Flight Safety Information September 12, 2012 - No. 185 In This Issue Russian Plane Crash Kills 10 in Far East Jet blows its tires during emergency landing in Anchorage Foreigners sue Nigerian Dana Air for negligence Private jet lands safely at Westchester County Airport after one of two engines shut down PRISM Certification Support U.S. watchdog to review airline safety program Jail time ordered for man who pointed laser at aircraft landing at McCarran DGCA to complete safety audit of airlines by next month (India) Embry-Riddle Reduces Airplane Noise Russian Plane Crash Kills 10 in Far East MOSCOW, September 12 (RIA Novosti) - A plane crashed on Russia's far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday, killing at least ten people, officials said. The twin-engine Antonov An-28 was carrying 12 passengers - two of them children - and two crew, investigators say. It had been on a flight from the regional capital, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Four survivors, including one child, have been taken to hospital in serious condition, emergencies officials said. The aircraft lost radio contact with traffic control at 12:28 local time [00:28 GMT] shortly before it was due to land at an airfield in the village of Palana, about 990 kilometers north of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. It remains unclear what caused the crash. The pilots had been trying to make an emergency landing when the plane came down in woodland some 10 kilometers from Palana, Kamchatka's special programs minister Sergei Khabanov said earlier on Wednesday. The plane, which entered service in 1989, belonged to a local state firm, authorities said. Aircraft are used extensively for transport in Kamchatka, a huge territory where there are many remote sites which are not easily accessible by road. Investigators have not ruled out mechanical failure, weather or crew error as possible causes of the crash, the Russian aviation safety agency said on its website. "The investigation is working to establish all circumstances surrounding the accident, including tests of the plane's fuel and examination of the transcript of communications between ground control and the An-28's crew," Rosaviatsia said. Investigators are also interviewing staff at the airport in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky where the plane took off. ************ Date: 12-SEP-2012 Time: 12:28 p.m. Type: Antonov 28 Operator: Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Air Enterprise Registration: RA-28715 C/n / msn: 25-1AJ006 Fatalities: Fatalities: 10 / Occupants: 14 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: 10 km from Palana Airport, Kamchatka peninsula - Russia Phase: Approach Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Yelizovo Destination airport: Palana Narrative: Ten people were killed when an An-28 passenger plane crashed in Russia's Kamchatka peninsula in the country's far east on Wednesday 12 September 2012. The rescuers' helicopter can't reach the disaster site, with four survivors not yet evacuated. They are reportedly in critical condition, Russia's Emergency Ministry said. Two children were reportedly on board the plane: a 13-year-old boy who is now in coma and a four-year-old girl, whose status remains unknown. The aircraft was flying from the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to the small town of Palana. At least 12 passengers and two crewmembers were on board. Radio contact with the plane was lost at 12:28 p.m. local time, when the plane was approaching Palana for landing. The plane was later found lying on its side about 10 kilometers away from the Palana airport. www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top Jet blows its tires during emergency landing in Anchorage ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A jumbo cargo jet blew out most of its tires while making an emergency landing in Anchorage. The Anchorage Daily News (http://is.gd/UpAPqI) says the jet was operating only on backup power when it landed early Tuesday at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Airport officials say the Southern Air Boeing 747 was headed from the Lower 48 to Asia when the plane's four main power generators quit working. Airport business manager Trudy Wassel says two backup generators kicked on, but they do not power a mechanism that keeps the jet's tires from skidding. The flight crew was forced to use manual brakes that had no anti-skid, and 14 of the jet's 18 tires blew out. The plane landed at about 2 a.m. Nobody was injured. Back to Top Foreigners sue Nigerian Dana Air for negligence LAGOS, Nigeria - Over 20 relatives of foreigners involved in the Dana Air ill-fated flight on June 3rd 2012 that killed all 153 passengers on board and 10 on the ground, have sued the airline in their different countries for negligence. The Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren, who disclosed this development to newsmen last week at the NCAA headquarters in Lagos, pointed out that the foreigners involved were from the United States, United Kingdom, China amongst other countries. Dr. Demuren noted that some of the foreigners and some Nigerians had dragged Dana Air to court to press charges against the airline adding that until that was settled, the families could not be compensated. Asked whether he knows the outcome of the litigation, Dr. Demuren declined to comment on it. He however, stressed that apart from the foreigners dragging the airline to court, Dana Airlines was expected to pay the sum total of $350m as compensation to the families of 153 victims onboard the airline noting that the amount of money to be paid excludes those who were killed on ground by the aircraft. According to him,"the meeting we are holding today is about Dana Air, although as you know money cannot replace lives that were lost due to the crash, people have lost their loved ones. The law is very clear that we need to pay the money that is required." Debunking some media reports, not Vanguard, that the airline was not adequately insured, Dr. Demuren insisted that the airline was adequately insured as at the time of the crash. He, however, explained that only 62 families had been paid so far due to the stringent measures involved in assessing the funds stressing that there were multiple claims from some family members which dragged the process backward. He said, "The aircraft was adequately covered by insurance and I can tell you that the whole money for the settlement of the families according to the law, is on ground, but we have to say it here that money cannot replace lives because so many people have lost their loved ones. Money is the smallest thing and the law is very clear on compensation. "We had to do a lot of DNA tests to know who to pay to in case of multiple claims. It is very important for us to move forward. That was why we called Dana management, NAICOM and representatives of Lloyds Insurance Company." Meanwhile, the Deputy Commissioner, Technical, National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Mr. Ibrahim Hassan also affirmed the statement of the D-G, NCAA that Dana Airlines was adequately insured as at the time of the crash adding that they had been insured even before the said crash. According to him, "30 per cent of the risk was domiciled in Nigeria by various insurance companies while Llyods of London bears the remaining 70 per cent risk.The issue of 70 per cent has already been resolved. You really have to carry out who the next-of-kin is. Again, some people have already gone to court to challenge the airline on the amount of money they are being paid. "The compensations of those people who lost their lives and properties on ground have not even commenced. We should not sensationalise the issue, but be responsible. However, I can assure you that all the issues would be settled," Mr. Hassan added. Source: allafrica.com Back to Top Private jet lands safely at Westchester County Airport after one of two engines shut down A private jet carrying seven people safely landed about 4 p.m. after problems forced the pilot to shut down one of two engines and prepare for an emergency landing at Westchester County Airport. The Learjet 55 corporate jet took off from the county airport bound for Nebraska about 3 p.m. Airport Operations was notified at 3:10 p.m. that the plane was experiencing engine trouble and was returning to the area, Westchester County police spokesman Kieran O'Leary said. "As a precaution, the pilot shut down the engine - one of two powering the plane," O'Leary stated. "The plane's fuel load was too heavy to permit an immediate landing, so the pilot continued to fly to burn off fuel." There were five passengers and two crew members on board. The plane traveled to the area around Stewart Airport in Newburgh and circled the airport there before returning to Westchester County Airport where it landed at 4:02 p.m. As a precaution, the Westchester County Airport's emergency response procedures were implemented. Firefighters from the airport's fire brigade as well as the Armonk, Purchase and Port Chester fire departments were on standby at the airport along with personnel from the Westchester County police, the Westchester County Department of Emergency Services and local EMS, O'Leary said. Arlene Salac, a spokeswoman with the Federal Aviation Administration, said the pilot reported that one of the Learjet's two engines was not working, but Salac noted "the aircraft is designed to land with one engine." http://www.lohud.com/article/20120911/NEWS/309110107/Private-jet-lands-safely- Westchester-County-Airport-after-one-two-engines-shut-down Back to Top Back to Top U.S. watchdog to review airline safety program The U.S. government is reviewing a program that allows airlines to self-disclose safety problems to the FAA to avoid penalties. Washington (CNN) -- U.S. government auditors will review a program that allows airlines to avoid penalties for safety problems by self-disclosing them to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Transportation Department's Office of Inspector General, a watchdog, said on Tuesday that it would examine the voluntary initiative to ensure it is not being misused as happened previously in the case of a major carrier. Congress has requested the review. The FAA established the program in 2006 to increase safety by allowing airlines to spend resources to fix safety problems rather than spending time trying to settle disputes with the agency. Goal: Speedier trip through airport security In a highly critical report two years later, the inspector general's office said FAA safety inspectors had grown too close with Southwest Airlines. The report said inspectors had allowed the carrier to repeatedly self-disclose violations of FAA repair orders, absolving it of any penalty without ensuring that the company had come up with a solution for the safety issue. The matter involved 46 Boeing 737s that had not been inspected for potential cracks, a problem that could have led to rapid cabin decompression and crashes. When Southwest discovered the lapse, FAA inspectors encouraged the airline to formally self-disclose the problem and allowed it to operate those planes on 1,451 flights for eight days, the inspector general's report said. Southwest later inspected the planes and found fuselage cracks on five, the report said. The company later was assessed a heavy fine by the FAA. The Voluntary Disclosure Reporting Program is one of at least four self-reporting efforts the FAA has adopted to monitor the industry and its own employees to identify problems and trends and prevent accidents. Safety experts generally applaud voluntary approaches, saying they increase data available to researchers and can make systems safer if trends are found. The inspector general's office said its review would look at whether the airlines are meeting FAA requirements when filing reports and whether regulators are evaluating the industry's corrective actions. The FAA created a non-punitive reporting system for air traffic controllers in 2008 and expanded it this year to include employees who maintain radar installations and other systems. The FAA said that system has yielded enormous data and prompted corrective steps. Back to Top Jail time ordered for man who pointed laser at aircraft landing at McCarran A Las Vegas man was sentenced to eight months in jail for pointing a laser light last year at aircraft landing at McCarran International Airport. Michael Viera-Crespo, Jr., 28, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court, according to Nevada's U.S. attorney, Daniel G. Bogden. U.S. District Judge Miranda Du sentenced Viera-Crespo, who pleaded guilty in March to attempted destruction of an aircraft. In addition to the jail time, Viera-Crespo also will serve three years of supervised release. Viera-Crespo has been in federal custody since March 27. Authorities say that on the evening of Aug. 31, 2011, Viero was standing outside an apartment complex near McCarran when he shined a strong green laser light into the cockpit of at least three commercial aircraft on their landing approach. After the airport reported the incidents, Metro Police flew a helicopter to the area, and a laser then beamed at the police helicopter. The helicopter crew contacted patrol units on the ground, which located Viera-Crespo parked at an apartment complex on Tamarus Street and shining the green laser light. Viera-Crespo was arrested at the scene. In his plea agreement, Viera-Crespo stated that he shined the laser light at the aircraft to interfere with the pilots and that he acted with reckless disregard for the safety of the persons on the aircraft. "These powerful lasers have the potential to harm a pilot's vision and affect their ability to safely operate an aircraft," Bogden said. "We take these cases seriously because of the potential for harm and the risk posed by such criminal conduct to pilots, their passengers and the public." Laser pointing incidents involving aircraft have risen dramatically in the last several years, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The lasers can temporarily diminish eyesight or blind pilots in planes near the ground, according to FAA research. Some industrial lasers are capable of damaging the eye. Early this year, the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 was signed into law and prohibits aiming of a laser pointer at an aircraft or in its flight path. http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/sep/11/jail-time-ordered-man-who-pointed- laser-aircraft-l/ Back to Top DGCA to complete safety audit of airlines by next month (India) The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is set to complete the second safety audit of all airlines by next month, as per The Indian Express report by Mihir Mishra. "We started with Kingfisher Airlines and Air India Express first because of the staff shortage that held us from doing an audit of all of them in one go. We have to complete the audit of all other airlines by October, 2012," said a senior DGCA official. He said that the audit reports of Kingfisher and Air India Express would be out in a day or two. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Civil Aviation had also asked the DGCA to remove the word 'financial' from the title "Assessment of Impact of Financial Stress on Safety of Operations" of the Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR). A CAR is a guideline which lays down requirements for aviation in the country and how an airline will be judged on a particular parameter. In November last year, DGCA conducted a safety audit to ascertain the impact on safety on account of bad financial health of the airlines. It had found that stress due to non- payment of salaries to engineers and pilots risked the safety of flight. The risk was more in case of engineers, who are in the job of servicing planes during late night hours. Non- payment of salaries with found in Kingfisher Airlines, Air India and Air India Express. In the case of Air India Express, it was also found that the duty sheet for pilots were not computerised but made manually. Since the earlier audit, the aviation sector showed an improvement in its financial condition. However, Kingfisher, is yet to improve its finances. http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/dgca-to-complete-safety-audit-of-airlines-by-next- month-17687 Back to Top Embry-Riddle Reduces Airplane Noise Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has found a way to address local residents' concerns about noise from its training aircraft. After an investment of $250,000 and five years of research, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has found a way to address local residents' concerns about noise from its training aircraft. The university has installed new noise reduction exhaust systems and is continuing to conduct research on new quieter propellers in its Daytona Beach campus fleet of Cessna 172 training aircraft. "We've listened to our community and spent many hours trying to come up with solutions - serving on local noise committees, developing alternate procedures, producing noise abatement handouts and training videos - whatever it took to try to resolve this," says Ken Byrnes, chairman of flight operations at Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach campus. "But it always came back to a mechanical solution." After testing and analyzing a variety of airplane exhaust systems and experimental propellers for the past two years, Byrnes said his department got the best results with an exhaust system from Gomolzig Company in Germany and a resized propeller. The study and installation effort has involved more than a dozen faculty, staff and students at the campus. "We are the first large flight training organization in the nation to install a noise- reducing system in our fleet of Cessna 172 training aircraft," Byrnes says. The campus uses 41 of the planes to train students. The new mufflers are making a difference, says Jason Kring, an assistant professor of human factors at Embry-Riddle who conducted before-and-after noise tests with a team of students. "The regular Cessna makes 75 decibels of sound, roughly equivalent to the volume of a washing machine or a busy street," Kring says. "With the muffler installed, the sound was reduced to around 70 decibels, the same as normal conversation from a few feet away or the sound inside a passenger car." The Daytona Beach campus averages 250 training flights a day. "As one of the largest employers in Volusia County with over a half-billion dollar annual impact on the local economy," Byrnes said, "we're an integral part of the community and we're committed to being great neighbors." Byrnes said his department is planning next to develop and install a quieter propeller in its training planes. http://www.onlineamd.com/aerospace-Embry-Riddle-Muffler-091212.aspx Curt Lewis