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Blown Lap Joints and Other Points of Fatigue

The older 737’s which ruptured their five-foot tops (at the lap joints) are just a drop in the proverbial bucket. Or, if you will, the canary in the cave. Because they are a sign of what is to come, if Boeing, and in fact ALL plane makers, don’t step up the inspection guidelines for metal fatigue in 15 year old planes. The FAA is mandating initial and repetitive electromagnetic inspections “to detect cracking in a specific part of the aircraft that cannot be spotted with visual inspection.” The FAA Emergency Airworthiness Directive pdf can be found here.

Sure, since the fuselage crack on the Southwest 737 on April 1, older model 737’s have demonstrated a propensity toward metal fatigue. On that particular plane, in March, eight instances were found of cracking in the frame and six cracked stringer clips which hold the skin. To be sure, Southwest did the right thing by grounding its 80 737s and checking them all because it turned out that five of those inspected had cracks in the same location. Those 18-inch roof sections are being repaired according to the recommendations of Boeing and the NTSB with a large aluminum patch

But what about 15 year old 757s? They should put all the older planes of comparable cycles—let’s not limit this to Boeing!— What about 15 year old Airbuses? —under scrutiny for metal fatigue. Are they not just as likely to blow as a 737?


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    Tsunami Closes Airports

    Sendai Airport in Northern Japan was inundated by a tsunami and remained shut down.
    Narita, which focuses on long international flights, was partially re-opened today.
    Haneda, Tokyo’s other airport, closed for much of the day

    Flights incoming to Tokyo were cancelled due to the quake and tsunami, and some diverted to U.S. Air Force’s Yokota Air

    Nasa Images


    Below is the TSUNAMI WARNING SUPPLEMENT for Hawaii Fri March 11
    000
    WEHW40 PHEB 111649
    TSUHWX

    HIZ001>003-005>009-012>014-016>021-023>026-111849-
    /O.CON.PHEB.TS.W.0001.110311T1649Z-000000T0000Z/

    BULLETIN
    TSUNAMI MESSAGE NUMBER 12
    NWS PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER EWA BEACH HI
    648 AM HST FRI MAR 11 2011

    TO – CIVIL DEFENSE IN THE STATE OF HAWAII

    SUBJECT – TSUNAMI WARNING SUPPLEMENT

    A TSUNAMI WARNING CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR THE STATE OF HAWAII.

    AN EARTHQUAKE HAS OCCURRED WITH THESE PRELIMINARY PARAMETERS

    ORIGIN TIME – 0746 PM HST 10 MAR 2011
    COORDINATES – 38.3 NORTH 142.4 EAST
    LOCATION – NEAR EAST COAST OF HONSHU JAPAN
    MAGNITUDE – 8.9 MOMENT

    MEASUREMENTS OR REPORTS OF TSUNAMI WAVE ACTIVITY

    GAUGE LOCATION LAT LON TIME AMPL PER
    ——————- —– —— —– ————— —–
    KWAJALEIN MH 8.7N 167.7E 1134Z 0.70M / 2.3FT 16MIN
    CHRISTMAS KI 2.0N 157.5W 1459Z 0.52M / 1.7FT 18MIN
    MANUS PG 2.0S 147.4E 1426Z 0.92M / 3.0FT 36MIN
    PAGO PAGO AS 14.3S 170.7W 1556Z 0.35M / 1.2FT 14MIN
    LUGANVILLE VU 15.5S 167.2E 1537Z 0.54M / 1.8FT 52MIN
    VANUATU 17.8S 168.3E 1532Z 0.69M / 2.3FT 20MIN
    DART 55012 15.8S 158.5E 1517Z 0.04M / 0.1FT 52MIN
    DART 46404 45.9N 128.8W 1440Z 0.11M / 0.3FT 18MIN
    KAPOHO HI 19.5N 154.8W 1408Z 0.06M / 0.2FT 14MIN
    HONOLULU OAHU 21.3N 157.9W 1329Z 0.68M / 2.2FT 32MIN
    HILO HAWAII 19.7N 155.1W 1357Z 1.32M / 4.3FT 24MIN
    KAHULUI MAUI 20.9N 156.5W 1340Z 1.82M / 6.0FT 28MIN
    LAHAINA HI 20.9N 156.7W 1335Z 0.50M / 1.6FT 64MIN
    MILOLII HI 19.2N 155.9W 1350Z 0.67M / 2.2FT 12MIN
    BARBERS PT HI 21.3N 158.1W 1323Z 0.65M / 2.1FT 06MIN
    HONUAPO HI 19.1N 155.6W 1340Z 0.04M / 0.1FT 32MIN
    HALEIWA HI 21.6N 158.1W 1329Z 1.09M / 3.6FT 38MIN
    MAKAPU`U HI 21.3N 157.7W 1312Z 0.49M / 1.6FT 52MIN
    KAWAIHAE HAWAII 20.0N 155.8W 1330Z 0.85M / 2.8FT 56MIN
    HONOKOHAU HI 19.7N 156.0W 1345Z 0.44M / 1.4FT 10MIN
    DART 51407 19.6N 156.5W 1322Z 0.17M / 0.6FT 44MIN
    NAWILIWILI KAUAI 22.0N 159.4W 1311Z 0.64M / 2.1FT 26MIN
    HANALEI HI 22.2N 159.5W 1306Z 0.85M / 2.8FT 28MIN
    TERN FR. FRIGATE US 23.9N 166.3W 1224Z 0.37M / 1.2FT 16MIN
    MALAKAL KOROR PW 7.3N 134.5E 1142Z 0.10M / 0.3FT 40MIN
    LEGASPI PH 13.1N 123.8E 1049Z 0.26M / 0.8FT 58MIN
    DART 46403 52.7N 156.9W 1128Z 0.09M / 0.3FT 60MIN
    DART 52402 11.7N 154.2E 0932Z 0.29M / 0.9FT 22MIN
    DART 46408 49.6N 169.9W 1030Z 0.14M / 0.5FT 18MIN
    DART 21414 48.9N 178.3E 0927Z 0.18M / 0.6FT 24MIN
    MIDWAY 28.2N 177.4W 1054Z 1.26M / 4.1FT 12MIN
    YAP FM 9.5N 138.1E 0951Z 0.18M / 0.6FT 92MIN
    WAKE US 19.3N 166.6E 0928Z 0.38M / 1.2FT 14MIN
    SAIPAN US 15.2N 145.7E 0916Z 0.66M / 2.2FT 30MIN
    TOSASHIMIZU SHIKOKU 32.8N 133.0E 0751Z 0.93M / 3.0FT 64MIN
    OMAEZAKI HONSHU JP 34.6N 138.2E 0660Z 0.99M / 3.2FT 72MIN
    DART 21418 38.7N 148.7E 0619Z 1.07M / 3.5FT 06MIN

    LAT – LATITUDE (N-NORTH, S-SOUTH)
    LON – LONGITUDE (E-EAST, W-WEST)
    TIME – TIME OF THE MEASUREMENT (Z IS UTC IS GREENWICH TIME)
    AMPL – TSUNAMI AMPLITUDE MEASURED RELATIVE TO NORMAL SEA LEVEL.
    IT IS …NOT… CREST-TO-TROUGH WAVE HEIGHT.
    VALUES ARE GIVEN IN BOTH METERS(M) AND FEET(FT).
    PER – PERIOD OF TIME IN MINUTES(MIN) FROM ONE WAVE TO THE NEXT.

    NOTE – DART MEASUREMENTS ARE FROM THE DEEP OCEAN AND THEY
    ARE GENERALLY MUCH SMALLER THAN COASTAL MEASUREMENTS.

    EVALUATION

    A TSUNAMI HAS BEEN GENERATED THAT COULD CAUSE DAMAGE ALONG
    COASTLINES OF ALL ISLANDS IN THE STATE OF HAWAII. URGENT ACTION
    SHOULD BE TAKEN TO PROTECT LIVES AND PROPERTY.

    A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF LONG OCEAN WAVES. EACH INDIVIDUAL WAVE
    CREST CAN LAST 5 TO 15 MINUTES OR MORE AND EXTENSIVELY FLOOD
    COASTAL AREAS. THE DANGER CAN CONTINUE FOR MANY HOURS AFTER THE
    INITIAL WAVE AS SUBSEQUENT WAVES ARRIVE. TSUNAMI WAVE HEIGHTS
    CANNOT BE PREDICTED AND THE FIRST WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST.
    TSUNAMI WAVES EFFICIENTLY WRAP AROUND ISLANDS. ALL SHORES ARE AT
    RISK NO MATTER WHICH DIRECTION THEY FACE. THE TROUGH OF A TSUNAMI
    WAVE MAY TEMPORARILY EXPOSE THE SEAFLOOR BUT THE AREA WILL
    QUICKLY FLOOD AGAIN. EXTREMELY STRONG AND UNUSUAL NEARSHORE
    CURRENTS CAN ACCOMPANY A TSUNAMI. DEBRIS PICKED UP AND CARRIED
    BY A TSUNAMI AMPLIFIES ITS DESTRUCTIVE POWER. SIMULTANEOUS HIGH
    TIDES OR HIGH SURF CAN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE THE TSUNAMI HAZARD.

    THE ESTIMATED ARRIVAL TIME IN HAWAII OF THE FIRST TSUNAMI WAVE IS

    0307 AM HST FRI 11 MAR 2011

    MESSAGES WILL BE ISSUED HOURLY OR SOONER AS CONDITIONS WARRANT.
    …SP…

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    Pocono Helicopter Crash Investigation Underway


    What: ACS Helicopter LLC Bell 407 helicopter
    Where: Mount Pocono
    When: Oct 11, 2012
    Who: Two fatalities, one injury
    Why: The Tuesday wreck piloted by a full time American Airlines pilot (part time with ACS Helicopter LLC) was discovered at 2:30 a.m. wednesday. The helicopter encountered bad weather as it passed through northern Monroe County. Pocono Mountains Municipal Airport is not equipped for receiving distress calls.

    The helicopter was found on its right side, leaking fluids, with broken rotor and tail.

    Fatalities of the crash were Pilot William Ellsworth, 52, of Califon, N.J., and passenger Tighe Sullivan, 51, of Darien, Conn.

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    NTSB INVESTIGATING NEAR MIDAIR COLLISION

    National Transportation Safety Board
    Washington, DC 20594

    September 23, 2010

    NTSB INVESTIGATING NEAR MIDAIR COLLISION OVER MINNEAPOLISINVOLVING COMMERCIAL JETLINER AND SMALL CARGO AIRCRAFT

    The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a near midair collision between a commercial jetliner and a small cargo aircraft that came within an estimated 50 to 100 feet of colliding near the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport (MSP).

    On September 16, 2010, about 6:49 a.m. CDT, US Airways flight 1848 (AWE 1848), an Airbus 320, was cleared for takeoff on runway 30R en route to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, carrying five crewmembers and 90 passengers. At the same time, Bemidji Aviation Services flight 46 (BMJ46), a Beech 99 cargo flight with only the pilot aboard, was cleared for takeoff on runway 30L en route to La Crosse, Wisconsin. Weather conditions at the time were reported as a 900-foot ceiling and 10 miles visibility below the clouds.

    Immediately after departure, the tower instructed the US Airways crew to turn left and head west, causing the flight to cross paths with the cargo aircraft approximately one- half mile past the end of runway 30L. Neither pilot saw the
    other aircraft because they were in the clouds, although the captain of the US Airways flight reported hearing the Beech 99 pass nearby. Estimates based on recorded radar data indicate that the two aircraft had 50 to 100 feet of vertical separation as they passed each other approximately 1500 feet above the ground.

    The US Airways aircraft was equipped with a Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) that issued climb instructions to the crew to avert collision. The Beech 99 was not equipped with TCAS and the pilot was unaware of the proximity of the Airbus. There were no reports of damage or injuries as a result of the incident.

    NTSB and FAA investigators conducted a preliminary investigation at the Minneapolis airport traffic control tower on September 18th and 19th and are continuing to review the circumstances of this incident.

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    Disaster Drill in Springfield

    Congratulations to Springfield-Branson National Airport for a successful disaster.

    A successful disaster drill, that is, for airport, Willard, and Springfield fire departments and Cox and Mercy hospitals.

    This year staged a mock airplane on fire that had to be put out, and then actors in the wreckage portraying victims.

    At the old terminal, 20 actors were passengers who were dead or injured, and first responders were able to practice significant emergency response. Springfield-Branson National Airport is a likely location for a landing disaster situation because they have a long runway designed to accommodate a big airliner being able to land.

    Video shows actors in preparation for the disaster.

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  • |

    Ethiopian Crash Video (2)

    Terrorism has been ruled out (for now.) Of course there is no evidence yet what happened to cause this disaster, but area storms–explosive turbulence inside cumulonimbus clouds– seem to be the most likely culprit. No survivors have been found.

    Stormy weather and lightning during takeoff. No word of any survivors.

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  • Accidental death verdicts

    The death of 4 individuals–pilot, Martin Rhodes, 48, of Stoke-on-Trent, Simon Marshall, 51, of Lichfield, Ryan Birch, 15, and his father, Tony Birch, 52, of Wolverhampton, have been recorded as accidental deaths. They were flying to France in a Piper Cherokee light aircraft when it crashed close to the Isle of Wight Airport, in Sandown, on August 5, 2007.

    source http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/burtonmail-news/displayarticle.asp?id=404453 author JONATHAN HORSFALL

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