All Ops & safety articles – Page 38
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News
Sriwijaya 737’s unresolved throttle snag led to fatal thrust asymmetry
Indonesian investigators have determined that the right-hand throttle lever on a Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737-500 did not move backwards when the autothrottle commanded reduced power, resulting in thrust asymmetry and a fatal in-flight upset. None of the 62 occupants of the aircraft, operating from Jakarta to Pontianak on 9 January ...
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News
Average passenger weight unchanged despite obesity trend: EASA
Contrary to expectations, the average weight of passengers has not changed significantly since a previous study conducted nearly 15 years ago. Lufthansa Consulting reached the finding after conducting an extensive survey at six airports on behalf of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. Standard passenger weights are used for aircraft ...
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News
BRA to operate corporate route with maximum-permitted sustainable fuel blend
Swedish carrier Braathens Regional Airlines is claiming to be the first to operate services with the maximum-permitted blend of sustainable aviation fuel. BRA, which uses a fleet of ATR 72s, will conduct two flights weekly between Gothenburg and Lyon, on behalf of automotive firm Volvo Group, from autumn this year. ...
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News
Lufthansa launches Airbus virtual-reality cockpit training for A320s
Lufthansa Group is to serve as launch customer for a virtual-reality procedure trainer for pilots being developed by Airbus. Airbus intends the system to allow pilots to undertake procedures training without the use of a flight simulator or fixed training equipment. The airframer showed off the development at the European ...
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News
Fatalities as Precision ATR lands short and sinks in Lake Victoria
Tanzanian carrier Precision Air believes at least 19 fatalities resulted from an ATR 42-500 accident at Bukoba during which the turboprop came to rest submerged in Lake Victoria. The aircraft – identified by the airline as 5H-PWF – had been operating a service, PW494, from Dar es Salaam. Precision Air ...
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News
Confirmation bias over incorrect altitude put executive jet at risk of terrain collision
French investigators have emphasised the risk of confirmation bias following an incident in which a Cessna 525 executive jet suffered a simultaneous failure of an air-data system and the left-side primary flight display. Immediately after take-off from Paris Le Bourget on 14 August 2020 the left-hand primary display blanked, prompting ...
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News
Korean Air begins ‘intensive’ inspections of A330s following spate of safety incidents
Korean Air has started “intensive” inspections on its fleet of Airbus A330s, taking them out of service in phases, following two incidents involving the type within the span of a week.
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News
Greater consideration of risks might have averted BA 787 nose-gear collapse
UK investigators believe a British Airways Boeing 787-8 nose-gear retraction accident at London Heathrow might have been prevented if health and safety risks in an airworthiness directive had been given greater attention by the operator. The accident occurred when a nose-gear locking pin was inserted in the wrong location on ...
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In depth
5G may have caused dozens of troubling in-flight avionics failures
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) suspects new 5G cellular networks may have caused roughly 80 instances of aircraft system interference this year, with pilots reporting a range of malfunctions since the latest generation of mobile connectivity went live in January.
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News
Pilots did not clarify control after SriLankan A330 inadvertently pushed into descent
Investigators believe a SriLankan Airlines Airbus A330-300 lost considerable altitude during an in-flight upset after one of the pilots nudged the sidestick during cruise, disconnecting the autopilot and pushing the jet into a descent. While the inquiry does not specify the reason for the “sharp nose-down input” by the first ...
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News
Argentina’s new travel tax angers airlines
Airlines are blasting a new tax proposed by the Argentine government that will once again increase airfares.
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News
Viva A320neo low-fuel probe indicates less than 300kg in tanks on landing
Colombian investigators have disclosed that an Airbus A320neo landed with less than 300kg of fuel on board following two diversions on a service from Cali. The aircraft, operated by Viva Air, had departed Cali for the northern city of Riohacha on 17 October. This sector is some 530nm in length ...
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News
US orders 737 Classic spoiler sensor check to avert split-throttle risk
Operators of certain older ‘Classic’ Boeing 737 variants are being instructed to conduct tests to check for potential spoiler sensor failure, which could escape detection by the autothrottle computer. According to the US FAA, a review of system logic on the variants – from the 737-300 to the -500 – ...
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News
Positive thinking: how pilot with HIV battled ban to achieve dream
Loganair first officer James Bushe always had an ambition to fly professionally. His problem: a medical condition that meant he could not obtain his licence
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Analysis
Why aerospace must do more to get pilot mental health reporting on the level
When pilot Alan Smith took an anti-depressant medication after a stressful relocation to a new city, he had no idea what lay in store: a months-long odyssey that almost derailed his future career prospects and cost thousands of dollars in unexpected expenses.
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News
Korean Air A330 involved in runway excursion at Cebu airport
A Korean Air Airbus A330 suffered a runway excursion after landing at Cebu international airport in bad weather.
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News
UK Civil Aviation Authority preparing to seek new chief executive
UK Civil Aviation Authority chief executive Richard Moriarty is stepping down from his post as head of the regulator next spring. The authority is preparing to start searching for a successor to Moriarty, who has served in several roles in more than a decade at the organisation. He was appointed ...
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News
Amelia ERJ-145 suffers runway excursion at Paris Orly
French investigators are probing a runway excursion involving an Embraer ERJ-145 arriving at Paris Orly airport on 20 October. The aircraft had conducted its approach to runway 25 at around 19:15, after sunset, having flown from Rodez in southern France. It was operated by the aeronautical group Amelia, which has ...
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News
Norwegian 737 turbulence inquiry highlights controllers' lack of weather data
French investigators probing a serious turbulence event involving a Norwegian Boeing 737-800 have highlighted the disadvantages of air traffic controllers’ not having real-time weather data superimposed on their radar displays. The aircraft, bound for Nice on 25 July last year, had been heading south, cruising at 37,000ft, with a flightplan ...
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News
Taxes, litigation, air rage and infrastructure weigh on Latin American carriers
Latin American carriers must face down both familiar and new structural issues in the post-pandemic environment if the region is to grow to its full potential, and allow greater access to the population in the coming years.