Flight Safety Information August 26, 2013 - No. 176 In This Issue Friction Escalates in Air Crash Probe Aviation firms halt Super Puma flights after North Sea crash Bill would require a second cockpit door on commercial aircraft The FAA Has Shut Down 2 Journalism School Drone Programs Delta flight from Cancun to Atlanta forced to make emergency landing in Alabama Nigerian Teen Survives Jet Flight Hidden Inside The Landing Gear DFW-bound jet diverted to Little Rock after engine problems ICAO finds no safety concerns in airline operations; FAA audit next month (India) FAA changes cause lack of qualified pilots Think ARGUS PROS Chinese Airlines Lure Pilots With Double the Pay of U.S. Captains NTSB Communications Course Friction Escalates in Air Crash Probe By ANDY PASZTOR Friction between federal aviation regulators and crash investigators threatens to impede a probe into a Southwest Airlines Inc. landing accident last month in New York, according to the carrier's safety officials. The July 22 accident at LaGuardia Airport, which resulted in more than a handful of injuries but no fatalities, underscores growing tension between experts at the National Transportation Safety Board, responsible for uncovering the causes of accidents, and regulators at the Federal Aviation Administration interested in swiftly punishing pilots or bringing civil-enforcement actions against airlines in the wake of a crash. That inherent conflict is now exacerbated, according to industry and government-safety experts, by the growing importance of social media in disseminating air-safety information. As a result, many airline officials increasingly feel trapped between competing demands for ever faster releases of information, coming from passengers as well as different parts of the government and even their own top executives. Escalating public pressure for nearly instantaneous details about airliner incidents and accidents has shaken up the previously staid, traditional world of accident investigations. The safety board's leaders increasingly are turning to Twitter to rush out details of significant findings-sometimes before advising on-site investigators of impending messages. Those unconventional announcements in turn are prompting the FAA and industry players to speed up their internal investigations and responses. The LaGuardia situation "is a good example of the multitude of information requests that come into the airline" after a typical crash or major incident, according to Timothy Logan, Southwest's senior risk-management official. Even before investigators from the safety board had completed their preliminary inquiry, he said, regulators from a number of different offices within the FAA already were seeking some of the same information from the carrier. "I'm not sure it serves anybody's purpose," said Mr. Logan, because it wasn't coordinated properly and in any event, "the safety investigation should take precedence." FAA officials helping the NTSB on investigations are prohibited from working on potential enforcement cases. About a week after the LaGuardia accident, Mr. Logan told an international safety conference last week in Vancouver, British Columbia, one part of the agency asked Southwest for information related to the plane's "black boxes," or onboard data and voice recorders. "I haven't even seen it yet, how am I going to give it to you?" he recalled responding. The FAA is barred from using cockpit-voice recordings for enforcement. "We're in the middle" of the tussle, Mr. Logan told the conference, because there is "certain information we're told we can't provide" to the FAA. Calling the situation "very frustrating," he said "we need to get this worked out" to avoid broader delays and complications that could affect investigations of many other commercial-aviation accidents. "We have four different parts of the agency coming at us" at the same time, Mr. Logan told a handful of attendees at the conference after his prepared remarks. Pilot-union leaders at Southwest have privately expressed the same general complaints to the FAA, according to people familiar with the details. Ten of the 149 people aboard the Southwest Boeing 737 were injured when the plane landed on its front wheels at LaGuardia, causing the nose gear to collapse and substantially damaging other parts of the aircraft. The high-profile accident temporarily closed the busy runway. The captain of Southwest Flight 345, arriving from Nashville, took the unusual step of taking over the controls during the last 400 feet of the descent, and investigators are now trying to determine if she throttled back the engines prematurely. The plane switched to a nose-down position in the final four seconds of flight. The NTSB has said it found no airplane malfunctions that could have caused the botched landing, though investigators haven't yet disclosed their conclusions. The FAA said it is "supporting the NTSB and examining our areas of responsibility to determine if any near-term action is necessary to ensure safe operations," but a spokeswoman declined to elaborate. Also on Sunday, a Southwest spokeswoman declined to comment on the specifics of the probe but said its quality hasn't been hurt. In an email response, an NTSB spokesman said the board relies on social media since many journalists use Twitter because "it is instantaneous and often meets their deadlines." The statement called it a valuable tool "to inform the media and the general public about the status of accident investigations." The Southwest probe highlights the dramatic procedural and attitude changes already embraced by Southwest's safety team in this new era. Dennis Post, the airline's senior accident investigator, told the same Vancouver conference that the prevalence of Twitter and videos taken by passengers using cellphones has drastically altered the way Southwest begins examining in-flight emergencies. "Our passengers are our first investigators," Mr. Post said, calling them "on-scene reporters" eager to share information about all types of events. Every day, he added, "we have teams pulling everything we can off social media" in order to create a novel warning system about unusual events throughout Southwest's nationwide network. In the event of a crash, Mr. Logan said aircraft makers and many other airlines resort to the same Internet-savvy tactics. But he worries that the resulting flurry of tweets and videos could end up confusing, rather than enlightening, most people. "The last thing we need is a [public relations] war in the midst of a significant event," he told accident investigators last week. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324591204579035231353396714.html Back to Top Aviation firms halt Super Puma flights after North Sea crash Four dead after North Sea helicopter crash British aviation firms have suspended all flights of Super Puma helicopters after four people were killed in the latest in a series of accidents in the North Sea oilfields, officials said yesterday. The accident on Friday was the fifth in four years off the Scottish coast involving a Super Puma, a passenger helicopter manufactured by Eurocopter, part of the European aerospace giant EADS. The body of the fourth victim was recovered yesterday, police said. "The fourth person was recovered from the wreckage a short time ago and we have deployed family liaison officers to support those who have lost loved ones. We are also working with the industry to help support all of those affected," said Angus MacInnes from Police Scotland. Survivors and the coastguard have said there appeared to be a loss of power before the helicopter, operated by the Canadian-based aviation firm CHC for the French oil giant Total, plunged into the sea near a cliff. The Super Puma AS332 L2 was travelling from the Borgsten Dolphin platform to Sumburgh airport on the Shetland archipelago when it came down three kilometres (two miles) west of its destination on Friday. "The two operators of Super Pumas in the United Kingdom yesterday voluntarily stopped operations," a spokesman for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Britain's aviation regulator, said. The suspension by CHC and by fellow operator Bond of all four Super Puma variants currently in service follows a recommendation by the British offshore oil industry's Helicopter Safety Steering Group (HSSG). The HSSG said it had taken the "precautionary measure of recommending temporary suspension of all Super Puma commercial passenger flights to and from offshore oil and gas installations within the UK". It added: "HSSG will closely monitor the situation and will only recommend resumption of flights by one or more of the Super Puma variants when it considers that sufficient factual information is available to support the decision." The CAA stressed that there had been no regulatory decision to ground Super Pumas, which would be the responsibility of the European Aviation Safety Agency. Eurocopter did not immediately respond to the move, but earlier said that it was supporting the relevant authorities with their investigations. The four people killed in the accident were all working for Total contractors, the oil giant said. Two of the 14 people rescued from the sea after the crash remain in hospital. Total backed the decision to suspend Super Puma flights. "It's a sensible course of action until we find out what the situation is," a Total spokesman said. The victims were named as Duncan Munro, 46, Sarah Darnley, 45, Gary McCrossan, 59, and George Allison, 57. There have been four other Super Puma accidents in the North Sea since 2009. Sixteen men died when a Super Puma plunged into the sea after its gearbox failed as it was flying from BP's Miller platform to Aberdeen in April 2009. All 19 people were rescued when a Super Puma ditched in the North Sea in October 2012, and another 14 were rescued in a similar Super Puma incident in May 2012. In February 2009 a Super Puma ditched in the Sea and all 18 people survived. http://www.gulf-times.com/uk-europe/183/details/363775/aviation-firms-halt-super- puma-flights-after-north-sea-crash Back to Top Bill would require a second cockpit door on commercial aircraft Airlines are balking over the possible, unfunded, requirement for a second cockpit barrier. Law enforcement supports the idea. A bill awaiting congressional approval is reviving the ghosts of Sept. 11. Commercial airlines would be required to install a secondary barrier to protect the cockpit under legislation introduced by Rep. Michael G. Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and supported by Ellen Saracini, the widow of Victor Saracini, one of the pilots killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. After the deadly attacks, the Federal Aviation Administration required commercial airlines to install one locking door between the cabin and the cockpit. The new bill suggests that planes are momentarily vulnerable when a pilot unlocks the door to use the restroom in the main cabin. Fitzpatrick's bill was referred to a congressional subcommittee in April, with no hearing date scheduled. The debate over the barriers has grown heated, with federal law enforcement groups supporting the bill and the airline industry criticizing it for costing millions of dollars. "We believe individual carriers should be able to make the determination," said Jean Medina, a spokeswoman for Airlines for America, the trade group for the country's airlines. After the Sept. 11 attacks, Congress set aside $100 million to help air carriers pay the estimated $12,000 to $17,000 cost of installing each cockpit door. Fitzpatrick's bill does not offer government funding for the second barrier. The Federal Law Enforcement Officers Assn., which includes federal air marshals, endorsed the legislation. "The best security is a layered approach, and the more layers, the better," said Don Mihalek, a spokesman for the law enforcement group. He dismissed the airline's complaint that the doors are mandated without funding. "The only mandate the airlines should be primarily concerned with is the terrorists', which is to kill as many Americans as they can, no matter the cost," Mihalek said. If you see a hotel with only a handful of online reviews, you might not be getting the full picture. A study by Spanish professors published by Cornell University found that initial online hotel reviews tend to be more negative and that the overall evaluations improve as the number of opinions increases. Online reviews are crucial for hotels because research shows they are usually more effective than traditional marketing such as print, radio and television ads. The study, based on sample reviews of 16,680 hotels, found that when a hotel has only 11 to 20 reviews, an average of 23% of them rate the hotel as terrible or poor. But when a hotel has more than 101 reviews, only about 13% of them rate the hotel terrible or poor, the study showed. Kelsey Blodget, editorial director at the hotel review site Oyster.com, said there are two probable reasons for the trend. "If the earliest reviews are posted when the hotel is brand new, it could just be because new hotels usually have some kinks to work out before they get things running smoothly," she said. "It could also be that those with negative things to say are the most eager to voice their opinions and are more likely to be 'first responders.'" Ryanair, the ultra-low-fare carrier based in Ireland, wants you to know it is cheap but not so cheap as to stiff you on your pocket change. The airline famous for squeezing fees from passengers took some heat recently from British tabloids that suggested Ryanair's flight attendants were not returning change to passengers after onboard sales. The tabloids hinted that the penny-pinching airline was keeping the change to increase airline revenue. "Nonsense," responded Robin Kiely, a spokesman for Ryanair. "Utter nonsense." The stories, he said, were based on a training manual that instructed Ryanair flight attendants who are selling onboard food and drinks what to do when they run out of change. The manual tells flight attendants to suggest that passengers buy extra items to eliminate the need for change, Kiely said. But the manual, produced by a third party, has been revised. "Our policy is to give change right back," he said. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-travel-briefcase-20130827,0,983090.story Back to Top The FAA Has Shut Down 2 Journalism School Drone Programs The Federal Aviation Administration has shut down two Midwestern journalism school programs using drones for aerial reporting, according to the Columbia Daily Tribune. In July, the University of Missouri Drone Journalism Program recieved a letter from the FAA requesting that it cease all outdoor flight, director Scott Pham wrote on the program's website. The Drone Journalism Lab at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln received a similar letter. Both programs use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with attached cameras to record video and photography from the air. Now, they need to obtain a Certificate of Authorization (COA) from the FAA before they can resume outdoor drone flights. (They are still allowed to use the UAVs indoors.) The Missouri program was created eight months ago, and says it operated under the FAA's regulations for remote control aircraft. But because the university is considered the university a "public agency," it must file for the COA, which is more restrictive. In his post, Pham wrote, "We intend to apply for a COA and we have no reason to think we will be denied." Professor Matt Waite, who started the University of Nebraska program, wrote he will pursue the certificate as well: "There are so many unanswered questions about using drones for journalism that it hardly makes sense to stop now. So we're applying for a COA. The people at the FAA with whom we've talked have been very helpful and matter-of-fact about getting one. It'll take time and a fair amount of documentation, they've told us, but provided we follow the rules it should happen." But both seem wary of how the required permit will change their use of drones for aerial reporting. Pham explains that because the COA will restrict where the university can fly drones, "it will significantly change the way we act as a program... Within a defined airspace, its [sic] hard to imagine the kinds of stories we can produce." Waite echoed his concerns: "The COA process, as it stands now, is antithetical to journalism. Permits take months. You have to apply to fly in a specific location - months in advance, mind you - and your chances of getting a permit drop if you ask for a place in restricted airspace... So the kinds of stories we can do are going to be very limited." Pham and Waite support the use of the unmanned, camera-equipped vehicles as a new way to gather information in the digital age. According to Pham, the Missouri program has produced stories on fracking and prairie fires http://www.businessinsider.com/faa-ends-journalism-school-drone-use-2013- 8#ixzz2d4ciN7kw Back to Top Delta flight from Cancun to Atlanta forced to make emergency landing in Alabama after pilots smell smoke in the cockpit An Atlanta-bound Delta Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Alabama on Sunday after the pilots smelled smoke in the cockpit. The flight, which originated in Cancun, Mexico, was supposed to land in Atlanta about 2:30 p.m. Sunday, but was rerouted to Birmingham Regional Airport about 2 p.m. The plane, Delta flight 534, was carrying 200 people - 184 passengers and six crew members - when it was forced to make the emergency landing. Delta officials told WSFA.com that the pilots began to smell a smokey odor coming from a failed fluorescent lightbulb on the plane. As a precaution, the flight was rerouted to Birmingham. No injuries have been reported. Because Montgomery is not an International airport, it doesn't normally accept international flights and doesn't have a secure customs area for international travelers. However, airport officials have moved the travelers to a secure location as they wait for another plane to bring them to Atlanta. Just last month, another Delta flight was forced to make an emergency landing after the flight crew noticed an 'engine-related problem' with the plane. That flight - which took off from New York's LaGuardia Airport en-route to Palm Beach, Florida - was diverted to New York's JFK International Airport after the pilot noticed the unspecified problem. No injuries were reported as a result of that emergency landing, either. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2401936/Delta-flight-Cancun-Atlanta-forced- make-emergency-landing-Alabama-pilots-smell-smoke-cockpit.html#ixzz2d4Qvqu3b Back to Top Nigerian Teen Survives Jet Flight Hidden Inside The Landing Gear LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) - A young teenager dashed across a runway at a Nigerian airport, hid in the wheel well of a jet and survived a 35-minute domestic flight, the airline and aviation authorities said Sunday. Passengers and crew had alerted the pilots that a boy was seen running to the plane as it was taxiing to take off Saturday from southern Benin City, Arik Airline spokesman Ola Adebanji said. The pilots alerted the country's aviation agency, he said. The incident highlighted the growing concerns about airport security in Nigeria, which is fighting an Islamic uprising mainly contained in the northeast of the country, where there is a state of emergency. "We are worried by the incessant security lapses at our airports," Arik Airline managing director Chris Ndulue said. The West African country also has a history of major aviation disasters and security challenges. Despite the possible presence of the boy, the pilots opted to continue with their takeoff, Federal Aviation Agency of Nigeria spokesman Yakubu Dati said. "Immediately upon the departure of the aircraft, FAAN's security did another sweep of the area and found nothing unusual," Dati said. When the plane arrived in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital, a boy aged 13 or 14 jumped to the ground from the wheel and was detained by Arik personnel, Adebanji said. He said the teenager probably survived because the flight was short and the plane probably didn't rise above 25,000 feet (7,620 meters). Most stowaways don't survive. The body of a suspected stowaway fell from an Air France plane over Niger, also in West Africa, in July and was discovered lifeless in a western suburb of the capital, Niamey, officials said. The plane was coming from Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou, and was scheduled to continue to Paris. In September 2012, a man's body landed in a street in southwest London. He was eventually identified as Jose Matada, 26, of Mozambique, who an employer said had expressed an interest in moving to Europe for a better life. Police thought at first he was a murder victim, but soon determined his lifeless body had fallen from a plane preparing to land at nearby Heathrow Airport. Last year, Nigeria gained a coveted U.S. safety status that allows its domestic carriers to fly directly to the U.S. Back to Top DFW-bound jet diverted to Little Rock after engine problems An American Airlines MD-80 jet took off from Charlotte, North Carolina on Sunday morning, but was diverted on its scheduled trip to DFW International Airport. The aircraft made an emergency landing in Little Rock, Arkansas after one of the engines went out. Emergency crews were standing by along the runway, but Flight 1111 landed safely around 12:30 p.m. and all 135 people on board are okay. Passengers were scheduled to be flown to Dallas on Sunday evening. http://www.wfaa.com/news/local/DFW-bound-jet-diverted-to-Little-Rock-after-engine- problems-221107181.html Back to Top ICAO finds no safety concerns in airline operations; FAA audit next month (India) MUMBAI: In a major relief to Indian carriers, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), a global regulatory body, has said that it no longer sees "significant safety concerns" in India's airline operations. The ICAO took the decision after about a week-long audit of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the regulatory practices in India's aviation industry , Arun Mishra, who heads the regulator, told ET. "The ICAO auditors have taken the call. Now, they will send it to the headquarters in Montreal which will then process this. The final recommendation would be made in a week or two," said Mishra. India is also up for an audit by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) next month. Mishra didn't elaborate on the second audit. The ICAO clean chit will help push India's case favourably when FAA conducts its audit. The ICAO had in December 2012 said it identified concerns with respect of the ability of the country to oversee airlines under its jurisdiction . In the ICAO audit, the regulator had clubbed India with muchlesser developed countries such as Guatemala, Haiti, Hungary and Congo. Had ICAO's concerns not been addressed , it could have lead to a death knell for the Indian aviation, said experts. "A downgrade would have had global ramifications and would have pretty much undone the growth in Indian aviation over the past decade," said Amber Dubey, partner and head of the aerospace and defense segment at global consultancy KPMG. He added it would have also likely impacted the international growth plans of Indian carriers as a downgrade would make global airports jittery. The country's national carrier Air India plans to soon start flights to Sydney and Melbourne and expand to destinations such as Milan and Rome. Jet Airways, India's second-biggest carrier by market share recently announced it is selling 24% stake to Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways, a move which would see the two carriers aligning fleet networks to expand globally. India's other carriers such as IndiGo and SpiceJet have been planning to expand operations to regional destinations abroad. The ICAO primarily had two concerns : one about the air operator's certificate not being in line with ICAO guidelines and the fact that the DGCA had no certified process for approving modifications and repairs of planes done abroad. Both of these have been addressed, said Mishra. In another significant move, the Indian government will soon introduced a bill in Parliament to replace the current regulatory body with the Civil Aviation Authority, that will have significantly higher financial and operational autonomy to regulate the aviation sector. "But there still is a lot more to be done from the regulator's end," said Kapil Kaul, chief executive for South Asia at Sydney-based consultant CAPA-Centre for Aviation. http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-08-24/news/41443959_1_icao-air-india-indian-carriers Back to Top FAA changes cause lack of qualified pilots Changes in the Federal Aviation Administration have local pilots scrambling to obtain flight-training hours. After the crash of Colgan Air flight 3407 in February 2009 in Clarence Center, N.Y., the FAA created a new law that was then passed in 2010 called the Airline Safety and FAA Extension Act. This law became effective on Aug. 1 to ensure both pilots and co-pilots receive the ATP flight school certification. The key element of this new law has raised the minimum requirements of flight hours for pilots to be hired by an airline from 250 to 1,500 hours. This has also made it difficult for national and local airlines to hire and hang on to pilots. "The rule gives first officers a stronger foundation of aeronautical knowledge and experience before they fly for an air carrier," said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta, in an FAA press release. "With this rule and our efforts to address pilot fatigue - both initiatives championed by the families of Colgan flight 3407 - we're making a safe system even safer." Western Nebraska Regional Airport in Scottsbluff has already felt the effects of the new law with their carrier Great Lakes Airlines. WNRA Director Darwin Skelton said things have gone smoothly with GLA, with the occasional hiccup, but throwing the new law into the mix really hurts. "They (FFA) make the laws and you have to abide by them," he said. "It's frustrating, but they have to do what they need to do and we will try to get through this the best we can and make it as painless as possible to fly the public." Skelton said he hopes GLA can get their pilots through the training they need in order to get back to an even keel. Several cancellations at WNRA have already taken place because of the new law. "People book on certain flights for reasons and when they are forced to change it becomes a bit of an inconvenience for folks," he said. GLA has alleviated most of the stress of the cancellations and other issues to their customer flights by calling them in advance and arranging new flights. Skelton said he hopes residents continue to fly out of the airport considering the circumstances and hoped the situation doesn't linger for too much longer. "I just hope people will continue to be patient with us and continue to fly out of Scottsbluff," he said. "That 10,000 boarding number is very important to us. Just bear with us." http://www.starherald.com/news/local_news/faa-changes-cause-lack-of-qualified- pilots/article_2edcae28-0d40-11e3-afb4-0019bb2963f4.html Back to Top Back to Top Chinese Airlines Lure Pilots With Double the Pay of U.S. Captains Carriers Boost Salaries to Hire Seasoned Crews, Causing Shortage Across Asia By JEFFREY NG HONG KONG-China is snapping up the world's supply of senior pilots, contributing to a global shortage and creating headwinds for Asia's fast-expanding airlines. China is among the world's fastest-growing air-travel markets, with domestic passenger traffic second only to the U.S., with the market expanding 14.7% in June compared with a year earlier, according to the International Air Transport Association. Peter Forbes, interviews with Shenzhen Airlines in Miami, where the airline recruited pilots last year. The rising middle class in China means millions more people are taking to the skies. Beijing plans soon to allow even more growth in its tightly controlled sector by encouraging the development of budget airlines, which are already booming across Asia. Chinese carriers have more than 800 commercial airliners on order, on top of 2,088 now flying. Each plane requires about six two-person flight crews, creating demand for thousands of new pilots. Chinese airlines lack sufficient locally trained candidates. The shortage illustrates an endemic problem in China's rapidly expanding economy, where the development of infrastructure and professional skills hasn't kept pace with surging demand. The country also struggles to retain expatriate talent amid worsening pollution concerns and rising consumer prices. China isn't alone in its need. Boeing Co. estimates that the broader Asian-Pacific region will require 185,600 new pilots between 2012 and 2031, accounting for 40% of global pilot demand. The region today has 56,000 pilots, or roughly 26% of the global total, according to Boeing. Chinese airlines are wooing experienced foreign pilots by upping the pay for captains. Some carriers are advertising annual salaries and benefits of up to $270,000, or roughly double the average wage of a U.S. airline captain. "You've got a shrinking supply [of experienced pilots], so the answer is to increase pay," said Mark East, managing director at New Zealand-based Rishworth Aviation, the largest airline-pilot recruiting firm in Asia, with 600 contract pilots in the region. He said Chinese airlines have raised their pay offers to foreign pilots by up to 30% in the past 18 months to cope with the growing shortage. Chinese airlines account for more than 60% of the recruitment postings for captains on the careers website of Flightglobal, an industry publication. While China is training more local crews, pilots still need roughly a decade of experience before they can be promoted to captain. The air-travel boom has outpaced that maturation. Today, nearly all Chinese airlines employ foreign crews. Americans represent the largest proportion. Chinese carriers started hiring foreign pilots in 2003. They now account for roughly 6% of the commercial-pilot workforce, with 1,778 foreign-pilot licenses issued as of last year, according to China's aviation regulator. Among the Chinese airlines offering top salaries are Hainan Airlines Co., 600221.SH +1.59% which is promoting net annual packages of up to $270,000, and Shenzhen Airlines Co., with packages valued at up to $231,600, according to the Flightglobal listings. These salaries are on par with what the most senior captains at premium airlines make and well above world standards. Average captain's pay at a major U.S. airline is $135,000, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Rich Chinese compensation comes with heavy work loads, however. Paul Schneider, an Australian who worked as a Boeing 737 captain with a major Chinese airline in 2010 and 2011, said the duty times for foreign pilots in China were among the longest he's ever seen, particularly for those working short domestic flights. China's appetite for senior pilots is hurting many smaller Asian upstarts, which too are eager to expand but must compete for crews. "We are the ones feeling the pinch of the pilot shortage...the smaller carriers are in a battle to attract quality pilots," said David Wilmot, acting director of flight operations at Jet Asia Airways Co., a Thailand-based charter airline with six Boeing 767s that employs mostly foreign pilots. Mr. Wilmot says the exorbitant salaries some of the Chinese airlines are willing to pay are "just putting us out of the market" for pilots. Many airlines in Southeast Asia pay expat captains around half of some of the Chinese carriers' best recent offers. Worsening the captain shortage: aging veterans, particularly in the U.S. "There is a tsunami of retirement which is now under way in the airline industry," said John Bent, a consultant to the International Air Transport Association, a global industry group. "We've got potentially the first big pilot supply problem" in years, he said. The improving U.S. airline market is further aggravating Asia's problems because overseas American pilots are heading home, Asian airline executives say. Hiring foreign pilots was much easier three years ago, they say, but the supply has recently flattened out. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323455104579012194041354578.html Back to Top NTSB Communications Course National Transportation Safety Board Washington, D.C. Public Affairs: 202-314- 6100 Direct: 202-314-6219 Title Managing Communications Following an Aircraft Accident or Incident Co-sponsor Airports Council International - North America (ACI-NA) Description The course will teach participants what to expect in the days immediately following an aviation accident or incident and how they can prepare for their role with the media. ID Code PA302 Dates, Tuition and Fee October 24-25, 2013 $1034 early registration, by September 24, 2013 $1084 late registration, between September 25 and 12:00 pm (noon) ET on October 23, 2013 $100 processing fee will be added to tuitions for all offline applications. A tuition invoice can be ordered for a $25 processing fee. Note: payment must be made at time of registration. Times Oct. 24: 8:30 am - 5:00 pm Oct. 25: 8:30 am - 3:00 pm Location NTSB Training Center * 45065 Riverside Parkway * Ashburn, Virginia 20147 Status OPEN. Applications are now being accepted. Apply to Attend October 24-25, 2013 CEUs 1.3 Overview * How the National Transportation Safety Board organizes an accident site and what can be expected in the days after an aviation disaster from the NTSB, FAA, other federal agencies, airline, airport, media and local community * Strategies for airline and airport staff to proactively manage the communication process throughout the on-scene phase of the investigation * How the NTSB public affairs officers coordinate press conferences and release of accident information and what information the spokespersons from the airport and airline will be responsible to provide to the media * Making provisions for and communicating with family members of those involved in the accident * Questions and requests likely encountered from the airlines, airport staff, family members, disaster relief agencies, local officials and others > Comments from course participants > See the 219 organizations from 28 countries that have sent staff to attend this course Performance Results Upon completion of this course the participant will be able to: * Be better prepared to respond to a major aviation disaster involving a flight departing from or destined for participant's airport * Demonstrate greater confidence in fielding on-scene questions about the many aspects of the investigation and its participants, including what types of specific information may be requested * Identify the appropriate Public Affairs roles for the various organizations involved in an accident investigation. * Be more productive in the first few hours after an aviation disaster by understanding which tasks are most important and why * Perform job responsibilities more professionally and with greater confidence given the knowledge and tools to manage the airport communications aspect of a major aviation disaster Who May Attend This course is targeted to who, in the event of an aviation disaster, will need to provide a steady flow of accurate information to media outlets and/or other airport, federal or local authorities. Accommodations Area hotels and restaurants Airports Washington Dulles International (IAD): 10 miles Washington Ronald Reagan National (DCA): 30 miles Baltimore/Washington International (BWI): 60 miles More Information Email TrainingCenter@ntsb.gov or call (571) 223-3900 Courses, forums and symposia are added to the schedule throughout the year. Subscribe to the e-newsletter to learn about upcoming events and new programs: http://www.ntsb.gov/trainingcenter/list/list_mw020207.htm Curt Lewis