Flight Safety Information September 22, 2011 - No. 195 In This Issue FBI Investigates Vandalism on Southwest Airlines Planes Plane crashes at Truckee airport; pilot seriously injured Salt Lake airplane passenger carried knife on board, made threats Norway and Canada enter into aviation safety agreement International Winter Operations Conference Opens October 5 in Montreal Indonesia safety and infrastructure challenges FBI Investigates Vandalism on Southwest Airlines Planes Federal investigators are looking into multiple reports of vandalism on Southwest Airlines planes. The FBI says Arabic or Arabic-like symbols are showing up written in dirt and soot on the outside of planes. "This has been going on for several months," Southwest spokesperson Brandy King said in a statement. "We continue to track the impacted fleet, logging when and where the vandalism is taking place." King declined to give specific details, including which airports were affected. Southwest Airlines sent out an internal memo saying the markings will be handled as an "internal vandalism issue." http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/FBI-Investigates-Vandalism-on-Southwest- Airlines-Planes-130328978.html Back to Top Plane crashes at Truckee airport; pilot seriously injured An airplane crashed Wednesday morning after takeoff at Truckee Tahoe Airport (NV). The twin-engine Piper Aztec crashed about 9:20 a.m. and burned on the airport grounds, according to Ian Gregor, spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration. A pilot was airlifted to a hospital in Reno with serious injuries. Kevin Bumen, director of aviation at Truckee Tahoe Airport, said the pilot was the only person in the plane when it crashed into an aircraft parking area. Witnesses said the pilot appeared to get himself out of the plane before it burst into flames. "He looked in surprisingly good shape for a guy who had just run his plane into the ground," said Chaco Mohler, publisher at the Tahoe Quarterly in Truckee, who witnessed the crash from his office window a block from the airport. The plane was about 50 feet off the ground when it veered left and crashed, he said. "It went relatively quickly into the ground, hitting the wing and nose at the same time," Mohler said. No other equipment was damaged when the plane caught fire after the crash, Bumen said. Federal aviation records show the plane is registered to Brian Mettler of Bakersfield. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash, Bumen said. Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/09/22/3929410/plane-crashes-at-truckee- airport.html#ixzz1YgBrVZ9F Back to Top Salt Lake airplane passenger carried knife on board, made threats, police say SALT LAKE CITY - A Salt Lake airline passenger faces federal charges for allegedly carrying a knife onto an airplane and verbally threatening police and FBI agents. Shortly after taking his seat on a Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas on Sunday, David Alan Anderson, 60, began elbowing the passenger next to him to "claim" the armrest, according to a federal complaint. He then put his foot on the passenger's leg. "Sir, you are going to have to move over," the passenger told him. About five minutes later, the passenger saw Anderson staring at him. He then said to the passenger, "If I have a knife, I would slit your throat," the complaint states. The passenger told flight attendants, who noticed Anderson reach into his bag several times with something cupped in his hand. The flight crew then called Salt Lake police. Anderson denied having a weapon or making threats. But during a consensual search of his bag, police found a Gerber folding knife with a 3 ½-inch blade. Police handcuffed Anderson and took him to the airport police station. At the station, the complaint says, Anderson made numerous profane threats to police and FBI agents including, "Your days are not long," "It's a shotgun in the chest," "I'll pull your eyeballs out," and "It will give me a lot of pleasure to see you again, but you won't see me, bucko." According the complaint, Anderson smelled slightly of alcohol, but did not appear to be drunk. Anderson faces charges of dangerous weapon on an aircraft and retaliation against a federal law enforcement officer by threat of murder. http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705391170/Salt-Lake-airplane-passenger-carried- knife-on-board-made-threats-police-say.html Back to Top Norway and Canada enter into aviation safety agreement The Norwegian Ministry of Transport reports that a bilateral agreement between the European Union and Canada on civil aviation safety entered into force on July 26 2011. On the same day, a temporary agreement between Norway and Canada signed on October 7 2010 entered into force. The content of this temporary agreement covers the same elements as the EU/Canada agreement. It is intended to be replaced by a final agreement at a later stage. The two agreements provide for the mutual recognition of certificates and licences relating to the airworthiness of civil aeronautical products, and establish procedures that make such approvals simpler and more efficient - and thus less expensive - than previously. The terms of the agreements concern, among other things: · approval of the airworthiness and monitoring of civil aeronautical products; · monitoring of the continued airworthiness of aircraft; · approval and monitoring of production and manufacturing facilities; · approval and monitoring of maintenance facilities; and · environmental certification and environmental testing of civil aeronautical products and associated cooperation activities. The agreements may subsequently be expanded to include other areas. Pursuant to eachagreement, the parties shall have the opportunity to participate in each other's inspections or potentially conduct joint inspections in the areas encompassed by the agreement. The parties shall additionally exchange information about their own relevant legislation, and on accidents and incidents in these areas. As well as improving aviation safety, environmental quality and environmental compatibility, and simplifying the export and import of aeronautical products, the agreements may contribute to the further development of harmonised international standards and approval processes. The agreements are intended to have a positive impact on participants involved in the construction, manufacture and maintenance of civil aeronautical products in Norway, the European union and Canada, as well as for airlines - especially with regard to the maintenance of aircraft in the same areas. http://www.internationallawoffice.com/newsletters/detail.aspx?g=e9968dc7-c2e4-43fc- 8446-5ef4e6eb73ef Back to Top International Winter Operations Conference Opens October 5 in Montreal MONTREAL, QUEBEC, Sep 21, 2011 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Global experts in winter aviation will present the latest industry advances at the International Winter Operations Conference, October 5-6 at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth hotel. Under the theme "Safety Is No Secret", aviation industry experts in all aspects of winter operations will share the latest technological advances and best practices from around the world, according to Captain Paul Strachan, President of the Air Canada Pilots Association. "We invite anyone interested in the advancement of aviation safety to hear the lessons these industry leaders have learned in their respective fields of expertise," Captain Strachan said. Keynote speaker at the conference will be Allan J. McDonald, former Director of the Space Shuttle Solid Rocket Motor Project at the time of the Challenger accident and co- author of the book "Truth, Lies and O-rings: Inside the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster". Local speakers include representatives from Bombardier, GE Aviation, Pratt & Whitney Canada, Aero MAG 2000, Universite du Quebec a Chicoutimi and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Presentations are also scheduled by experts from Airbus, Boeing, Embraer, ATR, Deicing Innovations, the Flight Safety Foundation, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and the University of Waterloo. The complete agenda and registration information are available at www.winterops.ca . The last International Winter Operations Conference in 2009 attracted more than 200 delegates from 17 countries. The International Winter Operations Conference is hosted by the Air Canada Pilots Association (ACPA). ACPA is the largest professional pilot group in Canada, representing the more than 3,000 pilots who operate Air Canada's mainline fleet. Contacts: Air Canada Pilots Association Paul Howard Director of Communications 905-678-9008 ext. 222 phoward@acpa.ca SOURCE: Air Canada Pilots Association Back to Top Indonesia safety and infrastructure challenges Thursday, 22 September, 2011 - 17:10 The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called on Indonesia to implement coordinated policy measures to reap the economic and social benefits of a successful aviation industry. "I am optimistic about Indonesia's aviation potential. With over 18,000 islands crossing an expanse of over 5,000 km, aviation is the critical link. Only aviation can connect efficiently Indonesia's nearly 240 million inhabitants domestically and to the world. So it is important that the government has coordinated policy measures, including the critical issues of ensuring safety and adequate infrastructure for development," said Tony Tyler, IATA's Director General and CEO. Between 2010 and 2014, Indonesia is expected to be the sixth fastest growing market for international passengers. In 2014 Indonesia will rank as the ninth largest domestic market and among the top 10 for international freight. "The potential for aviation in Indonesia is enormous. Alongside its significant domestic traffic, its location at the heart of southeast Asia gives this market tremendous potential. As the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) moves forward with liberalization, it is important that Indonesia is well-prepared with a safe industry operating on global standard infrastructure," said Tyler. Addressing issues in Indonesia is a priority for Tyler during his first visit to Asia as IATA's DG and CEO. While in Jakarta, Tyler met with Garuda Indonesia CEO Emirsyah Satar, and will have discussions with Indonesian government officials, including Transport Minister Freddy Numberi, and airport operator Angkasa Pura II. Safety: IATA emphasized the need for attention to safety oversight, particularly as the industry is rapidly developing. Between 2005 and 2010, Indonesia recorded a total of 33 accidents. "Indonesia is 1.4% of global traffic but accounted for 4% of all accidents in 2010. Every accident is a reminder of the need to improve. Many efforts have been made in recent years to improve Indonesia's safety record. An indication of the success of these efforts is seen in the removal of five Indonesian carriers from Europe's list of banned airlines. Now we need a coordinated initiative by all stakeholders to solve the safety issue once and for all and restore confidence in all of Indonesia's airlines," said Tyler. "Safety is our top priority and IATA is here to assist. I urge Indonesia to mandate the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) for all Indonesian carriers. Similarly, I encourage the mandating of the IATA Safety Audit for Ground Operations (ISAGO) at Indonesian airports to manage better safety on the ground. Together, such proactive actions will send a clear signal to the world that Indonesia is serious about solving its safety issues," said Tyler. IOSA is the highest global standard for airline operational safety management. Countries that have mandated IOSA include Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Turkey, Lebanon, and Bahrain. In 2010 there was one hull loss accident for every 1.6 million flights globally, while IATA carriers-for whom IOSA is a condition of membership-had one hull loss accident for every 4 million flights. There are 372 airlines on the IOSA registry and Garuda is the only Indonesian airline on it. ISAGO is the global standard for ground handling safety. The ISAGO registry includes 125 registrations for 82 ground service providers operating at 98 airports worldwide. Runway excursions - instances where the aircraft leaves the runway - accounted for 21% of global accidents in 2010. Three of the four accidents in Indonesia in 2010 were runway excursions. As part of IATA's efforts to improve safety in Indonesia, a Runway Excursion Risk Reduction (RERR) workshop was held in 2010 and attended by representatives from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and domestic airlines. The RERR toolkit, which gives high-level reference material as well as an in-depth analysis of runway excursion accident data and a compilation of significant risk factors, has also been made available. Infrastructure: "Having the right infrastructure to accommodate growth is critical - both on the ground and in the air. It also means having the right processes to handle passengers efficiently. Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta airport urgently needs additional capacity. Traffic reached 43.7 million passengers in 2010. This already surpasses the 38 million passenger capacity that the airport will have when Terminal 3 eventually becomes fully operational. A solution is urgently needed. Without sufficient capacity in Jakarta, Indonesia risks missing the economic benefits that should accompany ASEAN liberalization in the coming years," said Tyler. Insufficient air traffic management is also a potential bottleneck to growth. "IATA is providing technical assistance for more effective use of the airspace in the Jakarta area but full implementation is as yet uncertain. Similarly, the leading edge Automatic Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast (ADS-B) technology that is in place to manage overflight is not being used. Implementation of both these programs is critical to ensuring that the growing traffic volumes to Indonesia are managed safely and efficiently," said Tyler. IATA is promoting process improvements that could increase the quality and efficiency of the passenger experience, namely IATA Fast Travel for passenger processing and Checkpoint of the Future for security. IATA Fast Travel gives passengers more control of their travel through self-service options for baggage tagging, travel documents scanning, flight rebooking, boarding and baggage recovery. Checkpoint of the Future is an initiative to modernize and improve security by combining a risk-based approach with technology that will allow passengers to get from curb to gate without stopping, unpacking or intrusive checks. Specifically, Tyler urged Indonesia to join governments that have endorsed the principles for the Checkpoint of the Future. http://www.voxy.co.nz/business/indonesia-safety-and-infrastructure- challenges/5/102143 Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC