Snippets - Daily Changing Aviation Safety News Items of Interest

Airlines relying on older jets

DALLAS (AP) -- Federal regulators say airlines are pushing the useful life of their jets to new limits -- prompting a need for even more careful oversight.

"That can be accomplished in a safe manner, but it's going to take extra attention, and not waiting for problems to cause accidents," Jim Hall, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, told The Dallas Morning News in Sunday's editions.

The need was apparent last week when the Federal Aviation Administration ordered 179 Boeing 737s -- some more than 20 years old -- grounded for inspections of their fuel-tank wiring. Inspections were ordered after mechanics found that engine vibrations aboard 737s were rubbing some wires bare.

Among the planes inspected was Southwest Airlines' oldest 737, which was put in service on May 17, 1977. No. 20 keeps a demanding, 11-flight schedule the Dallas-based carrier expects of all its Boeings.

Half of the inspected planes were found to have wires with moderately to severely worn insulation, including N20SW.

The North American fleet of airliners has an average age of 15.25 years -- the oldest, by five years, of any developed region in the world. The only countries with older airplanes are in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, aviation consultants say.

The FAA is working on a program, due out this summer, that will help airlines find problems that lurk in old wiring.

Tom McSweeny, the FAA's director of aircraft certification, said officials are always looking for ways to keep old airplanes as safe as new ones.

"The goal is that no matter how old the aircraft gets, it affords the appropriate level of safety," he said.

Some carriers are revitalizing their fleets. Southwest's fleet of 267 jets is the second youngest in the nation at 8.4 years. Fort Worth-based American Airlines' 646 planes are third-youngest at 10.2 years.

Most older commercial airliners are destined for closer scrutiny, said federal air safety officials.

"A lot has been learned so far, and some more will be learned before this is over," said James E. Burnett Jr., a safety consultant who chaired the NTSB for much of the 1980s. "The reality that we deal with is that the airlines consider airplanes too valuable to throw them away before squeezing every little bit of use out of them."

Top of the class (24Feb00)

High fliers of the industry got the ultimate accolade last evening at a gala celebration in the Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore. Eleven trophies were presented at Flight International's Aerospace Industry Awards 2000, including the prestigious Aerospace Personality of the Year Award. The annual awards, launched at Asian Aerospace six years ago, recognise excellence and outstanding achievements in aerospace over the past 12 months. Guest of honour at the awards ceremony, attended by more than 500 top industry executives, was Liew Heng San, managing director of the Economic Development Board, Singapore. Here are the awards details in full.

AVIONICS & AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS (Sponsored by Bombardier Aerospace)

Meggitt Safety Systems: Certification of the High Temperature, High Vibration Electrical Wiring to last the lifetime of an aircraft and to withstand temperatures higher than 2000°F and damage from vibration.

Having tried deregulation

Australian Transport Minister Wants Liberalized Aviation Rules

Australia wants more liberalized global and domestic aviation rules, Transport Minister John Anderson said Monday. "The existing system of regulating international air travel has restricted the growth of efficient airlines and imposed unnecessary costs on travelers throughout the world," Anderson said at a meeting of the International Air Transport Association. The Australian government believes it is essential to move away from an existing bilateral system of negotiating airline access toward a free world in aviation. "I am realistic about the difficulty of replacing the 3,000 registered treaties that make up the bilateral system," Anderson said. "The end results, however, will be worth the effort: cheaper airfares, more flights and safer air travel," he added. The minister also said government policies are increasing competition in the Australian airline industry, and he rejected a suggestion the industry isn't large enough to support more than two airlines.

White House Establishes Group On Aging Wiring

Inter-agency Panel Will Coordinate Research

While federal investigators have pretty much shot down (pun intended) the missile theory as the cause of the demise of TWA Flight 800, faulty wiring is still a suspect in that crash and in the crash of Swissair Flight 111. Because of those high-profile accidents, and wiring problems in spacecraft and nuclear power plants, the White House last week announced it will form a group to coordinate federal research on aging wiring. The new inter-agency group will pool expertise across a range of disciplines to determine "if there are common issues" that need to be addressed through research and development programs, said Jake Siewert, a White House spokesman. There are reports that bad wiring has led to fires and equipment failures for years in military and commercial aircraft, while NASA has had to deal with wiring flaws on Columbia, Endeavor and Discovery space-shuttle missions.

While testifying to Congress last September, Paul McCarthy, executive air-safety chairman of the Air Line Pilots Association, said, "Aging wiring effects must be accounted for in the regulations and practices which govern the design and maintenance of the aircraft." The new White House initiative will be run by President Clinton's National Science and Technology Council, set up in 1993 to coordinate science, space and technology policies. The new task force will include experts from the FAA, the Pentagon and NASA as well as the Departments of Commerce, Energy and Transportation, said Siewert.

AIR CRASH RESCUE NEWS:

June 2, 2000 - Aging Wiring Probed 'National Concern' Over Plane, Shuttle, Nuclear Plant Safety WASHINGTON (USA) - The Clinton administration plans to form a research group next week to probe the safety of aging wiring in airplanes, space shuttles and nuclear power plants.

''Aging wiring is an issue of national concern that extends beyond aviation,'' says Duncan Moore, the White House's associate director for technology, in a May 10 memo obtained by USA TODAY.

Damaged wire insulation has led to fires and electrical equipment failures for years in military and commercial airplanes, according to Air Force, Navy and Federal Aviation Administration documents. U.S. and Canadian investigators are studying whether wiring malfunctions might have caused the crashes of TWA Flight 800 in 1996 and Swissair Flight 111 in 1998.

Last September, NASA put a hold on space shuttle flights because damaged wiring was found throughout the agency's aircraft. An exposed wire caused a short circuit during the launch of the shuttle Columbia last summer.

Similar flaws were later found elsewhere on Columbia and on the Endeavor and Discovery shuttles.

The research group ''will become the focal point for wire safety technology in the U.S.,'' Moore's memo says. ''This group will be responsible for ensuring that federal research is coordinated and communicated in a timely way to improve safety for air, space and other areas where aging wiring is a safety issue.'' The group's first meeting is set for Wednesday, Moore said in an interview.

Officials from the FAA, the Defense Department, NASA and other agencies have been asked to attend.

Moore's memo says his office decided to form the group after reviewing research and safety efforts begun by the government agencies and meeting with leaders of the International Aviation Safety Association, a consumer safety organization. IASA has been pressuring Vice President Gore's office to get more involved in wiring safety issues. It is led by Lyn Romano, whose husband died in the Swissair crash, and Ed Block, a former Defense Department wiring expert who is on an FAA panel that is studying airliner wiring.

Romano is glad the group is being formed but has her doubts. ''I'm not optimistic because I've seen so many related committees that have been established in Washington and so much rhetoric has been put out by the FAA, and nothing has gotten done.'' FAA and NASA officials did not return calls Thursday. The Defense Department declined to comment.

FAA, Navy Sign Memorandum of Understanding

The Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Research and Acquisitions and the Naval Air Systems Command have exchanged a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation. The purpose of the MOU is to provide a framework for a strategic partnership between the two organizations. This partnership is intended to renew and expand coordination and cooperation in aeronautical and aviation related research and technology.

Dr. Jan Brecht-Clark, Deputy Director of Aviation Research exchanged the Memorandum with Rear Admiral Joseph W. Dyer, Assistant Commander for Research and Engineering at a meeting at Naval Air Station, Patuxent River, MD, on April 28. "We have a lot more in common than we've seen before," Brecht-Clark said. "The FAA has world-class researchers, but we can't do it all. This MOU will be critical in identifying those things we can trade or leverage."

The MOU creates a partnership between the two agencies to use their personnel and technology to support each other's programs. This will be especially effective in program areas that are common to both, such as aircraft safety, avionics, aging aircraft, maintenance, GPS and reliability.

Rear Admiral Joseph A. Dyer, Assistant Commander for Research and Engineering , and Dr. Jan Brecht-Clark, Deputy Director, Office of Aviation Research, exchange the MOU.
		http://www.faa.gov/aar/news/jun99/jun99.htm#top

Seconding Brecht-Clark's comments, Dyer remarked on the match between the two organizations. "We have obvious synergies. We want to work with you and support you," he said. "In these days of downsizing pressure, there are strategic partnerships that make sense."

Brecht-Clark reported on FAA efforts to develop new processes to improve safety, efficiency and security in the wake of projected air traffic volume increases. "By the year 2007, the equivalent of the entire population of the United States will be taking a trip by plane every year, resulting in very crowded airports and air space," she said. "The efficiency needed to control that airspace will be incredible. And there is no greater efficiency than a fighter aircraft flying from point to point. We have a goal of reducing fatal commercial mishaps by 80 percent by 2007," she said. "That's the kind of work that can benefit both our fleet and yours."

According to Robert Pappas (AAR-430) the first development work under the MOU will be a three-year project involving the Arc Fault Circuit Breaker. The breaker is intended to detect arcing within wire bundles that might not be detected normally. "This can bring about a big safety improvement."

FAA and Navy representatives expect the MOU will benefit both agencies by reducing costs and providing a broader base of research capabilities.

"It's a win-win situation," Brecht-Clark said.

For additional information, contact, Thomas O'Brien (AAR-400) at (609) 485-6086 or Robert Pappas (AAR-430) at (609) 485-6181.

2 June 00— Four years after the explosion of TWA Flight 800, the Federal Aviation Administration is reportedly considering new rules that would reduce the risk of a similar tragedy.
The Washington Post reports federal regulators may require airlines to pump inert gas into airplane fuel tanks before takeoff to prevent an explosion, like the one that brought down TWA Flight 800 in July of 1996, killing all 230 passengers.

More Cost Effective
The idea of inert gas was first posed in an urgent National Transportation Safety Board recommendation three and a half years ago, but the FAA considered it to be too expensive and impractical.
     However, a top FAA official tells the Post that thanks to new technology, the estimated cost of such a requirement has been cut in half.
     FAA director of aircraft certification service, Elizabeth Erickson, tells the Post, “The bottom line is, it’s a lot cheaper than the [advisory committee] that first looked at this thought.”
     Erickson said that in new tests conducted at airports in Atlanta and Atlantic City, the FAA found that providing every commercial airport in the country with equipment to make inert all aircraft tanks would cost about $1.6 billion.

Focus on Plane’s Initial Climb
Federal investigators are convinced that heated fumes in the nearly empty center fuel tank of TWA Flight 800 led to the explosion that brought the plane down.
     Pumping inert gas such as nitrogen into fuel tanks would eliminate the risk of vapors heating up to the point they could explode during the plane’s initial climb. Once a plane has climbed to a higher altitude, there isn’t enough oxygen for the vapors to ignite.
     Erickson tells the Post there are two ways of introducing inert gases, one more practical for large airports and the other for small airports.
     A more detailed final advisory committee report will be released this month or in July, and Erickson notes some regulatory requirements could be coming from that

SEATTLE, Washington (USA) - The Federal Aviation Administration yesterday ordered the operators of 719 Boeing aircraft to replace insulation blankets covered with a form of Mylar that could increase the risk of a fire spreading.

The directive applies to MD-80, MD-88, MD-90, DC-10 and MD-11 aircraft designed by McDonnell Douglas, which Boeing bought in 1997. The agency issued the proposed airworthiness directive last August. It was made final yesterday.

The action was taken in response to the September 1998 crash of a Swissair MD-11 near Halifax, Nova Scotia, that killed 229 people. The crew reported smoke in the cockpit, apparently from an electrical fire.

"The risk of fire aboard these aircraft is very low, but this is a prudent action to take to raise the bar on safety," FAA Administrator Jane Garvey said in a statement.

The order affects 719 U.S.-registered aircraft operated by Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Federal Express, Frontier Airlines, Midwest Express, Northwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines, Trans World Airlines, US Airways and World Airways.

Operators have five years to replace the insulation blankets, a process that will cost about $368 million.

May 17, 2000 - 1 Map Light Found in Swissair Crash HALIFAX, Nova Scotia - One of the 11 map lights suspected as a possible source of the fire aboard a Swissair jetliner that crashed off Nova Scotia two years ago killing 229 people has been found unburned, investigators said Tuesday.

Fearing that a problem with the map lights might have caused the fire, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration in March ordered similar map lights on other MD-11 airplanes unplugged and inspected as a precautionary move.

Jacques Babin of Canada's Transportation Safety Board said one map light recovered from the copilot's side of the cockpit of Swissair Flight 111 showed no sign of burning.

Investigators believe insulation around the halogen map lights may have helped spread the fire on the plane, which crashed on Sept. 2, 1998, killing all aboard.

They have recovered pieces of the plane's 10 other map lights, but say there may be too much damage to get any information.

In examining the map lights on other MD-11s, investigators discovered that blanket insulation pressed against some of the light fixtures showed signs of heat damage. The FAA subsequently ordered changes in the flammable insulation aboard hundreds of aircraft.

Cathay flight makes emergency landing in Taiwan

A Cathay Pacific Airbus was forced to abort its flight to Hong Kong on Sunday (30 Apr 00) because of mechanical trouble and made an emergency landing in southern Taiwan. No injuries were reported.

Flight CX405 took off smoothly from Taipei's Chiang Kai-shek International Airport Sunday evening, but the captain was forced to shut down one of the two engines and land in the southern port city of Kaohsiung, a passenger on board said.

"It's a real scare when you hear the captain's voice yelling for the chief purser in a very tense voice," investment banker Mark Ho told The Associated Press.

The airline couldn't comment since the mishap was still under investigation, said an airport staffer who only gave her surname Hsing.

Airline officials in Hong Kong - where Cathay Pacific is based - couldn't be reached for comment since offices had closed early for the Labor Day holidays.

Ho said passengers were frightened, but no one was injured. The airline was arranging for the passengers to board another airline to Hong Kong, he added.

Ho said nothing was apparently wrong when the plane took off, but flight attendants had stopped serving hot food or coffee on board the flight because of a short-circuit in the flight's electrical systems about 40 minutes after take off.

"That was the first sign of trouble," Ho said. Ho added that passengers were frightened, but no one was hurt.

http://www.airlinepilotnews.com/may/5-1/cathay_flight_makes_emergency_la.htm

*Global Analysis and Information Network (GAIN) (updated 9/2/98)* The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has proposed the formation of a voluntary, privately-owned and operated international infrastructure for exchanging aviation safety information. The FAA is calling the concept the Global Analysis and Information Network (GAIN) which would collect, analyze, and disseminate aviation safety information to those in the aviation community who can use it to improve safety. The infrastructure would enhance the capabilities of industry, government and labor to improve the relatively stable accident rate and aviation safety overall. GAIN would emphasize proactive identification of safety concerns through the collection of data about the less serious but more numerous occurrences that are currently under-reported in the aviation system (more).
*Aviation Safety Risk Analysis: (updated 8/9/99)* The FAA's workload for ensuring aviation safety is increasing due to multiple factors such as air traffic growth, aging aircraft, and the introduction of new technologies. This program will provide risk management and decision support tools and systems to aviation safety inspectors and certification engineers to allow them to systematically assess potential risks and take proactive steps to reduce the rate of aviation-related accidents or incidents. These tools include, but are not limited to, the safety performance analysis system (SPAS), air carrier operations systems model, maintenance malfunction information reporting, and probabilistic safety assessment. Cost and safety benefits derived from this program will also extend to aviation-related industries and society as a whole. *Fire Research and Safety: (updated 8/9/99)* This project will minimize fire-related injuries and increase survival rates for aircraft occupants during in-flight and post-crash fires. Improvements will be developed to prevent the ignition of interior materials, detect and control fires, reduce impediments to passenger escape, including heat, smoke, and toxic gases, and increase passenger evacuation rates. Research will develop fire-safe cabin materials, smart systems for aircraft fire hazard control, new techniques for fire suppression, and low flammability safety fuels.
*Aircraft Catastrophic Failure Prevention Program: (updated 8/9/99)* Created by Congress in 1990, this program has the intended goal of improving aircraft safety by developing technologies and methods that will assess the risk and prevent defects, failures, and malfunctions of aircraft, aircraft components, and aircraft systems which could results in catastrophic failure of aircraft. Current activities within the program included the following: development of aircraft vulnerability models to assess the risk to aircraft from turbine engine noncontainment, development of improved modeling and mitigation materials for noncontainment, investigation into copper/silver sulfides found on components of fuel quantity indicating systems (responds to NTSB recommendation A-98-37), and investigation into B-737 flight control systems. http://www.aero-space.nasa.gov/goals/faa_rti.htm
*Wonder if these Three programs exchange information?*
Airframe Airworthiness Assurance (AAA) - Since 1991, NASA has conducted a research program in Aging Aircraft as part of the Advanced Subsonic Technology (AST) Program. This program, to be completed in 1998, concentrated on thin-skin fuselage structures. The AAA project will build upon the results of the AST Aging Aircraft project in the areas of wing structure, aircraft engines, and subsystems. The goal of AAA is to develop technologies to assure continued airworthiness of the aging commercial transport fleet and to enhance human survivability in the event of an accident. It is planned to achieve three objectives: (1) develop technologies to extend the useful safe life of airframe and engine materials and structures and all systems including landing gear, hydraulics, wiring, and electromechanical systems; (2) develop a systems approach to crashworthiness design that includes validated analysis methodology, new structural concepts and materials, safer cabin interiors, advanced restraint equipment, design and injury criteria to enhance crash safety; and (3) assess the needs and develop technology for fire prevention, detection, and suppression that can minimize fire hazards in crashes and prevent fatal accidents due to in-flight fires. http://www.aero-space.nasa.gov/goals/nasa_rt.htm
*USDoD Research Initiatives* *Aging Aircraft:* The objective of this program is to develop and transition technologies to extend operational life, reduce operational and maintenance costs, and enhance the readiness of aging USAF aircraft structures. By 2005, over 75% of the USAF aircraft inventory will be more than 25 years old. Maintenance/repair costs for aging aircraft structures are increasing due to cracking or corrosion damage. The Air Force program focuses on reducing maintenance and repair requirements and their associated costs, and on increasing the operational readiness of USAF aging aircraft. It does this within the framework of the Aircraft Structural Integrity Program. The successful implementation of the Aging Aircraft Program initiative is being achieved through the efforts of the Aging Aircraft Technologies Team and its five application focus area teams: Airworthiness Assurance/Fleet Management; Advanced Structural Integrity Methodology; Improved Corrosion Prevention, Assessment and Control; Advanced Non Destructive Inspection (NDI) Systems; and Repair and Replacement Technologies. These five focus area teams are responsible for developing and implementing a strategy which delivers cost-effective technology products that solve cracking and corrosion problems in aging aircraft structures. Program plans are being developed jointly with the other services, NASA and the FAA, under the auspices of the Joint Aeronautical Commanders' Group (JACG). http://www.aero-space.nasa.gov/goals/dod.htm	FAA Aircraft R&D Initiatives Some of the FAA activities that will favorably impact the meeting of our AvSP goal are as follows: *Aging Aircraft Research: (updated 8/9/99)* Aging airframe structures have shown increasing susceptibility to widespread fatigue damage and corrosion that could pose a threat to their structural integrity. Instances of structural failures point to the need for increased reliability in inspection methods. This research effort will ensure the continued safety and airworthiness of the U.S. civil fleet by quantifying and predicting the effects of aging on both the life of aircraft and air safety, and transferring resulting research and technology to aircraft maintenance and certification efforts. This research effort will ensure safety by developing the means for evaluating and reducing the risks associated with aging aircraft structures. The various research activities will also include technology transfer of technical material and knowledge to industry and foreign regulatory agencies. *Nonstructural Systems Research: (updated 8/9/99)* The goal of this research effort is to establish and conduct research which addresses the recommendation of the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security that the FAA, in cooperation with airlines and manufacturers, expand the Aging Aircraft Program to cover nonstructural systems. Accident data from 1959 through 1996 indicates that up to 3 percent of all cause factors or 30 percent of airplane-related cause factors may be attributable to nonstructural systems. The current focus of the research is on electrical systems safety (wiring and circuit breakers assessment and technology improvement). Future initiatives will include efforts to assess and improve mechanical systems safety. http://www.aero-space.nasa.gov/goals/faa_rti.htm

Re: Finnair emergency landing in Zurich

danicad66
(F/Ljubljana, Slovenia)

4/25/00 7:10 am

Hello all. Just thought I'd fill you in on the emergency that my colleagues experienced first hand on April 15 on their flight from Zurich to Helsinki. It had been scarier than I imagined.

Just as the plane reached the cruising altitude, smoke started to come out of one of the overhead luggage compartments, a couple of rows in front of where my colleagues were seating. The crew (pilots included) seemed to have panicked (words of my colleague). The captain started to shout orders (in Finnish) to the flight attendants, who started running down the aisle frantically to deal with the situation. The only one that looked in control all the time was a steward who finally put out the fire with a halon bottle, putting on a smoke-hood beforehand. Oxygen masks were deployed; passengers remained still and silent; there was no panic on their side, just fear. When the fire had been put out, the plane entered into a very steep descent, without prior notice to the passengers. They were frozen solid and had no idea whether something else was wrong with the plane. Just before landing and after some extremely sharp turns they could see the runway with all the emergency vehicles waiting. The captain only spoke to the passengers more than half an hour after the landing. They were offered a psychologist and were put in a hotel overnight.

As I understand this should have been a pretty routine operation (descent+landing), once the smoke had been dealt with. Yet it has not been one of the cases when you could have judged the gravity of the situation by some of the crew's reactions. Shouldn't have the pilots at least briefly announced that "everything has been taken care of and we are going to return to Zurich"? I'm sure it would have meant a huge difference to the passengers.

Danica

April 28, 2000 - Emergency Landing Made in Manila

MANILA, Philippines - An Air Philippines jet carrying 62 people made an emergency landing Friday in Manila after smoke suddenly filled the passenger cabin, officials and witnesses said.

No one was hurt aboard the Boeing 737-200, which carried 56 passengers and six crew members.

It was the second safety incident involving an aircraft of that type operated by Air Philippines in just over a week.

On April 19, another of the planes plowed into a coconut grove on a hill near Davao in the southern Philippines, killing all 131 people aboard in the country's worst ever air disaster. The cause of that accident is still under investigation.

In Friday's incident, the plane, which took off from central Cebu province, was about 10 miles from Manila when dark smoke suddenly filled the cabin, prompting the pilot to ask air traffic controllers for an emergency landing, said Rene Mailom of Air Philippines.

A statement by the Air Transport Office said one of three hydraulic systems in the plane malfunctioned, but the problem ``did not jeopardize the safety of the flight.'' Lita Castro, 51, a passenger sitting in the middle section of the plane, said smoke smelling like burning rubber started coming out of the overhead air vents, she said.

Oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling and passengers were instructed to wear them. The crew also asked the passengers to brace their heads with their arms, Castro said.

``I asked a stewardess beside me if we would crash. I was so frightened,'' Castro said. ``She told us to stay calm and everything will be all right.'' Air transport officials said an investigation was under way.

Air Philippines, which began operations in 1996, is one of a number of recently created airlines flying older planes. Its operating permit was temporarily suspended in 1998 because of lapses in safety and maintenance.

Supplemental information from T.S.B. Initial Notification (#A00O0077):
The Airbus A320-211 aircraft flight crew declared an emergency reporting smoke
in the cockpit shortly after take-off and returned to Toronto (LBPIA). The aircraft landed on runway 24L without further incident with ERS standing by. The company reported that an electric cooling fan motor in the aircraft avionics bay malfunctioned and was the source of the smoke.

MM Comment: I am told by my DND and Air Canada Airbus pilot buds that their breakers trip all the time and that, contrary to Airbus and company policy, they have to be reset - if they weren't, the Airbuses would never fly. They even have a dismissive attitude towards the manufacturer/airline police, deeming it to be an idealistic piece of CYA. It is of enough concern that official (and prudent) policies are not being adhered to (to the point of being held in scorn) - but what bothers me more is that the Airbus is totally dependant on wiring (fly by wire, glass cockpit, side-stick controllers (Military has control column) and that the general purpose wire for Airbus is nothing other than Kapton.

Investigators probing the 1998 crash of a Swissair plane off Nova Scotia say a pilot's map light in the cockpit ceiling of the MD-11 could have been a source of ignition, The New York Times reported Saturday.

Canadian investigators were sorting through the debris of swissair flight 111 to try to find the map light from that plane, Jim Harris, spokesman for the Canadian Transportation Safety Board, told the Times.

The cause of the crash that killed 229 people has yet to be determined.

Boeing, which makes the MD-11 model planes, is urging airlines using that type of aircraft to check the lights often until they can be replaced, and to install fire-resistant tape to protect insulation. The FAA is considering whether to make such checks mandatory.

FAA spokeswoman Rebecca Trexleer said the agency is examining the map light issue. "We are drafting an air worthiness directive. It will probably be similar to Boeing's service bulletin".

However, she declined to say when that directive would be issued or what it would say.

There are no MD-11 planes registered in Canada, but the investigators found the possible problem while looking at such planes undergoing maintenance outside the country. This model was made by McDonnell Douglas, which has been taken over by Boeing.

Harris said investigators haven't yet ruled out anything in determining what caused Swissair 111 to plunge into the ocean

Release #99.52

September 15, 1999

Pilots Union Calls for Additional Research on Aircraft Wiring

WASHINGTON, D.C.---The Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) today told Congress that it is time to re-examine the assumptions and practices on aircraft electrical wiring.

"Various events and accidents have made it imperative that we examine all aspects of aircraft wiring, from the design characteristics, to the materials used, to how they are installed in the aircraft. We also must revise our previous notions of how well wiring holds up under aging and use. And wherever possible, we must pursue technological improvements that provide better alternatives to electrical wiring," said Captain Paul McCarthy, executive air safety chairman for ALPA.

McCarthy was testifying at hearings of the House Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations and Emergency Management, part of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The subject was aircraft wiring, and McCarthy was careful to separate ALPA's testimony from any ongoing accident investigations.

"Although the subject of aircraft wiring has been a central part of at least two recent airline accidents, I wish to make it clear that nothing I say here should be construed as being directed at any of these specific investigations. Rather, they should be taken as general comments on this aspect of aviation safety. I also want to make it clear that we at ALPA are not trying to issue any sort of general alarm about wiring concerns. Our members continue to operate these airliners, including the older models, with abundant confidence in their airworthiness," he said.

McCarthy addressed several types of failures and concerns with aging wiring, including "ticking faults," "wet wire" fires (a form of the ticking fault now known as "wet arc tracking"), the effects of vibration, moisture, heat and physical installation stresses, and the use of polyimide or Kapton as a wiring insulator. ALPA urged a five-part solution: improve the Federal Aviation Regulations standards, revamp design and installation processes, incorporate modular construction, use fiber optics where appropriate, and evaluate other potential methods of signal transmission, such as infrared and FM radio.

ALPA is the oldest and largest pilot union in North America. It represents 55,000 airline pilots at 53 carriers in the U.S. and Canada.

Click here, to read Captain McCarthy's testimony.

# # #

ALPA CONTACT: John Mazor (703) 481-4440

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ABC: FAA Inspection Check of Boeing 717-200 for Electrical Problems

W A S H I N G T O N, April 1 The Federal Aviation Administration ordered immediate inspections Saturday of 14 Boeing 717-200 airliners to check for potential electrical problems in altitude indicators and make necessary modifications. The order follows reports of two instances of intermittent loss of information on the captain and first officer's primary flight display and integrated standby instrument system display, the agency said. In both cases, airspeed

and altitude indicators remained operational and the flights were completed without incident, it said. The planes affected by the order are operated by Trans World Airlines and Air Tran. Olympia Airlines, a Greek carrier, also operates two 717-200s, which first entered service last year. Before the affected planes can fly again, the FAA said electrical cables must be coiled and stowed between the glareshield and the standby display to further isolate the display from other instruments and revise operational procedures. The agency estimated the work would take two hours to complete at a cost of $120 per plane.

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/travel/DailyNews/planeorder000401.html

NTSB SYMPOSIUM ON TRANSPORTATION SAFETY AND THE LAW

Washington, DC - The National Transportation Safety Board will host a
symposium next month designed to air the conflicts between the growing
need for data to improve transportation safety and the industry's concern
about the use of that data in regulatory actions, law suits and criminal
prosecutions. The symposium will be held on April 25-26, 2000, at the
Hyatt Regency Crystal City Hotel, 2799 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington
Virginia 22202. Issues to be discussed include:
* How the generation of data enhances transportation safety
* The impact of government investigations and private litigation
* The proper relationship among accident investigations, regulatory
enforcement actions and/or criminal inquiries; and
* The protection of trade and other proprietary information.
http://www.ntsb.gov/pressrel/2000/000309.htm

February Flurry of Actions to Improve Safety of MD-11's MD-11 deficiencies /Air Safety Week [05 Mar 00]

Operators of MD-11s have been inundated recently with more than a dozen airworthiness directives. The activity reflects what some observers have described as a "patchwork quilt" response to what seems to be an increasing list of deficiencies with the MD-11.

In two installments, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued 15 airworthiness directives (AD's) on the MD-11. Most were original AD's; a couple superseded previously issued AD's. In the 18 months since the crash of the Swissair Flight 111 the number of AD-related actions on the MD-11 totals 46. As a basis for comparison, in the 18 months before the Sept. 2, 1998 crash the FAA issued 11 AD's on the MD-11. Critics may see in these relative counts mute evidence of a "tombstone" approach to safety - that it takes a crash to galvanize action.

The latest AD's are consistent with previously published directives on the MD-11, which focused primarily on a number of electrically-related "nasty threats" (see ASW, Feb. 8, 1999). Every one of the latest AD's relate in one way or another to the MD-11's electrical system. These AD's came out in two batches, eight on Feb. 1 and another seven on Feb. 17. Operators have until March 17 to comment on the first set, and until March 23 to comment on the second set.

The operative terms in these AD's are "inspect," "repair" and "modify."

In some cases, power feeder cables are to be wound in spiral wrap to prevent chafing. One benefit of spiral wrapping is that it tends to dampen in-flight high frequency vibration-induced chafing. The evident intent is to prevent the fiery result of electrical arcing.

In other instances, the installation of protective sleeving and spiral wrap may reflect a grudging admission that unsheathed Kapton wire poses a hazard (although the AD's certainly make no such admission and, indeed, some experts believe properly-installed Kapton wiring is safe).

The requirement to install new circuit breakers and wiring "to prevent a disparity between the ratings of certain circuit breakers and their associated wiring" suggests an original-equipment electrical design fault (incompatible CB's and connector ratings). If so, the original flaw is neatly camouflaged by the corrective action now mandated.

The requirement to perform electrical resistance measurements of ground studs and circuit breakers associated with the No. 2 generator infer improper build-up of grounding studs. The action now required could be an outgrowth of the production line problems noted at the Long Beach, California plant in the early 1990's, when many of the MD-11's now in service were built (see ASW, Feb. 28).

In light of the AD's, operators may be left wondering what festers unseen elsewhere in the MD-11?

http://airlinepilots.com/Flight%20Watch/FW71.htm#LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST BOEING CLAIMS FLYING AN AIRCRAFT BEYOND ITS SERVICE LIFE CYCLE AMOUNTS TO STRICT LIABILITY AND NEGLIGENCE
LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST BOEING CLAIMS FLYING AN AIRCRAFT BEYOND ITS SERVICE LIFE CYCLE AMOUNTS TO STRICT LIABILITY AND NEGLIGENCE

It is no secret that many of the civil airliners flying in America are being operated beyond their design service lives. As a matter of economics, a decision has been made to continue flying these aircraft and to shift the burden from the engineers who designed the airplanes to the maintenance personnel and engineers who must ensure their continued airworthiness.

The Boeing 747-100 airplane was designed to have a service life of 60,000 hours. Nevertheless, TWA Flight 800 involved a Boeing 747 with over 100,000 flying hours. The Boeing 747 was tested to one design life. Conversely, McDonnell Douglas aircraft are ordinarily tested to two design lives, i.e., twice the service life of the particular aircraft.

If the legal theory raised in the lawsuit were to be accepted by the courts, it could prompt airlines flying aircraft beyond their design lives to replace them with new airplanes.

An Airplane Does Not Have to Be Good as New to Be Airworthy

The case came on for trial before Judge Pope. The FAA Inspector testified, and the lawyer for the mechanic made a motion to dismiss arguing that the FAA had failed to carry its burden of proof, that is, that the FAA had failed to make out a prima facie case. Judge Pope granted the motion and noted that the FAA Inspector, although asserting there was extreme play in the door handle, did testify that the handle opened the door. After discussing the fact that the Cessna Service Manual gave the mechanic no guidance about the door handle and discussing the general directives found in Appendix D of FAR Part 43, Judge Pope declared:

"In Administrator v. Elfin, SE-4824, a 1984 case, the Board made the point that the standard is not what the inspector believes but what the Administrator has specified through approved manuals and other documents must be done.

Here there is no definition of what securely attached means precisely. Even assuming that is the only standard to be found and that it does apply here, does it mean that the handle cannot be pulled off the shaft or that the handle should not wobble, if it can wobble, how much wobble is permitted, how much force should be applied if wobble exists to determine if the attachment is secure. There are no answers for the mechanic as to these questions. Even that somewhat vague guidance is directed only to the annual and 100-hour inspections.

Even applying the lower standard of the need to only establish a prima facie case, the Administrator has not established that the --Administrator has not established through approved manuals or other directives how much looseness is permitted before the attachment of a door handle can be considered unairworthy because its condition does not meet performance standards for maintenance operations.

Accordingly, I find that the Administrator has not established a prima facie case and that the complaint should be dismissed.

The FAA appealed the adverse ruling of Judge Pope, and the NTSB affirmed declaring:

"…The Administrator's entire premise here was that the door handle was "too loose" to be securely attached, was not equal to its original condition, and therefore was not airworthy. As the Administrator notes, there may be many unairworthy conditions that are not, as a practical matter, quantifiable, but are cognizable by a mechanic. But, by the same token, as we have on many occasions noted, aircraft parts are subject to continual wear and tear, and common sense and fairness dictate that an aircraft, or a part, does not literally have to be "equal to its original…condition" to comply with §43.13(b). See Administrator v. Calavaero, Inc., 5 NTSB 1099, 1100-1101 (1986). Given the dearth of direct and convincing evidence on the condition of the handle, we do not think it was an abuse of discretion for the law judge to grant respondent's motion to dismiss the Administrator's complaint.

Perhaps this decision by the NTSB will be of some assistance to persons who make evaluations about whether or not aircraft components meet their original or properly altered condition under FAR §43.13(b). Administrator v. Buckel, NTSB Order No. EA-4600 (October 8, 1997).

http://airlinepilots.com/Flight%20Watch/FWArchive.htm

March 1, 2000 - Level With Us, FAA

LOS ANGELES, california (USA) - Critics of the Federal Aviation Administration, who tend to congregate after airplane crashes, have the advantage of 20-20 hindsight. That doesn't, however, mean their criticisms should be dismissed.

In 1996, after a cargo hold fire led to the crash of a ValuJet airliner in Florida, officials of the National Transportation Safety Board said the FAA should have required airlines to install fire detectors in cargo holds. And now, after the discovery that a faulty horizontal stabilizer may have contributed to the crash of an Alaska Airlines MD-83 jet off the California coast a month ago, FAA critics are saying the agency should have required all airlines to inspect the stabilizers after mechanics found corrosion in them in 1998.

Some of this is unfair. The hard fact is that it would be impractical for the FAA to ground entire fleets and require complicated, take-it-apart
inspections every time a mechanic spots a potential airworthiness problem. Still, FAA officials have failed to level with the public about how they
make difficult decisions. Their recent insistence that "we do not allow safety to be compromised under any circumstances" slights the truth, which is that the agency is each day forced to make trade-offs between safety and cost, both in the design of airplanes and their maintenance.

U.S. commercial airlines remain one of the safest forms of travel. But FAA officials need to do more to explain to the public their progress at
minimizing known safety dangers that are unrelated to the Alaska Airlines crash, which is still under study. For instance, Vernon Grose, an aviation
safety consultant and former member of the National Transportation Safety Board, points out that more than 2,000 jets that are at least 20 years old
are flying in the United States and says the FAA isn't doing enough to address "the most serious issue in aviation today": the cracked, chafed
wiring insulation in some planes that could cause electrical shorts or arcing and a fire.

The FAA has a difficult job, but that should not absolve the agency from its duty to adequately explain the rationale behind its all-important systems
for risk assessment

Subject: SAS MD87 destroyed by Electrical Fire

This was perhaps one of the classic Kapton /thermal-acoustic blanket arc-tracking fire accidents.

When and where was it built? (see the yellow table below)

.pdf (Adobe Acrobat file) of 3mb downloadable from this URL:

http://www.flightsafety.org/ap/ap_dec96.pdf (to be web-mounted later: URL will be here)

The Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) McDonnell Douglas MD-87 was taxiing to its assigned gate at Copenhagen Airport

Kastrup in Copenhagen, Denmark, when a flight attendant in the aft cabin detected a faint smell of electrical smoke after

electrical lights near her lit brightly and then dimmed before they self-extinguished. She alerted the lead flight attendant

(purser), who immediately contacted the first officer. Smoke continued to develop in the cabin as the aircraft was parked

at the gate. The flight attendant in the rear of the aircraft opened the aft cabin door and lowered the aft ventral stairway. The lead

flight attendant opened the left forward cabin door and ordered the jet bridge to be brought to the door. All 79 passengers and six

crew members evacuated the aircraft without injury in the Nov 24, 1993, accident. A fire that subsequently erupted substantially

damaged the fuselage skin and destroyed the aft cabin interior of the aircraft. A fire fighter was seriously injured when he lost his

oxygen mask while extinguishing the fire.

The Danish Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB), in a report released in October 1996, concluded that factory-installed

wires "were routed in such a manner that they became pinched between the aircraft structure (intercostal) and a recirculation fan duct

installed on a partition. [Intercostals are short longitudinal structures that join adjacent aircraft fuselage frames or ribs.]

"The pinching resulted in chafing of the wire insulation, which led to metal-to-metal contact between the wires and the intercostal

and to wire-to-wire contact. Arcing and sparking caused a V-shaped erosion and burn spot on the intercostal. Continued arcing

and sparking resulted in ignition of the cabin sidewall insulation material, [that] eventually developed into a fierce …

uncontrollable fire which subsequently destroyed the aft part of the cabin interior and a major part of the aircraft structure."

The AAIB report said that a post-accident inspection of three other SAS MD-87s "revealed a number of serious faults and

unsatisfactory conditions in the factory-installed electrical wiring for the right-hand aft stowage closet." The report added

that the "routing of the unprotected and slack wires (across the inboard-facing flange of the intercostal) jeopardized the

safety of the installation [because] pinching, rubbing and [wire insulation wear] was a potential risk/hazard."

http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564456280-f8c

09:32 AM ET 02/20/00
Factory that built Alaska jet had problems-report

    LOS ANGELES, Feb 20 (Reuters) - A McDonnell Douglas
aircraft factory was faulted by government auditors for
slipshod work during the period when it built the Alaska
Airlines jet that recently crashed, the Los Angeles Times said
on Sunday.
    The newspaper, citing documents and interviews, said in the
early 1990s government auditors found that McDonnell Douglas
employees "performed slipshod work, used out-of-date blueprints
and improperly inspected parts -- all as the financially
troubled company was scrambling to keep planes rolling off the
assembly line."
    The Alaska Airlines 

 MD-83 jetliner plunged into the
Pacific Ocean near Los Angeles on Jan. 31, killing all 88
people on board.
    Attention has focused on possible problems with the MD-83
jetliner's horizontal stabilizer. The Federal Aviation
Administration has ordered a nationwide inspection of 1,000
MD-80 and related aircraft.
    McDonnell Douglas is now part of Boeing Co 

 .
    The Times said the FAA cited at McDonnell Douglas "repeated
and chronic breakdowns in manufacturing procedures although the
agency said the deficiencies posed no threat to flight safety."
    It said company officials feared at the time the FAA might
have taken the highly unusual step of shutting down the factory
at Long Beach, California.
    The newspaper said that there was no indication that poor
quality control in the manufacturing process played a role in
the January crash.
    Former McDonnell Douglas executives said overall quality
control was sound, the Times said. But Bill Skibbe, former vice
president in charge of the MD-80 program, "acknowledged that
flaws uncovered by federal regulators in 1991 ultimately could
be tied to the crash of the Alaska Airlines plane, which was
delivered the following year."
    A Boeing spokesman told the newspaper that it does not
deliver an airplane unless it meets all its quality standards.

And Not forgetting that sr111 and AS261 were built in that same period as the SAS MD87

February 1 Newly released Notices of Proposed Ruler-Making for MD-11 Airworthiness Directives (electrical)

McDonnell Douglas Model MD-11 Series: NPRM, proposed AD to require a visual inspection of the external power feeder cables in the forward cargo compartment between certain stations to detect chafing or damage; repair, if necessary; and installation of spiral wrap. The actions are intended to prevent chafing and damage to external ground power feeder cables. Comments due March 17. Docket No. 99-NM-268-AD. Contact: Brett Portwood, 562/627-5350; fax 562/627-5210.

McDonnell Douglas Model MD-11 Series: NPRM, proposed new AD that would require a one-time detailed visual inspection of the electrical connections to detect corrosion; repair, if necessary; and installation of new circuit breakers and associated wiring. The actions are intended to prevent a disparity between the ratings of certain circuit breakers and their associated electrical connector contacts. Comments due March, 17. Docket No. 99-NM-264-AD. Contact: Brett Portwood, 562/627-5350; fax 562/627-5210.

McDonnell Douglas Model MD-11: NPRM, proposed AD to require a visual inspection of wiring behind the control panel of the auxiliary power unit (APU) located in the cockpit to detect chafing; repair if necessary; and modification of the wiring. The actions are intended to prevent such chafing and resultant arcing due to insufficient clearance between the wire bundles and the airplane structure. Comments due March 17. Docket No. 99-NM-270-AD. Contact: Brett Portwood, 562/627-5350; fax 562/627-5210.

McDonnell Douglas Model MD-11 and MD-11F Series: NPRM, proposed AD to require a one-time detailed visual inspection of the generator power feeder wires to detect chafed or damage wires; repair, if necessary; and a modification of the generator power feeder wire installation. The actions are intended to prevent chafed and burnt generator power feeder wires. Comments due March 17. Docket No. 99-NM-267-AD. Contact: Brett Portwood, 562/627-5350; fax 562/627- 5210.

McDonnell Douglas Model MD-11 Series: NPRM, proposed AD to require a one-time detailed visual inspection of a certain passenger seat wire assembly to detect chafed or damaged wires; repair, if necessary; and installation of protective sleeving. The actions are intended to prevent chafing of the passenger seat wire assembly against a bracket at the lower sidewall panel due to insufficient clearance between the bracket and seat wire assembly. Comments March 17. Docket No. 99-NM-263-AD. Contact: Brett Portwood, 562/627-5350; fax 562/627-5210.

McDonnell Douglas Model MD-11 Series: NPRM, proposed AD to require electrical resistance measurements of the ground studs of the No. 2 generator in the electrical power center of the center accessory compartment for proper electrical bonding and of the ground studs and circuit breaker terminations in the forward cargo compartment to detect looseness and for proper electrical bonding; and corrective actions, if necessary. The actions are intended to prevent arcing and overheating of terminals and consequent smoke and fire in the forward cargo compartment due to improper bonding of ground studs in the forward cargo compartment and in the electrical power center. Comments by March 17. Docket No. 99-NM-269-AD. Contact: Brett Portwood, 562/627-5350; fax 562/627- 5210.

A McDonnell Douglas aircraft factory was faulted by government
auditors for slipshod work during the period when it built the
Alaska Airlines jet that recently crashed, the Los Angeles Times
said on Sunday. The newspaper, citing documents and interviews,
said in the early 1990s government auditors found that McDonnell
Douglas employees "performed slipshod work, used out-of-date
blueprints and improperly inspected parts -- all as the
financially troubled company was scrambling to keep planes rolling
off the assembly line." The ALASKA AIR GROUP MD-83 jetliner
plunged into the Pacific Ocean near Los Angeles on Jan. 31,
killing all 88 people on board. (Reuters 09:32 AM ET 02/20/2000)
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564456280-f8c

and the sr111 MD-11

Head In The Sand Award

It is that time of year when the Ostriches Anonymous Association (OAA) votes on the most obtuse entry in their annual "Head in the Sand" competition. The award goes to the anonymous individual or organization contributing most outrageously to the denial or obfuscation of significant aviation risks. The winner will be announced at the Ninth Annual Ostrich Watchers Ball Feb. 25th at the Cavanaugh Air Museum in Dallas at the Addison Airport. Among the 25 "sightings" vying for this coveted recognition are the following:

Airline pilot: The fatal rudder malfunctions are extremely rare and shouldn't cloud the airplane's overall safety record.
Oliver's Astute Analysis: The Titanic sinking was calculated to be such an extremely rare event that they did not need lifeboats for everyone.

FAA spokesperson: "The high costs and complexity" of replacing obsolete flight data recorders justified postponing retrofits requirements until 2001. Made in response to NTSB Chairman's complaint that "Once again, an investigation into a reported flight anomaly is being hampered by the lack of basic aircraft data."
Oliver's Astute Analysis: If we charged the FAA and the airlines for the high costs and complexity of the investigation, including putting out the fires, cleaning up the wreckage, and burying the victims, perhaps the public wouldn't have to foot the bill for regulatory and industry incompetence like this.

FAA official: "We haven't had enough fatalities in air cargo operations to justify TCAS." In response to requests from the pilots association of a major air freight company to require installation of the same Traffic Collision Avoidance Systems (TCAS) that are required on all passenger airliners.
Oliver's Astute Analysis: They again maintain that 'it is safe' until enough people are killed to bring public and political pressure on the regulators...(who) are charged with overseeing the highest standard of care to the traveling public. >> OAA, e-mail PilotPerformance@compuserve.com<<

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 8, 2000 SB-00-03

NTSB CALLS FOR VIDEO RECORDERS ON SMALLER TURBINE POWERED PLANES

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The National Transportation Safety Board has recommended that all turbine-powered aircraft currently exempt from flight recorder rules be required to be equipped with crash-protected video recorders. Under the Board’s recommendation, the requirement would first affect planes that carry passengers for hire and take effect within 5 years of adoption of a technical standard order covering the devices by the Federal Aviation Administration.

The Board’s recommendation follows adoption of its final report on the crash of a Scenic Airlines Cessna 208B in Montrose, Colorado in 1997 that killed all nine persons aboard - the pilot and eight employees of the U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation who were on a charter flight returning to page, Arizona. The Board determined the probable cause of the accident to be the pilot’s failure to maintain sufficient airspeed while maneuvering the airplane near maximum gross weight and aft center of gravity while the aircraft was in or near instrument flight conditions. Although the Board could not determine exactly why the pilot did not maintain sufficient airspeed, factors contributing to the accident were his improper in-flight planning and decision-making and his failure to use proper stall/spin recovery techniques.

The aircraft took off from Montrose a little after 7:00 a.m. on October 8, 1997 and crashed about 20 minutes later on a plateau. Although the plane was equipped with an Emergency Locator Transmitter, no ELT signal was detected. It took rescue workers 50 hours to find the aircraft. All occupants were killed during the aircraft’s impact with the ground.

The Safety Board noted in its recommendation letter to the FAA that during the past 2 years, its investigations of several accidents involving Cessna 208s and similar aircraft have been hampered by the lack of flight data recorder (FDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR) information. The Board said that, although the installation of conventional FDRs and CVRs on those aircraft would be impractical, recent technological advancements have made video recorders technically and economically viable. The video recordings could capture instrument readings, cockpit control settings and pilot actions for post-crash analysis.

The NTSB is participating in a working group with the European Organization for Civil Aviation Equipment (EUROCAE), which is developing minimum manufacturing standards for the use of such recording systems in aircraft. The Board said that the FAA should incorporate the EUROCAE proposed standards for a crash-protected video recording system into a technical standard order, which could then provide the basis for a requirement for their use in turbine-powered aircraft that are not required to have FDRs and CVRs.

Other recommendations to the FAA were that record-keeping requirements for single-engine aircraft be improved, and that ELTs for planes carrying passengers for hire meet a more stringent crashworthiness standard within one year.

The Board recommended that the General Services Administration, which issues regulations covering the transportation of federal employees, require that federal aircraft be equipped with video recorders if they are exempt from the FDR and CVR requirements, once the recommended FAA rules are in place; that all federally-owned or -leased aircraft be equipped with the more crashworthy ELTs within one year; and that pilots used in federal transportation be proficient in instrument flight rules even if the flight is not expected to enter instrument conditions.

Similar recommendations were issued to the Department of Interior, the National Association of State Aviation Officials, and Agency or Department Heads of the committee members of the Interagency Committee for Aviation Policy.

The Board’s final report of the Montrose accident (listed under the date of occurrence, October 8, 1997) and the recommendation letters may be accessed on the NTSB’s web page at “www.ntsb.gov”. The recommendation letter numbers are A-99-64 through A-99-78.

Coincidental Development

The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) is mobilizing its expertise to address the hazard of aircraft fires. The goal is to produce recommendations for regulatory authorities and industry addressing the full range of areas where hazards can be mitigated: from certification of aircraft and electrical system design to fire detection, suppression, emergency procedures and checklists. ALPA's in-flight fire project may be unprecedented in the scope of its work.

The effort features two overall thrusts: to assess the hazard posed by wiring (smoke, overheats, electrical system design, etc.) and to improve crew capability for coping with in-flight fire. Near-term efforts are focused on reviewing checklists, both in form (legibility of print) and content (logic of procedures), and to assess the state of the fleet with respect to electrical system and fire detection/suppression capabilities.

The group's first meeting was held last month. The next meeting in January is slated to develop a more detailed plan of work. >> ALPA, tel. 703/481-4440

Top of the class (24Feb00)

Having tried deregulation

Australian Transport Minister Wants Liberalized Aviation Rules

White House Establishes Group On Aging Wiring

Inter-agency Panel Will Coordinate Research

FAA Aircraft R&D Initiatives