09 NOV 2009 _______________________________________ *TAM: Jet forced to return to JFK *Mouse Grounds Plane at Kennedy *Engine smoke causes Delta plane evacuation *Pilot Error Suspected in Yemenia Airways Crash *Delta and FAA investigate falling engine tail cone *Air France flight safety boss to retire *Pilot Safety Symposium and Job Fair Set by FltOps, Flight Safety Foundation *General Civil Aviation Authority confirms senior Emirati appointment (UAE) *Africa world's most dangerous place to fly *Why Boeing Likes Dixie *Chinese air chief calls for joint research on aerospace safety *************************************** TAM: Jet forced to return to JFK RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) - TAM Airlines says one of its jets took off from New York's JFK airport but was forced to return 20 minutes into the flight because of a mechanical problem. TAM Linhas Aereas SA says that Flight JJ8081 en route to Sao Paulo with 196 people on board returned Friday night after a warning light indicated problems with the wing flaps. An airline spokesman says the jet circled in the air for several minutes to burn fuel and lighten up before safely landing at JFK. He spoke on condition of anonymity as he wasn't authorized to discuss the incident. The plane was repaired and took off from JFK early Saturday, landing safely in Sao Paulo at 10:38 a.m. (7:38 a.m. EST; 1238 GMT). *************** Mouse Grounds Plane at Kennedy A Delta Air Lines flight at Kennedy International Airport bound for London Heathrow Airport was delayed and the passengers were switched to another plane Sunday night after someone reported seeing an onboard intruder: a mouse in the cabin. The 147 passengers had waited for about half an hour for Flight 001 to leave the gate when a crew member announced that the mouse sighting meant the plane would have to be cleared. The passengers were escorted off the Boeing 767 and booked on another airplane, said Carlos Santos, a Delta spokesman. Mr. Santos said the airplane was being inspected to determine whether a mouse was actually on the plane. Officials at the gate told waiting passengers that a mouse could potentially chew through electrical wires and hydraulic lines, creating a safety hazard. But Mr. Santos used more heedful language. "Out of precaution, we changed the airplane," Mr. Santos said. "Plain and simple, there's not supposed to be a mouse on the airplane." The flight delay apparently did not raise the anger level of passengers, who were scheduled to leave at 11:30 p.m. "People were amused," said William E. Schmidt, deputy managing editor of The New York Times, who was on the flight, which had been scheduled to leave at 8:55 p.m. "But we're waiting for them to get another plane ready." Sunday was apparently the second time in less than a month that a mouse delayed a trans-Atlantic flight for Delta. On Oct. 18, a Delta pilot refused to fly after someone reported a mouse on board, The Sun of London reported. That report said the delayed flight was also to leave Kennedy for Heathrow. Mr. Santos said on Sunday night that he was not aware of that report. http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/mouse-grounds-plane-at-kennedy/ ***************** Engine smoke causes Delta plane evacuation (UPI) Smoke and reports of flames caused a Delta Air Lines plane to be evacuated before takeoff from Atlanta, a Delta official said. The right engine on Flight 1016, bound for Philadelphia, emitted smoke on Saturday, forcing the evacuation of the 138 passengers onto the taxiway, Carlos Santos, Delta spokesman, said, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The cause of the engine smoke was still being investigated, the newspaper said. No injuries were reported. All passengers were reassigned to other flights to Philadelphia, the newspaper said. ************** Pilot Error Suspected in Yemenia Airways Crash In Early Findings, Investigators Say Cockpit Confusion and Mistakes Led to July Accident off Comoros in Which 152 Perished.ArticleComments (1)more in Business >.EmailPrinter By ANDY PASZTOR, DANIEL MICHAELS and STEFANIA BIANCHI Investigators believe that pilot error and confusion in the cockpit of a Yemenia Airways jetliner caused the plane to crash in the Indian Ocean as it tried to land in the Comoros Islands in June, said people familiar with the analysis. Preliminary findings regarding the crash, which killed all but one of the 153 people onboard, haven't been released by the international committee investigating the incident. But the findings are already prompting strong disagreement from the airline, which has cited bad weather as the primary cause. "There's no final report on the findings of the investigation yet, so it's too early to speculate on what caused the crash," Yemenia Airways Chairman Abdulkalek Saleh Al Qadi said in an interview. Since the Airbus A310 crashed on June 30, officials in Yemen and Comoros have objected to suggestions by some European officials that the airline and its staff were to blame for the accident. "No other airline has had such a negative attack after an accident," Mr. Al Qadi said. Yemenia has lost 70% of its traffic from Europe, he said, because French authorities expressed concerns about Yemenia's safety "even before a full investigation." Europeans were aware of the carrier's safety problems because over the past two years, European Union officials considered placing Yemenia on an EU blacklist of carriers forbidden from flying to the 27-country bloc. The airline was cited after multiple reports of lapses in maintenance and equipment on Yemenia planes -- including the one that crashed -- at airports in France, Italy and Germany. EU aviation officials have monitored Yemenia closely since July but haven't blacklisted it. If the airline is eventually deemed to have trained its pilots insufficiently, it could increase pressure in the EU to sanction the carrier. An Airbus spokesman said the unit of European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. is supporting the continuing investigation. People familiar with the work of investigators, who have studied the plane's digital recorders of flight data and cockpit conversations, say there was no indication the 19-year-old plane or its engines malfunctioned. Instead, investigators believe the pilots were overwhelmed by the tasks of flying while maintaining situational awareness, these people said. While bad weather and rudimentary airport systems were apparently contributing factors, the pilots' actions seem to have been the root cause of the crash, these people said. .The incident has drawn the attention of safety experts partly because so-called loss-of-control accidents have become the single largest source of airliner fatalities. In the Yemenia crash, investigators know from air-traffic data that the plane, en route to Comoros from Sana'a, Yemen, was circling to land at the Moroni Airport in rain and blustery winds. The airport lacks the latest navigation equipment that can guide pilots all the way down to the ground in such conditions. The approach can be difficult at night and in bad weather because pilots have to bank and circle while ensuring they line up with the runway. If they turn too sharply, the plane can end up too high and too fast, without enough time to make the proper descent. According to the people familiar with the inquiry, the plane had trouble maintaining steady altitude in the turn, possibly because of strong winds. Air-traffic controllers and navigation equipment provided a landing path to the pilots, who circled the airport to land. The pilots failed to stop their turn in time and didn't correctly line up the aircraft with the runway. Then the plane, according to people familiar with the probe, stalled and the pilots lost control. The aircraft ended up continuing for several miles before plunging into the Indian Ocean, according to the people familiar with the inquiry. The scenario may explain why the wreckage was found out at sea rather than immediately around the airport, these people said. The only survivor was a 12-year-old girl who clung to wreckage for 10 hours before being rescued. During the descent, according to these people, the pilots received automated warnings to "pull up, pull up." The crew tried to react, but made various incorrect adjustments to the flight controls that investigators believe complicated their problems. Investigators believe pilots got confused, lost sight of the horizon and failed to regain altitude after the plane went into a stall, these people said. "The crew became disoriented and improperly flew the aircraft," according to a person familiar with the investigation. The pilots' families haven't commented publicly. Mr. Al Qadi of Yemenia said a panel of international investigators handling the crash may meet Tuesday for an update on the analysis. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125772122141737159.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections _world *************** Delta and FAA investigate falling engine tail cone Delta Air Lines and the FAA are investigating an incident in which the engine tail cone came off a Delta Boeing 777-200ER during a flight on5 November. The airport departed New York JFK airport for Tokyo at 13:00 local time and the engine tail cone landed in a residential yard in Long Island, New York, a Delta spokesman says. The aircraft arrived in Tokyo and the airline installed a new tail cone during its 13-hour layover. The aircraft will return to the US during its regularly scheduled flight on 7 November, the spokesman says. An FAA spokeswoman says she expects the part fell off shortly after takeoff due to the location of where the part landed. No one was harmed and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is not investigating the matter, but is monitoring the situation, an NTSB spokeswoman says. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news ************** Air France flight safety boss to retire Air France's executive vice-president of flight operations Gilbert Rovetto is to retire. The airline says that Rovetto was always due to retire in December and that this had been decided before the 1 June crash of an Air France Airbus A330 (AF447) in the South Atlantic. Rovetto's role carries responsibility for flight safety at Air France. Trade union SNPL recently criticised a letter about the A447 accident that Air France management sent to pilots, saying that it called into question the pilots' professionalism and responsibility. The airline has since offered to set up a committee of senior pilots to act as advisors to chief executive Pierre-Henri Gourgeon. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news **************** Pilot Safety Symposium and Job Fair Set by FltOps, Flight Safety Foundation NEW YORK, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- FltOps.com will team with the Flight Safety Foundation (FSF), to present the next in its series of pilot safety symposiums and job fairs, on Saturday, November 21, at the New York-LaGuardia Airport Marriott. At a time when the public is questioning attention to safety, one of the primary purposes of the event is to remind pilots of their time-honored obligations to safety as well as instill those ethics in the next generation pilots. The conference examines the proposed new flight/duty regulations. Coming regulatory changes will strictly define pilot duty times, rest periods and minimum qualifications leading to improved safety and increase pilot staffing. FltOps.com estimates that it would take only 90-120 days for the feeder carriers to absorb the 1,200 pilots who are now on furlough status. Pending economic recovery, major airlines could be in an expansive hiring mode within two years, which will pull more pilots from the feeders. A reflection of the importance of these trends is the fact that FltOps.com is now teaming with FSF for its symposiums and job fairs. "We are honored to have the FSF as a major sponsor of our next pilot job fair and safety conference, at which the ethics of safe flying will be a principal theme," said Louis Smith, president of FltOps.com. "We are promoting a safety culture because the industry is serious about improving safety and establishing the safety mentality even in future aviation professionals, many of whom will be attending the symposium," said FSF's President Bill Voss, who will speak on pilot ethics. "They represent the future of the industry and should have access to all of the foundation's expertise, as they embark upon their academic work in this exciting field." The agenda is at http://www.fltops.com/jobs/. Other presentations include: The Screening and Selection of Pilots with the Right Stuff: A panel discussion on the latest screening and testing methods being used to select pilots. Choosing The Safest Primary Training: A flight-training professional will advise students and parents on the key safety attributes to look for when visiting prospective flight schools and aviation universities. Pilot Applicants with Issues What are the Limits?: Moderated by Judy Tarver, FltOps.com V.P. of Pilot Career Services, this panel will discuss the implications of how safety incidents can affect a pilot's career. Joining the Flight Safety Foundation as sponsors of the event are Career Pilot School, Crew Resources Worldwide, Compass Airlines, Paramount Aviation Resources Group and World Airline Services. Representatives of AirTran, JetBlue, Korean Air, All Nippon, Shenzhen Airlines and Colgan Air are also slated to attend. Aviation schools represented including Dowling College, Damos Aviation Services, F.I.T Aviation, Gulfstream Academy, Kansas State University and Southern Illinois University. www.fltops.com/about www.flightsafety.org/about-the-foundation Contact: Kathryn Creedy, 1-888-533-8732 (888-LEFT SEAT) Email: creedy@fltops.com SOURCE FltOps.com ************** General Civil Aviation Authority confirms senior Emirati appointment (UAE) This appointment of a prominent female figure (Captain Al Hamili) in the UAE underscores the country's intention to expand aggressively into the global aviation regulation sector through an innovative and 'no barrier' approach. Aside from being the first Emirati and woman to be nominated at such a critical role, Aysha Al Hamili is also the first lady and the youngest representative in the ICAO Council. She is an established motivational figure among Emirati woman following her achievement in becoming the first commercially licensed female pilot at the Royal Jordanian Air Academy in 2000. "Aysha brings with along the necessary skills required to successfully push forward the UAE's role on the regulatory and decisions making side of the global aviation platform," said Saif Mohammed al Suwaidi, Director General of the GCAA. Suwaidi added, "We are proud to welcome her to this critical post given her diverse aviation background academically and on job experience that covers the fields of flight operations, safety and security, air services negotiations on national and international level, and lead high level meetings of a diplomatic nature." In recent years, the UAE has achieved significant success on both the commercial and advisory segments of the global aviation circle through the unprecedented efforts of the GCAA in renewing, monitoring and adapting local air operations and raising air service safety and quality standards. One of these achievements was the UAE's winning of a seat, by the GCAA, to the member council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation in 2007. The country has since worked closely with the ICAO and regional aviation authorities to advance existing air systems and operations, adopt international aviation safety standards and programs and focus on safety measures to reduce the loss of human life that is inherent to air operations. "It is without a doubt one of the key's achievements in my life and a great honour for me to be entrusted with such a crucial position," said Captain Aysha Al Hamili . "I believe my experience in representing the UAE on the international arena for the purpose of expanding the UAE traffic rights entitlements and air services opportunities for our national air carriers has created a strong base for me to move forward from." Captain Al Hamili added: "I will endeavor to increase the position and responsibility of the UAE among leading global aviation organizations and showcase the country's continuous achievements in developing unified quality air operations for a nation that has grown so rapidly within a short span of time." Despite her many achievements, Captain Al Hamili is still pursuing higher educational and training opportunities for herself indicating her approach to continuously strive towards increased improvement and higher goals. In addition to her portfolio of achievements and responsibilities, Captain Al Hamili is currently a member of the following activities that are defining the Air Transport structure in UAE to support national carriers in the expansion of their operational and commercial network: 1. Head of Air Transport Working Group which drafted the UAE Air Transport Policy- Principles Managing Traffic Rights 2. UAE Representative in the Air Transport Committee in the Arab Civil Aviation Commission (ACAC) 3. UAE Representative in the Air Transport Committee for the Gulf Country Council (GCC) "We are confident that through her appointment the UAE will play an increased role in assisting other aviation bodies to raise air operation standards and implement safety management practices to minimize the risk inherent to global air travel," concluded Suwaidi. http://www.ameinfo.com/215393.html **************** Africa world's most dangerous place to fly Africa accounts for only 4 per cent of the world's air traffic but nearly a third of the world's air disasters take place on the continent, a senior aviation official says. So dismal is the situation that African aviation authorities meeting here on Thursday decided to form regional organisations to investigate all air crashes and tighten safety standards. Officials say Africa's disproportionate share of aircraft disasters is often attributed to bad equipment, poor maintenance and failure to adhere to safety standards. Poor infrastructure and emergency response services in many African countries can lead to more deaths. Aviation expert Mwangi wa Kamau said his African Civil Aviation Agency, based in Windhoek, Namibia, has struggled to bring African states into compliance with international safety standards. He said he witnessed poor safety practices in his work as chief aviation accident investigator in his native Kenya and in Namibia. Since 1945, Congo has had more fatal crashes than any other African country, with more than 20 in the past 13 years, says the Aviation Safety Network. Most of the planes flying there are aging Soviet-era aircraft. One of the more recent Congo crashes was in April last year, when a DC-9 skidded off the runway during takeoff and crashed into a neighbourhood in an eastern town, killing at least 44 people. The condition of the runway is suspected of contributing to the crash. Lava flow from a volcano eruption several years before oozed onto the runway and solidified, cutting its length by more than half to about 600m. The causes of some other recent crashes remain a mystery. - Yemenia Flight 626 plunged into the ocean off East Africa on June 30, killing 152 people. Only a teenage girl survived. Investigators have not determined the cause of the crash, partly because the black boxes recovered from the Indian Ocean were damaged. - On May 5, 2007, a Kenya Airways plane nose-dived into a swamp in Cameroon, killing all 114 aboard after less than a minute in flight. The wreckage was not found until more than 40 hours after the crash. There is still no official ruling on the cause of the crash. According to the International Air Transport Association, Africa has the highest incidence of the most typical type of crash - runway crashes during takeoff or landing - with nearly 4 cases per million flights. http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/africa-worlds-most-dangerous-place- to-fly-20091107-i2mo.html *************** 787_assembly Why Boeing Likes Dixie South Carolina is the lucky new home of a Boeing factory that will produce the 787 Dreamliner. Boeing's official reason for the plant in North Charleston is it wants the ability to produce more 787 Dreamliners than its Everett, Washington, plant can churn out. Three 787s will roll out of the factory each month when it starts up in July, 2011, supplementing the seven Everett will provide monthly. The reality, as always, is more complicated. The 787 is way behind schedule. Two have been built, but none have flown. Customers, who have ordered a total of 840 planes, are increasingly anxious. Modern airliners are extraordinarily complicated, and it was an aircraft engineer who coined Murphy's Law. But Boeing has made unnecessary missteps that have brought it to the current situation. A two-month strike in 2008 led to increased delays. Design flaws, the latest requiring a redesign of the wingbox where the wings meet the fuselage, and a big problem with a tiny fastener have sent engineers and designers back to the drawing board. Despite the setbacks, Boeing says a 787 will be airborne this year While the South Carolina plant will be the smaller of two assembling the 787 (with parts shipped in from around the world), symbolically it is a big move. Despite being a staple of the Seattle area since the company's 1916 foundation, Boeing has inched away from Washington as its product lineup and supply chain have grown more diverse. It built the 757 fuselage in Wichita, Kansas at the end of the plane's run, and it still makes 737 fuselages there before shipping them to Washington for final assembly. Boeing bought rival McDonnell Douglas in 1997, absorbing its commercial aircraft line (based in California) and military aircraft line (in Missouri). It was a huge move, but Boeing's heart remained in Washington. Boeing's operation in South Carolina will build 787s. Four years later, Boeing took what some considered a sacrilegious step and announced it would move its corporate headquarters to Chicago, far from its commercial manufacturing base in Washington and its military operations in California and Missouri. Just 1,100 or so jobs actually were relocated, but message was clear: Boeing was willing to move. Despite the skilled workers and production facilities in Washington, Boeing seemed to be saying it would leave if the price was right. Once it became clear Boeing wanted another 787 production line, the question was where to put it. The choices came down to Washington or South Carolina. North Charleston was a natural choice. In July, Boeing bought a major Vought Aircraft Industries plant there; it builds and integrates much of the 787's rear fuselage. Another outfit, Global Aeronautica - Boeing's 50-50 venture with Alenia Aeronautica - integrates the center fuselage there. One major reason for the move almost certainly is Boeing plants in South Carolina aren't union shops, whereas its large spread in Washington is a unionized operation with a history of labor disputes. Just before last week's announcement that Boeing was going to North Charleston, talks between Boeing and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers fell apart. "Most of the time, they didn't even take notes," Tom Wroblewski, president of the local union told Bloomberg about the negotiations. "It's now clear that Boeing was only using our talks as a smoke screen, and as a bargaining chip to extort a bigger tax handout from South Carolina." Others would argue the union long ago shot itself in the foot by showing a willingness to strike. After all, a statue at the Boeing Machinists HQ near Everett doesn't immortalize a bunch of guys happily building an airplane. It shows people picketing around a burn barrel. Be that as it may, South Carolina has offered incentives totaling $170 million if Boeing meets certain employment and financial prerequisites. It seems money pulls Boeing stronger than sentiment. In that light, Boeing's latest step away from its historical home could be viewed as an experiment. If it finds it can thrive elsewhere, there is little to stop it from relocating completely to South Carolina. Or, for that matter, to China or Mexico. Nothing like that could possibly occur within the next few years. If nothing else, Boeing has no new commercial products to offer after the 787 and new 747 model, both of which have sufficient planned production capability. But Airbus, Embraer and Cessna have set up large factories in China, and Canada's Bombardier has a major new facility in Mexico. Boeing must be watching those developments very, very carefully. http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/11/why-boeing-likes-dixie/ ************** Chinese air chief calls for joint research on aerospace safety China's air chief General Xu Qiliang today called the service's high-profile celebrations of the 60th anniversary of its founding an occasion for all air forces of the world to conduct joint research on aerospace safety. "Opening up (like this) has created a platform and a learning opportunity for our air force," Xu said during a brief morning visit to the 5th Air Division of the Jinan Military Regional Air Command, joined by air force leaders of 32 different countries. The celebrations of the 60th founding anniversary of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) was marked by a two-day international forum in Beijing - which attracted 350 senior air force personnel from home and abroad - and today's visit to Shandong province, which birthed both Confucius and Sun Tzu, the author of The Art of War. While both the scheduled skydiving display in Beijing on Sunday and a training scenario in Shandong today were canceled due to unfavorable weather conditions, Xu said it was imperative that the service's global leaders gathered in China to discuss a crucial and common issue. "Aerospace peace, safety and harmony is something all of us are extremely concerned about. These efforts (of the PLAAF) have enabled us all to research on this subject of shared interest... and facilitate the reaching of a consensus," Xu said. "It's only when every one of us becomes forces of peace could there be more hopes of peace for all mankind of tomorrow," he said. Chris Moran, Commander in Chief of Air Command of the UK's Royal Air Force, said it is important that "all the air forces of the world work in harmony and that efforts like this are part of that process. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2009-11/09/content_8934789.htm *************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC