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Friday the 20th of May, 2016

1st debris found from Egypt plane crash, no clue on cause EGYPTAIR JETLINER DEBRIS FOUND, DETAILS ON TERRORISM SUSPICIONS, OTHER DETAILS.

Search crews found human remains, luggage and passenger seats Friday from the EgyptAir jetliner that fell out of

the sky over the Mediterranean Sea, as investigators tried to determine whether the disaster was the work of

terrorists.

With no bodies to bury, relatives and friends of some of the 66 people on board held special prayers in mosques for

the lost.

But the mystery remained over why the Airbus A320 — which had been cruising normally in clear skies on a

nighttime flight from Paris to Cairo early Thursday — suddenly lurched left and then right and plummeted into the

sea, never issuing a distress signal.

Egyptian authorities said they believe it may have been an act of terrorism, as have Russian officials and some

aviation experts, but so far no hard evidence has emerged.

No militant group has claimed to have brought down the aircraft. That is a contrast to the downing of a Russian jet in

October over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula that killed 224 people. In that case, the Islamic State group’s branch in Sinai

issued a claim of responsibility within hours.

Three European security officials said the passenger manifest for EgyptAir Flight 804 contained no names on

terrorism watch lists. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the

investigation. The manifest was leaked online and has not been verified by EgyptAir.

Still, the tragedy has fueled suspicions of terrorism, especially in light of the bombing of the Russian plane and the

recent extremist attacks in Paris and Brussels. Some aviation experts have said the circumstances suggest a bomb

blast.

“To Promote the Science and Improve the Methods of Aviation Fire Protection and Prevention”

WEEKLY NEWS

REPORT

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Experts said answers will come only with examination of the wreckage and the plane’s black box recorders. But

retrieving them may take time. The water is 8,000 to 10,000 feet deep in the area where the jetliner is thought to

have gone down, roughly halfway between Egypt’s coastal city of Alexandria and the Greek island of Crete.

Friday brought the first confirmation of debris from the crash. The Egyptian army said it found debris around 180

miles (290 kilometers) north of Alexandria, and that it was searching for more. EgyptAir said luggage and seats were

found, as well as body parts.

France, Greece, Italy, Cyprus and Britain have joined the search, which encompasses a wide area south of Crete.

Investigators from Egypt, France and Britain as well from Airbus will examine everything found in the search,

Egyptian officials said.

In Egypt — home to 30 of those on the flight — Civil Aviation Minister Sherif Fathi informed relatives there were no

survivors, the Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper said.

In several mosques around the Egyptian capital, families and friends of the victims held what is known as “Salat al-

Ghaib,” Arabic for “prayers for the absent.” Those are held for the dead when there is no body.

At the al-Thawra Mosque in Cairo’s Heliopolis district, mourners wept as they prayed for a family of four who were

killed — Salah Abu Laban, his wife, Sahar Qouidar, their son Ghassan Abu Laban and daughter-in-law Reem al-

Sebaei.

“I ask God for forgiveness. This is very hard for the family,” a relative, Abdel-Rahman al-Nasry, told The Associated

Press.

President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi’s office issued a statement expressing its condolences to relatives and its “deep

regret and sadness for the victims.”

“God give great mercy and host them in his heaven,” it added.

The statement marked the first official recognition by Egypt’s government that the missing plane had crashed.

The crash has struck a demoralizing blow to Egypt. The economy has been gutted by years of turmoil since the

2011 overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak, and the Russian plane crash caused a new plunge in tourism, one of

the country’s main money makers.

Egyptian security officials said they were running background checks on the passengers to see if any had links to

extremists.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault asserted Friday on France-2 television that there is “absolutely no

indication” of what caused the crash.

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Amid fears that a security lapse may have led to the tragedy, France’s junior minister for transport, Alain Vidalies,

defended security at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle Airport, saying staff badges are revoked if there is the slightest

doubt.

The pilot, Mohammed Shoukair, was experienced by Egyptian standards, with 6,275 flying hours, and co-pilot

Ahmed Assem had clocked 2,101 hours, officials said.

A terror analyst who is in contact with members of the Islamic State group and other jihadist groups said there have

been “no credible or even semi-credible” claims of responsibility for the flight’s crash.

Shiraz Maher at the International Center for the Study of Radicalisation in London said the Islamic State released a

20-minute video Thursday about its plans to conquer India.

“If they had been involved in the crash,” he said, “it would be very odd for them to have sent that video rather than

boasting of the crash.”

Witness: ‘Pop’ heard before fatal Sevier, Tn. plane crash SEVIERVILLE — A witness heard a “loud pop” and then silence just before the crash that killed the pilot of a

privately owned plane Thursday morning in Sevier County.

“I walked on out and there was black smoke billowing,” said Billie Schnick, who lives just to the north of the runway

of the Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge Airport, 134 Air Museum Way in Sevierville.

As she watched the scene unfold, she began to feel sick.

“I got a little sicker, started calling some friends of mine, saying, ‘Hey, we need some prayers quickly,’ ” Schnick

said.

The single-engine Beech Bonanza plane crashed just before 11:45 a.m. at the edge of some woods 10 to 15 feet

from the runway, airport manager Emily Haun said. She said the plane was locally owned, but the pilot, a frequent

patron of the airport, was not the owner. Investigators haven’t yet released his identity.

Detective Kevin Bush of the Sevierville Police Department said the pilot was the only person aboard and was

coming east to land when he apparently experienced some kind of difficulty.

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“He probably struck the ground and … rotated the aircraft 180 degrees, where it came to rest and was fully

engulfed” in flames, Bush said. “There were no distress calls whatsoever.”

Federal Aviation Administration records list the plane as made in 1953 and registered to Kenneth L. Justice of

Sevierville and Ray Irwin of Kodak. Neither could be reached Thursday afternoon.

Haun said a witness saw the plane over the runway and said the pilot appeared to have tried to land, then to take off

again when the plane crashed.

Schnick said she was inside her house when she heard “a loud pop … and all of a sudden the noise of the plane

just stopped,” she said. “There was nothing.”

Bush said emergency responders arrived in three to five minutes but found the pilot, who was still in the plane,

already deceased.

He said the weather was good, and the pilot was experienced.

“We just don’t know much yet,” Bush said.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash. The pilot’s body was

taken to the Regional Forensic Center in Knox County.

Staff from the NTSB and FAA were on the scene Thursday afternoon to take over the investigation. Bush said a

news conference may be called on Friday.

Thursday’s crash is the second fatal aviation-related accident in Sevier County in less than two months.

An April 4 sightseeing helicopter crash killed pilot Jason Dahl, 38, and passengers Johna Morvant, 49, visiting from

North Carolina; her daughter Peyton Rasmussen, 22, and son Parker Rasmussen, 18; and Peyton Rasmussen’s

boyfriend, 21-year-old Michael Glenn Mastalez of Texas.

The 1977 Bell 206-L LongRanger, operated by Smoky Mountain Helicopters, hit trees near the top of a 1,100-foot

wooden ridge behind an outlet mall before coming to a rest, in flames, on its left side.

A preliminary NTSB report in April crash said the helicopter “lost the rotor sound” shortly before crashing. A full

report and ruling on what caused the crash could take up to a year, NTSB officials have said.

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Bush said Sevierville emergency response units, which assisted Pigeon Forge in that crash, called Pigeon Forge

units to assist Thursday.

“We did learn some stuff” last month about processing the scene of a downed aircraft, “and we put it to use today,”

Bush said. “Hopefully, it will make the NTSB and FAA’s job a little easier.”

Plane overshoots runway in Bowie, Md; no one injured A four-seat, single-engine Cessna 172 plane overshot the runway while landing at Freeway Airport and skidded into

the fence at the edge of the property, just a few feet from the

shoulder of westbound Route 50 near Bowie.

The accident happened about 2:45 on Thursday afternoon.

There were no injuries reported, according to Mark Brady, a spokesman for the Prince George’s County fire

department.

Apparently, the plane was being operated at the time by a trainee, who was in the process of building up enough

hours to qualify for a pilot’s license.

Maryland State Police were handling the investigation, Brady said.

The accident happened off to the right side of the highway and did not necessitate any lane closures. However,

drivers passing by slowed to have a look at the plane, which crashed nose-first into the fence, causing extended

backups on westbound Route 50. At one point, the backup was three miles long, according to police.

The Federal Aviation Administration andNational Transportation Safety Boardwill be conducting a follow up investigation,

state police said.

Father, and son injured in West Des Moines plane crash A 65-year-old pilot and his 30-year-old son were injured Thursday night when their small, recreational-use plane

crashed south of West Des Moines.

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TMZ is reporting that the boyfriend of Carole Radziwill on “Real Housewives of New York City” was a victim in

the crash.

Her boyfriend, Adam Kenworthy, was a passenger with his father, who piloting the plane, TMZ reported.

Radziwill told TMZ that Kenworthy was released from the hospital a few hours after the crash.

The pilot suffered serious injuries and his son’s injuries were moderate, said West Des Moines EMS spokesman

Dave Edgar. He could not be more specific about the pair’s medical conditions Thursday.

Edgar said the crash occurred at about 7:30 p.m. on a hill near the 3000 block of Southeast Army Post Road.

Officials believe a problem with the plane’s power caused the need for an emergency landing about 10 minutes after

it took off from Des Moines International Airport.

Authorities were notified of the crash first by the airport, and then by the pilot’s son, who called 911 using his

cellphone, Edgar said.

The men were conscious when emergency responders arrived on the scene, Edgar said.

Both were transported by ambulance to Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating, Edgar said.

FAA Posts Third Video in Airport Safety Video Series The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has posted the third video designed to further enhance airport safety.

The video outlines the success of previous initiatives to enhance airport safety and the

national efforts underway to further reduce the risk of runway incursions at U.S. airports.

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The video also discusses the FAA’s collaborative partnerships with the aviation community to improve runway safety

at airports. To view the video, go to:http://www.faa.gov/airports/safety-video-series/.

The FAA launched the safety information video series last year to provide the airport community with information to

help them continue to operate the nation’s airports safely and efficiently.

To receive an e-mail alert when the FAA releases a new safety video, please visithttp://www.faa.gov/airports/safety-

video-series/and click on the subscribe button.

Lithium-Ion Battery Transport Subject Of FAA SAFO Outlines New ICAO Requirements

The FAA has issued a SAFO alerting Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 121, 125, 129 and

135 operators of the new Dangerous Goods/Hazardous Materials requirements contained in ICAO Technical

Instructions (TI) for the shipment of lithium batteries. The SAFO also encourages operators to notify their customers

who offer lithium battery cargo shipments of these changes.

The FAA says this SAFO only addresses shipments of lithium ion and metal batteries as cargo, not those contained

in or packed with equipment. Neither this SAFO nor the newly effective ICAO requirements impact existing

regulations for passengers and crew members transporting lithium batteries.

ICAO has recently adopted several critical safety provisions related to the shipment of lithium batteries (inclusive of

both cells and batteries). The specific changes are found in:

Addendum No. 3 to the Technical Instructions (2015/2016 Edition) (January 15, 2016)

Addendum No. 4 to the Technical Instructions (2015/2016 Edition) (February 23, 2016).

Information referencing the ICAO actions can be found in Addenda I and II of the 57th Edition of the International Air

Transport Association (IATA) Dangerous Goods Regulations.

For shipments subject to the ICAO Technical Instructions, the following provisions, which are applicable to both

cargo transporters and operators, became effective on April 1, 2016:

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Shipments of UN 3480 Lithium Ion Batteries, including lithium ion polymer batteries, are FORBIDDEN from

transport as cargo on passenger aircraft. These include Section IA, Section IB,and Section II shipments.

These shipments must now have the “Cargo Aircraft Only” label in addition to existing hazard communication

requirements and can only be offered to operators forcarriage aboard cargo only aircraft.

Shipments of UN 3480 Lithium Ion Batteries, including lithium ion polymer batteries, offered for transport on

cargo only airplanes “must be offered for transport at a state of charge not exceeding 30 percent of their rated

capacity. Cells and/or batteries at a state of charge greater than 30 percent of their rated capacity may only

be shipped internationally with the approval of the State of Origin and the State of the Operator under the

written conditions established by those authorities”. In the U.S., the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety

Administration (PHMSA), in coordination with the FAA, will consider any applications for such approvals.

Shippers of UN 3480 Lithium Ion Batteries, including lithium ion polymer batteries, and UN3090 Lithium Metal

Batteries, including lithium alloy batteries, under ICAO’s “Section II” provisions (for Packing Instruction (PI) PI

965 and PI 968) are not permitted to offer for transport more than one Section II package in any single

consignment or more than one Section II package per overpack.

It is generally recognized that the safe transport of hazardous materials by air requires compliance from both

shippers and operators. The FAA has specifically noted the important role that shippers play in the safe transport of

lithium batteries and how operators can enhance safety by recognizing the role that their cargo customers have in

introducing risk into their system. In 2010, the FAA recommended operators request that their cargo customers

“identify shipments of currently excepted lithium batteries by information on airway bills and other documents

provided by shippers offering shipments of lithium batteries.” See: SAFO 10017 Risks in Transporting Lithium

Batteries in Cargo by Aircraft, which was issued October 8, 2010.

Earlier this year, the FAA urged operators to consider, “the history of the shipper’s compliance with dangerous

goods transport regulations.” See: SAFO 16001 Risks of Fire or Explosion when Transporting Lithium Ion or Lithium

Metal Batteries as Cargo on Passenger and Cargo Aircraft.

The FAA believes that an operator’s ability to comply with the above-referenced ICAO Addenda 3 & 4 (effective on

April 1, 2016) is significantly dependent on the compliance of shippers. The FAA will continue to conduct risk-based

inspections and outreach to known lithium battery shippers; however the U.S. Government has limited oversight

over global shippers. Therefore, operators are encouraged to communicate the information in this SAFO, as well as

any relevant policies carriers have in place, to shippers of lithium battery cargo to ensure compliance with the ICAO

Technical Instructions.

The FAA recommends that operators review the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration; {Docket

No. PHMSA-2016-0014; Notice No. 2016-05}; Hazardous Materials: ICAO Lithium Ion Battery Prohibition Safety

Advisory Notice on the newly effective changes to international requirements.

FMI: SAFO

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Today in History 51 Years ago today: On 20 May 1965 a Pakistan International Airlines Boeing 720-040B crashed on approach to

Cairo; killing 119 out of 125 occupants.

Date: Thursday 20 May 1965

Time: 01:48

Type: Boeing 720-040B

Operator: Pakistan International Airlines – PIA

Registration: AP-AMH

C/n / msn: 18379/321

First flight: 1962-10-19 (2 years 7 months)

Engines: 4 Pratt & Whitney JT3D-3B

Crew: Fatalities: 13 / Occupants: 13

Passengers: Fatalities: 108 / Occupants: 114

Total: Fatalities: 121 / Occupants: 127

Airplane damage: Destroyed

Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)

Location: ca 20 km S of Cairo International Airport (CAI) ( Egypt)

Phase: Approach (APR)

Nature: International Scheduled Passenger

Departure airport: Dhahran International Airport (DHA/OEDR), Saudi Arabia

Destination airport: Cairo International Airport (CAI/HECA), Egypt

Flightnumber: PK705

Narrative:

A Boeing 720-040B passenger plane, operated by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) was destroyed when it

crashed while on approach to Cairo International Airport (CAI), Egypt. All 13 crew members and 108 passengers

were killed. Six passengers survived.

Flight PK705 was the inaugural service from Karachi, Pakistan to London, U.K. Intermediate stops were planned at

Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Cairo, Egypt and Geneva, Switzerland.

The flight departed Dhahran at 21:22 UTC for Cairo. The flight was uneventful and at 23:40 UTC, 01:40 local time, it

was cleared for a left-hand circuit for runway 34. At 23:45 the crew reported turning on finals. The Boeing 720 kept

descending and struck the ground short of the runway in a slight left-bank attitude with its undercarriage up and

flaps at 20 degrees.

PROBABLE CAUSE: “The aircraft did not maintain the adequate height for the circuit and continued to descend until

it contacted the ground. The reason for that abnormal continuation of descent is unknown.”

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Thursday the 19th of May, 2016

Terrorism suspected in crash of Egyptian plane; no survivors found CAIRO — An EgyptAir jetliner bound from Paris to Cairo with 66 people aboard crashed in the Mediterranean Sea

early Thursday, and Egypt’s aviation minister said the disaster was more likely the result of a terrorist attack than a

technical problem.

There were no immediate signs of any survivors.

EgytAir Flight 804, an Airbus A320 with 56 passengers and 10 crew members, went down about halfway between

the Greek island of Crete and Egypt’s northern coastline after takeoff from Charles de Gaulle Airport, authorities

said.

Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos said the plane made abrupt turns and suddenly lost altitude just before

vanishing from radar screens around 2:45 a.m. Egyptian time.

He said the aircraft was at altitude of 37,000 feet, made a 90-degree left turn, then a full 360-degree turn toward the

right, dropping from 38,000 to 15,000 feet. It was lost at about 10,000 feet, he said.

An Egyptian search plane later located two orange items believed to be from the aircraft, 230 miles southeast of

Crete, a Greek military official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

In Cairo, Civil Aviation Minister Sherif Fathi cautioned that the disaster is still under investigation. But he said: “The

possibility of having a different action or a terror attack is higher than the possibility of having a technical failure.”

The airline said the Egyptian military had received an emergency signal from the aircraft, an apparent reference to

an Emergency Locator Transmitter, a battery-powered device designed to automatically give out a signal in the

event of a crash or sudden loss of altitude.

The Egyptian military said it did not receive a distress call, and Egypt’s state-run daily Al-Ahram quoted an

unidentified airport official as saying the pilot did not send one. The absence of a distress call suggests that

whatever sent the aircraft plummeting into the sea was sudden and brief.

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Egyptian security officials said they were running background checks on the passengers to see if any had links to

extremists.

Those on board, according to EgyptAir, included 15 French passengers, 30 Egyptians, two Iraqis, one Briton, one

Kuwaiti, one Saudi, one Sudanese, one Chadian, one Portuguese, one Belgian, one Algerian and one Canadian.

Egyptian military aircraft and ships searched for debris and victims from the plane, whose passengers included a

child and two babies, officials said. Greek and French authorities also joined the operation.

Whatever caused the crash, the disaster is likely to deepen Egypt’s woes as the country struggles to revive its ailing

economy, particularly the lucrative tourism sector that has been battered by the turmoil in which the country has

been mired since a 2011 popular uprising.

The crash also renewed security concerns surrounding Egyptian planes and airports. A Russian passenger plane

crashed in the Sinai last October, killing all 224 people aboard. Moscow said the aircraft was brought down by a

bomb, and a local branch of the Islamic State claimed responsibility.

French President Francois Hollande held an emergency meeting at the Elysee Palace. He also spoke with Egyptian

President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi by telephone and agreed to “closely cooperate to establish as soon as possible the

circumstances” surrounding the disaster, according to a statement.

In Cairo, el-Sissi convened an emergency meeting of the National Security Council, the country’s highest security

body. It includes the defense, foreign and interior ministers, in addition to the chiefs of the intelligence agencies.

In Paris, the city prosecutor’s office opened an investigation. “No hypothesis is favored or ruled out at this stage,” it

said in a statement.

About 15 relatives of passengers arrived at the Cairo airport, and authorities brought doctors to the scene after

several distressed family members collapsed.

In Paris, relatives started arriving at De Gaulle Airport outside the French capital.

A man and a woman, identified by airport staff as relatives of passengers, sat at an information desk near the

EgyptAir counter. The woman sobbed, holding her face in a handkerchief. The pair were led away by police.

The Airbus A320 is a widely used twin-engine plane that operates on short and medium-haul routes. Nearly 4,000

A320s are in use around the world.

The last deadly crash involving one of the planes was in March 2015, when one of the pilots of a Germanwings flight

deliberately slammed it into the French Alps, killing all 150 people aboard.

Airbus said the aircraft in Thursday’s disaster was delivered to EgyptAir in 2003 and had logged 48,000 flight hours.

The pilot had more than 6,000 hours of flying time, authorities said.

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In March, an EgyptAir plane was hijacked and diverted to Cyprus. A man described by authorities as mentally

unstable was taken into custody.

Air Force B-52 crashes in Guam, crew bails to safety A B-52H Stratofortress crashed around 8:30 a.m. on Andersen Air Force Base’s flight line, the base’s public affairs

office has confirmed.

All seven aircrew members safely exited the aircraft. No injuries have been reported. Emergency responders are on

scene, according to Andersen’s public affairs.

The B-52 was deployed to Andersen from Minot, North Dakota, as part of the military’s continuous bomber presence

mission in the Pacific.

The aircrew are members from the 69th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron and were performing a routine training

mission.

The incident is under investigation and measures to mitigate possible environmental impacts are being taken. More

information will be released as it becomes available.

The B-52 Stratofortress long-range, heavy bomber aircraft has a wingspan of about 185 feet and a length of 159

feet.

The H model, first delivered in 1961, is capable of delivering conventional air-launched cruise missiles, and has

been used in several operations such as Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom. B-52Hs can carry a

maximum capacity of 20 missiles per aircraft, according to the Air Force.

Pacific Command has maintained a rotational strategic bomber presence in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region for more

than a decade to foster partnerships with allies, and to keep adversaries at bay. In January, a B-52 from Andersen

conducted a low-level flight near Osan Air Base, South Korea, after North Korea days earlier purported a successful

hydrogen bomb test.

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B-52s deploy several times a year globally for rotational exercises. In the Middle East, several B-52s from from

Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, are currently using precision-guided bombs against the Islamic State.

The last major crash of a B-52 aircraft in Guam was in July 2008, when a B-52 crashed into the ocean about 35

miles northwest of the island, killing all six flight crew on board, according to an Air Force investigation report. The

plane had taken off from Andersen Air Force Base to perform a flyby in the Guam Liberation Day celebration.

Local responders assist

Local emergency agencies responded to the crash.

The Guam Fire Department confirmed shortly after 9 a.m. that units were responding.

“It’s too early to comment on what happened,” GFD Chief Joey San Nicolas said in a media alert sent at 9:38

a.m.

“We assure the public this does not appear to be an attack, and we highly discourage anyone from spreading

assumptions, or any information that does not come from (the Office of) Civil Defense or the military itself,” he said.

Rolenda Fasumalie, Guam International Airport Authority spokeswoman, said an airport fire-fighting unit was

deployed.

The airport’s fire trucks, with sirens blaring, entered the base around 9:45 a.m.

From outside the base fence in Yigo, smoke could be seen on the horizon, billowing from the northern end of the

runway.

Firetrucks could be seen on the runway.

The Offices of Homeland Security and Civil Defense received a report of an aircraft incident at 8:50 a.m. Guam

Waterworks Authority was requested to assist firefighting units on base, said spokeswoman Jenna Gaminde.

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Guam Waterworks Authority was requested to assist the Guam Fire Department and all military officials on scene

with a water tanker, the release states.

B-52 squadron from North Dakota

The 69th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Minot Air Force Base, in North Dakota, began its

deployment on March 2 as part of a rotation of aircraft bombers and crew to Guam.

The squadron replaced its sister unit, the 23rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron in support of the U.S. Pacific

Command’s continuous bomber presence, according to Andersen.

“The B-52 is a symbol and a strategic projection of power,” said Maj. Luke Dellenbach, 69th Expeditionary Bomb

Squadron’s assistant director of operations, in announcing the squadron’s Guam deployment in March.

“The training environment and airspace out here is great. There are a lot of individuals in the squadron that have not

had the experience flying a long-range distance over oceanic waters, so this will be a great opportunity for them,”

Dellenbach said of Guam in March.

Cargo plane of “Silk Way” Airlines crashes in Afghanistan killing 7 Baku-APA. A Silk Way Airlines cargo plane carrying nine people has crashed after taking off from Dwyer Airport in

Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. There are preliminary reports that 7 of 9 people on board were killed.

The State Civil Aviation Administration of Azerbaijan noted that the accident happened at about 06:30 p.m. Baku time

on Wednesday when the Antonov An-12 crashed as it took off from Dwyer Airport.

Nine people were on board the aircraft, including five citizens of Azerbaijan, three citizens of Ukraine, and a pilot

from Uzbekistan.

Azerbaijan State Civil Aviation Administration established a commission to investigate the accident. The commission

will arrive at the scene to investigate the causes of the incident.

Small plane crash in Kiowa County leaves one dead The crash happened near the Kansas border and just southeast of Sheridan Lake

One person was killed Wednesday morning in a single-engine plane crash in Kiowa County, authorities say.

Micki Trost, spokeswoman for the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said the

crash was reported about 9:30 a.m. by a 911 caller.

The crash happened near Kiowa County Road 71 and Colorado 96 southeast of Sheridan Lake. The scene is just

west of the Kansas border.

The Kiowa County Sheriff’s Office responded to the crash along with local fire and medical personnel.

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Allen Kenitzer, spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the plane was a Cessna 210 and that it went

down under “unknown circumstances.”

Kenitzer said local authorities reported only one person — the pilot — was aboard.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the crash.

NTSB Cites Poor Visibility In Two Alaska Helo Accidents Aircraft Went Down On Back-To-Back Days, One Person Fatally Injured

The NTSB has released preliminary reports from two accident which occurred in Alaska on May 5 and May 6, one of

which resulted in the fatal injury of the pilot.

In the first accident on May 5, 2016, about 1408 Alaska daylight time, an Airbus AS350B2 helicopter, N194EH,

collided with snow-covered terrain while on approach to a remote landing site on the Norris Glacier, about 15 miles

northeast of Juneau, Alaska. The commercial pilot sustained serious injuries, and the helicopter sustained

substantial damage.

The helicopter was registered to, and operated by, Era Helicopters LLC, Lake Charles, Louisiana, as a visual flight

rules (VFR) flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 on-demand charter flight. Visual

meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and company flight following procedures were in

effect. The flight originated from the operator’s base of operations in Juneau, about 1315.

During an interview with a National Transportation Safety Board investigator on May 11, the pilot reported that the

purpose of the flight was to provide logistical support to a remote dog sledding camp situated on the Norris Glacier.

The pilot said that while on approach to the site, over a large, featureless, and snow-covered ice field, “flat light

conditions” made it very difficult to discern the topographical features of the snow-covered ice field below. The

helicopter subsequently struck the snow-covered ice field, and rolled over to the right. The pilot characterized the

accident as controlled flight into terrain.

The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, tailboom, and main rotor system.

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The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that

would have precluded normal operation.

The closest official weather observation station is located at the Juneau International Airport (JNU), about 16 miles

west of the accident site. At 1353, an Aviation Routine Weather Report (METAR) was reporting, and stated in part:

Wind, 120 degrees (true) at 15 knots; visibility, 8 statute miles; clouds and sky condition, few clouds at 1300 feet,

broken clouds at 3900 feet; temperature, 45 degrees F; dew point, 41 degrees F; altimeter, 30.21 inHg.

The next day, at about 1855 Alaska daylight time, an Airbus AS350B2 helicopter, N94TH, collided with snow-

covered terrain while en route to Skagway, Alaska, about 4 miles southeast of Skagway. The commercial pilot

sustained fatal injuries, and the helicopter sustained substantial damage.

The helicopter was registered to, and operated by, Temsco Helicopters, Inc., Ketchikan, Alaska, as a day, visual

flight rules (VFR) flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 on-demand charter flight.

Marginal visual meteorological conditions were reported on the Denver Glacier at the time of the accident, and

company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight originated from the operator’s heliport in Skagway,

about 1840.

During an interview with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on May 9, the

operator reported that the pilot departed from the operator’s heliport to drop off one passenger and 12 dogs at a

remote dog sledding camp situated on the Denver Glacier.

The pilot dropped off the single passenger and the 12 dogs and departed to return to the heliport with the dog crates

onboard the helicopter. The helicopter flew towards the previously used aerial return route to the southwest, and

then the helicopter turned and flew to the north. Visibility was reported for the previously used aerial return route as

about 1/4 mile, and to the north of the dog sledding camp visibility was reported as about 1/2 mile.

The helicopter was classified as overdue by the operator and a second company helicopter departed from the

heliport at Skagway to check on the status of the overdue helicopter. The second helicopter aircrew discovered the

overdue helicopter resting on its left side with the tailboom separated in steep mountainous terrain in close proximity

to a frozen glacial lake, about 2 miles northeast of the dog sledding camp.

The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the main rotor system, the fuselage, the tailboom, and the tail rotor

system.

On May 8, the NTSB IIC, along with an additional NTSB investigator, an inspector from the Federal Aviation

Administration’s Juneau Flight Standards District Office, and a representative from Temsco Helicopters traveled to

the accident scene. The wreckage was recovered and transported to a secure facility for future examination of the

airframe and engine.

The closest official weather observation station is located at the Skagway Airport (AGY), about 4 miles to the

northwest of the accident site. At 1853, an Aviation Routine Weather Report (METAR) was reporting, and stated in

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part: Wind 210 degrees (true) at 19 knots, gusting to 28 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; clouds and sky condition,

few clouds at 8,000 feet; temperature 53 degrees F; dew point 37 degrees F; altimeter 29.81 inHg.

(Source: NTSB)

FMI:

www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/month.aspx

Today in History 23 Years ago today: On 19 May 1993 a SAM Colombia Boeing 727-46 struck Mount Paramo Frontino at 12300ft; all

133 on board were killed.

Date: Wednesday 19 May 1993

Time: 15:04

Type: Boeing 727-46

Operator: SAM Colombia

Registration: HK-2422X

C/n / msn: 18876/217

First flight: 1965-12-30 (27 years 5 months)

Engines: 3 Pratt & Whitney JT8D-7A

Crew: Fatalities: 7 / Occupants: 7

Passengers: Fatalities: 125 / Occupants: 125

Total: Fatalities: 132 / Occupants: 132

Airplane damage: Destroyed

Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)

Location: 40 km (25 mls) SE of Medellín ( Colombia)

Crash site elevation: 3749 m (12300 feet) amsl

Phase: En route (ENR)

Nature: International Scheduled Passenger

Departure airport: Panama City-Tocumen International Airport (PTY/MPTO), Panama

Destination airport: Rionegro/Medellín-José María Córdova Airport (MDE/SKRG), Colombia

Flightnumber: 501

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Narrative:

A Boeing 727-46 passenger plane, registered HK-2422X, was destroyed in an accident near Medellín, Colombia.

There were 125 passengers and seven crew members on board. All were killed.

SAM Colombia flight 501 departed Panama City-Tocumen International Airport (PTY) on a scheduled service to

Medellín (MDE) and Bogotá (BOG), Colombia.

The crew reported over the Abejorral NDB beacon at FL160, approaching Medellín. The flight was then cleared to

descend to FL120. The 727 had actually not yet reached the beacon, and descended into mountainous terrain. The

flight struck Mount Paramo Frontino at 12300 feet. Thunderstorm activity in the area made ADF navigation more

difficult and the RNG VOR/DME had been attacked by terrorists and was unserviceable.

Wednesday the 18th of May, 2016

2 dead in plane crash near Falcon Field MESA, AZ (KPHO/KTVK) –

Two people were killed when a fixed-wing airplane crashed as it was taking off from Falcon Field Airport in Mesa

Tuesday evening.

Emergency crews were dispatched at about 6:45 p.m. The Mesa Fire and Medical Department confirmed the

fatalities less than 30 minutes later.

The single-engine AT-6 burst into flames on impact.

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Detective Steve Berry of the Mesa Police Department said the plane experienced a mechanical difficulty. The plane,

which had taken off in tandem with another aircraft, crashed as the pilot was turning right.

A witness, however, told Jeff Van Sant that the plane was about to hit another aircraft. According to Martin

Cervantez, it looked like the pilot lost control while maneuvering to avoid a collision, causing the plane to cartwheel.

Berry could not confirm that account, saying only that everything was “very preliminary.” He said the pilot of the

other plane circled and landed without incident.

Aerial video from the scene showed the demolished plane on Greenfield Road on the west side of the airport. The

nose section housing the propeller broke off the body of the aircraft and was lying a few feet away. A portion of the

wreckage was covered with a tarp and there was what appeared to be fire-suppression foam all over the

roadway.

It’s not clear if weather was a factor in the crash. Berry said the storm that swept through the Phoenix metro area

had not yet moved in.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.

Greenfield will be closed between McDowell and McKellips throughout the night.

The AT-6 was flown during World War II and into the 1970s. The warbird, which is often used for both static displays

and aerial demonstrations at airshows throughout the country, was the go-to stand-in for various Japanese planes in

movies about World War II.

FAA records show the plane that crashed was manufactured in 1942 and registered to a Mesa-based LLC.

Falcon Field, which serves as a reliever to Phoenix Sky Harbor International and Phoenix-Mesa Gateway airports, is

located at Greenfield and McKellips roads. The Commemorative Air Force Airbase Arizona, which offers rides

aboard an SNJ/T-6 Texan, a trainer for the type of plane that crashed, is located there.

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Pilot burned after Grass Valley plane crash Plane crashes into second plane at Nevada County Airpark

NEVADA COUNTY, Calif. (KCRA) —A Grass Valley pilot is lucky to be alive after an experimental plane he put

together himself made a hard landing at the Nevada

County Airpark before it crashed into another plane and burst into flames.

Friends identified the pilot as 75-year-old Van Anthony.

After the crash, Anthony climbed out of the burning plane but suffered burns to his body.

“I’m very surprised. I thought for sure he was done,” said Bruce Marlow, a friend of Anthony. “He did well to get out

of that aircraft in a timely fashion. I’m sure right now he’s probably not feeling that, but he did well to get out of that.”

Anthony built the plane, a Zenith Zodiac 601, by himself from a kit.

The crash happened around 4:40 p.m. Tuesday.

Anthony initially touched down on the runway then lost control. The plane darted across the taxiway and into an

unoccupied plane on the parking ramp.

“He was landing, and landed hard and then something happened after that and he was along for the ride basically,”

Airport Manager Lee Ocker said.

Cal Star paramedics placed Anthony on a stretcher and loaded him up into a helicopter. They flew him to UC Davis

Medical Center where he’s in the emergency room and reported as stable.

A majority of the Zenith Zodiac burned, including the entire front end and cockpit. The Cessna 441 plane Anthony

crashed into also suffered significant burn damages.

It’s unknown what caused the plane to crash. Federal investigators will arrive Wednesday to investigate.

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Waco Regional Airport closed after test flight blocks, damages runway Most of the flights scheduled at the Waco Regional Airport on Tuesday were canceled after mechanical issues with

an Australian cargo plane caused it to block the main runway until about 7

p.m.

A Royal Australian Air Force C-27J that had been worked on by L-3 Communications near the Waco Regional

Airport blew two tires during a test run about midnight Monday, forcing American Eagle to cancel flights and the

airport to shut down, city of Waco spokesman Larry Holze said.

The large military aircraft was performing touch-and-gos when the problems occurred, Holze said.

The American Eagle cancellations affected about 180 passengers, he said. The aircraft was removed from the

runway about 7 p.m., Holze said. He did not know Tuesday night whether the airport had reopened.

An American Eagle employee said the airport had reopened by 7 p.m. The employee was not authorized to speak

on behalf of the company.

Four of the six commercial flights scheduled to leave Waco were canceled, and three of the five commercial flights

scheduled to land in Waco were canceled Tuesday, according to flightstats.com.

L-3 spokesman Lance Martin said the contractor had worked on the plane but declined to detail the nature of the

job. He referred additional questions to the Air Force in San Antonio.

Air Force Capt. Jose Davis confirmed that the plane was on a training mission and that none of the seven crew

members on board were injured in the incident. He said the plane damaged the runway but declined further

comment, saying the incident remains under investigation.

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NTSB Issues Preliminary Report In Alabama Accident Pilot Walked Away After Cessna 412B Came Down In Trees And Caught Fire

The NTSB has released a preliminary report from an accident involving a Cessna 412B in Foley, AL late last month.

The airplane came down in a wooded area and caught fire, but the pilot managed to walk

away.

The accident was captured on a closed-circuit video camera.

According to the report, the airplane was destroyed when it impacted trees and terrain in Foley, Alabama. The

private pilot sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for

the flight from Foley Municipal Airport (5R4), Foley, AL, to West Georgia Regional Airport (KCTJ), Carrollton, GA.

According to the responding FAA inspector, during the takeoff from runway 18, the airplane left the ground at the

runway end, just clearing the airport’s perimeter fence. The airplane was unable to gain sufficient altitude to clear

the trees less than a quarter of a mile south of the runway. The airplane began hitting tree tops, and impacted a

large oak tree with the left wing, then spun into two other large oak trees 30 feet to the southwest. The airplane then

flipped over, hit the ground, exploded and was consumed by fire. The pilot jumped from the rear entry door and

landed on his back. Pilot refused medical attention and sustained burns and a cut to his left hand.

The inspector further stated that the airplane was fueled at the local Fixed Base Operator (FBO) with 45.2 gallons of

100 Low Lead aviation fuel, which resulted in a total of 150 gallons onboard. Both

the fuel source and the airplane were checked for contaminants by the pilot and FBO personnel.

The inspector also interviewed the pilot, who stated that he taxied out and lined up for takeoff on the runway. With

brakes on, he cycled the propellers and they “checked good.” The magneto check at 1,500 rpm was also “good,” as

were the oil pressure and oil temperature. The pilot then ensured that the fuel selectors were on both mains, the

throttles were full, mixtures were all the way forward, boost pumps were on low, and the propellers were all the way

forward. He put flaps to the takeoff position and released the brakes.

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During the takeoff roll, everything was “normal” (temperatures and pressures were “in the green”), and when the

airplane had accelerated to 75-80 knots, the pilot pulled back on the yoke slowly, and the airplane began to climb.

The pilot raised the landing gear and noticed that the airplane wasn’t climbing. He looked at the airspeed indicator,

which indicated 80 knots. The pilot heard the stall warning and pulled back on the yoke. He then shut the boost

pumps off and lowered the flaps before a hard impact.

After impact, the pilot found himself upside down. He released his seat belt, saw fire and went to the back of the

airplane. He opened the aft hatch and rolled forward, landing flat on his back. Two men then helped him up and led

him to a nearby building.

Winds, recorded about the time of the accident at an airport 8 nautical miles to the south, were from 130 degrees

true, at 11, gusting to 17 knots.

(Image from CCTV video)

FMI: www.ntsb.gov, CCTV Video

Today in History 58 Years ago today: On 18 May 1958 a Sabena Douglas DC-7C crashed near Casablanca, killing 61 out of 65

occupants.

Date: Sunday 18 May 1958

Time: 04:25

Type: Douglas DC-7C

Operator: Sabena

Registration: OO-SFA

C/n / msn: 45157/737

First flight: 1956

Crew: Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 9

Passengers: Fatalities: 52 / Occupants: 56

Total: Fatalities: 61 / Occupants: 65

Airplane damage: Damaged beyond repair

Location: near Casablanca-Cazes Airport (CAS) ( Morocco)

Phase: Approach (APR)

Nature: International Scheduled Passenger

Departure airport: Lisboa-Portela de Sacavém Airport (LIS/LPPT), Portugal

Destination airport: Léopoldville-N’Djili Airport (FIH/FZAA), Congo (Democratic Republic)

Narrative:

The Sabena flight, originating at Brussels, Belgium had departed Lisbon following an intermediate stop on a flight to

Leopoldville (now Kinshasa), Belgian Congo. Vibration in the no. 1 engine forced the crew to shut it down.

Casablanca ACC was advised that the flight wanted to make an emergency landing there. At 04:19 a runway 21

approach was attempted, but the aircraft did not touch down. Some 600 m past the runway threshold at a height of 5

m and with landing gear down and full flaps, full power was applied. The DC-7 then climbed in a sharp left turn.

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Reaching a height of 25 m, the plane stalled, crashed into buildings and caught fire.

The correct procedure for going around would have been to apply full throttle only gradually attaining V2 speed;

retracting the landing gear; and, at 115 kt, retracting the flaps from 50 to 20°.

PROBABLE CAUSE: “An error of judgement in re-application of power when the aircraft was neither in the

appropriate configuration nor at a sufficient speed to carry out the attempted safety manoeuvre.”

Tuesday the 17th of May, 2016

4 dead in Tupelo, Mississippi plane crash Four people died Monday morning when a small plane crashed after taking off from Tupelo Regional

Airport.

Tupelo Police Chief Bart Aguirre said the three passengers and a pilot died in the crash near Colonial Estates Road,

about a half a mile north of the airport in a field adjoining the Tupelo Buffalo Park & Zoo.

According to the Federal Aviation Agency, the Beech BE36 crashed at 8:32 a.m. The pilot reported smoke in the

cockpit before the crash.

Lee County Coroner Carolyn Green called the site “a severe crash area.”

Leesha Faulkner, communications director for the city of Tupelo, said the plane burned on impact, and that there

were no survivors. Tupelo police located the burning aircraft around 8:38 a.m. The Tupelo Fire Department and

Northeast Mississippi Medical Center responded to the scene as well.

An aircraft matching that description, a Beechcraft Bonanza, registered from Kerrville, Texas, arrived at the Tupelo

airport Sunday morning. The six-seater, single-engine plane, registered to Henry L. Jackson, had departed Kerrville

Municipal Airport in Kerrville, Texas, on Sunday at 8:16 a.m. It landed at the Tupelo Regional Airport at 11:38 a.m.,

according to Flight

It was scheduled to take off from Tupelo Monday at 8:30 a.m. with an arrival time of 12:41 p.m. at the

Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport in Charlottesville, Virginia. The weather was overcast with a light wind at the time

of take-off.

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The Kerrvile Daily Times reported Monday that four people from Kerrville were killed in the crash. They did not

identify the victims.

Green told reporters that even when she had some idea of who the victims were, she would be hesitant to notify

family until she has DNA identification.

Tupelo Mayor Jason Shelton called the crash a “worst-case scenario.”

“Tupelo Fire Department, airport emergency responders, and Tupelo police responded immediately and secured the

scene and now will be in a secondary role to the FAA as they continued to conduct the investigation,” Shelton said.

The Associated Press reported that Laurie Carwile, who works in the gift shop at the Tupelo Buffalo Park & Zoo,

said she heard the crash and later saw smoke.

“We actually thought it was thunder,” Carwile said. “I was in the gift shop and this man came beating on the door

telling me to open the door. I thought we were being robbed. He was actually trying to tell me the plane had come

down and to call 911.”

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are working to determine the crash’s cause.

Pilot hospitalized after glider crash in Madson County, Indiana

MADISON CO., Ind. — The FAA will be in Madison County on Monday to investigate the crash of a

glider.

A glider, or sailplane, is a type of aircraft that does not have an engine.

Deputies were called to the 7200 block of W 700 N shortly before 5pm Sunday.

They found the pilot of the glider, Richard Smith, 65, Greentown, Ind., lying on the ground.

Smith told deputies that he caught a downdraft and was trying to recover from it but could not.

He said the sailplane hit the ground, nose first, then the right wing caught the ground and knocked him back about

30 feet. The glider came to rest on its belly.

Smith told deputies he was able to unbuckle himself and get out he glider after it went down.

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He was taken to Community Hospital to be treated for a stiff back and minor aches.

Germanwings plane makes emergency landing after cockpit fills with

smoke A Germanwings plane was forced to perform an emergency landing when smoke filled the cockpit during a flight.

Firefighters were pictured entering the plane as it landed at Düsseldorf airport shortly before 10pm on Monday.

No-one was injured as a result of the incident on board the plane from Dresden.

Flight 4U9023 was carrying 142 passengers and five crew when pilots noticed smoke on board the aircraft.

A Germanwings spokesman said the source of the fire is unclear but reports in German newspaper Bild suggest the

smoke may have come from the luggage compartment.

Today, another Germanwings flight from Düsseldorf to Faro in Portugal was forced to make an emergency landing

in Bordeaux after an elderly man reportedly suffered heart problems.

A small plane crashes near Homestead, Florida airport A small plane landed hard, bouncing along Runway 36 at Homestead General Aviation Airport Monday afternoon,

before stopping near a canal, federal officials said.

A separated tire could be spotted about six feet from the plane, which also was split in the front.

A Miami-Dade Fire spokeswoman confirmed that two people on board were taken to the hospital — one of whom

was airlifted as a trauma alert. The plane went down at about 4:45 p.m. at 28700 SW 217th Ave., at the Homestead

airport.

The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday the Piper PA/28 had only two people on board.

Greg Chin, a spokesman for Miami-Dade Aviation Department, said the plane was coming from Miami Executive

Airport.

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Investigators were there into the night collecting evidence on what may have caused the fixed single-engine plane to

go down.

According to FAA records, the plane, which was built in 1966, was registered to Sandy and Santiago Gonzalez.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-

dade/article77958792.html#storylink=cpy

Boston Officials Cast A Wary Eye Towards Seaplane Trials In Boston

Harbor Two Companies Hope To Establish Service On The City’s Waterfront

Trials conducted last week by two seaplane companies which hope to begin operations out of Boston Harbor went

pretty smoothly, at least as far as aircraft operations are

concerned.

But while the waters were fairly smooth, the political winds were causing some turbulence for the companies. Three

local politicians are casting a wary eye towards potential noise and “navigation hazards”, according to a report from

The Boston Globe.

The companies are Tailwind and Cape Air. Both say they hope to ease neighbors’ concerns by meeting with local

leaders to acquaint them with both the aircraft and the operations. They hope to establish service between Boston

and Manhattan.

While the FAA has the final say in whether the companies will be able to establish regular seaplane service between

the two cities, the local politicians could have some sway over the agency. City Councilman Michael Flattery said

that the Charles River would be more appropriate for the seaplane operations because of shifting wind patterns and

heavy summer boat traffic. State Representative Nick Collins feels like security would be an issue because

passengers would not be screened like airline passengers at a major airport, and said Logan would be better suited

because it is more secure and closer to the city center.

Tailwind is a charter operator, while Cape Air is a scheduled airline. Both have seaplane experience, and could

launch the commercial routes between the East River in New York and Boston Harbor within a year.

FMI: www.capeair.com, http://flytailwind.com, www.cityofboston.gov/citycouncil

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Training, Pitot Probes And Process Flaws Behind Boeing 757 Dive John Croft | Aviation Daily

While descending into Dublin during a flight from Newark, New Jersey, the crew of a United AirlinesBoeing 757-200

acted in a “nonstandard” manner in responding to an unreliable airspeed indication—an issue most likely caused by

ice crystals in the right-side pitot probe.

The crew’s actions—two successive pitch-down maneuvers to counter what the first officer incorrectly thought was

an aerodynamic stall—contributed to the minor injuries 13 passengers and four flight attendants suffered on Oct. 20,

2013. An excessive dive speed caused damage to external sections of the aircraft and one of three onboard

hydraulic systems.

The incident raises a broader question about the safety of pitot probes (which measure airspeed) when flying

through ice crystals, an issue connected with numerous recent accidents or incidents. While pitot probes for new air

transport aircraft certified after January 2015 must be shown to work at conditions that would have been seen on the

Newark–Dublin flight, aircraft certified before that date do not.

In its final report on the incident, published May 10, Ireland’s Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) called for

the FAA, as the certifying authority of the 757, to “study whether a safety deficiency exists in pitot-probe icing

protection” for aircraft certified before January 2015. The recommendation is one of eight issued by the AAIU in the

final report, along with two probable causes.

The first probable cause was a temporary block of the right main pitot tube due to ice-crystal icing, leading to an

artificially low airspeed on the first officer’s display. The second probable cause was the crew’s “nonstandard

response” to the low-airspeed reading. Contributing to the incident was the “startle effect” of that low airspeed on the

first officer, just after the aircraft had experienced turbulence.

Investigators said the aircraft flew through, or close to, an area of “convective cloud activity,” with ice crystals

predominantly in the “water phase,” as the aircraft descended through 25,000 ft. At the time, the 757 was 80 nm.

southwest of Dublin, with the first officer at the controls. The seat belt sign was activated in the cabin.

After a bout with turbulence, the first officer told investigators the airspeed on his display decreased to about 90 kt.,

a speed that would likely denote an aerodynamic stall. He “immediately” pushed the control column forward and

applied full power without disengaging the autopilot or autothrottle, or alerting the captain. The airspeed increased,

but as soon as the first officer began raising the nose, the speed dropped again and he commenced a second pitch-

down maneuver.

Data from the flight data recorder (FDR) showed the aircraft experienced a maximum negative acceleration of -

0.36g during the push-overs and a maximum pull-up of 1.72g, forces that partly caused the injuries to unbelted

passengers and flight attendants. The aircraft’s speed increased from 300 kt. during the initial descent to as high as

380 kt., with vertical speeds as high as 12,000 ft. per min. during the maneuvers.

Investigators said the high speed—30 kt. beyond the aircraft’s maximum operating speed—damaged the wing-to-

body fairings. Excessive speed also dislodged and damaged the center hydraulic system servicing-bay door (on the

underside of the aircraft) and the actual center hydraulic system, causing a loss of hydraulic fluid.

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After the second pitch-down, the pilots determined that the captain’s airspeed indication was correct, and began

leveling the aircraft.

The AAIU recommendations for United include reviewing weather radar operational guidance (Investigators said the

convective weather that led to the turbulence should have been visible if the aircraft’s weather radar was

appropriately adjusted.). The AAIU also urged United to review its “unreliable” airspeed training (Standard operating

procedures call for checking the captain’s and first officer’s gauges before acting.).

United further needs to emphasize to pilots the importance of using standard callouts, especially during “non-

normal” flight maneuvers, the AAIU stated. Evidence that the crew did not make standard callouts came only from

postincident statements from the two pilots, rather than the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), which had been

overwritten. The CVR has a 2-hr. duration.

According to a written report from the copilot, a “lady from Dublin” arrived in the cockpit after the uneventful landing

and asked the crew to “pull” the CVR and FDR circuit breakers, a standard practice called for by the International

Civil Aviation Organization to preserve information after incidents or accidents. But due to the commotion in the

cockpit at that time, the first officer said he had missed shutting off the CVR breakers.

The confusion led to an AAIU recommendation for United to review its operations manual. Investigators said the

manual could be interpreted as requiring the preservation of CVR data only for accidents, and only if requested by

airline officials, excluding the pilots.

Today in History 63 Years ago today: On 17 May 1953 a Delta Air Lines Douglas DC-3 crashed near Marshall, TX in a thunderstorm,

killing 19 out of 20 occupants.

Date: Sunday 17 May 1953

Time: 14:15

Type: Douglas DC-3DST-318

Operator: Delta Air Lines

Registration: N28345

C/n / msn: 2224

First flight: 1940

Total airframe hrs: 39000

Crew: Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3

Passengers: Fatalities: 16 / Occupants: 17

Total: Fatalities: 19 / Occupants: 20

Airplane damage: Damaged beyond repair

Location: 21 km (13.1 mls) E of Marshall, TX ( United States of America)

Phase: En route (ENR)

Nature: Domestic Scheduled Passenger

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Departure airport: Dallas-Love Field, TX (DAL/KDAL), United States of America

Destination airport: Shreveport-Greater Shreveport Municipal Airport, LA (SHV/KSHV), United States of America

Flightnumber: DL318

Narrative:

Flight 318 departed Dallas on a VFR Flight Plan at 13:10 for Atlanta, with a scheduled stop at Shreveport. En route

to Shreveport the crew were warned about thunderstorms in the area of Longview. At about 14:12 Flight 318 called

the Shreveport Control Tower, which cleared it to make a right-hard turn for landing approach to runway 13. Flight

318 acknowledged this message and requested the Shreveport weather which was transmitted as dark scattered

clouds at 1,000 feet, ceiling estimated 4,000 feet, overcast at 20,000 feet, visibility 10 miles, thunderstorm, light rain

shower. The tower also advised of a thunderstorm approximately 15 miles west of Shreveport. This transmission

also was acknowledged by the flight. The thunderstorm was entered at an altitude of 2500 feet, and with no

apparent attempt to change course. The very intense localized thunderstorm was accompanied by frequent cloud-

to-ground lightning, hail, heavy rain, turbulence, and high winds. The flight was forced to the ground. It struck the

trees while in a shallow angle of descent. It continued ahead, cutting a swath through trees for a distance of

approximately 500 feet, struck the ground, skidded, and came to rest in a mess of wreckage 870 feet from the point

of initial contact with the trees. The aircraft partially burned following impact.

PROBABLE CAUSE: “1) The encountering of conditions in a severe thunderstorm that resulted in loss of effective

control of the aircraft, and 2) The failure of the captain to adhere to company directives requiring the avoidance of

thunderstorms when conditions would allow such action.”

Monday the 16th of May, 2016

Plane Crashes at Georgia Air Show, Pilot Killed by PHIL HELSEL and EMMANUELLE SALIBA

A plane crashed at an Atlanta-area air show Saturday while performing stunts, killing the pilot, DeKalb County

officials said.

The crash occurred at 4:49 p.m. at the DeKalb-Peachtree Airport north of Atlanta, where the 2016 Good Neighbor

Day Airshow was being held, DeKalb County Public Information Officer Shiera Campbell said.

Juan Rios captured the crash on video. He told NBC News the accident happened during one of the last events of

the afternoon.

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The video shows two planes crossing each other close to the ground while trailing white smoke, before one of the

planes rises high in the air in what appears to be a loop before descending and appearing to lose control.

“We were commenting about the amount of training that the pilots have to go through and then I started making the

joke about the communication between the pilots,” Rios said. “Then I just became speechless.”

DeKalb Public Safety Director Cedric Alexander the jarring scene would be difficult for spectators to process. “There

was a large crowd that was still here watching the air show when this occurred so we know this is going to be a very

traumatic to a lot of people who witnessed this unfortunate event,” he said.

The pilot will not be identified until next of kin is notified, Campbell said. Officials said he was from the Augusta area.

Authorities said the weather was clear at the time of the crash, and the cause is unclear. The National

Transportation Safety Board will be investigating the crash and Federal Aviation Administration officials were at the

scene Saturday, Campbell said.

The county said in a statement that the crash was the first accident in the 30 years that the Good Neighbor Day Air

Show has been held.

Flags at the airport were flown at half-staff Saturday to honor the pilot who died, the county said.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/plane-crashes-georgia-air-show-pilot-killed-n574186

Crop-duster pilot dies in crash near West A crop-duster pilot from Glen Rose died in the crash of his aircraft at 1:49 p.m. Saturday near 1155 Hlavenka Road

northeast of West, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman said.

Senior Trooper D.L. Wilson identified the victim as John Allen Seay, 75.

The airplane struck a guide wire on a power pole and went down, Wilson said.

He did not say whether the pilot died at the scene or if he was transported to a hospital.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates the cause of aircraft accidents, could not be reached

for comment Saturday.

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Missing airplane found crashed north of Altadena, CA; one killed ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST >> A small airplane crashed in the Angeles National Forest north of Altadena

Sunday morning, killing a man.

One unidentified man was pronounced dead at the crash scene, Deputy Kimberly Alexander of the Los Angeles

County sheriff’s Information Bureau said. There were no initial reports of any additional injuries or any additional

people on board the plane, she said.

Rescuers searched the Angeles National Forest nearMount Wilson for more than seven hours before finding the

crash site after the small airplane vanished from radar amid inclement weather Sunday morning, officials said.

The missing aircraft was first reported shortly after 9:10 a.m., Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said.

“Apparently, it went off radar,” sheriff’s Lt. Randy Tuinstra said.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Allen Kenitzer confirmed officials lost communications with the single-

engine airplane.

“We have a reported missing aircraft, a Cessna 182. … Traveling from Montgomery Field in San Diego to Santa

Monica Municipal Airport,” he said. “Contact was lost 17 miles east of Van Nuys.”

No witnesses reported seeing the aircraft in trouble, Tuinstra said.

According to FlightRadar24.com, the aircraft’s last reported altitude was about 4,000 feet below the elevation of

nearby mountain tops.

Bad weather prevented sheriff’s department helicopters from joining the search.

“Visibility is very, very low right now,” Tuinstra said Sunday morning. “We’re hoping that will burn off soon and we

can get a better look.”

Members of the Montrose, Altadena, San Dimas, Sierra Madre and Santa Clarita search and rescue teams

continued scouring the area on the ground until the weather improved in the afternoon, allowing search helicopters

to join in the operation, officials said.

The aircraft crash site was found near the 4,466-foot-tall Brown Mountain, in the forest north of Altadena, according

to Deputy Juanita Navarro-Suarez of the sheriff’s Information Bureau.

The airplane is registered to San Diego Skylane LLC, according to FAA records. It has a valid, standard-

classification flight certification.

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Small Plane Catches Fire On Gallatin, Tn. Runway

GALLATIN, Tenn. – Crews have responded to reports of a plane fire on the runway at Sumner County Regional

Airport.

A statement from the Federal Aviation Administration said the plane crashed in a field and caught on fire after

departing from Runway 17/35.

First responders were called out to the airport on 1475 Airport Road in Gallatin just before 2:30 p.m. Friday.

Officials confirmed three people were on the plane, including the pilot, identified as Gregory Harms, 74, and his two

grandchildren.

The two children, whose identities were not released, were taken to Sumner Regional Hospital. Authorities said they

were both okay. Harms was not injured.

Harms said he didn’t want to comment on the accident until he talked to federal investigators, but did say he had

been flying for 50 years.

Officials said the plane was a 1963 model Piper PA22 Tri-pacer.

Aerial video from Sky5 showed the plane was destroyed.

Investigators from the Gallatin Police Department and Sumner County Sheriff’s Department responded to the

scene. The FAA will also be investigating, and the NTSB will work to determine the cause of the accident.

The airport runway was closed until the scene could be cleared.

Plane crash in northern Berkeley County, WV. injures two HEDGESVILLE – A small plane crashed in the front yard of a house in northern Berkeley County Saturday

afternoon near Little Georgetown Road, injuring two people, according to a dispatcher with Berkeley County

EMS.

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The dispatcher said the pilot indicated the plane had taken off from a private airfield and was just 50 to 100 feet off

the ground when it ran into difficulties and crashed in the front yard of a private residence after striking several trees.

Both the pilot and a passenger were transported away by ambulance. Their conditions were not known. No one on

the ground was injured.

According to one eyewitness, the plane took off from what is known as Green Landings Airport located off McCoy’s

Ferry Road before it crashed near a house on Chisholm Drive. The privately owned airstrip, located off Take Off

Drive, has a grass runway.

“It (plane) took off, then heard it sputter and then it fell the hell out of the sky,” said one woman who lives near the

crash scene, but declined to give her name. “It took out some trees, but luckily it didn’t hit the house.”

The woman said it was the second crash in the area in the past five years from the same private airfield.

According to The Journal archives, a 70-year-old pilot, Harry L. Weber of Connecticut, was pronounced dead at a

Virginia hospital in October 2011 after his single-engine airplane he was flying crashed into a home shortly after

takeoff from the same airfield.

Police said that Weber was taxiing his Arion Lightning fixed-wing plane on the runway, preparing to take off from

Green Landings private airfield when the plane veered across a grassy area and struck a nearby home on Chisholm

Drive.

“We’ve lived here eight years and this is the second plane crash,” the neighbor said. “We’re not happy about it.”

EMS officials said the airplane crash is being investigated by the West Virginia State Police. Both Hedgesville and

Bedington volunteer fire companies responded to the scene along with Berkeley County Ambulance.

Two minor-injury plane crashes in eastern Kern within an hour MOJAVE, Calif.

Officials say there were two minor-injury plane crashes within an hour of each other Friday in eastern Kern County.

The first around three Friday afternoon took place in California City. California City Fire officials said the two people

on board reportedly had minor injuries. Fire officials said the plane may have slipped off the runway. It’s unclear if

the plane was landing or taking off. The plane usually takes off and lands east and west. The plane reportedly went

off the west end.

The second took place at the Mojave Air and Space Port around 3:45 Friday afternoon according to the Kern County

Fire Department. That crash involved a test plane and the pilot had minor injuries.

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KCFD reporting that a plane crashed just south of Delano this morning DELANO, Calif. – The Kern County Fire Department is reporting that a plane crashed just south of Delano Saturday

morning.

The call came in just before 11 AM this morning, reporting that a single engine aircraft had gone down just south of

Delano Airport.

Local authorities say that the plane landed in an orchard and that only the pilot was onboard; they were conscious

when authorities arrived and were transported to the hospital with moderate injuries.

This is the third plane crash in Kern County in the last 24 hours; yesterday, one plane crash landed in Mojave and

another flipped on a runway in Cal City.

Mumbai airport ops hit after Lufthansa flight gets stuck on tarmac Flight operations at Mumbai airport’s primary airstrip were hit for at least 14 hours after a Lufthansa aircraft was

stranded on the tarmac following an emergency touchdown on

Friday.

The Lufthansa flight LH764 from Munich, with 163 passengers on board, made an emergency landing as the pilots

reported a problem with the landing gear.

A Lufthansa spokesperson confirmed the incident saying four tyres of the Airbus A330 were damaged.

“The plane will be removed from the runway after the assembly of four new tyres. Flight LH765 of 14th May had to

be cancelled. 223 passengers will be affected and LH is trying to rebook them on other flights,” a statement issued

by the airlines said.

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Although operations were moved to the secondary runway at least four flights, including the Lufthansa return flight to

Munich, were cancelled. These included a flight each by Air India and United Airlines bound to Newark as well

Singapore Airlines’ Airbus 380 to Singapore.

All these planes are twin-aisle aircraft with a seating capacity of at least 250 passengers and require the full take off

run from the main runway.

While airport officials said flight movement on the smaller runway was seamless some airlines reported delays. Jet

Airways tweeted that all its arrivals and departures throughout the day were likely to run late by at least 30 minutes

owing to main runway closure.

Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) officials, who inspected the grounded aircraft, suspect that its anti-skid

system which protects the brakes from locking could have failed.

Airport sources added that the German flagship carrier was in talks with Air India to clear the aircraft from the

runway. AI, which is the member of the International Airlines Technical Pool, is the only carrier that has aircraft

recovery kit in India and South Asia.

Today in History 70 Years ago today: On 16 May 1946 a Viking Air Transport Douglas DC-3 crashed near Richmond, VA (USA), killing

all 27 occupants.

Date: Thursday 16 May 1946

Time: 01:04

Type: Douglas C-47A-80-DL (DC-3)

Operator: Viking Air Transport

Registration: NC53218

C/n / msn: 19626

First flight: 1944

Total airframe hrs: 1180

Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney R-1830-92

Crew: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2

Passengers: Fatalities: 25 / Occupants: 25

Total: Fatalities: 27 / Occupants: 27

Airplane damage: Damaged beyond repair

Location: 10 km (6.3 mls) S of Richmond-Byrd Field, VA (RIC) ( United States of America)

Phase: Approach (APR)

Nature: Domestic Non Scheduled Passenger

Departure airport: Richmond International Airport (Byrd Field), VA (RIC/KRIC), United States of America

Destination airport: Atlanta Municipal Airport, GA (ATL/KATL), United States of America

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Narrative:

The DC-3 landed at Richmond-Byrd Field (RIC) with indications of engine problems. The crew however, decided to

continue to Atlanta immediately because of worsening weather conditions. Engine trouble after takeoff forced the

crew to return to Byrd Field. The aircraft was not properly lined up on the first attempt to land and maneuvered for

another attempt. One of the engines ran rough and was shut down. The aircraft lost control, stalled and crashed. It

appeared that the pilot had shut down the wrong, no. 2, engine when a crack had developed in the no. 6 cylinder of

the no. 1 engine.

PROBABLE CAUSE: “The inability of the pilot to maintain adequate control of the aircraft to effect an emergency

single-engine instrument approach under adverse weather conditions. Contributing factors were: The decision of the

pilot to continue the flight into weather conditions when the considered unsafe; the negligence of the pilot in failing to

have an inspection of the aircraft engines made prior to departure from Richmond, the action of the pilot in shutting

down the wrong engine when experiencing excessive vibration from a power plant; and the pilot’s neglect in failing

to retract the landing gear during an emergency go-around.”