Flight Safety Information - August 30, 2022 No.166 In This Issue : Incident: Swiss BCS3 at Zurich on Aug 29th 2022, problems with both radio altimeters : Incident: United B764 at Newark on Aug 26th 2022, dropped panel in flight : IndiGo flight shows engine stall warning as passing jet creates turbulence : GHANA CONSIDERS BANNING ALL AIRCRAFT OLDER THAN 20 YEARS FROM ITS AIRPSACE : Crew Steps In to Break Up Fight Between Air France Pilots During Flight : Orange is the new black: the history of the ‘black box’ : UPS Grows Boeing 767 Fleet To Over 100 Aircraft With New Order : Researchers Develop AI Pilot for Navigating Crowded Airspace : ALPA - 66th Air Safety Forum - September 12-15, 2022 - JOIN US! Incident: Swiss BCS3 at Zurich on Aug 29th 2022, problems with both radio altimeters A Swiss International Airlines Bombardier C-Series CS-300, registration HB-JCS performing flight LX-562 from Zurich (Switzerland) to Nice (France), was climbing out of Zurich's runway 28 when the crew requested to stop the climb at FL070 or FL080 due to a technical problem subsequently advising, both they had problems with both their radio altimeters. The aircraft entered a hold at FL080 and returned to Zurich for a safe landing on runway 14 about 25 minutes after departure. A replacement BCS3 registration HB-JCU reached Nice with a delay of about 2 hours. The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground about 10 hours after landing back. A passenger reported the crew announced technical reasons for the return. https://avherald.com/h?article=4fd88924&opt=0 Incident: United B764 at Newark on Aug 26th 2022, dropped panel in flight A United Boeing 767-400, registration N76064 performing flight UA-23 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Dublin (Ireland), was climbing through 16,000 feet out of Newark's runway 22R when the crew heard a loud bang. In the absence of any abnormal indication the crew continued the flight and landed safely on Dublin's runway 28L about 5:40 hours later. A post flight inspection revealed the aircraft had lost a panel at the underside of the aft fuselage near the packs bay. The return flight UA-22 was cancelled. The aircraft is still on the ground in Dublin about 49 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=4fd84d2d&opt=0 IndiGo flight shows engine stall warning as passing jet creates turbulence • An Airbus A320 operated by IndiGo was flying over the Guwahati to Mumbai route on Monday at roughly 36,000 feet when the captain noticed an Engine 1 stall warning signal that quickly vanished New Delhi [India], August 30 (ANI): In a rare occurrence, an Airbus A320 operated by IndiGo was flying over the Guwahati to Mumbai route on Monday at roughly 36,000 feet when the captain noticed an Engine 1 stall warning signal that quickly vanished. "IndiGo flight 6E-6812 witnessed an engine 1 stall warning signal for a moment due to a bigger jet of Boeing 777 aircraft passing in the opposite direction of IndiGo's A320 aircraft which creates 'Wake Turbulence' mid-air," an official told ANI. Soon after witnessing wake turbulence by emirates Boeing's (B-777) big plane, the IndiGo's aircraft was cruising generally to its destination without any difficulty. A Mumbai-bound IndiGo plane took off as per schedule from Guwahati airport at around 6:32 am in the morning. According to sources, the 'wake turbulence' arose due to the large jet aircraft crossing in the opposite direction of the Indigo aircraft. According to the Federation Aviation Administration (FAA), the largest US-based transportation agency, it is clearly mentioned that sometimes the wake turbulence can be negligible or sometimes it can be disastrous. "A wake turbulence encounter can range from negligible to catastrophic. The impact of the encounter depends on the weight, wingspan, size of the originated aircraft, distance from the originated aircraft, and point of vortex encounter," FAA said on wake turbulence. In addition, during FAA wake turbulence, pilots are always prepared for turbulence in the sky and the role of the pilot is very important in dealing with the conditions at that time, "Wake turbulence can impose rolling moments exceeding the roll-control authority of encountering aircraft, causing possible injury to occupants and damage to aircraft. Pilots should always be aware of the possibility of a wake turbulence encounter when flying through the wake of another aircraft, and adjust the flight path accordingly," Flight Safety of FAA read. The airline's company has reported the incident to India's aviation regulatory body, Director General Civil Aviation (DGCA), about the incident and there was no damage to the plane and passengers. IndiGo declined to make any official comment on the above incident. https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/indigo-flight-shows-engine-stall-warning-as-passing-jet-creates-turbulence-122083000034_1.html GHANA CONSIDERS BANNING ALL AIRCRAFT OLDER THAN 20 YEARS FROM ITS AIRPSACE The Delta Air Lines saga in Ghana continues, which soon could spill over to other carriers if a new proposal gains any traction that would ban all aircraft over 20 years from the airspace of Ghana. After a problem-plagued Boeing 767-300 aircraft was used repeatedly to operate flights between New York (JFK) and Accra (ACC), the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) banned that particular aircraft from its airspace and requested that Delta stop flying the 767 altogether on to Ghana. Even so, outrage grew that Delta would use such a troubled aircraft, with some charges of racism being directed at Delta even though it uses the same aircraft to serve destinations in Europe and within the USA. A lawsuit was also threatened. Now, the GCAA will reportedly soon issue a directive that will block the flying and importation of any commercial aircraft that are 20 years in Ghana. Charles Kraikue, the Director-General of the GCAA, explained: “Following persistent complaints from passengers, we will soon bring out a new directive that will stop airlines from using overage aircraft in the country’s airspace. “Under the new regime, the proposed ceiling for commercial aircraft to be deployed to Accra is 20 years. This is part of a bundle of measures designed to ensure that aircraft on the Accra route are fit for purpose.” Of course, age is just a number not just with humans, but airplanes. Indeed, a well-maintained 40-year-old Delta DC-9 might be far “safer” than a newly-delivered Aeroflot A350 that has operated for several months without maintaining its inspection log. Kraikue virtually concedes this point: “If the proper maintenance procedures are followed, chronological age is not a limitation, but the directive has become necessary due to recent periodic complaints and dissatisfaction from passengers.” That strikes me as a rather weak reason for the ban, especially considering roughly half the aircraft in Ghana would face a ban under this measure. For example, domestic operator Passion Air would be left with only two aircraft, since its fleet of Dash 8-300s is over 30 years old. Delta responded to the letter by saying it would abide by the ban of that particular 767-300, N-195DN, but explained that it uses the 767 on routes all over the world and that “Delta is committed to providing the highest levels of safety and industry-leading service for not just our Ghanaian customers but also all our customers.” CONCLUSION Ghana is considering banning all aircraft over 20 years from flying in its airspace. This strikes me as the sort of “using a shotgun to shoot a fly” type of solution. Perhaps instead the GCAA should heavily fine airlines who experience mechanical delays rather than a blanket ban, but I ultimately think the latest GCAA proposal will hurt the very people it intends to help. https://liveandletsfly.com/ghana-bans-older-aircraft/ Crew Steps In to Break Up Fight Between Air France Pilots During Flight The fight between pilots began with "rude hand gestures" and were later separated, so one pilot could land the plane. Just as there is no fighting in the war room, there’s no being dicks in the cockpit. Two Air France pilots got a firm reminder of this age-old adage when they were suspended following an inflight altercation earlier this summer. The fight happened in June on a flight from Geneva to Paris, when pilots exchange rude hand gestures (as only the French can) while actively flying an Airbus A320. From CNN: “The incident was quickly resolved without affecting the conduct or safety of the flight, which continued normally,” an airline spokesperson said in a statement. “The pilots concerned are currently suspended from flying and are awaiting a managerial decision on the outcome/treatment of the incident. Air France reminds that the safety of its customers and crew members is its absolute priority.” Members of the crew had to intervene and separate the two pilots, the BBC reports. One pilot remained in the cockpit to land the plane safely. The flight was not affected by the row. The incident only came to light after an investigation into the airline by French-language newspaper Geneva Tribune. The Tribune revealed worrisome issues within Air France via a report from the French version of the Federal Aviation Administration, the The Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (or BEA). The BEA recently made pilot recommendations, not due to the fight, but due to a terrifying fuel leak which force an emergency landing of an Air France plane in December of last year. From CNN: The BEA report said pilots failed to follow fuel leak procedures that require the affected engine to be shut down to reduce fire risk, resulting in “a substantial reduction in the flight’s safety margin, the fire having been avoided by chance.” This is not an isolated case, BEA said. “Through a certain number of recent investigations,” they observed “that the crews concerned had not, for various reasons, voluntarily or not, carried out certain procedures in a compliant manner,” the agency said in the same report. Earlier this year, in a separate incident, an Air France plane arriving at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport experienced technical issues and “instability of flight controls” while landing. A build up of such incidents is pretty worrisome. It seems like only a matter of time before something tragic happens. So keep your bœufs on the ground where they belong, Air France pilots. Seem like there’s more important things to worry about while up in the air. https://jalopnik.com/crew-steps-in-to-break-up-fight-between-air-france-pilo-1849468336 Orange is the new black: the history of the ‘black box’ By André Orban -30 August 2022048 Flight data recorder (FDR) known as black box, used in aircraft From its invention and throughout its evolution, the ‘black box’ has been crucial for maintaining and improving commercial aircraft safety since the 1950s. Here, component supply specialists Artemis Aerospace explores this essential piece of equipment and how it has developed into the modern technology used by the industry today. Why is it called a black box? Although commonly referred to as a ‘black box’, the device’s official name is flight data recorder (FDR) or cockpit voice recorder (CVR). Originally, flight recorders consisted of magnetic tape encased in a fireproof box that was painted black to protect the metal and prevent rust, hence the terminology ‘black box’ – an expression that was made popular by the British during World War II. However, after FDRs were mandated by the aviation industry in the 1960s, regulations stipulated that all flight recorders must be painted in ‘international orange’ – making them highly visible and easy to distinguish in the event of an incident. Early flight recorders Although the Australian scientist, David Warren, is credited with inventing the first flight and voice recorders for the commercial aviation industry, the earliest known design was made by François Hussenot and Paul Beaudoin at the Marignane flight test centre in France in 1939. The ‘Hussenograph’ was a photograph-based flight recorder that used scrolling photographic film and recorded instrument data, such as altitude and speed. Hussenot’s and Beaudouin’s legacy lives on through the Société Française des Instruments de Mesure, which they founded in 1947 and today forms part of the multi-national manufacturer of aircraft engines and equipment, Safran group. During WWII, Len Harrison and Vic Husband developed a crash and fire-proof flight recorder for the Ministry of Aircraft Production, setting the standard for today’s modern units. The first flight recorders for commercial aircraft Up until the 1950s, flight recorders were primarily used on military aircraft. However, in 1953, David Warren’s prototype FDR ‘The ARL Flight Memory Unit’ was specifically designed for post-crash investigations of civilian aircraft and was the first to record voices in the cockpit as well as instrument readings. During the same year, Professor James J. Ryan, who was a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Minnesota, invented and patented the flight recorder in the United States. However, unlike Warren’s invention, Ryan’s didn’t include a cockpit voice recorder, which wasn’t patented in the US until 1961 by Edmund A Boniface Jr. As recordings became digitised, this led to the FDR and CVR being combined into one unit called the CVDR. Most commercial jets are now additionally equipped with a QAR (quick access recorder) meaning data can be easily removed and accessed quickly in the event of less serious incidents, such as unplanned deviations, that require further investigation. Today’s systems are digitally controlled and include built-in test equipment that records how the aircraft is operating. This means that potential issues can be identified and dealt with before an incident occurs, making air travel even safer and more efficient than ever before. Flight recorders become mandatory Following the crash of Trans Australia Airlines Flight 538 in 1960, Australia became the first country in the world to make cockpit voice recorders mandatory. In 1964, the United States passed its first cockpit voice recorder rules requiring all turbine and piston aircraft with four or more engines to install CVRs by March 1967. By 1967, FDRs had become mandatory in many countries. Commercial aircraft were required to carry FDRs and CVRs housed in bright orange boxes in the tail of the aircraft, where they would stand the best chance of survival in the event of a crash. FDRs are now governed by ICAO (International Civil Aviation Authority) and the FAA (Federal Aviation Authority) in the United States. These regulators stipulate the specifications and standards FDRs must meet for aircraft. This includes FDRs being equipped with an underwater locator beacon that is automatically activated when an incident occurs. FDR improvements and updates Despite the introduction of the underwater locator beacon to aid FDR recovery following a crash, the technology was not without its limitations. Notably, the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in March 2014, demonstrated the restrictions of flight recorder technology, which required physical possession of the device in order to understand the cause of an accident. Unable to locate Flight 370 or its FDR, authorities called for live streaming of data from the aircraft to the ground. In addition to this, they requested for the range and battery life on all underwater locator beacons to be extended and that aircraft be fitted with a secondary deployable recorder that would be ejected from the aircraft before impact. FDRs of the future Artificial intelligence and telematics are leading the way in developing the aircraft of the future, including improving the collection of in-flight data and voice recordings. Honeywell’s latest flight deck, Anthem, provides anytime, anywhere data analytics and an engine-out function to automatically guide pilots to the nearest airport, while assessing factors such as terrain and wind speed. The NTSB (National Transport Safety Board) in the US has long been lobbying for installing cockpit video recorders in new and in-service commercial jets to improve the quality of information that can be gathered following an incident. However, this hasn’t been without controversy and ALPA (Air Line Pilots Association) has expressed concerns regarding privacy. Whatever the future holds for flight data recorders, they will continue to be essential to maintaining safe air travel for all. https://www.aviation24.be/airlines/orange-is-the-new-black-the-history-of-the-black-box/ UPS Grows Boeing 767 Fleet To Over 100 Aircraft With New Order UPS has ordered an additional eight new 767 aircraft. UPS has placed an order for eight more Boeing 767 freighters. The additional eight aircraft will bring the airline's fleet of 767s to 108. The aircraft will be delivered incrementally starting in 2025. The airline will also receive a 767 freighter conversion by the end of 2023. UPS placed the last order for the 767 in December 2021. This seemed to be the end for the 767, as Boeing showed no signs of continuing the project. This latest order has stretched the aircraft's life further. Boeing has stated that it now intends to produce 767 freighters for decades to come. Freighter's ordered Boeing will produce eight additional 767 freighters for UPS in the coming years. The recent order will expand the airline's fleet of 767s from 100 to 108. This builds on the airline's order placed in December 2021 for 19 767 freighters. It will also receive an older passenger 767, converted to a freighter. This aircraft is expected to be delivered by the end of 2023. The deliveries from this most recent order will begin in 2025. Within a decade, the airline would have added 28 767 freighters to its fleet of 80. Boeing will deliver the freighters incrementally beginning in 2025. The 767 is a versatile widebody capable of carrying up to 52.4 tonnes of cargo. Coupled with its extended range capabilities, it makes an excellent freighter that the airline utilizes in every corner of the globe. The UPS Executive Vice President and President of the US region, Nando Cesarone, stated, "The additional 767s will help us continue to deliver what matters to UPS customers around the world. This is a very versatile aircraft that we operate across every region of the globe, "With these aircraft, our fleet will continue to be among the most modern in our industry, meeting our customers' needs while improving our efficiency, sustainability and reliability." The Boeing senior vice president of Commercial Sales and Marketing, Ihssane Mounir, said, "This repeat order from UPS is a testament to the outstanding cargo capabilities of the 767 Freighter and further demonstrates Boeing's market leadership in the freighter segment," Growing market Orders for the 767 variants slowed significantly in the past two decades. Last year UPS placed what many thought would be the final order for the 767. In the past two decades, Boeing has diverted its attention to other projects instead of the 767. The lack of orders plus the diverted attention are the primary reasons why many speculated that the 767 was nearing the end of its life. Years earlier, Boeing halted production of the 757 after orders slowed dramatically. This is another reason it seemed as though the manufacturer would cease production of the 767. Air Cargo revenue has doubled since before the pandemic. Since this last order, Boeing has shared its intentions of continuing to produce freighters for years to come. It anticipates that the industry will need an additional 2,795 more freighters throughout the next two decades. Air Cargo demand is higher than ever and continues to grow alongside international e-commerce. Revenue from air cargo has doubled in the past three years alone. The 767 has been one of Boeing's most successful freighters. It would make sense for the manufacturer to continue making this aircraft for decades to meet this growing demand. https://simpleflying.com/ups-new-boeing-767-order/ Researchers Develop AI Pilot for Navigating Crowded Airspace New research from the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University shows that AI-powered pilots could enable the integration of autonomous aircraft into the airspace. Above is a simulation demonstrating the capabilities of an AI pilot. (Photo: The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University) Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have designed an AI (artificial intelligence) pilot that can navigate an aircraft through crowded airspace using visual flight rules (VFR). The AI pilot has been tested on flight simulators, and it detects other aircraft using a computer vision system and six cameras. It also offers the ability to communicate with air traffic controllers and pilots using its automatic speech recognition function. There has not been sufficient research conducted on integrating autonomous vehicles into the airspace with manned aircraft, according to Jay Patrikar, a Ph.D. student at Carnegie Mellon’s Robotics Institute that worked on the AI pilot project. “With air taxis, most have been focusing on the hardware—building the aircraft, making it go faster and farther,” Patrikar told Avionics International. “Nobody has talked enough about how these taxis would get integrated into the current airspace system.” The AI pilot can operate an aircraft just like a human pilot, shared Dr. Jean Oh, associate research professor at the university’s Robotics Institute. She noted that larger airports usually have an air traffic control tower to optimize the schedule for aircraft taking off and landing. At smaller airports, pilots rely on radio communications and visually observing other aircraft in the airspace to coordinate their actions. According to the Carnegie Melon team, most autopilot controls featured in commercial airliners and other aircraft are designed to operate under instrument flight rules (IFRs). That's one reason why their team is focused on developing an AI pilot that can interact with other aircraft in the lower altitude VFR airspace where electric air taxis and drones operate. “We ran a very simple scenario with two airplanes trying to land at the same airport, potentially creating conflict,” said Dr. Oh regarding the simulated flight tests. “They need to plan their trajectories so they avoid collisions safely.” The AI predicts the future trajectories of other aircraft after observing their movements. “Based on those predicted trajectories, the AI planner chooses a safe action,” Dr. Oh told Avionics. “We compute all the possible cases and then choose the safest path.” The researchers’ current approach focuses mostly on this trajectory-based intention prediction and planning. They are also working on a proof of concept for using natural language understanding. “We use communication to capture the other pilot’s intentions,” she noted. “When that information is available, the algorithm can use it to refine the planning.” She remarked that there are limitations with this concept. “We can’t always assume that information will be ready. Communication is not always allowed or supported, and it can be very noisy input from the environment; there could be a lot of errors introduced by doing so.” Dr. Oh has previously worked on robotic navigation systems for ground vehicles which helped to inform her work in developing an AI pilot. “A lot of the existing robotic technologies that are used for self-driving are developed in a static environment—the autonomous vehicle is the only moving agent in the environment and everything else is static,” she explained. “The approaches have been developed to detect obstacles and avoid them. What hasn’t been fully addressed is there are many other vehicles and agents in the environment. In such dynamic environments, the research is still ongoing.” There are also a lot of limitations in the current regulatory approach to allowing operations of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the national airspace, according to Dr. Oh. “The Federal Aviation Administration and those currently designing the future of aviation are proposing a segregating approach,” she said. Essentially, they designate spaces for UAVs and other autonomous aircraft that are separate from those used by manned systems. As the number of UAVs and drones grows over the next 10 years, issues will arise. Solutions currently in effect at airports are inefficient, says Dr. Oh. “At the airport, if there is one UAV landing or taking off, no one else can use that space. It is a very inefficient use of these expensive resources.” She points out that the airspace will quickly become crowded, and not just for commercial use but in other areas as well. The approach of separating autonomous aircraft from other vehicles does not scale well. The AI pilot that the Carnegie Mellon team has developed could provide the ideal solution to these problems. The AI pilot has not yet been tested on actual aircraft. “We are doing more user studies in the coming weeks to evaluate the AI pilot,” Dr. Oh remarked. “There are difficulties evaluating this integrated AI system, and any type of integrated AI for that matter—there is no good way to evaluate the system using one metric.” The user studies, she explained, will involve human pilots flying in a simulated airspace with another aircraft controlled by either a second human pilot or the AI pilot. The research team will then ask the pilots how safe or comfortable they felt operating in each environment to evaluate the performance of the AI pilot. https://www.aviationtoday.com/2022/08/29/researchers-develop-ai-pilot-navigating-crowded-airspace/ 66th Air Safety Forum – Join Us! PERSEVERANCE THROUGH STRENGTH AND UNITY September 12 – September 15, 2022 | Omni Shoreham Hotel | Washington, DC safetyforum.alpa.org CONFIRMED KEYNOTES INCLUDE • Capt. Joe DePete – President, Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l • The Honorable Jennifer Homendy – Chair, National Transportation Safety Board • The Honorable David Pekoske – Acting Administrator, Transportation Security Administration • Mr. Nick Robinson, Director General Civil Aviation, Transport Canada • Capt. “Sully” Sullenberger – Former U.S. Ambassador to ICAO • Mr. Dieudonne Kazzembe, Aero Club Foundation Scholarship Recipient Agenda and registration information can be found at safetyforum.alpa.org THANK YOU, SPONSORS & EXHIBITORS! Sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are available. Email airsafetyforum@alpa.org for more information. Curt Lewis