25 JUN 2009 _______________________________________ *Air France: Flight 447 pilot's body retrieved *Babbitt Expedites Flight And Rest Rule Review *FAA panel to develop rules on pilot fatigue by September *Dispatchers Raise Southwest Safety Questions *El Al and others in line for laser-based anti-missile protection *FAA steps up pressure on carriers to adopt voluntary safety schemes *EASA Plans No Immediate Action On A330 Pitot Tubes *NTSB to Meet on Ground Fire Aboard Cargo Airplane in San Francisco *Delta Airline plane makes emergency landing *NTSB Posts the Executive Summary of the Public Hearing on Helicopter Emergency Medical Services *US To Provide Funds For Indonesia Airline Safety Overhaul **************************************** Air France: Flight 447 pilot's body retrieved PARIS (AP) - Search crews in the mid-Atlantic have retrieved the bodies of the chief pilot of Flight 447 and a flight attendant, Air France said Thursday. The two are among 50 bodies pulled out of the ocean in the international search for remains of the 228 victims and wreckage of the May 31 crash. Air France, in a statement on its Web site, said the pilot and male flight attendant have been identified but did not release their names. A pilots' union named the flight captain as Frenchman Marc Dubois. Earlier this week the international police agency Interpol said 11 of the 50 bodies retrieved had been identified: eight Brazilians, one with joint Brazilian-German citizenship, one Brazilian-Swiss and a Briton. On Wednesday Germany's Foreign Ministry said three Germans - two men from Bavaria and a woman from Hamburg - have been identified. The ministry did not release their names. The Airbus A330 plane came down in the Atlantic after running into thunderstorms en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris. The Brazilian military has led the search and recovery efforts for bodies and debris, while the French are in charge of investigating the crash and the hunt for the flight recorders, or black boxes. The cause of the crash is unclear. The plane's two black boxes could be key to determining what happened. But the boxes will only continue to emit signals for a few more days. They send out an electronic tapping sound that can be heard up to 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) away. French officials said this week that military ships searching for the wreckage have detected sounds in the Atlantic depths but they are not from the flight recorders. Two French-chartered ships are trolling a search area with a radius of 50 miles (80 kilometers), pulling U.S. Navy underwater listening devices attached to 19,700 feet (6,000 meters) of cable. A French submarine is also searching. **************** Babbitt Expedites Flight And Rest Rule Review 10 Regional Safety Forums To Be Held FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt Wednesday announced an expedited review of flight and rest rules and called on U.S. airlines and unions to respond, by July 31, with specific commitments to strengthen safety at regional and major airlines by insisting that airlines obtain all available FAA pilot records, among other actions. On June 15, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and Babbitt met with airline safety executives and pilot unions to strategize on how best to reduce risk at regional airlines while promoting best practices from major airlines. "We know that the airline industry is committed to operate at the highest level of safety," Babbitt said. "Now is the time to push these initiatives forward." The FAA is making pilot fatigue a high priority and will work rapidly to develop and implement a new flight time and rest rule based on fatigue science and a review of international approaches to the issue. By July 15, the agency will establish an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) - including FAA, labor and industry representatives - that will be charged with developing recommendations for an FAA rule by September 1. Also by July 15, FAA inspectors will complete a focused review of airline procedures for identifying and tracking pilots who fail evaluations or demonstrate a repetitive need for additional training. Inspectors will conduct additional inspections to validate that the airline's training and qualification programs meet regulatory standards in accordance with FAA guidance materials. In a letter dated June 24, Babbitt (pictured) urged all air carriers to immediately adopt a policy to ensure that their pilot applicants release any records held by the FAA to the hiring air carrier while the agency works with Congress to update the current Pilot Records Improvement Act of 1996. Further, the FAA expects all carriers who do not currently have Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) and Aviation Safety Action Programs in place to do so. Beginning next month, the FAA and industry will hold at least 10 regional safety forums throughout the nation to open a dialogue with as many airlines as possible, solidifying commitments to the actions identified in the Call to Action meeting, and to discuss additional best practices. The FAA expects airlines that have contractual relationships with regional feeder companies to develop specific programs to share safety data and ensure that their partner airlines mirror their most effective safety practices. "We will work closely with Congress on all of these actions and will provide any necessary technical assistance," Babbitt said. Earlier this year, the FAA proposed upgraded training standards for pilots, flight attendants and dispatchers. The proposal is the most comprehensive upgrade in FAA training requirements in 20 years and incorporates best industry practices. The rule aims to enhance traditional training programs by requiring additional simulator recurrent training, special hazard training, and additional training and practice in the use of Crew Resource Management (CRM) principles, as examples. The comment period closes August 10 and the FAA expects to promptly develop a final rule. FMI: www.faa.gov aero-news.net **************** FAA panel to develop rules on pilot fatigue by September By Alan Levin, USA TODAY WASHINGTON - Airlines, pilot unions and federal officials have until Sept. 1 to develop new rules to limit fatigue among pilots, the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday in an unusually aggressive move to reach agreement on one of the industry's most contentious safety issues. The National Transportation Safety Board has cited fatigue as a factor in several recent crashes, including a February crash near Buffalo that killed 50 people. The board revealed last month that both pilots on that flight had not gotten a full night's sleep before the accident. The NTSB lists combating fatigue as one of its "Most Wanted" safety improvements. FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt called on airlines and pilot unions to begin meeting with federal officials by July 15 to come up with recommendations on how long pilots can work each day. The committee will have until September to present their findings, Babbitt said in a news release. "Now is the time to push these initiatives forward," he said. An effort to get unions and airlines to reach a compromise in the 1990s failed, leaving 50-year-old rules that scientists who study fatigue say do little to promote safety. Under current rules, pilots generally can fly up to eight hours a day. Their workday, which includes time on the ground between flights, can extend up to 16 hours. There are no restrictions on flying during the middle of the night or making numerous takeoffs and landings. Curtis Graeber, a scientist who has studied pilot fatigue for nearly 30 years, said that research can better predict how long pilots should work than simple hourly limits. Factors such as how many days in a row a pilot has worked and whether rest periods allow for a good night's sleep should be used to limit flying time, Graeber said. Airlines in Europe, Australia and New Zealand have begun adopting such rules. Graeber said he is not hopeful that the groups can reach agreement in this country. "Getting that kind of consensus has proved challenging in the past," he said. Pilots have rejected attempts to extend the amount of time they can fly and airlines oppose changes that would restrict scheduling. Airlines and the Air Line Pilots Association said Wednesday that they support the government's effort. http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2009-06-24-faa_N.htm ***************** Dispatchers Raise Southwest Safety Questions Major Overhaul Work Done In El Salvador Dispatchers at Southwest Airlines, represented by the Transport Workers Union (TWU) have raised "multiple safety concerns" about Southwest Airlines flights to El Salvador for major overhauls. TWU Local 550 members also have been disturbed by what appear to be "an ongoing close relationship between the FAA and SWA." The FAA has worked with Southwest to grant waivers for the Central America-bound flights, but the agency has not been forthcoming in answering dispatcher questions about safeguards and regulatory compliance. The agency's lack of response to dispatchers, who are charged with FAA compliance and essentially serve as an airline's safety officers, has become so absurd that the local union has resorted to putting a display on its Web site with the number of days without a response --20 days at the time of this release. A letter to all dispatchers from the union's leadership outlining problems with the El Salvador-bound flights can be found at the union's Web site. Flight dispatchers at Southwest and other airlines are responsible for planning and monitoring the progress of an aircraft journey. Both the pilot in command and the dispatcher are legally responsible for the safety of a flight. FMI: www.twu550.org aero-news.net *************** El Al and others in line for laser-based anti-missile protection Israeli flag-carrier El Al is to be among the beneficiaries of an agreement between the Israeli Government and Elbit Systems to supply laser-based anti-missile equipment for commercial aircraft. Under a $76 million agreement with the Israeli ministry of transport, Elbit will provide its Commercial Multi-Spectral Infra-Red Countermeasure (C-MUSIC) system, a variant of its MUSIC anti-missile equipment for the military arena. MUSIC comprises a thermal camera which acquires and tracks a missile threat, combined with a laser designed to disrupt an incoming projectile's guidance system. The system is mounted on a high-speed turret to track the missile accurately. "This is a significant breakthrough in this field and we believe that many customers worldwide will decide to install these systems aboard their commercial aircraft fleets," says Elbit Systems chief Joseph Ackerman. Elbit's Electro-optics division is to supply the equipment to the Israeli ministry, and the company says it will be installed "aboard a variety of commercial aircraft owned by Israeli commercial airlines". While Elbit has not identified any of the carriers likely to receive the equipment, a source familiar with the agreement says "it can be assumed" that all three major Israeli airlines - El Al, Israir and Arkia - are in line to be fitted. El Al is already reported to have fitted a number of aircraft with the 'Flight Guard' flare-based system developed by Israel Aerospace Industries' Elta division. Risks of missile attacks on Israeli aircraft became apparent seven years ago when a weapon was fired at an Arkia Boeing 757 on departure from Mombasa in Kenya in November 2002. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news **************** FAA steps up pressure on carriers to adopt voluntary safety schemes FAA administrator Randy Babbitt has asked airlines to adopt voluntary safety measures, and to outline their commitment in a written response by 31 July following a Colgan Air Bombardier Q400 crash in February. US airlines have been asked to implement a policy of asking pilot job applicants for voluntary disclosure of FAA records-such as notices of disapproval-as FAA works with the US Congress to update the Pilot Records Improvement Act of 1996 to possibly require airlines to seek such information. Further, Babbitt is asking all airlines to participate in voluntary safety reporting schemes such as the Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) and the Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP). In addition to participating in FOQA and ASAP, Babbitt is requesting in a letter to carriers that airlines develop data analysis processes to "ensure effective use of this information". The new administrator is also requesting that majors with regional partners seek ways to ensure that the feeder airline adopts and implements "the most effective practices for safety". Babbit is also asking majors to have periodic meetings with regional partners that participate in FOQA and ASAP to review programme data and "to constantly emphasize their shared safety philosophy". While the FAA cannot require airlines to comply with voluntary measures, Babbitt has previously indicated, "I don't think October is too unreasonable to make public who chooses not to do those things." Babbitt's safety efforts appear to have industry support, including that of the Regional Airline Association (RAA) and the Air Transport Association of America (ATA). However, airlines are not the only target of Babbitt's safety initiative. He has also asked airline unions to publish a code of ethics and to establish professional standards and ethics committees to develop peer audit and review procedures. Labour groups are also asked to support periodic safety risk management meetings between FAA and mainline and regional carriers "to promote the most effective practices, including periodic analysis of FOQA and ASAP data with an emphasis on identifying enhancements to the training program", Babbitt says in a letter to unions. In addition to making requests of unions and airlines, Babbitt announced that FAA is undergoing an expedited review of flight and rest rules as fatigue was one area of focus during Congressional and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) hearings on the Colgan crash. By 15 July, FAA will form an aviation rulemaking committee (ARC), which will have a 1 September deadline to draft recommendations to the FAA. The agency will use ARC recommendations to inform a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on flight and rest limits. Also by 15 July, FAA inspectors will complete their review of airline procedures for identifying and tracking pilots who fail evaluations or demonstrate a repetitive need for additional training. Using results from inspections, FAA will develop a Safety Alerts For Operators (SAFO) report by 31 July to provide airlines guidance material about conducting a comprehensive training program review. FAA inspectors will then conduct additional inspections to validate that the airline's training and qualification programs meet regulatory standards in accordance with FAA guidance materials. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** EASA Plans No Immediate Action On A330 Pitot Tubes The European Aviation Safety Agency has decided, for now, to hold off on issuing an air worthiness directive concerning Thales-made pitot tubes on A330/A340s. EASA said, "We are not planning any action at this stage pending the investigation" into the crash of Air France Flight 447. The pitot tubes have come under fire in the wake of the crash of AF447 because the mishap aircraft, an A330-200, broadcast maintenance messages just before all contact was lost indicating inconsistent speed information and potential problems with the pitot tube. Air France and other airlines had previously encountered problems with the pitot tubes and Thales had developed an upgrade, but an equipment change was not mandated by safety officials. Even before the crash, Air France had decided to upgrade its pitot tubes, but the mishap aircraft was still flying with the old standard. The airline has since upgraded all the probes, in part under pressure from its pilots. Air France and aviation safety officials insist there is no data available at this point to suggest a problem with the pitot tubes was in fact linked to the crash. Industry officials point out that even with pitot tubes malfunctioning, pilots should still be able to fly the aircraft. http://www.aviationweek.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/search/AvnowSearchR esult.do?reference=xml/awx_xml/2009/06/24/awx_06_24_2009_p0-150188.xml&pubKe y=awx&channel=comm&issueDate=2009-06-24&headline=EASA+Plans+No+Immediate+Act ion+On+A330+Pitot+Tubes *************** NTSB to Meet on Ground Fire Aboard Cargo Airplane in San Francisco The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a public Board meeting Tuesday, June 30, at 9:30 a.m., in its Board Room and Conference Center, 429 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C. There is one item on the agenda. The Board will consider a final report on the following accident: On Jan. 28, 2008, at about 10:15 p.m., an ABX Air Boeing 767- 200, N799AX, operating as flight 1611 from San Francisco International Airport, experienced a ground fire before engine startup. The captain and the first officer evacuated the airplane through the cockpit windows and were not injured, but the airplane was substantially damaged. A live and archived webcast of the proceedings will be available on the Board's website at www.ntsb.gov. Technical support details are available under "Board Meetings." To report any problems call (703) 993-3100 and ask for Webcast Technical Support. A summary of the Board's final report, which will include findings, probable cause, and safety recommendations, will appear on the website shortly after the conclusion of the meeting. The entire report will appear on the website several weeks later. http://www.amtonline.com/article/article.jsp?siteSection=1&id=8641 **************** Delta Airline plane makes emergency landing ATLANTA, GA (KSLA) - A Delta Airlines plane had to make an emergency landing in southern California Tuesday night after an engine had to be shutdown. The FAA said that the Boeing 757 was about one-hundred miles east of Ontario, Calif., when the pilots experienced a strange engine vibration at about thirty-three thousand feet, prompting the pilots to shutdown the engines. The cause of the vibration is under investigation, but aerial television footage shows damage to the engine. Delta flight 1973 was headed to Ontario from Atlanta, GA with 190 people on board. http://www.ksla.com/Global/story.asp?S=10586594&nav=0RY5 ************** NTSB Posts the Executive Summary of the Public Hearing on Helicopter Emergency Medical Services The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has published a 35 page report on the four-day public hearing on the Safety of Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) operations that began on Tuesday, February 3, 2009, at 9:00 a.m., and ran through Friday, February 6. The hearings were open to public observation, but were not open to participation from the general public. The hearing took place in the Board Room and Conference Center, at 429 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20594. The NTSB Conference Center is the primary location for the National Transportation Safety Board's Board meetings, public hearings, training, public forums, symposiums, and other events. The goal of the hearing was for the Safety Board to learn more about HEMS operations, in order to better evaluate the factors that contribute to accidents. The Board heard from numerous witnesses who deal with all elements of HEMS operations. The format of the hearing involved the questioning of several panels. Forty-one witnesses were called. Helicopter Association International (HAI) President, Matt Zuccaro, who is also Co-Chair of the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST), was one of three keynote witnesses who opened the hearing with individual presentations. He provided an overview of current and future industry safety initiatives, as well as a list of issues and action items for consideration by the NTSB. Zuccaro was instrumental in the recent rewrite of the HEMS A021/A050 Op Specs by facilitating a consensus among HEMS industry leaders and regulators. Zuccaro, accompanied by other HAI staff, participated in the full four days of the hearing as a "designated party." HAI also participated in the questioning of the various witness panels attending the hearing. The witnesses and designated parties represented a wide range of EMS-related communities, including associations such as HAI. Other witnesses included helicopter pilots, HEMS operators, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officials, medical doctors, regulators and policy makers, first responders, flight dispatchers, flight nurses, flight paramedics, administrators, inspectors, and officials who provide oversight. Witnesses were questioned in regard to the following issues: HEMS industry growth, flight operations procedures, safety-enhancing technologies, and flight recorders. In his presentation, Zuccaro addressed such HEMS issues and recommendations as mandatory use of night vision goggles, an all IFR operating environment, elimination of launch/response times, study of fatigue factors in HEMS, promotion of risk aversion not risk exposure, client education programs, appropriate application of technology, non-punitive safety reporting environments, and implementation of Safety Management Systems. The need to aggressively focus on human factors issues was highlighted, to include a recommendation that HEMS risk assessment and decision making should be the same as other mission protocols. Also pointing out the need to provide a sterile operating environment for pilots and technicians, absent of unnecessary pressures, and that any considerations should be limited to safe aeronautical decision making. The NTSB Hearing summary stated that "Helicopter emergency medical systems provide an important service to the public, transporting seriously ill patients or donor organs to emergency care facilities. However, the number of accident fatalities during HEMS operations has increased over the last several years, raising questions about the safety of these operations. From 2003 through 2008, 85 HEMS accidents claimed 77 lives, and 2008 was the deadliest year on record for HEMS operations with 8 fatal accidents and 29 fatalities, up from 2 fatal accidents and 7 fatalities in 2007. This increase in fatalities and fatal accidents brought HEMS operations to the attention of Congress, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), as well as industry, the media, and the public. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also took notice, and in 2005 created a "HEMS Task Force" after observing the spike in HEMS accidents. The resulting FAA analysis of HEMS accidents identified three primary safety concerns: inadvertent IMC encounters, night operations, and CFIT. The hearing was conducted according to the Safety Board's investigative hearing procedures (see 49 CFR Part 845). Witnesses were called and sworn by the Hearing Officer, and the primary questioning was initiated by the Board's Technical Panel. The Board of Inquiry was chaired by NTSB Member Robert L. Sumwalt. Also serving on the Board of Inquiry were Thomas E. Haueter, Director of the NTSB Office of Aviation Safety; Vernon S. Ellingstad, Director of the NTSB Office of Research and Engineering; and David L. Mayer, NTSB's Deputy Managing Director, Lorenda Ward, from the Major Investigations Division of the NTSB Office of Aviation Safety, served as the Hearing Officer. HAI is committed to "Safety First, above all else" and has sponsored numerous forums and workshops with the NTSB and FAA, actively working to improve HEMS helicopter safety. HAI is a professional trade association representing 2,800 plus members, in 74 nations, who safely operate more than 5,000 helicopters approximately 2.3 million hours each year. HAI is dedicated to the promotion of the helicopter as a safe, effective method of commerce, and to the advancement of the international helicopter community. http://www.rotor.com/Default.aspx?tabid=510&newsid905=61691 **************** US To Provide Funds For Indonesia Airline Safety Overhaul JAKARTA -(Dow Jones)- The U.S. has signed a deal to provide $381,000 in grants to the Indonesian Transport Ministry to fund efforts to improve aviation safety in the country, a U.S. embassy official said late Tuesday. The grant is to be "used for helping (the ministry) to reform and make more efficient the supervisory systems" within the aviation sector, Lawrence Johnson, commercial attache with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, told reporters. Johnson said Indonesia is "very serious" about improving airline safety and that improved safety standards could assist the country's airlines in eventually gaining access to routes to and from the U.S. No Indonesian airline currently flies to the U.S. Johnson said the U.S. would "send American experts" to help with regulatory and oversight reforms, but didn't elaborate. He didn't provide further details on the grant funding. Indonesia's airline sector has been plagued by a string of high-profile fatal crashes in recent years, and all Indonesian aircraft were banned from entering European Union airspace in 2007. The transport ministry has since worked with European auditors and regulators to improve safety and maintenance standards in the sector, and has said it hopes to have the ban lifted in the upcoming session of the European parliament. *************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC