Flight Safety Information March 26, 2020 - No. 062 In This Issue Incident: LATAM A319 near Sao Paulo on Mar 9th 2020, engine shut down in flight Incident: Lufthansa Cityline CRJ9 at Munich on Mar 25th 2020, smell in cockpit Singapore Airlines and SilkAir pilots put on leave without pay Alaska Airlines drastically slash down flights by 70 percent Air Canada Flight Attendants Union Dismayed by Lack of Federal, Company Action to Protect Workers US warns its airlines of risk of attack in Kenyan airspace FAA says no passengers on Collings Foundation aircraft after deadly CT crash Emptier skies: New data shows that nearly 7,000 aircraft have been stored S.A.F.E. postpones Maintenance Safety Symposium Russia to Ground International Flights From Friday Due to Coronavirus Glut of Jet Fuel Is on Brink of Overwhelming Global Storage Welders wanted: SpaceX is hiring to ramp up production of stainless steel Starship The USC Aviation Safety & Security Program Has Moved Online! Incident: LATAM A319 near Sao Paulo on Mar 9th 2020, engine shut down in flight A LATAM Brasil Airbus A319-100, registration PR-MAL performing flight LA-3146 from Rio de Janeiro Santos Dumont,RJ to Curitiba,PR (Brazil) with 125 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing through FL343 when the crew needed to shut the right hand engine (V2524) down after the crew had received a low oil quantity indication then followed by a low oil pressure indication for the right hand engine. The crew diverted to Sao Paulo's Guarulhos Airport,SP (Brazil) for a safe landing on runway 09R about 30 minutes after stopping the climb. Brazil's CENIPA reported that following the low engine oil quantity indication and the later low oil pressure indication the crew performed a precautionary shut down of the engine and diverted to Guarulhos Airport. http://avherald.com/h?article=4d4f77bc&opt=0 Back to Top Incident: Lufthansa Cityline CRJ9 at Munich on Mar 25th 2020, smell in cockpit A Lufthansa Cityline Canadair CRJ-900, registration D-ACNW performing flight LH-2006 from Munich to Dusseldorf (Germany), was climbing out of Munich's runway 08L when the crew stopped the climb at about FL150 reporting they had a small event in the cockpit only, nothing in the cabin. The crew requested to return to Munich and landed safely on Munich's runway 08R about 25 minutes after departure. A replacement Canadiar CRJ-900 registration D-ACNX reached Dusseldorf with a delay of 2 hours. http://avherald.com/h?article=4d4f8451&opt=0 Back to Top Back to Top Singapore Airlines and SilkAir pilots put on leave without pay Singapore Airlines has asked its pilots to take unpaid leave for up to seven days each month, starting 1 April. The airline tells Cirium this applies to pilots with the mainline carrier and regional carrier SilkAir, and the measures will be in place "until the business recovers". It adds: "We have also reached agreements with our unions for a set of cost-cutting measures. These include voluntary no-pay leave for all staff up to division vice-presidents [and] varying days of compulsory no-pay leave ranging between one and seven days every month for pilots, executives and associates, as well as furlough for staff on re-employment contracts. These measures will impact about 10,000 staff." Local newspaper Business Times reports that captains are to take seven days of unpaid leave per month, while first officers and second officers will take five days and four days, respectively. Pilots older than 62 and on re-employment contracts will be placed on furlough for at least six months. The same report quotes Kenneth Lai, president of the Air Line Pilots Association Singapore (Alpa-S), as saying that the latest measures, along with steep capacity cuts, will on average cut captains' salaries by as much as 55%. First officers and second officers will see reductions of up to 50% and 15%, respectively. These are computed against the pilots' total monthly package, comprising their basic salary and a variable component. Singapore Airlines declined to say when the next round of scheduled salary negotiations with Alpa-S would take place, citing confidentiality. Responding to Cirium's queries about how the latest measures will impact its liquidity, the group reiterates that it has drawn on its lines of credit to meet immediate cash-flow requirements and is in discussions with several financial institutions for future funding needs. It says: "The company continues to explore measures to shore up its liquidity during this unprecedented disruption to global air travel." https://www.flightglobal.com/airlines/singapore-airlines-and-silkair-pilots-put-on-leave-without-pay/137540.article Back to Top Alaska Airlines drastically slash down flights by 70 percent HONOLULU (KHON2) - Alaska Airlines announced that it will reduce its flight schedule for April and May by about 70 percent due to the COVID-19 outbreak. According to the company, flight schedules for June and beyond will be based on demand but expects that reductions will be substantial for at least the next several months. "Alaska's goal, since the onset of this outbreak, has been to keep our employees and guests safe and healthy, and to ensure that our airline is here to support and serve them in the future," said Alaska CEO Brad Tilden. "But we also know that given the lack of demand for air travel and profound impact on the financial management of our business, hard work and aggressive control of costs and cash are required, even with additional support." Some of the actions being taken to reduce spending and improve liquidity are as follows: • The company announced the suspension of its cash dividend and previously announced the suspension of our share repurchase program. • Alaska Airlines have drawn down $400 million on our line of credit and closed an additional secured loan for $425 million today. • The company will be announcing officer pay reductions through Sept. 30 as follows: • 100% pay reduction for both the CEO and President of Alaska Airlines; • 50% for the President of Horizon Air; • 30% for EVPs and SVPs; and • 20% for VPs and MDs. • Its Board of Directors voted to take their own cash retainers to zero through Sept. 30. • Alaska Air are actively soliciting employees who are interested in voluntary leaves of absence, under which Alaska would continue to pay both health and travel benefits. • Alaska Air suspended annual pay increases, plan to reduce hours for management employees, and will release contractors and temporary workers. • Alaska Air is aggressively managing all spending, including all spending for aircraft, buildings, equipment, leases, services and other areas. It will make all necessary investments in expense items to maintain the safety and integrity of our operation. • Alaska Airlines are working with all vendor partners to reduce spending in line with its reduced flight schedule. https://www.khon2.com/coronavirus-2/alaska-airlines-drastically-slash-down-flights-by-70-percent/ Back to Top Air Canada Flight Attendants Union Dismayed by Lack of Federal, Company Action to Protect Workers and the Public VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 25, 2020-- The union representing Air Canada flight attendants is dismayed by the lack of action by both the airline and the government to better protect the safety of flight attendants and passengers in the air. On March 17, following a complaint by the Air Canada Component of CUPE, an investigation into working conditions onboard three Air Canada aircraft was conducted by the office of the federal Minister of Labour. The investigation determined that "requiring flight attendants to come frequently into close proximity with passengers during the COVID19 outbreak, in order to provide regular service, with no possibility of social distancing presents a serious threat to their health." On March 20, the federal government ordered Air Canada to alter working guidelines to mitigate the risks to flight attendants and gave the airline until March 23 to comply. However, the union representing the flight attendants is wondering why the federal government has yet to take action. "The lack of action by both the government and the airline is an insult to the flight attendants who have soldiered through this crisis at tremendous risk to their own health and safety to bring thousands of Canadians home," said Wesley Lesosky, the President of the Air Canada Component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). For weeks, the union has been imploring the government and the company to improve health and safety requirements onboard commercial aircraft. Recommendations from the union included better, and more readily available personal protective equipment for flight attendants and reduced in-flight meal and drink service so that flight attendants are only interacting with passengers for emergencies. Both the government and the company have been slow to respond, although progress has been made it does not go far enough. https://apnews.com/Business%20Wire/c0840233776b471aa2c64f44c8b1ad70 Back to Top US warns its airlines of risk of attack in Kenyan airspace In Summary The latest alert by its agency could rock recent growth in the Kenyan travel and aviation sector after years of recovery. FAA asked American operators to report any security related incidents they may encounter within the airspace. The US government has issued a fresh advisory, warning its airlines of the risk of being attacked within Kenyan airspace in yet another blow to local tourism. The US, backed by an express Nairobi-New York air link, is Kenya's top source of foreign tourists recording 245,437 arrivals last year. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), in an updated alert issued on Wednesday, warned civilian airliners and all operators of US-registered aircraft to "exercise caution" when flying over Kenyan airspace, citing possible attacks by extremists. "Those persons are advised to exercise caution when flying into, out of, within, or over the territory and airspace of Kenya East of 40 degrees East longitude at altitudes below fl260 due to the possibility of extremist/militant activity," the agency said. It asked American operators to report any security related incidents they may encounter within the airspace. FAA also asked the affected operators to inform it of their travel plans at least 72 hours ahead of planned flights to Kenya. FAA said it will review the advisory by February 26, 2021. It issued a similar warning in February 2019. https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/business/US-Kenya-air-safety-advisory/2560-5471954-9ppp09/index.html Back to Top FAA says no passengers on Collings Foundation aircraft after deadly CT crash In a recent ruling, the Federal Aviation Administration revoked the Collings Foundation's permission to have passengers aboard its aircraft after a deadly crash last October, citing various safety reasons. The ruling comes nearly six months after a World War II B-17 bomber Nine O Nine - owned by the Collings Foundation - crashed soon after taking off from Bradley International Airport on Oct. 2, 2019. The aircraft experienced engine trouble. Seven people died - five passengers, the pilot and the co-pilot. Seven others were injured. The National Transportation Safety Board investigation is ongoing. In the seven-page FAA decision, released Wednesday, FAA Deputy Executive Director of Flight Service Standards Robert Carty indicated there were issues with two of the aircraft's four engines and that the foundation didn't follow requirements to run the plane and carry passengers. A request for comment from Hunter Chaney, a spokesman for the Collings Foundation, was not immediately returned Wednesday night. The FAA ruling takes away the permission Collings had to charge for rides on its historic collection of planes. It also denied Collings Foundation's request for an extension of that permission for 10 aircraft. A few weeks after the Bradley crash, Collings Foundation asked its supporters to support the exemption application to the FAA. In the decision, Carty said the FAA understands flights on these historic aircraft are "meaningful to some members of the public," he said the FAA is required to make sure everything is operating in the best way for public interest. The FAA findings, according to Carty's decision, indicated that Collings was not fulfilling several requirements and that "Collings lacked a safety culture" - necessary to continue to operate. Among the findings, Carty said, was that the crew chief on the flight that crash was not trained for his role. "Given the facts of the accident on Oct. 2, 2019, and the subsequent evidence of Collings's lack of compliance ... the FAA has determined that granting the exemption ... would not be in the public interest because of the adverse effect on safety," Carty wrote. His decision indicated that if the FAA continued to let Collings Foundation carry passengers on its aircraft, it would "adversely affect safety." https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/FAA-says-no-passengers-on-Collings-Foundations-15157635.php Back to Top Emptier skies: New data shows that nearly 7,000 aircraft have been stored It's no shock that the airline industry has especially struggled to cope with the decrease in demand amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis. Airlines around the world have been forced to cut capacity, with some even suspending their entire operations. And it's the pace at which airlines are taking to grounding operations that has truly been astounding. As with most things with the coronavirus, developments have been coming fast. News and advisories seem to change every day - and that appears to be holding true even with airlines. According to new information from data and analytics firm Cirium, nearly 7,000 aircraft from global airlines have already been stored to ride out the rest of the coronavirus outbreak. As countries continue to close their borders and travellers opt to stay home, significant portions of fleets have already been grounded. In the past 24 hours, the number of grounded aircraft grew by 800, according to Cirium, which now reports 6,639 aircraft in storage globally. For Boeing aircraft, Cirium says that 2,542 aircraft are grounded, including the previously grounded 737 MAX aircraft - 1,671 narrow-body and 871 wide-body aircraft. Altogether, each variation of aircraft breaks down as follows: Aircraft Number in storage globally Boeing 717s 45 Boeing 727s 6 Boeing 737 MAXs 383 Boeing 737s (-200, -300, -400, -500, -600, -700, -800 and -900) 1,087 Boeing 747s 108 Boeing 757s 150 Boeing 767s 154 Boeing 777s 376 Boeing 787s 233 Meanwhile, there are 2,608 Airbus aircraft grounded globally - 1,837 narrow-bodies and 771 wide-bodies. The number of aircraft in storage breaks down as follows: Aircraft Number in storage globally Airbus A220s 33 Airbus A300s 11 Airbus A310s 8 Airbus A318s 23 Airbus A319s 338 Airbus A320s 948 Airbus A320neos 112 Airbus A321s 325 Airbus A321neos 58 Airbus A330s 467 Airbus A330neos 18 Airbus A340s 117 Airbus A350s 66 Airbus A380s 84 The aircraft are stored all over the world at around 600 locations. For British Airways, that means predominantly at its base at London Heathrow for its wide-bodies, as well as Manchester and Cardiff. It's narrow-bodies - specifcally A321s - are, for the most part, in Glasgow. Meanwhile, for Virgin Atlantic, most of its aircraft are in Bournemouth, Glasgow Preswick, Glasgow or London Heathrow. On Monday, Ryanair, Europe's largest budget airline announced that it was completely ending commercial operations until at least June. While it's still flying some aircraft for repatriation and humanitarian efforts, as of Wednesday, all commercial flights have been suspended. At points on Wednesday, we got a look at Europe's skies with just two Ryanair aircraft airborne. It's likely that the astounding pace at which airlines are parking their aircraft will continue for the weeks and potentially months to come. During parts of April, Virgin Atlantic only expects to operate six aircraft at a time. https://thepointsguy.com/news/7000-aircraft-stored-coronavirus/ Back to Top S.A.F.E. postpones Maintenance Safety Symposium The conference will reschedule in Dallas with the original outstanding speakers and sponsors at a date to be announced. S.A.F.E. Structure Designs announced that the Maintenance Safety Symposium, "Troubleshooting Technology" scheduled for June 10 in Dallas will be postponed until the fall. The conference hosted by S.A.F.E., Southern Utah University (SUU), and Helicopter Safety Alliance will be deferred in the wake of the COVID-19 situation. The conference will reschedule in Dallas with the original outstanding speakers and sponsors at a date to be announced. "Although it is a disappointing to postpone the conference, our main concern is the safety and welfare of all the participants." said Terry Palmer, director of the event. "We are dedicated to providing new and relevant information to mechanics that will assist them in maintaining the new high tech aircraft. We will stay in touch with the maintenance community and provide updates on this event and other training resources." "S.A.F.E. is very active in supporting maintenance training through certificate programs at SUU and regional outreach. Our goal is to provide mechanics with the products and equipment that make them safer and more efficient" said Johnny Buscema, CEO of S.A.F.E. "Training plays a significant part in safety and we will continue to develop and sponsor these programs. https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/maintenance-providers/press-release/21131186/safe-structure-designs-safe-postpones-maintenance-safety-symposium Back to Top Russia to Ground International Flights From Friday Due to Coronavirus MOSCOW - Russia will suspend all regular and charter flights to and from the country from Friday due to the coronavirus crisis and close all shops in Moscow apart from food stores and pharmacies from this weekend, the government and city authorities said. Authorities announced the measures after Russia reported its biggest one day rise in coronavirus cases on Thursday, bringing the official tally to 840. Russia has reported two coronavirus deaths, and another woman, who was diagnosed with the virus has died. The figures remain much lower than in many European countries for now, but the mayor of Moscow told President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday that the real scale of the problem in the Russian capital far exceeded official figures. Putin addressed the nation on Wednesday in a televised speech in which he unveiled new measures designed to slow the transmission of coronavirus, declaring next week a non-working week for many Russians and urging people to stay at home. On Thursday, Moscow's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said all shops and shopping malls except those that sell food and pharmacies would be closed from March 28 to April 5. Restaurants, cafes and bars would also be closed, Sobyanin said in a statement. The same measure will be implemented in the Moscow Region, which surrounds the capital, a local government decree said. Under the airline restrictions, Russian flights will still be allowed to fly to other countries to bring Russian citizens back or if they are authorised by special government decisions, the government said on its website. https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/03/26/world/europe/26reuters-health-coronavirus-russia-flights.html Back to Top Glut of Jet Fuel Is on Brink of Overwhelming Global Storage The world is close to running out of space to store all the fuel that jets are no longer burning. Only about 20% of land-based storage for the product remains -- about 50 million barrels -- while airlines cut flights, according to Vienna-based consultant JBC Energy GmbH. A collapse in air travel due to the coronavirus pandemic has brought with it a plunge in fuel demand and the threat of a shortage of places to keep unwanted supplies. The picture looks sure to worsen in the coming weeks and months unless oil refineries take drastic action of their own to cut output. Flight cancellations are destroying demand for the roughly 7 million barrels-a-day market, with some traders speculating consumption could have dropped by as much as 50% of that. Dubai-based Emirates, which runs the world's biggest airline by international traffic, will suspend most passenger flights from March 25, it said Sunday. The product has slumped by more than 60% from its high this year and is trading at around $260 a ton for May supply in northwest Europe. More importantly, perhaps, December prices for jet fuel are at about $340 a ton. In other words, if traders can find a means of storing until the end of the year that costs less than the gap between the two months -- around $80 a ton -- then they can profit from hoarding supplies. It's hard to pinpoint exactly when storages would hit tank tops because it's unclear at this stage precisely how big the hit to aviation demand has been. Also uncertain is the extent to which refineries have already cut production or how much they can do so if required. Storage sites currently dedicated to diesel could be re-purposed for jet fuel -- if there's time and a workforce available to do that. Energy Aspects Ltd., a consultant, estimates that 2.7 million barrels a day of demand will be cut in April and May compared with what it was previously anticipating. Separately, Facts Global Energy estimates a drop of about 2 million barrels a day, or 30% of current demand. The curtailment could be as large as 50% of typical consumption, a senior executive at one of the world's biggest commodity traders estimated. Caltex Australia Ltd. estimates jet fuel demand could drop as much as 80%-90% while announced flight cancellations are in place. If either figure is right, and if oil refineries fail to respond by dialing back output, then land-based tanks will start to fill within weeks. While storage companies sometimes have unused space, that doesn't necessarily mean it's available for anyone to use. It can be reserved but not utilized. "We could see floating storage being used as there is no other option," said Sri Paravaikkarasu, Asia oil director at FGE. "Clearly onshore tank storage is getting filled at this point." Traders and shipbrokers report strong interest in booking tankers to keep fuel cargoes at sea. There is nevertheless still some space left. In Antwerp, Rotterdam and Amsterdam, the trading hub in northwest Europe, independently held inventories stand at about 3.6 million barrels, well below seasonal norms. They peaked at 7.1 million barrels in 2009. Insights Global, a firm that monitors the stockpiles, says it could take several weeks from the fuel being produced to it reaching storage. There are also pockets of buying still. More jet fuel is finding its way to Latin America, where consumption has yet to have the same kind of hit seen in other parts of the world. Weak Demand Signs of weak demand abound, however. The Colonial Pipeline, the largest fuel-link between the Gulf of Mexico and the East Coast, is lowering flows. The conduit carries multiple products including jet fuel, gasoline and diesel. The Philadelphia-based Trainer refinery, owned by a unit of Delta Air Lines, has shifted from jet fuel production to focusing primarily on diesel. Analysts say there could be reductions in how much fuel refineries are making. That, though, would only add to challenges in the crude oil market, where an increasing number of tankers are already being booked to hoard barrels because of weak near-term demand. While global oil consumption is being destroyed by the coronavirus -- aside from the collapse in air travel, city lockdowns and quarantines mean people are driving less -- Saudi Arabia is flooding the market with oil. The kingdom began aggressively adding barrels after Russia rejected its proposal to curb output and help shore up a glut. Jet fuel's premium to crude, its so-called crack spread, has plunged to about $8 a barrel in northwest Europe. That could mean even less refining, adding to an oversupply of crude. "Jet fuel cracks have been hit the hardest as flights have been grounded to halt the spread of the coronavirus," according to Rui Hou, a research analyst at Wood Mackenzie Ltd., adding that sluggish demand for transport fuel is generally bad for refining margins. "Consequently, refiners are likely to cut the crude runs to get through the tough time." https://finance.yahoo.com/news/glut-jet-fuel-brink-overwhelming-154516964.html Back to Top Welders wanted: SpaceX is hiring to ramp up production of stainless steel Starship SpaceX wants to get Starship up and running soon. The coronavirus pandemic isn't shrinking every part of the job market. For example, SpaceX is looking to hire lots of folks to help ramp up production and testing of its ambitious Starship Mars-colonizing architecture over the coming months - and the company recently issued a public recruiting pitch. "The design goal for Starship is three flights per day on average [per ship], which equates to roughly 1,000 flights per year at greater than 100 tons per flight. This means every 10 ships would yield 1 megaton per year to orbit," Jessica Anderson, a lead manufacturing engineer at SpaceX, said last week during the launch webcast for the company's latest batch of Starlink internet satellites. "This is a significant effort, and we are looking for highly skilled engineers and welders to help us make this a reality," Anderson added. "If you're interested in joining the team, please take a look at SpaceX.com/careers." At the moment, that website lists more than 600 current SpaceX job opportunities, most of them based at the company's headquarters in Hawthorne, California. But about 60 of the offered positions are at SpaceX's South Texas facility, near the village of Boca Chica, where Starship is being built. The Starship system consists of a 165-foot-tall (50 meters) spacecraft called Starship, which SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk has said will be capable of carrying up to 100 people. Starship will launch to Earth orbit atop a huge rocket called Super Heavy, then make its own way to the Red Planet, the moon or anywhere else a mission may demand. Both Starship and Super Heavy will be fully and rapidly reusable. For example, Super Heavy will come back to Earth for vertical landings shortly after liftoff, as the first stages of SpaceX Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets already do. And the company wants each Starship to fly often as well, as Anderson noted during last week's Starlink webcast. Reuse won't apply just to the Starship spacecraft that deliver payloads to Earth orbit. The vehicles that go to the moon, Mars and other distant destinations will also fly multiple missions, Musk has said. Starship will feature six of SpaceX's Raptor engines and therefore be powerful enough to launch itself off the lunar or Martian surface, without the need for Super Heavy. (Mars and the moon are much smaller than Earth and thus have a weaker gravitational pull.) Super Heavy will be powered by up to 37 Raptors, Musk has said. So, while SpaceX aims to carry out brief flight tests in the near future with the current Starship prototype, known as the SN3, and longer demo missions shortly thereafter with the SN4, "ramping up our Starship and Raptor production line is what matters most," Anderson said. SpaceX wants to get Starship fully up and running fast. If all goes well with development and testing, the system could start flying its first operational missions - probably satellite launches to Earth orbit - by 2021, company representatives have said. And there's one crewed mission on the docket already. Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa booked Starship for a round-the-moon trip, with a target launch date of 2023. https://www.space.com/spacex-hiring-starship-engineers-welders.html The USC Aviation Safety & Security Program Has Moved Online! The following upcoming courses will take place in our virtual WebEx classrooms. Human Factors in Aviation Maintenance Knowledge and understanding of human factors in the realm of aviation safety with a focus on the role of the maintainer. March 30 - April 3, 2020 4.5 Days Tuition: $2575 Incident Investigation/Analysis For managers and supervisors who may be required to investigate, implement, or review safety findings and recommendations resulting from aviation incidents. April 6-10, 2020 4.5 Days Tuition: $2575 More classes will move online soon. If you want to take a specific class online, or have any questions, please contact us. Earn Credit for FlightSafety Master Technician-Management Program Students taking the following USC courses will earn elective credits towards FlightSafety International's Master Technician-Management Program • Human Factors in Aviation Safety • Gas Turbine Accident Investigation • Helicopter Accident Investigation • Safety Management for Aviation Maintenance • Safety Management for Ground Operations Safety • Accident/Incident Response Preparedness Earn Credit for FlightSafety Master Technician-Management Program Students taking the following USC courses will earn two points toward completing the application for the National Business Aviation Certified Aviation Manager Exam. • Aviation Safety Management Systems • Accident/Incident Response Preparedness • Human Factors in Aviation Safety • Aircraft Accident Investigation • SeMS Aviation Security Management Systems For further details, please visit our website or use the contact information below. Email: aviation@usc.edu Telephone: +1 (310) 342-1345 Curt Lewis