Safe But Not Safe Enough: Helicopter Crash Reduction

International Helicopter Safety Team is a task force composed of American and European government agencies–an international safety team–forecasts to reduce the rate of helicopter crashes 80 percent within eight years, no doubt a good idea as helicopters crash three times more frequently than commercial airliners

Seventy percent of helicopter crashes are determined to be the result of human error (training, overwork or poor design)

Partial list of Fatal crashes in 2008
Date ——– Location ——– Craft ——–#
12/27/2008 Honiara, PO HUGHES 369 N104BN Fatal(1)
12/11/2008 Sabine Pass, TX BELL 206 N180AL Fatal(5)
11/16/2008 Lingen, Germany Rotorway PH-NTL Fatal(1)
11/16/2008 Quitman, AR BELL OH-58C N153GF Fatal(1)
11/2/2008 Gallatin, TN Robinson R-44 N300FX Fatal(1)
10/16/2008 Dryden, NY Robinson R22 N943MH Fatal(1)
10/15/2008 Aurora, IL BELL 222 N992AA Fatal(4)
10/13/2008 Conroe, TX BELL 206 N6ZV Fatal(2)
10/13/2008 Sedona, AZ BELL 407 N42AZ Fatal(1)
9/27/2008 Forestville, MD AEROSPATIALE AS365 N92MD Fatal(4) 0
9/21/2008 Kenosha, WI Robinson R44 II N999ZD Fatal(2)
9/6/2008 Muzino Village, Russia Robinson R-44 RA-04180 Fatal(2)
9/3/2008 Persian Gulf, United Arab Emirates Bell 212 A6-AVL Fatal(7)
8/31/2008 Greensburg, IN Bell 206L-1 N37AE Fatal(3)
8/29/2008 Ridgedale, MO Robinson R44 II N41411 Fatal(2)
8/17/2008 Olalla, WA Robinson R-22 N301MA Fatal(1)
8/6/2008 Alice Arm, Canada Hughes 369D C-GZIO Fatal(3)
8/5/2008 Weaverville, CA Sikorsky S-61N N612AZ Fatal(9)
7/19/2008 Price, UT Hughes 369D N400BE Fatal(3)
7/15/2008 Salesville, AR Hughes 269B N469E Fatal(2)
7/4/2008 Sunol, CA Schweizer 269 C-1 N2011A Fatal(2)
6/29/2008 Flagstaff, AZ Bell 407 N407GA Fatal(7)
6/29/2008 Flagstaff, AZ Bell 407 N407MJ Fatal(7)
6/8/2008 Huntsville, TX Bell 407 N416PH Fatal(4)
5/29/2008 Panama City, Panama Bell UH-1N SAN-100 Fatal(11)
5/25/2008 Sunrise Beach, MO McDonnell Douglas 500-E N686F Fatal(1)
5/24/2008 Avalon, CA Aerospatiale AS-350-D N67GE Fatal(3)
5/16/2008 Comstock, MI Fairchild Hiller FH-1100 N5049F Fatal(1)
5/10/2008 La Crosse, WI Eurocopter Deutschland EC 135 T2+ N135UW Fatal(3)
5/9/2008 Muanda, Congo Bell 206 L-1 N5014V Fatal(1)
4/30/2008 Paraty, Brazil Agusta/Westland A109S PR-IPO Fatal(2)
4/28/2008 Bartlett, TX Robinson R44 N477SH Fatal(1)
4/15/2008 Chickaloon, AK Eurocopter France AS350B2 N213EH Fatal(4)
3/13/2008 Wilmington, NC Robinson R22 Beta II N2215R Fatal(1)
3/11/2008 Santa Cruz, Peru Bell 412EP N417EV Fatal(10)
3/2/2008 Nizhnevartovsk, Russia Robinson R-44 II RA-04223 Fatal(2)
2/13/2008 Gascoyne Junc, Australia Robinson R44 VH-ZDP Fatal(2)
2/8/2008 Totes Gebirge, Austria Bell 206B OE-XRH Fatal(2)
2/5/2008 S. Padre Island, TX Eurocopter France AS350B2 N911VA Fatal(3)
1/25/2008 Los Angeles, CA Robinson R22 N705JJ Fatal(1)
1/22/2008 Ochopee, FL Robinson R44 N18HB Fatal(2)
1/11/2008 Puebla, Mexico Bell 412HP XC-JCD Fatal(8)
1/7/2008 Zuzenhausen, Germany Bell 206B D-HJET Fatal(1)

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    Yemenia Spotless Record? Really?

    I glance at a lot of news sites, mostly skimming just to make sure the facts are the same across the board, and I don’t usually stop and make comments about one particular site, or other. I’m usually focused on the message, not the messenger.

    But once in a while, I come across erroneous content.

    What should I do when I come across a site that posts an article that says up till the crash in the Comoros, Yemenia Airlines had an unblemished record?

    What world is that staff reporter living in? Who gave them that information? Because it’s wrong.

    Today’s Yemenia was formerly Yemen Airlines and Yemen Arab Airlines and Yemen Airways. (There may be more DBA names I’m leaving out.)

    This airline, rebranded over and over, has had at least 11 crashes and a couple of hijackings thrown in (1973 and 1975.) Just take a look at the actual record.

    And there were EU Safety sanctions in JUL 2008: EU safety action (Safety deficiencies noted by ramp inspections in several countries; Yemenia took corrective actions.); on JUL 2009: EU safety action (The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) suspended the maintenance organisation approval EASA.145.0177 issued to Yemenia Yemen Airways, due to unresolved safety deficiencies.) On JUL 2009: EU safety action (The authorities of France suspended the certificates of airworthiness of the aircraft of type Airbus A310 registered in France (F-OHPR and F-OHPS) and operated by the carrier.) On NOV 2009: EU safety action (Member States will verify systematically the effective compliance of Yemenia with the relevant safety standards through the prioritisation of ramp inspections to be carried out on aircraft of this carrier.)

    The EU is right to be so demanding. Yemenia Airlines has a dangerous record, no matter what the airline is called. Lack of safety is the reason the airline has been on the EU blacklist. Don’t the people of Yemen deserve a safe carrier?

    (See below)

    Hijacks first:

    • 14-SEP-1994——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia—— Boeing 737-2R4C Hijacker(s) demanded to be taken to Saudi Arabia. Duration of the hijacking: less than 1 day.

    • 25 August 1973——a Yemen Airlines Douglas DC-6 was hijacked during a passenger flight from Ta’izz to Asmara. The perpetrator forced the pilots to divert the aircraft with fifteen other passenger and six crew members on board to Kuwait Airport, for which a refueling stop at Djibouti Airport turned out to be necessary. In Kuwait, the hijacker surrendered to local police forces.

    • 23 February 1975——a Yemen Airlines DC-3 was hijacked during a flight from Al Hudaydah to Sana’a and forced to land at an airport in Saudi Arabia. There, the aircraft was stormed and the perpetrator overpowered.

    • 27-AUG-1993——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— Boeing 737-2R4C An Alyemda Boeing 737 aircraft was hijacked during a domestic flight from Riyan Airport (RIY) to Al Ghaydah Airport The hijacker, a Yemeni soldier who reportedly was armed with a handgun and a hand grenade, demanded to be taken to either Kuwait or Oman. The pilot convinced the hijacker that a refueling stop was necessary.

    • 20-JAN-1983——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— Boeing 707-300 Three hijackers forced the aircraft to land at Djibouti. After the aircraft landed a gun battle erupted inside the aircraft and two passengers were reportedly wounded. The hijackers subsequently surrendered and were taken Into custody by Djibouti authorities. The hijackers were convicted of air piracy in Djibouti and reportedly sentenced to six months In prison. This was suspended.

    • 22-AUG-1972——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— Douglas DC-6 Three passengers hijacked the Alyemda plane en route between Beirut (BEY) and Cairo. The flight diverted to Nicosia (NIC), Cyprus. The hijackers said that they belonged to a group named the Eagles of National Unity in South Yemen. After a three hour refueling stop the airplane continued to Benghazi (BEN), Libya. The hijackers surrendered to Libyan authorities.

    • 15-AUG-1985——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— Boeing 707-336C Climbing through FL230, water inadvertently spilled on the autopilot panel and the crew had to disengage the autopilot because the stabilizer trim wheel started to rotate. Control was lost as the plane pitched up and down. Control was regained at 1000 feet and an emergency landing was carried out at Aden.

    • 09-MAY-1982——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— DHC-7-103 A Dash 7 passenger plane, operated by Alyemda, crashed into the sea some 2 km from the Aden International Airport (ADE), Yemen. Of the 49 occupants, 23 were killed. The pilot had reported the runway in sight at a distance of 9 nautical miles (17 km) and was cleared to report on final for runway 26. The wind was reported 240 degrees at 5 knots. The aircraft reported short final, was sighted by the tower and cleared to land, then lost altitude andcrashed in the sea.

    • 26-JAN-1982——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)——The Boeing 707 was flying a cargo of military supplies from Libya to Damascus when it was attacked by an Iraqi or Israeli fighter plane. The crippled freighter managed to land at Damascus, but was considered damaged beyond repair.

    • 01-MAR-1977——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— Douglas C-47A-25-DK 7O-ABF Crashed into the sea off Aden. 19 fatalities, 19 aboard

    • 17-SEP-1975——Alyemda (Merged with Yemenia)—— Douglas DC-3 Nose, front fuselage and propellers where damaged following a heavy landing. Aviation News reported the accident happened on Sept. 16

    • 3 November 1958——a Yemen Airlines Douglas C-47 Skytrain #YE-AAB crashed near in Italy, killing eight people on board. The aircraft had been on a flight from Rome Ciampino Airport to Yemen with a planned stopover at Belgrade, carrying the Yemenite Under Secretary of Foreign Affairs.

    • 19 March 1969——a Yemen Airlines C-47 (registered 4W-AAS) crashed near Ta’izz during a post-maintenance test flight, killing the four occupants. It turned out that the elevator of the aircraft did work properly. Repair work had been done on that part, because it had been damaged some days earlier in a ground collision.

    • 16 September 1971——a Yemen Airlines C-47 (registered 4W-ABI) crashed near Rajince, Serbia when it encountered severe icing conditions, killing the five people on board. The aircraft had been on a multi-stopover flight from Yemen to Europe and had just departed Belgrade Airport.

    • 1 November 1972——a Yemen Airlines Douglas DC-3 (registered 4W-ABJ) was destroyed in a crash-landing at an airfield near Beihan.

    • 13 December 1973——a Yemen Airlines DC-3 (registered 4W-ABR) crashed near Ta’izz.

    • 14 November 1978——a Yemen Airlines C-47 (registered 4W-ABY) was damaged beyond repair in a heavy landing at an airfield near Ma’rib.

    • 26 June 2000——a Yemenia Boeing 737-200C, registered 7O-ACQ, was damaged beyond repair when it veered off the runway upon landing at Khartoum International Airport following a cargo flight from Yemen. Despite their plans to carry out a runway 36 approach, the crew landed straight-in on runway 18. The aircraft departed the side of the runway. The nose gear collapsed as it contacted obstructions.

    • 21 January 2001——a Yemenia Flight 448, a Boeing 727-200 with 91 passengers and 10 crew on board, was hijacked 15 minutes into a flight from Sana’a to Ta’izz by an Iraqi man. The plane was forced to land at Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport, where the perpetrator was overpowered by the crew.

    • 1 August 2001——a Yemenia Boeing 727-200 (registered 7O-ACW) was damaged beyond economic repair when it overran the runway upon landing at Asmara International Airport following a flight from Sana’a with 107 passengers and four crew on board, none of whom were significantly injured.

    • 30 June 2009——a Yemenia Flight 626 from Sana’a to Moroni, Comoros crashed into the sea shortly before landing. Of the 142 passengers and eleven crew that had been on the Airbus A310-300 with the registration 7O-ADJ,[23] only a 12-year-old girl, Bahia Bakari, was recovered, alive and conscious, although suffering from extreme tiredness and hypothermia, cuts to her face and a fractured collar-bone.

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    Joy Flight Steals Joy

    Before the Sukhoi Superjet smashed into a ledge on Wednesday, killing 45 people and raining debris down the slopes of Mount Salak, I had never heard the term “joy flight.”

    The “joy flight” is the airline equivalent of you going down to the Ferrari dealership and taking a test drive. Or it would be if you were being driven in the Ferrari for fifty minutes or so, in a party atmosphere courted along with a bunch of other potential buyers.

    The “joy flight” is a selling tool for the manufacturer. They host this ride for potential buyers to show off the features and quality/qualities of a new plane they are trying to sell.

    Until the black box is recovered (we hope one was on the plane!), we won’t have any idea if the pilots had been asked to “buzz” the mountain, or if their request to fly low was a response to the heavy cloud cover. United Aircraft Corporation which built the Superjet says that pilot Alexander Yablontsev (who had logged 10,000 hours in Sukhoi prototypes) was their best test pilot, and had overseen “everything from the designing of the aircraft to its certification.”

    Buzzing mountains renowned as an airline graveyard would not be the smartest thing to do, but everyone does wonder why the pilots requested to lower their altitude right over Mount Salak. Family members are already protesting the hazardous route that had been planned for the demonstration flight.

    There were 35 Indonesians, 8 Russian crew members, 1 French and 1 American.

    The American, Peter Adler was a consultant for Sriwijaya Air, a domestic Indonesian carrier. Adler had been born in São Paulo, Brazil to Auschwitz survivors, grew up in Los Angeles and leaves behind a wife Randi, and family.

    Joy flight is a cruelly ironic term. In catastrophic loss of life cases, loss of joy can be considered part of the damages, as families inevitably remain haunted by the loss of their loved ones.

    We offer our condolences, but we know how insufficient that is, as relatives are only beginning the harsh journey of grief that begins with shock and a sense of immeasurable loss.

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  • Businessmen Beware the Air

    George’s Point of View

    Most business jet fatal accidents happen on approach. I suppose this means that it is fine for businessmen to fly but not to land. (Conclusions like this are why they never have me on any study committees.)

    But seriously, the latest Aviation study came out with these figures:

    • The fatal accident rate for air taxis is 3.49 per million flying hours
    • For corporate operations it is 0.24 per million
    • For owner-operated business jets it is 1.28 per million
    • The overall figure for all business jets flying civil operations is 1.45 per million flying hours.

      The fifty-nine fatal accidents under study show twenty-one occurred on ferry flights, seventeen on “private/business”, six carried cargo, five carried passengers, four were air ambulance flights, and three were training.

      Whether the problem is fatigue, pilot (or crew) training, plane maintenance, air traffic control, bureaucratic red tape, or gas-squeezing political policies, when the consensus is that more than half of these accidents are preventable, this is an indication that something is seriously wrong with Business Aviation.

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  • Does the Cutting Edge Cut too Far?

    Bombardier is promising their new C series planes will “cut greenhouse gas emissions, ensure substantial fuel savings and be four times quieter .”

    Let’s hope all these cuts don’t also sacrifice safety along with heavier materials. As far as safety is concerned, will the new planes made of “lightweight composite and aluminum lithium materials, built to accommodate stricter environmental standards and” well-built airplane(s) … capable of withstanding turbulence” be sacrificing the safety of sturdier construction and time-tested safety features to reach optimistically green standards?

    How will these new lighter planes fare when subjected to unexpected turbulence, which is commonplace in realistic day to day flying conditions? I have no answers, only questions.

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  • Ethiopia Flight 409-Pilot Error or something More?

    From the Official Report :

    The Captain only had 188 hours on the B737-700/800.
    The 1st officer had 350 hours on the B737-700/800.

    I’m sorry to partially disagree with the opinion of those who believe the Ethiopia Flight 409 is an open and shut pilot-error case. True, it does not look like there’s much B737 experience.

    But lack of experience is no grounds for lack of skills or reckless operation.

    Besides, I find hard to accept the fact that two pilots deliberately flew direct to the heart of a super cell. There must be a technical issue there such as inoperative weather radar (I mean that became inoperative after takeoff). Even a “green” pilot knows better than take a direct heading to a massive thunderstorm.

    Although if we decide to label the two pilots as “inexperienced” that means questioning all the training/promotion process of Air Ethiopia.

    What does the Air Ethiopia OPERATIONS MANUAL protocol assign as a pilot’s training minimum qualifications for Captain and for First Officers?

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  • Seat Belts: Airplanes AND BUSES

    George’s Point of View

    Yesterday we posted the NTSB’s safety recommendation that each person who is less than 2 years of age to be restrained in a separate seat position by an appropriate child restraint system during takeoff, landing, and turbulence.

    It does make sense that infants not be held during dangerous turbulence in a plane, but kept securely in a seat, just as it is required by law when in a car.

    With all of the accidents we see on buses, I would like to know why the NTSB has not mandated seatbelts aboard all buses. Not just for infants, of course, but for everyone.

    Out of NTSB’s own reports, “42% of the total (fatalities) are from side impact or non-collision (typically rollover) accidents. It is for this 42% of fatal accidents that seat belts have their greatest life saving potential”

    NTSB should also demand seat belts on all passenger buses and school buses.

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