AIR SAFETY WEEK :: JUNE 16, 2008

Crisis in Confidence
Acting FAA Administrator Robert Sturgell, told an ATCA Technical Symposium in Atlantic City, NJ on June 11 that there is a "crisis in confidence" as regards air safety. "Without question, we're at a critical juncture in the history of aviation. (But) I think it's fair to say that we're in a...

Sudanese Jetliner Bursts into Flames at Khartoum Airport
The Associated Press reported that a Sudanese Airbus A310-324 (ST-ATN) carrying 214 people veered off a runway at Khartoum-Civil Airport (KRT), Khartoum, Sudan in a thunderstorm and burst into flames on June 10, killing dozens unable to escape the inferno. An Associated Press reporter at the scene said the...

Deep Losses Projected for World's Airlines
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) revised its industry financial forecast for 2008 significantly downward, predicting a collective net loss of US$2.3 billion. The culprit? Skyrocketing fuel bills. The latest forecast is based on a price of US$106.5 per barrel of crude oil. In March, IATA had...

Airliner Cabins Healthier than Travelers Think
Passengers who fear catching an infectious disease in a plane can breathe easily as an Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) survey shows that the quality and quantity of air filtered through a modern aircraft cabin is actually far better than in other crowded places. "Despite the popular view that...

Cutting Aircraft Development Costs while Improving Safety
A distressing fact for aeronautical engineers: scale model airplanes don't fly anything like their full-sized counterparts. And that makes aircraft design a lot more difficult. "Right now, for developing a new airplane, there's only so much you can do with wind tunnel testing and computations,"...

An Inside Look at Behavior Detection Officers
More than two months after being observed by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Behavior Detection Officers (BDOs) at Orlando International for acting suspiciously, a passenger who allegedly attempted to smuggle bomb-making components on to an aircraft sits in jail awaiting trial in July. Here's a...

B-2 Crash Linked to Maintenance Oversight
Moist air caused the U.S. Air Force to lose one of only 16 Northrop Grumman B-2 bombers earlier this year, the first crash of the $1.4 billion stealth aircraft. During a takeoff from an Andersen AFB runway on 23 February, moisture contamination on the fly-by-wire B-2 Spirit's air data sensors threw off the...

Animal Ambush: The Challenge of Managing Wildlife Hazards at GA Airports
The following are excerpts from a technical paper on wildlife problems at airports that was presented at the 53rd Corporate Aviation Safety Seminar. It was authored by Dr. Richard A. Dolbeer, National Coordinator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Airport Wildlife Hazards Program, Michael J. Begier...

Safety & Technology Trends
FAA's Technical Center Designated Historic Site The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) has designated the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) William J. Hughes Technical Center as a Historic Aerospace Site. The AIAA cited the Center's pivotal role in creating the nation's modern...

Security Shortlines
DHS Eases Entry for International Travelers The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has launched two new initiatives, the Global Entry pilot program and the Passenger Service Program, to speed up passenger processing at U.S. ports of entry. Global Entry is a customer service and security program...

Safety Rules and Regs
Airworthiness Directives; Various Transport Category Airplanes Equipped With Auxiliary Fuel Tanks Installed in Accordance With Certain Supplemental Type Certificates Final Rule. SUMMARY: We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for various transport category airplanes. This AD requires deactivation...

Accidents & Incidents
Date Aircraft Type Narrative Death/Injury Remarks May 02, 2008 Rumbek, Sudan Beech 1900C 5Y-FLE The chartered flight operated by Flex Air of Nairobi, Kenya, experienced loss of power in both engines and crashed. 20 fatalities The departure point was Wau, Southern Sudan. The final destination was Juba...