Flight Safety Information October 14, 2010 - No. 211 In This Issue Airlines oppose law increasing pilot flight hours Sukhoi Superjet 100 passes noise testing program System sets targets to lessen possible flight hazards Heart attack kills pilot during flight New scanner aims to make liquids on planes safer ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Airlines oppose law increasing pilot flight hours WASHINGTON - A key safety measure recently passed by Congress in response to a deadly regional airline crash last year is facing opposition from industry officials concerned that it could lead to higher salaries for airline pilots. A Federal Aviation Administration advisory panel dominated by airlines, companies that employ pilots to fly corporate planes and university flight schools wants to reduce by two-thirds a requirement that airline co-pilots have a minimum of 1,500 hours of flying experience - the same experience threshold that captains must meet. The key issue is money, according to officials familiar with the panel's deliberations. Airlines worry that if the FAA raises the threshold for co-pilots - also called first officers - from the current minimum of 250 hours, airlines will be forced to raise pilot salaries and benefits in order to attract more experienced fliers, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. Most airline pilots have far more experience than 1,500 hours. But industry analysts have forecast a pilot shortage if the economy starts to expand, which could create a premium for experience. The salaries of corporate and other private pilots are affected by airline salaries. University flight schools are similarly concerned that if beginner pilots have to accrue 1,500 hours of flight experience before they can be hired by an airline, they'll skip expensive university training in favor of amassing flight time through per-hour instruction. Using a provision in the new law that allows the FAA to give prospective pilots some credit for flight school training, the panel proposed allowing airlines to hire university-trained first officers with as little as 500 hours, according to a copy of the panel's recommendations. The roles of airline captains and first officers have changed over the years. Today, both pilots are expected to be able to fly a plane equally well and to share duties. The FAA formed the committee this summer just before Congress passed a far-reaching aviation safety bill, including the boost in required flight hours. The law was prompted by a regional airline crash near Buffalo, N.Y., in February 2009 that killed 50 people. The flight's 24-year-old first officer earned about $16,000 in the year before the accident. She lived at home with her parents near Seattle but flew across the country in order to reach the airline's base in Newark, N.J., in time for the flight. A National Transportation Safety Board investigation concluded the first officer and the flight's captain were probably suffering fatigue at the time of the accident. Neither had slept in a bed the night before - the first officer napped in a cockpit jump seat, the captain in a crew lounge where sleeping was discouraged. Pilots, particularly at regional airlines, often can't afford to live in the communities where they're based. Some share cheap apartments near their base so they can grab sleep before flights. Others simply nap wherever they can. Lawmakers who proposed the 1,500-hour requirement last year said at the time they hoped it would lead to higher salaries. "The new safety law explicitly requires 1,500 flight hours," Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Ill., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure aviation subcommittee, said this week. "Any modification of that number has to be justified as making safety stronger than current ... requirements." Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who pushed the requirement in the Senate, said Congress was "crystal clear" that 1,500 hours was to be the minimum level required for co-pilots. FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said in a statement that the panel's recommendations won't be the sole factor in the agency's determination of how to implement the new law. FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt, a former airline pilot, has expressed skepticism about the 1,500-hour requirement, saying it is more important to improve the quality of the pilot training than to increase the amount of experience in the cockpit. That has also been the industry position. "The number of hours flown should not be the sole measure of qualification and proficiency," said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Association. Roger Cohen, president of the Regional Airline Association, said money had nothing to do with the recommendation. He said academic training is "far more useful in training pilots for modern airline operations" than hours amassed "towing banners above the beach." Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hCLlVKChJBnZGGI0F6iOENP_WFbAD9IRAQ3G0?docId=D9IRAQ3G0 [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrqwgMdll1jN65YdLkXL27VHGAWPfg0ZMZLhJabZfOBOeLu87gmBuVtLIbxwqykZ4wT8YSUgcdm7tt-ZfUqxmN7XP1mDbXJqrmzRP8wnNGbkMmAtWlzOJ-FOGlpRDiQT_dGeMOK5pHJvKpWn2qYkPXkG5uOLnxLLygEC2-F87MdizjNj3MFbacKXGBpl7NMbEjP-XvaHnXPLEbzvOfIqEwQbFM1hHHH1Wm4=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sukhoi Superjet 100 passes noise testing program The Sukhoi SSJ 100 from Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. in Moscow has passed a noise testing [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrrKjDhTwpqLi5cQfGmZl-llhnKTjPspLxabifkE7PamV3W5HxDkzymN2hJ7Fs2m2fIzkxyVLIcPWyzjv6RkPP_0x5WfA6TF8lNWi8IE8GikTujY81D7KKsgjaffHt7CeYPiEjuRidIlynk0jMNaBw84R4rz8qwdk3O9RZbR3g4QUN27SPWufwUHawn_db5WyD6JR2ex-UuTKw6kZ9vJvZpx1iNaVeikL6De8npQHKJwD4HEG4H-rKyn36IbDldzdOd0aJf3CiM0rtogCz9D4AJ5mYjVWwzAhws=] program performed as a part of its overall flight certification [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrosvU13O_3zkEosmO-yV8IGh_1uuBa3ysIhxXd-TRttZBrCnXHJz1DqIKuH_cqolglJBEpU7jOwox-4pocnwjj8XFlKo2aWkPQ07fhGPM8TaI_yt3gM-BwkzDNyGYv7aQcDKxC_aVCTN1qCiqodFi1XmOmLsuiI9PaRRbmP49KxOgsGtYwylNuXcC5CqL0CGOCMyUhwPB173WR5ynE22ZYzYPF7wwypmxcyVGeKdhgoK2JO1n-3pu0hQiXcuXYds19S-UnPRsxlYhSL0ZY-iDZzISHW55dpDxQ=] campaign with the European Aviation Safety [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrqOlU5qH-gzLOr7a30kdyVO5iRdFNL5f0uiH72VWeK2BIiU2178QtfmvEIS9GIbDSksjBUQhjLhvhXJVUfroORZSmwgxgUy7fcvfYWtsfnU1iLHq7iQDYJ3NXPxYPYNf24zPAwvDW7bFdlHTgLyXojSd2QivhlN5KvNPzbUDikMivWU7p0Cxsiwk3VCSLKNNzzo0evcrOMhouZvZXwrzW75guydfrzyukmRahDaBP4LYhE70qockh7IzyMjNStNm3lvlXVK_eQXnQ==] Agency (EASA) and Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC) Aviation Register (AR). At the Cuneo-Levaldigi airport in Turin, Italy the aircraft made eight certification flights. The preliminary results show that the aircraft noise levels show full compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) CAEPIV requirements. The same aircraft -- #95004 -- is undergoing high intensity radio frequency (HIRF) testing, in the same premises. HIRF testing methodology was elaborated by the SCAC engineering team in collaboration with Alenia Aeronautica and relevant certification authorities. HIRF certification is required to demonstrate that the aircraft electric and electronic equipment are not influenced by external electromagnetic fields such as those produced by a TV, radio stations, or radar [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrryrP6H41Qa4hZ8G0piqItVCJxBzS-xW1zer_SmxF54BwC-PHiN9a5MlCPSI94ukjcpal6NdZXIU7JPCIktQ-0QW8NpjO0Z3sXRhUJGX3vAVM_D1CBkcqpduSjfEW9Zf-QNMURJwZDdb2ndnyY0nKjhh_hJ5vSO1KkBBQ3TDCPAmy2Gzsq_-ktPvnFMISGgwzStsUq_tQivSQKdUk9btadmMYg475KBBTHfJdMe0erl9nFZkWK4btyBlpsHBaInkF0-N8OULN9PxsnrGazz_jtSoeNpqvj5TOaBXsXqyTztML5OIFBYeT0E]. HIRF testing technique consists in radiating the aircraft with radio waves whose frequencies and levels of emission are set by certification rules. The aircraft can be electrically powered or unpowered, and engines can also run. The electromagnetic fields and currents on cables inside the aircraft are measured during radiation and avionics [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrqoHv9SdIx8q5REW8Hj9uYozqeEUnGUUtCq6VMGrr57kb95lrELjWDsD29Oqf1y2FZMWU5W62e4vs_HmQx489hLPo_Kh8zzZ31leuLOJEiuVkjaXDXNAAXDycXgdDRNyqdpq50YWCJVkA2o7FhMNVEK] equipment monitored to check for any malfunction. Telemetry is used to monitor aircraft parameters in real time as well as to avoid radiation exposure during testing. "Sukhoi Superjet 100 is the first aircraft in Russia that has compliance with international noise standards proven in flight under supervision of Russian and European certification authorities," says Igor Vinogradov, senior vice president of certification for Sukhoi. Source: http://www.militaryaerospace.com/index/display/article-display/2298533944/articles/avionics-intelligence/news/2010/10/sukhoi-superjet_100.html [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDro1NuGFRYNi888ElynHfDFb1JRxfLy2hh0zwWZSUAem85_9lEHw6hpZj7VEctzKWoS1KnWATLsWGr4x5GamK71Nt7KeIerxN3cPdnrH8Pl2SjQ_qoNKqpu1i1yrucx9RMiC22ImUFMT2hTFqxfv1pzUxG6EcvaQrauw2cfQzwoSQCYn3Lmz_ZAjAyRoWgggZzx9jNuYYqSeclCJw3m-l7TRU1iQojt5XhKCIsCismmnK27IzI1KOZtiLFVE3pVfHP0Qjx6rhwjxobQbzgAMk74AH9ao2gnc640=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ System sets targets to lessen possible flight hazards SA's record has improved but now air safety needs to become proactive and preventative, writes Julius Baumann SINCE Colin Jordaan was recruited by former transport minister Jeff Radebe in 2007 to head the troubled Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the organisation has made huge strides in improving safety oversight and bringing down the rate of aircraft accidents in SA. Mr Jordaan told the fourth annual national safety seminar in Midrand yesterday that, in terms of International Civil Aviation Organisation safety requirements, SA was now one of the most compliant countries in the world, at 99%, according to most recent data. In 2007 one of the weakest areas was the lack of skilled inspectors and the CAA has since gone on an extensive recruitment drive . "We now have inspectors for every single aircraft type in SA." A range of safety interventions, including the launch of the General Aviation Safety Initiative in 2008, has led to a significant decline in the accident rate since 2007. Despite a spike in late 2008 - when 23 people were killed in 12 accidents in a single month - the rate has fallen steadily. Mr Jordaan said that in the 12 months to March the number of accidents fell 15% and fatalities dropped 54% compared with the previous year. This drop means the CAA has come a long way towards meeting the government's Millennium Goal, signed in 2007, to reduce aircraft accidents by 50% by 2014. But the country's aviation authorities need to do more, Rennie Van Zyl, acting head of the CAA's accident investigation unit, said at the conference. The industry needs to move from reactive monitoring of accidents to a more proactive stance on safety. "Let us not start thinking about safety when we are looking at the smoking hull of an aircraft. We need to adopt the next generation of safety practices to reduce the rate of occurrences, of which safety management systems are the cornerstone," he said. The systems put the onus on aircraft operators and other service providers to identify potential hazards and take steps to eliminate them as a cause of an accident. The International Civil Aviation Organisation introduced the system as a new safety regulation and civil aviation organisations around the world are now obliged to implement their own regulations. The CAA is far advanced . "We had hoped to have it completed by the beginning of this year. However, the drafting of the regulations is now complete and promulgation is not far off," says Louise Stols, GM of risk and compliance at the CAA. The aim of the regulations is for each organisation to set proactive targets . By way of example, Ms Stols said an airline would target a reduction in runway incursions or bird strikes over a fixed period. "The targets will be agreed to by the CAA and will be a contract with that specific operator or service provider," Ms Stols says. "From these we will determine national targets." Full implementation is set for 2012 and the CAA hopes to publish initial targets by early next year. "These targets will evolve over time as the process matures," she says. Several aviation companies have begun to implement the systems and yesterday South African Airways' (SAA's) head of aviation safety, Coen van den Bergh, showed how the system will be rolled out at the airline. He said that while the system was introduced at SAA as far back as eight years ago, management is in the process of rolling the system out more widely. "Previously safety was the domain of management but now we are introducing the system across levels and divisions of the airline," said Mr van den Bergh. "Last week the CAA gave a presentation to the SAA executive committee on the system and this week coming we will meet with our human resources department to see how we can get employees to meet the targets in terms of their performance scorecards. "This is not a programme that belongs just with management but with every employee." The question posed at yesterday's conference was whether the new regulations work. "I say the answer to that question is yes. By eliminating potential hazards the likelihood of accidents is greatly reduced," said Mr van Zyl. Source: http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=123685 [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrqYWKObYCE99Syjs52waAJrjqhTq3I1wtdPC02j1N2B3unqclDsWs_bqjGnLNIcXnxPm0L_5kSXQagau31u4wyZStcndNZibXi6YuLJkaXKM8shVIBo-MmXlWkKZpHUEOi_KSjcmiGsE0w2wK9yqtdo5521tj492fY=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Heart attack kills pilot during flight The captain of a Qatar Airways Airbus A330-300, flight QR645 from Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL) in Manila, Philippines to Doha Airport (DOH) in Qatar died of a heart attack during the flight, on Wednesday morning, October 13. The copilot took command of the aircraft, diverting to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL) in Malaysia, landing at 11:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday, October 13. Paramedics were unable to revive the man, who was described as an Indian national. Another Qatar Airways flight crew flew the aircraft from Kuala Lumpur to Doha, the capital of the Qatar, arriving 272 minutes late (4-1/2 hours), according to flight status tracking at FlightSmart.com Qatar, which has an emirate-type government, is located in the Middle East, bordered by Saudi Arabia and separated by the Persian Gulf from Bahrain. It is rich in oil and natural gas. Al Jazeera, an international news network headquartered in Doha, was among the first media to report the incident. Qatar Airways said in a statement that its priority "remains the comfort and safety of its passengers and staff". It did not confirm the cause of death, or if the flight was ever at risk. While rare for a cockpit crew to become incapacitated aloft, according to the British Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), there were 32 incidents during 2009 when pilots were incapacitated during a flight. During 2008, such situations occurred 39 times, caused by food poisoning, nausea and fainting. The last reported death by a flight crew while airborne happened on June 18, 2009 when a 60-year-old pilot aboard Continental Airlines (CO) flight Flight 61, a Boeing 777-200ER, from Brussels AIrport (BRU) to Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) suffered a fatal heart attack at 10:30 a.m. EDT over the Atlantic. The first officer and a relief pilot took over control of the aircraft. None of the 247 passengers on board the plane were aware of the tragedy. Many commercial aircraft and airports around the world have computerized heart paddle defibrillators available which can deliver a shock to help restore normal cardiac rhythm to persons suffering heart related incidents. It is not yet known whether such equipment was on board the Qatar Airways flight, or if it were deployed. This journalist was on a Northwest Airlines flight in 2007 from LaGuardia Airport (LGA) to Minneapolis (MSP), which had to return to the gate because a flight crew member had become critically ill. Our sympathies go out to the family, friends, and colleagues of the deceased Qatar Airways captain. Source: http://www.examiner.com/airlines-airport-in-national/heart-attack-kills-pilot-during-flight?render=print#print [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrqJS9wU1uW4u8pJuO-by8pZkkPi_hglxjYNCPcU6GiFkvpQr8Hl-xTCGUyYi0LG6UKDqnPdFcTHQdrplMvl1-vdId1NbVBdq2Az3yqh8Sy5kSkaqOLecynCTv2xopGJDfaHq_2_0alxxmSypuN4VBKM8KOXR6Jokgkll8UQwzwm4n7F4hyXMAfQdN2fELnKQzUtWu9q5lpI5pBiBVRIX5DBVuwXTB6dsSw=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New scanner aims to make liquids on planes safer The latest airport security technology being developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory could open the door for airline passengers to bring their soft drinks and full-size shampoo bottles on board again. Homeland security officials put the latest generation of the bottled liquid scanner to the test Wednesday during a demonstration at Albuquerque's international airport. Everything from bottled water and champagne to shampoo and pink liquid laxatives were scanned to make sure explosives weren't hiding inside. The device, about the size of a small refrigerator, uses magnetic resonance to read the liquids' molecular makeup, even when the substances are in metal containers. Within 15 seconds, a light on top of the simple-looking metal box flashes red or green, depending on whether there's danger. The device is so sensitive it can tell the difference between red and white wine, and between different types of soda. "What we're doing is really looking for the real dangers, like liquid homemade explosives," said Stephen Surko, program manager of the Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency. "We're just real excited at the progress we're making." The technology is still a few years from being deployed in the nation's airports, where fears of liquid explosives have stopped passengers from bringing more than small amounts of lotions and other toiletries in their carry-on bags. Surko said the lab will have to partner with a manufacturer, and the machines will have to go through testing and certification. With the bottled liquid scanner, Surko said Transportation Security Administration officers would be able to quickly check the liquids that are allowed in carry-on luggage. If the technology is successfully implemented, it may eliminate the need for passengers to stuff all their toiletry bottles - each no larger than 3.4 ounces - into a single quart-sized plastic bag. Travelers had gotten used to being scanned, swabbed and patted down since the 9/11 attacks, but it was an alleged plot to blow up 10 trans-Atlantic airliners with liquid bombs in 2006 that prompted the U.S. to clamp down on liquids. The restrictions have inconvenienced passengers and resulted in longer lines, but officials at the demonstration acknowledged they have yet to achieve what they call a full measure of security. Several passengers flying out of Albuquerque got a sneak peak of the new technology as they were passing through a security checkpoint. Most said they would feel better if the liquids allowed on a plane could be scanned, but they also hoped that the technology would some day allow them to take their drinks along. Barbara Riegelsberger of Cleveland, who travels several times a year, said she has become accustomed to the hassles of packing her shampoo and leaving behind her water bottle. "I'm willing to do what I need to do to be safe," she said. Tomas Hora, a balloon pilot from Germany who was in Albuquerque for an international balloon event, doubted whether the new technology would make things safer. "It won't make a difference," said Hora, who was traveling with his wife and young child. "I think if somebody wants to do harm to an airplane, he can do harm no matter the security you do here at the beginning." Federal officials are hoping otherwise. They have already spent more than $14 million developing the liquid scanners, and the Obama administration has committed tens of millions of dollars to deploy more state-of-the-art equipment to U.S. airports, such as body-imaging scanners and chemical analysis machines that check for explosives in medically necessary liquids like prescription drugs. Over the last two years, researchers have been able to make the bottled liquid scanner about 90 percent smaller and six times faster. The goal is to make it even smaller so it can fit beside other equipment at airport checkpoints. Los Alamos scientist Michelle Espy said she knows what it's like to be in a checkpoint and have her young daughter's bottle taken away. "This would be a very great solution, a quick solution," she said. "Obviously, the end goal is to be able to seamlessly, without slowing anything down, just let people take their liquids on." Source: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/lifestyle/travel/new-scanner-aims-to-make-liquids-on-planes-safer-wcpo1287058650022 [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?llr=gqvqzbdab&et=1103779088702&s=6053&e=001q4-SbE9uDrrYYICCU_47L7CVCEBlySkpAYMuHxRBH0-k_LhYcQ6Ic2wYl3gd867JfhU7Bn6L8M2yznooQEHIPyQ4eKEQLOKqKAphdU3drgtZ9zXdGJ46o0WDMOzQD0HjCRFqk9Lhil8FfMdvLzGTgNz1Z0095erns6UfjeSfgNJGfipeJRitRfkBJJ7aQXn70pslXHLUiaQh-9MOYsmBDqQu1GcTMV3BCAJsmwoOedQ=] Back to Top ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC