NTSB To Meet

National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594

April 26, 2010

NTSB TO MEET ON US AIRWAYS 1549 HUDSON RIVER ACCIDENT

The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a public Board meeting on May 4 on its investigation into the accident in which a US Airways jetliner came to rest in the Hudson River near New York City after a low-altitude encounter with a flock of birds.

The purpose of the meeting will be to determine the probable cause of the accident and to consider proposed safety recommendations to reduce the likelihood of future such mishaps.

On January 15, 2009, at 3:27 p.m. EDT, US Airways flight 1549, an Airbus A320, lost engine power after striking a flock of Canada geese shortly after departing New York’s LaGuardia Airport. The captain brought the plane down into the Hudson River after determining that landing at an airport was not feasible. The plane, destined for Charlotte, N.C., carried 150 passengers and a crew of five. Four passengers and one flight attendant received serious injuries.

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    Symposium Announced: Airline Code-Sharing Arrangements and Their Role in Aviation Safety


    Date and Location:
    October 26 – 27, 2010
    NTSB Conference Center

    Short Description:
    The goals of the symposium are to (1) elicit information on the structures, practices, and oversight of domestic and international code-sharing arrangements; (2) gain insight into best practices regarding the sharing of safety information between airlines and their code-sharing partners; and (3) to explore the role that a major airline would have in the family disaster assistance response for an accident involving a code-sharing partner. These areas will be explored through presentations from major and regional airlines, industry organizations, and representatives of the traveling public.

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    NTSB Warns Old Weather Data on Pilot Displays Can Contribute to Plane Crashes

    The NTSB has sent out a safety alert concerning weather information that is up to twenty minutes old, although it may be advertised as real time data. The discrepancy in time can be fatal when weather conditions are in rapid flux. The NTSB has related this old weather information to two recent crashes that occurred at night:

    • March 2010 med-evac helicopter Tennessee crash where the pilot was racing to home base trying to beat a storm
    • December 2011 Piper PA-32 Bryan Texas where the plane broke up in stormy weather.

    In both these crashes, “the time stamps indicated the one-minute time interval used to create the image, and not the actual age of the data used to create the image.”

    The Tennessee crash involved information five minutes old; the Texas crash involved information six to eight minutes old.

    The night crashes in particular are affected by old data. Pilots need to be aware that the data can be old, and not use the weather display to navigate around bad weather.

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    NTSB Safety Recommendation A-10-119

    National Transportation Safety Board
    Washington, DC 20594
    August 6, 2010

    NTSB Safety Recommendation A-10-119 and -120
    and Reiteration of NTSB Safety Recommendation A-04-63

    The National Transportation Safety Board recommends that the European Aviation Safety Agency:

    Modify European Aviation Safety Agency Certification Specifications for Large Aeroplanes CS-25 to ensure safe handling qualities in the yaw axis throughout the flight envelope, including limits for rudder pedal sensitivity. (A-10-119)

    After the yaw axis certification standard recommended in Safety Recommendation A-10-119 has been established, review the designs of existing airplanes to determine if they meet the standard. For existing airplane designs that do not meet the standard, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) should determine if the airplanes would be adequately protected from the adverse effects of a potential aircraft-pilot coupling (APC) after rudder inputs at all airspeeds. If adequate protection does not exist, EASA should require modifications, as necessary, to provide the airplanes with increased protection from the adverse effects of a potential APC after rudder inputs at high airspeeds. (A-10-
    120)

    In addition, the National Transportation Safety Board reiterates the following recommendation to the European Aviation Safety Agency:

    Review the options for modifying the Airbus A300-600 and the Airbus A310 to provide increased protection from potentially hazardous rudder pedal inputs at high airspeeds and, on the basis of this review, require modifications to the A300-600 and A310 to provide increased protection from potentially hazardous rudder pedal inputs at high airspeeds. (A-04-63

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    NTSB BOARD MEMBERS TO MEET WMATA BOARD

    NTSB Advisory
    National Transportation Safety Board
    Washington, DC 20594
    August 8, 2010

    The five Members of the National Transportation Safety Board will meet the board of directors of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) on Monday, August 9, at 2:30 p.m. at the WMATA headquarters building, 600 Fifth Street, N.W. in Washington, D.C.

    The two groups will discuss the recently issued NTSB findings and safety recommendations related to the NTSB’s accident investigation of the June 2009 Red Line collision of two WMATA trains.

    At the conclusion of the meeting, there will be a brief press availability with Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman in the WMATA board room.

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  • DOT PANEL’S RECOMMENDATIONS IDENTIFY CHILD SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS IN AVIATION BUT DO NOT GO FAR ENOUGH, NTSB CHAIRMAN SAYS

    National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah A. P. Hersman said that the recommendations issued today by a federal advisory panel dealing with child safety in aviation are a step in the right direction, but they do not go far enough to ensure the safety of the smallest children in airplanes.

    The Department of Transportation’s Future of Aviation Advisory Committee (FAAC) presented 23 recommendations to DOT Secretary Ray LaHood today. Among those recommendations was a call that Secretary LaHood utilize the full resources of his office to educate the flying public about the dangers of lap children in aviation. The FAAC also requested that the Secretary to update economic and safety data concerning small children, and to take decisive steps, which may include rulemaking, to address child passenger safety in aviation.

    Chairman Hersman stated, “We appreciate the FAAC acknowledging the dangers associated with children flying on their parents’ laps, but we would have preferred to see the FAA be mandated to require that every person including our youngest children be restrained appropriately for their age and size.” She continued, “We know that the safest place for children younger than age two traveling on airplanes is in an appropriate child safety seat. The era of the lap child on airplanes should come to an end.”

    The NTSB recently held a Public Forum on Child Passenger Safety in the Air and in Automobiles on December 9, 2010. A webcast of that forum, and presentations and videos concerning child passenger safety are available at www.ntsb.gov/children.

    The NTSB will continue its efforts to promote child passenger safety in the coming year through education and advocacy that is aimed toward the caregivers of children, regulatory agencies, and the transportation industry.

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    NTSB TO OFFER TRAINING ON EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INVOLVED IN MAJOR AIRCRAFT ACCIDENTS AND INCIDENTS

    National Transportation Safety Board
    Washington, DC 20594

    August 5, 2010

    The National Transportation Safety Board is devoting two
    days at its Training Center to offer guidance to aviation
    public affairs professionals on how to most effectively
    manage emergency communications following a major aircraft
    accident or incident.

    The training will be offered on October 7-8, 2010, at the
    NTSB Training Center in Ashburn, Virginia, (near Washington,
    D.C.) and is aimed at communications professionals working
    with airports, airlines and corporations with aviation
    departments.

    Representatives from the NTSB Office of Public Affairs will
    explain the process by which investigation-related
    information is verified and released to the news media and
    the family members of those affected by a major accident.

    Members of the national news media will be there to discuss
    how previous accidents have been covered and to talk about
    how social media is changing how breaking news is
    disseminated and consumed. Airport and airline
    communications professionals will provide case studies on
    how communications during previous aircraft incidents and
    accidents were handled.

    Those interested in learning more should see the complete
    description of the training, registration information, and
    cost to attend at:
    http://www.ntsb.gov/TC/CourseInfo/PA302_2010.htm

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