Flight Safety Information August 27, 2015 - No. 170 In This Issue Out-of-Control Takeoff Try by Allegiant Jet Spurs FAA Probe Europe Is Trying To Regulate Drones To Protect Airplanes Two drone pilots ticketed for 'Orca Protection Violations' Two passengers arrested after razor and pepper spray fight on JetBlue flight Draft Aviation Policy Likely to be Delayed (India) Changi vortex study to examine separation intervals The world's worst airlines to fly with Possible debris found from plane that took off from Orlando Executive Airport NASA crashes a third airplane for science on live TV PROS 2015 TRAINING Who Knows Where Almost Every Flight Is Right Now? Frontier Airlines to hire 200 flight attendants in Orlando More than 40 Airlines Adopt Wildlife Trophy Bans After Cecil the Lion's Death Airplane recycler warns of dismantling overcapacity WestJet receives first of 4 wide-body 767-300 aircraft Philippine Air to purchase or lease Boeing, Airbus planes Kent State Aeronautics & Dispatch Program Back To School with ERAU - Aviation Safety Seminars for Professionals GRADUATE RESEARCH REQUEST GRADUATE RESEARCH REQUEST GRADUATE RESEARCH REQUEST Upcoming Events JOBS AVAILABLE (New Positions) Out-of-Control Takeoff Try by Allegiant Jet Spurs FAA Probe U.S. air-safety investigators are looking into a mechanical failure that caused the nose of an Allegiant Airlines jet to rise off the ground prematurely before takeoff, defying the crew's attempts to push it down. Pilots abruptly halted their roll on the runway at 138 miles (222 kilometers) an hour to regain control of the Boeing Co. MD-83 in Las Vegas on Aug. 17, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Allegiant blamed a fault in the elevator, the part of the tail that helps an aircraft to climb or descend. "That is a very big deal," John Goglia, a former member of the National Transportation Safety Board who worked as an airline mechanic, said in an interview. "At very minimum, they would have had control problems. In a worst-case scenario, they would have been unable to control it. It could have been a disaster." Primary flight controls on airliners are so critical to safe operations that they must be designed to essentially never fail. Manufacturers such as Boeing must certify to the FAA that the odds of a malfunction involving the elevators and other flight controls are less than one in a billion. The loss-of-control issue last week also was reported to the NTSB, which investigates aircraft accidents. Allegiant, a unit of Allegiant Travel Co., inspected all its MD-80-type jets, which make up about 70 percent of the fleet, after the incident. "I don't know that I have ever heard of one doing that," John Cox, a former airline pilot who is now president of consultant Safety Operating Systems, said in a telephone interview. "That's how rare it is." Federal Requirements Because of the potential severity of a flight-control failure, federal regulations require that a second qualified mechanic inspect and sign off on any maintenance performed on the elevators, Goglia said. He worked on the MD-80 and its predecessor models for 30 years. The incident adds to safety issues raised at Allegiant, a Las Vegas-based carrier that focuses on flights to leisure destinations. The FAA opened an investigation last month into a plane getting so low on fuel that the pilot said he needed to make an emergency landing. Last week's episode involved Flight 436, which was bound for Peoria, Illinois, with 158 passengers and six crew members. Began Liftoff The jet began to lift off from the runway before it was moving fast enough for a normal takeoff, and the front of the plane stayed up even as a pilot adjusted the controls in a way that should have kept the nosewheel on the runway, according to an incident report filed by the airline to the FAA. The pilots then aborted the takeoff, according to the FAA. Allegiant said an inspection found that a device that moves one of the plane's two elevators had become disconnected. The plane was repaired and put back into service. All of the airline's jets from the MD-80 family were checked out "to ensure the flight control systems in those aircraft were functioning properly before returning them into service," said Kimberly Schaefer, an Allegiant spokeswoman. "All aircraft were found to be in working order." A mechanical failure of a related system at the tail of another MD-83 led an Alaska Airline Group Inc. plane to crash into the Pacific Ocean north of Los Angeles in 2000, killing all 88 people aboard. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-08-26/out-of-control-takeoff-attempt- by-allegiant-jet-spurs-faa-probe Back to Top Europe Is Trying To Regulate Drones To Protect Airplanes The popularity of civil drones has led to increasing reports of near-misses with commercial aircraft. BERLIN/FRANKFURT, Germany, Aug 26 (Reuters) -- No-drone zones, software to block flights into sensitive areas and registration rules are among proposals from European regulators and aviation experts to ensure growing numbers of drones don't case dangerous run-ins with passenger aircraft. The use of civil drones, whether for commercial purposes such as crop surveillance, monitoring of natural disasters, photography or just as a fun leisure activity, is rising. That popularity has led to increasing reports of near-misses with commercial aircraft, such as when a Lufthansa plane was approaching Warsaw airport last month. The UK's CAA issued a warning last month after seven incidents where drones had flown near planes at different British airports in less than a year. Recognizing the threat, the European Commission conceded this year that "drone accidents will happen" and has charged its aviation safety agency arm with developing common rules for operating drones in Europe. A tech pilot controls a drone Interceptor MP200 after it catches a separate DJI Phantom 2 drone with a net during a demonstration flight in La Queue-en-Brie, France, on Feb. 9, 2015. Aviation concerns focus on smaller drones, operated like model planes and flown for recreation, because their users are often not familiar with the rules of the air. "The problem is that encounters with drones usually take place during the most critical phases of a flight, such as during take-off or landing when a drone strike could have potentially devastating consequences," Philip von Schoeppenthau, Secretary General of the European Cockpit Association, said. Schoeppenthau told Reuters drones had the potential to be more dangerous to an aircraft than a bird strike. "While aircraft engines have been tested against bird strikes, there is no data yet on engine resistance, for example, against a 4 or 5 kilo drone being sucked into an engine," Schoeppenthau said. A remotely controlled DHL drone transporting medicines is pictured in Norden-Norddeich prior to take off in Nov. 18, 2014. TAKING OFF Recreational drones, relatively easy to fly thanks to their four rotors, cost as little as $25 for micro-versions and up to thousands of dollars for more advanced versions fitted with HD video cameras. Pilots' associations and others have called for drones to be fitted with geo-fencing technology, which uses GPS software to stop them straying into certain areas, along with height and distance limits. They also call for registration of drones. "We need a requirement for registration. That would allow us to identify those abusing the rules and stop them from flying," Klaus-Dieter Scheurle, head of the DFS German air traffic authority, told Reuters in an interview. Many cities have no-fly areas for drones already, but that has not stopped people from sending them up. Just this year, police have investigated drones over restricted areas in France, and, across the Atlantic, over the White House. In much of Berlin, for example, operators need a license to fly higher than 30 meters. Scheurle said the DFS awarded 125 permits for people seeking to fly drones on the city's disused Tempelhof airfield on one sunny day, but estimates around eight times as many were actually flying. The problem is not going to go away. Scheurle expects drones will proliferate as the technology gets cheaper. "It's fun to fly them," he said. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/europe-drone- regulation_55ddc16fe4b0a40aa3acd065?kvcommref=mostpopular Back to Top Two drone pilots ticketed for 'Orca Protection Violations' Two men, including one from Mercer Island, have been issued tickets by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for violating a protected species by allegedly flying their drones too close to orca whales. According to Fish and Wildlife officers, the drone piloted by Douglas Shih of Mercer Island and the drone piloted by a man from California were both within 10 yards of a pod of resident killer whales in the Haro Strait, west of San Juan Island, on Aug. 16. Washington state law requires "vessels" and "other objects" to stay at least 200 yards away, so both drone pilots received tickets. Shih's ticket was for $1,025. Since early June, five recreational boaters have been cited for orca protection violations. Shih and the man from California received the first tickets issued for drone-related violations. "We take it very seriously. These orcas are key to the local economy," Sgt Russ Mullins of Fish and Wildlife told KIRO 7 earlier this summer. "They're of intrinsic value to millions of people. We need to be very aggressive and err on the side of caution when protecting these whales." Doug Shih, who owns Aerial Photography Seattle, declined KIRO 7's invitation for an on- camera interview but said he would never want to hurt or distract the orcas. Shih said that he's very aware of the laws to keep boats away --- and that he always complies. But he believes the law is not clear when it comes to drones. NOAA marine biologist Lynne Barre said the law is clear, and should definitely include drones because the unmanned aircraft can pose a risk to the orcas' safety and potentially change their behavior. "Enforcement of our rules is very important," Barre told KIRO 7. "We need good compliance to make sure that wildlife viewing is done responsibly and without an impact to the whales. http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/two-drone-pilots-ticketed-orca-protection- violatio/nnRmM/ Back to Top Two passengers arrested after razor and pepper spray fight on JetBlue flight Two plane passengers were arrested Wednesday morning at Kennedy Airport after a razor and pepper spray fight that started when one of them tried to "climb over" the other as the jet reached the gate, the Port Authority said. Jean Ballentine, 61, who was on the JetBlue flight from Jamaica, was trying to leave her Row 21 window seat when the woman in the middle seat "pushed" her off, said Joseph Pentangelo, spokesman for the Port Authority. Ballentine then punched the other woman, Mary Cannady, 52, in the face, and when a man seated across the aisle intervened, Ballentine slashed him in the elbow with an eyebrow razor, authorities said. At that point, Cannady got a small can of pepper spray from her pocketbook and squirted the eye-and-skin irritant onto Ballentine, Pentangelo said. Eyebrow razors and pepper spray are not permitted on JetBlue flights. The fight forced the pilot to open the cabin door and order Ballentine escorted off the plane, the spokesman said. All the injuries in the attack were minor, officials said. Ballentine, of Brooklyn, was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday in Queens Criminal Court on charges of assault and criminal possession of a weapon, officials said. Cannady, of Linden, New Jersey, was issued a citation for unlawful possession of tear gas, a New York City code violation, authorities said. Six other people were treated at the airport for pepper spray exposure, officials said. Two people were treated and released from Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, a woman who had trouble breathing and the man who intervened and got a minor cut on his elbow, Pentangelo said. The fight happened about 8:45 a.m. on JetBlue Flight 960, which had 179 passengers and a crew of six, Port Authority officials said. All on board were detained in the customs baggage area and interviewed by Port Authority police, Pentangelo said. The cabin was searched by police, he said, a police detail was also in the plane as a JetBlue crew cleaned the cabin. http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/two-plane-passengers-arrested-after-fight- on-jet-blue-flight-at-jfk-1.10777624 Back to Top Draft Aviation Policy Likely to be Delayed (India) NEW DELHI: The much awaited draft aviation policy is likely to be delayed further as certain provisions including easing of international flying norm for domestic carriers, are expected to be reworked. The decision to rework some of the provisions was taken after Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the draft at a meeting yesterday, sources close to the development said. At the meeting, which was also attended by Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, among others, certain changes were suggested, sources said. "The aviation ministry has been asked to rework many of the provisions in the aviation policy draft, including the one relating to easing of 5/20 norm," they said. The existing norm allows only those Indian carriers fly abroad who have completed five years of domestic operations besides a fleet of 20 aircraft. According to sources, a group of secretaries, including from Civil Aviation and Finance ministries, is expected to go though the revised draft. Consequently, finalisation of the new draft aviation policy is now likely to take more time before being put up for public comments, sources said. The Ministry was expecting to finalise the revised draft civil aviation policy by the first week of September. Established players like Jet Airways and IndiGo are opposed to any change in the current norm, popularly known as 5/20 on the grounds that any such move would "vitiate" the existing level-playing field and only favour new entrants. The existing norm allows only those Indian carriers fly abroad who have completed five years of domestic operations besides a fleet of 20 aircraft. http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/draft-aviation-policy-likely-to-be-delayed-sources- 1211355 Back to Top Changi vortex study to examine separation intervals Aviation authorities in Asia and Europe are to conduct a joint study into wake turbulence to determine whether the distances between aircraft can be reduced while maintaining safety standards. The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) will cooperate in a study of aircraft wake turbulence at Singapore's Changi Airport. If the study finds that current separation minima can be safely reduced, runway capacity at Changi-and other airports around the world-could be increased. The vortices created by an aircraft's passage through the air vary in strength from a variety of factors, including the aircraft's size. Due to the safety hazard posed by wake turbulence, an aircraft following behind another aircraft must maintain adequate safe distance. The minimum safety separation between two aircraft, in turn, determines runway capacity. CAAS and EASA will work together to conduct wake vortex measurements of aircraft at Changi. This will involve real-time data collection via the use of laser-imaging detection and ranging technology (LIDAR), as well as a review of air traffic control working procedures to ensure safe aircraft separation. Outcomes from this study will potentially provide the scientific basis for further enhancement of aircraft separation standards. "This...will bring valuable data and information on wake turbulences in an operational environment and will further improve our understanding of this complex topic in order to guarantee the highest level of safety to passengers," EASA Executive Director Patrick Ky said. "This working arrangement with EASA adds a new dimension to our long-standing cooperation in data sharing and analysis of aircraft operations," CAAS DG Kevin Shum said. "This study is timely, as Singapore and others in the international aviation community are finding various ways to optimize runway capacity to handle more flights in a safe manner." http://atwonline.com/safety/changi-vortex-study-examine-separation-intervals Back to Top The world's worst airlines to fly with Topping the list as the world's worst airline is North Korea's Koryo Air. Skytrax has released its annual world airline star ratings, ranking airlines by the quality of their front-line product and service standards. Topping the list as the world's worst airline is North Korea's Koryo Air. It is the fourth year in a row that the airline has been named the world's worst. It was the only airline to receive a one-star rating out of a possible five. Skytrax's ratings are recognised as a global benchmark of airline standards. Locally, Air New Zealand and Australian counterpart Qantas both achieved a healthy four stars out of five. Jetstar Airways did a little worse with only three stars given for its service. According to Skytrax, a two-star rating is awarded to airlines delivering a lower quality performance, below the industry quality average across many of the rating sectors. The ranking signifies poorer or inconsistent standards. Listed in alphabetical order, here are 23 airlines that received two stars or fewer from Skytrax THE WORLD'S WORST AIRLINES: Air Italy, Italy. Skytrax rating: two stars. Air Koryo, North Korea. Skytrax rating: one star Bahamasair, Bahamas. Skytrax rating: two stars. Biman Bangladesh, Bangladesh. Skytrax rating: two stars. Bulgaria Air, Bulgaria. Skytrax rating: two stars. China United Airlines, China. Skytrax rating: two stars. Cubana Airlines, Cuba. Skytrax rating: two stars. Iran Air, Iran. Skytrax rating: two stars. Lion Air, Indonesia. Skytrax rating: two stars. Mahan Air, Iran. Skytrax rating: two stars. Nepal Airlines, Nepal. Skytrax rating: two stars. Onur Air, Turkey. Skytrax rating: two stars. Pegasus Airlines, Turkey. Skytrax rating: two stars. Rossiya Airlines, Russia. Skytrax rating: two stars. Ryanair, Ireland. Skytrax rating: two stars. SmartWings, Czech Republic. Skytrax rating: two stars. Spirit Airlines, USA. Skytrax rating: two stars. Sudan Airways, Sudan. Skytrax rating: two stars. Syrianair, Syria. Skytrax rating: two stars. Tajik Air, Tajikistan. Skytrax rating: two stars. Turkmenistan Airlines, Turkmenistan. Skytrax rating: two stars. Ukraine Int'l Airlines, Ukraine. Skytrax rating: two stars. Yemenia, Yemen. Skytrax rating: two stars. http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/71503874/the-worlds-worst-airlines-to-fly-with Back to Top Possible debris found from plane that took off from Orlando Executive Airport Emergency personnel found some debris in the Indian River but have not confirmed whether it is from the missing plane. A Brevard County sheriff's dive team was en route Wednesday night. The search area included the Indian River and Banana River. The pilot, who has not been identified, was the only one aboard the twin-engine Cessna. The Brevard County sheriff, Fire Rescue, U.S. Coast Guard and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission participated in the search, officials said. According to the Federal Aviation Administration records, the plane is owned by Gibbs Rentals Inc. based in Wilmington, Del. Flightaware.com reports the plane took off around 3:55 p.m. and was supposed to land at Space Coast Regional Airport around 4:20 p.m. Orlando Executive Airport is operated by the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority and is off East Colonial Drive near Maguire Boulevard. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-missing-plane-brevard- titusville-20150826-story.html Back to Top NASA crashes a third airplane for science on live TV If you've ever wanted to see a "severe but survivable plane accident" (without worrying about actual lives at stake), tune into NASA TV today between 1 and 2pm ET. The site will be broadcasting live coverage of a simulated crash conducted by the agency's Search and Rescue Mission Office. The crash test, which involves dropping a 1974 Cessna 172 tail-down from 100 feet onto soil, is intended to test emergency locator transmitters (ELTs) used by search and rescue teams. The ELTs installed in commercial planes and general aviation need to work even in the extreme conditions of an accident, which can include excessive vibrations, fire and impact. ELTs that survive a crash can send signals to orbiting satellites, which relay the data to search and rescue teams on the ground. The Cessna 172 being dropped in today's test is fitted with five ELTs, two crash test dummies (mmm mmm mmm), cameras and sensors to collect data which will be used to improve the ELT system. This will be the third Cessna that NASA has crashed; the first was dropped from 80 feet at nose level on concrete, and the second was dropped at 100 feet at nose level on soil. Visit NASA TV or this Ustream link to watch live. http://www.engadget.com/2015/08/26/nasa-crashes-a-third-airplane-for-science-on- live-tv/ Back to Top Back to Top Who Knows Where Almost Every Flight Is Right Now? Sweden's Flightradar24 has thousands of receivers world-wide tracking planes Flightradar24's chief executive Fredrik Lindahl, left, with Mikael Robertsson, a co-founder of the global plane tracking service, at the company's Stockholm headquarters. It's 11 o'clock. Does your airline know where your flight is? Maybe not, but a couple of aviation geeks who crowdsourced a global tracking network do. The disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in March 2014 left the traveling public dismayed that airlines don't constantly track airplanes. In that vacuum, Flightradar24, based here, has become the go-to source of information on tracking planes. The operation relies on volunteers world-wide with 7,500 receivers installed on roofs, towers, islands and ships. Flightradar24's website is used by airlines, airports, Boeing and Airbus operations centers and news agencies. Airport workers use it to check on arriving flights. Car services use it to keep tabs on arriving customers. Want to follow your spouse's arrival time on a flight from Dubai, or figure out what just flew over your house? Flightradar24 can track it in real-time. A Flightradar24 receiver surrounded by model airplanes. The flight-tracking firm has sent 7,500 of the small black boxes to volunteers around the world. "Flightradar24 is to aviation kind of like Facebook is to social media," said Mark Young, a medical evacuation pilot in Montrose, Colo., who volunteers in Civil Air Patrol search- and-rescue missions. He's put up Flightradar24 receivers in areas of Colorado, Arizona and Utah where the Federal Aviation Administration doesn't have low-altitude radar coverage. In exchange he gets data from Flightradar24 that helps locate missing airplanes. "We're using it to save lives," he says. Flightradar24 showed how airlines were routinely flying over conflict at the Ukraine- Russia border when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down with 298 people aboard on July 17, 2014. And it collected data that first pointed investigators to conclude that a Germanwings pilot intentionally flew an Airbus A320 into the French Alps, killing all 150 people onboard on March 24. Most planes manufactured in the last 10 years and many others retrofitted with new equipment transmit their location and a lot of other data through technology called ADS- B: Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast. It is a crucial part of next-generation air-traffic control and will someday replace radar, which can be slightly inaccurate and slow, by plotting airplanes via the position they transmit. It is already being used by air- traffic controllers in some countries, including parts of the U.S. But widespread use is still many years and billions of dollars away. Flightradar24 founders Mikael Robertsson, 39, and Olov Lindberg, 38, friends from an early 1990s computer-programming society, heard about ADS-B and realized they could buy a couple of small receivers, put antennas on the roofs of their houses-one south of Stockholm and one north of the city-and track planes flying over Stockholm. They added the airplane-tracking feed to their main business: an airline-ticket price-comparison search site, similar to Kayak, that they started in 2006. The flight tracking brought visitors to their site. Soon fans were asking if they could install receivers in their homes and add data to the site, first in Gothenburg, Sweden, then in Norway, then Poland. An antenna goes on the roof of a house and is wired to the receiver inside, which connects to the Internet and feeds data to the website. A typical Flightradar24 view of air traffic across the globe. Airplanes that are yellow are tracked real-time through the firm's network of receivers; airplanes that are orange are depicted with data from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration with a five-minute delay. "Suddenly we had data from 10 receivers and we started to draw planes on Google Maps," says Mr. Robertsson. "But we had no idea how to make money with it." The duo bought 10 more receivers, which cost a few hundred dollars each, and installed them in far-flung areas such as Greenland to track planes across the north Atlantic and the Maldives in the Indian Ocean. Amateur radio buffs and plane-spotter hobbyists contacted the company about installing more receivers. A volunteer wrote software for them that would extract all kinds of data from the ADS-B signal. In addition to a flight's call sign, position, altitude, airspeed and heading, ADS-B also broadcasts a plane's origin and destination. If requested by air-traffic controllers, ADS-B will even transmit data such as settings of cockpit instruments and how much fuel is left. Air-traffic controllers directing planes toward London's hyper-busy Heathrow Airport already routinely use ADS-B to double check pilots. The data displayed on a controller's screen shows the altitude selected in the autopilot, so if a flight is told to descend to 5,000 feet, the controller can make sure the pilot didn't mistakenly dial in 4,000 feet. In the U.S., the FAA issued a $1.8 billion ADS-B contract to Exelis Inc., a unit of communications-technology company Harris Corp. Exelis has installed 634 ground stations and receivers on oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. Air-traffic controllers are already using ADS-B over the Gulf, where there is no radar coverage. ADS-B also has been used at select airports to space airplanes precisely behind one another: Jets with the technology can talk to each other and adjust speed to maintain safe separation. The FAA has required all planes, including private propeller planes, to be equipped with ADS-B transmitters by 2020. Once that happens, radar will eventually be phased out. Flightradar24 doesn't aspire to be a fail-safe system used to direct airplanes like Exelis. To be used for air-traffic control operations, systems have to be secure, redundant and subjected to rigorous testing. But Flightradar24, and other, smaller ADS-B trackers like FlightAware and Planefinder, have already proven to have broad coverage. In 2010, a volcanic ash cloud shut down travel in Europe and Flightradar24 became the source for news agencies and government leaders to assess the impact. On April 16, 2010, four million visitors hit the site and crashed servers. "That was the point we realized we could make something more out of this," Mr. Robertsson says. They started to invest in receivers and software and developed an app for smartphones that sells for $3.99. With 1.5 million registered users, the income has bought equipment to expand coverage, which back in 2010 was still mostly Europe. A Flightradar24 receiver, about the size of a smartphone, includes a memory card that saves five hours of data broadcast by airplanes overhead. Data from a receiver in the French Alps first tipped investigators that a Germanwings pilot intentionally crashed an Airbus A320. By the summer of 2012, Messrs. Robertsson and Lindberg had 400 receivers up and running. They split their company in two and sold the airline-ticket-search site in January 2014, using the money to fund manufacturing of their own receivers. They also hired Fredrik Lindahl, 38, a longtime acquaintance with a background in online marketing, as chief executive of Flightradar24. Soon they were sending out 50 receivers a week. They screened each volunteer for location, preferring spots above obstructions and making sure they had multiple receivers in key areas in case some go offline. Each receiver has a range of about 200 nautical miles and costs $500 to $600 including shipping. Chris Servheen, a wildlife biologist who lives on a hill above Missoula, Mont., volunteered to host a receiver because he and his teenage sons were "interested in being part of a network and contributing to information," he says. Now Mr. Servheen says they can identify planes flying overhead-Seattle traffic, cargo flights from Asia and European flights into and out of San Francisco and Los Angeles. "It's like bird watching," he says. Lance Ginner, who pioneered satellite use for amateur radio in the 1960s, added Flightradar24 receivers to mountaintop radio antenna sites he maintains in California. "It's just incredible in this day and age that you don't know where an airplane is all the time," says Mr. Ginner, who lives near San Francisco. "The capability is there in the plane. It's not rocket science." When Germanwings Flight 9525 crashed, French investigators immediately called Flightradar24. The company's receivers have a memory card that stores five hours of data. Flightradar24 was able to download the memory card from a receiver 50 miles from the crash site. It took 48 hours to analyze. "We found we had the autopilot data saved. The pilot changed from cruising altitude down to 100 feet," indicating he intentionally flew the jet into the Alps, said Mr. Robertsson. Later when the plane's black box data recorder was found, the Flightradar24 conclusion was confirmed. Several systems are competing to become the global standard for official flight tracking, including Aireon LLC-an effort led by satellite firm Iridium, Canada's air-traffic control provider NAV Canada and others. The FAA and Exelis also are part of Aireon, which says it expects to be in service in 2018. Airlines and air-traffic-control agencies say receivers mounted on satellites are necessary to continuously track planes over large bodies of water. In addition to tracking, constant surveillance can save time and fuel by giving planes more direct routing and quicker altitude changes. Flightradar24 thinks it can cobble together ocean coverage with receivers on islands, ships, buoys and maybe even balloons to improve its flight-tracking services for consumers. There are already Flightradar24 receivers on islands between Alaska and Russia. There are also receivers on islands north of Brazil, on Madeira and the Azores islands in the Atlantic and Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, as well as on a boat near Halifax, Nova Scotia. "Our main goal is to have global coverage," Mr. Robertsson says. Corrections & Amplifications In an earlier version of this article, a photo of a conference room at Flightradar24's Stockholm headquarters showed an image of an airplane seen through a window. That airplane was determined to have been digitally inserted into the image. http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-men-who-know-where-every-flight-is-1440610114 Back to Top Frontier Airlines to hire 200 flight attendants in Orlando Frontier Airlines will conduct interview Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., at Orlando Airport Marriott, Lakeside. Frontier Airlines intends to hire 200 flight attendants based in Orlando and will host a "meet and greet" with prospective employees Friday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Orlando Airport Marriott/Lakeside, the low-cost carrier announced Wednesday. A Frontier release says prospective candidates should apply online first here before attending the event at the Marriott, 7499 Augusta National Dr., Orlando, FL 32822. Applicants must be 21 or older and possess a valid passport. Frontier spokesman Rich Oliver said the airline prefers candidates with a customer- service and sales background. Starting pay is $19.52 an hour. The airline guarantees 75 hours a month, Oliver said, with the opportunity to pick up more flights. The Denver-based airline, the release said, expects to set up its Orlando crew base this fall and will have training classes starting each month. Frontier routes from Orlando include ones to Harrisburg, Pa., Cleveland, Washington, D.C., Denver, Trenton, N.J., Los Angeles and Indianapolis. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-frontier-hiring-attendants-20150826- story.html Back to Top More than 40 Airlines Adopt Wildlife Trophy Bans After Cecil the Lion's Death Since the death of Cecil the lion in early July, 42 airlines have announced or reaffirmed bans on wildlife trophy shipments on their carriers. American Airlines, Delta, Hawaiian Airlines, Jet Blue, United and Virgin are just a few of the carriers that have banned shipments of lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros and Cape buffalo trophies. Shipping giants UPS and FedEx and South African Airways have yet to do so. Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, "is calling upon them to get in line with emerging industry standards for animal welfare and conservation and to stop shipping trophies from these rare animals gunned down in their native habitats." Pacelle said: "UPS and other shipping carriers and airlines have the opportunity to help us fight this enterprise of globe-trotting trophy hunting of the rarest, most remarkable animals in the world. We urge these entities to follow in the footsteps of Virgin, Delta, United and other airlines and freight carriers." In addition to the airline announcements, several lawmakers have introduced bills to restrict wildlife trophy imports. U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-NJ, has introduced a bill to ban all imports of trophies and parts from African lions and other at-risk species. Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-TX, and Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-TX, plan to sponsor a bill to amend the Endangered Species Act to ban "all acts of senseless and perilous trophy killings." Lawmakers in New York and New Jersey have introduced bills to restrict intrastate sales and transportation of animal trophies. http://www.humanesociety.org/news/news_briefs/2015/08/airlines-trophy-bans- 082615.html?referrer=https://www.google.com/ Back to Top Airplane recycler warns of dismantling overcapacity The Netherlands: Dutch airplane dismantling and recycling company Aircraft End-of-Life Solutions (AELS) has criticised the development of a major aircraft dismantling facility at Twente Airport near Enschede in the east of the Netherlands. 'Worldwide, over the past few years, six or seven new aircraft dismantlers have come to the market; that's really more than enough,' AELS' managing director Derk-Jan van Heerden has lamented to the local media. 'There is absolutely no need for extra capacity.' Newly-formed Aeronextlife is expected to open its doors in early 2016 and is investing 'several millions of Euros' in the project. Meanwhile, the enterprise has rented two hangars to facilitate dismantling operations. Aeronextlife has chosen Twente Airport because its landing strip is long enough even for Boeing 747-sized aircraft to land. According to the company's spokesman Wilco van Hoorn, some 3500 airplanes will reach their end-of-life stage and be dismantled worldwide over the coming years. Aeronextlife will focus primarily on dismantling Boeing 737-type aircraft 'because there are so many of them'. http://www.recyclinginternational.com/recycling- news/8988/business/netherlands/airplane-recycler-warns-dismantling-overcapacity Back to Top WestJet receives first of 4 wide-body 767-300 aircraft A host waits to direct passengers at a Westjet Airlines check-in counter at Calgary Airport. (Larry MacDougal / THE CANADIAN PRESS) CALGARY - WestJet (TSX:WJA) has taken delivery of the first of four Boeing 767-300 extended range aircraft it has ordered to begin flights to Europe and elsewhere starting next month. The four aircraft will arrive separately over the next eight months. The first one which arrived today will fly between Toronto and Calgary over the next several months. Two more 767s will fly from Alberta to Hawaii and between Toronto and Montego Bay, Jamaica beginning in December. The fourth and final aircraft, which features 262 seats and a flying range of about 11 hours, will arrive next spring to launch WestJet's new service to London, England in May 2016. WestJet reported record earnings in its second quarter in late July, thanks to falling fuel costs and a rising number of passengers. WestJet earned a second-quarter profit of $61.6 million, up from $51.8 million in the same period last year while revenue grew more than $12 million to $942 million. http://www.ctvnews.ca/business/westjet-receives-first-of-4-wide-body-767-300-aircraft- 1.2535277 Back to Top Philippine Air to purchase or lease Boeing, Airbus planes MANILA, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Flag carrier Philippine Airlines Inc said on Thursday it was considering whether to purchase or lease eight Boeing 787 or Airbus A350 XWB planes to allow it to fly non-stop to more destinations in the United States and Europe from Manila. The airline, owned by PAL Holdings Inc of business tycoon Lucio Tan, was also considering buying or leasing nine Q300 or Q400 Bombardier turboprops to replace ageing similar models in its fleet, said its president Jaime Bautista. "The Dreamliner and XWB will be contributing to savings in fuel, savings in maintenance and will allow us to improve our product because we can fly non-stop to more destinations," Bautista told reporters, adding delivery could be in 2017-2018. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/philippine-air-purchase-lease-boeing-045510373.html Back to Top Kent State Aeronautics & Dispatch Program Kent State Dispatch Program 1) It's available as an academic minor on all 5 of our degrees; Flight, Management, ATC, Systems Engineering, and Aeronautical Studies 2) Only 4-year institution in Ohio with a Part 65 Dispatch program 3) Graduated two classes now with a total of 21 graduates who have completed the practical exam 4) Several students have been hired by local Part 135 operators 5) The dispatch specific classes can be taken over 2-semesters or together during an 8-week summer session. www.kent.edu/caest Back to Top CERTIFICATE OF MANAGEMENT IN AVIATION SAFETY Professional education seminars for aviation practitioners Embry-Riddle will host a variety of aviation safety focused executive education courses at its Daytona Beach Campus; all courses are offered in a face-to-face traditional classroom setting taught by subject matter experts from the aviation industry. Who Should Attend: These courses are tailored for industry professionals involved in the operations, management, and supervision of aviation organizations. What You Will Learn:The certificate is designed for participants interested in obtaining a strong safety foundation; the objective is to produce aviation industry professionals who are skilled in providing expertise in safety management and technical guidance on FAA, OSHA, DOT and EPA Compliance Issues. The certificate requires completion of three 5-day courses in Occupational Safety and Health & Aviation Ground Safety, Aviation Safety Program Management & Aircraft Accident Investigation and Management (Basic or Advanced). REGISTER TODAY ONLINE ERAU FALL 2015 CERTIFICATE OF MANAGEMENT IN AVIATION SAFETY SERIES: OCT. 19-23, 2015: OSHA & Aviation Ground Safety Oct. 26-30, 2015: Aviation Safety Program Management Nov. 2-6, 2015: Aircraft Accident Investigation LOCATION: DAYTONA BEACH CAMPUS, FLORIDA CONTACT INFORMATION: Ms. Sarah Ochs, Director of Professional Programs Email: case@erau.edu Phone: (386) 226-6928 www.erau.edu/cmas Back to Top GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Volunteers needed to take a survey for research: Provide feedback on failure to follow procedure Dear aviation maintenance personnel, If you have experiences to share about the causes of failure to follow procedures on Part 121 aircraft in the maintenance world, we would like to hear from you! Your experiences uniquely describe the daily events in the aviation maintenance hangar and can provide critical information that may identify, mitigate, or even prevent failures to follow procedures in the future. In this survey, we will be asking supervisors, AMTs, other maintenance professionals with Part 121 aircraft experience to answer multiple choice format questions and share your experiences in paragraph format. This is a rare opportunity to shape what is currently known about failures to follow procedure and positively impact aviation mechanics within the industry. We appreciate your time and thank you for your participation in advance. We encourage you to share your experiences. Click the following link or type the address into the address bar of your Internet browser to complete the survey: www.tinyurl.com/FFP-AMT ********** More Information Who is conducting this research? Alex Chaparro, PhD (Alex.Chaparro@wichita.edu), and Brady Patzer (bspatzer@wichita.edu) of Wichita State University (WSU). WSU is an FAA Center for Excellence in the area of Composites and Advanced Materials. The project is sponsored by the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, in Oklahoma City, OK. What are we studying? This study is examining the causes of failures to follow procedure in aircraft maintenance. Why participate? Participating in this study provides an opportunity to impact actionable methods for handling failures to follow procedure. This study could improve the efficiency and safety of aviation maintenance work. Who is eligible? We need input from AMTs and others who have worked on Part 121 aircraft. Of particular interest are those have either failed to follow procedure in the past, or have seen other personnel fail to follow procedure for any reason. Your responses will be held confidential. No individual responses will be reported. How do I participate? Click the following link or type the address into the address bar of your Internet browser to complete the survey: www.tinyurl.com/FFP-AMT Back to Top GRADUATE RESEARCH SURVEY Title: Research Study on Aviation Professionalism needs you support. Hello, you are receiving this message as a courtesy to Mr. Hussain Alhallaf, a Ph.D. candidate at Florida Institute of Technology's doctoral program in Aviation Sciences. Mr. Alhallaf is examining aviation professionalism and is seeking assistance from industry members through completion of an online survey, which would take 10-15 minutes. Mr. Alhallaf's research is the first to empirically study perspectives on professionalism and personal development in aviation. This study is dedicated to Colgan Air flight 3407 (2009), many other aviation catastrophic events, and the aviation industry as a whole. In addition to taking the survey we also are seeking your generosity in distributing the survey's link. The study is targeting participants who work/study in the aviation profession. To participate, you may access the online survey via the following link: http://questionpro.com/t/ALRnkZSa9Y By supporting academic research and donating time and input to the institutions that train the next generation of aviation professionals, you are active in ensuring the future safety of the flying public. Get involved with us. If you have any questions or are unable to distribute the email, please do not hesitate to contact me via e-mail at halhallaf2014@my.fit.edu or by Cell phone at (386) 847-7671. Thank you for your cooperation. Back to Top GRADUATE RESEARCH REQUEST Aircraft Maintenance Technician Decision-Making Purpose of Project My name is Robert Norcross. I am a doctoral student at Northcentral University in Arizona. I am conducting a research study about aircraft maintenance technician decision-making processes when aircraft repair information is not in the aircraft maintenance repair manuals. Focus group sessions will be held to gain your valuable experience, views, and opinions on nine questions pertaining to the research topic. Your views on the questions are important to me and I invite you to participate. The focus group sessions should last between 30 and 60 minutes and held at a date and time convenient for you. The focus group sessions will use www.gotomeeting.com and a conference call phone number. You are eligible to participate in this research if you: 1. 1. Are older than 18 years of age. 2. 2. Hold a Federal Aviation Administration issued Airframe and Power Plant certificate. 3. 3. Issued the Airframe and Power Plant certificate on or before 1 January 2010. 4. 4. A resident of the United States. Risks: There are minimal risks in this study. Some possible risks include: discomfort sharing views about the proposed research questions, other participants knowing your identity. To decrease the impact of these risks: you can refuse to answer any question, stop participating at any time, or request to answer the questions with a phone call to the researcher. Benefits: If you decide to participate, there is no direct benefits/compensation to you. The potential benefits to others are improved efficiency and less time and money spent reworking aircraft discrepancies. If you are interested in participating please contact me, Robert Norcross at R.Norcross4749@email.ncu.edu or 757-281-9289. Back to Top Upcoming Events: Fundamentals of IS-BAO September 15, 2015 St. Louis, Missouri USA https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1660854 IS-BAO Auditing September 16, 2015 St. Louis, Missouri USA https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1660878 Fundamentals of IS-BAO August 30, 2015 Casablanca, Morocco https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1725994 IS-BAO Auditing August 31, 2015 Casablanca, Morocco https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1725997 Aircraft Fire Hazards, Protection & Investigation Course 9-11 Sept. 2015 Hotel Ibis Nanterre La Defense (near Paris) France http://blazetech.com/resources/pro_services/FireCourse-France_2015.pdf AViCON - Aviation Insurance Conference September 10th and 11th, 2015 Stevensville, MD 21666 http://www.rtiforensics.com/news-events/avicon Regulatory Affairs Training Course September 15 & 16 Fort Worth, TX http://jdasolutions.aero/services/regulatory-affairs.php Suspected Unapproved Parts (SUPS) Training Course September 15 & 16 Fort Worth, TX http://jdasolutions.aero/ Safeskies 2015 Aviation Safety Conference 22 to 24 September 2015 Realm Hotel, Canberra www.SafeskiesAustralia.org BARS Auditor Training October 6-8, 2015 Dubai, United Arab Emirates http://flightsafety.org/bars/auditor-training OSHA & Aviation Ground Safety Training Course (ERAU) Oct. 19-23, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/cmas Aviation Safety Program Management Training Course (ERAU) Oct. 26-30, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/cmas Aircraft Accident Investigation Training Course (ERAU) Nov. 2-6, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/cmas Aviation Safety Management Systems (SMS) Seminar (ERAU) Nov. 17-19, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/sms Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Seminar (ERAU) Dec. 8-10, 2015 Daytona Beach, FL www.erau.edu/uas 'DTI QA & SMS Workshops are Back in Town!' (Toronto, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Melbourne FL, and YOUR town just contact us) www.dtitraining.com Back to Top JOBS AVAILABLE: Staff Engineer ALPA https://jobs-alpa.icims.com/jobs/1193/staff-engineer/job Assistant Airline Safety Manager - Investigation (AASM-I) Cathay Pacific https://cathaypacific.tms.hrdepartment.com/jobs/1580/Assistant-Airline-Safety- Manager-Investigation-AASM-IHong-Kong-Hong-Kong Operations Integrity Risk Specialist Air New Zealand https://careers.airnz.co.nz/jobdetails?jobmc=111020RE Curt Lewis