Flight Safety Information October 25, 2011 - No. 219 In This Issue Allegiant jet makes emergency landing in NC Air Force F-15 fighter jet crashes US Air Force grounds F-22 fighters -- again Pilot exits may clip Cathay wings Nigeria: The Nation Attains Latest Stage of Air Safety - Ncaa Airlines Rev Up for Flights to Cuba FAA Warns of Corrosion on Boeing 757 Tails Russian authority grounds regional carrier Mordovia Allegiant jet makes emergency landing in NC WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) - An Allegiant Air jet heading from Florida to New York made an emergency landing in North Carolina after the pilot got a warning light. An airline spokeswoman says the flight carrying about 145 people landed in Wilmington about 3:30 p.m. Sunday after an oil filter light came on in the cockpit. Flight 798 was heading to Plattsburgh International Airport in New York from Orlando Sanford International Airport in Florida. Airport director Jon Rosborough says the plane landed safely and there were no injuries. Kristine Cooper with Allegiant says normal procedure is to get the plane on the ground and have it checked when warning lights trigger. Back to Top Air Force F-15 fighter jet crashes in remote area north of Las Vegas; pilot ejects safely ALAMO, Nev.(AP) - An Air Force fighter jet crashed in a sparsely populated part of southern Nevada on Monday, but the pilot was able to eject from the aircraft and didn't suffer any injuries, authorities said. The F-15C Eagle from Nellis Air Force Base crashed on federal land northwest of Alamo, Nev., said Lt. Ken Lustig, an Air Force spokesman. Alamo is about 100 miles north of Las Vegas. Lincoln County Sheriff Kerry Lee said a citizen reported seeing a large explosion and fireball west of U.S. Highway 93 shortly after 4 p.m. Deputies made their way over rough terrain and through a ranch toward the plume of smoke about five miles from the highway, he said. "It was out in the desert, really hard to get to," Lee said. When deputies arrived, they found a debris field about 100 yards long. "It didn't look like the plane slammed into the ground," the sheriff said. "There was a lot of the plane left, but it burned up." The pilot had started walking and was picked up by a military helicopter about 30 minutes after the crash, Lee said. He was flown to Mike O'Callaghan Federal Hospital near Las Vegas for an examination that revealed no injuries, Lustig said. Lustig didn't have any details about the nature of the flight and couldn't say whether the jet that crashed was accompanied by other aircraft. An investigation into the cause of the crash was already under way Monday night, Lustig said. Back to Top US Air Force grounds F-22 fighters -- again WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US Air Force has had to ground dozens of F-22 fighter jets for the second time this year after concerns a pilot suffered a lack of oxygen in the cockpit, officers said Monday. Commanders at a base in Virginia and in Alaska ordered a "pause" in flights for the world's most expensive and advanced fighter aircraft as a safety precaution, an Air Force spokesman said. The decision came after an incident last week in which a pilot at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia suffered "hypoxia-like" symptoms in mid-flight, Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Johnson told AFP. The announcement came only a month after the Air Force grounded the entire Raptor fleet from May through mid-September -- an extraordinary step -- to allow engineers to check for possible problems with the plane's oxygen supply. Analysts say the precise source of the problem remains a mystery despite elaborate tests and safety measures. The fleet was cleared to return to the air last month without a clear explanation behind a spate of incidents in which pilots appeared to suffer from a lack of oxygen. "Part of our protocol is to allow units to pause operations whenever they need to analyze information collected from flight operations to ensure safety. That is what is happening at Langley at the moment, and we support that decision," Johnson said in an emailed statement. About 30 F-22 Raptors are based at the Langley base in Virginia, which President Barack Obama visited last week. At Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska, senior officers lifted the temporary flight ban on Monday after having ordered the planes grounded last Thursday, he said. The Air Force has been reluctant to discuss the problem in any detail, particularly the circumstances of about a dozen incidents affecting F-22 pilots over a three-year period. At a cost of nearly $150 million for each plane, the F-22 Raptor is designed mainly for dogfights against rival fighter jets and the radar-evading aircraft were not used in the NATO-led air campaign over Libya. The Air Force has more than 160 F-22 Raptors in its fleet and plans to build a total of 187. Some US lawmakers and defense contractors lobbied for years to fund a larger F-22 fleet but former defense secretary Robert Gates succeeded in defeating their effort, saying there was no urgent need to build more of the sophisticated aircraft. Back to Top Pilot exits may clip Cathay wings Cathay Pacific would likely be hard-pressed to keep up its expansion plan, with 13 of the 21 pilots hired in the past three months said to have resigned over employment conditions. It is understood that many of them are expatriates who find Cathay's offer less attractive than those of other airlines. It is also believed the airline has only hired about 20 pilots so far this year, excluding those who joined through its training program. The Hong Kong flag carrier earlier announced plans to hire a total of 250 pilots. A spokesman said he can neither confirm nor deny the resignation of 13 pilots, and did not respond when asked if it is an unusual situation. "My colleague had a look at the documents and he said the figures do not look like they match. He said there should probably not be that many [resignations]," the spokesman said. He said of 86 cadet pilots who joined the airline's training program in the past three months, 44 have been inducted. Chairman Christopher Pratt said in March Cathay plans to hire 2,300 staff this year, including 250 pilots and 1,300 flight attendants. Pratt also said the carrier will boost its fleet by another 27 new aircraft, after a record-breaking year in 2010 for net profit, turnover, passengers and cargo. The supposed resignations, meanwhile, triggered a discussion among pilots in an aviation forum. One user said 33 pilots have already resigned this year and a "sizable chunk" will quit around December, before the new tax year. The user, understood to be an expat pilot, said Cathay has been reducing benefits to foreign hires. The carrier discontinued the housing allowance paid to foreign pilots in April. Another pilot said the airline is replacing foreign pilots with locals who are entitled to fewer benefits. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=30&art_id=116377&sid=34193421&con_type=1 Back to Top Nigeria: The Nation Attains Latest Stage of Air Safety - Ncaa Nigerian has attained global standard in terms of air safety and security and will soon be compared to what is obtainable in any part of the globe, Deputy General Manager Procurement of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has said. Alhaji Diyajo Yahaya Ahmed said in Abuja yesterday at the opening of bids for the development of Geodetic Aerial Maps and Imagery data of obstacles and obstructions at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport. He said under the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), "what these consultants are bidding for is the latest ICAO safety requirement and Nigeria is ready to implement it for the safety of our airspace and flights in and across the country." He said funds for the execution of the project have already been made available by government warning that any consultant that wins the bid to execute the contract must be ready to deliver according to specific standards. He said while the NCAA is under obligation to comply fully with due process in the award of the contract, the agency will do everything possible to ensure that the projects is executed within the specified period of time and according to standard. He said NCAA will set up a committee that will evaluate all the bids submitted before short listing qualified consultants for the job while a pre-technical proposal meeting will be arranged soon for the qualified consultants. Also speaking at the event, the Aviation Safety Inspector of the agency, Mr. Felix Anyanwu said the project when executed will enhance safety and accurate data as well as reduce air accidents especially for helicopters that fly low since it will increase visuals for pilots. Eight companies bidded for the project which include six Nigerian and two United States of American based firms. It is expected that list of successful bidders will be made available by month end. http://allafrica.com/stories/201110250401.html Back to Top Airlines Rev Up for Flights to Cuba As Travel Limits Ease, Carriers Boost Charter Service in Hopes That Full-Scale Tourism Will Return. U.S. airlines are wading deeper into the charter business to Cuba as travel restrictions have loosened, hoping one day to haul American tourists to the island's unspoiled beaches. By year-end, four of the largest U.S. airlines will operate about 25 weekly flights to Cuba for charter companies. AMR Corp.'s American Airlines has been flying to Cuba for two decades, and JetBlue Airways Corp. arrived last month. The world's two biggest carriers by traffic, United Continental Holdings Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc., are resuming weekly service to Cuba after a seven-year hiatus. Charter companies estimate that they will fly 400,000 people between Cuba and the U.S. this year, up from 250,000 last year. The surge follows President Barack Obama's January order to make travel to the communist country easier for students, journalists and religious groups, among others. That helped clear the way for future direct charter flights to Cuba from Chicago, Baltimore, Dallas and 12 other cities. Until this year, Miami International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport and New York's JFK International Airport were the only U.S. gateways to the island for many years. Tourism by Americans is still barred. But under the new rules some U.S. citizens-for example, under the auspices of news organizations or universities-now can get permission for travel to Cuba from licensed charter companies instead of just through the U.S. government. Others, such as performers, humanitarians or individuals planning direct educational exchanges with Cuban citizens, still must apply case-by-case to the U.S. Treasury Department. As before, Cuban-Americans can make unlimited trips to visit family. Bobby Caballero, manager of the Tropicana Café, a Cuban eatery in Tampa, Fla., says that with flights from Tampa to Cuba, he no longer has to take the annual four-hour drive to Miami when he flies to visit family on the island. "Think about it: That costs at least $120 in gas" round trip, he says. "I'm very, very happy, brother." The airlines provide the aircraft, crew and insurance to operate the flights. The charter companies sell the tickets, vet travelers and run the trips. The charter companies say they pay the airlines about $16,000 to $25,000 per round-trip flight between Miami and Havana, enough to make the short hops over the Gulf of Mexico profitable for the airlines but hardly gold mines. "Carriers can't be looking at this as a money maker," says Vivian Mannerud, president of charter operator Airline Brokers Co., who has been selling flights to Cuba since 1982. "They have to look at this as an investment." Cuba is a big tourist destination for Canadians, Mexicans and Europeans and one of the few markets with untapped potential among Americans. Travel by Americans to Cuba became easier in January. Charter firms now can approve people traveling with religious groups. Universities can sponsor people for travel requiring charter firm OK. Freelance journalists, people on direct educational or cultural exchanges can travel with U.S. Treasury Department approval. Performers, athletes and humanitarians still require Treasury approval. Tourism remains barred. Cuban-Americans still can make unlimited family visits. . Some U.S. citizens illegally vacation on the island via Canada or Mexico. Airlines appear to be getting ready in case U.S. travel restrictions are lifted more in coming years. JetBlue began flying between Cuba and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for Airline Brokers last month. "Cuba has huge market potential and the only way we can fly there right now is through charters," says JetBlue spokesman Mateo Lleras. "As a side bonus, we're also gaining experience and exposure in that market." Before the Cuban revolution, the country was home to a thriving hotel and casino industry. Travel by U.S. citizens has been restricted since 1963, except for five years under Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. Several major U.S. airlines flew to the island for charter companies through the 1980s and '90s. A Delta flight carried the Baltimore Orioles to play a Cuban all-star baseball team in 1999. When the administration of President George W. Bush tightened the rules in 2004, Delta and Continental halted service. Meanwhile, AMR has expanded its market share. For several years after 2004, its regional carrier, American Eagle, operated an estimated 80% of the flights from Miami to Cuba, charter companies say. Since 2009, American Airlines' presence in Cuba has grown with demand, say Tessie Aral, president of ABC Charters Inc. ABC uses American for eight flights a week to Cuba, including the first regular flights from Tampa since 1959. "American has stuck it through thick and thin for a very, very long time," says Ms. Mannerud, of Airline Brokers. "I think in the end it's going to pay off." AMR confirms it flies to Cuba for charter companies but declines to comment further. United Continental declines to discuss in detail its weekly flights to Cuba from Los Angeles and Miami, which will start Dec. 6. It will run the flights for Cuba Travel Services Inc. The charter company says it will use the airline for charters from Houston and might add service from Oakland, Calif. Delta's return to Cuba, on behalf of Marazul Charters Inc., will make the carrier one of the most frequent fliers between the island and the U.S. By December, Delta will fly to Cuba nine times a week, including the first- ever flights from the carrier's hub, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest. Corrections & Amplifications By December, Delta will fly to Cuba nine times a week. An earlier version of this article reported an incorrect number of weekly flights. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203752604576643452812586950.html?mod=googlenews_wsj Back to Top FAA Warns of Corrosion on Boeing 757 Tails Pilots could lose control of the aircraft if maintenance is inadequate The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) wants airlines to take a very carerful look at the horizontal stabilizers on the tail sections of Boeing 757 jets. The agency says that corrosion on the stabilizers could cause pilots to lose control of the aircraft. It might sound far-fetched but 11 years ago, a a similar mishap befell an Alaska Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83 off the Southern California coast. The airplane became uncontrollable and crashed into the sea, killing all 88 on board. Investigators looking into that crash blamed poor maintenance, faulty design and slipshod federal oversight. The FAA is proposing what's called a mandatory safety directive that would require all U.S. carriers to check the stabilizers on more than 700 757s. Overseas airlines would eventually do the same, it's hoped. Boeing said it supports the proposal and noted that it already recommends carriers "regularly inspect and lubricate" moving parts. http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2011/10/faa-warns-of-corrosion-on-boeing-757-tails.html Back to Top Russian authority grounds regional carrier Mordovia Russian authorities have suspended operations by regional carrier Mordovia Airlines, citing the company's financial and economic situation. The grounding is part of a crackdown on poorly-performing carriers as the government seeks to demonstrate its willingness to suspend operators which fail to meet minimum criteria. Mordovia Airlines, based in Saransk, has a fleet of about five Antonov An-24 and An-26 aircraft. The carrier said its flight network includes scheduled services between Saransk, Moscow Domodedovo and Sochi. It had been intending to expand with routes to St Petersburg, Ekaterinburg and Krasnodar. Russian federal air transport regulator Rosaviatsia said the carrier had suffered a "deterioration" in its performance, and confirmed the suspension on 21 October. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC