Flight Safety Information December 17, 2014 - No. 254 In This Issue Several hurt after American jet meets turbulence Missing MH370: Underwater Hunt For Malaysia Airlines Jet Could End by May Tourists die in Turkey balloon crash Korean Air Faces Flight Suspensions Over Executive's Snack Tantrum Aircraft lands safely after engine fire Grand Canyon offers incentive for quieter aircraft Blame the FAA for air-traffic controller shortage Dubai gearing up for World Aviation Safety Summit PRISM TO HELP PREPARE FOR E-IOSA Under the auspices of the Gulf Flight Safety Council, the second Gulf Flight Data Forum meeting was held on December 7/8, hosted by Emirates Airline ERAU NextGen 101 Seminar - Washington, D.C. New...GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship Upcoming Events Several hurt after American jet meets turbulence FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - An American Airlines jet encountered severe air turbulence shortly after taking off from Seoul, South Korea, prompting an unscheduled landing at Narita International Airport in Tokyo after 14 people asked for medical attention. The airline says four passengers and a crew member needed hospital treatment, but none of those injuries are life-threatening. Download a free toolkit and understand the essentials of planning your estate. A statement issued by the Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier says American Flight 280 was headed for Dallas-Fort Worth on Tuesday when the Boeing 777-200 met with turbulence. After the landing, passengers and crew members were evaluated and treated in Japan. American says there were 240 passengers on board and 15 crew members. Officials say the remaining passengers won't continue their travel to DFW until Wednesday and have been taken to hotels to spend the night. Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/dec/17/5-injured-when-american- airlines-jet-encounters-tu/#ixzz3MAM5sWUg Back to Top Missing MH370: Underwater Hunt For Malaysia Airlines Jet Could End by May The underwater hunt for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 may be finished by May, authorities said Wednesday. More than 4,247 square miles of the floor of the southern Indian Ocean - an area half the size of Lake Erie - have now been searched, the Australia Transportation Safety Bureau (ATSB) announced in an update. It represents about one fifth of the total search area that marine experts are trawling in the hope of finding clues to the whereabouts of the Boeing 777, which disappeared on March 8 with 239 people on board. The ATSB said that one of the vessels involved in the search, Fugro Discovery, "experienced a system issue with a component of the search equipment" on Saturday. "Search activities have been suspended while the issue is remedied." However, the statement said: "Assuming no significant delays with vessels, equipment or from the weather, the current underwater search area may be largely completed around May 2015." One other vessel, GO Phoenix, was still in the area on Wednesday but a third ship, Fugro Equator, was scheduled to return to shore in Australia. http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/missing-jet/missing-mh370-underwater-hunt-malaysia-airlines- jet-could-end-may-n269826 Back to Top Tourists die in Turkey balloon crash A tourist has been killed and nine others injured in a hot air balloon crash in Turkey. The balloon, which was carrying Chinese and Malaysian tourists, came down in the Guvercinlik Valley in Cappadocia at 08:15 (06:15 GMT) on Wednesday. The tourist killed was identified by Turkish media as Tang Yi, while a Malaysian was reported to be in a critical condition. Reports from the country said the cause of the incident was as yet unknown. The balloon had taken off from Goreme in Nevsehir province in Central Anatolia on Wednesday morning. Map Paramedics and security forces were dispatched to the scene of the crash. In 2009 a balloon crash in the same region killed a British tourist and injured nine other people. Three Brazilian tourists were killed, and 20 people injured, when two balloons collided in Cappadocia in 2013. Cappadocia, in central Anatolia, is famed for its "fairy chimney" volcanic cones, subterranean cities carved out of soft stone, and early Christian churches. Ballooning has become a popular tourist business in the region over the past decade. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-30512894 Back to Top Korean Air Faces Flight Suspensions Over Executive's Snack Tantrum SEOUL, South Korea - South Korea will most likely order some Korean Air flights suspended after one of the company's executives made a passenger jet return to the gate because she was angry with the way she was served macadamia nuts, government investigators said on Tuesday. Cho Hyun-ah, 40, hurled "loud and abusive language" at the first-class cabin crew after she was served her nuts in an unopened package, instead of on a plate, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement. In another finding that was likely to damage Korean Air's image, the ministry said the airline's executives had tried to persuade the cabin crew members to "make false statements" to government investigators in order to protect Ms. Cho, who had earlier denied using abusive language or violence. "We will impose a suspension of flights or a financial penalty against Korean Air for violating aviation laws," Kwon Yong-bok, a senior ministry official of airline safety, said during the media briefing. The laws ban onboard disturbances, such as using loud or threatening language, that could endanger the safety of a passenger jet. Cho Hyun-ah resigned as the head of in-flight services for Korean Air on Monday. Credit Yonhap, via Associated Press The ministry briefed the media on Tuesday on its investigation of the Dec. 5 episode, in which the irate Ms. Cho ordered Korean Air Flight 86, bound for Incheon, South Korea, and already taxiing at Kennedy International Airport in New York to return to the gate to kick off the chief steward. South Koreans believed that Ms. Cho could do so not because she was Korean Air's vice president in charge of in-flight services but because she was a daughter of its powerful chairman, Cho Yang-ho. Ms. Cho and Korean Air have since become objects of withering criticism and ridicule. The reaction was particularly harsh in South Korea, where people saw Ms. Cho as the latest example of arrogance and entitlement prevalent among the families that control big South Korean businesses, such as Korean Air. Mr. Kwon said the government will later sort out details of the punishment, such as how many flights will be suspended and for how long. There was no immediate reaction from Korean Air. The company had earlier admitted that the decision to turn the plane around on Dec. 5 was "excessive" because there was no emergency involved. Ms. Cho and Korean Air officials faced a separate criminal investigation by prosecutors who were looking into whether her behavior violated aviation regulations and whether the company tried to hush up the scandal. The South Korean media and analysts said Ms. Cho's nut scandal exposed problems deeply rooted in the corporate culture of so-called chaebol, the country's family-controlled business conglomerates, whose leaders have a reputation for imperious behavior and treating their employees like feudal subjects. Park Chang-jin, the senior steward who was kicked off the plane, has told South Korean television stations that he and a junior steward who had served the nuts were forced to kneel before Ms. Cho. He said he was compelled to obey her because she was "a daughter of the owner" of Korean Air. When Ms. Cho was called in for questioning by the government on Friday, a horde of Korean Air officials accompanied her, although by then, her father, the chairman Mr. Cho, had apologized for her "foolish conduct" and said he would fire her from all corporate posts in his sprawling conglomerate. Some of those Korean Air officials asked janitors at the government building to clean the women's restroom again because Ms. Cho would most likely use it, the local media reported this week. A Korean Air spokesman said he could not immediately confirm or deny the reports. In a South Korean conglomerate, members of the "owner family" are said to wield decisive influence on which top managers are promoted or removed in their corporate empires. They have often returned to top posts themselves even after they were convicted of bribery, tax evasion and other crimes. (Mr. Cho, the Korean Air chairman, was convicted of tax evasion in 2000.) Mr. Park, the steward, has said that Ms. Cho hit him with a plastic folder of in-flight service manuals - a claim she denied. On Tuesday, government officials said they would ask prosecutors to determine who was lying. They also said they would punish the airline, not the pilot, for turning the plane around on Dec. 5. Given Ms. Cho's "special" status among pilots and other employees, government investigators determined that the captain of Flight 86 "had no option" but to follow her order, said Lee Gwang- hee, a senior government investigator. The transportation ministry said it would form a special panel to check "whether the safety procedures of Korean Air are undermined by its organizational culture." "If we find a problem there," it said in a statement, "we will take drastic action." http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/17/world/asia/korean-air-faces-flight-suspensions-over- executives-snack-tantrum.html?_r=0 Back to Top Aircraft lands safely after engine fire Flybe flight from Glasgow to Belfast was forced to make an emergency landing after an engine fire. Flight BE130, which was travelling to Belfast City Airport, was diverted to Belfast International Airport. The airline said the plane was met by emergency services "as a routine and precautionary measure". There were no injuries among the 76 passengers, two pilots and two cabin crew. Passengers were brought off the plane and taken by road to Belfast City Airport. One passenger, Simon Tiernan, tweeted: "Lucky to be alive tonight. Plane engine caught fire over the sea. Serious credit to the pilots and crew, great job. "Plane had to do an emergency landing. Had basically accepted that my time on earth was done. Pilots I love you. "Think I will get the ferry next time #flybebelfast". In a statement Flybe said: "Flybe can confirm that flight BE130 from Glasgow to Belfast City diverted to Belfast International Airport due a small engine fire, which was extinguished before landing." They added: "At no time was the safety and wellbeing of passengers compromised. "Flybe operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with all manufacturers guidelines." The cause of the fire is being investigated. Quintin Oliver, a lobbyist who was returning to Belfast after visiting Glasgow for work, described the moment of the fire. "The left hand engine went on fire and the plane lurched a little, not hugely. The engine was on fire, it was burning like a Catherine wheel with large orange flames shooting out the side. That's when you get scared." He added: "It goes through your mind all the air crashes you have seen on the TV. You get worried about what's going to happen, how you're going to land, whether you're going to land." Mr Oliver said he was still waiting two hours after the evacuation to reboard the plane and retrieve his hand luggage, although some passengers had chosen to leave and collect their belongings tomorrow. He praised the airline for looking after the passengers' safety, but said that communication had been "shockingly bad" and when they evacuated it was not clear what was happening in the terminal. http://www.independent.ie/life/travel/travel-news/aircraft-lands-safely-after-engine-fire- 30843248.html Back to Top Grand Canyon offers incentive for quieter aircraft FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - Air tour operators at the Grand Canyon would be able to take more visitors over the most popular flight routes under a proposed incentive to make aircraft quieter. The incentive would apply to the Dragon and Zuni Point corridors, which provide views of the widest and deepest parts of the canyon to the eastern edge. The flights aren't visible from the South Rim where most of the Grand Canyon's 4.5 million visitors travel each year. Operators use about 3,700 of their assigned flights in the Dragon and Zuni Point corridors from January to March. Those that upgrade aircraft to meet the definition of quiet technology could shift those flight slots to the summer months when demand is higher without losing out on business during the winter months. "They can kind of manage within their own fleet how they want to do it, but it would give companies credit for truly quieter technology," said Robin Martin, chief of planning and compliance at the Grand Canyon. Operators don't necessarily have to fly quieter aircraft to win the certification of quiet technology. Under a definition used by the Federal Aviation Administration, some can just add seats to aircraft to qualify. A provision in the 2012 federal transportation bill to make half of the Grand Canyon free from commercial air tour noise for at least 75 percent of the day requires the Federal Aviation Administration and the Grand Canyon to provide incentives for quiet air technology. Many of the tours originate from Las Vegas. U.S. Sens. John McCain, of Arizona, and Harry Reid, of Nevada, had criticized a proposal by the National Park Service to manage air tour noise at the Grand Canyon and restore natural quiet to the park. The Park Service wanted to make 67 percent of the canyon quiet for three-fourths of the day or longer, but the senators said the noise restrictions were unfair and would decimate air tours. The first incentive for quiet air technology went into effect in January, reducing fees from $25 to $20 per flight. The FAA later released 1,721 flight allocations that had been abandoned to commercial tour operators for use as long as their active fleets did not increase noise in the park overall. The public comment period for the latest proposed incentive ends Dec. 10. "We have long believed quiet technology was the right solution to achieving substantial restoration of natural quiet at Grand Canyon. We have invested in converting as we can our fleets of helicopters and fixed wing aircraft," said Alan Stephen, an official with Grand Canyon Airlines and Papillon Airways, two of the Grand Canyon's largest commercial air tour companies. "New quiet technology helicopters cost about $3 million each. Papillon will need to spend about $12- $15 million annually to make this conversion by the deadline," Stephen added in a statement Monday night. "Better utilization of these helicopters is the most important incentive the federal agencies can implement." Air tour operators use more than 90 percent of the nearly 45,000 flight slots available to them in the Dragon and Zuni Point corridors, Martin said. About 60 percent of the aircraft conducting tours at the Grand Canyon already meet the quiet air technology standard. Dick Hingson of the Sierra Club said the impact of the proposal is unclear but could worsen noise levels in the canyon's backcountry where hikers and campers seek solitude. He said the environmental group wants some assurance from the park that it is not going to do the minimum possible in terms of the science. "It can be a smoke screen," he said. "The incentives should be used to develop engines that are quieter as a source directly." Martin said the FAA and the Grand Canyon have set a maximum noise level at the park based on flight allocations for 2012. Officials said the new incentive, if implemented, could be discontinued if noise from air tours throughout the park exceeds that level. "We're looking more at noise than numbers," Martin said. http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20141217/GJLIFESTYLES/141119298/0/SEARCH Back to Top Blame the FAA for air-traffic controller shortage By: Steven Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research With Thanksgiving, the busiest travel time of the year, behind us, there is a growing problem that could affect air-passenger safety - an impending shortage of air-traffic controllers. As backdrop, Ronald Reagan fired nearly 12,000 air-traffic controllers in 1981, when these workers illegally went on strike and effectively shut down airports across the country. Today, because of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) mandatory retirement age of 56, a deluge of retirements are expected over the next few years. Without a solid plan to replace these controllers with equally competent hires, public safety is being put to the test, and consumers should expect increased delays and cancellations in the years to follow. FAA needs to hire 10,000 new controllers According to a U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General Office report, more than 11,700 air-traffic controllers will retire by 2021. While the work-force attrition was certainly a predictable outcome and it was on the FAA's radar, it seems that the FAA failed to take the necessary steps to plan for the shortfall. The FAA's failure is highlighted by years of mismanagement, a proposal to dissolve its current air-traffic controller training program, and a decision to completely overhaul its hiring processes for new air traffic controllers. Closer examination of FAA's practices reveals a startling series of management problems over the years. Recent audits have been very critical of the FAA - particularly its poor management of the current air traffic controller training program, overspending and dropping productivity, and deficiencies involving air traffic controller fatigue, as well as delays in addressing and implementing suggestions by auditors. The problems paint a picture of incompetency, project mismanagement, a bureaucracy that has become too out of touch with its mission, or some combination. FAA approves four companies to fly commercial drones The FAA has also demonstrated deficiencies in planning. The issue of labor shortages did not just creep up; the FAA knew about it and needed to plan for it. Training air-traffic controllers is expensive and takes more than two years to get a candidate fully trained. As a result, alleviating a future shortage requires action now. Whereas audits have generally pointed the finger of blame at the FAA, the agency - in scapegoating fashion - recently decided to end its current air-traffic controller training contract. The timing could not come at a worse time, with shortages mounting. A better approach would be to make improvements to the current training program in order to get more eyes on the sky. Further, the FAA has decided to stop selecting its training candidates from qualified flight schools or by offering training slots to military vets who have experience. Instead, the focus will be to take candidates from off the street, which will not improve the quality of the candidates, will increase training time and cost taxpayers more money. It's doubtful that reducing the prerequisites for air traffic controller jobs will be considered a flying success. But, there could be a hidden agenda here but, for whatever the reason, it has nothing to do with improving public safety. The bottom line is that revamping the air-traffic controller training program could not have come at a worse time, as the FAA needs to bring more controllers quickly onboard. It is like an NFL team completely changing its playbook right before the playoffs - it's too late to practice and mistakes will happen. However, mistakes with flying safety are not a game. The resulting airport delays will cost American consumers billions of dollars of lost time, and the increase in flight cancellations will only raise consumer prices, not to mention the potential for jeopardizing public safety. Stretching air-traffic controllers too thin is a risk, particularly with the mental and physical stress of keeping aircraft from colliding into each other. So, absent proven performance in air-traffic control breakthroughs, the FAA will have to replace the retiring controllers - with properly trained candidates. It's a matter of public safety. http://www.cnbc.com/id/102268962#. Back to Top Dubai gearing up for World Aviation Safety Summit Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) will once again host the World Aviation Safety Summit taking place in Dubai on 23 - 24 March 2015. The Summit will bring together local and international stakeholders from regulatory authorities, airline operators, airport operators, aircraft manufactures, pilot associations, safety organisations and air traffic control service providers to discuss key strategies and challenges in improving safety culture. Continuous improvement in global aviation safety is fundamental to ensuring air transport continues to play a major role in driving sustainable economic and social development around the world. With air traffic projected to double in the next 15 years, current and emerging safety risks must be addressed proactively to ensure that this significant capacity expansion is carefully managed and supported through strategic regulatory and infrastructure developments. Jeff Poole, director general, Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) will deliver a keynote address at the summit which will also feature high level debate and discussion on the most pressing issues surrounding safety in the aviation industry. The key objectives for the Summit are: To promote and facilitate the collection and sharing of safety information among the worldwide aviation community To help reduce legal and cultural barriers that discourage sharing of safety information To encourage government organisations to support and develop a safer and more efficient aviation industry To integrate safety culture with a world class safety management system to decrease human error. To educate and reinforce safety and regulators perspective on safety culture Over 300 regional officials representing airports, airlines, regulators, and industry stakeholders will attend the Summit, generating two days of insightful debate and discussions between the panel and the floor. http://www.arabianaerospace.aero/dubai-gearing-up-for-world-aviation-safety- summit.html#sthash.W3rrU1TH.dpuf Back to Top Back to Top Under the auspices of the Gulf Flight Safety Council, the second Gulf Flight Data Forum meeting was held on December 7/8, hosted by Emirates Airline. The meeting was held over two days with 6 airlines sharing statistical flight data on the first day, while the second day was open to all airlines based in the general region who operated a Flight Data Monitoring programme. The statistical flight data sharing provided valuable insights for the participants of day one. Specifically, by sharing it gave them a benchmark to compare their statistical values to other airlines. Possible causes of the differences in statistical values gave an indication on how improvements could be made to specific areas of monitoring or risk. On the second day the discussion on benchmarking was expanded on how to set safety performance indicators using flight data. FDM techniques and best practices were reviewed and it was identified that most operators face similar issues in extracting safety-enhancing information from flight data and integrating the information directly into their Safety Management software. Direct contacts between flight data analysts were established, enabling them to more easily solve technical issues. Apart from discussions pertaining to the technicalities of collecting, decoding and validating flight data, common tools and statistical analysis techniques were presented. The meeting members agreed that following international trends, enhanced regional industry regulation and oversight would likely see regional regulators require greater visibility of flight data monitoring programmes. The Gulf Flight Data Forum presents a good forum to aid operators in establishing industry "best practice" programmes. The next two-day meeting is planned for March 2014 immediately prior to the next GFSC meeting. Those operators wanting further information on this regional initiative may contact hasan.mir@emirates.com or dave.stobie@emirates.com for details. About the Gulf Flight Safety Council: The Gulf Flight Safety Council (GFSC) is a diverse organization of members from all over the Gulf region and around the world, including manufacturers, regulators, air traffic service providers, business jet and VVIP operators, airlines and cargo operators and many more. Meetings are held on a quarterly basis. http://www.gfsc.aero/home Back to Top ERAU NextGen 101 Seminar - Washington, D.C. "The Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide Office of Professional Education is pleased to announce a two-day seminar entitled NextGen 101. The course is designed to identify the key concepts, attributes, and challenges of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). Government and industry employees with an interest in NextGen, aviation stakeholders and members of the military transitioning to a career in civilian education should attend. The course will take place in Washington D.C. on April 21-22, 2015. Course fee is $750 per person or $675 per person with five or more people registering from the same group. For more information and to register, please visit us online at http://proed.erau.edu/programs/specialized-industry-training/nextgen-101-seminar/index.html" Back to Top New GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Below please find the introduction paragraph and link for my graduate research survey. Thank you for your help! My name is John Betson Uku. I am an airline pilot. I am a graduate student studying Air Safety Management at City University, London. As part of my dissertation I am conducting a survey of pilots' perception of Just Culture and the effect on safety management. If you work as a pilot your participation in this survey would be greatly appreciated. The survey is completely anonymous and should take about ten minutes to complete. Please contact me if you have any questions. The survey can be accessed via the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JBU1431BHX Thank you for your help, John B Uku John.Uku.1@city.ac.uk Back to Top Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship The Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship was established by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) to shape the next generation of researchers in aviation weather, honoring the late Najeeb Elias Halaby, an eminent aviator and administrator, for his vision and more than five decades of extraordinary contributions to aviation (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/halabyfellowship.pdf). The Fellowship The recipient of a Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship will spend three months (in 2015 or early 2016) in residence with NCAR's Aviation Weather Research Program, which Mr. Halaby was instrumental in establishing in the 1980s. As the nation's leader in addressing aviation weather research, NCAR plays a unique role in meeting user needs by transferring research results to operations through its Research Application Laboratory (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/). The Fellow will conduct research broadly aimed at improving the integration of weather into decision support tools for improved weather avoidance and air traffic management. The Fellowship will provide: * a monthly stipend for three months, including temporary living expenses * round-trip travel expenses to and from Boulder, CO * travel to a conference to present results * page charges for one publication of key results Eligibility and Application The Halaby Fellowship targets graduate students (late Masters or early PhD level) enrolled in an aviation-relevant department or program of a domestic or international university. Interested candidates should have advanced research skills, far-reaching vision, and dedication to get things accomplished. Consideration for this Fellowship will be given to candidates based on the following submitted material: * Curriculum vitae * Proposal (maximum five pages) presenting the research to be conducted at NCAR, the anticipated outcome of that, and how the proposed effort ties into the candidate's ongoing graduate research project(s) * Contact information for three references (one of which should be the student's primary advisor) NCAR will accept applications for the Halaby Fellowship each year. Email Applications by February 28, 2015 to halabyfellowship@ucar.edu Back to Top Upcoming Events: 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 13 - 14 Jan. 2015 Baltimore, MD USA https://www.regonline.com/CalendarNET/EventCalendar.aspx?EventID=1592658&view=Month Curt Lewis