17 NOV 2009 _______________________________________ *Sully vs. Langewiesche: Controversy Over Miracle Books *Cocaine jet blows it on take-off *United Pilot Drunk on Flight, Police Say *Boeing says two more 787s fixed *RAA elects SkyWest President Childs as Chairman *IATA finalises pact to with several states to lift bilateral restrictions *Asian Carriers Recruiting for Airline Pilots *A European Perspective: Air France Shaken By Internal Safety-Related Crisis *************************************** Sully vs. Langewiesche: Controversy Over Miracle Books Huffington Post | Christine Negroni In the aftermath of the Miracle on the Hudson, Capt. Chesley Sullenberger told any reporter who would listen that credit for putting the US Airways Airbus A320 safely down on the river after losing both engines to bird strikes, was not his alone. His attempt to avoid being anointed savior of the flight was ineffective -- which is not surprising to anyone familiar with today's media culture. But Sullenberger's reserve notwithstanding, investigators are loath to lay credit or blame on any one factor in something as complex as an aviation accident. William Langewiesche knows this. He has written about it in magazine articles and in his earlier book, "Inside the Sky." In his new book, "Fly by Wire the Geese, the Glide, the Miracle on the Hudson" he writes about the various factors that came into play on Flight 1549. But in detailing the creation and operation of the highly automated (fly by wire) Airbus A320 Capt. Sullenberger believes Langewiesche left readers with a mistaken impression that technology saved the day. "Fly by Wire gives more credit than is due to how the airplane helped mitigate disaster that day." Sullenberger told me on Sunday. Stirring the wrath of Capt. Sullenberger wasn't his intent, Langewiesche said. He was writing about an engineering design created more than twenty years ago that re-interpreted the cockpit and the way pilots would fly and became an integral part of the Airbus product line. Highly relevant was the motivation of the engineer, Bernard Ziegler, who wanted to make an airplane that would survive bad piloting. "Ziegler was trying to make an airplane that was pilot-proof. The lowest ten percent is what he was designing this airplane for," Langewiesche told me speaking of the estimated percent of pilots who are not the right stuff. He was wondering if Sullenberger had interpreted his writing about Ziegler to be a statement of his own thinking. "Ziegler was very bombastic and combative and he was making a statement about pilots. I'm reporting what Ziegler says, not signing off on it." In a lengthy interview, Sullenberger says "Fly by Wire" left him with the impression that automation is an effective substitute for pilot skill. It's the antithesis of what he wrote in his own book about Flight 1549, "Highest Duty: My Search for What Really Matters." In that book, which is largely a memoir, Sullenberger says preparation, anticipation and attention to the flight led to the happy outcome on January 15. The question who or what is responsible for the miracle is specious. No disaster or near disaster has just one cause. These events lie at the end of an unbroken chain of events. In widening the circle to include all the contributing factors, the airplane's automation just doesn't make the cut, Sullenberger says. It is "greatly overstating to say" that the fly by wire system on his airplane mattered that day. It was a "minor contributing factor." Langewiesche seemed genuinely baffled when I called to ask him about Capt. Sullenberger's reactions. Was media misrepresentation of his book to blame? Perhaps he said. Are pilots, even a generation later still sensitive about a flight control system rooted in a philosophy that airplanes should be "pilot-proof"? Langewiesche, himself a pilot, thinks not. "Pilots are central to flight safety, of course they are," he said. "I'm not a proponent of fly by wire; I'm not an opponent of fly by wire. I don't think its role is critical, but it was functioning. It's part of the story." The man versus machine debate is not new, nor is it close to resolution. There are those who believe more technology makes an airplane safer. Others argue while automation solves one set of problems it creates another. It's a point made in "Highest Duty" and one reason Sullenberger decided to speak up about Langewiesche's book. Air accidents are examined in an attempt to discover what went wrong and what needs to be fixed and here's the flip side. Understanding why things go right can teach a lesson about future success. That's Capt. Sullenberger's point. "Among the things that went right, you have to have a clear understanding of the degree to which each of these factors contributed, and they have to be weighed in an accurate way," he said. Langewiesche echoed the sentiment. The he said/he said between Langewiesche and Sullenberger is largely a media creation ignited by headlines like, "Saint Sully: How About Some Credit for Airbus?" and "Pilot was Cool but Plane was Cooler." Were the two men to get together for an Obama-esque beer summit, they would probably agree on most points and certainly agree on the last thing Langewiesche said to me about the events of January 15th, before we said goodbye. "That was a day in which everything worked right." This may be the rare case in which clever publicists are not behind a high profile dustup between public figures with books to sell. But given the way Flight 1549 has been elevated to miracle status, that thoughtful books about the event should be stirring controversy and generating reader interest is a happy outcome indeed. Christine Negroni is the author of "Deadly Departure" and the forthcoming "The Crash Detectives." She writes about aviation for The New York Times. Reach her at christine.negroni@gmail.com http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/16/sully-vs-langewiesche-con_n_359594. html *************** Cocaine jet blows it on take-off The United Nations has confirmed a jet being used to transport cocaine from South America to Africa has crashed on take-off. The UN believes the Boeing plane had just unloaded its cargo of cocaine in Mali in Western Africa when it crashed on take-off this month. West Africa has become a transit point for drug trafficking between South America and Europe. Reports say it is the first time the UN has heard of a plane this size being used to smuggle drugs between the continents. It is estimated 1,000 kilograms of cocaine could have been removed just before the crash. The drugs have not been found and Interpol is investigating. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/17/2744737.htm?section=justin *************** United Pilot Drunk on Flight, Police Say LONDON (AP) - A United Airlines pilot was pulled from a plane and arrested shortly before takeoff after a co-worker suspected him of being drunk, police and air officials said Tuesday. Scotland Yard said the 51-year-old was arrested after officers were called aboard United Airlines Flight 949, due to fly from London's Heathrow Airport to Chicago, around noon on Monday. A spokesman for the police force said officers arrested the man "on suspicion of being aviation staff whilst exceeding the prescribed alcohol limit." "I.e. he was suspected to be drunk," the spokesman said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with force policy. Britain's Press Association news agency gave a slightly different version of events, saying the pilot was called from the plane and given a breathalyzer test out of view of the passengers before being arrested. It did not identify the source for its reporting. The Press Association quoted a spokesman for Heathrow Airport operator BAA as saying that United's staff reported the pilot to police and that the flight's departure was imminent. A call to BAA seeking comment late Tuesday was not immediately returned. The Scotland Yard spokesman confirmed that the pilot had been given a breathalyzer test and that results were expected shortly. He said the man, whom he did not identify, has been released on bail. He added that he did not know exactly under what circumstances the pilot was arrested. United Airlines spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said the pilot had been removed from service pending an investigation. She said her airline had strict rules on alcohol "and we have no tolerance for violation of this well-established policy." She also declined to identify the pilot or say how long he had worked for the airline. She added that the flight was canceled and that the plane's 124 passengers were put on other flights. Monday's incident bears a strong resemblance to the arrest in May at Heathrow of an American Airlines pilot - also scheduled to fly a plane to Chicago - after he failed a breath test. Airport security staff had alerted airport police about the pilot. In January, Southwest Airlines put a pilot on leave after passengers at a security checkpoint in Columbus, Ohio, told authorities that he smelled of alcohol. The pilot ran into a restroom and changed out of his uniform jacket and called in sick. Union leaders say pilots are under increased scrutiny by security agents and passengers because of high-profile cases involving drunk pilots. http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=80868&catid=142 **************** Boeing says two more 787s fixed Boeing Co. said two more of its 787s have been fixed in Everett. Over the weekend, workers installed reinforcements in the side section of the 787s' wings where they join with the fuselage. The Chicago aerospace giant (NYSE: BA) announced problems with the side-of-body section in June, when it delayed the plane's first flight by six months. Last week, Boeing fixed the first test-flight airplane. Boeing officials reiterated that the 787 will have its first flight by the end of this year. "Our focus now is on completing the static test later this month, which will validate the modification. Concurrently we are restoring the airplanes and completing the functional tests required to fly by the end of the year," said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 program, in a statement. http://seattle.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2009/11/16/daily4.html ************** RAA elects SkyWest President Childs as Chairman The US Regional Airline Association has elected SkyWest President and COO Russell Childs as board chairman for the 2009-2010 term. Childs was elected to the role during the RAA's recent fall membership meeting in Washington, DC. Other officers elected during the meeting were Air Wisconsin CEO Jim Rankin at vice chair, Cape Air CEO Dan Wolf as treasurer and PSA Airlines CEO Keith Houk as secretary. Additionally, ExpressJet chief Jim Ream, Trans States Holdings CEO Rick Leach and Jazz CEO Joe Randell were re-elected to the association's board of directors for terms through 2012, joining current members Peter Bowler the CEO of American Eagle Airlines, Empire Airlines' chief Tim Komberec, Great Lakes CEO Doug Voss and the chiefs of Gulfstream International Airlines and Republic Airways Holdings Dave Hackett and Bryan Bedford. RAA also elected Jerry Schumacher of US Technical and Lucas Aardenburg of Snecma as chair and vice chair of its Associate Member Council. The group's recent past chair Karla Cadden of ARINC remains ex-officio chair. Source: Air Transport Intelligence news *************** IATA finalises pact to with several states to lift bilateral restrictions IATA today debuted what it deems as a landmark agreement among seven states and the European Commission (EC) pledging to ease restrictions in bilateral aviation agreements that limit market access, pricing and access to capital markets. The "Multilateral Statement of Policy Principles" regarding the implementation of Bilateral Air Service Agreements was signed today during the second annual IATA Agenda for Freedom Summit in Montebello, Canada. States that have agreed to the non-binding principles are Chile, Malaysia, Panama, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and the USA. The European Commission has also agreed to the principles. IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani stresses those parties account for roughly 60% of global aviation. During the first meeting last year in Istanbul, 14 countries and the European Commission attended the summit. In the agreement finalised today, the states and the European Commission agreed to three key elements. First, the parties agreed to the possibility for airlines to access global capital markets through an agreement of the states not to exercise bilateral rights that would allow them to block international services from airlines with non-national ownership structures. The states also agreed to consider the possibility of waiving ownership restrictions. The second element entails the states and the EC agreeing on principals that seek to reduce restrictions on market access and to expedite the further opening of markets in future bilateral negotiations. A final pillar of the agreement is the states agreeing on principles to allow greater freedom to price airline services in line with market realities. Bisignani today during a conference call with reporters said carriers are battling the current global economic downturn with "one hand tied behind their back" due to the current bilateral system. He also stresses that carriers are not asking for a cash bailout similar to the banking industry, rather, the industry seeks "commercial freedom to run our business like a normal one". Responding to question about the absence of countries such as China, India or Japan in joining the initial agreement Bisignani explained certain countries need additional time to discuss the framework with their transportation ministers. He specifically said he looks forward to New Zealand signing the pact. IATA also today cited results from a study it commissioned to InterVISTAS to examine liberalisation in 12 markets: Australia, Brazil, Chile, India, Mauritius, Morocco, Peru, Singapore, Turkey, The United Arab Emirates, Uruguay and Vietnam. Results of the study show that lifting restrictions on market access and ownership and control would increase annual GDP in the 12 economics by 0.86% or US$67.6 billion. The study's conclusions also show that easing restrictions in both those areas would reduce average fares by 38%, and generate 2.4 million jobs. Obviously there are governments that will not be interested in the easing of various bilateral restrictions. But Bisignani says IATA is ready to supply information if "governments need support in taking this decision". Source: Air Transport Intelligence news ************** Asian Carriers Recruiting for Airline Pilots Airline pilot job hiring is not expected to liven up in the U.S. until the economy shows steady recovery. But there is hiring activity among carriers in the Asia-Pacific region, which is showing the first signs of a turnaround. All Nippon Airways, Korean Air and Shenzhen Airlines will be eyeing recruits at the FltOps.com/Flight Safety Foundation Pilot Safety Symposium and Job Fair to be held at New York LaGuardia Airport on Nov. 21. Airline pilots and pilot-wannabes who have registered for the fair are reflecting a wide range of experience-from 201 hr. to 27,091 hr. total flight time-for an average of 5,720 hr. Shenzhen, which requires 3,000 hr. total time for captains, will be conducting on-site interviews for Airbus A320, Boeing 737NG and Embraer 190 flight crews. http://www.aviationweek.com ************** A European Perspective: Air France Shaken By Internal Safety-Related Crisis A deep crisis related to aviation safety is souring relations between Air France's 4,100 pilots and their managers. Mistrust and suspicions are rampant. And if the discord is not defused quickly, it could seriously disrupt the airline's business strategy, which is already being pummeled by a negative economic environment. Air France management is trying to restore workable relations with four rival cockpit-crew unions. Credit: AIR FRANCE/PHILIPPE DELAFOSSE This unprecedented situation can be viewed as collateral damage from the Air France Flight 447 accident. Not surprisingly, the dispute is escalating, since flight crews and the carrier's chain of command have long maintained adversarial relations. Further fanning the flames are the difficulties in establishing probable causes for AF447's June 1 plunge into the Atlantic Ocean during a flight between Rio de Janeiro and Paris. The French air accident investigation bureau (BEA) still expects to gather enough information to avoid publishing an inconclusive final report. Meanwhile, speculation is growing. No fewer than four French cockpit-crew unions are involved in the imbroglio, a harmful fragmentation. In fact, the unions are competing for new members while following divergent strategies and incompatible objectives. Instead, they should be speaking with a single voice or, even better, implementing a long-overdue merger. Nevertheless, all four unions have agreed to reject Air France management's public posture, which they say is adding to the confusion. Union leaders also assert that managers are trying to cover up weaknesses in pilot training procedures. At this stage, no one can claim to be bringing the situation under control. This indicates that some procedures involving cruise flight are thought to be flawed or not being applied correctly, with the implication that the AF447 crash could have been the result of inappropriate actions in the cockpit. The pilots consider such an assumption unacceptable. Clearly, the airline's leaders have not found the right words to establish a good rapport with the flight crews. On their side, the unions have not submitted workable proposals to promote a more positive mood. In a carefully worded internal letter, Air France operations management last month tried to restore confidence but missed this goal. Although using conciliatory terms in preparation for discussions once the storm abates, management warned pilots to be more vigilant, disregarded the need for new procedures and instead asserted that it would be sufficient just to adhere to existing rules. This could be interpreted to mean that Air France attributed "safety lapses" to overconfidence. With no specific reference to AF447, management indicated that flight operations are suffering from decreased vigilance. "Intolerable," retorted Capt. Erick Derivry, spokesman for France ALPA. (Formerly known as SNPL, the French branch of the Air Line Pilots Assn. is Air France's leading union.) Other pilots believe that trust has simply evaporated and a management-pilot divorce is underway-not a no-fault divorce but a true breakup. An 11th-hour initiative, however, is expected to reduce tensions. Air France Chief Executive Pierre-Henri Gourgeon and pilot union leaders finally came to an agreement to quickly form a dedicated safety team of 5-7 veteran pilots. They will report directly to Gourgeon. In addition, Capt. Gilbert Rovetto, senior vice president for operations, is now scheduled to retire next month, "as planned earlier"-an obvious trompe l'oeil to suppress an additional source of strain. Adopting for the first time a diplomatic tone regarding the AF447 mishap, Gourgeon said: "Nothing indicates that the cockpit crew was at fault. At least, this is my personal belief." He added that the plan is to review flight safety top-to-bottom. Whether Gourgeon's initiative can restore confidence is unclear. BEA and Airbus are also being criticized by some pilots and their friends, who allege that the truth is being withheld in "secret efforts" to protect A330-200 sales. Such accusations are not new and appear frequently after Airbus crashes. In addition, Henri Marnet-Cornus, a retired pilot, and Francois Nenin, a writer who says he is a flight safety expert, recently completed a "counter-inquiry" on AF447-an effort apparently aimed at undermining the credibility of the investigation team. The result is a painful, endless mess. Will common sense finally return? http://www.aviationweek.com ************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC