Flight Safety Information December 5, 2014 - No. 246 In This Issue Blue Angels jet skids off Brunswick runway, gets stuck in mud Saudi Arabia Says 2 Americans Hurt in Plane Crash Preliminary info in Mo. plane crash released Tests raise worry that battery shipments on passenger planes could catch fire Horizon Air achieves international safety standard United Airlines flight hits bird, turns back to Vermont airport PRISM TO HELP PREPARE FOR E-IOSA AIRCON3 - Pre-Conference Workshop Upcoming Events Blue Angels jet skids off Brunswick runway, gets stuck in mud The U.S Navy Blue Angels fly An F/A-18 Hornet into Brunswick Executive Airport Thursday morning to meet with officials in advance of the 2015 Great State of Maine Air Show. BRUNSWICK, Maine - During a special appearance Thursday morning at the Brunswick Executive Airport, one of the Blue Angels jets, part of the U.S. Navy's aerobatics team, fishtailed off the runway during landing and became stuck in the mud. As the jet neared the end of the runway, it fishtailed on some ice. Pilots managed to make the turn onto the taxi, but then the jet spun around on the ice and slid off the runway. Capt. Corrie Mayes was one of the two pilots in the jet at the time. She said both the jet and the pilots are fine. "As you all saw, we are having a little bit of difficulty with the jet. But it's nothing significant," she said. "The weather, we just slipped off the runway a little bit down there. We're getting pulled out now. The jet is in perfectly good condition." Mayes says all but the end of the runway was clear. She said the jet wasn't able to stop before hitting the ice, and after it did there was not enough runway to take off again. Several unsuccessful attempts were made to free the F-18 Hornet from the ice and get it back on the runway, but as of late Thursday afternoon, the jet is still stuck in the snow and ice. The Blue Angel sent a jet to the airport because the Navy's aerobatics team is the featured performer at the 2015 Great State of Maine Air Show, which is scheduled for Labor Day weekend of 2015. A Blue Angels engineering crew is on its way to Brunswick to make sure the jet was not damaged. Watch the video here on WGME's website. https://bangordailynews.com/2014/12/04/news/mid-maine/blue-angels-jet-skids-off-brunswick-runway- gets-stuck-in-mud/ Back to Top Saudi Arabia Says 2 Americans Hurt in Plane Crash The civil aviation authority of Saudi Arabia says two Americans were injured when a small, private plane they were traveling in ran out of fuel and crashed near the airport of the capital, Riyadh. Spokesman Khalid al-Khaybari said in a statement that the plane had left Egypt's Red Sea airport in Hurghada and was scheduled to land in Riyadh before continuing to Malaysia. He says that the pilot had alerted air traffic control at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh that the plane was running out of fuel. The plane was forced to make an emergency crash landing Wednesday, inuring the pilot and passenger, who are both U.S. citizens. The names of the two were not made public, but al-Khaybari says they were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/saudi-arabia-americans-hurt-plane-crash-27338911 Back to Top Preliminary info in Mo. plane crash released COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) - Federal aviation officials are blaming power loss for a central Missouri plane crash that left three men seriously injured. The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that the National Transportation Safety Board has issued its preliminary report into last month's Fulton crash. The report says the pilot of the twin-engine Cessna 401A lost power to one of engines after takeoff. The report says the pilot shut down the opposite engine when he saw he would not be able to stop on the runway. One fuel tank was ruptured, but there was no fire. Several witnesses called 911. The plane got about 10 feet into the air before it came back down, ran off the runway and landed in a ditch. The complete investigation will take six to 12 months to complete. http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local/2014/12/04/columbia-plane-crash-preliminary- information/19881425/ Back to Top Tests raise worry that battery shipments on passenger planes could catch fire This frame grab from video, provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shows a test at the FAAs technical center in Atlantic City, N.J. last April, where a cargo container was packed with 5,000 rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. A cartridge heater was inserted to simulate a single battery experiencing uncontrolled overheating. Forty-four minutes into the test a build-up of flammable gases inside the container caused an explosion that blew open the container's door and sent boxes flying. The container was soon fully engulfed in flames. New U.S. government tests are raising concern that rechargeable lithium batteries carried as cargo on passenger airliners around the world are susceptible to fires or explosions that could destroy the planes. Yet U.S. and international officials have been slow to adopt safety restrictions that might affect both powerful industries that depend on the batteries and the airlines that profit from shipping them. The batteries are for products ranging from cellphones and laptops to hybrid cars. (AP Photo/FAA) By JOAN LOWY, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) - Dramatic government test results raise new concern that bulk shipments of rechargeable lithium batteries carried as cargo on passenger planes are susceptible to fires or explosions that could destroy the airliners. Yet U.S. and international officials have been slow to adopt safety restrictions that might affect the powerful industries that depend on the batteries and the airlines that profit from shipping them. The batteries are used in products ranging from cellphones and laptops to hybrid cars. Shipments of rechargeable batteries on passenger planes are supposed to be limited to no more than a handful in a single box, under safety standards set by the U.N.'s International Civil Aviation Organization and adopted by the U.S. and other nations. But a loophole permits shippers to pack many small boxes into one shipment and get around the rules. Tens of thousands of the batteries may be packed into pallets or containers and loaded into the cargo holds of wide-body passenger planes. In an April test by the Federal Aviation Administration, a cargo container was packed with 5,000 lithium- ion batteries and a cartridge heater added to simulate a single battery experiencing uncontrolled overheating. The heat from the cartridge triggered escalating overheating in nearby batteries, which spread in a chain reaction. Temperatures reached about 1,100 degrees. Once about 300 batteries had become involved, a fierce explosion blew open the container door and sent boxes flying, catching FAA and industry observers by surprise. Within seconds, the cargo container was in flames. The explosion came from a buildup of flammable gases. A second test in September produced similar results, despite the addition of a fire suppression agent. Safety authorities have long known that lithium-ion batteries can fuel violent fires if they are defective, damaged, overcharged, incorrectly packaged or exposed to extreme heat. But they have been allowed to be shipped on passenger planes because it was thought the halon gas fire suppression systems in the cargo compartments of airliners could extinguish any fire. The container tests have raised a new worry: that an explosion could increase pressure in the cargo hold, activating depressurization valves that would let halon gas and smoke vent into the passenger cabin and cockpit. That would dilute fire suppression in the hold and let a fire rage unchecked. The cargo problem is distinct from the one that caused a fire two years ago in a lithium-ion battery installed as part of the operating system of a Boeing 787. In that case, Boeing failed to anticipate that a short circuit in one of the battery's eight cells could spread to the other cells and ignite a fire, the National Transportation Safety Board said Monday. The U.N.'s civil aviation agency is considering a series of proposals to strengthen packaging, labeling and handling standards for lithium-ion battery shipments, and airline pilot unions are pushing for limits on the number of batteries that can be transported. No consensus emerged at an October meeting in Brazil, and any changes aren't expected to take effect until 2017. By contrast, the U.N. agency decided earlier this year to ban shipments on passenger planes of lithium metal batteries, a non-rechargeable cousin to lithium-ion batteries typically used in toys, watches and medical devices. That ban goes into effect in January. About 10 percent of the 2.5 billion lithium metal batteries manufactured annually are shipped by air. Lithium-ion batteries are far more frequently shipped by air, but there has been no similar effort to ban their transport on passenger planes despite a heightened awareness of their dangers. About 4.8 billion lithium-ion cells were manufactured in 2013, and production is forecast to reach 8 billion a year by 2025. A battery contains two or more cells. http://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2014/12/03/air-shipments-of-batteries-could-be-fire-risk Back to Top Horizon Air achieves international safety standard SEATTLE, WA - Alaska Airlines' regional partner Horizon Air today announced it successfully completed the International Air Transport Association's Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) and has been renewed on the IOSA Registry. "Ensuring a safe operation for our customers and employees is Horizon Air's top priority," said David Campbell, Horizon's president and chief operating officer. "Participating in the IOSA registration audit is a natural extension to this commitment." The IOSA program is a key element of International Air Transport Association's efforts to promote global airline operational safety. To be on the IOSA Registry, an airline must satisfy hundreds of standards and recommended practices in its operational areas, including flight operations, operational control and dispatch, maintenance, cabin operations, ground handling, cargo operations and operational security. The weeklong audit, which takes place every two years, is conducted by an independent audit organization accredited by IATA. The IOSA program contributes to improved aviation safety worldwide by establishing a globally accepted set of safety audit standards. IOSA registration is a condition of membership in IATA, which represents 84 percent of global air traffic. The IOSA program was created in 2003, and Horizon has been on the registry since 2006. Alaska Airlines has been on the registry since 2005, having completed the audit most recently in October 2013. Horizon Air flies to 44 cities across the United States, Canada and Mexico. http://www.eturbonews.com/53183/horizon-air-achieves-international-safety-standard Back to Top United Airlines flight hits bird, turns back to Vermont airport SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. -- A United Airlines flight bound for Washington, D.C., struck a bird and was forced to turn back and land at a Vermont airport. One person on the aircraft tweeted a picture of the damage, calling it a "scary moment." The bird strike happened Thursday when United Airlines Flight 4331 struck the bird shortly after takeoff. Burlington International Airport officials tell WPTZ-TV that the plane landed safely and nobody was hurt. The 50 passengers took another flight to Washington. The aircraft's windshield was heavily damaged. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/united-airlines-flight-hits-bird-turns-back-to-vermont-airport/ Back to Top Back to Top Pre-Conference Workshop: Thursday, January 15th: Investigations in support of Safety Management Systems (SMS): The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) defines SMS as "A systematic approach to managing safety, including the necessary organizational structures, accountabilities, policies and procedures." Most Civil Aviation Authorities support the implementation of SMS in aviation training organizations and service providers. Many also include the provisions for a Safety Manager within those safety programs. This workshop will investigate the attributes of a supportive Safety Culture along with the competencies and skill-sets required of the Safety Manager to appropriately collect, analyze and take actions on safety information. The outcomes of this workshop will be assembled and distributed to participants in order for their consideration for inclusion into existing and future aviation programs and curricula. Workshop Leaders: Stewart Schreckengast, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Aviation Department, University of South Australia & Douglas Drury, PhD, Senior Lecturer, Aviation Department, University of South Australia are hosting. Free conference add on- but space is limited. Sponsored by the Robertson Safety Institute Registration Back to Top Upcoming Events: ERAU UAS FUNDAMENTALS COURSE December 9 - 11, 2014 ERAU Daytona Beach Campus, FL www.daytonabeach.erau.edu/uas Event: "The Future of Regulation of SMS and QA" Symposium. Keynote: Mr. Martin Eley, Director General Transport Canada. Location: Coronado Resort Hotel @ Disney World, Orlando Florida. Date: Jan 4-6, 2015 info: http://www.dtiatlanta.com/symposium.html A3IR CON 2015 January 16-17, 2015 Phoenix, AZ http://commons.erau.edu/aircon/2015/ Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF) NTSB Training Center, Ashburn, VA March 10-11, 2015 www.acsf.aero/symposium FAA Helicopter Safety Effort three-day safety forum April 21-23, 2015 Hurst, Texas eugene.trainor@faa.gov www.faahelisafety.org IS-BAO Workshop Information and Registration 6 - 7 Dec. 2014 Dubai, UAE 13 - 14 Jan. 2015 Baltimore, MD USA https://www.regonline.com/CalendarNET/EventCalendar.aspx?EventID=1592658&view=Month Curt Lewis