George’s Point of View
A disaster not in California…
From June 12 to June 15, the Sarychev Peak on the Russian Kuril Islands erupted, causing air traffic disruptions between Northern American and Japan. The ash clouds are reaching “estimated heights of 45,000 feet.” (Danger zone for aviation from from E152 to W155 over a distance of 2000nm and N40 to N48).
The dust clouds are drifting east and dispersing.
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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?
Cost of Aviation
If you want to see the most current mappings of the ash, here’s the British meteorological service site.
As I sit here in a foreign country separated from my home by an ocean and a sky full of volcanic ash they are saying may disrupt trans-atlantic aviation for the next six months, and wondering when I will get home, I read the chilling words of a American scrivener remembering the recent flight that wiped out the Polish “politocracy.”
Michael White: “An airplane is a hollow bullet filled with humans lives, shot from a gun we call an airport. Should it impact with the ground other than according to the dictates of precise technology, its content perishes.”
Those of us who fly so often take for granted that flight is a right, but every so often, Nature reminds us we are not birds, we are Icarus, daring to fly too close to the sun. We are creatures of the earth. We have no wings beyond those our imagination have wrought.
Who among us can say it is worth the cost, especially those people I work with every day who have lost their nearest and dearest.
And yet, how we have flown.
- Air Safety | Editorial | Video
Blown Lap Joints and Other Points of Fatigue
The older 737’s which ruptured their five-foot tops (at the lap joints) are just a drop in the proverbial bucket. Or, if you will, the canary in the cave. Because they are a sign of what is to come, if Boeing, and in fact ALL plane makers, don’t step up the inspection guidelines for metal fatigue in 15 year old planes. The FAA is mandating initial and repetitive electromagnetic inspections “to detect cracking in a specific part of the aircraft that cannot be spotted with visual inspection.” The FAA Emergency Airworthiness Directive pdf can be found here.
Sure, since the fuselage crack on the Southwest 737 on April 1, older model 737’s have demonstrated a propensity toward metal fatigue. On that particular plane, in March, eight instances were found of cracking in the frame and six cracked stringer clips which hold the skin. To be sure, Southwest did the right thing by grounding its 80 737s and checking them all because it turned out that five of those inspected had cracks in the same location. Those 18-inch roof sections are being repaired according to the recommendations of Boeing and the NTSB with a large aluminum patchBut what about 15 year old 757s? They should put all the older planes of comparable cycles—let’s not limit this to Boeing!— What about 15 year old Airbuses? —under scrutiny for metal fatigue. Are they not just as likely to blow as a 737?
Tam, a Letter of Remembrance
Dear Tam Families,
On this day, 7/17/17, I just reread the transcript of TAM flight JJ-3054. I never knew those people aboard that plane, but I knew their families. I remember the families of these lost passengers. I remember your heartbreak and your loss. Ten years have passed. I hope you have had ten years of healing.On this day, 7/17/2007, TAM flight JJ-3054 flew into history, taking with it all 187 passengers and crew, and twelve people on the ground. Tonight, I wanted to be that good friend who remembers the date, but not the pain. I was there with you, and I remember you were towers of strength, getting through the hardest time of all. What I hope is that time has healed your wounds, and that you can remember the music and joy that filled your loved ones lives. Remember the good things. The love. The laughter. The connection. May you continue to carry with you all the good memories. I share my heartfelt condolences to all the families. I was there with you, then. I am with you now in spirit. I will never forget.
