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    Canadian Helicopter Wrecks at Sleeping Beauty

    What: Bailey Helicopters Ltd.Eurocopter AS 350B2 AStar flying out of CYXJ/Fort St John General Airport
    Where: Sleeping Beauty Mountain. Terrace BC, Canada
    When: June 1, 2012
    Who: 3 aboard, 3 fatalities
    Why: At nine oclock, ATC lost contact with a training flight flown by 45-year-old Peter Bryant. Two other Bailey Helicopter employees were also aboard.

    A search and rescue team including a Canadian Armed Forces Buffalo fixed-wing aircraft and a Cormorant helicopter out of Comox were all deployed to the electronic flight tracking system location and confirmed that the Eurocopter crashed in poor weather (described as “horrible”) into Sleeping Beauty Mountain. The area was undergoing rain and snow, and considered unsafe by an avalanche technician. One rescue searcher hiked to the crash site.

    The remains have now been recovered, though it was a hazardous recovery, during which an avalanche occurred.

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    Dubai -Toronto Flight, First Ever A380 Diverts to and Lands in Ottowa


    What: Emirates airbus A380 en route from Dubai to Toronto
    Where: Ottowa
    When: June 1, 2012
    Who: 530+ passengers
    Why: After taking off from Dubai, the pilot encountered problems. In fact, pilots circled Toronto before they diverted to Ottowa, where they made a safe landing with firefighters and paramedic emergency services on standby. The plane, the first A380 ever to land at Ottawa International Airport, touched down at 5 pm.

    Pilots diverted to Ottowa because Ottawa International Airport has a 10,000-foot runway. An A380 requires at least 9,875 feet.

    According to Global Toronto, the jet nearly ran out of fuel after being rerouted due to torrential rains in Toronto.

    The flight eventually made it to Toronto at 9:00 pm.

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    Runway Overrun in Indonesia


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Hon Kit

    What: Sriwijaya Boeing 737-400 en route Jakarta to Pontianak
    Where: Kalimantan
    When: June 1, 2012
    Who: 163 passengers
    Why: On landing on the ungrooved runway in Pontianak-Supadio Intl airport in “wet and windy conditions,” the plane skidded off the runway, incurring significant damages. Passengers evacuated directly on to the landing area.

    The transportation ministry told Agence France Presse that “the nosewheel is broken and the landing gear sunk into the soft soil.”

    The right wing is damaged, and the airport was closed as the situation was handled.

    According to JADEC, the weather was “WIOO 010530Z 23022KT 0600 FEW009CB BKN007 29/25 Q1008 RMK CB OVER THE FIELD”

    The NTSC is investigating.

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    Civil Aviation Safety Advisory Council Postscript

    Indian safety experts are worried now that the dissolution date of Civil Aviation Safety Advisory Council (CASAC), has passed.

    CASAC, made up of senior pilots, air traffic managers, airfield experts, retired Air Force officials and aviation doctors has no future. CASAC members have disagreed with actions made by the DGCA, and the DGCA has dropped complaints by the CASAC such as when the CASAC registered a complaint against an airline operating without mandatory safety checks. See the safety program.

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    American Eagle Emergency Landing in Chicago

    What: American Eagle Embraer EMB-145LR en route from Chicago to Tulsa
    Where: Chicago
    When: May 31, 2012
    Who: 31 aboard
    Why: The flight took off, but received a gear disagree message. After a flyby determining the gear were down, the pilots made an overweight landing. No injuries were reported. There were apparently no stairs provided on exit.

    Passengers eventually arrived in Tulsa after 1 pm.

    The same plane had just made a prior emergency landing at O’Hare.


    Pilot’s audio provided by http://www.liveatc.net

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    Are Pilot Instructors Qualified?

    The path to skill is through studying mistakes. For pilots, that means finding the cause and correction of their own and others’ mistakes. What does a recent rash of student/instructor plane crashes indicate? Is the instructor adequately preparing the student, or is the instructor adequately qualified? See Video

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    May 2012: 6 Near collisions over Moscow Alleged

    Although the Control tower denies this number, in the past three months, Moscow ATC (union) reported six near collisions over Moscow.:

    • March 7: at Domodedovo Airport, Swiss Air jet and a Boeing 737 averted by an alarm 15 seconds before a collision would have happened. Both were landing
    • March 22: at Ostafyevo International Airport: During takeoff
    • April 25: Vnukovo International Airport: Trans Aero Boeing 737 and Lufthansa Boeing 737 nearly collided while landing.

    Other jets involved are said to be Falcon-900, and ATR-72.

    The incidents are presumably due to old equipment, firing of established experienced personnel, new staff and recent reorganization of the airspace routing over Moscow.


    * unconfirmed

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    FAA, NTSB Employee’s Planes Collide


    What: NTSB employee’s Beechcraft BE-35 (N6658R) five miles from Warrenton-Fauquier Airport
    What: FAA employee Thomas R. Provin’s 1965 Piper PA-28 (N23SC) en route from from Culpeper Regional Airport to the Warrenton-Fauquier
    Where: southern Fauquier County.
    When: May 28, 2012 4:00 pm
    Who: two people aboard the Beechcraft fatalities, one aboard the Piper (injured)
    Why: Over Warrenton, Fauquier County, Virginia, two planes collided. The pilot of the piper was hospitalized with injuries; both in the Beechcraft succumbed to their injuries. The Beechcraft was owned by an employee of the NTSB. The Piper is owned by an employee of the FAA. Subsequently, they requested the Canadian NTSB to investigate.

    The planes impacted the ground a mile apart by a mile long debris field, one on a family farm. The woodsy secluded area is a challenging site to gather debris due to wildlife like snakes.

    View more videos at: http://nbcwashington.com.

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    Banner Flight Ends in San Diego Bay

    What: Cessna 150
    Where: San Diego bay
    When: May 26, 2012, 4:20 p.m
    Who: 2 aboard, no fatalities
    Why: A Cessna towing a banner lost engine power. Pilots informed ATC, cut free the banner they were towing and ended up in San Diego Bay, Missing the Hilton Hotel. The plane sank; the pilot and passenger aboard were recovered uninjured, by passing boaters.

    A salvage company is going to recover the plane from the bay.

    See videos below:

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    Viva Aerobus Lightning strike

    What: Viva Aerobus Boeing 737 300 en route from Cancun to Tuxtla Gutierre, Mexico
    Where: Villahermosa Mexico
    When: May 27 2012
    Who: 108 aboard
    Why: After a successful takeoff, the plane depressurized. Pilots diverted to Villahermosa where they made a safe landing.

    Mexican news reported that the plane was struck by lightning, and that when the pilots made a safe diversion and landing to Villahermosa, the plane was repaired.

    Passengers were reluctant to re-board but the flight continued at 19:15 hours on the same plane, after repairs. At the time of takeoff, there were still storms in the mountainous region of Chiapas.

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    Small Swiss-owned Planet Crashes after “problems” in Parchim


    What: Twin Club Diamond DA42 Twin Star
    Where: Schwerin-Parchim Airport, Germany
    When: May 28, 2012
    Who: 4 aboard, 2 fatalities
    Why: After the pilot reported to ATC of having problems with the aircraft just after takeoff, the flight crashed in a forest near the town of Parchim. The 58 year old Swiss pilot and one 61 year old Swiss female passenger were reported as fatalities. Emergency services arrived in time to free two others (also Swiss) from the aircraft.

    They were injured and ported by helicopter to a hospital.

    The names have not been released.

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    Jet Airways Hot Engine in Mumbai

    What: Jet Airways Boeing 737-800 en route from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
    Where: Mumbai
    When: May 28, 2012
    Who: 158 aboard
    Why: While en route, Jet Airways pilots had to shut down and engine and divert to Mumbai.

    One of the Boeing’s engines caught on fire.

    Pilots made a safe landing at Mumbai-Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. On the ground at the airport at 5:45 a.m., fire and smoke was reported coming from the left engine.

    Passengers evacuated at the nearest taxiway. Emergency services put out the engine fire in minutes.

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    Air Canada Engine Spews Parts


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Francisco Muro

    What: Air Canada Boeing 777-333ER
    Where: Toronto Canada
    When: May 28 2012
    Who: 318 passengers, 16 crew
    Why: After a louder than normal take-off, fifteen minutes into the flight, pilots of the Air Canada Boeing en route from Toronto to Japan shut off an engine. Witnesses reported smoke and fire coming from the right engine.

    The flight had to return to Toronto following engine problems. Falling bits of engine debris “hot bits of blackened metal” fell from the sky and caused some damage to parked vehicles near Derry and Kennedy Rds in Mississauga. The entire circuit of the flight took about an hour and a half.

    There were no injuries on the flight, but emergency services were on standby on landing, in expectation of trauma.

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    4 Lost in Crash at St George Airport


    What: Cessna 172
    Where: St. George Municipal Airport, St George, Utah
    When: May 26, 2012
    Who: 4 aboard, 4 fatalities
    Why: The plane carrying four men crashed early in the morning around 1:30 a.m. The wreckage wasn’t discovered until 6 a.m. when security discovered it 300 feet south of the runway. There were no severe weather conditions reported at the airport during the early morning hours.

    The four victims were locals whose names have not been released.

    The FAA and NTSB are investigating.

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    Light Craft Crashes in Hancock County

    What: Piper PA-22-150 single engine aircraft
    Where: Greenfield County, Indiana
    When: May 26, 2012, 7:00 a.m.
    Who: 3 aboard
    Why: Near the Pennsy biking trail and County Road 400 east, a single engine aircraft, a Piper PA-22-150 Tri-Pacer has crashed.

    The accident occurred south of Pope Airfield where the pilot had just attempted takeoff but failed to achieve adequate lift to fly over the treeline.

    They did miss power lines.

    Pilot Melvin Grant, of Greenfield, and passengers Mark Grant and Andrew Pfaff were taken to Indianapolis’s Methodist Hospital.

    The FAA is investigating.

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    Bell Crash in Switzerland


    What: HeliSwiss Bell Jet Ranger training flight
    Where: Tschäggeten-Alp, Kandertal, Berner Oberland Switzerland
    When: May 24, 2012
    Who: 3 aboard, 3 fatalities
    Why: Three Swiss pilots, one of them a flight instructor leading the training flight crashed after hitting a wire.

    The flight went missing at 5:45, after which a search continued until darkness in the rugged terrain was too dangerous.

    The Heliswiss helicopter crashed into a tributary of the Kander Valley. The site of the impact is a steep, wooded, rocky slope in Tschaggenten-Alp, an area with poor reception, which is hindering recovery services.

    After a fire was spotted, rescue teams were flown in, halted overnight (with only security guards on hand) and recovery begun again May 25th.

    A team has been assembled to care for the family members.

    The Bell Jet Ranger is an American helicopter.

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    Agricultural Accident-two cropdusters collide


    What: Miles Flying Service AT80 AIR TRACTOR AT-802A
    Where: Paragould Arkansas
    When: May 23, 2012, 11:35 a.m
    Who: 1 severe injury, 1 fatality
    Why: Two agricultural planes, a Beech Grove Grumman G164C and a Miles Flying Service AIR TRACTOR AT-802A collided in midair during an aerial application (crop-dusting) activity. The planes flew from Craighead and Greene county airstrips. One plane was flying S-N, the other was flying E-W. The planes turned into one another at the field’s corner and they impacted ground separated by 300 yards near County Road 322 and Highway 168 in Greene County.

    One person on the Gurmman was fatally injured; one person on the Air tractor had serious injuries. The accident occurred sixteen miles from Paragould arkansas. A medical helicopter evacuated the injured pilot.

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    UPS Safe Landing in Tulsa


    What: UPS Cargo Airbus en route from Louisville to Tulsa
    Where: Tulsa International Airport
    When: May 22, 2012 5:40 a.m.
    Who: 2 Crew
    Why: En route, the plane flashed a landing gear warning.

    Pilots made a safe landing in Tulsa but had to be towed. The runway was closed for thirty minutes.

    Below see video of Airbus landing.

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    Mooney M20C Lands at Island Road and Sheridan Street

    What: 1965 Mooney M20C en route from Baldwin County Georgia to North Perry Airport, Pembroke Pines
    Where: Sheridan Street in Cooper City Florida
    When: May 19, 2012
    Who: Pilot and passenger
    Why: The pilot who experienced engine trouble managed to force-land on Sheridan street, only clipping his wings on the tree-lined street. No injuries were reported but traffic was shut down on the street for a while.

    The FAA is investigating.

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    Cessna Crashes into Front Yard, Takes out 2000+ Utilities


    What: Cessna 210 en route from Phoenix to Van Nuys
    Where: Glendale
    When: May 21, 20128:30 pm
    Why: A plane crashed in Glendale, hitting power lines and knocking out service to 2,100 customers near the crash site. The pilot notified ATC of engine trouble near the El Monte Airport, and said he was trying to reach Van Nuys Airport before he lost contact with ATC.

    THe plane struck power poles and a tree before impacting the ground in a residential front yard. Three homes were evacuated but no one on the ground was injured.

    The pilot went to Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center with injures but was released Monday night. Police said he did a good job avoiding causing damage to other people and property. The Cessna is owned by Allen K. Heng and James Roth. Heng was not aboard at the time of the crash.

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    Helicopter Pilot Walks Away from Hard Landing


    What: Enstrom F-28F helicopter en route from Elko, Nevada to Twin Falls Idaho
    Where: Twin Falls, Idaho.
    When: May 20, 2012
    Who: Pilot
    Why: The pilot reported that ten miles south of the Twin Fall Airport, he contacted the control tower that was inbound for landing. However, then he told ATC that he would not be able to make it to the airport with the problems he was having.

    He subsequently made a precautionary landing to an open field with control problems with the helicopter. During landing, the helicopter’s tail boom separated from the aircraft.

    The pilot is the owner of the helicopter, and was not injured.

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    Pakistan Helicopter in Chenab River

    What: Pakistan Army helicopter en route from Gujranwala
    Where: Chenab river in Punjab, Pakistan
    When: May 23, 2012, 11:00 a.m.
    Who: 2 aboard
    Why: A pilot and trainee were on a routine training mission near Wazirabad in the two seat training helicopter when they crashed in the Chenab river 100 km from Lahore.

    Search parties came to the scene when the helicopter lost communication with ATC. Three army choppers and divers from Mangla are engaged in the search.

    The wreckage was apparently found or retrieved within six hours after the search began.

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    An-30B Crash-lands in Fiery Blaze In Cáslav


    What: Russian Air Force Antonov An-30B
    Where: Čáslav Airport, Czech Republic
    When: 23-MAY-2012
    Who: 23 aboard
    Why: On landing at Čáslav, the pilot lost control, and the plane skidded off the runway.

    There were fourteen Russians aboard, and 8 Czechs, six of whom were seriously injured. Ten ambulances and two choppers responded to the scene. Four patients were taken to Čáslav hospital with burns. Four injured were treated on the scene. One passenger with severe burns went to Vinohrady Hospital in Prague. Seven passengers and the pilot were taken by ambulance to a Cologne hospital. The emergency was declared at 11:50, and firefighters had the fire under control by 12:25. There were no casualties of the accident.

    Specialists were testing the area for radiation, which was observed in the vicinity of the plane. The plane belongs to the”Open Skies” mission. The Antonov An-30B is an aerial survey observation plane.


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    Unstable Passenger Claims Bomb Implant


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Giovanni Verbeeck

    What: US Airways B767 from Paris to Charlotte
    Where: Bangor Maine
    When: May 22, 2012
    Who: 179 passengers, 9 crew
    Why: Around noon, Two F-15 fighter jets scrambled to intercept a US Airways plane where a French woman from Cameroon had handed a note to a flight attendant claiming that she had a surgically implanted bomb. She was traveling alone and had no baggage.

    The flight which made a safe landing in Maine.

    The flight was interrupted for three hours when passengers were evacuated, and federal customs agents escorted the woman off the plane in handcuffs. The plane was examined and reboarded.

    A passenger said the crew initially blamed the unexpected landing on fuel and weather issues.

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    Pilot and Three Passengers Walk away from Frankenmuth Crash

    What: Kitze Aviation Inc. Piper PA-28-180 Cherokee G
    Where: Frankenmuth, MI
    When: May 20, 2012, 3:20 pm
    Who: 4 aboard
    Why: A 25 year old pilot Thomas Wolfe successfully landed the Piper in Zehnder Field after losing power.

    The pilot and one passenger got medical treatment after landing. Two others were transported to Flint’s Hurley Medical Center for treatment.

    The pilot, Thomas Wolf, 56 year old Gerald Wolfe and 57 year old Frank Tima, are from Livonia. 26-year-old Laura Richardson is from Royal Oak.

    The accident is under investigation.