Flight Safety Information July 13, 2012 - No. 142 In This Issue Chartered Aircraft Crashes Enroute To Tasiast Mine; Seven Killed Thailand, Cambodia investigate jet incident Delta Jet Evacuated At JFK: Plane Turned Around Mid-Flight After Suspicious Wires Found Pilot Shortage Could Lead To Less Qualified Pilots By 2031 Nigeria: DANA Crash - Pilots Noted Problem 17 Mins After Takeoff ARGUS PROS Aviation Auditing Nigeria to host international conference on aviation safety Metric for Aviation Emissions Established FAA moves to address pilot training on stalls, surprises Chartered Aircraft Crashes Enroute To Tasiast Mine; Seven Killed (RTTNews.com) - Kinross Gold Corp. (KGC, K.TO) confirmed that a YAK-12 Mauritanian military plane which was chartered to carry gold from its Tasiast mine in Mauritania crashed shortly after taking off from the airport in Nouakchott, Mauritania. Seven people were killed in the crash, including two pilots, two Mauritanian customs officials, and three contract security personnel. No Kinross personnel were on board. Kinross extended its sincere condolences to the families of the victims. However, the incident has not affected normal mine operations or flights of personnel to and from Tasiast. No gold was on board the flight and the incident is not expected to affect gold shipment schedules. *********** Date: 12 JUL 2012 Time: 07:45 Type: Harbin Yunshuji Y-12-II Operator: Force Aérienne de la République Islamique de Mauritanie Registration: 5T-MA. Crew: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 Passengers: Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5 Total: Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 7 Airplane damage: Written off Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: near Nouakchott Airport (NKC) (Mauritania) Phase: Initial climb (ICL) Nature: Military Departure airport: Nouakchott Airport (NKC) (NKC/GQNN), Mauritania Destination airport: Tasiast Gold Mine Airstrip, Mauritania Narrative: A Harbin Yunshuji Y-12-II transport plane was destroyed when it crashed shortly after takeoff from Nouakchott Airport (NKC), Mauritania. All seven occupants were killed. The airplane was operated by the Mauritanian Air Force on a flight on behalf of the Kinross Gold Corporation. It was heading for the Tasiast gold mine to bring gold back from the mine to Nouakchott. Kinross reported that two pilots, two Mauritanian customs officials, and three contract security personnel were on board. www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top Thailand, Cambodia investigate jet incident Authorities in Thailand and Cambodia are investigating reports that Cambodian troops fired on a Bangkok Airways passenger jet after mistaking it for a spy plane. BANGKOK (AP) - Authorities in Thailand and Cambodia are investigating reports that Cambodian troops fired on a Bangkok Airways passenger jet after mistaking it for a spy plane. A senior Thai army officer says Cambodians opened fire as the plane circled the border region in bad weather this week. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject. There were no reports of damage. Thailand's Foreign Minister Surapong Tovijakchaikul denies the reports. Cambodian Col. Seng Phearin said Friday that forces fired 18 gunshots into the air, but the aircraft was military and not civilian. Bangkok Airways says it received no reports of an aircraft coming under fire. Thailand and Cambodia have often had tense relations over a disputed border region, with the situation sometimes turning violent. Back to Top Delta Jet Evacuated At JFK: Plane Turned Around Mid-Flight After Suspicious Wires Found NEW YORK - New York officials have found suspicious wires in a bathroom onboard a flight that was returned to Kennedy International airport, but no explosive device was found. Officials are questioning a male and female passenger about them. New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne says Delta Flight 126 bound for Madrid was returned to the gate and evacuated Thursday after a report of a suspicious device aboard. The flight took off at 8 p.m. and it landed around 10 p.m. Authorities say wires were found in the lavatory that apparently did not belong to the plane. It was initially thought the passengers were evacuated before the plane took off. It's not clear how many people were on board. A call to Delta was not immediately returned. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/13/delta-jet-evacuated-at- jfk_n_1670126.html?utm_hp_ref=travel Back to Top Pilot Shortage Could Lead To Less Qualified Pilots By 2031: REPORT By JOAN LOWY WASHINGTON (AP) -- An industry forecast that nearly half a million new airline pilots will be needed worldwide over the next 20 years as airlines expand their fleets has raised safety concerns that airlines will hire lower caliber pilots as they struggle to fill slots. Boeing, one of the world's largest makers of commercial jetliners, forecasts about 465,000 new pilots will be needed worldwide between now and 2031 as global economies expand and airlines take deliveries of tens of thousands of new commercial jetliners. The forecast includes 69,000 new pilots in the North America, mostly in the U.S. The greatest growth will be in the Asia-Pacific region, where an estimated 185,600 new pilots will be needed. Likewise, Boeing predicts 601,000 new aircraft maintenance technicians will be needed over the same period, with greatest demand - 243,500 technicians - in the Asia-Pacific region. An estimated 92,500 new technicians will North America. The rising global demand for airline pilots has raised concern among industry and government officials that there will be a global and a domestic pilot shortage. "In many regions of the world, a pilot shortage is already here," the Boeing forecast said. "Asia Pacific in particular is experiencing delays and operational interruptions due to pilot scheduling constraints." That's particularly true in China and India, industry officials said. Airlines based in Asia and the Middle East have been holding pilot job fairs in the U.S. and thousands of pilots laid off due to U.S. airline bankruptcies and mergers are now flying for foreign carriers. "We have airlines around the world as they buy our airplanes and come to us on the training side of the house, saying `We're struggling to fill (pilot) seats. Can you help us?' " said Carl Davis, Boeing's chief of pilot services. Davis presented his company's forecast Thursday at a conference in Washington on pilot training hosted by the Air Line Pilots Association, the world's largest pilot union. U.S. industry and government officials are also concerned that the rising global demand for pilots, combined with an anticipated wave in pilot retirements and tougher qualification standards for new pilots that kick-in next year, will create a domestic shortage as well. "I'm concerned because it has safety implications," John Allen, the Federal Aviation Administration's director of flight services, told The Associated Press. Allen said he wants to spur a discussion among industry, labor unions, and academia about a potential shortage that will "really look at this and address it, not to just sweep it under the rug ... Is this a problem? And, if it is a problem, how bad is it?" He said he is fearful that if there is a shortage, airlines will hire pilots who are technically qualified but don't have the "right stuff." "If the industry is stretched pretty thin ... that can result in someone getting into the system that maybe isn't really the right person to be a pilot. Not everybody is supposed to be a pilot," Allen said. Jean Medina, a spokeswoman for Airlines for America, responding to Allen's comments, said: "Safety is always our top priority and our airlines hire pilots that meet the rigorous standards set by the FAA." The International Air Transport Association didn't respond to a request for comment. Lee Moak, president of the pilots union, said he doubts a pilot shortage will be felt in the U.S. for about three to five years. If U.S. airlines start hiring pilots in large numbers, he said, pilots now flying for foreign carriers will likely return home. There are currently about 90,000 airline pilots in the U.S. and Canada. "Globally is another matter," Moak said. Industry and government officials anticipate a wave of pilot retirements at U.S. airlines beginning this year. Five years ago, the FAA raised the mandatory retirement age for pilots from 60 to 65. The fifth anniversary of that decision is Dec. 13. Pilots who were age 60 on that date five years ago are reaching the age where they have to retire. Also, FAA regulations created in response to an aviation safety law passed by Congress two years ago will raise the experience threshold required to be an airline first officer from the current 250 hours of flying time to 1,500 hours, the same level as required of captains. That's expected to make it harder for airlines to find qualified new applicants. At the same time, the pool of military-trained pilots that airlines have relied upon in the past has largely dried up as more pilots choose to remain in the military rather than seek airline careers, industry officials said. That means airlines have had to rely on new hires that have accumulated their experience at flight schools and, later, working as flight instructors at local airports and the flight schools. "The cost of getting into flying is very expensive," Davis said. "When I talk to college students, if they're coming out of a 4-year collegiate (aviation) program most of them are $150,000 -to- $160,000 in debt. And that only gives them the qualifications to go be a flight instructor. If you're making $20,000 a year as a flight instructor you're lucky." A shortage in the U.S. will likely first be felt at regional airlines, which tend fly smaller airliners and hire less-experienced pilots than mainline careers. A typical pilot career path is to get hired as a first officer at a regional airline, get promoted to captain and then get hired by a mainline carrier. Back to Top Nigeria: DANA Crash - Pilots Noted Problem 17 Mins After Takeoff - Report The preliminary report on the June 3, 2012, Dana crash released by the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), yesterday in Abuja, has revealed that the pilots of the ill- fated plane noted problems with the engine 17 minutes after takeoff in Abuja. The report signed by the commissioner/chief executive officer, AIB, Capt. M. Usman, said that the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) recovered from the black box revealed that the pilots mentioned it in a discussion but did not voice concerns that the condition would affect the continuation of the flight. The statement said: "The CVR retained about 31 minutes of flight and starts about 15:15 at which time the captain and the first officer were in a discussion of a non-normal condition regarding the correlation between the engine throttle setting and an engine power indication. However, they did not voice concerns then that the condition would affect the continuation of the flight." The report said that the pilots continued to monitor the condition while maintaining contacts with the control tower which issued the plane final heading to intercept the final approach course for the runway. "During the period of 15:37 and 15:41 the flight crew engaged in pre-landing tasks including deployment of the slats, and extension of the flaps and landing gear. At 15: 41:16 the first officer (FO) inquired, 'Both engines coming up?' and then the captain replied "Negative". The flight crew subsequently discussed and agreed to declare an emergency. At 15:42:10, DANA 992 radioed a distress call indicating "dual engine failure...negative response from throttle. "At 15:42:35, the flight crew lowered the flaps further and continued with the approach and discussed landing alternatively on runway 18L. At 15:42:45, the capt reported the runway in sight and instructed the FO to raise the flaps up and 4 seconds later to raise the landing gear. "At 15:43:27 hours, the Capt informed the FO, 'We just lost everything, we lost an engine. I lost both engines'. During the next 25 seconds until the end of the CVR recordings, the flight crew was attempting to restart the engines," it stated. However it appears that investigations might not be conclusive after all as the much- awaited reports from the flight cockpit data recorder was not available because it melted in the fire that engulfed the plane after the crash. According to the AIB commissioner, "The two flight recorders, the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and the flight data recorder (FDR) were analysed at the facilities of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Washington, D.C., USA. The solid state-based memory in the CVR was in good condition and retained 31 minutes of audio information. The digital tape-based memory in the FDR succumbed to the post- crash fire and melted; consequently no data could be recovered." However, he said the investigations confirmed earlier reports of dual engine failure, while investigations into whether the fuel was contaminated proved negative. The report revealed that a review of the technical log of the Boeing MD-83 plane manufactured in US did not indicate any condition that could result in the crash. It said: "A review of the aircraft technical logs of the previous 30 days did not indicate a condition. The airplane had last undergone maintenance on 1st June 2012, and after a return to service flight on 2nd June 2012, it was operated on four revenue flights (two- round-trips between LOS and ABV) and another four flights on 3rd June 2012. "The airplane was on the fourth flight segment of the day, consisting of two round-trips between Lagos and Abuja. The accident occurred during the return leg of the second trip. DAN 992 was on final approach for runway 18R at LOS when the crew reported the total loss of power." The report further revealed that investigative activities carried out on the plane included visual examination of the aircraft wreckage, review maintenance records and other historical information of the aircraft, documentation of the training and experience of the flight crew, determination of the chronology of the flight, review of recorded data, reconstructing the aircraft refueling, and collection of related fuel samples and interview of related personnel. "Future investigative activities will include the detailed examination of the engines, further testing of fuel samples, continued factual gathering of relevant historical, operational, maintenance and performance information of the accident airplane. "In addition to other similar airplane models, further development of the background of the flight crew, further analysis of the CVR audio recording and review of pertinent issues associated with regulatory oversight," it added. http://allafrica.com/stories/201207130085.html Back to Top Back to Top Nigeria to host international conference on aviation safety Nigeria will from July 16 to July 20 host an international conference on aviation safety in Africa. The Special Assistant to the Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah, Mr Joe Obi, disclosed this in a press statement in Abuja yesterday. The statement said the conference would be declared open by President Goodluck Jonathan. It said the conference would be hosted by the Federal Ministry of Aviation (FMA) in conjunction with the African Union Commission (AUC) and the African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC). He said: ``The meeting will focus mainly on Safety Performance in Africa. The ministerial session of the conference will be preceded by the meeting of Directors- General of Civil Aviation Authorities and other Aviation Safety Experts.'' The statement said the conference would be attended by the ministers responsible for Civil Aviation in Africa; Directors-General of Civil Aviation in Africa and representatives of Regional Aviation bodies. Other stakeholders expected at the conference are Aviation Safety Experts; regulatory agencies; International Aviation Organisations; International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), USA. Also expected at the conference are representatives of the International Air Transport Association (IATA); Airport Council International (ACI); Flight Safety Foundation and Civil Air Navigation Service Organisation (CANSO), among others. The statement said that a joint declaration and implementation mechanisms for safety imperatives in Africa would be adopted at the end of the Conference. http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/news-update/53708-nigeria-to-host- international-conference-on-aviation-safety.html Back to Top Metric for Aviation Emissions Established ARLINGTON, Va., July 12, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Path paved for new standard to govern future CO2 Aviation Emissions The ICAO Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) reached a critical milestone by formally establishing the metric that will form the basis of a new ICAO CO2 standard. The final agreement on the standard was made during a meeting in Saint- Petersburg, Russia. Since 2010, when the ICAO Council directed CAEP to develop the standard, ICCAIA, alongside ICAO member states, intergovernmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, has worked extensively to develop a robust, fair and equitable metric system. The way is now set for CAEP to complete the work on a new standard that will achieve reductions in aviation fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by addressing aircraft technological improvements. The new metric system defines how aircraft CO2 emissions can be evaluated in a manner that is relevant to its operation. It is based on fuel used per unit distance at three different cruise conditions, which represents a broad spectrum of aircraft utilization. In order to cope with the wide range of aircraft sizes, the metric accounts for fuselage geometry and maximum take-off weight. The aerospace industry is committed to continued efficiency improvements through technological improvements, operational efficiencies, airspace redesign and the introduction of sustainable alternative fuels. Not only are aircraft 70 percent more fuel efficient than 50 years ago, but the industry has committed to carbon neutral growth after 2020. This standard will be a vital addition to the basket of measures that the industry can use to achieve its carbon emission reduction goals. The International Coordinating Council of Aerospace Industries Associations (ICCAIA) is the international organization of aerospace industry manufacturing associations. ICCAIA was established in 1972 to provide the civil aircraft industry a means to be represented with observer status in the deliberations of the UN's International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). SOURCE The International Coordinating Council of Aerospace Industries Associations (ICCAIA) Back to Top FAA moves to address pilot training on stalls, surprises The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday a rule under development will require pilots to get training to react better to stalls and surprises, following a recent report detailing those problems with an Air France crash. Michael Huerta, FAA's acting administrator, said after lengthy development that the rule would be completed in 2013. But he said airlines can begin updating their simulator training now so that pilots become more familiar with recovering from stalls. "We want to give pilots more and better training on how to recognize and recover from stalls and aircraft upsets," Huerta told a conference of the Air Line Pilots Association. The pace of improving pilot training has frustrated relatives of the 50 people killed in the Colgan Air in February 2009, the last commercial fatalities in the United States. The National Transportation Safety Board blamed the Buffalo crash on pilots overreacting to warnings the plane was going too slow and yanking up on the turbo-prop's controls. In a July 5 report, French investigators blamed an Air France crash that killed 228 people in June 2009 on pilots stalling their plane and failing to recover after several pieces of air-speed equipment froze. The plane's engines worked fine as it fell for more than 3 minutes before crashing into the Atlantic. Scott Maurer of Moore, S.C., who has pushed for safety measures since his daughter Lorin died in the Colgan crash, said the Air France report "underscores the dramatic need to better train our pilots to react to emergency situations, and in particular to not be so heavily reliant on the automation in the cockpit." Huerta told pilots that new training under the rule that is being developed would simulate problems that might happen in actual flight, rather than in a highly choreographed scenarios of current training. "We can't lose sight of the importance of training on the core aspects of flying, such as crew management, stall recovery or other events that could occur when there is a change or a loss in automation," Huerta said. http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/post/2012/07/faa-moves-to-address-pilot-training- on-stalls-surprises/802094/1 Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP, FRAeS, FISASI CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC