News
07 MAR - Airlines black list: European Commission adopts new measures 13 MAR - FAA issues emergency AD on B737-800 SFP spoiler actuator jams
13 MAR - ANA DHC-8 makes nose gear-up landing at Kochi
15 MAR - New Indonesian air transport chief says safety top priority
15 MAR - ATSB releases final report into Boeing 777 in-flight upset event
16 MAR - AAIB releases final report into Boeing 777 fuel leak serious incident
16 MAR - Indonesian aviation safety `very low`
19 MAR - FAA issues emergency AD on ERJ-170/190 cargo door opening in flight
25 MAR - No Indonesian airlines meet full safety standards, audit shows
26 MAR - Mexico suspends AOC of Líneas Aéreas Azteca
28 MAR - Space junk falls around LAN Chile airliner
30 MAR - Passenger bridge collapses over wing of B757 at Denver airport
07 MAR 2007 Airlines black list: European Commission adopts new measures [to table of contents]
The European Commission adopted the third update of the Community list of airlines banned in the European Union. The revised Community list is notable for (1) the withdrawal for the first time of two carriers who have introduced adequate safety measures (Phuket Air and DAS Air Cargo), (2) the action by five countries to stop the operations of carriers included in the Community list, (3) the adoption at Community level of new safety measures imposed on two companies – Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Air West from Sudan and (4) the adoption by two states – Russia and Bulgaria – of autonomous measures on a number of their carriers. (EU)
EU press release
The FAA issues an emergency AD for Boeing 737-800 SFP airplanes after reports of seven flight spoiler actuator jams on 737-800 Short Field Performance (SFP) airplanes. Two reports involved in-service airplanes that were discovered during a routine maintenance walk-around and were believed to have occurred on the previous landing during auto speedbrake extension. Five other reports occurred during spoiler system testing at Boeing prior to delivery. (FAA)
http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgAD.nsf/NewEmergencyAD?OpenView
13 MAR 2007 ANA DHC-8 makes nose gear-up landing at Kochi [to table of contents] An All Nippon DHC-8-400 carried out an emergency landing at Kochi Airport (KCZ), Japan. The nose gear of flight 1603 from Osaka-Itami Airport (ITM) would not extend. The airplane circled the airport for around two hours to consume fuel. The airplane landed at 10:54. None of the 56 passengers and four crew members were injured in the incident. (Kyodo News)
video of the emergency landing
15 MAR 2007 New Indonesian air transport chief says safety top priority [to table of contents] Indonesia`s newly appointed director general for air transportation, Budhi Muliawan Suyitno, has vowed there will be tough consequences for airlines disregarding safety procedures. He would rank the safety standards of all airlines in Indonesia and `suspend airlines at the bottom of the list`. In addition to ranking the safety standards of airlines, Budhi said he would improve national air transportation safety awareness and upgrade human resources in the regulatory body. (The Jakarta Post) 15 MAR 2007 ATSB releases final report into Boeing 777 in-flight upset event [to table of contents]
In August 2005, Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777-2H6ER 9M-MRG suffered an in-flight upset en route from Perth to Kuala Lumpur. A safe landing was made back in Perth. The Australian ATSB concluded that a contributing safety factor was that an anomaly existed in the component software hierarchy that allowed inputs from a known faulty accelerometer to be processed by the air data inertial reference unit (ADIRU) and used by the primary flight computer, autopilot and other aircraft systems. Other safety factors identified were: 1) The software anomaly was not detected in the original testing and certification of the ADIRU; and 2) The aircraft documentation did not provide the flight crew with specific information and action items to assess and respond to the aircraft upset event. (ATSB)
ATSB Occurrence 200503722
16 MAR 2007 AAIB releases final report into Boeing 777 fuel leak serious incident [to table of contents] The AAIB UK has released the investigation report regarding a fuel leak incident on June 10, 2004. After takeoff from London Heathrow Airport, a vapour trail was seen streaming aft of the Boeing 777. An emergency return to Heathrow was made. The fuel leak was caused by fuel escaping through an open purge door inside the left main landing gear bay, on the rear spar of the centre wing tank. The purge door had been removed during base maintenance and had not been refitted prior to return to service. (AAIB)
AAIB Report No: 2/2007
16 MAR 2007 Indonesian aviation safety `very low` [to table of contents] Indonesia does not have enough quality personnel or technology to match the needs of its booming aviation sector, a government fact-finding team said after the country`s third major plane accident this year. A spokesman said that they found weaknesses in the regulatory aspects, in the attitudes, quality and number of personnel and in the lack of up-to-date technology due to shortages of funds. (Sydney Morning Herald) 19 MAR 2007 FAA issues emergency AD on ERJ-170/190 cargo door opening in flight [to table of contents]
The FAA issues an emergency AD to prevent a cargo door from opening during flight; which could lead to structural failure or loss of control. The FAA had received a report that the aft cargo door of a Embraer ERJ 190 airplane opened in flight just after takeoff. The airplane returned to the departure airport and landed without incident. The assessment of the event indicated that the door was not fully closed when the airplane took off. Inspection of the airplane revealed that the door frame lateral roller fitting was cracked and the roller fitting cover plate was distorted. The roller fitting cover plate distortion caused a malfunction in the door position indication system. A similar situation was found on the forward cargo door on a Model ERJ 170 airplane. In that instance, the problem was discovered by ground personnel, and the door was secured prior to takeoff. (FAA)
AD 2007-06-53
25 MAR 2007 No Indonesian airlines meet full safety standards, audit shows [to table of contents] None of Indonesia`s commercial airlines, charter operators and air cargo companies are complying with all mandatory safety regulations (Cat.I), according to an emergency audit. The audit was conducted by the Ministry of Transport following recent accidents. Seven Part 121 airlines were rated Category III. They had met minimal safety requirements but had not complied with several requirements and would be given three months to improve safety or risk being shut down. These airlines are Metro Batavia, AdamAir, Kartika Airlines, Transwisata Air, Tri MG Intra Asia Airlines, Manunggal Air Service, and Jatayu Airlines. (Direktorat Jenderal Perhubungan Udara)
full audit list
26 MAR 2007 Mexico suspends AOC of Líneas Aéreas Azteca [to table of contents] The Mexican DGAC suspended the AOC of Líneas Aéreas Azteca for safety reasons. An inspection carried out by DGAC between March 5-23 brought several deficiencies to light. Amongst others the inspectors found deficiencies in safety procedures, the periodic qualification of pilots, ground crew and maintenance personnel. The airline has 90 days to comply with regulations. (Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes) 28 MAR 2007 Space junk falls around LAN Chile airliner [to table of contents]
The pilot of a LAN Chile Airbus A.340, notified air traffic controllers at Auckland Oceanic Centre after seeing flaming space junk falling across the sky just five nautical miles in front of and behind his plane. Flight LA801 from Santiago (SCL) to Auckland (AKL) had just entered the Auckland FIR. The airplane landed safely at Auckland at 04:04. Airways New Zealand had been warned by Russian authorities almost two weeks ago that a satellite would be entering the earth`s atmosphere, but the incident happened some 12 hours prior to the time given by the Russian authorities. (The West) 30 MAR 2007 Passenger bridge collapses over wing of B757 at Denver airport [to table of contents]
An empty passenger bridge collapsed over the wing of a United Airlines Boeing 757 at Denver International Airport, damaging the aircraft but causing no injuries. Flight UA 965 had just arrived from Boston and the 184 passengers and crew were still on board. The bridge that collapsed is a new type that extends over the wing. (AP)
