Flight Safety Information - December 31, 2021 No. 261 In This Issue : Cessna 208B Grand Caravan - Landing Accident (Mozambique) : Delta passenger attacks Los Angeles airport officer after being denied boarding, authorities say : State Dept warns Americans traveling abroad to 'make contingency plans' : Cathay Pacific suspends cargo flights due to virus controls : Omicron, unruly passengers deter U.S. airline staff from holiday overtime : Israel signs deal to buy $3.1 billion in U.S. helicopters, tankers Cessna 208B Grand Caravan - Landing Accident (Mozambique) Date: Tuesday 28 December 2021 Type: Cessna 208B Grand Caravan Operator: Halsted Aviation Corporation (HAC) Registration: Z-HAC MSN: 208B0563 First flight: 1996 Engines: 1 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-114A Crew: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Passengers: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Total: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Aircraft damage: Damaged beyond repair Location: Bazaruto Island Airport (BZB) ( Mozambique) Phase: Landing (LDG) Nature: Unknown Departure airport: ? Destination airport: Bazaruto Island Airport (BZB), Mozambique Narrative: A HAC Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, registration Z-HAC, sustained substantial damage when it was involved in a landing accident at Bazaruto Island Airport (BZB), Mozambique. There were no injuries. https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20211228-0 Delta passenger attacks Los Angeles airport officer after being denied boarding, authorities say A Delta Air Lines passenger who was upset at being denied entry onto a New York City-bound flight at Los Angeles International Airport assaulted a police officer Thursday and was subsequently arrested, authorities said. Delta personnel called airport police around 1:40 p.m. about the passenger who was denied boarding because of his alcohol intake, police Sgt. Rob Pedregon told Fox News. The aircraft was slated to depart for John F. Kennedy International Airport. "They felt he was too intoxicated to fly," he said. An airline spokesperson told Fox News the passenger became verbally abusive at the departure gate. When the officers arrived, they decided the unidentified man could be walked out of the terminal where he could get a ride. "When they got to the bottom of the escalator for arrivals, the officer handed the suspect his ID back and afterwards the suspect had a moment of rage and he assaulted the officer," Pedregon said. An officer was punched in the chest and the suspect was tackled and taken into custody, he said. "I'm not going to comply until you tell me why," the suspect said as he struggled with the officers, TMZ reported. "It's people like you. You ruined my (expletive) night, dude." The celebrity gossip site said the man was hoping to fly to New York City. He was arrested on suspicion of battery on a police officer and public intoxication and booked into jail. The flight departed without any further incidents, Delta said. Thursday’s incident came amid a spike in confrontations involving unruly airline passengers. As of Dec. 21, the Federal Aviation Administration said there were 5,779 reports of unruly passengers, mostly for mask-related incidents. Just over 1,000 investigations have been initiated, the agency said. https://www.yahoo.com/news/delta-passenger-attacks-los-angeles-074253978.html State Dept warns Americans traveling abroad to 'make contingency plans' The State Department warned on Thursday that Americans who are traveling abroad "should make contingency plans" as countries around the globe grapple with rising numbers of COVID-19 cases spurred by the omicron variant. "U.S. citizens who do choose to travel internationally should make contingency plans, as they may have to remain in a foreign country longer than originally planned, which will be at their own expense," the department said in a media note. "The Department recommends international travel insurance with coverage for COVID-related trip cancellation and medical benefits," it added. The State Department also noted that for Americans aged 2 years and older coming back into the U.S. from international travel would need either proof of recovery from COVID-19 or a negative COVID-19 test taken within one day before they are set to return. Other foreign governments may also have additional COVID-19 guidance for visitors upon entering the country, the State Department added. The guidance underscores the seriousness with which officials are approaching the new omicron variant, the spread of which has already caused staff shortages and reductions in certain services in the United States. Health officials say the variant, first discovered only a month ago in South Africa, is highly transmissible, but early data also suggests it may not be as severe as delta for people who are vaccinated. "We know now, incontrovertibly, that this is a highly, highly transmissible virus. We know that from the numbers we're seeing," Dr. Anthony Fauci said during a White House briefing on Wednesday, adding "all indications point to a lesser severity of omicron versus delta." A South African study that analyzed a hospital system in the "epicenter" of the new variant said omicron appeared to have already had its peak and did not seem to cause a corresponding spike in hospitalization and deaths. https://www.yahoo.com/news/state-dept-warns-americans-traveling-033806116.html Cathay Pacific suspends cargo flights due to virus controls HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airlines is suspending cargo flights for a week due to stricter quarantine requirements for air crews, potentially adding to strain on global supply chains. Long-haul flights to Europe, across the Pacific and to Riyadh and Dubai are suspended through Jan. 6, the airline said Thursday. It promised to try to help customers “mitigate the disruption.” Hong Kong is tightening up virus restrictions after confirming its first cases of community transmission of the omicron variant of the coronavirus on Friday, tied to a Cathay Pacific crew member who had returned from the United States on Christmas Day. The airline’s workforce is stretched thin after the quarantine for Cathay Pacific flight crews who return from abroad was extended to one week in a hotel room from three days. Thursday’s announcement gave no details, but The South China Morning Post newspaper said the longer quarantine would leave Cathay without enough pilots for all its flights. The airline earlier asked staff to volunteer for a “closed-loop system” under which they would work for three-week stints with brief stopovers in Hong Kong, but too few agreed, according to news reports. Cathay said earlier it would reduce its schedule of passenger flights in the first three months of 2022 due to staff shortages. The airline came under attack Friday over the first local omicron cases, which sparked fears of a possible outbreak. The crew member had lunch at a restaurant two days after returning from the U.S., in apparent violation of a three-day self-isolation rule. Two other people eating at the Moon Palace restaurant on Monday were infected: the father of the crew member and a construction worker dining 10 meters (30 feet) away. City leader Carrie Lam expressed her strong dissatisfaction to both the chairman and the CEO of the city's flagship airline, Health Secretary Sophia Chan said at a news conference. Cathay Pacific said in a statement that five crew members had tested positive for omicron recently, and some had not followed regulations. It apologized and said they would be disciplined. Health officials said there is a high risk of further spread, saying it could lead to what would be a fifth major wave of infections in the city. Hong Kong has recorded 81 omicron cases. The others were among people who had arrived from overseas. https://www.yahoo.com/news/cathay-pacific-suspends-cargo-flights-075325128.html Omicron, unruly passengers deter U.S. airline staff from holiday overtime (Reuters) - U.S. airline cabin crew, pilots and support staff are reluctant to work overtime during the holiday travel season despite being lured with hefty financial incentives because of the growing fear of contracting COVID-19 and the prospect of dealing with unruly passengers, three airline unions said. That reluctance, combined with bad weather and tight staffing at pandemic-battered airlines, led to massive flight cancellations over the past week, the unions said. The issues will likely result in more strain in the weeks ahead as the spread of the Omicron variant accelerates. "We have negotiated holiday incentives to help with operational challenges, but there's only so far you can stretch people," Sara Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), representing 50,000 flight attendants at 17 airlines, said in a statement. In the months leading up to the holidays, airlines were wooing employees to ensure solid staffing, after furloughing or laying off thousands over the last 18 months as the pandemic crippled the industry. The airline sector is also feeling added pressure as employment numbers still trail pre-pandemic levels, but the total hours worked by fewer staff has almost fully rebounded. The industry was hopeful that staff would pick up overtime to fly a record number of passengers since the pandemic began, according to the AFA. But the fast-spreading Omicron variant, which is leading to unprecedented COVID-19 cases in the U.S., has caused staff to re-think workloads. On Thursday, over 1,200 flights were canceled within, into, or out of the United States as of 3:29 p.m. ET, data from flight-tracking website FlightAware.com showed. United Airlines said the nationwide spike in Omicron cases has had a direct impact on its operations. Southwest Airlines Co said it had yet to see any impact on its operations. JetBlue Airways Corp said it was cutting its schedule through Jan. 13 by about 1,280 flights due to crew members getting sick. Delta Air Lines Inc said incentive pay is being offered to flight crews but did not elaborate further. American Airlines Group Inc, Alaska Air Group Inc, Spirit Airlines Inc, Skywest Inc and Hawaiian Holdings Inc did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Thursday that an increasing number of agency employees had tested positive for COVID-19. "To maintain safety, traffic volume at some facilities could be reduced, which might result in delays during busy periods," an FAA spokesperson said. TESTY, DIFFICULT PASSENGERS Violent skirmishes between passengers and flight crew have also hit a record high this year, prompting U.S. regulators to crack down harder. The FAA in early November said it had referred more than three dozen unruly passengers to the FBI for potential criminal prosecution. Still, many cabin crews fret about their safety on board. "It's not worth the risk when tensions are high to go out there and risk getting hurt or possibly disabled on the job," said Thom McDaniel, International Vice President at the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU), which represents over 150,000 members across several sectors, including airlines. For example, U.S. prosecutors in Colorado charged a 20-year-old California man with assaulting a flight attendant on an Oct. 27 American Airlines flight bound for Santa Ana, California, that forced the pilots to divert the flight. Both AFA and TWU have made public calls for regulators to address the rising incidents on board. JUICY INCENTIVE PAY NOT ENOUGH Airlines have offered bonuses and up to triple pay for employees working during the holidays, but few are biting. "A lot of flight attendants are not willing to pick up (extra shifts), even for extra pay because they fear for their own safety," McDaniel said. Some pilots have also rebuffed extra pay. The American Airlines' pilot union had declined the company's offer of as much as double pay for working during the holidays, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters last month. "We have limits by the FAA and those sometimes are approached, but what you have is a human limit," said Allied Pilots Association spokesman Dennis Tajer, who represents American Airlines pilots. The Air Line Pilot’s Association, Int’l representing Delta pilots said resolving scheduling issues will be a priority when the union returns to contract negotiations with the airline in January. https://www.yahoo.com/news/omicron-unruly-passengers-deter-u-213715568.html Israel signs deal to buy $3.1 billion in U.S. helicopters, tankers JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel has signed a deal with the United States to buy 12 Lockheed Martin Corp CH-53K helicopters and two Boeing Co KC-46 refuelling planes, the Israeli Defence Ministry said on Friday, estimating the total price at around $3.1 billion. The deal, signed on Thursday, is part of an upgrade of Israel's air force capabilities and includes an option to buy six additional helicopters, a ministry statement said. It said the first helicopters were due to arrive in Israel in 2026. Brigadier-General Shimon Tsentsiper, chief of materiel for the air force, told Israel's Army Radio on Thursday that the refuelling planes on order would not be delivered before 2025. He said Israel was trying to bring forward the delivery of the KC-46s, and eventually wanted a total of four of them. Israeli media have speculated that the refuelling planes could be crucial for carrying out a long-threatened air strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. Tsentsiper said the air force's current refuelling capacities were sufficient for its missions. https://www.yahoo.com/news/israel-signs-deal-buy-2-074610742.html Curt Lewis