Flight Safety Information May 3, 2018 - No. 089 In This Issue Incident: United B739 near Denver on May 1st 2018, electrical situation Incident: Delta A333 near Norfolk on May 1st 2018, electrical problems Incident: Southwest B737 near Cleveland on May 2nd 2018, cracked cabin window Incident: Qantas B738 at Perth on Apr 28th 2018, runway incursion forces rejected takeoff 02-MAY-2018 - United States Air Force - USAF Lockheed WC-130H Hercules accident: 9 dead Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner...involved in a lithium battery overheat incident EVAS - Cockpit Smoke Protection NTSB opens docket for San Francisco International Airport near taxiway collision incident 'Flight Deck LIBIK - Lithium-Ion Battery Incident Kit Sikorsky Exec Stresses Urban Air Safety Rolls-Royce knew of engine fault but told Air NZ it was safe to fly, report says Aircraft emergency evacuation procedures: Passengers risk lives by taking carry-on luggage CAAV instructs stronger measures to ensure aviation safety Boeing: 2 million aviation workers needed by 2036; local college program may help China is pressuring international airlines to copy its political views NASA struggling to get James Webb Space Telescope across the finish line Call for Nominations For 2018 Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award 2018 CHC Safety & Quality Summit Early Registration Now Open 'BASS - Business Aviation Safety Summit - 2018' Don't miss the HFACS workshop in Las Vegas June 12th & 13th Incident: United B739 near Denver on May 1st 2018, electrical situation A United Boeing 737-900, registration N53441 performing flight UA-859 from Orlando,FL to Denver,CO (USA) with 185 people on board, was descending towards Denver when the crew declared emergency reporting an "electrical situation" on board, they did not require emergency services. The aircraft continued the approach for a safe landing on runway 17L about 20 minutes later. A passenger reported the aircraft shook violently during the approach, the aircraft was received by emergency services. At the time a weather front associated with windshear was moving across the aerodrome, by the time the aircraft landed at 13:53L (19:53Z) the thunderstorm cells had just reached the western runways of the aerodrome. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/UAL859/history/20180501/1611Z/KMCO/KDEN http://avherald.com/h?article=4b815556&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Delta A333 near Norfolk on May 1st 2018, electrical problems A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration N826NW performing flight DL-64 from Atlanta,GA (USA) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with 306 people on board, was enroute at FL370 about 100nm east of Norfolk,VA (USA) when the crew decided to turn around and return to Atlanta reporting electrical issues. The aircraft landed safely back on runway 27R about 3 hours after departure. The crew requested emergency services to check the brakes advising they had performed an overweight landing. The aircraft remained on the ground for about 3 hours, then departed again and reached Rome with a delay of 6.5 hours. http://avherald.com/h?article=4b814b4c&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Southwest B737 near Cleveland on May 2nd 2018, cracked cabin window A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N713SW performing flight WN-957 from Chicago Midway,IL to Newark,IL (USA) with 81 passengers, was enroute at FL330 about 120nm westnorthwest of Cleveland,OH (USA) when the crew descended the aircraft to FL270 due to a cabin window, the outer pane of which had cracked without any cabin pressurization issue. The aircraft diverted to Cleveland for a safe landing about 35 minutes after leaving FL330. The airline reported: "The Crew of Southwest Flight 957, with scheduled service from Chicago Midway International Airport to Newark Liberty International Airport, made an unscheduled stop at Cleveland-Hopkins International Airport for maintenance review of a potential crack to the outer pane of a window. There are multiple layers of panes in each aircraft window. No emergency landing was declared. The aircraft maintained pressurization, and the flight landed uneventfully in Cleveland. The aircraft has been taken out of service for maintenance review, and our local Cleveland Employees worked diligently to accommodate the 81 Customers on a new aircraft to Newark. The Safety of our Customers and Employees is our number one focus each and every day." https://flightaware.com/live/flight/SWA957/history/20180502/1351Z/KMDW/KEWR The cracked cabin window (Photo: Chaikel): http://avherald.com/h?article=4b81469f&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Qantas B738 at Perth on Apr 28th 2018, runway incursion forces rejected takeoff A Qantas Boeing 737-800, registration VH-XZM performing flight QF-567 from Sydney,NS to Perth,WA (Australia), had safely landed on Perth's runway 03, vacated the runway via taxiway J2 and was instructed and read back to hold short of runway 06. Another Qantas Boeing 737-800, registration VH-VZL performing flight QF-582 from Perth,WA to Sydney,NS (Australia), was accelerating for takeoff from runway 06 when VH-XZM crossed the hold short line on taxiway J2 prompting tower to instruct VH-VZL to stop immediately. VH-VZL rejected takeoff and came to a stop near taxiway J2. The aircraft vacated the runway via taxiway A and returned to the apron. VH-VZL was able to depart about one hour later. Australia's TSB rated the occurrence a serious incident and opened an investigation. The ATSB wrote: "The area where the incident occurred is annotated on the En Route Supplement Australia (ERSA) as a runway incursion 'hot spot'. The holding point on taxiway J2 prior to runway 06 is marked with a runway stop bar." http://avherald.com/h?article=4b811e7b&opt=0 Back to Top 02-MAY-2018 - United States Air Force - USAF Lockheed WC-130H Hercules accident: 9 dead Status: Preliminary Date: Wednesday 2 May 2018 Time: ca 11:30 Type: Lockheed WC-130H Hercules Operator: United States Air Force - USAF Registration: 65-0968 C/n / msn: 4110 First flight: 1965 Crew: Fatalities: / Occupants: Passengers: Fatalities: / Occupants: Total: Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 9 Airplane damage: Destroyed Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: ca 2 km from Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, GA (SAV) ( United States of America) Phase: Initial climb (ICL) Nature: Military Departure airport: Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, GA (SAV/KSAV), United States of America Destination airport: Tucson-Davis Monthan AFB, AZ (DMA/KDMA), United States of America Narrative: A Lockheed C-130 Hercules was destroyed whent it impacted Augusta Road (Highway 21) and burst into flames shortly after takeoff from Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, Georgia, USA. All nine occupants suffered fatal injuries. The aircraft was attached to the Puerto Rico Air National Guard and had been undergoing routine maintenance in Savannah before heading to the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) at Davis Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20180502-0 Back to Top Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner involved in a lithium battery overheat incident Date: 02-MAY-2018 Time: 06:15 LT Type: Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner Owner/operator: Air Canada Registration: C-FVLX C/n / msn: 38356 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 219 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: None Location: 245 nautical miles North of SCEL - Chile Phase: En route Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Toronto/Lester B. Pearson Intl, ON (CYYZ) Destination airport: Santiago/Arturo Merino Benítez Intl, Chile (SCEL) Narrative: Air Canada flight AC92 from Toronto's Lester B. Pearson Airport, Canada to Santiago-Arturo Merino Benítez Airport, Chile with 11 crew members and 208 passengers on board, was involved in a lithium battery overheat incident. When the aircraft was cruising at FL390 approximately 245 nautical miles North of SCEL, a passenger in the forward section of the aircraft inadvertently dropped a cellular phone down inside the seat mechanism. Despite guidance to passengers on how to address this type of situation, the seat was moved by the passenger which caused damage to phone. Smoke was then observed in the cabin, however there was no fire. The cabin crew was able to retrieve the device and placed it in a Portable Electronic Device Fire bag. The flight continued to destination without further incident. The seat area was inspected and no damage was found. The area was cleaned and the aircraft was returned to service. https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=210336 Back to Top Back to Top NTSB opens docket for San Francisco International Airport near taxiway collision incident The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) opened the public docket as part of its ongoing investigation of the July 7, 2017, Air Canada overflight of a taxiway at San Francisco International Airport. Air Canada flight 759, an Airbus A320, was cleared to land on runway 28R at San Francisco International Airport, but the aircraft lined up on parallel taxiway C, which had four airplanes on it awaiting takeoff clearance. Air Canada flight 759 descended below 100 feet above the ground and initiated a go-around after overflying the first airplane on taxiway C. The docket includes factual reports for operations, human performance, air traffic control, aircraft performance, and the flight data recorder. The docket also contains a video that shows the overflight, as well as interview summaries, photographs and other investigative material. The docket contains only factual information collected by NTSB investigators. Analysis, findings, recommendations, and probable cause determinations related to the incident will be issued by the NTSB at a later date. https://news.aviation-safety.net/2018/05/02/ntsb-opens-docket-for-san-francisco-international-airport-near-taxiway-collision-incident/ Back to Top Back to Top Sikorsky Exec Stresses Urban Air Safety Chris Van Buiten at podium The urban air mobility sector will need to meet stringent standards, Chris Van Buiten, vice president of Sikorsky Innovations, at the AVUSI conference. (Photo: Mark Huber) The emerging $30 billion urban air mobility market could succumb to crib death unless the industry embraces levels of safety that are at least equivalent to those governing helicopters weighing more than 7,000 pounds under FAR Part 29. That was the message from Chris Van Buiten, vice president of Sikorsky Innovations, this week at the AVUSI conference. "I am extremely nervous," he said. "Until you are ready to have your vehicle fly with your family onboard every day, you are making a toy. How many YouTube videos of a family coming off the 60th floor and tumbling to the sidewalk would it take to have this industry go away?" Van Buiten was referring to the aftermath of scheduled passenger-carrying Sikorsky S-61L that made a hard landing on the helipad atop New York's Pan Am building in 1977. It rolled over and flying debris killing four passengers awaiting boarding and a pedestrian on the ground. "Helicopter operations in most cities around the world stopped for decades," Van Buiten noted, with those that remained exiled to river barges and piers. Van Buiten said the magnitude of the urban air mobility safety challenge is daunting. "It's 50,000 aircraft flying 3,000 hours each annually-a total of 150 million flight hours per year. If the world's safest helicopter today is lost at a rate of one per one million flight hours and we are talking 150 million flight hours per year, can our industry tolerate 150 YouTube videos of moms not making it home? Never. Not going to happen. So if you aren't thinking about 100 times of what the best safety standard is in the helicopter industry right now, you are going to ruin it for us all. The bar is very high and it needs to be. The technology exists and the standards need to be vigorously adhered to. "I've heard people in this community talk about maturing their products in countries that have lower safety standards. That's outrageous and completely unacceptable. Part 29 is not going to be what's going to be required to fly with four passengers." The bar will be higher and the industry will need to reach it to ensure "business success of a $30 billion business and the vision we're talking about," he added. Van Buiten said Sikorsky is maturing autonomous flight technology in its legacy platforms and that has provided a sobering experience of just how difficult the urban mobility challenge is. "We've converted an S-76 to fly with a supercomputer onboard that does the required autonomy calculations in real time to do terrain avoidance and full point-to-point flight in national airspace. We have 120 hours in the aircraft executing very complex autonomy missions." This helicopter currently flies with a safety pilot. "Our Matrix technology uses flight controls and advanced diagnostics and prognostics to achieve the level of safety we are talking about. We're maturing the autonomy technology that will make this possible to make it an FAA-certifiable system. We're absolutely doing it the hard way, with Level A software and incredible levels of redundancy. It gets incredibly difficult to get to the levels of excellence required for operations at this level." Nevertheless, Van Buiten remains optimistic that the industry can meet the looming safety challenge. "Urban mobility is going to happen. We are seeing the venture capital come in. A lot of the right people are working on it and it is the intersection of electric propulsion and autonomy that are going to make the economics possible. It's an economics issue and a safety issue. We can do it and we can get to the required level of safety. But we need to collaborate and be honest about it." https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/general-aviation/2018-05-01/sikorsky-exec-stresses-urban-air-safety Back to Top Rolls-Royce knew of engine fault but told Air NZ it was safe to fly, report says The national carrier is working with engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce on an issue involving Trent 1000 engines. Two Air New Zealand flights forced into emergency landings had known engine problems, but were deemed safe to fly according to the manufacturer's risk models. In December 2017, an Air New Zealand Boeing 787 Dreamliner, bound for Tokyo, had to land suddenly after a failed engine caused the aircraft to shake violently with 282 people on board. The following day another Dreamliner, this time bound for Buenos Aires, also had to turn back when similar problems arose after take off. Air New Zealand told Newsroom at the time that it was "extremely surprised by the two issues experienced". Two Air New Zealand's Boeing 787 Dreamliner were grounded with failed engines in December 2017. A subsequent inquiry by the New Zealand Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) found engine manufacturers Rolls-Royce knew of six in-flight incidents worldwide before the Air New Zealand incidents. The TAIC interim report, published on Thursday, revealed the engine issues were caused by a known problem that happened earlier than predicted by Rolls-Royce's risk analysis model. Damage to turbine blades on a Rolls Royce Trent 1000 engine shut down by pilots on an Air New Zealand Dreamliner just after takeoff from Auckland. "The Commission's continuing inquiries into these incidents suggest that the failures were consistent with a known problem with unmodified Trent 1000 engines," said the Commission's manager of air investigations, Peter Williams. "Rolls-Royce has been replacing engine components with a new design, and managing the safe operating life of unmodified engines using a risk analysis model. "After the December incidents Rolls-Royce reduced the number of flights Air New Zealand could make under its risk analysis model, but obviously it would have been preferable that the model had taken the engines out of service before the December incidents could occur. "After the December incidents Air New Zealand had also voluntarily reduced the maximum time to a diversion airport for which it would fly its aircraft with unmodified engines." Since the Air New Zealand events, the European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA), which certifies the engines, also directed that aircraft should not be powered by two unmodified engines which had flown similar numbers of flights, he said. "Since the Commission began consulting on a draft of today's interim report and associated draft urgent recommendations, further action by EASA and the United States Federal Aviation Authority meant final recommendations were not needed," Williams said. The damaged blades are in the aft section of the turbine blade sections. The report confirms that all eight incidents occurred during the take-off or climb phases of flight when engines are subjected to the highest stress, and the blade separations have followed cracking in the blade shank that has been initiated by corrosion. Rolls Royce told the TAIC it is likely a combination of environmental and operational factors are involved and that they may be operator specific. Rolls-Royce has been replacing blades in the Trent 1000 single-stage intermediate pressure turbine modules with redesigned blades made from a different alloy and with an improved corrosion protective coating. It had been using a risk analysis model to determine how many flights unmodified engines may make safely. Air New Zealand has been approached for comment. https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/travel-troubles/103594447/rollsroyce-knew-of-engine-fault-but-told-air-nz-it-was-safe-to-fly-report-says Back to Top Aircraft emergency evacuation procedures: Passengers risk lives by taking carry-on luggage When an engine on a Boeing 777, operated by British Airways, caught fire as the aircraft was on its take-off roll at Las Vegas, all 170 passengers and crew were safely evacuated. Photo: AP How long do you reckon it's going to take to evacuate an aircraft in an emergency? That's every passenger and crew member, out of their seats and down the evacuation slides, starting from the time the emergency exits pop open to the time when the cabin is completely empty. In a smoke-filled cabin with the aircraft on fire, and possibly with some of the emergency exits blocked or unusable. Considering there are probably some wheelchair passengers on board, plus solo parents with babies and infants. Two or three minutes, maybe longer? How about 90 seconds? Because 90 seconds is the time required for an aircraft with a seating capacity of more than 44 passengers to achieve certification by Europe's Joint Aviation Regulations or the Federal Aviation Regulations in the USA. To demonstrate compliance, an aircraft manufacturer must perform a full-scale evacuation demonstration, in darkness, with half the available exits blocked and with a gender mix as close as possible to that on a typical flight. Crew and passengers don't know which exits will be blocked and all passengers and crew are expected to be out of the aircraft and on the ground within 90 seconds. If not, the aircraft can't be certified as a commercial aircraft. Passengers from Asiana Airlines flight 214, many with their luggage, on the tarmac just moments after the plane crashed at the San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco. Photo: AP Despite every attempt to create a realistic scenario, the demonstration is a long way short of the life-threatening situation that is likely to be unfolding in a real-life emergency evacuation. The evacuees in the demo know they're going to have to make an emergency evacuation. They're prepped for it, and probably far more aware of where the emergency exits are than is the case among passengers on a typical flight. They are not sitting on an aircraft which might have just skidded along the runway after its landing gear collapsed, shredding screaming metal. There's no choking, eye-watering smoke in the cabin, the aircraft isn't burning, no blind panic and no passengers screaming hysterically. In a YouTube video of an A380 evacuation test, the 873 "passengers" are almost universally young, slender and agile. No babies, no kids, no elderly, incapacitated or intoxicated passengers. The miracle, then, is that many stricken aircraft that are beset by flames and smoke, having just come to a halt after screeching and tearing themselves to bits along the runway and burdened with passengers who are not in their prime, do in fact manage to get everyone on board safely off in something very close to 90 seconds. When an Emirates Boeing 777 crashed and caught fire at Dubai Airport in 2016, all 300 passengers and crew were evacuated safely despite only half the emergency slides being deployed before the aircraft was engulfed in flames. In 2013 an Asiana 777 crashed short of the runway at San Francisco, causing the landing gear, engines and tail section to separate from the fuselage which bucked and pivoted wildly as it skidded along the runway. Despite many injuries from the crash, fire outside and smoke inside the cabin, 305 of the 307 on board survived. The two who died in the crash were found not to be wearing seatbelts. When an engine on yet another Boeing 777, operated by British Airways this time, caught fire as the aircraft was on its take-off roll at Las Vegas, all 170 passengers and crew were safely evacuated, although 27 required hospital treatment for minor injuries. In all three cases emergency evacuation procedures proved effective, yet a common thread has emerged from these incidents that deeply disturbed flight crew, aviation regulators and crash investigators. In each disaster, images showed a number of passengers leaving the aircraft having retrieved their carry-ons from the overhead lockers. This was despite the commands of crew members to passengers to get out of the aircraft and leave their bags behind. Among the items that passengers took with them were handbags, wheeled cases, backpacks and even duty-free alcohol. Some even stopped to grab a selfie, or to shoot video of the unfolding drama on their smartphone while still inside the aircraft. Apart from delaying other passengers attempting to reach the emergency exits, and slowing down their owners, carry-ons present an additional threat to the inflatable slides that deploy automatically from these exits. Images posted on social media in 2016 showed passengers scrambling to get their luggage from overhead compartments while their plane was on fire after landing in Dubai. Photo: One solution that has been suggested is overhead baggage compartments that lock shut in an emergency. However, the prospect of some enraged and panicked passengers slamming at the overhead lockers while trying to free their precious gear - and holding up everyone behind - is not the desired effect. It's behaviour that needs adjusting, not the hardware. Perhaps requiring passengers who have retrieved their carry-ons to return them to the overhead lockers of their stricken aircraft could be a more effective deterrent. http://www.traveller.com.au/aircraft-emergency-evacuation-procedures-passengers-risk-lives-by-taking-carryon-luggage-h0zjwr#ixzz5EQU607R9 Back to Top CAAV instructs stronger measures to ensure aviation safety Hanoi (VNA) - The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has issued an instruction on ensuring aviation safety after recent incidents, especially the landing of a Vietnam Airlines' flight in a runway that has not been ready to use in Cam Ranh International Airport in the south central province of Khanh Hoa. Under the Instruction 119/CT-CHK dated May 2, the CAAV asked Vietnam Airlines' pilots to make thorough preparations prior to flights including updating themselves on information of the scheduled flight and study the structure of the landing airport, while making early contact with the air traffic control station of the landing airport to get meteorological information as well as landing methods and runway. The pilot must double check important information, strictly adhere to aviation regulations, and immediately report on unusual signs that may confuse the pilot and threaten the fight's safety. Earlier on April 29, Vietnam Airlines' flight VN-7344, which departed from Ho Chi Minh City at 2:00 pm carrying a seven-member crew and 203 passengers, landed on a runway that was under construction at Cam Ranh International Airport in Khanh Hoa at 2:53 pm the same day. No passenger or crew member was hurt. All crewmembers of the fights have been suspended for investigation. The CAAV also asked the Airports Corporation of Vietnam and Cam Ranh International Airport to strengthen supervision of the investor and contractor's work in ensuring security and safety of the runway construction project. Instant measures must be applied to warn flights landing in the airport of the condition of the unfinished runway, stated the instruction. The Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation and the air traffic control unit of Cam Ranh Airport were told to intensify the supervision of aircraft's movement since they approach the airport for landing until they exit the runway in order to timely prevent incidents similar to that on April 29. Relevant agencies were also asked to review their operations to ensure aviation safety, while consulting the CAAV on the issuance of necessary documents to prevent similar incidents. Vietnam Airlines said on May 2 that immediately after the incident, the airline had coordinated closely with the CAAV and competent agencies to investigate the case. Vietnam Airlines also convened an emergency meeting for the entire system and reviewed the carrier's operations at Cam Ranh International Airport and other airports so as not to repeat similar incidents. It said mistakes committed by the flight crew were an important reason for the April 29 wrongful landing and pledged to continue to coordinate closely with the investigation group of the CAAV and competent agencies to clarify the incident and trace other reasons of concerned parties in order to make official conclusions. Following the incident, the flight's captain reported the incident on his own and committed to complying to all requirements to serve the investigation work of competent agencies.-VNA https://en.vietnamplus.vn/caav-instructs-stronger-measures-to-ensure-aviation-safety/130392.vnp Back to Top Boeing: 2 million aviation workers needed by 2036; local college program may help SEATTLE - A Boeing study shows the aviation industry will need 2 million new commercial pilots, maintenance technicians, and cabin crew members over the next 20 years. When there's an emergency landing as we've seen twice over the past couple of weeks with two Southwest Airlines planes, if there's a problem with a plane itself... "You take it very personally. It hurts you in the midsection," said Selena MacFadden, who is as an adjunct instructor at South Seattle College's Aviation Maintenance Technology program. She teaches students how to keep planes up in the air. "You know what's going on as far as how the mechanics are feeling, who that aircraft was assigned to, who was on board, everybody asks themselves, 'Did I have a part to do in it? Did I work on it? What happened?'" asked MacFadden. However, the number of people responsible for keeping our planes in tip-top shape is declining due to retirement and a lack of new recruits. "There's an immediate fear of math and physics," said David Skogerboe, a South Seattle College embedded career specialist. At 50 years of age, Adrian Claybourne is answering the call. The former pastry chef who spent years sailing in the Caribbean is heading back to school to be an aviation mechanic. "In the Caribbean, there are no mechanics really, so I decided I should probably learn how to fix my own plane," said Claybourne. It's Skogerboe's job to connect students like Adrian with the countless openings across the nation. "People are starting to realize I can go to school for two years and make a lot of money pretty quickly," said Skogerboe. But a baseline salary of $20 an hour isn't enough to fuel the shortage of aviation professionals. "They think it's low-tech, just turning wrenches and things like that," said Claybourne. Maintenance work isn't all just about using your hands on complex parts. There's a growing tech side. "The electronics in an aircraft -- and that is exploding in need as aircrafts become more like computers," said Skogerboe. Claybourne graduates with his degree and two FAA certifications next month. He leaves behind one of many open spots at the aviation program for more students passionate about keeping us safe when we fly. That same Boeing report shows there's a shortage of pilots. One local flight instructor says money is a factor. Pilots don't make as much money as what they used to and going to flight school is expensive and normally doesn't come with opportunities for grants, scholarships, or student loans. http://q13fox.com/2018/05/02/boeing-report-20m-aviation-jobs-needed-by-2036-to-keep-us-safe-in-the-sky/ Back to Top China is pressuring international airlines to copy its political views • China has sent letters to Qantas, American Airlines, and reportedly United Airlines to warn them against referring to Taiwan as a country. • The letter from China's Civil Aviation Authority says the companies will be referred to "the relevant cyber-security authorities" if they do not comply. • Taiwan is a self-ruled democratic island that China considers one of its provinces. • Zara and Marriott experienced the same issues earlier this year, with the hotel chain forced to shut down its app and website for a week as financial punishment. China is pressuring airlines around the world to toe its political line. Qantas and American Airlines have confirmed they recently received a letter from China's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) warning them to follow China's laws and change references to Taiwan as a country to a province of China. Taiwan's political situation is highly contentious as the democratic island is self-ruled, but Beijing considers it to be a province of China. The letter, according to Foreign Policy, was also received by United Airlines and said the companies would be referred to "the relevant cyber-security authorities" if they did not undertake the change. Qantas confirmed to Business Insider it also received the CAA letter. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the correspondence was sent last month and requested changes to mentions of Taiwan, as well as Hong Kong and Macau which are both Special Administrative Regions of China. Business Insider reviewed Qantas' webpage at 10.30pm on Wednesday and found Taiwan was indeed listed as a country. Earlier this year, the CAA demanded Delta Air Lines issue a public apology for listing Taiwan and Tibet as countries on its website. The airline responded and said it had made a "grave mistake". Around the same time during a regular review of its site, Qantas found a similar "oversight" that listed some Chinese territories as countries. "We are correcting this error," a Qantas spokesperson told Business Insider. It is currently unknown whether Qantas ever corrected this "error", if it was only changed on some areas of its site, or if the regions were changed to territories of China and then back again. But not complying with China's laws concerning its territories can have huge financial repercussions. Marriott was ordered to shut down its app and website for a week in January for sending an email that listed Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan as countries. Part of China's motive is to ensure international recognition for Taiwan doesn't grow. Because as more companies and countries officially recognise the democratic island as its own country, China's claim to rule diminishes. Just yesterday China snapped up one of Taiwan's largest diplomatic allies. The Dominican Republic cut ties to Taiwan in favour of establishing a formal relationship with China. Taipei warned that the move was another example of China's "dollar diplomacy", luring the island's allies with promises of billions in aid and loans. Only 19 countries now hold diplomatic relations with Taiwan. http://www.businessinsider.com/china-sends-letter-to-qantas-united-american-airlines-on-taiwan-2018-5 Back to Top NASA struggling to get James Webb Space Telescope across the finish line A custom cargo container holding JWST's optical telescope assembly is loaded into a C-5 aircraft in Houston on Jan. 31 for transport to Northrop Grumman's Redondo Beach, California, facility. Credit: NASA Johnson Space Center On the evening of Feb. 2, a C-5 plane landed at Los Angeles International Airport, having taken off a few hours earlier from Ellington Field in Houston. A truck unloaded its contents, a customized cargo container called the Space Telescope Transporter for Air, Road and Sea (STTARS), and drove it several kilometers away to the sprawling Space Park campus of Northrop Grumman. Inside STTARS was the optical telescope assembly for the James Webb Space Telescope, including its giant segmented mirror and suite of instruments, which had recently completed thermal vacuum testing at the Johnson Space Center. The telescope part of JWST was now, for the first time, in the same clean room as its spacecraft bus and sunshield, ready to put together - if all went according to plan. But, with JWST, not everything goes according to plan. "With all the flight hardware 100 percent complete, we're approaching the finish line for launch readiness," said Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA associate administrator for science. "However, it looks like we have a ways to go before we cross that finish line." Zurbuchen spoke at a media teleconference March 27, announced less than 24 hours earlier, to dispense the latest dose of bad news for the mission. JWST, whose launch had already slipped last year from October 2018 to between March and June 2019, would be delayed again, now until approximately May 2020. The delay has obvious implications for the mission, and the scientists who have been waiting for years to use the telescope. However, it could have repercussions that go far beyond this single mission. Deploying and refolding JWST's many-layered sunshield took much longer than NASA expected. Moreover, the sunshield experienced several tears during the deployment test. Credit: NASA Human error and optimistic schedules There was no single technical issue that caused this latest schedule slip. "The change in launch timing is not indicative of hardware or technical performance concerns," Zurbuchen said on the call. "Rather, the integration of the various spacecraft elements is taking longer than expected." That work suffered a number of problems involving the spacecraft and sunshield, rather than the telescope and instruments. When NASA delayed JWST's launch last year, it cited issues with thrusters on the spacecraft and delays with the testing of the five-layer deployable sunshield. Both those issues factored into the new, longer delay. The biggest problem, said Dennis Andrucyk, deputy associate administrator for science at NASA, was with the spacecraft's thrusters. "The propulsion system's issues were all introduced by human error, unfortunately," he said in a briefing at the National Academies' Space Science Week meeting just a couple hours after the official announcement of the delay. Technicians cleaned the thrusters with an "incorrect solvent," he said, damaging seals in valves. They had to be refurbished, causing a slip of about nine months. In addition, pressure transducers in the propulsion system were damaged when workers applied the wrong voltage to them, requiring them to be replaced, at a cost of three months. A similar voltage problem damaged a heater for a catalyst bed used for a thruster, causing another month of delays. The sunshield suffered different problems. "It took much longer to deploy, fold and stow the sunshield," Andrucyk said. Original plans called for deploying the sunshield in a week and folding it back up in a month."That was an optimistic schedule," he said, noting it actually took twice as long. Moreover, the sunshield experienced several tears during that deployment test, the largest of which was about 10 centimeters long. Andrucyk said those tears have been repaired, and steps have been taken to reduce the slack in cables used to deploy the sunshield that contributed to the problem. The sunshield work caused about seven months of delays, although some of that was in parallel with the thruster work. A third issue, he said, was that the integration and testing schedule of the spacecraft and sunshield needed to be stretched out to take into account lessons from past work. That added three months to the schedule, and the project tacked on another three months of schedule reserve. The result, he said, was an 18-month delay to about May 2020 from the October 2018 launch date that the mission had been holding until last fall. The telescope's combined science instruments and optical element exits the massive thermal vacuum testing chamber after about 100 days of cryogenic testing inside it. Scientists and engineers at Johnson Space Center put JWST through a series of tests designed to ensure the telescope functioned as expected in an extremely cold, airless environment akin to that of space. Credit: NASA Webb's exact launch date, though, remains unclear. The mission's standing review board, whose schedule assessment led to the announcement of this delay, offered the May 2020 date at the 70 percent confidence level. "We need to reach a higher confidence level before we make a final launch date determination," Zurbuchen said. To assist in that work, NASA announced the formation of an independent review board, to be chaired by Tom Young, a former NASA center director and aerospace executive with extensive experience on space projects and a willingness to speak his mind. (When the delay was announced, Young, who serves on the National Academies' Committee on Astronomy and Astrophysics, was grilling other NASA officials about the status of JWST's already imperiled successor, the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope, or WFIRST, mission.) "The reason I'm asking for an independent review to look at this is that, frankly, I don't think I have a concise answer to how we ended up there," Zurbuchen said. "There are a lot of symptoms out there, but root cause is different than a description of symptoms." That independent review was scheduled to start in early April and wrap up at the end of May. Its results will be incorporated into continued internal analysis of the state of the project, with a report to Congress by late June that will include a revised launch date and development cost. Even as those reviews continue, NASA announced several managerial changes to the program. Those include more interaction between agency leadership and executives at Northrop Grumman, as well as putting more senior NASA project managers on site at Northrop's facility. The company also established a direct reporting line between its JWST project manager, Scott Willoughby, and company president Kathy Warden. In the days following the announcement of the delay, NASA shuffled some project leadership. Eric Smith, who served as JWST director at NASA Headquarters, was moved to the position of program scientist. Greg Robinson, deputy associate administrator for programs in NASA's science mission directorate, took over as program director. Three ways to measure costs Perhaps the biggest question facing JWST is what effect these delays, and the work to overcome them, will have on the mission's cost. In the 2011 "re-plan" of JWST, when cost and schedule overruns threatened the mission with cancellation, Congress set a $8 billion cap on its development. The mission has remained within that cost cap - at least for now. While JWST's reviews continue through June, just how much its cost will increase isn't known, or even if it will breach the cap, which would require Congress to formally reauthorize the mission. "We think it's likely that we will, but we don't have the data in hand to establish a new cost," explained Paul Hertz, director of NASA's astrophysics division, at a meeting of the Committee on Astronomy and Astrophysics the day after the announcement. "We're not 100-percent confident that we're going to breach that $8 billion." The implications of a cost increase on JWST are complex and depend on the timescale you examine. "There are three different costs at play here," Hertz said, from the short to the long term. One cost, he explained, is simply how much money the mission needs in any given year. "What matters to me as the astrophysics division director is, is the money I need in any given year more than the money that is currently budgeted for Webb?" Hertz said that, for fiscal years 2019 and 2020, money that had been budgeted for operations could instead be spent on development. As a result, he did not expect to need much additional funding to accommodate the Webb delay. "I don't believe it will be a large impact," he said, and not until 2020. "The amount of money we need in [fiscal year 2020] will be modest compared to the whole astrophysics budget." However, a shift of funds from operations to development - NASA requested $305 million for JWST in its 2019 budget proposal and expected to need nearly $200 million in 2020 - would count against that $8 billion cost cap, the second of Hertz's costs. Whether the mission breaches the cost cap, and by how much, won't be known until June. The third cost is the mission's total life-cycle cost, including its development and operations. That will go up, he said, because operations will extend at least 18 months longer than previously planned. While JWST has a prime mission of five years, Hertz said planning assumes that it will be extended to perhaps 10 years or more "just in case it passes senior review" - a line met with laughter by a roomful of astronomers who have long assumed that NASA will operate the telescope as long as it's technically feasible to do so. Long-term effects With such an extension, Hertz said expects JWST to be operating into the 2030s, assuming it enters operations in late 2020 or 2021. That will put its operations in parallel for years with NASA's next astrophysics flagship mission, WFIRST - if it gets built. NASA's 2019 budget proposal sought to cancel WFIRST, citing a desire to use at least some of funding projected for WFIRST for exploration programs. However, Congress provided WFIRST with $150 million in the fiscal year 2018 omnibus bill, more than requested, and included report language indirectly criticizing any proposal to cancel it. That windfall, though, came before the new JWST delay, leaving some fearing that Congress may not be in such a generous mood when it takes up the 2019 budget proposal. Zurbuchen went to great lengths in presentations to clarify that the sins of JWST are not also the sins of WFIRST. "There's going to be an impact of perception," he said, acknowledging recent efforts to reduce the costs of WFIRST. The difference, he emphasized, was that WFIRST relies little on new technologies: its telescope is a hand-me-down from the National Reconnaissance Office, and its main instrument is more mature than JWST's instruments were at a similar phase of development. "WFIRST and Webb are as similar to each other as the Malibu that I drive and the Ferrari my neighbor drives," he said. "They're both cars, but they're really different classes of both cost and complexity." The delay in JWST could also affect planning for later missions beyond WFIRST. Astronomers had hoped JWST would be operational in 2019 so that initial science results could influence the next astrophysics decadal survey, scheduled to be completed in late 2020. That survey will identify, among other things, the top-priority flagship mission that would be in line for NASA to develop and launch some time in the 2030s. "We recognize that the timing of the decadal is a multi-stakeholder type of discussion," Zurbuchen said, suggesting "we should flip planetary and astrophysics and move astrophysics to the right." With the next planetary science decadal scheduled to be completed in 2022, this would likely delay the astrophysics decadal to perhaps 2024. For now, the community shows little sign of supporting such a delay. "I would as soon just not delay it a couple of years," said Anne Kinney, head of the NSF's mathematics and physics sciences directorate. NSF is involved with the decadal as it funds ground-based observatories. "From NSF's perspective, let's keep going." "We're still holding discussions both internally and with NASA and NSF as to what the astronomers should do," said David Smith of the National Academies at an April 4 meeting of a NASA Mars advisory committee. "My hope is that we stick to the schedule." The delay and additional expense is worth it for both JWST and future missions, Zurbuchen emphasized. "The stupidest thing we could is to somehow rush to a deadline," he said. "What's really important here is that when we're done, we launch this and we have a telescope on orbit that works and fulfills on its promise." He added that a lesson that should not be taken away from JWST's woes is that NASA should avoid complex missions like it. "We should push the envelope," he said. "But what we should also do is not make stupid mistakes." http://spacenews.com/nasa-struggling-to-get-james-webb-space-telescope-across-the-finish-line/ Back to Top FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 25, 2018 CONTACT: Philip Barbour, 205-939-1700, 205-617-9007 Call for Nominations For 2018 Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- The Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Foundation is now accepting nominations for the 2018 Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award, honoring a leader in global aviation safety. The award will be presented during the 71st Annual International Air Safety Summit, taking place Nov. 12-15 in Seattle, Wash. Presented since 1956, the Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award recognizes notable achievement in the field of civil or military aviation safety in method, design, invention, study or other improvement. The award's recipient is selected for a "significant individual or group effort contributing to improving aviation safety, with emphasis on original contributions," and a "significant individual or group effort performed above and beyond normal responsibilities." Mechanics, engineers and others outside of top administrative or research positions should be especially considered. The contribution need not be recent, especially if the nominee has not received adequate recognition. Nominations that were not selected as past winners of the Award can be submitted one additional time for consideration. Please note that self-nominations will not be considered. The Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award's story dates back 70 years. On April 14, 1945, after visiting family in Pittsburgh, Laura Taber Barbour was aboard a Pennsylvania Central Airlines DC-3 when it crashed into the rugged terrain of Cheat Mountain near Morgantown, West Virginia. All passengers and crew were killed. In the years following, her husband, Dr. Clifford E. Barbour and son, Clifford E. Barbour, Jr., established the Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award in her honor. The Award Board, composed of leaders in the field of aviation, meets in June of each year to conduct a final review of nominees and selection of the current year's recipient. Please help us honor this year's most deserving recipient. Nominations, including a 1-2-page narrative, can be submitted via the Laura Taber Barbour Foundation website at http://ltbaward.org/the-award/nomination-form/. Nominations will be accepted until June 14, 2018. For more information, including a complete history of Award recipients, see www.ltbaward.org. ABOUT THE LAURA TABER BARBOUR AIR SAFETY AWARD: The Award was established in 1956 through early association with the Flight Safety Foundation and from its founding has enjoyed a rich history of Award Board members, nominees and Award recipients. In 2013, the Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Foundation was formed from members of the Award Board, the aviation community and the Barbour family. As the foundation plans to broaden the scope of its intent, with great purpose, the Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award will continue to spotlight those champions who pioneer breakthroughs in flight safety. Back to Top 2018 CHC Safety & Quality Summit Early Registration Now Open IRVING, TX - May 1, 2018 - CHC Helicopter today announced the official opening of early bird registration for its signature aviation safety event, the annual CHC Safety and Quality Summit. From May 1 through May 31, interested delegates will have the opportunity to register for this year's' event at a discounted early bird rate of $1085 (USD). After May 31, the regular price for registration goes up to $1185 (USD). Now entering its fourteenth year, the CHC Safety and Quality Summit draws more than 500 industry professionals from nearly 30 countries to gather to share the latest in safety best practices and the human factors elements in safety. This year, delegates will come together to discuss the theme: Building Safety at Every Level: Does this start at the top or with front line employees? The 2018 CHC Safety and Quality Summit will take place October 2-4 at the Gaylord Texan Resort Hotel & Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas, near CHC's global headquarters. To register and learn more about the Summit visit www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com. For additional questions, please email summit@chcheli.com. About CHC For more than 70 years, CHC Helicopter has provided safe, reliable, cost-effective helicopter service in some of the most remote and challenging environments around the world. With extensive experience transporting customers in the oil and gas industry, supporting search-and-rescue and EMS contracts, and providing maintenance, repair and overhaul services, our dedication to safety and reputation for quality and innovation help our customers reach beyond what they thought possible. Visit www.chcheli.com for information. Contact Information SUMMIT Irina Sakgaev Safety & Quality Applications Specialist +1.604.232.7302 summit@chcheli.com MEDIA Cameron Meyer Communications Specialist +1.214.262.7391 Cameron.Meyer@chcheli.com www.chcsafetyqualitysummit.com Curt Lewis