Flight Safety Information - September 27, 2023 No. 187 In This Issue : Incident: Southwest B737 near Baltimore on Sep 25th 2023, hydraulic leak : Incident: PIA A320 at Sialkot on Sep 23rd 2023, rejected takeoff due to bird strike, deflated tyres : BA pilot had cocaine party in Joburg before he was due to fly full plane to London – report : Part Two: Exploring Aviation's Human Factors 'Dirty Dozen' : London's Gatwick Airport Limits Flights As Covid-19 Outbreak Causes Staff Shortages : The headache of Ural Airlines to get its A320 out of a field : MIT’s New AI-Powered Co-Pilot Will Redefine Aviation Safety : The airline industry has put a dent in the pilot shortage : Reports Suggest Bamboo Airways Is Struggling To Pay Its Pilots : America's Military Can’t Repair Its Own $1.7 Trillion Jet Incident: Southwest B737 near Baltimore on Sep 25th 2023, hydraulic leak A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N925WN performing flight WN-1551 from Atlanta,GA to Washington National,DC (USA), was descending towards Washington when the crew decided to divert to Baltimore reporting a hydraulic fault. The aircraft landed safely on Baltimore's runway 33L, attending emergency services reported a lot of smoke emanating from the brakes of the aircraft. A replacement Boeing 737-700 registration N237WN "hopped" to Washington National reaching a maximum altitude of 4000 feet and continued the next sectors of flight WN-1551. https://www.avherald.com/h?article=50edd980&opt=0 Incident: PIA A320 at Sialkot on Sep 23rd 2023, rejected takeoff due to bird strike, deflated tyres A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration AP-BLC performing flight PK-264 from Sialkot to Lahore (Pakistan), was accelerating for takeoff from Sialkot's runway 22 when the crew rejected takeoff at high speed (about 160 knots over ground) and returned to the apron, where three tyres deflated. The airline reported the aircraft, originating in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) had diverted to Sialkot due to inclement weather in Lahore. During takeoff to continue the flight to Lahore the aircraft suffered a bird strike prompting the takeoff to be rejected. The passengers were taken to Lahore by bus in the end. https://www.avherald.com/h?article=50ed23b4&opt=0 BA pilot had cocaine party in Joburg before he was due to fly full plane to London – report In August, British Airways pilot Mike Beaton went out on the town during a layover in Johannesburg, The Sun reported on Wednesday. He sent a colleague text messages describing the drinking, the cocaine, and the sex that lasted into the early hours. He was due to co-pilot a flight to London the next morning. But his colleague alerted their bosses, and the flight was delayed by a day. On a Monday in August, a plane full of passengers travelling from Johannesburg to London was delayed for 24 hours while British Airways sorted out a staffing emergency. That emergency, it now turns out, involved a night of drugs, drinking, and marathon sex by one of the airline's pilots. On Wednesday, British tabloid The Sun reported on Mike Beaton's wild night out based on texts he sent to a stewardess friend, recounting his Joburg party. What he described left little doubt that he would not be fit to act as first officer for a flight out the next day – after he "couldn't even lift my head" until 14:00 the next day. She reported him, and the flight was cancelled. Beaton, said The Sun, was flown home the next day as a passenger, subjected to a drug test, and then fired. Beaton's reported texts describe a "standard Joburg setup" that went from a bar to "Grillhouse", thought to be the steakhouse branch in Melville Arch, and then to the Tiger's Milk restaurant. At the bar he met a "young Spanish bird" and a "Welsh chick", and at the club their group of three met "two local lads who live in the compound", likely Melrose Arch. The married Beaton said he snorted cocaine from the breasts of one of the women (after starting a debate about which woman's breast would be best for this exercise), before he started to think "things were getting way out of hand". So he returned the women to their hotel, where he had drug-fuelled marathon sex with his new Welsh acquaintance. Beaton continued to boast about his exploits even after his friend, who initially solicited the story, expressed discomfort at the cocaine use. In response to a News24 request, BA stressed that there had been no risk to passengers, and repeated a short statement it had issued to the British press: "Safety is always our top priority. The matter was referred to the CAA [the UK Civil Aviation Authority] and this individual no longer works for us." The CAA confirmed that Beaton's medical certification had been withdrawn. In order to fly again, he would have to satisfy the regulator that he had been fully rehabilitated. https://www.news24.com/news24/world/news/ba-pilot-had-cocaine-party-in-joburg-before-he-was-due-to-fly-full-plane-to-london-report-20230927 Part Two: Exploring Aviation's Human Factors 'Dirty Dozen' Covering the last six precursors of many human errors. In aviation, human factors are given tremendous attention to establish and maintain the safety of people and machines. Human factors relate to conditions in human behavior that limit their judgment and decision-making abilities and compromise aviation safety. The industry has learned over time that human errors remain one of the most significant causes of aviation-related incidents and accidents. Boeing analyzes its manufacturing and operational data and reports various elements of aviation safety. The company shows the involvement of human error in aircraft incidents by stating, "Human error has been documented as a primary contributor to more than 70 percent of commercial airplane hull-loss accidents. While typically associated with flight operations, human error has also recently become a major concern in maintenance practices and air traffic management." This article is "Part Two" of the Dirty Dozen in Human Factors. The last six of the precursors of error are elaborated in this article. In case you missed it, check out Part One here. 1 Lack of Resources If not all paperwork is available to carry out a flight check or a lack of maintenance manuals prevents the completion of a maintenance task, this is referred to as a lack of resources. As much as the aviation industry relies on people and teamwork, it also requires all resources to be available to perform a task. From manuals and documentation to human resource management, adequacy of resources is essential. Since the start of the global pandemic, the aviation industry has been hit hard by a supply chain crisis. Not having a critical part available on time can result in a ripple effect of issues. The consequential delay in aircraft maintenance impacts fleet management and flight operations. Aviation personnel must ensure that resources are planned ahead of time to prevent any human errors. Recommendations: Aviation personnel must postpone the task at hand if faced with a lack of resources. Moreover, parts or procedures that do not comply must not be chosen to complete work. 2 Pressure Work pressure can be of many variants. One of the primary factors of anxiety that often leads to human errors is the pressure to meet a deadline. Countless incidents have occurred in aviation where a lousy maintenance job was done to meet the operational deadline. While some delays are inevitable, aviation personnel may implement alternative methods to meet deadlines. Individuals also put pressure on themselves or are sometimes unable to handle work pressure. As such, they may make assumptions about what is expected of them and, as a result, make mistakes. Poor judgments and decision-making are part of the pressure that is evident in the aviation industry. Recommendations: Aviation personnel must speak up if they feel under immense pressure. Even if the stress is created by themselves, help must be requested before making a judgment. 3 Lack of Assertiveness or self-confidence Like in any other profession, aviation personnel may also lack self-confidence or assertiveness in their behavior. The ability to communicate emotions, beliefs, and concerns is referred to as being assertive in behavior. Several aviation incidents have occurred where an inexperienced pilot was unable to express concern over a mistake made by an experienced captain. Two Pilots working in the cockpit.Photo: Yakobchuk Viacheslav | Shutterstock While such behaviors originate from cultures and beliefs, these must be addressed in the aviation community. Critically, being assertive does not mean being aggressive or stubborn. Putting the emotion or concern forward is always considered a safe behavior in aviation. Human Factors training provides techniques for assertiveness and more rationality when dealing with a serious situation. Recommendations: Aviation personnel must voice their concern when things do not feel right. Hazardous environments and dangerous activities must be communicated to ensure damage is prevented. At the same time, a culture of acceptance towards corrective and constructive criticism must be fostered. That way, all individuals will likely communicate and express their concerns openly. 4 Stress Acute and Chronic stress are two of the most distinct types of stress attributed to aviation safety. Acute stress results from a real-time demand faced by the individual. For example, an ATC personnel faced a stressful situation in the tower dealing with various diverted flights simultaneously. Chronic stress refers to a physical or psychological demand over a long period of time. Some ATC personnel may take a long-term leave from work after having worked for numerous years. The human body needs to recover from such stresses to ensure they do not affect an aircraft's or its occupants' safety. Social interactions, communication strategies, and informal sessions can help alleviate stress levels. Moreover, a light and friendly work environment allows for casual and personal communication with colleagues in the workplace. Recommendations: Aviation personnel must be self-aware of their stress, whether a one-off acute event or more long-standing stresses. Social interactions and openness go a long way in minimizing the effects of stress on individuals. 5 Lack of Awareness Having tunnel vision or a lack of awareness of the surroundings can be detrimental to aviation work. Aviation personnel must have a complete picture of the work and its impact on others. Having partial awareness may lead to incomplete or inaccurate work. People must preemptively understand their work's impact on others' lives. Industry leaders must foster professionalism by making their employees more aware of the work, its potential outcomes, and its effects on others. While there are many safety nets in aviation systems, people must still be mindful of how their actions impact the greater aviation community. Recommendations: Aviation personnel must ask others to check their work even if they are familiar with it. Having a second set of eyes is always a good idea when the stakes are high. Despite the safety nets, the room for error is very low. As such, a thorough evaluation of the work and its impact must be performed. 6 Norms or Habits Workplace norms are always influenced by the culture that people create. Such culture is developed over time, and certain habits form. "This is the way we do things around here," is one of the most common phrases used in aviation. The "way" can be either safe or unsafe, but it has at least seemed to have worked so far. Individuals must not let habits come in the way of safety in aviation. Interested in similar content? Check out our complete guides section here. A jet engine removed from an aircraft for maintenance at a hangar. Photo: santi lumubol/Shutterstock Just because an incident has not happened in the past doesn't necessarily mean things are completely safe. It may very well be luck playing all the time. Rather than following the norms, processes and techniques must be thoroughly tested against all potential threats. Standards enforced through peer pressure or hierarchy must be resolved to maintain safety. Recommendations: Aviation personnel must identify unsafe and undesirable norms in the workplace. The standards must be tested for potential dangers before accepting and following them. Following what has always been done in the workplace may not be the safest solution. https://simpleflying.com/aviation-human-factors-dirty-dozen-part-two/#pressure London's Gatwick Airport Limits Flights As Covid-19 Outbreak Causes Staff Shortages • The largest number of cancellations will be on Friday, September 29, with 33 departures affected. • London's Gatwick Airport Limits Flights As Covid-19 Outbreak Causes Staff Shortages • More than 40 flights were canceled over the weekend. Gatwick Airport, London's second-busiest, has canceled several flights because of staff shortages in air traffic control blamed on the Covid-19 outbreak, Forbes reported. More than 40 flights were canceled over the weekend. The airport has also moved to limit the number of planes coming and going from its runway for the rest of the week, the airport's CEO Stewart Wingate said in a statement. The airport said a daily 800-flight limit, including both departures and arrivals, has been imposed until Sunday. The daily cap will prevent last-minute cancellations and delays for passengers while National Air Traffic Services (NATS) gets back to normal, the airport said. The largest number of cancellations will be on Friday, September 29, with 33 departures affected. 30% of staff in the division within air traffic control are off sick for a variety of reasons, including COVID-19, the airport said in a statement. NATS apologized to passengers but said that a variety of medical reasons meant it couldn't manage the normal flows in and out of the airport. In a statement, NATS said, ''We have worked very closely with Gatwick airport throughout. Given the levels of sickness we have experienced over the last few weeks we believe it is the responsible thing to do to limit the number of flights this week in order to reduce the risk of daily disruption to passengers using the airport. With 30 percent of tower staff unavailable for a variety of medical reasons including Covid, we cannot manage the number of flights that were originally planned for this week.'' Meanwhile, Stewart Wingate, CEO of London Gatwick, said, “This has been a difficult decision but the action we have taken today means our airlines can fly reliable flight programs, which gives passengers more certainty that they will not face last-minute cancellations. We are working closely with NATS to build resilience in the control tower, and this decision means we can prevent as many disruptions as possible. ''London Gatwick would like to apologise to any passengers who have been impacted by these restrictions.'' EasyJet, the airport's most used airline, is expected to be the most affected, the BBC reported. Johan Lundgren, the chief executive of easyJet, said, ''While it is regrettable that a temporary limit on capacity at Gatwick airport is required, we believe that it is the right action by the airport so on-the-day cancellations and delays can be avoided. ''Gatwick airport and Nats now need to work on a longer-term plan so the resilience of [air traffic control] at Gatwick is improved and fit for purpose. Our call for a more wide-ranging review of Nats remains so the broader issues can be examined so it can deliver robust services to passengers now and in the future.'' https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/londons-gatwick-airport-limits-flights-as-covid-19-outbreak-causes-staff-shortages-4426770 The headache of Ural Airlines to get its A320 out of a field Ural Airlines Flight U61383 made an emergency landing in Novosibirsk region, Russia, the morning of Sept. 12. The Ural Airlines (U6) Flight #U61383 was en route from Sochi to Omsk. The pilot reported hydraulic problems to ATC. The Captain decided to divert to an airport with longer runways but then realized they could not make it to Novosibirsk and decided to land in an open field near Novosibirsk, Siberia, with 167 people aboard. Russia’s Ural Airlines plans to return to operation its Airbus A320 (reg. RA-73805). Signs that Russian carrier Ural Airlines is preparing the A320 aircraft for take-off, a Ground power unit (GPU) can be seen connected here, which means a power up attempt and getting ready to leave the field. The aircraft has been cleaned, all slides stowed, the doors closed, the engines have been covered, the landing gear was dug out of the ditches. It is not clear if the airline intends for the plane to take off from the field itself, or a nearby road. However, there don’t seem to be any wide roads nearby. https://airlive.net/news/2023/09/27/the-headache-of-ural-airlines-to-get-its-a320-out-of-a-field/ MIT’s New AI-Powered Co-Pilot Will Redefine Aviation Safety MIT's Air-Guardian: Elevating Aviation Safety with Human-AI Collaboration. Safer skies through proactive risk detection and seamless co-piloting. Powered by cutting-edge technology and trusted by industry leaders MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) has introduced Air-Guardian, an aviation safety system for a better collaboration between human pilots and AI, promising safer skies for all. The technology will upgrade a cockpit to a place where both a human pilot and an AI co-pilot continuously monitor and assess the flight’s parameters, each focusing on different aspects but working together to ensure passenger safety. Air-Guardian operates by proactively interpreting the pilot’s attention. It utilises eye-tracking technology for humans and “saliency maps” for AI, pinpointing the areas of focus within the cockpit’s visual field. These maps function as a virtual guide, aiding the AI in comprehending algorithms and identifying potential risks long before they escalate, setting it apart from traditional autopilot systems that react only after safety breaches have occurred. Air-Guardian was put through field tests where both the pilot and the AI made decisions based on the same unprocessed visual data during navigation. The results: Air-Guardian not only reduced the risk level during flights but also improved the success rate of reaching predefined waypoints. “This system doesn’t replace human judgement; instead, it complements it, leading to enhanced safety and collaboration in the skies, ” said Ramin Hasani, MIT CSAIL research affiliate and the mind behind liquid neural networks. Air-Guardian’s core technology relies on an optimization-based cooperative layer and liquid Closed-form continuous-time neural networks, known for their ability to decipher cause-and-effect relationships. The inclusion of the VisualBackProp algorithm ensures a clear understanding of attention maps within the images. The research for Air-Guardian was partially funded by organisations such as the United States Air Force Research Laboratory, the United States Air Force Artificial Intelligence Accelerator, The Boeing Company, and the Office of Naval Research. It represents a significant stride in aviation safety. https://analyticsindiamag.com/mits-new-ai-powered-co-pilot-will-redefine-aviation-safety/ The airline industry has put a dent in the pilot shortage Regional airlines are feeling a larger impact from the pilot shortage than mainline U.S. carriers. WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The pilot shortage has alleviated over the past year but still remains a substantial impediment for U.S. air service, especially in small markets. According to an analysis by consulting firm Oliver Wyman, pilot availability for North American airlines is approximately 13,300 short of demand, an improvement over last year's shortage of approximately 17,300. However, the shortage would be more severe -- an additional 6,000 pilots -- if regional carriers were flying the same number of planes as they did before the pandemic, explained Oliver Wyman partner Geoff Murray at the Regional Airline Association's (RAA) annual meeting on Tuesday. U.S. regional aircraft flying, which typically connects small and midsize markets with airline hubs, has declined 36% from 2019, Murray said. While the largest U.S. airlines say they have largely caught up on pilot hiring for mainline flights, a pronounced impact continues in the regional sector, Murray said, since the larger airlines do most of their hiring from the regional ranks. According to the Wyman analysis, 75% of mainline pilots are hired out of the regional sector, with the remainder coming from business aviation and the military. The company estimates that 44% of the regional pilot workforce of 18,100 will get hired at a mainline U.S. carrier this year, including a whopping 59% of regional airline captains. Murray said the pilot deficit improved in the past year due both to reduced demand and increased supply. Demand for pilots has been driven down by parked regional aircraft, planes being flown fewer hours per day than is optimal, and supply chain-related production delays. Meanwhile, pilot supply has increased due to a bump in the number of pilots achieving certification to fly for commercial airlines. This year, Oliver Wyman expects 6,900 new North American airline pilots, countering 4,200 pilot retirements. FAA data also show that pilot hiring is on the rise. Through August of this year, the agency had issued 7,526 of the Air Transport Pilot (ATP) certificates, which are the certificates required to fly for a commercial airline. That's up 8% compared to the same period a year ago, according to an analysis from the Air Line Pilots Association. Still, the Wyman study projects that the pilot shortage will persist for the foreseeable future and will still be approximately 13,000 a decade from now, driven in part by a 30% increase in demand for pilots over that period. The RAA says that its members were flying 300 fewer aircraft this July than they did in July 2019. Those reductions have been driven by the pilot shortage and by airline strategies to focus more on mainline flying, which offers larger margins. Forty U.S. airports have lost at least half their flights since 2019, according to the RAA. https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Airline-News/The-airline-industry-has-put-a-dent-in-the-pilot-shortage Reports Suggest Bamboo Airways Is Struggling To Pay Its Pilots Around 10% of the airline's pilots are believed to have departed the airline following delays in receiving their wages. SUMMARY • 30 pilots have left Bamboo Airways in the past two months due to delayed wages, reflecting the airline's financial struggles. • Bamboo Airways is currently undergoing a major restructuring plan, including changes to its route network, fleet, and human resources. • The airline has faced challenges such as travel restrictions during the pandemic, stiff competition, financial losses, and inconsistent leadership. As many as 30 pilots have reportedly left Bamboo Airways in the last two months after delays in receiving their wages. The reports come as the Vietnamese carrier finds itself facing significant financial hardship. Staff at the airline are understood to have faced frustrating pay delays in the past, although this is the first time that the issue has affected foreign pilots, who make up a large majority of the carrier's 300-strong pilot community. Bamboo Airways is currently undergoing a major restructuring plan, which includes its route network, fleet, and human resources. In a statement to Reuters, the airline said that it had "reduced a number of pilot personnel recently to serve this goal," although it denied that the late payment of salaries was the reason for the pilots leaving. Turbulent times for Bamboo Airways Since commencing operations in January 2019, Bamboo Airways has not had an easy ride. Vietnam's travel restrictions throughout the pandemic were among some of the strictest in the world, and since then, the airline has faced stiff competition in the form of the rapidly expanding low-cost carrier, Vietjet. Last year, Bamboo Airways posted a loss of 17.6 trillion dong ($722 million), and earlier this summer, rumors surfaced of the airline almost filing for bankruptcy protection. In addition to its financial woes, the airline has lacked consistent leadership, and its current CEO, Nguyen Ngoc Trong, was appointed in July 2023, when his predecessor resigned after just two months in the role. With its unique hybrid model, fitting somewhere between a full-service carrier and low-cost carrier, Bamboo Airways has perhaps struggled to carve out a niche in an extremely competitive market. However, in a bid to quell any rumors, the airline issued a statement assuring that it was maintaining normal operations. Vietnam's third-largest airline Bamboo Airways is the third-largest airline in Vietnam, with a 17% market share. Data from ch-aviation.com shows that the carrier currently has 30 aircraft in its fleet, including three Boeing 787-9s. The airline's only widebody aircraft each seat 292–294 passengers in a three-class configuration. The carrier has previously stated its intentions to boost the size of its fleet to 100 aircraft by 2028. In line with this plan, Bamboo Airways is awaiting delivery of another ten 787-9s and one Airbus A321, although beyond that, there are no further aircraft on order as yet. From its hubs at Noi Bai International Airport (HAN) and Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN), Bamboo Airways operates an extensive domestic and regional network. The airline also flies to a limited number of long-haul destinations - London Gatwick (LGW), Sydney (SYD), Melbourne (MEL), and Frankfurt (FRA), although the London service will end on October 25th. https://simpleflying.com/bamboo-airways-struggling-pay-pilots-reports/ America's Military Can’t Repair Its Own $1.7 Trillion Jet Only about half of the U.S.’s fleet of F-35 fighter jets is operational at any time due to difficulties with repairs, which must go through contractors. Like Apple’s new iPhone, America’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is expensive and hard to repair without intervention from the original manufacturer. According to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), a bipartisan watchdog group in D.C., F-35s are only available for missions about half the time. A whole lot of these expensive jets are sitting in storage because they’re waiting on repair parts. The F-35 is a troubled aircraft that’s been on the GAO’s radar for years. Its new report on the jet, “DOD and the Military Services Need to Reassess the Future Sustainment Strategy,” drilled down into why the aircraft spent so much time on the tarmac and not in the skies. “The F-35 fleet mission capable rate—the percentage of time the aircraft can perform one of its tasked missions—was about 55 percent in March 2023, far below program goals,” the GAO said. “The program was behind schedule in establishing depot maintenance activities to conduct repairs. As a result, component repair times remained slow with over 10,000 waiting to be repaired.” Right now, the care and upkeep of F-35s has been contracted out to third parties. If something breaks on an F-35, it’s usually fixed by a defense contractor and not military engineers. This is part of why the jet is so expensive. “DOD has estimated overall costs for the program at more than $1.7 trillion over its life cycle, with the majority of the costs, about $1.3 trillion, associated with sustaining the aircraft,” the GAO said. The goal has long been for the Pentagon to take over routine maintenance of the aircraft, but it’s not going well. When something breaks on the F-35, it takes the Pentagon an average of 141 days to repair it. That’s a long time for a jet to be grounded, but it's actually an improvement from the last time the GAO conducted the survey in 2017. Back then it took the DoD 172 days to fix a piece of the jet. The goal is to get that number down to 60. “Program officials anticipated having greater repair material starting in the second half of 2023, helping to steadily improve repair times,” the GAO said. “These officials also told us that they were still years away from achieving the program’s goal.” Other indicators have gotten worse, not better. In 2019, there was a backlog of 4,300 parts waiting on repair. In 2023, that number is up to 10,000, but the GAO did say that some of this is due to an increased number of F-35s overall. The problem of waiting on repair parts has gotten so bad, however, that the DoD is simply buying new parts instead of waiting to repair old ones. “According to DoD officials, this is a practice that program officials do not believe is a sustainable solution,” the GAO said. It’s also an expensive one. Buying new parts instead of repairing old ones is part of why the F-35 will cost the U.S. $1.7 trillion. According to the GAO, the Pentagon is 12 years behind schedule in getting its repair shops up and running. The military needs to be able to repair 68 individual components itself. The list includes stuff like ejection seats, landing gear, and the power thermal management system. Right now, it can only repair 44 of the components. Everything else has to go through contractors. “Delays in standing up the F-35 program’s depot repair capacity has had several effects, including slow repair times, a growing backlog of components needing repair, and lower aircraft readiness,” the GAO said. The F-35 has long been a troubled aircraft. Last week, an F-35B went missing over the skies of South Carolina after a Marine pilot ejected. The Pentagon lost the jet for a few hours before eventually recovering it after it crashed. This is just the latest in a long list of accidents and mishaps that have destroyed F-35s over the past few years. Everytime an F-35 catches fire at random or shoots itself by accident, contractors make a little more money and the overall cost of the project goes up a little more. https://www.vice.com/en/article/y3w5ay/america-cant-repair-its-own-dollar17-trillion-jet Curt Lewis