Flight Safety Information December 19, 2014 - No. 256 In This Issue Crying baby sparks mid-air brawl on Air China flight Chinese Flier Opens Xiamen Airlines Flight Emergency Door for 'Fresh Air' Flight Attendant Kicked Off Korean Air Flight Alleges Cover-Up PRISM TO HELP PREPARE FOR E-IOSA Cramped in Coach, but With Better Entertainment...Improving In-Flight Wi-Fi Airlines cued up for Cuba: Former American Airlines CEO ERAU NextGen 101 Seminar - Washington, D.C. New...GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship Upcoming Events Crying baby sparks mid-air brawl on Air China flight (PIX11) - A crying baby reportedly started a mid-air brawl that almost caused an Air China flight to make an emergency landing. The trouble aboard Flight 433 from Chongqing to Hong Kong all started when two women seated in from of 27-year-old Chan Juan Sung thought her baby was crying too loudly and she wasn't doing enough to stop it. When Sung didn't respond in the way the women hoped, the pair reclined their seats all the way back. The ensuing brawl resulted in one of the women getting punched in the face and the pilot threatening to land the plane. "They were fighting, the baby was now screaming and other passengers were shouting. It was like some bizarre film," a witness told the Daily Mail. The plane landed at its scheduled time and police interviewed the passengers involved in the scuffle were interviewed by polive. "Passengers cannot behave like this," an Air China spokesman told the website. http://pix11.com/2014/12/18/crying-baby-sparks-mid-air-brawl-on-air-china-flight/ Back to Top Chinese Flier Opens Xiamen Airlines Flight Emergency Door for 'Fresh Air' BEIJING - A commercial jet's emergency exit was pulled open by a first-time flier as the aircraft prepared to take off so he could get some "fresh air," according to local media in China. The safety scare aboard the Xiamen Airlines flight came days after Chinese passengers reportedly threw hot water and noodles at a Thai stewardess, setting off a fresh round of debate on social media over the image and behavior of Chinese travelers. The fresh-air incident occurred on Sunday, when the Xiamen Flight MF8453 flier suddenly opened the emergency door as the plane was preparing to depart for Chengdu from Hangzhou. The 50-year-old passenger was not punished because he had never been on a plane before and didn't mean any harm, according to a Southern Metropolis Daily report. The flier had explained to flight attendants that he "just wanted to let in some fresh air," the report added. That explanation - and lack of punishment - has drawn criticism in China's court of public opinion. "We should punish him hard or we would be risking others' safety," one commenter posted on the Southern Metropolis Daily's Weibo, a Twitter-like site. Another said: "We should ban these guys." One commenter on the Weibo of China's Central Television - CCTV - said: "If this happened in the United States, he would surely be arrested." Another chimed in to add that "though Chinese are rich now, their behavior is still bad." http://www.nbcnews.com/news/china/chinese-flier-opens-xiamen-airlines-flight-emergency- door-fresh-air-n270726 Back to Top Flight Attendant Kicked Off Korean Air Flight Alleges Cover-Up SEOUL, South Korea - A flight attendant for Korean Air who was kicked off a plane after macadamia nuts in an unopened package were served to an airline executive accused Korean Air and government officials on Thursday of trying to whitewash the incident. The executive, Cho Hyun-ah, 40, a daughter of the airline's chairman, became enraged when a flight attendant in first class served her nuts in a bag instead of on a plate on Dec. 5. She forced Korean Air Flight 86, already taxiing at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York and bound for Incheon, South Korea, to return to the gate to kick the senior steward, Park Chang-jin, off the plane. Ms. Cho's outburst set off public outrage, prompting the government to investigate whether her conduct had violated aviation laws. But in an interview with the South Korean television network KBS that was broadcast on Thursday, Mr. Park said that from the moment the episode was leaked to the news media, Korean Air tried to protect Ms. Cho, then a vice president of the airline, at all costs, even coercing crew members into lying to government investigators. "They already had a script," Mr. Park told KBS. "They concocted various excuses for why she could not help but get enraged, and told us to admit to them." Korean Air did not comment on the allegations of a cover-up, pending an investigation by prosecutors. The transport ministry, which questioned Mr. Park, said it would conduct an internal audit of its investigators to see if they collaborated with Korean Air executives to hush up the scandal. Mr. Park, who as a senior flight attendant was berated by Ms. Cho over the nut service, said a higher-ranking employee suggested a statement for him to present to investigators. Then, he said, when he was being questioned by officials from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Korean Air executives were either present or within earshot to make sure that he did not deviate from the script. Government investigators even let Korean Air executives ask questions, guiding Mr. Park to answer them with a yes or no, he said. "I determined that I would never have a fair investigation," said Mr. Park, explaining why he did not respond to another summons from the investigators and instead gave his acccount to the news media. In an interview on Friday with KBS, he said that Ms. Cho had made him and a junior steward who had served the nuts apologize on their knees, and that she had also hit his hand with a plastic folder of in-flight service manuals. Last week, under snowballing public pressure, Ms. Cho's father and Korean Air's chairman, Cho Yang-ho, apologized for her "foolish" behavior and stripped her of all jobs in his family-run conglomerate. Prosecutors questioned Ms. Cho for 12 hours on Wednesday about allegations that she broke aviation laws by using verbal and physical violence against the crew and by forcing the plane to return to the gate. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/19/world/asia/steward-kicked-off-korean-air-flight- accuses-airline-and-south-korea-of-attempting-cover-up.html?_r=0 Back to Top Back to Top Cramped in Coach, but With Better Entertainment Improving In-Flight Wi-Fi and Streaming From Virgin America, JetBlue and More Virgin America is the cream of the crop when it comes to high-tech in-flight entertainment, says tech columnist Molly Wood. Travelers can have wifi and free satellite television, all from their seat. Video by Molly Wood and Rebekah Fergusson on Publish Date December 17, 2014. AIR travel, as an experience, sure leaves a lot to be desired. Smaller seats, higher baggage fees and ticket prices (despite lower fuel costs) are just a few of the myriad complaints. On the bright side, however, airlines are making more money, and after years of outdated in- flight entertainment, investments in onboard technology may entertain passengers enough to make the miles go by more quickly. Most United States carriers have, in recent months, announced updates and improvements to their domestic in-flight tech that, in some cases, even provide free entertainment to the poor souls back in coach. These new services let you use your own mobile devices, like tablets, laptops and phones, to either stream free content like TV, music or games, or to rent movies and TV without having to pay for a Wi-Fi plan. At the center of many new offerings is Gogo Air, the in-flight Internet pioneer that provides both Wi-Fi on planes and more full-fledged entertainment options. Delta Air Lines' new Delta Studio service, for example, relies on Gogo. The service, released in August, is available to all passengers on any flight over 90 minutes, letting them stream satellite TV, music and video games on a personal device without paying for a Wi-Fi plan. Photo American Airlines has some kind of seat-back entertainment in 58 percent of its wide-body jets. When you open a browser window on your laptop, tablet or phone, you'll see a menu that offers movies and TV to stream or rent. What you see is based on where you're sitting. (You'll be asked for your name and seat number when you sign in.) So-called premium movies and TV are free for first, business and upgraded economy class, but Delta said coach passengers get at least something free, and can pay $6 for additional movies and $1 for TV shows. If you want to surf the web or check email, though, you'll still have to pay for Wi-Fi. And be aware that to get the free streamed content, you must download Gogo's video player app before boarding the flight. Alaska Airlines this week announced a similar service, also powered by Gogo, that will let fliers rent movies and TV even if a separate Wi-Fi subscription isn't available on the flight. JetBlue, which has long been popular thanks to its satellite TV in flight - every plane in its fleet has a seat-back TV - is also leaning heavily on personal devices and faster Wi-Fi. The airline's Fly-Fi service uses satellite-based Internet access, instead of the more typical ground-to-air system, with speeds that can rival home broadband networks. The airline is still deploying the faster Wi-Fi throughout its fleet; it said just under half its planes offer the faster Internet options. A JetBlue spokeswoman said the rollout would be complete in spring 2015. If you're on a flight with Fly-Fi, you can get basic web access free, or upgrade to even faster Internet access for $9 an hour. Those prices may change after the entire fleet has the technology. That's expensive, but I've paid as much or more for Gogo's in-flight Wi-Fi and had it work at a crawling pace. If you really wanted to stream a movie from Netflix, the cost might be worth it. Continue reading the main story Its free content includes programs from Fox and National Geographic, e-learning videos, book excerpts and cooking shows. Personally, I'd rather watch the live TV on the seat back, but maybe a Fox series would suffice if the TV signal became choppy. Many airlines are finding that offering better in-flight Wi-Fi and a few free content options is easier and cheaper than upgrading expensive seats to include seat-back TVs. And a few free offerings go a long way, especially in coach. "Other than pouring us endless martinis, that's just about the only thing they can do to keep us happy in flight," said Jack Plunkett, chief executive of Plunkett Research, a market research firm based in Houston. Mr. Plunkett said airlines were slow to jump into in-flight technology after the industry's first major attempt - the seat-back telephone - proved a "dismal failure." JetBlue's Fly-Fi service uses satellite-based Internet access, instead of the more typical ground-to-air system. "It added a lot of weight to the airplane, drew a lot of power and required a communications system connecting the airplane to a comm system on the ground," he said. "After that failure, it was hard to talk them into trying Wi-Fi on board." But as personal devices like phones, tablets and laptops became more and more common, and third-party Wi-Fi providers offered to shoulder the cost of in-flight Internet access, airlines realized that the "bring your own device" model of in-flight entertainment could be cheap and easy. And instead of replacing entire seats to add entertainment, airlines are adding welcome niceties like power outlets and USB plugs in every row. So, using in-flight Wi-Fi to stream a movie to a plugged-in tablet becomes a better way to fly. Southwest Airlines, always bare bones in terms of its actual planes, offers Wi-Fi on about 80 percent of its flights. While the company said its smaller aircraft would not be retrofitted for Wi-Fi, any new jets that come into the fleet will have it. Southwest also includes live Dish satellite TV and Beats Music playlists without requiring passengers to pay for a Wi-Fi plan, and said it was the only airline that offered wireless Internet access during taxiing, before takeoff and after landing. In the coming years, expect in-flight Wi-Fi to continue to get faster - and hopefully cheaper. Virgin America announced this week that it had upgraded its in-flight Wi-Fi, provided by Gogo Inflight, to up to 10 megabits per second, close to a typical home broadband connection. The connections in-flight will probably be slower, because everyone is sharing the Wi-Fi, but that is still an improvement. And Gogo said that it was testing satellite-based Wi-Fi, instead of the current ground-to-air system, and that could provide a plane with a connection of 70 megabits per second. Even shared among passengers on a plane, that would be speedy Internet. A few carriers are, of course, slower to upgrade than others. United, for example, offers Wi-Fi access on only about half of its jets, although it just announced plans to bring Wi-Fi and Gogo- powered personal device streaming to some of its smaller United Express planes starting early next year. About 200 of its 700 planes offer seat-back entertainment. American Airlines offers Wi-Fi on all its big jets, but only on 12 percent of its regional planes, and it has some kind of seat-back entertainment in 58 percent of its wide-body jets, the company said. And then there's the domestic in-flight dream: Virgin America, often lauded as having the best domestic in-flight system of them all. Yes, every flight has (newly upgraded) Wi-Fi, power outlets and USB ports. But every plane also has seat-back TVs that stream live television and offer on-demand movies and TV (free to Main Cabin Select and first-class passengers). The TVs serve as touch-screen ordering systems for food and drinks, which are then delivered directly to your seat. You can use them to play games and chat with other passengers, and Virgin America just introduced a new feature that lets you send a drink to another passenger on the plane. Such seat-back amenities might not be practical to maintain forever, especially as personal devices and faster in-flight Internet access become cheaper and easier to deploy. But for now, the best of all worlds is still the best option. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/18/technology/personaltech/improving-in-flight-wi-fi-and- streaming-from-virgin-america-jetblue-and-more.html Back to Top Airlines cued up for Cuba: Former American Airlines CEO Airine companies have been ready to provide service to Cuba for years; all they are waiting for is Congress to lift the embargo, former American Airlines CEO Bob Crandall told CNBC Thursday. While President Barack Obama announced the expansion of travel into Cuba as part of his plan to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba, unrestricted travel by tourists will still take an act of Congress, Crandall explained. "When that happens ... there are a lot of companies that are cued up to provide frequent service to Cuba, and I expect there will sort of be an air bridge. There'll be a lot of service by a lot of different companies lots of time a day," he said an interview with "Squawk on the Street." It's estimated that about 500,000 Americans traveled to Cuba in 2013. The process to do so has been an arduous one. Travelers have to go through a company, a church or an arts institution to get People-to-People licenses and have to obtain government permission through the Treasury Department. However, with the new policy, that process should now become easier, with travelers obtaining a general license to travel. However, "to really free up the flow of travel, Congress has to lift the embargo that exists today," Crandall said. When that happens, he is unconcerned about the influx of American tourists to Cuba scaring off other travelers. "I don't think the fact that there are going to be more people going to Cuba is going to discourage people from around the world want to see Cuba. Cuba has very attractive assets of many kinds." He also thinks Cuba "in due course will be an active center of business in the Caribbean." As for the overall airline industry, Crandall predicted it will be "satisfactorily profitable" for many years thanks not only to low fuel prices but consolidation that has eliminated "extreme competition." Read MoreDelta sees $1.7B benefit from lower fuel costs http://www.cnbc.com/id/102281117#. 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