Flight Safety Information May 29, 2012 - No. 106 In This Issue Debris from disabled Air Canada jet lands on cars near Pearson Emergency landing after jet engine catches fire on Saudi Arabia-to-India flight TSA Questions Safety of Venezuelan Airports FAA Investigating 80 Year Old's Skydive Mishap FAA Proposes $395,850 Civil Penalty against US Airways PRISM CERTIFICATION CONSULTANTS GULF FLIGHT SAFETY COMMITTEE AGM - DUBAI 6 JUNE 2012-05-21 ISASI regional meeting in the Middle East (Abu Dhabi) 2012 US/Europe International Aviation Safety Conference...June 12-14, 2012 Debris from disabled Air Canada jet lands on cars near Pearson TORONTO Police believe chunks of metal that fell on cars near Pearson International Airport on Monday afternoon came from a disabled jet. Peel Regional Police Constable George Tudos says investigators know of four vehicles that were hit by pieces of metal about the size of a cellphone around 2:30 p.m. There were no injuries. An Air Canada spokesman says a Boeing 777 made an emergency landing at Pearson after losing an engine shortly after takeoff. Peter Fitzpatrick says the crew landed the plane on one engine and there were no injuries among the 318 passengers and 16 crew aboard. Fitzpatrick says the cause of the engine shutdown on flight AC001 to Narita airport in Tokyo isn't known. The Canadian Press Back to Top Emergency landing after jet engine catches fire on Saudi Arabia-to-India flight; no one hurt NEW DELHI (AP) - A Jet Airways plane has made an emergency landing at Mumbai airport after its left engine caught fire, but the Indian airline says no one was hurt. The airline says in a statement that the plane's left engine caught fire early Monday morning during a flight from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Jet Airways says air traffic controllers asked for the plane to land after seeing some smoke coming out of its engine. Back to Top TSA Questions Safety of Venezuelan Airports According to a note on the U.S. State Department's website, "Since 2005, the Venezuela government has not permitted the U.S. Transportation Security Agency (TSA) to assess the safety and security standards of Venezuelan airports that provide direct service to the United States, as required by the U.S. Congress. In September 2008, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began to post public notices at U.S. airports to notify passengers of this issue." However, a statement released by the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington last week, said its country's airports are safe. The statement also said U.S. representatives from United, Delta, American and FedEx, left a recent meeting in Caracas with the same understanding. Francisco Paz Fleitas, Venezuela's president of the National Institute for Civil Aviation, stressed "the importance of holding such meetings ... to discuss [and address] the distorted and erroneous perceptions caused by the signs placed in U.S. airports regarding the supposed lack of safety of Venezuelan airports." A U.S. State Department spokesman told AIN that State Department officials were attempting to contact James Derham, the Chargé d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Venezuela, to confirm the details. The spokesman expressed surprise that the Venezuelan government had issued a media alert related to airports because "no one recorded the precise contents of that meeting." A Delta spokesman confirmed that two airline representatives did attend a meeting in Caracas last week and told AIN, "Delta respects the requirements from TSA and will follow them. Delta considers the safety of the airports we serve." Despite the State Department warnings issued in 2005, Delta said it has "served the Venezuelan market continuously for the past 14 years." An American Airlines spokesman said, "Venezuela was our first South American destination almost 25 years ago [and] American would not operate flights into Venezuela, if we deemed the airports we serve to present unacceptable safety conditions." The State Department did not contact AIN again before press time with updates explaining the mixed messages. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ainsafety/2012-05-28/tsa-questions-safety- venezuelan-airports Back to Top FAA Investigating 80 Year Old's Skydive Mishap (WASHINGTON) -- One 80 year old grandmother's terrifying skydive is being investigated by the FAA after it went viral. The video was created by The Parachute Center, a skydiving company in Acampo, Calif., as a memento for jumpers to take home after their airborne adventures. It shows a woman named Laverne having second thoughts right before her jump, but the instructor scoops her up and they fall out of the plane. At one point in the video, it appears that Laverne has slipped out of her harness, and the instructor grabs on to her. Skydiving Goes Wrong: 80- Year-Old Granny Falls Out Of Harness In a statement to ABC News, Parachute Center owner Bill Dause said, "This happened a long time ago and everything worked as advertised. No one got hurt or injured." An FAA safety inspector visited The Parachute Center on Saturday, according to FAA spokesman Ian Gregor. The inspector spoke with the company owner and employees about the incident and plans to do additional interviews and examine records next week. Skydiving fatalities are on the decline these days, with some 21 deaths out of 3 million jumpers in 2010, a 0.007 chance of death, according to the association. Nancy Koreen, a spokesperson for the association, said it looked as if Laverne's harness wasn't adjusted properly, and that she wasn't positioned properly before the jump. "But that's not at all a common occurrence," she said. "It's extremely, extremely rare." Even so, Laverne will probably celebrate her next birthday on solid ground. http://www.masoncountydailynews.com/news/national-news/31039-faa-investigating- 80-year-olds-skydive-mishap Back to Top FAA Proposes $395,850 Civil Penalty against US Airways The FAA is proposing a $395,850 civil penalty against US Airways, for allegedly violating U.S. Department of Transportation Hazardous Materials Regulations. As the result of a inspection of the airline's facilities at Hartford Bradley International Airport (BDL) from May 10 to 18, the FAA alleges the airline committed various violations between February 26 and May 12, 2010, involving 12 flights to or from Bradley. In one instance, the TSA discovered undeclared cigarette lighters in checked baggage, while another incident involved improperly packaged alkali batteries being loaded onboard. The FAA also alleged the airline failed to provide pilots with the required "accurate and legible written information" regarding 23 shipments of hazardous materials it accepted for transportation. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ainsafety/2012-05-28/faa-proposes-395850- civil-penalty-against-us-airways Back to Top Back to Top GULF FLIGHT SAFETY COMMITTEE AGM - DUBAI 6 JUNE 2012-05-21 The Gulf Flight Safety Committee, the regional aviation safety forum for the Gulf, will hold its annual general meeting at the Emirates Training Centre in Dubai from 0830 to 1630 on 6 June 2012. In addition to the annual appointment of the executive committee and other GFSC business, there will be the usual mix of incident reviews and industry debate, followed by some informative safety presentations. All existing members are urged to attend and take part in shaping the next steps for the GFSC, and others with an interest in regional safety matters and perhaps thinking of joining are welcome to attend on this occasion. Further information is available on the website www.gfsc.aero and queries should be directed to chair@gfsc.aero or to the current chairman Jo Gillespie jgillespie@gatesaviation.com . Sponsored by NEXUS Flight Operations Services in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Back to Top Back to Top 2012 US/Europe International Aviation Safety Conference June 12-14, 2012 Cleveland, Ohio USA Time is short but it is not too late to register for the 2012 US/Europe International Aviation Safety Conference scheduled June 12-14, 2012 at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel. The FAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) are joining forces for the advancement of aviation safety through global leadership. In keeping with the conference theme, "Maintaining the Course for International Collaborative Success", FAA and EASA are teaming with colleagues from civil aviation authorities around the world as well as international companies whose products and services contribute to the safety of air travel. Continuing the tradition of previous years, this conference will provide a forum for aviation safety leaders to share ideas and initiatives on international cooperation, harmonization, and emerging safety challenges. The conference will be of interest to government aviation standards, certification, operations, and maintenance personnel as well as representatives from both domestic and international aviation industries and associations. Deadline for registration is June 1, 2012. For more information on site and agenda, call or email Diane Migliori (202 385-8948; diane.migliori@faa.gov) or visit the conference website at: http://www.faa.gov/news/conferences_events/2012_us_eu. ********** 2012 US/Europe International Aviation Safety Conference June 12-14, 2012 Cleveland, Ohio USA Maintaining the Course for International Collaborative Success The FAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) are again joining forces to advance aviation safety through global leadership at this year's International Aviation Safety Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, June 12-14, 2012. FAA and EASA look forward to teaming with colleagues from civil aviation authorities around the world and international companies whose products and services contribute to the safety of air travel. Continuing the tradition of previous years, this conference will provide a forum for aviation safety leaders to share ideas and initiatives on international cooperation, harmonization, and emerging safety challenges. Bill Ayer, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Alaska Airlines, has accepted our invitation to deliver the Keynote Address on the second day of the conference. Who Should Attend: * Government aviation standards, certification, operations, and maintenance personnel * Representatives from both domestic and international aviation industries and associations Conference Sessions Contact For more information, contact: Diane Migliori (202) 385-8948 diane.migliori@faa.gov Registration Hotel Cleveland Agenda Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP, FRAeS, FISASI CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC