Carrier

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    Associated Jet Crash in Nigeria

    On Oct 3, 2013, a twenty-three year old Associated Aviation Embraer EMB-120 was en route from Lagos to Akure to carry the deceased regional governor and family to his funeral in Akure.

    The Embraer developed engine trouble on take-off. (The failed engine was a Pratt & Whitney.) The plane struck a wooded area, a wall and came to rest on fire, avoiding a residential area. The flight data recorder has been recovered.

    The number of people aboard has not been determined. Some sources say the flight had 20 passengers plus a crew of seven; some sources say only twenty were aboard in all. Fifteen victims lost their lives initially, and one died in the hospital.

    The four survivors were hospitalized.

    See Videos Below

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    Helicopter Pilot Dies during Fair

    Carl R Enlow was killed by a helicopter rotor at the Bloomsburg Pennsylvania town fair.

    Enlow was a former military helicopter pilot who was giving rides. He was struck after his shift, in an accident. He was med-evaced by LifeFlight helicopter to Geisinger Medical Center where he died.

    The Heritage Rotors LLC Enstrom F-28C helicopter was standing at the time of the accident, in the parking lot near gate five was in the process of gassing up between rides. Enlow was returning to the helicopter to speak to the next pilot when apparently his hat blew off and he reached for it.

    The Bloomsburg Fair Association is donating their profit from the rides to Enlow’s widow, and a memorial fund is being arranged.

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    First Responders Compromise Investigation

    The first responders to the Sunday crash in India’s Naneghat Hills compromised the investigation of a crash by moving the wreckage before investigators arrived. The United Helicharters flight from Juhu to Aurangabad to Nagpur crashed in the Naneghat Hills at an altitude of 2,000 feet.

    The bodies of the deceased and the flight data recorders were also removed before the DGCA arrived.

    Two pilots and three passengers died in the twin-engine Bell 212 crash during a foggy flight. The crash occurred on Sept 29, 2013 at 8:15 a.m..

    Protocol demands that except for rescue of survivors, the wreckage not be touched until the DGCA has arrived.

    Police and fire teams removed the bodies of captain Anshu Kumar Matta, captain Surendra Singh Bhadauria, co captain Allen Martin, technician Dean D’Souza and engineer Yatin Wakde, whose bodies were burned in the crash. The recovery team also failed to record the recovery process which is a violation of protocol, just as in the Mangalore crash.

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    Cessna Accident in Santa Monica


    A hangar collapsed in flames after a twin-engine Cessna 525A CitationJet CJ2 owned by Creative Real Estate Exchange veered into it while landing at Santa Monica Municipal Airport.

    The Cessna had flown from Hailey, Idaho and landed in Santa Monica at 6:20 pm.

    Witnesses said it looked like a normal landing till it veered off course. The burning plane made three explosions. The number of people aboard the plane has not been released, but it is reported as “unsurvivable.”

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    Emergency Diversion in Brazil

    An Avianca Brazil Airbus A318-100 en route from Porto Alegre to Sao Paulo had taken off from Porto Alegre’s runway 11 when the plane developed problems with the hydraulics system.

    After burning off fuel, the pilots returned to Porto Alegre and made a safe landing.

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    Crash in Bank Lot


    On Sept 25, Kentucky doctor and his wife who were flying a GDK International LLC-owned Cirrus SR20 G2 to the Chicago area to attend a medical conference when their plane struck a tree, a light post and several cars in Bolingbrook. The pilot had aborted a landing, and never completed the go-around back to the airport

    The wrecked plane ended up in a Chase Bank parking lot.

    The plane was consumed by fire. The surgeon, Dr. Narayan Venguswamy made it out of the plane but he was burning

    Witnesses tried to stifle the flames with a sweatshirt. He was hospitalized at Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital then Loyola University Medical center, where he died.

    His wife died at the scene. Several cares in the parking lot also caught fire.

    Several Videos below
    *Note: If videos autostart simultaneously, turn off the sound, wait till the “ads” play out, then click individual videos to stop/start. (If you click during the ad, you go to the advertiser instead of the news. Sorry about the ads folks!)

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    El Dorado Airport: Avianca Airbus Skids off Runway


    Avianca Airbus A318 en route from Bogota to Armenia-El Edén Airport was taking off when it veered right with its nose gear mired in the soft ground.

    El Dorado Airport crews responded to the scene. The accident occurred during taxi prior to taking off. Flight 9847 had been scheduled to depart at 2:15 pm Saturday in Bogota to Armenia.

    There were 83 people aboard the plane at the time of the incident, none of whom were injured.

    Passengers were provided an alternative flight.

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    Navy Helicopter Crashes in Red Sea

    A United States Navy Sikorsky MH-60S Sea Hawk assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 6 crashed in the Red Sea on Sunday. Three of the five aboard are recuperating. Two are missing and presumed dead. The crew is from Naval Air Station North Island. (San Diego)

    The USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is supporting the rescue efforts. The crash is reported as an attempted landing on the deck.

    The names of the two lost at sea have not been released. All of the crew wore floatation devices and safety gear-

    See News Video Below

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    Four Dead in Passenger Plane Crash, Lyon


    Photographer Rolando Criniti

    A privately owned Cessna 421C Golden Eagle en route from Lyon Bron Airport to Aix-Les-Milles/Aix En Provence Airport took off then crashed near Lyon, France. The four passengers, one of whom ejected) died in the crash.



    The plane crashed in a field near the end of the runway. Fifty firefighters and sixteen vehicles, nvestigators from the RCMP Air Transport and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, responded to the scene. Four charred bodies were found in the plane, one without. Prefect Stéphane Rouvé and Lyon Prosecutor Marc Cinamonti visited the wreckage.

    The names of the passengers have not been released.

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    Mahan Air Rejects Takeoff

    On September 23, 2013, a Mahan Air Boeing 747 en route from Kerman to Medinah aborted takeoff.

    Fourteen of the 419 aboard were injured. There were 25 crew aboard also.

    The flight was aborted after damage to the tires occurred.

    There is no indication if injuries occurred due to the emergency slides or if they were a consequence of the rejected take-off. (We tend to assume that it is the crew who is most likely to be up and about during takeoff, and most likely injured; but emergency slide injuries of exiting passengers are common.)

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    Indigo Emergency Landing

    No injuries occurred when Indigo Airlines #6E125 Airbus veered off the runway and hit runway lights at Bangalore International Airport. The incident closed the runway for hours, diverting more than ten flights.

    110 passengers and six crew escaped injury when the plane landed in heavy rain and hydroplaned off the runway veering to the right and damaging the landing gear tires on the right side of the plane.

    Alarmist newspaper headlines called the event “a narrow escape” for Indigo passengers. This was probably something of an exaggeration, though it probably felt terrifying at the time.

    The DGCA is investigating.

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    Ethiopian Airlines Diverts to Malta

    On Sept 19, 2013, an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 757-231 was en route from Rome to Addis Ababa when one engine developed problems.

    The flight was diverted to Malta, where they made a safe landing with one engine.

    None of the 135 aboard were injured.

    The flight took off again later, for Addis Ababa.

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    Flight diverts to Stansted

    A Sri Lankan Airlines plane en route from Colombo to Heathrow diverted to Stansted to make an emergency landing after two passengers endangered the plane. One of the passengers said “something” was in the luggage hold.

    The 267 passengers and crew were uninjured. The two passengers were taken into custody. One is undergoing medical treatment in a hospital and one is at Harlow Police station.

    The investigation is being handled as a criminal matter.

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    Australia: Near Miss

    Two planes that had a near miss avoided a collision by about 700 vertical feet were over Perth when one of the pilot’s collision collision alarm alerted him of the impending collision.

    Flight QF581 from Sydney to Perth had gotten permission from ATC to go from 38,000ft which put them on a collision course with incoming QF 576.

    Both planes swerved out of the way over Gulf St. Vincent.

    Qantas Airbus A330-200, flight QF-576 was en route from Perth,WA to Sydney,NS. Qantas Airbus A330-200 was from Sydney,NS to Perth,WA. ATC gave clearance to QF581 whose pilot had averted disaster by the time clearance was rescinded.

    The “loss of separation” incident is under investigation.

    According to the vice-president of the Australian and International Pilots Association, TCAS typically warns about 25 seconds out.

    * ACAS / TCAS (In-cockpit) TA alerts when there is a risk of collision in 40 seconds.


    Video

    TCAS ALERT

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    What is the Value of a Human Life?

    In case you forgot, Dana Air Flight 992 is the McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft en route from Abuja to Lagos, Nigeria which crashed on June 3rd 2012, in the Iju-Ishaga neighbourhood of Lagos, demolishing a furniture works and printing press building.

    The accident, a combination of engine failure and subsequent forced landing, killed 163 people, ten of them on the ground. Eleven miles from the airport, the MD-83 crashed on its tail. It and the neighborhood went up in flames.

    Why do I bring this up now, a little over a year later?

    Because 11 families have received $100,000 each–

    Because sixty-five families whose compensation payments have not been made, due largely to documentation issues and they are suing Dana Air —

    Dana Air claims “95 of 125 families have received interim compensation of $30,000.”

    I have been reading rhetoric lauding Dana Air for making what someone calls “unprecedented progress” in paying compensation.

    Putting the value of a human life at $100,000 is lowballing the value of life. I am surprised that anyone would be commending such devaluation.

    Is the operator looking for a gold medal for forking over a mere $100,000 for a loss of life?

    Is this all a life is worth in that part of the world or is this something Dana insurer is declaring a fair compensation?

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    Drunken Pilot Detained in Leeds

    A pilot caught drunk in the cockpit of a Pakistan International Airways Airbus is in custody, and bound to appear in court in October over the breech of trust. PIA suspended the 20 year pilot.

    The UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “A pilot attempting to fly while under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs is a major threat to flight safety.”

    Irfan Faiz was four times over the legal limit when he was taken into custody, and charged with “breaching the trust of the public.”

    He was arrested as he was carrying out pre-flight checks. Officers had him take a breath test at ten pm just prior to his scheduled ten pm. flight of an Airbus 310 from Leeds to Islamabad. 177 passengers were put up at hotels when the pilot was removed.

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    American Airlines Diversion to San Andres

    An American Airlines 757 from San Jose, Costa Rica to Miami, Florida diverted to San Andres at 9.45 a.m. when there was smoke in the cockpit. Pilots made a safe landing in rainy conditions.

    No injuries were reported to the 172 passengers or six crew members aboard. No cause for the smoke has been reported yet. Passengers exited the plane prior to it being examined.

    Caracol TV reported that there was a “mechanical issue” behind the diversion

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    Missing Helicopter Found, Confirmed Death of Margarita Afanaskin


    On Sept 14, 2013, an Agusta Westland AW119 Koala en route from Chinggis Khaan International Airport in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia to Myakinino in Krasnogorsk, Moscow went missing near Tver Oblast. The last conversation between the pilot and ATC took place at 13:14 when the plane was flying over Staritskogo in heavy rain with low visibility. There are conflicting reports that the helicopter landed at a lumberjack festival with a number of people aboard, and that the commander of the aircraft was 30-year-old helicopter champion of Europe and Russia, Margarita Afanaskin was flying the helicopter to a Yakhroma airfield when the helicopter went missing. This has not been confirmed.

    The search team involved more than 100 people from diverse agencies, including the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry: 25 people 5 units from the Federal Air Transport Agency; 6 people, 3 units and participating police officers, foresters, volunteers. The rescue hotline released at the time was (4822) 39-99-99.?. Four Robinson helicopters and a Mi-8 helicopter searched Saturday.

    The search continued through the end of the fourteenth, and resumed the morning of the fifteenth.

    At 18:11 on September 16, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that helicopters in the area of ??the village Selco Staritskogo district of Tver region, from the air sighted the possible wreckage of the vehicle. Ground forces confirmed the bodies of a man and a woman whose names were not initially released; but since then the pilot was confirmed, and the passenger of the helicopter was the head of a department of the Federal Forestry Agency, Sergei Medvedev.

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    EasyJet Emergency Landing in Pisa

    On Sept 14, 2013, an Easyjet Airbus en route from Pisa to London was taking off from Pisa when it suffered a bird strike.

    The pilots entered a holding pattern and made a safe landing in Pisa around 11:30.

    THe extent of the damage to the plane #G-EZIZ is not known.

    No injuries were reported.

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    Engine Falls Off of Plane


    Here’s something we don’t hear too often:

    A plane’s propeller blade broke off, vibrated and the plane’s engine broke and fell off during flight. People survived this, so we can presume the flight didn’t get too high.

    On Sept 10, 2013, a Vintage Wings of Canada Boeing PT-27 Stearman took off and crashed with two aboard.

    The plane crashed right after takeoff from McGill Airfield. The two aboard the plane suffered minor injuries.

    Fire trucks and ambulances responded to the scene.

    Photo found on Twitter

    The incident is being investigated by Canadian Transportation Safety board.

    Canadian Aviation Daily Reporting System reported this as:

    A Vintage Wings of Canada Boeing B75N1 (C-GKUE) from Brandon, MB (CYBR) to St. Andrews, MB (CYAV) crashed on departure from runway 26 at CYBR. Emergency services and RCMP responded. RCC, TSB, NOC and CACO all advised.

    Update AOR 166176-V1: A Vintage Wings of Canada Boeing B75N1 (C-GKUE) from Brandon, MB (CYBR) to St. Andrews, MB (CYAV) departed runway 26 and shortly after take-off the engine was observed detached from the aircraft. Aircraft went vertical and then crashed onto the runway. ARFF responded in 2 minutes. Runway 08/26 closed at 1807Z. As a result, Westjet Encore (WJE3242) DH8D diverted to Winnipeg, MB and a private M20P returned to Portage La Prairie, MB. Runway was re-opened at 1950Z.

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    Plane Hits Car in Detroit


    Hello three stooges airport, Detroit.

    Delta Expressjet Flight 5365 was backing up before taking off for Tulsa (picture cartoon airplane backing up, and running in place. You know how cartoon figures always do that before they go fast…)

    The wingtip of the Expressjet plane got stuck in the window of a vehicle around 4 pm on Sept 9 2013.

    The vehicle is owned, operated and parked on the tarmac of Detroit Metro Airport by Skychef, which caters food for airlines.

    I wonder if Skychef caters food for Expressjet? I wonder if SkyChef should paint their vehicles bright orange and haul on their roof a Times-Square sized Bulletin board that says “Don’t Hit Me, I’m Just the Caterer.”

    Apparently the car was stationary and the plane was backing up when the hang-up occurred.

    Maybe the Skychef vehicle was where it was supposed to be, since they’ve got to get food to the planes. We’re pretty sure that the plane was where it was supposed to be. In fact, we’re not sure if we should be sending a bucket of pavement striping paint to the airport, or a pair of those rear view glasses advertised on the back of a comic book to the pilot. Heads up folks. That could be a very expensive fender bender.

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    Three Die in Canadian Coast Guard Helicopter Crash

    CCGS_Amundsen_in_the_Arctic
    Three people died in a Canadian Coast Guard crash of a *MBB Bo 105 helicopter.

    The accident occurred in the McClure Strait near Banks Island in the Northwest Territories. THe helicopter was out of CCGS Amundsen, a T1200 Class Medium Arctic icebreaker and Arctic research vessel operated by the Canadian Coast Guard which performs ice breaking in winter, research in summer and is equipped for search and rescue, and pollution management.

    The helicopter crew was on a reconnaissance mission to check ice conditions.

    The names of the fatalities were released:

    • Daniel Dube, the pilot;
    • Marc Thibault, commanding officer of the CCGS Amundsen;
    • Klaus Hochheim, an Arctic researcher, a respected climatologist and research associate with the Centre for Earth Observation Science (CEOS) at the University of Manitoba.

    Their bodies were recovered.

    The cause of the accident has not been determined, though it is presumed the Arctic being “one of the harshest and most challenging climates in the world” may be a factor, though failure of helicopter components has not been ruled out.

    * Messerschmitt

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    Russian Helicopter Crash Kills 3


    On Sept 9, a DOSAAF-operated Mil Mi-2 helicopter en route from Starorusskoye to Poronaysk Russia crashed with three aboard on Sakhalin Island. There were no survivors. The helicopter, registration HS-TEF, is a total loss.

    The crew was monitoring rivers when it crashed about 30 kilometers from Dolinsk.

    Emergency services responded, including the Dolinskogo fire squad, the Russian Emergency Management Services group and an Antonov An-2 aircraft out of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk airport. THe fire was extinguished at 1:45 pm.

    The cause of the accident is under investigation and no conclusions have been drawn. Visibility and weather conditions at the time were good according to the Center for Crisis Management of the Main Directorate of the Russian Emergencies Ministry.

    DOSAAF is an acronym for the Russian Volunteer Society for Cooperation with the Army, Aviation, and Fleet.

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    Thai Airways Airbus with Nosegear Failure skids off Bangkok runway, 14 Hospitalized


    A Thai Airways International Airbus A330-321 en route from Guangzhou Baiyun International to Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi International (i.e. China to Thailand) had a runway excursion when it landed at its destination.

    Fortunately emergency services were on hand to put out the fire that started in the engine.

    The Thai Airways statement said there was a “landing gear malfunction.”

    The plane went off the right side of the runway, and the nosegear failed.

    There were fourteen crew and 388 passengers. Fourteen people were injured and hospitalized in Bangkok. Emergency slides were used to exit the plane. We presume the injuries occurred on the emergency slides.

    Theguardian reported that Thai Airways covered up the logo after the accident. This practice is known as the “crisis communication rule” from Star Alliance, and is a measure to save face and reputation.

    See Footage below