News
01 DEC - Skymark Boeing 767 suffers uncontained engine failure 01 DEC - President: JAL on its way to solve safety problems
02 DEC - Hainan Airlines fires three pilots for safety reasons
04 DEC - Historian petitions NTSB to review 1967 Hendersonville collision probe
04 DEC - Nigerian CAA grounds Albarka Air, Fresh Air
06 DEC - ANSV issues new safety recommendation to EASA in Tuninter ATR-72 investigation
08 DEC - TSB: Environment and crew decision making factors in Shorts 360 accident at Osha
14 DEC - Sosoliso Airlines grounded after crash
15 DEC - ANA and JAL to replace PW4000 engine parts
15 DEC - NTSB issues investigation update on Southwest runway overrun
16 DEC - Investigators to reconstruct fatal Helios flight
16 DEC - ATSB releases factual report on Lockhart River Metro crash
16 DEC - AAIB issues Special Bulletin on Challenger pitch trim system contamination
20 DEC - Nigeria grounds Bellview Airlines
26 DEC - Alaska Airlines MD-80 returns with hole in fuselage
31 DEC - FAA issues emergency AD on Grumman G-73 wing inspections
31 DEC - El Al to install anti-missile systems on six passenger jets
01 DEC 2005 Skymark Boeing 767 suffers uncontained engine failure [to table of contents]
A Skymark Airlines Boeing 767-300 suffered an uncontained nr. 2 engine failure after takeoff from Kagoshima (KOJ), while climbing through an altitude of about 1,650 meters. Flight 306 was bound for Tokyo-Haneda Airport (HND) with 90 passengers and crew on board. The airplane returned to Kagoshima where it landed safely. After landing a 1.5-meter-long, 20- to 60-centimeter hole was discovered in the engine. (Mainichi, Asahi.com)
Japan Airlines' president Toshiyuki Shinmachi, reported that JAl is on the way to resolving one of the root causes of a series of safety lapses this year that seriously damaged passenger confidence. Mr Shinmachi said that since April, the managers had met ground staff many times to discuss safety improvements and to get feedback from maintenance workers and crew. One of the most common complaints was that the ground crew was not given enough time to carry out its checks. (Financial Times) 02 DEC 2005 Hainan Airlines fires three pilots for safety reasons [to table of contents]
The Chinese airline Hainan Airlines has fired three pilots, two captains and a first officer, who are said to have caused safety problems for the company. The airline said the pilots were responsible for two accidents that occurred on November 7 and November 13, respectively, as a result of improper operations which should have been easily avoided. (China CSR) 04 DEC 2005 Historian petitions NTSB to review 1967 Hendersonville collision probe [to table of contents]
An amateur historian has uncovered evidence that could lead the NTSB to review its probe into a mid-air collision between a Piedmont Boeing 727 and a Cessna 310 in 1967. The historian has petitioned the NTSB to amend its long-ago ruling because, among other reasons, he has found radio transcripts that indicate the Cessna pilot steered toward the 727 by confusing communications with the airport control tower. (AP)
ASN Accident description
04 DEC 2005 Nigerian CAA grounds Albarka Air, Fresh Air [to table of contents] The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), has grounded operations of Albarka Air for non adherence to routine maintenance and suspended the Air Operator Certificate (AOC), of Fresh Air, over alleged violation of Air Navigation Regulations (ANRs). This development follows some radical reforms in the aviation sector prominent among which is the approval of a round the clock terminal radar service for all airports in the country. Also, an air safety audit team from the ICAO, arrived Nigeria to carry out airworthiness and safety audit in the country. (This Day) 06 DEC 2005 ANSV issues new safety recommendation to EASA in Tuninter ATR-72 investigation [to table of contents]
The Italian ANSV accident investigation bureau issued a new safey recommendation to the EASA in the light of the August 2005 ditching of a Tuninter ATR-72. The ANSV recommends that the EASA consider the possibility to change the fuel system certification regulation for public transport aircraft in order to require that the fuel low level warnings be independent from the fuel gauging systems. (ANSV)
safety recommandation
08 DEC 2005 TSB: Environment and crew decision making factors in Shorts 360 accident at Osha [to table of contents] The TSB of Canada released its investigation report on the crash of an Air Cargo Carriers Shorts 360 at Oshawa on December 16, 2004. The report states that the crew planned and attempted a landing on a contaminated runway that did not provide the required landing distance. TSB investigators also found that, when the captain attempted a go-around, the aircraft became airborne at a slower-than-normal speed. In addition, investigators discovered that the flight crew had not been advised of a directive issued by the aircraft manufacturer that would have allowed them to use a different approach setting for landing. (TSB)
TSB Report Number A04O0336
14 DEC 2005 Sosoliso Airlines grounded after crash [to table of contents] Sosoliso Airlines has been grounded with immediate effect, by the Nigerian President. The action follows in the wake of the Sosoliso accident in Port Harcourt. He also said that all planes operating in Nigeria would be inspected in the next week and grounded if they were found to be defective in any way. (Reuters) 15 DEC 2005 ANA and JAL to replace PW4000 engine parts [to table of contents]
All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Japan Air Lines (JAL) will replace parts in PW4000 engines in their Boeing 777s for a total of about 9.5 billion yen following incidents of engine trouble earlier this year. ANA will replace blades in the high-pressure turbines in 42 engines for some 5.2 billion yen and JAL in 39 engines for about 4.3 billion yen. (Kyodo News) 15 DEC 2005 NTSB issues investigation update on Southwest runway overrun [to table of contents]
In an investigation update, the NTSB reports that the Southwest Boeing 737-700 touched down firmly with about 4,500 feet of remaining runway. The autobrakes were set on max. Preliminary calculations also show that, for the runway conditions and use of brakes and thrust reverser that occurred (reversers were deployed about 18 seconds after touchdown), the stopping distance without hitting obstructions would have been about 5,300 feet. (NTSB)
NTSB update
16 DEC 2005 Investigators to reconstruct fatal Helios flight [to table of contents] Greek air accident investigators will reconstruct the sequence of events that led to the crash of the Helios Boeing 737 outside Athens last August by staging some of the pressurisation problems it experienced on an identical plane. The reconstruction will be done on December 19. The 737 will take off from Cyprus at exactly the same time as the Helios flight, fly exactly the same route to Athens, simulate all the technical failures, and have an F-16 fighter plane follow as happened on the day of the accident. (Guardian) 16 DEC 2005 ATSB releases factual report on Lockhart River Metro crash [to table of contents]
The Australian ATSB released a factual report into the circumstances surrounding the fatal Metro accident near Lockhart River on 7 May 2005. The airplane flew into the side of a hill during an RNAV approach to runway 12. (ATSB)
ATSB Occrrence 200501977
16 DEC 2005 AAIB issues Special Bulletin on Challenger pitch trim system contamination [to table of contents] The U.K. AAIB reports that on November 11 a Challenger 604 crew experienced cautions and malfunctions concerning the stabiliser trim system. Nose-up trim commands resulted in almost full nose-down trim and the crew diverted to London Heathrow for a successful flapless landing. Later examination showed contamination within the Horizontal Stabiliser Trim Control Unit (HSTCU) where the two channels of trim command are physically close, with no mechanical back-up. There appear to have been previous occurrences with a different HSTCU on this aircraft. An AAIB Safety Recommendation is made to Transport Canada relating to the effect of the contamination on the pitch trim system. (AAIB)
AAIB Special Bulletin S3/2005
20 DEC 2005 Nigeria grounds Bellview Airlines [to table of contents] Nigeria ordered privately owned Bellview Airlines, which lost a plane in a crash in October that killed 117 people, to halt all domestic and international flights. The decision was reportedly based on the interim report of the audit panel checking all aircraft owned by airlines operating in Nigeria for airworthiness. (Reuters, Vanguard) 26 DEC 2005 Alaska Airlines MD-80 returns with hole in fuselage [to table of contents]
A cabin decompression at FL260 forced an Alaska Airlines MD-80 (N979AS) to return to Seattle. The decompression was apprently caused by a 12-by-6-inch hole near a cargo door on the plane's left side. The hole was probably caused by a ramp vehicle at Seattle. The airplane operated Flight 536 to Burbank. (FAA, KATU) 31 DEC 2005 FAA issues emergency AD on Grumman G-73 wing inspections [to table of contents]
In the wake of the December 19 Grumman G-73T crash at Miami, the FAA issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (AD). The AD calls for a detailed visual inspection of wing spar elements to detect repairs, cracking or corrosion. (FAA)
AD 2006-01-51
31 DEC 2005 El Al to install anti-missile systems on six passenger jets [to table of contents] El Al Israel Airlines will install anti-missile systems on six passenger jets that fly to terror-sensitive areas. Installation of the $1 million Flight Guard systems will begin in the coming days. (Haaretz)
