Flight Safety Information April 29, 2013 - No. 086 In This Issue Aircraft Crashes at Base in Afghanistan Boeing Jet Returns to the Air, but It's Only a Start Riyadh-bound jet in minor accident at Jeddah airport Indonesian pilots concerned over safety Non-reporting of air-safety lapses a worry (INDIA) PROS IOSA Audit Experts Why American Airlines Employees Loathe Management Position Wanted: Pilot Position (Airline/Cargo) Aircraft Crashes at Base in Afghanistan KABUL, Afghanistan April 29, 2013 (AP) - A civilian cargo aircraft crashed at Bagram Air Field, north of the Afghan capital, soon after takeoff on Monday, the U.S.-led military coalition said. It is not immediately known if there were casualties. Taliban quickly claimed responsibility for the crash, but the coalition denied that, saying in a statement to The Associated Press: "Taliban's claims are false. There was no enemy activity or involvement during this incident." The coalition said emergency crews rushed to the scene and were assessing the situation. Capt. Luca Carniel, a coalition spokesman, said the aircraft crashed from a low altitude right after takeoff. He had no information about how many people were on board or the name of the company operating the aircraft. The district police chief in the area, Zamaray Khan, said the aircraft crashed at about 3 p.m. Back to Top Boeing Jet Returns to the Air, but It's Only a Start A ground crew bowed toward an All Nippon Airways 787 Dreamliner as it returned from a test flight at the Haneda International airport in Tokyo. HANEDA AIRPORT, JAPAN - Katsuhiro Ogami, a top engineer at All Nippon Airways, could not sit still Sunday on the airline's first test flight of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner jet fitted with fortified batteries. He peered, and peered again, at a monitor hooked to the plane's batteries for any signs of overheating. Technicians from Boeing are working to outfit all the 787 Dreamliners in ANA's fleet with the redesigned batteries. "We kept on checking the voltage again and again, because we were so nervous," he said in an interview after the 787 jet landed at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, apparently without incident. "Everything was fine, absolutely fine." Mr. Ogami may have gotten over his own jitters, but he and his colleagues at All Nippon, the largest operator of Boeing's 787 batteries, now must convince an uneasy public of the reliability of the jets - most of which were grounded for three months because of concerns that the batteries crucial to the planes' sophisticated electrical systems might catch fire. Even as Boeing and the operators of its Dreamliners move swiftly toward getting the jets back in the air, they now face the delicate task of selling passengers on the idea that the jet is safe, even though engineers have still not figured out what exactly caused batteries to burn on two separate planes earlier this year. In the past week, regulators in the United States, Europe and Japan - all of which grounded the 787 fleet after those incidents - signed off on fixes to the batteries proposed by Boeing. Smaller airlines are already moving ahead in reintroducing the jet to their fleets, including Ethiopian Airlines, which used a 787 on Saturday on a two-hour commercial flight from Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, to Nairobi. But the resumption of 787 flights at All Nippon and Japan Airlines, which together own nearly half the 50 Dreamliner jets Boeing has delivered so far, will prove the real test of whether the modified batteries will eliminate further mishaps. So both Japanese airlines are being cautious about bringing the Dreamliners back into service, saying they hope to resume scheduled commercial flights only in June. That will give them more time to conduct test flights, retrain their crew and to educate the public about the safety of the improved batteries. (All Nippon said it might introduce Dreamliners on some flights before June, however.) "It's up to us to explain how we've made these planes safer," Shinichiro Ito, chief executive of All Nippon and Mr. Ogami's boss, said at a press conference after flying on the test jet, together with executives from Boeing. "We won't decide to resume commercial flights until we're sure our passengers are comfortable with boarding a 787." The other airlines that already own 787s are all eager to resume service, although the timing varies. United has scheduled its 787s to start flying domestic routes on May 31 and plans to begin international flights on June 10, from Denver to Tokyo and Houston to London. The airline will then fly its 787s in August from Houston to Lagos, as well as from Los Angeles to Shanghai and Tokyo. LOT, the Polish national airline, plans to begin commercial 787 flights on June 5 between Warsaw and Chicago. Later, it expects to fly its planes to New York, Toronto and Beijing. Air India said it hoped to have flights by mid-May. The other airlines that own 787s are Qatar Airlines and LAN of Chile. But it is in Japan where the 787 has a particularly difficult task in winning back confidence. The Japanese public has been subject to intense coverage of what first appeared to be teething problems of Boeing's next-generation 787 jet: a cracked cockpit window and a fuel leak. Then a battery fire on a parked Japan Airlines jet in Boston in January, followed closely by a meltdown of batteries aboard a domestic All Nippon flight, catapulted the story into the nation's top headlines. The All Nippon incident, which prompted an emergency landing, has been particularly damaging to the 787's image in Japan. All day, TV stations played footage of the incident, emergency chutes splayed on the tarmac, with testimony from distressed passengers to boot. "I was terrified. I didn't feel alive," Masaaki Ishikawa, a 40-year-old office worker, told the Sankei newspaper at the time. Now, some Japanese are understandably worried. "I'd be a little scared about going on a 787, especially if I was one of the first ones back on," said Takako Aso, 69, a pediatrician who was about to board a flight from Haneda to the southern island of Kyushu on Sunday. "I don't usually check what type of aircraft I'm boarding, and I almost think I shouldn't start, or I'd be too nervous." Boeing engineers say their fixes to the batteries - which include better insulation between the eight cells in the battery, gentler charging to minimize stress and a new titanium enclosure and venting system - eliminate all potential causes of battery fire. The engineers also acknowledge that they may never know what caused the batteries to overheat on the Japan Airlines and All Nippon aircraft because the cells were so damaged. Still, Boeing swore by its fixes Sunday. "No matter what the initiating cause was, it will have no effect whatsoever on the airplane because of the enclosure that we've designed," the Boeing 787 chief engineer, Mike Sennett, told reporters. "The enclosure ensures there can be no fire." Besides the repairs made by Boeing, the Japanese Transport Ministry has requested that All Nippon and Japan Airlines install improved battery monitoring systems on its planes and put its 787 cockpit crews through additional flight training. Once the planes are back in service, the airlines will take a sample of batteries every few months for tests to make sure the improvements are working. All Nippon said that five teams of engineers from Boeing were hard at work making the fixes to its 17 Dreamliners. Each of those aircraft will undergo a "proving flight" to confirm that no battery-related failures occur during use, the airline said. The Tokyo-based airline has also set up a dedicated Web site on which it will post painstakingly detailed information complete with intricate charts and diagrams on the fixes being made to each aircraft. All Nippon is not being let off easy. Asked at a press conference attended by about 70 reporters how he might convince his passengers the plane is safe, the pilot of the test flight, Yuichi Marui, rattled off platitudes suspiciously similar to those already voiced by All Nippon's chief executive. "That's no good," a reporter retorted. "Tell it like you would tell a little child." "Uh, let's see - well, we've fixed all the bad parts now," Mr. Marui offered. "What I mean is, the plane is very safe." http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/29/business/global/29iht- dreamliner29.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 Back to Top Riyadh-bound jet in minor accident at Jeddah airport All passengers on SV1036 flight are safe. JEDDAH: NADIM AL-HAMID - A Riyadh-bound Saudi Arabian Airlines flight had a minor collision with a tow-truck at the King Abdul Aziz International Airport yesterday. The Boeing 777 aircraft, with passengers on board, was about to take off when it collided with a maintenance vehicle. Khaled Al-Khaibari, a spokesman for the General Authority of Civil Aviation, confirmed the accident, but described it as minor. "All passengers on SV1036 flight are safe," he said. Al-Khaibari said all passengers were deplaned and were put on a different aircraft. "All of them reached their destination safely," he said. http://www.arabnews.com/news/449792 Back to Top Indonesian pilots concerned over safety Pilots speak out about Lion Air's safety record and rules which they worry will lead to more accidents. Pilots at Indonesia's largest airline say they are seriously concerned about the company's safety record. Pilots of Lion Air have told Al Jazeera that safety rules are being violated, mostly with illegally flying excess hours. Despite several requests, Lion Air management have not responded to these allegations. On April 13, a brand new airplane from Lion Air missed the runway in Bali and landed in the sea. All passengers aboard survived but pilots and former pilots are worried it is just a matter of time before a serious crash happens. http://www.aljazeera.com/video/asia/2013/04/201342762750824255.html Back to Top Non-reporting of air-safety lapses a worry (INDIA) MUMBAI: Two consecutive incidents in Mumbai, where pilots attempted to hide the air- safety lapse, have raised serious concerns. The attempt at covering up shows the lack of responsibility on part of the pilots as well as the airlines involved. Last month, an Indigo flight had veered off the runway and the incident came to light only when the airport inspection team saw some lights broken on the runway. An unauthorised landing by an Air India (AI) aircraft ten days ago also showed how lax the administration is when it comes to air-safety issues. The pilot involved was allowed to fly the next flight despite the goof-up. Officials at the airport said that the attempt to cover up may create serious situations and may set a bad precedent. "Why would a pilot try to hide an incident? Only because he or she knows that they can get away easily despite violations," said a senior airport official. Officials said that things won't improve unless the investigation is clear and quick at all levels. "The airline involved has to duly report and take necessary action of de-rostering the pilot so that investigation can proceed. All proof should be provided so that corrective action is taken duly," said a Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) official. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Non-reporting-of-air-safety-lapses-a- worry/articleshow_dc/19725570.cms Back to Top Back to Top Why American Airlines Employees Loathe Management By Richard Finger, Contributor The mistrust that labor harbors for American Airlines management is a feud with a history filled with a powerful vitriol that only duplicitous behavior engenders. It all began back in 2003 when then CEO Don Carty, after multiple years of billions in losses, used the threat of bankruptcy to wring $1.8 billion in wage and other concessions from the three major constituent unions; the APA (American Pilots Association), the TWU (Transit Workers Union, an AFL-CIO affiliate), and the APFA (Association of Professional Flight Attendants). While a somber Mr. Carty preached to labor that in this dark hour the necessity for "shared sacrifice" he failed to mention the deca-millions in retention bonuses of 200 percent of salary that management had concurrently approved for top executives. The second tranche of perfidy was the major commission of the omission of disclosing the creation of a new "secret" supplemental executive retirement plan (think pension) being squirreled away only for top executives. Apparently, Mr. Carty felt no comfort in being on equal footing with rank and file employees whose primary pensions may potentially be at risk in a bankruptcy scenario. So the CEO in October 2002 clandestinely funded an irrevocable trust for the top 45 executives which specifically delineated in the trust agreement that trust assets "shall not be subject to the claims of the creditors of the corporation in a bankruptcy".... Employees were so indignant they threatened to abrogate the recently ratified pay cut labor agreements. The retention bonuses were hastily cancelled but the supplemental pension plan remains in place to this day. Further fallout was the swift "resignation" of the woodenheaded Mr. Carty who received no severance package. But thanks to that recently created executive retirement plan, magically Mr. Carty was gifted $8.2 million. The award was actually closer to $12 million as the $8.2 million was an after tax figure. During the intervening eight year period leading up to the bankruptcy, Mr. Carty's successor, Gerald Arpey, continued the rich American tradition of, one way or another, of rewarding failure. While recording billions in losses in his own right, Mr. Arpey was insistent in attempting to push through hundreds of millions in executive bonuses. Mr. Arpey, enjoyed regurgitating to the rank and file a pithy little cheer "share the pain, share the gain". More accurate might have been "all the pain, with none of the gain." The perpetual struggles of employees protest of executive bonuses in light of their own reduced circumstances leaves many both acrimonious and disillusioned. The covert supplemental retirement plan remains a festering open wound. The airline refuses to issue public disclosures as to its current assets or how much money goes to fund it or where the money comes from. Until the bankruptcy, union representatives had been negotiating since 2008 to reach new labor accords. Only since the bankruptcy with management's legal right to reject labor contracts has the process moved forward. The Merger: Who's Getting What Judge Sean Lane has blessed the marriage but the couple won't be cohabitating for perhaps another six months or so. We know the equity split is 72 percent to 28 percent in favor of American shareholders. Given that stock split and an estimated $1.2 billion in cost efficiencies both secured and unsecured American Airlines creditors are likely to be repaid in full. Doug Parker will be CEO of the combined entity, and Judge Lane disallowed Tom Horton's $20 million bonus not for any moral reasons, but because it is illegal under bankruptcy law. The board of the new company will have the legal freedom to award Mr. Horton whatever compensation they wish. American Airlines has frozen its employee pension plan which has $18.8 billion is liabilities and an estimated $ 8 billion funding shortfall. Because payments under defined benefit programs are calculated on both years of employee service and a certain percentage of final salary the American unfunded gap likely went down by a few billion. Current employees who retire in twenty years have their benefit computed as of today's years of service and salary so actuarial future pension liabilities will by definition be reduced. The plan has been replaced with a 401k defined contribution plan where American Airlines will match employee's contributions up to 5.5 percent of their salary. The company will likely save tens of millions annually under this defined contribution scenario as not everyone will save 5.5 percent of salary every month. Also, this shifts the investment risk from the company to the employee. And come now the egregious insult of a $20 million bonus for caretaker CEO Tom Horton. Here is one more depredation. Regardless of whether Tom Horton receives his undeserved $20 million, he has a pension worth at least $5million. Through accounting legerdemain Horton has been given credit for at least four extra years of American Airlines employment. I almost forgot about employees. Guess what they are getting; the shaft, as usual. I have been in contact with several employees both by phone and e-mail during the past couple of weeks. I got a little detail from a TWU mechanic. In the 2003 giveaway, this gentleman saw his wages reduced 17.5 percent or nearly $20 thousand per year and had vacation time reduced by a week. A decades long American Airlines employee, before the latest new labor contracts he was making a little less than $70, 000 annually. After a decade of wage stagnation, the new post-bankruptcy accord initially calls for a paltry three percent salary increase. But because of increased employee health care cost burdens, a frozen pension and the newly implemented defined contribution 401K program, our example is taking home about $4,400 less per year! While this atrocity was unfolding, the airline and the TWU jointly issued a memorandum which I think was intended as some sort of mission statement delineating myriads of "business improvement opportunities". There is a climax which specifies areas where "Union and Company agrees......to become best in class." Like....you just gave me my first raise in ten years which perversely cut my after tax wages by 7 percent.........and you throw this nonsense in my face. Are Unions Too Cozy With Management At least in the case of the flight attendants and the mechanics I have gotten some feedback that many are less than happy about the job that APFA and the TWU are doing representing their interests. Did labor have a strong enough voice at the table? All three unions knew about and approved the $20 million bonus for Tom Horton. All three unions readily agreed to place language in the labor agreements "gagging" employees from complaining about excessive management bonuses. Some are of the opinion that inserting "gag" order language was a quid pro quo for the American Airlines reimbursing APFA $5 million for bankruptcy financial consultants and $2 million to pay investment banking firm Jefferies & Co. American also refunded to the TWU over $2.7 million in bankruptcy related expenses. At least in the case of the TWU, I came into possession of union form LM-2 which is a required annual report to the Department of Labor. Total TWU expenditures were $45.6 million versus $44.8 million in receipts. The point is that $2.7 million is not an insignificant number for the TWU. Top management at all the unions receives a designation A-5 travel pass. With this perk, APFA president Laura Glading and her family can travel first class anyplace, anytime and have priority that can bump a full fare passenger. Ms. Glading can retire at the end of her term with this benefit intact. Her predecessor, Tommy Hitto-Blake retired with A-5 travel. At the time it was kept secret from union membership. Why keep it hidden if there is nothing underhanded going on. I also came into possession of a number of TWU form L-10's which are disclosures of gifts or perks that American Airlines doles out to union officials. I discovered thousands of dollars in free airline travel, meals, and even baseball tickets. Also, top TWU officers are appointed for life and not elected like counterparts at APA and APFA. If an appointment lacks accountability to those to whom you are to represent, then it becomes little more than a sinecure. Woven all together, a case can be made for an incestuous relationship between union management and executives at American Airlines. Top union officials make $200,000 or $250,000 or more exclusive of perks and benefits worth many thousands more. With these "cushy" jobs does there exist a lack of incentive for these agents of the workers to fight their hardest for them. Judging by the results of the latest rounds of labor negotiations, it is at least a possibility. Deregulation And The Law Of Unintended Consequences When dust has settled, and these two companies begin cohabitating together, the United States will be left with but four airlines that control 90 percent of all domestic traffic. Prior to the October 24, 1978 enactment of the Airline Deregulation Act ("Act") or the "big bang" in airline jargon, airlines were governed by the now defunct Civil Aeronautics Board. It was a staid if not gentlemanly arrangement. It set fares and granted (or not) licenses to airlines for new routes. The system had functioned for over four decades when in the early 1970's the Arab oil embargo drastically increased fuel prices and the economy suffered from stagflation. The rate system often subsidized inefficient routes. As air fares were escalating rapidly, congressional pressure mounted to scrap this antiquated bureaucracy. The theory was that an industry once untethered from government shackles would surely thrive under unfettered capitalism. After thirty five years and hundreds of new startup airlines, hundreds of bankruptcies, liquidations, reorganizations, and mergers, in 2013 what are the remnants of the "Act"? The Justice Department evaluates all airline mergers and acquisitions on competitive grounds with the Transportation Department and FAA chirping in background advice. Congress which has the discretion to intervene has opted out of the major mergers between United/Continental and Delta/Northwest. Each mega merger effectively grants near monopoly at many airports and for many routes. Justice denies ATT the right to merge with T-Mobile but yet blesses a United/Continental union that has limited or no competition on many routes. Either doing proper diligence is neglected or it is fair game to call Justice Department competence into question. Will Justice do their usual wink and nod and bless the US Airways/American combination that will create the world's largest airline? If they do then airline consolidation, with full government blessing, will be complete. Four airlines (United, American/US Air, Southwest, and Delta) will control the domestic skies. Intra market monopolies will predominate to detriment of the traveler. If an aberration occurs and the marriage is denied, pundits question whether either US Airways or American can compete solo against the giant tentacles of United, Delta, and Southwest. So we're damned if they do and damned if they don't. With these four mega airlines having near domestic monopoly at many regional airports, contrary to whatever nonsense the consultants parade before Congress, airfares will drastically increase. I live in Houston, Texas and after the United/Continental combination, United now controls over 90 percent of domestic travel in and out of our Houston Intercontinental Airport. Many fights have been consolidated so travelers have fewer choices and fares have been radically increased .The landscape is the same at major airports like Denver, Dallas, and Atlanta. The Future After the multitudes of iterations of three and half decades, the airline industry is now structurally in its most powerful position in the history on aviation; it is poised to reap massive profits from the now entrenched government approved oligopolistic framework. Was this what the framers of the Airline Deregulation Act envisioned? These big four major airlines are all not surprisingly projected to make lots of money in 2013 and 2014. With current industry configuration, I do believe a trained chimpanzee could run these airlines profitably. Within this industry structure of near guaranteed profitability there needs to be significant profit participation formula for TWU, APFA, and APA members. These employees have truly sacrificed and the time has come for a little bit of catch-up. To prevent executives from gaming the system, calculations should be based on the same criteria that any future executive bonuses are based on. Each of the three unions should have a seat on the board of directors to act as a check against management over reach. American Airlines employees have no shortage of grievances to be angry about. It is the cronyism of this management team that serves as a paradigm for why many complain about the unfairness perpetuated in the boardrooms of corporate America. No one can know whether workers will be treated more equitably under the US Airways managers. I only know there is only one way it can go. http://www.forbes.com/sites/richardfinger/2013/04/29/why-american-airlines- employees-loathe-management/2/ Back to Top Position Wanted: Pilot Position (Airline/Cargo) Experienced international airline aviator with 8,000+ total flying hours; in excess 2000 hours of B777, 2200 hours of B737, and 1800 hours of A310 experience. Verifiable record of no violations. Solid training record- has passed all commercial airline and check rights on first attempt. Continuous employment in aviation. Dependable employee- 0 no. - Shows throughout career. Facilitate open communication and mutual respect among all work groups. Committed to Safety First. Firm Advocate of Crew Resource Management. U.S. Citizen Contact: jahanzeb737@yahoo.com Curt Lewis