Carrier

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    A380 Emergency Landing at Shamshabad

    What: Emirates A380 en route from Bangkok to Dubai
    Where: Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad
    When: October 23, 2011, 3:40 a.m.
    Who: 481 passengers
    Why: While en route, the plane developed problems. Pilots planned to land in Chennai but could not get clearance, and diverted instead to Shamshabad, where they were able to be cleared to land.

    The flight did land safely. The passengers disembarked with no reported injuries, and were provided a plane to take them the rest of the way to Dubai. Some took alternative flights.

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    Journalists Die in Belarus Chopper Crash

    What: Belarusian Eurocopter AS 355NP Ecureuil II AS355 NP border patrol helicopter
    Where: Lithuanian border about 800 metres from Vileity
    When: October 20 2011, 3:45 p.m
    Who: 5 fatalities
    Why: Three journalists, Vitaly Prochkovsky, 36; Sergei Shamalov, 39; and Yulia Shaternik, 28 died working on a report about border security for Union, a Belarus television and radio company. Pilots Igor Skvortsov and Andrew Pekarsky also died in in the crash. The chopper circled a house, and fell out of the sky. The Twin Squirrel helicopter they were on crashed for an unknown reason. Forester Elena Kirplyuk witnessed the crash. Crash site specialists converged on the scene. An investigation is underway.

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    Air India Emergency Landing in Bhopal

    What: Air India Airbus A319-100 en route from Bhopal to Indore
    Where: Bhopal
    When: Oct 19th 2011
    Who: 70 passengers
    Why: The Air India flight took off normally but once in the air developed a hydraulic failure.

    The flight returned to the airport and made a safe landing after being in the air for a quarter of an hour.

    Passengers were booked on alternative flights.

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    Sky King Flight Cancelled

    What: Sky King/Direct Air Boeing 737-200 en route from Lakeland,FL to Niagara Falls,NY
    Where: Lakeland
    When: Oct 15th 2011
    Why: The charter flight took off once and returned to the Lakeland with cabin pressure problems, then took off again, again with cabin pressure problems.

    The passengers were booked on alternative flights.

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    Lufthansa Oil Pressure Down over Cologne


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Ruud Brinks – Aerospray

    What: Lufthansa Cityline Embraer ERJ-190 en route from Frankfurt to Hanover
    Where: Cologne
    When: Oct 21st 2011
    Who: 41 passengers and 5 crew
    Why: After takeoff from Frankfurt, an engine was shut down (for the second day in a row). The pilots diverted to Cologne where they made a safe landing. Passengers were driven to Hanover.

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    British Airways Engine Shut Down over Atlantic


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Gary Claridge-king

    What: British Airways Boeing 777-200 en route from Santa Maria Azores Islands (Portugal) to London Heathrow
    Where: Atlantic
    When: Oct 19th 2011
    Why: While en route to Portugal, one of the plane’s four engines (right engine) had to be shut down after experiencing a problem with the oil pressure. The flight diverted to Lisbon, and made a safe landing.

    The same plane had had a similar problem on October 16th, and had diverted at that point to Santa Maria.

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    Turbulence Injury over Rhode Island


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Rodolfo García López

    What: US Airways Boeing 767-200 en route from Philadelphia, to Frankfurt Germany
    Where: Providence
    When: Oct 19th 2011
    Who: One injury
    Why: While while en route over west Providence over Rhode Island, an encounter with turbulence resulted in a serious injury to a passenger’s ankle. The flight returned to Philadelphia due to the medical emergency. Departure was delayed. The flight did land in Frankfurt about four hours late.

  • Another Flight 447 Fatality

    Air France-KLM tossed out its CEO Pierre-Henri Gourgeon, another fall guy in the ongoing disaster of Air France Flight 447.

    Mr. Spinetta who ran Air France from 1999 until 2009 will resume his role at the helm until the expected replacement is Alexandre de Juniac, advisor to the French Minister of Finances takes the helm.

    Gourgan had been in conflict Jean-Cyril Spinetta.French politics as usual.

    Gourgeon, a former fighter pilot, had been re-appointed in July for a four year term. However, a committee made up of Jean-Francois Dehecq, Patricia Barbizet, Jean-Marc Espalioux and Cornelis van Lede chose to fire him Gourgan.

    An interim report on the crash said pilots of the plane had not received training. Management has since then assessed it’s training program.

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    Iran Air Sans Nose Gear



    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Aleksey Lisitsyn

    What: Iran Air Boeing 727-200 en route from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Tehran Imam Khomeini
    Where: Tehran
    When: Oct 18th 2011
    Who: 94 passengers and 19 crew
    Why: On approach to Imam Khomeini Airport, the crew aborted the approach due to a landing gear issue. The crew diverted the flight to Mehrabad Airport (also in Tehran).

    The fly by at Mehrabad indicated the nose gear issue was actual, and not an indicator problem.

    The crew landed without the nose gear on the main gear, and the runway had been foamed. There were no reported injuries.

    In George’s Point of View


    Maintenance, Maintenance, Maintenance!

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    Non-Compliance Results in FAA Fines

    $160,000 in penalties may be levied against SkyWest Airlines.

    Four passenger flights failed to follow cargo and baggage documentation procedures, resulting in weight, balance, cargo and baggage load data errors.

    Four flights went out without a load manifest that accurately reflected the weight of the cargo and baggage, when the total weight of the aircraft was not computed under approved procedures, and when the aircraft were not loaded according to an approved load schedule.

    SkyWest has paid civil penalties in eight similar previous cases.

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    First Officer Attacked by Stairway


    What: Virgin Australia/Pacific Blue Boeing 737-800 en route from Brisbane,QL to Denpasar Bali
    Where: Brisbane
    When: Oct 14th 2011
    Who: 1st officer
    Why: The plane was in its parking bay as the first officer was inspecting the plane prior to departure, when the exhaust of a departing Qantas jet blew the mobile stairs, including the first officer, over. Both stairs and pilot ended up on the tarmac, the first officer ending up with a broken arm and leg. The plane was in its parking bay. The pilot departed for the hospital, presumably by ambulance, and the plane departed for Bali, with only a 90 minute delay.

    I don’t think I’ve ever heard of this happening!

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    Delta MD-88 Emergency Landing in Cincinnati

    What: Delta McDonnell Douglas MD-88 en route from Flint Michigan to Atlanta Georgia
    Where: Cincinnati
    When: Oct 18, 2011
    Who: 130 passengers, 6 crew
    Why: While en route, the cabin began to smell “smokey.” The crew diverted to Cincinnati where they made a safe landing. They disembarked, and were able to leave Cincinnati around noon. The cause of the smokey smell was not released.

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    MD-83 Diverts to Bilbao with Cabin Pressure problem


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Pieter-Jan Van De Vijver

    What: Spanair McDonnell Douglas MD-83 from Ovideo to Barcelona
    Where: Bilbao
    When: Oct 13th 2011
    Who: 96 passengers
    Why: While en route, the plane developed problems with cabin pressure. The pilots diverted to Bilbao, where they made a safe landing.

    Passengers were provided alternate flights.

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    Ministry Opinion on PNG crash

    What: PNG Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-8-102
    Where: 20 km (12.5 mls) S of Madang Airport (MAG) (Papua New Guinea)
    When: Oct 13, 2011
    Who: 4 crew, 28 passengers, 4 survivors
    Why: The Png flight crashed 20 miles south of Madang, and was lost and later discovered on fire. 28 died in the crash, but pilots, one passenger and an attendant survived. The Australian Captain broke both legs in the crash. The surviving passenger is a Chinese man who incurred serious burns.

    “Based on the information that the pilot gave to the towers which was there’s smoke coming out of the engines and we’re running out of power, doing a forced landing, that’s what they said, which resulted in it crash landing.” The Ministry of Civil Aviation in Papua NG announced unofficially that there was a mechanical problem with the plane. The black box was recovered and sent to Australia for analysis.

    A Canadian team from de Havilland is doing an independent investigation.

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    Bomb Threat Calls for Marriage Counseling

    What: China United Airlines flight en route from Beijing to Urumqi
    Where: Jiayuguan Airport in Gansu province
    When: Oct 13, 2011
    Who: Mrs. Wang
    Why: Apparently 27 year old Mrs Wang wanted to make her husband worry, so she made a fake bomb and said it was aboard the flight, which diverted to Jiayuguan Airport. There was no actual bomb, which investigators discovered, and the plane was sent on its way after the inspection.

    Mrs. Wang was detained. Her husband was not aboard the plane.

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    Missing Russian Chopper Located, All 7 Alive


    View Large
    Contact the photographer Michael Hohryakov

    What: Russian Emergency Chopper Mil Mi-8MTV-1 #RF-31129
    Where: Altan, Trans-Baikal area Russia
    When: 09-OCT-2011
    Who: 7 aboard
    Why: The missing chopper was located and all aboard are alive. 15 units of equipment and 115 rescuers were engaged in the search. When the flight failed to check in at 12:45, it was declared missing.

    Three crew members and 4 Avialesookhrana representitives were all in good condition, found in the Trans-Baikal region of Kyrinskom. An emergency chopper picked up the 7 and flew them to the First Municipal Hospital in Chita.

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    Papua New Guinea 28 Die in Violent Storm, Forest Crash on the Banks of the Gogol


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Raymond Ngu


    What: PNG Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-8-102
    Where: 20 km (12.5 mls) S of Madang Airport (MAG) (Papua New Guinea)
    When: Oct 13, 2011
    Who: 4 crew, 28 passengers, 4 survivors
    Why: About 5.15pm, while en route from Lae to Madang, the flight went down in dense forest in bad weather. The pilots managed to send a distress call. Four survivors were pulled from the wreckage and taken to Yamad clinic. The survivors include an 64 year old Australian pilot and a New Zealand pilot and an Asian passenger who was sitting in the seventh seat, who crawled through a crack in the fuselage, and who suffered burns on 27% of his body (including back and arms). Survivors are being transported by boat to Modilon hospital in Madang.

    First responders were initially blocked when they could not cross the Guabe river, then a boat suffered engine problems, then the third attempt made it to the scene of the crash. A violent storm and dense forest hampered the rescue efforts, which were facilitated by chopper.

    Australia engaged four army Blackhawk helicopters to assist in the rescue. Rescuers on the Gogol river were impeded due to heavy rains. It took four boats to reach the crash site.

    PNG quarantined Laes Nadzab airport and grounded the Dash 8 fleet.

    Witnesses saw the plane crash on the Guabe River bank and on impact, burst into flame. Most of the passengers were local Papuan parents of Madang’s Divine Word University students. According to a resort manager who went to pick them up from the airport, six of the plane’s occupants — one passenger and five crew members – had reservations to stay at Madang Resort.

    PNG Accident Investigation Commission’s spokesman Sid O’Toole talked to the media.

    PNG Airlines released the following:

    POMSOX/MEDIA RELEASE – PORT MORESBY 10:30 PM THURSDAY, 13th OCTOBER 2011 – AIRLINES PNG ANNOUNCEMENT


    We are sad to confirm that there has been an accident involving an Airlines PNG Dash 8 aircraft near Madang late Thursday afternoon.

    Emergency services have been activated and Airlines PNG is co-operating with authorities to mount rescue and recovery efforts.

    There were 28 passengers and 4 crew members on board. There appear to be some survivors while a number of people remain unaccounted for.

    Airlines PNG is working with the emergency service authorities to confirm this information in more detail.

    A full investigation is underway by authorities and Airlines PNG as to the possible cause of the accident.

    Airlines PNG fully supports the action of local authorities at Lae who have quarantined aviation fuel at Lae airport from where the aircraft originated.

    Airlines PNG has also grounded its Dash 8 fleet of 12 aircraft until further notice.

    Our prayers and thoughts are now with all those affected by this very sad day for Papua New Guinea.

    For further information contact:

    Media Relations:

    Email: media.relations@apng.com

    AYMD 130602Z 1308/1320 12008KT 9999 SHRA SCT016 SCT030 BKN140 Q1009 1011 1010 1008
    AYMD 122301Z 1302/1314 12010KT 9999 SHRA SCT016 SCT030 BKN140 Q1010 1008 1009 1011

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    Coming Soon: Step by Step Reconstruction of Sol Líneas Aéreas Flight 5428


    In a Saab 340 simulation, two pilots are attempting to reconstruct how the pilots managed on May 18 in the Sol Líneas Aéreas Flight 5428 crash in Prahuaniyeu, 16 miles south-west of the town of Los Menucos, Río Negro, Argentina, crash that killed 22. The information sources were the black boxes, (flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder) including records of the dialogue and sounds in the cockpit and flight operations.

    Those interested in the results include Judge Bariloche Leónidas Molde, the court clerk, the prosecutor, and an aeronautical engineer, and representatives of the Accident Investigation Board for Civil Aviation (JIAAC). JIAAC’s September preliminary report indicated that the pilots were responsible for the accident.

    A new voice transcription to be used includes noise in the cabin, like the sound of alarms. The experts will use a certified replica of the plane that crashed in the Black River and the black boxes to establish what happened to cause the flight to crash. 19 seconds of audio before the impact was badly damaged and a team is currently trying to rescue the audio.

    The simulation will recreate the flight based on both the voices of the pilots and data from the Flight Data Recorder.

    The trial will last two days. The date of a final report has not been set.

    Individuals in noncompliance of official procedures and lacking official documentation may be excluded from participation. Also, some question Saab involvement but rather than this being a conflict of interest, they are engaged as responsible technical experts on their own machines. Family members just want to hear the actual transcribed voices of their loved ones.

    We may be talking about this again, since final analysis reports can take so long, and may or may not be conclusive.

    Src: http://www.clarin.com/sociedad/Tragedia-Sol-simulador-reconstruyen-vuelo_0_571142968.html

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    Tire, Landing Gear Fail on Sky Airlines Antalya Landing


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Szabolcs Kelemen

    What: Sky Airlines Boeing 737-400 en route from Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden (Germany) to Antalya (Turkey)
    Where: Antalya on
    When: Oct 10th 2011
    Who: 156 passengers and 6 crew
    Why: After a normal flight, on landing in Turkey, the plane’s right main gear collapsed when a right tire burst.

    One cause for a burst tire is a hard or fast landing, or the state of the runway. The cause has not yet been determined.

    In the accident photos (according to AV gossip), the logo has been painted out with white paint.

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    ANA Turbulence over Japan


    Japan airways registration JA623J. The incident occurred on JA624A
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer ciel

    What: ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 767-300 en route from Singapore to Tokyo
    Where: South China Sea
    When: Oct 9th 2011
    Who: 176 passengers and 10 crew
    Why: During breakfast, the flight encountered turbulence which injured five aboard. Those injured included three of the crew.

    Wake turbulence has been suggested. If so, details will show up in the investigation.

    The flight made a safe landing in Tokyo.

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    Venezuelan Plane Rejects Take off


    Pictured: Plane similar to YV445T which was involved in the incident
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer José de Jesús González – SVZM Spotters

    What: Aeropostal McDonnel Douglas MD-82 en route from Valencia to Porlama
    Where: Valencia Venezuela
    When: Oct 8th 2011
    Why: On takeoff from Valencia, an engine failed. (The same fault was repeated the next day.)

    The pilots rejected takeoff.

    The flight was cancelled.

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    Emergency landing in St Petersburg Russia


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Petr Gorbunov

    What: Rossiya Airbus A319-100 en route from St. Petersburg to Moscow
    Where: St. Petersburg, Russia
    When: Oct 7th 2011
    Why: After takeoff, the plane developed engine failure in the left engine.

    The pilots shut down the left engine and returned to make a safe landing.

    The flight was in the air less than twenty minutes. A replacement jet was provided within three hours.

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    Entrepreneur, Dies Piloting Plane, 2 Sons, Woman Passenger, 4 dead

    What: Pilot/operator Ângelo Rafaeli D’élia Beechcraft V35 Bonanza # PT-CTL en route from Ponta Porã to Viracopos-Campinas
    Where: Marabá Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil
    When: October 1, 2011, 21:30
    Who: 4 fatalities
    Why: In the night, as rain was falling, the Beechcraft Bonanza en route for Campinas in Sao Paulo never made it to its destination, but crashed on farmland near Marabá Paulista, leaving a five foot crater. Four people died in the crash: entrepreneur Ângelo Rafaeli D’elia, 51, who was piloting the aircraft, the children Bruna D’Elia, 18 and Rafael Ângelo, 12 years, and Syhlvia Katheiny Torreta.

    Reports are that the pilot was lost, and that someone aboard the plane was sick. They asked for assistance from London’s control tower.

    Locals reported hearing an explosion when the plane impacted the ground.

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    British Airways: Take This Class and Please Don’t Die on Our Plane

    Take This Class and Please Don’t Die on Our Plane. That will be £125. Thank you for not dying on British Airways.

    British Airways has a problem.

    It seems that they developed a class for British Petroleum. You see, BP sends their staff to remote locations which are only served by airlines on the EU banned list. As we described it on the last article the last time we talked about it, these poor BA employees ended up on flights on planes that skydivers wouldn’t touch with a ten foot parachute.

    Anyway, this class they worked up must now be like a friday night paycheck burning a hole in their pocket. You see, they keep trying to market this class as a product. Like the guy who gets stuck with a warehouse full of Widgets. The first time we heard this, the class was being offered for purchase, and the purpose of the class was to teach aviation safety and how to behave during a crash to increase your likelihood of not dying on their plane.

    We think the whole thing is kind of fishy, since the plane is not supposed to crash. Landing safety is the airline’s responsibility, not an option. I wouldn’t keep writing about this but I keep getting notices about this class.

    So they’re now looking for a new market, and they’ve found it. They announced that the£125 four hour class on how to survive a plane crash will be available for FREE. Or actually, only free to passengers who want to pay in mileage points, i.e. rich people. So. Rich people can pay in points (or perks) to get a lesson on how not to die. If anyone else wants to be safe, you’re going to have to ante up the cash.

    We are not really arguing against the class, if they want to provide it. Maybe it will make some people feel safer. (Though probably not. Why would you take a course in how to crash if you thought you were going to land safely? It’s probably going to be full of white-knuckled flyers anyway.) We just believe that, since arriving safely is the responsibility of the airline, that the class should be for free. After all, we don’t charge school students for fire drills.