Several reports have recently been received of loose pneumatic quickdisconnect unions on Goodrich pitot probes P/N 0851HL. These may be the result of mis-torque of the affected unions at equipment manufacturing level.
Investigations are still on-going to determine the root cause(s).
See the full report here (.pdf)
George’s Point of View
SMS development is a good thing, but we shouldn’t abandon black boxes.
Airbus wants to replace black boxes with “a more secure system” of real time satellite transmission.
The thing is we HAVE black box technology now. We should keep using it.
Aviation authorities should mandate the usage of both–keep what’s in place as a backup, and go for the real time data relay also. Not everything works as expected, all of the time, so all possible fail-safes should be employed. It’s not just that all that record-keeping keeps everyone honest; in the case of aviation, all those records will keep people alive.
Real time is not fail-proof, but a FANTASTIC idea. The question of cockpit recordings that infringe on the pilots privacy is going to hang in the air unanswered for now while the real time system is tested and perfected.
The privacy issue is an interesting factor. Some real time conversation in a cockpit is simple camaraderie–a workplace environment thing that makes a working environment comfortable. Plus it works better than coffee to keep the pilots awake and generally on task.
No one likes to work with someone looking over their shoulder. Eventually this may become an issue as authorities will inevitably over-regulate the degree of cockpit conversation–bound to be a factor when one considers the Hudson river crash where air traffic control (not pilots) were discussing cat bbq rather than doing their jobs; and the Colgan Air/Pinnacle cockpit recordings that exposed training deficits just before the icing crash in Buffalo .
The point is that we have the technology; we should use it. It will help save lives.
The IATA is the sixty year old international trade body of aviation, which represents, leads and serves the airline industry in general and is made up of about 230 airlines (93% of international air traffic.) The Superstructure Group has become an IATA partner. The Superstructure Group is developing the STEADES exchange system, provides technology and consultancy services to meet information needs and is bringing realtime SMS software to the aviation industry.
IATA Partners are listed here:
http://www.iata.org/sp/partners_all.htm
Special flight schedule published at www.lufthansa.com due to expected pilots’ strike
East Meadow, N.Y., Feb. 19, 2010 — As a consequence of the strike measures which have been initiated by the “Vereinigung Cockpit” trade union, Lufthansa is making corresponding adjustments to its flight schedule from Monday to Thursday, February 22- 25. About two thirds of the affected Lufthansa-operated flights will have to be cancelled, however Lufthansa regional partners such as Lufthansa City Line will operate their flightsaccording to schedule.
The special flight schedule for the period of the strike can now be accessed at
www.lufthansa.com and lists all flights which should be operating according to the current planning. Depending upon the actual operating conditions during the days of the strike, further changes could be made to the special flight schedule.
Customers who have purchased a Lufthansa ticket for a flight which is operated by a partner airline (codeshare) will not find the LH flight number known to them in the special flight schedule. Since the partner airlines are not affected by the strike, these flights will operate as planned (flight numbers LH1400-2629 and LH5050-6999).
Lufthansa is doing everything in its power to inform its customers as soon as possible and offer them alternative travel options. Passengers already booked on a Lufthansa flight during the period from February 22 to 25 can rebook once free of charge on another Lufthansa flight, if they wish to change their travel plans – provided their ticket was issued before February 18, the new travel date is before May 31, 2010 and their arrival and departure destinations remain the same.
Should a flight be cancelled, and the purpose of the journey no longer applies,
passengers can cancel their booking free of charge. Travelers have the opportunity to regularly check the status of their flight at www.lufthansa.com under the heading “My bookings”. A cancellation of the flight and the booking will be shown there. If a rebooking has been made, the travel alternatives will be shown there as well.
Passengers on domestic German flights, whose flights have been cancelled, can
independently purchase a rail ticket for the identical route in the same travel class and later, together with proof of the flight ticket purchased from Lufthansa, claim a refund. They can access the passenger receipt of their etix online at www.lufthansa.com under Information & Service > Check-in > Passenger Receipt.
Customers can continue to obtain information about their bookings, as well as about the Rebooking options and cancellations, at the toll-free number 1-800-645-3880 in the U.S. and 1- 800-563-5954 in Canada.
According to the special flight schedule, the following flights to/from North America are scheduled to take place during the period from February 22-25:
February 22
LH 412 Munich – Newark
LH 413 Newark – Munich
LH 430 Frankfurt – Chicago
LH 431 Chicago – Frankfurt
LH 434 Munich – Chicago
LH 435 Chicago – Munich
LH 438 Frankfurt – Dallas Ft Worth
LH 439 Dallas Ft Worth – Frankfurt
LH 492 Frankfurt – Vancouver
LH 493 Vancouver – Frankfurt
LH 498 Frankfurt – Mexico City
LH 499 Mexico City – Frankfurt
February 23
LH 412 Munich – Newark
LH 413 Newark – Munich
LH 492 Frankfurt – Vancouver
LH 493 Vancouver – Frankfurt
February 24
LH 412 Munich – Newark
LH 413 Newark – Munich
LH 434 Munich – Chicago
LH 435 Chicago – Munich
LH 442 Frankfurt – Detroit
LH 443 Detroit – Frankfurt
LH 492 Frankfurt – Vancouver
LH 493 Vancouver – Frankfurt
LH 498 Frankfurt – Mexico City
LH 499 Mexico – City Frankfurt
February 25
LH 412 Munich – Newark
LH 413 Newark – Munich
LH 434 Munich – Chicago
LH 435 Chicago – Munich
LH 490 Frankfurt – Seattle
LH 491 Seattle – Frankfurt
LH 492 Frankfurt – Vancouver
LH 493 Vancouver – Frankfurt
###
Deutsche Lufthansa AG
Corporate Communications
Martin Riecken
Tel.: +1 516-296-9671
americaspr@dlh.de
www.lufthansa.com
http://twitter.com/Lufthansa_USA
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 3, 2011
SB-11-06
Washington, DC – The National Transportation Safety Board is hosting a conference to share best practices and promote post-accident family assistance in all modes of transportation. Family Assistance: Promoting an International Approach for the Transportation Industry, will be held in Washington, DC on March 28 and 29, 2011. The conference will bring together family members, transportation accident investigation agencies, industry representatives, government agencies, and the news media to share perspectives on lessons learned in providing family assistance following transportation accidents in an international context.
“Following a major aviation or passenger rail accident in the US, the NTSB has the responsibility to coordinate support for survivors and families,” said NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman. “With this conference, we are marking the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act and the 10th anniversary of ICAO Circular 285, with a unique forum to identify lessons learned and draw from international experiences to improve the support for families in the wake of transportation tragedies worldwide.”
The first day of the conference will include panel discussions featuring family members, transportation industry representatives, vendors, non-governmental organizations, transportation accident investigative agencies, and the news media examining their perspectives on transportation family assistance.
The second day will feature a series of presentations by NTSB Transportation Disaster Assistance staff as they discuss the Board’s family assistance model from an operational perspective.
This conference, being held at NTSB’s headquarters, is provided free of charge to those interested in the provision of family assistance in all modes of transportation. A complete agenda and list of speakers will be published prior to the conference. The first day will be webcast at www.ntsb.gov.
– Strong demand seen for new, more fuel efficient single-aisle airplanes
– Modest growth predicted for region’s passenger traffic
MONTREAL, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing (NYSE: BA) forecasts that air carriers in North America will take delivery of about 7,200 new airplanes over the next 20 years at an investment of $700 billion.
New airplane deliveries in Canada and the United States will be driven largely by the need to retire older, less fuel-efficient single-aisle airplanes and regional jets, as airlines replace them with new-generation, more fuel-efficient models. (For the purposes of the Boeing forecast, the North America market consists of the U.S. and Canada. Mexico is included in Boeing’s forecast for Latin America.)
“North America is a large, mature market, and we expect passenger traffic for the region to grow at a modest rate of 3.4 percent,” said Randy Tinseth, vice president of Marketing, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, who released Boeing’s 2010 North America market outlook today in Montreal. “The fast-paced lifestyles in Canada and the U.S. require rapid, frequent and reliable coast-to-coast and interregional transportation. Driven by this demand, nearly three-quarters of the new deliveries over the next 20 years will be single-aisle airplanes.”
Taking retirements of airplanes into account, the North America fleet will grow from 6,590 airplanes today to about 9,000 airplanes by 2029.
Boeing forecasts that single-aisle airplanes will grow from 56 percent of the total North America fleet today to 71 percent of the fleet by 2029. Airlines are increasingly focusing on airplane age as fuel-thirsty, older airplanes weigh increasingly on earnings. Increased attention to aviation’s impact on global climate change also will be a factor in selecting airplanes that produce lower carbon emissions.
Newer airplane types such as the Next-Generation 737 offer significant advantages in environmental performance as well as improved capabilities, fuel efficiency and maintenance costs.
“After several years of losses among the region’s air carriers, we’re seeing signs of improvement and airlines are beginning to implement fleet renewal plans as they look to the future,” Tinseth said. “To help meet this demand, Boeing Commercial Airplanes will continue to work closely with our more than 500 suppliers and partners in Canada. Boeing imports parts and services from Canada amounting to more than a billion U.S. dollars a year, more than $625 million of which is associated with Boeing Commercial Airplanes.”
Twin-aisle fleets will evolve in the region as airlines continue to expand international point-to-point services to a wider range of airport pairs and frequencies. Small- and mid-sized twin-aisle airplanes will grow to represent 19 percent of the North America fleet by 2029.
Within the North America market, Boeing sees a demand for 1,180 new, efficient twin-aisle airplanes such as the 787 Dreamliner. Twin-aisles will account for only 16 percent of total airplane demand in the region over 20 years but will have a proportionally higher share of delivery cost, at 37 percent of the overall investment.
Large airplanes (747-size and larger) will not see significant demand in North America, with only about 40 units (all freighters), or one percent of the total investment.
Boeing also forecasts declining demand for regional jets in North America as airlines shift to more fuel-efficient turboprops or larger jetliner models. High fuel prices, intensified competition and the superior efficiencies of larger single-aisles will take a toll on the economics of small regional jets. This category will account for just 4 percent of the total investment for new airplanes, with only 800 new regional jet deliveries over the next 20 years, nearly all for replacement.
American Airlines becomes the first U.S. airline to order the 777-300ER
SEATTLE, Jan. 19, 2011 — Boeing (NYSE: BA) and American Airlines today announced the Fort Worth, Texas-based carrier has exercised options for two 777-300ERs (extended range).
“American Airlines is an industry leader whose vision and disciplined approach to growth has made it one of the largest airlines in the world,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Jim Albaugh. “American is the first carrier in the United States to order the 777-300ER. These new airplanes will complement their large fleet of 777-200ERs offering additional flexibility in serving the nonstop routes, while providing increased efficiency and reliability.”
The Boeing 777 is the world’s most successful twin-engine, long-haul airplane. The 777-300ER extends the 777 family’s span of capabilities, bringing twin-engine efficiency and reliability to the long-range market.
“These additional wide-body aircraft will bolster our network strategy, particularly the international growth opportunities we expect from our joint businesses with oneworld® partners in the transatlantic and transpacific markets,” said Tom Horton, President, AMR Corp., the parent company of American Airlines and American Eagle. “We value the combination of size, range and performance of the 777-300ER, as well as the extensive customer amenities it offers. The seating capability of the aircraft will give us growth flexibility in slot-constrained airports and provide us with greater ability to serve new long-haul markets.”
The Boeing 777-300ER is 19 percent lighter than its closest competitor. It produces 22 percent less carbon dioxide per seat and costs 20 percent less to operate per seat. The airplane can seat up to 365 passengers in a three-class configuration and has a maximum range of 7,930 nautical miles (14,685 km). The 777 family is the world’s most successful twin-engine, twin-aisle airplane.
Boeing incorporated several performance enhancements for the 777-300ER, extending its range and payload capabilities. Excellent performance during flight testing, combined with engine efficiency improvements and design changes that reduce drag and airplane weight, contributed to the increased capability.
SEATTLE, Jan. 27, 2011 — Boeing Training & Flight Services has signed a long-term agreement with Blue1 to provide 717 training capabilities in Stockholm, Sweden, beginning the first quarter of 2011. Blue1 is a Scandinavian Airlines’ subsidiary based in Helsinki, Finland.
“Enhancing safe and efficient flight operations, with cost-effective solutions implemented closer to our customer’s home bases is our main priority,” said Roei Ganzarski, chief customer officer, Boeing Training & Flight Services. “Through this partnership with Blue1, we are bringing our 717 training programs closer to our customers.”
Blue1 operates five Boeing 717s with an additional four scheduled to enter its fleet by the end of March 2011. “As we transitioned to the 717, it became increasingly clear that we would benefit from a regional 717 training solution,” said Mr. Heikki Setala, head of Flight Operations, Blue1. “Boeing, as the original manufacturer of our airplanes, was wholly supportive of our needs and provided an overall cost-reducing solution.”
The European Aviation Safety Agency-certified 717 full-flight simulator will be relocated from Boeing’s Atlanta campus to a training center in Stockholm. Boeing will continue to support its customers with 717 solutions in North America and Asia Pacific.
Under the terms of the agreement, Boeing continues to hold the exclusive license to market the Stockholm-based 717 training capacity to third parties.
Boeing Training & Flight Services offers comprehensive training solutions worldwide through its global network of campuses and other locations that best serve its customers’ needs.
The Boeing 717 is a proven and reliable 100-seat jetliner, with more than 125 in active service with airlines today.
