Cause

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    Southwest #762 Diverts to Boise

    While en route from Seattle to Phoenix, a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 flight 762 suffered a cracked windshield. Pilots made an emergency landing in Boise at Gowen Field. The plane went to maintenance, and the 143 passengers had to wait for another flight to get to Phoenix.

    The cabin never lost air pressure but had to dump fuel to make a safe landing.

    FOX 10 News | myfoxphoenix.com

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    Hot Cows Set off Alarms

    Cow
    Almost 400 cows aboard a Boeing 747 heated the craft up so much they set off the fire alarm. Pilots diverted from their location over the Irish sea, and made a safe landing at Heathrow.

    This did not happen April 1st, so we are presuming it is an actual event.

    None of the 390 cattle were injured. The carrier may wish to remain nameless as the name of airline involved was not released, perhaps fearing a reduction in cattle bookings. (Yes, this is sarcasm. Cows can’t read and their choice of carrier is not likely to hinge on written emergency reports.)

    After landing, maintenance crews checked the plane’s fire alarm system and found no smoke or fire, concluding that cows were the culprits causing excessive heat. We assume none of the cows were smoking.

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    Chinese Cargo Flight Runway Excursion in Taiwan

    China Airlines Cargo Boeing 747-409F was en route from Abu Dhabi to Taipei when it suffered runway excursion on landing. The right landing gear went off the runway on landing, damaging runway lights, a taxi light and tires. The gear left a track of 570 feet

    The airport advance team measured, tested the aircraft, performed preliminary interviews with the pilot, removed the CVR FDR and collected data. The preliminary report is being developed according to http://www.asc.gov.tw/asc_ch/news_list_2.asp?news_no=530

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    MH370: One Ping Does Not A Discovery Make. Or Does it?

    An underwater locator beacon (ULB) such as the one on the black boxes (CVR) Cockpit Voice Recorder and FDR (Flight Data Recorder) of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 on 37.5 kHz for about 30 days at 4°C temperature. They run on lithium-ion batteries, and “mileage” may vary; 30 days is the minimum expectation. This is all relevant to today’s news because the Chinese patrol ship Haixun 01 which is one of the ships equipped with a pinger locator, has heard a ping in the South Indian Ocean.

    The particular frequency was selected because it is not one that occurs in nature.

    Although Malaysia Airlines told the public that “This battery is not replaceable,” the ULB batteries had been scheduled for battery replacement in 2012, but were not replaced by Dukane Seacom, the original equipment manufacturer of the beacons. (Dukane Seacom either replaces the entire pinger or installed new batteries.) If replacement was not performed by toe OEM or other parties, the actual ping time may be less than 30 days.

    One ping in an ocean does not a discovery make. The wreckage has not been located, nor the ping confirmed. But we can still hope this is a step in the right direction.

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    Delta Flight 886 Diverts to JFK Airport; Rolls off the Taxiway

    250px-Delta_logo.svgDelta Airlines Flight 886 had to make an emergency landing at John F. Kennedy International Airport, due to a fault in plane’s hydraulic system.

    The plane was en route from Atlanta to LaGuardia Airport. However, as the fault was detected, it was diverted to the JFK airport.

    The airline told that the decision of diversion was made because the JFK airport has longer runways than the LaGuardia Airport.

    The McDonald Douglas MD8 aircraft made a safe landing at about 9pm on Wednesday, April 2. But the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey told that while taxiing to the terminal, it skidded off the taxi way, on to the grassy area.
    There were 118 passengers and 5 crew members on board. None of them was injured.

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    New Black Boxes with one big Upgrade

    The thirty-day ping life that black boxes are known for is about to be history, thanks to Radiant Power Corp, and Air France 477. After AF447, U.S. and European agencies decided to raise their expectations of black boxes. In 2011, they mandated a requirement that acoustic emergency transmitters be powered for at least 90 days. But with the rapid-fire application (standard for aviation procedures) that standard goes into effect next year. Associations like the FAA and the NTSB, and the BEA in France are cognizant of the size of airlines fleets, and the prohibitive cost of upgrades; so it is common for safety standards to take a long time to go into effect.

    If they had raised the bar sooner and faster, MH370 might have had a bigger “ping” window, but the black box batteries are quickly coming to the end of their span.

    Recommendations included the standard of expecting a new, lower-frequency emergency locator on every airliner, in addition to the 90 day battery-life.

    The video Below has a representative of Radiant Power Corp showing a current beacon.

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    $325,000 Civil Penalty Against Alfa Chemistry

    The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a $325,000 civil penalty against Alfa Chemistry of Stony Brook, New York, for allegedly violating U.S. Department of Transportation Hazardous Materials Regulations.

    The FAA alleges that on two separate FedEx cargo flights, Alfa Chemistry shipped undeclared hazardous material that DOT regulations prohibit from being transported on passenger and cargo aircraft. The company allegedly shipped approximately one pint of Acrolein on April 19, 2013 and three additional pints of it on May 23, 2013. Acrolein can become explosive when combined with air and is classified as a toxic/poisonous material and flammable liquid under DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations.

    On May 24, 2013, FAA and FedEx personnel tried to inspect the second shipment of Acrolein at the FedEx sort facility in Peabody, Massachusetts, after it began emitting a strong, pungent odor. However, they were unable to examine it because they began to experience coughing fits and extreme eye, nose and throat irritation due to the severity of the odor and vapors coming from the shipment. A FedEx employee had to put on a protective suit to inspect the shipment.

    The FAA determined that neither shipment had required shipping papers or emergency response information. The FAA also determined that the May 23, 2013 shipment was not marked, labeled, or packaged as required by the Hazardous Materials Regulations.

    Additionally, the FAA determined Alfa Chemistry failed to properly train and test the employees who packaged the Acrolein.

    Alfa Chemistry has 30 days from the receipt of the FAA’s enforcement letter to respond to the agency.

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    Avianca Airlines Flight Makes Emergency Landing Without Front Wheels

    UntitledAn Avianca Airlines Fokker 100 jet made an emergency landing in the Brazilian capital city Brasilia, as its front landing gear stopped working.

    The plane, carrying 49 passengers, was en route from Petrolina to Brasilia airport on March 28. The pilot requested emergency landing protocol as his attempt to lower the plane’s front landing gear failed.

    Media sources report that the pilot kept flying the passenger jet around the city, in order to shed the weight of extra fuel. The plane then safely landed on its rear wheels, while the fire crew foamed it to avoid a friction fire when its nose touched the runway.

    All the passengers and crew members were evacuated safely.

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    Latest Video Coverage of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Search

    Videos below not visible on the front page
    Readers and subscribers, please feel free to tweet @georgehatcher if you have more current MH370 news.

    AL Jazeera says Chinese ire over MH370 is hurting Malaysia ties.
    Chinese protests put a face on the lost passengers. China officials feel public pressure from the grief and anger of the Chinese people.

    The search for debris from #MH370 has been moved north based on alternative estimates of speed.

    The zone of focus, 1100 kilometers away is outside of the “roaring forties” air zone, taking the search out of bad weather.

    New computation of location is based on faster speeds, faster usage of fuel based on Kuala Lumpar data. Termed the most credible lead.

    Pencarian beralih, pesawat bergerak lebih pantas

    Families wish the information was coming faster and staged a walk-out after a disappointing press conference. Hopes are high in some areas that debris will be found on Saturday’s search.

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    Bodies Recovered 5 Days After Ridgeway Reservoir Plane Crash

    Ridgeway reservoirSearch teams have finally recovered the bodies of 5 persons who were on board while their single engine plane crashed in the Ridgeway Reservoir Colorado on March 22nd.

    The Socata TBM700 crash happened on March 22 when the plane was en route to Montrose regional airport.

    The victims have been identifies as Jimmy Hill, 48; Katrina Barksdale, 40; Seth McDuffie, 14; 11 year old Kobe and 8 year old Xander. All the victims were from Gadsden, Alabama.

    The plane wreckage was found upside down buried in silt, 60 feet below water level.

    The cause of the crash is still unknown.

    This post is an update of ‘Single Engine Plane Crashes Near Montrose

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    Ecuador Bound International Flight Makes Emergency Landing in Charleston

    TAME Airlines Airbus A330-200 heading to Ecuador from New York’s JFK Airport made an emergency landing at Joint Base Charleston at 2:05 on March 25.

    The medical emergency was declared because of a female passenger having breathing trouble. However, she refused to go to the local area hospital for medical treatment. The plane left after refueling at 4.30 a.m. without dropping the passenger.

    The flight was directed to the Joint Base since no international flights operate between midnight and 4 a.m. at the Charleston International airport, and the ground crew is not available during this time.

    The plane had 70 passengers and 9 crew members on board.

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    Malaysian Airlines Flight MH066 Makes Emergency Landing in Hong Kong

    Malaysian airlines

    Malaysian Airlines flight MH066 had to make an emergency landing in Hong Kong after its main electrical power generator failed.

    The flight was on its way from from Kuala Lumpur to Seoul when the main generator of Airbus A330-300 stopped working.

    The plane, carrying 271 passengers, safely landed at the Hong Kong International Airport on Monday, March 24, before 3 am.

    Malaysian Airlines maintains that even though the main generator failed, the plane’s auxiliary power unit was able to continue delivering electric power.

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    Prime Minister Endorses Australian-based search

    On March 24, Najib Razak, Malaysia’s Prime Minister, announced that new computations by Inmarsat and the AAIB, flight MH-370 ended in the South Indian Ocean west of Perth (Australia). At this point, Malaysia endorsed the new search search parameters.

    The full statement:

    “This evening I was briefed by representatives from the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch — or AAIB. They informed me that Inmarsat, the UK company that provided the satellite data which indicated the northern and southern corridors, has been performing further calculations on the data. Using a type of analysis never before used in an investigation of this sort, they have been able to shed more light on MH370’s flight path.

    Based on their new analysis, Inmarsat and the AAIB have concluded that MH370 flew along the southern corridor, and that its last position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth. This is a remote location, far from any possible landing sites.

    It is therefore with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.

    We will be holding a press conference tomorrow with further details. In the meantime, we wanted to inform you of this new development at the earliest opportunity. We share this information out of a commitment to openness and respect for the families, two principles which have guided this investigation.

    Malaysia Airlines have already spoken to the families of the passengers and crew to inform them of this development. For them, the past few weeks have been heartbreaking. I know this news must be harder still. I urge the media to respect their privacy, and to allow them the space they need at this difficult time.”

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    Investigation into Deadly Cessna 206 Crash near Brisbane Continues

    The Cessna 206 operated by Adrenalin Skydivers crashed during takeoff on March 22 at the airstrip, 50km north of Brisbane.  Five persons, including the pilot, two tandem instructors and a couple were killed.

    The Managing Director of Aero Dynamic Flight Academy and the Safety Officer of Caboolture Airfield, Bryan Carpenter said the aviation community is shattered by the ­tragic incident. He said it was not possible at this stage to speculate the cause of the accident.  The possible causes could have been a bird collision, a mechanical failure or a center of gravity shift in the plane.  The plane was reportedly having engine trouble on takeoff.

    The victims included instructors Glenn Norman and Juraj Glesk, and Logan couple Rahuia Hohua and Joey King.

    Adrenalin Skydivers, known as Skydive ­Bribie, uses Caboolture Airfield for picking up tourists for conducting tandem jumps.  They land on nearby Bribie Island.

    Adrenalin Skydivers Pty Ltd also had a similar accident in August 2010 killing seven on board.

    The investigation is being handled by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.

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    American Airlines Flight 757 Made Emergency Landing at Tulsa

    Birds ingested in one of the engines of the American Airlines flight 757, forced it to make emergency landing in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

    The incident happened while the plane was taking off from Tulsa.  The pilot immediately returned the plane back for check-up.

    These kind of incidents are quiet common in Tulsa, The airplanes usually get hit by birds and sometimes by skunks and other mammals. Alexis Higgins of FAA says that they are seeking help from biologists to remove these birds from the airport.

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    Learjet Makes Emergency Landing at Victoria International Airport

    Learjet

    A Learjet plane carrying five people made an emergency landing at Victoria International airport, at about 3:20 pm. On March 22, 2014.

    According to the airport spokesperson, the emergency landing was made after the indication of a landing gear malfunction. The plane landed safely and no one was injured.

    It was later found out that the landing gear was working properly.

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    Small Plane Crash Killed One in Douglas

    Douglas

    A Piper Aerostar 601P crashed in Douglas County near Otero Drive and East Phillips Place, towards the southeast of Aurora, killing the only person on board.

    Aurora Police advised people to stay away from the area although they declared nearby homes out of danger.

    About two acres of grass were burnt because of the fire.  The plane broke into pieces.

    An amateur video and the eye witnesses say that the pilot appeared to be a kid playing in the plane. He was flying very low in circles close to the houses.

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    Plane-Catering Truck Collision Injures a Flight Attendant at Dubai Airport

    An Emirates flight catering truck collided with a Urals Airline Airbus A320 at the Dubai International Airport, resulting in flight attendant Marina Zhelyamova getting injured. None of the 128 passengers were injured.

    According to media reports, the plane was about to take off for Russia when the catering truck smashed into its tail. The collision made the female flight attendant to fall out through the open door.

    Marina Zhelyamova was immediately taken to the hospital with a concussion, and later had surgery.

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    A CRJ-200 Makes Emergency Landing in Montgomery

    A mechanical fault in a CRJ-200 aircraft, forced it to make emergency landing at Montgomery Regional Airport.Montgomery

    According to the airport spokesperson, the Delta flight connecting through Express Jet was carrying 47 passengers and was travelling from Atlanta to Montgomery. He further said that some mechanical issue was detected in one of the flaps and hence it was decided to request an emergency landing at Montgomery Regional Airport.

    The plane landed at around 1:30 p.m. on Monday, March 17, 2014. All passengers and crew members exited safely.

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    The Traumatized Passengers of Mexico-Edmond Sunwing Flight, Waited Hours to Get Customs Clearance

    A Puerto Vallarta, Mexico-bound Sunwing Boeing 737-800 en route from Edmonton,Alberta Canada, diverted and made an emergency landing on Sunday March 16, 2014 in Helena Montana after flying through ninety seconds of turbulence.

    Two of the six person crew sustained injuries, but none of the 181 passengers were seriously injured, perhaps because the seatbelt lights were on.

    Passengers waited hours on the airstrip before a customs agent finally arrived and attended to them. The replacement jet did not arrive for eleven hours.

    According to Ron Mercer, Director Helena Regional Airport, the airport has only one customs agent who was not there on Sunday. Another customs agent was called and arrived after a 1.5 hour drive from Great Falls. The airport does not usually host commercial international flights and the customs agent had to “do his homework” and consult  international rules before passengers could exit the aircraft.

    The situation called for modification in the US customs and immigration department’s emergency protocols, for easing up procedures for those passengers already traumatized due to an emergency situation.

    The unexpected delay will no doubt result in consequences because, as CBC News says major Canadian airlines tariff says if “…your flight is delayed more than 90 minutes, you may have the right to get off the plane.”

    You can rest assured that after these passengers spent five hours in the plane, someone is going to be paying a hefty fine.

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    Malaysia Airlines MH370 Where Are You? Can Satellites Tell Us

    After being in flight for forty minutes, the Malaysia Airlines MH370 vanished, but not without a trace. The disappearance occurred ten days ago on March 8, 2013. Techies world-wide are convinced that a trail is discoverable via satellite signal, as engines continued to transmit data after other communications were shut down. So is China, who has engaged the assistance of ten ships and twenty-one satellites in the search. The Boeing 777 was waylaid, misplaced or otherwise disappeared between Kuala Lumpur and Beijing.

    China and Malaysia are not alone in the search. In response to Malaysia’s plea for world-wide assistance in scouring earth, wave and sky, twenty-six countries are pitching in:

    Malaysia, Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, China, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Turkmenistan, the United Arab Emirates, UK, the United States, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

    Australia is searching in the Indian Ocean.

    Three BEA investigators with Air France Flight 447 experience are lending their expertise.

    Two individuals boarded with stolen passports. Hundreds of theories about the disappearance are developing. From treachery to catastrophic failure to a dry run for a “9/11” style attack, every possible scenario has been postulated.

    Malaysia Airlines is providing accommodations for relatives at the Lido Hotel where family briefings are being held at six o’clock every evening.

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    A Bird-Struck Light Aircraft Flips Over During Crash Landing in Swansea

    A local farmer in Grovesend, Swansea was forced to make emergency landing at his own airstrip, after his plane hit a flock of birds.images

    According to the South Wales Police, the light plane registration G-BKCX, owned and flown by the farmer flipped over during crash landing on Sunday, March 17, 2014. He managed to escape with minor injuries including a mild concussion. He was later given medical aid at the Morriston Hospital, Swansea.

    Two fire trucks, West and Mid Wales Fire and Rescue Services responded to the scene.

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    Mexico Bound Sunwing Flight Suffers Severe Turbulence Over Montana

    A Puerto Vallarta, Mexico bound Sunwing flight experienced extreme turbulence, while flying over Montana, and made emergency landing at Helena Regional Airport, Montana.

    The flight took off from Edmonton, Canada. Severe turbulence near Montana disturbed the flight and injured two flight attendants, after which the pilot declared a medical emergency and landed at Helena Regional Airport at 7:30 a.m. on March 17, 2014.

    According to the airport spokesperson, the injured flight attendants suffered only minor injuries and did not need medical attention.