Flight Safety Information - May 16, 2023 No. 094 In This Issue : Incident: Endeavor CRJ9 at New York on May 11th 2023, heading problems : Incident: Lufthansa A359 at Montreal on May 15th 2023, hydraulic failure : Incident: Wizz A320 at Einhoven on May 14th 2023, engine failure : Incident: Gol B738 at Sao Paulo on May 14th 2023, rejected takeoff due to engine failure : Authorities respond to reported suspicious package on Jetblue flight at MIA : Putting public safety over politics and preserving the 1,500-hour pilot training rule : Global Aerospace's SM4 Aviation Safety Program Provides Insight on the Effects of Increased Demand and Fatigue on Pilots : DFW Airport sets stage to restart work on sixth terminal with new airlines lease : Flight forced back to Dayton International Airport after engine problems : U.S.-Made Technology Is Flowing to Russian Airlines, Despite Sanctions : EASA UPDATES ROADMAP FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN AVIATION Incident: Endeavor CRJ9 at New York on May 11th 2023, heading problems An Endeavor Canadair CRJ-900 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration N295PQ performing flight DL-5145 from New York La Guardia,NY to Savannah,GA (USA), was climbing out of La Guardia's runway 13 when the crew did not respond to two calls by ATC repeating the same instruction, on the next repeated call the crew read back to climb to 12,000 feet and turn onto heading 320 degrees, the controller added he needed them to turn right away, at this time the crew requested for a block clearance, the controller queried what altitude they needed, then the crew explained there had an issue with the heading but were fine with the altitude. The controller instructed the crew to initiate a turn and would tell the crew when to roll out of the turn. The crew requested to stop climb at 10,000 feet and subsequently on ATC instruction descended to 9,000 feet while still rolling in and rolling out of turning on ATC instructions. The crew advised they were reading checklists and talking to maintenance but needed to divert to New York JFK,NY (USA). The aircraft landed safely on JFK's runway 22R about 68 minutes after departure. The aircraft remained on the ground of JFK Airport for about 4:20 hours, then departed again and reached Savannah with a delay of about 5.5 hours. https://avherald.com/h?article=50932229&opt=0 Incident: Lufthansa A359 at Montreal on May 15th 2023, hydraulic failure A Lufthansa Airbus A350-900, registration D-AIVB performing flight LH-474 from Munich (Germany) to Montreal,QC (Canada), was descending towards Montreal when the crew reported a hydraulic failure. The crew subsequently used the alternate gear extension to lower the gear and continued for a safe landing on runway 24L about 20 minutes later. The aircraft was towed to the apron. The return flight LH-475 was cancelled. The aircraft is still on the ground in Montreal about 8 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=509312cb&opt=0 Incident: Wizz A320 at Einhoven on May 14th 2023, engine failure A Wizz Air Airbus A320-200, registration HA-LYP performing flight W6-1072 from Eindhoven (Netherlands) to Katowice (Poland), was in the initial climb out of Eindhoven's runway 03 when the crew declared Mayday reporting an engine (V2527) failure. The aircraft levelled off at 3000 feet and returned to Eindhoven for a safe landing on runway 03 about 27 minutes after departure. The crew stopped the aircraft on the runway, shut the #1 (left hand) engine down and requested emergency services to inspect that engine before proceeding to the apron. The aircraft is still on the ground in Eindhoven about 33 hours after landing back. https://avherald.com/h?article=5092bf5f&opt=0 Incident: Gol B738 at Sao Paulo on May 14th 2023, rejected takeoff due to engine failure A Gol Transportes Aereos Boeing 737-800, registration PR-GTH performing flight G3-1490 from Sao Paulo Congonhas,SP to Campo Grande,MS (Brazil), was cleared for takeoff from Congonhas' runway 17R when upon applying takeoff power the right hand engine (CFM56) emitted a bang and smoke yawing the aircraft to the left. The crew rejected takeoff, steered the aircraft right back onto the centerline and returned to the apron. A replacement Boeing 737-8 MAX registration PS-GPL reached Campo Grande with a delay of about 105 minutes. The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground at Congonhas Airport about 17 hours after the rejected takeoff. https://avherald.com/h?article=509277e6&opt=0 Authorities respond to reported suspicious package on Jetblue flight at MIA MIAMI (WSVN) - Miami-Dade Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units responded to a reported suspicious package aboard a JetBlue flight at Miami International Airport. JetBlue Flight 2892 was taxiing on the tarmac, preparing for its journey to New York City, when authorities received a call regarding a potential threat involving a suspicious package. A specialized bomb squad was promptly dispatched to the scene to conduct an investigation. The aircraft, carrying 144 passengers, was subsequently directed to the penalty box area as a precautionary measure. Officials confirmed that all individuals were removed from the plane so authorities could do a sweep of the aircraft. The flight eventually arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport after about a three-hour delay. According to Miami-Dade police, the incident was a false alarm. https://wsvn.com/news/local/miami-dade/authorities-respond-to-reported-suspicious-package-on-jetblue-flight-at-mia/ Putting public safety over politics and preserving the 1,500-hour pilot training rule BY REPS. BRIAN HIGGINS (D-N.Y.), NICK LANGWORTHY (R-N.Y.), JOE MORELLE (D-N.Y.), AND CLAUDIA TENNEY (R-N.Y.), OPINION CONTRIBUTORS FILE – A Republic Airways jet is seen at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va., June 2, 2021. Federal officials have rejected a request by Republic, which is facing a pilot shortage, to hire co-pilots with half the usual minimum amount of flying experience, saying it would reduce safety. On Feb. 12, 2009, Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed in Clarence, N.Y., killing everyone on board and one person on the ground. The tragedy was a turning point in American aviation history. Thanks to the efforts of the Families of Flight 3407, the loved ones of those who passed away, Congress enacted major flight safety reforms after the crash in the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2010. A pillar of these reforms is the “1,500 Hour Rule” which requires first officers, also known as co-pilots, to have a minimum of 1,500 hours of flight training time. Since this rule was implemented in 2012, our skies have never been safer. But as the 2023 FAA reauthorization bill is debated, regional airlines and special interests are calling to roll back this hard-fought requirement — a decision that would only put the flying public and our pilots at risk. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that the Flight 3407 crash was preventable and caused by pilot error. The victims’ families didn’t blame the pilots, though; they too were victims. Instead, they blamed the system that allowed inadequately trained pilots to fly. Turning tragedy into advocacy, Flight 3407 Families worked with Democrats and Republicans to establish the 1,500-hour pilot training rule, among other measures, to ensure that no community experienced another tragedy like Western New York knows. Every American that steps on a plane deserves to fly with One Level of Safety on both regional and major airlines. Following the Flight 3407 crash, the NTSB identified serious deficiencies within the airline industry, including exhausting schedules, inexperienced pilots, and insufficient training. Prior to the implementation of the 1,500-hour rule, first officer pilots were only required to have a minimum of 250 flight hours in their training. In the 10 years since the 1,500-hour rule was enacted, we have experienced the safest period in American aviation history. In the last 14 years, commercial aviation fatalities have decreased by 99.8 percent and more than 10 billion passengers have traveled safely on our airways. According to the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), prior to the passage of the Aviation Safety and FAA Reauthorization Act of 2010, the passenger airline industry experienced about 1,100 deaths related to airline accidents over 20 years. The numbers are clear — pilot experience is a matter of life and death. Thanks to our high standards and strong oversight, the United States is considered the gold standard for airline safety. However, that benchmark has been tested over the past few years. Attempting to persuade regulators to roll back training and safety regulations, airlines have argued that the 1,500-hour rule is causing a pilot shortage, but the numbers tell a different story. According to the FAA, a total of 15,591 new air transport pilot licenses were issued and 9,671 pilots retired between 2019 and 2021, giving a surplus of 6,000 pilots ready to serve airlines across the country. Recently, regional airlines have attempted to circumvent the 1,500-hour rule. In 2022, Republic Airways requested an exemption to allow pilots graduating from the carrier’s own training program to qualify for a commercial license with just 750 hours of training, which the FAA denied. Recently, SkyWest applied to the FAA to conduct scheduled passenger operations as a commuter airline, which would allow SkyWest to operate at a lower level of safety using first officer pilots with substantially less training. Any exemptions to the 1,500-hour rule would set a dangerous precedent that could result in lower safety standards overall. Allowing these exemptions does not serve the best interests of the flying public and jeopardizes the safety standards we have fought for and achieved for nearly 15 years. We cannot compromise safety to appease the bottom lines of airlines. The 1,500-hour rule has played a critical role in maintaining the safest period in American aviation history. For the sake of the flying public, airline pilots, and families of Flight 3407 who have continually fought to protect this rule, we cannot go backward. Brian Higgins represents New York’s 26th District, Nick Langworthy represents New York’s 23th District, Joe Morelle represents New York 25th District, Claudia Tenney represents New York’s 24th District. https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/4005582-putting-public-safety-over-politics-and-preserving-the-1500-hour-pilot-training-rule/ Oregon-Based Mercy Flights Joins Air Charter Safety Foundation Mercy Flights, a Medford, Oregon-based civil air ambulance company, is the newest member of the Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF). The nonprofit ACSF now includes more than 310 aviation-centric businesses, including charter and fractional operators. Mercy Flight will now participate in the ACSF’s third-party facilitation of the FAA’s voluntary Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP). The voluntary program, administered in cooperation with the FAA, “is designed to help operators identify, report and resolve potential safety issues without fear of reprisal from the FAA,” according to the ACSF. The program incorporates tracking and corrective action recommendations to assist in enhancing and improving participating members’ overall safety culture. With 73 years of history, Mercy Flights completed 24,878 transports in 2022. It operates a Beechcraft King Air C90GTx turboprop twin as well as a Bell 407GX helicopter. The fixed-wing King Air is staffed by two pilots, a flight nurse and a paramedic. The single-pilot Bell 407 also is crewed with a flight nurse and paramedic. CEO Sheila Clough said, “Addressing safety through the auspices of the ACSF and its ASAP is one more extremely important milestone in [our] plan and our mission.” https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/oregon-based-mercy-flights-joins-air-charter-safety-foundation/ Global Aerospace's SM4 Aviation Safety Program Provides Insight on the Effects of Increased Demand and Fatigue on Pilots Understanding the Effect of Increased Aviation Demand and Fatigue on Pilots Morris Plains, NJ --News Direct-- KISS PR Brand Story The COVID-19 pandemic has taken its toll on the aviation industry, with travel restrictions and flight cancellations severely impacting air travel over the past three years. Business aviation was one of the most impacted air travel sectors, as organizations opted for virtual meetings or found other ways to engage remotely with their clients and colleagues. However, business travel has since rebounded, with many companies reporting that corporate travel budgets have returned to pre-pandemic levels despite the increased cost of airfare, according to Morgan Stanley. Executives at Airbus Corporate Jets anticipate that 2023 will see a higher number of business professionals choosing to fly on private or chartered flights. While surely welcome, what impact does this resurgence of flight demand have on the well-being of pilots? Pilot Shortages and Fatigue Even before the pandemic, it was predicted that a shortage of pilots was forthcoming, as members of the baby-boom generation neared the federally mandated retirement age of 65. At the same time, the costs and time required to obtain a pilot certification have continued to rise, serving as a major deterrent for individuals considering aviation as a career choice. The broader airline industry estimated a shortage of nearly 8,000 pilots in 2022. Unfortunately, this shortage is likely to persist. Analysts predict that the industry will be faced with a shortage of nearly 24,000 pilots by the year 2026, which is equivalent to the elimination of approximately 23% of the current pilot workforce. With decreasing availability of qualified labor and rising air travel demand, the industry is acutely feeling the challenge. And pilots are carrying the burden with more work hours, declining productivity and increased fatigue. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects the airline industry as a whole to post a net profit of $4.7 billion in 2023. Perhaps this inflow of capital will help stimulate new investments to help tackle the problem of pilot fatigue. Ultimately, it is up to air operators to create safer working conditions for pilots and attract the skilled personnel needed to meet air travel demand safely and reliably. The Causes of Pilot Fatigue While the persistent shortage of pilots plays a significant role in pilot fatigue, there are other factors to consider. Flight delays due to antiquated IT systems and scheduling issues are also to blame. In April 2022, the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association reported record-setting fatigue levels. According to the organization’s president, Casey Murray, “A lot of our delays and issues that we’re having have to do with scheduling and connecting pilots with airplanes. It is inefficient scheduling processes that are affecting when we work in a very dynamic environment.” This is becoming not only a problem for aviation in the United States but globally. According to the Australian Transport Bureau, a third of pilots have reported removing themselves from duty because of fatigue, an action they unfortunately felt was looked down upon by superiors. On top of scheduling practices, an often overlooked source of pilot fatigue is individual factors. A new baby at home. Online courses. A medical condition that makes it difficult to achieve high-quality sleep. The list of what can influence a pilot’s ability to get adequate rest each day is long and varied, but the fact remains: Arriving for duty rested and alert is as much a function of what’s going on at home as it is linked to the schedule at work. Just losing 30 to 60 minutes of sleep a night can quickly create a sleep debt that contributes to pilot fatigue. Managing Pilot Fatigue Amid Increasing Air Travel Demand As part of their overarching commitment to safety, air operators have a duty to remain aware of the dangers of pilot fatigue and take the necessary steps to mitigate risk. A key step toward this objective is to implement a comprehensive Fatigue Risk Management Program (FRMP). An FRMP employs multi-layered defensive strategies to manage fatigue-related risks regardless of their source. It includes data-driven, ongoing adaptive processes that can identify fatigue hazards as they appear, perform risk assessments, implement and evaluate controls and mitigation strategies and monitor performance. A successful FRMP allows the organization to conduct operations not only more safely, but also more efficiently. This flexibility is crucial to help the organization meet rising demand with resources that are fixed or expanding more gradually. A guide for utilizing fatigue risk management systems created in partnership with IATA, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) can help aviation businesses implement these invaluable tools. Pulsar Informatics helps air operators develop and implement a complete FRMP that integrates fatigue risk management directly into their workflows. Our products are designed to enable operators to actively manage fatigue to not only improve safety and save costs but also manage growing demand and help meet evolving regulatory requirements. Contact us today to learn how an FRMP can deliver benefits to your organization. About Global Aerospace SM4 Aviation Safety Program The Global Aerospace SM4 Safety Program has revolutionized the way insurance specialists help their clients achieve higher levels of operational safety. SM4 was built on the concept of integrating four critical safety components: planning, prevention, response and recovery. Its mission is to help organizations manage risk, enrich training efforts, strengthen safety culture and improve safety management systems. https://sm4.global-aero.com/ Global Aerospace Suzanne Keneally Vice President, Group Head of Communications +1 973-490-8588 View source version on newsdirect.com: https://newsdirect.com/news/global-aerospaces-sm4-aviation-safety-program-provides-insight-on-the-effects-of-increased-demand-and-fatigue-on-pilots-230440500 https://finance.yahoo.com/news/global-aerospaces-sm4-aviation-safety-180026010.html DFW Airport sets stage to restart work on sixth terminal with new airlines lease The new pact with American Airlines and others would replace the 2010 use and lease agreement for 10 years, beginning Oct. 1. DFW International Airport has tentatively agreed on a new use and lease agreement with American Airlines and other carriers, setting the stage for work to restart on a sixth terminal delayed by COVID-19. At this month’s board meeting, leaders discussed an authorization to add or remove leased square footage reflected in its carriers’ “leased premises” under certain conditions. The agreement would replace the 2010 lease and use agreement for 10 years beginning Oct. 1, according to internal documents. However, board members went into a closed session for about an hour to discuss the matter, so no substantial information was given aside from documents. The new agreement signed this month hints at the future of Terminal F stating it would include a “pre-approved capital program” for terminal renovation, more gates and certain infrastructure capital projects. American and DFW came to a tentative deal on building a new $3 billion Terminal F back in 2019, highlighting the partnership that could add up to 24 new gates and give American room to grow for years to come. The new terminal would occupy a spot now filled with a parking lot, the last of six spaces that were part of the original airport design for terminals. American, and theoretically other carriers, would pay for the new terminal through leases on gates, landing fees and other rents paid to the airport. Fort Worth-based American Airlines is a key player in any deal at DFW because it’s the carrier’s biggest hub and it had an 86% market share at the airport in March. But design work was still underway when the COVID-19 pandemic hit a year later and upended the industry, forcing the airport to put the new terminal on hold indefinitely. After a record 75 million passengers went through DFW in 2019, traffic dropped by nearly 50% in 2020 to levels not seen since the Reagan Administration. To add to the uncertainty, American Airlines lost $11.9 billion in 2020 and 2021 and the industry as a whole is still struggling to return to 2019 levels of traffic because of a shortage of pilots and aircraft, further setting back the need for expansion at DFW. But DFW has been one of the fastest recovering airports on the strength of American Airlines and its dependence on its central hub airport. After an up-and-down 2022 where the airport brought in 73.36 million passengers, traffic at DFW is up 6.9% for the first three months of 2023 compared to the same period in 2019. American also pulled in a $10 million profit in the first quarter. In the meantime, DFW has built extra space with 8 new gates in Terminals C and D, and it plans to add five more gates in Terminal A. Last summer, investors were told that the airport submitted a $27.8 million capital spending request to carriers to cover the design cost for Terminal F, according to the Electronic Municipal Market Access website. “The note in our bond documents is to notify investors that we would like to proceed with the long-term planning of Terminal F,” the airport said in a statement in August. “DFW Airport is committed to informing our investors of potential capital projects as it would have a material impact on the Airport’s debt outlook. We have not received airline funding approval for Terminal F. We look forward to continuing discussions with the airlines regarding Terminal F.” https://www.dallasnews.com/business/airlines/2023/05/15/dfw-airport-sets-stage-to-restart-work-on-sixth-terminal-with-new-airlines-lease/ Flight forced back to Dayton International Airport after engine problems DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — A flight out of Dayton International Airport was diverted due to engine vibrations Tuesday morning. According to the flight logs from Flight Aware, the plane took off from Dayton International Airport around 6:30 a.m. for Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. Sometime around 7 a.m., the plane was diverted due to engine vibrations and turned back for Dayton. Airport officials reported that fire crews were staged as a precaution, but the plane landed without incident. The cause of the engine vibrations is unknown at this time. https://www.wdtn.com/news/local-news/dayton-international-airport-flight-engine-problems/ U.S.-Made Technology Is Flowing to Russian Airlines, Despite Sanctions Russian customs data shows that millions of dollars of aircraft parts made by Boeing, Airbus and others were sent to Russia last year. Last August, Oleg Patsulya, a Russian citizen living near Miami, emailed a Russian airline that had been cut off from Western technology and materials with a tempting offer. He could help circumvent the global sanctions imposed on Rossiya Airlines after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by shuffling the aircraft parts and electronics that it so desperately needed through a network of companies based in Florida, Turkey and Russia. “In light of the sanctions imposed against the Russian Federation, we have been successfully solving challenges at hand,” Mr. Patsulya wrote, according to a criminal complaint filed Friday with the U.S. District Court in Arizona. Mr. Patsulya and his business partner were arrested Thursday on charges of violating U.S. export controls and international money laundering in a case that illustrates the global networks that are trying to help Russia bypass the most expansive technological controls in history. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the United States has acted in partnership with nearly 40 other governments to impose sanctions on Russia, including limits on Moscow’s access to weapons, computer chips, aircraft parts and other products needed to fuel its economy and its war. The sanctions also applied to Russian airlines including Aeroflot, its subsidiary Rossiya and others. But despite these far-reaching sanctions, thousands of shipments of aircraft parts were successfully sent into Russia last year, according to a trove of Russian customs data obtained by The New York Times. The data, which was compiled and analyzed by Import Genius, a U.S.-based trade data aggregator, shows that tens of millions of dollars of aircraft parts were sent to Russian airlines explicitly facing sanctions by the Biden administration, including to Rossiya Airlines, Aeroflot, Ural Airlines, S7 Airlines, Utair Aviation and Pobeda Airlines. Those shipments were made possible by illicit networks like Mr. Patsulya’s, which have sprung up to try to bypass the restrictions by shuffling goods through a series of straw buyers, often in the Middle East and Asia. For instance, dozens of shipments of copper wires, bolts, graphite and other parts marked as made in the United States by Boeing slipped into the warehouses of Aeroflot last year. They traversed obscure trading companies, free-trade zones and industrial parks in the United Arab Emirates and China, and then traveled into Russia, to help patch up Aeroflot’s dilapidated fleet. The data captures more than 5,000 individual shipments of aircraft parts into Russia over a period of eight months in 2022, from simple screws to a Honeywell-branded aircraft engine starter valued at $290,000. In all, it shows that $14.4 million of U.S.-made aircraft parts were sent into Russia during the eight months, including $8.9 million of parts that are described as being manufactured or trademarked by the U.S. plane maker Boeing and sold into Russia via third parties. Boeing said it had fully complied with U.S. sanctions and had suspended providing parts, maintenance and technical support for customers in Russia in early 2022. Experts in the aviation supply chain said the parts probably came from a variety of sources, such as existing overseas stocks from airlines and repair facilities or resellers who trade in scrapped parts. Most of the products were routed through countries like the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, China and the Maldives, according to the data. But a handful of shipments — including to Rossiya — were sent directly from the United States or Europe. The shipments also increased over the course of last year as Russia recruited global businesses to help it bypass the sanctions. The trend suggests that “networks for evading sanctions took time to establish during the immediate post-export-control scramble but are now in a position to help Russian airlines source some key parts,” said William George, the director of research at Import Genius. The Russian nationals taken into custody on Thursday began setting up their scheme last May to send aircraft parts from the United States to Russia in violation of export regulations, according to the criminal complaint. The men are accused of fielding requests for parts, including expensive brake systems for a Boeing 737, from at least three Russian airlines, including two that had been strictly barred from purchasing U.S.-made products through a so-called temporary denial order issued by the Commerce Department. F.B.I. agents raided a condo owned by the men’s company in the Trump Towers in Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., on Thursday. Lawyers for the men did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Despite the level of sanctions evasion, airplane shipments into Russia remain significantly lower than before the war. U.S. officials say Russian airlines have been forced to cannibalize planes, breaking them down for spare parts to keep others in operation, as well as turning to Iran for maintenance and parts. Russia’s imports of aircraft and aircraft parts fell from $3.45 billion annually before the invasion to only about $286 million afterward, according to The Observatory of Economic Complexity, a data visualization platform that explores global trade dynamics. According to Silverado Policy Accelerator, a Washington nonprofit, China has been the leading overall exporter of parts for aircraft, spacecraft and drones to Russia since the invasion, accounting for about half of all shipments, followed by India. The number of single-aisle planes in use in Russia fell about 16 percent from the summer of 2021 to the summer of 2022, after the invasion, according to Cirium, an aviation data provider. The number of larger twin-aisle planes, often used on international routes, was down about 40 percent. Aviation experts say it will become more challenging for Russian airlines to continue flying planes without access to Western suppliers and help from Boeing and Airbus. The manufacturers regularly consult with airlines to assess any damage and strictly control access to technical documentation used by mechanics. But for now, Russian airlines have been kept alive with the help of international shipments and the use of hundreds of foreign jets that were stranded there after the war began. Tens of thousands of flights are expected to crisscross Russia this month, according to schedules published by Cirium. More than 21,000 flights — over half of them operated by Russian airlines — are expected to carry passengers to and from countries in Central Asia, as well as Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, China and Thailand. Half a dozen export control lawyers and former government officials consulted by The New York Times said that many of the shipments in the Import Genius data likely violated sanctions, but that plane makers like Boeing or Airbus were not necessarily at fault. The aviation supply chain is complex and global, and the parts could have come from a variety of sources. “There is pretty clearly a violation,” said William Reinsch, a trade expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies who oversaw export controls during the Clinton administration. “Less clear is the guilty party.” Aircraft parts originating in the European Union, including those marked as being manufactured or trademarked by Airbus, were also shipped into Russia last year, according to the data. Justin Dubon, a spokesman for Airbus, said that the company keeps track of genuine parts and documentation provided to its customers and conducts due diligence on all parties requesting spare parts. Restrictions in the United States and Europe mean that “there is no legal way that genuine aircraft parts, documentation and services can get to Russian carriers,” he said. U.S. restrictions technically allow companies to apply for a special license to continue sending products to Russian carriers for “safety of flight” reasons, but both Boeing and Airbus said that they had neither sought nor received such a license. In addition, Airbus said that E.U. laws prevent it from shipping such goods to Russia, regardless of U.S. licensing. Current and former U.S. officials say that some shipments into Russia are to be expected. Kevin Wolf, a partner at the law firm Akin Gump who oversaw export controls during the Obama administration, said the restrictions “can never block everything,” but that the rules were still significantly degrading Russia’s capabilities. He added that the scope of the new rules still exceeds current methods of tracking and enforcement in other allied countries. Until the invasion of Ukraine, trade in aircraft parts was mostly unrestricted by the United States and other countries, except to Iran, Cuba, North Korea and Syria. “It’s improving,” Mr. Wolf said, “but it’s still way, way behind.” Compared with other countries that mostly limit their scrutiny to goods crossing their own borders, the United States is unparalleled in its attempt to police commerce around the world. In the past three years, the United States has imposed new technology restrictions for Russia, China and Iran that apply extraterritorially: Products made in the United States, or in foreign countries with the help of American components or technology, are subject to U.S. rules even when changing hands on the other side of the world. Both the United States and the European Union have been ramping up penalties for companies that violate sanctions, and dispatching officials to countries like Kazakhstan to try to persuade them to clamp down on shipments to Russia through their territory. The U.S. government has nine export control officers stationed in Istanbul, Beijing and other locations to trace shipments of sensitive products, and it is setting up three more offices. But providing parts can be a lucrative business. James Disalvatore, an associate director at Kharon, a data and analytics firm that has been monitoring Russia’s efforts to bypass sanctions, said the value of some aircraft parts imported by Russian airlines since the invasion had risen fourfold or more. “I don’t think there’s any secret what’s going on,” said Gary Stanley, a trade compliance expert who advises businesses in aerospace and other industries. “How long have we had Cuban sanctions? How long have we had North Korean sanctions? How long have we had Iranian sanctions? It never seems to put these folks out of business.” https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/15/business/economy/russia-airlines-sanctions-ukraine.html EASA UPDATES ROADMAP FOR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN AVIATION EASA has updated its proposed roadmap for the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in aviation. Three years after it published the first version of the document, Europe's aviation safety agency has now published its expanded AI Roadmap 2.0 to include “experience gained from concrete AI use cases involving stakeholders from the aviation industry, academia, and research centers,” the agency said in a statement. Through its AI Roadmap, EASA aims to provide a comprehensive plan for the growing use of AI and machine learning (ML) in the aviation industry, with a focus on safety, security, and ethical considerations. The AI Roadmap 1.0, a 30-page document published in February 2020, was intended to serve as a basis for ongoing discussions between EASA and industry stakeholders. EASA published its revised AI Roadmap 2.0 on May 10. EASA says it will treat this roadmap as a “living document” that it will amend annually based on those discussions and continuing advancements in AI technologies and their applications in aviation. “AI allows us to create intelligent systems that can provide advanced assistance solutions to human end users, optimize aircraft performance, improve air traffic management and in turn enhance safety in ways that were previously unimaginable,” EASA executive director Patrick Ky wrote in a cover letter for the AI Roadmap 2.0. “However, the deployment of AI in aviation also poses new challenges and questions that need to be addressed.” In its updated roadmap, EASA has added a new chapter to identify and address some common AI challenges in aviation. The challenges EASA describes in this section pertain to things like quality assurance frameworks, knowledge and data management, and the predictability of AI behavior. The updated document also includes a new rulemaking concept for AI, in which EASA calls for a “mixed rulemaking approach” involving cross-domain rules plus domain-specific rules. EASA anticipates these rules will be developed in two steps. First, it would develop transversal “Part-AI” rules for three major provisions identified in the EASA concept paper on machine learning applications. These include requirements for authorities (Part-AI.AR), requirements for organizations (Part-AI.OR), and requirements pertaining to AI trustworthiness (Part-AI.TR). Step two will be to analyze these rules on a per-domain basis to determine those rules “that need to be complemented to provide an adequate regulatory basis for deploying the new Part-AI,” the document states. Another notable addition to EASA's AI Roadmap is a new section on aerodromes, including airports and vertiports that transport passengers or cargo. According to EASA, AI can be used for both airside and terminal-based operations. For example, airside AI could be used for UAS detection systems, avian radars, and the detection of foreign object debris on a runway. In the terminal, AI could be used in security and screening procedures. EASA will continue to update the AI Roadmap as it works with industry stakeholders to understand, develop, and improve AI applications in the aviation industry. The agency is also funding a variety of AI-related research and has partnered with private companies like Daedalean and Collins Aerospace to collaborate on research relevant to the AI Roadmap. https://www.futureflight.aero/news-brief/2023-05-15/easa-updates-roadmap-artificial-intelligence-aviation Curt Lewis