Flight Safety Information June 25, 2015 - No. 124 In This Issue Military Plane (F-16) Crashes In Arizona Near Mexico Border F-16 Accident (Thailand) Boeing 767 Bird Ingestion (Crimean Peninsula) European ban on Philippines airlines lifted Man Held Over Bomb Scare On Ryanair Jet Pilot landing in Des Moines reports laser strike on jet Police: Green laser illuminates cockpit, injures pilots Jet tire crashes through kitchen ceiling of Montreal home MN pilots spotting more drones Mother and baby survive Colombia jungle plane crash Korean Air ramps up MERS precautions Dornier aircraft still missing; four ships pull out of search ops (India) Thieves caught on surveillance stealing luggage at Sea-Tac Airport PROS 2015 TRAINING Boeing plans to further slow 747 jet production in 2016 Denver lands United Airlines global pilot training operations China to spend 500b yuan ($80 Billion USD) on boosting civil aviation FAA Deploys NASA ATM Tool to Up Airspace Efficiency IG To Audit FAA Controller Hiring Procedures Upcoming Events JOBS AVAILABLE (New Positions) Military Plane (F-16) Crashes In Arizona Near Mexico Border: Reports A military plane crashed in Arizona near the Mexico border on Wednesday night. The crash, which involved an F-16 Fighting Falcon with the 162nd Fighter Wing of the Air National Guard, occurred during a night training mission near the border town of Douglas. According to the 162nd Wing's official Facebook page, there was one person on board the aircraft. "...Teams of rescue personnel were dispatched to the scene near Douglas Municipal Airport," 2nd Lt. Lacey L. Roberts said in a news release. "At this time there is still no additional information on the pilot." Aviation and Cochise County officials told The Arizona Republic newspaper that the crash sparked a brush fire that is burning right next to a high-pressure gas line. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/25/military-plane-crash_n_7659790.html **************** Date: 24-JUN-2015 Time: 08:00 p.m. Type: General Dynamics F-16 Owner/operator: US Air National Guard, 162nd Wing Registration: C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: / Occupants: 1 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: five miles east of Douglas, Arizona - United States of America Phase: En route Nature: Military Departure airport: Davis-Monthan Air Force Base Destination airport: Davis-Monthan Air Force Base Narrative: The plane crashed under unknown circumstances. The fate of the pilot is unknown at present. www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top F-16 Accident (Thailand) Date: 24-JUN-2015 Time: 01:00 p.m. Type: General Dynamics F-16A Owner/operator: Thai AF, 1st Wing Registration: C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: Nakhon Ratchasima - Thailand Phase: Take off Nature: Military Departure airport: Destination airport: Narrative: The plane skidded off the taxiway and veered into a drainage ditch on Wednesday 24 June 2015. The pilot ejected safely. www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top Boeing 767 Bird Ingestion (Crimean Peninsula) Date: 23-JUN-2015 Time: 16:30 UTC Type: Boeing 767-3Q8(ER) Owner/operator: Ikar Airlines Registration: VP-BMC C/n / msn: 30301/762 Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 202 Other fatalities: 0 Airplane damage: Substantial Location: Simferopol Airport (SIP/UKFF) - Phase: Take off Nature: Passenger Departure airport: Simferopol, SIP/UKFF Destination airport: Irkutsk, IKT/UIII Narrative: Ikar Airlines flight IK112 was in the initial climb out of Simferopol when the ATC reported the right-hand engine had ingested a bird prompting the crew to shut the engine down and return to Simferopol for a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure. The aircraft was not able to land immediately as the runway had to be cleared of engine debris. Simferopol is a city on the Crimean peninsula, the status of which is disputed between Ukraine and Russia. www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top European ban on Philippines airlines lifted Brussels has dropped the Philippines from its European Union blacklist of airlines banned or restricted from flying within the region. All airlines from the Philippines, banned since 2010, have been released from the list and are therefore now allowed to operate in the European airspace. No new bans have been imposed. The EU Air Safety List is a list of airlines which are either considered not able to respect international aviation safety standards, or whose civil aviation authorities are deemed unable to provide the necessary safety oversight as foreseen by international aviation safety rules. The airlines mentioned on the EU Air Safety List are either not allowed to operate to the EU, or, in a limited number of cases can only do so under very strict conditions. The EU Air Safety List also serves as a tool to warn the travelling public when travelling in other parts of the world. The EU Air Safety Committee consists of top aviation safety experts from the Commission, from each of its 28 EU member states, as well as from Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Violeta Bulc, EU transport commissioner said: "After five years of hard work we are finally able to clear the airlines certified in the Philippines from the European Air Safety List. The Philippines is an important country with a sizeable and rapidly growing aviation sector. Today's result can serve as an example for other countries which have difficulty to match their safety oversight capabilities with the growth of their industry." The updated EU Air Safety List includes all airlines certified in 20 states, for a total of 231 airlines: Afghanistan, Angola (with the exception of one airline which operates under restrictions and conditions), Benin, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Gabon (with the exception of 2 airlines which operate under restrictions and conditions), Indonesia (with the exception of 4 airlines), Kazakhstan (with the exception of one airline which operates under restrictions and conditions), Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Libya, Mozambique, Nepal, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Zambia. The list also includes one individual airline: Blue Wing Airlines (Suriname), bringing the overall total of airlines banned from EU skies to 232. Additionally, the list includes eight airlines which are subject to operational restrictions. These airlines can only fly to the European Union with specific aircraft types: Air Astana (Kazakhstan), Afrijet and SN2AG (Gabon), Air Koryo (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), Air Service Comores (the Comoros), Iran Air (Iran), TAAG Angolan Airlines (Angola) and Air Madagascar (Madagascar). The air carriers certified in Ghana that were on the Air Safety List have been removed as the Commission secured the necessary guarantees from Ghana that these airlines no longer exist and that their aircraft have been removed from active service. http://www.airtrafficmanagement.net/2015/06/european-ban-on-phillipines-airlines- lifted/ Back to Top Man Held Over Bomb Scare On Ryanair Jet Bomb disposal experts sweep the plane before it takes off for Oslo as a 48-year-old man is detained over a hoax call. A man has been detained over a bomb scare on a Ryanair plane that forced the part- closure of a Polish airport. A security alert was triggered at Modlin airport near Warsaw after an anonymous call that there was an explosive device on the passenger jet, which had been due to fly to Oslo in Norway. The airport was shut to incoming flights as bomb disposal experts carried out a security sweep of the aircraft, which had not yet boarded. The plane was at Modlin airport near Warsaw Nothing was found and a 48-year-old man was detained over the hoax call. Police spokesman Mariusz Mrozek said: "There is no evidence that we are dealing here with an organised group, rather this was an irresponsible prank." Ryanair said: "Warsaw Modlin Airport received an anonymous hoax call this morning (25 June) that there was an explosive device on a Ryanair aircraft due to take off from Warsaw Modlin to Oslo at 08.40hrs local. "The airport security authorities ordered an immediate inspection of the aircraft (which hadn't yet boarded) and closed the airport to inbound arrivals as a security precaution. "The security sweep confirmed this was a hoax and the aircraft has returned to service, while the airport has since reopened. "Ryanair sincerely apologises to the customers of the outbound Oslo flight for any inconvenience caused by this hoax call." The aircraft has now been cleared to return to service and the airport has reopened. http://news.sky.com/story/1508085/man-held-over-bomb-scare-on-ryanair-jet Back to Top Pilot landing in Des Moines reports laser strike on jet DES MOINES, Iowa -A scare for a Delta pilot flying into the Des Moines International Airport on Tuesday night. Authorities are investigating a laser strike on the aircraft. The flight from Minneapolis was on approach to land when the pilot said a bright green laser light burst into the cockpit. It was the only flight to report the problem. Delta pilot Donald Julius steered clear of the possible threat, coming from the ground possibly near the Iowa State Capitol building. It was fixed on the aircraft for about 25 seconds as the pilot ducked to prevent eye damage. Des Moines Airport Executive Director Kevin Foley said that this is not the first time an aircraft was attacked here by a bright green laser. He believes the aircraft was intentionally targeted, as the number of incidents reached a record last year with nearly 4,000 laser strikes on airplanes across the country. Des Moines police said they are investigating seven separate laser-beam strikes on planes since Jan. 1. Pilot Nick Lambert said he has experienced it firsthand. "All (of) the sudden we just saw some green flashes going through the cockpit, and we were like, 'What is that?'" he said. Lambert said he managed to look away and avoided direct eye contact just as the Delta pilot did Tuesday. "Worst case scenario, it could cause temporary blindness, depending how high you are. If you get a laser beam 50 feet off the ground, you could nose it in. You could stall the airplane," Lambert said. The Federal Aviation Administration said this is a very serious crime. The administration said it received nearly 3,900 reports of lasers being shined at aircrafts across the country. The FAA is asking for everyone's help with this case and urges people to call police if they see anyone beaming a laser to the sky. The maximum penalty is 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for pointing a laser beam at a jet. http://www.kcci.com/news/pilot-landing-in-des-moines-reports-laser-strike-on- jet/33759064 Back to Top Police: Green laser illuminates cockpit, injures pilots MARTINSBURG, Pa. (AP) - Police are looking for whoever shined a laser into the cockpit of a UPS plane flying over western Pennsylvania, temporarily blinding the pilots. Authorities say it happened Tuesday night above Blair County. State Police say two pilots on a Philadelphia-bound flight from Pittsburgh were hurt when a green laser illuminated the cockpit. The pilots were treated for their injuries at a suburban Philadelphia hospital. The FAA is investigating. http://www.wtrf.com/story/29404528/police-green-laser-illuminates-cockpit-injures- pilots Back to Top Jet tire crashes through kitchen ceiling of Montreal home CTV Montreal: Jet wheel tears through roof The wheel of a jet tore through the roof of a home in St. Laurent near Trudeau Airport Wednesday morning. Residents in a Quebec neighbourhood are used to planes flying by, but not debris falling from the sky. Denise Roberts reports. Residents at a home outside Montreal got quite the scare after a Falcon 10 jet tire falls on on a roof. Residents of a Montreal apartment building say they were shocked when a jet tire fell from the sky, crashing through the roof and leaving a hole in one woman's kitchen ceiling. Hole in ceiling from tire People living in the building, located in the city's Saint-Laurent neighbourhood, said they heard a loud thud just before 2 a.m. A woman living on the top floor found a hole in her roof and a jet tire in her apartment. At roughly 5 a.m., she went to inform her landlord. "This morning my tenant came home to an apartment with a hole in her kitchen ceiling; she could see through the kitchen into the sky," the landlord, who did not want to be identified, told CTV Montreal. "She came down at 5 a.m., rang our doorbell panicking and we went up to investigate," she added. The woman was stunned that a plane tire had crashed into the building. "I think it's ridiculous ... I mean there's got to be quality checks, someone that makes sure everything is attached and attached well. How can a tire just fall off a plane?" She added that incident has her questioning the safety of her neighbourhood. The area sees high levels of air traffic overhead because it is on the flight path of Pierre Elliott Trudeau airport. "It is a very residential area, there's a lot of children here and it makes me angry that something like this happened at all," the woman said. Jet wheel falls through roof The Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday that the wheel belonged to a Falcon 10 jet, which landed safely at the airport at approximately 2 a.m. Wednesday. The TSB said the plane was operated by Club Jet. It plans to send an investigator on Thursday. Club Jet had no comment as of Wednesday evening. Alan De Sousa, the mayor of Saint-Laurent, said he is following the incident and wants to ensure that residents are safe. "I'm very thankful there's no injury or any loss of life, but our public security can't just depend on luck," said De Sousa. "I think there are responsibilities that have to be assumed." http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/jet-tire-crashes-through-kitchen-ceiling-of-montreal- home-1.2438323 Back to Top MN pilots spotting more drones Mosquito Control and drone encounters EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. - A helicopter pilot came close to a drone flying nearby Wednesday morning causing the pilot to change course. It highlights a growing issue among pilots, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Scott Churchill owns Scott's Helicopters, which also operations KARE 11's news chopper. He said one of his pilots came within 200 yards of a drone while she treated a swamp below for mosquitoes. "So she deviated off to one direction, and it deviated the other way," he said. "Depending on where it would hit on the aircraft, absolutely it could create a catastrophic accident." After the pilot noticed that drone flying near her, she called the tower at the Flying Cloud Airport, which is only about five miles away. The airport then called Eden Prairie Police, but officers were not able to find the drone's operator. "They're not supposed to be that close to an airport, and they're not supposed to, by Minnesota law they're not even supposed to operate off an airport," he said. The FAA is currently studying how to regulate drones, also known as Unmanned Aircraft Systems or UAS. Unless you get permission from the federal government, drones fall under the model aircraft regulations, which prohibit operators from flying drones more than 400 feet in the air, and within five miles of an airport. It's such an issue, the FAA started a campaign called "Know Before You Fly", which warns people about the dangers of operating drones. And drone sightings from pilots are increasing. The FAA receives about 60 drone reports from pilots a month. "We aren't able to verify what the pilots actually saw in many instances," said FAA spokesperson Elizabeth Isham Cory. "But pilots rarely have taken evasive action." This may have been the second sighting by a pilot over Eden Prairie in as many days, according to Churchill. "In this same location there was another incident reported by an airplane yesterday," he said. KARE 11 was unable to get a hold of anyone with the Flying Cloud Airport to get more information. "It's got us concerned right now," said Churchill. And while the FAA figures out exactly how to police drones, people like Scott Churchill worry things will get worse. "I think you're going to see a lot more of this in the metro down the road," he said. http://www.kare11.com/story/news/local/2015/06/24/mosquito-control-pilots-dodging- drones/29253127/ Back to Top Mother and baby survive Colombia jungle plane crash Ms Murillo suffered some injuries and burns but they were not believed to be serious A young mother and her baby have been found alive five days after their plane crashed in the jungle of western Colombia. A Colombian Air Force chief described their survival as "a miracle". Maria Nelly Murillo, 18, and her one-year-old son were found by rescuers near to where their small Cessna plane crashed in Choco province. Ms Murillo had some injuries and burns while her baby appeared to be in good health. The twin-engine Cessna plane (T303), which was carrying fish and coconuts, had been flying from the town of Nuqui on the Pacific coast to Quibdo, the capital of Choco. It disappeared from the radar of the civil aviation authorities 20 minutes into the flight. When the pilot did not respond to any calls, officials knew something was wrong and despatched a plane to search the area. It took the search team two days until they finally spotted a white dot in the dense jungle, which turned out to be the remains of the Cessna. It had crashed, for reasons not yet known, in the Alto Baudo region. When the search team reached the Cessna, they found its pilot, Carlos Mario Ceballos, dead in the cockpit. Glimmer of hope There was no trace of Ms Murillo or her baby, Yudier Moreno, which the passenger list said had been on board. But according to Col Hector Carrascal of the Colombian Air Force, rescuers took hope when they noticed that the cabin door was ajar. Search and rescue aircraft found the wreck of the plane. The cause of the crash is unclear "It could have opened on impact, but it could have been opened from the inside," he said. "But that's when we started to worry. We didn't have a clue what had happened to them: they could be lost in the jungle trying to survive or they could have died already." But then the rescuers found clues which led them to believe Ms Murillo and her baby could still be alive. Coconut shells near the plane and a discarded flip flop in the jungle lifted their hopes. They also found the baby's birth certificate near a tree, which convinced them that Ms Murillo was trying to leave a trace of her path through the jungle. Part of the search party scoured the jungle on foot while others flew over the area in a helicopter using a loudspeaker to shout Ms Murillo's name and urge her to return to the crash site. But for two days their search yielded no results. 'Miracle' Finally, on Wednesday, they located Ms Murillo about 500m from the site of the crash in a ravine on the banks of a river. Ms Murillo and her baby were taken by helicopter to a hospital in Quibdo "It's a miracle. It is a very wild area and it was a catastrophic accident," Col Carrascal said. Of the baby, he said: "His mother's spirit must have given him strength to survive." The couple were airlifted to a hospital in Quibdo. Ms Murillo told medical staff that she had managed to open the cabin door and run into the jungle as fire was spreading in the cabin. She then reportedly went back for her baby, at which time she sustained burns to her face, an arm and a leg. Afraid the plane might explode, she walked into the jungle along the bank of a small river. Details of how she survived are still sketchy, but local media said she came across a couple of indigenous people who helped her. She was also able to drink coconut water from the coconuts the plane had been carrying, local media said. She reportedly heard the calls over loudspeaker from the rescue helicopter which prompted her to make her way back to the crash site. She is being treated for her injuries in hospital. Her baby son is said to be unharmed. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-33265943 ******************** Date: 20-JUN-2015 Time: 13:15 LT Type: Cessna T303 Crusader Owner/operator: Unknown Registration: HK-4677G C/n / msn: Fatalities: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 3 Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: near Alto Baudó - Colombia Phase: En route Nature: Unknown Departure airport: NQU Destination airport: UIB Narrative: A Cessna T303, HK-4677G went missing on a flight from Nuquí to Quibdó , Colombia. The aircraft was found to have crashed in a wooded area. All four on board sustained fatal injuries. Four days after the accident rescued alive women and 8 month old baby who were on that plane fell www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top Korean Air ramps up MERS precautions Korean Air has stepped up cabin sterilization procedures on all its flights following the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak in Korea. Previously, the carrier had only been sterilizing cabins on flights to and from Middle East (ME) destinations, but will now expand the procedure to all its aircraft. The Korean flag carrier says it will now begin sterilizing all aircraft once a week in addition to its ME sterilization timetable, no matter where it flies. The MERS outbreak has so far killed 27 in Korea, with more than 170 confirmed cases to date. The outbreak has caused school and hospital closures, and resulted in the cancellation of an estimated 120,000 tourist bookings since the first cases were diagnosed late May. Travel advisories have been issued against traveling to Korea by Hong Kong, China, and Macau. Singapore and Australia have introduced extra screening for passengers from Korea. Korean will use MD-125 disinfectant to clean 20 aircraft per day, up from the previous five per day, and says that the process will ensure decontamination from any potential coronavirus particles for at least a week from each cleaning-and-disinfection procedure. http://atwonline.com/safety/korean-air-ramps-mers-precautions Back to Top Dornier aircraft still missing; four ships pull out of search ops (India) Officials suspect that the Dornier which went missing on June 8 could have crashed along the Chidambaram coast. With the mystery around the missing ICG Dornier aircraft continuing, four ships, including the National Institute of Ocean Technology vessel Sagar Nidhi, have withdrawn from search operations on Wednesday. Despite ICG's assertions that ships and aircraft are continuing the round-the-clock search 16 days after the Dornier with three crewmen on board disappeared, a vessel from Reliance Industries with cameras/remote operation systems left Kakinada without giving any concrete position of the aircraft. In a final bid to locate the Dornier, the Coast Guard has plans to use a high-tech vessel belonging to Indian Navy from Thursday. "It will arrive from Visakhapatnam. The ship will be equipped with high-tech system to detect transmission from the aircraft's SONAR Locator beacon", a senior ICG official said. The submarine pressed into search duties also failed to locate wreckages underwater. Officials suspect that the Dornier which went missing on June 8 could have crashed along the Chidambaram coast. In another hurdle to the search team, the transmission from the Sonar Locator Beacon (SLB) is also getting weaker. Though the SLB could transmit up to 30 days, officials say that the signals are weaker and more scattered. ICG sources said search aircrafts that flew for nearly 150 hours could not locate the Dornier. The "Dornier aircraft CG-791 deployed for surveillance along the Tamil Nadu Coast and Palk Bay from the Coast Guard station Chennai on June 8th evening failed to return base. This is the second incident of a Dornier missing while deployed for night surveillance in the last three months. A Dornier belonging to the Navy crashed on March 26 off Goa coast. Two pilots, including a woman officer, were killed in the mishap while the main pilot was rescued. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/485633/dornier-aircraft-still-missing-four.html Back to Top Thieves caught on surveillance stealing luggage at Sea-Tac Airport SEATTLE-TACOMA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Wash. - At least nine different people have been recently spotted on surveillance video stealing luggage at Sea-Tac Airport, the Port of Seattle Police Department said Wednesday. Luggage theft at Sea-Tac is down from this time last year, and police want to keep it that way. That's why they want passengers to be aware of a possible theft ring that has been taking bags. Police say in all of the cases, the thieves dressed like they just got off a plane, including one couple spotted wearing comfortable clothes, even carrying what looks like their own backpacks, when they steal a bag. One group of three appear to stand in a row, each swiping a bag before they leave. "They are here all hours of the day and sometimes when we get an individual that has done this multiple times, they will get a certain pattern but we'll do focus-policing and focus-patrols," said Port of Seattle police detective Darin Beam. Here are some suggestions to better protect yourselves from luggage thieves: - Get to the baggage claim before your bag does; - Put a marker on your bag to make it stand out; - Don't put valuables in checked bags; - Be aware of your surroundings. Police say the thieves have gotten more sophisticated and are adapting to police tactics, but they say luggage theft is a crime of opportunity that passengers can take measures against. http://q13fox.com/2015/06/24/surveillance-catches-thieves-stealing-luggage-from-sea- tac-airport/ Back to Top Back to Top Boeing plans to further slow 747 jet production in 2016 Boeing Co (BA.N) said on Wednesday it would slow production of its 747-8 jumbo jet by 23 percent to one per month starting in March, an effort to keep the production line running amid sluggish demand for the iconic, humped-top plane. Boeing, the world's largest plane maker, is currently building 747s at a rate of 1.5 a month and had already announced plans to reduce the rate to 1.3 a month from September. The company said the decision to slow production further was not related to Tuesday's announcement that President Dennis Muilenburg will succeed Jim McNerney as chief executive on July 1. Boeing had been widely expected to slow production of its biggest plane in response to weakness in the cargo market. Those concerns were eased last week when Russia cargo airline Volga-Dnepr Group committed to buying 20 747s. The U.S. Air Force said earlier this year that it would buy an unspecified number of 747s to update the Air Force One presidential fleet, also boosting the jet's prospects. But last year Boeing logged no net 747 orders, setting up 2015 as a make-or-break year for the plane that was developed in the late 1960s. Earlier this month, Boeing cut by 13 percent its long-range forecast for large wide-body aircraft, a category that includes its 747 and the Airbus (AIR.PA) A380. Boeing expects 540 of these planes will be needed over the next 20 years, down from 620 it forecast in 2014. According to latest data, Boeing had only 32 orders on its books through May for the 747, which costs just under $370 million at list price. "With recent orders and commitments, along with these changes announced today, we anticipate a stable future for the 747 production system," Bruce Dickinson, vice president and general manager of the 747 program, said in an internal company report on Wednesday. The 747 has become a workhorse for air freight companies and is appreciated for its large capacity that allows it to carry long cargo such as pipe segments. Even though the cargo market is recovering, the "overcapacity of freighters in the market" has prompted Boeing to slow production, Dickinson said. Airbus, also struggling to sell its double-decker A380, is considering revamping the jet with new, more efficient engines - a decision that could come later this year if it can find enough customers. Boeing's shares closed down a shade under 1 percent at $143. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/24/us-boeing-output-idUSKBN0P42I720150624 Back to Top Denver lands United Airlines global pilot training operations DIA's largest carrier will consolidate pilot training operations into one center at Stapleton Every one of the 12,000 pilots worldwide who fly for United Airlines - Denver International Airport's largest carrier - soon will be trained in the Mile High City. On Wednesday, United announced the consolidation of its global pilot-training operations to its training center in Stapleton - a move that will keep 400 jobs in Denver and will add 200 jobs in exchange for a $13.2 million tax-incentive package from the city and state. United operates two training facilities. The Stapleton center, at the corner of East 35th Avenue and Quebec Street, houses flight simulators for the airline's Airbus fleet as well as some Boeing aircraft. The site in Houston handles training for some of the airline's Boeing fleet. Stapleton, which has been in operation since the mid-1950s, will be completely renovated to accommodate the additional equipment and personnel. United spokesman Luke Punzenberger said this approach - as opposed to building a new facility - will save United more than $80 million in upfront capital expenses. United's capital investment at the site will total about $40 million, according to the city. Competition was stiff between Denver and two cities under consideration - Houston and Chicago, where United is based. In the end, the scale tipped for Denver. In an internal memo to pilots, Howard Attarian, United's flight operations senior vice president, said lower capital expense, an expedited two-year timeframe and minimal disruption to operations are key reasons why Denver got the edge. DIA CEO Kim Day said the proximity of the training center to Regional Transportation District's East Rail Line, which will begin service to the airport early next year, also was crucial. Plenty of state and local incentives also sweetened the pot. The state's Office of Economic Development chipped in about $9.2 million in Job Growth Incentive Tax Credits in exchange for the creation of 265 full-time jobs over eight years, said OED spokeswoman Holly Shrewsbury. Those jobs will have an average annual wage of about $62,300. The Job Growth Incentive Tax Credit is equal to 50 percent of the company's 7.65 percent Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax on net job growth each year. However, unlike many other states, Colorado requires the jobs to be created, hired and retained for one year before tax credits are issued. The city of Denver committed an additional $4 million in incentives tied to "performance benchmarks," pending City Council approval, said Mayor Michael Hancock. Paul Washington, executive director of Denver's OED, said United must meet stipulations in capital investment into rehabilitation of the Stapleton site and its flight simulators, as well as the number of jobs it delivers to the area, to receive the incentives. "We, of course, looked at the direct economic impact of those investments and job creation metrics, and the incentives are based on the achievement of them as projected by United Airlines," Washington said. The 12,000 pilots - and the thousands more Punzenberger says the airline anticipates hiring over the next few years - will each stay in Denver for up to three weeks at a time. This totals 69,000 travel nights per year, Washington said, keeping hotels in the Stapleton area busy and possibly leading to new investment in the area. The Houston training center will remain in use during the transition, but United expects some staffers and equipment to move to Denver by the end of this year. "With the amount of training we need to accomplish over the next few years, it is essential that we minimize disruption to our training schedule," Attarian wrote. As for job losses in Houston, Punzenberger said it's too early to know how many will be affected, but he said there will be a "net job impact" - positive for Denver and negative for Houston. "We will do a complete assessment of all jobs, top to bottom, and then interview for those positions," he said. "Consolidating is the best choice that will allow us to build the best team now." This is the second large deal between the city and the airline over the past year. In August, United extended its lease with DIA through 2035 in exchange for savings of nearly $35 million a year for the airline. The initiatives from that deal are not related to those offered on the training center, Day said. http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_28373689/denver-lands-united-airlines-pilot- training-facility Back to Top China to spend 500b yuan on boosting civil aviation Investment backs Silk Road goals, with better connections to Eurasian countries as part of Beijing's effort to open up air transport in the region China has become the world's second-largest aviation market, with demand for air travel fuelled by rising incomes. China will splash out 500 billion yuan (HK$632.6 billion, $80 billion USD) on civil aviation development this year and boost air traffic to Eurasian countries along the "Silk Road", ahead of drawing up a new five-year plan for its fast-growing aviation industry. Li Jiaxiang, the head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, said at the Civil Aviation Development Forum in Beijing on Wednesday the aviation regulator was drafting the 13th five-year plan to 2020 for the sector and would push ahead with 193 priority projects this year with a total investment of 500 billion yuan. Li said 51 of the projects were directly related to President Xi Jinping's "One Belt, One Road" initiative to enhance the country's connectivity with the Eurasia region. "To enhance the development of air transport in the region, opening the market is the key ... We will further expand traffic rights arrangements with Central Asia and South Asia, and expand agreements with countries in Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia and West Asia, as appropriate. We will also focus on opening international traffic rights in the hubs of Xian, Urumqi, Kunming, Xiamen and Yinchuan." The mainland's 52 airlines would add 83 international routes in the summer-autumn season this year, after adding 131 last year, both record-high numbers, Li said. He said 24 of the planned new routes this year were to countries along the One Belt, One Road. China is the world's second-largest aviation market and the fastest-growing one, with passenger traffic growing at 12 per cent last year - twice the world average. Despite the country's slowing growth, the increased disposable income of its 500 million middle-class population has fuelled air transport and outbound travel. Outbound traveller numbers last year topped the 100 million mark for the first time. Li said mainland airlines recorded an 18.8 per cent increase in international traffic last year. "In the first five months of 2015, we saw a 39.4 per cent boost in international traffic in and out of China," he said. The mainland has 202 airports, a number growing by 10 to 15 each year, according to Li. Li, who is expected to retire soon from the top post that he has held since December 2007, emphasised the importance of maintaining the country's safety record. "We must enhance international cooperation in ensuring the safety of air transport," he said. Last month, the aviation regulator unveiled a point-based audit system for foreign airlines, after Thailand was found to have inadequate safety oversight by the International Civil Aviation Organisation. Beijing plans to put 500 civil aviation experts on overseas exchange programmes, studies or training courses in the next five years, Li said. http://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1826266/china-spend-500b- yuan-boosting-civil-aviation Back to Top FAA Deploys NASA ATM Tool to Up Airspace Efficiency A new software tool developed by NASA and positioned to help Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) manage the nation's skies, is being deployed by the FAA. The Terminal Sequencing and Spacing (previously called TSS, now TSAS) software will help ATCs manage airspace within a doughnut-shaped region of sky that begins five miles from a major airport and extends outward to an estimated 35 miles. According to NASA, this new technology will allow pilots to better use flight deck automation to fly fuel-efficient, optimized profile descents, which streamlines glide paths toward the runway reducing fuel use and noise toward an airport. It also safely permits more flights to merge together at a point where they can be cleared for final approach and landing. NASA Future Flight Central is a national Air Traffic Control/Air Traffic Management (ATC/ATM) simulation facility. The two-story facility offers a 360-degree full-scale, real- time simulation of an airport, where controllers, pilots and airport personnel participate to optimize expansion plans, operating procedures, and evaluate new technologies. Photo: NASA "The current level of flight deck automation available to the pilot community is underutilized due to a lack of controller automation tools," said National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) representative Eric Owens. "TSAS is one more step in the direction of optimizing the NAS." Work on the software tool began in 2009, and the first prototype began system integration and testing in 2011. Since then, it has been put through more than two dozen high-fidelity tests involving controllers and pilots, and using the world-class simulation facilities at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. NASA transferred the TSAS technologies to the FAA in 2014 for further testing and evaluation and completed an operational integration assessment of the tool in May at Atlantic City International Airport in New Jersey. The agency intends to deploy the capability in the National Airspace System (NAS) beginning with nine major airports located in Phoenix, Houston, Atlanta, Seattle, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Charlotte, Denver and Los Angeles between 2018 and 2022. http://www.aviationtoday.com/av/topstories/FAA-Deploys-NASA-ATM-Tool-to-Up- Airspace-Efficiency_85372.html#.VYvmZPlVhBc Back to Top IG To Audit FAA Controller Hiring Procedures The U.S. DOT's Inspector General (IG) has begun auditing the FAA's air traffic controller hiring processes in light of last year's controversial changes to a system that had been in place for decades. The FAA plans to hire 3,200 new controllers over the next two years to fill the vacancies left by thousands of retiring air traffic controller hired after the 1981 Patco strike. Recently, both Congress and the media have expressed concerns about the transparency and effectiveness of the FAA's revised processes. The chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the subcommittee for aviation and Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) have specifically asked the IG to examine the agency's updated hiring program for any weaknesses in the integrity of the hiring processes. The IG said the audit will review the screening, training and placement of new controllers, as well as identify the FAA's justification for altering the hiring process last year. A 2010 IG review of FAA hiring determined the agency did not make full use of valuable data gathered from initial controller aptitude tests. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/aerospace/2015-06-23/ig-audit-faa-controller- hiring-procedures Back to Top Upcoming Events: Fundamentals of IS-BAO July 7, 2015 Alexandria, VA USA https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1659131 IS-BAO Auditing July 8, 2015 Alexandria, VA USA https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1659136 EAA AirVenture Schedule July 19-26, 2015 Oshkosh, WI http://www.eaa.org/en/airventure/eaa-airventure-schedule-of-events Fundamentals of IS-BAO July 21, 2015 Orlando, FL USA https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1659145 IS-BAO Auditing July 22, 2015 Orlando, FL USA https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1659149 Fundamentals of IS-BAO August 19, 2015 Madrid, Spain https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1659089 IS-BAO Auditing August 20, 2015 Madrid, Spain https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?eventid=1659096 Safety Management Systems Training & Workshop Course offered by ATC Vantage Inc. Tampa, FL August 6-7, 2015 www.atcvantage.com/training Aircraft Fire Hazards, Protection & Investigation Course 9-11 Sept. 2015 Hotel Ibis Nanterre La Defense (near Paris) France http://blazetech.com/resources/pro_services/FireCourse-France_2015.pdf Regulatory Affairs Training Course September 15 & 16 Fort Worth, TX http://jdasolutions.aero/services/regulatory-affairs.php Suspected Unapproved Parts (SUPS) Training Course September 15 & 16 Fort Worth, TX http://jdasolutions.aero/ Back to Top JOBS AVAILABLE: NTSB Human Performance Investigator https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/404707900 Curt Lewis