Flight Safety Information November 16, 2010 - No. 236 In This Issue FAA: No Dreamliner Flight Testing Until Fire Cause Is Known FAA Issues Emergency AD For Bell 212 Helicopters Qantas jet hit by lightning China seen grabbing helicopter role, jet orders Lufthansa plane lands at nearby airport after apparent bird strike Masters Degree Survey FAA: No Dreamliner Flight Testing Until Fire Cause Is Known Ground Testing Will Continue On Schedule Boeing's Dreamliner will be grounded until the cause of an onboard electrical fire last week has been determined, the FAA said Friday. In a statement published by BNO News, FAA spokesperson Lynn Lunsford said "The FAA does not plan to resume certification testing until we clearly understand the cause of the incident and identify any corrective actions that might be needed." Boeing said in a statement last week that the initial inspection appears to indicate that "a power control panel in the aft electronics bay will need to be replaced on ZA002." Boeing is inspecting the power panel and surrounding area near that panel to determine if other repairs will be necessary. FMI: www.faa.gov Back to Top FAA Issues Emergency AD For Bell 212 Helicopters Crack Found On The Main Rotor Hub Inboard Strap Fitting The FAA has issued an Emergency AD (EAD) (2010-24-51) prompted by a recent accident that resulted in several fatalities. During the investigation of the accident, a crack was found on the main rotor hub inboard strap fitting (fitting). Subsequently, 4 additional fittings from the same manufacturing lot were inspected and two were found to exhibit the same type of cracking as found on the fitting installed on the helicopter involved in the accident. A cracked fitting could result in failure of the fitting, loss of a main rotor blade, and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter. FAA officials reviewed Bell Alert Service Bulletin No. 212-10-141, dated November 11, 2010 (ASB), which specifies the immediate removal of certain serial-numbered fittings from service. Bell states that they have determined that the fitting may not have been manufactured in accordance with the engineering design requirements and may fracture as a result of the non-conformance. Bell further states that their investigation is ongoing and indicates that fittings serial numbers A-9956 through A-10005 inclusive are affected by the ASB. The FAA says it is issuing the EAD because we evaluated all the relevant information and determined the unsafe condition described is likely to exist or develop in other products of this same type design. The EAD requires, before further flight, removing each affected fitting and replacing it with an airworthy fitting. Any fitting with a part and serial number identified in the Applicability section of this EAD is no longer eligible for installation on any helicopter. This EAD differs from the ASB in that the FAA does not require returning parts to Bell. FMI: www.faa.gov Back to Top Qantas jet hit by lightning Another Qantas jet has been involved in a mid-air scare - this time after being struck by lightning. The 717 regional plane landed for inspections soon after take-off on Tuesday on its way from Alice Springs to Darwin. Qantas said there were no engine issues and it was "just protocol" to carry out inspections after the lightning strike. There were no injuries or threat to the plane when the tail to the plane was struck on Tuesday afternoon. The plane landed at 2.10pm (CST) in Darwin. Qantas has faced a string of hitches since a Qantas A380 superjumbo was forced to make an emergency landing in Singapore after one of its engines exploded earlier this month. AAP Back to Top China seen grabbing helicopter role, jet orders Canada's Bombardier touts for new Chinese business The prediction by the head of the world's largest civil helicopter maker, Europe's Eurocopter, came on the eve of the Zhuhai air show where China is expected to flaunt its strategic ambitions by announcing big orders for its first passenger jet. Despite a fast-growing economy and vast geographical area, commercially operated helicopters are a rare sight in China because of military restrictions on low-level flight. Just 200 are in service compared with 12,000 in the United States. But the aviation industry expects those rules to change in the next two or three years. And once opened up, the market could grow at a furious pace and not only attract foreigners but spark local production, Eurocopter Chief Executive Lutz Bertling said. "I expect China to be building new helicopters in the 2020s ... and I see a fully China- developed helicopter by the end of this decade," Bertling said in a joint interview with a selection of journalists attending China's largest air show. Most existing Chinese models incorporate outside designs or are produced under licence. EADS EAD.PA subsidiary Eurocopter has two such partnerships dating back to 2006 and 1992. Bertling said China would need 500 new helicopters in the next five years and 1,000 within a decade. Eurocopter has a 41 percent share of the small Chinese civil market ahead of nearest rival Sikorsky UTX.N, Bertling said. Asia is already growing fast and could outstrip the United States as a source of new orders this year, he added. BIG ORDERS China's mooted ambitions in helicopters fit a pattern well under way in passenger jets, albeit so far with mixed results. As a source of wealth and national prestige, aerospace has been awarded strategic status in China's five-year plan. Its hopes ride on a sleek 150-seat passenger jet designed to rival Airbus EAD.PA and Boeing BA.N, known as the C919. Executives gathering for the show near Hong Kong from Nov. 17 said state-controlled aircraft maker Comac would announce the first orders for the C919, due to enter service in 2016. Leading national airlines are likely to be the buyers and one supplier said it was "not a question of whether but how many" planes, barring a surprise glitch in the negotiations. The C919 poses a direct threat to the most popular planes made by Boeing and Airbus, the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 families of jets, but with a shorter range. Analysts say foreign airlines will be sceptical about buying until the plane and its maintenance network prove themselves. But any apparent pressure on Chinese airlines to support the project could remind investors of the long-term difficulties Airbus and Boeing will face in protecting their shared throne from pretenders in China, Japan, Canada, Brazil and Russia. Airbus sealed a 102-plane order from China during a state visit to Paris by President Hu Jintao last week but fine print revealed the new part of the order was for 66 planes. Airbus is mulling plans to upgrade the A320 family with new engines to leapfrog the C919 and Bombardier BBDb.TO C-Series from Canada, which is already nibbling at its market share. Bombardier will be in Zhuhai in the hope of grabbing orders. China has had less success with a 78-seat regional jet, the ARJ21, which is due to be delivered next year. The Zhuhai air show will be a chance for Chinese officials to update buyers on the plane, which industry critics have described as overweight. Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/ Back to Top Lufthansa plane lands at nearby airport after apparent bird strike during take off in Florence ROME (AP) - Airport authorities say a Lufthansa plane with 81 passengers aboard landed safely in Pisa after apparently being struck by a bird during take off from nearby Florence airport. Florence airport spokesman Federico Barracco said nobody was injured in the incident Tuesday. He said the pilot of the Frankfurt-bound Embraer 190 "heard some strange vibrations" and decided it was best to land in Pisa to check the engine. Back to Top Masters Degree Survey My name is Jason Jaeger, and I am completing an academic research project as part of my Masters of Aeronautical Science program for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. My research concerns refractive surgery for pilots. My survey is short and anonymous. Please visit the site below to share your experiences with either PRK or LASIK eye surgery. Thank you in advance. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SN8WDZM Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC