Flight Safety Information April 25, 2012 - No. 083 In This Issue Bhoja aircraft banned for general flights... Fla.-bound jet makes emergency landing in NY Space shuttle Enterprise's NY arrival pushed back to Friday PRISM CERTIFICATION CONSULTANTS Ethiopian Pilots Complete Training for 787 Dreamliner Bhoja aircraft banned for general flights Probe can take three months Islamabad-The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Tuesday banned Bhoja Air Lines planes for general flights after finding some of the planes unfit to fly. CAA had started inspection of passenger aircrafts operated by private airlines earlier on Monday after the fatal crash in Islamabad. According to a private television channel, Airworthiness Instructor CAA cancelled the Airworthiness Certificate for 2 flights of Bhoja Airlines bound for Islamabad via Lahore from Karachi. " During inspection", Instructor said, " Planes were found unfit for general flights both domestic and international. They are grounded until clearance and obtainment of Airworthiness Certificate". He further added that objections were raised on the constituent parts of Bhoja Airlines planes including Landing Gear and Doors during inspection. Planes carrying national flag of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) had already obtained airworthiness certificate from CAA. Captain Mujahid al Islam, head of the team probing Bhoja Airline's airliner crash, has said that the investigation into the tragic incident could take three months. While talking to media at the crash site in Hussainabad on Tuesday he said several evidences of the incident have been sealed, adding that work to remove the remains would be begun within two days. It is pertinent to mention here that a nine-member team is investigating the issue. The number of the team can be raised if needed. A team of insurance company has also reached Pakistan which would provide compensation to the affected families after investigative report is finalised. Meanwhile the Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif said on Tuesday that there should be an independent judicial commission for investigation into Bhoja air liner crash, which took lives of 127 passengers and crew members. Addressing the laptop distributing ceremony to the female students who showed outstanding academic performances in Allama Iqbal Government Girls College, he said "I see a ray of hope and enthusiasm among students and hope the students will change the future of Pakistan". He added that the students can save Pakistan from Ali Baba and forty thieves who are hell bent in looting the country. The chief minister further said that 127 people lost their precious lives in the ill-fated air crash and the government was bound to set up an independent judicial commission for investigation in the tragic incident. http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=152088 Back to Top Fla.-bound jet makes emergency landing in NY WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.-A JetBlue aircraft bound for West Palm Beach, Fla., made an emergency landing at a suburban New York airport shortly after hitting birds upon takeoff. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters says JetBlue Flight 571 carrying 54 passengers had a bird strike while taking off from Westchester County Airport in White Plains on Tuesday. He says the plane returned to the airport and landed safely just before 7 p.m. No one was injured. JetBlue spokeswoman Real Hamilton-Romeo says initial reports indicate no damage to the plane. On Thursday, a Los Angeles bound jet made an emergency landing at JFK Airport after striking a bird. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2012/04/24/fla_bound_jet_makes_emergency_landing_in_ny/ Back to Top Space shuttle Enterprise's NY arrival pushed back to Friday NASA now says that's the soonest it will take off on its last flight - weather permitting The space shuttle Enterprise is seen mated on top of the NASA's Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), a modified Boeing 747 jumbo jet, at Washington Dulles International Airport on April 21. NEW YORK - Grounded for more than 25 years as a museum display, the space shuttle Enterprise will need to wait just a few more days before taking to the air for one last flight. The prototype NASA orbiter, which never flew in space but was used by the space agency for approach and landing tests in the late 1970s, will now take off from Washington, D.C. for New York no sooner than Friday, if the weather cooperates. "A large region of low pressure dominating the east coast has made it difficult to reliably predict an acceptable day for the flight," NASA said in a statement released after a meeting held early Tuesday to reassess the weather forecast. "Managers now are tentatively targeting the flight for Friday, April 27, weather permitting." NASA had originally planned Enterprise's delivery to John F. Kennedy International Airport for Monday but concerns over the weather delayed its departure. NASA managers met on Monday afternoon and tentatively decided to try for Wednesday, but that was not to be. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is coordinating the flight, which when finally cleared for takeoff will occur between 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. EDT. The exact route and timing are dependent on weather and operational constraints. Later this summer, Enterprise will be transported by barge to New York's Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, on the retired World War II aircraft carrier USS Intrepid, for public display. Enterprise had been exhibited in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va., since 2003, but was displaced when the space-flown shuttle Discovery arrived last Thursday. The next day, Enterprise was mounted atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, a modified Boeing 747 jumbo jet, and has since sat at Washington Dulles International Airport waiting for sunny skies. Rain, rain go away NASA, in consultation with Intrepid officials, announced the latest flight delay on Tuesday. Local forecasts called for a low pressure system on the East Coast to deliver low clouds and rain in both the Washington and New York areas, preventing the ferry flight from beginning earlier in the week. To protect against the showers, shuttle engineers installed makeshift "rain covers" over Enterprise's vent openings on Saturday. After a trip to the local hardware store, workers fabricated the covers out of foam board that they then covered in their hotel parking lot with aluminum sheeting, weather stripping and wood. The covers will be removed before Enterprise departs for New York. NASA stated that the decision to delay Enterprise's ferry was to ensure a safe flight for both the test orbiter and the carrier aircraft crew. At the speed they fly, raindrops can inflict damage on the shuttle's heat shield tiles, and due to weight constraints, the jet does not have the fuel reserves to maneuver around the storms. NASA also hoped to fly Enterprise over some of New York City's landmarks, including low passes near the Statue of Liberty and the Intrepid museum, for photo opportunities. These flyovers however, were weather dependent. 27 years and counting The last time Enterprise took to the air was on Nov. 18, 1985, when it arrived at Dulles Airport from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to be donated to the Smithsonian. As with this upcoming flight, it was then mounted on the same aircraft that began its airborne service to NASA. Before the space-worthy orbiters could fly and return from space, Enterprise flew a series of approach and landing test (ALT) flights in 1977 to verify the shuttle's handling as an unpowered glider when returning from space. Two pairs of two astronaut pilots each flew Enterprise to landings at Edwards Air Force Base in California after the orbiter was lofted to altitude by the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft NASA 905. For this week's flight, Enterprise will fly without a crew - its own cockpit stripped of its instruments long ago - and will remain mounted to the 747 through the touchdown at JFK in front of an invited audience of 1,500 people. On the ground, the air- and spacecraft will remain together until NASA can re-stage the large cranes it used to hoist Enterprise atop the jet in Washington to New York. Enterprise will then wait in a JFK hangar until June, when it will loaded onto a barge and moved around Manhattan to the Intrepid. There, the orbiter will be craned onto the flight deck for display. The Intrepid's new "Space Shuttle Pavilion," a temporary climate-controlled steel-and-fabric structure, is targeted to open to the public in mid-July. http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/47151581/ns/today-today_tech/t/space-shuttle-enterprises-ny-arrival- reset-wednesday/ Back to Top Back to Top Ethiopian Pilots Complete Training for 787 Dreamliner Source: Ethiopian Airlines Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Ethiopian Airlines, the first African airline to operate the 787, has trained eight pilots on the 787 Dreamliner at the Boeing Flight Services campus located at Gatwick, London. Additional batches of trainees are conducting 787 training in the same facility. Boeing has been granted approval by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to provide flight training for pilots preparing to operate the new Boeing 787. With 787 training, pilots can transition to the new airplane in five to 20 days, depending on previous pilot experience. Boeing 777 pilots can qualify to fly the 787 in as little as five days, given the high level of commonality between the two airplane types. "This is an important milestone in the history of Ethiopian Airlines," said Captain Desta Zeru, Senior Vice President of Flight Operations for Ethiopian Airlines. "Our pilots are now qualified as the first African pilots to fly the 787. "We are proud to support Ethiopian Airlines as they grow their business with the 787 Dreamliner," said Roei Ganzarski, chief customer officer, Boeing Flight Services. "World class training for a world class airplane is part of the Boeing Edge we work hard to provide to our customers." The Boeing 787 flight training program uses an innovative suite of training devices including a full-flight simulator, flight training device and desktop simulation station to ensure that pilots are ready to fly the Dreamliner. About Ethiopian Ethiopian Airlines, one of the largest and fastest growing airlines in Africa, made its maiden international flight to Cairo in 1946. With the latest addition of new services to Seychelles, Ethiopian provides dependable services to 65 international destinations spanning four continents. Ethiopian is proud to be a Star Alliance Member. The Star Alliance network is the leading global airline network offering customers convenient worldwide reach and a smoother travel experience. The Star Alliance network offers more than 21,000 daily flights to 1,290 airports in 189 countries. Ethiopian is a multi-award winner for its commitment and contributions towards the development and growth of the African aviation industry and in recognition of its distinguished long-haul operations enhanced by the introduction of new routes and products. Recently, Ethiopian won Gold in the African Airline of the Year 2011/2012 Awards organized by the African Aviation News Portal. Ethiopian also received the 2011 AFRAA award for being consistently profitable over the years and has won the "AFRICAN CARGO AIRLINE OF THE YEAR 2011 Award" for its excellence in air cargo. Ethiopian also won the NEPAD Transport Infrastructure Excellence Awards 2009 and "the Airline of the Year 2009 Award" from the African Airlines Association (AFRAA). With its acquisition of and firm orders for several new modern fleet, the airline is well positioned to pursue aggressively the implementation of its 2025 strategic plan to become the leading aviation group in Africa. Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP, FRAeS, FISASI CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC