News
01 MAR - Cruise line reportedly knew of problems before Mexican air crash 01 MAR - FAA questions Britain on L.A. - London flight with one engine out
01 MAR - PIA Boeing 777 undercarriage catches fire after landing
04 MAR - Transport Canada to bolster aviation safety management
04 MAR - Charter firm to face safety checks after Challenger crash at Teterboro
06 MAR - Air Transat Airbus 310 loses rudder in flight
09 MAR - NTSB issues safety recommendations regarding FMS software
14 MAR - Bird strikes a legal issue for Australian airports
15 MAR - Four ENAV employees sentenced over Milan crash
15 MAR - Airbus to recommend rudder inspections
26 MAR - RAAF plane dodges missile over Baghdad
28 MAR - Eva Air flight runs into turbulence: 50 injured
29 MAR - Mishaps spur safety inspections of Japanese airlines
29 MAR - Airplane loses luggage compartment door in flight over Kenya
30 MAR - US aviation industry resist NTSB proposal on safety
30 MAR - Jamaica remains IASA Category 1 following FAA audit
30 MAR - Engine fire on takeoff causes grass fire at Kano
30 MAR - Metro III collides with deer on landing in Florida
01 MAR 2005 Cruise line reportedly knew of problems before Mexican air crash [to table of contents]
Family members of cruise ship passengers who died in a 2001 Mexico plane crash have settled with Holland America Line for an undisclosed amount. Reportedly, Holland America Line knew that Aero Ferinco, which it used for charter flights had a long and troublesome history of mechanical problems, cancellations and safety violations years before the plane crash. (Seattle Times)
The U.S. FAA is questioning British officials about a British Airways Boeing 747 that continued to the U.K. from Los Angeles on three engines. After an engine failed shortly after takeoff, the flight crew decided to continue to London but had to make an priority landing in Manchester. U.S. aviation safety officials said the decision return to LAX raises concern about the potential impact of a new European Union law that requires European carriers to reimburse passengers for substantial delays. (Washington Post) 01 MAR 2005 PIA Boeing 777 undercarriage catches fire after landing [to table of contents]
A fire in the undercarriage of a PIA Boeing 777 forced the evacuation of all 333 passengers at Manchester Airport. PIA flight 789 had just landed after a flight from Karachi and was taxiing to the terminal when the incident occurred. The small fire was quickly put out. An AAIB report blamed four similar fires involving PIA jets last year on the wrong grease being used by the airline. (Manchester Online, BBC) 04 MAR 2005 Transport Canada to bolster aviation safety management [to table of contents]
Transport Canada announced proposals to further improve the safety performance of Canadian air operators and increase accountability. The proposed changes would require air operators to implement safety management systems in their organizations, which could lead to the early identification and resolution of potential problems and safety risks. (Transport Canada)
news release
04 MAR 2005 Charter firm to face safety checks after Challenger crash at Teterboro [to table of contents] The FAA has grounded the operator of the Challenger jet that overran the runway at Teterboro Airport last month, and a judge yesterday ordered the company to hand over training records and other documents to federal investigators. Platinum Jet Management LLC may not have been properly certified to operate the Challenger charter plane, according to an FAA cease-and-desist order issued this week. A Platinum representative said the company was working with Darby Aviation, known as AlphaJet, which does hold a Part 135 certificate. Darby subcontracts to Platinum, which provides maintenance and on-board crews for the jet. (The Star-Ledger) 06 MAR 2005 Air Transat Airbus 310 loses rudder in flight [to table of contents]
Air Transat flight 961 from Varadero, Cuba to Québec City, returned to Varadero after the aircraft's rudder separated half an our into the flight. The aircraft, Airbus A310-308 C-GPAT, landed safely without injury to the 261 passengers and nine crew. (CBC, AFP) 09 MAR 2005 NTSB issues safety recommendations regarding FMS software [to table of contents]
In the light of the March 2003 incident in which a Boeing 747 suffered a tailstrike while the crew tried to rotate the plane at too low a speed, the NTSB issued five safety recommendations. The NTSB advises Honeywell to change the FMS software, a.o. to annunciate warnings to the flight crew when a takeoff reference speed is changed by a value that would impede the airplane's ability to safely take off. (NTSB)
Safety Recommendations A-05-03 through -07
14 MAR 2005 Bird strikes a legal issue for Australian airports [to table of contents] Aerodrome operators are being warned they need to look closely at the steps they are taking to minimise the risk of aircraft bird strikes in Australia. Each year more than 1300 aircraft bird strikes are officially reported, with around 150 planes damaged by collisions with birds. The cost and frequency of bird strikes has prompted a warning that it is possible legal action could be taken against people or organisations that have failed to take reasonable steps to prevent bird strikes. (CASA)
Media Release
15 MAR 2005 Four ENAV employees sentenced over Milan crash [to table of contents] Four employees of Italy's air traffic control authority ENAV have been convicted over the 8 October 2001 collision at Milan crash that killed 118 people. Found guilty of manslaughter, they were each jailed for between three and four years. (BBC) 15 MAR 2005 Airbus to recommend rudder inspections [to table of contents]
Airbus will tell airlines to inspect the rudders of 400 Airbus A.310 and A.300-600 aircraft worldwide after the March 6 incident in which the rudder fell off an Air Transat A.310. Airbus will tell airlines to conduct visual and ultrasonic inspections, usually done every five years, within a few weeks. (Bloomberg) 26 MAR 2005 RAAF plane dodges missile over Baghdad [to table of contents]
An RAAF Lockheed C-130J Hercules transport aircraft leaving Baghdad earlier this month evaded what could have been a surface-to-air missile, the Australian Defence Force said. The incident occurred on March 9 when the plane flying out of Baghdad observed the launch of what was possibly an anti-aircraft missile. In response, the crew deployed countermeasures and took evasive action before completing their mission without further incident. (AAP) 28 MAR 2005 Eva Air flight runs into turbulence: 50 injured [to table of contents]
An Eva Air Airbus 330-200 carrying 267 passengers and crew members entered an area of violent turbulence at an altitude of around 10,700 meters about 20 km west of Niijima Island, Japan. About 50 passengers were injured. Flight 2196 then expedited the approach and landing at Tokyo-Narita. (Japan Times) 29 MAR 2005 Mishaps spur safety inspections of Japanese airlines [to table of contents]
The Japanese Land, Infrastructure and Transport Ministry began inspecting airlines nationwide to check whether they had implemented safety checks in response to a series of problems involving Japan Airlines. (The Japan Times) 29 MAR 2005 Airplane loses luggage compartment door in flight over Kenya [to table of contents]
An Aero Kenya aircraft, presumably a Let 410, lost the forward luggage compartment some six minutes after departing Eldoret on a flight to Nairobi. The door struck the nr. 1 engine. The flight returned for a safe emergency landing without injury to the two pilots and six passengers. (The Nation, The Standard) 30 MAR 2005 US aviation industry resist NTSB proposal on safety [to table of contents]
In response to the NTSB`s proposed rulemaking that would amend 49 CFR Part 830 to include certain aviation events that are not currently covered by the regulations, U.S. airlines and other aviation companies are resisting some or all of the changes. Comments included a.o. that the collection and reporting of this data beyond existing FAA reporting requirements would be resource-intensive, duplicative and non-productive. (Reuters, NTSB)
NTSB - public comments on NPRM
30 MAR 2005 Jamaica remains IASA Category 1 following FAA audit [to table of contents] Consequent upon a review of Jamaica’s aviation sector on March 16, 2005, by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) the country remains in Category One. The Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority was audited under the FAA’s International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme. About December, 2004 the CAA amended legislation which gave it more authority and independence and established a pecuniary system of punishment in which fines can be levied by the CAA without having to involve the courts. In fact, under these new regulations, aircraft operators must all be re-certified and a process has been established for this. (Jamaica Ministry of Transport and Works) 30 MAR 2005 Engine fire on takeoff causes grass fire at Kano [to table of contents]
An engine fire on a departeding Boeing 737 caused grass on the Kano Airport, Nigeria to catch fire. The resulting bush fire caused serious damage to the transformers and electrical cables serving runway 24. The Bellview Airlines B737 5N-BFN landed safely back at Kano without injury to the 96 passengers and five crew members. (Vanguard) 30 MAR 2005 Metro III collides with deer on landing in Florida [to table of contents]
An IBC Airways Swearingen SA-227AC Metro III (N811BC) collided with a deer on landing at Dade Collier Airport, FL. The nr.1 propeller separated and struck the airplane`s fuselage, causing substantial damage. Both pilots, the only occupants, were not injured. (FAA)
