Flight Safety Information December 21, 2015 - No. 254 In This Issue Cracks in Air India aircraft windshield forces flight to return to Delhi Air France Flight Forced To Land In Kenya Over Bomb Scare Southwest Airlines jet hits another aircraft at Bob Hope Airport; no injuries reported American Airlines jet makes emergency landing at LAX Jet Fighter Crashes at Ind...onesian Air Show; 2 Dead Cambodia upgrades air safety PROS 2015 TRAINING Job Hunting? Drone Pilots Are Getting $125,000 Bonuses The Art of Turning Around an Airplane Coming to LAX: 13 'comfort dogs' for frazzled fliers Woman pleads guilty to wrongfully disclosing pilot's medical history to FAA Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship Upcoming Events JOBS AVAILABLE (New Positions) Cracks in Air India aircraft windshield forces flight to return to Delhi All passengers were deplaned and later flown to their destination in another aircraft, Air India said. By: PTI | New Delhi | Published:December 21, 2015 7:38 am air india, air india flights, air india international flights, air india flight to washington, air india washington route, air india direct flight to washington, washington direct flight, direct flight to washington, air india news, latest newsA Lucknow-bound Air India flight with 160 passengers onboard was forced to return to IGI airport in New Delhi after being airborne for over an hour following cracks in the aircraft's windshield. The Air India flight AI 411 took off from IGI airport for Lucknow around 7:15 am. When the plane was airborne for some time, the pilot noticed cracks had developed in the windshield and decided to return. The aircraft landed safely at 8:20 am. All passengers were deplaned and later flown to their destination in another aircraft, Air India said. The aircraft is back into operation after necessary repairs. http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/cracks-in-air-india-aircraft-windshield-forces- flight-to-return-to-delhi/#sthash.bUGPxHmj.dpuf Back to Top Air France Flight Forced To Land In Kenya Over Bomb Scare A device suspected to be a bomb was found in the aircraft's lavatory. NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - An Air France flight from Mauritius to Paris was forced to land in the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa after a device suspected to be a bomb was found in the lavatory, a Kenyan police official said Sunday. The Boeing 777 Air France flight 463 was heading to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris when the pilots requested an emergency landing at the Moi International Airport at 12:37 a.m., police spokesman Charles Owino said. "It requested an emergency landing when a device suspected to be an explosive was discovered in the lavatory," Owino said. The plane was carrying 459 passengers and 14 crew members on board and had left Mauritius at 9 p.m., Owino said All passengers were safely evacuated and the device was taken out, said Owino. Bomb experts are analyzing the suspected explosive, he said. "The object, believed to be an explosive device has successfully been retrieved from the aircraft," said Kenya Airports Authority in a post on Twitter, adding that scheduled flights to Mombasa were disrupted during the interval but that normal operations have resumed. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/air-flight-bomb-scare-kenya_56765b20e4b0b958f656fc68 Back to Top Southwest Airlines jet hits another aircraft at Bob Hope Airport; no injuries reported A Southwest Airlines plane struck another Sunday afternoon on the tarmac at Bob Hope Airport, seen here in August, according to the FAA. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) A Southwest Airlines jet struck another aircraft Sunday afternoon on the tarmac at Bob Hope Airport, delaying holiday travelers. An Oakland-bound Southwest Airlines plane was pushing back from Gate A1 when it struck another Southwest plane parked at an adjacent gate, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said. No injuries were reported in the accident, which occurred about 2:30 p.m., Gregor said. The crash disrupted travel plans for about 225 passengers, who the airline worked to place on other flights, said Southwest Airlines spokeswoman Emily Samuels. It's unclear if the crash damaged either aircraft. Both planes were taken out of service for inspections, Samuels said. The crash occurred in a part of the airport where air traffic controllers do not guide the aircraft, according to the FAA. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-southwest-planes-accident-burbank-airport-20151220- story.html Back to Top American Airlines jet makes emergency landing at LAX LOS ANGELES - An American Airlines jet made an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport today after the plane was believed to have struck a bird shortly after takeoff. Flight 641 from Washington, D.C., reported a mechanical problem but safely made it to Los Angeles and landed at 8:30 p.m., American Airlines spokeswoman Leslie Scott said. Declaring the need for an emergency landing is standard procedure in those kinds of scenarios, she said. There were 120 people on board, according to LAX spokeswoman Katherina Alvarado. After the plane de-boarded, no mechanical issues were discovered, Scott said. http://www.dailybreeze.com/general-news/20151220/american-airlines-jet-makes-emergency-landing-at- lax Back to Top Jet Fighter Crashes at Indonesian Air Show; 2 Dead An Indonesian jet fighter taking part in an aerobatic show crashed and burst into flames Sunday, killing two pilots. No one on the ground was injured. The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle, a U.S.-South Korean-made light attack aircraft, spun out of control and crashed into an air force base complex near Adi Sutjipto Airport in Yogyakarta, a tourist destination city on the main island of Java, according to a witness, Jawardi, who goes by a single name. He spoke to MetroTV. The crash occurred on the second day of an air show celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Air Force Flight School in Yogyakarta, said Air Vice Marshal Dwi Badarmanto, an air force spokesman. The pilot and co-pilot - both Indonesians - died instantly, and an investigation team has been sent to the crash site, he said. TV showed plumes of black smoke billowing from the wreckage as the plane burst into flames. The trainer aircraft is one of 16 similar models bought by the Indonesian air force last year. http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/jet-fighter-crashes-indonesian-air-show-dead-35870902 Back to Top Cambodia upgrades air safety PHNOM PENH, 21 December 2015: Cambodia has purchased new aviation software that will allow it to better manage flight operations in and out of airports. Khmer Times reported the purchase was made with a grant from the Japanese International Cooperation Agency. A government official said the satellite technology would increase confidence in the safety at Cambodian airports. inside no 2The software enables an improved guiding system and strengthens the capacity to manage air traffic via satellites that are used to guide aircraft and manage air traffic more safely. The new system will be installed at Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville airports. The software can also give traffic controllers the tools to reduce the distance of approach flight paths over Cambodian airspace, by around 10 km, according to the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation secretary, Mao Havannal. Cambodia Airports handled more than 5.7 million passengers and 64,000 flights movements in 2014, an increase of 13% and 10% respectively compared to 2013. http://www.ttrweekly.com/site/2015/12/cambodia-upgrades-air-safety/ Back to Top Back to Top Job Hunting? Drone Pilots Are Getting $125,000 Bonuses "We need these professionals to stay with us." If you're a US Air Force drone pilot, and your return to civilian life is fast approaching, the service has an offer that may be too good to pass up. Instead of going home, the Air Force will give you a bonus of $125,000, in exchange for an agreement to serve for five more years, according to Air Force Times. If this sounds familiar, it's because it is. In July, the Air Force first proposed retention bonuses of $15,000 a year for pilots making new commitments of five or nine years to the service, for a total of $75,000 or $135,000, respectively. But according to Air Force spokeswoman Rose Richeson, that was just "a projection," and the newer, higher figure is the one that will be implemented. The Air Force said in a press release Tuesday that those qualified to operate remotely piloted aircraft - known as 18X RPA pilots - are eligible for the bonus on the basis of $25,000 a year, for five years. In order to qualify, pilots must already have six years of aviation service under their belts, after the completion of undergraduate RPA training. Officers must also have attained the rank of active duty lieutenant colonel or below, and must already be receiving incentive pay for RPA aviation. Finally, the five-year bonus period cannot overlap with the completion of 25 years of active duty service. Those renewing their service have the option of being awarded 50% of the bonus at the beginning of their new commitment. The Obama administration's use of drones in its anti-terrorism efforts has been controversial. According to a Pew Research Center survey from May, U.S. drone strikes against terrorist targets in such countries as Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen had the support of 58% of those surveyed. However, this support comes despite well-publicized incidents in which drone attacks have killed innocent civilians, such as in a December 2013 strike against a convoy that was part of a wedding party in Yemen. Despite incidents such as these, the bonus suggests that drone strikes will continue to be part of the United States military's efforts. After all, the use of drones has expanded to fields outside of the military, and recent events indicate that it is likely to continue to do so. In August, Fortune reported that drones are being used in such fields as mining, wildlife research and agriculture. The e-commerce giant Amazon has also famously announced its intention to use drones to deliver your packages, and Unmanned Vehicle University in Phoenix is just one of the latest institutions of higher learning to offer drone pilot training. This suggests that whatever the negatives, drones may be here to stay, and the bonus being offered to Air Force personnel would appear to indicate that RPA pilots will be as valuable a tool to the military as traditional pilots have been in the past. "These airmen are making extremely important contributions to the fight," Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said in Tuesday's press release. "We need these professionals to stay with us and we're committed to retaining them in our force." http://fortune.com/2015/12/19/drone-pilots-bonuses/ Back to Top The Art of Turning Around an Airplane About 1,000 flights a day take off or land at Kennedy International Airport, one of the world's busiest airports. For every plane that lands, dozens of workers hustle to return it to the sky. Here is a look at how Delta Air Lines did it with one recent flight. ILLUSTRATIONS BY JASON LEE Photo NOV. 17, 2015, 4:23 A.M. Wheels Down on Runway 4R Air traffic controllers inside the lollipop-shaped Federal Aviation Administration tower watched Delta Air Lines Flight 408 from Tel Aviv begin its descent at 3:52 a.m. Thirty-one minutes later, the 777 barreled onto Runway 4R. Nine floors below the tower, inside another glass-paneled room overlooking the runways, Delta's coordinators, called gatekeepers, began organizing the ground crews. Several gatekeepers monitored video screens and coordinated with "above wing" crews (flight attendants and gate agents) and their "below wing" counterparts (maintenance workers and lavatory service workers) to make sure they were on schedule. If a plane falls behind, senior managers receive emails and text messages. Each day, performance metrics are scrutinized. 4:33 A.M. At Terminal 4, Gate B22 Three workers with illuminated wands, known as marshallers, one positioned in front of the plane and two "wingwalkers" underneath the wings, guided the 777 into its berth using the painted yellow lines. The lines map where the cabin doors should be in relation to the jetway, which connects the plane to the terminal. As soon as the plane was parked, the marshallers put down their wands and rushed to put the belt loader in place to remove baggage. Everything and everyone was off the plane 53 minutes later. 5:53 A.M. A Tow and a Tuneup A truck called a supertug, which has been described as "the unholy matrimony of a Hummer and a Batmobile," pulled the plane to a parking spot between Terminals 4 and 2. Two mechanics from Delta's TechOps team descended with tool kits and manuals. They had three hours to do their work. On the exterior, they checked the pitot tubes - twiglike devices near the nose of the aircraft that measure airspeed - the wheels, the brakes and the landing gear. They inspected the engines and checked the oil level and the pressure. They also inspected the fan blades for signs of damage. Inside, they followed up issues that the flight crew had logged. The screens and software for the in-flight entertainment systems were all in working order. They tightened one seat in business class and four in the main cabin. They also replaced items in one of the first-aid kits on board. Just after 6 a.m., a cleaning crew replaced pillows and blankets. They vacuumed and wiped down seats, tray tables, overhead bins, bulkheads and other surfaces in the cabin with disinfectant. The maintenance crew finished its work by 8 a.m. NOV. 17, 9 A.M. Mission Control As the supertug pulled the 777 into position at its new gate, B28, the wingwalkers took up their wands. The lavatory service truck hooked up a hose to remove waste and refill the tank with a fresh blue-colored chemical mixture. At Delta's hub in Atlanta, a dispatcher began assembling a flight plan, a document that tells aviation authorities what they need to know about the aircraft's identification, who and what is on board, and its intended route. He checked on weather that might delay the plane. He also made sure the plane would not exceed its maximum takeoff weight of 656,000 pounds. The payload had already been calculated based on the amount of cargo, the number of passengers, the estimated number of bags and the amount of fuel needed to reach Tokyo. Forty-three minutes later, the flight plan was finalized and ready for verification by the F.A.A. and the air traffic managers who monitor the airspace over Canada and Japan. 9:37 A.M. Stocking Up on Provisions The first of two catering trucks pulled up to the aircraft. After removing leftover food and drinks from the previous flight, workers loaded 381 small bottles of water, 126 cans of Coke, 122 cans of orange juice, 106 cans of tomato juice, 72 minibottles of Finlandia vodka, 39 cans of Suntory beer, 35 bottles of white wine, 26 bottles of sake, 20 cans of Miller Lite, 20 cans of Fresca, 500 packets of sugar, 300 packets of peanuts, 35 filter bags of Starbucks coffee and 500 plastic wings for children. The second catering truck arrived at 10:11 a.m. with 214 meals for the main cabin, 35 business-class meals and eight special meals. In all, 37 galley carts were loaded to serve Alaskan halibut in first class and beef misoyaki with steamed rice in the main cabin. 10:06 A.M. Loading Cargo, Fuel and Spare Parts Workers loaded the plane with 6,313 pounds of freight and 200 pounds of airmail for the United States Postal Service. Every day, Delta ferries several tons of letters and packages around the world, with more at this time of year. They also loaded airplane parts. Just as cars have a spare tire in the trunk, most Delta flights carry tires, brakes and other equipment to store at other airports, so workers can make a quick fix without having to pay another airline for an urgently needed part. A total of 291 bags weighing 9,090 pounds were loaded onto the plane. No animals were on board. (Soon, dogs and cats will not be allowed to fly as checked baggage.) It took an hour and 15 minutes to pump 236,000 pounds of jet fuel into the tank. 10:23 A.M. Time for Check-In English- and Japanese-speaking agents arrived at Gate B28. Among their duties is to account for every passenger and every bag that will be on board the flight. They helped passengers with their seat assignments and prepared a series of documents, including the flight plan, four wheelchair requests and customs forms for passengers and crew. Fifteen crew members boarded the aircraft, followed by 246 passengers. 11:53 A.M. All Aboard Once the passenger cabin door closed, the captain took over. He called the supertug driver, who pushed the plane back from the gate three minutes ahead of schedule. The driver removed a metal peg to disconnect the aircraft and saluted the captain to let him know the plane was ready to go. Once the control tower cleared the flight for takeoff, the plane sailed down Runway 13R at about 125 miles per hour. At 12:26 p.m., the wheels folded into the airplane's belly as it began its 6,958-mile journey. http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/12/16/nyregion/jfk-airport-new-york-101.html?_r=0 Back to Top Coming to LAX: 13 'comfort dogs' for frazzled fliers PUP program Los Angeles International Airport supports a program to use dogs to reduce stress among frazzled travelers. United Airlines has expanded a similar program. (Hugo Martin / Los Angeles Times) For those airline fliers who get so frazzled by holiday travel that they start to bark at seatmates, United Airlines is offering an all-natural way to relieve stress: dogs. Through a program called United Paws, the Chicago-based carrier is deploying more than 200 dogs to the airline's seven airport hubs Monday through Wednesday. The specially trained "comfort dogs" will be led around the terminals by handlers so that stressed fliers can pet, scratch and nuzzle the pooches. In past years, the program has operated at only one or two airports during the holidays. But United plans to expand the effort this year to Los Angeles, Cleveland, Denver, Newark, Washington, Houston and Chicago. The 13 dogs assigned to Los Angeles International Airport are coming from the nonprofit group Actors & Others for Animals. Representatives of United Paws say research shows that five minutes spent with a dog can decrease stress hormones and lower blood pressure. Throughout the rest of the year, LAX funds a similar program dubbed Pets Unstressing Passengers. Under the PUP program, dogs and their handlers roam the airport every day to spread the dogs' healing powers. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-united-airlines-dogs-20151218-story.html Back to Top Woman pleads guilty to wrongfully disclosing pilot's medical history to FAA Ebony Shonte Echols was not happy with a patient - a commercial airline pilot - who complained about the heart clinic where she worked. So she sent his health information to the Federal Aviation Administration against his wishes, federal authorities said. Echols, 35, a former employee of State of the Heart Cardiology in Grapevine, agreed last week to plead guilty in the case, court records show. A federal judge has to formally approve the plea deal before it is official. She faces up to a year in prison and a maximum fine of $50,000. She was indicted in January on one count of wrongful disclosure of individually identifiable health information and three counts of making false statements, for lying to the FBI. Echols got into an argument in February 2014 with the pilot, who was at the clinic for a physical fitness exam required by the FAA. He was not identified in federal court documents. Afterward, she told the man he was "terminated as a patient of the clinic" and that she was going to send his medical records to the FAA, court records show. The pilot told her not to. She did so "with the intent to cause malicious harm," the indictment said. Echols has a criminal history, according to Dallas County records. She received deferred adjudication in 2014 for fraud committed while working for a podiatrist in Irving. In that case, she used a patient's banking and personal information to pay her rent in 2011, court records show. Also last year, she was convicted of insurance fraud, according to records. Echols was convicted in 2003 of failing to identify a fugitive. And she had three check-by-theft cases, in 2001, 2010 and 2011, records show. http://www.dallasnews.com/news/local-news/20151218-woman-pleads-guilty-to-wrongfully-disclosing- pilots-medical-history-to-faa.ece Back to Top Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship The Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship was established by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) to shape the next generation of researchers in aviation weather, honoring the late Najeeb Elias Halaby, an eminent aviator and administrator, for his vision and more than five decades of extraordinary contributions to aviation (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/halabyfellowship.pdf). The Fellowship The recipient of a Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship will spend three months (in 2016 or early 2017) in residence with NCAR's Aviation Weather Research Program, which Mr. Halaby was instrumental in establishing in the 1980s. As the nation's leader in addressing aviation weather research, NCAR plays a unique role in meeting user needs by transferring research results to operations through its Research Application Laboratory (http://www.ral.ucar.edu/). The Fellow will conduct research broadly aimed at improving the integration of weather into decision support tools for improved weather avoidance and air traffic management. The Fellowship will provide: * a monthly stipend for three months, including temporary living expenses * round-trip travel expenses to and from Boulder, CO * travel to a conference to present results * page charges for one publication of key results Eligibility and Application The Halaby Fellowship targets graduate students (late Masters or early PhD level) enrolled in an aviation- relevant department or program of a domestic or international university. Interested candidates should have advanced research skills, far-reaching vision, and dedication to get things accomplished. Consideration for this Fellowship will be given to candidates based on the following submitted material: * Curriculum vitae * Proposal (maximum five pages) presenting the research to be conducted at NCAR, the anticipated outcome of that, and how the proposed effort ties into the candidate's ongoing graduate research project(s) * Contact information for three references (one of which should be the student's primary advisor) NCAR will accept applications for the Halaby Fellowship each year. Email Applications by February 28, 2016 to halabyfellowship@ucar.edu Back to Top Upcoming Events: 2016 DTI SMS/QA Symposium January 3, 4, & 5 2016 Disney World, FL 1-866-870-5490 www.dtiatlanta.com 6th European Business Aviation Safety Conference 2016 February 23-24, 2016 Frankfurt, Germany www.ebascon.eu 2016 Air Charter Safety Symposium | Safety: A Small Investment for a Rich Future March 8-9, 2016 | NTSB Training Center | Ashburn, VA http://www.acsf.aero/events/acsf-symposium/ CHC Safety & Quality Summit | Back to Basics: Prioritizing Safety in a Challenging Economy April 4-6, 2016 Vancouver, BC www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com BARS Auditor Training Washington, DC Tuesday-Thursday 5-7 April http://flightsafety.org/bars/auditor-training Back to Top JOBS AVAILABLE: Manager Flight Operation FedEx Express https://www.appone.com/MainInfoReq.asp?R_ID=1186411 Deputy Director of Flight Operations & Technical Services Helicopter Association International https://www.rotor.org/AboutHAI/Employment.aspx Curt Lewis