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An ultralight plane crash-landed in woods off Porter Road, Fryeburg, Maine on the afternoon of August 23rd.
The single-seater Aerolite 103, flying from Leavitt Airport, New Hampshire, crashed while attempting an emergency landing at Eastern Slopes Regional Airport, Fryeburg, due to engine failure.
The pilot, a 56-year-old Pennsylvania man, remained unharmed.
A single-engine Cessna 172 and a twin-engine Sabreliner collided midair near Brown Field Municipal Airport in San Diego, California, at around 11 A.M. on August 16.
The accident happened near Otay Mesa Road and Harvest Street when both aircrafts were approaching Brown Field Municipal Airport.
Five people were killed in the crash. Their identities are not known at the moment.
The FAA and the NTSB are investigating.
A Hawker Beechcraft BE35 plane crashed onto Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) tracks at the crossing between Hicksville and Bethpage stations on Long Island, New York, on August 16.
The plane was heading from Francis S. Gabreski Ariport, Westhampton Beach to Morristown when the pilot reported difficulty in maintaining altitude. Authorities said he was attempting to make an emergency landing at Republic Airport, Farmingdale but could not make it to there.
The pilot was killed in the crash while his only passenger, identified as Carl Giordano, 55, of New Vernon, New Jersey, sustained injuries. He was taken to Nassau County University Medical Center.
The FAA and the NTSB are investigating.
A Piper PA-46 aircraft crashed shortly after taking off from Adirondack Regional Airport in Saranac Lake, New York, on August 7th.
Authorities said the single-engine plane had arrived from Rochester worldwide Airport and was flying back there when it went down.
Four people were killed in the crash. They were identified as Raymond Shortino, 67, his wife Sharon Shortino, 66, and their friends Harvey Stoler, 68, and Sharon Stoler, 68.
The FAA and the NTSB are investigating.
A small Rockwell Commander plane had to make an emergency landing in a field in Penn Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania,
on the afternoon of August 1st.
The two seater plane on a “sightseeing adventure” from Reading, Pennsylvania, had to be landed in emergency due to engine trouble.
The plane was destroyed. The 55 year-old woman and 47 year-old man aboard remained safe.
The FAA is investigating the incident.
A helicopter crash-landed in Atkinson, Henry County, Illinois, at around 5 P.M. on August 5.
According to sources, the aircraft hit a power line, caught fire, and landed in a soy bean field.
The pilot, who was the only person aboard, was pulled out of the burning helicopter by farm owner. He was airlifted to Peoria, Illinois, in serious condition.
The NTSB and Illinois State Police were investigating the crash.
A small plane crash-landed near the runway of Georgetown-Scott County Airport, Georgetown, Kentucky, on the night of August 1.
The the twin-engine Beechcraft King Air plane was attempting an emergency landing when it crash-landed. All 4 people aboard sustained injuries and were taken to hospitals.
The injured were identified as the pilot Mark Conrad and his pasengers Ron Absher, Aaron Conrad and Jonathan Absher.
The FAA is investigating.
A single-engine plane crashed at Lawrence J. Timmerman Airport, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on the evening of July 29.
Milwaukee County sheriff’s office spokesperson Fran McLaughlin said the plane caught fire after hitting the ground.
The plane was heading to Marquette University in Milwaukee, at the time.
The occupants of the plane, identified as Joseph Trustey, 53, and his daughter Anna Trustey, 18, lost their lives in the crash.
The NTSB and the FAA are investigating.
A single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza crashed in Colbert, Oklahoma, on the afternoon of July 26.
The plane, carrying 2 people, was heading from Springfield, Missouri, to Fort Worth Spinks Airport, Texas, when it apparently lost power and crashed.
Charles S Fehr, 64, died in the crash while his 64 year-old wife Vicki Fehr sustained injuries.
The NTSB and the FAA are investigating the accident.
A single-engine Beechcraft BE35 crashed into the yard of a house in Riverside, California, on the afternoon of July 26.
The accident happened when the pilot was trying to an make emergency landing at Riverside Municipal Airport, California, due to engine malfunction.
The plane caught fire after hitting the yard. The pilot, who was the only person aboard, was pronounced dead at the scene.
The FAA and NTSB were investigating the accident.
US Transportation Department has started an investigation into possible overcharging by airlines following May 2015 Amtrak train crash in Philadelphia.
The New York-Washington Amtrak rail service was suspended after a derailment that took 11 lives and injured 200 people.
The department has sent letters to JetBlue Airways, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, American Airlines and United Continental Holdings, asking for their average fares before, during and after the accident. According to transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, “These airlines have allegedly raised fees beyond what you would ordinarily be expected in the Northeast Corridor at a time when the Amtrak line was shut down.”
Following a 5-day audit of Thailand’s aviation safety standards, the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has pointed out several flaws that need to be addressed in order to continue flight service to the US.
The audit was conducted after Thailand’s DCA failed to address the concerns identified by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) within the given 90-day period.
According to Thailand’s Transport Minister Prajin Juntong, the FAA has given them 65 days to fix the shortcomings and if they fail to do so, Thai carriers could face a ban on flying to the US.
The flaws identified by the FAA include shortage of qualified air safety inspectors and redundant inspection methods etc.
Wings of Alaska flight 202 crashed on a hillside, north of Point Howard, in Southeast Alaska, on July 17.
The Cessna 207 was flying from Juneau to Hoonah when it went down.
The pilot, identified as Fariah Patterson, 45, lost his life in the crash, while all 4 passengers survived with injuries. Alaska State Troopers identified the passengers as Humberto Herrera, 57, his wife Sandra, 60, Jose Vasquez, 15, and Ernestine Hanlon-Able, 64.
The NTSB is investigating the cause of the accident.
A sky-diving plane had to make an emergency landing at route 72 in Stafford Township, New Jersey, on the morning of July 12.
The single-engine plane had to be landed in emergency after it apparently lost engine power. The plane was carrying 5 people, including 3 students and an instructor from the Skydive East Coast sky-diving school, at the time.
The plane landed uneventfully. Authorities said the instructor received a minor cut on his arm while everyone else remained unhurt.
The FAA is investigating.
In the wake of recent aviation tragedies, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued new recommendations, on January 22, aimed at enhancing the flight tracking technologies.
In a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the NTSB said, “Recent events have highlighted that recovering flight data can be costly and difficult when an accident occurs in a remote area, outside radar coverage.” To prevent such difficulties, the NTSB has recommended installation of tamper-resistant location transmission devices in all aircrafts.
Furthermore, the NTSB called for regulations mandating that the flight data and cockpit voice recorders of all commercial airliners be equipped with low-frequency underwater beacons capable of being easily located.
Cockpit video recorders and longer lasting batteries on the beacons are also among other recommendations submitted for consideration by the FAA.
On November 18, the U.S. Aviation Safety Board ruled that the Federal Aviation Administration has the authority to regulate drone flights.
According to the ruling, the FAA has the power to hold the operators of unmanned aircrafts accountable, when they are using them recklessly. The decision came after the FAA appealed a ruling of an NTSB judge that overturned a $10,000 FAA fine against Raphael Pirker.
In 2011, Pirker remotely operated his 56-inch foam glider to make an aerial video for the University of Virginia. According to the FAA, he operated the aircraft in a reckless manner and at one point, a person had to duck out to avoid it.
Pirker appealed the fine, saying that his glider was only a model aircraft and therefore, should not be held under the FAA regulations about manned aircrafts. In March, an NTSB judge ruled that FAA has no authority to regulate the unmanned aircrafts.
Following the new decision, the Raphael Pirker case will be again sent to an administrative law judge who will determine if the aircraft was operated recklessly.
Malaysia’s Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai has visited the U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in Washington DC on October 24.
In a statement released after the meeting, Liow thanked the US Government for supporting Malaysia in the aftermath of MH370 and MH17 tragedies. He announced that the US has promised to support a resolution to be put forward by Malaysia to the ICAO Council in the wake of MH17 disaster.
“Specifically the ICAO Resolution strongly reaffirms the need for all states to comply with international law that prohibits acts of violence that pose a threat to the safety of international civil aviation and stresses the importance of all states assisting with the continuation and finalisation of a full, thorough and independent international investigation into the incident…In light of these tragedies, it is clear that the international community must collaborate closely and take greater steps towards improving safety and security in civil aviation,” he said.
Liow will be attending the 203rd Session of the ICAO Council early next week in Montreal, Canada. Regarding the inputs to the ICAO Council, he said, “Malaysia intends to present its views and input to the ICAO Council, with a view towards seeking consensus on this matter…Among the matters I will put forward to the ICAO Council include the need to improve aircraft tracking by implementing real-time tracking as well as the need for sharing of information pertaining to flight risks.”
An advisory panel of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has recommended strict actions for discouraging bulk shipment of lithium batteries through commercial planes.
The recommendations were published by the ICAO on October 1, after a recent meeting of the advisory group was held in Cologne, Germany, in September.
The group has also suggested to re-assess the fire detection systems in terms of their ability of respond quickly and to limit the battery shipments to cargo compartments with excellent fire-suppression capability.
In July 2010, 2 people were killed after a shipment of batteries caught fire and caused a Boeing Co 747 cargo plane, operated by United Parcel Service Inc., to crash in Dubai.
Renowned panelists in the first panel discussion at the 20th World Routes Development Forum, which was held in Chicago on September 21, concluded that the global aviation industry is currently facing 5 critical challenges.
As per the results of live polling moderated by BBC World News presenter, Aaron Heslehurst, the delegates regarded infrastructure as the most critical challenge, with aviation profitability, safety/security, taxation and oil price stability being the other 4.
At the start of the session, the issue of safety and security was discussed, particularly in context of the recent incidents of MH17 and MH370. Managing director of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB), Datuk Badlisham Ghazali appreciated the actions taken by the ICAO and other bodies in order to improve aviation safety, however, he emphasized on the need of enhanced visibility from global aviation bodies regarding the industrial developments aimed at increasing safety. Referring to MH17 tragedy, he said, “The industry needs to move forward in more visible way. Response has not been as visible as what I had hoped for.”
The issue of aircrafts flying over conflict area in eastern Ukraine was also brought up during the discussion. Thomas Windmuller, SVP airports, passenger and cargo services at IATA, asked why some airlines had the vital information not to fly while the others were not aware.
Profitability was another point of discussion in the forum and according to Windmuller, “We are in a period of sustained growth in volume, but not necessarily profitability. The number of airlines that recover their capital cost is very small… The problem is not just airlines, it is aviation. There are very few parts and components that are making big money. These include airports, and air navigation services, who do not make a profit, and do not cover their long-term capital costs.”
The delegate voting regarded Infrastructure challenges as the most serious issue being faced by the aviation industry today. The current investment in aviation infrastructure development projects vary a great deal from country to country. In some countries like China, big investments are being made for infrastructure development while in some other countries this trend is non-existent.
Trey Urbahn, the chief strategy officer of Azul Brazilian Airlines, said that the most pressing issue being faced by Brazilian aviation industry today is taxation. Giving example of Azul Brazilian Airlines, he said that 36% of the company’s profit go on taxes and that the company is working with the government to address this serious issue. He suggested that the taxation garnered should be re-invested for infrastructure development.
Following the death of a Los Angeles International Airport worker in February, Cal/OSHA has issued citations and imposed a fine of $77,250 on Menzies Aviation for allegedly violating 1 regulatory, 1 serious and 3 serious-accident related state safety codes.
On February 21, Cesar Valenzuela, a 51-year-old LAX worker employed by Menzies, was thrown out of a tow tractor while he was picking cargo without wearing a seatbelt. The investigations conducted by Cal/OSHA revealed that the safety policy of Menzies Aviation does not obligate the workers to wear safety belts while operating the tow tractors in and around the Los Angeles International Airport.
According to Christine Baker, the director of the Department of Industrial Relations, which oversees Cal/OSHA, “This fatality could have been prevented with a well-thought-out and implemented safety plan, as is required for all worksites in California.”
be diligent, when in doubt-ask, make decisions about weather deviations as far in advance as possible, pay attention, give weather reports
NTSB to Participate in Annual Aviation Event in Oshkosh, Wisconsin
July 22, 2014
WASHINGTON – National Transportation Safety Board Member Earl Weener and NTSB senior aviation investigators will participate at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014, the Experimental Aircraft Association’s annual fly-in convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on July 28 – August 3.
General aviation accidents account for the majority of aviation-related deaths in the United States and continue to be a safety priority for the NTSB. General aviation safety has been an issue area on the NTSB’s Most Wanted List since 2011, and numerous safety recommendations have been issued to address our safety concerns.
During the week-long event, Member Weener and NTSB staff will conduct presentations on accident case studies and lessons learned and various safety issues, including aeronautical decision-making and weather hazards for GA pilots, which is currently on the Most Wanted List. They will also meet with members of the public who visit the NTSB exhibit in the Federal Pavilion and will be featured on EAA Radio daily.
“Participation at the Oshkosh airshow has become a staple for NTSB investigators and staff,” said NTSB Acting Chairman Christopher A. Hart. “This annual event provides us with an extraordinary opportunity to meet face-to-face with a large number of general aviation pilots and share lessons learned from our investigations with the aviation community.”
In an effort to raise additional awareness, the NTSB has issued numerous safety alerts aimed at reducing accidents. Theses safety alerts include:
• Thunderstorm Encounters;
• In-Cockpit Next Generation Radar Mosaic Imagery;
• Prevent Aerodynamic Stalls at Low Altitude ;
• Reduce Visual References Require Vigilance; and
• Is Your Aircraft Talking to You? Listen!
Media requests for interviews with Member Weener or any of the NTSB staff should be emailed to Keith Holloway, NTSB Public Affairs Officer.
