Flight Safety Information September 17, 2010 - No. 195 In This Issue FAA's pilot-fatigue plan hits wall with unions NTSB Issues Safety Recommendation Based on 2001 Airline Crash Near JFK China Southern Airlines hit by safety incidents Invitation for Expressions of Interest...Registered Audit Companies & Accredited Auditors ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAA's pilot-fatigue plan hits wall with unions FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt details the proposal, next Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, left. By Alan Levin, USA TODAY WASHINGTON - Two union groups on Thursday rebuked the government's proposal to reduce on-the-job fatigue among the nation's pilots, a potential roadblock to the sweeping attempt to revamp pilot schedules. The Allied Pilots Association, which represents American Airlines' 11,500 pilots, called the proposal by the Federal Aviation Administration "a big step backwards." The Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations - an umbrella group of pilot unions representing American, Southwest Airlines, US Airways and others - said the FAA proposal "may have a negative impact on flight safety." DRINKING: Pilots' alcohol limits debated NEW RULES: Big change for pilots' scheduling NTSB: Pilots need air-hazard skills The groups said that the FAA proposal that would allow pilots in some instances to fly up to two hours longer each day - to 10 hours, up from eight - would actually increase fatigue. The FAA argued that other changes to reduce fatigue would ensure safety. The proposal calls for lowering the maximum number of hours a pilot can work each day, including paperwork and waiting for flights, and increasing the guaranteed rest period. It also proposed more restrictive schedules when pilots fly late at night or make numerous short flights, both of which can trigger fatigue. Congress ordered new rules after last year's commuter plane crash near Buffalo raised concerns about fatigued pilots and safety. They must go into effect by Aug. 1. Flight-safety advocates, who have applauded the proposal, said they feared that the objections by pilots and some carriers could create barriers to a new rule much like those that killed a similar proposal in 1995. Bill Voss, president of the non-profit Flight Safety Foundation, called the proposal "a tremendous step forward on something that has been in gridlock because of labor-management distrust for over 20 years." "Whether or not this proposed rule survives depends on whether the parties have the courage to maintain the compromise that has been struck," Voss said. The nation's largest pilots union, the Air Line Pilots Association, testified before the House Aviation Subcommittee that it also is troubled by some elements of the FAA proposal. However, ALPA said it is still studying the proposal. Some carriers have also objected to provisions of the proposal. The National Air Carrier Association, a trade group for charter airlines, testified before the subcommittee that it disagrees with the FAA's attempts to apply the same set of pilot work rules for all carriers. Some charter companies operate under less stringent rules http://www.usatoday.com/ Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NTSB Issues Safety Recommendation Based on 2001 Airline Crash Near JFK A new safety recommendation from the NTSB considers rudder problems encountered before the November 2001 crash of an American Airlines Airbus near JFK. September 17, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently issued a safety recommendation to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) regarding the November 2001 crash of an American Airlines Airbus near JFK. The crash of Flight 587, which was flying to the Dominican Republic, took the lives of all 260 passengers and crew, as well as five people in Belle Harbor, a neighborhood in Queens. While all such airline crashes are tragic, this one was particularly devastating, coming just two months after the horror of 9/11 and just a few miles from Ground Zero. Flight 587 encountered wake turbulence from a Boeing 747 shortly after takeoff, and the pilot's steering response created severe strain on the rudder mechanism. Sounds of likely mechanical failures could be heard in the recorded data recovered from the plane's wreckage, as well as the pilots' desperate attempts to right the aircraft. In other words, the structural failure of the vertical stabilizer was caused by an overreaction by the pilot to the presence of air turbulence caused by another aircraft. The aircraft may have corrected itself without any input from the pilot at all, like the January 10, 2008 Air Canada Airbus incident over Washington State, noted by the NTSB in its new recommendation. Soon after its crash investigation commenced, the NTSB issued a safety recommendation for updates in training of all pilots of transport-category airplanes. The NTSB's 2004 final report on the incident found the cause of the crash to be "the in-flight separation of the vertical stabilizer as a result of the loads beyond ultimate design that were created by the first officer's unnecessary and excessive rudder pedal inputs." The vertical stabilizer is the "fin" or "tail" of the aircraft, with the side-to-side moving rudder that controls aircraft nose direction. The "loads" referenced by the NTSB are aerodynamic stresses caused by rapid movement of the rudder in an attempt to combat the aircraft movement caused by the wake of the nearby Boeing 747. The report, however, also pointed to "characteristics of the Airbus A300-600 rudder system design and elements of the American Airlines Advanced Aircraft Maneuvering Program," as a contributing factor in the crash. The Airbus A-300 involved in the November 2001 crash was built in France, subject to European regulatory oversight. In its new recommendation, issued on August 4, 2010, the NTSB encourages modification of European certification standards to ensure safe handling qualities "in the yaw axis throughout the flight envelope," as well as instituting limits for the sensitivity of rudder pedals. The yaw axis refers to the axis about which the aircraft nose and tail moves side-to-side. The flight envelope refers to the outer boundaries of flight for which the aircraft is designed. The NTSB recommendation involves limiting rudder movement so that the aerodynamic stresses or "loads" do not exceed the design maximums. The NTSB also suggests review and modification, if necessary, of all existing models of the Airbus A300-600 and A310 aircraft. www.ntsb.gov [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103695123087&s=6053&e=001nLPWATRD_17WsQJZjut6wwFOkDIN2_y9HLzrYUajzv6TXTjXjo-6Eu0RLYhvrjt8jr8EhRJ6wU7w09yisqNWdZVRyZS5rJYEO5ExPGrNyx4=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ China Southern Airlines hit by safety incidents BEIJING (AFP) - A China Southern Airlines passenger jet caught fire Monday just before it was due to take off, in the second incident to hit the carrier in less than 24 hours, an official and state press said. A fire broke out early Monday in the cargo hold of an Airbus A321 passenger jet operated by China Southern at an airport in the southern city of Guangzhou, an airline official who asked not to be named told AFP. An investigation into the fire was under way, he said. The state-run Xinhua news agency said the fire started after passengers had already boarded the jet, adding that an initial probe found that "combustibles" in the cargo hold were to blame, without offering details. On Sunday, thick smoke was seen coming from the wheels of another China Southern plane as it landed with more than 100 passengers aboard in the northern city of Xian, Xinhua said. No casualties were reported in either incident, it said. However, they follow other incidents that have raised doubts over aviation safety in the country, particularly the August 24 crash of a Brazilian-made passenger jet operated by Henan Airlines. The plane missed a runway in northeastern China's Heilongjiang province, killing 42 people and injuring another 54. It was the deadliest commercial plane crash in China since 2004. The incident in Xian involved a McDonnell Douglas MD90 jet, Xinhua said. That jet took off again later Sunday after repairs, it said. The smoke was caused by an oil leak in a tyre and high temperatures in the wheel hub, it added, quoting the airline. In the days following the Henan Airlines crash, the wings of a Huaxia Airlines jet scraped the ground when landing in the southwestern city of Guiyang. China's aviation watchdog subsequently ordered Huaxia to suspend all flights and launch a safety inspection of all of its aircraft. Authorities had already ordered safety checks of the country's fast-growing civil aviation fleet of 1,300 planes in the wake of the Henan Airlines disaster. The government has also ordered reviews of the qualifications of all pilots and other domestic airline personnel after it was found that around 200 pilots had lied on their resumes. Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Invitation for Expressions of Interest Registered Audit Companies & Accredited Auditors for the Resource Sector Basic Aviation Risk Standard Program The Flight Safety Foundation (the Foundation) has come together with the world's leading resource companies to make flying safer for personnel employed within the sector. The Basic Aviation Risk (BAR) Standard Program will transform how aviation safety is managed in the resources and allied sectors to enhance global aviation safety standards and save lives. The rollout of the Program is well advanced and the Foundation now invites Expressions of Interest from suitably qualified organisations to become a BAR Standard Registered Audit Company. Registered Audit Companies will be the only entities permitted to conduct official audits of aircraft operators used by the resource sector as part of the BAR Standard Program (utilizing only BAR Standard Accredited Auditors). Following the initial expressions of interest being received by the Foundation, suitably qualified organisations will be invited to make a formal application (application forms to be supplied). Upon evaluation of these applications, the Foundation plans to appoint a number of organisations as Registered Audit Companies permitting them to employ BAR Standard accredited auditors to conduct BAR Standard audits. Successful Audit Companies will be registered for an initial three-year term and will be subject to, at a minimum, an annual performance evaluation. Continuation of Audit Company registration will be dependent on satisfactory ongoing evaluation, as well as conformity with all relevant program operating parameters. Expressions of Interest are also being sought from appropriately qualified individuals to apply to become BAR Standard Accredited Auditors. To become a BAR Standard Accredited Auditor, applicants are required to meet specified industry experience criteria to qualify and participate in the Auditor Accreditation Course. Upon the successful completion of the formal training course, applicants will become BAR Standard Accredited Auditors. To maintain accreditation auditors will be required to meet recency and recurrent training requirements and be subjected to ongoing evaluation of audit quality and conduct. This is a grass roots opportunity to for experienced industry professionals to become part of this innovative program that will change the face of aviation safety in the resources and allied industries. Further information on the program may be obtained at www.flightsafety.org. Expressions of Interest and further enquiries may be forwarded to Mr Graham Rochat, email: rochat@flightsafety.org or phone: +61 1300 557 162. About the Flight Safety Foundation The Flight Safety Foundation is an independent, non-profit, international organization engaged in research, auditing, education, advocacy and publishing to improve aviation safety. Its membership spans 142 countries and all segments of the global aviation industry. Its Board of Governors and broad range of technical/advisory committees represent a who's who of aviation industry leaders. www.flightsafety.org [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103695123087&s=6053&e=001nLPWATRD_15YWQ7Q8rOFuel3V7OQo1pinkT9qR7i9rKaVhKJqveXwml_ZIgKd5kFDeqmZBLwuyuimt5aWuSUggWT5TLitL5pncxR7o89nS83HFo6jdE4Uw==] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC