Mystery Remains Regarding Reno EMS Crash
The preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on the Nov. 14 crash of a helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) aircraft near Doyle, CA, sheds little light on the cause of the fatal HEMS accident---only the second for 2009. The medical helicopter went down north of Reno near... [read more]
Life Saver or Life Taker?
On October 29, Aviation Today conducted a webinar on Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) operations, which provide an important service to the public by transporting seriously ill patients and donor organs to emergency care facilities, often from remote areas not served by adequate facilities. These...
EMS Chopper Versus Ambulance?
New research from the University of Virginia Health System shows that urban sprawl causes delays in ambulances reaching their destinations in sprawling sections of large metropolitan areas in the United States. Matthew J. Trowbridge, MD, MPH, lead investigator and assistant professor of emergency medicine at...
FAA Probes Major Commo Network Outage
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has formed a expert panel to examine the reliability of a telecommunications network that broke down last month, snarling air traffic across the country. The Nov. 19 snafu, which resulted in delays of 819 flights and forced air traffic controllers to manually enter...
FAA Shoots Down Spitfire Aviation Services
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) plans a $4 million civil penalty for Spitfire Aviation Services of Fayetteville, AR for numerous violations of Federal Aviation Regulations. The alleged infractions include conducting at least 798 passenger-carrying revenue flights between November 2005 and October...
ALPA Support SMS Programs
Safety Management Systems (SMS) provide a vital tool to enhance safety in aviation and other transportation industries in Canada, according to the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). "SMS programs dramatically improve safety by adding an extra layer of internal audit to existing inspection...
Securing Aviation Safety
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) recently reiterated its call for a global approach for aviation safety. The call was made by Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director general and CEO in the sixth annual Dr. Assad Kotaite Lecture hosted by the Royal Aeronautical Society in Montreal. Cooperation...
Pilot Fatigue Overhaul Stalls
The aviation subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee was advised recently that much-awaited commercial airline pilot work rules won't be proposed before the end of 2009, as promised by FAA Administrator Randy Babbit. A proposed rulemaking that would redefine ancient flight/duty-time rules is now to be...
Sleep Deprivation Affects Decision Making
Sleep deprivation adversely affects automatic, accurate responses and can lead to potentially devastating errors, a finding of particular concern among firefighters, police officers, soldiers, pilots and others who work in a sleep-deprived state, say University of Texas at Austin researchers. Psychology...
USAF Releases July 2009 F-15E Crash Report
Air Combat Command (ACC) officials have released the results of the July 18 USAF/Boeing F-15E Strike Eagle crash in Afghanistan, saying a flight lead weapons system officer's incorrect assessment of a training target's elevation led to the crash, The the crew was killed upon impact, and the $55 million...
GPS Improve Military Chopper Safety
Global Positioning System (GPS) technology is being applied to older rotary-wing aircraft to help save lives, says a senior helicopter pilot based at Andrews AFB, MD. USAF Colonel. Peter Mapes and other pilots at Andrews AFB will install and test advanced GPS units, designed originally for fixed-wing...
Joint Program Aims to Reduce Firefighter Injuries
Firefighting may be near the top of the Pentagon's list of high-risk occupations, but there's a move afoot to make it safer. Pentagon firefighting injury reports---more than 1,000 new incidents each year---have cost the Department of Defense (DoD) nearly $30 million a year. When the Defense Safety Oversight...
Safety & Technology Trends
ARINC to Enhance ACARS ARINC has signed anagreement with long-time customer AVICOM JAPAN Company to enhance Japan's ACARS (Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System) data link infrastructure with more efficient ACARS multiple-service technology. The technology refreshment will be a significant...
Security Shortlines
Aegean Airlines Fits CDMS on Aircraft Aegean Airlines, Greece's largest airline, has chosen the AD Aerospace CabinVu in-flight security systems for fitting on a Boeing 737-400 aircraft. The Cockpit Door Monitoring System (CDMS) improves the safety and security of the Flightdeck and the whole aircraft by...
Safety Rules & Regs
Airworthiness Directives; Airbus Model A318-111 and -112, and Model A319, A320, and A321. Final rule; request for comments. SUMMARY: The FAA is revising an existing airworthiness directive (AD), which applies to all Airbus Model A318-111 and -112 series airplanes, and all Model A319, A320, and A321 series...
Accidents & Incidents
Date Aircraft Type Narrative Death/Injury Remarks Nov 06, 2009 Baxley, GA HUGHES 369 N89ZC A/c registered to Extreme Helicopters crashed in a field while conducting autorotation following loss of engine power, No injuries Pilot said chopper lost power less then a minute after takeoff. A/c rolled over onto...
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