George’s Point of View
The IATA ( Air Transport Association) is an association representing the world’s airlines commitment to excellence and safety in aviation. All of its 224 Member airlines live up to best practice standards in airline safety. 8 airlines lost membership due to failing a 2008 IOSA ( IATA Operational Safety Audit) audit.
Airlines which fail the safety audit, or are otherwise unable to reach the safety standards are banned by the European Union. One of those banned airlines is Garuda Indonesia, the national airline of Indonesia. That’s the same airline which has been in the news for the recent sentencing of one of it’s pilots. Not that Garunda Indonesia even flies to Europe.
Marwoto Komar who was piloting Garuda Indonesia Flight 200 , ignored warnings not to land the plane when he brought it in at twice the safe speed, resulting in the plane slamming into the runway, skidding off and bursting into flame, killing 21. While he did not get life in prison, he did get jail time.
The pilot’s sentencing is really a symptom of what is going on with Garunda Indonesia, which is a lack of government supervision. In fact, aircrafts which would otherwise be considered safe, are NOT safe simply because of being part of GI’s under-supervised, under-inspected, under-maintained fleet. In fact, there is a $24 million Indonesian governmental program now in place to train Indonesian air safety inspectors, an ambitious program which may still take years to bring the airline up to acceptable safety standards.
In the meantime, apparently the burden of safety rests on the shoulders of pilots, which in view of recent history, does not particularly appear to be a good thing. Furthermore, no one yet has made it public exactly why Marwoto Komar ignored air traffic control AND his instruments AND his co-pilot to attempt a landing at twice the safe speed, but perhaps while he is in jail, the Indonesian skies may be marginally safer. Not that it does any good for the 21 victims of Flight 200.
Similar Posts
Thanksgiving Wishes
It is time again for Thanksgiving. In my heart, I feel Thanksgiving every day, perhaps because in my business I am constant touch with families of victims. I work closely with people in all stages of loss. I have to admit, it takes a toll. Even the news of the day takes a toll-the deaths of children abroad in bombings, this bus crash in Tennessee, the latest crash: they all take a piece of me. There are so many times that I can bring hope or help; I can’t help but wish I could always do so. There are so many who have so much. I feel deeply for those who are struggling to get their lives on track, and those who have to scratch for meals wherever they may be.As this day of Thanksgiving approaches, I extend my condolences to all those who have suffered loss or deprivation. I pray that this season, everyone has everything they need, peace of heart, peace of mind, and tables full of blessings. At the same time, I give thanks for every moment, for my friends, family and health, and all the blessings of those close to me. Have a happy Thanksgiving.
- Air India Express | airliners.net | Boeing | Crash | Editorial | India | Mangalore | update
INDIA’s DGCA Asserts Co-Pilot Assertiveness
George’s Point of View
Following the Air India Express tragedy in Mangalore India (and definitely in response to it), the DGCA (India’s Directorate-General of Civil Aviation) has been trying to shut the gate after the horses are out. They’re still pointing their fingers at the pilot.
The tape of the crash records the co-pilot Capt H S Ahluwalia (*i.e. the pnf) insisting to Commander Capt Zlatko Glusica to initiate a go-around. The Captain (**i.e. the pf) did not, and the plane landed too far down the runway, clipped an antenna, crashed thru the end of the runway, off the edge of the runway plateau. We can only assume the captain ignored his co-pilot, as no go-around was initiated.
Apparently the pilot was in error and the co-pilot knew it. It must have been obvious to Ahluwalia that they were landing at the wrong angle too far down (the middle) of the runway–but he did not act on his knowledge. At any rate, he was in disagreement with his superior officer.
Consequently, the DCGA has issued an operations circular highlighting procedural assertiveness for the co-pilot when he knows the pilot is wrong. The Mangalore tragedy is not mentioned by name, but it is certainly the silent subtext.
Did the crash occur because the co-pilot did not take the controls? What exactly will this circular accomplish? Had this circular been public already, would the pilot and co-pilot have ended up in a wrestling match over controls of the airplane?
It will be interesting to hear from pilots about what they think the consequences of this directive might be, and if they think a cultural context may play a part.
I always turn to the experts. Right now, before the full investigation is out, I am hearing a lot of speculative “pilot error” but it is all speculation. But is it all pilot error?
My experts remind me that “Every incident is linked to a chain of events. Each event alone is not sufficient reason to provoke an accident although when they link together the chances are multiplied and sometimes the accident occurs.” ( I am quoting a pilot.)
For example, if pilot fatigue were a contributing factor (landing at dawn after a long tiring duty cycle), isn’t the carrier’s policy on pilot fatigue a contributory factor?
The Boeing 737 landed midway on runway 24, and then overshot it, crashing into a gorge. Initial reports on the civil aviation website showed runway 27 mislabeled as runway 24. The actual crash site was not even pictured, a mistake that certainly casts doubt on the quality of the investigation, and possibly even the quality of the resources available to pilots at the time they were negotiating a landing. What did their map say? Is a pilot alone in error if the resources provided him are in error? I know I am digressing, but the point I want to make is this:
I don’t have years of flight school, or engineering training but I do have opinion. And in my opinion, pilot error alone does not cause a crash like this.
Terminology
*pnf – pilot not flying
**pf – pilot flying
—
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer WTWhat: Air India Express Boeing 737-800 en route from Dubai to Mangalore
Where: Mangalore airport
When: 6:00 a.m May 22 2010
Who: 160 (?) passengers including 23 children, 6 crew= 158 fatalities and 8 survivors
Why: Air India Express flight 812 attempted touch down was around the middle marker. (Conflicting) reports are that it overshot the runway, and that the pilot intended a go round (tapes reveal the co pilot was urging a go-round) but the plane hit the localizer antenna at the runway’s end, plowed through the perimeter losing part of a wing, and went down 75 feet into a ravine, and broke into pieces and burst into flames. On touchdown, there was a reported “bang” which may have been a tire bursting. A drizzle started after the accident. From 5 to 10 people have been hospitalized, but according to reports there are possibly 3 survivors.Survivor Abdul Puttur suffered burns. He was seated near the wing exit and said that the pilot had announced the landing, then there was a thud. He saw huge flames after the plane fell into the ravine and then he jumped out from the back entrance. Another passenger said the pilot made no announcement.
The Serbian pilot was Zlatko Glusica, first officer was S.S. Ahluwalia.
According to DGCA rules, Mangalore International Airport is deemed a “critical airfield” which means that “supervised take offs and landings” are prohibited. Only the captain (not the first officer) can pilot take-offs and landings. Mangalore International Airport has a controversial table top runway and which forces pilots to make a precision landing. The airport has no buffer zone, and pilots landing planes must fly precisely or risk hurtling off the edge.
Cost of Aviation
If you want to see the most current mappings of the ash, here’s the British meteorological service site.
As I sit here in a foreign country separated from my home by an ocean and a sky full of volcanic ash they are saying may disrupt trans-atlantic aviation for the next six months, and wondering when I will get home, I read the chilling words of a American scrivener remembering the recent flight that wiped out the Polish “politocracy.”
Michael White: “An airplane is a hollow bullet filled with humans lives, shot from a gun we call an airport. Should it impact with the ground other than according to the dictates of precise technology, its content perishes.”
Those of us who fly so often take for granted that flight is a right, but every so often, Nature reminds us we are not birds, we are Icarus, daring to fly too close to the sun. We are creatures of the earth. We have no wings beyond those our imagination have wrought.
Who among us can say it is worth the cost, especially those people I work with every day who have lost their nearest and dearest.
And yet, how we have flown.
