Flight Safety Information November 4, 2015 - No. 221 In This Issue Join Our Mailing List Flash Was Detected as Russian Jet Broke Apart, U.S. Military Officials Say Russian plane crash: New clues emerge from wreckage, victims' injuries South Sudan Plane Crash Kills At Least 41 On Board And On The Ground Cirrus Airframe Parachute system Deployment NTSB: Fuel line mechanism disconnected on Dynamic jet Flight paths: safety is at the heart of it all European Parliament adopts resolution to enhance aviation safety Bali flights grounded after ash cloud closes airport Cockpit Controversy: Industry facing major pilots shortage Unruly passenger tackled and tied to his seat by fellow travellers after trying to kick down cockpit door PROS 2015 TRAINING Stop By and Visit At NBAA - Booth N812 FAA issues Emergency AD for dual-hydraulic AS350 helicopters Pratt & Whitney starts E-Jet E2 engine flight testing Ethiopian Aviation Academy Graduates 201 Aviation Professionals FAA drone task force moves ahead Upcoming Events JOBS AVAILABLE (New Positions) Flash Was Detected as Russian Jet Broke Apart, U.S. Military Officials Say Russian crews collected the personal belongings of passengers on the Metrojet flight on Tuesday on the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt Credit Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations, via Associated Press SHARM EL SHEIKH, Egypt - American military officials said Tuesday that satellite surveillance had detected a large flash of light just as a Russian chartered jet broke apart and fell from the sky over the Sinai Peninsula on Saturday, killing all 224 people aboard. The United States military is not part of the multinational investigation into the crash, but officials said the satellite images were the first indication that the plane had exploded, because of either a bomb or the ignition of a fuel tank. But it will probably take several more days for the authorities to better understand what occurred. Vladimir Puchkov, left, Russia's emergency situations minister, with other officials on Sunday at the site of the Metrojet crash on the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.Who's Involved in the Metrojet Crash InvestigationNOV. 2, 2015 The disaster has set off waves of hand-wringing in Egypt, Russia and elsewhere about whether mechanical failure, human error or terrorism was the cause. But here in the resort area where the plane took off minutes before the crash, thousands of sun-seekers from Russia and other European countries arriving daily say they are undeterred. Most have already written off the possibility that the crash was terrorism. They shrug off the risks, exhale cigarette smoke and talk about destiny. "Russia is dangerous and not safe either," said Svetlana Golobitz, a pediatrician from St. Petersburg sucking on a cigarette just outside the terminal gate. "You can have an accident driving in a car or walking in the night; this is your fate," she said. "I like this place, so I want to spend my winter here." The Russian and Egyptian authorities have both sought to rule out an act of terrorism even as they have warned others against premature speculation about the results of their continuing investigation. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt on Tuesday dismissed claims of responsibility by a branch of the Islamic State as "propaganda" aiming to harm "the stability and security of Egypt and the image of Egypt." But in the same interview with the BBC, Mr. Sisi also said that it would "take time to clarify" the causes of the crash because the investigation was just beginning. The Russian news agency Interfax published details on Tuesday about what it said were recordings of the crew's conversations that showed all was normal four minutes before the plane disappeared from radar screens. "The crew was engaged in routine communications with air traffic controllers," the news agency said, attributing the details to an unnamed source in Cairo. "Sounds uncharacteristic of a standard flight precede the moment of the airliner's disappearance from radar screens," the agency said, quoting the source. "The recordings suggest that an emergency situation occurred on board unexpectedly, took the crew by surprise, and the pilots had no time to send out a distress signal," Interfax said. The crash took place Saturday over an area of the Sinai Peninsula where Egyptian security forces are battling local militants affiliated with the Islamic State. But the plane was flying at an altitude too high for the militants to strike with the kinds of missiles they are believed to possess. The report of the images seems to bolster the conclusion that a missile attack was unlikely. Investigating the Russian Plane Crash in Egypt Here's a look at what has happened since a Russian plane went down in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. The midair breakup of the plane scattered debris across eight square miles, according to Russian and Egyptian officials, and most of the dead were Russians. Russian officials said Tuesday that remains, including the bodies of 140, had arrived in St. Petersburg, according to Interfax. Nine of the bodies have been identified, officials said. Five countries have sent representatives to join an investigative team working in Cairo, and the team is preparing to analyze the so-called black-box recordings of the flight's data. But the investigators have not yet released any details of what they may have uncovered. A senior American law enforcement official said the flash detected by a military satellite "could have been caused by any number of things," including a bomb, an exploding fuel tank or some other cause. Some in Russia say that news of the crash has turned them off Sharm el Sheikh, a perennial favorite destination. Tatyana Utkina, 32, had planned to leave Moscow on Wednesday for a two-week vacation for her family of four, but she canceled the trip. "We don't plan to go to Egypt for a while at least," she said. She said she suspected terrorism had brought down the plane, despite the lack of evidence, noting that the Islamic State's claim of responsibility had called the crash retribution for Russia's recent airstrikes against militants in Syria. "What happened is connected to what is happening in Syria," she said. Russian travel agents said the crash had chilled the demand for air travel to almost any destination, not just to Egypt. "Yesterday there was a moment when no tours were sold at all," said Irina Tyurina, the spokeswoman for the Russian Union of Tour Operators. But when the third direct flight of the day from Moscow landed at Sharm el Sheikh around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, hundreds of new Russian tourists came pouring out of the airport, squinting in the glare of the late afternoon sun as they raced their wheeled suitcases toward five waiting tour buses. In interviews, dozens of tourists from Russia, Britain, the Netherlands and Denmark said that, while saddened by the crash, they were still delighted with their own travel plans. Kelly Thomas, 41, and Robert Flinn, 48, said they first learned of the crash on Saturday morning when they were sipping Champagne in a lounge at Gatwick Airport, outside London, waiting to take off on a British charter flight. "I thought, 'Oh my God,' " recalled Ms. Thomas, a nervous traveler in the best of circumstances. She considered that it was a Russian airline, she recalled, sitting at the bar of the mostly-full Sharm el Sheikh Hard Rock Cafe on Tuesday evening, before her return flight. "I don't mean to be derogatory of the Russians, but they are the worst when it comes to flight safety." As for the Islamic State's claim, Mr. Flinn said he expected it, regardless of the cause. "They want to look as scary as possible." By twilight, the Naama Bay promenade, an avenue of tourist shops and restaurants with the Hard Rock Cafe on one side and a Buddha Bar on the other, was just beginning to fill up as tourists filtered in from the surrounding beaches and scuba diving spots. By 8:30 p.m., the outdoor restaurants and nightclubs in the upscale Soho Square development were so thick with tourists that walking was difficult in places, and buses from the surrounding resorts were just beginning to ferry in crowds for a long night ahead. Most of the cars on the streets were taxicabs and police vehicles. Some patrol cars circled the main road with their lights silently flashing, and unmarked white Toyota station wagons filled with uniformed police officers patrolled as well. The tourists interviewed here described a feeling of security inside the city and its resorts. Natalie Galloway, 38, and her daughter, Meghan, 17, said they had been coming every year for eight years from Buckingham, near Oxford. During the upheaval after the military takeover two years ago, their hotel advised them to stay in for the night. But after that everything went back to normal. "Everywhere you go, there are roadblocks or police everywhere, and it makes you feel reassured," Natalie said. Hisham Zaazou, the minister of tourism, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday that he foresaw a possible "short-term" dip in the number of Russian visitors because of the crash, until the possibility of terrorism was fully ruled out. "That is why I am crossing my fingers that the result of the investigation will be a technical failure, which will be a positive for Egypt," he said. The Russians were the quickest to dismiss the possibility of terrorism, said a local tour operator who gave his name only as Safy, 25, mainly because they had the strongest conviction about their own government's negligence. "All the Russians say, 'This is our country's fault,' " he said. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/04/world/middleeast/egypt-sinai-province-crash.html?_r=0 Back to Top Russian plane crash: New clues emerge from wreckage, victims' injuries (CNN)New clues have emerged from the wreckage of Metrojet Flight 9268, prompting more speculation about whether there was a midair explosion and whether repair work from a previous accident may have played a role in the plane's demise. The aircraft, headed from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg, Russia, crashed in the Sinai Peninsula on Saturday, killing all 224 people on board. The plane's tail was found about 5 kilometers (3 miles) away from the rest of the plane wreckage, the Russian state broadcaster Russia 24 reported. The outlet also said the rest of the wreckage did not show any signs of burning from a fire. "To me, it says (the tail) exited the plane before the explosive event and before the fire engulfed the plane," she said. The same plane's tail struck a runway while landing in Cairo in 2001 and required repair, according to the Aviation Safety Network, which tracks aircraft incidents. At the time, the aircraft was registered to the Lebanese carrier Middle East Airlines, registration records show. Schiavo, a former inspector general for the U.S. Department of Transportation, said something could have gone wrong with the repair work after the tail strike. She said she once worked on a crash where a tail strike that had not been repaired well brought down a plane almost two decades later. "A bad repair is like a ticking time bomb, because once it's on the plane, it stays with the plane forever," she said. Airline company spokesman Andrei Averyanov said the plane had been damaged in 2001, but had most recently been thoroughly checked for cracks in 2013. Not enough time had passed for major cracks to develop to a critical size since then, he said. The A321-200 was built in 1997. The aircraft had clocked around 56,000 flight hours over the course of nearly 21,000 flights, the plane maker said. Officials have said all its inspections were in order. The possibility of an explosion Forensic experts trying to identify the 224 victims from the crash have divided the types of trauma into two categories: injuries from the fall, and injuries that align with an explosion -- such as metal pieces in bodies, the St. Petersburg news outlet Fontanka reported. But the experts said it's too early to say what actually caused the plane to crash. Russia's state-run TASS news agency reported that Russian and Egyptian experts had not found any blast- related trauma during their preliminary examination of the bodies, citing a Russian source within the investigation. Most of the bodies retrieved at the crash site are intact, a medical source in Sinai told CNN. That doesn't eliminate the possibility that an explosion occurred, said CNN safety analyst David Soucie, a former accident investigator for the Federal Aviation Administration. "A blast would not have to be very large ... to rupture the hull of that aircraft," he said. On Wednesday, the Russian Emergency Situation Ministry said the search zone in Egypt had expanded to 40 square kilometers. Previously, Egyptian authorities said the search zone spanned 20 square kilometers. The victims The disaster claimed the lives of 209 Russians, four Ukrainians, one Belarusian and three others whose citizenships were not clear. At least 25 children were on the plane. Russian media said the tragedy also created a large number of orphans because many parents left their children behind to go on vacation to Sharm el-Sheikh. So far, 33 of the 224 bodies have been identified, TASS reported Wednesday. The first body has been released for a funeral. 'It's a horror ... to lose so many children' The radar Flight 9268 was on its way from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg early Saturday when it dropped off radar about 23 minutes into the flight, Egyptian officials say. Air traffic controllers apparently didn't receive any distress calls. The website Flightradar24, which tracks aircraft around the world, said it had received data from the Russian plane suggesting sharp changes in altitude and a dramatic decrease in ground speed before the signal was lost. Satellite data A U.S. military satellite detected a midair heat flash from the Russian airliner before the plane crashed Saturday, a U.S. official told CNN. Intelligence analysis has ruled out that the Russian commercial airplane was struck by a missile, but the new information suggests that there was a catastrophic in-flight event -- including possibly a bomb, though experts are considering other explanations, according to U.S. officials. Analysts say heat flashes could be tied to a range of possibilities, including a bomb blast, a malfunctioning engine exploding or a structural problem causing a fire on the plane. Black boxes Egyptian officials have said they are finishing fieldwork first, and then will go on to investigate the data in the black boxes. Experts started retrieving data from the recorders on Monday, Egypt's Civil Aviation Ministry said. Russia's privately owned Interfax news agency quoted an unnamed source in Cairo as saying the plane's cockpit voice recorder had captured uncharacteristic sounds the moment before the flight disappeared. It cited the source as saying that an "unexpected' and "nonstandard (emergency)" occurred "instantly," which was why the pilots failed to send an emergency or alarm signal. A top Russian aviation official has said the plane broke apart in midair. Russian state media has reported that so far, investigators haven't found any traces of explosive devices in the debris. The security situation Sinai has been a battleground between ISIS-affiliated militants and Egyptian security forces in recent years. Hundreds have died in the fighting. The militants appeared to claim responsibility for bringing down the Russian passenger jet in a statement posted online Saturday, but officials in Egypt and Russia have disputed that claim, saying there's no evidence to support it. Egypt's Interior Ministry said it wasn't stepping up security in Sharm El-Sheikh or at the resort city's airport "because there is no indication (the plane crash) was a terrorist operation." But the U.S. Embassy in Cairo has sent a security message to its employees, instructing them not to travel anywhere in the Sinai Peninsula pending the outcome of the crash investigation. http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/04/africa/russian-plane-crash-egypt-sinai/ Back to Top South Sudan Plane Crash Kills At Least 41 On Board And On The Ground A Russian-built cargo plane (An-12) with passengers on board crashed on Wednesday after taking off from the airport in South Sudan's capital, killing at least 41 people on the flight and on the ground, an official and a Reuters witness said. A crew member and a child on board survived, presidential spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny told Reuters. Shortly after taking off from Juba airport the plane came down on the banks of the White Nile River, leaving a tail fin and lumps of fuselage strewn in vegetation close to the water. The plane may have had about 20 people on board, including crew and "probably" 10 to 15 passengers, Ateny said, but added: "We need to confirm how many people were on board." In addition, he said an unknown number of people were killed on the ground as the Antonov plane crashed near where some fishermen were working. "We don't know the number of people that were killed on the ground," he added. A police officer, who did not give his name because he was not authorised to speak to the media, told Reuters at the scene that at least 41 people died, but said the number could climb. The Reuters witness said he saw 41 bodies at the site. Earlier, South Sudanese media had said the cargo plane carried five Russian crew and seven passengers. South Sudan Tribune on Twitter also reported two survivors, one of them a child. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/south-sudan-plane-crash_5639ce00e4b0411d306eddcb *************** Status: Preliminary Date: Wednesday 4 November 2015 Type: Antonov 12BK Operator: Allied Services Limited Registration: EY-406 C/n / msn: 01347704 First flight: 1971 Crew: Fatalities: / Occupants: 5 Passengers: Fatalities: / Occupants: 7 Total: Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 12 Airplane damage: Destroyed Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: 0,8 km (0.5 mls) from Juba Airport (JUB) ( South Sudan) Phase: Initial climb (ICL) Nature: Cargo Departure airport: Juba Airport (JUB/HSSJ), South Sudan Destination airport: Paloich Airport (HSFA), South Sudan Narrative: An Antonov 12 cargo plane was destroyed after impacting terrain shortly after takeoff from Juba Airport, South Sudan. Initial reports stated there were five crew members and seven passengers on board with three occupants having survived the accident. Radio Miraya, a radio station owned and operated by the UN Mission in South Sudan, reported observing up to 40 bodies in the wreckage. The aircraft operated on a flight to Paloich, South Sudan and had just taken off from runway 13 at Juba Airport when it came down close to the River Nile. http://www.aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20151104-0 Back to Top Cirrus Airframe Parachute system Deployment Date: 03-NOV-2015 Time: 09:45+ Type: Cirrus SR22 Owner/operator: WG Aviation LLC Registration: N857SW C/n / msn: 0816 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Substantial Location: Fayetteville, AR - United States of America Phase: Take off Nature: Unknown Departure airport: Bentonville Muni (KVBT) Destination airport: Waco Rgnl (KACT) Narrative: The aircraft experienced a deployment of the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) over west Fayetteville, Arkansas. The airplane came to rest on a roadway shoulder sustaining substantial damage. There was 4 occupants on board, at least two people taken to the nearest hospital with minor injuries, according Police Department. The plane started having oil pressure issues immediately after take off. http://www.aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=180979 Back to Top NTSB: Fuel line mechanism disconnected on Dynamic jet The National Transportation Safety Board says a fuel line component was disconnected before a Dynamic jetliner caught fire last week. The Dynamic jet that caught on fire had been in dry storage for 29 months, until September Federal investigators have discovered a critical fuel line mechanism was disconnected on the Dynamic International Airways jetliner that caught fire Thursday at Fort Laudedale-Hollywood International Airport. In its accident update released Tuesday, the National Transportation Safety Board also said the twin- engine Boeing 767 had been in dry storage for almost two and half years until Dynamic started leasing it in September. The jet was then flown about 240 hours before it erupted into flames on Thursday, investigator Tim LeBaron said. Both those factors hint that maintenance problems likely played a role. Dynamic International Airways Flight 405 was supposed to fly to Caracas, Venezuela. As the jetliner was taxiing for takeoff, a plane behind it noticed fuel leaking from the left wing. Fire broke out shortly after, prompting passengers to flee from the aircraft on emergency chutes. "Of the 90 passengers and 11 crewmembers onboard the airplane, one was seriously injured and 21 sustained minor injuries as a result of the emergency evacuation," LeBaron wrote in the update. Other details in the NTSB update: * An initial review of the plane's onboard logbook showed no maintenance had been performed - prior to the accident - on the wing area where the "fuel line coupling assembly" was found disconnected. That assembly, located just above the engine, has been retained for further examination. * There was no evidence the left engine exploded and caused the fire; *The fire didn't penetrate into the passenger cabin, but burned the lower portion of the left wing, the left engine and the left side of the fuselage; Fuel leak suspected but not confirmed in jetliner fire * The flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder - or black boxes - are being reviewed at the NTSB's laboratory in Washington, D.C.; * Dynamic International Airways will inspect the remainder of its planes to ensure "fuel line coupling assemblies," are properly installed. * NTSB investigators have interviewed the two flight crew members and nine cabin crew members; what they said was not immediately revealed. Steve Marks, a Miami attorney who specializes in aviation accidents, said placing the aircraft in dry storage for 29 months potentially played a role in the fuel line coupling assembly becoming disconnected. "Typically planes are stored in Arizona or New Mexico, where the dry climate prevents them from having decay," he said. "But whenever an aircraft is sitting for so long, there's a risk that parts can get brittle." Marks added that after planes are taken out of storage, they should receive a thorough maintenance inspection. The NTSB has yet to say whether that was done. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-ntsb-update-dynamic-fire-20151103-story.html Back to Top Flight paths: safety is at the heart of it all It is shortly before 7pm on Monday and the usual steady stream of aircraft are heading south towards Abu Dhabi and Dubai from destinations across Europe. Emirates flight EK102 from Milan descends to about 8,000 metres as it makes its final turn over the Arabian Gulf, ready for its final approach into Dubai. Close behind, still at cruising altitude, is Etihad's EY28, bound for Abu Dhabi from Edinburgh. An Air Berlin flight from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi is next in line. For all intents and purposes, it is business as usual for the airline industry in the busy Gulf. But a glance at any one of the real-time global aircraft tracking sites tells another story. Entire swathes of the conflict-ridden Middle East are now no-fly zones for the world's commercial airlines. Instead of taking the traditional direct route to and from the Gulf, which is usually across Syrian and Iraqi airspace, most aircraft are now being funnelled over Iran. This is bad news for the economy of Iraq, says David Kaminsky-Morrow, air transport editor for Flight International magazine, but good news for Iran. All countries levy navigation charges on aircraft that pass through their airspace, and now, Iran is reaping what Iraq has lost - and such payments are exempt from international sanctions. This time last year, Iran Daily reported that the number of aircraft passing through Iranian airspace had increased by 32 per cent in the six months to October last year - a trend that has continued since. One Sunday in October last year, there were 1,015 "overflights", compared with 559 a year earlier. A rapid rise in overflights was seen in August following a series of successes in Iraq by ISIL. "After requests from airlines to use Iranian airspace because of the events in Iraq and Ukraine, we created five new air corridors," said Ebrahim Shoushtari, deputy director for operations at the Iran Airports Company. "We now have 96 corridors." With large commercial jets charged about US$2,000 an overflight, Iran could be making as much as US$2 million (Dh7.3m) a day - $1m of which is at Iraq's expense. The new route southward typically takes aircraft across the Black Sea from Romania to Turkey, crossing into Iranian airspace west of Lake Urmia. From there, they track down the west side of the country, passing close to Khorramabad in the Zagros Mountains before flying out over the Gulf near Kish island. Zoom out on the map on FlightRadar24 and the aircraft-packed route and its considerable detour are like the course of a mighty river seen from the air. Equally apparent is the near-empty airspace over Iraq and Syria, conspicuous bald patches in the tapestry of modern air travel and a stark reminder that we live in dangerous times. That was graphically underlined on Saturday with the loss of Russian Flight KGL9268, which crashed into the Sinai desert, killing all 224 on board. It remains unclear what destroyed the Airbus 321, but whatever it was, some airlines are taking no chances. Emirates, Etihad, Air France and Lufthansa were among those that reacted by rerouting flights over the Sinai or avoiding the peninsula altogether. Others were more sanguine. British Airways and easyJet announced they had no plans to alter their routes to and from Sharm El Sheikh. Shortly after the crash, a group affiliated to ISIL claimed it had downed the Airbus 321, carrying Russian and Ukrainian holidaymakers home from the Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheikh, "in response to Russian air strikes that killed hundreds of Muslims on Syrian land". On Monday, adding fuel to speculation of terrorism, Russian airline Metrojet blamed a "mechanical impact on the plane" for the loss of its aircraft. But it is thought that the militants were unlikely to possess the sort of sophisticated surface-to-air missiles required to hit an aircraft travelling at 12,000 metres. At best, ISIL might have access to Manpads, shoulder-fired Man Portable Air Defence Systems, such as the US Stinger. Although the US state department believes hundreds of these might be at large in the region, they have a maximum vertical range less than a third as high as the aircraft was flying. But the world of aviation was turned upside down in July last year when Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur crashed in eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 on board, including 80 children. Flight 17 was a wake-up call for the aviation industry, says Kaminsky-Morrow, and its spectre is governing airlines' reactions to the still unexplained loss of KGL9268. "After the events in Ukraine, the precautions that were put in place about not flying over conflict zones were extended to other regions of the world," he said. The crash of MH17 happened at the height of the conflict between the Ukraine government and pro- Russian rebels and, despite suspicions at the outset that this was no accidental air tragedy, the cause was initially unclear. But a report published last month by the Dutch Safety Board confirmed that the flight had been hit at 10,000 metres by a Russian-made warhead on a missile fired by a Russian-made Buk surface- to-air missile system. Who pulled the trigger has not been ascertained. The damning evidence of a missile strike was irrefutable and macabre - the telltale bow-tie-shaped fragments from the warhead were a unique signature of the weapon embedded in the remains of the cockpit and the bodies of the crew. The aviation industry, said the Dutch report, "should take more account of the changing world within which it operates". Conflicts involving groups other than governments were "more disorderly and less predictable than 'traditional' wars between states" and "the spread of advanced weapon systems means that the parties involved in these conflicts may possess these types of weapons and therefore are able to hit targets at greater distances and altitudes". The industry, it concluded, "should take urgent measures to identify, assess and manage the risk associated with flying over conflict zones more effectively". In fact, the aviation sector had already been jarred into action by the fate of MH17. Immediately after the tragedy, the International Civil Aviation Organisation set up an early-warning information sharing system called the Conflict Zone Information Repository, which went live in April this year. The problem, says Kaminsky-Morrow, is "that this kind of initiative is only as good as the information it receives and how willing people are to contribute information to it". Last month, the British Airline Pilots Association called for "accurate information about where it is safe to fly to be shared by nation states and operators worldwide". Pilots wanted "clear direction from the UN on how safe routes are, particularly when close to or above conflict zones". The association was "encouraged" by the setting up of the information repository, but "not all countries are contributing data and using the information". Passengers and pilots, says Stephen Landells, a flight safety specialist at the pilots' association, "want an open and uniform level of safety, not one that is decided in secret and in different ways by airlines and countries". There are 42 warnings in force on the CZIR, but these have been posted by only seven countries - France, Germany, the US, UK, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The UAE's two bulletins, issued in July, prohibit all UAE-registered operators from flying in certain areas of Iraq and Yemen. Examination of the 42 warnings reveals a startling fact - three of them show that airlines were expecting trouble over the Sinai, and had been warned not to fly below 7,900 metres in the region months ago. Warnings about the danger of flying over certain parts of the Sinai were posted on March 30, September 8 and October 5 by the US, UK and Germany respectively. The US warning, issued seven months ago and still in force, urges "extreme caution during flight operations" due to "the risk to safety from small-arms, rocket-propelled grenades, mortars, anti-aircraft fire and shoulder-fired Manpads". The most recent notice, issued by Germany on October 5, advises all German operators not to fly below 7,900 metres, due to the "risk to aviation from dedicated anti-aviation weaponry". Egypt, noted the International Civil Aviation Organisation, had objected to this last warning. In a letter to the organisation last month, Mahmoud El Zanaty, president of the Egyptian Civil Aviation Authority, said: "I have the honour to inform you that all necessary measures for safeguarding the airspace are already taken from our side." Whether or not that proves to have been the case remains to be determined by the investigation into the loss of Flight KGL9268. http://www.thenational.ae/world/egypt-unrest/flight-paths-safety-is-at-the-heart-of-it-all#full Back to Top European Parliament adopts resolution to enhance aviation safety The European Parliament has adopted a resolution aimed at improving aviation safety and efficiency through global flight tracking systems. The newly adopted resolution supports the assignment of primary radio spectrum allocation for satellite- based automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B). The GPS-based surveillance system is part of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) efforts to convert US air traffic control (ATC) system from a ground-based system to a satellite-based system. "It is imperative that we make safety a priority and it is encouraging that Parliament has made this critical issue a key objective during the WRC." ENAV CEO Roberta Neri said: "A primary spectrum allocation will ensure that the world's aviation community has access to the next-generation air traffic surveillance capability of space-based ADS-B to improve global safety and efficiency. "It is imperative that we make safety a priority and it is encouraging that Parliament has made this critical issue a key objective during the WRC." ADS-B will allow for real-time air traffic monitoring, and deliver performance-based enhancements in safety and efficiency. Moreover, it will be consistent with the International Civil Aviation Organisation's (ICAO) objectives. NAV Canada CEO John Crichton said: "The European Parliament has set the standard in supporting this action and as the Air Navigation Service Provider in Canada, we fully support this initiative from the other side of the Atlantic. "Primary spectrum allocation for space-based global flight tracking is putting safety first. It is our primary goal and main objective in maintaining our airspace." Meanwhile, European Parliament Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc has asked all EU member states to welcome this resolution in order to ensure the objective of global flight tracking. http://www.airforce-technology.com/news/newseuropean-parliament-adopts-resolution-to-enhance- aviation-safety-4710658 Back to Top Bali flights grounded after ash cloud closes airport DENPASAR: Ash spewing from a volcano forced Indonesian authorities to close the international airport on Bali on Tuesday, an official said, temporarily grounding all flights to the popular holiday island. Authorities decided to close Ngurah Rai International Airport for four hours until 11.30 pm (1530 GMT) so they could assess the risk posed by a large ash cloud drifting from Mount Rinjani, an active volcano on the nearby island of Lombok. More travel chaos as volcano closes Bali airport again Airport manager Trikora Harjo said the situation would be re-evaluated as the evening went on but unless conditions improved the airport could remain shut. "If there's any chance available (to reopen the airport) I will, but if not, I will continue to keep it closed," he told AFP, adding he did not yet know how many flights would be affected. Australian airlines Virgin Australia and Jetstar had already cancelled all flights Tuesday, deeming conditions unsafe for flying, with Virgin also scrapping its roster for Wednesday. Islamabad airport ranked 9th worst in the world Jetstar advised passengers not to travel to the airport for flights to and from Bali until further notice, while AirAsia said several flights would be "adjusted" due to the temporary closure. Ash from a different volcano stranded thousands of passengers on Bali for days during the peak holiday season in July. http://tribune.com.pk/story/984514/bali-flights-grounded-after-ash-cloud-closes-airport/ Back to Top Cockpit Controversy: Industry facing major pilots shortage LAS VEGAS (KSNV News3LV) - Boeing Co. estimates that within the next 20 years the world will need more than a half-million pilots, but the aviation industry is seeing a shortage of qualified candidates. In 2013, new federal rules went into place that required airline captains to fly hundreds more hours before being able to fly a commercially. The idea was to increase safety, but industry experts say it's hampering their ability to find pilots. The skies around McCarran International Airport illustrate the demand for flights remains strong. "The industry is growing, not just here but worldwide," said Dr. Juan Merkt of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. As that growth continues, one resource is shrinking: pilots. There aren't enough to meet demand, and that means a loss of service. 'The airlines are going to start parking airplanes because they don't have pilots to fly them, and they're going to stop service to smaller cities," Merkt said. Jeff Mulder, chairman of the American Association of Airport Executives, agrees. "There isn't enough of a flow in to the workforce pipeline," Mulder said. Merkt says he believes federal regulations have set the bar for pilots sky high. Today, they are required to fly 1,500 hours before being eligible to fly commercially. One reason for the paucity of candidates: Starting salaries are low, minimum-wage jobs at around $20,000 a year. "We don't do it for the money; you have to love what you do, and we love aviation," said Henderson resident OJ Barakat, a recent graduate of Embry-Riddle. "That's why we do it." Barakat is transitioning to be a flight instructor at the university. He has logged about 230 flight hours but needs an additional 700 to fly commercially. Flight hour requirements are lower for students of four-year aviation schools like Embry-Riddle or those with military service. "I wanted to fly as long as I can remember," Barakat said. "My mom can tell you stories about how I was a little kid and all I wanted to do was fly airplanes" He knows starting his career means he'll be living in a small apartment with roommates but as he has said, for him it's not about the money. Dr. Merkt said many of the students at the school are like Barakat - men and women who have a passion for flying, not the money ... at least to begin with. Pilots for major airlines can easily make well in six- figure salaries. Still, Merkt admitted they have to do better at attracting potential pilots because getting to the cockpit is expensive. School and training costs are very high. Merkt said the industry needs to offer whatever help it can to potential pilots. "They need to get involved with universities like Embry-Riddle and come up with solutions to alleviate part of the cost," Merkt said. Time in a flight simulator comes with a hefty price tag. For Barakat, it's about $100 an hour. As the industry struggles to find and train pilots, those who are already qualified now face mandatory retirement at age 65. Mulder says a wave of retirements is adding to the shortage in the sky. "We're still going to see the impacts for several years until we can catch up and, really, it's going to take quite a recruiting effort," Mulder said. As big airlines hire more, the pool of pilots for smaller regional airlines is sucked dry. Mulder says he feels Congress needs to rethink flight-hour mandates. "It's something that they need to go back and take a look at again because it's causing quite a bit of damage to air transportation in this country," Mulder said. Mulder said it may be years before things are corrected. He said recently the smaller airlines are doing what they can to offer better pay in the form of signing bonuses for incoming pilots. Ultimately, a pilot shortage means empty cockpits and fewer flights. "I'm afraid over the next couple years we're going to continue to see cuts until we can get more people in the pipeline to fly airplanes again," Mulder said. At McCarran, pilot shortages have not impacted service. In fact, more flights are being added. The shortages are felt more at smaller airports. http://www.news3lv.com/content/news/story/Airline-Industry-facing-major-pilots- shortage/vFL13OxpxkuWT7k2CMpWQQ.cspx Back to Top Unruly passenger tackled and tied to his seat by fellow travellers after trying to kick down cockpit door on flight over Sweden * Scary incident occurred as a Wizz Air plane flew from Romania to Norway * Unruly man tried to open two emergency exits and kicked the cockpit door * He was tackled and overpowered by male travellers, then tied to his seat * Man was arrested when the plane made an emergency landing in Malmo * Police said there were no indications the incident was terror-related A commercial flight descended into chaos when an unruly passenger suddenly charged towards the front of the plane and tried to kick down the cockpit door. The Wizz Air plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Malmo, Sweden, after the incident sparked fears of a terror attack. It left passengers frightened at a time when airlines are in a heightened state of security following the crash of a Russian Metrojet passenger plane, which left all 224 passengers and crew dead. Passengers disembark after the Wizz Air plane finally landed at Norway's Torp Sandefjord Airport Passengers disembark after the Wizz Air plane finally landed at Norway's Torp Sandefjord Airport Wizz Air flight 3215 was flying from the Romanian capital of Bucharest to Norway's Torp Sandefjord Airport, about 70 miles south of Oslo, when the mid-air drama unfolded. Sweden's Expressen newspaper said the man got out of his seat and began shouting before he ran up the aisle to the cockpit door. He kicked the door twice before he was tackled and overpowered by several male passengers, the newspaper reported. He was also accused of trying to open two emergency exits while the plane was flying at about 10,000ft. The man is a 43-year-old Romanian citizen who lives in Norway, Expressen reported. Passengers said the incident was over within five minutes and calm was restored after the man was overpowered and tied to his seat. He was taken into police custody when the Budapest-based budget airline's Airbus A320 diverted to Malmo last night. No injuries were reported. Police said the man was arrested on suspicion of violating aviation laws by endangering passengers during a flight. Police spokesman Stephan Soderholm said there were no indications that the incident was terror-related. He said a second passenger was taken into custody in Malmo for drunkenness. Police were alerted by air traffic controllers at Malmo Airport after the Wizz Air captain reported problems with two unruly passengers. Both men were not on board the A320, which has a passenger capacity of 180, when it left Malmo and arrived in Norway behind schedule. MailOnline Travel has contacted Wizz Air for comment. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3303322/Wizz-Air-passenger-tried-kick-cockpit- door-flight-Romania-Norway.html#ixzz3qWsBTG00 Back to Top Back to Top Stop By and Visit At NBAA DATE Nov. 17 - 19, 2015 LOCATION Booth N812 Las Vegas Convention Center 3150 Paradise Rd. Las Vegas, NV 89109 Back to Top FAA issues Emergency AD for dual-hydraulic AS350 helicopters The FAA is now requiring operators of dual-hydraulic AS350 helicopters to perform their yaw load compensator checks after rotor shutdown. Airbus Helicopters Photo Two months after Airbus Helicopters introduced new hydraulic test procedures for AS350 helicopters, the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has made test procedure changes mandatory for operators of dual-hydraulic AS350 models. The FAA issued an initial Emergency Airworthiness Directive (AD) on the subject on Oct. 28, 2015, and a revised version of the AD two days later. The revised AD, 2015-22-53, requires operators of dual-hydraulic AS350 helicopters to stop performing the yaw load compensator check during pre-takeoff procedures, and instead perform it after landing, following rotor shutdown. The AD also requires that the collective- mounted yaw servo hydraulic switch be in the "ON" (forward) position before takeoff. According to the FAA, the AD was prompted by two accidents and one incident involving dual-hydraulic AS350 B3 helicopters. In each event, the aircraft experienced a counterclockwise rotational yaw immediately after takeoff. The pilots in the two nonfatal events reported that the anti-torque pedals felt jammed or locked in the neutral position, which is indicative of takeoff without hydraulic assistance to the tail rotor. This can occur if a pilot drains the yaw load compensator during pre-takeoff hydraulic checks, and then neglects to restore the collective-mounted yaw servo hydraulic switch to the "ON" position. The problem has been recognized for some time. In August 2014, Airbus Helicopters issued a safety notice on the topic after receiving reports of pilots taking off with their collective-mounted yaw servo hydraulic switches in the "OFF" (aft) position. Airbus also introduced a modification (07.4622) for dual-hydraulic AS350 models, which provides pilots with a flashing caution light when the yaw servo hydraulic switch is turned "OFF". However, relatively few AS350 operators undertook the retrofit in a timely fashion; one year later, at least two-thirds of the eligible aircraft in the U.S. fleet still lacked the modification. On July 3, 2015, a Flight For Life AS350 B3e was involved in a fatal crash shortly after takeoff in Frisco, Colo. The survivors of that accident filed lawsuits against Airbus Helicopters and operator Air Methods Corp., contending that the aircraft took off without hydraulic assistance to the tail rotor. On Aug. 26, 2015, Airbus Helicopters announced new yaw load compensator functional check procedures for all AS350 models in the form of flight manual revisions. The revised procedures were immediately adopted by the European Aviation Safety Agency as an AD with an effective date of Aug. 31, 2015. The FAA's new, revised Emergency AD does not require adoption of the procedures as published by Airbus Helicopters. Instead, operators of dual-hydraulic AS350 helicopters may comply by inserting a copy of the AD into the rotorcraft flight manual, or by making specified pen-and-ink changes to procedures in the manual. The complete AD is available on the FAA website. The earlier version of the AD did not include a method of recording compliance. It also contained an inaccurate statement regarding the operation of the yaw load compensator system. A fuller explanation of how the system works can be found in previous Vertical coverage and in Airbus Helicopters Safety Information Notice No. 2776-S-29. http://www.verticalmag.com/news/article/FAAissuesEmergencyADfordualhydraulicAS350helicopters Back to Top Pratt & Whitney starts E-Jet E2 engine flight testing Pratt & Whitney has commenced flight testing on the PW1900G engine designated to power the Embraer E190-E2 and E195-E2 aircraft. The geared turbofan (GTF) engine completed its first flight affixed to Pratt's Boeing 747SP flying testbed aircraft. The flight occurred from Pratt's flight testing center in Mirabel, Quebec. "The start of engine flight testing is an important milestone for us as we bring the E-Jets second generation from concept to reality," Embraer Commercial Aviation president and CEO Paulo Cesar Silva said in a statement. The PW1900 is the fourth engine in Pratt's GTF family of engines. Pratt has already delivered GTF engines to Bombardier for the CSeries, Airbus for the A320neo and Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. for the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ). http://atwonline.com/engines/pratt-whitney-starts-e-jet-e2-engine-flight-testing Back to Top Ethiopian Aviation Academy Graduates 201 Aviation Professionals Flight Attendants Ethiopian Aviation Academy, the largest aviation academy in Africa, a full ICAO TRAINAIR Plus member and IATA authorized global training center, is pleased to announce that it has graduated 24 pilots, 96 aviation maintenance technicians, 37 cabin crew and 44 marketing professionals at a ceremony held at Ethiopian Headquarters on 03 November 2015. The graduates include nations from Rwanda. The training equipped the graduates with sufficient theoretical and practical knowledge to qualify them in their carrier as Aviation professionals. On the occasion, Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam congratulated the new graduates and welcomed them to the airline's fast growing and dedicated workforce, gave out diplomas to all the graduates, flight wings to graduating pilots and cabin crew and achievement award to graduates with outstanding academic performance. Tewolde said, "Ethiopian Aviation Academy is the bedrock of the airline's success. Self-sufficiency in training of all aviation Services expertise right from the inception of our business has been one of the major success factors of Ethiopian Airlines. That is why we have invested huge amount of time, energy and money for the expansion of our Aviation Academy to meet the demand for trained aviation expertise of the 21st century and to set the standard in high-level quality education demanded by the aviation profession. Pilots He added, "We will continue to invest in the Academy to scale up its capacity both in scope and scale not only to meet our internal demand for more than 17,000 employees envisaged in our vision 2025 but also to address the critical shortage of trained and qualified aviation professionals prevailing in the continent of Africa. Shortage of trained and skilled human power is one of the major reasons why our continent is lagging behind in all measurements of development in the civil aviation sector." Ethiopian Aviation Academy is certified by the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority, the U.S Federal Aviation Administration, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), and IATA Safety Audit (IOSA). The Academy has been providing training for pilots, maintenance technicians, cabin crew, marketing personnel and in leadership development for Ethiopian and 50 different countries from all over the world for more than six decades. For your training needs and further information, please contact the Ethiopian Aviation Academy Administration services through (251-1) 517 4333 or visit our website at www.ethipianairlines.com. Technicians About Ethiopian Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian) is the fastest growing Airline in Africa. In its close to seven decades of operations, Ethiopian has become one of the continent's leading carriers, unrivalled in efficiency and operational success. Ethiopian commands the lion share of the pan-African passenger and cargo network operating the youngest and most modern fleet to more than 91 international destinations across five continents. Ethiopian fleet includes ultra-modern and environmentally friendly aircraft such as the Boeing 787, Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 777-200LR, Boeing 777-200 Freighter, Bombardier Q-400 double cabin with an average fleet age of five years. In fact, Ethiopian is the first airline in Africa to own and operate these aircraft. Ethiopian is currently implementing a 15-year strategic plan called Vision 2025 that will see it become the leading aviation group in Africa with seven business centers: Ethiopian Domestic and Regional Airline; Ethiopian International Passenger Airline; Ethiopian Cargo; Ethiopian MRO; Ethiopian Aviation Academy; Ethiopian In-flight Catering Services; and Ethiopian Ground Service. Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline registering an average growth of 25% in the past seven years. http://www.ethiosports.com/2015/11/03/ethiopian-aviation-academy-graduates-201-aviation- professionals/ Back to Top FAA drone task force moves ahead The Federal Aviation Administration is moving quickly on its plans to register recreational unmanned aircraft. Officials announced that Earl Lawrence, director of the FAA's Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Office, will lead the government side of a drone registration task force. He'll be joined by co- chairman Dave Vos, the lead on Google X's Project Wing drone delivery program. The new group plans to meet this week to develop recommendations on a streamlined registration process and minimum requirements for registering unmanned aircraft. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has directed the task force to deliver a report on policy recommendations by Nov. 20. The FAA wants to have a registry online by Christmas. The task force's private-sector members include representatives from camera company GoPro, Walmart and Amazon, which is looking into using drones in package delivery. The FAA also tapped model aircraft hobbyists, airline associations and drone makers to serve on the panel. The Office of Management and Budget, NASA and the departments of Commerce, Defense, Homeland Security, Interior and State will provide support to the task force, according to the FAA announcement. https://fcw.com/articles/2015/11/02/faa-drone-registration-task-force.aspx Back to Top Upcoming Events: Air Cargo Safety and Security Symposium ALPA Washington, DC November 5, 2015 http://aircargoconference.alpa.org 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 New HFACS workshop Las Vegas December 15 & 16 www.hfacs.com 2016 DTI SMS/QA Symposium January 3, 4, & 5 2016 Disney World, FL 1-866-870-5490 www.dtiatlanta.com BARS Auditor Training Washington DC? Tuesday-Thursday 5-7 April http://flightsafety.org/bars/auditor-training Back to Top JOBS AVAILABLE: Interdisciplinary Engineer (Mechanical or Aerospace Engineer) NTSB https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/419032300 Human Performance Investigator NTSB https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/413256600 Curt Lewis