Flight Safety Information August 11, 2014 - No. 164 In This Issue Pilots Say U.S. Failed to Assess Ukraine Threat Probe faults pilots and controller for 2013 Alaska crash DGCA grounds 13 GoAir pilots, training chief (India) Airport Tests New Way to Avoid Deadly Bird Strikes Canadian Woman Climbs Airport Fence to Stop Plane Safety questions hit Tigerair PRISM TO HELP PREPARE FOR E-IOSA Boeing To Enter The Scrap-Aircraft Market 20 rescued dogs in Georgia, SC arrive in NJ by private jet Windowless jet makes its fuselage transparent using displays Dentons Adds Three Aviation, Space Experts From Jones Day Smyth quits as boss of Menzies Aviation Wanted:...B-737 Freighter for Lease ISASI 2014 - Annual Seminar, October 13-16, 2014 Upcoming Events Pilots Say U.S. Failed to Assess Ukraine Threat International Experts get ready to leave MH-17 Crash Site. By Andy Pasztor WASHINGTON-U.S. pilot union leaders alleged that federal agencies failed to promptly assess and publicize potential threats posed to airliners flying over eastern Ukraine before the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 last month. The criticism comes as several federal agencies have begun in recent days to look at possible improvements to the process for identifying and responding to significant threats to civilian aircraft, people familiar with the talks said. It isn't clear what changes are being discussed, and officials of the Federal Aviation Administration and intelligence agencies declined to comment on the discussions. In a speech and separate interview on Wednesday, Lee Moak, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, asserted that U.S. and other governments didn't properly fulfill their "duty to warn" airlines about the possible hazards of flying over areas where fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists raged on the ground. Flight 17 was "a watershed event" and was "uniquely different" from other airliners brought down by hostile fire in earlier decades, Mr. Moak said in the interview. As a result of what occurred over Ukraine last month, he said, "the federal government has to come up with a dynamic process" to alert airlines about such future threats. When intelligence is available about flying over hostile airspace, he added, "there has to be a timely process to notify" the industry, and then carriers have to more effectively share information between themselves. In response to the shootdown, Mr. Moak said that labor and airlines representatives have joined forces to prod the FAA and U.S. intelligence community to streamline and accelerate the threat-assessment system. Some of these people said U.S. national-security officials had intelligence about threats from Ukrainian rebels at least a day before Flight 17 went down. Reiterating the FAA's previous position, the agency said: "Before the Flight 17 incident there was no intelligence to indicate separatists intended to target civil aircraft." The FAA also said: "Our first indication that they had an operable SA-11 [antiaircraft system] was July 17, the day of the crash." The FAA reiterated that "agency officials work with counterparts in the U.S. intelligence and law-enforcement communities on a continuous basis to monitor and analyze intelligence." The agency said it provides guidance or imposes restrictions when it receives "specific and credible actionable intelligence of a threat." U.S. intelligence officials on Thursday largely echoed the FAA's comments, and their own previous explanations, saying that the U.S. hadn't confirmed the extent of the threat to airliners before Flight 17's downing on July 17. In a briefing for reporters last month, intelligence officials said they didn't know for certain when the SA-11 system was transferred into eastern Ukraine. There were U.S. suspicions that the Russian-backed separatists had an SA-11 when a Ukrainian military cargo plane traveling at a lower altitude was shot down on July 14, the officials said at the briefing. Some officials also have voiced suspicions that the separatists may have had possession of an inoperable SA-11. However, the crash of Flight 17 was what confirmed the presence of an SA-11, they said. Questions about what the FAA knew before the downing-and steps it subsequently took to impose temporary restrictions on U.S. airlines flying into Israel-were highlighted Thursday at the pilot union's biggest annual safety conference. Claudio Manno, the FAA's assistant administrator for security and hazardous materials, told the conference on Thursday that the fate of Flight 17 "demonstrates that we are now faced with an increasing safety concern" about more-sophisticated weapons in the hands of both "state and nonstate actors." He said it is a concern that is emerging now, and "it's a different dynamic" than dealing with traditional terrorist groups. In the past year, he said, the FAA has issued, reviewed or updated more than a dozen notices or special regulations focused on airspace threats, including regarding Iraq, Libya, Mali, Ukraine and Israel. The agency declined to make Mr. Manno available for additional comment. Ukraine barred commercial aircraft from flying below 32,000 feet over the region before the downing of Flight 17 as combat continued on the ground and Ukrainian rebels previously shot down two military aircraft. The Ukrainian government did that without giving the U.S. or the International Civil Aviation Organization, an arm of the United Nations, a detailed explanation, according to U.S. and air-safety officials. Countries are responsible for controlling and monitoring threats to their own airspace, and they traditionally haven't been obligated to provide such explanations to the ICAO or other governments. The FAA has barred U.S. commercial flights over Ukraine after Flight 17 went down. The downing of the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 has prompted widespread debate about the broader role of both the ICAO and the U.S. in analyzing airspace threats stemming from hostilities on the ground. ICAO has set up a government-industry task force to study the matter and make recommendations in several months to its policy-making body. ICAO has set up a government-industry task force to study the matter and make recommendations in several months to its policy-making body. Mitchell Fox, chief of ICAO's flight operations office, on Thursday emphasized that individual countries are responsible for alerting airlines about airspace threats. But when conflict is under way, he told the safety conference, some countries "can't always carry out, for obvious reasons," such warnings. Governments involved in a conflict, he said, "may not always have the ability to do that." If the U.S. and the industry wait for ICAO to dramatically change its procedures, "we will end up waiting forever," Mr. Moak said in the interview. But in the U.S., he said, government officials are "going through a process" to identify ways to improve and speed up the warning system. "I hope that they're going to announce something in the near future," Mr. Moak said, without providing specifics. The union has been involved in some of those discussions. "ICAO does need to have a role," according to Mr. Moak, but "it would be better if the U.S. government is a leader here and they get out in front." Then he said "we don't have any confusion." Randy Harrison, corporate security director for Delta Air Lines Inc., said carriers increasingly are making decisions about where to stop flying based largely on their own risk assessments. "Airlines are now often acting quicker than the government agencies," he told the conference. In the case of halting service to Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, "we saw a number of airlines step out" and temporarily suspend flights "well ahead of the [U.S.] government." http://online.wsj.com/articles/pilots-official-criticizes-u-s-over-intelligence-before-mh17- disaster-1407414319 Back to Top Probe faults pilots and controller for 2013 Alaska crash JUNEAU Alaska (Reuters) - A cargo plane's crash into a mountainside in southwest Alaska last year was caused by failure to maintain a safe altitude, which was the fault of an air traffic controller and the two pilots who died in the accident, federal regulators said on Monday. The Alaska Central Express Air Cargo crashed on March 8, 2013, after striking a "rock outcrop protruding from the snow" outside Dillingham, the plane's destination, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. The crash took the lives of pilot Jeff Day, 38, and his co-pilot, 21-year-old Neil Jensen. During stormy weather near Dillingham, Day asked to enter a holding pattern so he could switch to another radio channel and check on runway conditions. The plane, however, held at an altitude of 2,000 feet, rather than the required 5,400 feet, something the crew should have known, the report said. "Such a lack of awareness is inconsistent with pilot-in-command responsibilities and company procedures ... during the descent and approach phases of flight," the NTSB report said. Meanwhile, the air traffic controller's instructions were "ambiguous," the report said, and failed to specify what segment of the approach could be done at 2,000 feet. "(The controller) did not appropriately monitor the flight's progress and intervene when the airplane descended to 2,000 feet," the report said. "As a result, the airplane was permitted to descend below the minimum instrument altitudes applicable to the route of flight and enter the holding pattern well below the published minimum holding altitude." The report notes that the aircraft, a Beech 1900C, had several pieces of navigation equipment that can produce visual and aural terrain warnings. Damage from the crash, however, prevented NTSB inspectors from testing the equipment or determining its settings prior to the crash, it added. Day had been captain of the Beech 1900 for nearly 18 months, having been with the company for nearly five years, accumulating more than 5,400 hours in the aircraft. Jensen had been with the company four months, racking up 250 hours in that plane. http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/11/us-usa-alaska-crash- idUSKBN0GB28F20140811 Back to Top DGCA grounds 13 GoAir pilots, training chief (India) The directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) has grounded 13 pilots of GoAir as the low-cost carrier (LCC) was allegedly making them fly aircraft without imparting the required training. NEW DELHI: The directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) has grounded 13 pilots of GoAir as the low-cost carrier (LCC) was allegedly making them fly aircraft without imparting the required training. The regulator also sacked GoAir's chief of training and issued show cause notices to the airline and also the pilots, asking them why action - which in pilots' case is grounding them for good - should not be taken against them. "In 2012, these 13 pilots were flying in Go without the required mandatory training. The airline imparted training for a much shorter duration that required. Then they again started flying this year with insufficient training. As soon as we got to know of this, we have taken action by grounding them and getting Go's chief of training sacked," said a senior DGCA official. GoAir CEO Giorgio De Roni is learnt to have sought a meeting with the DGCA top brass to explain his airline's position. A GoAir spokesperson said: "We confirm that we have received a show cause notice from DGCA related to training processes. As per normal procedure we are entitled to appeal, highlighting the reasons why we believe we have not been disrespectful of any regulation. We have preliminarily and informally shared our views with DGCA. A meeting with the authority is expected to take place within the end of this week and we are confident we can fully clarify our position." http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/DGCA-grounds-13-GoAir-pilots-training- chief/articleshow/40085402.cms Back to Top Airport Tests New Way to Avoid Deadly Bird Strikes New York: (AP) When birds and planes collide, the results can be deadly. That's why airports around the world work hard to keep birds away, even resorting to shooting or poisoning large flocks. One Ohio airport is now experimenting with a new, gentler way to avoid bird strikes: planting tall prairie grass. Heavy birds like geese - which cause the most damage to planes - are believed to avoid long grasses because they fear predators might be hiding within. So officials at Dayton International Airport are converting up to 300 acres of the airfield's 2,200 non- aeronautical acres into prairie grass. The goal is, by the end of this year, to plant the tall grass under the takeoff and landing paths. There are more than 10,000 airplane bird strikes a year in the US alone. Most do little or no damage to the plane. The most frequent problem is damage to the engines. The FAA estimates that such damage costs the industry $950 million a year. But some cause catastrophic damage. The forced landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River in 2009 - often called The Miracle on the Hudson - occurred after Canadian geese were ingested in both engines, causing the plane to lose power. Nobody died when the plane glided into the river. The passengers of Eastern Air Lines Flight 375 in 1960 weren't so lucky. The plane struck a flock of European starlings during takeoff. All four engines were damaged and the aircraft crashed in Boston harbour; 62 people died. Globally, wildlife strikes have killed more than 250 people and destroyed over 229 aircraft since 1988, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. In the past 23 years, there were 25 fatalities and 279 injuries linked to wildlife strikes in the US. A little more than half of bird strikes occur from July to October, which is when young birds leave nests and fall migration occurs. Between 2001 and 2013, there were 218 wildlife strikes at Dayton. The majority involved doves, pigeons, sparrows and other small birds that didn't cause severe damage. The airport sees 56 commercial planes landing and taking off each day. Two- thirds of those are smaller regional jets. Airports often buy large parcels of adjacent land to create a buffer zone and limit the number of local residents affected by loud jet engines. Newer airports tend to be built next to tracts of empty land. Those large fields happen to make great rest stops for migrating birds. "We operate airports in a smaller and smaller environment," says Terrence G. Slaybaugh, director of Dayton's airport. "If we are going to protect the long term use of airports in an increasingly populated area we need to be less intrusive and find ways to contribute in a positive way to our surroundings." The thick grass has other benefits: preventing water runoff, taking carbon dioxide out of the air and requiring only one mowing every three years. Bird lovers are also excited about the use of non-lethal methods to keep birds away from the airport. The airport's neighbor, the Aullwood Audubon Center and Farm, has been working closely with aviation officials on the tall grass project. "It's a watershed moment. Our airport is embracing it," says Charity Krueger, executive director of the centre. Still, Dayton airport has to prove that the tall grass is the best approach. The tactic could backfire: in the past, the FAA notes, such grasses have led to increased rodent populations, a food source for raptors. Dayton's initial test will run for three years. Preventing bird strikes often requires multiple approaches. Airports need to plan out what type of trees and landscaping they plant, selecting vegetation that doesn't produce fruits or seeds attractive to birds. Waste from airport restaurants needs to be properly secured and irrigation improved to avoid large areas of standing water. Then there are design factors. Light posts can be fitted with anti-perching devices. Tubular steel beams for terminals and hangars are also much-less desirable as resting spots, compared with traditional I- beams with flat surfaces. Some locations take more drastic measures. Airports use chemically-treated food baits that birds eat and then send out distress call that frighten away other birds in the flock. At other times, birds might be captured and relocated. Then there are poisons and shotguns used to kill birds, or specialists who are brought in to break eggs and remove nest materials. Such efforts to cull bird populations often draw protests from animal rights groups and bird watchers. Dayton airport has had a policy for at least 14 years of not killing birds. But it does try to scare them away with loud noises from non-lethal pyrotechnics and recordings of geese in distress. Maybe with this new grass, even that harassment won't be necessary anymore. The industry has been looking for a solution for a long time. After all, the FAA notes that the first reported bird strike was by Orville Wright, back in 1905. http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/airport-tests-new-way-to-avoid-deadly-bird-strikes- 574751 Back to Top Canadian Woman Climbs Airport Fence to Stop Plane An Air Canada jet takes off over the terminal at the Halifax, Nova Scotia airport on September 12, 2011. She thought her husband was on board A woman in Nova Scotia scaled a barbed-wire fence at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport on Sunday in an attempt to prevent a plane from taking off, authorities said. The 37-year-old woman was spotted almost immediately by employees in the aircraft control towers and stopped by an airline employee. "She jumped the security fence, but she was nowhere near the aircrafts," the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's Sgt. Al LeBlanc told CNN. "The airport staff and the Mounted Police responded right away and apprehended her." The woman had reportedly scaled the 10-foot security fence-sustaining minor injuries in the process-because she believed her husband was aboard a plane that was about to take off and she was intent on stopping it. The plane was rerouted and police said the woman's husband wasn't actually on board. Though LeBlanc told CNN that the woman is unlikely to face criminal charges, the airport is planning on throughly investigating its security measures. http://time.com/3100182/canada-nova-scotia-plane-woman/ Back to Top Safety questions hit Tigerair "The captain had three months earlier passed drug and alcohol tests." Photo: Paul Rovere Tigerair Australia has been hit by potentially serious safety incidents that include pilots being issued a drastically wrong flight plan, a collision between a tug and an Airbus A320 and "heated" disputes between flight crews and other staff, leaked documents reveal. A confidential report to Tigerair management shows the crew responsible for a March 3 Airbus A320 flight carrying 177 people from Sydney to Perth were given a highly inaccurate flight plan that could have resulted in the aircraft not having enough fuel to make the journey. The plan, which allegedly was given late to the flight crew, advised that the plane was carrying zero passengers and, as such, required less fuel than it actually needed to get to Perth. "This meant that all the supplied flight plan calculations were based on a flight 14,660kgs lighter than the actual aircraft weight," the April 1 report found. The pilots detected the mistake, loaded extra fuel before take-off and landed safely in Perth. However, Tigerair and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau have launched investigations into the incident, with particular emphasis on disputed accounts about whether the extra fuel loaded by the pilots met minimum safety standards. Fairfax Media can reveal: The dispatcher responsible for the erroneous Sydney-Perth flight plan told an internal Tigerair investigation that he had been trained at a time when only 20 plans a day were needed, but was now preparing as many as 80 plans per day. "Additionally, he stated his training on some aspects of the flight planning system was minimal and amounted to being shown '3 or 4' times how to run a plan by another dispatcher," the Tigerair report found. A July 23 Tigerair safety bulletin documented how an Airbus A320 filled with passengers encountered "rapidly deteriorating safety margins" after parts of the hydro-tow bar used to push the aircraft back from a gate at Melbourne airport became disconnected and collided with the right engine cowling. The pilots had no knowledge of the potentially dangerous incident because "all effective communication was... lost" with the ground crew and "the flight crew only became aware of the abnormal situation due to the nose wheel 'shuddering'". Tensions between Tiger flight crews and staff on the ground prompting Tiger chief pilot Harry Holling to last month email all pilots to warn them about "several reports lately of crew having heated discussions with other staff whilst on line''. "There is no place for yelling, aggressive or threatening behaviour...this applies to radio transmissions as well as face to face communication." Tigerair is 60 per cent owned by Virgin Australia. In 2011, the airline was grounded for a short period by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority after a series of adverse safety incidents. At that time, it was associated with Singapore Airlines. In a statement on Friday, Tigerair said the March 3 Sydney to Perth flight was reported to the ATSB as a routine incident. "Tigerair advises it is satisfied that at all times the aircraft had more than adequate fuel for the journey and landed in Perth without incident with more than legal fuel reserves," Tigerair's statement said. "As the incident is currently under review by the ATSB, it's not appropriate for the airline to comment further at this time." It is understood that although the aircraft landed with enough fuel in reserve to meet CASA's requirements, it may not have been sufficient to meet the airline's minimum standards. Shortly after the March 3 flight plan incident, Mr Holling sent an email to all pilots warning them to check flight plans for mistakes. "As pilots, we are the last line of defence and we should all exercise extra care when our flights are disrupted or not routine. Generally everyone does a great job in dealing with the pressures of low cost carrier operations and dealing with weather and curfews," Mr Holling wrote. The recent collision between the hydro-tow bar and the Tigerair plane has raised questions about the communication links between the cockpit, flight dispatchers and the tug operators. The Tigerair safety bulletin reveals that the tug driver has no "verbal link" with the flight crew or dispatcher. "In this occurrence the dispatcher perceived a dangerous situation was rapidly developing and discarded the headset in order to remove himself from the path of the advancing aircraft. A stop instruction was not issued to the flight crew." Tigerair management reported the collision to the ATSB, which decided not to investigate further. Tigerair is conducting its own inquiry into the incident. The captain responsible for the March 3 Sydney to Perth flight was stood down after he reported the erroneous flight plan. He decided to load extra fuel and did not request a new flight plan because he risked missing the Sydney airport 10pm curfew. Shortly after reporting the flight plan error, the captain's medical certificate was suspended after an anonymous allegation was made to Tiger, Virgin Australia and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority accusing him of cocaine use. The captain, who is understood to strenuously deny the allegation, had three months earlier passed drug and alcohol tests. A CASA spokesman said it was standard procedure to suspend the medical certificate of any pilot accused of drug use until another drug test was conducted. Tiger confirmed that the captain and his first officer were stood down after the Sydney to Perth flight. The airline said this was standard procedure to enable both to assist the investigations. The first officer has returned duties at Tigerair and the airline is understood to have asked the captain to return once he complies with CASA's requirements to reinstate his medical certificate. Attempts by the captain to find out the source of the drug allegation have been unsuccessful, with CASA refusing to disclose whether it was someone in Tigerair management or elsewhere responsible. CASA has refused a freedom of information request lodged by the captain for all documents regarding the drug use allegations because it would involve an "unreasonable disclosure" of personal information about the source of the complaint. CASA also said release of information could harm Tiger's business affairs and affect its ability to enforce aviation safety laws. The ATSB report into the Sydney to Perth flight is due in October. http://www.smh.com.au/business/aviation/safety-questions-hit-tigerair-20140801- zzjij.html#ixzz3ABM6RZFY Back to Top Back to Top Boeing To Enter The Scrap-Aircraft Market Boeing seeks to acquire an aircraft recycling company to exploit the used-parts market, as more airlines upgrade to newer jets The Boeing Company's (BA) Senior Vice President for Global Sales and Marketing, John Wojick, recently stated that the company is looking to acquire an aviation used-parts company that can recycle engines and other components of aircrafts scrapped by airlines. The aircraft used-parts market is valued at $3.2 billion and is growing rapidly, and Boeing seeks to exploit the opportunity. As airlines are now opting for more fuel-efficient models, they are replacing older jets much earlier than their expected lives. Airlines scrap aircrafts almost 10 years before the jet's expected useful life of 30 years. Boeing buys back its old jetliners from airlines and then outsources the disassembling of these aircrafts. This is part of the company's strategy to encourage airlines to upgrade and increase orders for Boeing's newer models, such as the 747-8. Wojick stated that the initiative had been profitable for the company, and believes that Boeing should now consider venturing into the disassembling business itself. According to the Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association, over the decade around 6,000 jetliners are expected to be replaced for more fuel economical ones. A study from consultanting firm TeamSAI states that, on average, components of a narrow-body aircraft are worth $1.5 million, while those of a wide-body aircraft are worth $2.5 million. Engines for wide-body aircrafts sell for an average of $6 million. Components sold in the used-parts market include black boxes, cockpit instruments, as well as windshields. Even though entering the used-parts market might be highly profitable, there is the possibility of cannibalization of the sales of Aviall, Inc., which is Boeing's subsidiary responsible for the distribution of new aircraft parts and after-sale services. Used parts that are sold are generally pitched as cheaper and to be in equally good condition as the new ones. Hence, this may tae away some of the demand for Aviall's new components. http://www.bidnessetc.com/23972-boeing-to-enter-the-scrapaircraft-market/ Back to Top 20 rescued dogs in Georgia, SC arrive in NJ by private jet MORRISTOWN, N.J. (AP) - Twenty dogs rescued from high-kill shelters in Georgia and South Carolina arrived in New Jersey by means usually reserved for corporate titans. They were flown by private jet to Morristown Municipal Airport on Sunday. Rich Errico of Home For Good Dog Rescue usually drives a van more than 12 hours to bring the dogs back to foster families and permanent homes. But the owner of a private airport terminal offered to fly them back in style. "I go down to the Florida area a lot," Dirk van der Sterre told the Daily Record of Parsippany. "I thought, why not? We can do this. We have done 10 transports and brought up 120 dogs in a little under two years. It's my way of giving back. Errico says the van can be stressful for the dogs. "On the plane, they hardly know they have traveled anywhere." Van der Sterre fell in love with a female black Labrador named Bree on the last trip. "She was sitting on my wife's lap during the last trip," van der Sterre confessed. "Then I held her. That was it. It was over." http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2014-08-11/20-rescued-dogs-georgia-sc-arrive-nj- private-jet Back to Top Windowless jet makes its fuselage transparent using displays The IXION windowless jet-which makes its interior transparent using display panels that cover most of the cabin-might look like an impossible sci-fi concept but the fact is that we are not very far from this. Check out the video. It's so cool. The concept airplane interior-created by Technicon Design-uses external cameras to capture a 360-degree panoramic view of the exterior, which is adjusted for perspective and displayed on the cabin's walls. The illusion of transparency, however, would not be perfect as it won't appear to be three-dimensional. It would fell like animated wallpaper with current displays. Perhaps flying inside a giant semi-cylindrical display would get tiring at one point, but I would like to see it built and try it. http://sploid.gizmodo.com/aircrafts-with-transparent-cabins-might-sound-like-a-th- 1618297383 Back to Top Dentons Adds Three Aviation, Space Experts From Jones Day Top to bottom: Elizabeth H. Evans, Delbert D. Smith and Deepak Reddy Dentons bolstered its aviation finance practice and created a new space business team with the addition of three Jones Day veterans, the firm said Monday. Elizabeth H. Evans and Deepak Reddy join the New York office as partners, where Evans will serve as global co-chair of Dentons' aviation finance practice and lead the practice in the U.S., the firm said in a statement. Delbert D. Smith joins the firm in its Washington, D.C., office as senior space business counsel to lead the firm's new multidisciplinary, global space business practice, with contributions from Evans and Reddy, the firm said. "The arrival of Liz, Deepak and Del allows Dentons to meet one of our major strategic priorities: extending our seasoned Canadian and U.K. global aviation and aerospace team to the United States," Dentons US managing partner Mike McNamara said in the statement. "The talent and experience they bring will augment the firm's exceptional aviation finance and telecommunications capabilities around the world and deepen our corporate offerings." The space business group will focus on transactional, insurance, intellectual property, regulatory, import/export, litigation and arbitration matters for commercial satellite and space businesses, the firm said. Smith told Law360 on Monday that where space business was once a very traditionalist practice, it has opened up in recent years. "The problem is some firms are creating what I call 'instant expertise,' and it doesn't work," Smith said. "You can't simply take a group of lawyers and turn them overnight into an industry practice." Dentons' services start with financing expertise from Evans' group and continue through regulatory, satellite insurance, arbitration and litigation matters, Smith said, and he expects 45 to 50 attorneys to be involved in the space business practice in the coming years in some 20 offices worldwide. "What Dentons is doing differently is they're putting their expertise and money where their mouth is, and taking a risk that satellites and space will be significant," Smith said. Evans said that she and Smith met at Jones Day working on export credit arrangements for space assets, and that defense budget cuts and the commercial success of satellite operators have led to a boom in the industry. "We hadn't really intended to ever leave Jones Day, but when we saw what Dentons could offer in terms of having a worldwide base of telecommunications providers, as well as an even greater geographic footprint than Jones Day had, it was a wonderful place to move to," Evans said. Evans pointed to the firm's presence in Canada and the U.K. since the 2013 merger of SNR Denton, Canada-based Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP and Paris-originated Salans LLP as giving the firm a leg up in the industry. Evans and Smith both envision more public-private partnerships in space, with Smith saying that he expects a resurgence from NASA, likely in the form of a public-private joint venture. "A lot of people have given up - the funding is gone from NASA, we'll never see them again," Smith said. "I predict the opposite, if we ever get a Mars program going." Evans, who joined the firm on July 15, focuses on aircraft, project and satellite financing, including private placements of debt and equity, initial public offerings and secured equipment acquisition finance, with particular experience in export credit finance and project finance matters, including representing financial institutions in unique financings guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. or Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency cross-border insurance products. Evans earned her Bachelor of Arts from Wellesley College and her law degree from Columbia University. Reddy, who joined the firm on Monday, focuses his practice on representing airlines, aircraft leasing companies, financial institutions and investment funds in connection with mergers and acquisitions, financing and leasing transactions. He also frequently represents large Indian companies in cross-border transactional and corporate advisory matters and will be actively involved in Dentons' India practice. Reddy earned his Bachelor of Arts from Brandeis University and his law degree from Fordham University. Smith, who joined the firm on August 1, focuses his practice on financing, regulatory, institutional and international issues in telecommunications and satellite communications. In addition to asset-based and corporate acquisitions, Smith provides strategic consultation to private businesses and public sector entities in developing and implementing communications satellite systems. In particular, he has advised non-U.S. companies in expanding into U.S. domestic and international space and telecommunications markets through direct investment and joint ventures, the firm said. Smith earned his Bachelor of Science, Master of Science and law degrees from the University of Wisconsin. He also holds a doctorate from Cambridge University and a diploma in public international law from the Hague Academy of International Law. http://www.law360.com/technology/articles/566105/dentons-adds-three-aviation-space- experts-from-jones-day Back to Top Smyth quits as boss of Menzies Aviation THE highly-experienced boss of the John Menzies aviation division has resigned, as the firm moves to appoint its first group chief executive in more than seven years. RESIGNATION: Menzies Aviation founding executive Craig Smyth is to leave his post with the Edinburgh company. The Edinburgh business confirmed Craig Smyth, a founding executive of Menzies Aviation, who has been with the wider company since 1993, was planning to leave his post as managing director. Alongside that John Menzies said it is searching for a chief executive, with the board thought to favour the appointment of an external candidate. The aviation business does ground handling at air hubs across the world, while distribution sends millions of magazines and newspapers around the UK and Ireland. Since 2007, John Menzies has operated a three-pronged executive structure which saw each main operating division headed by separate managing directors alongside a group financial director. Yesterday it said: "The board is conducting a detailed review of the group's senior management structure and is involved in a search process for a chief executive officer for John Menzies. "We will make an announcement as soon as we have concluded the review process." John Menzies has operated in the same structure since Patrick McDonald departed as chief executive in March 2007. William Thompson, chairman at that time, suggested Mr McDonald's strong leadership and the performance of the two operating divisions meant there were fewer functions for the chief executive to look after. Mr Smyth, finance director Paul Dollman and then distribution boss Ellis Watson were the executives placed in charge at that time. Mr Dollman stepped down last year with Paula Bell joining as finance director in June of 2013. From mid-2009 the distribution business was run by David McIntosh, who has been with John Menzies since 1989, but in January this year he informed the board of his intention to step down to pursue other interests. Forsyth Black, who has been with the group for 14 years, took over that division in June this year but did not join the plc board. Mr Smyth, 46, a chartered accountant, has been a key figure in the expansion of the fast growing aviation division. Analysts at Liberum suggested Mr Smyth may have felt disappointed at not getting the opportunity to run the wider group. They said: "Craig Smyth is resigning and the company has confirmed that it is looking for a [chief executive] which will return Menzies to a more conventional management structure. "We understand the board is looking for an external candidate and we don't believe that the two events are unconnected. Whilst the loss of Craig is a negative we believe some investors will prefer the more normal structure." Mr Smyth did not respond to phone calls. It is understood he does not have another job to step straight into. John Menzies said: "The board of John Menzies acknowledged receipt of the resignation of one of its divisional managing directors, Craig Smyth, managing director of Menzies Aviation. "Craig will continue in his current role and fulfil all of his contractual obligations." According to the most recent John Menzies annual report Mr Smyth, along with other executives, has a 12- month notice period. That same document shows Mr Smyth's basic salary for this year is more than £336,000. For 2013, his total remuneration was £1.2 million, which included long-term incentive payments worth £646,000 and an annual bonus of £150,000. In May, following the annual general meeting, current chairman Iain Napier suggested the business was interested in acquisitions but the focus of that activity was likely to be in the aviation arm. John Menzies is due to report interim results next week. Liberum retained a buy rating on the stock with an 847p target price. The shares closed up 3.5p, or 0.5 per cent at 659p. http://www.heraldscotland.com/business/company-news/smyth-quits-as-boss-of- menzies-aviation.2501839 Back to Top Wanted: B-737 Freighter for Lease Contact: curt@curt-lewis.com or (817)845-3983 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