From the editors of Aviation International News

January 6, 2014

This issue is sponsored by Baldwin Aviation.

Atlas Identifies Causes of 747’s Landing at Wrong Airport
Atlas Air’s internal investigation into how its crew landed a Boeing 747 Dreamlifter at the wrong airport last November has uncovered important factors explaining how the freighter, headed to Wichita’s McConnell Air Force Base, mistakenly landed at the smaller Jabara Airport, nine miles to the northeast of the air base. In a crew-training video obtained by AIN, Atlas Air flight operations vice president Jeff Carlson said that a number of intermittent issues with the first officer’s primary flight display earlier in the night-time flight created some skepticism on the part of the pilots about the reliability of the aircraft’s automation system. Although Wichita’s weather was good, the pilot flying programmed an Rnav/GPS approach to Runway 19L at McConnell that would have placed the aircraft at 3,000 feet over Jabara. According to Carlson, the pilot said previous VFR approaches to McConnell had often put him at a higher altitude than expected and that difficulties in picking out McConnell’s runway prompted him to make an instrument approach. The two pilots did not brief each other about other area airports or the 19L approach lighting system that could have helped them to verify that they were landing at McConnell. Wichita approach controllers cleared the 747 for the instrument procedure 25 miles out and immediately switched the aircraft to the McConnell tower, which cleared the aircraft to land. The 747 remained on autopilot until passing the initial approach fix, at which time the flying pilot saw a brightly lit runway slightly to his left, which seemed to match what he was searching for. Believing the aircraft was too high to land safely, the flying pilot disconnected the autopilot and increased the rate of descent toward what he thought was 19L at McConnell but was in fact Runway 18 at Jabara. The pilot monitoring was uncertain about the runway’s identity, but remained silent. Carlson said the primary reason for the incident was the flying pilot’s late decision to abandon the instrument approach for a visual approach that required him to hand-fly the aircraft, as well as inadequate monitoring by the other pilot. Also mentioned in the video, which Atlas has not released for public viewing, was ATC’s failure to notice the aircraft descending toward the wrong airport. Atlas Air now requires pilots to remain on an instrument approach procedure–even in visual conditions–until passing the final approach fix.

Challenger Crashes at Aspen in Windy Conditions
One person aboard a Bombardier Challenger 600 died and another was seriously injured after the aircraft–N115WF–crashed Sunday afternoon while attempting to land on Runway 15 at Aspen-Pitkin County Airport in Colorado. The Challenger’s right wing separated at impact, and the aircraft then rolled inverted and caught fire. A third person aboard the aircraft sustained minor injuries. The accident occurred at approximately 12:20 p.m. during the aircraft’s second attempt to land. The crew missed the first approach after reporting a 33-knot tailwind. Live ATC captured the tower telling the crew just before the second attempt to the same runway that the wind was still gusting to 25 knots.

ASRS Suggests Crews Focus Too Much on Automation
The Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) continues to receive reports indicating that pilots’ ability to maintain real-world awareness can be eroded by over-reliance on (often highly dependable) programmed control of the aircraft. In one report, pilots admitted that they had focused so much on programming the aircraft’s automation systems that they missed cues that would have called their attention to potential problems. “We were flying a red eye with destination weather sitting at 400/1, drizzle and mist,” the captain reported. “The approach was properly briefed and all checklists complied with correctly.” The first officer was flying and selected “level change” while descending. The Vnav did not engage when selected, however, and he then selected “approach.” A few moments later, the tower called a low-altitude alert and the crew elected to go around. Both needles had been centered on the flight director, but the pilot monitoring said he never looked closely enough at how the approach was set up on the master control panel. “I realized later that the level-change function had not disengaged either, which explained why everything remained centered as the aircraft descended toward the ground,” concluded the captain. “One thing I will include on all approaches in the future is a mental or verbal verification of the final approach fix crossing altitude at the time of crossing.”

Galileo Satellites Locate Aircraft by GPS
The European Space Agency’s Galileo satellites recently achieved their first successful in-flight tracking of a test machine using aircraft-generated longitude, latitude and altitude. A pair of Galileo test receivers was used aboard the aircraft, the same kind currently employed for Galileo field-testing. The evaluations were scheduled during periods in November when all four Galileo satellites were visible in the sky. Positioning fixes require at least four satellites. The receivers fixed the airplane’s position and determined key variables such as the position, velocity and timing accuracy, time to first fix, signal-t- noise ratio, range error and range-rate error. Test flights were also conducted during takeoff, straight-and-level flight at a constant speed, circling maneuvers, straight-and-level flight with alternating speeds, turns with a maximum bank angle of 60 degrees, pull-ups and push-overs, as well as approaches and landings. The satellites also allowed positioning to be carried out at speeds up to 245 knots. The test took place over the Gilze-Rijen Air Force Base in the Netherlands and was overseen by the ESA, the National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands with the support of Eurocontrol, the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation, and Dutch air navigation service provider LVNL.

Manufacturing Defect Caused Bell 206L Blade Separation
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) says in a December 2013 report that a manufacturing defect by a vendor for Bell Helicopter caused eight feet of a 206L LongRanger’s main rotor blades to separate in flight on Nov. 2, 2011. The pilot and two passengers were killed when the aircraft, operated by Sunrise Helicopters, subsequently crashed shortly after takeoff from Kapuskasing in Ontario. The TSB report said the broken blade exhibited a complete chord-wise fracture approximately 100 inches from the tip, in addition to a significant void in the adhesive that bonded the lead weights to the blade. There were also numerous secondary fatigue cracks originating from the inner surface of the blade spar. The main rotor system, including the transmission, and the top of the fuselage separated as a unit in flight and came to rest approximately 140 feet west of the main wreckage. The engine separated from the airframe before impact and came to rest 170 feet north of the main wreckage. Various other components, which also separated in flight, were found strewn near the crash site. Another LongRanger accident in August 2008 was also blamed on defective blade manufacturing. Three people died in that accident.

North Sea Super Puma Inquiry Begins Today
A UK inquiry into the April 2009 fatal crash of a Eurocopter AS332L2 Super Puma in the North Sea begins today in Aberdeen, Scotland. Operated by Bond Helicopters, the rotorcraft suffered a main rotor gearbox failure and crashed into the sea off the Aberdeenshire coast while returning from an oil platform. The accident killed the two pilots and all 14 passengers aboard.

European Commission Updates List of Banned Airlines
The European Commission last month issued its updated list of airlines banned from European Union airspace for safety concerns. New to the list are carriers from Nepal. Some progress on safety improvements was noted in the Philippines, Sudan and Zambia.

Runway Excursion Research Project Announced
Two Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University graduate students–Diana Cobas and Georgina Lopez–are studying the impact some new cockpit technologies might have on preventing runway excursions. They invite pilots with experience of both traditional runway excursions, as well as those related to new technology, will take their anonymous survey.

Christchurch Airport Wins Ground Safety Award
New Zealand’s Christchurch International Airport has won the 2013 Safety Award from theAustralasian Aviation Ground Safety Council (AAGSC). The facility was selected after of its management installed CCTV monitors around the airport to keep staff up to date on ground traffic issues. Another factor was the airport’s new ramp lights, designed to prevent injury to ground personnel. The lights are activated when aircraft are about to push back from the terminal.

AINsafety welcomes news tips and feedback
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