Flight Safety Information - June 2, 2021 No. 110 In This Issue : Incident: Belavia B738 near Krasnodar on Jun 2nd 2021, suspected fuel leak : Incident: American B773 near Dallas on May 29th 2021, no water supply : Incident: Aeroflot A20N at Novosibirsk on May 30th 2021, bird strike : Irate woman spits on, kicks passengers in airplane face mask meltdown : Alaska Airlines flight to Seattle diverts, lands in Las Vegas due to broken windshield : High Court Orders 61 Sacked Air India Pilots To Be Reinstated : LATAM Is Not Looking To Sell Subsidiary TAM Brazil : The $15 billion jet dilemma facing Boeing's CEO Incident: Belavia B738 near Krasnodar on Jun 2nd 2021, suspected fuel leak A Belavia Boeing 737-800, registration EW-526PA performing flight B2-8284 from Hurghada (Egypt) to Minsk (Belarus) with 180 people on board, was enroute at FL380 about 60nm north of Krasnodar (Russia) when the crew reported they suspected a fuel leak, declared PAN PAN and diverted to Krasnodar for a safe landing on runway 23L about 20 minutes later. A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EW-438PA was dispatched to Krasnodar and is currently enroute estimated to reach Minsk with a delay of about 10 hours. The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Krasnodar about 11 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=4e84c5d8&opt=0 Incident: American B773 near Dallas on May 29th 2021, no water supply An American Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration N732AN performing flight AA-50 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute at FL330 about 280nm eastnortheast of Dallas when the crew decided to return to Dallas Ft. Worth. The aircraft descended to FL220 for the return and landed safely on Dallas' runway 35C about 90 minutes after departure. A passenger reported maintenance had been working on the aircraft prior to departure, the aircraft thus departed with a delay of 2.5 hours. Almost an hour into the flight the captain announced there was no water supply causing a sanitation problem, therefore they were returning to Dallas. A replacement aircraft took them to London. A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration N720AN reached London with a delay of 8.5 hours. https://avherald.com/h?article=4e84117e&opt=0 Incident: Aeroflot A20N at Novosibirsk on May 30th 2021, bird strike An Aeroflot Airbus A320-200N, registration VP-BPQ performing flight SU-1460 from Moscow Sheremetyevo to Novosibirsk (Russia), departed Sheremetyevo's runway 06C and landed on Novosibirsk's runway 25 completing a seemingly uneventful flight about 3.5 hours later. Rosaviatsia reported however, a postflight inspection revealed evidence of a bird strike, the radome showed a hole of 45mm/1.8 inch diameter and a detachment of about 250mm/10 inches. The aircraft was removed from service. The aircraft returned to service about 23 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=4e8361ca&opt=0 Irate woman spits on, kicks passengers in airplane face mask meltdown Woman on Ibiza-to-Milan flight spits, kicks passengers in fight over face mask VIDEO UNRULY PASSENGERS • Pic shows flight attendant’s gnarly injuries after unruly passenger knocked out two teeth • Flight diverted after ‘substance’-snorting man allegedly freaks out and pretends to stab people • Drunken beautician booted off flight for some ugly behavior • Not-so-friendly skies: Plane lands mid-flight after unruly flyer attacks passengers An unhinged traveler had a meltdown on an Italy-bound flight over the airline’s face mask policy — pulling the hair of a fellow flier and spitting on passengers, disturbing video shows. The woman — believed to be Italian — was caught on video by fellow passengers on a Ryanair flight from Ibiza to Milan, according to Newsweek. She is seen wearing a mask, but it is uselessly covering her chin as she apparently refused to follow the airline’s protocol of properly masking up. “The crew of this flight from Ibiza to Milan Bergamo requested police assistance upon arrival after a passenger became disruptive in-flight,” Ryanair told the mag about the Wednesday incident. “The aircraft landed normally, and police removed the individual at Milan Bergamo airport. This is now a matter for local police,” it added. In response to the viral footage, the woman blew off steam on Instagram, where she whined that she was “frustrated” and “unlucky” during the flight. A woman was filmed attacking another female passenger during an argument about face masks on a Ryanair flight from Ibiza to Milan. The woman became disruptive after allegedly refusing to follow the airline’s mask protocol. She also threatened legal consequences for anyone who shared the videos with other people, Newsweek reported. https://nypost.com/2021/06/01/woman-spits-on-kicks-passengers-in-airplane-face-mask-meltdown/ Alaska Airlines flight to Seattle diverts, lands in Las Vegas due to broken windshield LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — An airplane traveling to Seattle, Washington, was diverted Thursday, landing safely in Las Vegas after reporting a broken windshield. McCarran International Airport says Alaska Airlines Flight 203 was traveling from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico when it made a detour and landed without incident at 6:16 p.m. The Boeing 737-900 had 162 passengers and six crew members on board at the time, the airline says. In a statement to 13 Action News, an Alaska Airlines spokesperson wrote: Alaska Airlines Flight 203, flying from Puerto Vallarta, Mex. (PVR) to Seattle, Wash. (SEA), landed safely in at Las Vegas, Nev. (LAS) at 6:15 p.m. PT without incident. A minor crack in the aircraft's windshield was detected in flight. Alaska Airlines 737 fleet are outfitted with triple-paned windows that have outer, middle and inner panes. If an outer pane cracks, the other panes can maintain cabin pressure. The safety of our guests and employees/teammates is always our first priority. At no point was the safety of our guests or crew/teammates compromised. Our crews are among the best in the business, and they train for this exact type of situation. Guests are being accommodated tonight and will continue onto SEA tomorrow morning, with an estimated departure time of 10:00 a.m. PT. https://www.ktnv.com/news/alaska-airlines-flight-to-seattle-diverts-lands-in-las-vegas-due-to-broken-windshield High Court Orders 61 Sacked Air India Pilots To Be Reinstated In a huge reprieve for 61 Air India pilots, the Delhi High Court has ordered that all the pilots be reinstated by the airline. This includes contractual pilots and all of them will receive their back wages since their unlawful termination. Let’s find out more about this ruling and its impact on Air India. Back to flying According to India Today, the Delhi High Court has come to the aid of dozens of Air India pilots. While the court had previously discussed paying the pilots their salary instead of rehiring them, it seems they have reversed course and held up the original employment contract instead. In response to over 40 claims filed by pilots, the High Court ruled that Air India must rehire all the pilots who were sacked in August. This number totals 61 pilots, all of whom were locked in a contract dispute with the carrier. In addition to getting their old jobs back, the pilots will also receive back wages from April 2nd (the day they were suspended). Air India has not announced whether it will appeal the ruling or carry out the court’s orders immediately. Regardless, the ruling puts the flag carrier in a difficult spot, forcing them to rehire pilots at a time when demand for both domestic and international flights remains at an all-time low. Win for pilots Air India’s pilots unions have long been at odds with the management, even before the pandemic started. Most recently, the unions have demanded that the airline vaccinate its staff immediately or said they would stop flying. Before that, they also demanded a reversal of the steep pay cuts currently in place prior to the second wave. Yesterday’s judgment will be a big win for the airline’s employees and the pilot’s union. It will also ensure that Air India will not attempt to violate employment contracts in the future, a question that has been key to the case. Despite its financial situation, things don’t seem to the getting better for the beleaguered flag carrier. For now, expect to see Air India rehire the pilots soon and return them to service, or even appeal the ruling. Given the current situation in India, many of the carrier’s pilots are flying minimal hours due to a lack of demand and reduced schedules. This means the rehired pilots may not find much work. https://simpleflying.com/air-india-pilots-sacked-reinstated/ LATAM Is Not Looking To Sell Subsidiary TAM Brazil LATAM Airlines Group is definitely not interested in selling its Brazilian branch, the company’s CEO said earlier this week. After a week of stories following Azul’s supposed interest in TAM Brazil, the largest South American airline is trying to lay the rumors to rest. Let’s investigate further. The plan is to exit Chapter 11 this year Roberto Alvo, LATAM Airlines Group CEO, categorically denied any interest in selling the Brazilian subsidiary. In an interview with EFE, he said, “(I want to say) categorically and emphatically, that our Brazilian company nor any other actives LATAM has, is on sale.” He then added that LATAM plans to emerge from its Chapter 11 bankruptcy process this year. Once the Group is out, it will have highly competitive costs and will be able to put up a fight in every market, Alvo said. Last week, LATAM ended its domestic codeshare with Brazilian rival Azul Linhas Aereas. Following the announcement, Reuters published a story regarding Azul’s interest in buying LATAM Airlines Brazil. This rumor is not new; last year, the Brazilian Equity Research team of Bradesco BBI Bank suggested that LATAM’s best option would be to sell TAM to Azul. Every single time the rumor has emerged, LATAM has quickly tried to put the story to rest. Last week, the airline sent the following statement to Simple Flying, “LATAM Group intends to compete in Brazil and other markets aggressively and doesn’t have the intention of selling or breaking apart its Brazilian, or any other, branch. LATAM Group has not received any acquisition proposal. The ending of the domestic codeshare by LATAM is not related to this topic.” One year in Chapter 11: how is LATAM going? LATAM filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy process at the end of May 2020. It became the second airline in Latin America to do so, following the steps of Avianca. Later on, Aeromexico would join as well. In 2020, the airline had a 69.87% decrease in passenger revenue, according to stats provided by ch-aviation. It also posted a 61.86% decrease in passenger figures going from 74.18 million travelers in 2019 to 28.29 million. The highlight of LATAM’s business during 2020 was the cargo division. It soared and had such results that the Group is increasing by 90% its freighter fleet in the next two years. One year after, LATAM seems to be doing as well as it can. Roberto Alvo said, “Today, we are good, financially speaking. We finished the first quarter with US$2.6 billion in liquidity, which is the biggest in absolute and relative terms for any company in the region. We trust LATAM will exit the crisis strengthened, with an unbeatable cost structure in the region.” What can we expect going forward? LATAM is currently expecting that it will have a capacity of around 60% to 80% when the year ends. The rates are even higher in Brazil, as it expects to be close to 90% by December. Roberto Alvo said that LATAM could go back to 100% within the next two years. He also said that a few airlines would disappear in the next few years due to this crisis’s heavy toll. He added that Latin America has more capacity than demand, and this will drive ticket prices down and put pressure on airlines in the region. https://simpleflying.com/latam-tam-brazil-no-sale/ The $15 billion jet dilemma facing Boeing's CEO SEATTLE/PARIS (Reuters) - Boeing Co CEO Dave Calhoun faces a multibillion-dollar dilemma over how to rebuild sales in its core airliner business that has sparked an internal debate and put the future of the largest U.S. exporter on the line, industry insiders say. Boeing is reeling from a safety scandal following crashes of its 737 MAX airliner and an air travel collapse caused by the pandemic. Those crises have overshadowed a deeper, longer term risk to the company's commercial passenger jet business. Boeing's share of the single-aisle jetliner market - where it competes in a global duopoly with Airbus - has faded from some 50% a decade ago to roughly 35% after the 737 MAX's lengthy grounding, according to Agency Partners and other analysts. Airbus' single-aisle A321neo has snapped up billions of dollars of orders in a recently booming segment of the market, as the largest MAX variants struggled to block it. Without a perfectly timed new addition to its portfolio, analysts warn America risks ceding to Europe a huge portion of that market - valued by planemakers at some $3.5 trillion over 20 years. But Boeing is not yet ready to settle on a plan to develop a new plane to counter the A321neo, and two leading options - press ahead now or wait until later - come with financial and strategic risks, several people briefed on the discussions said. "I'm confident that over a longer period of time, we'll get back to where we need to get to and I'm confident in the product line," Calhoun said in April as Boeing won new MAX orders. Asked about the company's discussions and options over a potential new airplane, a Boeing spokesman said it had no immediate comment beyond Calhoun's remarks to investors. OPTIONS A weakened Boeing has little margin for error, especially as it tackles industrial problems hobbling other airliners. Boeing's first option is to strike relatively quickly, bringing to market by around 2029 a 5,000-mile single-aisle jet with some 10% more fuel efficiency. That could potentially be launched for orders in 2023. "There is no better way to fix their image than invest in the future now, pure and simple," said Teal Group analyst Richard Aboulafia. A new single-aisle jet would replace the out-of-production 757 and fill a void between the MAX and larger 787, confirming a twist to earlier mid-market plans as reported by Reuters https://www.reuters.com/article/aircraft-projects-idUSL5N2CF5PN in April last year. The idea took a backseat early in the pandemic, before regaining attention. It would also be an anchor for an eventual clean-sheet replacement of the 737 family. An alternative option is to wait for the next leap in engine technology, not expected until the early 2030s. That could involve open-rotor engines with visible blades using a mixture of traditional turbines and electric propulsion. Wary of letting short-term product decisions drive strategy, Boeing is also prioritizing a deeper dive into investments or business changes needed to regain the No.1 spot, analysts say. TIMING DILEMMA Both approaches carry risks. If it moves too quickly, Boeing may face a relatively straightforward counter-move. Airbus' preference is do nothing and preserve a favorable status quo, European sources say. But it has for years https://reut.rs/3vET9jk harbored studies codenamed "A321neo-plus-plus" or "A321 Ultimate" with more seats and composite wings to repel any commercial attack. Such an upgrade might cost Airbus some $2-3 billion, but far less than the $15 billion Boeing would spend on a new plane. For Boeing, a premature tit-for-tat move runs the risk of merely replicating the strategic spot it finds itself in now. If it moves too slowly, however, investors may have to bear a decade of perilously low market share in the single-aisle category, the industry's profit powerhouse. Those urging restraint, including soon-departing finance chief Greg Smith, have a simple argument, insiders say. Boeing has amassed a mountain of debt and burned $20 billion in cash lurching from crisis to crisis. "It's a different world," one insider said. "How could you possibly be thinking about a new airplane?" However, some engineers at Boeing's Seattle commercial home are crying out for a bold move to reassert its engineering dominance following the worst period in its 105-year history. "That should be a priority for Boeing right now," said Tom McCarty, a veteran former Boeing avionics engineer. "To get back in clear leadership of advancing technology." ENGINE TALKS As it weighs up when to act, Boeing has sought initial technical data from engine makers Rolls-Royce, Pratt & Whitney and the General Electric-Safran tie-up CFM International, industry sources say. A firm competition is not expected for a year or more, they add, a delay that illustrates Boeing's bind. Rolls, which has most to gain as it tries to re-enter the lucrative single-aisle market, said last month it would be ready for any new product. Watching Boeing's decision from the sidelines is China, where state manufacturer COMAC is working on a C919 narrowbody in a potential challenge to the cash-cow 737 and A320 families. Sitting on $7 billion in net cash and a second-mover's advantage, analysts say Airbus appears most comfortable, though it also faces its share of industrial headaches. A wild card in the deliberations is growing environmental pressure, mirrored in the priorities of each planemaker. Airbus has pledged to introduce the first hydrogen-powered small commercial plane in 2035. The "zero-emission" agenda reflects its CEO's conviction that disruptive technology will play a role in next-generation jets. But industry sources say it is no coincidence that such rhetoric also steers Boeing away from launching an interim jet. Boeing has emphasized quicker gains from sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). Any new 757-style jet would feature the ability to run 100% on SAF, people familiar with the plan said. While backing the drop-in fuel for technical reasons, Boeing has left itself enough room to argue that a relatively early new plane would still fit the industry's environmental objectives. Airbus has meanwhile kept up pressure with proposals last week to almost double single-aisle output within four years. While some suppliers questioned how quickly the plan was achievable https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/airbus-sets-higher-jet-output-targets-recovery-looms-2021-05-27, one industry executive noted it sent a "message that Airbus exits the crisis as No.1 and intends to stay there". One risk is that anything that looks like a grab for market share could trigger the very Boeing jet Airbus hopes to avoid. Asked whether he thought Airbus's expansion plans might provoke Boeing into launching a new plane, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury played down the prospect of a new industry arms race. "If they trust the MAX with the pent-up demand they see for single-aisle then I don't see why they would be in a hurry to replace the MAX. If they are in a different situation they might come to other conclusions," Faury told Reuters. https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/15-billion-jet-dilemma-facing-070218030.html Curt Lewis