Flight Safety Information August 11, 2014 - No. 164 In This Issue Iran jet crashes after take-off, killing 48 Engine Fire Forces JetBlue Flight to Abort Takeoff Engine fire on jet from Dubai quickly extinguished at Logan Prison Time for American Pilots Involved in Boeing Crash Reasserted in Brazil Air France aircraft makes emergency landing in Lagos PRISM TO HELP PREPARE FOR E-IOSA Despite warnings, more guns are showing up at US airports Malaysian Airlines Gives $5,000 to Families of MH17 Victims Rowdy passenger forces London-bound flight back to Hong Kong ISASI 2014 - Annual Seminar, October 13-16, 2014 Upcoming Events Iran jet crashes after take-off, killing 48 Iranian security and rescue personnel inspect the site of a passenger plane crash near the capital Tehran. AP An Iranian passenger plane has crashed while taking off from an airport near the capital Tehran, killing 48 people on board. State-run news agency IRNA said the aircraft, an Iran-140 typically used for short domestic flights, crashed near Mehrabad airport, west of Tehran. The plane went down in a residential area after its engine failed. Iranian state television said 48 people were killed in the crash: 40 passengers and eight crew members. The plane, operated by Sepahan Air, was heading to Tabas, a town in eastern Iran. It took off at 9.20am local time and crashed shortly afterwards. The Iran-140 is a 52-seat passenger plane produced in Iran with Ukrainian technology. Iran has suffered a series of plane crashes, blamed on its ageing aircraft and poor maintenance. Many of the Boeing aircraft in state-run Iran Air's fleet were bought before the country's 1979 Islamic Revolution, which disrupted ties with the US and Europe. US sanctions prevent Iran from updating its US aircraft and make it difficult to get European spare parts or planes as well. The country has come to rely on Russian aircraft, many of them Soviet-era planes that are harder to get parts for since the Soviet Union's breakup. The last major airliner crash in Iran was in January 2011, when an Iran Air Boeing 727 broke into pieces on impact while attempting an emergency landing in north-western Iran, killing at least 77 people. http://www.independent.ie/world-news/middle-east/iran-jet-crashes-after-takeoff- killing-48-30497589.html#sthash.nGiOasSK.dpuf ***************** Status: Preliminary Date: Sunday 10 August 2014 Time: 09:21 Type: HESA IrAn-140-100 Operator: Sepahan Airlines Registration: EP-GPA C/n / msn: 9005 First flight: 2008 Engines: 2 Klimov TV3-117VMA-SBM1 Crew: Fatalities: / Occupants: 8 Passengers: Fatalities: / Occupants: 40 Total: Fatalities: 39 / Occupants: 48 Airplane damage: Destroyed Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: ca 3 km NNW of Tehran-Mehrabad Airport (THR) ( Iran) Phase: Initial climb (ICL) Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Tehran-Mehrabad Airport (THR/OIII), Iran Destination airport: Tabas Airport (TCX/OIMT), Iran Flightnumber: 5915 Narrative: A HESA IrAn-140 passenger plane, operated by Sepahan Airlines, crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehran-Mehrabad Airport (THR), Iran. According to a statement by the Civil Aviation Organiztion (CAO), there were 40 passengers and 8 crew members on board. FARS news agency reported nine occupants survived. The airplane took off from runway 29L at Mehrabad Airport. Instead of performing the left hand procedure turn after takeoff, the airplane banked right and lost altitude. It impacted the ground, broke up and burst into flames. Takeoff was accomplished with a tailwind component of approximately 6 knots, according to weather reports. The IrAn-140 is an Antonov 140 turboprop aircraft, built under license by HESA in Iran. Sepahan Air, which is a division of HESA, operated five IrAn-140's. www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top Engine Fire Forces JetBlue Flight to Abort Takeoff Aircraft Departing Puerto Rico Carried 186 Passengers and Six Crew Members By SUSAN CAREY And ANDY PASZTOR A JetBlue Airways Corp. JBLU plane bound for New York aborted takeoff Saturday night from San Juan, Puerto Rico, after its left engine caught fire following a bird strike, prompting pilots to evacuate the plane using emergency slides. JetBlue said preliminary reports suggested that Flight 704, an Airbus A321 single-aisle jet carrying 186 passengers and six crew members, suffered "bird ingestion in the number one engine." Damage to jet engines from hitting birds isn't uncommon but such events rarely result in fires. The New York-based discount airline, which has sizable operations in Puerto Rico, said three passengers on Flight 704 suffered minor injuries during the evacuation Saturday night. They were taken to hospitals in San Juan, but quickly released. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident. A makeup flight, JetBlue 8104, departed at 3:30 a.m. Sunday and arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport at 7:09 a.m., JetBlue said. Firefighters at the airport put out the fire. An FAA spokesman said a runway in San Juan was shut down "for a period." When engines do catch fire, the most common causes are oil-pressure problems or loose turbine blades. Statistics compiled by an affiliate of the Flight Safety Foundation show 17 accidents and incidents dating back to the 1990s involving aircraft engine fires caused by internal malfunctions, fuel system failures or other causes. The FAA has gathered data on a total of some 11,000 bird strikes nationwide affecting airliners, business aircraft and general aviation in 2013. Over the years, about a third of such incidents occurred during takeoff or initial climb. More than 90% of all bird strikes historically happened below 3,500 feet altitude, according to the FAA. From 1990 to 2013, FAA statistics show 25 fatalities attributed to wildlife strikes involving U.S. civil aircraft. http://online.wsj.com/articles/engine-fire-forces-evacuation-of-jet-in-san-juan- 1407693672?mod=_newsreel_2 Back to Top Engine fire on jet from Dubai quickly extinguished at Logan An engine fire on an Emirates Airline 777 jet was extinguished quickly after the plane landed Sunday afternoon at Logan International Airport, according to Massachusetts Port Authority. Massport Fire Rescue began fighting the small fire in one of Flight 237's engines soon after it arrived from Dubai about 2 p.m., extinguishing the blaze within six minutes, said spokesman Matthew Brelis. The plane was towed to the gate, where passengers were able to disembark, Brelis said. None of the flight's 349 passengers or 18 crew members was injured, he said. http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2014/08/10/engine-fire-quickly-extinguished-after- emirates-jet-lands-logan/6ircgyAndapVYBWCfswkTL/story.html Back to Top Prison Time for American Pilots Involved in Boeing Crash Reasserted in Brazil Joseph Lepore and Jan Paul Paladino Brazil's Superior Court of Justice (STJ) decided to maintain the sentence of three years and one month of jail in open regime for US pilots Joseph Lepore and Jan Paul Paladino. They were convicted of causing a crash between a Legacy Jet and a Boeing 737 operated by Brazil's Gol Airlines in 2006, leaving 154 people dead. The court turned down a petition by the Federal Public Prosecution (MPF) to lengthen the sentence imposed on the two convicts based on the number of victims. It has also rejected the MPF petition for preventive detention of the two pilots, who live in the United States. A lower court had already reduced the condemnation of the American pilots, determined by the Federal Court of Mato Grosso, which initially was of four years and four months in prison for manslaughter. While federal prosecutors asked the Supreme Court to increase the penalty for Americans, the Defense wanted a reduction and replacement of jail time by a sentence restricting the pilots rights. Antonio Augusto Aras, the Assistant Attorney General of the Republic, argued that the sentence should be increased due to the violation of technical rules of piloting that ended up causing all the deaths of the Boeing. The assistant prosecutor and the attorney for the Association of Relatives and Victims of the Accident, former Supreme Court Justice Nilson Naves, also defended an increase in the penalty, reminding that the pilots had caused the second largest plane crash in Brazil's history. The minister rapporteur, Laurita Vaz, decided to deny the appeals from the defense and the prosecution, According to Vaz, the penalty applied by the Federal Court of Appeal cannot be considered unreasonable. The pilots' lawyer, Theodomiro Dias, criticized what he called "contradiction" in the position of the rapporteur. In December 2013, Vaz had asked that the sentence be reduced to two years and four months of detention. The Ministers of the Supreme criticized Brazil's penal legislation, but informed that the penalty could not be increased due to the number of deaths because this fact has already been taken into consideration in earlier phases of the proceeding. Lepore and Paladino live in the United States. They were detained for some time in Brazil, but traveled back to their country in December 2006, the year of the accident. Despite their promise to go back to Brazil to submit themselves to the Brazilian authorities they have refused to do this. http://www.brazzilmag.com/component/content/article/137-august-2014/13135-prison- time-for-american-pilots-involved-in-boeing-crash-reasserted-in-brazil.html Back to Top Air France aircraft makes emergency landing in Lagos Lagos (AFP) - An Air France aircraft, with 178 people aboard, made an emergency landing at Lagos's international airport Sunday after a faulty indicator showed a nose tyre pressure fault, an official statement said. "The aircraft, which had a total of 178 souls on board with 168 passengers and 10 crew, landed safely," the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said in the statement. http://news.yahoo.com/air-france-aircraft-makes-emergency-landing-lagos- 211558169.html Back to Top Back to Top Despite warnings, more guns are showing up at US airports TSA agents at Logan International Airport. Six incidents of passengers with guns were reported in 2013. TSA agents at Logan International Airport. Six incidents of passengers with guns were reported in 2013. One Monday last month, a 41-year-old Somerville woman was stopped at a Logan International Airport security checkpoint by agents who discovered a prohibited item in her carry-on bag. It wasn't the usual sort of thing - an extra-large water bottle, a forgotten shampoo container, or even a pair of scissors. It was a gun: a Smith & Wesson .380 caliber handgun with a bullet in the chamber. As astonishing as it may seem in an era of heightened security and terrorism threats, the number of air travelers caught with guns in their carry-on bags has increased in recent years. The number of passengers who tried to bring guns onto planes in their carry-on bags jumped from 976 in 2009 to 1,813 in the United States last year, according to the Transportation Security Administration. The number of incidents climbed 16 percent in 2013, compared with the prior year, and confiscations are up again this year. Eighty-four percent of the guns found last year were loaded, according to a Northwestern University analysis. The TSA says most people claim they simply forgot they were carrying a gun. "How does that happen?" asked David Borer, general counsel for the American Federation of Government Employees, the union that represents more than 45,000 TSA workers. "They don't forget to put on their pants. They don't forget to bring a toothbrush. But oh hey, they forgot they brought a gun? They've been on notice for this for 10 years, and it's time to grow up and be responsible." The rate of gun detections at Logan is below the national average and is the fifth-lowest for all US airports with incidents last year, according to a Globe analysis of TSA and Federal Aviation Administration data. Guns were discovered on just six travelers out of a total of 14.7 million who departed from Logan last year. There have been five incidents at Logan so far in 2014. Only John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia Airport in New York, Newark Liberty in New Jersey, and Mineta San Jose International Airport in California had fewer cases per traveler. The highest was at Raleigh County Memorial Airport in West Virginia. These type of incidents are one reason why the TSA enforces such tight security screening procedures, which travelers often find cumbersome. "We have to be careful that people do not carry weapons through or try to carry weapons through," said Ed Freni, director of aviation for the Massachusetts Port Authority. Guns aren't the only weapons confiscated by TSA agents. In a weekly blog distributed by the agency, they have reported finding inert grenades, knives, stun guns, brass knuckles, spear guns, and a samurai sword. "More than a dozen years after 9/11, you'd think people's awareness would be raised," said Lisa Farbstein, a TSA spokeswoman. "But they continue to bring firearms and weapons to checkpoints every day. The numbers just keep going up." Passenger often say they simply forgot they had a gun in a carry-on bag. Pictured, a routine screening at Logan Airport. Passenger often say they simply forgot they had a gun in a carry-on bag. Pictured, a routine screening at Logan Airport. Farbstein said weapons at checkpoints cause delays and slow the screening process for other travelers because law enforcement must respond to each incident. Some security experts and gun policy specialists point to loose gun laws and a lack of enforcement in some states as reasons why more travelers bring guns to airports. Guns in carry-on bags appear to be more common at airports in rural areas and in the South, where gun laws are generally more relaxed, according to TSA data. While it is against the law to carry a gun on a plane, stiff charges don't always follow the discovery of a firearm. The TSA can impose heavy civil penalties, up to $11,000, against gun-toting travelers caught at the security check-in. But criminal charges are left up to the agency that polices the airport. Punishments also vary, from felony charges in Massachusetts - if the district attorney's office decides to prosecute - to misdemeanors in some states, to no charges in others. The TSA said it assessed $1.7 million in civil penalties for firearms in carry-on bags last year. The agency does not track prosecutions. In the case of the woman stopped at Logan last month, she and her husband first blamed one another. He thought she removed it, and she thought he had. They were traveling to Greece for a monthlong vacation with their four children. She will receive a court summons after she gets back from her trip, according to State Police. David Rosenbloom, a professor of health policy and management at Boston University, said the memory-lapse excuse makes sense in states with relaxed gun laws, as unlikely as it may seem. "People who have guns in states with expansive open-carry laws are carrying their guns," Rosenbloom said. "They get ready to go to the airport and don't think about it. They always have their guns on them." TSA agents at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International caught 111 travelers carrying guns through the security check-in last year, the highest number of any airport in the nation. A measure took effect in Georgia last month that loosens restrictions and allows owners to carry guns in unrestricted areas of airports, bars, churches, schools, and some government buildings, unless otherwise noted. Now, licensed gun owners won't be arrested if they are caught with a gun at the airport's security checkpoint. Glenn Yorek, captain of the Houston Police Department's airport division, said travelers rarely attempt to conceal guns in their bags, and he believes they simply forget about the weapons. In these instances, people with concealed weapons permits, no outstanding warrants, and a clear criminal history are allowed to take the gun back to their car or pass it to a relative who can take it off airport grounds. The district attorney does not typically press charges, Yorek said. About 19 million passengers depart from the Houston airport each year. Gun confiscations aren't a big issue for the agency because it happens so rarely, Yorek said. "It's not a high percentage, and this is Texas, by the way," he said. "Everyone has a horse and a gun. These are not hardened criminals or terrorists and the DA has enough trouble." It would become a more serious issue if TSA agents began missing guns, but Yorek is confident that isn't happening in Houston. Although it may be in Phoenix. Earlier this summer, officials at London's Heathrow Airport discovered a loaded Glock in the carry-on of a traveler who had flown in from Phoenix. The gun was found as he went through security to catch a connecting fight to Paris, according to news media reports. There were no incidents with the gun. "The reality is that guns have no place on the aircraft, and our officers are there to enforce that," Borer said. "We expect back up from law enforcement, and we don't always get it." http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2014/08/10/despite-notice-more-travelers- taking-weapons-airport- checkpoints/GeSkXJVp7PzsbNbSrMtaQM/story.html?p1=Article_InThisSection_Bottom Back to Top Malaysian Airlines Gives $5,000 to Families of MH17 Victims Malaysia Airlines is offering $5,000 to the families of each passenger and crew member who perished aboard Flight MH17. In a statement issued Saturday, the airline said its primary focus was to care for the loved ones affected by the tragedy, and has assigned each family a caregiver to provide emotional support. "To date, a majority of the families have already received such financial assistance, which will not be part of any compensation that may be payable," Malaysia Airlines said in a statement. The Malaysia Airlines jet was shot down on July 17 as it traveled over eastern Ukraine killing all 298 passengers and crew. Attempts to recover bodies from the site have been marred by difficulties because of continued clashes between pro-Russia separatist rebels and Ukrainian forces. http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ukraine-plane-crash/malaysian-airlines-gives-5-000- families-mh17-victims-n176711 Back to Top Rowdy passenger forces London-bound flight back to Hong Kong HONG KONG - A rowdy British passenger forced a London-bound Virgin Atlantic flight to return to Hong Kong on Monday after he "lost control", police said. The 26-year-old, identified only as "Robert", was on a Heathrow-bound plane from Hong Kong International Airport and became disruptive after the flight had been in the air for more than an hour. It was forced to turn around after 90 minutes, the airline said, and landed safely back in Hong Kong. The passenger was arrested then sent to hospital, authorities said. "The foreign man called Robert, who is 26 years old, lost control on board and didn't follow instructions from staff on the flight," a police spokesman told AFP. "He was shouting... When the flight returned to Hong Kong, the man was arrested for violating aviation security ordinance and was sent to Princess Margaret Hospital," he added. A Hong Kong airport authority spokeswoman said that flight VS201, an Airbus A340, had departed at midnight. Stranded passengers were put up in Hong Kong hotels and will fly out again on Monday night. "The flight went back to Hong Kong after 90 minutes for a disruptive passenger," a Hong Kong-based Virgin Atlantic spokeswoman said. "The rest of the passengers were provided with accommodation before they depart tonight." Police said Monday that the man had not yet been charged. Authorities were unable to confirm whether he was still hospitalised and what treatment he had received. http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/658595-rowdy-passenger-forces-london-bound-flight- back-to-hong-kong.html Back to Top Back to Top Upcoming Events: ACI-NA Annual Conference and Exhibition Atlanta, GA September 7 - 10, 2014 http://annual.aci-na.org/ IFA - Maintaining Airworthiness Standards and Investing in the Most Important Asset 'The Human Element' 17 - 18 September, 2014 Emirates Eng Facility, Dubai www.ifairworthy.com ISASI 2014 - Annual Seminar October 13-16, 2014 Adelaide, Australia www.isasi.org IASS 2014 Abu Dhabi, UAE November 11-13, 2014 http://flightsafety.org/meeting/iass-2014 ERAU UAS FUNDAMENTALS COURSE December 9 - 11, 2014 ERAU Daytona Beach Campus, FL www.daytonabeach.erau.edu/uas Curt Lewis