Colgan Air Crash Raises Many Safety Issues
Three days of testimony before the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) last week about pilot fatigue, failed flying tests and cockpit warning systems placed a harsh spotlight on regional airline operations, pointing to numerous safety issues. On February 12, 2009, a Colgan Air Bombardier Dash 8-Q400... [read more]
New York Slot Auction Killed
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has cancelled plans to auction off scarce takeoff and landing slots at New York area airports following a strong backlash from airlines, industry groups, the General Accountability Office and a federal court which late last year blocked implementation of the Bush...
Bird Strike Risk on the Rise
The wildlife threat to commercial passenger aircraft has increased so experts on bird strikes are calling for additional measures to raise the safety bar. They believe that the solutions include bird population reduction at airports, new technology and possibly tougher bird ingestion standards for jetliner...
Birds be Gone from Airplane Hangars
The threat that birds can pose to life was vividly demonstrated recently by the safe emergency landing of a U.S. Airways passenger jet in New York City's Hudson River. In Borden, Canada, not far from Toronto, the Canadian Forces School of Aerospace and Engineering experienced another sort of bird problem...
Pilot Error Causes EMS Chopper Midair in Arizona
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has determined that the probable cause of a midair collision between two emergency medical service (EMS) helicopters last year was failure of both pilots to see and avoid the other helicopter on approach to a helipad. Contributing to the accident were the...
Pilots Error Blamed in Hawaii Crashes
Pilot error caused a Cessna to crash June 17, 2008 near Pahala, HI killing all three on board, the National Transportation Safety Board has concluded. The Safety Board also found that a pilot of a Hawker Beechcraft 1900C (N410UB), killed January 14, 2008, when the plane crashed seven miles from Hawaii's...
Mechanical Issue a Factor in 2007 Kemper Midair
A student pilot who collided with a veteran Piper PA-30 pilot over the Everglades on December 8, 2007, killing both, was operating a Kemper Aviation Cessna 152 that misreported its altitude to air traffic controllers, according to federal investigators. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) ruled...
Military Tests Commercial Fuel to Replace JP-8
In an ongoing analysis of alternatives to reduce aviation fuel costs, the Air Force Petroleum Agency (AFPA) has launched an initiative to use commercial jet fuel in place of military standard JP-8 fuel. The USAF annually uses about 2.5 billion gallons of fuel, resulting in the service's second highest annual...
USAF Releases Finding on Two C-17 Accidents
Air Mobility Command says a C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane landed Jan. 30 with a retracted gear at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan due to pilot error. The crew had failed to lower the landing gear and confirm proper aircraft landing configuration in accordance with the before landing checklist. The accident...
Safety & Technology Trends
Apptis Wins Air Traffic Terminal Services Work Apptis, a leading provider of IT and communications services to the federal government, has been awarded a $34 million contract from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Air Traffic Organization - Terminal (ATO-T) for program planning, execution and...
Security Shortlines
Threat Spotting Cameras Surveillance cameras at some grocery stores are not just passively recording customers and staff. They're studying checkout lines for signs of "sweethearting." That's when cashiers use subtle tricks to pass free goods to friends: obscuring the bar code, slipping an item...
Safety Rules & Regs
Advisory Circular Subject: Operator Requirements for Incorporation of Fuel Tank Flammability Reduction Requirements. Date: 5/7/09. AC No: 120-98. On July 21, 2008 the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published the 2008 Fuel Tank Flammability Reduction (FTFR) rule, Reduction of Fuel Tank Flammability in...
Accidents & Incidents
Date Aircraft Type Narrative Death/Injury Remarks April 04, 2009 Angleton, TX ARGENCE RV-8 N89EA A/c destroyed during impact with trees following a roll during initial climbout from Flyin' Tiger Field (81D). One serious Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. April 05, 2009...
|
