What: Cool Stream Media LLC Socata TBM700 C2 en route from Teterboro airport to Atlanta-Dekalb Peachtree Airport Where: Interstate 287 in Harding, NJ When: Dec 20, 2011, 10 am. Who: 5 aboard, 5 fatalities Why: After taking off from Teterboro airport en route to Atlanta-Dekalb Peachtree Airport, the pilot inquired about icing conditions, and shortly afterwards, crashed on I-287 in New Jersey. The plane came down on the median and broke up just outside of Morris township. One witness heard nothing but saw an explosion. Another witness smelled burning rubber and said it sounded like a wood chopper.
The plane lost contact with ATC just before the crash.
Aboard the flight were Jerry Buckalew, 45 and Rakesh Chawla (36) managing directors of Greenhill & Co Investment Banking Firm. Buckalew’s wife Corinne and two children Jackson and Meriwether and a dog were also aboard. Witnesses say the plane was spinning and flipping, then a wing came off and the plane went straight down. Buckalew owned the plane.
No cars were stuck but the plane’s right wing landed in a tree 400 yards from the crash site..
The pilot had gotten clearance to climb to 17,500 feet. ATC said there was “moderate rime” at 17000 feet. Another controller warned of extreme icing.
The debris field covered an area half a mile wide. The northbound late of I-287 was blocked a heap of burning charred metal.
What: British Airways A321 en route from London Heathrow to Glasgow Where: London When: Dec 20th 2011 Who: pilot and co-pilot Why: After takeoff, pilots declared an emergency when they became lightheaded. They returned to Heathrow and made a safe landing. The problem was reported as a technical fault due to fumes or pressure problems in the cockpit. On declaration, pilots called for oxygen which was brought by cabin crew; and oxygen masks were apparently not released for the passengers. The flight made a safe landing. Paramedics were the first aboard, attending to the pilots.
The replacement jet provided for the passengers took them to their destination with a three hour delay,
What: Associated Mission Aviation Pacific Aerospace 750XL en route from Jayapura to Okbibab. Where: Abmisibil Airport, Okbibab, Papua When: Dec 17, 2011 Who: 5 aboard, 2 fatalities Why: The plane landed at Abmisibil Airport, and skidded into a ravine at the end of the runway.
Pilot Arnold Burung did not survive. The injured, Jacob Uropmabin, Timothy Uropmabin, Ramli, and Rady (AKA Yakob Uropmabin,Timotius Uropmabin, Ramly and Radi) were hospitalized at Dian Harapan Hospital in Jayapura.
Pacific Aerospace manufactures planes in New Zealand.
What: PIPER PA-28-151 CHEROKEE, ARROW, WARRIOR, ACHER Where: Longmont When: 12/18/2011 5:36 pm Who: pilot Why: A pilot flying over Longmont had engine trouble and had to make an emergency landing.
The pilot realized he could not make the airport, and maneuvered in position over the road. He managed to land on a busy road with substantial traffic but there was no impact and the plane and cars were undamaged. The pilot apparently coasted in with the engine off. Interview is below
What: Krasnojarsk Cheremshanka Airport Terminal Where: Russia When: Dec 19th 2011 Who: no injuries or deaths reported Why: 38 vehicles carrying a hundred firefighters responded to the scene of a fire at the Krasnojarsk Cheremshanka Airport but failed to save the airport’s tower. The first thing that caught fire was roof of the terminal, where it began, they suspect, with a short circuit. Then the fire spread until the terminal collapsed. It took four hours to put out the fire, but no one was injured. The airport was the hub for Katekavia Airlines and the base airport of the Siberian Regional Emergencies Department Centre.
One airport employee was evacuated by truck ladder. They were not hospitalized. The roof took five minutes to become engulfed.
Flights have been transferred to the neighboring Emelianovo airport.
What: Bangkok Airways Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500 en route from Koh Samui to Bangkok Where: Koh Samui When: Dec 17th 2011 Who: 38 passengers and 4 crew Why: While taxiing prior to takeoff, the pilot lost control, the plane struck an embankment and slid into a ditch.
Reports say that the pilot attempted to control the plane, but it did not respond. The flight was cancelled. Passengers were provided alternative flights.
What: Delta/Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 en route from Detroit,MI to Quebec Where: Quebec When: Dec 10th 2011 Who: 45 aboard Why: On approach to Quebec, the pilots received a flaps fault.
The pilots aborted the approach. After declaring emergency, the pilots reset the flap system and made a second approach, landing safely.
What: Frontier Airlines Airbus A319-100 en route from Seattle to Denver Where: Yakima When: Dec 14th 2011 Who: 138 passengers Why: While en route, the plane developed smoke in the aft galley.
Pilots diverted to Yakima, where they made a safe landing with emergency services on standby. The call came in at 9:22 a.m.and the plane landed at 9:40.
It was determined that the source of the smoke seems to have been a coffee pot or oven in the galley. A replacement jet was provided.
In George’s Point of View
The source of the problem could have been an electrical short, and the air quality may have been affected, so despite jokes about landing over kitchen equipment, the airport manager and airline management stand by the pilots decisions, which are based on correct emergency response which resulted in no deaths, no injuries.
Bombardier’s Learjet 85 business jet program is getting an infusion of $6 million in Wichita now that the Kansas Department of Commerce has permitted the use of a 1994 bond money incentive.
The exact figure ($52.7 million) is expected to translate into 450 jobs. This is in addition to $2 million in bonds to expand the Learjet85 plant.
The expansion plan includes building a new production flight facility. Phase three, the paint facility and delivery centre will completed in 2013.
Air India’s delinquency in payroll which earlier this year led to a strike, has led to about fifty pilots quitting.
Employees were promised incentives and raises to 30,000 employees. Currently pilots and other employees are owed a month’s salary.
Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi said ” the management of the Air India was in a constant dialogue with the unions and associations of the pilots.”
In the October strike, 100 pilots threatened to quit.
What: Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200 en route from Atlanta,GA to Seattle,WA Where: Kansas City When: Dec 15th 2011 Who: 163 aboard Why: The flight was well underway when passengers and crew smelled smoke in the cabin.
Pilots diverted to Kansas City Missouri, where they made a safe landing.
A KING 5 News employee was a passenger aboard the flight and posted on twitter that everyone was ok.
The problem was repaired, and the plane was re-boarded, continuing on to its destination.
What: Intersky de Havilland Dash 8-300 en route from Berlin Tegel to Friedrichshafen Where: Berlin When: Dec 14th 2011 Who: 21 passengers Why: The flight was about to depart when an unauthorized vehicle cut across the runway right in the plane’s path.
Pilots jerked the plane to a stop, injuring a flight attendant who had to be hospitalized.
What: Pegasus Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration TC-ASP performing flight PC-223 from Ercan Cyprus to Adana Turkey Where: Ercan When: Dec 9th 2011 11:05 Who: 75 passengers and 6 crew Why: Just ten minutes out of Ercan, over the Five Finger Mountains, the plane was struck by lightning.
Consequently, several systems malfunctioned. Pilots returned to Ercan State Airport and made a safe landing. Passengers were provided alternative flights.
Many regions in cyprus have been subjected to torrential rain and thunder.
What: UTAir/Tulpar Airlines Yakovlev Yak-42 en route from Moscow Vnukovo to Volgograd with 57 passengers and 7 crew When: Dec 10th 2011 Who: 57 passengers and 7 crew Why: While en route, the Yak developed engine problems in the left engine.
The crew shut down the engine (idled) and made a safe landing in Volgograd.
What: US Army Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warrior Where: SW training area of Joint Base Lewis-McChord When: Dec 12, 2011 Who: 2 occupants, 2 fatalities
What: US Army Bell OH-58D Kiowa Warrior Where: SW training area of Joint Base Lewis-McChord When: Dec 12, 2011 8 pm Who: 2 occupants, 2 fatalities Why: Two two-seat reconnaissance “Scout”choppers crashed during routine exercises at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a few miles from Ranier Washington. Four individuals died in the event. Two were injured. It has not been released if the two injured were aboard, or if the choppers collided.
The remains were taken to Madigan Army Medical Center.
The debris field covered 300 meters. Military vehicles were securing the scene.
The Fort Rucker, Alabama Combat Readiness Center is coordinating the investigation, beginning with a six member team.
What: Aviation Technology Innovators Beechcraft 65-80 Queen Air en route from Manila to McGuire Field, San Jose, Mindoro. Where: Parañaque City, Philippines When: Dec 10, 2011 2 p.m. Who: 3 aboard, 11 on the ground Why: The first steps after a crash are those of the investigators whose job it is to examine the wreckage and determine the facts. This information will eventually be turned into an interim and a final report, which will stand as a record. Simultaneously, the records will be examined. Not only will the pilots’ recorded histories be searched and the level of their skill examined, but also the maintenance and ownership of Beechcraft 65-80 Queen Air RP-C824
Captains Timoteo Aldo and Jessie Kim Lustica died in the crash three minutes after takeoff.
Here is a big question: Where is Captain Fidel Hembrador who leased ATI for the repair, maintenance and hangar parking services for the plane?
My first thought takes me to wondering about the condition of the plane. (Maintenance! Maintenance! Maintenance!) My second is to wonder about the pilots’ experience. My third is a strong suggestion that people refrain from rebuilding so close to the airport. However, such an edict would mean it is the government’s responsibility to see that 600 displaced people get generous government assistance in the form of grants or compensation, providing the means for displaced families to establish domiciles elsewhere.
Below is the DEC 12 release from the Department of Transportation and Communications of the Philippines:
Secretary of Transportation and Communications Mar Roxas met with CAAP [Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines] officials today, and ordered a thorough investigation of the light aircraft incident that left 14 people dead on Saturday in Barangay Don Bosco, Paranaque City.
The officials discussed the liability of the owner of the light plane and take into effect a speedy, seven-day timeline for the submission of the investigation report.
CAAP director general Ramon Gutierrez reported that he constituted the Aircraft Accident Investigation Inquiry Board (AAIIB) headed by Captain Amado Soliven, Jr. to lead the panel. The panel will investigate why and how the Beechcraft Queen Air (RPC-834) eight-seater light plane plunged into the shanty town in Paranaque City, exploding on impact, and causing a fire that gutted a 2,000-square-meter section of the slum area.
Gutierrez also told the DOTC secretary the ill-fated aircraft submitted an official flight plan to the CAAP hours before the flight under the registry of Aviation Technologies Innovators, Inc. [ATI], a repair station/maintenance and hangar provider.
But CAAP investigators revealed that the plane had a certificate of registration under one Captain Fidel Hembrador, a private operator, who reportedly leased ATI for the repair, maintenance and hangar parking services for the said plane.
Hembrador has yet to surface following the incident last Saturday.
The CAAP reported that it had retrieved and secured the engines of the plane. CAAP investigators, with the assistance of the authorized repair station of the engine manufacturer (LYCOMING), are currently breaking down the engines to determine if a mechanical malfunction had occurred.
The CAAP had commandeered the aircraft record and logbooks, as well as summary records of the training experience of the crew.
“I have tasked the fact-finding panel to come up with a report and recommendations within the week,” said Secretary Roxas. “We will make sure that all facts of this unfortunate accident are investigated, the victims are duly compensated, and make sure that similar accidents do not happen in the future.”
Roxas added that the general aviation services is one sector that the DOTC intends to relocate to another site. “The objective is to decongest NAIA from small aircraft operations, so as not to comingle with commercial airline operations.”
The CAAP had recommended two potential transfer sites, Fernando Air Base in Lipa City, Batangas and Sangley Point in Cavite.
Both military facilities are military-owned. Roxas said the DOTC and the Department of National Defense will come up with a MOA that will govern the transfer, as well as the relocation of residents who will be displaced by the move.
What: British Airways Airbus A319-100 en route from London UK to Zurich Switzerland Where: Zurich When: Dec 11th 2011 Why: On approach to Zurich, passengers and crew smelled an odor described as “burning” and “electrical.”
The crew made an accelerated approach and wore oxygen.
They made a safe landing.
Pilots taxied to the gate as usual, and passengers disembarked, with emergency services on standby.
What: Southern Air Transport Boeing 747-200 freighter en route from Charleston,SC to Liege Belgium Where: Liege When: Dec 11th 2011 Who: 5 crew Why: On approach to Liege, the pilots encountered issues with the hydraulic systems.
The flight made a safe landing in Liege.
After allowing the Southern Air Transport flight to land, the Liege airport shut down, forcing in bound traffic to divert to other airports.
What: Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines en route from Louisville,KY to Minneapolis,MN (USA) Where: Minneapolis When: Dec 8th 2011 Why: While on approach to Minneapolis, the CRJ-200 underwent a flaps failure.
The pilots made efforts to correct the problems and were unsuccessful in facilitating reparations. They made a fast landing without flaps, but the landing was otherwise without incident.
What: Aviation Technology Innovators Beechcraft 65-80 Queen Air en route from Manila to McGuire Field, San Jose, Mindoro. Where: Parañaque City, Philippines When: Dec 10, 2011 2 p.m. Who: 3 aboard, 11 on the ground Why: After taking off from Ninoy Aquino International Airport, the pilot reported trouble to ATC, and was trying to return to the airport. The pilots, Timoteo Aldo and Jessie Kim Lustica, had been fetching a cargo of fish. A witness described the plane “twirling” in the air before impact.
The Beechcraft crashed into Felixberto Serrano Elementary school and exploded, killing the 3 aboard and 11 on the ground in Better Living Subdivision, Parañaque City. The specific location was Taiwan St., Barangay Don Bosco. School was not in session, but there had just been a Christmas party there. The F. Serrano Elementary School burned down; school for 2000 will be suspended on Monday as plans are made to send students to alternative schools.
Victims included children playing at the playground.
Twenty injured were taken to Parañaque Doctors Hospital and Parañaque Community Hospital along the South Luzon Expressway. The Philippine Red Cross was on the scene, reporting a number of burn victims.
50 domiciles on the subdivision’s easement were damaged. Residents were not called “squatters” but were described as informal settlers. Seventy families were evacuated–a total of 600 people evacuated.
A covered court inside the subdivision is being provided as temporary shelter for evacuees.
Maricel Rodriguez Garado, Ronald Sabidario were two adults reported as lost in the crash in addition to the two pilots. See Videos Below
What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300 en route from Saint Louis,MO to Dallas Where: Saint Louis When: Dec 7th 2011 Who: 137 passengers and 5 crew Why: After takeoff, systems revealed unsafe gear.
The pilot returned to Lambert and made an emergency landing. No injuries were reported, and passengers were provided alternate flight.
What: US Airways Airbus A320-200 en route from Philadelphia,PA to Las Vegas Where: Philadelphia When: Dec 7th 2011 Why: After taking off from Philadelphia, those aboard noticed what was described as “the stench of dirty socks.” The plane returned to Philadelphia and made a safe landing. Passengers were provided an alternative flight.
Note that in spite of the uncharming description of the smell,the caution was due not to excessive fear of stinky feet but to caution over the kind of lawsuit that Boeing is dealing with right now over toxic air fumes from tricresyl phosphates (TCPs), carbon monoxide and other toxic components bleeding from faulty “bleed-air” systems. Drowsiness, disorientation and memory loss may occur as a result of exposure to aerotoxicity.
What: Sundance Helicopters Aérospatiale AS-350B Where: Near Lake Mead, Nevada When: Dec 7 2011, 5 pm Who: 5 fatalities Why: Las Vegas police search and rescue team conformed that a luxury sunset tour of the Las Vegas Strip and Hoover Dam crashed into the River Mountains. The pilot Landon Nield of Las Vegas and four passengers were killed in the crash thirty miles from the Vegas strip were in a remote area. Officials airlifted to the crash site confirmed the condition of the victims. Recovery will continue Thursday after sunrise.
Sundance Helicopters of Las Vegas has had at least five accidents and has been the subject of 10 federal enforcement actions since 1994 but Nield had no history of accidents or violations.
Two of the passengers, tourists Delwin and Tamara Chapman of Utica, Kan were renewing their vows and celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary.
Two of the victims, 28-year-old Lovish Bhanot and 26-year-old Anupama Bhola, were a couple of newlyweds from New Delhi, India.
The crash was reported by an employee of Alfred Merritt Smith water treatment facility who witnessed the event.
A 12-member team is being sent to investigate the crash.
In September of 2003, a Sundance Aerospatiale crashed Near Grand Canyon West Airport, Arizona.
NTSB LAUNCHING TEAM TO INVESTIGATE TOUR HELICOPTER ACCIDENT IN NEVADA
The National Transportation Safety Board has launched a 12- member Go-Team to investigate the crash of a helicopter on a sight-seeing tour that occurred near Las Vegas at about 5:00 p.m. PT on Wednesday. Preliminary reports indicate that all five persons on board the helicopter were fatally injured.
Senior Air Safety Investigator Bill English will serve asInvestigator-in-Charge. Member Mark Rosekind is among those traveling to the site and will serve as principal spokesman during the on-scene phase of the investigation.
Peter Knudson is the public affairs officer accompanying the team; he may be reached on his cell phone at 202-557-1350.
What: Delta flight en route from Kansas City to Detroit Where: Kansas City When: Dec 6, 2011 Who: 73 aboard Why: The Delta flight took off but after about twenty minutes, the flight became rocky and turbulent.
The pilots had to shut down the right engine after it lost power; then they returned to the airport to make a safe landing.
What: Great Lakes Air Inc Piper PA-32-260 Cherokee Six en route from St. Ignace to Mackinac Island Where: Lake Huron shore, about three miles north of St. Ignace, northern Michigan When: Dec 3, 2011 Who: 2 fatalities Why: Thomas Phillips, 52, with homes in Kirkland and Mackinac Island, and Joseph Pann Jr., 29, of St. Ignace were killed in a piper crash in Michigan. From Mackinac County Airport at St. Ignace to the destination Mackinac Island Airport is 4.5 miles and should have taken six minutes, but the plane was reported missing and was later found 100 yards from shore. Search and rescue controllers were involved at 10:07 p.m after police called. No distress call was reported but the plane was tracked by the cellphone of one of the victims.
Phillips was general manager with Amazon Web Services.
