes Aviation Academy. After the tragedy in Mangalore, India's aviation regulator has been trying to improve the country's air safety. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation created an advisory council in May to help investigate the accident. The panel is supposed to provide recommendations on air navigation, monitoring of flight operations and airports. On Aug. 3 India's aviation minister Praful Patel talked to Parliament about the safety problems faced by airline industry in the country. "The challenge before DGCA is to manage phenomenal growth of air traffic without compromising on aviation safety," Mr. Patel said. The new guidelines come after the initial probe into the Mangalore crash revealed failures by pilots to follow basic safety rules during the final approach. Their problem was then compounded by cockpit confusion after touchdown. http://blogs.wsj.com/ [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?et=1103610559951&s=6053&e=001_0Klb9Nb4HIOxYfx3lTshQhD4iO7N_PLuk4j8zrS-HrMjKOGI5BqkMJwkVTnuhsCftYcPAJV98tqO7GlNjJzIy9vViXsX36onS9k1a5cBts=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ HK Government: Fuel Contamination Likely Cause Of Cathay Engine Malfunction HONG KONG (Dow Jones)--Fuel contamination was the likely cause of both engines on a Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. (0293.HK) jet malfunctioning as it approached Hong Kong's airport in April, the city's civil aviation department said Wednesday. On a flight from the Indonesian city of Surabaya, the Airbus A330 aircraft made an emergency landing after both engines became stuck at certain thrust levels, resulting in a much higher-than-normal touchdown speed that led to a small fire in its landing gear as the brakes overheated. Eight people out of a total of 322 passengers and crew on board flight CX780 suffered injuries during the evacuation process. The government department said in an update to its investigation on the incident that it found spherical particles in parts of the aircraft's engines, as well as in fuel samples collected from the engines and fuel tanks. Traces of such particles were also discovered in fuel samples from the dispenser used to deliver fuel to the Airbus aircraft at Surabaya's Juanda International Airport, according to the civil aviation department. The department said it has so far found no faults or failures with any of the components removed from the A330 aircraft apart from those linked with the contamination. "Examination and analysis indicated that those (particles) could not have been generated from within the aircraft airframe or engine systems under normal operating conditions," it said in the bulletin. However, the civil aviation department said the exact source of the external contaminants hasn't been determined, adding the investigation on the incident is still ongoing. The department said its investigation is being conducted in conjunction with air crash investigators in France, the U.K., and the U.S. Cathay Pacific had at one point stopped refueling its planes in Surabaya as investigators probing the malfunctions were looking at fuel quality as one of many possible factors causing the rare incident. The Hong Kong-based carrier said in a statement Wednesday it will continue to cooperate and work closely with the government in its continuing investigation. It said it hasn't reported or seen any abnormalities on its flights or those of other airlines operating out of Surabaya since the April incident. http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100811-706190.html Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC