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53 Trent Engines Removed from Service

Rolls-Royce removed 53 Trent Engines from service over pipe thickness problems in the oil feed pipes. Thinned pipe walls and cracking from a manufacturing defect led to an internal oil fire on a Qantas Airways Airbus A380, which made an emergency landing in Singapore in 2010. This is the flaw that led to Qantas grounding its entire A380 fleet, and other carriers like Singapore Airlines. Several modification standards were published: FW48020, FW59326, and FW64481.

The ATSB does not expect a complete analysis of the data it is gathering on these engines until May 2012.

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    Part Two of the Gol Sentences, in which ATC is Accountable

    We recently mentioned when the pilots of the two US pilots were sentenced to US community service for the 2006 Midair collision between a GOL Boeing and a business jet.

    In addition to the pilots, the Air Traffic Controller Lucivando de Alencar was sentenced. Judge Murilo Mendes revoked Alencar’s license, and sentenced him to three years of community service.

    Flight 1907, en route from Manaus to Rio, disappeared from radar over Mato Grosso when it collided in mid-air with an Embraer Legacy 600 business jet piloted by the two pilots who were sentenced earlier this week. The Legacy jet landed safely at Cachimbo Airport but 148 passengers and 6 crew members died in the Boeing that crashed into the Amazon.

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    Update on Boeing 787 Dreamliner ZA002 Incident

    EVERETT, Wash., Nov. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — During approach to Laredo, Texas, yesterday, airplane ZA002 lost primary electrical power as a result of an onboard electrical fire. Backup systems, including the deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), functioned as expected and allowed the crew to complete a safe landing. The cause of the fire is still under investigation by Boeing.

    The pilots executed a safe landing and at all times had positive control of the airplane and all of the information necessary to perform that safe landing.

    Initial inspection appears to indicate that a power control panel in the aft electronics bay will need to be replaced on ZA002. We are inspecting the power panel and surrounding area near that panel to determine if other repairs will be necessary.

    We have retrieved flight data from the airplane and are analyzing it in Seattle. This process will take several days. We are committed to finding the cause quickly but will not rush the technical team in its efforts.

    The team was conducting monitoring of the Nitrogen Generation System at the time of the incident but there is no reason to suspect that the monitoring or earlier testing of that system had anything to do with the incident.

    Consistent with our internal processes, until we better understand the cause of the incident on ZA002, we have decided to postpone flight test activities on other airplanes. Ground test activities will be conducted until flight test resumes.

    Likewise, we cannot determine the impact of this event on the overall program schedule until we have worked our way through the data. Teams have been working through the night and will continue to work until analysis is complete and a path forward is determined.

    See More on Dreamliner Test Flight Emergency Landing

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    Flyers Rights Joins with Legendary Consumer Advocate Ralph Nader and Aviation Consumer Action Project to Demand ‘Voice’ in On-going Security Debate

    Group also refutes certain “Poll” data as being inaccurate and/or out of date

    NAPA, Calif., Nov. 21, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Flyers Rights (www.flyersrights.org) the largest non-profit Airline passenger rights group in the world, has joined Consumer Advocate Ralph Nader and Paul Hudson from the Aviation Consumer Action Project (ACAP) (acapaviation@yahoo.com) to demand meetings with DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano, DOT Secretary Ray LaHood and Administrator John Pistole (TSA) to discuss the continuing issues regarding Whole Body Scanners & “Enhanced” Pat Downs by TSA Personal. That letter is shown here: http://strandedpassengers.blogspot.com/2010/11/letter-to-dhs-secretary.html

    “Airline Passengers have so far been ignored in this process,” said Kate Hanni, Director of Flyers Rights. “Thus far, Secretary Napolitano and Administrator Pistole have taken meetings with Airline Executives, Hotels, Pilots Unions, and Flight Attendant Unions- but Not a Single Meeting with the people who pay the money to Fly. How is that possible or right?”

    “Mr. Nader, Mr. Hudson and Flyers Rights represent the passengers that DHS and TSA claim to be trying to protect. DHS or TSA needs to listen to what those passengers have to say,” continued Hanni.

    The groups also want to ensure that the public understands the illogic of current polls being used to defend these security measures.

    “Some Polling Data that has been reprinted in the media is either out of date, was improperly administered, or has been taken out of context,” said Kate.

    Specifically:

    • A Poll recently published by USA Today was from January 2010 BEFORE any scanners and “Enhanced” Pat Downs were enabled.
    • A Poll by CBS only offered people the choices of Yes/No on Body Scanners, and did not give people another choice except “I don’t understand.”

      More accurate polling can be found if the Right questions are asked:

    • An MSNBC poll asked “Do you support 1) Body Scanners, 2) Pat Downs or 3) “I won’t fly if these measures are in place.” 48% said they would not fly if Body Scanners or Pat Downs were the option – This poll that had 80,000 respondents.
    • A Reuters Poll that had 90,000 respondents indicated that 96% would find Alternative means of transportation or Not Fly if given the choice of Body Scanners or Pat Downs.

    “What is a fact is that the more the public knows about these processes, the more they don’t want them affecting their lives. There comes a time when More Security isn’t Better Security- More Security is Just More,” added Hanni.

    Noted Paul Hudson, long time advocate for stronger aviation security, “We are requesting the use of Full Body Scanners and Enhanced Pat Down Process be reduced or suspended pending a public comment period, public hearings, and a full review by outside experts. TSA needs to answer serious questions of intrusiveness, safety, and effectiveness, before subjecting hundreds of millions of airline passengers to such extreme measures.”

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    New Years Eve Air Rage Shakes Up Thomson Airways Flight

    What: Thomson Airways TOM133 out of Manchester en route to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic
    Where: Diverted to Bermuda
    When: New Years Eve
    Who: Three men engaged in an “air rage” incident
    Why: On board the plane, the three men fought over alleged homophobic public order offences, affray and smoking.

    A 35-year-old was arrested at Gatwick airport. The two other men are still in custody in Bermuda.

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  • Just a Thought

    We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. Cynthia Ozick

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    And a Little Dog Shall Lead Them…

    The dog was in his crate, and got anxious; his owner tried to comfort him, and let him out of the crate, accidentally or not. So the anxious, terrified dog bit a passenger and a flight attendant. And consequently the pilot of Newark-Phoenix U.S. Airways Flight 522 landed in Pittsburg, booted out the senior citizen and neurotic little Toto too, and flew the rest of the way to Phoenix.

    And the senior citizen and the little dog took another flight from Pittsburg to Phoenix. No word if it was on U.S. Airways or not.

    George’s Point of View

    If Solomon had been on that flight, what would he have done?

    Threaten to cut the eight pound dog in thirds? I can see it now, as he is posed with a plane-legal 10th century BC weapon, ready to divide the dog into thirds, to the horror of the dog’s owner. Given the mindset of most contemporary Americans, rather than being upset, the bitten attendant and passenger would likely both have their hand out, even after getting their share of dog. However, possibly not, since only a diehard dog lover would try to handle an angry chihuahua (or whatever the little canine is.) Let’s hope for the owner’s sake that the injured comrades-in-travel were forgiving dog lovers.

    And also, let’s hope that Fido, Rover, Toto (or whatever his name is) stays home instead of going on the next trip.

    The thing that I don’t understand these days is the suspension of common sense. How many thousands of dollars in fuel and expenses did that diversion to Pittsburg cost? Was it really essential to make an emergency landing to strand a senior citizen and pet in Pittsburg? How serious were the bites? There’s no mention of a medical emergency.

    Let’s hope no charges are filed.

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