All Ops & safety articles – Page 106
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OpinionTime to slim down aviation’s ever-expanding rule book
In the latest of a series, FlightGlobal takes a view from behind the cockpit door with a column from Captain Wim De Wannemacker, who flies Boeing 737s for TuiFly Belgium
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NewsShort-circuit could lead 777 thrust levers to advance during taxiing
Operators of Boeing 777s are being cautioned that autothrottles could trigger an uncommanded advancement of the throttle levers on the ground, after a number of instances. Most of the occurrences have taken place during taxiing. But in one event, says the US FAA, the uncommanded autothrottle advance happened after landing, ...
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NewsA321 hit windshear before short landing and tail-strike
US investigators have determined that an American Airlines Airbus A321 landed short of the runway and suffered a tail-strike after encountering a microburst on approach to Charlotte-Douglas airport. But the National Transportation Safety Board points out that the crew had not adopted the airline’s guidance on approach speed and aircraft ...
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NewsIndia’s DGCA frets over more loss of control incidents
India’s aviation regulator has identified airprox incidents, runway incursions and unstable approaches among its eight safety priorities, following a spike in cases during 2018. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has also flagged in-flight loss of control as a new area of concern, following a two-fold increase in ...
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NewsBoeing modifying 777 fuel indicator after in-flight discrepancy incidents
Boeing is developing a modification for passenger and freighter 777s after the discovery of a fuel discrepancy problem involving the centre wing tank. The modification follows at least 25 instances of disparity between the aircraft’s fuel-quantity indicator for the centre tank and the uplifted amount from refuelling trucks – after ...
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NewsArmenian carriers blacklisted over weak certification and monitoring
All Armenian carriers have been blacklisted by the European Commission, after more than six months of discussions with the Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia over safety concerns relating to its oversight capability. Two Armenian airlines – Aircompany Armenia and Armenia Airways – as well as the Civil Aviation Committee were ...
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NewsInvestigators download data from crashed PIA A320 recorders
Investigators have downloaded information from the two flight recorders retrieved from the Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A320 which crashed in Karachi. French investigation authority BEA states that – at the request of the Pakistani inquiry team – it has “successfully” obtained information from the cockpit-voice and flight-data recorders. “Analysis of ...
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NewsRunaway trolley injured several passengers on Air France 777
French investigators believe cabin crew’s increased workload, after an unexpected change of aircraft type, meant a trolley was left unsecured and injured several passengers when it broke free. The accident occurred on board an Air France Boeing 777-300ER (F-GSQL) departing Mauritius for Paris Charles de Gaulle on 16 September 2018. ...
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NewsUtair 737 hit 1.1m snow bank short of runway: inquiry
Investigators have determined that snow-clearance at Usinsk airport was inadequate before a landing accident in which a Utair Boeing 737-500 struck a shallow snow bank, about 1.1m high, situated 32m before the runway. The inquiry has also revealed that the aircraft was consistently slightly low on its descent path during ...
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NewsRunway assumption caused Indonesia AirAsia A320 to make wrong turn
In November 2017, an Indonesia AirAsia first officer assumed the departure runway from Perth would be the same as the arrival runway, and inputed the wrong data into the flight management guidance system. As a result, the Airbus A320 made a left turn after take off that was lower ...
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NewsWake-vortex crash probe baffled by tight separation decision
Investigators have not been able to explain why the captain of a Diamond Aircraft DA62 calibration flight repeatedly breached minimum separation distances from commercial traffic at Dubai before a fatal wake-turbulence accident. Analysis of the accident sequence indicates the UK Flight Calibration Services DA62, conducting approaches to runway 30L, had ...
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NewsMD-82 almost stalled at low level after go-around thrust overlooked
Bulgarian investigators have revealed that a Boeing MD-82 almost stalled while nose-high at low level, after the crew did not engage go-around thrust during a missed approach at Tarbes-Lourdes airport. The Bulgarian Air Charter aircraft descended to about 40ft while still nearly 500m from the runway, flying close to the ...
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NewsFedEx MD-11F, Hong Kong Airlines A330 in airprox incident
The Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department (CAD) is investigating a loss of separation incident at Hong Kong International airport, involving a FedEx Boeing MD-11 freighter and a Hong Kong Airlines (HKA) Airbus A330-300.
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NewsE-Jet operators told to act to avert trim-switch misfitting
Operators of Embraer 170 and 190 regional jets are being instructed to modify control yokes to prevent horizontal stabiliser trim switches being inadvertently wrongly installed. Brazil’s national civil aviation regulator, ANAC, has advised of “occurrences” in which the pitch-trim switches on the yokes have been fitted with poles inverted. This ...
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NewsATSB report highlights safety issues with firefighting
An increase in aerial fire-fighting activities in Australia over recent years has contributed to a higher rate of safety incidents, according to the country’s air accident investigation body, although stresses there has not been an rise in the risk per flight.
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NewsInquiry alleges tampering of hard-landing A321 cockpit recorder
Russian investigators probing an Airbus A321 hard landing have made the extraordinary accusation that its cockpit-voice recorder was erased and fitted in another aircraft, then re-installed in the damaged jet, ahead of the inquiry commission’s arrival. The Nordwind A321 – on final approach to Antalya’s runway 36C on 10 January ...
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NewsReturn-to-line training must be tailored for individual pilots: federation
Cockpit crew representatives are cautioning that resumption of flight operations as the coronavirus crisis recedes will require careful consideration of varying training levels for returning pilots. There will be a range of situations that operators will need to take into account, says international airline pilot federation IFALPA. Some pilots will ...
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NewsHigh-speed Islander spun and skidded backwards off wet runway
UK investigators have determined that a high-speed landing on a wet runway resulted in a Montserrat Airways Britten-Norman Islander overrunning, spinning through 180°, and sliding backwards down a steep incline. The aircraft (VP-MNI) came to rest when its tail snagged in the security fence at Montserrat airport. It had been ...
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NewsRussian authority recommends flights operate half-empty
Russia’s federal consumer rights protection authority is recommending that aircraft should not carry more than half their total passenger capacity during the restoration of air traffic. The authority, Rospotrebnadzor, states that, during check-in, passengers should not be seated in “close proximity” to one another – including seats immediately in front ...
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NewsPIA 777 taxied without all-clear from ground crew
UK investigators have determined that a Pakistan International Airlines Boeing 777-200LR incorrectly assumed that ground-support equipment had been removed before commencing to taxi, striking the towbar which was still in front of the jet. The tug and towbar had been disconnected from the aircraft (AP-BGZ), which was preparing to depart ...