Flight Safety Information March 28, 2018 - No. 063 In This Issue Incident: LOT B734 at Warsaw on Mar 26th 2018, burst tyre on landing Incident: Lufthansa A319 at Munich on Mar 27th 2018, engine failure on roll out Incident: LOT B788 over Atlantic on Mar 23rd 2018, engine shut down in flight Boeing 737-700 Ground Collision with B767 at Tel Aviv Airport (Israel) US-Bangla crash hints at glaring safety issues UAE GCAA calls on Qatar to immediately stop airspace violations (UAE) FAA reminds operators to enhance measures to deal with odours, smoke and fumes EVAS - Cockpit Smoke Protection Petroleum Air Services passes IATA safety audit Is it time to update airplane evacuation tests? Airline Official Calls for Harsher Penalties on Airplane-Drone Near-Misses Vietnamese girl slapped with fine for smoking on flight Small airline Great Lakes suspends flight operations Ecuadorean Air Force Incorporates Female Pilots in its Transport Squadron 2018 U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School applications due May 27 How To Fix United Airlines' Culture Problem Airline CEO explains why Airbus lost a major order to Boeing A start-up that manufactures rockets with giant 3-D printers just scored $35 million in funding Flight Deck LIBIK - Lithium-Ion Battery Incident Kit 2018 CHC Safety & Quality Summit: Call for Papers.The Submission Deadline is Friday, March 30 Incident: LOT B734 at Warsaw on Mar 26th 2018, burst tyre on landing A LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 737-400, registration SP-LLG performing flight LO-382 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Warsaw (Poland), landed on Warsaw's runway 33 and was in the roll out when tower observed smoke from the left main gear and advised the crew. The crew taxied clear of the runway and stopped. The crew of another aircraft nearby reported smelling a lot of burning rubber. The crew suspected they had burst just one tyre and would be able to taxi to the apron. Emergency services responded and requested the engines to be shut down for the inspection and found a hydraulic leak. The aircraft was towed to the apron. http://avherald.com/h?article=4b69ea39&opt=256 Back to Top Incident: Lufthansa A319 at Munich on Mar 27th 2018, engine failure on roll out A Lufthansa Airbus A319-100, registration D-AILY performing flight LH-2457 from Oslo (Norway) to Munich (Germany), had landed on Munich's runway 26R and was in the roll out when the crew declared Mayday, Mayday, Mayday reporting the failure of the right hand engine (CFM56) and requested emergency services to attend. The aircraft stopped on the runway, the next arrival needed to go around. Tower advised emergency services were on their way, the crew advised they were able to taxi off the runway and hold on the adjacent taxiway, vacated the runway and stopped waiting for the emergency vehicles. The aircraft is still on the ground in Munich about 14 hours after landing. http://avherald.com/h?article=4b69e8d9&opt=256 Back to Top Incident: LOT B788 over Atlantic on Mar 23rd 2018, engine shut down in flight A LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 787-800, registration SP-LRF performing flight LO-6506 from Cancun (Mexico) to Warsaw (Poland), was enroute at FL390 over the Atlantic Ocean about 440nm southwest of Bermuda (Bermuda) when the crew needed to shut one of the engines (Trent 1000) down. The aircraft drifted down to FL220 and diverted to New York JFK,NY (USA) about 700nm north of their position. The aircraft landed safely on New York's runway 04L about 2:15 hours later. The crew advised no further assistance was needed and taxied to the apron. A replacement Boeing 787-800 registration SP-LRB departed about 3 hours after landing of SP-LRF and reached Warsaw with a delay of about 5 hours. The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in New York about 91 hours after landing. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/LOT6506/history/20180323/2122Z/MMUN/EPWA http://avherald.com/h?article=4b69e455&opt=256 Back to Top Boeing 737-700 Ground Collision with B767 at Tel Aviv Airport (Israel) Status: Preliminary Date: Wednesday 28 March 2018 Time: 06:20 Type: Boeing 737-76J (WL) Operator: Germania Registration: D-ABLB C/n / msn: 36115/2692 First flight: 2008-07-29 (9 years 8 months) Engines: 2 CFMI CFM56-7B22 Crew: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Passengers: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Total: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Airplane damage: Substantial Location: Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) ( Israel) Phase: Pushback / towing (PBT) Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV/LLBG), Israel Destination airport: Berlin-Tegel Airport (TXL/EDDT), Germany Flightnumber: ST4915 Narrative: A Germania Boeing 737-700 (D-ABLB) was involved in a ground collision accident with an El Al Boeing 767-300ER (4X-EAK) at Tel Aviv-Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel. Germania flight ST4915 was being pushed back from the gate when the tail fin impacted the right hand horizontal stabilizer of El Al flight LY385. Both flights were cancelled. https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20180328-0 Back to Top US-Bangla crash hints at glaring safety issues The recent US-Bangla crash at Tribhuvan International Airport has hinted at glaring air safety issues, including a gaping hole in assertions from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal about the recently commissioned radars under Japanese assistance purportedly for enhancing air safety. This air safety enhancement initiative, worth a billion rupees of Japanese grant, somehow mysteriously failed the UBG-211 flight under the Instrument Flight Rules as it flew below safe altitude by not providing safety alerts to the controller, according to an official at TIA. According to normal practices, the minimum safe altitude warning alert is an automatic radar system safety feature that is intended to provide aural and visual alert to the controller in case an aircraft in his jurisdiction descends below a safe altitude. The controller then is required to advise the flight crew with standard communication phrases, something that is found missing in the air-ground communication records. A TIA controller on condition of anonymity, recalled how outage in critical air-ground communication equipment had led to several cancelled flights in the recent past, adding that the maintenance of the critical communication navigation and surveillance systems at TIA were less than satisfactory and repeated calls for timely rectification go unheard. Besides, what is appallingly evident from the transcripts is the unprofessional manner in which the Kathmandu tower ATCs handled an IFR flight that was not adhering to its standard flight path. As per standard ICAO procedures, the change of an IFR flight to a visual one can only be effected by a standard radio message initiated by the pilot-in-command. "While an IFR flight is conducted with reference to instruments in cockpit along with appropriate procedural safeguards to enable adequate terrain clearance in all its phases such as take-off, cruise and approach, the ATC training and proficiency standards in their core area are sub-optimal at an ATC- majority organisation," a senior captain shared. Interestingly, in the aftermath of the crash when the CAAN's who-is-who's were crying themselves hoarse, stating that the regulatory oversight of the carrier in question rests solely with Bangladesh, they were losing credibility by wilfully distorting facts about Nepal's safety oversight obligations provided under the relevant International Civil Aviation Organisation's annex for performing safety oversight of foreign operators, he revealed. The fatal crash has, however, ceased to make it to headlines within merely two weeks of its tragic occurrence, with the task of handling its aftermath delegated to the investigation commission and the victims' families, a senior CAAN official said, adding that the commission, as per ICAO Annex 13, is only mandated to reveal the probable cause and provide recommendations for preventing future recurrence. Clearly outside the purview of the investigation panel, the acts of omission and commission by the various actors in the handling of the ill-fated flight and its fiery end, of the aviation services providers for air traffic control and the aerodrome - CAAN, and that for meteorological services - Department of Hydrology and Meteorology also appear destined to be swept under the carpet, stakeholders feared. According to them, had it not been for the public availability of the air to ground communication records of the crash that has led to numerous raised eyebrows in Nepal and abroad about the conduct of the ATCs, it was a foregone conclusion that truth would remain buried as in past crashes. https://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/us-bangla-crash-hints-at-glaring-safety-issues/ Back to Top UAE GCAA calls on Qatar to immediately stop airspace violations (UAE) Recent incident over the skies of Bahrain activated a UAE civilian aircraft's collision avoidance system The UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has called on Qatar to stop endangering civilian aircraft flying on declared flight paths. The statement from the GCAA follows an incident in which two Qatari fighter aircraft approached a UAE civilian passenger aircraft on a previously planned and declared flight path. According to Ismail Al Blooshi, GCAA assistant director General for Aviation Safety Affairs, came within 700 feet of one another at high speed - with the Emirati plane taking an emergency climb in altitude. "This is way below the safe separation that is maintained at this kind of operation," Al Blooshi added. "This act, which is clearly a deliberate act, has endangered the lives of civilians on board and is a clear violation of international civil aviation treaties, and actually puts international civil aviation traffic at risk." Al Blooshi noted that investigations into the incident have shown that the Qatari jets were not communicating with air traffic controllers, and that the actions of the fighter jets "activated or demanded intervention" from the aircraft's traffic collision avoidance system, which is considered the last 'safety net' that prevents an aircraft from colliding. "In this case, the system was activated as it maneuvered the aircraft away from the Qatari jets at 32,000 feet," he said, adding that the Qatari jets 'chased' the aircraft to an altitude of 35,000 feet. Al Blooshi and the GCAA have called for an "immediate cessation of acts which endanger or compromise the safety of civil aviation." Additionally, the AFP quoted Al Blooshi as saying that the UAE would file a complaint to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) over the incident. "We were one of the first countries to ban (our planes) flying over areas of conflict when there is a risk to civil aviation," he told AFP. "These are declared international routes and this is unacceptable." http://www.arabianbusiness.com/transport/393056-gcaa-calls-on-qatar-to-immediately-stop-airspace- violations Back to Top FAA reminds operators to enhance measures to deal with odours, smoke and fumes The FAA have released a Safety Alert For Operators (SAFO) "to identify a need to enhance flight crew procedures that mitigate the risk to passengers and crew in the event of odors, smoke and/or fumes." The FAA reasons: Background: In-flight odor, smoke and/or fume events can occur without overt visual and/or olfactory cues. To mitigate adverse health consequences to passengers and crew, prompt and decisive action is critical. Discussion: Air carriers should ensure their procedures and checklists specifically address recognition, differentiation and mitigation of odors, smoke and/or fumes in the cabin and/or flight deck. Odors, smoke and/or fumes may be introduced to the cabin atmosphere as a result of aircraft equipment malfunction/failure or by inadvertent or intentional actions. While the presence of an odor alone does not necessarily require crew action or medical response, events involving odor, smoke and/or fumes require targeted and timely action to protect aircraft occupants. The FAA recommends: "Operators, under their existing Safety Management System structure, should review their company's odor, smoke and/or fumes procedures to ensure they address benign odor events as well as toxic odor, smoke and/or fumes, in an expeditious manner to limit exposure of passengers and crew." http://avherald.com/h?article=4b69cc13&opt=256 Back to Top Back to Top Petroleum Air Services passes IATA safety audit Egyptian airline Petroleum Air Service (PAS) passed the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA). PAS was founded in 1982 to provide oil industry support services and charter flights in Egypt. It operates a fleet of two CRJ-900's and five DHC-8-300's. In addition the airline has a large number of helicopters: Bell 206, Bell 212, Bell 412, AgustaWestland AW139, and Eurocopter EC-135's. The IOSA programme is an evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline. IOSA uses internationally recognised quality audit principles and is designed to conduct audits in a standardised and consistent manner. It was created in 2003 by IATA. All IATA members are IOSA registered and must remain registered to maintain IATA membership. https://news.aviation-safety.net/2018/03/27/petroleum-air-services-passes-iata-safety-audit/ Back to Top Is it time to update airplane evacuation tests? Author: Bill McGee, USA TODAY Thankfully, in recent years we've often seen everyone onboard airline flights safely escape serious accidents. From Capt. Sully Sullenberger's US Airways Flight 1549 "Miracle on the Hudson" in New York City in 2009 to an uncontained engine failure on American Airlines Flight 383 in Chicago in 2016, there were no fatalities in scenarios that in the past almost certainly would have been disastrous. In fact, an astounding 95.7% of occupants have survived scheduled airline accidents in recent years. As I've noted here many times before, the fatalistic "all or nothing" approach to flying - that either the flight lands safely or everyone is doomed - is not only dead wrong, but it's a self-fulfilling prophecy that is harmful and even potentially life-threatening. The fact is, if the zero-fatality record is to be continued, the need for better and more effective emergency evacuation procedures is more critical than ever. That's why we need greater awareness of how the Federal Aviation Administration oversees such procedures, and a government study could shed some much needed light on that oversight. A minute and a half ... Since 1967, the FAA has required that new aircraft be safely evacuated in 90 seconds or less. Much has changed since then, as technology has greatly improved both accident avoidance and accident survivability. But it's worth noting that in 1967 there were no commercial twin-aisle widebody aircraft in use, and average passenger loads were much lower, so the challenges were in some ways easier. Federal regulations mandate compliance on evacuation standards during both certification (aircraft manufacturers) and operational (airlines) testing. But in 1985 the FAA first amended its policies to allow "the use of analysis in lieu of a full-scale demonstration," in an effort to reduce injuries during such drills. While the regs do require new evaluations for significant design changes to existing aircraft, such as additional seats and installation of certain equipment, drills have been largely replaced by computer modeling. There are valid questions about whether such analysis has kept pace with the real world. The FAA provides an online Fact Sheet entitled "Stayin' Alive: the FAA and Aircraft Evacuations," but it has not been updated in 12 years, since March 2006, and the three "Improvements to Cabin Safety" detailed there were completed more than three decades ago, between 1985 and 1987. During those three years, the average U.S. airline passenger load factor was between 60.3% and 62.4%; in 2017 the average load was 83.5% (and 84.6% domestically). Last May, I was asked about evacuations while testifying in Congress and I expressed concerns that so many key factors about safely evacuating planes have changed in recent years. Among those concerns: * Both seat pitch (legroom) and seat width have shrunk, as I demonstrated here in 2014. More: Think airline seats have gotten smaller? They have * While seats are growing tighter, Americans are growing larger. * As noted, passenger loads are at all-time record highs, even worse than what I detailed in 2013. * Checked-baggage fees have led to record numbers of carry-on bags cluttering cabins. What's more, a plethora of electronic devices causes new worries, including passengers who are distracted by them during crises and charging cords that could trip evacuees in an emergency. All these issues have combined to make real-world evacuations more difficult, despite the airplanes themselves being more safely designed. New challenges Last July, a federal court responded to a complaint from the consumer organization FlyersRights.org by ordering the FAA to prove that it shouldn't regulate airline seat sizes. Judge Patricia Millett stated, "This is the Case of the Incredible Shrinking Airline Seat," and the ruling chastised the FAA for a "vaporous record" of evacuation tests and "(at-best) off-point studies and undisclosed tests using unknown parameters." The FAA responded by asserting that seat pitch is considered during testing. For its part, FlyersRights.org stated: "The FAA has not conducted, or alternatively has not released, any tests, whether computer simulations or rehearsed evacuations, that demonstrate that planes with modern seat sizes and modern passenger sizes would pass emergency evacuation criteria." Earlier this month, the ranking members of the House Transportation Committee and Aviation Subcommittee - Reps. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) and Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) - wrote to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Inspector General (DOT-IG) and requested an investigation into the effectiveness of the FAA's oversight of aircraft manufacturers' certification process. The primary concerns: 1. Standards have not been updated since 1990, and 2. Airplane makers have increasingly relied on computer simulations and modeling rather than actual evacuation drills. The letter noted how large roll-aboard suitcases are so common in the age of checked-bag fees and also noted "behavioral shifts," such as "the propensity to film evacuations on smartphones rather than focusing on actually evacuating." So DeFazio and Larsen asked the IG to research if the FAA and the airlines are doing enough to enhance post-accident survivability. Improving airline evacuation protocols has a long history. Back in 1993, the U.S. Government Accountability Office examined the FAA's standards amid concerns about injuries during live drills, but today there are new concerns. And in 2000 the National Transportation Safety Board issued or reiterated 23 specific recommendations to the FAA on this topic. In 2006, there was much media attention on the evacuation of 873 people during testing of the Airbus A380, in part due to the use of Airbus employees and a total of 33 injuries. Many industry professionals support examining how tighter seats can affect safety; the Association of Professional Flight Attendants recently stated: "We recognize that seating issues extend beyond evacuation safety, including the potential for increased incidents of air rage." What you can do In 2016 I wrote about the need for passengers to focus on saving lives - their own and others - rather than retrieving their carry-on bags, with "Emergency evacuation? Leave your laptop!" But as vital as it is not to block the aisle of a burning aircraft to retrieve a carry-on, that is just one necessary step. Those injuries I referenced above that were sustained during evacuation drills? It's educational to focus on them. Many were abrasions from direct skin contact on slides and many were broken feet, ankles and legs from wearing the wrong shoes. So what you do while flying can matter - a lot. * How you dress. Wear clothes that are comfortable and easy to move in but don't bare too much skin; consider the weather on both ends of the journey in case the worst happens and you need to exit the airplane in harsh climates. Don't wear flip-flops or other shoes that can easily fall off, but don't wear spiky heels that will get caught on a slide. * What you drink (and pop): A lot of passengers - particularly fearful ones - like to immediately zone out with eye masks, alcohol and sleeping pills or other pharmaceuticals. Thanks to an exhaustive study by Boeing of all commercial jet accidents between 1959 and 2016, we know the most critical phases of flight are takeoff through climb and descent through landing, when 89% of all fatal accidents occur. Lesson: It pays to be particularly alert and cognizant at the beginning and end of each journey. * How you listen. Of course you're a frequent flier and you can recite the safety briefing by heart. Really? Have you counted the number of rows to not one but both of the nearest exits, in case you need to feel your way through a cabin that has no lighting and is filled with smoke and will likely have as many as half of the available exits blocked? Please pay attention and be aware. * Keep yourself - and loved ones - safe. Stay buckled up until told otherwise. Follow instructions. And the ONLY safe way for a child under 2 to fly is in an approved safety restraint and not as a "lap child," even though neither the airlines nor the FAA will mandate this. A380 Evacuation Demonstration http://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/nation-now/is-it-time-to-update-airplane-evacuation-tests/465- 0f00dc58-d4f7-4f63-bfff-51eb796871d0 Back to Top Airline Official Calls for Harsher Penalties on Airplane-Drone Near-Misses An unidentified drone operator nearly collided his UAV with an Air Newzealand plane descending onto Auckland airport. Air Newzealand flight NZ92 heading from Tokyo to Auckland had an extremely close near-miss with a rogue drone on Sunday, prompting officials from the airline to urge legislative authorities to increase penalties for such behavior. We recently reported on the rampant increase in near-misses between drones and airplanes in the U.K., but clearly, this isn't a localized issue. Where there are drones, there will be at least some operators irresponsibly piloting them into commercial airline airspace. The drone in question reportedly came as close as 16 feet of the plane, and almost caused a "serious incident" to occur. Remember, an object crashing into a jetliner's engine can render it utterly useless, and result in a much higher risk of that airplane losing control. According to the BBC, the pilots of NZ92 noticed the UAV during their landing procedure at Auckland airport and feared a collision with the plane or damage to engine. Thankfully, none of that occurred. "NZ92 was just meters away from a serious incident on Sunday," said Captain David Morgan, Air Newzealand Chief Operations Integrity and Standards Officer. "The pilots spotted the drone at a point in the descent where it was not possible to take evasive action." Morgan is essentially explaining that at a certain point in the commercial jetliner's descent, its safety is at the whim of anyone who might fly a drone into its engine. Of course, the rate of these incidents is extremely low, but on Sunday, those chances were high. In the wake of this disturbing yet fortunate incident, Morgan urged authorities to establish "tougher deterrents" for those considering to trespass into no-fly zones, using the now highly-affordable and capable hobby drones. He wants the "reckless drone-use around airports" to stop, with potential prison terms as a possible consequence. As it stands, the laws in place result in a fine of up to $3,600, with the rules establishing a 2.4-mile no-fly area near any New Zealand airport. http://www.thedrive.com/tech/19675/airline-official-calls-for-harsher-penalties-on-airplane-drone-near- misses Back to Top Vietnamese girl slapped with fine for smoking on flight A VietJet aircraft prepares for landing. Photo by Reuters/Kham The 17-year-old said it was her first time flying and she did not know the rules. Aviation authorities have fined a teenage girl VND2 million ($88) for smoking on a domestic flight despite repeated warnings from the crew. The passenger, 17, was caught smoking in the toilet on a Vietjet flight from Hai Phong in northern Vietnam to the Dak Lak in the Central Highlands, officials said. She claimed it was her first time flying and she did not know the rules. Passengers are almost always reminded not to smoke before take-off, but some still try to have a sneaky puff in the toilets, where non-smoking warnings can be seen. Vietnam has 15.6 million smokers, one of the highest numbers in the world. Smoking is one of many cases reported recently of violations that have affected flight safety in Vietnam. The country introduced a record 40-flight ban last year for passengers who smoke, fight or steal on flights, as its air travel industry reaches new heights. Vietnamese airports served more than 94 million air passengers in 2017, up 16 percent from the previous year, including 13 million foreigners. https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/vietnamese-girl-slapped-with-fine-for-smoking-on-flight- 3728957.html Back to Top Small airline Great Lakes suspends flight operations A man pulls a mop bucket past an unattended Great Lakes Airlines ticket counter in Cheyenne Regional Airport in Cheyenne, Wyo, on Tuesday, March 27, 2018. Wyoming-based Great Lakes Airlines has suspended all flight operations in the five states it operates... Great Lakes Airlines, which operated small turboprop planes between destinations in the West and Midwest, has suspended flying. The airline says in a note on its website that it stopped scheduled flights at midnight Monday but has not filed for bankruptcy protection and continues to operate parts of its business. The airline did not immediately respond to messages on Tuesday. Great Lakes served fewer than a dozen destinations, linking big cities including Los Angeles, Phoenix and Denver with smaller destinations like Telluride, Colorado, and Prescott, Arizona. On its website, the airline is giving instructions for refunds. The company says partner Aerodynamics Inc. will operate Great Lakes Jet Express flights between Denver and Pierre and Watertown, South Dakota. https://wtop.com/business-finance/2018/03/small-airline-great-lakes-suspends-flight-operations/ Back to Top Ecuadorean Air Force Incorporates Female Pilots in its Transport Squadron For the first time, two female pilots will fly aircraft belonging to Ecuador's 11th Transport Wing. CAPACITY BUILDING After passing the Level II Twin Otter Transport Operational Pilot Course, Ecuadorean Air Force first lieutenants Vanessa del Rocío Puga and Diana Estefanía Ruíz Solís kicked off participation in operational missions to benefit the community. (Photo: Ecuadorean Air Force) In January 2018, Ecuadorean Air Force (FAE, in Spanish) first lieutenants Vanessa del Rocío Puga and Diana Estefanía Ruíz Solís became the first female pilots to join the 11th Transport Wing. The pilots graduated from the Level II Twin Otter Transport Operational Pilot Course at Cotopaxi Air Base. On March 20th, the officers began operational missions in remote areas around the country. "We now have two female pilots who fly transport equipment. It's a source of pride for women to fly in the unit and demonstrate all their abilities," FAE Lieutenant Colonel Edison Puga Castro, 11th Transport Wing commander, told Diálogo. "Women's participation in military transport aviation is of fundamental importance." From November 2017 to January 2018, the pilots trained intensively alongside male officers, which included time in the Twin Otter aircraft flight simulator. All participants concluded the training satisfactorily and achieved FAE's required standardized score. "To be the first female pilots of the 11th Transport Wing's 1113th Squadron is an honor and a source of pride," said 1st Lt. Puga. "We not only demonstrate every day that we can do it, but we also open doors so that women who come after us can do it better." "Thanks to the course and many challenges, we are ready to fulfill the mission any time and any place," 1st Lt. Ruíz said to Diálogo. "To complete the missions, we have to use all five senses in the plane, inside the cabin, to operate in any emergency situation," 1st Lt. Puga added. In Ecuador, pilots work in situations where access is difficult because they operate on unprepared runways, high-altitude airports, and difficult weather conditions. "Military aviation [in Ecuador] takes place in a special terrain. It takes place in the Andes and three additional regions of the country, which makes aviation in the country special," Lt. Col. Puga Castro said. Solidarity wings The 11th Transport Wing moves armed military personnel and equipment for different security and defense missions in Ecuador. It also carries out air reconnaissance work throughout its national territory as part of the fight against illicit activity. The unit provides support during emergencies and natural disasters. It also implements operations to benefit of the community. "After March 20th, [2018], our entire squadron will participate in the Wings for Integration operational mission, moving people and cargo to hard to reach areas in the eastern part of Ecuador, also known as Amazonia," 1st Lt. Ruíz said. "The population of these communities can only travel by air or river; they need our air resources to move around. The Air Force brings hope to that region." Lt. Col. Puga Castro pointed out that FAE's 11th Transport Wing was critical during the April 2016 earthquake. Pilots and airmen carried out hundreds of troop transport and humanitarian aid flights, and brought food and medicine to affected cities. "The eastern zone of Ecuador [comprising seven provinces], is home to several native communities that are isolated from any help. With these aircraft, we helped the population improve their quality of life and integrate with society," 1st Lt. Puga said. "Wings for Integration will operate in that region of the country until our Air Force signals another mission," 1st Lt. Ruíz added. Female pilots in FAE To achieve the presence of women in military tasks wasn't easy. In 1966, FAE opened its doors to the very first woman. In 2000, the Superior Military Aviation Academy received its first female candidates for special officers in social communication, finance, medicine, and architecture. Many years went by before the institution opened its doors to women in aviation missions in 2007. FAE implemented institutional changes to create the conditions that would allow for the inclusion of women. Transforming some legislation, infrastructure, rules, laws, and regulations was necessary so women could thrive with all the guarantees and rights that would ensure their proper training. "Ever since female personnel entered FAE, they faced challenges," Lt. Col. Puga Castro said. "In military operations, physical demands placed on a woman and on a man can't be the same, but, with flying, it's different. The demands are the same, and women have to do everything men do." "Living with our male colleagues is a challenge," 1st Lt. Puga said. "However, we are used to it now and give our best every day to continue to integrate with each other and live together in a friendly way." Today, FAE has women in a number of branches of aviation such as transport, helicopter rescue, and combat aviation. "Women now have the same opportunities as male officers to rise to the highest ranks in the Air Force because they are military academy graduates. Female pilots can join the FAE command or the Armed Forces command in the future," Lt. Col. Puga Castro said. Inclusion is not just a matter for the armed forces, but for society itself. "The doors of FAE are open; the decision now rests with Ecuadorean women. The path is set for them to follow," 1st Lt. Puga concluded. "Women only have to decide and perform as best as they can with professionalism, effort, and dedication," 1st Lt. Ruíz added. https://dialogo-americas.com/en/articles/ecuadorean-air-force-incorporates-female-pilots-its-transport- squadron Back to Top 2018 U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School applications due May 27 JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH -- Application packages for the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School selection board are due by May 27, 2018. The board, set for July 23-25, will consider total force officer and current Air Force civilian applicants to attend training as early as July 2019. Officers may apply to become a test pilot, test combat systems officer or test remotely piloted aircraft pilot. Both officers and civilians interested in flight test engineer positions are encouraged to apply. Applicants from all aircraft types and backgrounds must have strong academic and technical experience. "Test pilot school ensures Air Force mission dominance by training officers and civilians to lead and conduct full-spectrum testing and evaluation of aerospace weapons systems," said Capt. Bradley Diedrick, Air Force's Personnel Center assignments officer. Diedrick pointed out a few changes to this year's application process. Air Force Materiel Command approved a reduction in the flying hours required in the experience eligibility requirements for test pilots, CSOs and RPA pilots. "Instead of 750 hours total time in a single-pilot major weapons system, it's now 500 hours," Diedrick said. "For a dual-pilot MWS, it's 750 hours instead of 1,000. Applicants for flight test engineer aren't required to have flying hours." There are also new application forms this year. Diedrick said applicants should use the forms attached to the TPS Personnel Services Delivery Memorandum on myPers or available on the TPS website, rather than the forms posted on the Air Force E-Publishing website. He said civilian applications for flight test engineers are handled much like the military application process for test pilot positions with minute differences detailed in Air Force Instruction 99-107 and the TPS PSDM. Civilians compete directly for flight engineer spots and the selection board racks and stacks them in the same pool as military applicants. The U.S. Air Force TPS trains pilots, CSOs and flight engineers to develop, test and evaluate the newest aircraft and weapons systems. In addition, the school conducts exchange programs with the U.S. Naval, United Kingdom and French test pilot schools to train fixed and rotary wing pilots and flight test engineers. Program graduates will earn a Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering through Air University. Find additional information about rank requirements, eligibility criteria, process and other specifics on myPers using a CAC-enabled, .mil computer. Select "Any" from the dropdown menu and search "Test Pilot." For more information about Air Force personnel programs, visit the AFPC public website. http://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1476509/2018-us-air-force-test-pilot-school- applications-due-may-27/ Back to Top How To Fix United Airlines' Culture Problem Denise Lee Yohn , CONTRIBUTOR I write about brand leadership. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. * Although United's employees seem to be at fault, the underlying cause is the company's lack of culture leadership. * Employees can and will only deliver an experience to customers that they experience themselves United Airlines employees seem utterly incompetent. The recent dog death incident is only the latest in a string of situations in which United employees have screwed up. But the incidents don't reflect a competence deficit at the airline; they reveal a culture problem -- and United's leaders must take specific actions to fix it. United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz must take specific actions to fix the culture problem at his company. (Photo by Jim Young/Getty Images) The Problem When Dr. David Dao he refused to give up his seat on a plane last year, United employees called airport security who ended up dragging him off the plane. Weeks later, a United gate agent refused to allow two young girls to board a plane because their leggings didn't adhere to the airline's dress code for "pass travelers." And just last week a flight attendant insisted on putting a dog in an overhead bin because its carrier wouldn't fit under the seat and assured the dog's owner that it would be fine up there. The dog was found dead upon arrival at the destination. These employee actions are deplorable and quite a disconnect from the company's brand slogan "Fly the Friendly Skies." The employees seem completely opposite from those featured in the company's recent Olympics advertisements which aimed to show that their superhero-like qualities enabled them to ensure the safe, smooth, and fun passage of Olympic athletes as well as everyday customers. The contrast between the company's brand aspirations and its actual operations couldn't be sharper. The Diagnosis Although United's employees seem to be at fault, the underlying cause is the company's lack of culture leadership. CEO Oscar Munoz and his fellow leaders are responsible for the huge gap between the company's brand identity and organizational culture. They have failed to engage, train, and motivate employees adequately and appropriately. Munoz is credited with stabilizing the airline's workforce after the poorly executed merger of United Airlines and Continental Airlines in 2010 resulted in a widespread lack of trust between the airline's management and its workers. He also has boosted United's position in monthly on-time performance rankings of U.S. airlines from near the bottom to middle of the pack or better. But he and other United executives have not been effective in cultivating the culture at the company. In fact, they have contributed to an unhealthy and poor-performing corporate culture by: Making vapid promises and setting vague values. After the disaster with Dr. Dao, the airline rewrote its overbooking policies and promised to empower employees to act in the moment to put customers first. Munoz pledged that "every customer deserves to be treated with the highest levels of service and the deepest sense of dignity and respect." The company initiated a new employee training program called "core4" to emphasize the company's four core values: caring, safe, dependable, and efficient. Clearly the recent dog death, along with several other incidents in the past year involving pets being delivered to incorrect destinations and/or dying while under United's care and the fact that the airline remains among the highest of U.S. airlines for complaints, indicate that whatever changes the leaders have implemented have not delivered on their promises. The training has not been effective and its values are at best aspirational and more likely inconsequential. Prioritizing operational performance over employees. United's on-time and financial performance gains seem to have been achieved on the backs of its employees. On online forums, flight attendants routinely complain about what they view as deliberate understaffing. This, combined with the increase in quick turns due to more aggressive flight scheduling, means that attendants have too much to do in too short of a time during the boarding process. They aren't paid until the aircraft pushes back from the gate and they're held accountable for departures delayed by lack of in-cabin readiness. It's easy to see why they often rush through procedures and indiscriminately follow procedures. Not respecting or listening to employees. United recently announced that it would discontinue quarterly bonus payments to most employees and would replace them with a lottery-based system in which those who qualified for the lottery through participation in the core4 program could win prizes. When employees responded in an uproar, Munoz explained that the program's intent was "to spice up the process a little bit." His comments suggest that leaders view employee compensation as something needing an injection of fun instead of understanding its role in meaningfully engaging employees and contributing to their livelihood. Also his statement, "We'll be working over the next couple weeks to make sure we get input from people at all levels," suggests that employees were not adequately consulted during the conception of the change. The Solution If United's leaders want to stop the flow of employee mistakes that lead to public relations crises and to ensure that their workers live up to the company's brand ideals, they need to lead a substantive culture change. Cultural leadership of this nature includes: Setting prescriptive values. Since it's not possible to anticipate every possible customer scenario and to dictate the appropriate employee response, setting policies and procedures is not enough. Employees must be guided by clear and prescriptive values that help them determine how to handle unforeseen or difficult situations. Vague values such as "caring" don't provide the specificity that employees need to help them make the right in-the-moment decisions. But if United's leaders were to articulate and abide by values such as "listen carefully and respond respectfully," they would increase the likelihood that customers would be treated appropriately. Empowering and equipping employees. Core4 training and other programs like it are ineffective if they're not supported by policies and procedures that empower and equip employees do the right thing. While it's important for employees to develop emotional intelligence and learn effective communication skills, their hands shouldn't be tied by restrictive policies that dictate certain customer handling and they shouldn't face serious consequences for improvising when the situation calls for it. Leaders should respect employees enough to use their discretion -- and empower them to do so. Aligning employee experience and customer experience. Employees can and will only deliver an experience to customers that they experience themselves , so leaders must engage employees the way they want employees to engage customers. If managers only follow procedures and don't take the time to understand what their employees need, employees are going to operate by the book regardless of what customers might really need. If employees are treated as if their well-being is less important than airline performance, they will care less about customers' well-being and more about on-time departures and efficient operations. But if leaders listen to, value, and demonstrate they trust employees, employees are likely to listen to, value, and trust customers. Last year around this time, Munoz penned a letter "to the world we serve" to introduce the company's new shared purpose and values. He wrote, "United Airlines is such an iconic brand." He and his team need to lead the organization and cultivate a culture that lives up to that status. Denise Lee Yohn is a brand expert, speaker, and author of What Great Brands Do and FUSION: How Integrating Brand and Culture Powers the World's Greatest Companies. https://www.forbes.com/sites/deniselyohn/2018/03/28/how-to-fix-united-airlines-culture- problem/#29298f1bfd3d Back to Top Airline CEO explains why Airbus lost a major order to Boeing Hawaiian Airlines boeing 787 Dreamliner A rendering of Hawaiian Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. Hawaiian * Hawaiian Airlines announced an order for 10 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners while canceling an existing order for six Airbus A330-800neos. * The Dreamliner was selected after an intense sales competition between Airbus and Boeing. * In an interview with Business Insider, Hawaiian Airlines CEO Peter Ingram explained why his company decided to abandon its long-standing Airbus order and go with Boeing. On March 6, Hawaiian Airlines announced its decision to order 10 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners with a list price of $2.82 billion. It was also the first major move the airline had made since Peter Ingram took over as president and CEO less than a week earlier. Ingram previously served as Hawaiian's chief commercial officer under former CEO Mark Dunkerley, who retired this month. For Boeing, the announcement proved to be a double shot of good news. At the same time as the Dreamliner announcement, Hawaiian also confirmed that it had canceled an order for six Airbus A330-800neos. It was the only six orders Airbus had for the aircraft type. Hawaiian's decision to go with Boeing is the culmination of an intense and protracted sales competition between the 787-9 and the Airbus A330-900neo. As a result, Hawaiian is believed to have received a very substantial discount off the list price. "Both airplanes are terrific and both had pros and cons," Ingram told Business Insider in a recent interview. "Ultimately, we came to a conclusion after a disciplined and detailed process that the 787-9 is the right airplane for us." Airbus A330 800neo Hawaiian A rendering of Hawaiian's cancelled Airbus A330-800neo. Airbus Hawaiian's decision to go with Boeing surprised some people. Over the past few years, Airbus had been on a roll with the Honolulu-based carrier. Hawaiian is replacing its Boeing 767-300s with smaller and much more efficient Airbus A321neos. More significantly, the airline's current flagship is its fleet of two dozen Airbus A330-200s. Since the A330neo is simply an updated version of the A330 Hawaiian already has in service, it would make perfect sense to simply upgrade to the newer model of the plane it already has. In fact, Ingram called the A330neo order "a natural extension" for the airline. So how did Boeing manage to pull off the win? The story goes all the way back to 2008, when Hawaiian placed an order with Airbus that included six next-generation A350-800 jets. With room for about 280 people, the Dash 800 is the smallest member of the A350XWB family of carbon-composite wide-body jets. Even though the European airplane maker was able to find plenty of buyers for the plane, the company decided to effectively give up on it in favor of developing the A330neo. (Neo stands for new engine option.) The neo would also be available in two sizes: the smaller A330-800 and the larger A330-900. As a result, in 2014, Hawaiian switched its order from the A350-800 to the A330-800. However, Hawaiian proved to be the only airline to go with the A330-800, and that made Ingram and his team uncomfortable with the situation. "Unfortunately, the A330-800 has not proved to be as popular in the marketplace," Ingram said. "But for us, it doesn't make sense to remain committed to an airplane that had the risk of not being sufficiently accepted in the marketplace in the future." He continued: "So the lack of orders for the A330-800 opened us up to having a competition to look at the wide-body platform for us going into the decade." The lack of industry acceptance creates all kinds of complications for airlines in terms of maintenance, service, and resale value. Ingram went on to further explain his rationale. Even though Hawaiian purchases aircraft with plans to fly it for its entire service lift, the airline CEO also goes into it with the understanding that his company needs to remain nimble if the industry changes. "From a risk management perspective, it's always prudent for us to consider what happens in the future if something affects the economics (of the business) and we need to make a change," he said. "The fact that there are no other customers for that particular variant at this time put us in the position where, if we continued with the order, we would have very few options if we need to make a change." In short, Hawaiian didn't want to be stuck with a plane no one else wanted. http://www.businessinsider.com/hawaiian-airlines-ceo-explains-boeing-choice-over-airbus-2018-3 Back to Top A start-up that manufactures rockets with giant 3-D printers just scored $35 million in funding * Start-up Relativity Space's latest round of venture-capital funding brought in $35 million. * The company says it can 3-D print 95 percent of its orbital rocket in development. * At $10 million, Relativity's Terran 1 is priced in the middle of today's rocket market. The Stargate 3D printer at Relativity Space's facility in Los Angeles, CA. Relativity Space Start-up Relativity Space is kicking into high gear after its latest round of venture-capital funding brought in $35 million to help it manufacture the next generation of orbital rockets with one of the world's largest 3-D printers. The Los Angeles-based newcomer will use the funds to build a second, upgraded version of its Stargate printer, hire 28 new employees by the end of the year and quadruple the company's facilities from 10,000 square feet. The new funds bring Relativity's total venture capital raised to over $45 million since its founding in 2015. "With the 3-D printing approach, people have seen we can produce and launch rockets with a lead time of 60 days. That's completely noncompetitive," Relativity Space CEO Tim Ellis told CNBC. The newest venture capital round was led by Playground Global and included early investors Mark Cuban, Y Combinator Continuity and Social Capital. Cuban has been involved in every funding round since he led the seed round with half a million dollars of his own funds. "Relativity is moving along in the development path faster than what I would expect for what they're doing: building a rocket," Dylan Taylor, another early investor in Relativity, told CNBC. The company's founders, Ellis and Chief Technology Officer Jordan Noone, earned their rocket expertise while working at Blue Origin and SpaceX, respectively. Together they dreamed up a rocket that was more than just supplemented by 3-D-printed parts - they conceptualized Relativity's Terran 1 midsize rocket, which Ellis said is now 95 percent 3-D-printed. While today's rockets have more than 100,000 individual parts, Ellis said Terran 1 will have less than 1,000. "That's an internal metric we're really going for: how few parts we can use to build the rocket without compromising performance," Ellis said. At $10 million, Terran 1's price falls in the middle of the rocket market. The market is typically divided between $2 million to $5 million light vehicles - built by Rocket Lab, Vector and Virgin Orbit - and $62 million to $400 million heavy vehicles - built by SpaceX, United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin. More than $45 million raised thus far would imply Relativity's valuation is in excess of $100 million, using traditional venture capital measurements. Rocket Lab, which recently succeeded in its first orbital launch, is valued as high as $1.2 billion, while SpaceX is worth as much as $21.5 billion. Even with several testing milestones outstanding, a $100 million valuation makes Relativity fairly cheap in today's market. The space industry continues to receive private investment, as 2017 saw a record $3.9 billion flow into commercial space companies, according to investment firm Space Angels. "I can't think of another space company that has raised this kind of money this quickly," Taylor said. "It all goes back to the original business plan thesis, as part of what Relativity said is its difference: designing a rocket from first principle as 3-D printed." Coming to market in 2021 A test fire of Relativity Space's Aeon 1 engine at NASA's Stennis Space Center. Relativity Space One example of Relativity's development speed is its progress in finding more parts of the rocket that can be 3-D printed. When CNBC first spoke to Ellis in January, he cited Terran 1 as being 90 percent 3-D printed. But only a few weeks later, the start-up had found another 5 percent. "We started to look at a little more detail in three areas" of the Aeon 1 engine, which powers the rocket, Ellis said. "And we found quite a few more ways to reduce parts further." "One of the benefits of 3-D printing is we can test, collect data, print a new version and test again in weeks instead of months," Ellis noted. Relativity has completed 100 test firings of the Aeon 1 engine, using the E-3 facility at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. While Relativity had paid about $1 million to use the test stand, the company won an "Announcement of Collaborative Opportunity" contract, which gives Relativity $1.5 million from NASA to keep using the E-3 stand, Ellis said. Last week, Relativity announced a 20-year leasing agreement with NASA to use the E-4 facilities at Stennis, which gives the start-up access to four robust testing chambers for larger tests. Relativity values the pro bono side of the agreement at $30 million, an astounding value for the burgeoning company. "We only pay for maintenance and utilities for the next 20 years, which is relatively low cost," Ellis said. "E-4 was originally designed for 500,000-pound thrust engines, so it's very big, very sophisticated." Relativity Space engineers inspect the company's Aeon 1 engine on the test stand at NASA's Stennis Space Center. Relativity Space This is the first time Stennis has signed such a public-private partnership agreement, which is becoming increasingly common in NASA's strategy to foster the space industry. "We are going to keep testing on E-3 in building up to the brand new E-4 stand," Ellis said. "The goal is to actively test on the stand in 2018 and, by early 2019, we'll do a second-stage hold-down test with more of the rocket." Terran 1 is an expendable rocket, which goes against a push from many private rocket companies to develop reusable rockets. But Ellis explains that it's simply a matter of cost. "Raw material and propellants are very small percentage points of the cost" of each rocket, Ellis said. "The cost really comes from the labor and effort to design, build, inspect and qualify the rocket." Relativity is on track to launch its first Terran 1 to orbit in 2020, Ellis said, with the goal being "first commercial service by early 2021." The company so far has received intentions to launch from commercial and government entities it values at over $1 billion. These range from putting up satellites to exploratory missions, both key markets in the rapidly growing space industry. https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/27/relativity-space-series-b-round-3-d-printing-rockets-gets-35- million.html Back to Top Back to Top 2018 CHC Safety & Quality Summit: Call for Papers The Submission Deadline is Friday, March 30, 2018. There's still time to submit an abstract for 14th CHC's Safety & Quality Summit later this year! For more than a decade, professionals across multiple industries have gathered to share knowledge and best practices while hearing from some of the top minds in the fields of safety and human factors. There's still time for you to lend your voice to the conversation. Whether your background is in safety management systems or risk analysis; fixed-wing or rotorcraft; or if you come from the energy industry - we'd like you to join us at this year's Summit! Submit an abstract regarding this year's theme: Building Safety at Every Level: Does this start at the top or with front line employees? Join your industry colleagues to share in your knowledge and experience. Help teach others how to create, maintain or improve the culture of safety at their organizations. Submit an abstract by March 30 by visiting Call for Papers . Be sure to include a proposed title for your 90 minute presentation, as well as a description or outline, objectives, audience benefits and a brief speaker biography, as well as your contact information. Visit www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com for more information. Thank you! CHC Summit Team To find out more, or to submit an abstract, click on the project link below. Call for Papers Sincerely, Michelle Chrystal CHC Helicopter summit@CHCheli.com Curt Lewis