Flight Safety Information December 20, 2016 - No. 252 In This Issue ERROR SENDS JET FROM LAX INTO FLIGHT PATH OF OTHER PLANE Investigators admit MH370 could be north of search area EgyptAir Crash: Victims' remains to be released Pillsbury: Global, Top-Ranked, Non-Stop Service Maiden flight for Gulfstream G600 business jet 2 Alaska Airlines jets grounded after lightning strikes The FAA has issued nearly 23,000 drone pilot licenses in just three months China commissions first 7tonne civil helicopter RESEARCH STUDY SURVEY Najeeb E. Halaby Graduate Student Fellowship Graduate Research Survey ERROR SENDS JET FROM LAX INTO FLIGHT PATH OF OTHER PLANE An air traffic controller error sent an EVA jet from LAX into the flight path of another plane and flying low over the mountains above the San Gabriel Valley, Eyewitness News has learned. (KABC) ALTADENA, Calif. (KABC) -- An air traffic controller error sent a jet from LAX into the flight path of another plane and flying low over the mountains above the San Gabriel Valley, Eyewitness News has exclusively learned. As a big rainstorm pounded Southern California early Friday, an EVA Air Boeing 777 that left LAX around 1:20 a.m. heading to Taipei was given an incorrect instruction by a controller based in San Diego to turn left instead of right. That sent the airliner toward the mountains above Altadena, as well as toward the flight path of an Air Canada plane that had just taken off. Audio traffic indicates the same controller realizing the problem and telling the airliner to "Stop your climb" and several times to head southbound. "EVA 015 Heavy, what are you doing? Turn southbound now, southbound now. Stop your climb," the frustrated controller says after the plane apparently does not heed her initial instruction. Several times the controller tells the pilot to head south. More than a minute later, she is still trying to get him to change direction. The EVA crew eventually pulled up and got onto the right flight path. The ordeal played out in the skies above the San Gabriel Valley in the rainstorm while countless people slept below. But some residents say they were startled late at night by the ominous sound of a large jet that seemed to be flying too close to the ground. They said they don't get low-flying planes in their area because of the nearby mountains. "It sounds like it's getting lower and lower and really loud, really big," said Altadena resident Kate Sullivan. "Like a really big fricking jet is going right over the house really slowly." Her main concern is Mt. Wilson nearby, which rises 5,700 feet above the ground. "We never have jets coming in, in this neighborhood, because we have Mt. Wilson right here. The mountains are right here!" The FAA has launched an investigation. Federal regulations require planes to be at least three miles away from another object laterally or 2,000 feet above mountains. FAA officials said the EVA never lost the required distance to the other jetliner to be in danger of a plane-to-plane collision, but the agency is investigating whether it did come too close to the mountains. http://abc7.com/news/controller-error-sends-jet-from-lax-into-flight-path-of-other- plane/1664275/ Back to Top Investigators admit MH370 could be north of search area SYDNEY (AP) - For two years, a handful of ships have diligently combed a remote patch of the Indian Ocean west of Australia in a $160 million bid to find Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. On Tuesday, investigators made what was surely a painful admission: They have probably been looking in the wrong place. The latest analysis by a team of international investigators concluded the vanished Boeing 777 is highly unlikely to be in the current search zone and may instead be in a region farther north. But though crews are expected to finish their deep-sea sonar hunt of the current search area next month, the possibility of extending the search to the north appeared doubtful, with Australia's transport minister suggesting the analysis wasn't specific enough to justify continuing the hunt. The latest twist in the search for Flight 370 highlights the extraordinary difficulty officials have faced in their attempts to find the aircraft based on the faintest scraps of data. All along, officials have said they are not simply looking for a needle in a haystack - they are looking for the haystack. On Tuesday, the haystack was poised to shift again, with the release of a report by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, which is leading the search for the plane. The report is the result of a November meeting of international and Australian experts who re- examined all the data used to define the search area for the aircraft, which vanished during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014, with 239 people on board. Since the plane disappeared, experts have analyzed a series of exchanges between the aircraft and a satellite to estimate a probable crash site along a vast arc of ocean in the southern hemisphere. A deep-sea search of a 120,000-square kilometer (46,000-square mile) stretch of water along the arc has so far come up empty. In November, the experts went back over the satellite data, along with the results of a new ocean drift analysis of the more than 20 items of debris likely to have come from the plane that have washed ashore on beaches throughout the Indian Ocean. The analysis, based on where the items washed up and when, suggested the debris originated farther north along the arc from the current search zone. Given the number of aircraft parts found so far, the team concluded that a debris field had floated on the water surface after the plane crashed. So they eliminated areas of the ocean where air crews had searched the surface in the early stages of the hunt. That left a 25,000-square kilometer (9,700-square mile) area immediately to the north of the current search zone as the most likely place where the plane hit the ocean, the report said. The investigators concluded with "a high degree of confidence" that the plane is not in the current search area. And they agreed the new area needs to be searched. "The experts concluded that, if this area were to be searched, prospective areas for locating the aircraft wreckage, based on all the analysis to date, would be exhausted," the report said. However, a new search would require fresh funding. The countries involved - Malaysia, Australia and China - agreed in July that the $160 million search will be suspended once the current effort is exhausted unless new evidence pinpoints the plane's exact location. Australian Transport Minister Darren Chester suggested an extension was unlikely, noting that the latest report does not give a specific location of the plane. "As agreed at the Tripartite Ministers meeting in Malaysia in July we will be suspending the search unless credible evidence is available that identifies the specific location of the aircraft," Chester said in a statement. "The search for MH370 has been the largest in aviation history and has tested the limits of technology, and the capacity of our experts and people at sea." Malaysia's Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai did not explicitly rule out a new search, but said in a statement "we remain to be guided as to how this can be used to assist us in identifying the specific location of the aircraft." Australian government oceanographer David Griffin, who worked on the analysis of how the debris drifted, said he is confident the plane is in the newly identified search area. And he dismissed the idea that the new analysis means the search to date has been a wasted effort, saying that the current search zone was based on the best available data at the time. "It could have been where we were searching, absolutely, but the new information does clarify that immediately north is more likely," Griffin said. As part of their analysis, Griffin and his team built replicas of the first piece of debris that was found - a wing fragment known as a flaperon that was discovered on Reunion Island off the African coast in July 2015. The team then set the replicas adrift, measuring how fast they traveled and noting how much the wind influences their rate of speed. They then ran computer simulations of how the aircraft parts could have drifted, which helped paint a picture of where they originated. The newly identified search zone does include an area that was searched very early on in the hunt, but crews didn't comb a wide enough area to rule it out, Griffin said. "They didn't go quite far enough away from the arc to cover all possibilities," he said. The fact that crews were so close to the area now identified as the likeliest crash site - coupled with the lack of commitment to search the new area - is sure to frustrate families of those on board, who have been pushing the governments to continue searching. "They should keep searching no matter how much money they will spend," said Li Jingxin, whose brother was on the plane. "The cost of the search has nothing to do with us relatives. They should also raise the amount of compensation (to families) to make up for the time lost while they searched the wrong place." http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/12/20/investigators-admit-mh370-could-be-north- search-area.html Back to Top EgyptAir Crash: Victims' remains to be released The Egyptian state prosecutor has announced that victims' remains are to be handed over to their families, seven months after the Egyptair A320 dived into the Mediterranean Sea. Flight MS804 crashed on its way from Paris to Cairo on May 19th, killing all 66 people on board. Despite the long wait, causes of the crash are still unknown. However, the Egyptian authorities in charge of the investigation announced on 15th December that "traces of explosive substances" had been found on some bodies. This statement would appear to support the theory of a terrorist attack initially put forward by Egyptian authorities. Analysis of the aircraft's black boxes confirms that a fire broke out on board, around the zone of the toilets and avionics, but does not explain its origin. Relatives of the victims have criticised delays and a lack of communication from investigators - their last press release dating back to July. In France, a group representing families of the crash victims has launched an online petition to speed up the repatriation of bodies and find out the truth behind this tragedy. So far it has already gathered over 4,200 signatures. http://www.aeronewstv.com/en/events/crash/3671-egyptair-crash-victims-remains-to- be-released.html Back to Top Back to Top Maiden flight for Gulfstream G600 business jet The Gulfstream G600 took to the air without any paint livery(Credit: Gulfstream) Gulfstream Aerospace's long-cabin, twin-engine G600 business jet has taken to the air for the first time, kicking off its flight-test program. According to Gulfstream, the test flight went off without a hitch with test pilots Scott Martin and Todd Abler at the controls supported by Flight Test engineer Nathaniel Rutland. It took off on December 17 at 1:50 pm EST from Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport, Georgia and was in the air for two hours and 53 minutes. With a length of 96 ft (29.26 m) and a wingspan of 95 ft (28.96 m), the G600 replaces the G450 and has greater range and lower fuel consumption than its predecessor. It's powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW815GA turbofan engines, carries a crew of two and up to 19 passengers, depending on how it's configured. Cruising speed is Mach 0.85 (647 mph, 1,041 km/h) with a range of 6,200 nm (7135 mi, 11,482 km). Gulfstream claims the G600 has the longest cabin in its class that's pressurized to low altitude and can be configured into four work, entertainment, dining and rest areas. KIt also boasts satellite communications and high-speed internet. "Launching the G600's flight-test program is a milestone for us and our customers, who have guided the vision for this aircraft from the beginning," says Mark Burns, president, Gulfstream. "We look forward to delivering this aircraft to them in 2018. Today's flight, which went flawlessly, represents a significant step forward in the journey to certification and delivery." Two additional G600s are due to make their first flights early next year. http://newatlas.com/gulfstream-g600-business-jet-maiden-flight/47035/ Back to Top 2 Alaska Airlines jets grounded after lightning strikes Two Alaska Airlines jets traveling in Southeast Alaska were struck by lightning Monday, an official said. Following the company's standard practice, both jets were taken out of service for inspections, said spokeswoman Ann Zaninovich. Lightning first struck Flight 62, which was preparing to land in Sitka as it made its morning run through the region, Zaninovich said. The aircraft, carrying 98 passengers, landed normally and taxied to a gate, she said. Alaska Airlines flew up a replacement jet from Seattle, and some travelers experienced a five-hour delay. Zaninovich said the replacement aircraft was expected to reach its final destination, Seattle, shortly before 10 p.m. The second plane to experience a lightning strike was Flight 66, flying from Anchorage to Cordova. It landed in Cordova, and the remaining legs of its daily run were canceled, Zaninovich said. There are no maintenance technicians in Cordova, and the jet was returned to Seattle for a proper inspection. The 35 passengers were lodged in Cordova and will catch a flight out Tuesday morning, Zaninovich said. Lightning striking commercial aircraft is not uncommon, according to the spokeswoman. Jets are designed to dissipate the electrical discharge of a lightning bolt, leaving the engines unharmed. But occurrences are taken seriously and the aircraft stay out of service until fully inspected, she said. https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2016/12/19/two-alaska-airline-jets-grounded-after- lightning-strikes/ Back to Top The FAA has issued nearly 23,000 drone pilot licenses in just three months That's over 300 new drone pilot certifications a day. Since the Federal Aviation Administration clarified the rules for commercial versus recreational drone flying at the end of August, nearly 23,000 people have become licensed commercial drone pilots, according to the FAA. The agency released its rules for commercial drone operators on Aug. 31, requiring pilots who fly for work or business to pass a test and become certified. The FAA says that, between Aug. 31 and Dec. 9, over 28,000 people applied to become a professional drone pilot and 22,959 licenses were issued. That means more than 300 people a day (that's weekdays) across the United States have become certified drone operators in roughly three months. The number of certified unmanned aircraft pilots, however, pales in comparison to the number of drones registered with the FAA, which was over 550,000 as of September and amounts to an average rate of 2,000 drones registered a day. Hobbyists - amateaur photographers or those flying for fun who aren't making money from operating a drone - don't need to get certified. But anyone flying an aircraft that weighs more than half a pound does need to register the drone with the FAA, which can be done online. Drones are now being used in all kinds of industries, from real estate to cell tower inspection. In October, President Obama awarded a grant of $2.2 million to train coal miners how to professionally fly drones in southwest Virginia. The emerging global construction drone market is valued at $127 billion, according to research published in May from PwC. The aeronautical knowledge test to become a certified drone pilot does require some studying. Pilots have to go to a local testing center that offers the drone pilot certification; it usually costs about $150 to take the exam, according to the FAA. http://www.recode.net/2016/12/19/14006772/faa-drone-pilot-licenses-three-months- numbers-uav Back to Top Sikorsky Wins Pentagon Contract For Marine One Helicopter Sikorsky Deal 'Overwhelmingly' Approved An agreement between Lockheed Martin Corp., the parent company of Sikorsky, and the state is now in place after the General Assemply and the Teamsters union both voted in favor. The Department of Defense on Thursday announced a $138 million contract with Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. for maintenance and repairs of the presidential helicopter, a prestigious aircraft with strong ties to Connecticut. The decision by the Navy followed negotiations with Sikorsky's parent company, Lockheed Martin Corp., over costs. Naval Air Systems Command had pursued a "parallel plan" to do the work in Florida, the Defense Department said. The two sides have since agreed to keep the work in Stratford. Work is expected to end in November 2022. As many as 85 jobs were in jeopardy at Sikorsky, which has built and maintained the presidential Marine One helicopter for decades. Sikorsky spokesman Paul Jackson said the helicopter manufacturer has 40 years of experience "fulfilling this no-fail mission and appreciates the opportunity to continue doing so." U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Lockheed Martin and the Department of Defense disagreed on cost and how it could be reduced. "Both sides, the company and the Pentagon, were flexible," he said. "And they came to understand their positions better." "The workforce, [which] has the experience working with Marine One, is best equipped and prepared to ensure that the fleet continues to be safe and reliable," said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, whose Third Congressional District includes the Sikorsky plant. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said the "united effort" of Sikorsky, workers and the congressional delegation prevailed in the battle to keep the work in Connecticut. President-elect Donald Trump already flies his own Sikorsky helicopter, but Blumenthal said "there's no more prestigious helicopter" than Marine One. "These are not your average company helicopters," he said. "My guess is he'll be flying this." Sikorsky announced in May 2014 a $1.24 billion contract to build the next fleet of "Marine One" presidential helicopters. http://www.courant.com/business/hc-sikorsky-presidential-helicopter-20161215- story.html Back to Top China commissions first 7tonne civil helicopter BEIJING: China today commissioned its first seventonne helicopter, which can be used for operations like search and rescue and law enforcement, marking a new advancement in its aviation industry. The new Chinese civil helicopter made its maiden flight , marking a new development in the China's helicopter industry, the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) said. The AC352 civil helicopter is a multipurpose twinengine helicopter with a 7.5 tonne maximum takeoff weight, and is capable of carrying up to 16 passengers, AVIC said. It will boost the development of the nation's helicopter industry, Wu Ximing, chief designer of helicopters for AVIC was quoted as saying by staterun Xinhua news agency. Lu Weijian, chief designer of the AC352, said the helicopter can be used in fields including offshore transportation, search and rescue, law enforcement, general transport and medical assistance. Global resources were pooled in research and production of the helicopter, according to AVIC. The new helicopters are expected to be delivered to clients in 2018, Lu said. AVIC plans to carry out research on heavylift helicopters in accordance with national planning, aiming to make a breakthrough in research on highspeed helicopters and tiltrotor helicopters, Wu said. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/china-commissions-first-7-tonne-civil- helicopter/articleshow/56082017.cms Back to Top RESEARCH STUDY SURVEY Hello, I'm Dr. Tim Holt and I'm currently the Program Chair for Aeronautics and an Associate Professor with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, AZ. In this position I'm responsible for faculty, curriculum, course updates, course alignment, etc... Furthermore, I teach undergraduate courses in aeronautics, safety, unmanned systems, and airport management for the Bachelor of Science in Aeronautics program. To this day, there are no reported statistics of general aviation pilots that have survived hypoxia during normal flight operations. More often than not there are tales of pilots getting themselves into a hypoxic situation and not surviving; rarely do people hear of those that survive. This leaves the aviation community unsure of the common circumstances that these pilots find themselves that create a hypoxic state, as well as whether or not that reported the occurrence to the proper establishments. The data collected from this survey issued to general aviation pilots, will hopefully give insight as to how best to prevent these occurrences from happening, as well as promote a healthy safety culture to report these events. It is with this in mind that we decided to embark on this research study. This survey is completely anonymous and individual responses will not be recorded. It should only take 5-10 minutes to complete. The link to the survey will provide you the Informed Consent and contact information of the researchers involved in the study. Thank you in advance, it's truly appreciated. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GAHYPOXIA 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 aviation researchers, 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 2017 or early 2018) 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 enhanced mitigation of weather sensitivities (e.g., weather impact avoidance) and management of air traffic. 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, 2017 to halabyfellowship@ucar.edu Back to Top Graduate Research Survey HI! My name is Amber L. Hulsey, A.B.D. and I am currently working on my dissertation for my Ph.D. entitled, "Human Trafficking: Flying Under the Radar." My dissertation examines the extent to which human trafficking occurs by air as a mode of transportation compared to land and sea. Additionally, the study examines the actions that can be taken to combat human trafficking into and within the United States. The theoretical lens to which this study uses is Human Security Theory. This survey is completely anonymous, has undergone Institutional Review Board and has been approved. If you have any questions or would like to contact me for any reason, please email me at amber.hulsey@usm.edu. The survey will be open from December 7- December 21st. Please share this on all social media accounts, with your friends, family, and with your colleagues. Upon completion of this study, I will share the findings with various government and NGO's to aid in eradicating human trafficking. Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HTinUSA Thank you so much for taking the time to complete this survey and more importantly, for helping aid in the research to combat human trafficking by air. Curt Lewis