Flight Safety Information September 1, 2011 - No. 181 In This Issue NTSB: Emirates 777 continued flight after loud bang, messages Lewis U. aviation program impresses U.S. representative Commercial aviation safety audit scheduled this December -- CAAP Aer Lingus defends internship position for 'Air Safety Assistant' FAA approves launch of Orbital's demo flight NTSB: Emirates 777 continued flight after loud bang, messages The US National Transportation Safety Board revealed in a preliminary report issued 30 August that an Emirates Boeing 777-200ER crew continued a 5h flight from Moscow's Domodedovo airport to Dubai on 5 March after hearing a "loud bang" and receiving several error messages on departure. Pilots of Flight 132 (A6-EMH) reported the incident after landing at Dubai, according to the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) of the United Arab Emirates, the authority handling the investigation. "Following the bang a number of status messages were annunciated, these messages occurred over a 16 minute time as per the Boeing AHM (airplane health management) data," the report stated. Messages indicated a problem with the right Rolls-Royce Trent 800 engine, and included a thrust asymmetry compensation message that is issued when the flight control computer automatically uses rudder input counter the yaw effects of a failed engine. Four additional messages were received on departure, followed by two AHM messages after landing. Flightglobal's ACAS database shows that the 14-year-old aircraft is owned by Veling and has Trent 884-17 engines, members of the Trent 800 family. As of 30 June, the aircraft had accumulated 61,581 hours and 12,945 cycles, according to ACAS. Inspection of the aircraft in Dubai revealed "a large section" of the right engine's inboard fan duct and thrust reverser were missing, starting at the trailing edge and ripping forward. Overall, officials estimated that 2.8-3.7m2 (30-40ft2) section of engine covering to be missing, along with the primary exhaust nozzle outer skin. The primary nozzle inner skin had been "holed in several locations at the 12 to 1 o'clock position," the report stated. External to the engine, the one tyre on the main landing gear "was observed to have a large cut to the sideway" of approximately 36cm (14in), officials said. Examination of the aircraft and engine was to continue but the results have not yet been posted. The report does not discuss what procedures the Emirates crew followed after hearing the bang and receiving the AHM annunciations or whether the aircraft should have been returned to Domodedovo. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2011/08/31/361475/ntsb-emirates-777-continued- flight-after-loud-bang.html Back to Top Lewis U. aviation program impresses U.S. representative ROMEOVILLE - U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Chicago, a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, toured Lewis University in Romeoville, meeting with Brother James Gaffney, president, Provost Stephany Schlachter and Chair of the Department of Aviation William Brogan, as well as students and other faculty. I greatly enjoyed this opportunity to sit down with Lewis University's leadership and discuss the university's strengths, goals, and needs," Lipinski said. "As Northeastern Illinois' most senior member of the transportation and infrastructure committee and a member of the subcommittee on aviation, I was especially pleased to be able to tour Lewis University Airport and the university's aviation facilities, meeting with students and faculty. "America's aviation system faces a host of challenges, from security to on-time performance. Lewis' aviation program is helping ensure we have the workforce we need to meet those challenges, and I applaud its efforts," he said. As chairman and currently as a ranking member of the Research and Science Education subcommittee, Lipinski has played a leading role in the effort to strengthen science, technology, engineering and math education at the university level through the America Competes Act and its reauthorization. http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/news/7384257-418/lewis-u-aviation-program- impresses-us-representative.html Back to Top Commercial aviation safety audit scheduled this December -- CAAP THE PHILIPPINES is preparing for a fresh audit this December to be conducted by a team of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on the country's commercial aviation safety systems, in hopes of regaining the "category 1" status it lost in 2008, the head of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said on Friday last week. A rating upgrade, in turn, will open the door for Philippine air carriers either to mount or expand operations to the United States. Currently, only Philippine Airlines (PAL) maintains such routes. The Philippines' downgrade has been blamed for lower-than-expected visitor arrivals from the US, with the Philippine Travel Agencies Association saying last month that the tourism industry had foregone more than P66.3 billion since 2009 due to a lack of additional visitors from the US. "[The] FAA technical review [is] scheduled [in] December," CAAP Director General Ramon S. Gutierrez said via text. The FAA downgraded the Philippines' civil aviation rating, citing policies and systems that were below standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) of the United Nations, including a lack of qualified safety personnel. "A Category 2 rating means a country either lacks laws or regulations necessary to oversee air carriers in accordance with minimum international standards, or that its civil aviation authority -- equivalent to the FAA -- is deficient in one or more areas, such as technical expertise, trained personnel, record-keeping or inspection procedures," FAA had explained in January 2008 in announcing its action on the Philippines. Mr. Gutierrez added that "preparations are being made to address [FAA's] findings and corrective actions are made to close open items [sic] until the scheduled visit." He did not elaborate on measures. FAA downgraded the Philippines to "category 2" from "category 1" in 2008 after a safety audit in November 2007. The Philippines had been in "category 1" since 2002 prior to the downgrade. CAAP preparations since early this year have included training of safety inspectors which has been a key issue for the downgrade, Mr. Gutierrez told reporters last May. PAL financed this training that was conducted by US-based aviation consultant Tim Neel & Associates, LLC, which CAAP had hired. At present, only PAL flies to the US, connecting Manila to Las Vegas in Nevada, San Francisco and Los Angeles in California, and Honolulu in Hawaii. Moreover, budget carrier Cebu Pacific, which is operated by listed Cebu Air, Inc., has financed CAAP's joint initiative with Airbus to enhance airport navigation systems in local hubs like Iloilo, Puerto Princesa, Butuan, Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga. In response to the FAA downgrade, the government enacted into law on March 4, 2008 Republic Act No. 9497, or the Civil Aviation Authority Act of 2008, replacing the deficient Air Transportation Office (ATO) with the CAAP. Mr. Gutierrez had said in interviews last March and May that, after the FAA, his agency aims to invite teams from ICAO and the European Union (EU) in hopes of getting similar favorable action. ICAO had designated the country as a "significant safety concern" in December 2009, while EU blacklisted the Philippines in April last year. Last year, ICAO's Coordinated Validation Mission scrapped its planned Dec. 7-10 audit, citing "operational concerns" -- in apparent reference to the change then in CAAP leadership. Leaked diplomatic cables posted on the Internet last week by WikiLeaks recalled that an executive of Boeing Co., acting as an aviation consultant, told the US Embassy on March 19, 2008 that "in his opinion, regaining Category 1 would take at least one year after...three critical elements are in place." The document identified these factors, as cited by the Boeing consultant, as appointing a head for the CAAP, hiring "qualified aviation inspectors" and putting in place a new computer system. Three months later, the US Embassy said in a separate report that there had been "little progress" made by the country in addressing FAA's concerns. "Our meetings with Philippine government officials, airline owners and managers, and other involved persons suggest that little progress has been made on the return to Category 1," the cable read. The cable also described the defunct ATO as a "corrupt organization," noting that funds meant to hire new inspectors were used to construct a new building inside the ATO complex instead. But reforms needed to regain "Category 1" status were still not in place more than a year later, according to another cable dated July 1, 2009. "The progress of the Philippine civil aviation regulator towards regaining...'Category 1' safety rating has been stymied by bureaucratic obstacles that block essential salary increases needed to attract and retain qualified personnel," the cable read. "There is little chance of the Philippines regaining a Category 1 safety rating unless these issues are resolved," it added. Despite informing the US Embassy a month later that it was working to address safety concerns, the Philippine civil aviation regulator was still found lacking qualified personnel, according to a cable, dated Aug. 20, 2009. http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Economy&title=Commercial- aviation-safety-audit-scheduled-this-December----CAAP&id=37512 Back to Top Aer Lingus defends internship position for 'Air Safety Assistant' AER LINGUS HAS said that an advertised internship position for an Air Safety Assistant would not involve any overseeing of safety management for the airline. The former State carrier is seeking applicants for the six-month internship to work in the airline's Air Safety Department - which the advert states "is responsible for managing the day to day operations of the airline's flight safety". Specified duties include "being a member of the air safety office team", providing "support in the area of safety promotion" and "developing and updating relevant policies and procedures". Applicants for the position must have a university degree in communications, business or a related subject and an "excellent customer service ethic". The role is advertised as part of the government's JobBridge scheme, which aims to offer the unemployed "a real opportunity to gain valuable experience" and pays €50 per week on top of social welfare benefits. Under the rules of the scheme, businesses pay nothing to any interns which they take on. The advertisement last night sparked outrage on Twitter, with user Allan Cavanagh tweeting: "Safety doesn't come cheap, unless you're Aer Lingus". Aideen Blackwood wrote: "I feel really safe flying with Aer Lingus knowing that they're hiring an AIR SAFETY assistant through #jobbridge." Aer Lingus this afternoon told TheJournal.ie: "This role will afford a suitably qualified graduate a unique opportunity to gain valuable work experience and insight into the functioning of a safety department in a large organisation." Stressing that it is proud of its safety record, the airline added: "The successful candidate will not be engaged directly in any safety management role, but instead will be assigned tasks and projects to assist the officers and investigators in their duties." This morning, it emerged Aer Lingus had made an operating loss of €27.8 million for the first half of 2011 after an industrial dispute with cabin crew that saw hundreds taken off the payroll. Aer Lingus did not directly respond to an enquiry as to whether the Air Safety Assistant duties would previously have been performed by a permanent employee. One of the conditions of the JobBridge scheme is that interns cannot displace paid workers. The airline's statement continued: Whilst primarily administrative in function, the candidate will gain exposure to, and insight into all aspects of the airline's operations, through the safety department's daily interactions, as part of its oversight responsibility. The Aer Lingus safety department has grown in recent years. As well as seeing growth in both its Emergency Response Planning, Health & Safety, and Operations Quality departments, all of which form part of the Airline's integrated SMS. The offer of an intern placement forms no part of the safety department's strategic plan, which has as its objective to ensure the safety department maintains adequate full time staff to manage the Airline's SMS to optimum effectiveness. The Department of Social Protection told TheJournal.ie this evening that the internship notice "clearly states that it is the Air Safety Department that is responsible for managing the airline's flight safety and promotion, and not the intern". Further information on what constitutes an internship can be found on the JobBridge website, it added. The department also said it believes the Aer Lingus internship "offers an excellent opportunity for an individual to gain experience in the field of safety management systems and therefore increase their employability in this area". The closing date for applications for the internship is this Friday, 2 September. http://www.thejournal.ie/aer-lingus-defends-internship-position-for-%E2%80%98air- safety-assistant%E2%80%99-215000-Aug2011/ Back to Top FAA approves launch of Orbital's demo flight The Federal Aviation Administration has granted Orbital Sciences Corp. a license to launch a demonstration flight to the International Space Station early next year, the company announced today. The first launch of Orbital's Cygnus cargo module atop a Taurus II rocket is tentatively planned in late February from Wallops Island, Va. A first test flight of the Taurus II is planned late this year, and Orbital said an expanded FAA license covering that launch was expected soon. Dulles, Va.-based Orbital is one of two U.S. companies, along with Hawthorne, Calif.- based SpaceX, on which NASA is relying to deliver cargo to the station after the shuttle's retirement. SpaceX hopes to launch its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft on a demonstration flight to the station Nov. 30 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The schedule for both demonstration flights will depend on NASA's ability to keep the space station staffed beyond this fall following last week's failed Russian resupply mission. New crews won't be able to fly to the station until a Russian commission completes an investigation of the failure, which involves a Soyuz rocket similar to the one that launches astronauts and cosmonauts. http://space.flatoday.net/2011/08/faa-approves-launch-of-orbitals-demo.html Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC