Flight Safety Information - May 26, 2025 No. 104 In This Issue : Incident: TAP A332 at Lisbon on May 23rd 2025, hydraulic failure : Incident: Transavia A21N at Amsterdam on May 23rd 2025, engine shut down in flight, gear bolt found : Incident: China Airlines A21N near Hong Kong on May 24th 2025, engine problem : Incident: Afriqiyah A333 at Beida on May 24th 2025, runway excursion on backtrack : ATR 72-500 (72-212A) - Engine Failure (United Kingdom) : Flight from Tokyo diverted to Seattle after passenger tries to open exit doors : Misplaced antenna caused military controllers to lose contact with Black Hawk near DCA: report : Pentagon Air Traffic Control Glitch Caused Two Planes to Abort D.C. Landings : Which airline has the biggest or oldest fleet? Here's how Delta, United, American and Southwest compare. : US Justice Department reaches deal with Boeing to allow planemaker to avoid prosecution : Nominations for ISASI - Jerry Lederer Award - Please submit before May 30 : ISASI 2025 - Denver : Calendar of Events : TODAY'S PHOTO Incident: TAP A332 at Lisbon on May 23rd 2025, hydraulic failure A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A330-200, registration CS-TOO performing flight TP-204 (dep May 22nd) from Newark,NJ (USA) to Lisbon (Portugal), was descending towards Lisbon when the crew declared PAN PAN due to their left hand engine being shut down and subsequently a hydraulic failure. The aircraft landed safely on Lisbon's runway 02, only the outboard ground spoilers and the right hand engine's thrust reverser deployed, and taxied to the apron. The aircraft is still on the ground in Lisbon about 25 hours after landing. On May 25th 2025 The Aviation Herald received information that left hand engine's (CF6) oil filter clogged up, the engine was shut down about 15 minutes later while enroute at FL410 about 370nm westnorthwest of Lisbon and the aircraft drifted down to FL260. Another 10 minutes later the fuel right wing pumps indicated low pressure. Descending through about FL200 towards Lisbon the blue hydraulic system indicated low pressure and the slat system #2 indicated a fault. https://avherald.com/h?article=52826453&opt=0 Incident: Transavia A21N at Amsterdam on May 23rd 2025, engine shut down in flight, gear bolt found A Transavia Airbus A321-200N, registration PH-YHZ performing flight HV-6935 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Tirana (Albania), was climbing out of Amsterdam's runway 36C when the crew declared PAN PAN reporting an engine (Leap) failure. The crew levelled off at 3000 feet and entered a hold to work the checklists, the engine was shut down. In the meantime Amsterdam's birdwatch reported they had found a gear bolt on runway 36C. The crew therefore decided to have a low approach to have their gear checked for any missing wheel. The aircraft performed a low approach to runway 36C about 25 minutes after departure, ground observers reported one of the left main tyres looked as if it may have been partly deflated. The aircraft entered another hold to work checklists, then positioned for the approach to runway 36C again and landed safely about 50 minutes after departure. The aircraft is still on the ground about 27 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=52829877&opt=0 Incident: China Airlines A21N near Hong Kong on May 24th 2025, engine problem A China Airlines Airbus A321-200N, registration B-18111 performing flight CI-851 from Taipei (Taiwan) to Chiang Mai (Thailand), was enroute at FL340 about 100nm southeast of Hong Kong when the crew decided to divert to Hong Kong due to an indication of a possible malfunctions of the right hand engine (PW1133G). The aircraft landed safely on Hong Kong's runway 07L about 30 minutes later. Passengers reported they heard sounds like a barking dog during the diversion. A replacement A321-200N registration B-18118 reached Chiang Mai with a delay of about 7.5 hours. The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Hong Kong about 17 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=52829432&opt=0 Incident: Afriqiyah A333 at Beida on May 24th 2025, runway excursion on backtrack An Afriqiyah Airways A330-300, registration 5A-ONQ performing Hajj flight 8U-1542 from Beida (Libya) to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), was backtracking runway 10 for departure when at the turn pad the aircraft attempted to line up, however, all gear went off the paved surface of the runway. The aircraft became stuck on soft ground. The airline confirmed a minor runway excursion during line up for departure stating, that no injuries and no damage occurred. https://avherald.com/h?article=52826180&opt=0 ATR 72-500 (72-212A) - Engine Failure (United Kingdom) Date: Sunday 25 May 2025 Time: 14:15 Type: ATR 72-500 (72-212A) Owner/operator: Blue Islands Registration: G-ISLO MSN: 778 Year of manufacture: 2008 Engine model: P&W Canada PW127 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: Other fatalities: 0 Aircraft damage: None Category: Incident Location: near Birmingham Airport (BHX/EGBB) - United Kingdom Phase: Initial climb Nature: Passenger - Scheduled Departure airport: Birmingham International Airport (BHX/EGBB) Destination airport: Jersey-States Airport, Channel Islands (JER/EGJJ) Confidence Rating: Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources Narrative: Blue Islands flight SI2265, an ATR 72-500, suffered an engine failure shortly after takeoff from runway 33 at Birmingham Airport (BHX). The aircraft safelty returned to BHX and landed on runway 33, 45 minutes after takeoff. https://asn.flightsafety.org/wikibase/514568 Flight from Tokyo diverted to Seattle after passenger tries to open exit doors A flight from Tokyo to Houston was diverted to Seattle on Saturday after a passenger tried to open two of the plane’s exit doors, according to the FBI and a spokesperson for the Port of Seattle. The crew and passengers restrained the person, who was taken to a hospital for medical evaluation after landing, the FBI said in a statement. All Nippon Airways Flight 114 was traveling from Japan’s Haneda Airport to George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston when it was diverted “due to an unruly passenger,” the airline said. The plane – a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner – had been in the air for about 10 hours when it landed at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport around 4 a.m. local time, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware. “Port of Seattle Police were called due to reports of a passenger who attempted to open exit doors during the flight,” spokesperson Chris Guizlo told CNN Sunday. No injuries were reported among the remaining passengers and flight crew, Guizlo added. “Our report shows the flight diverted due to a passenger disturbance,” a spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration told CNN Sunday. Upon arrival, a second passenger became unruly while on the tarmac in Seattle, according to All Nippon Airways. The person was frustrated at the flight diversion and punched the bathroom door, the FBI said. The person was “removed for unruly behavior before the plane departed SEA for Houston,” Guizlo noted. “This was unrelated and the passenger was deplaned without incident.” No charges related to the incident have been filed, the FBI added. The flight continued to Houston, landing just before 1 p.m. local time without incident, according to the airline and FlightAware. In-flight disturbances have surged A similar diversion happened in April when a flight carrying more than 200 people from Bali, Indonesia, to Melbourne was forced to turn around after a passenger tried to force open a plane door as the aircraft flew over the Indian Ocean, according to low-cost carrier Jetstar. In the United States, the FAA has a zero-tolerance policy for unruly passenger behavior, which surged to a record high in 2021, with nearly 6,000 reported incidents. Reports have declined significantly since then, but 2023 still saw more than 2,000 incidents, FAA figures show. In 2023, more than 400 enforcement actions were initiated and $7.5 million in fines were levied against such passengers. An unruly passenger last November tried to force open a plane door on a flight from Milwaukee, injuring an attendant and prompting fellow passengers to duct-tape him. The man allegedly told a flight attendant that he wanted, and needed, “to exit the aircraft now,” according to a report from the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Department of Public Safety. Also last year, a man was charged in the unprovoked beating of a passenger aboard a United Airlines flight after he repeatedly punched the person until blood was drawn. https://www.yahoo.com/news/flight-tokyo-diverted-seattle-passenger-211537229.html Misplaced antenna caused military controllers to lose contact with Black Hawk near DCA: report An Army general recently confirmed that military air traffic controllers lost contact with an Army helicopter, prompting two commercial planes to perform go-arounds to avoid crashing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), where a midair collision in January killed 67 people. On May 1, a Delta Air Lines Airbus A319 and a Republic Airways Embraer E170 at DCA were told to perform go-arounds due to a U.S. Army Black Hawk Priority Air Transport helicopter inbound to the Pentagon Army Heliport, according to statements from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Brig. Gen. Matthew Braman, director of Army Aviation, said a temporary control tower antenna placed in the wrong location caused military air traffic controllers to lose contact with the Black Hawk helicopter for 20 seconds, according to a report from The Associated Press. Even though the helicopter should have emitted its exact location, FAA officials reportedly told Braman the data received was "inconclusive," varying up to three-quarters of a mile. "It certainly led to confusion of air traffic control of where they were," Braman told the AP. The antenna, which was set up while a new control tower was being built, has since been relocated to the Pentagon rooftop, the outlet reported. Faa 'Permanently Restricting' Washington Helicopter Traffic After Fatal Midair Collision Near Dc Airport Chris Senn, the FAA’s assistant administrator for government and industry affairs, initially said in an email shared with Politico that the go-arounds could have been avoided had the Black Hawk traveled west to the heliport instead of taking "a scenic route." Army Public Affairs said in a statement its internal review found "no deviations from approved flight paths" and "no risk of intersecting air traffic." The Army claims its helicopter, which was not carrying any passengers, was continuously broadcasting via its Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) Out system throughout the flight, and the go-arounds were performed "out of an apparent abundance of caution." "The first go-around occurred before PAT 23 arrived at the Pentagon helipad and was the result of an issue with sequencing of air traffic by DCA Tower," the Army said in the statement. "The second occurred during PAT 23’s subsequent traffic pattern and was based on conflicting positional data from legacy tracking systems." The close calls came less than one month after the FAA increased staffing and oversight for the DCA air traffic control team. https://www.yahoo.com/news/misplaced-antenna-caused-military-controllers-002312859.html Pentagon Air Traffic Control Glitch Caused Two Planes to Abort D.C. Landings Newark International Airport isn’t the only airport battling ancient equipment problems. A new report claims that the two commercial flights that were forced to abandon their landings near Washington, D.C., on May 1 were reacting to problems with military air traffic control. According to The New York Times, Pentagon air traffic controllers lost contact with an Army Black Hawk helicopter for 20 critical seconds on May 1—an incident emblematic of deeper dysfunction in U.S. military airspace under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The May 1 scare occurred as the Black Hawk rounded the Pentagon, prompting air traffic controllers to wave away a Delta Airbus and a Republic Airways Embraer due to uncertainty about the chopper’s position. Army aviation head Gen. Matthew Braman revealed the details of the incident to the Associated Press. Braman said that the Comms blackout was caused by a poorly placed temporary antenna, which had only recently been moved to the Pentagon’s roof. However, critics aren’t buying it. A former NTSB crash investigator accused the Army of sidestepping responsibility. “It just sounds like excuses,” he told the AP. The near-miss comes off the back of a deadly January midair collision involving an Army helicopter and a passenger jet that killed 67 people. In response, the FAA banned helicopters from the air corridor where the crash occurred, and paused flights into the Pentagon. Under Hegseth, a Trump loyalist and Fox News firebrand-turned-Defense Secretary, the Pentagon has been thrown into chaos. His administration has faced backlash over DEI rollbacks, religious favoritism, and the Signalgate leaks involving the sharing of sensitive military communications. Meanwhile, critical infrastructure like air traffic control has faltered, with outdated tech blamed for recent blackouts and travel disruptions at Newark Liberty International Airport. The issues have become so bad that the airport has registered a near 20 percent decline in arrivals and a 15 percent decline in departures. This year has seen a number of unrelated crashes, with an air ambulance going down in Philadelphia in January, killing six, and a commuter plane crashing in Alaska, killing 10. Despite these high-profile accidents, the number of air incidents overall is slightly below average. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is pushing for urgent modernization, but near-misses like this are increasing calls for accountability before further tragedies unfold. https://www.yahoo.com/news/pentagon-air-traffic-control-glitch-032539149.html Which airline has the biggest or oldest fleet? Here's how Delta, United, American and Southwest compare. Which airline has the biggest or oldest fleet? Here's how Delta, United, American and Southwest compare. United, Delta, American, and Southwest operate the world's largest airline fleets. Business Insider compared the age, size, and makeup of the Big Four's planes. United and Southwest prefer Boeing planes, while the other two have an even split with Airbus. US airlines dominate the world's rankings, operating the four largest fleets. Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines also lead the world in revenue, while Southwest isn't far behind, either. The last of those is a budget airline, and this is evident in its fleet, which consists entirely of Boeing 737s. While the big three mainline carriers may seem pretty similar, there are some key differences. For example, United Airlines heavily favors Boeing planes, while only Delta operates wide-body Airbus jets. United also operates the world's largest fleet with more than 1,000 planes. However, it is also has the oldest in the US on average. Delta, meanwhile, operates the oldest jet that's still flying. United Airlines United Airlines is the only carrier with over 1,000 planes.Gary Hershorn/Getty Images With 1,023 planes, United Airlines has the largest fleet in the world, according to data from Ch-aviation. More than half of those are Boeing 737s, which is unsurprising given that United is the planemaker's biggest customer. Unlike its legacy competitors, United shows a clear preference for Boeing planes. Airbus jets make up less than a fifth of its fleet. United's oldest plane that's still flying is a 34-year-old Boeing 767. Registered as N641UA, it was delivered in April 1991. While this is nearly two years younger than the oldest plane operated by a US airline, United has the oldest fleet with an average age of 15.8 years. It also has the highest proportion of wide-body planes at 22% of its fleet, showing how its extensive network offers numerous long-haul flights. Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines has the oldest plane still flying in the US — a Boeing 757 that was delivered just over 35 years ago. It's registered as N649DL and appears to typically operate charter flights. In fact, Delta also owns the next 21 oldest aircraft, which are a mix of 757s and 767s delivered between 1989 and 1991. However, the average age of its fleet is still slightly younger than United's, at 15.2 years. About half its 979 planes were made by Boeing, and half by Airbus, per Ch-aviation data. Boeing jets make up the bulk of its narrow-body aircraft, but if you're flying long-haul with Delta, it's more likely you'll find yourself on an Airbus. In fact, Delta is the only carrier on this list to operate wide-body Airbus planes, namely the A330 and the A350. Tariffs have complicated its orders from the European planemaker. Earlier this month, Airbus sent an A350 from its delivery center in Toulouse, France, to Tokyo, so Delta avoided paying tariffs. A similar tactic was used five years ago, when the World Trade Organisation permitted tariffs on aircraft as high as 15%, as the US and European Union accused one another of unfair subsidies for Airbus and Boeing. American Airlines American Airlines planes sit parked at LaGuardia airport on traditionally the busiest travel day, the day before the U.S. holiday of Thanksgiving, in the Queens borough of New York City, U.S., November 27, 2024 The American Airlines Group flew more than 220 million passengers last year.Shannon Stapleton/REUTERS American Airlines also has a roughly even split between Airbus and Boeing planes. Although the carrier only uses narrow-body Airbus planes, it has both short and long-haul Boeing jets. Still, American uses more narrow-body planes than its competitors, representing 87% of its fleet. Its average jet is also more than a year younger than its two rivals, at 14.1 years old. It has the smallest fleet of the three mainline carriers, totaling 988, per Ch-aviation data. However, when its regional subsidiaries are included, the American Airlines Group carries the most passengers in the world, totaling 226.4 million last year. Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines only uses Boeing 737s.Kevin Carter/Getty Images The Dallas-based carrier was the progenitor of the budget airline business model, so its fleet makeup is quite different from that of the mainline carriers. Southwest's fleet is made up entirely of Boeing 737 jets, numbering 802, according to data from Ch-aviation. So while it has the smallest fleet of the big four, they all have a similar number of narrow-body planes. Budget airlines typically only operate one type of aircraft because it saves on maintenance and training costs. However, its traditional business model has come under threat in recent years. Budget airlines have had to contend with changing consumer habits, increased fuel and labor costs, and domestic overcapacity that has made it harder to fill planes. So, Southwest has announced an array of changes, scrapping signature policies such as "two bags fly free" and bringing in assigned seating. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/airline-biggest-oldest-fleet-heres-083701283.html US Justice Department reaches deal with Boeing to allow planemaker to avoid prosecution WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department said on Friday it has struck a deal in principle with Boeing to allow it to avoid prosecution in a fraud case stemming from two fatal 737 MAX plane crashes that killed 346 people, dealing a blow to victims' relatives. The agreement allows Boeing to avoid being branded a convicted felon and was harshly criticized by many families who lost relatives in the crashes and had pressed prosecutors to take the U.S. planemaker to trial. A lawyer for family members and two U.S. senators had urged the Justice Department not to abandon its prosecution, but the government quickly rejected the requests. "This kind of non-prosecution deal is unprecedented and obviously wrong for the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history. My families will object and hope to convince the court to reject it,” said Paul Cassell, a lawyer representing many of the families. Boeing agreed to pay an additional $444.5 million into a crash victims’ fund that would be divided evenly per crash victim on top of an additional $243.6 million fine. The Justice Department expects to file the written agreement with Boeing by the end of next week. Boeing will no longer face oversight by an independent monitor under the agreement. Boeing will pay in total over $1.1 billion including the fine and compensation to families and over $455 million to strengthen the company’s compliance, safety, and quality programs, the Justice Department said. "Boeing must continue to improve the effectiveness of its anti-fraud compliance and ethics program and retain an independent compliance consultant," the department said Friday. "We are confident that this resolution is the most just outcome with practical benefits." Boeing declined immediate comment. Reuters first reported on May 16 that Boeing had reached a tentative nonprosecution agreement with the government. The agreement would forestall a June 23 trial date the planemaker faces on a charge it misled U.S. regulators about a crucial flight control system on the 737 MAX, its best-selling jet. Boeing in July had agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge after the two fatal 737 MAX crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia spanning 2018 and 2019, pay a fine of up to $487.2 million and face three years of independent oversight. "With this filing, the DOJ walks away from any pretense to seek justice for the victims of the 737 MAX crashes,” said Javier de Luis, an aerospace engineer of Massachusetts who lost his sister in the Ethiopian crash. Boeing no longer will plead guilty, prosecutors told family members of crash victims during a meeting last week. The company's posture changed after a judge rejected a previous plea agreement in December, prosecutors told the family members. DOJ said Friday that family members and lawyers of over 110 crash victims either support the agreement or settlement efforts without a trial or do not oppose the deal. Judge Reed O'Connor in Texas said in 2023 that "Boeing's crime may properly be considered the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history." Boeing has faced enhanced scrutiny from the Federal Aviation Administration since January 2024, when a new MAX 9 missing four key bolts suffered a mid-air emergency losing a door plug. As a result, DOJ officials decided to reopen the older fatal crashes case and negotiate a plea agreement with Boeing. The FAA in January 2024 capped production at 38 planes per month. DOJ officials last year found Boeing had violated a 2021 agreement, reached during the Trump administration's final days, that had shielded the planemaker from prosecution. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-justice-department-reaches-deal-183318286.html Nominations for ISASI - Jerry Lederer Award - Please submit before May 30 Please consider nominating someone who you know is deserving of the Jerry Lederer Award: any member of ISASI may submit a nomination. The nominee is not required to be an ISASI member and may be an individual, a group of individuals, or an organization. The nomination can be for a single event, a series of events, or a lifetime of achievement. Nomination statements should emphasize an original and remarkable contribution and personal effort beyond normal duty requirements. To nominate, a letter no more than a single page, is written outlining the individual’s achievements; such traits as persistence, standing among peers, manner and techniques of operating, and achievements are considered. The nomination letter is to be e-mailed to both the ISASI office (ann.schull@isasi.org ) and to the Awards Committee Chair (Dave King - kingdfk@aol.com). Nominations must be received by May 30th. www.isasi.org "Soaring To New Heights: A World of Innovation" ISASI 2025 September 29, 2025 – October 3, 2025 Renaissance Denver Hotel & Conference Center 3801 Quebec Street Denver, CO 80207 USA CALENDAR OF EVENTS · Flight Safety Foundation - Aviation Safety Forum June 5-6, 2025 - Brussels . 2025 EASA-FAA International Aviation Safety Conference, 10 Jun 2025 to 12 Jun 2025, Cologne, Germany · The 9th Shanghai International Aerospace Technology and Equipment Exposition 2025; June 11 to 13, 2025 . South Texas Business Aviation Association June 20th at the Galaxy FBO at Conroe Airport, Texas. . Airborne Public Safety Association -APSCON / APSCON Unmanned 2025 in Phoenix, AZ | July 14-18, 2025 . 3rd annual Asia Pacific Summit for Aviation Safety (AP-SAS), July 15-17, 2025, Singapore, organized by Flight Safety Foundation and CAAS. . Asia Pacific Aviation Safety Seminar 2025; 10-11 September 2025; Manila, Philippines · ISASI ANNUAL SEMINAR 2025'September 29, 2025 – October 3, 2025, DENVER, COLORADO . Air Medical Transport Conference (AMTC™) - 2025 – October 27-29th (Omaha, Nebraska) . 29th annual Bombardier Safety Standdown, November 11-13, 2025; Wichita, Kansas · CHC Safety & Quality Summit, 11th – 13th November 2025, Vancouver, BC Canada Curt Lewis