Flight Safety Information February 28, 2011 - No. 044 In This Issue NTSB's Hersman Addresses Code Sharing, International Investigations FAA OKs iPad for Pilots' Charts US officials: 4 Americans dead in UAE plane crash Agencies Spar Over Air Safety Data Continental Flight From DC Diverted After Takeoff Air travelers may have been exposed to measles Reported air-traffic errors rise 81% over 2007 Phoenix-bound flight lands as precaution in Omaha Goodrich to Showcase Advanced Helicopter Systems at Heli-Expo Air India COO quits NTSB's Hersman Addresses Code Sharing, International Investigations Keynotes American Bar Association's Forum On Air And Space Law In a keynote address Wednesday to the American Bar Association's Forum on Air and Space Law 2011 Update Conference, NTSB Chair Debora A.P. Hersman addressed the issues of international code sharing, as well as the NTSB's participation in aviation accident investigations in other countries. Hersman said a number of code-sharing investigations have been conducted during her time at NTSB. "Through our investigations, we recognized that a better understanding of airline code-sharing arrangements and their role in aviation safety was needed, so we held a symposium last October," she said. "We found that there is no universal type of code-share. Whether it's a code-share partnership between a domestic main line carrier and regional air carrier, or two domestic main line carriers, or domestic and international carriers, these are complex relationships. Many mainline carriers have multiple regional partners, and some regionals fly for several mainline carriers." Hersman said regional airlines represent more than half of the scheduled flights in the US, and that code-sharing provides consumers with convenience and accessibility, while carriers are able to expand their network without investing significant resources in lesser-used routes. She said the symposium highlighted a great deal of coordination between some airlines and their partners, particularly in the areas of auditing, operations, and the sharing of safety data. "And that's the way it should be," she said. "After all, when an airline is willing to put their name, their paint scheme and, most-importantly, their passengers into the hands of another operator, they have both the opportunity and the obligation to make sure that safety is job one." But while a lot of carriers are reportedly going beyond the FAA minimums and even using their relationships with other carriers to "raise the bar on safety" Hersman said the bad news from accident investigations is that sometimes the FAA requirements are seen as a not just the floor, but also the ceiling for things such as qualifications and training. On the topic of investigations on foreign soil, Hersman told those attending the conference that about 75% of the air carrier accident and incident investigations conducted by the NTSB each year now are non-US events. And of the board's seven Investigators-in-Charge, one spends almost half of his time in Africa. "In these foreign investigations, the US stakeholders - the NTSB, as well as the FAA and the manufacturer and/or operator of the aircraft - are in a position to see, first-hand, potential airworthiness issues with US products. This, in turn, provides us at the Safety Board with the information we need to make recommendations to address safety deficiencies - bringing these lessons learned home to improve the safety of our domestic fleet," she said. And, she said, because of the assistance provided by the NTSB in their investigations, foreign governments are willing to assist when there is an issue in the U.S. She cited as examples the investigations of the Continental Connection 3407 accident, and the Miracle on the Hudson ditching, both of which involved foreign designed and manufactured airplanes. "The NTSB's investigation benefited greatly from our Canadian and French counterparts support in our understanding the performance of the aircraft during the accident," she said. FMI: www.ntsb.gov Back to Top FAA OKs iPad for Pilots' Charts From the earliest days of aviation, pilots have relied upon paper maps to help find their way. Even in an era of GPS and advanced avionics, you still see pilots lugging around 20 pounds or more of charts. But those days are numbered, because maps are giving way to iPads. The Federal Aviation Administration is allowing charter company Executive Jet Management to use Apple's tablet as an approved alternative to paper charts. The authorization follows three months of rigorous testing and evaluation of the iPad and Mobile TC, a map app developed by aviation chartmaker Jeppesen. The latest decision applies only to Executive Jet Management, but it has implications for all of aviation. By allowing the company's pilots to use the Apple iPad as a primary source of information, the FAA is acknowledging the potential for consumer tablets to become avionics instruments. The iPad has been popular with pilots of all types since its introduction last year. But until now, it could not be used in place of traditional paper charts or FAA- approved devices such as more expensive, purpose built electronic flight bags. The iPad was OK for reference, but not as a pilot's sole source of information. The new FAA authorization changes all that. To receive FAA authorization, Jeppesen and Executive Jet Management went through a rigorous approval process. It included rapid-decompression testing from a simulated altitude of 51,000 feet and ensuring the tablet will not interfere with critical navigation or electronic equipment. Executive Jet tested the iPad and Mobile TC in 10 aircraft flown by 55 pilots during 250 flights. The first thought many pilots, not to mention passengers, will have is: What happens if the iPad or the app crashes? Jeff Buhl, Jeppesen's product manager for the Mobile TC app, says the Apple iOS operating system and the app proved "extremely stable" during testing. In the "unlikely" event of a crash, he says, it takes but a moment to get them running again. "The recovery time for an application crashing or the OS crashing is extremely rapid," Buhl says. During the evaluation period with the FAA, the production app did not crash. But even if it did, Buhl says it's ready to go again "in 4-6 seconds from re-launch to previous state." The FAA says each individual operator - in this case Executive Jet Management - must develop specific procedures for dealing with system or software crashes and other issues. Under the authorization, Executive Jet Management will require a second approved electronic device, which most likely will be another iPad, in the cockpit. Although this authorization applies to just one company, it is a milestone for all operators, including major airlines, because it opens the door for them to embrace the iPad. Though any company wishing to follow Executive Jet's lead will have to endure equally rigorous scrutiny by the FAA. Agency spokesman Les Dorr says the process is no different from what is required for any other electronic device (.pdf) used to display navigation information. "As far as the iPad is concerned, we do that on a case-by-case basis when an airline applies to be able to use it," Dorr says. The FAA is already seeing more requests to use the iPad in the cockpit. Alaska Airlines began testing the iPad back in November and there are about 100 pilots currently evaluating the device according to spokeswoman Marianne Lindsey. She says in addition to the convenience, there is a practical weight saving aspect to using the iPad as well, "it's replaced about 25 pounds of manuals and charts." Jeppesen's director of portfolio management, Tim Huegel, says several carriers are looking into using the iPad and TC Mobile, and with the FAA granting one approval, it should become increasingly easy for others to follow Executive Jet's lead. "We'll be able to reuse a lot of the documentation and the lessons learned working with Executive Jet Management to help our commercial customers as they now begin to pursue FAA authorization," he says. The charts available with Mobile TC include charts for visual flight rules and for instrument flight rules, which are more commonly used by commercial operators. The app only shows an electronic version of the paper charts Jeppesen has been producing for years, but Huegel says future versions could incorporate the iPad's GPS capability. He sees a day when tablets provide "door-to-door management" of a pilot's information, from crew scheduling to weather information to navigation charts. http://www.wired.com/autopia/2011/02/faa-ipad/ Back to Top US officials: 4 Americans dead in UAE plane crash ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Four Americans have been killed when their turboprop plane crashed shortly after takeoff in the United Arab Emirates. The Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National reports the plane is owned by Triple S Aviation, a Texas-based aircraft service company with a branch office in Dubai. Investigators are trying to determine the cause of last night's fiery crash. The identities of those killed - everyone on board - weren't immediately disclosed. The U.S. Embassy says the plane was en route to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the first leg of a trip back to America. The twin-engine plane - apparently a modified vintage aircraft - went down after taking off at Al Ain International Airport, about 60 miles east of Abu Dhabi. ***** Date: 27-FEB-2011 Time: 9pm Type: McKinnon G-21G Turbo Goose Operator: Triple S Aviation Registration: N221AG C/n / msn: 1240 Fatalities: Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: Al Ain airport - United Arab Emirates Phase: Take off Nature: Departure airport: Al Ain Destination airport: Riyadh Narrative: Shortly after lift-off, the aircraft veered to the left and crashed on Taxiway Kilo www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top Agencies Spar Over Air Safety Data By ANDY PASZTOR (WSJ) The Federal Aviation Administration is locked in a dispute with accident investigators over a sensitive safety issue: Who should have access to data that airlines voluntarily provide to the government? The clash stems from a recent National Transportation Safety Board effort to obtain data from the FAA about safety lapses over the years by various U.S. airlines, according to government and airline industry officials. Board investigators requested the data as part of their investigation of an American Airlines Boeing 757 that ran off the end of a runway last December in Jackson Hole, Wyo., according to these officials. Such industry-wide information, based on voluntary reports from airlines and pilots about runway incidents, traditionally has been off-limits to the safety board. But now, as part of the board's broader push to identify safety hazards, it wants the right to review large volumes of voluntary incident reports from years past. FAA and industry officials fear that by making some of the confidential information public, the board could end up chilling voluntary reports-and, potentially, eroding overall safety as a result. FAA officials rejected the board's request on those grounds, and referred the issue to a group of labor, industry and government experts. Over the years, airlines and pilots have voluntarily turned over extensive details about thousands of potentially hazardous incidents, based on promises that the FAA would keep the data confidential. The information, typically, hasn't been used against carriers or to punish pilots. The FAA has worked to fine-tune the voluntary data-sharing system, partly by building trust through strict controls on distribution of the information. Without such restrictions and safeguards, according to industry and FAA officials, the flow of voluntary data could dry up. NTSB officials, over the years, have made some preliminary requests for confidential data, though they never sought to escalate the argument after being turned down by the FAA. But recently, as part of the safety board's expanded focus, it has sought to insert itself into the information-sharing network. The board, for example, has demanded unfettered access to certain data under the purview of a high-level team of experts. Marion Blakey, a former head of both the FAA and the NTSB, said Sunday that any plan to turn over such data to the safety board "should proceed with extreme care." Although the board "has a terrific track record treating data with a high degree of confidentiality," Ms. Blakey said, the FAA should give NTSB investigators safety summaries "rather than actually placing data in another place" controlled by a different agency. A board spokesman last week confirmed requesting information to "explore a safety issue pertaining to runway overrun events such as the one that occurred at Jackson Hole." An FAA spokeswoman declined to comment. The dispute is part of a growing turf battle between the two agencies that was highlighted in December when Deborah Hersman, the safety board's chairman, sketched out plans to expand the NTSB beyond its core mission of investigating accidents. With U.S. airline accident rates at historically low levels, the board now handles significantly fewer domestic airliner crashes than in the past. For the board to stay relevant, it will begin analyzing and combating safety threats, Ms. Hersman said. Its goal is to begin issuing safety recommendations designed to prevent those threats from resulting in fatalities. Earlier this month, FAA officials countered that the board's authority doesn't extend to identifying or trying to deal with potential hazards. That job, according to these officials, is reserved solely for the FAA as part of its regulatory mandate. Some current and former FAA officials said that board officials should be required to sign the same non-disclosure pledges as company and union officials. Back to Top Continental Flight From DC Diverted After Takeoff Continental flight from DC diverted to Dulles Airport after takeoff due to mechanical problem (AP) A Continental Airlines flight that took off from Washington's Reagan National Airport has been diverted to Washington Dulles International Airport after a mechanical problem. Airports spokeswoman Tara Hamilton says Flight 1559 left Reagan National Airport about 8 a.m. Monday bound for Houston. But it was quickly diverted and made a safe landing at Dulles Airport. Hamilton says they have not determined what caused the problem. A call placed to Houston-based Continental Airlines was not immediately returned. Back to Top Air travelers may have been exposed to measles Health officials in five states are warning travelers, airport employees and others that they may have been exposed to measles. In Boston, health departments have been offering vaccinations to people who may have had contact with a 24-year-old French consulate employee there who became sick earlier this month. Health officials are also contacting airport employees who may have come into contact with an unvaccinated 27-year-old New Mexico woman with measles. She flew from the United Kingdom to Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia Feb. 20, then flew from Baltimore to Denver and Albuquerque on Feb. 22. Passengers who were also traveling on those days should call their doctors if they develop symptoms of measles, officials say. Symptoms begin with a runny nose, red, watery eyes and a fever of 101 degrees or higher, then progress to a red rash that begins on the face and spreads to the rest of the body, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Anyone infected on those flights could start showing symptoms now, says David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Health Department in Virginia, where Dulles International Airport is located. People typically begin showing symptoms within one to three weeks after being infected. So far, Goodfriend says he hasn't found anyone with symptoms. Doctors investigate even one case of measles because it's extremely contagious, Goodfriend says. Thanks to vaccinations, doctors have eliminated measles in the Western Hemisphere, says William Schaffner, an infectious-disease expert at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville. New cases here - about 150 a year or fewer - are typically brought in by people from overseas. "We don't want measles to be re-introduced here," Schaffner says. The virus infects more than 80% of unvaccinated people exposed to it, Schaffner says. Measles can linger in the air for two hours and spreads through coughing, sneezing or secretions from the mouth, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. "Air currents can take the virus to the far corners of the room and into another room," Schaffner says. "The current generation of doctors won't recognize it because they've never seen it." Measles can cause rare but life-threatening side effects, such as pneumonia and brain inflammation, and is especially risky for pregnant women, babies under 1 year old and people with compromised immune systems, Schaffner says. People with symptoms shouldn't go to work or school, and should call their doctors before showing up in the office, to avoid infecting other patients, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Maintaining a high rate of "herd immunity" protects those babies, who don't get their first measles shots until they're 12 months old, Schaffner says. People are considered immune if they were born in the USA before 1957, have had measles or have had two doses of measles vaccine, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. A medication called Immune Globulin can prevent measles if given within six days of exposure. The United Kingdom and Ireland have weathered a number of measles outbreaks since 1998, when the author of a now-discredited article in The Lancet alleged a link between the vaccine and autism. Hundreds of people there were hospitalized and four died, says Paul Offit of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, author of Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All. Myths about an autism-vaccine link - which have been refuted by 14 studies - have led parents of 100,000 children not to vaccinate them, Offit says. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2011-02-28-measles28_ST_N.htm Back to Top Reported air-traffic errors rise 81% over 2007 WASHINGTON - More than 1,800 errors by air-traffic controllers - including 43 most likely to cause a midair collision between planes - were reported to the Federal Aviation Administration last year. The agency says that points up the need for greater safety steps. Air-traffic errors that allowed planes to get too close together jumped 81% from 2007 to 2010, according to newly released data by the FAA, rising from 1,040 to 1,887. Those most likely to cause a collision or an accident were also up from 34 in 2007 to 43 last year, a 26% increase. The higher number of reported errors involving airliners, private planes and military aircraft don't pose a sudden increase in the risk to fliers, the FAA says. Instead, the agency insists the numbers are the result of several years of effort to improve reporting. For years the FAA has been dogged by reports that errors were sometimes covered up. Three years ago, for example, an FAA investigation prompted by whistle-blowers found that reports were routinely falsified at a Dallas facility. In response, the agency created a new no-fault system to report errors, developed computers that can routinely spot errors and changed the way it judges air-traffic managers' job performance. The FAA says the growing number of errors reported are a sign it's taking safety more seriously. http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/ Back to Top Phoenix-bound flight lands as precaution in Omaha OMAHA, Neb. - (AP) A Phoenix-bound jet landed safely at Eppley Airfield in Omaha after a passenger reported seeing or smelling smoke. The Delta flight from JFK airport in New York landed a little before 12:30 a.m. CST Monday in Omaha. Omaha television station KETV says the plane was checked for fire or smoldering materials, but nothing was found. Passengers were offered hotels rooms for some sleep and food vouchers before resuming their journey later Monday. Delta representatives did not immediately respond to phone messages left before business hours by The Associated Press. Back to Top Back to Top Goodrich to Showcase Advanced Helicopter Systems at Heli-Expo CHARLOTTE, N.C., Feb. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Goodrich Corporation (NYSE: GR) at next week's Heli-Expo will showcase advanced helicopter technology that brings real-time information to air crews and lower operating costs to owners along with enhanced safety and rescue systems. Heli-Expo 2011 takes place at the Orange County Convention Center on March 5-8 in Orlando, Fla. Goodrich (booth 2142) will display its HUMS (Health and Usage Management Systems), helicopter health monitoring and management systems that provide actionable data, from flight line maintenance teams all the way to the manufacturer. Precise data provided by the system can alert the user to take small corrective actions to prevent future costly maintenance; in addition, it advises of unavoidable future maintenance tasks so the user can plan and minimize operational impact. In addition, Goodrich will showcase its rotating flexible main drive shaft, a light weight one-piece welded construction drive shaft that transmits power at speeds up to 27,000 RPM while accommodating all misalignments. Long length, super- critical tail rotor drive shafts and titanium couplings will be shown alongside. Stop by and see why Goodrich's advanced helicopter drive systems provide the industry's highest reliability and lowest direct operating costs. Also on display is the Goodrich TASE family of low cost gyro-stabilized camera gimbals, ideal for surveillance, inspection, law enforcement, fire fighting and environmental monitoring. The camera gimbals come standard with features that include built-in moving maps, geo-pointing and geo-locating along with command/control/record software and joystick steering for operator ease of use and simple camera orientation. Advanced safety and rescue systems will include internal and external mount rescue hoists, fully integrated ice detection and protection systems, and the new Crashworthy Passenger Seat for installation on multiple helicopter platforms. With a commitment to ongoing cost reduction and performance improvement for operators, Goodrich will show its Diamond Range (TM) line of brushes with guaranteed 1,000 hour life for DC starter generators with a complete network of Authorized Repair Center locations for overhaul and installation. Goodrich technical teams will be on hand throughout the show for expert demonstrations and to answer questions on usage and various deployment techniques. Visitors to the booth will get a chance to interact with these innovative products, and even get a chance to view some of the latest products in action. Goodrich Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, is a global supplier of systems and services to aerospace, defense and homeland security markets. With one of the most strategically diversified portfolios of products in the industry, Goodrich serves a global customer base with significant worldwide manufacturing and service facilities. For more information visit http://www.goodrich.com. Goodrich Corporation operates through its divisions and as a parent company for its subsidiaries, one or more of which may be referred to as "Goodrich Corporation" in this press release. SOURCE Goodrich Corporation Back to Top Air India COO quits Air India's chief operating officer Gustav Baldauf has resigned, say reports. Baldauf, formerly an executive of Austrian Airlines and India's Jet Airways, tendered his resignation this morning, say reports. Air India's spokesman could not be contacted for comment. Baldauf was appointed COO at Air India last April. Reports say the state-owned carrier had recently ordered Baldauf to explain comments he reportedly made to Indian media about government interference at the loss-making carrier. Air India posted a loss of 55.5 billion rupees ($1.2 million) for the fiscal year ending 31 March 2010. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC