AVHERALD: SMOKE

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http://avherald.com/h?article=48586ab7
20150430141936:20150429000000
Incident: United B752 at Newark on Apr 29th 2015, rejected takeoff after flames reported from engine or gear
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N17105 performing flight UA-70 from
Newark,NJ (USA) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 135 people on board, was
accelerating for takeoff from runway 04L when the next departure cleared
to line up runway 04L reported seeing smoke and sparks from the left main
gear, Tower repeated flames from the engine or the wheels. The crew reject
takeoff at low speed, steered the aircraft off the runway and stopped on
the adjacent taxiway, tower instructed the aircraft to hold position while
emergency services were responding. No fire was detected, the passengers
disembarked onto the taxiway and were bussed to the terminal.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N17133 reached Amsterdam with
a delay of 4 hours.

The airport reported smoke and sparks were observed from the left landing
gear, no fire was detected, the smoke seemed to originate from the brakes,
that appeared to have locked up.

The airline reported firefighters responded but found no fire, the aircraft
is being checked.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4857e7ff
20150429220319:20150427000000
Incident: Inuit DH8A near Umiujaq on Apr 27th 2015, smoke in cabin
An Air Inuit de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-FAIV performing flight
3H-860 from La Grande,QC to Port Hope Simpson,NL (Canada) with no passengers,
3 crew and cargo, was enroute at FL250 about one third into the flight when
the flight attendant noticed a burning smell in the cabin between seat row
2 and 3. The crew donned their oxygen masks, advised ATC, initiated a diversion
to Kuujjuarapik,QC (Canada) and worked the “Emergency Fuselage Fire and
Smoke of unknown origin”. After completing the checklist the flight attendant
observed smoke in the cabin. The crew declared emergency and decided to
divert to Umiujaq,QC (Canada) which was closer. While descending towards
Umiujaq the flight attendant discovered that the smoke originated from the
cabin lighting system above the overhead lockers. The cabin lights were
turned off, the flight attendant discharged a Halon fire extinguisher into
the affected area. The aircraft landed safely in Umiujaq soon after.

The Canadian TSB reported that the plastics connector of neon light tubes
was identified as source of smell and smoke. The TSB annotated that the
use of the oxygen masks made communication between crew as well as communication
to ATC difficult, the use smoke goggles was also “obstructive”.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=48557f93
20150427083614:20150425000000
Incident: US Airways A319 at Jacksonville on Apr 25th 2015, bird strike
An US Airways Airbus A319-100 on behalf of American Airlines, registration
N738US performing flight US-1927/AA-1927 from Jacksonville,FL to Charlotte,NC
(USA) with 120 people on board, departed Jacksonville’s runway 08. Immediately
after becoming airborne the crew reported they had two geese hitting the
aircraft, they had heard them, the airport should check the runway, it was
a pretty good hit, the birds probably hit the gear. Tower reported smoke
from the right hand side, it looked like smoke and some flames from the
engine but tower wasn’t sure whether engine or gear. The crew decided to
stop the climb at 2000 feet and prepared to return to Jacksonville. A runway
inspection revealed debris on runway 08, tower offered runway 14, the crew
reported it was probably a landing gear door that was hit. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 14 about 10 minutes after departure.

A passenger reported that upon rotation from runway 08 there was a very
noticeable bang, the aircraft subsequently climbed out steeper than normal,
there were engine vibrations from the right hand engine (CFM56), the captain
subsequently announced that they had taken a bird strike at the landing
gear and needed to return to the airport for a quick inspection, though
landing gear and engines showed normal indications. Following landing the
captain examined the aircraft, then the flight was cancelled, the captain
reported there was damage to engine blades and the landing gear. It appeared
a bird was still wedged into the landing gear door, there also was a dent
in the nose cone.

The right hand engine and right main gear (Photo: Thomas Jerolitsch):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=48546eb6
20150428223937:20150425000000
Accident: THY A320 at Istanbul on Apr 25th 2015, hard landing, go-around, engine problem, gear problem, gear collapse, runway excursion
A THY Turkish Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration TC-JPE performing flight
TK-1878 from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Istanbul (Turkey) with 97 people
on board, landed on Istanbul Ataturk Airport’s runway 05 at 10:22L (07:22Z)
but rolled right just before touchdown causing the right engine and wing
to contact the runway and a hard touch down. The crew initiated a go-around,
then declared emergency due to an engine (V2527) inoperative. The crew
subsequently reported an unsafe gear indication. The aircraft positioned
for an emergency landing on runway 35L, touched down about 20 minutes after
the go around, but with the right main gear collapsed the aircraft skidded
on its right engine, with sparks and smoke trailing the engine, and veered
right off the runway spinning nearly 180 degrees. The aircraft was evacuated
via slides while emergency services started to spray the aircraft. There
were no injuries, the aircraft received substantial damage to the right
hand main gear, right hand engine and its pylon as well as to leading and
trailing edge high lift devices at the right hand wing.

The airline confirmed the aircraft went off the runway during an emergency
landing, the 97 passenges have been safely evacuated, there are no injuries.

A passenger reported the aircraft was on its first approach to Ataturk’s
Airport uneventfully until about 100 feet AGL when the aircraft suddenly
rolled heavily to the right and fell down onto the runway, while on the
ground the aircraft was still tilted to the right, the engines accelerated
and the aircraft became airborne again, the passenger thought the right
main gear had collapsed at that point already. While positioning for the
second approach another passenger yelled “Fire”. Cabin crew instructed the
passengers to brace for landing. The second touchdown was smooth, however,
there were scraping sounds from the right, the passenger did not notice
a gear collapse during roll out, only after the aircraft had slowed significantly
the aircraft began to veer to the right. The doors were opened, passengers
directed to the left forward and right rear doors for evacuation, when the
right hand overwing exits were opened foam from the fire engines entered
the cabin. About 5 minutes after landing busses arrived and took the passengers
to the terminal.

The French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin of Apr 28th 2015 quoting
Turkish Authorities, that the aircraft landed very hard causing damage to
the right hand main gear and engine, the crew conducted a go around and
landed, the right main gear collapsed and the aircraft came to a stop at
the runway egde. The Turkish Accident Investigation Board is investigating
the accident.

Metars:
LTBA 250920Z 24007KT CAVOK 15/07 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250850Z 23007KT CAVOK 16/06 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250820Z 22006KT 200V260 CAVOK 15/06 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250750Z 20004KT 160V240 CAVOK 15/07 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250720Z 17005KT 140V200 CAVOK 15/05 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250650Z 15008KT CAVOK 16/04 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250620Z 15009KT CAVOK 16/03 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250550Z 18004KT 150V230 CAVOK 14/05 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250520Z 17004KT 120V240 CAVOK 13/07 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250450Z VRB01KT CAVOK 12/08 Q1020 NOSIG
LTBA 250420Z VRB02KT CAVOK 11/08 Q1020 NOSIG

The landing of TK-1878 (Video: TezGroup)
Another video of the landing, also watch last 40 seconds (Video: Skyrhn
H¸rku)
Passenger photo of TC-JPE after evacuation:
TC-JPE seen shortly after the go-around (Photo: AFP):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=485598f2
20150426222523:20150424000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Jacksonville on Apr 24th 2015, smoke indication
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N915DL performing
flight DL-2213 from Melbourne,FL to Atlanta,GA (USA), was climbing through
FL345 about 30nm south of Jacksonville when a smoke detector went off prompting
the crew to divert to Jacksonville for a safe landing on runway 08 about
20 minutes later. The crew vacated the runway and stopped for a check by
emergency services before the aircraft continued to the apron.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=485100b9
20150420224647:20150419000000
Incident: Austrian B772 at Washington on Apr 19th 2015, oven disobeys "no smoking" sign
An Austrian Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration OE-LPA performing flight
OS-94 from Washington Dulles,DC (USA) to Vienna (Austria) with 279 passengers
and 12 crew, was climbing out of Dulles Airport’s runway 19C when the crew
reported they had a technical problem, smoke on board and needed to land
back to Dulles. The crew declined a number of ATC queries and instructions
stating they needed to work their checklists. The aircraft returned to Dulles’
runway 19C. While intercepting the localizer ATC advised that emergency
services wouldn’t be able to reach the runway in time for the landing and
assigned runway 19L for landing, the crew declined the runway change stating
they were already setup and slowing for the landing and advised they would
be able to vacate the runway, they requested a remote parking position with
emergency services standing by there. The aircraft landed safely on runway
19C about 13 minutes after departure and taxied to a remote parking position.

The flight was cancelled.

The airline reported an oven in one of the galleys went smoking. Flights
OS-94 and OS-93 of Apr 20th from Vienna to Washington were cancelled, the
aircraft is estimated to return to Vienna as flight OS-94 of Apr 20th after
a technical examination.

A passenger reported the crew announced an immediate return to Dulles and
made a nice overweight landing. After landing the captain indicated there
had been smoke in the aft galley and talked about a coffee maker (also see:
Incident: Austrian B763 near Frankfurt on Apr 18th 2015, unLAWful coffee
maker).

Another passenger seated at an emergency exit in the back reported there
was lots of smoke, possibly from a coffee maker.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=484f389e
20150418153506:20150418000000
Incident: Austrian B763 near Frankfurt on Apr 18th 2015, unLAWful coffee maker
An Austrian Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration OE-LAW performing flight
OS-89 from Vienna (Austria) to Newark,NJ (USA) with 207 passengers and 10
crew, was enroute at FL340 about 120nm eastnortheast of Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
when smoke emanated from a galley prompting cabin crew to disconnect galley
power and discharge fire extinguishers into the galley. The smoke dissipated.
The flight crew decided to return to Vienna, where the aircraft landed safely
about 40 minutes later.

The airline reported a coffee maker in the forward galley suffered a technical
defect causing smoke as result of a light smouldering fire, the coffeemaker
was removed from the aircraft. Although the aircraft technically could have
departed again, crew duty time limitations required the flight to be cancelled.
A number of passengers were rebooked onto other flights, the others were
taken to hotels.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=484d2055
20150415221602:20150413000000
Incident: American B738 at New York on Apr 13th 2015, bird strike
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N955AN performing flight
AA-1696 from New York La Guardia,NY to Miami,FL (USA) with 152 people on
board, departed La Guardia’s runway 13 when shortly after contacting departure
the crew reported they had a burning smell, later smoke in the cabin, they
declared emergency and wanted to divert to JFK Airport. The crew stopped
the climb at 5000 feet, advised they were too busy to provide number of
people on board and fuel on board and received vectors to JFK’s runway 22R,
prompting a staccato of ATC instructions on JFK final approach to squeeze
the emergency aircraft into the already dense landing sequence with other
aircraft climbing and turning out of the way. The aircraft landed safely
on JFK’s runway 22R about 10 minutes after departure and vacated the runway.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration N805NN reached Miami with a delay
of 3.5 hours.

The airline reported the left hand engine ingested a bird on departure from
La Guardia causing the burning smell.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=484c4622
20150414211620:20150413000000
Incident: British Airways B773 near Munich on Apr 13th 2015, smoking galley
A British Airways Boeing 777-300, registration G-STBG performing flight
BA-139 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Mumbai (India), was enroute at FL350
about 120nm northeast of Munich in Czech Airspace when the crew reported
smoke in a galley and decided to turn around and divert to Munich (Germany),
the crew advised on approach that the smoke was subsiding, where the aircraft
landed safely on runway 26R about 25 minutes later. The aircraft taxied
to the apron with emergency services following the aircraft.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after about 3 hours on the
ground in Munich and reached Mumbai with a delay of 3:20 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=484b89e8
20150413225922:20150413000000
Incident: Shuttle America E145 near New York on Apr 13th 2015, smoke in cockpit
A Shuttle America Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N564RP performing flight S5-3377/DL-3377 from Rochester,NY to New York La
Guardia,NY (USA) with 42 passengers and 3 crew, was descending towards New
York when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and considered to divert
to Newburgh,NY but continued for a safe landing on La Guardia’s runway 22,
the crew indicated after landing that no assistance was required and taxied
to the apron.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=484a66ca
20150412133658:20150411000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near Cologne on Apr 11th 2015, smoke in cockpit
An Easyjet Airbus A320-200, registration G-EZUT performing flight U2-5455
from London Gatwick,EN (UK) to Paphos (Cyprus), was enroute at FL330 about
90nm southwest of Cologne when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
diverted to Cologne for a safe landing on runway 32R about 20 minutes later.
Emergency services did not need to intervene.

Passengers reported they did not notice anything amiss until the crew announced
they were diverting to Cologne.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration G-EZTK positioned to Cologne
and continued the flight delivering the passengers to Paphos with a delay
of 7 hours.

The occurrence aircraft was able to position back to London the following
day about 19 hours after landing.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=48466099
20150407164925:20150407000000
Incident: Lufthansa A333 at Frankfurt on Apr 7th 2015, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A330-300, registration D-AIKG performing flight LH-598
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), was in the initial
climb out of Frankfurt’s runway 18 when the crew stopped the climb at about
3300 feet reporting smoke in the cabin, joined a left downwind for runway
25C and landed safely back on runway 25C about 7 minutes after departure.
Emergency services examined the aircraft but did not need to intervene.

A passenger reported thick smoke became visible in the cabin, the aircraft
returned to Frankfurt and taxied to the apron with emergency services following
the aircraft.

A replacement Airbus A330-300 registration D-AIKD is estimated to reach
Jeddah with a delay of 4 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=484664ed
20150407171928:20150406000000
Incident: Rusline CRJ1 at Baratayeveka on Apr 6th 2015, cargo smoke indication
A Rusline Canadair CRJ-100, registration VQ-BNY performing flight 7R-224
from Baratayeveka to Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) with 26 passengers and 3
crew, was climbing out of Baratayeveka when the crew received a cargo smoke
indication, activated the cargo fire suppression system and returned to
Baratayeveka for a safe landing about 45 minutes after departure. Emergency
services did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported it was most likely an erroneous indication by a faulty
sensor.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=48423a4f
20150402202222:20150401000000
Incident: Shuttle America E145 near Buffalo on Apr 1st 2015, laptop went smoking
A Shuttle America Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N293SK performing flight S5-6023/DL-6023 from New York La Guardia,NY to
Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 53 people on board, was enroute at FL340 about
40nm south of Buffalo,NY (USA) when a passenger’s laptop began to emit smoke
prompting the flight crew to divert to Buffalo while cabin crew cooled the
device pouring water over the laptop. The smoke ceased, and the aircraft
landed safely in Buffalo about 17 minutes after leaving FL340.

Police took the remains of the laptop into custody for investigation.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight and reached Chicago with a
delay of 2 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=483ea8a2
20150329164134:20150329000000
Incident: Cathay B773 near Amsterdam on Mar 29th 2015, fire in cabin
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300, registration B-KPC performing flight CX-251
(dep Mar 28th) from Hong Kong (China) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 289
people on board, was enroute at FL360 about 170nm northeast of Amsterdam
(Netherlands) over the North Sea, when the crew reported a fire in the cabin
and decided to divert to Amsterdam. While descending towards Amsterdam the
crew reported that the fire had been extinguished, only smoke remained in
the galley, and continued to Amsterdam for a safe landing on runway 27 about
30 minutes later, the aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency services
following the aircraft to the stand.

The occurrence aircraft was able to depart Amsterdam after about 3 hours
on the ground and reached London with a delay of 3:45 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=483783be
20150320220409:20150319000000
Incident: United B752 near Boston on Mar 19th 2015, smell of smoke in cabin
A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N33103 performing flight
UA-23 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Dublin (Ireland) with 169 passengers and 8
crew, was enroute at FL350 about 15nm south of Boston,MA (USA) when the
crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted to Boston for a safe landing
on runway 27 about 20 minutes later and taxied to the apron with emergency
services following the aircraft to the gate, the crew advised that flight
attendants reported it wasn’t smoke but smell of smoke.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N58101 reached Dublin with a delay
of 3 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4836969a
20150319182429:20150319000000
Incident: Condor B763 over Atlantic on Mar 19th 2015, lavatory fire indication
A Condor Boeing 767-300, registration D-ABUC performing flight DE-4156 from
Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Cancun (Mexico) with 230 passengers and 10 crew,
was enroute at FL320 about one hour into the Atlantic crossing, when the
crew decided to turn around and divert to Shannon (Ireland) reporting smoke
in the cockpit following a rear lavatory fire indication. The crew requested
emergency services to check the tyres due to the pending overweight landing.
The aircraft landed safely on Shannon’s runway 06 (active runway 24) about
80 minutes later, vacated the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway
for inspection by emergency services. Emergency services entered the cabin
to examine the lavatory and also checked the undercarriage, subsequently
reporting the undercarriage okay.

The airline reported: “The aircraft started at 1:36pm CET in Frankfurt and
returned to Shannon precautionarily after about 3,5 hours of flight time
due to a light smoke development in a lavatory in the back of the aircraft.
There was no smoke in the cockpit.” The passengers are being taken care
of at the airport until a replacement aircraft dispatched from Frankfurt
to Shannon arrives delivering maintenance personnel to check the occurrence
aircraft and takes the passengers to Cancun.

Emergency Services checking the aircraft on adjacent taxiway (Photo: AVH/PF):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=48353615
20150317221649:20150317000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 at New York on Mar 17th 2015, smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N729JB performing flight B6-2 from
Fort Lauderdale,FL to New York JFK,NY (USA), was descending towards New
York when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and continued for a safe
landing on JFK’s runway 22L.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4832c81e
20150314210913:20150314000000
Incident: Republic DH8D at Denver on Mar 14th 2015, blew tyre on departure
A Republic Airways de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of United, registration
N191WQ performing flight YX-4870/UA-4870 from Denver,CO to Kansas City,MO
(USA) with 71 people on board, departed Denver’s runway 08 and was in the
initial climb when the crew declared emergency initially reporting they
had blown a nose tyre on departure. A runway inspection confirmed tyre debris
on the runway, at the same time another runway inspection found dead birds
on runway 16L. The crew levelled off at 10,000 feet, performed a low approach
which identified the nose gear “was light on rubber” and entered a hold
to burn off fuel, cabin crew prepared the cabin and passengers for the return.
While on final approach for runway 17R cabin crew had the passengers to
adopt the brace position, the crew now reported (correctly) the left hand
inboard main tyre had blown based on observation from inside the aircraft.
The aircraft landed safely on runway 17R, the tyre on the inboard left main
wheel separated during roll out, the outboard left main tyre remained inflated.
Emergency services reported the left inboard tyre shredded during roll out,
there was no fire and no smoke. The aircraft stopped on the runway, the
crew shut the aircraft down, the passengers disembarked onto the runway
and were bussed to the terminal.

A replacement Dash 8-400 registration N209WQ is currently estimated to reach
Kansas City with a delay of 4.5 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=482f8afc
20150310184206:20150309000000
Incident: SAA A343 at Johannesburg on Mar 9th 2015, smoke in cabin
A SAA South African Airways Airbus A340-300, registration ZS-SXD performing
flight SA-52 from Johannesburg (South Africa) to Accra (Ghana), was climbing
out of Johannesburg when the crew stopped the climb at FL120 and started
to dump fuel reporting smoke in the cabin. 5 minutes later the crew reported
the smoke had subsided, climbed the aircraft to FL130 to complete the fuel
dump and returned to Johannesburg for a safe landing on runway 21L about
one hour after departure.

Passengers reported the captain indicated they had a problem with an air
conditioning system.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=482c3f80
20150306193000:20150305000000
Incident: Sichuan A320 near Jinan on Mar 5th 2015, cargo fire indication
A Sichuan Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration B-6843 performing flight
3U-8816 from Tianjin to Hangzhou (China), was enroute at 8900 meters (FL292)
about 20nm north of Jinan (China) when the crew received a cargo fire indication
and diverted to Jinan for a safe landing about 15 minutes later. Emergency
services did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke. There were no injuries.

The airline reported the indication was identified false as result of a
malfunctioning smoke detector.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after 4.5 hours on the ground
in Jinan and reached Hangzhou with a delay of 5 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=482c66b0
20150306234238:20150302000000
Incident: North Cariboo DH8C near Calgary on Mar 2nd 2015, smoke in cabin
A North Cariboo Air de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GAQN performing
flight NCB-1306 from Edmonton,AB to Calgary,AB (Canada), was enroute near
Calgary when the lavatory smoke detector activated and smoke became visible
in the cabin. The crew declared emergency and received vectors direct to
Calgary, where the aircraft landed safely about 30 minutes later. Emergency
services did not find any trace of fire or heat.

The Canadian TSB reported: “Company maintenance found oil leaking from the
# 4 bearing housing on the # 1 engine (Pratt & Whitney PW123). The engine
was replaced.”
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http://avherald.com/h?article=483471af
20150316220408:20150227000000
Incident: Georgian CRJ1 near Johnstown on Feb 27th 2015, smoke in cabin
An Air Georgian Canadair CRJ-100 on behalf of Air Canada, registration C-FWRT
performing flight ZX-7326/AC-7316 from Raleigh/Durham,NC (USA) to Toronto,ON
(Canada), was enroute at FL310 about 40nm southeast of Johnstown,PA (USA)
when cabin crew advised the cockpit of smoke originating from one of the
cabin panels. The crew diverted to Johnstown for a safe landing about 25
minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified moisture from condensation
had caused an electrical short in the overhead wiring near seat row 7 at
the right side of the aircraft.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4824833b
20150421185759:20150224000000
Accident: Fedex MD11 near St. Louis on Feb 24th 2015, cargo fire indication
A Fedex McDonnell Douglas MD-11 freighter, registration N584FE performing
flight FX-1407 from Memphis,TN to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 4 crew, was
enroute at FL360 about 80nm northnorthwest of St. Louis,MO (USA) when the
crew received indication of a cargo fire, the automatic cargo fire suppression
system activated. The crew decided to turn around and divert to St. Louis
for a safe landing on runway 12L about 18 minutes later. The crew evacuated
via slides, one of the crew received injuries in the evacuation and was
taken to a hospital. Emergency services did not find any trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The airline reported that the fire suppression system, activated by heat,
went off and foamed a cargo container.

On Apr 21st 2015 the NTSB reported that the main deck fire suppression system
automatically activated. Following landing the four crew evacuated through
the left main door via slides, one of the crew members received serious
injuries in the evacuation. The NTSB is investigating the accident.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4822d1f7
20150222173735:20150221000000
Incident: Thomas Cook B753 near Budapest on Feb 21st 2015, smoke in the flightdeck
A Thomas Cook Boeing 757-300, registration G-JMAA performing flight MT-1125
from Sofia (Bulgaria) to London Gatwick,EN (UK) with 280 people on board,
was enroute at FL340 about 100nm south of Budapest when the crew declared
PAN reporting “smoke in the flight deck” and decided to divert to Budapest.
While descending towards Budapest the crew performed the smoke drills and
subsequently reported that the smoke and fumes in the flight deck had dissipated
but there was still a strong smell of burning in the cabin and some smoke.
The aircraft landed safely on Budapest’s runway 31R about 20 minutes after
leaving FL340. Emergency services checked the aircraft, which afterwards
taxied to the apron.

The passengers were taken to hotels.

The occurrence aircraft remained on the ground for about 17 hours, then
continued the flight and is estimated to reach Gatwick with a delay of 21
hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=48221ae5
20150221203309:20150221000000
Incident: Air Austral B773 at Manchester on Feb 21st 2015, hydraulic leak
An Air Austral Boeing 777-300, registration F-OSYD performing positioning
flight UU-9902 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Manchester,EN (UK),
landed on Manchester’s runway 23R when smoke became visible from the landing
gear initially prompting assumptions the aircraft had blown tyres. The aircraft
vacated the runway and stopped, emergency services found hydraulic fluid
dripping onto the hot brakes as source of the smoke.

The runway was briefly closed for a runway inspection and a sweep.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=481e422e
20150217230242:20150215000000
Incident: Delta A333 at Amsterdam on Feb 15th 2015, rejected takeoff
A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration N806NW performing flight
DL-163 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Minneapolis,MN (USA), was accelerating
for takeoff from Amsterdam’s runway 36L when the crew rejected takeoff at
about 80 knots advising tower that no assistance was needed. Tower alerted
emergency services advising the crew that there was smoke from the landing
gear, crew guessing that smoke was just from the brakes, tower reporting
it was too much smoke for that, they probably blew a tyre or so, this needed
to be checked out. The crew of another aircraft confirmed a lot of smoke
from the left main gear suggesting the left main gear brakes/wheels may
have locked up. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped on an adjacent
taxiway where emergency services checked the aircraft.

A subsequent inspection found hydraulic fluid on the left side of the taxiway.

A replacement Airbus A330-300 registration N812NW reached Minneapolis with
a delay of 3 hours.

N806NW during the rejected takeoff (Photo: Martijn Biekart):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=481e3e3b
20150216222417:20150213000000
Incident: Egypt B738 at Cairo on Feb 13th 2015, rejected takeoff due to smoke
An Egypt Air Boeing 737-800, registration SU-GCM performing flight MS-757
from Cairo (Egypt) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 59 passengers, was accelerating
for takeoff from Cairo when a burning smell developed in the cabin followed
by light smoke. The crew rejected takeoff, slowed safely and returned the
aircraft to the apron. There were no injuries, emergency services did not
find any trace of fire or heat.

A replacement Boeing Boeing 737-800 registration SU-GEC reached Amsterdam
with a delay of 4 hours.

A passenger reported that during acceleration for takeoff “the cabin filled
with light smoke and a burning smell”, the takeoff was rejected and the
aircraft returned to the apron, where fire services checked the aircraft
and ambulances were ready.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=481b14cf
20150212203345:20150212000000
Incident: jet2.com B733 near Leeds on Feb 12th 2015, smoke in cabin
A Jet2.com Boeing 737-300, registration G-GDFE performing flight LS-509
from Newcastle,EN (UK) to Prague (Czech Republic), was enroute at FL330
about 25nm northeast of Norwich,EN (UK) when the crew declared emergency
reporting smoke in the cabin. The aircraft diverted to Leeds,EN (UK) for
a safe landing on runway 32 about 45 minutes later.

The airport reported emergency services checked the aircraft, there was
no fire on board of the aircraft.

The airline reported the aircraft diverted due to an “operational issue”.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 registration G-GDFL reached Prague with a delay
of 2:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=481b1371
20150212202357:20150212000000
Incident: Lingus A320 at Dublin on Feb 12th 2015, smoke indication in cabin
An Aer Lingus Airbus A320-200, registration EI-CVC performing flight EI-152
from Dublin (Ireland) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was climbing out of Dublin’s
runway 28 when the crew requested to level off at 5000 feet due to a smoke
indication in the cabin requesting vectors to stay close to the aerodrome
in case of a return. The crew advised that cabin crew was examining the
lavatory. The airport prepared for the air return, emergency services went
to their stand by positions, departures were reassigned runways due to the
priority return. About 5 minutes after levelling off the crew requested
to continue the climb and continued to London where the aircraft landed
safely about 55 minutes after departure.

The airline reported the crew received a smoke indication, one passenger
oxygen masks also dropped. The aircraft had been in regular maintenance
for the last week.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48199ddb
20150210225057:20150209000000
Incident: Envoy CRJ7 near Tulsa on Feb 9th 2015, smoke in cockpit and medical emergency
An Envoy Canadair CRJ-700, registration N532EA performing flight MQ-3235/AA-3235
from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Cedar Rapids,IA (USA) with 65 passengers and
4 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 25nm south of Tulsa,OK (USA) when the
crew donned their oxygen masks reporting smoke in the cockpit and a medical
emergency on board, requesting medical personnel at the gate, and diverted
to Tulsa. Upon checking in with tower the crew advised they would vacate
the runway, stop on the taxiway and pop the doors open, medical personnel
requested the meet the aircraft on the taxiway. The aircraft landed safely
on runway 36R about 20 minutes after leaving FL330, vacated the runway and
stopped on the adjacent taxiway. Emergency services responded, took care
of the medical emergency and checked the aircraft. The passengers disembarked
onto the taxiway and were bussed to the terminal.

The remainder of the flight as well as the return flight was cancelled.

The source of the smoke is being investigated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48165287
20150209212013:20150205000000
Incident: Air Canada B772 at Bridgetown on Feb 5th 2015, cargo smoke indication
An Air Canada Boeing 777-200, registration C-FIVK performing flight AC-967
from Bridgetown (Barbados) to Toronto,ON (Canada), was climbing out of Bridgetown’s
runway 09 when the crew stopped the climb at 2000 feet reporting a cargo
smoke indication and returned to Bridgetown for a safe landing on runway
09 about 5 minutes after departure. Emergency services did not find any
trace of fire, smoke or heat.

The flight was cancelled.

On Feb 9th 2015 the Canadian TSB reported the crew received a forward cargo
hold smoke indication, declared Mayday, discharged the fire suppression
bottles and returned to Bridgetown. Emergency services found no evidence
of fire or smoke. The airline is investigating the occurrence.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4814e9e5
20150204222043:20150204000000
Incident: THY B773 near London on Feb 4th 2015, smoke indications in aft cabin
A THY Turkish Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration TC-JJM performing flight
TK-10 (dep Feb 3rd) from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Istanbul (Turkey), was
enroute at FL350 about 50nm south of London’s Gatwick Airport,EN (UK) when
the crew reported a smoke indication in the aft cabin and diverted to Gatwick
for a safe landing on runway 08R about 20 minutes later. Emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported an examination did not identify any problems.

The aircraft departed Gatwick after about 2 hours on the ground and reached
Istanbul with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48126564
20150201193141:20150131000000
Incident: Volotea B712 near Rome on Jan 31st 2015, smoke in cabin
A Volotea Boeing 717-200, registration EI-EXI performing flight V7-1740
from Catania to Verona (Italy) with 117 passengers, was enroute at FL340
about 30nm north of Rome when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cabin and diverted to Rome’s Fiumicino Airport for a safe landing
on runway 34R about 25 minutes after leaving FL340. There were no injuries,
emergency services did not need to intervene.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were bussed to
Verona (road distance approx 534km).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48126347
20150201191602:20150131000000
Incident: Envoy E145 near Waterloo on Jan 31st 2015, bleed air leak
An Envoy Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of American Airlines, registration N618AE
performing flight MQ-3425/AA-3425 from Des Moines,IA to Chicago O’Hare,IL
(USA) with 49 people on board, was climbing out of Des Moines when the crew
stopped the climb at about FL190 reporting a bleed air problem on the left
hand engine (Ae3007). The aircraft diverted to Waterloo,IA for a safe landing
on runway 30, the crew requested emergency services to check for any smoke
or fire from the left hand engine. Emergency services reported no smoke
and no fire from the left hand engine, the forward cowl of the engine appeared
discoloured however. The aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency services
following the aircraft.

A replacement ERJ-145 registration N694AE reached Chicago with a delay of
4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4813e4f5
20150203180702:20150130000000
Incident: Aeromexico Connect E145 at Los Angeles on Jan 30th 2015, lavatory smoke indication
An Aeromexico Connect Embraer ERJ-145, registration XA-ULI performing flight
5D-2201/AM-2201 from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Hermosillo (Mexico) with 30
passengers and 3 crew, was climbing out of Los Angeles’ runway 24L when
the crew reported they needed to return due to smoke in the lavatory. The
aircraft stopped the climb at 7000 feet and returned to Los Angeles for
a safe landing on runway 25L about 20 minutes after departure. Emergency
services did not need to intervene, the aircraft taxied to the apron.

The occurrence aircraft was able to depart again after about 3.5 hours on
the ground in Los Angeles and reached Hermosillo with a delay of 3:45 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4810cd92
20150130175441:20150129000000
Incident: United B753 near Ontario on Jan 29th 2015, burning smell
A United Boeing 757-300, registration N75851 performing flight UA-1181 from
Los Angeles,CA to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) with 199 passengers and 7 crew,
was climbing through FL280 out of Los Angeles when the crew aborted the
climb due to a burning odour on board, turned around and diverted to Ontario,CA
(USA) for a safe landing about 16 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 737-900 registration N37464 reached Washington with
a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=480de96d
20150127005216:20150126000000
Incident: Garuda CRJX near Biak on Jan 26th 2015, lightning strike
A Garuda Airlines Canadair CRJ-1000, registration PK-GRK performing flight
GA-698 from Manokwari to Jayapura (Indonesia), needed to divert to Biak
(Indonesia) following a lightning strike. The aircraft received damage to
the left hand wing and was unable to continue the flight.

Jayapura Airport reported two flights were expected from Manokwari with
large parts of Papua experiencing bad weather. One flight arrived, the other
diverted to Biak following a lightning strike. During examination of the
aircraft technicians found black smoke emanating from the left hand wing,
a detailed inspection is in progress. The flight was postponed to Tuesday.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=480df00e
20150127013918:20150125000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near Amsterdam on Jan 25th 2015, smoke in cockpit
An Easyjet Airbus A320-200, registration G-EZWK performing flight U2-6238
from Berlin Schoenefeld (Germany) to Bristol,EN (UK), was enroute at FL380
about 40nm southwest of Amsterdam (Netherlands) when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit and a strong odour in the passenger cabin and diverted to
Amsterdam for a safe landing on runway 18R about 20 minutes later. Emergency
services checked the exterior and followed the aircraft to the apron, where
the passengers disembarked normally and firefighters checked the interior
of the aircraft, no further intervention by fire brigades was needed.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration G-EZTY reached Bristol with a
delay of 4 hours.

The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Amsterdam about 27 hours
after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=480b39f6
20150123190633:20150122000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Las Vegas on Jan 22nd 2015, smoke indication
An Allegiant Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-536 from Las Vegas,NV
to Great Falls,MT (USA) with 160 people on board, was in the initial climb
out of Las Vegas when the crew received a smoke indication, stopped the
climb at 6000 feet and returned to Las Vegas for a safe landing about 10
minutes after departure. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

A replacement MD-83 reached Great Falls with a delay of 2:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4808efca
20150120212851:20150119000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 at Worcester on Jan 19th 2015, lavatory smoke indication
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N229JB performing flight B6-2019
from Worcester,MA to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 77 passengers and 4 crew,
was in the initial climb out Worcester’s runway 29 when the crew advised
they had an issue going and levelled off at 3000 feet, a minute later they
declared emergency reporting they had “a lav smoke”. On final The aircraft
returned to Worcester, on final approach to runway 29 the crew advised the
lav smoke announciation had gone out. The aircraft landed safely on runway
29 about 8 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported just after becoming airborne an alarm started to sound
in the cabin and an odour similiar to rubber burning occurred.

The occurrence aircraft was able to position to Boston about 12.5 hours
after landing back.

The flight is currently estimated to reach Fort Lauderdale with a delay
of 1340 minutes (22:20 hours).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48083740
20150119231937:20150118000000
Incident: Avianca A319 near Cartagena on Jan 18th 2015, smoke indication
An Avianca Airbus A319-100, registration N647AV performing flight AV-37
from Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) to Bogota (Colombia), was enroute at FL330
about 30nm southwest of Cartagena (Colombia) when the crew declared emergency
reporting a smoke indication and diverted to Cartagena for a safe landing
about 18 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire, smoke
or heat.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after about 75 minutes on the
ground and reached Bogota with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48080052
20150119164503:20150118000000
Incident: Delta B772 at Atlanta on Jan 18th 2015, smoke on takeoff observed by other flight crew
A Delta Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N701DN performing flight DL-95
from Atlanta,GA (USA) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with 308 people on board,
was in the initial climb out of Atlanta’s runway 27R when the flight crew
of another aircraft taxiing on a taxiway near the end of runway 27R reporting
seeing smoke off the left hand side of the Boeing 777 upon rotation, possibly
smoke from a tyre while passing the PAPI’s runway 09L. The crew levelled
off at 7000 feet, declared emergency and returned to Atlanta for a safe
landing on runway 27R. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped on an
adjacent taxiway requesting emergency services to check for any fires around
the aircraft advising that the inboard forward brakes of the left hand main
gear indicated higher than all the other brakes. Emergency services reported
seeing smoke from the left side during landing, too.

Following examination and repairs the aircraft was able to depart again
after about two hours on the ground and reached Tokyo with a delay of 2
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=480454fd
20150114215630:20150113000000
Incident: Asiana Cargo B744 near Novosibirsk on Jan 13th 2015, smoke indication in cabin
An Asiana Cargo Airlines Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration HL7417 performing
flight OZ-784 from Oslo (Norway) to Seoul (South Korea) with 4 crew, was
enroute at FL350 about 190nm northeast of Novosibirsk when the crew received
indication of smoke in the cabin and decided to divert to Novosibirsk, where
the aircraft landed safely on runway 07 about 35 minutes later.

Rosaviatsia reported the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted to
Novosibirsk for a safe landing. The cause of the smoke is being investigated.

The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Novosibirsk about 25 hours
after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=480395b8
20150113223755:20150112000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 near Norfolk on Jan 12th 2015, odour in cockpit
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N306JB performing flight B6-1534
from Tampa,FL to Hartford,CT (USA) with 93 people on board, was enroute
at FL370 about 210nm southeast of Norfolk,VA (USA) when the crew reported
an unknown odour in the cockpit and diverted to Norfolk for a safe landing
on runway 23 about 40 minutes later. Emergency services did not find any
traces of fire, heat or smoke.

The occurrence aircraft was able to continue the flight after about 6:15
hours on the ground and reached Hartford with a delay of 7:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4802c8f5
20150112221719:20150112000000
Incident: TAM A320 at Londrina on Jan 12th 2015, brakes fire
A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A320-200, registration PR-MAC performing flight
JJ-3763 from Sao Paulo Congonhas,SP to Londrina,PR (Brazil), landed on Londrina’s
runway 31 when the left brakes began to overheat. While taxiing to the apron
smoke became visible and a brakes fire broke out while the aircraft was
reaching the stand.

The return flight JJ-3762 was cancelled.

PR-MAC arriving at the stand in Londrina:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4802d6ce
20150112234446:20150111000000
Incident: Commutair DH8C at Ithaca on Jan 11th 2015, lavatory smoke indication
A Commutair de Havilland Dash 8-300 on behalf of United, registration N839CA
performing flight C5-3588/UA-3588 from Ithaca,NY to Newark,NJ (USA), was
climbing through about 9500 feet when the crew received a lavatory smoke
indication and returned to Ithaca for a safe landing about 20 minutes after
departure. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke and
no evidence of anyone smoking in the lavatory.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4804518d
20150114213252:20150108000000
Incident: Transat A332 at Montreal on Jan 8th 2015, cargo smoke indication
An Air Transat Airbus A330-200, registration C-GPTS performing flight TS-734
from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) with 366 people
on board, was climbing out of Montreal’s runway 24L when the crew received
a forward cargo smoke indication, stopped the climb at 8000 feet, worked
the related checklists after which the smoke indication became intermittent
and returned to Montreal for a safe landing on runway 24R about 15 minutes
later. An inspection by fire services did not reveal any trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance identified a faulty smoke detector
controol unit. The unit as well as the smoke detector were replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4802d266
20150112231535:20150108000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Winnipeg on Jan 8th 2015, smoke on board twice
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of United, registration N975SW performing
flight OO-5530/UA-5530 from Winnipeg,MB (Canada) to Denver,CO (USA) with
50 people on board, had just become airborne after takeoff from Winnipeg’s
runway 31 when the crew reported smoke in the cabin, levelled off at 3000
feet and returned to Winnipeg for a safe landing on runway 31 about 10 minutes
after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found no fault and suspected that
de-icing fluid from the pre-departure application had entered the environmental
system of the aircraft and caused the smoke. The aircraft was returned to
service, departed again but needed to return a second time for the same
reason.

The aircraft departed again after about 5 hours on the ground but stopped
the climb again at 3000 feet due to smoke in the cabin and returned to Toronto
for a safe landing a second time.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48006785
20150109215826:20150108000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Detroit on Jan 8th 2015, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N713TW performing flight DL-2275
from New York JFK,NY to Salt Lake City,UT (USA), was enroute at FL380 about
100nm northeast of Detroit,MI (USA) when the crew decided to divert to Detroit
reporting smell of smoke in the cabin. The aircraft landed safely on Detroit’s
runway 21L about 22 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47fd6040
20150105232403:20150105000000
Incident: Aeromexico B738 near Los Angeles on Jan 5th 2015, smell of smoke in cabin
An Aeromexico Boeing 737-800, registration N342AM performing flight AM-645
from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Mexico City (Mexico) with 169 people on board,
had just reached cruise level 300 when the crew reported smoke in the cabin
and decided to return to Los Angeles for a safe landing about 45 minutes
after departure. The aircraft taxied to the apron where passengers disembarked
normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47fa5ab4
20150105222453:20150101000000
Incident: Air France B773 near Montreal on Jan 1st 2015, overheating passenger seat
An Air France Boeing 777-300, registration F-GSQL performing flight AF-54
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) with
269 passengers and 17 crew, was enroute at FL380 about 50nm northwest of
Montreal,QC (Canada) when the crew declared emergency reporting an overheating
passenger seat in the business class and diverted to Montreal for a safe
landing on runway 24R about 30 minutes later. Emergency services attended
the aircraft, checked the seat and did not find any trace of fire or smoke.

Passengers reported they did not notice any unusual odour or did not see
smoke/haze.

The airline reported a minor technical problem.

The aircraft refueled and continued the journey to Washington arriving with
a delay of 3:45 hours.

On Jan 5th 2015 the Canadian TSB reported that a member of the cabin crew
reported a burning odour from the passenger cabin, a flight crew member
investigated and found a first class seat’s electronic module overheating.
Unable to stop the overheating the crew declared emergency and diverted
to Montreal. Maintenance electrically deactivated the seat, the aircraft
continued the journey without further incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f968b7
20141231173743:20141230000000
Incident: American B763 at Rio de Janeiro on Dec 30th 2014, blew all right main tyres on landing and taxied to gate
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N380AN performing flight
AA-251 (dep Dec 29th) from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) to Rio de Janeiro,RJ
(Brazil), landed on Galeao Antonio Carlos Jobim International Airport’s
runway 15 but blew all 4 right main gear tyres. The aircraft did not stop
but taxied to the gate at high engine power with smoke trailing the right
main gear. Runway, taxiway and apron surfaces received scratches.

The airline reported the aircraft landed normally and taxied to the gate.
It was then discovered that the tyres had blown.

The onward flight AA-974 to New York JFK,NY (USA) was cancelled.

The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Rio de Janeiro 28 hours
after landing.

The aircraft taxiing in (Video: Jose Nonato Coutinho)
The tyre and surface damage:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f95f9f
20141231162648:20141230000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Belfast on Dec 30th 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-JECI performing flight BE-996
from Southampton,EN to Belfast City,NI (UK) with 69 passengers and 4 crew,
was descending towards Belfast’s City Airport when the crew received an
aft cargo smoke indication, declared emergency and accelerated the approach
into Belfast’s City Airport. The aircraft landed safely, attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat, the passengers disembarked
normally via stairs and were bussed to the terminal.

The airline confirmed there was no sign of smoke in the rear baggage hold.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f958b5
20141231153724:20141228000000
Incident: Porter DH8D near Toronto on Dec 28th 2014, propeller overspeed and smoke in cockpit
A Porter Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration C-GLQD performing
flight PD-539 from Toronto City,ON to Sudbury,ON (Canada) with 78 people
on board, was climbing through FL190 out of Toronto when the flight crew
noticed smoke on the flight deck, donned their oxygen masks, declared emergency
and worked the smoke drill. The captain was unable to communicate with the
first officer using the face mask microphone. The captain noticed that the
right hand propeller was indicating an overspeed condition, worked the related
checklist and shut the right hand engine (PW150) down. The forward outflow
valve was opened, the smoke began to dissipate. The crew decided to divert
to Toronto’s International Airport where the aircraft landed safely on runway
23, the left hand engine was shut down and the APU started. The passengers
disembarked rapidly onto the runway and were bussed to the terminal.

The Canadian TSB reported that the smoke was limited to the cockpit, there
was no smoke in the cabin. Maintenance determined an internal failure of
the right hand engine contaminated the pressure and climate control system
for the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f7c06b
20141229161616:20141228000000
Incident: Asia X A333 at Perth on Dec 28th 2014, blew tyre on landing
An Air Asia X Airbus A330-300, registration 9M-XXD performing flight D7-236
from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Perth,WA (Australia), landed on Perth’s
runway 21 at 05:47L (Dec 27th 21:47Z). During roll out the tower controller
advised that a tyre had blown and there was smoke from the right hand main
gear, the crew replied “negative”, the tower insisted reporting a right
hand tyre had torn off the wheel running on its rim. The aircraft vacated
the runway and stopped on taxiway L2, attending emergency services reported
fluid leaking from the gear and flaps damage.

The passengers disembarked onto the taxiway via stairs.

The occurrence aircraft was able to return to Kuala Lumpur on Dec 29th 2014
as flight D7-237D and reached Kuala Lumpur with a delay of 39 hours.

Metars:
YPPH 272300Z 18010KT CAVOK 23/11 Q1016 NOSIG
YPPH 272230Z 21006KT CAVOK 22/11 Q1016
YPPH 272200Z 17005KT CAVOK 20/12 Q1016 NOSIG
YPPH 272130Z 17008KT CAVOK 19/11 Q1015
YPPH 272100Z 19007KT CAVOK 20/11 Q1015 NOSIG
YPPH 272030Z 19005KT CAVOK 20/12 Q1015
YPPH 272000Z 13001KT CAVOK 21/11 Q1015 NOSIG
YPPH 271930Z 13006KT CAVOK 20/11 Q1015
YPPH 271900Z 16007KT CAVOK 22/10 Q1015 NOSIG
YPPH 271830Z 15007KT CAVOK 22/10 Q1014
YPPH 271800Z 19008KT CAVOK 22/10 Q1014
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f66774
20141227230406:20141226000000
Incident: American B738 at Boston on Dec 26th 2014, smell of smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N955NN performing flight
AA-165 from Boston,MA to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 155 people on board,
was climbing out of Boston’s runway 33L when the crew levelled off at 4000
feet declaring emergency reporting smell of smoke in the cabin, nothing
was visible though. The aircraft landed safely back on runway 33L about
11 minutes after departure. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration N848NN reached Los Angeles with
a delay of 3:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f49fa1
20141225171041:20141223000000
Incident: Envoy E135 near Lexington on Dec 23rd 2014, burning electrical odour on board
An Envoy Embraer ERJ-140 on behalf of American Airlines, registration N809AE
performing flight MQ-2914/AA-2914 from Lexington,KY to Chicago O’Hare,IL
(USA) with 17 passengers and 3 crew, was climbing out of Lexington when
the crew stopped the climb at FL220 due to a burning eletrical odour on
board. The aircraft returned to Lexington for a safe landing on runway 22
about 25 minutes after departure, vacated the runway and stopped on the
adjacent taxiway for an inspection by emergency services. Emergency Services
did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f348ef
20141223233005:20141222000000
Incident: American B772 near Tokyo on Dec 22nd 2014, stench on board
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N773AN performing flight
AA-182 from Shanghai Pudong (China) to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 253 people
on board, was enroute at FL350 about 250nm eastnortheast of Tokyo (Japan)
when the crew decided to turn around and divert to Tokyo’s Narita Airport
due to a stench on board believed to originate from the cargo hold. The
crew descended the aircraft to FL200 for the way back and landed safely
in Tokyo about 50 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire,
smoke or heat, the aircraft taxied to the apron.

It was found that a galley oven was responsible for the stench, the exact
causes are under investigation.

The occurrence aircraft was able to continue the flight as flight AA-182T
after 16 hours on the ground in Tokyo and reached Los Angeles with a delay
of 17.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f282b5
20141222235514:20141222000000
Incident: Air France A319 near Amsterdam on Dec 22nd 2014, unusual odour in cockpit
An Air France Airbus A319-100, registration F-GRHV performing flight AF-1820
from Marseille (France) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 121 people on board,
was descending towards Amsterdam when the crew reported an unsual odour
in the cockpit. The aircraft continued for a safe landing on Amsterdam’s
runway 27, emergency services did not find any trace of fire, smoke or heat.
The aircraft was able to depart again for the return flight AF-1821 about
90 minutes later.

The airline confirmed the crew noticed the smell of smoke in the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f0c67e
20141220195130:20141218000000
Incident: WDL B462 at Cologne on Dec 18th 2014, autopilot failure and smoke in cockpit
A WDL Flugdienst British Aerospace BAe 146-200 on behalf of HOP!, registration
D-AWUE performing positioning flight A5-8212 from Cologne/Bonn (Germany)
to an unknown destination with 4 crew, was climbing through FL230 when smell
of smoke was noticed on the flight deck shortly followed by the autopilot
disconnecting by itself. Both flight crew donned their oxygen masks, the
aircraft stopped the climb and returned to Cologne for a safe landing about
45 minutes after departure. There were no injuries, the two flight attendants
were taken to a hospital however.

Germany’s BFU dispatched an investigator on site.

Preliminary examination suggests the computer of the autopilot, located
in the electronic compartment of the aircraft, suffered a technical fault.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47f18eac
20141221191246:20141217000000
Incident: Buffalo DC3 at Hay River on Dec 17th 2014, smoking engine
A Buffalo Airways Douglas DC-3, registration C-GWZS performing flight J4-169
from Hay River,NT to Yellowknife,NT (Canada) with 16 passengers and 3 crew,
was in the initial climb out of Hay River when the left hand engine began
to run roughly prompting the crew to reduce engine power, report some engine
indication but not request assistance or priority and return to Hay River
for a safe landing about 11 minutes after departure. Ground personnel observed
smoke from the engine and notified emergency services, Buffalo Airways staff
discharged fire extinguishing agent into the smoking engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ef4b09
20141218222713:20141217000000
Incident: United A319 near Cleveland on Dec 17th 2014, smoke in cabin
A United Airbus A319-100, registration N840UA performing flight UA-268 from
Los Angeles,CA to Newark,NJ (USA), was enroute at FL370 about 110nm southwest
of Cleveland when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to
Cleveland for a safe landing on runway 24L about 30 minutes later. The crew
advised during roll out that no assistance was needed and taxied to the
terminal.

The airline reported there was smoke in the cabin.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.

The occurrence aircraft resumed service 17 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ef4667
20141218215350:20141217000000
Incident: Austrian A321 at Tel Aviv on Dec 17th 2014, smoke indication in galley
An Austrian Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration OE-LBE performing flight
OS-858 from Tel Aviv (Israel) to Vienna (Austria) with 187 passengers and
7 crew, was climbing out of Tel Aviv’s runway 26 when the crew stopped the
climb at 5000 feet reporting a smoke indication in the rear galley. The
aircraft returned to Tel Aviv for a safe landing on Tel Aviv’s runway 12
about 35 minutes after departure.

The airline reported that an oven in the rear galley emitted steam causing
the smoke detector to trigger. The crew decided to return to Tel Aviv as
a precaution.

The aircraft departed again after about 5 hours on the ground and reached
Vienna with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47eda977
20141216224246:20141216000000
Incident: Omni B763 near Bogota on Dec 16th 2014, the hottest food around
An Omni Air International Boeing 767-300 on behalf of Avianca, registration
N342AX performing flight AV-25 from Bogota (Colombia) to Lima (Peru) with
104 passengers and 12 crew, was enroute about 30 minutes into the flight
when the crew received a smoke indication in one of the galleys. The aircraft
returned to Bogota for a safe landing about one hour after departure.

Avianca reported the food trays in the galley had overheated. A replacement
aircraft is now estimated to reach Lima with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47eda38f
20141216220103:20141216000000
Incident: Delta B763 near Billings on Dec 16th 2014, electrical odour on board
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N177DN performing flight DL-32
(dep Dec 15th) from Seattle,WA (USA) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France)
with 203 passengers and 10 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 170nm northnortheast
of Billings,MT (USA) when the crew decided to divert to Billings due to
an electrical odour on board. The aircraft landed safely on Billings’ runway
10L about 35 minutes later, attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, smoke or heat.

After about 6 hours on the ground in Billings the aircraft continued the
flight to Detroit,MI (USA), were a crew and aircraft change was planned,
but needed to divert a second time due to electrical fumes, this time to
Minneapolis,MN (USA) for a safe landing on runway 30L, requested emergency
services to keep an eye on them while they were taxiing to the gate.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ebd8fe
20141214161547:20141214000000
Incident: Air France B744 over Atlantic on Dec 14th 2014, cargo smoke indication
An Air France Boeing 747-400, registration F-GITE performing flight AF-733
from Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France)
with 142 passengers and 14 crew, was enroute at FL390 over the Atlantic
Ocean about 400nm southwest of Shannon when the crew received a forward
cargo smoke indication and decided to divert to Shannon (Ireland). The crew
instructed emergency services to not open the forward cargo door before
all passengers had left the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely on runway
24 about 70 minutes after the emergency call and taxied to the apron with
emergency services following the aircraft. Emergency services did not find
any trace of fire, smoke or heat.

A load of vegetables carried in the forward cargo compartment is believed
to have triggered the smoke indication.

F-GITE in the flare (Photo: AVH/PF):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47eb394f
20141213200436:20141212000000
Incident: Southwest B737 at Baltimore on Dec 12th 2014, flock of birds
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N7710A performing flight
WN-3118 from San Antonio,TX to Baltimore,MD (USA) with 142 passengers and
5 crew, was on approach to Baltimore’s runway 28 maintaining 4000 feet approximately
15nm southeast of Baltimore Airport when the aircraft flew through a large
flock of birds, the crew subsequently reported damage to the leading edge
flaps and problems in extending the flaps. The crew requested delay vectors
to work out whether and how to extend the flaps, then suddenly requested
an immediate turn to runway 28 for immediate landing and requested emergency
services on standby prompting final approach control to declare emergency
for the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely on runway 28, after landing
the crew reported they got some warning for the right hand engine (CFM56),
there was some observation of smoke and abnormal indications, a bird probably
went through the engine, there was no fire indication however. The crew
requested emergency services to check the right hand engine, which was shut
down after landing. Emergency services reported no fire and no visible damage
to the engine. Following inspection the aircraft taxied to the apron with
emergency trucks following the aircraft.

Observers on the ground reported seeing streaks of flames and unusual engine
sounds from the right hand engine while the aircraft passed over Anne Arundel
County, 15nm southeast of Baltimore Airport, at low altitude.

The airline confirmed a bird strike, the aircaft was taken out of service.
A replacement aircraft continued the onward leg to Detroit,MI (USA).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47e4e871
20141205203857:20141204000000
Incident: Delta B753 near Toledo on Dec 4th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-300, registration N593NW performing flight DL-312
from Detroit,MI to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA), was climbing through 17,000
feet out of Detroit when the crew donned their oxygen masks due to smoke
on the flight deck and decided to divert to Toledo,OH (USA). The crew suspected
the smoke was coming from oil off the left hand engine (PW2043). The aircraft
landed safely on Toledo’s runway 07 about 13 minutes after stopping the
climb. The aircraft turned off the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway
for an inspection by emergency services, then taxied to the apron.

A replacement Boeing 757-300 registration N581NW reached Fort Lauderdale
with a delay of 6 hours.

The airline reported the crew diverted to Toledo due to a smokey odour in
the cockpit, the cause of which is not yet known.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47e41c51
20141204213545:20141203000000
Incident: American B763 over Atlantic on Dec 3rd 2014, wheel well fire indication
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N346AN performing flight
AA-974 (dep Dec 2nd) from Rio de Janeiro,RJ (Brazil) to New York JFK,NY
(USA) with 121 people on board, was enroute at FL380 over the Atlantic Ocean
about 300nm west of Bermuda (Bermuda) when the crew received a main wheel
well fire indication. The aircraft descended to FL200 and diverted to Bermuda.
While the aircraft was diverting, the tower controller in Bermuda was called
in and opened the tower for the emergency arrival. The crew advised that
there was no smoke or smell of smoke at all. The aicraft landed safely on
runway 12 one hour after the indication. The aircraft stopped at the end
of the runway for an inspection of the main wheel wells by emergency services,
emergency services did not detect any indication of fire, smoke or heat.
The aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after 9 hours on the ground
in Bermuda and reached New York with a delay of 11 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47e34faa
20141203215320:20141130000000
Incident: SriLankan A343 over Arabian Sea on Nov 30th 2014, smoking IFE
A SriLankan Airbus A340-300, registration 4R-ADC performing flight UL-230
(dep Nov 29th) from Kuwait (Kuwait) to Colombo (Sri Lanka), was enroute
over the Arabian Sea when a burning electrical smell developed shortly followed
by smoke rising from a seat in the forward passenger cabin. Cabin crew relocated
the passengers in the area to the aft cabin, disconnected power from the
inflight entertainment system, discharged a number of fire extinguishers
and stopped the smoke. The aircraft continued to Colombo for a safe landing
on schedule.

A passenger reported that a burning smell developed in the forward cabin,
a short time later smoke was noticed rising from a seat in row 10. Passengers
were moved from the forward to the aft cabin, 2 or 3 fire extinguishers
were discharged, the inflight entertainment was switched off. Passengers
were later told that an inflight entertainment box had been identified as
source of the smoke.

The occurrence aircraft did not continue its schedule but remained on the
ground in Colombo for about 13 hours before resuming service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47e0fdb0
20141130231524:20141129000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Pittsburgh on Nov 29th 2014, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N717TW performing flight DL-434
from New York JFK,NY to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 169 people on board,
was enroute at FL360 about 75nm eastsoutheast of Pittsburgh when the crew
decided to divert to Pittsburgh due to smell of smoke near the aft galley.
The aircraft landed safely in Pittsburgh about 15 minutes later.

Following an examination the aircraft was able to continue the flight and
reached San Francisco with a delay of 2.5 hours.

The airline reported that the maintenance inspection in Pittsburgh did not
find any problem, the aircraft was able to continue the flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47de755c
20141127213617:20141127000000
Incident: Transavia B738 at Amsterdam on Nov 27th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Transavia Boeing 737-800, registration PH-HZO performing flight HV-5749
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Casablanca (Morocco), was in the initial
climb out of Amsterdam’s runway 09 when the crew declared PAN PAN PAN reporting
they had smoke in the electrical recirculation. The aircraft levelled off
at FL060 and returned to Amsterdam for a safe landing on runway 18C about
13 minutes after departure. The aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency
services following the aircraft.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration PH-HZK reached Casablanca with
a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47e1d232
20141202003757:20141122000000
Incident: Omni B772 over Atlantic on Nov 22nd 2014, burning smell and smoke in cockpit
An Omni Air Boeing 777-200 on behalf of Air Mobility Command, registration
N918AX performing flight MC-422 from Baltimore,MD (USA) to Ramstein (Germany),
was enroute at FL410 about 300nm east of St. John’s,NL (Canada) when the
crew detected a burning electrical smell followed by light smoke on the
flight deck. The crew declared emergency, worked the related checklists
removing galley power, turned around and diverted to St. John’s for a safe
landing about 45 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified the cooling fan was identified
as source of the smell and smoke. The fan was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47d99946
20141121175840:20141121000000
Incident: ANA B763 at Manila on Nov 21st 2014, smoke in cockpit
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 767-300, registration JA614A performing
flight NH-950 from Manila (Philippines) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with 182
passengers and 10 crew, was climbing out of Manila when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit and returned to Manila for a safe landing about 30
minutes after departure. Emergency services did not find any smoke but detected
smell of smoke in the cockpit area.

The flight is currently estimated to depart with a delay of 23 hours, the
passengers were rebooked onto other flights however.

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines dispatched two investigators
on site.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47dda717
20141126211838:20141119000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ9 at Toronto on Nov 19th 2014, rejected takeoff due to nose wheel vibrations
A Jazz Aviation Canadair CRJ-705 operating as Air Canada Express, registration
C-GNJZ performing flight QK-8902/AC-8902 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to New
York JFK,NY (USA) with 64 people on board, was accelerating for takeoff
from Toronto’s runway 24R when the crew rejected takeoff at low speed (about
50 knots) due to nose wheel vibrations and the aircraft pulling to the right.
The aircraft stopped safely on the runway, the crew reported an odour and
smoke from the front of the aircraft. Emergency services responded and reported
there was no fire, however the nose gear appeared to be out of alignment.
The aircraft was towed off the runway to a gate where passengers disembarked.

A replacement CRJ-705 reached New York with a delay of 4.5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported that the nose gear torque links had not been connected.
The upper and lower torque links as well as both nose wheel assemblies were
replaced and the torque links connected.

NAV Canada reported the runway was closed for about 45 minutes as result
of the occurrence.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47d75b2d
20141118202600:20141113000000
Incident: Transat B738 enroute on Nov 13th 2014, oven wants but doesn’t get cream topping
An Air Transat Boeing 737-800, registration C-GTQG performing flight TS-982
from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Puerto Plata (Dominican Republic) with 195
people on board, was enroute at FL330 about 300nm north of Puerto Plata
when an oven in the forward galley emitted plumes of smoke, the smoke billowing
from the back and the sides of the oven. The oven circuit breaker was tripped
and the galley and utility busses shut down, the smoke ceased without necessity
to discharge fire agents. The aircraft continued to Puerto Plata for a safe
landing.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance identified after landing that
the source of the smoke had been limited to the oven, the oven was isolated
from the power supply and the aircraft departed for the return flight. The
oven is being sent to the manufacturer for further analysis.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47d2e8f1
20141118175058:20141110000000
Incident: China Southern A332 at Zhuhai on Nov 10th 2014, bird strike
A China Southern Airbus A330-200, registration B-6059 performing flight
CZ-3739 from Zhuhai to Beijing (China), departed Zhuhai’s runway 05 without
apparent problem and climbed to cruise level FL370, when the left hand engine
(Trent 772) emitted a loud bang and streaks of flames followed by a burning
smell developing in the cabin. The crew turned the aircraft around and diverted
to Ghuangzhou, about 60nm north of Zhuhai, for a safe landing about 45 minutes
after departure.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration B-6058 reached Beijing with a
delay of 4.5 hours.

The airline subsequently reported the engine surge was the result of a bird
strike on departure from Zhuhai.

On Nov 18th 2014 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that the
aircraft was levelling at 11300 meters (approx. FL370) when a bang was heard
followed by vibrations. The crew subsequently also noticed scorching and
smoke. According to ECAM indications the left hand engine was shut down
and the aircraft diverted to Guangzhou for a safe landing about 31 minutes
later. The occurrence was rated a serious incident and is being investigated
by China’s Accident Investigation Board.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ce3ef1
20141106204243:20141106000000
Incident: United B772 near Dublin on Nov 6th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A United Boeing 777-200, registration N791UA performing flight UA-925 from
London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Washington,DC (USA) with 125 passengers and 14
crew, was enroute at FL360 about 70nm southeast of Dublin when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Dublin selecting runway 16
due to winds (16 knots from 170 degrees), the aircraft needed to do a couple
of orbits to lose altitude. Dublin Airport kept both runways sterile sending
arriving aircraft in holds and holding departures. The aircraft dumped fuel
until capturing the localizer. The crew aborted their ILS approach to Dublin’s
runway 16 about 25 minutes after leaving FL360 requesting runway 10 now.
While the aircraft positioned for an ILS approach to runway 10 the crew
reported there were no visible flames just smoke in the cockpit, they anticipated
a normal landing and continued for a safe landing on runway 10 about 10
minutes after the go-around. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped
on an adjacent taxiway for inspection by emergency services, landings of
other arrivals on runway 16 resumed immediately afterwards.

Following the initial inspection by emergency services the crew requested
emergency services to follow the aircraft to the gate stating they had smoke
and fumes in the cockpit and cabin, source unknown.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47cfdebb
20141108234946:20141105000000
Incident: United B763 near Lima on Nov 5th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A United Boeing 767-300, registration N664UA performing flight UA-819 (dep
Nov 4th) from Houston,TX (USA) to Buenos Aires Ezeiza,BA (Argentina) with
262 people on board, was enroute near Lima (Peru) when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Lima for a safe landing.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.

The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Lima 3.5 days after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ce5330
20141106231232:20141031000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Vancouver on Oct 31st 2014, a whoosh, smoke and sparks in cockpit
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GNON performing flight QK-8099
from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Seattle,WA (USA) with 54 people on board,
was climbing through 8000 feet out of Vancouver when the crew heard a whoosh
sound and noticed sparks and smoke from the terminal block of the right
hand windshield. The crew turned the windshield heating off and returned
to Vancouver for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found the left upper portion of the
right hand windshield damaged, the windshield was replaced.

A replacement Dash 8-300 reached Seattle with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47c8c776
20141030214407:20141028000000
Accident: Starbow B462 at Accra on Oct 28th 2014, hydraulic failure
A Starbow Airlines British Aerospace BAe 146-200, registration 9G-SBD performing
flight S9-124 from Accra to Takoradi (Ghana) with 77 people on board, was
climbing out of Accra when during gear retraction a hydraulic failure occurred
causing the right main hand gear to not completely retract. The crew stopped
the climb at 6000 feet and decided to return to Accra but were unable to
extend the flaps forcing a flaps up landing, the gear was lowered and locked
via alternate extension. The aircraft landed safely at a higher speed than
normal and stopped on the runway, sparks, flames and smoke was observed
from the landing gear prompting the crew to perform an evacuation of the
aircraft via slides while emergency services cooled down the brakes. Two
occupants received minor injuries in the evacuation.

The airline confirmed a hydraulic failure resulting in a high speed landing
during which the brakes overheated causing smoke to be seen by emergency
services. Their observation prompted the crew to evacuate the aircraft.
Two passengers received minor injuries in the evacuation.

The occurrence has created conflicting reports by Ghana’s Ministry of Transport
who reported the airline would not fly again and Ghana’s Civil Aviation
Authority pointing out that the airline can not be grounded as their AOC
has not yet expired. The airline is free to lease other aircraft to perform
their flights (indirectly suggesting that their current fleet has been grounded
over concerns of safety).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47c664bd
20141027212230:20141021000000
Incident: Westjet B738 near Thunder Bay on Oct 21st 2014, soap ain’t insulating
A Westjet Boeing 737-800, registration C-FRWA performing flight WS-428 from
Edmonton,AB to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 96 people on board, was enroute
at FL390 about 90nm eastsoutheast of Thunder Bay,ON (Canada) when the crew
decided to turn around and divert to Thunder Bay due to a burning smell
and smoke from the aft lavatory. On approach the crew advised the smoke
appeared to be coming from a light in the aft lavatory and did not get any
worse, they would be able to taxi in. The aircraft landed safely in Thunder
Bay about 23 minutes later, attending emergency services did not need to
intervene, the passengers disembarked normally.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified the source of the smoke
behind the aft lavatory mirror where a spare plastics soap container had
been placed but had fallen over leaking soap onto the electrical connectors
of the lavatory lights. The TSB said: “The operator actioned a fleet wide
campaign by disallowing cleaning services to locate the spare soap bottles
behind the mirror shelf until a solution could be developed to prevent this
type of event.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47c1b7ac
20141021223943:20141020000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Chicago on Oct 20th 2014, control problems
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of United, registration N926SW performing
flight OO-5290/UA-5290 from Asheville,NC to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with
44 passengers and 3 crew, was on approach to Chicago O’Hare Airport west
of the aerodrome when the crew declared emergency reporting they had kind
of lost their flight controls, were able to perform only left hand turns
and had difficulty maintaining altitude. Chicago TRACON and all approach
controllers stopped all descents towards Chicago at their present altitudes
providing a minimum separation of 2000 feet to the CRJ-200 at about 2000
feet MSL, the CRJ-200 performed a left hand turn towards Chicago Dupage
Airport where the aircraft landed safely at high speed (230 knots over ground)
on runway 20L still in contact with Chicago TRACON, Dupage emergency services
inquiring with tower about the status of the aircraft were told, tower was
still not talking to the emergency aircraft after the aircraft had landed.
A short time later the crew switched to tower frequency and advised again
they had kind of lost their flight controls and performed a flaps up landing,
emergency services reported there were no signs of fire, smoke, heat or
any leaks. After the brakes had cooled down a bit the aircraft taxied to
the apron, where the passengers disembarked.

The passengers were bussed to O’Hare Airport.

The airline confirmed a mechanical problem.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47bdd74b
20141016210407:20141014000000
Incident: Envoy CRJ7 near Abilene on Oct 14th 2014, gear problem
An Envoy Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of American Airlines, registration
N546FF performing flight MQ-3362/AA-3362 from Midland,TX to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX
(USA), was enroute at FL290 about 20nm southwest of Abilene,TX (USA) when
the crew reported an indication of overheated outboard brake on the left
outboard main wheel and decided to divert to Abilene requesting emergency
services to attend the aircraft and direct their focus onto the left hand
gear. They crew also requested someone with binoculars should check the
aircraft on approach for any traces of smoke, the crew advised they would
stop on the runway and would possibly evacuate. No smoke was seen on final
approach after gear extension that resulted in three greens. The aircraft
landed safely on Abilene’s runway 35L, after roll out the brakes indicated
normal again, the crew didn’t trust that indication. Fire crews advised
it was safe to taxi to the apron, the aircraft taxied to the apron with
emergency services in trail.

The overheat indication was identified false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47b93e1c
20141014175534:20141008000000
Incident: Iran A320 at Shiraz on Oct 8th 2014, minor brakes fire
An Iran Air Airbus A320-200, registration EP-IEB performing flight IR-423
from Shiraz to Tehran Mehrabad (Iran) with 150 people on board, rejected
takeoff from Shiraz due to a brakes indication. While vacating the runway
smoke became visible from the right hand main gear, the aircraft stopped
on the adjacent taxiway, a small fire was visible on the right main gear.
Emergency services responded and put the fire out foaming the gear. The
outboard tyre deflated. The passengers disembarked via mobile stairs.

The airline reported the wheel brakes locked up.

The Aviation Herald learned that the #3 wheel brakes locked up during the
takeoff run.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=48245f15
20150224164029:20141004000000
Accident: Emirates A332 at Karachi on Oct 4th 2014, protective breathing equipment catches fire
An Emirates Airbus A330-200, registration A6-EAQ performing flight EK-609
from Karachi (Pakistan) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with 82 passengers,
was being pushed back from the park position when smoke developed in the
cabin prompting flight attendants to don their protective breathing equipment
(PBE). However, upon activation of the PBE by one flight attendant this
unit self ignites and caught fire causing injuries to the flight attendant.
An evacuation via slides was initiated, emergency services responded and
put out the fire. The flight attendant was taken to a hospital.

The occurrence aircraft remained on the ground in Karachi until Oct 7th
before resuming service.

On Feb 24th 2015 Germany’s BFU reported in their October bulletin, that
Germany’s BFU is supporting the investigating authority to examine the PBE.

The aircraft after evacuation (Photo: OMNI FLYERS):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47b478e5
20141004160620:20141003000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 over Norwegian Sea on Oct 3rd 2014, strong odour on board
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGI performing flight LH-490
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Seattle,WA (USA), was enroute at FL340
over the Norwegian Sea north of the Faroe Islands when the crew decided
to return to Frankfurt due to a strong odour on board. The aircraft landed
safely back in Frankfurt about 2.5 hours later.

Passengers reported a strong odour on board, one passenger even mentioned
smoke on board.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47b476da
20141004155111:20141001000000
Incident: Hawkair DH8C near Vancouver on Oct 1st 2014, electrical fire
A Hawkair de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-FIDL performing flight
BH-102 from Vancouver,BC to Terrace,BC (Canada) with 29 people on board,
was climbing out of Vancouver about 40nm northwest of the aerodrome when
the crew declared emergency reporting an electrical fire on board. The aircraft
returned to Vancouver, was offered and accepted runway 13 for landing. On
approach to Vancouver the crew advised that there was an electrical smell
remaining on the flight deck but no smoke. The aircraft landed safely on
runway 13 about 15 minutes after declaring emergency and taxied to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47b0926a
20150115211904:20140929000000
Incident: Stobart AT72 at Muenster on Sep 29th 2014, engine fire indication
A Stobart (former Aer Arann) Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-212A on
behalf of Flybe, registration EI-REM performing flight BE-6031 from Muenster
(Germany) to Southend,EN (UK) with 22 people on board, was climbing out
of Muenster when the crew received an engine (PW127) fire indication, shut
the engine down, discharged the fire suppression system causing the fire
indication to cease and returned to Muenster for a safe landing about 18
minutes after departure.

The airport reported they received information about an engine fire indication
and “pressed the red button”. All passengers were able to disembark safely
after landing. The aircraft is currently being examined, it is not yet clear
whether the engine was actually on fire or the fire indication was false.

On Oct 8th 2014 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that there
was an engine fire after takeoff.

On Jan 15th 2015 the German BFU reported in their seriously delayed September
bulletin, that the aircraft was climbing through 1200 feet AGL when the
crew heard an unusual sound and noticed fluctuations at the engine parameters
of the left hand engine. The engine was reduced to idle, at that time two
more unusual sounds occurred, the master caution activated and the fire
warning for the left hand engine illuminated. The crew worked the memory
items “engine fire at takeoff” shutting the engine down and dischaging the
first fire bottle. 30 seconds after discharging the first fire bottle the
second fire bottle was discharged too. The crew declared emergency and requested
an immediate return to runway 07, ATC cleared the aircraft for a right turn
and the approach to runway 25, the crew noticed only later that their intention
to land on runway 07 was not met by the clearance and adjusted the navigation
instruments to land on runway 25. Due to the height the captain decided
to fly a 360 to lose height. On approach to runway 25 ATC advised that no
fire or smoke was visible from the left hand engine, after safe landing
attending emergency services reported no indications of an engine fire.
The aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency services in trail.

The BFU reported that a visual examination of the exterior of the engine
did not find any evidence of fire. However, within the cowling of the engine
clear evidence of an engine fire was found, several tubes and pipes showed
fire damage. Apart from the evidence of fire there were also indications
of mechanical damage, the second stage of the power turbine held a number
of damaged blades, the exhaust pipe showed cracks and holes. The oil scavenge
line, vent line and pressure line showed damage between 6th and 7th bearing.
Another oil line showed a gap of 3cm.

A borescopic inspection revealed the shaft connecting propeller, power turbine,
starter and high pressure turbine was disconnected.

The engine has been sent to the manufacturer for examination under supervision
by Canada’s TSB.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ae5c34
20140926175128:20140926000000
Incident: LOT B788 near Glasgow on Sep 26th 2014, smoke indication
A LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 787-800, registration SP-LRB performing flight
LO-4 (dep Sep 25th) from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Warsaw (Poland) with
248 people on board, had just step climbed from FL390 to FL410 about 170nm
west of Glasgow,SC (UK) when the crew declared emergency reporting a smoke
indication in the cargo bay. The aircraft diverted to Glasgow for a safe
landing on runway 23 about 33 minutes after leaving FL410. Attending emergency
services reported there was no visible smoke, no fire or heat could be detected.

The airline reported the smoke indication in the cargo bay appeared to be
false. There was no fire and no smoke.

The occurrence aircraft was able to continue the journey after about 6 hours
on the ground and is estimated to reach Warsaw with a delay of 7.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ae83af
20140926223937:20140925000000
Incident: Sun Country B738 near Boise on Sep 25th 2014, wheel well fire indication
A Sun Country Boeing 737-800, flight SY-123 from Lewiston,ID to Bullhead
City,AZ (USA) with 132 people on board, had just reached cruise flight level
390 climbing out of Lewiston when the crew received a wheel well fire indication
and decided to divert to Boise,ID. The crew requested emergency services
to provide their opinion whether an emergency evacuation via slides would
be needed advising they had a lot of elderly people on board of their charter
flight. The aircraft landed safely on Boise’s runway 28L about 16 minutes
after leaving FL390, stopped on the runway, shut the aircraft down and requested
emergency services to check the wheel wells for any smoke. Emergency services
reported there was no smoke and no evidence of a fire. The engines were
restarted and the aircraft taxied to the apron.

The occurrence aircraft was able to continue the flight after about 3 hours
on the ground and reached Bullhead City with a delay of about 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47ac289b
20140923210151:20140923000000
Incident: Germanwings A320 near Munich on Sep 23rd 2014, fan woes
A Germanwings Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIQH performing flight 4U-8891
from Rome Fiumicino (Italy) to Berlin Tegel (Germany), was enroute at FL360
about 85nm south of Munich at the border Italy/Austria when the crew reported
a fan overheat indication and associated odour in cockpit and cabin. The
aircraft diverted to Munich (Germany) for a safe landing on runway 26L about
20 minutes later. Emergency services did not detect any indication of fire,
heat or smoke and followed the aircraft to the apron.

The occurrence aircraft is still on the ground in Munich about 7 hours later.

A passenger reported the captain announced they had an overheat indication
for one of the air conditioning fans and according odour in cockpit and
cabin in the area of the aft galley.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47b250f2
20141001201242:20140921000000
Incident: British Airways A319 at Zurich on Sep 21st 2014, strong burning smell twice
A British Airways Airbus A319-100, registration G-EUPW performing flight
BA-716 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Zurich (Switzerland), was on final
approach to runway 14 when the crew requested emergency services to attend
the aircraft after landing, they would be able to vacate the runway, cabin
crew had just reported a strong burning smell in the aft of the cabin. The
aircraft landed safely on runway and vacated the runway, then stopped on
the adjacent taxiway advising the situation in the cabin appeared under
control while emergency services were on their way to the aircraft. After
arrival emergency services checked the aircraft but found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke, the aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron.

The aircraft departed for the return flight BA-717 on schedule about 2 hours
later, was cleared to climb to FL120 upon contacting departure but requested
FL100 due to a technical problem, then requested to join a holding advising
they were planning to return to Zurich. The crew subsequently requested
emergency services as before, they would vacate the runway and stop at the
holding point H1 for checks by emergency services as before, they had again
electrical fumes in the rear of the cabin as on the previous flight. Established
on ILS 14 the crew declared PAN. The aircraft landed safely on runway 14
about 30 minutes after departure.

The aircraft remained on the ground in Zurich for about 22 hours until a
defective toilet motor had been identified and replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47aa83f8
20140921184425:20140921000000
Incident: Atlas B744 over Atlantic on Sep 21st 2014, cargo main deck fire indication
An Atlas Air Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration N499MC performing freight
flight 5Y-5421 from Miami,FL (USA) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 5 crew
and 110 tons of flowers, was enroute at FL350 over the Atlantic Ocean when
the crew received a fire indication for the aft main deck, donned their
oxygen masks and declared emergency. The aircraft descended to FL250 and
diverted to Shannon (Ireland), the crew indicated they would stop on the
runway and needed emergency services to check whether an evacuation was
necessary. The aircraft landed safely on Shannon’s runway 06. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft subsequently
vacated the runway and taxied to the apron.

The occurrence aircraft is currently still on the ground in Shannon about
5.5 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47a9124a
20140919220853:20140919000000
Incident: Virgin America A320 near Las Vegas on Sep 19th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Virgin America Airbus A320-200, registration N639VA performing flight
VX-174 from San Francisco,CA to Newark,NJ (USA) with 134 people on board,
was enroute at FL350 about 170nm north of Las Vegas,NV (USA) when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Las Vegas for a safe landing
about 30 minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The airline reported the crew detected smell of smoke and diverted to Las
Vegas.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration N623VA reached Newark with a
delay of 4:40 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47a90142
20140923211549:20140918000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Norfolk on Sep 18th 2014, avionics smoke warning
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FDSU performing flight AC-924
from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 137 people on
board, was enroute at FL340 about 40nm southwest of Norfolk,VA (USA) when
the crew received an avionics smoke indication and decided to divert to
Norfolk, where the aircraft landed safely about 20 minutes later. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration C-FPDN was dispatched to Norfolk
and reached Fort Lauderdale with a delay of 9 hours.

On Sep 23rd 2014 the Canadian TSB reported the crew received an “Avionic
Smoke” message on the ECAM and diverted to Norfolk. Maintenance replaced
the avionics equipment ventillation computer.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47a83a2d
20141119222725:20140918000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 at Long Beach on Sep 18th 2014, engine fire indication
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N656JB performing flight B6-1416
from Long Beach,CA to Austin,TX (USA) with 142 passengers and 5 crew, was
climbing out of Long Beach’s runway 30 when the crew reported a fire indication
for the right hand engine (V2527), stopped the climb at 9000 feet and returned
to Long Beach for a safe landing on runway 30. After the aircraft came to
a stop the crew advised they were initiating an evacuation asking whether
there was any smoke from the right hand engine, tower replied in the negative
(no smoke), the crew then advised they were cancelling the evacuation but
instructed tower to immediately report any smoke. The slides were deployed
on all doors and overwing exits nonetheless and passengers evacuated.

Passengers reported the right hand engine emitted a loud bang, smoke entered
the cabin afterwards. The passenger oxygen masks were manually released
by the cabin crew.

The airline reported the crew received an overheat indication for the right
hand engine.

On Nov 19th 2014 the NTSB reported the right hand engine failed and developed
an undercowl fire during the initial climb out of Long Beach. Just prior
to reaching 10,000 feet the crew received a number of ECAM warnings related
to the right hand engine including “ENG 2 FIRE WARNING” and was informed
about smoke in the cabin. The crew shut the right hand engine down, discharged
both fire bottles and returned to Long Beach for a safe single engine landing.

Scenes on board (Photo: Jared West):
Scene after landing:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47a82ec5
20140918200829:20140916000000
Incident: Tindi DHC7 at Hope Bay on Sep 16th 2014, engine fire indication
An Air Tindi de Havilland Dash DHC-7-100, registration C-GCEV performing
flight 8T-801 from Yellowknife,NT to Hope Bay [CHB3],NU (Canada) with 18
people on board, was on final approach about 3nm before touch down when
the #1 engine’s (PT6, outboard left hand) fire warning activated prompting
the crew to brief the flight attendants of a possible evacuation while continuing
for landing, the checklist was carried out after touch down resulting in
the engine being shut down and a fire bottle discharged. Ground personnel
indicated there was no smoke visible from the engine. The crew initiated
an evacuation through the rear right exit. There were no injuries.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found no trace of fire, cleaned the
fire loop connectors and replaced the fire bottle. The aircraft subsequently
returned to Yellowknife without further incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47a423c6
20140913161354:20140912000000
Incident: Air France A343 near Shannon on Sep 12th 2014, overheat indication in IFE
An Air France Airbus A340-300, registration F-GLZM performing flight AF-344
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 265 passengers
and 12 crew, was enroute at FL360 about 160nm west of Shannon (Ireland)
about to enter Oceanic Airspace when the crew decided to turn back due to
problems with the inflight entertainment system. The aircraft descended
to FL250 for the way back and landed safely back in Paris about 190 minutes
after departure.

The airline reported the crew received an overheat indication for the inflight
entertainment system, however no smell, no haze or smoke was observed.

A replacement Airbus A340-300 registration F-GLZK reached Montreal with
a delay of 8:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47a2bd5d
20140911224520:20140907000000
Incident: Canadian North B732 near Edmonton on Sep 7th 2014, engine shut down in flight
A Canadian North Boeing 737-200, registration C-GKCP performing flight 5T-9091
from Regina,SK to Edmonton,AB (Canada), had been enroute at FL360 and had
just reached the top of descent into Edmonton when the crew reduced the
engines to idle thrust, but received an overheat indication for the left
hand engine (JT8D). The crew shut the engine down, discharged a fire bottle
but the overheat indication did not extinguish. The second fire bottle was
discharged, the overheat indication continued until after landing. The crew
declared Mayday and continued for a safe landing. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, unusual heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance replaced the #1 engine overheat sense
loop.

Maintenance reported the overheat sensor was “open”, the sensor loop was
replaced and an engine test run conducted which identified a minor bleed
air leak that was rectified before the aircraft was returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479ec9ca
20140906214147:20140905000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Baltimore on Sep 5th 2014, engine shut down in flight, hydraulic leak and oil leak
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N903DE performing
flight DL-772 from Atlanta,GA to Providence,RI (USA), was enroute at FL330
about 30nm eastsoutheast of Baltimore,MD (USA) when the crew reported they
needed to shut their right hand engine (JT8D) down due to an oil and hydraulics
leak. The crew decided to divert to Baltimore, performed an alternate gear
extension and landed safely on Baltimore’s runway 10 with open gear doors
prompting tower to advise the crew of smoke and sparks off the tyres, the
crew advising these were most probably the open gear doors. The aircraft
stopped on the runway, emergency services advised one of the gear doors
was dragging on the ground, a gallon of fluids had leaked onto the runway,
brakes were a bit hot but no concern.

The aircraft was towed off the runway.

The airline confirmed mechanical problems.

A replacement MD-88 reached Providence with a delay of 2:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479dea59
20140905194928:20140904000000
Incident: Fedex B772 near Whitehorse on Sep 4th 2014, cabin fire indication
A Fedex Federal Express Boeing 777-200, registration N880FD performing freight
flight FX-195 from Memphis,TN to Anchorage,AK (USA), was enroute at FL400
about 140nm south of Whitehorse,YT (Canada) when the crew received a cabin
fire indication, declared emergency, descended the aircraft to FL250 and
diverted to Whitehorse for a safe landing on runway 32L about 45 minutes
later and stopped on the runway. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft vacated the runway about 80 minutes
after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479ce9f1
20140904165759:20140903000000
Incident: Jet2 B733 at East Midlands on Sep 3rd 2014, electrical problems resulting in smoke in cabin
A Jet2.com Boeing 737-300, registration G-GDFT performing flight LS-644
from Ibiza,SP (Spain) to East Midlands,EN (UK) with 147 people on board,
was on final approach to East Midlands’ runway 09 when the crew initiated
a go-around from below 700 feet MSL due to electrical problems, positioned
the aircraft for another approach to runway 09 and landed safely about 15
minutes later. While the aircraft taxied to the apron, a burning smell developed
on board followed by smoke. After the aircraft had arrived at the stand,
the crew initiated an evacuation of the aircraft. No injuries are being
reported.

Passengers reported the aircraft went around just prior to touch down and
landed on its second round, it appeared however the (public) audio system
had failed during the second approach. While taxiing towards the terminal
a burning smell became obvious and smoke appeared in the cabin.

The airline reported electrical problems resulted in smoke in the cabin
and a precautionary evacuation.

The United Kingdom’s Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) reported a
serious incident at East Midlands by an airliner in the evening of Sep 3rd
2014 and dispatched an investigation team on site.

In the evening of Sep 4th 2014 The Aviation Herald received information
indicating first preliminary examination of the aircraft suggests the electrical
problem was related to relay R1. That relay R1, connecting the Battery Busbar,
had already caused two incidents on Boeing 737-300 G-EZYN on Mar 22nd 2005,
AAIB investigation report and on Boeing 737-300 G-THOJ on Aug 13th 2006,
AAIB investigation report. In both occurrences the crew had noticed progressive
abnormal announciator indications, one crew up to and including the loss
of the DC Battery Bus and loss of standby ADI. As result of the investigation
into G-EZYN a safety recommendation 2005-65 had been issued which was also
directly relevant to G-THOJ according to AAIB findings and may, according
to current information, also be relevant to G-GDFT. Safety recommendation
2005-65 reads: “It is recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration
require that the Boeing Airplane Company examine the various electrical
configurations of in-service Boeing 737 aircraft with the intention of providing
operators with an Operations Manual Procedure that deals with loss of power
from the Battery Busbar.” The AAIB had analysed for G-EZYN: “The loss of
the Battery Bus on Boeing 737-300/400/500 aircraft results in the loss of
a number of significant systems which, on some aircraft, can include the
Standby Attitude Indicator. The integrity of the main attitude displays
on EFIS equipped aircraft can also be compromised due to the loss of cooling.”
and stated: “Checklist procedures for electrical system malfunctions cannot
reasonably be expected to cater for failures of individual components down
to relay level, so the crew were left to conduct their own diagnosis. This
they did successfully, to the extent that they identified zero volts on
the Battery Bus and the static inverter. However, there were no drills for
this condition so they took no additional action, although normal operation,
at least on this aircraft, could have been restored by moving the Standby
Power switch to the ëBATí position.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479ac664
20140901203940:20140901000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 over Atlantic on Sep 1st 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N662JB performing flight B6-787
from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Sint Maarten (Sint Maarten) with 139 people
on board, was enroute at FL330 about 230nm northwest of Bermuda (Bermuda)
when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and decided
to divert to Bermuda. Enroute to Bermuda the crew reported they had the
smoke pretty much under control the fumes however still persisted. The aircraft
landed safely on Bermuda’s runway 12 about 40 minutes later, emergency services
checked the aircraft after landing before the aircraft proceeded to the
apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4799fc34
20140908125330:20140831000000
Incident: TAP A332 near Sal on Aug 31st 2014, smoke indication
A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A330-200, registration CS-TOJ performing flight
TP-16 from Recife,PE (Brazil) to Lisbon (Portugal) with 262 people on board,
was enroute over the Atlantic Ocean near Sal (Cabo Verde) when the crew
received a smoke indication and decided to divert to Sal for a safe landing.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the passengers were taken to hotels, technicians have
been dispatched to Sal to examine the aircraft.

The occurrence aircraft was able to depart Sal after about 24 hours on the
ground and reached Lisbon with a delay of 24 hours.

On Sep 8th 2014 Portugal’s GPIAA reported that the crew received a smoke
indication for the lower deck mobile crew rest area. Cabin crew reported
observing a burning odour and smoke venting from the outlets of the lower
deck crew rest area and discharged fire extinguishers into the area. After
landing all electrical power was disconnected from the aircraft and an inspection
performed which was unable to find any evidence of fire. Maintenance engineers
subsequently released the aircraft to continue the flight to Portugal under
restrictions and requirements to conduct further corrective and preventive
maintenance in Portugal. The GPIAA have not dispatched investigators to
Sal but opened an investigation into the occurrence.

The occurrence aircraft resumed service after about 5 hours on the ground
in Lisbon on Sep 1st 2014.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4797580b
20141211153416:20140828000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near London on Aug 28th 2014, smoke in cockpit
An Easyjet Airbus A320-200, registration G-EZWM performing flight U2-7215
from Liverpool,EN (UK) to Naples (Italy) with 157 passengers and 6 crew,
was climbing through FL340 about 50nm northwest of London’s Gatwick Airport,EN
(UK) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to
Gatwick Airport for a safe landing on runway 26L about 17 minutes later.
Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the crew received a smoke indication which was identified
false.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration G-EZUC reached Naples with a
delay of 3 hours.

The occurrence aircraft resumed service about 6.5 hours after landing.

On Sep 10th 2014 the French BEA reported in their monthly bulletin quoting
preliminary information provided by the AAIB, that an Airbus A320 with 326
people on board (!!) diverted to London Gatwick because of smoke in the
cockpit, identifying the occurrence location and time at London Gatwick
at 06:45L (05:45Z) but stating a Portuguese aircraft, without providing
a tail number (all details matching G-EZWM except for the Portuguese aircraft).
There were no injuries. The British AAIB rated the occurrence an accident
(!) and opened an investigation.

Editorial note to BEA report (Sep 10th 2014): Given the reported 326 people
on board and the reported Portuguese A320 aircraft (no tail number provided),
though all other data match G-EZWM, The Aviation Herald discards the classification
as accident as well assuming there has been a mixup of occurrences (there
was no second inflight diversion to Gatwick in progress at that time). At
this time there is no detail reported that would suggest a classification
as accident. At the same time, the fact that the AAIB informed the BEA about
this occurrence and the occurrence is being investigated by the AAIB suggests,
that the airline’s statement was “premature”, and the AAIB considers the
occurrence at least as incident, possibly serious incident. The AAIB has
not yet released any information on the occurrence to the public.

On Dec 11th 2014 the British AAIB released their bulletin rating the occurrence
a serious incident, reporting 157 passengers and 6 crew and reporting the
crew received a “AVIONICS SMOKE” warning and could see smoke emanating from
the right side of the center console inside the first officer’s footwell.
The smoke ceased during the descent back to London’s Gatwick Airport. A
component in a static inverter powering electrical outlet sockets in the
cockpit was found overheated.

The AAIB reported that the aircraft was climbing through FL320 when the
first officer noticed an odd odour, the captain could not smell anything
and used the surveillance camera to check the galley whether cabin crew
was cooking anything. When he pressed the interphone call button to talk
to the lead flight attendant, he noticed smoke coming from the right of
the center console near the first officer’s knee. The captain told the lead
flight attendant he would call back, both pilots donned their oxygen masks.
An “AVIONICS SMOKE” indication on the ECAM together with an amber “SMOKE”
light on the “GEN 1 LINE” pushbutton and “FAULT” captions on the “BLOWER”
and “EXTRACT” buttons appeared. The captions and lights extinguished after
about a minute, the smoke however continued. The crew declared PAN, commenced
a descent and worked the “AVIONICS SMOKE” checklist. The commander handed
control of the aircraft as well as communication duties over to the first
officer while he worked the related checklists, informed cabin crew and
passengers and reprogrammed the FMGS for the return to Gatwick.

During the descent the smoke stopped, the aircraft landed without further
event on Gatwick’s runway 26L. Emergency services attended to the aircraft
and escorted the aircraft to a remote stand, where passengers disembarked
normally. After engine shut down the crew removed their oxygen masks. Emergency
services did not find any hot spots.

Engineers subsequently found a static inverter showed significant burn marks
and replaced the inverter. The inverter was sent to the manufacturer for
further examinations, the manufacturer identified a capacitor had been destroyed
by overheating, the destruction preventing to determine the exact reason
for its failure. The AAIB stated summarizing the statement of the manufacturer:
“They consider this failure was an isolated incident but advise that they
will monitor the reliability of the static invertors.”

The static inverter causing the “false” smoke indication (Photo: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479b5f82
20140908130153:20140827000000
Incident: White AT72 at Lisbon on Aug 27th 2014, smoke in cabin
A White Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-212A on behalf of TAP Air Portugal,
registration OY-EBW performing flight TP-1078 from Lisbon (Portugal) to
Malaga,SP (Spain) with 38 passengers and 4 crew, was in the initial climb
out of Lisbon’s runway 03 when the crew declared “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday,
smoke in the cockpit”, the departure controller replied “blocked, I’ll call
you shortly” and continued to issue instructions to other aircraft until
TP-1078 repeated their Mayday Call about 30 seconds later again blocking
another radio transmission, departure then called TP-1078 who now could
transmit their call clearly declaring emergency due to smoke on the flight
deck. The crew requested an immediate return to Lisbon but advised they
would be able to vacate the runway. The aircraft positioned for an ILS approach
to runway 03 and landed safely about 12 minutes after departure.

The French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that smoke with a strong
burning smell was detected in the aircraft cabin, the crew declared emergency
and performed a normal landing. The runway returned to service about 10
minutes after landing.

On Sep 8th 2014 Portugal’s GPIAA reported the crew decided to declare Mayday
due to the presence of a burning smell and smoke in the cockpit, the origin
of which was unknown. Following landing emergency services and crew assessed
that there was no risk to the safety of the aircraft, the aircraft taxied
to a stand with emergency services in trail, the passengers disembarked
normally at the stand. The occurrence was rated a serious incident and an
investigation has been opened.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4797a912
20140828212309:20140827000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Indianapolis on Aug 27th 2014, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N11191 performing
flight EV-6136/UA-6136 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Charleston,SC (USA), was
climbing out of Chicago when the crew stopped the climb at FL230 reporting
smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Indianapolis,IN (USA) for a safe landing.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 registration N11184 reached Charleston with
a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479612f0
20140826200456:20140825000000
Incident: ANA B763 at Tokyo on Aug 25th 2014, white smoke in cabin
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 767-300, registration JA615A performing
flight NH-697 from Tokyo Haneda to Ube (Japan) with 165 people on board,
was climbing out of Haneda’s runway 05 when the crew stopped the climb at
FL100 due to what appeared to be white smoke in the aft cabin and returned
to Tokyo Haneda for a safe landing on runway 34R about 20 minutes after
departure. The smoke had dissipated by then, attending emergency services
did not find any trace of fire or heat.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration JA8368 reached Ube with a delay
of 110 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47979c47
20140828195007:20140824000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 near Orlando on Aug 24th 2014, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Rouge Airbus A319-100, registration C-FYJH performing flight
RV-1866/AC-1866 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Orlando,FL (USA) with 142 people
on board, was nearing the top of descent into Orlando, about 10 minutes
prior to initiating the initial descent, when the crew received an ECAM
Avionics smoke indication. The crew notified air traffic control and was
cleared direct to Orlando. During the descent towards Orlando the weather
radar became inoperative, flight and cabin crew searched for other signs
of smoke but did not find any further trace of smoke. The aircraft landed
safely in Orlando, attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported the aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron.
Maintenance is investigating what caused the smoke indication and the failure
of the weather radar.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4792eb8a
20140822162123:20140822000000
Incident: Mount Cook AT72 at Auckland on Aug 22nd 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Mount Cook Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-212A on behalf of Air New
Zealand, registration ZK-MCA performing flight NZ-5231 from Auckland to
New Plymouth (New Zealand), was climbing out of Auckland when the crew stopped
the climb at about FL116, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit
and returned to Auckland for a safe landing about 16 minutes after departure.
After checks by emergency services the aircraft was able to taxi to the
apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

A listener on frequency reported that the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
declaring emergency, attending emergency services did not need to intervene
and the aircraft taxied to the apron.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the next flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4792e70e
20140822154742:20140821000000
Incident: Trans States E145 near Indianapolis on Aug 21st 2014, smoke in cabin
A Trans States Airlines Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration
N855HK performing flight AX-3398/UA-3398 from Columbus,OH to Chicago O’Hare,IL
(USA) with 48 people on board, was climbing out of Columbus when the crew
stopped the climb at FL240 reporting smoke in the cabin and diverted to
Indianapolis,IN (USA) for a safe landing about 18 minutes later. The passengers
disembarked rapidly onto the runway.

Passengers reported a smell of smoke occurred in the cabin about 15 minutes
after departure, shortly after the crew announced the aircraft would divert
to Indianapolis because of smoke in the cabin.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4792dfbe
20141014131712:20140821000000
Incident: Air India A320 at Kochi on Aug 21st 2014, crew was radioed about smoke from engine, uncontained engine failure
An Air India Airbus A320-200, registration VT-ESI performing flight AI-47
from Kochi to Delhi (India) with 182 people on board, was in the initial
climb out of Kochi at about 21:00L (15:30Z), with a delay of one hour due
to late arrival on the inbound flight, when the crew was radioed about smoke
emanating from an engine (V2500). The crew stopped the climb and returned
to Kochi for a safe landing about 15 minutes after departure.

The flight departed again about 45 minutes after landing and reached Delhi
with a delay of 2 hours.

India’s largest newspaper reported (in contradiction to all other reliable
sources in India and about 10 hours after those sources) that the crew received
an engine fire indication and shut the engine down. Then the paper exercised
even prose poetry: “What made matters worse was that Kochi had bad weather
at that time with thundery monsoon clouds covering the sky and strong winds
blowing. However with a serious engine fire warning alarm, there was no
time to jettison fuel. Captain ….. made one of the most difficult landings
that any pilot can expect to make in his or her career. ‘He climbed to about
3,000 feet and then returned to Kochi. The plane landed safely and he took
it right to the terminal.'”

The Metars however show thunderstorms setting in at 23:00L (17:30Z) only
and no strong winds at all. Needless to also point out a good number of
impossibilities (e.g. jettison) and the contradiction in this report: that
the aircraft was taken right to the terminal after this difficult landing
with an ongoing serious fire alarm …

On Sep 2nd 2014 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin quoting
India’s Accident Investigation Board, that during initial climb the crew
declared emergency due to the failure of the right hand engine, shortly
afterwards the engine fire indication came on and the aircraft returned
to Kochi. Post flight examination showed the low pressure turbine stage
4 blades were partly sheared and some metal debris was found in the engine
exhaust. Thrust reverser duct C was also found damaged. India’s AIB rated
the occurrence a serious incident and opened an investigation.

On Oct 14th 2014 the NTSB reported that the right hand engine (V2500) suffered
an uncontained failure, the crew received an engine fire warning, shut the
engine down and return to Kochi. Post flight visual inspection showed damage
to the stage 4 low pressure turbine blades and metal debris in the exhaust
as well as impact damage to the thrust reverser cowls consistent with an
uncontained engine failure. India’s AAIB is investigating the occurrence
rated an incident (editor’s note: not a serious incident), the NTSB have
accredited a representative to assist the investigation.

Metars:
VOCI 211930Z 00000KT 4000 HZ SCT012 FEW025CB OVC080 25/24 Q1006 NOSIG

VOCI 211830Z 08003KT 4000 TS SCT012 FEW025CB OVC080 25/23 Q1007 NOSIG

VOCI 211800Z 34003KT 4000 TS SCT012 FEW025CB OVC080 25/24 Q1007 NOSIG

VOCI 211730Z 33005KT 4000 TS SCT012 FEW025CB OVC080 25/24 Q1007 TEMPO RA
VOCI 211630Z 05003KT 4000 HZ SCT012 FEW025CB OVC080 25/23 Q1007 NOSIG

VOCI 211600Z 12006KT 4000 HZ SCT015 FEW025CB OVC080 25/23 Q1007 NOSIG

VOCI 211530Z 12006KT 4000 HZ SCT015 FEW025CB(N) OVC080 25/24 Q1007 NOSIG
VOCI 211500Z 10005KT 4000 HZ SCT015 OVC080 26/24 Q1007 NOSIG
VOCI 211430Z 11004KT 4000 -DZ SCT015 OVC080 26/25 Q1006 NOSIG
VOCI 211400Z 00000KT 5000 HZ SCT018 OVC080 27/25 Q1006 NOSIG
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479602e0
20140826175539:20140820000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 over Pacific on Aug 20th 2014, hot pot
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-GHLT performing flight AC-47
from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Honolulu,HI (USA), was enroute at FL340 over
the Pacific Ocean about 500nm southwest of Vancouver when the crew decided
to return to Vancouver due to a burning smell and smoke in the cabin. The
aircraft landed safely on Vancouver’s runway 26L about 90 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported the runway was closed for 9 minutes while emergency
services checked the aircraft. The source of smell and smoke was identified
to be a coffee pot.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47917389
20140820180251:20140820000000
Accident: Indigo A320 at Delhi on Aug 20th 2014, smoke from gear after landing causes evacuation
An Indigo Airbus A320-200, registration VT-IFK performing flight 6E-176
from Mumbai to Delhi (India) with 147 passengers and 6 crew, landed on Delhi’s
runway 27 and rolled out without obvious incident when the crew of fire
truck on an adjacent airport road called in reporting dense smoke from the
left hand main gear of the aircraft. The aircraft stopped on an adjacent
taxiway, the crew initiated an emergency evacuation via slides. A number
of passengers received minor injuries as result of the evacuation.

The airline reported the evacuation through the right hand doors and one
left hand side chute was completed in 75 seconds. A few passengers receiving
minor injuries were treated by medical staff.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration VT-INP continued flight 6E-176
to its final destination Varanasi.

VT-IXF after the evacuation (Photo: Tarun Shukla):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47917846
20141111205611:20140818000000
Incident: CSA AT72 at Frankfurt on Aug 18th 2014, smoke in cargo hold and cabin
A CSA Czech Airlines Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-212A, registration
OK-GFS performing flight OK-534 from Prague (Czech Republic) to Frankfurt/Main
(Germany) with 59 passengers and 4 crew, was on approach to Frankfurt when
the crew declared emergency reporting a smoke indication in the cargo hold
and smoke in the cabin. The aircraft continued for a safe landing at Frankfurt.
Emergency services identified a piece of luggage in the hold as source of
the smoke, that contained a bottle of Acetone and a hair dryer packed too
close together.

The return flight was cancelled.

The aircraft was able to position out of Frankfurt about 7.5 hours after
landing.

On Aug 26th 2014 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that a
small fire and smoke developed in one piece of luggage in the forward luggage
compartment. The occurrence was rated a serious incident by Germany’s BFU
and is being investigated.

On Nov 11th 2014 Germany’s BFU reported in their monthly bulletin, that
the aircraft was descending towards Frankfurt when the flight crew observed
smell of smoke and asked cabin crew to investigate. A short time later the
crew received an ELEC SMOKE and FWD SMOKE indication on their CCAS, both
flight crew donned their oxygen masks and declared Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.
In the meantime cabin crew opened the door to the forward cargo compartment
and with the help of passengers brought pieces of luggage into the aisle
of the cabin and identified a particular piece of luggage as source of smoke.
The suitcase was taken to the galley, cut open with scissors and a halogen
fire extinguisher was discharged into the suitcase. The suitcase remained
under permanent supervision by one cabin crew while the other cabin crew
member returned to prepare the cabin for landing. Shortly after the cabin
crew had discharged the fire extinguisher, the aircraft received clearance
for the ILS approach runway 25L, the crew cancelled Mayday at that point.
The aircraft landed safely about 12 minutes later, the suitcase was taken
off the aircraft through door L2, subsequently the passengers disembarked
normally.

Police examined the suitcase and determined that there had been smouldering
within the suitcase without open flames, substantial heat developed. Two
more pieces of luggage showed traces of heat. Two one-way glass bottles
with screw cap holding one liter of fluid additionally secured with adhesive
tapes were found inside the suitcase, one bottle however had broken up and
the content had spilled into the suitcase. The female owner of the suitcase
reported it was a fluid to make the hair lighter. The suitcase had been
checked in.

The suitcase (Photo: BFU/Frankfurt Airport Fire Brigades):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4790c9e7
20140819210130:20140817000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Milwaukee on Aug 17th 2014, electrical odour in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-663 from Orlando,FL to Milwaukee,WI
(USA) with 127 passengers and 5 crew, was descending towards Milwaukee when
the crew declared emergency reporting an electrical odour in the cabin.
The aircraft continued for a safe landing in Milwaukee. Attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 performed the onward legs to Los Angeles,CA
and Oakland,CA.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478fd067
20140818145657:20140815000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 at Newark on Aug 15th 2014, smoke in cabin
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N17159 performing
flight EV-4535/UA-4535 from Newark,NJ to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 48 people
on board, was in the initial climb out of Newark’s runway 22R when upon
contacting departure the crew requested to level off at 5000 feet reporting
smoke in the cabin and declaring emergency. The crew requested to return
to Newark for a landing on runway 22L, an aircraft on approach to 22L was
instructed to go around due to the emergency and an aircraft already lined
up for departure instructed to vacate the runway. The aircraft landed safely
on Newark’s runway 22R about 10 minutes after departure. The crew indicated
to not need further assistance after landing and taxied to the apron.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 registration N12135 reached Minneapolis with
a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478ce9aa
20140814194753:20140813000000
Incident: Jazz DH8D near Ottawa on Aug 13th 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration C-GGNY performing flight QK-8953
from Fredericton,NB to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 69 passengers and 4 crew,
was enroute at FL240 about 20nm west of Ottawa,ON (Canada) when the crew
received a cargo hold smoke indication and decided to turn around and divert
to Ottawa. Subsequently visible smoke was observed in the cabin, the crew
declared emergency, performed a safe landing on Ottawa’s runway 07, stopped
on the runway and initiated evacuation of the aircraft.

The Canadian TSB reported that all exits were used for the evacuation. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire or heat. The source of the smoke
is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478cccc6
20140819133501:20140813000000
Incident: Vueling A319 at Florence on Aug 13th 2014, gear fire after landing
A Vueling Airbus A319-100, registration EC-JVE performing flight VY-1503
from Paris Orly (France) to Florence (Italy) with 121 passengers, landed
on Florence’s runway 05 and slowed safely. While vacating the runway smoke
was observed from the landing gear prompting the crew to stop clear of the
runway, emergency services responded and reported visible flames from the
gear prompting the crew to initiate the evacuation of the aircraft via slides.
Emergency services applied foam to extinguish the fire. There were no injuries
though a pregnant woman was taken to a hospital as a precaution.

Italy’s ANSV deployed investigators on site and opened an investigation
into the occurrence rated a serious incident.

The French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin on Aug 19th 2014, that
while applying the park brake a hydraulic spray leakage occurred on the
right main gear, two seconds later the spray caught fire prompting the crew
to initiate an emergency evacuation. A post event examination showed the
elbow of the brake hose on the right wheel was loose.

Smoke rises from the aircraft (Photo: Charles Cole):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478b69e6
20140812202632:20140812000000
Incident: British Airways B763 near London on Aug 12th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BNWC performing flight
BA-103 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Calgary,AB (Canada), had just reached
cruise FL340 when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit about 140nm northwest
of London (almost over Liverpool,EN) when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit and returned to London Heathrow for a safe landing on Heathrow’s
runway 27R. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.
The passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478ac359
20140811234440:20140811000000
Incident: United B772 at Amsterdam on Aug 11th 2014, smoke from left brakes
A United Boeing 777-200, registration N77006 performing flight UA-58 (dep
Aug 10th) from Houston,TX (USA) to Amsterdam (Netherlands), landed on Amsterdam’s
runway 18R when tower advised the crew that smoke was coming from the left
main gear. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway
while emergency services responded. Emergency services reported a hydraulic
leak with fluid dripping onto the left main gear. The aircraft was towed
to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478ab52a
20140811215816:20140810000000
Incident: Transavia B738 at Paphos on Aug 10th 2014, overheating brakes on landing
A Transavia Boeing 737-800, registration PH-HZD performing flight HV-313
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Paphos (Cyprus) with 117 passengers, landed
on Paphos’ runway 11. During roll out tower advised smoke came from the
gear, emergency services responded and cooled the brakes down.

The aircraft was able to depart for the return flight HV-314 about 17 hours
after landing and reached Amsterdam with a delay of 16 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478b6186
20140812192331:20140803000000
Incident: United B738 near Vancouver on Aug 3rd 2014, lavatory smoke indication
A United Boeing 737-800, registration N24224 performing flight UA-1126 from
Denver,CO to Anchorage,AK (USA) with 126 people on board, was enroute at
FL360 about 120nm northwest of Vancouver,BC (Canada) when the crew received
a right aft lavatory smoke indication and decided to divert to Vancouver,
where the aircraft landed safely on Vancouver’s runway 26R about 30 minutes
later. Once on the ground the crew advised there was no visible smoke, flames
or haze on board.

The Canadian TSB reported the crew pulled the pin on the fire extinguisher
but did not discharge the extinguisher. Maintenance examined the lavatory
after landing and found no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The smoke detector
was deactivated by pulling its cannon plug and the circuit breaker for hot
water pulled according to minimum equipment list, the fire extinguisher
was replaced, then the aircraft was released to continue the flight. The
smoke detector was replaced the following day.

The occurrence aircraft reached Anchorage with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47830e85
20140801213839:20140730000000
Incident: Envoy E145 at New York on Jul 30th 2014, smoke in cabin
An Envoy Embraer ERJ-145, registration N837AE performing flight MQ-3340
from New York La Guardia,NY to Knoxville,TN (USA) with 44 passengers and
3 crew, was in the initial climb out of La Guardia’s runway 31 when the
crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cabin and requested to return
immediately. The aircraft was cleared for a visual approach to runway 22,
landed safely on that runway about 4 minutes after departure and stopped
on the runway. The occupants rapidly disembarked onto the runway and were
bussed to the terminal.

The aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47816e7b
20140730190151:20140730000000
Incident: China Southern A319 at Guangzhou on Jul 30th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A China Southern Airlines Airbus A319-100, flight CZ-6059 from Guangzhou
(China) to Phnom Penh (Cambodia), was climbing through 5000 feet out of
Guangzhou when the crew donned their oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting
smoke in the cockpit and returned to Guangzhou for a safe landing about
19 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported there was a burning electrical smell.

The airline confirmed a mechanical problem.

A replacement aircraft reached Phnom Penh with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47817558
20140730195515:20140729000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ9 at Phoenix on Jul 29th 2014, pack overheated
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-900 on behalf of US-Airways, registration N897SK
performing flight OO-2948/US-2948 from Albuquerque,NM to Phoenix,AZ (USA)
with 64 passengers, was on final approach to Phoenix when one of the air
conditioning systems overheated. The crew continued for a safe landing.
While the aircraft was taxiing towards the apron, passengers began to smell
smoke, apparently from a lavatory, the smoke detector of the lavatory triggered
prompting the crew to stop on the taxiway and have the passengers disembark
via the aircraft’s airstairs.

The aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron.

Passengers reported they smelled burning rubber.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47800073
20140728225118:20140728000000
Incident: Biman Bangladesh A313 at Kathmandu on Jul 28th 2014, brakes overheated
A Biman Bangladesh Airbus A310-300, registration S2-ADK performing flight
BG-701 from Dhaka (Bangladesh) to Kathmandu (Nepal), was landing at Kathmandu
when smoke was observed from the brakes during roll out. The aircraft came
to a safe stop, emergency services responded and cooled the brakes down.

Airport police reported fire fighters put a small wheel fire out.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477ffd77
20140728222931:20140728000000
Incident: Alitalia A320 near Alexandria on Jul 28th 2014, smoke in cockpit
An Alitalia Airbus A320-200, registration EI-DSD performing flight AZ-897
from Cairo (Egypt) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with 118 passengers and 6 crew,
was climbing out of Cairo when the crew stopped the climb at about FL250
and diverted to Alexandria (Egypt) reporting smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft
landed safely on Alexandria’s runway 32.

Passengers reported they are currently without information at the terminal
in Alexandria.

Alexandria’s Borg el Arab Airport reported the passengers disembarked and
are in the waiting lounge while the aircraft is being repaired.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477fed15
20140728203205:20140728000000
Incident: Kuwait A306 near Brussels on Jul 28th 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Kuwait Airways Airbus A300-600, registration 9K-AMD performing flight
KU-103 from Kuwait (Kuwait) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 219 passengers
and 14 crew, was enroute at FL340 about 25nm east of Brussels (Belgium)
when the crew decided to divert to Brussels reporting a forward cargo smoke
indication. The aircraft landed safely on Brussels’ runway 25R about 20
minutes later, attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

The airline reported the crew diverted to Brussels due to smoke in the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477f087f
20140727172645:20140726000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Milwaukee on Jul 26th 2014, smell of smoke on board
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N922DL performing
flight DL-1496 from Minneapolis,MN to New York La Guardia,NY (USA) with
145 people on board, was enroute at FL330 about 50nm northwest of Milwaukee,WI
when the crew reported a smokey odour on board and decided to divert to
Milwaukee. On approach the crew reported that whatever caused the odour
appears to have gone out by itself and continued for a safe landing on Milwaukee’s
runway 25L about 20 minutes later.

A replacement MD-88 reached New York with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47817343
20140730193814:20140725000000
Accident: Saudia A320 near Riyadh on Jul 25th 2014, smoking galley oven
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration HZ-AS21 performing
flight SV-1905 from Riyadh to Taif (Saudi Arabia), was climbing out of Riyadh
when smoke emanated from the aft galley. Cabin crew used fire extinguishers
while the flight crew returned the aircraft to Riyadh for a safe landing.
The passengers disembarked normally, two cabin crew needed to be taken to
a hospital for smoke inhalation. Emergency services secured a galley oven
that was identified as source of the smoke.

Saudi Arabia’s Accident Investigation Board opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4780bf49
20140729214351:20140722000000
Incident: UPS B763 at Salt Lake City on Jul 22nd 2014, smoke in the cockpit
A UPS Boeing 767-300, registration N328UP performing freight flight 5X-2843
from Salt Lake City,UT to Louisville,KY (USA) with 2 crew, was climbing
through 16,000 feet out of Salt Lake City when the crew reported smoke in
the cockpit and returned to Salt Lake City for a safe landing on runway
16L about 18 minutes after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477cdbe7
20140724223605:20140722000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Columbus on Jul 22nd 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N657SW performing flight
WN-424 (callsign SWA-9015) from Baltimore,MD to Chicago Midway,IL (USA)
with 49 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL360 about 15nm northwest
of Columbus,OH when the crew received a forward cargo smoke indication and
decided to divert to Columbus for a safe landing. The aircraft vacated the
runway, stopped on the taxiway, then the occupants were evacuated via slides.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Chicago as flight WN-9015 with a delay
of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477a1467
20140721110322:20140721000000
Incident: Virgin Atlantic A346 near Irkutsk on Jul 21st 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340-600, registration G-VWIN performing flight
VS-251 from Shanghai Pudong (China) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 286
passengers and 15 crew, was enroute at FL320 in Mongolia’s Air Space about
230nm southwest of Irkutsk (Russia) when the crew received an aft cargo
smoke indication and diverted to Irkutsk for a safe landing on runway 12
about 45 minutes later. Emergency services did not find any trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The airline reported a technical issue prompted a precautionary landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477b1bfb
20140722183332:20140720000000
Incident: Southwest B735 near Austin on Jul 20th 2014, smoke in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-500, flight WN-4625 from Austin,TX to Dallas
Love,TX (USA) with 27 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing out of Austin
when the crew stopped the climb at 17,000 feet reporting smoke in the cabin
and returned to Austin for a safe landing about 15 minutes after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47770f9d
20140909103728:20140717000000
Crash: Malaysia B772 near Donetsk on Jul 17th 2014, aircraft was shot down
A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration 9M-MRD performing flight
MH-17/KL-4103 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) with
283 passengers and 15 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 20nm northeast of
Donetsk (Ukraine) when the transponder data became unreliable at 13:18Z
(position N48.28 E38.08) and was lost at FL330 at 13:20Z. The aircraft came
down near the villages of Shakhtarsk and Hrabove (Ukraine) about 20nm from
the last transponder position and 20nm from the Ukrainian/Russian border,
the ELT of the aircraft was recorded at position N48.1230 E38.5258.

Videos circulating in the Internet and media claiming to show the stricken
MH-17 coming down with a raging fire at the right hand wing are in fact
videos of the shoot down of an Antonov AN-30 in Slavyansk on Jun 6th 2014.

Recovery of victims

On Jul 20th 2014 an agreement reached between separatists and Ukrainian
Recovery Services permitted the recovery of 196 of the 298 bodies so far.
According to Ukrainian government Ukrainian recovery services and international
observers are permitted to recover the bodies and take them to a safe place.
According to Associated Press the bodies have been loaded onto trains headed
to a separatist held city. Ukrainian Donetsk Emergency Ministry confirmed
196 bodies have been recovered and are going to be transferred to Donestsk.

On Jul 20th 2014 the OSCE confirmed bodies have been brought to the rail
station of Torez where three refriggerated rail cars are used to store the
victims until international experts arrive. The separatists claim 167 bodies
have been brought to Torez, the OSCE has not been able to verify this however.

On Jul 21st 2014 the Ukrainian government said, 272 bodies have been recovered
so far. Dutch investigators have reached Torez to begin identifying the
bodies. The Ukrainian government proposed that the Netherlands should lead
the investigation. There are tough negotiations ongoing to permit the trains
carrying the bodies to leave Eastern Ukraine, so that the bodies can be
identified and returned to their families.

In the afternoon of Jul 21st 2014 the recovery of body was officially ended
after 298 bodies have been recovered from the crash site. The bodies are
expected to be brought to Kharkiv where identification is going to continue.

Late Jul 21st 2014 Ukraine’s prime minister confirmed that two trains with
the bodies left Torez for Kharkiv. The trains have arrived in Kharkiv around
noon Jul 22nd local time about 15 hours after departure from Torez.

On Jul 23rd 2014 the first bodies are being flown to the Netherlands where
a national day of mourning has been declared. Dutch Officials report however,
that they have received only 200 bodies plus a number of body parts and
believe, that many human remains are still unrecovered at the crash site.
The two military aircraft with 40 coffins have just landed in Eindhoven
(Netherlands) at 15:47L/13:47Z.

On Jul 24th and Jul 25th several more flights are expected to carry the
remaining bodies, handed over so far by separatists, to Eindhoven.

On Jul 26th 2014 a number more bodies have been recovered from the crash
site and are being taken to the Netherlands.

On Aug 1st 2014 a large group of forensic experts and investigators, about
70 experts, was able to reach the crash site for the first time, after a
small group managed to get to the crash site on Jul 31st 2014 following
the fighting that prevented access to the crash site between Jul 27th and
Jul 31st. A number of human remains have been recovered, but up to 80 bodies
are still suspected unrecovered at the crash site.

First information following the crash

Ukrainian rescue services reported that the wreckage is spread over an area
of about 15km diameter around the villages of Hrabove and Shakhtarsk.

Ukraine ATC reported that the aircraft was enroute normally, there had been
no indication of any problem and there was no emergency call.

Interfax reports citing an industry source that a Malaysia Boeing 777 from
Amsterdam to Malaysia has crashed near the Ukrainian/Russian border, the
burning wreckage has been located. The aircraft has been shot down, the
agency subsequently added.

Initial Statements

Malaysia Airlines have confirmed an incident, the aircraft did not enter
Russian Airspace so far, about two hours after the estimated entry into
the airspace. At 15:40Z Malaysia Airlines tweeted: “Malaysia Airlines has
lost contact of MH17 from Amsterdam. The last known position was over Ukrainian
airspace. More details to follow.” At 16:45Z the airline tweeted: “Malaysia
Airlines confirms it received notification from Ukrainian ATC that it had
lost contact with flight MH17 at 1415 (GMT) at 30km from Tamak waypoint,
approximately 50km from the Russia-Ukraine border. Flight MH17 operated
on a Boeing 777 departed Amsterdam at 12.15pm (Amsterdam local time) and
was estimated to arrive at Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 6.10 am
(Malaysia local time) the next day. The flight was carrying 280 passengers
and 15 crew onboard. More details to follow.” In the morning of Jul 18th
Malaysian Airlines corrected the initial passenger count from 280 to 283.
On Jul 19th 2014 the airline released the final passenger manifest: 193
Dutch (including 1 dual citizen Dutch/US), 43 Malaysian (including 2 infants
and 15 crew), 27 Australian, 12 Indonesian (including 1 infant), 10 British
(including 1 dual citizen UK/South Africa), 4 German, 4 Belgian, 3 Philippine,
1 Canadian and 1 New Zealand citizens.

On Jul 19th 2014 Malaysia Airlines released the passenger manifest (the
cargo manifest had been released earlier) and stated: “Malaysia is deeply
concerned that the crash site has not been properly secured. The integrity
of the site has been compromised, and there are indications that vital evidence
has not been preserved in place. Interfering with the scene of the crash
risks undermining the investigation itself. Any actions that prevent us
from learning the truth about what happened to MH17 cannot be tolerated.
Failure to stop such interference would be a betrayal of the lives that
were lost.” and concluded their statement: “This outrage cannot go unpunished.
Once again, Malaysia condemns this brutal act of aggression, and calls for
those responsible to be found, and to face the full force of justice without
delay.”

On Jul 18th 2014 Malaysia Airlines reported the Boeing 777-200 registration
9M-MRD, that had operated MH-17 on Jul 17th 2014, had last undergone maintenance
on Jul 11th 2014 and had “clean bill of health” with all communication systems
operating normally. The aircraft, introduced to service in 1997, had accumulated
75,322 flight hours in 11,434 cycles. There was no distress call from the
aircraft. “The usual flight route was earlier declared safe by the International
Civil Aviation Organisation. International Air Transportation Association
has stated that the airspace the aircraft was traversing was not subject
to restrictions.”

Ukraine’s Ministry of Interior have confirmed the Boeing has crashed, there
were no survivors.

The Ukraine have closed the airspace around Donetsk about 90 minutes after
the aircraft disappeared.

The Ukrainian President said, the aircraft has been brought down as result
of a terrorist act. Ukrainian military forces were not involved in the shoot
down of the aircraft.

Ukrainian separatists had initially claimed they had shot down another Ukrainian
Airforce AN-26, the comments were and references to them are currently being
deleted across the Internet. Separatists of the self pronounced Republic
of Donetsk had also shown off with ground to air missiles capable to down
airliners in the last couple of days, these videos and messages are currently
being deleted as well.

See below the images of Igor Girkin’s (Strelkov’s) website retrieved at
15:22Z and at 23:00Z on Jul 17th 2014. Igor Girkin is commander of the Donbass
People’s Milita. Igor Girkin wrote at 17:37 MSK as first sentence: “Message
from the Militia: In the area Snizhne just knocked down an AN-26 lying somewhere
in the mine ‘Progress'” – this sentence later disappeared and is not present
anymore on the current web page, the sentence however is still verifyable
from Internet caches.

Officially the separatists state, that they have no involvement into the
downing of MH-17. They have recovered the black boxes of the aircraft.

The Ukrainian Foreign Minister reported the Ukraine have opened a criminal
investigation into the terrorist act and reported in a press conference,
that they have intercepted phone calls between rebels who initially celebrated
the shoot down of another Ukraine Air Force aircraft, then recognized and
discussed that the aircraft was civilian with a lot of casualties.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister pledged that “no stone will be left unturned”.
Ukrainian Authorities believe the aircraft has been shot down, but Malaysia
is not yet able to verify the cause of this tragedy. “If it transpires that
the plane indeed was shot down we insist the perpetrators must swiftly be
brought to justice”. According to Ukrainian ATC the emergency locator beacon
transmitted from position N48.1230 E38.5258. The president of the USA and
Malaysia agree, that the investigation must not be hindered, nobody should
interfere with the crash site or move debris including the blackbox. “This
is a tragic day in what has already been a tragic year for Malaysia …
The flight’s passengers and crew came from many different countries, but
today, regardless of nationalities, we are all united in grief.”

United States of America Officials reported that the aircraft has been shot
down. US radar systems tracked a ground to air missile turning onto and
tracking an airliner, a second system detected a heat signature just as
the aircraft was being hit. The data are currently being evaluated to determine
the launching point of the missile. On Jul 18th 2014 the USA announced,
that the missile has been launched inside the borders of the Ukraine.

On Jul 18th 2014 the President of the United States of America announced,
that MH-17 has been brought down by a surface to air missile that was launched
from within an area controlled by pro-russian separatists. The president
called the event an “outrage of unspeakable proportions”, that highlights
the need for peace.

On Jul 21st 2014 the US vice president stated, that the US have compelling
evidence that the Boeing was shot down by separatists utilizing missiles
and missile launchers supplied from Russia, amongst the evidence satellite
images showing major military supplies moved from Russia into Eastern Ukraine
including missile launchers and intercepted phone calls. The intercepted
phone calls earlier published by the Ukrainian government discussing the
shootdown of an AN-26 and then identifying a civil aircraft are authentic.
“There’s enormous amount of evidence that points to the involvement of Russia
in providing these systems, training the people on them”, the vice president
stated.

On Jul 21st 2014 Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed they have compelling
evidence (contradicting Ukrainian government reports of Jul 17th 2014) that
an Ukrainian Air Force SU-25 fighter aircraft was within 5km around flight
MH-17 at the very same altitude at FL330 and shot down MH-17. The Ministry
claimed, challenged with the service ceiling of the aircraft, that the SU-25
would be able to briefly reach 10,000 meters of altitude. SU-25 fighter
jet aircraft have a service ceiling of 7000 meters (FL230) clean and 5000
meters (FL160) with maximum weapons. While Sukhoi’s website continues to
state, that the service ceiling (the altitude that can be reached with a
climb rate of 100 feet per minute, above that altitude the maximum possible
climb rates fall below 100 feet per minute) of the clean SU-25 is 7000 meters,
Wikipedia have experienced several dozen edits modifying the surface ceiling
up to 10,000 meters and back. From an aerodynamics point of view it is impossible
to reach 10,000 meters of altitude with a service ceiling at 7,000 meters
unless energy of substantial excess speed is being converted into altitude.
To have the SU-25 climb 3000 meters above its service ceiling would require
supersonic speeds, that the SU-25 is not capable of however.

On Jul 23th 2014 the separatist outlet under the name of Igor Girkin mentioned
above, that is recognized by all Russian media agencies (including Ria,
Interfax, Itar-Tass, …) as authentic quoting those informations within
minutes of their posting on that site, reported and published videos of
missile launchers that two Ukrainian Airforce Sukhoi SU-25s have been shot
down on Jul 23rd 2014.

On Jul 23rd 2014 a member of the milita of separatists told journalists
of Italian newspaper “Corriere della Sera” that his commanders told them
the separatists had shot down an aircraft of the Kiev “nazis”. When he found
a little girl at the crash site he realized that this was a civil aircraft.

On Jul 23rd 2014 a commander of the separatist militia told news agency
Reuters that the separatists did have BUK missiles suspected to have brought
down MH-17.

On Jul 28th 2014 the Ukrainian Government reported that the flight data
and cockpit voice recorders’ first analysis results suggest the aircraft
came down as result of an explosive decompression after the aircraft had
been punctured by shrapnell from an explosion outside the aircraft. There
is no such statement from the DSB leading the investigation or the AAIB
conducting the read out and analysis of the black boxes.

On Jul 28th 2014 the DSB stated: “Flight recorders MH17 can be used for
investigation, content will only be published in coherence with other investigation
information.”

The attempts to establish an independent international investigation

The Ukrainian Ministry of Transport reported that a commission to investigate
the causes of the crash has been formed, ICAO and Eurocontrol are going
to support the investigation as well as the US NTSB, Netherlands’ and Malaysia’s
Civil Aviation Authorities, Boeing, the European Civil Aviation Conference
and the European Commission. Civil Aviation Authorities of all nations,
that had citizens on board of the aircraft, have been invited to join the
investigation as well. The Ministry stated, that until the disappearance
of the aircraft from radar screen there had been no indication of trouble.
Following confirmation of the crash of the Boeing 777 the airspace around
Donetsk, Luhansk and parts of Kharkiv region has been completely closed.

The separatists in the Donetsk area have pledged to grant safe, full and
unlimited access to the crash site to recovery workers and investigators.
Until noon of Jul 18th 2014 representatives of the Ukrainian government
have not been granted access to the crash site, though. International investigators
have not yet reached the area.

In the afternoon of Jul 18th 2014 thirty international observers from the
Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) have arrived
at the crash site but left again after 75 minutes when separatists denied
full and unlimited access to the crash site. On Jul 19th 2014 the OSCE observers
are attempting to reach and inspect the crash site again. In addition investigators
from the USA, Germany, France, Netherlands and Malaysia are expected to
arrive at the crash site on Jul 19th 2014. In the afternoon of Jul 19th
2014 the OSCE reported, that the movements of their team of 24 have again
been limited by separatists carrying arms, the team has not been able to
interview witnesses, the team observed bodies were moved from the crash
site but were unable to talk to those carrying the bodies.

On Jul 18th 2014 Russia’s Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK), responsible
for investigation of aviation accidents, announced that they believe in
the circumstances of the crash of MH-17 the investigation should be carried
out under the supervision of the ICAO. The blackboxes will therefore be
handed over to the ICAO for investigation. On Jul 18th 2014 Russia’s Foreign
Minister also stated that Russia won’t touch the black boxes but hand them
over to ICAO for investigation, Russia won’t break the existing rules for
investigation of such occurrences.

On Jul 19th 2014 separatists have denied earlier reports that they had recovered
the two black boxes of the Boeing and denied reports the separatists had
intended to send the black boxes to Moscow. The items that were recovered
from the wreckage did not include the black boxes, the separatists explained.

On Jul 20th 2014, after a person carrying an orange object seemingly to
be one of the black boxes walked across the crash site before the cameras
of international press, Separatist leaders confirmed they have retrieved
the black boxes and are going to hand them over to ICAO.

On Jul 21st 2014 accident investigators from Netherlands, Germany, USA and
Australia have arrived in Kharkiv and are expected to proceed to the crash
site later the day.

Malaysia’s Minister of Transport had reported late Jul 20th Ukrainian time,
that he had arrived in the Ukraine, talked to separatist leaders and reached
agreements and assurances, that the black boxes would be handed over to
Malaysia by Monday 9pm local time (18:00Z), safety of international investigators
at the crash site would be ascertained and the bodies would be brought to
Kharkiv. First reports, that the black boxes were handed over to Malaysian
Officials, surfaced in Russian media at about Jul 22nd 2014 00:00Z, including
videos of a ceremony in which orange objects looking like black boxes were
handed over by a Rebel leader. There is no official confirmation from Malaysia
Airlines, Malaysia’s Ministry of Transport or other official Malaysian Government
Bodies so far, however.

Late Jul 21st 2014 The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO)
reported, that their experts have arrived in the Ukraine over the weekend
“to begin assisting their Ukrainian counterparts with the official accident
investigation into the loss of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17.” ICAO’s council
president stated: “ICAOís accident investigation experts are in the Ukraine
to respond to a call for assistance from the Stateís National Bureau of
Incidents and Accidents Investigation of Civil Aircraft. Their work relates
to Annex 13 investigations, the objective of which is to determine the causes
of an accident and to make recommendations that will help prevent future
accidents. This is a painstaking process and the collaboration of all concerned
with the international team of investigators, notably where access to all
evidence and data is concerned, will be greatly appreciated.î

On Jul 21st 2014 the security council of the United Nations have adopted
an unanimous resolution condemning the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight
17 and loss of 298 lives “in the strongest terms”. The UN security council’s
15 members demand “a full, thorough and independent international investigation
into the incident in accordance with international civil aviation guidelines”.
The council demanded that “armed groups in control of the crash site and
the surrounding area refrain from any actions that may compromise the integrity
of the crash site, including by refraining from destroying, moving or disturbing
wreckage, equipment, debris, personal belongings, or remains, and immediately
provide safe, secure, full and unrestricted access to the site…” and all
military activities be ceased in the immediate area surrounding the crash
site. The UN stated: “The Council also demanded that those responsible for
this incident to be held to account and that all States cooperate fully
with efforts to establish accountability.”

On Jul 22nd 2014, according to Russian media reports distributed by global
media as well, the separatists have declared a cease fire in the region.
There is no confirmation of this information on known separatist websites
however.

In the evening of Jul 22nd 2014 the boxes, that had been handed over by
separatists earlier in the day, are being carried to the UK by a Belgian
Air Force Aircraft. The boxes are going to be opened and read out in Farnborough.

On Jul 23rd 2014 the Dutch Onderzoeksraad (Dutch Safety Board) have formally
assumed the task of leading the investigation into the loss of MH-17. The
DSB stated: “Hoewel de onderzoekers nog geen veilige toegang tot de crashsite
hebben, wordt zowel in Kiev als in Nederland gewerkt aan het verzamelen
en het analyseren van gegevens uit diverse bronnen. ” (Although the investigators
still do not have secure access to the crash site, they are working to collect
and analyse data from various sources.) The current team of investigators
combines 24 investigators from the Ukraine, Malaysia, Australia, France,
Gerrmany, USA, UK and Russia. The boxes handed over in Kharkiv have been
taken to the UK, where specialists are going to read the data out. The DSB
complains that it would be necessary to go to the crash site, examine and
collect materials, however, this is not possible as no secure access is
available. In the meantime the crash site is open with evidence freely accessible.
The DSB stated: “Ondanks het feit dat onderzoeksmateriaal en sporen beschadigd
zijn geraakt of zijn verdwenen, verwacht de Onderzoeksraad voldoende relevante
informatie te kunnen verzamelen vanaf de rampplek.” (Despite the fact, that
research materials and evidence have been damaged or have disappeared, the
investigation team expects to be able to collect relevant information from
the crash site).

On Jul 23rd 2014 the British Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) confirmed
they have received two boxes from the Dutch Safety Board for read out in
the AAIB’s Farnborough facilities.

On Jul 23rd 2014 the DSB reported that the cockpit voice recorder appears
to not have been tampered with, valid data have been downloaded from the
device.

On Jul 24th 2014 the DSB reported that both recorders have been successfully
read out and contain valid data of flight MH-17. The black boxes are being
examined for possible manipulation, the DSB expects however that data relevant
to the investigation will become available from the recorders. On request
by OSCE the DSB has approved moving debris at the crash site in order to
search for further bodies, that so far have not been handed over to the
Netherlands.

In the afternoon of Jul 24th 2014 international monitors of the crash site
reported they have been chased off the crash site by armed guards.

Russia’s MAK (Interstate Aviation Committee, IAC) announced that they have
joined the investigation led by the Dutch Safety Board and accredited an
official representative. The MAK fully support the UN security council resolution
requiring a “full, thorough and independent international investigation
into the incident with Boeing 777 of Malaysian Airlines”. The MAK stated:
“From the first day of this terrible tragedy, i.e. 17 July IAC works in
close cooperation with ICAO, experts authorities of independent investigation
of aircraft accidents and supports the position of the international aviation
community, including members of the regional Agreement on Aviation, among
whom are Russia and Ukraine, that investigation must be conducted in full
compliance with Annex 13 of the ICAO Chicago Convention.” and continued:
“IAC expresses its gratitude to the President of ICAO Council, Secretary-General
of ICAO, representatives of OSCE and the States for their collaboration
in such a tragic for the international community and difficult for the world
aviation period and is ready, as it was in the past, to provide for the
implementation of the fundamental principles of the ICAO Chicago Convention
for civil aviation which must remain the safest means of transportation
and communication in the world.”

On Jul 25th 2014 the Netherlands have dispatched 40 unarmed policemen to
secure the crash site. Australia have dispatched 50 police officers to the
crash site.

On Jul 25th 2014 the OSCE reported that three Malaysian Investigators, who
had been on site for three days, returned to Kiev stating they were pleased
with the ground covered, the team took a particular interest in parts of
the fuselage that showed holes possibly produced by shrapnell. A so far
unknown part of the fuselage, with seats and windows intact and a number
of bodies, has been discovered in a forested area of the crash site.

On Jul 26th 2014 Malaysia as well as the Dutch Safety Board voice concerns
that their investigators still have no full unrestricted access to the crash
site. The DSB stated, that both black boxes have successfully been read
out and do contain valid data of flight MH-17, so far there is no evidence
of the blackboxes having been tampered with. Analysis of the data has started.
It is not the intention of the international investigation team to visit
the entire crash site or collect and transfer Debris to the Netherlands,
instead based on the results of information collected so far the investigators
are going to employ in very focussed missions to the crash site to identify
specific indications and target specific materials. Those missions, taking
place under presence of security guards, will take several days, a factual
report will be prepared, the release of which can not yet be estimated however.

On Jul 27th 2014 the Dutch Safety Board reported a mission to the crash
site by the Dutch and Australian investigators was cancelled over safety
concerns. 4 Russian investigators are expected to join the investigation.

On Jul 28th 2014 the investigators again were not able to securely access
the crash site. There is fighting around the crash site, Ukrainian forces
claim to have taken control of part of the crash site from the separatists
in order to ensure safe access to the crash site.

On Aug 11th 2014 the DSB reported that the investigation will continue in
The Hague (Netherlands) after 25 accident investigators collected as much
evidence as possible at the crash site in the Ukraine. A preliminary report
is being prepared which will be published in a few weeks time stating: “The
report will contain the first factual findings arising from the investigation
based on various sources, such as the cockpit voice recorder and the flight
data recorder (the black boxes), air traffic control data, radar and satellite
images.” The DSB further stated: “Due to the changed safety situation in
East Ukraine it is unclear whether the data can be supplemented with information
from further investigations at the crash site. To date under Ukranian supervision
only a few investigators were able to briefly visit the crash site immediately
after the plane crash. Since the Dutch Safety Board took the charge of the
investigation no new opportunity has arisen for the team to visit the crash
site.”

At the same time the Government of the Netherlands have released a map showing
the extent of the crash site (yellow circles marking debris off the aircraft),
the areas which international investigators have successfully visited (green),
the areas which international investigators were denied access to (red)
and the areas which are currently deemed unsafe (orange).

Related NOTAMS:
A1508/14 – SEGMENTS OF ATS ROUTES CLOSED:
T242 NALEM MASOL M996 ABUGA GUKOL
G476 MASOL OLGIN W533 TOROS KUBIR
L32 NALEM KW P851 LS NESLO
A83 LS DIMAB L980 GANRA TAMAK
W538 GANRA FASAD W633 LUGAT MAKAK
L69 LAMIV GONED W644 DON GETBO
M70 BULIG TAMAK B493 PODOL FASAD
L984 BULIG FASAD W531 KOVIL PW
M136 MEBAM DON M995 OLGIN PENAK
L140 KOVIL FASAD.
FM FL320 UP TO UNL. 17 JUL 15:00 2014 UNTIL 17 AUG 23:59 2014 ESTIMATED.
CREATED: 17 JUL 15:02 2014

A1507/14 – TEMPO RESTRICTED AREA INSTALLED WITHIN FIR DNIPROPETROVSK
BOUNDED BY COORDINATES :
495355N 0380155E 485213N 0372209E 480122N 0370253E
471352N 0365856E 465018N 0374325E 465900N 0382000E
470642N 0381324E THEN ALONG STATE BOUNDARY
UNTIL POINT 495355N 0380155E.
RESTRICTION NOT APPLIED FOR FLIGHTS OF STATE ACFT OF UKRAINE. FL320 – UNL,
17 JUL 15:00 2014 UNTIL 17 AUG 23:59 2014 ESTIMATED. CREATED: 17 JUL 14:56
2014

A1493/14 – SEGMENTS OF ATS ROUTES CLOSED:
T242 NALEM MASOL M996 ABUGA GUKOL
G476 MASOL OLGIN W533 TOROS KUBIR
L32 NALEM KW P851 LS NESLO
A83 LS DIMAB L980 GANRA TAMAK
W538 GANRA FASAD W633 LUGAT MAKAK
L69 LAMIV GONED W644 DON GETBO
M70 BULIG TAMAK B493 PODOL FASAD
L984 BULIG FASAD W531 KOVIL PW
M136 MEBAM DON M995 OLGIN PENAK
L140 KOVIL FASAD.
FM FL260 UP TO FL320. 14 JUL 18:00 2014 UNTIL 14 AUG 23:59 2014 ESTIMATED.
CREATED: 14 JUL 15:58 2014

A1492/14 – TEMPO RESTRICTED AREA INSTALLED WITHIN FIR DNIPROPETROVSK
BOUNDED BY COORDINATES :
495355N 0380155E 485213N 0372209E 480122N 0370253E
471352N 0365856E 465018N 0374325E 465900N 0382000E
470642N 0381324E THEN ALONG STATE BOUNDARY
UNTIL POINT 495355N 0380155E.
RESTRICTION NOT APPLIED FOR FLIGHTS OF STATE ACFT OF UKRAINE. FL260 – FL320,
14 JUL 18:00 2014 UNTIL 14 AUG 23:59 2014 ESTIMATED. CREATED: 14 JUL 15:48
2014

Map of crash site, yellow: debris, green: search by international investigators,
red: access denied, orange: unsafe area (Graphics: Dutch Government):
Shrapnell damage seen to the cockpit/windshield section (Photo: Jeroen Akkermanns/RTL):
The sketch showing the SU-25 No. 3305 at 10,000 meters at 400 kph over ground/approx.
120 KIAS (Graphics: Russia’s Ministry of Defense):
Allegedly intercepted phone calls between separatists (Video: Ukrainian
Government/NewsfromUkraine):
Igor Girkin’s relevant note of 17:37 MSK retrieved at Jul 17th 2014 15:22Z,
the later missing AN-26 sentence marked:
Igor Girkin’s relevant note of 17:37 MSK retrieved at Jul 17th 2014 23:00Z,
the AN-26 sentence missing:
Shrapnell Damage to forward cargo bay (Photos: Tom Coghlan):
Wreckage (Photo: Dominique Faget/AFP):
Wreckage (Photo: Maxim Zmeyev/Reuters):
Wreckage and bodies pixellated out (Photo: Maxim Zmeyev/Reuters):
Debris near Shakhtarsk:
Ground observer reporting seeing something hit the aircraft and aircraft
coming down (Video: Secretariat for HQ of National Resistance of Ukraine):
Copy (introducing english sub titles to the Russian spoken) of the video
above after the Youtube Account of Secretariat for HQ of National Resistance
of Ukraine was dissolved and the original video thus was removed:
Smoke rising from supposed crash site (Video: Secretariat for HQ of National
Resistance of Ukraine):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4774a31a
20140714123243:20140713000000
Incident: Air India B773 at Newark on Jul 13th 2014, bird strike
An Air India Boeing 777-300, registration VT-ALR performing flight AI-144
from Newark,NJ (USA) to Mumbai (India) with 292 passengers and 21 crew,
was climbing out of Newark’s runway 22R when the crew of another aircraft
reported seeing flames and smoke out of the #1 engine (GE90, left hand).
In the meantime the crew of the Boeing 777, already on departure frequency,
stopped the climb at 2000 feet reporting the left hand engine had been shut
down and returned to Newark for a safe landing on runway 22R about 22 minutes
after departure.

The airport reported the aircraft came to a stop on an adjacent taxiway
with multiple tyres blown. There had been no bird strike.

The airline reported the left hand engine was shut down as result of a bird
strike, the passengers were taken to hotels and are being rebooked onto
other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47735887
20140712210822:20140711000000
Incident: Jetblue A321 over Atlantic on Jul 11th 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Jetblue Airbus A321-200, registration N907JB performing flight B6-409
from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) with 173
passengers and 6 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 240nm west of Bermuda
(Bermuda) when the crew received a smoke indication in the aft luggage compartment,
no smell or haze was observed on board, and decided to divert to Bermuda.
Upon checking in with Bermuda Approach the crew reported no change, the
indication was still active. Upon contacting the tower the crew advised
the situation was still unchanged. The aircraft continued for a safe landing
on Bermuda’s runway 12. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped on an
adjacent taxiway for an inspection by emergency services advising emergency
services they had no APU and could not shut down both engines, the right
hand engine was shut down for the inspection. Emergency services reported
no traces of fire, heat or smoke, thereafter the aircraft taxied to the
apron with emergency services in trail.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration N625JB reached Santo Domingo
with a delay of 10 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47729f02
20140715180506:20140711000000
Incident: United B772 over Pacific on Jul 11th 2014, haze on board
A United Boeing 777-200, registration N210UA performing flight UA-201 (dep
Jul 10th) from Honolulu,HI (USA) to Guam,GU (USA) with 335 passengers and
13 crew, was enroute at FL350 over the Pacific Ocean about 300nm southsouthwest
of Midway Islands,UM (USA) and about 850nm west of Honolulu when the crew
decided to return to Honolulu due to smell of smoke on board. The aircraft
descended to FL300 for the way back. About 10 minutes later haze was observed
in the cabin prompting the crew to turn north and divert to Midway Islands.
The aircraft dumped fuel and landed safely in Midway about one hour after
turning around.

A passenger reported there was a “problem with one of the wings” and the
cabin became smokey. Multiple passengers reported the aircraft had suffered
technical problems involving a burning smell in the cockpit prior to departure
and departed Honolulu with a delay of about 4 hours as result. Passengers
tweeted that the aircraft dumped fuel on the way to Midway.

There is a report on the Internet telling that the aircraft lost transponder,
radios and other systems one by one, however, radar data indicate the transponder
worked until touchdown.

Another passenger reported that there had been a burning smell prior to
departure. In flight the smell returned becoming stronger and stronger,
the smoke detectors in the aft cabin triggered. The captain announced there
were electrical problems and the (weather) radar had ceased functioning.
The replacement aircraft returned them to Honolulu, however, without the
luggage that could not be unloaded from the occurrence aircraft at Midway.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration N779UA positioned to Midway as
flight UA-2068 and returned the passengers to Honolulu as flight UA-2104
delivering the passengers back to Honolulu about 14 hours after their departure
from Honolulu.

The FAA reported there was an electrical smell in the cockpit.

The airline reported: “United flight 201 from Honolulu to Guam diverted
to Midway Island Thursday because of a mechanical issue. We sent another
aircraft to Midway Island to fly our customers back to Honolulu, where we
are accommodating them to their final destinations.”

On Jul 14th 2014 the airline reported that a defective equipment cooling
fan was identified as source of the problem. The fan was replaced and the
aircraft returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4771c6a3
20140710210803:20140709000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Knoxville on Jul 9th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N949DL performing
flight DL-770 from Orlando,FL to Cincinnati,KY (USA) with 52 passengers
and 5 crew, was enroute at FL370 about 25nm southeast of Knoxville,TN (USA)
when both flight crew donned their oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting
smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Knoxville. On approach to
Knoxville’s runway 23R the crew advised that the smoke appeared to be dissipating
after they had turned off some of the equipment, but continued to use their
oxygen masks. The aircraft landed safely on runway 23R and stopped on the
runway, the crew removed their oxygen masks and requested emergency services
to check the aircraft from the outside for any indications of smoke or abnormality
explaining they had a smoke event. Emergency services reported no trace
of fire, smoke or heat and advised they would follow the aircraft to the
gate. The aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency services in trail.

The crew reported 57 people on board to emergency services, the airline
reported 41 passengers and 5 crew were on board of the aircraft.

A replacement MD-88 reached Cincinnati with a delay of 2:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=476c3752
20140703152059:20140703000000
Incident: British Airways B763 near London on Jul 3rd 2014, burning smell in cockpit
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BNWX performing flight
BA-676 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Istanbul (Turkey) with 185 passengers,
was climbing out of London when the crew stopped the climb at FL230 reporting
a burning smell in the cockpit and returned to Heathrow Airport for a safe
landing on runway 27R about 35 minutes after departure (20 minutes after
stopping the climb). The aircraft taxied to the apron after inspection by
emergency services.

The airline reported the aircraft encountered a minor technical problem,
the problem is being resolved and the aircraft is about to resume the flight.

Emergency services reported they were alerted due to smoke in the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4768835f
20140628213108:20140628000000
Incident: British Airways B744 over Atlantic on Jun 28th 2014, smoke and fumes
A British Airways Boeing 747-400, registration G-CIVO performing flight
BA-209 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Miami,FL (USA), was enroute at FL340
over the Atlantic Ocean about one hour into the crossing when the crew reported
smoke in the cabin and decided to turn around and divert to Shannon (Ireland).
The aircraft descended to FL280 for the flight back. The crew subsequently
reported also smoke and fumes in the cockpit and decided to divert to Dublin
(Ireland), then to return to London Heathrow, where the aircraft landed
safely about 2 hours after turning around.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47623e43
20140620162058:20140619000000
Incident: Wideroe DH8C at Skien on Jun 19th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Wideroe de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration LN-WFH performing flight
WF-524 from Skien to Bergen (Norway) with 18 passengers and 3 crew, was
climbing out of Skien when smoke was observed on the flight deck prompting
the crew to return to Skien for a safe landing about 10 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported that less than 2 minutes after the gear was retracted
the gear was extended again making them aware of something was wrong. They
were later told a fan inside the cockpit was emitting smoke.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4766f146
20140626201305:20140618000000
Incident: Austrian B763 near Toronto on Jun 18th 2014, white smoke in cockpit
An Austrian Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration OE-LAZ performing flight
OS-66 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Vienna (Austria) with 195 people on
board, was enroute at FL330 about 130nm northeast of Toronto,ON (Canada)
when the crew noticed white smoke in the cockpit, which dissipated after
about 15 seconds, the odour however remained. The crew worked the related
checklists and decided to turn around and divert to Toronto. On downwind
to runway 05 the crew requested emergency services on stand by due to an
overweight landing and a necessary brakes inspection. The aircraft landed
safely on runway 05 about 35 minutes after turning around and taxied to
the apron with emergency services in trail.

The Canadian TSB reported that the crew used autobrakes 1, the brakes temperatures
did not exceed 270 degrees C. Maintenance was subsequently advised that
a ground unit used in Chicago, that supplied pneumatic pressure to the aircraft
due to the non-availability of the APU, had broken down and possibly contaminated
the pneumatic ducting. The pneumatic ducting was cleaned, the system was
operated using engine power until the odour had disappeared, then the aircraft
was returned to service.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.

The occurrence aircraft resumed service 22 hours after landing as flight
OS-72 from Toronto to Vienna.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4761a430
20140620171215:20140618000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Minot on Jun 18th 2014, electrical odour in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N564JB performing flight B6-597
from Boston,MA to Seattle,WA (USA) with 132 people on board, was enroute
at FL340 about 90nm northeast of Minot,ND (USA) when the crew noticed an
electrical odour on the flight deck and decided to divert to Minot for a
safe landing about 23 minutes later. The crew cancelled the emergency after
landing advising the smell had dissipated.

The incident aircraft was able to continue the flight after 4:15 hours on
the ground and reached Seattle with a delay of 4.5 hours.

On Jun 20th 2014 the Canadian TSB reported that the aircraft was approximately
75nm southwest of Winnipeg,MB (Canada) when the crew detected heavy electrical
odour in the cockpit and spotted the cabin air recirculation fan circuit
breaker had tripped. The crew worked the related checklists turning off
the inflight entertainment system, declared emergency and diverted to Minot.
Maintenance identified the left cabin air recirculation fan was faulty,
disconnected the fan and the inflight entertainment system and released
the aircraft to continue the flight under minimum equipment list requirements.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47576084
20140606143521:20140606000000
Incident: Jet2 B733 at Blackpool on Jun 6th 2014, smoke from right hand side after landing
A Jet2.com Boeing 737-300, registration G-CELJ performing flight LS-740
from Alicante,SP (Spain) to Blackpool,EN (UK), landed on Blackpool’s runway
10 when during roll out smoke was observed from the right hand side of the
aircraft. The aircraft stopped on the runway, emergency services responded
and recommended evacuation of the aircraft. The occupants of the aircraft
subsequently left the aircraft via slides onto the runway.

Smoke seen on the right hand side, emergency services inspecting (Photo:
ac):
The aircraft being evacuated (Photo: ac):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4753a45f
20140601192217:20140531000000
Incident: TAM A320 at Belem on May 31st 2014, hydraulic leak
A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A320-200, registration PR-MBZ performing flight
JJ-3432 from Brasilia,DF to Belem,PA (Brazil), landed in Belem after a seemingly
uneventful flight. While turning off the runway smoke was observed from
the main landing gear, which was caused by hydraulic fluid dripping onto
the hot brakes of the aircraft.

The airline said the smoke was quickly brought under control by airline
maintenance staff.

The aircraft remained on the ground for about 32 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=475177d2
20140529215826:20140529000000
Incident: Copa B738 near Grand Cayman on May 29th 2014, wheel well fire indication
A Copa Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration HP-1837CMP performing flight
CM-219 from Havana (Cuba) to Panama City (Panama) with 115 people on board,
was enroute near Grand Cayman Islands (Cayman Islands) when the crew received
a wheel well fire indication. The crew decided to divert to Grand Cayman’s
Owen Robert International Airport, where the aircraft landed safely. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft is estimated to reach Panama City with a delay of 4:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47515561
20140529173937:20140529000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 at Mallorca on May 29th 2014, wheel well fire indication
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DAL performing flight FR-8551
from Palma Mallorca,SP (Spain) to Memmingen (Germany) with 148 passengers,
was in the initial climb out of Mallorca’s runway 24L when the crew received
a wheel well fire indication, stopped the climb at about 5500 feet, extended
the landing gear, entered a hold at 3000 feet to burn off fuel and returned
to Mallorca for a safe landing on runway 24L about 30 minutes after departure.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-EFL reached Memmingen with
a delay of 6 hours.

The occurrence aircraft was able to resume service about 8.5 hours after
landing.

The airline confirmed a wheel well fire indication, there was no fire however.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=474fed48
20140527201419:20140525000000
Incident: Aeroflot A321 near Moscow on May 25th 2014, cargo smoke indication
An Aeroflot Airbus A321-200, registration VP-BWN performing flight SU-1860
from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Yerevan (Armenia) with 161 passengers
and 8 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 150nm south of the aerodrome when
the crew received a cargo smoke indication and decided to return to Sheremetyevo
Airport for a safe landing. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Airbus A321-200 registration VQ-BOI reached Yerevan with a
delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=474cdb93
20140523221514:20140522000000
Incident: Cityjet RJ85 near Dublin on May 22nd 2014, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A Cityjet Avro RJ-85, registration EI-RJH performing flight WX-118/AF-3135
from Dublin (Ireland) to London City,EN (UK) with 48 passengers and 4 crew,
was climbing out of Dublin when the crew donned their oxygen masks, stopped
the climb at about FL120 reporting smoke in the cockpit and a cracked windshield.
The aircraft returned to Dublin, on approach the crew advised the smoke
appeared to be dissipating in the cockpit, there were still significant
fumes in the cabin however, and performed a safe landing on runway 28 about
15 minutes after departure.

The airline reported that there was no cracked windshield. The cause of
the fumes/smoke is being investigated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477fca60
20140728162437:20140521000000
Incident: Qantas A388 near Honolulu on May 21st 2014, personal electronic device’s battery overheats
A Qantas Airbus A380-800, registration VH-OQK performing flight QF-93 from
Melbourne,VI (Australia) to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was enroute near Hawaii
(USA) when the battery of a passenger’s personal air purifier worn around
the neck overheated and emitted smoke. The crew performed the relevant emergency
actions and immersed the device in water which effectively dissipated the
heat from the device and stopped the smoke. The passenger received superficial
burns not needing medical assistance. The aircraft continued to Los Angeles
for a safe landing.

The ATSB reported on Jul 28th 2014, that the investigation into the occurrence
has been discontinued after the investigation established, that the battery,
a non-rechargeable Lithium battery, was within the specifications permitted
for carry on items and the crew reacted according to documented procedures,
which proved effective. The ATSB reasoned: “Given that the ATSBís records
show that this type of battery failure is quite uncommon and both the crewís
actions and documented procedures were effective in managing the small risks
involved, there would be limited safety benefit in investigating the matter
further, and as such, the ATSB investigation has been discontinued.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=479c3464
20140903153224:20140520000000
Incident: SA Express DH8D near Richards Bay on May 20th 2014, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A SA Express de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of South African Airways,
registration ZS-YBY performing flight XZ-1213/SA-1213 from Johannesburg
to Richards Bay (South Africa), was on approach to Richards Bay about 20nm
before touch down when the crew donned their oxygen masks reporting smoke
in cockpit and cabin. The aircraft continued for a safe landing in Richards
Bay.

South Africa’s Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) reported in their May Bulletin
presenting “Statistics reflect accident information entered into the computer
by the Accident and Investigation Office” released on Sep 3rd 2014, that
during the descent towards Richard Bay (no typo) about 20nm out the crew
observed smoke in cockpit and cabin and used their oxygen masks.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4749c91b
20140519222720:20140518000000
Incident: American B738 at Boston on May 18th 2014, smoked bread crumbs
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N840NN performing flight
AA-1532 from Boston,MA to Miami,FL (USA) with 160 people on board, was climbing
out of Boston when passengers noticed a smell of smoke prompting the crew
to return to Boston for a safe landing about 25 minutes after departure.

The aircraft was able to depart again about 80 minutes after landing and
reached Miami with a delay of 75 minutes.

The airline reported the source of the smell was identified to be bread
crumbs in a galley oven. The oven was cleaned and the aircraft departed
again.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4749c35c
20140519214707:20140515000000
Incident: Lufthansa A321 at Malta on May 15th 2014, cargo smoke indication
A Lufthansa Airbus A321-200, registration D-AISE performing flight LH-1310
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Malta (Malta), was on approach to Malta
when a cargo smoke indication occurred. The crew continued for a safe landing
on Malta’s runway 31. The aircraft stopped on the runway for an inspection
by emergency services. Passengers subsequently disembarked onto the runway
via mobile stairs.

The return flight was cancelled, the aircraft positioned to Frankfurt as
flight LH-9973 about 3:45 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4742d5eb
20140510213012:20140510000000
Incident: United B752 over Pacific on May 10th 2014, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N29124 performing flight UA-1296 from
Los Angeles,CA to Kona,HI (USA) with 150 people on board, was enroute at
FL340 about 70 minutes into the flight when the crew decided to return to
Los Angeles reporting smoke in cockpit and cabin. The aircraft landed safely
back in Los Angeles about 2.5 hours after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=473fa0e6
20141222152902:20140506000000
Incident: Vietnam A332 at Melbourne on May 6th 2014, rejected takeoff
A Vietnam Airlines Airbus A330-200, registration VN-A371 performing flight
VN-780 from Melbourne,VI (Australia) to Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) with
180 passengers and 13 crew, was accelerating for takeoff from Melbourne’s
runway 16 when the right hand engine (PW4168) failed causing the crew to
reject takeoff at low speed (just above 30 knots). The aircraft slowed safely
and came to a stop on the intersection between runways 16 and 27 (3000 feet/1000
meters down the runway), emergency services responded, debris from the engine
was found on the runway.

The airport was closed for about one hour until the aircraft was moved off
the runways.

Passengers reported hearing a pop sound like a tyre had blown and seeing
streaks of flame out of the engine. The crew braked hard and stopped the
aircraft.

Ground observers reported seeing lots of smoke from the aircraft and believed
an engine fire had occurred.

The airport reported there had been an engine failure, debris of the engine
was found on the runway. There had been no engine fire however, the smoke
came off the tyres and was the result of hard braking by the crew.

The airline confirmed an “engineering malfunction” before takeoff.

On Dec 22nd 2014 the Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) reported
that the loss of power of the right hand engine was the result of blade
failures on the 4th stage of the low pressure turbine. The ATSB stated:
“One of those turbine blades was found to exhibit a fracture surface that
appeared to be different to the remaining blades” and followed up stating
that this blade was found to have fractured as result of high cycle fatigue
cracking. The area of the crack initiation however could not be examined
due to being obscured by rotational contact marks between blade and 4th
stage nozzle guide vane clusters. Now the investigation “will focus on determining
whether the turbine blade failed due to the failure of other upstream engine
components or as a result of a defect within the blade itself.”

The fractured blade (Photo: ATSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4739fa40
20150409132429:20140429000000
Accident: Air Contractors B734 at East Midlands on Apr 29th 2014, parts of left main gear failed
An Air Contractors Boeing 737-400 freighter, registration EI-STD performing
freight flight QY-1748 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to East Midland,EN
(UK) with 2 crew and 10 tonnes of freight, had safely landed on East Midland’s
runway 27 at about 02:26L (01:26Z) and slowed to taxi speed. While attempting
to turn off the runway parts the left main gear collapsed disabling the
aircraft on the runway. There were no injuries.

The runway needed to be closed for most of the day, current estimate is
the runway re-opens by 19:00L (18:00Z).

The airline reported the aircraft had landed normally and had slowed safely.
While turning off the runway parts of the left main gear failed. The aircraft
was carrying 10 tonnes of freight (maximum capacity 17 tonnes). The captain
(39) had 4,500 flight hours, the first officer (38) 3,900 hours. The aircraft
had undergone its last A-maintenance check the last weekend (Apr 26th and
27th) and its last heavy maintenance check in February 2013. The Irish AAIU
and the British AAIB have been informed.

The AAIB have opened an investigation into the occurrence rated an accident
and dispatched investigators on site.

On Apr 9th 2015 the AAIB released their final bulletin concluding the probable
causes of the accident were:

The damage to the flap system, fuselage, and MLG equipment was attributable
to the detachment of the left MLG axle, wheel and brake assembly. The damage
to the MLG outer cylinder, engine and nacelle was as result of the aircraft
settling and sliding along the runway.

The left MLG axle assembly detached from the inner cylinder due to the momentary
increase in bending load during the transition from auto to manual braking.
The failure was as a result of stress corrosion cracking and fatigue weakening
the high strength steel substrate at a point approximately 75 mm above the
axle.

It is likely that some degree of heat damage was sustained by the inner
cylinder during the overhaul process, as indicated by the presence of chicken
wire cracking within the chrome plating over the majority of its surface.
However, this was not severe enough to have damaged the steel substrate
and therefore may have been coincidental. Although the risk of heat damage
occurring during complex landing gear plating and refinishing processes
is well understood and therefore mitigated by the manufacturers and overhaul
agencies, damage during the most recent refinishing process cannot be discounted.

The origin of the failure was an area of intense, but very localised heating,
which damaged the chrome protection and changed the metallurgy; ie the formation
of martensite within the steel substrate. This resulted in a surface corrosion
pit, which, along with the metallurgical change, led to stress corrosion
cracking, fatigue propagation and the eventual failure of the inner cylinder
under normal loading.

The AAIB reported the first officer was pilot flying, due to low visibility
procedures in progress at East Midland the crew decided to conduct a CATIII
autoland. During roll out, at about 60 KIAS, the first officer handed controls
to the captain (38, ATPL, 4,279 hours total, 377 hours on type), who pushed
the brakes pedals to disengage autobrakes, the system remained connected
however. The captain pushed the brake pedals harder, autobrakes disconnected,
the aircraft shuddered and rolled slightly left. The captain used the steering
tiller to keep the aircraft on the runway. The first officer saw smoke drift
by the aircraft, the crew of another aircraft reported smoke from the landing
gear, the captain concluded one of the main gear legs had failed and due
to the other crew report was concerned the aircraft might be on fire. He
moved both engine start levers to the cut off position to shut off the engines.
Three fire engines had reached the aircraft but took positions rather far
from the aircraft prompting the commander to conclude that the aircraft
was not on fire (he reasoned that if there had been any fire the engines
would move closer and start to apply fire agent).

Runway marks indicated that the aircraft had travelled 115 meters/380 feet
from the point of its left main gear failure to its final resting position.
The flight data recorder indicated a spike in longitudinal acceleration
s the aircraft slowed through 52 KIAS and another spike 2.25 seconds later.
The aircraft rolled to a bank angle of 7 degrees left afterwards and remained
in that attitude until end of recording.

The left main landing gear inner cylinder was found fractured across the
full diameter through the chrome portion about 75mm above the axle, the
upper torque link arm failed, anti-skid wiring harness, conduit and brake
pipes were parted. The left main wheels, brakes unit and axle assembly came
to rest 27 meters behind the aircraft.

Examination of the left main assembly did not reveal any anomalies except
for the chrome plating at the inner cylinder, which showed extensive crazing
over the majority of the surface with small flakes of the plating having
separated leaving an imprint of the crazing in the form of ferrous oxide
tracks. The fracture surface showed stress corrosion at the origin of the
fracture, further into the material there was evidence of fatigue and the
remainder of the fracture surface exhibited evidence of ductile overload.

The AAIB continued: “As the investigation progressed it was also found that
the ferrous oxide tracks on the substrate were present beneath the chrome
which was exposed to the elements, but not on the upper area normally surrounded
by oil in the outer cylinder. The inner cylinder area above the fracture
face on the portion of the cylinder which had
been forced up into the outer cylinder during the runway abrasion exhibited
circumferential helical bands in the chrome plate. When the chrome was removed,
these marks were also present on the steel substrate. Metallurgical analysis
revealed localised heating damage correlating to the bands” and stated:
“Metallurgical examination of the microsection through the fracture face
showed an area in the substrate steel of over and undertempered martensite,
consistent with localised heating.”

The AAIB reported that the left main gear assembly had undergone overhaul
between December 2012 and January 2013, during which the plating of the
inner cylinder had been re-chromed and re-finished.

The AAIB analysed that the brakes application by the captain was within
usual range and did not contribute to the failure of the landing gear stating:
“The brake pedal application to deselect the autobrake is likely to have
imparted a short duration increased drag load to both MLG. This load was
not excessive, but was enough to overload the already weakened structure
of the left MLG inner cylinder.”

The AAIB analysed: “It is possible that damage was as a result of very high
temperature localised heating of the chrome plated surface which also affected
the substrate beneath. This senario is supported by the presence of the
martensitic area in the substrate steel as shown by the examination after
microsection through the fracture surface. However, this is the only area
of localised heat damage other than the helical banding. Therefore, it can
be concluded that the chicken wire cracking is likely to have been caused
by a grinding anomaly during the finishing process, but that it was not
severe enough to impart heat damage into the steel substrate.”

Related NOTAM:
C2206/14 – RWY 09/27 CLOSED. 29 APR 02:53 2014 UNTIL 29 APR 18:00 2014 ESTIMATED.
CREATED: 29 APR 02:55 2014

Metars:
EGNX 290250Z 08005KT 3000 BR BKN006 10/09 Q1013
EGNX 290150Z VRB03KT 3000 BR BKN006 10/09 Q1013
EGNX 290120Z 10004KT 070V140 3000 BR BKN006 10/09 Q1013
EGNX 290050Z 12006KT 1500 BR BKN004 10/09 Q1013
EGNX 290020Z 13006KT 100V180 1100 R27/P1500 BR FEW002 BKN003 10/10 Q1013
EGNX 282350Z 11006KT 0900 R27/P1500 FG FEW002 BKN003 10/10 Q1014
EGNX 282320Z 13007KT 0900 R27/P1500 FG FEW002 BKN003 10/09 Q1014

Ferrous oxidation on the substrate beneath the chrome plating after longitudinal
microsection (Photo: AAIB):
EI-STD sitting on the runway (Photo: Roger Nock):
The left main wheels on the runway (Photo: Roger Nock):
Distance between aircraft and wheels (Photo: Roger Nock):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4739655a
20140428161242:20140428000000
Incident: S7 A321 at Moscow on Apr 28th 2014, smoke in cabin
A S7 Sibir Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration VQ-BQI performing flight
S7-155 from Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) to Chisinau (Moldova) with 219 people
on board, was in the initial climb out of Domodedovo’s runway 32L when the
crew stopped the climb at 6000 feet due to smoke in the cabin and returned
to Domodedovo Airport for a safe landing on runway 32L about 30 minutes
after departure.

A replacement Airbus A321-200 registration VQ-BQJ is estimated to reach
Chisinau with a delay of 2.5 hours.

Russia’s Ministry of Interior initially reported the aircraft returned because
of a fire indication for the right hand engine (CFM56).

The airline later reported the aircraft returned due to smoke in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47396180
20140428154527:20140425000000
Incident: TAM A321 near Salvador on Apr 25th 2014, cargo smoke indication
A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A321-200, registration PT-MXH performing flight
JJ-3861 from Recife,PE to Brasilia,DF (Brazil) with 150 people on board,
was enroute at FL320 about 200nm west of Salvador,BA (Brazil) when the crew
received a cargo smoke indication and diverted to Salvador, where the aircraft
landed safely on runway 10 about 30 minutes later. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after about 4:15 hours on the
ground and reached Brasilia with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4737f000
20140426185442:20140424000000
Incident: Envoy E145 near Tampa on Apr 24th 2014, smoke on board
An Envoy Air (former American Eagle) Embraer ERJ-145, registration N935AE
performing flight MQ-3454 from Tallahassee,FL to Miami,FL (USA) with 47
passengers and 3 crew, was climbing out of Tallahassee when the crew stopped
the climb at FL250, donned their oxygen masks and decided to divert to Tampa,FL
(USA) reporting smoke on board. The aircraft landed safely on Tampa’s runway
01L about 11 minutes later. After landing the crew advised that the smoke
on board had gone, the aircraft vacated the runway and taxied to the apron.

A passenger reported there had been a loud boom in the back of the aircraft
immediately followed by smell of smoke.

The airline confirmed there was smell of smoke on board, however, the airline
was not aware of any explosion.

N935AE is powered by AE3007 engines.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=473b0fdf
20140430203136:20140421000000
Incident: Sky Regional DH8D at Moncton on Apr 21st 2014, passenger detects wheel damage
A Sky Regional de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of Air Canada, registration
C-FSRW performing flight RS-7527/AC-7527 from Moncton,NB to Montreal,QC
(Canada), was in the initial climb when a passenger notified the crew the
outboard right hand main wheel had suddenly stopped during the departure
roll and had started to emit smoke. The crew decided to continue the flight
to Montreal. Upon descending towards Montreal the crew notified ATC of the
problem with the wheel and requested emergency services on stand by for
the arrival. The aircraft landed safely on Montreal’s runway 24R.

The Canadian TSB reported that the right main wheel bearing, the brake,
wheel and and axle assembly were replaced. The aircraft manufacturer is
investigating the occurrence.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4734da77
20140422173811:20140420000000
Incident: Qatar A333 at Doha on Apr 20th 2014, smoke in cabin
A Qatar Airbus A330-300, registration A7-AEA performing flight QR-1 from
Doha (Qatar) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was in the initial climb out of
Doha’s runway 33 when the crew stopped the climb at 2500 feet due to smoke
in the cabin and returned to Doha for a safe landing on runway 33 about
13 minutes after departure.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration A7-ACB reached London with a
delay of 4:15 hours.

Passengers reported that there was a strong burning smell, then visible
haze and smoke about mid cabin. Cabin crew fetched portable fire extinguishers
and checked the cabin including walls and overhead bins for possible sources
of heat or fire but without finding any. The cabin was prepared for an evacuation,
however, the smoke began to dissipate and was gone by the time of touch
down. Emergency services met the aircraft upon landing. The passengers disembarked
normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47e25db9
20141202171649:20140419000000
Report: Flydubai B738 near Kiev on Apr 19th 2014, IFE could not resist smoking
A Flydubai Boeing 737-800, registration A6-FEK performing flight FZ-727
from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Kiev Zhuliany (Ukraine) with 59 passengers
and 7 crew, was descending towards Kiev at about 15000 feet, when cabin
crew noticed smoke rose from passenger seat 9A. One cabin crew relocated
the passengers in seats 9A-C, another cabin crew fetched a fire extinguisher
and a smoke hood and discharged the fire extinguisher onto the seat, the
power to the inflight entertainment system was turned off. In the meantime
the cabin supervisor informed the flight deck about increasing smoke and
heavy fumes in the cabin indicating an electrical fire, the flight crew
declared emergency, declined an offer to divert to Kiev’s main airport Borispol
Airport and discussed whether they should perform a straight in landing
to runway 26 though winds favoured runway 08. A second fire extinguisher
was fetched, however not discharged anymore as cabin crew noticed the smoke
had decreased and was dissipating. The flight crew at the same time was
working the fire, smoke, fumes checklist, upon completing the checklist
cabin crew informed the flight deck that the smoke had ceased and dissipated.
The flight crew continued for a normal safe landing on Zhuliany’s runway
08.

The United Arab Emirates GCAA released their final report concluding the
probable causes of the incident were:

The Air Accident Investigation Sector (AAIS) determines that the causes
of the smoke that emitted from the visual display unit VDU of seat 9A were:

– Gasses emitted from the PCB of the VDU backlight inverter board.

– Heat caused by increased current demand after the break in the secondary
coil of the transformer followed by the failure of the primary side transistor
components.

– The failure of the fuse to open quickly and isolate the circuit due to
its inappropriate rating related to the VDU application and possibly other
reasons not determined by the Investigation.

Contributing Factors to the Incident

Contributing factor to the Incident was that the material of the fuse might
have helped in transferring heat by ‘conduction’ between the fuse and the
PCB of the backlight inverter board.

The GCAA reported that cabin crew already identified the smoke was originating
from the visual display unit of the inflight entertainment system for seat
9A. The system was removed after the flight and heat damage was found inside
consistent with the inverter printed circuit board (PCB) being heated by
heat transfer from the fuse and emitting smoke as result. The current demand
had increased due to a failure of the secondary winding of the transformer
of the VDU’s power supply, the fuse however did not trip because its current
rating was substantially higher than needed for VDU operation.

The GCAA analysed that the responses by cabin crew, flight crew as well
as the aerodrome had been in line with the required procedures.

The smoking inverter board (Photo: GCAA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=472d32cd
20140412164909:20140412000000
Incident: American B772 near Norfolk on Apr 12th 2014, cargo fire indication
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N778AN performing flight
AA-950 (dep Apr 11th 2014) from Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil) to New York
JFK,NY (USA), was enroute at FL360 about 175nm eastsoutheast of Norfolk,VA
(USA) when the crew received a forward cargo fire indication. The crew activated
the fire suppression system in the cargo hold and decided to divert to Norfolk.
Despite the discharge of the fire suppression system the fire indication
continued. The aircraft landed safely on Norfolk’s runway 23 about 28 minutes
after leaving FL360 and stopped at the end of the runway for emergency services
to check the cargo hold. Emergency services did not find any trace of fire,
heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=477635ad
20150316172453:20140411000000
Incident: China Airlines B738 near Bangkok on Apr 11th 2014, burning smell, smoke and arcing in cabin
A China Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration B-18601 performing flight
CI-7916 from Yangon (Myanmar) to Taipei (Taiwan) with 155 passengers and
8 crew, was enroute at FL370 about 250nm northwest of Bangkok when the crew
noticed a burning odour near the main cabin door 1L, then observed smoke
and arcing. While cabin crew discharged fire extinguishers the flight crew
diverted the aircraft to Bangkok. The aircraft entered a hold at 6000 feet,
climbed to FL100, descended to 7000 feet again to enter another hold and
landed safely at Bangkok about 2 hours after leaving FL370.

Taiwan’s Aviation Safety Council (ASC) reported the occurrence on Jul 16th
2014 stating that an investigation into the Fire/Smoke occurrence has been
opened.

On Mar 16th 2015 Taiwan’s ASC released their final report in Chinese concluding
the probable causes of the occurrence were:

– There were existing compression situation of forward galley 2 electric
wire and the ceiling panel, the normal operation vibration caused the wire
rubbing against the ceiling panel. The exposed conducting wire inside the
electric wire and graphite fibers inside the ceiling panel rubbing against
each other caused short circuit happened between the left side panel and
the metal beam. The electric circuit from conducting wire to the right hand
side then to the left hand side metal beam panel, the electric circuit formed
a short circuit to ground and caused the cabin electric arcing.

– There are 2 probable causes regarding to the situation of the compression
between the forward galley 2 electric wire and the ceiling panel.

+ When the aircraft was shop out 16 years ago, the forward galley 2 wire
had compressed to the ceiling panel, however, the occurrence did not occur
due to the wire wrap was the close type; 8 years ago, the wire wrap was
changed to open type when the mechanic re-installed the clamp and wire in
accordance with Engineering Order (EO) instruction, at the time the wire
had compressed to the ceiling panel directly. The vibration of normal operation
caused the electric wire to rubbing against the ceiling panel. The conducting
wire inside the electric wire and graphite fibers inside the ceiling panel
was exposed and compressed each other.

+ China Airlines did not train the mechanic regarding the positioning marking
before remove and reinstall the components when the aircraft was shop out;
consequently, the mechanic did not perform positioning marking when the
EO was performed 8 years ago. The EO content also did not include the positioning
marking step which caused the clamp was installed onto the fore side of
the fastener mistakenly lead the wire compressed to the ceiling panel.

The ASC reported that the aircraft was enroute when the cabin crew at position
1R heard a “bang” sound and noticed a burning smell, a passenger pointed
to smoke coming from the cabin ceiling. Cabin crew 1R found a dark spot
near the door 1L and dripping material. The purser was informed, checked
the spot, felt an electrical shock when touching the panel and suspected
a hidden fire. While the flight crew initiated a diversion to Bangkok, cabin
crew disconnected all power to forward galley #2. Being unable to get behind
the panel for identifying the source of the fire, the purser requested the
axe from the captain, that is kept in the cockpit, the captain handed the
axe to the purser, the purser used the axe to create a hole in the panel,
during that process an electrical arc shot about 30cm in length came off
the ceiling. The arc ceased after a fire extinguisher was discharged into
the hole.

The dark spot at the cabin ceiling (Photo: ASC):
The chafed wires (Photo: ASC):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=472ee7d0
20140414210436:20140411000000
Incident: Canadian North B732 near Yellowknife on Apr 11th 2014, smell of smoke and haze in cabin
A Canadian North Boeing 737-200, registration C-GNDU performing flight 5T-447
from Cambridge Bay,NU to Yellowknife,NT (Canada) with 36 people on board,
was enroute at FL330 about 160nm north of Yellowknife when the crew reported
the smell of smoke as well as haze on board. The flight crew received a
#2 air conditioning system trip off indication, shut the system down, the
haze and smell dissipated thereafter. The aircraft landed safely in Yellowknife.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=472d3d53
20140905143147:20140411000000
Incident: British Airways A319 at Frankfurt on Apr 11th 2014, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Airbus A319-100, registration G-EUPZ performing flight
BA-909 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was in
the initial climb out of Frankfurt’s runway 18 when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit, stopped the climb at about 4000 feet, entered a right hand
turn and landed safely on runway 07C (active runways 25) about 13 minutes
after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The incident aircraft was able to resume service on Apr 19th 2014.

On Sep 5th 2014 Germany’s BFU reported in their April Bulletin that shortly
after departure the crew donned their oxygen masks, reported smoke in the
cockpit, declared PAN, PAN, PAN and returned to Frankfurt for a landing
on runway 07C. Maintenance identified a defective fan in the avionics compartment
and replaced the fan.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=472d3aeb
20140412174556:20140411000000
Incident: Caribbean B738 over Atlantic on Apr 11th 2014, smell of smoke
A Caribbean Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration 9Y-JMA performing flight
BW-425 from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago)
with 106 people on board, was enroute at FL350 about 120nm southwest of
Bermuda (Bermuda) when the crew reported the smell of smoke on board and
decided to divert to Bermuda, however without declaring emergency. The aircraft
landed safely on Bermuda’s runway 12 about 30 minutes later.

The incident aircraft was able to continue the flight as flight BW-3425
the following day and reached Port of Spain with a delay of 26.5 hours.

Police reported the aircraft diverted after an electrical burning smell
was observed in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4729f1e9
20140408123903:20140407000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 at Frankfurt on Apr 7th 2014, rejected takeoff
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGU performing flight LH-630
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates), was accelerating
for takeoff from Frankfurt’s runway 18 when the crew rejected takeoff at
high speed due to a #4 engine (CFM56, outboard right hand) fire indication.
The aircraft slowed safely and stopped on the runway, emergency services
responded, checked the engine and cooled the brakes. The aircraft subsequently
returned to the gate.

A replacement Airbus A340-300 registration D-AIFA reached Dubai with a delay
of 3:40 hours.

A passenger reported the aircraft was accelerating for takeoff normally,
when the brakes came on at high speed. After the aircraft had come to a
full stop the captain announced an engine #4 fire indication, a smell of
overheated brakes became apparent in the cabin, emergency services arrived
and checked the engine and brakes. There had been no unusual noises, vibrations
or smells prior to the brakes coming on, there was no visible smoke or fire.

The incident aircraft is still on the ground in Frankfurt 24 hours later.

Engine #4 being checked by emergency services:
Emergency service line up:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47287cb2
20140406171230:20140406000000
Incident: Jetstar A320 near Rockhampton on Apr 6th 2014, fumes in forward cabin
A Jetstar Airbus A320-200, registration VH-VQW performing flight JQ-959
from Cairns,QL to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 132 passengers, was enroute
at FL370 about 130nm southwest of Rockhampton,QL (Australia) when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Rockhampton where
the aircraft landed safely on runway 33 about 22 minutes later.

The airline reported passengers in the forward cabin noticed a strong smell
prompting the diversion. The passengers were taken to hotels overnight while
the aircraft is being examined for the cause of the fumes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4726ab38
20140404104729:20140404000000
Incident: Qantas A332 near Adelaide on Apr 4th 2014, cargo fire indication
A Qantas Airbus A330-200, registration VH-EBQ performing flight QF-581 from
Sydney,NS to Perth,WA (Australia) with 266 people on board, was enroute
at FL380 about 150nm westsouthwest of Adelaide,SA (Australia) when the crew
received an aft cargo fire indication and activated the fire suppression
system which stopped the fire indication. The aircraft turned around and
diverted to Adelaide for a safe landing on Adelaide’s runway 05 about 23
minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

Qantas said the crew received a warning indication indicating a possible
technical problem, the crew diverted to Adelaide as a safety precaution.
The passengers disembarked normally via the aerobridge.

Passengers reported that apart from the aircraft turning back to Adelaide
and the crew announcements they did not notice anything abnormal, in particular
there were no unusual smells. Other passengers tweeted however there was
smoke in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=472870ab
20140406155313:20140403000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Lexington on Apr 3rd 2014, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N14558 performing
flight EV-5924/UA-5924 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Knoxville,TN (USA) with
52 people on board, was enroute at FL370 about 25nm northeast of Lexington,KY
(USA) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert
to Lexington. Upon checking in with Lexington approach the crew reported
the smoke had subsided and they were continuing the diversion as a precaution.
The aircraft landed safely on Lexington’s runway 22 about 25 minutes after
leaving FL370 and taxied to the apron.

The remainder of flight was cancelled.

The airline stated a maintenance issue caused the diversion to Lexington.
The passengers were reaccomodated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=472563e5
20140402221518:20140402000000
Incident: KLM B773 near Bangkok on Apr 2nd 2014, cargo fire indication
A KLM Boeing 777-300, registration PH-BVA performing flight KL-836 from
Singapore (Singapore) to Amsterdam (Netherlands), was enroute at FL280 about
110nm southsouthwest of Bangkok (Thailand) when the crew told passengers
they had received a cargo fire indication, the fire suppression system had
been activated and they needed to divert to Bangkok, subsequently stating
the fire indication had extinguished. The aircraft dumped fuel and landed
safely in Bangkok about 30 minutes after the fire indication. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The passengers were taken to hotels and reported they were told the repair
of the fire suppression system would take until next day.

The airline apologized to passengers in written stating the flight (that
had departed Denpasar for Singapore on Apr 1st 2014 and departed Singapore
at 00:30L on Apr 2nd) had to be diverted to Bangkok as a safety precaution
because of a fire warning in a hold. The flight could not be continued due
to crew duty time limitation.

The incident aircraft was able to continue the flight just after midnight
local time, about 21 hours after landing, and is estimated to reach Amsterdam
with a total delay of 22 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4724695a
20140401214130:20140331000000
Accident: Jetblue E190 at Kingston on Mar 31st 2014, smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N267JB performing flight B6-876
from Kingston (Jamaica) to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 98 passengers,
was climbing out of KIngston when smoke in the cockpit prompted the crew
to return to Kingston, where the aircraft landed safely about 15 minutes
after departure. 6 passengers received injuries.

The airline confirmed smell of smoke on board of the aircraft, 6 passengers
received medical assistance after landing.

The FAA reported 6 passengers received injuries following smoke in the cockpit.

The source of the smoke is under investigation.

Jamaica’s Airport Authority reported they are investigating whether the
smoke came from one of the engines or air conditioning systems. One of the
passengers received a leg fracture while exiting the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47216824
20140328195618:20140328000000
Incident: Aeromar AT42 at Lazaro Cardenas on Mar 28th 2014, smoking brakes during line up
An Aeromar Avions de Transport Regional ATR-42-300, registration XA-TIC
performing flight VW-610 from Lazaro Cardenas to Mexico City (Mexico) with
18 people on board, was taxiing for departure turning onto the runway to
line up for departure when a large plume of white smoke rose from the left
hand main gear prompting the crew to evacuate the aircraft. Emergency services
responded and doused the left hand gear.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto another flight.

Passengers reported they were heading for the runway and the aircraft was
in the turn into takeoff position when they felt a jolt and strong vibrations,
the crew stopped the aircraft believing they had burst a tyre when white
smoke became visible outside. The captain ordered the evacuation of the
aircraft. They were later told a tyre had blown indeed starting the sequence
of events.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=471f2ed4
20140325224319:20140324000000
Incident: Sunstate DH8D near Brisbane on Mar 24th 2014, lavatory fire indication
A Sunstate Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of Qantas, registration
VH-QOT performing flight QF-2128 from Sydney,NS to Gladstone,QL (Australia)
with 33 passengers and 4 crew, was enroute at FL240 about 135nm southwest
of Brisbane,QL (Australia) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit.
The aircraft diverted to Brisbane for a safe landing about 30 minutes later.

Passengers reported fumes occurred in the cabin, the air conditioning shut
down followed by a fire detector going off in the lavatory.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=471d8035
20140323191757:20140322000000
Incident: Air France B773 near Paris on Mar 22nd 2014, cargo smoke indication
An Air France Boeing 777-300, registration F-GSQC performing flight AF-456
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil),
had just reached cruise level 310 about 95nm southwest of Paris when the
crew declared emergency reporting a cargo smoke indication and returned
to Paris. The aircraft dumped fuel on the way back and landed safely on
Charles de Gaulle Airport’s runway 26R about 35 minutes later. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration F-GSQB departed the following
day as flight AF-456A and is estimated to reach Sao Paulo with a delay of
28 hours.

A passenger reported the crew announced they had just declared emergency
due to a cargo fire indication, passengers should assume brace positions
for landing. Emergency services found no hazard.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=471f28a3
20140325215903:20140321000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Winnipeg on Mar 21st 2014, smoke in cabin
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-GRWS performing flight WS-655 from
Toronto,ON to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 109 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute
at FL380 near Winnipeg,MB (Canada) when the crew reported a burning odour
and smoke in the cabin. The crew shut down the cabin utility power after
which smoke and odour subsided. The crew continued the flight to Calgary
for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported a recirculation fan was reported failed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=471bf5d0
20140321213549:20140320000000
Incident: Alaska B737 near Eugene on Mar 20th 2014, galley oven smoking
An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N618AS performing flight
AS-513 from Santa Ana,CA to Seattle,WA (USA) with 122 people on board, was
enroute at FL400 about 130nm southsoutheast of Eugene,OR (USA) when the
crew decided to divert to Eugene after a galley oven “decided” to smoke.
The galley power was turned off and a fire extinguisher discharged into
the oven, the smoke ceased. The aircraft landed safely at Eugene about 30
minutes after leaving FL400.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 carrying a maintenance team was dispatched
to Eugene, resumed the flight and reached Seattle with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4718c5ee
20140317231132:20140316000000
Incident: Arabia A320 near Mumbai on Mar 16th 2014, cargo smoke indication
An Air Arabia Airbus A320-200, registration A6-ANL performing flight G9-454
from Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) to Kozhikode (India) with 171 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute over the Arabian Sea southwest of Mumbai (India)
when the crew received a smoke indication in one of the cargo holds. The
aircraft diverted to Mumbai for a safe landing. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight to Kozhikode after about 5.5
hours on the ground in Mumbai and reached Kozhikode with a delay of 6.5
hours (including a delay at departure from Sharjah).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47170e3f
20140316070608:20140314000000
Incident: Cargolux B744 near Shannon on Mar 14th 2014, cargo fire indication
A Cargolux Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration LX-SCV performing flight
CV-765 from Aguadilla (Puerto Rico) to Maastricht (Netherlands) with 2 crew
and a cargo of flowers, was enroute at FL370 about 120nm east of Shannon
(Ireland) over the Irish Sea when the crew declared emergency reporting
a cargo fire indication. The aircraft descended and set course to divert
to Cardiff,WL (UK) but stopped the descent at 4000 feet, climbed back to
FL100 and diverted to Shannon advising they would vacate the runway after
landing. The aircraft landed safely on runway 24 in low visibility about
one hour after declaring emergency and about 40 minutes after aborting the
approach to Cardiff. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The airline reported the main deck fire warning was caused by moisture from
the flowers on board of the aircraft.

Metars Cardiff:
EGFF 140720Z 00000KT 0050 R12/0125 FG VV/// 04/04 Q1029
EGFF 140650Z VRB03KT 0000 R12/0125 FG VV/// 04/03 Q1029
EGFF 140620Z VRB03KT 0000 R12/0150 FG VV/// 03/03 Q1029
EGFF 140550Z 09005KT 0900 R12/P1500 FG NSC 02/02 Q1029
EGFF 140520Z AUTO 06005KT 0600 R12/1400 FG NCD 02/02 Q1029
EGFF 140450Z 08006KT 1600 BR NSC 03/03 Q1028
EGFF 140420Z 08005KT 1500 BR NSC 03/02 Q1029
EGFF 140350Z 09005KT 1400 BR NSC 03/02 Q1029
EGFF 140320Z 05005KT 2200 BR NSC 04/04 Q1029
EGFF 140250Z AUTO 07005KT 1900 BR NCD 04/03 Q1029
EGFF 140220Z 06006KT 2000 BR NSC 04/03 Q1029

Metars Shannon:
EINN 140700Z 25007KT 6000 FEW001 BKN008 07/07 Q1030 BECMG BKN015
EINN 140630Z 21004KT 1500 -DZ FEW001 BKN005 07/07 Q1029 NOSIG
EINN 140600Z 24004KT 1500 -DZ FEW002 BKN004 07/07 Q1029 NOSIG
EINN 140530Z 24003KT 1800 BR FEW003 BKN005 07/06 Q1029 NOSIG
EINN 140500Z 23003KT 1800 BR SCT001 BKN005 06/06 Q1030 NOSIG
EINN 140430Z 22006KT 1400 R24/P1500 R06/P1500 BR SCT001 BKN004 06/06 Q1030
NOSIG
EINN 140400Z 24009KT 1200 R24/P1500 R06/P1500 MIFG SCT001 BKN004 06/06 Q1030
NOSIG
EINN 140330Z 27004KT 1200 R24/P1500 R06/P1500 MIFG SCT001 BKN004 06/06 Q1030
NOSIG
EINN 140300Z 27009KT 1100 R24/P1500 R06/P1500 MIFG SCT001 BKN003 06/06 Q1030
NOSIG

LX-SCV being checked by emergency services:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47156cf9
20140313214601:20140310000000
Incident: Juneyao A320 near Jinan on Mar 10th 2014, forward cargo fire indication
A Juneyao Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration B-6381 performing flight
HO-1253 from Shanghai Hongqiao to Beijing (China), was enroute near Jinan
(China) when the crew received a forward cargo fire indication, activated
the fire suppression system and diverted to Jinan for a safe landing. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airport reported the fire indication was determined false.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration B-6735 reached Beijing with a
delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47303d7f
20140416154202:20140309000000
Incident: British Airways A320 at Prague on Mar 9th 2014, loose nut
A British Airways Airbus A320-200, registration G-EUUT performing flight
BA-858 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Prague (Czech Republic), had landed
on Prague’s runway 24 and was about to taxi to the apron when ground personnel
observed smoke from the right hand main gear and notified tower, who dispatched
emergency services to assist the aircraft. Emergency services established
that the smoke was result of hydraulic fluid dripping onto the hot brakes.

Czech’s UZPLN reported in their quarterly bulletin that after cooling the
brakes mechanics found a leak at brake #4, where the hoses for the green
and yellow hydraulic systems connected to the brake. The nuts on those hydraulic
connectors were tightened and the brakes tested without fault.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47112400
20140308120514:20140308000000
Incident: Indigo A320 at Kathmandu on Mar 8th 2014, smoke from brakes during roll out
An Indigo Airbus A320-200, registration VT-IEU performing flight 6E-31 from
Delhi (India) to Kathmandu (Nepal) with 176 passengers and 6 crew, landed
normally on Kathmandu’s runway 02. During the roll out smoke was observed
from the right hand main gear. The aircraft stopped on an adjacent taxiway
and was evacuated via slides through the right hand doors. No injuries are
being reported, emergency services responded and cooled the brakes.

The return flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4710c69b
20140428090534:20140308000000
Crash: Malaysia B772 over Gulf of Thailand on Mar 8th 2014, aircraft missing, data indicate flight MH-370 ended west of Australia
An Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration 9M-MRO performing flight
MH-370 from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Beijing (China) with 227 passengers
and 12 crew, was enroute at FL350 about 40 minutes into the flight about
90nm northeast of Kota Bharu (Malaysia) over the Gulf of Thailand in contact
with Subang Center (Malaysia) just about to be handed off to Ho Chi Minh
Air Traffic Control Center (Vietnam) when radar and radio contact was lost
at about 01:22L (17:22Z Mar 7th). Subang Air Traffic Control Center officially
told the airline at around 02:40L (18:40Z Mar 7th) that the aircraft was
missing. Malaysia’s Prime Minister stated on Mar 15th that based on new
satellite data there is evidence that the data communication systems and
transponder had been turned off by deliberate action by someone on board
and the aircraft deviated off course, the last confirmed communication between
aircraft and satellites occurred at 00:11Z (Mar 8th). On Mar 24th 2014 Malaysia’s
Prime Minister announced that according to new computations by Inmarsat
and the British AAIB there is no reasonable doubt that flight MH-370 ended
in the South Indian Ocean west of Perth (Australia).

On Mar 8th 2014 the airline confirmed on their website the aircraft is missing,
a search and rescue operation has been initiated. Subang Air Traffic Control
reported at 02:40 local Malaysian time, that radar and radio contact with
the aircraft had been lost. The last radar position was N6.92 E103.58. There
has been no distress call, no ELT or other signal was received from the
aircraft. The focus is currently to locate the aircraft, as of 11:20Z Mar
8th search teams from Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam have failed to find
any evidence of the aircraft. On Mar 9th 2014 14:43L (06:43Z) the airline
added, that still no evidence of the aircraft has been found more than 24
hours after last contact with the aircraft and corrected the time of last
contact with the aircraft to 1:30L. The airline stated, they are fearing
for the worst, depending on where the aircraft will be found a command center
will be set either at Kota Bharu or Ho Chi Minh City.

In a press conference the airline stated, the last contact with the aircraft
had been about 120 miles (90nm) northeast of Kota Bharu (Malaysia), over
the Gulf of Thailand. The aircraft was piloted by an experienced captain
(53, 18,365 hours total) and a first officer (27, 2,763 hours total). The
aircraft carried 154 Chinese citizens, 38 Malaysians, 7 Indonesians, 6 Australians,
5 Indian, 4 French, 3 citizens of USA, 2 New Zealanders, 2 Ukrainians, 2
Canadians, 1 Russian, 1 Italian, 1 Dutch and 1 Austrian.

On Mar 11th 2014 the airline reported that the aircraft had accumulated
53,465 flight hours in 7,525 flight cycles since its delivery to Malaysia
Airlines in 2002. The aircraft has last undergone maintenance on Feb 23rd
2014. All Malaysia Airlines aircraft are equipped with ACARS transmitting
monitoring data automatically. However, no distress call and no information
was relayed. The search area has been extended and includes the Strait of
Malacca west of Malaysia looking at the possibility that the aircraft may
have turned back and diverted to Subang (Malaysia).

On Mar 8th 2014 search missions have been launched along the estimated flight
track of the aircraft from Gulf of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos to
China (South China Sea).

On Mar 8th 2014 at about noon local time Vietnamese search personnel reported
they have detected an ELT signal about 20nm south of the coast of Ca Mau.
Vietnam officials subsequently stated that they have not yet detected flight
MH-370.

On Mar 8th 2014 in the afternoon local time an Admiral of the Vietnamese
Navy was understood to indicate that the crash site of the aircraft has
been located about 130nm south of the Vietnamese Island Tho Chau (110nm
southwest of main land Ca Mau), the Navy later said that the admiral only
referred to the position of last radio/radar contact with the aircraft,
the aircraft has not yet been found.

On Mar 8th 2014 China reported that the aircraft did not enter Chinese airspace
(editorial note: which effectively discounts rumours and false reports by
a Malaysian outlet of the aircraft having landed in Nanning (China)).

On Mar 8th 2014 Nanning Airport stated the aircraft did not arrive at the
airport.

On Mar 9th 2014 the NTSB reported that a go-team has been dispatched to
Asia to assist with the investigation into the missing flight MH-370. The
NTSB wrote: “Once the location of the airplane is determined, International
Civil Aviation Organization protocols will determine which country will
lead the investigation.”

In the evening of Mar 9th 2014 local time Malaysia’s Transport Ministry
reported, that no trace of the missing aircraft has been found at dawn Mar
9th after two days of search. The oil slicks as well as debris found so
far are not related to the aircraft. Rumours like other crew establishing
contact to the accident flight after radar contact was lost, phone contact
to a mobile phone of one the passengers of the missing flight or the aircraft
having landed in China or Vietnam, are false.

In the night of Mar 9th 2014 Vietnam’s Search and Rescue Control Center
released a photo of a part floating in the Gulf of Thailand, that despite
darkness was discovered by a Twin Otter Aircraft of Vietnam’s Coast Guard
at position N8.792 E103.374 about 31nm southsouthwest of Tho Chu (editorial
note: 114nm north of the last radar contact position) and is believed to
be a part of the aircraft. The Control Center stated, the part is definitely
made of composite material. Forces will be dispatched to the part after
daybreak Mar 10th 2014. Malaysia’s Department of Civil Aviation said later
that this part is unrelated to MH-370, it was not recovered.

Hong Kong’s Air Traffic Control Center reported on Mar 10th 2014 around
17:30L (09:30Z) that an airliner enroute on airway L642 reported via HF
radio that they saw a large field of debris at position N9.72 E107.42 about
80nm southeast of Ho Chi Minh City, about 50nm off the south-eastern coast
of Vietnam in the South China Sea and about 281nm northeast of the last
known radar position. Ships have been dispatched to the reported debris
field.

On Mar 10th 2014 Vietnam’s Search and Rescue Control Center confirmed receiving
the report by Hong Kong’s Air Traffic Control Center stating that a Hong
Kong based airliner reported a large field of debris while enroute on airway
L642. A Thai cargo ship in the area was asked for assistance and has set
course to the area but did not find anything unusual so far. A second vessel
asked for assistance did find some debris. Following this finding Vietnam’s
Maritime Search and Rescue Services (MRCC) dispatched a ship to the debris
field.

On Mar 10th 2014 Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department confirmed a Cathay
Pacific flight from Hong Kong to Kuala Lumpur spotted large amount of debris
while enroute off the coast of South East Vietnam.

Vietnam’s Search and Rescue Center later announced that the border guard
vessel arriving at the position of the debris field did not find any objects.
There were high winds and large waves, the debris possibly drifted away.

On Mar 11th 2014 Malaysia’s Air Force reported their primary radar data
suggest, the aircraft may have turned west over the Gulf of Thailand at
about 1000 meters/3000 feet below the original flight level (editorial note:
another possible interpretation could be: at 1000 meters of height compared
to 10000 meters original level) and flown past the east coast near Kota
Bharu and the west coast of Malaysia near Kedah, the radar return was last
seen at 02:40L near Pulau Perak in the Straits of Malacca, about 285nm westsouthwest
of the last known (secondary) radar position. Local Police at Kota Bharu
confirmed a number of locals reported lights and a low flying aircraft at
Kota Bharu at an estimated height of 1000 meters/3000 feet.

Early Mar 12th 2014 the commander of Malaysia’s Air Force stated, he did
not make statements about the aircraft being tracked across Malaysia into
the Strait of Malacca. The Air Force does not discount the possibility of
an air turn back however, as stated in a press conference on Mar 9th 2014.

In the evening of Mar 11th 2014 Vietnam’s Search and Rescue Center reported
they were expanding their search areas both to the east and west including
the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand. Two Chinese search planes in addition
to the Vietnamese ships and aircraft have been operating over Vietnamese
waters, so far there has not been any finding. The oil slicks and debris
found in the Gulf of Thailand south of Tho Chau Island proved unrelated
to MH-370, the field of debris of Mar 10th was determined false alert too.

On Mar 12th 2014 Vietnam’s Search and Rescue Control Center reported that
analysis of satellite images of Vietnams coastal regions, capable of showing
objects sized 2.5 meters by 2.5 meters, did not detect any signs of the
aircraft. Around noon the Control Center reported, that the search operation
continues in full like the days before based on official information from
Malaysia that the aircraft has not been tracked in the Strait of Malacca.
9 Vietnamese aircraft and 9 Vietname ships plus 14 foreign aircraft and
22 foreign ships are searching Vietnamese waters.

On Mar 12th 2014 officials of Malaysia’s Civil Aviation Authority talking
to families of occupants of MH-370 in Beijing reported that the aircraft
was just in the process of being handed off to Vietnam, the last radio transmission
heard from the aircraft was “Okay, good night”. The crew did not report
on Vietnam’s frequency anymore. About three minutes later Vietnam’s control
center noticed that the aircraft had disappeared from radar and had not
reported on his frequency. There had been no emergency or distress calls
on any means of communication, although radio coverage of the area is generally
good. Malaysia’s CAA officials stressed, that they do not have any indication
that the aircraft may have turned back or deviated from the planned route.
The aircraft “suddenly disappeared”. So far the aircraft has not been found
although a total of 1788 ships are participating in the search for the aircraft.

Editorial note on Mar 12th 2014: On Mar 10th Malaysia expanded the search
area into the Strait of Malacca assigning substantial forces to that large
search area (much larger than the search area in the Gulf of Thailand with
a radius of 100nm around the last known secondary radar position east of
Malaysia). It remains unclear why this has been done given the Mar 12th
denials of reports of Mar 11th that the aircraft may have been tracked by
primary radar into the Strait of Malacca explaining that widened search.
It also remains unclear why on Mar 12th the search is now moving northwest
into the Andaman Sea west of Malaysia, especially when there are/were no
indications of the aircraft turning back as Malaysia officials told families
in Beijing on Mar 12th.

In the evening of Mar 12th 2014 the commander of Malaysia’s Air Force confirmed
in a televised news conference, that an unidentified radar target was last
seen at FL295 about 200nm northwest of Penang (Malaysia) at 02:15L after
a number of intermittent returns (editorial note: this translates to just
off the coast of Phuket (Thailand) in the Andaman Sea). As the primary radar
does not identify which aircraft produced the return (other than secondary
radar identifying the aircraft via the aircraft’s transponder), it is not
clear whether that unidentified target was MH-370. This radar observation
however prompted Malaysia’s Authorities to expand the search into the Strait
of Malacca and Andaman Sea.

Late Mar 12th 2014 China’s State Administration of Science (SASTIND) reported,
they discovered three large objects sized 13×18, 14×19 and 24×22 meters
at position N6.7 E105.63 (121nm eastsoutheast of the last known secondary
radar position), all three objects within a radius of 20km (11nm) and published
the satellite images, taken on Mar 9th 2014 at 11:00 Beijing time (03:00Z),
see below. SASTIND stated they are committed to provide further search services
to locate flight MH-370.

On Mar 13th 2014 two Vietnamese aircraft reached the position identified
by SASTIND but did not find any debris scanning the area for about 3 hours.
China’s head of government ordered Chinese ships to the position to “try
harder” to find the debris identified by the satellite images. The head
of China’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAC) stated, that the SASTIND satellite
images show smoke and floating objects, however, “at this time the CAAC
can not confirm these objects are related to MH-370″ (editorial note: media
reports converted this statement into “the debris is not from MH-370”).

On Mar 13th 2014 afternoon Malaysia’s Transport Minister said in a televised
press conference, that the last ACARS transmission was received from the
aircraft at 01:07L (17:07Z), there were no later transmissions via ACARS
(editorial note: which effectively states a report by a single US “news”
paper of the engines monitoring recording information via ACARS for 4 more
hours is untrue), the last transmission received from the aircraft indicated
all systems were operating normally. Boeing, Roll Royce, and NTSB confirmed
the last data transmission received from the aircraft was at 01:07L. Malaysia’s
Search Control Center consulted with the NTSB and other agencies with respect
to the unidentified primary radar returns and it was a common decision,
that there were sufficient grounds to dedicate forces to search for the
aircraft west of Malaysia. The aircraft dispatched to the location identified
by SASTIND did not find anything, China did not intend to release the satellite
images to the public. Malaysia is committed to find the aircraft and is
going to intensify search efforts further.

In the afternoon of Mar 14th 2014 Malaysia’s Transport Minister re-iterated,
that there was a primary target seen indeed, it may be MH-370 but could
be any other aircraft too. It can neither be confirmed nor ruled out that
this radar target was MH-370. As result the search areas are being widened
into the Indian Ocean beyond Andaman Islands to the west as well as to the
east further into the South China Sea. Two oil slicks have been discovered
near the position of last contact, one of these oil slicks contained jet
fuel, however, it is not clear whether this jet fuel comes from MH-370 or
not. Malaysia is sharing data that would normally not be shared with the
public in the interest of national security. Media reports that the aircraft
transmitted any data beyond the point of last contact are not true.

During the press conference in the afternoon of Mar 14th 2014 Malaysia’s
Transport Minister provided more details about the primary radar observation
stating, the target was first picked up at waypoint IGARI at FL350 (editorial
note: waypoint IGARI nearly conincides with the last secondary radar position
of MH-370) at 01:21L moving towards waypoint VAMPI, then waypoint GIVAL
and finally turning northwest towards waypoint IGREX. The target was lost
at FL295 after GIVAL at 02:15L.

On Mar 14th 2014 Inmarsat released following statement on their website:
“Routine, automated signals were registered on the Inmarsat network from
Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 during its flight from Kuala Lumpur. This
information was provided to our partner SITA, which in turn has shared it
with Malaysia Airlines. For further information, please contact Malaysia
Airlines.” (Editorial note: this statement does NOT state at which times
this occurred, nor does it state that those signals were registered after
17:22Z on Mar 7th).

On Mar 15th 2014 Malaysia’s Prime Minister stated in a press conference:
“based on new satellite communication we can say with a high degree of certainty
that the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS)
was disabled just before the aircraft reached the east coast of peninsular
Malaysia. Shortly afterwards, near the border between Malaysian and Vietnamese
air traffic control, the aircraftís transponder was switched off.” Movements
of the aircraft until the aircraft left Malaysia’s primary radar coverage
were consistent with deliberate action by someone on the aircraft. The primary
radar target, so far believed but not confirmed to be MH-370, could today
be identified as MH-370 with the help of new data received from the satellite
data provider. The aircraft could have flown on for 7 hours, the last trace
of the aircraft was identified at 08:11L (00:11Z Mar 8th). “Due to the type
of satellite data we are unable to confirm the precise location of the plane
when it last made contact with the satellite.” However, the investigation
was able to determine that the last communication was in one of two corridors:
“the northern corridor stretching approximately from the border of Kazakhstan
and Turkmenistan to northern Thailand or the southern corridor stretching
approximately from Indonesia to Southern Indian Ocean.” The investigation
team is working to further refine the information. The search in the South
China Sea and Gulf of Thailand has been ended. “In view of this latest development
the Malaysian Authorities have refocussed their investigation into the crew
and passengers on board. Despite media reports, that the plane was hijacked,
I wish to be very clear we are still investigating all possibilities as
to what caused MH-370 to deviate from its original flight path.”

On Mar 15th 2014, following the speach by Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Malaysia
Airlines released a statement stating amongst others: “This is truly an
unprecedented situation, for Malaysia Airlines and for the entire aviation
industry. There has never been a case in which information gleaned from
satellite signals alone could potentially be used to identify the location
of a missing commercial airliner. Given the nature of the situation and
its extreme sensitivity, it was critical that the raw satellite signals
were verified and analysed by the relevant authorities so that their significance
could be properly understood. This naturally took some time, during which
we were unable to publicly confirm their existence.

We were well aware of the ongoing media speculation during this period,
and its effect on the families of those on board. Their anguish and distress
increases with each passing day, with each fresh rumour, and with each false
or misleading media report. Our absolute priority at all times has been
to support the authorities leading the multinational search for MH370, so
that we can finally provide the answers which the families and the wider
community are waiting for.”

On Mar 16th 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport said, that the search
has become much more difficult now including 25 instead of so far 14 countries
including diplomatic efforts. Areas of land in 11 countries are being searched.
Satellite data, primary and secondary radar data as well as search aircraft
and ships are being requested. The aircraft took off with the fuel planned
according to flight plan, there was no additional fuel loaded. The investigation
refocussed on crew, all passengers as well as all ground personnel handling
the aircraft. The crew homes have been searched, the captain’s flight simulator
equipment was dismantled and re-assembled at police premises for further
investigation. The crew members had not requested to fly together. The team
of Inmarsat have arrived in Malaysia supporting the investigation. Priority
is still on the search and rescue operation. There have been no attempts
to contact Malaysia, the airline or any other party in order to seek ransom
or other compensation in exchange for occupants or the aircraft. There was
no hazardeous cargo on board, the cargo has been checked according to standard
operating procedures. The satellite signals could also have been sent while
the aircraft was on the ground as long as there was electrical power available.

On Mar 17th 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport reported that three investigators
of the French BEA, who had been involved in the search for AF-447 see Crash:
Air France A332 over Atlantic on Jun 1st 2009, aircraft entered high altitude
stall and impacted ocean, have arrived in Malaysia and are joining the search
for MH-370 sharing their knowledge and experience with AF-447. Police had
visited the homes of both pilots on Mar 9th 2014 and spoken with family
members, one Mar 15th the captain’s flight simulator was disassembled with
the help of family members and re-assembled at police premises for further
investigation. The last ACARS transmission received was at 01:07L, the next
regular ACARS transmission would have occurred at 01:37L 30 minutes later.
It is not known when the ACARS system was disabled. Initial investigation
identified the first officer was transmitting the last radio call at 01:19L.

On Mar 17th 2014 Australia announced that they are going to dedicate substantial
forces to coordinate and conduct the search in the sectors of the South
Indian Ocean. All Australian agencies are reviewing their data to see whether
anything can be determined that might help to locate the aircraft.

On Mar 18th 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport and Minister of Foreign
Affairs stated, that all countries operating satellites have been contacted
in search for additional clues in the search area of 2.24 million square
nautical miles. Equipment with deep sea detection capability is being asked
for. There have been diplomatic efforts to contact and seek assistance from
the countries in the northern and southern search corridors, the response
has been excellent. There have been no new data discovered from Indonesia
so far, the data are being revisited however, not only satellite but also
all other data Indonesia’s military might have about the hours following
the disappearance of MH-370. Current focus of the investigation is to narrow
the search area by the use of additional data that may be available through
satellite and other sources by other nations, there have been talks with
the US Department of Defense in that respect, too. As of current there is
still equal focus on both northern and southern corridors. The aircraft’s
transponder responses were last seen at 01:21L. Every country in the search
area is in possession of primary radar data, the data are being assessed
and all aircraft movements in the search area are currently being identified.
However, the only primary radar data in the open is Malaysia’s. Malaysia
has put the interest of passengers and the search for MH-370 above national
interest.

Mar 18th 2014: According to China’s news agency Xinhua China have started
to search for MH-370 within China’s territory.

On Mar 18th 2014 Australia’s Maritime Safety Agency (AMSA) confirmed they
are coordinating a search for MH-370 in the South Indian Ocean. The first
search area is about 1500nm southwest of Perth,WA (Australia), aircraft
from Australia, New Zealand and the USA are participating in that search.

On Mar 18th 2014 Thailand’s Air Force reported that they did pick up a primary
target of an airliner on Mar 8th once that departed Kuala Lumpur towards
Vietnam, however, had no subsequent contact with such a target. The information
has been passed on to Malaysia. The Air Marshal stated that media reports
in Thailand referring to the Air Forces’ chief claiming, the air forces’
primary radar at Surat Thani had tracked an aircraft departing from Malaysia,
turning around and passing Butterworth (Malaysia) were inaccurate. The Marshal
added, that had the aircraft been tracked in Thailand’s airspace, the Air
Force would have responded, and an information would have been provided
to Malaysia. On Mar 19th 2014 the Marshal told Malaysia’s Authorities, that
an intermittent signal of an airliner was picked up at 01:28L as it headed
towards Kuala Lumpur from the South China Sea, turned right towards Butterworth
(Malaysia) and was lost from radar. That signal was only detected after
specific request by Malaysia, the signal was never observed within Thailand’s
airspace.

On Mar 19th 2014 Malaysia’s Transport Minister said, Malaysia contacted
the Maldives, the Air Force Chief of Maldives told Malaysia the reports
of an aircraft sighting at the Maldives Islands are not true. Both corridors
are of equal importance in the search operation, the southern corridor is
much more challenging however. The logs of the captain’s flight simulator
have recently been “cleared”. There were no findings of any signficance
with any of the passengers. The aircraft followed its regular flight plan
to Beijing via waypoint IGARI, there is no evidence that waypoints have
been added or modified.

On Mar 20th 2014 Australia’s Maritime Safety Agency announced that expert
analysis of satellite images by Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation
showed two pieces of debris about 2500km (1350nm) southwest of Perth adjacent
to the search area defined. The debris may or may not be related to MH-370.
Three search planes have been dispatched to the location as well as a fourth
plane tasked to drop buoys. A Norwegian merchant ship, that has joined the
search for MH-370, has been dispatched to and has already reached the location,
too. Later on Australia released panchromatic (left) and multispectral (right)
satellite images taken on Mar 16th 2014 which led to the discovery of two
objects at positions S44.05 E90.96 and S44.05 E91.224 (distance 11.89nm
between objects, 3085nm from last primary radar contact). The US Navy said,
strong radar returns received by search aircraft in the area, are not linked
to the objects. Australia pledged to continue the search for the objects
by air and ship until located, unless it is certain they can not be found.
If the objects are not located today, they’ll be searched for tomorrow,
… In the evening of Mar 20th AMSA tweeted that the first search aircraft,
a RAAF Orion P3, had not been able to locate the objects but encountered
limited visibility due to cloud and rain in the search area. In the evening
the search was suspended but is going to resume on Mar 21st 2014 (local
Australian time).

On Mar 20th 2014 Malaysia’s Transport Minister stated in the daily briefing,
that Australia’s prime minister called Malaysia advising that two objects
have been identified southwest of Perth in satellite images which may or
may not be related to MH-370. Search aircraft have been dispatched into
the area, another aircraft has been tasked to drop data buoys to assist
in identifying drifts. An Australian Navy vessel has been dispatched to
the area but is several days away. China is using 21 satellites to search
for the aircraft within China’s borders, other countries in the northern
search area are conducting aerial searches. 18 ships are searching the southern
corridor.

In the evening of Mar 21st 2014 Australia’s Maritime Safety Agency AMSA
reported that the searches of Mar 21st have been concluded without any sightings.
6 aircraft have been scanning 23,000 square kilometers of waters. By now
two merchant ships are in the area, the Royal Australian vessel HMAS Success
is expected to arrive in the search area on Mar 22nd.

On Mar 21st 2014 Inmarsat experts stated, that the pings received by their
satellite over the Indian Ocean were basically signals to check whether
the aircraft still wanted service (“are you alive”). It was positively established
that the pings were coming from 9M-MRO indicating the receiver and transmitter
were still powered up. In further determination the round trip time of signals
from the satellite sending the inquiry out until receiving the reply from
the aircraft was measured and it was detected, that the round trip time
increased from hour to hour, which indicated the aircraft was moving away
from its last known (secondary radar) position.

On Mar 22nd 2014 Malaysia Airlines stated: “Malaysia Airlines wishes to
clarify that the lithium ion batteries carried onboard MH370 on 8 March
2014 was in compliance with the International Civil Aviation Organisation
(ICAO) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) requirements
where it is classified as Non Dangerous Goods.”

On Mar 22nd 2014 Malaysia’s Transport Minister said that China, India, Pakistan,
Myanmar, Laos, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan have reported according preliminary
analysis of radar data there were no sightings of the aircraft on Mar 8th
in their countries. A cyclone has been forecast to affect the southern corridor
search area with very strong winds and rough sea. The transcript of the
communication between aircraft and Malaysian ATC as well as the cargo manifest
is in possession of the investigation, they are going to be released to
the public in due course. The minister stated: “Preliminary investigation
of the cargo manifest has not shown any link to anything that might have
contributed to MH370ís disappearance”.

On Mar 22nd 2014 China’s State Administration of Science (SASTIND) released
a new satellite image identifying an object floating in the waters at S44.95
E90.22. The satellite image was taken on Mar 18th, the object has been determined
to be 22 by 13 meters (in Malaysia press conference erroneously reported
as 22 by 30 meters as the Ministry of Transport of Malaysia later confirmed).
The position of this object is about 63nm southwest of the objects identified
by AMSA on Mar 20th 2014.

On Mar 22nd 2014 late night Australia’s AMSA reported that all aircraft
have returned to base. One aircraft sighted objects with naked eyes including
identifying a wooden pallet, a buoy has been dropped into the debris to
track its movement, another aircraft was dispatched and reported only seeing
clumps of seaweed. A merchant ship is approaching that position to collect
the objects. The Chinese satellite discovery was within Saturday’s search
area, aircraft tasked to the search however did not sight that debris. The
search continues on Sunday (Mar 23rd) in the effort to locate the objects
observed on satellite images so far.

On Mar 23rd 2014 Malaysia’s Transport Minister said, that Malaysia received
new satellite images from French Authorities showing potential objects in
the vicinity of the current search area in the southern corridor. The images
were forwarded to Australia. Two Chinese and Two Japanese search aircraft
have joined the Australian search out of Perth. An Australian vessel carrying
a remote controlled submarine vehicle is on the way in the search area.
Indonesia is leading the search into the northern part of the south corridor,
two search aircraft from India joined the search out of Subang. The last
ACARS transmission received from the aircraft at 01:07L showed nothing unusual
and showed a normal routing towards Beijing.

On Mar 23rd 2014 AMSA reported that a number of civil aircraft including
an Airbus A319-100 have joined the search southwest of Perth. An area of
59,000 square kilometers is being searched during Mar 23rd, the area has
been determined based on drift modelling derived from the marker buoys dropped
during first day of search. By the end of Mar 23rd there were no sightings
of significance from all 8 aircraft and HMAS Success involved in the search,
earlier the day there had been fog in the search area, the conditions however
improved during the day.

In the early afternoon of Mar 24th 2014 AMSA tweeted that one of the Chinese
search planes spotted objects in the South Indian Ocean within the search
area of 69.500 square kilometers of today. Resources are being relocated.
Later AMSA reported that an Australian search plane saw one circular grey
or green object and a rectangular orange object in the search area, the
objects are different from the earlier Chinese observation. HMAS Success
is heading towards these objects.

During the regular press conference of Malaysia’s Transport Minister on
Mar 24th 2014 the airline representative stated, that the first officer
was on his 6th flight on the Boeing 777 after having undergone conversion
training from another aircraft type. The aircraft was carrying wooden pallets
but there is no evidence the wooden pallet sighted in the South Indian Ocean
was one carried by MH-370. The aircraft was carrying 200kg of Lithium batteries
packaged in full compliance with safety requirements in addition to electronics
and several tons of fruit.

On Mar 24th 2014 Malaysia’s Prime Minster called for an unscheduled press
conference at 10pm local time (14:00Z). Families of occupants of the aircraft
in Beijing have been called in to a short term meeting, and there are reports
the families of occupants have been booked onto charter flights to Australia.
Relatives in Kuala Lumpur have commenced a meeting at 21:30L.

In the press conference on Mar 24th 2014 Malaysia’s Prime Minister said,
that the experts of the AAIB briefed the prime minister stating that the
satellite experts have done further computations on the satellite data using
methods never used before. Based on the new computations Inmarsat and the
AAIB have concluded MH-370 flew the southern corridor with its final position
west of Perth, Australia at a remote area of the Indian Ocean with no landing
sites. “It is with deep sadness and regret I must inform you that, according
to these new data, flight MH-370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean”, the
Prime Minister stated.

Shortly after the Prime Minister’s press conference on Mar 24th 2014 Malaysia
Airlines released their statement given to relatives of the occupants stating:
“Malaysia Airlines deeply regrets that we have to assume that MH370 ended
in the southern Indian Ocean. As you will hear in the next hour from Malaysiaís
Prime Minister, new analysis of satellite data suggests the plane went down
in the Southern Indian Ocean.”

Shortly after the PM’s press conference of Mar 24th 2014 Inmarsat reported
that the new analysis of their satellite data used to identify the corridor
and final location was based on the Doppler effects modifying radio waves
and frequencies depending on speed and direction of travel of the aircraft,
these data were compared to other flights. The computations are not precise
enough to give the accurate position, however, made it possible to identify
the general location. The new modelling and comparism were developed after
the first discovery of the data on Mar 11th 2014, the work is still in progress.

On Mar 25th 2014 Australia’s AMSA decided to suspend all search activities
for the day due to weather conditions with forecast gales of 80+ kph and
associated sea swell as well as low level cloud with bases forecast at 200
to 500 feet, the conditions would pose a risk to the search crews. The search
is estimated to resume on Mar 26th.

On Mar 25th 2014 Malaysia’s Transport Minister reported in the daily press
conference the last complete handshake between satellite and aircraft took
place at 00:11Z as previously reported, there is evidence that another incomplete
hand shake occurred at 00:19Z. A new method based on Doppler effect to compute
the speed of the aircraft relative to the satellite and compare these results
with other aircraft along the northern and southern corridor showed little
match within the northern corridor but good match with the southern corridor,
the method permitted to roughly locate the aircraft at the time of the last
complete handshake. As result the search in the north corridor as well as
in the northern part of the southern corridor have been aborted, the search
area has been narrowed to 469,407 square nautical miles instead of the previous
2.24 million square nautical miles. Works to further narrow down the search
area including decoding and analysis of the last incomplete handshake at
00:19Z continue. In the search area near Perth six Chinese ships are estimated
to arrive on Mar 26th, HMAS Success is going to return to the search area
after temporarily having left the area due to rough sea and weather. The
Transport minister said quote: “In recent days Inmarsat developed a second
innovative technique which considers the velocity of the aircraft relative
to the satellite. Depending on this relative movement, the frequency received
and transmitted will differ from its normal value, in much the same way
that the sound of a passing car changes as it approaches and passes by.
This is called the Doppler effect. The Inmarsat technique analyses the difference
between the frequency that the ground station expects to receive and one
that is actually measured. This difference is the result of the Doppler
effect and is known as the Burst Frequency Offset. The Burst Frequency Offset
changes depending on the location of the aircraft on an arc of possible
positions, its direction of travel, and its speed. In order to establish
confidence in its theory, Inmarsat checked its predictions using information
obtained from six other B777 aircraft flying on the same day in various
directions. There was good agreement. While on the ground at Kuala Lumpur
airport, and during the early stage of the flight, MH370 transmitted several
messages. At this stage the location of the aircraft and the satellite were
known, so it was possible to calculate system characteristics for the aircraft,
satellite, and ground station. During the flight the ground station logged
the transmitted and received pulse frequencies at each handshake. Knowing
the system characteristics and position of the satellite it was possible,
considering aircraft performance, to determine where on each arc the calculated
burst frequency offset fit best. The analysis showed poor correlation with
the Northern corridor, but good correlation with the Southern corridor,
and depending on the ground speed of the aircraft it was then possible to
estimate positions at 0011 UTC, at which the last complete handshake took
place. I must emphasise that this is not the final position of the aircraft.
There is evidence of a partial handshake between the aircraft and ground
station at 0019 UTC. At this time this transmission is not understood and
is subject to further ongoing work. No response was received from the aircraft
at 0115 UTC, when the ground earth station sent the next log on / log off
message. This indicates that the aircraft was no longer logged on to the
network. Therefore, sometime between 0011 UTC and 0115 UTC the aircraft
was no longer able to communicate with the ground station. This is consistent
with the maximum endurance of the aircraft. This analysis by Inmarsat forms
the basis for further study to attempt to determine the final position of
the aircraft. Accordingly, the Malaysian investigation has set up an international
working group, comprising agencies with expertise in satellite communications
and aircraft performance, to take this work forward.” The Minister handed
out documents prepared by Inmarsat and the AAIB, see below.

In the evening of Mar 25th 2014 AMSA announced that the search is going
to resume on Wednesday (Mar 26th) after gale force winds subsided and visibility
improved. 12 aircraft and 5 ships (HMAS Success and 4 chinese ships) are
expected in the search area on Wednesday.

On Mar 26th 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport stated in the daily press
conference that French Satellites have identified 122 objects so far forming
a field of debris, the various objects sized between one and 23 meters in
size. The field spreading over an area of about 400 square kilometers/120
square nautical miles was located on images taken on Mar 23rd 2014 at a
position of approx. S44.6695 E90.607 near the earlier observation SASTIND
had made in the South Indian Ocean.

In the evening of Mar 26th 2014 AMSA reported that all 12 aircraft have
left the search area, two private aircraft reported seeing three objects,
two of them likely ropes, none of which could be relocated in another pass.
HMAS Success plus four chinese ships are continuing in the search area.

On Mar 27th 2014 AMSA reported 11 aircraft and 5 ships set out to search
an area of 23,000 square nautical miles, the aircraft needed to be called
back to Perth due to the weather. The ships, initially thought to be leave
the search area too, will remain in the search area and attempt to continue
their search pattern. The bad weather is estimated to last 24 hours.

On Mar 28th 2014 AMSA reported the search has resumed in full, 10 aircraft
and 6 ships are joining the search in the search area, that has been revised
after assessment of primary radar data over the South China Sea and Strait
of Malacca showed the aircraft was travelling faster requiring higher fuel
burn and thus reducing range of the aircraft. The ATSB have cross checked
the assessment and determined that this new assessment is a credible lead
as to where the debris may be located. As result the search area has been
relocated about 1100km/590nm north, now 1850km/1000nm westnorthwest of Perth,
an area of 319,000 square kilometers/93,000 square nautical miles is being
search on Mar 28th. Satellites have been redirected to monitor the search
area.

In the evening of Mar 28th 2014 AMSA reported that all aircraft have concluded
their search in the new northern area, the planned search area has been
scanned. Five aircraft sighted objects of various sizes and colours and
took photos of that debris, the photos are going to be assessed over night.
A Chinese ship has been tasked to collect the debris and is estimated to
arrive at the location the next day (Mar 29th). Weather conditions are forecast
“reasonable” for the search on Saturday (Mar 29th).

In the evening of Mar 29th 2014 AMSA reported that the aircraft have sighted
new objects in Saturday’s 252,000 square kilometer/73,400 square nautical
miles search area. The Chinese ship as well as HMAS Success already operating
in the new search area have recovered a number of objects, however, none
of them could be confirmed to be related to MH-370.

On Mar 30th 2014 AMSA reported that an emergency signal received from a
fishing vessel about 3300km/1780nm southwest of Perth needed to be addressed,
two aircraft thought to participate in the search for MH-370 were tasked
to respond to the fishing vessel – as only debris was located at the point
of the signal, the search for the vessel is going to continue on Mar 31st.
The remaining 9 aircraft and now 8 ships continued to scan the northern
search area west of Perth, aircraft reported new sightings. The objects
retrieved from the ocean yesterday have been described as “fishing equipment
and other flotsam” unrelated to MH-370.

On Mar 31st 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport stated, that Malaysia
is committed to find the aircraft and recover the black boxes, search efforts
will not cease until the aircraft has been found. The Minister said after
mentioning families of occupants are heartbroken and have endured unbearable
strain: “This is a promise that Malaysia intends to keep. We will continue
searching, and we will keep investigating, and we will never give up until
we find out what happened to MH370.” The Minister stated, that the ship
ADV Ocean Shield with a blackbox ping locator, capable to detect pings off
the black boxes up to 6000 meters below water surface, has departed Perth
and is expected in the northern search area by Apr 3rd to commence search
for the black boxes. A new coordination center called JACC (Joint Agency
Coordination Center) has been established in Perth responsible to coordinate
the search activities of the various participants in the search. On Mar
31st 10 aircraft and 11 ships were participating in scanning an area of
254,000 square kilometers/74,000 square nautical miles. Five objects retrieved
so far by ships have been identified to be unrelated to MH-370.

On Mar 31st 2014 AMSA stated that the search for the fishing vessel was
abandoned due lack of surviveability and unclear documentation that does
even permit to establish who owns and operated the vessel. As result all
aircraft and ships are available for the search of MH-370, 10 aircraft and
10 ships will search the search area west of Perth. In addition, the vessel
ADV Ocean Shield was conducting tests with its black box ping locator earlier
the day and set off to the search area in the evening of Mar 31st taking
several days until reaching the area.

On Apr 1st 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport stated the ATC transcript
containing the communication between Air Traffic Control and the crew of
MH-370 would be released, the transcript of the press conference released
on the Ministry’s Website and Facebook Account did not contain the transcript
however. The Ministry later e-mailed the transcript to The Aviation Herald,
see ATC Transcript of MH-370.

On Apr 2nd 2014 the JACC welcomed the arrival of the British submarine HMS
Tireless stating: “With her advanced underwater search capability, HMS Tireless
will be a valuable contribution to the search for the missing plane.” The
search on Apr 2nd managed to scan an area of 237,000 square kilometers/69,100
square nautical miles with 10 aircraft and 9 ships. The JACC also stated:
“The Australian Transport Safety Bureau continues to refine the area where
the aircraft entered the water based on continuing ground-breaking and multi-disciplinary
technical analysis of satellite communication and aircraft performance,
passed from the international air crash investigative team comprising analysts
from Malaysia, the United States, the UK, China and Australia.”

On Apr 4th the JACC reported ADV Ocean Shield and HMS Echo have begun their
search using the towed underwater ping locators, converging towards each
other on a single 240km long single track, each ship operating at about
3 knots for optimal performance of the pinger locators. 14 aircraft and
10 ships participated in the search of Apr 4th.

On Apr 5th 2014 China’s state run news agency Xinhua reported the Chinese
ship Haixun 01, participating in the search for MH-370, located a 37.5kHz
pulse signal at position S25 E101 (about 730nm westsouthwest of Learmonth,WA
and 900nm westnorthwest of Perth,WA (Australia), see updated overview map).
Xinhua states that it is not yet clear whether this beacon is related to
MH-370. Underwater Locator Beacons as mounted to flight data recorders are
using 37.5kHz pulsed pings and at 160dB (re 1μPa) transmission energy
are detectable up to 5 kilometers distance in good conditions, at 180dB
(re 1μPa) up to 22 kilometers in good conditions.

On Apr 6th 2014 the JACC stated: “Reports overnight that the Chinese ship,
Haixun 01, has detected electronic pulse signals in the Indian Ocean related
to MH370 cannot be verified at this point in time.” The JACC has requested
further data and also said: “ìAdvice tonight from the Australian Maritime
Safety Authority’s Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC) and the Australian Transport
Safety Bureau is that they cannot verify any connection to the missing aircraft.
The RCC in Australia has spoken to the RCC in China and asked for any further
information that may be relevant. The deployment of RAAF assets to the area
where the Chinese ship detected the sounds is being considered.”

On Apr 6th 2014 Xinhua reports, that according to JACC (editorial note:
JACC has nothing of this in their official reports) an Australian ship has
located another pulsed signal at another location.

On Apr 6th 2014 video evidence of a press conference shows the coordinator
of the JACC reporting that ADV Ocean Shield, with their towed ping locator,
have located a third source of 37.5kHz pulse sound. On Friday Apr 4th 2014
Haixun 01 had located a “fleeting” source of ping sound, on Saturday Apr
5th 2014 Haixun 01 located a second source of ping sound, which was published
through Xinhua, the two signals were 1.2nm apart from each other. The ping
detected by ADV Ocean Shield is about 300nm from the location of Haixun’s
detected signals. ADV Ocean Shield is going to explore their own signal
while HMS Echo has been dispatched to join Haixun 01 with both ships exploring
the signals detected by Haixun 01.

On Apr 7th 2014 the JACC reported that ADV Ocean Shield detected their 37.5kHz
pulsed ping signals over a period of 140 minutes before losing them, the
vessel subsquently turned around, and on the return leg received the ping
signals again for 13 minutes. ADV Ocean Shield has identified two distinct
sources of pings. The ping signals are consistent with those of a flight
data or cockpit voice recorder. It is not yet verified, whether these signals
are related to MH-370. The coordinator said however, this is the best lead
so far. Haixun 01’s signals had been detected over a period of 90 seconds
(not minutes) on Saturday (Apr 5th).

On Apr 7th 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport confirmed that ADV Ocean
Shield detected two distinct sources of ping signals, about 1650 km/890nm
northwest of Perth (editorial note: and about 1000km/545nm westnorthwest
of Learmonth), consistent with both the flight data and cockpit voice recorder,
first for a period of 140 minutes, after turning around during the return
leg over 13 minutes. While this is the best and most promising lead so far,
it is not yet confirmed these signals originate from the blackboxes of MH-370.

On Apr 7th 2014 Australia’s Navy reported ADV Ocean Shield with 34 people
on board had been towing the ping locator in a depth of 3000 meters in waters
4500 meters deep when the ping signals consistent with underwater locator
beacons as used with blackboxes were detected about 600nm west of Exmouth,WA
(Australia).

On Apr 9th 2014 the JACC reported three days after the first two detections
of late Apr 5th ADV Ocean Shield succeeded to re-acquire the ping signals
on two occasions (detections #3 and #4) late Apr 8th. Detection #3 lasted
5:32 minutes and detection #4 7 minutes, all in the same broad area, however
these two detections recorded one source of pings only. The JACC believes
they are searching in the right area defining a reduced and much more manageable
search area at the ocean floor, however, they need to visually identify
aircraft wreckage before they can confirm with certainty that this is the
final resting place of MH-370. The ADV Ocean Shield is continuing methodical
work to refine the search area around the 4 ping detection locations, the
autonomous underwater vehicle has not yet been deployed, the towed pinger
locator can cover six times the area in the same time the autonomous underwater
vehicle would be able to do with its sonar equipment. Acoustic analysis
of the recordings of the detections so far indicates the pulsed signals
at a very stable frequency of 33.331kHz at 1.106 seconds intervals, this
is not a signal of natural origin and is consistent with the signals to
be emitted by the underwater ping locator of flight data or cockpit voice
recorders. The size of the search area has significantly reduced in the
last few days based on the detections by ADV Ocean Shield and known ocean
drift. 84 hydroacoustic buoys are being dropped in the area, that will place
their hydrophones about 1000 feet below the water surface and radio their
signals to a ground station. The sea floor is covered with silt that limits
acoustic propagation of signals (not reflecting signals) and at the same
time permits debris to “hide” in the silt. The knowledge of silt on the
ocean floor comes from a sample that has been taken several years ago in
a location about 160nm from the current search area.

On Apr 10th 2014 the JACC confirmed, that a RAAF AP-3C Orion Aircraft recorded
an acoustic signal in the vicinity of ADV Ocean Shield while conducting
an acoustic search. The JACC stated: “The acoustic data will require further
analysis overnight but shows potential of being from a man-made source.”

On Apr 11th 2014 the JACC reported that analysis of the signals received
by the RAAF AP-3C Orion Aircraft on Apr 10th 2014 identified the signals
as being unrelated to the flight or cockpit voice recorders. ADV Ocean Shield
is continuing more focussed sweeps with the tower ping locator, the Orion
Aircraft continues acoustic search. “A decision as to when to deploy the
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle will be made on advice from experts on board
the Ocean Shield and could be some days away.”

On Apr 14th 2014 the JACC announced that there have been no signal detections
since Tuesday last week (Apr 8th), however, the four signal detections by
ADV Ocean Shield so far permit to identify a reduced and manageable search
area on the ocean floor. The detections by Haixun 01 and by the RAAF AP-3C
Orion Aircraft have been discounted as credible transmissions. The JACC
has therefore decided to end the search with the towed pinger locator today
(Apr 14th) and deploy the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Bluefin-21
as soon as possible, possibly in the evening of Apr 14th already. The AUV
will need 2 hours to get down to the ocean floor, will operate 16 hours
at the ocean floor and take again 2 hours to return to the surface. It will
then take 4 hours to download and assess the data, a mission will thus take
a total of 24 hours. The first mission is scheduled to search an area of
8000 by 5000 meters (40 square kilometers) on the ocean floor. The AUV uses
in sight pulse sonar, transmitting and receiving a sonar pulse permitting
to create a threedimensional map of the ocean floor. ADV Ocean Shield has
detected an oil slick on Apr 13th in her search area, a sample of about
two liters was taken and is being brought ashore for laboratory analysis.
The JACC stated: “I stress the source of the oil is yet to be determined
but the oil slick is approximately 5,500 metres down-wind and down-sea from
the vicinity of the detections picked up by the Towed Pinger Locator on
Ocean Shield.”

In the morning of Apr 15th 2014 the JACC reported that the first mission
of the UAV needed to be terminated prematurely after about 6 hours when
Bluefin-21 went below its operational limit of 4500 meters depth and returned
to the surface by a built in safety feature. The data of 6 hours operation
are being read out and assessed. Bluefin-21 is going to deploy again during
the day weather permitting.

On Apr 18th 2014 the JACC reported that laboratory analysis of the oil slick
found on Apr 13th 2014 identified the oil was not related to aircraft (neither
hydraulic nor engine oil). The risks of operations of UAV Bluefin-21 have
been re-assessed by the operator and manufacturer, there is a small but
acceptable risk of operating the UAV below 4500 meters of water depth, Bluefin-21
is therefore able to completely explore the sea floor within the defined
search area. Bluefin has descended to its fifth mission, the four missions
so far have not revealed any objects of interest.

On Apr 20th 2014 the JACC reported, that Bluefin-21 has surveyed about 50%
of the planned search area on the sea floor with the conclusion of its seventh
mission. The search area on the ocean floor has been defined at approximately
10km around the ping locator positions (about 314 square kilometers). So
far, including the results of mission 6 but not yet including the results
of mission 7 no objects of interest have been found.

On Apr 23rd 2014 the JACC reported that “Western Australia Police have attended
a report of material washed ashore 10 kilometres east of Augusta and have
secured the material.” The ATSB is examining the material if there is any
relevance to flight MH-370, photos have been taken and sent to Malaysia.

On Apr 23rd 2014 the ATSB described the material as a sheet of metal with
rivets, the material appears interesting enough to take a closer look. Malaysia’s
Transportation Minister commented he had not yet seen those photographs.

On Apr 23rd 2014 Malaysia’s Minister of Transport stated, that a new investigation
body is being formed to lead the investigation, the International Investigation
Team. Malaysia’s Cabinet has approved the formation of that new body: “The
main purpose of the International Investigation Team is to evaluate, investigate
and determine the actual cause of the incident so similar ncidents could
be avoided in the future. I would also like to note that the investigation
will not include criminal aspects which are under the purview of the Royal
Malaysian Police.” The investigation will continue to follow the requirements
of the Civil Aviation Regulation 1966, the standards set under ICAO Annex
13 – Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation – and the Chicago Convention.
The Minister concluded: “Indeed, it is imperative for the government to
form an independent team of investigators which is not only competent and
transparent but also highly credible. As Iíve consistently said since the
beginning, we have nothing to hide.”

On Apr 24th 2014 the JACC announced that “after examining detailed photographs
of material washed ashore 10 kilometres east of Augusta, the ATSB is satisfied
it is not a lead in relation to the search for missing flight MH370.”

According to The Aviation Herald’s radar data the aircraft was last regularly
seen at 17:22Z (01:22L) at position N6.9 E103.6 about half way between Kuala
Lumpur and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) at FL350 over the Gulf of Thailand
about 260nm northnortheast of Kuala Lumpur and 90nm northeast of Kota Bharu
40 minutes into the flight, followed by anomalies in the radar data of the
aircraft over the next minute (the anomalies may be related to the aircraft
but could also be caused by the aircraft leaving the range of the receiver).

On Mar 8th 2014 aviation sources in China reported that radar data suggest
a steep and sudden descent of the aircraft, during which the track of the
aircraft changed from 024 degrees to 333 degrees. The aircraft was estimated
to contact Ho Chi Minh Control Center (Vietnam) at 01:20L, but contact was
never established.

Italy’s Foreign Ministry said, the Italian citizen is alive and was not
on board of the aircraft other than the passenger manifest suggests, the
man called his parents from Thailand. The foreign ministry later added,
that the passport of the citizen had been recently stolen in Thailand.

Austria’s Foreign Ministry stated in the afternoon (European time) that
the Austrian listed on the passenger manifest was not on board of the aircraft.
The foreign ministry later added, that the passport of the Austrian citizen
had been stolen about two years ago when the citizen was touring through
Thailand.

According to the states run Chinese news agency Xinhua Chinese police established
that one of the Chinese passengers listed on the manifest never left China,
is still at home and in possession of his passport, therefore was not on
the accident flight. The passenger’s passport had not been lost or stolen,
the numbers on his passport and the passport number noted on the manifest
are identical however.

On Mar 11th 2014 Malaysian investigators reported a 19 year old Iranian
was travelling on one of the false passports to join his family waiting
for him in Germany. They were contacted by his mother admitting she knew
her son was using a false passport. In the evening Malaysian investigators
summarized that there is no evidence suggesting there is a link between
the disappearance of the aircraft and the use of false passports. Investigation
continues however, the background of all passengers is being investigated,
for example whether there are high life insurances.

On Mar 10th 2014 Malaysia’s Defense Ministry said, that as result of the
verified discrepancies between passenger manifest and people on board of
the aircraft, the Austrian and the Italian, the entire manifest is under
scrutiny. At least 4 names are suspicious and are being investigated with
the participation by the FBI from the USA.

On Mar 9th 2014 China Southern Airlines, code share partner of Malaysia
Airlines, reported that they sold a total of 7 tickets for the accident
flight, amongst them the tickets for the Italian and the Austrian as well
as one Dutch, one Malaysian, two Ukrainians and one Chinese.

The manufacturer of the underwater locator beacons (ULB), that were mounted
to the flight data and cockpit voice recorders of MH-370, specified their
ULB would transmit ultrasonic pulsed sounds at 37.5kHz +/- 1kHz at 160dB
(re 1µPa). After a period of 30 days the ULB would still transmit at that
frequency at 157 dB. The manufacturer did not publish any data beyond 30
days (certification criteria). Other manufacturers specifying their ULBs
also at 160dB initially and 157dB after 30 days state the ULB would still
transmit after 90 days though at around 150dB, the frequency drift may exceed
1kHz.

Search area on Apr 9th revised based on ADV Ocean Shield detections (Graphics:
JACC):
The 4 ULB detections by ADV Ocean Shield up to Apr 9th 2014 (Graphics: JACC):
Computed aircraft range and ping positions (Graphics: JACC):
The underwater ping locator being prepared for first search on Apr 4th 2014
(Photo: Australia’s Department of Defense):
ADV Ocean Shield (Photo: Australia’s Department of Defense):
Search Ship positions of Apr 6th 09:00 UTC (Graphics: LiveAIS/IHS Maritime):
Search Area of Apr 4th and cumulative search area since Mar 18th (Graphics:
JACC):
Search Area of Mar 28th and cumulative search area since Mar 18th (Graphics:
AMSA):
French Satellite Images taken Mar 23rd 2014 (Graphics: MMOT):
Possible flight trajectories based on Doppler Effect Assessment (Graphics:
MMOT):
Explanation of Doppler Effect Assessment, handout by Malaysia’s Ministry
of Transport (Graphics: MMOT):
Object at S44.95 E90.22 seen by Chinese Satellite on Mar 18th and identified
Mar 22nd 2014 (Photo: SASTIND):
Object 1 sized 24m identified by Australia on Mar 20th at S44.05 E90.96,
sat image taken Mar 16th (Photo: AMSA):
Object 2 sized 5m identified by Australia on Mar 20th at S44.05 E91.224,
sat image taken Mar 16th (Photo: AMSA):
Australian search Mar 18-20th (Graphics: AMSA):
The possible corridors: northern from Kazakhstan/Turkmenistan to Northern
Thailand, southern from Indonesia to Southern Indian Ocean (Graphics: AVH/Google
Earth):
Three large objects on Sat Images Mar 9th 03:00Z at N6.7 E105.63 (Photos:
SASTIND):

The field of debris spotted from the air on Mar 10th 2014:
Part floating in Gulf of Thailand identified unrelated to MH-370 (Photo:
Vietnamese Coast Guard):
Infrared VISSR Satellite Image Mar 7th 18:00Z (Graphics: AVH/Meteosat):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=470fea76
20140306234256:20140305000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Greenville on Mar 5th 2014, smoke in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N696AE performing flight
MQ-3400 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Moline,IL (USA) with 45 passengers and
3 crew, was climbing through FL210 out of Dallas Ft. Worth when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Greenville,TX, about
50nm northeast of DFW Airport, for a safe landing about 10 minutes later
and was evacuated. Emergency services jumped into action.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were bussed back
to Dallas Ft. Worth and were rebooked onto other flights.

A passenger reported that fire fighters did extinguish something on board
of the aircraft.

The airline said the source of the smoke is under investigation.

The FAA reported an electrical component failure caused the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=470ca067
20140302205916:20140301000000
Incident: Delta MD90 at Las Vegas on Mar 1st 2014, burst two tyres on landing
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N921DN performing
flight DL-1751 from Minneapolis,MN to Las Vegas,NV (USA), landed on Las
Vegas’ runway 25L. During roll out tower reported seeing smoke from the
right hand main landing gear. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped
on the taxiway between runway 25L and 25R. Attending emergency services
both right hand main gear tyres were blown. The aircraft was shut down.

The airport reported the aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=470e39d1
20140304203000:20140227000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Edmonton on Feb 27th 2014, smoking "brain"
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHON performing flight AC-179
from Montreal,QC to Edmonton,AB (Canada) with 104 people on board, was just
about to reach the top of descent towards Edmonton when the captain’s electronic
flight bag laptop computer emitted smoke “signals” in response to being
powered up. The battery was immediately removed from the laptop and the
smoke stopped. The flight continued for a normal and safe landing at Edmonton.

The Canadian TSB reported the battery showed no evidence of heat damage
or deformation. The laptop was quarantained for further investigation by
the TSB.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47071bc7
20140224152513:20140222000000
Incident: TAM B773 near Las Palmas on Feb 22nd 2014, odour on board
A TAM Linhas Aereas Boeing 777-300, registration PT-MUD performing flight
JJ-9374 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil)
with 234 passengers and 17 crew, was enroute at FL320 about 300nm south
of Las Palmas,CI (Spain) when the aircraft entered turbulence. Subsequently
a unidentifyable odour was noticed in the cabin and dark smoke from the
lower deck raising concerns something in the cargo bay might emit the fumes,
the crew reported hazardeous goods on board. The aircraft turned around
and diverted to Las Palmas for a safe landing at Gran Canaria Airport about
one hour after turning around. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported fractured equipment within a lavatory was identified
as source of the bad odour that passengers had complained about. Chemical
materials transported in the cargo hold were not affected.

The aircraft reached Sao Paulo on Feb 24th 2014 around 02:00L (05:00Z) with
a delay of 30 hours.

The airline detailed that a recirculation fan within a lavatory had seized.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=47064e44
20140222194244:20140222000000
Incident: Delta B738 near San Diego on Feb 22nd 2014, loss of cabin pressure
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N3751B performing flight DL-978
from San Diego,CA to Salt Lake City,UT (USA) with 140 people on board, was
climbing through 16,000 feet out of San Diego when the cabin pressure was
lost and the passenger oxygen masks were released. The crew descended the
aircraft to 10,000 feet and returned to San Diego. On short final to runway
27 the crew requested to roll the trucks indicating they had another problem,
the aircraft touched down and rolled out safely on runway 27 and stopped
on the runway stating they had smoke in the cabin. Emergency services found
no indication of fire or heat.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4704c8e5
20140220202509:20140220000000
Incident: ANA B763 near Akita on Feb 20th 2014, smoke in cabin
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 767-300, registration JA8569 performing
flight NH-874 from Akita to Tokyo Haneda (Japan) with 155 passengers and
8 crew, was climbing out of Akita about 5 minutes into the flight when a
burning smell and white smoke appeared in the cabin. A short time later
the fire detectors in the lavatories raised alert prompting the crew to
stop the climb and return to Akita for a safe landing. Emergency services
checked the right hand engine (CF6) after landing.

Japan’s Ministry of Transport reported that there was no fire. A minor oil
leak from the right hand engine was identified as source of the smell and
smoke, the oil vaporized, got into the air conditioning system and thus
was transported into the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4703db82
20140220171254:20140217000000
Incident: Etihad B773 over Indian Ocean on Feb 17th 2014, repeated arson in lavatories
An Etihad Boeing 777-300, registration A6-ETM performing flight EY-461 from
Melbourne,VI (Australia) to Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates), was enroute
over the Indian Ocean west of Australia when the fire detectors in a lavatory
in economy class triggered alarm. Smoke and flames were visible from a bin
in the lavatory, cabin crew quickly extinguished and contained the small
fire. About 2 hours later the fire detector of another lavatory in the economy
class triggered alarm, again cabin crew needed to extinguish a small fire
in the bin of that lavatory. The captain decided to divert the aircraft
to Jakarta (Indonesia) where the aircraft landed safely, all passengers
disembarked and were questioned by Indonesian police.

The aircraft continued the flight after about 4 hours on the ground with
all passengers aboard and reached Abu Dhabi with a delay of 4:15 hours,
however, not without three more fire incidents after which the captain ordered
cabin crew to stop all cabin service and guard the lavatories instead until
landing in Abu Dhabi.

The airline confirmed multiple disruptions on the flight prompting the diversion
to Jakarta. No arrests have been made, about a dozen passengers were detained
by UAE police after arrival in Abu Dhabi however for further interviews.

Passengers reported there were sirens and flashing red lights going on and
odour of smoke was noticed throughout the aircraft, with smoke visibly coming
from first one then another lavatory. Breakfast service was stopped while
the aircraft diverted to Jakarta. Passengers were upset about the flight
being continued without the arsonist being identified and removed from the
flight. Gossip amongst passengers indicated a female had set the lavatories
alight.

On Feb 20th 2014 the airline reported that the 12 detained passengers were
all released again, as there was no conclusive evidence. There had been
two fire incidents after takeoff resulting in the diversion to Jakarta,
three more fire incidents occurred while enroute from Jakarta to Abu Dhabi.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46fec5c7
20140219160459:20140211000000
Incident: Kuwait A306 near London on Feb 11th 2014, hydraulic failure
A Kuwait Airways Airbus A300-600, registration 9K-AMA performing flight
KU-104 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Kuwait (Kuwait), was climbing through
FL160 out of London when the crew decided to return to London due to a hydraulic
failure. The aircraft landed safely at Heathrow Airport about 20 minutes
later.

The aircraft was able to depart again 5 hours after landing and reached
Kuwait with a delay of 5:45 hours.

On Feb 19th 2014 the airline told The Aviation Herald: “The Event occurred
due to Cabin smoke smell/fumes due to which diversion was considered. On
the ground, inspection was carried out on all the related systems including
engine, air conditioning, hydraulics etc and all found satisfactory. Few
feathers were found on Engine 1 and BirdStrike Inspection was also carried
out. Note that the same aircraft departed and landed without incident few
hours later. Still we cannot confirm the exact source of Smoke/Smell and
Investigation is still under progress.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46fc629d
20140209193656:20140207000000
Incident: British Airways B744 near Dallas on Feb 7th 2014, smoke in aft cabin
A British Airways Boeing 747-400, registration G-BNLW performing flight
BA-288 (dep Feb 6th) from Phoenix,AZ to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute
at FL350 about 240nm north of Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) when an electrical
odour and smoke emanated from the aft cabin. While cabin crew isolated the
fault, the flight crew diverted the aircraft to Dallas Ft. Worth for a safe
landing on runway 35C about 40 minutes later.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after about 3 hours on the
ground and reached London with a delay of 3:10 hours.

A passenger reported there was smoke from one of the rear of the cabin,
then the cabin lights extinguished while cabin crew attempted to isolate
the fault.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46f7f26d
20140204003053:20140203000000
Incident: Air France A321 near Amsterdam on Feb 3rd 2014, smoke on board
An Air France Airbus A321-200, registration F-GTAS performing flight AF-1340
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Amsterdam (Netherlands), was descending
towards Amsterdam when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke on board
of the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely on runway 06, while taxiing
to the terminal emergency services were told there was smoke and vibrations
from the right hand engine (CFM56).

The return flight AF-1341 was cancelled.

The incident aircraft was able to position back to Paris departing Amsterdam
about 8 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46f7ef8a
20140204001045:20140131000000
Incident: United B772 near Newark on Jan 31st 2014, smell of smoke
A United Boeing 777-200, registration N791UA performing flight UA-932 from
Washington Dulles,DC (USA) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was enroute at FL350
about 23nm east of Newark,NJ (USA) when the crew reported the smell of smoke
on board of the aircraft and decided to divert to Newark. The aircraft landed
safely on runway 22L about 32 minutes later. Three passengers were taken
to a hospital for checks after possible smoke inhalation.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration N783UA departed the following
day as flight UA-1755 and reached Frankfurt with a delay of 23:15 hours.

The airport reported three passengers were taken to a hospital as a precaution
due to smoke inhalation.

The airline confirmed the smell of smoke on board.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46f4c8ba
20140130225441:20140129000000
Incident: Air France A388 over Canada on Jan 29th 2014, special inflight "entertainment"
An Air France Airbus A380-800, registration F-HPJD performing flight AF-6
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute
at FL400 over north east Canada when a strong burning smell developed around
the aft of the upper deck cabin. Cabin crew rushed to locate the source
of the smell, moved passengers out of the seats and removed the seat cushions
and finally identified a short circuit in one of the seats’ inflight entertainment
system. The smell dissipated afterwards, the crew continued the flight to
New York – ATC remained unaware – for a safe landing.

Several passengers reported a strong smell of electrical smoke developed
near the rear of the upper deck cabin, cabin crew reacted rapidly, moved
passengers out of their seats and removed seat cushions. The flight crew
indicated they were considering a diversion to Gander,NL (Canada). Cabin
crew obviously identified the source of the smell and did something to a
seat about mid premium economy class, possibly disconnecting electrical
supply, after which the smell dissipated. The flight was continued to New
York without diversion. It later emerged an inflight entertainment system
had developed a short circuit.

A passenger commented: “Very impressed with the reaction time and teamwork
of the cabin crew.”

Seats without cushion (Photo: passenger):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46f3d7bb
20140129181100:20140129000000
Incident: Mesa CRJ7 near Wilmington on Jan 29th 2014, air conditioning problems and smoke
A Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United, registration N506MJ
performing flight YV-3759/UA-3759 from Washington Dulles,DC to Boston,MA
(USA) with 61 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing through about FL280 about
10nm southeast of Philadelphia,PA when the crew initiated a rapid descent
due to problems with the air conditioning systems. The aircraft turned around
and diverted to Wilmington,DE for a safe landing on runway 01 about 25 minutes
later.

The FAA reported smoke on board of the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46fa579e
20140207022913:20140128000000
Incident: Air KBZ AT72 at Yangon on Jan 28th 2014, smoking brakes
An Air KBZ (Air Kanbawza) Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration
XY-AIW performing flight K7-266 from Yangon to Heho (Myanmar) with 65 people
on board, was lined up waiting for departure when the crew decided to return
to the apron due to a system malfunction. While taxiing towards the apron
smoke began to rise from the left hand main wheels but was noticed only
after the aircraft had stopped at the stand and a large smoke plume obscured
vision on the apron. Emergency services responded and foamed the main gear.
The left main gear tyres deflated due to overheat.

The airline reported the aircraft was on the runway ready for takeoff when
a system malfunction prompted the crew to return to the gate. After arrival
at the gate one of the tyres was found emitting smoke due to excessive temperature.
Airport staff managed the smoke, all 65 occupants left the aircraft without
injuries. A replacement aircraft reached Heho with a delay of 2.5 hours.

The smoke plume:
The deflated tyres:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46f4c0d2
20140130215613:20140128000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near South Bend on Jan 28th 2014, loss of cabin pressure
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-4202 from Milwaukee,WI to
Baltimore,MD (USA) with 65 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL410 about
30nm east of South Bend,IN (USA) when the crew initiated an emergency descent
due to the loss of cabin pressure, the passenger oxygen masks were released.
The aircraft diverted to South Bend for a safe landing about 25 minutes
later.

Passengers reported smell of smoke on board.

The airline reported the aircraft had pressurization problems, the passenger
oxygen masks were released and the oxygen generators activated.

The oxygen generators are known to get quite hot due to the chemical reaction
to generate oxygen, it is not unusual to get a smell of smoke as well as
light haze from the oxygen generators.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e840e6
20140114221759:20140114000000
Incident: SAS CRJ9 at Copenhagen on Jan 14th 2014, rejected takeoff
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Canadair CRJ-900, registration LN-RNL performing
flight SK-436 from Copenhagen (Denmark) to Gothenburg (Sweden) with 24 passengers
and 4 crew, was accelerating for takeoff from Copenhagen’s Kastrup Airport
when the crew rejected takeoff at low speed, about 10 seconds after applying
takeoff thrust, after the captain smelled smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft
stopped on the runway, flight and cabin crew established there was smoke
in cockpit and cabin, the occupants rapidly deplaned onto the runway while
emergency services responded.

Passengers reported that the engines had spooled up and the aircraft was
accelerating on the runway for about 10 seconds when the brakes came on
and the aircraft stopped, the flight crew had donned their oxygen masks.
About a minute after coming to a stop cabion crew initiated the evacuation
of the aircraft.

The cause of the smoke is being investigated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e83c4f
20140114214516:20140109000000
Incident: Jazz DH8D at Calgary on Jan 9th 2014, "fireworks" at landing
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration C-GGFJ performing flight QK-8437
from Regina,SK to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 64 people on board, landed at
Calgary, during roll out passengers observed sparks and smoke from the right
hand landing gear. The aircraft was already on the taxiway on the apron
near the terminal when the flight crew stopped the aircraft and requested
emergency services to attend the aircraft, the fire chief confirmed smoke
but no fire from the right hand landing gear. The passengers disembarked
onto the apron and walked to the terminal.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified the #3 wheel brake had
failed, after removal of the wheel assembly it was found that both wheel
bearings had failed causing the brake to disintegrate. The inner bearing
was found welded into the axle. The right main landing gear axle, wheels
and brake assemblies #3 and #4 were replaced. A service difficulty report
was filed with Transport Canada.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e5e24c
20140111212137:20140108000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Detroit on Jan 8th 2014, fire indication in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-685 from Detroit,MI to Baltimore,MD
(USA), was climbing out of Detroit’s runway 22L when the crew stopped the
climb at 6000 feet reporting smoke on board. The aircraft positioned for
a return to runway 22L and landed safely about 11 minutes after departure.
Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the aircraft taxied
to the gate with emergency services following the aircraft.

A passenger reported a strange smell developed on board shortly followed
by a fire alarm sounding from the back of the aircraft. The crew subsequently
announced there was smoke on the aircraft. Fire fighters entered the aircraft
after reaching the gate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e5242d
20140110221705:20140107000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Charlotte on Jan 7th 2014, engine surges
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N927DA performing
flight DL-781 from New York La Guardia,NY to Atlanta,GA (USA), was enroute
at FL300 about 60nm north of Charlotte,NC (USA) when an engine emitted a
bang for the second time prompting the crew to divert to Charlotte for a
safe landing about 20 minutes later. The crew shut the left hand engine
down after landing, emergency services checked the engine before the aircraft
proceeded to the apron.

A passenger reported that the aircraft was enroute at FL340 about 170nm
north of Charlotte when an engine emitted a bang, a smell of smoke developed
shortly after. The crew descended the aircraft to FL300 and announced there
had been an aircraft fault, the smell of smoke dissipated again. About 25
minutes later a second bang occurred after which the crew decided to divert
to Charlotte. The crew announced that there were problems with the pressure
on the left hand engine.

A replacement MD-88 reached Atlanta with a delay of 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e39c7b
20140108231725:20140103000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Winnipeg on Jan 3rd 2014, circuit breaker panels vent smoke
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration N463SW
performing flight OO-4476/DL-4476 from Winnipeg,MB (Canada) to Minneapolis,MN
(USA) with 53 people on board, was in the initial climb out of Winnipeg
when the crew spotted smoke coming from the vents of circuit breaker panels
and levelled the aircraft at 3000 feet. While working the checklists the
smoke cleared. The crew nonetheless declared emergency and returned to Winnipeg
for a safe landing about 21 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance determined the smoke was the result
of de-icing fluid sprayed into the aft equipment bay prior to departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e11583
20140105181212:20131231000000
Incident: Sprintair SF34 at Kiev on Dec 31st 2013, engine fire after landing
A Sprintair Saab 340A on behalf of UPS, registration SP-KPZ performing freight
flight SRN-6938 from Warsaw (Poland) to Kiev Zhulhany (Ukraine) with 2 crew,
had safely landed at Kiev’s Zhulhany Airport when dense white smoke was
observed from the right hand engine. The crew stopped the aircraft, shut
both engines down and discharged the fire bottles into the right hand engine,
then evacuated the aircraft. Responding emergency services did not need
to intervene anymore.

Ukraine’s Civil Aviation Authoritiy opened an investigation into the occurrence.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46d72bd2
20131223223939:20131211000000
Incident: Delta A333 near Val d’Or on Dec 11th 2013, smoke indication
A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration N820NW performing flight
DL-258 from Minneapolis,MN (USA) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 278 passengers
and 13 crew, was enroute at FL350 about 75nm southwest of Val d’Or,QC (Canada)
and 350nm northeast of Detroit,MI (USA) when the crew received a smoke indication
for the crew rest area. The crew worked the relevant checklist, the crew
rest was checked with no smoke or haze found however an electric smell detected.
The crew decided to divert to Detroit where the aircraft landed safely about
65 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that checks after landing did not detect any trace
of smoke or fumes.

A replacement Airbus A330-300 registration N812NW reached Amsterdam with
a delay of 4:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46da3e5a
20140408130315:20131210000000
Incident: Germanwings A319 at Cologne on Dec 10th 2013, fumes prompt flight crew to don oxygen masks
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWK performing flight 4U-825
from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Cologne/Bonn (Germany), was on approach to
Cologne’s runway 14L when fumes on board prompted the flight crew to don
their oxygen masks until after landing. The aircraft continued for a safe
landing on runway 14L. The entire crew subsequently went to the hospital
for tests.

Germany’s BFU confirmed the incident stating the occurrence was rated a
serious incident. An investigation has been opened.

The airline stated the occurrence flight 4U-825 was reported to the relevant
authorities in time and promptly after the pilots donned their oxygen masks
on approach to Cologne due to fumes in the cockpit.

The aircraft remained on the ground for about 48 hours and resumed service
on Dec 12th 2013.

On Apr 8th 2014 the BFU reported in their monthly bulletin (released two
months past schedule) that the aircraft was on approach descending through
5500 feet when an odour of burning oil was noticed in cockpit causing irritation
of respiratory tracts of all 3 pilots in the cockpit. All three donned their
oxygen masks, queried the cabin where a similiar odour was reported. The
captain assumed control and continued for a safe landing. All three pilots
and one flight attendant went for a medical examination, which was without
findings according to feedback by the crew members receiving their test
results.

D-AGWK has been involved in two similiar occurrences in the past: Accident:
Germanwings A319 at Dublin on May 27th 2008, pressurization problems and
Accident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Dec 19th 2010, smoke in cockpit,
both pilots nearly incapacitated. The investigations by the Irish AAIU and
German BFU following the events in Dublin 2008 and the event in Cologne
2010 could not determine the causes of the events on board of D-AGWK.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46c52f6f
20131201174519:20131130000000
Incident: Mount Cook AT72 at Auckland on Nov 30th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Mount Cook Airlines Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration
ZK-MCW performing flight NZ-5071 from Auckland to Palmerston North (New
Zealand) with 52 passengers, was climbing out of Auckland when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and returned to Auckland for a safe landing
on runway 23L about 15 minutes after departure. The aircraft stopped on
the runway, the passengers rapidly disembarked onto the runway.

Passenger wellys219 tweeted: “Small inconvenience at Auckland Airport this
morning.” Another passenger reported they were told there was smoke but
didn’t see any in the cabin.

The airline reported that their investigation concluded the “smoke” was
most likely steam out of the air conditioning system. The passengers were
rebooked onto the next flight.

The aircraft stopped on the runway, passengers disembarked onto the runway
(Photo: wellys219):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46c3abde
20140108124250:20131129000000
Crash: LAM E190 over Botswana/Namibia on Nov 29th 2013, captain intentionally crashed aircraft
A LAM Linhas Aereas de Mocambique Embraer ERJ-190, registration C9-EMC performing
flight TM-470 from Maputo (Mozambique) to Luanda (Angola) with 28 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at FL380 over northern Botswana in clear weather
when the aircraft suddenly began to descend at about 6000 feet per minute
until radar contact and radio contact was lost with the aircraft at about
11:30Z. The aircraft did not arrive in Luanda (scheduled arrival at 14:10L,
13:10Z), the aircraft would have run out of fuel by now. There are no reports
of an unscheduled landing anywhere in the region along the flight track.
The aircraft was found crashed and burnt down on Namibia’s territory in
the Bwabwata National Park east of Rundu (Namibia), about 15nm eastsoutheast
of Bagani at coordinates S18.1933 E21.8693 with the aircraft’s final heading
westnorthwest in the general direction to Bagani, the following morning
(Nov 30th), no survivors were found.

The following morning (Nov 30th) Namibia’s Civil Aviation Authority reported
that villagers in the Bwabwata National Park (Sambesi Region) reported the
aircraft crashed in their neighbourhood with no survivors. A helicopter
has been dispatched on site.

On Nov 30th late morning Namibia’s Regional Police reported a rescue team
has reached the crash site on the ground, the aircraft has completely burned
down, there are no survivors.

On Nov 29th in the afternoon, a few hours after the aircraft disappeared,
the airline released a press statement saying that they have information
the aircraft landed in Rundu (Namibia) in northern Namibia. The airline
and aviation authorities are currently trying to establish contact to verify
the information. Late evening the airline stated, they still have no word
about the whereabouts of C9-EMC.

Namibia’s Authorities have initiated a search for the aircraft confirming
the aircraft had been last heard over northern Namibia. The aircraft has
not landed on Rundu’s Airport. There are unverified reports of the aircraft
having gone down 200km/108nm east of Rundu, a national park with mainly
wetlands and dense forests.

Mozambique’s government said, it can not be ruled out that the aircraft
crashed in the border region of Namibia and Botswana, a search for the aircraft
is underway in both countries. The search however is hampered by very bad
weather in the region and darkness. The government still hopes the aircraft
managed a forced landing in the forested area.

On Saturday (Nov 30th) the airline reported the search for the aircraft
is ongoing in Botswana, Namibia and Angola. The aircraft carried 10 citizens
of Mozambique, 9 Angolans, 5 Portugese, 1 French, 1 Brazilian and 1 Chinese
citizen, 1 passenger and the crew not yet listed. As of current Namibian
police helicopters are searching the area, that is forested without roads,
the search is extremely difficult therefore.

On Nov 30th 2013 Namibia’s Regional Authorities of the Kavango Region reported
that Authorities in Botswana saw smoke and heard explosions on Friday (Nov
29th) afternoon shortly after the time of loss of contact with the aircraft
and informed their Namibian Counterparts. Another short time later villagers
sent photos suggesting the aircraft had crashed in the region, due to weather
rescue teams were able to reach the crash site on Saturday only.

On Nov 30th 2013 Botswana Authorities reported they originally thought the
aircraft had crashed within the boundaries of Botswana, a search was launched.
On Friday (Nov 29th) about 15:00L (14:00Z) search personnel observed smoke
and explosions on Namibian territory and informed Namibian Authorities.

On Nov 30th 2013 Portugal’s Foreign Ministry reported the passenger listed
Brazilian has in fact dual citizenship of Portugal and Brazil.

On Nov 30th 2013 14:45Z Mozambique’s government, the airline as well as
most of Mozambique’s media are not reporting the aircraft has been found
but still maintain the aircraft is missing. Mozambique’s government confirmed
however the aircraft was the newest Embraer 190 in LAM’s fleet (thus identifying
C9-EMC too).

On Nov 30th 2013 rangers of Bwabwata National Park reported that both blackboxes
(flight data and cockpit voice recorder) have been found and recovered by
accident investigators.

On Nov 30th 2013 17:30L (15:30Z) the airline confirmed the Embraer ERJ-190
tailnumber C9-EMC manufactured in 2012 has crashed killing all 27 passengers
(revised from previous day where the airline stated 28 passengers) and 6
crew. The aircraft had entered service with the airline on Nov 17th 2012
and had since accumulated 2905 flight hours in 1877 flight cycles.

On Nov 30th 2013 aviation sources reported that according to radar data
the aircraft suddenly started to descend at about 5000 feet per minute until
the aircraft disappeared from radar. Radio contact was lost at the same
time. The captain of the flight was a senior pilot with over 4000 hours
with LAM and also held an instructor rating, the first officer had about
1000 hours of total flight hours with airlines in Mozambique. The captain
had repeatedly flown the route.

Late Nov 30th 2013 Mozambique’s government confirmed the aircraft crashed
in the border area between Botswana and Namibia, authorities in Namibia
were informed by Botswana on Friday by about 15:00L (14:00Z) that smoke
and explosions were observed by Botswana officials on Namibian soil. Mozambique’s
government has been informed by Namibia on Saturday that the wreckage has
been identified as the remains of C9-EMC, there have been no survivors.
An international commission led by Namibia is going to investigate the crash,
Brazil (state of manufacture) and Mozambique (state of operator) are going
to participate in the investigation. A preliminary report is anticipated
within 30 days according to ICAO rules. Mozambique’s government established
a second commission to examine the Civil Aviation Authority of Mozambique
and the airline LAM.

According to information provided by Namibia’s lead investigator the aircraft
was enroute at FL380 when it began to descend at about 100 feet per second
(6000 feet per minute), it remained visible on radar until about 3000 feet
MSL. The two boxes recovered from the aircraft were the cockpit voice recorder
and one ELT, the flight data recorder however is still missing.

On Dec 1st 2013 the airline reported both captain and first officer held
Air Transport Pilot Licenses, the captain had accumulated 9,053 hours total
experience with 1,395 hours in command, the first officer had accumulated
1,418 hours of flying experience. The aircraft had undergone its last inspection
on Nov 28th 2013. The investigation is being led by Namibia, Authorities
of Mozambique, Angola, Brazil and the USA joined the investigation.

Pilots based at Bagani Airstrip (Namibia) about 10nm west of the crash site,
reported on their Facebook page “Pirots of the Namibian”, that the weather
was clear all day on Friday (Nov 29th), Metars of Maun (Botswana) 140nm
south of the crash site, confirm that weather report (see below).

On Dec 3rd 2013 the lead investigator said, both recorders have been recovered,
flight data and cockpit voice data are being read out. A commission of 30
investigators from Namibia, Mozambique, Brazil, Angola and the USA met in
Windhoek (Namibia’s capital) and is heading to the crash site. Another group
in Windhoek currently identifies the remains of the victims. In compliance
with ICAO rules a preliminary report is to be expected within 30 days.

On Dec 4th 2013 the lead investigator said, the black boxes will be read
and analysed by the NTSB. The accident board has collected radar data and
weather data. There was no distress call.

On Dec 5th 2013 the Pirots of the Namibian told The Aviation Herald: “At
time of the crash the weather was fine as far as we could see at Bagani
ñ our view towards the SE was obstructed by tree so that limited what we
could see there. We (2 crew) flew … to Windhoek via Rundu at 17:45L that
afternoon and by that time there were several heavy downpours and regular
lightning in the area especially towards the East. On the way to Rundu we
had to fly around a few of these. We later heard the SAR helicopter returning
to base at around sunset and I am not surprised that they had to abort the
mission due to weather ñ it was getting worse quickly when we left Bagani.”
The Pirots could not comment on thunderstorm cells around or near the airway
at the time of the accident, however, when they attempted to contact Gaborone
Control at FL115 near the crash site, they were unable to establish contact
and had been off Windhoek Radar for a while.

On Dec 12th 2013 reader Simon, meteorologist at a highly reputed university
in the USA, submitted true colour satellite images (see below), that were
taken by Eumetsat on the day of the crash at 11:15Z and 11:30Z. Reader Simon
reported that he had never seen such a rapidly developing thunderstorm cell
before. At 11:15Z that cell was located about 15nm to the right of the airway
at position S19.398 E23.369 about 111nm from the crash site, most likely
created updrafts in excess of 60 meters/second (117+ knots vertical), provided
ice crystal icing conditions and grew its tops rapidly from about FL260
to FL420 within 30 minutes and falling back to FL300 again in another 30
minutes (at 12:00Z). A smaller cell was almost over the airway at position
S19.493 E23.017 about 101nm from the crash site also creating ice crystal
icing conditions and probably producing updrafts around 55 meters/second
(107 knots vertical speed).

On Dec 14th 2013 Mozambique’s Civil Aviation Authority reported in a press
conference, that the investigation is well underway, cockpit voice and flight
data recorder have been successfully read out and have been analysed, a
preliminary report is nearly finished. Results of the investigation so far
rule out any mechanical problem or problem with the airworthiness of the
aircraft as cause of the major accident.

On Dec 21st 2013 Mozambique’s Civil Aviation Authority reported in a press
conference (the preliminary report has not yet been released by Namibia’s
Accident Investigation Commission), that cockpit voice recorder and flight
data recorder revealed, that the captain was alone on the flight deck, banging
on the flight deck door could be heard on the cockpit voice recorder. The
autoflight systems (autothrottle and autopilot) were engaged. There were
sounds and clicks consistent with a person knowledgeable of the aircraft
systems commanding the engines to idle thrust and selecting the autoflight
systems into a descent at 6000 feet per minute. Numerous warnings and alerts
were not responded to.

The airline operates 3 Embraer ERJ-190 registrations C9-EMA, C9-EMB and
C9-EMC. The airline also operates two Embraer ERJ-145, two Boeing 737-200s
(which are already phased out however) and one Boeing 737-500. The subsidiary
Mocambique Express operates 3 Embraer EMB-120 and 3 de Havilland Dash 8-400s.

Metars at Maun (Botswana) about 140nm south of the crash site:
FBMN 291500Z 04006KT 9999 FEW030 35/11 Q1011
FBMN 291400Z 06004KT 9999 FEW030 35/12 Q1011
FBMN 291300Z 10007KT 9999 FEW030 34/12 Q1012
FBMN 291200Z 09008KT CAVOK 33/13 Q1014
FBMN 291100Z 14011KT CAVOK 32/14 Q1015
FBMN 291000Z 16012KT 8000 29/15 Q1017
FBMN 290900Z 17007KT CAVOK 3014 Q1017
FBMN 290900Z 17007KT CAVOK 30/14 Q1017

Aerial view of crash site approx 15nm ESE of Bangani, view to the north
(Photo: Pirots of the Namibian):
Detail of final position in view to eastsoutheast (Photo: Pirots of the
Namibian):
Detail of first impact in view to eastsoutheast (Photo: Pirots of the Namibian):
Aerial view of crash site approx 15nm ESE of Bangani, view to the eastsoutheast
(Photo: Pirots of the Namibian):
Detail of first impact out of view towards Bagani (Photo: Pirots of the
Namibian):
Aerial view of crash site approx 15nm ESE of Bagani, view toards Bagani
(Photo: Pirots of the Namibian):
Crash site, seen towards point of first impact (Photo: AP/Olavi Haikera):
The remains (Photo: AP/Olavi Haikera):
True Colour Image Nov 29th 11:30Z (Photo: AVH/Reader Simon/Eumetsat):
True Colour Image Nov 29th 11:15Z (Photo: AVH/Reader Simon/Eumetsat):
Infrared Satellite Image SEVIRI Nov 29th 12:00Z (Photo: Meteosat):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46c89814
20131205224830:20131128000000
Incident: Regional 1 DH8A near Fort Mackay on Nov 28th 2013, burning odour and bleed air "disco"
A Regional 1 Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-FRIB performing
flight TSH-441 from Fort Mackay Albian,AB to Edmonton,AB (Canada) with 38
people on board, was climbing through 15,000 feet out of Fort Mackay’s Albion
Airport when the crew noticed a vague burning odour on board, which was
shortly followed by the #2 bleed air hot indication cycling on and off.
The crew worked the associated checklist, turned bleed air system #2 off
and requested FL200 instead of FL240. After the aircraft levelled off at
FL200 the #1 bleed air hot started to illuminate and extinguish repeatedly.
Again the associated checklist was performed resulting in the shutdown of
the #1 bleed air system. The crew declared emergency reporting smoke in
the cockpit and initiated a descent to 8000 feet due to the loss of pressurization.
The aircraft landed safely on Edmonton’s runway 20 about 75 minutes after
departure.

The Canadian TSB reported that the crew initiated a “moderate descent” to
8000 feet due to the loss of pressurization. It was suspected that de-icing
fluid in the engine intakes was the source of the odour. The bleed systems
are being investigated by maintenance.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46c2071a
20131127220207:20131126000000
Incident: Delta MD90 at Grand Rapids on Nov 26th 2013, smoking engine
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N927DN performing
flight DL-752 from Minneapolis,MN to Grand Rapids,MI (USA) with 151 passengers,
had safely landed on Grand Rapids’ runway 26L, while turning off the runway
the crew radioed tower they had an issue with the left hand engine, “send
the trucks”, later adding there was smoke. Emergency services responded
and checked the left hand engine reporting it didn’t look too serious.

The airport reported the aircraft had already landed when the crew alerted
tower of smoke. All passengers were taken off the aircraft within 10 minutes.
The cause of the smoke is being investigated.

The incident aircraft was able to perform the next morning’s return flight
DL-751 with a delay of 85 minutes after 10:45 hours on the ground.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46c12a07
20131126212936:20131126000000
Incident: Tianjin E145 near Tianjin on Nov 26th 2013, engine fire indication
A Tianjin Airlines Embraer ERJ-145, flight GS-6552 from Tianjin to Hohhot
(China), was climbing out of Tianjin about 10 minutes into the flight when
the crew received an engine fire indication, shut the engine down and activated
the engine fire suppression system. The aircraft returned to Tianjin for
a safe landing about 25 minutes after departure. Emergency services found
no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the engine fire indication was false.

A replacement ERJ-145 reached Hohhot with a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46bf688b
20131126003233:20131123000000
Incident: Delta B744 at Manila on Nov 23rd 2013, engine shut down in flight
A Delta Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration N670US performing flight DL-172
from Manila (Philippines) to Tokyo Narita (Japan), was climbing out of Manila’s
runway 06, when engine #4 (PW4056, outboard right) emitted a bang and streaks
of blue flames prompting the crew to level off at FL170 and enter a hold.
The crew worked the checklists, shut the engine down and returned to Manila
for a safe landing on runway 06 about 30 minutes after departure, the crew
requested emergency service to check out the right hand outboard engine
for any indications of smoke, the crew stated they did not receive any engine
fire indication.

Passengers reported the engine emitted a bang and streaks of blue flames.
They were later told that maintenance found a turbine inlet vane had fractured
causing the engine failure.

The flight was cancelled.

The captain showing a piece of the turbine parts to passengers (Photo: Doug
Hormann):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46be942a
20131123202154:20131115000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A near Sudbury on Nov 15th 2013, audio control not a non-smoker
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GONR performing flight QK-7819
from Toronto,ON to Sudbury,ON (Canada) with 35 people on board, had just
left cruise level to descend towards Sudbury when smoke was detected in
cabin and cockpit. The crew donned their oxygen masks, advised passengers
to follow instructions by the flight attendants but did not declare emergency.
The aircraft continued for a safe landing at Sudbury about 22 minutes later,
emergency services attended the aircraft and confirmed there was no trace
of fire or heat. The aircraft taxied to the apron, where passengers disembarked
normally.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance subsequently found the circuit
breakers for the audio control panel #1 tripped. Upon resetting the circuit
breakers the audio control panel resumed smoking prompting maintenance to
replace the audio control panel. Subsequent tests confirmed the new audio
control panel was serviceable and a non-smoker.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b6f7ce
20131113221855:20131113000000
Incident: Endeavor CRJ9 at New York on Nov 13th 2013, burning odour in cabin
An Endeavor Air Canadair CRJ-900 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N917XJ performing flight 9E-2921/DL-2921 from New York JFK,NY to Minneapolis,MN
(USA) with 69 people on board, was on a Canarsie climb through 10,000 feet
out of JFK when the crew reported a burning odour on board, donned their
oxygen masks and advised they needed to return. The aircraft descended to
4000 feet and positioned for an approach to runway 31R. The aircraft landed
safely on runway 31R, vacated the runway and stopped. Passengers disembarked
normally and were bussed to the terminal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b3ad60
20131109213501:20131109000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near Shannon on Nov 9th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIF performing flight
BA-177 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 220 people
on board, was enroute at FL360 about 120nm southeast of Shannon (Ireland)
when the crew donned their oxygen masks, declared Mayday reporting smoke
in the cockpit and diverted to Shannon. While descending towards Shannon
the crew still on oxygen masks advised they would stop on the runway but
not evacuate, they were landing overweight, in the meantime they were able
to isolate the source of the smoke, they requested an ILS approach to runway
24. The aircraft landed overweight but safely on Shannon’s runway 24 about
25 minutes after leaving FL360, turned off the runway, stopped off the runway
and shut the engines down.

A replacement Boeing 747-400 registration G-CIVX was flown to Shannon, departed
Shannon about 7 hours after landing of G-VIIF and is estimated to reach
New York with a delay of 7:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b36b7c
20150112134911:20131108000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Seville on Nov 8th 2013, white smoke on board
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DPF performing flight FR-2355
from Tangier (Morocco) to Dusseldorf Niederrhein (Germany) with 175 passengers
and 6 crew, was climbing out of Tangier when the crew stopped the climb
at FL110 and decided to divert to Seville,SP (Spain) after a passenger reported
fumes on board. The aircraft landed safely on Seville’s runway 27 about
17 minutes later.

Maintenance determined an air conditioning fault causing a pipe to blow
dust and/or debris into the cabin.

The airline reported a passenger reported fumes in the cabin, the crew alerted
the fire services in Seville, who were on standby for the arrival of the
aircraft, that landed normally. The passengers were taken to a replacement
aircraft which continued towards Dusseldorf’s Niederrhein (Weeze) Airport.
Engineers inspected the aircraft and found a fault in the air conditioning
system, the relevant safety agencies in Spain and Ireland have been advised.

A number of Spanish media reported a cabin fire and smoke in the cabin,
the aircraft diverted to Seville, vacated the runway and taxied to the terminal,
others reported the crew reported smoke in the cabin.

On Nov 14th 2013 Spain’s CIAIAC reported that cabin crew reported dense
white smoke with no odour while climbing through 8000 feet out of Tangier.
The flight crew stopped the climb and diverted to Seville, the aircraft
vacated the runway and stopped on the taxiways, doors were opened and passengers
disembarked normally. An investigation has been opened.

On Jan 12th 2015 Spain’s CIAIAC reported in an interim statement, that the
examination of the aircraft revealed three air conditioning ducts in the
area where the smoke originated out of position. The investigation focusses
on why the ducts were in that condition and on analyzing the crew’s handling
of the emergency. The draft reported is being written.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DYI departed Seville about
4.5 hours after landing of EI-DPF and reached Cologne/Bonn at about 03:45L
about 4 hours behind scheduled landing at Weeze Airport.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b2d714
20131108203937:20131108000000
Incident: Lufthansa A321 near Berlin on Nov 8th 2013, burning odour in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A321-200, registration D-AISJ performing flight LH-195
from Berlin Tegel to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 196 passengers and 6
crew, was climbing through FL160 out of Berlin when the crew declared emergency
reporting a burning odour in the cockpit and returned to Tegel for a safe
landing on runway 08L about 14 minutes later. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

Lufthansa reported a safety landing because of an unidentified odour, there
was no fire or smoke involved. The passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46afe309
20131106224111:20131104000000
Accident: Royal Air Maroc B763 at Montreal on Nov 4th 2013, cargo belt loader caught fire
A Royal Air Maroc Boeing 767-300, registration CN-RNT performing flight
AT-206 from Casablanca (Marocco) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 258 people
on board, had completed an uneventful flight, the aircraft reached the parking
position, engines were shut down and passengers began to disembark. A cargo
belt loader was used to unload luggage from the left aft cargo door but
caught fire emitting a large plume of smoke and prompting the crew to initiate
an emergency evacuation via slides. About 250 passengers evacuated the aircraft.
7 passengers received injuries, 5 of them were taken to hospital, the injuries
partly to lower limbs as result of the evacuation and partly due to smoke
inhalation.

The airport said it was Royal Air Maroc’s decision to evacuate and asked
whether it could have been done differently. 7 passengers were treated on
the spot, 5 of them taken to a hospital.

Canada’s TSB have opened an investigation.

On Nov 6th 2013 the TSB reported that the aircraft was parking at the gate
after arrival from Casablanca. While the passengers began disembarking through
the front left main door a cargo belt loader approached the left aft cargo
door but caught fire due to a fuel leak inside its engine compartment. An
evacuation was ordered, the passengers continued to deplane through the
left front door and three slides (to the right hand side) were deployed
with a number of passengers exiting the aircraft via the slides. 3 passengers
sustained minor injuries as result of the evacuation.

The burning cargo belt loader (Photo: Reallove):
The burning cargo belt loader, evacuation in progress (Photo: Maxime Landry):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b05d37
20131112165257:20131103000000
Incident: Easyjet A319 at Milan on Nov 3rd 2013, smoke in cabin
An Easyjet Airbus A319-100, registration G-EJAR performing positioning flight
U2-9002 from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Lyon (France) with 6 crew, was climbing
out of Milan’s Malpensa Airport when the crew donned their oxygen masks,
stopped the climb at FL260 and returned to Malpensa for a safe landing on
runway 35R about 25 minutes after departure.

Italy’s ANSV rated the occurrence a serious incident and opened an investigation
reporting that the aircraft was performing a positioning flight without
passengers when smoke in the cabin forced the crew to use their oxygen masks.

On Nov 12th 2013 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that during
initial climb just after thrust reduction the crew activated the air conditioning
systems (packs). The first officer immediately noticed bad fumes and smell
prompting the crew to don their oxygen masks and execute the initial smoke
drill. The captain requested a priority landing at Malpensa where the aircraft
landed without further event. After landing all 6 crew members went to hospital
for blood testing. Italy’s ANSV is investigating the serious incident.

The aircraft had landed at Milan Malpensa’s Airport as flight U2-2788 on
Nov 2nd 2013 arriving from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46aec2a9
20131103200657:20131102000000
Incident: Emirates A332 near Colombo on Nov 2nd 2013, cargo fire indication
An Emirates Airlines Airbus A330-200, registration A6-EAR performing flight
EK-655 from Colombo (Sri Lanka) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates), was climbing
out of Colombo when the crew stopped the climb at FL270 due to a cargo fire
indication and returned to Colombo for a safe landing on runway 22 about
30 minutes after departure. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

Passengers reported that following checks the aircraft was boarded and prepared
for another departure, however, the crew duty time had elapsed and the flight
was postponed to the next day.

The aircraft departed the following morning and reached Dubai with a delay
of 17 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=46adc879
20131102160114:20131101000000
Incident: Air France B773 near Saint Denis on Nov 1st 2013, smell of smoke in cabin
An Air France Boeing 777-300, registration F-GSQR performing flight AF-645
from Saint Denis (Reunion) to Paris Orly (France), was climbing out of Saint
Denis when the crew stopped the climb at FL180 reporting a strong smell
of smoke in the cabin. The aircraft subsequently entered a hold to dump
fuel before returning to Saint Denis for a safe landing about 95 minutes
after departure.

A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration F-GSQO reached Paris with a delay
of 4:45 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to depart for flight AF-643 about 10 hours
after landing back.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46add584
20131102173707:20131031000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Abilene on Oct 31st 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-12 from Dallas Love,TX to
Albuquerque,NM (USA) with 128 passengers, was climbing through FL360 out
of Dallas when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Abilene,TX
(USA) for a safe landing on runway 35R about 20 minutes later. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 registration N420WN reached Albuquerque with
a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b5f648
20131112164823:20131030000000
Incident: Singapore A388 near Singapore on Oct 30th 2013, sparks and smoke in cabin
A Singapore Airlines Airbus A380-800, registration 9V-SKB from Singapore
(Singapore) to Sydney,NS (Australia), was climbing through FL130 out of
Singapore when cabin crew noticed sparks and smoke coming from an inflight
entertainment system at seat 55D. Cabin crew used a Halon fire extinguisher
and disconnected power supply to the seat. The flight continued to Sydney
for a safe landing on schedule.

The French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin on Nov 12th 2013 that the
occurrence was rated a serious incident by Singapore’s AAIB, an investigation
has been opened.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46afb75d
20131104230405:20131029000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 at Newark on Oct 29th 2013, unidentifyable burning smell
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGV performing flight LH-408
from Dusseldorf (Germany) to Newark,NJ (USA) with 192 people on board, was
on approach frequency to Newark descending through about 6000 feet when
the crew requested priority due to an unidentifyable smell in the cockpit,
possibly burning rubber or burning plastics. The captain donned his oxygen
mask for the remainder of the approach and landing, the crew requested high
speed up to 280 knots. There was no smoke or haze visible, they lost the
flight management system #1 about 5 minutes prior to the fumes and did not
know whether there was a link between that failure and the smell. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 04R about 18 minutes later.

The aircraft was on the ground in Newark for about 3 hours then departed
for the return flight LH-409 about 40 minutes behind schedule and reached
Dusseldorf on schedule.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a8f3ce
20131027200358:20131025000000
Incident: Frontier A319 at Denver on Oct 25th 2013, rejected takeoff
A Frontier Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N954FR performing flight
F9-212 from Denver,CO to Austin,TX (USA), rejected takeff from runway 34L
at high speed after all flight data disappeared from the instruments. While
turning off the runway, already on the taxiway but not clear of the runway,
both right hand main tyres deflated disabling the aircraft during the turn
off, responding emergency services reported lots of smoke while approaching
the aircraft, after arriving at the aircraft emergency services reported
no actual danger, both right main gear tyres were deflated, there was debris
left behind on the taxiway by the right hand gear, the structure and rims
looked okay however. The passengers disembarked onto the taxiway via stairs
and were bussed to the terminal.

Runway 16R/34L was closed until maintenance had replaced all 4 main tyres
and moved the aircraft out of the runway’s protected area.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration N904FR reached Austin with a
delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a76096
20131025210045:20131024000000
Incident: Spirit A319 at New Orleans on Oct 24th 2013, smell of smoke in cabin
A Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N512NK performing flight
NK-365 from New Orleans,LA to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 129 people
on board, was climbing out of New Orleans when the crew stopped the climb
at 14,000 feet and returned to New Orleans reporting a smokey odour on board.
The aircraft landed safely on New Orleans’ runway 20 about 18 minutes after
departure.

The incident aircraft was able to depart again after about 3:15 hours on
the ground and reached Dallas with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a69edb
20131024233941:20131022000000
Incident: American B752 near El Paso on Oct 22nd 2013, electrical odour on board
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N688AA performing flight
AA-2420 from Los Angeles,CA to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 162 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at FL370 about 50nm northwest of El Paso,TX when
the crew declared emergency reporting an electrical smell on board and diverted
to El Paso for a safe landing on runway 22 about 18 minutes later. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.

The incident aircraft resumed service about 27 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a5b367
20140814152258:20131022000000
Incident: American B752 near Providenciales on Oct 22nd 2013, engine oil leak
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N605AA performing flight
AA-2282 from Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago) to Miami,FL (USA) with
169 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute at FL360 about 110nm southeast of
Providenciales (Turks and Caicos) when the crew noticed smell of smoke in
the cockpit and declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit. Shortly
afterwards the left hand engine’s (RB211) oil temperature rose to above
170 degrees C into the red zone, the engine was reduced to idle, the oil
pressure dropped and the temperature returned to within operational values.
The aircraft diverted to Providenciales for a safe landing about 17 minutes
after leaving FL360.

Maintenance found engine oil in the fan duct, the quantity in the oil reservoir
had reduced by about 1/3.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration N838NN was dispatched to Providenciales,
continued the flight and reached Miami with a delay of 7 hours.

The airline reported there was no fire, the aircraft diverted due to a mechanical
problem with an engine causing a low oil indication.

Turks and Caicos Emergency Department reported the crew indicated a fire
on board, the left engine was smoking and dripping fuel.

On Aug 14th 2014 the British AAIB released their bulletin reporting a seal
in the low pressure fuel pump had failed permitting fuel to enter the oil
system and the bleed air system. The aircraft was about 100nm southeast
of Providenciales when smoke began to fill the cockpit, the crew donned
their oxygen masks and diverted to Providenciales, cabin crew informed the
cockpit of smoke from the left hand engine but no signs of fire. The crew
completed the smoke, fumes and fire as well as the smoke removal checklists,
at FL100 the smoke had dissipated sufficiently that the crew was able to
remove the oxygen masks and smoke goggles.

Following landing the left engine was removed from the airframe, its oil
level was found low, there was a strong smell of fuel in the oil system,
and a large amount of debris was on the magnetic chip detectors, in particular
on the detector at the high speed gearbox. A seal in the low pressure fuel
pump was found heavily damaged, the fuel pump had a maintenance interval
of 12,000 hours and had accumulated 11,600 hours.

The AAIB discussed: “This is believed to be the fifth occasion on this engine
type of a fuel pump fault that has resulted in smoke entering the bleed
air system. The engine manufacturer is conducting a detailed inspection
of the fuel pump to determine the cause of failure, in accordance with its
established continued airworthiness procedures.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a5c623
20131023231755:20131021000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Pasco on Oct 21st 2013, cargo fire indication
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N614DL performing flight DL-2329
from Atlanta,GA to Seattle,WA (USA) with 185 people on board, was enroute
at FL360 about 150nm eastsoutheast of Pasco,WA when the crew received a
forward cargo fire indication and diverted to Pasco for a safe landing on
runway 30 about 25 minutes later and stopped on the runway for emergency
services to check the cargo bay. Emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted due to indication of haze in
the cargo bay.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached Seattle with a delay of 7.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a5c3a3
20131023230252:20131021000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Syracuse on Oct 21st 2013, coffee pot smoking
An Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N920DL performing
flight DL-1841 from Syracuse,NY to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 116 people on board,
was climbing through about 15,000 feet out of Syracuse when the crew declared
emergency reporting they had a fire extinguisher discharged, a coffee pot
at the right forward galley was smoking. The aircraft returned to Syracuse
for a safe landing on runway 10 about 12 minutes later, vacated the runway
and stopped for a brief examination by emergency services, then continued
to the apron.

The airline confirmed a smokey odour in the galley.

The airport reported there had been a small electrical fire at the coffee
pot, which had been quickly extinguished.

A replacement MD-88 reached Atlanta with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a33f88
20131020172050:20131020000000
Incident: United B744 at Sydney on Oct 20th 2013, blew tyres on takeoff
A United Boeing 747-400, registration N182UA performing flight UA-840 from
Sydney,NS (Australia) to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was in the initial climb
out of runway 34L when the crew reported it appeared they blew a tyre on
takeoff, tower might want to double check the runway and they were returning
to Sydney. Runway 34L was closed, a runway inspection discovered “lots of
rubber” on the runway. The aircraft entered a hold at 10,000 feet to dump
fuel and returned to Sydney for a safe landing on runway 34L about 90 minutes
after departure. During roll out tower reported some smoke from the left
main gear, it appeared there was some rubber missing from those wheels.
The aircraft vacated the runway via taxiway G and stopped clear of the runway.
Both left aft body gear tyres had separated with the wheels running on their
rims, tyre debris impact marks around the wing root fairings.

Runway 34L was closed for about 20 minutes until the debris had been removed,
but needed to be closed again due to damage on the runway caused by the
wheels. The runway was opened and closed a number of times over the next
5 hours as result of the occurrence.

The flight was cancelled.

N182UA seen at the gate (Photo: Airline Hub Buzz):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a09b94
20150207204142:20131015000000
Incident: Spirit A319 at Dallas on Oct 15th 2013, contained engine failure
A Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N516NK performing flight
NK-165 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 145 passengers,
was climbing through FL200 out of Dallas when the left hand engine (V2524)
emitted a huge bang and smoke began to appear in cabin and cockpit prompting
the flight crew to don their oxygen masks and shut the engine down. The
aircraft returned to Dallas Ft. Worth, significant weather warning of thunderstorms
in effect, and while being vectored for an ILS approach to runway 35C and
cleared for the approach the crew declined stating they needed to go through
the localizer and join the localizer from the other side, their speed was
decreasing through 255 KIAS at that point. The aircraft was turned outbound
to reposition to join the localizer, a number of aircraft approaching other
DFW runways began to go around due to weather. The crew joined the localizer
on their second attempt. The approach controller advised all emergency services
were waiting and queried whether they had problems with the instruments,
the crew replies “yes” but confirmed they had localizer and glideslope indication.
The controller monitored the flight progress very carefully notifying the
crew that localizer tracking and glidepath appeared good before handing
the aircraft off to tower. The aircraft landed safely on Dallas Ft. Worth’s
runway 35C about 30 minutes after stopping the climb.

The NTSB dispatched investigators on site despite the government shutdown
initially stating the engine failure had been uncontained.

On Oct 18th 2013, after the government shutdown had been ended, the NTSB
issued a press release stating that after assessment it was determined the
engine casing had not been breached, the engine failure is now rated contained.
The investigation is ongoing, the engine will be taken to a laboratory for
further analysis.

On Nov 13th 2013 the NTSB reported in their preliminary report that the
aircraft was climbing through about FL190 when the crew received an Engine
Pressure Ratio (EPR) fault, a N2 over limit warning and an Exhaust Gas Temperature
(EGT) over limit warning for the #1 engine (V2524). Approximately three
minutes later a loud bang was heard followed by the engine #1 fire warning.
The crew declared emergency, shut down the engine and discharged one of
the fire bottles. Following return and safe landing emergency services confirmed
there was no fire, ground crew reported substantial damage to the low pressure
turbine. The thrust reverser cowls were opened, large sections of the low
pressure turbine and turbine exhaust case were missing.

The airline reported the crew received indication of a mechanical malfunction,
shut an engine down and returned to Dallas for a normal landing.

Passengers reported a huge engine explosion followed by smoke billowing
into the cabin. The aircraft was shaking violently before the engine was
shut down.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration N506NK reached Atlanta with a
delay of 4:45 hours.

On Feb 6th 2015 the NTSB released their final report concluding the probable
cause of the occurrence rated an incident was:

A high pressure turbine 2nd stage blade separation due to stress corrosion
cracking in the J channel cooling cavity. The failed blade entered the gas
path and caused substantial damage to the low pressure turbine. The engine
was subsequently left at a high power setting for approximately four minutes,
exposing the turbine hardware to temperatures that exceeded the material
annealing temperature and resulted in in failure and separation of multiple
engine components.

The NTSB wrote: ” The flight crew reported that about ten minutes after
takeoff, at FL190, the electronic centralized aircraft monitor (ECAM) displayed
a No. 1 engine pressure ratio (EPR) mode fault, N2 over limit warning, and
an exhaust gas temperature (EGT) over limit warning. The ECAM notifications
coincided with heavy vibrations that could be felt throughout the cockpit
and cabin. Both engines were advanced to the take-off/go around (TO/GA)
power setting until a No. 1 engine fire warning registered about four minutes
later at which time the flight crew shutdown the No. 1 engine and discharged
one fire suppression bottle. During the event sequence smoke began entering
the cockpit and the crew donned oxygen masks. The airplane returned to DFW
and executed an uneventful single engine landing.”

The NTSB described the damage: “The No. 1 engine low pressure turbine (LPT)
3rd and 4th stage disks, turbine exhaust case center body, and the No. 5
bearing housing were jettisoned from the engine. The LPT 5th stage disk
had separated from the 6th stage disk and was hanging on the LPT shaft.
There was extensive damage to all remaining high pressure turbine (HPT)
and LPT hardware. Large sections of the LPT and exhaust cases were breached
and not recovered. The engine cowlings were in good condition without indications
of radial uncontainment.”

Left side of engine (Photo: NTSB):
Right side of engine (Photo: NTSB):
The LPT turbine (Photo: NTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46cb128d
20140410161948:20131014000000
Incident: British Airways B744 over Atlantic on Oct 14th 2013, electrical fire on board
A British Airways Boeing 747-400, registration G-BNLW performing flight
BA-192 (Dep Oct 13th) from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) to London Heathrow,EN
(UK) with 275 passengers, was enroute over the Atlantic Ocean, breakfast
was about to be served, when an burning electrical smell was noticed and
fire detectors went off. An actual fire was detected in the cabinet containing
the control center of the inflight entertaiment center, cabin crew managed
to extinguish the fire. The aircraft continued to London for a safe landing.

The airline confirmed the incident reporting it took about 5 minutes from
detecting the first fumes to the ultimately small fire being extinguished
using several, possibly 5, fire extinguishers.

The occurrence has been rated as serious incident, an investigation has
been opened into the occurrence.

Passengers reported that they noticed the inflight entertainment system
went offline and there was some accumulation of flight attendants. It was
only later that some of the passengers were quietly told about a fire, that
had taken out part of the inflight entertainment system.

On Apr 10th 2014 the British AAIB released a preliminary report within their
monthly bulletin reporting that the aircraft was enroute about 2 hours before
landing when both pilots noticed a smell reminding them of desinfectant,
they checked the cockpit door surveillance system to find out whether the
forward lavatory was being cleaned. The upper deck forward flight attendant
called the flight deck reporting a “funny smell”, during the call the pilots
noticed the smell turned into a strong, acrid electrical burning smell.
The call was termined when a lavatory smoke EICAS message was received indicating
the smoke was either in a lavatory or the cooling duct of the inflight entertainment
system. The captain handed control to the first officer and worked the related
checklist which did not require any action from the flight deck, the crew
decided not to don their oxygen masks and did not transmit a distress call.

In the meantime two flight attendants had located an open fire in galley
4 between doors 2L and 2R and began to fight the fire with BCF extinguishers
reporting to the flight deck open flames in galley 4 emanating from the
Video Demodulator (VMOD) of the inflight entertainment system, which was
located in the service director’s office in Galley 4. The communication
channels were kept open. The fire appeared to keep relighting several times,
a total of five fire extinguishers were discharged until the fire could
be reported out. The VMOD was removed and secured.

The AAIB analysed: “The VMOD unit was sent to its manufacturer for investigation
but, at the time of preparation of this account, their report has not been
received. However it was noted that the unit is certified to self-extinguish
when electrically isolated. An internal investigation by the operator concluded
that it was likely the VMOD had remained powered during the incident and
this was the reason it continued to re-ignite. One of the cabin crew described
how he believed he had isolated the IFE, but his description of events suggested
that he had only actioned the ëseat/pc electrics isolationí part of the
ëSafety Equipment and Procedures Manualí and that this had been done from
memory.”

The Video Demodulator and related switches (Photo: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469ec120
20131014151352:20131013000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 near Buffalo on Oct 13th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Chautauqua Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N268SK performing
flight RP-4983/UA-4983 from Cleveland,OH to Boston,MA (USA) with 34 passengers
and 3 crew, was climbing out of Cleveland, when the crew donned their oxygen
masks, stopped the climb at FL250 about 60nm southwest of Buffalo,NY, declared
emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Buffalo for a safe
landing on runway 23 about 13 minutes later, vacated the runway and was
instructed to stop on parallel taxiway for inspection by emergency vehicles,
the crew indicated they could taxi directly to the apron and proceeded to
the gate.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 registration N292SK reached Boston with a
delay of 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469e22f7
20131013201627:20131013000000
Incident: Cebu Pacific A320 at Kalibo on Oct 13th 2013, overheating brakes on landing
A Cebu Pacific Airbus A320-200, registration RP-C3245 performing flight
5J-79 from Seoul Incheon (South Korea) to Kalibo (Philippines), landed safely
in Kalibo when during roll out the left hand brakes started to overheat.
The aircraft was able to taxi to the apron but then smoke started to rise
from the brakes prompting emergency services to respond and douse the wheels
with water to cool them down. The passengers disembarked after the brakes
had cooled down.

The incident aircraft was able to depart for the onward flight about 3 hours
later.

RP-C3245 with smoking brakes (Photo: Joseph Cepril Regalado):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469d3e15
20131012163653:20131010000000
Incident: PIA A313 near Karachi on Oct 10th 2013, smoke indication
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A310-300, registration AP-BGR
performing flight PK-304 from Karachi to Lahore (Pakistan), returned to
Karachi for a safe landing following a smoke indication.

The airline reported the fire/smoke indication was false caused by a malfunction
of the fire warning system.

A replacement A310-300 registration AP-BGN reached Lahore with a delay of
4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469981e6
20131007215541:20131006000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Peoria on Oct 6th 2013, smoke indication
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N609DP performing flight
MQ-3176 from Peoria,IL to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 47 passengers and
3 crew, was climbing out of Peoria when the crew received an aft cargo smoke
indication, stopped the climb at 14000 feet, declared emergency reporting
they were coming back in and returned to Peoria for a safe landing on runway
04 about 13 minutes after departure. The aircraft stopped on the runway
and was evacuated. No trace of fire, heat or smoke was detected.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The airline said the cause of the sensor indication is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4698aeba
20131006195559:20131006000000
Incident: Wideroe DH8A near Svolvaer on Oct 6th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Wideroe de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration LN-WIM performing flight
WF-824 from Bodo to Svolvaer (Norway) with 37 passengers and 3 crew, was
on final approach to Svolvaer when the crew reported smoke had been detected
in the cabin. The aircraft landed safely about 2 minutes later, the passengers
rapidly deplaned.

The airline said electrical wiring overheated causing the smoke.

The return flight WF-825 was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469cab1d
20131011230104:20131005000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Toronto on Oct 5th 2013, lavatory smoke indication
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N922AE performing flight
MQ-3630 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 42 people
on board, was in the initial climb out of runway 06R when the crew received
a lavatory smoke indication, stopped the climb at 5000 feet and returned
to Toronto’s runway 15L about 10 minutes after departure.

NAV Canada reported the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance replaced a carbon seal of the
right hand engine (AE3007).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46972569
20131004205919:20131003000000
Incident: Shuttle E170 at Denver and Chicago on Oct 3rd 2013, suspected blown tyres on nose and main gear
A Shuttle America Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of United, registration N635RW
performing flight S5-3578/UA-3578 from Denver,CO (USA) to Toronto,ON (Canada),
stopped the climb out of Denver at FL290 due to concern that one of the
nose gear and/or main gear tyres might be blown after debris had been found
on the departure runway in Denver. The crew continued the flight but soon
needed to descend the aircraft to 11,000 feet. The crew subsequently diverted
to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) requesting a low approach to runway 28R to have
the landing gear checked from the ground requesting tower and aircraft on
the ground to check their nose and right main landing gear for blown tyres.
The crew of an aircraft on the ground reported that all tyres were in place,
they couldn’t tell for sure however whether the tyres were inflated or deflated.
The observer on the tower advised he could not see any anomaly with the
tyres, they appeared normal. The crew acknowledged reporting they had left
significant chunk of debris at the departure runway. The aircraft positioned
for another approach to 28R and landed safely about 3 hours after departure
from Denver, however were unable to vacate the runway and stopped on the
runway. Emergency services reported the right inboard tyre looked flat but
pretty much intact, there was no fire and no smoke, the aircraft was released
to continue taxi to the apron, the crew however decided the tyre was too
shredded and they needed to be towed.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-170 registration N859RW reached Toronto with a
delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46966402
20131003212853:20131003000000
Incident: Eagle B190 near Nelson on Oct 3rd 2013, electrical smell in cockpit
An Eagle Airways Beech 1900D on behalf of Air New Zealand, registration
ZK-EAP performing flight NZ-2195 from Wellington to Nelson (New Zealand)
with 17 passengers and 2 crew, was descending towards Nelson when the crew
declared emergency reporting an electrical smell in the cockpit. The aircraft
continued for a safe landing on Nelson’s runway 02 and stopped after vacating
the runway at the last exit.

Emergency services reported that after landing there was light haze visible
in the cockpit. The crew shut down both engines and rapidly disembarked
the passengers. The source of the smoke is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46961c3e
20131012153927:20131003000000
Crash: Associated E120 at Lagos on Oct 3rd 2013, lost height after takeoff
An Associated Aviation Embraer EMB-120, registration 5N-BJY performing charter
flight SCD-361 from Lagos to Akure (Nigeria) with 13 passengers and 7 crew,
lost height shortly after takeoff from Lagos Airport’s runway 18L, impacted
trees, a brick wall and ground at 09:32L (08:32Z) and caught fire. 5 survivors
were rescued, 15 people have been confirmed dead by authorities.

The Federal Aviation Agency Nigeria (NCAA) confirmed an Embraer EMB-120
lost height shortly after takeoff and crashed. 15 bodies have been recovered
from the crash site, 5 survivors have been taken to hospitals. The black
boxes have been recovered, Nigeria’s Accident Investigation Board has dispatched
investigators on site and is going to investigate the crash. It is unclear
whether there were 20 people or 20 passengers plus crew on board of the
aircraft.

Later the day the NCAA reported that the crew had declared emergency stating
an engine had failed on takeoff. The front section of the aircraft has completely
burned down beyond recognition.

Nigeria’s Aviation Ministry reported the aircraft carried 20 passengers
and 7 crew.

Nigeria’s Airport Authority subsequently reported 20 people including crew
were on board of the aircraft.

On Oct 4th the airline released the aircraft manifest reporting the aircraft
carried 13 passengers and 7 crew (captain, first officer, engineer, dispatcher,
2 flight attendants and 1 unidentified function), 5 survivors are being
treated in three hospitals in Lagos, 15 occupants of the aircraft have been
killed in the crash. Prior to the accident flight the aircraft had last
flown on Aug 30th 2013.

A ground witness reported the aircraft struggled to climb at all after rotation,
appeared to attempt to return but fell back onto the ground in unusual attitude.

The aircraft was carrying a family and a body to the funeral of the body
in Akure, a second aircraft departing earlier with other family members
including the widow of the deceased and two daughters of the pair reached
Akure safely. The oldest son of the pair survived the crash with serious
but non life-threatening injuries.

Emergency services reported, that the coffin of the deceased taken to Akure
for burial was recovered intact though battered.

Metars:
DNMM 031200Z 20011KT 170V230 9999 TS BKN012 FEW020CB 28/25 Q1013 NOSIG

DNMM 030830Z 23008KT 190V300 9999 BKN011 27/24 Q1014 NOSIG
DNMM 030730Z 22004KT 180V270 9999 SCT010 26/24 Q1014 NOSIG
DNMM 030700Z 23003KT 170V310 9999 SCT010 26/24 Q1013 NOSIG
DNMM 030630Z 00000KT 8000 SCT009 25/22 Q1013 NOSIG
DNMM 030600Z 00000KT 8000 SCT009 25/22 Q1013 NOSIG
DNMM 030530Z VRB02KT 8000 SCT009 25/22 Q1012 NOSIG

The brick wall (Photo: Reuters):
The tail of 5N-BJY (Photo: Reuters):
The remains of the aircraft (Photos: AP):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46958d5c
20131002194504:20131002000000
Incident: CSA AT72 at Budapest on Oct 2nd 2013, engine fire
A CSA Czech Airlines Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-200, registration
OK-YFT performing flight OK-787 from Budapest (Hungary) to Prague (Czech
Republic) with 33 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing through about 3000
feet out of Budapest’s runway 31R when the crew, audibly on oxygen masks,
declared Mayday reporting smoke in the aircraft and requested an immediate
return to runway 31R for a landing as soon as possible. Another aircraft
was immediately pulled off the approach and sent into a hold, several more
aircraft also were sent to holds. About a minute after the initial emergency
call the crew reported they had an engine fire on the left hand engine,
the engine had been shut down and the fire suppression systems had been
discharged, the fire appeared to have been extinguished, in the stress of
the situation the crew reported 330 passengers and 4 crew on board. The
aircraft landed safely on runway 31R about 10 minutes after departure and
stopped on the runway where emergency services checked the aircraft before
it continued to the apron.

Budapest Airport was closed for about 30 minutes as result of the emergency
due to one runway out of service for maintenance and the other kept sterile
for the emergency and subsequent checks. Two aircraft diverted to Bratislava
as result of the delay.

The airline confirmed the crew received an engine fire indication, shut
the engine down and returned to Budapest.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the next flight.

On Oct 8th 2013 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that after
departure the crew noticed smell of smoke and smoke coming from the left
hand engine, the left hand engine’s fire indication activated, the engine’s
low oil pressure activated and the engine stalled. The crew shut the engine
down and returned to Budapest. After landing investigators found a number
of fractured turbine vanes. Hungary’s Transportation Safety Board is investigating
the occurrence rated a serious incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4695abca
20131002230739:20131001000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Knoxville on Oct 1st 2013, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N17185 performing
flight EV-4293/UA-4293 from Columbia,SC to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with
35 people on board, was climbing through FL305 about 70nm northeast of Knoxville,TN
when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Knoxville. The
aircraft landed safely on Knoxville’s runway 23L about 20 minutes later,
after landing the crew advised no assistance was needed anymore and proceeded
to the apron.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 reached Chicago with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469b0d78
20131009220247:20130928000000
Accident: Jazz CRJ9 at Toronto on Sep 28th 2013, smoke in cabin during roll out
A Jazz Canadair CRJ-705, registration C-GLJZ performing flight QK-8859 from
Charlottetown,PE to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 61 people on board, was in
the roll out on Toronto’s runway 05 when the flight crew received indication
of a right hand pack overheat shortly followed by cabin crew reporting heavy
smoke in the cabin. The captain stopped the aircraft on taxiway AK, requested
emergency services to attend the aircraft and ordered a rapid disembarkation
of passengers. Subsequently the captain went to the cabin and noticed the
smoke began to dissipate and returned to the cockpit to coordinate with
emergency services.

The Canadian TSB reported that during the following walk around it was discovered
that a number of passengers had exited the aircraft through the right hand
overwing exit, three passengers received minor injuries. Cockpit voice and
flight data recorders were secured. Maintenance found the right hand air
cycle machine seized and replaced it, subsequent tests showed no anomaly.
Maintenance in addition replaced all power supply units for cabin emergency
lights before returning the aircraft to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4692673b
20130928195949:20130928000000
Incident: Atlanta Icelandic B744 at Dhaka on Sep 28th 2013, overheating brakes
An Air Atltanta Icelandic Boeing 747-400 on behalf of Saudi Arabian Airlines,
registration TF-AMV performing positioning flight SV-3822 from Riyadh (Saudi
Arabia) to Dhaka (Bangladesh), landed in Dhaka when sparks and smoke was
observed from the right hand main landing gear during roll out, the aircraft
stopped on the runway. Emergency services responded and cooled the brakes.

The airport was closed for about one hour as result of the emergency.

The airport reported a malfunction of the right main gear caused sparks
and smoke. Emergency services responded, the aircraft was towed to the apron
about one hour after landing.

The aircraft was not able to pick up the 422 pilgrims waiting for their
Hajj flight, the flight was postponed to the next day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=469182f0
20130927171028:20130926000000
Incident: American MD82 at Chicago on Sep 26th 2013, battery fire in cabin
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration N493AA performing
flight AA-1159 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Saint Louis,MO (USA) with 126 people
on board, was climbing through 10,000 feet out of Chicago’s runway 22L when
the crew reported a fire in the cabin and returned the aircraft to O’Hare
Airport for a safe landing on runway 10L about 13 minutes after departure.
The crew advised the fire had been extinguished, the camcorder was still
smoking, they were able to vacate the runway but needed to stop clear of
the runway and get the firefighters on board. The aircraft stopped, shut
both engines down, brought the APU up while firefighters entered the cabin
and secured the camcorder.

Emergency services reported the aircraft returned due to smoke in the cabin,
the Lithium battery of a passenger’s camcorder in an overhead bin had set
the bag around the camcorder on fire, the fire had been put out by handheld
fire extinguishers by cabin crew and the battery was placed into a bucket
of cold water.

A replacement MD-83 registration N589AA reached Saint Louis with a delay
of 160 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468ff6aa
20130926124129:20130924000000
Incident: Lufthansa A319 at Munich on Sep 24th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A319-100, registration D-AKNJ performing flight LH-1818
from Munich (Germany) to Barcelona,SP (Spain), was climbing out of Munich
when the crew donned their oxygen masks, stopped the climb at FL160 reporting
smoke in the cockpit and returned to Munich. The crew subsequently advised
they had light smoke in the cockpit, they would stop on the runway and requested
emergency services to check the aircraft out “in aller Ruhe” (in all calmness).
The aircraft performed an ILS approach to runway 26L and landed safely on
runway 26L about 17 minutes after departure.

The flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft resumed service after about 13 hours on the ground.

The airline reported the following day the crew detected the smell of smoke,
however, there was no smoke in the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468f1c6c
20130924200953:20130923000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Wichita on Sep 23rd 2013, burning smell on board
A Delta Boeing 757-200, registration N6705Y performing flight DL-1480 from
San Francisco,CA to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 175 people on board, was enroute
at FL370 about 60nm westsouthwest of Wichita’s Mid-Continent Airport,KS
(USA) when the crew reported a burning smell on board and decided to divert
to Wichita. Later on approach the crew reported an unknown smoke in the
cabin. The aircraft landed safely on Wichita’s runway 19R about 17 minutes
after leaving FL370. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

Passengers reported a smell like burning plastics.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468ca8d9
20130921204308:20130920000000
Incident: Spirit A319 at Fort Lauderdale on Sep 20th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N525NK performing flight
NK-305 from Fort Lauderdale,FL to Las Vegas,NV (USA) with 150 people on
board, was in the initial climb out of Fort Lauderdale’s runway 10L when
the crew stopped the climb at 4000 feet reporting smoke in the cockpit,
donned their oxygen masks and returned the aircraft to Fort Lauderdale for
a safe landing on runway 10L about 9 minutes after departure. The aircraft
was able to taxi to the gate after a check by emergency services.

A replacement A319-100 registration N531NK reached Las Vegas with a delay
of 3 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to resume service 5 hours after landing.

Passengers reported that during takeoff rotation a smell like burning batteries
appeared in the cabin, shortly after becoming airborne smoke entered the
cabin from the cockpit. The aircraft returned to Fort Lauderdale, emergency
services entered the aircraft with fire extinguishers. They were later told
that a faulty air conditioning system was identified as cause of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468bb3ae
20130920163138:20130920000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Manchester on Sep 20th 2013, irritating smell on board
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N910DE performing
flight DL-1941 from Manchester,NH to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 144 passengers
and 5 crew, was climbing out of Manchester when the crew stopped the climb
at 10,000 feet reporting fumes in the cabin were getting the flight attendants
irritated, the crew declared emergency and decided to divert to Boston,MA,
where the aircraft landed safely on runway 04R about 25 minutes after departure,
vacated the runway and stopped for a check by emergency services, shut both
engines down and requested emergency services to walk around advising they
were still smelling the fumes. Emergency services did not find any trace
of fire, heat or smoke. Passengers disembarked onto the taxiway and were
bussed to the terminal, the aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron.
There were no injuries.

The airline confirmed fumes on board prompted the diversion. The passengers
were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468b08a8
20130919204133:20130919000000
Incident: American B752 near San Andres on Sep 19th 2013, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N676AN performing flight
AA-1204 from San Jose (Costa Rica) to Miami,FL (USA) with 178 passengers,
was enroute near San Andres Island (Colombia) when the crew reported smoke
in the cabine and diverted to San Andres for a safe landing.

The aircraft is currently being examined to identify the source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468aed0d
20130919173713:20130919000000
Incident: JAL B773 at Sapporo on Sep 19th 2013, smoking from main gear
A JAL Japan Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration JA8942 performing flight
JL-505 from Tokyo Haneda to Sapporo (Japan) with 503 passengers and 13 crew,
landed on Sapporo’s runway 01L. During roll out tower advised that smoke
was seen from the right hand main gear, emergency services responded. The
aircraft rolled out safely and stopped on taxiway A1 just past the end of
the runway. Emergency services doused the right hand main gear with water.
The passengers remained on board, the aircraft later continued taxi to the
gate, where the passengers disembarked normally.

Runway 01L/19R was closed for about 30 minutes as result of the occurrence.

The airline reported hydraulic fluid exited from a fractured hydraulic and
evaporated, accelerated by the hot brakes, causing the impression of smoke.
There was no fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468b0c3a
20130919210604:20130918000000
Incident: TAM A320 near Curitiba on Sep 18th 2013, smell of smoke in cockpit
A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A320-200, registration PR-MYI performing flight
JJ-3045 from Sao Paulo Congonhas,SP to Porto Alegre,RS (Brazil), was enroute
at FL380 about 35nm east of Curitiba,PR (Brazil) when the crew reported
smell of smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Curitiba for a safe landing
on runway 15 about 12 (!) minutes later. Responding emergency services found
no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

Following examination the aircraft departed Curitiba as flight JJ-9396 to
Porto Alegre 4 hours after landing and reached Porto Alegre with a delay
of 4 hours. The aircraft subsequently performed return flight JJ-3046 with
a delay of 45 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=471532fe
20140313145332:20130914000000
Report: Thomas Cook B763 near Manchester on Sep 14th 2013, acrid smell in galley
A Thomas Cook Boeing 767-300, registration G-TCCB performing flight MT-2538
from Manchester,EN (UK) to Antalya (Turkey) with 320 passengers and 11 crew,
was climbing out of Manchester, when cabin crew switched on the ovens in
the rear galley. Three minutes later an acrid smell was noticed emanating
from the #3 oven, the oven was turned off and the circuit breakers reset.
Although the oven had been disconnected the smell intensified and cabin
crew noticed “wispy white smoke” from the sides and top of the oven. Fire
Extinguishers were discharged two times, the flight crew declared PAN and
diverted to East Midlands,EN (UK) for a safe landing. The aircraft vacated
the runway and stopped, fire services entered the cabin and removed the
oven. The aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron, where passengers
disembarked.

The AAIB reported in their bulletin that there was no evidence of fire in,
on or around the oven.

The trays to be inserted into the oven are being prepared by an independent
ground service company and come preloaded with the passengers’ meals.

A safety pin in the #3 oven, which should prevent the trays from contacting
exposed elements at the back of the oven, was found bent.

Examination revealed that two different types of ovens were installed on
the operator’s Boeing 767s, one being 11mm narrower than the other. It was
found, that the meal trays could be easily inserted into the larger oven
but needed some force to be inserted into the narrower oven.

The occurrence tray inserted into the #3 oven was found damaged and too
big for the oven.

As safety action as result of the occurrence the operator identified a new
insert compatible with both types of ovens.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=468467f1
20130911204124:20130911000000
Incident: Jet2.com B733 at Newcastle on Sep 11th 2013, bird strike
A Jet2.com Boeing 737-300, registration G-GDFO performing flight LS-353
from Newcastle,EN (UK) to Krakow (Poland), was in the initial climb out
of Newcastle’s runway 25 when the aircraft flew through a flock of seagulls
and suffered a number of bird impacts. The crew stopped the climb at FL060
and positioned for an approach to Newcastle’s runway 25, when on final approach
the crew received a fire indication for the left hand engine (CFM56), declared
emergency and continued for a safe landing on runway 25. Emergency services
checked the aircraft reporting no fire or smoke, the aircraft subsequently
taxied to the apron with the fire trucks in trail.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 registration G-CELE reached Krakow with a delay
of 2:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46b6e1e4
20131113194022:20130910000000
Incident: Safair B733 near Cape Town on Sep 10th 2013, failure of primary flight instruments
A Safair Boeing 737-300 on behalf of South African Airways, registration
ZS-SMJ performing freight flight SA-6836 from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth
(South Africa), was climbing through about FL170 when all primary flight
instruments failed. The crew stopped the climb at FL210 and returned to
Cape Town for a safe landing on runway 01 about 25 minutes later.

On Nov 13th 2013 South Africa’s Civil Aviation Authority reported the aircraft
on a scheduled cargo flight from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth returned because
of the failure of the primary flight instruments consistent with the failure
of a central air data computer. An investigation has been opened.

Media in South Africa had reported in September the cargo flight returned
because of smoke in the cockpit, an information that The Aviation Herald
could not substantiate at the time.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4684624b
20130911200324:20130910000000
Accident: Air Berlin A321 near Nuremberg on Sep 10th 2013, unusual odour near lavatory, 2 cabin crew treated for smoke inhalation
An Air Berlin Airbus A321-200, registration D-ABCF performing flight AB-9152
from Berlin Tegel (Germany) to Palma Mallorca,SP (Spain) with 140 passengers,
was enroute at FL350 about 50nm north of Nuremberg (Germany) when the crew
decided to divert to Nuremberg due to an unusual, unidentifyable smell near
the lavatory. The aircraft landed safely, however two cabin crew members
were taken to a hospital, where they were diagnosed with smoke inhalation.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration D-ABMG reached Palma Mallorca
with a delay of 4 hours.

The airline reported that the aircraft diverted to Nuremberg due to a smell
near a lavatory that could not be identified. A male and a female cabin
crew member were taken to a hospital.

The hospital reported the two cabin crew were diagnosed with smoke inhalation
and remained in intense hospital care for 24 hours.

The accident aircraft resumed service the following day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4681fccd
20130917185242:20130908000000
Accident: Thai A333 at Bangkok on Sep 8th 2013, runway excursion on landing
A Thai Airways Airbus A330-300, registration HS-TEF performing flight TG-679
from Guangzhou (China) to Bangkok (Thailand) with 287 passengers and 14
crew, landed on Bangkok’s runway 19L at about 23:30L (16:30Z) but veered
right off the runway and came to a stop with all gear on soft ground about
1700 meters down the runway, a large plume of dust rose above the aircraft
initially creating fears of a crash followed by smoke from the right hand
engine. The aircraft was evacuated via slides. 14 people received minor
injuries in the evacuation with 3 of the injured still in hospital care
48 hours later, the aircraft received damage to both engines (PW4164), the
nose gear and the right hand main gear, the nose gear is bent but did not
collapse. The runway received substantial damage as result of the fracture
of the right hand main gear bogie beam after the aircraft had travelled
about 1000 meters down the runway following main gear touchdown.

Ground witnesses reported seeing sparks/fire at the right hand side of the
aircaft during roll out. The right hand engine emitted smoke after the aircraft
came to a stop, emergency services foamed the engine which stopped the smoke.

The airline reported (in their original Thai wording) that upon touchdown
the nose gear caused a disruption which resulted in the aircraft to veer
off the runway, their English translation reports a failure of the nose
gear as cause of the aircraft veering off the runway. The captain took control
of the aircraft and brought it to a stop. The airline confirmed 8 people
received minor injuries as result of the evacuation and were taken to hospitals.

The airport authority reported that runway 01R/19L will not be available
during entire Monday, Sep 9th (not yet reflected in NOTAMs). Emergency services
attended to a right hand engine fire following the runway excursion. None
of the gear struts has collapsed (contradicting media reports in Thailand
reporting the nose gear had collapsed). The southern part of the runway
was re-opened around noon local time, TORA 2000 meters.

A passenger reported that the aircraft touched down normally with its main
gear, but when the nose gear touched down the aircraft veered violently
to the right, the aircraft appeared to roll left first then right. When
the aircraft came to a stop there was fire visible from the right hand side,
an evacuation through the left hand doors was immediately initiated.

Thailand’s Civil Aviation Authority reported on Tuesday (Sep 10th) that
permission to move the aircraft off the runway has been granted, the works
to release the runway fully back to service should be completed by midnight
to Wednesday local time. The Authority added later in the day that the root
cause of the runway excursion has been determined to be the fracture of
the right hand main gear bogie beam. The cause of the fracture as well related
events including the damage to the engines and engine fire are still being
investigated.

On Sep 10th 2013 the airline said initial investigation results suggest
that the aircraft had travelled about 1000 meters down the runway following
a smooth landing when the right hand bogie beam broke and caused the runway
excursion. The aircraft received substantial damage, especially on its right
hand side and engine. Following the fracture of the bogie beam the right
hand engine scraped along the runway surface causing sparks and some smoke,
the actual cause of the following engine fire is still being investigated
however.

The airport authority reported the airplane was moved off the runway area
in the early morning of Wednesday Sep 11th 2013.

On Sep 11th 2013 at 15:30L (08:30Z) all works to return the runway to service
were completed, the runway is back in service. Only taxiways B7 and B8 remain
closed for another day.

The French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin on Sep 17th 2013 quoting
Thai Authorities: “There was flame on both engines.” Thailand’s Accident
Investigation Board is investigating the occurrence rated an accident.

Metars:
VTBS 081730Z VRB01KT 9999 FEW020 BKN120 BKN300 25/22 Q1012 NOSIG
VTBS 081700Z 00000KT 9999 FEW020 BKN120 BKN300 25/22 Q1012 NOSIG
VTBS 081630Z 00000KT 9999 FEW020 BKN120 BKN300 26/23 Q1012 NOSIG
VTBS 081600Z 00000KT 9999 FEW020 BKN120 BKN300 26/22 Q1012 NOSIG
VTBS 081530Z VRB01KT 9999 FEW020 BKN120 BKN300 26/22 Q1013 NOSIG
VTBS 081500Z VRB01KT 9999 -RA SCT020 SCT035 BKN120 26/22 Q1013 NOSIG
VTBS 081430Z 25005KT 200V290 9999 -RA SCT020 SCT035 BKN120 26/22 Q1012 NOSIG
VTBS 081400Z 24003KT 180V330 9999 FEW020 BKN120 BKN300 26/23 Q1012 NOSIG
VTBS 081330Z 22003KT 9999 FEW020CB BKN120 BKN300 26/23 Q1011 CB S NOSIG

VTBS 081300Z 15003KT 110V190 9999 FEW020CB BKN120 BKN300 27/23 Q1010 CB
SW NOSIG

Related NOTAMs:
A3191/13 – TWY B7 AND TWY B8 CLSD DUE TO WIP. 11 SEP 13:40 2013 UNTIL 12
SEP 23:00 2013. CREATED: 11 SEP 13:41 2013

A3157/13 – DUE TO DISABLED AIRCRAFT ON RWY 01R/19L, THE REMAINING PORTION

OF A RWY 01R/19L, RWY 01R IS NOT ALLOWED TO TKOF AND LANDING,
RWY 19L IS ALLOWED TO TKOF ONLY AT THE PSN AS FOLLOWING
A. AIRCRAFT ENTERS RWY 19L TO TKOF PSN VIA TWY B8 AND THEN TURNS
RIGHT TO FACE SOUTH FOLLOWING YELLOW GUIDELINE AND TAXI TO TKOF
PSN DISPLAYED BY THE TRANSVERSE WHITE MARKING, TORA IS 2000M
B. AIRCRAFT ENTERS RWY 19L TO TKOF PSN VIA TWY B7 FOLLOWING YELLOW
GUIDELINE TO TKOF PSN DISPLAYED BY TRANSVERSE WHITE MARKING,
TORA IS 1700M
C. RWY EDGE LGT, RWY CENTERLINE LGT, RWY END LGT IN THIS PORTION
OF RWY 19L ARE SERVICEABLE
D. CLOSED TWY:B1, B2, B3, B4, B5 AND B6
E. AIRCRAFT USING THIS SHORTENED RWY SHOULD BE CODE C OR BELOW
F. AIRLINE SHOULD HAVE ADDITIONAL RESERVED FUEL DUE TO POSSIBLE
FLIGHT DELAYS. 09 SEP 05:30 2013 UNTIL 11 SEP 02:00 2013. CREATED: 09
SEP 05:32 2013

A3152/13 – RWY 01R/19L CLSD DUE TO DISABLE ACFT. 08 SEP 17:45 2013 UNTIL
09 SEP 01:00 2013. CREATED: 08 SEP 17:46 2013

Another right hand bogie beam fracture of an Airbus A330-200 at Munich in
2007 (Photo: BFU Germany/Emergency services Munich):
Tracks on the runway:
HS-TEF the following day (Photo: Reuters/Chaiwat Subprasom):
HS-TEF the following day (Photo: Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha):
Passenger photos:
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Excerpt of Aerodrome Chart (Graphics: AIP Thailand):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4680579a
20130907172403:20130905000000
Incident: Sun Country B737 near Spokane on Sep 5th 2013, smell of smoke as result of passenger laser burning holes
A Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N716SY performing flight
SY-283 from Minneapolis,MN to Seattle,WA (USA) with 105 passengers and 5
crew, was enroute at FL400 about 60nm east of Spokane,WA (USA) when the
crew reported the smell of smoke on board and diverted to Spokane for a
safe landing on runway 03 about 15 minutes later. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

On Sep 7th Authorities reported the FBI arrested a passenger who had brought
along home built laser devices and had operated those devices in flight
burning a number of holes into aircraft seats around his seat resulting
in the odour that prompted the diversion to Spokane.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=467f9eb8
20130906163313:20130903000000
Incident: UTAir B735 at Tyumen on Sep 3rd 2013, APU fire indication
A UTAir Boeing 737-500, registration VQ-BPO performing flight UT-723 from
Tyumen (Russia) to Munich (Germany) with 66 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing
out of Tyumen’s runway 21 when the crew received an APU fire indication,
stopped the climb, activated the APU fire suppression and returned to Tyumen
for a safe landing on runway 21 about 20 minutes later. Emergency services
did not detect any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

Rosaviatsia reported that the examination of the APU did not reveal any
evidence of a fire.

The following day Rosaviatsia reported that the APU was off, when the fire
indication activated. The crew activated the fire suppression system. Tyumen’s
branch of Rosaviatsia have opened an investigation into the occurrence.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=467ee655
20130904214557:20130903000000
Incident: Delta MD90 near Birmingham on Sep 3rd 2013, smell of smoke
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N935DN performing
flight DL-2243 from New Orleans,LA to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 132 people on
board, was enroute at FL310 about 120nm southsouthwest of Birmingham,AL
(USA) when the crew reported smell of smoke on board and decided to divert
to Birmingham for a safe landing on runway 06 about 30 minutes later. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The incident aircraft reached Atlanta with a delay of 11:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=467edd48
20130904204035:20130902000000
Incident: Westjet B737 at Vancouver on Sep 2nd 2013, too hot a TV
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-GWCM performing flight WS-541 from
Montreal,QC to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 124 people on board, had landed
on Vancouver’s runway 08L when the crew reported an aft cargo fire. The
crash button was pressed, emergency services responded while the aircraft
stopped on the next taxiway. Firefighters checked the aircraft but did not
find any trace of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft subsequently continued
taxi to the gate.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance determined a Live TV amplifier
mounted in the aft cargo bay had destructed itsself causing smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46790ff4
20130828213028:20130828000000
Incident: Delta A332 at Amsterdam on Aug 28th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-200, registration N855NW performing flight
DL-267 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Boston,MA (USA), was climbing out
of Amsterdam’s runway 36L when the crew stopped the climb at FL080 reporting
smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft flew a left hand turn to land safely
on runway 06 about 12 minutes later.

The incident aircraft was able to depart again after about 2.5 hours on
the ground and is estimated to reach Boston with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4677662d
20130826205641:20130826000000
Incident: Condor B753 near Dubrovnik on Aug 26th 2013, smell of smoke in cabin
A Condor Boeing 757-300, registration D-ABOJ performing flight DE-1015 from
Hurghada (Egypt) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 204 passengers and 9 crew,
was enroute at FL340 about 70nm north of Dubrovnik (Croatia) when the crew
reported smell of smoke in the cabin, turned around and diverted to Dubrovnik
for a safe landing on runway 12 about 20 minutes later. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft is still on the ground in Dubrovnik about 7 hours after landing.
The flight is estimated to reach Frankfurt with a delay of 12 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=467737ff
20130826153727:20130825000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Montgomery on Aug 25th 2013, smokey odour on board
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N6700 performing flight DL-534
from Cancun (Mexico) to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 184 passengers and 6 crew,
was enroute at FL370 about 95nm southwest of Montgomery,AL (USA) when the
crew detected a smokey odour on board and decided to divert to Montgomery
for a safe landing about 16 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported a malfunctioning fluorescent light was identified as
source of the odour.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached Atlanta with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4677285f
20130826135143:20130825000000
Accident: Shenzhen B738 at Shenzhen on Aug 25th 2013, APU fire during taxi
A Shenzhen Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration B-5317 performing flight
ZH-9969 from Shenzhen to Beijing (China) with 82 passengers, was taxiing
for departure when the APU caught fire emitting a large smoke plume. The
aircraft stopped on the taxiway and was evacuated, emergency services responded
and put the fire out. 12 passengers received minor injuries in the evacuation,
the aircraft received minor damage.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration B-5378 reached Beijing with 67
passengers and a delay of 4.5 hours. 15 passengers chose to cancel their
trip.

The airline confirmed 12 passengers received minor injuries, mainly abrasions
and minor burns due to summer attire providing insufficient protection while
going down the slides.

The APU fire (Photo: Shenzhen Airport):
The aftermath (Photo: Shenzhen Airport):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46741167
20130822180036:20130821000000
Incident: Astana B763 at Astana on Aug 21st 2013, smoke in cabin
An Air Astana Boeing 767-300, registration P4-KCA performing flight KC-954
from Astana to Almaty (Kazakhstan), was climbing out of Astana when the
crew stopped the climb at about FL110 and decided to return to Astana due
to smoke in the cabin. The smoke dissipated during the return. The aircraft
landed safely back on Astana’s runway 04 about 30 minutes after departure.

The airline reported a fauly air conditioning system was identified as source
of the smoke.

A replacement Airbus A321-200 registration P4-NAS reached Almaty with a
delay of 9 hours.

The incident aircraft departed Astana at the same time reaching Almaty with
a delay of 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=467289b4
20150427220806:20130819000000
Accident: Buffalo DC3 at Yellowknife on Aug 19th 2013, engine fire
A Buffalo Airways Douglas DC-3, registration C-GWIR performing flight J4-168
from Yellowknife,NT to Hay River,NT (Canada) with 21 passengers and 3 crew,
was climbing out of Yellowknife’s runway 16 at 17:11L (23:11Z) when the
right hand engine caught fire prompting the crew to stop the climb at about
800 feet and attempt a return to Yellowknife’s runway 10. The aircraft contacted
a number of trees, missed wires and landed very hard and short of the runway
before the aircraft came to a stop on its belly. No injuries occurred, the
aircraft received substantial damage.

The Canadian TSB have opened an investigation into the accident.

Ground observers reported the aircraft did not extend the gear on final
approach and landed on its belly coming to a stop about 100 meters short
of the runway in a ditch.

Passengers reported the right hand engine was on fire, the aircraft clipped
the tops of a number of trees before the crew was able to steer the aircraft
onto an open field for a hard touch down. All occupants are safe.

NAV Canada reported later that the aircraft departed runway 16, during climb
out tower observed torching and smoke from the right hand engine and notified
the crew, but received no reply. Tower cleared the aircraft to land on runway
10 and advised emergency services, the aircraft circled for an approach
to runway 10, on final approach tower notified the crew the gear was not
down, the aircraft crash landed on the south west in field south of the
threshold runway 10. The airport was closed for about 45 minutes until runway
16/34 was made available again.

On Aug 28th 2013 the Canadian TSB reported that shortly after takeoff from
runway 16 the crew observed a fire in the right hand engine (PW R-1830-92),
shut the engine down and performed a low altitude turn towards runway 10.
The aircraft struck a stand of trees south west of the threshold runway
10 and landed with the gear up south of the runway, no post impact fire
occurred, the aircraft was evacuated. No injuries occurred to the 21 passengers
and 3 crew.

On Apr 27th 2015 the Canadian TSB released their final report concluding
the probably causes of the accident were:

Findings as to causes and contributing factors

– An accurate take-off weight and balance calculation was not completed
prior to departure, resulting in an aircraft weight that exceeded its maximum
certified take-off weight.

– The right engine number 1 cylinder failed during the take-off sequence
due to a pre-existing fatigue crack, resulting in an engine fire.

– After the right propellerís feathering mechanism was activated, the propeller
never achieved a fully feathered condition likely due to a seized bearing
in the feathering pump.

– The windmilling right propeller caused an increase in drag which, combined
with the overweight condition, contributed to the aircraftís inability to
maintain altitude, and the aircraft collided with terrain short of the runway.

– The operatorís safety management system was ineffective at identifying
and correcting unsafe operating practices.

– Transport Canadaís surveillance activities did not identify the operatorís
unsafe operating practices related to weight and balance and net take-off
flight path calculations. Consequently, these unsafe practices persisted.

Findings as to risk

– If companies do not adhere to operational procedures in their operations
manual, there is a risk that the safety of flight cannot be assured.

– If Transport Canada does not adopt a balanced approach that combines inspections
for compliance with audits of safety management processes, unsafe operating
practices may not be identified, thereby increasing the risk of accidents.

– If cockpit or data recordings are not available to an investigation, this
may preclude the identification and communication of safety deficiencies
to advance transportation safety.

Other findings

– Current Canadian Aviation Regulations permit a transport category piston-powered
aircraft to carry passengers without a flight data recorder or cockpit voice
recorder.

The TSB reported that the airline has a walk-in/on demand scheme that permits
passengers to show up for boarding without pre-booking a seat. If the passenger
count exceeds the capacity of the aircraft a stand by aircraft is being
dispatched, on Aug 19th 2013 a stand by aircraft needed to be dispatched.

The accident aircraft was loaded with cargo and 17 passengers, the passengers
and their luggage were not weighed at check in. After the aircraft had been
loaded, 4 last minute passengers boarded the aircraft along with the luggage.

At the time of departure the operational flight plan had been partially
completed without passenger count, cargo weight, the crew never received
a cargo manifest.

The aircraft subsequently departed Yellowknife’s runway 16 from intersection
runway 16/34 with runway 10/28 with a takeoff distance available of 5956
feet.

About 2 minutes after the takeoff clearance was issued tower observed heavy
torching and smoke from the right hand engine and called the aircraft reporting
the observation but did not receive a reply. The crew was just retracting
the landing gear when they observed fire in the right hand engine and initiated
the checklist which included to shut the engine down and feather the propeller.

The right propeller moved towards the feathered position but did not reach
the feathered position and continued windmilling.

The crew initiated a low altitude, the aircraft reached a maximum height
of 180 feet AGL, right hand turn in an attempt to reach runway 10 but struck
a stand of trees, about 30 feet in height, about 690 feet southwest of the
threshold of runway 10 and impacted ground about 400 feet past the trees.
The wreckage trail extended over 330 feet parallel to and south of runway
10.

Landing gear and flaps were found in the retracted position, the ELT did
not activate due to the relatively low impact energy.

After the aircraft came to a stand still the flight attendant initiated
the evacuation of the aircraft, all 21 passengers exited the aircraft through
the left aft door. The flight attendant then returned to the aircraft and
moved some galley drawers that were blocking the cockpit door and confirmed
the flight crew was safe, all three crew then evacuated the aircraft.

Arriving emergency services, who had been near the threshold of runway 10
due to an unrelated vehicle recovery operation, foamed the aircraft as a
precaution.

The TSB reported that the aircraft was not equipped with a flight data recorder
or a cockpit voice recorder and was not required to carry those items by
Canadian regulations.

The TSB reported that the aircraft is certified for a maximum takeoff weight
(MTOW) of 26,200 lbs. The aircraft carried 2707lbs of fuel, 21 passengers
along with their cargo and 3 crew, which using standard weights resulted
in an estimated takeoff weight of 27,435 lbs, 1235 lbs above MTOW. The TSB
cited a study by the Australian TSB who had experimentally determined the
aircraft with the left hand (critical) engine shut down and the propeller
windmilling would be able to climb at 100fpm at 26,200 lbs, maintain altitude
at 28,000 lbs and descend at 90 fpm at 30,000 lbs.

The TSB reported that the right hand engine’s #1 cylinder’s head and barrel
were found separated due to a fracture of the barrel along the threaded
joint with the head. A pre-existing fatigue crack was discovered in a thread
groove, the cause of the crack could not be determined due to the accident
impact damage.

The feathering system of the right hand propeller was designed to move the
propeller to 88 degrees of pitch which stops the rotation of the propeller
and thus reaches minimum drag. An oil pump driven by an electrical motor
supplies oil pressure to the propeller dome which moves the propeller into
its feathered position, when the propeller reaches the full stop position
the pressure would increase to 600psi at which point the the cut out switch
prompts the motor to de-energize. If the pressure of 600psi is not reached
the motor and pump continue to operate until they fail. The feathering system
is also design to unfeather the propeller. If the feathering system continues
to run beyond the feather position, the propeller would move through the
feathered position and reach fine pitch again. Douglas had issued a flight
operations bulletin following an accident in the Netherlands advising crews
that it was possible to interrupt the feathering manually in case the cut
off switch did not operate, the accident crew was aware of this bulletin.
In the post accident examination During the propeller was found at a blade
angle of 46 degrees only which reduced but did not stop the windmilling.
The TSB analysed: “Feathering the propeller of an inoperative engine is
critical to the performance of a multi-engine aircraft as it reduces parasite
drag by moving the propeller blades towards a coarser pitch angle relative
to the flight path of the aircraft. In most cases, the propeller will stop
spinning. A non-feathered, or windmilling, propeller will induce a high
parasite drag penalty on aircraft performance. In order to maintain airspeed
at or above the minimum airspeed of 90 knots indicated airspeed (KIAS),
Buffalo 168 (BFL168) sacrificed climb performance and was barely able to
maintain a constant altitude. Manoeuvring the aircraft to return to the
airport led to a loss of altitude, which ultimately resulted in the collision
with terrain. After the right propellerís feathering mechanism was activated,
the propeller never achieved a fully feathered condition due to a system
failure. Post-occurrence testing of the propeller feathering system indicated
the oil pump motor failed likely due to a seized bearing. Activation of
the feathering system results in the pump motor running until sufficient
oil pressure develops to trip the pressure-sensitive cut-out switch, set
for 600 pounds per square inch (psi), which occurs when full feather position
is reached. The compromised bearing likely slowed the motor speed resulting
in decreased oil pressure. The pump will continue to run until it fails
if the trip pressure is not reached and system operation is not monitored.
There is no back-up pump.”

The TSB analysed: “Aircraft performance, as indicated in the aircraft flight
manual (AFM), is predicated on the weight of the aircraft. In this occurrence,
a complete and accurate weight and balance report was not calculated prior
to takeoff. As the aircraftís weight and balance had not been updated since
1990, using actual passenger and cargo weights may not have produced an
accurate take-off weight. As such, the crew would not be able to determine
accurately the aircraftís performance capabilities during a normal takeoff.
As was determined in the 1994 Australian DC-3 accident report19, aircraft
operating above the maximum certified take-off weight (MCTOW) experience
a serious degradation in climb performance when experiencing an engine failure
with a windmilling propeller.”

The TSB thundered:

In this occurrence, the aircraft departed without a completed weight and
balance calculation and was later determined to weigh in excess of the MCTOW
at the time of departure. The investigation found that it was common to
operate in this manner, and that weight and balance forms were normally
completed enroute without the benefit of accurate information and without
using standard or actual passenger weights as required by the Company Operations
Manual (COM). The risks associated with operating the aircraft overweight
may not have been fully appreciated by the crews since net take-off performance
calculations required by the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) and specified
in the COM were not being conducted. As a result, no assessment of obstacle
clearance in the event of an engine failure during takeoff had been carried
out. Successful adaptations from procedures tend to reinforce that activity.
Therefore, previous success in operating the aircraft overweight was likely
taken as assurance of future performance without consideration being given
to aircraft performance in the event of an emergency. Given that neither
the Pro-Active nor the Re-Active Risk Assessment programs identified issues
relating to operational control, weight and balance or calculated aircraft
performance, and that the practice of adjusting weight and balance calculations
to maintain them within limits after departure was well known and accepted
by senior management, it was highly unlikely that these unsafe practices
would be reported through, or addressed by, the companyís SMS.

There were other indications that the organizational culture at Buffalo
Airways was not supportive of a system that required the organization to
take a proactive role in identifying hazards and reducing risks. The companyís
response to deficiencies identified during TC surveillance activities demonstrated
an adversarial relationship between the company and the regulator. The company
refuted the regulatory basis of findings, questioned the competence of TC
inspectors and initially did not take responsibility for the issues identified.
The overall picture that emerged from this investigation is of an organization
that met the basic requirements of regulations and then only when pushed
by the regulator. An SMS introduced into a culture motivated merely to comply
with regulations is unlikely to be effective. The operatorís SMS was ineffective
at identifying and correcting unsafe operating practices.

With respect to the regulator, Transport Canada, the TSB analysed: “The
current approach to regulatory oversight, which focuses on an operatorís
SMS processes almost to the exclusion of verifying compliance with the regulations,
is at risk of failing to address unsafe practices and conditions. If TC
does not adopt a balanced approach that combines inspections for compliance
with audits of safety management processes, unsafe operating practices may
not be identified, thereby increasing the risk of accidents.”

Metars:
CYZF 200100Z 16003KT 15SM VCSH FEW010 BKN040CB BKN140 BKN240 18/14 A2930
RMK SC1CB5AC2CI1 SC TR CI TR SLP926 DENSITY ALT 1800FT=
CYZF 200000Z 20003KT 15SM VCSH FEW010 SCT040CB BKN150 BKN240 18/14 A2929
RMK SC1CB4AC2CI1 SC TR SLP925 DENSITY ALT 1800FT=
CYZF 192325Z 25005KT 15SM VCSH FEW010 SCT040CB BKN150 OVC240 18/13 A2928
RMK SC1CB3AC2CI2 SLP922 DENSITY ALT 1800FT=
CYZF 192300Z 23005KT 15SM VCSH FEW010 SCT040CB BKN150 BKN240 17/13 A2928
RMK SC1CB3AC2CI2 SC TR SLP920 DENSITY ALT 1800FT=
CYZF 192200Z 23009KT 15SM VCSH FEW007 BKN030TCU BKN140 BKN240 20/14 A2928
RMK SF1TCU4AC1CI1 SLP918 DENSITY ALT 2100FT=
CYZF 192100Z 22007KT 15SM FEW009 SCT040TCU BKN140 BKN240 18/15 A2928 RMK
SF2TCU2AC1CI2 SLP920 DENSITY ALT 1900FT=

Related NOTAM:
B3842/13 – RWY 10/28 CLSD AVBL AS TWY. 20 AUG 17:15 2013 UNTIL 20 AUG 20:00
2013. CREATED: 20 AUG 17:23 2013

The fractured cylinder #1 (Photo: TSB):
Detail of the aircraft (Photo: TSB):
Overview of the accident scene (Photo: bizjet101):
Flight Trajectory (Graphics: TSB):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4671a339
20130819155337:20130818000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 near Philadelphia on Aug 18th 2013, smell of smoke
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N249JB performing flight B6-827
from Boston,MA to Baltimore,MD (USA) with 95 passengers and 4 crew, was
enroute at FL320 about 95nm northnortheast of Philadelphia,PA (USA) when
cabin crew noticed the smell of smoke in the cabin prompting the flight
crew to divert the aircraft to Philadelphia. The aircraft landed safely
on Philadelphia’s runway 27L (active runways 09) about 25 minutes later,
vacated the runway and stopped for inspection by emergency vehicles. Emergency
services advised no traces of fire, heat or smoke were detected from the
outside of the aircraft, vehicles would follow the aircraft to the stand.
While communicating with dispatch to assign a gate emergency services alerted
the cockpit, that a heat signature had been found at the aft cargo area,
the crew responded with the evacuation of the aircraft. No injuries occurred
during the emergency evacuation.

The airline reported the crew diverted as abundance of caution after a smell
of smoke was detected in the cabin.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-190 reached Baltimore with a delay of 7:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4671d86a
20130819214621:20130817000000
Incident: Darwin SB20 at Ancona on Aug 17th 2013, smoke indication
A Darwin Airlines Saab 2000 on behalf of Alitalia, registration HB-IZH performing
flight F7-108/AZ-7037 from Ancona to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with 28 passengers
and 3 crew, was climbing out of Ancona when the crew received a smoke indication,
declared emergency and returned to Ancona for a safe landing about 20 minutes
after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the next flight
the following morning.

The airline reported the smoke indication turned out to have been false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=466ea4d5
20130815200333:20130815000000
Incident: El Al B744 near Athens on Aug 15th 2013, lavatory smoke indication
An El Al Boeing 747-400, registration 4X-ELE performing flight LY-4 from
New York,NY (USA) to Tel Aviv (Israel) with 324 people on board, was enroute
at FL370 about 75nm northeast of Athens (Greece) when the crew reported
a lavatory smoke indication and diverted to Athens for a safe landing on
runway 03L about 22 minutes later. Responding emergency services found no
trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted to Athens as a precaution, the
passengers were taken to hotels until their onward transport to Tel Aviv
can be arranged. It appears that a passenger was smoking in a lavatory causing
the diversion.

Following checks the incident aircraft was able to continue the journey
and departed Athens after about 12 hours on the ground. The aircraft reached
Tel Aviv with a delay of 11.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=466dc37a
20130814163522:20130814000000
Incident: United B752 near Dublin on Aug 14th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N14107 performing flight UA-131 from
London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) with 147 people on
board, was enroute at FL340 about 40nm south of Dublin (Ireland) when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Dublin for a safe overweight
landing on runway 28 about 20 minutes later. The aircraft stopped briefly
for a check by emergency services then taxied to the apron on its own power.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=466eb511
20130815220355:20130811000000
Incident: Canadian North B732 at Yellowknife on Aug 11th 2013, fumes from the cargo section
A Canadian North Boeing 737-200, registration C-GNDU performing flight 5T-446
from Yellowknife,NT to Kugluktuk Coppermine,NU (Canada), was climbing through
10,000 feet out of Yellowknife when the flight attendants informed the flight
deck about fumes from the cargo section. The cargo section was examined
and a start cart was found leaking fuel, a pool was forming underneath the
cart. The crew stopped the climb at Fl250 and returned to Yellowknife for
a safe landing about 25 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that the crew completed the smoke removal checklist
and requested emergency services on standby upon arrival, however did not
declare priority or emergency. After landing a rapid deplanement via the
rear airstairs was initiated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=466aad7a
20130810162835:20130809000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Birmingham on Aug 9th 2013, lavatory smoke indication
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-585 from Kansas City,MO to
Tampa,FL (USA) with 65 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL410 about
80nm west of Birmingham,AL (USA) when the crew received a rear lavatory
smoke indication and diverted to Birmingham for a safe landing about 20
minutes later. No fire, heat or smoke was found.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Tampa with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4666d8d0
20130806210230:20130805000000
Incident: Delta B763 over Atlantic on Aug 5th 2013, engine shut down in flight
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N175DN performing flight DL-75
from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 220 people on board,
was enroute at FL320 over the Atlantic Ocean about 30 minutes into the crossing
and about 300nm northwest of Shannon (Ireland) when the crew reported the
failure of the right hand engine (PW4060), turned the aircraft around and
diverted to Shannon while drifting down and dumping fuel. The aircraft landed
safely on Shannon’s runway 24 about an hour later and stopped on the runway,
the crew requested emergency service to check for any smoke emanating from
the right hand engine. No smoke was reported, the aircraft subsequently
taxied to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N172DZ was dispatched from New
York’s JFK Airport to Shannon as flight DL-9933, and continued the flight
to Atlanta as DL-9856 and is estimated to reach Atlanta with a delay of
27 hours.

“Meeting” of incident (right) and replacement (left) aircraft:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46654dce
20130803172150:20130803000000
Incident: American B772 near Bogota on Aug 3rd 2013, cargo fire indication
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N786AN performing flight
AA-908 (dep Aug 2nd) from Buenos Aires,BA (Argentina) to Miami,FL (USA)
with 250 passengers and 14 crew, was enroute at FL370 about 170nm north
of Bogota (Colombia) when the crew received a cargo fire indication, turned
the aircraft around and diverted to Bogota for a safe landing on runway
13L about 28 minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted to Bogota due to a cargo fire
indication, no fire occurred, the indication was identified false.

The incident aircraft is estimated to reach Miami with a delay of 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=478cc4e0
20140814151520:20130802000000
Report: Jet2 B733 at Leeds on Aug 2nd 2013, electrical failure and burning smell
A Jet2.Com Boeing 737-300, registration G-CELF performing flight LS-201
from Leeds,EN (UK) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 119 passengers and 5
crew, was climbing out of Leeds’ runway 14 with the first officer flying
the aircraft and the captain (56, ATPL, 8,130 hours total, 3,300 hours on
type) being pilot monitoring, when the captain heard a click sound and noticed
the autothrottle had disconnected. Subsequently the Master Caution and FLT
CONT indication activated indicating the Mach trim had failed. At the same
time the commanders electronic ADI, HSI, Altimeter, VSI, Mach and radio
altimeter failed, the #1 rectifier transformer unit circuit breaker tripped,
the flight management computer locked up with both CDUs becoming unresponsive.
The right hand instruments remained all functional except for the flight
track (from the FMS) no longer being displayed on the navigation display
and crosschecked with the stand by instruments. The crew continued to retract
gear and flaps and at safe height levelled off at 4000 feet. The captain
checked the condition of the electrical systems, detected that yaw damper,
left forward window overheat, a fuel pump and normal exhaust fan were also
inoperative. The circuit breakers for battery charger, electric hydraulic
pump B and normal exhaust fan had tripped in addition. The commander started
the APU, called the purser to the flight deck for a briefing. When the purser
returned to the cabin she noticed a distinct smell of burning but no visible
smoke or haze, her collegues at the aft galley confirmed they were smelling
the odour as well. Cabin crew alerted the commander to the smell and shut
down the galleys. The commander declared PAN, the aircraft returned to Leeds.
While on final approach to runway 14 the left hand generator tripped offline,
the captain selected the APU as source for generator bus 1, and all instruments
including the FMS were reinstated. The aircraft landed safely on runway
14 and vacated the runway, then stopped. The passengers disembarked onto
the taxiway, the aircraft was towed to the apron.

The AAIB released their bulletin stating that maintenance found the “the
red phase ëAí ground cable from the No 1 generator had separated from the
T191 stud on the side of the No 1 engine. This cable had separated due to
a failure of its terminal lug. Further examination of the generator harness
revealed a cracked terminal lug on the blue phase ëCí ground cable at the
T191 stud and a further cracked terminal lug at the firewall end of the
grey ground cable. The crack on the blue phase ëCí lug was only visible
after the heatshrink insulation was removed.”

The left hand generator harness had not undergone maintenace since last
overhaul in 2008. During that overhaul the harness, taken from another engine,
had been moved onto G-CELF.

The lug of the fractured cable had suffered from fatigue causing cracks
to develop.

The AAIB analysed: “The initial loss of the AT was recognised by the commander
who was aware that it was not a ëno goí item in the Minimum Equipment List
(MEL) and expected to continue the flight. As his instruments and other
services failed, he realised that there had been a significant electrical
failure although he did not recognise the situation as one which was covered
in the abnormal checklist. The PF continued to fly the aircraft, using his
instruments, and ATC were notified of the situation. The crew agreed that
there was no abnormal procedure for their circumstances and that they should
return to Leeds Bradford Airport. At that stage, there was no urgency to
return and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) regarding briefing the
cabin crew were carried out as normal. When the SSC made the commander aware
of the burning smell, the flight crew decided to expedite their return and
transmitted a PAN call. From his training background, the commander knew
that 140 kt was a safe approach speed and would not be runway limiting.
When the No 1 generator tripped offline, the commander carried out the abnormal
procedure and the FMC became available, enabling the appropriate approach
speed to be obtained.”

With respect to the failure of the lugs the AAIB analysed: “The red phase
ëAí ground cable terminal lug failed due to corrosion fatigue under the
influence of loads consistent with high frequency vibrations. The blue phase
ëCí terminal lug and the grey ground terminal lug had started to crack in
the same manner and would probably have failed eventually as well. This
engine had been subject to higher than normal vibration in the month preceding
the failures, which was probably a contributory factor.”

The damaged cables (Photo: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=466aa936
20130810160447:20130801000000
Incident: Arann AT72 at Birmingham on Aug 1st 2013, tail scrape on go around after bounced landing
An Aer Arann Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration EI-REO
performing flight RE-3504 from Knock (Ireland) to Birmingham,EN (UK), landed
on Birmingham’s runway 15 at about 17:45L (16:45Z), but bounced prompting
the crew to initiate a go around as bounce recovery. Following a second
touchdown the aircraft rotated, the tail contacted the runway surface causing
a short puff of smoke while all gear remained airborne, and the aircraft
climbed out to safety. The aircraft positioned for another approach to runway
15 and landed safely. No injuries occurred, the aircraft received minor
tail scrape damage as visible in the second approach.

The aircraft was able to depart Birmingham about 6 hours after the occurrence.

Metars:
EGBB 011820Z 17010KT CAVOK 28/17 Q1004
EGBB 011750Z 18013G24KT CAVOK 29/17 Q1004
EGBB 011720Z AUTO 17015KT 9999 NCD 29/16 Q1004
EGBB 011650Z 17015KT CAVOK 30/17 Q1004
EGBB 011620Z 16012KT CAVOK 31/18 Q1004
EGBB 011550Z 17012KT CAVOK 31/17 Q1004
EGBB 011520Z 16013KT CAVOK 31/16 Q1005
EGBB 011450Z 17013KT CAVOK 31/17 Q1005
EGBB 011420Z 16012KT CAVOK 31/17 Q1005
EGBB 011350Z 18013KT 150V210 9999 FEW047 30/18 Q1005
EGBB 011320Z 16013KT 9999 FEW040 30/18 Q1006

Touchdown, bounce and go around (Video: Edward Sweeney):
Approach, bounce, go around and second approach (Video: No1Matthew1):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46656559
20130803200316:20130801000000
Incident: Caraibes A333 at Paris on Aug 1st 2013, engine problems
An Air Caraibes Airbus A330-300, registration F-GOTO performing flight TX-570
from Paris Orly (France) to Cayenne (French Guiana), was climbing out of
Orly’s runway 08 when the crew reported engine trouble, stopped the climb
at 3000 feet and returned to Orly for a safe landing on runway 06 about
17 minutes after departure.

A replacement Airbus A330-300 registration F-HPTP reached Cayenne as flight
TX-5670 with a delay of 4 hours.

The incident aircraft is still on the ground at Orly 57 hours after landing.

The airline said the aircraft returned to Orly as a precaution, there was
no engine or fire involved.

The airport confirmed the crew reported engine trouble.

Passengers reported seeing streaks of flames from the engine and white smoke,
but did not report a bang. A burning smell subsequently developed on board
of the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46649021
20130802180406:20130731000000
Incident: Eastern SB20 near Sumburgh on Jul 31st 2013, APU fire indication
An Eastern Airways Saab 2000 on behalf of FlyBe, registration G-CFLV performing
flight BE-6779 from Sumburgh,SC to Aberdeen,SC (UK) with 32 passengers,
was climbing out of Sumburgh when the crew received an APU fire indication
and returned to Sumburgh for a safe landing. Emergency services found no
trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement aircraft reached Aberdeen with a delay of 100 minutes.

The airline reported the aircraft returned due to a technical problem related
to one of the aircraft’s warning systems.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46631d63
20130731221255:20130730000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near Albany on Jul 30th 2013, smell of smoke
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-135, registration N738NR performing flight
MQ-3364 from New York La Guardia,NY (USA) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 36
passengers and 3 crew, was enroute at FL250 about 20nm east of Albany,NY
when the crew reported smell of smoke in cockpit and cabin and decided to
divert to Albany for a safe landing on runway 01 about 10 minutes later,
vacated the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway. Attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the aircraft taxied to the
apron afterwards.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-135 registration N711PH reached Montreal with
a delay of 3:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46615caf
20130729165431:20130729000000
Incident: Eastern Australia DH8C near Canberra on Jul 29th 2013, smoke in cockpit
An Eastern Australia de Havilland Dash 8-300 on behalf of Qantas, registration
VH-SBG performing flight QF-2225 from Sydney,NS to Wagga Wagga,NS (Australia),
was enroute about 35nm northnortheast of Canberra,AC (Australia) when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Canberra for a safe landing.
The aircraft was evacuated after landing. No injuries occurred, emergency
services did not find traces of fire or heat.

Australia’s Transportation Safety Board have opened an investigation into
the occurrence rated an incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46691d37
20130808155450:20130728000000
Accident: Air France B773 at Paris on Jul 28th 2013, evacuation while boarding due to fumes
An Air France Boeing 777-300, registration F-GSQA performing flight AF-116
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Shanghai (China) with 315 people
on board, was boarding at the gate when the crew noticed a strong burning
odour on board and saw smoke in the cabin. The captain ordered the evacuation
of the aircraft, the first officer declared Mayday and requested emergency
vehicles. The overwing exits were opened for the evacuation, a number of
passengers evacuated that way. One passenger received a serious injury during
the evacuation and was taken to a hospital.

France’s BEA reported in their weekly bulletin released Aug 8th that the
crew noticed a strong burning odour on board and noticed visible smoke in
the cabin, the captain ordered the evacuation which in part was performed
through the overwing exits. One passenger evacuating that route received
an elbow fracture.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=466158e7
20130729162809:20130728000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 near Albany on Jul 28th 2013, cargo fire indication
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-863 from Cedar Rapids,IA
to Saint Petersburg,FL (USA) with 155 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute
at FL330 about 70nm northwest of Albany,GA (USA) when the crew received
a cargo fire indication and diverted to Albany for a safe landing about
16 minutes later. The aircraft was evacuated on the runway. No injuries
occurred. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were bussed to
St. Petersburg.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46a1d4f5
20131018140817:20130727000000
Incident: Avianca F50 at Bogota on Jul 27th 2013, rejected takeoff
An Avianca Fokker 50, registration HK-4497 performing flight AV-9279 from
Bogota to Ibague (Colombia) with 34 passengers and 4 crew, was accelerating
for takeoff from Bogota’s runway 13R when the crew received indication of
a low oil pressure for the right hand engine. The crew rejected takeoff
at high speed and safely slowed the aircraft. When about to turn off the
runway the crew was radioed by tower indicating smoke from the engine, the
engine indicated overtemperature and increasing vibrations. The crew shut
the engine down and activated the fire suppression system, the passengers
rapidly disembarked the aircraft. There were no injuries.

The Dutch Onderzoeksraad reported in their quarterly bulletin that Colombia’s
authorities found several turbine blades of the right hand engine were damaged
and rated the occurrence a serious incident, an investigation was opened,
the Onderzoeksraad (representing the country of manufacture) offered assistance
to the investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465f211a
20130726214114:20130726000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Budapest on Jul 26th 2013, fumes and smoke indication
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-EMJ performing flight FR-3898
from Milan Orio (Italy) to Warsaw (Poland) with 180 people on board, was
enroute at FL360 about 140nm west of Budapest (Hungary) and 30nm north of
Graz (Austria) when the crew reported a smoke indication and decided to
divert to Budapest. On final approach the crew advised the fumes had dissipated,
they requested emergency services to follow them to the gate however. The
aircraft landed on runway 13L (active runways 31) about 20 minutes later,
attending emergency service found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft was able to continue the journey after about 3.5 hours on the
ground and reached Warsaw with a delay of 3:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465fe5a7
20130727211442:20130725000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Detroit on Jul 25th 2013, smokey odour on board
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N521US performing flight DL-903
from Detroit,MI to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA), had just reached cruise level
350 when the crew reported a smokey odour on board and decided to return
to Detroit, subsequently changing the decision to divert to Cincinnati’s
Northern Kentucky Airport,KY for a safe landing on runway 18C about 35 minutes
later.

The airline reported the crew diverted out of abundance of caution after
a smokey odour was detected on board.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached Fort Lauderdale with a delay of 6:15
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465e2d54
20130725164819:20130725000000
Incident: Air India B788 enroute on Jul 25th 2013, smoking galley oven
An Air India Boeing 787-800, registration VT-ANL performing flight AI-20
from Delhi to Kolkata (India), was enroute when an oven in the aft galley
began to emit smoke prompting cabin crew to disconnect galley power and
and discharge fire extinguishers onto and into the oven. The fire was put
out permitting the flight to continue to Kolkata for a safe landing.

The oven was removed from the aircraft, which continued its schedule following
examination in Kolkata that established an internal fire in the oven had
occurred but did not affect any of the surrounding areas.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465e2a8d
20130725163048:20130725000000
Incident: Republic DH8D near Newark on Jul 25th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Republic Airways de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of United, registration
N336NG performing flight YX-4890/UA-4890 from Newark,NJ to Pittsburgh,PA
(USA) with 27 passengers, was climbing through FL200 out of Newark when
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Newark.
Upon contacting tower the crew advised they were going to evacuate the aircraft
and continued for a safe landing on runway 04R about 15 minutes after stopping
the climb. The aircraft was evacuated, no injuries occurred. The passengers
were bussed to the terminal, the aircraft was later towed to the apron.

The airport reported emergency services did not find visible smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465e3a34
20130725181408:20130723000000
Incident: American MD83 at Chicago on Jul 23rd 2013, hydraulic failure
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration N589AA performing
flight AA-1634 from Tucson,AZ to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was descending
towards Chicago when the crew advised they had a hydraulic failure that
would require them to stop on the runway with gear doors open. The crew
requested runway 04R and was vectored for the approach to runway 04R, the
aircraft landed safely on the runway and stopped. The crew repeatedly asked
emergency services for any smoke visible and the status of the gear doors.
The aircraft was towed off the runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465d4b99
20130724144857:20130723000000
Incident: Delta B764 near Caracas on Jul 23rd 2013, smell of smoke
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N828MH performing flight DL-120
(dep Jul 22nd) from Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil) to New York JFK,NY (USA),
was enroute at FL340 about 125nm northeast of Caracas (Venezuela) when the
crew reported smoke in cockpit and cabin, turned the aircraft around and
diverted to Caracas for a safe landing about 30 minutes later.

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted to Caracas due to smell of smoke
in cockpit and cabin. A replacement Boeing 767-300 has been dispatched to
Caracas.

Passengers reported the aircraft departed Sao Paulo with a delay of 4 hours
due to problems with a window that didn’t want to close. While enroute over
the Caribbean Sea lots of very cold smoke appeared from the cabin ceiling,
flight attendants started to open the ceiling and others brought along fire
extinguishers.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465ca4bd
20130723192514:20130722000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near Springfield on Jul 22nd 2013, engine shut down in flight, smoke in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-140, registration N857AE performing flight
MQ-2940 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Champaign,IL (USA) with 40 people on
board, was enroute at FL330 about 45nm southsouthwest of Springfield,MO
(USA) when the crew reported the left hand engine needed to be shut down
and decided to divert to Springfield. The crew subsequently also reported
smoke in the cockpit while descending towards Springfield and landed safely
about 30 minutes after leaving FL330, the aircraft was able to taxi to the
terminal.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46648934
20130802171447:20130720000000
Incident: Vietnam B772 near Da Nang on Jul 20th 2013, cargo fire indication
A Vietnam Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration VN-A150 performing flight
VN-773 from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) with 268 passengers and 11 crew,
was enroute at FL380 near Da Nang (Vietnam) when the crew received a cargo
fire indication that peristed even after the relevant checklists were completed.
The crew decided to divert to Da Nang for a safe landing, the crew repeatedly
checked with emergency services for any smoke or fire detectable, however,
emergency services did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft
taxied to the apron.

Maintenance determined the channel 1 aft cargo fire detector circuit breaker
had popped. The occurrence is being investigated by Vietnam’s VAECO with
the assistance by Boeing. The aircraft had been dispatched under minimum
equipment list requirements due to the channel 2 aft cargo fire detector
being inoperative.

The airline reported the crew received a high temperature indication for
the aft cargo bay and in accordance with procedures diverted to Da Nang
for a safe landing. The passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4657eac8
20130717205506:20130717000000
Incident: Adria CRJ9 near Ljubljana on Jul 17th 2013, lavatory smoke indication
An Adria Airways Canadair CRJ-900, registration S5-AAN performing flight
JP-322 from Ljubljana (Slovenia) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) with
39 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing out of Ljubljana when the crew received
smoke indications for both lavatories on board of the aircraft. The crew
stopped the climb and returned to Ljubljana for a safe landing about 20
minutes after departure. Emergency services did not find any trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

A replacement CRJ-900 registration S5-AAL reached Paris with a delay of
2:45 hours.

The incident aircraft resumed service in the afternoon about 8 hours after
landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465f2b68
20130726225732:20130716000000
Incident: Westjet B738 near Las Vegas on Jul 16th 2013, smell of burning plastics in cockpit and cabin
A Westjet Boeing 737-800, registration C-GKWA performing flight WS-1403
from Phoenix,AZ (USA) to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 147 people on board, was
enroute at FL380 about 180nm east of Las Vegas,NV (USA) when the flight
crew noticed a smell of burning plastics in the cockpit, checked with cabin
crew who confirmed the smell was also present in the cabin. The crew declared
PAN and diverted to Las Vegas. During the descent towards Las Vegas the
crew actioned the relevant check lists for smoke removal, the smell dissipated.
The aircraft landed safely on runway 25R about 30 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported emergency services did not detect any hot spots,
the aircraft taxied to the gate where the passengers disembarked normally.
The cause of the fumes could not be identified despite extensive post incident
maintenance inspection and engine run ups.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46565203
20130717185914:20130715000000
Incident: Helvetic F100 near Zurich on Jul 15th 2013, smoking oven
A Helvetic Fokker 100, registration HB-JVH performing flight 2L-440 from
Zurich (Switzerland) to Bristol,EN (UK) with 66 passengers, was climbing
through FL210 out of Zurich when the crew noticed smoke in the cockpit,
stopped the climb at FL220 and returned to Zurich for a safe landing on
runway 16 about 30 minutes later. A galley oven was identified as source
of the smoke.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The airline confirmed the aircraft returned due to a smoke in the cockpit
due to a smoking oven, the cause of the smoke is being investigated, Switzerland’s
SUST have opened an investigation.

On Jul 17th 2013 the SUST reported in a preliminary brief that the aircraft
was climbing out of Zurich when smoke emanated from a galley oven and entered
the cockpit. The crew decided to return to Zurich. After turning the galley
oven off the smoke ceased. A short time later there was smoke in the cockpit
again prompting the crew to don their oxygen masks, the smoke stopped after
some time. The aircraft landed without further incident, the passengers
disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=465572aa
20130714194007:20130712000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Raleigh/Durham on Jul 12th 2013, avionics bay smoke indication
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N583JB performing flight B6-1117
from New York La Guardia,NY to Tampa,FL (USA) with 163 people on board,
was enroute at FL360 about 90nm north of Raleigh/Durham,NC (USA) when the
crew received an avionics bay smoke indication and decided to divert to
Raleigh/Durham for a safe landing about 25 minutes later. Attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

Maintenance identified the indication as faulty.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after 3:15 hours on the ground
and reached Tampa with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46565868
20130715222202:20130711000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Montreal on Jul 11th 2013, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FKOJ performing flight AC-165
from Montreal,QC to Calgary,AB (Canada), was in the initial climb out of
Montreal when the crew received an avionics bay smoke indication, stopped
the climb at 3000 feet and decided to return to Montreal. The aircraft approached
runway 24R but needed to go around due to being too high. The aircraft positioned
for another approach to runway 24R and landed safely about 20 minutes after
departure and 10 minutes after the go-around. Emergency services inspected
the aircraft, the aircraft was subsequently able to taxi to the apron.

The runway was closed for about 15 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46596e4f
20130719213655:20130710000000
Incident: American B772 at Beijing on Jul 10th 2013, engine fire indication
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N775AN performing flight
AA-186 from Beijing (China) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was in the initial
climb out of Beijing when the crew received erratic EGT indications followed
by a fire indication for the left hand engine (Trent 892), the crew determined
operation was engine was normal and the engine was kept running. The aircraft
returned to Beijing for a safe overweight landing on runway 01 about 18
minutes after departure. Emergency services reported there was no trace
of fire or smoke from the engine but needed to cool the brakes.

The flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft is still on the ground in Beijing (standing Jul 19th).

Maintenance identified the inboard thrust reverser of the left engine suffered
a structural failure damaging the wiring harnesses for the EGT indications
and fire loops. Both inboard and outboard thrust reversers are being replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4652ec6e
20140321152016:20130701000000
Incident: Transasia AT72 near Taipei on Jul 1st 2013, overheat air and electrical smoke indication
A Transasia Airways Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration
B-22806 performing flight GE-5111 from Taipei Sung Shan to Makung (Taiwan)
with 72 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing out of Taipei’s Sung Shan airport
when the crew received a “OVERHEAT AIR” indication and requested an air
return. While working the relevant checklists the crew also received an
“ELECTRIC SMOK” indication, declared PAN and landed safely back at Sung
Shan Airport about 13 minutes after departure.

Taiwan’s ASC reported that cockpit voice and flight data recorder were removed
from the aircraft and an investigation was opened into the occurrence rated
a serious incident.

In March 2014 Taiwan’s ASC released their final report in Chinese concluding
the probable cause of the incident was:

hot air was continuously vented from air condition outlet, due to malfunctioning
Pack #1 duct temperature sensor and temperature limiter that caused the
modulating valve kept opening in the occurrence flight; as a result, temperature
in the cockpit remained high. The flight crew did not shut off pack #1 immediately
which enabled to stop hot air from continuously flowing into the cockpit.

The ASC reported that during climb the crew noticed the cockpit air became
hotter and hotter, and a white vapor like moisture appeared in the cockpit.
At 4000 feet the master caution and “OVERHEAT AIR” activated. Climbing through
5300 feet the crew had still not begun reading the associated checklist,
when numerous master cautions activated and the electrical smoke indication
illuminated. The associated checklists were not carried out, the crew did
not don their oxygen masks and did not wear their smoke goggles. The autopilot
was disconnected, the captain took control, the first officer declared PAN,
and the aircraft returned to Taipei Songshan. Descending through 3000 feet
the crew opened the avionics vent exhaust after which the vapor disappeared,
the warnings ceased and temperatures returned to normal levels.

The ASC analysed that despite the indications the crew did not respond properly
reading the associated checklists preventing them to correctly identify
the duct overheat, therefore did not shut down air conditioning system #1
which would have stopped the hot air instantly.

3 safety recommendations were issued to ATR, no safety recommendation was
issued to the operator.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46455b06
20150212132556:20130624000000
Incident: Thomas Cook A332 at Manchester on Jun 24th 2013, rejected takeoff
A Thomas Cook Airbus A330-200, registration G-OMYT performing flight MT-314
from Manchester,EN (UK) to Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) with 325 people
on board, rejected takeoff from Manchester’s runway 23R at high speed (about
140 knots) after the right hand engine (Trent 772) emitted a loud bang and
failed. The aircraft slowed safely and came to a stop at about half way
down the runway. Emergency services responded and checked engine and brakes,
the aircraft taxied to the apron afterwards where emergency services cooled
down the brakes.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration G-MDBD departed Manchester 5
hours after the rejected takeoff and is currently estimated to reach Punta
Cana with a delay of 6 hours.

The airline confirmed the incident aircraft rejected takeoff due to an engine
failure. The engine is currently being examined.

On Jul 2nd 2013 the French BEA reported the takeoff was rejected at 140
knots due to an engine fault. The AAIB have opened an investigation into
the occurrence rated a serious incident.

On Dec 12th 2013 the British AAIB reported in their bulletin that the takeoff
was rejected at 105 KIAS after a flash and smoke from the right hand engine
and associated loss of power. The investigation determined that the right
hand engine failed because of the fracture of the a single high pressure
turbine blade as result of high cycle fatigue crack propagation, causing
an engine surge and damage further downstream into the intermediate and
low pressure turbines and nozzles. Although the investigation report didn’t
name the videographer, it is obvious from the narration they used the Simon
Lowe’s video shown below as evidence into the investigation, too.

The AAIB reported that both IP (intermediate pressure) and LP (low pressure)
spools of the engine became seized as result of debris jammed between turbine
rotors and casings during run down of the engine.

The AAIB stated: “Laboratory analysis of the fractured blade root found
multiple crack initiation locations caused by Type 2 Sulphidation corrosion.
This led to high-cycle fatigue (HCF) propagation, weakening of the blade
and subsequent material rupture in tensile overload. In addition, unidentified
deposits were present on the surfaces of the blade remains which are the
subject of ongoing analysis by the manufacturer.”

On Feb 12th 2015 the AAIB released an amendment to their Bulletin reading:
“The failure of the HP turbine blade in this incident was caused by high
cycle fatigue propagation due to surface damage as a result of Type 2 Sulphidation
corrosion. During examination of the remains of the blade, to determine
the cause of its failure, unidentified deposits were found on its surfaces.
There was concern that these deposits may have been volcanic in origin,
in particular from the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajˆkull in Iceland, so
additional forensic analysis was carried out. That work was completed in
August 2014 and did not identify compounds typically associated with volcanic
activity. However, although an encounter with volcanic gaseous sulphur cannot
be discounted it is concluded that the deposits probably are an accumulation
of atmospheric dirt and pollutants.”

Video by ground observer (Video: Simon Lowe):
Another ground observer’s video (Video: Eddie Leathwood):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=464534e2
20130624162136:20130624000000
Incident: Atlas B748 near Washington on Jun 24th 2013, multiple cargo fire indications
An Atlas Air Boeing 747-800 freighter, registration N850GT performing freight
flight KK-605 (scheduled dep Jun 23rd, act dep Jun 24th) from Huntsville,AL
(USA) to Luxembourg (Luxembourg), was enroute at FL330 about 75nm westsouthwest
of Washington’s Dulles Airport when the crew declared emergency reporting
an aft cargo fire indication. During the descent towards the Airport the
crew reported a second, then a third and finally a fourth fire indication
had occurred and advised they were stopping on the runway and disembarking
the aircraft requesting emergency services to NOT open any of the lower
cargo bays to not accelerate the fire before they had gotten off the aircraft
but requesting to monitor the holds and discharge agent into the cargo holds
if possible. The aircraft landed safely on runway 19L, during roll out the
crew decided to vacate the runway onto taxiway K7 advising the fire indications
had ceased, stopped adjacent to the runway and shut the aircraft down, fire
crews attended the aircraft. After the engines had spooled down, the crew
released brakes reporting they were getting rather hot and requesting the
wheels being chocked, then reported they had just received another fire
indication and requested a ladder to the #1 door. Fire services reported
there were no indications of a fire or smoke from the outside and no heat
indication, the cargo doors were still kept closed.

About one hour after landing preparations were made to taxi or tow the aircraft
to the maintenance hangar, the crew was still on board of the aircraft at
that time.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4642f6ea
20130621204019:20130621000000
Incident: American B752 near Denver on Jun 21st 2013, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N606AA performing flight
AA-1070 (scheduled dep Jun 20th, actual dep Jun 21st) from Seattle,WA to
Miami,FL (USA) with 183 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute at FL350 about
160nm eastnortheast of Denver,CO (USA) when the crew reported the smell
of smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Denver. The crew advised
on approach that the smoke was dissipating. The aircraft landed safely on
runway 35R about 30 minutes later. Attending emergency services found no
trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported maintenance did not find anything out of the ordinary,
the aircraft was returned to service.

The incident aircraft continued the flight and reached Miami with a delay
of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46416685
20130619212051:20130619000000
Incident: Delta B763 near Denver on Jun 19th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N1602 performing flight DL-1162
(dep Jun 18th) from Los Angeles,CA to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute
at FL370 about 150nm east of Denver,CO (USA) when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit, turned around and diverted to Denver for a safe landing
on runway 16R about 30 minutes later. The crew taxied the aircraft to the
gate with emergency services in trail.

The incident aircraft was able to continue the flight after 10.5 hours on
the ground and reached New York with a delay of 12 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46414307
20130619170139:20130617000000
Incident: Aeromexico B738 at Cancun on Jun 17th 2013, smoke in cabin
An Aeromexico Boeing 737-800, registration N520AM performing flight AM-580
from Cancun to Mexico City (Mexico) with 120 passengers and 7 crew, was
climbing out of Cancun’s runway 12R when smoke appeared in the cabin obviously
originating from the air conditioning outlets. The crew stopped the climb
at FL110 and decided to return to Cancun, worked the checklists which resulted
in the smoke subsiding and landed safely on runway 12R about 15 minutes
after stopping the climb. The passengers disembarked normally.

The flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft was able to position to Mexico City about 8 hours
after landing back.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46415fbe
20130619203331:20130615000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 at Toronto on Jun 15th 2013, several cargo smoke and fire indications
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FLWK performing flight AC-1128
from Saskatoon,SK to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 79 people on board, had been
dispatched under minimum equipment list requirements with the forward cargo
fire suppression system inoperative. The aircraft was on final approach
to Toronto’s runway 05 about 6nm before touchdown when the crew received
several smoke and fire indications for the forward cargo hold. The crew
declared emergency, emergency services responded. The indications cleared
after several seconds. The crew continued for a safe landing on runway 05
and came to a stop on the intersection with runway 33R. Emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the aircraft vacated the runway about
11 minutes after landing.

The Candian TSB reported that the cause of the false indications is under
investigation by maintenance.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=463c2667
20130613144203:20130612000000
Incident: United B752 near Phoenix on Jun 12th 2013, smell of smoke on board
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N544UA performing flight UA-468 from
Houston,TX to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was enroute at FL380 about 150nm eastsoutheast
of Phoenix,AZ (USA) when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit
and decided to divert to Phoenix for a safe landing on runway 26 about 25
minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N556UA positioned from Los Angeles
to Phoenix, resumed the flight and delivered the passengers to Los Angeles
with a delay of 7.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=463a816c
20130611152941:20130611000000
Incident: Norwegian B738 near Stockholm on Jun 11th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 737-800, registration LN-NOO performing flight
DY-812 from Oslo (Norway) to Stockholm (Sweden) with 79 passengers, was
descending towards Stockholm about 20 minutes prior to estimated landing
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin. The crew continued the approach,
about 7 minutes later the crew reported the smoke indication had extinguished
and landed the aircraft safely on Stockholm Arlanda Airport’s runway 08
about 17 minutes after reporting the smoke on board. Attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The smoke detector indication was identified to have been false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=463b844a
20130612212100:20130610000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Milan on Jun 10th 2013, smoke indication
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIZT performing flight LH-233
from Rome Fiumicino (Italy) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was enroute at
FL360 about 100nm eastsoutheast of Milan’s Linate Airport when the crew
received a smoke detector indication and decided to divert to Linate Airport.
The aircraft landed safely about 25 minutes after leaving FL360. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft positioned to Frankfurt about 6 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46e67627
20140112152741:20130609000000
Report: British Airways B744 near London on Jun 9th 2013, trash compacted into smoke
A British Airways Boeing 747-400, registration G-CIVA performing flight
BA-214 from Boston,MA (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 312 passengers
and 16 crew, was descending towards London and about to enter the Ockham
hold when cabin crew observed an acrid smoke from the trash compactor at
galley #4 (near door 2L). The flight attendant was unable to isolate the
electric supply of the trash compactor, but unpowered the entire galley
using the galley power emergency switch. Despite the power being removed
the situation worsened, the flight crew declared emergency and performed
an expeditious safe landing at Heathrow, the flight crew vacated the runway
and stopped. In consultation with emergency service the flight crew decided
to continue taxi to the stand, where emergency services removed the trash
compactor from the aircraft, subsequently the passengers disembarked normally.

The United Kingdom’s Air Accident Investigation Branch released their bulletin
stating that the trash compactor was sent to the manufacturer for further
analysis, however no conclusive evidence for the cause of the acrid smell
was found.

The AAIB concluded: “The operator has included the findings from this event
in its review of cabin crew training and fire safety drills.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46406feb
20130618164316:20130608000000
Accident: US Airways B752 at Kona on Jun 8th 2013, evacuation during push back causes 4 injuries
A US Airways Boeing 757-200, flight US-119 from Kona,HI to Phoenix,AZ (USA)
with 178 passengers and 6 crew, was being pushed back from the gate when
smoke appeared on board of the aircraft prompting the evacuation of the
aircraft via slides.

The FAA reported on Jun 18th, that 4 people received minor injuries as result
of the evacuation. There was no fire, the smoke originated from the APU.

Scenes during the evacuation (Photo: Steve T.):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46336de8
20130606123134:20130602000000
Accident: Cebu Pacific A320 at Davao on Jun 2nd 2013, runway excursion
A Cebu Pacific Airbus A320-200, registration RP-C3266 performing flight
5J-971 from Manila to Davao (Philippines) with 165 passengers and 6 crew,
veered right of the runway at 19:05L (11:05Z) while landing on Davao’s runway
23 in heavy rain and came to a stop with the nose gear collapsed, both engines
received substantial damage due to ground contact following the nose gear
collapse.

The aircraft was still in its final position in the morning of Tuesday (Jun
4th), the aircraft was moved off the runway and to the apron Tuesday afternoon.

The airline reported the aircraft veered off the runway while landing in
Davao in heavy downpour.

Sources within the airline claimed that the runway lights failed briefly
while the aircraft was on short final causing the runway excursion.

On Jun 4th the airline added, that the aircraft was evacuated 15 minutes
after coming to a stop. Both engines had made ground contact following the
nose gear collapse however, both engines were severely damaged, likely beyond
repair, and emitted smoke. The crew however quickly established that the
engines were not on fire. Due to the tilted position of the aircraft the
crew anticipated that an emergency evacuation would cause injuries, assessed
the situation and then decided to perform a precautionary disembarkation
via the left hand front door and evacuation slide.

The CAA Philippines (CAAP) reported on Tuesday (Jun 4th), that there was
no evidence of a technical malfunction of the aircraft prior to landing.
There is no evidence of a malfunction of airport facilities, too, the crew
was able to see the runway despite the heavy rain. The aircraft touched
down normally but veered right off the runway and came to a stop about 1100
meters down the runway between taxiways A4 and A3 during a heavy downpour
at 19:05L. The CAAP vowed that should the airline recovery teams not manage
to move the aircraft off the runway by Tuesday afternoon, the CAAP would
take over, the runway would become available by Tuesday at the latest.

On Jun 6th 2013 sources within CAAP reported, that not all damaged runway
edge lights could be explained with the accident of the Cebu Pacific Airbus
A320. At least two broken runway edge lights were damaged by another aircraft,
supposed to have been another Cebu Pacific Turbo Prop aircraft landing about
5 minutes prior to the accident aircraft. The pilots of that Turboprop did
not report the occurrence, there was damage to the wheels found however.
Had the incident been reported, it may have averted the later accident,
but at least helped to assess the situation on the ground more accurately.

Metars (no Metars were reported at 11:00Z and later):
RPMD 021000Z 14002 9999 TS BKN015 CB SCT090 BKN290 29/26 Q1008 CB SW-SE
AND OVHD DIST PCPN NW LITS N
RPMD 020900Z 18006 9999 FEW015 CB SCT090 BKN290 30/26 Q1007 CB NE
RPMD 020800Z 18002 9999 SCT015 CB SCT090 BKN290 30/26 Q1006 CB ALQUADS

RPMD 020700Z 18008KT 9999 SCT015CB SCT090 BKN290 31/25 Q1006 CB NW-E/SW
DIST PCPN NE
RPMD 020600Z 18008KT 9999 VCRA SCT015CB SCT090 BKN290 32/26 Q1007 DIST PCPN
NE CB N-E/SW-NW
RPMD 020500Z 22006KT 9999 SCT015CB BKN290 32/26 Q1007 CB NE-E/SW-W

The aircraft back on paved surface (Photo: Cebu Pacific):
The aircraft being moved back onto paved surface (Photo: Cebu Pacific):
RP-C3266 being evacuated (Photo: Dave Jubz):
RP-C3266 in its final position (Photo: Jeff Sy):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=463512fe
20130604213744:20130526000000
Incident: LIAT DH8C near Pointe a Pitre on May 26th 2013, smoke in cabin
A LIAT de Havilland Dash 8-300, flight LI-512 from Bridgetown (Barbados)
to Antigua (Antigua), was enroute about 10nm from Pointe a Pitre (Guadeloupe)
when the flight attendant reported smoke in the cabin prompting the crew
to divert to Pointe a Pitre for a safe landing.

On Jun 4th The airline confirmed the incident reporting a replacement aircraft
delivered the passengers to Antigua the same day. The incident aircraft
underwent a series of checks according to the manufacturer’s maintenance
procedures however no fault was identified and the aircraft returned to
service. It is believed that a transient fault in the air conditioning system
caused the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462c0ec6/0000
20141126173054:20130524000000
Accident: VIA A320 at Varna on May 24th 2013, runway excursion
Bulgaria’s Air Accident Investigation Unit (BAAIU) released their final
report in Bulgarian concluding the probable causes of the accident were:

– Inadequate in depth analysis of the meteorologic conditions in the forecast
as well as underestimation of weather observations with respect to the descent
of the aircraft by meteorological offices at Varna Airport, Air Traffic
Control and the crew of the aircraft
– dynamic sharp changes of wind speed and direction just prior to touch
down
– Non compliance with tail wind limits by the crew and incorrect decision
by the aircraft commander to continue the landing although current weather
conditions required to go around and either enter a hold to wait for better
conditions or divert to an alternate aerodrome
– the aircraft touched down at about the mid point of the runway at a speed
above Vapp. Automatic brakes were deactivated when the pilot flying applied
brakes, who however was late in applying maximum brakes pressure
– Increased workload by the commander due to
~ lack of experience of the first officer
~ time pressure due to next scheduled leg of the aircraft

Contributing factors

– ATIS information between 06:30Z and 07:30Z provided the term “NOSIG” which
reinforced the incorrect assessment of the actual weather conditions by
air traffic control and crew
– Change of the active runway by air traffic control without consultation
with weather offices and without consideration to the fact that the glideslope
transmitter of the ILS was operating in “bypass” mode

The BAAIU reported that upon nearing Varna the crew listened to ATIS information
“U” at about 06:50Z, which indicated that runway 27 was active and arriving
aircraft should expect a VOR approach to runway 27, visibility was at 4500
meters, winds from 230 degrees at 8 knots, rain, cumulo nimbus cloud at
2200 feet, temperature at +19 degrees C, dew point at -16 degrees C, QNH
1002, NOSIG (no significant changes in the next 2 hours).

The captain (54, ATPL, 16,300 hours total, 9,457 hours on type) was pilot
flying, the first officer (46, ATPL, 4,980 hours total, 18 hours on type)
pilot monitoring.

Upon contacting approach control of Varna the aircraft was cleared to descent
to 9000 feet on QNH 1001, the crew read back they were cleared to 9000 feet
at 1009 hectoPascals and inquired whether they could perform an ILS approach
to runway 09, the controller corrected the wrong readback repeating QNH
1001 which was read back correctly on the second readbach, the crew again
requesting an ILS approach to runway 09. After coordination with tower the
approach controller advised the crew to expect an ILS approach to runway
09 and provided a vector to a point 10nm ahead of runway 09 and cleared
a descent to 5000 feet.

While the aircraft was descending ATIS switched to information “W”, which
was announced by the approach controller. Information “W” reported active
runway 27, arrivals to expect VOR approaches to runway 27, the runway was
wet, winds from 240 degrees at 8 knots, visibility 6000 meters, temperature
+19 degrees C, dew point -17 degrees C, rain, CB at 2200 feet, NOSIG. Approach
reconfirmed the crew could expect the ILS approach to runway 09. The aircraft
gets cleared to descend to 2500 feet and subsequently for the ILS approach
runway 09 before being handed off to tower.

On a final approach to runway 09, about 5nm before touchdown, the crew contacted
tower and received information “variable winds at 19 knots gusting up to
31 knots” and clearance to land on runway 09, the crew acknowledged.

The aircraft was configured for landing with gear down, full flaps, spoilers
armed, autobrakes set to medium.

Just as the aircraft crossed the runway threshold at 45 feet AGL at 152
KIAS/187 knots over ground a frontal system arrived over the aerodrome from
the southwest associated with significant increase in wind changing from
southwest to west and increased rain. The aircraft floats at a height of
8 feet for about 7 seconds and about 1300 meters (runway length 2517 meters),
touches down at about 1220 meters of runway left at a speed of 168 knots
over ground producing a vertical acceleration of +1.35G. The captain subsequently
opened reversers, the spoilers extended into their ground positions, the
aircraft however was unable to stop within the remaining runway. The captain
steered the aircraft slightly left to avoid a collision with the localizer
antenna, the aircraft collided with the airport perimeter fence and came
to a stop 224 meters past the end of the runway and 37 meters to the left
of the extended runway center line. A burning smell develops in the cabin
prompting the commander to perform the fire drills for both engines and
order an emergency evacuation via slides. During the evacuation through
all exits two passengers received broken ankles and were taken to hospitals.

The BAAIU reported that the crew did not receive a specific TAF indicating
variable gusting winds of up to 15 meters/second (30 knots) at about their
time of arrival, not before departure from Leipzig nor during flight. Information
off the weather radar of Varna Airport show, that a series of strong convective
cells were located west of the aerodrome at about 06:50Z, which combined
into one large powerful cell moving northeast and reaching the aerodrome
with its “wall” just as the aircraft crossed the runway threshold, also
reflected in special weather reports issued at 07:13Z, 07:16Z and 07:21Z
(also seen in the METARs).

The BAAIU reported that the lawn of the airport was being mowed at the time
of the landing to the left of the runway. For this purpose the glideslope
transmitted had been put into bypass, the aerodrome engineer monitoring
possible deviations of the glideslope as result of the works via a laptop.
No deviation was recorded at the time of approach and landing. The lawn
mower reached a point sensitive to the glideslope about one minute after
the overrun and stopped. The BAAIU conducted tests of whether the lawn mower
could have caused unrecorded glideslope deviations during their investigation,
setting the glideslope transmitter into bypass and having the lawn mower
drive along its path during the accident day, the tests showed no deviation
of the glideslope. The BAAIU reported that the “bypass mode” disables the
automatic monitoring system of the ILS to switch from the main to the stand
by transmitter in case of a disturbance being recorded.

The BAAIU computed the actual landing distance required in the existing
wind conditions (more than 30 knots of tail wind amounting to 1080 meters
of increased landing distance) at the time of landing was 2606 meters, more
than the landing distance available.

The BAAIU analysed that the Vapp of the aircraft was 134 KIAS, it remains
unclear why the aircraft was crossing the runway threshold at 158 KIAS,
24 knots above reference speed, therefore. According to tests with the lawn
mower a theory of disturbances on the glideslope signal were “untrustworthy”,
a second theory of malfunctioning aircraft systems found no support in flight
data recorder and examination of the aircraft. The third theory suggests
that the crew did not react timely to environmental changes.

The BAAIU analysed that the approach to runway 27 would have required 5
additional minutes of flying, at which time the combined large cell would
already have been over the aerodrome. The approach to runway 09 however
was in line with an aircraft approaching from the west and was equipped
with a superior navigation aid, the ILS, apart from saving those 5 minutes
additional flying time, which became a factor into the crew decision due
to time constraints imposed by the schedule of the aircraft. At the time
of the crew deciding for an ILS approach to runway 09 ATIS as well as ATC
information both suggested a tail wind component albeit within the operational
limits of the aircraft. Additional information like the TAF indicating strong
varyiing winds at about their time of arrival as well as amended information
about the wind situation from ATC was not available to the crew. Only when
the crew checked in with tower, the crew received surprising information
about the wind gusting up to 31 knots, even though ATIS and ATC information
had suggested “NOSIG” over the next two hours.

The BAAIU continued analysis that at this time the aircraft was about 5nm
from touchdown, sufficient time to decide for a go around and assess the
options like entering a hold to wait for weather improvement or divert to
the alternate aerodrome at Bourgas. The BAAIU analysed that the little experience
of just 18 hours on type of the first officer may have put the commander
into a difficult position with respect to decide for a go-around. However,
computation of the landing distance required in the existing circumstances
exceeding the landing distance available required the approach to be aborted,
the decision to continue the landing is thus not acceptable.

The BAAIU analysed that the work load of the captain increased substantially
on short final forcing him to concentrate on piloting the aircraft rather
than assessing the weather scenario and landing distances. The passitivity
of the first officer, becoming obvious with the “before landing checklist”,
contributed to the increase of work load and also led to the first officer
not calling deviations from the standard operating procedures, e.g. deviations
from the glideslope and particular reference speeds, that would have prompted
the decision to go around by the commander. The BAAIU specifically mentions
that an additional safety pilot to compensate for the lack of experience
by the first officer could have prevented the accident.

The BAAIU analysed that tower changed the runway from 27 to 09 without consulting
with weather office and without consideration to the fact, that the ILS’
glideslope transmitted was in bypass mode. The BAAIU stated that tower was
not required to consult with met offices according to standard operating
procedures at the time. This lack of requirement resulted in tower permitting
the use of runway purely on ATIS information. There is no provision in the
ATC manual about the ILS transmitters being in stand by mode, too. With
the transmitter in bypass however it was possible that disturbances of the
transmitters/beams would not be corrected.

The BAAIU analysed that tower missed a chance to prevent the accident when
an aircraft holding short of runway 09 waiting for departure queried the
current winds about 2 minutes prior to the accident resulting in tower reading
the winds from 180 degrees at 21 knots showing a large wind change – the
wind change was not relayed to the arriving VIA flight however due to time
constraints. The omission of this information was in violation of the requirements
of ATC manual however.

The investigation analysed that the term NOSIG was not justified especially
with the prospect of a TAF released at approx. 04:20Z indicating strong
varyiing winds at around 07:00Z to 07:30Z gusting up to 30 knots. This NOSIG
however contributed to both tower and crew misjudging the existing weather
scenario and not expecting the significant weather change that occurred
on very short final to just prior to touchdown.

The BAAIU analysed that the captain declared Mayday and requested assistance
by emergency services believing to transmit on tower frequency however talking
on Intercom due to stress. Cabin crew acting professionally however did
not initiate the emergency evacuation until explicit command to initiate
emergency evacuation was given by the captain.

The BAAIU analysed that the captain timely and correctly decided to inititate
the emergency evacuation agreeing with the considerations that the damage
to the aircraft was unknown, there was smoke in the cabin probably due to
the rupture of the oil seal in the right hand engine and dust from the fractured
airport perimeter fence. However, the instruction to cabin crew was provided
before the actual checklists being read invoking the danger that passengers
evacuate with the engines still running and being sucked into the engines.
Cabin crew, after receiving the instruction to evacuate, verified that the
engines had been shut down before the first passengers left the aircraft.

The BAAIU analysed that the evacuation took about six minutes way above
the target of 90 seconds. It took about two minutes from the decision to
evacuate until all passengers were off the aircraft due to advanced age
of the majority of passengers and decreased mobility of some passengers
and an accumulation of passengers near the over wing exits as well as bad
weather conditions with reduced visibility, strong winds and rain. It took
another 4 minutes for the crew to leave the aircraft after collecting laptops
and other personal belongings.

The investigation released a number of safety recommendations to Bulgaria’s
Civil Aviation Authority to review and improve weather analysis and information
flow to ATC and operators to ensure all pertinent data are and become available
to flight crew, ensure flight crew know limitations of their aircraft, review
procedures to verify operability of navigation aids in particular ILS, improve
ATC manuals and improve Crew Resource Management Training during simulator
sessions.

The right hand engine (Photo: BAAIU):
Nose section (Photo: BAAIU):
Perimeter fence (Photo: BAAIU):
Final position (Photo: BAAIU):
LZ-MZR seen from runway end (Photo: BAAIU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462beb5e
20130613135253:20130524000000
Accident: British Airways A319 near London on May 24th 2013, unlatched doors on both engines separated, fuel leak, engine on fire shut down
A British Airways Airbus A319-100, registration G-EUOE performing flight
BA-762 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Oslo (Norway) with 75 passengers
and 5 crew, was climbing out of Heathrow’s runway 27L when a loud bang from
the left hand engine was heard and the left hand engine’s (V2522) cowling
doors went missing. The crew levelled off at 6000 feet reassuring passengers.
While positioning for a return to Heathrow another loud bang was heard,
this time from the right hand engine, and the right hand engine’s cowling
doors went missing, and the right hand engine was trailing smoke. The aircraft
landed safely on Heathrow’s runway 27R about 26 minutes after departure,
stopped on the runway and was evacuated via slides while emergency services
doused the right hand engine and extinguished the engine fire. No injuries
occurred.

Both runways were closed to accommodate the emergency, runway 09R/27L re-opened
shortly after the landing. Runway 09L/27R reopened after the aircraft had
been towed to the apron about 2 hours after landing.

Pictorial evidence shows the left hand engine doors went missing in flight,
both engines’ cowling doors were missing in photos after landing.

The airline confirmed the aircraft returned to Heathrow due to a technical
fault, the aircraft was evacuated via slides after landing.

The airport reported emergency services were assisting an aircraft with
a fire.

The United Kingdom’s Air Accident Investigation Board AAIB have opened an
investigation and dispatched a team of investigators on site.

On May 29th the NTSB reported quoting the AAIB, that both engine cowl doors
separated during takeoff and fell onto the runway, one engine was leaking
fuel and had been shut down, they were returning to Heathrow. Later the
crew reported the other (still running) engine was on fire, the aircraft
continued for a safe landing, was shut down and evacuated. The NTSB assigned
an accredited representative into the investigation led by the AAIB.

The aircraft seen from the ground (Photo: APA/Rex Features):
The right hand engine after landing with doors ripped off and soot (Photo:
DPA):
The left hand engine in flight (Photo: Reuters/Jon Chaplin):
The left hand engine in flight before right hand engine emitted bang (Photo:
David Gallagher):
The left hand engine after landing with doors ripped off (Photo: DPA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462c2fda
20130524193256:20130523000000
Incident: Nippon Cargo B748 near Whitehorse on May 23rd 2013, cargo smoke indication
A Nippon Cargo Airlines Boeing 747-800, registration JA13KZ performing freight
flight KZ-159 from New York JFK,NY to Anchorage,AK (USA) with 5 crew, was
enroute at FL360 about 75nm west of Whitehorse,YT (Canada) when the crew
received an upper cargo deck smoke indication, turned around and diverted
to Whitehorse for a safe landing about 25 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported a post flight examination determined the smoke
indication was false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4630cc74
20130530140112:20130522000000
Incident: Greenland DH8B at Narssarssuaq on May 22nd 2013, electrical problem and smoke in cockpit
An Air Greenland de Havilland Dash 8-200, registration OY-GRJ performing
flight GL-421 from Paamiut to Narssarssuaq (Greenland), was descending towards
Narssarsuaq when the crew decided to enter a hold due to weather conditions
with winds from 090 degrees at 39 knots, 25 knots minimum, gusting 62 knots.
While in the holding pattern over NDB NA the crew received a primary inverter
malfunction indication and smoke appeared in the cockpit. The crew donned
their oxygen masks, worked the relevant checklists and noticed after about
1-2 minutes that the smoke was subsiding and the smell of smoke disappeared.
The crew decided to return to Paamiut due to the weather conditions and
landed in Paamiut about 25 minutes after deciding to return.

Denmarks Havarikommission reported a postflight examination confirmed the
primary inverter was faulty and was the source of the smoke. An investigation
has been opened.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462ea85e
20130527210204:20130522000000
Incident: Cathay B773 at Bangkok on May 22nd 2013, cargo fire indication
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300, registration B-HNE performing flight CX-700
from Bangkok (Thailand) to Hong Kong (China) with 206 passengers, was climbing
out of Bangkok’s runway 19R when the crew stopped the climb at 7000 feet
reporting a cargo fire indication and returned to Bangkok for a safe landing
on runway 19R about 12 minutes after departure. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The flight was cancelled.

The airline confirmed the return because of cargo fire indication, the indication
was identified to be false. The aircraft returned to service on May 24th
following extensive examination.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462b4221
20130523151731:20130522000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Minneapolis on May 22nd 2013, fumes in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N630JB performing flight B6-485
from Boston,MA to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 150 people on board, was enroute
at FL340 about 140nm southeast of Minneapolis,MN (USA) when the crew reported
fumes in the cockpit and decided to divert to Minneapolis. On final approach
to Minneapolis the crew advised they still had a smell “back there” but
no smoke, they did not expect an evacuation but wanted to turn off runway
30L to the right onto what appeared to be a de-icing pad for checks by emergency
services, which was approved. The aircraft landed safely on runway 30L,
vacated the runway and later taxied to the apron with emergency services
in trail.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462749d2
20130518143411:20130517000000
Incident: American B772 near Aruba on May 17th 2013, smoke indication
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N772AN performing flight
AA-234 from Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil) to Miami,FL (USA) with 218 passengers
and 14 crew, was enroute at FL380 about 75nm westnorthwest of Oranjestad
(Aruba) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Aruba’s
Reina Beatrix Airport for a safe landing on runway 11 about 19 minutes later.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, a smoke
detector had activated prompting the diversion.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after 4 hours on the ground
and reached Miami with a delay of just over 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4626772b
20130517131328:20130517000000
Incident: KLM Cityhopper E190 near Amsterdam on May 17th 2013, burning smell on board
A KLM Cityhopper Embraer ERJ-190, registration PH-EZG performing flight
WA-1445/KL-1445 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Aberdeen,SC (UK) with 85
people on board, was climbing through about FL100 out of Amsterdam’s runway
36L when the crew declared Mayday reporting a burning smell on board and
requested to return to Amsterdam. The aircraft stopped the climb at FL110
and returned to Amsterdam, advising the smell was persistent and did not
dissipate. The aircraft landed safely on runway 27 about 12 minutes after
departure. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or
smoke and escorted the aircraft to the apron, where passengers disembarked
normally and were bussed to the terminal.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The airline confimed a minor technical problem prompted the return.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462aa53b
20130522204806:20130516000000
Incident: Sunwing B738 at Halifax on May 16th 2013, bird strike
A Sunwing Boeing 737-800, registration C-GTVG performing positioning flight
WG-9589 from Halifax,NS (Canada) to Santa Clara (Cuba) with 7 crew, was
climbing through 500 feet AGL out of Halifax’s runway 23 when the crew heard
several loud bangs, the engine instruments appeared normal however, the
flight attendants observed streaks of flame from the left hand engine. The
crew declared emergency, shut the left hand engine down as a precaution,
levelled off at 5000 feet and returned to Halifax for a safe landing about
30 minutes after departure.

A replacement aircraft positioned to Santa Clara reaching Cuba with a delay
of 5.5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported there was no fire and no smoke. Maintenance confirmed
a bird strike had caused the engine incident and resulting precautionary
shut down.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4625ed5c
20130516202052:20130514000000
Incident: Inuit DH8C near Baie-Comeau on May 14th 2013, smoke in cockpit
An Air Inuit de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GRAI performing flight
3H-833 from Schefferville,QC to Quebec,QC (Canada) with 18 passengers and
3 crew, was enroute at FL220 about 50nm southwest of Baie-Comeau,QC when
the crew noticed light smoke in the cockpit and a burning odour, declared
emergency and diverted to Baie-Comeau for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance is examining the aircraft to determine
the source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46250220
20130515163954:20130514000000
Incident: American MD82 near Amarillo on May 14th 2013, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration N7542A performing
flight AA-1099 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Albuquerque,NM (USA) with 117
passengers, was enroute at FL320 about 45nm south of Amarillo,TX when the
crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit together with a number of other
indications and decided to divert to Amarillo for a safe landing about 10
(!) minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The aircraft was examined and was able to continue the flight reaching Albuquerque
with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462aa77e
20130522210454:20130513000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 at Fort Lauderdale on May 13th 2013, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FDRK performing flight AC-925
from Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 144 people on
board, was climbing out of Fort Lauderdale’s runway 28R when the crew received
an avionics smoke indication, levelled off at 8500 feet and returned to
Fort Lauderdale for a safe landing on runway 28R about 10 minutes after
departure.

The Canadian TSB reported the avionics equipment ventilation controller
was replaced.

The incident aircraft already had similiar occurrences, see Incident: Air
Canada A320 at Miami on Apr 20th 2012, avionics smoke indication and Incident:
Air Canada A320 near Edmonton on Aug 18th 2012, avionics smoke indication.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46235924
20130513141316:20130512000000
Incident: Germanwings A319 at London on May 12th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AKNV performing flight 4U-2465
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Stuttgart (Germany) with 141 people on board,
was climbing out of Heathrow’s runway 27R when the crew stopped the climb
at about 4000 feet reporting smoke in cockpit and returned to Heathrow’s
runway 27L about 7 minutes after departure. Emergency services found no
trace of fire or heat. The passengers disembarked normally via stairs.

The airline confirmed fumes on board, the aircraft is currently being inspected.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462072a8
20130513222405:20130509000000
Incident: Cathay B773 near Winnipeg on May 9th 2013, cargo fire indication
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300, registration B-KPE performing flight CX-806
from Hong Kong (China) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 277 people on board,
was enroute at FL370 about 180nm southeast of Winnipeg,MB (Canada) when
the crew received a cargo fire indication, activated the fire suppression
system, turned around and diverted to Winnipeg for a safe landing on runway
36 about 35 minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace of
fire, heat or smoke.

On May 13th 2013 the Canadian TSB reported the indication was false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462049fb
20130509172755:20130509000000
Incident: Avianca Brazil A318 at Fortaleza on May 9th 2013, smoking engine
An Avianca Brazil Airbus A318-100, registration PR-AVK performing flight
O6-6371 from Fortaleza,CE to Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil) with 83 passengers,
was climbing out of Fortaleza’s runway 13 when the crew stopped the climb
at about 4000 feet and returned to Fortaleza for a safe landing on runway
13 about 8 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported smoke became visible from an engine (PW6124) shortly
after becoming airborne, smoke also appeared in the cabin.

The airport reported the crew returned to Fortaleza as a precaution without
requesting emergency services.

The airline said, the cause of the return is under investigation.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46205c17
20130509193350:20130508000000
Incident: American MD83 near Denver on May 8th 2013, burning odour on board
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration N980TW performing
flight AA-880 from Denver,CO to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 107 people
on board, was climbing out of Denver when the crew stopped the climb at
FL280 reporting a burning electrical odour on board and decided to divert
to Pueblo,CO (USA) for a safe landing 15 minutes later. Emergency services
did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The passengers were bussed to Colorado Springs,CO, boarded another aircraft
and reached Dallas with a delay of 8 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to position to Dallas the following day (AA-9606)
and resumed service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=462055f1
20130509185012:20130508000000
Incident: Delta B763 at Honolulu on May 8th 2013, rejected takeoff, blew all main gear tyres
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N188DN performing flight DL-2364
from Honolulu,HI to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was accelerating for takeoff from
Honolulu’s runway 08R when the crew rejected takeoff at high speed, tower
reported smoke from the right main gear, later the left main gear tyres
appear deflated, there was no smoke anymore. Emergency services responded,
the aircraft was disabled on the runway. Emergency services reported they
were extinguishing the right hand main gear, there was still smoke from
the right main, the left main tyres were deflated, later reporting all right
and all left main gear tyres had deflated and requested the aircraft to
be shut down, emergency services advised no evacuation was necessary, there
was no fire and the smoke had subsided, the crew advised they were still
showing hot right brakes.

The FAA reported the aircraft blew tyres on a rejected takeoff, the passengers
deplaned onto the runway and were bussed to the terminal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4620e9a9
20130511101114:20130507000000
Incident: PSA CRJ2 at Mobile on May 7th 2013, engine trouble, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, registration N253PS
performing flight US-2444 from Mobile,AL to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 6 passengers
and 3 crew, was climbing out of Mobile when a loud bang occurred, the left
hand engine (CF34) showed vibrations and rolled back, thick black smoke
appeared in cockpit and cabin. The crew donned their oxygen masks, stopped
the climb at about 11,000 feet reporting smoke in the cockpit and reducing
both engines to idle thrust, released the passenger oxygen masks, and returned
to Mobile for a safe landing – with both engines still running – on runway
32 about 12 minutes after departure. The passengers rapidly disembarked
onto the runway and were bussed to the terminal.

A passenger reported that shortly after the flight attendants rose from
their seats there was a loud bang, then thick black smoke began to appear
in the cabin, there were strong vibrations, the oxygen masks came down.
The FAA reported the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit,
the CRJ-700 landed safely on runway 32 in Mobile. The FAA was not aware
of any engine problem.

The aircraft resumed service on May 9th after the left hand engine was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=461ee35d
20130719143140:20130507000000
Incident: British Airways B763 near Amsterdam on May 7th 2013, burning odour and smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BNWI performing flight
BA-234 from Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 63
passengers and 9 crew, was enroute at FL400 about 115nm east of Amsterdam
(Netherlands) when the crew reported a burning odour in the cockpit and
decided to divert to Amsterdam subsequently advising there was visible smoke.
Further into the approach the crew reported that the smoke was no longer
visible, they suspected an electrical problem. The aircraft continued for
a safe landing on Amsterdam’s runway 36R about 32 minutes after leaving
FL400. The aircraft taxied to the gate after a quick check by emergency
services, that did not find any trace of fire or heat.

All 63 passengers were rebooked onto flight BA-433 flown by an Airbus A319-100
and reached London with a delay of 1.5 hours.

A maintenance team is being flown in from London to further examine the
aircraft.

The Dutch Onderzoeksraad (DSB) opened an investigation reporting there was
odour and smoke in the cockpit, the aircraft also encountered problems with
autothrottle.

The DSB reported in their quarterly bulletin of July 2013 that the aircraft
was enroute from Moscow to London when the autothrottle disconnected unexpectedly.
The crew worked the relevant checklists and consulted with dispatch, then
reengaged autothrottle. Seconds later a burning smell developed in the cockpit,
dissipated and reappeared. Suspecting a causal link between the autothrottle
disconnect and the burning smell the crew disengaged autothrottle, the burning
smell dissipated again. Some time later the burning smell appeared again
however, one of the cabin crew was called to the cockpit and reported feeling
unwell prompting the flight crew to don their oxygen masks and divert to
Amsterdam. The cockpit smoke and fire checklists were executed, the aircraft
landed in Amsterdam without further incident, the cabin crew member did
not require medical treatment. A preliminary investigation did not identify
any problem with autothrottle, however, a recirculation fan of the air conditioning
system was found seized due to a defective bearing causing the burning smell.
The occurrence was rated a serious incident, the investigation continues.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=461f7f57
20130508170857:20130506000000
Incident: Aeroflot A320 at Minsk on May 6th 2013, odour in cabin, smoke after landing
An Aeroflot Airbus A320-200, registration VQ-BHL performing flight SU-1830
from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Minsk (Belarus) with 70 people on board,
was about to turn onto final approach when a burning odour was noticed in
the business class cabin. The aircraft continued for a safe landing.

Rosaviatsia reported that after landing smoke became visible in the cabin,
but did not report further details.

The incident aircraft remained on the ground for about 14 hours, then resumed
service and performed the return flight SU-1831.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=461dcc13
20130507100934:20130505000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Alicante on May 5th 2013, spurious wheel well fire indication
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DPC performing flight FR-9887
from Alicante,SP (Spain) to Liverpool,EN (UK) with 152 passengers and 6
crew, was climbing out of Alicante when the crew stopped the climb at FL220
and returned to Alicante for a safe landing on runway 10 about 16 minutes
later with emergency services on stand by.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DHN reached Liverpool with
a delay of 5:45 hours.

An observer on the ground reported that emergency services immediately after
landing attended the aircraft inspecting the wheel wells of the aircraft.

The airline’s press department reported on May 5th that the aircraft “returned
to Alicante shortly after take-off after a cockpit warning light indicated
a possible minor technical issue. The aircraft landed normally and passengers
disembarked and to minimise delay, a replacement aircraft was positioned,
which departed for Liverpool.”

On May 7th the airline’s chief pilot told The Aviation Herald, that the
crew received a spurious wheel well fire indication, actioned the relevant
checklists and returned to Alicante requesting emergency services to inspect
the wheel wells after landing. Emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke, then the aircraft taxied to the apron. A faulty sensor was
identified as cause of the indication. The chief pilot concluded: “Indeed
a minor technical problem!”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46183bb4
20150203231252:20130429000000
Crash: National Air Cargo B744 at Bagram on Apr 29th 2013, lost height shortly after takeoff following load shift and stall
A National Air Cargo Boeing 747-400 freighter on behalf of US Mobility Command,
registration N949CA performing cargo flight N8-102 from Bagram (Afghanistan)
to Dubai Al Maktoum (United Arab Emirates) with 7 crew and cargo consisting
of 5 military vehicles, has crashed shortly after takeoff from Bagram Air
Base’s runway 03 at 15:30L (11:00Z) and erupted into flames near the end
of the runway within the perimeter of the Air Base. All 7 crew are reported
perished in the crash.

Afghan Authorities immediately denied claims that the crash of a large civilian
cargo aircraft was the result of enemy activities. A large fire erupted
after the aircraft impacted ground, it appears all crew have been killed.

Coalition Forces reported a civilian large cargo plane crashed shortly after
takeoff, at the time of the accident there was no enemy activity around
the aerodrome. Rescue and Recovery efforts are under way, the Air Base is
currently locked down and the aerodrome is closed.

National Air Cargo confirmed their aircraft N949CA with 7 crew, 4 pilots,
2 mechanics and a load master – initial information had been 8 crew -crashed
at Bagram. The airline later added, that the aircraft had been loaded with
all cargo in Camp Bastion (Afghanistan, about 300nm southwest of Bagram),
the cargo had been inspected at Camp Bastion, the aircraft subsequently
positioned to Bagram for a refuelling stop with no difficulty, no cargo
was added or removed, however, the cargo was again inspected before the
aircraft departed for the leg to Dubai Al Maktoum.

The NTSB reported the Boeing 747-400 was operated by National Air Cargo
and destined for Dubai Al Maktoum when it crashed just after takeoff from
Bagram and came to rest within the boundaries of the Air Base. All 7 occupants,
all American citizens, were killed. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Transportation
and Commercial Aviation is leading the investigation into the crash, the
NTSB have assigned accredited representatives joining the investigation.

Several observers on the ground reported the National Air Cargo Boeing 747-400
had just lifted off and was climbing through approximately 1200 feet when
it’s nose sharply rose, the aircraft appeared to have stalled and came down
erupting in a blaze.

According to a listener on frequency the crew reported the aircraft stalled
due to a possible load shift.

A car driver caught the aircraft climbing out and coming down on his car
camera, see below.

The aircraft was carrying 5 military vehicles.

On Jun 2nd 2013 accident investigators by the Ministry of Transport and
Civil Aviation of Afghanistan reported in a press conference that quickly
shifting cargo, consisting of three armored vehicles and two mine sweepers
totalling at 80 tons of weight, caused the accident. The cargo slammed so
hard at the back of the aircraft, that parts of the aircraft separated and
wiring in the back was severed. As result of the shift and loss of aircraft
parts the center of gravity moved so far back, that the attitude of the
aircraft could no longer be controlled, the nose of the aircraft rose beyond
the flying envelope of the aircraft and the aircraft stalled destroying
the aircraft and killing all crew in the resulting impact. Parts of the
aircraft, that separated as result of the initial load shift, were recovered
from the runway. The straps used to tie down the cargo were recovered from
the accident site, although charred they provided evidence of having fractured
before final impact, it was unclear however, whether the fracture(s) had
happened before or after takeoff.

The FAA had released a Safety Alert for Operators on May 20th 2013 regarding
securing heavy vehicles in aircraft, see News: FAA concerned about potential
safety impact of carrying and restraining heavy vehicle special cargo loads.

On Oct 16th 2014 the NTSB announced that Afghanistan’s Authorities have
delegated the remainder of the investigation to the NTSB, who had participated
in the investigation so far. The NTSB is going to complete the investigation
and issue the final report.

On Feb 3rd 2015 the NTSB opened the docket into the investigation with all
factual information available so far. The operational factual report stated,
that the captain and first officer of the flight did not have prior experience
in transporting armoured vehicles, 2 of which weighed 13 tons each and 3
18 tons each. It has been the first itime for National Air Cargo to transport
18 ton vehicles when those were taken aboard in Camp Bastion. The flight
was originally planned to depart Camp Bastion directly for Dubai, the flight
however did not receive overflight permission over Pakistan out of Camp
Bastion. Hence the flight was planned to Bagram for a refuelling stop and
then depart to Dubai. No additional cargo was loaded in Bagram, just 48
tons of fuel were added.

The NTSB reported that while on the ground in Bagram the captain was informed
by one of the crew members that one of the straps had broken. The crew engaged
in a discussion about a possible load shift while landing in Bagram, there
was also discussion of re-securing the load prior to departure. The aircraft
departed an hour later. (Editorial note: in the entire docket The Aviation
Herald was unable to find any answer to the question, whether the cockpit
discussion about the broken strap and possible load shift on landing resulted
in action or whether nothing was done about)

The takeoff roll on runway 03 was normal, the aircraft rotated at the usual
point. 9 seconds after the “rotate” call by the crew the cockpit voice recorder
stopped recording just after the “gear up” call, 3 seconds later the flight
data recorder at 171 KIAS, 13 degrees nose up, 4 degrees right bank and
33 feet AGL with no warnings or unusual recordings until and at that point.
According to witnesses on the ground including tower controller and several
other observers on the ground the aircraft continued to pitch up until it
appeared to be stalling, turned to the right and impacted ground just right
of the runway and beyond the departure end of the runway.

According to interviews 26 straps were used for tie down of the 18 ton Cougars,
24 straps for the 13 ton vehices. Each strap was capable of a load of 5000
lbs (2.27 tons). A number of witnesses interviewed were quoted stating that
“only” two straps were added to the heavier Cougar in comparism to the 13
ton vehicle.

National Air Cargo operates three Boeing 747-400s with the registrations
N952CA, N919CA and N949CA. N949CA operated into Afghanistan on Apr 28th.

Metars (Bagram, via US Military):
KQSA 291255Z 04008G16KT 9000 -TSRA BKN050CB BKN090 BKN150 09/05 A3003 RMK
CB NE MOV NE SLP181 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 291231Z 30009G16KT 8000 -TSRA BKN050CB BKN090 BKN150 08/04 A3001 RMK
CB NE MOV NE WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 291229Z 30010G15KT 6000 -TSRAGS BKN050CB OVC100 12/04 A3000 RMK CB
OHD MOV N WND DATA ESTMD LSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 291155Z 33008G17KT 9999 -TSRA SCT050CB BKN090 BKN170 13/04 A2996 RMK
CB OHD MOV N SLP139 60000 70000 51014=
KQSA 291155Z COR 33008G17KT 9999 -TSRA SCT050CB BKN090 BKN170 13/04 A2990
RMK CB OHD MOV N SLP139 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD 60000 70000 51014=
KQSA 291059Z 35011G17KT 9999 FEW050 BKN065 BKN090 14/05 A2993 RMK WND DATA
ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 291058Z 35011G17KT 9999 FEW050 BKN080CB BKN150 14/05 A2993 RMK LTG
DSNT NW SLP124 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 291055Z 02007KT 9999 FEW040 BKN080CB BKN150 18/06 A2994 RMK PK WND
06026/1005 WSHFT 1027 LTG DSNT NW CB DSNT NW SLP124 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP
ESTMD=
KQSA 290955Z COR 10017G30KT 9999 SCT085 BKN140 BKN200 17/06 A2992 RMK PK
WND 09032/0856 LTG DSNT NW CB DSNT E SLP213 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD
COR 13=
KQSA 290855Z 09026G37KT 6000 -TSRA DU FEW000 BKN070CB BKN130 17/06 A2990
RMK PK WND 09037/0852 CB W SLP103 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 290755Z 12025G37KT 9999 SCT032CB BKN070 BKN150 17/06 A2995 RMK PK WND
10037/0747 CB W MOV N SLP114 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 290655Z 12015G27KT 9999 VCTS SCT036CB BKN050 BKN080 15/08 A2998 RMK
CB N MOV N SLP135 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 290630Z 12016G24KT 5000 -TSRAGS FEW030 BKN050CB 15/07 A3000 RMK CB
OHD MOV N WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 290628Z 10015G20KT 9999 -SHRA SCT043 BKN050 BKN080 16/06 A3000 RMK
LTG DSNT SE WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP ESTMD=
KQSA 290555Z 31007KT 9999 BKN050 15/04 A3001 RMK SLP134 WND DATA ESTMD ALSTG/SLP
ESTMD 58010=

Metars (of Kabul 22nm south of Bagram):
OAKB 291350Z 18004KT 7000 BKN050 13/04 Q1016 NOSIG RMK BLU BLU
OAKB 291250Z 30007KT 9999 SCT040CB BKN060 15/01 Q1015 NOSIG RMK BLU BLU

OAKB 291150Z 10017G27KT 9999 VCTS SCT090CB BKN120 16/06 Q1013 NOSIG RMK
BLU BLU
OAKB 291050Z 11020G30KT 9999 SCT090 OVC120 16/05 Q1012 NOSIG RMK BLU BLU
OAKB 290950Z 10020G30KT 9999 SCT080CB 17/06 Q1012 NOSIG RMK BLU+ BLU+

OAKB 290850Z 10025G42KT 9999 FEW060CB SCT070 17/05 Q1013 NOSIG RMK BLU+
BLU+
OAKB 290750Z 11020G30KT 9999 BKN060 17/06 Q1014 NOSIG RMK BLU BLU
OAKB 290650Z 10017KT 9999 FEW050 BKN060 16/05 Q1015 NOSIG RMK BLU BLU
Car video of the aircraft departing and coming down (Video: Sathion):
The accident load being moved on board in Camp Bastion on Apr 29th 2013
(Photo: NTSB/National Air Cargo):
Smoke plume rising from the crash site (Photo: Albert Ramirez):
Aerodrome chart (Graphics: AIP Afghanistan):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46187fa0
20130429220739:20130428000000
Incident: Delta B752 at Tampa on Apr 28th 2013, engine shut down in flight
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N668DN performing continuation
flight DL-534 from Tampa,FL to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 185 people on board,
was climbing out of Tampa’s runway 19R when the right hand engine (PW2037)
emitted a number of bangs and streaks of flame, the crew immediately after
becoming airborne declared Mayday reporting they had lost the right hand
engine and requested to do a quick pattern back to the departure runway.
Tower instructed another arrival on final approach to runway 19R to swing
over to runway 19L, emergency services went into their stand by positions.
The crew levelled off at 2000 feet – tower warned of a high antenna in the
area – and returned to runway 19R for a safe landing about 8 minutes after
departure, vacated the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway for an
inspection by emergency services, the crew inquired whether any smoke was
visible from the engine which emergency services responded to in the negative.

The flight had previously diverted to Tampa due to a sparking button in
the cockpit, see Incident: Delta B752 near Tampa on Apr 28th 2013, sparking
button in cockpit.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The right hand engine is being replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=461acbe3
20130502194413:20130426000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 at Calgary on Apr 26th 2013, rejected takeoff
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FMYV performing flight AC-225
from Calgary,AB to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 102 people on board, rejected
takeoff from Calgary’s runway 28 when a strong odour and white smoke appeared
in the cockpit. The aircraft slowed safely and vacated the runway, emergency
services responded, the smoke dissipated after the engine thrust had been
reduced to idle.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified the left hand air cycle
machine as source of the odour and smoke and replaced the machine, the recirculation
fans and filters. Following engine grounds runs went without residual odour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46148e33
20130424224044:20130424000000
Incident: American B763 near Raleigh/Durham on Apr 24th 2013, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N378AN performing flight
AA-1769 from New York JFK,NY to Miami,FL (USA) with 190 people and a small
shipment of hazardeous goods on board, was enroute at FL400 about 100nm
east of Raleigh/Durham,NC when the crew reported smoke in the aft cabin
and decided to divert to Raleigh/Durham for a safe landing on runway 23R
about 25 minutes later.

The flight is currently estimated to reach Miami with a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4613943a
20140701152828:20130422000000
Accident: Singapore A333 near Bangkok on Apr 22nd 2013, cargo fire
9V-STO after opening of cargo doorA Singapore Airlines Airbus A330-300,
registration 9V-STO performing flight SQ-446 from Singapore (Singapore)
to Dhaka (Bangladesh) with 105 passengers and 12 crew, was enroute at FL350
about 120nm southwest of Bangkok (Thailand) when the crew received a cargo
fire indication, activated the cargo fire suppression system and decided
to divert to Bangkok. During the descent towards Bangkok a burning smell
developed on board of the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely on Bangkok’s
runway 19R about 20 minutes later. Emergency services responded, the passengers
disembarked via stairs, after opening of the aft cargo door a plume of smoke
became visible, fire services sprayed the cargo bay and needed more than
2 hours to control the situation. There were no injuries, the cargo was
damaged, the damage to the aircraft is being assessed.

The airline confirmed a rear cargo smoke indication prompted the diversion
to Bangkok, the aircraft landed safely, no injuries occurred. The passengers
were provided with hotel accomodation, were rebooked onto other flights
and continued their journey the following day. Thailand’s Authorities are
investigating, the airline is fully cooperating with the investigation.
It is planned to ferry the aircraft to Singapore for further assessment
after initial checks are completed.

Passengers reported the crew announced there was a minor problem, however,
they needed to divert to Bangkok. The aircraft landed safely with emergency
services on stand by and proceeded to the apron, where the passengers disembarked.
Only after a large plume of smoke became visible after opening of the cargo
bay everyone realised how critical the situation had been.

Thailand’s accident investigation board has opened an investigation.

On Jul 1st 2014 Singapore’s AAIB released an interim report indicating that
the investigation has been delegated to the Singapore AAIB. The AAIB reported
that the crew received an aft and bulk cargo smoke indication in flight
at FL360 over the Gulf of Thailand about 8nm from Thailand’s coast. The
crew activated the cargo fire extinguishing agent and diverted to the nearest
airport Bangkok. The smoke indication remained active even after the agent
had been discharged. The aircraft landed safely on Bangkok’s runway 19R,
vacated the runway and taxied to a parking bay where emergency services
performed an exterior inspection. No smoke or fire was visible from the
aft and bulk cargo doors, the passengers disembarked via stairs. The AAIB
then continued: “The Bangkok ARFF service tended to the aft cargo compartment
where smoke was billowing from the aft cargo door. While unloading cargo
container 42L, the contents burst into flames. The ARFF used a combination
of water and carbon dioxide to extinguish the fire.”

Cargo being unloaded from the aircraft:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46138a01
20130423181618:20130421000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Stockholm on Apr 21st 2013, burning odour on board
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIPL performing flight LH-2419
from Stockholm (Sweden) to Munich (Germany) with 137 passengers, was climbing
out of Stockholm when the crew stopped the climb at FL230 reporting a burning
odour on board and decided to return to Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport for
a safe landing on runway 26 about 30 minutes after departure. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

Following checks the aircraft was able to depart again after about 3:00
hours on the ground and reached Munich with a delay of 3:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46129c00
20130422155609:20130421000000
Incident: Saudia B772 near Muscat on Apr 21st 2013, cargo fire indication
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration HZ-AKJ performing
flight SV-749 from Mumbai (India) to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) with 341 people
on board, was enroute near Muscat (Oman) when the crew received a cargo
fire indication, discharged the relevant fire suppression system and diverted
to Muscat for a safe landing. The aircraft stopped on the runway for inspections
by emergency services closing the runway for about half an hour until the
aircraft was towed to the apron.

Oman’s Civil Aviation Authority reported that emergency services found no
trace of fire, heat or smoke, the indication was determined false. Possible
cause of the indication was determined to be a load of fruit carried in
the cargo compartment.

The aircraft was able to continue the journey and reached Riyadh with a
delay of 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=461292cd
20130422145930:20130420000000
Incident: Aeroflot A321 near Budapest on Apr 20th 2013, smoke and burning smell on board
An Aeroflot Airbus A321-200, registration VQ-BEG performing flight SU-2031
from Budapest (Hungary) to Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia), was climbing through
FL140 out of Budapest when the crew observed smoke developing in the cockpit
associated with the smell of burning wires. The crew stopped the climb at
FL150, entered a hold at FL100 and landed safely back on Budapest’s runway
31R about 40 minutes after departure.

Rosaviatsia reported the smoke originated in the avionics bay.

The aircraft was able to depart again after 4 hours on the ground and reached
Moscow with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4611fd93
20130421221234:20130420000000
Incident: Delta MD90 at Washington on Apr 20th 2013, smoke from landing gear during roll out
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N965DN performing
flight DL-1464 from Minneapolis,MN to Washington National,DC (USA), landed
on Ronald Reagan Airport’s runway 01. During roll out tower notified the
crew that there was smoke from the right hand main landing gear beginning
right at touchdown. The aircraft slowed safely and vacated the runway onto
taxiway S and the run up area at runway 19, the next arrival was instructed
to go around. Emergency services responded, an immediate runway inspection
commenced with tower advising he believed a tyre was blown right in the
touch down zone, the inspection recovered tyre debris from the runway. The
MD-90 was towed to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460f4153
20130418154109:20130418000000
Incident: United B772 near Tokyo on Apr 18th 2013, burning smell in galley
A United Boeing 777-200, registration N27015 performing flight UA-6 from
Singapore (Singapore) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with 279 people on board,
was descending through 10,000 feet towards Tokyo when cabin crew in the
forward business galley noticed a burning smell prompting the flight crew
to declare emergency. The aircraft landed safely on Narita Airport’s runway
16R about 6 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

Japan’s Ministry of Transport reported the aircraft was on approach about
24km/13nm southeast of the airport descending through 2700 meters/8900 feet
when the crew declared emergency reporting a burning smell in the forward
business class galley. An inspection found no anomaly.

The incident aircraft was able to depart Tokyo three hours later for its
next flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460e76eb
20130417165611:20130417000000
Incident: PSA CRJ2 near Philadelphia on Apr 17th 2013, smoke on board, evacuation
A PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, registration N218PS
performing flight US-2357 from Albany,NY to Washington National,DC (USA),
was enroute at FL280 about 75nm northeast of Philadelphia,PA (USA) when
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Philadelphia.
The airport prepared for a major alert and for the closure of all runways
as result of the alert status. On final approach the crew, audibly on oxygen
masks, advised they had an aft lavatory fire indication, there was smoke
in the cabin, there was no smoke in the cockpit, they were planning to evacuate
after landing. The aircraft landed safely on Philadelphia’s runway 27L about
20 minutes later and stopped on the runway and was evacuated, all runways
were closed for about 30 minutes until emergency services started to return
runways one by one back to tower.

While all runways were still closed another flight declared fuel emergency
and proceeded to land while the airport was still closed, about 2 minutes
later emergency services returned runway 27R to tower permitting the fuel
emergency to land on that runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460db38a
20130503141337:20130416000000
Accident: Aeromexico B762 at Madrid on Apr 16th 2013, tail strike on takeoff
An Aeromexico Boeing 767-200, registration XA-TOJ performing flight AM-2
from Madrid,SP (Spain) to Mexico City (Mexico), was rotating for takeoff
from Madrid’s runway 36L when the tail of the aircraft contacted the runway
surface leaving debris behind. The crew continued the takeoff and climb,
levelled off and descended after the oxygen masks were released, then entered
a hold to burn off fuel and returned to Madrid for a safe landing about
90 minutes after departure. Two cabin crew received injuries, the aircraft
sustained substantial damage.

An Air Europa Airbus A330 departing after the Aeromexico received nose gear
tyre damage while departing over the debris left by the Boeing and needed
to return, too, see Incident: Air Europa A332 at Madrid on Apr 16th 2013,
damaged nose gear tyres on takeoff.

The airport reported two cabin crew received neck injuries (mainly bruises)
from their seat belts as result of impact forces.

The airline confirmed the aircraft suffered a tailstrike on takeoff and
returned to Madrid for a safe landing. The safety of passengers was not
at risk at any time. The airline is cooperating with the investigation authorities.

Spain’s CIAIAC is investigating the accident and resulting tyre damage incident.

An observer on the ground reported that the aircraft was rotating for takeoff
about abeam of the fire station about 1900-2000 meters down the runway (runway
length 4350 meters), the nose gear and main gear lifted off the runway but
the aircraft did not climb, instead the tail contacted the runway for about
4 seconds before the aircraft started slowly to climb. The observer believed
to have seen some smoke from the tail while it contacted the runway. Following
the event the observer could not see any runway inspection.

A passenger reported the takeoff appeared normal initially until the aircraft
began to rotate, the nose lifted up, however, nothing happened. The nose
dropped again, then rose very sharply perhaps because of the runway end
becoming visible. A sound of impact was heard from the back of the cabin
followed by scratching sounds, that lasted for about 5 seconds, then the
aircraft began to climb. During the initial climb the aircraft was shaking,
the right wing dropped which the passenger, frequent traveller, perceived
as unusual. The aircraft continued to climb heading north out of the Madrid
area, no announcements were made. Passengers in the back of the cabin reacted
confused and increasingly alarmed with no announcement made by the crew.
Several minutes into the flight the passenger oxygen masks dropped (see
photo below) together with the announcement “put on your mask and breath
normally”, the aircraft obviously stopped the climb and rapidly descended,
a short time later an announcement “10,000 feet” was heard, cabin crew announced
passengers could not remove their masks, the cockpit announced now they
were returning to Madrid but provided no reason. The aircraft landed back
in Madrid and taxied straight to the gate, the passengers disembarked normally.
The passenger was able to see terrible damage to the tail of the aircraft,
the right hand main gear tyres had deflated. The passenger had not seen
any damage inside the aircraft. They were offered accomodation over night
and were rebooked onto other flights via other European cities connecting
to Mexico City the following day.

Air Traffic Control reported the aircraft climbed out without any comment,
later into the departure climb the crew indicated they had cabin pressure
problems and needed to return to Madrid. There was no mention of the possibility
of a tail strike and no mention of injuries on board. The tower controller
had not been able to see the tail contact the runway surface about 4km from
his position, between the Aeromexico and Air Europa there were a few other
departures without any problems.

On May 3rd 2013 Spain’s CIAIAC reported the three flight attendants seated
in the rear galley heard strange noises during takeoff. When they proceeded
to inform the flight deck about the noises the flight crew already prepared
to return to Madrid due to the cabin pressure problems at 14,000 feet. Then
the passenger oxygen masks were released. The crew informed ATC about cabin
pressure problems 22 minutes after departure. Two of the three cabin crew
in the aft galley complained about neck pain. The aircraft received substantial
damage to the lower fuselage including the near complete loss of both APU
compartment doors. The Air Europa A332 departed 29 minutes after departure
of XA-TOJ as 7th aircraft following XA-TOJ. The runway inspection following
that departure recovered two metallic pieces of debris from the runway.

Metars:
LEMD 161500Z 18004G15KT CAVOK 25/07 Q1021 NOSIG
LEMD 161430Z 19004G18KT 130V260 CAVOK 25/08 Q1021 NOSIG
LEMD 161400Z 23004KT 120V280 CAVOK 25/08 Q1021 NOSIG
LEMD 161330Z 19006KT 130V290 CAVOK 25/12 Q1022 NOSIG
LEMD 161300Z 21006G18KT CAVOK 24/10 Q1022 NOSIG
LEMD 161230Z 21006G17KT 160V280 CAVOK 24/10 Q1022 NOSIG
LEMD 161200Z 17005KT CAVOK 23/12 Q1022 NOSIG
LEMD 161130Z 18002KT CAVOK 23/09 Q1023 NOSIG
LEMD 161100Z 22002KT CAVOK 22/11 Q1023 NOSIG
LEMD 161030Z 21001KT CAVOK 21/11 Q1023 NOSIG
LEMD 161000Z 19003KT 140V250 CAVOK 19/11 Q1023 NOSIG

Scenes on board:
The damage to XA-TOJ (Photo: Controladores Aereos):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460dc117
20130416212153:20130415000000
Incident: United A319 at Minneapolis on Apr 15th 2013, fire on board
A United Airbus A319-100, registration N846UA performing flight UA-662 from
San Francisco,CA to Minneapolis,MN (USA), was descending towards Minneapolis
when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit, later adding
that there appeared to be a fire in the aft cabin. The aircraft positioned
for a final approach to runway 30L, the preceding traffic was instructed
to switch runway to 30R or go-around, that crew chose to go around with
UA-662 sending a “thanks, guys!” On final approach to runway 30L the crew
reported “whatever was burning in the aft cabin appears to be out now”,
the smoke was now dissipating. The crew advised they would vacate the runway,
then stop for emergency services to look at whatever caused this. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 30L and vacated the runway. Following checks by
emergency services the aircraft taxied to the gate on own power.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460cbbd3
20130415153103:20130414000000
Incident: KLM B738 near Amsterdam on Apr 14th 2013, unidentified smokey smell
A KLM Boeing 737-800, registration PH-BXN performing flight KL-1619 from
Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Milan Linate (Italy) with 112 passengers, was
climbing through FL130 out of Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport when the crew
declared PAN reporting an unidentified smokey smell throughout the entire
aircraft and requested to return to Schiphol. The aircraft landed safely
on runway 22 about 13 minutes later and stopped on the runway, where emergency
services inspected the aircraft. Passengers disembarked normally onto the
runway and were bussed to the terminal, the aircraft taxied to the apron
about one hour after landing.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration PH-BXA reached Milan with a delay
of 3 hours.

The airline said the cause of the smell is still under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460cb167
20130415142127:20130414000000
Incident: Korean B773 near Tokyo on Apr 14th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Korean Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration HL-8210 performing flight
KE-11 from Seoul (South Korea) to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 288 people on
board, was enroute at FL330 about 90nm northeast of Tokyo’s Narita Airport
(Japan) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert
to Narita for a safe landing on runway 16R about 23 minutes later. Attending
emergency services did not find any fire or heat.

Japan’s Transport Ministry reported the flight crew had reported smoke in
the cockpit, however cabin crew had observed a small amount of smoke in
a galley above a refrigerator. An investigation is under way.

The aircraft was able to continue the journey 14.5 hours after landing and
reached Los Angeles with a delay of 15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=460b3a82
20130413180252:20130410000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Ottawa and Quebec on Apr 10th 2013, brake leak before departure, smoke from main gear on landing
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-FJVV performing flight QK-8748
from Ottawa,ON to Quebec,QC (Canada) with 33 people on board, was delayed
before departure due to a brakes hydraulic leak. The aircraft departed with
a delay of 40 minutes. During roll out in Quebec smoke was observed from
the right hand main gear, tower advised the crew, the crew taxied the aircraft
to the gate, where emergency services responded to too.

A passenger reported that a fluid leak at the right hand main gear had delayed
departure by about 40 minutes, there was a puddle of fluid underneath the
right hand wheels and the tyres were wet with the fluid, during landing
smoke but no actual fire became visible from the right hand main gear, the
aircraft taxied to the gate where three fire engines showed up. The passengers
disembarked normally. The passenger thought residual fluid from the leak
before departure caused the smoke when the brakes got hot during landing.

The Canadian TSB reported smoke became visible during roll out in Quebec,
the crew was advise and taxied the aircraft to the gate, where emergency
services responded to too. Residual fluid from a brakes leak before departure
from Ottawa was identified as source of the smoke. The brakes were cleaned
and inspected.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4608e44d
20130410212210:20130410000000
Incident: Volaris A319 at Guadalajara on Apr 10th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Volaris Airbus A319-100, registration N501VL performing flight Y4-429
from Guadalajara to Tijuana (Mexico), was in the initial climb out of Guadalajara
when the crew reported smoke on board and decided to return to Guadalajara
for a safe landing.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration XA-VOF reached Tijuana with a
delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4608ce3d
20130410184748:20130410000000
Incident: China Eastern A320 near Hangzhou on Apr 10th 2013, smoke in cabin
A China Eastern Airbus A320-200, flight MU-5211 from Hangzhou to Guangzhou
(China) with 146 passengers and 8 crew, was climbing out of Hangzhou about
10 minutes into the flight when a strong burning smell became noticeable
in the aft cabin shortly followed by visible smoke. The crew stopped the
climb and returned to Hangzhou for a safe landing about 25 minutes after
departure. Emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 reached Guangzhou with a delay of 5.5 hours.

Passengers reported on Weibo the tail of the aircraft was on fire.

The airline said, there was no fire. A malfunction of the air conditioning
system is suspected as cause of the odour and smoke, the examination of
the aircraft is ongoing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4607e619
20130409162735:20130408000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Isle of Man on Apr 8th 2013, smell of smoke
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, flight BE-811 from Manchester,EN to Isle
of Man (UK) with 46 passengers and 4 crew, was on approach to Isle of Man
when the crew reported smell of smoke on board. The aircraft continued for
a safe landing at Isle of Man’s Ronaldsway Airport about 5 minutes later.
Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the aircraft taxied
to the apron.

The airline confirmed a minor technical problem.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4602ee37
20130403133225:20130402000000
Incident: Air Malta A319 near Catania on Apr 2nd 2013, addicted oven
An Air Malta Airbus A319-100, registration 9H-AEJ performing flight KM-328
from Malta (Malta) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was enroute at FL380 about
50nm northnorthwest of Catania (Italy) when the crew reported an aft galley
oven had just started smoking. The crew decided to divert to Catania while
cabin crew quickly stopped the smoke. The aircraft landed safely in Catania
about 25 minutes after leaving FL380.

Following checks the aircraft was able to continue the journey and reached
Frankfurt with a delay of 3:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4603223f
20130403185913:20130331000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ2 at Montreal on Mar 31st 2013, lavatory smoke detector indication
A Jazz Canadair CRJ-200, registration C-GZJA performing flight QK-8673 from
Montreal,QC (Canada) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 36 people on board,
was in the initial climb out of Montreal’s runway 24L when the crew received
a lavatory smoke detector indication and declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cockpit. The aircraft stopped the climb at 5000 feet, returned to
Montreal for a safe landing on runway 24L about 12 minutes after departure
and stopped on the runway for an inspection by emergency services. The aircraft
subsequently taxied to the apron.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance ran both engines with bleed air
on and detected a smell of compressor wash soap. Both engines were run at
full power for 20 minutes, the aircraft then returned to service. The aircraft
had undergone a compressor wash the previous day, it was the first flight
since.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=46013886
20130401102643:20130331000000
Incident: Nextjet ATP near Norrkoping on Mar 31st 2013, smell of smoke
A Nextjet British Aerospace ATP on behalf of Braathens Regional, registration
SE-LLO performing flight DC-307 from Stockholm Bromma to Vaxjo (Sweden)
with 43 people on board, was enroute at FL160 about 40nm south of Norrkoping
(Sweden) when the crew decided to divert to Norrkoping due to a smell of
smoke on board. The aircraft landed safely, emergency services responded
but found no trace of fire or smoke despite removing a couple of sidewall
panels from the aircraft.

Initially flight attendants suspected a fire of napkins on board, the maritime
and aeronautical rescue center reported, flight attendants had discharged
fire extinguishers into the area where they suspected the smell came from.
Following first examination after landing police reported there never had
been any fire.

Sweden’s Havarikommission is investigating. A search for the source/cause
of the smell so far remained without success.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45fe3c8e
20130328175134:20130328000000
Incident: Delta MD90 at Milwaukee on Mar 28th 2013, cargo smoke indication
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N922DX performing
flight DL-771 from Milwaukee,WI to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 160 passengers
and 6 crew, was in the initial climb out of Milwaukee’s runway 25L when
the crew declared emergency reporting a smoke indication. The aircraft returned
to Milwaukee for a safe landing on runway 25L about 8 minutes after departure.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the crew received a cargo smoke indication.

A replacement MD-90 reached Atlanta with a delay of 2:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4608df3c
20130410204424:20130322000000
Incident: Sunwing B738 near Ottawa on Mar 22nd 2013, smoke in cabin
A Sunwing Boeing 737-800, registration C-GRKB performing flight WG-326 from
Ottawa,ON (Canada) to Varadero (Cuba) with 179 people on board, was in the
initial climb out of Ottawa’s runway 32 when cabin crew alerted the flight
crew of smoke in the cabin, shortly after the smoke became also visible
on the flight deck. The crew declared emergency, stopped the climb at 3000
feet and returned to Ottawa for a safe landing on runway 32. The aircraft
stopped on the runway for checks, the runway was closed for 45 minutes.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 reached Varadero with a delay of 6 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance determined de-icing fluid had been
ingested into the APU resulting in the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f93a4e
20130322141917:20130320000000
Incident: British Airways B763 near London on Mar 20th 2013, smell of smoke on board
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BZHB performing flight
BA-902 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was climbing
out of Heathrow when the crew stopped the climb at FL170. The aircraft continued
in the general direction of Frankfurt for another 10 minutes before the
crew decided to return to Heathrow reporting a smell of smoke on board.
The aircraft landed safely back in Heathrow about one hour after departure.

The flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft remained on the ground until next day, when it resumed
service 28 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f7b263
20130320170221:20130319000000
Incident: Fedex A306 at Fort Lauderdale on Mar 19th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Fedex Federal Express Airbus A300-600, registration N676FE performing
freight flight FX-1677 from Fort Lauderdale,FL to Indianapolis,IN (USA)
with 2 crew and hazardeous goods on board (Lithium batteries), was climbing
out of Lauderdale’s runway 09L when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit,
stopped the climb at FL250 and returned to Fort Lauderdale. On approach
the crew reported they had received a fire indication for the avionics bay
and had observed a light odour in the cockpit, the indication had extinguished
in the meantime, they were carrying lithium batteries in the cargo. The
aircraft landed safely on runway 09L about 24 minutes after departure and
stopped on the runway. Emergency services reported seeing no smoke around
the aircraft, they also did not detect any hot spots. The aircraft subsequently
taxied to the cargo apron with the emergency services in trail.

Due to the emergency arriving traffic was sent into holds around Fort Lauderdale
for up to 30 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f7a922
20130320160805:20130319000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Indianapolis on Mar 19th 2013, bit of smoke in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-441 from Baltimore,MD to
Las Vegas,NV (USA) with 133 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL360
about 70nm southeast of Indianapolis,IN (USA) when the crew reported a “bit
of smoke in the cabin” and decided to divert to Indianapolis. The crew indicated
unless there was smoke visible outside they would vacate the runway and
taxi to the gate and requested emergency services to follow them to the
gate. The aircraft landed safely on runway 23R about 20 minutes after leaving
FL360 and taxied to the gate with emergency services in trail.

The airline reported that the crew had heard some unusual sounds in the
rear of the cabin.

Emergency services reported there was some white smoke in the rear of the
cabin when they boarded the aircraft. The cause of the smoke is unclear
though probably electric.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Las Vegas with a delay of 1:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f65222
20130319001748:20130318000000
Incident: Expressjet E135 near Lexington on Mar 18th 2013, smoke on board, lightning suspected
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N13914 performing
flight EV-4547/UA-4547 from Newark,NJ to Nashville,TN (USA) with 48 passengers,
was enroute at FL260 about 60nm southeast of Lexington,KY at about 08:35L
(12:35Z) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert
to Lexington, the crew indicated they did not intend to evacuate. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 22 about 15 minutes later and taxied to the gate
after emergency services reported not seeing any smoke.

Airport officials reported a lightning strike is suspected as cause of the
smoke.

Infrared Satellite Image GOES-E 11:45Z (Graphics: NASA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f64b4e
20130318233007:20130317000000
Incident: Skywest E120 near Monterey on Mar 17th 2013, haze and odour in cabin
A Skywest Embraer EMB-120 on behalf of United, registration N308SW performing
flight OO-5303/UA-5303 from Bakersfield,CA to San Francisco,CA (USA) with
27 passengers and 3 crew, was enroute at FL220 about 35nm south of Monterey,CA
(USA) when the crew reported light haze and an odour in the cabin and decided
to divert to Monterey for a safe landing about 15 minutes later.

The airline reported the air conditioning system was identified as cause
of the odour. The passengers were taken to San Francisco by road.

Emergency services reported a smoke detector in a lavatory activated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f53b04
20130317152752:20130317000000
Incident: Malmo RJ1H at Malmo on Mar 17th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Malmo Aviation Avro RJ-100, registration SE-DSX performing flight TF-102
from Malmo to Stockholm Bromma (Sweden) with 49 people on board, was climbing
through FL200 out of Malmo when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and
returned to Malmo for a safe landing on Malmo’s runway 17 about 22 minutes
after departure, the aircraft taxied to the gate where passengers disembarked
normally.

Emergency services reported there had been a burning smell and thick smoke,
the smoke had subsided by the time of the landing.

The airline reported one of the cabin fluorescent lights was identified
as source of the smell and smoke. The flight was cancelled, the passengers
were rebooked onto the next flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f4a40a
20130316213035:20130314000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Las Vegas on Mar 14th 2013, cargo fire indication
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N645SW performing flight
WN-481 from Las Vegas,NV to Tulsa,OK (USA) with 136 passengers and 5 crew,
was climbing out of Las Vegas’ runway 25R in contact with departure frequency
when the crew reported they may have the aircraft on fire and requested
an immediate turn back to the airport runway 25R. The aircraft stopped the
climb at 6300 feet and returned to runway 25R for a safe landing about 10
minutes after departure. Attending emergency services found no trace of
fire, heat or smoke, the aircraft taxied to the apron where passengers disembarked
normally.

The airline reported maintenance found the indication malfunctioned.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Tulsa with a delay of 3:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f63317
20130318203352:20130312000000
Incident: Pacific Coastal B190 at Vancouver on Mar 12th 2013, smoky audio
A Pacific Coastal Airlines Beech 1900C, registration C-FPCO performing flight
8P-615 from Vancouver,BC to Cranbook,BC (Canada) with 10 people on board,
was in the initial climb out of Vancouver when smoke appeared in the cockpit.
The crew returned the aircraft to Vancouver for a safe landing on runway
12.

The Canadian TSB reported that an audio amplifier had failed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ef60cc
20130310160550:20130309000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Orlando on Mar 9th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N924DL performing
flight DL-2044 from Miami,FL to New York La Guardia,NY (USA), ws enroute
at FL330 about 140nm east of Orlando,FL (USA) when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit and decided to divert to Orlando. On approach to Orlando
the crew advised they did have a smoke event however the smoke had dissipated
and a normal landing would commence. The aircraft landed safely on Orlando’s
runway 35L about 30 minutes after leaving FL330.

The airline reported that smoke appeared in the cockpit when some anti-ice
equipment was activated and dissipated when the system was turned off again.

A replacement MD-88 reached New York with a delay of 3:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45edea46
20130308194038:20130308000000
Incident: Lufthansa B744 over Atlantic on Mar 8th 2013, smoke on board
A Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, registration D-ABVH performing flight LH-499
(dep Mar 7th) from Mexico City (Mexico) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), had
departed with a delay of 4:45 hours due to a problem with the brakes. The
aircraft was enroute at FL370 over the Atlantic Ocean when the crew reported
smoke on board of the aircraft and decided to divert to Lajes Airfield on
Terceira Island, Azores (Portugal) for a safe landing on Lajes’ runway 33.

Lufthansa’s website confirms the diversion to Terceira however does not
provide any estimate when the flight is to continue to Frankfurt, but shows
the flight Mexico City to Frankfurt cancelled.

Frankfurt Airport’s arrival board shows the flight delayed to arrive on
Mar 9th (scheduled arrival at 14:55L on Mar 8th).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45edf2e0
20130308204050:20130307000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ2 near Toronto on Mar 7th 2013, lavatory smoke indication
A Jazz Canadair CRJ-200, registration C-GJZZ performing flight QK-7945 from
Toronto,ON (Canada) to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 24 people on board, was
climbing out of Toronto when the crew received a lavatory smoke indication,
stopped the climb at 7000 feet and returned to Toronto for a safe landing
on Toronto’s runway 05 about 18 minutes after departure. Attending emergency
services did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance discovered two burn marks on the back
of a light assembly.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ec3f04
20141001130317:20130305000000
Incident: Horizon DH8D near San Jose on Mar 5th 2013, persistent engine fire indication
A Horizon de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of Alaska Airlines, registration
N417QX performing flight QX-404/AS-2404 from San Jose,CA to Boise,ID (USA)
with 47 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing through 17,000 feet out of San
Jose when the crew stopped the climb declared emergency due to an engine
(PW150A) fire indication. The engine was shut down, the fire suppression
system activated, the fire indication persisted however. San Jose Airport
cancelled a number of approach clearances in the meantime and kept both
runways 12L/12R sterile. The crew did not acknowledge the hand off to San
Jose approach, did not report on San Jose approach frequency even after
San Jose approach called on guard, too, and was seen descend rapidly. Resulting
in a noticeable relief for the controllers the crew checked in with San
Jose tower, the crew audibly on oxygen masks reported they still had an
active fire indication on the right hand engine, they were planning to evacuate
after landing. The aircraft was cleared to land runway 12L or 12R on pilot’s
discretion, tower reported there was no smoke visible from the aircraft.
The aircraft landed safely on runway 12L, stopped on the runway and shut
down, emergency services reported seeing no smoke and no trace of fire,
the aircraft was not evacuated. The passengers disembarked normally and
were bussed to the terminal. The aircraft was towed to the apron about one
hour after landing.

A replacement Dash 8-400 registration N438QX reached Boise with a delay
of 6.5 hours.

On Mar 15th 2013 the NTSB reported the aircraft sustained minor damage as
result of an inflight engine fire. The aircraft was climbing towards FL200
when the crew heard a bang and received a right hand engine fire indication.
The right hand engine was shut down, both fire bottles were discharged however
without success. Cabin crew reported no fire was visible from the engine.
The aircraft returned to San Jose for a safe landing and stopped on the
runway, the left engine was shut down and the passengers disembarked through
the left main door. Initial assessment by maintenance confirmed an actual
engine fire, the damage to the aircraft was limited to “what was visible
on the aircraft’s exterior”. The aircraft was moved to a secured hangar
for further examination.

On Oct 1st 2014 the NTSB released their final report concluding the probable
cause of the incident was:

The failure and separation of a section of the No. 2 engine’s combustion
chamber’s small exit duct (SED), which created an airflow disruption that
led to an engine surge and subsequent fire. Contributing to the accident
was the insufficient weld penetration that remained totally contained within
the SED outer dome and did not penetrate through to the inner duct as required
by the manufacturing specifications.

The NTSB reported that the engine’s low pressure compressor, turbines, combustion
chambers and gearboxes did not receive damage though downstream of the high
pressure compressor sooting was visible. The NTSB described the damage to
the high pressure compressor:

“The high pressure turbine (HPT) vane assembly includes the SED inner duct
and outer dome that are welded together and function to direct combustion
gas flow. Pieces of the outer dome had separated from the vane assembly
and were subsequently ingested into the gas path. A section of the SED outer
dome was submitted to the PWC materials lab for weld analysis. The exposed
inner duct of the SED exhibited localized thermal distress including burn
through and distortion at approximately the 11 O’ Clock position. Sooting,
metal splatter and discoloration were noted on all HPT vanes with some metallic
fragments adhering to the leading edge of the vane airfoil. Two metal fragments
were found resting at the bottom of the HPT blade shroud against the aft
side of the vanes.

The HPT disk assembly exhibited impact damage and metal splatter along the
blade leading edges 360 degrees around. All blades were heavily sooted.
Material loss was noted on leading edge blade tips resulting in exposure
of internal blade cooling passages. Uniform tip rubs were present on HPT
blades around the disk as evidenced by shiny metal and material smearing.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ea7876
20130304141322:20130304000000
Incident: Delta A333 at Amsterdam on Mar 4th 2013, engine problem
A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration N807NW performing flight
DL-604 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Mumbai (India), was climbing out
of Amsterdam’s runway 18L when the crew stopped the climb at FL110 declaring
emergency reporting problems with the right hand engine (PW4168A) and requested
to return to Amsterdam’s runway 18R. About 3 minutes later another KLM Boeing
737-800 declared emergency due to smoke in the cockpit indicating they would
need to evacuate, see Incident: KLM B738 at Amsterdam on Mar 4th 2013, smoke
in cockpit and cabin, due to the specific request for runway 18R the A333
was kept on approach to runway 18R while the Boeing was re-assigned runway
18C, a large emergency response was invoked by the airport to facilitate
both emergencies estimated to arrive at the same time. The A330 landed safely
on runway 18R about 30 minutes after departure, about 20 minutes after declaring
emergency and about 5 minutes after the Boeing.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration N860NW departed Amsterdam for
Mumbai with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ea765f
20130304135802:20130304000000
Incident: KLM B738 at Amsterdam on Mar 4th 2013, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A KLM Boeing 737-800, registration PH-BGA performing flight KL-1623 from
Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Milan Linate (Italy), was in the initial climb
out of Amsterdam’s runway 18L when the crew donned their oxygen masks, stopped
the climb at 2000 feet reporting smoke in the cockpit and cabin and advising
they would evacuate the aircraft on the runway. The aircraft was assigned
runway 18R for landing, while positioning for the approach approach control
queried whether the crew could accept 18C due to another emergency on approach
to runway 18R. The crew accepted runway 18C, advised that the situation
on board had improved sufficiently that an evacuation was no longer needed
and landed safely on that runway about 13 minutes after departure. The aircraft
taxied to the gate with emergency services in trail.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration PH-BXB departed Amsterdam about
2.5 hours after landing and reached Milan with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ea7b22
20130304143234:20130303000000
Incident: United B752 near Cleveland on Mar 3rd 2013, burning smell in cabin
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N57111 performing flight UA-132 from
New York JFK,NY to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was enroute at FL360 about 80nm
south of Cleveland,OH (USA) when the crew reported, that someone had reported
a burning smell in the cabin, and diverted the aircraft to Cleveland for
a safe landing about 25 minutes later. Attending emergency services found
no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airport reported maintenance was unable to find anything abnormal.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers rebooked onto
other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e78468
20130228233452:20130226000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 at Miami on Feb 26th 2013, smell in cabin
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-140, registration N829AE performing flight
MQ-3512 from Miami,FL to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 42 people on board, was in
the initial climb out of runway 08L when the crew reported a smell/smoke
in the cabin and requested an immediate return to Miami. The crew stopped
the climb at 1400 feet, joined a left downwind for runway 08L and landed
safely back about 5 minutes after departure.

A replacement ERJ-140 registration N826AE reached Atlanta with a delay of
2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e4c708
20130225172155:20130223000000
Incident: Delta A320 at Salt Lake City on Feb 23rd 2013, haze in cabin
A Delta Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N356NW performing flight
DL-1158 from Salt Lake City,UT to Orlando,FL (USA) with 151 people on board,
was climbing out of Salt Lake City’s runway 34R with low visibility procedures
in effect when an acrid odour as well as haze developed in the cabin prompting
the crew to don their oxygen masks and stop the climb at 11,000 feet indicating
they wanted to return to Salt Lake City without mentioning the problem however.
About 4 minutes later the crew reported they had smoke in the cockpit, which
had started to dissipate at that point. The aircraft returned to Salt Lake
City for a safe landing on runway 34L (3500 feet RVR) about 20 minutes after
departure.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration N375NC reached Orlando with a
delay of 4.5 hours.

Passenger photo in the cabin (Photo: Blake Scarbrough):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e18e8b
20130221194915:20130221000000
Incident: British Airways A320 near Lisbon on Feb 21st 2013, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Airbus A320-200, registration G-EUYA performing flight
BA-499 from Lisbon (Portugal) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), had just reached
cruise level 360 when the crew decided to return to Lisbon. The aircraft
landed safely on Lisbon’s runway 21 about 30 minutes later.

A listener on frequency reported the crew had donned their oxygen masks
reporting smoke in the cockpit, when the aircraft returned to Lisbon.

The flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft is still on the ground in Lisbon about 11 hours after
landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e27ade
20130222222725:20130220000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 at New York on Feb 20th 2013, smoke in the cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-140, registration N835AE performing flight
MQ-4403 from New York JFK,NY to Raleigh-Durham,NC (USA), was in the initial
climb out of runway 31L when during the left turn towards Canarsie upon
being handed off to departure the crew declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cockpit. The aircraft joined a left visual downwind, the tower advised
he would need to hand the aircraft off in case they continued for a longer
downwind as there was too much traffic out there, the crew replied they’d
turn base right away and landed safely on runway 31L about 11 minutes after
departure.

A passenger reported that immediately after becoming airborne the cabin
started to fill with smoke, that appeared to come from the cockpit area,
the smoke quickly dissipated again and was gone by the time of landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e18343
20130221183631:20130220000000
Incident: Wideroe DH8B near Trondheim on Feb 20th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Wideroe Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-200, registration LN-WSB performing
flight WF-757 from Mo I Rana to Trondheim (Norway) with 20 passengers and
3 crew, was descending towards Trondheim about 10 minutes prior to landing
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin. The crew continued for a safe
landing at Trondheim about 8 minutes later, vacated the runway and stopped
on the adjacent taxiway. Emergency services found no trace of fire or heat,
the passengers disembarked normally onto the taxiway and were bussed to
the terminal.

The airline reported the aircraft was still at cruise level when the smoke
occurred, the crew quickly descended the aircraft to 10,000 feet, where
the aircraft no longer needed to be pressurized while emergency services
were put on stand by.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e176da
20130221172303:20130220000000
Incident: UTAir B735 near Moscow on Feb 20th 2013, smell of smoke in cockpit
A UTAir Boeing 737-500, registration VP-BYM performing flight UT-257 from
Moscow Domodedovo to Surgut (Russia) with 88 passengers, was climbing through
FL290 out of Moscow when the autopilot disconnected shortly followed by
the smell of smoke in the cockpit. The crew aborted the climb and returned
to Moscow Domodedovo for a safe landing 32R about 25 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45dfd275
20130219181713:20130219000000
Incident: ANA B773 near Osaka on Feb 19th 2013, hydraulic failure
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 777-300, registration JA752A performing
flight NH-34 from Osaka Itami to Tokyo Haneda (Japan) with 279 passengers
and 13 crew, was climbing out of Osaka’s Itami Airport when the crew reported
the failure of a hydraulic system and returned to Itami Airport for a safe
landing on runway 32L with open gear doors about 35 minutes after departure.
During the turn off the left hand main brakes emitted smoke, emergency services
needed to cool the brakes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45df2945
20130218224427:20130218000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 at Pisa on Feb 18th 2013, hot coffee maker
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DHE performing flight FR-9935
from Pisa to Cagliari (Italy), was climbing out of Pisa’s runway 04R when
a coffee maker overheated and emitted smoke prompting the crew to stop the
climb at 5000 feet and return to Pisa for a safe landing on runway 04R about
12 minutes after departure. By the time of the landing the smoke had already
subsided and the aircraft taxied to the gate.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DHP reached Cagliari with a
delay of 2 hours.

The incident aircraft is still on the ground in Pisa about 11 hours after
landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e4b6b1
20130225154450:20130217000000
Incident: British Airways A320 at London on Feb 17th 2013, oily fumes on board
A British Airways Airbus A320-200, registration G-MIDX performing flight
BA-370 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Marseille (France) with 111 passengers
and 6 crew, was in the initial climb out of Heathrow’s runway 09R, when
cabin crew reported acrid hazy and oily fumes in the cabin prompting the
crew to don their oxygen masks, declare emergency, stop the climb at 6000
feet, shut the bleed air systems down and return to Heathrow. During positioning
for a landing on runway 09R the fumes began to subside. The aircraft landed
safely on runway 09R about 15 minutes after departure and taxied to the
gate. All 6 crew went for a medical check after landing.

The airline confirmed fumes on board prompted the aircraft to return to
Heathrow, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights. The right hand
engine (V2527) was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45e17948
20130221173704:20130217000000
Incident: Westjet B737 at St. John’s on Feb 17th 2013, smoke in cockpit prior to departure
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-GLWS performing flight WS-2912
from St. John’s,NL (Canada) to Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) with 134
people on board, had been de-iced prior to taxiing towards the runway .
The aircraft had been instructed to line up and wait, the aircraft had taxied
into position and was waiting for takeoff clearance when heavy smoke developed
in the cockpit. The crew requested emergency services to attend the aircraft
and worked the relevant fire/smoke checklists, after selecting the APU off
the smoke quickly dissipated. Responding emergency services found no trace
of fire or heat, the aircraft subsequently taxied back to the apron.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance determined de-icing fluid had entered
the APU’s bleed air system and became the source of the smoke. No other
problem was identified.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45dedbf6
20130218134620:20130217000000
Incident: Delta MD90 near Denver on Feb 17th 2013, cargo fire and smoke alert
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N935DN performing
flight DL-1017 from Denver,CO to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 160 people on board,
was enroute at FL310 about 130nm east of Denver when the crew received a
cargo fire alert as well as smoke detector indications, declared emergency
and returned to Denver for a safe landing on runway 35R about 30 minutes
later. The aircraft vacated the runway onto a high speed exit and stopped
shutting the right hand engine down. Responding emergency services found
no trace of heat, opened both aft and forward cargo holds and found no trace
of fire or smoke.

A replacement MD-90 reached Atlanta with a delay of 6:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45df1e17
20130218212547:20130215000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Montreal on Feb 15th 2013, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FMSX performing flight AC-1252
from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Cancun (Mexico) with 154 people on board, was
climbing through 7000 feet out of Montreal when the crew declared PAN reporting
smoke in the cabin and decided to return to Montreal. The aircraft positioned
for an approach to Montreal’s runway 24R, the crew reported the situation
on board had stabilised. The aircraft landed safely on runway 24R and stopped
on the runway for an inspection by emergency services before vacating the
runway about 10 minutes later and taxiing to the apron.

The Canadian TSB reported an evacuation was not required.

A replacement A320 registration C-FPDN reached Cancun with a delay of 4
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45db2b72
20130213222157:20130211000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D at Belfast on Feb 11th 2013, rejected takeoff
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-FLBA performing flight BE-409
from Belfast City,NI to Birmingham,EN (UK), was accelerating for takeoff
when after a few seconds the crew rejected takeoff at low speed. The aircraft
slowed safely and taxied back to the gate.

A passenger reported the captain announced a warning light had illuminated.
While the aircraft was taxiing back to the gate the passenger observed smoke
from the left hand main gear and believed some fluid was leaking. After
the aircraft had arrived at the gate, maintenance personnel were focussing
their attention of the left main wheel axles and investigating what appeared
to be fluid.

A replacement Dash 8-400 registration G-JEDV reached Birmingham with a delay
of 2:45 hours.

The incident aircraft resumed service on Feb 13th.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d723ce
20130211144553:20130208000000
Incident: United B772 over Atlantic on Feb 8th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A United Boeing 777-200, registration N206UA performing flight UA-935 from
London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 182 passengers and
10 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 15 minutes into the Atlantic crossing
off the Irish Coast and about 300nm northwest of Shannon (Ireland) when
the crew turned around reporting smoke in the cockpit, dumped fuel and diverted
to Shannon (Ireland) for a safe landing on runway 24 about 45 minutes later.
After landing the crew requested emergency services to especially look at
the nose wheels reporting the smoke was coming into the cockpit. Emergency
services advised nothing abnormal was seen, the aircraft subsequently taxied
to the apron.

The aircraft is still on the ground 7 hours after landing.

Passengers reported the crew announced there was smoke coming from a panel
in the cockpit. The aircraft dumped fuel and diverted to Shannon. About
4 hours after landing the flight was cancelled, the passengers were taken
to hotels. Passengers were advised the flight will depart Shannon on Feb
9th 11:00L and reach Los Angeles with a delay of about 24 hours.

The incident aircraft attempted to resume the flight on Feb 9th and was
cleared for takeoff from runway 24 at 15:00L (15:00Z) when the crew rejected
takeoff at low speed reporting they had received some message. The aircraft
returned to the gate, the flight was cancelled a second time.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration N222UA was dispatched to Shannon
on Feb 10th and reached Los Angeles with a delay of 48.5 hours.

The incident aircraft positioned to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) as flight
UA-6872 on Feb 10th.

N206UA touching down in Shannon:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d715e7
20130208182405:20130208000000
Incident: El Al B738 near Tel Aviv on Feb 8th 2013, smell of smoke
An El Al Boeing 737-800, registration 4X-EKJ performing flight LY-213 from
Tel Aviv (Israel) to London Luton,EN (UK), was climbing out of Tel Aviv
when the crew stopped the climb at FL260 due to smell of smoke on board
and decided to return to Tel Aviv for a safe landing on runway 08 about
30 minutes after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d658a2
20130706155532:20130206000000
Incident: LAN A343 near Madrid on Feb 6th 2013, odour of tear gas and smoke in cockpit
A LAN Airlines Airbus A340-300, registration CC-CQE performing flight LA-705
from Madrid,SP (Spain) to Santiago (Chile), was climbing through FL250 out
of Madrid when the crew donned their oxygen masks and decided to return
to Madrid due to smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft landed safely back on
Madrid’s runway 32R about 60 minutes after departure.

Passengers tweeted that they didn’t know why the aircraft returned, gossip
running amongst the passengers was smoke in the cabin.

The airline reported the crew received a maintenance alarm prompting the
return to Madrid. The passengers were taken to hotels over night and are
estimated to depart the following day.

On Mar 4th 2013 the French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin that during
climb the crew noticed smoke in the cockpit, donned their oxygen masks,
declared emergency and returned to Madrid. There was no damage to the aircraft,
Spanish Authorities are investigating the serious incident.

On Jul 5th 2013 the CIAIAC reported, that the aircraft had departed runway
36L and was climbing through FL270 when the crew noticed an odour similiar
to tear gas entering the cockpit followed by smoke. The crew donned their
oxygen masks, declared emergency and requested an immediate return to Madrid’s
Barajas Airport. Flight attendants confirmed the presence of smoke in the
cabin, too. With the engines at idle during the descent the crew received
a “PACK 1 REGULATOR AIR FAULT. PACK 1 IN BYPASS MODE.” ECAM message and
the smoke began to dissipate. The crew notified ATC that the situation has
been brought under control and advised they were going to make an overweight
landing. The aircraft landed safely on runway 32R, emergency services checked
the landing gear, the aircraft taxied to the gate with emergency services
in trail, the passengers disembarked normally. The emergency was cancelled
56 minutes after the crew called Mayday.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d59253
20130206203259:20130204000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 at Chicago on Feb 4th 2013, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N11121 performing
flight EV-5828/UA-5828 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Ottawa,ON (Canada)
with 38 people on board, was climbing out of O’Hare’s runway 04L when the
crew stopped the climb at 2100 feet reporting smoke in the cockpit, the
crew said “standby” and became unresponsive, tower radioed “low altitude
alert, climb immediately” when the aircraft descended through 1900 feet.
The crew in the meantime had donned their oxygen masks and subsequently
reported on departure frequency. The aircraft climbed to 2500 feet and returned
to Chicago for a safe landing on runway 04R about 10 minutes after departure.
The aircraft stopped on the runway and was evacuated, two aircraft on final
approach to runway 04R were instructed to go around. There were no injuries.

The airline reported the aircraft returned to Chicago due to smoke in the
cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d14594
20130201150349:20130131000000
Incident: Delta MD90 at Boston on Jan 31st 2013, dragging brake during line up
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N932DN performing
flight DL-2101 from Boston,MA to Atlanta,GA (USA), had lined up on runway
33L awaiting takeoff clearance when the crew advised they had a little problem
with the right hand brakes that appeared stuck. The aircraft was instructed
to taxi down runway 33L to return to the gate, while moving slowly the crew
requested emergency services to attend the aircraft due to the brakes becoming
“really hot”. The crew of another aircraft radioed the right main gear appeared
on fire and the tyres may have been blown. The crew stopped the aircraft
on the spot and shut the aircraft down, the smoke off the brake subsided.
After emergency services arrived the passengers disembarked onto the runway
via stairs and were bussed to the terminal.

Runway 33L was closed while emergency services responded until the aircraft
was towed clear of the runway.

Following repairs the aircraft was able to depart and reached Atlanta with
a delay of 7 hours.

N932DN taxiing slowly down runway 33L with right brakes dragging (Photo:
Tkolos):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d63452
20130207152834:20130130000000
Incident: SAS MD82 at Copenhagen on Jan 30th 2013, rejected takeoff
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration SE-DIK
performing flight SK-2537 from Copenhagen (Denmark) to Dublin (Ireland)
with 104 passengers and 5 crew, was accelerating for takeoff from Copenhagen’s
runway 22R when the left hand engine (JT8D) emitted a loud bang and the
aircraft started veering left prompting the crew to reject takeoff at 76
KIAS. The aircraft slowed safely, with no fire indication and no smoke present
the crew vacated the runway, shut the engine down and requested emergency
services to check the left hand engine.

A runway inspection revealed engine debris on the runway.

The Danish Havarilkommission (HCL) reported a first preliminary engine inspection
revealed the front compressor drive turbine had disintegrated and opened
an investigation into the serious incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d0a842
20130131210945:20130130000000
Incident: PSA CRJ2 near Greenville on Jan 30th 2013, smoke indication
A PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, flight US-2486
from Tallahassee,FL to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 19 passengers and 4 crew
on board, was enroute at FL310 about 90nm south of Greenville,SC (USA) when
the crew reported a lavatory smoke detector indication and diverted to Greenville.
On approach the crew reported the smoke had subsided and proceeded for a
safe landing on Greenville’s runway 22 about 20 minutes after leaving FL310.
The aircraft taxied to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45cfea71
20130130233537:20130129000000
Incident: American B752 over Gulf of Mexico on Jan 29th 2013, smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N652AA performing flight
AA-1366 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) to San Juan (Puerto Rico), was enroute
at FL370 about 140nm west of Tampa,FL (USA) when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit followed by a forward equipment smoke detector and forward
equipment overheat indication. The crew decided to divert to Tampa, on approach
the crew reported the smoke had dissipated and no abnormal indication persisted
and continued for a safe landing on runway 19R about 25 minutes later. The
aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency services in trail.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached San Juan with a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45cece25
20130129171624:20130129000000
Accident: Germanwings A319 at Cologne on Jan 29th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWR performing flight 4U-824
from Cologne (German) to Milan Malpensa (Italy), was taxiing for departure
shortly after engine start when a flight attendant in the rear of the cabin
observed smoke entering the cabin. The aircraft returned to the gate, the
passengers disembarked normally, emergency services responded but found
no trace of fire or heat. 3 crew and 2 passengers were taken to a hospital
with breathing difficulties.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration D-AGWS reached Milan with a delay
of 2 hours.

Germany’s BFU is looking into the occurrence to determine whether an investigation
will be opened and have ordered the aircraft to remain on the ground.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45cec736
20130129171948:20130128000000
Incident: American B763 near San Juan on Jan 28th 2013, overheating battery charger
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N358AA performing flight
AA-233 from Miami,FL (USA) to Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil) with 198 passengers
and 13 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 60nm south of San Juan (Puerto Rico)
when the crew decided to divert to San Juan due to an overheating battery
charger and smell of smoke on board. The aircraft landed safely about 18
minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N349AN, originally scheduled to
fly from San Juan to New York, resumed the flight to Sao Paulo and is estimated
to reach Guarulhos Airport with a delay of 19 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to return to service the following day and
resumed the flight N349AN was originally scheduled to fly.

A passenger reported that the flight had been delayed repeatedly at the
gate in Miami already due to an overheating battery charger. Later, about
2.5 hours into the flight, the captain announced the problem had returned
and there was smoke on board prompting them to divert to San Juan.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45cc536c
20130128175136:20130126000000
Incident: Lufthansa B744 near Munich on Jan 26th 2013, wild west oven
A Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, registration D-ABVS performing flight LH-756
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Mumbai (India), was enroute at FL350 about
35nm southeast of Linz (Austria) when the crew decided to divert to Munich
(Germany) due to a galley oven emitting smoke. The aircraft descended towards
Munich when the crew stopped the descent at FL140 and climbed again to return
to Frankfurt, climbing through FL210 the crew declared emergency reporting
smell of smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Munich for a safe landing
on runway 08R about 10 minutes after stopping the climb at FL220 and about
45 minutes after the first decision to divert. Emergency services needed
to cool the left main gear brakes.

The smoke signalling oven was replaced and the aircraft departed again after
about 130 minutes on the ground. The aircraft is currently estimated to
reach Mumbai with a delay of 4 hours.

The airline reported a blocked fan in the convection oven was identified
as source of an electrical odour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45cb6096
20130125141551:20130124000000
Incident: Lufthansa A321 at Ankara on Jan 24th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A321-200, registration D-AIDU performing flight LH-1785
from Ankara (Turkey) to Munich (Germany), was climbing out of Ankara’s runway
21L when the crew stopped the climb at about 9000 feet reporting smoke in
the cabin and decided to return to Ankara. The aircraft burned off fuel
and landed safely back in Ankara one hour after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The incident aircraft is still on the ground in Ankara about 23 hours after
landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c919e0
20130122213336:20130121000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A near Toronto on Jan 21st 2013, smoke indication and odour
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GTBP performing flight QK-7791
from Toronto,ON to Sault Ste. Marie,ON (Canada) with 34 people on board,
was climbing out of Toronto when the crew received a smoke indication followed
by an odour in cockpit and cabin. The crew stopped the climb at 14,000 feet,
actioned the relevant checklists closing the bleed air valves and shutting
the recirculation fans down and returned to Toronto. During the descent
the smoke indication ceased. The aircraft landed safely on Toronto’s runway
15L about 15 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance is still investigating to identify
the source of the odour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c8f195
20130122171028:20130121000000
Incident: Southwest B735 near Tulsa on Jan 21st 2013, smell of smoke
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-500, flight WN-254 from Kansas City,MO to
Houston Hobby,TX (USA) with 76 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL360
about 15nm south of Tulsa,OK (USA) when smell of smoke was detected in the
cabin prompting the crew to turn around and divert to Tulsa for a safe landing
on runway 08 about 20 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c405a0
20130116205911:20130116000000
Incident: Aer Lingus A320 at Dublin on Jan 16th 2013, smell of smoke
An Aer Lingus Airbus A320-200, registration EI-EDS performing flight EI-484
from Dublin (Ireland) to Lisbon (Portugal) with 87 passengers and 6 crew,
was climbing out of Dublin’s runway 10 when the crew stopped the climb at
8000 feet reporting smell of smoke in cockpit and cabin. The aircraft returned
to Dublin for a safe landing on runway 10 about 13 minutes after departure.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration EI-CVC reached Lisbon with a
delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c377c5/0023
20141201213918:20130116000000
Accident: ANA B788 near Takamatsu on Jan 16th 2013, battery problem and burning smell on board (including JAL Boston, Ethiopian London and JAL Tokyo events)
On Sep 24th 2014 the JTSB released their final report concluding the probable
causes of the serious incident of JA804A were:

The emergency evacuation was executed on Takamatsu Airport taxiway in the
serious incident, which was a consequence of emergency landing deriving
from the main battery thermal runaway during the airplaneís takeoff climb.

Internal heat generation in cell 6 very likely developed into venting, making
it the initiating cell, resulting in cell-to-cell propagation and subsequent
failure of the main battery. It is very likely that cell 6 internal heat
generation and increased internal pressure caused it to swell, melt the
surrounding insulation material and contact the brace bar creating a grounding
path that allowed high currents to flow through the battery box. The currents
generated arcing internal to the battery that contributed to cell-to-cell
propagation consequently destroying the battery.

Cell 6 heat generation was probably caused by internal short circuit; however,
the conclusive mechanism thereof was not identified.

In the serious incident, the internal short circuit of a cell developed
into cell heat generation, thermal propagation to other cells, and consequently
damaged the whole battery. The possible contributing factors to the thermal
propagation are that the test conducted during the developmental phase did
not appropriately simulate the on-board configuration, and the effects of
internal short circuit were underestimated.

The JTSB stated in the findings: “We cannot disregard the fact that all
battery incidents (the serious incident inclusive) occurred in winter. Therefore,
at present low temperature environment was the possible contributing factor
to the battery failure.

The JTSB annotated in the findings that the ground wire “fused” when 1,010
Amperes were running across the wire while cell 7 was venting.

The JTSB listed a number of possible scenarios leading to the thermal runaway
stating that observations on the flight data recorder permits to identify
the cause of the thermal runaway was an internal short circuit. The JTSB
stated: “From the analyses of internal short circuit, three possible candidates
for interior short circuit remain: lithium metal deposition in the cell,
metal piece contamination, and damaged separator. Given the fact that all
similar battery incidents occurred in the cold season, lithium metal deposition
deriving from charging under cold conditions could have existed. However,
it is unlikely that lithium metal deposition was the sole causal factor
of the internal short circuit leading to venting. It is possible that electric
transient or other factors combined may have affected the lithium metal
deposition leading to an internal short circuit. As no mechanism of internal
short circuit was conclusively identified, we are unable to exclude the
possible involvement of other factors associated with design and manufacturing.”

The JTSB found that tests performed replicated thermal runaways with the
actual on-board configuration however did not include internal short circuit
simulation. During development of the batteries simulations of internal
short circuits had been performed, however did not simulate the on-board
configuration. These tests did not develop into thermal runaways. The JTSB
therefore stated: “RTCA/DO-311, which is referred to by the latest version
of LIB airworthiness standard TSO-179a, does not stipulate test procedures
to properly simulate internal short circuit. It should be amended to mandate
internal short circuit tests simulating proper on-board environment.”

On Dec 1st 2014 the NTSB released their final report concluding the probable
causes of the occurrence of JA829J in Boston were:

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause
of this incident was an internal short circuit within a cell of the auxiliary
power unit (APU) lithium-ion battery, which led to thermal runaway that
cascaded to adjacent cells, resulting in the release of smoke and fire.
The incident resulted from Boeingís failure to incorporate design requirements
to mitigate the most severe effects of an internal short circuit within
an APU battery cell and the Federal Aviation Administrationís failure to
identify this design deficiency during the type design certification process.

The NTSB reported that one of the eight battery cells suffered an internal
short circuit as result of design deficiencies, which led to a thermal runway
propagating to other cells (which Boeing had considered but ruled out as
a possibility) resulting in the fire, that fortunately occurred on the ground.
The NTSB stated: “Because the APU and main lithium-ion batteries installed
on the 787 represented new technology not adequately addressed by existing
regulations, the Federal Aviation Administration required that Boeing demonstrate
compliance with special conditions to ensure that the battery was safe for
use on a transport category aircraft. Boeing’s safety assessment of the
battery, which was part of the data used to demonstrate compliance with
these special conditions, was insufficient because Boeing had considered,
but ruled out, cell-to-cell propagation of thermal runaway (which occurred
in this incident) but did not provide the corresponding analysis and justification
in the safety assessment. As a result, the potential for cell-to-cell propagation
of thermal runaway was not thoroughly scrutinized by Boeing and FAA engineers,
ultimately allowing this safety hazard to go undetected by the certification
process.”

In addition the NTSB identified a number of design and manufacturing concerns:
– GS Yuasaís cell manufacturing process allowed defects that could lead
to internal short circuiting, including wrinkles and foreign object debris,
to be introduced into the Boeing 787 main and auxiliary power unit battery.

– The thermal protections incorporated in large-format lithium-ion battery
designs need to account for all sources of heating in the battery during
the most extreme charge and discharge current conditions and protect cells
from damage that could lead to thermal runaway.

– More accurate cell temperature measurements and enhanced temperature and
voltage monitoring and recording could help ensure that excessive cell temperatures
resulting from localized or other sources of heating could be detected and
addressed in a timely manner to minimize cell damage.

– Determining the initial point of self-heating in a lithium-ion cell is
important in establishing thermal safety limits.

– Boeingís electrical power system safety assessment did not consider the
most severe effects of a cell internal short circuit and include requirements
to mitigate related risks, and the review of the assessment by Boeing authorized
representatives and Federal Aviation Administration certification engineers
did not reveal this deficiency.

– Boeing failed to incorporate design requirements in the 787 main and auxiliary
power unit battery specification control drawing to mitigate the most severe
effects of a cell internal short circuit, and the Federal Aviation Administration
failed to uncover this design vulnerability as part of its review and approval
of Boeingís electrical power system certification plan and proposed methods
of compliance.

– Unclear traceability among the individual special conditions, safety assessment
assumptions and rationale, requirements, and proposed methods of compliance
for the 787 main and auxiliary power unit battery likely contributed to
the Federal Aviation Administrationís failure to identify the need for a
thermal runaway certification test.

– Stale enhanced airborne flight recorder data could impede future accident
and incident investigations by delaying the full understanding of the recorded
data; stale data could also impact aircraft safety if an operatorís maintenance
activities were based on these data.

– The poor audio recording quality of the enhanced airborne flight recorder
could impede future aircraft investigations because the recorded conversations
and other cockpit sounds might be obscured.

The NTSB released 15 safety recommendations to the FAA, 2 safety recommendations
to Boeing and 1 safety recommendation to the manufacturer of the battery
in addition to the safety recommendations released so far.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c377c5
20140925220555:20130116000000
Accident: ANA B788 near Takamatsu on Jan 16th 2013, battery problem and burning smell on board (including JAL Boston, Ethiopian London and JAL Tokyo events)
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 787-800, registration JA804A performing
flight NH-692 from Ube to Tokyo Haneda (Japan) with 129 passengers and 8
crew, was climbing through FL330 out of Ube about 35nm west of Takamatsu
(Japan) when the crew received indications of battery problems, at the same
time a burning smell developed on board. The crew decided to divert to Takamatsu
where the aircraft landed about 14 minutes later. The aircraft vacated the
runway, stopped past the hold short line and was evacuated via slides. One
passenger received a serious, two passengers minor injuries during the evacuation.

All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines have grounded their Dreamliners as
result of the recent inflight incidents, see Incident: United B788 near
New Orleans on Dec 4th 2012, electrical problems causing concerns of electrical
heat on board, Incident: Qatar B788 near Doha on Dec 8th 2012, generator
failure as well as an APU battery fire that occurred on board of Boeing
787-800 at Boston,MA (USA) on Jan 7th 2013.

The airline reported the crew received a fault indication within the battery
system followed by a smoke detector indication inside one of the electrical
compartments, there was no smoke visible in cockpit or cabin. The battery,
same type as the one involved in the ground incident in Boston on Jan 7th
2013, was found discoloured and leaking, the battery obviously had developed
high temperatures.

Japan’s Tranportation Safety Board JTSB opened an investigation and dispatched
three investigators on site. The NTSB dispatched an accredited representative
to Japan to join the investigation.

The JTSB reported on Jan 17th 2013, that the crew received indication of
a battery malfunction while climbing through FL300, in addition an odour
occurred on board. The crew diverted to Takamatsu as a result, the aircraft
was evacuated via slides after landing. The occurrence was rated a serious
incident.

On Jan 23rd 2013 the JTSB released a preliminary report in Japanese reporting
that a passenger received a sprained wrist and two other passengers minor
injuries in the evacuation. The aircraft had been climbing through FL320
out of Ube when the crew received indication of failure of the battery and
an odour appeared in the cockpit. Due to the odour the crew decided to divert
to Takamatsu, where the crew landed on runway 26, vacated the runway onto
taxiway T4 and initiated an emergency evacuation. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, however traces of smoke released from the electric
compartment were found on the outside of the fuselage. Investigators found
the main battery, a lithium ion battery same type as the APU battery, had
buckled at the upper cover and was leaking, the inside showed hydrocarbons.
The main battery was removed from the aircraft on Jan 17th, the undamaged
APU battery was removed from the aircraft on Jan 18th, following a first
examination of the main battery on Jan 20th the battery has been dispatched
for detailed examination on Jan 22nd.

On Feb 5th 2013 the JTSB released a second progress report in Japanese reporting
that all 8 cells of the damaged battery, nominal voltage 29.6V, 75 Ah capacity
at 28.5kg/63 lbs, showed thermal damage before the thermal runaway, particularly
cells 3 and 6 are damaged. The positive electrode of cell 3 shows substantial
damage and a hole, the internal wiring has melted down.

On Feb 20th 2013 the JTSB released another progress report in Japanese reporting,
that the aircraft had no history of being hit by lightning. The positive
electrode of cell number 3 had become so hot, that the material melted,
the positive terminal of cells 1, 2, 6, 7 and 8 were damaged supposedly
because of reaching the melting point of the terminal’s material aluminium.
The grounding wire of the battery container was broken most likely because
of currents flowing through the container. The flight data recorder revealed
that the battery voltage reduced from 31V to 11V within 10 seconds followed
by voltage drops of about 1V every two seconds, prior to that a measured
voltage of 32V indicated the battery was at nearly full charge. The investigation
of why the voltage drops occurred is still underway, specific attention
is given to the strobe navigation lights however, that were turned on during
the encounter. The investigation is ongoing.

On Mar 27th 2013 the JTSB released another interim report in Japanese summarizing,
that a “smoking gun” has still not been identified, the investigation so
far has not yet led to “elucidation of the underlying cause”. The JTSB reported
that the puzzle about the navigation strobe lights has been solved however
(see sketch below), with both APU and main batteries showing balanced voltages
neither relay would be powered with the related switches off, however, with
the main battery’s voltage dropping to 1V a current flow from the APU battery
via both relays to ground became possible, both relays activated and the
wing tip and strobe lights activated despite being switched off. The wire
connecting the battery case to ground was broken and showed evidence of
having been blown (editorial note: implicitely suggesting prior to the battery
event), however, the aircraft had no history of a lightning strike. There
is no evidence, that battery charger, bus power control unit, generator
control unit or battery diode module did not perform to specifications.
Battery cells 1-8, especially 3 and 6, showed extensive internal damage,
there is no evidence that a large current flow occurred on the output of
the battery towards the hot battery bus.

The NTSB is currently investigating the APU battery fire that occurred on
board of JAL Japan Airlines’ Boeing 787-800 registration JA829J in Boston
on Jan 7th 2013 after the passengers and crew had disembarked at the gate.
The NTSB reported on Jan 20th 2013 that a first examination of the flight
data recorder of JA829J showed the nominal battery voltage of 32V has never
been exceeded. The battery, powering the APU for APU startup, has been disassembled
into its 8 cells for detailed examination and documentation, 3 of the cells
were selected for further disassembly and examination of cell internal components.
On Jan 24th 2013 the NTSB reported that examinations including CT scans
identified traces of electric short circuiting on an electrode (see photo
below) as well as signs of thermal runaway on JA829J’s APU battery. There
was fire present.

On Feb 7th 2013 the NTSB reported: “After an exhaustive examination of the
JAL lithium-ion battery, which was comprised of eight individual cells,
investigators determined that the majority of evidence from the flight data
recorder and both thermal and mechanical damage pointed to an initiating
event in a single cell. That cell showed multiple signs of short circuiting,
leading to a thermal runaway condition, which then cascaded to other cells.
Charred battery components indicated that the temperature inside the battery
case exceeded 500 degrees Fahrenheit.” Mechanical impact damage as well
as external short circuiting have been ruled out as causes, deformations
and arcing were the result of a battery malfunction. The NTSB continued
that Boeing conducted a risk assessment during the certification process
which did not identify any possibility of a cell to cell propagation or
of fire, both of which however occurred in the battery fire events at Boston.
Boeing further assessed that a smoke release event would occur one time
in 10 million flight hours, however, the two events at Boston and Takamatsu
bring the balance to two events in 100,000 flight hours well above the failure
rate predicted in the certification process. The NTSB concluded: “the possibility
that a short circuit in a single cell could propagate to adjacent cells
and result in smoke and fire must be reconsidered.”

On Mar 7th 2013 the NTSB released an interim report reporting the APU of
JA829J (169 flight hours/22 flight cycles since new) had been started at
15:04Z while the aircraft was taxiing to the gate. The aircraft reached
the gate at 15:06Z, the passengers disembarked by 15:15Z and the crew left
at 15:20Z. Cleaning personal entered the cabin. According to the flight
data recorder the voltage of the APU battery, a Lithium Cobalt based battery
rated at 75Ah/29.6V capable of delivering up to 1000A and typically 450A
over 45 seconds for up to three APU start attempts, began to fluctuate at
15:21:01Z, failed at 15:21:15Z with the voltage dropping and reached 28V
at 15:21:30Z. At 15:21:37Z the APU automatically shut down, the battery
voltage reached 0V. A mechanic in the aft cabin noticed the power had been
lost and went to the cockpit, recognized the APU had automatically shut
down and went back to the aft cabin but smelled and saw smoke and notified
the maintenance manger, who in turn asked the mechanic to check the aft
electronic bay. The mechanic found heavy smoke and observed two distinct
flames of about 3 inches at the APU battery. The mechanic attempted to extinguish
the fire using a dry chemical fire extinguisher but flames and smoke did
not stop. At 15:37Z emergency services were alerted, the first vehicle arrived
less than a minute later. Multiple attempts by emergency services to extinguish
the fire were unsuccessful, the battery appeared to rekindle. A pop sound
was heard followed by hissing sounds, a firefighter received a minor burn
at the neck when the battery popped. It was decided to remove the battery,
about 80 minutes after the begin of the event the battery was moved out
of the aircraft, 100 minutes after the begin of the event the situation
was pronounced under control. The battery had weighed 61.8lbs/28kg when
it was installed and weighed 56 lbs/25kg when it was removed from the aircraft
mainly due to the loss of electrolyte. Examination of the cells and battery
revealed a number of protusions on cell 5, which were determined to the
result of arcing between between the cell 5 case and battery case, the protusions
were outward and the cell case had expanded outward, the arcing was the
result of the cell expansion leading to the breach of the battery case.
Tests of the battery monitoring unit were not possible due to the damage
received during the fire, the battery control unit passed all tests (except
that it inhibited charging already above the permitted minimum temperature
of 5 degrees F). Boeing had assessed the risk of a battery cell venting
at one in 10 million flight hours and the risk of the battery spilling flammable
fluid at one in 1 billion flight hours, however, only 52,000 flight hours
had been accumulated in operation of the B787 so far and two batteries had
vented/spilled. The only scenario, that Boeing had identified, that could
lead to the battery venting with fire was overcharge, the design requirements
made it highly improbable that an overcharge could occur. The investigation
is continuing.

The incidents prompted the FAA to conduct a review of the Boeing 787 design,
manufacturing and quality assurance processes, the US Department of Transport
and the FAA are convinced, that the aircraft is safe reporting they spent
more than 200,000 man hours during certification of the aircraft.

In the evening of Jan 16th 2013 the FAA released an emergency airworthiness
directive requiring all operators of Boeing 787-800 with immediate effect
to modify the battery system or take another FAA approved action before
further flights, which effectively grounds the aircraft. The FAA argued:
“This emergency AD was prompted by recent incidents involving lithium ion
battery failures that resulted in release of flammable electrolytes, heat
damage, and smoke on two Model 787-8 airplanes. The cause of these failures
is currently under investigation. These conditions, if not corrected, could
result in damage to critical systems and structures, and the potential for
fire in the electrical compartment.”

On Mar 12th 2013 the FAA announced they approved a plan to certificate an
improved battery system provided by Boeing. An improved containment of the
battery, and improved venting system, a redesign of battery components to
reduce the risk of short circuits inside the battery and better insulation
of cells are parts of that plan, the FAA has also approved limited test
flights to two Boeing 787-800s, the FAA said: “The purpose of the flight
tests will be to validate the aircraft instrumentation for the battery and
battery enclosure testing in addition to product improvements for other
systems.” The AD remains in effect until the tests conclude successfully,
the FAA did not provide any estimates on the time line.

On Apr 26th 2013 the FAA released a new airworthiness directive 2013-08-12
superseding the emergency airworthiness directive of Jan 16th 2013 permitting
the Boeing 787-800 to resume service after following steps have been taken:
“Install main battery and auxiliary power unit (APU) battery enclosures
and environmental control system (ECS) ducts; and replace the main battery,
APU battery, and their respective battery chargers; in accordance with the
Accomplishment Instructions of Boeing Alert Service Bulletin B787-81205-SB500003-00,
Issue 001, dated April 19, 2013.” As result of this new airworthiness directive
a first Boeing 787-800 registration ET-AOP of Ethiopian Airlines took the
skies on Apr 27th 2013 flying passengers from Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) to
Nairobi (Kenya) as flight ET-801.

On Jul 12th 2013 an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787-800 registration ET-AOP
was parked at London Heathrow Airport with no occupants, when smoke began
to billow from the rear of the aircraft prompting emergency services to
respond and both runways to be closed. The aircraft was foamed and the fire
extinguished. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time. The aircraft
had arrived in Heathrow as flight ET-700 at 06:30L (05:30Z) and was scheduled
to depart for the return flight ET-701 at 21:00L (20:00Z). On Jul 13th 2013
the AAIB reported that there had been smoke throughout the fuselage causing
extensive heat damage in the upper portion of the rear of the fuselage and
stated: “However, it is clear that this heat damage is remote from the area
in which the aircraft main and APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) batteries are
located, and, at this stage, there is no evidence of a direct causal relationship.”

On Jul 18th 2013 the AAIB reported in their special bulletin with respect
to ET-AOP, that fire fighters encountered a fire above the ceiling panels
close to the rear of the cabin, a halon extinguisher was not effective,
only after a panel was moved and the fire was doused with water and foam
the fire was extinguished. The origin of the fire coincided with the emergency
locator transmitter (ELT), with no other systems in the vicinity storing
sufficient energy to initiate a fire. The ELT is powered by a set of Lithium
Manganese Dioxide Batteries, which showed disruptions of cells. It is unclear
however whether the combustion started as result of energy release within
the battery cells or by an outside event like a short circuit. Some 6000
units of this transmitter have been produced, ET-AOP is the only such incident
so far. The AAIB recommended to the FAA to “inert” (deactivate) the ELTs
in Boeing 787s until appropriate airworthiness actions can be taken and
to conduct a safety review of all Lithium battery powered ELTs on all aircraft
types.

On Jan 14th 2014 a JAL Japan Airlines Boeing 787-800, registration JA834J,
was parked at the apron of Tokyo’s Narita airport and was being prepared
for departure for flight JL-707 to Bangkok (Thailand) scheduled about two
hours later, when white smoke was observed from the aircraft’s main battery,
the battery was found overheated, its safety valve opened and electrolyte
fluid leaking from the battery. No further damage is being reported, the
aircraft was removed from service. A replacement Boeing 787-800 registration
JA829J operated the flight departing with a delay of 7 minutes and arriving
on schedule. Boeing tweeted that the aircraft was in maintenance, a single
cell vented resulting in a smoke event, the new safe guards worked as planned.
The battery suffered a fault in the charger and battery. The airline stated:
“A maintenance personnel in the cockpit found that the white smoke was wafting
outside of the window and that the message which indicated the possibility
of main battery system failure was displayed on the cockpit display during
departure preparation. The inspection of the battery case inside the battery
enclosure revealed that the safety pressure relief valve (which opens in
case that the cell inside pressure rises) of one cell of the eight cells
opened. JAL707 departed by another Boeing 787 almost on time.” This new
ground incident comes a few days after both NTSB and JTSB announced the
investigations into the thermal runaways of the APU and main battery in
Takamatsu and Boston have been finished and the final reports are being
prepared for release later in 2014.

On Jun 18th 2014 the British AAIB provided a special bulletin reporting
the investigation into the Ethiopian ET-AOP event in London so far determined,
that the ELT battery had suffered a thermal runaway with all of its 5 cells
showing severe damage consistent with the thermal runaway. The ELT battery’s
internal wires were found improperly installed, “in that they had been crossed
and pinched together between the battery cover-plate and the ELT case, adjacent
to one of the cover-plate fasteners.” It was likely that the wires were
improperly installed during production assembly of the ELT.

The AAIB reported: “The nature of the battery failure was such that much
of the battery material was consumed, and that which remained was extremely
fragile. Therefore, despite extensive forensic examination and CT scanning
of the battery and the individual cells, it has not been possible to determine
with certainty the sequence of cell failures within the battery or the pre-failure
state of the safety features in the circuit.”

The AAIB released five safety recommendations to the FAA as result of the
investigation into ET-AOP so far.

The faulty wiring of ET-AOP (Photo: AAIB):
Schematics of battery and damage of ANA main battery (Graphics: AVH/JTSB):
The grounding wire of battery case (Graphics: JTSB):
The electrical path activating wing tip lights despite switched off (Graphics:
JTSB):
Battery diagram (Graphics: NTSB):
The damaged electrode of cell 3 (Photo: JTSB):
Traces of smoke exiting the fuselage (Photo/Graphics: JTSB):
Main battery left, undamaged APU battery right (Photos: JTSB):
Hole in an electrode of JA829J indicative of short circuit (Photo: NTSB):
The burned battery of JA829J, Boston Jan 7th 2013 (Photo: NTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c317be
20130115173431:20130115000000
Incident: Cathay A333 at Tokyo on Jan 15th 2013, smoke in cabin
A Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300, flight CX-501 from Tokyo Narita (Japan)
to Hong Kong (China) with 127 people on board, was climbing out of Tokyo’s
Narita Airport when a smoke detector in a lavatory activated prompting the
crew to return to Narita Airport for a safe landing on runway 34L. Attending
emergency services reported seeing no fire or smoke, the aircraft taxied
to the gate on its own power.

Japan’s Ministry of Transport reported that a burning odour was observed
near the lavatory immediately after takeoff, later the smoke detector activated.
An inflight entertainment system’s display set in front of a passenger seat
near the toilet is suspected as cause of the smell.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c16fbb
20130113184010:20130113000000
Incident: Arkia AT72 near Tel Aviv on Jan 13th 2013, engine fire indication
An Arkia Airlines Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, flight IZ-802
from Eilat to Tel Aviv Sde-Dov Airport (Israel) with 67 people on board,
was descending towards Tel Aviv when the crew received an engine fire indication
and decided to divert to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport for
a safe landing. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, smoke
or heat.

The airline confirmed an engine fire indication during the flight, the indication
was identified faulty.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c179ef
20130113225827:20130112000000
Incident: China Eastern A306 at Shenzhen on Jan 12th 2013, rejected takeoff
A China Eastern Airbus A300-600, flight MU-5274 from Shenzhen to Shanghai
Hongqiao (China), was accelerating for takeoff from Shenzhen when the crew
discovered disagreeing airspeed indications and rejected takeoff at high
speed. The aircraft stopped safely though with smoke off the main landing
gear. Responding emergency services cooled the hot brakes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45c162d3
20130113172446:20130112000000
Incident: Wings Abadi AT72 at Gunung Sitoli on Jan 12th 2013, blew tyres on landing
A Wings Air Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration PK-WFH
performing flight IW-1264 from Medan to Gunung Sitoli (Indonesia) with 62
passengers, landed at Gunung Sitoli when tower observed smoke coming from
the right main landing gear. The aircraft rolled out safely and came to
a stop about half way down the runway with both right main gear tyres burst.
The passengers disembarked onto the runway and were taken to the terminal.

The airport was closed for about one hour until the aircraft could be moved
to the apron and tyre debris was cleaned off the runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45bd50d1
20130108202017:20130107000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A at Rouyn on Jan 7th 2013, smoke in cockpit
A Jazz Aviation de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GJSV performing
flight QK-8757 from Montreal,QC to Rouyn,QC (Canada) with 16 people on board,
was descending through 8000 feet towards Rouyn when the crew donned their
oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting a loud noise of unknown origin
and smoke in the cockpit. Cabin crew advised there was no smoke in the cabin,
a short time later the lavatory smoke alarm activated however. The crew
shut down both bleed air systems and observed the smoke lessened afterwards.
The aircraft landed safely and taxied to the apron, where the passengers
disembarked.

The Canadian TSB reported the aircraft had already been involved in a smoke
incident 3 days earlier, see Incident: Jazz DH8A at Quebec on Jan 4th 2013,
smoke on board, after which the right hand engine had been replaced. Maintenance
determined following the new event that oil had entered the environmental
control system at the left hand engine resulting in oil related haze. The
aircraft is to be ferried to Montreal for investigation and troubleshooting.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45bb75fa
20130106154327:20130105000000
Incident: Compass E175 near Pittsburgh on Jan 5th 2013, smell of smoke
A Compass Airlines Embraer ERJ-175 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N634CZ performing flight CP-5772/DL-5772 from Atlanta,GA to Rochester,NY
(USA), was enroute at FL370 about 110nm south of Pittsburgh,PA when the
crew reported smell of smoke on board and diverted to Pittsburgh for a safe
landing on runway 28R about 20 minutes later. Responding emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-175 registration N622CZ reached Rochester with
a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45bc7cd1
20130107212532:20130104000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A at Quebec on Jan 4th 2013, smoke on board
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GJSV performing flight QK-8721
from Gaspe,QC to Quebec,QC (Canada) with 19 people on board, was on final
approach about 10nm before touchdown in Quebec, when the crew donned their
oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit. Cabin
crew informed the flight deck that there was intensifying smoke in the cabin
as well, passengers were breathing through articles of clothing. The crew
continued for a safe landing on runway 24, vacated the runway onto taxiway
A and stopped, the occupants rapidly disembarked onto the taxiway. No injuries
occurred.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance identified oil had entered the
environment control system and produced haze due to a leaking seal at the
right hand engine (PW120A). The engine was replaced following a borescopic
inspection.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45bdeaa3
20130109135910:20130103000000
Incident: Nordstar B738 near Antalya on Jan 3rd 2013, cargo fire indication
A Nordstar Boeing 737-800, registration VQ-BDZ performing flight Y7-7602
from Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt) to Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) with 161 passengers
and 8 crew, was enroute at FL340 about 100nm south of Antalya over the Mediterranean
Sea when the crew received a cargo fire indication and diverted to Antalya
for a safe landing on runway 36R about 17 minutes later. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat.

Rosaviatsia reported the cargo smoke detector was identified malfunctioning.
The smoke detector was deactivated under minimum equipment list requirements
and the aircraft continued to Moscow.

The aircraft departed Antalya 3.5 hours after landing and arrived in Moscow
with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b9e8f4
20130104202828:20130102000000
Incident: Eastern JS41 near Aberdeen on Jan 2nd 2013, cargo fire indication
An Eastern Airways British Aerospace Jetstream 41, registration G-MAJE performing
flight T3-554 from Aberdeen,SC to Stornoway,SC (UK) with 10 passengers and
3 crew, was climbing out of Aberdeen when the crew received a cargo fire
indication and returned to Aberdeen for a safe landing about 30 minutes
after departure. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

The airline confirmed the smoke detector was identified faulty.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b7ed84
20130102135405:20130101000000
Incident: Finnair A319 at Helsinki on Jan 1st 2013, smell of smoke in cabin
A Finnair Airbus A319-100, registration OH-LVG performing flight AY-863
from Helsinki (Finland) to Zurich (Switzerland), was climbing out of Helsinki’s
runway 22R when the crew stopped the climb at 6000 feet reported smell of
smoke in the cabin and returned to Helsinki for a safe landing on runway
22L about 12 minutes after departure. Emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration OH-LXH reached Zurich with a
delay of 3.5 hours.

The airline confirmed smell of smoke in the cabin prompted the return to
Helsinki. The aircraft was examined.

The incident aircraft resumed service the following day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b422e7
20121228235903:20121228000000
Incident: Allegiant MD82 near Fort Wayne on Dec 28th 2012, cargo fire indication
An Allegiant McDonnell Douglas MD-82, flight G4-959 from South Bend,IN to
Punta Gorda,FL (USA) with 149 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing through
about 16,000 feet out of South Bend when the crew received a cargo fire
indication and diverted to Fort Wayne,IN for a safe landing about 15 minutes
later. The aircraft was evacuated, no injuries are being reported. Emergency
services found no trace of fire or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b65b77
20130103151023:20121225000000
Incident: Niugini DH8B near Port Moresby on Dec 25th 2012, engine shut down in flight
An Air Niugini de Havilland Dash 8-200, registration P2-PXI performing flight
PX-713 from Bulolo to Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea), was descending towards
Port Moresby when the crew needed to shut the left hand engine (PW123C)
down due to an engine overheat indication. The aircraft continued for a
safe landing in Port Moresby, the tower controller reported seeing smoke
out of the engine. The passengers rapidly deplaned.

The airline confirmed an overheat indication prompted the engine to be shut
down following standard operating procedures. The engine was replaced, the
removed engine is being sent for further analysis. All other aircraft were
checked before their next departure too.

On Jan 3rd 2013 the Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) reported
the aircraft experienced an engine failure on approach to Port Moresby prompting
the Papua New Guinea’s Accident Investigation Commission to rate the occurrence
a serious incident and open an investigation and request assistance by the
ATSB to download and analyse the black boxes of the aircraft. The ATSB appointed
an accredited representative to the investigation and opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b1221e
20130909105846:20121225000000
Accident: Bagan F100 near Heho on Dec 25th 2012, landed on road outside airport
An Air Bagan Fokker 100, registration XY-AGC performing flight W9-11 from
Mandalay to Heho (Myanmar) with 63 passengers, 6 crew and 2 security personnel,
was on approach to Heho in low visibility at 08:50L (02:20Z), when the aircraft
touched down on a road about 1km/0.6nm south of the aerodrome, broke up,
came to a stop in a paddy field about 150 meters north of National Highway
4 south of the aerodrome, and burst into flames. One passenger and a motorist
riding a motorbike on the road were killed, 9 people on board including
both flight crew as well as another person on the ground received injuries
and were taken to a hospital. The aircraft sustained substantial damage
beyond repair.

Myanmar’s Vice Minister of Information said, the aircraft landed on a paddy
field near the airport in very poor visibility due to heavy snow fall, fire
broke out only after ground contact. An 11 year old boy amongst the passengers
was killed, 4 foreigners were amongst the 11 injured, the motorist is not
yet identified. Amongst the 65 passengers there were 47 foreigners. The
aircraft was 22 years old (editorial note: which identifies XY-AGC).

The airline confirmed XY-AGC was involved while performing flight W9-11,
2 crew and 7 passengers were injured, the aircraft attempted an emergency
landing off the aerodrome.

In a later press release the airline reported a female tour guide was identified
as the only fatality amongst the passengers, a male on a motorbike was killed
on the ground. Cabin crew initiated an evacuation via the emergency exits.
8 passengers received injuries as result of the outbreak of fire after ground
contact, 26 passengers were taken to Yangon for medical checks and treatment.

Another government official said the crew had reported an engine fire at
about 09:00L (02:30Z) prior to the accident.

Passengers reported they were unaware of any trouble prior to first ground
contact, which was a rather small bump followed by a number of heavy bumps
until the aircraft skidded to a halt. After the aircraft had stopped they
saw flames outside, the front main door was forcibly opened after a short
while and the passengers ran away from the aircraft. Several passengers
by then were already suffering from smoke inhalation.

Government sources reported on Dec 26th the aircraft, registration XY-AGC,
had departed Mandalay at 08:28L and was on approach to Heho in dense fog
at 08:50L when the aircraft hit a 66kV power line running east to west about
1nm south of runway 36 threshold and then hit trees along National Highway
4 connecting Meiktila and Taunggyi about 0.6nm before the runway threshold
before contacting ground. A female Burmese tour guide amongst the passengers
was killed, the two pilots and 9 passengers received injuries. Emergency
services brought the fire under control about 45 minutes after the accident.
The fire had started from the tail section, which had fractured and separated
in the sequence of the accident, presumably already at impact with the power
line or trees. Myanmar’s Ministry of Transport have opened an investigation
into the accident and formed an investigation commission. The black boxes
will be read out in Singapore.

On Jan 3rd 2013 the Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) reported
Myanmar’s Accident Investigation Board (MAIB) have requested assistance
by the ATSB to download the flight data and cockpit voice recorders. The
ATSB have appointed an accredited representative to assist the MAIB and
opened an investigation. The occurrence type was provided as “terrain collision”.

On May 1st 2013 Netherland’s DSB reported in their quarterly bulletin one
passenger and one person on the ground were killed in the accident, 9 other
people on board of the aircraft as well as another person on the ground
were injured when the aircraft hit a number of power lines and trees while
on approach to Heho’s runway 36. The DSB have appointed an accredited representative
as state of manufacture and have joined Myanmar’s investigation.

On Sep 9th 2013 the Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) reported
that the ATSB received the badly damaged flight data and cockpit voice recorders
from Myanmar for readout on Jan 21st 2013. The ATSB succeeded in reading
out valid data from both devices, on Jan 25th 2013 the relevant data and
graphics have been handed to Myanmar’s Authorities in charge of the investigation
into the accident. The investigation is being continued by Myanmar’s Authorities.

A visitor to the accident site took a number of pictures about two weeks
after the accident, see below, and reported that locals observed a local
power line running about 5 meters south of the National Highway 4, just
clear of the trees, was taken down by the aircraft and needed repair, while
the other even smaller power lines directly south and north of the highway
were not reported damaged, the 66kV line is visible on the two southbound
photos in the far background about 700 meters south of the highway. The
visitor walked off the road towards the south but did not find any traces
on the ground, it thus appears that the aircraft made first ground contact
right on the road, bushes south of the highway appeared undamaged with only
tree tops separated. The visitor also could not observe any debris south
of the road (but can’t tell whether this area had been cleaned up in the
meantime). Looking north of the highway the left hand engine has been covered
with an orange cover (left side of the northbound photo) and the main wreckage
has been fenced off and covered with a blue cover.

The aircraft was scheduled to land at Heho at 09:15L (02:45Z).

Heho offers a runway 18/36 of 8500 feet/2590 meters length at an elevation
of 3860 feet. NDB approaches are published for both runway 18 and 36 by
AIS Myanmar.

No weather data are available (neither METAR nor local weather station reports),
a weather station at Taunggyi 13nm east of Heho Airport reported at 06:30L:
Temperature 12 degrees C, dew point 10 degrees C, humidity 83%, visibility
6km, light winds from southwest at about 1 knot, mist. At 12:30L the weather
station reported: temperature 22 degrees C, dew point 11 degrees C, 38%
humidity, visibility 10km, light winds from southwest at about 1 knot.

View from National Highway 4 to the south towards the 66kV power line in
the background about two weeks after the accident:
Detail view from National Highway 4 to the south about two weeks after the
accident:
View from National Highway 4 to the north towards the wreckage about two
weeks after the accident:
Ground tracks – view towards point of touchdown (Photo: AFP/Myanmar Police):
Ground tracks – view towards wreckage (Photo: AFP/Myanmar Police):
The aircraft shortly after the accident (Photo: AFP/STR):
XY-AGC still ablaze minutes after the accident (Photo: Myat Thura):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Approach Chart NDB runway 36 (Graphics: AIS Myanmar):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45afa278
20121223153450:20121222000000
Incident: Compass E170 at Louisville on Dec 22nd 2012, lavatory smoke indication
A Compass Airlines Embraer ERJ-175 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N620CZ performing flight CP-5740/DL-5740 from Louisville,KY to Minneapolis,MN
(USA), was in the initial climb out of Louisville’s runway 17R when the
crew reported they had a lavatory smoke indication and requested emergency
services on stand by for an immediate return. The aircraft levelled off
at 3000 feet and landed safely on runway 17R about 8 minutes after departure.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-175 registration N639CZ reached Minneapolis with
a delay of 4 hours.

A passenger reported there was light haze visible in the cabin. While waiting
for the replacement aircraft it was hinted the incident aircraft had undergone
some maintenance the night before.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ae2f3b
20121221212101:20121220000000
Incident: Delta MD90 near Sioux Falls on Dec 20th 2012, cargo smoke indication
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N955DN performing
flight DL-1348 from Minneapolis,MN to Tucson,AZ (USA), was enroute at FL300
about 70nm southwest of Sioux Falls,SD when the crew received a cargo smoke
indication and decided to turn the aircraft around and divert to Sioux Falls
Regional Airport, where the aircraft landed safely about 25 minutes later.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The smoke detector was later identified defective.

A replacement MD-90 registration N908DA reached Tucson with a delay of 8
hours.

The incident aircraft positioned back to Minneapolis as flight DL-9938 about
7 hours after landing and resumed service the following day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ac6cf0
20130111205406:20121219000000
Incident: SAA B732 at Port Elizabeth on Dec 19th 2012, blew all main gear tyres on landing
A South African Airways Boeing 737-200 freighter, registration ZS-SID performing
freight flight SA-6835 from Johannesburg to Port Elizabeth (South Africa),
landed on Port Elizabeth’s runway 08 at about 04:00L (02:00Z) but blew all
tyres on the main landing gear during roll out until the aircraft came to
a stop about 900 meters/2950 feet past the runway threshold. No injuries
occurred, emergency services responded and cooled the gear down.

The runway is currently still closed 16 hours after landing. The airport
continued normal operation using runway 17/35.

A ground observer reported immediately after touchdown there were sparks,
smoke and flames from the main landing gear.

South Africa’s CAA reported on Jan 11th 2013, that the crew reported the
anti-skid system had failed.

Relevant NOTAM:
B1804/12 – RWY 08/26 CLSD. DELAYS TO BE EXPECTED. 19 DEC 13:09 2012 UNTIL
19 DEC 19:00 2012 ESTIMATED. CREATED: 19 DEC 13:14 2012

Metars:
FAPE 190400Z 03006KT CAVOK 19/// Q1008 NOSIG
FAPE 190325Z 06005KT 7000 SCT004 19/// Q1008 BECMG CAVOK
FAPE 190300Z 05006KT 8000 BKN004 18/// Q1008 NOSIG
FAPE 190200Z 06008KT 8000 BKN004 19/// Q1009 NOSIG
FAPE 190100Z 06009KT CAVOK 18/18 Q1009 NOSIG
FAPE 190000Z 07008KT CAVOK 18/18 Q1010 NOSIG
FAPE 182300Z 07011KT CAVOK 19/19 Q1011 NOSIG
FAPE 182200Z 07011KT CAVOK 19/19 Q1011 NOSIG

ZS-SID sitting 900 meters down the runway at 11:00L (Photo: Nigel Campbell):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45ab984d
20121218172013:20121215000000
Accident: Southwest B733 at Albany on Dec 15th 2012, bird strike
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N602SW performing flight
WN-1953 from Orlando,FL to Albany,NY (USA), was on final approach to Albany’s
runway 01 when a bird impacted the aircraft. The aircraft touched down safely
and rolled out, tower subsequently advised there was smoke coming from the
nose wheel. The crew replied they had a bird hit on final. Emergency services
responded.

The FAA reported the aircraft received substantial damage.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b8e286
20130103163658:20121214000000
Incident: TAP A319 at Copenhagen on Dec 14th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A319-100, registration CS-TTK performing flight
TP-754 from Lisbon (Portugal) to Copenhagen (Denmark), was on approach to
Copenhagen’s runway 04R when the crew detected a burning smell in the cockpit
and spotted light haze. The crew requested priority and continued for a
safe landing on runway 04R about 5 minutes later.

Denmark’s HCL reported the crew did not don their oxygen masks. After rollout,
while taxiing the crew discovered the source of the odour was a cockpit
display. After the aircraft had reached the gate an ECAM message indicated
a fan in the rear cargo bay. Emergency services therefore inspected the
rear cargo bay but did not find any trace of fire, heat, smoke or smell.
Maintenance removed the cockpit display in question but found no fault,
only some dust. The HCL believes that an electrical source covered with
dust at the cockpit display in question may have been the cause of the odour/haze.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b22b73
20130315193504:20121214000000
Incident: Lufthansa A321 near Frankfurt on Dec 14th 2012, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A321-100, registration D-AIRR performing flight LH-1246
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Vienna (Austria) with 157 people on board,
was climbing out of Frankfurt’s runway 18 when the crew reported smell,
then smoke in both cockpit and cabin, stopped the climb at FL110 and returned
to Frankfurt for a safe landing on runway 25C about 18 minutes after departure.

The French BEA reported there were no injuries, the German BFU is investigating
the serious incident.

On Mar 15th 2013 the German BFU reported in their monthly bulletin that
both pilots noticed a “rotten” smell in the cockpit, a few seconds later
the first officer showed first symptoms prompting both pilots to don their
oxygen masks and return to Frankfurt. The odour was also noticed in the
cabin. The aircraft returned to Frankfurt for a safe landing about 20 minutes
after departure, all members of the crew were taken to a hospital for checks.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b9a553
20150421201614:20121211000000
Incident: Swiss A319 near Stockholm on Dec 11th 2012, several electrical malfunctions
A Swiss International Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration HB-IPX performing
flight LX-1250 from Zurich (Switzerland) to Stockholm (Sweden) with 104
passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL390 about 240nm south of Stockholm
when the crew encountered various electrical malfunctions. The flight continued
to Stockholm for a safe landing on runway 01L about 45 minutes later. There
were no injuries, the aircraft sustained no damage.

The Swiss B¸ro f¸r Flugunfalluntersuchungen (BFU) reported they are investigating
the serious incident.

The incident aircraft positioned to Zurich the following day leaving Stockholm
about 20 hours after landing and resumed service about 26 hours after landing
in Stockholm (about 4 hours after landing in Zurich).

On Apr 21st 2015 the Swiss SUST released their final report concluding:

The serious incident is attributable to repeated voltage lowering events
and faults in the power supply to various busses.

The exact cause could not be determined.

The SUST reported that during the climb out of Zurich, at about FL200, DC
Bus 1 suffered a brief voltage reduction which prompted the automatic system
to rearrange the electrical supply, so that the essential bus no longer
was supplied by transformer rectifier TR1 but the ESS TR (essential transformer
rectifier). About one hour into the flight, at FL390 near Hamburg, the flight
crew received indication “DC BUS 1 FAULT” followed by intermittent indications
“BLOWER FAULT”, “BRAKE SYST 1 FAULT” and “EXTRACT FAN FAULT”. The electrical
sytem reconfigured several times between TR1 and TR2 until TR1 was automatically
shut down and DC BUS1 and BAT BUS were supplied via TR2 for the remainder
of the flight.

The flight crew discussed the situation with the lead flight attendant just
in case smoke would occur and preparted for a possible emergency descent.
The crew assessed possible diversions to Copenhagen and other options along
the route. The captain consulted with dispatch and maintenance in Zurich
and carried out the recommendation received from Zurich to trigger circuit
breaker AB10 to disable the power supply to TR1. In the minutes following
the DC BUS 1 and DC BAT BUS experienced several brief voltage reductions
although being supplied by TR2, and the indications “APU FIRE DET FAULT”,
“APU FIRE LOOP A FAULT” and “CARGO DISCH” appeared. The side stick solenoid
of the first officer audibly activated several times even though the side
stick remained inactive.

The voltage subsequently stabilized and remained stable for the remainder
of the flight. The crew decided to continue the flight to Stockholm.

While on descent through FL350 towards Stockholm circuit breaker AB11 tripped
automatically without any associated warning causing the loss of a number
of systems including cockpit temperature control, the temperature in the
cockpit fell below freezing. The lighting of several control panels failed.
When the crew activated the engine anti-ice systems the control light for
the right hand engine only illuminated.

Further into the descent the DS ESS Bus suffered a number of brief voltage
reductions resulting in the loss of the captain’s primary flight display,
navigation display and upper ECAM display. The crew declared PAN and requested
an immediate straight in ILS approach to runway 01L. The aircraft touched
down on runway 01L, the crew engaged thrust reversers but only the right
hand thrust reverser deployed while the left hand reverser remained stowed
(without prior failure indication).

Following landing TR1 was examined with no anomaly found, TR1 worked flawlessly.
Several contactors were tested with no anomaly.

Circuit Breaker 3XN1 was visually checked without any discolouration or
other indications of overheating, it was noted that the release button was
pushed in. The release button was pulled out, the fuses had continuity although
they should have disconnecte. The release button was pushed in again, the
contacts opened and the circuit breaker appeared normal. The circuit breaker
was closed, power applied and the circuit breaker tripped properly disconnecting
the load. Another cycle was initiated, this time the circuit breaker made
unusual noises instead of disconnecting the load and smoke appeared. Power
was turned off, the circuit breaker now showed substantial damage and the
test was aborted.

SUST wrote: “The CB was then dismantled. The image obtained from the x-rays
was confirmed. Based on the level of destruction it is assumed that a short-circuit
had occurred between phases B and C. However, it must be stated that the
considerable extent of destruction occurred on the occasion of the tests
at Airbus on 25 June 2013 and not during the serious incident. It can also
be assumed that it is highly probable that electrical arcing had already
occurred between two phases during flight LX 1250, but with much less impact.”

The circuit breaker, front and back side, after the test (Photo: SUST/Airbus):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a5cafa
20121211143824:20121210000000
Incident: Alaska B738 near Sacramento on Dec 10th 2012, electrical smell in cabin
An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N525AS performing AS-606
from Seattle,WA to Las Vegas,NV (USA) with 152 passengers and 6 crew, was
enroute at FL370 about 125nm northeast of Sacramento,CA (USA) when the crew
reported an electrical smell in the cabin and decided to divert to Sacramento,
where the aircraft landed safely about 22 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration N516AS reached Las Vegas with
a delay of 6:15 hours.

The airline confirmed some slight electrical odour on board of the aircraft,
the source of the odour is under investigation, there was no fire or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a43649/0000
20130315160351:20121209000000
Incident: Condor A320 near Stuttgart on Dec 9th 2012, smoke on board
The German BFU reported in their monthly bulletin that the aircraft was
enroute at FL350 when an eletrical odour was observed that changed into
smell of plastics. Shortly afterwards white smoke appeared in the cockpit,
the crew donned their oxygen masks and decided to divert to Stuttgart for
an overweight landing (68 tons) on runway 25. Although the smoke in the
cockpit had dissipated, the crew worked the checklists for an emergency
evacuation including crew on stations and “ENG MASTER SW”, emergency services
reported seeing no smoke or fire, so that the crew decided to not evacuate
and have passengers disembark via stairs and were bussed to the terminal.
No injuries occurred.

Post flight examination revealed the radar tranceiver located in the front
area of the avionics compartment had been cause of the smells and smoke.
It was removed from the aircraft and taken a special laboratory for further
examination.

The radar tranceiver with minor traces of soot (Photo: BFU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a43649
20130315160423:20121209000000
Incident: Condor A320 near Stuttgart on Dec 9th 2012, smoke on board
A Condor Airbus A320-200, registration D-AICI performing flight DE-7546
from Berlin Schoenefeld (Germany) to Las Palmas,CI (Spain) with 134 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at FL350 about 75nm northeast of Stuttgart (Germany)
when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in cockpit and cabin. The
aircraft diverted to Stuttgart for a safe landing on runway 25 about 17
minutes later and stopped on the runway. The passenger disembarked via stairs.

The airport was closed for about 45 minutes as a result.

The airline reported the cause of the smoke is still unclear and under investigation.
A replacement aircraft is going to continue the flight.

The airport reported there was smell of burning plastics and smell of smoke
in cockpit and cabin, the flight crew donned their oxygen masks. Two of
the four flight attendants were taken to a hospital with breathing problems.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration D-AICC reached Las Palmas with
a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a2f6a7
20121207233307:20121206000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 at New York on Dec 6th 2012, smell of smoke in cabin
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N178JB performing flight B6-1111
from New York JFK,NY to Raleigh/Durham,NC (USA) with 95 people on board,
was on a Breezy Point climb out of New York’s runway 31L when the crew requested
to level off at 6000 feet reporting cabin crew had just reported a smokey
odour in the back of the cabin. The crew requested to return to New York
to check the smell out, on approach the crew reported the smell had subsided
and the aircraft landed safely on runway 31L about 15 minutes after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a2e6b5
20121207213913:20121204000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Regina on Dec 4th 2012, generator failure and odour on board
A Westjet Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration C-GWAZ performing flight
WS-475 from Winnipeg,MB to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 127 people on board,
was enroute at FL400 about 135nm east of Regina,SK when the right hand generator
(engine CFM56) failed. A short time later, after the crew had completed
the relevant checklist, a strong burning electrical smell was noticed throughout
the aircraft. The crew declared emergency and diverted to Regina for a safe
landing about 30 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported there was no visible smoke. Maintenance found
the generator control unit had burned out. The unit was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a0a125
20121204235642:20121204000000
Incident: Argentinas B738 near Trelew on Dec 4th 2012, smoke in galley
An Aerolineas Argentinas Boeing 737-800, registration LV-CTC performing
flight AR-1693 from El Calafate,SC to Buenos Aires Aeroparque,BA (Argentina)
with 120 passengers, was enroute near Trelew when smoke appeared from a
galley prompting the crew to divert to Trelew for a safe landing.

A passenger tweeted a “short coffee” caused the diversion meaning a coffeemaker
suffered an electrical short circuit.

The passengers were rebooked onto other flights to Buenes Aires out of Trelew.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45a0903f
20121206175537:20121204000000
Incident: United B788 near New Orleans on Dec 4th 2012, electrical problems causing concerns of electrical heat on board
A United Boeing 787-800, registration N26902 performing flight UA-1146 from
Houston Intercontinental,TX to Newark,NJ (USA) with 174 passengers and 10
crew, was enroute at FL410 about 200nm north of New Orleans,LA when the
crew reported electrical problems and decided to divert to New Orleans.
Later on approach to New Orleans the crew reported they don’t really expect
anything however requested fire services to especially check the areas aft
of the wings, they had some strong electrical current in the cargo areas.
The aircraft landed safely on New Orleans’ runway 10 about 30 minutes after
leaving FL410 and stopped on the runway. Fire crews inspected the aircraft
and reported they saw no discolourization or other indications of heat,
fire or smoke, the aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron.

The airline confirmed a mechanical problem, engineers have been dispatched
to find out what caused the diversion.

A passenger reported the crew announced electrical problems and requested
cabin crew to watch out for discolourization of or dripping plastics.

Another passenger tweeted the crew announced an electrical malfunction.

Boeing told The Aviation Herald on Dec 6th 2012: “The airplane remains on
the ground as troubleshooting by the United and Boeing team continues. The
aft electronics bay was inspected and there were no signs of fire. Likewise
the power panels in that bay were inspected and there were no signs of arcing
present. One of the airplane’s six electric generators did fail. The multiple
redundancies built into the 787 ensured that the airplane remained powered.
The generator will be replaced, additional checks completed and the airplane
returned to service. There is no firm estimate for when this is expected
to be complete but should not take long.”

Runway 10 was closed at the time when the aircraft left FL410 due to work
in progress, works were interrupted, the runway was cleared and opened to
accept the aircraft. After the aircraft had vacated the runway, the runway
was closed again and works resumed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=459edf9a/0000
20131111172742:20121202000000
Incident: British Airways B772 over Atlantic on Dec 2nd 2012, smoke in cabin
The Irish AAIU released their final report without a formal conclusion but
stating “The cause of the smoke was later identified as a bearing failure
of the primary equipment cooling supply fan.”

The AAIU reported that while enroute over the Atlantic the crew experienced
three smoke encounters. The captain (pilot monitoring) described the third
smoke event as “quite bad” prompting the commander to instruct the first
officer (pilot flying) to don his oxygen mask, the captain declared Mayday
and instructed the aircraft to descend to FL150. The captain did not don
his oxygen mask considering this would impair radio communication. The aircraft
diverted to Shannon at FL150, while enroute to Shannon the crew actioned
the relevant smoke checklists and cleared the smoke. The crew therefore
downgraded the Mayday to PAN about 30 minutes after declaring Mayday reporting
that the diversion to Shannon was still necessary due to the higher fuel
burn at FL150, after working the checklists and following diagnosis the
right hand equipment cooling fan had failed. The aircraft landed safely
on Shannon’s runway 24 118 minutes after declaring Mayday.

Maintenance disabled the right hand cooling supply fan in accordance with
the aircraft maintenance manual and released the aircraft under minimum
equipment list requirements to return to London. The aircraft was ferried
to London.

Examination of the fan showed that the front bearing race had collapsed,
a common fault. Due to the contact of rotating parts with stationary parts
overheating occurred, internal protecting logic shut down the fan and activated
the left hand cooling fan.

All fan bearings of the faulty fan were replaced and the rotor balanced.

The AAIU commented: “This occurrence, which developed in mid-Atlantic, was
operationally well handled by the flight crew who, when faced with the threat
of smoke on the flightdeck, made the prudent decision to declare an emergency,
to make an early descent and to set course for the nearest diversion airport.
The AAIU is aware of several similar occurrences with other operatorís aircraft,
which have necessitated diversions into Irish airports. The Operator is
working towards the installation of vibration monitors, which should result
in early detection of fan issues and thus lead to a reduction in the number
of fan failures leading to in-flight smoke events.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=459edf9a
20121202173038:20121202000000
Incident: British Airways B772 over Atlantic on Dec 2nd 2012, smoke in cabin
A British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIK performing flight
BA-66 from Philadelphia,PA (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 180 people
on board, was enroute over the Atlantic Ocean about 400nm westnorthwest
of Shannon (Ireland) when the crew requested to divert to Shannon (Ireland)
reporting smoke in the cabin. The aircraft descended to FL150 and diverted
to Shannon, VHF radio contact with Shannon was established about 200nm out
with the help of another aircraft relaying messages from Shannon to BA-66
and back. The crew of BA-66 reported they had solved their issue in the
meantime and expected a normal landing. Concerns arose about landing conditions
at Shannon however, runway 06 was active and indicated by winds from 120
degrees at 11 knots, with reports of reducing visbility the crew of BA-66
became concerned they might not make it in and requested a CATII approach
to runway 24 again advising they had solved their issue and were happy to
taxi in without stop after landing. The aircraft subsequently landed safely
on runway 24 and taxied to the apron.

The airline confirmed a minor technical issue prompted the diversion to
Shannon. A replacement aircraft was dispatched to Shannon and took the passengers
to London.

A replacement Airbus A321-200 registration G-EUXE positioned to Shannon
as flight BA-9256 and reached London with a delay of 8 hours.

The incident aircraft positioned to London at normal cruise level departing
Shannon about 8:15 hours after touchdown and reached London with a delay
of 9.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45b23cec
20121226173747:20121127000000
Incident: Ukraine B733 at Liege on Nov 27th 2012, cargo fire indications
A Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration UR-FAA performing
flight PS-31R from Liege (Belgium) to Vienna (Austria), was climbing through
FL277 to FL350 out of Liege when the crew received multiple main deck cargo
fire indications. The crew donned their oxygen masks, worked the cargo fire
checklist and descended the aircraft to FL100. After levelling off at FL100
the fire indication disappeared, the crew could not notice any smoke/haze
or smell any unusual odour. The crew nonetheless decided to return to Liege
for a safe landing.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Transport reported in their monthly bulletin that
a faulty smoke detector was identified and replaced, in addition traces
of frost were detected on a panel of the main cargo deck that could have
triggered a false smoke indication. The investigation determined the fire
indications were false after dry ice transported by the aircraft evaporated
and triggered the smoke detectors, one of the smoke detectors was faulty.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4593ab96
20121118202424:20121116000000
Incident: PIA AT42 at Islamabad on Nov 16th 2012, rejected takeoff
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Avion de Transport Regional ATR-42-500,
registration AP-BHH performing flight PK-605 from Islamabad to Gilgit (Pakistan)
with 48 people on board, rejected takeoff from Islamabad at low speed due
to a configuration warning. However, the crew could not move the throttle
levers back past the flight idle position, during the subsequent taxi at
higher than normal thrust the brakes overheated causing smoke rising from
the gear. The aircraft stopped, emergency services responded and cooled
the brakes down.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The incident aircraft was able to resume service about 3 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45911b8e
20121115152122:20121115000000
Incident: Copa B737 near Bogota on Nov 15th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Copa Airlines Colombia Boeing 737-700, registration HP-1371CMP performing
flight P5-650/CM-650 from Bogota (Colombia) to Panama City (Panama) with
86 people on board, was climbing out of Bogota when the crew reported smoke
in the cabin and returned to Bogota for a safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=458f5897
20121214104235:20121113000000
Incident: Global Aviation MD82 at Johannesburg on Nov 13th 2012, rejected takeoff
A Global Aviation McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration ZS-TOG performing
charter flight QG-112 from Johannesburg (South Africa) to Llilongwe (Malawi)
with 120 passengers and 7 crew, was accelerating for takeoff from runway
03L about one minute after takeoff clearance when tower reported there was
smoke coming from an engine. The crew rejected takeoff and came to a stop
about 2400 meters/7900 feet down the runway indicating they might be able
to vacate the runway, tower however instructed the aircraft to hold position
on the runway while directing emergency services towards the aircraft.

The aircraft left debris behind while slowing and was subsequently seen
on the runway with the left wing low and right wing high.

The airport confirmed the MD-82 registration ZS-TOG rejected takeoff after
a tyre burst, a wheel caught fire. Emergency services responded. All passengers
and crew disembarked safely. The runway was closed for 5 hours as result
of the occurrence.

Ground observers reported the passengers and crew disembarked via the rear
tail stair of the aircraft, there had been no fire at all.

One ground observer reported he could see the left main gear intact, however,
both left main wheel tyres had separated from the wheels, the wheels had
been partially ground down causing the aircraft to lean to the left.

The US NTSB reported on Dec 14th 2012, that the aircraft experienced a wheel
failure on the left hand main gear during acceleration for takeoff from
Johannesburg. The pilot rejected takeoff and stopped the aircraft on the
runway 03L. The aircraft sustained damage to the left hand main gear, the
left hand main wheel assemblies, left hand engine and left hand wing. South
Africa’s CAA is investigating the incident, the NTSB have appointed an accredited
representative to participate in the investigation as representative of
the state of manufacture.

Global Aviation owns two MD-82s with the registrations ZS-TOG and ZS-GAB.

The MD-82 on the runway (Photo: Radioislam):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4589199b
20121105231149:20121105000000
Incident: El Al B744 near Shannon on Nov 5th 2012, smell of smoke on board
An El Al Boeing 747-400, registration 4X-ELD performing flight LY-7 from
Tel Aviv (Israel) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 338 people on board, was
enroute at FL340 about 140nm northwest of Shannon (Ireland) about to enter
Oceanic Airspace, when the crew decided to turn around without requesting
priority and set course in direction of London,EN (UK). About 20 minutes
later while descending through FL210 about 50nm east of Shannon the crew
declared PAN reporting an unidentified smell of smoke in the main cabin
and requested to now divert to Shannon (Ireland). The aircraft landed safely
on Shannon’s runway 24 about 25 minutes after declaring PAN, backtracked
the runway and taxied to the apron with emergency services following the
aircraft.

The passengers were taken to hotels.

A replacement Boeing 747-400 registration 4X-ELB has been dispatched from
Tel Aviv to Shannon as flight LY-21 and is expected to continue the flight
to New York.

The airport currently estimates the flight to continue on Nov 6th at 02:00L
(02:00Z).

4X-ELD after landing in Shannon:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=458146e5
20121116221813:20121026000000
Incident: Lufthansa B744 near Goose Bay on Oct 26th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, registration D-ABTL performing flight LH-431
from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 293 passengers
and 16 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 520nm northwest of Goose Bay,NL
(Canada) when the crew reported smoke in the cabin as result of an electrical
problem in one of the galleys and diverted to Goose Bay. The aircraft landed
safely on Goose Bay’s runway 08 about 70 minutes later.

Lufthansa’s Boeing 747-400 registration D-ABVD performing flight LH-430
departing Frankfurt on Oct 27th 2012 for Chicago O’Hare diverted to Goose
Bay to drop two mechanics off and is estimated to reach Chicago with a delay
of 3 hours.

The mechanics determined a coffee maker had malfunctioned.

The aircraft reached Frankfurt on Oct 28th at 06:00L with a delay of 24
hours, flight number still LH-431 (callsign DLH4T5).

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted to Goose Bay due to smoke as
result of a defective coffee maker. After a circuit breaker was replaced
certified maintenance engineers flown into Goose Bay released the aircraft
to service.

On Nov 16th 2012 the Canadian TSB reported that smoke and an electrical
smell were noticed in the business class right hand galley near the coffee
makers. All circuit breakers of the galley were pulled, power to the inflight
entertainment system and portable electronic devices disconnected, right
and left utility busses switched off. The coffee maker was removed, it was
noticed that its circuit breaker had popped. The crew did not declare emergency
but diverted to Goose Bay. Maintenance determined no other anomaly than
the coffee maker and released the aircraft to service, the aircraft completed
the journey without further incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=458084b7
20121026140536:20121026000000
Incident: Jetstar A320 near Christchurch on Oct 26th 2012, smokey odour in cockpit
A Jetstar Airbus A320-200, registration VH-VFD performing flight JQ-288
from Christchurch to Wellington (New Zealand), was climbing out of Christchurch
about 13 minutes into the flight when the crew stopped the climb at FL230
and returned to Christchurch due to a smokey odour in the cockpit. The aircraft
landed safely on Christchurch’s runway 02 about 30 minutes after departure.

The flight was subsequently cancelled, the passenger were rebooked onto
other flights.

The airline confirmed the aircraft returned due to engineering difficulties.

Passengers said a flight attendant noticed a strange odour in the cabin
which prompted the crew to return to Christchurch. The odour was very faint
like burning fabric.

Emergency services said they were told there was smoke in the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45908411
20121114221940:20121025000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Ft. McMurray on Oct 25th 2012, smokee maker
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-FCAG performing flight AC-851
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 216 people on board,
was enroute at FL380 near Fort McMurray,AB (Canada) about one hour prior
to estimated landing in Calgary when the #2 coffee maker in the forward
galley began to emit smoke prompting the crew to switch both utility electrical
busses off. The smoke subsided and the aircraft continued to Calgary for
a safe landing about 50 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported the #2 coffee maker was replaced.
(link above erroneously identifies an A330-300 on the incident flight)
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457ee823
20121024142028:20121021000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 near Phoenix on Oct 21st 2012, engine shut down in flight
An Allegiant McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-217 from Phoenix Mesa,AZ
to Bellingham,WA (USA) with 169 people on board, was climbing out of Phoenix
Mesa Gateway Airport when the crew reported a tail cone overheat indication
prompting them to shut the right hand engine down. The aircraft returned
to Mesa Gateway Airport, entered a hold to burn off fuel and landed safely
on Mesa’s runway 30L about 35 minutes after departure, the crew requested
emergency services to follow them to the apron to check for smoke off the
tail section.

A replacement MD-83 reached Bellingham with a delay of 3 hours.

A passenger reported the captain announced they had an overheating engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457d2a82
20121106133918:20121021000000
Incident: Emirates A332 at Lusaka on Oct 21st 2012, uncontained engine failure
An Emirates Airlines Airbus A330-200, registration A6-EAP performing flight
EK-714 from Lusaka (Zambia) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates), was enroute
about 30 minutes into the flight when the left hand engine (Trent 772) emitted
a loud bang prompting the crew to shut the engine down and return to Lusaka
for a safe landing. Passengers disembarked normally.

The airline confirmed the aircraft returned to Lusaka due to a technical
problem, the passengers were taken to hotels.

Sources at the airport said the aircraft burst a tyre on departure prompting
the crew to return.

Passengers reported they heard a loud bang on initial climb attributing
the bang to one of the engines.

A passenger added that they were enroute at FL320 about 33 minutes into
the flight when the left hand engine emitted a loud bang, some smoke and
fumes appeared temporarily in the cabin, sparks were visible from the left
hand engine, the cowling of which sustained two large holes inboard. Upon
disembarking the passenger saw two large holes at the outboard cowling of
the left hand engine as well. Ground personnel at Lusaka hinted that a
new engine was to be flown into Lusaka. The passenger said, flight and cabin
crew were excellent.

Another passenger said the engine blades tore into the outer skin.

Zambian newspapers had reported a crash landing at Lusaka claiming the aircraft
had burst a tyre, gone off the runway and received substantial damage, but
later retracted such stories now stating the aircraft was seen parked at
the apron in Lusaka on Monday.

On Nov 6th 2012 the French BEA reported quoting Zambian Authorities, that
the aircraft was climbing through FL240 about 132nm northeast of Lusaka
Airport when the captain heard a loud bang followed by smoke, severe vibrations
and sparks from the #1 engine. The crew worked the relevant checklists and
shut the engine down, the return flight was normal except for vibrations
still caused by the failed engine.

Another passenger’s photos (Photos: Aniq):
Passenger photo (Photo: Sid):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457ad2df
20121019161841:20121019000000
Incident: Thomas Cook B763 near Dublin on Oct 19th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Thomas Cook Boeing 767-300, registration G-TCCA performing flight MT-2038
from Manchester,EN (UK) to Tenerife Sur Reina Sofia,CI (Spain) with 323
people on board, was enroute at FL320 about 75nm southwest of Dublin (Ireland)
when the crew declared PAN reporting smoke in the cockpit requesting to
divert to Dublin. The aircraft landed on Dublin’s runway 28 about 20 minutes
later, vacated the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway to have emergency
services check the aircraft.

Dublin airport confirmed the aircraft diverted to Dublin reporting smoke
in the cockpit.

The airline said the aircraft diverted due to a minor technical issue.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457ac751
20121019145548:20121019000000
Incident: Norwegian B738 at Oslo on Oct 19th 2012, rejected takeoff
A Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 737-800, flight DY-742 from Oslo to Trondheim
(Norway) with 184 passengers, was accelerating for takeoff when the aircraft
started to skid. The crew rejected takeoff, the aircraft came to a safe
stop however smoke was observed in the cabin. No injuries occurred.

Oslo Airport reported that what was thought to be smoke was identified as
steam. The runway was very slippery causing difficulty during takeoff, the
aircraft however remained within the boundaries of the runway.

The airline said takeoff was rejected because of the aircraft beginning
to skid. The brakes got very hot resulting in some smoke, the aircraft stopped
on the runway.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration LN-NGD reached Trondheim with
a delay of 2.5 hours.

Metars:
ENGM 190812Z 20009KT CAVOK 08/06 Q1009 NOSIG
ENGM 190741Z 20007KT CAVOK 07/06 Q1009 NOSIG
ENGM 190711Z 21004KT 9999 FEW010 BKN220 07/06 Q1008 NOSIG
ENGM 190641Z 21005KT CAVOK 07/06 Q1008 NOSIG
ENGM 190611Z 22005KT 190V250 CAVOK 07/06 Q1007 NOSIG
ENGM 190541Z 21008KT 9999 FEW010 BKN015 08/06 Q1007 NOSIG
ENGM 190511Z 21009KT 9999 FEW009 BKN011 08/07 Q1007 NOSIG
ENGM 190447Z 21011KT 9999 BKN011 08/07 Q1006
ENGM 190412Z 21009KT 9999 FEW010 BKN012 08/07 Q1006 NOSIG
ENGM 190340Z 20011KT 9999 FEW010 BKN012 08/07 Q1006 NOSIG
ENGM 190315Z 21008KT 9999 FEW010 BKN012 08/07 Q1006
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457aa836/0000
20131010163636:20121019000000
Accident: jet2 B738 at Glasgow on Oct 19th 2012, rejected takeoff
The AAIB released their bulletin stating that one passenger received a serious
and 15 passengers minor injuries during the evacuation.

The aircraft was accelerating for takeoff when the flight crew became of
a strange smell in the cockpit, passengers and cabin crew noticed strange
smell followed by what appeared to be smoke from the overhead bins. The
chief flight attendant repeatedly pressed the flight deck call button to
alert the flight crew of a developing emergency situation in the cabin.
When the aircraft accelerated through 80 knots both pilots noticed “misting”
in the cockpit and the smell intensified. The captain called to reject takeoff,
closed the thrust levers, disconnected autothrottles, applied maximum braking,
selected the spoilers fully up and opened the thrust reversers. The first
officer confirmed the rejected takeoff and spoilers were fully open and
thrust reversers had opened. When the aircraft declerated through 60 knots
the first officer selected the flaps to 40 degrees to facilitate a possible
evacuation and radioed ATC they were stopping. The chief flight attendant
was called to the flight deck to brief on the status in the cabin, smoke
in the cabin was clearly visible through the flight deck door, the captain
therefore ordered the evacuation of the aircraft.

A number of passengers exited through the overwing exits, and given the
darkness did not recognize they could slide down the flaps and instead jumped
down. A number returned into the cabin and exited through the main doors.

Passengers evacuating through the doors slid down rapidly due to the wet
surface and had difficulty to clear the slide before the next passenger
arrived down. This caused collisions and injuries. The serious injury occurred
to female passenger (77) after sliding down the door slide, when she badly
landed on the runway and fractured bones in her neck. The 15 other minor
injuries occurred on the door slides as well as result of collisions or
being knocked over on slide off the end of the slide.

An initial examination of the aircraft’s engines did not reveal any anomaly.
The packs were examined and the right hand air recycle machine replaced
when it hesitated to operate during the examination. Laboratory analysis
revealed no anomaly however, analysis of the filters did not find any contamination.
The aircraft was testflown without recurrence before being returned to service.

The AAIB analysed: “No defects were identified on the aircraft that could
have led to the smoke or fumes that were seen and smelt.

Laboratory analysis of the cabin temperature sensor air filters, exposed
to cabin air, showed that there were no unusual substances or residues of
oil or hydraulic fluid present.

At the beginning of the flight, the air conditioning packs were selected
ON after engine start, in accordance with the standard operating procedures,
but later than on the other flights sampled. This, combined with the short
taxi time, may have meant that the cabin was slightly warmer than usual
by the time the takeoff commenced.

The ambient conditions on the day meant the air was humid, with the temperature
and dew point only one degree apart. As engine power was increased for takeoff,
more air was available for air conditioning and the air conditioning system
was able to supply colder air to the cabin to achieve the selected temperature.
As the cabin was warm and humid, this sudden influx of cold air, potentially
down to 1.7∞C, could have caused the formation of mist or fog in the cabin
which, in the low lighting conditions, could have given the appearance of
smoke or fumes.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457aa836
20121019153736:20121019000000
Accident: jet2 B738 at Glasgow on Oct 19th 2012, rejected takeoff
A jet2.com Boeing 737-800, registration G-GDFJ performing flight LS-177
from Glasgow,SC (UK) to Alicante,SP (Spain) with 189 passengers and 6 crew,
was accelerating for takeoff from Glasgow’s runway 05 when smoke appeared
in the cabin prompting the crew to reject takeoff at high speed. The aircraft
came to a safe stop, an evacuation via slides commenced causing injuries
to 17 occupants. 4 people were taken to hospitals, 13 were treated on site.

The airport was closed for 2:20 hours as result.

The AAIB have opened an investigation and dispatched investigators on site.

Evacuation in progress (Photo: Barry Gemmell):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457d75d7
20121022210308:20121018000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Calgary on Oct 18th 2012, burning odour in cabin
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-FWBX performing flight WS-167 from
Calgary,AB to Edmonton,AB (Canada) with 116 people on board, was climbing
out of Calgary#s runway 16 when the purser detected a burning smell and
haze in the mid cabin. The flight crew levelled off at about 8000 feet,
declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and returned to Calgary
for a safe landing on runway 28 about 10 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that maintenance identified a problem with the
Live TV system, further troubleshooting is underway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4579ef1b
20121018140100:20121018000000
Incident: Wideroe DH8A near Bergen on Oct 18th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Wideroe de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration LN-WII performing flight
WF-101 from Floro to Bergen (Norway) with 17 passengers, was on approach
to Bergen when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit,
later downgrading the emergency reporting the smoke was subsiding. The aircraft
continued for a safe landing in Bergen, the passengers disembarked normally.

The airline confirmed the crew declared emergency because of smoke in the
cockpit, after landing the captain briefed the passengers about what happened
before passengers disembarked.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457aeef9
20121019192526:20121017000000
Incident: Air Canada B773 at Vancouver on Oct 17th 2012, bird strike
An Air Canada Boeing 777-300, registration C-FIVR performing flight AC-7
from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Hong Kong (China) with 368 people on board,
was just rotating for takeoff from Vancouver’s runway 08R when the crew
observed a heron and believed it had struck the aircraft. There were no
abnormal indications, the crew therefore decided to continue the flight.
During the climb cabin crew however reported intermittent burning odour
in the cabin. The crew thus reported smoke in the cockpit, dumped fuel and
returned to Vancouver for a safe landing on runway 08R about one hour after
departure.

The Canadian TSB reported 40 tons of fuel were dumped, the aircraft landed
safely, brakes temperatures remained normal and the aircraft taxied to gate.
Maintenance found significant damage to the right hand engine’s (GE90) acoustic
tiles, that is being assessed by powerplant engineering. Feathers were recovered
from the engine and have been forwarded for identification.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45794f1e
20121017202219:20121015000000
Incident: Canadian North B733 near Edmonton on Oct 15th 2012, addicted oven
A Canadian North Boeing 737-300, registration C-GCNK performing flight 5T-1717
from Fort MacKay,AB to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 61 people on board, was
enroute at FL340 about 100nm north of Edmonton when a flight attendant observed
smoke from the aft galley. The crew declared emergency and diverted to Edmonton
for a safe landing on Edmonton’s runway 20 about 20 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance determined an oven in the aft galley
had been smoking.

NAV Canada reported the oven had been inadvertently turned on, the aircraft
was examined and returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45775059
20121015122835:20121015000000
Incident: SAS B738 near Trondheim on Oct 15th 2012, instrument problem
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration LN-RCZ performing
flight SK-4409 from Tromso to Oslo (Norway) with 159 passengers, was enroute
at FL360 about 30nm southeast of Trondheim (Norway) when the crew decided
to divert to Trondheim due to problems with some instruments. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 09 about 15 minutes later.

Passengers reported the captain announced some instruments had gone black.
Subsequently there was smoke.

The airport said, there had been no emergency and no priority.

The airline said the diversion was precautionary, there was no smoke.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=457672a7
20121017174855:20121014000000
Accident: Corendon B738 at Antalya on Oct 14th 2012, cockpit fire
A Corendon Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration TC-TJK performing flight
7H-773 from Antalya (Turkey) to Trondheim (Norway) with 189 passengers and
7 crew, was being pushed back from the gate at Antalya, when smoke appeared
in the cockpit and soon after in the cabin prompting the captain to initiate
an evacuation of the aircraft via slides. 27 passengers were taken to hospitals,
two of them received serious injuries (fracture of leg, fracture of arm),
25 passengers received minor injuries, all injuries were the result of the
evacuation.

The airline confirmed the aircraft was evacuated because of smoke in the
cockpit. The aircraft was removed from service due to minor damage received
during the occurrence. 27 passengers were taken to hospitals.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration TC-TJJ reached Trondheim with
157 passengers and a delay of 4 hours.

Passengers reported a number of passengers were exiting the aircraft through
the overwing exits but had no way to get down and were standing on the wings.
When yelling occurred, that the aircraft was on fire, those passengers standing
on the wings jumped down, the injuries resulted from these jumps. The smoke
had started in the front of the cabin appearing like coming from one of
the crew lockers.

On Oct 15th the FAA reported that smoke filled cockpit and cabin while the
aircraft was being pushed back, 27 passengers received unknown injuries
during the evacuation. The FAA does not mention any fire.

The NTSB tweeted that the NTSB is going to join the investigation. In a
later released press release the NTSB stated that there had been a cockpit
fire during pushback.

TC-TJK during the emergency (Photo: Corendon Airlines):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4577639b
20121015130751:20121013000000
Incident: AirTran B712 near Louisville on Oct 13th 2012, smell of smoke
An AirTran Boeing 717-200, flight FL-186 from Atlanta,GA to Indianapolis,IN
(USA) with 109 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL320 about 20nm southeast
of Louisville,KY (USA) when the crew reported smell of smoke on board and
diverted to Louisville for a safe landing about 15 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45f2aee9
20130314115620:20121011000000
Report: Thomas Cook B752 at Glasgow and near Manchester on Oct 11th 2012 and Oct 12th 2012, smoke/fumes on board
A Thomas Cook Boeing 757-200, registration G-FCLA performing flight MT-3549
from Dalaman (Turkey) to Glasgow,SC (UK) with 231 passengers and 8 crew,
had safely landed and had reached the gate, passengers were disembarking
via the jetway attached to the L2 door. While approaching the gate the crew
had activated the APU, the APU started normally without any anomaly and
without smells, the crew subsequently focussed on post flight activities
when some time during disembarkation the captain became aware of a strong
smell and some blue haze in the cockpit. The captain (57, ATPL, 16,000 hours
total, 12,000 hours on type) left the cockpit, discovered thick smoke in
the cabin, the front section of the cabin was already empty however there
were still passengers in the rear section of the cabin, the commander therefore
went to the next intercom and ordered the immediate evacuation of the aircraft.
The doors L4 and R4 were re-armed then opened, the slides deployed and passengers
evacuated onto the apron, the door R3 was also re-armed and opened with
passengers using that exit, the door L3 remained closed due to obstacles
outside, doors L1/R1 were not used because the front section of the cabin
was already empty. One of about 60 passengers using the slides received
a very minor injury in the evacuation.

Maintenance identified the APU as source of the smoke and scheduled the
APU to be replaced three days later, in the meantime the APU was deactivated
under minimum equipment list requirements and the aircraft returned to service.

The following day the aircraft departed Glasgow for flight MT-3212 to Tenerife
Sur Sofia Reina,CI (Spain) with 241 passengers and 8 crew. Following engine
start the aircraft taxied out to the runway without any obvious smells,
however, when engine thrust was increased for takeoff a strong fuel/oil
smell became obvious. The crew, aware of the previous day’s events, were
not concerned and continued the takeoff, the smell seemed to subside during
the climb. The aircraft had reached FL350 about 50nm northwest of Manchester,EN
(UK) when both pilots started to feel unwell with light headedness and dizziness.
Both pilots donned their oxygen masks, declared PAN and initiated a diversion
to Manchester and began to action the fumes and smoke checklists. The pilots
improved, there seemed to be no fumes or smell in the cabin, the pilots
thus stopped at the first completion point of the checklist. Some time later,
while on approach to land, a lavatory smoke detector activated. The crew
continued for a safe landing on Manchester’s runway 23L about 30 minutes
after leaving FL350.

The British Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) released their bulletin
into both events reporting that following the first event maintenance decided
to replace the APU, however deferred the replacement until three days later,
deactivated the APU and released the aircraft to service under minimum equipment
list requirements. There was one very minor injury as result of the evacuation
of about 60 passengers.

The following day after landing both flight crew were taken to a hospital
for checks, both were released the same day. The aircraft underwent engineering
checks and engine ground runs were conducted with no anomaly identified.
It was suspected that residual oil may have remained in the air conditioning
or equipment cooling systems as result of the previous day’s events and
engineering activities. The aircraft departed for its next flight about
9 hours after landing and resumed service the following day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4574470b
20121012102541:20121011000000
Incident: Kuwait B772 near Cardiff on Oct 11th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Kuwait Airways Boeing 777-200, registration 9K-AOB performing flight KU-101
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute at FL360
about 60nm northwest of Cardiff,WL (UK) when the crew declared emergency
reporting visible smoke in the cabin, descended the aircraft to FL200 while
turning back and returned to London Heathrow dumping fuel on the way. The
aircraft landed safely on Heathrow’s runway 09R about one hour after departure.

A passenger reported the captain announced they were returning to Heathrow
due to technical reasons. After landing the captain announced they had returned
to London due to visible smoke in the cabin. The passengers deplaned about
3 hours after landing, the flight was postponed to the next day.

Heathrow Airport reported the mist appearing in the cabin was identified
as steam from the air conditioning system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45735ee3
20121010174056:20121009000000
Incident: Gojet CRJ7 at Grand Rapids on Oct 9th 2012, rejected takeoff
A Gojet Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United, registration N171GJ performing
flight G7-3654/UA-3654 from Grand Rapids,MI to Denver,CO (USA) with about
70 people on board, was accelerating for takeoff from runway 17 when the
crew rejected takeoff at high speed reporting smoke in the cabin. The aircraft
came to a stop near the intersection with runway 26L about 3300 feet/1000
meters down the runway and was evacuated. Emergency services responded.

All runways were temporarily closed to facilitate the emergency, runway
26R was opened about 10 minutes later but due to weight restrictions and
limited length could not be used for some arrivals and departures.

Passengers reported that smoke began to appear from the back of the cabin
when the engines accelerated for takeoff, people started to shout, about
half way down the runway the takeoff was rejected. Flight attendants began
to evacuate the aircraft to the left.

Air Traffic Control told other aircraft operating into and out of Grand
Rapids that the aircraft had rejected takeoff, both cockpit and cabin had
been full of smoke and the occupants had evacuated, it would last at least
half an hour to one hour to get one of the main runways 17 or 26L open again,
new clearances could be expected in about 55 minutes prompting a number
of aircraft to divert.

About 45 minutes after the rejected takeoff, after all passengers had been
collected and bussed to the terminal, main runway 26L was re-opened permitting
the airport to resume normal operation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456dc0b2
20121003203758:20121003000000
Incident: SAS B738 near Stavanger on Oct 3rd 2012, unruly passengers
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration LN-RRL performing
flight SK-809 from Oslo (Norway) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute
at FL360 about 100nm southsoutheast of Stavanger (Norway) when the captain
decided to divert to Stavanger to offload two unruly passengers. The aircraft
landed safely on Stavanger’s runway 18 about 20 minutes later. Police arrested
the two unruly passengers.

The aircraft reached London with a delay of 3 hours.

Police reported the heavily intoxicated woman (32) and man (34) started
a brawl with cabin crew over not getting more alocohol and not being permitted
to smoke. Both have been charged.

The airline said the two behaved so badly that the captain decided to let
police deal with the two. Half of the crew was replaced to permit crew provide
testimony to police without further delaying the flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456d7e32
20121003132642:20121002000000
Incident: KLM B737 over North Sea on Oct 2nd 2012, smoke in cabin
A KLM Boeing 737-700, registration PH-BGL performing flight KL-1197 from
Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Stavanger (Norway) with 53 passengers, was enroute
at FL410 over the North Sea about 170nm west of Billund (Denmark) when the
crew reported smoke in the cabin and divert to Billund advising the smoke
was subsiding. The aircraft landed safely and normally in Billund about
30 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled. The passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456cb0a5
20121002180753:20121002000000
Incident: American B772 over Atlantic on Oct 2nd 2012, smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N762AN performing flight
AA-98 from Stephenville,NL (Canada) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute
at FL380 over the Atlantic Ocean when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
and diverted to Shannon (Ireland). While descending towards Shannon the
crew advised they intended to taxi straight to the gate after landing. The
aircraft landed safely on runway 24 and taxied to the gate with emergency
services following the aircraft to the gate.

The aircraft had already diverted to Stephenville on its way from Chicago
O’Hare,IL (USA) to London due to a medical emergency after a passenger suffered
symptoms of a heart attack. The aircraft was on the ground in Stephenville
for about 2.5 hours.

The airline reported smell of smoke was detected in the cabin believed to
originate from an overheated fan, there was no visible smoke. The problem
is being isolated, the aircraft is estimated to continue shortly.

Due to crew duty time limitations the remainder of the flight was postponed
to the next day, the passengers were taken to hotels.
N762AN at Shannon:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456d75f3
20121010183052:20121001000000
Incident: US Airways A332 near Halifax on Oct 1st 2012, overheated galley
A US Airways Airbus A330-200, registration N282AY performing flight US-796
from Philadelphia,PA (USA) to Tel Aviv (Israel) with 233 people on board,
was enroute at FL350 about 115nm east of Halifax,NS (Canada) and 170nm eastsoutheast
of Moncton,NB (Canada) when the crew reported an overheated galley and was
cleared to divert to Halifax. On approach the crew was advised that Halifax
had no ILS only a NDB available, the threshold of active runway 23 was displaced
with no approach lights available due to work in progress. The crew opted
to divert to Moncton upon that information, entered a hold at 6000 feet
to burn off fuel and landed safely on Moncton’s runway 29 about one hour
after the decision to divert.

An Airbus A330-200 registration N285AY positioned to Moncton and returned
the passengers to Philadelphia departing Moncton about 13 hours after landing.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration N284AY reached Tel Aviv with
a delay of 24 hours as flight US-796.

On Oct 10th 2012 the Canadian TSB reported a flight attendant observed an
aft galley oven emit high heat, removed power from the galley but the heat
still increased and light smoke became visible. A fire extinguisher was
discharged into the oven, while the flight crew declared emergency and diverted
to Moncton. Maintenance replaced the suspect oven, the surrounding structures
howed no discolouration due to heat exposure and the aircraft was returned
to service. Examination of the removed oven revealed no anomaly.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456cb8bd
20121002155327:20121001000000
Incident: Corsica A320 at Ajaccio on Oct 1st 2012, smoke in cockpit
An Air Corsica Airbus A320-200, registration F-HDMF performing flight XK-800
from Ajaccio to Lourdes (France) with 180 passengers, was climbing out of
Ajaccio when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, stopped the climb at
about 10,000 feet and returned to Ajaccio for a safe landing.

A replacement A320-200 registration F-HDGK reached Lourdes with a delay
of 5.5 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to resume service about 9 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456c2560
20121001223650:20121001000000
Incident: China Southern A319 at Zhengzhou on Oct 1st 2012, burst four tyres on landing
A China Southern Airbus A319-100, registration B-6220 performing flight
CZ-6276 from Chongqing to Zhengzhou (China), landed on Zhengzhou’s runway
12 when during roll out all 4 main gear tyres deflated causing sparks and
smoke from the landing gear. The aircraft came to a safe stop on the runway
and was disabled. Emergency services responded. The passengers disembarked
normally onto the runway.

The airport needed to be closed for about 2 hours until the aircraft was
removed from the runway.

Tracks on the runway:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456bc17f
20121001113935:20120930000000
Incident: Delta B738 near Jacksonville on Sep 30th 2012, oven in need of a smoke
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N3756 performing charter flight
DL-8900 from Baltimore,MD to Saint Petersburg,FL (USA) carrying the Baltimore
Orioles baseball team, was enroute at FL320 about 50nm north of Jacksonville,FL
when the crew reported an oven in the forward galley emitted smoke and sparks.
The crew decided to divert to Jacksonville. The smoke subsided during the
descent, the oven however was still hot. On tower the crew reported the
situation was improving, they were planning to vacate the runway and taxi
to the apron. The aircraft continued for a safe landing on Jacksonville’s
runway 08 about 20 minutes later and taxied to the apron.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 reached St. Petersburg with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456c17a9
20121001205943:20120926000000
Incident: Air Canada A333 at Frankfurt on Sep 26th 2012, acrid smell, thin smoke and temperature rise in cockpit
An Air Canada Airbus A330-300, registration C-GFUR performing flight AC-845
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 235 people on
board, was climbing out of Frankfurt’s runway 25C when the crew reported
a strong acrid smell, thin visible smoke and a temperature rise in the cockpit
and requested an immediate return to Frankfurt. The aircraft levelled off
at FL070 and landed safely but overweight on runway 25C about 12 minutes
after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported the crew noticed an acrid smell in cockpit and
cabin, thin visible smoke and a temperature rise was observed in the cockpit.
The aircraft landed 40 tons overweight. Maintenance determined the #1 air
conditioning system as source of the smoke.

An observer on the ground reported a high number of emergency vehicles including
fire engines and ambulances deployed to runway 25C a few minutes prior to
the A330 landing at what appeared a higher than normal speed. The aircraft
vacated the runway and taxied to a remote apron at the western end of the
aerodrome soon being surrounded by all emergency vehicles, fire brigades
checking out the landing gear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45671425
20120925202417:20120925000000
Incident: Sky Work D328 near Southend on Sep 25th 2012, electrical smell and smoke
A Sky Work Airlines Dornier Do-328, registration HB-AEV performing flight
SX-503 from London City,EN (UK) to Berne (Switzerland) with 26 people on
board, was enroute near Southend,EN (UK) when the crew reported an electrical
smell and smoke on board and diverted to Southend. During the approach the
crew reported the smoke had cleared, the smell persisted and continued for
a safe landing in Southend. Following inspection by emergency services the
aircraft taxied to the apron.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456c1b42
20121001212509:20120923000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 at Montreal on Sep 23rd 2012, burning smell
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N14105 performing
flight EV-4575/UA-4575 from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Newark,NJ (USA) with
35 people on board, was in the initial climb out of Montreal’s runway 24L
when a strong burning smell developed on board. The crew declared emergency
and returned to Montreal for a safe landing on runway 24L about 9 minutes
after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported the crew did not observe any visible smoke. The
passengers deplaned normally at the gate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=456c1a2f
20121001211729:20120922000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 at Los Angeles on Sep 22nd 2012, aft cargo smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-GAQZ performing flight AC-798
from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 107 people on board,
was in the initial climb out of Los Angeles’ runway 24R through about 2000
feet when the crew received a brief aft cargo smoke indication, which extinguished
but was followed by a smoke detector fault indication. The crew declared
PAN and returned to Los Angeles for a safe overweight landing on runway
25L about 12 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported no smoke or damage was detected, maintenance replaced
the smoke detection control unit. The overweight landing was within limits.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45784dcf
20140426202359:20120921000000
Incident: SAS B737 near Amsterdam on Sep 21st 2012, smoke in cockpit
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration SE-REU performing
flight SK-531 from Stockholm (Sweden) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute
at FL400 about 110nm northeast of Amsterdam (Netherlands) when the crew
decided to divert to Amsterdam due to smoke emanating from a flight management
system’s multi function control and display unit in the cockpit. The aircraft
landed safely on Schiphol Airport’s runway 18C about 25 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.

The incident aircraft was able to position back to Stockholm as flight SK-9111
after about 4 hours on the ground in Amsterdam.

On Oct 16th 2012 Netherland’s Onderzoeksraad reported they have opened an
investigation into the occurrence.

In their quarterly bulletin released on Apr 25th 2014 the Onderzoekraad
reported that the investigation has been terminated without a final report.
The investigation so far established that the smoke originated from a Multi
Function Control and Display unit (MCDU) connected to the flight management
system. The smoke dissipated after the MCDU had been disconnected from electrical
power. Examination by the manufacturer of the MCDU identified a faulty transistor
in the power supply of the MCDU, the impact of the fault remained within
the design requirements. Boeing as aircraft manufacturer concluded no further
safety measures were needed arguing that the limited release of smoke does
not seriously impair the crew and operation of the aircraft. Based on the
available checklists, the crew testimonies the DSB concluded the crew responded
adequately and quickly and effectively stopped the emission of smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=455ab5b9
20120910165737:20120910000000
Incident: TAP A320 near Madrid on Sep 10th 2012, smoke in cabin
A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A320-200, registration CS-TNK performing flight
TP-834 from Lisbon (Portugal) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with 109 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at FL380 about 90nm southeast of Madrid,SP (Spain)
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted to Madrid for a safe
landing on runway 33R about 30 minutes later.

Airport sources reported a burned wire was found.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=455abefa
20120910180833:20120909000000
Incident: Commutair DH8B near Johnstown on Sep 9th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Commutair de Havilland Dash 8-200 on behalf of United, registration N362PH
performing flight C5-785/UA-4785 from Washington Dulles,DC to Cleveland,OH
(USA) with 37 passengers, was climbing out of Washington when passengers
and cabin crew smelled smoke in the cabin prompting the flight crew to stop
the climb at 10,000 feet and divert to Johnstown,PA for a safe landing about
20 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

A replacement Dash 8-200 registration N379PH reached Cleveland with a delay
of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4562b818
20120920191254:20120903000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Gander on Sep 3rd 2012, fire in lavatory
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-FMWP performing flight AC-831
from Geneva (Switzerland) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 215 people on board,
was enroute at FL360 about 65nm northeast of Gander,NL (Canada) when a smoke
detector activated in a mid wing lavatory. Cabin crew discovered an actual
fire in the lavatory trash receptacle and discharged a halon extinguisher,
while the flight crew declared PAN and advised of a possible diversion to
Gander. After it had been determined that the fire was extinguished and
there was no damage to the aircraft the flight crew cancelled the PAN and
continued the flight to Montreal for a safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4554f709
20121203170131:20120903000000
Accident: XL Airways B738 at Cologne on Sep 3rd 2012, injuries after malfunction of air conditioning system
An XL Airways Germany Boeing 737-800, registration D-AXLF performing flight
G1-110 from Hanover to Cologne/Bonn (Germany) with 186 passengers, 10 infants
and 6 crew, had safely landed on Cologne’s runway 24 and was taxiing towards
the terminal, when smoke appeared in the cabin seemingly originating from
the air conditioning vents. The occupants rapidly deplaned via stairs. 11
passengers needed treatment by medical services at the airport.

Passengers reported the smell of kerosene on board, then smoke appeared
in the cabin.

Airport Authorities reported the aircraft was evacuated (editorial note:
photos of the scene show no evacuation slides deployed, but stairs at the
aircraft), 7 passengers were treated for minor smoke inhalation, 4 passengers
were taken to a hospital. The cause of the smoke was unknown, Airport police
confirmed however that passengers reported the smell of kerosene.

The airline reported that upon touch down smoke exited the air conditioning
vents for a couple of seconds, the cause being unclear. The following day
(Sep 4th) the airline added that a defective hydraulic check valve near
the wheel well was found. There was no smoke but vapour of hydraulic fluid
that produced a pungent odour.

Cologne Fire services reported 11 people were taken to local hospitals with
irritations of respiratory tract. 5 passengers received serious, 6 minor
injuries.

The BFU responded to the occurrence and sent investigators on site, cockpit
voice and flight data recorders were downloaded. First investigation results
suggest a malfunction of the air conditioning system emitted steam, there
was no evidence of smoke.

The aircraft bound for Gaziantep (Turkey) had earlier returned to Hanover
already, after the crew had levelled off at FL110 due to an odour on board.
The aircraft landed back in Hanover about 45 minutes after departure. Following
maintenance the aircraft departed Hanover for Cologne about 5:40 hours after
landing back.

A replacement Atlas Air Airbus A321-200 registration TC-ETF reached Gaziantep
with a total delay of 24 hours.

In their September Bulletin released on Dec 3rd 2012 Germany’s BFU reported
that cabin crew believed to have observed some unusual smell during climb
and informed the commander. The flight was continued. During touchdown on
runway 24 a flight attendant observed smoke and odour coming from one of
the over wing emergency exits, she could not determine whether it was smoke,
steam or mist, the odour was “horrible and caustic, which hit her lungs”.
9 seconds after “slightly positive touchdown”, vertical acceleration 1.4G,
while airspeed decayed through 100 knots, the captain, pilot flying, noticed
black smoke invading the cockpit through the air conditioning vents and
turned off both air conditioning systems and observed the smoke decreased.
The first officer noticed gray smoke from the air conditioning vents which
decreased after the captain had turned off both packs. After the aircraft
vacated the runway he opened his side window to release the rest of the
smoke. In the meantime the passengers became agitated, some passengers boxed
the overhead panels opening the oxygen mask containers, multiple annoncements
by flight attendants weren’t able to calm the passengers. The captain continued
taxi to the park position, both packs were activated again during taxi about
3 minutes prior to reaching the parking position, the doors were opened
at the assigned parking position. The disembarkment of passengers however
was disorderly, cabin crew perceived the passengers as highly emotional
and aggressive. 11 passengers were taken to hospital but were able to continue
to Gaziantep the following day. Maintenance found hydraulic fluid along
the full length of the tubing to the pneumatic manifold, the contamination
began at the connector to the hydraulic reservoir pressurization system,
in the tube and filter to the hydraulic A-system considerable amounts of
hydraulic fluid were found. The needle showing the filling level was near
the full state, however could not be exactly determined due to the glass
being steamed up, the indicator of the B system was beyond full. Boeing
customer support had warned in 2004, that filling the hydraulic reservoirs
beyond full would result in hydraulic fluid entering the pneumatic system
and air conditioning systems.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4551bcca
20120830200900:20120828000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Oakland on Aug 28th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N472WN performing flight
WN-2899 from Oakland,CA to Reno,NV (USA) with 119 people on board, was climbing
out of Oakland’s runway 29 when the crew reported smoke in the cabin, stopped
the climb at about 11,000 feet and returned to Oakland for a safe landing
on runway 29 about 13 minutes after departure and taxied to the apron indicating
they were okay.

The airline reported a flight attendant smelled smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4550d7da
20120829202605:20120825000000
Incident: Transat A313 near Moncton on Aug 25th 2012, crew dismantle smoking ADF in flight
An Air Transat Airbus A310-300, registration C-GTSK performing flight TS-269
from Barcelona,SP (Spain) to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 229 people on board,
was enroute at FL360 near the Magdalen Islands northeast of Moncton,NB (Canada)
when the crew observed smoke coming from the ADF case #2. The crew tripped
the relevant circuit breaker, the smoke however continued. The crew therefore
removed the case from the ADF and unconnected the ADF, after which the smoke
stopped. The aircraft continued to Toronto for a safe landing about 2 hours
later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance determined some overheating had occurred
in the internal electronics of the ADF. The ADF was replaced, the faulty
ADF is undergoing further examination to find the cause of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=454ad97f
20120822175333:20120821000000
Incident: JAL B763 near Tokyo on Aug 21st 2012, smoke in cockpit
A JAL Japan Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration JA615J performing flight
JL-741 from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Manila (Philippines) with 240 people
on board, was climbing out of Tokyo when smoke appeared in the cockpit originating
from the lower part of the steering panel. The crew stopped the climb at
FL200 and returned to Narita Airport for a safe landing on runway 16R about
40 minutes after departure. By the time the aircraft touched down the smoke
had dissipated. The passengers disembarked normally.

Japan’s Transport Ministry reported the smoke originated from the lower
part of the steering panel and subsided prior to landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=454a179c
20120821225138:20120821000000
Incident: Lufthansa B735 near Dusseldorf on Aug 21st 2012, bird strike, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Boeing 737-500, registration D-ABIC performing flight LH-3386
from Dusseldorf (Germany) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was climbing out of
Dusseldorf’s runway 23L when the crew stopped the climb at FL250 about 120nm
west of Dusseldorf reporting smoke in the cockpit and returned to Dusseldorf
for a safe landing on runway 05L in opposite direction of active runways
23. The aircraft taxied to the apron with emergency services in trail.

An observer on the ground reported after the aircraft had reached the apron
emergency services remained in attendance for 25 more minutes before the
fire trucks returned to their bases.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

The airline reported the odour prompting the return was identified to be
the result of an engine (CFM56) ingesting a bird during departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=454eb479
20120827212845:20120819000000
Incident: Flybe AT72 at Helsinki on Aug 19th 2012, runway excursion
A Flybe Finland (former Finncomm) Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500,
registration OH-ATH performing flight BE-3992 from Tampere to Helsinki (Finland),
performed an instrument approach to Helsinki Vantaa Airport’s runway 22L
in good weather and calm winds, however with the Travel Limiter Unit (TLU)
stuck at the high speed setting intended to reduce forces on the tail plane
by limiting available rudder travel above 185 KIAS. After touch down the
aircraft veered right off the runway, the right main gear departed paved
surface and went over grass until the crew was able to steer the aircraft
back onto the runway. There were no injuries and no damage to the aircraft
or runway.

Finland’s Onnettomuustutkintakeskus (SIAF, Safety Investigation Authority
Finland) opened an investigation into the serious incident. The lead investigator
said, that the rudder pedals practically did not move at all after landing.
The investigation will also look into other occurrences with the TLU stuck
at the high speed settings including the accident of Air Dolomiti AT72 I-ADCD
in Munich, see Accident: Dolomiti AT72 at Munich on May 17th 2012, smoke
in cockpit, engine problem, runway excursion on landing. The similiarities
between OH-ATH and I-ADCD, if there are any, however are limited to the
TLU stuck at the high speed setting, OH-ATH had no other technical difficulties.
Metars:
EFHK 190520Z 21004KT 9999 FEW005 SCT027 BKN060 17/16 Q1012 NOSIG
EFHK 190450Z 23003KT 9000 FEW003 BKN070 17/15 Q1012 NOSIG
EFHK 190420Z 24004KT 9000 -RA FEW003 BKN075 16/16 Q1012 NOSIG
EFHK 190350Z 25003KT 8000 FEW003 BKN080 BKN130 16/15 Q1012 NOSIG
EFHK 190320Z 23004KT CAVOK 16/15 Q1013 NOSIG
EFHK 190250Z 25003KT CAVOK 16/15 Q1013 NOSIG
EFHK 190220Z 23003KT CAVOK 16/15 Q1013 NOSIG
EFHK 190150Z 24003KT CAVOK 16/15 Q1013 NOSIG
EFHK 190120Z 24003KT CAVOK 16/15 Q1013 NOSIG

Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45490864
20120820145357:20120819000000
Incident: United B752 near Newark on Aug 19th 2012, unusual odour on board
A United Boeing 757-200, flight UA-409 from Newark,NJ to Seattle,WA (USA),
was climbing through 14,000 feet out of Newark when the crew decided to
return to Newark reporting smoke in the cockpit. During descent back to
Newark the crew reported the smoke appeared to be going down and indicated
they would be able to vacate the runway. The aircraft landed safely on Newark’s
runway 04L about 20 minutes after departure and vacated the runway.

The airline said the aircraft returned to Newark due to an unusual odour
aboard which was later linked to the air conditioning system.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N553UA reached Seattle with a
delay of 4:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=454b051a
20120822223601:20120818000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Edmonton on Aug 18th 2012, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FDRK performing flight AC-154
from Edmonton,AB to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 141 people on board, was climbing
through 5000 feet out of Edmonton when the crew received an avionics smoke
indication and decided to return to Edmonton for a safe overweight landing
about 12 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance replaced the avionics smoke detector,
determined the overweight landing was within limits and returned the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4547f10a
20120819065128:20120818000000
Incident: United B752 at Newark on Aug 18th 2012, blew tyre on takeoff, both engines "red"
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N17126 performing flight UA-96 from
Newark,NJ (USA) to Berlin Tegel (Germany) with 173 people on board, was
departing Newark’s runway 11 when just before being handed off to departure
the crew reported they blew a tyre and declared emergency. After contacting
departure the crew reported they lost their engines (plural, RB211) and
declared emergency. Departure reported streaks of flames were seen from
the left hand engine, crew queried intensively left engine and then reported
they had two “red engines”. The aircraft climbed to 3000 feet, the next
departure off Newark reported the United had blown a tyre on the left hand
side on runway 04L. The crew reported the left hand engine was showing overtemperature
with a chunking banging and vibration on the left side while the right hand
engine had cleared in the meantime. The aircraft climbed to 4000 feet to
burn off fuel and returned to Newark for a safe landing on runway 04R about
100 minutes after departure. The crew reported “ops normal” after landing
and taxied their aircraft to the gate.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N18112 departed Newark with a
delay of 5 hours.

The FBI said the crew reported a burst tyre on takeoff resulting in flames
seen from the left hand engine.

The FAA said the crew reported a problem after departure, however, the engines
were operating normally at landing.

Observers on the ground reported repeated banging sounds from the aircraft,
no smoke was seen however streaks of flames from the left hand engine (suggesting
the engine suffered compressor stalls or surges).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45427f1f
20120812184953:20120812000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Hartford on Aug 12th 2012, some indication
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-1595 from Providence,RI to
Tampa,FL (USA) with 143 passengers, was climbing through FL250 when the
crew requested to descend back to FL240 indicating they would divert shortly.
After initially selecting Baltimore,MD for the diversion the crew subsequently
eyed Philadelphia,PA before deciding to divert to Newark,NJ. The crew went
ahead to declare emergency although reporting the indicator light had gone
out in the meantime. The aircraft landed safely on Newark’s runway 22L about
30 minutes after returning to FL240, the crew requested emergency services
to check for signs of smoke, in absence of any observations of smoke the
crew taxied the aircraft to the apron.

The airline reported the crew received an indicator light, deemed the indication
most likely false but didn’t want to take any chances.

Passengers tweeted the crew did a great job but didn’t know why they diverted.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45425f96
20120812153149:20120812000000
Incident: Aegean A320 near Athens on Aug 12th 2012, smoke indication
An Aegean Airbus A320-200, registration SX-DVN performing flight A3-316
from Athens to Heraklion (Greece), was climbing through about FL250 when
the crew received a smoke indication and decided to return to Athens for
a safe landing about 15 minutes later.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration SX-DVX reached Heraklion with
a delay of 90 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45427768
20120905191655:20120811000000
Incident: US Airways B762 near Boston on Aug 11th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A US Airways Boeing 767-200, registration N251AY performing flight US-750
from Philadelphia,PA (USA) to Brussels (Belgium), was enroute at FL370 about
200nm east of Boston,MA when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
decided to divert to Boston. On approach to Boston the crew reported visibility
in the cockpit was good again, there was still intermittent smell of smoke
however. The aircraft landed safely on Boston’s runway 22L about 40 minutes
later, vacated the runway and taxied straight to the apron.

A replacement Boeing 767-200 registration N245AY reached Brussels with a
delay of about 9 hours.

On Aug 13th 2012 NAV Canada reported the crew reported an electrical smell
and possible smoke in the cockpit.

On Sep 5th 2012 the Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified an inoperative
avionics recirculation fan as source of the odour. The incident aircraft
positioned to Philadelphia under minimum equipment list requirements due
to the fan remaining inoperative, the fan was replaced in Philadelphia.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45409f7e
20120810142156:20120809000000
Incident: Easyjet A319 near Milan on Aug 9th 2012, cargo fire indication
An Easyjet Airbus A319-100, registration G-EZBC performing flight U2-2863
from Milan Malpensa to Lamezia Terme (Italy), was climbing through FL190
out of Milan when the crew received a cargo fire indication and returned
to Milan Malpensa for a safe landing on runway 35R about 17 minutes later.
Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=453f0f4e
20120808173701:20120808000000
Incident: KLM B772 at Amsterdam on Aug 8th 2012, rejected takeoff
A KLM Boeing 777-200, registration PH-BQO performing flight KL-881 from
Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Hangzhou (China) with 337 people on board, rejected
takeoff from Amsterdam’s runway 24 at high speed (ground speed above 135
knots). Tower reported smoke from the main landing gear. The aircraft came
to a safe stop on the runway, emergency services responded monitoring and
cooling the overheated brakes, that had reached more than 600 degrees Centigrade.

The aircraft remained on the runway for more than an hour. The aircraft
was subsequently towed to the apron where passengers disembarked.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration PH-BQB departed Amsterdam with
a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4540d51a
20120810203516:20120806000000
Incident: Northwestern JS32 near Fort Smith on Aug 6th 2012, engine fire indication
A Northwestern Air Lease British Aerospace Jetstream 32, registration C-FNAE
performing flight J3-906 from Fort Smith,NT to Hay River,NT (Canada), was
climbing out of Fort Smith about 10 minutes into the flight when the crew
received a fire warning for the left hand engine (TPE331). A visual inspection
of the engine showed no fire or smoke, the engine gauges all showed normal
values, the crew therefore decided to keep the engine running and returned
to Fort Smith, Fort Smith’s volunteer fire brigade was called out for the
landing. The aircraft landed safely. During taxi the crew shut the engine
down, the fire indication still persisted so that the crew discharged both
fire bottles, smoke was seen coming from the tail pipe of the engine afterwards
prompting ground personnel to discharge a dry chemical fire extinguisher
into the tail pipe as well.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found no evidence of fire and determined
the fire indication was false. The engine however was found seized as result
of accumulation of agent particles and the shock cooling associated with
the discharge of the dry chemical extinguisher. The engine needed to be
replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=453c91ff
20120805164225:20120803000000
Incident: AirTran B712 at Indianapolis on Aug 3rd 2012, hydraulic failure
An AirTran Boeing 717-200, flight FL-1792 from Indianapolis,IN to Atlanta,GA
(USA) with 116 people on board, was climbing out of Indianapolis when the
crew reported the failure of their right hydraulic system, levelled off
at 6000 feet and returned to Indianapolis to land on runway 23R and came
to a stop on the runway. Emergency services responded, reported a bit of
smoke from the right hand gear and a blown tyre on the right main gear,
the smoke quickly subsided with emergency services cooling down the brakes.

A replacement Boeing 717-200 reached Atlanta with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=453a5496
20120802212049:20120731000000
Incident: Air France A320 at St. Petersburg on Jul 31st 2012, smoke and fire in cockpit
An Air France Airbus A320-200, registration F-GKXZ performing flight AF-1153
from St. Petersburg (Russia) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France), was climbing
out of St. Petersburg’s runway 28L when the crew reported smoke and fire
in the cockpit, stopped the climb at about FL110 and returned to St. Petersburg
for a safe landing on runway 28L about 14 minutes later.

Rosaviatsia reported the crew reported smoke and fire in the cockpit, emergency
services found no trace of fire after landing.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45380fb4
20120730230021:20120730000000
Incident: Frontier A320 near Nassau on Jul 30th 2012, cargo smoke indication
A Frontier Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N263AV performing flight
F9-8541 from Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA)
with 173 people on board, was enroute at FL340 near Nassau (Bahamas) and
about 240nm eastsoutheast of Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) when the crew initiated
a diversion to Fort Lauderdale reported they had an aft cargo smoke indication.
The crew activated the fire suppression system and landed safely on Fort
Lauderdale’s runway 09L about 40 minutes later. Emergency services found
no trace of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4549457a
20120820215222:20120729000000
Incident: Shovkoviy AN12 at Chernovtsy on Jul 29th 2012, tail strike
A Shovkoviy Airlines Antonov AN-12, registration UR-CGX performing flight
S8-2106 from Corlu (Turkey) to Chernovtsy (Ukraine), was landing at Chernovtsy
when tower observed sparks and smoke from the tail of the aircraft upon
touch down. The aircraft rolled out safely.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Transport rated the occurrence an incident in their
monthly bulletin and reported that evidence of a tail strike was found.
The tail section sustained abrasions. The investigation determined that
after touchdown a left cross wind caught the aircraft prompting the commander
to provide correcting control inputs but also to inadvertently increase
the pitch angle.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4536e2fa
20120729140430:20120729000000
Incident: Lufthansa A321 near Riga on Jul 29th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A321-200, registration D-AIDK performing flight LH-1461
from St. Petersburg (Russia) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was enroute at
FL340 about 70nm north of Riga (Latvia) when the crew reported smoke in
the cabin and diverted to Riga for a safe landing about 25 minutes later.
Responding emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

Following examinations the aircraft was able to continue the journey and
reached Frankfurt with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45362ac0
20120728215422:20120728000000
Incident: Condor B753 near Salzburg on Jul 28th 2012, smell of smoke in cockpit, failure of weather radar
A Condor Boeing 757-300, registration D-ABOK performing flight DE-6334 from
Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Antalya (Turkey) with 264 passengers and 9 crew,
was enroute at FL310 about 15nm north of Salzburg (Austria) when the crew
reported the failure of the weather radar and a strong smell of smoke in
the cockpit. The crew considered to divert to Munich and Salzburg, both
of which were deemed unsuitable due to a line of thunderstorms moving across
the area and decided to divert to Linz (Austria), where the aircraft landed
safely on runway 26 about 25 minutes later. The aircraft taxied to apron
where the passengers disembarked normally via stairs.

Linz Airport said a defect of the weather radar was identified by maintenance,
the source of the smell however was not yet determined. The weather radar
is going to be repaired. The passengers are currently waiting for a replacement
aircraft.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration D-ABUH was dispatched to Linz
and is currently enroute estimated to reach Antalya with a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45360948
20120728133837:20120727000000
Incident: Germanwings A319 near Dusseldorf on Jul 27th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AKNT performing flight 4U-2035
from Bremen to Stuttgart (Germany), was climbing out of Bremen near Muenster
(Germany) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, stopped the climb
at FL230 and diverted to Dusseldorf for a safe landing on runway 23L about
15 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.

The airport of Muenster/Osnabruck initially prepared for the emergency arrival
alerting all services until it became clear about 5 minutes after the first
alert that the aircraft diverted to Dusseldorf.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45354ecf
20120727163548:20120727000000
Incident: Georgian B190 at Syracuse on Jul 27th 2012, odour in cabin
An Air Georgian Beech 1900D on behalf of Air Canada, registration C-GMGA
performing flight ZX-7401/AC-7401 from Syracuse,NY (USA) to Toronto,ON (Canada)
with 4 people on board, was climbing out of Syracuse when the crew reported
an odour on board of the aircraft however no other indication, and requested
to return to Syracuse for a safe landing on runway 28 about 10 minutes after
departure. The aircraft vacated the runway and taxied to the apron.

The airport reported a battery operated smoke detector issued an alarm.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45337f08
20120725155103:20120725000000
Incident: China Southern A319 near Hangzhou on Jul 25th 2012, clouds in cabin
A China Southern Airlines Airbus A319-100, flight CZ-6199 from Hangzhou
to Guangzhou (China) with 105 passengers, was climbing out of Hangzhou when
what was identified as heavy smoke initially developed in the forward cabin
of the aircraft prompting the crew to return to Hangzhou for a safe landing.
The passengers disembarked normally via mobile stairs.

The smoke, that had led to reports of an aircraft fire in China, was identified
as mist originating from the air conditioning system as result of a malfunction.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration B-6408 reached Guangzhou with
a delay of 10 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4532b8ac
20120724172757:20120723000000
Incident: Regional 1 DH8A near Thunder Bay on Jul 23rd 2012, engine shut down in flight
A Regional 1 Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-FDND performing
flight TSH-720 from Thunder Bay,ON to Sioux Lookout,ON (Canada) with 17
people on board, had just levelled off at 12,500 feet after departure from
Thunder Bay when the crew noticed the right hand engine’s (PW120A) Interstage
Turbine Temperature had risen above 1000 degrees Centigrade. The flight
crew requested cabin crew to check the engine, cabin crew reported light
smoke coming from a vent tube. The crew shut the engine down and returned
to Thunder Bay for a safe landing about 30 minutes after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4530f6f4
20120722170419:20120721000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near West Palm Beach on Jul 21st 2012, fuming coffee maker
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N625JB performing flight B6-362
from West Palm Beach,FL to New York La Guardia,NY (USA) with 117 people
on board, was climbing through 16,000 feet out of West Palm Beach when cabin
crew reported smoke in the aft galley from the vents above the cofee makers.
The galley circuit breakers were pulled, the flight crew declared emergency
and returned to West Palm Beach for a safe landing on runway 10L about 10
minutes later, the smoke had dissipated by then.

The aircraft, that had first departed with a delay of about 50 minutes,
was able to depart again after about 130 minutes on the ground and reached
New York with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45300cfb
20120721143123:20120721000000
Incident: Air France A319 near Hamburg on Jul 21st 2012, smoke in cockpit
An Air France Airbus A319-100, registration F-GRXD performing flight AF-1410
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Hamburg (Germany) with 137 people
on board, was descending through FL100 on approach to Hamburg when the crew
declared PAN reporting smell of smoke and loose plastics parts in the cockpit.
2 minutes later the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit.
The aircraft landed safely on runway 23 about 7 minutes later, vacated the
runway onto taxiway O and stopped. Attending emergency found no trace of
fire or heat, the smoke had dissipated by then. The passengers disembarked
via mobile stairs onto the taxiway.

The return flight AF-1411 was cancelled.

The aircraft was able to depart Hamburg as flight AF-393V to Paris Charles
de Gaulle about 4 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=452ea1fc
20130412085959:20120718000000
Accident: American Eagle CRJ7 at Peoria on Jul 18th 2012, smoke in cabin
An American Eagle Canadair CRJ-700, registration N502AE performing flight
MQ-3773 from Denver,CO to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 53 passengers and
4 crew, was on approach to Chicago O’Hare at 11,000 feet when the crew decided
to divert to Peoria,IL due to weather conditions at O’Hare. The aircraft
turned around and following a left base established on final approach for
Peoria’s runway 13 when the crew declared emergency due to smoke in the
cabin, a number of aircraft also diverting from O’Hare to Peoria immediately
switched to other diversion fields upon hearing about the emergency. The
crew continued for a safe landing on runway 13 and vacated the runway, the
aircraft was then evacuated. One passenger received an ankle injury during
the evacuation through the overwing exit.

On Feb 12th 2013 the NTSB released their brief factual report stating that
the aircraft was on a 3nm final to Peoria’s runway when smoke was detected
in the aircraft. After landing the crew commanded an evacuation, the main
door and both overwing exits were used for the evacuation. One passengers
received a fractured ankle as result of the evacuation. A post landing examination
did not identify any obvious source of the smoke. The aircraft had been
dispatched under minimum equipment list requirements with one air conditioning
system inoperative, the remaining air conditioning system failed on final
approach to Peoria, so that the cabin was supplied with ambient air. On
final approach the aircraft overflew a large house fire.

On Apr 12th 2013 the NTSB released their final report concluding the probable
cause of the accident was:

The emergency ground egress during which a passenger broke her ankle. Contributing
to the accident was the failure of the environmental system, which allowed
smoke from a nearby house fire to enter the airplane.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4532b766
20120724172011:20120712000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 at Geneva on Jul 12th 2012, hydraulic leak
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-FMWP performing flight AC-831
from Geneva (Switzerland) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 215 people on board,
was climbing out of Geneva’s runway 23 when the crew received a left hydraulic
low pressure indication, levelled off at 10,000 feet and returned to Geneva
for a safe landing on runway 23 about 20 minutes after departure. During
roll out hydraulic fluid dripped onto the hot left hand brakes causing smoke
development, emergency services responded, the aircraft was towed to the
gate.

The Canadian TSB reported after receiving the left low hydraulic pressure
indication the crew checked the relevant EICAS pages and found zero quantity
remaining for the left hand hydraulic system. The crew requested emergency
services on stand by. Maintenance replaced the left hand spoiler #1 actuator,
replenished the hydraulic fluid and checked the left hand system for function
and absence of leaks and performed an overweight landing as well as hot
brakes inspection before returning the aircraft to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=453205ea
20120723214156:20120712000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Vancouver on Jul 12th 2012, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FGYL performing flight AC-150
from Vancouver,BC to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 133 people on board, was
climbing out of Vancouver when the crew received an equipment cooling and
an avionics smoke indication. The crew levelled off at 10,000 feet, declared
PAN and returned to Vancouver for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB did not report what caused the indications.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 reached Montreal with a delay of 3 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to resume service about 6.5 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4529aaf9
20120713161129:20120712000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Norfolk on Jul 12th 2012, blew tyre on landing
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N938DL performing
flight DL-2148 from Atlanta,GA to Norfolk,VA (USA) with 144 passengers and
5 crew, landed on Norfolk’s runway 05 but blew a right main tyre causing
smoke to appear from the landing gear during the roll out. The crew requested
emergency services to have a look and stopped the aircraft on the runway,
the next aircraft on final approach was instructed to go around. No injuries
occurred. A runway inspection needed to clear a lot of debris from the runway,
the aircraft was observed tilting.

The FAA reported the aircraft blew a tyre and was disabled on the runway,
the passengers deplaned onto the runway via stairs.

The runway was closed until the aircraft could be towed off the runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4529e28c
20120713225838:20120711000000
Incident: Delta MD90 at Chicago on Jul 11th 2012, burst tyre on landing
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N909DA performing
flight DL-1321 from Minneapolis,MN to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), landed on
O’Hare’s runway 10, vacated the runway and was handed off to ground. Tower
subsequently instructed the next arrival to go around reporting debris on
the runway. In the meantime another aircraft reported on ground frequency
the Delta landing on 10 had just blown a tyre. Upon checking with ground
the Delta crew was informed about the blown tyre and decided to stop on
taxiway F near intersection with taxiways B. Another crew reported the blown
tyre was the left inboard main tyre. About 7 minutes later another crew
reported there was smoke coming from the landing gear, emergency services
responded, the aircraft was shut down and subsequently towed to the apron.

A passenger reported the aircraft had just turned off runway 10 when it
stopped, an operations vehicle showed up with the driver walking around
the aircraft. A few minutes later fire trucks pulled up. The captain announced
they had blown a tyre on landing, had hot brakes and needed to wait for
the brakes to cool down before being towed to the gate. The aircraft was
towed to the gate about 45 minutes after landing reaching the gate 60 minutes
after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4528da7a
20120712154125:20120711000000
Incident: Thomas Cook B763 near Paris on Jul 11th 2012, fuming chiller
A Thomas Cook Boeing 767-300, registration G-TCCB performing flight MT-2428
from Manchester,EN (UK) to Enfidha (Tunisia) with 326 people on board, was
enroute at FL350 about 70nm westnorthwest of Paris (France) when a chiller
unit in the aft galley began to emit smoke prompting the crew to turn around
and divert to London Gatwick,EN (UK). On the way to Gatwick the smoke dissipated,
the aircraft landed safely on Gatwick’s runway 26L about 30 minutes after
turning around.

The airline confirmed a small amount of smoke was emitted by a chiller unit
in the aft galley. The unit was fixed and the aircraft was able to continue
the following morning. The passengers could not be taken to hotels over
night due to a combination of factors.

The incident aircraft reached Enfidha with a delay of about 12 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4525c5af
20120708173728:20120708000000
Incident: Delta B752 near West Palm Beach on Jul 8th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N615DL performing flight DL-418
from San Juan (Puerto Rico) to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 190 people on board,
was enroute at FL390 about 100nm northeast of West Palm Beach,FL (USA) when
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to West Palm Beach subsequently
reported the smoke had dissipated. The aircraft landed safely on runway
28R about 16 minutes later.

The airline currently estimates the flight to arrive in Atlanta with a delay
of 7 hours delay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=452521ed
20141008204959:20120706000000
Incident: Malmo RJ1H near Palma on Jul 6th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Malmo Aviation Avro RJ-100, registration SE-DST performing flight TF-792
from Malmo (Sweden) to Palma Mallorca,SP (Spain) with 101 passengers and
5 crew, was on approach to Palma descending through about FL100 when a computer
screen in the cockpit began to emit smell of smoke and smoke. The crew declared
emergency and continued the approach. The smoke ceased permitting a normal
and safe landing on runway 24L about 8 minutes later.

The airline reported while descending through 10,000 feet about 10 minutes
prior to estimated landing a computer screen in the cockpit cracked and
emitted smoke prompting the crew to declare emergency. The smoke subsequently
ceased, the aircraft landed normally and safely. The crew focussed on the
safe landing and did not talk to the passengers. While acknowledging passenger
complaints about lack of information the airline said they believe their
crew set their priorities right in putting safety of flight and passengers
first.

Spain’s CIAIAC reported on Aug 22nd 2012, that during the approach to runway
24L the first officer’s primary flight display went blank. In a first reaction
the first officer switched the other display to “compact mode” after which
electrical smell followed by smoke appeared in the cockpit, no smoke or
smell was present in the cabin. The crew donned their oxygen masks, declared
emergency and continued the approach. The smoke dissipated before safe landing,
the passengers disembarked normally.

On Jul 5th 2013 the CIAIAC released a preliminary report in Spanish reporting
a post incident examination showed a problem with the primary flight display’s
insulation which permitted water to condensate and ingress into the primary
flight displays causing electrical problems. The damage was limited to the
primary flight display. The investigation focusses on the issue with the
insulation, that has a record of similiar incidents in the past, the manufacturer
was aware of the issue and had released a service bulletin, it appears however
additional measures are needed.

On Oct 8th 2014 the CIAIAC released their final report within their (delayed)
quarterly bulletin concluding the probable cause of the incident was:

The incident onboard aircraft SE-DST was likely caused by the presence of
water in the first officerís PFD unit due to the improper placement of an
isolation blanket that allowed condensed water to drip onto the unit.

The CIAIAC reported, that during the descent into Palma Mallorca the first
officer’s primary flight display, part of the EFIS, went blank. The first
officer selected the lower navigation display (part of EFIS) into compact
mode, but subsequently noticed the smell of smoke and then smoke. The first
officer’s EFIS was turned off, the crew donned their oxygen masks and declared
emergency. The smoke cleared during the approach and the crew removed the
oxygen masks prior to landing. The smoke and smell was not noticed in the
cabin.

An examination of the first officer’s primary flight display showed traces
of smoke around the ventilation holes at the top of the unit, the insulation
blankets were not properly adjusted. In the inside stains of water, corrosion
and arcing on several connectors were found at the top of the power supply.

The CIAIAC reported that prior to the occurrence the right hand PFD of SE-DST
had already encountered several five similiar events since installation
of the right hand PFD on May 11th 2011 after it had gone blank. Following
the last of these 5 events on Jun 12th 2012 a new PFD was installed.

The CIAIAC reported that the aircraft maintenance manual had no provisions
for installing the insulation blankets which is a simple process requiring
no tools. Following the occurrence the maintenance manual was changed to
include procedures for installing the insulation blankets.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=453d865b
20120806202832:20120704000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Anchorage on Jul 4th 2012, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-FMWQ performing flight AC-9
from Calgary,AB (Canada) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with 205 people on board,
was enroute near Anchorage,AK (USA) when cabin crew observed a small amount
of smoke and identified the origin to be an inflight entertainment screen.
Power to the inflight entertainment system was removed, the smoke subsided,
and the aircraft continued to Tokyo for a safe landing on schedule.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance replaced the inflight entertainment
screen at seat 33E.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=452360d2
20120705180835:20120704000000
Incident: Alitalia CRJ9 at Rome on Jul 4th 2012, rejected takeoff
An Alitalia Canadiar CRJ-900, flight AZ-1183 from Rome Fiumicino to Crotone
(Italy), rejected takeoff from Fiumicino’s runway 25 after smoke and a burning
smell was observed in cockpit and cabin. The aircraft slowed safely, stopped
on the runway for emergency services to check the aircraft and taxied to
the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

The flight was cancelled.

Passengers reported cabin crew and captain indicated this was a problem
with the air conditioning system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4521f637
20120703233741:20120703000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near San Jose on Jul 3rd 2012, electrical burning smell
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N928WN performing flight
WN-2433 from Las Vegas,NV to San Jose,CA (USA) with 99 people on board,
was on approach to San Jose descending through about 11,000 feet when cabin
crew noticed a burning smell in the back of the cabin and alerted the flight
crew. The flight crew declared emergency reporting fumes in the cabin and
continued the flight to San Jose for a safe landing on San Jose’s runway
30L (active runways 12L/R) about 10 minutes later. Emergency services found
no trace of fire or smoke however confirmed a burning electrical smell in
the back of the cabin, the aircraft taxied to the gate where the passengers
disembarked.

The FAA said they are working with the airline to determine what caused
the smell.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4521e338
20120703212109:20120702000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Buenos Aires on Jul 2nd 2012, strong burning odour on board
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-GDUZ performing flight AC-92
from Santiago (Chile) to Buenos Aires Ezeiza,BA (Argentina), was enroute
more than half way towards Buenos Aires when a strong burning smell developed
on board prompting the crew to declare emergency. The aircraft continued
for a safe landing on Ezeiza’s runway 11, no trace of fire or smoke was
detected, and taxied to the gate, where the passengers disembarked.

The aircraft was able to depart for the return flight AC-93 from Ezeiza
to Toronto,ON (Canada) via Santiago with a delay of 2.5 hours. The complete
scheduled rotation AC-92/93 is Toronto-Santiago-Ezeiza-Santiago-Toronto.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4521d5ef
20120703195907:20120702000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Urumqi on Jul 2nd 2012, fire in cargo hold
An Emirates Boeing 777-300, registration A6-EGQ performing flight EK-308
from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Beijing (China) with 270 people on
board, was enroute near Urumqi (China) when the crew received an aft cargo
fire indication and activated the cargo fire suppression system. The crew
diverted to Urumqi for a safe landing, emergency services found a number
of burned bags in the aft cargo hold, the fire had been extinguished by
the cargo fire suppression system in flight. No injuries occurred.

Urumqi airport reported a few pieces of luggage were damage by fire, a particular
suitcase containing a lithium battery was identified as source of the fire,
evidence suggests the lithium battery ignited as result of thermal runaway,
the cause of the ignition however needs to be confirmed.

The remainder of the flight as well as the return flight EK-309 departing
Beijing Jul 3rd were cancelled.

The incident aircraft positioned back to Dubai the following day as flight
EK-7373 and has not yet resumed service (standing Jul 3rd 20:00Z).

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted to Urumqi due to a fire alert
in the aircraft hold as result of smoke from a lithium battery. The passengers
were provided with accomodation and have been rebooked onto connecting flights
from Urumqui to Beijing on Jul 3rd.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=452122a5
20120712152219:20120702000000
Incident: Swiss RJ1H near Zurich on Jul 2nd 2012, loss of cabin pressure
A Swiss Avro RJ-100, registration HB-IXW performing flight LX-456 from Zurich
(Switzerland) to London City,EN (UK), was climbing through FL250 about 100nm
west of Zurich when the crew initiated an emergency descent and the passenger
oxygen masks were released. The aircraft descended to FL100 and returned
to Zurich for a safe landing on runway 14 about 40 minutes later.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the next flights.

A passenger reported that cabin crew were just serving drinks when the aircraft
began a steep descent causing the service carts to roll off. During the
descent the passenger oxygen masks were released and smoke of whitish/blueish
colour appeared in the cabin obviously coming from where the passenger oxygen
masks were released from. The smoke became dense enough to make it difficult
to see the flight attendant in the front of the cabin, the eyes were burning.
After the aircraft levelled off at low altitude the flight attendants tore
the oxygen masks including tubing from the cabin ceiling, a number of tubes
had melted.

The airline confirmed a gradual loss of cabin pressure reporting there had
been no smoke and no overheating/burning generator, no damage had occurred
to the oxygen masks/tubing and the aircraft received no damage. There was
some odour as result of the oxygen generators working however.

On Jul 12th the airline added that they are now able to confirm reduced
visibility in the cabin in addition to the odour, apologizing that this
information had not been available to the press department last week when
issuing the first statement. During operation of the chemical oxygen generators
located above the passenger seats heat and an odour of iron are being generated
which can also reduce visibility in the cabin. These conditions do not endanger
safety of flight however.

The Swiss BFU reported on Jul 11th that the air conditioning system #1 had
been disengaged for technical reasons. About 25 minutes into the flight
air conditioning system #2 shut down automatically resulting in a rapid
climb of cabin altitude. The flight crew donned their oxygen masks and initiated
an emergency descent, the passenger oxygen masks were automatically released
and used by passengers. The aircraft returned to Zurich. The BFU rated the
occurrence a serious incident and have opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=451bfe9c
20120626173916:20120626000000
Incident: Frontier A318 near Shannon on Jun 26th 2012, engine shut down in flight
A Frontier Airbus A318-100, registration N805FR performing positioning flight
F9-805FR from Goose Bay,NL (Canada) to Shannon (Ireland), had been cleared
for the ILS approach to Shannon’s runway 24 when the aircraft went through
the localizer. Upon query by the approach controller the crew declared PAN
reporting they were dealing with an engine #2 (CFM56, right hand) problem
and requested to be pulled off the approach and enter a holding. The aircraft
maintained 3000 feet, while working the checklists the crew declared emergency
reporting they had a #2 engine malfunction, commenced another ILS approach
to runway 24 and landed safely on runway 24 about 12 minutes after going
through the localizer. The crew asked tower whether he would see any smoke
from the right hand engine, which tower replied to in the negative. The
aircraft vacated the runway and stopped on taxiway A for emergency services
to check the aircraft, then taxied to the apron.

N805FR on stand 11:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4518c640
20120622151959:20120622000000
Incident: Astana A320 near Shymkent on Jun 22nd 2012, medicine sets off cargo smoke detector
An Air Astana Airbus A320-200, registration P4-TAS performing flight KC-111
from Almaty (Kazakhstan) to Baku (Azerbaijan) with 104 passengers, was enroute
near Shymkent (Kazakhstan) about half way into the flight when the crew
received an aft cargo smoke indication and decided to divert to Shymkent,
where the aircraft landed safely. Attending emergency services found no
trace of fire.

The airline reported that after passengers disembarked the luggage was unloaded
and a passenger bag identified as source of the cargo fire indication. The
passenger bag contained medicine which was confirmed to set the detector
off. The medicine was removed and the aircraft released to continue the
flight.

The incident aircraft is estimated to reach Baku with a delay of about 7
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4517bd73
20120621081941:20120620000000
Incident: SAS A333 near Bangor on Jun 20th 2012, smoke in cabin
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration SE-REF performing
flight SK-910 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Copenhagen (Denmark) with 261 passengers
and 11 crew, was enroute at FL290 about 20nm southwest of Bangor,ME (USA)
when the crew decided to divert to Bangor due to visible smoke in the cabin
and smell of smoke in the cockpit, the crew reported smoke in the cabin.
While maneouvering to capture the localizer runway 33 the crew reported
smoke was no longer visible in the cabin, air traffic control advised ILS
runway 33 was in service but glideslope inoperative. The aircraft performed
a localizer approach to Bangor’s runway 33, landed safely about 18 minutes
after leaving FL290 and vacated the runway, the crew reported everything
was back to normal and taxied to the apron. No injuries and no damage occurred.

The airline confirmed there was visible smoke in the cabin and smell of
smoke in the cockpit. The passengers were taken to hotels, the aircraft
is currently being examined.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45171dd9
20120620132610:20120620000000
Incident: Rossiya A148 near St. Petersburg on Jun 20th 2012, cargo fire indication
A Rossiya Antonov AN-148, registration RA-61703 performing flight FV-119
from St. Petersburg to Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia), was in the initial
climb out of St. Petersburg when the crew received a cargo smoke indication
and decided to return to St. Petersburg for a safe landing about 15 minutes
after departure. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement AN-148 registration RA-61701 reached Moscow with a delay of
3 hours.

Maintenance determined the smoke detector was faulty.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4514c5ee
20120617192020:20120617000000
Incident: Arkia AT72 near Eilat on Jun 17th 2012, engine fire indication
An Arkia Israel Airlines Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration
4X-AVX performing flight IZ-845 from Tel Aviv to Eilat (Israel) with 73
people on board, was on approach to Eilat when the crew received a right
hand engine fire indication, shut the engine down and activated the fire
suppression system, which extinguished the fire indication, and continued
for a safe landing on Eilat’s runway 03 about 10 minutes later. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline confirmed an engine fire indication which prompted the crew
to carry out the relevant standard procedures. The aircraft is currently
being examined.

The airport authority said there was no evidence of an engine fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4514a78f
20120617141826:20120616000000
Incident: Delta B763 at Salt Lake City on Jun 16th 2012, burst tyre on takeoff
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N1201P performing flight DL-89
from Salt Lake City,UT (USA) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) with 198
passengers, was departing Salt Lake City’s runway 34R when tower reported
smoke from the left main gear. The aircraft was already in the initial climb
when another crew taxiing on a nearby taxiway reported the rubber of a tyre
had departed the aircraft. The aircraft levelled off at 12,000 feet and
dumped fuel. About 80 minutes after departure the aircraft performed a low
approach to runway 34R to have ground check how many tyres were blown, the
aft inboard tyre on the left main gear was reported blown, the aircraft
climbed back to 12,000 feet to burn off more fuel and landed safely though
trailing smoke from the left main gear on runway 34R about 2 hours after
departure.

Runway 34R was closed for a number of hours after landing until the wheel
was replaced and the aircraft was towed off the runway. The passengers disembarked
normally at the gate.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4511a174
20120613223701:20120613000000
Incident: IndiGo A320 at Jammu on Jun 13th 2012, leaking fire suppression system
An IndiGo Airbus A320-200, flight 6E-551 from Srinagar to Jammu (India)
with 166 passengers, had just landed at Jammu (India) when smoke was observed
from the underside of the aircraft prompting suspicions of brakes or engine
fire. The aircraft vacated the runway, stopped and was evacuated. No injuries
occurred. Emergency services responded and identified a leak in a cargo
hold’s fire suppression system as cause of the smoke.

The airline reported the aircraft had already landed when the crew was notified
about smoke from an engine, stopped and evacuated the aircraft. Technicians
were flown in from Delhi to examine the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45123b0d
20120615144423:20120612000000
Incident: Monarch B752 near Munich on Jun 12th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Monarch Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration G-DAJB performing flight
ZB-3789 from Chania (Greece) to Manchester,EN (UK) with 225 passengers,
was enroute at FL360 about 70nm southwest of Munich (Germany) near Innsbruck
(Austria) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert
to Munich. Munich Airport temporarily stopped arrivals and departures on
both runways to facilitate the emergency. The Boeing 757 landed safely on
Munich’s runway 26L about 20 minutes after leaving FL360.

Runway 08R/26L remained closed for about 25 minutes after landing while
the northern runway 08L/26R went into operation about 5 minutes after landing.

The passengers were taken to hotels overnight. The incident aircraft was
able to continue the flight the following day and reached Manchester with
a delay of about 21 hours.

Maintenance was seen working in the forward cargo hold during the night.

The airline reported on Jun 15th that a burning smell was detected in the
cabin and as a precaution a full emergency was declared and the flight diverted
to Munich. The aircraft landed safely, the passengers disembarked normally
and were taken to Manchester the following day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45108a3b
20120612155513:20120612000000
Incident: Aer Arann AT42 at Dublin on Jun 12th 2012, burst tyre(s) on landing
An Aer Arann Avion de Transport Regional ATR-42-300 on behalf of Aer Lingus,
registration EI-CBK performing flight RE-3213/EI-3213 from Isle of Man (UK)
to Dublin (Ireland) with 29 passengers, landed on Dublin’s runway 10 at
10:34L (09:34Z) when an observer reported smoke from the arriving ATR’s
gear on ground frequency. After the aircraft had stopped on the runway the
crew reported to tower they had burst a tyre and requested emergency services
to have a look. Emergency services confirmed the outboard left main tyre
and possibly the inboard left main tyre had blown. The passengers disembarked
normally onto the runway.

Runway 10/28 was closed for about 4 hours until the aircraft was towed off
the runway as a result, runway 16 was used instead.

Metars:
EIDW 121030Z 12008KT 080V150 9999 FEW016 SCT025 BKN040 13/08 Q1011 NOSIG
EIDW 121000Z 14007KT 100V160 9999 FEW016 SCT025 BKN040 13/08 Q1011 NOSIG
EIDW 120930Z 12008KT 090V160 9999 FEW016 SCT025 BKN050 13/09 Q1011 NOSIG
EIDW 120900Z 12008KT 9999 FEW016 SCT025 BKN050 13/09 Q1011 NOSIG
EIDW 120830Z 13007KT 9999 FEW009 SCT020 BKN070 13/08 Q1010 NOSIG
EIDW 120800Z 12008KT 9999 FEW009 SCT020 BKN070 13/08 Q1010 NOSIG
EIDW 120730Z 12008KT 9999 FEW009 SCT020 BKN070 12/09 Q1010 NOSIG
EIDW 120700Z 14005KT 100V180 9999 FEW009 BKN070 BKN120 12/09 Q1010 NOSIG
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450e3d6e
20120609210039:20120609000000
Incident: Condor B753 near Nuremberg on Jun 9th 2012, burning smell on board
A Condor Boeing 757-300, registration D-ABOC performing flight DE-6512 from
Dusseldorf (Germany) to Antalya (Turkey) with 234 people on board, was enroute
at FL350 about 45nm northwest of Nuremberg (Germany) when the crew reported
a burning odour on board and diverted to Nuremberg for a safe landing on
runway 28 about 15 minutes later. Responding emergency services found no
trace of fire or smoke, however confirmed an abnormal smell in the cockpit
and a source of heat.

A replacement Boeing 757-300 registration D-ABOH is estimated to reach Antalya
with a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450e0d08
20120609200320:20120609000000
Incident: PIA A313 near Islamabad on Jun 9th 2012, electrical problems
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A310-300, registration AP-BEC
performing flight PK-211 from Islamabad (Pakistan) to Dubai (United Arab
Emirates), was climbing out of Islamabad when smell of smoke as result of
an electronic malfunction prompted the crew to return to Islamabad for a
safe landing about 50 minutes after departure.

A replacement Airbus A310-300 registration AP-BGQ reached Dubai with a delay
of 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450e0857
20120609143507:20120608000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near New York on Jun 8th 2012, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N521JB performing flight B6-820
from Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 150
people on board, was on approach to New York at 9000 feet when the crew
reported smell of smoke on the flight deck, declared emergency and requested
runway 31R. While on final approach to runway 31R the crew reported that
the smell had dissipated and there was no longer smell of smoke present.
The aircraft continued for a safe landing on runway 31R about 9 minutes
after declaring emergency and taxied to the gate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450c86f1
20120607201958:20120607000000
Incident: KLM B744 near Knock on Jun 7th 2012, lavatory smoke detector woes
A KLM Boeing 747-400, registration PH-BFO performing flight KL-643 from
Amsterdam (Netherlands) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute at FL320 about
60nm north of Knock (Ireland) when the crew decided to return to Amsterdam
due to a malfunctioning lavatory smoke detector. On approach the crew advised
normal operations and landed safely on runway 18R about 75 minutes after
turning around.

The aircraft departed again after 90 minutes on the ground and is estimated
to reach New York with a delay of 4 hours.

The airline tweeted they had problems with one of the smoke detectors in
a lavatory and were expecting to have it fixed in 30 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450b8f45
20120606173007:20120605000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near Bahrain on Jun 5th 2012, hydraulic failure
A British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIJ performing flight
BA-125 from Bahrain (Bahrain) to Doha (Qatar), was climbing out of Bahrain
when the crew reported a hydraulic failure, stopped the climb at FL130,
entered a holding and returned to Bahrain for a safe landing on runway 12L
about 70 minutes after departure. Emergency services in attendance reported
white smoke from the landing gear and recommended passengers to disembark
onto the runway via stairs. The aircraft was shut down, the passengers deplaned
via mobile stairs onto the runway and were bussed to the terminal.

The aircraft was towed off the runway about 40 minutes after landing, the
aerodrome was closed for about 40 minutes as a result.

The remaining rotation BA-125/BA-124 Bahrain-Doha-Bahrain was cancelled.
The aircraft was able to depart for the return flight BA-124 to London Heathrow,EN
(UK) the following day and is estimated to reach London with a delay of
13.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4508fb60
20120713131820:20120603000000
Crash: Dana MD83 at Lagos on Jun 3rd 2012, collided with power line on approach following dual engine failure
A Dana Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration 5N-RAM performing flight
9J-992 from Abuja to Lagos (Nigeria) with 147 passengers and 6 crew, was
on approach to Lagos about 11nm from LAG VOR when the crew declared emergency
reporting both engines had failed and they were going down. At about 15:43L
(14:43Z) the aircraft collided with a power line, crashed into a built up
area about 5nm short of the threshold of runway 18L near Akande St (not
Adebayo Akande St) and 1.2nm south of LAG VOR and burst into flames. A number
of residential houses around the crash site were on flames, too, a large
smoke plume was visible above the city. All occupants of the aircraft perished
in the crash, 10 fatalities on the ground have been confirmed, 5 injured
people on the ground have been taken to hospitals, 38 people lost their
homes.

Offices and counters of Dana Air in Abuja and Lagos needed to be protected
by armed forces while relatives besieged all Dana premises to get information.

Rescue and Recovery works are hampered by a large crowd gathered at the
crash site, the rescue forces complaining the residents have taken over
the crash site. The works are difficult by concrete buildings in danger
of collapsing as result of impact by the aircraft and the resulting need
to take these buildings down first and are further hampered by lack of equipment
to move the aircraft debris. During Jun 4th two cranes joined the recovery
works.

On Jun 5th Lagos Emergency Management reported 153 bodies have been recovered
from the crash site so far, 5 injured people had been rescued and taken
to hospitals. 4 of the injured were treated and have already been discharged
from the hospital. A total of four buildings were destroyed by the aircraft
impact.

On Jun 5th the hospital treating four of the injured recovered from the
two-story building hit by the aircraft reported, one man suffered fractures
of his upper left humerus, another man had no injuries at all, a little
girl had a scratch, a young boy had been hit by debris at his back. The
hospital also reported, that about 40 minutes after the crash they were
delivered 8 bodies recovered from that very building too.

On Jun 8th Lagos Emergency Management reported all 153 bodies recovered
so far need to be DNA tested for identification, the testing is expected
to take 4-6 weeks, although 52 bodies identifyable have been preliminarily
identified already.

Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Authority initially reported the aircraft crashed
shortly after takeoff for Abuja, but corrected to say the aircraft arrived
from Abuja, then turned back reporting the aircraft was departing Lagos
and returned. There are no survivors. Late evening the CAA reported as their
final word, that the aircraft was flying from Abuja to Lagos. On Jun 4th
the CAA confirmed the accident aircraft was 5N-RAM on flight 9J-992 and
released a passenger manifest.

On Jun 5th the CAA confirmed the crew declared Mayday reporting the failure
of both engines. In the afternoon the CAA decided to suspend Dana Air’s
Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) effectively grounding the airline.

On Jun 3rd the airline confirmed one of their planes crashed in the outskirts
of Lagos. On Jun 4th 2012 Dana Air expressed their condolences in a public
note confirming 5N-RAM on flight 9J-992 was lost with 146 passengers, a
flight engineer and 6 crew.

On Jun 4th Dana Air suspended all flight operations until further notice
telling on their website “We regret that your Dana Air flight will not operate
today, as scheduled”.

On Jun 5th the airline stated that the aircraft had been in good condition
and thus contradicted claims in Nigerian press suggesting the aircraft was
not airworthy and was doing its first flight following repairs forced out
of repair early by pressure of airline management. The airline explained
that the aircraft was flying its regular schedule to Ibadan without any
problems on Jun 2nd and on Jun 3rd flew flights 9J-999 Lagos-Abuja, 9J-998
Abuja-Lagos and 9J-993 Lagos-Abuja without any incidents prior to the illfated
flight 9J-992. Later Jun 5th the airline added the captain had a total flying
experience of 18,500 hours, thereof 7,100 hours on the MD-83, the first
officer had a flying experience of 1,110 hours total and 800 hours on type.
The aircraft had accumulated more than 35,000 cycles and 60,000 flight hours,
its last A-check was completed on May 30th 2012 with the next C-check required
until September 2012, the aircraft was in possession of a valid certificate
of airworthiness following the previous C-check. Both black boxes have been
recovered and are in possession of Nigeria’s AIB.

On Jun 7th airline officials said, that the crew was in contact with Lagos
Radar when the crew reported engine trouble. They were subsequently handed
off to Lagos Tower but did not report on Lagos Tower frequency anymore,
two minutes after reporting the engine failure the aircraft disappeared
from radar.

On Jun 10th 2012 Dana Air’s Director of Flight reported on Lagos’ TV, that
the remains of one or more birds have been found in one of the engines recovered
from the crash site. However, the cause of the crash is still to be determined.

In the evening of Jun 3rd a number of Nigerian companies reported, their
staff travelling from Abuja to Lagos has gone missing.

In the evening of Jun 3rd sources within Dana Air said the aircraft was
flying from Abuja to Lagos confirming some of the passengers reported missing
by their companies were on board of the aircraft. The aircraft was on approach
to Lagos about 11nm from the Lagos VOR LAG, when the crew declared emergency.
The aircraft crashed shortly after.

On Jun 4th Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation said Dana flight 992 was about
11nm before Lagos’ Murtala Muhammed Airport when the crew declared emergency.
A minute later the aircraft disappeared from radar, subsequently it was
learned the aircraft had crashed into residential buildings in the Iju area
of Agege (editorial note: north of the aerodrome) with 153 people on board.
An investigation has been opened.

On Jun 4th 2012 Nigeria’s Accident Investigation Bureau NAIB confirmed both
flight data and cockpit voice recorders have been recovered and were handed
to NAIB officials.

Listeners on frequency said the crew reported engine trouble.

On Jun 4th a professional helicopter pilot on frequency reported the MD-83
crew declared emergency reporting the failure of both engines. According
to politiken.dk the Danish pilot and his Danish company providing off-shore
services for the Nigerian Oil Industry were subsequently asked by the tower
to check the whereabout of the aircraft and were the first to reach the
crash site providing the location to Lagos tower.

On Jun 4th a Nigerian military official confirmed the crew reported engine
trouble. The crash site is situated along the regular approach path the
aircraft would have taken into Murtala Muhammed Airport.

LAG VOR is located about 6.2nm north of the threshold of runway 18L at position
N6.7086 E3.3275.

On Jun 3rd a photographer reported the crash site was at Oluwatoyin Street,
which in the end turned out to be located 5nm north of threshold runway
18R. Map resources did not know that street but resolved the name to show
the intersection of Toyin Street and Olowu Street 1nm east of the airport.

On Jun 4th a video showed a street sign reading “Akande St” (but not “Adebayo
Akande St”) in the immediate vicinity of the crash site identifying the
location at about 5nm short of threshold and on the extended centerline
of runway 18L and about 1.2nm south of LAG VOR.

Metars:
DNMM 031600Z 19006KT 150V240 9999 BKN013 29/24 Q1012 NOSIG
DNMM 031500Z 19007KT 140V230 9999 SCT014 30/23 Q1013 NOSIG
DNMM 031400Z 20006KT 150V250 9999 SCT014 31/23 Q1013 NOSIG
DNMM 031300Z 19004KT 150V260 9999 SCT014 31/22 Q1014 NOSIG
DNMM 031200Z 17005KT 130V220 9999 SCT013 31/23 Q1015 NOSIG
DNMM 031100Z 14004KT 060V220 9999 SCT013 30/23 Q1015 NOSIG

Impressions from the crash site (Photos: AP):
The tail of the aircraft burning in the streets of Lagos:
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450826b5
20120602152847:20120531000000
Incident: Monarch A321 near London on May 31st 2012, unruly passenger
A Monarch Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration G-OZBT performing flight
ZB-532 from Manchester,EN (UK) to Palma Mallorca,SP (Spain) with 212 passengers,
was enroute at FL350 about 25nm southwest of London Gatwick,EN (UK) when
cabin crew detected smell of smoke in the cabin prompting the flight crew
to divert to London Gatwick. In the meantime cabin crew found out a passenger’s
hair was singed as result of a prank by his friend (24) in the next seat.
The aircraft landed safely on runway 26L about 30 minutes later, police
took the unruly passenger into custody.

The aircraft continued the journey after about 2 hours on the ground and
reached Palma Mallorca with a delay of 2 hours.

Police reported a male passenger (24) was arrested after cabin crew smelled
smoke on board causing the aircraft to divert. Cabin crew later determined
the hair of a passenger had been singed by the suspect. The suspect remains
in custody.

The airline confirmed an incident on board which resulted in one passenger
being offloaded.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4507551c
20120601160108:20120531000000
Incident: Flybe E190 near Birmingham on May 31st 2012, smoke indication
A Flybe Embraer ERJ-195, registration G-FBEH performing flight BE-790 from
Birmingham,EN to Glasgow,SC (UK) with 57 passengers, was climbing out of
Birmingham about 20 minutes into the flight when the crew received a smoke
indication and an air conditioning system’s circuit breaker opened. The
crew decided to return to Birmingham for a safe landing about 40 minutes
after departure.

The airline reported a minor electrical problem with one of the air conditioning
systems had opened a circuit breaker and caused a smoke indication. At most
there may have been faint haze in the cabin though cabin crew did not report
haze, smoke or any panic on board other than claimed by a number of UK media.
The aircraft was back in the air after about one hour on the ground.

The AAIB said they are aware of the non-reportable incident.

A replacement aircraft reached Glasgow with a delay of 2.5 hours.

Most UK media reporting a cockpit fire, smoke and panic on board removed
their stories in the meantime.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4503e904
20140204181606:20120528000000
Accident: Carpatair SB20 at Florence on May 28th 2012, engine fire indication
A Carpatair Saab 2000, registration YR-SBJ performing flight V3-444 from
Florence (Italy) to Timisoara (Romania) with 45 passengers and 4 crew, was
holding at the hold short line waiting for departure from runway 05 when
the crew received a left hand engine’s (AE2100) fire indication. The crew
initiated an emergency evacuation. Four passengers received minor injuries
in the evacuation and were taken to a hospital. Responding emergency services
found no evidence of fire.

Passengers reported somebody was shouting there was a burning smell on board
just prior to the evacuation being initiated. Several passengers fell down
onto the apron and received minor injuries.

The airport was closed for about 90 minutes as a result.

Italy’s ANSV reported an investigator has been dispatched on site to collect
evidence.

On Apr 11th 2013 the ANSV reported in an annual review of occurrences covered
by the ANSV, that from evidence available it became clear, that there had
been no fire/overheat condition to the engine, however, there had been a
real fire/overheat warning. Upon receiving the fire indication the crew
actioned the memory items until discharge of the first fire agent, then
the crew declared emergency and the captain decided to evacuate the aircraft.
With no signs of visible fire from the left hand engine all emergency exits
were being used including the left forward door, right hand doors and overwing
exits, the evacuation was completed in 40 seconds. Responding emergency
services discharged fire agent which completely removed any possibility
of fire from the engine. While jumping from the aircraft, height about 1.7
meters, a number of passengers received injuries, some of them serious injuries.
The aircraft does not need slides by regulations, that require slides from
a height of 1.83 meters and above. The airport was closed for 82 minutes.
The investigation is still ongoing in trying to determine the causes of
the fire warning and the issues with the evacuation.

On Jan 28th 2014 the ANSV released their final report in Italian concluding
the probable cause of the accident was:

the activation of the fire indication of the left hand engine.

Evidence rules out however that there was an engine fire. From the evidence
available it was not possible to establish with certainty what caused the
fire indication.

The ANSV reported in their analysis that the tower controller had the impression
of white smoke coming from between the fuselage and the left hand engine.
The captain visually assessed the left hand engine repeatedly, the fire
indication ceased after the first fire bottle was discharged, however, the
crew received a radio transmission indicating there was smoke from the engine,
which prompted the commander’s decision to evacuate the aircraft. The ANSV
stated it was reasonable to doubt the fire had been extinguished. It was
not in line with procedures however that the aircraft was evacuated through
all doors rather than just the right hand doors.

The ANSV analysed that regulations do not take into account that jumping
down from 1.83 meters serious injuries, like a limb fracture as seen during
the evacuation, can occur. The ANSV further reasoned that in case of a crash
the distance from door to floor may even be larger prompting a safety recommendation
to mandate the installation of evacuation slides on the Saab 2000.

YR-SBJ after evacuation (Photo: ANSV):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=450ae447
20120605221249:20120525000000
Incident: Air Canada B773 over Pacific on May 25th 2012, acrid smell in cabin
An Air Canada Boeing 777-300, registration C-FIVM performing flight AC-4
from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 360 people on board,
was enroute at FL350 over the Pacific Ocean about 430nm west of Vancouver
when the crew declared PAN reporting they had an acrid smell in the cockpit
and possible smoke in the cabin. The aircraft was cleared direct Vancouver
and landed safely about 62 minutes later with emergency services in attendance.
No fire, heat or smoke was found.

The Canadian TSB reported that there was an acrid smell in the cabin, but
no visible smoke. The source of the smell was identified to be the inflight
entertainment system which was immediately shut down in flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44fe70cc
20120521203446:20120521000000
Incident: United A320 near Tampa on May 21st 2012, smoke in cabin
A United Airbus A320-200, registration N413UA performing flight UA-831 from
Washington Dulles,DC (USA) to Cancun (Mexico) with 127 people on board,
was enroute at FL350 about 40nm northwest of Tampa,FL (USA) when the crew
reported smoke in the cabin and decided to divert to Tampa for a safe landing
on runway 01L about 25 minutes later.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration N433UA is estimated to reach
Cancun with a delay of 8 hours.

The airport reported the smoke was caused by a technical problem.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44fb07c1/0012
20120720152748:20120517000000
Accident: Dolomiti AT72 at Munich on May 17th 2012, smoke in cockpit, engine problem, runway excursion on landing
Germany’s BFU reported in their monthly Bulletin that the aircraft was climbing
through FL130 about 15 minutes into the flight when cabin crew reported
smoke and an electrical smell of burning plastics in the cabin. The flight
crew began to work the relevant checklist, when an “explosion” occurred
in the right hand engine followed by a fire indication for the right hand
engine. The crew shut the right hand engine down and activated the first
fire suppression system, which extinguished the fire indication. The crew
declared emergency and returned to Munich on one engine. During the return
cabin crew again reported smoke in the cabin prompting the commander to
decide an evacuation would be carried out after landing. Cabin crew began
to brief the passengers for the evacuation. During the last stages of the
approach the flight crew observed the rudder pedals could no longer be moved
despite combined efforts of both flight crew. A yawing moment to the left
during the flare thus could not be compensated, the aircraft touched down
on runway 26L in some left angle to the runway center line, continued straight
and departed the runway about 1290 meters/4230 feet past the runway threshold,
collided with the most western antenna of the RVR system and its switchbox,
the nose gear subsequently collapsed. The aircraft came to a stand still
after rolling over soft ground for about 300 meters. The left engine could
not be shut down the normal way and was therefore shut down using the fire
handle, the evacuation of the aircraft was initiated. Five passengers received
minor injuries.

The aircraft was piloted by the captain (42, ATPL, 7,804 hours total, 5,559
hours on type) and the first officer (35, ATPL, 4,477 hours total, 1,677
hours on type). The aircraft had accumulated 18,521 hours total in 18,712
cycles.

The BFU reported that upon arrival of the investigators both propellers
were found in their feathered positions, the left hand propeller could be
turned by hand, the right hand propeller could not be moved. The lower part
of the right engine’s cowling was covered with oil, the upper part of the
right engine’s cowling showed burn marks. When the cowling was opened traces
of fire and a number of fractured pipes in the aft area of the engine were
discovered.

In the cockpit both oxygen masks had been used, the throttles could not
be moved.

The right hand engine was sent for laboratory examination.

After the aircraft was moved into a hangar the rudder system was examined,
it was determined the pedals could only be moved in a restricted range.
The Travel Limited Unit (TLU) was found in the “high speed” mode limiting
the rudder travel. After the limiter had been mechanically disconnected
the pedals could be freely moved and the rudder followed accordingly to
its mechanical stops.

After the battery was connected the TLU was electrically tested, it was
found the TLU fault indication was illuminated. There was no “low speed”
indication, the bus tie connector switch was found in the open position.
When the TLU was manually selected to low speed, the TLU fault indication
extinguished and the green low speed indication illuminated about 25 seconds
later, the TLU mechanics was moved removing the rudder travel limits. When
the TLU was selected to high speed, the mechanism moved to engage the travel
limits and the TLU fault indication illuminated 25 seconds after the switch
was engaged.

The electrical busses were subsequently powered by a ground power unit,
the TLU selected to automatic. With the bus tie still disengaged, the TLU
was in high speed mode, the FLT CTL indication was missing, the low speed
indication was missing, the TLU fault indication was illuminated. When the
bus tie connector was closed the TLU moved to the low speed mode, the low
speed indication illuminated and the TLU fault indication extinguished.

The investigation is continuing.

Aerial photo showing ground tracks (Photo: BFU/Police Helicopter Munich):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44fb07c1
20120518132838:20120517000000
Accident: Dolomiti AT72 at Munich on May 17th 2012, smoke in cockpit, engine problem, runway excursion on landing
An Air Dolomiti Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500 on behalf of Lufthansa,
registration I-ADCD performing flight EN-1912/LH-1912 from Munich (Germany)
to Venice (Italy) with 58 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing through about
FL130 when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to return
to Munich. On approach to Munich the crew also reported problems with the
right hand engine (PW127) and shut the engine down. While landing on Munich’s
runway 26L at 14:00L (12:00Z) the aircraft veered left off the runway taking
out a transmissometer (used to measure RVR values) and came to a stop about
80 meters/260 feet off the runway close to the perimeter fence with the
nose gear collapsed, already outside the runway’s protected area. The aircraft
was evacuated. No injuries are being reported, a number of passengers complained
about blood circulation issues however. The aircraft sustained substantial
damage.

A ground witness reported the right engine was shut down as the aircraft
came in to land. Multiple ground observers reported smoke emanated from
the aircraft after it came to a stand still, a video however shows no smoke
whatsoever from the aircraft while more than a dozen emergency vehicles
rushed towards the aircraft.

The airport reported the aircraft returned to Munich after the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit. Shortly before landing the crew reported engine problems.
The aircraft touched down hard, veered off the runway and came to a stop
80 meters off the runway.

The aircraft was towed to a hangar in the late evening.

The German BFU have opened an investigation, the aircraft’s black boxes
have been secured and are being analysed.

Metars:
EDDM 171320Z VRB04KT CAVOK 11/M02 Q1021 NOSIG
EDDM 171250Z VRB03KT CAVOK 12/M00 Q1022 NOSIG
EDDM 171220Z VRB03KT 9999 SCT046 SCT070 11/M00 Q1022 NOSIG
EDDM 171150Z VRB05KT 9999 SCT048 SCT065 BKN044 11/M00 Q1022 NOSIG
EDDM 171120Z 27006KT 250V310 CAVOK 10/M00 Q1023 NOSIG
EDDM 171050Z VRB02KT 9999 BKN044 10/M00 Q1023 NOSIG
EDDM 171020Z 30004KT 270V350 9999 BKN038 10/01 Q1023 NOSIG
EDDM 170950Z 23003KT 9999 SCT038 10/M00 Q1023 NOSIG
EDDM 170920Z 27005KT 130V300 9999 SCT038 09/02 Q1023 NOSIG

I-ADCD in its final position (Photos: Tobi Gollasch):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f70610
20120513143833:20120512000000
Incident: Air India B773 near Bucharest on May 12th 2012, Mangos cause cargo smoke indication
An Air India Boeing 777-300, registration VT-ALP performing flight AI-121D
from Delhi (India) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 303 passengers and 17
crew, was enroute at FL360 about 70nm northeast of Bucharest (Romania) when
the crew received a cargo smoke indication and decided to divert to Bucharest’s
Otopeni Airport. On approach to Otopeni Airport the crew reported the fire
warning had extinguished and advised they were ready for evacuation but
would only evacuate if there is smoke or fire visible, otherwise would deplane
using stairs. The aircraft continued for a safe landing on runway 26L about
22 minutes after leaving FL360 and vacated the runway via taxiway G and
stopped on the taxiway. Responding emergency services found no trace of
fire, heat or smoke. The passengers disembarked normally via stairs and
were taken to hotels.

The airline initially suspected a faulty smoke detector produced a false
alert, an examination later revealed a load of Mangos in the cargo bay.
The reasons for the fumes setting off the smoke detector probably were chemicals
used to ripen the fruits, the airline explained.

The aircraft departed Bucharest 28 hours after landing and reached Frankfurt
with a delay of 29 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f48377
20120509132931:20120509000000
Incident: Eva B773 near Manila on May 9th 2012, smoke in cockpit
An Eva Air Boeing 777-300, registration B-16706 performing flight BR-226
from Singapore (Singapore) to Taipei (Taiwan), was enroute near Manila (Philippines)
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and decided to divert to Manila.
On approach the crew reported the smoke had subsided. The aircraft landed
safely in Manila.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f683ff
20120511230446:20120503000000
Incident: United B752 near Goose Bay on May 3rd 2012, smoke in cabin
A United Boeing 757-200, registration N18112 performing flight UA-114 from
Newark,NJ (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 125 people on board, was
enroute at FL350 about 200nm southwest of Goose Bay,NL (Canada) when cabin
crew informed flight crew about smoke and an acrid burning smell in the
first class cabin. The captain declared emergency deciding to divert to
Goose Bay and actioned the relevant checklist which required the utility
bus and the inflight entertainment system to be shut down. The smoke and
smell began to dissipate thereafter. The aircraft landed safely but overweight
at Goose Bay about 35 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance identified the electrical seat power
control unit of seats 1A/B as source of the smoke. The control unit was
de-activated and the aircraft continued to London, where the aircraft landed
with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f059a3
20120504162508:20120503000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 at Houston on May 3rd 2012, cargo fire indication
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, flight EV-4299/UA-4299
from Houston,TX to Baton Rouge,LA (USA) with 47 passengers, was climbing
out of Houston when the crew reported a cargo fire indication, levelled
off at 4000 feet and returned to Houston for a safe landing on runway 27
about 15 minutes after departure. Emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The airline reported there was a faint smell of smoke in the cabin of the
aircraft.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 reached Baton Rouge with a delay of 2:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44eded0c
20120501195445:20120501000000
Incident: Delta B764 over Atlantic on May 1st 2012, smokey odour in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N841MH performing flight DL-19
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Detroit,MI (USA), was enroute over the Atlantic
Ocean about one hour into the crossing when the crew reported a smokey odour
in the cabin, turned around and diverted to Shannon (Ireland). On approach
the crew advised they didn’t need any assistance. The aircraft landed safely
on runway 06 about 70 minutes after turning around.

The aircraft was able to continue the journey after 2 hours on the ground
and is estimated to reach Detroit with a delay of 3.5 hours.

N841MH in Shannon:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44edb4b3
20120501134333:20120430000000
Incident: US Airways A319 near Tucson on Apr 30th 2012, smell of smoke in cockpit
A US Airways Airbus A319-100, flight US-338 from Phoenix,AZ (USA) to San
Jose Cabo (Mexico) with 54 people on board, was enroute at FL320 about 60nm
south of Tucson,AZ when the crew donned their oxygen masks, reported smell
of smoke in the cockpit, turned around and diverted to Tucson for a safe
landing on runway 11L about 20 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f6882b
20120511233531:20120429000000
Incident: Westjet B737 at Calgary on Apr 29th 2012, blast of hot air from rudder pedals
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-FIBW performing flight WS-447 from
Calgary,AB to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 122 people on board, was in the
initial climb out of Calgary’s runway 28 when immediately after rotation
a strong smell of fumes along with a blast of hot air from the rudder pedals
was noticed in the cockpit. Before the aircraft reached 1000 feet AGL the
purser contacted the flight deck reporting a smokey odour in the cabin.
The crew declared emergency, levelled off at 5000 feet and returned to Calgary
for a safe landing on Calgary’s runway 34 about 8 minutes after departure
and stopped on the runway. Emergency services found no trace of fire or
heat.

The Canadian TSB reported prior to the departure maintenance had prepared
the left hand engine for a borescopic inspection within an E2 check. The
borescopic inspection plug had been removed, but then it was determined
that the borescopic inspection could not proceed due to the tight tolerances
on the new engine. Anti-seize compound was applied to plug and the plug
was re-installed. As the borescopic inspection had not been conducted the
engine run required after such an inspection was not performed. It is believed
that heated residual anti-seize compound on and around the borescope inspection
plug caused the smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 registration C-FXWJ reached Vancouver with
a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f64817
20120511160448:20120428000000
Incident: Cimber Sterling AT72 near Billund on Apr 28th 2012, duct overheat and smoke in cabin
A Cimber Sterling Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration OY-CIO
performing positioning flight QI-9501 from Billund to Copenhagen (Denmark)
with just the two pilots on board, was climbing out of Billung about 10
minutes into the flight when the crew received a “DUCT OVHT” caution message
and shut air conditioning system #2 down. The first officer left the flight
deck to check the cabin and reported that it was very hot in the cabin and
there was smoke in the cabin. During the brief opening of the cockpit door
both pilots could see and smell smoke in the cockpit. Both flight crew donned
their oxygen masks, the crew declared emergency and returned to Billund
for a safe landing.

Denmarks Havarikommission opened an investigation into the incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44eb73ed
20120428224949:20120428000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Ft. Wayne on Apr 28th 2012, smoke fumes in cockpit and cabin
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N677AE performing flight
MQ-3989 from Dayton,OH to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 32 passengers and
3 crew, was enroute at FL200 about 20nm southeast of Fort Wayne,IN when
the crew donned their oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting smoke fumes
in cockpit and cabin and advised they were going to divert to Fort Wayne.
The aircraft positioned for a GPS runway 14 approach and landed safely on
runway 14 about 15 minutes after declaring emergency. The crew taxied the
aircraft to the apron reporting the smoke had dissipated.

The airline reported a burning electrical smoke on board, there was no fire
on board.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e87f7d
20120425135017:20120425000000
Incident: KLM MD11 near Shannon on Apr 25th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A KLM McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration PH-KCC performing flight KL-758
from Panama City (Panama) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 272 passengers
and 13 crew, was enroute at FL370 about 140nm south of Shannon (Ireland)
when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Shannon for
a safe landing on runway 06 about 35 minutes later. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire or smoke.

The airline reported an unusual odour in the cabin prompted a precautionary
diversion. A replacement aircraft is going to continue the flight.

PH-KCC at the gate in Shannon:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44ea69ed
20120427205153:20120423000000
Incident: Calm SF34 near Rankin Inlet on Apr 23rd 2012, lights darken the cabin
A Calm Air Saab 340B, registration C-FTJW performing flight MO-539 from
Chesterfield Inlet,NU to Baker Lake,NU (Canada), was enroute when the flight
attendant observed the overhead lights flickered and a puff of smoke in
the rear of the cabin at the upper left side. The lights were turned off,
the smoke abated and no heat was observed. The crew decided to divert to
Rankin Inlet,NU reporting smoke in the cabin but not requiring assistance.
The the aircraft landed safely in Rankin Inlet.

The Canadian TSB reported the source of smoke was determined to be a fluorescent
light ballast.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e62ccf
20120422151444:20120422000000
Incident: UPS B763 near Boston on Apr 22nd 2012, odour, smoke in cockpit and cargo fire indication
A UPS Boeing 767-300, registration N332UP performing flight 5X-209 from
Philadelphia,PA (USA) to Cologne (Germany), was enroute at FL330 about 40nm
northnortheast of Boston,MA (USA) when the crew reported an odour in the
cockpit, followed by smoke in the cockpit from the center pedestal possibly
right radio. The crew decided to divert to Boston where the aircraft landed
overweight and safely on runway 33L about 13 (!) minutes later and stopped
on the runway reporting they had hot brakes and now also had a fire indication
at the upper cargo deck containing hazmat, they believed however the fire
indication was false. The crew shut the aircraft down and requested emergency
services to use thermal imaging, a quick check of the cargo bay by them
had not shown any trace of fire. Emergency services found no trace of fire.

The aircraft was subsequently towed to the cargo apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e7ebbe
20120424201353:20120420000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 at Miami on Apr 20th 2012, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FDRK performing flight AC-917
from Miami,FL (USA) to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 145 people on board, was
in the initial climb out of runway 08R when the crew received an avionics
smoke indication, declared emergency and returned to Miami for a safe overweight
landing on runway 12. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire
or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance examined the avionics smoke warning
system, reset the avionics equipment ventilation computer and performed
an overweight landing inspection.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e30b5e
20120420110703:20120418000000
Incident: Lufthansa B744 near Ufa on Apr 18th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, registration D-ABVS performing flight LH-729
from Shanghai (China) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 311 passengers, was
enroute at FL340 about 80nm northeast of Ufa (Russia) when the crew reported
smoke in the cabin and diverted to Ufa for a safe landing about 20 minutes
later. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, the smoke was
identified as electrical as result of some faulty wires. No injuries were
reported.

The airline’s website estimated the flight to depart Ufa at 04:45L Apr 19th
and continue to Moscow Domodedovo (Russia), those flights were all cancelled
on Apr 19th. The website then did not show how the passengers would get
to Frankfurt.

Lufthansa dispatched two Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIZJ and D-AIQB,
from Moscow to Ufa as flights LH-9875 and LH-9879, which arrived in Ufa
around 11:30L (05:30Z), the aircraft are currently enroute as flights LH-9877
and LH-9881 obviously heading for Germany, current position (11:00Z) already
over Belarus 270nm west of Moscow. D-AIZJ landed on Frankfurt’s runway 25C
at 15:08L (13:08Z) and D-AIQB on runway 25C at 15:21L (13:21Z) delivering
the passengers to Frankfurt with a total delay of about 20.5 hours.

The incident aircraft positioned to Germany on Apr 20th leaving Ufa about
44 hours after landing.

The airline reported the aircraft diverted because of an unusual odour on
board adding later that the source of the smell was identified to be an
overheating lamp in the crew rest bunk.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4582be8c
20121029113059:20120417000000
Report: Virgin Australia B737 near Melbourne and Sydney on Apr 17th 2012, fumes sicken two flight attendants
A Virgin Australia Boeing 737-700, registration VH-VBL performing flight
DJ-815 from Melbourne,VI to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 129 passengers and
7 crew, was departing Melbourne when the captain noticed a burning smell
in the cockpit until top of climb, where the smell dissipated. Shortly after
gear retraction the purser told the flight crew there were very unusual
smells in the front and back of the cabin, the captain advised the aircraft
had just come out of maintenance and he had experienced a similiar encounter
before recommending to open the vents to improve ventilation of the cabin
and report if the smells did not improve after 3-5 minutes. One of the flight
attendants in the back of the cabin reported feeling unwell and could not
continue his duties. About halfway into the flight the purser entered the
cockpit to discuss the fumes situation with the captain and noticed no such
smell was present in the cockpit. During the descent towards Sydney, passing
about 10,000 feet, the captain noticed a slight smell for about a minute.
The aircraft landed safely in Sydney. After passengers had disembarked,
the captain discussed the events with a maintenance engineer who advised
the aircraft had undergone an engine wash prior to the flight, the first
officer advised he had not smelt anything unusual throughout the flight.
No passenger reported feeling unwell. A doctor declared two flight attendants
unfit to return to duties, one of the two was even declared unfit to fly
and could not return home until the next day.

The aircraft had already been involved in a similiar event, see Accident:
Virgin Blue B737 near Gold Coast on Jun 5th 2009, fumes sicken 4 flight
attendants. The aircraft has been removed from Virgin Australia’s fleet
in the meantime and is anticipated to resume service in Argentina.

The ATSB released their final report without conclusions, but a safety message:

The incident highlights the potential for crew incapacitation from exposure
to fumes.

Clear and unambiguous communication between the flight and cabin crew should
be maintained during any unusual event.

The ATSB mentioned that the captain never referred to the smoke, fire and
fumes checklist as he considered the situation under control and the fumes
dissipated. Part of the checklist required that cabin crew would not open
the cockpit door but communicate with the flight deck only via intercom.
If cabin crew were affected the captain would need to inform dispatch.

The purser reported that she felt the smell was slightly worse when she
stood up and decribed the smell as similiar to dirty socks. She developed
a blurry vision, dizziness and a dry throat. Her collegue at the front of
the cabin felt nauseous and coughed throughout the flight. She advised the
captain of the condition of the collegue in the back of the cabin but did
not use the word “incapacitated” believing she had described the condition
clearly enough.

The purser conducted a debrief with the cabin crew, the captain joined a
short time later and advised he considered to file a hazard report.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e25cdf
20120418152435:20120417000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Traverse City on Apr 17th 2012, Lithium battery causes smoke in cabin and medical emergency
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N8980A performing flight 9E-4290/DL-4290 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Minneapolis,MN
(USA) with 44 passengers, was enroute at FL280 about 80nm east of Traverse
City,MI (USA) when a Lithium battery powering a device on a passenger’s
chest caught fire. While cabin crew extinguished the fire and provided first
aid to the passenger, the flight crew diverted the aircraft to Traverse
City for a safe landing about 20 minutes later. Medical services took care
of the second degree burn of about a dime’s size on the patient’s chest.

The aircraft was cleared to continue the journey and is currently estimated
to reach Minneapolis with a delay of 3:45 hours.

A passenger twittered a lithium battery exploded on the chest of a fellow
passenger causing the emergency landing.

The airport reported a lithium battery on a passengers chest caught fire
and caused a second degree burn of about a dime’s size on his chest. The
passenger was able to continue the flight.

The FAA reported on Apr 18th a battery pack caught fire prompting the crew
to declare emergency because of smoke in the cabin and divert to Traverse
City. The crew extinguished the fire, one person received an unknown injury.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e15a5f/0000
20140212234835:20120416000000
Accident: Virgin Atlantic A333 near London on Apr 16th 2012, cargo fire indication
The British AAIB released their final report concluding:

Causal factors

The investigation identified that injuries were sustained during the evacuation
of the aircraft. The evacuation was initiated based on the commanderís assessment
of the available sources of information, including the repetitive and intermittent
nature of the aft cargo smoke warnings.

The investigation identified the following causal factor for the intermittent
cargo smoke warnings:

– A latent fault on the T1 thermistor of smoke detector 10WH, in combination
with a CAN Bus fault and possible high levels of humidity in the cargo compartment
due to the carriage of perishable goods, provided circumstances sufficient
to generate multiple spurious aft cargo compartment smoke warnings.

Contributory factors

The investigation identified the following contributory factors for the
intermittent cargo smoke warnings:

– The thermal channel fault in 10WH was not detected prior to the event
by the internal smoke detector temperature monitoring.

– The proximity of the fire extinguisher nozzles to the smoke detectors.

The AAIB reported that two passengers substained serious injuries during
the evacuation, the aircraft received minor damage (dents and punctures
to fuselage skin panels) as result of the evacuation slides deploying.

The aircraft was climbing through FL187 when the crew received a SMOKE AFT/BULK
CARGO SMOKE Master Warning for about 7 seconds, then the indication extinguished,
and activated again for about 9 seconds. The third flight crew member offered
to go back and check the situation, the commander (49, ATPL, 15,619 hours
total, 155 hours on type) contacted dispatch to see whether there were any
further details known, e.g. from ACARS messages. Just when he was explaining
the problem to dispatch the warning activated again, at which point the
commander terminated the call to maintenance, declared PAN and decided to
return to Gatwick. The aircraft levelled at FL220 and turned back towards
Gatwick. Fire agent was discharged into the cargo hold, the warning activated
again for 5 seconds. A second fire agent was discharged, the warning again
activated for 5 seconds, after 18 seconds the warning activated again this
time for nearly 3 minutes.

The captain briefed the cabin crew to wait for the evacuation command from
him, if emergency services did not report any sign of smoke they would taxi
in, otherwise they would evacuate.

The third flight crew member returned to the cockpit and reported he had
not been able to find any trace of fire, heat or smoke. The fire warning
activated again for 11 seconds.

The crew performed an overweight landing into Gatwick’s runway 08R and stopped
about 1630 meters down the runway with the engines at idle, APU running
and park brakes set waiting for information from emergency services. Tower
reported “I don’t see any smoke from here … all appears to be normal at
this stage.”

Fire services contacted the cockpit and asked for the current condition
on board, the fire warning again activated. The captain decided to initiate
the evacuation at this point, emergency services reported all vehicles were
clear, the captain declared Mayday and initiated the emergency evacuation.

The AAIB reported that the emergency services had been told the aircraft
had smoke in the cockpit, the emergency services therefore positioned towards
the cockpit of the aircraft. When the fire chief contacted the flight crew
he was told it was in fact an aft cargo fire indication, a vehicle was repositioned
to the rear of the aircraft.

Emergency services subsequently observed the evacuation, passengers were
not holding sufficient distance and hit the preceding passengers while those
tried to stand up and get sorted off the slide. Others toppled over and
fell onto the concrete receiving minor injuries.

After the evacuation had been completed and everybody was confirmed off
the aircraft, emergency services opened the cargo hold, removed three palettes
to get space and subsequently were able to determine that there had been
no smoke, fire or heat. It was noted however that there had been smoke from
the brakes of the aircraft after landing.

The AAIB reported that Brest control had received information of “smoke
on board”, the information was passed on as “smoke in the cockpit” to London
Terminal Controller. The Terminal controller’s planner, who had just completed
his training in unusual circumstances and emergency with a scenario that
included an aircraft with suspected fire on board, declared a full emergency
for the aircraft as he also believed from garbled transmissions arriving
from the aircraft that the crew was on oxygen masks and thus was convinced
there was smoke in the cockpit.

The AAIB analysed: “It is difficult for a commander to come to the conclusion
that a smoke or fire warning is spurious and make the decision not to evacuate
given the life‑threatening implications of being wrong. In this case,
the commander decided that the safest course of action was to evacuate the
passengers.”

The AAIB analysed quoting testimony provided by the captain however, that
“simulator training might predispose pilots to make decisions to evacuate
when faced with actual circumstances similar to those of a training scenario.”

The AAIB analysed: “The message that there was smoke in the aft cargo bay,
passed accurately to Brest ATC by the co-pilot, had been corrupted by the
time it reached the fire crew at London Gatwick Airport such that they thought
there was smoke in the cockpit and positioned their vehicles at the wrong
end of the aircraft. Although this had no bearing on events in this incident,
it highlighted that it is important for accurate information about the nature
of a problem to be relayed between agencies.”

The investigation found the thermistors’ insulating envelopes of smoke detectors
9 and 10 had been compromised with cracks and holes. The AAIB analysed:
“Tests showed that when the thermistor chips came into contact with a conductive
substance, such as water, they were unable to detect the correct resistance
values for a given temperature, and the resulting temperature measurements
were inaccurate. Infiltration of water through the holes or cracks effectively
cancelled the insulation provided by the Kapton and PET. The investigation
was not able to determine how the integrity of the insulating envelope on
the 9WH and 10WH thermistors, had become compromised.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e15a5f
20120416132933:20120416000000
Accident: Virgin Atlantic A333 near London on Apr 16th 2012, cargo fire indication
A Virgin Atlantic Airbus A330-300, registration G-VSXY performing flight
VS-27 from London Gatwick,EN (UK) to Orlando,FL (USA) with 299 passengers
and 13 crew, was climbing out of London Gatwick’s runway 08R about 75nm
westsouthwest of London Gatwick Airport when the crew declared emergency,
levelled off at FL220 reporting a cargo fire indication and returned to
Gatwick. The aircraft landed safely on Gatwick’s runway 08R about 35 minutes
after departure, stopped about halfway down the runway and was evacuated,
a number of tyres deflated. Responding emergency services found no trace
of fire or smoke. A number of passengers received minor injuries in the
evacuation.

The airline reported a technical problem prompted the captain to return
to Gatwick and to evacuate the aircraft.

The airport was closed for about 2 hours as result of the occurrence until
the aircraft was towed off the runway.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44e0707c
20120415114021:20120415000000
Incident: Royal Brunei B772 near Mumbai on Apr 15th 2012, cargo fire indication
A Royal Brunei Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration V8-BLF performing flight
BI-98 (dep Apr 14th) from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Bandar Seri Begawan
(Brunei) with 195 passengers and 13 crew, was enroute near Mumbai (India)
when the crew received an aft cargo fire indication and diverted to Mumbai
for a safe landing. No trace of fire or smoke was found in the aft cargo
bay. The aircraft taxied to a remote stand, where passengers disembarked
normally.

The airline confirmed the diversion due to an aft cargo fire indication,
the aircraft landed safely, no injuries occurred. The passengers are going
to be taken to hotels in India, visas for the passengers are currently being
processed. A replacement aircraft is going to be dispatched to Mumbai and
is estimated to depart Mumbai the following day and reach Brunei with a
delay of 32 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44e08e10
20120415140928:20120414000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Grand Cayman on Apr 14th 2012, smell of smoke
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N988DL performing
flight DL-352 from Grand Cayman (Cayman Islands) to Atlanta,GA (USA) with
147 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing out of Grand Cayman when cabin crew
noticed a smell of smoke in the cabin prompting the flight crew to return
to Grand Cayman’s Robert Owen Airport for a safe landing about 15 minutes
after departure.

A replacement MD-88 reached Atlanta with a delay of 5:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e3f0d2
20120419195530:20120411000000
Incident: British Airways B763 at Toronto on Apr 11th 2012, hydraulic leak
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BNWU performing flight
BA-93 from Shannon (Ireland) to Toronto,ON (Canada), was on final approach
to Toronto’s runway 05 when the crew requested tower to look for anything
unusual with the landing gear, tower however could not detect anything unusual.
The aircraft landed safely on runway 05, but upon vacating the runway via
taxiway B tower observed smoke from the right main gear. Flight crew became
aware at the same time and requested emergency services to respond.

The runway was closed for about 15 minutes for an inspection and cleaning.

The Canadian TSB reported it was determined hydraulic fluid leaked onto
the hot brakes creating the smoke.

The aircraft had to divert to Shannon earlier, see Incident: British Airways
B763 over Atlantic on Apr 11th 2012, unruly medical emergency
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44def4f1
20120413140648:20120411000000
Incident: Air Malawi B732 near Blantyre on Apr 11th 2012, smoke indication
An Air Malawi Boeing 737-200, flight QM-201 from Blantyre (Malawi) to Johannesburg
(South Africa) with 78 passengers, was climbing out of Blantyre about 20
minutes into the flight when the crew received a smoke indication and returned
to Blantyre for a safe landing about 40 minutes after departure.

The airline denied rumours of an inflight engine fire circulating in Malawi
and said the crew received a smoke indication that was faulty. The aircraft
was examined and departed again for Johannesburg.

Air Malawi resumed flights to Johannesburg end of March 2012 after leasing
a Boeing 737-200 from Star Air Cargo in.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44dc842a
20120410110121:20120409000000
Incident: Mihin Lanka A321 over Indian Ocean on Apr 9th 2012, cargo fire indication
A Mihin Lanka Airbus A321-200, registration 4R-MRC performing flight MJ-603
from Colombo (Sri Lanka) to Jakarta (Indonesia), was enroute about one hour
into the flight when the crew received an aft cargo fire indication and
returned to Colombo for a safe landing on runway 22 about 105 minutes after
departure. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire or smoke.

The airline reported the cargo fire indication was determined false.

The aircraft returned to service about 10 hours after landing operating
its remaining daily schedule on time, for example the rotation to Sharjah
(United Arab Emirates). The aircraft resumed flight MJ-603 the following
morning and reached Jakarta with a delay of 24 hours.

The airline operates one Airbus A320-200 registration 4R-MRB and one Airbus
A321-200 registration 4R-MRC.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44d72e46
20120406155115:20120403000000
Accident: Expressjet E145 at Denver on Apr 3rd 2012, smoke in cockpit, hard short landing
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N27152 performing
flight EV-5912/UA-5912 from Peoria,IL to Denver,CO (USA) with 17 passengers
and 3 crew, was cleared to land on runway 34R. Tower controller was issuing
instructions to other aircraft when he interrupted in surprise at 08:33L
(14:33Z) and exclaimed “he hit the lights” followed by “runway 34R is closed”
instructing the next arriving aircraft to cancel approach clearance, maintain
9000 feet and continue on the localizer, all airport frequencies began to
report an ongoing emergency on the airport, traffic on runway 34L and departures
on runway 25 were also temporarily halted. The Embraer rolled out and stopped
on the runway remaining there disabled, the crew declared Mayday and advised
they were evacuating, tower advised emergency services were deploying. The
crew of another aircraft advised they were observing the landing and they
had the impression the Embraer had hit the approach lights then touched
down really hard but when they taxied closer to have a look onto the aircraft
it didn’t appear they would have struck the lights but they aren’t sure,
tower commented in response they’ll have the approach and runway lights
inspected. The Embraer was evacuated due to smoke on board.

The airport reported the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, the aircraft
was evacuated. One passenger was taken to a hospital, the extent of injuries
was not known. The aircraft remained disabled on the runway, the runway
was closed for 2.5 hours.

The airline reported the aircraft was evacuated onto the runway because
of smoke on the aircraft.

On Apr 4th the FAA said the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and continued
for a landing without further incident, the passengers deplaned onto the
runway, one person received an unknown injury, the aircraft received unknown
damage.

Reader Erik was listening to the fire department’s frequency starting 08:34L
(one minute after landing and Mayday call), fire fighters were told there
was smoke in the cockpit and the aircraft was being evacuated. When the
first vehicle reached the aircraft everybody was already off the aircraft,
no injuries had occurred. The captain told fire crews that they had touched
down before the runway threshold, they had observed smoke on board, he had
also activated the aft cargo fire suppression system. Fire crews reported
there was some fluid leaking off the nose gear. Firefighters, who had entered
the cockpit, reported they had dealt with an active fire by deploying an
agent, the halon had put the fire out, they were however still seeing hot
spots behind a panel. Other firefighters checking the cargo bay reported
no smoke or fire but haze from the halon off the aircraft fire suppression
system. Airport operations subsequently inspected the lights and found no
damage, no tracks were visible.

Sources at the airport reported that the smoke began to emanate when the
aircraft was on short final descending through about 1000 feet AGL, quickly
filling the cockpit. When the aircraft was just about to overfly the numbers
the crew had lost visual reference due to the smoke and brought the aircraft
down rapidly stopping as fast as they could. Tower did not believe the first
Mayday Call (already after touch down) and pressed the crash button after
the second Mayday Call.

On Apr 6th the NTSB reported they are not going to investigate the occurrence.
The cause of the smoke was determined to be an engine seal leak, there was
no fire.

Metars:
KDEN 031553Z 33014KT 3/4SM R35L/3500V5000FT -SN BR BKN005 OVC017 00/M02
A3019 RMK AO2 SLP229 P0004 T00001017
KDEN 031453Z 32013KT 1/2SM R35L/3500V4500FT -SN FG BKN003 OVC013 00/M01
A3018 RMK AO2 TWR VIS 3/4 SLP224 P0004 60013 T00001011 51015
KDEN 031440Z 32011KT 1/2SM R35L/3500V4500FT -SN FG SCT003 BKN011 OVC028
00/M01 A3018 RMK AO2 TWR VIS 3/4 P0004
KDEN 031422Z 33012KT 1/2SM R35L/3000V3500FT SN FZFG SCT003 OVC009 M01/M02
A3017RMK AO2 TWR VIS 3/4 P0002
KDEN 031404Z 34013KT 1/2SM R35L/3000V4500FT -SN FZFG SCT005 OVC013 M01/M02
A3016 RMK AO2 TWR VIS 3/4 P0001
KDEN 031353Z 35013KT 3/4SM R35L/4000V5500FT -SN BR SCT005 OVC015 M01/M02
A3016 RMK AO2 SLP217 P0006 T10061017
KDEN 031449Z 31013KT 3/4SM R35L/4000V5000FT -SN BR BKN003 OVC013 00/M01
A3018 RMK AO2 P0004
KDEN 031322Z 35011KT 1 1/4SM R35L/5500VP6000FT -SN BR BKN005 OVC013 M01/M02
A3014 RMK AO2 P0003
KDEN 031305Z 35013KT 2SM -SN BR OVC007 M01/M02 A3013 RMK AO2 P0001
KDEN 031253Z 36012KT 1 1/4SM R35L/6000VP6000FT -SN BR OVC005 M01/M02 A3013
RMK AO2 SLP206 P0003 T10061017
KDEN 031246Z 36013KT 3/4SM R35L/4500VP6000FT -SN BR OVC005 M01/M02 A3012
RMK AO2 P0003
KDEN 031232Z 36016KT 3/4SM R35L/3500V4500FT -SN BR BKN003 OVC008 M01/M02
A3011 RMK AO2 P0002
KDEN 031209Z 01014G21KT 1 1/4SM R35L/6000VP6000FT -SN BR OVC003 M01/M02
A3010 RMK AO2 P0001
KDEN 031153Z 35015KT 3/4SM R35L/5000VP6000FT -SN BR BKN003 OVC008 00/M01
A3009 RMK AO2 PK WND 36027/1110 SLP190 P0003 60011 70013 T00001011 10017
20000 55015
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44d5a3b3
20120401224820:20120401000000
Incident: US Airways A319 at Burbank on Apr 1st 2012, rejected takeoff
A US Airways Airbus A319-100, registration N836AW performing flight US-271
from Burbank,CA to Phoenix,AZ (USA) with 67 passengers and 5 crew, was cleared
for takeoff from Burbank’s runway 15. Immediately after the crew spooled
the engines up for takeoff the left hand engine (V2524) emitted smoke. The
crew reported they had a #1 engine failure as soon as they powered it up
and had stopped on the runway wherever they were and requested emergency
services to check the aircraft suspecting the smoke might come from the
tyres. Emergency services responded and reported the smoke came from the
#1 engine. The crew requested to check the left side of the aircraft for
damage suspecting they may have temporarily exited the runway. Emergency
services reported there was no visible damage to the aircraft, left landing
gear and runway, but the engine was still emitting smoke. Emergency services
suggested to tow the aircraft off the runway, the captain offered to taxi
the aircraft to the aircraft holding area AA at taxiway A, emergency services
agreed, the aircraft vacated the runway via taxiway A2, turned left onto
the holding and bypass area and shut the aircraft down. The passengers disembarked
onto the holding area and were bussed to the terminal.

The runway was closed for about 30 minutes until the aircraft had taxied
off the runway and airport operations had conducted a runway inspection
reporting the runway clear.

Aerodrome Chart (Graphics: FAA):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=44d408d0
20120330234549:20120330000000
Incident: Batavia A320 at Pekanbaru on Mar 30th 2012, flaps problem
A Batavia Airbus A320-200, flight Y6-565 from Jakarta to Pekanbaru (Indonesia)
with 163 people on board, aborted the approach to Pekanbaru due to flaps
problems. After working the checklists the crew decided to land with partial
flaps in sunny weather and near calm winds. The aircraft touched down safely
at a higher than normal speed at 15:45L (08:45Z) and stopped just before
the runway end (runway length 7050 feet/2220 meters). The aircraft remained
disabled on the runway, passengers disembarked onto the runway.

The airport was closed for about 2 hours until the aircraft was towed to
the apron, a number of arriving flights diverted.

A number of passengers claimed the crew had announced they had brake problems,
there had been sparks prior to landing, there was smoke in the cabin, the
aircraft overran the runway and they were kept on board for about an hour
after landing before disembarking.

Other passengers reported the aircraft had gone around and continued to
fly for about 30 minutes before the aircraft landed. Following touchdown
the aircraft came to a stop, then began to move again before stopping again.
The crew announced they had problems with the brakes so that they could
not taxi to the apron. After about 15 minutes they disembarked onto the
runway.

The airline reported there had been a problem with the wings before landing,
however stated the aircraft stopped 15 meters/50 feet short of the runway
end, there were no sparks and no smoke.

The airport reported the aircraft was towed to the apron, at least one tyre
had deflated. The airport was closed for about 2 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44d3f38d
20120330212653:20120324000000
Incident: Porter DH8D near St. John’s on Mar 24th 2012, smoke in cockpit and loss of com radio
A Porter Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration C-GLQX performing
flight PD-268 from St. John’s,NL to Halifax,NS (Canada) with 41 people on
board, was enroute at FL240 about 100nm west of St.John’s about 15 minutes
into the flight when the crew observed smoke in the cockpit supposedly coming
from a windshield element, declared emergency and decided to return to St.
John’s requesting to descend to get rid of the smoke. While on approach
to St. John’s 18 minutes later the crew reported the smoke had dissipated,
another 3 minutes later the crew reported their COM1 radio had failed. The
aircraft landed safely on St. John’s runway 29 about 8 minutes after reporting
the radio failure.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44ced9a1
20120324170258:20120323000000
Incident: UTAir B735 at Novosibirsk on Mar 23rd 2012, hydraulic leak
A UTAir Boeing 737-500, registration VP-BYL performing flight UT-583 from
Moscow Vnukovo to Novosibirsk (Russia) with 70 passengers and 5 crew, suffered
a hydraulic leak at a brakes line during roll out at Novosibirsk causing
hydraulic fluid to drop onto the hot brakes resulting in smoke from the
gear. The aircraft came to a safe stop, the passengers however disembarked
normally.

The aircraft was repaired, departed for the return flight after about 8
hours on the ground and reached Moscow with a delay of 6 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44cd4dce
20120322183859:20120322000000
Incident: American B763 near Shannon on Mar 22nd 2012, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N392AN performing flight
AA-49 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA),
was enroute at FL340 over the Atlantic Ocean about 200nm westsouthwest of
Shannon (Ireland) when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and decided
to divert to Shannon. The aircraft descended to FL330 towards Ireland until
12nm southwest of Shannon, then entered orbits to descend towards Shannon
and landed safely on Shannon’s runway 06 about 45 minutes after turning
around, reported operation was back to normal, emergency services performed
a visual inspection after the aircraft vacated the runway, the aircraft
subsequently taxied to the apron followed by emergency vehicles.

After the aircraft arrived at the stand emergency services used thermal
imagining especially on the cargo areas.

A failed fan of a galley oven was identified as source of the smoke.

The airline confirmed a small mechanical issue unrelated to the actual operation
of the flight prompting the diversion to Shannon. Due to an overweight landing
the aircraft needs to be inspected. A replacement aircraft is going to continue
the flight.

N392AN taxiing off the runway:

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http://avherald.com/h?article=44cc5c98
20120321142135:20120320000000
Incident: American MD83 at Raleigh/Durham on Mar 20th 2012, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration N9405T performing
flight AA-1355 from Raleigh/Durham,NC to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with
147 people on board, was climbing out of Raleigh’s runway 23R when the crew
declared emergency reporting they had smoke in the cabin out of the air
conditioning vents, no trace of fire. The aircraft stopped the climb at
7000 feet and returned to Raleigh/Durham for a safe landing on runway 23R
about 10 minutes after departure and taxied to the apron.

A replacement MD-83 reached Dallas with a delay of 6:40 hours.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44d801aa
20120404194718:20120317000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 at Memphis on Mar 17th 2012, rejected takeoff
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-GQCA performing flight AC-7044
from Memphis,TN to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 48 people on board, rejected
takeoff from Memphis at low speed (about 70 knots) after the crew received
a lavatory smoke ECAM warning. The aircraft slowed safely and vacated the
runway, emergency services responded, no trace of fire was found.

The Canadian TSB reported examination by cabin crew revealed no anomaly
with the lavatories.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=44ca03ce
20120329122056:20120317000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Las Vegas on Mar 17th 2012, smoke from right gear on landing
An Allegiant Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration N866GA performing
flight G4-497 from Des Moines,IA to Las Vegas,NV (USA) with 147 passengers
and 5 crew, landed on Las Vegas’ runway 25L at about 21:54L (04:54Z Mar
18th) when the crew told tower they believed they had blown a tyre recommending
a runway inspection but they needed no assistance. Tower reported smoke
trailing the aircraft, the crew requested emergency services to check the
right hand main gear of the aircraft and stopped on the runway commenting
they wouldn’t go anywhere. Tower instructed the next arrival, already cleared
to land on runway 25L, to land on runway 25R instead. While waiting for
the emergency services the crew commented they believed there would be a
lot of rubber on the runway. The passengers disembarked via stairs onto
the runway and were bussed to the terminal.

The runway was closed for about 7.5 hours until the aircraft was moved off
the runway.

An observer on the ground reported the aircraft touched down, bounced climbing
about 2-3 feet again before touching down a second time. Smoke trails developed
immediately at the right hand side of the aircraft. When emergency services
arrived at the aircraft the smoke had already ceased.

The airport reported both right hand main gear tyres burst on landing.

The FAA reported on Mar 19th the aircraft blew tyres and also sustained
minor damage to the left hand main gear.

Passenger Richard Margulies reported the left hand main gear strut had rotated
by about 90 degrees so that the wheels were perpendicular to aircraft’s
direction of movement, see his photo below taken from the bus that took
the passengers to the terminal.

Metars:
KLAS 180656Z 20017G21KT 10SM BKN080 08/00 A2948 RMK AO2 PK WND 21026/0559
SLP973 T00830000
KLAS 180556Z 21015G27KT 10SM OVC080 09/M03 A2948 RMK AO2 PK WND 21031/0458
SLP972 60018 T00941028 10128 20094 50002
KLAS 180456Z 21020G30KT 10SM BKN055 10/M02 A2948 RMK AO2 PK WND 22030/0453
SLP973 T01001022
KLAS 180356Z 22018G27KT 10SM BKN050 OVC090 11/02 A2949 RMK AO2 PK WND 21028/0327
RAE00 SLP974 P0000 T01060022
KLAS 180256Z 23018G28KT 10SM -RA SCT070 OVC100 11/04 A2947 RMK AO2 PK WND
22031/0235 RAB35 SLP971 P0000 60018 T01110044 55008
KLAS 180156Z 19017G25KT 10SM FEW070 BKN100 OVC140 13/07 A2945 RMK AO2 PK
WND 20026/0145 RAE0058 SLP962 P0000 T01280067

Passenger photo of landing gear taken from bus (Photo: Richard Margulies):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=44c9e12b
20120318183030:20120317000000
Incident: Aeromexico Connect E145 near Tampico on Mar 17th 2012, loss of cabin pressure
An Aeromexico Connect Embraer ERJ-145, registration XA-TAC performing flight
5D-2469/AM-2469 from Veracruz to Monterrey (Mexico) with 48 passengers and
3 crew, was enroute at FL320 near Tampico (Mexico) when the crew initiated
an emergency descent and a diversion to Tampico due to the loss of cabin
pressure. The aircraft landed safely.

A passenger reported that they were about 40 minutes out of Monterrey (about
half way) when the aircraft began to descend and the flight attendant, who
had just moved the cart into the aisle for beverage service did not begin
service. Then a sound like a gunshot occurred and the passenger oxygen masks
deployed, the cockpit announced “emergency descent” and the descent accelerated.
A couple of minutes later the cockpit announced they had a depressurization
and were diverting to Tampico. Heat developed in the cabin, probably from
the oxygen generators. No smoke/haze was observed throughout the event.
The aircraft landed in Tampico and was received by emergency services. The
passenger wanted to commend the young flight attendant, who although her
fear was noticeable reverted to her training and acted very professionally,
as well as the flight crew, the ground crew however that took over after
the aircraft arrived in Tampico created an “unholy mess”. A replacement
aircraft reached Monterrey with a delay of 5:45 hours.

Other passengers reported the aircraft lost cabin pressure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c950b5
20120317211618:20120317000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Denver on Mar 17th 2012, lavatory smoke indication
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of United, registration N699BR performing
flight OO-6281/UA-6281 from Denver,CO to Tulsa,OK (USA) with 49 passengers
and 3 crew, was in the initial climb out of Denver when the crew declared
emergency reporting a possible fire in a lavatory. The crew stopped the
climb at 7000 feet and returned to Denver for a safe landing on runway 17L,
vacated the runway and taxied to the apron, where passengers disembarked.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c88614
20120316214608:20120316000000
Incident: Wizzair A320 at Eindhoven on Mar 16th 2012, smoking engine
A Wizzair Airbus A320-200, registration HA-LPK performing flight W6-2525
from Riga (Latvia) to Eindhoven (Netherlands) with 174 people on board,
had landed on Eindhoven’s runway 22 when during slow down smoke became visible
from an engine. Responding emergency services, alerted by the crash button
pressed in the tower, inspected the smoking engine however found no evidence
of fire but a leak with oil dripping onto the hot section of the engine.

Dutch media had already reported a crash at Eindhoven Airport.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44cfd582
20120325220018:20120315000000
Incident: Aeroflot IL96 at Goa on Mar 15th 2012, rejected takeoff
An Aeroflot Ilyushin IL-96, registration RA-96005 performing flight SU-578
from Goa (India) to Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) with 252 people on board,
rejected takeoff from Goa and stopped safely.

Rosaviatsia reported the takeoff was rejected upon instruction by the tower
after the air traffic controller confused the contrails of the aircraft’s
engines (PS-90) with smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c87d59
20120316203240:20120315000000
Incident: Air Europa B738 near Santiago de Compostela on Mar 15th 2012, technical problem
An Air Europa Boeing 737-800, registration EC-IDA performing flight UX-828
from Tallinn (Estonia) to Tenerife Sur Reina Sofia,CI (Spain), was enroute
at FL350 about 120nm northnortheast of Santiago de Compostela,SP (Spain)
when the crew decided to divert to Santiago de Compostela where the aircraft
landed safely about 25 minutes later with emergency services receiving the
aircraft.

Passengers reported the crew announced they had a technical problem and
were diverting to Santiago. While disembarking smoke became visible in the
rear of the cabin together with some roaring sound.

The airline confirmed a technical problem caused the diversion but said
there was no smoke in the cabin.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EC-HJQ reached Tenerife with a
delay of 5 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to depart Santiago the following day after
about 17 hours on the ground.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c7900f/0000
20141202162849:20120315000000
Crash: Jet One Express CVLP at San Juan on Mar 15th 2012, engine trouble
On Dec 2nd 2014 the NTSB released their final report concluding the probable
cause of the crash was:

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause
of this accident was the flight crewís failure to maintain adequate airspeed
after shutting down the right engine due to an in-flight fire in one of
the right augmentors. The failure to maintain airspeed resulted in either
an aerodynamic stall or a loss of directional control.

The captain (65, ATPL, 22,586 hours total, about 9000 hours on type) was
pilot flying, the first officer (44, CPL, 2,716 hours total, about 700 hours
on type) was pilot monitoring. Prior to departure the crew performed a run
up of both engines for about 15-20 minutes, ground personnel and crew did
not notice anything abnormal with the engines during the run up. The crew
subsequently received departure instructions to follow the standard eastern
departure route for visual flights. The crew requested a second engine run
up, typical for the aircraft, which was conducted on taxiway C while holding
short of B. The aircraft subsequently taxied to runway 10 and departed.

97 seconds after becoming airborne the first officer declared emergency,
the captain requested a left turn to return to San Juan and asked whether
ATC could see any smoke off the aircraft, ATC confirmed the transmission
but did not verify any smoke – the NTSB reports in a foot note, that the
air traffic controller did not notice any more smoke from the engines than
usual, although he radioed “uh, the engine is smoking” this was meant as
acknowledgement of the pilot’s transmission.

An airport official driving a truck around the aerodrome and familiar with
the aircraft reported he did not hear any unusual sounds or notice anything
unusual when the aircraft departed. Ground surveillance cameras at the aerodrome
also did not record any indications of smoke or fire as the aircraft climbed
over the end of runway 10. A witness in an apartment complex about 1 mile
east of the aerodrome and just south of the extended runway center line
reported however that he heard strange noises that he described as intermittent
engine surges, he saw the aircraft lose altitude and turn north.

Radar data indicated that the aircraft continued to climb, the speed over
ground remained between 140 and 160 knots, the captain advised they needed
to land on runway 28, air traffic control cleared the aircraft to land on
runway 28. The aircraft reached a maximum altitude of 935 feet MSL while
in a left hand turn (30 degrees bank angle) to return to the airport. 205
seconds after becoming airborne, while descending through 500 feet MSL,
the aircraft began rolling right at a speed of about 140 knots over ground,
248 seconds after becoming airborne radar contact with the aircraft was
lost at 110 feet MSL and at an estimated speed of 88 knots over ground,
278 seconds after becoming airborne the aircraft impacted Laguna La Torrecilla.

The NTSB reported that the aircraft carried a load of bread, according to
invoice 12,100 lbs of cargo. The estimated ramp weight of the aircraft was
47,710 lbs with a maximum allowable takeoff weight of 40,900 lbs.

The NTSB reported that the captain was required to undergo a competency
check every year. It could be established that the captain had received
a competentency check on Jun 24th 2010 valid until Jun 30th 2011, however,
the general manager of Fresh Air, also known as Jet One Express, who was
also the son of the captain and was responsible to maintain pilot records,
was unable to provide evidence that the captain had undergone a competency
check in the last 12 months before the accident.

The NTSB reported that the captain had witnessed an inflight engine fire
on another Convair on Jan 17th 2011. While overflying that other aircraft
he noticed the fire and radioed the crew, that they had a fire and needed
to turn around, the crew made it back (the NTSB quoted the captain’s son:
“by the skin of their teeth”). The NTSB reported with respect to this other
accident: “Postaccident examination of the airplaneís left engine revealed
a discrepancy in two cylinders in which the pistons did not move during
rotation of the engine. This discrepancy may have resulted in unburned fuel
or oil entering the exhaust system and igniting in the exhaust or augmentor
assemblies. Although the augmentor assemblies were not available for examination,
the location of the fire suggests that there was a leak in the vicinity
of the augmentor assemblies and muffler junction, causing the fire to burn
inside the nacelle rather than exit out the aft end of the muffler.”

The NTSB reported that the minimum control speed for the aircraft is 87
knots and the published stall speed for level flight was 97 knots. The NTSB
added: “However, minimum control speeds increase substantially for a turn
into the operative engine, as the accident crew did in the final seconds
of flight. As a result, the airplane was operating close to both stall and
controllability limits when radar contact was lost.”

The NTSB reported that the left hand engine controls were found in positions
fully consistent with the engine operating at takeoff power, the right hand
engine’s thrust lever however was found in the closed position, the throttle
valve was in a position consistent with the engine being shut down. A post
accident examination of both engines did not reveal any mechanical failure
that would have prevented normal operation of the engines, neither engine
or exhaust manifolds showed indications of thermal distress or fire.

The post accident examination found the left hand propeller in the fully
feathered position, while the right hand propeller was found in a position
consistent with takeoff power setting.

The NTSB reported that according to testimony by other flight crew of the
company the autofeather system on the accident aircraft was not operative,
it’s circuit breaker had been pulled. In addition, the captain usually had
the autofeather system turned off even when operative. It was similiar with
the aircraft’s antidetonation injection system (ADI), the captain had the
habit of not arming the system even if operative. The NTSB analysed, that
with both systems operative and armed, the maximum allowable takeoff weight
would have been 48,000 lbs, with the autofeather inoperative/not armed the
maximum allowable takeoff weight reduced to 43,500 lbs and with both autofeather
and ADI systems inoperative/not armed the maximum allowable takeoff weight
was 40,900 lbs and stated: “The NTSB concludes that based on the captainís
history of ADI and autofeather nonuse and the postaccident position of the
autofeather switch, the flight crew likely did not use the ADI and autofeather
systems during the takeoff; as a result, the accident airplane exceeded
the maximum allowable takeoff weight of 40,900 lbs.”

With respect to the left hand propeller found feathered instead of the right
hand propeller, the NTSB analysed: “Pilots flying multiengine aircraft are
generally trained to shut down the engine experiencing a problem and feather
that propeller; thus, the flight crew likely intended to shut down the right
engine by bringing the mixture control lever to the IDLE CUTOFF position
and feathering the right propeller, as called out in the Engine Fire In
Flight checklist. This would have left the flight crew with the left engine
operative to return to the airport. However, postaccident examinations revealed
that the left propeller was found feathered at impact, with the left engine
settings consistent with the engine at takeoff or climb setting. The right
engine settings were generally consistent with the engine being shut down;
however, the right propellerís pitch was consistent with a high rotation/takeoff
power setting. Had the autofeather system been ARMED, the right propeller
would have automatically started the feathering process and, simultaneously,
a blocking relay would be energized, preventing the left propeller from
feathering. Because the autofeather system was not activated, the flight
crew had to manually feather the propeller and likely manually selected
the left propeller to feather at some point before impact with the water.”

The NTSB analysed that the aircraft did not carry a flight data or cockpit
voice recorder, it was not required to be equipped with these recorders.
The investigation thus was unable to determine when the crew shut the right
hand engine down and when the left hand propeller was feathered. However,
as the aircraft continued to climb initially at an airspeed above the single
engine climb speed until the controller cleared the aircraft to land back,
it was thus likely that the right hand engine had not been shut down until
the aircraft became cleared to land. The NTSB continued: “The radar data
then indicate a relatively steady decline in altitude until the final right
turn to align with runway 28. The calculated airspeed on the accident flight
was around 140 knots when the airplane began to bank to the right to line
up with runway 28, but then decreased during the right turn. The NTSB concludes
that although the flight crew feathered the left propeller at some point
during the return to the airport, the feathering likely occurred late in
the accident sequence because the flight profile indicates that at least
one engine was generating thrust until near the end of the flight.”

The NTSB reported: “Airframe fire and thermal damage were found on the airplaneís
right wing rear spar, nacelle aft of the power section, and in the vicinity
of the junction between the augmentor assemblies and the exhaust muffler
assembly. Damage to the airframe extended from the right engine firewall
aft to the flaps, with the damage greater on the outboard side compared
to the inboard side. The rear spar was intact with several areas of significant
fire damage. Sooting was present on all of the rear spar aft surfaces, and
the spar web exhibited evidence of burn-through in three areas concentrated
toward the right side. The lower bulkhead that forms the aft end of the
right wheel well remained attached, with several areas exhibiting heat damage.
The right inboard flap had some melting and other heat-related signatures
on the upper surface on the forward outboard corner, and sooting was present
on the top surface of the flap; the inboard flap was otherwise intact. The
inboard end of the right outboard flap exhibited fire damage, including
a section of the attached flap track, as well as a section of the inboard
edge that was missing and presumed destroyed in the fire. Damage to the
remaining inboard portion of the right outboard flap extended about 14 in
along the trailing edge and 28 in along the leading edge.”

The NTSB analysed: “All of the fire and thermal damage was located aft of
the engine and the fire detection/warning system installed on the airplane.
Additionally, the condition of the paint on the upper right wing skin within
the nacelle area was consistent with long-term exposure to high heat exceeding
normal operation. The paint discoloration and lack of oil residue on the
right augmentors when compared to the left augmentors and when compared
with augmentors from an exemplar airplane indicated that the right side
was exposed to much higher temperatures than the left side. While the investigation
could not determine the exact location of the ignition source, it appears
to have been aft of the engine in the vicinity of the junction between the
augmentor assemblies and exhaust muffler assembly. Statements from mechanics
familiar with this type of airplane indicate exhaust fires do occur in the
augmentors on this type of aircraft. Under normal conditions, the fire is
exhausted out the muffler assembly, resulting in little or no damage to
the aircraft. A fire leaking out of the augmentor assembly at the junction
with the muffler assembly would have produced the damage that was found
on the accident aircraft. Although the source of fuel for the fire could
not be determined, oil or fuel leaks into the exhaust system are capable
of igniting in the presence of the high heat within the augmentors and would
have led to the exhaust fire. Thus, the NTSB concludes that the thermal
damage to the airplane resulted from the ignition of a flammable liquid
in one of the right augmentors, and a leak in the vicinity of the augmentor/muffler
junction allowed the fire to exit the junction and damage portions of the
right wing.”

The NTSB analysed, supported by testimony of the captain’s son, that the
captain was pilot flying initially, the first officer made the initial emergency
call consistent with the usual distribution of the captain flying the outbound
(heavy) leg carrying cargo and the first officer doing the (light) return
leg (without cargo). However, all later communication was done by the captain
suggesting that the first officer became pilot flying during the emergency
while the captain worked the checklists and assumed pilot monitoring duties.

Flight trajectory (Graphics: NTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c7900f
20141202162835:20120315000000
Crash: Jet One Express CVLP at San Juan on Mar 15th 2012, engine trouble
A Jet One Express Convair CV-340, registration N153JR performing a freight
flight callsign 153JR from San Juan (Puerto Rico) to Saint Maarten (Dutch
Antilles) with 2 crew, was climbing out of San Juan’s runway 10 and had
just been handed over to departure when the crew declared emergency and
requested an immediate return asking departure whether they would see any
smoke from the aircraft, the controller reported seeing no smoke. The aircraft
was cleared to land on runway 28, however did not reach the airport anymore
and impacted lagoon La Torrecilla just east of the aerodrome at about 07:45L
(11:45Z). Both pilots perished.

The aircraft wreckage with both occupants, the captain being the owner of
the airline, was located at the bottom of the lake, depth about 30-50 feet
(10-15 meters), divers are still (standing Mar 16th 18:30Z) working to free
the bodies from the wreckage.

Residents around the lagoon reported they got aware of the aircraft when
it began to descend towards the waters, the aircraft was trailing smoke
from the right hand engine while in a left hand turn obviously to return
to runway 28.

The aircraft was carrying 12,000 lbs (5.5 tons) of bread and other goods.

The airport reported the crew reported engine trouble.

Initially Authorities reported three people were on board of the aircraft.

On Mar 16th the FAA reported the crew declared emergency due to an engine
fire, the aircraft crashed and was destroyed while returning to the runway.

Metars:
TJSJ 151256Z 09013KT 10SM FEW034 SCT075 26/17 A3010 RMK AO2 SLP191 T02610172
TJSJ 151210Z VRB04KT 10SM FEW030 SCT075 25/18 A3010 RMK AO2 “ACFT MSHP”
TJSJ 151156Z 12005KT 10SM FEW030 SCT075 24/18 A3009 RMK AO2 SLP188 70001
T02440183 10244 20222 52019
TJSJ 151056Z 00000KT 10SM FEW030 SCT060 22/18 A3008 RMK AO2 SLP183 T02220178
TJSJ 150956Z 00000KT 10SM FEW030 SCT070 23/18 A3005 RMK AO2 SLP174 T02280178
TJSJ 150856Z 00000KT 10SM SCT030 23/18 A3003 RMK AO2 SLP169 T02280178 55007
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f87dbe
20120514110923:20120312000000
Accident: Condor B763 at Frankfurt on Mar 12th 2012, oil fumes injure cabin crew
A Condor Boeing 767-300, registration D-ABUA performing flight DE-1264 from
Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Nairobi (Kenya), was in the initial climb out
of Frankfurt’s runway 18 when the crew received a aft toilet smoke warning
and a strong smell of burnt oil developed in cockpit and cabin. The pilot
flying donned his oxygen masks, the third flight crew member was sent back
to the cabin to assess the situation and returned reporting there was no
trace of smoke in the area. The crew stopped the climb at 5000 feet and
consulted with dispatch resulting in the decision to return to Frankfurt.
The aircraft landed safely on Frankfurt’s runway 25C about 25 minutes after
departure.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration D-ABUF reached Nairobi with a
delay of 12 hours.

Germany’s BFU reported in their monthly bulletin that a number of cabin
crew reported headache and burning eyes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c6060e
20120313194340:20120312000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Baltimore on Mar 12th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N955DL performing
flight DL-1425 from Baltimore,MD to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 149 passengers,
was climbing through about 5000 feet out of runway 15R when the crew reported
smoke in the cabin and decided to return to Baltimore requesting emergency
services on standby. The aircraft landed safely on Baltimore’s runway 10
about 10 minutes after departure.

The airline reported smell of smoke was detected in the cabin.

A replacement MD-88 reached Atlanta with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c42f8d
20120311160451:20120309000000
Incident: United B737 at Houston on Mar 9th 2012, lightning strike
A United Boeing 737-700, registration N24706 performing flight UA-1007 from
Houston,TX (USA) to Bogota (Colombia) with 125 people on board, was climbing
through about 10,000 feet approximately 30nm southeast of Houston’s Intercontinental
Airport at about 16:50L (22:50Z) when the aircraft was hit by lightning.
The crew stopped the climb at 15,500 feet, declared emergency reporting
they had lost everything (referring to instruments) due to a lightning strike
right onto the nose of the aircraft. The crew subsequently requested delay
vectors at 10,000 feet to burn off fuel before returning to Houston. The
aircraft landed safely on Houston Intercontinental Airport’s runway 09 about
45 minutes after departure.

Airport officials reported the cockpit filled with smoke following the lightning
strike.

The FAA reported the aircraft received a lightning strike about 15nm out.
Three more lightning strikes occurred in the same area at about the same
time.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 registration N39726 reached Bogota with a delay
of 4.5 hours.

Metars:
KIAH 100044Z COR 05013KT 5SM TSRA BR BKN011CB BKN034 OVC055 09/07 A3028
RMK AO2TSB44 OCNL LTGIC VC N TS VC N MOV E P0008
KIAH 092353Z 35015G20KT 6SM -RA BR BKN009 BKN040 OVC065 10/08 A3027 RMK
AO2 PK WND 05030/2304 WSHFT 2245 TSE42 SLP250 TS MOV E P0006 60078 T01000078
10106 20094 52018
KIAH 092342Z 01016KT 6SM -RA BR BKN008 BKN034 OVC050 10/08 A3025 RMK AO2
PK WND05030/2304 WSHFT 2245 TSE42 OCNL LTGIC DSNT E TS MOV E CB DSNT E MOV
E P0006
KIAH 092323Z 36011KT 4SM -TSRA BR BKN008CB BKN035 OVC050 10/08 A3028 RMK
AO2 PKWND 05030/2304 WSHFT 2245 PRESRR OCNL LTGIC VC E-S TS VC E-S MOV E
P0006
KIAH 092302Z 05024G28KT 1SM +TSRA BR FEW006 SCT014CB OVC037 10/08 A3018
RMK AO2PK WND 05028/2302 WSHFT 2245 PRESFR FRQ LTGICCC OHD TS OHD MOV E
P0002
KIAH 092253Z 05021G26KT 1SM +TSRA BR SCT006 BKN014CB OVC031 10/08 A3024
RMK AO2 PK WND 04026/2253 WSHFT 2154 TSB17RAB05 SLP241 FRQ LTGICCC OHD TS
OHD MOV E P0061 T01000083
KIAH 092227Z 33009KT 2SM +TSRA BR BKN006CB OVC015 10/08 A3030 RMK AO2 WSHFT
2154 TSB17RAB05 FRQ LTGICCC E-S-NW TS E-S-NW MOV E P0033
KIAH 092245Z 01010KT 1 1/2SM +TSRA BR SCT006 BKN014CB OVC031 10/08 A3031
RMK AO2 WSHFT 2154 TSB17RAB05 FRQ LTGICCC E-S-W TS E-S-W MOV E P0054
KIAH 092217Z 35012KT 3SM +TSRA BR OVC008CB 11/08 A3026 RMK AO2 WSHFT 2154
TSB17RAB05 OCNL LTGICCC VC SE SW-NW TS VC SE SW-NW MOV E P0018
KIAH 092211Z COR 32006KT 4SM +RA BR OVC008 11/08 A3028 RMK AO2 WSHFT 2154
RAB05OCNL LTGIC DSNT SW-NW CB DSNT SW-NW MOV E P0007
KIAH 092153Z 33009KT 10SM OVC008 11/08 A3024 RMK AO2 RAE33 PRESRR SLP241
P0003 T01060083
KIAH 092053Z 05013KT 5SM +RA BR BKN008 OVC024 11/08 A3022 RMK AO2 SLP232
P0008 60008 T01060083 56028
KIAH 091953Z 01008KT 10SM -RA OVC009 10/08 A3025 RMK AO2 RAB14 SLP244 P0000
T01000078
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44bff387/0000
20140103154413:20120306000000
Accident: Silkair A319 at Solo on Mar 6th 2012, reported gear fire on landing
Indonesia’s NTSC released their final report concluding the probable cause
of the accident was:

Uncertain identification combined with ineffective communication by the
controller caused the pilot to make the emergency decision.

The NTSC reported: “The aircraft landed at 0158 UTC. During landing roll,
the controller observed smoke on the left main landing gear and informed
to the SLK pilot. The controller communicated in unclear English. The communication
was assisted by the pilot of another aircraft by translating to and from
Indonesia and English.

For five minutes the pilot repeatedly asked Marmo Tower for more information
to find out whether there was smoke and/or fire. At 0204 UTC, Marmo Tower
said to the pilot that there was fire and the pilot made decision to conduct
passenger emergency evacuation between the taxiway Bravo and apron.”

During the subsequent emergency evacuation one of the passengers received
minor injuries.

The NTSC stated that there was no evidence of fire. The controller however
was not eligible to conduct duty as controller.

A post event examination showed that:

– There was no damage or sign of fire on the wheel and brake assembly number
2;
– Found dry/burnt grease of estimate size 8 cm3 on heat shield;
– The tire pressure was normal, no fuse plugs melted;
– There was no sign of any hydraulic leak or grease on brake number 2;
– There was no sign of damage on the axle sleeve number 2.

The aircraft evacuated on taxiway B (Photo: NTSC):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44bff387
20140103154403:20120306000000
Accident: Silkair A319 at Solo on Mar 6th 2012, reported gear fire on landing
A Silkair Airbus A319-100, registration 9V-SBH performing flight MI-112
from Singapore (Singapore) to Solo (Indonesia) with 124 passengers and 7
crew, had touched down on Solo’s runway when tower informed the crew there
was fire at the left main gear. The crew brought the aircraft to a standstill
and queried whether it was fire or smoke, the tower confirmed he saw fire.
The crew initiated an evacuation via slides, no injuries occurred during
landing, one passenger received minor injuries during the evacuation.

Indonesia’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation reported tower observed
smoke, sparks and fire from the landing gear of the aircraft during roll
out. The aircraft turned off the runway onto taxiway B towards the apron,
when the aircraft stopped and was evacuated. First examination confirmed
a gear fire had occurred. The cause of the gear fire and smoke is being
investigated, as result of the serious incident Silkair has been instructed
to report to Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC).

Silkair maintained however that there was no evidence of fire, smoke and
sparks were seen from the brakes. The brakes overheated and emitted smoke
only.

On Apr 2nd 2012 the NTSC released 3 safety recommendations in Indonesian
permitting insight into the sequence of events. The abstract reports that
the aircraft had completed an ILS landing on runway 26 and had been cleared
to turn off via taxiway B, when during roll out the tower observed smoke
and sparks from the left hand main gear. After tower reported the observation
the aircraft stopped on taxiway B and requested tower to confirm whether
there was smoke and flames, tower reported seeing heavy smoke and moderate
fire. Following this information the commander decided to evacuate the aircraft,
all 124 passengers and 7 crew evacuated safely. An airport maintenance officer
on the apron near the aircraft however did not observe any fire or smoke
from the gear of the aircraft. Following the evacuation the brakes temperature
showed 195 degrees Centigrade only. Visual inspection of the gear revealed
no trace of fire or brake overheat, the tyres remained inflated at 200 psi.
The NTSC annotated that communication by tower was fluent and according
to ICAO phraseology in standard operation, however could not be understood
by the Silk Air crew in abnormal operation, other crews needed to jump in
to make tower understood to the Silk Air crew. The NTSC recommended to Solo
Airport to improve human resources with regards to English language communication
skills and to improve frequency of monitoring and cleaning the runway for
rubber deposits as well to Indonesia’s Directorate of General Aviation to
review the ICAO Language Proficiency Training System used to train and certify
professional staff, especially air traffic controllers.

Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44c0d52c
20120307171219:20120305000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ7 near Longview on Mar 5th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United, flight OO-5169/UA-5169 from
Houston,TX (USA) to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 58 passengers and 4 crew, was
climbing through FL300 about 100nm north of Houston and 60nm south of Longview,TX
when the crew donned their oxygen masks, reported smoke in the cockpit and
decided to divert to Longview’s Gregg Airport for a safe landing about 17
minutes later.

The passengers were bussed back to Houston and re-booked onto other flights.

A faulty printer was identified as source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44bf47fd
20120307122041:20120305000000
Incident: Air France A343 over Atlantic on Mar 5th 2012, smoke caused by short circuit
An Air France Airbus A340-300, registration F-GLZJ performing flight AF-422
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Bogota (Colombia) with 274 passengers
and 14 crew, was enroute over the Atlantic northwest of the Azores Islands
when the crew received a smoke indication for the lower mobile deck, crew
rest area. The flight crew decided to divert to Lajes Airport on Terceira
Island, Azores (Portugal) for a safe overweight landing. The passengers
disembarked via mobile stairs.

Examination revealed the smoke indication was caused by smoke emanating
from a short circuit.

A replacement Airbus A340-300 registration F-GLZR was dispatched to Lajes
on Mar 6th, departed Terceira Island at 15:40L Mar 6th (16:40Z) and reached
Bogota with a delay of 26.5 hours.

The airline’s press office said, the fire indication was false, there was
no smoke, an investigation is underway to determine why the alarm went off
for no reason.

Passengers reported an unusual burning odour shortly after takeoff, that
had been delayed by about 30 minutes due to some technical issue. About
3 hours into the flight the odour intensified and smoke became visible in
the cabin, seemingly emanating from a lavatory. The aircraft dumped fuel
while descending towards the Azores Islands.

Passenger Alessandro Colombo was seated in the front row of premium voyager
class and told The Aviation Herald, that he could not notice any smoke,
unusual odour or unusual sounds from his seat, however, he noticed something
was going on in the left aft part of the cabin. The aircraft was northwest
of the Azores Islands when it turned to divert to Lajes, the captain announced
they had a smoke alert, would divert to Lajes and would dump fuel on the
way to Lajes. The aircraft, while dumping fuel, descended normally to 3000
feet (according to map/flight progress display on the entertainment system),
continued at that altitude, still dumping fuel, for about 20 minutes straight
towards Lajes and landed safely. Alessandro described the scenario on board
as calm with no panic whatsoever, four fire trucks awaited the aircraft
at Lajes, 2 firemen entered the cabin in full safety equipment, the passengers
disembarked quietly over airport stairs with all their belongings.

Disembarking the aircraft in Lajes (Photo: Alessandro Colombo):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44e62157
20120422134728:20120304000000
Incident: SAS A321 near Bremen on Mar 4th 2012, smoke in cabin
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration LN-RKK performing
flight SK-7719 from Billund (Denmark) to Fuerteventura,CI (Spain) with 195
passengers and 6 crew, was enroute at FL340 about 60nm west of Bremen (Germany)
when cabin crew observed smoke from the aft galley. While flight crew decided
and set course to return to Copenhagen the galley’s circuit breakers were
opened causing the smoke to subside. The aircraft landed safely on Copenhagen’s
runway 22L about one hour later.

The aircraft was able to depart again after about 5.5 hours on the ground
and reached Fuerteventura with a delay of 7 hours.

The Danish Havarikommission reported the crew identified an oven in the
aft galley as source of the smoke and tripped the circuit breakers. Maintenane
subsequently found an electrical defect in the oven. The German BFU is investigating
the occurrence because the aircraft was over Germany at that time.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44bbd1e1
20120301212335:20120301000000
Incident: Wideroe DH8D near Bergen on Mar 1st 2012, engine fire indication
A Wideroe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration LN-WDF performing positioning
flight WF-9006 from Bodo to Bergen (Norway) with 5 crew, was on approach
to Bergen’s Flesland Airport when the crew declared emergency reporting
an engine fire indication. The engine was shut down, the fire suppression
system discharged, the fire indication however continued. The aircraft continued
for a safe landing a few minutes later, stopped on the runway and was evacuated.
Emergency services found no fire.

The runway was closed for about one hour.

The airport reported the aircraft had been in Bodo for a routine check.
Following the engine fire indication, alert was raised 2 minutes prior to
landing, both fire bottles were discharged, the fire indication ceased and
the aircraft landed safely stopping on the runway. A first inspection found
no traces of fire, smoke visible from the engine probably was the result
of the fire suppression agent. The fire indication was probably false. Norway’s
AIB is investigating.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44b84735
20120226171122:20120227000000
Incident: ANZ B772 near Auckland on Feb 27th 2012, smoke alert
An Air New Zealand Boeing 777-200, registration ZK-OKE performing flight
NZ-85 (dep Feb 26th) from Auckland (New Zealand) to Hong Kong (China) with
287 people on board, was climbing out of Auckland’s runway 23L when the
crew levelled off at FL260 reporting a lavatory smoke indication and returned
to Auckland for a safe landing on runway 23L about 50 minutes after departure.

After about 2.5 hours on the ground the aircraft was able to depart again
and is estimated to reach Hong Kong with a delay of 3 hours.

The airline reported they are not sure what caused the alert however believe
a passenger may have smoked in the lavatory.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44bbcd4b
20120301205124:20120226000000
Incident: First AT42 at Yellowknife on Feb 26th 2012, smoke just prior to takeoff
A First Air Avion de Transport Regional, registration C-FIQU performing
flight 7F-852 from Yellowknife,NT to Cambridge Bay,NU (Canada) with 21 people
on board, was lined up on runway 34 preparing for departure when the crew
received an aft smoke indication and decided to return to the apron. While
taxiing along the runway a strong odour of electrical fumes was detected,
the crew stopped the aircraft about 1550 feet down the runway and evacuated
the aircraft.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found the circuit breaker for the
“ground cooling fan #2” tripped and the Pack 2 Overheat mimic trip indicator
was showing. The ground cooling fan #2 was replaced, following function
checks the aircraft was returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44b2a93c
20120219234415:20120218000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Washington on Feb 18th 2012, smell of smoke
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N585JB performing flight B6-665
from Buffalo,NY to Orlando,FL (USA), was enroute at FL340 about 140nm southwest
of Washington,DC (USA) when the crew reported smell of smoke on board and
decided to divert to Washington’s Dulles Airport for a safe landing about
30 minutes later. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The remainder of the flight was postponed to the next day. The aircraft
was able to continue the journey as flight B6-8065 after about 13 hours
on the ground and reached Orlando with a total delay of 14.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44afb43d
20120216123124:20120215000000
Incident: Commutair DH8B near Hartford on Feb 15th 2012, cargo fire indication
A Commutair de Havilland Dash 8-200 on behalf of United, flight C5-4827/CO-4827
from Providence,RI to Newark,NJ (USA) with 32 passengers and 3 crew, was
enroute at 8000 feet about 10nm southeast of Hartford,CT when the crew received
a smoke indication for the cargo compartment and decided to divert to Hartford’s
Bradley Airport for a safe landing about 8 minutes later.

The indication was determined false, the aircraft continued to Newark for
a safe landing with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44ad1eb9
20120216185200:20120213000000
Incident: Airphil Express A320 at Kalibo on Feb 13th 2012, overran runway
An Airphil Express Airbus A320-200, registration RP-C3227 performing flight
2P-969 from Manila to Kalibo (Philippines) with 135 people on board, overran
runway 23 by about 60 meters while landing in Kalibo (main city of Aklan
province) around 10:32L (02:32Z). The aircraft stopped safely but was disabled
with all gear on soft ground, no injuries and no damage occurred.

Observers on the ground reported the right hand gear emitted smoke during
the landing roll prompting an immediate response by emergency services,
who doused the right hand main gear after the aircraft came to a stop.

The runway was closed for about 4 hours until the aircraft was towed off
the runway.

No Metars are available, the local weather station reported visibilities
of 8 to 16km between 02:00L and 11:00L, light rain at 02:00L and 05:00L,
light mist subsequently, light winds from north/northeast up to 08:00L and
winds from eastnortheast at 25 kph (13.5 knots) at 11:00L, temperatures
between 24 and 28 degrees C.

Passenger video of the landing (Video: sjvoyager):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a9fa3d
20120209211944:20120209000000
Incident: Republic E170 near Montreal on Feb 9th 2012, lavatory smoke indication
A Republic Airlines Embraer ERJ-175 on behalf of US Airways, registration
N108HQ performing flight YX-3305/US-3305 from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Charlotte,NC
(USA), was climbing out of Montreal about 5 minutes into the flight when
the crew reported a smoke indication in the lavatory, turned around and
landed safely in Montreal about 7 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that the aft lavatory smoke detector was found
faulty.

The aircraft reached Charlotte with a delay of 65 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a77f10
20120206232603:20120206000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Tenerife on Feb 6th 2012, smell of smoke in cabin
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DHB performing flight FR-1228
from Tenerife Sur Reine Sofia,CI (Spain) to Billund (Denmark) with 138 passengers,
was climbing through FL340 out of Tenerife about 110nm north of Sur Reina
Sofia Airport when the crew reported the smell of smoke in the cabin and
decided to return to Tenerife’s southern airport. The aircraft landed safely
at Sur Reina Sofia Airport about 22 minutes later. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-EBH reached Billund with a
delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a63857/0000
20120301171447:20120205000000
Incident: SAS MD82 at Copenhagen on Feb 5th 2012, rejected takeoff and evacuation
The Danish Havarikommission (HCL) released a brief preliminary report stating,
that the aircraft was accelerating for takeoff on runway 22L when the crew
heard a loud sound, observed the left hand engine instruments showing an
engine problem and rejected takeoff at about 40 knots. Smoke became apparent
in cockpit and cabin at that time. The left hand engine was immediately
shut down. The smoke detectors in the cabin issue smoke alerts. The presence
of smoke in the cabin after stand still and the continuing smoke detector
alerts prompted the commander to shut the right hand engine down and order
the evacuation of the aircraft, that was completed in about 90 seconds.

The left hand engine’s front accessory drive including the nose bullet had
separated from the engine. Oil was found in the engine’s hot section and
exhaust. Further checks found the front accessory drive’s support lugs fractured,
the bolts and remains of the 15 lugs were found in the bearing housing flange.
Preliminary laboratory examination determined 14 of the 15 lugs fractured
due to to fatigue, the 15th was an overload fracture.

The HCL analyzed that engine oil in the hot section will cause smoke in
the cabin through the air conditioning system.

The front accessory drive had been removed from the engine in December 2011
in connection with an inlet fan replacement, a vibration check following
re-installation went without issues.

The separated front accessory drive and bullet (Photo: HCL):
The support lug damage (Photo: HCL):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a63857
20120205141724:20120205000000
Incident: SAS MD82 at Copenhagen on Feb 5th 2012, rejected takeoff and evacuation
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration SE-DIL
performing flight SK-1462 from Copenhagen (Denmark) to Oslo (Norway) with
135 passengers including the Norwegian Crown Princess and Crown Prince,
was accelerating for takeoff on Copenhagen’s runway 22R when an engine (JT8D)
emitted a loud bang prompting the crew to rejected takeoff at low speed,
while smoke began to fill the cabin. The aircraft came to a safe stop just
before the displaced runway threshold (about 550 meters/1800 feet down the
runway) and was evacuated through all emergency exits. No injuries have
been reported.

HRH Mette-Marit tweeted her “morning turned out a bit more exciting than
expected whew” and thanked SAS staff for taking care of the passengers.

A number of passengers including the Norwegian Royal Couple were rebooked
onto other flights.

A replacement McDonnell Douglas MD-82 registration SE-DIN departed Copenhagen
with a delay of 3.5 hours.

The airline confirmed there was smoke in the cabin as result of an engine
failure.

The aircraft after evacuation (Photo: Her Royal Highness Crown Princess
Mette-Marit via Twitter):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a3311b
20120202181552:20120131000000
Incident: UPS MD11 near Winnipeg on Jan 31st 2012, fire alert on board
A UPS McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration N252UP performing freight flight
5X-2998 from Louisville,KY to Anchorage,AK (USA), was enroute at FL360 about
190nm north of Winnipeg,MB (Canada) when the crew received a fire indication
on board. The aircraft turned around and diverted to Winnipeg for a safe
landing on Winnipeg’s runway 13 about 35 minutes later. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The fire alert was determined false.

The Canadian TSB reported on Feb 2nd 2012, that the APU fire indication
activated and did not extinguish even after the fire suppression systems
had been discharged. Emergency services did not find any evidence of fire
after landing. Maintenance later determined that the fire warning light
socket of the APU exterior control panel was shorted to ground. The aircraft
remains on the ground until fire bottles, squibs and the control panel assembly
have been replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a081cb
20120129143457:20120129000000
Incident: Qantas B763 near Mount Isa on Jan 29th 2012, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Qantas Boeing 767-300, registration VH-OGJ performing flight QF-825 from
Darwin,NT to Brisbane,QL (Australia) with 170 passengers, was enroute near
Mount Isa,QL when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit and diverted
to Mount Isa for a safe landing.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration VH-VZV has been dispatched from
Brisbane to Mount Isa as flight QF-6160 and is estimated to reach Brisbane
with a delay of 8 hours.

A passenger reported there were no stairs available at Mount Isa to serve
the Boeing 767, hence a fork lift was used.

Mount Isa Airport reported emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke. A wheel chair lift was used to help passengers down as there were
no stairs available for a Boeing 767, that does not normally land in Mount
Isa.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449ee781
20120127151933:20120127000000
Incident: Nordwind B752 at Moscow on Jan 27th 2012, smoke in cabin
A Nordwind Boeing 757-200, registration VQ-BKE performing flight N4-1921
from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt), was in the
intial climb out of Sheremetyevo’s runway 07L when the crew stopped the
climb at 2500 feet reporting smoke in the cabin and returned to runway 07L
for a safe landing about 15 minutes after departure.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration VQ-BOG reached Sharm el Sheikh
with a delay of 4.5 hours.

The airline confirmed a technical problem.

A similiar event had already occured 5 days earlier involving the same aircraft,
see Incident: Nordwind B752 at Moscow on Jan 22nd 2012, smoke in cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449e305c
20120126183303:20120125000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Cologne on Jan 25th 2012, hydraulic leak
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIPE performing flight LH-1988
from Munich to Cologne (Germany), was on approach to Cologne when the crew
detected a possible hydraulic leak. The aircraft continued the approach
to Cologne’s runway 14L for a safe landing, tower however reported smoke
from the right hand main gear. The aircraft stopped after vacating the runway,
emergency services responded and cooled the brakes. The aircraft was subsequently
towed to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally about 30 minutes
after landing.

A passenger reported the aircraft stopped shortly after turning off the
runway, fire brigades arrived a short time later. The crew announced that
they had suffered a hydraulic leak and after landing the tower reported
smoke from the right hand gear obviously as result of hydraulic fluid dripping
onto the brakes. Emergency services used water to cool the right hand brakes
the crew announced at 160 degrees C at that point. Emergency services advised
that the aircraft needed to hold position to prevent further hydraulic fluid
spillage, the aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron, where the passengers
disembarked about 30 minutes after landing.

The incident aircraft was able to depart Cologne about 6 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449d5dee
20120125201727:20120125000000
Incident: Iran F100 at Zahedan on Jan 25th 2012, smoke in cockpit
An Iran Air Fokker 100, registration EP-CFK performing flight IR-382 from
Zahedan to Chahbahar (Iran), was climbing out of Zahedan when smoke began
to emanate from the windshield heating prompting the crew to return to Zahedan
for a safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449c83f8
20120125095822:20120124000000
Incident: British Airways B772 over Atlantic on Jan 24th 2012, smoke in the cabin
G-VIIL being checked by emergency servicesA British Airways Boeing 777-200,
registration G-VIIL performing flight BA-297 from London Heathrow,EN (UK)
to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was enroute at FL360 over the Atlantic Ocean
about 400nm west of Ireland when smoke became visible in the cabin. The
crew declared PAN, turned around, descended the aircraft to FL270 and diverted
to Shannon (Ireland). On the way back the aircraft dumped fuel, the crew
reported they believed they had dealt with the issue that they believed
was an air conditioning re-circulation fan. The re-circulation fan was turned
off, the smoke dissipated shortly thereafter, however, the crew requested
a full turn out of emergency services to check for any indication of smoke
on the outside of the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely on Shannon’s
runway 24 about 70 minutes after turning around and stopped on the runway
where emergency services checked the aircraft.

The runway was closed for about 10 minutes.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration G-YMMN reached Chicago with a
delay of 9 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449d7304
20120125222347:20120122000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Quebec on Jan 22nd 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GTAG performing flight QK-8748
from Ottawa,ON to Quebec,QC (Canada) with 23 people on board, was descending
through 10,000 feet towards Quebec when the crew observed smoke in the area
of the left windshield. The crew donned oxygen masks, declared emergency
and initated related procedures. The crew continued for a safe landing on
Quebec runway 06.

The Canadian TSB reported minor damage to the left windshield’s seal was
detected, a short circuit was found at the terminal L2 of the terminal block
between windshield and window frame. The windshield is going to be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449b764e
20120207165356:20120122000000
Incident: Nordwind B752 at Moscow on Jan 22nd 2012, smoke in cabin
A Nordwind Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration VQ-BKE performing flight
N4-1921 from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt), was
in the initial climb out of Sheremetyevo’s runway 07L when the crew reported
smoke in the cabin, stopped the climb at 3500 feet, joined a left downwind
and returned to runway 07L for a safe landing on runway 07L about 12 minutes
after departure.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration VQ-BOG reached Sharm el Sheikh
with a delay of 5.5 hours.

Russia’s Ministry of Transport reported that the smell of smoke was detected
in the cockpit and flight attendants reported smoke in the cabin prompting
the crew to return to Sheremetyevo Airport. During the descent the smoke
began to dissipate and completely disappeared during landing. No damage
or leakage of fluids was found, the source of the smell/smoke was not identified.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449aae62
20120122144324:20120121000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 at New York on Jan 21st 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-440 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N8745B performing flight 9E-4292/DL-4292 from New York JFK,NY to Lewisburg,WV
(USA) with 4 passengers and 3 crew on board, was climbing through 3500 feet
out of JFK’S runway 04L when one of the pilots donned his oxygen mask and
declared emergency reporting they had smoke in the cockpit. The crew was
advised by the departure controller to expect runway 04R and was vectored
by departure and approach controller to position for an approach to runway
04R. ATC began to struggle to avoid multiple conflicts with aircraft already
on final approach, one aircraft had to be taken out of sequence and turned
back to re-establish on the localizer, the CRJ-200 needed to be kept high
at 4000, then 3000 feet for intercepting the localizer due to potential
conflicts. The final approach controller changed the runway to 04L causing
the crew to struggle setting the cockpit up, the pilot talking to ATC still
on oxygen mask requested the localizer frequency, several vectors increasing
the intercept angle were needed until the aircraft was able to intercept
the localizer and continued for a safe landing on JFK’s runway 04L about
12 minutes after departure. After landing and vacating the runway via taxiway
H the crew reported there was no smoke in the cabin and the smoke in the
cockpit had dissipated, no further assistance was needed.

An aircraft cleared to line up on runway 04L with the emergency aircraft
4.5nm out refused the clearance stating they needed more time.

The airline reported the cause of the smoke is under investigation.

The rotation was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44994c5a
20120120212959:20120120000000
Incident: PSA CRJ2 at Charlotte on Jan 20th 2012, smell of smoke
A PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, flight US-2338
from Charlotte,NC to Charlottesville,VA (USA) with 42 passengers and 3 crew,
was in the initial climb out of Charlotte’s runway 18C when the crew declared
emergency reporting smell of smoke on board. While the aircraft positioned
for an approach to runway 18R the smell began to dissipate. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 18R about 10 minutes after departure and taxied
to the apron.

A replacement CRJ-200 reached Charlottesville with a delay of 2:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4498975f
20120120170755:20120119000000
Incident: Air France A388 over Atlantic on Jan 19th 2012, smoke in cabin
An Air France Airbus A380-800, registration F-HPJC performing flight AF-346
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 448 people
on board, was enroute at FL380 over the Atlantic Ocean about 75 minutes
into the Atlantic crossing, about 600nm west of Ireland, when the crew declared
PAN due to smoke in the cabin, turned around, descended to FL370 and while
initially heading towards Ireland decided to return to Paris Charles de
Gaulle where the aircraft landed safely on Charles de Gaulle Airport’s runway
26R about 2.5 hours after turning around.

The flight was postponed to depart the following day noon as flight AF-4094
with a delay of 20 hours.

The airline reported a video screen overheated but denied smoke in the cabin
contradicting the crew report on HF radio relayed by other aircraft to Shannon
Center.

The airline’s press office had similiarly and falsely denied a Mayday call
of their crew over the Atlantic, see Incident: Air France A332 over Atlantic
on Nov 30th 2009, Mayday call due to severe turbulence.

A passenger reported there was smoke coming from an inflight entertainment
seat in the economy class, which dissipated after the inflight entertainment
system was shut down.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4528c9b2
20120713083354:20120117000000
Report: Korean B744 over Irish Sea on Jan 17th 2012, hot cows
A Korean Air Boeing 747-400, registration HL7601 performing freight flight
KE-9560 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Brussels (Belgium) with 390 cows
travelling on the main deck, was enroute at FL340 over the Irish Sea when
the crew received an aft main deck fire warning. A crew member left the
cockpit to check the main deck and saw no signs of fire or smoke. Although
the crew suspected the indication was false probably caused by the presence
of the cows, they decided to carry out the relevant checklist procedures,
donned their oxygen masks, initiated a controlled cabin depressurization
and performed an emergency descent. The aircraft diverted to London Heathrow,EN
(UK) for a safe landing, attending emergency services found no trace of
fire or smoke.

The AAIB stated in their bulletin the crew believed “the presence of the
cattle led to higher than normal levels of humidity and that this was the
cause of the warning.”

The bulletin did not state on the fate of the cows.

The airline reported none of the cows suffered from hypoxia during the emergency
descent, all of them reached London in good condition.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4497c579
20120118224706:20120115000000
Incident: Velvet Sky B733 at Johannesburg on Jan 15th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Velvet Sky Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration ZS-SPU performing flight
VZ-310 from Johannesburg to Cape Town (South Africa), was in the initial
climb out of Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and returned to Johannesburg for a safe landing
about 10 minutes after departure.

A replacement McDonnell Douglas MD-82 registration ZS-TOG reached Cape Town
with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=449bb549
20120123214241:20120114000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Minot on Jan 14th 2012, electrical smell in cabin
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-FWAI performing flight WS-1407
from Orlando,FL (USA) to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 130 people on board, was
enroute at FL380 about 35nm south of Minot,ND (USA) when an electrical burning
smell was noticed in the cabin. The smoke/fire/fumes checklist was actioned,
cabin crew reported a few moments later that the smell had intensified prompting
the flight crew to declare emergency and divert to Minot for a safe landing
about 22 minutes later. Responding emergency services did not find any trace
of fire or heat.

The Canadian TSB reported the LiveTV seat electronics box at seats 6ABC
had several burnt diodes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44cbabc3
20120320174937:20120113000000
Incident: Air Berlin A332 near Bangkok on Jan 13th 2012, burning odour and smoke in cabin
An Air Berlin Airbus A330-200, registration D-ABXB performing flight AB-7151
from Bangkok (Thailand) to Dusseldorf (Germany), was climbing out of Bangkok
when a burning odour became noticeable in the aft cabin followed by visible
smoke. Near the door L3 rumbling and whimpering sounds were heard. Subsequently
white smoke associated with a burned smell appeared from the air conditioning
outlets in the cabin ceiling. Smell and smoke was not noticeable in the
cockpit nor was any warning indication in the cockpit. After cabin crew
had informed the flight crew an emergency was declared and the crew set
course to return to Bangkok. While descending, with the engines at idle
and while working the smoke checklists, the smoke began to lighten, the
aircraft landed safely but overweight back in Bangkok. The passengers disembarked
normally via stairs.

The BFU reported in their monthly bulletin that the rotor of an air cycle
machine, usually rotating at 35000 revolutions per minute to prepare engine
bleed air for use in the air conditioning system, had seized. The turbine
had overheated and unprocessed, humid engine bleed air had entered the cabin.
Later a valve closed automatically preventing such bleed air to enter the
air conditioning system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4496ec87
20120117223332:20120113000000
Incident: Porter DH8D near Quebec on Jan 13th 2012, smoke in cockpit
A Porter Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration C-GLQQ performing
flight PD-512 from Quebec,QC to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 68 people on board,
was climbing through FL180 out of Quebec when the crew detected a burning
smell in the cockpit and shortly afterwards saw wisps of smoke followed
by an “ENG ADPT HEAT 1” caution message. The crew performed the smoke drill,
donned oxygen masks and goggles, declared emergency and returned to Quebec
for a safe landing on Quebec’s runway 06 about 45 minutes after departure.
Responding emergency services found no trace of fire or heat, however still
observed the smell of smoke. The aircraft taxied to the gate where passenger
disembarked normally.

Emergency services again inspected the aircraft at the gate, the smell was
still noticeable, however, no source of heat was found.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found a damaged and overheated Engine
Intake Heater Adapter Assembly which caused the odour to develop and distribute
through the engine intake via the bleed air and the air conditioning system
into the aircraft. The Heater Adapter Assembly was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44943461
20120114145737:20120113000000
Incident: US Airways A320 near Ft. Lauderdale on Jan 13th 2012, electrical smell in cockpit
A US Airways Airbus A320-200, registration N107US performing flight US-1559
from Philadelphia,PA to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA), was on approach to Fort
Lauderdale when the crew reported smell of an electrical smoke in the cockpit.
The crew continued for a safe landing on Fort Lauderdale’s runway 27R and
vacated the runway, emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4492cd49
20120112214610:20120112000000
Incident: PSA CRJ2 near Charleston on Jan 12th 2012, cargo smoke indication
A PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, registration N226JS
performing flight US-2514 from Nashville,TN to Washington National,DC (USA)
with 23 passengers and 3 crew, was enroute at FL310 about 100nm southwest
of Charleston,WV when the crew reported a cargo smoke indication and diverted
to Charleston for a safe landing on runway 23 about 20 minutes later. The
aircraft stopped on the runway, emergency services inspected the aircraft
finding a closed system was leaking some gaseous substance presumed oxygen
creating fog, however, no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft was
shut down and towed to the apron.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44985eae
20120119170206:20120111000000
Incident: Greenland DHC7 near Ilulissat on Jan 11th 2012, lavatory smoke indication
An Air Greenland de Havilland Dash 7-100, registration OY-CBT performing
flight GL-620 from Ilulissat to Upernavik (Greenland) with 27 passengers
and 3 crew, was climbing through 2000 feet out of Ilulissat when the lavatory
smoke detector triggered and smell of smoke was noticed in cabin and cockpit.
The crew stopped the climb and returned to Ilulissat for a safe landing.
At the time of landing the smoke detector had ceased its alert, the smell
of smoke however was still detectable when emergency services checked the
aircraft. No fire, heat or smoke was detected however.

Denmark’s Havarikommission (HCL) reported, that at the time of activation
of the smoke detector the lavatory door was open with nobody inside the
lavatory. A following examination of the aircraft failed to bring up any
explanation for the activation of the smoke detector and the smell of smoke
onboard, however detected the high pressure bleed air on both left engines
(PT6A, #1 and #2) did not work, the system being electrically controlled.
The system was reset and a test flight performed without any further anomaly.
The HCL believes that some fluid evaporated in the air conditioning system
causing the fumes, however, it was impossible to tell whether the fluid
may have been oil, soap, de-icing fluid or the like. The failure of the
left hand high pressure bleed air may have aggravated the situation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4493ab21
20120113230333:20120108000000
Incident: Air Wisconsin CRJ2 at Ottawa on Jan 8th 2012, smoke in cockpit
An Air Wisconsin Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, registration
N434AW performing flight ZW-3837/US-3837 from Ottawa,ON (Canada) to Philadelphia,PA
(USA), was climbing out of Ottawa when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit,
the airfield was in sight. The aircraft was cleared for an “absolutely unrestricted
visual approach” to runway 25, levelled off at about 4000 feet and landed
safely on runway 25 about 5 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported the odour (smoke) was attributed to ingestion
of anti-ice fluid that had been applied prior to departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44902294
20120109152554:20120108000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Louisville on Jan 8th 2012, engine shut down in flight
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ-3560 from Indianapolis,IN to
Miami,FL (USA) with 28 people on board, was enroute at FL370 about 45nm
south of Louisville,KY when the crew reported an oil leak on the #1 engine
(left hand) and smell of smoke on board, shut the engine down and diverted
to Louisville for a safe landing about 20 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448f61e6
20120108162539:20120108000000
Incident: KLM MD11 at Amsterdam on Jan 8th 2012, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A KLM McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration PH-KCK performing flight KL-671
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Montreal,QC (Canada), was climbing through
5000 feet out of Amsterdam’s runway 36L when the crew reported they had
a problem. The crew subsequently reported they had smoke in the cabin and
cockpit and requested to level off at FL130 and keep close to Amsterdam.
The aircraft levelled off at FL130 for about 30 minutes, dumped fuel and
returned to Amsterdam for a safe landing on runway 27 about one hour after
the onset of trouble.

A replacement Boeing 747-400 registration PH-BFY is now estimated to depart
Amsterdam with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448e8b96
20120107154547:20120106000000
Incident: Korean A333 near Komatsu on Jan 6th 2012, odour on board
A Korean Air A330-300, registration HL7550 performing flight KE-766 from
Sapporo (Japan) to Seoul (South Korea) with 242 passengers, was enroute
at FL380 about 120nm northeast of Komatsu (Japan) when a strong odour on
board prompted the crew to divert to Komatsu for a safe landing. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The passengers were taken to hotels. The aircraft was examined and released
for flight the following day after 20 hours on the ground. The aircraft
reached Seoul with a delay of 20 hours.

Passengers reported the odour smelled like burned wires.

The airline reported the odour was caused by an anomaly in the air conditioning
system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448c1be9
20120104221358:20120104000000
Incident: Allegiant MD82 near Bellingham on Jan 4th 2012, smoke in cabin
An Allegiant McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration N425NV performing flight
G4-278 from Bellingham,WA to Las Vegas,NV (USA), was climbing out of Bellingham
when the crew reported light smoke in the cabin, stopped the climb at 9000
feet and returned to Bellingham for a safe landing about 20 minutes after
departure. The smoke dissipated on approach, responding emergency services
found no trace of fire or heat.

A replacement MD-82 is estimated to reach Las Vegas as flight G4-9425 with
a delay of 4:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448c1974
20120104215941:20120104000000
Incident: Express E145 near Colorado Springs on Jan 4th 2012, cargo smoke indication
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United, registration N31131 performing
flight XE-4461/UA-4461 from Houston,TX to Grand Junction,CO (USA) with 33
people on board, was enroute at FL360 about 100nm south of Colorado Springs,CO
when the crew reported a cargo smoke indication and diverted to Colorado
Springs. On approach the crew reported that the indication had gone off
but turned back on and continued for a safe landing on runway 35R about
20 minutes later and taxied to the apron. Emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448bf789
20120105093225:20120104000000
Incident: Astana B763 at Amsterdam on Jan 4th 2012, suspected tail strike on departure
An Air Astana Boeing 767-300, registration P4-KCA performing flight KC-904
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Atyrau (Kazakhstan), was climbing out of
Amsterdam’s runway 24 and had been cleared to climb to FL250 when the crew
reported they were going to level off at FL150 due to an issue subsequently
adding they had just been informed about a possible tail strike on departure
and needed to return for checks. The aircraft levelled off at FL150, entered
a holding at FL100 to burn off fuel and returned to Amsterdam’s runway 27
about 140 minutes after departure.

The aircraft was able to depart again after two hours on the ground and
is estimated to reach Atyrau with a delay of 4:15 hours.

Maarten Visser sr observed the tail strike from the ground and took a picture
confirming ground contact by the tail bumper (watch the smoke trailing the
aircraft).

Metars:
EHAM 041355Z 26020G31KT 230V290 9999 FEW022 SCT025 08/04 Q1013 NOSIG
EHAM 041325Z 26020KT 230V290 9999 FEW025 08/04 Q1013 NOSIG
EHAM 041255Z 26023KT 230V300 9999 FEW025 07/03 Q1013 NOSIG
EHAM 041225Z 27022KT 9999 FEW022 08/04 Q1013 NOSIG
EHAM 041155Z 27023KT 240V300 9999 FEW020 08/03 Q1014 NOSIG
EHAM 041125Z 27022KT 9999 FEW020 08/04 Q1014 NOSIG
EHAM 041055Z 27026KT 240V300 9999 FEW027 07/03 Q1014 NOSIG
EHAM 041025Z 28021G31KT 250V310 9999 SCT025 07/03 Q1014 NOSIG
EHAM 040955Z 28024G34KT 9999 FEW025 07/03 Q1013 NOSIG
EHAM 040925Z 28021KT 9999 SCT026 07/03 Q1012 NOSIG
EHAM 040855Z 28023KT 250V310 9999 SCT025 SCT043 07/03 Q1012 NOSIG
EHAM 040825Z 28019KT 250V310 9999 SCT025 07/03 Q1011 NOSIG

P4-KCA on takeoff (Photo: Maarten Visser sr):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4491fcf0
20120111204927:20120102000000
Incident: Air Canada A333 near Toronto on Jan 2nd 2012, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Airbus A330-300, registration C-GHKX performing flight AC-856
from Toronto,ON (Canada) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 270 people on board,
was climbing through 17,000 feet out of Toronto, when smoke began to emanate
from the aft galley. The crew pulled the circuit breaker, the smoke continued
however. The flight crew declared emergency and returned to Toronto for
a safe landing on runway 23 about 30 minutes after departure. As the smoke
had gradually dissipated during the return the aircraft taxied to the apron.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found an oven insert was jammed in
the back of the oven blocking the fan.

The incident aircraft departed again and reached London with a delay of
14 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448a8c92
20120102232753:20111231000000
Incident: American B772 near Beijing on Dec 31st 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N756AM performing flight
AA-186 from Beijing (China) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was enroute about
30 minutes into the flight when smell of smoke was detected in the cabin
prompting the crew to return to Beijing for a safe landing about 60 minutes
after departure. No traces of fire, heat or smoke were found.

The aircraft was able to depart the following day and reached Chicago with
a delay of 26 hours.

Passengers reported they smelled a strong odour of smoke on board, shortly
afterwards the captain announced they had technical problems and were returning
to Beijing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448ddb05
20120106212428:20111230000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 at Ottawa on Dec 30th 2011, rejected takeoff
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-440 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N8721B performing flight 9E-4089/DL-4089 from Ottawa,ON (Canada) to Detroit,MI
(USA) with 52 people, rejected takeoff from Ottawa’s runway 25 at high speed
(about 100 KIAS) due to smoke entering the cockpit. The smoke dissipated
quickly during and after stop, emergency services responded but were advised
the problem had been solved before the trucks reached the aircraft. The
aircraft taxied to the gate escorted by emergency services.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance determined glycol (de-icing fluid)
entered the air conditioning packs resulting in the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44873c2e
20111229213200:20111229000000
Incident: Republic E170 at Montreal on Dec 29th 2011, smoke alert
A Republic Airways Embraer ERJ-175 on behalf of US Airways, registration
N108HQ performing flight YX-3179/US-3179 from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Philadelphia,PA
(USA) with 74 people on board, was in the initial climb out of Montreal
when the smoke detector in the aft lavatory triggered. The crew levelled
off at 3500 feet and returned to Montreal for a safe landing on runway 24
about 12 minutes after departure. Responding emergency services found no
trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported the smoke alert ceased after touchdown.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44871b21
20111229173215:20111228000000
Incident: Mesa CRJ7 at Burlington on Dec 28th 2011, generator failure, smoke indication in cargo hold
A Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United Airlines, registration
N512MJ performing flight YV-3785/UA-3785 from Burlington,VT to Chicago O’Hare,IL
(USA) with 66 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing through about 2500 feet
out of Burlington’s runway 15 when the crew reported smoke in the forward
cargo bin and added the #1 generator was lost as well. The aircraft returned
to Burlington’s runway 15. On finals the crew reported they still had smoke
in the cargo hold and cabin and would be evacuating, the aircraft continued
for a safe landing about 10 minutes after departure. After touch down the
crew reported there was no trace of smoke in the cabin, they would taxi
to the gate. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

The airline reported the smoke indication was false.

The aircraft was able to depart Burlington again after about 4 hours on
the ground and reached Chicago with a delay of 4:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4483ad49
20111225124307:20111224000000
Incident: Cathay B744 near Moscow on Dec 24th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Cathay Pacific Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration B-HOV performing
flight CX-254 (dep Dec 23rd) from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Hong Kong (China)
with 197 passengers and 21 crew, was enroute at FL350 about 80nm northeast
of Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
and diverted to Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport for a safe landing about 20
minutes later.

Cathay diverted the flight CX-260 (dep Dec 24th) from Paris Charles de Gaulle
(France) to Hong Kong to Moscow Domodedovo as well to pick up the passengers.
The passengers of flight CX-254 reached Hong Kong with a delay of 16:45
hours, the passengers of flight CX-260 with a delay of 3 hours.

The airline reported the passengers disembarked normally in Moscow. Those
passengers not needing Visa were taken to hotels, the others were taken
care of in the terminal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=448204ff
20111223122142:20111222000000
Incident: Carpatair F100 at Rome on Dec 22nd 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Carpatair Fokker 100, registration YR-FZA performing flight V3-438 from
Rome Fiumicino (Italy) to Timisoara (Romania) with 98 people on board, was
in the initial climb out of Fiumicino’s runway 25 when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit, levelled off at about 3000 feet, returned to Fiumicino’s
runway 34L for a safe landing about 10 minutes later and taxied to the apron
without needing further assistance.

An observer on the ground reported runways 25 and 34L were closed for about
30 minutes due to runway inspections.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4483bc24
20111225142035:20111221000000
Incident: Wisconsin CRJ2 near Ottawa on Dec 21st 2011, smoke on board
An Air Wisconsin Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, registration
N434AW performing flight ZW-3757/US-3757 from Ottawa,ON (Canada) to Charlotte,NC
(USA) with 52 people on board, was in the initial climb out of Ottawa when
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, levelled off at 3000 feet and returned
to Ottawa for a safe overweight landing about 20 minutes after departure.
Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported that the aircraft had been de-iced prior to departure,
de-icing fluid entered the air conditioning system and caused the odour
and smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44821010/0000
20121011125517:20111220000000
Incident: British Airways A321 near London on Dec 20th 2011, both flight crew nearly passed out
The British AAIB released their Bulletin concluding the probable cause of
the incident was:

The symptoms experienced by the commander may have been the result of the
after-effects of a cold, combined with coincidental head and aircraft movement.
The temporary symptoms experienced by the co-pilot may have been a reflection
of the potentially evolving situation of an incapacitation at an early stage
in the flight leading to possible mild hyperventilation.

Their subsequent actions were taken in view of this perceived potential
for incapacitation. No aircraft faults were discovered and no other aircraft
occupants were affected by any symptoms. The crew did not require medical
treatment and resumed flying duties without any recurrence of their earlier
symptoms.

A previously unknown intermittent fault with the CVR was identified and
this has resulted in a Safety Recommendation.

The AAIB reported that the captain (44, ATPL, 8,570 hours total, 3,445 hours
on type) as well as the first officer were well rested, neither of them
had flown the day before. The pilots met prior to the incident flight about
15 minutes before begin of check in, preflight preparations were normal
and the aircraft departed from runway 27R. While climbing through FL120
the captain looked down onto the center pedestal to change a radio frequence
at a time when the aircraft began to roll out of a 25 degrees bank and the
pitch attitude was increasing by 4 degrees, when she began to feel slightly
dizzy and light headed. The dizziness did not abate, at FL210 she asked
the first officer whether she felt well, which the first officer affirmed
at first but then indicated she was feeling light headed. Both crew therefore
donned their oxygen masks, and the first officer levelled the aircraft.
The crew decided to return to Heathrow and after initially being assigned
runway 27L landed safely on runway 27R.

After vacating the runway the crew removed their oxygen masks, but donned
them again after some light headiness returned. After the aircraft had reached
the parking position, they removed the oxygen masks again, this time with
no ill effects.

Shortly after the aircraft arrived on stand emergency services boarded the
aircraft and examined cabin and cockpit air with no smoke or fumes detected.
Paramedics checked both pilots with no abnormal symptoms. No further medical
treatment was required, a check the following day did not reveal any necessity
for medical care, both flight crew therefore were not seen by a doctor.

The captain had suffered from a cold, but felt fit to fly and had not taken
any medication in the 48 hours prior to the flight. The first officer reported
in her 12 years of flying experience she had not experienced such symptoms
before. There was no recurrence of the symptoms with either flight crew.

During the entire flight there had been no indication of any aircraft system
anomaly, the cabin altitude had reached a maximum of 3,200 feet. Both pilots
were not aware of any smells, fumes or smoke, none of cabin crew or passengers
experienced any abnormal effects.

Examination of the aircraft revealed a malfunction of the cockpit voice
recorder prompting the vast majority of the bulletin to be dedicated to
the technicalities of that fault.

The AAIB also looked into the cabin air supply stating that air taken from
the bleed air outputs of each engine was passed through an air conditioning
system. The outputs of both air conditioning systems is then sent to a single
mixer unit before being distributed to the three cabin zones, the temperature
of each of which is independently controlled by mixing unconditioned hot
air into the conditioned air. The unconditioned hot air is taken from “a
combined single supply of hot air that is taken from the inlet for each
pack”.

The AAIB analysed that the both pilots continued to execute their pilot
duties properly throughout the event, neither one was incapacitated. The
coincidence of the captain moving her head to look down onto the center
console together with the aircraft movement to level wings following a 25
degrees bank and increasing the pitch attitude by 4 degrees may have caused
a “disorientation episode caused by a combination of oculogyric disorientation
and an alternobaric episode made more likely by the lingering effects of
a cold. The resulting natural instinct to hyperventilation could lead
to hypocapnia which may well have contributed to the feeling of light-headedness.”

The AAIB continued: “The onset and clearance of the co-pilotís symptoms
within approximately 25 seconds may have been a reflection of the potentially
evolving situation of crew incapacitation at an early stage in the flight
leading to mild hyperventilation.” and concluded the analysis: “The reason
for the dizziness experienced by both pilots when they first removed their
oxygen masks on the ground could not be positively determined but it is
possible that it was caused by the effect of a sudden reduction in inspired
oxygen concentration on cerebral oxygenation, blood flow and pressure.”

Sketch of cabin air supply (Graphics: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=447f70f9/0000
20140103151605:20111220000000
Accident: Sriwijaya B733 at Yogyakarta on Dec 20th 2011, runway excursion
Indonesia’s NTSC have released their final report concluding the probable
cause of the accident was:

Unsuccessful to recognize the two critical elements, namely fixation and
complacency affected pilot decision to land the aircraft while the approach
was not meet the criteria of stabilized approach.

The NTSC reported that the aircraft had joined a holding over Yogyakarta
VOR (JOG) due to weather, the weather however had deteriorated forcing the
airport authority to close the aerodrome and the crew of SJ-230 to divert
to Surabaya (Indonesia) where the aircraft landed safely.

The aircraft was refueled, the weather at Yogyakarta improved, so that the
aircraft departed Surabaya again after about 40 minutes on the ground. The
aircraft arrived at Yogyakarta as fifth in sequence of 7 arriving aircraft.
The captain had put approach charts on the left writing pad, the top chart
was the ILS runway 10 chart for Surabaya, the second page was the ILS approach
runway 09 Yogyakarta and the third page was the VOR/DME runway 09 Yogyakarta,
the bottom page was the standard arrival procedure runway 09 Yogyakarta.

The aircraft approached Yogyakarta for the VOR/DME approach runway 09, passed
JOG VOR at 2700 feet MSL at a speed of 203 knots over ground (according
to radar data), at about 1200 feet MSL the crew reported the runway in sight,
the aircraft was handed off to tower and received landing clearance by tower
together with the information of light rain, the runway being wet and the
winds were calm. The captain (58, ATPL, 29,801 hours total, no time on type
provided), pilot flying, recognized the aircraft was not aligned with the
extended runway center line and all four VASIs showed white indicating the
aircraft was above glidepath, the captain disconnected autopilot and autothrottle
and continued manually to correct the trajectory and profile. The captain’s
left course indicator was set to 091 degrees, the right hand course indicator
to 084 degrees, both pointers had been connected to the ADF. Several EGPWS
warnings “Pull Up!” sounded, the captain selected autobrakes to setting
4. There were no call outs by the first officer (28, CPL, 562 hours total,
no time on type provided) although required.

On short final the captain managed to establish the aircraft on the normal
vertical profile, the indicated airspeed was 158 knots. The aircraft touched
down at 156 KIAS (Vref+18, Vref=138 KIAS), radar data showed a speed over
ground of 169 knots upon touch down. Spoilers extended automatically, the
aircraft however bounced. Brakes pressure reached close to maximum shortly
after touchdown and continued to be near maximum until stand still. The
flaps extended to 40 degrees after touchdown.

After touch down the captain engaged thrust reversers, the crew however
did not feel any deceleration. When the captain recognized they would not
be able to stop on the runway, he steered the aircraft to the left. The
aircraft came to a stop 75 meters past the runway end and 54 meters to the
left of the left of the runway center line, the nose and right main gear
legs had collapsed and the aircraft’s belly had received substantial damage
as result as well. Two runway lights and one taxiway signboard were damaged.

After the aircraft came to a stop, the captain commanded “Brace! Brace!”
via the passenger announcement system (PA), however nothing was heard in
the cabin. The crew subsequently ran the “Emergency on Ground” procedure.

Cabin crew noticed that the cabin lighting had changed to evacuation lighting
and observed black smoke from the left hand engine. The flight attendants
therefore initiated the emergency evacuation opening all doors. Some passengers
also opened the overwing emergency exits.

An elderly passenger in seat row 2 was pushed by other passengers, cabin
crew intervened and held other passengers back while assisting the elderly
passenger to evacuate. Another passenger transported on a stretcher was
evacuated by ground rescue personnel. Six passengers received minor injuries
as result of the evacuation.

The NTSC reported that all navigation aids were found working properly and
had no role in the accident. Communication between ground and aircraft was
generally good and had no role into the accident, too.

The NTSC reported that the cockpit voice recorder revealed that there had
been no checklist reading and no approach briefing. There had been a discussion
between the pilots regarding the VOR/DME approach pattern, particularly
about inbound courses and altitudes to be flown at specific stages. The
captain asked “how many miles are we now” and the automation was disengaged
immediately after the call “runway in sight” was done prior to the EGPWS
calling “one thousand”. The EGPWS activated two times with “Sink Rate” and
“Pull Up!” at 500 feet, after the call “Two hundred” the EGPWS issued again
“Sink Rate!” and “Pull Up!” warnings, that ended prior to the call “ten”.
The NTSC analyzed that although after passing the VOR the inbound course
was 084 degrees the aircraft continued on 090 degrees which brought it to
the right of the extended runway centerline. After the runway got in sight
the pilot flying attempted to correct by rolling the aircraft left to about
25 degrees of bank. Several EGPWS warnings “Sink Rate” and “Pull Up” occurred,
the rate of descent increased up to 2040 fpm, even between 200 and 10 feet
AGL.

The NTSC stated: “This profile indicated that the aircraft was higher than
the required profile. The pilot tried to correct the profile by increasing
the rate of descend. This manoeuvre has a consequence of increase in aircraft
speed. These situations indicated that the aircraft was not on profile for
approach related to the path (direction) and profile (altitude) compare
to the VOR DME approach procedure for runway 09 Yogyakarta. This might due
to that the PF did not perform approach briefing and was not ready with
the approach page on the writing pad for review.”

The NTSC analyzed that spoilers fully extended and brakes activated immediately
after touchdown, the brakes operated normally throughout the roll out.

The flaps extended to 40 degrees only after touch down due to the flaps
relief system, that prevented extension to 40 degrees due to flap overspeed.

The NTSC concluded the analysis: “These situation indicated that the approach
was not meet the 9 criteria of stabilize approach according to the Flight
Safety Foundation as stated in the Boeing Flight Crew Training Manual (FCTM).
The aircraft speed was 20 Kt above the target. The aircraft path was deviate
and higher from the published approach path. The pilot corrected the final
track and approach path by lower the aircraft nose down and rate of descend
up to 2040 ft per minute. However, this action has resulted in high aircraft
speed.”

The NTSC bitterly complained about cockpit discipline. Not only were approach
briefing and checklist reading not conducted, the captain asked for the
aircraft position, the relevant approach charts were not readily available
for review during the approach, the course indicators were connected to
the ADF with no purpose, the pilot flying being unfamiliar with the VOR/DME
runway 09 approach procedure. The pilot flying, other than required by the
manuals to immediately react to the first EGPWS warning, ignored the EGPWS
warnings. Final sentence by the NTSC: “According to the descriptions above,
the procedures were not well implemented.”

With respect to human factors the NTSC analysed that the lack of briefing,
checklist reading, cockpit preparation for the approach were “the symptoms
of fixation which is one of the critical elements of the situational awareness.”

The NTSC continued: “The pilot kept on landing while the approach was not
in the stabilize approach criteria. This symptom is an indication of complacency,
which is one of the critical elements of
the situational awareness. There was a passenger expressed his disappointment
of the pilot decision to divert to Surabaya. This event was suspected to
affect the pilot decision.”

The NTSB also analyzed: “Within the preceding six months, the PIC has flight
hours more than 100 hours every month. This condition may lead to pilot
fatigue.”

With respect to crew resource management the NTSC stated as summarizing
analysis: “These conditions could be concluded that the CRM was not well
implemented.”

The operator took a good number of safety actions following the accident.

The NTSC released safety recommendations to Indonesia’s Directorate General
of Civil Aviation and the airline to ensure fatigue levels of flight crew
remain acceptable and to ensure proper training of flight crew.

Nose gear (Photo: NTSC):
Right main gear (Photo: NTSC):
Ground tracks (Photo: NTSC):
Trajectory (Graphics: NTSC):
VOR/DME runway 09 approach chart (Graphics: NTSC/AIP Indonesia):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=447ce735
20111217145931:20111216000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Kansas City on Dec 16th 2011, burning smell
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-198 from Kansas City,MO to
Portland,OR (USA) with 135 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing out of Kansas
City when the crew requested to level off at 10,000 feet and return to Kansas
City due to a burning smell on board. The aircraft returned to Kansas City
for a safe landing on runway 19R about 12 minutes after departure. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Portland with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=447b0911
20111215141445:20111215000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Kansas City on Dec 15th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N693DL performing flight DL-15
from Atlanta,GA to Seattle,WA (USA) with 163 people on board, was enroute
at FL360 about 110nm southeast of Kansas City,MO when passengers and cabin
crew smelled smoke in the cabin prompting the flight crew to divert to Kansas
City for a safe landing about 20 minutes later.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight and reached Seattle with a
delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=447a7da3
20111215081527:20111214000000
Incident: Shuttle E170 at New York on Dec 14th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Shuttle America Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N870RW performing flight S5-5876/DL-5876 from New York La Guardia,NY to
Saint Louis,MO (USA) with 30 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing through
13,000 feet out of New York’s La Guardia Airport when the right hand engine
(CF34) emitted a loud bang and shut down on its own. The crew diverted the
aircraft to New York’s JFK Airport for a safe landing on runway 04L about
25 minutes after departure. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped
on the adjacent taxiway requesting emergency services to check the right
hand side for any indications of smoke or fire, emergency services reported
everything looking normal.

A post flight inspection found a compressor blade had separated. The engine
is to be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=447a71ba
20111214203940:20111214000000
Incident: Frontier A319 near Yakima on Dec 14th 2011, unruly coffee pot
A Frontier Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N918FR performing flight
F9-844 from Seattle,WA to Denver,CO (USA) with 138 passengers, was enroute
at FL310 about 80nm east of Yakima Air Terminal,WA when the crew reported
smoke in the aft galley and diverted to Yakima for a safe landing about
24 minutes later. Firefighters entered the aircraft and checked the aft
galley, found evidence of smoke but no trace of fire or heat.

Passengers reported they were entirely unaware of smells or smoke and were
surprised by the massive presence of emergency services.

The fire department reported their initial information was the smoke may
have come from a coffee pot. Food inside an adjacent oven may also have
been the source of the smoke. Traces of smoke were found, however, no source
of fire or heat.

The aircraft is being examined.

A replacement aircraft is estimated to reach Denver with a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4478ec32
20111212221413:20111211000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Rochester on Dec 11th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N565JB performing flight B6-87 from
New York JFK,NY to Salt Lake City,UT (USA) with 137 people on board, was
enroute at FL340 about 60nm south of Rochester,NY (USA) when the crew reported
smell of smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Rochester for a safe landing
about 23 minutes later. Responding emergency services found no trace of
fire or heat.

Maintenance determined a faulty heating fan as source of the burning smell.

A replacement Airbus A320 reached Salt Lake City with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4478171e
20111211214712:20111211000000
Incident: British Airways A319 near Zurich on Dec 11th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Airbus A319-100, registration G-EUOC performing flight
BA-720 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Zurich (Switzerland), was on approach
to Zurich when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit. The approach was
accelerated, the aircraft landed safely on runway 34. After landing the
crew reported operation had returned to normal, the aircraft taxied to the
gate with emergency services following the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4478044a
20111211194357:20111210000000
Incident: Lufthansa Cityline CRJ7 at Frankfurt on Dec 10th 2011, lavatory fire alert
A Lufthansa Cityline Canadair CRJ-700, flight LH-868 from Frankfurt/Main
(Germany) to Bergen (Norway), was climbing out of Frankfurt when the forward
lavatory fire alert activated. The crew decided to return to Frankfurt for
a safe landing.

A replacement CRJ-700 registration D-ACPI reached Bergen with a delay of
3:20 hours.

A passenger reported smell of smoke on board, a fire alert was heard from
the forward lavatory. The captain announced there was an unidentified problem
with a fire alarm unit and returned the aircraft to Frankfurt, where firefighters
came on board to check the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4477dc97
20111211152306:20111210000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Green Bay on Dec 10th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N8541D performing flight 9E-3886/DL-3886 from Detroit,MI to Mosinee,WI (USA)
with 41 passengers and 3 crew, was enroute at FL200 about 20nm south of
Green Bay,WI when the crew declared emergency reporting an engine failure.
The aircraft landed safely in Green Bay on one engine about 15 minutes later.

Passengers reported smoke began to appear in the cabin just prior to the
crew’s announcement of an emergency landing in Green Bay.

A replacement aircraft reached Mosinee with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44760aca
20111209105208:20111209000000
Accident: Cathay B744 at Shanghai on Dec 9th 2011, smoke in cabin during taxi
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400, registration B-HUB performing flight CX-365
from Shanghai Pu Dong to Hong Kong (China) with 351 passengers and 19 crew,
was taxiing for departure when smoke appeared in the cabin prompting the
captain to initiate an evacuation of the aircraft. A number of passengers
received injuries in the evacuation.

The airline confirmed 7 passengers and 2 crew received minor injuries in
the evacuation and have been taken to hospital. Arrangements are being made
to get the passengers to their destination.

The City government reported there were 7 injuries in the evacuation.

The evacuation in progress (Photo: Amanda via Weibo):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44732190
20111205215354:20111204000000
Incident: Delta B738 near San Juan on Dec 4th 2011, engine fire indication
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N372DA performing flight DL-421
from Atlanta,GA (USA) to Saint Lucia (Saint Lucia), was enroute at FL370
about 100nm northwest of San Juan (Puerto Rico) when the crew reported they
had received a left hand engine (CFM56) fire indication with no actual fire
and requested an emergency descent and diversion to San Juan. The aircraft
landed safely on San Juan’s runway 08 about 22 minutes later, responding
emergency services found no trace of fire or smoke.

After the fire loop was disabled according to minimum equipment list requirements
the aircraft continued to Saint Lucia reaching its destination with a delay
of 4:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4479af22
20111213212047:20111203000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Vancouver on Dec 3rd 2011, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-GWSY performing flight WS-586 from
Vancouver,BC to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 134 people on board, was climbing
out of Vancouver’s runway 08R when the crew reported smoke in cabin and
cockpit, stopped the climb at 7000 feet and returned to Vancouver for a
safe landing on runway 08L about 12 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that during routine maintenance just before the
incident flight lubrication applied to borescopic plugs may have leaked
onto the engine. The plugs were removed, cleaned and reinstalled and a high
power run up performed without no smoke or fumes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44709d64
20111202212349:20111128000000
Incident: Westjet B738 near Amarillo on Nov 28th 2011, burning smell on board
A Westjet Boeing 737-800, registration C-GKWJ performing flight WS-2056
from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Cancun (Mexico) with 159 people on board,
was enroute at FL350 about 50nm northeast of Amarillo,TX when cabin crew
reported a burning smell/fumes in the cabin. While the flight crew initiated
a diversion to Amarillo and actioned the “Smoke and Fumes” quick response
check, cabin crew attempted to identify the source of the smell. After the
flight crew had completed the quick response check the smell dissipated.
The aircraft continued for a safe landing in Amarillo.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration C-GWSV reached Cancun with a delay
of 10 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=446d17bd
20111130132809:20111128000000
Incident: Flybe Nordic AT72 near Pori on Nov 28th 2011, smell of smoke
A Flybe Nordic (former Finncomm) Avion de Transport Regional ATR 72-500,
registration OH-ATL performing flight BE-5631 from Vaasa (Finland) to Tallinn
(Estonia), was enroute near Pori (Finland) when the crew reported smell
of smoke on board and diverted to Pori for a safe landing.

Flybe reported the smell of smoke originated from the printer in the cockpit
which suffered a technical malfunction.

Finland’s Onnettomuustutkintakeskus (Accident Investigation Board) reported
on Nov 30th that according to technical investigation so far the printer
dropped a metal clip, which caused a short circuit. The investigation is
ongoing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=446d32e2
20111128180324:20111127000000
Incident: American B752 over Pacific on Nov 27th 2011, burning smell in cockpit and cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N193AN performing flight
AA-161 from Los Angeles,CA to Kahului,HI (USA), was enroute at FL380 about
200nm west of Los Angeles when the crew observed a strong burning smell
in the cabin near the forward galley and in the cockpit with smoke becoming
visible in the galley. The forward galley was shut down, the burning smell
however did not dissipate. The crew turned around, actioned the relevant
fire/smoke checklists and landed safely on Los Angeles’ runway 07L (runways
24L/R and 25L/R active) and vacated the runway.

The airport had stopped all departures for about 10 minutes while awaiting
the emergency aircraft, the south complex (runways 07L/25R and 07R/25L)
was kept sterile at least 10 minutes prior to landing of the aircraft, both
runways re-opened after landing.

The cause of the smell/smoke is under investigation.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached Kahului with a delay of 4:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=446d0cb3
20111128135929:20111127000000
Incident: American B762 near Buffalo on Nov 27th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 767-200, registration N328AA performing flight
AA-177 from New York JFK,NY to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 173 passengers,
was enroute at FL380 about 40nm west of Buffalo,NY (USA) when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit, turned around and diverted to Buffalo. On approach
to Buffalo the crew reported the situation appeared under control and continued
for a safe landing on runway 23 about 25 minutes later.

A replacement aircraft is estimated to reach San Francisco with a delay
of 18 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=446c4f7f/0018
20120504103958:20111125000000
Incident: REX SF34 near Sydney on Nov 25th 2011, smartphone battery runaway
CT scan image, screw circled (Photo: ATSB)The Australian Transportation
Safety Board (ATSB) released their final report concluding the probable
causes of the incident were:

– During repair work at an unauthorised maintenance facility, a screw was
misplaced in the mobile telephone battery bay.

– The screw caused mechanical damage to the battery which resulted in an
internal short circuit and rapid heating.

– The rapid internal heating within the mobile telephone battery triggered
a thermal runaway event, producing a large amount of heating and associated
smoke.

The ATSB reported that the aircraft had landed and was taxiing towards the
gate when the flight attendant noticed smoke coming from near seat 3A and
instructed the passenger seated in seat 3A to throw the source of the smoke
into the aisle. The flight attendant subsequently discharged a fire extinguisher
onto the source of the smoke, which was later identified a mobile phone.
Several minutes later the smoke cleared.

The owner of the mobile phone had purchased the device about one year prior
to the incident, about 6 months prior to the incident the mobile phone had
to be repaired for a broken screen, the mobile phone was serviced by a facility
not authorised by the manufacturer, the owner could not remember where the
phone had been serviced.

A first examination of the phone revealed a screw was missing from the 30pin
connector at the base of the phone. The screw thread socket was found in
good condition.

X-ray examination revealed a screw in the battery section.

The phone was then taken to a specialised facility for a two stage examination
via a CT scan in the first non-destructive stage and dismantling and destructive
examination in stage 2.

The facility determined the Lithium-Ion battery of the phone had experienced
a thermal runaway, the screw found in the battery compartment was most likely
the screw missing from the connector, one screw fastening the main circuit
board was missing, two screws fastening a flexible cable were incorrectly
installed, the main circuit board flexible cable was disturbed, two liquid
contact indicators were missing and a metal clip near the battery was deformed.
Over time the screw in the battery compartment caused mechanical damage
to the battery resulting in an internal short circuit, which led to the
thermal runaway.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=446c4f7f
20111130134630:20111125000000
Incident: REX SF34 near Sydney on Nov 25th 2011, smartphone battery runaway
The faulty iPhone (Photo: REX)A REX Regional Express Saab 340B, registration
VH-PRX performing flight ZUL-319 from Lismore,NS to Sydney,NS (Australia),
was on approach to Sydney when a passenger’s iPhone started to emit smoke
followed by red glow. The flight attendant managed to cool the iPhone down
and stop glow and smoke. The aircraft continued for a safe landing in Sydney.

The ATSB have initiated an investigation.

A passenger reported that the flight attendant became aware of the owner
of the iPhone becoming agitated while on approach to Sydney. After touchdown
the iPhone was thrown onto the floor where the flight attendant then cooled
the smartphone down and stopped the glow and smoke.

The airline reported that the iPhone self combusted after landing emitting
a significant amount of dense smoke accompanied by a red glow, the flight
attendant carried out recovery actions.

The ATSB reported on Nov 30th that after landing the flight attendant used
a fire extinguisher to cool the phone down, passengers and crew disembarked
safely. There are no records of any self-ignitions of smartphones or other
portable devices within Australia, given the widespread carriage and use
of such technology the ATSB is however keen to fully understand the nature
of this event.

In the meantime, the ATSB stressed, “this event reinforces the importance
of the prohibition of carriage of lithium batteries in checked baggage and
the benefits of being able to respond quickly and effectively in the rare
event that a problem is encountered in the aircraft cabin.”

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4469d31a
20111124170341:20111123000000
Incident: Shuttle America E170 at Denver on Nov 23rd 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Shuttle America Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of United Airlines, registration
N635RW performing flight S5-3524/UA-3524 from Denver,CO (USA) to Toronto,ON
(Canada) with 68 passengers, was climbing through 16000 feet when the crew
reported smell of smoke in the cabin. About a minute later the smell dissipated,
the aircraft however returned to Denver for a safe landing on runway 17R
about 20 minutes after departure, vacated the runway and stopped on taxiway
M to have emergency services check the aircraft.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-170 reached Toronto with a delay of 3.5 hours.

The airline reported one of two air conditioning modules had failed.

Passengers reported a pop sound was heard just prior to smell of “lit matches”
developing in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4469cf84
20111124163752:20111123000000
Incident: American B762 at Los Angeles on Nov 23rd 2011, burning smell on board
An American Airlines Boeing 767-200, registration N335AA performing flight
AA-10 from Los Angeles,CA to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 164 people on board,
was climbing out of Los Angeles’ runway 25R when the crew reported a burning
smell on board, levelled off at about 8000 feet and returned to Los Angeles
for a safe landing on runway 25R about 17 minutes after departure, vacated
the runway and taxied directly to the apron.

The cause of the burning smell is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4466b94b
20111121003823:20111120000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Pittsburgh on Nov 20th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration
N12201 performing flight XE-4405/CO-4405 from Newark,NJ to Saint Louis,MO
(USA), was enroute at FL360 about 35nm southeast of Pittsburgh,PA when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Pittsburgh for a safe
landing on runway 28R about 20 minutes later. The aircraft taxied to the
gate with emergency services in trail.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 registration N12552 reached Saint Louis with
a delay of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44a16688
20120130150807:20111118000000
Accident: Germania B737 near Milano on Nov 18th 2011, first officer partially incapacitated by fumes
A Germania Boeing 737-700 in Air Berlin colours on behalf of Air Berlin,
registration D-AGEN performing flight AB-8407 from Milan Malpensa (Italy)
to Dusseldorf (Germany), was climbing out of Malpensa’s runway 35R when
shortly after rotation a pungent smell developed on board of the aircraft.
With the increasing intensity of the fumes the health condition of the first
officer, pilot flying, deteriorated, about 5 minutes into the flight the
first officer suffered from a sudden and strong nausea. The first officer
left the cockpit for the lavatory, the captain assumed duties of both pilot
flying and pilot monitoring for the remainder of the flight. After the first
officer returned to the cockpit he donned his oxygen masks and improved
after about 15 minutes. A flight attendant, who had been called to the cockpit,
checked the first officer and especially noticed the first officer being
pale with his eyes being red with increased flow of lacrimal fluid. The
heart beat rate dropped from about 100 to about 80 while the first officer
improved. After about 15 minutes, when the first officer seemed to have
improved, he removed his oxygen masks and attempted to relax. When the aircraft
descended towards Dusseldorf through about 7000 feet, the smell increased
again however was only noticed by the first officer, who again donned his
oxygen mask. The captain, still assuming duties of both pilots, performed
a safe landing on Dusseldorf’s runway 26R about 80 minutes after departure
from Milan. The first officer was taken to a hospital, where a blood sample
was taken.

The German BFU reported in their monthly bulletin that the smoke, fire or
fumes checklist had not been actioned by the crew. No smell or fumes were
reported from the cabin. A technical inspection of the airconditioning systems,
engines, consumption of engine and hydraulic oil revealed no anomalies,
the BFU considers an overfilling of engine oil possible.

The BFU reported that the examination of the first officer’s blood sample
revealed that the blood sample “is positive for exposure to tri-ortho-cresyl
phosphate. This sample had a strong signal for the adduct on butyrylcholinesterase.
It was estimated that 1,4% of his/her butyrylcholinesterase was modified
as a consequence of exposure to tri-ortho-cresyl phosphate.î

The BFU stated that the medical assessment of this result with respect to
consequences for the health of humans is subject of the further investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4469e404
20111124190645:20111118000000
Incident: Lufthansa A319 near Rimini on Nov 18th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A319-100, registration D-AILB performing flight LH-1928
from Munich (Germany) to Naples (Italy), was enroute at FL370 about 35nm
southeast of Rimini (Italy) when the crew decided to divert to Rimini due
to smoke in the cabin. The aircraft landed safely in Rimini about 20 minutes
later.

Italy’s ANSV rated the occurrence a serious incident and opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4465a6fa
20111119161039:20111118000000
Incident: Saudia B772 near Abu Dhabi on Nov 18th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration HZ-AKL performing
flight SV-832 from Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) with
174 passengers, was enroute at FL350 about 90nm south of Abu Dhabi (United
Arab Emirates) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted
to Abu Dhabi for a safe landing on runway 31R about 35 minutes later. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

About 17 hours after landing the aircraft is still on the ground in Abu
Dhabi (standing Nov 19th 16:00Z).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44623f51
20111116151615:20111114000000
Incident: Jetlink CRJ1 at Nairobi on Nov 14th 2011, rejected takeoff
A Jetlink Canadair CRJ-100, registration 5Y-JLH performing flight J0-449
from Nairobi to Mombasa (Kenya), rejected takeoff from Nairobi after smoke
appeared in the cabin. The aircraft slowed safely, turned off the runway
onto taxiway E about half way down the runway (length 4,117 meters/13,500
feet) where it stopped. Passengers disembarked normally onto the taxiway.

Multiple passengers reported on Twitter that emergency services needed more
than 20 minutes to show up at the aircraft.

There was no actual fire, a fault in the air conditioning system is assumed
to be the source of the smoke/haze.

Emergency Services in Nairobi reported that they were ready to immediately
respond however air traffic control told them the crew did not require any
assistance as the takeoff was aborted due to a computer fault.

The aircraft on taxiway E, 20 minutes after stop, still waiting for emergency
services (Photo: Edward Kagoce via Twitter posted 07:36L):
Waiting for emergency and airport services (Photo: Edward Kagoce posted
on Twitter 07:49L):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44619c2d
20111114162946:20111113000000
Incident: American B752 near Nassau on Nov 13th 2011, smell of smoke
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N616AA performing flight
AA-1830 from Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) to Miami,FL (USA), was enroute
at FL360 about 115nm southsoutheast of Nassau (Bahamas) when the crew reported
smell of smoke on board and diverted to Nassau for a safe landing about
30 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached Miami with a delay of 5 hours.

A left hand bleed duct overheat was identified as cause of the odour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4460b967
20111206145150:20111112000000
Incident: Thomas Cook B752 near Lanzarote on Nov 12th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Thomas Cook Boeing 757-200, registration G-TCBA performing flight MT-6125
from Tenerife Sur Reina Sofia,CI (Spain) to Newcastle,EN (UK) with 228 passengers
and 8 crew, was climbing out of Tenerife when the crew reported smoke in
the cabin and diverted to Lanzarote for a safe landing.

The passengers were taken to hotels and are estimated to reach Newcastle
during Sunday (Nov 13th).

Spain’s CIAIAC reported that during the flight cabin crew became aware of
a burning smell and slight haze in the rear cabin. Actions were taken regarding
cabin lighting, however, the smell/haze did not disappear prompting the
diversion to Lanzarote. The passengers disembarked normally, a subsequent
inspection did not find any technical problem.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=445f5876
20111111232114:20111111000000
Incident: Delta DC95 at Fargo on Nov 11th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Douglas DC-9-50, registration N677MC performing flight
DL-1246 from Fargo,ND to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 76 passengers, was climbing
out of Fargo’s runway 18 when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and returned
to Fargo’s runway 18 for a safe landing about 10 minutes after departure.

The airline reported a smokey odour was observed in the cabin prompting
the return.

The aircraft was able to depart again and reached Minneapolis with a delay
of 6:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=445f175a
20111111153013:20111110000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Atlanta on Nov 10th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N910DE performing
flight DL-1442 from Atlanta,GA to Charlotte,NC (USA), was climbing out of
Atlanta’s runway 28 when a loud bang was heard from the right hand engine
followed by smoke entering the cabin through the air conditioning. The crew
levelled off at about 5500 feet and returned to Atlanta for a safe landing
about 10 minutes after departure.

A replacement MD-88 registration N935DL reached Charlotte with a delay of
3 hours.

The airline confirmed an engine failure and subsequent smoke in the cabin,
however said there was no engine fire. The cause of the engine problem is
being investigated.

Passengers reported they heard a large boom from the right hand engine and
noticed sparks and streaks of flame from the engine. A short time later
smoke came through the air vents.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=445b04a2
20111106161955:20111105000000
Incident: Dragonair A321 near Hong Kong on Nov 5th 2011, burning smell on board
A Dragonair Airbus A321-200, registration B-HTD performing flight KA-207
from Phnom Penh (Cambodia) to Hong Kong (China) with 154 passengers and
9 crew, was enroute over the South China Sea about one hour prior to estimated
landing in Hong Kong when a number of passengers noticed a burning smell
on board, which was confirmed by cabin crew prompting the flight crew to
declared emergency and to accelerate approach and landing to Hong Kong.
The aircraft landed safely in Hong Kong about 50 minutes later, responding
emergency services found no evidence of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the aircraft was thorougly examined, however no trace
of fire, heat or smoke was identified and no malfunction was found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4458b97b
20111103211451:20111102000000
Incident: Korean B772 enroute on Nov 2nd 2011, unruly passenger
A Korean Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration HL7752 performing flight
KE-955 from Seoul (South Korea) to Istanbul (Turkey), was enroute about
4 hours prior to estimated arrival when a male passenger’s (35) behaviour
had escalated to altercations and a fight with the crew. The captain therefore
ordered the man to be subdued using electro-shock devices and to be restrained
in his seat. The aircraft continued to Istanbul for a safe landing. The
passenger was taken into custody by Turkish police.

Charges of interfering with flight crew and endangering aircraft safety
were brought forward by Turkish Prosecution. After the man spent the night
in police custody, it was established however that the man was suffering
from schizophrenia. The man was therefore taken to a hospital.

The passenger wanted to smoke, cabin crew intervened pointing out smoking
was prohibited on board of the aircraft, the verbal exchange escalated into
an altercation until the man finally physically attacked cabin crew, which
prompted the captain’s order to use electro-shock devices to subdue the
passenger.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4456cac3
20111101155617:20111031000000
Incident: American B763 near Orlando on Oct 31st 2011, intermittent smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N39367 performing flight
AA-215 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Miami,FL (USA), was enroute at FL390
about 135nm northwest of Orlando,FL (USA) when the crew reported intermittent
electrical smell in the cockpit and decided to divert to Orlando. On approach
to Orlando the crew advised they had intermittent smoke in the cockpit and
planned to stop on the runway to have emergency services have a look onto
the problem. The aircraft landed safely on Orlando’s runway 36L.

A failed equipment cooling fan was identified as source of the smell/smoke.
The aircraft was able to depart Orlando after the fan was disabled according
to minimum equipment list requirements and reached Miami with a delay of
3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4452a34a
20111027141228:20111026000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Frankfurt on Oct 26th 2011, acrid smell in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIZF performing flight LH-1065
from Nice (France) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 89 passengers, was on
approach to Frankfurt when cabin crew noticed an acrid smell in the aft
cabin. Approach and landing were accelerated, the aircraft landed safely
on runway 25L.

The airline reported the cause of the smell is being investigated, but does
not appear to be related to the earlier two acrid smell occurrences, see
Accident: Lufthansa A320 near Zurich on Oct 21st 2011, acrid smell in galley
and Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Perm on Oct 25th 2011, smoke in cabin.
The three similiar occurrences within a week are coincidence and do not
reflect the status of the fleet.

The incident aircraft resumed service the following day about 12 hours after
the incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4450eeea
20111027135948:20111025000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Perm on Oct 25th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIZG performing flight LH-1481
from Ekaterinburg (Russia) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 116 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at 10800 meters (FL348) about 80nm northeast of
Perm (Russia) when the crew reported smoke in the aft cabin and diverted
to Perm for a safe landing about 25 minutes later.

A replacement Airbus A321-200 registration D-AIDF was dispatched to Perm
and is estimated to reach Frankfurt with a delay of 13.5 hours.

Lufthansa reported two flight attendants reported an acrid smell in the
aft of the cabin.

On Oct 27th Lufthansa reported the acrid smell originated from the oven
in the rear galley.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44597fb1
20111104203528:20111024000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Los Angeles on Oct 24th 2011, food sends smoke signals
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FGLY performing flight AC-69
from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 82 people on board,
was climbing out of Los Angeles, when smoke was observed from an aft galley
oven. The oven was turned off and the smoke quickly dissipated. The aircraft
continued to Calgary for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported that the smoke was the result of food spillage,
a puddle of oil was cleaned up in the oven and the flight proceeded to Calgary.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=444ececc
20111023140159:20111021000000
Incident: Insel MD82 near Santo Domingo on Oct 21st 2011, cargo smoke indication
An Insel Air McDonnel Douglas MD-82, flight 7I-904 from Miami,FL (USA) to
Curacao (Curacao) with 144 passengers, was enroute at FL330 near Santo Domingo
(Dominican Republic) when the crew diverted to Santo Domingo’s Las Americas
Airport due to a smoke indication in the cargo compartment. The aircraft
landed safely.

A replacement aircraft reached Curacao with a delay of 9 hours.

The airport had reported, the aircraft diverted because of mechanical problems
with an engine.

The airline later explained that the crew received a cargo smoke detector
indication, discharged the fire suppression system of that cargo compartment
and diverted to Santo Domingo. The aircraft is undergoing thorough examination
before returning to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=444cd313
20111020163803:20111020000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Shannon on Oct 20th 2011, electrical smell on board
A United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N779UA performing flight
UA-919 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Washington Dulles,DC (USA), was enroute
at FL360 about 200nm southwest of Shannon (Ireland) when the crew reported
an electrical smell without detectable smoke on board which they wanted
to be checked out by maintenance calling the diversion precautionary. The
aircraft turned around, dumped fuel over the Atlantic Ocean and diverted
to Shannon for a safe landing on runway 24 about 45 minutes later and taxied
to the apron with the trucks following the aircraft.

N779UA in the flare to runway 24:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=444b53d1
20111018195309:20111018000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Cincinnati on Oct 18th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-894 from Flint,MI to
Atlanta,GA (USA) with 130 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute at FL340 about
25nm west of Cincinnati’s Northern Kentucky Airport,KY when the crew decided
to divert to Cincinnati due to a smell of smoke in the rear of the cabin.
The aircraft landed safely about 20 minutes later. Emergency services found
no trace of fire, smoke or heat, the source of the smell is under investigation.

A replacement MD-88 reached Atlanta with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=444b340d
20111018173248:20111018000000
Incident: Atlanta Icelandic B742 near Sofia on Oct 18th 2011, cargo fire indication
An Air Atlanta Icelandic Boeing 747-200 freighter on behalf of Saudi Arabian
Airlines, registration TF-AAB performing flight SV-946 from Brussels (Belgium)
to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) with 6 crew and flammable cargo, was enroute near
Sofia when the crew received a cargo fire indication and diverted to Sofia
for a safe landing on runway 27. Responding emergency services found no
trace of fire, smoke or heat.

Bulgaria’s Transport Ministry said, contradicting Bulgarian media reports
of a fuel leak, that the aircraft diverted because of a cargo fire indication.

An observer on the ground reported that after the aircraft had slowed, vacated
the runway and stopped, fire fighters entered the aircraft via a mobile
stair and checked the inside of the aircraft. About one hour after landing
the fire fighters left the aircraft and all trucks but one left the scene.

TF-AAB surrounded by emergency vehicles:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4447ee38
20111014175623:20111013000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Saint Petersburg on Oct 13th 2011, smoke in cabn
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-892 from Saint Petersburg,FL
to Youngstown,OH (USA) with 129 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing out
Saint Petersburg’s runway 17L when the crew reported smoke in a lavatory
and returned to Saint Petersburg’s runway 17L for a safe landing about 6
minutes after departure. The smoke had dissipated by then already.

The cause of the smoke was unclear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=444704e7
20111013164054:20111013000000
Incident: Alitalia A321 near Istanbul on Oct 13th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Alitalia Airbus A321-100, registration I-BIXR performing flight AZ-815
from Tel Aviv (Israel) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy), diverted to Istanbul’s
Ataturk Airport for a safe landing around 12:00L after the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit.

Following checks the aircraft was able to continue the journey after about
5 hours on the ground and reached Rome with a delay of 5:50 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4446e933/0001
20140616134229:20111013000000
Crash: PNG DH8A near Madang on Oct 13th 2011, both propellers oversped
PNGAIC have released their final report concluding the probable causes of
the crash were:

Contributing safety factors

– The Pilot-in-Command moved the power levers rearwards below the flight
idle gate shortly after the VMO overspeed warning sounded. This means that
the release triggers were lifted during the throttle movement.

– The power levers were moved further behind the flight idle gate leading
to ground beta operation in flight, loss of propeller speed control, double
propeller overspeed, and loss of usable forward thrust, necessitating an
off-field landing.

– A significant number of DHC-8-100, -200, and -300 series aircraft worldwide
did not have a means of preventing movement of the power levers below the
flight idle gate in flight, or a means to prevent such movement resulting
in a loss of propeller speed control.

Other safety factors

– Prior to the VMO overspeed warning, the Pilot-in-Command allowed the rate
of descent to increase to 4,200 ft per minute and the airspeed to increase
to VMO.

– The beta warning horn malfunctioned and did not sound immediately when
one or both of the flight idle gate release triggers were lifted. When the
beta warning horn did sound, it did so intermittently and only after the
double propeller overspeed had commenced. The sound of the beta warning
horn was masked by the noise of the propeller overspeeds.

– There was an uncommanded feathering of the right propeller after the overspeed
commenced due to a malfunction within the propeller control beta backup
system during the initial stages of the propeller overspeed.

– The right propeller control unit (PCU) fitted to MCJ was last overhauled
at an approved overhaul facility which had a quality escape issue involving
incorrect application of beta switch reassembly procedures, after a service
bulletin modification. The quality escape led to an uncommanded feather
incident in an aircraft in the United States due to a beta switch which
stuck closed.

– Due to the quality escape, numerous PCU‟s were recalled by the overhaul
facility for rectification. The right PCU fitted to MCJ was identified as
one of the units that may have been affected by the quality escape and would
have been subject to recall had it still been in service.

– The FDR data indicated that the right PCU fitted to MCJ had an uncommanded
feather, most likely due to a beta switch stuck in the closed position,
induced by the propeller overspeed. It was not possible to confirm if the
overhaul facility quality escape issue contributed to the beta switch sticking
closed, because the PCU was destroyed by the post-impact fire.

– The landing gear and flaps remained retracted during the off-field landing.
This led to a higher landing speed than could have been achieved if the
gear and flaps had been extended, and increased the impact forces on the
airframe and its occupants.

– No DHC-8 emergency procedures or checklists were used by the flight crew
after the emergency began.

– The left propeller was not feathered by the flight crew after the engine
failed.

– The investigation identified several occurrences where a DHC-8 pilot inadvertently
moved one or both power levers behind the flight idle gate in flight, leading
to a loss of propeller speed control. Collectively, those events indicated
a systemic design issue with the integration of the propeller control system
and the aircraft.

Other key findings

– The flaps and landing gear were available for use after the propeller
overspeeds and the engine damage had occurred.

– There was no regulatory requirement to fit the beta lockout system to
any DHC-8 aircraft outside the USA at the time of the accident.

– The autopilot could not be used during the accident flight.

– The operator‟s checking and training system did not require the
flight crew to have demonstrated the propeller overspeed emergency procedure
in the simulator.

– After the accident, the aircraft manufacturer identified a problem in
the beta warning horn system that may have led to failures not being identified
during regular and periodic tests of the system.

Safety issues

– A significant number of DHC-8-100, -200, and -300 series aircraft did
not have a means of preventing movement ñ whether intentional or unintentional
ñ of the power levers below the flight idle gate in flight, nor a means
to prevent such movement resulting in a loss of propeller speed control.

– The aircraft manufacturer identified a problem in the beta warning horn
system that left the system susceptible to failures that may not have been
identified during regular and periodic tests of the system.

– After the accident, the facility that overhauled the propeller control
unit (PCU) installed on MCJ (as the aircraft‟s right hand PCU at the
time of the accident) identified a quality escape relating to the use of
incorrect reassembly procedures for the installation of the beta switch
within the propeller control unit. The quality escape may have led to uncommanded
fearing of the right propeller.

The PNGAIC analyzed that the aircraft was handflown on a steep descent with
the propellers governed at 900 rpm, the rate of descent reaching 4,200 feet
per minute. The airspeed increased until it hit the maximum operating speed
(Vmo) causing the overspeed warning to sound. The first officer recollected
that the captain pulled the power levers back quite quickly. Shortly afterwards
both propeller underwent signficant simultaneous overspeeds causing damage
to the engines, complete loss of forward thrust and smoke intruding cockpit
and cabin through the bleed air system although no fire was evident before
ground contact. An off field forced landed became necessary because of the
loss of forward thrust making the following accident inevitable.

There had been no preexisting malfunction of the aircraft with the exception
of the beta warning horn, which had failed.

The crew did not refer to checklists or execute standard emergency procedures.
As result the left hand propellers remained unfeathered until 72 seconds
before impact causing significant engine damage and drag as well as shortening
the time between the overspeed event and forced impact with ground. The
PNGAIC stated that had the airspeed and rate of descent been within the
usual ranges the time between onset of the emergency to ground contact could
have been 9 minutes instead of the actual 4:12 minutes.

Flaps and Landing Gear would have been available but were not used although
they could have contributed to soften the impact with terrain.

The PNGAIC stated: “Several similar propeller overspeed events have occurred
in other DHC-8 aircraft that did not have a beta lockout mechanism fitted.
These all had factors in common such as the aircraft being on descent, high
airspeed, and power levers moved below the flight idle gate. At the time
of the accident, DHC-8 aircraft outside the USA were not required to have
a beta lockout mechanism.”

The PNGAIC analyzed, that two actions were required to force the propellers
into beta range in flight: the power levers must have been pulled rearwards
and the flight idle gate triggers must have been raised to permit the power
levers below the flight idle position. The PNGAIC analyzed that a click
was heard on the cockpit voice recorder just after the overspeed warning
activated exactly at the time when the flight idle gates were expected to
be operated in order to permit the power reduction move the propellers into
beta range.

Further support for the theory that the flight idle gates had been lifted
comes from the fact, that the beta warning horn, although malfunctioning,
did sound – however only after the propellers had already entered beta range.
This is further evidence that the triggers had been lifted.

The PNGAIC concluded: “In the absence of any identifiable mechanical component
failures, movement of the power levers behind the flight idle gate by the
Pilot-in-Command is considered to be the only plausible explanation for
the simultaneous double propeller overspeed in MCJ.”

The PNGAIC analyzed: “As a consequence of the inhibition of the propeller
speed control and overspeed protection systems in MCJ, all propeller speed
control was lost. This meant the propellers were driven by the airflow like
the vanes of a windmill, resulting in the propeller RPM limits being significantly
exceeded, a condition exacerbated by the aircraft‟s high speed. With
the propellers back-driving the engines, the power turbines oversped and
the left engine failed. The right propeller underwent an uncommanded feather
because of a malfunction in the PCU beta switch system. However, expert
knowledge of the propeller control system ñ beyond that which any pilot
could be expected to possess ñ would have been needed to unfeather the right
propeller and the right engine could not therefore be used for forward thrust.
The left engine had shut down due to internal damage, so a forced landing
without power was inevitable. Although it could not be used for forward
thrust, the left engine was still powering the left hydraulic system and
the left AC generator was producing AC electrical power. The propeller blade
tips exceeded the speed of sound. The CVR recording showed that the flight
crew had great difficulty communicating above the very loud noise. The propeller
noise also masked the intermittent sound of the beta warning horn.”

With respect to the beta warning the PNGAIC analyzed: “In 1999 the manufacturer
recommended and Transport Canada mandated the installation of a beta warning
horn on the DHC-8 to alert pilots whenever the flight idle gate release
triggers were lifted in flight. This reduced the risk of inadvertent movement
of the power levers below the flight idle gate during flight. Audible warnings
can be very effective, although research has shown they are not always heard
or comprehended in sufficient time for an effective response to be made,
particularly in times of high workload or distraction. Due to the malfunction
of the beta warning horn in MCJ, the audible tone of the horn ñ which was
a defence against in-flight raising of the power lever triggers ñ was absent.
If the beta warning horn had functioned normally, the pilots may have recognised
what was happening and taken appropriate action quickly enough to prevent
the propeller overspeeds from damaging the engines.”

The PNGAIC further stated that the aircraft manufacturer identified a problem
with the beta warning horn functional tests on one of their corporate aircraft
and issued a service bulletin with a revised test procedure. 5 of 91 aircraft
covered by the service bulletin showed defective beta warning horns. The
PNGAIC stated: “The manufacturer identified worn micro-switch retaining
brackets as the factor underlying this malfunction, and a further service
bulletin was issued to rectify the problem.”

The PNGAIC analyzed that according to flight data recorder the right hand
power lever had been moved to about 13 degrees below flight idle, outside
the governing range of the propeller control. The right beta switch closed.
It is likely that the power lever was subsequently advanced into the governing
range again, however, the FDR indicates the right beta switch remained closed
until the end of recording. Consequently the beta backup logic feathered
the propeller, the stuck switch would have prevented the crew to unfeather
the propeller had they tried to unfeather the propeller – but they did not.

With respect to that PCU malfunction the PNGAIC reported: “Shortly before
this report was finalised, the NTSB indicated to the AIC that, had the PCU
still been in operation on an aircraft, it would have been subject to recall
for issues directly related to beta switches sticking due to incorrect application
of installation procedures at overhaul. It is possible that the quality
control issue associated with that recall was implicated in some way in
the feathering of MCJ‟s right propeller, but extensive thermal damage
to the right PCU precluded any examination and testing to determine the
cause of the beta switch malfunction. The AIC was therefore unable to determine
if the quality control issue contributed to the uncommanded feather of the
right propeller or not.”

The PNGAIC analyzed: “Although the right engine remained undamaged after
the propeller overspeed commenced, the uncommanded feather of the right
propeller meant it could not be used for forward thrust. If the PCU had
not malfunctioned and the propeller had returned to the governing range,
the flight crew may have been able to use the right engine for forward thrust
and a forced landing may not have been necessary. However, if the right
propeller had not feathered and the engine power turbine had continued to
be driven by an overspeeding propeller, it is possible the right engine
would have failed in the same way as the left engine because of the forces
exerted on the power turbine by the overspeeding propeller.”

With respect to not reading the checklists the PNGAIC analyzed: “If the
flight crew had used the DHC-8 emergency procedures for propeller overspeed,
engine failure, and forced landing, it may have altered the final outcome
of the occurrence. In common with the manufacturer‟s other abnormal
and emergency procedures, these procedures were designed for flight crew
to deal with the emergencies without recourse to ad hoc actions. Why the
flight crew did not respond with standard emergency procedures is not clear.
They said afterwards there had been insufficient time. It is possible they
were overwhelmed and this somehow prevented them from putting into effect
the procedures and methods they had been trained to use in such circumstances.
On the basis that the flight crew responded in an ad hoc manner to the emergency,
it appeared that the operator‟s training system had been ineffective
in inculcating into those pilots the company‟s prescribed responses
to emergencies. There was no evidence that either pilot had completed the
propeller overspeed drill during their simulator training or simulator checks.
It is therefore possible that they had never demonstrated this procedure
to a check captain.”

The PNGAIC analysed that had the airspeed been reduced to 120 KIAS as recommended
by the checklists after the propeller overspeed onset at descending through
7500 feet MSL, the aircraft could have remained airborne for a further 9
rather than the actual 3:20 minutes from 7500 feet MSL (total 4:12 minutes
from actual altitude of onset) and travelled a distance of 18.9nm from 7500
feet MSL down.

The PNGAIC analyzed that observing the checklists the aircraft was WITHIN
gliding range to Madang aerodrome – at the time of descending through 7500
feet, after descending more than 2500 feet after the onset of the propeller
overspeeds, the aircraft was 17nm from the aerodrome – , however cautioned:
“This section is not intended to imply that the flight crew should have
attempted to glide towards Madang. Instead, it examines what may have been
possible given the height at which the propeller overspeeds occurred, and
how long the aircraft could have remained airborne if the flight crew had
managed the situation differently.” The PNGAIC further stated: “Prompt execution
of the applicable emergency procedures would therefore have probably allowed
the flight crew to glide to, or close to, Madang aerodrome, had they been
able to see it. However, the flight crew could not see Madang and were also
aware of a storm in the vicinity of the aerodrome.”

The PNGAIC summarized the analysis: “In summary, the aircraft‟s degraded
controllability and the high rate of descent/short time to impact were at
least partly attributable to the fact that the flight crew did not use the
standard emergency procedures early on. While it is not possible to determine
exactly what would have happened if the flight crew had had more time to
deal with the situation, it is reasonable to suppose it may have positively
affected their ability to assess and manage the situation in a systematic
manner.”

Flight track of the aircraft after the propeller overspeed (Graphics: PNGAIC):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4446e933
20111115175255:20111013000000
Crash: PNG DH8A near Madang on Oct 13th 2011, both propellers oversped
An Airlines of PNG (Papua New Guinea) de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration
P2-MCJ performing flight CG-1600 from Lae to Madang (Papue New Guinea) with
28 passengers and 4 crew, was lost from radar about 20km south of Madang
around 17:00L (07:00Z). The aircraft was later located on land about 20km
south of Madang, the aircraft was on fire. 28 occupants perished, both pilots
as well as a flight attendant and a passenger survived.

Early Oct 14th Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs said no Australian
was killed in the crash identifying one of the pilots survived. The Department
continued that according to local authorities 4 people survived the crash,
amongst them also the other pilot.

Late Oct 14th Australian consular staff at Madang confirmed 4 survivors.
The Australian Captain received serious injuries to his legs but is in stable
condition, the New Zealand First Officer received minor if at all injuries,
a third survivor is a Chinese male in his fifties with serious injuries
due to burns to his back and arms, who had escaped the burning wreckage
through a crack in the fuselage, and the fourth survivor is believed to
be a flight attendant. The captain has been flown to Port Moresby (Papua
New Guinea).

Papua New Guinea’s Accident Investigation Commission (AIC) said, the airplane
went down 20km south of Madang near the mouth of the Gogol River and caught
fire, there are reports of survivors and fatalities. Rescue forces have
reached the crash site, police has cordoned the site off, ambulances have
reached the site, local hospitals are on stand by. A first investigator
has reached Madang. The Australian Transportation Safety Board has been
asked for assistance.

On Oct 17th the AIC reported that the crew reported smoke coming from both
engines, they lost power on both engines and were attempting a forced landing.

Papua’s Authorities reported the black boxes have been recovered.

On Oct 17th the ATSB confirmed both flight data and cockpit voice recorders
have been taken to Canberra (Australia) and have been successfully read
out.

The airline stated there were 28 passengers and 4 crew on board. There appear
to be a number of survivors while the remaining people are unaccounted for.
Authorities have quarantained the aviation fuel at Lae Airport. PNG Airlines
have grounded all their 12 Dash 8 aircraft until further notice.

No weather information is available for Madang (neither Metar nor local
weather office data), however local residents reported a violent storm was
in the vicinity at the time of the crash.

TAF Madang [AYMD]:
AYMD 130602Z 1308/1320 12008KT 9999 SHRA SCT016 SCT030 BKN140 Q1009 1011
1010 1008
AYMD 122301Z 1302/1314 12010KT 9999 SHRA SCT016 SCT030 BKN140 Q1010 1008
1009 1011

The remains of P2-MCJ (Photo: AP/Scott Waide):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=4442c092
20111008160037:20111008155952
Report: Air Greenland DH8B near Narsarsuaq on May 27st 2011, a really hot air data computer
An Air Greenland de Havilland Dash 8-200, registration OY-GRG performing
flight GL-416 from Narsarsuaq to Nuuk (Greenland) with 38 passengers and
3 crew, had just reached FL190 enroute to Nuuk when the flight crew observed
smell of smoke on the flight deck. The crew actioned the relevant checklists
but could not identify the source of the smell, the situation did not evolve
any further so that the crew decided to continue the flight. Subsequently
the flight attendant reported the smell was now also noticeable in the cabin.
Flight service was informed and emergency services were put on stand by
in Nuuk. The aircraft landed safely in Nuuk.

Denmarks Havarikommission (HCL) released their final brief report in Danish
reporting that emergency services using thermal imaging identified the air
data computer (ADC) #1 as source of the smell, measuring an electronic resistor
had reached a temperature of 355 degrees C. Examination of the faulty ADC
by the manufacturer confirmed the ADC had been the source of the smell,
the overheating had occurred as result of excessive current probably due
to a short circuit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4442be55
20111008154431:20111007000000
Incident: Evergreen B742 over Atlantic on Oct 7th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Evergreen Boeing 747-200, registration N490EV performing flight EZ-1421
from Adana Airbase (Turkey) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with just 3 crew and
no cargo on board, was enroute over the Atlantic Ocean about one hour into
the Atlantic crossing when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, turned
around and diverted to Shannon (Ireland) for a safe landing on runway 24
about one hour later.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight the following day.

N490EV just before touchdown on runway 24:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4444bb48
20111010224915:20111006000000
Incident: Delta B764 at London on Oct 6th 2011, smell of smoke
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N832MH performing flight DL-2
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was climbing out
of Heathrow when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cabin. The crew
stopped the climb and entered a holding dumping fuel. The aircraft returned
to Heathrow for a safe landing.

A passenger on board reported that after takeoff the aircraft entered a
holding due to smell of smoke on board, dumped fuel and returned to Heathrow.
The flight was subsequently cancelled, the passengers were taken to a hotel
and rebooked on other flights.

The incident airplane departed as flight DL-2 the next day on schedule.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44410faa
20111006161407:20111003000000
Incident: Westjet B738 near Calgary on Oct 3rd 2011, burning odour in cabin
A Westjet Boeing 737-800, registration C-GWSX performing flight WS-425 from
Calgary,AB to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 134 people on board, was in the
initial climb through 1000 feet AGL out of Calgary’s runway 16 when the
crew reported smoke in the cabin. The aircraft levelled off at around 8400
feet and returned to Calgary’s runway 16 for a safe landing about 12 minutes
after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported, that it was actually a burning smell in the cabin.
The smell dissipated until landing and the aircraft taxied to the apron
with the APU shut down. The APU had received maintenance the previous day,
during which the fan blades were lubricated. It is believed the burning
smell originated from the excess lubricant burning off.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=443ea325
20120823163821:20111003000000
Incident: Air Dolomiti AT72 near Florence on Oct 3rd 2011, engine shut down in flight
An Air Dolomiti Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500 on behalf of Lufthansa,
registration I-ADCC performing flight EN-1885/LH-1885 from Florence (Italy)
to Munich (Germany) with 59 passengers, was in the initial climb through
1000 feet when the crew needed to shut the left hand engine (PW127) down.
The aircraft returned to Florence for a safe landing about 11 minutes after
departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto later flights.

Italy’s ANSV rated the occurrence a serious incident and dispatched investigators
on site. The crew received a failure indication of the left hand engine
about one minute into the flight and subsequently shut the engine down.
In Aug 2012 Denmark’s Havarikommissionen (HCL) released Tri-national Safety
Recommendations as result of joint investigations into similiar occurrences
in Copenhagen (Denmark), Budapest (Hungary) and Florence (Italy), which
permit insight into the events. The safety recommendation states for I-ADCC,
that the aircraft took off from Florence’s runway 23 in a bleed off configuration.
When the aircraft climbed through 400 feet AGL the master caution activated
due to a left hand engine low oil pressure, which disappeared a short time
later. The climb continued with one more brief indication. After the aircraft
had reached acceleration height and bleed valves had been switched on, the
low oil pressure indication reappeared and the inter stage turbine temperature
(ITT) dropped to 0. The crew initially believed into a faulty indication
as there were no other abnormal indications, but soon noticed smoke becoming
visible in the cockpit and the left hand engine fire indication activating.
The engine was shut down, the fire agents discharged and the aircraft returned
to Florence for a safe landing on runway 05. After vacating the runway the
aircraft was evacuated.

All three investigations listed these common findings:
– all events occurred during initial climb
– “the events were all due to the initial distress of a Power Turbine 1st
stage rotor blade causing subsequent damages and heavy unbalance of the
whole PT assembly, further unbalance of the LP rotor through No. 6 & 7 bearing
housing, and final oil leakage due to breaking of No. 6 & 7 bearing compartment
retaining bolts and distress of the radial transfer tubes. Fire was then
originated by such a leakage in presence of hot parts”
– a crack propagated from an internal casting defect resulting in distress
of the PT1 rotor blade, the propagation of the crack was according to the
low cycle fatigue mechanism.

Two safety recommendations were submitted to Transport Canada and three
safety recommendations to EASA.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=443d04c5
20111001163738:20110930000000
Incident: PSA CRJ2 near Philadelphia on Sep 30th 2011, smell of smoke
A PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, registration N256PS
performing flight US-2588 from Knoxville,TN to Philadelphia,PA (USA) with
48 passengers and 4 crew, was on approach to Philadelphia when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft continued for a safe landing
on Philadelphia’s runway 35, vacated the runway onto high speed exit E3
and was evacuated onto the taxiway. No injuries occurred.

Passengers reported they could smell but not see smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=443c6bdf
20110930225253:20110928000000
Incident: Lufthansa Cityline E190 near Prague on Sep 28th 2011, smoke detector activated
A Lufthansa Cityline Embraer ERJ-190, registration D-AECG performing flight
CL-1486/LH-1486 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Minsk (Belarus), was enroute
at FL370 about 65nm northeast of Prague (Czech Republic) and about 80nm
eastsoutheast of Dresden (Germany) when the crew decided to divert to Dresden
due to smoke indication on board. The aircraft landed safely in Dresden
about 25 minutes later.

The flight was cancelled. The aircraft positioned to Frankfurt the following
day and resumed service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4439c964/0000
20120313173121:20110926000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 at Denver on Sep 26th 2011, bird strike
The NTSB have released their final report concluding the probable cause
was:

The initial damage to the fan blades was caused by the ingestion of a Red-Tailed
Hawk that resulted in the fracture of one or more fan blades, which then
struck the fan case and caused it to bulge. The bulged fan case moved into
the path of the other passing fan blades producing various sized blades
fragments that creating a cascading effect of collateral impact damage to
the other fan blades, the fan case, and the inlet cowl.

The NTSB reported the aircraft had just touched down on runway 35R, full
reverse thrust had been applied, when the flight crew observed two hawks
at the center line of runway 35R shortly followed by impact on the fuselage
and hot odour in the cockpit. After vacating the runway engine #1 rolled
down on its own, an oil pressure light followed by a low oil pressure indication
came on. A flight attendant observed smoke from the tail pipe of the engine,
the flight crew shut the engine down using the “engine fire, severe damage
or separation” checklist. Emergency services were called but found no trace
of fire. The aircraft was subsequently towed to the gate.

The aircraft sustained minor gouging of the fuselage and underside of the
left wing, a passenger window was nicked and the left main gear forward
tyre was slashed but not deflated.

The left hand engine showed multiple impacts on its inner barrel of the
inlet cowl, gouges and through holes through the outer skin of the inlet
at two locations. All fan blades were extensively damaged with three blades
fractured across the airfoil. No penetrations or breaches were observed
in the engine cases, the fan case however showed several bulges corresponding
to hard impacts, fan blade rub strip material was missing.

The right hand engine showed minor fan blade leading edge damage to a number
of blades.

The remains of the whole bird as well as fragments of a second bird were
recovered from runway 35R and identified as remains of juvenile Red-Tailed
Hawks.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4439b6c1
20110927153624:20110926000000
Incident: Aserca DC93 at Puerto Ordaz on Sep 26th 2011, hydraulic leak
An Aserca Airlines Douglas DC-9-30, registration YV371T performing flight
R7-749 from Puerto Ordaz to Caracas (Venezuela) with 90 passengers, was
climbing out of Puerto Ordaz when passengers saw smoke in the cabin prompting
the return of the aircraft to Puerto Ordaz for a safe landing.

The airline reported the aircraft actually suffered a hydraulic leak, due
to the high pressure the fluid evaporated causing the impression of smoke.

The incident occurred about 4 hours after the accident of Aeropostal’s DC-9-50,
see Accident: Aeropostal DC95 at Puerto Ordaz on Sep 26th 2011, hard landing
tears engines off.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4438f491
20110926173941:20110926000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 at Hartford on Sep 26th 2011, smoke in lavatory
A Chautauqua Airlines Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Continental Airlines,
registration N287SK performing flight RP-4736/CO-4736 from Hartford,CT to
Cleveland,OH (USA) with 49 passengers and 3 crew, was in the initial climb
out of Hartford about 2 minutes into the flight when smoke was observed
in a lavatory. The aircraft returned to Hartford for a safe landing on runway
06 about 5 minutes after departure, vacated the runway and stopped on the
adjacent taxiway, where the aircraft was evacuated. No injuries occurred,
the passengers were bussed to the terminal.

Due to the blocked taxiway other arriving aircraft had to turn around on
the runway and backtrack the runway to vacate the runway requiring ATC to
increase separation for landing traffic substantially causing some delays.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4448023c
20111014200401:20110924000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 at Toronto on Sep 24th 2011, avionics smoke indication
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-GBIK performing flight AC-737
from Toronto,ON (Canada) to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 123 people on board,
was climbing through 4000 feet out of Toronto’s runway 33L when the crew
received an avionics smoke warning message on their ECAM. The crew worked
the relevant checklists but found no evidence of smoke. The crew declared
PAN, returned to Toronto for a safe landing on runway 24R about 24 minutes
after departure and stopped on the runway for an inspection by emergency
services, who also found no trace of fire, smoke or heat. The aircraft subsequently
taxied to the apron.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance also found no evidence of smoke and
replaced the avionics compartment’s smoke detector.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44380a40
20111208151256:20110922000000
Incident: Air France A319 near Algiers on Sep 22nd 2011, smoke in cabin
An Air France Airbus A319-100, registration F-GRXN performing flight AF-558
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to N’Djamena (Chad), was enroute at
FL330 about 160nm east of Algiers (Algeria) when the crew reported they
had heard a loud bang inside the aircraft followed by smoke from a lavatory.
The aircraft diverted to Hassi Messaoud (Algeria) for a safe landing.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration F-GRXK was dispatched to Algiers
and reached N’Djamena with a delay of 9.5 hours.

The incident aircraft returned to Paris on Sep 25th.

The NTSB reported on Dec 8th 2011, that emergency services found no trace
of fire or heat. The forward galley air-chiller was removed from the aircraft
for further examination. The investigation has been delegated to France’s
BEA.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4436b356
20110923233139:20110919000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Edmonton on Sep 19th 2011, uncommanded engine feather
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GSTA performing
flight QK-8165 from Edmonton,AB to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 38 people on
board, was rotating for takeoff from Edmonton’s runway 02 when tower observed
black smoke from the left hand engine (PW123B) and the left hand propeller
went into its feather position uncommandedly. The crew continued the feather
procedure, shut the engine down as the aircraft climbed through 1000 feet
and returned to Edmonton for a safe landing on Edmonton’s runway 30 about
25 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that the engine and all propeller related components
were removed from the aircraft and are being torn down for inspection. An
engineering report will be provided to the TSB.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=443287d4
20110918223156:20110918000000
Incident: TACA A320 near Cuzco on Sep 18th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A TACA Peru Airbus A320-200, flight T0-9 from Lima to Cuzco (Peru) with
90 passengers, was on approach to Cuzco when smoke began to emanate from
one of the windshield heating systems. The crew accelerated the approach
into Cuzco for a safe landing.

The airline reported a short circuit in the windshield heating system caused
the smoke but no flames.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=443426bb
20110920203548:20110916000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Halifax on Sep 16th 2011, smoke detector could not be silenced
A United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N218UA performing flight
UA-976 from Washington Dulles,DC (USA) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with
262 people on board, was enroute at FL310 about 55nm southeast of Halifax,NS
(Canada) when the crew received a smoke detector indication, cabin crew
also received Lower Lobe Area Rest (LLAR) red cabin lights and chime announciations
at their stations. No odour, smoke, heat or fire was observed in or near
the LLAR, however, none of the indications could be silenced. The flight
crew declared emergency, returned to Washington’s Dulles Airport, dumped
fuel on the way back and landed safely about 2 hours after turning around.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance replaced a number of electronic boards,
the LLAR smoke detector and returned the aircraft to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442f03cb
20110915163338:20110914000000
Accident: United Airlines B752 at Washington on Sep 14th 2011, reported engine fire
The evacuated N534UA (Photo: Jodi Gersh)A United Airlines Boeing 757-200,
registration N534UA performing flight UA-586 from Washington Dulles,DC to
San Francisco,CA (USA) with 179 passengers and 6 crew, had been pushed back
from the gate and about to start taxiing for departure, when shouts were
heard in the cabin indicating smoke from the right hand engine (PW2037).
The aircraft stopped, an evacuation was initiated, all slides (including
the right hand slides) were deployed and the aircraft was evacuated. 3 people
received injuries, one of them was taken to a hospital.

Responding emergency services found no trace of fire or smoke.

The airline said, they can not yet say whether there was an engine problem
or not.

The FAA reported on Sep 15th 2011, that all persons on board were evacuated
via chutes due to a reported engine fire while the aircraft was still at
the ramp. The fire extinguished. Three persons received minor injuries.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442facab/0001
20121127152911:20110913000000
Incident: Cimber Sterling AT72 at Copenhagen on Sep 13th 2011, engine fire
The Danish Havarikommissionen (HCL) released their final report concluding:

The root cause of the engine failure and engine fire was found to be fatigue
crack propagation caused by casting defects (shrinkage porosities) of one
of the Power Turbine (PT) stage 1 blade, which led to fracture of one of
the PT1 blades. The fractured blade caused a lot of fractured PT stage 2
blades and the PT Rotor came in unbalance and broke the bolts holding the
Rotor shaft Bearing Housing No 6 & 7. This in turn put all the force on
the Bearing Housing oil transfer tubes causing them to break, subsequently
leading to an oil leak. The internal oil leak caused a fire. The leaking
oil continued out to the bottom of the nacelle and the internal oil fire
then spread outside to the nacelle area.

The technical investigation revealed that this event was not an isolated
event. The AIB-DK concluded that at the time of the serious incident, there
were unidentified PT1 blades from the same Batch (Heat) in circulation around
the world as the fractured PT1 blade – with micro shrinkage porosity.

The HCL reported the first officer (34, ATPL, 2,613 hours total, no time
reported on type) was pilot flying for the takeoff from runway 22R, the
captain (32, ATPL, 3,874 hours total, 3,108 hours on type) was pilot monitoring.
Following takeoff at 136 feet AGL the crew received a master warning with
reference to the left hand engine’s low oil pressure, at 256 feet AGL a
master caution with reference to the left engine’s ITT was issued, the crew
noticed bad smell and observed smoke in the cockpit. At 564 feet AGL the
crew initiated the shut down of the left hand engine by executing the memory
items of the checklist, at that time cabin crew attempted to establish contact
with the cockpit but were told to “standby”, 5 seconds later a master warning
occurred with reference to a left hand engine fire, at the same time cabin
crew reported smoke in the cabin. The crew was satisfied that the aircraft
was flying safely on the right hand engine, declared Mayday and requested
to land on either runway 22, an offer of tower to fly a tear drop back to
runway 04R was not taken up. Another flight crew waiting for departure from
runway 22R reported they could see smoke and a bright light from the left
side of the aircraft. The crew agreed to hand controls to the captain, tower
advised landing would occur on runway 22L. The crew noticed the left hand
fire indication and discharged agent #1. At 1305 feet AGL, about 2:28 minutes
into the flight, the crew began to discuss landing on runway 30, discovered
the fire indication was still active, discharged agent #2 and requested
tower to report whether any fire was seen from the ground and checked with
cabin crew whether they could see any fire from the left hand engine, tower
responding they would take a look and report, cabin crew reporting that
now there were no longer any signs of fire. Tower reported they could not
see any signs of fire from the ground. The crew requested wind information
which indicated a crosswind component of 22 knots for runway 30, the crew
decided to land on runway 30. The flight crew decided an emergency evacuation
would most likely be necessary, advised tower they would perform an evacuation
onto the runway and had cabin crew on standby for the evacuation through
the right hand doors. The aircraft touched down on runway 30 5:02 minutes
after becoming airborne, at that time winds were from 250 degrees at 17
knots. The crew issued “Standby, standby, standby” on the PA, verified that
the fire had been extinguished and decided to cancel the evacuation informing
cabin crew about the cancellation via interphone. The captain briefed the
passengers on the extinguished engine fire and announced they would disembark
through the normal passenger door but leave the hand luggage behind as smoke
was still present in the cabin.

The aircraft had accumulated 20,554 hours in 31,168 flight cycles. The left
hand engine had accumulated 16,018 hours since new (no cycles given), the
last overhaul had occurred in 2006 at 10,078 hours and 13,608 cycles since
new, the last visit to the engine workshop had occurred in February 2011
at 15,832 hours/23,937 cycles since new for a hot section repair, that visit,
like the other earlier visits, did not reveal any evidence of stage 1 turbine
blade failures.

A first visual inspection of the engine showed 2 blades of the stage 2 turbine
were severely damaged, the scavenge oil line from bearing #6 and #7 was
found loose and leaking at the 6 o’clock position into the power turbine
support case. The engine oil tank was drained removing 2 liters of oil,
the tank has a capacity of 22 liters.

The engine tear down inspection revealed all stage 2 turbine blades were
heavily damaged, several blades had fractured. The stage 2 stator was heavily
damaged, the shroud was heavily damaged with parts of the outer shroud missing.
The stage 1 turbine was removed from the engine, two blades were found fractured
and separated at the root, all blades showing indications of overheat. The
bearing baffle of bearings #6 and #7 was damaged with three bolts holding
the baffle and bearing houses in place had sheared off, the bearing houses
could be manually rotated indicating that the other 9 bolts below the baffle
and three more bolts at the oil transfer tubes had also sheared off. After
removing the assembly the turbine inlet case was observed wet with oil.
The three oil transfer tubes for bearings #6 and #7 were found sheared off
almost in flush with the bearing housing, the tubes fractured just above
the threads.

In a review conducted in 2008 by the engine manufacturer there had been
68 blades of 90,000 identified, that suffered from porosity exceeding x-ray
limits resulting in 12-16 engines removed from service prior to schedule.
The manufacturer improved inspection of new blades by introducing a new
x-ray inspection in 2008 as result of the survey, the number of blades suffering
from porosity, which had peaked in 2008, then decreased again. A service
bulletin released in March 2008 required to remove suspect blades, the incident
engine and its blades however were not covered by that bulletin as the bulletin
did not cover stage 1 turbine blades manufactured before 2007 and there
was no life time limit set on those blades.

The HCL analysed: “The flight crew decision on landing on runway 30 instead
of landing on runway 04R (tailwind component of more than 10 knots) or a
visual approach to runway 22L was in the AIB-DKís opinion an optimum compromise
between operational flight safety on one hand and reduction of the total
airborne time on the other. By a reduction of the total airborne time, the
severity of this incident (inflight fire) and the total risk were lessened.”

The HCL continued: “Taking the severity of this serious incident into consideration
and in the interest of flight safety, the flight crew decision of overriding
the operational procedures including checklists (six emergency checklists)
and only perform memory items was – under the actual conditions – optimum.
This decision also contributed to a reduction of the total airborne time
and the flight crew workload.”

The HCL further analysed: “The AIB-DK regards this incident as an unprepared
emergency, which made time a crucial parameter. For that reason, crew interaction
and communication had first priority rather than continuous information
to and briefing of the passengers. However, the passengers were briefed
in flight on the engine problems and again on ground on the disembarkation
by the commander. Besides safety related cabin crew duties (securing the
cabin), the AIB-DK finds it likely that a cabin crew announcement shortly
before landing on the engine problems and on safety preparations (seatbelts)
might have been supportive to the commanderís briefing and thereby sustaining
a positive passenger control.”

The HCL analysed that immediately upon takeoff the left hand engine suffered
a stage 1 blade fracture and separation, that in sequence led to an oil
fire in the nacelle section.

Stage 1 turbine rotor (Photo: HCL):
Stage 2 turbine stator (Photo: HCL):
Stage 2 turbine outer shroud (Photo: HCL):
Bearing baffle and stage 1 stator (Photo: HCL):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442facab/0000
20120823163853:20110913000000
Incident: Cimber Sterling AT72 at Copenhagen on Sep 13th 2011, engine fire
The Danish Havarikommission (HCL) have released their preliminary report
reporting the first officer was pilot flying, the captain pilot monitoring.
When the aircraft climbed through about 134 feet AGL out of runway 22R,
the crew received a Master Warning referring to low oil pressure of the
left hand engine. After the Warning was silenced a Master Caution appeared
referring to the engine’s high inter stage turbine temperature (ITT). Smoke
became visual in the cockpit and cabin. The crew shut the left engine down.
When the aircraft climbed through about 750 feet AGL a left hand engine
fire alert and Master Warning occurred. The captain took control of the
aircraft and flew a left hand circuit, while the fire agent #1 was discharged,
the passengers were briefed about the return. After discharging the second
fire agent the crew decided to land on runway 30, tower was advised the
aircraft would be evacuated. After safe landing on runway 30 5:02 minutes
after departure the crew noticed the fire indication had ceased, the emergency
evacuation was cancelled, the passengers disembarked through the left hand
door onto the runway.

Technical examination of the engine identified a stage 1 blade of the power
turbine fractured due to fatigue, which in turn caused multiple blades to
fracture in stage 2. The power turbine rotor became unbalanced causing heavy
rubbing between the power turbine and low pressure rotors. The low pressure
rotor rubbed against the housing of bearing 6 and 7, the housing rotated,
the attaching bolts sheared which caused the oil fracture tubes to rupture.
The oil released from the tubes flowed down to the bottom of the nacelle
where a fire started.

The investigation is ongoing.

In August 2012 Denmark’s Havarikommissionen (HCL) released Tri-national
Safety Recommendations as result of joint investigations into similiar occurrences
in Copenhagen (Denmark), Budapest (Hungary) and Florence (Italy), which
permit insight into the events. The safety recommendation states for OY-CIM,
that the aircraft took off Copenhagen’s runway 22R and was climbing through
134 feet radio altitude when a cockpit master warning referring to a left
engine low oil pressure was triggered. After the master warning was silenced
a master caution referring to a high inner stage turbine temperature (ITT)
activated. Smoke was present in cockpit and cabin. The crew performed the
memory checklist items and shut the left hand engine down. When the aircraft
climbed through 750 feet radio altitude a left engine fire warning activated.
Both fire agents were discharged and the aircraft returned to Copenhagen’s
Kastrup Airport for a safe landing on runway 30. After landing the crew
verified the fire indication had ceased and cancelled the evacuation of
the aircraft. The aircraft was airborne for 5 minutes and 2 seconds.

All three investigations listed these common findings:
– all events occurred during initial climb
– “the events were all due to the initial distress of a Power Turbine 1st
stage rotor blade causing subsequent damages and heavy unbalance of the
whole PT assembly, further unbalance of the LP rotor through No. 6 & 7 bearing
housing, and final oil leakage due to breaking of No. 6 & 7 bearing compartment
retaining bolts and distress of the radial transfer tubes. Fire was then
originated by such a leakage in presence of hot parts”
– a crack propagated from an internal casting defect resulting in distress
of the PT1 rotor blade, the propagation of the crack was according to the
low cycle fatigue mechanism.

Two safety recommendations were submitted to Transport Canada and three
safety recommendations to EASA.

Stage 2 power turbine blades (Photo: HCL):
Evidence of fire on outer parts (Photo: HCL):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442facab
20110915143503:20110913000000
Incident: Cimber Sterling AT72 at Copenhagen on Sep 13th 2011, engine fire
A Cimber Sterling Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration OY-CIM
performing flight QI-851 from Copenhagen to Aalborg (Denmark) with 47 passengers
and 4 crew, was climbing out of Copenhagen when the left hand engine caught
fire also sending smoke into the cabin. The crew shut the engine down, activated
the engine fire suppression system and returned to Copenhagen for a safe
landing about 13 minutes after departure, the aircraft was evacuated on
the runway.

Cimber Sterling confirmed the incident and said, it is still too early to
tell what caused the engine fire. The aircraft is still grounded for examinations,
the cause of the engine fire is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442e111f
20110913152448:20110913000000
Incident: Swiss A321 at Dublin on Sep 13th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Swiss International Airlines Airbus A321-100, registration HB-IOC performing
flight LX-401 from Dublin (Ireland) to Zurich (Switzerland) with 155 people
on board, was climbing through FL070 out of Dublin’s runway 28 when grey
smoke with the smell of burning plastics was observed in the cabin. The
crew levelled off and returned to Dublin for a safe landing on runway 28
about 10 minutes after departure. After a brief inspection by emergency
services the aircraft taxied to the gate.

The cause of the smoke is under investigation.

A replacement aircraft is being dispatched to Dublin and is expected to
reach Zurich with a delay of 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442e0e98
20110913150735:20110912000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Jackson on Sep 12th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration
N16918 performing flight XE-2380/CO-2380 from Knoxville,TN to Houston,TX
(USA) with 52 passengers, had just reached FL350 about 160nm northeast of
Jackson,MS (USA) when the crew reported a popping sound followed by smoke
in the cockpit. The crew decided to divert to Jackson for a safe landing
about 25 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442bd450
20110910234552:20110910000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near Doncaster on Sep 10th 2011, smoke in cabin
An Easyjet Airbus A320-200, registration G-EZTA performing flight U2-1931
from Manchester,EN (UK) to Sofia (Bulgaria), was climbing through FL270
out of Manchester’s runway 23R when the crew reported smoke in the cabin,
levelled off and diverted to Doncaster,EN (UK) for a safe landing on runway
20 about 20 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire or
heat. The passengers deplaned normally via stairs.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration G-EZTG reached Sofia with a delay
of 5.5 hours.

The source of the smoke was not found so far. The incident aircraft positioned
back to Manchester departing Doncaster 8 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442b7bd2
20110910145102:20110909000000
Incident: Atlantic Southeast CRJ7 near Albany on Sep 9th 2011, electrical smell
An Atlantic Southeast Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of Delta Airlines,
flight EV-5039/DL-5039 from Hartford,CT to Detroit,MI (USA) with 64 people
on board, was climbing through FL180 when the crew observed a faint electrical
smell on board and decided to divert to Albany,NY (USA) for a safe landing
about 15 minutes later. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

A replacement CRJ-700 reached Detroit with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442a8ec0
20110909125653:20110908000000
Incident: SAS A321 near Hamburg on Sep 8th 2011, smoke in cabin
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration OY-KBE performing
flight SK-688 from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Copenhagen (Denmark) with 130
passengers, was enroute at FL380 about 60nm southeast of Hamburg (Germany)
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and decided to divert to Hamburg’s
Fuhlsbuettel Airport for a safe landing on runway 23 about 20 minutes later.
By the time of landing the smoke had dissipated, emergency services utilizing
thermal imaging found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft was able to continue the journey after about 2 hours on the
ground and reached Copenhagen with a delay of about 130 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4429b8a0/0000
20120614124829:20110907000000
Incident: jet2 B752 near Kavala on Sep 7th 2011, electrical problems
The United Kingdom’s Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) released their
bulletin reporting the aircraft was enroute in Bulgarian Airspace when the
crew received “L AC BUS OFF” and “L GEN OFF” messages followed by a number
of systems failing. The crew worked the relevant checklists which briefly
restored the left AC bus power, however the power failed again this time
with a thin haze of smoke and a burning electrical smell in the cockpit.
The crew donned their oxygen masks and goggles and declared emergency. The
crew subsequently powered the APU up which supplied the left AC bus for
about 17 seconds before the left AC bus failed again. On final approach
to Kavala it was apparent that the fumes had dissipated, the passengers
disembarked normally after safe landing.

The AAIB reported the aircraft had experienced a “L AC BUS OFF” message
13 flights prior to the incident flight. Maintenance had performed troubleshooting,
however with inconclusive results, the left hand Integrated Drive Generator
(IDG) was disconnected and put onto the deferred defects list under minimum
equipment list requirements.

On the day of the incident flight, prior to the flight, maintenance performed
another go at the defect and found an open circuit at a connector between
the left hand engine pylon and the left hand IDG, the terminal crimp pin
was found corroded. The wiring loom between the left engine pylon and IDG
was replaced, a successful operational check followed and the left hand
IDG was returned to service with the left AC bus system declared serviceable.

Following the incident flight a post flight visual inspection found no cause
and no origin of the smoke, the circuit breakers and the bus ties were found
without defects. Error codes in the Bus Power Control Unit (BPGU) indicated
that the current demanded by the loads on the left AC bus were not in balance
with the output by the IDG. Maintenance replaced the left generator control
unit and the left GBPU, ground run the engines for 45 minutes with both
AC busses operating normally without any unusual smells. The aircraft was
subsequently released to return to Manchester.

During the return flight to Manchester, about 140 minutes into the flight,
the crew received again “L AC BUS OFF” and “L GEN OFF” messages without
any associated smells, the crew successfully powered the left AC bus via
the APU and completed a normal landing in Manchester.

After landing the crew attempted to reconnect the left IDG and was successful.

Maintenance again found the error codes in the BPGU suggesting that the
load had not been in balance with the power generated by the IDG.

Further maintenance actions followed which identified pin 12 at the connector
at the left engine pylon was open, the same pin that had already been identified
in maintenance action prior to the incident. The connector was disassembled
and it was found that the crimp terminals at pin 11 and pin 12 had parted
from their wiring and the connector backshell was loose. Pin 11 connects
an earth shield, while pin 12 connects a winding around the A phase output
of the IDG to the left generator transformer for fault detection.

All crimp terminals were replaced, a new backshell mounted and electric
continuity verified. Following this maintenance activity no further fault
occurred. The faulty crimp terminals as well as the faulty backshell were
sent to the AAIB for further testing.

The AAIB analysed that the backshell was loose due to stripped threads probably
because of overtightening. This defect permitted moisture to enter the connector
causing corrosion on the internal components. In addition to permitting
moisture into the connector the loose backshell also removed support of
the wiring loom permitting the loom to vibrate, which promoted mechanical
damage of the individual wires at their point of attachment to the crimp
terminals. The loss of connectivity on pin 12 erroneously meant that the
A-phase produced zero current and prompted the GCU via logic from the BPGU
to disconnect the left IDG.

The AAIB further analysed the intermittent nature of the defect, due to
corrosion with the crimp terminals, made it difficult to isolate the fault.
There was no evidence of overheating at the connector however, and only
during the incident flight there was smell and haze associated with the
“L GEN OFF” messages. It is therefore probable that the presence of an additional
factor was necessary to produce the smell and smoke. The AAIB continued:
“However, loss of electrical continuity at pin 11 of the D1114J connector,
as determined from examination of the crimp terminal, disconnected the earth
shield from the left IDGís exciter field power supply wiring. It is therefore
possible that electromagnetic interference could have affected the exciter
field voltage and, in turn, the left IDG output AC voltage. The aircraft
manufacturer confirmed that a reduction in AC voltage can cause fuselage-mounted
electrical motors and transformers to overheat, resulting in a hot electrical
smell and possibly light smoke, but without leaving any visible evidence
once these components have subsequently cooled.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4429b8a0
20120614124821:20110907000000
Incident: jet2 B752 near Kavala on Sep 7th 2011, electrical problems
A jet2 Boeing 757-200, registration G-LSAI performing flight LS-465 from
Leeds,EN (UK) to Larnaca (Cyprus) with 217 people on board, was enroute
at FL380 about 40nm north of Kavala (Greece) when the crew decided to divert
to Kavala due to the failure of navigation equipment. The aircraft landed
safely.

A listener on frequency reported that the crew, obviously on oxygen masks,
reported smoke in the cockpit.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration G-LSAD was dispatched to Kavala,
but could not continue the flight until the next morning. The aircraft reached
Larnaca with a delay of 17 hours.

The incident aircraft was able to depart Kavala about 25 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4428a4cb
20110912112818:20110906000000
Crash: Aerocon SW4 at Trinidad on Sep 6th 2011, missing aircraft found destroyed, one survivor
An Aerocon Swearingen SA-227 Metroliner, registration CP-2548 performing
flight A4-238 from Santa Cruz to Trinidad (Bolivia) with 7 passengers and
2 crew, was on approach to Trinidad, when the crew reported they were in
the procedure turn to final approach to Trinidad’s Airport about 10nm north
of the aerodrome about 19:00L (23:00Z), then radio contact was lost. The
aircraft did not arrive at the aerodrome or any other aerodrome. The aircraft
was found around noon of Sep 8th, at 16:40L (20:40Z) helicopters reached
the site, but found no survivors. 8 bodies have been recovered. The following
day one male survivor (35) was found and taken to a hospital.

Bolivia’s Air Force reported on Sep 8th around 12:30L (16:30Z) that after
the skies cleared they did locate the aircraft in a lagoon about 15nm northeast
of Trinidad Airport and observed survivors.

Bolivia’s Ministry of Defense reported in the evening of Sep 8th, helicopters
reached the completely destroyed wreckage at 16:40L and only found bodies,
6 of which were recovered so far. The bodies trapped in the wreckage require
additional equipment to recover them later the day. The minister continued,
that his staff had told him there were survivors.

On Sep 9th around 09:00L (13:00Z) a man (35) with a serious head wound and
bruises all over the body approached recovery workers and was recognized
as survivor of the crash. He said, he had heard the noise of the helicopters
and recovery works and walked through the jungle to find the source of the
noise. After the crash he had waited for a day before he realised all others
had died in the crash, and walked away from the wreckage seeking for help
for about 48 hours. He was flown to a private hospital where the head wound
and the bruises were treated. The survivor did not suffer any fractures.

At the time of the approach the visibility was reported poor in the area.

Bolivia’s Air Force have launched a search and rescue operation.

Bolivia’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed the aircraft went
missing while on approach to Trinidad. Last radio contact was when the crew
indicated they were in the procedure turn around 20:00L.

The airline reported the aircraft’s arrival was estimated for 19:10L, the
crew reported the procedure turn at about 19:00L. The aircraft is still
missing (standing Sep 8th 01:45L/05:45Z), no ELT signal has been detected,
the search and rescue operation has been intensified after day break Wednesday
(Sep 7th), however hopes are fading the airplane may have landed off the
field as the search has been unsuccessful so far.

Bolivia’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation reported, that the black
boxes have been recovered and sent to Brazil for analysis. The VOR was out
of service at the time of the crash and had been out of service since Aug
20th, the aircraft was performing a non-precision instrument approach. Sounds
on the control tower recordings suggest no problem with the aircraft during
the last communications. The surviving passenger also indicated the crew
did not indicate any problems. The investigation also attempts to verify
whether correct information about visibility, that was hampered by smoke
produced by clearing works, was forwarded to the crew.

Trinidad features a runway 14/32 of 2400 meters/7880 feet length with a
VOR/DME approach (MDH 371 feet AGL/MDA 870 feet MSL, visibility of 1200
meters required for Category B aircraft) and a NDB approach (MDH 551 feet/MDA
1060 feet, visibility required 1600 meters) available to runway 14. Both
instrument approaches require to overfly the aerodrome to the north and
turn back (procedure turn) onto final approach.

Metars:
SLTR 070200Z 00000KT 0800 FU NSC 25/20 Q1011
SLTR 070100Z 00000KT 1500 FU NSC 26/20 Q1011
SLTR 070000Z 00000KT 1500 FU NSC 27/20 Q1010
SLTR 062300Z 00000KT 1500 FU NSC 28/19 Q1009
SLTR 062200Z 00000KT 1200 NSC 30/18 Q1009
SLTR 062100Z 21008KT 1200 FU NSC 32/18 Q1009
SLTR 062000Z 19010KT 1200 FU NSC 33/18 Q1009
SLTR 061910Z 19010KT 1200 FU NSC 34/18 Q1010
SLTR 061900Z 22008KT 1500 FU NSC 34/18 Q1010

Relevant NOTAM:
A0336/11 – ID TRI FREQ 115,9 MHZ/CH 106X VOR/DME U/S. 20 AUG 19:35 2011
UNTIL 20 SEP 19:30 2011 ESTIMATED. CREATED: 20 AUG 19:37 2011

Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442587b2
20110903141717:20110902000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Frankfurt on Sep 2nd 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-ECOM performing flight BE-7126
from Stuttgart (Germany) to Birmingham,EN (UK) with 46 passengers and 4
crew, was enroute near Frankfurt (Germany) when smell of smoke was observed
about mid-cabin. The crew to divert to Frankfurt Hahn Airport for a safe
landing. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

Emergency Services reported that a member of the crew had noticed smell
of smoke on board prompting the diversion. A check utilising infra red cameras
showed no anomaly.

The passengers were taken to local hotels, the flight is estimated to continue
on Saturday afternoon.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4423f20c
20110901181537:20110901000000
Incident: KLM B737 at Amsterdam on Sep 1st 2011, smoke in cabin
A KLM Boeing 737-700, registration PH-BGH performing flight KL-1170 from
Helsinki (Finland) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) was on approach to Amsterdam
when the crew requested priority reporting a smoke problem in the back of
the cabin. The aircraft continued for a safe landing on Amsterdam’s runway
27 (active runway for landings 06) about 10 minutes later. After a brief
check by emergency services the aircraft taxied to the gate.

The cause of the smoke is being investigated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442317f0
20110905223902:20110830000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Washington on Aug 30th 2011, engine shut down in flight
The left engine (Photo: Adriano Carneiro)A United Airlines Boeing 777-200,
registration N788UA performing flight UA-861 from Washington Dulles,DC (USA)
to Sao Paulo,SP (Brazil), was climbing through FL200 about 50nm southeast
of Washington’s Dulles Airport, when the left hand engine (PW4090) emitted
a huge bang and smoke appeared in cabin and cockpit. The crew shut the left
hand engine down and returned to Washington’s Dulles Airport reporting on
approach, that the smoke in the cockpit had dissipated and they were no
longer planning to evacuate the aircraft after landing, the left engine
had locked and was shut down. The aircraft landed safely on Dulles Airport’s
runway 01R and vacated the runway stopping on the adjacent taxiway for emergency
services to check the aircraft.

A passenger reported that he felt unusual vibrations while the aircraft
was still level at FL190, then the engine began to emit sparks followed
by a huge bang and smoke appearing in the cabin. After landing emergency
services cooled the brakes, the passengers disembarked onto the taxiway
via stairs.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration N784UA departed Washington about
14.5 hours after landing and is estimated to reach Sao Paulo with a total
delay of 15 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=442302d3
20110831154802:20110830000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Nantes and London on Aug 30th 2011, odour on board
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DHC performing flight FR-9803
from Girona,SP (Spain) to London Stansted,EN (UK), was enroute at FL380
about 32nm south of Nantes (France) when the crew decided to divert to Nantes
squawking emergency after a passenger complained about smell of smoke on
board. The aircraft landed safely on Nantes runway 03 about 15 minutes later.

Ryanair reported that engineers were flown to Nantes, nothing was found,
and the aircraft was released for flight about 5.5 hours later.

When the aircraft was enroute at FL280 over the Channel about 75nm south
of London’s Gatwick Airport,EN (UK), the crew decided to divert to Gatwick
squawking emergency again after there were again passenger complaints about
fumes. The aircraft landed safely in Gatwick about 20 minutes later.

Ryanair reported that a passenger complained about fumes in the rear galley
prompting another diversion to the nearest airport Gatwick. The passengers
were taken to Stansted Airport by coach. The aircraft was taken out of service
for inspection.

By Aug 31st 15:45Z the aircraft is still out of service, although it was
positioned to Stansted Airport around noon Aug 31st.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4422f853
20110831144207:20110830000000
Incident: Virgin America A320 near Houston on Aug 30th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Virgin America Airbus A320-200, registration N835VA performing flight
VX-315 from Orlando,FL to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was enroute at FL360 about
60nm east of Houston,TX (USA) when the crew reported smoke in the cabin
and diverted to Houston. The aircraft landed safely on Houston’s runway
27 (runways 08 and 09 active) about 17 minutes later.

A passenger tweeted the flight diverted because of an odour on board.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration N524VA reached Los Angeles with
a delay of 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4420ff31
20110829125348:20110829000000
Accident: Gulf Air A320 at Kochi on Aug 29th 2011, runway excursion
A Gulf Air Airbus A320-200, registration A9C-AG performing flight GF-270
(dep Aug 28th) from Bahrain (Bahrain) to Kochi (India) with 137 passengers
and 6 crew, landed on Cochin International Airport’s runway 27 at about
03:55L (22:25Z Aug 28th) but veered right off the runway and came to a stop
with all gear about 10 meters off the paved surface. The aircraft was evacuated.
One passenger received serious injuries (fractures) and is in hospital care,
7 other minor injuries and were released from hospital after treatment.
The aircraft received substantial damage to its nose gear.

The airport said the runway is closed for an estimated 10 hours although
small turboprops can operate on the runway. Strong winds, rain and reduced
visibility of 2000 meters prevailed at the time of landing.

Gulf Air confirmed the nose gear collapsed. One passenger received serious
injuries.

India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation reported the crew provided
testimony that they were able to see the runway from about 6nm out. While
descending through 2000 feet AGL there was moderate rain, but after the
aircraft had descended below decision height there were sudden gusts of
wind and severe rain. A disabled aircraft retrieval kit is being brought
in from Mumbai to move the aircraft back onto paved surface and off the
runway.

A passenger reported that the airplane had landed normally when the pilot
all of the sudden lost control. The aircraft skidded off the runway into
the grass and mud. Shouts occurred in the cabin “MAYDAY, MAYDAY, EVACUATE”,
smoke began to fill the cabin, the passenger noticed some some strange smell
of some gasses. Cabin crew later said the aircraft had been evacuated in
20 seconds, the captain appeared to be in total shock after evacuation.

The runway was re-opened for takeoffs from runway 27 and landing on runway
09 with a reduced runway length (landing distance available on runway 27
and takeoff distance available on runway 09) of 2050 meters.

The local weatherstation reported partly cloudy, variable winds at 3 knots
and visibility of 4000 meters at 02:30L, light rain, winds from westsouthwest
at 19 knots (significantly different to Metars) and visibility of 2000 meters
at 05:30L (00:00Z).

Cochin International Airport offers a runway 09/27 of 3400 meters length
with ILS and VOR approaches to runway 27 and a VOR approach to runway 09.

Metars:
VOCI 290000Z 26003KT 4000 HZ FEW008 SCT015 OVC080 26/24 Q1008 TEMPO VIS
2000M RA
VOCI 282330Z 28005KT 4000 HZ FEW006 SCT015 OVC080 26/24 Q1008 NOSIG
VOCI 282300Z 00000KT 4000 HZ FEW005 SCT015 OVC080 26/24 Q1008 NOSIG
VOCI 282130Z 29005KT 3000 HZ SCT010 SCT080 26/24 Q1008 NOSIG
VOCI 282100Z 04004KT 3000 HZ SCT010 BKN080 26/24 Q1008 NOSIG
VOCI 282030Z 00000KT 3000 HZ FEW010 SCT015 BKN080 26/25 Q1009 NOSIG
VOCI 281800Z 00000KT 3000 HZ FEW010 SCT015 BKN080 27/25 Q1010 NOSIG

Relevant NOTAM:
A1201/11 – OBSTRUCTION DUE DISABLED ACFT ON RWY. PSN: 2200M FM THE BEGINING
OF RWY09. 31M NORTH OF CL OF RWY. HGT: 11M AGL
REVISED DECALRED DISTANCES OF RWY09/27 DUE DISABLED ACFT ON RWY
AS FOLLOWS.
RWY TORA TODA ASDA LDA
09 1500M 1500M 1500M 2050M
27 2050M 2050M 2050M 1500M
ARRIVALS PERMITTED ON RWY09 ONLY AND DEPARTURES PERMITTED ON RWY27
ONLY. ALL ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES ARE LIKELY TO BE DLA. 29 AUG 06:00 2011
UNTIL 29 AUG 18:30 2011 ESTIMATED. CREATED: 29 AUG 06:12 2011

A9C-AG off the runway (Photo: AP):
ILS 27 Approach Chart (Graphics: AIP India):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=441c4622
20110823151857:20110822000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Rzeszow on Aug 22nd 2011, engine damage
An Emirates Boeing 777-300, registration A6-EMU performing flight EK-60
from Hamburg (Germany) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates), was enroute at FL350
about 20nm east of Rzeszow (Poland) when the crew decided to divert to Vienna
(Austria) (distances: Rzeszow 20nm, Krakow 110nm, Warsaw 155nm, Budapest
200nm, Vienna 240nm) due to problems with the left hand engine (Trent 895).
The airplane landed safely on Vienna’s runway 16 about 50 minutes later.

After landing in Vienna it was determined the left hand engine (Trent 895)
had suffered substantial damage and needs to be replaced. The engine casing
was found penetrated suggesting an uncontained engine event and a subsequent
fire.

Austrocontrol said the crew reported problems with the left engine and decided
to divert to Vienna because of maintenance possibilities. During approach,
landing and taxi no smoke was observed from the engine.

Emirates confirmed the aircraft diverted to Vienna as a precaution due to
technical problems.

The left engine (Photo: R. Reiner/Austrianwings):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=441bbc00
20110822224011:20110822000000
Incident: American Eagle CRJ7 at Washington on Aug 22nd 2011, leak from wing
An American Eagle Canadair CRJ-700, registration N511AE performing flight
MQ-3898 from Washington National,DC to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was departing
Ronald Reagan Airport’s runway 01 when the tower called smoke from the right
hand engine. Another pilot chimed in reporting he believed the trail was
coming from the right hand wing about mid point, he believed it might be
fuel. A second pilot confirmed that observation. MQ-3898 climbed to 4000
feet and diverted to Washington’s International Airport for a safe landing
on runway 01R about 13 minutes later.

An observer on the ground reported fuel appeared to stream off the top of
the wing.

The flight is currently estimated to reach Chicago with a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4419c56e
20130603233337:20110820000000
Crash: First Air B732 near Resolute Bay on Aug 20th 2011, impacted terrain
A First Air Boeing 737-200, registration C-GNWN performing flight 7F-6560
from Yellowknife,NT to Resolute Bay,NU (Canada) with 11 passengers and 4
crew, went missing while on approach to Resolute Bay and was found crashed.
3 passengers survived with injuries and are reported in stable condition,
8 passengers and all 4 crew perished.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) confirmed the aircraft has crashed
near Resolute Bay, 12 occupants perished, 3 occupants survived with injuries.
The crash site is located less than 2km west of Resolute Bay Community in
rugged terrain. Two survivors (a 7 year old girl and a 48 year old male)
were taken to Ottawa for medical treatment, the third survivor (23 year
old female) is being treated at Iqaluit. All three are in stable conditions.

First Air confirmed their Boeing 737-200 C-GNWN had an accident in the hills
about 8km from the airport of Resolute Bay. In a later press release First
Air reported the aircraft had last radio contact about 5nm from the airport
and crashed about 10 minutes later. 3 survivors are are in the medical
care center, there were 12 fatalities.

The Canadian Forces were conducting an exercise called Nanook 11, which
includes the simulation of a major air disaster near Resolute Bay. The exercise
was interrupted, the forces joined the search and rescue operation in progress.

The Canadian TSB reported investigators, dispatched to Resolute Bay to monitor
the upcoming military exercise next week, were on scene quickly.

On Aug 22nd the TSB reported that the aircraft was on approach to runway
35T when it struck a hill about 1nm east of the mid point of the runway.
The aircraft was destroyed and there was a post impact fire. 4 crew and
8 passengers perished, three passengers survived and were recovered by Canadian
Military personnel, who were in Resolute Bay for Exercise operation Nanook.

The two female survivors reported the impact came completely unexpected
with no obvious problem prior to impact. The girl received a leg fracture
and was found sitting on a rock in tears by the 23 year old female, who
also managed to get away from the wreckage, and taken to a safe place. Investigators
could not yet speak to the male survivor due to health condition.

NAV Canada reported the aircraft was on an ILS/DME approach to runway 35T
when it collided with terrain east of the runway at N74.71883 W94.91867.
4 crew and 8 passengers perished, 3 passengers received non-life threatening
injuries. Weather was reported: 200 feet cloud ceiling, 3 miles visibility
with fog and drizzle, wind from 180 degrees at 10 knots.

ALPA reported both flight crew perished in the accident.

Sources within the airline report the two flight attendants are amongst
the fatalities, too.

Locals reported poor visibility and low cloud. The local weather station
reported visibilities at or above 8km/4.3nm with fog, rain, humidity close
to 100%.

A listener on frequency reported the crew of C-GNWN had called 3nm final
for runway 35T, which proved to be their last radio transmission. Temporary
Tower tried to raise them without success. Another aircraft was on approach
to runway 17T and went around because of fog, they were asked by tower whether
they could see anything. During their second approach the fog lifted and
the crew of that aircraft was able to see a debris field and black smoke
at the top of a hill.

Photographer Nicolas Laffont told The Aviation Herald, that he took the
shot of the Crash Site from Resolute Bay Airport.

The Boeing 737-200 combi aircraft C-GNWN was in a 5 pallet configuration
with room for 24 passengers and 5 cargo pallet positions.

Resolute Bay Airport offers a gravel runway 17T/35T of 6500 feet/1980 meters
length, an ILS is available for approach to runway 35T, a backcourse localizer
non-precision approach available for runway 17T. Following the crash the
ILS was NOTAMed unserviceable until Aug 23rd, on Aug 23rd the ILS was NOTAMed
unserviceable until further notice. The NOTAM was withdrawn on Aug 25th.

On Jan 5th 2012 the TSB released a first progress report stating, that the
aircraft performed an ILS approach (minimum 200 feet AGL, 0.5 miles visibility)
to runway 35T. 40 minutes prior the crash the weather had been reported
as 10 miles visibility in light drizzle with overcast cloud at 700 feet
AGL, a weather observation shortly after the crash indicated 5 miles visibility
in light drizzle and mist with overcast cloud at 300 feet AGL. The crew
initiated a go-around 2 seconds prior to impact, at that point flaps were
set at 40 degrees, the gear was down and locked, the airspeed was 157 KIAS
and the final landing checklist had been completed. The aircraft impacted
terrain at 396 feet MSL (runway level 215 feet MSL) about 1nm east of the
mid point of the runway. Another aircraft completed a successful ILS approach
and landing to runway 35T 20 minutes after the crash, measurement flights
confirmed the ILS was serviceable. Examination of the aircraft revealed
no technical problem prior to impact, both engines were operating and delivering
considerable power at the time of impact. The TSB currently works on the
hypothesis of a controlled flight into terrain.

In June 2013 a letter by the Canadian TSB became known highlighting the
role of the temporary military control tower in the sequence of events leading
to the crash. The TSB stated that the tower, although operating a Class
D airspace, did not provide IFR separation, neither by radar nor by procedural
control. The TSB stated:

The Canadian Forces had set up a temporary Class D control zone in Resolute
Bay to handle increased air traffic for this exercise. At 1139, a second
aircraft operating under instrument flight rules (IFR) entered the Class
D control zone without appropriate IFR separation. There was a loss of separation
and had the First Air flight not hit the ground there could have been a
risk of a mid-air collision.

The control agency has the responsibility to separate IFR flights from each
other, and provide traffic information to flights being operated under visual
flight rules (VFR). IFR separation is normally provided by using radar information.
The military radar installed for OP Nanook was not useable at the time of
the accident as a flight check had not yet been performed to verify radar
accuracy.

The use of radar information and, in a non-radar environment, procedural
methods, can be used to ensure IFR separation of aircraft. In the absence
of these two defences, closing the Class D control zone would have alerted
crews that ATC was not providing IFR separation, forcing them to revert
to the normal procedures for uncontrolled airspace.

Metars:
CYRB 201900Z 15008KT 8SM VCFG OVC006 07/06 A2985 RMK SC7 VIS N-E 3 FG TOP
OF HILL SLP113
CYRB 201800Z 19008KT 10SM VCFG SCT003 OVC010 07/07 A2983 RMK SF3ST5 SLP108

CYRB 201700Z CCA 20007KT 10SM VCFG SCT002 OVC009 07/06 A2982 RMK SF2ST6
SLP105
CYRB 201649Z 18013KT 5SM -DZ BR OVC003 RMK ST8
CYRB 201600Z 18008KT 10SM -DZ OVC007 06/06 A2981 RMK ST8 SLP100
CYRB 201533Z 17008KT 5SM -DZ BR OVC006 RMK ST8
CYRB 201500Z 18016KT 1/2SM R35/2200FT -DZ FG VV002 06/06 A2979 RMK FG8 SLP095

CYRB 201450Z 17013KT 5/8SM -DZ BR VV002 RMK FG8
CYRB 201434Z 17016KT 15SM -DZ OVC005 RMK ST8
CYRB 201400Z 16014KT 15SM BKN009 OVC070 07/06 A2979 RMK SF4AC4 SLP094

Relevant NOTAMs:
08/025 (110129) – CYRB ILS 35 U/S. WIE UNTIL UFN. CREATED: 23 AUG 14:10
2011 (withdrawn on Aug 25th)

08/020 (110123) – CYRB DAH IS AMENDED AS FLW:
CLASS D RESOLUTE MTCA IS ESTABLISHED AS FLW:
THE AIRSPACE WITHIN 80 NM RADIUS 744301N 945810W
700 FT AGL TO FL200. FOR OPS NANOOK.
FREQ FOR OPS NANOOK:
RESOLUTE TML: 228.5000 MHZ
: 123.075 MHZ
GLOWWORM(MIL PAR): 243.4000 MHZ
: 128.850 MHZ
RESOLUTE TWR: 236.5 MHZ
: 122.1 MHZ
RESOLUTE GND: 122.6 MHZ
: 149.15 MHZ. 23 AUG 17:00 2011 UNTIL 28 AUG 01:00 2011. CREATED:
21 AUG 04:08 2011
08/019 (110122) – CYRB ILS 35 U/S. WIE UNTIL 22 AUG 23:59 2011. CREATED:
21 AUG 00:47 2011

The wreckage (Photo: AP/Nicolas Laffont):
Crash Site near Resolute Bay Airport (Photo: Nicolas Laffont via Twitter):
Detail map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
ILS approach runway 35T (Graphics: NAV Canada):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44170da0
20110817125934:20110816000000
Incident: Brit Air CRJ1 near Lyon on Aug 16th 2011, smoke in cabin, possible depressurization
A Brit Air Canadair CRJ-100 on behalf of Air France, flight DB-5729 from
Lyon to Caen (France) with 46 passengers, was climbing out of Lyon about
10-15 minutes into the flight when the crew initiated an emergency descent
and returned to Lyon for a safe landing about 30 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported that heavy black smoke without any smell began to fill
the cabin just before the crew turned around. Flight attendants advised
that oxygen masks might be released and opened the air conditioning vents
throughout the cabin. No further information was provided. The passengers
were taken to a hotel after some time and were rebooked onto other flights
the following day.

Brit Air and Air France refused to comment.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44528d0c
20140320172108:20110815000000
Incident: Air Berlin A333 at Dusseldorf on Aug 15th 2011, fire on board
An Air Berlin Airbus A330-300, registration D-AERQ performing flight AB-2050
from Dusseldorf (Germany) to Tenerife Sur Reina Sofia,CI (Spain) with 383
passengers and 11 crew, was in the initial climb out of Dusseldorf when
a flight attendant noticed open flames at a lamp near the door 2R. Cabin
crew discharged a fire extinguisher and managed to put the fire out, the
flight crew levelled off at 6000 feet and returned to Dusseldorf for a safe
landing about 13 minutes after departure.

Germany’s BFU released their bulletin in German reporting, that shortly
after becoming airborne the flight attendant at door 2R heard a bang and
saw her working lamp, built into the door, blacken and shortly thereafter
smoke becoming visible followed by flames becoming visible. The flight attendant
reported the occurrence to the lead cabin crew via Interphone, who instructed
cabin crew from doors 1L and 1R to assist fire fighting at door 2R and informed
the flight crew. A halon fire extinguisher was discharged onto the lamp
and behind the door panels, no flames were visible afterwards however smoke
still poured out of the panelling.

A post flight examination showed that especially the power supply of the
lamp showed evidence of extensive heat and fire exposure. Following the
removal of the door panels traces of fire and smoke were found at the insulation
and structure of the door.

Examination of the power supply showed two conductor pathes on the main
board of the power supply showed evidence of high amperage, those lines
were directly connected to 115V AC/400 Hz and GND.

The BFU analysed the fire remained limited to a few square decimeters.

The manufacturer of the lamp unit had already released a service information
letter on Sep 26th 2000 reporting that water could reduce insulation resistance
on the main board of the power supply. The production processes were changed
and a replacement of the affected parts was offered free of charge. Another
service information letter was released in 2005 recommending the replacement
of all units manufactured before 2002 re-iterating the danger of water leading
to reduced isolation.

The BFU said, the manufacturer said 3,400 of 10,700 units were manufactured
according to the old production processes. Of these 3,400 units only 400
were replaced.

On Mar 20th 2014 the BFU released their final report concluding the probable
causes were:

Due to the climatic conditions in the door area condensation developed.
Furthermore, whenever the door was open water could penetrate from the outside.

The water reached the power unit.

The BFU is of the opinion that the classification of the power unit as category
W equipment in accordance with RTCA/DO-160C was not appropriate. The protection
of the power unit against environmental conditions was sufficient in regard
to the test procedures but not always in the real fitting situation.

In combination with the water the insulation resistance of the circuit board
was reduced and resulted in a short circuit.

The energy set free by the short circuit resulted in fire.

The fire was noticed by the cabin crew which immediately initiated appropriate
actions.

The fire was confined.

The BFU is of the opinion that to date the measures initiated by the manufacturer
in the function as design organisation to remedy the known deficiency were
insufficient to prevent in-flight fire.

Door 2R (Photo: BFU):
The main board of the power supply (Photo: BFU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=441e90fa
20110826100411:20110815000000
Incident: Brit Air CRJ7 at Lyon on Aug 15th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Brit Air Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of Air France, registration F-GRZH
performing flight DB-5906/AF-5906 from Lyon (France) to Barcelona,SP (Spain),
was departing Lyon when two loud bangs were heard from the left hand engine
(CF34). The crew continued takeoff, observed no changes in engine parameters
however received an engine fire indication, shut the engine down and discharged
the fire suppression systems. The aircraft returned to Lyon for a safe landing.

The NTSB reported the BEA have initiated an investigation.

Another flight experienced a problem out of Lyon the same day, see Incident:
Brit Air CRJ1 near Lyon on Aug 16th 2011, smoke in cabin, possible depressurization.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44190202
20110819223850:20110815000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Montreal on Aug 15th 2011, smelly coffee
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHNX performing flight AC-682
from Toronto,ON to Deer Lake,NL (Canada) with 82 people on board, was enroute
at FL390 about 100nm westsouthwest of Montreal,QC when the crew declared
emergency reporting an electrical fire on board and decided to divert to
Montreal. Cabin crew had noticed smell of smoke and subsequently identified
the source to be near a number of coffee makers and turned them off, the
circuit breaker was pulled as well. The aircraft landed safely on Montreal’s
runway 06L about 18 minutes later and stopped on the runway.

Following examinations the aircraft taxied to the apron, after a runway
inspection the runway was re-opened about 15 minutes after landing.

The Canadian TSB reported a coffee maker in the forward galley was found
defective with two wires to the tank being burned. The coffee maker was
replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4415aa0b
20110815202236:20110815000000
Incident: Air Berlin A333 at Dusseldorf on Aug 15th 2011, fire in galley
An Air Berlin Airbus A330-300, registration D-AERQ performing flight AB-2050
from Dusseldorf (Germany) to Tenerife Sur Reina Sofia,CI (Spain) with 380
passengers and 11 crew, was in the initial climb out of Dusseldorf’s runway
23R when a smouldering fire started in the lighting of the forward galley.
While cabin crew extinguished the fire the flight crew levelled off at 6000
feet and returned to Dusseldorf’s runway 23R for a safe landing about 13
minutes after departure. The fire was out at the time of touch down, emergency
services did not need to intervene. The aircraft taxied to a stand, where
passengers disembarked normally.

A replacement Airbus A330-300 registration D-AERS reached Tenerife with
a delay of 4:50 hours.

Passengers reported that heavy black smoke emanated from the lighting in
the ceiling of the forward galley.

The airline reported that a smouldering fire in the lighting of the forward
galley was quicky extinguished by cabin crew.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44173004
20110817163627:20110814000000
Incident: US Airways A321 at San Francisco on Aug 14th 2011, bird strike
A US Airways Airbus A321-200, registration N176UW performing flight US-700
from San Francisco,CA to Philadelphia,PA (USA), was in the initial climb
out of runway 01R when the tower asked whether the flight was proceeding
normally reporting some small explosion and smoke and flames from what appeared
to be the left hand engine (CFM56). The crew replied they had some bad vibration
and declared emergency requesting runway 28R. Tower instructed two aircraft
on final to runway 28R to go-around, cleared US-700 to land on runway 28R
and stopped all other departing and arriving traffic keeping all 4 runways
available for the emergency aircraft and emergency services. US-700 however
decided to proceed over the bay and work some checklists and climbed to
5000 feet prompting tower to open runways 28L, 28R and 01L again. A runway
inspection of runway 01R was conducted with no anomaly reported. The crew
reported they had severe vibrations on the #2 (right hand) engine, the thrust
had been reduced on the engine which was still running. The aircraft positioned
for an approach to runway 28R, all departing and arriving traffic was again
halted for the arrival of the emergency aircraft, and landed safely on runway
28R about 25 minutes after departure.

A passenger reported the captain announced they were returning to San Francisco
due to damage to an engine caused by one or more birds. After disembarking
the aircraft the passengers observed what appeared to be white feathers
in between the fan blades of the right hand engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4415a694
20110815200013:20110814000000
Incident: Republic E170 at Washington on Aug 14th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Republic Airways Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of US Airways, registration
N122HQ performing flight RW-3353/US-3353 from Washington National,DC to
Kansas City,MO (USA), was departing from Ronald Reagan Airport’s runway
01 at 11:12pm local (03:12Z Aug 15th) with a delay of about 3 hours due
to severe weather and was in the initial climb when the crew declared emergency
reporting they apparently had smoke in the cabin. The aircraft levelled
off at 4000 feet and diverted to Washington’s International Airport for
a safe landing on Dulles Airport’s runway 01R about 15 minutes after departure.

The flight was subsequently cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto
other flights reaching their destination with delays of around 12 hours.

A passenger reported the passengers observed smell of smoke in the cabin.
The aircraft was evacuated via slides after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44141b7a
20110813232645:20110813000000
Incident: US Airways B762 over Atlantic on Aug 13th 2011, smoke in cabin
A US Airways Boeing 767-200, registration N246AY performing flight US-749
from Madrid,SP (Spain) to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 192 passengers, was enroute
at FL390 about 250nm eastsoutheast of Boston,MA (USA) when the crew donned
their oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting smoke on board of the
aircraft. The crew decided to divert to Boston, on approach they removed
the oxygen masks and reported the smoke had dissipated. The aircraft landed
safely on Boston’s runway 04R about 40 minutes later. The crew told attending
emergency services that they had been on oxygen masks for about 10 minutes
due to smoke in the cabin, the smoke had dissipated about 30 minutes prior
to landing. Fire fighters reported no trace of smoke, the aircraft taxied
to the apron with the emergency vehicles trailing the aircraft.

The airline said, the aircraft diverted as a precaution, 4 cabin crew were
taken to a hospital for evaluation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4414a6b9
20110814152035:20110812000000
Incident: North American B763 near Port of Spain on Aug 12th 2011, smoke in cabin
A North American Airlines Boeing 767-300 on behalf of Caribbean Airlines,
registration N764NA performing flight BW-503 from New York JFK,NY (USA)
to Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago), was on approach to Port of Spain
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and accelerated the approach.
The aircraft landed safely in Port of Spain and taxied to the gate covered
by emergency services.

The airport reported the aircraft landed without incident and taxied to
the gate, the aircraft was examined for the cause of the smoke.

The aircraft was able to perform the return flight following the examination
and reached New York with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440f7595
20110810161839:20110807000000
Incident: Air Finland B752 at Leeds on Aug 7th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Air Finland Boeing 757-200 on behalf of jet2.com, registration OH-AFL
performing flight LS-251 from Leeds,EN (UK) to Faro (Portugal), was climbing
out of Leeds’ runway 32 when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, levelled
off at 4000 feet and returned to Leeds’ runway 32 for a safe landing about
15 minutes after departure.

The flight was postponed to the next day, the passengers were taken to hotels.

A jet2.com Boeing 757-200 registration G-LSAB reached Faro with a delay
of 18 hours.

Air Finland reported on Aug 10th that a very strong smell was noticed in
the cabin obviously originating in the aft section of the cabin between
doors 2 and back of the cabin. Flight crew was informed and returned to
Leeds. During the approach to Leeds the smell dissipated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440d4e5a
20110806173525:20110805000000
Incident: American B763 at Chicago on Aug 5th 2011, brake fire
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N373AA performing flight
AA-41 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with
220 passengers and 12 crew, landed on O’Hare’s runway 28, slowed, turned
off the runway and was handed off to ground control. While the aircraft
turned off the crew of another aircraft on ground control reported the right
hand brakes of the American on fire, ground control confirmed seeing smoke,
a third crew added they were seeing flames. The American crew stopped the
aircraft immediately, emergency services responded and the crew initiated
an emergency evacuation via slides. No injuries occurred.

The airline confirmed brake #7 caught fire, the smell off the hot brake
entered the air conditioning system.

Fire engines cooling the right main gear:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440cf259
20110806073707:20110805000000
Incident: Philippine B744 near Sapporo on Aug 5th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Philippine Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration RP-C8168 performing flight
PR-102 (scheduled dep Aug 4th, actual dep Aug 5th) from Manila (Philippines)
to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 449 people on board, was enroute near Sapporo
(Japan) when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit and decided
to divert to Sapporo for a safe landing about 75 minutes later. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline said, a malfunctioning exhaust fan in the cockpit, that could
have caused the equipment to overheat, prompted the diversion to Sapporo.
A maintenance team was flown to Sapporo for repairs. The aircraft is expected
to depart Sapporo as flight PR-902 on Saturday Aug 6th 16:00L and to reach
Los Angeles on Saturday 10:10L with a total delay of 38 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440ce0e9
20110805104526:20110804000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Rome on Aug 4th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-EMI performing flight FR-4342
from Palermo to Bologna (Italy) with 121 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute
at FL250 over the Tyrrhenian Sea about 80nm southwest of Rome (Italy) when
the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted to Rome Ciampino Airport
for a safe landing on Ciampino’s runway 15 about 18 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DAI reached Bologna with a
delay of 3 hours.

A passenger reported the smoke originated from an overhead light.

The airline reported the aircraft diverted because a small amount of smoke
was emitted by a reading light.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440c12a5
20110804101148:20110803000000
Incident: ADA JS32 near Monteria on Aug 3rd 2011, engine shut down in flight
An ADA Aerolinea De Antioquia British Aerospace Jetstream 32, registration
HK-4364 performing flight ANQ-7953 from Corozal to Medellin (Colombia) with
22 people on board, was enroute near Monteria (Colombia) when the crew needed
to shut an engine down, that emitted smoke. The aircraft diverted to Monteria
for a safe landing.

The airport reported the runway was closed for 75 minutes while emergency
services foamed the engine using 210 gallons/800 liters of foam and 1500
gallons/5680 liters of water. A replacement aircraft took the passengers
to Medellin later the day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4408e93e
20110731124727:20110730000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Orlando on Jul 30th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
An Allegiant McDonnel Douglas MD-83, flight G4-696 from Orlando Sanford,FL
to Knoxville,TN (USA), was in the initial climb out of Sanford Airport when
the crew reported smell of smoke in the cabin, levelled off at 4000 feet
and returned to Sanford Airport for a safe landing about 10 minutes after
departure.

A replacement aircraft reached Knoxville with a delay of 5.5 hours.

The airline reported that a number of passengers smelled smoke in the cabin
prompting the return. Before second departure a toddler refused to remain
in his seat and ran around the aircraft while the aircraft taxied out for
departure prompting the crew to return to the gate, the toddler and parents
were removed from the aircraft, then the replacement aircraft was able to
depart.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440837fa
20110731181031:20110730000000
Incident: Singapore B744 near Naha on Jul 30th 2011, fire alert
A Singapore Airlines Cargo Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration 9V-SCA
performing freight flight SQ-7866 from Taipei (Taiwan) to Tokyo Narita (Japan)
with 4 crew, was enroute near Okinawa Island about one hour into the flight
when the crew reported they had a fire alert on board and decided to divert
to Naha (Japan) on Okinawa Island. The aircraft landed safely at Naha Airport
about 30 minutes later, attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

The runway was closed for about 20 minutes.

The airline said, initial results suggest the smoke detector malfunctioned.
The investigation continues, the results will be reported to the Civil Aviation
Authorities.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4407f71a
20130921185008:20110730000000
Accident: Caribbean B738 at Georgetown on Jul 30th 2011, overran runway
A Caribbean Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration 9Y-PBM performing flight
BW-523 from Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago) to Georgetown (Guyana) with
157 passengers and 6 crew, overran Georgetown’s runway 06 by about 100 meters
at 01:32L (05:32Z), broke through the perimeter fence, fell onto a perimeter
road and broke up, the front section separating just ahead of the wing root.
52 people were taken to hospitals for assessments, three of them remained
in hospital care (one leg fracture).

The airport was closed until about 10:00L (14:00Z).

Gyuana Authorities reported, that 52 people were taken to two hospitals
in Georgetown for assessment, all of them but three were released after
initial treatment. Three remained in hospital care, one of them with a leg
fracture. Guyana’s Civil Aviation Authority are investigating the accident.
Georgetown Airport’s fire commander told the investigators that firefighters
observed the aircraft as it approached but touched down only about half
way down the runway abeam the terminal building with about 3000 feet of
runway remaining. They needed to douse engine #2 (right hand engine) which
was emitting smoke after the aircraft came to a stop.

Aviation sources said, the aircraft touched down with flaps fully extended
(40 degrees).

On Aug 10th 2011 it became known to The Aviation Herald, that the flight
data recorder showed the flaps at position 30 degrees on final approach,
touchdown and rollout, the flaps indicator still showed the flaps at position
30 degrees after the accident.

On Sep 20th 2013 Guyana’s presidential advisor stated in a press conference,
that the investigation has been completed. The final report states as cause
of the accident, that the aircraft landed far beyond the touch down zone
due to the captain maintaining excess power during the flare. This resulted
in the aircraft not using the full deceleration capabilities and ended in
the runway overrun. The final report has not yet been published.

The flight had originated in New York JFK,NY via Port of Spain.

Georgetown’s runway 06/24 is 2270 meters/7450 feet long, an ILS is about
to be introduced however was not yet active at the time of the accident.

The aerial view along the runway towards the accident site taken about 8
hours after the accident shows the runway covered with a thin layer of water,
the accident aircraft’s four main wheel tracks visible through different
light reflection near the end of the runway and along the runway end safety
area, while the aerial view in opposite direction seems to suggest no tyre
tracks at all on the runway surface covered with water.

Metars:
SYCJ 300700Z 00000KT 9000 BKN015 24/24 Q1008 NOSIG
SYCJ 300600Z 00000KT 9000 BKN015 24/24 Q1008 NOSIG
SYCJ 300500Z 00000KT 9000 -SHRA FEW014CB BKN015 25/24 Q1009 CB-NE-ENE NOSIG

SYCJ 300423Z 00000KT 9999 TS FEW015CB SCT016 CB-NE-ENE NOSIG
SYCJ 300400Z 00000KT 9999 FEW016 24/24 Q1009 NOSIG
SYCJ 300300Z 00000KT 9999 FEW016 25/24 Q1010 NOSIG
SYCJ 300200Z 00000KT 9999 FEW017 SCT300 25/24 Q1010 NOSIG
SYCJ 300100Z 00000KT 9999 FEW017 SCT300 25/24 Q1010 NOSIG

Aerial views of the accident site (Photos: Mike Charles):
Watch the slope and top of the slope (Photo: Kaieteur News):
The accident scene in following daylight (Photo: Motidog):
The accident scene in following daylight (Photo: AP/Jules Gibson):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440ba619
20110803205958:20110729000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Toronto on Jul 29th 2011, rejected takeoff
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N663AR performing flight
MQ-4003 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 53 people
on board, rejected takeoff from Toronto’s runway 05 at low speed when smoke
entered the cockpit. The aircraft vacated the runway and stopped on the
high speed turn off. Emergency services responded while the passengers were
evacuated. Emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

Runway 05 was closed while emergency services responded.

The Canadian TSB reported that when the crew advanced throttle levers for
takeoff, smoke entered cockpit and cabin. The aircraft taxied clear of the
runway and was evacuated. Maintenance found oil in the left hand engine
(AE3007). The engine is to be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44078aa7/0000
20121129170143:20110729000000
Accident: Egyptair B772 at Cairo on Jul 29th 2011, cockpit fire
Egypt’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Central Directorate (EAAICD) released
their final report concluding the probable causes of the accident were:

Probable causes for the accident can be reached through:

– Accurate and thorough reviewing of the factual information and the analysis
sections
– Excluding the irrelevant probable causes included in the analysis section
Examination of the aircraft revealed that the fire originated near the first
officer’s oxygen mask supply tubing, which is located underneath the side
console below the no. 3 right hand flight deck window. Oxygen from the flight
crew oxygen system is suspected to have contributed to the fire’s intensity
and speed.

The cause of the fire could not be conclusively determined. It is not yet
known whether the oxygen system breach occurred first, providing a flammable
environment or whether the oxygen system breach occurred as a result of
the fire.

Accident could be related to the following probable causes:

1. Electrical fault or short circuit resulted in electrical heating of flexible
hoses in the flight crew oxygen system. (Electrical Short Circuits; contact
between aircraft wiring and oxygen system components may be possible if
multiple wire clamps are missing or fractured or if wires are incorrectly
installed).

2. Exposure to Electrical Current

The captain (49, ATPL, 16,982 hours total, 5,314 hours on type) and first
officer (25, ATPL, 2,247 hours total, 198 hours on type) were preparing
the aircraft for departure including reading the checklists requiring the
check of the flight crew oxygen system. The first officer conducted these
checks and found the oxygen pressure in the normal range at 730 psi. The
crew went on with the other preparation procedures, the passengers boarded,
the crew was waiting for a delayed last passenger until doors could be closed
and the aircraft was ready to depart.

About 30 minutes after the oxygen masks were checked the first officer heard
a pop followed by a hissing sound from the right hand side of his seat,
fire and smoke came out of the right hand console underneath the #3 cockpit
window to the right of the first officer. The captain ordered the first
officer to leave the cockpit immediately and notify cabin crew and emergency
of the cockpit fire. The captain discharged the fire extinguisher available
in the cockpit, however did not manage to put the fire out. The first officer
in the meantime notified cabin crew of the cockpit fire prompting an immediate
rapid disembarkment via the jetways, then moved on to find somebody with
a radio unit, stopped a car on the service way underneath the jetway and
radioed the fire department, first fire trucks arrived about 3 minutes after
the fire was first observed. Rapid deplanement was completed in about 4-5
minutes. Fire fighters were able to extinguish the fire quickly, all works
to extinguish and cool the aircraft were finished about 94 minutes after
the onset of fire.

Seven people including passengers, Egyptair personnell and fire fighters
suffered from mild asphyxia caused by smoke inhalation and were transferred
to hospitals.

The aircraft received substantial damage including extensive fire and smoke
damage to the cockpit, two holes were burned through the external aircraft
skin at the right hand side of the cockpit, smoke damage occurred throughout
the aircraft, heat damage was found on overhead structures aft of the cockpit,
isolated areas of heat damage were in the electronic bay below the flight
deck where molten metal had dripped down from the flight deck.

The passenger jetway suffered some damage as well including windows were
broken due to heat damage, two jacks controlling the canopy at the front
were bent due to heat, separation of the canopy, damage to the machine controlling
the bridge entrance door due to rushed entry of fire fighters, cracks in
the glass of the operator cabin. The jetway was repaired and resumed service
on Aug 2nd 2011.

The EAAICD analysed that all actions by the flight crew were prompt and
timely, the decision process was efficient and timely. Cabin crew deplaned
the passengers efficiently and timely and thus highly contributed to the
safety of passengers and crew. Ground crew acted prompt and efficiently
after detecting the fire, too.

The aircraft showed no defects that could have contributed to the accident.

The investigation determined there were no fuel, hydraulic or oil lines
near the cockpit area where the fire started. The investigation thus focussed
on the crew oxygen system reasoning that the speed of the fire development
required an accelerant.

The system’s stainless steel supply tubes were found without any leakages,
the stainless steel spring showed no evidence of arcing/electrical short
circuit however most of the wiring was missing near the supply tube with
evidence of melting.

The aircraft was found to differ from Boeing’s design in that a clamp supporting
the first officer’s wiring to the oxygen mask light panel was missing. The
wiring was not sleeved and a large loop of unsupported wire was found. The
investigation determined that about 280 aircraft including all of Egyptair’s
Boeing 777s were delivered that way.

The flexible oxygen mask hoses were tested for conductivity, some of which
were found not conductive with others found conductive.

It was found: “contact between aircraft wiring and oxygen system components
may be possible if multiple wire clamps are missing or fractured or if wires
are incorrectly installed.”

A laboratory analysis concluded: “A short circuit from electrical wiring,
which is supposed to be in contact with or routed near the stainless steel
oxygen supply tubing, would be the most likely source to provide electrical
energy to the spring. It is supposed that the stainless steel spring had
been subjected to high energy level, which heated the internal spring until
it became an ignition energy source, causing the flexible oxygen hose to
ignite and sustain a fire. The time to failure, may took few seconds depending
on the amount of energy supplied to the internal spring.”

A similiar occurrence, also referenced by the EAAICD, had occurred on a
Boeing 767-200 in San Francisco, see Accident: ABX Air Cargo B762 at San
Francisco on Jun 28th 2008, on fire while parked, no arson. The EAAICD stated
however that the construction of the flight crew flexible oxygen mask hoses
of the B762 and B772 differed to an extent that no parallels could be drawn.

Cockpit damage (Photo: EAAICD):
Holes burnt through external skin (Photo: EAAICD):
Smoke damage in cabin (Photo: EAAICD):
Heat and smoke damage in galley (Photo: EAAICD):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44078aa7
20110730204612:20110729000000
Accident: Egyptair B772 at Cairo on Jul 29th 2011, cockpit fire
An Egyptair Boeing 777-200, registration SU-GBP performing flight MS-667
from Cairo (Egypt) to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) with 291 passengers, was preparing
for departure at gate F7 with the passengers already boarded when a fire
erupted in the cockpit causing smoke to also enter the cabin. The crew initiated
an emergency evacuation. 5 occupants received minor injuries in the evacuations.
Emergency services responded and put the fire out. 2 fire fighters were
taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation. The aircraft received substantial
damage, the fire burned through the right hand side of the cockpit leaving
a hole of about the size of the first officer’s side window in the fuselage
just below that window.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration SU-GBR reached Jeddah with a delay
of 4.5 hours.

Cairo airport officials reported an electrical cockpit fire was reported
extinguished 25 minutes after the alert, the passengers were evacuated,
their luggage remained intact. Two fire fighters were taken to a hospital
for smoke inhalation.

Cairo Civil Defense reported 7 people were taken to local hospitals.

A passenger reported the emergency exits were not opened, all passengers
vacated the aircraft through the smoke and the main doors.

Early stages of fire before arrival of fire fighters (Video: taaaamer1):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440637a4
20110728070103:20110728000000
Incident: Air Canada B772 at Sydney on Jul 28th 2011, oven ignores no smoking sign
An Air Canada Boeing 777-200, registration C-FIUA performing flight AC-34
from Sydney,NS (Australia) to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 266 passengers
and 18 crew, was enroute at FL310 about 140nm eastnortheast of Sydney about
30 minutes into the flight when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and
decided to return to Sydney. The aircraft dumped fuel and landed safely
on Sydney’s runway 34L about 80 minutes after departure.

The aircraft was able to depart again after about 100 minutes on the ground
and is currently estimated to reach Vancouver with a delay of 3:15 hours.

The airline reported that the smoke was emitted by a galley oven, there
was no fire, the cause of the smoke is not yet known. The captain decided
to return, dumped fuel but did not declare emergency. The oven has been
removed from the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44065eb7
20110728112658:20110727000000
Incident: American Eagle AT72 near Longview on Jul 27th 2011, smoke in cabin
An American Eagle Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72, flight MQ-4777 from
Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Longview,TX (USA) with 47 passengers, was on approach
to Longview when the crew reported smoke in the cabin. The crew continued
for a safe landing, vacated the runway and evacuated the aircraft via the
air stairs at the rear doors. No injuries occurred.

The return flight was cancelled. The cause and origin of the smoke are being
investigated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4405a9c6
20110727150228:20110727000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Kansas City on Jul 27th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-694 from Columbus,OH to Las
Vegas,NV (USA) with 138 people on board, was enroute at FL380 about 60nm
east of Kansas City,MO when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided
to divert to Kansas City. The aircraft landed safely on Kansas City’s runway
19R. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4404d8b0
20110726151601:20110726000000
Incident: Delta B738 near Omaha on Jul 26th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N385DN performing flight DL-1002
(scheduled dep Jul 25th, actual dep Jul 26th) from Salt Lake City,UT to
New York JFK,NY (USA) with 159 passengers, was enroute at FL350 about 80nm
westsouthwest of Omaha,NE when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cabin
and decided to divert to Omaha, where the aircraft landed safely about 17
minutes later.

The cause of the smell is under investigation, a replacement aircraft is
being dispatched to Omaha.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4403fc36
20110725151545:20110725000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Greensboro on Jul 25th 2011, cargo fire indication
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N325SW performing flight
WN-999 from Birmingham,AL to Baltimore,MD (USA) with 91 passengers and 5
crew, was enroute at FL370 about 110nm southwest of Greensboro,NC when the
crew reported an aft cargo bay fire indication and diverted to Greensboro.
On approach to Greensboro the crew requested runway 05R and briefed they
intended to vacate the runway at taxiway H4 requesting emergency services
to stand by to check the aircraft. The aircraft continued for a safe landing
on runway 05L (active runways 23) about 18 minutes after beginning the diversion
and vacated the runway at taxiway H4 stopping just clear of the runway.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The
aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44031e00
20110725072814:20110724000000
Accident: Uni Airways MD90 at Taipei on Jul 24th 2011, rejected takeoff
An Uni Airways McDonnell Douglas MD-90 on behalf of Eva Air, registration
B-17918 performing flight BR-807 from Taipei (Taiwan) to Macau (Macao) with
152 passengers and 7 crew, rejected takeoff from Taipei at low speed due
to a left hand engine (V2525) fire indication. The airplane slowed safely
reaching taxi speed about 200 meters down the runway and began to taxi towards
the apron, when smoke was seen from the engine prompting the crew to evacuate
the aircraft via slides. 15 people received minor injuries in the evacuation.

Taiwan’s Aviation Safety Council have dispatched three investigators on
site. The black boxes have been removed from the aircraft. A decision whether
the ASC or the CAA are going to conduct the investigation is pending.

Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) reported on Jul 25th that aircraft
B-17918 rejected takeoff at 09:19L due to some abnormal indication. The
aircraft began to taxi towards the C2 apron when the captain was informed
about smoke from the #1 engine, the captain performed a dry start of the
engine to clear a possible tail pipe fire however now cabin crew, too, observed
smoke from the engine prompting the emergency evacuation. 15 passengers
received injuries (mainly abrasions) and were taken to a local hospital.
The ASC has determined they will not conduct the investigation, the CAA
is investigating.

Passengers reported that there had been smell of oil and/or fuel right from
boarding throughout taxi to the runway and intensified when the aircraft
turned onto the runway and began to accelerate, then the brakes came on
very hard.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440258d2
20110723163519:20110723000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near London on Jul 23rd 2011, smoke in cabin
A British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIA performing flight
BA-2159 from London Gatwick,EN (UK) to Saint Lucia (Saint Lucia) with 225
passengers, was climbing out of Gatwick’s runway 26L about 5 minutes into
the flight when the TV screen on a passenger seat began to emit smoke. The
flight crew levelled off at FL150 while cabin crew disabled the inflight
entertainment system and stopped the smoke. The aircraft entered a holding
for about 40 minutes before returning to Gatwick for a safe landing on runway
26L about one hour after departure.

Following further checks the aircraft departed again about 2.5 hours after
landing and is currently estimated to reach Saint Lucia with a delay of
4 hours.

The airline said that cabin crew dealt with the situation and the flight
crew decided to return as a precaution. The 225 passengers remained on board
while further checks were made before the aircraft departed again.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4411e75d/0000
20120412144052:20110721000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Edinburgh on Jul 21st 2011, cargo smoke indication
The AAIB released their bulletin releasing following summary:

The aircraft generated a spurious smoke warning from the forward baggage
compartment, which was probably caused by a short circuit in the smoke detector
connector. The pilots decided to treat the warning as valid even though
there was no evidence of smoke or fumes. The pilots decided that, with the
possibility of a fire on board, an evacuation was required and, after landing,
the aircraft vacated the runway and the passengers were evacuated onto a
taxiway.

Safety action was taken by the aircraft operator to prevent a similar short
circuit in other smoke detector connectors, and to ensure pilots received
training with respect to aircraft evacuation that reflected company policy.
Safety action was taken by the airport authority to address issues that
arose during and after the evacuation.

The aircraft was enroute at FL240 about 80nm south of Edinburgh when the
crew received a master warning and a smoke warning from the forward luggage
compartment. The crew donned their oxygen masks and smoke goggles and worked
the relevant checklist including discharging the fire suppression system
into the forward luggage compartment, the smoke warning light extinguished
shortly after.

The crew declared PAN and advised cabin crew to look for smoke from the
forward luggage compartment. As there were no signs of smoke or fire on
the flight deck the crew removed their oxygen masks and goggles, the captain
(55, ATPL, 8,010 hours total, 1,960 hours on type) advised cabin crew they
had had to fight a fire and would do an emergency descent into Edinburgh
instructing cabin crew to secure the cabin and advising he would decide
later whether an evacuation was necessary.

The smoke warning light illuminated again and remained permanently lit until
after landing.

Captain and first officer agreed that the occurrence was real even though
no smoke had been seen. The crew carried out the fuselage fire or smoke
checklist and carried out actions associated with a fuselage fire or smoke
from unknown source including the shut down of DC and AC generators and
main, auxiliary and stand by batteries effectively shutting down the first
officer’s instrument displays. Power was also removed from the autopilot,
ILS receivers, transponder, black boxes, the aircraft had begun to depressurize.

The crew estimated the landing to take place in seven minutes when the aircraft
was about 55nm from touch down, the air traffic controller attempting to
compute a more accurate estimate was unable due to the loss of the transponder
signal. The first officer inquired with cabin crew whether they would be
able to prepare cabin and passengers for the landing in seven minutes which
the cabin crew replied to in the negative. The first officer therefore made
an emergency announcement via PA indicating they would evacuate after landing.
The crew advised ATC they would vacate the runway and evacuate onto the
taxiway.

The crew performed a surveillance radar approach (SRA), touched down and
rolled out safely and vacated onto taxiway L about 15 minutes after advising
cabin crew of 7 minutes to landing, where the aircraft was evacuated, no
injuries occurred. Emergency services found no trace of fire or smoke.

The crew later reported that following the smoke indication extinguishing
after the fire suppression system had been activated they were convinced
they had a real smoke event on board. When the smoke warning light subsequently
illuminated again they believed the fire might have re-ignited through an
electrical loom or the smoke warning system might have been incorrectly
wired and the smoke was actually in the rear luggage compartment. The commander
did not believe the warning was spurious.

A post flight examination of the aircraft found no sign of fire or smoke
in any part of the aircraft. The forward luggage compartment contained no
items that could have generated smoke or other airborne particles. The smoke
detectors passed their tests, insulation and wiring checks of the smoke
detectors also revealed no fault.

The fire control amplifier was removed and sent to the manufacturer for
further testing under NTSB supervision. The unit passed 15 of 17 tests,
the remaining two tests including the temperature stress test were failed.
The board had been exposed to cooling with a cooling spray followed by heating
with the heat gun and produced an occasional smoke warning. These warnings
were abnormal, the manufacturer stated, and were produced only after the
board had been exposed to more moisture than would be encountered in service.

Deposit was found around pin B of the smoke detector connector. The manufacturer
stated that if those deposits were products of corrosion then moisture must
have been present, and if such moisture caused a short circuit between pin
B and the shell a self test would be triggered resulting in smoke warnings
and the fire suppression system being armed. Several of the blanking pins
of the connector were found missing. The detector passed all manufacturer’s
tests however.

The detector was subsequently taken to a company specialised in electric
failure investigation. The company identified the deposits were products
of corrosion. Using a high resistance meter the resistance between pin B
and shell was measured at 400.000 MegaOhms, in comparism pin A and shell
was measured at 200.000 MegaOhms. When humid air was blown onto the connector,
pin A to shell remained constant at 200.000 MegaOhms, pin B to shell however
reduced to 4 MegoOhm.

The connector was manufactured to military specification and would have
been tight had all blanking pins been installed. With the blanking pins
missing however moisture would be able to enter the connector.

According to maintenance documentation the connector had never been replaced,
the pins therefore must have been missing since production. Inspections
of other aircraft found the blanking pins in place on those aircraft.

The airline commented that they do not encourage crews, nor should ATC encourage
crews, to vacate the runway before evacuating. The aircraft should rather
be stopped on the runway and evacuation been done there.

The airport authority stated that the loud speaker of the passenger evacuation
management system mounted on a vehicle had been inoperative, a loudhailer
was used instead. The bus to drive the passengers to the terminal was summoned
by a radio call using a keyword that wasn’t recognized by the driver forcing
a phone call instead, however, that did not delay the bus significantly.
The aerodrome manager declined the request to use the passenger receiption
center believing the situation wasn’t serious enough.

Left: The smoke detector’s actual connector, right: normal connector (Photos:
AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4411e75d
20110811083046:20110721000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Edinburgh on Jul 21st 2011, cargo smoke indication
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-ECOF performing flight BE-672
from Newquay,EN to Edinburgh,SC (UK) with 47 passengers and 4 crew, was
enroute at FL240 when the crew received a forward luggage smoke indication.
The crew declared PAN and accelerated approach to Edinburgh. The aircraft
landed safely and vacated the runway followed by the occupants evacuating
the aircraft onto the taxiway. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

The AAIB have opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4400a43c
20110721142016:20110721000000
Incident: Gazpromavia T154 at Krasnodar on Jul 21st 2011, rejected takeoff
A Gazpromavia Tupolev TU-154, registration RA-85778 performing flight 4G-9662
from Krasnodar to Yamburg (Russia) with 142 passengers, rejected takeoff
from Krasnodar at high speed after a number of left hand main gear tyres
burst and smoke briefly emanated from the wheels. The airplane came to a
safe stop however remained disabled on the runway with three of the left
main gear tyres and wheels damaged. The passengers disembarked onto the
runway via mobile stairs.

The airport was closed for about 3.5 hours as a result until the aircraft
could be towed off the runway.

A replacement aircraft is estimated to depart Krasnodar with a delay of
6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ffa633
20110720111306:20110720000000
Incident: Cityjet F50 near Antwerp on Jul 20th 2011, cargo fire indication
A Cityjet Fokker 50 on behalf of Air France, registration OO-VLS performing
flight WX-5240/AF-5240 from Antwerp (Belgium) to Manchester,EN (UK), was
in the initial climb out of Antwerp when the crew received a cargo fire
indication and returned to Antwerp for a safe landing. Attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44175e11
20110817214315:20110719000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Bristol on Jul 19th 2011, oven choked over meals
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-GHLA performing flight AC-889
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Ottawa,ON (Canada) with 208 people on board,
was climbing out of London Heathrow near Bristol,EN (UK) when an aft galley
oven began to emit smoke. Cabin crew switched the oven off and the smoke
dissipated. The flight was continued to destination, the oven remained off
for the remainder of the flight. On approach to Ottawa the crew reported
a medical emergency on board and continued for a safe landing on Ottawa’s
runway 25.

The Canadian TSB reported the source of the smoke were burnt meal casseroles.

NAV Canada reported that on approach to Ottawa the crew reported a sick
passenger
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43fff3d1
20110720193023:20110719000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Calgary on Jul 19th 2011, returned twice because air conditioning problems
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHNW performing flight AC-118
from Calgary,AB to Ottawa,ON (Canada) with 95 people on board, was climbing
out of Calgary’s runway 16 when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cabin and levelled off at 8000 feet. About 2 minutes, while positioning
for a return to Calgary, the crew received an EICAS message “PACK 2 FAIL”
and cabin crew reported the smoke had dissipated. The aircraft landed safely
about 12 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported that the aircraft was released under minimum equipment
list requirements without working right air conditioning system.

The aircraft departed again and was climbing through FL250 about 70nm east
of Calgary when the crew received an EICAS message indicating a ‰1 bleed
air leak (affecting #1 air conditioning system). As result of the MEL from
the previous flight and the fault the crew initiated an emergency descent
to 10,000 feet and returned to Calgary again. The aircraft landed overweight
but safely on runway 34 about 40 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported that the #2 air conditioning system was then replaced
and tested serviceable, maintenance also performed a dual engine ground
run and tested all bleeds without any fault. An overheat detection test
also revealed no faults.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ffa20c
20110720104650:20110719000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near Hayden on Jul 19th 2011, electrical odour in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-135, flight MQ-3822 from Denver,CO to Los
Angeles,CA (USA) with 36 passengers and 3 crew, was enroute at FL360 about
30nm northwest of Hayden’s Yampa Valley Airport,CO when the crew reported
a strong electrical odour in the cockpit and diverted to Yampa Valley Airport
for a safe landing about 25 minutes later. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline said, the cause of the odour is under investigation. The passengers
were bussed back to Denver and rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ff9fa8
20110720103201:20110719000000
Incident: TAM A332 near Miami on Jul 19th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A330-200, registration PT-MVB performing flight
JJ-9399 from Orlando,FL (USA) to Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil), was enroute
at FL370 about 80nm southeast of Miami,FL (USA) when the crew declared PAN
PAN PAN, reported smell of smoke in the cabin and requested to divert to
Miami. The airplane landed safely on Miami’s runway 09 about 20 minutes
later and vacated the runway.

The airline reported some technical problem, the passengers were accomodated
in Miami and rebooked onto other flights.

The incident aircraft operated flight JJ-8091 from Miami to Sao Paulo departing
Miami about 7 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43fdf82b
20110718103451:20110717000000
Incident: American Eagle AT72 at Shreveport on Jul 17th 2011, smell of fuel and smoke in cabin
An American Eagle Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-200, registration N270AT
performing flight MQ-4725 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Shreveport,LA (USA),
was on approach to Shreveport about 10 minutes prior to estimated landing
when a smell of fuel developed in the cabin followed by smoke. The crew
declared emergency and accelerated approach for a safe landing on runway
14. The aircraft was evacuated. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire or heat.

Passengers reported the smoke seemed to come from the cockpit area. The
airplane’s departure from Dallas had been delayed for about 100 minutes
due to maintenance work.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43fd27cc/0000
20110823172242:20110717000000
Accident: Arann AT72 at Shannon on Jul 17th 2011, nose gear collapse
The Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) have released their preliminary
report stating, that the captain was pilot flying for the approach to Shannon’s
runway 24. The crew had been advised about turbulence prompting the captain
to aim for the end of the touch down zone in order to avoid turbulence at
the final stages of the landing considering that the remaining runway length
was sufficient.

According to flight data off the FDR the aircraft however experienced an
extended landing flare, engine torque had been increased in the initial
flare and then was progessively reduced. The captain became increasingly
concerned with the remaining runway length and decided to positively settle
the aircraft on the runway by a pronounced push on the yoke with a simultaneous
reduction of engine torque. The aircraft reached a nose down attitude of
8 degrees, the nose gear contacted the runway first at a vertical acceleration
of 1.7G, the aircraft bounced back into the air and the captain initiated
a go-around. While climbing out the gear was retracted with no abnormal
indications.

The aircraft was vectored for another approach to runway 24, the captain
aimed for the mid point of the touch down zone, the aircraft bounced a number
of times the last time again reaching a nose down attitude of 8 degrees
with the nose gear again first contacting the runway at a vertical acceleration
of 2.3G. At that point the blue hydraulic system lost pressure. The nose
gear collapsed and the nose scraped along the runway. The aircraft gradually
veered to the left and exited the runway surface onto grass near taxiway
Alpha, the left propeller struck a runway sign and received damage to one
propeller blade. The airplane came to a stop 1200 meters past the first
impact marks on the runway.

The AAIU annotated that the crew had no directional control over the aircraft
during the roll out due to the nose gear steering inoperative due to collapsed
nose gear and the rudder being jammed in the mid position.

The crew was unable to shut the engines down normally, the condition levers
could not be retarded to their aft position. The crew therefore pulled the
fire handles to shut the engines downs.

The flight crew decided to not evacuate due to lack of evidence of smoke
or smoke. The cabin crew however noticed a burning smell and initiated an
evacuation.

The nose gear, that normally retracts forward, was forcibly bent backwards
and forced into the fuselage causing substantial structural damage in the
under cockpit area.

The AAIU stated that a crosswind limit of 30 knots applied with the runway
status being damp. The operator had advised that gusts were not to be included
in the assessment whether a landing could be performed. Tower reported gusts
of 32 knots from 70 degrees, however, the maximum windspeed was 24 knots
resulting in a crosswind component of 22.5 knots.

The AAIU learned during the investigation that the aircraft had encountered
similiar issues in similiar weather conditions, however with different crew,
on two occasions prior to the accident.

The AAIU issued (and Aer Arann already adopted) a safety recommendation:
“Aer Arann should review the maximum crosswind limitations for approaches
onto RWY 24 at Shannon in conditions where the wind direction lies in the
sector from 260∞ – 320∞ and the wind speed is more than 15 kts, i.e. when
turbulence on the landing/approach may be expected.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43fd27cc
20110823172532:20110717000000
Accident: Arann AT72 at Shannon on Jul 17th 2011, nose gear collapse
An Aer Arann Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-200 on behalf of Aer Lingus,
registration EI-SLM performing flight EI-3601 from Manchester,EN (UK) to
Shannon (Ireland) with 21 passengers and 4 crew, approached Shannon’s runway
24 in turbulent conditions at 10:21L (09:21Z) however suffered a nose gear
collapse upon touchdown. The airplane skidded on its nose more than 1000
meters before the aircraft veered off the runway out of control and came
to a stop on taxiway A within the runway protected area, the nose on the
grass to the left of the taxiway. No injuries occurred. The passengers disembarked
onto the taxiway via stairs. The aircraft received substantial damage to
the nose gear, the belly and both propellers.

The airplane had already gone around from approach to runway 24 about 15
minutes earlier. The tower reported possible turbulence at the touch down
zone of runway 24.

The airport was closed until approximately 16:30L (15:30Z) until the aircraft
was removed from the intersection of taxiway A and runway 24.

Some debris was collected from the runway, the runway received no damage.

Aer Arann said, the airplane suffered a nose gear collapse upon landing
on its second approach and veered off the runway onto grass. The AAIU and
Irish Aviation Authority have been informed.

The Irish Aviation Accident Investigation Unit AAIU reported that one of
the nosewheels was recovered from the grass off the runway, the other nosewheel
was found embedded into the fuselage. The blackboxes have been recovered,
data from ATC and weather secured. The crew has already been interviewed.

Aviation Sources said surveillance videos showed the nose gear folded backwards
upon touchdown (the nose gear retracts forward), one nose wheel separated
upon touchdown and was recovered from the touch down area, the aircraft
subsequently skidded on its nose for more than 1000 meters creating a lot
of sparks and smoke and finally veered off the runway by pure chance onto
taxiway A however out of control of the crew, where it came to a stop just
at the hold short line, most of the aircraft still within the runway protected
area, the nose on the grass left of the taxiway. The winds at the time of
the accident were from the sector 260-320 degrees true at more than 15 knots
(see the warning on the ILS runway 24 approach chart below) causing turbulence
and/or windshear.

Metars:
EINN 171000Z 30023G35KT 9999 FEW010 SCT013 BKN017 14/11 Q1000 NOSIG
EINN 170930Z 30023KT 9999 -DZ FEW010 SCT014 BKN018 14/11 Q1000 NOSIG
EINN 170900Z 31020G32KT 9999 FEW010 SCT014 BKN018 14/11 Q0999 NOSIG
EINN 170830Z 31023G33KT 9999 FEW010 SCT013 BKN017 14/12 Q0999 NOSIG
EINN 170800Z 30020KT 9999 FEW010 BKN013 BKN018 14/12 Q0999 NOSIG
EINN 170730Z 30021G33KT 9999 SCT012 BKN015 OVC018 14/11 Q0999 NOSIG
EINN 170700Z 30022G32KT 9999 FEW010 BKN015 OVC018 13/11 Q0999 NOSIG

EI-SLM close ups:
EI-SLM on taxiway A:
EI-SLM being towed to the apron:
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
ILS runway 24 approach chart (Graphics: AIP Ireland):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43fc9565
20110716171235:20110713000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 over Atlantic on Jul 13th 2011, smoke in electronic bay indication
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, flight B6-895 from Boston,MA (USA) to Punta Cana
(Dominican Republic) with 129 passengers, was enroute at FL330 about 360nm
northwest of Bermuda (Bermuda) when the crew decided to divert to Bermuda
due to a smoke indication for the electronic bay. On approach to Bermuda
the crew requested emergency services to inspect the aircraft, especially
the right side of the aircraft, the compartment in the tail section and
the compartment right underneath the cockpit reporting, they had a smoke
indication but no visible smoke and no smell. The aircraft landed safely
on Bermuda’s runway 30 about one hour after the decision to divert and taxied
to the apron, where emergency services checked the aircraft.

The aircraft was able to depart Bermuda after 3 hours on the ground and
reached Punta Cana with a delay of 4:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43f48ded
20110706163054:20110706000000
Incident: Saudia B744 near Chennai on Jul 6th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration HZ-AIV performing
flight SV-841 from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) with
exactly 200 passengers on board, was enroute near Chennai (India) when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Chennai for
a safe landing on runway 25. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire or heat.

Following examination and repairs the aircraft was able to continue to Jeddah
after about 4.5 hours on the ground and is estimated to reach Jeddah with
a total delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=440ba99f
20110803212534:20110704000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Glacier Park on Jul 4th 2011, oven smoke signalling
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FLWH performing flight AC-540
from Seattle,WA (USA) to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 69 people on board, was
enroute at FL370 near Glacier Park,MT when the rear galley oven started
to emit smoke. Cabin crew turned the oven off and the smoke dissipated.
The crew decided to continue the flight and landed safely in Toronto about
3 hours later.

The Canadian TSB reported that the oven needed to be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43f15fc0
20110702170602:20110630000000
Incident: Pantanal AT42 at Sao Paulo on Jun 30th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Pantanal Linhas Aereas Avion de Transport Regional ATR-42-300, registration
PT-MFM performing flight P8-4758 from Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP to Sao Jose
de Rio Preto,SP (Brazil) with 44 passengers, was in the initial climb through
about 1500 feet out of Guarulhos Airport when the right hand engine (PW120)
emitted a loud bang prompting the crew to shut the engine down. The aircraft
returned to Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos Airport for a safe landing about 10 minutes
after departure.

Passengers reported they saw sparks and smoke from the right hand engine
just when it emitted the loud bang. The right hand propeller subsequently
stopped.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the later flight
out of Sao Paulo’s Congonhas Airport.

The airline confirmed technical problems. The passengers were bussed to
Congonhas Airport and continued their journey from there.

An examination of the airframe on Jun 29th by Brazil’s ANAC had shown a
continuous flow of engine oil through a leak at the right hand engine in
addition to a defect with the airplane’s transponder. The airplane was grounded.
On Jun 30th, after another inspection, the aircraft was released to flight
by ANAC, but had to return on the next flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4404361d
20110725212621:20110628000000
Incident: Air Canada B773 near Shannon on Jun 28th 2011, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Boeing 777-300, registration C-FIVS performing flight AC-872
(dep Jun 27th) from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with
360 people on board, was enroute at FL360 overhead Shannon (Ireland) when
smoke began to emanate from seats 31H and 31J. The inflight entertainment
system was shut down and the smoke dissipated. The crew decided to continue
the flight to Frankfurt where the aircraft landed safely about 90 minutes
later.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance replaced the faulty quad seat electronic
box.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ee7517
20110629043814:20110628000000
Incident: Transavia B738 near Amsterdam on Jun 28th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Transavia Boeing 737-800, registration PH-HSD performing flight HV-5951
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Lisbon (Portugal), had just reached cruise
FL320 about 90nm southwest of Amsterdam when the crew reported smoke in
the cockpit and decided to return to Amsterdam. The aircraft landed safely
on Amsterdam’s runway 27 about 30 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration PH-HZW reached Lisbon with a delay
of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ee17b0
20111208174854:20110627000000
Incident: Flybe E190 near Southampton on Jun 27th 2011, haze in cabin
A Flybe Embraer ERJ-195, registration G-FBEJ performing flight BE-195 from
Southampton,EN to Leeds,EN (UK) with 24 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing
out of Southampton when smell of smoke was observed in the cabin followed
by haze. The crew donned their oxygen masks and decided to return to Southampton.
During the approach the haze and smell began to dissipate. The aircraft
landed safely back in Southampton.

A passenger reported the smell seemed to originate from the back of the
cabin where it was stronger, the smell and haze spreading towards the front
of the aircraft. Fire fighters entered the aircraft after landing and identified
an overheated air conditioning unit.

On Dec 8th 2011 the British AAIB released their bulletin reporting that
the aircraft had been dispatched with just one air conditioning system operative
under minimum equipment list requirements. When the aircraft climbed through
FL100 a strong sulphurous smell and haze was observed in the flight deck
prompting the crew to don their oxygen masks and to return to Southampton.
The smell and haze cleared after about 5 minutes.

A postflight examination showed the operative air conditioning system had
failed. A detailed examination at the manufacturer’s facilities showed the
second stage turbine rotor had failed resulting in seizure of the motor.
That fault was a known scenario as result of resonance in the second stage
turbine and had already been covered by a service bulletin issued by Apr
26th 2010 and the recommendation to replace the turbine with a modified
one incorporating more nozzle vanes to eliminate the resonance. The turbine
on the incident aircraft had not yet been modified.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ea8b68
20110624112005:20110624000000
Incident: Qantas B744 near Brisbane on Jun 24th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin, medical emergency
A Qantas Boeing 747-400, registration VH-OJC performing flight QF-16 (dep
Jun 22nd) from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Brisbane,QL (Australia) with 367
people on board, was enroute nearing Brisbane when a smell of smoke was
detected in the cabin. The flight crew declared emergency and continued
to Brisbane, while cabin crew attempted to locate the source of the smell.
The aircraft landed safely.

The airline reported that maintenance located a faulty fan in the cabin
rest area as source of the fumes. In addition to the fumes an elderly lady
suffered symptoms of a stroke while on approach to Brisbane, the patient
was taken to a local hospital.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ea8998
20110624110750:20110623000000
Incident: Aeromexico Connect E145 near Monterrey on Jun 23rd 2011, lightning strikes
An Aeromexico Connect Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Aeromexico, registration
XA-SLI performing flight 5D-2471/AM-2471 from Nuevo Laredo to Mexico City
(Mexico) with 43 people on board, was enroute near Monterrey (Mexico) when
the aircraft was hit by two rays of lightning causing some system damage
and smell of smoke in the cockpit. The crew decided to divert to Monterrey
for a safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e5fc72
20120823163805:20110617000000
Incident: Tarom AT42 at Budapest on Jun 17th 2011, engine failure
A Tarom Romanian Air Transport Avion de Transport Regional ATR-42-500, registration
YR-ATG performing flight RO-234 from Budapest (Hungary) to Bucharest Otopeni
(Romania) with 34 passengers and 3 crew, was in the initial climb out of
Budapest’s runway 31L when the right hand engine (PW127) emitted screeching
sounds as well as smoke and stopped. The crew secured the engine and returned
to Budapest’s runway 13L (parallel runway opposite direction) for a safe
landing a few minutes after departure. The airplane vacated the runway and
stopped on the adjacent taxiway, where the airplane was shut down.

A replacement aircraft reached Bucharest with a delay of 5 hours.

The airline reported that preliminary examination results suggest the engine
failed at a height of about 1000 feet as result of a bird strike.

The Hungarian Transportation Safety Board (KBSZ) reported on Jul 19th and
Jul 21st, that the airplane suffered a fire in the turbine of the right
hand engine causing smoke to enter the cabin. The aircraft landed in opposite
direction to takeoff, vacated the runway onto taxiway A8 via taxiway X and
was evacuated. An investigation into the serious incident is underway.

Denmark’s Havarikommissionen (HCL) released Tri-national Safety Recommendations
as result of joint investigations into similiar occurrences in Copenhagen
(Denmark), Budapest (Hungary) and Florence (Italy), which permit insight
into the events. The safety recommendation states for YR-ATG, that the aircraft
took off Budapest’s runway 31L. At around 1200 feet AGL the crew observed
sounds like the right hand engine stalled and reduced the engine to idle.
Shortly afterwards an engine low oil pressure indication occurred followed
by an engine fire warning. The crew carried out the relevant memory checklist
items, feathered the propeller, shut the engine down and discharged both
fire bottles which put the fire out. Smoke became also visible in the cabin.
Following a Mayday call the captain flew a tight right hand turn and landed
the aircraft safely on runway 13L, where the aircraft was evacuated. Emergency
services did not need to intervene as the fire was already extinguished.

All three investigations listed these common findings:
– all events occurred during initial climb
– “the events were all due to the initial distress of a Power Turbine 1st
stage rotor blade causing subsequent damages and heavy unbalance of the
whole PT assembly, further unbalance of the LP rotor through No. 6 & 7 bearing
housing, and final oil leakage due to breaking of No. 6 & 7 bearing compartment
retaining bolts and distress of the radial transfer tubes. Fire was then
originated by such a leakage in presence of hot parts”
– a crack propagated from an internal casting defect resulting in distress
of the PT1 rotor blade, the propagation of the crack was according to the
low cycle fatigue mechanism.

Two safety recommendations were submitted to Transport Canada and three
safety recommendations to EASA.

Metars:
LHBP 171830Z 24004KT CAVOK 24/15 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171800Z 25006KT CAVOK 25/15 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171730Z 25008KT CAVOK 25/15 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171700Z 25008KT CAVOK 26/15 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171630Z 25009KT 9999 FEW045 SCT200 26/15 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171600Z 32009KT 9999 FEW045 SCT200 26/17 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171530Z 28011KT 230V320 9999 FEW048 SCT200 27/17 Q1014 NOSIG
LHBP 171500Z 31010KT 260V340 9999 FEW048TCU SCT200 26/16 Q1014 NOSIG
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e5ddc2
20110618165518:20110617000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 over Atlantic on Jun 17th 2011, fire indication
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGB performing flight LH-420
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Boston,MA (USA) with 215 passengers and
12 crew, was enroute at FL340 over the Atlantic south of Greenland when
the crew received a fire alert for the cabin crew rest area, the indication
did not cease even after the fire suppression system was activated. The
aircraft descended to FL250 and diverted to Goose Bay,NL (Canada) for a
safe landing about 90 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of
fire, heat or smoke.

The passengers were taken to local hotels. The flight is expected to reach
Boston with a delay of 23 hours.

Passengers reported they were prepared for a possible water landing (ditching).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e4c4a6
20110617095111:20110616000000
Incident: US Airways B733 near Norfolk on Jun 16th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A US Airways Boeing 737-300, registration N532AU performing flight US-1864
from Charlotte,NC to Providence,RI (USA) with 131 people on board, was enroute
at FL330 about 25nm southeast of Norfolk,VA when the crew reported an electrical
smell of smoke in the back of the cabin and decided to divert to Norfolk.
The airplane landed safely on Norfolk’s runway 23 about 20 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 reached Providence with a delay of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e7bf00
20110620224430:20110614000000
Incident: Air Canada B773 near Calgary on Jun 14th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
An Air Canada Boeing 777-300, registration C-FIUW performing flight AC-850
from Calgary,AB (Canada) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 293 people on board,
was enroute at FL330 about 280nm northnortheast of Calgary (and about 150nm
northeast of Edmonton,AB) when the crew reported an issue with the main
battery and decided to return to Calgary. The aircraft dumped fuel for about
19 minutes and landed safely in Calgary about 75 minutes after the decision
to return.

The Canadian TSB reported that the crew sensed the smell of smoke in the
cockpit, dumped fuel for 19 minutes and landed safely back in Calgary. Maintenance
identified a faulty main battery charger and replaced the charger. An Air
Canada investigation into faulty batteries is ongoing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e34709
20110615154749:20110612000000
Incident: Jetstar A321 at Darwin on Jun 12th 2011, takeoff from intersection instead full length
The crew of a Jetstar Airbus A321-200, registration VH-VWX performing flight
JQ-83 from Darwin,NT (Australia) to Denpasar Bali (Indonesia), was planning
for a departure from Darwin’s runway 11 using the full length of the runway.
When the aircraft taxied along taxiway B2 the aircraft lined up on runway
11 (about 1120 meters/3670 feet down the runway) and departed reaching Denpasar
safely.

The ATSB opened an investigation.

The usual taxiroute (followed also the previous day) would cross the runway
at taxiway B2 onto taxiway B1 and further to the holding point runway 11
via taxiways A3 and A1.

Metars:
YPDN 120830Z 12010KT CAVOK 24/01 Q1013 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120800Z 14008KT CAVOK 24/01 Q1012 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120730Z 14009KT CAVOK 25/01 Q1012 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120700Z 16011KT CAVOK 25/02 Q1012 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120630Z 15010KT CAVOK 25/02 Q1012 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120600Z 15010KT CAVOK 25/02 Q1012 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120530Z 18010KT CAVOK 25/04 Q1012 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120500Z 14009KT CAVOK 24/04 Q1013 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120430Z 14006KT CAVOK 24/04 Q1013 RMK SMOKE
YPDN 120400Z 16012KT CAVOK 24/04 Q1013 NOSIG

Aerodrome Chart (Graphics: AIP Australia):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43dfc972
20110611114814:20110610000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near San Francisco on Jun 10th 2011, smoke in cabin
A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N506UA performing flight
UA-479 from Las Vegas,NV to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 179 passengers and
6 crew, was on approach to San Francisco when the crew reported medium smoke
in the area of the forward galley. The crew continued for a safe landing
on San Francisco’s runway 28R, taxied clear of the runway and stopped on
a taxiway where emergency services checked the aircraft.

The cause of the smoke is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e0b007
20110612135654:20110609000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Chicago on Jun 9th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ-4343 from Chicago O’Hare,IL
to Detroit,MI (USA), was in the initial climb out of Chicago’s runway 04L
when the crew donned their oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting
smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft levelled off at 4000 feet and returned
to Chicago for a safe landing on O’Hare’s runway 09R about 8 minutes later
and vacated the runway.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 reached Detroit with a delay of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43de3029
20110609134556:20110609000000
Incident: Air Nelson DH8C near Dunedin on Jun 9th 2011, cargo fire indication
An Air Nelson de Havilland Dash 8-300 on behalf of Air New Zealand, flight
NZ-8077 from Christchurch to Invercargill (New Zealand) with 54 passengers,
could not land in Invercargill due to fog and was diverted to Dunedin. While
on approach to Dunedin the crew received intermittent cargo smoke indications,
declared emergency and continued for a safe landing in Dunedin. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline believes the smoke detector was faulty. The passengers were
offered a transfer to Invercargill by road or accomodation over night and
a flight into Invercargill the following day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43db99bb
20110606102820:20110606000000
Incident: GoAir A320 at Delhi on Jun 6th 2011, cargo fire indication
A GoAir Airbus A320-200, registration VT-WAM performing flight G8-201 from
Delhi to Bangalore (India) with 165 passengers and 6 crew, was climbing
out of Delhi when the crew received a cargo fire indication and decided
to return to Delhi for a safe landing about 18 minutes after departure.
Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline suspects a faulty sensor as cause of the indication.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43dcb200
20110607183422:20110605000000
Incident: Georgian B190 near Ottawa on Jun 5th 2011, engine shut down in flight
An Air Georgian Beech 1900D, registration C-GAAS performing flight ZX-2800
from Toronto,ON to Ottawa,ON (Canada), was enroute at FL190 about 85nm west
of Ottawa when the left hand engine (PT6A) emitted a loud bang associated
with flames from the engine exhaust and the engine instruments showing a
rapid rise in Interstage Turbine Temperature (ITT) readings. The crew reduced
power to control the ITT and the flames ceased, the ITT however began to
rise again prompting the crew to shut the engine down. Another bang with
flames from the exhaust occurred just when the crew retarted the condition
lever to cut-off. Passengers reported smell of smoke on board, the lavatory
smoke detector triggered. The crew declared emergency and continued to Ottawa
for a safe landing about 20 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43dbc172
20110606151029:20110605000000
Incident: Republic E170 near Harrisburg on Jun 5th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Republic Airline Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of US Airways, flight RW-3341/US-3341
from Philadelphia,PA to Pittsburgh,PA (USA) with 76 people on board, was
enroute at FL200 about 20nm southeast of Harrisburg,PA when the crew donned
their oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and
diverted to Harrisburg. The aircraft made an emergeny descent to 9000 feet.
The crew declined any instrument navigation reporting the cockpit was filling
with smoke, ATC provided radar vectors to Harrisburg. On Harrisburg approach
the crew requested “whatever runway you can give us” and following a visual
approach landed safely on Harrisburg’s runway 31 about 10 minutes after
declaring emergency.

A passenger reported there was smell of smoke in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43dd2ace
20121108122815:20110603000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Chicago on Jun 3rd 2011, brake separated during roll out
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N607AE performing flight
MQ-4176 from Columbus,OH to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 49 passengers and
3 crew, landed and rolled out on O’Hare’s runway 22R when the tower controller
queried whether the aircraft had blown a tyre on landing. The aircraft vacated
the runway and taxied to the holding pad runway 32R to check the tower’s
observation, the captain opened the right hand door, saw smoke from the
right hand gear and leaking hydraulic fluid. The crew shut the engines down
and had the aircraft towed to the gate.

A subsequent inspection of runway 22R found and recovered parts of a brake
that had separated just south of the intersection with taxiway U.

The NTSB reported that parts of the number #3 (inboard right) brake had
disintegrated and separated. The operator was asked to quarantine the brake
and separated parts for further detailed investigation, the new brake was
installed on the aircraft.

On Sep 22nd 2012 the NTSB released their factual report without providing
an actual reason of why parts of the brake had disintegrated and separated,
but focussed on the maintenance procedures to examine the brake’s carbon
disc for oxidation. The manufacturer had issued a plastic tool to perform
a detailed visual inspection (DVI) which involved a sharp plastic stick
(or finger nail) to detect oxidation of the carbon disc. The NTSB reported
that 5 of 5 mechanics in 5 facilities did not have the plastic tool and
were not aware of the DVI procedures. The brakes manufacturer subsequently
performed training at the facilities and revised their documentation to
clarify the DVI requirements. The operators maintenance facilities have
all been equipped with the tool.

On Nov 8th 2012 the NTSB released their final report reporting, that five
brakes assemblies including three of other occurrences had been shipped
to the manufacturer for examination with all 5 assemblies having been found
with oxidation of varying degrees, and concluding the probable cause was:

The overheat and failure the brake during landing due to oxidation of the
brake rotors, which went undetected by maintenance personnel. Contributing
to the accident was maintenance personnelís lack of familiarity with detailed
brake oxidation inspection procedures.

Aerodrome Chart (Graphics: FAA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43d927fe
20110603090819:20110602000000
Incident: Delta B763 near Atlanta on Jun 2nd 2011, engine trouble
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N139DL performing flight DL-1902
from Las Vegas,NV to Atlanta,GA (USA), was on approach to Atlanta when the
crew reported problems with the left hand engine (CF6). The aircraft continued
for a safe landing on runway 26R, vacated the runway at the end and stopped
for an inspection by emergency services. The left engine was seen emitting
smoke after landing.

The airline reported “issues” with the left hand engine. The passengers
disembarked onto the taxiway and were bussed to the terminal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43d87b13
20110602131239:20110602000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Porto on Jun 2nd 2011, engine problem
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-ENE performing flight FR-3512
from Lanzarote,CI (Spain) to London Luton,EN (UK), was enroute at FL380
about 125nm east of Porto (Portugal) when the crew decided to divert to
Porto due to an engine (CFM56) indication. The aircraft landed safely on
Porto’s runway 35 about 35 minutes later and taxied to the apron where passengers
disembarked normally.

Portugese media reported smoke from an engine.

Ryanair said, there was no smoke, the crew received an indication suggesting
a technical malfunction and diverted as a precaution.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DWB reached Luton with a delay
of 3:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43d37daa
20110527112730:20110527000000
Incident: Spicejet B738 near Mumbai on May 27th 2011, cargo fire alert
A Spicejet Boeing 737-800, registration VT-SGG performing flight SG-401
from Mumbai to Hyderabad (India) with 140 passengers, was climbing out of
Mumbai when the crew received a cargo fire indication, actioned the relevant
checklists and returned to Mumbai for a safe landing about 30 minutes after
departure. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or
smoke.

A replacement aircraft reached Hyderabad with a delay of 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43d462c7
20110528133021:20110525000000
Incident: Air China A333 enroute on May 25th 2011, passenger camera battery catches fire
An Air China Airbus A330-300, flight CA-1549 from Beijing to Shanghai (China),
was enroute when cabin crew smelled smoke, located the source in an overhead
locker and found a passenger’s camera had caught fire due to thermal runaway
of its Lithium battery. The cabin crew were able to contain the fire, cool
the batteries down and thus stop the thermal runaway and resulting fire.
The aircraft continued to Shanghai for a safe landing. No injuries were
reported.

The airline said, the spontaneous fire resulted in about 20cm high flames.
The flight and aircraft remained unaffected, the flight continued to destination.

Passengers reported the cabin crew carried the burning camera to a lavatory,
other cabin crew rushed for fire extinguishers, and put the fire out in
the lavatory.

The FAA had released a Safety Alert for Operators including video material
showing how to fight such fires in November 2009, see How to fight fires
caused by Lithium batteries in portable electronic devices.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43d0e939
20110524181724:20110523000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near Shannon on May 23rd 2011, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIG performing flight
BA-239 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Boston,MA (USA) with 221 passengers,
was enroute at FL380 about 170nm southwest of Shannon (Ireland) above the
Atlantic Ocean when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to
divert to Shannon. During the descent the crew reported smoke in the cabin,
too, that got increasingly worse. The airplane continued for a safe landing
on Shannon’s runway 24 about 30 minutes later.

A passenger reported that the smoke appeared in the cabin simultaneously
from both the front and rear part of the cabin. The outside of the aircraft
looked “charred” after landing.

An observer on the ground said, the airplane looked entirely spotless with
no traces of being charred. The nose of the aircraft looked entirely normal,
too. Security around the aircraft has been very tight however with permission
required to get near the aircraft.

The Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit commented the passenger observation:
“The information may have been provided in good faith, but incorrectly,
because of a misinterpretation by a passenger of a shadow visible from the
aircraft windows, which was cast onto the aircraft wing by background lighting
when the aircraft arrived on stand at Shannon.”

British Airways said the aircraft diverted as a precaution due to a technical
problem that is now being investigated by the engineers. The 221 passengers
were taken to local hotels, a relief aircraft was dispatched to Shannon.
The passengers should be on their way to Boston in the evening of May 24th.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration G-YMMN flew the passengers from
Shannon back to London Heathrow reaching London on May 24th 17:00L (16:00Z).

According to VAAC there was no projection of ash particles at FL380, however,
the ash cloud from Grimsvotn was projected to extend into the region of
the flight and over Shannon below FL200 (from surface to FL200, with air
reported clean above FL200).

G-VIIG sitting at the gate:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43cf4989
20110522102554:20110521000000
Incident: Delta DC95 near Green Bay on May 21st 2011, odour in forward galley
A Delta Airlines Douglas DC-9-50, registration N766NC performing flight
DL-1476 from Detroit,MI to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 81 passengers and 5
crew, was enroute at FL280 about 15nm east of Green Bay,WI when the crew
reported a strange odour/smell of smoke in the forward galley and decided
to divert to Green Bay for a safe landing about 17 minutes later. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43cdbf0e
20110520140748:20110520000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Bucharest on May 20th 2011, cargo fire indication
An Emirates Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration A6-EMX performing flight
EK-6 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates), was enroute
at FL390 about 130nm northwest of Bucharest (Romania) when the crew received
an aft cargo fire indication and decided to turn around, descend the aircraft
to FL200 and divert to Vienna (Austria), where the aircraft landed safely
about 70 minutes after the cargo fire indication. No trace of fire, heat
or smoke was found.

The aircraft had been enroute with the aft cargo fire suppression system
inoperative and the aft cargo compartment being empty due to the fire bottles
being empty after the aircraft already had another cargo fire indication
the day before, see: Incident: Emirates B773 near Budapest on May 19th 2011,
cargo fire indication.

The passengers have been rebooked onto flights EK-126 and EK-128 from Vienna
to Dubai.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43cdad77
20110520134905:20110519000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Budapest on May 19th 2011, cargo fire indication
An Emirates Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration A6-EMX performing flight
EK-5 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute
at FL360 about 30nm south of Budapest when the crew declared PAN reporting
an aft cargo fire indication and decided to divert to Vienna (Austria),
where the aircraft landed safely on runway 16 about 25 minutes later. No
traces of fire, heat or smoke were found.

The cargo was unloaded and the aircraft was dispatched under MEL requirements
with emtpy aft cargo compartment fire bottles. The airplane was able to
depart again after 3 hours on the ground and reached London with a delay
of 2:45 hours.

The Hungarian TSB reported that the crew declared PAN because of a cargo
fire indication but did not believe there was an actual fire. The TSB is
not going to investigate the occurrence because the aircraft landed in Vienna.

A6-EMX made another stop in Vienna on the return flight EK-6 landing at
05:07L (03:07Z) on May 20th, see Incident: Emirates B773 near Bucharest
on May 20th 2011, cargo fire indication.

Another Boeing 777-200 registration A6-EWI performing flight EK-29 on May
20th from Dubai to London landed in Vienna on May 20th at 13:30L (11:30Z)
to pick up the cargo left behind by A6-EMX and continued to London estimated
to reach London with a delay of 80 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43cd0315
20110519163235:20110517000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 at New York on May 17th 2011, lightning strike
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N583JB performing flight B6-180
(dep May 16th) from Phoenix,AZ to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 151 passengers
and 5 crew, was on approach to New York’s runway 04R descending through
13000 feet when the crew reported a lightning strike. A minute later the
crew declared emergency reporting they now were smelling smoke in the cockpit
and needed to land as soon as possible. The crew landed safely on runway
04R about 10 minutes later. After landing the crew reported the smell had
dissipated, emergency services reported everything appeared normal, the
aircraft began to taxi towards the apron when one of the fire trucks reported
a suspicious line on the side of the fuselage causing suspicions of a possible
crack. The line was also found on the other side of the fuselage and suspected
to be part of an (old) paint scheme. The aircraft taxied to the apron.

The aircraft had been enroute at FL330 until abeam Albuquerque,NM then descended
to FL260 for the remaining cruise portion of the flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43cab5ec
20110517203654:20110516000000
Incident: Strategic A320 near Honiara on May 16th 2011, cargo fire indication
A Strategic Airlines Airbus A320-200 on behalf of Solomon Airlines, registration
VH-YQB performing flight IE-700 from Honiara (Solomon Islands) to Brisbane,QL
(Australia) with 38 passengers, was enroute about 30 minutes into the 3:30
hours flight when the crew received a cargo fire indication and decided
to return to Honiara. The aircraft landed safely in Honiara about 70 minutes
after departure, attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke. The airplane taxied to the apron on its own power, the passengers
disembarked normally.

The airplane reached Brisbane with a delay of 24 hours.

The airline reported a faulty sensor was identified as cause of the indication.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43caa3e6
20110516220053:20110516000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Mesa on May 16th 2011, hot odour on board
An Allegiant McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-174 from Mesa,AZ to Pasco,WA
(USA) with 147 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing out of Mesa when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Mesa’s Phoenix-Mesa
Gateway Airport. The aircraft levelled off at 15,000 feet and landed safely
at Mesa about 25 minutes after departure.

The airline reported there was no smoke but fumes and heat in the cabin.

A replacement MD-88 reached Pasco with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ca703d
20110523170036:20110515000000
Accident: Continental B772 near Newark on May 15th 2011, cargo fire indication, failed air duct in cabin
A Continental Boeing 777-200, registration N27015 performing flight CO-85
from Tel Aviv (Israel) to Newark,NJ (USA), was on approach to Newark when
the crew declared emergency reporting a cargo fire indication. On short
final to runway 22L the crew reported the cargo fire indication had ceased
following working the checklists. The aircraft landed safely on runway 22L.
Two passengers needed medical attention after landing.

The airport was closed for about 15 minutes following the landing while
emergency services checked the aircraft.

The airplane re-entered service on May 23rd.

Passenger Susan Wrye told The Aviation Herald, that she heard a “terrible
boom sound” about 20 minutes prior to landing which caused everyone to scan
the engines believing one of them had failed. A wind rush sound started
developing as if someone had opened a window in mid air and increased to
a very loud volume, the passengers began to cover their ears to protect
them. Fluffy material began to float through the cabin emanating from the
left hand side of the aft cabin, the material looking like flocks of insulation
became thicker. A chemical substance, smelling like chlorofluorocarbon,
was released. A number of people began coughing as the chemical burned while
breathed in. Flight attendants moved 12 people out of their seats and covered
the area (left hand seats A-C around seat row 43) with blankets trying to
keep the fluffy material contained. Another loud boom occurred and blew
the blankets completely away, the flight attendants covered the area again
with the blankets. A flight attendants believed to see smoke coming from
the area. One of the flight crew came back into the cabin, looked at the
mess and returned to the cockpit. An announcement by the flight crew followed,
that Susan and her fellow passengers could not understand due to the loud
wind rush sound coming from the area, cabin crew made clear they were conducting
an emergency landing. During the approach, as the aircraft slowed for landing,
the wind rush sounds decreased in volume and ceased during the roll out.
Susan still suffers from respiratory problems and is in medical care to
prevent pneumonia as result from injuries received during exposure to the
chemicals and material floating through the cabin.

Another passenger, who wants to remain unnamed, confirmed Susan’s account
but reported that the deafening sound did not cease during the landing roll
out but only after system shut down. A number of passengers was moved out
of the seats A-C rows 40-43 and seated in other seat rows, putting 4 people
into 3 seats and securing two of them into one seat with seat belt extenders.
The passenger was aware that a public announcement was being made by indications
on the inflight entertainment system, but was not able to hear anything
of the announcement due to the deafening sound from underneath seats A-C
rows 40-43. The passenger, too, suffers from respiratory problems following
the event and is in medical care.

The NTSB reported that the crew heard a pop in the rear of the aircraft
and thought they had a fire in the cargo compartment. The event was treated
as a fire upon landing but there was no evidence of a fire. It was determined
that an air duct failed in the passenger cabin. The NTSB does not investigate.

Flocks of material in the cabin (Photos: Susan Wrye):
The area covered (Photo: Susan Wrye):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ca5ecf
20110516142824:20110515000000
Incident: American MD82 at Phoenix on May 15th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, flight AA-1172 from Phoenix,AZ
to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 140 passengers and 5 crew, was in the initial
climb out of runway 25R when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, stopped
the climb at 5000 feet and decided to return to Phoenix for a safe landing
11 minutes after departure.

The airline reported that a small fluid leak in the Auxiliary Power Unit
(APU) was identified as cause of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43ca3c17
20110516104603:20110515000000
Incident: American MD82 near Little Rock on May 15th 2011, engine fire indication
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration N552AA performing
flight AA-1720 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) with
136 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 85nm southwest of
Little Rock,AR when the crew reported an engine fire indication and diverted
to Little Rock for a safe landing about 15 minutes later. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire or smoke, the aircraft taxied to the apron
on own power.

A replacement MD-83 reached Washington with a delay of 4:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c809dd
20110513165402:20110513000000
Incident: Finnair A319 near Riga on May 13th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Finnair Airbus A319-100, registration OH-LVI performing flight AY-798
from Pisa (Italy) to Helsinki (Finnland), was enroute at FL390 about 140nm
westsouthwest of Riga when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted
to Riga for a safe landing on runway 36 about 20 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.

The incident aircraft was ferried to Helsinki about 4.5 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c7d617
20110513110301:20110512000000
Incident: SAS B738 near Oslo on May 12th 2011, smoke in cockpit, cracked windshield
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration LN-RCN performing
flight SK-4031 from Oslo to Stavanger (Norway) with about 70 passengers,
was climbing through FL270 out of Oslo when the crew donned their oxygen
masks reporting smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Oslo. During
the descent a windshield cracked. The airplane landed safely about 20 minutes
later.

The airline reported, that a defective windshield heating element caused
an electrical odour and smoke prompting the captain to turn the windshield
heating off, which in turn caused one of 17 layers of the windshield to
crack. The defective heating element is being investigated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c6022a
20110511065541:20110511000000
Incident: Qantas B738 at Auckland on May 11th 2011, lightning strike
A JetConnect-Qantas Boeing 737-800, registration ZK-ZQA performing flight
QF-26 from Auckland (New Zealand) to Melbourne,VI (Australia) with 144 passengers,
returned to Auckland after the airplane got hit by lightning while climbing
out of Auckland. The aircraft landed safely about 90 minutes after departure
without assistance.

The airline said the crew suspected a lightning strike and returned to Auckland
as a precaution. No damage was found.

Some New Zealand Media reported faint smoke on board following the lightning
strike.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c605d2
20110511072133:20110510000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Oklahoma City on May 10th 2011, windshield heating problem
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-542 from Kansas City,MO to
Dallas Love,TX (USA) with 44 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL340
about 90nm east of Oklahoma City,OK when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit due to a malfunctioning heating element of the windscreen. The aircraft
diverted to Oklahoma City for a safe landing about 30 minutes later, responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 reached Dallas with a delay of 2 hours.

The airline reported a malfunctioning heating element prompted the crew
to divert as a precaution.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c5a226
20110510202805:20110510000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Cincinnati on May 10th 2011, burning smell in cabin
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-2187 from Cincinnati,KY
to Orlando,FL (USA) with 149 people on board, was in the initial climb out
of Cincinnati Northern Kentucky Airport’s runway 18C when the crew reported
burning smell in the back of the cabin, levelled off at 2000 feet and reported
a fire on board while joining a right downwind for runway 18C at 2500 feet.
On final approach to runway 18C the crew told ATC flight attendants reported
an intense burning smell in the back of the cabin causing quite some concern
with the crew because of electrical problems prior to departure. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 18C about 9 minutes after departure, responding
emergency services found no trace of fire or smoke.

The airport later reported the fire fighters found no smoke but steam.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 departed Cincinnati with a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c2dc89
20110507133358:20110506000000
Incident: Delta MD88 at Orlando on May 6th 2011, burning electrical smell
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-977 from Orlando,FL
to Washington National,DC (USA) with 116 passengers and 5 crew, was in the
initial climb out of Orlando’s runway 17L when the crew declared emergency
reporting they had a burning electrical smell in the rear of the aircraft
and returned to Orlando’s runway 17L for a safe landing about 10 minutes
after departure. Emergency services did not find any trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

The flight was subsequently cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c2d4fe
20110507125127:20110506000000
Incident: Omni DC10 over Atlantic on May 6th 2011, engine fire indication
An Omni Air McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 on behalf of US Mobility Command,
registration N270AX performing flight MC-119 from Ramstein (Germany) to
Baltimore,MD (USA) with 352 people on board, was enroute overhead the Atlantic
northwest of Ireland when the crew received intermittent fire warnings for
the #2 engine (CF6, tail mounted). The crew worked the according checklists,
shut the engine down, but continued to receive intermittent engine fire
alerts. The crew turned around and diverted to Shannon (Ireland) for a safe
landing on runway 06 (runway 24 was active), vacated the runway and stopped
on the adjacent taxiway, where emergency services checked the aircraft without
finding any trace of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft subsequently taxied
to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c2c020
20110507105733:20110506000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Denver on May 6th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United Airlines, registration
N11176 performing flight XE-5869/UA5869 from Denver,CO to Grand Junction,CO
(USA) with 26 passengers, was enroute at FL240 about 50nm westsouthwest
of Denver when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and returned to Denver,
where the aircraft landed safely on runway 34R about 14 minutes later. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the airplane taxied
to the gate where the passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c2420b
20110506203136:20110506000000
Incident: American B752 near Las Vegas on May 6th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight AA-431 from Miami,FL to San
Francisco,CA (USA) with 159 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute at FL340
about 160nm northeast of Las Vegas,NV when the crew reported smell of smoke
in the cockpit and decided to divert to Las Vegas keeping more than 340
knots ground speed until final approach. The airplane still was doing 300
knots above ground at a 5nm final and landed safely on runway 25R about
30 minutes after leaving FL340. Attending emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke, the airplane taxied to the gate where passengers
disembarked normally.

The source of the smell is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c0ffb9
20110505102809:20110504000000
Incident: Southwest B735 near El Paso on May 4th 2011, electrical odour in cockpit and cabin
Oxygen masks dropped (Photo: Josh Myers)A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-500,
registration N525SW performing flight WN-31 from Houston Hobby,TX to Phoenix,AZ
(USA) with 138 people on board, was enroute at FL360 about 50nm west of
El Paso,TX (USA) when the crew reported an electrical odour in the cockpit
and cabin and decided to divert to El Paso. The crew indicated they intended
to vacate the runway. The airplane landed safely on El Paso’s runway 22
about 18 minutes later and vacated the runway. The passengers disembarked
normally.

Passengers reported the oxygen masks were released.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 reached Phoenix with a delay of 3.5 hours.

The airline said, the incident aircraft is being ferried to Dallas Love,TX
for examination of what caused the electrical smell.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43c066be
20110504175137:20110503000000
Incident: Morningstar B752 at Winnipeg on May 3rd 2011, rejected takeoff
A Morningstar Boeing 757-200, registration C-FMFG performing freight flight
MAL-7050 from Winnipeg,MB to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 2 crew, rejected takeoff
from Winnipeg’s runway 31 at high speed when the fire bell activated. The
aircraft stopped safely, the crew reported they had no indication of an
engine fire but the fire bell could not be cancelled. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported that emergency services and maintenance found
no anomalies. The aircraft was powered down and powered up and the fire
indication ceased. The airplane returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43bf9892
20110512173156:20110503000000
Incident: American B772 near Moncton on May 3rd 2011, overheating battery
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N793AN performing flight
AA-47 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 150 people
on board, was enroute at FL360 about 120nm northeast of Moncton,NB (Canada)
when the crew decided to divert to Moncton reporting the smell of smoke
in the cockpit as result of an overheating battery and requested the emergency
services on stand by. On approach the crew reported the situation got stable,
they had smoke from an overheating battery. The airplane landed safely on
Moncton’s runway 11 and vacated the runway.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration N795AN was flown in from New York’s
JFK Airport and reached Chicago with a delay of 9 hours.

On May 12th the Canadian TSB reported an overheating battery was replaced
by maintenance.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43bde96b
20110501233748:20110501000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Tampa on May 1st 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight DL-1147 from Atlanta,GA to West
Palm Beach,FL (USA) with 182 passengers, was enroute at FL390 about 70nm
north of Tampa,FL (USA) when the crew decided to divert to Tampa due to
a smokey odour in the cockpit. The airplane landed safely on Tampa’s runway
01L about 15 minutes later.

The airline said, the airplane has been taken out of service. The passengers
are offered to being bussed to or rebooked onto other flights to West Palm
Beach.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43bc71d7
20110526144130:20110429000000
Incident: Qatar A320 near Budapest on Apr 29th 2011, cargo fire indication
A Qatar Airways Airbus A320-200, registration A7-AHF performing flight QR-94
from Vienna (Austria) to Doha (Qatar) with 95 passengers and 8 crew, was
enroute at FL350 about 150nm southeast of Budapest (Hungary) already over
Romania when the crew received a cargo fire indication, descended the aircraft
to FL110, turned around and diverted to Budapest for a safe landing on Budapest’s
runway 13R about 35 minutes later and vacated the runway stopping on the
adjacent taxiway. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke, the passengers disembarked normally via mobile stairs. The
airplane subsequently taxied to the apron.

The smoke detector was identified faulty.

The airplane was able to continue the flight after about 5 hours on the
ground and reached Doha with a delay of 6.5 hours.

The Hungarian TSB’s initial notice of the serious incident mainly quoted
the report by The Aviation Herald (see above) in the event description,
adding the detail that the crew received a “FWD cargo smoke” indication,
which ceased about 5 minutes later. The crew had initially declared Mayday,
downgraded to PAN thereafter and requested a priority landing in Budapest.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b9f3e9
20110427124810:20110426000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Philadelphia on Apr 26th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N948DL performing
flight DL-2158 from Orlando,FL to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 158 people
on board, was in an enroute holding at FL330 about 60nm southsoutheast of
Philadelphia,PA (USA) due to weather at JFK when the crew reported smell
of smoke in the aft section of the cabin and diverted to Philadelphia for
a safe landing on runway 27L, the aircraft vacated the runway onto taxiway
Z, the crew reported after landing the smell had dissipated but requested
emergency services to examine the tail section and aft cabin. The tail
stairs were lowered, the engines were shut down. Emergency services found
no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The airplane was subsequently towed to
the apron.

A passenger said the captain announced they’d be diverting to Philadelphia
due to a burning smell in the aft cabin and “heat in the tailcone”. Philadelphia
was chosen as a precaution in case of the loss of electrical power on approach
because of being in VMC (in visual meteorologic conditions) while all other
airports in the area were in IMC (instrument meteorologic conditions).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b93feb
20110426140602:20110426000000
Incident: Air Corsica AT72 at Nice on Apr 26th 2011, engine shut down in flight
An Air Corsica Avion de Transport Regional ATR-72-500 on behalf of Air France,
registration F-GRPJ performing flight XK-201/AF-4740 from Nice to Bastia
(France) with 44 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing out of Nice’s runway
04R when the right engine (PW127) emitted two bangs prompting the crew to
shut the engine down. The aircraft levelled at 10,000 feet and returned
to Nice for a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure. The passengers
disembarked normally under the supervision of emergency services and were
bussed to the terminal.

Passengers reported the engine emitted two bangs, then white smoke began
to enter the cabin from all vents.

Airport police said, the right hand engine suffered an oil leak.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the next flight.

F-GRPJ after landing (Photo: jessie5):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b944b5
20110426144002:20110425000000
Incident: American B738 near Charleston on Apr 25th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N818NN performing flight
AA-1012 from Miami,FL to Washington National,DC (USA) with 160 passengers,
was enroute at FL370 about 105nm southeast of Charleston,SC (USA) when the
crew reported passengers had smelled smoke in the aft section of the aircraft.
The crew decided to divert to Charleston and landed safely on Charleston’s
runway 33 about 17 minutes later, responding emergency services found no
trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The runway was briefly closed.

The passengers were taken to local hotels and are estimated to reach Washington
the following day (Apr 26th).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b7a38d
20110424164356:20110423000000
Incident: US Airways A320 at Tampa on Apr 23rd 2011, smoke on board
A US Airways Airbus A320-200, registration N111US performing flight US-1048
from Tampa,FL to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 154 passengers and 5 crew, was
in the initial climb out of Tampa’s runway 19R when the crew donned their
oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting smoke in the aircraft later
adding there was smoke in cockpit and cabin. The airplane levelled off at
3500 feet and returned to Tampa’s runway 19R for a safe landing about 8
minutes after departure, emergency services reported on crew request to
see no smoke from the aircraft, the crew subsequently taxied to the apron.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b45166
20110421104105:20110419000000
Incident: Bluebird Cargo B734 at Budapest on Apr 19th 2011, rejected takeoff
A Bluebird Cargo Boeing 737-400, registration TF-BBH performing an acceptance
flight BF-229 from Budapest (Hungary) to Budapest (Hungary) with 3 crew,
rejected takeoff from Budapest’s runway 31L at high speed after the tower
observed smoke from the left hand wing. The airplane slowed safely and vacated
the runway onto taxiway C about 2450 meters/8050 feet down the runway. Responding
emergency services found a fuel leak from the left hand wing and needed
to cool hot brakes prompting the crew to vacate the aircraft.

It was subsequently discovered that the fuel filler cap had dropped off
the left wing. The airplane was towed to the maintenance hangar about one
hour after rejecting takeoff.

The airplane had undergone major maintenance in Budapest starting March
19th and was just to position to resume service.

TF-BBH on taxiway C:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b3696e
20110419155423:20110419000000
Incident: Spicejet B738 at Chennai on Apr 19th 2011, burst tyre on landing
A Spicejet Boeing 737-800, flight SG-917 from Hyderabad to Chennai (India)
with 81 passengers and 5 crew, burst a main gear tyre while landing in Chennai.
Smoke was observed from the gear prompting the crew to stop the aircraft
on the runway with emergency services responding. The passengers deplaned
normally onto the runway and were bussed to the terminal, the airplane was
towed to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b32fa3
20110420133645:20110418000000
Incident: US Airways B734 near Greenville on Apr 18th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit and cabin
A US Airways Boeing 737-400, registration N445US performing flight US-907
from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 94 passengers and 5
crew, was enroute at FL310 about 50nm southwest of Greenville-Spartanburg
when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit and the rear of the
aircraft and decided to divert to Greenville. On approach the crew advised
that they wanted to stop on the runway, pop the doors open and then decide
whether to evacuate or not with a strong possibility that an evacuation
would commence. The crew continued for a safe landing on runway 22 about
20 minutes later and stopped on the runway. While emergency services were
driving towards the aircraft the crew reported without doors being opened
that the smell has dissipated after landing and they were ready to taxi
off the runway. The aircraft vacated the runway about 4 minutes after landing,
emergency services assessed the aircraft off the runway where the doors
were opened with flaps still down in case of a possible evacuation. The
passengers disembarked normally using mobile stairs.

The runway was closed for about 5 minutes as a result.

The airline reported on Apr 20th that the smell came from a faulty equipment
cooling fan.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b29ec1
20110418165432:20110417000000
Incident: Thomson B763 near Bermuda on Apr 17th 2011, hydraulic leak
A Thomson Boeing 767-300, registration G-OOAN performing flight BY-61 from
La Romana (Dominican Republic) to London Gatwick,EN (UK), was enroute at
FL320 over the Atlantic Ocean about 800nm east of Bermuda (Bermuda) when
the crew reported a possible hydraulic leak and decided to divert to Bermuda.
On approach to Bermuda the crew advised they’d be landing overweight and
would stop at the end of the runway requesting emergency service to check
their brakes and for hydraulic fluid dripping onto the brakes. The crew
however did not declare emergency. The airplane landed safely on Bermuda’s
runway 12 about 130 minutes later and stopped on the runway. Emergency services
reported some smoke from the brakes on the outer main gear wheels however
no leaks of hydraulic fluid were visible, later adding they could smell
the hydraulic fluid. The aircraft taxied to the apron about 20 minutes after
stopping.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b01356
20110415161549:20110415000000
Incident: Webjet B733 at Salvador on Apr 15th 2011, cargo fire indication
A Webjet Boeing 737-300, registration PR-WJP performing flight WH-6749 from
Salvador,BA to Sao Paulo,SP (Brazil) with 109 passengers, was in the initial
climb out of Salvador when the crew reported a cargo fire indication and
returned to Salvador for a safe landing about 10 minutes after departure.
Responding emergency services did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airplane was able to depart again with 108 passengers and reached Sao
Paulo with a delay of 100 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43afd691
20110415093355:20110414000000
Incident: Lufthansa Cityline E190 at Munich on Apr 14th 2011, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A Lufthansa Cityline Embraer ERJ-190, registration D-AEBF performing flight
LH-2508 from Munich (Germany) to Birmingham,EN (UK), was in the initial
climb out of Munich’s runway 26R when the crew reported smoke in cockpit
and cabin, levelled off at 4000 feet, joined a right hand pattern and returned
to Munich’s runway 26R for a safe landing about 10 minutes after departure.

A replacement Avro RJ-85 registration D-AVRR reached Birmingham with a delay
of 1:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43af0c60
20110414101843:20110414000000
Incident: Saudia B772 near Athens on Apr 14th 2011, cargo fire alert
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration HZ-AKG performing
flight SV-38 from Washington Dulles,DC (USA) to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) with
212 passengers, was enroute at FL370 about 180nm southwest of Athens when
the crew received a cargo fire indication and decided to divert to Athens.
The crew reported they had dry ice loaded in the forward cargo hold. The
airplane landed safely on Athen’s runway 03R about 30 minutes later. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e32b53
20110615123413:20110413000000
Incident: Kalitta B744 near Frankfurt on Apr 13th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Kalitta Boeing 747-400, registration N740CK performing freight flight
K4-246 from Bahrain (Bahrain) to Brussels (Belgium), was enroute near Frankfurt/Main
(Germany) when smoke appeared in the cockpit. The crew donned their oxygen
masks, declared emergency and diverted to Frankfurt for a safe landing.

Germany’s BFU reported that due to defective strip seal in an engine (CF6)
oil ingressed into the air conditioning system.

The freight was taken to Brussels the following day by a Boeing 747-200
registration N790CK, the incident aircraft departed Frankfurt on Apr 18th.

N740CK on final approach to Frankfurt Apr 13th 2011 (Photo: Pawel Jakubowski):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43b2c857
20110418213125:20110413000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 at Toronto on Apr 13th 2011, smoke in cockpit and cabin
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHIQ performing flight AC-710
from Toronto,ON (Canada) to New York La Guardia,NY (USA) with 65 people
on board, was climbing through 1000 feet out of Toronto’s runway 33R when
the crew observed smoke in the cockpit, donned their oxygen masks, declared
PAN and returned to Toronto for a safe landing on runway 06L about 10 minutes
after departure. The smoke dissipated after landing.

The Canadian TSB reported that the crew received an EICAS message “PACK
1 FAIL” after landing. Maintenance suspects a failure of the #1 air conditioning
system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43aeb12a
20110413235656:20110413000000
Incident: Delta MD90 near Rochester on Apr 13th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration N910DN performing
flight DL-1329 from Tampa,FL to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 143 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at FL320 about 130nm south of Rochester,MN when
the crew needed to shut the left hand engine (V2525) down. The airplane
drifted down and diverted to Rochester,MN, located about 65nm short of Minneapolis,
for a safe landing on runway 31 about 25 minutes later.

Passengers reported they felt vibrations and smelled smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43abc71c
20110410141001:20110409000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Chennai on Apr 9th 2011, smoke in cockpit
An Emirates Boeing 777-300, registration A6-EBK performing flight EK-409
from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with 365 people
on board, was enroute near Chennai (India) when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit and diverted to Chennai for a safe landing.

A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration A6-EMR, having arrived as flight
EK-544 from Dubai and scheduled to fly EK-545 from Chennai to Dubai, reached
Dubai as flight EK-7409 with a delay of 23.5 hours.

A6-EBK performed flight EK-545 and reached Dubai on schedule about 10 minutes
after A6-EMR.

The airline said the flight diverted due to a technical problem, that could
not be solved in time before the crew ran out of maximum duty time. The
passengers were accomodated over night.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43abd15e
20110410152236:20110408000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Manchester on Apr 8th 2011, smoke detector alert
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-JECX performing flight BE-811
from Manchester,EN to Isle of Man (UK) with 20 passengers and 4 crew, was
in the initial climb out of Manchester when the crew received a smoke detector
indication in a lavatory and decided to return to Manchester for a safe
landing on runway 23R about 10 minutes after departure. The airplane briefly
stopped on the runway, then vacated the runway onto the adjacent taxiway,
where the airplane was shut down. The passengers disembarked normally and
were bussed to the terminal.

Flybe confirmed a smoke indication in the lavatory. The passengers were
rebooked onto the next flight.

Video of the aftermath (Video: NorthWestAviation):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a6bc08
20110408032131:20110404000000
Accident: United Airlines A320 at New Orleans on Apr 4th 2011, smoke in cockpit, complete electronic failure, runway excursion, evacuation
A United Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N409UA performing flight
UA-497 from New Orleans,LA to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 109 people on
board, was in the initial climb when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit,
levelled off at 5000 feet and returned to New Orleans. The crew reported
before joining downwind that they had lost all instruments and requested
to be talked down by ATC via Precision Approach Radar (PAR). The crew descended
to 600 feet where they got visual contact with the water of Lake Pontchartrain
and continued visually for a landing on runway 19 about 10 minutes after
departure. During landing the aircraft blew both right hand main gear tyres,
went left off the runway, stopped with all gear just off the paved surface
north of the intersection with runway 10/28, and was evacuated via slides.

A number of passengers needed medical attention due to smoke inhalation.

Post landing photos showed the RAM Air Turbine (RAT) deployed. Runway 01/19
was closed for about 10 hours.

The crew told passengers that they had lost all electronics and were flying
on minimal backup systems, landing would occur overweight with minimal braking
and minimal steering ability.

At the time of the emergency runway 10/28 at New Orleans was not available
and was closed. Frantic attempts by tower to get the runway clear during
the emergency proved unsuccessful, the runway was cleared and opened about
10 minutes after UA-497 had landed.

The NTSB reported on Apr 4th that the crew received automated warnings and
observed smoke in the cockpit while climbing through 4000 feet, subsequently
they reported the loss of primary instruments. Upon landing they experienced
the loss of anti-skid and nose wheel steering and went off the left side
of the runway about 2000 feet down the runway. The right forward slide did
not inflate. The NTSB have opened an investigation.

On Apr 6th the NTSB reported the airplane went off the left side of the
runway about 2000 feet before the runway end after the aircraft experienced
electrical problems and smoke in the cockpit.

On Apr 7th the NTSB said the crew recalled receiving an auto-throttle related
ECAM message while climbing through 4000 feet shortly followed by an avionics
smoke warning with the instruction to land. Despite this message neither
crew recalled smelling smoke or fumes during the flight. The captain worked
the electronic checklist for the avionics smoke warning, which included
shutting down some of the electrical systems. The first officer’s display
screens went blank, the ECAM messages disappeared, the cockpit to cabin
intercom stopped functioning and the air driven generator (RAT) deployed.
The captain took control of the aircraft and managed the radios while the
first officer opened the cockpit door to advise flight attendants. The crew
requested runway 10 but was advised runway 10 was unavailable due to construction
vehicles on the runway. The captain was able to use airspeed, altimeter
and attitude information during the return to the airport and ordered an
evacuation after landing. Cabin crew did not smell smoke or fumes nor did
they observe haze, but noticed the cabin lights were turned off and the
intercom ceased functioning. Cockpit Voice and Flight Data recorders were
downloaded, they both stopped recording prior to landing.

Following the landing ATIS announced a disabled aircraft 300 feet northeast
of the threshold runway 28 (editorial note: putting it 2000 feet before
the runway end, also observe the 2000 feet distance marker in the picture
below, rather than 2000 feet down the runway).

Metars:
KMSY 041353Z 18019G25KT 6SM HZ BKN021 OVC026 25/21 A2984 RMK AO2 PK WND
18026/1330 SLP106 T02500206
KMSY 041253Z 18016G23KT 6SM HZ SCT017 BKN023 24/21 A2984 RMK AO2 SLP106
T02440206
KMSY 041153Z 18015G22KT 7SM FEW015 BKN025 24/20 A2984 RMK AO2 SLP108 T02390200
10244 20239 55004
KMSY 041124Z 18014G20KT 8SM FEW015 BKN025 24/21 A2984 RMK AO2
KMSY 041053Z 18013KT 8SM FEW016 BKN030 24/21 A2984 RMK AO2 SLP107 T02440206
The aircraft off the runway (Photo: AP/Patrick Semansky):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a98890
20110407211344:20110403000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 at Toronto on Apr 3rd 2011, instrument failure and acrid smell
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-GBIN performing flight AC-1294
from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Aruba (Aruba) with 69 people on board, was accelerating
for takeoff from runway 23 when the lower ECAM and the first officers primary
flight display and navigation display failed accompanied by an acrid smell.
The crew continued the takeoff, declared emergency in the initial climb
reporting smoke and electrical smell, stopped the climb at 3000 feet and
returned to Toronto’s runway 23. On downwind the crew indicated they’d need
to stop on the runway but did not expect an evacuation, reaffirming on final
that they did not expect an evacuation but needed a tow. The crew performed
a safe landing about 13 minutes later, the airplane was towed to the gate.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found two circuit breakers tripped
(for the bus2 electrical supply and the Brake and Steering Control Unit
(BSCU)). The BSCU did not show any malfunction, abnormal odour or signs
of overheating/burning. The #2 transformer rectifier unit was replaced,
systems checked operative thereafter and the airplane returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a4d9eb
20110410161807:20110402000000
Incident: TAP A332 near Salvador on Apr 2nd 2011, engine shut down in flight, smoke in cabin
A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A330-200, registration CS-TOG performing flight
TP-186 (dep Apr 1st) from Rio de Janeiro,RJ (Brazil) to Lisbon (Portugal)
with 227 passengers, was enroute near Salvador,BA (Brazil), when the crew
reported the left hand engine (PW4168) had to be shut down and decided to
divert to Salvador for a safe landing.

A passenger reported that there was smoke in the cabin. Other passengers
tweeted about smoke, burning smell and failed lights in the cabin after
a sound like an explosion.

The left hand engine suffered visible damage to the N1 fan as well as the
first compressor stage.

The airline confirmed a technical failure in an engine requiring the airplane
to remain on the ground in Salvador for repairs. A replacement aircraft
will be dispatched to Salvador to continue the flight.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration CS-TON departed Lisbon as flight
TP-9491 to Salvador and reached Lisbon as flight TP-2156 with a delay of
22 hours.

The incident aircraft CS-TOG reached Lisbon as positioning flight TP-9070
on Apr 10th and entered service again the same day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a41265
20111209160707:20110401000000
Incident: Danish Air Transport MD87 at Oulu on Apr 1st 2011, engine problem
A Danish Air Transport McDonnell Douglas MD-87 on behalf of Blue1, registration
OY-JRU performing flight KF-202 from Oulu to Helsinki (Finland) with 65
passengers and 6 crew, was in the initial climb when the crew reported problems
with the left hand engine (JT8D), levelled off and returned to Oulu for
a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure.

The airline reported the engine lost power but was kept running until landing.
The cause of the power loss is being investigated.

On Dec 9th 2011 the Danish Havarikommission (HCL) reported that a loud bang
was heard followed by a brief smell of smoke, the instruments of the left
hand engine fluctuated. After the engine was reduced to idle, the fluctuations
ceased. The crew declared emergency and returned to Oulu. An examination
revealed the engine received damage to an acoustic panel only, the HCL aborted
the investigation after that finding.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a5da63
20110403135718:20110330000000
Incident: American MD82 near Jacksonville on Mar 30th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration N510AM performing
flight AA-555 from Fort Myers,FL to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA), was enroute
at FL300 about 70nm northwest of Tampa,FL and 135nm southwest of Jacksonville,FL
when the crew reported an odour of smoke without any visible smoke in the
cabin and due to a thunderstorm front in their south decided to divert to
Jacksonville. During the approach to Jacksonville the crew reported the
odour was dissipating. The aircraft landed safely on Jacksonville’s runway
07 (active runway 32) about 23 minutes later, the airplane stopped on the
runway and was checked by emergency services before continuing to the apron
after about 5 minutes.

A replacement McDonnell Douglas MD-83 reached Dallas with a delay of 2.5
hours.

Metars Tampa:
KTPA 310215Z 18009KT 9SM -RA SCT050 OVC110 21/19 A2987 RMK AO2 TSE15 P0004
$
KTPA 310153Z 20010KT 7SM -TSRA SCT050CB OVC110 21/18 A2987 RMK AO2 TSB0054
SLP116 FRQ LTGICCC NE-SE MOV E P0012 T02110178 $
KTPA 310059Z COR 13006KT 9SM -TSRA FEW025CB OVC080 21/18 A2985 RMK AO2 TSB54
FRQ LTGICCC W TS W MOV E P0000
KTPA 310053Z 14005KT 10SM -RA OVC080 21/18 A2986 RMK AO2 SLP109 P0003 T02060183

KTPA 302353Z 11003KT 9SM -RA SCT040 OVC070 21/18 A2987 RMK AO2 RAE19B36
SLP115 P0003 60009 T02110183 10272 20206 56010
KTPA 302253Z 28003KT 4SM -RA BKN040 BKN055 OVC070 21/17 A2988 RMK AO2 RAB23
SLP118 P0006 T02060172
KTPA 302153Z COR 32007KT 10SM BKN055 OVC080 23/16 A2988 RMK AO2 VCSH NW
SLP117 T02280161

Metars Jacksonville:
KJAX 310156Z 29003KT 10SM SCT009 BKN014 OVC024 18/18 A2977 RMK AO2 SLP081
T01830183
KJAX 310121Z 28003KT 10SM SCT009 BKN014 OVC024 18/18 A2976 RMK AO2
KJAX 310056Z 26004KT 10SM BKN009 OVC024 18/18 A2975 RMK AO2 SLP076 T01830178
KJAX 310028Z 26003KT 10SM SCT009 OVC024 18/18 A2974 RMK AO2
KJAX 302356Z 25003KT 10SM FEW005 BKN012 BKN030 18/18 A2974 RMK AO2 SLP070
60126 T01830178 10244 20178 51035
KJAX 302331Z 00000KT 10SM SCT005 BKN012 OVC024 18/18 A2973 RMK AO2
KJAX 302256Z 32003KT 10SM BKN005 OVC021 18/18 A2972 RMK AO2 SLP064 T01830178
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a36858
20110331153452:20110330000000
Incident: Air France B744 near Paris on Mar 30th 2011, smoke in cabin
An Air France Boeing 747-400, registration F-GEXB performing flight AF-442
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Rio de Janeiro Galeao,RJ (Brazil),
was climbing through FL300 about 115nm westsouthwest of Charles de Gaulle
Airport about 20 minutes into the flight when the crew declared emergency
reporting smoke in the cabin and returned to Paris for a safe landing about
21 minutes later.

The flight had to be cancelled, the airline reported technical problems.
The passengers were taken to hotels.

Passengers reported there had been smoke in the rear of the aircraft.

A replacement Boeing 747-400 registration F-GISD departed Paris with a delay
of 16.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a69d35
20110404110623:20110328000000
Incident: Brussels RJ85 near Milan on Mar 28th 2011, smoke on board
A Brussels Airlines Avro RJ-85, registration OO-DJX performing flight SN-3157
from Brussels (Belgium) to Milan Malpensa (Italy), was flying near Milan
when the crew donned their oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting
smoke on board. The crew continued for a safe landing on Milan’s runway
35R.

Italy’s Agenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza del Volo (ANSV) rated the occurrence
a serious incident and opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43a12a9a
20110328230832:20110328000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Louisville on Mar 28th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-1385 from Orlando,FL to Chicago
Midway,IL (USA) with 103 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL360 about
60nm southsoutheast of Louisville,KY when the first officer noticed a smell
of smoke that appeared to originate from his windshield. The crew donned
their oxygen masks, the windshield heating was turned off and the smell
dissipated. The crew decided to divert to Louisville for a safe landing
on runway 35L with oxygen masks still donned about 15 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Chicago with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439f003c
20110326112132:20110326000000
Incident: Qantas B734 near Adelaide on Mar 26th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Qantas Boeing 737-400, registration VH-TJO performing flight QF-587 from
Adelaide,SA to Perth,WA (Australia) with 124 passengers, was enroute about
30 minutes into the flight when smoke appeared from the aft galley. The
crew decided to return to Adelaide where the airplane landed safely about
40 minutes later.

The flight departed again and reached Perth with a delay of 3:20 hours.

Police and Adelaide Airport reported a fire broke out in the rear galley
which was quickly extinguished.

Qantas said there was no fire, however an oven emitted smoke due to an electrical
fault about 30 minutes after departure. The oven was turned off and the
smoke began to dissipate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439c79a7/0000
20110912125355:20110323000000
Incident: Qantas A332 enroute on Mar 23rd 2011, fire in cockpit
The ATSB have released their Bulletin reporting that the crew noticed a
smell in the cockpit and cabin when the aircraft was enroute at FL390 about
365nm northwest of Cairns. The crew actioned the checklists for smoke/fumes/avionics
in an attempt to minimise the smell, cabin crew confirmed the smell had
reduced.

Following the smell and some arcing from the left hand windshield hearter
a small flames became visible from the bottom left corner of the captain’s
windshield. The flight crew donned their oxygen masks and discharged the
cockpit’s BCF fire extinguisher successfully putting the flame out. An ECAM
message “A.ICE L WSHLD HEAT” followed prompting the crew to action the relevant
checklist prompting the crew to press the reset button for the window heat
computer. About 20 minutes later another ECAM message “L WINDOW HEAT” occurred,
although the crew actioned the relevant checklist 4 more events of arcing
and flames from the bottom left corner of the captain’s windshield occurred
over the next 6 minutes, all of which were extinguished by the crew.

The operator’s maintenance advised the probe window heat should be de-selected
although this was no guarantee the heating would be de-powered. The crew
therefore decided to divert to Cairns reporting technical issues and extinguished
fires on board. The aircraft landed safely in Cairn about 50 minutes after
the first smell.

The operator had already assigned the windshield for replacement according
to an Airbus Service Bulletin, that required replacement as soon as spares
become available. Following the event the windshield and the number one
window heat computer were replaced.

The ATSB annotated that the windshield replacement program, released following
five windshield heat connector overheat events, was well ahead of permitted
time, completion within the operator’s fleet to be completed by September
2011 with the SB requiring replacement until March 2012.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439c79a7
20110324103653:20110323000000
Incident: Qantas A332 enroute on Mar 23rd 2011, fire in cockpit
A Qantas Airbus A330-200, registration VH-EBL performing flight QF-20 from
Manila (Philippines) to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 147 passengers and 11
crew, was enroute about 4 hours into the flight when the flight crew noticed
flames and smoke from the left hand windshield heating. The flight crew
used the fire extinguishers to put the fire out. The airplane subsequently
diverted to Cairns,QL (Australia) for a safe landing on runway 15 about
6 hours after departure from Manila.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers cleared customs
in Cairns and were rebooked onto domestic flights.

Qantas confirmed a windscreen electrical fault occurred causing smoke and
small flames (1-2cm/less than one inch) near the left windshield. The flames
were extinguished by the crew. There was no need for emergency services
after landing.

The ATSB have opened an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439ced05
20110323230000:20110322000000
Incident: Chautauqua E135 at Louisville on Mar 22nd 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Chautauqua Airlines Embraer ERJ-135 on behalf of Frontier Airlines, flight
RP-1912/F8-1912 from Louisville,KY to Milwaukee,WI (USA), was in the initial
climb out of Louisville’s runway 17R when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit and decided to return to Louisville. The airplane landed safely
on runway 17R about 8 minutes after departure.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439c8034
20110323102712:20110322000000
Incident: Delta B752 near Salt Lake City on Mar 22nd 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight DL-2621 from Salt Lake City,UT to
Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 147 passengers, had already reached FL380 about
130nm southsouthwest of Salt Lake City when cabin crew noticed an acrid
smell of smoke in the rear galley however no smoke was visible. The flight
crew decided to return to Salt Lake City. Active runways at Salt Lake City
were 16 at the time, the airport brought the ILS 34L up on request by the
crew. The airplane landed safely on Salt Lake City’s runway 34L about 25
minutes later and taxied to the apron.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached Los Angeles with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439972dc
20110320201438:20110319000000
Incident: Comair CRJ7 near Grand Rapids on Mar 19th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Comair Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight OH-626/DL-6626
from Grand Rapids,MI to Detroit,MI (USA) with 55 people on board, was climbing
out of Grand Rapid’s runway 26L through 12000 feet when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit and returned to Grand Rapids for a safe landing on
runway 26L about 20 minutes after departure. The airplane vacated the runway
and stopped on the parallel taxiway D to evacuate the aircraft, the crew
reported there was still smoke in the cockpit and cabin originating from
a side wall of the cabin. No injuries occurred.

Runways 26L and 17 were temporarily closed because of the evacuation and
people on the ground.

Delta Airlines reported on Mar 20th, that a light bulb is suspected to have
short circuited causing the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43971ebd
20110316214326:20110315000000
Incident: First Air AT42 at Yellowknife on Mar 15th 2011, smoke on board
A First Air Avion de Transport Regional ATR-42-300, registration C-GULU
performing flight 7F-125 from Hay River,NT to Yellowknife,NT (Canada) with
20 people on board, was on a 7nm final to Yellowknife’s runway 33 when the
crew declared emergency reporting smoke on board. The crew continued for
a safe landing with emergency services in attendance about 4 minutes later
and stopped on the runway, the passengers deplaned onto the runway and were
bussed to the terminal.

The runway was closed for about 30 minutes.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance found an avionics cooling fan had
overheated and emitted smoke. The air conditioning system then circulated
the smoke through most of the aircraft which activated a smoke detector.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43953983
20110323202113:20110314000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ2 at Halifax on Mar 14th 2011, haze in cabin
A Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-200, registration C-GOJA performing flight
QK-8600 from Halifax,NS to St. John’s,NL (Canada) with 42 passengers and
3 crew, was in the initial climb out of runway 05 when haze developed in
the cabin prompting the crew to level off at 1800 feet and return to Halifax
for a safe landing on runway 32 about 7 minutes after departure. By the
time of touch down the haze had dissipated again, responding emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the airplane subsequently taxied
to the apron on its own power.

The flight was subsequently cancelled, the passenger were rebooked onto
other flights.

NAV Canada said the crew reported smoke in the cockpit.

The Canadian TSB reported on Mar 23rd, that the flight crew noticed a strong
smell and cabin crew reported smoke in the cabin. The smoke dissipated during
the landing roll, so that the crew elected to taxi to the gate with emergency
services following. “Maintenance staff inspected and cleaned all related
ACM ducts, replaced both coalescer socks and retightened several loose clamps.”
Several ground runs were completed without anomaly, the airplane was returned
to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4394a00c
20110313210546:20110313000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Colorado Springs on Mar 13th 2011, smoke in cockpit, flaps problem
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N600WN performing flight
WN-1646 from Phoenix,AZ to Denver,CO (USA) with 141 people on board, was
enroute at FL350 about 180nm southwest of Colorado Springs,CO and about
230nm southwest of Denver when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
decided to divert to Colorado Springs. On approach the crew reported flaps
problems, aborted the approach and positioned for a new final approach.
The airplane landed safely on Colorado Spring’s runway 35R at some higher
speed than normal about 40 minutes later.

Runway 35R was closed temporarily, the crew subsequently reported the smoke
had stopped, fire engines reported they did not find any trace any fire,
heat or smoke, the aircraft subsequently taxied to the apron with emergency
services following the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4398b225
20110318192501:20110312000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 at Vancouver on Mar 12th 2011, glycol smell on gear extension
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FKCO performing flight AC-299
from Winnipeg,MB to Vancouver,BC (Canada), was on approach to Vancouver’s
runway 08L when the crew selected the gear down and immediately afterwards
noticed a smell similiar to residual glycol fluid. The crew continued for
a safe landing on runway 08L, the smell however persisted while the aircraft
taxied towards the gate. When the airplane was approaching the gate smoke
was observed on the flight deck and in the cabin, ATC was advised, emergency
services responded. The aircraft reached the gate, the jetway was docked
and the occupants of the aircraft rapidly deplaned through the main door
L1, the smoke dissipated. No injuries and no damage occurred, emergency
services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat.

The Canadian TSB reported that after the aircraft was towed to a maintenance
facility maintenance engineers identified a yellow rudder servo actuator
was leaking from the piston transducer vent hole resulting in contamination
of the air conditioning systems. The servo actuator was replaced and the
aircraft returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43978ee5
20110317104329:20110312000000
Incident: Saudia A320 at Dammam on Mar 12th 2011, rejected takeoff
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Airbus A320-200, flight SV-1145 from Dammam to
Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), rejected takeoff from Dammam’s runway 34R at high
speed after thick black smoke appeared in the cabin causing commotion amongst
the passengers. The airplane stopped safely. There are no reports about
the aircraft being evacuated, a passenger video instead reveals the captain
trying to calm the passengers via an announcement and the absence of the
evacuation signal.

Passenger Nofah intended to film the cloud formation during takeoff (see
the video below) and published his resulting video 3 days later. Another
passenger, who published his video on the day of the occurrence, claims
he was forced to remove his video. Other passengers reported thick black
smoke appeared in the cabin, however did not mention how they got off the
aircraft.

A replacement aircraft reached Riyadh.

Passenger video (Video: Nofah):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=439272bb
20110312150953:20110310000000
Incident: Spicejet B738 at Jaipur on Mar 10th 2011, bird strike, engine shut down in flight
A Spicejet Boeing 737-800, flight SG-913 from Jaipur to Ahmedabad (India)
with 138 people on board, was departing Jaipur when the crew needed to shut
the right hand engine down following a loud bang from the engine, abnormal
engine indications and a report from the tower that the engine was trailing
smoke. The airplane levelled at 2000 feet and returned to Jaipur for a safe
landing about 6 minutes after departure.

A replacement aircraft reached Ahmedabad with a delay of 5:20 hours.

Spicejet reported that the airplane suffered a bird strike.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4391c738
20110310122141:20110309000000
Incident: Mesa CRJ9 at Long Beach on Mar 9th 2011, burst tyre on takeoff
A Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-900 on behalf of US Airways, registration N912FJ
performing flight YV-2829/US-2829 from Long Beach,CA to Phoenix,AZ (USA)
with 82 people on board, burst a tyre on departure from Long Beach’s runway
30 prompting the tower to instruct another aircraft on short final for crossing
runway 25L to go around and later advise aircraft operating on crossing
runway 30 and 25L about possible debris until a runway inspection was completed.
The Mesa crew decided to continue to Phoenix, where the crew declared emergency
on approach. The aircraft landed safely on Phoenix’s runway 26, light smoke
was seen from the gear during landing. The aircraft taxied to the apron
on its own power with emergency services following the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4391be46
20110310112133:20110309000000
Incident: Southern Air B742 near Liege on Mar 9th 2011, engine shut down in flight
A Southern Air Boeing 747-200, registration N820SA performing freight flight
9S-9820 from Liege (Belgium) to Fort Dix,NJ (USA), was climbing through
FL180 out of Liege when the crew reported they had shut down an engine due
to a fire indication. The airplane returned to Liege for a safe landing
on runway 23L about 20 minutes later. No trace of fire, heat or smoke was
found by emergency services.

Liege’s Bierset Airport reported there was no fire, just an indication.

The airplane was able to depart again about 5.5 hours after the return and
is estimated to reach Fort Dix with a delay of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438dc9e9
20110305184356:20110305000000
Incident: Belavia CRJ2 near Kiev on Mar 5th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Belavia Canadair CRJ-200, registration EW-277PJ performing flight B2-846
from Kiev (Ukraine) to Minsk (Belarus), was climbing out of Kiev when the
cabin started to fill with smoke. The crew decided to return to Kiev for
a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438db1d5
20110426195925:20110305000000
Crash: Antonov A148 near Voronezh on Mar 5th 2011, in flight break up
An Antonov/Voronezh Aircraft Joint Stock Company Antonov AN-148-100, registration
61708 performing a training flight from Voronezh to Voronezh (Russia) with
6 crew, was enroute about 134km (72nm) southsouthwest of Voronezh and about
160km (86nm) east of Belgorod when the aircraft lost height and impacted
ground on private property in the village of Gorbuzovo around 11:05L (08:05Z).
The aircraft was destroyed and burst into flames, all 6 occupants perished
in the crash.

Witnesses on the ground in Gorbuzovo reported a wing had separated from
the aircraft in flight.

Russia’s Emergency Ministry (MCHS) confirmed finding debris of the aircraft
about 3km from the actual crash site, the airplane began to break up in
flight. Both crash site and debris site have been cordoned off. The chairman
of the MCHS added that more aircraft debris, including debris from inside
the cabin, has been located along the route from the first debris to the
final crash site, none of that debris showing any evidence of fire. 4 flight
data recorders have been recovered late Mar 5th, three of them in satisfactory
condition, and have been sent to Moscow for analysis.

Pictures taken by Russian News Agency RIA Novosti show, that the left hand
main wing came to rest in a cemetery about 900 meters from the main wreckage
site (location approx. N50.473 E38.743) and about 2100 meters from the first
debris that appears to be a horizontal stabilizer.

Russia’s Industry Ministry opened an investigation into the crash, the on-site
work has been completed Mar 8th.

Aviation sources reported, the aircraft still carried an experimental registration,
either 61707 or 61708 (without RA-). The Aviation sources later reported,
that both aircraft 61707 and 61708 were on a combined training mission at
the time. Listening to the frequency in Voronezh around 10:55L one of the
aircraft, supposedly 61707, was heard on radio descending to 2100 meters
talking about fire and smoke, due to radio noise the listener was not able
to understand the complete transmissions.

The Antonov AN-148 was about to be handed over to the first non-Russian
customer in Myanmar, two of the occupants were nationals of Myanmar and
are believed to have been the pilots at the controls at the time of the
crash.

Voronezh Aircraft Joint Stock Company, also known as United Aircraft Corporation,
reported their aircraft 61708 was involved in the crash during a training
mission, during which the two pilots of Myanmar were to receive training.
The aircraft had completed its factory test program and had completed 31
flights prior to the crash without any safety relevant malfunctions during
these flights.

On Mar 9th United Aircraft Coporation confirmed that the two pilots of Myanmar
were at the controls of the aircraft. The aircraft had been cleared to descend
from 9000 to 5000 meters to perform its standard training programme and
was subsequently observed breaking up in the air, debris was found spread
over a distance of 3km. The aircraft missed the school building, the main
wreckage came to rest about 50 meters from the last houses of the village.
Preliminary findings of the accident investigation will be published by
the end of the week (Mar 11th).

On Apr 26th 2011 Russia’s Industry Ministry reported that the investigation
into the crash has been completed. The commission found the crew inadvertently
permitted the aircraft to accelerate 110 kph (60 knots) above design speed
during an emergency descent, which led to the deformation of the aircraft
due to low frequency vibration in all axes of the aircraft which caused
the inflight break up and subsequent collision with terrain. Contributing
factors were untimely and inadequate actions by the crew to control the
emergency descent, lack of proper crew coordination, deviations from recommendations
in flight manuals in executing the emergency descent and misleading indications
on basic instruments when outside characteristic operating conditions.

Left main wing inboard portion found about 900 meters from main wreckage
(Photo: AFP/RIA Novosti):
Left main wing outboard portion (Photo: AFP/RIA Novosti):
Debris found 3km from the crash site:
Crash site (Photo: MCHS):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438e95e2
20110306181217:20110304000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Champaign on Mar 4th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ-4111 from Chicago O’Hare,IL
to Charlotte,NC (USA) with 31 passengers, was climbing through FL210 out
of a Chicago when the crew noticed smell of smoke in the cockpit and decided
to divert to Champaign,IL for a safe landing about 15 minutes later. Responding
emergency services did not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438bed1c
20110303135534:20110303000000
Incident: LAN A318 near Santiago on Mar 3rd 2011, smoke in cabin
A LAN Airbus A318-100, flight LU-300 from Santiago to La Serena (Chile)
with 125 people on board, was climbing out of Santiago, when passengers
observed a strong burning smell soon followed by visible smoke in the cabin.
The crew returned to Santiago for a safe landing about 10 minutes after
departure.

A replacement aircraft departed about 2 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43de52eb
20110609175558:20110228000000
Report: bmi E135 at East Midlands on Feb 28th 2011, cargo fire indication during landing roll
A bmi Embraer ERJ-135, registration G-RJXJ performing flight BD-1234 from
Brussels (Belgium) to East Midlands,EN (UK) with 24 passengers and 3 crew,
was in the landing roll at East Midlands when the crew observed a cargo
fire indication, taxied clear of the runway and stopped on the taxiway.
The crew declared PAN requiring assistance by emergency services, actioned
the relevant checklists including discharging the fire extinguisher into
the cargo hold, and asked the flight attendant to look into the hold through
an inspection hole in the lavatory floor. The flight attendant reported
the cargo hold looked cloudy prompting the commander to instruct the passengers
to rapidly deplane onto the taxiway leaving their luggage behind. Emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The AAIB released their final bulletin stating, that the cloudiness in the
cargo hold was thought to be the result of the fire extinguisher discharge.

The operator believes the fire indication was the result of water ingress
into one of the fire detectors.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4389a15c
20110228213429:20110228000000
Incident: Delta B738 near Omaha on Feb 28th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N398DA performing flight DL-1481
(dep Feb 27th) from New York JFK,NY to Phoenix,AZ (USA) with 60 passengers
and 5 crew, was enroute at FL380 about 140nm southwest of Omaha,NE when
a passenger reported seeing smoke. The crew decided to divert to Omaha for
a safe landing about 35 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

Delta Airlines reported an extensive inspection has been scheduled.

A replacement McDonnell Douglas MD-88 registration N926DL reached Phoenix
as flight DL-9862 with a delay of 9.5 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438880c7
20110227135512:20110225000000
Incident: Virgin Blue B738 near Melbourne on Feb 25th 2011, smelly oven
A Virgin Blue Boeing 737-800, flight DJ-302 from Brisbane,QL to Melbourne,VI
(Australia) with 160 passengers, was just beginning the descent towards
Melbourne when smell of smoke was noticed in the cabin. Flight attendants
quickly determined an oven as source of the smell while the flight crew
accelerated approach and landing into Melbourne, where the airplane landed
safely. Six passengers were checked for smoke inhalation by medical teams
at the airport but did not require further assistance.

Virgin Blue reported the oven was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43852b1d/0000
20111018140753:20110223000000
Incident: Qantas A332 at Perth on Feb 23rd 2011, rejected takeoff
The ATSB released their final report concluding the following safety factors
contributed to the incident:

– The pilot in command rejected the takeoff due to a sudden and unexpected
yaw that was initially identified as an engine failure, but was later found
to be the effect of a lateral wind gust (lateral jerk).

Other key findings

– Emergency services responded to flame and smoke from the wheels, but were
not required to dispense any extinguishing agent.

The captain (ATPL, 19,000 hours total, 5,000 hours on type) was pilot flying
when the aircraft accelerated on runway 03. Little to no rudder input was
necessary to maintain the runway center line, however, when the aircraft
accelerated through 100 KIAS the captain felt a sudden and unexpected sharp
yaw that felt like an engine failure. He instinctively applied rudder input
and rejected the takeoff. Unlike in an engine failure there was little resistance
to the rudder application, a look onto the engine instruments showed no
indication of an engine failure, however, after having rejected the takeoff
the captain was committed to stop the aircraft. The aircraft briefly stopped
on the runway and taxied off the runway onto taxiway D, where tower advised
seeing smoke from the area of the left main gear. Emergency services responded,
the fire station manager reported seeing flames from a left main wheel.
The flames did not sustain, firefighters therefore did not dispense any
extinguishing agent therefore, instead monitored the brakes until they had
been cooled down to a safe temperature by cooling fans.

The ATSB reported that the data off the flight data recorder showed the
deviation to the left began without any rudder input or engine asymmetry
when the aircraft accelerated through 111 knots ground speed. One second
later, at a ground speed of 115 knots, the captain applied right rudder,
both engines were reduced to idle, then idle reverse was selected, the brakes
were applied and ground spoilers deployed. Analysis of the flight parameters
suggest the deviation and left acceleration were caused by a right lateral
wind gradient (gust).

The ATSB analysed: “The investigation did not identify any organisational
or systemic issues that might adversely affect the future safety of aviation
operations. However, the occurrence does provide a timely reminder of the
risks associated with rejected takeoffs at relatively high speeds, such
as wheel fires. Pilot awareness of their potential exposure to sudden and
unexpected lateral wind gusts during takeoff may increase the likelihood
of pilots differentiating between a lateral jerk and the effect of an engine
failure.”

Graphical representation of FDR (Graphics: ATSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43852b1d
20110228142651:20110223000000
Incident: Qantas A332 at Perth on Feb 23rd 2011, rejected takeoff
A Qantas Airbus A330-200, registration VH-EBL performing flight QF-566 from
Perth,WA to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 180 passengers, rejected takeoff
from Perth’s runway 03 at about 80 knots when the crew felt the airplane
was pulling to the left. The airplane slowed safely and vacated the runway,
responding emergency services needed to cool the brakes for about 45 minutes
before the airplane was able to taxi to the apron.

Tower order flight Qantas 1073 on short final to go around due to the rejected
takeoff, then advised another aircraft on final for runway 03 about the
rejected takeoff with smoke coming from the brakes and possible debris on
the runway with a runway inspection pending. The crew of Malaysia Airlines
MH-125, a Boeing 777-200 registration 9M-MRH arriving from Kuala Lumpur
(Malaysia), decided to continue the landing.

Flight QF-566 was subsequently cancelled.

Qantas said the crew detected an unexpected slight lateral movement of the
aircraft prompting the crew to reject takeoff.

The Australian TSB reported the crew rejected takeoff when the airplane
veered off the runway center line. An investigation has been initiated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438502c1
20110223114224:20110222000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Greensboro on Feb 22nd 2011, odour in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N987DL performing
flight DL-1014 from Atlanta,GA to Richmond,VA (USA) with 113 passengers
and 5 crew, was enroute at FL310 about 80nm southwest of Greensboro,NC when
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Greensboro for a
safe landing about 13 minutes later.

Delta reported a suspicious odour was noticed in the cockpit area.

A replacement MD-88 reached Richmond with a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43845624
20110222164544:20110221000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 near Sao Paulo on Feb 21st 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGM performing flight LH-505
from Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil) to Munich (Germany) with 221 passengers,
was about 30 minutes into the flight when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit and decided to return to Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos Airport where the
aircraft landed safely about one hour after departure.

Lufthansa said the airplane encountered technical problems but no fire.
Most of the passengers were rebooked onto the flight to Frankfurt/Main (Germany),
the incident aircraft is expected to take the remaining passengers to Munich
with a delay of 19 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4383a9b7
20110223112723:20110221000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 at Greenville on Feb 21st 2011, smoke in cabin, smoke visible after landing
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N8886A performing flight 9E-4018/DL-4018 from Greenville,SC to Detroit,MI
(USA) with 39 passengers and 3 crew, was climbing out of Greenville’s runway
22 when the crew reported an emergency on board, smoke in the cabin and
requested an immediate return. The aircraft was instantly cleared for landing
on runway 22, the crew advised they were planning to evacuate onto the runway.
The airplane landed safely about 5 minutes after departure and stopped on
the runway, the tower reported smoke above the back of the aircraft, the
occupants were evacuated onto the runway. No injuries occurred.

Emergency services reported they were emptying the cargo holds, they believed
there was the source of the smoke, but there was no actual fire. The airplane
was subsequently towed to the apron.

The airport was closed for about 40 minutes as a result.

Passenger Philipp reported, that the taxi for takeoff was perfectly normal.
Just before the airplane accelerated Philipp thought the air in the cabin
was somewhat glary but he told himself that he probably made that up. Immediately
after takeoff a lot of thick white smoke came quickly in with no distinctive
smell. The passengers started yelling, the flight attendant reported the
smoke to the flight crew then began yelling “bend over stay down” over and
over until landing 5 minutes later. Delta never told the passengers what
caused the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43814906
20110219082035:20110218000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Boston on Feb 18th 2011, lightning strike, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N585JB performing flight B6-446
from Tampa,FL to Boston,MA (USA), was on approach to Boston’s runway 27
descending to 5000 feet when the aircraft was struck by lightning twice,
the crew becoming increasingly concerned with the weather requesting to
get vectors out of the weather or onto the approach. About 30 seconds later
the crew reported a smell of smoke in the cockpit with no further indications
and was instantly cleared to intercept the localizer runway 27. The airplane
landed safely on runway 27 about 6 minutes later (02:19Z).

Metars:
KBOS 190354Z 30012KT 10SM BKN110 11/M07 A2948 RMK AO2 SLP981 T01061067

KBOS 190254Z 22009KT 10SM FEW050 OVC090 08/02 A2952 RMK AO2 PK WND 28046/0207
RAE23 SLP997 P0001 60005 T00780017 58001
KBOS 190154Z 28020G36KT 9SM -RA SCT041 BKN047 OVC055 09/02 A2958 RMK AO2
PK WND 28036/0151 RAB0055 SLP016 TS DST S MOV E P0004 T00890017
KBOS 190054Z 31009KT 8SM BKN050 BKN160 13/06 A2952 RMK AO2 SLP994 T01330056

KBOS 182354Z 23010KT 10SM FEW070 SCT180 12/05 A2953 RMK AO2 SLP997 T01170050
10156 20111 58001
KBOS 182254Z 23009KT 10SM SCT080 BKN160 BKN200 13/05 A2954 RMK AO2 SLP003
T01280050
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43809819
20110218143145:20110218000000
Incident: Republic E170 near Washington on Feb 18th 2011, electrical odour in cabin
A Republic Airlines Embraer ERJ-175 on behalf of US Airways, registration
N127HQ performing flight RW-3116/US-3116 from Manchester,NH to Washington
National,DC (USA) with 60 passengers and 4 crew, was on the Potomac River
Approach into Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport runway 19 when
a flight attendant noticed an electrical smell in the forward galley and
pulled the circuit breakers prompting the flight crew to declare emergency
about 8nm before touchdown however without requiring assistance. The aircraft
landed safely on runway 19 about 4 minutes later and turned off onto taxiway
F. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The approach clearance for the aircraft next in sequence for landing was
cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=438883d3
20110227141631:20110217000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A near Cranbrook on Feb 17th 2011, windshield in flames
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-FGRM performing
flight QK-8215 from Vancouver,BC to Cranbrook,BC (Canada) with 42 people
on board, was enroute at FL250 about half way into the flight when the right
hand windshield erupted in flames, arcing and smoke from the terminal block
connector area. The windshield heating was turned off and arcing, flames
and smoke ceased without the need of a fire extinguisher, none of the windshield
layers cracked. The crew made announcements to the passengers due to the
smoke and continued the flight to Cranbrook where the airplane landed safely
about 40 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported that no emergency was declared. The windshield
had accumulated 7563 flight hours since new. A service difficulty report
will be filed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437e36e5
20110215210341:20110215000000
Incident: United Airlines A319 near Grand Junction on Feb 15th 2011, smoke indication in cargo hold
A United Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N801UA performing flight
UA-306 from Los Angeles,CA to Baltimore,MD (USA) with 109 people on board,
was enroute at Fl370 about 170nm southwest of Grand Junction,CO (USA) when
the crew reported a smoke indication in the aft cargo hold and decided to
divert to Grand Junction. The airplane landed safely about 25 minutes later,
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The aircraft is now estimated to reach Baltimore with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437d7469
20110214225152:20110214000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near West Palm Beach on Feb 14th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N644JB performing flight B6-745
from Orlando,FL (USA) to San Juan (Puerto Rico), was enroute at FL360 about
63nm east of West Palm Beach,FL (USA) and 13nm west of Freeport(Bahamas)
when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to West
Palm Beach. The aircraft landed safely on runway 10L about 22 minutes later.
Emergency service found no trace of fire or heat.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437d02ab
20110217170627:20110214000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Stockholm on Feb 14th 2011, smoke in cabin
An Emirates Boeing 777-300, registration A6-ECE performing flight EK-203
from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 361 people
on board, was enroute at FL320 about 120nm northeast of Stockholm (Sweden)
when the crew diverted to Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport reporting smoke in
the cabin. The aircraft dumped fuel and landed safely on Arlanda’s runway
01L about 40 minutes later.

The airplane was able to depart again after 5.5 hours on the ground.

Arlanda Airport reported, that the crew did not evacuate the aircraft, the
passengers disembarked normally instead and waited inside the terminal.

The Swedish Havarikommission announced on Feb 17th that they are going to
investigate the occurrence.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437d0765
20110222205154:20110213000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Montreal on Feb 13th 2011, smoke indication and smell of smoke in cabin
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N663AR performing flight
MQ-4079 from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 16 people
on board, was climbing out of Montreal’s runway 06R when the crew declared
emergency reporting a lavatory smoke alert and smell of smoke in the cabin.
The aircraft levelled at 5000 feet and set up for an approach to runway
06R but missed the turn onto the localizer and were estimated about 20 degrees
off the runway heading by tower. The crew aborted the approach, flew another
circuit and subsequently landed safely on runway 06R about 20 minutes after
departure. The airplane vacated the runway with emergency vehicles following
the aircraft.

The flight was subsequently cancelled.

The Canadian TSB reported on Feb 22nd that maintenance found engine #2 (Ae3007)
produced smoke in the bleed air system. The engine was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437c4a04
20110214083627:20110211000000
Incident: Air Mauritius A343 over Indian Ocean on Feb 11th 2011, smoke alert in cargo hold
An Air Mauritius Airbus A340-300, registration 3B-NBE performing flight
MK-48 from Mauritius (Mauritius) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was enroute
overhead the Indian Ocean when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
diverted to Mombasa (Kenya) for a safe landing about 3:45 hours after departure
from Mauritius.

A replacement Airbus A340-300 registration 3B-NBJ was dispatched from Mauritius
to Mombasa to continue the flight MK-48 scheduled to fly from Mauritius
via Frankfurt to Geneva (Switzerland) and return to Mauritius as flight
MK-59. 3B-NBJ subsequently flew directly to Geneva reaching Geneva with
a delay of 11 hours, then returned to Mauritius – without flying to Frankfurt
– as flight MK-5059.

Radar data show 3B-NBE departed Mauritius for flight MK-48 on schedule,
while 3B-BNJ (claimed to have been the incident aircraft by some other service)
was just on approach to Mauritius following flight MK-749 from Mumbai (India)
landing about about half an hour later, then completed the rotation MK-290/MK-291
to Reunion before the aircraft was ferried to Mombasa.

The incident aircraft 3B-NBE returned to Mauritius and resumed service departing
to Paris (France) as flight MK-34 40 hours after the departure as MK-48.

Air Mauritius said a smoke alert was triggered in one of the cargo holds
prompting the captain to divert to nearest available airport Mombasa. On
examination on the ground it appeared the alert was false, the incident
aircraft was then ferried back to Mauritius for further checks. The passengers
were taken to hotels in Mombasa. In the evening of Feb 11th a special flight
was dispatched to Mombasa.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437a7fb2
20110211083153:20110210000000
Incident: Colgan SF34 near College Station on Feb 10th 2011, smoke indication
A Colgan Saab 340B on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration N194CJ
performing flight 9L-9504/CO-9504 from Houston,TX to College Station,TX
(USA), was on approach to College Station when the crew reported a smoke
detector indication. The airplane landed safely at College Station, responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4379e4ce
20110210155151:20110209000000
Incident: Southwest B735 near Omaha on Feb 9th 2011, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-500, registration N504SW performing flight
WN-3329 from Omaha,NE to Saint Louis,MO (USA) with 77 people on board, was
climbing through FL310 when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit
and decided to return to Omaha for a safe landing about 38 minutes after
departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4377815f
20110217181108:20110207000000
Incident: Delta B764 over Labrador Sea on Feb 7th 2011, fumes in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N833MH performing flight DL-40
from Minneapolis,MN (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute above
the Labrador Sea when the crew reported fumes in the cockpit and decided
to divert to Goose Bay,NL (Canada), where the airplane landed safely about
100 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

NAV Canada reported that a local maintenance facility checked the aircraft,
identified and fixed the problem and released the aircraft to continue the
flight.

The aircraft reached London with a delay of 6 hours.

The Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) said the crew received an
indication the left hand recirculation fan had failed and noticed an electrical
odour. After declaring emergency the crew actioned the smoke removal checklist
and diverted to Goose Bay. Maintenance discovered the left recirculation
fan had failed and released the aircraft to service according to Minimum
Equipment List (MEL) requirements.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43758127
20110205195930:20110204000000
Incident: El Al B742 near Munich on Feb 4th 2011, smoke indication in cargo hold
An El Al Boeing 747-200, registration 4X-AXL performing freight flight LY-881
from Tel Aviv (Israel) to Liege (Belgium), diverted to Munich (Germany)
for a safe landing after the crew received a smoke alert for the forward
cargo hold. The aircraft landed safely, responding emergency services did
not find any trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airplane was able to continue the flight and reached Liege with a delay
of 6 hours.

4X-AXL during the stop in Munich (Photo: Aircraft Spotter):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43757830
20110205183905:20110203000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Kingston on Feb 3rd 2011, smoke alert
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, flight B6-1783 from Orlando,FL (USA) to Bogota
(Colombia) with 149 people on board, diverted to Kingston (Jamaica) following
a smoke alert for a safe landing.

The airplane was able to continue to Bogota reaching Bogota with a delay
of 4.5 hours and performed the return flight B6-1784 reaching Orlando with
a delay of 3 hours.

The airport reported the airplane diverted because of a cockpit indication
as result of a maintenance issue.

Jetblue later reported that the crew received a smoke alert and diverted
as a precaution although no smoke or smell could be observed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4372b1e1/0000
20121008113311:20110131000000
Incident: Singapore A388 near Singapore on Jan 31st 2011, burned wires in forward cargo hold
Singapore’s AAIB released their final report without including a formal
conclusion to the cause of the serious incident.

The AAIB reported in addition to the preliminary report, that a “ELEC GEN
1 FAULT” message had appeared during engine start for the flight from Singapore
to Hong Kong already. The Variable Frequency Generator (VFG) on the electric
generator was reset, the fault cleared and the aircraft departed.

During engine start in Hong Kong the fault message occurred again, but did
not clear upon resetting the VFG. The engines were shut down and the aircraft
towed back to the gate. Maintenance subsequently interchanged the generator
control units of engine #1 and APU, tests of both were subsequently satisfactory
and the aircraft was released to the flight with no fault message occurring
during engine start and departure.

About 45 minutes prior to estimated landing in Singapore the crew received
an ECAM message indicating smoke in lavatory LM35. At the same time the
purser was in the lavatory LM35 and heard a loud bang, the lights went out
in the lavatory and an electrical burning smell appeared. The purser asked
two flight attendants to take care of the lavatory while he reported the
occurrence to the flight crew. The flight attendants attempted to find any
source of heat but did not detect any heat. When the purser returned to
the lavatory he saw smoke coming from the base of the wall panel underneath
the sink but could not locate the source of the smoke. He discharged a fire
extinguisher towards the bottom of the wall panel. Smoke and smell cleared
about 10 minutes later. There was no further incident.

None of the 381 people on board were injured.

Maintenance found the feeder terminal block for VFG #1 in the forward cargo
compartment underneath lavatory LM35 damaged showing signs of burning as
well as on the feeder cables to that block and the insulation around the
block. The inner surface of the cover of the block did not show heat damage
but some soot. The lightning protection units (LPU) connected to the feeder
terminal block showed signs of melting. The burnt components were all replaced,
a functional test was concluded satisfactorily and the aircraft was dispatched
for a test flight. While the engines accelerated for the test flight on
Feb 20th 2011 however a ECAM message “ELEC GEN 1 FAULT” appeared again,
the takeoff was rejected.

During subsequent troubleshooting maintenance discovered the main excitation
cable was damaged. The cable had been installed since delivery of the aircraft,
no work had been performed on it since delivery.

Subsequent checks of the non-volatile memory of the generator control units
revealed that a peak amperage of 1511A had been reached with the over-current
protection logic inhibiting the output of the VFG with currents above 435A.

Failure analysis of the excitation cable identified the cable had been damaged
by arcing between the negative (blue) wire and the shield of the cable.

The LPUs, effectively Zener diodes, would permit any surges of voltage above
270V to flow to the electrical ground in order to protect damage to the
electrical system. The damage caused to the LPUs was identified as result
of excessive currents through the LPA.

The fire extinguishing agent discharged by the purser had not reached the
terminal block.

The AAIB analysed that there was a short circuit between negative wire and
shield of the excitation cable which caused voltage output by the VFG #1
to exceed the nominal 143 Vac. The over voltage protection logic however
did not trigger due to the negative wire’s voltage being above 19 Vdc. The
voltage continued to increase until the LPUs, designed to safe guard in
case of lightning strikes, conducted for longer than they were designed
for, which resulted in a short circuit between the feeder cables attached
to the terminal block and electric ground causing excessive currents through
the feeder cables. “The design of the lightning protection system was such
that it did not prevent the feeder cables from being shorted to the electrical
ground when excessive voltage is output by the VFG.”

The excessive current through the feeder cables overheated and damaged the
feeder block and the LPUs. Eventually the over-current protection triggered
and limited the damage.

The electrical arcing at the excitation cable suggests there may have been
a prior damage to the cable, this however could not be ascertained.

The AAIB further analysed: “The fire that damaged the feeder terminal block
had probably extinguished by itself but it remains a concern that there
is no sure way of detecting and extinguishing a fire in that area.”

2 safety recommendations were released each to Airbus and EASA as result
of the report recommending to review the design the lightning protection
system with regards to excessive voltage released by the VFG and review
the need of a fire detection and suppression system at the feeder block.

Immediate safety actions included the aircraft manufacturer issuing a notice
on Apr 4th 2011 disallowing resetting the generators in case of “ELEC GEN
x FAULT” messages. The generator control unit’s over-voltage protection
logic was redesigned.

The burnt terminal feeder block (Photo: SAAIB):
The burnt lightning protection units (Photo: SAAIB):
The damaged excitation cable (Photo: SAAIB):
Sketch of aircraft and locations (Graphics: SAAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4372b1e1
20120831140129:20110131000000
Incident: Singapore A388 near Singapore on Jan 31st 2011, burned wires in forward cargo hold
A Singapore Airlines Airbus A380-800, registration 9V-SKD performing flight
SQ-861 from Hong Kong (China) to Singapore (Singapore), was on the descent
towards Singapore when smell of smoke was observed in a lavatory. Cabin
crew discharged a halon fire extinguisher while the flight crew continued
for a safe landing in Singapore.

Singapore Airlines reported that ground crews later found evidence of burned
electrical wiring in the forward cargo hold. The airline and Airbus are
investigating.

On Feb 3rd Singapore Airlines reported that all their 11 Airbus A380-800s
were examined with no further findings of burned wiring. The burn marks
were found in the forward cargo hold underneath the lavatory, however there
was no fire.

The German BFU reported on Mar 11th that the smoke developed due to a short
circuit in the wires from a generator.

On Aug 31st 2012 Singapore’s AAIB released a preliminary brief report dated
Mar 28th 2012 stating, that a flight attendant heard a loud bang while he
was in a lavatory followed by electrical burning smell and smoke. The smoke
subsequently cleared and the aircraft continued for a normal landing. Post
flight examination revealed damage to the feeder terminal block and feeder
cables below the lavatory as well as damage to a cable controlling the output
of the #1 (outboard left hand) generator.

The AAIB reported all other aircraft of the operator were inspected with
no further damage found. While the investigation by Singapore’s AAIB is
ongoing, Airbus have reviewed operating procedures and is looking into improving
the protection logic of the controlling device of the electrical generator.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=437065fb
20110130135529:20110129000000
Incident: Singapore B773 near Singapore on Jan 29th 2011, smoke in cabin
A Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300, flight SQ-328 from Singapore (Singapore)
to Munich (Germany), returned to Singapore after smoke was seen in the cabin.
The airplane landed safely.

A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration 9V-SWN reached Munich with a delay
of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436ebe1d
20110217180725:20110127000000
News: Electrical fire in Gander Area Control Center on Jan 27th 2011
An electrical fire in the power supply room of Gander’s,NL (Canada) Area
Control Center caused the evacuation of air traffic controllers. Responding
local volunteer fire fighters found the power supply room filled with smoke,
the electrical fire had already gone out at that time.

The controllers had first noticed the failure of their radar screens that
went blank, and radioed about 200 flights in their area of responsibility
to maintain assigned altitudes, headings and speeds and to switch to alternate
frequencies by Moncton’s,NB (Canada) Area Control Center.

NAV Canada reported that about 40 minutes after the electrical failure and
evacuation Gander’s controllers were able to resume service using backup
facilities.

The Canadian TSB reported on Feb 17th that a commercial power supply failure
had occurred, which was to trigger the Uninterruptable Power Supplies (UPS)
to supply power from a battery backup, which then would start a generator
once online. The UPS however failed causing smoke and a power failure in
the control room. 4 low level domestic aircraft were cleared to return to
their point of origin, the Oceanic flights were instructed to remain on
their present routing and to contact Moncton or Montreal center when in
reach. The controllers were able to re-enter the building 40 minutes later.
The center was operational again 3:20 hours after the fire alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436d9915
20110127095604:20110126000000
Incident: Continental B737 at Newark on Jan 26th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Continental Boeing 737-700, registration N27733 performing flight CO-572
from Newark,NJ to Boston,MA (USA), was climbing out of Newark’s runway 04L
when the crew donned their oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cockpit and requested an immediate return. The airplane levelled
off at 3000 feet, the crew reported the smoke seemed to subside. The crew
landed safely back on runway 04R, released the emergency services and taxied
to the gate.

Another Continental Boeing had a similiar occurrence about 6 hours prior
to this, see Incident: Continental B739 at Newark on Jan 26th 2011, smoke
in cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436d1960
20110126194736:20110126000000
Incident: Continental B739 at Newark on Jan 26th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Continental Airlines Boeing 737-900, registration N38423 performing flight
CO-1626 from Newark,NJ to San Diego,CA (USA) with 136 people on board, was
in the initial climb out of Newark’s runway 04L when smoke became visible
in the aircraft prompting the crew to don their oxygen masks, declare emergency
reporting smoke in the cockpit, level off at 3000 feet and return to Newark.
The crew removed the oxygen masks, requested a long final and proceeded
for a safe landing on runway 04L about 15 minutes after departure vacating
the runway without requesting any further assistance by emergency services.

The crew told passengers they suspected the smoke was related to the de-icing
procedure performed before takeoff.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436daf4a
20110127123042:20110125000000
Incident: Air France B772 at Montreal and near Gander on Jan 25th 2011, rejected takeoff, then smell of smoke on board
An Air France Boeing 777-200, registration F-GSPV performing flight AF-345
from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France), rejected
takeoff from Montreal’s runway 24R at low speed due to a programming error
of the flight management system and subsequently vacated the runway at taxiway
B2 about 2200 meters/7500 feet down the runway.

The airplane departed again about 2:10 hours later and was enroute at FL380
about 220nm northeast of Gander,NL (Canada) when the crew reported smell
of smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Montreal. The airplane
landed safely in Montreal again about 4.5 hours after departure.

The flight was subsequently cancelled.

NAV Canada reported the crew rejected takeoff because of a programming error.

Air France said, a minor computer error causing a technical alert prompted
the crew to reject takeoff at low speed following. After the departure the
crew noticed an unusual smell of smoke caused by a faulty fan prompting
them to return to Montreal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436ca75a
20110126080020:20110125000000
Incident: World Atlantic MD83 near Albany on Jan 25th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A World Atlantic Airways McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration N802WA performing
charter flight WAL-825 from Springfield,MA to Bradford,PA (USA) with 32
passengers (the men’s basketball team of the University of Massachusetts)
and 7 crew, was climbing through FL230 out of Springfield when the crew
declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert
to Albany,NY. On approach the crew reported the smoke was dissipating, a
short time later they advised the smoke was returning, during final approach
the crew reported the smoke had again dissipated with just smell of smoke
remaining, no smoke had been observed in the cabin, they would advise after
landing whether an evacuation would be necessary. The crew continued for
a safe landing on Albany’s runway 01 about 30 minutes after departure from
Springfield’s Westover Metro Airport and taxied to the apron.

A replacement Sky King Boeing 737-200 performing flight F3-9772 reached
Bradford with a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436b208c
20110124140652:20110124000000
Incident: Farnair AT72 at Cologne on Jan 24th 2011, rejected takeoff
The crew of a Farnair Switzerland Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-200
on behalf of UPS, freight flight FAT-6992 from Cologne (Germany) to Katowice
(Poland), rejected takeoff from Cologne when the crew noticed white smoke
from the cargo area and almost simultaneously fire alerts activated. The
airplane slowed safely, responding emergency services found no trace of
fire or heat leading to the suspicion that de-icing fluid had entered the
air conditioning system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436a2725
20110123114247:20110122000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Oakland on Jan 22nd 2011, wheel well fire indication
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-450 from San Francisco,CA
to Chicago Midway,IL (USA), was climbing through FL210 when the crew declared
emergency reporting a wheel well fire indication on the right main gear
and decided to divert to Oakland,CA. While on approach to Oakland’s runway
29 tower reported it appeared there was no smoke. The crew advised would
stop on the runway waiting for fire service to check the wheel well and
decide whether to evacuate or not upon their feedback. The airplane landed
safely, fire services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The airplane
taxied to the apron about 5 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4392b33f
20110311140759:20110121000000
Accident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Jan 21st 2011, burning smell on board
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWL performing flight 4U-238
from Cologne to Friedrichshafen (Germany), was climbing out of Cologne when
a strong smell of burning electrics was noticed on board however no smoke
became visible. The crew levelled off at FL270 and decided to return to
Cologne for a safe landing about 35 minutes after departure.

Germany’s Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU) reported, that
the smell led to dizziness, tickles on both hands and feet, racing hearts
and nausea. The flight crew donned their oxygen masks and returned to Cologne.
Two flight attendants complained about nausea and headaches. A medical check
after landing did not reveal any results.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration D-AGWO reached Friedrichshafen
with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4368067e
20110120145008:20110119000000
Incident: Austral MD83 near Rio Gallegos on Jan 19th 2011, engine shut down in flight
An Austral McDonnell Douglas MD-83 on behalf of Aerolineas Argentinas, registration
LV-BEG performing flight AU-2895/AR-2895 from El Calafate,SC to Ushuaia,TF
(Argentina), had just departed El Calafate when the crew reported they needed
to shut an engine (JT8D) down. The aircraft diverted to Rio Gallegos,SC,
about 140nm southeast of El Calafate, for a safe landing.

Police at Rio Gallegos said, the pilot had reported an engine fire indication.

Passengers reported they saw no fire or smoke and became aware of a problem
only after landing when emergency services approached the aircraft. They
were later told of a mechanical malfunction.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436845e1
20110120214701:20110118000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 at Montreal on Jan 18th 2011, smell of glycol and smoke
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-GBHY performing flight AC-423
from Montreal,QC to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 58 people on board, was in
the initial climb when cabin crew advised of smoke with a smell of glycol
in the cabin. The flight crew levelled off at 4000 feet and returned to
Montreal for a safe landing on runway 24R about 13 minutes after departure.
The airplane stopped on the runway, opened the cabin doors to vent the smoke
and subsequently taxied to the apron.

The Canadian TSB reported, that maintenance found no anomaly with the aircraft
and engines. They performed an engine wash on both engines, replaced the
filter circulation fans and returned the aircraft to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43670de7
20110119122517:20110118000000
Incident: ExpressJet E145 at Manchester on Jan 18th 2011, smoke on board
An ExpressJet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration
N15555 performing flight XE-2190/CO-2190 from Manchester,NH to Newark,NJ
(USA) with 44 passengers and 3 crew, was climbing through 3000 feet out
of Manchester when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the lavatory
and requested to return to Manchester, upon suggestion of alternatives the
crew decided to divert to Boston. The crew levelled at 6000 feet, reported
on the way that the smoke was dissipating after a smoke detector in a lavatory
went off, they believed de-icing fluid had entered the engine. They performed
a safe landing on Boston’s runway 04R about 22 minutes after departure from
Manchester.

A passenger reported smoke was visible throughout the cabin, a short time
later some fluid started dripping off the cabin ceiling.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=436593dd
20110118174732:20110117000000
Accident: Kestrel CVLP at St. Thomas on Jan 17th 2011, engine fire, veered off runway on landing
A Kestrel Convair C-131F, registration N8277Q performing a freight flight
from St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) to unknown destination with 2 crew,
departed St. Thomas’ runway 28 and was in the initial climb around 07:47L
(11:47Z) when the tower observed smoke from the left hand engine (P&W R-2800).
The crew declared emergency reporting an engine fire and loss of hydraulics
and initiated a return to St. Thomas’ runway 10, where the aircraft touched
down but could not slow. The airplane veered right off the runway, broke
through the airport fence and came to a stop on a public road parallel to
the runway (actually the airport access road). No injuries occurred, the
airplane received substantial damage.

The airport was closed for several hours.

The FAA reported the aircraft went off the runway and received substantial
damage.

Metars:
TIST 171253Z AUTO 10010KT 10SM CLR 26/21 A3003 RMK AO2 SLP171 T02560211
TSNO
TIST 171153Z AUTO 10008KT 10SM CLR 24/21 A3001 RMK AO2 SLP163 60000 70006
T02440211 10244 20228 53013 TSNO
TIST 171053Z AUTO 09006KT 10SM CLR 23/21 A3000 RMK AO2 SLP158 T02280206
TSNO
TIST 170953Z AUTO 10009KT 10SM CLR 23/21 A2998 RMK AO2 SLP153 T02330211
TSNO
TIST 170853Z AUTO 09007KT 10SM OVC060 24/21 A2997 RMK AO2 SLP150 60000 T02390211
55002 TSNO
TIST 170753Z AUTO 09006KT 10SM OVC065 23/21 A2996 RMK AO2 RAB0655E13 SLP145
P0000 T02280211 TSNO
TIST 170653Z AUTO 08007KT 8SM SCT046 BKN055 24/22 A2997 RMK AO2 SLP149 T02390222
TSNO

Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43649e74
20110116135540:20110116000000
Incident: Kingfisher AT72 at Bangalore on Jan 16th 2011, engine fire indication
A Kingfisher Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-500, registration VT-KAP
performing flight IT-4817 from Bangalore to Hyderabad (India) with 27 passengers
and 5 crew, was in the initial climb out of Bangalore when the crew received
a fire indication for the right hand engine, shut the engine down and returned
to Bangalore for a safe landing about 10 minutes after departure. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The cause of the indication is currently under investigation.

A replacement aircraft reached Hyderabad with a delay of 7.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4364dd4a
20110121224424:20110115000000
Incident: Cathay Pacific B773 at Vancouver on Jan 15th 2011, odour on board prompts two returns
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300, registration B-KPH performing flight CX-888
from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 184 people on board,
was climbing out of Vancouver’s 08R when a smell of smoke was detected on
board prompting the flight crew to level off at 9000 feet and return to
Vancouver for a safe landing on runway 08R about 25 minutes after departure.

The aircraft was examined and released for flight again. The aircraft departed
a second time from runway 08R after about 110 minutes on the ground, however
the smell was observed again prompting the crew to level off at 10000 feet
and return a second time again landing safely on runway 08R about 20 minutes
after second departure.

The flight was subsequently cancelled.

The airline confirmed there was a strong odour on board prompting the first
return. The aircraft departed again however the smell was still detected
in the cabin prompting the second return. Emergency services were on stand
by for both landings. The flight was cancelled, the passengers put into
hotels. The aircraft is currently being examined, the Canadian Transportation
Safety Board is expected to investigate.

The Canadian TSB reported on Jan 21st that maintenance could not determine
the source of the smell of burning plastics observed on board. The aircraft
was released to flight again, but returned a second time when the smell
of burning plastics re-appeared. Maintenance again could not determine the
source of the smell. The airplane was subsequently released for a ferry
flight to New York with an engineering manager on board to observe.

The second return (first return not available on flightaware):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4362540e
20110113193529:20110112000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Raleigh/Durham on Jan 12th 2011, smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-2771 from Baltimore,MD to
Jackson,MS (USA) with 46 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL400 about
110nm north of Raleigh/Durham,NC when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
and decided to divert to Raleigh/Durham. The airplane landed safely in Raleigh/Durham
about 20 minutes later and taxied directly to the apron. No traces of fire,
heat or smoke were discovered.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Jackson with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4361825d
20110113200332:20110112000000
Incident: TAP A319 near Lisbon on Jan 12th 2011, smell of smoke
A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A319-100, registration CS-TTG performing flight
TP-570 from Lisbon (Portugal) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), was enroute at
FL330 about 130nm northeast of Lisbon when the crew decided to return to
Lisbon due to some technical problem. The airplane landed safely on Lisbon’s
runway 21 about about 20 minutes later.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration CS-TTJ reached Frankfurt with
a delay of 3 hours.

An electrical problem was identified in the oven of the forward galley,
the oven had produced a smell of smoke in the forward galley.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43618080
20110112190401:20110112000000
Incident: Windjet A320 near Catania on Jan 12th 2011, brakes problem
A Windjet Airbus A320-200, registration EI-DFO performing flight IV-583
from Forli to Catania (Italy) with 47 passengers, was on approach to Catania
when the crew reported an auto-brakes indication and went around. The crew
subsequently performed a safe landing applying brakes manually, during the
roll out smoke was seen from the right hand main landing gear. The aircraft
vacated the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway, where emergency
services cooled the brakes down.

The airplane was repaired and resumed service about 8 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4360ca43
20110111204829:20110111000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Kansas City on Jan 11th 2011, smell of smoke on board
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N625SW performing flight
WN-144 from Kansas City,MO to Orlando,FL (USA) with 142 people on board,
was climbing through FL250 out of Kansas City when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit and decided to return to Kansas City for a safe landing on
runway 27 about 40 minutes after departure and taxied to the apron.

The cause of the smell of smoke on board is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4360a379
20110111161843:20110111000000
Incident: Danish Air Transport AT42 near Bergen on Jan 11th 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Danish Air Transport Avions de Transport Regional ATR-42-300, flight DX-54
from Bergen to Floro (Norway), returned to Bergen after smell of smoke was
noticed in the cabin. The airplane landed safely about 20 minutes after
departure.

The airline said, a short circuit in one of the passenger reading lights
is suspected to have caused the odour. The incident was undramatic.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435d586f
20110107135824:20110107000000
Incident: Fedex MD11 at Mumbai on Jan 7th 2011, cargo fire indication
A Federal Express McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration N613FE performing
freight flight FX-5034 from Mumbai (India) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates)
with 2 crew, was climbing out of Mumbai when the crew received a cargo fire
indication and decided to return to Mumbai for a safe landing about 40 minutes
after departure. Responding emergency services found no trace of fire, heat
or smoke.

After a thorough check the aircraft was released for flight again and reached
Dubai with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44fe403b
20120521150546:20110106000000
Report: Easyjet A319 at Belfast on Jan 6th 2011, taxiway de-icing prompts evacuation
An Easyjet Airbus A319-100, registration G-EZFI performing flight U2-615
from Liverpool,EN to Belfast International,NI (UK) with 46 passengers and
6 crew, had safely landed on Belfast’s runway 25 and was vacating the runway
via taxiway D when smoke of brown to black colour appeared throughout the
cabin reducing visibility in the cabin combined with smell like electrical
burning or bonfire and intensified. The flight crew stopped the aircraft
and initiated the evacuation of the aircraft. One passenger received minor
injuries in the evacuation.

The AAIB released their bulletin reporting taxiways and runways at Belfast
had been treated with potassium acetate and urea during the day, this however
had not been communicated to the crew.

The captain (39, ATPL, 8,408 hours total, 2,892 hours on type) was pilot
flying, after touchdown on runway 25 the captain applied idle reverse. During
the roll out the tower instructed the crew to continue roll to the end of
the runway and vacate via taxiway D as runway 35 was temporarily blocked
and asked to keep the speed up. The aircraft was thus the first to use taxiway
D after some time. Idle Reverse remained selected while the aircraft turned
onto taxiway D about 270 meters into the taxiway, the captain brough the
thrust levers from idle revers to revers. At that time smoke of brown to
black colour associated with a smell of electrical burning or bonfire had
already begun to emanate from the overhead vents along the cabin prompting
cabin crew to prepare to don their oxygen masks and goggles and to call
the flight deck, where the first officer received the call. After advising
the captain of the smoke reported in the cabin the captain also selected
the service interphone on his audio panel and heard the next call by cabin
crew suggesting they needed to evacuate as the smoke intensified.

The captain brought the aircraft to an abrupt stop, the captain ordered
the evacuation checklist to be actioned, the first officer declared emergency
and advised they were evacuating, however had not selected the radio on
his audio panel so that this call was actually transmitted on the service
interphone and did not reach air traffic control.

In the meantime the purser had instructed the passengers to unfasten their
seat belts and get out, however, the purser did not engage the evacuation
alert, cabin crew began to open the doors. Upon hearing the doors got opened
the captain, concerned passengers might be endangered by the still running
engines, shut both engines down causing both generators to drop offline
which extinguished all lighting on the flight deck. Flight crew found it
impossible to read the evacuation checklist that way, some of the items
were carried out from memory and by touch, the fire handles were pulled
and the fire agents discharged.

When tower called with further taxi instructions the captain advised they
were evacuating. At this point tower became aware of the evacuation and
alerted emergency services.

Doors 1L and 1R were opened, both slides deployed and the passengers slided
down. Upon hearing the forward doors were opened the rear flight attendants
donned their smoke hoods, opened doors 2L and 2R as well, slide 2L deployed
but the flight attendant at 2R only saw pitch black and could not determine
whether the slide had properly deployed. The flgiht attendant at 2R thus
blocked door 2R and began to divert passengers to door 2L.

By the time emergency services arrived at the aircraft all occupants had
already left the aircraft and the commander using a torch had called all
passengers around him.

Emergency services entered the aircraft but were unable to establish any
source of fire or heat using thermal imaging.

One female passenger reported back pain and bruises recalling a female passenger
wearing her high heel shoes had pushed onto her while sliding down the chute.

The AAIB analysed that no faults were found on the aircraft. Both potassium
acetate and urea were most probably the source of the smoke/fumes and most
likely had been ingested by the engines during prolonged use of reverse
thrust along taxiway D, passed through the air conditioning system and entereed
the cabin through the overhead vents.

The AAIB highlighted that the cabin crew was in contact with the flight
deck, there was no catastrophic situation requiring immediate evacuation,
the engines were still running, so that the purser should have waited for
the commander to initiate the evacuation. The AAIB also annotated cabin
crew could have been more effective in communicating the smoke to the flight
deck by using the emergency call to the flight deck rather than doing a
normal call. The first officer’s response “OKAY” to the reported smoke and
“We need to evacuate” was ambiguous and could be interpreted as agreement
with the proposal of evacuating.

As result of the evacuation and the sudden engine shutdown all lights extinguished
on the flight deck, the right dome light however would have remained available
to the flight crew but would have needed to manually selected on. The AAIB
analysed that the sudden engine shutdown was appropriate and minimised the
hazard to passengers.

The evacuation checklist would have properly configured the aircraft first
and then required the shut down of the engines.

Map (Graphics: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435cceca
20110106213638:20110106000000
Incident: Continental B737 near El Paso on Jan 6th 2011, smell of smoke
A Continental Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N15712 from Santa Ana,CA
to Houston Intercontinental,TX (USA) with 127 people on board, was enroute
at FL370 about 35nm westnorthwest of El Paso,TX when the crew reported smell
of smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to El Paso for a safe landing
on El Paso’s runway 22 about 15 minutes later. Responding emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The cause of the odour is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435c5cd8
20110106080651:20110105000000
Incident: Cayman B733 near Grand Cayman on Jan 5th 2011, smell of smoke on board
A Cayman Airways Boeing 737-300, registration VP-CAY performing flight KX-113
from Miami,FL (USA) to Grand Cayman Island (Cayman Islands), was enroute
overhead Cuba about half way into the flight when a smell of smoke developed
on board. The crew accelerated the approach and landing into Grand Cayman’s
Owen Roberts International Airport, landed safely and taxied to the gate,
where passengers disembarked normally.

The airline said, that the crew elected to begin the descent into Grand
Cayman early after the smell of smoke developed on board. Maintenance identified
a ventilation fan that had developed a defect resulting in the odour. The
fan was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435a8152
20110103221449:20110103000000
Incident: Air Iceland F50 at Bergen on Jan 3rd 2011, cargo fire indication
An Air Iceland Fokker 50, registration TF-JMT performing flight NY-212 from
Reykjavik (Iceland) to Bergen (Norway) with 45 people, was on approach to
Bergen when the crew reported a cargo fire indication. The airplane continued
for a safe landing about 4 minutes later and was evacuated. Responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the cause of the indication is under investigation.

Passengers reported the smell of burnt cookies in the cabin on approach
to Bergen.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435a7b02
20110103212919:20110103000000
Incident: United Airlines A320 near Denver on Jan 3rd 2011, odour on board
A United Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N487UA performing flight
UA-243 from Denver,CO to Las Vegas,NV (USA) with 144 passengers and 5 crew,
was climbing out of Denver about 60nm into the flight when an unusual odour
was observed in the cockpit and cabin of the aircraft. The crew decided
to return to Denver for a safe landing about 30 minutes after departure.

A replacement aircraft reached Las Vegas with a delay of 2.5 hours.

The FAA reported a smell of smoke.

The airline reported an unusual odour but did not confirm smell of smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435a1659
20110103090558:20110101000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ7 at Tucson on Jan 1st 2011, smell of smoke in cabin
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United Airlines, flight OO-6448/UA-6448
from Tucson,AZ to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was climbing through FL220 out of
Tucscon when a smell of electrical smoke was observed on board of the aircraft.
The crew decided to return to Tucscon for a safe landing about 20 minutes
after departure.

The flight was cancelled. The cause of the smell is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4358a6d0/0002
20110928152009:20110101000000
Accident: Kolavia T154 at Surgut on Jan 1st 2011, aircraft burned down
Russia’s Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) released their final report
in Russian concluding the probable cause of the accident was:

The outbreak of fire in the right generator panel located between frames
62 and 64 in the cabin. The cause of the fire was an electrical arc produced
by electrical currents exceeding 10 to 20 times the nominal loads when two
generators not synchronised with each other were brought online but got
connected together instead of being connected to parallel busses.

The unsynchronised operation of the generators can be attributed to:

– poor technical conditions of contacts TKS233DOD responsible for connecting
the generators with the electrical busses, that were damaged by prolonged
operation without maintenance. A contact normally open was welded and fractured
insulation material moved between contacts that are normally closed. These
abnormal contact positions led to the connection between #2 and #3 generators.

– Differences in the schematic diagrams of generator 2 and generators 1
and 3. When the switch is moved from “check” to “enable” with no delay in
the “neutral” position generator 2 is brought online without time delay
which leads to increased wear of normally closed contacts in the TKS233DOD
unit.

– The specific design of the electrical systems to ensure power supply to
each bus from either the APU or either engine integrated drive generator.

The MAK reported that the crew had started the engines in the order left,
tail mounted and right hand engine. After engines #1 (left) and #2 (tail
mounted) had started, the push back for departure commenced while the crew
started engine #3. After all 3 engines had stabilized at idle power, the
crew brought the generators online which started the fire. A ground engineer
observing the outbreak of fire began to wildly gesticulate to signal the
engines should be shut down. About a minute later a flight attendant observed
fire and called the cockpit, after which the flight engineer shut the engines
down, went to the passenger cabin and opened the left main door releasing
the evacuation slide then returned to the cockpit and shut the APU down.
Cabin crew did not use fire extinguishers or showed other fire fighting
efforts. The flight engineer subsequently attempted to de-energize the electrical
busses but could not see anything anymore due to thick black smoke. The
navigator attempted to go to the cabin but was blocked by the flow of passengers
to the forward main door. Helping passengers in the evacuation he managed
to leave the aircraft. Captain, first officer and flight engineer remained
trapped in the cockpit and were able to leave the cockpit only after the
passenger stream decreased. Flight engineer and first officer left the cockpit
crawling on all 4 and went down the slide, the captain also crawling on
all four went to the first forward passenger compartment, then also left
the aircraft via the slide.

2 adult passengers and 1 child died in the accident, 27 passengers and 5
crew received serious injuries, 22 passengers and 3 crew received minor
injuries, 74 passengers remained uninjured. The aircraft burned nearly completey
down, two segments of the left wing and the fuselage aft of frame 67 remained.

The MAK analysed that the fire started at 10:00:36L or 10:00:37L, the onboard
recorders stopped recording at 10:01:31L most likely due to failure of power
supply. At 10:01:50L the crew radioed “fire on board”. At 10:01L the evacuation
of passengers was initiated, of the 10 emergency exits of the aircraft 8
were opened including the right hand rear exit at engine #3 and another
right hand exit. At 10:02L tower called the trucks out, at 10:04L the first
fire engines arrived and began to foam the aircraft however from quite some
distance because the trucks could not drive closer due to evacuees around
the aircraft, followed by a number of more airport and local fire engines.
At 10:18L the aircraft was completely ablaze, burning Kerosene covered the
ground of about 1000 square meters (about 10,000 square feet). At 10:20L
two other aircraft parked nearby were towed away to safety, 12 medical teams
with 5 emergency doctors teams arrived on scene. At 10:31L the aircraft
is completely destroyed, at 10:40L the fire is contained and at 10:46L extinguished.

The MAK analysed due to the short circuit created between the two generators
of engine #2 and #3, that were not running in synchronisation but connected
to each other a current in excess of 170A was produced while voltage dropped
from 230V to about 175V within 4 seconds.

The technical analysis of the switchboard controlling the electrical system
was hampered by the fire and heat damage the boards received during the
fire. The MAK however was able to identify that all contacts were in a generally
poor condition prior to the fire, a contact normally open was welded closed
due to arcing while fractured insulation material had moved between contacts
normally closed.

The MAK determined that there were no regulations concerning maintenance
or maintenance intervals of the TKS233DOD unit. The MAK however identified
deficiencies in maintenance documentation regarding APU maintenance.

A number of safety recommendations to the aircraft manufacturer, the airline
and Russia’s Rosaviatsia (Civil Aviation Authority) were released as result
of the report.

The remains of the aircraft (Photos: MAK):
The electric path causing the fire (Graphics: MAK):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4358a6d0
20110107152356:20110101000000
Accident: Kolavia T154 at Surgut on Jan 1st 2011, aircraft burned down
A Kolavia Tupolev TU-154B2, registration RA-85588 performing flight 7K-348
from Surgut to Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) with 116 passengers, 8 crew and
10 off duty crew, was preparing for takeoff from Surgut and had just been
pushed back when a fire broke out. The crew could not extinguish the fire
which spread into the fuselage. The airplane was evacuated. Three passengers
were killed, 43 people received injuries with 39 of them being hospitalized,
the others remained uninjured. The aircraft burned down completely.

The Russian Health Ministry reported on Jan 1st one person was killed and
34 people were hospitalized, 4 of them being in critical condition.

Russia’s MAK (Accident Investigation Committee) confirmed RA-85588 suffered
an accident at Surgut killing one passenger, the aircraft burned down. The
MAK have initiated an investigation. On Jan 2nd the MAK added, that both
flight data recorders have been recovered, analysis has begun. On Jan 3rd
the MAK said, that all three engines had been started when the fire broke
out. The quality of recordings is good, the work at the accident site is
hampered by low temperatures however. On Jan 4th the MAK reported, that
the fire broke out in the rear of the aircraft between frames 62 and 65,
neither engines nor the APU were the source of the fire.

Russia’s Rosaviatsia (Civil Aviation Authority) said, that the engine caught
fire when the airplane was preparing for takeoff. Fire fighters were able
to extinguish the fire within 20 minutes but not before the airpane completely
burned down.

Russia’s Rostransnadzor (Ministry of Transport) said on Jan 1st, the airplane
had just been pushed back, the engines were being started when ground staff
ordered an emergency shut down of the engines due to a fire. The engines
were shut down, the airplane de-powered and an evacuation was initiated.
The fire reached the inside of the passenger cabin. Emergency services were
able to extinguish the fire about 42 minutes after the fire broke out. The
airplane was destroyed. 3 people were killed, 39 people were injured. The
Ministry have initiated an investigation in cooperation with the Russian
prosecution office. On Jan 2nd the Ministry added, that after the assessment
of risk vs economics involving the continued operation of the 15 TU-154B
types remaining in service in Russia the Ministry have proposed to suspend
operation of TU-154B aircraft until the factors leading to the accident
have been determined.

The airline reported in a press release dated Jan 2nd, that 43 people including
8 crew members were hospitalized with burns of first and second degree as
well as injuries from smoke inhalation. Three persons have not been located
so far. The airplane carrying 116 passengers, 8 crew and 10 off duty crew
was taxiing out for departure at the time and burned completely down.

Local Authorities in Surgut confirmed one fatality on Jan 2nd and reported
two passengers (a father and son) missing. On Jan 6th Authorities confirmed,
that the remains of three passengers have been recovered.

One of the pilots reported, that they had started the engines and were just
connecting the generators when they received the command to shut down. Passengers
started to shout “fire”, almost instantly smoke came through all openings
into the cockpit.

Passengers reported, that people in the last seat row started to shout fire,
then smoke quickly entered the cabin followed by actual fire that rapidly
spread through the cabin along the ceiling.

An airport surveillance video shows no fire or smoke visible outside the
aircraft when all left hand emergency exits flew open and passengers emerged
onto the wing, slided down the front and aft door where the chutes had deployed
and jumped down from the L2 door where the side had not deployed (right
side of aircraft not visible).

Ground video of the burning aircraft (Video: AlfaZlo):
The burnt down aircraft:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43681b3c
20110120170254:20101231000000
Incident: United Airlines A320 at Denver on Dec 31st 2010, smoke on board
A United Airlines Airbus A320-200, flight UA-283 from Denver,CO to San Diego,CA
(USA), was climbing out of Denver when the crew reported visible smoke in
the cabin as well as cargo and lavatory fire alerts. The aircraft returned
to Denver for a safe landing on runway 07 about 10 minutes after departure.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration N428UA reached San Diego with
a delay of 3.5 hours.

The cause of the smoke was determined to be oil that entered the air conditioning
system following an APU failure earlier the day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4355f5fb
20101229100922:20101229000000
Incident: Egypt Air B738 at Mumbai on Dec 29th 2010, cargo fire indication
An Egypt Air Boeing 737-800, registration SU-GCR performing flight MS-968
(dep Dec 28th) from Cairo (Egypt) to Mumbai (India) with 124 passengers
and 7 crew, was on final approach to Mumbai when the crew reported a cargo
fire indication. The airplane landed safely about 2 minutes later, responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The airplane subsequently
taxied to the gate where passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=435579d4
20101228194616:20101227000000
Incident: Webjet B733 near Ribeirao Preto on Dec 27th 2010, cargo fire indication
A Webjet Boeing 737-300, flight WH-5722 from Ribeirao Preto,SP to Curitiba,PR
(Brazil), was about 20 minutes into the flight when the crew received a
cargo fire indication and returned to Ribeirao Preto for a safe landing.
No traces of fire or smoke were detected.

However, ground personnel found a box containing hot Pamonhas (Brazilian
food, according to Wikipedia “a paste made from corn and milk, boiled wrapped
in corn husks”) in very close proximity to the sensor, which had caused
the sensor to overheat. The cargo compartment was emptied and the flight
departed again after 30 minutes on the ground.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4352e55a
20101225162323:20101224000000
Incident: Kuwait A343 near Muscat on Dec 24th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Kuwait Airways Airbus A340-300, registration 9K-ANA performing flight
KU-416 from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Kuwait (Kuwait), was enroute near
Muscat (Oman) when smoke began to appear from underneath a passenger seat.
The crew diverted to Muscat for a safe landing.

The airline said technicians examined the aircraft and power cords, identified
a technical glitch and repaired the aircraft, however due to crew duty time
limitations the flight had to be rescheduled.

The aircraft was able to continue the flight after 17 hours on the ground
in Muscat and reached Kuwait with a total delay of 17.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43567a70
20101230001811:20101223000000
Incident: Air Canada B773 enroute on Dec 23rd 2010, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Boeing 777-300, registration C-FIVM performing flight AC-7
from Toronto,ON to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 360 people on board, was enroute
when smoke began to emanate from underneath passenger seat 63E. Cabin crew
removed the seat cushion and identified the source of the smoke to be an
inflight entertainment electrical box. The power to the inflight entertainment
system was turned off and two fire extinguishers discharged. The smoke dissipated
so that the crew decided to continue the flight to Vancouver for a safe
landing about 2 hours later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that no emergency was declared. Maintenance is
investigating.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434f6da7/0000
20120229192031:20101221000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 at Kerry on Dec 21st 2010, smoke during roll out
The Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) released their final report
concluding the probable cause of the occurrence was:

Ingestion of granular urea while using reverse thrust.

Contributory Factor(s)

A prolonged spell of cold weather resulted in granular urea being used to
anti-ice the runway after normal de-icing fluid stocks had been exhausted.

The newly assigned first officer (CPL, 322 hours total, 2.5 hours on type)
was pilot flying on his first flight with passengers, the captain (ATPL,
13,000 hours total, 6,100 hours on type) was pilot monitoring also holding
an instructors rating, a safety pilot (ATPL, 2,600 hours total, 2,300 hours
on type) occupied the observer’s seat.

The crew had been advised on approach, that the runway was dry and had been
cleared to land on runway 26. Slowing through 60 knots the captain took
control of the aircraft in compliance with company standard operating procedures.
When the aircraft slowed through 50 knots the safety pilot reported smoke
at the right hand side of the cockpit followed by a call from the cabin
supervisor when the aircraft turned off the runway that there was smoke
in the cabin too.

The captain observed the smoke to thicken and instructed the first officer
to don his oxygen mask. Following the call from the cabin the captain instructed
the safety pilot to open the cockpit door to view the cabin and could not
see the back of the cabin due to “grey/blue slightly acrid smoke”. He decided
to immediately evacuate the aircraft, shut down the engines without starting
the APU and invoked the evacuation procedures.

The safety pilot called PAN to ATC, emergency services responded promptly.
Cabin crew commenced evacuation through all exits upon hearing the captain’s
instruction via PA, one passenger however was unable to open the overwing
exit which therefore was not used for evacuation. A good number of passengers
took along their carry on items, it was difficult to control them without
disrupting the evacuation flow.

The AAIU reported no injuries occurred.

The AAIU reported that the month prior to the event it had been unusually
cold depleting the supplies of runway de-icing fluid at the airport. As
snow was expected to fall during the day, the airport therefore had used
an alternative to keep the runway free of ice, urea granulates.

Urea granulates are colourless, odourless with a melting point of 132.7
degrees C. The AAIU collected samples of the urea granulate from the runway
and heated them using hot air. The granulate initialted melted to a clear
fluid, which subsequently began to boil releasing a pungent and acrid smell
and some grey hue. The AAIU annotated that ammonia was being released upon
contact with the water vapour in the air).

The AAIU reported that a similiar incident had occurred on another Ryanair
airframe upon arrival in Girona. The cause of that event could not be clarified.

The AAIU analysed, that although snow fall was expected during the day and
the runway had been prepared with granular urea, there had been no snow.
As a result the urea had not dissolved and remained in granular form on
the runway, which remained bare and clear of snow.

Revserse thrust was used after touchdown, it was therefore probable that
urea was lifted from the runway and ingested into the engines, where the
urea rapidly heated by the engine compression before being dispensed through
flight deck and cabin by the air conditioning system.

The AAIU analysed: “The first priority is the safety of passengers and crew;
if they can be evacuated safely it is critical that this is done as soon
as possible. Therefore when faced with acrid smoke in both the cockpit and
cabin from an unknown source and possibly a fire, the Commander correctly
decided to shut the engines down and order an evacuation.”

While urea was commonly used on runway and taxiways in history it is currently
rarely used so that flight crews affected for the first time by urea won’t
recognize its fumes and smell. The AAIU therefore issued a safety recommendation
to advise flight crew accordingly when urea is being used on run- or taxiways.

An additional safety recommendation was issued regarding the cockpit voice
recorder continuing recording for 10 minutes even after power failure, a
third safety recommendation addressed ICAO to examine the issue of passengers
taking their carry on items along during an evacuation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434f6da7
20120229192108:20101221000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 at Kerry on Dec 21st 2010, smoke during roll out
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-ENB performing flight FR-701 from
London Stansted,EN (UK) to Kerry (Ireland) with approx. 160 passengers,
had just landed at Kerry and was taxiing to the gate, when fumes were observed
in the cockpit prompting the crew to stop and initiate an evacuation via
slides. Two passengers received injuries in the evacuation and were treated
at the airport.

Ireland’s Air Accident Investigation Unit AAIU is monitoring the scenario
to decide whether to initiate an investigation, a report by mechanics is
expected to clarify whether there was an issue with the aircraft or whether
perhaps de-icing fluid had been ingested from the de-icing facility at Kerry.

Ryanair confirmed the occurrence saying it was a precautionary evacuation.
Engineers are currently examining the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434f6ab6
20101221134235:20101221000000
Incident: Tristar Air A30B at Bahrain on Dec 21st 2010, rejected takeoff
A Tristar Air Airbus A300-B4 on behalf of DHL Bahrain, registration SU-BMZ
performing freight flight DHX-521 from Bahrain (Bahrain) to Bagram Air Base
(Afghanistan), rejected takeoff from Bahrain at low speed following a configuration
alert. The airplane slowed safely with main wheel #6 sending some “smoke
signals”, vacated the runway, waited for the brakes to cool down and successfully
departed about one hour later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434e753b/0019
20131205110836:20101219000000
Accident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Dec 19th 2010, smoke in cockpit, both pilots nearly incapacitated
The German BFU released their final report concluding the probable cause
of the accident was:

The health impairments of both pilots combined with a significant limitation
of the capability to perform which had occurred during the approach were
very likely caused by:

– Massive development of smell in the cockpit area whose origin and spread
could not be determined.

Contributing factors could have been:

– Physiological and psychological effects of the smell on both crew members

The BFU added, that no smell was noticed in the cabin.

The BFU therefore analysed that scenarios like oil leakage in engines, APU
or hydraulic systems, cockpit contamination by TCP, supply of contaminated
air from the outside, contamination with insecticides, de-icing fluid, use
of dry-ice, carbon-monoxide, rain repellent or some sort of disease were
unlikely, stating that scenario involving toxic substances like tricresylphosphate
and its isomers, n-phenyl-l-naphthylamine and carbon-monoxide had been looked
into, however, with respect to TCP’s ortho isomer which might have caused
symptoms similiar to those experienced the BFU stated: “That the TCP ortho-isomer
was present during the approach to Kˆln/Bonn on 19 December 2010 could not
be proven”.

The BFU stated however:

“The BFU does not entirely rule out the following scenario:

– Smell development due to malfunctioning electrical or electronical systems
on board”

and stated: “Such a contamination of the air in the cockpit or a local smell
development due to an electrical malfunction could not entirely be ruled
out. The BFU has knowledge of cases in which e.g. a tantalum capacitor developed
an intense smell. It was a temporarily extremely unpleasant smell which
forced the crew to don their oxygen masks. Determination of the cause was
difficult because often these tantalum capacitors only serve as buffer amplifiers
in electrical gadgets. Even if a component were defective the electronic
system would still be fully functional and it would be very difficult to
identify the “burnt” tantalum capacitor.”

The BFU reported that the captain (35, ATPL, 8,535 hours total, 7,864 hours
on type) recovered and was fit to fly after 4 days, the first officer (26,
CPL, 720 hours total, 472 hours on type) needed 6 months to recover and
become fit to fly again.

The BFU complained: “For the BFU it was unusual that about one year later
the severity of the occurrence came to light because of new information
the BFU received” stating a BFU representative had been at the aircraft
25 minutes after the aircraft landed and had talked to the captain, the
captain identified as having been impaired or partially impaired indicating
that he had difficulties controlling the aircraft. The first officer, who
was already in the ambulance, was not interviewed, the representative not
identifying it necessary as treatment in the ambulance, e.g. to prepare
blood samples, was not unusual. As result the investigation was based only
on QAR data and the interviews with the crew, however, did not have cockpit
voice or flight data recordings available. The BFU summarised: “Due to an
error in communication within the BFU the seriousness of the occurrence
had not become clear.”

The BFU analysed that the QAR data did not identify any anomaly in flight
and flight profile except that the speed was too high during intercept of
the glideslope, which however was noticed and the captain made several inputs
to correct. The aircraft and flight trajectory met the criteria of a stabilized
approach. The approach thus was stable and safe, the aircraft touched down
in the required landing configuration and in the touch down zone of the
runway.

The BFU analysed with respect to human performance: “The only source of
information the BFU had, were the QAR data and the descriptions the two
pilots had given, because neither CVR data, nor video recordings, nor witness
reports were available. The pilots have assessed the severity of their physiological
and psychological limitations with the help of a description and decision-making
aid. The classification the PIC made of “Impairment” to “Partial Impairment”
showed that he could perform his tasks with some, partially even great difficulties
and that he made some minor errors. One example was that the landing checklist
was completed after the pilot monitoring had reminded them to do so. The
co-pilot described the impairment of his performance capabilities as “Partial
Incapacitation” which means he could carry out his tasks with great difficulties
only. In summary, the BFU has come to the conclusion that neither of the
two pilots suffered “full” incapacitation. However, both were significantly
impaired in their capacity to perform. The co-pilot was more gravely affected
than the PIC. This assessment was confirmed by the analysis of the course
of the flight between the beginning of the occurrence and the parking of
the airplane at the parking position. In spite of severe limitations the
crew was able to bring the flight to an end in a controlled fashion.”

With respect to use of resources and response to the fumes and recognition
of impairment the BFU analysed: “The decision of the PIC to conduct the
approach and landing manually instead of automated was noteworthy. In general,
the automated conduct of flight is supposed to be a relief for flight crews
which should also be true for abnormal situations. The BFU is of the opinion
that an autoland would have posed risks because the required operating conditions
for the instrument landing system on the ground could not be guaranteed
in the short time available.” and concluded: “The BFU does not question
the pilot’s decision to fly and land manually after the occurrence had happened.
The justification that the situation had scared him, and he then rejected
the thought to conduct an autoland pretty fast, because he would have had
to consider too many things, was understandable. When the BFU reviewed the
course of action, the argument and the sense of the PIC that due to his
long-term experience the control of the airplane would occur “automatisiert”
(automated) were taken into consideration. The fact that approach and landing
were stabilised and safe shows that the PIC had estimated his options in
this situation correctly.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434e753b/0000
20120927231051:20101219000000
Accident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Dec 19th 2010, smoke in cockpit, both pilots nearly incapacitated
The German BFU released their preliminary report in German stating, that
both flight crew became partially incapacitated within seconds following
a strong burning electrical smell on base leg and during intercept of the
localizer. The captain’s oxygen level in his blood fell substantially below
80%, the first officer’s oxygen level below 80% (normal value 95-98%). The
first officer was in sick leave for 6 months following the event.

The flight had been delayed due to heavy snowfall in Cologne. The aircraft
finally departed Vienna with a delay of 3 hours, the flight was uneventful
until the aircraft turned onto the left base leg for Cologne’s runway 14L
when both flight crew smelled a strong electrical burning odour. Upon query
the purser reported no smell in the cabin. The odour seemed to subside after
a brief moment.

While the aircraft turned to intercept the localizer the first officer reported
he felt seriously sick close to vomiting (German “kotz¸bel”), he smelled
a strong electrical sweet odour and would don his oxygen mask. Alerted by
that remark the captain noticed his legs and arms were tickling, his senses
were literally vanishing and his sight abruptly reduced to a tunnel view.
He too donned his oxygen mask. The first officer needed two attempts to
don his oxygen masks. After both flight crew had donned their oxygen masks,
the captain improved slightly, while the first officer’s condition continued
to deteriorate.

The captain (35, ATPL, 7,864 hours total, 3,107 on type) instructed the
first officer (26, CPL, 720 hours total, 472 hours on type) to advise approach
they would immediately contact tower and to declare Mayday on tower. While
the first officer was communicating with tower declaring emergency and reporting
strong smell in the cockpit the tower instructed an aircraft ahead of the
A319 to go around, the aircraft established on the glide path, the captain,
pilot flying, selected flaps 1 himself and disengaged the autopilot now
flying manually. The aircraft was flying too fast (around 220 KIAS), the
captain therefore deployed spoilers, instructed the first officer therefore
to lower the gear and later to select flaps 2.

At that point the first officer felt overwhelmed, he could no longer overview
the scenario, could no longer process the arriving information and had difficulty
to focus on single aspects of the scenario. The captain felt that while
manually flying the aircraft he was at the upper limit of what he was capable
to do in his bad bodily shape.

After the crew managed to configure the aircraft for landing, the aircraft
was still too fast, the captain decided that a go-around was not possible
and thus cancelled the stability criteria (gate at 1000 feet), their only
option was to put the aircraft down as quickly as possible.

The first officer described the time between 1800 feet and touchdown as
an eternity, he was however able to recognize that the aircraft had reached
and was maintaining correct approach speed and realized they had not worked
the landing checklist. He thus processed the landing checklist which required
all his efforts, it was difficult to process the checklist, it was difficult
to concentrate and think.

Both pilots reported that just prior to landing they perceived their situation
as surreal and like in a dream.

The aircraft touched down on the runway, the automatic brakes slowed the
aircraft to about 40 knots, the captain subsequently applied manual brakes,
the aircraft began to skid, the captain however managed to slow the aircraft
to taxi speed and vacate the runway via taxiway A3. He then joined taxiway
A and handed controls to the first officer to be able to talk to emergency
services. The first officer totally focussed on steering the aircraft that
he did not get anything that happened around him.

The captain in the meantime was talking to emergency services, tower did
not want them taxi to the gate but to a remote stand away from the buildings,
following that decision the captain took over again and taxied the aircraft
to the stand. Shortly before arriving on stand the first officer noticed
they had not yet run the after landing checklist, the checklist was now
executed. After reaching the stand and applying park brake both crew realised
the APU had not yet been started, the APU was started.

The first officer wanted to open his side window, but needed three attempts
to do so. After the window was open he removed his oxygen masks, but immediately
noticed the acrid smell again and donned his oxygen mask again.

Emergency services subsequently entered the cockpit, the first officer needed
assistance to get off the aircraft, while the captain remained in the cockpit
until all passengers had disembarked. Emergency services measured oxygen
levels in the blood of both pilots and found the captain substantially below
80% (at about 70%) and the first officer below 80%, paramedics commented
both pilots were close to faint.

The BFU stated the events in the cockpit remained unnoticed in the cabin
until after landing.

Following landing the aircraft was checked by airline maintenance who identified
de-icing fluid as source of the smell. The technicians reported that they
could clearly detect the odour even 15 minutes after landing. Maintenance
replaced cooling fans for cockpit instrumentation, no pollution was detected.
The engines were checked, washed and ground run with no findings, the flight
crew oxygen supply and masks replaced, and a 45 minutes test flight undertaken
with no odours, the aircraft was thus returned to service on Dec 20th 2010.

A C-Check 13 months later also did not identify any possible causes of the
smell.

The BFU reported that their initial information received from emergency
services had been smoke in the cockpit, both pilots were treated in ambulances,
it was suspected they were suffering from smoke poisoning. Subsequently
the airline told the BFU, that there had been no smoke but only smell, maintenance
had identified de-icing fluid as cause of the smell, the crew had been released
from hospital, the crew did not suffer from any poisoning. Following that
information the BFU decided to not open an investigation.

Only a year later the BFU received additional information which prompted
the BFU to open an investigation.

The BFU reported that medical services at the airport already measured the
blood oxygen levels of both pilots and found the values below and well below
80%. Both pilots were subsequently taken to a hospital for further diagnosis.
During the drive to the hospital one pilot recovered to the point where
he commented he could clearly think again. After two hours in the hospital
both pilots were discharged without blood analysis.

The first officer went to the hospital again the following day for a detailed
analysis of his health condition. A blood analysis detected two conspicuous
values in the area of clinical chemistry, the first officer was not fit
for duty for 6 months.

The BFU did not release any safety recommendations so far.

In a similiar event involving the very same Germanwings A319 the Irish AAIU
concluded “The probable cause of the adverse symptoms reported by the aircraft
crew and some passengers could not be determined”, see Accident: Germanwings
A319 at Dublin on May 27th 2008, pressurization problems.

Two more aircraft had similiar issues within 8 days prior to this accident,
see Incident: Germanwings A319 at Cologne on Dec 11th 2010, smoke in cockpit
and Incident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Dec 16th 2010, smell of smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434e753b
20120927214613:20101219000000
Accident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Dec 19th 2010, smoke in cockpit, both pilots nearly incapacitated
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWK performing flight 4U-753
from Vienna (Austria) to Cologne (Germany) with 144 passengers and 5 crew,
was on approach to Cologne when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit.
The airplane continued for a safe landing. Paramedics needed to treat both
flight crew at the airport and subsequently took them to a hospital.

The cause of the smoke is unknown.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44f65038
20120511170151:20101217000000
Report: Sun-Air D328 at Billund on Dec 17th 2010, smoke in cockpit and cabin
A Sun-Air Dornier D-328-300, registration OY-NCL performing flight EZ-8211
from Billund (Denmark) to London Stansted,EN (UK) with 26 passengers and
3 crew, was originally destined for London City,EN (UK) but due to a delay
needed to head for Stansted Airport. The aircraft departed Billund’s runway
09 and was climbing through 800 feet AGL when the crew noticed a chemical
odour and smoke like haze around the map and instrument lights. At the same
time the flight attendant called the flight deck reporting smoke and odour
in the cabin. At the same time a smoke indication for the rear toilet illuminated.
The crew declared emergency, stopped the climb and decided to return to
Billund. While positioning for runway 09 the crew worked the relevant checklists
which required the #2 air conditioning system to be shut down after which
the smoke and odour began to dissipate. The aircraft landed safely back
on runway 09 about 8 minutes after departure.

Denmark’s Havarikommission (HCL) released their final report in Danish concluding
the probable cause of the incident was a worn and slightly damaged carbon
seal in the right hand engine.

The HCL reported that as result of the haze dissipating after shutting the
#2 air conditioning system down maintenance conducted a borescopic inspection
of the right hand engine immediately after landing and found the compressor
stage #2 contaminated with engine oil. With the compressed air that oil
was then transferred to the air conditioning systems and in turn caused
the smell and haze. The engine was removed from the aircraft and sent to
the manufacturer for further examination, which revealed a carbon seal at
the #2 bearing was worn and slightly damaged.

The HCL assessed that occurrences of this sort had been very few worldwide,
it was the first such event in Denmark. The board therefore concluded it
was a unique event which does not require further action like engine modification.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434c50a2
20101217180755:20101217000000
Incident: Arkefly B738 near Stuttgart on Dec 17th 2010, haze in cabin
An Arkefly Boeing 737-800, registration PH-TFA performing flight OR-495
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Hurghada (Egypt) with 176 passengers and
7 crew, was enroute at FL350 about 60nm north of Stuttgart (Germany) when
the crew decided to divert to Stuttgart due to some haze in the cabin. The
airplane landed safely on Stuttgart’s runway 25 about 20 minutes later.
Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, none of the people
aboard needed medical assistance.

Stuttgart airport reported that flight attendants were preparing the meals
when the ovens got too hot and steam exited the galleys. The airport was
closed for about 35 minutes.

The airline reported, that the crew diverted to Stuttgart as a precaution
due to smoke on board.

A replacement Jetairfly Boeing 737-800 registration OO-JAX was dispatched
to Stuttgart and is estimated to reach Hurghada with a delay of 9 hours.

The incident aircraft ferried back to Amsterdam departing Stuttgart 6.5
hours after landing.

The aircraft was involved in a similiar incident the previous day when a
sting smell and haze developed on board causing nausea to a number of people
on board, see: Incident: Arkefly B738 near Amsterdam on Dec 16th 2010, fumes
on board cause medical emergencies.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434eba87
20101220171405:20101216000000
Incident: American B772 near Beijing on Dec 16th 2010, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N761AJ performing flight
AA-186 from Beijing (China) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), returned to Beijing
when one of the air conditioning system emitted smoke into the cabin. The
airplane landed safely about 2 hours after departure.

The flight was subsequently cancelled, the passengers were taken to hotels
and re-booked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434c3290
20101217143739:20101216000000
Incident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Dec 16th 2010, smell of smoke
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWL performing flight 4U-15
from Berlin Schoenefeld to Cologne (Germany), was on approach to Cologne
when the crew reported smell of smoke on board. The crew continued for a
safe landing on runway 14L. Responding emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

The cause of smell could not be determined.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=434c21ec
20101217123742:20101216000000
Incident: Arkefly B738 near Amsterdam on Dec 16th 2010, fumes on board cause medical emergencies
An Arkefly Boeing 737-800, registration PH-TFA performing flight OR-121
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Lanzarote,CI (Spain) with 178 passengers,
had just reached cruise level 370 about 165nm southsouthwest of Amsterdam
and about 55nm north of Paris about 30 minutes into the flight, when the
crew decided to turn around and return to Amsterdam after some passengers
and cabin crew complained about nausea as well as some fumes on board. During
the approach to Amsterdam the crew initially reported they had 4 people
complaining upgrading the count to 30 people some time later. The airplane
landed safely on Amsterdam’s runway 06 about 35 minutes after turning around
and taxied to the gate where medical services were awaiting the aircraft
and took care of the affected people.

Passengers reported the airplane had been de-iced before departure, a sting
smell and faint haze developed in the cabin during the climb.

The airline reported that the smoke/haze developed probably because some
de-icing fluid may have entered the air conditioning system. All affected
people were treated at the airport, no person needed to be taken to hospital.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43490fb9
20101213143500:20101211000000
Incident: Germanwings A319 at Cologne on Dec 11th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWM performing flight 4U-527
from Barcelona,SP (Spain) to Cologne (Germany), was on final approach to
runway 24 when the crew donned their oxygen masks and declared emergency
reporting smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft continued for a safe landing
and vacated the runway, where responding emergency services examined the
aircraft. The crew was subsequently able to taxi to the gate, where passengers
disembarked normally. The first officer and a flight attendant were treated
at the airport for smoke inhalation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43486ee9
20101212193519:20101211000000
Incident: Delta B744 at New York on Dec 11th 2010, fire in galley
A Delta Airlines Boeing 747-400, flight DL-268 from New York JFK,NY (USA)
to Tel Aviv (Israel) with 399 people on board, was climbing through 13000
feet out of New York when the crew declared emergency reporting a fire in
the galley #2 and decided to return to New York requesting the longest runway
available (31L). During the descent towards JFK the crew reported, the fire
had gone out, they had a number of fuel pumps malfunctioning and wanted
to remain in the close vicinity of the airport in case they needed to immediately
land, but they wanted to dump fuel for about 45 minutes. The airplane entered
a holding near the airport, dumped fuel and landed safely on runway 31L
about 90 minutes after departure.

The airline reported, the crew returned because of an abundance of caution
after a smokey smell occurred on board.

Radio communication was intermittent at times as if there were electrical
problems, before departure the crew couldn’t hear the tower’s line up clearance
until reporting again on the frequency obviously on the other radio. Their
subsequent transmissions to tower appeared a bit broken but were understandable.
Very short interruptions of their transmissions occurred later their return
as well but did not hamper communication.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43458888
20101208212206:20101206000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ1 at Montreal on Dec 6th 2010, rejected takeoff
An Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-100, registration C-FVKR performing flight
QK-7674 from Montreal,QC to Charlottetown,PE (Canada) with 46 people on
board, rejected takeoff from Montreal’s runway 28 at low speed (50-60 KIAS)
because of smoke in the cabin and flight deck. The airplane slowed safely,
the smoke dissipated after engines spooled down. Responding emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke. The airplane taxied back to the gate,
the passengers disembarked normally.

The Canadian TSB reported that the airplane had been de-iced prior to departure.
It is likely that de-icing fluid was ingested into the aircraft bleed system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4344435d
20101206221731:20101205000000
Incident: Delta B738 near Fargo on Dec 5th 2010, unruly oven
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N3749D performing flight DL-1542
from Seattle,WA to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 104 people, was enroute at
FL370 about 90nm southwest of Fargo,ND when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit and diverted to Fargo for a safe landing about 20 minutes later.

A galley oven was determined as source of the smoke. The airplane was able
to depart again after about 3 hours on the ground and reached New York with
a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4342dd3e
20101204145354:20101204000000
Accident: THY B773 at Istanbul on Dec 4th 2010, cargo fire indication
A THY Turkish Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration TC-JJC performing flight
TK-60 (scheduled departure Dec 3rd) from Istanbul Ataturk (Turkey) to Bangkok
(Thailand) with 284 passengers and 14 crew, had lined up for departure on
runway 17L and was waiting for takeoff clearance when the crew received
a fire indication for the rear cargo hold and a burning smell developed
in the rear of the cabin. The crew initiated an evacuation via slides, during
which 30 passengers received minor injuries. Responding emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The runway was closed for about 90 minutes.

A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration TC-JJD reached Bangkok with a
delay of 8:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4344dc09
20101207205559:20101203000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Montreal on Dec 3rd 2010, cargo fire warning
A Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-GWSU performing flight WS-1055
from Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 131 people on
board, was on approach to Montreal descending through 9000 feet when the
crew received an aft cargo fire warning. The crew worked the according checklist
and declared emergency. About 3 minutes after the completion of the checklist
the warning extinguished. The crew continued for a safe landing on Montreal’s
runway 28, where emergency services checked the cargo hold without finding
any evidence of fire, heat or smoke. The aircraft subsequently taxied to
the gate on its own power.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433fd4e3
20101129120317:20101129000000
Incident: Mount Cook AT72 near Wellington on Nov 29th 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Mount Cook Avions de Tranport Regional ATR-72-500 on behalf of Air New
Zealand, flight NZ-5043 from Wellington to Dunedin (New Zealand) with 59
passengers, was climbing out of Wellington when the crew reported smell
of smoke in the cockpit and returned to Wellington for a safe landing.

Air New Zealand said, the passengers were rebooked onto other services.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4344bc68
20101207160119:20101128000000
Incident: Air Canada A321 at Vancouver on Nov 28th 2010, smoke in avionics bay indication
An Air Canada Airbus A321-200, registration C-GIUF performing flight AC-222
from Vancouver,BC to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 181 people on board, was climbing
out of Vancouver’s runway 08R when the crew reported a smoke in the cockpit
indication. The crew levelled off at 5000 feet and returned to Vancouver’s
runway 08R for a safe overweight landing about 20 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the crew received a smoke indication from
the avionics bay. The cause of the indication is still under investigation
by the airline.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43400661
20101129225813:20101128000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 near Springfield on Nov 28th 2010, cargo smoke indication
A Chautauqua Airlines Embraer ERJ-145, registration N292SK performing flight
RP-1147 from Milwaukee,WI to Saint Louis,MO (USA), was enroute southeast
of Springfield,IL when the crew received a cargo smoke indication and diverted
to Springfield for a safe landing. Emergency services found no trace of
fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement ERj-145 reached Saint Louis with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433fe6e4
20101129170929:20101128000000
Incident: bmi A321 near Bucharest on Nov 28th 2010, cargo smoke alert
A bmi Airbus A321-200, registration G-MEDM performing flight BD-997 from
London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Beirut (Lebanon), was enroute at FL350 about
105nm westnorthwest of Bucharest’s Otopeni Airport (Romania) when the crew
received smoke indications for both the forward and aft cargo hold. The
crew diverted to Bucharest and landed safely on Otopeni’s runway 08R about
20 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.
The airplane taxied to the gate where passengers disembarked.

The continuation was postponed to the following day, the passengers were
taken to hotels.

A replacement Airbus A321-200 registration G-MEDJ reached Beirut with a
delay of 19 hours.

The incident aircraft ferried back to London Heathrow on Nov 29th.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433dc5bd
20101125121609:20101122000000
Incident: UPS MD11 near Anchorage on Nov 22nd 2010, smoke in cockpit
A UPS McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration N257UP performing freight flight
5X-85 (dep Nov 23rd) from Shanghai (China) to Anchorage,AK (USA) with 7
people on board, had just completed an apparently uneventful flight and
was turning off landing runway 07R onto taxiway E when the crew reported
they had smoke coming from the back of their airplane and requested emergency
services. The crew taxied clear of runway 07R, crossed 07L, stopped on taxiway
E clear of runway 07L and evacuated onto the taxiway.

The airline reported, maintenance found no evidence of a fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433cb54c
20101123193303:20101122000000
Incident: Skywest E120 near Redding on Nov 22nd 2010, cargo fire indication
A Skywest Airlines Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia, registration N223SW performing
flight OO-6821 from Redding,CA to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 26 passengers
and 3 crew, was climbing through 8000 feet about 5 minutes into the flight
when the crew received a cargo fire indication, activated the cargo fire
suppression system and decided to return to Redding for a safe landing about
15 minutes after departure. Emergency services found no fire, smoke or heat.

The airline reported, that the indication was the result of a faulty smoke
detector.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433bb9a0
20101122000717:20101121000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 at New York on Nov 21st 2010, engine failure
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N1200K performing flight DL-30
from New York,JFK (USA) to Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) with 193 passengers,
was in the initial climb out of JFK’s runway 04L when the crew declared
emergency about 80 seconds after receiving take off clearance. Tower asked
the next departure waiting for takeoff clearance whether they had seen any
fire or smoke from the #1 engine of the departing aircraft with a negative
reply, another crew and tower reported seeing a flash from the departing
aircraft during takeoff. A third crew reported seeing a flame out and smoke
from the departing aircraft. The Boeing 767 crew reported they had lost
the left hand engine (PW4060), climbed to 5000 feet, dumped fuel and returned
for a safe landing on runway 04L about 50 minutes after departure. Emergency
services found no traces of an engine fire.

The FAA said, the crew reported engine problems, turned back to New York,
landed safely and taxied to the apron. Initial reports of an engine fire
were incorrect.

Jetblue flight B6-74, next in line to depart after the Delta Boeing, declined
takeoff clearance from runway 04L twice requesting a runway inspection before
departure. The airplane departed 10 minutes after the first takeoff clearance
following ground vehicles reporting the runway was clear.

Local news helicopters started swarming the airport about 10 minutes after
the departure of DL-30.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433a4371
20101119205308:20101118000000
Incident: Continental B752 at Newark on Nov 18th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Continental Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N18119 performing flight
CO-110 from Newark,NJ (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was climbing out
of Newark’s runway 22R when the crew donned their oxygen masks, reported
smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Newark. The airplane landed
safely on runway 22L about 14 minutes after departure and stopped on the
runway.

The airport was completely closed for about 15 minutes, tower told aircraft
waiting for departure that an evacuation was in progress on runway 22L.
Runway 22R was re-opened about 15 minutes after landing.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N14121 reached London with a delay
of 3.5 hours.

A passenger on board reported, that the flight departed with some delay
due to a fuel pump problem. The airplane returned to Newark shortly after
departure resulting in a hard landing that had bags falling. There was some
confusion amongst the flight attendants whether an evacuation should be
initiated. The passenger later clarified, there was no evacuation, the crew
permitted the brakes to cool down before proceeding to the apron.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4339a983
20101118205340:20101117000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 at Minneapolis on Nov 17th 2010, rejected takeoff
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight
9E-4086/DL-4086 from Minneapolis,MN to Wichita,KS (USA) with 43 passengers
and 3 crew, rejected takeoff from runway 30R at high speed after passengers
smelled smoke and a smoke detector triggered. The crew requested emergency
services to attend the aircraft reporting a possible fire on board, vacated
the runway and stopped on the parallel taxiway P.

The airline reported, that de-icing fluid seeped into the air conditioning
system causing the smell and the smoke detector to trigger. Some haze appeared
in the cabin. The passengers deplaned onto the runway and were bussed to
the apron.

A replacement CRJ-200 registration N813AY reached Wichita with a delay of
2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433a3760/0000
20110128133247:20101116000000
Incident: Swiss RJ1H near Zurich on Nov 16th 2010, loss of cabin pressure
The German BFU released their bulletin reporting, that the crew noticed
a very high rate of climb of the cabin altitude while climbing through approximately
FL210 followed by cabin altitude alert and the automatic release of the
passenger oxygen masks. The crew donned their oxygen masks and initiated
an emergency descent with descent rates of up to 5500 feet per minute and
reached FL100 about 15nm south of Stuttgart. The crew removed the oxygen
masks. Shortly thereafter cabin crew noticed smell and smoke development
on one of the oxygen generators. The flight crew donned their oxygen masks
again and decided to continue the flight to Frankfurt, where the aircraft
landed safely about 25 minutes later.

The airplane had been dispatched according to Minimum Equipment List (MEL)
requirments with a deferred defect concerning the pressurization control
panel that had displayed a message “PRI” indicating the primary control
channel had failed. Mechanics were unable to resolve the problem and deferred
the defect according to MEL.

Following the serious depressurization incident the pressurization control
panel, the primary and secondary outflow valves and other parts were replaced
and seized by the Swiss BFU for further examination.

Examination further revealed that the smoke and smell observed in the cabin
at FL100 was produced by dust on the oxygen generators, that run very hot
during operation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433754ca/0000
20110517175012:20101115000000
Incident: Qantas B744 near Sydney on Nov 15th 2010, smoke in cockpit
The ATSB released their final report reporting that the aircraft was climbing
through FL270 for FL320 when the flight crew, the captain occupying the
left seat, a second officer occupying the right seat (SOR), the first officer
and another second officer (SOO) on the observer seats, noticed a strong
electrical smell in the cockpit, shortly thereafter smoke was observed emanating
from the left electronic flight instrument system (EFIS) control panel.
The SOR called for oxygen masks, left the right hand seat, the first officer
assumed his position in the right hand seat, all crew donned their oxygen
masks. The crew actioned the non-normal checklists and noticed that a circuit
breaker for the left EFIS control panel had tripped. Although the smoke
had ceased the fumes were still present, the crew decided to return to Sydney
and advised ATC about the situation, they were expecting normal operation.

The crew dumped fuel and positioned in a holding pattern near Sydney, the
crew kept their oxygen masks on although the fumes had stabilized in the
meantime. Prior to completion of the fuel dump the crew received a crew
oxygen low warning prompting the crew to request an immediate approach to
Sydney, the fuel dump was discontinued, by the time of touch down the aircraft
had reduced to maximum landing weight.

After landing the captain’s weather radar could not be turned off due to
the failed left EFIS control panel, the circuit breaker for the weather
radar was pulled.

On the previous flight from Los Angeles to Sydney the crew had reported
the left BARO selector only worked intermittently, the left EFIS control
panel was therefore replaced in Sydney.

Following the incident flight the left EFIS control panel was removed and
was found serviceable with no trace of overheat, bent contacts or mechanical
damage.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433754ca
20110517175030:20101115000000
Incident: Qantas B744 near Sydney on Nov 15th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Qantas Boeing 747-400, registration VH-OEI performing flight QF-17 from
Sydney,NS (Australia) to Buenos Aires,BA (Argentina) with 205 passengers
and 17 crew, was enroute about an hour into the flight when the crew noticed
smoke in the cockpit and turned around to return to Sydney. Following smoke
removal procedures the airplane landed safely on Sydney’s runway 16R about
2 hours after departure.

Qantas said, a faulty component in a cockpit electronic display caused smoke
in the cockpit, the cause of the problem is not yet clear but believed to
be a minor technical problem. Engineers are inspecting the aircraft. The
ATSB (Australian Transportation Safety Board) and CASA (Civil Aviation Safety
Authority) have been notified. A replacement aircraft is scheduled to leave
with a delay of 6 hours.

The Australian Transportation Safety Board reported, that the crew noticed
smoke in the cockpit, donned their oxygen masks and initiated an emergency
descent. An investigation has been launched.

Passengers reported, that they started to notice problems when the lights
and entertainment system in the cabin went out and the airplane began to
dump fuel. Following the landing the captain came through the cabin stopping
every 10 seat rows or so, so that all people could hear him, and told that
they had smoke coming out of their main control panel, they went into emergency
procedures and performed a series of tests.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43348d8a
20101128164924:20101110000000
Accident: Kuwait A306 near Kuwait on Nov 10th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Kuwait Airways Airbus A300-600, registration 9K-AMA performing flight
KU-283 from Kuwait City (Kuwait) to Dhaka (Bangladesh) with 226 passengers
and 12 crew, was in the initial climb out of Kuwait’s runway 33R when the
crew reported smoke in the cabin and returned to Kuwait for a safe landing
about 10 minutes after departure. The airplane stopped on the runway and
was evacuated via slides. 3 passengers and 1 crew received injuries.

The airport was closed for about one hour.

The airport reported the first officer suffered a broken leg with a number
of passengers receiving minor injuries which were treated at the airport.

Kuwait’s Civil Aviation Authority said, 3 passengers and 1 crew received
minor injuries in the evacuation.

Kuwait Airways found in their internal investigation, that a smoke detector
falsely triggered due to humidity. The captain did not follow procedures,
training and checklists which would have avoided the return and would have
prevented an evacuation. As a result the airline filed a complaint against
their captain with Kuwait’s Civil Aviation Authority for non-compliance
with required standard operating procedures and non-cooperation in the investigation.

The Arabic newspaper Al Rai reported, that one passenger died in Farwaniya
Hospital two weeks after the evacuation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43330331
20101108165847:20101107000000
Incident: ANA B763 near Osaka on Nov 7th 2010, smoke in cockpit
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 767-300, registration JA619A performing
flight NH-1163 from Tokyo Haneda (Japan) to Seoul Gimpo (South Korea) with
202 people on board, was enroute near Osaka (Japan) when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Osaka’s Kansai Airport for a safe landing.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration JA613A reached Seoul with a delay
of 5.5 hours.

Japan’s Ministry of Transport reported, that the captain’s windshield heater
was identified as source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43322ee9
20101107213357:20101106000000
Incident: Airtran B712 near Memphis on Nov 6th 2010, smoke in cabin
An Airtran Boeing 717-200, registration N921AT performing flight FL-619
from New Orleans,LA to Milwaukee,WI (USA) with 65 people on board, was enroute
at FL330 almost overhead Memphis,TN (USA) when the crew reported an odour
and some smoke in the cabin. The crew diverted to Memphis for a safe landing
20 minutes later.

Airtran reported passengers and crew noticed an odour and a small amount
of smoke in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43309c6d
20110518151245:20101104000000
Accident: Qantas A388 near Singapore on Nov 4th 2010, uncontained engine failure
VH-OQA after landing (Photo: AFP)A Qantas Airbus A380-842, registration
VH-OQA performing flight QF-32 from Singapore (Singapore) to Sydney,NS (Australia)
with 440 passengers and 26 crew, was climbing out of Singapore overhead
the Indonesian Island of Batam about 20nm south of Singapore about 6 minutes
into the flight when the #2 engine (Trent 972, inboard left hand) emitted
a loud bang suffering from an uncontained failure. Debris with the Qantas
logo fell onto a road in built up city district Dutamas of Batam. The airplane
dumped fuel, returned to Singapore and landed safely about 2 hours after
departure, gear doors were open, slats retracted, flaps extended. No injuries
on board and on the ground in Batam were reported.

After landing fire services foamed engine #1 (outboard left hand) to shut
that engine down.

Residents on the ground in Batam reported hearing a bang like an explosion
before the debris came down onto a main road just south of the city center
of Batam. The occurrence had even sparked rumours the airplane may have
crashed.

Some of the debris including a turbine disk struck through the walls of
a house on the ground in Batam.

Qantas said, that the crew shut the #2 engine down as a precaution and returned
to Singapore. There is no suggestion that the debris in Batam came from
their airplane.

Qantas said in a later updated statement, that all their Airbus A380-800
will remain on the ground until sufficient information has been obtained
what happened on QF-32. The passengers disembarked in Singapore and were
taken to hotels, replacement aircraft are being dispatched to Singapore
to carry the passengers to Sydney, they are expected to reach Sydney during
Nov 5th. Australia’s ATSB has been notified.

On Nov 8th Qantas reported, that during checks of all Trent 970 and 972
engines they have identified three engines in Qantas’ fleet of A380s that
showed slight anomalies, oil in areas were no oil should be. In another
press release Qantas reported that the investigation into the uncontained
engine failure focusses on the possibility of an oil leak in the turbine
area though investigation continues into other areas as well to rule out
other possible issues. Qantas does not expect the A380s back in service
within the next 3 days, however within 24 hours all services should be back
to normal and disruptions to passengers due to the grounding of the Qantas
A380 should cease.

Engineers reported on Nov 6th, that the intermediate pressure turbine disk
of engine #2 had failed. The cause of that failure is still being investigated.
Once on the ground the crew noticed they could not shut down the #1 engine
due to wiring damage. Emergency services doused the engine to shut it down.
The Trent 900 engine has been subject to an Airworthiness Directive by EASA
requiring the intermediate pressure shaft coupling splines to be inspected
for excessive wear, which was found beyond material limits on a few engines.
Engineers are looking whether these problems have resurfaced again, but
do not believe this engine failure is related.

Australia’s Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) said, an investigation is
in progress reporting that shortly after takeoff from Singapore the aircraft
experienced a #2 engine failure, dumped fuel and returned to Singapore.
The airplane sustained substantial damage.

On Nov 5th the ATSB reported, that the Indonesian NTSC delegated the investigation
so that the ATSB will lead the investigation and prepare a factual preliminary
report by Dec 3rd 2010. Four Australian accident investigators have reached
Singapore, downloaded the cockpit voice and flight data recorder data. The
airplane took off at 9:57L, about 4 minutes later abnormal engine #2 indications
occurred and the engine shut down at 10:01L. The airplane dumped fuel and
landed at 11:47L. The engine is about to be removed from the aircraft for
further analysis, the investigators are inspecting the aircraft for other
damage, too. The parts fallen onto Indonesian territory were quarantained
for further examination.

On Nov 7th the ATSB confirmed that parts of a turbine disk (see picture
below) have been recovered in Indonesia with the help of the Indonesian
NTSC.

On Nov 13th the ATSB reported, that engine #2 has been removed from the
airframe and is being transported to an engineering facility in Singapore
under ATSB supervision for further examination. The removal of the engine
also permits a more thorough examination of the damage to the surrounding
systems and the wing. The search for missing engine parts in Batam (see
picture below) is increasingly difficult because of terrain and virgin jungle.
Both black boxes have been downloaded, in addition the quick access recorder
data including engine parameters not available on the flight data recorder
have been downloaded after some difficulty. Due to the failure of shutting
engine #1 down, which kept power supply up for the CVR, the relevant portion
during the engine failure on the cockpit voice recorder was overwritten.
The ATSB has already begun to prepare the release of a first interim report
by December 3rd.

On Nov 17th the ATSB reported, that the engine has been removed from the
aircraft (see photos below) and is now being dismantled. The low pressure
turbine has already been removed to allow examination of the damage in the
intermediate pressure turbine area. The aircraft examination is continuing,
a number of wing and body fairing panels have been removed from the aircraft
to facilitate the examination of the underlying structures and systems.
This work is going to continue at least for the remainder of the week. The
search in Batam for debris has recovered several turbine blades and blade
attachments but failed to retrieve the missing parts of the turbine disk.

On Nov 22nd the ATSB reported, that the low pressure and intermediate pressure
turbine modules including the shafts have been removed from the engine.
Together with the recovered parts of the intermediate pressure turbine those
parts of interest are being shipped to Rolls Royce for further examination
under the supervision of the British AAIB. The examination of the airframe
is continuing with the focus now on hydraulic, mechanical and electric systems
that have been affected by engine debris. The ATSB expects their on-site
investigators will be able to return to Australia by Friday Nov 26th. No
further update is to be expected until the release of the preliminary report
on Dec 3rd.

On Dec 2nd 2010 the ATSB released a safety recommendation to Rolls Royce
demanding RR should address a safety issue with the manufacturing process
of stub pipes, that were identified with an axial misalignment of an area
of counter-boring within the inner diameter of the stub pipe leading to
a localized thinning of the pipe wall on one side. The ATSB reported, that
fatigue cracking had been discovered within a stub pipe (see picture below)
feeding oil into the HP/IP (high pressue/intermediate pressure) bearing
structure. While investigation of the engine failure is continuing it has
been identified that the leakage of oil into the HP/IP bearing structure
buffer space and a subsequent oil fire within that area was central to the
engine failure and liberation of the IP turbine disk. The area of fatigue
cracking was associated with the area of pipe wall thinning.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Transport said, that the airplane although being
overhead Batam about 5 minutes after takeoff was still in the responsibility
of Singapore’s Air Traffic Control, when the aircraft suffered an engine
failure and requested to return to Singapore. The airplane subsequently
dumped fuel above the waters near waypoint HOSBA (25nm east of Singapore
Airport, 22nm northeast of Batam Airport). The airplane landed safely in
Singapore at 03:46Z (11:46L).

Indonesia’s Ministry of Transport later summarized the incident stating,
that the aircraft was overhead Batam landmass when the crew issued a PAN
call to Singapore Approach reporting a possible engine failure. The crew
requested to level off at 7500 feet MSL and a heading of about 150 degrees
to investigate the occurrence. About 20 minutes later the crew reported
they had gone through an extensive checklist, found there was a hole in
the (inboard) side of engine #2 and there was damage to the wing. The crew
requested to hold for half an hour before returning to Singapore. In the
meantime Batam’s air traffic control received calls from the ground about
debris on the ground and relayed the information to Singapore’s approach
controller. The crew reported, that apart from engine #2 all other engines
were working normally. The crew requested an approach to runway 20C at Singapore’s
Changi Airport. After coming to a stop at the end of the runway the crew
requested towing assistance. Responding emergency services found a fuel
leak off the left hand wing, engine #2 was damaged near the rear of the
engine, smoke was coming from tyre #7 and 4 tyres had deflated, the pilot
was not able to shut engine #1 down. It was safe nonetheless to have the
passengers disembark. All passengers had disembarked by 13:54L and engine
#1 was finally shut down by emergency services at 14:53L.

Airbus reported, that VH-OQA suffered an engine failure shortly after takeoff
from Singapore, dumped fuel and returned to Singapore. The airplane (MSN:
14) had accumulated 8,165 flight hours in 831 cycles since new (Sep 2008),
the #2 engine had accumulated 676 flight cycles since new.

Airbus later reported, that the aircraft sustained wiring cuts, the loss
of the green hydraulic system and some structural damage as result of the
#2 engine uncontained failure. The crew maintained control of the aircraft
throughout the flight with autopilot being engaged until 700 feet radar
altitude on approach to Singapore, engines #1, #3 and #4 were manually controlled
until landing. The landing was done with flaps configuration 3 due to slats
being unavailable. The aircraft landed 100 minutes after the engine failure,
following the landing engine #1 could not be shut down due to wiring damage
which prevented the LP and HP valves to be closed.

Rolls Royce reported on Nov 8th that they are making progress in understanding
what caused the failure of the Qantas engine. It has become clear that this
failure is specific to the Trent 900 series, the failure of the test Trent
1000 was unrelated.

On Nov 10th the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an Emergency
Airworthiness Directive for all Trent 900 engines reporting that “an oil
fire in the HP/IP structure cavity may have caused the failure of the Intermediate
Pressure Turbine (IPT) Disk”. The EAD requires extensive inspections within
the next 10 flight cycles to be repeated within every 20 flight cycles.

On Nov 12th Rolls Royce said in a press release that the examination of
the accident engine as well as the inspection results permitted Rolls Royce
to draw two key conclusions:

– The issue is specific to the Trent 900 engine series.
– The failure was confined to a specific component in the turbine area of
the engine. This caused an oil fire, which led to the release of the intermediate
pressure turbine disc.

The inspections are going to continue and will be supplemented by the replacement
of the relevant module according to an agreed programme.

The Rolls Royce Trent 972 engine is currently used only by Qantas for their
Airbus A380s. The engine delivers 72k lbs of thrust compared to the Trent
970 used by other Rolls Royce A380 operators, that delivers 70k lbs of thrust.
Fatigue cracking at stub pipe feeding oil into HP/IP bearing (Photo: ATSB):
The removed low pressure turbine (Photo: ATSB):
The removed engine #2 (Photo: ATSB):
Zoom in on combustion chamber and turbine area showing the damage (Photo:
ATSB):
Part of a turbine disk recovered in Batam (Photo: ATSB):
Engine #2 Detail (Photo: Reuters):
Fire Services foaming engine #1 to shut it down (Photo: Reuters):
The #2 engine damage (Photo: AFP):
Damage seen from the passenger cabin (Photo: UlfW):
Debris on the ground (Photo: AFP):
Search for missing engine parts (Photo: ATSB):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Detail map of debris (Graphics: ATSB):
Flight trajectory (Graphics: ATSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432eb832
20101101085151:20101031000000
Incident: Vision B762 near Baltimore on Oct 31st 2010, smell of smoke in cabin
A Vision Airlines Boeing 767-200, registration N766VA performing flight
V2-6401 from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Havana (Cuba) with 154 passengers,
was enroute at FL360 about 110nm southeast of Baltimore,MD when the crew
reported a smell of smoke in the cabin and diverted to Baltimore for a safe
landing about 25 minutes later.

The airplane was examined and released to continue the flight after about
3.5 hours on the ground and reached Havana with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432e36d4
20101101143911:20101031000000
Accident: 1Time MD82 at Johannesburg on Oct 31st 2010, rejected takeoff
Engine being foamed (Photo: farrylpurkiss)A 1time McDonnell Douglas MD-82,
registration ZS-TRE performing flight 1T-119 from Johannesburg to Cape Town
(South Africa) with 128 passengers, rejected takeoff from Johannesburg’s
runway 03L at low speed after the left hand engine (JT8D) emitted a loud
bang and the crew received an excessive EGT indication. The airplane slowed
safely, vacated the runway and taxied towards the terminal when the tower
advised the engine released a lot of smoke, responding emergency services
reported the engine on fire. The airplane stopped and was evacuated through
both front doors, while emergency services foamed the engine. 11 passengers
received injuries.

Runway 03L was closed temporarily.

The airline reported, that the left hand engine lost power during takeoff
prompting the crew to reject the takeoff however no actual fire had occurred
and the crew received no engine fire indication. Due to the report by emergency
services of a possible engine fire the captain decided to perform an emergency
evacuation. The airline said first inspection of the engine showed the engine
failure was the result of a foreign object ingestion (possibly bird strike).
Five passengers are under medical observation, no serious injuries occurred.

The airport reported 11 passengers received injuries during the evacuation,
6 of which were taken to a hospital.

A passenger claimed to have suffered a broken arm as result of the evacuation.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432ef254
20101101175132:20101030000000
Incident: Arkefly B763 over Atlantic on Oct 30th 2010, smoke in cockpit
An Arkefly Boeing 767-300, registration PH-OYI performing flight OR-365
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Curacao (Netherlands Antilles) and further
on to Bonaire (Netherlands Antilles), was enroute overhead the Atlantic
west of N49. W20. when the crew reported a burning smell of smoke and haze
in the cockpit. The aircraft diverted to Lajes/Azores Islands (Portugal)
for a safe landing.

The airline reported that maintenance identified the re-circulation fan
as cause of the burning smell and haze. The fan was disabled and the aircraft
was released to continue the flight.

The flight departed Lajes the following day, flew directly to Bonaire reaching
the airport with a delay of 20 hours, then proceeded to Curacao and is currently
on the return flight from Curacao directly to Amsterdam and is expected
to arrive just past midnight early Nov 2nd with a delay of 38 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432d9b09
20101030173850:20101030000000
Incident: Azerbaijan B752 near Istanbul on Oct 30th 2010, smoke in cabin
An Azerbaijan Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration 4K-AZ43 performing flight
J2-78 from Istanbul Ataturk (Turkey) to Baku (Azerbaijan) with 221 people
on board, was climbing through FL220 out of Istanbul when the crew reported
smoke in the cabin and returned to Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport for a safe
landing on runway 05 about 20 minutes later.

Passengers reported the smoke originated from a galley oven.

The airplane was able to depart again after 3.5 hours on the ground and
reached Baku with a delay of 3:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432e61c8
20101031204509:20101029000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 over Atlantic on Oct 29th 2010, smoke on board
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N1612T performing flight DL-166
from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Accra (Ghana), was enroute at FL330 overhead
the Atlantic about 300nm southeast of New York. At that point British Airways
flight BA-206 reported on HF Oceanic, that DL-166 had declared PAN and was
doing a 180 to return to JFK due to smoke throughout the aircraft. The airplane
descended to FL180 and returned to JFK Airport for a safe landing on runway
31L about 90 minutes later.

Maintenance determined an internal oil leak in the right hand engine (CF6)
which distributed oil into the bleed air system and thus air conditioning.
The engine needs to be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432cf7cb
20101029173742:20101028000000
Incident: Virgin Atlantic B744 near Orlando on Oct 28th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Virgin Atlantic Airways Boeing 747-400, registration G-VROY performing
flight VS-16 from Orlando,FL (USA) to London Gatwick,EN (UK), was climbing
to FL220 out of Orlando when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
decided to return to Orlando for a safe landing on runway 18R about 30 minutes
after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432ce4c9
20101029135314:20101025000000
Incident: Air Greenland DH8B near Nuuk on Oct 25th 2010, smoke in cabin, oil leak
An Air Greenland de Havilland Dash 8-200, registration OY-GRH performing
flight GL-281 from Nuuk to Paamiut (Greenland) with 11 passengers and 3
crew, was enroute at FL180 near Nuuk when the crew received a fire alert
for the lavatory, a short time later smoke was observed in the lavatory
and in the passenger cabin. The flight crew decided to return to Nuuk, executed
the according checklists and the smoke began to dissipate. The airplane
landed safely.

The Danish Havarikommission HCL reported, that maintenance subsequently
identified an oil leak in the bleed air system as cause of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432ae90d
20101028205353:20101025000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Winnipeg on Oct 25th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N226UA performing flight
UA-835 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Shanghai (China) with 194 passengers,
was enroute at FL340 about 210nm north of Winnipeg,MB (Canada) when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Winnipeg, where
the aircraft landed safely about 45 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 777-200 registration N219UA was dispatched from Chicago
O’Hare to Winnipeg as flight UA-9945 and reached Shanghai with a delay of
28 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Oct 28th that the crew detected an odour in
the cockpit about 2 hours into the flight and turned the re-circulation
fans off. About 5 minutes later the crew received an EICAS warning “Smoke
Crew Rest AFT/FD” and a master caution. The crew opened the flight deck
door and noticed a haze in the companionway and a rumbling underneath the
forward galley floor. The crew donned their oxygen masks, declared emergency
and diverted to Winnipeg. The crew continued to use the oxygen masks for
about 20 minutes, dumped fuel and completed a safe landing. Attending emergency
services using thermal imaging found no trace of smoke, heat or fire, the
cargo holds were opened but no trace of fire, smoke or heat were found there,
too. Maintenance troubleshooting could not identify the source of smoke.
After completing an overweight landing inspection the aircraft was ferried
to San Francisco with engineering pilots and maintenance personnel on board
performing system tests. No EICAS messages appeared during that ferry flight,
however during the descent towards San Francisco an oil odour became noticeable.
Troubleshooting is continuing with the focus on how oil is entering the
pneumatic system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432aa644
20101025215851:20101025000000
Incident: Arkefly B738 at Hurghada on Oct 25th 2010, wheel well fire indication
An Arkefly Boeing 737-800, registration PH-TFB performing flight OR-461
from Hurghada (Egypt) to Mombasa (Kenya), was climbing out of Hurghada when
the crew received a wheel well fire indication and returned to Hurghada
for a safe landing. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire,
heat or smoke.

Arkefly said, the cause of the indication is under investigation.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration PH-TFA was dispatched from Amsterdam
to Hurghada to resume the flight Amsterdam-Hurghada-Mombasa.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432aa7b1
20101025221110:20101024000000
Incident: US Airways B752 near Stephenville on Oct 24th 2010, smoke in cabin
A US Airways Boeing 757-200, registration N202UW from Philadelphia,PA (USA)
to Brussels (Belgium) with 149 passengers and 9 crew, was enroute near Stephenville,NL
(Canada) when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted to Stephenville
for a safe landing.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N939UW reached Brussels with a
delay of 10.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432a7207
20101025134147:20101024000000
Accident: Aero Contractors B735 at Lagos on Oct 24th 2010, mist in cabin
An Aero Contractors Boeing 737-500, flight AJ-320 from Port Harcourt to
Lagos (Nigeria) with 84 passengers, was approaching Lagos about 10 minutes
prior to estimated landing when smoke was noticed in the cabin quickly filling
the cabin. The crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cabin and
continued for a safe landing at Lagos, the airplane was evacuated after
landing. 15 people received minor injuries during the evacuation.

Nigeria’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation said, that the air conditioning
system of the aircraft had been in manual mode during the flight. When the
crew opened one of the valves mist developed in the cabin, people however
thought it was smoke. An investigation has been initiated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432904bf
20101024114514:20101022000000
Incident: Fedex MD11 near Mumbai on Oct 22nd 2010, cargo fire indication
A Fedex Federal Express McDonnell Douglas MD-11 freighter, registration
N579FE performing flight FX-5062 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Bangalore
(India), declared emergency reporting a fire indication in the lower cargo
compartment while enroute near Mumbai. The airplane landed safely. Responding
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airline reported the fire indication was false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432903a0
20101023135207:20101022000000
Incident: Air India B773 at Mumbai on Oct 22nd 2010, smoke from landing gear
An Air India Boeing 777-300, registration VT-ALJ performing flight AI-130
from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Mumbai (India), was turning off the runway
in Mumbai after landing when smoke was observed from the right hand main
landing gear. The airplane stopped on the taxiway.

The airplane remained on the taxiway for 55 minutes while emergency services
responded and cooled the brakes down forcing the airport to re-arrange runway
operations causing delays to several other arriving and departing flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4327a294
20101021140804:20101021000000
Incident: Malmo Aviation RJ1H near Umea on Oct 21st 2010, smell of smoke in cabin
A Malmo Aviation Avro RJ-100, registration SE-DSP performing flight TF-309
from Umea to Stockholm Bromma (Sweden), was climbing through FL100 about
6 minutes into the flight when a smell of smoke was observed in the cabin.
Although the smell suggested it may be burned food the crew decided to return
to Umea as a precaution. The airplane landed safely about 15 minutes after
departure.

A replacement RJ-100 registration SE-DSV reached Stockholm with a delay
of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43263de3
20101019161809:20101019000000
Incident: Lufthansa A333 near Kolkata on Oct 19th 2010, engine shut down in flight
A Lufthansa Airbus A330-300, registration D-AIKM performing flight LH-751
from Kolkata (India) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 152 passengers and
13 crew, was climbing out of Kolkata when the crew needed to shut an engine
(Trent 772) down due to some technical problem. The crew decided to return
to Kolkata, burned off fuel and landed safely about 2 hours after departure.

Airport officials reported, the airplane experienced technical trouble.

Passengers reported, there was smoke in the cabin.

The airline reported an engine developed a technical problem and was shut
down as a precaution. The crew burned off fuel to reduce weight for a smooth
landing. The passengers were taken to hotels and are being rebooked onto
other flights including Lufthansa flights from other Indian airports.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43263b09
20101020103048:20101019000000
Incident: Jetstar A320 near Sydney on Oct 19th 2010, engine shut down in flight
The crew of a Jetstar Airbus A320-200, registration VH-VQS performing flight
JQ-150 from Christchurch (New Zealand) to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 118
passengers, needed to shut an engine (V2527) down and declared PAN. The
airplane continued to Sydney for a safe landing on runway 16R.

Passengers reporting hearing a loud bang and seeing black smoke and streaks
of flames as the airplane descended towards Sydney.

The airline said there was no fire however confirmed an engine was shut
down and dark smoke was possible from the engine.

Aviation sources in Sydney reported, that the fan of the engine became seized.
The engine needs to be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=432501b9
20101018145201:20101016000000
Incident: Qantas A333 at Sydney on Oct 16th 2010, blue smoke from left hand wing
A Qantas Airbus A330-300, registration VH-QPH performing flight QF-42 (dep
Oct 15th) from Jakarta (Indonesia) to Sydney,NS (Australia), was on approach
to Sydney when the airport – while continuing normal runway operation and
standard communication with the aircraft – called emergency services on
stand by for the arrival of QF-42. While on final approach to runway 25
the tower reported seeing a lot of smoke from the left hand wing just overhead
the engine. The airplane landed safely, vacated the runway and taxied to
the apron with emergency services following, but needed to be towed into
the gate.

Observers on the ground saw blue smoke trailing the left side of aircraft,
originating from the left hand wing just outboard of and above the left
hand engine pylon.

An insider source told The Aviation Herald, that the blue hydraulic system
lost all fluid due to a failed pipe in the left hand main gear strut.

Qantas chose to not comment.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4324566a
20101025224343:20101016000000
Incident: Korean Air B744 near Seattle on Oct 16th 2010, burning smell on board
A Korean Air Boeing 747-400, registration HL7472 performing flight KE-31
from Seoul (South Korea) to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA), was enroute at FL370
about 150nm northwest of Seattle,WA (USA) when the crew reported an electrical
burning smell on board and diverted to Seattle. The crew requested runway
34R or 16L, which however was closed at the time and was opened for the
emergency arrival. The airplane landed safely on runway 16L, vacated the
runway and taxied to the gate, where the passengers disembarked normally.

The airplane was examined and released to service again, the airplane was
able to depart again after 3.5 hours and is estimated to reach Dallas with
a delay of 3.5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Oct 25th, that the crew reported an electrical
burning smell without declaring emergency but requesting to divert to Seattle.
While enroute to Seattle the crew reported the smoke was dissipating.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43271f7f
20101020202127:20101014000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Toronto on Oct 14th 2010, oven clean yourself!
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHNX performing flight AC-1123
from Toronto,ON to Saskatoon,SK (Canada) with 85 people on board, was climbing
out of Toronto when a cabin crew member noticed smoke from the aft galley
oven and notified the flight deck. The flight crew declared PAN reporting
smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Toronto for a safe landing
on runway 05 about 14 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that maintenance found the oven to be dirty,
replaced the oven and returned the aircraft to service. The oven checked
serviceable.

The flight reached Saskatoon with a delay of about 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43217873
20101012095346:20101011000000
Incident: Mesa CRJ7 near London on Oct 11th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United Airlines, flight YV-7253/UA-7253
from Burlington,VT to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 66 people on board, was
enroute at FL340 about 30nm north of London,ON (Canada) and about 120nm
westnorthwest of Buffalo,NY (USA) when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
and decided to divert to Buffalo. A short time later the crew reported that
the smoke had dissipated. The crew continued to Buffalo for a safe landing
about 30 minutes after reporting the smoke.

The Buffalo airport reported that crew had turned a heater on before the
smoke appeared in the cockpit. When the crew turned that heater off again
the smoke dissipated. The crew decided to divert to Buffalo as a precaution
nonetheless.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4320615d
20101010174012:20101010000000
Incident: Norwegian B733 at Alta on Oct 10th 2010, smoke detector triggered, smell of smoke in cabin
A Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 737-300, registration LN-KKY performing flight
DY-267 from Alta to Oslo (Norway), had just become airborne when a smoke
detector triggered and a smell of smoke developed in the cabin. The crew
immediately returned to Alta for a safe landing a few minutes after departure
and taxied to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

The airline said, there was a fire alert and smell of smoke observed in
the cabin, however no smoke or haze was visible. The airplane was examined
with no fault found. The aircraft was released to service after two hours.

The airplane departed again and reached Oslo with a delay of 130 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4320359c
20101010112241:20101008000000
Incident: Aeroperlas AT42 at Panama City on Oct 8th 2010, engine failure
An Aeroperlas Aerospatiale ATR-42-300, registration HP-004APP performing
flight WL-482 from Panama City Paitilla to Bocas Del Toro (Panama) with
43 passengers and 4 crew, experienced the failure of the right hand engine
(PW120) shortly after takeoff, smoke was observed from that engine. The
crew shut the engine down and returned to Panama City’s Paitilla Airport
(also known as Albrook Airport) for a safe landing about 12 minutes after
departure. The airplane stopped on the runway, passengers deplaned onto
the runway and were bussed to the terminal.

Passengers reported seeing flames out of the right hand engine.

Panama’s Civil Aviation Authority have opened an investigation into the
incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431fc818
20101009200615:20101008000000
Incident: Saudi E170 near Turaif on Oct 8th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Embraer ERJ-170, flight SV-646 from Beirut (Lebanon)
to Dammam (Saudi Arabia) with 61 passengers, was enroute near Turaif (Saudi
Arabia) when smoke was observed in the cabin. The crew diverted to Turaif
for a safe landing, the passengers were evacuated. No injuries occurred.

A replacement aircraft reached Damman with a delay of 4 hours.

Maintenance determined a problem with the right hand air conditioning system
as cause of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431ef94f
20101008153056:20101007000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Grand Forks on Oct 7th 2010, smoke detectors went off
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-485 from Grand Forks,ND
to las Vegas,NV (USA) with 152 people on board, was climbing out of Grand
Forks cleared to climb 10,000 feet when the crew requested to level off
at 5000 feet indicating they might need to return to the airport. A short
time later the crew declared emergency reporting a number of smoke detectors
had gone off with no visible smoke. The crew decided to enter a holding
over Grand Forks for about 10 minutes and then returned to Grand Forks for
a safe landing about 30 minutes after takeoff.

The fire alerts were determined false, no traces of fire, heat or smoke
were found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431c3177
20101004154318:20101004000000
Incident: NAS Air E190 near Wadi ad Dawasir on Oct 4th 2010, smoke in cabin
A NAS Air Embraer ERJ-190, flight XY-214 from Jazan to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia)
with 114 people on board, was enroute near Wadi ad Dawasir (Saudi Arabia)
about half way into the flight when the crew reported smoke in the cabin
and diverted to Wadi ad Dawasir for a safe landing.

A replacement aircraft reached Riyadh.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431a9cb5
20101002090818:20101002000000
Incident: Air India A313 over Indian Ocean on Oct 2nd 2010, smoke detector went off
An Air India Airbus A310-300, flight AI-901 from Kozhikode (India) to Riyadh
(Saudi Arabia) with 197 passengers and 12 crew, was enroute overhead the
Arabian Sea (Indian Ocean) about 50 minutes into the flight when a smoke
detector triggered prompting the crew to turn around and divert to Kochi.
The airplane landed safely about 1:45 hours after departure.

The passengers were taken to hotels, a replacement aircraft is expected
to continue the flight in the evening. The cause of the alert is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431f0f97
20101008193334:20100930000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near St. Pierre on Sep 30th 2010, autoflight system failure, smell of smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHKI performing flight AC-1197
from St. John’s,NL to Toronto,ON (Canada), was enroute at FL340 near St.
Pierre (Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, France) when
the crew requested to descend below RVSM due to the failure of the autoflight
system. The airplane was cleared to FL280 and descended to that level. Following
the descent the crew reported they were investigating a report of smoke
in the cabin. A short time later the crew reported there was an electrical
odour near a rear galley oven. The circuit breaker for the oven was manually
tripped and the smell dissipated. The crew continued the flight to destination
for a safe landing 2:40 hours later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that maintenance personnel reset the circuit
breakers and selected the rear galley ovens and coffeemakers on, but the
problem could not be reproduced. The airplane was since returned to service.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431cf8b5
20101005184116:20100930000000
Incident: Air Canada A321 at Vancouver on Sep 30th 2010, rejected takeoff because of bird strike
An Air Canada Airbus A321-200, registration C-GJWD performing flight AC-100
from Vancouver,BC to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 181 people on board, rejected
takeoff from Vancouver’s runway 26L at about 125 KIAS after a hawk impacted
the captain’s upper left windshield, the crew declared PAN, the tower observed
smoke from an engine. The airplane slowed safely and exited right onto taxiway
H, responding emergency services checked the aircraft before the airplane
taxied to the apron.

A subsequent runway inspection recovered the dead bird. The runway was closed
for about 10 minutes.

A replacement Airbus A321 reached Toronto with a delay of 4:40 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported maintenance performed a bird strike inspection
and returned the aircraft to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4317ec96
20100928064738:20100927000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 at Atlanta on Sep 27th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-1097 from Atlanta,GA
to Houston Hobby,TX (USA) with 119 passengers, returned to Atlanta after
the crew detected smoke in the cockpit shortly after takeoff. The airplane
landed safely 11 minutes after departure, the smoke dissipated and the aircraft
taxied to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

The FAA said, the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, landed shortly after
departure and taxied to the gate.

Delta reported, that the aircraft landed safely 11 minutes after departure
possibly because of smoke in the airplane.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43163309
20101119154129:20100924000000
Accident: Southern Air B742 at Frankfurt on Sep 24th 2010, rejected takeoff due to uncontained engine failure
A Southern Air Transport Boeing 747-200 freighter on behalf of Malaysian
Airlines, registration N758SA performing flight MH-6145 from Frankfurt/Main
(Germany) to Tashkent (Uzbekistan), rejected takeoff from Frankfurt’s runway
18 after engine #3 (CF6, inner right) suffered an uncontained failure and
slowed safely. The airplane received substantial damage.

An observer on the ground reported, that debris from the engine penetrated
the right hand wing, leading edge flaps, trailing edge flaps and the gear
doors prompting the observer to say they “look like Swiss Cheese”.

The German Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU) reported in
their status report in German on Nov 19th 2010, that the EGT indication
of engine #3 had significantly fluctuated during engine start and finally
fell to zero, so that the crew shut the engine down again. Engineers identified
a loose connector, subsequently engine #3 was started again and now showed
an EGT indication which varied only by a few degrees C.

Following takeoff clearance the crew accelerated the engines to about 70%
N1. The flight engineer reported that the generator #3 showed a warning
light, the captain therefore pulled all thrust levers to idle, but engines
#3 and #4 did not respond and continued to run at above 70% N1. At that
time the flight engineer noticed the right hand wing overtemperature indication
had illuminated prompting the captain to tell ATC that their takeoff would
need to be delayed. The crew of another aircraft observed smoke and fire
underneath the B742 and alerted ATC, the tower informed the B742 crew. In
the meantime the first officer discovered some orange glow underneath the
right hand wing. The captain therefore shut all engines down using the fire
handles and ordered the evacuation of the aircraft. All 4 crew on board
disembarked via the electronic compartment. Responding emergency services
did not find any fire.

The captain (29) had 3800 hours of flying experience, 1100 on type, the
first officer (55) had 9400 hours of flying experience thereof 1270 on type,
the flight engineer (47) had about 10000 hours of flying experience thereof
4600 on type.

Engine #3’s tech log showed an EGT check on Jun 15th 2010, on Aug 20th the
resistor values of the EGT probes were measured, and on Aug 31st a boroscopic
examination of the high pressure turbine stage 1 and 2 had been conducted,
all examinations showing no anomalies.

An examination of the engine showed that turbine disks 3 and 4 of the low
pressure turbine had fractured, the parts of both disks remained inside
the engine. All blades had separated from those two disks. In the rear section
of the engine there were a number of large holes, the stator between stage
3 and 4 of the low pressure turbine was completely missing. The aft cowling
and the central body were separated from the engine.

Engine parts impacted the aircraft in several locations. The underside of
the right hand wing showed impact marks up to 4 millimeters (0.15 inches)
deep. Several parts had gone through the pylon of engine #3.

The control cables for engines #3 and #4 in the right hand wing were severed,
as was the fire extinguishing tube of engine #3 and a cable harness above
engine #3.

Impact damage was also found on engines #2 (inboard left hand) and #4, the
belly fairing, the flaps, the ailerons and their cowlings. Tyres and brake
lines on the right hand main gear were damaged.

A boroscopic inspection of the engine found no damage in the compressor,
however about half a blade was missing from the first stage of the high
pressure turbine. The blades of the second stage showed erosion damage at
the tips.

No fire damage was found.

The NTSB had released a safety recommendation on May 27th 2010 recommending
a boroscopic inspection of the high pressure turbine every 15 flight cycles.
In June 2010 the FAA released an Air Worthiness Directive AD-2010-12-10
requiring a boroscopic inspection of the high pressure turbine stage 1 and
stage 2 blades, an EPR system check and engine trend monitoring every 75
flight cycles. That activity was the result of investigations into 4 occurrences,
where the low pressure turbine disks 3 and/or 4 had separated as result
of damages in the high pressure turbine.

General Electric, the engine manufacturer, released 4 service bulletin between
May and August 2010 as result of the investigations.

Engine #3 left hand side (Photo: BFU):
Engine #3 right hand side (Photo: BFU):
Impact marks on underside of right hand wing (Photo: BFU):
Missing half blade in high pressure turbine stage 1 (Photo: BFU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431562ec
20100924081632:20100923000000
Incident: Aerosur B722 at Viru Viru on Sep 23rd 2010, burst all main gear tyres on touch down
An Aerosur Boeing 727-200, flight 5L-300 from La Paz to Viru Viru (Bolivia)
with 142 passengers, burst all main gear tyres upon touch down in Viru Viru.
The tower advised seeing smoke from the landing gear right from touch down.
The airplane came to a safe stand still on the runway, emergency services
responded, the passengers disembarked normally.

The airport was closed for about 2.5 hours until the airplane was towed
off the runway. 5 flights were diverted.

The airport said, that tower saw smoke from the landing gear right from
the moment the airplane touched down and activated emergency services.

Aerosur said, that the tyres deflated because of hot brakes.

Bolivia’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said, that there
was moderate vibration from the landing gear after touchdown, the airplane
slowed using reverse thrust and brakes. The airplane was disabled on the
runway with all 4 main gear tyres blown and minor damage to the landing
gear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4314d727
20100923134336:20100923000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B764 over Irish Sea on Sep 23rd 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N840MH performing flight DL-250
(dep Sep 22nd) from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Athens (Greece) with 231 passengers
and 12 crew, was enroute at FL340 overhead the Irish Sea when the crew decided
to divert to Manchester,EN (UK) due to a smell of smoke in the cockpit.
The airplane landed safely about 20 minutes later.

The flight is expected to continue the following day (Sep 24th) and reach
Athens with a delay of 28 hours. The passengers were taken to local hotels.

Delta Airlines said, the crew reported a smokey odour in the cockpit and
diverted to Manchester as a precaution. The passengers disembarked normally,
the airplane was examined by maintenance and cleared for departure. However,
due a strike of ATC personnel in France the crew ran out of maximum duty
hours, so that the flight had to be cancelled. The flight will now depart
Manchester as DL-9858 on Friday at 8am BST (07:00Z).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4314fda9
20100923192003:20100920000000
Incident: Openskies B752 at Paris on Sep 20th 2010, rejected takeoff because of wrong flap setting
An Openskies Boeing 757-200, registration F-HAVI performing flight EC-1
from Paris Orly (France) to Newark,NJ (USA), rejected takeoff from Orly
Airport at high speed, the airplane slowed safely and vacated the runway.
Emergency services responded, six tyres deflated due to hot brakes.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration F-HAVN reached Newark with a delay
of 7:20 hours.

The airline reported, the takeoff was rejected at high speed due to an inconsistency
between what the crew expected and got to see on their instruments. The
airplane slowed safely and vacated the runway, the aircraft received minor
damage to tyres and wheels consistent with a rejected takeoff at high speed.
A replacement aircraft was dispatched to Newark.

Sources within the airline reported, that the takeoff was rejected because
a of wrong flap setting, flaps deployed to 1 degree only with another flap
setting having been planned. After the airplane had vacated the runway,
air traffic control advised of smoke from the landing gear, emergency services
responded and cooled the brakes, however not before six tyres had deflated.

The incident airplane resumed service 2 days later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43131a88
20100920235430:20100920000000
Incident: Mesa CRJ2 near Palm Springs on Sep 20th 2010, cargo fire indication
A Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, flight YV-2750/US-2750
from Phoenix,AZ to San Luis Obispo,CA (USA), was enroute at FL280 about
35nm northwest of Palm Springs,CA when the crew received a cargo fire indication
and decided to divert to Palm Springs for a safe landing 15 minutes later.

The FAA reported that emergency services found no traces of fire, heat or
smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431298e1
20100920060817:20100919000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Cape Girardeau on Sep 19th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-1199 from Atlanta,GA
to Saint Louis,MO (USA) with 132 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL340
about 50nm eastsoutheast of Cape Girardeau,MO when the crew reported smoke
in the cockpit and decided to diverted to Cape Girardeau. The smoke began
to appear in the cabin as well. The crew managed a safe landing about 14
minutes later. At the time of the landing the smoke had sufficiently dissipated
that the crew did not initiate an evacuation, the passengers disembarked
normally.

The passengers were bussed to St. Louis.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=431391ac
20100921155437:20100917000000
Incident: Easyjet A319 at Naples on Sep 17th 2010, smell of smoke in cabin
An Easyjet Airbus A319-100, registration G-EZBW performing flight U2-3364
from Naples (Italy) to London Stansted,EN (UK) with 144 passengers and 6
crew, was about 15 minutes into the flight when a smell of smoke was noticed
in the cabin prompting the crew to return to Naples for a safe landing.
The passengers disembarked normally.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration G-EZMH reached London with a
delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4311269d
20100918070829:20100917000000
Incident: US Airways B752 over Pacific on Sep 17th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A US Airways Boeing 757-200, registration N908AW performing flight US-432
from Phoenix,AZ to Kahului,HI (USA) with 175 passengers and 6 crew, was
enroute overhead the Pacific about 900nm from San Francisco and 1200nm from
Hawaii when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert
to San Francisco. On approach the crew reported that the smoke had dissipated.
The airplane landed safely on San Francisco’s runway 28L about 2 hours after
the report of smoke in the cockpit.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N901AW is estimated to reach Kahului
with a delay of 11 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43102758
20100916204726:20100916000000
Incident: American B763 near Halifax on Sep 16th 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N359AA performing flight
AA-199 from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 199 passengers
and 12 crew, was enroute at FL320 about 65nm north of Halifax,NS (Canada)
when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, declared emergency and requested
to divert. The controller immediately provided vectors to Halifax where
the airplane landed safely 16 minutes later.

The airline reported, that the smell of smoke came from a cooling fan in
the electronics bay. The fan will be disconnected and with redundant fans
being available the airplane will continue to New York after refueling.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430e0849
20100913142611:20100912000000
Incident: SAS MD82 near Belgrade on Sep 12th 2010, smoke indication
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration SE-DIN
performing flight SK-7708 from Bodrum (Turkey) to Billund (Denmark) with
149 passengers and 6 crew, diverted to Belgrade after the crew received
a smoke indication for the passenger luggage compartments. The airplane
landed safely.

The passengers were taken to local hotels.

A replacement MD-82 registration LN-RML reached Billund the following day
(Sep 13th) with a delay of 13:45 hours.

The smoke indication was determined false. The incident airplane was ferried
out of Belgrade on Monday (Sep 13th) too.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430dd3da
20100913070926:20100912000000
Incident: China Southern MD90 at Xi’an on Sep 12th 2010, small hydraulic leak causes smoke from landing gear
A China Southern Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90-30, flight CZ-6469 from
Taiyuan to Xi’an (China), landed in Xi’an when smoke from the landing gear
became visible during the rollout and turn off. The airplane vacated the
runway and stopped on the taxiway, where emergency services cooled down
the brakes. The passengers disembarked normally.

The airport said, that due to a small hydraulic leak fluid dripped onto
the hot brakes causing the smoke. Emergency services cooled the brakes with
nitrogen. A hydraulic pipe needed to be replaced delaying the return flight
CZ-6470 by 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430c0b41
20100910212742:20100910000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 at Fort Lauderdale on Sep 10th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N294JB performing flight B6-578
from Fort Lauderdale,FL to Westchester,NY (USA) with 78 people on board,
was about 5 minutes into the flight when the crew reported smoke in the
cabin and returned to Fort Lauderdale for a safe landing on runway 09L about
20 minutes after departure. The crew reported that there was no smoke anymore
and taxied to the gate.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-190 registration N190JB reached Westchester with
a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430bdc3d
20100912184656:20100910000000
Incident: American B763 near Shannon on Sep 10th 2010, smoke in cabin
N368AA in ShannonAn American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N368AA
performing flight AA-199 from Milan (Italy) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was
enroute at FL340 about 60nm south of Cork (Ireland) about to enter the Atlantic
crossing when the crew reported visible smoke in mid-cabin and a smoke detector
in the lavatory went off. The crew diverted to Shannon (Ireland) where the
airplane landed safely on runway 24, backtracked the runway and vacated
onto taxiway Alpha. The crew requested fire crews to enter the aircraft
and check the area where the smoke had been observed by cabin crew.

Police reported, that one of the passengers had been charging his mobile
phone, when the phone overheated and melted down. The passenger remained
unaware of his phone causing all the fuzz. Police conclude it was a genuine
mistake, the passenger continued on.

The airplane reached New York with a delay of 6 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430b4430/0001
20110811112423:20100909000000
Incident: Volga-Dnepr A124 at Torino on Sep 9th 2010, rejected takeoff, two engines flamed out
Fragment of upper half-ring 5th stage with vane #1The ANSV published a safety
recommendation to Russia’s Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) stating:
The serious incident occurred on Turin-Caselle airport demonstrates that
engine failsafe operation on model D18T series is not guaranteed at all
on the ones not yet modified.

ANSV – considering the very high MTOW of the aircraft on which D18T engine
series are installed, considering the safety level of an uncommanded engine
shut down during take-off on those aircraft, considering the Temporary Change
559 that is not supported by analysis related to the “fatigue progression”
on HPC 5th stage (the document was issued by the Operator) – recommends
Interstate Aviation Committee that the modification stated on the engine
Designer documents (D18T-1567 and 18T25446) must be completely carried out
on each engine installed onboard an aircraft before it could be airworthy.
The solution adopted by engine Designer (modification to the successive
scheduled shop visit) appears to be not acceptable and not sufficient at
all (ANSV-13/1687-10/1/1/11).

The ANSV reported that the aircraft was accelerating through 50 KIAS, when
engine #4 (outboard right) failed followed by uncommanded shut down of the
engine. The crew rejected takeoff. During application of reverse thrust
engine #1 (outboard left) surged followed by an uncommanded shut down. The
aircraft slowed safely and stopped on the runway, flames and smoke were
witnessed from engines #1 and #4.

The investigation so far showed, that the #1 engine surged and shut down
because reverse thrust was applied at a speed lower than prescribed in the
operating manual.

The #4 engine suffered mechanical damage in stage 6 of the high pressure
compressor “where it was completely missing one blade and where the fracture
at the place of tenon disengagement from groove No 94 showed presence of
fatigue.”

Analysis of the engine showed multiple cracking zones in the area of the
stage 5 guide vanes. The ANSV said: “The cracks on the HPC 5th stage guide
vanes induce a rotation on the longitudinal axis of the vanes with following
variation of the angle of attack of the air flow on the 6th rotor stage.
This kind of variation induces fatigue phenomena, found on the HPC 6th stage.”

The engine manufacturer had already reported to be aware of the issues in
the stage 5 and had released modification documents in October 2007, the
modifications thought to be applied during the next engine shop visit. The
manufacturer guaranteed the fail safe operation of the engines until the
end of the modification.

The ANSV however argued that the incident in Torino shows the fail safe
operation of the engines can not be guaranteed until the modifications have
been applied.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430b4430/0000
20110505144954:20100909000000
Incident: Volga-Dnepr A124 at Torino on Sep 9th 2010, rejected takeoff, two engines flamed out
The ANSV said in their preliminary report that two engines (#1/ outboard
left hand and #4 / outboard right hand) “flamed out” during takeoff when
the aircraft accelerated through about 50 knots. Emergency services responded
due to smoke emanating from both engines. The aircraft was able to taxi
to the apron following the event and examination.

The flight recorders were read out and borescopic inspections of both engines
conducted. Damage was found only in engine #4, while the flame out of engine
#1 was the result of a compressor stall due to application of reverse thrust
while the takeoff was rejected from low speed.

The engine was sent to the engine manufacturer in the Ukraine where some
type of structural damage was identified. The damaged parts were returned
to the ANSV for further analysis to determine the exact sequence of events.

Stage 6 high pressure compressor of engine #4 (Photo: ANSV):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430ac7cd
20100908214251:20100908000000
Incident: Spicejet B738 near Kolkata on Sep 8th 2010, cabin did not pressurize
A Spicejet Boeing 737-800, flight SG-219 from Kolkata to Delhi (India),
was climbing out of Kolkata when the crew noticed the cabin did not pressurize
properly. The airplane returned to Kolkata for a safe landing.

The flight had already departed with a delay of 100 minutes. When the airplane
taxied out for departure smoke was observed from the left hand engine. The
airplane returned to the gate, where maintenance examined the engine, fixed
the problem and released the airplane to the flight again.

A replacement aircraft reached Delhi with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=430a90be
20100908112236:20100907000000
Incident: Fedex A306 near Oklahoma City on Sep 7th 2010, smoke indication in cargo hold
A Fedex Federal Express Airbus A300-600, flight FX-982 from Memphis,TN to
Denver,CO (USA), was enroute at FL380 about 150nm northwest of Oklahoma
City,OK when the crew reported a smoke indication in the cargo hold and
decided to divert to Oklahoma City for a safe landing 27 minutes later.

Attending emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airport said, the smoke indication may have been the result of an air
conditioning issue.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43096b17
20100906143552:20100906000000
Incident: SAS MD82 near Hannover on Sep 6th 2010, loss of cabin pressure
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration LN-ROX
performing flight SK-640 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Copenhagen (Denmark),
diverted to Hannover (Germany) after cabin pressure was lost. Subsequently
the crew also reported smoke in the cabin. The airplane landed safely in
Hannover.

A replacement MD-82 registration SE-DIN is estimated to reach Copenhagen
as flight SK-6251 with a delay of 4.5 hours.

Scandinavian Airlines confirmed that the airplane diverted because of loss
of cabin pressure.

Emergency services in Hannover reported they were alerted because of smoke
in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43096739
20100921214637:20100905000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on Sep 5th 2010, smell of smoke in lavatory
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-GHLQ performing flight AC-25
(dep Sep 4th) from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Shanghai (China) with 152 passengers
and 10 crew, diverted to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (Russia) after flight
attendants smelled smoke in one of the lavatories. The airplane landed safely.

Emergency services could not find the source of the smell, maintenance examined
the aircraft finding no anomaly and released the aircraft to continue the
flight. The aircraft reached Shanghai with a delay of 5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Sep 21st, that cabin crew reported to flight
crew there were no serviceable lavatories and there was a strong burning
smell in one of the washrooms. The crew declared emergency and diverted
to Petropavlovsk for a safe landing. Maintenance found the lavatory door
MS1 latch switch melted. The switch was replaced and the airplane returned
to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43083adb
20100904224308:20100904000000
Incident: Trans States E145 near Indianapolis on Sep 4th 2010, cargo fire indication
A Trans States Airlines Embraer ERJ-145, flight AX-3546 from Saint Louis,MO
to Pittburgh,PA (USA) with 54 people on board, was enroute at FL330 about
25nm southwest of Indianapolis,IN when the crew received a cargo fire indication
and decided to divert to Indianapolis. The airplane landed safely about
18 minutes later. No trace of fire, heat or smoke was found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4307772e/0006
20130724182803:20100903000000
Crash: UPS B744 at Dubai on Sep 3rd 2010, cargo fire
The United Arab Emirates’ GCAA have released their final report concluding
the probable causes of the crash were:

– A large fire developed in palletized cargo on the main deck at or near
pallet positions 4 or 5, in Fire Zone 3, consisting of consignments of mixed
cargo including a significant number of lithium type batteries and other
combustible materials. The fire escalated rapidly into a catastrophic uncontained
fire.

– The large, uncontained cargo fire, that originated in the main cargo deck
caused the cargo compartment liners to fail under combined thermal and mechanical
loads.

– Heat from the fire resulted in the system/component failure or malfunction
of the truss assemblies and control cables, directly affecting the control
cable tension and elevator function required for the safe operation of the
aircraft when in manual control.

– The uncontained cargo fire directly affected the independent critical
systems necessary for crew survivability. Heat from the fire exposed the
supplementary oxygen system to extreme thermal loading, sufficient to generate
a failure. This resulted in the oxygen supply disruption leading to the
abrupt failure of the Captainís oxygen supply and the incapacitation of
the captain.

– The progressive failure of the cargo compartment liner increased the area
available for the smoke and fire penetration into the fuselage crown area.

– The rate and volume of the continuous toxic smoke, contiguous with the
cockpit and supernumerary habitable area, resulted in inadequate visibility
in the cockpit, obscuring the view of the primary flight displays, audio
control panels and the view outside the cockpit which prevented all normal
cockpit functioning.

– The shutdown of PACK 1 for unknown reasons resulted in loss of conditioned
airflow to the upper deck causing the Electronic Equipment Cooling [EEC]
system to reconfigure to ìclosed loop modeî. The absence of a positive pressure
differential contributed to the hazardous quantities of smoke and fumes
entering the cockpit and upper deck, simultaneously obscuring the crewís
view and creating a toxic environment.

– The fire detection methodology of detecting smoke sampling as an indicator
of a fire is inadequate as pallet smoke masking can delay the time it takes
for a smoke detection system to detect a fire originating within a cargo
container or a pallet with a rain cover.

Contributing Factors

– There is no regulatory FAA requirement in class E cargo compartments for
active fire suppression.

– Freighter main deck class E fire suppression procedures which relay on
venting airflow and depressurisation as the primary means of controlling
a fire are not effective for large Class E cargo fires involving dangerous
goods capable of Class D metal fire combustion.

– No risk assessment had been made for the failure of the cargo compartment
liner based on the evolution of cargo logistics and associated cargo content
fire threats, cargo hazards and bulk carriage of dangerous goods.

– The regulation standards for passive fire suppression do not adequately
address the combined total thermal energy released by current cargo in a
large cargo fire and the effect this has on the protection of critical systems.

– FAA and EASA regulatory requirements do not recognize the current total
fire risk associated with pallets, pallet covers and containers as demonstrated
by the NTSB/FAA testing.

– Class 9 Hazmat packing regulations do not address the total or potential
fire risk that can result from lithium battery heat release during thermal
runaway. Although non-bulk specification packaging is designed to contain
leaks and protect the package from failure, the packaging for Class 9 does
not function to contain thermal release.

– The growth rate of container and pallet fires after they become detectable
by the aircraftís smoke detection system can be extremely fast, precluding
any mitigating action and resulting in an overwhelming total energy release
and peak energy release rate for a standard fire load that cannot be contained.

– The course to return to Dubai required a series of complex radio communication
relays due to the Pilot Flyingís inability to view and tune the radio transceivers.

– The relay communication between the Pilot Flying, relay aircraft and the
various ATC stations resulted in communication confusion, incomplete and
delayed communications, which contributed to the escalated workload and
task saturation for the Pilot Flying.

– The Fire Main Deck non-normal checklist in the QRH was not fully completed
by the crew or adhered to regarding the fire suppression flight level or
land at nearest airport instruction.

– Task saturation due to smoke and multiple systems failures prevented effective
use of the checklist by the crew.

– Communications between the ATCO units involved multiple stages of information
exchange by landline and the destination aerodrome was not fully aware of
the specific nature of the emergency, the difficulty that the Pilot Flying
was experiencing or the assistance required.

– The Pilot Flying had not selected transponder code 7700, the emergency
code, when radio communication with the destination aerodrome was not established.

The GCAA reported that the crashes of the UPS Boeing 747-400 at Dubai and
the Asiana Boeing 747-400 near Jeju, see Crash: Asiana B744 near Jeju on
Jul 28th 2011, fire in cargo hold, show significant similiarities despite
different locations of the origins of fires.

The GCAA further stated: “Based on the NTSB cargo pallet and container fire
testing, approximately within ten minutes a large catastrophic fire can
occur which cannot be contained.”

The GCAA analysed with respect to the circumstances leading to the captain
leaving his seat and become incapacitated: “The incapacitation of the Captain
early in the event sequence was a significant factor in the investigation.
Based on the elevated temperature testing results and incidental CVR comments,
it is now understood why the oxygen flow stopped after the PVC hose connector
had failed, the direct effect of this failure on the crew survivability
and subsequent events in the accident timeline. At 15:19:15, the Captain
says ëitís getting hot in hereí, at 15:19:56 there is the first indication
that the Captains oxygen supply was compromised. The Captainís incapacitation
was possibly preventable as there was additional supplemental oxygen available
in the aft of the cockpit area and in the supernumerary area. The Captain
requested oxygen from the F.O. several times over approximately one minute.
The First Officer due to possible task saturation was either not aware of
the location of the supplementary oxygen bottles or able to assist the Captain.
It is not known if the Captain located either of the oxygen bottles although
they were within 2 meters of the Captains position.”

The GCAA analysed that the fire, according to studies and experiments conducted
by the NTSB, broke out about 10-15 minutes prior to the smoke detector alert.

The GCAA analysed with respect to time of fire detection to loss of contact:
“A study conducted by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, in which
15 in-flight fires between 1967 and 1998 were investigated, revealed that
the average elapsed time between the discovery of an in-flight fire and
the aircraft ditched, conducted a forced landing, or crashed ranged between
5 and 35 minutes, average landing of the aircraft is 17 minutes. Two other
B747 Freighter accidents caused by main deck cargo fires have similar time
of detection to time of loss of the aircraft time frames, South African
Airways Flight 295 was 19 minutes before loss of contact and Asiana Airlines
Flight 991 was eight minutes. Both aircraft had cargo that ignited in the
aft of the main deck cargo compartment. The accident aircraft in this case,
was 28 minutes from the time of detection until loss of control in flight.
The cargo that ignited was in the forward section of the main deck cargo
compartment. The average time is seventeen minutes. This should be factored
into the fire checklist that an immediate landing should be announced, planned,
organised and executed without delay. These findings indicate that crews
may have a limited time to complete various checklist actions before an
emergency landing needs to be completed and the checklist guidance to initiate
such a diversion should be provided and should appear early in a checklist
sequence.”

The GCAA analysed in this view with respect to checklists and diversion
guidance: “Currently SFF checklist methodology concerns whether or not crews
should be given guidance to divert and where in the checklist this guidance
should appear. In many current non alerted SFF checklists, guidance to complete
a diversion and/or emergency landing is given as one of the last steps,
if it is given at all, and the guidance to complete such a diversion is
only pertinent if efforts to extinguish the SFF were unsuccessful. In the
absence of active fire suppression the philosophy implicit in this design
is that continued flight to a planned destination is acceptable if in-flight
smoke or fire is extinguished. If crews follow these types of checklists
exactly as written, a diversion is initiated only after the completion of
steps related to other actions, such as crew protection (i.e., donning of
oxygen masks and goggles), establishing communication, source identification
and troubleshooting, source isolation and firefighting, and smoke removal,
and then only if the SFF is continuing.”

With respect to smoke entering the cockpit and the failure of PACK 1 the
GCAA analysed: “The flight crew was able to restore Pack 1 operation at
climb 12,200 ft (UTC 15:00:03) by accomplishing a reset per the PACK 1,2,3
non-normal procedure. All three packs were on at the time of the FIRE MAIN
DECK indication (UTC 15:13:46). Pack 2 and Pack 3 were then shutoff. This
is the expected result of the crew performing the FIRE MAIN DECK non-normal
procedure. Pack 1 was the only remaining source of flight deck ventilation
per system design. However, FDR indicates that Pack 1 stopped operating
at UTC 15:15:21. The shutdown of Pack 1 resulted in loss of all ventilation
to the flight deck, which compromised flight deck smoke control. Furthermore,
with no packs operating, the Forward Equipment Cooling System automatically
reconfigured into the ìclosed loopî mode, which changed the cooling air
to the flight deck instruments from pack air (outside ìfreshî air) to recirculated
air via the equipment cooling fan. Consequently, any smoke that would have
migrated to the E/E Bay would have been drawn into the Forward Equipment
Cooling System and supplied to the flight deck instruments.”

In addition the GCAA released following 95 findings:

3.1 FINDINGS
Findings The findings are statements of all significant conditions, events
or circumstances in the accident sequence. The findings are significant
steps in the accident sequence, but they are not always causal or indicate
deficiencies.
1. The crew of the inbound sector from Hong Kong reported a PACK 1 failure.
This failure could not be replicated on the ground in Dubai by the ground
engineer.
2. The Boeing 747-400 fleet was experiencing a lower than predicted MTBF
of the turbine bypass valve [TBV], which is a component of the AC PACKs.
3. A consignment of mixed cargo including a significant number of batteries,
including lithium types, was loaded on the inbound flight from Hong Kong
onto the pallets located at MD positions 4, 5, and 6, amongst other positions.
This cargo was not unloaded in Dubai.
4. At least three shipments including lithium type batteries should have
been classified and fully regulated as Class 9 materials per ICAO Technical
Instructions, and thus should have appeared on the cargo manifest. These
shipments were located in the cargo at MD positions 4 and 5.
5. Shippers of some of the lithium battery cargo loaded in Hong Kong did
not properly declare these shipments and did not provide Test Reports in
compliance with the UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods
Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3, to verify that such these battery
designs were in conformance with UN Modal Regulations.
6. The aircraft was airworthy when dispatched for the flight, with MEL items
logged. These MEL items are not contributory to the accident.
7. The mass and the Center of Gravity [CG] of the aircraft was within operational
limits.
8. The crew was licensed appropriately and no fatigue issues had been identified.
9. The Captains blood sample was positive for ethyl alcohol with a concentration
of (11 mg/dl).
10. Currently a universal fire protection certification standard covers
all transport category aircraft.
11. FAA Advisory Circular 25-9A Smoke Detection, Penetration, And Evacuation
Tests And Related Flight Manual Emergency Procedures does not require the
consideration of continuous smoke generation for cockpit smoke evacuation,
the FAA recommends that the airframe design address this situation but it
is not mandatory.
12. The crew were heard to confirm the oxygen mask settings during preflight,
however sound spectrum analysis indicated that for unknown reasons, the
First Officerís mask was set to Normal instead of 100%, which likely allowed
ambient air contaminated with smoke to enter his mask.
13. The take-off at 14:50 UTC and initial climb were uneventful.
14. At 14:58 UTC, Pack 1 went off line and was reset 2 minutes later by
the PM.
15. The crew acknowledged Bahrain radar and crossed into the Bahrain FIR
at 15:11 UTC.
16. At some point prior to the fire warning, contents of a cargo pallet,
which included lithium batteries, auto-ignited, causing a large and sustained
cargo fire which was not detected by the smoke detectors when in the early
stages of Pyrolysis.
17. Pallets with rain covers can contain smoke until a large fire has developed.
18. Two minutes after passing into the Bahrain FIR, Twenty one minutes after
take-off there is a fire alert at 15:12 indicating a, FIRE MAIN DK FWD.
19. The Captain assumes control as Pilot Flying, the F.O begins the FIRE
MAIN DK FWD non-normal checklist.
20. The Capt advises the F.O they are to return to DXB before alerting Bahrain
Area East Control [BAE-C] of the fire onboard, declaring an emergency and
requesting to land as soon as possible.
21. BAE-C advised the crew that Doha airport was 100 nm to the left. The
turn back to DXB totaled 185 nm track distance. The likely outcome of a
hypothetical diversion is inconclusive.
22. At the time the Captain decided to turn back, the crew was not yet aware
of the full extent of the fire and its effects.
23. By the time that the smoke in the cockpit and fire damaged controls
became apparent, diverting to Doha was no longer a feasible option.
24. The course to DXB resulted in the airplane flying out of direct radio
communication with ATC, requiring a complex relay of communication and increased
task saturation for the F.O.
25. In addition to the energy release from Lithium batteries resulting in
combustion, there is an associated mechanical energy release. This mechanical
energy release is capable of compromising the integrity of packaging and
creating incendiary projectiles.
26. The control of the aircraft when in manual control was compromised due
to the thermal damage to the control cable assemblies. The first indication
of the deteriorated synchronization problems between the control column
movement and elevator position appear when the Captain disconnects the autopilot.
27. The time interval between fire detection and the onset of aircraft system
failures was two minutes and thirty seconds at the point of detection. In
all probability the fire had damaged the control cables prior to autopilot
disconnection.
28. The aircraft begins to turn on to a heading for DXB and descends. As
it was dusk, the aircraft is now descending to the east and back into an
easterly time zone where there is limited available ambient solar light.
29. The cargo compartment liner failed as a fire and smoke barrier under
combined thermal and mechanical loads.
30. Consequently, the damaged cargo compartment liner exposed the area above
the cargo bay in fire zone 3 to sustained thermal loading either breaching
the cargo compartment liner or causing the aluminium structure retaining
the liner to collapse, exposing the area above and adjacent to the breach
to continuous thermal loading.
31. Consequently, the damaged cargo compartment liner exposed the supernumerary
and cockpit area to sustained and persistent smoke and toxic fumes.
32. Based on the NTSB pallet and container testing results, it is now known
that the growth rate of container fires after they become detectable by
the aircraftís smoke detection system can be extremely fast, precluding
any mitigating action and resulting in an overwhelming fire that cannot
be contained.
33. The high thermal loading damaged or destroyed the supporting trusses
for the control cables directly affecting the control cable tension. The
control column effectiveness was significantly reduced, subsequently the
movement of the elevators, speed brake, rudders, brakes and landing gear
control had been compromised.
34. The high thermal loading caused damage to the ECS ducting,
35. The ACARS/AHM data indicates a series of sensor failures and fire wire
loops tripping to active in the area of the fire, the fault timing and the
fire warning are corollary.
36. The crew donned their oxygen masks, and experienced difficulty hearing
each other.
37. The oxygen masks had a required setting of100% and in emergency for
smoke in the cockpit.
38. The oxygen selector position cannot be viewed when the mask is on. The
technique used to determine the selector position when the mask was on was
not an operator technique or reinforced through training scenarios and non-cognitive
muscle memory techniques.
39. The mask settings remain unchanged for the duration of the flight.
40. The main deck fire suppression system was activated and the cabin depressurized.
41. Lithium-metal cell thermal stability and reactions that occur within
a cell with elevated temperatures, up to the point of thermal runaway are
not oxygen dependent. Electrolyte or vent gas combustion properties and
the fire hazards associated with thermal runaway reactions do not respond
to the FL250 assumed hazard mitigation methodology.
42. The Class E cargo compartment fire suppression strategy of preventing
venting airflow in to cargo compartment, depressurization and maintaining
25,000ft cabin altitude may not be effective for Class D metal fires.
43. For unknown reasons Pack 1 went off and was not mentioned by the crew.
The cockpit smoke prevention methodology when the fire suppression is active
is to have pack one on low flow pressurizing the cockpit area to a higher
than ambient pressure, preventing smoke ingress.
44. It is unknown in this instance that if Pack one had been active this
method would have worked as described based on the volume and flow of the
smoke The Capt requests a descent to 10,000ft
45. The QRH Fire Main Deck checklist does not address the key factor of
descend or divert decision making. The checklist fire suppression methodology
advises the crew to remain at 25,000 cabin pressure altitude to suppress
a fire or land at nearest suitable airport. It does not provide guidance
for when or how to transition to landing or the fact that descending early
might provide more atmospheric oxygen to the fire. There is no intermediate
step to verify or otherwise assess the condition of the fire and to evaluate
the risk to the aircraft if a decent is initiated.
46. The Class E certification standards for fire suppression does not require
active fire suppression.
47. Within three minutes of the fire alarm, smoke enters the cockpit area.
This smoke in the cockpit, from a continuous source near and contiguous
with the cockpit area, entered with sufficient volume and density to totally
obscure the pilotís view of the instruments, control panels and alert indicating
systems for the duration of the flight.
48. Once the liner had been breached, the openings in the liner would progressively
expand, allowing an increase in the volume of dense noxious smoke, fire
and combustion by-products to escape the cargo compartment.
49. The cargo compartment liner structure certification does not include
extreme heat and other input loads such as vibration, multi-axial loading,
intermittent pressure pulses, thermo mechanical loadings based on differential
materials coefficients, acoustic and ballistic damage testing.
50. The crew made several comments concerning their inability to see anything
in the cockpit. The crew in the smoke environment had reduced visibility
and could not view the primary instruments such as the MFD, PFD, Nav Displays
or the EICAS messages.
51. The Captain selected the Autopilot on and leveled out following the
pitch control problems. The aircraft remained in a stable steady state when
controlled via the AP. There was no communication between the Captain and
the F.O. that the controllability problem was resolved using the AP.
52. Effective elevator and rudder control was only available with the autopilots.
The aircraft was controllable with the AP as the servos are electrically
controlled and hydraulically actuated, which for pitch control is in the
tail section aft of the rear pressure bulkhead, and the fire had not compromised
the electrical cabling to the actuators.
53. The PF was not fully aware of the extent of the control limitations,
could not see the EICAS messages and was not aware of all of the systems
failures.
54. The Captain called for the smoke evacuation handle to be pulled as the
smoke accumulated in the cockpit. The smoke evacuation handle when pulled
opens a port in the cockpit roof, which if the smoke is sustained and continuous,
will draw smoke through the cockpit as the pressure is reduced by the open
port venturi effect compounding the problem. The smoke evacuation handle
remained open for the remainder of the flight.
55. There are several instances of checklist interruption at critical times
at the beginning of the emergency. The speed and quick succession of the
cascading failures task saturated the crew. The smoke in the cockpit, combined
with the communications problems further compounded the difficult CRM environment.
With the incapacitation of the captain, the situation in the cockpit became
extremely difficult to manage.
56. One factor when dealing with the QRH and running checklists is that
the B747 does not have a hot microphone function. This caused increasing
difficulty managing cascading failures and high workload.
57. The crew was unable to complete the Fire Main Deck checklist. The aircraft
was not leveled off at 25,000 ft. Directly descending to the 10,000 ft may
have exacerbated fire and smoke problem due to the extra available oxygen.
58. The Captain instructed the F.O. to input DXB RWY12L into the FMC. This
action was completed with difficulty due to the smoke. There was no verbal
confirmation of the task completion, however, the the aircraft receivers
detected the DXB Runway 12L glide slope beam when approaching Dubai.
59. Captain made a comment mentioning the high cockpit temperature, almost
immediately the Captains oxygen supply abruptly stopped without warning,
this occurred seven minutes six seconds after the first Main Deck Fire Warning.
60. The Captainís inability to get oxygen through his mask was possibly
the result of the oxygen hose failure near the connector. The high thermal
loading was conducted through the supplementary oxygen stainless steel supply
lines heating the supplementary oxygen directly affecting the flexible hose
connector causing the oxygen supply line to fail.
61. Systems analysis indicates that the oxygen supply is pressure fed, therefore
venting oxygen could be released by a failed oxygen hose which could then
discharge until the oxygen line fails or the oxygen supply is depleted.
62. The Captain requests oxygen from the F.O. several times over approximately
one minute. The First Officer due to possible task saturation was not able
to assist the Captain.
63. The oxygen requirement of the Captain became critical, the Captain removes
the oxygen mask and separate smoke goggles and leaves the seat to look for
the supplementary oxygen. The Captain did not return. The Captain was in
distress locating the supplementary oxygen bottle and could not locate it
before being overcome by the fumes.
64. The Captain was incapacitated for the remainder of the flight. A post-mortem
examination of the Captain indicates that the cause of death was due to
carbon monoxide inhalation.
65. A full face emergency oxygen supply is available in the cockpit. Oronasal
masks are available in the lavatory, jump seat area and crew bunk area.
66. Due to the Captainís incapacitation the F.O became P.F. for the remainder
of the flight, operating in a single pilot environment. Exposure to this
type of environment in a controlled training environment could have been
advantageous to the remaining crew member.
67. The FO had breathing difficulties as the aircraft descended as the normal
mode function of the mask supplies oxygen at a ratio to atmospheric, ambient
air. The amount of oxygen supplied was proportional to the cabin altitude.
68. The cockpit environment remained full of smoke in the cockpit, from
a continuous source near and contiguous with the cockpit area for the duration
of the flight.
69. As the flight returned towards DXB, the crew were out of VHF range with
BAE-C and should have changed VHF frequencies to the UAE FIR frequency 132.15
for the Emirates Area Control Center [EACC]. Due to the smoke in the cockpit
the PF could not view the audio control panels to change the frequency selection
for the duration of the flight.
70. The flight remained on the Bahrain frequency 132.12 MHz on the left
hand VHF ACP for the duration of the flight. To solve the direct line of
communication problem, BAE-C requested traffic in the vicinity to relay
communication between crew and BAE-C.
71. The PF made a blind Mayday call on 121.5 MHz at 15:21 UTC.
72. The PF had to relay all VHF communication through other aircraft. The
radio communication relay between the PF, the relay aircraft and the ANS
stations resulted in confusion communicating the nature and intent of the
PFís request for information with the required level of urgency.
73. The PF requested from the relay aircraft immediate vectors to the nearest
airport, radar guidance, speed, height and other positional or spatial information
on numerous occasions to gauge the aircraftís position relative to the aerodrome
and the ground due to the persistent and continuous smoke in the cockpit.
74. The relay aircraft did not fully comprehend or communicate to the BAE-C
controller the specific nature of the emergency and assistance required,
particularly towards the end of the event sequence.
75. There was a multi-stage process to complete a standard request for information
between the accident flight and the destination aerodrome via the relay
aircraft and the ATCU.
76. The flight crew did not or could not enter the transponder emergency
code 7700, however all ATCUs were aware that the airplane was in an emergency
status.
77. DXB controllers were aware that the flight was in an emergency status,
however were not aware of the specific nature of the emergency or assistance
required, due to the complex nature of the relayed communications.
78. There was no radar data sharing from the UAE to Bahrain ATC facilities.
Bahrain had a direct feed that goes to the UAE but there was no reciprocal
arrangement. This lack of data resulted in the BAE-C ATCO not having radar
access the SSR track of the accident flight.
79. The ATC facilities are not equipped with tunable transceivers.
80. The accident aircraft transmitted on the Guard frequency 121.5 Mhz.
The transmissions were not heard by the EACC or DXB ATC planners due to
the volume of the 121.5 Mhz frequency being in a low volume condition.
81. The PF did not respond to any of the calls from the ACC or the relay
aircraft on 121.5 MHz, which were audible on the CVR, after the Mayday transmission.
82. During the periods when direct radio communications between the pilot
flying and the controllers was established, there was no negative effect.
Therefore it is likely that if direct 121.5 contact had been established
the communications task could have been simplified.
83. The relay aircraft hand off between successive aircraft caused increasing
levels of frustration and confusion to the PF.
84. All Dubai aerodrome approach aids and lighting facilities were operating
normally at the time of the accident.
85. There is no requirement for full immersion smoke, fire, fumes cockpit
training for flight crews.
86. The PF selected the landing gear handle down. The landing gear did not
extend, likely due to loss of cable tension.
87. The flaps extended to 20∞. This limited the auto throttle power demand
based on the max flap extension placard speed at 20∞ Flaps.
88. The PF was in radio contact with a relay aircraft, who advised the PF
through BAE-C that Sharjah airport was available, and a left hand turn onto
a heading of 095∞ was required.
89. The PF made an input of 195∞ into the MCP for an undetermined reason
when 095∞ was provided. The aircraft overbanked to the right, generating
a series of audible alerts. It is probable that the PF, in the absence of
peripheral visual clues, likely became spatially disorientated by this abrupt
maneuver.
90. The aircraft acquired 195∞, the AP was selected off. The throttle was
retarded and the aircraft began a rapid descent.
91. The PF was unaware of the large urban area directly in the airplaneís
path. The aircraft began a descent without a defined landing area ahead.
92. Spatial disorientation, vestibular/somatogyral illusion due to unreliable
or unavailable instruments or external visual references are a possibility.
The PF was unaware of the aircraft location spatially. The PF may have been
attempting an off airfield landing, evidenced by numerous control column
inputs.
93. The control column inputs to the elevators had a limited effect on the
descent profile. The pilot made a series of rapid column inputs, in response
to GPWS warnings concerning the sink rate and terrain. The inputs resulted
in pitch oscillations where the elevator response decreased rapidly at the
end of the flight
94. The available manual control of pitch attitude was minimal, the control
column was fully aft when the data ends, there was insufficient trailing
edge up [nose up] elevator to arrest the nose down pitch. Control of the
aircraft was lost in flight followed by an uncontrolled descent into terrain.
95. The aircraft was not equipped with an alternative viewing system to
allow the pilot(s) to view the instruments and panels in the smoke filled
environment.

Fire damaged and ruptured Lithium batteries recovered from the wreckage
(Photo: GCAA):
Original with opened electronics (Photo: GCAA):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=4307772e/0004
20110404083611:20100903000000
Crash: UPS B744 at Dubai on Sep 3rd 2010, cargo fire
The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) of the United Arab Emirates
have released a preliminary report reporting, that the first officer (ATPL,
6130 hours total, 78 on type) was pilot flying, the captain (ATPL, 11410
hours total, 367 hours on type) was pilot monitoring. The airplane departed
Dubai with some defects that were deferred according to minimum equipment
list requirements and did not contribute to the crash.

The airplane carried no declared shipments of hazardeous cargo. The package
details for the cargo on board however identified many shipments as lithium
batteries or electronic devices containing or packed with lithium batteries.
These shipments were distributed throughout the cargo decks and not concentrated
in a specific area. At least 3 shipments contained lithium ion batteries
specified as hazard class 9 and should have been identified on the cargo
manifest. The other cargo mainly consisted of clothes, shoes, books, toys,
lighting, transformers, solenoids, USB drives, circuitry, etc.

The airplane departed Dubai’s runway 30R. During climb out the crew received
a PACK 1 (left hand air conditioning system) fault while climbing through
13,000 feet, that could be reset by the captain. The airplane continued
to climb to its assigned cruise level 320. Near the top of climb an alert
consistent with the fire alert bell could be heard on the cockpit voice
recorder, the captain assumed role as pilot flying and the first officer
as pilot monitoring working the relevant checklists. The captain radioed
Bahrain that they had a fire indication for the main deck and needed to
land as soon as possible. Bahrain ATC offered Doha as their closest airport
in a distance of 100nm, distance to Dubai was 148nm. The captain decided
– and was cleared – to return to Dubai and declared emergency.

2 minutes after the first fire bell the autopilot disconnected followed
by a second fire alert 3 minutes after the first alert. At that time the
crew donned their oxygen masks and smoke goggles, PACK 1 shut down (but
no discussion of that PACK 1 shut down was recorded by the cockpit voice
recorder). The oxygen masks hindered their Intercom communication however,
which interfered with their cockpit resource management (the aircraft was
not equipped with “hot mikes”, a switch had to be moved on the audio control
panel or the microphone button on the yoke be depressed to talk).

After having been cleared to FL270 the crew requested an immediate descent
to 10,000 feet and following clearance performed a rapid descent to 10,000
feet. Bahrain ATC advised that they were now tracking directly towards Dubai
and cleared the flight to land on Dubai’s runway 12L at the crew’s discretion.

The crew worked the fire main deck checklist, in that process PACK 2 and
PACK 3 were manually selected OFF (that checklist was changed by Boeing
in December 2010 now requiring either PACK 1 or PACK 3 continue to run to
prevent excessive smoke accumulation in the cockpit), the aircraft began
to depressurize.

The captain commented that he had limited pitch control in manual flying
mode and asked the first officer to determine the cause of the pitch anomaly.
Data off the flight data recorder (FDR) showed the elevators did not deflect
to the range required by the control inputs.

5 minutes after the first alert the autopilot was re-engaged and the descent
stabilized. At that time the captain told the first officer to pull the
smoke evacuation handle, which was not part of the checklist. The captain
advised ATC that the cockpit was full of smoke and commented to the first
officer about the inability to see the instruments. Subsequently he asked
the first officer to input DXB (Dubai) into the flight management system
which the first officer acknowledged. The first officer commented about
the increasing temperature on the flight deck.

The ILS frequency for Dubai’s runway 12L was selected (although it did not
become clear whether Dubai had been programmed into the FMS).

The GCAA annotated: “Based on the information available to date, it is likely
that less than 5 minutes after the fire indication on the main deck, smoke
had entered the flight deck and intermittently degraded the visibility to
the extent that the flight instruments could not effectively be monitored
by the crew.”

7 minutes after the first alert the cabin altitude was at 20,000 feet and
the captain declared lack of oxygen. The captain handed control to the first
officer and left his seat to fetch some portable oxygen. Subsequent recordings
of the cockpit voice recorder did not indicate any further interaction from
the captain until impact.

8 minutes after the first alert Bahrain instructed the aircraft to change
to Dubai’s frequency. At approximately the same time the first officer transmitted
“mayday, mayday, mayday can you hear me?”. He explained that due to smoke
view of cockpit instruments, radio panels and flight management system had
been compromised, a frequency change was impossible. He decided to stay
on Bahrain’s frequency for the remainder of the flight, aircraft in the
area began to relay between N571UP and Bahrain ATC.

10 minutes after the first alert the first officer radioed that he was “looking
for some oxygen”. United Arab Emirates ATC transmitted on the guard frequency
but did not receive an acknowledgement from the first officer (although
he later transmitted on the guard frequency). The airplane levelled at 10,000
feet about 84nm west of Dubai.

14 minutes after the first alert the first officer requested immediate radar
vectors to the nearest airport again mentioning difficulty to see the instruments.

21 minutes after the first alert, about 26nm west of Dubai, the aircraft
descended to 9000 feet followed by a further gradual descent towards runway
12L, the speed was 340 knots.

26 minutes after the first alert, 10nm west of Dubai, relay aircraft advised
N571UP was too high and too fast and recommended to do a 360 (full circle),
the first officer replied “Negative” however. At this time the gear lever
was selected down, the CVR recorded the sounds of the gear lever movement,
however the first officer commented the gear was not functioning. The speed
brakes lever was moved towards extend, at the same time the CVR recorded
sounds consistent with a flaps handle movement.

The aircraft overflew Dubai Airport’s northern boundary at a heading of
117 degrees and a speed of 340 knots at 4500 feet descending. After overflying
the airport the aircraft was cleared directly to Sharjah Airport some 10nm
to the left of the aircraft position. The first officer requested and received
vectors to Sharjah’s runway 30, a heading of 095 to position towards final
approach to Sharjah. The first officer selected 195 into the master control
panel, the airplane began to turn right, the autopilot disconnected and
the airplane entered a descending right turn with the speed reducing to
240 knots until impact. Several aural ground proximity warnings sounded
including sink rate, too low terrain and bank angle warnings.

29 minutes after the first alert radar contact was lost and the aircraft
impacted a perimeter road of a military installation, the right wing impacted
several buildings, the engines separated, the fuselage went through a number
of service sheds. The aircraft left ground tracks of 620 meters length at
a heading of 243 degrees, the fuselage, wings and engines were spread over
an area of 300 meters. A post accident fire damaged the majority of the
wreckage.

The GCAA determined based on data available that the fire began in the forward
cargo main deck compartment.

The investigation is continuing.

Several safety recommendations have already been issued as result of the
ongoing investigation, all related to the transport of Lithium batteries.
The FAA had already issued a safety alert for operators (SAFO), see: News:
The risks of lithium batteries in aircraft cargo.

Location where the fire started (Graphics: GCAA):
Crash site overview (Photo: GCAA):
Map of crash site (Graphics: GCAA):
Flight trajectory Dubai area (Graphics: GCAA):
Flight trajectory complete (Graphics: GCAA):
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4307772e
20110404083603:20100903000000
Crash: UPS B744 at Dubai on Sep 3rd 2010, cargo fire
Smoke rising from crash sceneA UPS Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration
N571UP performing flight 5X-6 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Cologne
(Germany) with 2 crew, was returning to Dubai after declaring emergency,
when the airplane crashed onto a free space west of Dubai Silicon Oasis
and Al-Ain Highway (E66) about half way between Emirates Road (E311) and
Outer Bypass Road (E611) at 19:42L (15:42Z). Both crew perished in the crash.

UPS confirmed their Boeing 747-400 performing flight 5X-6 from Dubai to
Cologne with 2 crew crashed on takeoff. In an update of Sep 4th UPS confirmed
both crew member perished. In another update on Sep 5th UPS said, the captain
(48) joined UPS in 1995, the first officer (38) in 2006, both pilots were
based in Anchorage,AK (USA). The airframe N571UP was only three years old
and had accumulated 9977 hours in 1764 takeoffs and landings.

An airport official said, the crew reported technical problems while on
approach to Dubai.

An United Arab Emirates official said, the crew reported fire on board while
on approach to Dubai. The airplane, that had taken off at 18:40L (14:40Z)
was being vectored towards a military compound.

United Arab Emirates General Aviation Civil Authority said, that the crew
had reported smoke and fire in the cockpit and was returning to Dubai International
Airport. The airplane failed to land however and disappeared from radar
screens shortly thereafter. The bodies of both pilots have been recovered.

On Sep 5th the United Arab Emirates (UAE) General Civil Aviation Authority
(GCAA) released a brief preliminary report stating, that the airplane had
departed Dubai International Airport at 18:53L (14:53Z). UAE ATC Center
received information from Bahrain Center at 19:15L (15:15Z), that the airplane
was returning to Dubai with smoke in the cockpit unable to maintain altitude.
UAE ATC issued a clearance when the airplane was about 40km (21.6nm) from
touchdown, the airplane however was too high (8500 feet at 24km/13nm from
touchdown). The airplane passed very high overhead the airfield and entered
a right hand turn, the crew was advised all runways were available for landing.
The airplane tracked southwest when it rapidly lost altitude, radar contact
was lost at 15:42Z, the airplane crashed into an unpopulated area between
Emirates Road and Al Ain Highway. The cockpit voice recorder was recovered
6 hours after impact, the flight data recorder is still being searched for.
The NTSB team is expected to arrive at the crash site today (Sep 5th), too.
On Sep 7th the flight data recorder was recovered and was found in reasonable
condition.

The NTSB reported on Sep 4th, that UPS Flight 6, a Boeing 747-400 freighter
registration N571UP, crashed while attempting to land at Dubai International
Airport, from where the airplane had departed about 45 minutes earlier.
The crew had declared an emergency and requested an immediate return to
Dubai. The two crew were fatally injured, the NTSB does not know whether
there have been fatalities on the ground. The NTSB have assigned an Accredited
Representative as state of operator, state of aircraft design and manufacture
and state of engine design and manufacture. The investigation is led by
the United Arab Emirates Civil Aviation Authority.

Residents of Dubai Silicon Oasis said, the airplane crashed right in front
of their apartment blocks moving in an westsouthwesterly direction. After
verifying the wreckage location in daylight the following day (Sep 4th)
a resident put the wreckage position at N25.098 E55.360. From point of first
impact the airplane slid about 400 meters.

Aviation sources in Dubai report, that the crew declared emergency reporting
a fire in the cockpit shortly after takeoff and attempted to return to the
airport’s runway 30L dumping fuel. The airplane was seen flying very low
at a shallow descent until impact, where the airplane erupted in a large
fire ball. Several buildings, apparently all of them under construction,
have been set on fire by the crash.

Pilots on frequency of Bahrain Center reported, that the airplane had been
enroute overhead the Arabian Gulf about 120nm westnorthwest of Dubai when
the crew performed an emergency descent and reported a fire in the cockpit.
Later they reported they were unable to read their instruments and were
unable to change frequency asking for frequent updates on their altitude
and speed from ATC. They were vectored for a straight in approach to Dubai’s
runway 12L. Being too high and too fast for landing they were offered to
divert to Sharjah or join a right hand downwind for another visual approach
to runway 12L. The airplane impacted ground about 20 minutes after declaring
emergency.

The UAE GCAA reported on Sep 23rd that the data were completely and successfully
downloaded from the flight data and cockpit voice recorders and analysis
is making progress. The investigation is focussing on “understanding the
issues involved around the cargo carried and the associated risks.” The
airplane had just reached the top of climb at 19:12L (15:12Z) when the crew
received a main deck fire warning. The crew executed the according checklists
and requested the nearest airport from Bahrain ATC. They were offered Doha
but decided to return to Dubai. Over time a number of additional fire warnings
arrived from the main and lower cargo deck. There is evidence that during
the descent the crew had difficulty to see their primary flight instruments
due to thick smoke. There is also evidence that there was difficulty in
the communication. The aircraft subsequently overflew Dubai’s runway at
4000 feet and entered a right hand turn. About 5 minutes later air traffic
control alerted emergency services that there had been an accident at the
Nad Al Sheba area.

The FAA reported in their Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO) 10017, that
the airplane’s cargo contained a large quantity of lithium batteries. While
the investigation is still underway and the cause of the crash has not been
determined, the FAA believes it is prudent to inform operators of this fact
as well as remind operators of the characteristics of thermal runaways of
lithium batteries. The FAA states further, that the fire suppression agent
Halon 1301 found in class C cargo compartments is ineffective controlling
lithium metal cell fires. For an earlier SAFO including a video see: How
to fight fires caused by Lithium batteries in portable electronic devices
.

Boeing stated in a message to all Boeing 747-400 freighter operators released
on Oct 13th, that they plan to modify the fire indication checklists following
discovery on the flight data recorders of this crash, that none of the air
conditioning systems was working following the fire indication. Boeing plans
to add text indicating that after two of the three air conditioning systems
are shut down per system design following a fire indication, either air
conditioning system 1 or 3 must continue to work in order to prevent excessive
smoke accumulation on the flight deck. This modification is planned to be
released with the November flight crew operating manual bulletins, further
modifications of the manuals are under consideration.
Metars:
OMDB 031700Z 22004KT 8000 NSC 35/29 Q1000 NOSIG
OMDB 031600Z 24004KT 8000 NSC 36/27 Q1000 NOSIG
OMDB 031500Z 32006KT 290V030 8000 NSC 35/28 Q0999 NOSIG
OMDB 031400Z 30010KT 8080 NSC 36/26 Q0999 NOSIG
OMDB 031300Z 31011KT 290V350 8000 NSC 37/27 Q0999 NOSIG
OMDB 031200Z 30012KT 8000 NSC 37/27 Q1000 NOSIG

Aerial view of crash site (Photo: flaphandlemover):
Crash site in daylight (Photo: APA/EPA/Ali Haider):
Overview of crash site (Photo: AP/Kamran Jebreili):
Detail Map, final position identified by aerial view (Graphics: AVH/Google
Earth):
Map including nearby Airbase (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=4304c4fb
20100925104912:20100830000000
Incident: Shanghai Airlines B752 near Shanghai on Aug 30th 2010, smoke in cabin as result of lightning strike
A Shanghai Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration B-2833 performing flight
FM-809 from Shanghai to Hong Kong (China) with 131 passengers, had just
reached cruise level when smoke was observed in the cabin. The crew released
the passenger oxygen masks and returned to Shanghai for a safe landing about
one hour after departure.

Shanghai Airlines said on Aug 30th, that first examinations revealed the
smoke came from the air conditioning system, further examinations are under
way.

The NTSB reported on Sep 25th, that the airplane was struck by lightning
causing 4 small holes in the crown skin of section 43 and one hole in the
dorsal radio antenna. Burn evidence was found on the air distribution duct
and insulation blankets inside the aircraft.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4304672b
20100830083855:20100828000000
Incident: US Airways A319 at Washington on Aug 28th 2010, engine trouble
A US Airways Airbus A319-100, registration N758US performing flight US-1764
from Charlotte,NC to Washington National,DC (USA) with 81 passengers and
5 crew, was on final approach to Ronald Reagan Airport’s runway 01 at 18:48L
(22:48Z) when the crew declared emergency advising tower to continue landing
and asked whether tower would see something off their left hand engine.
Tower confirmed having seen sporadic flames out of the left hand engine,
emergency services have been called out, the flames stopped again. The crew
cancelled the emergency and continued for a safe landing, vacated the runway
and shut the left hand engine down. Attending emergency services did not
detect any fire or smoke anymore.

The airplane taxied to the apron 5 minutes later.

N758US’s left engine surging (Photo: Ann Minks):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=43056a0a
20100831195041:20100827000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A near Timmins on Aug 27th 2010, smoke in cockpit
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GJIG performing
flight QK-7829 from Toronto,ON to Timmins,ON (Canada) with 38 people on
board, was enroute about 60nm from Timmins, when the crew observed smoke
coming from the #2 transponder panel. The crew pulled the circuit breaker,
the smoke dissipated, a toxic odour remained however. The crew declared
emergency and continued to Timmins for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported, that an electronic circuit board was found burnt
in the #2 transponder. Maintenance replaced the #2 transponder and the TCAS
control panel, that was found adrift.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=43028f70/0000
20110925152623:20100827000000
Accident: Jet Airways B738 at Mumbai on Aug 27th 2010, evacuation during taxi leads to injuries
India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) released their final
report concluding:

Wrong decision of the captain to carry out evacuation for non-real emergency
situation of imaginative fire from the left engine, leading to the serious
injuries to passengers is the most probable cause for the incident.

Contributory factors:

– Non-awareness of the effect of anti-collision light by the ACMs (additional
crew member), cabin crew and CCIC (Cabin Crew in Charge)

– Over reacted ACMs and absence of company policy on ACM role in the flight

– Failure of CCIC to play her role in evacuation

– Incorrect usage of non-required exit for evacuation

The DGCA reported there were 139 passengers, 4 cabin crew and 8 additional
cabin crew members (effectively crew members off duty travelling as passengers)
on board of the aircraft. The cockpit crew was formed by a captain (43,
ATPL, 8,400 hours total), a first officer (40, CPL, 2,474 hours total, 2,099
hours on type) and a trainee first officer (on his 2nd pre-simulator flight)
in the observer seat.

The aircraft was taxiing along taxiway N about abeam taxiway N7 when an
additional cabin crew member (ACM) seated in seat 35A observed fire from
the left hand engine and informed his seat neighbour in 35B, also ACM. That
ACM got up and walked to the Interphone in the rear of the cabin and called
the cockpit. The captain verified he was talking to an ACM, stopped the
aircraft abeam taxiway N7 and called tower “do you see the fire on left
engine?” which the tower replied in the negative to. The captain requested
the purser to check to see whether there was a fire on the left engine.
The purser went back to row 36, looked at the engine and walked back to
her Interphone confirming there was fire under the left wing. There were
no indications in the cockpit. The tower had already dispatched a follow
me vehicle to check the aircraft and had the emergency trucks rolling. Based
on the confirmation of fire by the purser the captain ordered the evacuation
of the aircraft through the right hand doors. The crew worked the evacuation
checklist shutting down both engines by pulling the fire handles and APU
and informed tower “we have fire on left engine and we are evacuating.”
No fire extinguisher was discharged.

The purser called the other cabin crew to evacuate through the right hand
forward and rear doors, but did not instruct to open the L2 door and overwing
exits. However, door L2, both left hand overwing exits as well as both doors
R1 and R2 and right hand overwing exits were opened. Arriving emergency
services did not find any trace of fire or smoke. During the evacuation
4 passengers received serious injuries (multiple fractures of legs) and
21 passengers minor injuries as result of the evacuation. All injured passengers
had exited the aircraft through the overwing exists on both left and right
hand side.

All cabin crew and additional cabin crew members later confirmed there was
no unusual smell and and no smoke in the cabin at any time.

There was no rain, visibility was good, the apron and taxiway surfaces however
were wet. The DGCA analysed that weather did not contribute to the occurrence.

The aircraft underwent extensive checks of the left and right hand engines.
No traces of an engine or related fire were found, all systems including
the Electronic Engine Controls showed no anomaly. The LH engine’s cowling
and thrust reversers were opened with no evidence of fire detected. A borescopic
inspection showed no anomaly. Evaluation of flight data recordings during
the last flights including engine vibrations showed no anomaly. The engine
was ground run satisfactorily, the aircraft was released back to service
on Aug 28th 2010.

The DGCA further analysed that there was no fire from the left hand engine
or underneath the left hand wing although reported by both ACM and cabin
crew.

The DGCA analysed that the anti-collision red lights were on at the time
of the fire observation. All reporting crew members could not see the left
engine but noticed red flickering light at the bottom of the left wing.
When interviewed all cabin crew and ACM admitted they were not aware of
the effects of the anti-collision lights. The DGCA therefore analysed that
the reflection of the anti-collision light at the bottom of the fuselage
created the illusion of a fire underneath the left hand wing.

The DGCA further analysed, that the captain lacking situational awareness
made a wrong decision to evacuate. After the ACM reported a fire, the captain
asked the purser to check for a fire from the left hand engine, but failed
to recognize that one of the ACMs was husband of the purser. The purser
had already been influenced by her husband reporting the engine fire. On
the other hand the captain had information from the tower stating there
was no fire, he could not see any fire while looking out of his left window,
did not open the left window to get a better view of the left wing, the
pilots of other aircraft in vicinity also did not report a fire.

The first officer also failed to suggest to shut the engine down and return
to the gate on single engine.

The DGCA analysed that the purser did not exercise her supervisory duties
when ACMs – despite order to not use Interphones – did call the cockpit
via Interphone. She had received an Interphone call from the cabin crew
at L2 reporting the engine fire, she called the cockpit and after receiving
order to check for the presence of fire from the captain she walked back
to row 36, where both ACM in 35A, 35B and 35C (her husband) were talking
to her convincing her they all had seen fire. Being unaware of the effects
of anti-collision lights she also believed there was fire and confirmed
the fire to the cockpit. She subsequently did not provide proper instructions
to her cabin crew regarding evacuation leading to the opening of L2 and
all overwing exits. The DGCA therefore concluded the purser “failed to justify
her role as CCIC in the incident flight.”

The cabin crew member at L2 did not prevent the ACMs from using the Interphone
although instructions were clear that ACMs should not use the Interphone.
After the ACM had called the cockpit she went to the left side window in
row 36 and glanced out of the window, but did not see any fire. She however
did not inform the cockpit about her observation.

The DGCA further concluded the ACMs overacted, and overstepped their authority
when using the Interphone.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43028f70
20110925152829:20100827000000
Accident: Jet Airways B738 at Mumbai on Aug 27th 2010, evacuation during taxi leads to injuries
A Jet Airways Boeing 737-800, registration VT-JGM performing flight 9W-2302
from Mumbai to Chennai (India) with 147 passengers and 6 crew, was taxiing
for departure when the captain ordered the evacuation of the aircraft. 4
people received serious injuries (fractures) and 21 minor injuries during
the evacuation, 11 people were taken to hospitals.

Mumbai Airport reported, that the crew reported an engine (CFM56) fire alert
while taxiing and evacuated the aircraft. No fire was detected however.
2 people were taken to hospital with serious injuries, 13 received minor
injuries.

Jet Airways said, the captain received a fire indication for the left hand
engine, so that the captain ordered an evacuation. The engine is now being
thoroughly examined.

Passengers reported, that fellow passengers had seen smoke in the cabin
near the left hand wing and alerted the cabin crew, who in turn informed
the flight deck. Other cabin crew members started to search for the source
of the fire, when all of the sudden the evacuation was initiated. Several
passengers exiting through an overwing exit jumped down from that wing causing
the fractures.

India’s DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) suspended captain,
first officer and cabin crew for procedural lapses. No traces of fire or
smoke were found in a thorough examination although the crew claimed to
have seen smoke. 26 people were injured in the evacuation thereof 6 received
fractures (serious injuries) while jumping from the aircraft. 2 people are
still in hospital for treatment (Aug 28th late afternoon local time).

India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation said, that DGCA (part of the Ministry)
rated the occurrence a serious incident, the 2 flight crew, 4 cabin crew
as well as 4 Additional Crew Members (ACM) travelling as passengers were
suspended. An ACM seated in 35A observed fire in the left hand engine and
asked his collegue in 35B, who also confirmed to have seen fire. The ACM
of 35B walked to the rear right door and contacted the captain using the
interphone and also informed the cabin crew at the left rear door (L2).
The captain asked the cabin crew at L2 to confirm the fire, the crew member
reporting seeing the fire. After this the captain pulled the fire handles
for both engines and the APU without activating the fire suppression systems.
Subsequently the captain ordered the evacuation of the aircraft. All doors
at the right hand side were opened, on the left hand side the rear exit
and the rear overwing exit were opened. Emergency services responded. 14
passengers received injuries. The DGCA sent a team to Mumbai, the airplane
was examined over night under supervision of DGCA. No traces of fire or
smoke were found, a boroscopic examination of both engines showed no anomaly.
The cockpit voice and flight data recorders have been removed from the aircraft
for further analysis.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4302569e
20100827133307:20100827000000
Incident: Korean B744 near Irkutsk on Aug 27th 2010, APU fire indication
A Korean Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration HL7488 performing flight
KE-907 from Seoul (South Korea) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute
near Irkutsk (Russia) when the crew received an APU fire indication, declared
emergency and diverted to Irkutsk for a safe overweight landing. Tower reported
seeing no smoke or fire during the roll out, attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The airplane was examined, the indication was determined false. Following
repairs the airplane was released to continue the flight and is now estimated
to reach London with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43024819
20100827090250:20100826000000
Incident: Chautauqua E135 at Milwaukee on Aug 26th 2010, smoke from brakes, evacuation
A Chautauqua Embraer ERJ-135 on behalf of Frontier Airlines, flight RP-1332/F9-1332
from Indianapolis,IN to Milwaukee,WI (USA), landed on Milwaukee’s runway
07R and was turning off the runway, when the tower reported seeing hot brakes
and a few seconds later smoke from the brakes. The crew stopped the aircraft
on the taxiway adjacent to the runway – but not outside the runway protected
zone – and initiated an evacuation. Three other airliners on final approach
had to go-around as a result.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43023647/0000
20100913143350:20100826000000
Accident: Jetblue A320 at Sacramento on Aug 26th 2010, brake fire on landing
The NTSB said in their preliminary report that the park brake had become
engaged during the approach when the aircraft was at 5100 feet MSL and remained
engaged throughout the landing. 7 passengers received minor injuries in
the evacuation process.

The first officer was pilot flying, both crew did not notice any anomaly,
all indications were normal, the crew did not notice any abnormal indication
or warning regarding the brakes.

Upon touchdown the first officer remarked that it felt like a tyre had blown,
at that time the tower notified the crew of seeing sparks and smoke from
the landing gear. The captain took control of the airplane and maintained
directional control, the airplane came to a stop 2000 feet (610 meters)
past the touch down point. The captain ordered the first officer to execute
the ground evacuation checklist up to the decision point. The tower reported
smoke and fire was still visible around the main landing gear, based on
this information the captain elected to evacuate the aircraft. A swift and
orderly evacuation was performed through doors L1, L2 and R1.

FAA personnel then examined the aircraft and found all 4 main gear tyres
deflated, the wheel rims were ground down. The main gear tyres showed evidence
of being locked upon touchdown. Ground damage was limited to minor grazing
on the runway surface.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4300bc3c/0009
20120629144008:20100824000000
Crash: Henan Airlines E190 at Yichun on Aug 24th 2010, impacted terrain short of runway and burst into flames
China’s State Administration of Work Safety (CSAWS) released their final
report in Chinese into the crash concluding the probable causes of the crash
were:

– In violation of the airline’s flight operation manual the captain attempted
the approach to Yichun below required visibility. The airport reported 2800
meters of visibility while the manual required 3600 meters of visibility
to begin the approach.

– In violation of regulations by the Civil Aviation Authority the crew descended
below minimum descent altitude although the aircraft was operating in fog
and visual contact with the runway had not been established.

– Despite the aural height announcements and despite not seeing the runway
the crew continued the landing in the blind without initiating a go-around
resulting in impact with terrain.

Contributing factors were:

– The airline’s safety management is insufficient:

* part of the flight crew arbitrarily implement the company’s operations
manual as the company does not follow up outstanding problems. Records suggest
frequent deviations from approach profiles, i.e. deviation above or below
glide slopes, excessive rates of descents and unstable approaches.

* crew rostering and crew cooperation: Each of the crew was flying into
Yichun for the first time despite the known safety risks at the airport,
the communication and cooperation within the crew was insufficient, the
crew members did not monitor each other in order to reduce human errors.

* the airline’s emergency training did not meet requirements, in particular
the cabin crew training did not provide for hands on training on E190 cabin
doors and overwing exits. Alternate means by the airline did prove ineffective
and did not provide the quality China’s Civil Aviation Authority requires
thus leaving cabin crew unprepared to meet required cabin crew emergency
response capabilities.

– Parent company’s Shenzhen Airlines oversight insufficient

* Shenzhen Airlines, after having taken over Henan Airlines in 2006, did
not provide sufficient funding and technical support affecting the stability
and safety of staff and quality management.

* Air China, holding stock into Shenzhen Airlines, installed a safety supervisor
but failed to address the safety management issues with Shenzhen and Henan
Airlines.

– No supervision by China’s Civil Aviation Authority

* the license to operate the flight from Harbin to Yichun was granted without
route validation and without safety management in violation of regulations.

* to solve the lack of cabin crew flight attendants were certified although
not meeting the relevant requirements for air transport operations.

* the regional office of the Civil Aviation Authority did not communicate
to their superiors that they had approved the domestic operation of the
route from Harbin to Yichun permitting non-standard procedures.

– China’s Civil Aviation Authoritiy safety management loopholes

* On July 27th 2009 the meteorological database system administrator mistakenly
had entered the airport identifier ZYID instead of ZYLD which prevented
special weather reports from being entered into the system. Henan Airlines’
dispatch therefore could not brief and remind the crews accordingly.

The captain (40, ATPL, no experience data provided) was pilot flying, the
first officer (27, CPL) was pilot monitoring. The aircraft was enroute at
6300 meters of altitude/FL206 about 170km/92nm from Yichun when the crew
first contacted Yichun airport and was advised visibility was 2800 meters/9200
feet due to fog, which was concentrated at the aerodrome. The crew subsequently
conducted a briefing for the VOR/DME approach into runway 30 and specifically
mentioned the minimum descent altitude was 440 meters/1443 feet. The aerodrome
controller again advised that the vertical visibility was good however the
horizontal visibility was poor. The aircraft subsequently overflew the aerodrome,
the tower controller was able to see the aircraft. While the aircraft entered
the procedure turn the first officer commented the runway was very bright.
After completing the procedure turn the crew reported the runway in sight,
tower cleared the flight to land on runway 30 and again reminded the crew
of the minimum descent altitude of 440 meters. About 40 seconds later the
first officer commented “we have to bear this mist”, the CSAWS analysed
the aircraft entered low level fog at that point, 15 seconds later the autopilot
was disengaged with the captain steering the aircraft manually.

42 seconds after the autopilot was disengaged the aircraft descended through
440 meters (MDA) although the aircraft was flying in low level fog and there
was no visual contact with the runway. 21 seconds later, 1.6nm from touchdown
at an altitude of 335 meters the first officer called a high rate of descent
reminding the captain to reduce the sink rate. Another 6 seconds later the
GPWS called 50, 40, 20, 10 and the aircraft impacted the ground. 5 seconds
after the GPWS called 50 the ELT transmitter activated alerting the tower
also monitoring the emergency frequency, 32 seconds later the tower alerted
emergency services having lost contact with the aircraft. Tower attempted
to contact the aircraft for another 13 minutes without reply.

More than 1000 rescue workers were deployed in the meantime, the first responders
reaching the crash site 2 minutes 15 after tower raised the alert. Rescue
operations were finished 3.5 hours after the alert after rescue of 54 people
and the recovery of 42 bodies. 37 people received serious, 17 minor injuries.
One of the serious injured later succumbed to serious burns in Yichun hospital.

The investigation determined the aircraft hit trees 1110 meters before the
runway threshold, the main wheels contacted ground 1080 meters short of
the runway threshold, the engines came to rest 870 meters short of the threshold
with the main portion of the fuselage coming to rest 690 meters short of
the threshold at position N47.7478 E129.0428. The fuel wing tank ruptured
in the crash sequence leaking and distributing fuel. Smoke filled the cabin
rapidly, the survivors escaped through the left rear door, the cockpit’s
left sliding window and a gap in the fuselage, while all other doors could
not be opened due to deformation of the fuselage and the smoke barrier.

The investigation released a number of safety recommendations, at the first
and foremost:

Implement “Safety First” as responsibility of all aviation enterprises to
correctly grasp the relationship between safety and development as well
as safety and effectiveness.

Detail Map with newer satellite images (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4302450e
20100827083649:20100822000000
Incident: Frontier A320 near Rock Springs on Aug 22nd 2010, steam engine – or not?
A Frontier Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N201FR performing flight
F9-39 from Seattle,WA to Denver,CO (USA) with 171 people on board, was enroute
at FL350 about 38nm northwest of Rock Springs,WY (USA) when a galley oven
intermittently emitted smoke. The crew decided to divert to Rock Springs
where the airplane landed safely about 20 minutes later.

Although maintenance was able to quickly fix the problem, the crew exceeded
maximum duty time and could not continue the flight. A replacement crew
was flown to Rock Springs and continued the journey. The airplane reached
Denver with a delay of 9.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fdf762
20100821123411:20100820000000
Incident: Lufthansa A346 over Netherlands on Aug 20th 2010, smoke detector went off
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-600, registration D-AIHX performing flight LH-452
from Munich (Germany) to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 302 passengers and 17
crew, was enroute at FL340 overhead Netherlands about 140nm northnorthwest
of Frankfurt/Main (Germany), when the crew reported a smoke detector in
a lavatory had gone off and could not be stopped, no smoke has been observed.
The crew decided to divert to Frankfurt and began dumping fuel, during the
descent re-decided to divert to Cologne 74nm from the point of diversion
and landed on Cologne’s runway 14L at 17:39L (15:39Z).

Lufthansa said, that the crew received a fire indication from one of the
cargo holds. The cause of the indication is not yet known.

A replacement Airbus A340-600 registration D-AIHR, which had just returned
to Munich from Los Angeles (LH-453), was positioned to Frankfurt as flight
LH-8954 and subsequently Cologne as flight LH-8956. D-AIHR reached Los Angeles
with a delay of 8:20 hours.

D-AIHX at Cologne:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fd6829/0000
20101111165734:20100819000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D at Manchester on Aug 19th 2010, dense smoke in cabin
The British Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) released their bulletin
reporting that an oil seal in the left hand engine had failed leading to
oil contamination in the left hand bleed air which in turn supplied the
cabin via the air conditioning system.

The airplane landed safely about 14 minutes after departure, once propellers
had stopped the evacuation was completed in 15 seconds by estimation of
emergency services.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fd6829
20100820143058:20100819000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D at Manchester on Aug 19th 2010, dense smoke in cabin
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-JEDK performing flight BE-868
from Manchester,EN to Southampton,EN (UK) with 31 passengers and 4 crew,
was a few minutes into the flight when passengers started to complain about
smell of smoke on board. The crew declared emergency and returned to Manchester
where the airplane landed safely about 20 minutes after departure. The crew
stopped the aircraft on the runway, the passengers evacuated onto the runway
via the aircraft stairs.

The runway was closed for about one hour as a result.

Flybe said, the airplane returned to Manchester as a precaution. The passengers
were rebooked onto the next flight.

Passengers reported, that visible smoke developed in the cabin shortly after
takeoff. Cabin crew briefed the passengers how to open all 4 (emergency)
exits while the aircraft was heading back to Manchester. After landing,
the smoke was very dense already, the captain ordered to evacuate the airplane,
all exits were opened, a number of passengers left the aircraft via the
rear emergency exits. Gossip amongst passengers was that the smoke came
from the front, possibly the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fd1f3d
20100906153716:20100817000000
Incident: PrivatAir B738 near Cairo on Aug 17th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A PrivatAir Boeing 737-800 on behalf of Lufthansa, registration D-APBB performing
flight LH-586 from Munich (Germany) to Cairo (Egypt) with 76 passengers,
was on approach to Cairo, when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cockpit. The approach was accelerated, the airplane landed safely.
Attending emergency services found no fire, the airplane subsequently taxied
to the terminal, where passengers disembarked normally.

Engineers determined that a short circuit had caused the smoke, repaired
the damage and returned the aircraft to service.

The return flight reached Munich with a delay of 90 minutes as a result.

The airline reported on Sep 6th, that cabin crew noticed an unusual smell
in the rear galley and informed the cockpit. The crew declared PAN as a
precaution, fire engines were standing by for the landing. No smoke was
observed. Engineers discovered a damaged oven seal as cause of the smell.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fb3e59
20100816072901:20100816000000
Incident: ATI DC87 near Manila on Aug 16th 2010, cargo fire indication
An ATI Air Transport International Douglas DC-8-70 combi, registration N721CX
performing a charter flight from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Singapore (Singapore)
with 21 passengers and freight on board, was enroute near Manila (Philippines)
when the crew reported a fire indication in the cargo compartment and diverted
to Manila, where the airplane landed safely about 25 minutes later. Attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the airplane subsequently
taxied to the apron where the passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fad11b/0000
20120701153125:20100815000000
Incident: JAL MD90 at Sendai on Aug 15th 2010, engine shut down in flight
Japan’s Transportation Safety Board (JTSB) released their final report in
Japanese concluding the probable cause of the serious incident was:

During takeoff the right hand engine’s #4 bearing scavenge system ruptured,
the first diffuser tube of the #4 bearing scavenge system released engine
oil through the opening. The released engine oil came in contact with the
engine’s hot section and ignited.

The fracture of the #4 bearing scavenge tube was the result of fatigue
produced by stress created by vibrations by the operation of the engine.

The captain (52, ATPL, 14,720 hours total, 1,405 hours on type) was pilot
monitoring, the first officer (41, CPL, 6,574 hours total, 3,949 hours on
type) was pilot flying. The aircraft accelerated for takeoff on runway 27
and rotated at about 160 KIAS. Shortly after becoming airborne Sendai tower
reported white smoke coming from the right hand engine, however received
no reply. Sendai departure transmitted the tower’s observation of white
smoke near the right hand engine about 40 seconds after the tower reported
the observation. The crew engaged the autopilot about 20 seconds after that
transmission. 118 seconds after becoming airborne while climbing through
5500 feet the crew received a right hand engine fire indication, throttled
both engine back and declared emergency. The aircraft stopped the climb
at 6150 feet and began to gradually descend. 90 seconds after the fire alert
the crew shut the right hand engine down and discharged the first fire bottle,
80 seconds later discharged the second fire bottle after which the fire
indication ceased. The aircraft joined a left downwind and landed safely
on Sendai’s runway 27 about 15 minutes after becoming airborne.

The captain reported in post flight interviews that engine start and taxi
towards the runway was normal with no anomaly observed. After steering the
aircraft onto runway 27 the first officer assumed control and began takeoff,
which felt smooth without any anomaly. After rotation and positive rate
of the climb the captain selected the gear up and contacted departure and
was told “radar contact”. When the aircraft climbed through about 3000 feet
departure informed the crew about white smoke from the right hand engine
during takeoff. The captain checked the engine instruments and noticed an
amber warning light indicating low oil pressure, the master caution had
not been activated. The captain decided to activate the procedures for the
low oil pressure indication and was about to order level off at 6000 feet
when the right hand engine’s fire warning activated. The captain sensed
a slight yaw to the right and suspecting the right hand engine had been
damaged assumed control of the aircraft with the first officer assuming
the role of pilot monitoring, the fire memory checklists were actioned shutting
the engine down and discharging the first fire bottle and starting the timer.
After 80 seconds, when the fire indication had not ceased, the second fire
bottle was discharged which resulting in the fire warning extinguishing.
The aircraft subsequently joined a downwind to position for landing on runway
27 and stopped on the runway to have emergency services check the aircraft.
Emergency services reported no smoke, the crew therefore taxied the aircraft
to the apron.

The tower control said in post incident interviews that he had cleared the
aircraft for takeoff from runway 27 and contact departure upon airborne.
When the aircraft began to accelerate there was nothing unusual, by the
time the aircraft began to rotate white smoke became visible from the right
hand engine. He reported his observation, the crew however had already switched
to departure. He then forwarded his observation to the departure controller
who relayed the information, the aircraft subsequently stopped the climb
at 6000 feet. The departure controller indicated that the crew had declared
emergency due to an engine fire.

A post flight inspection of the aircraft revealed no damage to the aircraft,
the right hand engine however showed decolouration to the cowling, the pressure
relief door had opened with traces of heat loss extending backwards of the
door. The diffuser case was broken and traces of oil leakage were found.
Right hand engine after landing (Photo: JTSB):
The fractured scavenge tube (Photo: JTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fad11b
20100819111500:20100815000000
Incident: JAL MD90 at Sendai on Aug 15th 2010, engine shut down in flight
A JAL Japan Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90, registration JA002D performing
flight JL-3538 from Sendai to Fukuoka (Japan) with 106 people on board,
was in the initial climb when the crew reported problems with the right
hand engine (V2525), shut the engine down and returned to Sendai for a safe
landing about 15 minutes after departure.

A replacement aircraft reached Fukuoka with a delay of 3:20 hours.

Japan’s TSB reported, that two investigators are on scene. The air traffic
controller had observed smoke from the right hand engine and the crew received
a fire indication for the right hand engine. A first examination of the
engine revealed soot at the cover of the right hand engine probably as result
of an engine fire.

The American NTSB reported on Aug 19th that the crew received a fire indication,
shut the engine down and discharged the fire extinguishers (plural) into
the engine and returned to Sendai. A burn mark was discovered on the right
hand engine cowling.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fab717/0000
20110114111402:20100815000000
Incident: Thomas Cook B763 over North Sea on Aug 15th 2010, unruly oven
The British Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) have released their
bulletin reporting that shortly after reaching FL370 the cabin manager informed
the captain about smoke emanating from an oven in the forward galley. Despite
pulling the oven’s circuit breakers smoke continued to emanate from the
oven. The captain therefore isolated the utility busbar, declared PAN and
diverted to London Gatwick. Cabin crew discharged 6 BCF extinguishers into
the left and right ovens of the forward galley, the extinguishers seemed
ineffective as the smoke appeared to originate from around the exterior
of the ovens.

ATC offered runway 26L for the approach (runway 08R was active), which was
accepted by the captain. The aircraft landed safely on 26L, turned off the
runway and stopped on taxiway J where firefighters entered the aircraft
through the L1 door via a ladder and confirmed there was no fire. The aircraft
was subsequently towed to a remote stand.

Both forward galley ovens were removed from the aircraft. The left oven
was found without damage, an electrical short-circuit was discovered on
the right oven’s controller module, where the on/off switch was soldered
into the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) showing heat damage, localised burning
of copper PCB tracks and soldered connections to the on/off switch. The
oven controller’s 5 amp circuit breaker had tripped preventing more damage.
The heat damage prevented further analysis of what caused the short-circuit.

Smoke caused by the PCB exited the controller’s enclosure and circulated
the forward galley ovens causing confusion about the source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fab717
20110114111443:20100815000000
Incident: Thomas Cook B763 over North Sea on Aug 15th 2010, unruly oven
A Thomas Cook Boeing 767-300, registration G-DAJC performing flight MT-975K
from Manchester,EN (UK) to Dalaman (Turkey) with 324 passengers and 11 crew,
was enroute at FL370 overhead the North Sea about 45nm west of Amsterdam
(Netherlands) when smoke began to emanate from a galley prompting the crew
to divert to London Gatwick,EN (UK). Galley power was disconnected and the
smoke dissipated. The airplane landed safely in Gatwick about 30 minutes
later.

The airline reported that packaging material within a galley oven had begun
smoking. The airplane was released back to flight and returned to Manchester
for a crew change landing in Manchester 6.5 hours after departure. The airplane
will subsequently resume the journey to Dalaman.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f971c4
20100814135905:20100813000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 at Roanoke on Aug 13th 2010, rejected takeoff due to engine fire
An Allegiant Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration N893GA performing
flight G4-768 from Roanoke,VA to Orlando Sanford,FL (USA) with 142 passengers
and 5 crew, rejected takeoff from Roanoke’s runway 24 at low speed after
a lot of smoke was observed from the right hand engine. The airplane turned
off the runway, the tower reported the smoke was no longer visible. Emergency
services responded and followed the airplane to the apron, where passengers
disembarked normally. Emergency services subsequently confirmed the right
hand engine had been on fire and (now at the gate) foamed the engine.

The runway was closed for an inspection, debris from the engine was found
on the beginning of the runway.

The airline reported, that the crew received an engine fire indication,
shut the engine down and activated the engine’s fire suppression system.

A replacement MD-83 was dispatched to Roanoke and reached Orlando with a
delay of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f7d730
20100811135948:20100811000000
Incident: Korean B744 at Oslo on Aug 11th 2010, cargo fire alert
The crew of a Korean Airlines Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration HL7499
performing flight KE-542 from Oslo Gardermoen (Norway) to Seoul (South Korea)
with 4 crew, alerted ATC of a possible cargo fire. Attending emergency services
found no trace of fire, smoke or heat. The airplane was subsequently towed
to the apron.

The airport reported, that the airplane had departed from Gardermoen and
was already in Swedish Airspace (about 40nm east of Oslo) when the crew
reported a possible cargo fire and returned to Oslo landing safely several
minutes later at 14:03L (12:03Z).

Radar data suggest, that the airplane, that had arrived in Oslo as flight
KE-541 from Vienna (Austria) at approx. 11:05L (09:05Z), had not become
airborne.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=42f7d23f
20100813172538:20100810000000
Incident: Air France B773 near Goose Bay on Aug 10th 2010, cargo fire indication
An Air France Boeing 777-300, registration F-GZNF (COI configuration, 472
passenger seats) performing flight AF-344 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France)
to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 461 people on board, was enroute at FL360 about
330nm northwest of Goose Bay,NL (Canada) when the crew descended the airplane
to FL200 and set course towards Goose Bay where the airplane landed safely
one hour later.

Air France reported the airplane diverted as a precaution because of an
unspecified systems failure. A replacement Boeing 777-300 is about to be
dispatched from Paris Orly to continue the flight and is currently estimated
to reach Montreal with a delay of 28 hours. Due to limited accomodation
capacity in Goose Bay the passengers were given basic accomodation at the
airport.

NAV Canada reported, that the crew declared emergency reporting a fire indication
in the forward cargo hold. The indication was determined false.

The Canadian TSB reported on Aug 13th that the forward lower level cargo
smoke detector was replaced and the airplane was returned to service.

The replacement Boeing 777-300 registration F-GSQO departed Paris Orly as
flight AF-380V at 15:30L (13:30Z) on Aug 11th and is due to arrive in Goose
Bay by 16:30L (19:30Z). The airplane is then estimated to depart at 18:00L
(21:00Z) as flight AF-4190 and reach Montreal with a delay of 28 hours.

The incident airplane is about to ferry back to Paris Orly as flight AF-381V.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f4632a
20100806211327:20100806000000
Incident: US Airways B734 at Philadelphia on Aug 6th 2010, burst tyre on takeoff
A US Airways Boeing 737-400, registration N450UW performing flight US-1651
from Philadelphia,PA to Miami,FL (USA) with 140 people on board, departed
Philadelphia’s runway 27L. Shortly after becoming airborne the crew reported
they may have blown a tyre just before rotation, the tower reported to not
have seen anything but they would send a vehicle for a runway inspection.
The vehicle reported a blown tyre abeam taxiway Y (about 5000 feet/1500
meters from runway threshold). The crew had climbed to 16000 feet in the
meantime and now decided to return to Philadelphia. The crew performed a
low approach to runway 27L, the tower reported the outer left hand main
gear tyre appeared shredded while the other 3 main gear tyres appeared good.
The crew entered a holding to burn off fuel, indicated they would stop on
the runway and landed safely on runway 27L about 1:45 hours after departure.
The crew subsequently reported they saw smoke from the left hand side and
believed they lost both tyres on the left main gear, tower confirmed it
was a rough landing and fire fighters were running for the aircraft, emergency
services reported it looked really “nice” and the runway was closed. Emergency
services later reported that the inner left tyre looked bad was still “up”,
the outer tyre was shredded.

The passengers disembarked onto the runway and were taken to the terminal.
The airplane was subsequently towed to the apron.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=42f437b0
20100806154455:20100806000000
Incident: UTAir AT42 at Moscow on Aug 6th 2010, plane not accepted due to wildfires
A UTAir Aerospatiale ATR-42-300, flight UT-774 from Kharkov (Ukraine) to
Moscow Vnukovo (Russia), was on approach to Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport following
about an hour’s flight, when the airport did not accept the airplane because
visibility had dropped below 400 meters (1300 feet) due to smoke from the
wildfires around Moscow. While other aircraft diverted to other airports
in Moscow (Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo) the crew of UT-774 decided to return
to Kharkov, where the airplane landed safely 2 hours after departure.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=42f373c1
20100805133412:20100804000000
Incident: Atlantic Southeast CRJ2 near Knoxville on Aug 4th 2010, cargo fire indication
An Atlantic Southeast Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines,
flight EV-5450/DL-5450 from Atlanta,GA to Charleston Yeager,WV (USA), was
enroute at FL250 about 40nm north of Knoxville,TN when the crew declared
emergency reporting a cargo fire indication with the fire suppression system
having activated and decided to divert to Knoxville. The crew requested
emergency services to check the cargo compartment indicating they would
not evacuate unless there was a real fire/smoke suspecting the indication
was false. The airplane landed safely on Knoxville’s runway 23L about 15
minutes later, emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f25264
20100803225308:20100803000000
Incident: Monarch A321 at Birmingham on Aug 3rd 2010, engine shut down in flight
A Monarch Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration G-MARA performing flight
ZB-932 from Birmingham,EN (UK) to Tenerife Sur Reina Sofia,CI (Spain) with
213 passengers, departed Birmingham’s runway 15 and was in the initial climb,
when the left hand engine (V2535) emitted a loud bang, streaks of flames
and black smoke. The crew shut the engine down, stopped the climb at 2500
feet and returned to Birmingham’s runway 15 for a safe landing 15 minutes
after departure.

Monarch Airlines said, that shortly after takeoff the left hand engine needed
to be shut down due to a technical problem, the aircraft returned to Birmingham
as a precaution. Maintenance found indications of an engine fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f1b7df/0000
20101007135910:20100803000000
Crash: Katekavia AN24 at Igarka on Aug 3rd 2010, impacted ground short of runway
The Russian Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) have released their final
report in Russian concluding, that the probable cause of the crash was:

an approach to the airfield in weather conditions below required minima,
the failure of the crew to timely take the decision to go-around and the
descent below minimum descent altitude despite absence of reliable visual
contact with the approach lights and runway lights, which led to the collision
of the airplane with trees and ground in controlled flight.

Contributing factors were:
– unjustified weather forecasts regarding cloud ceiling, visibility and
severe weather (fog)
– inaccurate weather observation reports passed to the crew 40 minutes prior
to impact

The MAK complained, that the timely implementation of their recommendations
regarding improvements in meteorological services issued following the crash
of the Tupolev TU-134 RA-65021 in Samara on March 17th 2007 could have prevented
this crash.

The crew had performed a standard briefing and received forecast and actual
weather observations along the route and at Igarka. Evaluating all information
at hand the crew reasonably decided to conduct the flight.

A normal takeoff, climb, cruise and descent followed, no anomalies in systems
or procedures were recorded by the black boxes of the aircraft.

When the airplane was on final approach about 1500 meters short of the runway
12 aligned with the centerline the airplane began to veer off the centerline
to the right. Shortly thereafter the airplane impacted trees 477 meters
from the threshold and 234 meters to the right of the extended centerline
of the runway at a height of 6 meters and a distance of and a right hand
bank angle of 10-15 degrees, fell to the ground and came to a stop about
350 meters from the runway threshold and 280 meters to the right of the
centerline. The distance from first contact with trees until final position
was about 140 meters. The aircraft caught fire, the cabin filled with acrid
smoke. The flight attendant and flight engineer combined their efforts to
open the forward doors, which however were jammed. The captain escaped though
the left windshield window, the flight engineer through the top hatch, a
passenger with burning clothes were seen, the captain and flight engineer
brought him to ground and extinguished the fire with wet grass, then helped
the first officer out of the cockpit through the right hand window. All
passengers and the flight attendant were killed, the flight engineer and
both pilots survived with injuries of varying degrees.

The aircraft was destroyed by the impact forces. A number of trees were
damaged, no other damage on the ground occurred.

The captain (58) had 17250 hours of flying experience thereof 14205 on type
and 12664 on type in command. He was certified for approach minima of 50/700
meters and takeoff minima of 300 meters.

The first officer (41) had 5838 hours of flying experience thereof 2670
on type.

The flight engineer (35) had 2285 hours of flying experience all of them
on the AN-24.

Weather services had issued following forecast for Igarka: visibility in
excess of 10km (5.4nm), winds from 200 degrees at 6 meters/second (12 knots),
light rain, light haze, scattered cloud ceiling 240 meters (790 feet), cumulonimbus
clouds ceiling 300 meters (980 feet). Observed weather was reported as visibility
5000 meters (2.7nm) in thunderstorms with rain and scattered clouds ceiling
210 meters.

15 minutes prior to impact the weather station at Igarka recorded: winds
from 170 at 6 knots, visibility 3500 meters (1.9nm), light rain, 6 octers
of cloud ceiling 270 meters, 8 octers cumulonimbus ceiling 500 meters, temperature
15 degrees C, dew point 13 degrees C, 91% relative humidity, no change expected.

These data observed and transmitted permitted the approach to Igarka. However,
the MAK determined during the investigation as result of obseration of the
operation of the weather station, that these weather data were not justified
with regards to the cloud ceiling, visibility and fog. The forecasts also
were determined invalid.

At the time of the accident the threshold runway 30 had been temporarily
moved by 1000 meters to facilitate works on the runway, which left 1512
meters of runway available. The ILS to runway 12 was fully serviceable.
The associated approach lighting had been NOTAMed out of service prior to
the accident due to maintenance but returned to service with the NOTAM cancelled
just prior to the departure of the aircraft from Krasnoyarsk.

The crew had noticed the NOTAM regarding the approach lights, which restricted
operations to daylight hours only, and had checked with Igarka airport to
verify the information. The airport confirmed they were able to accept the
arrival outside of daylight hours with the approach lights available.

The MAK analysed, that the airplane departed with all systems functional,
the takeoff mass and balance was well within limits. The crew was well familiar
with the airfield in both daylight and nighttime operation. The crew had
spotted the approach lights and verified the airport would be able to accept
their arrival with approach lights serviceable. With the first officer being
pilot flying the airplane commenced the approach and descended towards runway
12. The crew heard the outer marker sound – to be overflown at 220 meters/720
feet – for about 5 to 10 seconds, the flight data recorder did not register
the outer marker. The flight engineer called the approach to minimum descent
altitude at 130 meters, when the airplane reached 100 meters the captain
called “land” despite no visual contact had been established with the approach
and/or runway lights in violation of regulations. The flight data recorder
shows, that upon passing the outer marker the airplane began to roll slightly
right reaching a bank angle of 7 degrees to the right.

Both captain and first officer said in post crash interviews that they saw
some lights to their left, but did not recognize approach or runway lights.
The ground appeared to be visible, but when the airplane descended further
the ground appeared to “break” and then disappeared. The crew explained
that they were looking for the ground and did not monitor the instruments
which caused the airplane to veer off course.

The flight data recorder recorded a sudden nose up elevator input about
3 seconds prior to first impact with the trees and power levers were pushed
forward, both engines accelerated accordingly. The airplane was at an estimated
height of 15 meters at that point. Collision with trees occured at a height
of 6 meters. The ELT did not trigger during the impact.

The MAK also established, that another AN-24 registration RA-46683 had landed
in Igarka 10 minutes prior to the accident, the crew conducting the final
descent towards the runway below the minimum descent altitude despite they,
too, were unable to see the approach and/or runway lights. The crew however
initiated a go-around from a height much less than 100 meters.

19 safety recommendations were released as result of the investigation,
mainly dealing with weather observation, weather forecast and dissemination
of weather data, improvement of weather observation equipment at Igarka
and the monitoring and training regarding minimum descent altitude.

Aerial Overview of crash site (Photo: MAK):
Flight trajectory (Graphics: MAK):
Map of crash site (Graphics: MAK):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f2ff66
20100804223823:20100801000000
Incident: American B763 near San Francisco on Aug 1st 2010, unruly passenger causes small fire on board
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N390AA performing flight
AA-72 from Honolulu,HI to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was enroute overhead
the Pacific near San Francisco when a male passenger set fire to a napkin
with a lighter causing smoke in the cabin and commotion amongst passengers
around. Alerted flight attendants intervened, the flight crew decided to
divert to San Francisco and landed safely on San Francisco’s runway 28L
at maximum landing weight. The unruly was taken into custody by police.

The airplane reached Chicago with a delay of just 50 minutes.

American Airlines confirmed the incident stating that cabin crew asked another
passenger to watch the misbehaving adult male, who then behaved until landing
in San Francisco. Drugs or alcohol may have played a role. The aircraft
was met by officials from Transportation Security Administration, the FBI
and San Francisco Police, the passenger was taken into custody.

The airport said, the passenger was drunk and was booked into jail.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f18f77
20100802152121:20100801000000
Incident: Korean B744 near Osaka on Aug 1st 2010, APU fire indication
A Korean Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration HL7495 performing flight
KE-11 from Seoul (South Korea) to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 349 people on
board, was enroute near Osaka (Japan) when the crew reported an APU fire
indication and diverted to Osaka’s Kansai Airport for a safe landing 30
minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The fire indication was determined false.

The airplane was able to depart Osaka again and reached Los Angeles with
a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f02006
20100801112741:20100731000000
Incident: Transaero B762 at Larnaca on Jul 31st 2010, hydraulic leak on landing
A Transaero Airlines Boeing 767-200, registration EI-CXZ performing flight
UN-9461 from St. Petersburg (Russia) to Larnaca (Cyprus) with 198 passengers
and 11 crew, had touched down in Larnaca when the tower controller noticed
smoke from the right hand engine (CF6) of the aircraft. At the same time
the crew shut the engine down and activated the fire suppression system.
The airplane rolled out safely, emergency services responded, put out a
small fire at the engine accessories and cleaned some fluid from the runway,
that had leaked from the engine.

The runway was closed for about 10 minutes, the airplane was subsequently
towed to the apron where passengers disembarked normally.

Larnaca Airport said, that tower discovered smoke from the engine during
the landing and sounded the fire alert. 4 fire engines responded, reached
the aircraft in less than a minute and foamed the engine, where small flames
were visible in the area of the engine accessories. The fire engines subsequently
escorted the airplane being towed to the apron, where passengers disembarked
normally. The crew had used the engine’s fire suppression system, too, however
it appeared that system could not extinguish the flames.

Transaero Airlines said, that the right hand engine suffered a hydraulic
leak resulting in smoke but no fire.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration EI-DBF was dispatched to Larnaca
and performed the return flight as UN-8462 reaching St. Petersburg with
a delay of 8 hours, the incident airplane ferried back to Moscow at the
same time following examination and repairs.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ef8f3c
20100730202853:20100730000000
Incident: PIA B743 at Karachi on Jul 30th 2010, rejected takeoff
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Boeing 747-300, registration AP-BGG
performing flight PK-302 from Karachi to Lahore (Pakistan) with 421 passengers,
rejected takeoff from Karachi at low speed when engine #1 (RB211, outer
left hand) ingested a bird causing the engine to fail with a loud bang and
to emit smoke. The airplane slowed safely, emergency services responded.

A replacement aircraft reached Lahore with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42eebaa5
20100729150811:20100729000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 at Frankfurt on Jul 29th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGC performing flight LH-438
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA), had just departed
Frankfurt when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, levelled off at 5000
feet and returned to Frankfurt’s runway 25R for a safe landing about 20
minutes after departure. The smoke dissipated before touch down.

A replacement Airbus A340-300 registration D-AIFA departed Frankfurt with
a delay of 5:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ee2e58
20111228185723:20100728000000
Crash: AirBlue A321 near Islamabad on Jul 28th 2010, impacted mountaineous terrain near the airport
Smoke rises from Margalla HillsAn AirBlue Airbus A321-200, registration
AP-BJB performing flight ED-202 from Karachi to Islamabad (Pakistan) with
146 passengers and 6 crew, was on approach to Islamabad in poor weather
conditions (monsoon rain and low visibility) when the airplane impacted
the Margalla Hills about 10nm north of the airport at a height of about
1000 feet above the city/aerodrome. Radio Contact was lost at approx. 09:45L
(04:45Z). Smoke was seen rising from the densely tree-covered mountains,
all occupants of the airplane perished in the crash.

The airline said, there are no survivors.

The crash site is difficult to access, but rescue forces have now reached
the crash site with helicopters. Authorities confirmed all 152 occupants
perished in the crash.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister, who had initially reported 5 survivors, confirmed
all occupants were killed in the accident. He reported, that the airplane
had approached the airport from the Kahuta side (southeast of the airport,
suggesting approach to runway 30), but went around and was about to approach
the airport from the Rawalpindi side (northwest of the airport suggesting
approach to runway 12). While repositioning for the second approach the
airplane impacted terrain.

Rescue forces reported, that it appeared the airplane was approaching the
terrain from about Murree towards Faisal Mosque (which means the airplane
was heading straight to the west at impact) and came to rest between Daman-e-Koh
and the Faisal Mosque.

Islamabad Officials said, that between 45 and 50 bodies including the captain
have been recovered, more bodies were observed on the ground by rescuers.
Earlier reports of 5 survivors were false.

Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority confirmed 146 passengers and 6 crew
were on board. The flight data recorders were recovered.

The CAA reported later, that at the time of the arrival runway 12 was active,
the airplane was performing an ILS approach to runway 30 circling runway
12. Initial investigation results suggest the airplane was flying too low
in poor weather conditions and low visibility and incorrectly turned too
late.

On Jul 29th the CAA said, that the airplane was required to remain within
a 5nm circle around the airport for the visual circling, however was about
9.5nm from the airport when the tower advised the crew about being outside
the protected area and instructed the crew to immediately turn left. The
crew acknowledged – this was their last radio transmission.

Airbus Industries reported, that Airbus A321-200 MSN 1218 (registration
AP-BJB) equipped with V2500 engines was involved in an accident near Islamabad
just after 09:45L while performing flight ED-202. The aircraft had accumulated
about 34000 flight hours in some 13500 flights. Airbus will provide technical
assistance to the Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan conducting the investigation
into the accident.

Islamabad (OPRN) features an ILS Category 1 for runway 30. Circling area
has been assigned north of the aerodrome requiring left hand circuits for
runway 12 and right hand circuits for runway 30. An ILS approach to runway
30 circling runway 12 required the aircraft to turn right (to the north)
for the downwind and subsequently turn back onto final for runway 12.
Metars:
OPRN 280600Z 05016KT 4000 RA FEW01ST0 SCT030 OVC100 FEW030TCU 25/24 Q1006.8

OPRN 280500Z 09018KT 3500 RA SCT010 SCT030 OVC100 FEW030 25/24 Q1006.9

OPRN 280400Z 05016KT 3500 SCT010 SCT030 BKN100 FEW030TCU 29/24 1006.7

OPRN 280300Z 05016KT 2000 RA FEW015ST SCT040 BKN100 FEW030TCU 24/23 1006.5

OPRN 280200Z 05016KT 2500 DZ FEW015ST SCT040 BKN100 FEW030TCU 24/23 1005.9

OPRN 280100Z 05018KT 4000 DZ FEW015ST SCT040 BKN100 FEW030TCU 24/23 1005.4

OPRN 280000Z 05018KT 4000 DZ FEW015ST SCT040 BKN100 FEW030TCU 24/23 1005.4
Overview of crash site (Photo: AFP/Aamir Qureshi):
Detail Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Map (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ee4168
20100728134701:20100727000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Charleston on Jul 27th 2010, smoke in cockpit
N564UA comes to a stop (Photo: Yeager Airport)A United Airlines Boeing 757-200,
registration N564UA performing flight UA-229 from Washington Dulles,DC to
San Diego,CA (USA) with 178 passengers, was enroute at FL360 about 25nm
north of Charleston,WV when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided
to divert to Charleston’s Yeager Airport. The airplane landed safely 14
minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N573UA was dispatched to Charleston,
continued the flight and reached San Diego via Chicago O’Hare,IL with a
delay of 6.5 hours.

The airport said, the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit.

Passengers reported, that smell of smoke was noticed in the back of the
cabin.

The cause of the smoke is under investigation, initial findings suggest
a hydraulic leak submitted odour to the cabin through the air conditioning.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42edca16/0001
20120222123125:20100727000000
Accident: Lufthansa MD11 at Riyadh on Jul 27th 2010, bounced landing
Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) have released
their final report via Germany’s Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation
(BFU) releasing following findings:

3.1 Cause Related Findings

– The flight crew did not recognize the increasing sink rate on short final.

– The First officer delayed the flare prior to the initial touchdown, thus
resulting in a bounce.

– The flight crew did not recognize the bounce.

– The Captain attempted to take control of the aircraft without alerting
the First Officer resulting in both flight crews acting simultaneously on
the control column.

– During the first bounce, the Captain made an inappropriate, large nose-down
column input that resulted in the second bounce and a hard landing in a
flat pitch attitude.

– The flight crew responded to the bounces by using exaggerated control
inputs.

– The company bounced-landing procedure was not applied by the flight crew.

3.2 Other Findings

– The flight crew was properly licensed and was qualified on the type of
aircraft.

– The meteorological conditions did not contribute to the accident.

– The aircraft was properly certificated and had been maintained in accordance
with approved procedures.

– The aircraft had no oral or visual indicator, such as a HUD, to inform
the flight crew of a bounced landing.

– The flight recorders were located just aft of the lower center cargo door.

– The FRS response was rapid and efficient.

– During the FRS operation, some FRS personnel were not wearing their PPE.

– Time synchronization at the KKIA airport was deficient.

– KKIA Airport Operations recordings were not available.

– Some KKIA Airport vehicles did not have rotating beacons.

– KKIA Airport Security did not maintain proper control of the accident
site during the initial response to the accident.

– KKIA Airport security cameras provided information that was useful to
the investigation.

GACA reported the captain (ATPL, 8,270 hours total, 4,466 hours on type)
was pilot monitoring, the first officer (ATPL, 3,444 hours total, 219 hours
on type) was pilot flying, the two were rostered together for the first
time, the first officer had joined Lufthansa Cargo 7 months prior to the
accident.

The aircraft departed Frankfurt with a cargo consisting of a combination
of pallets and rigid cargo containers as well as 44 shipments of dangerous
goods that had been loaded into the forward lower cargo compartment, and
12 shipments containing corrosive materials, toxic materials, magnetized
materials and flammable liquids.

The aircraft was vectored for an ILS approach to runway 33L, flaps were
set to 35 degrees and Vref was determined at 158 KIAS according to an estimated
landing weight of 207 tons. The first officer disengaged autothrottle and
autopilot for the final approach. The aircraft descended fully established
on localizer and glideslope until about 25 seconds prior to touchdown, when
the aircraft descended about half a dot below the glideslope, the airspeed
oscillated between 160 and 170 KIAS.

The speed above ground was 164 knots until about 20 seconds prior to touchdown,
then increased and reached 176 knots at touchdown.

About 1.7-2.0 seconds before touchdown, about 23-31 feet AGL, the first
officer initiated the flare, the main gear touched down 945 feet past the
runway threshold at a descent rate of 780 fpm resulting in a vertical acceleration
of +2.1G. The aircraft bounced off the runway, the main gear reached 4 feet
above runway surface with the spoilers fully extended due to main wheel
spin up.

During the bounce the captain, pilot monitoring, pushed the control column
resulting in a second touchdown in a flat pitch attitude with both main
gear and nose gear contacting the runway surface at a descent rate of 660
fpm resulting in a vertical acceleration of +3.0G.

Prior to second touchdown both pilots pulled the control column which combined
with the nose gear bouncing off the runway resulted in the pitch attitude
reaching 14 degrees nose up, the spoilers extended to 60 degrees while the
nose gear was compressed. Following the second bounce the main wheels reached
a height of 12 feet above runway surface.

Early in this second bounce the captain pushed the control column fully
forward, the elevators responded, shortly before third touchdown both pilots
pulled the control column with the elevators responding accordingly and
reducing the pitch down rate, the aircraft however still was pitching down
at touch down, which occurred at a descent rate of 1020 fpm and a vertical
acceleration of +4.4G. At this point the fuselage ruptured behind the wing
trailing edge, a fuel line to the number 2 APU and a fuel transfer line
to the tail fuel tank were severed and fuel spilled with the left hand wheel
well. A fire ignited and expanded into the upper cargo area.

The captain attempted to keep the aircraft within runway boundaries, not
knowing the fuselage had severed he deployed thrust reversers, only engines
#1 (left) and #3 (right) responded. The captain instructed the first officer
to declare Mayday.

Fire fighters located at their station 2 near taxiways A and P saw the MD-11
sliding and exiting the runway with smoke coming from the top of the aircraft
and immediately responded.

The aircraft subsequently went left off the runway, upon departing the runway
edge the nose gear collapsed. Following the first officer’s Mayday call
tower issued an Alert 3. Personnel of fire station 2 were already on their
way when the Alert was issued.

The aircraft came to a stop about 8800 feet past the runway threshold and
about 300 feet off the runway center line. All engines were shut off using
the fuel cut off levers, both crew evacuated through the L1 door via the
slide, the mid portion of the aircraft was on fire. Emergency services responded
and arrived within a very short time.

Both pilots were taken to a hospital.

The aircraft was destroyed.

Security cameras videotaped the landing, the recordings complemented the
later testimonies by the crew, witnesses on the ground and flight data recordings.
Their recordings showed no smoke or fire until a short time after the fuselage
ruptured, subsequently smoke rose out of the fuselage rupture, no fire was
apparent when the aircraft veered off the runway and disappeared in a cloud
of smoke and dust. After the dust settled fire station 2 became visible
again at the camera located at the left side of the runway 33L and close
to the aircraft’s final position. About 55 seconds after the aircraft had
crossed this camera’s view, the first fire fighting vehicle left fire station
2, the second vehicle departed the station 20 seconds later, the vehicles
crossed runway 33L 100 and 115 seconds after leaving the station. Emergency
services of the airport’s main unit and station 1 responded as well following
the general alert, emergency services from outside the airport were called
in.

Emergency services reported that upon their arrival the fire was limited
to the center main wheel well (editorial note: while the fuel spill occurred
in the left main gear well). By the time they arrived at the aircraft both
pilots had already evacuated, the captain had received some cuts and the
first officer was complaining about back pain.

The fire spread and later became visible at the crown of the fuselage. The
fire was extinguished 20 hours after the accident, but re-ignited on two
occasions over the next days due to still smouldering cargo. As a manned
fire fighting vehicle remained present at the wreckage those fires were
quickly extinguished.

In post flight interviews the first officer reported he sensed a sinking
or increased sinking while descending through 80 feet AGL. He either increased
engine power or delayed retarding engine power and initiated flare at about
30-40 feet AGL. During the flare he lowered the nose slightly. He had no
clear recollection of his actions following first touchdown, he did recall
when the captain instructed him to declare Mayday. The Mayday call however
was delayed until after the aircraft had exited the runway as the first
officer needed to recover his headset and microphone from the floor.

The airport needed to be completely closed as result of the accident as
runway 33R was closed and needed an inspection before re-opening 16 minutes
after the accident.

Two aircraft already holding at the holding point of runway 33L were cleared
to taxi onto runway 33L and vacate the runway via taxiway A3, no debris
was observed by the crews of these aircraft.

The GACA reported that security guards were located about 50 meters from
the position where the aircraft came to a stop, however, did not control
access to the accident site permitting emergency services as well as other,
unauthorized people to access the accident site. Unauthoritzed people were
present until the end of the fire fighting operation, that ended 20 hours
after the accident.

Both flight data recorders were recovered however showed extensive fire
damage. The memory cards showed they had been exposed to heat but not critically,
the memory cards showed no defect and were successfully read out.

The 44 shipments of dangerous cargo in the forward lower cargo had not been
damaged by the fire and were recovered. The 12 shipments of dangerous goods
in the aft portion of the aircraft were heavily damaged or destroyed by
fire.

None of the Halon fire suppression systems in the cabin and cargo compartments
had been activated.

The GACA reported that due to the heavy damage the source of the ignition
of the fire could not be identified, however, the spray of the fuel in the
left hand wheel well likely fed the fire.

The GACA reported that between 1992 and 2010 twentynine bounced and severe
hard landing events had been recorded with MD-11s that resulted in substantial
aircraft damage. The investigation found, that the recognition of a bounced
landing on the MD-11 appears to be difficult, mainly because of the lack
of sensing the bounce and the absence of a visual or oral indication of
a bounce. Instructors believed the only was to detect a bounced landing
would be via the radar altimeter, however, flight crews rarely, if not ever,
monitor the instruments following the flare and touch down. Another carrier
using Head Up Guidance Systems including Enhanced Flight Visibility System.
This Head Up Display would also provide indication of a bounced landing.

GACA analysed that “the aircraft and in particular the elevators responded
to the flight crew inputs on the control column. The LSAS commands remained
within its authority limits and as such, there was no evidence to indicate
that the LSAS may have contributed to this accident.”

The control inputs of the crew however can not be as clearly analyzed. The
crew would make control inputs based on their perceiption of the aircraft’s
motion, the parameters leading to that perceiption being height of the cockpit
above the runway, the rate of change of height of the cockpit above the
runway, pitch angle and pitch rate, load factors, force feedback on the
controls and cockpit and engine sounds.

The GACA thus analysed with regards to the large nose down control input
during the first bounce: “The reason for this large nose-down input by the
Captain is unclear. One possibility is that the Captain did not realize
the aircraft had bounced and was attempting to de-rotate the aircraft while
assuming the main gear were still on the ground. Of note, from t = 1.0 to
1.7 sec. during the first bounce, the cockpit descended, while the C of
G and gear climbed. This effect resulted from the decreasing pith angle
( and the consequent vertical translation of the cockpit as the aircraft
rotated about the C of G, which was about 89 ft behind the cockpit. The
decreasing cockpit height during this time may have made it more difficult
for the pilots to determine that the aircraft had bounced and that the main
gear were no longer on the runway.”

The GACA continued that the captain should have said “I have control” as
soon as he applied the first control input during the first bounce. The
omission of that call led both pilots to provide control inputs, not always
in unison, which aggravated the serious situation.

Still frames of the first security camera (Photos: GACA):
View down the runway, green circle first bounce, red circle second bounce
(Photo: GACA):
Map of accident site (Graphics: GACA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42edca16
20110717170024:20100727000000
Accident: Lufthansa MD11 at Riyadh on Jul 27th 2010, bounced landing
The MD11 on fire (Photo: AFP/Al-Riyadh News)A Lufthansa Cargo MD-11 freighter,
registration D-ALCQ performing flight GEC-8460 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) with 2 crew and 80 tons of goods, veered left off
the runway and broke into two parts and burst into flames while landing
at Riyadh’s runway 33L at 11:38L (08:38Z). The airplane came to a stand
still on soft ground just off the left hand runway edge. Captain and first
officer received injuries and were taken to local hospitals. Fire fighters
were able to extinguish the fire, that broke out in the center area of the
aircraft, front and rear portion were visibly not consumed by the fire.

The airport reported, that fire fighters were able to contain the fire.

Lufthansa Cargo said, that the airplane broke in two parts and caught fire.
The two crew were able to leave the aircraft via an evacuation slide but
received injuries, the extent of which is not being reported. In the afternoon
several hours after the accident phone contact has been established with
both crew members.

Aviation sources in Riyadh reported, that the crew declared emergency reporting
a cargo fire indication while on approach to Riyadh. The following day (Jul
28th) they reported, that first results of the investigation point into
the direction of a technical malfunction causing a fire in the cargo hold.
The airplane subsequently touched down very hard. Both pilots received minor
injuries, the first officer suffering a back injury.

Observers on the ground said, that the airplane was already trailing smoke
while on final approach.

Saudi Arabia’s Civil Aviation Authority (GACA) confirmed on Jul 27th the
crew arriving from Frankfurt (Germany) declared emergency reporting a cargo
fire inside the aircraft while on approach and landed at 11:38L (08:38Z).
An investigation is under way.

GACA spokesman Khaled al-Alkhyeeri said on Jul 29th the captain and first
officer are in good health with very minor injuries. Emergency services
reached the aircraft within 35 seconds after touch down using half of their
agents within 3 minutes thus efficiently confining the fire to the cargo
hold.

“The Economic”, a Saudi Arabian newspaper in Arabic, cited GACA spokesman
Khaled al-Alkhyeeri to have said on Jul 29th, that according to preliminary
investigation results there was no fire before touch down. The airplane
touched down very hard and veered to the left, the airplane subsequently
burst into flames.

Officials of Riyadh Airport said on Jul 29th, that the crew reported a cargo
fire while on approach, emergency services immediately deployed and observed
the airplane arrive in thick black smoke before the airplane touched down
on the runway.

Lufthansa Cargo said on Jul 30th, that they have no indication of an inflight
fire.

GACA’s head of the aviation safety department Abel Rahman Bukhari said on
Jul 31st, that preliminary investigation results suggest, that there was
no inflight fire prior to touch down. The undercarriage of the aircraft
was severly damaged in the landing causing the airplane to veer off the
runway. The impact caused the fire on board.

The NTSB reported on Jul 31st, that the aircraft “reportedly caught fire
after a hard landing at the King Khalid International Airport, Riyadh, Saudi
Arabia”.

A statement by Lufthansa provided to Lufthansa employees on Lufthansa’s
internal website around Aug 10th said, that the black boxes have been analysed
by the German Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU). The results
indicate, that the airplane touched down normally in the touch down zone,
however two more ground contacts followed which caused the rear of the aircraft
to fracture just aft of the main gear. After 2400 meters (7880 feet) the
airplane departed the runway 33L to the left, at this stage the nose gear
collapsed. The airplane came to rest after another 375 meters (1230 feet).
The crew left the airplane via slide 1L. Further information can not be
provided due to the ongoing investigation, every (internal or external)
statement must be authorised by Saudi Arabia’s investigator in charge. The
investigator hopes to release a preliminary report in fall 2010, which requires
interviews with the crew however. The interview has been scheduled for next
week (Aug 16th-20th). A final report is expected in about a year. The wreckage
has been removed from the accident site and is currently being dismantled.
Lufthansa Technics checks whether some of the undamaged parts can be re-used,
all the rest is going to be scraped in Saudi Arabia.

The German BFU stated on Aug 10th, that the airplane bounced after first
touch down and broke on next touch down.

Germany’s BFU reported in their July bulletin on Sep 17th, that the airplane
touched down on runway 33L with a vertical acceleration of approximately
2G and lifted off again, two more touch downs with 3G and 4.3G occurred.
The rear section of the aircraft broke just aft of the landing gear while
the airplane was still on the runway, about 2400 meters after first touch
down the airplane veered to the left, exited the runway and stopped after
another 375 meters. The crew left the burning aircraft. (Editorial note:
this report does not specify when the fire started and does not specify
when exactly the rear section broke).

The German news magazine Spiegel reported on Aug 14th, that ground witnesses
at Frankfurt Airport confirmed the cargo contained highly inflammable chemicals
as well as other hazardeous goods like weaponry and other military goods.
According to that report the chemicals were located exactly in the area
where the fire started. Lufthansa Cargo did not comment on that report.
Metars:
OERK 271000Z 32022KT 7000 SKC 41/05 Q1005 NOSIG
OERK 270900Z 32014KT CAVOK 40/05 Q1006 NOSIG
OERK 270800Z 34014KT CAVOK 39/06 Q1006 NOSIG
OERK 270700Z 35010KT CAVOK 38/07 Q1007 NOSIG
OERK 270600Z 33009KT CAVOK 37/07 Q1007 NOSIG
OERK 270500Z 31008KT CAVOK 33/05 Q1007 NOSIG
OERK 270400Z 29006KT CAVOK 30/06 Q1006 NOSIG
OERK 270300Z 30007KT CAVOK 28/04 Q1006 NOSIG

Relevant NOTAM:
A0722/10 – PRIMARY RWY 15L/33R NOW OPEN,SECONDARY RWY 33L/15R CLOSED DUE
TO
DISABLEED ACFT. 27 JUL 10:33 2010 UNTIL 27 JUL 21:30 2010. CREATED: 27 JUL
10:39
2010

TV pictures during fire fighting (Photos: AFP/Al-Ekbbaria):
D-ALCQ still smouldering (Photo: AFP/Al Riyadh News):
Fire extinguished, “CQ” recognizeable on tail (Photo: AP):
Map (Courtesy Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ec41bd
20100725072818:20100724000000
Incident: American MD83 near Moline on Jul 24th 2010, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight AA-1948 from Kansas
City,MO to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 71 people on board, was enroute
at FL330 about 50nm southwest of Moline,IL when passengers saw smoke in
the back of the aircraft. The crew diverted to Moline where the airplane
landed safely 13 minutes later.

The cause of the smoke is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ebd65b
20100724180448:20100723000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 near Idaho Falls on Jul 23rd 2010, cargo fire alert
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-200, flight OO-4575 from Bozeman,MT to Salt Lake
City,UT (USA) with 19 passengers, was enroute at FL310 about 28nm southeast
of Idaho Falls,ID when the crew received a cargo fire alert and decided
to divert to Idaho Falls. The airplane landed safely in Idaho Falls about
10 minutes later. Emergency services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat.

A replacement CRJ-200 registration N913EV reached Salt Lake City with a
delay of 4.5 hours.

Maintenance determined the fire indication was false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ebba61
20100724145521:20100723000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Toronto on Jul 23rd 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Westjet Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration C-GWSY performing flight
WS-324 from Toronto,ON to St. John’s,NL (Canada), stopped climb out of Toronto
at FL230, the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and
returned to Toronto for a safe landing on runway 15L about 25 minutes later
and stopped on the runway to have emergency services inspect the aircraft.
The airplane taxied to the apron 12 minutes after landing.

The replacement Boeing 737-700 registration C-FBWS could not land in St.
John’s initially due to weather and needed to divert for a landing in Stephenville,NL
(Canada) before finally reaching St. John’s with a total delay of 7 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42eb24e6
20100723202527:20100723000000
Incident: American B752 near Ft. Myers on Jul 23rd 2010, smell in cockpit and cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N626AA performing flight
AA-271 from Miami,FL to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 182 passengers and 7 crew,
was climbing out of Miami when the crew stopped the climb at FL280, donned
their oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting a strong smell of smoke
in cockpit and cabin but no visible smoke and diverted to Fort Myers,FL.
The airplane landed safely on Ft. Myer’s runway 06 about 10 minutes later,
stopped and shut down on the runway to have emergency services check the
aircraft. The aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron.

The airport was closed for about 20 minutes.

American Airlines currently estimate the flight to reach Los Angeles with
a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ea5163
20100722193129:20100722000000
Incident: Alitalia B763 over Atlantic on Jul 22nd 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
EI-DDW taxiing on taxiway CharlieAn Alitalia Boeing 767-300, registration
EI-DDW performing flight AZ-608 from Rome Fiumicino (Italy) to New York
JFK,NY (USA) with 198 passengers, was enroute at FL340 about 80 minutes
into the Atlantic crossing off the Irish Coast, when the crew requested
to turn around and divert to Shannon (Ireland), at that time reporting no
real issue. The airplane was cleared to descend to FL300 and upon reaching
the flight level fly direct to Shannon. About 30 minutes later the crew
reported they had a strong smell of smoke in the cockpit but were unable
to locate the source, in the meantime the smell had subsided. They still
wanted to divert to Shannon to have the airplane checked but didn’t need
any assistance. Emergency services were called on stand by at their stations.
The airplane landed safely on Shannon’s runway 06 about 100 minutes after
the request to divert and taxied directly to the gate.

The continuation was postponed to the next day, the passengers were taken
to local hotels.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f1bd7c
20100802221254:20100721000000
Incident: Fedex A306 near Cleveland on Jul 21st 2010, avionics smoke alert
A Fedex Federal Express Airbus A300-600, registration N733FD performing
flight FX-9129 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Memphis,TN (USA) with 2 crew,
was climbing through FL260 out of Toronto when the crew received an avionics
smoke message without smell or visible smoke. The crew declared emergency
and diverted to Cleveland,OH (USA) where the aircraft landed safely about
20 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the airplane was inspected and maintenance
determined a faulty avionics bay smoke detector, which was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42f1bc86
20100802220206:20100721000000
Incident: Air Canada B773 at London on Jul 21st 2010, smoke from gear on landing
An Air Canada Boeing 777-300, registration C-FIUW performing flight AC-848
from Toronto,ON (Canada) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 244 people on board,
landed at London’s runway 27R when smoke was observed from the left main
gear. Emergency services responded.

The Canadian TSB reported, that emergency services remained at the aircraft
until the smoke disappeared. Maintenance found a hydraulic leak that had
dripped fluid onto the brakes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ea664d
20100722183521:20100721000000
Incident: V-Bird IL76 at Podgorica on Jul 21st 2010, rejected takeoff
A V-Bird Avia Ilyushin IL-76, registration EK-76021 performing flight VBD-2012
from Podgorica (Montenegro) to Yerevan (Armenia) carrying dangerous goods
on behalf of a weapons factory in Montenegro, 1 passenger and 5 crew, rejected
takeoff at low speed when one of the engines failed leaving debris behind
on the runway. The tower observed black smoke from the engine. The aircraft
stopped safely on the runway.

The aircraft was disabled on the runway for about 3.5 hours.

The airport reported, that there was a technical problem with an engine
causing some fluid spill. The airplane and cargo remained undamaged apart
from the engine damage. Montenegro’s Civil Aviation Authority have initiated
an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e81595
20100719141429:20100718000000
Incident: LOT B763 at Warsaw on Jul 18th 2010, brake fire on landing
A LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration SP-LPB performing flight
LO-4 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Warsaw (Poland), landed on Warsaw’s
runway 33 when the tower reported smoke and fire from the left hand brakes.
The airplane stopped safely, the fire was put out by responding emergency
services.

The following flight scheduled to be performed by SP-LPB, LO-15 to Newark,
was cancelled as a result.

The airplane had a similiar incident on the previous flight, see Incident:
LOT B763 at Chicago on Jul 17th 2010, brake fire on landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e752f9
20100720062052:20100717000000
Incident: LOT B763 at Chicago on Jul 17th 2010, brake fire on landing
Taxiway is wet after engines put the fire out(Photo: Andy)A LOT Polish Airlines
Boeing 767-300, registration SP-LPB performing flight LO-3 from Warsaw (Poland)
to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), landed on Chicago’s runway 28 normally and was
about to vacate the runway via taxiway K (about 2400 meters/7800 feet from
runway threshold) when tower alerted the crew about smoke and fire from
the left hand main brakes, ordering the crew a few seconds later to stop
right there on the taxiway. Emergency services responded and put the fire
out. The airplane was subsequently towed to the apron.

The left hand brakes and tyres were replaced permitting the aircraft to
depart for the return flight LO-4 after 4.5 hours on the ground. The airplane
reached Warsaw with a delay of 3 hours.

Passenger Andy reported, that according to an announcement by the captain
the brakes fractured and caused damage to the hydraulic lines leading to
the fire.

The airplane suffered a similiar problem during landing in Warsaw on its
return flight, see Incident: LOT B763 at Warsaw on Jul 18th 2010, brake
fire on landing.
The fire engines responded (Photo: Andy):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e724cf
20111222112214:20100717000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Atlanta on Jul 17th 2010, smoke and fire in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N990DL performing
flight DL-1188 from Atlanta,GA to Hartford,CT (USA) with 106 passengers
and 5 crew, was climbing out of Atlanta when the crew noticed smoke in the
cockpit and decided to return to Atlanta. The airplane landed safely 25
minutes after departure, the crew needed to use a fire extinguisher to put
a small fire in the cockpit out that occurred after touch down.

Delta Airlines said, the fire was related to some electrical equipment.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration N379DA reached Hartford with a
delay of 3.5 hours.

The NTSB reported on Dec 2nd 2011, that maintenance found severe heat damage
to the right hand wing landing light switch, no other source of heat was
detected. The switch was removed and sent to the NTSB for further examination,
during disassembly no anomalies with the installation of the switch were
detected. Both circuit breakers “right wing landing light” (115VAC supplying
the landing light) and “right wing landing light control” (115VAC to extend
and retract the landing light) were found popped. The NTSB found the switch
severely damaged by fire, a research of possible quality issues in the production
between 2004 and 2010 did not find any problems related to this failure
mode. The maintenance log showed a broken wire to the right wing landing
light had been replaced in Sep 2008, no other discrepancies were discovered.

On Dec 22nd 2011 the NTSB released their final report concluding:

The cause of the right wing landing light switch fire is undetermined.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e65049
20100717094448:20100717000000
Incident: KLM Cityhopper F70 near Amsterdam on Jul 17th 2010, smoke in cabin
A KLM Cityhopper Fokker 70, registration PH-KZW performing flight WA1421/KL-1421
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Birmingham,EN (UK), was climbing to FL190
about 50nm southwest of Amsterdam when the crew reported smoke in the back
of the aircraft and requested to return to Amsterdam as a precaution. The
airplane landed safely on runway 27 about 22 minutes later.

A replacement Fokker 70 registration PH-KZA reached Birmingham with a delay
of 2:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e84c0e
20100719213151:20100715000000
Incident: Saudi B772 near Goose Bay on Jul 15th 2010, cargo fire indication
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration HZ-AKA performing
flight SV-21 from Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute
at FL340 about 140nm northnortheast of Goose Bay,NL (Canada) when the crew
received a cargo fire indication and decided to divert to Goose Bay. The
airplane landed safely about 28 minutes later, emergency services did not
find any trace of fire, smoke or heat.

Transport Canada reported, that the luggage was offloaded.

The airplane continued after about 4 hours on the ground in Goose Bay and
reached New York with a total delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e35858
20100713071324:20100712000000
Incident: American B763 near Casper on Jul 12th 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N343AN performing flight
AA-24 from San Francisco,CA to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 193 passengers
and 9 crew, was enroute at FL370 about 100nm southwest of Casper,WY when
the crew noticed an electrical smokey smell in the cockpit and decided to
divert to Casper. The airplane landed safely about 25 minutes later.

Maintenance identified one of the computer screens as source of the odour,
disabled the screen and released the aircraft to continue the flight after
about 5:20 hours on the ground. The airplane reached New York with a delay
of 6:15 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e29cdb
20100712203054:20100711000000
Incident: American B772 overhead Bering Sea on Jul 11th 2010, cargo fire alert
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N777AN performing flight
AA-175 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with 197 passengers
and 15 crew, was enroute at FL360 overhead the Bering Sea about to enter
the Pacific Ocean when the crew received a cargo fire alert. The airplane
diverted to Shemya Island,AK (USA) about 100nm southeast of their present
position where the crew managed a safe landing at Shemya Air Force Base
(runway length 3000 meters/9800 feet) 26 minutes later. No injuries were
reported, the cause of the fire alert is under investigation.

Alaska’s Coast Guard had been alerted by the FAA around 4:30pm local time
and was notified by 5:00pm that the airplane was on the ground, everyone
got off the aircraft and the fire was out.

The airplane carried the passengers to Anchorage,AK (USA) about 7 hours
after landing reaching Anchorage early Monday (Jul 12th) morning. American
Airlines subsequently cancelled the continuation from Anchorage to Tokyo.

American Airlines said on Jul 12th, that no traces of fire, smoke or heat
were found. The passengers were taken to Anchorage, from where a replacement
aircraft will take them to Tokyo with an estimated arrival 2 days later
than scheduled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e1ffa5
20100711102735:20100710000000
Incident: SAS A321 near Stuttgart on Jul 10th 2010, smell of smoke
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration OY-KBF performing
flight SK-688 from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Copenhagen (Denmark) with 187
passengers, had reached cruise level FL330 overhead Switzerland about 90nm
south of Stuttgart (Germany) about 20 minutes into the flight when the crew
reported smell of smoke on board and decided to divert to Stuttgart. The
airplane landed safely on Stuttgart’s runway 07 about 15 minutes later.

The passengers were taken to local hotels, the flight is expected to continue
on Sunday (Jul 11th).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e08b51
20100709122939:20100709000000
Incident: Emirates A332 at Kochi on Jul 9th 2010, fire alert
An Emirates Airlines Airbus A330-200, registration A6-EAC performing flight
EK-532 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Kochi (India) with 281 people
on board, was on final approach to Kochi when a smoke detector triggered
a fire alert. The crew continued for a safe landing, responding emergency
services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat.

The airplane is still on the ground in Kochi. The return flight EK-533 is
now estimated to leave Kochi with a delay of 31 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42e0d30c
20100709211059:20100708000000
Incident: Alaska Airlines B738 near Klamath Falls on Jul 8th 2010, electrical smell on board
An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N549AS performing flight
AS-625 from Las Vegas,NV to Portland,OR (USA) with 136 passengers, was enroute
at FL380 about 220nm south of Portland,OR and 30nm eastsoutheast of Klamath
Falls,OR when a burning electrical smell was observed in the back of the
cabin. The crew diverted to Klamath Falls for a safe landing 20 minutes
later. Emergency services did not find any heat, smoke or fire.

A replacement Boeing 737-900 was dispatched to Klamath Falls as flight AS-9005
and reached Portland with a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ea6ff1
20100722195827:20100705000000
Incident: Porter DH8D near Newark on Jul 5th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Porter Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration C-GLQJ performing
flight PD-122 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Toronto City,ON (Canada) with 67 people
on board, was climbing through 10000 feet when the crew noticed smoke and
a strong odour of burning plastic. The crew declared emergency and returned
to Newark for a safe landing, the aircraft was deplaned on an adjacent taxiway.
No injuries occured.

The Canadian TSB reported, that maintenance identified a recirculation fan
as source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42de3af3
20100706071101:20100705000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Sioux Falls on Jul 5th 2010, engine trouble
A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight UA-158 (dep Jul 4th) from San Francisco,CA
to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 182 passengers, was enroute near Sioux Falls,SD
when the crew decided to divert to Sioux Falls due to some mechanical problems.
The airplane landed safely at Sioux Falls.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 was dispatched from Chicago to Sioux Falls
as flight UA-9937 and delivered the passengers to Chicago with a delay of
7.5 hours.

Passengers reported they saw sparks, flames and smoke from the left hand
engine.

United Airlines said, the airplane diverted because of a mechanical problem,
they are not aware of any engine fire.

The incident aircraft is still in Sioux Falls 22 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42dd7d08
20100705061441:20100704000000
Incident: Thomas Cook A320 near Faro on Jul 4th 2010, burning smell on board
A Thomas Cook Airbus A320-200, registration G-TCAC performing flight TCX-78
(dep Jul 3rd) from London Gatwick,EN (UK) to Las Palmas,CI (Spain), was
enroute at FL350 about 120nm west of Faro (Portugal) when a strong burning
smell was observed in the cabin. The crew decided to divert to Faro, where
the airplane landed safely on runway 10 about 22 minutes later. Emergency
services did not detect any trace of fire or smoke. The passengers disembarked
normally.

Maintenance engineers found a short circuit that had caused some wires to
smoulder. The problem was fixed.

The airplane departed again 5.5 hours after landing and reached Las Palmas
with a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43e42f3b
20110616171257:20100702000000
Report: SAS A321 enroute on Jul 2nd 2010, smell of smoke
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration OY-KBF performing
flight SK-502 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Copenhagen (Denmark), was
enroute when smell of smoke was briefly observed on board. A mechanic on
board found no trace of fire. The crew continued to Copenhagen for a safe
landing.

Denmark’s Havarikommission released a brief report in Danish stating, that
after landing a fire extinguisher in a toilet’s waste bin was found discharged.
It was not possible to determine what triggered the fire extinguisher, however
it had been seen that passengers did not obey to the no-smoking sign and
disposed remains of cigarettes, not properly extinguished, into the toilet’s
waste bin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42dba325
20100706193747:20100701000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Toronto on Jul 1st 2010, smoke in cockpit
An Air Canada Airbus A320, registration C-FKCO performing flight AC-1153
from Toronto,ON to Calgary,AB (Canada), had just reached FL330 when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit and returned to Toronto requesting runway
05. The airplane landed safely on runway 05 22 minutes later and stopped
on the runway.

After emergency services checked the aircraft the airplane vacated the runway
20 minutes after landing.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration C-FTJO reached Calgary with a
delay of 5:45 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Jul 6th, that the crew observed traces of smoke
in the cockpit while the airplane climbed through FL300 and actioned the
according checklists. The smoke dissipated somewhat but a residual odour
remained prompting the crew to return to Toronto. The cause of the smoke
is still under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42daaa9e
20100701112811:20100630000000
Incident: Iberia A343 at Boston on Jun 30th 2010, rejected takeoff
An Iberia Airbus A340-300, registration EC-HQN performing flight IB-6166
from Boston,MA (USA) to Madrid,SP (Spain), rejected takeoff from Boston’s
runway 22R (runway length 7861 feet/2397 meters) at high speed due to an
engine #1 (CFM56, outboard left hand) indication. The crew of another aircraft
reported seeing smoke from the #1 engine. The airplane vacated runway 22R
turning right onto taxiway E at the end of the runway and stopped there
shutting down both left hand engines to permit fire engines access the #1
engine.

Runway 22R was closed for a runway inspection for about 20 minutes.

After rejected takeoff (Video: Jenf777):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42da03ea
20100630125444:20100630000000
Incident: Aviogenex B732 near Podgorica on Jun 30th 2010, smoke in cockpit
An Aviogenex Boeing 737-200, registration YU-ANP performing flight JJ-384
from Zakinthos (Greece) to Belgrade (Serbia) with 16 passengers and 6 crew,
was enroute near Podgorica (Montenegro) when the crew reported smoke in
the cockpit and diverted to Podgorica for a safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d88fde
20100628102739:20100627000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Rapid City on Jun 27th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Skywest Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of United Airlines, flight OO-6643/UA-6643
from Rapid City,SD to Denver,CO (USA) with 50 passengers and 3 crew, was
climbing out of Rapid City when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
returned to Rapid City for a safe landing 19 minutes after departure.

Following examination the airplane was released for the flight and reached
Denver with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d8a364
20100628131946:20100626000000
Incident: Aeroflot A332 over Atlantic on Jun 26th 2010, unruly passengers
An Aeroflot Airbus A330-200, registration VP-BLY performing flight SU-333
from Moscow Sheremetyevo (Russia) to Havana (Cuba), was enroute north of
Iceland when two already drunk Russian citizens began to smoke and consume
additional alcohol. When cabin crew tried to intervene, the pair became
verbally abusive prompting the captain to divert to Keflavik (Iceland),
where the airplane landed safely. The two unrulies were taken into custody
by Icelandic police.

The aircraft reached Havana with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42da1c66
20100630162145:20100625000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 over Pacific on Jun 25th 2010, smoke from windshield heater
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-FXCA performing flight AC-64
from Seoul (South Korea) to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 217 people on board,
had been in cruise flight for about one hour, when the crew observed an
electrical smell in the cockpit and shut down gasper and recirculation fans.
The smell subsided thereafter. About 4 hours later the smell appeared again,
this time minor wisps of smoke became visible underneath the captain’s glareshield.
The crew identified the source being the windshield heating connector and
turned the windshield heating off. The smoke and smell quickly subsided.
The airplane continued to Vancouver for a safe landing about 4 hours later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that maintenance replaced the captain’s L1 windscreen
and window heat connector and returned the aircraft to service after testing
the system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d66896
20100625111323:20100624000000
Incident: Continental B738 near Fargo on Jun 24th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N76288 performing flight
CO-1682 from Seattle,WA to Newark,NJ (USA), was enroute at FL350 about 100nm
southwest of Fargo,ND, when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted
to Fargo. On approach the crew reported it had become “really hot” for a
while, but now smoke had subsided, nonetheless they requested emergency
services on stand by. The airplane landed safely on runway 18 and taxied
to the gate.

The airplane was able to continue the flight and reached Newark with a delay
of 8.5 hours.

Fargo fire department said that a galley oven overheated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d3e6fa
20100621220752:20100621000000
Incident: Republic Airlines E190 near Kansas City on Jun 21st 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Republic Airlines Embraer ERJ-190 on behalf of Frontier Airlines, registration
N170HQ performing flight RW-1903/F9-1903 from Milwaukee,WI to Kansas City,MO
(USA) with 104 people on board, was on approach to Kansas City when the
crew reported smoke in the cockpit. On short final to runway 19R the crew
reported that it had become a bit better but they wouldn’t take any chances
and evacuate. The airplane landed safely on runway 19R, the occupants disembarked
via the slides. No injuries occured, the passengers were bussed to the terminal.

The airport reported, that emergency services found no trace of fire or
smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d2e45c
20100620104623:20100620000000
Incident: Malev B737 at Budapest on Jun 20th 2010, smell of smoke on board
A Malev Hungarian Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration HA-LOR performing
flight MA-660 from Budapest (Hungary) to Amsterdam (Netherlands) with 102
passengers, departed Budapest’s runway 31L when the crew reported smell
of smoke in the cabin, levelled off at 3000 feet and returned to Budapest
for a safe landing on runway 31R about 12 minutes later.

The airline said, that passengers observed smell of smoke on board prompting
the crew to return to the airport. The source of the odour was identified
to be residual engine cleaning fluid. The flight was cancelled, the passengers
rebooked onto the next flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d2d706
20100620085406:20100618000000
Incident: British Airways B734 near Luxembourg on Jun 18th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Boeing 737-400, registration G-DOCE performing flight
BA-8145 from Luxembourg (Luxembourg) to London Gatwick,EN (UK), was climbing
out of Luxembourg when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and returned
to Luxembourg. The airplane landed safely about 15 minutes after departure
and taxied to the apron.

The airplane was inspected by maintenance detecting a minor technical problem,
the passengers remained on board. The airplane subsequently departed Luxembourg
again and reached London with a delay of 2 hours.

The airport reported a minor technical incident caused the return of the
flight, which departed again about 2 hours after scheduled departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42d061e4
20100616215428:20100616000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Nassau on Jun 16th 2010, smell of smoke in cabin
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, flight B6-1757 from Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA)
to San Juan (Puerto Rico), was enroute at FL370 28nm east of Nassau (Bahamas)
30 minutes into the flight when the crew reported smell of smoke in the
cabin and requested to return to Fort Lauderdale, but then decided to divert
to Nassau, where the airplane landed safely 20 minutes later.

A replacement aircraft is being dispatched to Nassau.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42cfef9d
20100625205151:20100615000000
Incident: Alitalia A332 at Boston on Jun 15th 2010, engine failure on takeoff, engine on fire at landing
An Alitalia Airbus A330-200, registration EI-DIP performing flight AZ-615
from Boston,MA (USA) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with 244 passengers and 14
crew, was in the initial climb out of Boston’s runway 15R when the crew
called Mayday reporting their left hand engine (CF6) had failed. The crew
levelled off at 2000 feet, shut down and secured the engine and returned
to Boston. The airplane landed safely on runway 15R 20 minutes after departure,
fire engines reported smoke from the aircraft, the airplane came to a stop
on the intersection runway 15R/runway 09 and shut down on the runway. Fire
engines then reported the left hand engine on fire. Boston Airport closed
all runways. 5 minutes later the fire chief reported the fire extinguished.
The passengers disembarked via mobile stairs and were bussed to the terminal.

About 10 minutes after touch down Boston Airport began to gradually resume
operations.

Passengers said that they heard multiple bangs shortly after liftoff. The
captain announced that they were experiencing engine trouble due to a bird
strike.

The Italian “Agenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza del Volo” (ANSV, National
Agency for Flight Safety) reported late Jun 22nd, that the flight data recorder
was analysed by the NTSB. The NTSB subsequently aborted the investigation
reporting, that the engine has not been subject to failure, over-speed or
over-temperature, so that no risk for flight safety existed.

The NTSB released their factual report on Jun 25th stating, that the crew
received an Exhaust Gas Temperature indication on the ECAM and observed
an N1 overspeed indication for the left hand engine. The engine was throttled
back to idle, the aircraft returned to Boston for a safe landing, after
landing the engine was shut down. Examination of the engine revealed no
under the cowl fire damage, however oil and metallic particles were found
in the engine’s tail pipe. The oil magnetic chip detector was removed and
found covered with metallic shavings. Examination of the flight data and
quick access recorders revealed no overspeed or overtemperature event. The
NTSB has delegated the investigation to the Italian ANSV.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42cf0707
20100621204354:20100613000000
Incident: Lufthansa A346 near Gander on Jun 13th 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-600, registration D-AIHO performing flight LH-429
from Charlotte,NC (USA) to Munich (Germany) with 321 people on board, was
enroute at FL370 about 350nm southwest of Gander,NL (Canada) when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and requested to divert to Gander. The crew
dumped fuel and landed safely in Gander about 60 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that there was no smoke or flames, the smell
originated from a faulty inflight entertainment system.

On Jun 21st the Canadian TSB detailed, that the power supply to the enhanced
audio/video system located under seats 49F/G had failed. The power supply
was removed, and the airplane continued to destination.

The airplane reached Munich with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ce827c
20100614074550:20100613000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near St. Louis on Jun 13th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-1620 from Minneapolis,MN
to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 144 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL330
about 170nm west of Louisville,KY and 45nm east of Saint Louis,MO, when
the crew reported smoke in the cabin and decided to divert to Louisville.
The airplane landed safely on Louisville’s runway 35L about 30 minutes later.
Emergency services did not need to intervene, the cause of the smoke is
unknown.

A replacement McDonnell MD-88 reached Atlanta with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42cd0326
20100612085753:20100611000000
Incident: Continental B764 near Boston on Jun 11th 2010, smell of smoke in cabin
A Continental Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N76062 performing flight
CO-104 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Athens (Greece) with 220 passengers and 13
crew, was enroute at FL310 about 130nm east of Boston, when the crew reported
a bit developing smoke in the cabin, declared emergency and decided to dump
fuel, turn around and divert to Boston. The airplane landed safely 50 minutes
later.

A replacement Boeing 767-400 registration N68061 continued the flight and
is estimated to reach Athens with a total delay of 7 hours.

Continental Airlines said, that some odour of unknown origin had appeared
in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42cc7443
20100621203759:20100610000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 over Atlantic on Jun 10th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N175DZ performing flight DL-168
from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with 214 people on
board, was enroute at FL340 about 250nm south of Halifax,NS (Canada) when
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Halifax. The airplane
landed safely about 50 minutes later, the passengers disembarked normally.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N176DN was dispatched from Atlanta
to Hailfax as flight DL-9935. Flight DL-168 is currently estimated to reach
Rome with a delay of 11.5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Jun 21st, that the crew dumped fuel 60nm south
of Halifax and landed 33 minutes later. Maintenance identified a seat actuator
wire had shorted under seats 5E and 5C, the actuator was deactivated and
the airplane ferried to Atlanta (flight DL-9938) for repair.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42cac88a
20100609072956:20100608000000
Incident: Vietnam Airlines AT72 near Tuy Hoa on Jun 8th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Vietnam Airlines Aerospatiale ATR-72-500, registration VN-B210 performing
flight VN-9815 from Tuy Hoa to Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam), was about 5 minutes
into the flight when smoke became visible in the cabin. During the return
to Tuy Hoa the air conditioning system failed. The airplane landed safely
in Tuy Hoa 15 minutes after departure. The airplane vacated the runway and
stopped on the adjacent taxiway, where the passengers rapidly deplaned via
the airplane’s own stairs.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c90189/0000
20111207184450:20100606000000
Accident: Royal Air Maroc B734 at Amsterdam on Jun 6th 2010, flock of birds, engine fire
The Dutch Onderzoeksraad (Dutch Safety Board DSB) released their final report
in Dutch (the English version was released on Dec 7th 2011) concluding the
probable causes of the accident (translated from the Dutch report by The
Aviation Herald) were:

1. Shortly after takeoff a collision with a bird caused damage to the left
hand engine which reduced the available thrust from that engine to about
45%. The crew decided correctly to return to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.

2. The implementation of the return however were not in line with standard
operating procedures, the deviations were:

– the execution of a right hand turn at 260 feet AGL with a bank angle of
37.5 degrees instead of continuing straight until minimum safe altitude
has been reached and the gear has been retracted

– after the gear had retracted it was extended again at very low altitude

– the undamaged right hand engine was reduced from 94% to 83% N1 instead
of utilising its maximum thrust available

These deviations from standard operating procedures meant the aircraft was
not able to climb to minimum safe altitude, the crew had difficulty controlling
the aircraft and was distracted by a number of audio and visual warnings
that resulted from unfinished cockpit procedures.

3. Communication and interaction between the two pilots was not according
to international standards established for airline pilots. The immediate
right turn led to a marginal remaining flight performance, more difficult
tasks and complications, so that both pilots did not execute their duties
like handling procedures and checklists in the prescribed manner. This introduced
new complications like unnecessary warnings and unstable flight.

4. Training of Royal Air Maroc and Atlas Blue did not prepare flight crew
for multiple failures in flight.

– Prior to any refresher training the crew was told which failures were
to expect. While this is not unusual, the training could not cater for surprise
effects.

– Dealing with multiple faults was included only in the initial training
for captains.

– Although the flight crew training manual as well as flight crew operations
manual contained procedures and checklists to appropriately address the
faults, that occurred during this flight, the managers at Royal Air Maroc
and Atlas Blue considered this occurrence a unique event that can not be
trained for.

5. There was insufficient account of aircraft in distress below minimum
vector altitude taken in studies of necessary actions following the recommendations
of the Parliamentary Inquiry Commission investigating the Bijlmer plane
crash (editorial note: the crash of El Al’s Boeing 747-200 4X-AXG into an
apartment block at Bijlmermeer on Oct 4th 1992). Those aircraft will be
in the local control zone of Schiphol, the controllers however are without
information of high obstacles in the control zone creating an unnecessarily
increased risk of collision. This is especially true if flown outside visual
meteorologic conditions.

– Research of Dutch Traffic Control following the recommendations of the
Parliamentary Inquiry Commission into the Bijlmer crash led to a framework
of policies to guide aircraft in distress while flying above the town. The
policies establish that the aircraft commander is responsible for flight
while air traffic control is responsible to grant all available assistance
to the commander, while air traffic control should keep the aircraft as
much as possible within the established departure and arrival routes into
the runways to limit overflying built up areas. Although the Directorate
General for Aviation and Marimite Affairs agreed with these policies, the
radar screens of air traffic controller do not depict built up areas.

– Around Schiphol Airport high buildings are virtually everywhere in populated
areas. It is therefore not feasable to maneouver in those areas avoiding
the obstacles considering the speed and turn radii of aircraft. The aircraft
reached a maximum altitude of 730 feet well below the minimum vectoring
altitude of 1200 feet. Only two obstacles were depicted on the controller’s
radar screen, however, there is a high number of obstacles in the control
zone that pose a risk to aircraft flying below minimum vectoring altitude,
which is especially true if flown outside visual meteorological conditions.

6. The presence of one or more birds with a large mass in the flight trajectory
of an aircraft pose a safety risk, especially true for geese because of
their high mass and because of them flying in flocks. Most bird strikes
occur during takeoff and landing.

7. Research has shown that the responsible parties to control wild life
at Schiphol Airport have exhausted their options. Besides frequently closing
runways it is necessary to further reduce the risk of bird strikes in the
area of responsibilities of other parties.

8. All relevant aviation, agricultural, bird and nature parties recognize
the risk of bird strikes and the need to reduce that risk. Despite the concensus
on these necessities there is no concensus on the impact of those necessities
resulting in different views on the (cost) effective implementation of these
measures.

9. The urgency of a flight can not wait for the outcomes of studies of control
measures that short term reduce populations of geese as most effective methode
to reduce the risk of bird strikes and long term result in a habitat management,
detection of birds and deterrence capabilities in view of structural reduction
of bird strike risks.

10. Several Non-Government Organisations have joined in the “Geese-7” initiative
to reduce and stabilize the populations of various types of geese at a certain
size. The implementation of these recommendations is pending awaiting decision
by the Ministry of Economy, Agriculture and Innovation.

11. The Ministry of Economy, Agriculture and Innovation, also responsible
for flight safety, has not exercised adequate control of bird strike risks.

The Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-400 CN-RMF with 156 passengers, 4 Royal Air
Maroc cabin crew and 2 Atlas Blue pilots, the captain (36, ATPL, 7,540 hours
total, 7,200 hours on type) being pilot flying and the first officer (28,
ATPL, 2,730 hours total, 2,308 hours on type) being pilot monitoring, departed
Schiphol Airport’s runway 18L, flaps were set at 5 degrees, engines stabilized
at 93.8 and 94.0% N1. The aircraft accelerated through 171 KIAS during rotation
(nose up attitude of 6 degrees) and became airborne, at 16 feet AGL the
gear was selected up at a speed of 175 KIAS. At that moment the aircraft
collided with a flock of geese, which resulted in an immediate loss of all
thrust from the left hand engine, the nose landing gear indicated unsafe
because of the position of the nose gear did not agree with the selected
position. 6 seconds later the aircraft climbed through 140 feet at engine
thrust of 45.5% N1 and 93.8% N1, the left engine remained at 45% N1 for
the next 4 minutes until shut down. The first officer called out engine
#1 was damaged, the call was not responded to by the captain however. The
captain remarked that the aircraft was shaking violently and was difficult
to control. By himself, without sharing his thoughts with the first officer,
he wondered whether both engines had been damaged so that insufficient thrust
remained available to sustain flight, therefore he wanted to return immediately
considering the decision to return was obvious. He instructed the first
officer to select the landing gear down again and declare Mayday, the first
officer selected the landing gear down without discussion, then declared
emergency.

At a height of 280 feet the commander initiated a right hand turn. Despite
the gear being selected down the nose gear continued to indicate unsafe.
By the time the first officer completed the Mayday call the aircraft had
already reached a bank angle of 21 degrees, the controller recognizing the
right turn instructed the aircraft to roll out at 330 degrees and expect
vectors for runway 18R. The aircraft reached a maximum bank angle of 37.5
degrees (according to flight data recorder) at an airspeed that reduced
from 179 to 156 KIAS. The right hand engine’s thrust lever was manually
reduced to 83% N1 despite autothrottle being engaged, autothrottle was subsequently
disengaged. The aircraft continued to climb slowly reaching 498 feet AGL
before descending again at low rate, the GPWS sounded “Don’t sink! Don’t
sink!”, the airspeed continued to decrease through 145 KIAS. 60 seconds
after initiating the turn the aircraft finally rolled wings level at a heading
of 344 degrees.

The captain then requested the first officer to repeat the instructions
received from air traffic control and noticed that the nose gear indicated
unsafe, the discussion however got interrupted by the purser who called
the cockpit reporting the left hand engine was on fire. The captain ignored
that message and instead instructed the first officer to tell the cabin
crew they were returning to Schiphol. During the next 23 seconds the air
traffic controller inquired with the first officer whether the aircraft
was able to maintain altitude and whether they could accept vectors, the
captain talked to the purser who repeated the left engine was on fire, the
GPWS activated a number of times prompting the right thrust lever to be
pushed forward until the engine reached 101% N1 and the aircraft began to
climb again. After the first officer had finished the transmissions with
ATC the captain requested the information to be repeated. The aircraft reached
352 feet and began to descend again, the GPWS again activated “Don’t sink!”
and “Too Low, Terrain!”.

The purser entered the cockpit, the first officer asked him to verify through
the peep hole whether the nose gear was extended, then responded to a radio
transmission by ATC, which transferred the aircraft onto a discrete frequency
(a frequency with no other aircraft on). The purser confirmed the nose gear
was down and locked.

The captain increased the right hand thrust lever further to just below
firewall, the aircraft began to climb again, the GPWS alerts ceased but
nose landing gear warnings now sounded. While the two pilots discussed the
new warning ATC issued a heading of 350 degrees to join the downwind for
runway 18R and asked whether the aircraft was able to climb, which the crew
replied in the negative to.

The gear warning ceased when the aircraft overflew the villages of Vijfhuizen
and Haarlem at heights of 380 to 500 feet. When the aircraft was north of
these villages ATC issued a new heading of 100 degrees and advised they
were 4 miles from touchdown. The captain initiated the turn but rolled out
at 065 degrees, the left hand engine was shut down following the memory
checklist “Engine Fire or severe damage or separation”, while the memory
checklist was executed ATC issued heading 160, the instruction was not responded
to and was not followed. ATC issued a heading of 210 degrees, the instruction
was again not followed, only a minor right turn followed. By that time the
crew had completed the memory checklist and found the aircraft north of
the aerodrome passing through the extended centerline of runway 18L. ATC
issued a heading of 270 to return the aircraft to runway 18R, the crew completed
the rest of the checklists concerning the left engine and completed programming
of the flight management computer, the aircraft turned through 110 degrees,
the first officer inquired with ATC for vectors and was again instructed
to turn onto a heading of 270. The crew inquired whether a landing on runway
18L was possible, the approach controller declined because of obstacle clearance
(Sony Building) just north of runway 18L. The crew discussed the aircraft
was difficult to control, although the engine thrust was constant the airspeed
was fluctuating between 160 and 170 knots, the first officer called speed
when the airspeed decrased to 156 KIAS. The captain attempted to adjust
the right hand thrust lever but noticed it was already at maximum thrust
and instructed to firewall the engine for 5 seconds (103.9% N1).

The crew, seeing runway 18C, inquired whether a landing on 18C was possible,
which was approved, however, the crew reconsidered and decided to go ahead
with the original plan to land on runway 18R, the aircraft was heading at
310 degrees. ATC issued a heading to 215 degrees, the first officer called
the instruction out aloud and assisted the captain performing the turn with
verbal callouts. The captain captured the localizer manually and flew the
ILS with flaps still at 5 degrees. On final approach the captain instructed
the first officer to advise cabin crew to not evacuate but prepare for a
hard landing. The first officer did not pass that message because the aircraft
was already on short final and the first officer called out speeds and sinkrates
in order to assist the captain. After main wheel touch down at 175 KIAS
the first officer announced the automatic wheel brakes did not engage, the
captain instructed to turn the system off, the first officer suggested to
keep those nose up as long as possible, followed by a safe touchdown of
the nose gear. While the aircraft rolled out the captain again instructed
that no evacuation would be done unless there was fire. The aircraft came
to a stop on the runway, the right hand engine was shut down.

Emergency services reported no smoke or fire. The right main gear tyres
deflated. The passenger disembarked via mobile stairs.

The remains of 24 geese were found in the left main landing gear, the nose
landing gear and the electronic compartment.

Examination of the aircraft revealed:

– dents in the underside of the fuselage near the nose of the aircraft
– a dent in the leading edge of the vertical fin
– dents and cracks at the leading edge of the left hand engine’s inlet and
dents inside the engine
– three fanblades fractured at about midspan damaging all the rest of the
fan blades
– the left engine’s low and high pressure compressor, the combustion chamber,
high pressure turbine guide vanes, high pressure turbine blades, low pressure
turbine outlet guide vanes, and first to fourth low pressure turbine stages
were all damaged
– on the left side of the left hand engine was soot and oil
– on the fuselage were traces of oil
– the right main gear brakes were jammed

Pollution with engine oil was reported from the village of Harleem, the
investigation however could not establish the source of the oil spill stating
that the aircraft did not overfly the specific area in question.

Immediately after departure of the Boeing Schiphol operations were advised
of a possible bird strike on runway 18L and recovered the remains of 7 dead
Canada Geese, weights between 3 and 5 kg (6.6 to 11 lbs) from runway 18L
around about the extended centerline of runway 06/24.

Bird remains on the left main gear (Photo: DSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=433dd801
20101125151457:20100605000000
Report: SAS A321 at Copenhagen on Jun 5th 2010, nose gear damage on landing
The APEX bolt (Photo: HCL)A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration
OY-KBE performing flight SK-584 from Malaga,SP (Spain) to Copenhagen (Denmark)
with 182 passengers and 6 crew, had landed on Copenhagen’s runway 22L without
apparent incident and vacated the runway via taxiway B4 onto taxiway B when
the crew reported problems with the nose wheel steering. At the same time
smoke was observed from the nose gear. The aircraft stopped on taxiway B,
the passenger deplaned onto the taxiway and were bussed to the terminal.
Attending emergency services found the nose gear had rotated by 90 degrees.

The Danish Havarikommission HCL released a bulletin in Danish reporting,
that the APEX bolt was found missing from the torque link within the nose
gear assembly. The bolt was subsequently recovered from runway 22L.

The operator reported, that maintenance had been done to the torque link
requiring disassembly on Jan 5th and 6th 2010. Two engineers signed the
work off without annotation. On Jun 3rd a nose wheel needed to be replaced
which did not require to disconnect and reconnect the torque link.

The APEX bolt connecting the upper and lower torque links, that connect
the nose gear with the steering tube, was kept in place by a nut, the nut
was secured by a transverse bolt through the nut, which was again secured
by a nut. An additional lock pin was to secure that nut. Neither the nut
of the APEX bolt, the transverse bolt, its nut nor the locking pin were
found.

After reviewing four possible scenarios of how the bolt could become loose,
the HCL considers it unlikely, that the APEX bolt was installed correctly
during the last maintenance action. The four possible scenarios were:

1) the transverse bolt could have been tightened with the bolt/nut fracturing
resulting in the APEX bolt remaining unsecured.
2) the installation of the transverse bolt was not done properly
3) the nut on the APEX bolt may not have been screwed in sufficiently so
that only the outer thread(s) of the bolt were connected
4) the transverse bolt or its locking pin were not installed at all

The HCL decided to not investigate further.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c733bc/0000
20110623193925:20100604000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 at Eindhoven on Jun 4th 2010, rejected takeoff during rotation
The Dutch Onderzoeksraad (Dutch Safety Board DSB) released their final report
concluding:

During the takeoff at Eindhoven airport the pilot flying perceived two control
issues and one speed trend vector anomaly.

– The explanation for the control issues and speed trend vector anomaly
was likely related to an outside atmospheric phenomenon. The origin of this
atmospheric phenomenon could not be determined or explained with the information
available. The takeoff was rejected after the decision speed V1 and while
the nose wheel was off the ground for approximately two seconds.

– The First Officer who was the pilot flying considered the control and
speed trend vector problems to be serious enough and decided to reject the
takeoff.

– According to company procedures only the Captain is authorized to make
a rejected takeoff decision.

– To reject a takeoff above V1, especially when the nose wheel is off the
ground, is in principle considered to be improper and unsafe. There is no
specific guidance from the operator or manufacturer on dealing with control
issues at the time of rotating the aircraft.

– Specific guidance on rejecting a takeoff exist in case of an engine failure.

– Review of past statistics and studies show that pilot training and requirements
focus on rejected takeoffs due to an engine failure. Studies and statistical
information show that this accounts for less than 25% of the reasons for
rejected takeoffs. Thus 75% of the reasons the reject a takeoff is not trained
for.

The first officer (2300 hours total, 1170 hours on type) was pilot flying
for the leg from Eindhoven to Faro, the captain (3628 hours total, 2061
hours on type) was pilot monitoring.

The airplane taxied for a full length departure from runway 04 entering
the runway at taxiway G.

While the aircraft accelerated at low speed the first officer reported difficulties
to keep the aircraft on the runway centerline. At 80 knots the airspeed
indications were cross checked satisfactorily. While accelerating through
about 90 knots the airplane again deviated from the center line, the captain
checked the engine instruments believing they might have an engine asymmetry
but found both engines operating symmetrically and correctly.

Accelerating through about 140 knots the first officer noticed a speed trend
vector in the negative direction while the captain’s instrument showed a
positive speed trend vector. The captain did not find this discrepancy an
issue. The V1 and Vr calls were made at the proper speeds and the captain
removed his hand from the thrust levers.

The first officer reported later that upon reaching V1 the control column
moved aft without application of force, the aircraft began to rotate on
its own, the nose gear lifted off the runway. He had the feeling the airplane
was unsafe to fly and therefore closed the throttle levers, the autobrakes
system engaged automatically and the spoilers deployed automatically. The
nose gear was airborne for about 2 seconds.

As soon as the takeoff was rejected the captain took control of the aircraft
for the roll out. The airplane came to a stop about 500 meters before the
runway end. Flaps were kept at 5 degrees, the captain deemed an evacuation
was not necessary. The tower was informed that no assistance was necessary
and taxied towards the apron. A master caution related the center fuel pump
illuminated, the crew subsequently requested tower to check whether “everything
is fine with the rubber” and later “check our wheels are fine”. As result
of the rejected takeoff the brake temperature indications increased, the
crew became concerned with overheated brakes and possible wheel fire. After
arriving at the stand smoke was observed from the brakes. The crew decided
to have the passengers disembark and let the brakes cool off.

The DSB reported that the cockpit voice recorder was not available for the
investigation. The flight data recorder showed after application of takeoff
thrust the airplane showed variations in magnetic heading between 0 and
50 knots, the deviations were countered with the rudder. At around 60 knots
the aircraft became stable on runway heading. Between 100 and 150 knots
the flight data recorder showed fluctuations in the recorded airspeeds,
at 135 KIAS the airspeeds jumps by 10 knots in just one second. 21 seconds
after accelerating through 80 KIAS the pitch increased to a maximum of 1.4
degrees nose up, the nose gear was off the runway for nearly 2 seconds.
Simultaneously a left -0.126G and right 0.093G acceleration is recorded.
The airspeed reached a maximum of 160 KIAS, the thrust levers were retarded
at 152 KIAS.

Maintenance focussed on the report of unreliable airspeed first, a test
confirmed a disagreement of airspeeds between left and right side. According
to the fault isolation manual the right hand angle of attack sensor needed
adjustment, subsequently the test showed no discrepancy between left and
right hand side anymore.

During further maintenance activities a dent beyond limits was discovered
in the left pitot probe, the probe was subsequently replaced. Maintenance
further replaced the alpha vane, pitot probe and Air Data Inertial Reference
Unit on the right hand side.

The DSB analysed that the cause of the heading variations during the initial
takeoff roll could not clarified due to the FDR not recording the steering
tiller position. The DSB believes the changes in aircraft heading could
be related to overcontrolling the aircraft or an external disturbance like
a wake turbulence (unlikely), gusting winds (no gusts reported) or turbulence
due to structures (unlikely due to distances).

Above 110 KIAS the speed trend vectors had discrepancies. The recorded airspeeds
(captain’s side only) show that although the acceleration was smooth the
recorded airspeed values in contract showed sharp increases and decreases,
which likely resulted in the observed speed trend vectors. The angle of
attack sensors showed disagreement as well indicating the airflow was turbulent
with the airflow being asymmetric between left and right hand side.

At the time of accelerating through V1 no forces were applied to the control
column and the control column did not move. In a flight control check during
taxi no anomalies had been noted, there was no difference in the control
column positions and movements to previous flights. It is possible the aircraft
rotated on its own due to improper weight and balance resulting in a center
of gravity off computed range and the trim being out of range. However,
both center of gravity and trim setting were correct.

When the control column was moved aft in order to rotate the aircraft large
lateral acceleration occurred changing the heading of the aircraft. Rudder
pedals were used to align the aircraft back onto the runway centerline.
The large lateral accelerations may have induced a feeling (tactile input)
to the first officer giving him the impression the aircraft was unsafe to
fly.

Graphical representation of FDR (Graphics: DSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c7dc44
20100605100801:20100603000000
Incident: Air Algerie B736 near Beirut on Jun 3rd 2010, engine fire
An Air Algerie Boeing 737-600, registration 7T-VJR performing flight AH-4016
from Algiers (Algeria) to Beirut (Lebanon) with 57 people on board, was
on approach to Beirut when a severe vibration was felt throughout the aircraft
and the right hand engine (CFM56) caught fire forcing the crew to shut the
engine down and to activate the engine’s fire suppression system. The airplane
landed safely in Beirut still trailing smoke from the right hand engine
and stopped on the runway, emergency services needed to foam the right hand
engine. About one hour after landing the airplane was towed to the apron,
where passengers disembarked.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c7415a
20100604144250:20100603000000
Incident: Hawaiian B712 at Honolulu on Jun 3rd 2010, engine shut down in flight
The crew of a Hawaiian Airlines Boeing 717-200, flight HA-126 from Honolulu,HI
to Kahului,HI (USA) with 117 people on board, needed to shut down an engine,
when the crew noticed some abnormal engine indications and tower reported
to see some smoke from the engine. The airplane levelled off at 3500 feet
and returned to Honolulu for a safe landing about 8 minutes after departure.

A replacement aircraft reached Kahului with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c444a6
20100601180023:20100530000000
Accident: Spirit Airlines A319 at Ft. Lauderdale on May 30th 2010, smoke in cabin
N534NK after evacuation(Photo: Broward Sheriff Office/Ken Kronheim)A Spirit
Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N534NK performing flight NK-946 from
Cartagena (Colombia) to Ft. Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 90 passengers and 5
crew, had just landed on runway 09L and was vacating the runway, when the
crew reported they had a smell in the cabin and needed to stop on the taxiway.
Soon after the crew indicated they had smoke on board and needed assistance,
a few seconds later the crew announced they needed to evacuate. The occupants
evacuated via emergency slides onto the taxiway. Three passengers received
injuries in the evacuation, two of them needed to be taken to a local hospital.

Police reported, that one passenger received a back injury, another an ankle
injury and the third abrasions. The two passengers taken to hospitals were
released from hospital about 4 hours later. Emergency services did not find
any source of smoke.

Passengers reported they saw smoke close to the cockpit door while still
airborne and rushed to the rear exits to slide down the chutes.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42db9cee
20100702195224:20100529000000
Incident: Air Transat A313 over Atlantic on May 29th 2010, sick flight attendants
An Air Transat Airbus A310-300, registration C-GTSD performing flight TS-232
(dep May 28th) from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Dublin (Ireland) with 248 passengers
and 9 crew, was enroute at FL350 overhead the Atlantic about 2.5 hours into
the flight and 3.5 hours prior to arrival in Dublin, when flight attendants
working in the rear galley suffered serious discomfort and nausea, two flight
attendants lost consciousness temporarily. No smell or smoke was observed.
The flight attendants improved again so that they could continue their duties.
The airplane reached Dublin for a safe landing on schedule.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the source of the discomfort could not be
identified.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c15c6b
20100527174006:20100527000000
Incident: Royal Air Maroc B763 at Casablanca on May 27th 2010, smoke from gear upon landing
A Royal Air Maroc Boeing 767-300, registration CN-RNS performing flight
AT-201 (dep May 26th) from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Casablanca (Morocco)
with 232 passengers, had just touched down in Casablanca when traces of
smoke were seen from the landing gear. The airplane slowed safely.

The airline reported, that the traces of smoke were the result of excess
grease applied in last maintenance. The airplane taxied to the gate, where
passengers disembarked normally. The excess grease was removed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c15682
20100527165832:20100527000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 at Boston on May 27th 2010, burning odour
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-1373 from Boston,MA
to New York La Guardia,NY (USA) with 83 people on board, was departing Boston
maintaining 14000 feet, when the crew reported a burning odour in the back
of the aircraft, declared emergency and requested to return to Boston. The
airplane returned to land on runway 04R 12 minutes after emergency was declared,
the airplane turned off the runway onto runway 33R where emergency services
checked the airplane.

Emergency services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat.

About one hour earlier another fire alert had kept Boston’s emergency services
busy, see: Incident: American B738 at Boston on May 27th 2010, fire alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42c15318
20100527165807:20100527000000
Incident: American B738 at Boston on May 27th 2010, fire alert
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, flight AA-1875 from Boston,MA to Chicago
O’Hare,IL (USA) with 166 people on board, was climbing from 8000 to 14000
feet out of Boston, when the crew (quite agitated) declared emergency due
to a possible fire on board and requested to return to one of Boston’s runways
22. The airplane levelled off at 10000 feet, the crew donned their oxygen
masks, a few minutes later the crew requested runway 04R. About 12 minutes
after the crew declared emergency the airplane landed safely on runway 04R
and stopped on the runway.

Emergency services found no trace of fire, smoke or heat. The runway was
closed.

About one hour later Boston had to handle another emergency, see Incident:
Delta Airlines MD88 at Boston on May 27th 2010, burning odour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42bf1950
20100524164317:20100524000000
Incident: Travel Service B738 at Dublin on May 24th 2010, hydraulic leak
A Travel Service Boeing 737-800, registration OK-TVJ performing flight QS-137
from Narvik (Norway) to Dublin (Ireland), reported a hydraulic problem while
on approach to Dublin. The airplane continued for a safe landing on runway
10 with emergency services on standby, vacated the runway onto taxiway E3,
but then was requested by tower to hold position on taxiway H2 when emergency
services observed some smoke coming from the brakes.

A large puddle of hydraulic fluid developed underneath the aircraft, the
hydraulic fluid also dripped onto the brakes and caused some smoke. The
airplane was shut down at the taxiway and was towed to the apron about one
hour later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42bb5100
20100519170702:20100518000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 near Milan on May 18th 2010, smoke alert in cabin
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, registration D-AIPP performing flight LH-3897
from Milan Malpensa (Italy) to Munich (Germany) with 150 passengers, was
climbing through 4000 feet out of Malpensa’s runway 35L when the crew received
a smoke alert in the cabin and decided to return to Milan. The airplane
landed safely on runway 35L about 10 minutes after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto the next flight
and reached Munich with a delay of 2:15 hours.

The fire alert was determined false, the airplane was subsequently ferried
to Munich as flight LH-8959 and re-entered line service 8 hours after touchdown
in Milan.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42bb7473
20100519214518:20100517000000
Incident: Travel Service B738 near Cairo on May 17th 2010, fire alert in wheel well
A Travel Service Boeing 737-800, registration OK-TVF performing flight QS-609
from Sharm el Sheikh (Egypt) to Prague (Czech) with 160 passengers, diverted
to Cairo (Egypt) when the crew received a fire indication in one of the
main gear wheel wells. The airplane landed safely, no traces of fire, heat
or smoke were found.

Maintenance determined a malfunction of the fire alert system and after
a fix released the airplane to continue the flight. The aircraft reached
Prague with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42b9ab97
20100521163530:20100516000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Washington on May 16th 2010, small fire in cockpit
A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N510UA performing flight
UA-27 from New York JFK,NY to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 105 passengers and
7 crew, was enroute at FL360 about 12nm southwest of Harrisburg,PA and 72nm
northnortheast of Washington Dulles approximately 30 minutes into the flight,
when the crew reported a small fire in the cockpit, which was quickly contained.
The crew decided to divert to Washington Dulles, where the airplane landed
safely 23 minutes later.

The FAA reported, that a small fire was extinguished in the cockpit in flight.
The landing runway was closed for 40 minutes while the airplane was being
inspected. An investigation is under way.

Passengers said, they noticed an electrical smell in the cabin, then flight
attendants brought fire extinguishers from the rear of the airplane to the
cockpit.

The NTSB dispatched three accident investigators to determine whether the
problem was a recurrent one or a new problem.

On May 21st the NTSB reported, that the airplane was at FL360 about 30 minutes
into the flight when the crew noticed a strong acrid smell and observed
smoke originating from the captain’s lower windshield. The crew donned their
oxygen masks and smoke goggles, the captain handed controls to the first
officer and discharged a halon fire extinguisher. The fire and smoke dissipated
but re-ignited. The captain obtained a second fire extinguisher from the
lead flight attendant (purser). The fire remained extinguished after the
second bottle was discharged. During final approach to Dulles’ runway 19L
at about 500 feet MSL the captain’s windshield cracked. The airplane touched
down and rolled out safely, and vacated the runway. Fire fighters entered
the aircraft to check for residual heat or fire but found none, the airplane
was subsequently towed to the gate where passengers disembarked.

Preliminary examination of the airplane showed, that the inner pane of the
captain’s windshield cracked. One of the 5 terminal blocks attached to the
inside of the lower left windshield was consumed by fire and its wiring
harness substantially damaged. There was significant sooting and paint peeling
on the left hand side of the windshield support frame. The windshield was
retrieved from the aircraft and is to undergo close examination at the manufacturer.

The NTSB annotated that two previous windshield fire events on Boeing 757-200s
had led to a safety recommendation. The NTSB is looking closely into whether
this occurrence is related to the previous events.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42b866c5
20100515135419:20100515000000
Incident: Saudi MD90 near Sharurah on May 15th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Saudi Arabian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90-30, flight SV-1887 from
Sharurah to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) with 79 people on board, returned to Sharurah
after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit about 20 minutes into the flight
while climbing out of Sharurah. The airplane landed safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42b7de17
20100516181850:20100513000000
Accident: Austrian B763 near Beijing on May 13th 2010, fire in cabin
An Austrian Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration OE-LAZ performing flight
OS-64 from Beijing (China) to Vienna (Austria), was enroute over inner Mongolia
about 30 minutes into the flight when the crew reported a fire in the cabin
and returned to Beijing, where the airplane landed safely 30 minutes later.

The flight was cancelled.

Beijing Airport reported, that cabin crew detected fire in the cabin. Air
Traffic Control knew flight crew was busy getting the airplane back and
cabin crew fighting the fire, so they did not inquire further to determine
cause and location of fire but assisted the fastest possible return and
coordinated emergency services to be available at the runway. When the airplane
landed back the fire had already been extinguished, emergency services did
not need to jump into action.

Austrian Airlines reported, that an oven in the rear galley caught fire
in flight developing heavy black smoke when the airplane was about 230nm
north of Beijing. While the flight attendant alerted the cockpit, she inhaled
sufficient smoke to suffer injuries to her respiratory tract. The oven was
disconnected from power supply. Flight attendants were able to extinguish
the fire using smoke hoods and emptying two fire extinguishers. Following
the return mechanics founds a metal sheet bent which blocked the oven’s
fan and caused an overheat. Engineers could not yet determine whether the
deformation was the cause or a consequence of the fire. The flight had to
be cancelled when the used fire extinguishers could not be replaced quickly
enough to avoid crew duty times being exceeded.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42b77a6a
20100514085834:20100513000000
Incident: Aeromexico Connect E145 near Ciudad Victoria on May 13th 2010, cargo fire indication
An Aeromexico Connect Embraer ERJ-145, registration XA-ZLI performing flight
5D-633/AM-633 from San Antonio,TX (USA) to Mexico City (Mexico) with 31
passengers, was enroute near Ciudad Victoria (Mexico) when the crew received
a fire alert for a cargo compartment and decided to divert to Ciudad Victoria
for a safe landing.

Emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke, the indication
was determined false.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 XA-JLI continued the journey and reached Mexico
City with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42cb275d
20100609191553:20100512000000
Incident: Icelandair B752 over Atlantic on May 12th 2010, cargo fire indication
An Icelandair Boeing 757-200, registration TF-FIH performing flight FI-783
from Keflavik (Iceland) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute overhead the
Atlantic about 250nm east of Goose Bay,NL (Canada) when the crew declared
emergency reporting a fire indication for the main cargo bay and requested
to divert to Goose Bay. Before landing the crew reported there was no smoke
visible in the cabin and the fire indication had extinguished. The airplane
landed safely 60 minutes after declaring emergency.

The Canadian TSB reported on Jun 9th, that inspection of the cargo bay did
not reveal any trace of fire or smoke. A test of the system was performed
which showed no fault, the aircraft was returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42b3607f
20100508101721:20100507000000
Incident: Mount Cook AT72 at Auckland on May 7th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Mount Cook Airlines Aerospatiale ATR-72-500 on behalf of Air New Zealand,
flight NM-5077/NZ-5077 from Auckland to Palmerston North (New Zealand),
returned to Auckland when smoke entered the cabin shortly after takeoff.
The airplane landed safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42b08b98
20100504100009:20100502000000
Incident: JAT Airways B733 near Belgrade on May 2nd 2010, smoke in cockpit
A JAT Airways Boeing 737-300, flight JU-240 from Belgrade (Serbia) to Paris
Charles de Gaulle (France), was climbing out of Belgrade when the crew reported
smoke and sparks in the cockpit. The crew decided to return to Belgrade
for a safe landing about 30 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported the crew announced in flight they were returning due
to a small technical problem. Ground personnel then told them a generator
problem had occured.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 registration YU-ANV reached Paris with a total
delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42af386d
20100504214728:20100501000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C near Prince George on May 1st 2010, smoke on board
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GTAT performing
flight QK-8206 from Prince George,BC to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 51 people
on board, was climbing through FL180 out of Prince George, when the crew
reported smoke on board and decided to return to Prince George. The airplane
landed safely 14 minutes later.

The airport reported, that initial checks identified an overheated air conditioning
system as source of the smoke.

The Canadian TSB reported on May 4th, that the number 1 cabin pack temperature
began to rise steadily as the airplane climbed out of Prince George, then
the flight attendant advised there was smoke in the cabin. The crew declared
emergency and returned to Prince George. During the descent the smoke cleared.
The airplane landed without further incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42af170a
20100502111955:20100501000000
Incident: Wizzair A320 at Sofia on May 1st 2010, blew two main gear tyres on landing
A Wizzair Bulgaria Airbus A320-200, registration LZ-WZA performing flight
W6-650 from Venice (Italy) to Sofia (Bulgaria) with 149 passengers and 7
crew, touched down on Sofia’s runway 27 and was approximately 10 seconds
into the landing roll, when both left hand main gear tyres blew out and
smoke apeared from the left hand main gear. Emergency services responded,
detected no fire and cooled the wheels/brakes. The passengers disembarked
via stairs onto the runway about 15 minutes after landing.

The airport was closed for 2.5 hours until the airplane was moved off the
runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ac9117
20100429065046:20100428000000
Incident: Commutair DH82 near Allentown on Apr 28th 2010, cargo fire indication
A Commutair de Havilland Dash 8-200 on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration
N358PH performing flight C5-8677/CO-8677 from Newark,NJ to Harrisburg,PA
(USA) with 30 people on board, diverted to Allentown,PA when the crew received
a cargo fire indication. The airplane landed safely 16 minutes later, attending
emergency services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were bussed to
Harrisburg.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42abd955
20100428075351:20100427000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Rochester on Apr 27th 2010, visible smoke in cockpit due to hydraulics leak
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, registration
N8869B performing flight 9E-3907/DL-3907 from Detroit,MI to Rochester,MN
(USA) with 15 passengers and 3 crew, was on approach to Rochester about
60nm from the airfield when the crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit
updating audibly on oxygen masks a short time later that visible white haze
developed in the cockpit. The crew was cleared for a visual approach to
the runway of their choice, approached runway 31 and on final approach told
emergency services, they’d plan to dump everybody onto the runway if smoke
was seen outside the aircraft, otherwise they’d vacate the runway and attempt
to taxi to the apron. The airplane landed safely on runway 31, no smoke
was seen by emergency services, so that the airplane taxied off the runway
and to the gate with emergency services remaining in attendance. A flight
attendant was checked for smoke inhalation by emergency services at the
airport. No injuries occured.

Airport officials said later, that a hydraulics leak was identified as cause
of the haze. Mechanics arrived from Minneapolis to examine and repair the
aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42ab4a03
20100427133632:20100426000000
Incident: LH Cityline RJ85 near London on Apr 26th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Lufthansa Cityline Avro RJ-85, registration D-AVRI performing flight CL-4800/LH-4800
from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to London City,EN (UK), was on approach to
London’s City Airport, when the crew declared emergency reporting smoke
in the cabin. The airplane continued for a safe landing on runway 27.

The return flight CL-4801 was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a9fec0
20100425200525:20100425000000
Incident: Air Arabia A320 near Karachi on Apr 25th 2010, cargo smoke indication
An Air Arabia Airbus A320-200, flight G9-521 from Sharjah (United Arab Emirates)
to Chittagong (Bangladesh) with 155 passengers, was enroute near Karachi
(Pakistan) when the crew received a smoke indication in one of the cargo
holds. The crew diverted to Karachi, where the airplane landed safely and
was evacuated. No injuries occurred.

The indication was determined false as result of a technical failure of
the smoke detector.

The airplane was able to continue the flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42aa8247
20100426123437:20100423000000
Incident: Lufthansa A346 near Thessaloniki on Apr 23rd 2010, cargo smoke alert
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-600, registration D-AIHE performing flight LH-690
(dep Apr 22nd) from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Tel Aviv (Israel), was enroute
at FL390 about 40nm north of Thessaloniki (Greece) when the crew received
a cargo smoke alert and decided to divert to Thessaloniki. The aircraft
landed safely on Thessaloniki’s runway 10 about 18 minutes after departing
FL390.

The alert was determined false and the airplane departed Thessaloniki again
after 2.5 hours on the ground reaching Tel Aviv with a total delay of 3
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a8d463
20100424082030:20100422000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 over London on Apr 22nd 2010, generator failure
A United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N778UA performing flight
UA-907 from Munich (Germany) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), was enroute at
FL340 just overhead the airport of London City,EN (UK), when the crew turned
around roughly into direction of Amsterdam and descended to FL230 after
a generator tripped offline. Over the North Sea roughly half way between
London and Amsterdam the airplane turned around again and approached London
Heathrow,EN (UK), where the airplane landed safely on runway 09L.

Maintenance reset the generator. Following a ground time of about 3.5 hours
the airplane departed again and reached Chicago with a delay of 4:15 hours.

Passengers reported, that the in flight entertainment system had started
to play up as indication of electrical trouble.

One passenger reported on the Internet, that smoke appeared in the cabin
while they were over Paris. The captain said they had lost an engine and
they were diverting towards Paris, but Paris didn’t accept the airplane
so that they had to divert to London. A fellow passenger suffered a heart
attack during approach to London.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a68d77
20100422143611:20100421000000
Incident: United Airlines B763 over Atlantic on Apr 21st 2010, smell of smoke on board
N657UA at Lajes (Photo: Paulo Santos) A United Airlines Boeing 767-300,
registration N657UA performing flight UA-964 (dep Apr 20th) from Washington
Dulles,DC (USA) to Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) with 170 passengers, was enroute
over the Atlantic, when the crew reported a strong smell of smoke on board
and diverted to Lajes on the Azores Islands (Portugal) for a safe landing.

The passengers were taken to hotel for an overnight stay.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N646UA was dispatched to Lajes
as flight UA-9929 and has already departed Lajes on its way to Moscow passing
Ireland around 11:00Z (Apr 22nd).

Gossip in aviation circles on Terceira is, that N657UA suffered a minor
electrical problem, which was easily fixed.

The incident airplane departed shortly after the replacement aircraft and
reached London Heathrow by 15:30L (14:30Z) as positioning flight UA-9820.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a4001c
20100417195458:20100416000000
Incident: United Airlines A320 near Lincoln on Apr 16th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A United Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N464UA performing flight
UA-745 from New York La Guardia,NY to Denver,CO (USA) with 140 people on
board, was enroute at FL360 about 70nm west of Lincoln,NE when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Lincoln. While the
airplane was on approach to Lincoln the smoke started to dissipate. The
airplane landed safely 16 minutes later and taxied to the apron.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a330af
20100416153745:20100416000000
Incident: American B738 at Cali on Apr 16th 2010, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, flight AA-920 from Cali (Colombia)
to Miami,FL (USA) with 95 passengers, returned to Cali after the crew reported
they had smoke or fire in the cabin. The airplane landed safely about 15
minutes after departure.

The airport was closed for 18 minutes until emergency services had checked
the airplane.

The airport reported, that the smoke originated in one of the galleys aboard
the aircraft and dissipated before the airplane landed back. Following checks
the airplane was able to depart again with a total delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a25369
20100415090828:20100414000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Sioux Falls on Apr 14th 2010, smell of smoke on board
A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight UA-917 from Washington Dulles,DC
to Seattle,WA (USA) with 166 passengers, was enroute at FL360 about 70nm
east of Sioux Falls,SD (USA), when the crew reported a smell of smoke on
board and diverted to Sioux Falls, where the airplane landed safely 20 minutes
later.

The airline dispatched a replacement aircraft carrying a maintenance crew
to Sioux Falls. The replacement aircraft reached Seattle with a delay of
4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a1000b/0003
20130904154017:20100413000000
Accident: Cathay A333 at Hong Kong on Apr 13th 2010, engine stuck at high thrust
Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department (CAD) released their final report
concluding the probable cause of the accident was:

The accident was caused by fuel contamination. The contaminated fuel, which
contained SAP (Super Absorbent Polymer) spheres, uplifted at WARR (Surabaya)
subsequently caused the loss of thrust control on both engines of the aircraft
during approach to VHHH (Hong Kong).

The following chain of events and circumstances had led to the uplift of
contaminated fuel to CPA780:

– The re-commissioning of the hydrant refuelling system after the hydrant
extension work in WARR had not completely removed all contaminants in the
affected hydrant refuelling circuit. Salt water remained in the affected
hydrant refuelling circuit.

– The re-commissioning of the hydrant refuelling system after the hydrant
extension work in WARR was not properly coordinated which led to the premature
resumption of the hydrant refuelling operations while the hydrant system
still contained contaminant.

– The refuelling operation in WARR, in particular low flow-rate refuelling,
DP recording and monitoring, did not fully comply with the international
fuel industry latest guidance.

– A number of unscheduled filter monitors replacements after the premature
resumption of hydrant refuelling operation were not investigated by the
fuel supplier and hydrant operator at WARR.

– The unusual vibration observed during the refuelling of CPA780 was not
stopped immediately and properly investigated by the fuel supplier personnel.
The investigation also identified the following deficiencies and contributing
factors that may cause possible fuel contamination:

– There were no established international civil aviation requirements for
oversight and quality control on aviation fuel supply at airports.

– There were no established international civil aviation requirements for
refuel operational procedures and associated training for aviation fuel
supply personnel.

– The manual monitoring of DP changes in a fuelling dispenser during refuelling
was not effective.

The CAD analyzed that following the indication that both engines had stalled
about 45nm from the aerodrome the aircraft was left with insufficient power
to reach Hong Kong Airport until the crew worked the all engines flame out
checklist, which resulted in the left hand engine’s thrust to increase sufficiently
to be able to reach Hong Kong.

The CAD wrote:

“On descent to FL230 at 0519 hrs, the flight crew received the ECAM messages
of ìENG 1 CTL SYS FAULTî and ìENG 2 STALLî within a short period of time.
The flight crew handled the abnormal situation in accordance with the Airbus
and the company procedures for the A330 aircraft. The crew appropriately
declared a ìPANî call to ATC and also briefed the cabin crew of the situation.
The abnormal landing to VHHH was planned in accordance with the company
procedures.

At 0530 hrs, when the aircraft was approximately 45 nm southeast of VHHH,
the ECAM message ìENG 1 STALLî annunciated. This became an emergency situation
and the workload in the cockpit had understandably increased significantly.
The crew again handled the emergency situation in accordance with the Airbus
and the company procedures for the A330. They also appropriately declared
a ìMAYDAYî to ATC.

Owing to the control problem of the engine thrust and the limited power
produced by the engines during descent, the flight crew had attempted to
clear the faults from No. 2 engine by conducting the ìALL ENG FLAME OUT
ñ FUEL REMAININGî checklist. This crew action is considered reasonable under
the circumstances as that checklist provides the necessary procedures for
restarting the engine(s) and also provides information on configuring the
aircraft for an emergency landing should the engines fail. After the N1
of No. 1 engine had increased, it became apparent to the flight crew that
CPA780 could reach VHHH for an emergency landing.”

The CAD went on to write:

“During the visual approach to Runway 07L, the Commander manoeuvred the
aircraft in order to manage altitude and airspeed. It was not until the
aircraft on the final descent for landing that the Commander realised they
could not reduce the thrust on the number 1 engine. The speed was not controllable
and from that point, there was no time for the crew to consider other strategy
nor procedure to cope with such emergency situation. The Commander operated
the aircraft as close as possible to VLS for landing at whatever configuration
they could achieve. High drag devices such as speedbrakes and landing gears
were deployed. However, due to the high thrust from the No. 1 engine, it
was clear to the Commander that they would be landing at high speed, and
he manoeuvred the aircraft visually as required to achieve a touchdown as
close as possible to the normal touchdown zone. The crew did not inform
ATC of the abnormal high speed landing, very likely due to high workload
and limited time available.

At the time of the landing there was a crosswind of about 13 kt from the
right. The aircraft touched down at about 231 kt (the configuration full
approach speed with landing weight of 173,600 kg was 135 kt), and at a position
between abeam Taxiways A4 and A5 and with a distance of around 680 metres
from the beginning of the runway threshold, and bounced. The aircraft rolled
left to seven degrees and pitched down to -2.5 degrees at second touchdown.
Eventually the lower cowling of No. 1 engine contacted the runway surface.
The very high speed landing combined with the strong wind could have led
to the bounce of the aircraft after landing. This, combined with the necessary
directional control of the aircraft, could have subsequently caused the
lower cowling of No. 1 engine contacting the runway.

Although the autobrake remained at ìLOî (i.e. the lowest autobrake setting)
due to time constraint and workload, the Commander applied full manual braking
force after the touchdown. As a result of the high landing speed and abnormal
landing configurations, the aircraft came to a stop near the runway centreline
in the vicinity of the threshold area of the opposite Runway 25R, about
309m from the end of the landing Runway 07L. Landing distance for such abnormal
configurations and speed was not provided, nor was it required to be provided,
by the Airbus or the CPA documentations. The heat generated from the high
energy braking also caused the thermal relief plug to deflate three of the
left main gear tyres and two of the right main gear tyres, and the subsequent
hot brakes and fire observed by the AFC.”

The CAD further analysed that after bringing the aircraft to a stop the
crew worked the evacuation checklist until the point where the decision
whether to commence evacuation or not was to be made. The crew inquired
with tower whether fire or smoke was visible, the tower replied in the negative
and instructed the crew to switch to the fire chief’s frequency, the fire
chief subsequently reported fire and smoke from one of the aircraft wheels.
Upon that information the commander decided to go ahead with the evacuation.
The CAD annotated: “This decision of evacuation was considered reasonable.”

The CAD praised the crew: “The crew, as a whole, had demonstrated good crew
resource management throughout the flight.”

The CAD was not satisfied with the performance of Hong Kong ATC stating:
“At 0532 hrs, CPA780 called ìMAYDAYî and advised HK Approach of the dual
engine stall situation. Under the circumstance where a twin-engine aircraft
encountered dual engine stall, ATC would, according to standing instructions,
upgrade the emergency category to a Full Emergency. However, on this occasion
ATC did not upgrade the emergency category. The investigation tried to establish
why a ìMAYDAYî call associated with a dual engine stall situation had not
triggered ATC upgrading the Local Standby to a Full Emergency.” and further
down commented: “Nevertheless, given the limited time of 11 minutes available
from the moment CPA780 declared ìMAYDAYî to the time it landed at the airport,
there is no evidence suggesting a different emergency category declared
by ATC during the accident would have any bearing on the emergency resources
attending to CPA780 and the subsequent emergency evacuation.”

The CAD analysed with respect to the contaminated fuel, that after finding
of SAP spheres in the fuel further checks at the fuel metering unit, variable
stator vanes control unit and main metering valve found stiction of SAP
spheres in the fuel metering unit and variable stator vanes control unit
and accumulation of SAP spheres at the main metering valves of both fuel
metering units that seized both valves.

The CAD analyzed that during the uplift of 24,400kg of fuel the fuelling
hose vibrated a number of times, which was abnormal. SAP spheres were found
in the filters, hose and dispensers of the fuelling vehicle used to uplift
the fuel to the aircraft. The CAD commented: “It was apparent that the contaminated
fuel had been supplied to the aircraft.”

The CAD analyzed that with Surabaya being located close to the seashore
it was quite likely that water puddles at the aerodrome contained salt and
stated with respect to the ongoing upgrade work on the aerodrome’s fuel
distribution system: “When there was shortfall in adherence to the tie-in
procedures, such salt water could have entered the main distribution pipe
of the fuel hydrant circuit.” The CAD continued that theoretic considerations
verified by a practical test had indicated the possibility that salt water
in the fuel could compromise the fuel monitoring system permitting the uplift
of fuel despite the presence of contamination: “When the SAP was fully activated
with the salt water left inside the fuel hydrant system, the performance
of filter monitors was compromised and could not completely shut down the
flow. This allowed continuous refuelling through the filter monitors. With
such degraded performance of the filter monitors, fuel contamination was
not detected by the dispenser operator unless the fuel flow was so restricted
that warrant a filter change.”

13 immediate safety actions were taken by Surabaya Airport, DGAC Indonesia,
CAD and Cathay Pacific, the investigation released four more safety recommendations,
two to the airport authority of Surabaya with respect to fuel distribution
system and two to ICAO to introduce monitoring of fuel quality, fuel uplift
procedures and personnel training at aerodromes as well as the introduction
of devices which would stop the uplift of fuel “when the differential pressure
across the equipment filtration system is outside the equipment designed
value or range.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a1000b/0000
20100506112042:20100413000000
Accident: Cathay A333 at Hong Kong on Apr 13th 2010, engine stuck at high thrust
Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department (CAD) have released their preliminary
report saying, that the airplane had no observations in the maintenance
logs regarding fuel system and engines prior to the accident flight. The
airplane took at at 198700 kg takeoff weight, thereof 33400 kg of fuel.

During the climb the crew noticed an EPR fluctuation of the right hand engine,
the left engine also showed fluctuations however within a narrower range.

After levelling off at FL390 the crew received an ECAM message “ENG 2 CTL
SYS FAULT”, the according checklists were executed and the crew contacted
their maintenance department. As all parameters of the engines were normal
except the slight EPR fluctuations, it was decided to continue the flight.

100 minutes later the “ENG 2 CTL SYS FAULT” message reappeared, all parameters
still remained normal, crew consulted maintenance again and it was decided
to carry on.

During the descent towards Hong Kong while descending through FL230 the
crew received two ECAM messages: “ENG 1 CTL SYS FAULT” and “ENG 2 STALL”
within a short period of time. The flight crew advanced the number 1 lever
to the max continuous thrust position and pulled the number 2 lever to idle.
The crew requested a priority landing and track shortening, air traffic
control facilitated the request and sent the airport’s emergency services
on stand by.

11 minutes later while descending through 8000 feet the crew received an
“ENG 1 STALL” ECAM message and declared emergency and actioned the according
checklists. The captain attempted to move both thrust levers, during these
movements the engine #1 increased thrust to 74% N1 while engine #2 remained
at 17% N1 (below idle).

The captain flew a visual approach for runway 07L, with both thrust levers
at idle the left hand engine #1 showed an N1 of 74% and the right hand engine
17% N1. The left hand engine reduced to 70% N1 during touch down.

The airplane touched down at 230 KIAS at a landing weight of 173600 kg,
during touch down the left hand engine’s underside of the cowling briefly
touched the runway. Spoilers deployed automatically, the left hand reverser
was deployed, the captain applied maximum manual braking. When the airplane
stopped the left hand engine was still running at 76-79% N1. Both engines
were shut down, 5 main gear tyres deflated.

Emergency services reported smoke and fire from the main gear prompting
the crew to initiate an emergency evacuation via the slides, while emergency
services sprayed the main gear to battle the fire and cool the brakes down.

The CAD does not expect the investigation to conclude in less than a year.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a1000b
20100424132629:20100413000000
Accident: Cathay A333 at Hong Kong on Apr 13th 2010, engine stuck at high thrust
B-HLL being evacuated (Photo: AP) A Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300,
registration B-HLL performing flight CX-780 from Surabaya (Indonesia) to
Hong Kong (China) with 309 passengers and 13 crew, was on approach to Hong
Kong, when the crew reported a left hand engine (Trent 772) failure and
declared emergency. During roll out on the northern runway 07L brakes overheated
resulting in a small fire and 6 main gear tyres deflating. The occupants
of the airplane evacuated after standstill. 7 people received injuries in
the evacuation.

The airline reported, that 5 people were taken to a hospital.

The runway was closed for about 2.5 hours.

Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Authority said, that one engine had been shut
down countering rumours in Hong Kong, that the airplane may have lost both
engines on short final.

Cathay Pacific reported on Apr 13th, that the airplane touched down on one
engine (in response to media reports in Hong Kong, that the second engine
had failed on short final 10 minutes after the first was shut down).

In an updated press release on Apr 14th Cathay Pacific said, that the left
hand engine was delivering 70% N1 stuck at that level, while the right hand
engine was delivering idle thrust throughout the approach. The excess thrust
delivered by the left hand engine forced a higher than normal approach
speed without the usual flap settings. The airplane touched down at 230
KIAS (usual approach speed 135 KIAS), the high speed overheating the brakes
and leading to the deflated tyres (all 4 on the left, 2 on the right hand
main gear). After landing the crew was informed about smoke and flames at
the undercarriage and initiated the evacuation as a reaction to that information.

Aviation sources in Hong Kong said on Apr 13th, that both engines got stuck
at a setting of about 70% N1 delivering high power. The crew shut the left
hand engine down to reduce excess thrust and performed an emergency landing
with the other engine still operating at 70% N1. Touch down speed is reported
at around 200 KIAS causing the brakes to overheat.

Airbus reported later, that both engines were stalled and thrust control
was lost for both engines. The right hand engine was delivering thrust below
flight idle, the left hand engine thrust above flight idle. The crew received
ECAM stall messages for both engines, those messages being usually associated
with engine compressor surges. During landing the engine #1 (left hand)
cowling scraped the runway.

Cathay detailed further, that the aircraft experienced minor EPR oscillations
shortly before reaching Top of Climb on departure out of Surabaya. These
oscillation had an according indication of fuel flow, an ECAM message was
produced for engine #2 (right hand). The crew consulted Cathay’s dispatch
and it was decided that the EPR oscillations did not warrant a diversion.
On initial descent, when the airplane was descending through FL310, the
right hand engine experienced a surge and stalled, the engine remained below
flight idle for the remainder of the flight. When the airplane levelled
off at an intermediate altitude in the latter part of the approach, thrust
control over the left hand engine was gradually lost resulting in an uncontrolled
thrust increase to 70% N1. The airplane was able to maintain speed and altitude.
The crew conducted an ILS approach with flaps reaching stage 1 (selected
were flaps 2) and an approach speed of 230 KIAS, the airspeed reduced to
220 KIAS during flare and touch down. Reverse thrust was successfully selected,
the crew managed to stop the airplane about 1000 feet before the end of
runway 07L (before the threshold runway 25R). Both engines were shut down
after the airplane came to a stop, rescue services advised of tyre deflation
and presence of smoke and fire around the wheels. An investigation has
been initiated that also includes fuel system fault and fuel contamination.
Metars:
VHHH 130800Z 17014KT 9999 FEW008 SCT018 28/24 Q1012 BECMG 09015KT
VHHH 130730Z 16018KT 9999 FEW008 SCT018 29/24 Q1012 NOSIG
VHHH 130700Z 16017KT 9999 FEW008 SCT018 29/24 Q1012 NOSIG
VHHH 130630Z 16018KT 9999 FEW008 SCT020 29/24 Q1012 WS R07R NOSIG
VHHH 130600Z 14017KT 110V170 9999 FEW008 SCT020 29/24 Q1012 NOSIG
VHHH 130530Z 15019KT 120V190 9999 FEW008 SCT020 29/24 Q1012 NOSIG
VHHH 130500Z 15017KT 9999 FEW008 SCT020 29/24 Q1013 NOSIG
VHHH 130430Z 15015KT 9999 FEW006 SCT018 29/24 Q1013 NOSIG
VHHH 130400Z 15015KT 130V190 9999 FEW005 SCT018 29/24 Q1014 NOSIG
VHHH 130330Z 16015KT 130V210 9999 FEW005 SCT018 29/24 Q1014 WS R07L NOSIG

VHHH 130300Z 16014KT 140V210 9999 FEW005 SCT018 29/24 Q1014 WS R07L NOSIG

VHHH 130230Z 16014KT 9999 FEW005 SCT018 29/24 Q1014 NOSIG
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429fc9f5
20100411190928:20100409000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Oakland on Apr 9th 2010, hydraulics leak
The crew of a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-220 from San
Diego,CA to Oakland,CA (USA) with 134 people on board, reported hydraulics
problems while on approach to Oakland and declared emergency. The crew continued
for a safe landing on Oakland’s runway 29 and vacated the runway. Fire services
advised the crew subsequently of a hot brake on the outboard left hand main
wheel prompting the crew to verify whether fire services would recommend
an evacuation. The fire services explained, it appeared hydraulics fluid
was dropping onto the brakes and causing some smoke, they did not recommend
an evacuation. The airplane was towed to the gate about 30 minutes after
landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42a0e188
20100413071650:20100408000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Charleston on Apr 8th 2010, smell of smoke
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight
9E-3981/DL-3981 from Charleston,SC to Detroit,MI (USA) with 50 passengers,
was enroute at FL340 about 50nm southeast of Charleston,WV (USA) when the
crew smelled smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Charleston’s
Yeager Airport. The airplane landed safely about 16 minutes later.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked
onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429d69bd
20100408172532:20100408000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B752 near Tampa on Apr 8th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight DL-531 from Atlanta,GA (USA) to
Cancun (Mexico) with 164 people on board, was enroute at FL370 about 160nm
north of Tampa,FL (USA), when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and
decided to divert to Tampa. The airplane landed safely about 25 minutes
later.

The airline reported, that maintenance failed to find any trace of smoke
and released the airplane back to service. The airplane continued to Cancun
and is estimated to reach Cancun with a delay of 2 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429d3505
20100408101243:20100407000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Charleston on Apr 7th 2010, smell of smoke in the cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N365SW performing flight
WN-467 from Orlando,FL to Philadelphia,PA (USA) with 138 people on board,
was enroute at FL330 about 10nm northeast of Charleston,SC, when the crew
donned their oxygen masks due to smoke in the cabin. At that moment the
first message of the suspected attack on another aircraft by a passenger
setting the shoes alight was transmitted on the ATC frequency (see: Incident:
United Airlines B752 near Denver on Apr 7th 2010, unruly passenger leads
to fighter escort). The crew was able to transmit their emergency call after
that message reporting, they had smell of smoke in the cabin, no visible
smoke, no real problems, the diversion to Charleston being rather precautionary
to not take any chances. ATC reaffirmed the crew had gotten the FAA message
and tried to verify whether there may be any link between the emergency
and the attack reported by the FAA. The airplane landed safely on runway
15 15 minutes after the emergency call. Emergency services checked the airplane
but found no smoke, fire or heat, the airplane subsequently taxied to the
gate on its own power. A passenger was taken to a local hospital on a stretcher,
but was said to be okay.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Philadelphia with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429d154a
20100409071819:20100407000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Denver on Apr 7th 2010, unruly passenger leads to fighter escort
A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N507UA performing flight
UA-663 from Washington National,DC to Denver,CO (USA) with 157 passengers
and 6 crew, was on initial approach to Denver about 25 minutes prior to
estimated touch down when an air marshal smelled smoke from the front lavatory
in the first class and confronted the passenger inside the lavatory. The
air marshal understood the passenger was claiming diplomatic immunity and
made sarcastic remarks including a remark making reference to the shoe bomber
Richard Reid (12/2001) saying he would set his shoes alight. The passenger
was subdued and restrained. The crew requested law enforcement to meet the
aircraft upon arrival. Two F-16 fighter aircraft were scrambled, intercepted
the Boeing and escorted the aircraft during the last 5 minutes of the approach
to Denver. The airplane landed safely in Denver 25 minutes after the incident.

The message of an attempted attack on the airplane was transmitted by the
FAA across the country via ATC messages to all airborne aircraft: “Attention
all aircraft! Be advised: A US Air Carrier has reported a passenger has
attempted to ignite his shoes on fire. All pilots are asked to maintain
expert vigilance and report any anomalies to ATC immediately!”

The airplane was searched after arrival in Denver, no traces of explosives
were found, the shoes of the man contained no flammables.

The Transportation Security Agency (TSA) said, that a passenger caused a
disturbance on board of flight UA-663, the flight landed safely at 6:50pm
local (00:50Z Apr 8th). Law enforcement and TSA officials responded and
are currently interviewing the passenger.

Security officials said, the man involved was a diplomat for the Arab Emirate
of Qatar working at the embassy in Washington. They are currently investigating
but believe there may have been a serious misunderstanding, the passenger
obviously wanting to smoke a cigarette, the air marshal understanding shoes.
The diplomat and fellow passengers witnessing the scene are currently being
interviewed.

A replacement aircraft continued on the next leg to Las Vegas.

According to international habits a diplomat may not be arrested/detained,
however reasonable constraints may be used in emergency situations of self
defense, defense of public safety or prevention of a criminal act.

Law enforcement officials said later in the day, that after reviewing the
whole sequence of events the only offense committed was smoking in the lavatory.
The diplomat however is immune against these charges. When confronted, the
man made a joke to set his shoes on fire to mask the smell of the small
pipe he had been smoking in the lavatory.

The US States Department made clear to the government of Qatar, that the
junior diplomat (27) would be declared a “persona non grata” and expelled
from the US, if the government of Qatar did not remove him. The diplomat
has returned to Washington and will be sent home by Qatar.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429bfcc1
20100408173833:20100404000000
Incident: Canadian North B732 near Edmonton on Apr 4th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Canadian North Boeing 737-200, registration C-GSPW performing flight 5T-9860
from Edmonton,AB to Yellowknife,NT (Canada), was climbing through 12000
feet out of Edmonton about 15nm north of Edmonton, when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Edmonton. The airplane landed
safely on runway 20 about 10 minutes after departure.

Maintenance engineers determined a generator control unit had failed and
caused the smoke. The unit was replaced and the airplane returned to service.

The Canadian TSB reported on Apr 8th, that the left hand generator dropped
offline and the crew noticed the smell of smoke in the cockpit. There was
no indication of fire.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=429ace02
20100405071232:20100404000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Madison on Apr 4th 2010, smell of smoke in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ-3924 from Tulsa,OK to Chicago
O’Hare,IL (USA) with 27 people on board, diverted to Madison,WI after the
crew reported smell of smoke in the cockpit. The airplane landed safely
on Madison’s Dane County Airport runway 36 about 20 minutes later and taxied
to the gate.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=42995df4
20100403134043:20100402000000
Accident: Norwegian B738 near Alicante on Apr 2nd 2010, wheel well fire indication
A Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 737-800, registration LN-NOQ performing flight
DY-3802 from Alicante,SP (Spain) to Stockholm (Sweden) with 106 passengers,
had just reached FL300 climbing out of Alicante, when the crew received
a fire indication in one of the wheel wells and decided to return to Alicante.
The airplane landed safely about 45 minutes after departure and was evacuated.
4 passengers received injuries in the evacuation. Emergency services did
not find any trace of fire, smoke or heat.

Passengers began to report smell of smoke on board some time after takeoff.

The flight had to be postponed to the next day, the passengers were taken
to local hotels.

Norwegian Air Shuttle said they have no reports of injuries. A replacement
Boeing 737-300 registration LN-KKQ was dispatched to Alicante and is on
the way to Stockholm as flight DY-6802 with all passengers on board estimated
to reach Stockholm with a delay of 20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4298d065
20100402160232:20100401000000
Incident: United Airlines B744 at Tokyo on Apr 1st 2010, "oiled" brakes
The smoke trail A United Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration N121UA
performing flight UA-881 (dep Mar 31st) from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to
Tokyo Narita (Japan) with 348 passengers, touched down on Narita’s runway
16R, when a huge plume of white smoke began to emanate from the left hand
main landing gear. The airplane slowed safely, the smoke dissipated after
the airplane came to a stop. Emergency services responded, found no trace
of fire or tyre damage and suspected, that some hydraulics oil had leaked
onto the brakes. The runway was reopened after 10 minutes.

The airline reported, that there was unusual high friction between tyres
and runway surface causing the smoke.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4297cef0
20100401082750:20100331000000
Incident: American B762 at San Francisco on Mar 31st 2010, smoking engine
An American Airlines Boeing 767-200, registration N329AA performing flight
AA-178 from San Francisco,CA to New York JFK,NY (USA), was departing runway
10R when the tower advised “lots of smoke coming from the right engine”
(CF6) prompting the crew to shut the engine down and declare emergency.
The tower cleared the flight to land back onto runway 10L. The crew levelled
off at 3000 feet and returned to land on runway 10L 8 minutes after liftoff.
Tower reported that no smoke was visible anymore on final approach. Once
the airplane stopped on the runway, light smoke became visible from the
right hand engine however no fire.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N376AN reached New York with a
delay of 3:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42971d6a
20100402064428:20100331000000
Incident: Qantas A388 at Sydney on Mar 31st 2010, burst two left hand tyres on landing
A Qantas Airbus A380-800, registration VH-OQC performing flight QF-32 from
Singapore (Singapore) to Sydney,NS (Australia), had touched down on runway
16R when the airplane blew a number of tyres during the roll out. The airplane
stopped on the runway, the crew requested fire engines to attend the aircraft.
Tower reported he had seen some fire from the brakes during the roll out,
the fire had stopped however when the airplane came to a halt. No fire
or smoke was visible. Another aircraft lining up behind the Qantas reported
seeing sparks from the gear and a lot of rubber on the runway. Emergency
services reported, that all tyres on the left hand main gear had deflated
and the airplane is sitting on the rims.

Pictorial evidence confirms that only the rear two tyres of the left hand
main wheel assembly burst with the two forward tyres appearing still intact.

Sources inside Qantas said, that the brakes on the left hand main wheels
locked on during touchdown resulting in the two rear tyres bursting. “The
weight and friction of the still locked wheels running along the runway
then lead to the wheel assemblies being ground in half, down to the wheel
axles, which were also substantially damaged, along with the bogey itself.”
After realizing from the tower there was fire during the roll out the cockpit
crew alerted the cabin crew to a possible evacuation, the alert was later
cancelled. Due to the resulting angle of the wheel bogie there was no possibility
to jack the bogie up, so that the airplane could not be immediately moved
off the runway. The passengers disembarked onto the runway and were bussed
to the terminal.

The airplane was repaired and departed for its next journey about 24 hours
after the incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4296fb03
20100331065432:20100330000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B752 near St. Louis on Mar 30th 2010, smell of smoke
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N702TW performing flight
DL-721 from New York JFK,NY to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 165 passengers
and 6 crew, was enroute at FL340 about 120nm northnortheast of Saint Louis,MO
when the crew reported smell of smoke on board and decided to divert to
Saint Louis. The airplane landed safely 23 minutes later.

Passengers and flight attendants noticed an electrical smell in the rear
of the cabin prompting the diversion.

A replacement aircraft is expected to continue the journey.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=42928676
20100325135023:20100325000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D at Belfast on Mar 25th 2010, technical problems
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, flight BE-125 from Belfast City,NI to Glasgow,SC
(UK) with 61 passengers and 4 crew, experienced technical trouble shortly
after takeoff prompting the crew to return to Belfast’s City Airport. The
airplane landed safely.

Ground witnesses said, smoke was coming from an engine shortly after liftoff.

The airline said however, that there was no smoke. The crew detected technical
trouble shortly after takeoff and decided to return. The airplane is now
being assessed by engineers, passengers have been rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4292d1b8
20100402063451:20100324000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 near Toronto on Mar 24th 2010, smoke in rear galley
The crew of an Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-FMWP performing
flight AC-848 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 177
people on board, declared PAN reporting smoke in the rear galley while climbing
through FL240 about 70nm east of Toronto and returned to Toronto for a safe
landing on runway 23 18 minutes later. Emergency services inspected the
aircraft on the runway, the airplane subsequently taxied to the gate on
its own power.

The Canadian TSB reported on Apr 1st, that the flight crew noticed smell
of smoke in the cockpit, a short time later flight attendants reported smoke
in the aft galley of the aircraft. Power to the galley was disconnected
and the smoke dissipated. The airplane landed overweight. Maintenance found
the oven controller burnt and replaced the device.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429193c4
20100324081652:20100323000000
Incident: China Eastern B738 near Zhengzhou on Mar 23rd 2010, cargo fire indication
A China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800, flight MU-2454 from Beijing to
Wuhan (China) with 180 passengers, was enroute about one hour into the flight,
when the crew received a fire indication for a cargo hold, actioned the
according checklists and decided to divert to Zhengzhou, where the airplane
landed safely.

The fire indication was determined false by maintenance engineers, the sensor
and the fire bottles in the cargo hold were replaced and the airplane declared
airworthy after about 2 hours on the ground.

Passengers however refused to board the aircraft again and demanded a replacement
airplane, one passenger claiming they had seen smoke and fire from one of
the engines.

A replacement aircraft arrived another hour later and continued the journey
reaching Wuhan with a total delay of more than 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429117e0/0000
20110411140318:20100323000000
Accident: Air Canada A320 at Toronto on Mar 23rd 2010, steering problem and smell of smoke
The Canadian TSB released their final report concluding:

Findings as to Causes and Contributing Factors

– A leak from the number 1 yaw damper caused fluid to be ingested into the
auxiliary power unit and sent through the air conditioning system, resulting
in smoke entering the cabin.

– When the crew ordered the evacuation as a result of the smoke, several
persons received minor injuries while exiting the aircraft via the emergency
slides.

Finding as to Risk

– Several passengers deplaned from the aircraft through the emergency exits
while in possession of their carry-on baggage. This has the potential to
increase evacuation time and risk of injuries, and possibly block emergency
exits.

Other Finding

– The extensive delay between Transport Canada’s acceptance of this Board
recommendation and actual regulatory change permits identified safety deficiencies
to persist.

In the overnight maintenance prior to the flight 6 liters of hydraulic fluid
had been added to the green hydraulic system, the tech log of the aircraft
contained an instruction to monitor the fluid level.

When the flight crew began their preflight preparations and started the
APU, an odour was noticed in the cabin. The crew used to such odours on
startup, which may result from engine washes or residue in the air conditioning
system, increased the air flow in the cabin and reduced the temperature,
the smell dissipated.

Shortly after takeoff the odour appeared again, the crew again increased
air flow and reduced cabin temperature, the smell again dissipated.

While approaching the top of climb the crew attempted to locate the source
of the smell, but soon received an ECAM message indicating a low fluid quantity
level for the green hydraulic system. The crew actioned the relevant checklists
and turned off the power transfer unit and the green engine driven hydraulic
pump. At that time the aircraft was about halfway into the flight, weather
conditions at Toronto were more favourable than in Montreal so that the
crew decided to continue to Toronto.

Due to the green hydraulic system being shut down a number of systems were
not available including nose gear steering, normal brakes, normal gear extension
and engine #1 thrust reverser. The crew advised ATC, emergency services
were put on standby. The crew alternatively extended the gear and performed
an otherwise normal landing on runway 05, stopped on the runway, started
the APU and shut down both engines and waited for maintenance personnel
and a tow truck to arrive.

When the tow truck arrived, the driver requested all doors to be closed
as required by company procedures. Due to the manual extension of the gear
the gear doors had remained open, the extension of the gear however had
returned some fluid to the green hydraulic reservoir which now showed normal
fluid level. In consultation with maintenance it was decided to re-energize
the green hydraulic system, the crew therefore turned the electric pump
and the power transfer unit on about 21 minutes after landing.

Almost immediately, smoke began to enter the cabin. The electric pump and
the power transfer unit were shut down again, both left forward doors (L1
and L2) were disarmed and opened in order to clear the smoke, the smoke
however did not dissipate and continued to enter the cabin through the air
vents. The passengers increasingly grew uneasy. After the flight attendants
informed the captain about the situation the captain ordered the evacuation.
Both L1 and L2 doors were closed and armed. All doors including the overwing
exits were subsequently opened. Although cabin crew instructed passengers
to leave the aircraft without any hand luggage, a number of passengers exited
with their luggage.

The evacuation was finished within 2 minutes, during the end of the evacaution
the slides became damp due to light rain causing higher speeds arriving
at the end of the slide. Two passengers, who exited with the luggage, received
minor injuries. Two cabin crew exiting last and carrying emergency equipment
also hurt their backs.

The TSB analysed that no leakage had been detected during maintenance the
night before the flight, however, it was possible that some fluid had accumulated
before the APU intake causing the odour upon starting the APU.

In flight the manual gear extension caused enough fluid to return to the
hydraulic reservoir that the fluid level appeared normal again. When the
crew re-assessed the system status and attempted to close the gear door
by re-energizing the green hydraulic system, high pressure fluid leaked
from the #1 yaw damper actuator. This fluid, with no airflow to drive it
away from the aircraft, flowed down along the side of the fuselage until
it reached the APU intake and caused the smoke in the cabin. When the crew
disabled the pump, the leak stopped, however sufficient fluid had already
exited and continued to be ingested by the APU.

The evacuation time was not significantly increased by the closing, arming
and re-opening the L1 and L2 (forward) doors.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=429117e0
20110411134438:20100323000000
Accident: Air Canada A320 at Toronto on Mar 23rd 2010, steering problem and smell of smoke
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FTJO performing flight AC-433
from Montreal,QC to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 98 passengers and 6 crew, was
on approach to Toronto’s runway 05, when the crew reported they needed to
stop on the runway and needed emergency services. The airplane continued
for a safe landing on runway 05, stopped on the runway and was evacuated.
The airline reported, that there had been an acrid smell in the passenger
cabin. Upon touch down the crew noticed a steering problem related to a
hydraulics problem. The crew decided to evacuate via slides. One passenger
had to be taken to a hospital with a sore back, 4 more received minor injuries
like scratches and bruises. The acrid smell appears to have come from hydraulics
fluid.

Passengers reported, that there had been acrid smell in the cabine. Some
time into the flight the crew announced the airplane had hydraulics problem,
but a normal landing would follow, emergency services would be on stand
by. After touch down the acrid smell worsened and smoke became visible in
the cabine.

NAV Canada reported, that the crew declared emergency while overhead Simcoe
VOR 39nm northeast of Toronto reporting a hydraulics problem. The airplane
stopped on runway 05 and was evacuated via airstairs after the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit. The airplane was towed off the runway 140 minutes
after landing, the runway reopened 160 minutes after landing.

The Canadian TSB reported on Mar 24th, that the crew noticed a hydraulics
leak while in cruise flight, shut down the green hydraulics system and declared
emergency. The airplane made an uneventful landing on runway 05 and came
to a stop on the runway due to lack of nose wheel steering. While a tow
truck was being organized, smoke was reported in the cabin and the crew
decided to evacuate the airplane via chutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42901b38/0000
20100519110314:20100322000000
Crash: Airnorth E120 at Darwin on Mar 22nd 2010, impacted terrain shortly after takeoff
The Australian TSB released their preliminary report reporting, that the
crew planned, briefed and conducted an asymmetric power exercise. The crew
consisted of a captain to revalidate his command instrument rating in the
left hand seat and a supervisory training captain in the right hand seat.
The Aerodrome controller was informed by the training captain before takeoff,
that the departure would incorporate asymmetric power, which was approved
by the controller.

A normal takeoff commenced, one second after becoming airborne the failure
of the left hand engine was simulated. Ground witnesses reported, that the
departure appeared normal until a few seconds after becoming airborne, when
the airplane rolled left and veered left off the intended flight path. The
airplane continued rolling left and entered a steep nose down attitude until
the aircraft disappeared behind trees and black column of smoke rose.

The airport’s emergency services responded and contained the resulting fire
quickly, but could not save the pilots. The airplane was destroyed.

The ATSB was able to download the data off the cockpit voice recorder (30
minutes) and the flight data recorder (25 hours), data were not yet presented
in the preliminary report.

The airplane was loaded within weight and center of gravity limits.

Damage to the airplane is consistent with a steep impact trajectory and
a low forward speed. The airplane was right wing low and 65 degrees nose
down at impact. A high intensity fuel fed fire consumed most of the fuselage
and cabin, the right hand wing and inboard section of the left hand wing.
Both engines and propellers received substantial impact damage. The cockpit
was destroyed by impact forces except for the overhead panel. The landing
gear was found in the retracted position, the flaps in the 15 degrees position.
All control surfaces were accounted for at the accident site.

The engines and propeller hubs were removed from the crash site for detailed
analysis. The rudder power control unit and rudder hydraulic actuators were
also removed for testing and examination.

The supervisory/training captain had a total flying experience of 5664 hours,
thereof 3085 hours on the Brasilia and 2685 hours in command.

The captain revalidating his command instrument rating had a total flying
experience of 8217 hours with 3749 hours on the Brasilia, 2902 thereof in
command on the Brasilia.

The ATSB had issued safety recommendations following an accident in 2007,
that the lack of mandatory simulator training should be addressed. Following
that accident most Australian operators of the Brasilia transferred significant
parts of their training and checking to ground based simulators. It is unlikely
however, that in foreseeable future all asymmetric power training could
be moved to simulators.

In an instant response to the crash Airnorth verified all rudder actuators
of their remaining 4 Brasilias to be serviceable (no anomalies found), two
of the rudder actuators were subsequently upgraded.

In May 2009 a Brasilia simulator had been installed in Melbourne,VI and
was approved by Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) for initial
training, however the facility had no approved trainers for recurrent training.
Airnorth entered a contract with the facility in December 2009 and sent
4 pilots to become simulator instructors. The visual system was not fully
functioning at that time.

In February 2010 three pilots of Airnorth, including the supervisory/training
captain on the accident flight, had completed their sim checks and training
and met the requirements to be approved as simulator instructors. The CASA
estimated, that final step to finalize and issue the approvals would have
taken about 6 weeks. Airnorth received the training facility instructor’s
approval to conduct recurrent training on March 6th, but the instructor
still had to complete Airnorth’s induction course and some line flying in
Darwin.

On April 10th 2010 CASA advised the ATSB, that CASA was working on the recommendation
following the occurrence of 2007. A discussion paper had been released in
December 2009 to mandate simulator training, multiple responses were received
until the end of the response time in February 2010. The responses are being
evaluated. Mandatory simulator training is a high priority for CASA.

The crash site (Photo: ATSB):
The wreckage (Photo: ATSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4290127e/0000
20100920210505:20100322000000
Accident: Aviastar-TU T204 at Moscow on Mar 22nd 2010, landed short of runway
The Russian Aviation Interstate Committee (MAK) have released their final
report in Russian concluding the probable cause was:

The beginning of the approach in instrument meteorological conditions below
the required minima, the lack of a decision to go around and the continuation
of the descent below minima although visual contact with ground was not
established until impact with trees and ground (controlled flight into terrain).

Contributing factors were:

– lack of crew training to conduct approaches in minimum weather conditions
– inadequate crew resource management
– failure of autoflight systems increasing the workload
– failure of the crew to look for an alternate airport with better weather
conditions
– failure of the captain to take a decision when approach lights did not
become visible until minimums
– failure of the first officer to go-around in accordance with manuals
– poor communication on the flight deck resulting in observing crew members
being unaware the airplane had descended below safe height
– the failure of the autoflight systems and the impossibility to remove
that fault together with inadequate training and possible fatigue most likely
created mental and emotional stress that prevented the crew from making
the best decisions to complete the flight.

The MAK listed further safety deficiencies identified in the investigation:

– according to present rules crews may decide to depart despite weather
at destination being below required minima
– serious deficiencies in pilot re-training were identified in Aviastar
– serious violations of regulations by Aviastar in working and recreational
schedules of crews
– simulator training provided to crews did not track changes in design of
aircraft, equipment, systems and documentation of the aircraft
– simulators did not match aircraft performance and did not include changes
in systems
– simulators did not allow full range of failures and special cases
– the decision to depart from Domodedovo to Hurghada was in violation of
regulations, with the existing defects takeoff was prohibited
– flight preparations in Hurghada were in violation of regulations because
the weather conditions at both destination and the alternate in Kazan were
inadequate
– the selection of alternate airports of Sheremetyevo and Nizhniy Novgorod
in flight did not meet requirements by regulations and flight crew manual
regarding weather
– the decision to continue the approach despite the failure of the autoflight
systems was in violation of requirements according to the flight crew manual.
– recommendations of how to continue after the failure of the autoflight
systems were missing in the flight crew manual
– no medical records of the crew were held by the operator
– the aircraft was operated with several manufacturer service bulletins
not having been applied
– repairs of the right hand flaps were performed inadequately
– maintenance documentation was inadequate
– the tech log was incomplete and did not list all failures and their reasons
– components that had not been approved and components that had exceeded
end of life time were found on the aircraft
– information exchange with the airline is hampered by the lack of an airline
information management system requiring the exchange of information by hand
making the information prone to human factors at the source

The airplane departed Moscow’s Domodevo Airport for Hurghada on March 21st
but needed to return to the airport due to a burning smell in the cockpit
(see Incident: Aviastar-TU T204 near Moscow on Mar 21st 2010, smell of smoke
). The airplane returned safely, a defective windshield heater at the captain’s
side was identified as source of the smell. The heater was disabled by putting
the connectors out of the socket, the aircraft was released to flight although
minimum equipment list requirements did not permit to defer this defect
for departures from the home base (Domodedovo).

A reserve crew departed for Hurghada with a delay of about 12 hours. During
approach to Hurghada the autopilot disconnected automatically at a height
of 600 meters, according to analysis due to disagreeing signals commanding
the controls actuators.

At the time of the departure in Hurghada the crew received following forecast
for Domodedovo Airport: horizontal visibility 300 meters, vertical visibility
60 meters. Enroute the crew monitored weather conditions at Kazan, Sheremetyevo
and Nizhniy Novgorod, which all remained below the commander’s limits, so
that the commander decided to have no available alternate and continued
to Domodedovo. Weather data provided by Domodevo still enroute indicated:
visibility 300 meters, RVR 1300 meters at the beginning, 600 in the middle
area and 550 meters at the end, vertical visibility 60 meters. The airplane
began its descend from 11100 meters. While descending through 5400 meters
the autoflight systems quit normal function leaving only pitch hold and
heading hold modes. The crew did not understand the according failure messages,
which were caused by faulty readings of one radar altimeter fluctuating
between below 60 and 400 meters. While on downwind both pilots did not activate
the landing mode on their instruments leaving the displays in the FMS navigation
modes causing the deviation deflections to be displayed close to 0 and therefore
not reflecting the actual position of the aircraft in relation of the localizer
and glideslope beams. The airplane intercepted the localizer – as the crew
believed – about 10nm from touchdown but remained about 0.8nm left of the
extended runway centerline at an altitude of 500 meters. Upon first contact
with the tower the tower reported vertical visibility at 60 meters, RVR
at the beginning 1200 meters, mid section 450 meters and end 500 meters.
These data, while suitable for an automatic landing, did not permit a manual
landing. The airplane descended maintaining a track almost parallel to the
runway. About 5nm from touchdown at an altitude of 450 meters the first
officer commented they were left off the runway, a short time later a glideslope
warning occurs when the airplane was at 400 meters of altitude when it should
have been at 500 meters. The commander decided to continue the approach.
After the landing gear was lowered and flaps were deployed to 37 the aircraft
was cleared to land. About 4nm from touchdown the lateral offset was about
0.3nm (600 meters) to the left, about 2.5nm from touchdown at an altitude
of 180 meters the lateral offset is about 700 meters. Both pilots were trying
to find out about their actual lateral offset none considering to abort
the approach, the airplane was rolled to 15 degrees right bank, both pilots
fully focussing on the lateral offset and forget about the vertical trajectory.
1.3nm from the touchdown the airplane was 200 meters left of the extended
runway centerline at a height of 60 meters and crossed the runway centerline
at a height of 45 meters and 1.07nm from touchdown. The tower asks whether
the crew sees the approach lights, but at that time the airplane impacts
the first trees at a height of 20 meters and 1640 meters (0.8nm) from the
runway threshold, about 60 meters to the right of the runway centerline.
The airplane came to a stop about 1000 meters from the runway threshold
and 150 meters to the right of the extended runway center line at position
N55.430962 E37.856615.

The captain (33) had accumulated 5388 hours flying experience, thereof 1868
on type and 1016 in command. He had obtained qualification to fly Category
II approaches with minimum visibility of 30 meters vertical and a runway
RVR of 450 meters at the touch down zone and 200 meters at the far end.

The first officer (35) had accumulated 1973 hours of flying experience thereof
979 on type. He had obtained Category II qualification permitted to conduct
landings with minimum 30 meters vertical visibility and 350 meters RVR in
the touch down zone and 200 meters RVR at the far end.

The flight engineer (47) had accumulated 10826 flying hours, thereof 5402
on type.

The navigation aids and runway including approach and runway lighting were
found without fault.

Aerial view of crash site (Photo: MAK):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428f912f
20100322105723:20100321000000
Incident: Aviastar-TU T204 near Moscow on Mar 21st 2010, smell of smoke
An Aviatrans-TU Tupolev TU-204-100, registration RA-64011 performing flight
4B-1905 from Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) to Hurghada (Egypt) with 210 passengers
and 8 crew, was about 30 minutes into the flight, when the crew announced
the airplane would return to Moscow due to a hydraulics problem. The airplane
entered a holding for about 2 hours to burn off fuel and subsequently landed
safely.

The airplane was repaired and departed for Hurghada later.

The airplane landed short of Domodedovo’s runway the following day on the
return from Hurghada, see Accident: Aviastar-TU T204 at Moscow on Mar 22nd
2010, landed short of runway.

In a press release following that accident, Russia’s Civil Aviation Authority
reported, that the crew had noticed the smell of smoke shortly after takeoff
from Domodedovo to Hurghada the day before (Mar 21st) prompting them to
return to Domodedovo. The source of the smell was identified to be an electrical
heating element in the cockpit. The problem was solved and the airplane
was returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428b9614/0000
20101014135901:20100315000000
Incident: Jetstar A320 near Adelaide on Mar 15th 2010, engine fire
The ATSB released their summarizing report without conclusions stating,
that maintenance found metal debris and evidence of a tail pipe fire in
the tailpipe of the right hand engine (V2527).

The airplane was climbing through 12000 feet when the crew observed a loss
of power from the right hand engine accompanied by a loud bang from the
engine and several warning indications. Passengers reported seeing flames
and smoke from the right hand engine’s tailpipe.

The crew shut the engine down and discharged both fire bottles into the
engine. No fire indication occurred in the cockpit. The airplane returned
to Adelaide for a safe landing.

Removal and examination of the engine revealed a titanium fire that originated
in the vicinity of the 6th stage of the high pressure compressor. The examination
suggested that the partial power loss initiated from material failures in
the vicinity of the stage 6 high compressor stator vanes, due to the extensive
damage it was not possible to determine the precise reason for the event.
The manufacturer however considered a vane failure was likely, corroborated
by the fact that some previous stage 6 vane failures had led to titanium
fires as observed in the incident engine following the power loss.

The engine manufacturer had released a service bulletin in August 2006 identifying
serial numbers of new production engines that contained high pressure compressor
6th stage stator vanes from a batch produced in August/September 2004 that
turned out being possibly affected by a manufacturing defect causing a crack
or feature at the trailing edge of the stator vane. The serial numbers included
the incident engine. The service bulletin recommended to leave those engines
in service until the next scheduled overhaul shop visit.

As safety action the airline removed all 4 engines (on 4 different aircraft)
that were affected by the service bulletin from service by September 2010.

A risk analysis by the engine manufacturer, including the latest engine
occurrence, showed a still decreasing risk with no recommendation to change
current fleet management programs.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428b9614
20101014135918:20100315000000
Incident: Jetstar A320 near Adelaide on Mar 15th 2010, engine fire
A Jetstar Airbus A320-200, registration VH-VQO performing flight JQ-670
from Adelaide,SA to Darwin,NT (Australia) with 175 passengers and 6 crew,
was climbing to FL340 out of Adelaide’s runway 23, the fasten seat belt
sign had just been switched off about 12 minutes into the flight, when a
loud bang was heard, the airplane shuddered and streaks of flames were seen
out of the right hand engine (V2527). The crew radioed “PAN PAN, PAN PAN,
PAN PAN, Jetstar 670, Jetstar 670, engine fire”. The crew shut the right
hand engine down and set course back to Adelaide reporting, they did have
no engine fire indication however fire was observed from the right hand
engine. The fire had been extinguished, a normal standby response for the
landing rather than an emergency response was sufficient. The airplane returned
to Adelaide for a safe landing on runway 23 about 30 minutes after takeoff.
Emergency services reported after roll out, that no fire or smoke was visible.
The airplane taxied to the apron with the emergency services in attendance.

Passengers reported, the crew announced the engine fire had been extinguished
using the engine fire extinguisher.

A spokesman for Jetstar said, that there had been no engine fire but a mechanical
fault, the extent of which still needs to be determined. Passengers may
have observed sparks from the engine though.

The Australian TSB reported on Mar 17th, that the aircraft experienced a
substantial power loss to the right hand engine while climbing through FL120.
The crew secured the engine and returned to Adelaide. The ATSB have launched
an investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428acbf7
20130626195849:20100315000000
Incident: SEAir L410 at Caticlan on Mar 15th 2010, blew tyre on landing
A SEAir South East Asian LET L-410, registration RP-C2928 performing flight
DG-705 from Manila to Caticlan (Philippines) with no passengers and 3 crew,
burst the (sole) left hand main gear tyre while landing on Caticlan’s runway
and came to a stand still about half way down the runway. No injuries occured,
the airplane did not receive damages beyond the burst tyre, but was stuck
on the runway.

The airport had to be closed until a new tyre was brought in and the airplane
could be moved off the runway 7 hours later. 16 flights diverted to Kalibo
Airport or were cancelled.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Philippines (CAAP) released a summary concluding
the probable cause of the incident was:

The Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board determined that the
probable cause of this accident was the wind coming from the right at 13-20
Knots and the aircraft being very light it bounced and the floated on the
first touchdown and on the second touchdown with the top rudder being applied
to maintain alignment before touchdown with the runway, it was very probable
that the left brake was tapped which subsequently chopped the tire as evidence
by the smoke emitting from it. There after a very solid left tire mark was
very evident at the left tire track on the runway surface.

The AAIB released three safety recommendations:
-Pilot Flying should have his heels on the floor to preclude inadvertent
brake application upon touchdown.
– Threshold speeds shall be computed based on the actual landing weight
of the aircraft and not on the speeds printed on the Aircraft Operational
Manual which is usually based on the heaviest landing weight of the aircraft.
– Pilot Flying (PF) and Pilot Non-Flying (PNF) shall be lectured on the
brake system of the Let-410 and its operation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428b8ae8
20100316094054:20100313000000
Incident: Lufthansa A333 near Boston on Mar 13th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A330-300, registration D-AIKA performing flight LH-427
from Philadelphia,PA (USA) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 196 people on
board, was enroute at FL370 about 100nm east of Boston,MA (USA), when the
crew reported light continuous smoke in the cockpit coming out of a shielding,
declared emergency and turned around to divert to Boston. The airplane landed
safely on Boston’s runway 04R 27 minutes later.

The airplane was able to continue to Frankfurt after 3.5 hours on the ground
in Boston and reached Frankfurt with a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428a1152
20100314113843:20100312000000
Incident: Kuwait Airways B744 at Kuwait on Mar 12th 2010, wheel well fire indication
A Kuwait Airways Boeing 747-400, registration 9K-ADE performing flight KU-542
from Cairo (Egypt) to Kuwait City (Kuwait) with 259 passengers, was on approach
to Kuwait when the crew declared emergency reporting they had a wheel well
fire indication. All available emergency services were deployed and took
their stand by positions at the airport. The subsequent landing was safe
and without any incident however. Emergency services found no traces of
fire, smoke or heat.

A postflight inspection revealed a technical malfunction of the sensors,
the systems still showing an active fire alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42894816
20100313103126:20100312000000
Incident: Cimber AT42 near Malmo on Mar 12th 2010, smoke in cabin
A Cimber Air Aerospatiale ATR-42-500 on behalf of Scandinavian Airlines,
registration OY-CIJ performing flight QI-2744/SK-2744 from Copenhagen (Denmark)
to Palanga (Lithuania) with 27 passengers and 4 crew, had just departed
Copenhagen, when smoke began to appear in the cabin from the direction of
a “fasten seat belt” sign. The crew decided to divert to Malmo’s Sturup
Airport (Sweden) 25nm east of Copenhagen’s Kastrup Airport. The airplane
landed safely in Malmo 16 minutes after departure.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were returned
to Copenhagen, taken to hotels and rebooked onto other flights the following
day.

The airline reported, that the smoke was the result of an electrical short
circuit in one of the panels overhead the seats.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4288f34c
20100312232353:20100312000000
Incident: Interjet A320 at Toluca on Mar 12th 2010, smoke in cabin
An Interjet Airbus A320-200, registration XA-IJA performing flight 4O-701
from Toluca to Acapulco (Mexico), had just departed Toluca, when a strong
smell of burned plastics and smoke began to fill the cabin prompting the
crew to return to Toluca. The airplane landed safely 10 minutes after departure.

A replacement aircraft reached Acapulco with a delay of about one hour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42867095
20100309143832:20100309000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ7 near San Antonio on Mar 9th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Skywest Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United Airlines, registration
N762SK performing flight OO-6435/UA-6435 from San Antonio,TX to Los Angeles,CA
(USA) with 64 passengers, was climbing through FL250, when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit and return to San Antonio for a safe landing about
30 minutes after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42864cb2
20100309101013:20100308000000
Incident: Iberia A321 at Santiago De Compostela on Mar 8th 2010, rejected takeoff
An Iberia Airbus A321-200, registration EC-JMR performing flight IB-569
from Santiago De Compostela,SP to Madrid,SP (Spain), rejected takeoff at
low speed when the cabin began to fill with smoke. The airplane slowed safely
and returned to the apron, where passengers disembarked.

Following an examination engineers declared the airplane airworthy, so that
the aircraft departed again and reached Madrid with a delay of 90 minutes.

Passengers reported they were left without explanation except that some
technical problem had occured.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4285663c
20100309131607:20100307000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ7 at Aspen on Mar 7th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Skywest Airlines Canadair CRJ-700, flight OO-5940 from Aspen,CO to Denver,CO
(USA) with 66 passengers and 4 crew, had taken off Aspen at 12:50L (19:50Z)
with a fog related delay of 2:20 hours, when the crew reported smoke in
the cockpit and decided to return to Aspen for a safe landing on runway
15 24 minutes after takeoff, taxied off the runway and stopped on the adjacent
taxiway, where the passengers disembarked.

The airport reported, that a fault in an air conditioning system was determined
as cause of the smoke. The air conditioning system was repaired.

The aircraft was able to depart again and reached Denver with a total delay
of 6 hours.

The airline admitted later, that the aircraft was ferried to Denver without
passengers.

Passengers reported, that they observed an electrical smell and smoke during
the climb before the airplane turned back to Aspen. They were told to assume
brace positions for the landing, but were able to disembark via stairs after
landing. They were rebooked on other flights on Monday and Tuesday (Mar
8th and 9th).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428bd78c
20100316193043:20100306000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 enroute on Mar 6th 2010, cheesy smoke
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FNAQ performing flight AC-931
from Miami,FL (USA) to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 95 people on board, was
enroute when cheese in one of the galley ovens melted and started to scorch
producing visible smoke. The oven was turned off and closed, and the airplane
continued to destination for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the oven needed to be replaced after arrival
in Montreal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42845f14
20100306232802:20100306000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 near San Juan on Mar 6th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, flight B6-1762 from San Juan (Puerto Rico) to
Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 35 passengers and 4 crew, was climbing out
of San Juan, when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and decided to return
to San Juan. While on approach to runway 10 the crew reported, that the
smoke had not cleared. The aircraft landed safely on runway 10 and was evacuated.

Emergency services did not find any source of heat or fire.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-190 reached Fort Lauderdale with a delay of 7:45
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428355fb
20100305155914:20100305000000
Incident: United Airlines A319 near Buffalo on Mar 5th 2010, fire in lavatory
A United Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N819UA performing flight
UA-769 from Rochester,NY to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 127 people on board,
was climbing through 11000 feet out of Rochester, when the crew reported
smoke in the cabin and decided to divert to Buffalo,NY (USA). While on final
approach the crew reported, that the fire was out and they won’t evacuate
the aircraft. The airplane landed safely on runway 23 about 10 minutes later,
vacated the runway and stopped on an adjacent taxiway to have emergency
services examine the aircraft.

Buffalo’s Niagara Airport reported, that a water pump sparked a small fire
in the rear lavatory, which was put out by a flight attendant. Emergency
services did not need to intervene anymore.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42827a0b
20100304140720:20100304000000
Incident: Brussels Airlines RJ1H at Brussels on Mar 4th 2010, smoke and fuel leak
A Brussels Airlines Avro RJ-100, registration OO-DWF performing flight SN-2630
from Hamburg (Germany) to Brussels (Belgium), levelled off at FL100 after
departure from Hamburg and continued to Brussels maintaining FL100. On approach
to Brussels the crew reported a fuel leak and smoke on board. The airplane
landed safely on runway 02 about 20 minutes later with emergency services
on stand by.

The airplane was able to depart for its next flight about 3.5 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42876149
20100310205730:20100303000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near Winnipeg on Mar 3rd 2010, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FHKS performing flight AC-175
from Toronto,ON to Edmonton,AB (Canada) with 96 people on board, was enroute
at FL380 near Winnipeg,MB (Canada) about 2 hours into the flight, when smoke
was observed coming from the seat back display of seat 17C and the personal
headset of seat 17C partly melted down. The crew disabled the inflight entertainment
system, the smoke dissipated and the flight continued to Edmonton, where
the airplane landed safely about 90 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that after arrival in Edmonton bent connector
pins were found in the seat connector of seats 16A and C.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=427d7ff6
20100226110051:20100225000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 at New York on Feb 25th 2010, smokey odour on board
A Chautauqua Airlines Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight
RP-6054/DL-6054 from New York La Guardia,NY to Columbus,OH (USA) with 35
passengers, was in the initial climb out of La Guardia Airport, when the
crew reported a smokey odour on board, levelled off at 2500 feet and returned
to La Guardia for a safe landing 7 minutes after departure.

An earlier flight, RP-6020 from La Guardia to Columbus, already had to be
cancelled because of a smokey odour on board while the aircraft taxied to
the runway for departure.

The airline reported, that both aircraft had been de-iced, the de-icing
fluid possibly playing a role in the odour on board of both aircraft. Both
aircraft have been removed from service and undergo an examination to determine
the cause of the smell.

The airline’s flight schedule between La Guardia and Columbus was seriously
disrupted for the remainder of the day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42818b12/0000
20101111165025:20100224000000
Incident: Flightline DHC6 near London on Feb 24th 2010, cockpit fire, electrical failure
Power Distribution and Generator Control Box (Photo: AAIB)The British Air
Accident Investigation Board AAIB released their bulletin reporting that
prior to the first leg of the ferry out of Calgary,AB (Canada) the right
hand generator caution light had failed to illuminate. Following diagnose
maintenance decided to replace the right engine reverse current relay (RCR).
Following that action the right generator caution light illuminated properly.

Departing Birmingham the aircraft had climbed to cruise level 170. A few
minutes after levelling off the captain noticed two brief flickers of the
left generator caution light. After a brief discussion with the first officer
the commander opened the DC bus tie in order to separate the two generator
busses. This action was known to continue operation of both generators in
case the load was not balanced.

About 5 minutes later the commander noticed a faint smell but saw nothing
abnormal. The crew discussed the observation but decided to not reset the
left generator as they had no continuous generator indication. Another
few minutes later the crew noticed a dim orange flickering glow between
two ceiling panels on the right hand side of the cabin close to the location
of both left and right engine reverse current relay (RCR). The captain declared
emergency and requested to land at the nearest suitable airport. The airplane
was overhead River Thames near Manston,EN, but Manston Airport was closed
as was Lydd. Ostend Airport (Belgium) was 58nm away but the crew did not
wish to fly over open water for that distance. Southend Airport was open
but had broken cloud at 200 feet AGL with the crew deciding the weather
was not suitable to attempt an approach. The crew decided to divert to London
Gatwick for a landing on runway 26L.

While trying to identify the fault the crew observed the left hand generator
load meter was fully deflected and the right hand generator load meter was
nearly fully deflected. No checklist was available that matched their scenario,
the nature of the problem was not obvious. Nonetheless, the crew decided
to bring the right hand generator offline as it had been the RCR causing
some problem before departure of Calgary. After the generator was turned
off the generator caution light remained off. During the descent the crew
switched off all unnecessary electric equipment as well as equipment the
crew believed had wiring close to the RCR. The commander also went to the
cabin to turn off supplementary oxygen. No obvious improvement occurred,
so that the crew decided to shut the left hand generator down, too, leaving
the airplane just with battery power. The left hand generator caution light
also remained off which the captain considered was the result of a series
of circuit breakers having been tripped by the crew.

The crew thought the glow had reduced but a heat blister developed on the
cabin side of panels and there was light smoke. The aircraft landed safely
and taxied clear of the runway, when the crew attempted to shut down the
engines. The left hand engine shut down correctly, but the right hand engine
continued to runway at 12-15% Ng despite fuel had been shut off. The captain
thought the starter motor might be engaged and shut the engine down by selecting
the battery master switch to OFF.

Emergency services attended the aircraft and determined that the temperature
behind the RCR continued to increase. The battery was disconnected and emergency
services remained on guard until they were satisfied that there was no longer
a risk of fire.

The AAIB said: “The purpose of the RCR is to provide a connection between
the generator and the bus, or battery, and to provide reverse current protection
in the event of a generator failure or a loss of generator voltage.” Examination
of the aircraft showed, that an electrical fire had occurred that had almost
consumed the left hand RCR. The fire had burnt through the cover of the
power distribution and generator control box and caused a heat blister at
the trim of the cabin. The trim remained intact. The smoke was trapped between
fuselage and cabin trim and was drawn out of the cabin vent mounted in the
roof of the aircraft. The heat also damaged wiring for the entertainment
system and an aerial for the standby ADF. There was no further damage.

Both generators were visually intact, the brushes in good condition. The
5 amp circuit breaker for the right hand generator had tripped. The battery
was found in good condition.

The power distribution and generator control box was replaced and the airplane
was flown to Switzerland where a maintenance organisation performed a detailed
examination of the aircraft’s electrical system. The engineers advised the
AAIB that although the wiring of the aircraft was in a bad general condition
no obvious cause for the fire could be found. The complete wiring was replaced
and engine ground runs were done to test the generators and the distribution
system. All systems performed to satisfaction and the aircraft was subsequently
flown to its destination on the Maldives.

The service difficulty reports of the aircraft showed 18 occurrences of
trouble with the RCR since 1974. 15 of these reports indicated that either
the contacts had been welded closed or there were signs of overheat, smoke
or sparks. 11 of the RCRs were rated in excess of 300 amps and 5 at 400
amps.

All three RCRs that had been installed on the aircraft (including the one
removed in Calgary) were found to by type A-700A which were likely produced
between 1944 and 1966. No documentation was available anymore.

The part number became obsolete in 1966 and was replaced by A-700AP. All
three relays on the aircraft had been overhauled by a maintenance organisation
in Canada. The left hand RCR, rated at 300 amps, had been overhauled by
that organisation 35 flight hours before the fire. The right hand RCR during
the occurrence flight was rated at 400 amps, had been installed on Feb 21st
2009. The right hand RCR removed in Calgary was rated at 300 amps and had
flown for 13 hours before removal.

The maintenance organisation produced a copy of the manual which contained
only installation and testing instructions but no instructions to overhaul
the relays.

The AAIB analysed that the “two brief flickers” were caused by a rapid opening
and closing of the left RCR’s contacts. With the generator online this would
have resulting in arcing between the moving and fixed parts of the contacts
causing one of the two contacts to be welded shut. The crew noticed that
the left load meter was fully deflected with the right load meter almost
nearly fully deflected. This meant that the right hand generator while supplying
the right hand DC bus delivered around 400 amps into the left hand starter/generator.
It is this current flow that most likely caused and sustained the fire.

After landing the crew attempted to shut the engines down but the right
hand engine continued to run at 12-15% Ng. This shows that the battery was
supplying power to the right hand starter, which is only possible if the
DC bus tie and the main contacts in the right RCR were closed. It is therefore
probable that the damage to the left RCR and the wiring had already occurred
before the crew shut both generators down.

The investigation was unable to determine why the contacts of the left RCR
would have started to open and close causing the two brief flickers.

The AAIB annotated, that despite an AD released by Transport Canada in 1977
to improve the heat shield of the power distributio nand generator control
box, that had been applied to the aircraft, the heat shield had been breached
in 4 points.

The RCRs of type A-700A used on the aircraft were obsolete parts and had
not been approved for use on the DHC6 aircraft.

An AD released by Transport Canada in 1978 had recommended to replace RCRs
rated 300 amps with RCRs of 400 amps but did not require the replacement.
Instead an inspection of 300 amp type RCRs all 1200 flight hours was required.
The AAIB now recommends to require the replacement of all RCRs to 400 amps
rated types.
The left hand RCR (Photo: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=427de0b9
20100226223747:20100222000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 at Montreal on Feb 22nd 2010, glycol smell, then smoke alert
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FLSU performing flight AC-944
from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Orlando,FL (USA) with 158 people on board,
was climbing through 1000 feet out of Montreal, when a stronger than normal
smell of glycol (de-icing fluid) was observed on board. When the airplane
climbed through 2000 feet, the smoke detector for the aft cargo bay went
off. The crew carried out the according checklists, emptied both fire bottles
into the cargo bay, declared emergency and returned to Montreal. While on
approach, the crew cancelled the emergency, but continued back to Montreal
for a safe landing.

The Canadian TSB reported, that no traces of smoke or fire were detected
in the cargo area. Current assumption is, that the glycol fumes caused the
smoke detector to trigger. The fire bottles were replaced, the engines were
ground run to ensure no residual odour remained and the airplane was returned
to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=427b2648
20100223133041:20100221000000
Incident: American B772 near New York on Feb 21st 2010, burning smell
An American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N792AN performing flight
AA-951 from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil), was
enroute at FL290 about 20 minutes into the flight, when the crew decided
to return to New York checking whether the full length of JFK’s runway 31L
(landing distance available 11250 feet/3500 meters) was available, but did
not require any assistance. The airport dispatched emergency services into
their standby positions as a precaution. The airplane landed safely on runway
31L about 35 minutes later and taxied directly to the gate exiting the runway
via taxiway PA about 9000 feet/2750 meters down the runway, the crew indicating
again no assistance was needed.

A Brazilian celebrity twittered, that the airplane had caught fire causing
“excitement” throughout the Brazilian Press.

Another passenger reported, that a burning smell was noticed inside one
of the airplane’s galleys.

The FAA reported, that the airplane returned to New York after a smell of
smoke was detected in the electrical systems of the aircraft.

The flight was subsequently cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=427b1bed
20100223070736:20100219000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C near Vancouver on Feb 19th 2010, smoke detector went off
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GABO performing
flight QK-8560 from Vancouver,BC to Smithers,BC (Canada), had just lifted
off climbing through approx. 50 feet AGL, when a smoke detector in the lavatory
triggered. The airplane continued the initial climb, the smoke detector
was silenced and a flight attendant took position by the lavatory until
on final approach back to Vancouver. The airplane landed safely back to
Vancouver 21 minutes after departure.

The smoke detector was examined by maintenance, then the airplane was able
to depart again after 80 minutes on the ground and reached Smithers with
a delay of 90 minutes.

A passenger reported, that shortly after liftoff a cyclic alarm started
sounding in the cabin, that got silenced during the climb. After the airplane
had levelled off, the captain made an announcement telling the passengers
that a smoke alert in the lavatory had occured, but there was no smoke.
The airplane would return to Vancouver to have maintenance check the smoke
detector out. Upon reboarding the captain said, that avionics engineers
had looked at the smoke detector but had been unable to reproduce the problem.
The flight went without further incident. The passenger concluded: “The
crew behaved professionally and let us see the Olympic venues twice.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42799a6a
20100221075428:20100217000000
Incident: American Airlines B752 near Indianapolis on Feb 17th 2010, smell of smoke in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N197AN performing flight
AA-2021 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to San Juan (Puerto Rico), was already
enroute near Indianapolis,IN (USA) about 20 minutes into the flight, when
cabin crew reported a smokey smell in the cabin prompting the flight crew
to return to Chicago O’Hare. The airplane landed safely about 50 minutes
after departure.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N173AN reached San Juan with a
delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4277ac31
20100218180057:20100217000000
Incident: Cargolux B744 near Santiago de Compostela on Feb 17th 2010, smoke indication
LX-SCV at Santiago de Compostela (Photo: jifagu) A Cargolux Boeing
747-400, registration LX-SCV performing freight flight CV-761 from Curacao
(Netherlands Antilles) to Luxembourg (Luxembourg) with 3 people on board,
was enroute at FL350 overhead the Atlantic but already in Spanish Airspace
at N45 W12 about 200nm northwest of Santiago de Compostela,SP (Spain), when
the crew reported a smoke detector indication in the main cabin and decided
to divert to Santiago de Compostela, where the airplane landed safely on
runway 35.

Spain’s Airport Authority AENA reported, that the flight diverted to Santiago
de Compostela’s Lavacolla Airport following an engine fire alert. Maintenance
examined the engine, determined, that the fire alert had been false, and
returned the airplane to service.

A listener on ATC frequency in Santiago de Compostela told The Aviation
Herald, that the crew definitely reported a smoke detector indication in
the main cabin, there was no talk of engine fire and no talk of an engine
being shut down.

The airplane subsequently reached Luxembourg with a delay of 10 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42755194
20100216114749:20100214000000
Incident: Easyjet A319 near Milan on Feb 14th 2010, smoke in cockpit
An Easyjet Airbus A319-100, flight U2-2825 from Milan Malpensa to Brindisi
(Italy) with 151 people on board, was climbing out of Milano about 10 minutes
into the flight, when thick smoke started to emanate from an electrical
panel in the cockpit. The crew donned their oxygen masks and returned to
Malpensa Airport for a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure. As
a precaution both flight crew were taken to a local hospital to check for
possible intoxication due to smoke inhalation.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration G-EZBX reached Brindisi with
a delay of about 4 hours.

Aviation sources in Milan suggest, that the electrical motors of both blower
and extract fan of the avionics ventilation system failed causing the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4274ac43
20100215004554:20100214000000
Incident: Qantas A388 over Poznan on Feb 14th 2010, smoke in cockpit
A Qantas Airbus A380-800, registration VH-OQE performing flight QF-32 from
London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Singapore (Singapore), was enroute at FL350 overhead
Poznan (Poland) about 95 minutes into the flight, when the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit, stating a bit later that the smoke had cleared. They
decided to return to London while dumping fuel at FL340. The airplane landed
safely on Heathrow’s runway 27L 90 minutes after turning around.

The airplane was able to depart again after 3 hours on the ground and is
estimated to reach Singapore with a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42755d7d
20100215134634:20100213000000
Incident: Thomson B738 near Munich on Feb 13th 2010, fire detector triggered
A Thomson Airways Boeing 737-800, registration G-FDZB performing flight
BY-6647 from Innsbruck (Austria) to Cardiff,WL (UK) with 180 passengers,
was climbing out of Innsbruck, when the crew reported a smoke detector
in one of the lavatories had gone off and diverted to Munich (Germany),
where the airplane landed safely.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration G-FDZG was dispatched to Munich
the following day and reached Cardiff with a delay of 18 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=427548bc
20100215105740:20100212000000
Incident: British Airways B752 near London on Feb 12th 2010, fumes on board
A British Airways Boeing 757-200, registration G-CPEO performing flight
BA-484 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Barcelona,SP (Spain), returned to
London Heathrow after the crew reported fumes on board. The airplane landed
safely.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration G-CPET reached Barcelona with
a delay of 5:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42722244
20100211091721:20100210000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Green Bay on Feb 10th 2010, smoke in cabin
The crew of an American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ-4225 from Green
Bay,WI to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 35 passengers and 3 crew, reported
smoke in the cabin shortly after liftoff and returned to Green Bay’s Austin-Straubel
field for a safe landing 5 minutes after departure and taxied to the gate,
where passengers disembarked.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4271ad61
20100211085028:20100210000000
Incident: Austrian DH8D near Iasi on Feb 10th 2010, smoke in cockpit
OE-LGB shortly after landing An Austrian Airlines de Havilland Dash
8-400, registration OE-LGB performing flight VO-645/OS-645 from Vienna (Austria)
to Iasi (Romania) with 27 passengers and 4 crew, was on approach to Iasi
about 10 minutes prior to estimated landing, when the crew donned their
oxygen masks, reported smoke in the cockpit and continued for an accelerated
landing in Iasi. The airplane touched down safely and stopped on the runway,
the passengers were evacuated.

The airport said the cause of the occurrence is not yet known, a technical
team of Austrian Airlines is being flown to Iasi to examine the aircraft.

Austrian Airlines said on Feb 11th, that the airplane was on approach to
the destination airport Iasi, when haze developed inside the aircraft. The
crew took according safety measures and decided to evacuate the aircraft
after landing. Following the safe landing all passengers and crew left the
aircraft through the aircraft door and emergency exits. All passengers and
crew are well. The aircraft is now being examined in detail to determine
the cause of the occurrence.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=426cd76c
20100204163126:20100204000000
Incident: Loganair SF34 near Wick on Feb 4th 2010, smoke from engine
A Loganair Saab 340B on behalf of Flybe, registration G-LGNI performing
flight BE-6910 from Kirkwall,SC to Inverness,SC (UK) with 13 passengers,
diverted to Wick Airport,SC when the right hand engine (CT7) started to
emit smoke about halfway into the flight. The crew performed the according
checklists, shut the engine down and diverted to Wick, where the airplane
landed safely about 20 minutes after departure from Kirkwall.

Inverness Airport reported, that the passengers continued their journey
on the road. No arrival has been put onto the arrival board by 16:20L about
7 hours after scheduled arrival.

Loganair said, that the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and while performing
the emergency drills identified the right hand engine as source of the smoke.
The right hand engine was shut down and the crew diverted to Wick. A replacement
aircraft was dispatched and is expected to reach Inverness with a delay
of two hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=426cc69e
20100506161934:20100204000000
Accident: Yakutia AN24 at Yakutsk on Feb 4th 2010, early gear retraction causes rejected takeoff
RA-47360 on its belly (Photo: AP/Yakutsk Vecherny, Alexander Li) A
Yakutia Airlines Antonov AN-24, registration RA-47360 performing flight
R3-425 from Yakutsk to Olekminsk [UEMO] (Russia) with 38 passengers and
4 crew, was late in its takeoff run on runway 23L, when the left hand engine
failed prompting the captain to abort the takeoff at 07:33L (22:33Z Feb
3rd). The gear however retracted, so that the airplane came to a stop on
its belly, however still on the runway. Passengers and crew evacuated the
airplane. Emergency services quickly extinguished a fire in the left hand
engine. No injuries occured, the damage to the airframe needs to be assessed.
The airport was closed for several hours until the airplane was lifted by
cranes, the gear extended and the airplane subsequently towed to the apron
on its own wheels.

The Russian MAK (Interstate Aviation Committee responsible to investigate
aviation accidents) have opened an investigation into the accident and reported,
that initial assumption based on first evidence is, that the aircraft was
already airborne and a member of the crew had already initiated the gear
retraction, when the takeoff was aborted. The airplane received damages
to its lower fuselage, left hand propeller, left hand engine and wing.

Passengers reported on Feb 6th, that the airplane had been airborne for
about 10 to 15 seconds when a number of pops and clicks occured, the airplane
settled back onto the runway in screeching noises, sparks, flames and smoke
before coming to a stand still. The airplane was evacuated through the left
hand front and rear doors, due to the slight bank the exits were almost
level with the runway.

Yakutia reported on Feb 6th, that the airplane sustained only minor damage.
The airplane was airborne for about 600 meters at a speed of about 260 kph
(140 KIAS). It is still unclear, why the gear retracted. The crew had been
suspended without assigning any blame, the investigation to determine the
reasons is still ongoing.

Yakutsk’s only runway 05R/23L is 3400 meters/11150 feet long, former runway
05L/23R has been closed.
Metars:
UEEE 040030Z 27002MPS CAVOK M29/M32 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE767 23450250
UEEE 040000Z 27002MPS CAVOK M29/M32 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE767 23450250
UEEE 032330Z 27002MPS CAVOK M29/M32 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE767 23450250
UEEE 032300Z 28002MPS CAVOK M29/M32 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE767 23450250
UEEE 032230Z 28002MPS CAVOK M29/M32 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE766 23450250
UEEE 032200Z 27002MPS CAVOK M29/M33 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE766 23450250
UEEE 032130Z 28002MPS CAVOK M29/M33 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE766 23450250
UEEE 032100Z 28002MPS CAVOK M29/M33 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE767 23450250
UEEE 032030Z 28002MPS CAVOK M29/M33 Q1034 NOSIG RMK QFE767 23450250

Map (Courtesy Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=426ce1aa
20100204173316:20100203000000
Incident: British Airways A320 near Dusseldorf on Feb 3rd 2010, smoke alert
A British Airways Airbus A320-200, registration G-EUUK performing flight
BA-869 from Budapest (Hungary) to London Heathrow,EN (UK), was enroute at
FL380 about 40nm east of Dusseldorf (Germany), when a ventilator in the
avionics bay failed followed by a smoke detector in the avionics bay activating
shortly thereafter. The crew decided to divert to Dusseldorf where the airplane
landed safely about 30 minutes later.

According to the press office of India’s Commerce Minister Anand Sharma,
passenger on the flight, passengers and crew were evacuated after landing.
Passengers were rebooked onto other flights to their final destinations.

British Airways confirmed, that the airplane diverted because of technical
problems. The remainder of the flight to London was cancelled.

The incident A320 G-EUUK was able to depart Dusseldorf several hours later
and reached London Heathrow with a delay of 7:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=426a93f5
20100201214832:20100201000000
Incident: American B738 near Providenciales on Feb 1st 2010, smell of smoke
An American Airlines Boeing 737-800, flight AA-2297 from Miami,FL (USA)
to Saint Lucia Hewanorra (Saint Lucia) with 109 people on board, was enroute
at FL370 about 60nm south of San Salvador (Bahamas), when the crew reported
smell of smoke on board and set course to return to Miami before deciding
to divert to Providenciales (Turks and Caicos Islands), where the airplane
landed safely 30 minutes after reporting the smell.

A replacement aircraft has been dispatched to Providenciales.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42699293
20100317161907:20100131000000
Incident: ANZ B772 at Tokyo on Jan 31st 2010, rejected takeoff
An Air New Zealand Boeing 777-200, registration ZK-OKC performing flight
NZ-90 from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Auckland (New Zealand) with 296 passengers
and 13 crew, rejected takeoff from runway 34L at high speed. When the airplane
came to a stand still, smoke was seen from all main tyres prompting attending
emergency services to spray the wheels and overheated brakes.

The airport reported, that all 12 main gear tyres deflated due to the brakes
overheat. The runway had to be closed for about 30 minutes.

Air New Zealand reported, that the crew received a warning indicating a
problem with the auto thrust system and decided to reject takeoff. The airplane
was able to taxi clear of the runway before emergency services started to
cool the overheated brakes.

An Airworthiness Directive released by the FAA on Mar 17th 2010 revealed,
that the takeoff was rejected above V1 when the autopilot inadvertently
activated during the takeoff run, see FAA release AD requiring new autopilot
software for Boeing 777s.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4279e6d4
20100221172405:20100130000000
Accident: Spring Airlines A320 at Shenyang on Jan 30th 2010, tail strike on landing
A Spring Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration B-6612 performing flight
9C-8839 from Shanghai Pu Dong to Shenyang (China), landed tail first in
Shenyang at approximately 10:00L (02:00Z) in clear weather and almost calm
winds. The airplane rolled out without further incident, no injuries occured,
the airplane however received substantial structural damage.

The return flight 9C-8840 had to be cancelled.

Witnesses on the ground described, that the airplane landed in a very nose
high attitude, the tail contacted ground first producing sparks and substantial
smoke before the main gear and subsequently nose gear settled on the runway.

The airport reported, that the airplane received substantial structural
damage, that can not be repaired with local resources and therefore requires
Airbus to send a maintenance team and spare parts for repairs.

Metars:
ZYTX 300400Z 30002MPS 270V330 7000 SKC 01/M10 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300300Z 32001MPS 7000 SKC M00/M10 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300230Z 00000MPS 7000 SKC 01/M11 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300200Z 14002MPS 110V190 CAVOK M01/M10 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300130Z 14002MPS CAVOK M03/M11 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300100Z 13002MPS 100V170 CAVOK M04/M12 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300030Z 13003MPS CAVOK M06/M12 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 300000Z 13003MPS CAVOK M07/M13 Q1019 NOSIG
ZYTX 292330Z 13003MPS CAVOK M09/M14 Q1018 NOSIG
ZYTX 292300Z 13002MPS 050V150 CAVOK M11/M15 Q1018 NOSIG
ZYTX 292230Z 14001MPS CAVOK M12/M16 Q1018 NOSIG
ZYTX 292200Z 15002MPS CAVOK M11/M16 Q1018 NOSIG
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42673528
20100128182547:20100128182547
Incident: JAL B773 at Okinawa on Jan26th 2010, engine fire
A JAL Japan Airlines Boeing 777-300, flight JL-2088 from Okinawa to Osaka
Itami (Japan) with 332 passengers, was climbing out of Okinawa, when ground
personnel and tower controller observed the left hand engine on fire trailed
by black smoke. The tower radioed the crew, who decided to shut the engine
down and to return to Okinawa for a safe landing 17 minutes after liftoff.

The cause of the engine problem is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42668a3d
20100127212524:20100127000000
Incident: Comair CRJ1 near Myrtle Beach on Jan 27th 2010, smell of smoke
A Comair Canadair CRJ-100 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight OH-6435/DL-6435
from New York La Guardia,NY to Charleston,SC (USA) with 16 passengers and
3 crew, was enroute at FL320 about 110nm northnortheast of Myrtle Beach,SC
(USA), when the crew reported a smokey odour on board and decided to divert
to Myrtle Beach. The airplane landed safely in Myrtle Beach about 21 minutes
later. Attending emergency services found no trace of fire or heat.

The remaineder of the flight was cancelled. The airline offered ground transportation
like taxi or rental cars to the passengers.

A passenger reported, that there was a bit of smoke visible in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42658ba0
20100126141139:20100126000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Manchester on Jan 26th 2010, smell of smoke
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-JECL performing flight BE-321
from Birmingham,EN to Aberdeen,SC (UK) with 30 passengers, diverted to Manchester,EN
(UK) after the crew declared emergency reporting smell of burning in a galley.
The airplane landed safely about 40 minutes after departure from Birmingham.
The passengers deplaned via stairs onto the runway.

Manchester Airport halted all operations for about 15 minutes to accomodate
the emergency.

A replacement Dash 8-400 registration G-ECOA reached Aberdeen with a dealy
of 3 hours.

Flybe confirmed the incident stating, that the smell occured in the rear
galley.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=426660cd
20100127163620:20100125000000
Incident: China Southern A320 at Guangzhou on Jan 25th 2010, passengers at unease, then unsafe gear
A China Southern Airlines Airbus A320-200, flight CZ-3376 from Guangzhou
to Changsa (China) with 120 passengers, was departing Guangzhou, when passengers
got grossly concerned about seeing black smoke from the aircraft engines
needing all persuasiveness by flight attendants to get calmed again only
to hear the captain announce about 10 minutes after departure, that they
had to return to Guangzhou because the gear could not be fully retracted.
The airplane entered a holding to burn off fuel and landed safely about
one hour after departure.

The flight was subsequently cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto
the next flight 4 hours after initially scheduled departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4265c439
20100126210511:20100125000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A at Montreal on Jan 25th 2010, smoke in cockpit
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-FPON performing
QK-7666 from Montreal,QC to Fredericton,NB (Canada) with 22 people on board,
was climbing through 1000 feet AGL out of Montreal’s runway 06R, when the
crew observed smoke in the cockpit, declared emergency and returned to land
on runway 06R. Approach relayed tower’s clearance to land before hand off
to tower. The airplane touched down safely 10 minutes after departure and
stopped on the runway to have attending emergency services inspect the aircraft.
The passengers disembarked onto the runway.

The Canadian TSB reported, that no traces of fire were found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4260c20c
20100120154358:20100119000000
Incident: Chautauqua CRJ2 near Cleveland on Jan 19th 2010, electrical problems
A Chautauqua Airlines Canadair CRJ-200, flight RP-5507 from Boston,MA to
Cleveland,OH (USA) with 55 passengers, was on approach to Cleveland, when
one of the electrical busses suffered a power loss and smoke became visible.
The crew continued for a safe landing and shut the airplane down on the
runway, the passengers deplaned and were bussed to the terminal.

The airport reported, the runway had to be closed for 11 minutes after the
airplane experienced an electrical power loss. Smoke could be seen when
the airplane landed. The airplane was later towed to the gate.

The airplane’s next scheduled flight RP-5604 to Baltimore had to be cancelled.

The FAA reported the following day, that the AC bus was lost causing the
RAT (RAM Air Turbine) to deploy during the approach. The brakes locked on
landing causing the main gear tyres to blow during the landing roll out.
The registration of the airframe is still unknown.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42603a08
20100121120747:20100119000000
Incident: Austrian F100 at Belgrade on Jan 19th 2010, smoking engine
OE-LVL being evacuated An Austrian Airlines Fokker 100, registration
OE-LVL performing flight OS-774 from Belgrade (Serbia) to Vienna (Austria)
with 83 passengers and 5 crew, were preparing for departure from Belgrade
when the left hand engine (Tay 651-54) began to emit smoke during the engine
start. Passengers and crew were evacuated, no injuries occured.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

A number of media in Serbia reported, that the aircraft returned to Belgrade
with both engines on fire, others reported a rejected takeoff due to a smoking
engine.

Serbia’s CAA reported on Wednesday (Jan 20th), that following first preliminary
results of reviewing evidence, testimonials of crew and maintenance staff
and review of aircraft documentation the smoke occured during the second
attempt to start the left hand engine #1. The first attempt probably left
fuel in the engine. It is possible, that de-icing fluid had also entered
the engine.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=425d1899
20100115155207:20100114000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Santander on Jan 14th 2010, unruly passenger
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DCK performing flight FR-5589
from Santander,SP to Alicante,SP (Spain), was climbing out of Santander,
when an elderly male passenger in the back of the aircraft cabin started
to smoke and refused to stop smoking. The crew decided to continue to Alicante
however requested law enforment to meet the airplane upon arrival. The airplane
landed safely in Alicante, police took the passenger from board before the
other passengers disembarked normally.

The passenger was fined and released.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42591700
20100925095442:20100110000000
Accident: United Airlines A319 at Newark on Jan 10th 2010, right main gear did not deploy
N816UA on runway 04L A United Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration
N816UA performing flight UA-634 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Newark,NJ (USA)
with 48 passengers and 5 crew, aborted the approach to Newark’s runway 04R
when the crew received an unsafe indication for the right hand main gear.
The airplane entered a holding for troubleshooting, performed a low approach
to runway 11 for a visual inspection of the landing gear and subsequently
landed on runway 04L without the right main gear being locked about 35 minutes
after aborting the first approach. The airplane came to a stop on the left
main and nose gear and the right hand engine, the passengers were evacuated
via slides. No injuries occured.

United Airlines said, that the right hand main gear failed to deploy in
full. Three passsengers reported very minor injuries but declined any medical
treatment. The passenger ticket’s will be refunded and the passengers are
going to receive vouchers toward a future trip.

The FAA reported, that the right hand main gear did not extend.

The airport reported, that the airport was closed for about 20 minutes.
The closure and the lack of one runway causes delays of up to 100 minutes.

Passengers reported, that the captain made an announcement some time after
the go-around saying: “We are going to have an unusual landing.” further
explaining, they would have to land without one of the main gear struts.
Upon final approach the crew ordered brace position and settled the airplane
on the left hand main gear, nose gear and the right hand engine sending
sparks, the airplane kept going straight until full stop. Smoke of unknown
origin was observed, the evacuation was initiated.

Runway 04L/22R was still closed on Jan 11th 07:30Z.

The NTSB reported briefly on Sep 25th, that the right hand main gear partially
extended but could not be fully extended and locked despite manual attempts
to lock the gear. The crew decided to land before running low on fuel. Three
passengers received minor injuries.
Relevant NOTAMs:
01/041 (A0066/10) – RWY 4L/22R CLSD. WIE UNTIL UFN. CREATED: 10 JAN 14:52
2010
01/045 – OBST CRANE 83 (65 AGL) AT ARP. WIE UNTIL UFN. CREATED: 11 JAN 00:22
2010

N816UA on runway 04L (Photo: AP/Kathy Willens):
Map (Courtesy Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=425911ab
20100321144127:20100110000000
Incident: Swiss A319 at St. Petersburg on Jan 10th 2010, bird strike, both engines suffer severe vibrations
A Swiss Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration HB-IPT performing flight
LX-1311 from St. Peterburg (Russia) to Zurich (Switzerland) with 123 passengers
and 5 crew, was climbing out of Saint Peterburg’s Pulkovo Airport, when
the crew reported engine (CFM56) vibrations prompting them to return to
Pulkovo Airport. The airplane landed safely 40 minutes after departure.

Russia’s Transport Prosecution Office reported, that maintenance found evidence
of a bird strike in the engine.

According to recordings of Pulkovo Approach and Ground Control Frequency,
that surfaced on radioscanner.ru in March, see Approach (5MB) and Ground
(6MB) the crew declared Mayday while climbing through 2900 meters of height
(9500 feet) due to a bird strike. The crew reported high engine vibrations
in both engines, repeating two engines problems, and requested to return
to runway 28R with fire brigades on standby. The airplane landed safely,
vacated the runway and shut both engines down. While on ground frequency
language problems worsened, the crew requesting a report from fire engines
whether smoke or fire was visible from the engines with no reply and requested
to be towed to the apron. Radioscanner.ru commented, that the controllers
learned English only during that communication.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4259039e
20100110151648:20100109000000
Incident: Horizon DH8D near Portland on Jan 9th 2010, visible smoke in cockpit
A Horizon Air de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of Alaska Airlines, flight
QX-2012/AS-2012 from Portland,OR to Seattle,WA (USA) with 37 people on board,
was climbing through 16000 feet out of Portland’s runway 10L, when the
crew donned their oxygen masks and declared emergency reporting smoke in
the front of the cockpit. The airplane returned to Portland ‘s runway 10R
for a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure, the crew turned left
off the runway and stopped on the adjacent taxiway for examination by emergency
services.

Horizon Air reported, the smoke was limited to the cockpit area, no smoke
was apparent in the passenger cabin. The airplane was taken out of service,
the passengers were rebooked onto the next flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42576af6
20100108170751:20100108000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 at Boston on Jan 8th 2010, rejected takeoff
A Chautauqua Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight RP-6049/DL-6049
from Boston,MA to Columbus,OH (USA) with 25 passengers and 3 crew, rejected
takeoff from runway 09 due to a smell of smoke during the takeoff run, slowed
safely and turned left off the runway onto runway 33L and stopped at the
intersection with taxiway Delta. Another flight lined up for departure on
runway 09 departed before arriving emergency services closed the airport,
the Embraer was evacuated, the passengers were bussed to the terminal.

Runway 09 was reopened about 7 minutes after the runway closed.

The cause of the smell is still under investigation, there are suspects
that the smell may have been caused by de-icing fluid.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4256a68d
20100107203321:20100107000000
Incident: Swiss A343 at Tokyo on Jan 7th 2010, smoke from left main gear
A Swiss Airlines Airbus A340-300, registration HB-JML performing flight
LX-160 (dep Jan 6th) from Zurich (Switzerland) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with
227 people on board, had just landed at Narita Airport, when smoke was observed
by another flight crew coming from the left hand main gear prompting an
immediate response by the airport’s emergency services reaching the airplane
on a taxiway. Fire services found hydraulics fluid leaking from the top
of the gear strut onto the left hand main wheels.

Both runways 16L/34R and 16R/34L were closed for about 10 minutes.

The airplane was able to depart for its return flight about 2 hours later
and reached Zurich on time.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42557f7c
20100111213449:20100105000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ2 near Vancouver on Jan 5th 2010, fire alert
A Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-200, registration C-FDJA performing flight
QK-8558 from Victoria,BC to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 36 people on board,
was climbing through FL300 out of Victoria and about 80nm east of Vancouver,
when the crew reported they had a fire alert triggered on board and decided
to divert to Vancouver. The crew reported on final approach to Vancouver’s
runway 26R, that the fire alert had extinguished after depressing the fire
suppression switches for the halon bottle. The airplane landed safely on
runway 26R, taxied clear of the runway and had the airplane checked out
by emergency services.

NAV Canada reported, that the smoke detector in the rear luggage hold had
activated.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the rear cargo smoke warning illuminated.
The crew completed the according checklists, discharged both fire bottles,
declared emergency and diverted to Vancouver. It was determined, that there
was no trace of smoke or fire in the compartment.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4254223e
20100104215118:20100104000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Liverpool on Jan 4th 2010, fire alert
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-EFW performing flight FR-4021
from Liverpool,EN (UK) to Agadir (Morocco) with 116 passengers and 6 crew,
was climbing through FL170 out of Liverpool, when the crew reported a fire
indicator had triggered and decided to return to Liverpool Airport. The
airplane landed safely on runway 27 about 25 minutes after departure, the
airplane was evacuated via slides. No injuries occured, the passengers were
subsequently bussed to the terminal.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration EI-EFX departed 250 minutes later.

Ryanair reported, that a fire indication illuminated prompting the crew
to return to Liverpool. No fire, smoke or heat was detected, the company
suspects a faulty indicator as cause of the fire alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4252f2b4
20100103092025:20100102000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 at Boston on Jan 2nd 2010, smoke in cabin
A Chautauqua Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight RP-6001/DL-6001
from Boston,MA to Columbus,OH (USA) with 38 passengers and 4 crew, had just
lifted off from runway 27, when the crew reported they needed an emergency
return to the airfield because of smoke in the cabin. The crew donned their
oxygen masks, levelled off at 3000 feet, climbed further to 4000 feet on
ATC instruction. On downwind the crew reported, that they had pretty good
smoke in the cabin which was now dissipating. The crew performed a safe
landing on runway 33L and was able to turn the airplane off the runway,
the crew then decided to continue taxi to the gate reporting the smoke had
dissipated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42526920
20100102181404:20100102000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 at Boston on Jan 2nd 2010, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-1379 from Boston,MA
to New York La Guardia,NY (USA) with 34 people on board, was climbing through
about 6000 feet out of Boston’s runway 27, when the crew reported they had
smoke in the cabin and needed to return immediately. The crew later explained,
they had light smoke in the cockpit and smoke in the cabin, which appeared
to be under control and dispersing by then. The airplane landed safely on
runway 33L about 15 minutes after departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4252302e
20100102132114:20100101000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near Albuquerque on Jan 1st 2010, smoke alert
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration
N18120 performing flight XE-2025/CO-2025 from Houston,TX to Albuquerque,NM
(USA) with 53 people on board, was just ahead of top of descent for Albuquerque
when the crew reported a smoke detector in the cargo hold went off. The
approach to Albuquerque was accelerated and the airplane made a straight
in to runway 26 touching down safely. Attending emergency services found
no traces of fire, smoke or heat.

Maintenance determined the smoke detector was faulty.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4250d73a
20091231203524:20091230000000
Incident: Easyjet B737 at Luton on Dec 30th 2009, smoke in cockpit
An Easyjet Boeing 737-700, registration G-EZJW performing flight U2-2073
from Luton,EN (UK) to Budapest (Hungary), was on initial climb out of Luton’s
runway 08, when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to return
to the airport. The aircraft landed safely on runway 08, attending emergency
services found no trace of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration G-EZDR reached Budapest with
a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=424faec3
20091230181438:20091229000000
Incident: Jetblue A320 near Bermuda on Dec 29th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Jetblue Airbus A320-200, registration N645JB performing flight B6-774
from Aruba (Aruba) to Boston,MA (USA) with 63 passengers, was enroute at
FL360 about 100nm south of Bermuda, when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit emanating from the avionics and declared emergency deciding to divert
to Bermuda International Airport (Bermuda). The crew shut the relevant systems
down, the smoke dissipated as a result, the crew continued to Bermuda however.
Attempts to restart the missing avionics systems produced smoke again. While
on final approach to Bermuda the crew reported no smoke left in the cockpit.
About 30 minutes after the emergency call the airplane landed safely on
runway 30 in strong gusting winds (from 290-310 degrees from 25 knots to
35 knots) following a windshear of about 10 knots at 1000 feet AGL. Emergency
services and the tower reported no smoke or fire visible from the outside,
the crew reported no current smoke inside the aircraft, so that the crew
taxied the airplane to the gate.

The airline reported, that the crew had observed a fire indication in the
rear cargo hold. A maintenance inspection cleared the airplane to continue
the flight. The airplane reached Boston with a delay of 3 hours.

Metars:
TXKF 292355Z 30028KT 9999 SCT035 BKN049 BKN070 16/08 Q1013
TXKF 292255Z 29026KT 9999 FEW035 SCT070 17/08 Q1012
TXKF 292055Z 29025KT 9999 SCT040 BKN055 BKN065 17/09 Q1010
TXKF 291955Z 28022G32KT 9999 SCT040 BKN055 17/09 Q1010
TXKF 291855Z 29025KT 9999 FEW040 SCT055 18/08 Q1009
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=424d37ff
20091231200304:20091226000000
Incident: Air Canada B763 at Vancouver on Dec 26th 2009, engine vibrations caused by bird strike
An Air Canada Boeing 767-300, registration C-GHPH performing flight AC-57
from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Kahului,HI (USA), was climbing out of the
Vancouver, when the crew levelled off at FL180 reporting engine (CF6) vibrations
about 8 minutes into the flight and decided to return to Vancouver suspecting
a bird strike. The airplane landed safely about 40 minutes after departure.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration C-GDUZ departed with 4 hours delay.

The Canadian TSB reported on Dec 31st, that the crew noticed engine vibrations
and a burning smell of rubber with no smoke. The airplane landed overweight.
An examination by maintenance revealed evidence of a bird strike. Maintenance
performed the according overweight and bird strike inspections, replaced
component parts and returned the airplane to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=424c23fb
20100106103416:20091225000000
Incident: Northwest A333 near Detroit on Dec 25th 2009, passenger tried to ignite powdery substance
A Northwest Airlines Airbus A330-300 in Delta colors, registration N820NW
performing flight NW-253 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Detroit,MI (USA)
with 278 passengers, was on approach to Detroit just lowering the landing
gear, when a Nigerian male passenger attempted to ignite a powdery substance
attached to one of his legs. Passengers alerted by the smell and shine of
fire stormed out of their seats and subdued the Nigerian. The crew declared
emergency reporting a possible hijack attempt and continued for a safe landing
at Detroit, the airplane rolled past the end of the runway (supposedly 04L)
and stopped on the stop area, where passengers disembarked. The Nigerian
was taken into custody and is reported to have received second to third
degree burns to his legs.

Northwest Airlines reported initially, that the Nigerian attempted to ignite
a number of firecrackers upon landing and was immediately subdued. A number
of minor injuries occured in the commotion.

US authorities reported in the evening (Dec 25th), that the Nigerian said
in an interview, that he attempted to blow the airplane up while on approach
to Detroit. He had created a syringe of liquid chemicals mixed with the
explosive powder and taped the substance to his leg. Authorities are not
convinced about that claim stating, they have no corroborating evidence.
Nonetheless the White House has been informed, President Obama is monitoring
the situation.

Authorities reported during the night to Dec 26th, that the Nigerian appears
to have acted alone and to not have connections to terror networks. His
name does not appear on the “no fly” list, but does appear on a database
of people with suspect connections. He did not undergo a secondary security
screening in Amsterdam. He had only carry on luggage. A search of the airplane
did not reveal any further suspect materials.

Passengers reported, that they heard a pop, smelled smoke, saw some smoke
and some glow. A number of passengers jumped up from their seats, ran towards
the glow, subdued the Nigerian and threw a blanket over his leg to extinguish
the fire.

On Dec 27th the FBI said, that preliminary analysis identified the powdery
substance as PETN, a highly explosive substance, which probably was contained
in a condom. Liquid chemicals in the styringe were to be injected into the
powder to bring it to detonation, however the cloth of the Nigerian caught
fire first and the PETN detonated only partially.

On Jan 5th 2010 Netherland’s States Attorney reported, that they had analysed
all video surveillance tapes at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport and found no
evidence, that the Nigerian had received the explosives in Amsterdam concluding,
that he must have carried the explosives along from Lagos. The investigation
now focusses on Lagos Airport trying to determine, whether the Nigerian
was in contact with persons past security screening at Lagos Airport and
could have received the PETN there.

The airplane had arrived in Amsterdam as flight NW-240 from Minneapolis,MN
(USA) about 100 minutes before departure of flight 253. The Nigerian passenger
flew from Lagos (Nigeria) to Amsterdam on flight KL-588 connecting to flight
NW-253 to Detroit. Flight KL-588 arrived in Amsterdam 2:50 hours before
scheduled departure of NW-253.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=424b02cc
20091224154405:20091223000000
Incident: SA Airlink JS41 at Nelspruit on Dec 23rd 2009, rejected takeoff leads to grounding of JS41 fleet
A SA Airlink Jetstream 41, flight data not released (possible flights 4Z-8508
to Durban or 4Z-8870 to Livingston), rejected takeoff from Nelspruit (South
Africa) on Wednesday morning (Dec 23rd) after the left hand engine emitted
smoke and the crew received a low oil indication, the airline confirmed.

South Africa’s CAA has suspended the airworthiness certificates of all 14
Jetstream 41 aircraft of SA Airlink Wednesday evening as a result of this
and earlier incidents. The airline’s other aircraft continue operations.

The airline reported: “The decision to ground the Jetstream 41 fleet follows
the failure of an engine turbine seal plate component which resulted in
an aborted take-off incident involving one of our aircraft at Nelspruit
yesterday (Wednesday). The failure is similar to that identified by the
SA Civil Aviation Authority as a contributing cause in the 24 September
Durban accident involving another of our Jetstream 41 aircraft.” (See Accident:
SA Airlink JS41 at Durban on Sep 24th 2009, lost height after takeoff and
impacted school fence).

“The Jetstream 41s will remain grounded until Honeywell and the aircraft
manufacturer, BAE Systems, have identified and implemented a remedy”, the
chairman of the airline continued, pledging however that none of the passenger
will be left stranded. Passengers are asked to contact the airline’s call
center to check flight details.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4248bfd3
20091221163438:20091220000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 near Graz on Dec 20th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Rynair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DCK performing flight FR-5732 from
Stansted,EN (UK) to Graz (Austria) with 171 passengers and 6 crew, was on
approach to Graz when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit. The airplane
landed safely, the passengers quickly disembarked.

Following maintenance checks the airplane performed the return flight FR-5733
to Stansted with a delay of 40 minutes.

The cause of the smoke has not been reported.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4249af44
20091222210231:20091217000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ1 near Vancouver on Dec 17th 2009, smoke and sparks in cockpit
An Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-100, registration C-FZAQ performing flight
QK-8416 from Vancouver,BC to Kelowna,BC (Canada) with 50 people on board,
was climbing through 17000 feet about 45nm east of Vancouver 10 minutes
into the flight, when the crew observed sparks and a puff of smoke coming
from the overhead panel. The smoke dissipated quickly, the crew nonetheless
declared emergency and returned to Vancouver for a safe landing 18 minutes
later.

A replacement de Havilland Dash 8-300 reached Kelowna with a delay of 2
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42453296/0000
20100513142533:20091216000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Manchester on Dec 16th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The British Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) released their bulletin
saying, that the crew received a “ENGINE ADAPT HEAT NO 2” warning indication
in the cockpit and noticed an electrical burning smell which dissipated
within seconds. Relevant checklists did not indicate any action was needed
but recommended to remain clear of icing conditions. The crew talked to
the crew of another company aircraft who advised strong icing conditions
between FL120 and FL090 during descent towards Isle of Man, so that the
crew decided to divert to Manchester already in sight of the crew. During
the descent the smell returned more strongly and was also noticed in the
cabin prompting the crew to don their oxygen masks and to declare PAN. Two
passengers observed sparks from the rear of the right hand engine (PW150A)
during final ILS approach prompting the crew to declare MAYDAY. The airplane
landed safely on runway 05L, the crew brought the airplane to a halt on
the runway, shut the engines down and initiated an evacuation.

Engineers determined, that the right hand engine’s right air intake heat
adapter had overheated and mechanically failed. Both left and right adapter
had been inspected and tested three days prior to the incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42453296
20100513142127:20091216000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Manchester on Dec 16th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Flybe Dash 8-400, registration G-JECZ performing flight BE-278 from London
Gatwick,EN to Isle of Man (UK) with 45 passengers and 4 crew, diverted to
Manchester after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit following a smoke
detector alert. The airplane landed safely on runway 05L, the passengers
were evacuated. No injuries occured.

The runway had to be closed for 12 minutes.

The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers were taken to
hotels.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4242a954
20091214081109:20091213000000
Incident: Lion Air B734 at Pekanbaru on Dec 13th 2009, overran runway
A Lion Air Boeing 737-400, registration PK-LIT performing flight JT-391
from Batam to Pekanbaru (Indonesia) with 160 people on board, overran runway
18 while landing at Pekanbaru’s Simpang Tiga Airport at about 14:00L (07:00Z)
and came to a stop with the nose gear on the paved surface of the stop area,
the engines stopped. No injuries and no damage to the airplane occured.

The airport had to be closed for about 1 hour until the passenger had disembarked
via mobile stairs brought to the airplane and the airplane was towed off
the runway.

Passengers reported, that they saw smoke coming from the outside of the
airplane after the airplane came to a stop and thought there was a fire.

A replacement crew was able to continue the flight on its next leg to Jakarta
with a few hours delay following maintenance checks.

No Metars are available for Pekanbaru [WIBB].
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42424033
20091213191017:20091211000000
Incident: SAA A319 at Durban on Dec 11th 2009, rejected takeoff
A Yellow-billed kite (Photo: Chell Hill) A South African Airways Airbus
A319-100, flight SA-601 from Durban to Cape Town (South Africa), rejected
takeoff from Durban after an engine ingested a Yellow-billed Kite resulting
in smoke being emitted from the engine. The airplane slowed safely, emergency
services responded.

SAA reported, that it was nothing serious, the pilot took all necessary
precautions. The passengers disembarked normally and were flown to Cape
Town on another aircraft.

South African media cite a passenger on Comair flight MN-6300 preparing
for departure from Durban to Cape Town at that time, who reported their
flight attendant remarked on the PA: “If you look out of the left hand windows
you’ll notice the SAA’s engine on fire. Aren’t you glad you’re not flying
SAA?”

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42400ab5
20091210234656:20091210000000
Incident: Aerocaribbean B732 near Santo Domingo on Dec 10th 2009, engine problems
An Empresa Aerocaribbean SA Boeing 737-200, registration XA-UKW performing
a flight from Caracas (Venezuela) to Santiago de Cuba (Cuba) with 90 passengers
and 9 crew, diverted to Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) due to oil filter
trouble with the right hand engine (JT8D). The airplane landed safely albeit
trailed by a large black cloud of smoke from the engine.

Maintenance resolved the problem permitting the airplane to depart again
6 hours after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=423fd4b7
20091210173836:20091208000000
Incident: Pantanal AT42 near Sao Paulo on Dec 8th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Pantanal Aerospatiale ATR-42-300, registration PT-MFV performing flight
P8-4788 from Sao Paulo Congonhas,SP to Juiz de Fora,MG (Brazil), returned
to Congonhas Airport when smoke appeared in the cabin due to a fault in
the cabin lighting shortly after takeoff. The airplane landed safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=423e538d
20091214212539:20091208000000
Incident: British Airways B763 over Atlantic on Dec 8th 2009, smell of smoke
The crew of a British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BNWM performing
flight BA-253 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Nassau (Bahamas) with 147
passengers, reported smell of smoke while enroute overhead the Atlantic
about 570nm east of Gander, NL (Canada) and diverted to Gander, where the
airplane landed safely 90 minutes later. Emergency services found no traces
of fire, heat or smoke.

The airplane was released for flight following checks and is estimated to
reach Nassau with a delay of 3.5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Dec 14th, that maintenance found a short circuit
in the electronic control board of a wine cooler. The cooler was removed
and the according circuit breaker collared. Following an overweight landing
check the airplane was released to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=423d5125
20091207141647:20091206000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near San Diego on Dec 6th 2009, smoke alert on board
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-135, registration N845AE performing flight
MQ-3064 from San Diego,CA to Los Angeles,CA (USA), had climbed to 10000
feet, when the crew reported a smoke detector had triggered. The airplane
returned to San Diego for a safe landing on runway 27 12 minutes later.
No traces of smoke or heat were detected.

The cause of the alert is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=423cbb86
20091206210739:20091206000000
Incident: American MD82 at Fort Myers on Dec 6th 2009, fire on right wing
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, flight AA-2460 from Chicago
O’Hare,IL to Fort Myers,FL (USA) with 95 people on board, had descend to
5000 feet on approach to Fort Myers, when the crew declared emergency reporting
passengers had seen a small fire on the right hand wing about 3 feet (1
meter) from the fuselage and requested an immediate landing having emergency
services have a look onto the right wing. The airplane landed safely on
runway 06 8 minutes later and stopped on the runway to have the firemen
check the wing, tower reporting he saw no flames or smoke.

The airplane subsequently taxied to the gate, where passengers disembarked
normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4239f418
20091203134550:20091203000000
Accident: Batavia B734 at Bali on Dec 3rd 2009, smoke from engine, passengers evacuate on their own
A Batavia Boeing 737-400, registration PK-YVR performing flight 7P-701 (dep
Dec 2nd) from Surabaya to Kupang (Indonesia) with 151 passengers, diverted
to Bali after about one quarter of the journey’s distance when the airport
of Kupang had to close as result of the partial gear up landing (see Accident:
Merpati F100 at Kupang on Dec 2nd 2009, landed without left main gear).
The airplane landed safely in Bali. 3 passengers decided to leave the aircraft.

When Kupang indicated the next day (Dec 3rd) at around 11:45am, that the
airport would be closed for several days, the airplane now with 148 passengers
prepared for takeoff to return to Surabaya. During engine start up passengers
observed sparks, then flames and smoke from the left hand engine, ignored
cabin crew trying to stop the rush, opened the emergency exits and evacuated.
3 passengers received serious, 3 other passengers minor injuries in the
evacuation.

The airline said, that there was the usual cloud of smoke during engine
start up from the left hand engine, there was no fire, there was no danger.

The passengers reported, they saw first sparks, then flames and smoke. The
smoke was also visible on the right hand side of the airplane.

The airplane was seen with the left hand engine cowling open after the occurrence,
the engine was being worked on.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=423727a8
20091130112035:20091129000000
Incident: Lufthansa Cityline RJ85 near Linz on Nov 29th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Cityline Avro RJ-85, registration D-AVRI performing flight CL-3529/LH-3529
from Linz (Austria) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 61 passengers and 4
crew, returned to Linz when smoke developed in the cockpit and became also
visible in the forward rows of the passenger cabin shortly after liftoff.
The airplane landed safely.

One passenger needed to be treated at the airport.

The flight was cancelled, the passenger were rebooked onto other flights.

Maintenance determined, that de-icing fluid had entred the air conditioning
system causing the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=423508d7
20091126203533:20091125000000
Incident: Spirit A319 near Grand Cayman on Nov 25th 2009, smoke detector triggered
A Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N510NK performing flight
NK-438 from Managua (Nicaragua) to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 133 passengers,
was enroute near Grand Cayman Island, when a smoke detector triggered prompting
the crew to declare emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and to divert
to Grand Cayman’s Owen Roberts Airport. The airplane landed safely about
80 minutes after departure from Managua. Emergency services did not find
any traces of smoke or fire.

Maintenance checked the airplane, found no issues and released the airplane
to continue the flight.

The airplane departed Grand Cayman after 4 hours on the ground and reached
Fort Lauderdale with a delay of 4:40 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=422fb276
20091119184432:20091119000000
Incident: Condor B753 near Munich on Nov 19th 2009, fire in cabin
A Condor Boeing 757-300, registration D-ABON performing flight DE-7398 from
Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Palma Mallorca,SP (Spain), was enroute at FL370
west of Bern (Switzerland), when an electrical short circuit developed into
a smouldering fire and smoke in the forward cabin. The fire was quickly
extinguished, the smoke dissipated. The crew decided to divert to Munich
(Germany), where the airplane landed safely about 50 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 757-300 registration D-ABOB reached Palma Mallorca
with a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=422f8e74
20091120110031:20091119000000
Incident: Norwegian B733 near Hamburg on Nov 19th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 737-300, registration LN-KKT performing flight
DY-3855 from Stockholm Arlanda (Sweden) to Nice (France), was enroute at
FL350 about 23nm southeast of Hamburg Fuhlsbuettel (Germany), when the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit and initiated an emergency descent towards
Hamburg. The airplane subsequently landed safely on Fuhlsbuettel’s runway
23 about 20 minutes after initiating the descent, vacated the runway and
taxied to the apron.

A replacement Hamburg International Airlines Boeing 737-700 registration
D-AHIC resumed the flight as 4R-6855 and is estimated to reach Nice with
a delay of 3 hours.

The incident airplane was ferried back as flight DY-8908 departing Hamburg
about 3 hours after landing.

Norwegian Air Shuttle reported, that the crew smelled something unfamiliar
similiar to an electrical smell of smoke and diverted to Hamburg as a precaution.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=422f5f16
20091119185542:20091118000000
Accident: Allegiant MD87 at Wichita on Nov 18th 2009, engine failure
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-87, registration N952MA performing
flight G4-5813 from Wichita,KS to Bulkhead City,AZ (USA) with 125 passengers
and 5 crew, was climbing through 1500 feet out of runway 19R, when the left
hand engine emitted a loud bang, the crew received an engine fire indication
followed by an ATC transmission indicating, that flames from the left engine
were visible on the ground. The crew levelled at 4000 feet and returned
to Wichita, where the airplane landed safely on runway 19R about 8 minutes
later. The airplane was initially evacuated via slides, a number of passengers
went down the slides, most of the passengers disembarked via stairs brought
to the airplane.

A replacement McDonnell Douglas MD-83 resumed the flight and is estimated
to reach Bulkhead City with a delay of 6:15 hours.

Allegiant Air reported, that one passenger received minor injuries in the
evacuation.

Emergency services reported, that there was no engine fire, though the engine
was still emitting smoke on the ground.

The FAA reported, that two persons reported minor injuries after using the
slides.

Metars:
KICT 190253Z 17004KT 10SM CLR 05/M02 A2997 RMK AO2 SLP155 T00501017 51011

KICT 190153Z 17003KT 10SM CLR 03/M01 A2996 RMK AO2 SLP154 T00331011
KICT 190053Z 17003KT 10SM CLR 05/M01 A2995 RMK AO2 SLP149 T00501006
KICT 182353Z 17004KT 10SM CLR 08/M01 A2994 RMK AO2 SLP144 T00781011 10128
20078 55002
KICT 182253Z 00000KT 10SM FEW100 11/M02 A2993 RMK AO2 SLP141 T01061022

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=422d9777
20091125191533:20091113000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 near Goose Bay on Nov 13th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N182DN performing flight DL-209
from Prague (Czech) to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute at FL340 50nnm
southeast of Goose Bay,NL (Canada), when the crew reported smoke in the
cockpit and diverted to Goose Bay. The airplane landed safely in Goose Bay
about 13 (!!) minutes later.

Maintenance identified a forward cooling fan as source of the smoke.

The airplane was able to continue the flight after about 3:45 hours on the
ground and reached New York with a delay of 4 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported on Nov 25th, that a forward equipment cooling
exhaust fan had failed and the according circuit breaker had tripped. The
fan was deferred in accordance with minimum equipment list requirements
and the airplane returned to service, the airplane departed Canadian airspace
without further incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=422b18f2
20091125193002:20091112000000
Incident: Fedex MD11 near Goose Bay on Nov 12th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Fedex McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration N572FE performing
flight FX-3 from Cologne (Germany) to Memphis,TN (USA), declared PAN reporting
smoke in the cockpit when the airplane was enroute at FL320 overhead the
Atlantic halfway between Greenland and Canada and about 300nm northeast
of Goose Bay. The airplane was cleared direct Goose Bay and landed safely
about 50 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported on Nov 25th, that a thrust reverser actuator on
the left hand engine (CF6) leaked hydraulics fluid onto a bleed air duct.
The duct was cleaned and the associated filters and the thrust reverser
actuator were replaced. Subsequently the airplane departed Goose Bay without
further incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42270bb7
20091108222957:20091108000000
Incident: Lufthansa Cityline CRJ2 near Stockholm on Nov 8th 2009, smoke alert, engine shut down in flight
A Lufthansa Cityline Canadair CRJ-200, registration D-ACHI performing flight
LH-3039 from Stockholm Arlanda (Sweden) to Hamburg Fuhlsbuettel (Germany)
with 43 people on board, was climbing through FL160 out of Arlanda, when
the crew reported overheating and smoke in the cabin, declared emergency
and decided to return to Stockholm. While descending towards Arlanda Airport,
the crew shut the right hand engine (CF34) down. The airplane landed safely
about 10 minutes later with emergency services attending the airplane. No
smoke was detected after landing, no injuries occured.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4227ebfa
20091110003259:20091107000000
Incident: Sunexpress B738 near Antalya on Nov 7th 2009, rapid loss of cabin pressure
A Sunexpress Boeing 737-800, flight XQ-636 from Antalya (Turkey) to Saarbruecken
(Germany) with 127 passengers, was climbing out of Antalya about 20 minutes
into the flight, when the cabin pressure was rapidly lost, oxygen masks
deployed with their chemical oxygen generators producing a smell of smoke.
The crew initiated an emergency descent and returned to Antalya, where the
airplane landed safely.

A replacement Sky Airlines Airbus A320-200 registration TC-SKK reached Saarbruecken
with a delay of 4.5 hours.

The cause of the depressurization is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42242c32
20091105065856:20091104000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 near Las Vegas on Nov 4th 2009, smell of burning plastics
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-343 from Sioux Falls,SD
to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was enroute at FL340 about 115nm northeast of Las
Vegas,NV near Colorado City,AZ, when the crew reported a burning smell on
board and decided to divert to Las Vegas. The airplane landed safely 20
minutes later.

A burnt out light bulb was identified as cause of the burning smell of plastics.

The flight reached Los Angeles with a delay of 90 minutes however without
one passenger, whose final destination was Las Vegas.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4221979a
20100125133649:20091101000000
Incident: Germanwings A319 near Cologne on Nov 1st 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Germanwings Airbus A319-100, registration D-AGWE performing flight 4U-64
from Cologne to Rostock (Germany) with 133 passengers, returned to Cologne
after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit. The airplane landed safely,
the passenger disembarked normally.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration D-AGWJ departed Cologne with
a delay of 4 hours.

The airport initially reported 35 passengers on board of the aircraft.

Germany’s Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation BFU reported on Jan
25th 2010, that the crew noticed an acrid smell in the cockpit, donned their
oxygen masks and returned to Cologne. An investigation is ongoing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=421efab1
20091029132132:20091028000000
Incident: Nas Air A320 near Hail on Oct 28th 2009, cargo fire indication
A Nas Air Airbus A320-200, flight XY-729 from Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) to Alexandria
El Arab (Egypt) with 91 passengers, diverted to Hail (Saudi Arabia) after
the crew received a fire indication for one of the cargo holds. The airplane
landed safely, the passengers were evacuated.

Emergency services did not find any trace of fire, smoke or heat.

A replacement aircraft continued the journey.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=421e51ff/0000
20110422164043:20091028000000
Accident: Asiana A321 at Osaka on Oct 28th 2009, tail strike on landing
The Japanese Transportation Safety Board (JTSB) released their final report
in Japanese – English version released Apr 22nd 2011 – concluding the probable
cause was:

In this accident, it is considered highly probable that, during the landing
on Kansai International Airport, the Aircraft sustained damage in the aft
part of the fuselage which contacted the runway, since the pitch angle became
excessively large after the touchdown on the runway. It is considered highly
probable that the Aircraftís pitch angle became excessive because the First
Officer continued inputting pitch-up signals even after touchdown.

The flare by the First Officer was inappropriate and as a result, the sink
rate of the Aircraft did not fully decrease, causing the Aircraft to land
with a strong impact on the ground. It is considered probable that, that
the First Officer became upset by the impact contributed to his continuous
input for pitch-up after touchdown.

The first officer (35, CPL, 1789 hours total, 1498 on type) was pilot flying,
the captain (41, ATPL, 8022 hours total, 2079 hours on type) was pilot monitoring.

The airplane had been cleared to land on Osaka’s runway 06L. At 1000 feet
AGL the first officer disconnected the autopilot, autothrust remained in
speed hold with a target speed of 137 KIAS. The airplane reached 100 feet
AGL at a sink rate of 736 feet/minute and a pitch angle of 2.1 degrees,
which reduced to 1.8 degrees 2 seconds later. The airplane went through
33 feet AGL when the first officer began to apply back pressure on the side
stick, the pitch angle started to increase, however 3 seconds after descending
through 33 feet AGL both main gear sensors registered ground contact at
a pitch angle of 4.6 degrees, a vertical speed of 544 feet/minute and a
vertical acceleration of 1.91G, the spoilers began to deploy, and the vertical
acceleration reduced to 0.67G. The first officer now applied 15.9 degrees
(maximum 16 degrees) nose up input, the thrust levers were placed to idle
and the engines spooled down. 2 seconds after first touchdown the airplane
reached 4 feet AGL at a pitch angle of 10.2 degrees, the thrust levers are
placed into the TOGA detent, a second later both gear switches register
ground contact again at a pitch angle of 9.8 degrees, a vertical acceleration
of 1.2G and a speed of 124 KIAS. 2 seconds later a first officer’s nose
up input of 15.1 degrees is recorded, the pitch angle reached 10.5 degrees,
the first officer reduced the stick input to 1.4 degrees and the pitch angle
began to decrease afterwards, the airspeed increased to 140 KIAS and the
radar altimeter showed a gradual increase. 9 seconds after the throttle
levers were placed into the TOGA detent the airplane reached 15 feet AGL
and climbed out in the go-around.

The airplane landed without further incident on runway 06L about 10 minutes
later.

The captain reported later, that the approach had been stable until about
20 feet AGL, when the first officer got behind the aircraft. The aircraft
bounced once, the first officer selected TOGA, however the pitch attitude
was around 11 degrees when the aircraft settled on the runway a second time.
He had observed the first officer during two landings where the first officer
did not raise any concerns.

The first officer said, he started the flare at 30 feet AGL however in order
to reduce the drift he then delayed the flare a bit. The first touchdown
was hard, the airplane bounced. Fearing the second touch down might be even
harder and alignment with the runway lost he decided to go-around and placed
the throttle levers into TOGA. He did not realize they had suffered a tail
strike on second touch down observing a pitch attitude of 9-10 degrees.
He subsequently reduced the pitch to normal go-around attitudes. He considered
this landing the worst of his about 400 landings during his career so far.
He did not think fatigue was a factor.

The flight attendants reported they noticed a very hard touchdown and saw
the nose of the aircraft rise subsequently. A few seconds after the first
impact they heard sounds as if the airplane was rubbing over the runway
before the airplane began to climb out.

The airplane received skin damage to the underside of its belly, frame damage
and water drain mast damage. Apart from the paint and scratch marks on the
runway no damage occurred at the airport.

Airport surveillance cameras showed the airplane touched down about 150
meters past the runway threshold but lifted off again flying almost parallel
to the runway with the attitude increasing before settling again on the
runway about 360 meters past the runway threshold, white smoke was visible
from the tail, subsequently the airplane began to climb out.

The JTSB cited manuals stating that a tail strike occurs at pitch angles
of 11 degrees with gear oleos decompressed or 9.5 degrees with gear oleos
fully compressed. The manual warns of a pitch up tendency during ground
spoiler extension.

The JTSB analysed that the captain was not monitoring the first officer
properly and failed to assume control of the aircraft when the flare became
inproper.

The skin damage (Photo: JTSB):
Runway marks (Photo: JTSB):
Graphical representation of FDR (Graphics: JTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=421e4725
20091028140931:20091027000000
Incident: Air Southwest DH8C near London on Oct 27th 2009, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Air Southwest de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration G-WOWA performing
flight SZ-9114 from Southampton,EN to East Midlands,EN (UK), diverted to
London Gatwick,EN (UK) after the crew declared emergency reporting a smell
of smoke in the cockpit about 10 minutes into the flight. The crew donned
their oxygen masks and managed a safe landing further 10 minutes later at
5 minutes past midnight (Oct 28th).

Attending emergency services did not find any trace of fire or heat.

The airplane was carrying the soccer team of Stoke City returning from their
defeat in Portsmouth attempting to reach the quarter finals of the English
Carling Cup. The team had to continue their journey by bus.

Stoke City reported, that the players noticed a smell of smoke in the cabin
prompting the captain to divert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=421b5878
20091024171019:20091023000000
Incident: Rossiya A319 at Moscow on Oct 23rd 2009, bird strike
A Rossiya Airbus A319-100, registration VQ-BAR performing flight FV-160
from Moscow Sheremetyevo to Saint Petersburg (Russia), ingested a bird into
an engine while climbing out of Sheremetyevo Airport. Shortly thereafter
visible smoke appeared in the cabin. The crew shut the engine down and returned
to Sheremetyevo, where the airplane landed safely about 15 minutes after
liftoff.

A replacement Tupolev TU-154M reached Saint Petersburg’s Pulkovo Airport
with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4219160b
20091021153946:20091021000000
Incident: American B738 at Hartford on Oct 21st 2009, rejected takeoff
The crew of an American Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N960AN performing
flight AA-1375 from Hartford,CT (USA) to San Juan (Puerto Rico), rejected
takeoff after receiving abnormal engine indications and another crew reporting
8 feet (2.5 meters) long flames with smoke coming out of the right hand
engine. The airplane stopped on the runway, emergency services responded.
The airplane was towed off the runway about 30 minutes later.

Runway 06/24 was closed for about 30 minutes until the airplane was towed
off the runway and a runway inspection had been completed, a number of flights
waited for the runway to re-open, several other flights waiting for departure
chose to taxi to the shorter runway 33 for takeoff.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42193d7b
20110324122256:20091020000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C near Vancouver on Oct 20th 2009, cockpit fire
Damaged left hand windshield and terminal block(Photo: TSB)An Air Canada
Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-FRUZ performing flight QK-8216
from Cranbrook,BC to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 36 people on board, had
already descended towards Vancouver and was 30nm east of Vancouver at 10000
feet, when the crew declared emergency reporting a fire in the cockpit.
The crew requested a straight in approach to one of the runways 26 although
runway direction 08 was active. The crew managed to contain the fire, the
smoke dissipated, the outer pane of the left hand windshield shattered however
leaving only the inner pane intact. The airplane was cleared to land on
runway 26R and touched down safely with emergency services on stand by and
vacated the runway.

The runway was closed for 7 minutes.

Runway 08R remained active for all other traffic throughout the emergency.

The Canadian TSB reported on Oct 30th, that the left forward captain’s windshield
heater terminal block shorted out and caught fire for a few seconds. The
flames stopped when the crew turned the window heating off, one of the inner
layer panes was shattered. The crew donned their oxygen masks, declared
emergency and went for a straight in approach to runway 26R. By the time
the airplane was landing the outer pane of the windshield had started to
crack. Emergency services and crew assessed the situation and saw no risk
in having the airplane taxi to the apron. The airplane sustained minor damage.

On Mar 23rd 2011 the TSB released their final report concluding:

Findings as to Causes and Contributing Factors

1. Electrical arcing in the braid lead to the L2 connector on the windshield
terminal block occurred as a result of damage within the wire braiding.
It was not possible to determine the initial cause of the damage within
the wire braid.

2. Due to its proximity to the arcing, the inner ply of the windshield cracked.

Findings as to Risk

1. Whenever a cockpit voice recorder (CVR) is not secured after an occurrence,
information relevant to a TSB investigation is lost and the identification
of safety deficiencies and the development of safety messages are impeded.

2. Under certain arcing conditions, a thermal overload style circuit breaker
may not trip, increasing the risk of overheat or fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42181fd3
20091020082059:20091019000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Louisville on Oct 19th 2009, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-69 from Louisville,KY to
Phoenix,AZ (USA) with 139 people on board, was climbing out of Lousiville’s
runway 17R, when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit, levelled off at
8000 feet and decided to return to Louisville. The airplane landed safely
on runway 17R 17 minutes after departure, vacated the runway and requested
the attending emergency services to check the hot brakes at the gate reporting,
that there was a big smell of smoke in the cockpit but no smoke in cockpit
and cabin.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 reached Phoenix with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4215d31e
20091018172754:20091017000000
Crash: Victoria Air DC3 at Manila on Oct 17th 2009, engine fire
The remains of RP-C550 (Photo: AFP/Jay Directo) The crew of a Victoria
Air Douglas C-47B Skytrain freighter, registration RP-C550 on a freight
flight from Manila to Puerto Princesa (Philippines) with 4 crew, had departed
Manila’s runway 24 normally at 11:56am local (03:56Z) but eight minutes
later declared emergency reporting an engine fire and attempted to return
to the airport’s runway 06, when the aircraft lost height, struck a house
in the Villa Fidela subdivision and went into a warehouse (Location N14.4773
E120.9786) about 1.85nm short of the runway threshold at around 12:15L (04:15Z).
All four occupants were killed in the crash. Both houses caught fire, a
total of 15 houses received damages in the crash.

Authorities confirmed on Oct 18th, that only four people had boarded the
airplane although the load manifest showed 7 names.

The CAA of the Philippines stated on Oct 18th, that the crew reported an
engine fire 8 minutes after takeoff. The CAA received witness accounts stating,
that there was smoke trailing the aircraft as it descended towards the runway.
The airplane’s left wing hit a post prior to crashing into the warehouse.
The airplane transported fish.

The airport reported, that the airplane took off runway 24, the crew later
radioed Mayday reporting engine trouble and were cleared to land on runway
06. The pilot had already concluded the 180 degrees turn back to the runway
and was approaching runway 06, when it went down.

Witnesses on the ground said, that the airplane began to “wobble” (roll
left and right) before it lost height.
Metars:
RPLL 170600Z 26012KT 9999 FEW023 SCT300 31/26 Q1007 NOSIG RMK A2974
RPLL 170500Z 28008KT 9999 FEW023 SCT300 30/27 Q1008 NOSIG RMK A2977
RPLL 170400Z 29006KT 9999 FEW023 SCT300 31/27 Q1008 NOSIG RMK A2977
RPLL 170300Z 29006KT 9999 FEW023 SCT300 31/27 Q1009 NOSIG RMK A2980
RPLL 170200Z 28006KT 9000 FEW023 SCT300 30/26 Q1010 NOSIG RMK A2983
RPLL 170100Z 22001KT 8000 FEW023 SCT300 30/27 Q1010 NOSIG RMK A2983

Detail map (Courtesy Google Earth):
Map (Courtesy Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4230992c
20091120231322:20091013000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 near Atlanta on Oct 13th 2009, odour prompts return
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, flight DL-101 from Atlanta,GA to Buenos
Aires,BA (Argentine), was enroute at FL310 about 120nm south of Atlanta
30 minutes into the flight, when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and
decided to return to Atlanta. The airplane landed safely in Atlanta about
20 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N154DL reached Buenos Aires with
a delay of 5 hours.

Passengers on board reported, that following a normal departure – dinner
service was just about to commence – the cabin went dark, the inflight entertainment
system stopped working and just the emergency lights at the floor illuminated
about 30 minutes into the flight. A flight attendant was observed reporting
“smoke in the cabin” via phone obviously to the flight deck. Other flight
attendants later claimed when asked, however, that the passenger had misheard
and there was no mention of smoke. The airplane turned around and started
to descend in a hurry, when the captain announced they had experienced an
electrical failure and needed to return to Atlanta. The passengers and cabin
were prepared for an emergency landing, however no brace position was ordered.
The airplane landed safely and stopped on the runway to have the brakes
inspected, a lot of emergency services surrounded the airplane. Later the
captain told the passengers in private talks, that he viewed the events
similiar to Swissair flight 111 (editorial note: which crashed near Halifax,
Canada on Sep 2nd 1998 following an electrical short circuit igniting insulation
material) mentioning Swissair several times and he added the incident would
certainly make the headlines in all US newspapers. Delta Airlines and the
FAA did not respond to the passengers’ inquiries over the next month, when
they tried to clarify what had really happened.

The NTSB told The Aviation Herald, that an unusual odour was detected on
board which prompted the crew to return to Atlanta. Maintenance identified
a problem in the air conditioning system, serviced the system and returned
the airplane to service. The occurrence is not reportable to the NTSB and
is therefore not being investigated by the NTSB, the FAA may however conduct
their own investigation.

The Aviation Herald did not receive any replies from Delta Airlines and
the FAA within 24 hours after sending inquiries.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=421273ad
20091012221613:20091012000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 near College Station on Oct 12th 2009, smoke in cockpit
An Expressjet Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of Continental Airlines, registration
N11565 performing flight XE-2593/CO-2593 from Houston,TX to Omaha,NE (USA)
with 38 passengers and 3 crew, was climbing through FL210 out of Houston,
when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to College
Station,TX. The airplane landed safely on runway 34 18 minutes later and
vacated the runway, the passengers disembarked via stairs.

The airplane is currently being checked out.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 registration N14568 is estimated to reach
Omaha with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=420f67ef
20091015184633:20091006000000
Incident: Cathay B773 near Vancouver on Oct 6th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Cathay Pacific Boeing 777-300, registration B-KPF performing
flight CX-888 from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 178
people on board, reported smoke in the cockpit while climbing through 15000
feet departing Vancouver about 8 minutes into the flight and decided to
return to Vancouver. The crew donned their oxygen masks, Vancouver Airport
kept runway 26L steril for about 15 minutes to accomodate the arrival of
CX-888 with emergency services on stand by. While checking in with the tower
the crew reported, that the smoke was dissipating and they’d be okay. The
airplane landed safely on runway 26L about 20 minutes after departure.

The Canadian TSB reported on Oct 15th, that the left engine pressure regulating/shut
off valve was determined as the source of the smoke by maintenance.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42073ae9
20090929215454:20090927000000
Incident: Air France B744 near Montreal on Sep 27th 2009, smoke in cockpit
An Air France Boeing 747-400, registration F-GITJ performing flight AF-439
(dep. Sep 26th) from Mexico City (Mexico) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France),
was enroute at FL330 near Elmira Regional,NY (USA), when the crew declared
emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and requested to divert to Montreal,QC
(Canada). The crew dumped fuel and landed safely about 30 minutes after
declaring emergency.

After examination the airplane was able to continue the flight and reached
Paris with a delay of 5 hours.

The Canadian TSB reported, that a burning smell occured in the rear of the
cabin in the area of seat rows 48 to 50 seats J,K and L. The post flight
examination showed the inflight entertainment system for seat row 49 seats
J,K,L faulty. The unit was isolated and the airplane released for the remainder
of the flight.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=420704d4
20090928151443:20090925000000
Incident: ANA B773 at Fukuoka on Sep 25th 2009, brakes problems
An ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 777-300, registration JA756A performing
flight NH-247 from Tokyo Haneda to Fukuoka (Japan) with 396 passengers and
13 crew, had just touched down on Fukuoka’s runway, when the tower controller
alerted the crew of smoke coming off the left hand gear. Emergency services
responded. The airplane stopped safely. Emergency services recommended to
not evacuate and during further examination spotted a hydraulics leak at
the left hand gear. The aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron about
20 minutes after the landing.

The runway and thus the airport was temporarily closed to clean up the fluid
spill causing some diversions. The airplane received damage to the left
hand main gear tyres.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4203d155/0002
20111004141418:20090924000000
Accident: SA Airlink JS41 at Durban on Sep 24th 2009, lost height after takeoff and impacted school fence
South Africa’s Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) have released their final
report concluding the probable cause of the accident was:

Engine failure after takeoff followed by inappropriate crew response, resulting
in the loss of both lateral and directional control, the misidentification
of the failed engine, and subsequent shutdown of the remaining serviceable
engine.

Contributing factors:

– Separation of the second-stage turbine seal plate rim;

– Failure of the captain and first officer to implement any crew resource
management procedures as prescribed in the operatorís training manual;

– The crewís failure to follow the correct after take-off engine failure
procedures as prescribed in the aircraftís flight manual.

The CAA reported in addition to the preliminary report, that the captain
(40, ATPL, 2,956 hours total, 751 hours on type) had been upgraded to captain
just 14 days prior to the accident. The captain had already been involved
in another accident on Aug 21st 2005 when during a charter flight to Virgina
Aerodrome (South Africa) the aircraft on short final to runway 05 veered
left off the extended center line of the runway, the pilot reported engine
problems and a go-around, the aircraft continued to turn left towards a
residential area, the aircraft struck the roof of a home with the left wing
and nose and came to rest in an inverted tail high position.

The first officer (26, ATPL, 2,002 hours total, 1,027 hours on type) received
her ATPL just 16 days prior to the accident, she held a CPL since 2005.

Both crew had flown together the previous day and had a rest of 9:45 hours
prior to the accident flight.

The crew decided to start the left hand engine first on battery without
assistance by a ground power unit, however, the rpm of the engine did not
run up beyond 13%, the battery voltage alarmingly dropped prompting the
crew to abort the engine start. In consultation with a ground engineer the
crew then decided to try the right hand engine, which started successfully.
Afterwards the left engine was successfully started, too. The CAA quoted
later testimony by first officer and flight attendant, that the ignition
switches were left on the previous day and thus contributed to the start
problem.

The left hand engine had accumulated 1,714 hours since new, the right hand
engine 6,360 hours since new and 3,019 since last overhaul.

The first officer was pilot flying for the sector. When the engines of the
aircraft accelerated for takeoff, the crew of another aircraft observed
thick blue smoke from the right hand engine, engulfing the entire airframe,
but feared they could be made responsible if a rejected takeoff failed and
therefore did not radio the accident crew to stop. Instead, the observing
crew radioed tower asking whether the accident crew would be aware of the
smoke. By the time tower called the accident crew reporting heavy smoke,
the captain had already called V1 (95 KIAS) and “Rotate” and the takeoff
was continued.

The CAA reported, that according to CVR and FDR no warning and no caution
occurred during the entire takeoff run. The only indication of the catastrophic
failure of the right hand engine was the torque indication, that started
to drop while the aircraft accelerated through 90 KIAS (about 5 knots below
V1 and Vr), with the propeller speed however remaining at nominal speed.
The aircraft became airborne at about 125 KIAS. During the climb out the
gear was not retracted, the right hand engine’s torque reduced further.
At 100 feet a number of chimes occurred, the first was called by the first
officer as “engine oil contamination”. About 5 seconds after the call by
the first officer the captain called “we have lost an engine, we are losing
an engine” acknowledged by the first officer “I have it, I have it, keeping
runway track 6000 feet. Flap is zero. We have lost an engine.”

The aircraft continued to climb and accelerated to a maximum speed of 145
knots at 185 feet AGL, at which point the right hand engine’s torque reduced
through 20% and the airspeed began to decay. When the aircraft reached 400
feet AGL the torque had reached zero and the airspeed was reducing through
132 KIAS, the right hand engine’s propeller speed began to gradually decrease,
the aircraft progressively rolled to the right despite left aileron and
left rudder applied.

At 490 feet the aircraft temporarily levelled off at an airspeed of 120
KIAS, the first officer commented “We are not maintaining” acknowledged
by the captain. A master warning occurred, the beta discrete value of the
right hand engine indicated zero. A radion transmission said: “Your gear
is still down”, the captain was heard on the CVR saying “OK”. Shortly thereafter
the left engine began to run down, both torque and propeller rpm’s dropping
to zero consistent with a manual shut down – the investigation later found
both power levers in the full forward position (maximum power), the left
fuel cut off lever in the cut-off position and the right fuel cut off lever
in the flight position.

The first officer now called for the gear up, the captain acknowledged,
further alerts sounded. The aircraft started to descend, the angle of attack
increased and the stick shaker activated. The captain ordered “pitch forward”.
The SACAA commented that from that point it appeared the captain was flying
the aircraft, however, no hand over of controls had been announced or acknowledged.
Various ground proximity alerts sounded together with occasional stick shaker
activations as the aircraft descended and struck the ground 110 seconds
after the start of the takeoff run.

The captain sustained blunt chest and lower limb injuries resulting in a
multiple organ trauma causing his death 14 days after the accident.

The investigation found during a tear down of the engine that the second
stage turbine seal plate had failed which was deemed the primary cause of
the engine failure. The most damaging effect of the seal plate rim failure
was severe imbalance of the turbine rotor. The SACAA continued: “Typically,
this vibration led to fatigue failures of the rear bearing oil feed and
scavenge pipes with consequent oil starvation and deterioration of the bearing.
It is understood that detachment of the bearing cover, tail cone and retention
nut had not been seen before, except for one case that occurred in 2009.”

The investigation determined that the right hand seal plate had failed after
1,314 cycles since new, while the left hand engine’s seal plate was worn
beyond limits after only 570 hours since new. A Service Bulletin by the
manufacturer, issued in 2001 after a number of seal plate rim failures,
required inspection of the seal plates every 4,500 hours. The SACAA determined
in their investigation that at least 7 seal plate rim failures had occurred
before the plate had accumulated 4,500 hours since new between issuance
of the Service Bulletin and 2009.

The SACAA analysed that the most important cue to the crew during the takeoff
run would have been the engine torque indication. The SACAA said: “… had
neither of the pilots been monitoring the engine instruments at that point,
this cue would have been missed.”

The engine failure actually occurred when the aircraft accelerated through
90 KIAS. The SACAA analysed that the captain might well have noticed the
aircraft swinging to the right but the cause might not have been recognized
in the short time between failure and the call to rotate. The SACAA said:
“However, considering the experience that both pilots had, this oversight
seems surprising.”

The SACAA said, after rotation an engine failure was correctly identified,
the first officer identified oil contamination in the right hand engine,
the aircraft was rolling to the right, however, there was no attempt between
the pilots to positively identify which engine had failed. The SACAA continued:
“There was a gradual loss of control with the captain seemingly attempting
to feather the propeller on the failed engine quickly in order to regain
control. In doing so, he inadvertently selected the wrong engine. Having
done so, a forced landing became inevitable.” Later the SACAA stated: “The
power reduction of the left engine appears to have been the result of misidentification
and shutdown of the engine. This has been verified from analysis of the
FDR and CVR information. No clear reason for this misidentification could
be established, other than a complete deviation from the operatorís SOPs.”

The FDR showed at the time of ground contact the right hand propeller was
turning at 65% rpm consistent with not being feathered while the left hand
propeller showed no rpm consistent with being feathered. While the right
hand propeller appeared to be windmilling just prior to ground impact, impact
forces forced the propeller into the reverse blade angle position.

Three safety recommendations were issued to the SACAA as result of the investigation.

The #2 stage of the turbine and fractured seal plate (Photo: SACAA):
Ground tracks after first fuselage contact with ground (Photo: SACAA):
Graphical representation of FDR (Graphics: SACAA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4203d155/0001
20091223194025:20090924000000
Accident: SA Airlink JS41 at Durban on Sep 24th 2009, lost height after takeoff and impacted school fence
The South African CAA have released their interim report including FDR graphics
reporting, that the first officer was pilot flying and the captain pilot
monitoring. The crew had briefed and prepared a takeoff with flaps at 9
degrees.

Just before liftoff from runway 06 smoke was observed from the right hand
engine. The aircraft climbed to about 500 feet above ground, turned right
and touched down about 1.6 km (0.86nm) from the end of runway 06. It slid
over a distance of 62 meters while travelling across a road and through
a concrete fence and stopped on the yard of a primary school.

The SACAA reports, that according to the flight data recorder the right
hand engine failed above 70 knots, but below V1, the flight data recorder
showing a decrease in torque. The tower advised at the same time, that he
saw smoke trailing the aircraft. An unknown aircraft transmitted “severe
smoke” while ZS-NRM rotated. A warning sound is then heard on the cockpit
voice recorder, the first officer stated “right oil contamination”, the
airplane being at a pressure altitude of 100 feet and at an indicated airspeed
of 140 knots. 9 seconds after liftoff the captain transmitted “we have lost
an engine” and then “we are losing an engine”.

The airplane reached 350 feet MSL with 140 KIAS on runway heading, flaps
were retracted, the left hand engine operated normally at 100% rpm, while
the right hand engine was rapidly spooling down. Hydraulics and oil pressures
were normal.

10 seconds later, the airplane had reached 480 feet MSL at 120 KIAS, the
left hand engine operating normally at 100% rpm. The first officer commented
“we are not maintaining”.

3 seconds later 3 warnings sounded and the master caution activated. An
unknown source transmitted “your gear is still down”, the first officer
now commands “gear up”, the captain confirmed “ok, gear up”, but now the
left hand engine starts to rapidly spool down, the rpm reaching 0% after
7 seconds. The airplane was at 450 feet MSL and 125 KIAS.

3 seconds later the stick shaker activates, the airplane descends and reduces
speed descending through 150 feet MSL at 70 KIAS. 22 seconds after the left
hand engine started to run down, the cockpit voice recorder ends.

The flight data recorder dropped offline about 2 seconds prior to touchdown
due to both generators dropping offline.

Both propellers were severly damaged, however with little or no evidence
of rotation. The right hand propeller was in the feathered position at impact
and was pushed into the reverse due to impact forces. The propeller probably
turned at about 50% rpm at impact. The left hand propeller was not in the
feathered position prior to impact, but impact forces pushed the propeller
into the feathered position.

The right hand engine had severe internal damage prior to impact, that resulted
from the fracture of the second turbine stage seal rim. As result turbine
blade material was missing from all three turbine stages and two blades
of the second stage rotor had fractured.

The left hand engine showed no damage prior to impact. The integrated electronic
engine control was found in the shut off condition indicating, that the
unit had received a command to leave the “run” condition.

The SACAA states as a finding: “The reason for the power reduction experienced
on the no.1 engine, appeared to have been a misidentification and shutdown
of the serviceable engine. This has been concluded from analysis of the
DFDR and CVR information;”

Aerial view of the accident site (Photo: SACAA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4203d155
20111004141501:20090924000000
Accident: SA Airlink JS41 at Durban on Sep 24th 2009, lost height after takeoff and impacted school fence

Ground path (Photo: Martin Schulze) A South African Airlink Jetstream
41, registration ZS-NRM performing positioning flight SA-8911 from Durban
to Pietermaritzburg (South Africa) with 3 crew, lost height after takeoff
from runway 06 and impacted a primary school fence at about 08:00 local
(06:00Z) outside regular school hours. 4 people, amongst them a woman working
on the ground at the school perimeter, have been airlifted to local hospitals,
the captain with critical, the other 3 with serious injuries. The captain
died on Oct 7th as result of the injuries received during the accident.

The crew of a Comair aircraft lining up on runway 06 behind the Airlink
tried to warn the Airlink crew of smoke from the engines, but their transmission
was overlaid.

The fuselage broke up in two main parts at about the wing spars. Blade damage
to both propellers suggests, that the right hand engine was operating under
full power, while the left hand engine may have failed without the propeller
entering feather position.

Airlink reported, that the crew called Mayday reporting an engine loss and
smoke from the rear shortly after liftoff. The crew attempted an emergency
landing on the field ahead of the school.

On Sep 25th South Africa’s CAA confirmed the possibility of an engine failure
as cause of the accident after preliminary investigations were completed.
The wreckage has been released to be removed from the accident site. The
investigators are on their way back to Johannesburg for further investigations.

SA Airlink reported on Sunday (Sep 27th), that the captain of the flight
has undergone a 10 hour surgery and is in stable, however still critical
condition due to a punctured lung, broken ribs, leg injuries and facial
fractures. The first officer underwent surgeries as well and is now in a
stable and no longer critical condition. The flight attendant is recovering
well, doctors will pay attention to her spinal injury in the next days.
The Durban solid waste employee, who had been clearing ground outside the
school and was hit by the wing of the airplane, received multiple leg fractures,
underwent surgeries as well and is on the way of recovery. The airplane
has been moved to a secure hangar in Johannesburg, where the wreckage will
be available to South Africa’s accident investigators for further examination.

South Africa’s Civil Aviation Authority SACAA reported on Oct 2nd, that
Durban’s tower controller observed smoke from the right hand engine #2 during
the takeoff roll and advised the crew accordingly, however not before the
takeoff rotation commenced. The takeoff therefore could no longer be rejected,
the takeoff roll lasted for about 18 seconds. The #2 engine failed during
takeoff rotation, the #1 engine (left hand) reduced power during climb out
at about 450 feet MSL. The total time from start of takeoff roll to contacting
ground again was about 50 seconds.

The SACAA did not yet have the opportunity to interview the crew.

The SACAA is especially looking into the cause of the failure of engine
#2, but also into the power reduction of engine #1, which will be supported
by the analysis of cockpit voice and flight data recorders. The CAA also
examines, whether a misidentification of the failed engine may have caused
the power loss on the left hand engine, but also strips the engine down
to verify whether the engine has been serviceable or not.

SA Airlink reported on Oct 2nd, that the captain remains sedated but responds
to treatment, the blood pressure normalized, an infection in the foot has
improved, an infection in the chest still raises concerns. He didn’t need
further surgery. The copilot has been transferred to a high care facility
in Johannesburg. The flight attendant was moved the hospital’s orthopedic
ward. The Durban employee is comfortable and recovering well.

SA Airlink continued (Oct 2nd), that the perimeter wall of the school has
been rebuilt and the contaminated soil inside the school perimeter removed,
new soil delivered and new grass and seeds been planted.

SA Airlink welcomed the swift first analysis of the black boxes and for
the preliminary observations released on Oct 2nd (see above) pledging full
support of the SACAA in the ongoing investigation.

The hospital treating the captain reported on Oct 7th, that the captain
passed away around 1am on Oct 7th.
Metars:
FADN 240700Z 06012KT 9999 FEW012 21/18 Q1015 NOSIG
FADN 240600Z 06011KT 9999 FEW012 20/18 Q1015 NOSIG
FADN 240500Z 04006KT 9999 FEW012 18/17 Q1015 NOSIG
FADN 240400Z 05006KT 9999 FEW030 18/17 Q1016 NOSIG
FADN 240300Z 06005KT CAVOK 18/17 Q1016 NOSIG

Nose section (Photo: Martin Schulze):
Fence and tail section (Photo: Martin Schulze):
Point of first touch down (Photo: Martin Schulze):
Map (Courtesy Google Earth):
Detail Map (Courtesy Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4362e314
20110114124944:20090923000000
Report: City Star Airlines D328 near Dundee on Sep 23rd 2009, trouble with both engines
A City Star Airlines Dornier 328, registration D-CIRT performing a positioning
flight from Dundee,SC (UK) to Oberpfaffenhofen (Germany) with 2 crew, was
climbing through about 6000 feet out of Dundee when the crew reported trouble
with the left hand engine, the crew levelled off at 6000 feet and requested
to return to Dundee. The crew initiated the shut down of the left hand engine,
when the crew observed the right hand engine oil pressure indication begin
to fluctuate too. The crew aborted the shut down of the left hand engine,
advised ATC that they now had trouble with both engines and were vectored
to the nearest airfield available, RAF Leuchars, where the aircraft landed
safely on runway 28 about 12 minutes after departure from Dundee.

The British Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) released their Bulletin
concluding:

The cause of this serious incident was the failure of both engine air-switching
valves to operate normally.

This resulted in the over-pressurisation of the engine oil cavities and
the purging of oil overboard through the engine vent system. The presence
of corrosion on the pistons, piston rings and the inner bore of the valves,
caused as a result of the prolonged storage of the aircraft, prevented the
valves from operating normally.

The crew were faced with a series of malfunctions resulting in their decision
to land at the nearest suitable airfield. However, these intentions were
not communicated effectively to ATC and it was the decisive action of the
Leuchars controllers which prevented an escalation of an already difficult
situation.

The AAIB reported, that the aircraft had not been flown for almost two years.
City Star Airlines had ceased trading in September 2008, the aircraft had
used as a source of serviceable parts in the last period of City Star.

An aircraft asset company had made the aircraft serviceable in December
2008 and flew the aircraft to Dundee, where it went into storage.

The tower controller observed grey smoke from both engines during departure
but thought this was not unusual due to the long time since last operation
of the aircraft.

A mechanics of the maintenance organisation working with the crew observed
the takeoff and observed white smoke from the left hand engine and thought
this was unusual. He was going to phone ATC about his observation with the
request to advise the crew when he turned his VHF radio on and heard the
aircraft was returning to Dundee with an emergency.

The crew had taken off Dundee’s runway 27, flaps were retracted and the
aircraft accelerated at 1500 feet. When the airplane climbed through 3000
feet the right hand alternator indication illuminated along with according
EICAS messages. The crew completed their after takeoff checklists and were
about to commence the checklist for the alternator indication when the commander
noticed the oil pressure for the left hand engine started to fluctuate.
While the crew was discussing the fluctuation the red left engine oil pressure
warning illuminated together with an aural “attention-getter”. The crew
levelled off at FL060 and requested to return to Dundee, upon query by ATC
the crew declared emergency.

The captain considered the implications of shutting the left hand engine
down with a right hand engine alternator indication, the implication being
the loss of electrically driven hydraulics, and decided he would shut the
left hand engine down according to the checklist for low oil pressure. The
first officer had already identified the power lever for the left hand engine
and was about to retard the lever, when the captain observed the right hand
engine oil pressure indication to fluctuate. The crew aborted the shut down
of the left hand engine and the commander asked the first officer to request
vectors to the nearest suitable airfield.

The first officer thought he had done so but radioed: “we are having problems
with two engines rt and it ís the shortest way to the field.” ATC interpreted
this as a request for vectors direct to Dundee.

The captain considered that they might lose one or both engines without
any warning and maneouvered the airplane to remain in visual conditions
though in general direction of the ATC vectors. The crew saw an airfield
underneath and believed this was the airfield ATC was vectoring them to
and called visual with the field.

ATC advised the field was Leuchars, they still had 10nm to run to Dundee,
and asked whether they wanted to land at Leuchars. The crew believed ATC
were offering them an alternate airfield and replied “negative”.

The crew completed their landing checks and positioned the aircraft for
a final approach to Leuchar’s runway 28. With the engines at low power the
oil fluctuations had decreased in severity. ATC advised they were flying
towards Leuchars not Dundee to which the crew replied “roger”.

Leuchar’s tower controller judged from the position and altitude of the
aircraft that they were intending to land at the airfield and therefore
cleared the runway. He then verified the gear was down and cleared D-CIRT
to land.

The aircraft vacated the runway, ATC advised they had landed at Leuchars.
Only then the crew realised where Leuchars was, they did not have the aerodrome
in their FMC database nor did they carry the charts for the airfield.

A subsequent inspection revealed no oil leak although the left hand engine
had lost 7 quarts and the right hand engine had lost 4 quarts of engine
oil. Borescopic inspection of the engines showed no obstruction of bearing
oil vents or any evidence of damage.

The oil was refilled and the engines were ground run for 20 minutes with
no observed oil pressure fluctuation. The power of the right hand engine
was increased to 100% torque for about 5 minutes with no anomaly observed.
The left hand engine torque was increased to 85% for several minutes with
no observed anomaly, however when the torque was increased further the engine
oil pressure began to wildly fluctuate. After reducing to 85% torque the
oil pressure stabilized again. After shut down the right hand engine had
lost 1.5 quarts of engine oil, the left hand engine 3 quarts of engine oil,
with no evidence of an external leak or vent.

The flight data recorder showed that during the incident flight the left
hand engine oil pressure was indicated below limit for 14 times during the
flight, the right hand oil pressure went below limit once. The oil pressure
fluctuated by about 17 psi with a minimum of 30 psi.

After discussion with the engine manufacturer both engines were removed
for further examination at an approved overhaul facility under supervision
of German BFU. The engines were operated above idle and showed high oil
consumption with vapour observed venting from the oil system breather.

The P2.5/P3 air switching valves were replaced with new units, subsequent
tests showed no anomaly anymore.

The old P2.5/P3 valves were partly disassembled and were found seized in
their housings. The valves were dispatched to the engine manufacturer, who
found both pistons seized requiring a hydraulic press to free them. After
removal it was found that piston, piston rings and inner surface of the
valve had corroded.

The failure of the P2.5/P3 valves will cause the oil cavities and gearboxes
to become overpressurized at higher engine speeds forcing oil into the oil
system breather and being discharged overboard.

One safety recommendation was released as result of the investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42099e4c
20091001205805:20090922000000
Incident: Air Canada E190 near San Francisco on Sep 22nd 2009, unruly oven
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190, registration C-FNAI performing flight AC-583
from San Francisco,CA (USA) to Vancouver,BC (Canada) with 38 people on board,
was in the climb out of San Francisco, when the rear galley oven started
to emit smoke. When the oven was opened, spilled food was found. The oven
was switched off, the smoke dissipated. The airplane continued to destination
for a safe landing on schedule.

Two days earlier the same oven had already caused some “excitement” while
the aircraft was being pushed back in Los Angeles,CA (USA) to perform flight
AC-553 to Vancouver. Both engines had just been started, when an electrical
smell occured in the rear galley obviously originating from the oven. The
aircraft was immediately shut down again and towed back to the gate. Maintenance
engineers were unable to reproduce the smell and released the aircraft for
flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42019e8e
20090921142139:20090920000000
Incident: Iran Air F100 near Bandar Abbas on Sep 20th 2009, smoke in cabin
An Iran Air Fokker 100, registration EP-CFJ performing flight IR-214 from
Gheshm to Tehran Mehrabad (Iran) with 102 people on board, diverted to Bandar
Abbas (Iran) after the crew reported smoke in the cabin. The airplane landed
safely.

The flight had to be cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other
flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4200b328
20090920101538:20090919000000
Incident: Livingston A321 near Athens on Sep 19th 2009, smoke on board
A Livingston Airbus A321-200, registration EI-LVD performing flight LM-462
from Rhodes (Greece) to Verona (Italy) with 211 passengers and 7 crew, diverted
to Athens (Greece) due to smoke on board. The airplane landed safely on
Athen’s runway 03L at about 19:30 local (16:30Z) with emergency services
on stand by.

The flight is estimated to continue the following day at 14:00 local (11:00Z)
with a total delay of 20.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4200065f
20090919124451:20090918000000
Incident: Aegean A320 over Austria on Sep 18th 2009, smell of smoke
An Aegean Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration SX-DVV performing flight
A3-4463 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Rhodes (Greece), was enroute
at FL370 overhead Austria, when the crew reported smell of smoke and strange
sounds and diverted to Munich (Germany). The airplane landed safely.

The airplane was able to continue following repairs and reached Rhodes as
flight A3-4469 with a delay of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4201d286
20090921203003:20090917000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near Glasgow on Sep 17th 2009, hot water problem
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-ECOI performing flight BE-536
from Exeter,EN to Glasgow,SC (UK) with 36 passengers, was approaching Glasgow,
when the crew reported smoke in the cabin. The airplane continued for a
safe landing in Glasgow with emergency services on stand by.

Flybe said, that the captain reported a minor technical problem, which was
ultimately identified as an electrical problem with the hot water urn in
the forward galley. Glasgow Airport called a full emergency, the airplane
was met by fire services. All passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41fe7f7e/0000
20110514114157:20090917000000
Incident: British Airways A319 at Copenhagen on Sep 17th 2009, engine failure
the high pressure compressor (Photo: HCL)The Danish Havarikommission HCL
released their final report concluding:

The engine damage occurred as a result of a fracture in a non-Service Bulletin
V2500-ENG-72-0487 standard compressor blade in stage 3 of the high-pressure
compressor (HPC).

The fracture occurred as a result of high cycle fatigue initiated by wear
and tear on the Clappers. This wear and tear allowed the blade to bend which
consequently caused strain on the region of the blade platform bearing the
heaviest load.

The HCL reported that the airplane was climbing about 12nm southsoutheast
of Copenhagen’s Kastrup Airport when the crew heard a loud bang, observed
the aircraft to veer left, detected the left hand engine’s (V2500) exhaust
gas temperature increasing and received a number of ECAM messages associated
with the failure of the left hand engine, a smell of smoke was noticed in
the cockpit. The crew shut the left hand engine down, cabin crew observed
clouds of smoke in the cabin prompting the crew to declare MAYDAY. After
the engine was shut down the smoke dissipated and the emergency was downgraded
to PAN. The airplane returned to Copenhagen for a safe landing on runway
04R.

The left hand engine had accumulated 14,246 hours.

A post flight inspection found small particles and metallic fragments in
the turbine and engine exhaust pipe of engine #1. Subsequent inspections
found a blade missing from stage 3 of the high pressure compressor, only
the root of the blade remained in its slot. Secondary damage was observed
at all remaining 30 blades of stage 3, the stage 4 stator vanes and from
stage 6 to stage 12 of the high pressure compressor. No damage was observed
in the low pressure compressur, high pressure turbine and low pressure turbine.

Laboratory analysis concluded that the blade had cracked as result of high
cycle fatigue. The crack originated in the area of highest stress and worn
Clappers. This scenario was consistent with previous blade fractures observed
between 2001 and 2005.

In June 2005 the manufacturer had introduced a new blade design with modified
Clappers to address the issue of worn Clappers and issued an associated
service bulletin V2500-ENG-72-0487. By January 2010 83% of all engines had
received the modified blades. In June 2005 the manufacturer also issued
a non-modification SB establishing a revised inspection schedule for non-modified
blades. The incident engine had not been modified, during an inspection
in November 2008 the inspection interval was reduced to 100 cycles according
to the condition of the clappers indicating amber criterion, the engine
accumulated 1600 hours since. The last inspection prior to the incident
was on Sep 12th 2009.

The HCL annotated that the non-modification SB that wear and tear of Clappers
deteriorating to or below the amber criterion means the engine should be
detached within the next 500 cycles. Following that recommendation would
have prevented the engine failure, however being a recommendation there
was no requirement to replace the engine.
The root of the fractured blade (Photo: HCL):
The neighboured blade (Photo: HCL):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41fbf5b9/0001
20091118112837:20090914000000
Accident: Contact F100 at Stuttgart on Sep 14th 2009, landing without main gear
Tail sitting on the runway (Photo: BFU) The German Bundesstelle fuer
Flugunfalluntersuchungen BFU have released a first bulletin reporting, that
the airplane departed Berlin with a delay of 12 minutes after the airplane
did not move during first push back attempts. A slight “rear up” of the
airplane was observed instead, the crew confirmed that park brakes were
released, ground crew confirmed that the chocks had been removed. It turned
out, that push back tug driver had moved a wrong lever.

The airplane was dispatched with a takeoff weight of 38435 kg and a planned
landing weight of 36196 kg.

The captain was pilot flying, the flight progressed without further event
until established on the localizer at 2800 feet MSL, when the gear was lowered.
Only the nose gear indicated green, both left and right main gear were indicated
unsafe per ECAM message, in addition anti-skid fault and main landing gear
door faults were indicated. The ground proximity warning system issued a
“too low, gear”. The approach was aborted and the crew followed the missed
approach procedure.

The crew attempted to recycle the gear twice, both attempts also resulting
in the nose gear being down and locked, both main landing gear struts however
being indicated unsafe. The crew following the emergency checklists performed
the emergency gear extension procedure again with the result of just the
nose gear extending and indicating locked. The crew subsequently attempted
a 2G turn rolling the airplane to a right hand bank angle of 67 degrees,
the flight data recorder indicating an actual vertical acceleration of 2.1G,
both main gear struts remained unsafe however.

The crew now decided to perform a low approach to Stuttgart to have the
tower inspect the landing gear and received the information, that the left
main gear was not visible at all, the right hand main gear had extended
half way, both main landing gear doors were open. This observation was
confirmed by the crew of another aircraft at Stuttgart apron. While performing
the missed approach procedure the crew attempted another 2G turn, this time
the flight data recorder recorded a left hand bank angle of 68 degrees
and 2.2G vertical acceleration.

The aircraft subsequently entered a holding pattern to burn off fuel with
the aim to land with 700kg (1540 lbs) of fuel remaining. The crew attempted
to recycle the gear with the main and emergency procedures two more times
again without result.

The cabin was prepared for a gear up landing, the captain advised the cabin
crew to initiate an evacuation after landing.

While on final approach the crew shut both engines down at a height of 10
feet, at the time of touch down there were 400kg of fuel remaining. The
airplane slid for about 1000 meters, the tower told the crew subsequently
that no fire or smoke was visible. All passengers were evacuated via the
six emergency exits and slides, three persons received minor injuries during
the evacuation. The passengers reported, that smoke had developed in the
rear of the cabin.

The last C-check of the aircraft had been performed on Aug 5th 2009. At
that time the airplane had accumulated 31450 flight hours and 33527 cycles.
An acceptance flight had been successfully performed on Aug 6th 2009. During
that flight the emergency gear extension procedure had been tested, too.

The airport was closed from 10:47 local (08:47Z), the time of the touch
down, to 18:30L (16:30Z) affecting 155 flights.

When the airplane was lifted to be moved off the runway, both main gear
struts extended keeping in touch with the runway surface, however stopped
about 10cm short of their locked position. Helpers on the ground pushed
the gear struts into their locked position, the gear was secured with the
gear pins and the airplane subsequently towed to the apron.

The airplane received substantial damage. The main gear doors were severly
damaged, both outer main gear tyres were abraded and had deflated, the fuselage
skin at the bottom of the airplane had been abraded between the main wings
and the tail cone with parts of the skin completely grinded through, some
parts of the structures underneath the skin being damaged. The tail cone
was distorted. The trailing edges of the landing flaps were abraded.

During first tests evidence of a disruption of the hydraulics reflux emerged.
Therefore all hydraulics lines to the restrictor check valve were checked.
At the entry point into the restrictor valve two pieces of plastics were
found, which completely blocked the entry. Put together the two pieces had
a diameter of 8 mm. Color, form and size of the plastics pieces were equivalent
with a plunger washer of the park brake shut off valve.

After removal of the plastics pieces the gear would be retracted and extended
without any problem. If moved out of the locked position by about 10 cm
it fell freely back into its locked position.

According to the maintenance logs the park brake shut off valve had been
repeatedly replaced in the 13 months prior to the accident. On Aug 25th
2008 the park brake valve had been replaced. The maintenance report noted
a damaged plunger washer at the valve, the washer was replaced. On May 12th
2009 and in August 2009 the valve was replaced again.

According to a video taken by a police helicopter documenting the entire
approach and full stop landing, which was available to the BFU, the airplane
slid on the ground for 27 seconds, further 22 seconds later the evacuation
commenced. 134 seconds after touchdown all occupants had left the airplane.

Emergency services were alerted of the pending emergency landing 25 minutes
prior to the actual touch down. Emergency services took their positions
along the runway, the runway was not foamed before arrival of the aircraft.

The BFU released two safety recommendations, both of which were accepted
by EASA and published as Airworthiness Directive.
Overview of the accident site (Photo: BFU):
The plastics pieces in the restrictor valve (Photo: BFU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41fea3b6
20090917184148:20090913000000
Incident: Alaska Airlines B734 near Vancouver on Sep 13th 2009, oven disobeys "no smoking" sign
An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-400, registration N771AS performing flight
AS-62 from Ketchikan,AK to Seattle,WA (USA) with 148 people on board, was
enroute at FL330 west of Vancouver, when the crew noticed smoke coming from
the aft galley oven. The circuit breakers for the oven were tripped, the
flight crew declared emergency and diverted to Vancouver,BC (Canada), where
the airplane landed safely 14 minutes later.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the galley oven was replaced and the airplane
returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41fcd731
20090915122153:20090913000000
Incident: Bahamasair B732 at Ft. Lauderdale on Sep 13th 2009, engine failure
A Bahamasair Boeing 737-200, flight UP-206 from Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA)
to Nassau (Bahamas) with 52 passengers, was during initial climb, when the
control tower told the crew the left hand engine was emitting smoke. The
crew levelled off at 2000 feet, shut the engine down and decided to return
to Fort Lauderdale, where the airplane landed safely 10 minutes after departure.

Passengers reported, that they heard a pop sound just after liftoff followed
by streaks of flames and smoke out of the left hand engine. Smoke and flames
stopped a short time later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41fb043c
20090913061539:20090912000000
Incident: City Airline E145 near Berlin on Sep 12th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A City Airline Embraer ERJ-145, registration SE-DZB performing flight CF-526
from Salzburg (Austria) to Gothenburg (Sweden), diverted to Berlin Tegel
(Germany) after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit. The airplane landed
safely. No trace of fire or heat was found.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-145 registration SE-RAC reached Gothenburg with
a delay of 7 hours.

The incident airplane was ferried back to Gothenburg at the same time arriving
with a delay of 7 hours, too.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f88cb0
20090910064442:20090909000000
Incident: Finncomm E145 near Tampere on Sep 9th 2009, smell of smoke
A Finncomm Embraer ERJ-145, registration OH-EBE performing flight FC-228
from Vaasa to Helsinki (Finland), diverted to Tampere (Finland) after the
crew noticed a smell of smoke on board. The airplane landed safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=42fd2b37
20100819111048:20090907000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B764 over Atlantic on Sep 7th 2009, various problems
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-400, registration N840MH performing flight DL-186
from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Venice (Italy) with 206 passengers and 11
crew, was enroute at FL350 about 70nm northeast of St. John’s,NL (Canada)
about 2 hours into the flight, when the cabin lights started to flicker,
the passenger address system became intermittent and then failed, the passenger
oxygen masks on the left hand side of the cabin dropped and a sulphur smell,
but no smoke, was observed in the cabin. The crew decided to divert to Atlanta,GA
(USA) where the airplane landed safely about 4 hours later.

The incident became known only today through a brief preliminary report
by the NTSB.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f6f932
20090908065305:20090907000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Tampa on Sep 7th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN-1245 from Orlando,FL to Denver,CO
(USA) with 124 passengers and 5 crew, diverted to Tampa,FL after the crew
reported smoke and possibly fire in the lavatory while climbing through
FL270. The airplane landed safely on runway 18L 18 minutes later, the passengers
were evacuated via slides.

The airport reported, that fire fighter confirmed the presence of smoke
in the aircraft.

The airline reported, that a fire alarm in the rear lavatory had gone off,
but there was no smoke or fire.

Passngers reported a strong smell of smoke on board.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f54ffa
20090906000501:20090905000000
Incident: Sky King B732 near Hickory on Sep 5th 2009, fire alert in flight
A Sky King Boeing 737-200, flight F3-1471 from Greenville,SC to Greensboro,NC
(USA) with 78 passengers, was enroute near Hickory,NC, when a fire alert
in the cabin prompted the crew to divert to Hickory. The airplane landed
safely, attending emergency services did not find any trace of smoke, heat
or fire.

The alert was determined false, the airplane was released after two hours
on the ground and reached Greensboro with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f4ddbc
20090905112900:20090903000000
Incident: Batavia B734 at Padang on Sep 3rd 2009, burst tyre on backtracking
A Batavia Boeing 737-400, flight 7P-585 from Jakarta to Padang (Indonesia)
with 90 passengers, was about to backtrack the landing runway 34 doing the
180 degrees turn, when the outer right main gear tyre burst. The airplane
was able to taxi to the apron, where passengers disembarked normally.

Witnesses saw the tyre smoke during the final stages of the landing roll
out.

The tyre was replaced, then the airplane could depart on 7P-586 with a delay
of 2.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f31e10
20090903044232:20090902000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near Springfield on Sep 2nd 2009, smoke in cockpit
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-135, registration N734EK performing flight
MQ-4840/AA-4840 from Bentonville,AR to New York La Guardia,NY (USA) with
22 passengers, had just reached cruise level 370, when the crew declared
emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Springfield,MO,
where the airplane landed safely about 22 minutes later.

Attending emergency services did not find any source of heat or fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f25b51
20090903141936:20090902000000
Incident: Air NZ B733 near Wellington on Sep 2nd 2009, smell of smoke
An Air New Zealand Boeing 737-300, registration ZK-NGG performing flight
NZ-535 from Auckland to Christchurch (New Zealand) with 95 passengers and
5 crew, diverted to Wellington (New Zealand) after cabin crew noticed a
smell of smoke on board. The airplane landed safely.

Air New Zealand said, that a seal of the air conditioning system had failed.

Passengers reported, that there had been smell of burning rubber in the
cabin obviously coming from the right hand engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f1c899
20090902081514:20090901000000
Incident: Indigo A320 near Hyderabad on Sep 1st 2009, smoking engine
An Indigo Airbus A320-200, registration VT-INX performing flight 6E-122
from Bangalore to New Delhi (India) with 99 passengers and 6 crew, was enroute
near Hyderabad, when an engine fire alert activated and smoke was seen coming
from the engine. The crew decided to divert to Hyderabad, where the airplane
landed safely.

The airport reported, that the passengers were safely evacuated. A replacement
aircraft is expected to take the passengers to Delhi.

The airline reported, that the indication was false. The passengers were
rebooked onto another flight departing 3 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41f1f2b4
20090901190953:20090831000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 near New York on Aug 31st 2009, smoke in cabin followed by loss comm
A Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, registration N249JB performing flight B6-654
from New York JFK,NY to Rochester,NY (USA), had just departed JFK’s runway
31L and was climbing through 3000 feet, when the crew requested an immediate
return reporting smoke in the cabin. After receiving vectors for downwind
to runways 31 the crew could no longer be heard on the radios, but was able
to acknowledge instructions via the transponder ident. The departure controller
coordinated the return clearing both runways 31L and 31R issuing an according
landing clearance and asking the crew to monitor tower frequency again.
After the tower reissued the landing clearance, the Jetblue crew was able
to regain full radio communication. The airplane landed safely on runway
31R 8 minutes after liftoff and stopped on the runway to have emergency
services check out the airplane. Emergency services reported, that the smoke
had dissipated. The aircraft taxied off the runway to the ramp about 3 minutes
after landing followed by emergency vehicles.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-190 registration N267JB reached Rochester with
a delay of 2:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f8fb20e/0031
20090828133847:20090828133847
Accident: China Airlines B738 at Okinawa on Aug. 20th 2007, airplane in flames arriving at stand
The Japanese Transportation Safety Board (JTSB) released their final report
in English (4.5MB) concluding:

“It is considered highly probable that this accident occurred through the
following causal chain: When the Aircraft retracted the slats after landing
at Naha Airport, the track can that housed the inboard main track of the
No. 5 slat on the right wing was punctured, creating a hole. Fuel leaked
out through the hole, reaching the outside of the wing. A fire started when
the leaked fuel came into contact with high-temperature areas on the right
engine after the Aircraft stopped in its assigned spot, and the Aircraft
burned out after several explosions.

With regard to the cause of the puncture in the track can, it is certain
that the downstop assembly having detached from the aft end of the above-mentioned
inboard main track fell off into the track can, and when the slat was retracted,
the assembly was pressed by the track against the track can and punctured
it.

With regard to the cause of the detachment of the downstop assembly, it
is considered highly probable that during the maintenance works for preventing
the nut from loosening, which the Company carried out on the downstop assembly
about one and a half months prior to the accident based on the Service Letter
from the manufacturer of the Aircraft, the washer on the nut side of the
assembly fell off, following which the downstop on the nut side of the assembly
fell off and then the downstop assembly eventually fell off the track.

It is considered highly probable that a factor contributing to the detachment
of the downstop assembly was the design of the downstop assembly, which
was unable to prevent the assembly from falling off if the washer is not
installed.

With regard to the detachment of the washer, it is considered probable that
the following factors contributed to this: Despite the fact that the nut
was in a location difficult to access during the maintenance works, neither
the manufacturer of the Aircraft nor the Company had paid sufficient attention
to this when preparing the Service Letter and Engineering Order job card,
respectively. Also, neither the maintenance operator nor the job supervisor
reported the difficulty of the job to the one who had ordered the job.”

The airplane (CFM56-7B26 engines) had landed on runway 18 of Okinawa’s Naha
Airport at 10:26:52 JST (01:26:52Z). Flaps and slats were retracted as the
airplane taxied to its assigned parking position 41. The airplane stopped
on parking position 41 at 10:31:47 local, 3 seconds later the engines were
shut down and began to spool down. A ground staff member connected the interphone
via the airplane’s nose gear at 10:32:44. Around 10:32:53 fire broke out
in the area of the right hand engine and quickly spread to the right hand
wing leading edge (slat #5) and to the apron surface underneath the right
hand engine. Around 10:33 multiple air traffic controllers noticed the smoke,
confirmed the airplane on fire via airport surveillance cameras. At 10:33:05
the ground staff reported fire to the captain via the interphone. The captain
verified the smoke visually, then commanded the cabin crew on station at
10:33:42: “Attention! Crew on Station!” followed at 10:33:52: “Crew…uh…prepare
for evacuation!”. In response the purser ordered “Cabin Crew! All doors
in flight!”, at the same time an instruction to evacuate occured and all
cabin crew began the evacuation. At 10:33:58 air traffic control raised
alert via the crash phones and communicated the situation to three relevant
departments. At 10:34:24 the first person left the aircraft via slide 3R,
other slides followed until 10:34:47. Another plane landed on runway 18
at 10:34:47 and began to taxi towards the apron parking position 27 at 10:35:49.
Fire engines moved out the garage at about 10:35 and radioed the tower at
10:35:55 facing that second arrival on the taxiway. At 10:36:06 the evacuation
of passengers finished, the first officer had left the cockpit via the rope
exit at 10:36:02 and was still on the rope, when a first explosion occured
at 10:36:11. The first officer fell to the ground as result of the blast.
The captain exited via the rope at 10:36:20. The fire engines radioed the
tower again at 10:36:24 again without reply. At 10:36:54 a second explosion
occured, Naha City fire services deployed around 10:37. A third explosion
occured at 10:37:11. Ground control ordered the second arrived airplane
to stop. The tower finally called emergency service on radio 10:38:17 but
received no reply. Number 6 airport fire engine reached stand 41 at 10:38:25
and began to discharge foam at the right side of the airplane. At 10:38:28
the fuselage bent and the tail fell to the ground. At 10:38:58 other fire
engines arrived at stand 41 and began to discharge foam. Over the next minutes
many more fire engines from the city arrived on scene. At 10:57 fire services
requested and received permission to use the hydrant at the runway. Fire
fighting operations completed at 11:37.

No injuries occured.

The airplane was destroyed by fire and explosions. The pavement at parking
position 41 was partially damaged.

Inspection of the wreckage as well as testimony by witnesses suggested,
that a fuel leak had occured near the right hand engine and the right hand
wing leading edge (slat #5). An inspection found a puncture hole in a slat
track two days after the accident, the track housed the slat #5. A piece
of hardware headed by a nut protruded through the puncture hole towards
the inside of the fuel tank. A boroscopic inspection showed, that the hardware
was the downstop assembly consisting of a bolt, washer, downstop, sleeve
and nut. The downstop assembly had detached from the main track and fallen
into the track can, where it was pushed against the track can during retraction
of the slats and punched the hole into the track and fuel tank with the
nut end. Fuel leaked through that hole and began to splash down towards
the right hand engine. As long as the engine operated, the fuel was blown
behind the engine, but when the engine was shut down, the fuel splashed
down on the hot exhaust pipe of the engine and ignited.

The nut of the downstop assembly had to be replaced according to maintenance
procedures in a C-Check to prevent the downstop assembly’s nut to come loose.
The engineer removed the slat track with the slat in the half extended position,
so that the engineer (with the help by an assistant) could align the downstop
assembly. He did not remove – nor was he required to remove – the downstop
assembly and could not see the head of the bolt. The engineer did not turn
his attention towards the washer. The new nut was installed and tightened,
the job signed off by the maintenance supervisor.

The investigators stated, that when the nut was tightened without a washer
in place, the nut would go as far as the thread of the bolt permitted, however
without being stopped by the downstop and sleeve. During operation of the
aircraft the nut probably untightened and moved farther outward than it
was at the time of the tightening, but remained on the bolt permitting
to establish, that no washer had been installed. As result of the untightening
the nut side downstop assembly detached and fell off the main track.

The missing washer was found separated from the assembly at the accident
site. The investigators conclude therefore, that the washer had been installed
by the manufacturer, but most probably came loose during the maintenance
actions in the C-Check.

Two safety recommendations were issued as result of the investigation.

The remains of B-18616 (Photos: JTSB):
The slat track and downstop assembly (Photos: JTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41edf341
20090827185438:20090826000000
Incident: PSA Airlines CRJ2 near Fayetteville on Aug 26th 2009, smell of smoke in cabin
The crew of a PSA Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of US Airways, flight
US-2568 from Charlotte,NC to Fayetteville,NC (USA) with 47 passengers, reported
smoke on board while on approach to Fayetteville. The airplane landed safely
on Fayetteville’s main runway, exited the runway and evacuated on the taxiway.
No injuries occured.

The airport reported, that someone in the cabin had smelled smoke while
the airplane was descending towards Fayetteville.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41edbd5c
20090827124308:20090826000000
Incident: Easyjet B737 near Luton on Aug 26th 2009, smell of smoke
An Easyjet Boeing 737-700, registration G-EZJZ performing flight U2-2043
from London Luton,EN (UK) to Zurich (Switzerland), returned to Luton Airport
after the crew reported smell of smoke on board. The airplane landed safely
about 30 minutes after departure.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 registration G-EZKC reached Zurich with a delay
of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ee95d2
20090828144600:20090825000000
Incident: Air Moorea DHC6 near Papeete on Aug 25th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of an Air Moorea de Havilland DHC-6-300 Twin Otter, registration
F-OHJG performing flight TAH-1815 from Moorea to Papeete (French Polynesia)
with 16 passengers and 2 crew, declared emergency reporting smoke in the
cabin while enroute on the 5 minute flight from Moorea to Papeete. The crew
returned to Moorea managed a safe landing and taxied to the apron.

A replacement aircraft of Air Archipel resumed the flight.

The airline reported, that the air conditioning system suffered an electrical
fault causing the smoke. The airplane has been dispatched again after the
defective part of the air conditioning system was removed and the system
deactivated until the defective part can be replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ec7e90
20090826053513:20090824000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 near Calgary on Aug 24th 2009, smoking instrument screen
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-GARG performing flight AC-1191
from Toronto,ON to Victoria,BC (Canada), was enroute at FL360 125nm southeast
of Calgary, when the crew observed one of the instrument screens in the
cockpit emit smoke. The crew disabled the screen and diverted to Calgary,AB
as a precaution, where the airplane landed safely 30 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ec0183
20090825223528:20090824000000
Incident: British Airways B744 near Azores on Aug 24th 2009, electrical problems and smoke in cabin
A British Airways Boeing 747-400, registration G-BYGD performing flight
BA-217 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) with 300
passengers, was enroute on a southerly Atlantic track after passing south
of Ireland, when the crew reported smoke in the cabin and diverted to Terceira
(Portugal), one of the Azores Islands, where the airplane landed safely.

Passenger reported, that the inflight entertainment system didn’t work,
later other electrical problems surfaced before the airplane diverted to
Terceira’s Lajes Airport.

A replacement Boeing 747-400 registration G-BYGA departed as flight BA-9607
after 29 hours on the ground at Lajes and is currently estimated to reach
Washington with a delay of 32 hours.

NAV Canada reported on Aug 25th, that the airplane was at about 45 degrees
North 40 degrees West (about 690nm northwest of Terceira, about 690nm southeast
of St. John’s however requiring to pass through severe weather), when the
crew declared PAN PAN PAN at 13:45Z reporting technical problems. The crew
later advised, they had an electrical burning smell and were unable to isolate
the problem. The airplane landed in Lajes at 15:19Z.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41eb746d
20090824162224:20090823000000
Incident: Passaredo E145 near Ribeirao Preto on Aug 23rd 2009, burning smell
A Passaredo Linhas Aereas Embraer ERJ-145, flight PTB-1152 from Ribeirao
Preto,SP to Brasilia,DF (Brazil) with 27 passengers, returned to Ribeirao
Preto when a burning smell developed about 10 minutes into the flight followed
by a smoke detector triggering. The airplane landed safely.

The passengers were rebooked onto the next flight PTB-1450 departing 100
minutes later.

Maintenance could not identify any cause of the smell and smoke alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e8f2fd/0000
20101022202346:20090821000000
Accident: SATA Acores ATP at Porto Santo on Aug 21st 2009, rejected takeoff
The Portugese Gabinete de Prevencao e Investigacaio de Acidentes com Aeronaves
(GPIAA) released their final report in Portugese concluding the probable
cause of the incident was:

Overheating of the right hand engine following the destruction of several
turbine blades in the first stage of the turbine. The first blade to separate
was the #29 blade, that suffered a fatigue fracture.

Contributing to the injury was the way how the aircraft was deplaned.

The aircraft was accelerating for takeoff when the crew recognized the failure
of the right hand engine at speed less than 80 knots (low speed). The engine
temperature reached 1200 degrees C, an orange glow was seen in the cabin
and the engine emitted a lot of smoke. The crew rejected takeoff and discharged
the engine fire bottle. The airplane stopped on the runway, the crew shut
all systems down and ordered the evacuation of the aircraft through the
left hand rear door. The two cabin crew instructed the passengers to use
the slide at the left hand rear door, however, it became apparent that the
slide had not inflated. One passenger jumped down nonetheless and received
a minor foot injury, 11 more followed the example without injuries. The
remaining 2 passengers and 4 crew evacuated via the left hand forward door
and slide.

Responding emergency services poured water into the engine.

The GPIAA analysed that there was no fire.

Examination of the engine showed all second stage turbine blades had fractured,
after removal of the second stage two blades were found separated in the
first stage and damage to all other blades by impact of debris.

Microscopic examination showed that blade #29 a porous area near the blade
root due to non-oxidation. Testing showed fatigue near the porous zone.

The manufacturer had released a service bulletin in March 2008 indicating
such production issues however the incident engine and blades were not affected
by the service bulletin.

The lever for the left hand rear door was never placed in automatic.

The GPIAA did not release any safety recommendation though the non-inflation
of the evacuation slide motivates a safety advice. The airline had already
reacted in the aftermath of the incident and taken according steps.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e75213
20090819154422:20090819000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near La Rochelle on Aug 19th 2009, burning smell in cabin
An Easyjet Airbus A320-200, registration G-EZTE performing flight U2-8917
from London Gatwick,EN (UK) to Faro (Portugal) with 165 passengers and 6
crew, was enroute at FL370 over the Bay of Biscay about one hour into the
flight, when the flight crew decided to divert to La Rochelle (France) after
passengers noticed a strong smell of burning oil in the cabin. The airplane
landed safely about 20 minutes later.

Fire services used a heat sensitive camera but could not find any source
of heat, fire or smoke.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration G-EZTD reached Faro with a delay
of 5:40 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e6d398
20090818222859:20090817000000
Incident: Virgin Nigeria E190 near Abuja on Aug 17th 2009, air conditioning problem
A Virgin Nigeria Embraer ERJ-190, flight VK-812 from Accra (Ghana) to Abuja
(Nigeria) with 50 passengers, was enroute, when the crew initiated an emergency
descent and the oxygen masks deployed. The crew continued for a safe landing
in Abuja.

Passengers reported, that they had smelled smoke about 30 minutes into the
flight shortly after the airplane had reached cruise level. Later smoke
became visible and developed into thick smoke, then the oxygen masks came
down followed by announcements to use the masks. About 10 minutes later
the airplane levelled off and the crew announced, that everything was under
control.

Virgin Nigeria reported, that one of the air conditioning systems had failed
in flight which later affected the second air conditioning system too.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e61180
20090817211108:20090817000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 near Seattle on Aug 17th 2009, smell of smoke in cabin
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-365 from Bellingham,WA
to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 75 people on board, diverted to Seattle,WA
after the crew reported smell of smoke in the cabin and later in the cockpit.
The airplane landed safely 18 minutes later.

Attending emergency services found no trace of heat or fire, the cause of
the smell is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e545d7
20090816203554:20090816000000
Incident: American B752 near Panama on Aug 16th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of an American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N609AA performing
flight AA-960 from Panama City (Panama) to Miami,FL (USA) with 190 passengers,
declared emergency and decided to return to Panama, when cabin crew reported
smoke in the cabin. The airplane landed safely back to Panama City 40 minutes
after takeoff.

Authorities in Panama are currently checking the airplane out.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e5482f
20090816205513:20090815000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 near Bakersfield on Aug 15th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Skywest Airlines Canadair CRJ-200, flight OO-6491 from Los Angeles,CA
to Sacramento,CA (USA) with 47 passengers and 4 crew, diverted to Bakersfield,CA
after a smoke detector in the lavatory triggered. The airplane landed safely,
one passenger was brought to a local hospital with suspect of smoke inhalation.

Attending fire services said, they could not detect any smoke, source of
heat or fire. The flight attendants confirmed, that the fire alert in the
lavatory had sounded.

A replacement aircraft reached Sacramento with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e38d20
20090814193739:20090814000000
Incident: Horizon Air CRJ7 near Medford on Aug 14th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Horizon Air Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of Alaska Airlines, registration
N612QX performing flight QX-2605/AS-2605 from Portland,OR to Los Angeles,CA
(USA) with 60 passengers and 4 crew, was enroute at FL370 near Medford,OR
about 30 minutes into the flight, when the crew declared emergency reporting
smoke in the cabin. The crew decided to divert to Medford, where the airplane
landed safely about 20 minutes later.

Attending fire fighters reported visible haze after landing.

The airplane was able to continue the journey after 90 minutes on the ground.

Horizon Air said, that the temperature control of one of the air conditioning
systems had failed resulting in too high a cabin temperature. The airplane
diverted to get the unit checked for the sake of passenger comfort.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e2ec25
20090813204405:20090812000000
Incident: Air China B772 near Beijing on Aug 12th 2009, engine surge
An Air China Boeing 777-200, flight CA-1305 from Beijing to Shenzhen (China),
was about 20 minutes into the flight, when the crew decided to return to
Beijing due to technical problems. The airplane landed safely about one
hour after departure.

A replacment aircraft reached Shenzhen with a delay of 3.5 hours.

A passenger on board reported, that he had been dozing off, when about 20
minutes into the flight he heard two loud bangs from the right hand engine
and other passengers saw smoke and streaks of flames from the engine. The
TV screens in the cabin flickered. A few seconds later a strong burning
smell arrived in the cabin. The captain announced, that the right hand engine
had suffered a minor problem, so that he had shut down the engine and was
returning to Beijing on the left hand engine. The passenger noticed observing
the sun, that the airplane turned around and started to descend.

The passenger report prompted Chinese media to report an engine fire, which
was promptly denied by Beijing’s Airport Authority and the airline.

Air China said, that the cause of the technical problem is still under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e23110
20090812193443:20090811000000
Incident: TRIP E175 near Sao Jose do Rio Preto on Aug 11th 2009, unruly passenger
A TRIP Linhas Aereas Embraer ERJ-175, flight 8R-5608 from Rio de Janeiro
Santos Dumont,RJ to Sao Jose do Rio Preto,SP (Brazil) with 20 passengers,
was on approach to Sao Jose, when the smoke alert activated in the lavatory
due to a passenger, who had lit a cigarette. The crew continued to Sao Jose
for a safe landing about 25 minutes later. The unruly passenger was handed
over to police.

The passenger had originated in Campo Grande,MS and was now on the fifth
and last leg of his journey nearly 9 hours after departure.

Police released the passenger after verifying his identity. It has not yet
been decided whether charges will be filed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e08775
20090810221815:20090808000000
Incident: Click Mexicana F100 at Cancun on Aug 8th 2009, rejected takeoff
A Click Mexicana Fokker 100, registration XA-JXT performing flight QA-7574
from Cancun (Mexico) to Havana (Cuba) with 86 passengers and 4 crew, rejected
takeoff from Cancun at high speed when the crew noticed a fire indication
on one engine. The crew of another aircraft waiting for departure radioed
the right hand engine on fire. The Click crew steered their airplane off
the runway onto a taxiway, where the aircraft was evacuated. Emergency services
responded and put the fire out.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers have been rebooked onto other Click
Mexicana flights.

Click Mexicana reported, that following a smoke detection on one of the
engines during departure all passengers and crew were safely evacuated and
provided with the necessary assistance. The passengers were subsequently
booked onto other Click Mexicana flights to Havana.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41de2303
20090807140207:20090806000000
Incident: PIA A310 at Karachi on Aug 6th 2009, cargo fire alert
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A310-300, registration AP-BGN
performing flight PK-370 from Karachi to Islamabad (Pakistan), was climbing
out of Karachi when a cargo fire alert illuminated. The crew activated the
fire suppression systems and returned to Karachi for a safe landing. Responding
emergency services found no trace of smoke, heat or fire, however discovered
fruit in the cargo hold, that had developed gasses triggering the smoke
detectors.

The flight departed again and reached Islamabad with a delay of 6:45 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41dc9e90
20090805180137:20090805000000
Accident: Vueling A320 at Paris on Aug 5th 2009, engine smoking during push back
A Vueling Airbus A320-200, registration EC-ICQ performing flight VY-9127
from Paris Orly (France) to Alicante,SP (Spain) with 169 passengers, was
being pushed back, when the right hand engine (CFM56) emitted black smoke.
Emergency services responded and arrived within 2 minutes, the crew initiated
an evacuation via slides. The engine fire was quickly put out. 8 passengers
received minor injuries in the evacuation.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration EC-KMI reached Alicante with
a delay of 4.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41e0b341
20090810210758:20090803000000
Incident: Air Transat A313 near Montreal on Aug 3rd 2009, avionics bay smoke alert
The crew of an Air Transat Airbus A310-300, registration C-GTSI performing
flight TS-192 from Montreal Trudeau,QC (Canada) to Lyon (France) with 248
people on board, returned to Montreal when a smoke alert in the avionics
bay was indicated about 45 minutes into the flight while enroute at FL330.
The airplane landed safely about 60 minutes after the alert. The alert was
determined false.

The Canadian TSB reported, that maintenance replaced the smoke detector
in the avionics bay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41dafbff
20090803155019:20090802000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B752 near Las Vegas on Aug 2nd 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight DL-1086 from Las Vegas,NV to Atlanta,GA
(USA) with 185 passengers and 6 crew, was climbing through 17000 feet out
of Las Vegas about 5 minutes into the flight, when the crew donned their
oxygen masks, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and returned
to Las Vegas. The airplane landed safely on runway 25R about 10 minutes
later.

The airplane was examined and could resume the flight reaching Atlanta with
a delay of 8 hours.

Delta Airlines said, the airplane was examined and the problem resolved.
The cause of the smell of smoke is still being assessed, the airline’s spokesman
continued.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41dae415
20090821064733:20090802000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B752 at Washington on Aug 2nd 2009, rejected takeoff due to engine fire indication
The crew of a Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N652DL performing
flight DL-1234 from Washington National,DC to New York JFK,NY (USA), rejected
takeoff from Washington’s Ronald Reagan National Airport runway 19 at low
speed due to an engine fire indication for the number 1 (left hand) engine
(PW2037). The airplane stopped safely, emergency services responded and
foamed the engine, the passengers were kept on board.

The airport entered a ground stop for 67 minutes as result of the incident.

The airplane was towed to the gate about an hour later, where passengers
disembarked normally.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 reached New York with a delay of 5:20 hours.

The FAA confirmed flight DL-1234, registration N652DL and a contained engine
fire on the #1 engine.

Witnesses on the ground said, the engine appeared on fire just as the airplane
started the takeoff roll.

The onset of the fire (Photo: Walter Wilson):
Fire fighter begin to tackle the fire (Photo: Walter Wilson):
The smoke subsides (Photo: Walter Wilson):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41daa1b7
20090803060519:20090802000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Rochester on Aug 2nd 2009, cargo fire alert
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Northwest Airlines, flight
9E-2903/NW-2903 from Detroit,MI to Hartford,CT (USA) with 50 passengers,
was enroute about 46nm south of Rochester at FL310 about 30 minutes into
the flight, when the crew received an indication that the cargo fire bottle
was low on pressure suggesting it had discharged in flight. The crew reported,
they had no indication of a fire or smoke, nonetheless decided to divert
to Rochester, where the airplane landed safely on runway 22 15 minutes later.

The airline reported, that it was still unclear whether the fire bottle
had indeed discharged or there was an indication problem.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41da54ab
20090803053753:20090802000000
Incident: Northwest B742 at Minneapolis on Aug 2nd 2009, burst tyres on landing
A Northwest Airlines Boeing 747-200, registration N623US performing positioning
flight NW-9811 from El Paso Biggs Army,TX to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with just
13 crew on board, burst 5 tyres while landing on Minneapolis’ runway 12R
prompting the control tower to report heavy smoke from the gear during the
rollout to the crew. The crew attempted to exit the runway however did not
completely vacate the runway forcing the closure of the runway.

Two subsequent arriving airplanes had to execute missed approaches.

The runway was closed for about 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d9f77e/0000
20120214155840:20090802000000
Incident: British Airways B752 near Barcelona on Aug 2nd 2009, smoke in cabin
Spain’s CIAIAC released their final report in Spanish (English version)
concluding the probable cause of the incident was:

a fire in the static inverter due to excessive temperature reached by one
of its components, the resistor R-170, which affected the neighboured capacitors.
The fire generated smoke in the cabin prompting the crew to initiate an
emergency evacuation. The fire remained contained to the static inverter,
did not spread and did not affect other equipment.

The aircraft had just begun its descent towards Barcelona with the first
officer (33, ATPL, 5,100 hours total, 2,300 hours on type) being pilot flying
and the captain (41, ATPL, further data not provided) being pilot monitoring,
when the crew received an EICAS message “STANDBY INVERTER”. The crew checked
the circuit breakers and found all okay, no other anomaly was noticed. Soon
after a slight pungent smell developed. Shortly after the aircraft was cleared
for the ILS approach to runway 25R, the crew selected the autopilot to automatically
capture the localizer. A pungent smell now developed rapidly, cabin crew
reported the presence of smoke in the cabin, the flight crew noticed smoke
appeared to rise from the left hand seat. The crew donned their oxygen masks
and declared emergency when the aircraft was at 4500 feet about 15nm northeast
of the airport. Immediately after the autopilot captured the localizer the
crew received about 4 or 5 EICAS messages including “YAW DAMPER” and “SPOILERS”,
the announciators indicated “LAND 2”. The captain decided to keep the autopilot
engaged as long as practicable considering that the smoke might be the result
of an electrical problem. The aircraft was fully stabilized at 1500 feet
with the first officer aiming to avoid a go-around. At 300 feet the commander
decided to disconnect the autopilot, a manual landing was completed safely
about 5 minutes after declaring emergency. The captain ordered the evacuation
of the aircraft after verifying there was still smoke in the cabin.

Eight passengers needed medical care, three for anxiety attacks, two for
contusions, two for back pain and one for a sprained ankle.

The aircraft received damage limited to the static inverter. The static
inverter showed signs of fire, which was limited to the component and did
not spread or affect other equipment.

Cabin crew reported the pungent smell was first noticed in seat row 16 and
became stronger towards the cockpit. The observation was reported to the
flight deck, the captain briefed for a possible evacuation via Intercom.
After the aircraft came to a stop the captain again checked with the purser
and was told that smoke was still entering the cabin, the captain therefore
ordered the evacuation.

The CIAIAC analysed that the static inverter was exposed to excessive temperatures
through the resistor R-170 which reached a temperature above design and
affected adjacent capacitors which resulted in a fire. The fire remained
limited to the static inverter, the damage was consistent with previous
occurrences of the same kind that had led to a service bulletin in late
2009 recommending the replacement of resistor R-170.

The CIAIAC analysed that crew reactions and ATC reactions were prompt, concise
and appropriate. The commander’s decision to stop on the runway, check with
the purser and initiate the evacuation was adequate. The evacuation as well
as reaction by emergency services was quick and appropriate.

The passengers were taken to a departure lounge about one hour later, could
not be kept separated from other passengers and could not sit down, medical
assistance was provided in the same departure lounge under the view of passengers
from both the evacuated and other flights. The CIAIAC complained that the
airport had no separate room for passengers having undergone an emergency,
but also mentioned that ICAO does not require such a facility.

The burned static inverter (Photo: CIAIAC):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d9f77e
20091124144648:20090802000000
Incident: British Airways B752 near Barcelona on Aug 2nd 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a British Airways Boeing 757-200, registration G-CPEM performing
flight BA-478 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Barcelona,SP (Spain) with
176 passengers and 7 crew, reported smoke in the cabin and declared emergency.
The airplane landed safely at Barcelona about 25 minutes later and was evacuated
via slides. No injuries occured, no source of heat or fire was detected.

The emergency was cancelled about 20 minutes after landing, passengers were
permitted to collect their belonging about one hour after landing.

The airport reports no operational impact, all flights remained on schedule.

The Spanish Accident Investigation Team CIAIAC reported, that they were
notified of the occurrence four days later preventing them from accessing
some information, they were however able to retrieve the flight data recorders.
The smoke came from the left hand side of the captain’s seat. After the
airplane stopped on the runway the flight deck contacted the cabin crew
who reported the smoke had intensified during the approach and landing prompting
the commander to order the evacuation. Five people receive minor injuries
in the evacuation. The CIAIAC identified an electrical AC to DC inverter
located in the electrics forward compartment underneath the cockpit floor
as source of the smoke. The static inverter was retrieved by the CIAIAC
for further testing. The CIAIAC said, overheating inverters are a long known
problem within the Boeing fleet resulting in a service bulleting by Boeing
to replace the inverters with other types less prone to overheating.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d9f9ef
20090802104547:20090801000000
Incident: CSA A320 near Larnaca on Aug 1st 2009, smoke in cockpit
A CSA Czech Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration OK-LEG performing flight
OK-405 from Larnaca (Cyprus) to Prague (Czech), returned to Larnaca after
the crew reported smoke in the cockpit shortly after takeoff. The airplane
landed safely.

The airline reported, that light smoke appeared in the cockpit as result
of a short circuit within a computer.

After the computer was replaced, the airplane resumed the flight the following
morning and reached Prague with a delay of 13 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d9486b
20090802145336:20090801000000
Incident: Swiss RJ1H at Munich on Aug 1st 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Swiss European Airlines Avro RJ-100, registration HB-IXU performing
flight LX-1104 from Zurich (Switzerland) to Munich (Germany) with 62 passengers
and 4 crew, declared emergency while on approach to Munich reporting smoke
in the cabin and accelerated the landing. The airplane landed safely ahead
of schedule, emergency services did not need to jump to action.

The airplane was able to perform the return flight LX-1105 after 80 minutes
on the ground and reached Zurich with a delay of just 20 minutes.

Swiss reported, that a defective cabin light was identified as source of
the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d847e3
20090731090436:20090730000000
Incident: Air France A332 near Paris on Jul 30th 2009, smoke in cabin
An Air France Airbus A330-200, registration F-GZCJ performing flight AF-946
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Douala (Cameroon) with 184 passengers,
was climbing out of Paris at about FL200, when light haze appeared in the
cabin due to an air conditioning problem. The crew declared emergency and
returned to the CDG Airport, where the airplane landed safely about 30 minutes
after departure.

A replacement Airbus A330-200 registration F-GZCE departed as flight AF-946A
the following morning with a delay of 20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41dcd00f
20090805191954:20090729000000
Incident: Westjet B737 near Rouyn on Jul 29th 2009, spilled drink and smoke
A Westjet Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration C-FUWS performing flight
WS-142 from Calgary,AB to Halifax,NS (Canada) with 118 people on board,
was enroute near Rouyn,QC, when the chief flight attendant reported smoke
in the cabin coming from the right sidewall near the floor next to seat
row 10. The flight crew immediately executed the smoke/fire/fumes checklists.
When the crew asked whether there had been any changes in the cabin, the
cabin crew reported, that the source of the smoke appeared to be an InFlight
Entertainment (IFE) terminal box under the seat of a passenger, who had
spilled his drink onto. The smoke had stopped. The flight crew decided,
that the IFE no longer posed a threat and continued to destination for a
safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d8a310
20090731194444:20090728000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A at Victoria on Jul 28th 2009, hot start
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GONX performing
flight QK-8072 from Victoria,BC to Vancouver,BC (Canada), was preparing
for departure from Victoria and the left hand engine was being started,
when smoke entered the cabin prompting an immediate rapid deplanement.

Passengers reported an engine fire.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the crew attempted to start the left hand
engine at the gate in Victoria, however received indication of an impending
hot start and aborted the engine start. The Ground Power Unit (GPU) was
swapped and a second start was attempted, again resulting in an indication
of an impending hot start prompting the crew to abort the engine start.
A third engine start was attempted without the GPU, the crew assuming the
GPU being faulty or the aircraft not accepting the electric power transfer.
During the engine start the number 2 duct temperature increased rapidly
and smoke entered the cabin. The passengers were rapidly deplaned, emergency
services responded.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d630e4
20090730181953:20090727000000
Incident: Lufthansa B744 near Gander on Jul 27th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Lufthansa Boeing 747-400, registration D-ABVH performing flight
LH-431 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany), declared
emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit while enroute at FL360 80nm north
of Gander,NL (Canada). The crew decided to divert to Gander, where the airplane
landed safely 20 minutes later.

The airplane was able to continue the journey after 3 hours on the ground
in Gander and reached Frankfurt with a delay of 3:15 hours.

The Gander Airport Authority reported on Jul 29th, that a coffee maker in
a galley was identified as the cause. The coffee maker was removed, maintenance
subsequently determined, it was safe to continue the flight.

The Canadian TSB reported on Jul 30th, that a transformer within the coffee
maker had failed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d4f2e2
20090727073733:20090726000000
Incident: American B752 near Little Rock on Jul 26th 2009, smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight AA-2436 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX
to Boston,MA (USA) with 139 people on board, was enroute at FL350 about
35 minutes into the flight, when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
and decided to divert to Little Rock,AR, where the airplane landed safely
15 minutes later.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N664AA reached Boston with a delay
of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d467f0
20090728063829:20090726000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Islip on Jul 26th 2009, smoke on board
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-693 from Hartford,CT to Orlando,FL
(USA) with 132 passengers and 5 crew, was climbing through FL340 about 15
minutes into the flight, when the crew donned their oxygen masks, declared
emergency reporting smoke in the cabin with all passengers in the rear of
the cabin on oxygen masks and diverted to Islip,NY for a safe landing on
runway 24 45 minutes after takeoff. The crew reported, that according to
cabin crew the smoke/smell had dissipated before landing, the crew taxied
off the runway and held on the taxiway for inspection by the emergency services.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 resumed the flight departing Islip about 2:20
hours after the original departure from Hartford.

Southwest Airlines reported, that a coffee maker in the rear galley caused
the burning smell in the cabin. The airplane was returned to service later
the day.

The FAA reported, that no interior or exterior damage was found, reports
of smoke in the cockpit or an electrical fire in the rear were not accurate.
The burning smell is believed to have been caused by burning coffee grinds
on an on-board coffee maker. Passengers were using oxygen masks.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d3aec2
20090725175742:20090725000000
Incident: American B752 over Atlantic on Jul 25th 2009, smoke in the cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N601AN performing flight
AA-1937 from Boston,MA (USA) to San Juan (Puerto Rico) with 185 passengers,
was enroute at FL390 overhead the Atlantic about 25 minutes into the flight,
when the crew declared emergency, reported smoke in the cabin (stating they
didn’t know how bad it was) and requested to return to Boston. About 5 minutes
later the crew reported, that the source of the smoke had been put out.
The airplane landed safely on Boston’s runway 22L about 30 minutes after
the smoke was reported.

The flight was cancelled, the passenger were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d2adfa
20090724150340:20090724000000
Incident: Flybe DH8D near London on Jul 24th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Flybe de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration G-JECL performing flight
BE-1432 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Cardiff,WL (UK) with 46
passengers, diverted to London Gatwick,EN (UK), when haze/smoke began to
come down from the ceiling of the cabin. The airplane landed safely about
20 minutes later, stopped on the runway and was evacuated.

The runway and therefore effectively the airport had to be closed for about
30 minutes resulting in 11 diversions and about 15 delays of incoming aircraft.
Three departures were delayed.

Flybe said, that the priority landing with emergency services called out
as a precaution was the result of a technical failure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41d19a53
20090723095911:20090721000000
Incident: Arrow Cargo B752 near San Pedro Sula on Jul 21st 2009, smoke alerts
An Arrow Cargo Boeing 757-200 freighter, registration N868AN performing
flight JW-656 from Managua (Nicaragua) to Miami,FL (USA), diverted to San
Pedro Sula (Honduras) after several smoke alerts activated on board. The
airplane landed safely without further incident and without obvious traces
of smoke or fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41cf5005/0000
20110706155350:20090720000000
Incident: United Airlines B763 over Atlantic on Jul 20th 2009, smoke in cabin and cockpit
Damage of the static inverter (Photo: RNF)The Icelandic Aircraft Accident
Investigation Branch (RNF, also IAAIB) released their final report concluding
the probable cause was:

A static inverter on N658UA failed causing smoke to enter the cockpit and
cabin of the aircraft.

Findings as to risk

The flight crew removed the smoke goggles and placed on their foreheads
as they felt they were cumbersome to use. The airworthiness process of mandating
the replacement of applicable static inverters on Boeing 767 aircraft until
the aircraft have been modified will take more than 11 years. United Airlines
initiated a campaign to replace static inverters on their Boeing aircraft
at the end of 2005. Initially the campaign was estimated to be completed
in 2.5 years but is still on-going.

Other findings

The design of the audio panel and communication system installed in the
incident aircraft can hinder communications during high workload events.

The aircraft was enroute at FL370 on North Atlantic Track about 200nm southsouthwest
of Keflavik (Iceland) when the flight crew noticed an unusual smell in the
cockpit, but could not identify the source of the smell. The captain, pilot
monitoring, called the purser to the flight deck, but cabin crew had not
noticed any unusual smell. The first officer took a bathroom break with
the purser remaining in the cockpit, after he returned the captain took
a bathroom break. Purser and first officer noticed the smell getting stronger
and discovered smoke coming from the center pedestal. First officer and
purser donned oxygen masks, then the purser called cabin crew via interphone
to call the captain back to the cockpit and be on alert because of electrical
fumes in the cockpit. After the captain returned to the cockpit, the purser
left the cockpit to call the relief first officer to the cockpit. All three
pilots donned oxygen masks and smoke goggles, but captain and first officer
soon removed the smoke goggles finding their vision better without them
and their eyes not bothered by the smoke.

The captain had the relief first officer work the smoke and fumes checklist,
declared emergency with Reykjavik advising they were diverting to Keflavik.
The aircraft descended to 9500 feet according to the fumes/smoke checklists.
After the aircraft reached 9500 feet the crew decided to continue with the
smoke or fumes removal checklist, the crew continued to use their oxygen
masks. The relief pilot selected the equipment cooling switch to override
as per checklist, a few minutes later the crew noticed the fumes and smoke
intensity decreased and began to prepare for a normal landing at Keflavik’s
runway 02. Cabin crew reported there was still a lot of haze in the cabin.
The first officer advised ATC, that after landing they intended to taxi
to the apron with fire engines in attendance.

The aircraft landed safely following a visual approach to runway 02. After
coming to a stop at the stand the passengers disembarked normally via stairs,
emergency crews entered the aircraft, a distinct electrical smell became
obvious as soon as the emergency crews opened the door to the electronic
bay and the source of the smoke was identified to be an area where a static
inverter and a transformer rectifier unit were located.

A postflight examination showed the static inverter showed evidence extreme
overheating in the lower aft area approximately in the area of the R170
resistor, already well known as source from a number of previous similiar
smoke events.

In 2009 the FAA issued an Airworthiness Directive mandating the replacement
of the specific static inverter type within 42 months.

Three safety actions were taken as result of the investigation.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41cf5005
20110706155515:20090720000000
Incident: United Airlines B763 over Atlantic on Jul 20th 2009, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A United Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N658UA performing flight
UA-949 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 178
passengers and 11 crew, diverted to Keflavik (Iceland) after the crew declared
emergency and reported smoke in both cabin and cockpit. The airplane landed
safely on runway 02, taxied off the runway and stopped on taxiway K-1. The
passengers disembarked onto the taxiway via stairs.

A replacement aircraft has been dispatched, which is estimated to reach
Chicago with a delay of 21.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ce5320
20090719103102:20090719000000
Incident: Cathay Pacific B744 near Fukuoka on Jul 19th 2009, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400, registration B-HUJ performing flight CX-580
from Hong Kong (China) to Sapporo (Japan) with 398 people on board, diverted
to Fukuoka after smell of smoke developed on board followed by white haze
appearing at the ceiling of the airplane. The airplane landed safely.

Mechanics determined, that the haze originated in the air conditioning system
due to a leak, and fixed the problem releasing the aircraft back to service.
The airplane reached Sapporo with a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ccb9d1
20090717111509:20090717111509
Incident: BMI E145 near Aberdeen on Jul 17h 2009, smell of smoke in cabin
A BMI British Midland Embraer ERJ-145 registration G-RJXO performing flight
BD-1321 from Aberdeen,SC to Birmingham,EN (UK) with 18 passengers and 3
crew, returned to Aberdeen after smell of smoke was detected in the cabin.
The airplane landed safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41cd180d
20090717222421:20090717000000
Incident: American B752 near Jacksonville on Jul 17th 2009, smoke in cockpit
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N601AN performing flight
AA-244 from Los Angeles,CA to Orlando,FL (USA) with 74 people on board,
diverted to Jacksonville,FL (USA) after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit.
The airplane landed safely about 20 minutes later, attending fire fighters
found some haze, but no fire or heat.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c9dcb0
20090713171442:20090713000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ9 near Chattanooga on Jul 13th 2009, smell of smoke
A Pinnacle Airlines CRJ-900 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight 9E-926/DL-926
from Dayton,OH to Atlanta,GA (USA), was enroute at FL310 near Chattanooga,TN,
when smell of smoke was noticed on board. The crew decided to divert to
Chattanooga, where airplane landed safely 15 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c7d727
20090712063410:20090710000000
Accident: British Airways B744 at Phoenix on Jul 10th 2009, smoke prompts evacuation after push back
G-CIVB being evacuated A British Airways Boeing 747-400, registration
G-CIVB performing flight BA-288 from Phoenix,AZ (USA) to London Heathrow,EN
(UK) with 298 passengers and 18 crew, had to be evacuated via evacuation
slides shortly after push back from the gate, when fumes and smoke began
to fill the cabin. One person had to be brought to hospital with shoulder
injuries, 15 persons were treated at the airport for minor injuries.

Arriving fire crews found light smoke in the cabin and cargo bay, however
no fire was discovered. The fire fighters believe, the smell and smoke may
have been caused by an electrical problem.

Some passengers said, the acrid smelling haze was coming from underneath
their seats, others reported the smoke came from the overhead compartments.

The passengers are being put into hotels overnight. A replacement aircraft
has been dispatched to Phoenix.
Passenger video taken from the tarmac:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c5cbdb
20090708141135:20090707000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Jacksonville on Jul 7th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL-2030 from Atlanta,GA
to West Palm Beach,FL (USA) with 128 passengers, diverted to Jacksonville,FL
after the crew declared emergency and reported smoke in the cockpit. The
airplane landed safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c4f98c
20090708065950:20090707000000
Incident: Kingfisher A320 at Kolkata on Jul 7th 2009, cargo fire alert
The crew of a Kingfisher Airbus A320-200, flight IT-3432 from Guwahati to
Kolkata (India) with 117 passengers and 6 crew, declared emergency reporting
smoke in one of the airplane’s cargo holds while on approach to Kolkata.
The airplane landed safely 10 minutes later.

Kingfisher reported, that the crew had received a fire alert for one of
the cargo holds. No evidence of fire, smoke or heat was found, the alert
was identified false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c45529
20090706192526:20090706000000
Incident: American MD83 near Lafayette on Jul 6th 2009, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight AA-1243 from Fort Lauderdale,FL
to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 151 passengers, diverted to Lafayette’s
Regional Airport,LA when a smokey odour was noticed in the cabin. The airplane
landed safely about 35 minutes later after the crew considered to divert
to New Orleans,LA or Houston,TX.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c28cbd
20090704140626:20090703000000
Incident: Monarch A320 near Munich on Jul 3rd 2009, smoke in cabin
A Monarch Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration G-MPCD performing flight
ZB-648 from Manchester,EN (UK), diverted to Munich (Germany) due to smoke
in the cabin. The airplane landed safely, a passenger needed to be treated
at the airport.

The airplane was able to depart again the following day and reached Larnaca
with a delay of 22.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c1cd60
20090707143716:20090703000000
Incident: Tatarstan B734 near Volgograd on Jul 3rd 2009, smell of smoke in cabin
A Tatarstan Boeing 737-400, registration VQ-BDB performing flight U9-? from
Kazan (Russia) to Antalya (Turkey) with 150 passengers and 8 crew, diverted
to Volgograd (Russia) due to smell of smoke in the cabin. The airplane landed
safely about one hour after departure from Kazan.

Attending emergency services did not find any source of heat or fire. The
airline suspected, that somebody smoked on the toilet causing the smell.
An investigation has been initiated by Russian Authorities.

A replacement Orenburg Airlines Boeing 737 has been dispatched to continue
the flight as flight R2-9455.

The airline reported on Monday (Jul 6th), that the electronics controlling
the cockpit door lock mechanism was identified to have been the origin of
the odour.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c1d279
20090703171633:20090702000000
Incident: US Airways B752 near Hartford on Jul 2nd 2009, smoke in cockpit
A US Airways Boeing 757-200, registration N935UW performing flight US-752
from Philadelphia,PA (USA) to Stockholm Arlanda (Sweden) with 172 passengers,
was about 25 minutes into the flight, when the crew declared emergency due
to smoke in the cockpit. The airplane diverted to Hartford’s Bradley International
Airport, CT, where the airplane landed safely 20 minutes later. Attending
emergency services observed fire detectors going off, however saw no smoke.
The passengers disembarked normally.

The airline reported, that the crew saw light smoke in the cockpit.

A replacement Boeing 767-200 registration N246AY reached Stockholm with
a delay of 5.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41c1177a
20090702210617:20090702000000
Incident: Air One A320 near Milan on Jul 2nd 2009, smoke in cabin
An Air One Airbus A320-200, flight AZ-2970 from Milan Linate to Palermo
(Italy), was about 20 minutes into the flight, when smoke started to appear
in the cabin. The crew declared emergency and returned to Linate, where
the airplane landed safely.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 took off with a delay of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bfdbe0
20090701085421:20090630000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 at Tokyo and Portland on Jun 30th 2009, damaged tyre
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N184DN performing flight DL-786
from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Portland,OR (USA), was climbing out of Tokyo,
when the crew was radioed about tyre debris being found on the departure
runway of Narita’s airport. The crew decided to continue the flight to the
destination, where the crew informed air traffic control about the possibly
damaged tyre and declared emergency. The airplane landed safely on runway
28L with emergency services on standby and turned off the runway. The tower
reported some light smoke coming off the left main gear during the roll
out.

The runway was closed for an inspection, debris was found on the runway.

The crew stopped on the taxiway after turning off the runway and shut down
engine number #1 (left hand) to permit fire fighters have a closer look
onto the left hand main gear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bf6ae7
20090630201802:20090630000000
Accident: Spirit A319 near Daytona Beach on Jun 30th 2009, burning smell in cabin
A Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-100, registration N524NK performing flight
NK-433 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Fort Lauderdale,FL (USA) with 143 people
on board, was enroute at FL380, when a flight attendant detected a burning
acrid smell on board. The crew decided to divert to Daytona Beach. In the
meantime passengers in the first 10 rows started to cough. The airplane
landed safely in Daytona Beach 15 minutes later. The passengers disembarked
normally.

Three passengers complaining about shortness of breath and burning eyes
were taken to a hospital on stretchers.

The smoke dissipated once the engines were shut down.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bf30bf
20090630133909:20090629000000
Incident: Aerolineas Argentinas B735 near Rosario on Jun 29th 2009, smoke in cabin
An Aerolineas Argentinas Boeing 737-500, flight AR-1362 from Buenos Aires
Ezeiza,BA (Argentine) to Santa Cruz (Bolivia) with 108 people on board,
diverted to Rosario,SF (Argentine) when smoke filled the cabin due to an
unspecified technical defect. The airplane landed safely, no injuries occured.

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41beb0b7
20090629204635:20090629000000
Incident: Air Berlin B738 near Dusseldorf at Jun 29th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of an Air Berlin Boeing 737-800, registration D-ABBG performing
flight AB-2740 from Dusseldorf (Germany) to Heraklion (Greece) with 181
passengers, reported smoke in the cockpit and decided to return to Dusseldorf,
where the airplane landed safely shortly after takeoff.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration D-ABBM reached Heraklion with
a delay of 5.5 hours.

The airline reported, that there was no fire on board, some light haze smelling
of oil was visible and an oil indication illuminated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bdfec9
20090628224119:20090628000000
Incident: PIA A310 near Quetta on Jun 28th 2009, smoke in cabin
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A310-300, registration AP-BEG
performing flight PK-363 from Quetta to Karachi (Pakistan) with 163 passengers,
was climbing through about 7000 feet out of Quetta, when smoke started to
fill the cabin. The crew declared emergency and returned to Quetta, where
the airplane landed safely. The passengers disembarked normally via stairs,
no injuries occured.

Officials reported, that the smoke originated in the air conditioning system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bda472
20090629063346:20090627000000
Incident: Scandinavian A333 near Bangor on Jun 27th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration LN-RKH performing
flight SK-910 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Copenhagen (Denmark), diverted to
Bangor,ME (USA) after smoke became visible in the cabin about 50 minutes
into the flight and a source of the smoke could not be determined by the
flight attendants. The airplane landed safely on Bangor’s runway 15 about
20 minutes later. Attending fire services could not detect any source of
heat or fire.

The crew prepared the aircraft for departure 3 hours after landing, however
a strong burning smell reappeared prompting takeoff preparations to be cancelled.
The flight is currently still on the ground.

The incident airplane LN-RKH continued the flight as SK-6908 and reached
Copenhagen with a total delay of 25 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bd16c6
20090627203726:20090627000000
Incident: Thomas Cook A320 near Manchester on Jun 27th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Thomas Cook Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration G-TCAD
performing flight MT-559K from Manchester,EN (UK) to Larnaca (Cyprus) with
186 people on board, declared PAN reporting smoke in the rear of the cabin
shortly after takeoff from Manchester and decided to return to Manchester.
The airplane landed safely on runway 23R about 15 minutes after takeoff.

A replacement aircraft is expected to depart with a delay of 5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bca49e
20090627072458:20090626000000
Incident: Southwest B737 near Baltimore on Jun 26th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-3858 from Ft. Lauderdale,FL
to Philadelphia,PA (USA) with 125 passengers, diverted to Baltimore/Washington,MD
after a flight attendant saw smoke in the rear of the cabin. The airplane
landed safely about 30 minutes later.

A replacement aircraft reached Philadelphia with a delay of 2 hours.

Maintenance believes, a coffeemaker had gone up in smoke due to a short-circuit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41bb7b8e
20090625191645:20090622000000
Incident: Falcon Air Express MD83 at Aruba on Jun 22nd 2009, APU smoke in cabin
A Falcon Air Express McDonnell Douglas MD-83 on behalf of Surinam Airways,
registration N836RA performing flight PY-462 from Miami,FL (USA) to Aruba
(Aruba), had just landed at Aruba’s Reina Beatrix Airport, when the crew
started the auxiliary power unit (APU). Smoke appeared in the cabin immediately
thereafter prompting the crew to initiate an evacuation.

Two passengers received minor bruises in the evacuation, one refused treatment,
the other was treated at the airport.

The onward leg to Paramaibo (Surinam) was performed by a replacement Boeing
737-300 of Surinam Airways with a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41b91463
20090622173329:20090621000000
Incident: BMI A319 near London on Jun 21st 2009, smell of smoke in cabin
An BMI British Midland Airbus A319-100, registration G-DBCJ performing flight
BD-60 from London Heathrow,EN to Edinburgh,SC (UK) with 126 passengers,
returned to London Heathrow after a smell of smoke developed in the cabin
while climbing to cruise level above FL250. The airplane landed safely,
emergency services could not establish any fire or heat.

A replacement Airbus A319-100 registration G-DBCI reached Edinburgh with
a delay of 3:15 hours.

The incident airplane was checked out and was returned to service the following
day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41b70836
20090620111323:20090619000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Jackson on Jun 19th 2009, cargo fire alert
A Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Northwest Airlines, flight
9E-2135 from Nashville,TN to Memphis,TN (USA) with 28 passengers and 3 crew,
turned around and diverted to Jackson’s McKellar Airport after a sensor
reported a possible fire in the cargo bay. The airplane landed safely, attending
emergency services found no traces of smoke, fire or heat.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41b6a977
20090619201915:20090617000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 at Toronto on Jun 17th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Chautauqua Airlines Embraer ERJ-145, registration N292SK performing flight
RP-7860 from Washington,DC (USA) to Toronto Pearson,ON (Canada) with 53
people on board, was on final approach to Toronto’s runway 06L about 8nm
before touchdown, when the crew declared emergency reporting a smokey odour
in the cockpit. The crew continued the approach for a safe landing and taxied
to the gate.

The Canadian TSB reported, that the #1 windshield heat system was the source
of the smell of smoke, no smoke or flames were present.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41b11361
20090613131716:20090612000000
Incident: Northwest A333 over Atlantic on Jun 12th 2009, smoke in cabin, later second diversion due to weather
The crew of a Northwest Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration N811NW performing
flight NW-821/DL-821 from Rome Fiumicino (Italy) to Atlanta,GA (USA) with
285 people on board, reported smoke in the cabin about 10 minutes after
passing south of the southwest corner of Ireland at FL360, declared emergency
and diverted to Shannon, where the airplane landed safely on runway 06 30
minutes later. Attending fire services sprayed the right hand main gear
after landing.

Shannon Airport reported, that there was a smokey odour in the forward galley
prompting the diversion. The passengers disembarked normally at the gate.

The airplane was examined and declared airworthy, so that the aircraft resumed
the journey after 6.5 hours on the ground in Shannon. While approaching
Atlanta still at FL350 about 120nm before Atlanta around 20:58L (0:58Z),
the flight was sent into a holding due to weather related traffic congestion
at Atlanta prompting the crew to divert to Cincinnati Northern Kentucky,KY
about 250nm from their present position, where the crew performed a safe
automatic landing onto runway 36R.

No landings had occured at Atlanta between 19:57L (23:57Z) and 20:49L (00:49Z)
and no departures from 19:56L (23:56Z) to 20:20 (00:20Z) due to weather.

Metars Atlanta:
KATL 130452Z 27006KT 6SM -RA BR BKN055 BKN100 OVC150 22/21 A2997 RMK AO2
TSE18RAB13 SLP137 FRQ LTG DSNT SE TS DSIPTD P0002 T02170206 403170206
KATL 130419Z 30013G25KT 6SM -RA BR FEW030 BKN050 OVC080 22/20 A2999 RMK
AO2 TSE18RAB13 FRQ LTG DSNT S-SW TS DSIPTD P0000
KATL 130352Z 33003KT 10SM TS FEW030CB SCT070 BKN150 OVC200 22/21 A2997 RMK
AO2 TSE07B52RAE14 SLP139 OCNL LTGICCG W-NW CONS LTG DSNT SW TS W-NW AND
DSNT SW MOV SE P0010 T02170206
KATL 130307Z 03006KT 9SM -RA SCT035 BKN050 BKN070 OVC150 22/20 A2997 RMK
AO2 TSE07 FRQ LTGICCGCA DSNT NE-SE TS MOV SE P0010
KATL 130252Z 34003KT 10SM -TSRA FEW030CB BKN045 BKN070 OVC150 22/19 A2997
RMK AO2 PK WND 35034/0209 RAB00 SLP139 CONS LTGICCGCA NE-SE TS NE-SE MOV
SE P0022 60087 T02170194 53011
KATL 130221Z 36012G31KT 7SM -TSRA FEW020 SCT035CB BKN070 OVC150 22/18 A2995
RMKAO2 PK WND 35034/0209 RAB00 FRQ LTGICCGCA NE-SE-S TS NE-SE-S MOV SE P0022
KATL 130214Z 01022G34KT 2 1/2SM +TSRA BR FEW020 BKN035CB OVC070 21/18 A2995
RMKAO2 PK WND 35034/0209 RAB00 FRQ LTGICCGCA OHD-ALQDS TS OHD-ALQDS MOV
SE P0016
KATL 130210Z 35026G34KT 3/4SM R09R/4000VP6000FT +TSRA BR SCT020 OVC035CB
22/20 A2994 RMK AO2 PK WND 35034/0209 RAB00 FRQ LTGICCGCA OHD-ALQDS TS OHD-ALQDS
MOV SE
KATL 130208Z 35017G29KT 1SM R09R/4500VP6000FT +TSRA BR FEW020 BKN035CB OVC070
22/21 A2996 RMK AO2 PK WND 01029/0208 RAB00 FRQ LTGICCGCA OHD-ALQDS TS OHD-ALQDS
M
KATL 130152Z VRB03KT 10SM TS BKN035CB BKN070 OVC150 24/21 A2994 RMK AO2
RAE21 SLP129 FRQ LTGICCGCA N-NE AND W-N TS N-NE AND W-N MOV SE P0026 T02440206

KATL 130052Z 24021G29KT 4SM R09R/4500VP6000FT TSRA SCT030CB BKN045 BKN080
OVC150 23/20 A2993 RMK AO2 PK WND 04032/2354 WSHFT 2348 PRESRR SLP126 FRQ
LTGICCG S-SW-NW AND DSNT NE TS S-SW-NW AND DSNT NE MOV SE P
KATL 130007Z 08011G31KT 8SM -TSRA FEW020 SCT040CB BKN070 OVC150 24/20 A2990
RMKAO2 PK WND 04032/2354 WSHFT 2348 PRESFR FRQ LTGCGIC NE-OHD-S TS NE-OHD-S
MOV SE
KATL 122352Z COR 03028G34KT 3/4SM R09R/P6000FT +TSRA SQ FEW020 BKN040CB
OVC060 26/21 A2994 RMK AO2 PK WND 03034/2351 TSB39RAB41 PRESRR SLP128 FRQ
LTGCGIC OHD-ALQDS TS OHD-ALQDS MOV SE P0020 60020 T02610206 1
KATL 122349Z 03020G27KT 3/4SM R09R/P6000FT +TSRA FEW020 BKN040CB OVC060
28/21 A2993 RMK AO2 PK WND 04027/2349 TSB39RAB41 PRESRR FRQ LTGCG OHD-ALQDS
TS OHD-ALQDS
KATL 122339Z 27006KT 10SM TS SCT045CB BKN060 BKN110 BKN250 29/20 A2989 RMK
AO2 TSB39 FRQ LTGCG W-NW TS W-NW MOV SE
KATL 122252Z 27010KT 10SM SCT045 SCT060 BKN250 31/19 A2989 RMK AO2 SLP110
CB DSNT NE AND S-SW TCU DSNT NW T03060194
KATL 122152Z 28012G17KT 10SM SCT045 BKN060 BKN250 31/21 A2988 RMK AO2 SLP108
CB DSNT NE TCU DSNT E AND NW T03110206
KATL 122052Z 26011G17KT 10SM SCT045 SCT200 31/21 A2989 RMK AO2 SLP108 CB
DSNT NE TCU DSNT W & N T03110206 58010

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41afb03e/0000
20090804133819:20090611000000
Incident: Jetstar A332 near Guam on Jun 11th 2009, cockpit fire over Pacific
The terminal block (Photo: ATSB) The Australian Transportation Safety
Board (ATSB) have released a preliminary report stating, that the flight
carried 182 passengers, 4 flight crew and 13 cabin crew. The flight crew
noticed a burning rubber smell on the flight deck immediately followed by
two caution messages identifying a fault in the right hand cockpit windshield
heating followed by a loud bang and a flash of light and subsequent smoke
and fire from the bottom right corner of the right windshield. All flight
crew donned oxygen masks, after several unsuccessful attempts to extinguish
the fire following the checklists and using heat resistant gloves to smother
the fire the first officer used a BCF fire extinguisher to successfully
put the fire out, although fumes remained evident until landing.

Post flight inspection showed severe burning and melting of the right hand
windshield terminal block and minor damage to the glare shield and nearby
conduit around nearby loudspeaker wiring. The electrical plug was firmly
connected to the terminal plug, there was no evidence of a loose fitting.
All circuit breakers had remained closed, there was no evidence of arcing
or heat damage to the wiring of the windshield heating.

A non destructive examination of the terminal block using x-ray revealed
severe localized damage to the internal wiring of the terminal block.

As an immediate safety action Jetstar conducted an examination of all electrical
windshield connections on all their A330 aircraft, no abnormalities were
found.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41afb03e
20090611140656:20090611000000
Incident: Jetstar A332 near Guam on Jun 11th 2009, cockpit fire over Pacific
A Jetstar Airbus A330-200, registration VH-EBF performing flight JQ-20 (departing
June 10th) from Osaka Kansai (Japan) to Bilinga Gold Coast,QL (Australia)
with 190 passengers and 13 crew, was about 4 hours into the flight at 01:38am
local (15:38Z Jun 10th), when the flight crew noticed smoke coming from
the right hand side of the cockpit and donned their oxygen masks. Moments
later the heating of the right hand cockpit window caught fire. The captain
managed to put out the flames using a fire extinguisher. The crew declared
emergency and decided to divert to Guam (Guam), where the airplane landed
safely at 02:13am local (16:13Z Jun 10th) and taxied to a gate. No injuries
occured.

Attending fire services confirmed the presence of smoke in the cockpit,
but were able to terminate the emergency a few minutes after all passengers
and crew had disembarked normally.

A replacement A330-200 has been dispatched to Guam and is expected to arrive
by 6:20pm local (08:20Z).

The Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) takes the incident very
seriously and has dispatched 4 investigators to Guam.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41af11eb
20090625204236:20090609000000
Accident: American B763 over Atlantic on Jun 9th 2009, electrical fire in cabin
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N357AA performing flight
AA-64 from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Zurich (Switzerland) with 194 passengers
and 12 crew, diverted to Halifax,NS (Canada) when smoke appeared in the
mid cabin about 280nm southwest of Halifax about 45 minutes into the flight.
The crew turned towards Halifax and performed an emergency descent to 10,000
feet. A flight attendant put on a personal oxygen mask, entered the lavatory
and managed to extinguish the fire. The airplane landed safely on Halifax’s
runway 05 35 minutes after the smoke appeared and exited the runway. The
passengers disembarked normally via air stairs brought to the aircraft.
One passenger suffering from anxiety was brought to a hospital.

Engineers determined, that a fan in the ceiling of the mid cabin lavatory
had overheated and caught fire.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N355AA flight AA-9622 was dispatched
from New York JFK to Halifax and reached Zurich with a total delay of 8
hours.

The NTSB reported on Jun 25th, that the NTSB is leading the investigation
because the airplane was over international waters when the fire broke out
in one of the rear lavatories. The fire started in a compartment beneath
the sink and adjacent to a water heater. Burned paper material was observed
near the heater and in a cavity under the lavatory counter, that is normally
not accessed or used for storage.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ae74e0/0000
20120503112544:20090607000000
Incident: Tuifly B738 near Geneva on Jun 7th 2009, smoke in cabin
The Swiss Bureau for Air Accident Investigation (BFU) released their final
report concluding the probable cause of the serious incident was:

The serious incident is due to the emission of smoke as a result of a short-circuit
caused by an assembly defect on a printed circuit of an audio box (SEB)
located under a passenger seat on an airliner.

The aircraft was enroute, the cabin service had just been completed, when
a passenger notified cabin crew “Hier brennts!” (“Something’s on fire!”).
Cabin crew also noticed an acrid white smoke though no flames were visible.
The flight attendant notified the cockpit, fetched a fire extinguisher and
sprayed the area the white smoke was coming from. The purser checked for
any source of heat without noticing heat, she identified the smell as burnt
wires. After the purser informed the captain about the situation on board,
the commander decided to declare Mayday about 3 minutes after the passenger
informed cabin crew, reported an electrical fire on board and diverted to
Geneva. Air traffic control cleared the aircraft to descend to FL190, then
turned to another aircraft directing the aircraft to switch to another frequency,
which the crew of D-AHLR took for themselves however and switched to that
false frequency too.

When the crew reported on the incorrect frequency the puzzled controller
sent the aircraft back onto its previous frequency. At the same time the
original controller had already tried to contact flight X3-2367 and did
not get a reply, another crew reported the crew had switched to the wrong
frequency. The controller again tried to raise X3-2367 on his frequency
and the emergency frequency and made contact on the emergency frequency
now handing the aircraft off to the correct frequency.

While cleared and descending below FL190, after the cabin crew had already
taken their seats, the passenger again reported smoke in his vicinity. Another
fire extinguisher was discharged into the area, the commander was informed
and now considered the possibility of an evacuation, cabin crew was advised
and prepared for an evacuation. The cockpit crew informed ATC that they
still had a fire on board, the fire was under control but there was still
a glow in the area. The crew did not advise ATC of a possible evacuation.

The aircraft landed safely on runway 23 and taxied via taxiway C to the
apron following a follow me vehicle. Once the aircraft had stopped on the
apron, fire crews entered the aircraft through the main door using thermal
imaging. The audio electronic box underneath the reporting passenger’s seat
was identified and removed.

No damage beyond the audio box occurred.

The Swiss BFU reported: “The crew as a whole, under the influence of their
commander, refused to give any information regarding this incident, demanding
the presence of a representative of their company. The captain returned
to his hotel, conducted a debriefing and returned to Germany the next day.”

The audio box was found to contain two fuses, F1 designed to trip at 0.75A
and F2 designed to trip at 0.5A, the board however had 0.5A at position
F1 and 0.75A at position F2. Had the correct fuses been installed the unit
would not have been damaged, that way however a number of capacitator, resistors
and inductors received heat damage resulting in the smoke.

It was not possible to determine when the fuses were transposed. The unit
however is usually only replaced and not being repaired. The airline reported
that all other units were checked and no other occurrences of transposed
fuses were found.

The audio box (Photo: BFU):
Heat damage underneath the resistor (Photo: BFU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41ae74e0
20090609105945:20090607000000
Incident: Tuifly B738 near Geneva on Jun 7th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Tuifly Boeing 737-800, registration D-AHLR performing flight
X3-2637 from Menorca,SP (Spain) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 197 passengers
and 6 crew, declared emergency and decided to divert to Geneva (Switzerland)
after smoke was observed on board of the airplane. The airplane landed safely
on runway 23, taxied off the runway via a high speed turnoff and stopped
on the apron. Passengers disembarked normally brought via stairs brought
to the airplane with fire engines on standby.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration D-AXLE reached Frankfurt with
a delay of 6.5 hours. The incident airplane was ferried out 10 hours after
the emergency landing.

The Swiss Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU) reported on Jun
30th, that a short-circuit of the passenger audio system underneath a passenger
seat produced white smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41aaa9d3/0000
20130531135450:20090604000000
Incident: Icelandair B752 near London on Jun 4th 2009, engine problem
Iceland’s Rannsoknarnefnd flugslysa (RNF, Air Accident Investigation Board)
released their final report concluding the probable cause of the incident
was:

The operatorís engine maintenance program had an omission, where the low
pressure fuel pump did not have a task assigned to it, requiring soft life
maintenance when the engine was removed for shop visit.

– The low pressure fuel pump installed on engine #1 had never undergone
its recommended maintenance.

– The low pressure fuel pump installed on engine #1 failed due to internal
wear.

The RNF reported the first officer (32, ATPL, 3,807 hours total, 2,112 hours
on type) was pilot flying, the captain (39, ATPL, 6,844 hours total, 4,408
hours on type) was pilot monitoring. The aircraft had just been handed over
from Paris Center to London Center and was climbing through FL320 about
85 nm southsoutheast of London Gatwick Airport, when the flight crew noticed
white smoke entering the cockpit and donned their oxygen masks, the first
officer upon rapidly further intensifying smoke also donned his smoke goggles
while the captain abandoned attempts to put his goggles on after two failed
attempts concluding he had more important to do. The captain assumed role
as pilot flying while the first officer began to read the relevant checklist,
smoke or fire or fumes checklist. 17 seconds after the smoke was noticed
the crew notified London ATC about smoke on the flight deck, a few seconds
later three loud bangs were heard from the left hand engine (RB211), that
supposedly surged at this time. The captain, barely able to see the instrument
panel, leaned forward to check the engine displays and found the left hand
engine was showing irregular parameters in addition to rising EGT, the first
officer was unable to see the EICAS at all. 46 seconds after the smoke was
first detected the captain shut down engine #1 by moving the fuel lever
to cutoff position. The captain was ready to pull the fire handle and discharge
the fire agent suspecting the engine was on fire, however, no engine fire
indication occurred, hence the captain did not proceed with the fire drill.
Shortly after the engine was shut down, the smoke started to dissipate.

At the time of the engine shut down the autothrust system had disconnected,
the aircraft started yawing and rolling, the captain felt the autopilot
was struggeling flying the aircraft, so that the captain disengaged the
autopilot and flew the aircraft manually for most of the remainder of the
flight (the autopilot was briefly re-engaged for about 20 seconds 10 minutes
after the smoke had been detected).

Two minutes after the smoke was detected the crew requested diversion to
London Gatwick airport and was cleared to descend for a landing on Gatwick’s
runway 26L.

A passenger told cabin crew that there was smoke in the cabin, the flight
attendant looked up and saw a wall of smoke rolling through the cabin, that
seemed to originate from the area near the wings and subsequently distributed
evenly throughout the cabin. The flight attendant informed the flight deck,
all flight attendants fetched their fire extinguishers, donned oxygen masks
and looked for possible sources of fire and smoke.

The left hand air conditioning system had shut down together with the left
hand engine, due to the shut down the right hand air conditioning system
was prevented to go into high flow mode and thus was not able to maintain
cabin pressure, the cabin altitude began to rise as result. When the aircraft
descended through FL200 the cabin altitude horn sounded, the first officer
determined that they were descending quickly enough so that no release of
the oxygen masks would be necessary. About 4 minutes later the cabin altitude
horn stopped after the aircraft had descended below FL100.

11 minutes after the smoke was detected the smoke had dissipated sufficiently
that the flight crew removed their oxygen masks. 19 minutes after the smoke
appeared the aircraft touched down on Gatwick’s runway 26L for a safe landing.
Emergency services checked the left hand engine for any fire, no trace of
fire was detected, then the aircraft was cleared to taxi to the apron. At
the stand all aircraft doors were opened to release the smoke, the passengers
disembarked normally via stairs through the right hand doors upon request
by fire services who still were on stand by for the left hand engine problem.

Some passengers and crew suffered from minor eye irritation and minor respiration
problems as result of the smoke.

After the aircraft had arrived at the stand, fluid was seen leaking from
the left hand engine, the fluid was identified to be fuel. The engine was
opened and extensive smell of fuel and a fuel leak in the area of both magnetic
chip detector plugs were detected.

The engine was removed and sent for analysis.

The left hand engine had accumulated 63,434 hours in 17,811 flight cycles
since new. It had been last overhauled in 2005 when a cracked high pressure
turbine blade was replaced and had been installed on TF-FIJ in 2006.

The magnetic chip detectors contained a large amount of metallic debris,
which could not be clearly identified though it was suspected to originate
from a locking nut, a stepped sleeve, a carbon face seal and from a cup
washer.

The low pressure fuel pump was found with internal damage including the
self-locking nut, abutment sleeve, cup washer, carbon face seals, face seal
springs, stepped sleeve and retaining pin, it was likely the material found
in the magnetic chip detector originated from these parts. Tear down analysis
of the pump identified the carbon seal insert in the seal assembly between
pump and high speed gearbox had broken.

The RNF analysed that it was difficult to follow emergency procedures due
to the rapid development of smoke. Following the engine shut down the rudder
pedal was moved into the wrong direction, which explains the autopilot had
difficulty to control the aircraft. The captain stated that the difficulty
to read the instruments may have caused this initial reaction. The captain
was simulator instructor for pilot training and thus was very familiar with
the simulator smoke drill training.

ATC had ensured the aircraft was on a discrete frequency without other traffic
on frequency, the crew voiced appreciation of the support provided by ATC.

Icelandair’s computerized maintenance tracking system had no tasks assigned
to the low pressure fuel pump and instead had assigned an engine maintenance
program, which required maintenance after 12,000 hours. The engine manufacturer
however had required a full overhaul of the low pressure fuel pump after
exceeding 20,000 hours. Maintenance undertaken in 2002 therefore missed
the manufacturer’s requirement to replace the fuel pump and again in 2005.
It was likely a previous chip detector indication in 2008 were first indications
of the low pressure fuel pump failure.

Following the failure of the low pressure fuel pump and resulting fuel leak,
that also intruded the engine oil path, it is likely that the fuel/oil mixture
entered the engine compressor contaminating the air before the bleed air
outlet resulting in smoke penetrating the aircraft cockpit and cabin.

When the fuel/oil mixture went further down the gas path inside the engine
it is believed to disrupt the operation of the engine sufficiently to cause
the engine surges observed.

Six safety recommendations were released as result of the investigation.

The leaking engine (Photo: RNF):
Debris on the magnetic chip detector (Photo: RNF):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41aaa9d3
20130531135547:20090604000000
Incident: Icelandair B752 near London on Jun 4th 2009, engine problem
An Icelandair Boeing 757-200, registration TF-FIJ performing flight FI-543
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Keflavik (Iceland) with 149 passengers
and 8 crew, was enroute near London, when a loud bang was heard from the
left hand engine. Shortly thereafter smoke began to fill the cabin. The
crew shut down the engine, declared emergency and diverted to London Gatwick,
where the airplane landed safely on runway 26L.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41aa9e97
20090604185725:20090604000000
Incident: Shuttle America E170 near Moline on Jun 4th 2009, smoke on board
The crew of a Shuttle American Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of United Airlines,
flight S5-7559/UA-7559 from Pittsburgh,PA to Denver,CO (USA) with 67 passengers
and 4 crew, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and problems
with electrical systems while enroute at FL360 about 35nm east of Moline,IL.
The crew decided to divert to Moline’s Quad City Airport, where the airplane
landed safely on runway 09 just 12 (!) minutes later. The airplane stopped
on the runway, passengers disembarked via stairs brought to the runway and
were bussed to the terminal.

A replacement Embraer ERJ-170 was flown from Indianapolis (S5-9400) and
resumed the flight with a delay of 4 hours. The incident plane was ferried
back to Pittsburgh.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41a930d9
20090602205903:20090602000000
Incident: American B752 at Santa Ana on Jun 2nd 2009, tower observes smoke from engine
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N638AA performing flight
AA-1425 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Santa Ana,CA (USA), was on final approach
cleared to land on runway 19R, when the tower controller reported seeing
smoke from the right engine. Emergency services deployed. The aircraft landed
safely and turned off the runway for a short stop on taxiway Alpha. No smoke
was visible anymore, so that the airplane taxied to the gate, where passengers
disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41a90b7a
20090602165011:20090602000000
Incident: Northwest B752 near Waterloo on Jun 2nd 2009, smoke on board
The crew of a Northwest Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N519US performing
flight NW-335 from Detroit,MI to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 181 passengers
and 8 crew, declared emergency reporting smoke on board and diverted to
Waterloo Regional,IA. The airplane descended from FL360 and landed safely
on Waterloo’s runway 12 18 minutes later. The passengers disembarked normally,
no injuries occured.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N516US was ferried in as flight
NW-9874, resumed flight NW-335 and reached Los Angeles with a total delay
of 7 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41a2f210
20090525233217:20090525000000
Incident: Turkish Airlines A321 at Amsterdam on May 25th 2009, blown tyre on takeoff
A Turkish Airlines Airbus A321-200, registration TC-JRD performing flight
TK-1954 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Istanbul Ataturk (Turkey), blew
a tyre during the takeoff run on Amsterdam’s runway 36L – also known as
Polderbaan – and rejected takeoff. The airplane came to a safe stop, the
passengers disembarked via stairs onto the runway and were bussed to the
terminal. No injuries were reported.

The tower reported smoke coming from the landing gear.

Runway 18R/36L had to be closed until the airplane could be towed off the
runway.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration TC-JGO departed Amsterdam’s Schiphol
Airport with a delay of 7.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=419f56c3
20090521122718:20090520000000
Incident: Austral MD83 at Buenos Aires on May 20th 2009, smoke in cabin prompts evacuation
An Austral Aerolineas Argentinas McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registration LV-BDO
performing flight AU-2485 from Tucuman,TU to Buenos Aires,BA (Argentine),
had just touched down in Buenos Aires, when smell of burning plastics were
noticed in the cabin. While the airplane taxied to the gate, thick smoke
entered the cabin appearing to come from the air conditioning vents. The
airplane was stopped and evacuated onto the taxiway. No injuries have been
reported.

Passengers reported, that the smoke affected respiration and eyes.

The airport said, that there was a technical problem forcing the evacuation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=419d9272
20090519045508:20090518000000
Incident: Allegiant MD83 near Las Vegas on May 18th 2009, smoke in cockpit
An Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight G4-394 from Los Angeles,CA
to Grand Junction,CO (USA) with 130 passengers and 5 crew, diverted to Las
Vegas,NV (USA) after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit. The airplane
landed safely on runway 25R about 25 minutes later and taxied to a gate,
where passengers disembarked normally.

A replacement MD-83 reached Grand Junction with a delay of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=419aa01c
20090515155419:20090515000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Indianapolis on May 15th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N535UA performing
flight UA-189 from Baltimore,MD to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 140 passengers,
declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and diverted to Indianapolis,IN.
The airplane made a safe visual landing on runway 23R about 25 minutes later.
The smoke dissipated after landing, the passengers disembarked normally.

Emergency services could not establish a source of fire or heat. Engineers
are currently examining the aircraft to find the source of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41cd1fb0
20090717232324:20090512000000
Report: Eurowings CRJ2 near Budapest on May 12th 2009, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A Eurowings Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Lufthansa, registration D-ACRP
performing flight EW-3472/LH3472 from Dusseldorf (Germany) to Budapest (Hungary),
was on approach to Budapest, when the crew rearranged the bleed transfer
resulting in smoke appearing in the cockpit and in the lavatory. The crew
declared emergency, reset the bleed transfer to the previous setting and
shut the APU down. The smoke dissipated again, the aircraft landed safely.

The return flight EW-3473/LH-3473 was cancelled.

The German BFU reported without providing further details, that the incident
is under investigation by the Hungarian Authorities.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4198b9d1/0000
20110108091911:20090512000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Houston on May 12th 2009, tire fire
On Jan 7th 2011 the NTSB released their conclusion the probable cause of
the incident was:

The pilot’s inadvertent application of excessive braking after touchdown,
which caused the right wheels to lock and several tires to blow and resulted
in a subsequent brake fire.

In October 2010 the NTSB released their factual report stating, that the
airplane departed with several inoperative items as permitted by the minimum
equipment list (MEL), one of the inoperative systems was the automatic brakes
(not just the anti-skid system as reported earlier). Landing on runway 22
(length 7602 feet/2315 meters, surface grooved concrete) was necessary because
of MEL requirements.

The airplane performed a normal flaps 40 approach to runway 22 and touched
down normally in the touch down zone. The captain, pilot flying, then pulled
the thrust levers to idle, brought the spoilers into the fully up position,
activated and applied reverse thrust and applied manual brakes. Both crew
members thought the tyres blew soon after touchdown.

The NTSB reported that news helicopters confirmed by their footage, that
the airplane touched down in the touch down zone and came to a stop about
3300 feet from the touch down point. Smoke and fire appeared in the area
of the right hand main gear soon after touch down.

The crew was informed about the fire and smoke from the right hand main
gear by the tower and ordered the evacuation through the left hand doors.
The flight attendants opened the forward and aft left hand doors, the slide
inflated, and all 48 passengers slid down. The crew members checked the
cabin to ensure nobody was left behind and then slid down as well. The evacuation
was completed after 57 seconds.

Fire engines had reached the aircraft and were able to “knock” the fire
down 32 seconds after the evacuation began, 4 minutes later the fire services
reported the fire was out. Following a quick check in a triage all passengers
and crew were bussed to the terminal.

The flight data recorder showed, the left hand brakes experienced a maximum
brakes pressure of 990psi at an average of 770psi, whereas the right hand
brakes experienced a maximum brakes pressure of 1430psi.

Tire marks at the runway show, the right hand main gear touched down about
15 feet to the right of the runway center line and 1300 feet down the runway,
the touch down marks spanned about 20 feet. Another set of solid skid marks
from the right hand main gear were observed beginning 1550 feet down the
runway, the skid marks continued for 300 feet where the marks on the runway
suggest that both inboard and outboard tyres blew. Uninterrupted skid marks
continued from there to the final position of the aircraft, the marks ended
4650 feet down the runway.

Examination showed, that the left outboard tyre had ruptured as well and
parts of the tyre had separated. The left inboard tyre was undamaged. The
right inboard tyre had ruptured, there was minor damage to the wheel rim.
The right outboard tyre had ruptured, 3 inches of the right outboard wheel
rim and the right hand outboard brakes assembly had been ground away. Both
right main gear tyres, wheels and brakes assemblies showed minor thermal
damage. The right hand flaps received minor damage from tyre debris. Proper
MEL labels were found in the cockpit for the Auto Speed Brakes, Auto Brakes
and On-Board Performance Computer, no pre-event anomalies were identified
that would have prevented normal operation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4198b9d1
20101008100506:20090512000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Houston on May 12th 2009, tire fire
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N371SW performing flight
WN-519 from New Orleans,LA to Houston Hobby,TX (USA) with 48 passengers
and 5 crew, just landed on Houston Hobby Airport’s runway 22, when a tire
blew a few seconds after touch down. While the airplane slowed down, the
tower reported seeing smoke from the right landing gear and a small fire.
The airplane stopped on the runway just past the intersection with runway
12R/30L, video footage of the landing showed the outer right hand main gear
tire ablaze. The airplane was evacuated via the slides. Emergency services
quickly put out the fire.

The airport had to close runway 04/22 and 12R/30L for about one hour until
the airplane was towed off the runway.

The damage was limited to the tire, mechanics found no damage to the landing
gear.

The American NTSB stated in their preliminary report of May 29th, that three
of the four main landing gear tyres blew out on landing causing a fire in
the right main landing gear. Several items were inoperative in accordance
with the minimum equipment list (MEL) including the anti skid system. Runway
22 was required because of the MEL landing weight restrictions. The 48 passengers
including a lap child and 5 crew evacuated via slides, two adults received
minor injuries in the evacuation. The NTSB concluded their report: “The
cockpit voice recorder (CVR), and digital flight data recorder (DFDR) were
secured for further investigation and the rest of the airplane was released
to the operator.”

Video:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41985e91
20090512194201:20090512000000
Incident: Airlinair AT42 at Agen on May 12th 2009, smoke in cabin
An Airlinair Aerospatiale ATR-42-300, registration F-GKYN performing flight
A5-242 from Agen to Paris Orly (France) with 30 passengers, returned to
Agen when a strong burning smell developed in the cabin about 15 minutes
into the flight followed by visible smoke out of the air conditioning system
shortly thereafter. The crew managed a safe landing about 30 minutes after
departure, no injuries occured.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41984097
20090512161622:20090512000000
Incident: British Airways B763 near Budapest on May 12th 2009, smoke in cabin
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BZHC performing flight
BA-676 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Istanbul Ataturk (Turkey), was enroute
near Budapest, when cabin crew observed smoke in the cabin. The flight crew
declared emergency and diverted to Budapest for a safe landing about 2:20
hours past takeoff in London.

Emergency services could not establish a source of fire or heat. An investigation
is underway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4195718d
20090509070142:20090508000000
Incident: Finnair MD11 at Osaka on May 8th 2009, smoke from APU
A Finnair McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration OH-LGB performing flight
AY-78 from Osaka Kansai (Japan) to Helsinki (Finnland) with 208 passengers,
had lined up the departure runway and was waiting for the takeoff clearance,
when smoke was seen coming from the rear of the aircraft. The crew received
an APU fire alert, the automatic fire suppression system extinguished the
fire. Some metal parts of the APU fell onto the runway.

The APU was taken off service and secured, then the airplane resumed the
flight to Helsinki with a delay of 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4193c587/0000
20100928162702:20090506000000
Accident: World Airways DC10 at Baltimore on May 6th 2009, blew nose gear tyre
The NTSB released their final report concluding the probable cause of the
accident was:

the captainís inappropriate control inputs following a firm landing, resulting
in two hard nose-gear impacts before executing a go-around.

Contributing to the inappropriate control inputs was the captainís fatigue
and physical discomfort; and a possible lack of practical consolidation
of skills and experience due to a protracted and fragmented training period.

The captain was pilot flying, when the airplane was performing an ILS approach
to Baltimore’s runway 10 in VFR conditions and good weather. The approach
was fully stabilized at 1500 feet AGL and was fully configured with flaps
35 at 500 feet. The crew noticed a departing aircraft on a crossing runway
and disconnected the autopilot. The power increased briefly while descending
through 100 feet AGL, then decreased until touchdown. The aircraft began
to pitch up for the flare at 45 feet AGL, the main gear touched down first
at a pitch angle of 5.5 degrees, the flight data recorded 1.6G vertical
acceleration, the airplane bounced, the main gear struts extended and the
aircraft probably became airborne by a small amount.

The captain noticed the airplane bounced and attempted to maintain a normal
touch down attitude, the flight data recorder showed that the control column
changed from a pull to a push position for abotu 2 seconds, the pitch angle
decreased rapidly. As the pitch down rate increased the column changed to
a pull again, but the nose gear contacted the runway at a pitch angle below
0 degrees (nose down attitude) resulting in a vertical acceleration of 2.8G.
The captain later said he felt no elevator authority to arrest the de-rotation.

The pitch attitude rebounded reaching 10 degrees nose up 2 seconds later,
the control column was pushed again and engines #1 and #2 (left and center)
began to accelerate. The pitch angle decreased rapidly and the nose gear
contacted the runway a second time resulting in a vertical acceleration
of 3.2G. At the time of the second nose gear impact engines #1 and #2 were
accelerating through 85% N1, engine #3 was accelerating through 50% N1.
The airplane rebounded again and the airplane settled in a climb with all
engines at climb power.

Smoke appeared in the cockpit during climbout, the crew identified an airconditioning
system overheat. Some attitude instruments were lost, the inertial reference
units were damaged and dislodged and the #1 hydraulic system failed. The
captain declared emergency, the tower reported the nose gear showed damage
and there was debris on the runway.

The controller in charge activated the crash phone. The flight was vectored
for an approach to runway 33L, where the airplane finally landed safely.

The first officer received a serious neck injury, the captain and flight
engineer as well as 9 flight attendants reported minor injuries. There were
no injuries amongst the 168 passengers.

The aircraft received substantial damage: the left hand nose gear tyre burst
and shredded the carcass, the right hand nose gear tyre and wheel were damaged,
extensive skin damage, buckling and cracking in the forward fuselage, the
right hand side of the forward pressure bulkhead buckled and fractured,
numerous components in the electronics bay were damaged and dislodged.

The captain (40) had 6500 hours of flying experience thereof 193 on the
DC-10. During his flight from Guam to Honolulu on May 3rd/4th he felt ill
probably due to bad food and continued to Leipzig as a passenger via San
Francisco and Frankfurt.

During the flight to Baltimore the illness/discomfort returned requiring
him to frequently visit the lavatory due to digestive discomfort.

The first officer (37) had 6300 hours of flying experience thereof 373 hours
on the DC-10. The first officer also felt ill during the flight from Guam
to Honolulu on May 3rd/4th but had no trouble during the accident flight.

The first officer met the crew in Leipzig to replace the originally rostered
first officer who could not make the flight. He had 3580 hours flying experience
thereof 621 as flight engineer on the DC-10.

Weather conditions were winds calm, visibility in excess of 10nm, few clouds
at 2100 feet, temperature 17 degrees C.

There were no anomalies with the airfield equipment.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41936cd3
20090506201741:20090506000000
Incident: Cityjet RJ85 near London on May 6th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Cityjet Avro RJ-85 on behalf of Air France, registration EI-RJT performing
flight WX-5082/AF-5082 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Shannon
(Ireland) with 24 passengers and 4 crew, initiated an emergency descent
from FL340 to FL110 just before the English coast overhead the British Channel
reaching FL110 within 5 minutes and 27nm. The airplane subsequently diverted
to London Gatwick,EN (UK) for a safe landing.

Cityjet reported, that there was smoke in the cabin prompting the diversion.
The passengers have been rebooked onto other flights from Gatwick via Dublin
this evening.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4190cd69
20090503153421:20090502000000
Incident: Jet Airways B77W near Baku on May 2nd 2009, cargo smoke alert
A Jet Airways Boeing 777-300ER, registration VT-JEC performing flight 9W-122
from Delhi (India) to London Hearthrow,EN (UK) with 262 passengers and 15
crew, diverted to Baku (Azerbaijan) after a smoke detector in one of the
cargo holds triggered about 4 hours into the flight. The airplane landed
safely in Baku about 2 hours later.

The alert was determined false, the airplane could continue the journey
after checks and reached London with a delay of 7 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418f9702
20090502061815:20090501000000
Incident: AeroGal B752 at Guayaquil on May 1st 2009, engine failure on takeoff
An AeroGal Aerolineas Galapagos Boeing 757-200, registration HC-CHC performing
flight 2K-900 from Guayaquil (Ecuador) to Miami,FL (USA) with 128 people
on board, had just lifted off from runway 03, when the right hand engine
suffered repeated compressor stalls and lost power. The crew reduced thrust
on that engine to idle, levelled off and returned to Guayaquil for a safe
landing about 13 minutes later.

Residents in the north of Guayaquil heard repeated explosions, saw a low
flying aircraft with smoke trailing an engine and called city emergency
services reporting an airplane crash.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418e598b
20090430203536:20090430000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 at Toronto on Apr 30th 2009, engine fire
An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FKCR performing flight AC-101
from Toronto Pearson,ON to Vancouver,BC (Canada), had just lifted off Toronto’s
runway 05, when the tower controller noticed black smoke trailing the aircraft.
The crew declared PAN PAN PAN reporting the right hand engine on fire while
climbing through 1600 feet for 5000 feet and reported shortly thereafter,
that the engine fire was out, the engine was still running at idle thrust.
The airplane levelled off at 3000 feet and was vectored for a return to
runway 05, the approach however was abandoned due to debris left on the
runway. The airplane positioned for an approach to runway 15L, where the
airplane landed safely 19 minutes after liftoff.

A runway 05 inspection revealed some metal debris from the engine on the
runway.

A replacement Airbus A320-200 registration C-FLSS resumed the flight and
reached Vancouver with a delay of 2:12 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418e1fd1
20090430143716:20090429000000
Incident: Saudi E170 at Wadi Ad Dawasir on Apr 29th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Embraer ERJ-170, registration HZ-AED performing
flight SV-1925 from Wadi Ad Dawasir to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) with 60 people
on board, returned to Wadi Ad Dawasir when smoke originating from the air
conditioning system entered the cabin shortly after takeoff. The airplane
landed safely on runway 28. The airplane taxied to the gate, passengers
disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418c6b1e
20090428122943:20090428000000
Incident: Emirates B77W at Dubai on Apr 28th 2009, cargo smoke alert
An Emirates Airlines Boeing 777-300ER, registration A6-EBQ performing flight
EK-87 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Zurich (Switzerland), returned
to Dubai, after the forward cargo hold smoke detector triggered shortly
after takeoff. The airplane landed safely, emergency services found no trace
of fire, heat or smoke.

A replacement Boeing 777-300ER registration A6-EBU reached Zurich with a
delay of 6.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418c7dc9
20090428144215:20090427000000
Incident: Saudi B743 near Jeddah on Apr 27th 2009, galley fire
A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747-300, registration HZ-AIT performing
flight SV-1061 from Riyadh to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), was enroute, when a
fire started in the internal wiring of the upper galley causing some smoke.
Cabin and flight crew isolated the galley from electrical supply and stopped
the fire. The airplane landed safely on runway 34C at Jeddah. Emergency
services on stand by for the landing did not need to intervene.

Passengers did not notice anything unusual until seeing the fire trucks
upon arrival.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418908b8
20090424122314:20090424000000
Incident: BMI E135 at Hannover on Apr 24th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A BMI British Midlands Embraer ERJ-135, registration G-CDFS performing flight
BD-815 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Hannover (Germany) with 7 passengers,
was on approach to Hannover, when the crew reported smoke in the cockpit
about 7 minutes prior to estimated landing. The landing was accelerated,
the airplane landed safely. All people on board disembarked without injuries.

German police reported, that a technical defect caused the smoke on board
of the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4185e2e6
20090420162455:20090419000000
Incident: Air China B738 near Beijing on Apr 19th 2009, smoke alert
An Air China Boeing 737-800, flight CA-1603 from Beijing to Harbin (China),
returned to Beijing, when a smoke detector went off about 20 minutes into
the flight. The airplane landed safely at Beijing 54 minutes after takeoff.

Air China reported, that the smoke alert was determined false. A replacement
aircraft resumed the flight 2 hours after the return.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41852cc3
20090419201652:20090419000000
Incident: Iberia A321 at Fuerteventura on Apr 19th 2009, cargo smoke alert
An Iberia Airbus A321-200, registration EC-HUI performing flight IB-878
from Madrid,SP to Fuerteventura,CI (Spain), was on approach to Fuerteventura,
when a cargo hold smoke detector activated prompting the crew to declare
emergency. The airplane landed safely, emergency services receiving the
airplane found no fire or source of heat.

The return flight IB-871 was cancelled by the captain of the flight to allow
a thorough examination of the airplane. The 190 waiting passengers were
brought to hotels.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418421d6
20090418145811:20090417000000
News: Elevator keeps airplanes in the sky at Charlotte, Apr 17th 2009
More than 100 flights were delayed after an elevator in the control tower
got stuck with its engine emitting smoke, the FAA reported. The resulting
alert forced the tower controllers to leave the building. Although controllers
at the unaffected ground floor took over, about a dozen crews opted to not
continue their approach to Charlotte’s Douglas Airport,NC (USA) and wait
for the tower resuming operation about 30 minutes later.

Airport fire fighters freed a tower controller, who was trapped in the elevator
on the way up for about 15 minutes, without injuries.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418341d3
20090417132856:20090417000000
Incident: JAL A306 at Tokyo on Apr 17th 2009, engine fire after touchdown
A JAL Japan Airlines Airbus A300-600, flight JL-1204 from Aomori to Tokyo
Haneda (Japan) with 120 people on board, had just touched down at Haneda
Airport, when the right hand engin was seen emitting smoke and flames through
its exhaust pipe. The flight crew activated the engine fire suppression
system and put the fire quickly out that way. The passengers disembarked
normally, no injuries occured.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41823ce6
20090416071243:20090415000000
Incident: Qantas B738 at Melbourne on Apr 15th 2009, snakes missing from container
Stimson Python (Photo: Stewart Macdonald) A Qantas Boeing 737-800,
registration VH-VXQ performing flight QF-797 from Alice Springs,NT to Melbourne,VI
(Australia), had concluded the flight without incident. Ground workers were
unloading the plane, when they discovered that four 15cm (6 inches) long
Stimson Pythons were missing from their transport container. The airplane
was grounded and the pythons smoked out.

The Stimson Pythons (“Antaresia stimsoni”) usually grow up to 70-80cm (27-32
inches), but can become up to 140 cm (55 inches) in length and do not produce
venom. In the wild they live mainly in western and central Australia preying
upon frogs, saurians and other reptiles, small birds, bats and other small
mammals. They are common as pets, where they can get up to 20 years old.

Qantas could not explain how the snakes escaped the container. The container
holding 12 young pythons was intact at Alice Springs. After it was established,
that the species was not endangered, the aircraft was fumigated to kill
the 4 pythons.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=418156fa
20090415071130:20090414000000
Incident: Jetblue E190 at New York on Apr 14th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190, flight B6-919 from New York JFK,NY
to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 54 people on board, reported smoke in the
cabin about 90 seconds after takeoff from runway 13R and requested to return
to John F. Kennedy Airport. About three minutes later the crew reported,
that the smoke started to dissipate, but there was still haze in the mid
cabin and it was still warm there. The airplane landed safely on runway
13L 16 minutes after takeoff.

The flight was resumed by N289JB, Embraer ERJ-190, with a total delay of
two hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=417f5574
20090414220130:20090412000000
Incident: Virgin Atlantic B744 over Atlantic on Apr 12th 2009, smoke in cockpit, then struck by lightning
The crew of a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747-400, registration G-VFAB performing
flight VS-6 (dep. Apr 11th) from Miami,FL (USA) to London Heathrow,EN (UK)
with 363 people on board, reported smoke in the cockpit while enroute at
FL380 at around N39 W59 about 410nm southsoutheast of Halifax and requested
to divert to Halifax,NS (Canada). The airplane was cleared to Halifax and
landed safely on runway 14 80 minutes later.

NAV Canada reported on April 14th, that the crew declared emergency because
of smoke in the cockpit. While approaching Halifax, about 5nm southwest
of the airport, the airplane was struck by a lightning. The airplane landed
safely. The Canadian TSB will not investigate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=417cbf69
20091223154502:20090409000000
Crash: Aviastar Mandiri B463 at Wamena on Apr 9th 2009, impacted mountain on second approach
An Aviastar Mandiri British Aerospace BAe146-300, registration PK-BRD performing
a daily domestic flight from Jayapura to Wamena (Indonesia) with 6 crew
on board, impacted Gunung Pike (Mount Pike) about 5-10km from the airport
of Wamena after two go arounds while approaching Wamena in good visibility.
All occupants of the airplane perished in the crash.

Last radio contact with the airplane had been at 07:17 local time (22:17Z
Apr 8th). Officials at the airport observed black smoke and fire at the
top of Gunung Pike (local name, the position of which is not yet resolved)
after the plane had disappeared from sight and dispatched ambulances and
fire engines.

Wamena is a VFR only airport, no instrument procedures have been published.
Runway 15/33 is 1650 meters (5412 feet) long, elevation 5085 feet. The mountains
surrounding the airfield rise up to 12000 feet. The traffic pattern for
the airport is defined to the west, hence a right hand pattern for runway
15 and left hand pattern for runway 33.

The Ministry of Transportation of the Republic of Indonesia reported, that
the airplane had been approaching runway 15, had gone around and turned
right into the right hand visual traffic pattern. The airplane was instructed
to turn base, when it entered clouds and radio contact was lost. After several
attempts to contact the airplane failed and the estimated time of arrival
had passed, the tower controller saw smoke rising at the right base leg
in the area of Gunung Pike, which is about 5-10km from the airport. Weather
conditions were foggy with minimum visibility. The airplane was supposed
to unload the cargo and then pick up passengers bound for Jayapura. Three
accident investigators were dispatched to the crash site. The airplane carried
9 tons of fuel supplies for Wamena.

The highest elevation of the mountain located adjacent to the usual right
hand downwind and about at the location where the turn to base would be
initiated, is 2560 meters (8400 feet), the peak about 7.5 km from the city
of Wamena and 10km from the airport.

No Metars are available.

Map (Courtesy Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41778913
20090403112341:20090403000000
Incident: Virgin Blue B73G near Melbourne on Apr 3rd 2009, multiple lightning strikes
A Virgin Blue Boeing 737-700, flight DJ-1370 from Melbourne,VI to Launceston,TS
(Australia) with 117 passengers and 6 crew, was climbing out of Melbourne
about 10 minutes into the flight, when the airplane was struck multiple
times by lightning. The crew decided to return to Melbourne, where the airplane
landed safely.

Three passengers were checked out for smoke inhalation, but nobody was send
to hospital, emergency services reported.

Passengers said, that the flight got very turbulent, then they heard multiple
pops and saw several flashes.

A replacement Boeing 737-800 registration VH-VOS resumed the flight and
reached Launceston with a delay of 5 hours.

A weather front was moving through Melbourne at the time of the incident
resulting in flooding and failed traffic lights in Melbourne.

Metars:
YMML 030600Z 22008KT 9999 FEW025 BKN075 16/12 Q1015 NOSIG
YMML 030530Z 22014KT 9999 -RA FEW018 BKN030 15/13 Q1015 INTER 0530/0800
4000 SHRA BKN010
YMML 030500Z 19007KT 9999 FEW008 SCT017 OVC027 15/14 Q1015 FM0500 21014KT
9999 -SHRA SCT005 BKN010 INTER 0500/0600 3000 TSRA BKN005 FEW040CB INTER
0600/0800 4000 SHRA BKN005
YMML 030430Z 19009KT 9999 -SHRA FEW006 OVC024 15/15 Q1015 FM0430 21014KT
9999 -SHRA SCT005 BKN010 INTER 0430/0600 3000 TSRA BKN005 FEW040CB INTER
0600/0730 4000
YMML 030400Z 23011KT 7000 -SHRA BKN014 BKN020 16/13 Q1015 FM0400 21014KT
9999 -SHRA SCT005 BKN010 INTER 0400/0600 3000 TSRA BKN005 FEW040CB INTER
0600/0700 4000
YMML 030330Z 22010KT 9999 FEW013 BKN020 16/14 Q1016 INTER 0300/0430 3000
TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO 0330/0600 4000 SHRA BKN010 INTER 0600/0630 4000
RA BKN012
YMML 030300Z 21006KT 9999 -RA FEW013 BKN021 15/14 Q1016 FM0300 23015KT 9999
-SHRA SCT010 BKN025 INTER 0300/0430 3000 TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO 0300/0600
4000 SHRA BKN010
YMML 030239Z 24017G27KT 4000 -TSRA BKN013 FEW040CB 15/14 Q1016 FM0239 23015KT
9999 -SHRA SCT010 BKN025 INTER 0239/0430 3000 TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO
0232/0539
YMML 030232Z 23016G27KT 1000 TSRA BKN010 BKN040CB 16/14 Q1017 FM0232 22010KT
9999 -SHRA SCT010 BKN025 INTER 0232/0432 3000 TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO
0232/0532
YMML 030200Z 23014KT 9999 -RA FEW009 OVC017 16/15 Q1016 FM0200 22010KT 9999
-SHRA SCT010 BKN025 INTER 0200/0430 3000 TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO 0200/0500
4000 S
YMML 030130Z 20008KT 9999 FEW009 BKN011 BKN060 16/15 Q1016 FM0130 22010KT
9999 -SHRA SCT010 BKN025 INTER 0130/0400 3000 TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO
0130/0430 4000 SHRA BKN010
YMML 030100Z 22010KT 9999 -RA FEW012 SCT018 BKN070 FEW045CB 16/15 Q1017
INTER 0100/0400 3000 TSRA BKN010 FEW040CB TEMPO 0100/0400 4000 SHRA BKN010
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=417612e7
20090422164847:20090401000000
Incident: United Airlines B763 near Bangor on Apr 1st 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a United Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N654UA performing
flight UA-923 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Washington Dulles,DC (USA)
with 178 passengers and 11 crew, declared emergency reporting smoke in the
cockpit and diverted to Bangor,ME (USA). The airplane landed safely about
35 minutes later.

Emergency services found no trace of heat or fire, the cause of the smoke
is being investigated.

A replacement Boeing 757-200 registration N524UA has been flown in as flight
UA-9928 and continued the flight with a delay of 6 hours.

Bangor Airport said, that the crew reported smoke in the cockpit and one
engine inoperative.

The Canadian TSB reported on Apr 22nd, that the airplane was enroute at
FL360 about 60nm east of Fredericton,NB (Canada), when the pilot flying
heard something what sounded like a small explosion and sensed vibrations
of the airframe. The right hand engine EGT was displayed red in excess of
700 degrees C on the EICAS (Engine Indication and Crew Alerting System).
The engine was throttled back, the EGT however did not decrease. The crew
therefore decided to shut the engine (PW4060) down and divert to Bangor,
ME (USA). While descending the cabin crew reported visibile smoke in the
cabin. Although no smoke was observed on the flight deck, the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit to Moncton Center. The smoke removal checklist was
executed, which cleared the smoke in the cabin verified by the flight attendants.
The right hand engine needed to be replaced, the cause of the problems could
not yet be determined and will require a teardown of the engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41757dbb
20090402194302:20090331000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near Montreal on Mar 31st 2009, cargo smoke alert
The crew of an American Eagle Embraer ERJ-135, registration N721HS performing
flight MQ-4920 from New York La Guardia,NY (USA) to Montreal Trudeau,QC
(Canada), declared emergency due to smoke in the luggage compartment while
descending towards Montreal 30nm south of the airfield and requested emergency
services on stand by for the arrival. The airplane landed safely 12 minutes
later.

The Canadian TSB reported on April 2nd, that the crew received a smoke alert
from the luggage compartment. No indications of smoke, heat or fire was
established after landing. The airplane performed the return flight regularly
however without luggage in the affected compartment. Maintenance replaced
the fire bottles in the cargo compartment, but could not reproduce the malfunction.
The airplane was returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41742e01
20090330070840:20090329000000
Incident: American MD82 at San Diego on Mar 29th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of an American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, flight AA-480
from San Diego,CA to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 146 passengers, declared
emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit while climbing through FL200 out
of San Diego. The airplane landed safely on runway 27 about 24 minutes after
takeoff.

Firefighters could not establish any source of fire or heat.

A replacement MD-82 registration N424AA reached Dallas Ft. Worth with a
delay of 2:20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4170620a
20090325184743:20090325000000
Incident: Aerolineas Argentinas MD88 at Trelew on Mar 25th 2009, smoke in cabin prompts evacuation
An Aerolineas Argentinas McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration LV-VBZ performing
flight AR-1802 from Buenos Aires,BA to Trelew,CB (Argentine) with 41 passengers,
was on approach to Trelew, when an electrical defect caused the cabin to
fill with smoke. The airplane landed safely and was evacuated via slides
as soon as the airplane came to a standstill.

One flight attendant suffered respiratory problems and was treated on site.

A replacement aircraft was dispatched to perform the onward leg from Trelew
to El Calafate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41701e10/0000
20100915175215:20090325000000
Incident: JAC DH8D near Tanegashima on Mar 25th 2009, engine shut down in flight
The fractured RGB helical gear shaft (Photo: JTSB)The Japanese Transportation
Safety Board (JTSB) released their final report in English concluding:

It is highly probable that this serious incident occurred through the following
series of events:

While the Aircraft was climbing after takeoff, the reduction gear box (RGB)
helical input gearshaft of the No. 1 engine sustained fatigue fracture and
was detached from its position; the fragments of the broken shaft then flew
off, damaging the engine case and breaking the blades of the high pressure
turbine (HPT) and the blades and vanes of the low pressure turbine (LPT)
and power turbine (PT – “downstream stage turbine from which
the power for rotating the propeller is extracted”) at the downstream stages,
and this resulted in breakdown of the engine.

With regard to the fatigue fracture of the RGB helical input gearshaft,
it is considered probable that fatigue cracks had started from the impurity
inclusion present in the metal stock of the helical gear developed in the
shaft, and after undergoing repetitive application of stress, the shaft
was finally fractured.

The airplane had departed Tanegashima’s runway 31 with the first officer
being pilot flying and was climbing through 3700 feet about 6km from the
airport when a loud bang was heard, the master caution light illuminated
at 3800 feet followed by the oil pressure warning light for the left hand
engine, the rpms of the left hand rotors dropped sharply to about 47%. 7
seconds after the bang and 3 seconds after the oil pressure warning light
the engine was shut down. The crew declared emergency, continued the climb
to 8000 feet (instead of 12000 feet as initially cleared) and carried on
to Kagoshima, where winds came from 330 degrees at 22 knots gusting between
17 and 31 knots, volcanic smoke was observed. The crew entered a holding
at Kagishima for about 10 minutes to troubleshoot, subsequently they reported
that they were unable to feather the propeller. The crew managed a safe
landing on Kagoshima’s runway 34 approximately 52 minutes after the loud
bang.

Visual post flight examination found the #1 engine and the #1 feathering
pump damaged.

A teardown examination of the #1 engine showed, that the RGB helical input
gearshaft had developed a crack, which originated at an inclusion below
the surface of the shaft. The crack developed helically from the inside
to the outside until overload from torsional stress led to the development
of fatigue cracks and eventually failure of the gearshaft.

The HPT rotor blades were damaged by impact forces and overheating.

The LPT rotor blades were damaged by impact forces and overheating. All
vanes were damaged by heat.

All PT vanes were damaged by impact forces, the #1 stage and #2 stage blades
as well as the shaft were fractured. Examination of the fracture surfaces
showed tensile-stress-caused overloading.

A teardown examination of the feathering pump drive motor showed that the
motor was defective due to both rotor and static magnets being contaminated
with iron powder dust. The static magnets were corroded and detached due
to the separation of retaining adhesive. The armature had interfered with
the static magnets both.

Examination of other motors revealed three mose motors showed the same failure
mode.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=416eb00e
20090323170607:20090323142524
News: Fire adjacent to Kolkata Airport hampers Air Traffic
Airplanes, including two airliners, in a hangar at Kolkata Airport had to
be evacuated in a hurry, when a fire broke out in two chemical factories
immediately adjacent to the airport. The smoke clouds streamed across the
southern part of the airport, forcing approaches from and departures to
the north.

Airport officials said however, that the airport continues to operate on
schedule despite the disruption. Airport Metars report winds from the north
with maximum 3 knots and visibility of 2500 meters in haze, later thunderstorms
and rain.

Metars:
VECC 231420Z 00000KT 2500 HZ FEW020 FEW025CB SCT100 28/19 Q1010 TEMPO TL1520
1500 TSRA
VECC 231350Z 00000KT 2500 HZ FEW020 FEW025CB SCT100 29/19 Q1009 TEMPO TL1520
1500 TSRA
VECC 231320Z 00000KT 2500 HZ FEW020 FEW025CB SCT100 29/19 Q1009 TEMPO TL1520
1500 TSRA
VECC 231250Z 00000KT 2300 HZ FEW020 FEW025CB BKN100 30/19 Q1008 TEMPO TL1320
1500 TSRA
VECC 231150Z 20008KT 2300 TS FEW020 FEW025CB BKN100 31/18 Q1008 TEMPO TL1320
1500 TSRA
VECC 231120Z 00000KT 2500 TS FEW020 FEW030CB SCT100 33/19 Q1008 TEMPO TL1320
1500 TSRA
VECC 231050Z 00000KT 2500 HZ FEW020 FEW030CB SCT100 33/19 Q1009 TEMPO 1500
TSRA
VECC 231020Z 02003KT 2500 HZ FEW020 FEW030CB 33/19 Q1009 NOSIG
VECC 230950Z 01003KT 2500 HZ FEW020 SCT025 FEW030CB 34/19 Q1008 NOSIG

VECC 230950Z 01003KT 2500 HZ FEW020 SCT025 FEWN ?CHECK TEXT NEW ENDING ADDED
VECCYFYX
VECC 230950Z 01003KT 2500 HZ FEW020 SCT025 FEWN *CHECK TEXT NEW ENDING ADDED
VECCYFYX
VECC 230920Z 33003KT 2600 HZ FEW020 SCT025 34/19 Q1009 NOSIG
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=416fa4b5
20090401192457:20090323000000
Incident: Air Canada E175 near Toronto on Mar 23rd 2009, smoke in galley
The crew of an Air Canada Embraer ERJ-175, registration C-FEJB performing
flight AC-509 from Toronto,ON (Canada) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA), declared
PAN PAN about 15 minutes into the flight reporting smoke in the galley.
The crew decided to return to Toronto, where the airplane landed safely
on runway 05 36 minutes after takeoff.

The Canadian TSB reported on Apr 1st, that a coffee maker was the source
of the smoke. The airplane was returned to service after the coffee machine
was replaced.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=416c9997/0001
20090430070309:20090320000000
Accident: Emirates A345 at Melbourne on Mar 20th 2009, tail strike and overrun on takeoff
Skin Damage (Photo: ATSB) The Australian Transportation Safety Board
have released their preliminary factual report stating, that the main gear
uncompressed and left ground 115 meters past the runway end and the tail
of the airplane struck the ground past the end of the runway. The crew subsequently
noticed, that the aircraft weight entered into the laptop for takeoff computations
was 100 tonnes less than the actual takeoff weight of 362900 kg (799400
lbs).

Visibility was more than 10km that night, temperature was 17 degrees Celsius,
winds came from 250 degrees at 5 knots, no significant weather was around.

The first officer was pilot flying for the leg, the captain was pilot monitoring
for the reduced power takeoff on runway 16. The airplane reached V1 (143
knots) 1118 meters before the runway end. The captain called rotate, the
first officer attempted to rotate the aircraft when the aircraft was 964
meters before the runway end, which however did not respond. The captain
called again “rotate”, the first officer applied more backpressure resulting
in the nose lifting (886 meters before runway end) and the tail struck the
runway surface 229 meters before the runway end, but the airplane did not
begin to climb. The captain applied maximum thrust by moving the throttles
into the TOGA detent at the runway end and the airplane eventually commenced
a climb with the main gear uncompressing 115 meters past the runway end.
“During the take-off, the aircraft’s tail contacted the ground beyond the
end of the runway and a number of airport landing aids came into contact
with the aircraft.” The airplane subsequently impacted approach lighting,
the instrument landing system monitoring antenna and struck the localizer
antenna with its left main gear disabling the localizer function. A positive
rate of climb was established 292 meters past the runway end.

The tailstrike indication illuminated in the cockpit, so that the crew requested
to return to Melbourne. The airplane climbed to 7000 feet and dumped fuel
over Port Philip Bay for 36 minutes. While reviewing the documentation for
landing computations the crew noticed, that they had entered a weight into
the laptop for takeoff computations which was 100 tonnes less than the actual
takeoff weight. The wrong weight had been used to compute the takeoff performance
resulting in lower engine thrust settings and lower takeoff speeds than
required.

After the fuel dump was completed and the flight crew was configuring the
airplane for the landing, the cabin crew reported smoke in the cabin. The
crew requested an immediate landing. The airplane landed safely on runway
34 9 minutes after the smoke report and 45 minutes after commencing the
takeoff roll, rolled to the runway end and was examined by emergency services,
who established no imminent danger. The airplane was able to taxi to the
gate, where passengers disembarked normally.

The aircraft received abrasions at the rear lower fuselage skin, a dislodged
service panel, several deformations of fuselage frames and stringers, several
of which contained cracks, and cracks and deformation of the rear pressure
bulkhead. A contact mark was in the inner rear tyre of the left main gear.

Damage also occured to fixed approach lights, instrument landing system
monitoring antennas and the localizer antenna.
Bulkhead cracks (Photo: ATSB):
Ground track past runway (Photo: ATSB):
Localizer antenna (Photo: ATSB):
Ground impact marks (Graphics: ATSB/Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=416c9997
20090430062849:20090320000000
Accident: Emirates A345 at Melbourne on Mar 20th 2009, tail strike and overrun on takeoff
Damage after the tail strike An Emirates Airlines Airbus A340-500,
registration A6-ERG performing flight EK-407 from Melbourne,VI (Australia)
to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with 257 passengers and 18 crew, experienced
a tail strike on takeoff from Melbourne’s runway 16 (length 3657 meters/12000
feet) at around 22:30 local (11:30Z), hit the runway end lights and the
localizer antenna past the end of runway 16. The airplane climbed out safely,
went to dump fuel overhead the ocean at Port Phillip Bay but returned for
an immediate emergency landing when smoke started to fill the cabin about
30 minutes after takeoff. The airplane landed heavily on Melbourne’s runway
34 and was able to taxi to the apron after being checked out by emergency
services.

Severe abrazions occured to the tail skin and several access panels were
ripped off during the tailstrike, the landing reportedly caused additional
damage to the gear.

The Melbourne Airport confirmed, that several runway end lights were damaged
in the accident, too, and needed to be replaced. NOTAMs (NOTices for AirMen)
state, that the ILS runway 16 will not be available until March 23rd: “F2248/09
– ILS RWY16 ‘IMS’ FREQ 109.7 NOT AVBL. 20 MAR 16:10 2009 UNTIL 23 MAR 07:00
2009 ESTIMATED. CREATED: 20 MAR 16:10 2009″

In daylight Saturday morning it was established, that the airplane was still
on the ground when it passed the runway end during takeoff, according gear
tracks were found in the soft ground past the runway end.

The Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) confirmed the tailstrike
causing substantial damage to the airframe and subsequent smoke in the cabin,
however deferred all other questions to investigation results to be expected
in about 30 days.

Emirates Airlines reported on April 2nd, that both pilots handed in their
resignations.
Metars:
YMML 201400Z 35006KT CAVOK 15/13 Q1014 NOSIG
YMML 201330Z 35005KT CAVOK 15/13 Q1014 NOSIG
YMML 201300Z 01006KT CAVOK 15/13 Q1014 NOSIG
YMML 201230Z 31004KT CAVOK 16/14 Q1014 NOSIG
YMML 201200Z 30004KT CAVOK 16/14 Q1014 NOSIG
YMML 201130Z 26003KT CAVOK 17/14 Q1015 NOSIG
YMML 201100Z 24004KT CAVOK 16/14 Q1014 NOSIG
YMML 201030Z 23003KT CAVOK 17/14 Q1015 NOSIG

Damage after the tail strike:
Aerodrome Chart (Airservices Australia):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4169afe0
20090405164924:20090316000000
Incident: Saudi MD90 at Hail on Mar 16th 2009, thick smoke from engine after reaching gate
A Saudi Arabian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90-30, flight SV-1321 from
Riyadh to Hail (Saudi Arabia), had arrived at the gate after landing in
Hail, the passengers had just disembarked, when thick black smoke was seen
emanating from the right hand engine. Emergency services were able to quickly
extinguish the fire.

The return flight to Riyadh was performed by a replacement aircraft with
a delay of about 4 hours.

A fuel leak had developed inside the engine about 15 minutes after shutdown
of the engine, the fuel dropped onto hot parts causing the fire.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41678132
20090314143404:20090313000000
Incident: Air One A332 at Chicago on Mar 13th 2009, air conditioning problem caused smoke
An Air One/Alitalia Airbus A330-200, registration EI-DIR performing flight
AP-629/AZ-629 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Rome Fiumicino (Italy) with
240 passengers, returned to O’Hare Airport after thick smoke entered cockpit
and cabin after liftoff. The crew performed a safe overweight landing 5
minutes after liftoff.

Alitalia (merged with Air One) reported, that the airplane had problems
with its air conditioning system causing relatively thick smoke entering
the cockpit and cabin as the airplane climbed through 3000 feet.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4166d1a5
20090313181853:20090313000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Houston on Mar 13th 2009, smoke from engine
The crew of an American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ-3554 from Houston
Hobby,TX to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 18 passengers, reported one engine
on fire shortly after departure from the gate. The engine’s fire extinguishers
were activated, the passengers taken off the airplane. When emergency services
arrived, they saw still billowing smoke from the engine, however no fire
anymore.

The flight had to be cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4165a9d7
20090312070820:20090311000000
Incident: Continental B752 near Hartford on Mar 11th 2009, smoke alert in lavatory
A Continental Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N19130 performing flight
CO-145 from Madrid (Spain) to Newark,NJ (USA), diverted to Hartford,CT (USA)
after a smoke detector in a lavatory raised alert. The aircraft landed safely,
all passengers disembarked the airplane.

The airplane was examined for three hours, but was able to resume the journey
and reached Newark with a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=416108fb
20090306173117:20090306000000
Incident: Emirates A345 near Perth on Mar 6th 2009, false report of smoke in cabin
According to Australian media and French aviation sources an Emirates Airbus
A340-500, registration A6-ERH performing flight EK-425 from Perth,WA (Australia)
to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with 120 passengers, returned to Perth because
of supposed smoke in the cabin. The media say, that witnesses on the ground
saw smoke escape the cabin when the doors opened around 8:45 local (Mar
5th 23:45Z), a radio station however reports, that passengers calling in
said no smoke was observed on board. A leading Australian newspaper reports
a massive deployment of emergency services. According to the reports the
airplane had taken off on schedule around 7:00 local (Mar 5th 22:00Z), the
crew declared emergency at 07:50 local and landed safely back to Perth at
08:45 local.

However, radar track, Emirates’ flight status, both airports’ live flight
information as well as independent sources show the airplane arrived in
Dubai on time. Actually, all flights of Emirates from Perth to Dubai during
the last 7 days reached their destination on time. Aviation sources in Perth
are entirely silent on any such incident at Perth Airport as well.

The source of this seems to be an article published by the Sydney Morning
Herald (or of its sources), which was published on October 16h 2008, see
This report reappeared today with exactly the same wording all around the
Australian Media and French Aviation Sources. The Aviation Herald had reported
the real incident at Incident: Emirates A345 near Learmonth on Oct 16th
2008, chemical odour in cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41603658
20090305170550:20090303000000
Incident: Batavia B732 at Pekanbaru on Mar 3rd 2009, rejected takeoff twice
A Batavia Boeing 737-200, flight 7P-562 from Pekanbaru to Jakarta (Indonesia)
with 102 passengers, rejected takeoff at high speed around 20:15 local.
The crew stopped the airplane reportedly just before the runway end and
taxied back for another attempt. The second attempt was rejected this time
at low speed. The airplane subsequently taxied back to the terminal, the
flight was postponed to the following day.

Passengers reported, that the airplane was speeding down the runway for
the first takeoff attempt, when a loud boom was heard from the left hand
engine and sparks and smoke were seen from the engine.

The airport confirmed a mechanical malfunction of the airplane, but did
not confirm an engine fire or sparks.

Engineers reported, that the engine oil pressure light and gauges had indicated
low pressure at high engine power due to a blocked oil filter. The filter
was replaced and the airplane flew again early the following day.

Most of the passengers refused to board this airplane again the following
day and requested a refund.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415dbc78
20090302211240:20090302000000
Incident: Singapore B744 near Munich on Mar 2nd 2009, fire alert
The crew of a Singapore Airlines Boeing 747-400 freighter, registration
9V-SFK performing freight flight SQ-7344 from Nairobi (Kenya) to Amsterdam
(Netherlands), declared emergency reporting a fire alert and automatic activation
of the cargo fire suppression system and diverted to Munich (Germany). The
aircraft landed safely, the crew remained on board, the fire brigades checked
the aircraft out, but it remained unclear whether there had been any fire.
The airplane was subsequently towed off the northern runway.

Singapore Airlines said, that the airplane carried flowers, mangos, other
fruit and vegatables. The emanations by the mangos caused the smoke detectors
to trigger, resulting in a false alert. The airplane could take off again
and reached Amsterdam with a delay of approximately 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415d2c69
20090302000357:20090301000000
Incident: Continental B738 near San Diego on Mar 1st 2009, possible smoke from engine
The crew of a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N34282 performing
flight CO-1626 from Newark,NJ to San Diego,CA (USA) with 125 passengers,
reported possible smoke from an engine prompting a full emergency response
by the airport. The airplane landed safely, emergency services could not
establish any trace of fire.

The return flight CO-427 had to be cancelled nonetheless.

The FAA reported however, that there was no suspected engine fire or smoke
from the engine. A witness had seen smoke come from the landing gear of
the taxiing airplane prompting an emergency response by the airport, but
no fire could be detected.

The airport had said earlier, that the crew had told air traffic control
about possible smoke from an engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415deb40
20090311190408:20090228000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B752 over Atlantic on Feb 28th 2009, smoke in cockpit, all available emergency services requested
A Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N727TW performing flight DL-122
(departing Feb 27th) from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Shannon (Ireland), was
enroute overhead the Atlantic south of Greenland (N55 W46) at FL390, when
the crew declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and requested
to turn back to Gander. The airplane descended to 9500 feet and proceeded
to Gander. 13 minutes after the initial call the crew requested all available
emergency services for arrival in Gander. 41 minutes after the initial call
the crew reported, that the situation had stabilized on board. The airplane
landed safely in Gander 1:13 hours after the emergency call.

The Canadian TSB reported on Mar 11th, that the crew had not received any
indication of a malfunction, no circuit breaker popped, when the smoke appeared.
Engineers determined, that an electrical connection block for the right
windscreen had malfunctioned. The right windscreen, heat control and associated
wiring harness were replaced and tested. The airplane returned to service
on March 2nd.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415ca1d5/0000
20110629093959:20090228000000
Accident: Atlantic Southeast CRJ2 at Tallahassee on Feb 28th 2009, fire at the gate
The NTSB released their final report still stating the accident occurred
on March 1st 2009 (the Aviation Herald received the notification of the
accident on Feb 28th 2009 10:43pm EST) concluding the probable cause was:

An electrical anomaly in the top portion of the JB-1 junction box resulting
in ignition of adjacent combustible materials, including insulation blankets,
and a flexible oxygen line.

The captain and flight attendant were the only persons on board of the aircraft
when they were alerted to a hissing sound quickly followed by smoke and
signs of a fire and quickly evacuated the aircraft via the airstair.

The NTSB stated: “Evidence suggests that the fire initiated as a result
of an electrical anomaly in the top portion of the JB-1 junction box, near
bus bar and contactor components. This evidence includes melting of one
side of the bus bar along the periphery of its connection to a terminal
stud and severe thermal damage to the internal and, to a lesser degree,
external surfaces of the K1XB contactor case. Despite the damage to the
contactor case, the internal contacts did not appear to be stuck or exhibit
signs of melting or excessive pitting. There were no other signs of arcing
near any of these components.

Numerous maintenance difficulties had occurred on the aircraft involving
the external AC power supply system beginning approximately 10-weeks before
the accident. To attempt to remedy the anomalies, several relays, electrical
contactors, the AC power switch, the external ground power receptacle, and
other electrical components were removed and replaced with new components.
Several of these components were located in the upper section of the JB-1
junction box. The last of these actions occurred about 5-weeks before the
accident.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415ca1d5
20090403160707:20090228000000
Accident: Atlantic Southeast CRJ2 at Tallahassee on Feb 28th 2009, fire at the gate
An Atlantic Southeast Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines,
registration N830AS performing flight EV-5563/DL-5563 from Tallahassee,FL
to Atlanta,GA (USA), was being prepared for departure at gate B3 in Tallahassee
with the crew on board and the passenger luggage already loaded. The 47
passengers were still awaiting boarding, the crew working a checklist, when
the flight crew noticed heat behind them and saw smoke coming from the wall
between cockpit and galley. Emergency services responded to the emergency
call and were able to quickly extinguish the fire. No injuries occured.

The damage to the cockpit is described substantial. Fire fighters said,
that the pilot seats received most of the heat. The cause of the fire could
not yet be determined.

The flight had to be cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other
flights during the day.

The NTSB has dispatched investigators, the FAA has been notified as well.

The FAA reported, that the fire in the cockpit caused substantial damage
to the aircraft.

The NTSB reported in their preliminary report, that only the captain and
a flight attendant were on board, when the cockpit fire broke out shortly
after an external ground power unit was connected. Both captain and flight
attendant evacuated via the stairs and were not injured. The fire burned
an 18 inch hole through the left upper cockpit crown skin.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415c1f91
20090228182422:20090226000000
Incident: Vietnam A320 near Hanoi on Feb 26th 2009, smoke alert
A Vietnam Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration VN-A307 performing flight
VN-745 from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Singapore (Singapore) with 135 passengers,
returned to Hanoi after a smoke detector in the cargo hold triggered about
20 minutes into the flight. The emergency landing 35 minutes after takeoff
was safe. Emergency services did not find any trace of fire.

A replacement aircraft took off with a delay of 2 hours.

Engineers determined, that the smoke detector was faulty.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415a9c63
20090226231031:20090226000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Dallas on Feb 26th 2009, smoke alert
The crew of an American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, registration N613AE performing
flight MQ-3890 from Cedar Rapids,IA to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA), declared
emergency after a smoke detector went off in the cargo department and passengers
reported smelling smoke shortly before touch down. The airplane landed safely
and was checked out by emergency services.

No traces of fire were detected. Engineers are currently examining the airplane.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415725f2
20090223132424:20090221000000
Incident: Cirrus E170 at Muenster on Feb 21st 2009, smoke in cabin and cockpit
A Cirrus Airlines Embraer ERJ-170 on behalf of Lufthansa, registration D-ALIA
performing flight C9-1145/LH-1145 from Muenster to Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
with 40 passengers, returned to Muenster after smoke was noticed in both
cabin and cockpit. The landing 7 minutes after takeoff was safe.

Emergency services found no trace of a fire. The aircraft reentered service
the following day.

The airline reported, that the smoke turned out to have been steam out of
a malfunctioning air conditioning system. A part of the air conditioning
was replaced, the airplane thus could reenter service on Sunday (22nd).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4155586c
20090220154726:20090219000000
Incident: Gol B738 at Sao Luiz on Feb 19th 2009, rejected takeoff because of smoke
A Gol Transportes Aereas Boeing 737-800, flight G3-1671 from Sao Luiz,MA
to Fortaleza,CE (Brazil), rejected takeoff from Sao Luiz when smoke entered
the cabin.

Maintenance determined a malfunction of the air conditioning. The flight
had to be cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto a later flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4154cdc6
20090219235253:20090217000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Calgary on Feb 17th 2009, groomers thought it smelt like smoke
When the crew of an Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration
C-FRUZ performing flight QK-8170 from Calgary,AB to Edmonton,AB (Canada)
with 42 people on board, boarded the airplane, maintenance personnel had
already fired up the APU in order to warm up the aircraft. The flight crew
found the cabin extremely hot, the duct temperature was around 100 degrees.
There was a smell of smoke paired with a light haze in the cabin. The APU
was shut down and checked by maintenance prior to passengers boarding the
airplane, no fault was found and the airplane was released. After departure
while climbing through 10000 feet the crew noticed a smoke master warning
for the baggage compartment, which extinguished after a few seconds. The
cabin crew checked out the baggage compartment, but did not see or smell
any smoke. A few minutes later the smoke warning illuminated again. The
crew decided to return to Calgary, even though they didn’t see or smell
any smoke.

The Canadian TSB concluded their report about the incident: “When the aircraft
was deplaned the groomers commented that it smelled like smoke.”
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4151b4d1
20090216073827:20090215000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ2 near Grand Rapids on Feb 15th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Northwest
Airlines, flight 9E-2125/NW-2125 from Minneapolis,MN to Cleveland,OH (USA)
with 39 people on board, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cabin
and diverted to Grand Rapids,MI for a safe landing. The passengers disembarked
normally at the gate.

The passengers were rebooked onto another flight.

Engineers are investigating what prompted the crew to report smoke in the
cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415f8947
20090304212157:20090213000000
Incident: Air Canada A333 near Toronto on Feb 13th 2009, too hot a movie
An Air Canada Airbus A330-300, registration C-GHKX performing flight AC-856
from Toronto,ON (Canada) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 216 people on board,
was climbing out of Toronto, when the inflight entertainment monitor at
seat 29G began to smoke. The power to the inflight entertainment system
was turned off and the smoke stopped. The flight continued to London without
further incident.

The Canadian Transportation Safety Board reported, that the monitor was
replaced after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=415121cf
20090215144358:20090213000000
Incident: Cimber AT72 at Karup on Feb 13th 2009, smoke in cockpit before departure
A Cimber Air Aerospatiale ATR-72-500, registration OY-CIN performing flight
QI-332 from Karup to Copenhagen Kastrup (Denmark) with 19 people on board,
was evacuated right before departure due to smoke in the cockpit.

Emergency services could not find any trace of fire.

OY-CIN did have several difficulties with its air conditioning system recently,
so the current suspect is another fault in the air conditioning system.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414fbef0/0000
20100211121129:20090213000000
Accident: BA Cityflyer RJ1H at London on Feb 13th 2009, collapsed nose gear
The fatigue crack area (Photo: AAIB) The AAIB have released their Bulletin
into the accident stating, that the nose landing gear had fractured “due
to the presence of a fatigue crack in the upper internal bore of the landing
gear main fitting. The crack had formed as a result of poor surface finish
during manufacture and the incomplete embodiment of Messier Dowty Service
Bulletin SB 146-32-150, which the landing gear maintenance records showed
as being implemented at its last overhaul in June 2006.”

Three passengers were treated for minor injuries, two were kept in hospital
overnight.

The airplane had touched down smoothly and the commander, pilot flying,
lowered the nose wheel onto the runway, the airplane however continued to
pitch down until the fuselage contacted the runway. Smoke began to emanate
from behind the instrument panel, the “ELEC SMOKE” warning illuminated.
The commander applied full brakes and transmitted a MAYDAY indicating that
they were going to evacuate the airplane. After coming to a stop the commander
shut the engines down and ordered the evacuation via PA, the flight crew
donned their oxygen masks. The first officer operated the engine fire handles,
but could not see them due to smoke but rather had to find them through
feel.

The commander attempted to open the cockpit door once the evacuation checklist
was completed, however the electrical lock didn’t work and she needed to
remove her oxygen mask in order to reach the door latch. Instead she leaned
out of her direct vision window, received advice that all passengers had
evacuated. Both flight crew exited the cockpit through their direct vision
windows.

The flight data recorder showed a maximum acceleration of +1.5G during the
landing, the airplane derotated from 3.25 degreees nose p at a rate of
about 5 degrees per second. The nose leg recorded compressed via its squat
switch before the attitude lowered to below 0 degrees.

The maintenance facility, that had carried out the ultrasonic inspection
of the nose landing gear in accordance with the Service Bulletin SB 146-32-149
of June 2000, has been closed in the meantime.
Leg Fracture Location (Photo: AAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414fbef0
20090214044027:20090213000000
Accident: BA Cityflyer RJ1H at London on Feb 13th 2009, collapsed nose gear
G-BXAR on the runway in London City (Photo: AFP/Carl de Souza) A
British Airways Cityflyer Avro RJ-100, registration G-BXAR performing flight
CJ-8456 from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to London City,EN (UK) with 67 passengers
and 4 crew, experienced the collapse of the nose gear while landing on runway
28 at London City around 19:40 local (19:40Z). The airplane came to a stop
on the runway centerline. All people were evacuated from the the airplane
using slides, one passenger is reported to have been brought to hospital
with minor injuries.

The airport was closed, 11 incoming flights were diverted to Stansted, Heathrow,
Luton and Southend.

London Ambulance Services said, they dispatched 6 ambulances and several
single responders to the airport and treated 4 passengers on scene, but
nobody was brought to a hospital.

British Airways said, that the nose gear collapsed on landing at London
City Airport. As a precaution the passengers were evacuated using the slides.
One passenger received minor injuries and was brought to a hospital.

Passengers said, that they heard a loud bang just before the airplane nosed
down. The cabin started to fill with smoke after the airplane had come to
a stand still. The doors were opened, the slides deployed. A few bruises
and cuts occured due to hitting the asphalt after sliding down.

The AAIB have launched an investigation into the accident.
Metars:
EGLC 132120Z VRB02KT CAVOK 02/00 Q1026
EGLC 132050Z 34003KT CAVOK 03/01 Q1026
EGLC 132020Z 33003KT CAVOK 03/01 Q1026
EGLC 131950Z 34004KT 310V020 CAVOK 03/01 Q1025
EGLC 131920Z 34003KT CAVOK 03/01 Q1025
EGLC 131850Z VRB02KT CAVOK 04/00 Q1025
EGLC 131820Z 35004KT 9999 FEW035 04/00 Q1025
EGLC 131750Z 35005KT 320V030 9999 FEW040 05/00 Q1024
EGLC 131720Z 35007KT 9999 SCT035 05/00 Q1024

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414f6317
20090213165948:20090212000000
Incident: Southwest B73G at LasVegas on Feb 12th 2009, engine fire
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N773SA performing flight
WN-273 from Las Vegas,NV to Islip,NY (USA) with 116 passengers, returned
to Las Vegas after the right hand engine caught fire. The crew shut the
engine down, declared emergency and returned to the airport, where the airplane
landed safely with no fire or smoke visible 21 minutes after takeoff. The
airplane taxied to a gate on its own power without stop followed by emergency
services.

The FAA reported, that the engine did catch fire immediately after takeoff.
The engine was shut down, fire suppression systems were not activated.

Tower controllers saw flames out of the engine as the airplane was on its
initial climb after liftoff.

Ear witnesses on the ground reported, that the aircraft was sounding like
a machine gun as it climbed out.

Southwest Airlines said, that the engine was not on fire, but the cockpit
fire indication for the right hand engine activated. A replacement aircraft
took the passengers to Islip with a delay of just over 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414db24c
20090211104912:20090210000000
Incident: DHL B752 at Hamburg on Feb 10th 2009, rejected takeoff due to fire alert
A DHL Air UK Boeing 757-200, registration G-BIKZ performing freight flight
QY-4762 from Hamburg Fuhlsb¸ttel to Leipzig (Germany), rejected takeoff
from Hamburg around 22:00 local (21:00Z) due to a fire alert in one of the
cargo holds.

Emergency services deployed in full force and unloaded the airplane, but
could not find any trace of fire or smoke. It is therefore currently assumed,
that the smoke detector triggered due to a technical malfunction.

The airplane was able to depart shortly after midnight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414d346b
20090210213615:20090210000000
Incident: Trans States E145 near Louisville on Feb 10th 2009, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Trans States Airlines Embraer ERJ-145, registration N842HK
performing flight AX-8090 from Washington Dulles,DC to Saint Louis,MO (USA)
with 37 passengers, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cabin and
diverted to Louisville,KY, where the airplane landed safely on runway 17L
34 minutes later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414a6aff
20090207101846:20090206000000
Incident: Fedex B722 near Denver on Feb 6th 2009, fire alert
A Fedex Boeing 727-200, freight flight FX-2327 from Billings,MT to Springfield,MO
(USA) with 3 crew, diverted to Denver,CO after a smoke detector in the cargo
bays raised fire alert. The airplane landed safely on runway 35L, emergency
services could not find any trace of smoke or fire.

The airplane was subsequently towed off the runway. NTSB investigators have
arrived on the scene and are going through all cargo containers on board
to identify the source of the alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414971b2
20090206100546:20090205000000
Incident: Southwest B73G near Las Vegas on Feb 5th 2009, chemical smell
Passengers in the rear cabine and flight attendants of a Southwest Airlines
Boeing 737-700, flight WN-756 from Kansas City,MO to Las Vegas,NV (USA)
with 110 passengers and 6 crew, complained about a chemical smell and eye
irritation thinking a pepper spray had gone off, when the airplane was approaching
Las Vegas about 20 minutes before landing. Oxygen masks were released, the
landing accelerated. The passengers were deplaned on the taxiway.

All 4 flight attendants and 2 passengers were found affected by an irritant
with watery eyes and shortness of breath. 2 flight attendants and the 2
passengers were taken to a hospital for checkups.

Hazmat crews checked the airplane out, but found no irritant. As of current
a short in the electrical wiring causing smoke in the rear of the cabin
is suspected as cause of the incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41490c4f
20090205232516:20090205000000
Incident: Trans States E145 near Charlottesville on Feb 5th 2009, smoke in cabin
A Trans States Airlines Embraer ERJ-145 on behalf of United Airlines, registration
N845HK performing flight AX-8066/UA-8066 from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Richmond,VA
(USA) with 30 people on board, diverted to Charlottesville-Albemarle,VA
due to smoke in the cabin. The landing was safe, all people left the airplane
without injuries.

Passengers reported, that there was smoke visible in the cabin. They completed
the journey to Richmond by bus.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414720c5
20090203233126:20090203000000
Incident: Hainan B733 at Guangzhou on Feb 3rd 2009, fire alert
The crew of a Hainan Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration B-2578 performing
flight HU-7379 from Taiyuan to Guangzhou (China) with 131 passengers, declared
emergency while on approach to Guangzhou’s Baiyun Airport reporting that
a fire alert had gone off. The airplane landed safely a few minutes later.

The alert was determined false, dust and pigeon feathers in the cargo bay
had set off the smoke detector.

A replacement Boeing 737-300 registration B-2942 of Xinhua Airlines performed
the return flight HU-7380.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4148321e
20090204215703:20090131000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ9 near Vancouver on Jan 31st 2009, smoke in lavatory
An Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-705, registration C-GJAZ performing flight
QK-8320 from Vancouver,BC to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 45 people on board,
had just taken off Vancouver, when the crew smelled an odour and received
a smoke indication for the aft lavatory. Flight attendants told the flight
crew, that the smoke detector in the aft lavatory had activated, they could
smell smoke and could see smoke. The pilots decided to return to Vancouver,
where the airplane landed safely about 10 minutes after departure. The crew
did not declare emergency, however emergency services met the aircraft
after landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414691b0
20090202220601:20090129000000
Incident: Canadian North B732 at Edmonton on Jan 29th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Canadian North Boeing 737-200, registration C-GFPW performing
flight 5T-444 from Edmonton,AB to Yellowknife,NT (Canada) with 42 people
on board, saw smoke within the cockpit which they identified to come from
the window heating system. They decided to return to Edmonton as a precaution
and landed without further incident.

Maintenance determined, that the wiring to the captain’s #2 sliding window
was at fault.

The airplane had undergone heavy maintenance by a third party some days
earlier. The captain’s window had been removed and a pane been replaced.
Canadian North believes, that during reinstallation of the window the wiring
was not routed correctly. The wire installation is being rectified.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4373dc36
20110203162949:20090127000000
Report: HiFly A333 near Darwin on Jan 27th 2009, smoke alert on board
A HiFly Airbus A330-300 on behalf of the Australian Defense Force, registration
CS-TMT performing a flight from Darwin,NT (Australia) to Male (Maldives)
with 64 passengers and 11 crew, had just reached FL370 when the crew received
a smoke alert for a lavatory, then a failure message for the right air conditioning
system (PACK #2) and a fault message for the cabin pressure controller #1
(CPC, left hand air conditioning system). The crew was able to reset the
CPC, but needed to turn PACK #2 off. The smell became stronger nonetheless
prompting the crew to return to Darwin for a safe landing about 2 hours
later. After landing 3 cabin crew and a number of passengers reported feeling
unwell and were administered oxygen, medical staff considering the symptoms
common and non-serious. The three crew members were taken to a hospital
for further checks and quickly released.

Portugal’s Gabinete de Prevencao e Investigacao de Acidentes com Aeronaves
(GPIAA) released their final report concluding:

– Lavatory Smoke Detection Warning, as well the strong odor felt by crew
and pax, was caused by oil particles vaporization vented through the Bleed
ducts from the APU to the Packs and, thus, to the passenger cabin.
– “PACK #2 OVERHEAT” was caused by defective two duct sections sealing downstream
Pack #2), which allowed inducing air leak;
– “CPC1 FAULT” warning was triggered by pack #1 instability originated by
the absence of the related plenum.

The GPIAA reported that prior to departure the occupants already noticed
a foul odour on board similiar to a dead animal rotting. An examination
of the airframe concluded the smell was caused by external atmosphere pollution.

When the aircraft had just reached FL370 the crew received a “SMOKE LAV”
indication with a visual inspection of the lavatory finding everything normal.
The smell on board however became stronger, 10 minutes after the “SMOKE
LAV” the crew received a “PACK #2 OVERHEAT” message prompting the crew to
shut the right hand air conditioning system down for the remainder of the
flight shortly followed by a “CPC #1 FAULT” indication. The CPC was successfully
reset. The smell still became stronger although no cause, no smoke and no
burning or toxic fumes were discovered by an extensive search of cabin crew.
An engineer on board inspected the cargo holds finding nothing unusual.
The flight crew decided to return to Darwin where the aircraft burned off
fuel in the vicinity of the airport before landing safely.

The aircraft had just undergone maintenance in Jordan and was performing
its first revenue flight following that C-check and positioning flight to
Darwin. Following the incident flight HiFly engineers discovered oil at
the APU intake and inside the pneumatic ducts to both packs. An APU oil
leak was discovered above the bleed duct and APU air intake leading the
maintenance personnel to suspect an APU oil overfill.

Maintenance further discovered an incorrectly placed seal connecting two
duct sections of pack #2. A partially broken plenum was found on pack #1,
the missing part was not found.

Following repairs of these issues normal system performance was found, and
the smell disappeared.

The GPIAA analysed that the oil at the APU intake travelled to the packs
and thus caused the lavatory smoke indication, the smell and the dizziness
of a number of occupants. The deficient seal between the two ducts of pack
#2 permitted hot air to escape and caused the duct overheat indication.
The missing part of the plenum of pack #1 caused instability of the pack
and resulted in the CPC #1 fault.

The broken plenum (Photo: GPIAA):
The deficient seal (Photo: GPIAA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413f4a18
20090126090040:20090124000000
Incident: British Airways B772 at Abuja on Jan 24th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIH performing
flight BA-82 from Abuja (Nigeria) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 155 passengers
and 14 crew, declared emergency and diverted to the nearest airport Kano
(Nigeria) when smoke became visible in the cockpit and smell of smoke was
noticed in the first class cabin. The flight crew donned their oxygen masks,
the passenger oxygen masks were not deployed. The landing in Kano was safe,
the passengers disembarked normally.

The crew of the inbound flight BA-83 had already declared PAN while on arrival
to Abuja. Engineers isolated one air conditioning system and thought they’d
have fixed the problem. BA-82 departed with a delay of nearly 6 hours as
a result.

British Airways reported, that smoke became visible in the cockpit on the
flight from London to Abuja prompting the crew to request a priority landing,
all passengers disembarked normally. The airplane was repaired and declared
airworthy. On the second leg from Abuja to London however one of the engines
caught fire about one hour into the flight and smoke became visible again
in the cockpit prompting the crew to divert to Kano.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413ee37c
20090125144203:20090124000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Jacksonville on Jan 24th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N395SW performing
flight WN-3726 from Orlando,FL to Washington Dulles,DC (USA) with 106 people
on board, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit and diverted
to Jacksonville,FL for a safe landing.

No traces of fire were found by emergency services.

A replacement Boeing 737-700 registration N442WN resumed the flight and
reached Washington with a delay of 4 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413a64a1
20090120130943:20090119000000
Incident: Tuifly Nordic AB B752 near Casablanca on Jan 19th 2009, galley fire
A Tuifly Nordic AB Boeing 757-200, registration SE-RFP performing flight
6B-723 from Copenhagen (Denmark) to Boa Vista (Cape Verde) with 239 passengers,
diverted to Casablanca (Morocco) after a fire broke out in one of the galleys.
Flight attendants were able to extinguish the fire quickly emptying two
extinguishers, the flight crew still decided to divert as a precaution.

The airplane was checked out and was able to continue the journey after
about two hours on the ground. The return flight 6B-724 reached Copenhagen
with a delay of 2:20 hours.

TuiFly Nordic AB stated, that an electrical short circuit in one of the
rear galley ovens caused emission of smoke in a limited area.

The tour operator Star Tours as well as authorities in Morocco had reported
earlier, that a small fire in the galley was put out by the use of two fire
extinguishers.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413a6b7d
20090119171110:20090118000000
Incident: Southwest B73G near Sacramento on Jan 18th 2009, smell of smoke
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN-295 from Sacramento,CA to
Burbank,CA (USA), returned to Sacramento after the crew declared emergency
reporting a smell of smoke. The airplane landed safely 26 minutes after
liftoff and was evacuated. Four passengers were attended medically, however
no injuries occured.

No traces of fire were found.

Airport officials told, that following a two hour search a permitted small
container of pepper spray was found in the checked luggage, supposedly being
the source of the smell.

The Transportation Safety Administration TSA however reported on Monday
(Jan 19th), that no cans of pepper spray were found and the source of the
smell is still under investigation.

The passengers were rescreened and put on a replacement aircraft, that reached
Burbank with a delay of just over 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4138640d
20090118115200:20090117000000
Incident: Jetlite B738 at Kolkata on Jan 17th 2009, engine fire
The crew of a Jetlite Boeing 737-800, registration VT-SJI performing flight
S2-361 from Kolkata to Guwahati (India) with 38 passengers and 5 crew, declared
emergency and returned to Kolkata after the left hand engine caught fire
shortly after liftoff in reduced visibility due to fog. The crew shut the
engine down and activated the fire extinguisher, which stopped the fire.
The landing 19 minutes after takeoff was safe. Emergency services attending
the aircraft did not need to jump to action, the passengers disembarked
normally.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto another flight
4 hours later.

Witnesses on the ground reported seeing smoke and flames coming from the
engine. One ground witness underneath the departure path said, that he saw
a large bird hitting the airplane.

The air traffic controller in Kolkatta’s tower alerted the crew of smoke
out of their left engine. The aircraft was at about 400 feet AGL by that
time. Both crew and ATC were not able to see any bird activity due to the
light fog prevailing during takeoff.

The left engine suffered several damaged compressor blades consistent with
a bird strike.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413b62b4
20090120202421:20090116000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ2 near Vancouver on Jan 16th 2009, cargo smoke alert
An Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-200ER, registration C-FDJA performing flight
QK-460 from Vancouver,BC to Fort McMurray,AB (Canada) with 43 people on
board, was climbing about 90nm north of Vancouver, when the crew received
a cargo smoke warning shortly followed by a cargo fan fail message. The
crew completed the according checklists, discharged the fire suppression
system into the cargo hold, declared an emergency and returned to Vancouver,
where the airplane landed safely on runway 26R amid emergency services.
The cargo smoke warning ceased after about 5 minutes.

The cause of the smoke warning is under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413972de
20090119094656:20090116000000
Incident: Lufthansa A321 at Istanbul on Jan 16th 2009, bird strike on takeoff
A Lufthansa Airbus A321-200, registration D-AISB performing flight LH-3345
from Istanbul Ataturk (Turkey) to Frankfurt (Germany) with 154 passengers
and 6 crew, returned to Ataturk Airport after a bird struck the left engine
of the aircraft forcing the crew to shut the engine down shortly after takeoff.
The emergency landing 12 minutes after takeoff was safe.

The flight had to be cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto other
flights.

Lufthansa said, that there is no evidence of a bird strike, the crew however
had indications of a possible malfunction of the engine.

Passengers as well as witnesses on the ground reported, that they heard
an explosion and saw the left engine emit sparks and smoke.

Turkish Authorities reported, that engine parts were discovered on the roof
of a chocolate factory about 1.5nm north of the airport. The authorities
are puzzled by the Lufthansa statements and say, that blood was found on
the engine and the engine damage is consistent with a bird strike.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41389739
20090118232112:20090116000000
Incident: Interjet A320 at Guadalajara on Jan 16th 2009, bird strike
XA-JCV after the return (Photo: Hugo Cervera) An Interjet Airbus A320-200,
registration XA-JCV performing flight 4O-809 from Guadalajara to San Jose
Cabo (Mexico) with 106 passengers, struck a vulture with its left engine
while departing from Guadalajara forcing the crew to shut the engine down
and return to Guadalajara. The airplane landed safely about 20 minutes after
liftoff.

A replacement aircraft took the passengers to San Jose Cabo several hours
later.

Passengers reported, that the airplane shook after the bird was ingested
and the smell of burned feathers developed in the cabin.

Frequent flyer and passenger on that flight Hugo Cervera told The Aviation
Herald, that the airplane had the capability of showing the takeoff on the
built in TV screens. He therefore was watching the camera pictures on the
screen, when the aircraft started its takeoff roll by about 1:20pm local
time. Just as the airplane began rotation, a big black bird crossed from
the left about 5 or 6 meters above the runway. Just as the main wheels left
the ground, a strong squeak sound followed by a thump sound of impact was
heard from the left hand engine. An abnormal vibration followed, the engine
sounded like an “old ceiling fan at high speed”. The crew continued the
takeoff and climbed to 10,000 feet. As the airplane was climbing, a strong
smell like burned feathers or hair filled the cabin, no smoke or haze was
visible. After levelling off at 10,000 feet the left engine was shut down
and the vibrations stopped. The airplane rolled to the right to turn back
to the airport. The captain came on in an announcement reporting, that they
had hit a vulture (Coragyps atratus). About 10-15 minutes later the airplane
made another 180 degrees turn to land on runway 28 of Guadalajara, the touch
down was very smooth. The airplane stopped, some mechanics approached the
airplane, while the passengers waited for about 10-15 minutes before they
disembarked through the left front door via mobile stairs and subsequently
were bussed to the terminal. While Hugo disembarked (and took the picture
seen above), he noticed blood on the left engine and took a mental note,
that it now sounded like an old ceiling fan at low speed. About two hours
later another aircraft arrived and took them to their destination, not without
the passengers having had a good meal at the airport during the wait.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4137e9db
20090116211716:20090115000000
Incident: United Airlines A320 near Las Vegas on Jan 15th 2009, passengers reported smoke
The crew of a United Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration N427UA performing
flight UA-195 from Philadelphia,PA to Los Angeles,CA (USA), declared emergency
and diverted to Las Vegas,NV after passengers reported to have smelled smoke.
The airplane landed safely, no traces of fire or smoke were found.

The airplane continued the journey and reached Los Angeles with a delay
of 2 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413730ae
20090116001625:20090115000000
Incident: Regional 1 DH8A near Calgary on Jan 15th 2009, smoke in cockpit
A Regional 1 Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-100, registration C-GZTC performing
flight TSH-1850 from Calgary,AB to Fort MacKay,AB (Canada), had just levelled
off at FL240 after departure from Calgary, when the flight crew smelled
smoke and shortly thereafter saw smoke. The cabin crew confirmed seeing
smoke in the cabin, too. The crew requested to descend and return to Calgary.
While at 11000 feet the crew turned off both bleed air valves, which brought
the smoke to dissipate. An eventless landing followed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41370ebc/0028
20090303104849:20090115000000
Accident: US Airways A320 at New York on Jan 15th 2009, ditched in Hudson River
Bill Nix was passenger on the flight, which began perfectly normal, the
usual routine briefing occured, and the departure went normal. Bill was
seated in 25B next to the last seat row and chatted with a fellow passenger
seated in 25A during the departure, when he heard a noise that he thought
was an explosion in the belly of the plane.

The aisle became hazy with smoke, smell of fuel developed. “There was the
most unnatural silence at this time and it all seems unreal.” The engine
sounds had stopped, the noise from the air conditioning ceased. “I looked
at the guy next to me in 25A and he at me but we did not say a word, just
a look of disbelief.” Bill realized they had lost power and the airplane
had started to descend. Bill thought for the first time they were going
to die. The silence was interrupted by a passenger a few rows forward, who
stated one of the engines was on fire. Then it got silent again. Bill feared
the aircraft might explode with one engine on fire and the tanks full of
fuel. They were over New York City with nothing but buildings below and
they were descending fast. The thought they were going to die crossed his
mind a second time.

When Bill looked out of the window, they were below the tops of the buildings
already and he realized, they were heading for the river. “At the time that
seemed to be a good thing, we may survive after all. I heard nothing, not
even the wind, until the pilot said brace for impact, then a small child
started crying.” The “brace for impact” brought it all home, that they were
in big trouble. “We had a very rough landing, almost as soon as we hit the
water we felt water splashing into our faces and by the time we stopped
it was about ankle deep.” The water had been spraying through the floor
though no cracks were visible. The touchdown and slow down felt like a long
hard vibration, as only the tail hit water at first then the rest of the
airplane came down about a second or two later. No jolts were felt during
the slow down.

“A lot of people rushed to the back of the plane and tried to exit the rear
door, the flight attendant shouted ‘no the door is under water go out the
front’. That was the third time I thought I may die, this time from drowning.”
Still, a number of folks tried to open the rear doors, one person forced
the way to the door and opened the door a little. Flight attendant Doreen
Welsh physically stopped the door from opening all the way preventing the
airplane from completely filling with water. Bill was in water up to waist
level within a few seconds. Bill was sure, that had the door been fully
opened, the people near the rear of the airplane would have all drowned
as they were packed together trying to get out, so that they could not have
turned around quickly enough.

Bill headed forwards, a big bottleneck formed at the overwing exits, the
entire front of the airplane was empty. FA Welsh shouted that people should
go to the forward doors, but people still wanted to get out through the
wing exits. She shouted, that people should climb over the seats to reach
the forward doors, some of the passengers actually crawled over the seats.
Bill got past the middle doors and went out the left passenger door into
the raft. He immediately called his wife via mobile phone telling her he
was okay.

Around 70% of the people were already outside of the airplane either on
the wings or in the rafts, when the first boat arrived, then a second joined
and many more arrived. “I began to feel pretty good. All we had to do was
deal with the frigid water and cold air a few more minutes.” The plane was
sinking and drifting, the raft was still attached to the aircraft and the
sinking plane threatened to take the raft with it. “The pilot asked someone
on the boat to throw us a knife which they did and he cut us away from the
plane, so I guess there was actually four times that day I thought I was
gone.”

“I was picked up by, I believe a tour boat, the Athena. A great place to
be, on a warm boat headed to land. We were taken to the NY side and pier
78. Soon we had a lot of support from the Red Cross, fire department, police
etc, we got warm and partially dry. Buses were provided to take us to a
hotel, I went to the Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza at LGA. They had a room set
up for us to check in and food. They had assigned me a room for the night
and I had a key in about three minutes. Everyone through out the whole process
was wonderful. I slept very little that night, got up at 5:00 the next morning
and was met by a USAIR representative who had arranged a car for the airport
and had our tickets. She walked us through check in and security, got us
boarded about 45 minutes before the boarding process, also introduced us
the the pilot who promised us a smooth flight, and it was.”

“We were fortunate to have Captain Sullenberger as our pilot but I don’t
think most people realize that flight attendant Welsh may have saved dozens
of lives by stopping someone from opening the back door and letting the
river rush in. She was very active from the time of the bird hit until everyone
was out of the plane, even with her injuries she did a great job.”

Being back on dry ground passengers started to chat to each other. “Most
talk was about the frigid water and everyone wanted to say thank you to
the pilot, even then we realized we were lucky to have him. Most could not
believe it happened so quickly and we were ok and on land. The one thing
I heard the most and I thought of the most was how could this happen and
everyone on board lived. With something of this magnitude you almost expect
disaster.”

“I talked to and heard recounts of the landing from people up front and
it was like talking to someone in a different plane. I think the back of
the plane absorbed most of the impact. Some people up front told me it
was almost like a normal landing. It was a different story in the back.”

“So far I have not been in another plane, but I’m sure I will soon. I am
having some good days and some bad days and a few sleepless nights, but
it will get better with time. For now it’s just good to be here”, Bill Nix
closed his account.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41370ebc/0000
20090117214446:20090115000000
Accident: US Airways A320 at New York on Jan 15th 2009, ditched in Hudson River
The NTSB have released some details of the communication with Air Traffic
Control (all times in UTC) after interviewing 7 ATC personnel in LGA tower
and NY departure:

20:24:54 LGA Tower cleared US1549 for takeoff runway 04, turn left heading
360
20:25:40 LGA Tower “contact departure”
20:25:51 Crew contacts departure at 700 feet climbing 5000, departure clears
1549 to climb 15000 feet
20:27:01 the airplane intersected primary targets not visible on departure
controller screen
20:27:35 Departure commands turn left heading 270, but receives the reply
“Cactus 1549, hit birds, we lost thrust in both engines, we turn back towards
La Guardia”, departure replies “turn left heading 220”
20:27:49 Departure advised LGA Tower to stop departures and cleared 1549
to land runway 13, received reply “Unable, we may end up in Hudson.”. Discussions
about Teterboro about 6nm away occured, reply “We can’t do it”. “We are
gonna to be in Hudson” is the last communication between 1549 and ATC.
20:30:30 touch down in the Hudson according to radar data

The airplane has currently the weight of an Airbus A380, about 1 million
pounds (500 tons), as it is filled with water. At the point of touchdown
the Hudson River is about 50-55 feet deep (around 15 meters). In the press
conference the NTSB confirmed again, just the left hand engine is missing
from the airframe, police and NOAA are currently scanning the ground of
Hudson River for the engine using sonar mapping, interesting points are
being identified by remotely operated vehicles before divers are sent down.
2 cabin crew located in the forward cabin have been interviewed, the third
in the rear could not yet be interviewed (she’s the only serious injury
and in hospital). Departure was routine, then they heard a loud thud, a
sound they had never heard before, and all engine noise ceased, a complete
silence resulted. A passenger in the first class said “I think we hit birds”,
slight smoke and haze became visible in the cabin without impacting vision,
a metallic/electrical smell developed. The captain announced just three
words “Brace for impact”, the flight attendants repeated without using
the Intercom, just their voice “Brace, Brace, heads down”. The impact felt
like a hard landing, one impact only, gradual deceleration, neither flight
attendant realized they were in the water. The Captain said one word “Evacuate”,
left and right forward doors were opened, the right chute deployed automatically,
the left had to be inflated manually, the door step was about 2-3 feet (1
meter) above water surface. There was no panic and no yelling.

Both pilots have been interviewed for several hours, the results are not
yet known and will be briefed later.

Additional surveillance videos released by Mayor of New York showing the
airplane in flight and touching down:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41370ebc
20090118220550:20090115000000
Accident: US Airways A320 at New York on Jan 15th 2009, ditched in Hudson River
US Airways A320 in the Hudson River (Photo: AP/WNBC-TV) A US Airways
Airbus A320-200, registration N106US performing flight US-1549 from New
York La Guardia,NY to Charlotte,NC with 150 passengers and 5 crew, performed
a controlled emergency landing into the Hudson River after losing engine
power shortly after takeoff from runway 04 of New York’s La Guardia Airport.
The airplane had reached a maximum altitude of about 3000 feet. All people
on board got out of the airplane. 78 people received injuries and were treated
by paramedics, most of them minor injuries. One man suffered broken legs,
a number of people had to be treated for hypothermia. Several ships and
ferries helped to collect the people which got out to the wings and slides,
which served a life rafts.

A New Jersey Coast Guard video shows the last few seconds of slow down and
the evacuation of the airplane, covering the time between 3:29pm and 3:39pm
local (20:29Z-20:39Z). The camera catches the airplane 2:02 minutes into
the recording at the time time stamp of 3:31:02pm (watch the most left middle
section of video).

US Airways reported, that the airplane was flown by Captain Chesley B. Sullenberger
III (58) with a total of 19,663 flight hours and First Officer Jeffrey B.
Skiles (49) with a total of 15,643 flight hours. Flight attendants were
Sheila Dail (57) employed by the airline for 28 years, Doreen Welsh (58)
for 38 years and Donna Dent (51) for 26 years. The airplane had accumulated
16299 cycles with 25241 flight hours, the right engine had been installed
on May 28th 2006 and had accumulated 26466 flight hours, the left engine
had been installed on Jan 15th 2008 and had accumulated 19182 flight hours.
The last C-check was in April 2008, the last A-check was on December 6th
2008.

The FAA reported, that the airplane hit a flock of birds (geese) causing
both engines to lose power shortly after takeoff. The airplane took off
runway 04 and was airborne for about 3 minutes.

Passengers reported, they had barely time to prepare for the ditching from
time of impact with birds to impact with water. The airplane was airborne,
when one loud bang was heard, the airplane shook, both engines flamed out
and emitted smoke.

In radio transmissions to Air Traffic Control the pilot reported bird strikes
to both engines and wanted initially to divert to Teterboro,NJ before turning
onto the Hudson River.

The NTSB confirmed the registration of the airplane to be N106US and dispatched
a go-team consisting of 20 investigators on site. The French BEA joins the
investigation with 4 investigators, EASA with one specialist and Airbus
Industries with 6 engineers. On Jan 16th the NTSB reported, that one of
the airplane’s engines is missing but they can’t tell yet, which one is
missing. (Editor’s note: an images of the airplane just before touchdown
– see below – shows both engines attached). The airplane has been secured
south of Manhattan, attempts are underway to get the airplane fully recovered
out of the water. The FAA later added, it is the left engine missing. On
Saturday, Jan 17th, NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson confirmed, that the right
engine is still attached to the airframe correcting earlier information
released by the NTSB late Saturday, which had indicated both engines had
detached. Divers could not see the right engine due to poor visibility in
the water on Friday, he explained the earlier informations.

In a press conference on Jan 15th the Mayor of New York cautioned, that
they only believe everybody got out of the airplane. The number of 155 souls
on board is not yet entirely ensured as well. So far they don’t have reports
of any serious injuries. Only a few were actually delivered to the hospitals.
The captain walked the airplane twice after landing to ensure, nobody was
left on board.

The radar track by New York’s La Guardia Airport has the airplane appear
on the radar screen at 20:25:52Z, reaching the highest point at 3400 feet
MSL overhead the Bronx Park at 20:27:30Z, entering the left hand turn on
20:27:51Z. A Helicopter (registration N461SA) is at that time tracking north
over the Hudson River at 1000 feet MSL. The A320 leaves the turn at 20:28:27Z,
reaches the George Washington Bridge at 20:28:53Z at 1300 feet, while the
helicopter at that point descends to 800 feet and starts to turn right onto
Manhattan, the Airbus also swerves right for a moment. At 20:29:10Z the
aircraft are clear of each other. The last radar return of the aircraft
is received at 500 feet MSL at 15:29:50Z.

There are large bird sanctuaries underneath the departure path of runway
04 respective approach path runway 22 like Rikers Island, Clason Point Park,
Hunts Point Riverside Park or Barretto Point Park.

A marvelous article about the ditching including an extensive statement
by Eric Moody, captain of the British Airways Boeing 747-200 flight BA-009
losing all 4 engines while flying into volcanic ashes overhead Indonesia
in 1982, has appeared in the regional Scottish newspaper “The Scotsman”
at

On Sep 15th 1988 an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-200 registration ET-AJA
collided with a flock of pigeons at about 200 feet AGL while taking off
from Ethiopia’s airport Bahar Dar. Both engines failed some time later resulting
in a belly crash landing. 35 of the 104 occupants lost their lives.

Another very similiar accident happened to Scandinavian Airlines flight
751, a MD-81 registration OY-KHO on December 27th 1991, when during takeoff
from Stockholm both engines failed as result of ice coming off the main
wings and hitting the engines. All 129 people on board survived, 2 of them
with serious injuries and 23 with minor injuries.

At least temporary total power losses (incomplete list):
Dec 28th 1978: United DC68 registration N8082U near Portland,OR (USA), fuel
starvation
Jun 24th 1982: British Airways B742 registration G-BDXH over West Java (Indonesia),
volcanic ashes
Jul 23rd 1983: Air Canada B762 registration C-GAUN (“Gimli Glider”) near
Gimli (Canada), fuel starvation
Mar 31st 1986: United B762 registration N609UA near San Francisco,CA (USA),
dual flame out
Jun 30th 1987: Delta B762 registration N103DA near Los Angeles,CA (USA),
fuel inadvertently turned off
Sep 15th 1988: Ethiopian B732 registration ET-AJA at Bahar Dar (Ethiopia),
multiple bird strikes
Jan 08th 1989: British Midland B734 registration G-OBME at Kegworth, wrong
engine shut down after engine vibrations
Sep 03rd 1989: Varig B732 registration PP-VMK over Brazil, wrong heading
Dec 15th 1989: KLM B744 registration PH-BFC near Anchorage,AK (USA), volcanic
ashes
Jan 25th 1990: Avianca B703 at New York,NY (USA), fuel starvation
Dec 27th 1991: Scandinavian MD81 registration OY-KHO at Stockholm (Sweden),
ice ingestion
Nov 15th 1993: Indian Airlines A30B registration VT-EDV near Tirupati (India),
fuel starvation during diversion
Nov 23rd 1996: Ethiopian B762 registration ET-AIZ at Comoros (Union des
Comores), hijack
Jan 13th 2000: Avisto SH36 registration HB-AAM at Marsa Brega (Lybia), ice
ingestion
May 21st 2000: East Coast J31 registration N16EJ at Wilkes Barre,PA (USA),
fuel starvation
Jul 12th 2000: Hapag Lloyd A313 registration D-AHLB near Vienna (Austria),
cruise with extended landing gear
Aug 24th 2001: Transat A332 registration C-GITS (“Atlantic Glider”) near
Azores (Portugal), fuel leak
Aug 16th 2005: Tuninter AT72 registration TS-LBB near Sicily (Italy), wrong
fuel gauge
Jan 17th 2008: British Airways B772 registration G-YMMM at Heathrow,EN
(UK), yet unexplained engine roll down

It is also suspected, that a Ryanair Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DYG
lost all power following multiple bird strikes on approach into Rome Ciampino
(Italy) on Nov 10th 2008.

Flightpath map by flightaware:
Radar return list by flightaware:

The coast guard video:
Before touch down (Photo: AP/Trela Media), watch right upper corner, airplane
is about 0.9nm from final position andjust upstream of the large Manhattan
docks (approx. N40.7811 W73.9968):
The airplane coming to a stop, the doors fly open (Photo: AP/Greg Lam Pak
Ng)
Map of flight path (Courtesy Google Earth):
Standard Instrument Departures from KLGA:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4136d60f/0003
20100114100648:20090115000000
Incident: Flybe E195 near Newcastle on Jan 15th 2009, smoke from sink after water poured down
The AAIB have released their regular bulletin stating, that engineering
and chemical analysis results identified steam as source of the “ice blue
smoke”. No anomaly with the boiler was found.

The AAIB concluded, that it was not possible to find a satisfactory explanation
for the blue smoke, however, the “ice blue” light above the sink was probably
significant to the perceiption of “ice blue smoke”.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4136d60f/0000
20090220133337:20090115000000
Incident: Flybe E195 near Newcastle on Jan 15th 2009, smoke from sink after water poured down
The AAIB reports in a special bulletin, that a flight attendant had poured
half a jug of water down the forward galley sink, immediately thereafter
he saw ice-blue smoke come from the sink. A second flight attendant agreed
with the view, that this was not steam, but smoke. The flight crew was informed
and executed the according checklists requiring them to disarm the emergency
lighting, deploy the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) and turn the Integral Drive Generators
(IDG) off on both engines. All cabin lighting extinguished, the flight deck
went dark with the exception of just one primary flight display and multi
function display. The flight deck could no longer be reached from the cabin
as the interphone was disabled as well. An unnerving sound from the RAT
was heard in the cabin.

The smoke eventually ceased, however the cabin crew became concerned because
of the darkness and the lack of communication with the flight deck. The
flight attendants feared that a major emergency had developed on the flight
deck like the crew being incapacitated. After some minutes the cabin crew
decided to enter the flight deck using the emergency access system, this
however was inoperative too, so that the flight attendants could not access
the flight deck.

The concerns of the cabin crew were solved, when the captain made a public
audio address to the passengers advising them of the diversion to Newcastle.

The aircraft landed without further incident, emergency services could not
find any traces of fire or heat using thermal imaging cameras.

The interphone system has two different modes. Calling the pilot while in
an emergency configuration would sound a chime on the flight deck, but the
according call light would not illuminate and no voice communication would
be able to be established. Using the Emergency Button however would have
the system work normally.

The emergency access system is disabled in the emergency configuration,
access to the flight deck solely lies upon action from the flight deck.

The AAIB has issued immediate three safety recommendations concerning the
interphone and emergency access system.

The full bulletin is available at:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4136d60f
20090220131645:20090115000000
Incident: Flybe E195 near Newcastle on Jan 15th 2009, smoke from sink after water poured down
A Flybe Embraer ERJ-195, registration G-FBEH performing flight BE-7291 from
Aberdeen,SC to London Gatwick,EN (UK) with 40 passengers and 5 crew, was
enroute at FL370, when the crew declared emergency and descended towards
Newcastle,EN, where the airplane landed safely about one hour after departure
and taxied to a gate.

A replacement ERJ-195 registration G-FBEE resumed the flight and delivered
the passengers to Gatwick with a delay of 3:15 hours.

Flybe confirmed the diversion due to an unspecified technical issue.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=413b63af
20090120203050:20090114000000
Incident: Air Canada A321 near Calgary on Jan 14th 2009, smell of smoke in cockpit
An Air Canada Airbus A321-200, registration C-GITY performing flight AC-133
from Toronto Pearson,ON to Calgary,AB (Canada) with 179 people on board,
was about 30 minutes before Calgary, when the crew noticed an avionics smoke
odour in the cockpit. No emergency was declared and no priority requested.
The airplane landed safely.

Maintenance replaced the audio management unit and returned the aircraft
to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41334888
20090111203553:20090111000000
Incident: Flybaboo E190 over Adriatic on Jan 11th 2009, smoke in the cockpit
A Flybaboo Embraer ERJ-190, registration HB-JQF performing flight F7-295
from Athens (Greece) to Geneva (Switzerland) with 48 people on board, diverted
to Brindisi (Italy) after smoke appeared in the cockpit while the airplane
was en-route crossing the Adriatic Sea. The landing was safe.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=41331dda/0000
20090213134056:20090111000000
Incident: Virgin Atlantic A343 near Shannon on Jan 11th 2009, smoke from galley
The Irish Accident Investigation Unit AAIU released a preliminary report
stating, that the cabin crew saw a small fire in the bottom of a waste bin
storage compartment of the bar unit in the first class area. The flight
crew switched off galley and commercial electrical busses, but the fire
and arcing continued. Cabin crew emptied five 1kg (2lbs) fire extinguishers,
which put the fire out, but the arcing continued.

After arrival in Shannon fire services deployed the content of 5kg fire
extinguisher into the hole, but the glow continued. The airplane was completely
depowered, which stopped the arcing.

Investigation revealed, that a cable harness in the bottom of the waste
bin compartment was completely severed, the wires showing strong evidence
of arcing. The harness consisted of 6 wires with 24V DC and four carrying
115V AC in a protective shield. The wires made contact with the metal waste
bin.

According to drawings by the manufacturer two runners should have been installed
to keep the waste bin above the harness, however, no evidence of the runners
was found leaving the possibility, that they had never been installed.

The full preliminary report is available at:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=41331dda
20090113134940:20090111000000
Incident: Virgin Atlantic A343 near Shannon on Jan 11th 2009, smoke from galley
The crew of a Virgin Atlantic Airways Airbus A340-300, registration G-VELD
performing flight VS-39 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Chicago O’Hare,IL
(USA) with 156 passengers, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit
around 12:12Z and diverted to Shannon (Ireland). The emergency landing about
37 minutes later was safe, the airplane vacated the runway and was checked
out on the taxiway.

Emergency services established there was no fire. The smoke emanated from
some faulty wiring in the forward galley, which sent smoke into the cockpit.

At the time of the emergency Shannon issued a significant meteorological
phenomena report (SIGMET) reporting forecast severe turbulence below 6000
feet.

G-VELD was ferried to London Heathrow on Jan 13th.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41333abc
20090111185530:20090108000000
Incident: Gol B738 at Sao Paulo on Jan 8th 2009, rejected takeoff due to engine failure
A Gol Transportes Aereos Boeing 737-800, flight G3-1944 from Sao Paulo Guarulhos,SP
to Porto Alegre,RS (Brasil), rejected takeoff from the Guarulhos Airport
after the right hand engine failed emitting smoke. The airplane stopped
safely and returned to the gate, where passengers disembarked normally about
one hour later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=412e2001
20090105214651:20090105000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 near Killeen on Jan 5th 2009, smoke in cockpit
The crew of an American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ3505 from Dallas
Ft. Worth,TX to Killeen,TX (USA) with 47 passengers and 3 crew, declared
emergency reporting smoky haze in the cockpit. The haze dissipated before
the landing. The landing was safe, the passengers disembarked normally.

The airplane has been taken out of service for examination, the airline
reported.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=412903b5
20081231184454:20081230000000
Incident: Kuwait A306 at Cairo on Dec 30th 2008, engine failure
A Kuwait Airways Airbus A300-600, registration 9K-AMB performing flight
KU-542 from Cairo (Egypt) to Kuwait (Kuwait) with 227 passengers, returned
to Cairo after the right hand engine failed shortly after takeoff. The landing
on runway 05R about 30 minutes after takeoff was safe, the passengers disembarked
normally.

The airplane had departed about one hour late due to maintenance necessary
to the right hand engine of the airplane.

Kuwait Airways reported, that the left hand engine had failed shortly after
takeoff. A replacement Airbus A300-600, registration 9K-AMD, was sent to
Cairo to resume the flight.

Sources at the airport of Cairo had reported, that the right hand engine
caught fire enroute prompting the airplane to return.

A passenger reported via a friend’s blog, that the right hand engine exploded
jolting the airplane about 20 seconds after takeoff. Another explosion followed
again jolting the aircraft, then a third final explosion shook the airplane
hard. The airplane started losing altitude, fellow passengers in the back
of the airplane started screaming, that there was fire out of the engine.
The passenger could see smoke and flames coming out of the engine himself,
too. The airplane was brought under control and the crew performing a safe
landing about 30 minutes after the engine explosion.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=412889e9
20081230091810:20081229000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Milwaukee on Dec 29th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Skywest Airlines Canadair CRJ-200, flight OO-2716 from Milwaukee,WI to
Flint,MI (USA) with 40 passengers, returned to Milwaukee after the crew
reported smoke in the cockpit. The landing 11 minutes after takeoff was
safe.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers rebooked onto later flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=412596f7
20081226195831:20081226000000
Incident: Mesa Airlines CRJ7 at Charlotte on Dec 26th 2008, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-700 on behalf of United Airlines,
flight YV-7152/UA-7152 from Charlotte,NC to Washington Dulles,DC (USA),
declared emergency reporting a smoke detector had gone off shortly after
takeoff. The airplane returned to Charlotte for a safe landing 7 minutes
after departure. The passengers disembarked normally via stairs.

Passengers reported, that smoke became visible in the cabin.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4125350b
20081228184406:20081226000000
Incident: Mount Cook AT72 near Wellington on Dec 26th 2008, engine shut down in flight
A Mount Cook Airlines Aerospatiale ATR 72-200 on behalf of Air New Zealand,
flight NM-5015/NZ-5015 from Wellington to Christchurch (New Zealand) with
65 passengers and 4 crew, had to return to Wellington after a cockpit indication
forced the crew to shut down one engine. The landing was safe.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers rebooked onto other flights.

Passengers reported, that the right hand engine was hit by “something” followed
by a loud bang, then the smell of smoke appeared on board of the airplane.

Air New Zealand (owning Mount Cook Airlines) said, that the investigation
is still under way, however a bird strike can already be ruled out.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4129ccf8
20081231182011:20081225000000
Incident: Air Canada E170 at Toronto on Dec 25th 2008, smoke detector went off due to compressor wash
An Air Canada Embraer ERJ-175, registration C-FEJB performing flight AC-1043
from Toronto Pearson,ON (Canada) to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 72 people
on board, was in the initial climb out of Toronto, when a smoke detector
in a lavatory went off. The crew decided to return to Toronto for a safe
landing.

Maintenance suspects that the smoke detector was triggered by fumes from
residual detergent following a compressor wash of both engines earlier the
day.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41252b69
20081226075505:20081225000000
Incident: Piedmont DH8A near Wilkes-Barre on Dec 25th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Piedmont Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-100 on behalf of US
Airways, flight PI-4558/US-4558 from Newburgh,NY to Philadelphia,PA (USA)
with 32 passengers and 3 crew, declared emergency reporting smoke filling
the cockpit and diverted to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Intl. Airport for a safe
landing about one hour after departure.

Emergency services found no trace of a fire.

The passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4123c206/0000
20090101115007:20081224000000
Accident: Alaska Airlines B738 at Seattle on Dec 24th 2008, de-icing accident
The NTSB said in their preliminary report, that there were no injuries amongst
the 135 passengers and 6 crew when the airplane filled with smoke while
the de-icing was in progress.

The aircraft had pushed back from the gate to undergo de-icing prior to
taxiing to the active runway. The flight crew reported, that the de-icing
began before the airplane had completed the push back. The APU was running
at the time. Smoke began filling the cockpit and cabin. The flight crew
had the de-icing crew stop applying de-icing fluid and began smoke removal
procedures. The airplane was towed back to the gate. Passengers and crew
left the airplane through the forward boarding door.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=411d5e6e
20081216200501:20081214000000
Incident: Perimeter SW4 near Gimli on Dec 14th 2008, smoke in cabin
A Perimeter Aviation Swearingen SA-226TC Metro, registration C-FSWT performing
flight PAG-975 from Winnipeg,MB to Oxford House,MB (Canada) with 12 occupants,
was enroute at FL190 about 70nm northeast of Winnipeg, when passengers advised
the flight crew of smoke in the cabin. The flight crew donned oxygen masks
and executed smoke isolation procedures, then declared emergency and requested
to return to Winnipeg. The smoke did not dissipate, the first officer went
to the cabin with a fire extinguisher to assess the situation. No fire was
evident and the first officer returned to the cockpit. The air conditioning
pack was turned off resulting in the smoke to dissipate as the airplane
descended. After acquiring visual contact with the surface, the crew elected
to divert visually to Gimli, where the airplane landed without further incident.

Maintenance determined, that hot air had overheated a piece of cargo adjacent
to an air duct outlet. The outer cover of the cargo produced smoke but
did not ignite. As no other anomalies were determined, the airplane was
returned to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=411bdb0e
20090106155809:20081214000000
Incident: Air France A321 at Tunis on Dec 14th 2008, engine problem
An Air France Airbus A321-200, registration F-GTAJ performing flight AF-2585
from Tunis (Tunisia) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) with 209 people
on board, returned to Tunis due to an unspecified engine problem. The landing
14 minuter after takeoff was safe.

A passenger reported, that he saw one of the engines emit smoke, others
reported a flash and a loud bang.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were brought to hotels.

Following the emergency directive 2008-228 by the European Aviation Safety
Agency The Aviation Herald followed up with Air France and was told, that
only one surge of the left engine (#1) was identified by the flight crew
on their instruments, even though passengers heard loud bangs from both
engines. Neither engine was shut down and the airplane returned for a safe
landing on both engines. The Tunisian Safety Board came to the conclusion,
that only one surge occured on the left hand engine. Engine #1 was replaced
in Tunis. Air France wrote: “All Air France A318/319/320/321 with the CFM56-5B
engines installed comply with the EASA AD.”

Air France also said, that since April 2008 three operators had reported
stalling incidents with CFM56-5B engines equipped with 5BQ software. However,
“The TUN event may have brought this subject into the spotlight.”

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=428dec8d
20100319140959:20081212000000
Report: Finncomm E145 at Kemi on Dec 12th 2008, fire after landing
Fire damage on APU cowling (Photo: FAIB) A Finncomm Airlines Embraer
ERJ-145, registration OH-EBE performing flight FC-359 (dep Dec 11th) from
Helsinki to Kemi/Tornio (Finland), had safely landed on Kemi’s runway 36
at about 00:52L (22:52Z Dec 11th), when the captain was taxiing the aircraft
to the apron and the first officer was executing the checklists activating
the APU with both engines still operating and both engine generators still
delivering electrical power. The APU did not synchronise to the electrical
system, the first officer reset the APU’s generator in order to bring it
online, but this failed, too. The APU was shut down. As the airplane was
approaching its stand, the left hand engine was shut down, at the same time
the APU was started a second time. This however resulted in an overload
and triggered the overcurrent protection and left a couple of relays locked
in their open position resulting in several busses supplied by the left
hand generator being unpowered. After the airplane reached the stand about
1 minute 50 seconds after landing, the right hand engine was shut down,
too, resulting in a nearly complete loss of electrics power, the cabin lights
extinguished. A ground engineer tried to signal the fire to the crew with
hand signals, but was not noticed by the crew busy with the various fault
messages. The passengers observed the fasten seat belt sign extinguish and
got up to collect their belonging, the cabin door was opened after which
the ground engineer entered the aircraft and informed the crew of a fire
and smoke at the tail of the aircraft. The captain exited the airplane amongst
the passengers, saw smoke at the tail of the aircraft and returned to the
cockpit. Just when the last passenger exited the airplane, the captain activated
the fire suppression system of the APU. The fire was extinguished that way,
the smoke dissipated. Cockpit and cabin crew remained on board. Emergency
services did NOT respond. Neither cabin crew nor passengers nor tower nor
emergency services were aware of the fire, the crew did not communicate
the occurrence.

The Finnish Accident Investigation Board (FAIB) released their final report
in English concluding,

The incident occurred when the aircraftís APU caught fire while taxiing
to stand after landing. The flames made it to the APUís tailpipe and the
APU compartment. At first the pilots did not notice the fire because the
onboard warning system did not signal a fire warning. The ground crew informed
the pilots of the fire. When the fire started the passengers were still
onboard and they deplaned while the fire was burning.

Several simultaneously occurring faults affecting the aircraftís operation
exacerbated the severity of the incident. The pilots were occupied with
the APU generatorís coupling failure, the unexpected activation of the overcurrent
protection feature and the failed APU start. These held their attention
and slowed their response to the fire. The power failure also made the cabin
attendantís work more difficult, slowing down passenger exit as normal cabin
lighting was off. The fact that the pilots did not comply with the aircraft
manufacturerís instructions relating to the matter contributed to the overcurrent
protection feature activation. The air traffic control did not notice the
fire, nor was it informed of its occurrence. No alarm was given, nor did
the emergency unit on site react to the situation during the fire.

The FAIB reported, that the crew attempted to restart the APU while it was
still spooling down after being shut down. Manual and airline recommendations
however state a minimum of one minute is required between APU start attempts
to permit the APU cool down. The APU did not start the second time as the
FADEC refused the attempt because the minimum time between the spool down
and start had not yet expired. The fire warning of the APU never activated.

The fire caused damage to the structure of the APU compartment and the
electrical wiring of the APU. The APU needed to be replaced. The FAIB analysed
from the damage, amongst them a molten aluminium rivet (melting point 660
degrees Centigrade), that the fire exceeded 660 degrees of Centigrade and
on the outside of APU cowling exceeded 200 degrees causing the paint to
blister and turn brown.

Tests confirmed that the fire detection loop of the APU was working properly,
however did not detect heat of 470-498 degrees C in a distance of 30-50cm.
The same test triggered the fire detection however at a distance of 114cm.

The FAIB analysed, that the captain was acting upon the APU failed start
without consulting the according checklists, affirming his order to start
the APU despite the first officer querying whether he really wanted t o
start the APU now. He also acted upon the report of the APU fire without
consulting the according checklists. The actions in itsself were not wrong,
however the hurried execution contributed to further trouble.

The captain said in his occurrence report, that he did not consider the
possibility of a real fire, but thought fuel had gone into the tailpipe
of the APU. He intended to shut off the fuel to the APU, not to trigger
the fire suppression system, but activated the wrong switch. He did not
put any information about the APU fire into the logbook of the airplane
however.

Subsequently the crew was not able to completely power down the aircraft
and succeeded only after disconnecting the leads of the battery. This was
an action the crew was not certified or permitted to. The information about
the battery disconnect was not noted in the logbook.

The incident was reported to the FAIB more than three days after the occurrence.

The FAIB analysed, that the APU tailpipe fire was caused by fuel remaining
in the combustion chamber when the APU spooled down. That fuel did not have
sufficient time to exit the combustion chamber through the drain pipes and
ignited upon the second APU start. The flame entered the APU compartment
through a flame backflow. No fuel leaks were discovered.

Four safety recommendations were made as result of the report.
Fire damage on APU wiring (Photo: FAIB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=411a209c
20081213000202:20081212000000
Incident: American MD82 at Minneapolis on Dec 12th 2008, failed duct work
The crew of an American Airlines MD-82, flight AA-1683 from Minneapolis,MN
to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 117 passengers and 5 crew, declared emergency
reporting a fire on board about 4 minutes after takeoff from runway 17.
The airplane returned to Minneapolis runway 12R and landed safely 10 minutes
after takeoff.

Passengers reported, that they heard a loud bang from below, then blue smoke
started to emanate from the cabin floor.

American Airlines reported, that duct work had failed or blown a hole, triggering
a smoke detector in the cargo area, which in turn activated a fire retardant
system. There was no fire however.

The passengers were rebooked onto other flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41192c2c/0000
20110430083632:20081211000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Greenville on Dec 11th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The NTSB released their final report concluding the probable cause of the
incident was:

The overheating and arcing of the DC Ground Service Relay and Block Diodes
component for undetermined reasons.

The aircraft was enroute at FL300 when the crew started smelling smoke.
A short time later smoke began to appear in the cockpit from below the glareshield
and between the legs of the first officer and the crew donned their oxygen
masks, the smoke and fumes removal checklist was actioned by the first officer
and subsequently the smoke and fumes/electrical checklist. When the smoke
intensified although both left and right hand generators had been turned
off the crew declared emergency and diverted to Greenville. Following touchdown
on Greenville’s runway 22 some tyres blew upon initial application of brakes,
the aircraft rolled out safely on the remaining tyres. Emergency services
reported the right main gear brake assembly was on fire prompting the evacuation
through the left hand doors.

Following examination revealed overheat and smoke damage to the DC Ground
Service Tie Relay (R2-51) and Blocking Diode Assemblies (R7-50 and R7-51),
located in the forward accessory compartment. Further examination found
internal damage consistent with arcing of electrical contacts, however due
to the extent of the damage no further specifics could be ascertained related
to the arcing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41192c2c
20081220205239:20081211000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Greenville on Dec 11th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, registration N924DL
flight performing DL1102 from Washington Dulles,DC to Atlanta,GA (USA) with
140 passengers and 5 crew, declared emergency reporting smoke in the cockpit
while enroute close to Greenville/Spartanburg. The airplane diverted to
Greenville Aiport for an emergency landing on runway 22. The two right main
gear tyres blew on landing. The airplane exited the runway near the threshold
of runway 04 onto the taxiway, where the airplane was evacuated using slides.
Fire services started to foam the right hand main gear while the evacuation
was in progress.

A replacement MD-88 resumed the flight and reached Atlanta with a delay
of 4 hours.

The FAA reported, that two tyres had blown on landing.

Passengers reported they were alerted by a smell of smoke about 10 minutes
prior to landing.

Maintenance found an electrical component (a relais underneath the cockpit
floor) had overheated and gone up in smoke. Earlier the day tyre spacer
work had been done on the aircraft.

The NTSB reported in their preliminary statement (Dec 20th), that the crew
noticed smoke apparently coming from the first officer’s glareshield and
noticed an electrical odour while about 150-170nm north of Atlanta. The
flight crew donned oxygen masks and goggles, executed the smoke/fumes checklist,
declared emergency and diverted to Greenville/Spartanburg, where an emergency
evacuation was performed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4119298e
20081212095946:20081211000000
Incident: American B763 at New York on Dec 11th 2008, smoke detector went off
The crew of an American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N360AA performing
flight AA-85 from New York JFK,NY to San Francisco,CA (USA) with 207 people
on board, declared emergency about one minute after take off from runway
04L reporting a smoke detector had just gone off. The airplane levelled
off at 3000 feet and returned for a safe overweight landing on runway 04L
about 10 minutes after takeoff. The airplane turned off onto a taxiway,
was inspected by emergency services and then proceeded to a gate, where
the passengers disembarked normally.

A passenger reported, that a strange smell appeared and white smoke swept
along the ceiling.

A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration N39365 reached San Francisco with
a delay of 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41173dbb
20081209164504:20081207000000
Incident: Gol B738 near Belo Horizonte on Dec 7th 2008, air conditioning problem
The crew of Gol Transportes Aereos Boeing 737-800, flight G3-1629 from Belo
Horizonte to Sao Paulo Guarulhos (Brazil) with 137 passengers, declared
emergency and turned the airplane back to Belo Horizonte about 15 minutes
into the flight after toxic smoke began to emerge from the air conditioning
outlets with passengers panicking and showing first indications of suffocating.
The oxygen masks in the cabin were not released. As the airplane descended,
the smoke began to disperse. The landing 15 minutes later was safe, medical
emergency services immediately entered the aircraft to provide help.

Infraero, the Brasilian Airport Authority, confirmed the incident stating,
that the emergency services were put on alert after the crew radioed, that
they had smoke in the cabin. The smoke was likely caused by hydraulics oil.
Gol confirmed, that the problem was within the air conditioning system.
A replacement aircraft resumed the flight.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41156ea0
20081207140102:20081206000000
Incident: Royal Air Maroc B735 at Turin on Dec 6th 2008, engine fire
A Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-500, flight AT-943 from Turin (Italy) to Casablanca
(Marocco) with 115 passengers, was taxiing towards the departure runway,
when one of the engines caught fire. The crew shut the engine down, which
also stopped the flames and smoke. After ensuring, that there was no danger,
the crew taxied the aircraft to a stand with the remaining engine, where
passengers disembarked normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4113eb41
20081205192601:20081205000000
Incident: El Al B744 near Tel Aviv on Dec 5th 2008, fire on board
An El Al Boeing 747-400, registration 4X-ELC performing flight LY-28 (dep.
Dec 4th) from Newark,NJ (USA) to Tel Aviv (Israel), was about 90 minutes
out of Tel Aviv, when smoke developed in the rear galley. Flight attendants
turned galley power off and contained the fire using fire extinguishers.
The airplane performed a safe emergency landing into Tel Aviv.

El Al confirmed the incident stating, that an electrical short circuit had
caused sparks. The crew turned the electrical power off and quickly contained
the resulting fire. The passengers were not at risk.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4113d552
20081205172151:20081205000000
Incident: S7 B763 near Yekaterinburg on Dec 5th 2008, smell of smoke
The crew of a S7 Sibir Airlines Boeing 767-300, flight S7-72 from Krasnojarsk
to Moscow Domodedovo (Russia) with 92 passengers, declared emergency and
diverted to Yekaterinburg’s Koltsovo Airport after a smell of smoke developed
in the cockpit of the airplane. The landing was safe.

The onward flight to Moscow was cancelled.

The passengers were bussed to Chelyabinsk (distance about 100nm) and booked
onto other flights to Domodedovo departing Chelyabinsk later the day.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4112b5cf
20081204112647:20081203000000
Incident: Skywest E120 at Palm Springs on Dec 3rd 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Skywest Airlines Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia on behalf of United Airlines,
flight OO5442/UA5442 from Palm Springs,CA to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 14
people on board, returned to Palm Springs shortly after takeoff after smoke
started to fill the cockpit. The landing 12 minutes after takeoff was safe.
No injuries have been reported.

Fire services did not find any trace of fire, but had to remove the smoke
from the cockpit. The cause of the smoke has not yet been determined.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41175c0e
20081209195224:20081202000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Ft. McMurray on Dec 2nd 2008, sparking light
An Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration C-GUON performing
flight QK-8391 from Fort McMurray,AB to Edmonton,AB (Canada) with 44 people
on board, was getting ready for departure, when an electrical smell developed
near passenger seat 1C and smoke came from a side light panel. Arcing and
sparks were visible, too. The flight crew was advised and turned the electrical
power off.

Maintenance found burned wires at the cabin sidewall lighting assembly,
no damage to the light tube holders however. The light assembly was replaced
and the airplane returned to service. A more detailed examination of the
damaged light panel revealed, that the damage may have been caused by a
chafed wire.

The airplane resumed the flight and reached Edmonton with a delay of 30
minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=410fe7a7
20081201090648:20081130000000
Incident: Continental B738 near Managua on Nov 30th 2008, engine trouble, smoke in cabin
The crew of a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration N76514 performing
flight CO1447 from San Jose (Costa Rica) to Houston,TX (USA) with 179 passengers,
declared emergency following engine problems about 80nm out of San Jose
and decided to divert to Managua (Nicaragua). During the diversion the cabin
started to fill with smoke. The landing was safe, the passengers were evacuated.
No injuries have been reported.

The airport of Managua was closed for about one hour as the result of the
incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=410f2044
20081204165448:20081130000000
Incident: Swiss A343 near Urumqui on Nov 30th 2008, smoke detector in toilet went off
A Swiss International Airlines Airbus A340-300, registration HB-JMH performing
flight LX138 (dep. Nov 29th) from Zurich (Switzerland) to Hong Kong (China)
with 228 passengers, diverted to Urumqui in northwestern China, after the
crew received a smoke alert in one of the toilets on board. The landing
was safe, the passengers disembarked normally.

The following day the passengers were brought to Hong Kong by a replacement
aircraft of China Southern Airlines charted by Swiss.

Swiss reported, that technicians were able to identify one of the airplane’s
air conditioning systems to be at fault. The system was deactivated and
the airplane ferried back to Zurich two days after the incident.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=410e121d
20081129072658:20081128000000
Incident: Atlantic Southeast CRJ2 near Charleston on Nov 28th 2008, smell of smoke
An Atlantic Southeast Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Delta Airlines,
flight EV5310/DL5310 from Atlanta,GA to Syracuse,NY, diverted to Charleston,WV
after the crew smelled smoke in the cockpit. The landing approximately 15
minutes later was safe, attending fire services found no trace of fire and
were stood down about 20 minutes after landing.

A replacement CRJ-200 was flown in from Cincinnati Northern Kentucky,KY
Airport, which resumed the flight and reached Syracuse with a delay of 2.5
hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=410a7d2c
20081125134215:20081125000000
Incident: Air Nippon Network DH8D at Osaka on Nov 25th 2008, smell of smoke and haze in cabin
An Air Nippon Network de Havilland Dash 8-400 on behalf of All Nippon Airways,
registration JA851A performing flight EH1667/NH1667 from Osaka Itami to
Odate Noshiro (Japan) with 21 passengers, returned to Itami Airport about
15 minutes into the flight, after a smell of smoke developed on board. The
cabin started to fill with white haze while the airplane approached Itami
Airport, where the crew managed a safe landing about 25 minutes after departure.
The passengers were evacuated, no injuries have been reported.

A replacement Dash 8-400 by All Nippon Airways, JA852A, set off for the
flight and reached Odate Noshiro with 95 minutes delay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41098e4e
20081124160337:20081124000000
Incident: Chautauqua CRJ2 at Houston on Nov 24th 2008, smoke in cockpit and cabin
The crew of a Chautauqua Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 on behalf of Continental
Express, registration N466CA performing flight RP5570/CO5570 from Houston,TX
to Louisville,KY (USA) with 33 passengers, declared emergency due to smoke
filling both cockpit and cabin and returned to Houston. The landing about
30 minutes after departure was safe. The passengers were evacuated.

Attending fire services found no trace of fire, the source of the smoke
however is unclear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4108e9e9
20081123224549:20081123000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 at Munich on Nov 23rd 2008, false fire alarm
A Lufthansa Airbus A320-200, flight LH4426 from Munich (Germany) to Madrid,SP
(Spain) with 78 passengers, returned to Munich shortly after takeoff after
a smoke detector went off. The landing was safe.

Emergency services found no trace of fire, engineers however found a faulty
detector.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers were rebooked onto later flights.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=410599ae
20081120143502:20081120074854
News: Berlin Tegel operations hampered by large fire
Warehouse ablaze near Berlin Tegel Airport (Photo: APA/Andreas Meyer) A
large fire in a building near the military part of the airport hampered
all traffic at Berlin Tegel from early morning until about 9am local time
(08:00Z). Berlin’s fire services had dispatched 10 units with 130 fire fighters.
The fire was extinguished by about 9:30am local.

Authorities considered to close the airport due to heavy smoke. Landings
were suspended at Tegel, four arriving flights were diverted to Berlin Schoenefeld.

A warehouse of about 1000 square meters (approx. 10,000 square feet) near
the military part of the airport went up in flames despite heavy rain at
the time. The warehouse was used as a quarantine station for both humans
with suspected infectious sicknesses and illegally imported animals. Nobody
got injured in the blaze.

A thick pillar of smoke above the city was visible from most of Berlin.

It is unclear, how the fire could have started in the heavy rain, authorities
said. Fire fighters managed to contain the fire and save surrounding buildings
despite strong winds, that were prevailing besides the heavy rain.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41059b42
20081120205913:20081119000000
Incident: British Midland A320 near Dublin on Nov 19th 2008, smell of smoke in cabin
The crew of a bmi British Midland Airbus A320-200, registration G-MIDP performing
flight BD133 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Dublin (Ireland) with 93 passengers,
declared emergency due to smell of smoke in the cabin. The airplane landed
safely on runway 28 about 10 minutes later. No inuries have been reported.
Fire services found no trace of a fire – they had concentrated their attention
on engine #2 (right hand engine) for some time.

The airport had to be closed for about 20 minutes due to lack of fire cover
due to the fire engines attenting the bmi aircraft.

British Midland said, the aircraft is being checked to find the source of
the smell.

The return flight BD134 was cancelled.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4105979e
20081120164050:20081119000000
Incident: Shanghai B738 near Hainan Island on Nov 19th 2008, hydraulics leak in right engine
A Shanghai Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration B-4153 performing flight
FM833 from Shanghai (China) to Phnom Penh (Cambodia) with 149 passengers,
was near the Hainan Island in southern China, when the crew decided to divert
to Haikou Airport (China) on Hainan due to a sudden mechanical failure.
The landing about 20 minutes later was safe.

A passenger reported, that he saw smoke off the right engine. After landing
engineers put a receptable underneath the right engine with a fluid like
oil dripping down. When asked the engineers said, a hydraulics leak was
the cause of the smoke and dripping oil and a large quantity of the hydraulics
oil was lost at altitude.

According to the airport no emergency was declared and no emergency services
dispatched.

The airline reported, that a sudden mechanical problem prompted the crew
to divert to Haikou.

A replacement aircraft picked the passengers up and reached Phnom Penh with
a delay of approximately 10 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=410418fa
20081118214224:20081118000000
Incident: Sunstate DH8B at Brisbane on Nov 18th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Sunstate Airlines de Havilland Dash 8-200 on behalf of Qantas,
registration VH-SDE performing flight SSQ2543/QF2543 from Roma,QL to Brisbane,QL
(Australia) with 35 passengers and 4 crew, declared emergency about 10 minutes
prior to landing in Brisbane because of smoke in the cockpit. The airplane
landed safely in Brisbane.

The airplane had departed Roma with a three hour delay after arriving into
Roma on time.

A Qantas spokesperson said that a QantasLink Dash 8 aircraft landed without
incident in Brisbane this evening after the Captain reported white smoke
in the rear section of the cabin. Emergency services met the aircraft as
a precaution and followed the aircraft to the terminal where the 35 passengers
disembarked normally. Engineers are inspecting the aircraft.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41027d9f
20081117221136:20081116000000
Incident: British Airways A320 at London on Nov 16th 2008, burning smell, missing exterior panel
A British Airways Airbus A320-200, registration G-EUUR performing flight
BA916 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 140
passengers, returned to London Heathrow for a safe emergency landing about
10 minutes after departure.

The flight was cancelled, the passengers brought to hotels. British Airways
expects them to be flown to Frankfurt Monday morning.

British Airways said, that the airplane is currently being examined by engineers
to establish the cause of the emergency and didn’t want to speculate.

Passenger Paul Spiring, a frequent flyer, told The Aviation Herald, that
the airplane took off on time with no no indication of anything amiss until
the airplane had reached about Dover, when a burning smell became noticeable
throughout the cabin. Paul described his impression of the smell as electrical.
No smoke or haze was visible, passengers stopping discussions and getting
anxiously silent. Announcements by the flight and cabin crew said, that
the airplane would return to Heathrow as a precautionary measure as the
source of the smell could not be located, afterwards muted discussions between
the passengers arose again. The smell however dissipated during the following
5 minutes. The airplane landed safely about 15 minutes after the smell became
noticeable and turned off the runway, stopping shortly after leaving the
runway. Around 20-30 vehicles surrounded the aircraft shortly after coming
to a stand still. Firemen examined the airplane while passengers remained
seated for the next 30-40 minutes. The captain informed the passengers,
that an exterior panel was missing. The passengers then disembarked normally
and were bussed to the terminal.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40fecd04
20081114210458:20081111000000
Incident: Skywest CRJ2 at Winnipeg on Nov 11th 2008, rejected takeoff twice because of fire alert
A Skywest Airlines Canadair CRJ-200, flight OO5808 from Winnipeg,MB (Canada)
to Chicago ORD,IL (USA) , rejected takeoff at 60 knots from runway 18 at
Winnipeg due to a fire alert in the rear lavatory. Fire Services responded
and rushed towards the airplane. The smoke however dissipated and the fire
indication ceased as the airplane taxied off the runway. No traces of fire
were found.

The aircraft taxied to the apron, passengers deplaned and engineers checked
the airplane, especially the air conditioning systems.

Two hours later the airplane attempted takeoff again, however rejected takeoff
once again at 100 knots due to a fire indication in the rear lavatory. This
time emergency services were not called out, the airplane taxied to the
apron. The flight was cancelled.

The airplane was ferried to Salt Lake City, where maintenance replaced the
right hand engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40fdca5a
20081111202318:20081111000000
Incident: Airtran B712 near Jacksonville on Nov 11th 2008, smoke in cabin
The crew of an Airtran Airways Boeing 717-200, registration N985AT performing
flight FL904 from Orlando,FL to Akron,OH (USA) with 104 passengers, declared
emergency and diverted to Jacksonville,FL due to smoke in the cabin. The
landing was safe, the passengers disembarked normally.

A replacement aircraft departed Jacksonville about 2 hours after the emergency
landing and is scheduled to arrive in Akron with a delay of 2.5 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40fd97ba
20081111154110:20081111000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near London on Nov 11th 2008, smoke in cabin
The crew of a British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIS performing
flight BA213 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Boston,MA (USA) with 192 passengers
and 14 crew, declared emergency and returned to London Heathrow because
of suspected smoke in the cabin. The airplane landed safely about 1 hour
45 minutes after departure.

After being checked out by engineers the airplane could depart again with
a delay of about 3 hours 20 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40fd707a
20081112171711:20081111000000
Incident: Air Mandalay AT72 near Nay Pyi Taw on Nov 11th 2008, electrical problems
An Air Mandalay Aerospatiale ATR-72, flight 6T-401 from Yangon to Nyaung-u
(Myanmar) and further on to Mandalay, performed an emergency landing into
Myanmar’s new capital Nay Pyi Taw (VYNT, 19∞37’15.07″N 96∞12’08.28″E) due
to electrical problems. The landing was safe.

The airline reported, that a smell of smoke on board prompted the emergency
landing at Nay Pyi Taw. An inspection revealed, that the starter of a fluorescent
lamp had melted down. The lamp was replaced, then the airplane was able
to resume the flight to Nyaung-u and Mandalay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40fc83ce
20081110111235:20081109000000
Incident: SAS A343 at Copenhagen on Nov 9th 2008, smoke from galley oven
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Airbus A340-300, registration OY-KBM performing
flight SK937 from Copenhagen (Denmark) to Seattle,WA (USA) with 172 passengers
and 13 crew, returned to Copenhagen shortly after takeoff due to smoke from
an oven in the rear galley. The landing was safe.

A replacement Airbus A340-300, registration OY-KBD, reached Seattle with
a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40f459c8
20081103234944:20081101000000
Incident: Aeroflot A320 at Krasnojarsk on Nov 1st 2008, deicing prompts evacuation
An Aeroflot Airbus A320-200, flight SU780 from Krasnojarsk to Moscow Sheremetyevo
(Russia) with reportedly 200 (??) passengers, was evacuated while deicing
for takeoff was in progress. A passenger looking out of his window saw white
clouds of smoke, thought the plane was on fire, panicked and thus created
panic with the other passengers, too. The crew decided to give way to the
resulting stampede, alerted the tower and initiated the evacuation.

The white smoke clouds were in fact steam from the deicing fluid.

Aeroflot said the following day, that the air conditioning of the airplane
should have been turned off during the de-icing procedure, but was running.
Some de-icing fluid entered the vents and evaporated, producing some haze
in the cabin, which obviously helped the panic.

A replacement Airbus reached Moscow with 141 passengers and a delay of 14
hours at 10pm Moscow time.

A passenger on board, who wants to remain unnamed, reported on Monday (Nov
3rd), that the airplane was sitting at the gate unusually long after doors
were closed, then the airplane was pushed back, pulled in, and pushed back
again a couple of times. Then the engines were started and the airplane
taxied towards the runway. Immediately before the runway a deicing truck
was waiting for the airplane, the airplane stopped. Shortly thereafter white
clouds like smoke, steam or fog appeared inside the cabin from the back
crawling just under the cabin ceiling and quickly filled the entire cabin.
No smell was noticeable, definitely no smell like smoke, deicing fluid,
alcohol or steam. While the haze distributed throughout the cabin, people
were still quietly sitting buckled into their seats. Then a loud command
was shouted from the back, prompting all passengers to unbuckle and raise
from their seats, both doors in the back were opened, slides deployed to
both right and left of the aircraft and the evacuation started. The overwing
exits were opened by the according passengers, too.

While passengers were jumping down the slides, a S7 aircraft taxied along
the Airbus and began its takeoff roll.

Fire engines arrived after a few minutes but didn’t really jump to action.
Some long time later 2 busses arrived and took the passengers to the airport
terminal, where passengers had to pick up their luggage and send through
screening again. Several passengers decided to not continue their journey
and returned to Krasnojarsk.

Rumour amongst the passengers while waiting for the replacement aircraft
in the departure lounge had it, that there was a fire in the rear galley.
The source of the rumour however is unknown.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40f0b747
20081028174923:20081028000000
Incident: Lufthansa A306 at Malta on Oct 28th 2008, fire indication in cargo hold
A Lufthansa Airbus A300-600, registration D-AIAH performing flight LH4129
from Malta (Malta) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 205 passengers and 8
crew, returned to Malta due to a fire indication in the cargo hold. The
airplane landed safely on runway 13 13 minutes after departure and stopped
on the runway, fire services inspected the airplane and found no traces
of fire. The passengers disembarked via stairs brought to the runway. The
airplane subsequently taxied to the apron on its own power (single engine
taxi).

The runway was closed for about 40 minutes.

A faulty smoke detector was replaced. The airplane took off again with a
delay of 5 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ed64e7/0000
20090828111714:20081024000000
Incident: SAS B736 near Vasteras on Oct 24th 2008, smoke in cabin
The Swedish “Statens Haverikommission” (Swedish Accident Investigation Board)
released their report saying, that a warning indication concerning the left
hand generator (engines CFM56) had occured on the preceding flight SK-495
to Oslo. Mechanics checked the system and found no fault and released the
airplane for flight SK-496.

After takeoff from Oslo, the captain was pilot flying, the airplane reached
the cruise level FL330 about 15 minutes into the flight. Shortly thereafter
the captain noticed a burning electrical smell. Cabin crew reported a burning
electrical smell in the cabin as well. The master warning illuminated a
short time later together with the left hand generator warning light. The
crew requested a descent to FL110 and accelerated the flight to Stockholm.
During the descent the smell grew stronger prompting the flight crew to
don their oxygen masks, declare emergency, accelerate the descent and divert
to Vasteras Airport. Cabin crew was ordered to prepare for an immediate
landing, the captain handed the airplane over to the first officer and
began trouble shooting with the according checklists. The airplane landed
safely, was stopped on the runway and an immediate evacuation commenced.

Examination of the aircraft revealed, that the left hand generator control
unit (GCU) had overheated. The investigators therefore assumed, that the
electrical smell came from this unit. The unit was replaced and the airplane
released for a ferry flight to Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport. During that
flight however the same smell occured again, post flight examination showed
that the new GCU had overheated, too.

Additional examination showed, that electric arcing had occured in an electrical
connector of the left hand generator which resulted in an overload and overheating
of the GCU.

The electrical connector had already caused arcing problems earlier. A non-mandatory
service bulletin had been released by the manufacturer addressing the issue
of arcing.

The haverikommission did not release any recommendations as result of the
investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ed64e7
20081024182124:20081024000000
Incident: SAS B736 near Vasteras on Oct 24th 2008, smoke in cabin
The crew of a SAS – Scandinavian Airlines Boeing 737-600, registration LN-RPW
performing flight SK496 from Oslo (Norway) to Stockholm (Sweden) with 97
passengers and 6 crew, declared emergency because of smoke in the cabin
and diverted to Vasteras Airport 40 nautical miles west of Stockholm’s Arlanda
Airport. The landing was safe, the airplane stopped on the runway and was
evacuated via slides. No injuries have been reported.

Passengers had smelled smoke prompting the crew to divert. Smoke became
visible, so that the oxygen masks in the cabin were manually deployed.

Emergency services found no trace of fire, however confirmed thick smoke
on board of the aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ecfd0b
20081024070956:20081023000000
Incident: Saudi E170 near Tabuk on Oct 23rd 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Saudi Arabian Airlines Embraer ERJ-170LR, flight SV662 from
Damascus (Syria) to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) with 67 people on board, declared
emergency and diverted to Takuk (Saudi Arabia) after the crew noticed smoke
in the cockpit. The landing at 1:05pm local was safe, no injuries have been
reported.

A replacement aircraft resumed the flight and reached Jeddah with a delay
of 4 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ed0866
20081024081833:20081022000000
Incident: Jetblue Airways A320 at Denver on Oct 22nd 2008, fire alert in cargo hold
The crew of a Jetblue Airways Airbus A320-200, flight B6-97 from New York
JFK,NY to Denver,CO (USA), declared emergency while on final approach to
Denver Airport after a fire alert illuminated for one of the cargo holds.
The landing was safe, no traces of fire or smoke were detected.

Maintenance engineers determined a faulty smoke sensor as cause of the alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ebc722
20081022223439:20081019000000
Incident: Jazz CRJ1 near Ottawa on Oct 19th 2008, ACARS printer smokes in cockpit
An Air Canada Jazz Canadair CRJ-100, registration C-GJZN performing flight
QK7657 from Washington Dulles,DC to Ottawa,ON (Canada), was in the descent
for Ottawa, when the crew noticed smoke coming from the ACARS printer in
the cockpit. The oxygen masks were donned and the flight attendants advised.
A short time later the circuit breaker for the printer popped and the smoke
stopped. The airplane landed without further incident – the crew had not
declared emergency.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e80efc/0004
20110217150013:20081018000000
Accident: XL Airways B738 near Belgrade on Oct 18th 2008, smoke from engine after diversion
Serbia’s Air Accident and Incident Investigation Commission (SAAIIC) released
their final report concluding:

On the basis of all, in this Report mentioned, research, testing and analyses
the Commission considers that the main cause of the incident, i.e. in flight
shut down of the engine No. 1 was complete failure of engine bearing No.4
which has been located in a LPT Shaft Assembly.

Failure of the bearing caused the deterioration of working conditions of
the engine and later led to engine in flight shut down.

The SAAIIC reported, that the crew declared Mayday upon entering Serbia’s
control sector and reported concerns with an engine. ATC suggested landing
at Belgrade which the crew agreed with. The crew explained that they needed
assistance by fire services at the ground, they had still both engines operating
however one with vibrations. The aircraft was vectored for an ILS approach
to Belgrade’s runway 12 while ATC coordinated emergency responses on the
ground. CATII conditions with a runway visual range of 2000 meters prevailed
at the airport of Belgrade. 54 seconds prior to touch down the crew shut
engine #1 down. While on final approach the tower controller requested the
crew to shut down both engines on the runway. 90 seconds later the tower
controller advised the crew that the left hand engine was on fire and suggested
an evacuation. The aircraft landed safely around 600 meters down the runway
about 17 minutes after declaring emergency and came to a stop about 1900
meters down the runway (runway length 3400 meters), the crew subsequently
completed the evacuation within 40 seconds after coming to a stand still.
Fire services were able to extinguish the engine fire within 30 seconds,
then continued to cool the engine and brakes for about another 60 minutes.

The flight data recorder showed, that 12 minutes prior to check in with
Belgrade Area Control Center the #1 engine had been running at 88% N1, which
however reduced to 58% within 4 seconds, then went to 90% for the next 30
seconds with some fluctuations before gradually reducing to 76% over the
next 80 seconds. The engine then operated stable at 75-76% N1 for 10 minutes,
then dropped to 36% over 10 seconds remaining between 30 and 37% over the
next 16 minutes before showing virtually 0% for the last 90 seconds of the
flight, N2 was following a similiar pattern reducing to 15% N2 during the
last 90 seconds. The vibration level of the low pressure turbine reached
a value of 4.1 about 22 minutes after the first N1 reduction and remained
between 3.2 and 3.7 during the last 80 seconds of flight. The vibration
level of the low pressure compressor reached a maximum of 2.0, the high
pressure compressor 1.5, the high pressure turbine a maximum of 2.9. The
oil pressure dropped from 49 psi to 40 psi during the first N1 reduction,
then increased to 53 psi before reducing to 43 psi, returned to 49 psi before
gradually decreasing to 28 psi, in the last 6.5 minutes of flights the oil
pressure was practically 0. The oil quantity remained constant for about
15 minutes after the first reduction of N1, then dropped to 0 over the next
8 minutes and was 0 for the last 6 minutes of the flight. The engine’s exhaust
gas temperature EGT significantly increased about 15 minutes after the first
reduction of N1.

The SAAIIC stated that following the first reduction of N1 the engine protection
jumped in (N1 limit acceleration, Flame Out protection, Ignition system
becoming active), the first disorder of engine parameters lasted for about
15 seconds.

The next change of engine parameters occurred 15 minutes later, in the following
15 to 20 minutes the engine failed completely. However there had been no
indications of an engine fire.

The SAAIIC stated that according to the cockpit voice recorder the crew
did not work checklists during the final stages of the flight, did not request
weather data from ATC, ATC offered the weather data by himself. The crew
selected standard landing configuration for two engines operating (flaps
at 40 degrees), but shut the engine #1 down about 54 seconds before touchdown
without changing the configuration. The crew spent a lot of time entering
data into the FMC that did not provide data for Belgrade airport. The crew
maintained control of the aircraft at all times.

Engine #1 had accumulated 27921 hours and 10007 flight cycles before being
installed on the incident aircraft after undergoing a complete overhaul.
Bearing #3 had been replaced during that overhaul. The engine then accumulated
another 3124 hours in 1243 flight cycles (total: 31045 hours, 11250 flight
cycles) until the incident flight.

A visual inspection of the engine showed that there thick material/debris
in the chip detectors, the external condition of the engine was good and
the oil scavenge filter was in good condition. Wires and tubes of the engine
showed visible trace of burning. No evidence of foreign object debris was
found, the fan blades showed no trace of impact. Small quantities of oil
were found inside the turbine frame. The rotors of N1 and N2 could no longer
be turned separately, turning N2 also rotated N1. A borescopic inspection
showed damage to the high pressure compressor stage 1 to 9 blades as well
as both high pressure and low pressure turbine blades. Both turbines’ blades
showed black deposits and rubbing marks. Based on the evidence the SAAIIC
concluded that the inflight shut down was caused by the failure of the #4
bearing (intershaft roller bearing between the high pressure and low pressure
shafts). Accordin to documentation this bearing had been installed when
the engine was new and had therefore accumulated a total of 31045 flight
hours and 11250 cycles in more than 20 years of operation. The bearing failed
30 minutes prior to landing.

A tail pipe fire developed due to the ignition of drained oil by the high
temperature of exhaust gas when the engine was kept operating despite the
increased EGT and vibrations levels as well as without oil during the last
6 minutes of flight.

6 safety recommendations were issued as result of the investigation, one
of them recommending the replacement of all #4 engine bearings with new
bearings made of upgraded materials during their next shop visit.

The #4 bearing damage, left inner race/rollers/cage, right outer race (Photos:
SAAIIC):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e80efc/0001
20100527210714:20081018000000
Accident: XL Airways B738 near Belgrade on Oct 18th 2008, smoke from engine after diversion
The American NTSB reported, that the left hand engine (CFM56) suffered a
number 4 bearing failure. A fire ensued in the aft center body of the engine.
Due to the fire the engine pylon, some left wing components, electrical
cables and hydraulic tubing were heat affected.

The accident is being investigated by the Serbian Civil Aviation Authority,
a final report is not yet available.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e80efc/0000
20100527210840:20081018000000
Accident: XL Airways B738 near Belgrade on Oct 18th 2008, smoke from engine after diversion
The German Accident Investigation Bureau (BFU) reported on December 23rd
in their October Bulletin, that the crew had noticed a slight jolt followed
by an electrical smell, then observed fluctuating rpm indications for engine
#1. Therefore the crew decided to declare emergency and divert to Belgrade.
Shortly before landing engine #1 (left) failed and an engine fire ensued.
The passengers were evacuated via slides.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e80efc
20100527210757:20081018000000
Accident: XL Airways B738 near Belgrade on Oct 18th 2008, smoke from engine after diversion
D-AXLF at Belgrade after the diversion  (Photo: AP/Darko Vojinovic)  The
crew of a XL Airways Boeing 737-800, registration D-AXLF performing flight
G1-614 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Antalya (Turkey) with 183 passengers
and 6 crew, diverted to Belgrade because of an indication of a left hand
engine problem in the cockpit and vibrations of that engine. The landing
about 30 minutes later was safe. Upon touchdown the left engine was seen
to emit smoke, which prompted the evacuation of the airplane on the runway.
The engine was foamed by fire services.

A Belgrade radio station had reported earlier, that a Lufthansa airplane
had performed an emergency landing into Belgrade because of an engine fire.

Passengers reported, that they had seen flames out of the left hand engine
during the approach to Belgrade.

XL Airways Germany confirmed, that their airplane had performed an precautionary
landing into Belgrade because of an abnormal engine indication in the cockpit.
After landing the left engine emitted smoke prompting the evacuation of
the airplane. Subsequent inspection by fire services as well as maintenance
engineers later on revealed, that no fire had occured at all.

A replacement aircraft, an Air Via Airbus A320 registration LZ-MDM, delivered
the passengers to Antalya with a delay of 11.5 hours.
Left engine being foamed (Photos: AFP/STR):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e68c3b
20081016172745:20081016000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Syracuse on Oct 16th 2008, smoke detector went off
An United Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight UA173 from Boston,MA to San Francisco,CA
(USA) with 155 passengers, diverted to Syracuse after a smoke detector in
one of the airplane’s lavatories raised alert. The landing was safe.

It is currently unclear why the smoke detector went off.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e636dc
20081016145057:20081016000000
Incident: Emirates A345 near Learmonth on Oct 16th 2008, chemical odour in cabin
An Emirates Airbus A340-500, registration A6-ERB performing flight EK425
from Perth,WA (Australia) to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with 122 passengers,
returned to Perth after a chemical odour, also described as burning smell,
was detected in the cabin about 90 minutes into the flight. The crew declared
emergency and returned to Perth, where the airplane landed safely 2 hours
45 minutes after takeoff.

Passengers reported, that no smoke or haze was visible inside the cabin.
A flight attendant had smelled the odour in the back of the cabin.

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) have indicated to open an investigation
into the incident.

The passengers were rebooked onto the later Emirates flight today.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e5bb2c
20081015202821:20081014000000
Incident: Penair SF34 at Kenai on Oct 14th 2008, smoke alert in avionics bay
The crew of a Penair Saab 340B, registration N677PA performing flight KS251
from Anchorage,AK to Dillingham,AK (USA) with 13 people on board, declared
emergency and diverted to Kenai Municipial Airport,AK after a smoke detector
in the avionics bay raised alert. The landing was safe, fire fighters did
not detect any smoke in the avionics bay.

A replacement aircraft resumed the flight and delivered the passengers to
Dillingham with a delay of 3.5 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e3072e
20081012180949:20081012000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near Berlin on Oct 12th 2008, smoke alert
A British Airways Boeing 777-200, registration G-VIIK performing flight
BA143 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to New Delhi (India) with 220 passengers
and 16 crew, diverted to Berlin Schoenefeld for a precautionary landing
after a smoke detector raised alert. The landing was safe.

British Airways said, that the smoke alert was triggered by an electrical
fault of one inflight entertainment screen in the economy class.

The airplane has returned to London Heathrow with all passengers landing
in London 8 hours after departure and is expected to takeoff for Delhi again
after repairs.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e4d08e
20081015155318:20081011000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B752 near Halifax on Oct 11th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N705TW performing
flight DL42 from Cincinnatti N. Kentucky,KY (USA) to Amsterdam (Netherlands),
declared emergency due to smoke in the cockpit while crusing east of Halifax.
The airplane turned around and diverted to Halifax, where the crew managed
a safe landing.

A replacement Boeing 757-200, registration N717TW, resumed the flight and
delivered the passengers to Amsterdam with a delay of just over 10 hours.

The incident airplane was ferried back to Cincinnatti 18 hours after the
landing in Halifax as flight DL9902.

Maintenance staff had determined a failed left recirculation fan, which
showed evidence of overheating but no traces of fire, as source of the smoke.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e1e970
20081011081550:20081011000000
Incident: Air India B773 near Delhi on Oct 11th 2008, smoke in cabin
An Air India Boeing 777-300, registration VT-ALJ performing flight AI111
from New Delhi (India) to London Heathrow,EN (UK) with 115 passengers and
15 crew, returned to Delhi after smoke was detected in the cabin about 30
minutes into the flight. The landing in Delhi was safe, passengers disembarked
via stairs, no injuries have been reported. The emergency services could
be stood down 35 minutes after landing. The cause of the smoke is still
under investigation.

A replacement aircraft is scheduled to bring the passengers to London.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40e1f1fb
20081014101140:20081010000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 at Charlotte on Oct 10th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGP performing flight LH429
from Charlotte,NC (USA) to Munich (Germany) with 193 people on board, returned
to Charlotte after smoke appeared in the cockpit. The emergency landing
at Charlotte about 45 minutes after takeoff was safe. The airplane was examined
by emergency services after it stopped on a highspeed turnoff from the landing
runway, then taxied to the gate on its own power.

The flight was subsequently cancelled.

The airplane returned to Munich the following day (Oct 11th) and entered
service again on Oct 12th.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=414e8285
20090212110445:20081007000000
Report: Aer Arann AT42 near Isle of Man on Oct 7th 2008, smoke in cabin
An Aer Arann Aerospatiale ATR-42-300, registration EI-BYO performing flight
RE-377 from Dublin (Ireland) to Isle of Man (UK) with 17 passengers and
3 crew, had just started the initial descent towards Ronaldsway Airport
on the Isle of Man, when a smoke detector triggered in the aft lavatory.
The flight crew informed the flight attendant, who found the cargo bay clear,
but saw smoke in the rear toilet. She discharged a fire extinguisher, closed
the door and informed the flight deck. About 2 minutes later she checked
the toilet again and found the smoke had cleared and again reported to the
flight deck, where the flight crew confirmed the fire alert had ceased.
The crew informed Ronaldsway that they had a fire alert and requested a
priority landing. The airport issued a full emergency alert to emergency
services. Air Traffic Control issued radar vectors for an ILS approach to
runway 26. The airplane subsequently landed safely and taxied to the ramp
followed by fire trucks. The passengers disembarked normally at the apron,
the airplane was inspected by emergency services, who found no traces of
a fire.

Maintenance personnel then established, that the “return to seat” sign had
overheated in the toilet and the bulb filaments had failed. Further examination
revealed, that the correct bulbs had been used. No cause for the overheating
could be established to date.

The full AAIB report can be found at:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40deb66e
20081007191333:20081005000000
Incident: Qatar A320 at Berlin on Oct 5th 2008, rejected takeoff
Smoking A7-ADA at the ramp (Photo: Tony Bradley)  A Qatar Airways
Airbus A320-200, registration A7-ADA performing flight QR58 from Berlin
Tegel (Germany) to Doha (Qatar), rejected takeoff from runway 26R at high
speed using both reversers and taxied back to the apron without obvious
problems. After reaching the stand with fire engines in attendance engine
#1 (left) emitted smoke. Lufthansa technicians took care of the engine.

Runway 26R was closed for an inspection, another aircraft on approach performed
a swing over to runway 26L.

After repairs by Lufthansa Technics the airplane was able to resume the
flight with a delay of just two hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ddb77c
20081006133931:20081005000000
Incident: jet2.com B733 at Belfast on Oct 5th 2008, smoke from gear on landing
A jet2.com Boeing 737-300, registration G-CELY performing flight LS378 from
Murcia,SP (Spain) to Belfast,NI (UK), was on the landing roll at Belfast,
when the tower observed smoke coming from the landing gear and had emergency
services deploy. The aircraft was stopped on the runway, a quick assessment
of the situation by fire brigades determined no danger and the aircraft
taxied to the gate, where passengers disembarked normally.

The airport was briefly closed due to the incident.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ddbfec
20081006143819:20081004000000
Incident: Sriwijaya Air B732 near Ambon on Oct 4th 2008, bird strike
A Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737-200, flight SJ593 from Ambon to Ujung Pandang
(Indonesia) with 114 passengers, suffered a bird struck in its left hand
engine shortly after takeoff resulting in visible flames and smoke out of
the engine. After a quick checkout by the crew and an aircraft mechanics
on board of the airplane with no abnormal indications the crew assumed a
bird strike without damage and decided to continue the flight to Makassar
(Ujung Pandang). About 30 minutes later a loud bang was heard from the engine
followed by vibrations, so that the crew decided to return to Ambon, where
the airplane landed safely about one hour after departure.

An examination of the engine revealed a bird carcass inside the engine,
which had caused only a temporary disturbance while being ingested, but
then caused some damage to the engine about 30 minutes later when it moved
again.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40da4725
20081002093736:20081002000000
Incident: Cimber Air AT72 at Copenhagen on Oct 2nd 2008, smell of smoke
A Cimber Air Aerospatiale ATR-72-200, flight QI103 from Copenhagen to Sonderborg
(Denmark) with 24 passengers and 4 crew, returned to Copenhagen about 8
minutes after takeoff due to smell of smoke on board. The landing was safe.

A replacement ATR-72-200, OY-CIN, has already taken off to resume the flight.

No traces of fire or technical malfunctions were found. The smell was identified
to come from the air conditioning system due to overload.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d96bdb
20081001071933:20080929000000
Incident: TAM MD11 near Fortaleza on Sep 29th 2008, smell of smoke from air conditioning system
The crew of a TAM Linhas Aereas McDonnell Douglas MD-11, registration PT-MSJ
performing flight JJ8097 (dep. Sep 28th) from Paris CDG (France) to Sao
Paulo Guarulhos,SP (Brazil), considered a diversion to Fortaleza,CE (Brazil)
after passengers noticed a smell of smoke coming from the airconditioning
about 4 hours prior to planned arrival in Sao Paulo.

While cabin crew started to search the cabin for the source of the smell,
the flight crew was able to isolate the faulty air conditioning unit and
brought the smell to dissipate. The flight was continued to the planned
destination thereafter.

The airline confirmed a break down in one of the airplane’s air conditioning
systems without giving further details.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d67954
20080927153709:20080927143755
News: Delays at Bucharest Airport because of fire in terminal
Local Media in Romania report, that Bucharest’s Otopeni International Airport
has suspended departures due to a fire in a shop in the basement of the
international departure terminal. Fire brigades were able to extinguish
the fire, currently smoke removal is in progress.

International arrivals have resumed. So far 12 flights have been delayed
as the result of the fire.

TV pictures in Romania show thick smoke pouring out of the terminal’s windows.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d64213
20080927083345:20080926000000
Incident: American Eagle E135 near Alexandria on Sep 26th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of an American Eagle Embraer ERJ-135, registration N834AE performing
flight MQ3540 from Baton Rouge,LA to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 47 people
on board, declared emergency and diverted to Alexandria International Airport,LA
after smoke was smelled in the cockpit. The landing was safe, passengers
disembarked on the runway.

Fire fighters did not find any trace of fire, the source of the smoke is
unclear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d4e4f3
20080925160707:20080925000000
Accident: United Airlines B752 near Denver on Sep 25th 2008, smoke from galley oven
An United Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N554AN performing flight
UA82 from Los Angeles,CA to New York JFK,NY (USA), diverted to Denver,CO
after a galley oven emitted fumes and smoke. The landing was safe, six people
needed to be treated at the airport for smoke inhalation and could be released
again.

The aircraft reached John F Kennedy Airport with a delay of 5 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d416e2
20080924155600:20080924000000
Incident: American MD83 at Kansas City on Sep 24th 2008, fire alert
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight AA1077 from Kansas
City,MO to Dallas Fort Worth,TX (USA) with 105 people on board, returned
to Kansas City for a safe landing after a smoke detector issued an alert.

Fire brigades did not detect any trace of fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d2a859/0000
20091116150022:20080922000000
Accident: Icaro F28 at Quito on Sep 22nd 2008, slid off runway during rejected takeoff
 The Direccion General de Aviacion Civil del Ecuador (DGACE) have released
their final report in Spanish concluding, that the probable cause of the
accident was:

the indecision of the crew on the procedures as stated in the flight crew
operating manual following a fire alert and the late implementation of the
procedure once the decision to reject takeoff was taken.

Contributing factors were:

– the failure to conduct a briefing before takeoff, a fact that influenced
the lack of appropriate action by the crew to successfully tackle any emergency

– the lack of crew resource management to manage the emergency

– the wet runway which significantly reduced braking efficiency

The captain of the flight (44) held an ATPL and had a total of 9292 hours,
thereof 109 hours on type. The captain completed his type conversion training
between May and August 2008 and completed a crew resource management training
course in August 2008. He passed his line check on September 17th 2008.

The first officer of the flight (44) held a CPL and had a total of 3889
flying hours, thereof 380 on type. He had completed the type conversion
training between January and March 2008 and completed his CRM training on
July 1st 2008.

According to the flight data recorder the airplane reached a maximum speed
of 127 knots 50 seconds after the takeoff run began. 13 seconds later the
airplane departed regular surface (runway) at a speed of 75 knots, another
15 seconds later the airplane came to a standstill.

According to the cockpit voice recorder the captain was pilot flying. 36
seconds after being cleared for takeoff on runway 35 the engines spooled
up, 7 seconds later the crew confirmed takeoff thrust had been achieved,
40 seconds after the engine spool up the first officer called 80 knots.
10 seconds after the 80 knots call the smoke detector alarm started to sound
and continued throughout the remainder of the recording, 2 seconds later
the commander asked the first officer to report, what happened. A confusing
and partly illegible exchange occured, the captain called to abort the takeoff
18 seconds after the fire alarm started to sound. 25 seconds after the decision
to reject takeoff the first officer asks whether to shut down everything,
the captain asks for the evacuation checklist 15 seconds later, but the
checklist was not completed.

The first visible marks of the aircraft began 2500 meters down the runway.
The airplane impacted the localizer antenna 167 meters past the runway end.
50 meters past that point the nose gear collapsed. The airplane impacted
the perimeter wall 66 meters further down with the nose and right wing causing
the wall to partly collapse. The left wing was bent upwards during impact
with the embankment on which the airplane came to rest.

No fire ensued, no injuries occured.

The left hand overwing exists were used to evacuate the occupants from the
airplane. The left hand front door could not be opened sufficient, when
the door locked during the opening due to deformations of the fuselage.
The right hand main door could not be opened at all. The right hand overwing
exits were opened but not used due to the distance of the wing to the ground.

The fire detection systems (smoke detectors) were tested, but no anomalies
were found. No residue was found, which could have affected its operation.

The brakes were tested with no anomalies found. The tyres showed damage
from impact with irregular ground past the runway surface, there was no
evidence that the brakes had locked up.

Analysis of the cockpit voice recorder suggests, that 2 seconds after the
fire alert started to sound, the captain intended to continue the takeoff.
During the resulting 10 seconds of hesitation before the takeoff was aborted,
the airplane covered an additional distance of 738 meters in addition to
the 1680 meters until the fire alert, leaving 616 meters to stop within
the runway. On a dry runway the airplane would have needed 570 meters to
stop according to Fokker, on a wet runway however the stopping distance
would significantly increase Fokker being unable to determine the exact
required stopping distance due to lack of precise data of the runway condition.

The flight crew operation manual specifically listed the presence of a fire
alert as reason to reject takeoff at high speed. There had been a number
of false cargo hold fire alerts known and even experienced by the crew.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d379b0
20080923211926:20080920000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 at Point a Pitre on Sep 20th 2008, luggage presses fire alert
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-FYJH performing flight AC949
from Point a Pitre (Guadeloupe) to Montreal,QC (Canada), was ready for takeoff
awaiting clearance to takeoff, when the crew received an ECAM Forward Cargo
Smoke warning. The fire services were called out, but no heat or smoke was
found. The airplane returned to the gate and the cargo unloaded.

The fire alert ceased after the first layer of bags had been unloaded. It
was found, that one of the bags had pressed the protective grill of the
smoke detector against the detector. The bags were reloaded making sure,
there was a clearance between the bags and the ceiling, and the aircraft
returned to service.

The airplane reached Montreal with a delay of just over 80 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=45d071fd
20130131151527:20080918000000
Report: Icelandair B752 enroute on Sep 18th 2008, smoke in cabin due to audio jack overheat
The overheated resistors in the audio jack(Photo: RNF)An Icelandair Boeing
757-200, registration TF-FIV performing flight FI-597 (dep Sep 17th) from
Barcelona,SP (Spain) to Keflavik (Iceland) with 120 people on board, was
enroute over Ireland when a passenger reported the armrest was hot and there
was smoke coming from the audio jack. The inflight entertainment system
was powered down, the smoke subsided and the armrest cooled down. The flight
continued to Keflavik for a safe landing.

Iceland’s Rannsoknarnefnd flugslysa (RNF, Aircraft Accident Investigation
Board) released their final report concluding the probable cause was:

The Ethernet wire screen (ground) and pin 12 in the P2 plugs in cable assembly
p/n 179169-117 were found disconnected from the plug and plug shield.

This fault can cause a ~32VDC load to feed through the SVDU and through
the audio jack return lines, causing the resistors in the audio jack to
overheat and burn.

The RNF reported that an investigation was opened, however no root cause
could be determined at the time despite analysis by the manufacturer under
supervision by the NTSB. It could only be determined that a voltage source
of less than 32VDC had caused the audio jack to overheat. The occurrence
was regarded as a single isolated event and the investigation closed.

On Jun 15th 2009 another Boeing 757-200 was pushed back from Keflavik’s
gate, when a passenger reported a hot armrest and a burning smell. The aircraft
was towed back to the gate, an engineer deactivated the seat’s inflight
entertainment system, and the aircraft was pushed back again. This time
another passenger in the neighboured seat reported a hot armrest and a burning
smell. The aircraft again returned to the gate, a maintenance engineer disconnected
power from both seats.

After getting notified about these occurrences the RNF decided to re-open
the investigation of the Thales i4500 inflight entertainment system installed
at least on Icelandair and Air Canada Boeing 757s (205 aircraft in total).

The investigation into the second occurrences determined that the shield
of the Ethernet cables was not connected to the plug shield on both failed
seats and pin 12 (ground) was also disconnected from the plug. Inspection
of another seat showed the wire screen was not protected and could easily
be disconnected from the plug shield. When monitored with a voltmeter and
the plug being wiggled it was detected that after some time of wiggling
a voltage of about 30VDC appeared on the audio return wire, that had been
at less than 1VDC before, this condition was only possible with the cable
shield and pin 12 disconnected.

An experiment confirmed that after disconnecting the wire shield and pin
12, effective removing ground from the device, 30VDC appeared at the audio
return pin which caused the resistors to overheat.

The manufacturer of the inflight entertainment system took an immediate
safety action to replace the connectors with new ones, that ensure grounding
still occurs even in a loose plug situation.
The wiring diagram of the plug – disconnected wires marked yellow (Graphics:
RNF):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40cf1a54
20080918150658:20080918000000
Incident: Jetblue Airways A320 at Palm Beach on Sep 18th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Jetblue Airways Airbus A320-200, registration N562JB performing
flight B6-140 from West Palm Beach,FL to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 120
passengers, declared emergency and returned to West Palm Beach due to smoke
in the cockpit. The landing 21 minutes after departure was safe.

Emergency services standing by the for the arrival determined that there
was no fire. The source of the smoke is unclear.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43054420
20100831143248:20080914000000
Report: Cathay A333 near Taipei on Sep 14th 2008, loss of cabin pressure
A Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300, registration B-HLH performing flight CX-251
from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Hong Kong (China) with 59 (fifty nine) passengers
and 13 crew, diverted to Taipei (Taiwan) due to a typhoon. The airplane
left FL400 to descend towards Taipei, when the bleed air system became intermittent
and the cabin began to climb until the master caution activated. The crew
donned their oxygen masks and initiated an emergency descent, the passenger
oxygen masks deployed. Cabin crew subsequently reported a strong burning
smell in the cabin. The airplane landed safely on Taipei’s runway 24 about
30 minutes later and stopped on the adjacent taxiway, where the first officer
checked the cabin and confirmed the burning smell was produced by the chemical
oxygen generators supplying the passenger oxygen masks. Attending emergency
services did not find any trace of smoke, heat or fire.

Taiwan’s Aviation Safety Council (ASC) released their final report concluding:

3.1 Findings related to probable causes

1. Giving the de-activated of the No.1 engine bleed air valve per MEL 36-11-02,
the no.2 engine bleed air was the only one compressed air source for the
two air conditioning systems. The no.2 engine bleed air valve operated in
a high demand status. During aircraft descent, the compressed air automatically
bled from high pressure stage which provided the compressed air with higher
pressure and higher temperature. This led the pre-cooler downstream temperature
air getting higher. Due to the THCís grid filter contaminated from which
to reduce the muscle air pressure to control fan air valve that resulted
in the fan air valve could not open properly to provide sufficient cooling
air to pre-cooler. The no.2 engine bleed air valve was shut down automatically
due to bleed air overheat. Both air conditioning systems lost the compressed
air source and thereby aircraft lost its pressurization capability. (2.5)

3.2 Findings related to risk

1. The repeated defects of the numerous dual bleed air system and number
one engine bleed air defects prior to the occurrence revealed the deficiency
of the bleed air systemí reliability and potential operation risk. (2.6)
2. The flight crew might have confused the similar call signs on the same
control frequency. The crew were distracted by the system failure when they
did not adhere to company communication procedures by inadvertently omitting
the CX521 flight number at the end of one of the transmissions, which contributed
to the premature change of frequency. (2.1.1)
3. The flight crew omission of the CX521 flight number the fact that the
transmission was stepped on resulted in a lost opportunity for the pilot
and the controller to correct the mistake and prevent the premature change
of frequency. (2.1.1)
4. Approach controller should be aware the existing similar call sign situation
and follow the ATMP regulation for pilotí distinguishing when the CX521
acknowledged instruction and read back frequency change incorrectly for
other aircraft. (2.1.1, 2.8.2)
5. The ATMP English version and Chinese version 2-4-15 regarding emphasizing
to aid in distinguishing between similar sounding aircraft are inconsistent:
English version is mandatory while the Chinese version is not. (2.782)
6. Approach controller did not acknowledge the CX521 distress message immediately
on Guard frequency until the second one one minute latter. (2.8.3.1)
7. The ATMP request controllers to provide maximum assistance and first
priority to distress aircraft; consider pilot workload and human factor
of radio communication. The late information handling, frequent frequency
change instructions and instructed distress aircraft to follow speed restriction
were not in accordance with ATMP. (2.8.3.2)
8. Duplicated questions asking regarding ground assistance showed lack of
coordination and information exchange internally from both the TPE Tower
and the Approach controllers. (2.8.3.2)
9. All TACC controllers selected Mekong radio station which resulted in
TACC controllers failed to receive the CX521 ?Mayday? call at 1859:56 on
121.5 Frequency until 1900:52. (2.8.3.3)
10. Guard frequency 121.5 stations situated at Datum Mt and Mekong. The
two frequencies unable to cover each other due to the 140NM distance and
geographic influence. (2.8.3.3)
11. TACC North Sector guard frequency test omitted the occurrence neighbor
area waypoint SALMI. The omitted way point test may have resulted in TACC
controllers missing Mayday call from CX521. (2.8.4)
12. Some cabin crew members whose oxygen mask did not drop down, did not
try to open their access panels or using portable oxygen bottle around their
seats. (2.9)
13. Some cabin crew members may not be familiar with the cabin masks design
features and operation with regard to pulling down on the cord to activate
oxygen flow and not be fully aware of the normal operation of the cabin
masks. (2.9)
14. Some cabin crew members who were not to or not able to use their oxygen
masks may have misled passengers into thinking that wearing the mask was
not required. (2.9)
15. These side effects of the chemical oxygen generators did not list in
any cabin related manual and training course. This may have increased the
injury risk if cabin crews unfastened their seat belt and tried to find
out the suspected fire source. (2.9)

3.3 Other findings

1. Both flight crew members were certified and qualified in accordance with
Hong Kong Civil Aviation Regulations. (2.1)
2. There was neither evidence indicate the crew have any physical or psychological
problems, nor usage of alcohol or drugs. (2.1)
3. The crew did not select the APU after interrupting the AIR DUAL BLEED
FAULT checklist to initiate the EMERG DESCENT checklist in response to the
CAB PR EXCESS CAB ALT message. (2.1.2.1)
4. The FDR data indicated that the cabin altitude never exceeded 14,000ft
during the occurrence, there was no requirement for the crew to manually
deploy the cabin masks. (2.1.2.2)
5. The ?CAB PR EXCESS CAB ALT? and ?EMER DESCENT? procedures were inconsistent
regarding the selection of 7700. (2.1.2.2)
6. According to ATC radar control video play back, there was no evidence
indicating that the flight crew had selected 7700 SSR on the transponder.
(2.1.2, 2.7)
7. It was deem necessary that the flight crew took the immediate action
and performed the emergency descent to a safer altitude when dual bleed
system fail. (2.2)
8. The highest cabin altitude aircraft experienced was within the airworthiness
standard during the emergency descent operation. (2.3)
9. The leakage rate of B-HLH was within the Aircraft Maintenance Manual
specification. (2.3)
10. The Operator complied with the MEL 36-11-02 prescriptions. (2.4)
11. Refer to the tear down inspection result of the no.1 PRV; the shop findings
also could not confirm the indication problem. (2.6)
12. The CVR revealed there were temporary communication, poor radio signal
quality, poor readability and difficulties during the 1903 to 1907 period.
No evidence showed the TACC VHF system had anomaly at the time of occurrence.
(2.7)
13. Some passengers were not wearing their oxygen masks revealed that some
passengers either not fully understand the instructions from the automatic
announcement or they did not follow the instructions. (2.9)

The airplane had been dispatched with the #1 (left hand) engine bleed air
system inoperative in accordance with Minimum Equipment List (MEL) requirements.
The #1 bleed air valve was secured closed.

The airplane climbed to FL400 enroute. Due to a typhoon affecting Hong Kong
the aircraft headed to Taipei and had received descent clearance to FL140.
While descending through FL380 the crew received a “AIR ENG 2 BLEED FAULT”.
The crew attempted to reset the #2 bleed switch without success, the cabin
began to climb (lose pressure). The pilot flying (first officer) selected
open descent into the flight management and guidance system and deployed
spoilers to increase descent. At that time Air Traffic Control handed another
flight CI5321 (“Dynasty five three two one”) off to Taipei approach, the
captain of CX521 however acknowledged the call and selected the frequency.
A minute later the master caution activated with the ECAM message “EXCESS
CAB ALT”, the cabin climbed through 9700 feet at that point, the aircraft
was descending through FL300. The crew donned their oxygen masks and initiated
an emergency descent. The passenger oxygen masks were deployed automatically,
the cabin reached a maximum altitude of 13400 feet. The captain, pilot monitoring,
transmitted three Mayday Calls on the Taipei Approach Frequency and one
on the guard frequency, then Taipei confirmed received the emergency call
and cleared CX-521 down to FL100.

5 minutes later cabin crew reported a strong burning smell in the cabin
prompting the airport to deploy all available emergency services. Following
the landing on runway 24 the airplane turned off the runway and stopped
on adjacent taxiway SP, where emergency services attended the aircraft without
finding any smoke. The first officer went to the cabin and checked the odour
near door #4 finding that the smell was produced by the passenger oxygen
generators.

The ASC found repeated entries regarding “ENG 1 BLEED PRESSURE LOW” in the
maintenance logs since Jul 29th 2008 as well as repeated entries of “ENG
1 BLEED NOT CLOSED” since Aug 19th 2008. on Sep 13th 2008 another maintenance
entry said, that engine #1 bleed air valve had not closed during engine
run down after the engine had been shut down. Following this entry maintenance
recorded, that the engine #1 bleed air valve was secured shut according
to MEL. Following this entry the airplane was dispatched for 6 more sectors
including the occurrence flight. None of these 6 sectors were ETOPS sectors.

Maintenance reported following the occurrence flight, that the engine #2
bleed air system had suffered a fault related to “THRM (5HA2)/FAN AIR-V”
(thermostat filter in the fan air valve control).

The ASC found that 56 of the 59 passenger oxygen masks had been activated,
several passengers however did not don their oxygen masks according to cabin
reports. Three oxygen masks for cabin crew did not deploy due to stuck panels,
and out of the remaining 8 cabin crew 3 thought their oxygen masks were
not working.

Examination of the #2 engine bleed air system showed the grid filter had
collected significant contamination causing a pressure reduction, that prevented
the valve to completely open and thus caused an overtemperature condition
of the #2 engine bleed air. The source of contamination was expected atmosperic
pollution going past the primary filter.

Tests of the #1 engine bleed air valve releaved some leakage and corrosion
degrading the actuator piston seal. The corrosion could be explained by
the humidity environment on the airline’s Asian routes.

Air Traffic Control was struggeling with radar transmissions from CX-521
after the crew had switched to Taipei Approach prematurely due to mistaking
the call sign, the captain had read back the frequency but omitted the call
sign in the read back. The aircraft was more than 100nm outside the area
of responsibility of Taipei Approach, the aircraft was not visible on the
radar screen, and another Cathay CX-531 was on approach to Taipai in their
area of responsibility, controllers did not understand however why that
airplane at 5000 feet should call Mayday due to an emergency descent. Once
Taipei Approach identified the aircraft and its position, attempts to return
them to the correct frequency proved unsuccessful, Area Control completed
the hand off to Approach with Approach coordinating the clearance with Area
Control. 15 minutes after the crew had switched to the wrong frequency,
ATC was able complete the hand off to a discrete frequency dedicated to
flight CX-521. 18 minutes later the airplane touched down on runway 24.

The ASC identified three occasions during which call signs CI-5321, CX-521
and CX-531 were mixed up by either crew or air traffic controllers. CX-521
mistook instructions for CI-5321 twice, the first mistake was caught by
the air traffic controller who corrected the wrong readback. The second,
the frequency change, was not caught by air traffic control due to the missing
call sign in the read back. Later the controller mistook the emergency call
of CX-521 as coming from CX-531.

The occurrence crew, the ASC analysed, was distracted with the anomalies
on hand and did not pick up the wrong call sign as well as the premature
hand off.

The ASC analysed, that the operator should dispatch the aircraft with care
if one bleed air system is inoperative.

The ASC released a number of safety recommendations regarding the Minimum
Equipment List with one bleed air system inoperative and also recommended
to rework the depressurization checklist in case of dual bleed air failure
to activate the APU which could have prevented the cabin pressure to drop
to an altitude of 13400 feet. The ASC also issued a number of safety recommendations
to Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Authority regarding response of Air Traffic Control
to emergency calls, especially also to prevent frequency changes for distress
aircraft.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ccaf21
20080915123359:20080913000000
Incident: Air Mediterranee A321 at Fuerteventura on Sep 13th 2008, wheel fire after landing
An Air Mediterranee Airbus A321-100, registration F-GYAN performing flight
DR2504 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Fuerteventura,CI (Spain),
had just landed in Fuerteventura and was taxiing off the runway, when smoke
started the emanate from the left hand main gear. Fire engines immediately
activated, but needed around 10 minutes to stop the wheel fire, which was
helped by a hydraulics leak. The passengers disembarked normally after fire
fighters brought the fire under control.

Flight DR2505 back to Paris had be cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40cbc952
20080914105018:20080913000000
Incident: Chautauqua E135 near Moline on Sep 13th 2008, thick smoke behind cockpit
A Chautauqua Airlines Embraer ERJ-135 on behalf of American Eagle, flight
RP5340/AA5340 from St. Louis,MO to Minneapolis,MN (USA) with 23 passengers
and 3 crew, declared emergency because of smoke in the cabin about 20 minutes
into the flight and diverted to Moline’s Quad City Airport,IL. With fire
engines standing by the airplane landed safely and was evacuated. No injuries
have been reported.

The cause of the smoke is unknown, the airport reported, there was no fire.

Passengers reported, that thick smoke started to rise from an area immediately
behind the cockpit and rapidly filled the cabin. The flight attendant told
the passengers to prepare for a crash landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40cb388d
20080913181028:20080913000000
Incident: Norwegian Air Shuttle MD82 near Prague on Sep 13th 2008, false fire alarm
A Norwegian Air Shuttle McDonnell Douglas MD-82, flight LF5306 from Split
(Croatia) to Gothenborg (Sweden) with 128 passengers, diverted to Prague’s
Ruzyne Airport (Czech) after the smoke detector in a cargo hold issued
an alert. The landing was safe.

No traces of fire or smoke were detected, the alert was identified false.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4242e490
20091214150406:20080911000000
Report: Ryanair B738 at Dublin on Sep 11th 2008, tailstrike on takeoff
The tailskid assembly (Photo: AAIU) A Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration
EI-DYD performing flight FR-208 from Dublin (Ireland) to London Stansted,EN
(UK) with 148 passengers and 6 crew, struck its tail onto Dublin’s runway
28. The crew continued the takeoff, climbed to FL120, where the crew donned
their oxygen masks due to loss of cabin pressure, declared emergency and
descended with ATC clearance for a return to Dublin, where the airplane
landed safely on runway 28 21 minutes after departure.

The Irish AAIU released their final report concluding that:

the aircraft was depressurised manually at FL120 by the Flight Crew while
carrying out a Non-Normal Checklist subsequent to a low-severity tailstrike
event.

Contributory Causes were:
– Allowing the aircraft to climb and pressurise while the nature of the
problem was not clearly established.
– Actioning a Non-Normal Checklist without fully appreciating the consequences
of such action.

The captain was pilot flying to the sector to Stansted, a non-derated takeoff
with flaps 5 was planned. The airplane was cleared to climb to FL230 on
departure. While the airplane rotated for takeoff, the flight crew became
aware of a bump but were not sure what had occured. After the after takeoff
checklists had been processed and the airplane was in a stable climb, the
captain handed controls to the first officer to permit the captain assess
the problem, which took about 4 minutes, during which the airplane climbed
through 10000 feet. The captain came to the conclusion, that a tailstrike
had most likely occured and contacted a flight attendant, who confirmed
a tail strike had occured. The captain resumed the role of the pilot flying
and called for the Non-Normal Checklist (NNC) “tailstrike on takeoff”. The
airplane climbed to FL120 and remained on that level for about 40 seconds,
then commenced a descent upon clearance by ATC.

While processing the NNC the pressurization outflow valve was opened to
depressurize the cabin. As the airplane was not above 14000 feet, the passenger
oxygen masks did not deploy automatically, the cabin altitude horn however
sounded prompting the crew to don their oxygen masks before completing the
checklist.

Cabin crew noticed that a depressurization had occured and attempted to
raise the cockpit, however the flight crew was just busy donning their oxygen
masks and didn’t hear the call. After bumping the cockpit door the cabin
crew called again and told the flight crew, that the cabin had depressurized
but the oxygen masks had not dropped. The flight crew therefore released
the oxygen masks manually.

The AAIU found the tail skid assembly had some superficial scoring on its
shoe and the tail skid had not been compressed sufficiently to render the
airplane unservieable. The green mark on the tail skid indicating, that
the airplane was serviceable, remained visible.

The selection of flaps 5 gives a minimum tail clearance of 51cm on takeoff
rotation on 737-800 and 737-900 types.

The captain said in post flight interviews, that cabin crew had alerted
the cockpit of smoke in the cabin some time before the cabin altitude alert
activated.

The AAIU analysed, that the center of gravity could not be determined with
certainty however was within limits. The tailstrike in itsself was not a
serious event in itsself, however developed into a serious incident through
the following chain of events.

The commander was correct in handing controls to the first officer, however
it would been more prudent to level off immediately at a safe altitude,
fully identify the nature of the event and then complete the relevant checklists.
At low altitude the opening of the outflow pressure valve would not have
been problematic.

The NNC is designed to prevent the airframe from pressurizing in case, the
airframe had received such damage that a sudden decompression could occur.
As the airplane had already climbed to FL120 and had no damage, the execution
of the NNC caused a depressurization of the aircraft. Had the crew considered
the reesult of the checklist for a moment, they would have recognized, that
the aircraft would be depressurized by the checklist items.

The AAIU also analysed, that it was apparent that only the cabin purses
recognized the severity of the situation, when the cabin depressurized and
took immediate correct action to inform the flight deck.

Two safety recommendations were issued to the operator as result of the
investigation.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40c95d66
20080911111357:20080910000000
Incident: British Airways A319 at London on Sep 10th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Airbus A319-100, flight BA718 from London Heathrow,EN
(UK) to Zurich (Switzerland) with 121 passengers, was about 10 minutes into
the flight, when the cockpit crew smelled smoke in the cockpit, apparently
coming from the air conditioning. The crew decided to return to Heathrow
for a safe landing.

A replacement aircraft, an Airbus A321-200 registration G-EUXF, reached
Zurich with a delay of 3.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40c801aa
20080909194730:20080908000000
Incident: Cathay Pacific B744 near Toronto on Sep 8th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Cathay Pacific Airways Boeing 747-400, registration B-HOV
performing flight CX889 from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Vancouver,BC (Canada),
reported smoke in the cockpit and requested to divert to Toronto as a precaution.
The airplane landed safely 16 minutes later.

A faulty fan bearing was identified as cause of the smoke, thereafter emergency
services were stood down.

The airplane took off again to continue the journey after 4.5 hours on the
ground at Toronto.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40c44080
20080905115148:20080904000000
Incident: Thomsonfly B763 at Cancun on Sep 4th 2008, smoke in cabin
During boarding of a Thomsonfly Boeing 767-300, registration G-OBYJ performing
flight BY1674 from Cancun (Mexico) to Birmingham,EN (UK), white smoke developed
in the cockpit and the cabin. While the majority of passengers disembarked
through the airbridge, the rear exits were opened and slides deployed. All
passengers and crew returned to the terminal safely, no injuries have been
reported.

A spokesperson for Thomsonfly stated: “It is understood that, during passenger
boarding, white ‘smoke’ was detected in the flight deck and cabin. Engineers
are currently conducting a thorough investigation into the cause of the
incident, which is understood to be related to a cooling fan malfunction,
which was immediately deactivated. We would like to clarify that at no
time was there a fire, that the plane was on the ground and that neither
passengers or crew were in any danger.”

Passengers were provided with overnight accomodation. A replacement aircraft
has been dispatched to bring the passengers to Birmingham.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40c1a144
20080902130749:20080902000000
Incident: Eastern Airways JS41 near East Midlands on Sep 2nd 2008, false cargo fire alert
The crew of an Eastern Airways British Aerospace Jetstream 41, registration
G-MAJY performing flight T3-4721 from London Stansted,EN to Manchester,EN
(UK) with 14 passengers, declared emergency and diverted to East Midlands
Airport,EN (UK) after a smoke detector in the baggage compartment triggered.
The landing was safe, no traces of fire or smoke were found by attending
fire services.

A replacement aircraft brought the passengers to Manchester arriving with
a delay of 100 minutes.

Maintenance personnel identified a faulty sensor as cause of the false alert.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40bd83ef
20080828101053:20080826000000
Incident: Canadian North B732 at Yellowknife on Aug 26th 2008, bird strike
A Canadian North Boeing 737-200, registration C-GNDU performing flight 5T-444
from Yellowknife,NT via Norman Wells,NT to Inuvik,NT (Canada) with 76 passengers
and 4 crew, returned to Yellowknife after passengers – as well as ground
observers – reported smoke from the right hand engine within 3 minutes after
takeoff. The crew did not have any abnormal indication from both engines.The
tower relayed observations by ground observers of seeing smoke and/or fire
from the landing gear or right engine. Ground personnell was concerned,
that a tyre might have burst on takeoff.

The crew decided to burn off fuel, performed a low pass to have the landing
gear and tyres checked out, then landed without further incident at Yellowknife
48 minutes after liftoff.

Passengers reported, that they felt a little jolt and heard a sound like
a balloon popping just as the airplane began to rotate for takeoff.

Maintenance personnell identified remains of a small bird ingested by the
right engine. The smoke seen by observers came from the bird being diced,
burned up and passed through the engine, with no damage to the engine.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40bcd188
20080827141532:20080826000000
Incident: Thomsonfly B738 at Pula on Aug 26th 2008, microwave emergency
A Thomsonfly Beoing 737-800, registration G-CDZH performing flight BY2508
from Pula (Croatia) to London Gatwick,EN (UK) with 189 passengers, returned
to Pula about 10 minutes after takeoff, after a microwave oven in the airplane’s
galley started to emit thick black smoke. The airplane landed safely, no
injuries were reported.

Engineers identified an installation fault in the oven’s wiring.

A replacement aircaft, a Boeing 767-300 registration G-OBYH, was dispatched
and reached Gatwick with a delay of about 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40bc5900
20080826231124:20080824000000
Incident: Central Mountain B190 at Vancouver on Aug 24th 2008, smoke in cockpit (2)
A Central Mountain Air Beech 1900D, flight 9M331 from Vancouver,BC to Campbell
River,BC, was taking off runway 08R, when the crew reported they needed
to immediately return due to smoke in the cockpit. The tower instructed
a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800 (registration N33203, flight CO261)
approaching runway 08L to go-around. The Beech landed safely on runway 08L
5 minutes after becoming airborne.

As the incident happened just about 20 minutes after the almost same occurence
of another company airplane (see also Incident: Central Mountain B190 at
Vancouver on Aug 24th 2008, smoke in cockpit), the Canadian Transportation
Safety Board was informed.

Engineers could not find any trace or cause of smoke or fire during extensive
tests. Another company airplane taking off Vancouver had the very same trouble
(smoke) 20 minutes earlier, so that the airline concludes, it was moisture
and not smoke due to high humidity.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40bc5822
20080826231230:20080824000000
Incident: Central Mountain B190 at Vancouver on Aug 24th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Central Mountain Air Beech 1900D, flight 9M345 from Vancouver,BC to Comox,BC,
was taking off runway 08R, when the crew reported they needed to immediately
return due to smoke in the cockpit. The tower instructed a Cathay Pacific
Boeing 747-400 (registration B-HKD, flight CX888) approaching runway 08R
and an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-400 (registration N760AS, flight AS701)
approaching runway 08L to go-around. The Beech landed safely on runway 08R
3 minutes after becoming airborne.

Engineers could not find any trace or cause of smoke or fire during extensive
tests. Another company airplane taking off Vancouver had the very same trouble
(smoke) 20 minutes later (see Incident: Central Mountain B190 at Vancouver
on Aug 24th 2008, smoke in cockpit (2)), so that the airline concludes,
it was moisture and not smoke due to high humidity.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40bbce95
20080905133053:20080824000000
Incident: Air Dolomiti AT72 at Munich on Aug 24th 2008, brakes fire taxiing out
An Air Dolomiti Aerospatiale ATR-72-200, registration I-ADLW performing
flight EN3990/LH3990 from Munich (Germany) to Bologna (Italy) with 59 passengers
and 3 crew, was taxiing out for takeoff, when the left main gear caught
fire, sending a plume of smoke over the airport. The crew stopped the airplane
and evacuated the airplane, then arriving fire trucks extinguished the wheel
fire. No injuries have been reported.

The airline said, that the main damage is the tyres and the ground time
to inspect the airplane before it can enter service again.

The German BFU (German Accident Investigators) said on September 5th, that
the crew had rejected takeoff and had taxied off the runway. It is currently
assumed, that the already hot brake didn’t completely release after the
rejected takeoff.

The BBC has a video showing the fire and evacuation filmed by a passenger
in a nearby airplane.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ba5db2
20080824103025:20080823000000
Incident: Easyjet A319 at Copenhagen on Aug 23rd 2008, smoke in the cockpit
The crew of an Easyjet Airbus A319, registration G-EZDL performing flight
U2-4551 from Berlin Schoenefeld (Germany) to Copenhagen (Denmark) with 136
passengers, declared emergency reporting smoke on board while approaching
Copenhagen. The airplane landed safely at Copenhagen, passengers disembarked
normally.

Passengers reported, they didn’t see any smoke, but noticed something was
wrong when flight attendants started to turn lights off and on repeatedly.
The captain reported to them about 30 minutes into the flight, that they
had a small incident and are going to execute an expedited landing. After
landing he said, that they had smoke of unknown origin in the cockpit.

No trace of fire was found.

The return flight U2-4552 was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b9ad41
20080823125754:20080823000000
Accident: Easyjet B73G near Nice on Aug 23rd 2008, respiratory problems, smoke
The crew of an Easyjet Boeing 737-700, registration G-EZJG performing flight
U2-2313 from Luton,EN (UK) to Cagliari (Italy) with 130 passengers, reported
smoke on board, declared emergency and diverted to Nice (France), where
the airplane landed safely and was evacuated.

One flight attendant was brought to hospital with respiratory problems.
A second flight attendant was treated at the airport.

Firemen attending the aircraft reported seeing smoke, undoubtedly coming
from an electrical problem.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b9fc52
20080823215729:20080822000000
Incident: United Airlines B763 at San Francisco on Aug 22nd 2008, compressor stalls
An United Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N665UA performing flight
UA158 from San Francisco,CA to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 240 passengers
and 9 crew, returned to San Francisco about 30 minutes after takeoff (early
Saturday morning, Aug 23rd), after one of the engines suffered from compressor
stalls shortly after takeoff forcing the crew to shut the engine down. The
airplane landed safely, however smoke entered the cabin after landing and
shutdown of the second engine.

Passengers have been rebooked onto flights later Saturday and have been
accomodated in hotels.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b73189
20080821224849:20080820000000
Crash: Spanair MD82 at Madrid on Aug 20th 2008, went off runway during takeoff
The crash siteA Spanair McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registration EC-HFP performing
flight JK5022/LH2554 from Madrid,SP to Las Palmas,CI (Spain) with 162 passengers,
6 crew on duty and 4 crew off duty (172 people on board), has gone off the
runway 36L of Madrid’s Barajas Airport during takeoff at 14:14 local (12:14Z).
The fuselage broke up in at least two parts.

Madrid’s city government confirmed, that 153 people perished in the crash.
Only 19 survivors are currently treated in hospitals. 4 of them are in critical,
6 in serious condition, the others under observation while recovering. All
survivors were seated in rows 14-17.

The airplane went down into a ditch to the right of the runway’s overrun
area, broke up and caught fire. There is nothing left at the crash site,
that resembles an airplane, everything is completely destructed, torn to
shreds and burned down, fire men said continuing, that it is a miracle,
that there are survivors.

First pictures showed a large plume of smoke over the airport. Local news
agencies quote witnesses, that the left hand engine was on fire before the
airplane crashed. According to further witness statements, the airplane
became airborne and reached about 30 feet AGL, when the right wing dropped
(like in a steep right bank) and hit the ground causing the airplane to
cartwheel into the lower area right of the runway.

Spain’s prime minister has confirmed fatalities. Spain’s Ministry of Interior
has confirmed at least 90 fatalities.

Spain’s Minister of Development Alvarez said, that the airplane climbed
up to 200 feet and then fell back to the ground.

Spanish TV reported, that the airplane, scheduled to depart at 13:05 Local,
had rejected a first takeoff due to a faulty ram air temperature (RAT) indication
of +99 degrees Celsius, which severly limited the engine thrust (instead
of a usual takeoff EPR setting between 1.80 and 2.02 the engines were limited
to an EPR of 1.38). The airplane was then examined and set off for a second
takeoff, during which engine #1 caught fire and the airplane crashed.

The fires have been extinguished by 16:30 local time (14:30Z). The airport
has resumed operations using runway 36R/18L, while runway 36L/18R remains
closed. Passengers on an Iberia flight to Vienna, that departed after the
crash, reported upon their arrival in Vienna, that they had heard about
the crash while waiting for their delayed departure and expected to see
a damaged airplane, however could only see a large charred area with emergency
vehicles around it, but no larger wreckage pieces recognizeable.

The flight data and cockpit voice recorders have been recovered.

The NTSB has dispatched a go-team to Madrid under the lead of John Lovell
with four more technical specialists.

METARS:
LEMD 151400Z 21007KT 130V280 CAVOK 25/M03 Q1020 NOSIG
LEMD 151330Z 15003KT CAVOK 24/M03 Q1021 NOSIG
LEMD 151300Z 25005KT 170V290 CAVOK 23/M04 Q1021 NOSIG
LEMD 151230Z 28004KT 200V330 9999 FEW040 23/M03 Q1021 NOSIG
LEMD 151200Z 27003KT 9999 FEW040 21/M02 Q1022 NOSIG
LEMD 151130Z 35003KT CAVOK 22/M01 Q1022 NOSIG
LEMD 151100Z 35007KT 290V030 CAVOK 21/M02 Q1022 NOSIG

Map (courtesy Google Earth):
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b85c0d
20080821231326:20080818000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Montreal on Aug 18th 2008, smoke in cabin and cockpit
The crew of an United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N769UA performing
flight UA945 from Goose Bay,NL (Canada) to Chicago O’Hare (USA), declared
emergency, performed an emergency descent after cabin crew noticed a smell
of smoke in the cabin shortly afterwards followed by a fire alert in the
electronics compartment and diverted to Montreal,QC (Canada). The airplane
landed safely on Montreal Trudeau’s runway 24L 16 minutes later. The airplane
taxied to a gate on its own power, passengers disembarked normally.

The same airplane had another emergency because of smoke in the cockpit
a few hours earlier, which forced the crew to divert Goose Bay, see also:
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Goose Bay on Aug 18th 2008, smoke in
cockpit
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b681d2
20080821231213:20080818000000
Incident: United Airlines B772 near Goose Bay on Aug 18th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of an United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N769UA performing
flight UA945 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Chicago O’Hare (USA), declared
emergency about 260nm northnorthwest of Goose Bay (Coordinates 56∞36’43
N 063∞46’26 W) due to smoke in the cockpit and requested to divert to Goose
Bay. The airplane landed safely 42 minutes later.

Engineers identified an air conditioning fan, that had shorted out.

The airplane had another emergency during the continuation flight forcing
the crew to divert to Montreal, see Incident: United Airlines B772 near
Montreal on Aug 18th 2008, smoke in cabin and cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44221cdd
20110830150433:20080816000000
Report: AMC B738 at Paris on Aug 16th 2008, overran runway on continued takeoff
An AMC Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration SU-BPZ performing flight 9V-6104
from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Luxor (Egypt) with 185 passengers
and 7 crew, departed Charles de Gaulle’s shortened runway 27L but contacted
a number of provisional runway end lights and during rotation impacted some
markers on the safety barrier in front of a runway construction zone. The
aircraft became airborne before a blast fence and continued to Luxor for
a safe landing. The aircraft as well as ground lighting received minor damage.

The French Bureau díEnquetes et díAnalyses (BEA) released their final report
concluding:

The event was caused by the crewís failure to take into account the length
of the runway available for takeoff.

The following factors may have contributed to the event:

– the inadequacy of the OPT utilisation procedures set up by the operator
AMC to prevent such an error;

– the impaired level of crew performance, specifically related to the pilotsí
fatigue.

Construction work was being conducted on Charles de Gaulle Airport’s runway
27L between August 4th and 20th, which reduced the runway length from 4200
meters to 2960 meters. Temporary runway end lighting and safety barriers
were therefore installed.

On the inbound leg from Marsa Alam a passenger had smoked in the lavatory
prompting the captain to request police meet the aircraft at the gate. After
the aircraft arrived at the gate with a delay of 3 hours, the captain (43,
ATPL, 9,150 hours total, 1,900 hours on type) handled the police presence
on board while the co-pilot (39, ATPL, 5,950 hours total, 140 hours on type,
rated captain) was preparing the cockpit for the next sector to Luxor.

After police had left the aircraft about 50 minutes after reaching the gate,
the captain reviewed mass and balance information received from dispatch
indicating a takeoff mass of 74,441 kg/164,000 lbs (MTOW: 79,015 kg/174,000
lbs), then planned a departure from runway 27L intersection with taxiway
Y11 (2,360 meters of takeoff distance available) instead of Y12 (2,960 meters
of takeoff distance available). The flight planning software OPT, used within
the airline and therefore used by the crew, however did not show the available
takeoff distance. OPT, assuming full length of the runway being available,
computed V1 at 163 KIAS and Vr at 164 KIAS with the optimum flap setting
of 1 degree.

The captain was pilot flying for the sector to Luxor. During line up tower
stated, that they had 2,360 meters of takeoff distance available before
clearing the aircraft for takeoff.

The co-pilot observed some red lights in the distance of the runway which
he estimated were indicating the runway end.

When the aircraft accelerated through V1 the crew heard some noise from
the nose gear and indicated they had struck something, possibly the lights.
During climb out they were busy flying the assigned departure route and
checking for abnormal indications, in the lack of abnormal indications the
crew decided to continue to Luxor. ATC was not informed about the irregularity/noise
during takeoff.

After landing in Luxor one of the tyres was found with a deep cut on a nose
gear tyre, the captain wrote a report mentioning foreign object damage on
the runway.

About 3.5 hours after depature of SU-BPZ another aircraft was instructed
to cross runway 27L at taxiway K2. The crew refused the instruction reporting
debris on the runway. A subsequent runway inspection showed 4 marker beacons
at the end of the runway were damaged, a part from a Boeing 737-800 was
found in the area as well. This finding prompted Air Traffic Services to
inform the operators of all Boeing 737-800s, that had taken off runway 27L
since the previous runway inspection. An AMC official then indicated that
their aircraft had been damaged by foreign objects on the runway.

It took several days until data processing revealed the AMC aircraft had
struck the ground lighting.

The BEA complained, that Egyptian Authorities did not respond to their request
to read the flight data recorders out, that had been transmitted on Aug
17th 2008 implicating the AMC aircraft may have struck ground markers during
takeoff. After a retransmission of the request on Aug 19th Egyptian Authorities
reported the aircraft had flown more than 25 hours and the data of the incident
flight had been overwritten. The BEA therefore needed to use (inaccurate)
radar data to determine the flight track – those data allowed to determine
the point of becoming airborne with an accuracy of 80 meters.

The BEA reported the aircraft received minor damage to the #1 engine fairing
and on the trimmable horizontal stabilizer. One nose gear tyre had been
cut and a piece of the left main landing gear harness had become detached.

Immediately after flight the captain wrote in the logs, that they applied
a reduced takeoff thrust with an assumed outside temperature of 41 degrees
(corresponding with 24kN takeoff thrust, 91% N1), while later in the investigation
the crew gave testimony they had applied full thrust (26kN). Boeing’s analysis
of the actual takeoff performance confirmed that the reduced takeoff thrust
had been used for takeoff. The FMC settings also suggested a reduced takeoff
thrust of 24kN had been used for takeoff.

The BEA determined, that the aircraft became airborne at 165 KIAS after
a takeoff roll of 2,520 meters about 160 meters past the runway end. The
aircraft crossed the blast fence at very low height.

Boeing’s computation had estimated a takeoff distance of 2,645 meters (up
to 15 feet AGL) for a reduced takeoff thrust (24kN) with optimum flap setting,
while the takeoff distance for full thrust with optimum flap was computed
at 1,682 meters at a V1/Vr of 135 KIAS.

The BEA commented, that given the V1/Vr and thrust setting in use it was
more than questionable whether the crew would have been able to stop the
aircraft before the working area in case of a rejected takeoff near V1,
although a runway end safety zone of 240 meters was available past the temporary
runway end.

The BEA analysed, that the crew was not aware of the takeoff distance required
because the software OPT did not display the computed takeoff distance required
for takeoff. This was identified as one of the factors of why the crew did
not detect insufficient runway length available during flight preparation
and when the controllers stated the distance available. The crew was also
surprised by the departure route provided, which guided them to the south
from the northern runway – this procedure is not normally used and was not
expected by the crew, which increased work load to prepare departure and
deflected attention away from the runway length.

The BEA further analysed that the crew did not enter temporary runway restrictions,
as derived from NOTAMs, into OPT, which therefore assumed full runway length
available. Only the full runway length available permitted the use of reduced
takeoff thrust.

The BEA detected systemic failures within the operator, for example the
lack of flight data analysis. Without the BEA’s investigation into this
serious incident “the operator would not, in this event, have noticed a
warning on the dangers concerning entering erroneous data in the OPT.”

AMC had not setup procedures for entering data into the OPT software.

The BEA released two safety recommendations:

– that the DGAC, in the context of the State Safety Plan, take into account
the risks associated with operators introducing new computer tools.

– that EASA conduct a study on the standards that should be taken into account
during certification of onboard performance calculation systems, in order
to ensure that their ergonomics and procedures for use are compatible with
the requirements of safety.

Sketch of damage at runway end and runway end safety zone (Graphics: BEA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b4ac3f
20080817121807:20080816000000
Incident: American B752 near Tulsa on Aug 16th 2008, smell of smoke, burned out fan
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N647AM performing flight
AA114 from Los Angeles,CA to Newark,NJ (USA), declared emergency and diverted
to Tulsa,Ok after smell of smoke was noticed on board of the airplane.

A replacement aircraft, another Boeing 757-200 registration N619AA, completed
the flight arriving at Newark with a delay of 5 hours.

An examination of the airplane revealed, that an air recirculating fan had
burned out.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40b33bfc
20080815143131:20080815000000
Incident: South African B738 at Johannesburg on Aug 15th 2008, smoke just before takeoff
A South African Airways Boeing 737-800, flight SA309 from Johannesburg to
Cape Town (South Africa), was evacuated shortly before takeoff, when dense
smoke appeared in the rear of the airplane. No injuries have been reported.

A replacement aircraft took off about 2.5 hours later.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40bc5601
20080826225105:20080814000000
Incident: Air Canada A319 at Montego Bay on Aug 14th 2008, cargo fire indication
An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-FYJH performing flight AC983
from Montego Bay (Jamaica) to Toronto,ON (Canada), was climbing through
FL150 on departure from Montego Bay, when the crew received a forward cargo
fire alert. The crew discharged the fire bottles into the cargo compartment
and immediately afterwards received a forward cargo smoke ECAM indication.
The crew declared emergency and returned to Montego Bay performing an overweight
landing with emergency services standing by. The landing was safe, no injuries
were reported.

An examination of the airplane and the luggage and cargo revealed no traces
of fire or smoke. Maintenance personnell replaced the fire bottles, squibs,
forward smoke detectors and smoke detector control units.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40af5b76
20080810145034:20080810000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B763 at Milano on Aug 10th 2008, fire alert
A Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N198DN performing flight DL75
from Milano Malpensa (Italy) to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 213 passengers and
11 crew, returned to the Malpensa Airport after a smoke detector went off
about 15 minutes into the flight. The airplane landed safely back to Malpensa
30 minutes after departure.

Delta Airlines expects, that the airplane is able to depart again by 17:30
local time (15:30Z) with a delay of 7 hours. The flight however is now routed
with an intermediate stop at Bangor,ME (USA), supposedly for a crew change
due to crew hour limitations, and is expected to arrive at Atlanta with
a total delay of 9.5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40af68ba
20080811174041:20080809000000
Incident: Finnair A320 at Helsinki on Aug 9th 2008, gear on fire on landing
A Finnair Airbus A320-200, registration OH-LXB performing flight AY1796
from Corfu/Kerkyra (Greece) to Helsinki (Finnland) with 159 passengers and
6 crew, landed at Helsinki Vantaa Airport, when the tower noticed smoke
and flames coming from the undercarriage. The fire was brought under control
quickly by airport fire services. The passengers disembarked normally. No
injuries have been reported.

It is suspected, that hydraulics oil had leaked into the landing gear resulting
in the fire during the landing roll.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ad8107
20080808062335:20080807000000
Incident: Continental B73G near Santa Ana on Aug 7th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-700, registration N14735 performing
flight CO386 from Santa Ana,CA to Newark,NJ (USA) with 113 passengers and
5 crew, declared emergency and returned to Santa Ana’s John Wayne Airport
after the crew smelled smoke. The landing 20 minutes after takeoff was safe.
The passengers disembarked normally.

Responding fire fighters found no trace of fire.

A replacement aircraft, another Boeing 737-700 registration N27734, resumed
the flight and is expected to reach Newark with a delay of 2.75 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40acdc63
20080807175609:20080806000000
Incident: Air Canada A320 near Edmonton on Aug 6th 2008, fire alert, strange smell
The crew of an Air Canada Airbus A320-200, flight AC179 from Montreal Trudeau,QC
to Edmonton,AB (Canada) with 138 passengers, declared emergency reporting
smoke in the cockpit and an active fire alert while approaching Edmonton.
The airplane landed safely and was immediately inspected by Airport Rescue
and Fire Fighting personnel with passengers remaining on board. No trace
of fire was found, the airplane taxied to the gate on its own power.

The Airport reported, that the crew had declared emergency because of smoke
and an active fire alert, but when the airplane was entered by fire fighters,
there was no report of fire, instead a strange smell on board.

Air Canada confirmed the fire alert stating, the request for emergency equipment
was purely precautionary. The cause of the fire alert is currently being
investigated.

The Canadian Transport Ministry reported, that the emergency was declared
when the aircraft was 3nm from touchdown on runway 20 at Edmonton.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40acd691
20080807093636:20080806000000
Accident: Emirates B772 at Kuwait on Aug 6th 2008, rejected takeoff due to smoke in cabin
An Emirates Boeing 777-200, flight EK858 from Kuwait (Kuwait) to Dubai (United
Arab Emirates) with 346 passengers, rejected takeoff early into the takeoff
roll at Kuwait, when smoke was detected in the cabin. One passenger, who
left his seat in panic while the airplane was still moving, received minor
injuries.

All passengers were able to travel to Dubai on a replacement aircraft, that
reached the destination with a delay of 100 minutes.

It is assumed, that the smoke came from the engine exhaust.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40ab8897
20080811215410:20080805000000
Incident: American B752 near Los Angeles on Aug 5th 2008, smoke in cabin
N192AN at Los Angeles (Photo: AP/Carlos Delgado)An American Airlines Boeing
757-200, registration N192AN performing flight AA31 from Los Angeles,CA
to Honolulu,HI (USA) with 188 passengers and 6 crew, returned to Los Angeles
after smoke appeared in the cabin about half an hour into the flight. The
airplane was evacuated via slides after the safe landing on runway 07L 54
minutes after departure.

6 passengers received minor injuries during the evacuation and were treated
on site by the LA Fire Brigades.

The Los Angeles Fire department did not find any evidence of fire.

A replacement aircraft reached Honolulu with a delay of 5.5 hours.

Passengers reported, that they smelled smoke about 20 minutes into the flight,
then haze started to fill the cabin. Oxygen masks were deployed, flight
attendants helping passengers to adjust the masks.

American Airlines reported, that engineers identified an oil leak as source
of the haze.

The FAA is investigating, why several oxygen masks failed to deploy and
others did not supply oxygen despite being activated. The investigation
also examines, why a slide failed to deploy.

The FAA reported, that a broken oil seal had allowed oil to spray into the
engine, contaminating bleed air supplying the air conditioning system with
haze.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40aae4d8
20080804212152:20080804000000
News: Guam Airport evacuated over fire, Aug 4th 2008
The A.B. Won Pat Internation Airport of Guam (Guam) needed to be evacuated
after a fire broke out in an electrical switch board in the generator room
of the airport and developed heavy smoke entering the terminal building.
Flights were disrupted for about two hours until the fire was brought under
control. The airport was able to resume operation though on backup generators.
Three departing flights had to be delayed, one arriving flight was diverted.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40abac76
20080814110129:20080802000000
Incident: Westjet B73G near Ottawa on Aug 2nd 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Westjet Boeing 737-700, registration C-GLWS performing flight
WS225 from Ottawa,ON to Edmonton,AB, declared emergency and requested to
return to Ottawa after smell of smoke appeared in the cockpit. After the
TV system was shut down, the smell disappeared. The airplane landed safely.

Subsequent inspection found, that the cooling fan inlet of the aft cargo
Live TV electronic equipment rack was obstructed by luggage and also clogged
with dust. Maintenance personnel removed the luggage and cleaned the filters,
the airplane was put back in service without further incident.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a8d0d4
20080805214145:20080801000000
Incident: Cathay Pacific B744 near Winnipeg on Aug 1st 2008, cargo fire alert
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400 freighter, flight CX92 from Anchorage,AK
to New York JFK,NY (USA) with 3 crew, diverted to Winnipeg after an alert
indicated a possible fire in the front cargo hold. Suppression systems were
activated in that hold, the fire alert stopped before landing. The airplane
landed safely on runway 18 and exited onto runway 13, where emergency services
attended the aircraft.

An inspection revealed no indication of fire or smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a840b3/0002
20100610125023:20080801000000
Accident: Flybe E195 near Isle of Man on Aug 1st 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit, evacuation
The British Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) released their bulletin
stating, that the airplane had been dispatched with the #2 (right hand)
air conditioning system inoperative according to Minimum Equipment List
requirements.

When the airplane climbed through FL240 both pilots smelled a sulphurous
burning odour similiar to a match being lit leading the flight crew to believe
a passenger might be smoking in the forward lavatory. Cabin crew was contacted
however found noone in the lavatory. Cabin crew reported haze was visible
at the rear of the cabin and some smell was noticeable in the cabin.

The intensity of the odour increased on the flight deck prompting the crew
to don their oxygen masks at about mid way between Manchester and Isle of
Man, winds made Isle of Man favourable. Communication with oxygen masks
proved so difficult, that the flight crew had to resort to shouting amongst
them while radio transmissions had to be repeated several times until air
traffic control was able to understand the messages.

Cabin crew tried to contact the flight crew through intercom. While the
flight crew heard the cabin crew, the flight attendants could not hear the
pilots. The purser therefore used the emergency procedure to enter the flight
deck, where the captain indicated the intention to evacuate the aircraft
after landing, but did not indicate they were diverting to Isle of Man.
Due to the communication trouble the crew did not tell their intention to
evacuate the aircraft to air traffic control.

The crew performed a Surveillance Radar Approach (SRA) to Ronaldsway Airport
on the Isle of Man and established visual contact with the runway at about
700 feet. The crew completed a visual approach and landing on runway 26
and stopped on the runway. The captain ordered an evacuation.

Passengers found the evacuation slides very steep and lacking a round out
delivering the passengers onto the runway at a high speed. This and the
attempts by passengers to slow their slide were the prime reason for the
injuries in the evacuation. The right hand overwing exit could not be opened.

Inspection of the aircraft revealed, that the #1 (left hand) air cycle machine’s
rotor had seized, a further detailed analysis confirmed a turbine stage
2 blade failure similiar to the failure of the #2 air conditioning system
that had failed 4 days earlier. The imbalance of the rotor led to contact
between the blade tips and the housing producing hot fine metallic particles
that were released into the cabin air. Metallurgic examination of the failed
blades confirmed the blades suffered a fatigue crack close to the blade
root in an area known for high stress in turbine blade resonance.

The captain’s microphone in the oxygen mask was found inoperative. Inspection
of other aircraft in the fleet found another captain’s microphone inoperative,
that microphone however could be woken up by tapping it.

A consistent pattern was found with all oxygen mask’s microphones, which
feature a cut out during breath inhalation. The microphone would correctly
mask out during inhalation, however remained in the cut out. Tapping the
microphone would then bring the microphone live again until the next inhalation.
With oxygen supply mode switch to purge, the microphone tended to hunt between
cut-out and live during speech producing a pattern similiar to that recorded
and heard by ATC.

Product acceptance testers accustomed with the mask and speaking with the
mask on produced clear speech. Any user with less experience however produced
garbled sound as heard during the occurrence. Using the microphones required
training. The operator was advised, the manufacturer of the masks reviewed
and modified the design.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a840b3
20100610125145:20080801000000
Accident: Flybe E195 near Isle of Man on Aug 1st 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit, evacuation
G-FBEH after the emergency (Photo: Amadeus)A Flybe Embraer ERJ-195, registration
G-FBEH performing flight BE7016 from Manchester,EN to Belfast City,NI (UK)
with 90 passengers and 5 crew, declared emergency and diverted to the Isle
of Man after smell of smoke was noticed by the flight crew. The landing
at 13:17 local was safe, passengers evacuated via slides. One passenger
received injuries in the evacuation and was delivered to hospital, three
other passengers and one crew member received minor injuries and were treated
on scene.

Flybe reported, that a failure of the air conditioning system is being suspected
as cause of the smell at the moment.

ERJ-195 with fire trucks and clouds (Photo: Amadeus)
High Noon? (Photo: Amadeus)
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a7b382/0000
20131020200951:20080731000000
Accident: Iberia MD88 at Vienna on Jul 31st 2008, burst tyre, engine failure, gear unsafe indication
On Oct 17th 2013, more than 5 years after the occurrence, Austria’s Accident
Investigation Unit (“Verkehrssicherheitsarbeit f¸r ÷sterreich”, VERSA) released
their final report in German but retracted the report on Oct 18th 2013 stating:
“Der Untersuchungsbericht MD 88 vom 31.07.2008 wurde aus ermittlungstechnischen
Gr¸nden entfernt. Bereits ausgedruckte oder gespeicherte Versionen dieses
Berichtes sind mit sofortiger Wirksamkeit ung¸ltig.” (Translation: The investigation
report MD-88 of July 31st 2008 was removed for investigation technics reasons.
All already printed or stored versions of this report are invalid with immediate
effect).

Observing this statement and cautioning readers about that legal status
of the report The Aviation Herald publishes this invalid Final Report in
German nonetheless as it appears to provide insight into the sequence of
events.

This invalid final report concluded the probable causes of the serious incident
were:

– disruption of electric components of the proximity switch in the left
main gear well by foreign objects
– intrusion of foreign objects into the left hand engine

Probable factors:

– unsecured attachment of the tyre valve in rim #2
– it is unclear what additional maintenance works were conducted in the
area of the tyre valve by the operator while the tyre was replaced
– use of a porous O-ring in the valve on rim #2
– insufficient grease of the O-ring
– on the day of the incident a loss of pressure in the tyre was not detected,
it is to be assumed that the pressure had not been measured
– indications of a separation of the tread from tyre #2 were not detected
during pre flight checks

Possible factors

– insufficient torque moment during attachment of the valve during the tyre
replacement on Jul 11th 2008

The captain (58, ATPL, 15,818 hours total) and first officer (38, ATPL,
5,246 hours total) formed the crew, the report did not establish who was
pilot flying and who pilot monitoring.

VERSA reported that the aircraft departured Vienna’s runway 29, while becoming
airborne the left hand engine (JT8D) lost power and started to vibrate.
The crew retracted the landing gear, declared Mayday and positioned for
an approach to runway 29 for an immediate return. While on downwind at 2000
feet MSL the crew detected smell of smoke in the cockpit, there was no fire
indication however and no smoke was observed. The crew worked the checklists
for “engine fire or severe damage or separation” and emergency return to
the airfield, the left hand engine was shut down. The APU was started, the
hydraulic pump and electric generator of the APU were connected. After the
gear was extended the left hand main gear did not indicate down and locked,
the crew therefore flew a 360 and worked the checklist abnormal gear indication
with handle down and activated the alternate gear extension, the left main
gear however continued to indicate unsafe. The crew decided to abandon the
approach and subsequently performed a low approach along runway 29 in about
500 feet AGL to have the gear inspected from the tower. Tower reported the
gear was down, the crew subsequently climbed the aircraft to 5000 feet MSL.
In the meantime a runway inspection found parts of a tyre and a part of
a chine. The first officer attempted to inspect the gear through a periscope
in the passenger cabin however were unable to see the gear due to dirt obscuring
the periscope.

21 minutes after departure the crew conducted another overflight along (but
not above) runway 29 at 400 feet AGL which again resulted in the information
that the left main gear was down. The aircraft climbed again to 5000 feet
and entered a hold to burn off fuel and prepare a landing with unsafe gear
and a possible evacuation.

After sufficient fuel had been burned off to bring the aircraft to below
the maximum landing weight the crew performed a landing on runway 34, which
is longer and offers wider safety areas to the left of the runway, the crew
requested the runway to be foamed for the possibility of a gear collapse
– which according to strategies and ineffectiveness of the procedure was
not complied with.

The aircraft landed safely on runway 34 76 minutes after departure, the
open gear doors as result of the alternative gear extension contacted the
runway surface however and caused sparks. The aircraft rolled out safely
and vacated the runway via exit 32, the passengers disembarked onto the
taxiway.

The aircraft received substantial damage to the left main gear, left flaps,
both inner gear doors and the left main gear well. The inboard left hand
tyre was flat with the tread separated.

VERSA reported the outboard left tyre showed a pressure of 192 PSI with
a normal pressure of 200 PSI and the lower limit of 190 PSI.

VERSA reported that the defective tyre #2 had been produced on May 13th
2007 and had flown 225 cycles on another aircraft before it needed to be
replaced due to a cut in the tread. The tyre was sent to the manufacturer
for repair and was returned repaired on March 11th 2008. On July 11th 2008
it was then mounted on rim #2 in a licensed maintenance facility, a subsequent
24 hour test for tightness proved the tyre was tight and holding pressure,
the tyre was not moved or put under load during that test. The tyre pressure
was reduced to storage pressure of 40 psi afterwards.

The rim and tyre was mounted on the incident aircraft on Jul 30th 2008,
the storage pressure of 40 psi was increased to 200 psi. The aircraft performed
five sectors on Jul 30th 2008.

In the night from Jul 30th 2008 to Jul 31st 2008 a tyre pressure of 200
psi was confirmed by signature on all 4 tyres.

Following the incident flight the defective tyre was taken the tyre manufacturer
for tests, no penetrations were found and tests conducted with intact valves
confirmed the defective tyre was tight and held pressure. All marks on the
tyre including the fractures causing the separation of the tread are consistent
with the tyre losing pressure completely, according to experience one takeoff
with such a pressure loss is sufficient to cause the damage as observed
on the incident tyre.

When the tyre was mounted on the rim there was no requirement to dismount
the valve or check its function. However, there are indications that the
valve was dismounted. It was found that the thread of the valve connecting
the valve to the rim was not secured, which was not required nor designed.
The valve was found to be torqued to a point where a human being could unscrew
it without tools. The O-ring under the valve was found damaged and porous.
Further examination showed that the valve itsself was tight, the O-ring
however had only little traces of grease on one side, was porous and had
accumulated what is believed to be particles of abrasions of brakes.

VERSA analysed that during the mounting of the incident tyre on rim #2 on
Jul 11th 2008 the valve was dismounted, when the valve was reinstalled the
O-ring was not replaced and was not greased as required. When the valve
was torqued the O-ring was most likely damaged or already fractured. Due
to lack of movement and load the problem was not discovered during the leak
test. After the wheel was mounted on the incident aircraft on Jul 30th 2008
the loads and movements, aggravated by the failure of auto brakes, led to
a loss of tyre pressure. That loss however was not discovered during the
maintenance check in the night to Jul 31st 2008, the beginning separation
of the tread was not noticed during preflight checks for the incident flight.

VERSA analysed that the overflight along the runway introduced the risk
of unknown terrain, especially on single engine the safety margins could
have been compromised during climb out and were left to “random factors”.
VERSA argued that a low approach following published approach and go-around
procedures would have eliminated that risk and appeared more prudent. In
particular, the situation at Vienna required overflying an oil refinery
and chemistry factory, the failure of the other engine at that point could
have resulted in excessive consequences.

The failed tyre (Photo: VERSA):
The left engine inlet (Photo: VERSA):
The punctured flaps (Photo: VERSA):
Flight trajectory (Graphics: VERSA):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a7acca
20080801101318:20080731000000
Incident: LOT B762 near Gander on Jul 31st 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit and cabin
The crew of a LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 767-200, registration SP-LOB performing
flight LO7 from New York JFK,NY (USA) to Warsaw (Poland) with 193 passengers,
declared emergency reporting smell of smoke in both cockpit and cabin and
requested to divert to Gander,NL (Canada) while 140nm north east of Gander.
The airplane landed without further incident.

LOT Polish Airlines reported, that the smoke was caused by an overheating
oven. Another flight, LO41 from Warsaw (Poland) to Toronto Pearson,ON (Canada)
was diverted to Gander to deliver mechanics, so that the necessary repairs
could be done to SP-LOB.

SP-LOB could depart Gander in the meantime and is due to arrive in Warsaw
at 15:00 local time Aug 1st.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a79df8
20080801093649:20080731000000
Incident: Northwest B752 near Des Moines on Jul 31st 2008, strong smell in cabin
The crew of a Northwest Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N509US performing
flight NW335 from Detroit,MI to Los Angeles,CA (USA) with 179 passengers,
declared emergency and diverted to Des Moines,IA reporting smoke in the
cockpit. The landing was safe.

The airline reported, that strong smell developed in the passenger cabin
prompting the diversion. As a precaution paramedics were dispatched to meet
the passengers, but none of the passenger needed treatment. No evidence
or indication of fire was discovered on board of the aircraft. A replacement
aircraft, another B757-200, was dispatched and brought the passengers to
Los Angeles with a delay of 6.5 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a68a6a/0000
20100423184541:20080730000000
Incident: Vietnam Airlines B772 at Tokyo on Jul 30th 2008, engine smoke during landing, fire at gate
Scenes at the gate (Photo: JTSB) The Japanese TSB have released their
final report concluding, that the probable cause was:

After landing while taxiing the aircraft the right hand engine’s fuel hose
started to leak causing a fire. The leak was caused by a gap resulting from
an O-ring, that was slightly smaller than required. The installation of
the O-ring was performed without lubricant.

A service procedure to prevent a recurrence of an improper/improperly placed
O-ring in the fuel hose has been adopted by May 2009.

While enroute at FL370 about 3 hours into the flight the crew received “FIRE
LOOP2 ENG R” and an “OVERHEAT CIRCUIT R2” status message. As all engine
(PW4084) indications remained normal and the messages were not caution or
warning messages, no action was required and the crew continued to Tokyo’s
Narita Airport.

The aircraft landed on Narita’s runway 34R, turned off the runway and was
taxiing for about 2:20 minutes, when the crew received a right hand engine
overheat warning indication, 40 seconds later the fire alarm right hand
engine activated, the crew activated the fire extinguisher 6 seconds after
the fire alarm and called MAYDAY reporting their right hand engine on fire.
The fire alarm ceased following the release of the first bottle of fire
extinguisher, so that the crew decided to continue taxi. The airplane arrived
at Gate 84 with fire engines in attendance. Thin white smoke was still visible
from the right hand engine as the airplane came to a stop at the gate. The
passengers and crew disembarked, 7 more fire engines joined the three trucks,
that had accompanied the aircraft to the gate.

Maintenance personnel entered the aircraft occupying the cockpit and starting
to work on the engine. The engine continued to smoke, maintenance watched
for about 15 minutes, the fire engines water cannons had not been used yet.
The mechanics in an attempt to locate the problem returned to fire handle
to its normal position about 30-40 minutes later, the mechanics at the engine
immediately calling to pull the fire handle again and release the second
fire bottle. The mechanics observed a fuel spill resulting in an immediate
eruption of fire in the engine. After requesting the fire bottle to be fired,
the mechanics did not wait for reaction but requested fire engines to take
care of the fire, the fire trucks responded and put the fire out.

The engine and wiring received considerable fire damage inside the cowling.
No other damage occured.

The airplane had undergone heavy maintenance in June and July 2008, the
right hand engine’s fuel hose was detached on July 8th 2008 and the O-ring
was replaced. However, instead of the required O-ring M25988-1-135, the
smaller O-ring M25988-1-134 was used, the diameter of -134 being 1.6mm
smaller than -135’s diameter.
Fuel hose and damage by fire (Photo: JTSB):
The (light blue) O-ring at fault (Photo: JTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a68a6a
20080730121637:20080730000000
Incident: Vietnam Airlines B772 at Tokyo on Jul 30th 2008, engine smoke during landing, fire at gate
The crew of a Vietnam Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration VN-A146 performing
flight VN950 from Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) to Tokyo Narita (Japan) with
264 passengers and 13 crew, was advised by the airport tower controller,
that smoke was coming from the right hand engine during landing. The airplane
taxied to the gate, passengers disembarked normally.

About one hour after the airplane had landed, a fire broke in the right
hand engine, which was quickly extinguished by fire fighters.

Vietnam Airlines reported, that the crew received an over temperature alert
while the airplane was taxiing and performed the necessary procedures by
checklist. As the indication returned to normal they continued taxi.

The airport reported, that a fire truck was still engaged to tackle smoke
coming from the engine after the airplane arrived at the gate and while
passengers disembarked.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a6cebb
20080730180656:20080729000000
Incident: Emirates B773 near Budapest on Jul 29th 2008, smoke detector went off
An Emirates Airlines Boeing 777-300, flight EK6 from London Heathrow (UK)
to Dubai (United Arab Emirates) with 380 passengers, diverted to Budapest
(Hungary) after the crew received an alert from a smoke detector. The landing
was safe – the alert ceased after landing.

Engineers believe, the alert went off due to a short circuit, however a
replacement aircraft was dispatched to Budapest, which departed with a delay
of 16 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a66bd3
20080730063742:20080729000000
Incident: Delta Airlines B738 at New York on Jul 29th 2008, burst tyre on takeoff prompts return
A Delta Airlines Boeing 737-800, flight DL141 from New York JFK,NY to Salt
Lake City,UT with 167 passengers, burst the outer tyre of the right main
landing gear on takeoff. The crew elected to return to New York, however
decided to burn fuel first circling near Point Pleasant. The landing was
safe, although sparks and smoke were seen coming from the right main gear
at and shortly after touch down.

The flight took off again with a delay of roughly 9 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a6085c
20080729174558:20080728000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Monroe on Jul 28th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL776 from Dallas DFW,TX
to Atlanta,GA (USA) with 66 passengers, diverted to Monroe Regional Airport,LA
due to smoke in the cockpit. The landing was safe.

Delta Airlines decided to divert another already delayed MD-88, performing
flight DL1873 from Kansas City,MO to Atlanta,GA, to Monroe to pick the passengers
up. That airplane reached Atlanta with a total delay of 5.5 hours (both
flights).

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a5cd97
20080729110344:20080728000000
Incident: TUIFly Nordic AB B752 at Helsinki on Jul 28th 2008, galley oven ignores "no smoking" sign
A TuiFly Nordic AB Boeing 757-200, registration SE-RFP flight 6B-683 from
Helsinki (Finnland) to Larnaca (Cyprus) with 235 passengers and 7 crew,
returned to Helsinki after a galley oven began to smoke about 20 minutes
into the flight. The airplane landed safely.

The oven was replaced and the airplane took off again arriving in Larnaca
with a delay of 7 hours.

A spokeswoman for Finnmatkat, TUIFly’s Finnish partner, said, that a small
piece of paper got into the oven for unknown reason. A small amount of smoke
occured as the meals were being prepared. The galley was disconnected from
power supply as a precaution and the airplane returned to Helsinki. The
oven was replaced and the same plane departed again for Larnaca 7 hours
after first departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a48ee5
20080727211454:20080727000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Baltimore on Jul 27th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N351SW performing flight
WN121 from Baltimore,MD to Norfolk,VA with 124 passengers and 5 crew, returned
to Baltimore within 7 minutes after liftoff due to smell of smoke in the
cockpit, the Baltimore Airport reported. Passengers deplaned normally at
the gate.

Maintenance staff identified a fan as source of the smell. The fan was replaced,
the airplane returned to service resuming the flight with a delay of 2.5
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a2f40b
20080725190446:20080725000000
Incident: Great Lakes B190 at Cape Girardeau on Jul 25th 2008, smoke in cabin
A Great Lakes Aviation Beech 1900, flight ZK222 from Cape Girardeau,MO to
Saint Louis,MO (USA) with 3 passengers, declared emergency and returned
to Cape Girardeau due to smoke in the cabin. The landing was safe.

The emergency forced the airport to dispatch its rescue forces a second
time within minutes (also see: Incident: Chautauqua E145 near Cape Girardeau
on Jul 25th 2008, cracked windshield).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a29fb6
20080725153711:20080724000000
Incident: Loganair SF34 near Kirkwall on Jul 24th 2008, molten light bulb
The crew of a Loganair Saab 340, registration G-LGNG performing flight LOG8775
from Shetland Islands,SC to Aberdeen,SC (UK) with 32 passengers and 3 crew,
declared emergency reporting a burning smell and diverted to the next airport
at Kirkwall,SC. Passengers and crew evacuated the airplane.

Fire fighters entered the airplane and identified a faulty light bulb, which
had melted, as source of the smoke. The light bulb was replaced.

The airplane resumed the flight and reached Aberdeen with a delay of 1.5
hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a1c3d8
20080724063646:20080723000000
Incident: United Airlines B752 near Sioux Falls on Jul 23rd 2008, smoke in cabin
An United Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight UA102 from San Francisco,CA to
Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 182 passengers and 8 crew, declared emergency
and diverted to Sioux Falls Regional Airport,SD after a fire alarm set off
and smoke became visible in the front of the passenger cabin near lavatories,
possibly originating from a light bulb. The airplane landed safely 20 minutes
after the alarm.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40a0edd2
20080723063835:20080722000000
Incident: Westjet B736 at Calgary on Jul 22nd 2008, strange odour on board
A Westjet Airlines Boeing 737-600, flight WS208 from Calgary,AB to Winnipeg,MB
(Canada), declared emergency and returned to Calgary shortly after takeoff,
when the crew reported smelling smoke in the cockpit. The airplane landed
safely, passengers disembarked normally.

The passengers were rebooked onto other flights.

Westjet said, the problem was a strange odour, not smoke. The airplane is
now being thoroughly checked to identify the source of the smell.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=409ddc54
20080719075546:20080718000000
Incident: Delta Airlines MD88 near Boston on Jul 18th 2008, smell of smoke in cabin
A Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88, flight DL1935 from Boston,MA to
New York La Guardia,NY (USA), returned to Boston after a passenger smelt
smoke in the cabin. The smell was not noticed by flight attendants.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=409bf6b7
20080716185846:20080716000000
Incident: Gojet CRJ7 near Rochester on Jul 16th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of a Gojet Canadair CRJ-700 in United Airlines colors, flight G7-5388/UA5388
from Chicago O’Hare,IL to Providence,RI (USA) with 67 passengers and 4 crew,
reported light smoke in the cockpit and decided to divert to Greater Rochester,NY,
where the airplane made a safe landing.

When the crew switched the air conditioning off in flight, the smoke dissipated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=409aee92
20080715104629:20080714000000
Incident: RyanAir B738 at Graz on Jul 14th 2008, smoke in cabin while waiting in thunderstorm
A RyanAir Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DHW performing flight FR5733 from
Graz (Austria) to London Stansted,EN (UK), had already been boarded and
was ready for departure, when a severe thunderstorm arrived over the airport.
The crew decided to delay departure until the thunderstorm had passed, when
suddenly smoke appeared in the cabin. The passengers were evacuated. No
injuries were reported.

A replacement aircraft, Boeing 737-800 registration EI-DYC, resumed the
flight and arrived at Stansted with a delay of over 10 hours.

Engineers suspect a fault in the air conditioning system as cause of the
smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4099b10b
20080713191617:20080713000000
Incident: Mesaba Airlines CRJ900 at Syracuse on Jul 13th 2008, smoke in cabin
A Mesaba Airlines Canadair CRJ-900 on behalf of Northwest Airlines, flight
XJ3404/NW3404 from Detroit,MI to Syracuse,NY (USA) with 45 passengers and
4 crew, performed an emergency landing into Syracuse after passengers smelled
and saw smoke in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=409c9b4c/0011
20081219101543:20080712000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near Geneva on Jul 12th 2008, smell of smoke in cabin
The Swiss Accident Investigation Bureau (BFU) reported, that the origin
of the fire in the insulation of the rear toilets could not be established.
As no aircraft systems were affected, the investigation was ceded to the
federal Ministry of Public.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=409c9b4c
20080717155552:20080712000000
Incident: Easyjet A320 near Geneva on Jul 12th 2008, smell of smoke in cabin
The crew of an Easyjet Airbus A320-200, registration G-TTOG performing flight
U2-8752 from Corfu (Greece) to London Gatwick (UK) with 149 passengers and
6 crew, declared emergency and diverted to Geneva (Switzerland) due to a
smell of smoke in the rear toilet. The landing was safe.

A replacement aircraft, a Boeing 737-700 registration G-EZJT, resumed the
flight and arrived in London Gatwick with a delay of over 4 hours.

Easyjet confirmed the incident stating: “Safety is easyJetís number one
priority and at no point of time was there any risk to the well being of
our passengers or the crew.”

The Aviation Herald had received a report from Geneva, that it was a fire
in the rear toilet behind a panel causing a major scare to all passengers.
The fire was put out by flight attendants in flight. The cause of the fire
is unclear and currently under investigation, but it is assumed the fire
was not caused by tobacco products.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40962233
20080709081826:20080708000000
Incident: American MD82 near Little Rock on Jul 8th 2008, smoke in cockpit
The crew of an American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82, flight AA1257
from Indianapolis,IN to Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) with 127 passengers and
5 crew, declared emergency because of smoke in the cockpit and diverted
to Little Rock,AR, where the airplane landed safely. The light smoke dissipated
after the electrical systems of the airplane were shut down.

A replacement aircraft brought in from Tulsa resumed the flight 4 hours
later, but needed to divert again to Shreveport,LA due to weather related
traffic congestion at Dallas Fort Worth. The flight therefore arrived at
DFW with a total delay of 6 hours 20 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4092f0f7
20080707101733:20080704000000
Incident: United Airlines B744 near Glasgow on Jul 4th 2008, arcing galley
An United Airlines Boeing 747-400, registration N118UA performing flight
UA941 from Frankfurt/Main (Germany) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) with 266
passengers and 17 crew, declared emergency because of an arcing galley while
overhead northern Scotland and diverted to Glasgow,SC (UK).

United Airlines said without giving any further details, that it was a precautionary
landing. The passengers have been booked into hotels for the overnight stay
at Glasgow. The airplane resumed the flight on July 5th at 2:18pm and arrived
at Chicago with a delay of over 25 hours.

A passenger said (read below in the reader comment section), there was a
problem with galley equipment arcing and zapping while the crew was talking
about smoke/steam coming from that equipment. The captain then announced
difficulties with a galley prompting the return to Glasgow. United Airlines
Spokesman Kevin Johnston could neither confirm nor rule out this passenger
report stating that an investigation is still ongoing.

Officials of the Airport Authority of Glasgow confirmed, that the airplane
diverted because of an electrical failure in the galley associated with
the smell of smoke, however without an actual fire.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=408f9862/0004
20081026163804:20080630000000
Crash: Ababeel IL76 at Khartoum on June 30th 2008, hit ground immediately after takeoff
The Sudanese CAA stated in their preliminary factual report, that the crew
attempted to reject takeoff and hit the brakes, but it was too late and
the crew pulled the airplane up below the required takeoff speed. The airplane
was seen nose high after liftoff, then started a sharp left turn without
gaining height and continued banking to the left crossing the North East
Part of the Green Square, then lost height until impact with the ground.
The impact occured with a nose down attitude of 30 degrees and a 60 degrees
left bank.

ST-WTB had been sent to the United Arab Emirates for periodic checks and
life prolongation in March 2008 and was returned to service on June 25th
after maintenance in Sharjah was completely on June 11th. A total of 7 sectors
had been completed since June 25th until the airplane arrived in Khartoum
on June 29th, thereof two sectors with a total airborne time of 7 hours
on June 29th. It was then assigned flight BBE700 from Khartoum to Juba with
35 tons of cargo. Loading started June 29th around 21:00 local and was finished
by June 30th around 03:00 local. The loadmaster stated, that not the entire
cargo could be loaded due to the large volume, about 2 tons had to be returned
to the storage, the actual cargo therefore was 32.6 tons.

51 tons of fuel were loaded on request by the crew. The loadmaster and operations
officer both stated, that the remaining fuel on board from the last flight
was reported at 8 tons by the captain, so that they assumed a fuel weight
of 59 tons on the load sheet. The takeoff weight was therefore computed
to be 186.6 tons (maximum takeoff weight at 190 tons).

The airplane was parked near taxiway Delta surrounded by two Dash-8s and
a Boeing 737. The airplane could not maneouver out of its parking position
on its own without danger of having a wing tip collide with one of the other
parked aircraft. After engine start the crew decided to not call for a push
back, but to use reverse thrust to back out of their parking position, an
unaccepted procedure the CAA Sudan states. Eyewitnesses on the ground reported,
that the aircraft started to move on the third trial only, the airplane
was shaking vigorously as it backed out.

ST-WTB was seen rolling for takeoff at 04:02:45Z. A flight engineer, who
did not observe the takeoff, but heard the engine noise, commented to a
captain standing besides him that this was an engine reverse, not engine
run noise, then the noise vanished and smoke could be seen rising.

Runway 18 was inspected after the crash and track marks were found at the
end of runway 18 indicating, that the tyres smashed two light poles. The
tracks continued past the runway end on the paved surface of the runway
stop way.

After the aircraft got airborne, the crew should have turned right, the
airplane however banked left and continued on a heading of 142 degrees losing
height. At a distance of 1500 meters from the runway end the left wing impacted
an electric pole at 5.4 meters above ground, the wing tip detached. Then
the airplane struck an electric transmission line 42 meters off the pole.
The airplane continued flying, the left wing was just about touching the
ground. After 142 meters the left wing struck the stem of a tree at a height
of 40 cm above ground “inserting part of the front spar into the tree”.

Fuel spill started upon impact with the tree, 25 meters further down the
airplane collided with the Eastern brick wall and fence of the National
Green Square and disintegrated.

Flight Data and Cockpit Voice recorders have been sent to the Russian Interstate
Aviation Committee (MAK) for readout and examination.

The radio communication (ATC) from startup to impact with the ground has
been transcribed as follows (times in UTC):

03:40:43 Aircraft : Khartoum BBE 700
Tower : BBE 700 go ahead
03:41:00 Aircraft : Khartoum Tower BBE 700 destination Juba FL 290 on
board 04 endurance 07 request start up near Delta
Tower : BBE 700, Khartoum when marshaller in sight start up
approved wind 120/04 Temperature 27 QNH 1009
03:41:49 Aircraft : Roger, marshaller in sight start up approved QNH 1009
BBE 700
03:43:09 Aircraft : approach Tower BBE700 Juba 250
Tower : BBE 700 ( in Arabic ) How much you want
Aircraft : 250
Tower : no problem advice taxying
03:47:25 Aircraft : Khartoum BBE 700 request clearance near delta
Tower : Follow marshaller’s signals
Aircraft : Following marshaller
03:47:35 Aircraft : Following marshaller signals near Delta holding short
BBE 700
03:56:36 Aircraft : Khartoum BBE 700 behind departing aircraft request
line up
03:57:29 Tower : BBE 700 line up and wait
Aircraft : Line up and wait BBE 700
03:59:50 Tower : BBE 700 copy ATC
Aircraft : Ready to copy
04:00:00 Tower : BBE 700 cleared to Juba climb to maintain FL250 when
airborne right turn to establish R187 maintain 3000 initially
04:oo:18 Aircraft : Cleared to Juba Flight Plan route climb FL 250 level
change in route when airborne turn right R 187 climbing initially 3000
BBE 700
Tower : BBE 700 read back correct
04:00:53 Tower : Request total person on board and endurance
Aircraft : On board 04 endurance o8
Tower : Cleared for take off R/W 18 contact 124.7
Aircraft : Cleared for take off R/W 18 when airborne contact
124.7 initially 3000 BBE 700
04:02:43 Centre : Where is BBE 700
Tower : At the take off position, and rolling now.
04:03:58 Centre : Ababeel crashed and there is fire
04:04:39 Tower : Fire Brig. Being informed and they moved now
04:05:50 Tower : MSR 854 vacate via taxiway Bravo to parking due emergency,
131 also back track to Tarmac, for MSR854, NOV550, SAC and Lok, please all
traffic cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=408ec81b/0006
20100223211719:20080628000000
Accident: ABX Air Cargo B762 at San Francisco on Jun 28th 2008, on fire while parked, no arson
Stainless Steel Coil Spring Within Flexible Oxygen Hose (Photo: NTSB) The
NTSB have released their final report concluding:

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause
of this accident was the design of the supplemental oxygen system hoses
and the lack of positive separation between electrical wiring and electrically
conductive oxygen system components. The lack of positive separation allowed
a short circuit to breach a combustible oxygen hose, release oxygen, and
initiate a fire in the supernumerary compartment that rapidly spread to
other areas. Contributing to this accident was the Federal Aviation Administrationís
failure to require the installation of nonconductive oxygen hoses after
the safety issue concerning conductive hoses was initially identified by
Boeing.

Following findings were listed by the NTSB:

1. The pop and hissing sounds heard by the flight crew immediately before
the fire was discovered were consistent with the ignition of an oxygen hose
by an internal rather than external heat source.

2. The design of the oxygen hose assembly allowed the internal spring to
become a source of ignition when it was electrically energized, the polyvinyl
chloride hose material to act as a fuel, and the oxygen within the hose
to promote burning.

3. The fire aboard the ABX Air airplane most likely began when a combustible
and electrically conductive oxygen hose in the supernumerary compartment
became energized by a short circuit, which caused the hose to ignite and
burn through, and the release of oxygen from the hose caused adjacent materials
to ignite and burn at an accelerated rate.

4. Although no evidence was found to indicate that previous oxygen system
leaks contributed directly to the fire in the supernumerary compartment,
oxygen leaks are a safety hazard because of their potential to facilitate
a fire.

5. Aircraft rescue and firefighting personnel extinguished the fire in a
timely manner.

6. The skin-penetrating nozzle was an effective tool in extinguishing the
fire, especially because the forward doors were rendered inoperable by the
fire and could not be used to gain access to the fire.

7. The type of training that the driver of Rescue 49 received on the operation
of the high-reach extendable turret with skin-penetrating nozzle was not
sufficient to allow him to successfully insert extinguishing agent into
the cockpit on his initial attempts.

8. Aircraft rescue and firefighting personnel who are not sufficiently trained
on the high-reach extendable turret with skin-penetrating nozzle may not
be able to use the device effectively when fighting aircraft fires.

9. Combustible oxygen hoses with an electrically nonconductive design would
prevent the internal coil spring from becoming electrically energized, mitigating
the possibility that the hoses would melt and ignite.

10. It is likely that the modifier of the accident airplane would have recognized
the use of a part that was potentially combustible before releasing the
airplane to the operator if the Federal Aviation Administration had issued
an appliance airworthiness directive that cited the part manufacturer as
well as the airplane model.

11. Protecting oxygen system tubing from inadvertent short circuits is important
because of the proximity between the tubing and electrical wiring in a compressed
area as well as the potential severity of a fire involving oxygen.

12. An effective method of electrically grounding the supplemental oxygen
system to the airframe would help ensure that oxygen system components are
protected from short circuits.

13. Because aging polyvinyl chloride flexible hoses are more likely than
newer hoses to be cracked or otherwise degraded, aging hoses are more likely
to leak oxygen, which, along with an ignition source, could result in a
fire.

14. Passenger service unit reading lights with exposed electrical contacts
have the potential to move to positions that create inadvertent short circuits
and produce sparks near combustible materials.

15. Installing smoke detectors in supernumerary compartments would help
flight crews identify the existence of a fire in an accessible, possibly
unoccupied space and initiate suppression of the fire before it could propagate
and become uncontrollable.

16. The number of reported discrepancies regarding the accident airplaneís
oxygen system was excessive and indicative of a chronic problem with the
system, yet ABX Airís continuing analysis and surveillance program did not
include adequate actions for resolving the discrepancies and preventing
additional oxygen leaks from occurring.

The crew was preparing for departure, all freight had been loaded, the doors
were already closed, when the crew performed their oxygen check, which completed
normally. About 6 minutes later the first officer went to the supernumerary
compartment, located right behind the cockpit, to turn off the lights. At
that time he did not notice anything abnormal.

One minute later, when the crew was running the engine start checklist,
they heard a loud pop followed by a hissing sound followed by the first
officer noticing a big fire in the back. Subsequently the lavatory smoke
detector activated and a fire bell sounded. The crew called ATC informing
of a cargo fire, ground control confirmed to “roll the trucks”, then the
crew executed the fire and evacuation checklist. They could not exit through
the L1 or R1 doors due to the location and intensity of the fire, so that
both pilots evacuated through their cockpit windows. The first officer used
his escape rope to climb down, then instructed ground personnel to move
the stairs under the captain’s window, so that the captain climbed down
those stairs.

Due to the extensive damage ABX Air confirmed the airplane to be a hull
loss.
Oxygen System Components in Supernumerary Compartment (Photo: NTSB):
Proximity of Electrical Wiring to Oxygen System Tubing (Photo: NTSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=408ec81b/0002
20090701064221:20080628000000
Accident: ABX Air Cargo B762 at San Francisco on Jun 28th 2008, on fire while parked, no arson
“Maintenance in work” says a sign attached to the wall, that once separated
the cockpit from the cabin, as the airplane was being prepared to be towed
away from the stand, where it had caught fire. Heat and smoke caused severe
damage not only to the fuselage, but also in the cockpit.

Smoke and heat damage in the cockpit, photo: Vlasta Sajfr

Location of fire, photo: Vlasta Sajfr
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=408ca2dd
20080626095027:20080626095027
News: Fire at JFK’s control tower disrupts traffic for an hour
A fire in the 15th floor of the control tower building at New York’s JFK
Airport forced the evacuation of the airport’s tower controllers, located
in the 17th floor Wednesday afternoon between 2036Z (1636 EDT) and 2135Z.
All departing traffic was halted resulting in flight delays of up to two
hours, inbound traffic was handled from a backup tower.

The fire was quickly brought under control, smoke removal accomplished about
an hour later and normal operations resumed.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=408b6399
20080624144623:20080624000000
Incident: Continental B752 near Azores on June 24th 2008, smoke in galley
A Continental Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N19117 performing flight
CO120 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Barcelona (Spain), diverted to Lajes Airport
on the Azores due to smoke in the galley.

The flight resumed with a delay of close to 8 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=408ae9bd
20080623230623:20080623000000
Incident: American B752 at Los Angeles on June 23rd 2008, smoke, smell of fuel, hazmat
An American Airlines Boeing 757-200, registration N636AM performing flight
AA442 from San Francisco,CA to Miami,FL (USA) with 180 passengers, declared
emergency and diverted to Los Angeles,CA after the crew noticed smoke and
smell of fuel in the cockpit. The airplane landed safely on runway 25R and
was evacuated on the runway. As the airplane had loaded hydrochloric acid,
a hazmat material, hazmat crews were dispatched, but found the container
intact and no fluid spilled. No injuries have been reported.

The cause of the smoke and smell of fuel in the cockpit has not been identified
yet.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4086a803
20080618145535:20080618000000
Incident: American Eagle E145 at Kansas on June 18th 2008, smoke in cabin
An American Eagle Embraer ERJ-145, flight MQ3354/AA3354 from Dallas Love,TX
to Kansas,MO (USA) with 4 passengers and 3 crew (seven occupants), declared
emergency while on approach to Kansas reporting smoke in the cabin. The
landing was safe. The airplane was checked out by fire services, but no
trace of fire was found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40859c5a
20080617061748:20080616000000
Incident: Skywest E120 near Bakersfield on June 16th 2008, smoke in cabin
A Skywest USA Embraer 120 Brasilia, registration N290SW performing flight
OO5769 from Modesto,cA to Los Angeles,CA (USA), declared emergency and diverted
to Bakersfield after smoke developed in the passenger cabin. The landing
was safe. The passengers were brought to Los Angeles on later flights from
Bakersfield.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40854b01
20080618171222:20080615000000
Incident: Continental B733 at Saint John’s on June 15th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Continental Airlines Boeing 737-300, registration N14336 performing flight
CO1449 from Newark,NJ (USA) to Saint John’s,NL (Canada), was in the GIBBY
hold at Saint John’s due to weather, when the crew declared emergency and
reported smoke in the cockpit. The crew requested a CATII approach to runway
29 at St. John’s and performed an eventless landing at St. John’s. During
the approach the smoke dissipated.

Engineers did not find any cause or evidence of fire or smoke, however identified
a failed Attitude Indicator, which was replaced. The airplane was then returned
to service.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4084c959
20080616063408:20080615000000
Incident: Arik Air B733 at Abuja on June 15th 2008, engine failure
The captain of an Arik Air Boeing 737-300, registration 5N-MJB intended
to perform flight W3-156 from Abuja to Lagos (Nigeria) with 121 passengers,
had to order passengers to disembark again after the right hand engine did
not properly start up and released thick clouds of smoke. The captain announced
according to passenger reports, that the engine did not fire up while the
engine was leaking fuel.

The flight had to be cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40846fb7
20080615191453:20080614000000
Incident: Southwest B73G at Santa Ana on June 14th 2008, smell of smoke
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN3526 from Oakland,CA to Santa
Ana,CA (USA) with 100 passengers, declared emergency while on approach to
Santa Ana. The crew reported, they smelled smoke. The landing was safe,
no immediate danger was identified and the fire trucks followed the airplane
to the gate.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40833cdb
20080618161142:20080613000000
Incident: First Choice B763 near Orlando on June 13th 2008, smell of smoke in cabin
A First Choice Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-OOAN performing flight
DP69 from Cancun (Mexico) to London Gatwick (UK) with 247 passengers and
12 crew, diverted to Orlando Sanford,FL (USA) after a passenger noticed
a burning smell in the cabin during the first 2 hours into the flight. The
precautionary landing was safe.

As the crew ran out of crew duty hours, the passengers were booked into
a 4 star hotel.

Engineers identified a minor fault with the cabin door, which was quickly
isolated, First Choice Airways told The Aviation Herald. The plane was certified
safe to fly and resumed the flight, arriving at London Gatwick with a delay
of nearly 20 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407f6b0b
20080609064200:20080608000000
Incident: Southwest B733 near Wichita Falls on June 8th 2008, smell of smoke
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN2399 from Saint Louis,MO to
Albuquerque,NM (USA) with 129 passengers, diverted to Wichita Falls Municipial
Airport,TX after passengers smelled smoke in the cabin. The landing was
safe, no indications of fire were found. The passengers deplaned normally.

Southwest sent a maintenance team to inspect the airplane, while a replacement
aircraft completed the journey with a delay of more than 6 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407dd6ec
20080607045753:20080606000000
Incident: Southwest B73G at Denver on June 6th 2008, smoke in cabin
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN2618 from Denver,CO to Los
Angeles,CA (USA), returned to Denver shortly after takeoff after passengers
in the rear of the cabin smelled smoke. The landing was safe.

The smoke stopped and dissipated before landing. Origin and cause of the
smoke are currently being investigated.

The flight later departed again and arrived in Los Angeles with a delay
of 160 minutes.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407df563
20080607084232:20080605000000
Incident: Austrian Airlines F100 near Rome on Jun 5th 2008, leaking door seal
An Austrian Airlines Fokker 100, flight OS505 from Vienna (Austria) to Rome
Fiumicino (Italy), performed an emergency descent while on approach to Rome
due to a leaking door seal causing rapid loss of pressurization. Oxygen
masks in the cabin were manually deployed by the crew while already in the
emergency descent. Passengers reported smell of smoke a bit later, which
however dispersed again as the airplane levelled off.

The flight landed safely at Fiumicino. The return flight had to be cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407cc3a5
20080605185228:20080605000000
News: Firefighters enable plane landing, Jun 5th 2008
When famers burned straw in the vincinity of Guangzhou Airport (China),
the fire went out of control around 10:40 in the morning, covering the whole
airport in smoke.

As another rush of incoming line flights was just being expected, the airport
managers called all available fire fighting units in to fight the fires.
The fire fighters managed to put the fires out in 40 minutes and flights
resumed.

The next early morning at around 3am (June 6th local time) other farmers
began to burn straw again, repeating the whole procedure, as winds again
brought the flames out of control, so that the airport was again covered
entirely in smoke. Another massive deployment of fire fighters quickly extinguished
this fire, too.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407c0505
20080604202123:20080603000000
Incident: Ryanair B738 at Bournemouth on June 3rd 2008, unruly passengers
The crew of a Ryanair Boeing 737-800, registration EI-DPD performing flight
FR5957 from Wroclaw (Poland) to Bournemouth (UK) with 130 passengers, requested
police to stand by at landing at Bournmouth, as one drunk passenger had
smoked on the toilet and caused severe damage to the airplane, while two
others joined him fighting.

Police together with security personnel of Bournemouth Airport entered the
aircraft after landing and arrested one passenger for smoking on the toilet.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407b2674
20080603190232:20080602000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C near Edmonton on June 2nd 2008, engine trouble, smoke in cabin
The crew of an Air Canada Jazz de Havilland Dash 8-300, flight QK8477 from
Calgary,AB to Grande Prairie,AB (Canada) with 37 people on board, reported
problems with the left hand engine, subsequently followed by smell of smoke
in the cabin. The airplane diverted to Edmonton,AB and landed safely on
runway 12. An evacuation was immediately initiated.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407b0124
20080603143024:20080602000000
Incident: Lufthansa A343 at Munich on June 2nd 2008, smoke in toilet
A Lufthansa Airbus A340-300, registration D-AIGY flight LH764 from Munich
(Germany) to Mumbai (India), returned to Munich shortly after takeoff when
smoke developed on one toilet on board. No injuries have been reported.

The airplane is currently being checked.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407af459
20080603185157:20080602000000
Incident: British Airways B772 near St. John’s on June 2nd 2008, smoke in cockpit, fumes in cabin
A British Airways Boeing 777-200ER, registration G-VIIU performing flight
BA184 from Newark,NJ (USA) to London Heathrow (UK), declared PAN PAN PAN,
left FL400 for FL280 as part of the contingency plan and diverted to St.
John’s,NL (Canada) after smoke appeared in the cockpit, the galley and electronics
bay. Fumes were also smelt in the cabin. The landing was safe, fire brigades
declared the airplane safe after an inspection and the plane taxied to the
apron on its own power.

Engineers identified an overheated cooling fan in the cargo area as cause
of the smoke. The airplane later continued its journey, arriving at Heathrow
with close to 6 hours delay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4077cd01
20080601055707:20080530000000
Incident: Southwest B73G at Chicago on May 30th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, flight WN2638 from Phoenix,AZ to Chicago
Midway,IL (USA) with 137 passengers, declared emergency because of smell
of smoke in the cockpit. The airplane landed safely at Midway Airport.

The smell was found to originate from a re-circulator of the air conditioning
system.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=422a4602
20091112213959:20080529000000
Report: US Airways A333 at Manchester on May 29th 2008, EPR gauge causes brakes separation and hydraulics loss
Disconnected brake reaction rod (Photo: AAIB) A US Airways Airbus A330-300,
registration N270AY performing flight US-735 from Manchester,EN (UK) to
Philadelphia,PA (USA) with 250 passengers and 12 crew, rejected takeoff
from Manchester’s runway 23L at 120 KIAS when the crew noticed the engine
pressure ratio (EPR) gauge of the left hand engine had failed. During the
deceleration the brake pack on wheel #5 on the left hand main gear rotated
and damaged the brakes hydraulics lines. The airplane slowed to taxi speed
and was taxiing towards the apron, when two tyres deflated and the hydraulics
fluid of the green system was completely lost.

The AAIB released their report stating, that the failure of the EPR gauge
was the result of a failure in a pressure sensing tube that supplied the
full authority digital engine control (FADEC) on the left hand engine. During
slowdown a pin attaching the brake reaction rod to the brakes unit suffered
an overload failure, the pin being weakened by a previous undetermined event.

The crew prepared for a flex takeoff on runway 23L, flaps were selected
to 1, autobrakes were armed to MAX, V1 was 148 KIAS. While the airplane
was accelerating, an ECAM caution message arrived, according to crew recollection
it was either “AUTO FLT A/THR LIMITED” or “ENG THR LEVERS NOT SET”. The
first officer, pilot flying, assumed, that the levers may not be properly
in the detent and selected TOGA on both engines. Now an ECAM caution “ENG
1 EPR MODE FAULT” was displayed. The crew discussed briefly, the commander
decided to abort the takeoff and took control of the airplane. The decision
to reject takeoff was taken at 120 KIAS, the airplane accelerated further
to 130 KIAS before the airplane began to slow down. While on the runway
the tower advised, that there was some smoke from the left hand main gear
and asked, whether assistance was needed. The crew replied, they were going
to continue, the brakes were warm.

A runway inspection was carried out during which debris was found on the
runway. The airplane in the meantime was taxiing back to the apron, when
the crew noticed a very high brakes #1 temperature. The crew further noticed,
that the green hydraulics system had lost the hydraulics fluid and one tyre
had lost pressure. The crew decided to not continue to the apron but to
hold at a position where emergency services could attend the aircraft.
Stairs were brought to the airplane and passengers disembarked onto the
taxiway.

The ECAM caution message “ENG EPR MODE FAULT” indicates, that FADEC no longer
has an EPR available and reverts to N1 mode (controlling the rpm of the
N1 spool), autothrust is no longer available. The caution message is inhibited
during the takeoff run at speeds greater than 80 KIAS until the aircraft
is airborne.

The FCOM recommends, that the captain should seriously consider discontinuing
the takeoff if any ECAM caution/warning is activated below 100 KIAS. Above
100 KIAS the captain should be go-minded and very few situations should
lead to the decision to reject takeoff, amongst them any amber ENG caution
message.

See the original incident report at: Incident: US Airways A333 at Manchester
on May 29th 2008, rejected takeoff.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4076db16
20080530085310:20080529000000
Incident: US Airways A333 at Manchester on May 29th 2008, rejected takeoff
An US Airways Airbus A330-300, registration N270AY performing flight US735
from Manchester (UK) to Philadelphia,PA (USA) with 266 passengers, rejected
takeoff at Manchester. First information indicated a possible bird strike,
a spokesman for the airport reported an unusual tyre pressure reading as
cause of the rejected takeoff.

The airplane was seen holding on taxiway D with a punctured tyre with a
lot of smoke coming from there. The airport was closed for about 20 minutes
because all fire engines were engaged in the incident. Two other flights,
one arriving from Isle of Man and one from London, had to be diverted to
Liverpool

The flight was cancelled.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=407501af
20080527064810:20080526000000
Incident: Continental B738 near Houston on May 26th 2008, model rocket passes flight path
The pilot of a Continental Airlines Boeing 737-800, flight CO1544 from Houston,TX
to Cleveland,OH (USA) with 148 passengers, reported to Air Traffic Control,
that he saw a possible model rocket with a flaming tail and a smoke trail
ahead of his airplane while they were flying at 5000 feet shortly after
takeoff about 11nm east of the George Bush International Airport. The airplane
was not in danger and continued its journey.

FBI and FAA are investigating.

Model rockets can reach altitudes of 40000 feet, their owners are supposed
however to notify the FAA if their rockets are entering controlled airspace.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4074864d/0000
20081007143538:20080526000000
Crash: Moskovia AN-12 at Chelyabinsk on May 26th 2008, fire on board
The Russian Interstate Aviation Committee (MAK) concluded in their final
report, that the impact of RA-12957 with the ground was the result of loss
of roll controllability of the airplane.

The loss of control was caused by severed throttle wires, most likey around
section 23-25 in the cargo bay. The wires probably severed because of an
inflight fire, evident by several electronic fire alerts and system failures
as well as smoke in the cabin and cockpit, the origin of the fire however
could not be determined due to the post impact fire, which consumed most
of the aircraft.

The Antonov AN-12, registration RA-12957 performing flight GAI9675 from
Chelyabinsk to Perm with 7 crew and two maintenance engineers just having
done off field maintenance on the aircraft, had taken off runway 09 at Chelyabinsk.
About one minute after getting airborne the crew requested to return to
Chelyabinsk reporting smoke in the cabin. The airplane was cleared to return
to runway 09, the tower reported the cloud ceiling at 100 meters above ground
(330 feet). The tower could hear several aural alerts by aircraft systems
during transmissions by the crew. 7 minutes after the emergency call and
request to return the airplane disappeared from radar. The airplane collided
with the wires of a high voltage power line and crashed 11 km before the
threshold of runway 09 right of the extended runway centerline and came
to rest at N55.314 E61.307.

The MAK established, that while the airplane was in a 15 degrees of left
bank at an airspeed of 335 kph both left hand engines shut down spontaneously,
both propellers went into their feathered position. The cockpit voice recorder
stopped at the same time, while the flight data recorder continued to work.
About 40-45 seconds after both left engines shut down, the airplane developed
a rapid roll to the left. The airplane impacted ground with the gear retracted
and both right engines at maximum power.

Weather conditions at takeoff were winds from 100 degrees at 8 knots, light
rain, cloud ceiling 100 meters above ground, mist with a visibility of 2200
meters at a temperature of +11 degrees Centigrade.

The full investigation report in Russian is available at:

Map of crash site (courtesy Google Earth):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4074864d
20080526163538:20080526000000
Crash: Moskovia AN-12 at Chelyabinsk on May 26th 2008, fire on board
An Moskovia (Russia) Antonov AN-12, registration RA-12957 performing a freight
flight from Chelyabinsk, Ural to Perm, Ural (Russia) with 9 crew, crashed
near Chelyabinsk.

The crew reported fire on board 15 minutes before the crash. All occupants
were killed in the crash.

Svetlana Kryshtanovskaya, spokeswoman for the Russian Transport Ministry
said, that the airplane was about 10 km away from the airport at 12:15 local
time, when the crew reported smoke on board, shortly thereafter first phone
calls were received in which residents along its flight path reported seeing
the airplane on fire. The airplane was on its second attempt to land back
at Chelyabinsk, when it disappeared from radar and radio contact broke up,
she added. The airplane did not carry any cargo.

Members of the local civil defense at Chelyabinsk reported, that the airplane
had touched and downed a high voltage power line just before impact.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4075e5b3
20080610222604:20080525000000
Incident: Philippine Airlines A343 at Vancouver on May 25th 2008, rejected takeoff
A Philippine Airlines Airbus A340-300, registration RP-C3430 performing
flight PR107 from Vancouver,BC (Canada) to Manila (Philippines), rejected
takeoff on runway 26L when the crew noticed vibrations and saw high EGT
and RPMs outside normal parameters. Blue smoke was seen coming off engine
#2 by the tower controller.

The aircraft taxied off the runway on its own power, the flight had to
be cancelled. The aircraft is still seen at Vancouver airport awaiting repair.

Engineers changed engine #2 and the airplane returned to service. The reason
for the malfunction of the engine is still under investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40746351
20080526130309:20080525000000
Incident: Southwest B733 at Orlando on May 25th 2008, electrical smoke
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300, flight WN002 from Norfolk, VA to Orlando,
FL (USA), declared emergency while approaching Orlando after passengers
complained to flight attendants about a smell of electrical smoke. After
landing the airplane was towed to the gate.

Mechanics found, that the smoke came from the cockpit.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4071b8c0
20080523070849:20080522000000
Incident: Pinnacle CRJ9 at Memphis on May 22nd 2008, mist out of engines
A Pinnacle Canadair CRJ-900, flight 9E-2024 from Memphis, TN to Atlanta,
GA (USA) with 56 passengers, returned to Memphis shortly after takeoff,
when smoke was seen coming off the airplane’s engines.

An inspection of the freshly washed airplane after landing revealed, that
left over washing solution had caused emission of mist out of both engines.
The crew thought, it was smoke.

The airplane took off again arriving at Atlanta with a delay of more than
5 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=406df872/0000
20080519083115:20080517000000
Incident: American MD83 near Amarillo on May 17th 2008, smoke in cabin
Passengers Roberta and Donald Marsh, sitting in seats 22D and 22E on flight
AA1661, told The Aviation Herald, that they were not yet long in the air,
people had just been allowed to use their electronic equipment, when “all
of a sudden, the engine noise changed as if the engines had been slowed,
the motion became somewhat erratic.” Roberta started to feel airsick, which
she was not used to, and then she smelled smoke. Donald never smelt any
smoke, but a fellow passenger across the aisle smelled smoke, too.

Roberta Marsh recounts: “The plane then started to rapidly lose altitude,
but in what seemed like a controlled fashion, and three flight attendants
started rushing up and down the aisle. The plane banked sharply to the
right, and about then the attendants started ordering people to turn off
their electronic equipment RIGHT NOW, and stow it under the seats NOW, and
FAR BACK; ‘DO IT NOW!'”

In an announcement a flight attendant then told passengers, that they were
going to divert for an emergeny landing and she didn’t know yet, what the
captain would order after arrival.

“The flight attendants went over instructions again about emergency landings
and about exit doors, and then the captain came on the intercom and said
something to the effect that it was going to be a very hard landing; however,
the passengers were never put into an emergency/crash position.

Then we saw the runway, a lot of fire trucks and other emergency vehicles,
and a sign on the airport that said Amarillo Airport. The landing was miraculously
good, after what we had been expecting.”

Once the flight was on the ground and no imminent danger was identified,
flight attendants started counting off 28 people at a time, who then deboarded
the aircraft via stairs and walked into a small bus, which took them to
the terminal and returned to fetch the next 28 passengers.

“Before we had been allowed off, two men in yellow firemen’s garb came on
and walked down the aisle past them toward the back, wearing something like
an ‘infrared scope’ (according to some former military people who were on
the flight) over their eyes.”

Once passengers were in the terminal they received chits from American Airlines,
but “whatever food, water, or juices passengers tried to get, we had to
pay full price for.”

A replacement aircraft arrived after some time and passengers boarded the
plane. But the wait wasn’t over yet. “Part of the delay was apparently due
to a mix-up about whether or not we were missing one passenger, and an employee
from the Amarillo terminal even came on board with a passenger manifest
and took roll.”

With a delay of 6 hours the flight finally took off without further incident.

While passengers were waiting in the terminal, “a couple of the passengers
said that there were scorch marks on the plane, but as far as we were concerned,
this was hearsay, and was not first-hand information. They did not know
who had seen it or where it was, if it even existed.”

The Aviation Herald thanks Roberta and Donald for the passenger report and
wishes the pair a very good vacation after that fright!
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=406df872
20080519073326:20080517000000
Incident: American MD83 near Amarillo on May 17th 2008, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83, flight AA1661 from Dallas/Ft.
Worth, TX to Seattle, WA (USA) with 136 passengers, diverted to Amarillo,
TX after passengers and cabin crew smelled smoke in the cabin. At the same
time a warning light indicating a possible fire in the cargo hold illuminated
in the cockpit. The landing was safe, no smoke or fire was found, the airplane
taxied off the runway and passengers disembarked normally via stairs.

The flight continued on a replacement aircraft with a delay of close to
6 hours.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4069a2c7
20080513090746:20080512000000
Accident: Air Canada A321 near Winnipeg on May 12th 2008, smoke in cabin, FA injured
An Air Canada Airbus A321-200, registration C-GITU performing flight AC138
from Vancouver to Ottawa with 144 passengers, diverted to Winnipeg after
smoke was reported in the cabin. A flight attendant needed medical care
for smoke inhalation after landing.

The smoke was attributed to a failed fan. The airplane later continued its
journey reaching Ottawa with a delay of close to 3 hours.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4068c293
20080513111012:20080511000000
Incident: Aurigny AT72 at Gatwick on May 11th 2008, smoke in cockpit
An Aurigny Aerospatiale ATR-72, registration G-BXTN performing flight GR605
from London Gatwick to Guernsey, had to evacuate at the apron of Gatwick
after push back, after smoke developed in the cockpit, spokesman Andy Richards
for Aurigny Air Services said. 4 fire engines were seen around the airplane.
The flight schedule of Aurigny was seriously disrupted thereafter, G-BWDA
flying all legs, that were served thereafter. The third plane of Aurigny,
G-BWDB, seems to be inactive at this time. G-BXTN had served GR604, Guernsey
to Gatwick. All passengers have been brought home, Aurigny continued in
their press release.

G-BXTN continued flying today departing as GR601 from Gatwick to Guernsey
with 44 minutes delay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4065348e
20080507203114:20080506000000
Incident: KLM MD11 at Vancouver on May 6th 2008, engine fire indication after touch down
A KLM McDonnel Douglas MD-11, registration PH-KCI performing flight KL681
from Amsterdam (Netherlands) to Vancouver (Canada), declared PAN PAN immediately
after touch down stating, an engine fire warning had gone off.

A visual inspection from the tower revealed no smoke, followed by a visual
inspection by firefighters also without seeing any smoke or fire. The airplane
taxied to the gate normally.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40652a12
20080507192603:20080506000000
Incident: Air Canada B772 near Toronto on May 6th 2008, smoke in cabin
An Air Canada Boeing 777-200, registration C-FIUA performing flight AC34
from Vancouver to Toronto, requested priority about 100nm before Toronto
after smoke in the cabin developed, the smoke coming from the Inflight Entertainment
System underneath a starbord rear seat. The airplane was given a straight
in approach to runway 15R and received by fire engines.

Cabin crew brought the situation under control very quickly, the smoke stopped
after the starbord side IFE was shut off, but remained sufficient to be
visible and smelly at landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=406398ea
20080505204434:20080503000000
Incident: Jazz DH8A near Sudbury on May 3rd 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Jazz Air Dash 8-100, registration C-FGRM performing flight QK7822 from
Timmins to Toronto Pearson, diverted to North Bay after the crew reported
smoke in the cockpit. The crew decided not to land in Sudbury due to weather
conditions. The landing in North Bay was safe.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4061ddc0
20080503124045:20080502000000
Incident: Thomsonfly B733 at Ibiza on May 2nd 2008, smoke in cabin
A Thomsonfly Boeing 737-300, registration G-THOF performing flight TOM3771
from Cardiff to Ibiza with 147 passengers, requested equipment to stand
by and performed an emergency landing into Ibiza after smoke and strong
burning smell developed in the cabin. The crew managed a safe landing followed
by an immediate evacuation. No injuries were reported.

The airplane was able to takeoff again from Ibiza today.

Spanish:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40616852
20080502222526:20080501000000
Incident: Jazz DH8C at Calgary on May 1st 2008, smoke before departure, evacuation
A Jazz Air Dash 8-300, flight QK8132 from Calgary to Edmonton, was taxiing
to the deice station, when the crew reported a smoke/fire indication at
the nose compartment housing batteries. The aircraft was stopped, the passengers
were evacuated. No injuries were being reported. The flight was cancelled.

Canadian TSB examined the battery compartment and found no issues. It is
being believed, that melting snow on the taxi lights below the radome caused
steam to rise, which caused the smoke indication.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=406084a9
20080501201247:20080501000000
Incident: Onur MD88 at Antalya on May 1st 2008, smoke from engine, evacuation
An Onur Air (Turkey) McDonnel Douglas MD-88, registration TC-ONP performing
flight 8Q-4521 from Antalya (Turkey) to Copenhagen (Danmark) with 161 passengers,
returned to Antalya after smoke and strange sounds came from one engine.
The passengers were evacuated via slides.

Danish:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=405e1959
20080428162556:20080426000000
Incident: US Airways A320 near Bermuda on Apr 26th 2008, smoke in cabin
An US Airways Airbus A320, registration N119US performing flight US1005
from Philadelphia (USA) to San Juan (Puerto Rico) with 65 passengers and
6 crew, diverted to Bermuda International Airport after smoke was seen in
the cabin. The landing was safe.

Engineers determined a passenger entertainment unit underneath a seat as
cause of the smoke. After disconnecting that unit the airplane continued
the journey to San Juan, where it arrived with just over 3 hours delay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=405d593c
20080427171739:20080426000000
Incident: British Airways B763 near Venice on Apr 26th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A British Airways Boeing 767-300, registration G-BNWZ performing flight
BA662 from London Heathrow to Larnaca (Cyprus), declared emergency and diverted
to Venice (Italy) after smoke appeared in the cockpit. The landing was safe.

Engineers found a faulty audio accessory unit as cause of the smoke.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=405bd36f
20080425225040:20080422000000
Incident: FlyBE E145 near London on Apr 22nd 2008, smoke in cabine before takeoff, smoke in cockpit after takeoff
A FlyBE Embraer ERJ-145, registration G-ERJC performing flight BE1845 from
Southampton to Brussels National, diverted to London Gatwick after the flight
crew noticed smoke in the cockpit. It turned out, that the smell of smoke
was apparent in the cabine already before takeoff.

The smell was traced back to some Trichlorpropylane (TCP), that got into
the engine supplying the cabine air.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4298a44d
20100402105450:20080418000000
Report: Sriwijaya B733 at Pangkalpinang on Apr 18th 2008, overran runway on landing
Fan Blade Damage (Photo: NTSC) A Sriwijaya Boeing 737-300, registration
PK-CJC performing flight SJ-76 from Jakarta to Pangkalpinang (Indonesia)
with 144 passengers and 6 crew, touched down long and fast on Pangkalpinang’s
runway 34 and overran the runway end by about 50 meters but came to a stop
within the stop area. Both inboard main gear tyres received substantial
damage, both engines (CFM56) received damages to the engine inlet and fan
blades.

Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC) released their
final report concluding:

– The approach was not stabilised, and did not conform to the operatorís
standard operating procedures.
– The aircraft was high and fast on the approach, but the pilot in command
allowed the copilot to continue the approach and landing.
– The flight crewís compliance with procedures was not at a level to ensure
the safe operation of the aircraft.

The first officer, a flight operations inspector of Indonesia’s Directorate
General of Civil Aviation, was pilot flying, the captain pilot monitoring.
The crew planned the landing with flaps at 30 degrees at a reference speed
Vref of 130 KIAS on Pangkalpinang’s 2000 meters/6560 feet long runway 34.

During the approach a flight attendant entered the cockpit reporting an
unruly passenger in seat 1D. The captain sent the flight attendant back
to the cabine with the request to talk to other flight attendant. After
receiving confirmation of the disturbance by the other flight attendant
the captain told the first FA, that the matter would be resolved after landing.
Subsequently the captain noticed, that the airplane was not stabilized descending
through 1000 feet, but decided to not take remedial action or voice his
concern.

The airplane crossed the runway threshold at a height of 211 feet and a
speed of 170 KIAS, touched down 750 meters past the runway threshold and
450 meters past the touch down zone. The airplane overran the runway end
still with engines producing full reverse thrust and entered the stop area
covered with sand and loose stones before coming to a standstill 50 meters/165
feet past the runway end. Both inboard main gear tyres received substantial
damage, both engines ingested sand and stones from the overrun area and
received damages to the fan blades and engine inlets.

Emergency services arrived on scene 10 minutes (!) after the overrun leaving
the cockpit crew without information of the status of the airplane. Cabin
crew reported however, that the cabin was okay and no fire or smoke was
visible, so that the captain decided to keep the passengers on board and
not initiate an evacuation. The passengers disembarked using stairs about
one hour after the overrun.

The NTSC analysed, that tyre marks on the runway indicated heavy brake application
as the aircraft entered the stopway, the engines still delivered high reverse
thrust.

The NTSC considers it is possible, the captain did not take remedial action
in view of the unstabilized approach because of a reduced Cockpit Authority
Gradient, that arose out of the first officer being Flight Operations Inspector
for the DGCA. The investigation could not determine the reason for the
captain not ordering a go-around or taking other remedial action.

The NTSC could not determine why emergency services needed 10 minutes to
arrive on scene. In that time the cockpit crew was without information about
risk of fire and the extent of the damage. The NTSC therefore analyses,
that the captain should have ordered an evacuation.

Six safety recommendations were released as result of the report.
PK-CJC on the overrun (Photo: NTSC):
Tyre marks at the end of runway (Photo: NTSC):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4059893e
20080423071315:20080417000000
Incident: American B752 at Los Angeles on Apr 17th 2008, smell before departure, smoke after departure
The passengers of an American Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight AA285 from
Los Angeles to Kauai (Hawaii), noticed some strange smell when they boarded
the airplane, maintenance workers and the captain telling them though, that
the smell would clear once in flight with the air conditioning system working.
The smell didn’t subside after departure however, about 20 minutes into
the flight smoke appeared and the airplane returned to Los Angeles for a
safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4054eea0
20080417204642:20080417000000
Incident: Alaska B734 at Seattle on Apr 17th 2008, gear problem before, smoke after landing
An Alaska Airlines B737-400, registration N703AS performing flight AS529
from Los Angeles to Seattle with 103 passengers and 5 crew, reported potential
problems with the landing gear, but then performed a normal landing into
Seattle. 5 Minutes after touchdown grey smoke appeared in the cockpit prompting
an immediate evacuation via slides. 2 Passengers received minor injuries,
the copilot was treated for smoke inhalation.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4055c1b2
20080418172144:20080416000000
Incident: Atlantic Southeast CRJ7 at Atlanta on Apr 16th 2008, smoke in cockpit before departure
An Atlantic Southeast Bombardier CRJ-700, flight EV4399 from Atlanta Hartsfield
to Milwaukee, was evacuated on the spot, when the flight crew noticed smoke
in the cockpit before departure.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40545944
20080417055030:20080416000000
Accident: Virgin Nigeria B733 near Port Harcourt on Apr 16th 2008, smoke aboard
A Virgin Nigera Boeing 737-300, registrataion 5N-VND performing flight VK823
from Lagos (Nigeria) to Douala (Cameroun) with 172 passengers amongst them
the female Under 20 soccer team of Nigeria, diverted to Port Harcourt after
smoke was seen in the rear of the airplane as result of a hydraulics problem.

The airplane reportedly overran the runway at Port Harcourt. One report
says, the landing went without damages or injuries except for three passengers
suffering from shocks, another report suggests those three injuries were
from mechanical influence like jolting during the landing run and evacuation.

The three passengers were brought to hospital.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=405873e0
20080421221805:20080415000000
Incident: United B752 near Las Vegas on Apr 15th 20008, galley fire enroute
An United Airlines Boeing 757-200, flight UA862 from Los Angeles to Washington
Dulles, diverted to Las Vegas after a coffee machine caught fire. The fire
and smoke in the galley prompted the captain to declare emergency and land
immediately. The cabin crew managed to put the fire out quickly before landing.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=405478e7
20080417085937:20080414000000
Incident: Allegiant MD87 near Chicago Rockford on Apr 14th 2008, smell of smoke on board, UPS B747 at fault
An Allegiant Airlines MD-87, flight G4-916 from Chicago Rockford to Ft.
Lauderdale, FL, returned to Rockford after a smell of smoke was noticed
on board of the airplane. After landing the smell subsided, fire brigades
could not find any source of smoke.

At the time of departure an UPS B747 was doing training patterns around
the Rockford airport, the smoke of its engine getting into the Allegiant
cabine through the air conditioning system.

Although the cause of the smell could be established that way, the airplane
couldn’t depart right away again, as somebody had opened an emergency exit
and such deploying the escape slide.

The airplane therefore departed Rockford with an 8 hours delay.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=404f1f92
20080411064847:20080409000000
Incident: ATA E145 at Charlotte on Apr 9th 2008, brakes malfunction
A Trans State Airlines (ATA) Embraer 145 on behalf of American Airlines,
flight AX5535/AA5535 from St. Louis Lambert to Charlotte, NC with 44 passengers,
performed an emergency landing into Charlotte after a brakes failure was
indicated to the crew. The landing was safe albeit the brakes emitted smoke
and a tyre flattened. Passengers disembarked on the runway via airstairs,
the airplane was towed to the terminal.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=404a1b07
20080405100013:20080404000000
Incident: Delta MD88 near Norfolk on Apr 4th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A Delta Airlines MD-88, flight DL1214 from Fort Lauderdale to Boston with
48 passengers, diverted to Norfolk International after smoke developed in
the cockpit. The airplane landed safely at Norfolk about 10 minutes after
the emergency call.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40499619
20080404191107:20080403000000
Incident: Comair B732 at Port Elizabeth on Apr 3rd 2008, smoke filled cabin
A Comair (SouthAfrica) B737-200, flight MN6236 from Port Elizabeth (South
Africa) to Johannesburg, had to return to Port Elizabeth, as shortly after
takeoff smoke poured out of the air conditioning outlets.
The plane made a safe landing. According to the crew there was a problem
with one of the engines.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4048ae79/0002
20080404075138:20080403000000
Incident: Kingfisher A320 at Hyderabad on Apr 3rd 2008, smoke alarm in cargo bay
According to the latest reports, the powder was inflammable and emitted
smoke for about three hours until the airplane reached ground again. The
airplane had reached about halfway between Hyderabad and New Delhi, when
the smoke alarm triggered. New Delhi and Mumbai refused to accept the airplane
because they were crowded and Hyderabad at equidistance would provide plenty
of space – the pilot too opted for Hyderabad, turned around and brought
the airplane down about 2.5 hours after becoming airborne.

Kingfisher – while normally doing their freight screening themselves – have
engaged an external company, GMR, to handle their freight at Hyderabad.

Editor’s remark: this new development in the story now triggers memories
of Valujet flight 592, which crashed into the Everglades near Miami on May
11th 1996 after supposedly empty chemical oxygen generators caught fire
in the cargo bay of the airplane.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4048ae79
20080403163200:20080403000000
Incident: Kingfisher A320 at Hyderabad on Apr 3rd 2008, smoke alarm in cargo bay
A Kingfisher Airlines A320, flight IT801 from Hyderabad (India) to New Delhi
with 90 passengers, returned to Hyderabad shortly after liftoff after sensors
raised a smoke alert in the cargo bay. The airplane landed safely. It turned
out, that loaders had accepted a powder which would normally not have been
accepted for transport. The airplane took off again with a 4 hours delay.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=404727ae
20080401200223:20080401000000
Incident: Chautauqua E135 at Cincinnati on Apr 1st 2008, engine overheated
A Chautauqua Embraer 135 on behalf of Delta Airlines, flight RP6221/DL6221
from Chattanooga, TN to Cincinnati, KY, experienced an engine overheat about
10 minutes before landing, the engine starting to smoke. Passengers were
instructed to take brace positions for the landing.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4046506e
20080331212343:20080330000000
Incident: Chautauqua E145 at Indianapolis on Mar 30th 2008, smoke in cockpit
An Chautaqua Airlines Embraer 145, flight RP3041 from Washington National
to Indianapolis, declared emergency while on approach to Indianapolis after
smoke appeared in the cockpit. The crew managed a safe landing.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4045d777
20080331080654:20080330000000
Incident: American MD82 at Dallas DFW on Mar 30th 2008, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines MD-82, registration N77421 performing flight AA2034
from Dallas Forth Worth to Ft. Lauderdale with 129 passengers, returned
to Dallas Ft. Worth after passengers noticed a smoky smell in the cabin.
The airplane landed back about 10 minutes after becoming airborne.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40439d6d
20080328160157:20080328000000
Incident: American MD82 at West Palm Beach on Mar 28th 2008, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines MD-82, flight AA1463 from West Palm Beach to Chicago
ORD with 145 people on board, returned to West Palm Beach after passengers
noticed a smokey smell in the cabin. The airplane touched down safely 10
minutes after becoming airborne.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=43f48353
20110706152253:20080325000000
Report: Air Atlanta Icelandic B743 at Dhaka on Mar 25th 2008, engine and wing on fire, smoke in cabin
TF-ARS with first responders arriving (Photo: RNF)An Air Atlanta Icelandic
Boeing 747-300 on behalf of Saudi Arabian Airlines, registration TF-ARS
performing flight SV-810 from Madinah (Saudi Arabia) to Dhaka (Bangladesh)
with 307 passengers and 18 crew, had just touched down on Dhaka’s runway
14 when the tower controller alerted the crew to seeing a fire on the right
hand wing. Almost at the same time the crew received a fire indication for
the #3 engine (JT9D). The crew discharged one bottle, after 20 seconds the
second bottle of fire extinguisher without being able to extinguish the
fire. The aircraft was evacuated through the L1 and L2 doors. 15 passengers
and 2 crew received minor injuries in the evacuation, the aircraft received
substantial damage beyond economical repair.

The Icelandic Aircraft Accident Investigation Branch (RNF, also IAAIB) released
their final report concluding the probable cause was:

When TF-ARS was decelerating after landing on runway 14 at Zia International
Airport, fuel leak at engine No. 3 resulted in a fire within the strut.

The cause of the fire was that fuel was leaking through the flexible half
coupling to the hot surface of the engine. The fuel leak was because the
O-ring and retaining rings were not properly assembled within the coupling
and one retaining ring was missing.

The IAAIB considers unclear instructions in the aircraft maintenance manual
(AMM) to be a contributing factor of the incorrect installation.

Another incorrect installation was also found at the flexible half coupling
at the front spar for engine No. 1. However there were no signs of a fuel
leak in that area, most likely due to the fact that both the retaining rings
and the O-ring were within the coupling even though they were incorrectly
placed.

During the investigation, it was not possible to determine the quantity
of the fuel leak. However it is likely that the draining system within the
strut of engine No. 3 could not manage the fuel leak. According to the manufacturer,
the intention of the draining system is to drain drips or small running
leaks. Furthermore the drain was clogged by debris, but IAAIB believes that
this was a result of the fire.

Two out of six suitable emergency exits on the left side were used (L1 and
L2) to evacuate most of the passengers during the emergency evacuation.
The reason for not opening doors at location L3, L4 and L5 initially was
most likely due to the fact that the commander ordered the cabin crew to
remain seated prior to the emergency evacuation. The cabin crew members
at locations L3 to L5 most likely did not hear the emergency evacuation
command from the senior cabin crew member as he was only using a megaphone.
Furthermore these exits were not opened later since the passengers moved
aggressively to the opened exits, L1 and L2.

The reason for not opening emergency exit UDL at the upper deck was evaluated
by the crew to be too risky for the passengers.

The flight crew discharged both fire bottles for engine No. 3 without managing
to extinguish the fire. The flight crew did not discharge fire bottles on
other engines. According to the passenger evacuation checklist (see Appendix
2), the crew should discharge all fire bottles before evacuation.

Findings as to causes and contributing factors

– Incorrect assembly of the flexible half coupling at the front spar of
engine No. 3.

– Retaining ring missing in flexible half coupling at the front spar engine
No. 3.

– Lock wire fastened in such a way that the coupling nut might rotate slightly.

Findings as to risk

– Unclear command made to the cabin crew to start emergency evacuation.

– Cabin crew did not open all suitable emergency exits.

– Flight crew did not follow companyís procedure regarding evacuation.

Other findings

– Retaining rings and O-ring incorrectly inserted in the flexible half coupling
on engine No. 1.

– Pliers used to tighten or loosen the coupling nuts, even though maintenance
manual instructs to only hand tight the nuts.

IAAIB places emphasis on proper installation of the lock wire as well as
tightening the coupling nut by hand in accordance with AMM.

The RNF reported the aircraft had touched down on Dhaka’s runway 14 and
was about 50 seconds into the landing roll when the tower alerted the crew,
that he was seeing fire on the right hand side of the aircraft. Almost at
the same time the crew received a fire indication for engine #3. While the
first officer discharged the first fire bottle into enigne #3, the captain
taxied clear of the runway onto taxiway S (at the end of the runway), stopped
and shut all engines down. The second fire bottle was discharged into engine
#3 without being able to control the fire. The commander instructed cabin
crew to remain seated via PA and called the purser to the flight deck instructing
the purser to assess the situation and evacuate the aircraft if necessary.
The purser returned to the cabin, saw smoke and fire on the right hand side
of the aircraft and initiated an evacuation using the megaphone. Exits L1
and L2 were opened with slides deploying, all occupants left through these
two doors. 15 passengers and 2 crew received minor injuries in that evacuation,
the duration of which could not be found out.

The on site investigation found a fuel leak at the main fuel coupling, where
the main fuel line is coupled to the front spar for engine #3, when the
line was moved a little bit by hand fuel leaked from the coupling. After
opening the connector one of the two retaining rings was found missing and
the O-ring was found in the wrong position therefore not sealing the fuel
line as it should. Examination of the other fuel line coupling showed, that
the coupling for engine #1 was also incorrectly assembled while the couplings
for engines #2 and #4 were correct.

On March 18th, 7 days prior to the accident, a defect “Eng#3 fuel flow erratic”
was reported. On March 20th the fuel flow transmitter was replaced, operation
was found satisfactory thereafter.

About 6 months prior to the accident a C-check had been performed a task
of which was to replace all O-ring seals in the fuel feed line couplings.

The RNF analysed that it was impossible to determine from the aircraft documentation
which mechanics had disassembled and assembled the fuel line feed couplings
#1 and #3. The work however had been signed off by a licensed aircraft maintenance
engineer.

The RNF analysed that the Boeing maintenance instructions were not clear
which type of couplings should be used at the various locations.

One safety recommendation was released and 6 safety actions taken as result
of the investigation.
The damage (Photo: RNF):
Left: incorrect fuel coupling #3, Right: correctly assembled fuel coupling
#2 with O-ring between retainers (Photo: RNF):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40412617/0004
20080915112017:20080325000000
Accident: Saudi B743 at Dhaka on Mar 25th 2008, engine and wing on fire, smoke in cabin
A factual report released by Icelandic Aircraft Accident Investigation Board
(NRF) states, that one of two retaining rings was missing and an O-ring
was in the wrong position, therefore a fuel leak occured, where the fuel
line enters the front spar for engine #3.

The NRF reported, that the airplane had landed at Dhaka, when the tower
controller asked, whether all operations were normal. The crew confirmed
operations normal, but the tower controller advised, that he had just activated
the fire engines as he saw fire on the right hand wing. The crew still had
no fire indication and taxied off the runway, when the fire indication for
engine#3 illuminated. The crew activated the fire extinguishers without
success, shut down all engines and initiated the evacuation, which took
place through escape slides R1 (right hand side) and L1 and L2 (left hand
side). The right hand slide was used only initially and later blocked.

The aircraft is considered damaged beyond economic repair and is therefore
a hull loss.

The full report by the NRF (in English) is available at:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40412617/0003
20080504200718:20080325000000
Accident: Saudi B743 at Dhaka on Mar 25th 2008, engine and wing on fire, smoke in cabin
Brief report by NTSB:

ENG08WA019
On March 25, 2008 at 0822 Zulu time, an Air Atlanta Icelandic Boeing 747-300,
registration number TF-ARS, wet leased to Saudi Arabian Airlines, experienced
a fire on the No. 3 engine pylon during the landing rollout at the Dhaka
International Airport. According to the notification report, on the landing
rollout the tower advised the flightcrew of smoke and flames coming from
the aircraft. The flightcrew taxied the aircraft clear of the runway and
then received an engine fire warning in the No. 3 engine. The flight crew
performed the engine fire procedures and discharged both fire bottles but
the fire did not extinguish. After the 2nd bottle was discharged, the flightcrew
was advised that the smoke and flames were increasing and ordered an evacuation.

The source of the fuel leak was determined to be from the coupling connection
of the No. 3 fuel tank to the main fuel line that connects the tank to the
pylon. When the fuel line was removed it was discovered that one of the
two retaining rings was missing. Maintenance was performed on the No. 3
tank fuel line connection to replace the o-ring 6 months prior to the event.
The Bangladesh Civil Aviation Authority delegated the investigation to the
Aircraft Accident Investigation Board of Iceland; therefore this investigation
is under the jurisdiction of the government of Iceland. Further information
pertaining to this accident may be obtained from:

Aircraft Accident Investigation Board
Hus FBSR
Flugvallarvegi
101 Reykjavik
Iceland

Tel.: (354) 511 1666 (0800 – 1600 hrs)
(354) 569 4141 (1600 – 0800 hrs)
(354) 660 0336 (24 hour)
E-mail: rnf@rnf.is
Fax: (354) 511 1667
AFTN: BICAYAY
Website:

This report is for informational purposes only and contains only information
obtained for, or released by, the Government of Iceland
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40412617/0000
20080326094042:20080325000000
Accident: Saudi B743 at Dhaka on Mar 25th 2008, engine and wing on fire, smoke in cabin
The airplane involved was TF-ARS, actually performing flight SV810 from
Mahdinah to Dhaka (not SV808 from Riyadh as originally reported).
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40412617
20080325155008:20080325000000
Accident: Saudi B743 at Dhaka on Mar 25th 2008, engine and wing on fire, smoke in cabin
A Saudi Arabian Airlines B747-300, registration TF-ARS performing flight
SV810 from Mahdinah (Saudi Arabia) to Dhaka (Bangladesh) with 326 passengers
and 16 crew, performed an emergency landing after one engine caught fire
during the approach and smoke started to fill the cabin. The aircraft was
evacuated, a “few” minor injuries have been reported. Fire engines of the
airport put out the fire, which already engulfed the right wing.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403e1821
20080321221120:20080321000000
Incident: Northwest DC93 at Detroit on Mar 21st 2008, smoke alert in cargo bay
A Northwest Airlines DC-9-30, flight NWA1498 from Detroit Metro to Toronto
Pearson with 51 passengers, returned to Detroit after a smoke detector in
the cargo bay raised alarm. No fire or smoke was found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403da963
20080321085718:20080320000000
Incident: Expressjet E145 at Sacramento on Mar 20th 2008, smoke in cockpit
An ExpressJet Airlines Embraer 145, flight BTA224 from Sacramento to Oklahoma
City, returned to Sacramento after smoke appeared in the cockpit as the
airplane climbed through 5000 feet. After a safe landing 9 minutes after
liftoff no cause for the smoke could be found.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403c820b/0001
20080320195237:20080319000000
Incident: Delta B763 near Greenville on Mar 19th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit (one pax burned?)
According to a preliminary report by FAA, a heating duct imploded throwing
insulation throughout the cabine.

********************************************************************************
** Report created 3/20/2008 Record 3
**
********************************************************************************

IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: UNK Make/Model: B767 Description: B-767
Date: 03/19/2008 Time: 2148

Event Type: Incident Highest Injury: None Mid Air: N Missing:
N
Damage: Minor

LOCATION
City: GREER State: SC Country: US

DESCRIPTION
WHILE IN FLIGHT, A HEATING DUCT IMPLODED, SPRAYING INSULATION THROUGHOUT

THE CABIN. AIRCRAFT DIVERTED TO GREENVILLE/SPARTANBURG AIRPORT, GREER,
SC

INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0
Unk: X
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0
Unk: X
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0
Unk:

OTHER DATA
Activity: Business Phase: Cruise Operation: OTHER

FAA FSDO: COLUMBIA, SC (SO13) Entry date: 03/20/2008
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403c820b/0000
20080319231440:20080319000000
Incident: Delta B763 near Greenville on Mar 19th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit (one pax burned?)
An updated report now suggests, that one passenger has received burns from
a fire in the cargo hold, which extinguished by itsself before landing.

Editor’s note: this report is highly conflicting and unbelievable. With
a confirmed fire and a passenger receiving burns would the airplane indeed
taxi off the runway and to a gate at the apron, or would it stop on the
runway and evacuate right away? Especially, as the report claims a fire
in the cargo hold burning a passenger, so burning through the floor of the
passenger cabine?
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403c820b
20080319221117:20080319000000
Incident: Delta B763 near Greenville on Mar 19th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit (one pax burned?)
A Delta Airlines B767-300, flight DL1819 from Raleigh/Durham to Atlanta
with 200 passengers, diverted to Greenville Spartanburg after the crew smelled
smoke.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403c54e2
20080319162731:20080318000000
Incident: American MD82 near Springfield on Mar 18th 2008, smoke in cabine
An American Airlines MD-82, flight AA731 from New York LGA to Dallas/Ft.
Worth with 120 people on board, diverted to Springfield Branson after flight
attendants reported a strong smell and visible smoke in the cabine. The
airplane made a safe landing, passengers disembarked normally, the airplane
was grounded. There are reports, that one of the passenger lights overheated.

(Flightaware shows the flight diverted to Memphis, but the flight track
is actually inbound KSGF)
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403c0ea8
20080319080032:20080318000000
Incident: Canada B77W near Calgary on Mar 18th 2008, smell of smoke in cockpit
An Air Canada B777-300ER, flight AC32 from Bejing to Toronto with 291 people
on board, diverted to Calgary after the crew smelt smoke in the cockpit.

No cause for the smoke was found. The passengers were put onto another airplane
and continued their journey to Toronto.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403f671f
20080323131500:20080313000000
Incident: Etihad A332 over Africa on Mar 13th 2008, fire in toilet
During an Etihad A330-200, flight EY253 from Dhaka to Abu Dhabi with 231
passengers and 13 crew, some unidentified passenger(s) lit cigarettes in
the toilet about half way into the flight and by accident set the toilet
paper on fire. When the smoke detectors went off, the cabin crew put the
fire out quickly.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403811f6
20080314074531:20080313000000
Incident: JetX B738 near Antalya on Mar 13th 2008, smoke from engine
An JetX Airlines B737-800, registration OE-LNK performing charter flight
GX830 from Hurghada to Oslo with 184 people on board, diverted to Antalya
after smoke was seen coming from an engine.

Norwegian:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4160f493
20090309111625:20080306000000
Incident: Austrian B738 near Vienna on Mar 6th 2008, smoke in cabin
The crew of an Austrian Airlines Boeing 737-800, registration OE-LNR performing
flight OS-797 from Vienna (Austria) to Sofia (Bulgaria) with 72 passengers,
decided to return to Vienna Airport shortly after takeoff after smoke was
detected in the cabin. The airplane landed safely 5 minutes after becoming
airborne. Emergency services on stand by did not need to jump into action.

A replacement Boeing 737-600 registration OE-LNM reached Sofia with a delay
of 3:15 minutes.

Austrian Airlines confirmed on Monday (Mar 9th), that residue after an engine
compressor wash caused the smoke as already suspected on Friday.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=402d0531
20080229041345:20080228000000
Incident: Continental B738 at Costa Rica on Feb 28th 2008, smoke detector went off
A Continental Airlines B737-800, flight CO1797 from Costa Rica to Newark
with 144 passengers, returned to Costa Rica a few minutes after departure,
when a smoke detector in the cabine falsely issued an alert. The airplane
later departed for Newark again.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=402c30c3
20080228040114:20080228000000
Incident: Qantas B734 at Brisbane on Feb 28th 2008, hydraulics problems, smoke seen
A Qantas B737-400, flight QF969 from Townsville to Brisbane with 129 passengers,
experienced hydraulics problem while landing, smoke was seen coming from
the rear of the airplane. Nonetheless, passengers were kept on board for
about 10 minutes until the airplane could be towed off the runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=402cb4f7
20080228202026:20080227000000
Incident: SouthWest B737 at Phoenix on Feb 27th 2008, smoke in cockpit
A SouthWest Airlines B737-700, flight WN1176 from Phoenix to Chicago Midway
with 126 passengers and 5 crew, returned to Phoenix a few minutes into the
flight after smoke appeared in the cockpit following short-circuit under
a cockpit panel. The landing was safe, passengers deplaned normally at a
gate.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=402bff0f
20080227214639:20080227000000
Incident: Venezolana B732 at Panama on Feb 27th 2008, smoke from air conditioning
An Empresa Aerea Venezolana B737-200, registration YV287T performing flight
VNE224 from Maracaibo to Caracas with 46 people on board, diverted to Panama
City after smoke developed in the cabine, that was released by a faulty
air conditioning system.

Spanish:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=402af634
20080226133428:20080226000000
Incident: NorthWest B744 at Tokyo on Feb 26th 2008, smoke in cabine
A NorthWest B747-400, flight NW19 from Tokyo Narita to Manila with 403 people
on board, returned to Tokyo Narita about 30 minutes into the flight after
smoke appeared in the cabine. No fire was found.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41a59ae7
20090529094932:20080225000000
Report: Qantas B743 near Sydney on Feb 25th 2008, electrical smell in cockpit
A Qantas Boeing 747-300, registration VH-EBY performing flight QF-566 from
Perth,WA to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 374 passengers, was enroute at FL370
about 150nm westsouthwest of Sydney, when the flight crew detected a smell
that slowly increased in intensity. The crew donned their oxygen masks as
they could not identify the nature of the smell. The crew executed the flight
deck smoke/fumes evacuation and landing preparation checklists and confirmed,
that all aircraft systems were working correctly. Cabin crew reported no
smoke or smell in the cabin. The copilot declared PAN indicating, that the
crew expected a normal approach and landing, Sydney Airport invoked their
emergency plans. About 5 minutes later the crew initiated the descent to
Sydney, the captain announced the possibility of an emergency evacuation
to the passengers. The aircraft touched down safely about 30 minutes after
the onset of the smell, the flight crew requested an external inspection
of the airplane immediately after vacating the runway and requested the
fire trucks to follow the airplane to the gate, where the passengers disembarked
normally.

The Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) released their final report
stating, that maintenance could not find anything and could not reproduce
the odour, so that the operator decided to carry out an assessment flight.
While the aircraft taxied out for that flight, a faint smell became noticeable
on the flight deck. With the help of a particle counter it was established,
that the fume came from the lower left corner of the captain’s windshield.
Subsequent examination revealed loose windshield heat element terminal
connections causing electrical arcing resulting in fumes.

The left windshield and the heat element were replaced and a second assessment
flight carried out without incident. The airplane was returned to service.

Due to previous similiar incidents Qantas as well as Boeing had developed
engineering instructions in 2006 calling for recurring inspection of the
connectors of the heat elements. The airframe had 751 hours to fly until
the next recurring inspection was required by the Boeing engineering instruction.
Boeing had also released a redesign of the windshield with a different electrical
connection, that removed the requirement for the recurring inspection.

About 17 flight hours prior to the incident the airplane underwent maintenance
at a contracted licensed facility during which the crash pad at the left
hand windshield had been removed and refitted.

The ATSB concluded, that the loose terminal connections to the left windshield
heat element increased the electrical resistance and resulted in electrical
arcing and fumes on the flight deck. Another safety factor was the inadvertent
disconnection of the captain’s intercommunication system when the crew donned
their oxygen masks. The potential of the recent maintenance work in the
vicinity of the left windshield/crash pad/to have contributed to the insecurity
of the left windshield terminal connections could not be determined. The
redesign of the windshield by the manufacturer to improve the security of
the windshield heater wiring connection should address the risk of electrical
arcing in that component.

Windshield heat terminal block (Photo: ATSB):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4029a84d
20080224221615:20080224000000
Accident: SEAir Do328 at Manila on Feb 24th 2008, overran runway, gear collapse
A SEAir (South East Asian Airways) Do328, registration RP-C5328 flying from
Caticlan to Manila domestic with 32 passengers and 3 crew, overran the runway
at Manila due to faulty brakes and ended up beyond the runway with collapsed
gear. While people evacuated the airplane, smoke was seen coming from the
plane, but no fire erupted. No injuries were reported.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40253421
20080219141147:20080215000000
Incident: American B752 at Miami on Feb 15th 2008, fire forces return
An American Airlines B757-200, flight AA922 from Miami to La Paz with 170
passengers, had to return to Miami , after an unspecified technical fault
developed. While the airplane turned back towards Miami a fire was seen
on the left side of the airplane, the origin of which is unclear, and smoke
appeared in the cabine forcing the crew to perform an emergency landing,
which went safely.

The origin of the fire is still unclear, except that it didn’t come from
the engines and undercarriage.

It is interesting to note, that US media have not picked up on this incident
at all at all, only one Spanish media of Bolivia has caught up:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4021b9c6
20080215075754:20080214000000
Incident: Cargojet B727 near Halifax on Feb 14th 2008, smoke
A Cargojet B727, operating from St. John, Newfoundland, to Hamilton, Ontario,
safely diverted to Halifax after smoke was noticed on board.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4021b898
20080215074933:20080214000000
Incident: ExpressJet E145 near Syracuse on Feb 14th 2008, smell of smoke
A Continental Express Jet Embraer 145, flight XE2303 from Hartford, Conn.,
to Cleveland, OH with 53 passengers, diverted to Syracuse after a smell
of smoke was noticed in the cockpit. The odor probably came from an overheated
wire.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=401ab34b
20080206095346:20080206000000
Incident: ExpressJet E145 at Greenville on Feb 6th 2008, smoke detector in toilet prompts return
An Express Jet Embraer 145, flight BTA2143 from Greenville to Houston with
31 passengers, had to return to Greenville, after a smoke detector in a
toilet activated about 10 minutes after takeoff. No smoke was found after
safe landing, the incident was written down to a faulty detector.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40198c8c
20080204212511:20080204000000
Incident: United B763 near Kansas on Feb 4th 2008, smell of smoke prompts diversion
A United Airlines B767-300, flight UA871 from Washington Dulles to San Francisco
and further on to Taipeh with 215 passengers and 11 crew, diverted to Kansas
after a flight attendant report smell of smoke. The origin or cause of that
smell couldn’t be established.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4015785d
20080131120232:20080131000000
Incident: American B752 near Grand Junction on Jan 31st 2008, smoke in cabin
An American Airlines B757-200, flight AA119 from Newark to Los Angeles with
103 passengers, diverted to Grand Junction Airport after smoke developed
in the cabin, apparently stemming from the back of the plane. The landing
was safe, no injuries were reported despite evacuation on the runway.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4015623d/0001
20080327093858:20080130000000
Accident: American B752 near Palm Beach on Jan 30th 2008, smoke in the cockpit, 7 in hospital
The FAA has released tapes and transcripts of portion of the commmunication
between Center and Tower, Tower and crew as well as crew and fire brigades.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4015623d/0000
20080202061107:20080130000000
Accident: American B752 near Palm Beach on Jan 30th 2008, smoke in the cockpit, 7 in hospital
************************************************************
NTSB ADVISORY
************************************************************

National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594

February 1, 2008

************************************************************

NTSB INVESTIGATING CAUSE OF SMOKE IN COCKPIT ON FLIGHT OVER
ATLANTIC OCEAN

************************************************************

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating an
incident that occurred on January 30, 2008, in which an
American Airlines B757-200, en route from San Juan, Puerto
Rico to Philadelphia, diverted to West Palm Beach, Florida,
and made an emergency landing after the cockpit filled with
smoke.

Of the 139 passengers and 7 crewmembers, several were
transported to the hospital for smoke inhalation. All have
since been released. No other injuries were reported.

According to reports from the crew, while at cruise altitude
over the Atlantic Ocean, smoke began emanating from the
window heating system connected to the first officer’s
windshield. The crew donned oxygen masks and smoke goggles
and diverted to Palm Beach International Airport. During
the descent to land, the inner pane of the first officer’s
windshield shattered. The crew continued the descent and
landed without further incident.

The digital flight data recorder (DFDR) was downloaded and
sent to the NTSB laboratories in Washington. The affected
windshield, which remained in one piece, and the heating
unit were removed from the aircraft and will undergo a
detailed analysis.

While the cause of this particular incident is unknown and
remains under investigation, the NTSB is aware of five
events between 2004 and 2006 in which smoke, and in some
cases fire, were reported to have originated from window
heating systems in B-757 aircraft.

Based on these incidents, in September 2007 the NTSB issued
two Safety Recommendations to the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) asking the agency to require the
installation of redesigned window heating systems in all
Boeing 747, 757, 767, and 777 series aircraft. These Safety
Recommendations have yet to be implemented by the FAA.

The Safety Recommendations are available at
View of cracked windshield from inside flight deck
Heating unit on affected windshield

heater_block.jpg
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=4015623d
20080131094935:20080130000000
Accident: American B752 near Palm Beach on Jan 30th 2008, smoke in the cockpit, 7 in hospital
An American Airlines B757-200, registration N624AA performing flight AA1738
from San Juan to Philadelphia with 138 people on board, had to divert to
Palm Beach after the cockpit filled with smoke. The cockpit window to the
side of the copilot was broken. 7 people – amongst them both pilots – had
to be hospitalized after a safe landing. An electric short, possibly in
the window heating, respective fumes from the insulation of wires are suspected
as cause.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=44455113
20111011154917:20080124000000
Report: SAS F50 near Kristiansund on Jan 24th 2008, engine fire
A SAS Scandinavian Airlines Fokker 50, registration LN-RNG performing flight
SK-2321 from Kristiansund to Bergen (Norway), was climbing through FL125
out of Kristiansund about 15 minutes into the flight when the crew received
indication of the failure of the left hand engine’s (PW125B) de-icing system
followed by an engine fire indication about 20 seconds later. The crew actioned
the engine fire drills including shutting the engine down, closing the fuel
supply and activating the engine fire suppression system, declared emergency
and requested vectors to Aalesund. After the first fire bottle was discharged
the engine fire alert ceased. The crew did not register any indication of
an engine fire apart from the fire alert, indications like smell, smoke
or visible flames were not observed. The aircraft landed safely on Aalesund’s
runway 25 about 13 minutes after the engine fire indication.

Norway’s Statens Havarikommisjon for Transport (AIBN) released their final
report in Norwegian concluding the investigation without determination of
the probable cause.

The AIBN however concluded that there had in fact been a fuel fed engine
fire as result of what the AIBN believed to be an improperly installed bundle
of wires that over time rubbed against a fuel line until the insulation
was rubbed off and arcing occurred as result of a short circuit. The heat
generated by the arcing probably melted a hole into the fuel pipe causing
pressurized fuel to spill out and be ignited by the arcing, though the AIBN
could not rule out the actual ignition of the fuel may have occurred somewhere
else within the engine. It was more than unlikely that the fire would have
extinguished by itsself being fed by fuel as long as the engine ran, the
AIBN instead believes the fire could have grown becoming uncontrollable
had the flight crew not intervened timely and appropriately.

The AIBN believes the activation of the fire suppression system put the
fire out and the risk of a new inflamation was removed by shutting the engine
down and closing the fuel supply, at the same time also removing the electrical
sparks.

The AIBN analysed the decision to divert was sensible and appropriate because
the flight crew could not know the condition of the left hand engine and
the flight on single engine over longer distances is not adviseable.

The wire bundle with chafed insulation (Photo: AIBN):
The metallic fuel line with melted hole (Photo: AIBN):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=400e46fb
20080122222304:20080122000000
Incident: Lufthansa A320 at Berlin Tegel on Jan 22nd 2008, visible light smoke in cockpit
A Lufthansa A320-200, registration D-AIQM performing flight LH186 from Frankfurt/Main
to Berlin Tegel with 136 passengers, performed an emergency landing against
the active runway (active 26L+R, landing on 08L) at 16:11Z. The crew reported
visible light smoke in the cockpit at 16:00Z.

Landing was safe (no report, whether an evacuation took place), the airplane
was towed off the runway after 20 minutes, the airport resumed operation
shortly afterwards, interestingly enough had the first few planes on an
NDB approach to 26L, but cleared following planes for ILS 26L again.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=409f9536
20080721134755:20080119000000
Incident: United B763 at Rio de Janeiro on Jan 19th 2008, engine fire at takeoff (cabin video)
The crew of a United Airlines Boeing 767-300, flight UA9805 (which should
have departed as UA874 on Jan 18th) from Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) to Washington
Dulles,DC (USA), had trouble to get the right hand engine started and needed
mechanics to aid the engine start. The engine eventually started, but a
strong smell of smoke developed on board combined with unusual engine sounds.
The engine was shut down again and the airplane returned to the gate.

After additional work on the engine the airplane took off, but a fire indication
occured for the right hand engine three minutes after takeoff. The crew
declared emergency and safely returned to the airport.

During the attempt to start the engine an uproar happened in the cabin with
passengers wanting to know from flight attendants, what was happening as
the flight had already been delayed by 24 hours due to trouble with the
right hand engine, prompting another passenger to take a video (now published
on youtube) of both the uproar, intervention by police and subsequent emergency
return:

United Airlines chose to not return any comment to The Aviation Herald.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41030959
20081117115924:20071231000000
Report: Jetstar A320 at Melbourne on Dec 31st 2007, pallet loader catches fire
Example of a Pallet Loader (Photo: ATSB)   A Jetstar Airbus
A320-200, registration VH-VQT performing flight JQ476 from Melbourne,VI
to Newcastle,NS (Australia), was being prepared for the flight, when a
fire at the motor of a pallet loader, although quickly extinguished, created
quite some confusion on the airport.

Air temperature was reported at 41 degrees Centigrade with temperatures
on the apron estimated 43 degrees Centigrade.

The aircraft was being prepared for its flight with the crew in the cockpit,
the passengers were boarding via the airbridge through the left forward
door, the airplane was being refuelled from underneath the left wing and
cargo handlers were loading the luggage and other items to the right forward
and rear underfloor compartments, when the motor of the pallet loader used
to load the luggage stopped. The operator attempted to restart the motor,
then turned it off in order to attempt another restart after some time to
cool the motor down. The motor however restarted despite being turned off.
The operator noticed a burning smell, had his collegue look into the engine
compartment of the loader, who noticed a fire in there. The operator discharged
a fire extinguisher multiple times until he succeeded to put the fire out,
while the collegue radioed the ground handling duty manager.

The first officer looked out of the window and caught a glimpse of the smoke
in a mirror located in the parking bay. While he informed the captain, the
smoke dispersed. The captain asked the first officer to monitor the situation.

The refueller noticed the operator with the fire extinguisher, noticed white
smoke but no flames and stopped the refuelling, but left the hose connected.
He did not get informed about the fire until the airport safety manager
arrived on scene.

The ramp supervisor arrived at the bay and informed the turn around coordinator
(TAC), that there was a fire, that was extinguished. The TAC informed emergency
services and the airport communication center, who in turn informed the
airport safety manager (ASO).

The ASO arrived 4 minutes later at the bay and commanded the refueller to
disconnect and vacate the area.

The ramp supervisor informed the flight crew via interphone, that there
was a fire but extinguished, emergency services informed, no risk for airplane
or passengers existed, and no damage to the luggage or aircraft had been
done and that there would be a slight delay until loading could be continued.

The flight crew considered and discounted to have the passengers disembark.
They informed the cabin crew.

One fire truck was delayed, as it had to cross a runway and had to wait
for a takeoff. Another fire truck got stuck in traffic on the apron.

Air Traffic Control was not informed of the fire. Another aircraft in close
vicinity was issued a push back clearance while fire services and ASO were
still evaluating the situation.

Turn around ramp and ground handling operations were contracted to a third
party at Melbourne, but no documentation existed to support the contention,
that overall responsibility for safety of turn around operations rested
with the third party ground handlers.

The ATSB also stated, that there was no definition of an apron fire, no
standard operational plan existed for that type of fire.

The ATSB concluded:

Contributing safety factors

– The ignition source for the fire was most probably intense electrical
arcing within the pallet loader engineís starter motor solenoid.

Other safety factors

– There was no documented procedure to allocate overall responsibility for
the safety of turn around operations. (Safety issue)
– The potential for the resolution of apron emergencies in isolation of
the groundhandling leading hand meant that flight crews could not be assured
of being informed of those situations.
– The location of the refuelling point on the opposite side of the aircraft
made it difficult for the refueller to immediately confirm the nature of
the activity at the pallet loader.
– There was no apron fire emergency procedure in the Airport Emergency Plan
(AEP) that included the requirement to advise Air Traffic Services (ATS)
of the emergency. (Safety issue)
– ATS was unaware of the fire in the parking bay.

Other key finding

– The quick action by the pallet loader operator and ground-handling leading
hand to recognise, extinguish and report the fire in the engine compartment
of the pallet loader lessened the risk to the refuelling aircraft, its boarding
passengers, the involved turn around contractorsí personnel and the airport
facilities

The full ATSB report is available at:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3ff5226e
20071224175600:20071223000000
Incident: United B772 at Chicago on Dec 23rd 2007, engine#1 running rough, smell of burning oil in cabine
An United Airlines B777-200, registration N221UA performing flight UA881
from Chicago O’Hare to Tokyo Narita, had to dump fuel over Lake Michigan
and return to Chicago, after the left hand engine started to run rough with
“terrible” noises (according to passenger reports) and smell of burning
oil developed in the cabine. The airplane landed safely back to ORD after
about 90 minutes airborne.

Another incident with smoke developing in the cockpit, according to mechanics
requiring an engine change, affected N220UA on Dec 14th: Simon Hradecky,
“Incident: United B772 at Chicago on Dec 14th 2007, smoke in the cockpit”
#, 14 Dec 2007 22:56

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3ff52724
20071224182719:20071221000000
Incident: United B777 at San Francisco on Dec 21st 2007, smoke in the cockpit
An United B777, flight UA73 from San Francisco to Honolulu with 348 passengers
on board, had to return to San Francisco after smoke developed in the cockpit
about one hour into the flight. The crew managed a safe landing.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3ff28faa
20071221130328:20071221000000
Incident: EasyJet A319 at Luton on Dec 21st 2007, smoke in the cabin
An EasyJet A319, registration G-EZAD performing flight EZ4951 from Dortmund
to Luton, had to declare emergency and speed up arrival after smoke developed
in the cabin.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41253f33
20081226101016:20071214000000
Report: United B772 at Chicago on Dec 14th 2007, smoke in cabin
The cabin crew of a United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N220UA
performing flight UA-836 from Shanghai (China) to Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA)
with 249 passengers and 15 crew, reported about 13nm from O’Hare Airport
at 5000 feet MSL, that smoke was filling the cabin getting worse with visibility
already significantly reduced. The crew was unable to determine the source
of the smoke. The flight crew declared emergency. The first officer flew
the airplane to a safe landing and turned off onto the first high speed
taxiway, where he noticed a low engine oil indication of engine #2 (right.
The engine (PW4090) was shut down. The captain elected to initiate an evacuation
via slides. During the evacuation one passenger suffered the fracture of
one vertebra. No evidence of an engine or cabin fire was found.

Post accident examination of the right engine showed a low oil quantity.
The #2 bearing had failed causing metallic deposits on the chip detectors.
Engine oil had migrated into environmental system, that used the 8th and
15th stage of the compressor bleed air.

The NTSB released their final report stating, that the probable cause of
the accident was:

“Emergency evacuation due to dense smoke in the cabin and the possibility
of an on-board fire, which resulted in a serious injury to one of the 264
passengers and crew. An additional cause was the failure of an engine bearing,
allowing oil to migrate into the environmental system, and resulted in the
smoke in the cabin.”

The engine manufacturer had already released an improved design for the
#2 bearing and was replacing the bearings on an attrition basis, where the
original bearings were no longer serviceable. They changed the policy however
now proactively replacing the bearings regardless of condition.

About 4 hours into the flight the business class lavatory sinks were overflowing.
The lavatories were closed for the remainder of the flight. After the descent
into Chicago was initiated, the relief first officer reported, that the
forward lavatories immediately behind the cockpit also showed water problems.

About 13nm from the runway threshold the captain was informed by a flight
attendant, that smoke had occured in the cabin, getting worse. The flight
attendant could no longer see the rear of the airplane. The captain declared
emergency.

About 5nm from touchdown the ILS receivers showed both localizer and glideslope
information unreliable, an EICAS warning indicated the autopilot was in
degraded mode. The crew thought those issues were related to the previous
water issues. The captain elected to continue the approach, a high level
cloud layer would still allow sufficient time to transition from instrument
to visual approach. The first officer landed normally and turned off onto
the first high speed taxiway, where the captain took control of the airplane.
Now the first officer noticed the low oil indication of the right engine,
which was shut down.

Due to the multiple problems the captain decided to initiate the evacuation,
which resulted in one serious injury.

The full NTSB report is available via:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3fed2d42
20071214225642:20071214000000
Incident: United B772 at Chicago on Dec 14th 2007, smoke in the cockpit
A B777-200ER of United Airlines, registration N220UA performing flight UA836
from Shanghai to Chicago Ohare with 258 passengers and 15 crew, had to perform
an emergency landing at Chicago Ohare after smoke developed in the cockpit
about 15 minutes prior to the touch down. The plane made a safe landing,
the passengers were evacuated via slides immediately after the plane came
to a stop on the runway. One person was slightly injured in the evacuation.

A video of the aftermath is available at:
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=40d59a54
20080926135035:20071123000000
Report: Qantas B763 near Sydney on Nov 23rd 2007, fumes in cabin, passenger unconscious
A passengers on board of a Qantas Boeing 767-300, registration VH-OGG performing
flight QF439 from Sydney,NS to Melbourne,VI (Australia) with 255 passengers
and 9 crew, reported about 30 minutes into the flight, that he smelled fumes,
presumably from jet fuel, coming out of the air conditioning vent above
his seat 55E. The passenger fell unconscious and was administered oxygen.
He regained consciousness within seconds after receiving oxygen. A second
passenger seated in the area also reported nauseous.

The crew declared urgency and performed the “smoke or fumes air conditioning”
checklist. The aircraft continued to Melbourne, where the airplane landed
35 minutes later.

The final report by the Australian Transportation Safety Board into the
“serious incident” reveals, that the passenger reported the fumes to a flight
attendant and noted, that the smell made him “feel sick”. The flight attendant
could not smell any odour despite putting her nose directly to the vent.
She turned the vent off and notified the customer service manager (CSM),
who in turn notified the flight crew.

About 5 minutes later the flight attendant checked the passenger again,
who reported that he felt much worse, sick and fuzzy headed, but no problems
with the stomach. The CSM perceived the passenger as “ashen”, but could
again not perceive any odour while sticking the nose to the vent. The CSM
suggested the use of oxygen, to which the passenger agreed. While the CSM
went to the rear of the airplane to fetch the portable oxygen kit, the passenger
became unconscious, but recovered within second after oxygen was supplied.
Passengers in 55 D,E and F were moved to other seats. The passenger in 55F,
the sick passenger’s wife, reported to feel nauseous as well, but did not
improve after supply of oxygen.

The airplane began descend towards Melbourne about 12 minutes after the
onset, at which point the flight attendant originally attending the sick
passenger noticed a burning oil smell in the overwing area and notified
the flight crew. The crew declared PAN PAN and performed the “smoke or fumes
air conditioning” checklist.

The investigation could not determine, whether the impact on the two passengers
was caused by fumes from the aircraft or whether other unknown medical conditions
existed, that may have contributed to the symptoms exhibited by the two
passengers.

The full report by the ATSB is available at:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=40b2652b
20080814145335:20071123000000
Report: TAP A319 at London on Nov 23rd 2007, inexplicable smoke in cabin
A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A319-100, registration CS-TTK performing flight
TP367 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to Lisbon (Portugal) with 91 passengers
and 6 crew, had departed runway 09L of London Heathrow, when shortly after
liftoff dense smoke and smell of burned plastics appeared in the rear of
the passenger cabin. The purser informed the flight crew about the smoke,
the flight crew declared emergency and returned to London Heathrow. During
the approach the smoke cleared, the airplane landed safely on runway 09R,
taxied to the ramp on its own and shut down normally. Passengers disembarked
normally. An inspection by fire brigades did not reveal any trace of fire.

A subsequent examination of the airplane by TAP, including the entire cabine,
galleys, ovens, toilets, cabin lights, engines and APU, did not find any
cause of the smoke as well.

The AAIB closed the investigation with this result.

The AAIB report is available:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3fcf217d
20071107153748:20071107000000
Accident: Nationwide B732 at Cape Town on Nov 7th 2007, engine detached from wing after reverser deployment during takeoff
A Nationwide B737-200, registration ZS-OEZ performing flight CE723 from
Cape Town to Johannesburg with 106 passengers, experienced an uncommanded
reverser deployment while just getting airborne, soon after the entire engine
detached from the wing and fell onto the runway. The aircraft was then seen
climbing out in heavy smoke.

The aircraft was cirling Cape Town, until the runway could be cleaned from
the debris to enable the aircraft return, the crew managed a safe landing
back to Cape Town in the meantime.

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http://avherald.com/h?article=4159a59b
20090225184007:20070820000000
Report: American B763 at Frankfurt/Main on Aug 20th 2007, smouldering fire in insulation material
An American Airlines Boeing 767-300, registration N369AA performing flight
AA-84 from Chicago O’Hare,IL (USA) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany) with 158
people on board, was on approach to Frankfurt, when the crew received an
“AFT CARGO OVHT” (rear cargo hold overheat) warning. Even though the crew
performed the according checklist, the alert remained. After landing at
Frankfurt the crew activated the auxiliary power unit. The flight attendants
reported smoke and smell in the cabin while the airplane was taxiing towards
the gate. After arrival at the gate the smoke increased and visibility in
the cabin became impaired. The crew initiated an accelerated disembarkment
through the passenger door and an additional stair at the rear door and
called for the emergency services. The emergency services verified smoke
coming from an air conditioning outlet at the foot area of seat row 26,
but could not establish a source of heat or fire.

The German Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU) have released
their final report in German into the incident stating, that a smouldering
fire had developed at the front wall of the rear cargo hold and extinguished
by itsself again. The traces of the fire were detected only after several
panels were removed.

Closer examination revealed fire traces at an insulated metallic cable clip
around a cable harness above the smouldering fire location. Although the
clip was isolated, its insulation had been chafed through, two wires were
welded together.

When the airplane had landed and other consumers were activated, the resulting
cable fire could inflame several insulation blankets. When the circuit breakers
triggered, the wire sparks stopped and fire could not be sustained due to
lack of oxygen.

The BFU concluded, that a short triggered the warning and the circuit breaker
for the temperature monitor in the rear cargo hold as well as the power
supply for the auxiliary power unit. A fire developed behind the panels
of the forward wall of the cargo hold due to the chafed insulation of the
cable clip. When after landing additional consumers were automatically activated,
the fire started again, which inflamed insulation blankets leading to a
smouldering fire. The systemic reasons for the fire were a non-optimal protection
against shorts, which led to a fire. A regular inspection or a life time
limitation of the insulated clips was not mandated.

The BFU recommended to examine and modify the protection against short circuits
and to replace the metallic insulated clips with plastic clips.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=415e5a6d
20090303204124:20070723000000
Report: Alliance F50 near Adelaide on Jul 23rd 2007, smoke in cabin due to engine bearing
An Alliance Airlines Fokker 50 in cooperation with Qantas, registration
VH-FKZ performing flight QF-2614 from Adelaide,SA to Olympic Dam,SA (Australia),
was on the initial climb, when the flight attendant advised the flight crew
of smoke and haze in the cabin. A short while later the forward cargo bay
fire alert illuminated. The flight crew instructed cabin crew to discharge
the fire extinguisher for the forward cargo bay and elected to return to
Adelaide and requested emergency services to stand by though advising that
they would land normally. During the approach the rear cargo bay fire alert
illuminated, the cabin crew was instructed to discharge that fire extinguisher
as well. The airplane landed safely and taxied to a stand without further
incident. No injuries occured.

The Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) determined in their final
report, that bearing number 4 in the right hand engine had failed resulting
in a smoke haze in the cabin.

A post flight inspection revealed oil accumulation on the right engine has
generator case, severeal chip detectors were contaminated with metal. The
propeller and engine were removed from the aircraft and sent to a specialist
facility for examination, where the failure of the bearing #4 was established
to have been the original of the smoke haze as well as other damages that
occured to the engine.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f7431e7
20070717233038:20070717000000
Crash: TAM A320 at Sao Paolo on July 17th 2007, overshot runway and crashed into petrol station
Associated Press reports a TAM A-320 with 174 pax aboard crashed and burst
into flames Tuesday after landing at S„o Paulo’s airport for domestic flights,
Brazil’s airport authority said.

There are no immediate reports of injuries or deaths by authorities, but
flames shot into the sky and clouds of black smoke billowed into the aircraft
skidded off the runway.

The plane traveled across a busy road at the height of rush hour in South
America’s largest city and slammed into a gas station.

Brazilian media reported the plane crashed into a building or warehouse
owned by Tam, and television images showed images of firefighters spraying
water onto the building bearing a Tam sign.

The Tam Linhas Aereas flight was en route to S„o Paulo from the southern
Brazilian city of Porto Alegre, Mota said.

Daniel
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f6f2f31
20070711174543:20070711000000
Incident: British Airways B744 at Rio de Janeiro on July 11th 2007, false fire alarm in cargo prompts evacuation
A British Airways B747-400, flight BA 0247 from London Heathrow via Sao
Paolo to Rio de Janeiro with 113 passengers and 17 crew, performed an emergency
landing into Rio’s runway 15, after a fire was indicated in one of the cargo
bays. The airplane was evacuated, the airport of Rio closed for an hour.

Although the alarm turned out false, nearly all passengers reported, they
had actually smelt smoke.

No injuries were reported.

Newspaper Report in Portugese:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f6e19a9/0001
20090415134952:20070707000000
Accident: Delta B764 at Rome on July 7th 2007, multiple bird strikes in both engines, gear, slats and windows during takeoff
N834MH being inspected (Photo: ANSV) The Agenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza
del Volo (ANSV, National Agency for Aviation Safety) released their final
report stating, that about 30 young sea gulls were ingested into both engines.
Contributing to the accident were deficiencies in the wild life management
of Fiumicino’s Airport as well as an underestimation of the risk of birds
near the runway by the flight crew.

The airplane was taxiing for takeoff on runway 16R with 3 flight crew (including
a relief pilot), 8 cabin crew and 277 passengers and with a delay of 4.5
hours due to technical problems, that had to be solved before the departure.
The weather was clear, visibility beyond 10km, winds were blowing from 250
degrees at 10 knots.

While rolling on taxiway A near the intersection with runway 07/25 the crew
noticed a large number of sea gulls to the right (east) of the taxiway,
the gulls proceeding west towards the lawn between taxiway and runway. About
10 seconds after the airplane had lined up runway 16R, the first officer
noticed a van near the ILS antenna runway 25 and suggested, that the van
might be there to shy the birds away. The first officer went on to suggest
delaying departure until the birds had been removed from the area. 20 seconds
later the tower cleared flight DL-77 for takeoff and the captain decided
to go ahead with an immediate takeoff without more ado.

47 seconds later at around reaching V1 a series of impacts occured over
a time span of 26 seconds. During initial climbout, about one minute after
liftoff, the crew noticed that the vibration indications for both engines
were off scale and the EGT for the right hand engine was above normal temperatures.
After levelling off at 3000 feet 90 seconds later the commander made the
decision to return to Fiumicino. The crew indicated to air traffic control,
that they wanted to return to the airport, but first climb to 4000 feet
to dump fuel. During reducing engine thrust the crew noticed, that the vibration
indication of the left engine reduced, while the vibration indication of
the right engine showed little reaction. Air Traffic Control wanted the
airplane to climb to FL80, the crew however indicated they would not be
able to climb FL80. The fuel dump commenced at 4000 feet. At the same time
about 6 minutes after liftoff the crew declared emergency. The fuel dump
lasted for 4 minutes until the airplane had positioned for a visual final
approach runway 16R. The airplane touched down on runway 16R 12 minutes
after liftoff still with significant overweight. Due to the lack of reverse
thrust the brakes overheated to the point, where smoke became visible, the
airplane however was able to taxi off the runway and to a stand followed
by emergency services. At the stand emergency services cooled the wheels
using a jet of cold compressed air. The emergency status was cancelled 25
minutes after liftoff.

The ANSV report does not mention whether the main gear tyres deflated or
not as airport officials had reported in 2007.

The captain expressed regret after landing, that he had not heeded the suggestion
by the first officer to delay departure.

10 minutes after landing wild life control of Fiumicino Airport removed
about 70 birds from the vicinity of the runways. Inspections during the
following two days at the same time of departure revealed a similiar amount
of birds in the same area.

Examination of the aircraft showed, that the damage by the bird strike occured
mainly to the two engines, especially their fans. Bird remains were still
present in certain areas. Boroscopic examination of the engines revealed,
that there was some damage inside the engines as well. The main damage however
occured to the fan blades especially of the right hand engine, the engine
cowlings and fan casings.

Ornithologist determined, that the sea gulls were young and inexperienced.
The weather in the previous days had been ideal for bird breeding leading
to a large increase in the bird population and abnormal concentration of
birds.

The wild life monitoring at Fiumicino Airport showed a general increase
of bird strikes per movement over the years, although the year 2006 showed
a decrease and thus remained below the threshold triggering an alarm. However,
the numbers of 2006 still showed an increase of bird strikes by 77% compared
to 2002.
The fan blades of the left engine (Photo: ANSV):
Fan blades of the right engine (Photo: ANSV):
Other fan blades of the right engine (Photo: ANSV):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f47a8fd
20070523100014:20070522000000
Incident: Israir A320 at Berlin-Schˆnefeld on May 22nd, smoke in cabine
The crew of an Israir A320-200, Flight ISR251 with 162 passengers and 6
crew on board arriving from Tel-Aviv, had to initiate an emergency landing
and evacuation of the airplane at Berlin-Schˆnefeld, when smoke developed
in the cabine during final approach. A women suffered minor injuries during
the evacuation via slides.

German authorities later said, that the cause of the incident was oil fumes
developing in an engine, which were distributed into the cabine through
the air conditioning system, rating the incident as “harmless”.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=405001e8
20080412062107:20070510000000
Final Report: BMI E145 at Aberdeen on May 10th 2007, smoke in cockpit, crew refused to use oxygen masks
A BMI British Midland Embraer 145, registration G-RJXA performing flight
BD369 from Aberdeen to Manchester with 16 passengers and 4 crew, returned
to Aberdeen after smoke developed in the cockpit about 4.5 minutes after
takeoff and the captain’s PFD, MD and EICAS went blank. The crew did not
don the oxygen masks. The aircraft safely landed 15 minutes after becoming
airborne.

The AAIB posts following conclusions in form of an analysis:

Analysis

This incident was as a result of a No 1 IC-600 failure. It appeared, initially,
to have been reasonably handled, in that the aircraft was landed and evacuated
within 15 minutes of the initial appearance of smoke. However, upon closer
analysis of the procedures employed by the crew during the recovery to Aberdeen,
a number of important omissions became apparent that could have had very
serious consequences.

Crewís actions

The crew did not don their oxygen masks and establish communications at
the first sign of smoke, as required in the operatorís Operations Manual
and the aircraftís QRH. They should have done this irrespective of the amount
of smoke present. Had they done this the crew would have been protected
from any invisible gases that might have been present during the recovery
(the smell persisted for some time). This potentially endangered themselves,
the cabin crew and the passengers. If the crew subsequently felt ìgiddyî
they might have become incapacitated and thus been unable to put on their
masks without assistance. Once the smoke started to appear, they had no
way of knowing whether it would stop quickly or continue to fill the cockpit.

The commander attempted to do the ëSmoke Evacuationí checklist from memory
and only completed two items, from the middle of the checklist. He informed
the co‑pilot that he was doing it, rather than discussing with him
whether it was a sensible course of action, thus showing poor Crew Resource
Management. Having done this, he did not refer to the QRH to clarify if
these actions were correct. The ëSmoke Evacuationí checklist is to be used
once the source of the smoke has been identified and extinguished. The aim
of the checklist is to increase the airflow through the aircraft so as to
evacuate the smoke overboard. If the smoke was still being generated the
increased airflow could have fanned the source and exacerbated the situation.

Throughout the descent, while the commander was PNF, he handled all communications
with ATC and the cabin crew. Had he given control of this communication
to the co-pilot, he would have reduced his workload and probably have given
himself time to refer to the QRH. There was no fault diagnosis of the commanderís
blank screens. As a result the Display Failure/IC-600 failure checklist
was not completed. Had the commander completed this checklist he would have
had his PFD, MFD and EICAS restored to him. This would have made it much
easier for him to monitor the co-pilotís flying. As they were in IMC, and
he landed the aircraft using the standby instruments, this would have been
prudent. The commanderís request to the co-pilot to contact the cabin crew
at 300 ft aal was inappropriate. As the commander landed the aircraft using
the standby instruments, the co-pilot should have been closely monitoring
the commander during the final stages of the approach.

The crew correctly believed, during the later stages of the descent, that
the smoke had stopped being generated, despite the lingering smell. Therefore
they had as much time as they needed to complete all the necessary checklists
before landing the aircraft.

The crewís actions should have been to don their oxygen masks, establish
communications, complete the ëAir Conditioning Smokeí or ëElectrical System
Fire Or Smokeí checklist, as they saw appropriate, then the ëDisplay Failureí
checklist, followed by the ëSmoke Evacuationí checklist, if smoke was still
present. Once these were complete they could then take their masks off,
one at a time, to make sure there were no longer noxious fumes present,
or land with their oxygen masks on.

Crew training

Crews train in the simulator, during appropriate situations, with oxygen
masks on, so that when it comes to a real incident they are able to operate
the aircraft unhindered while wearing them.

The correct use of the QRH checklist is instilled into crews during their
initial and recurrent training. These checklists are carefully developed
and tested by the aircraft manufacturer and are designed to keep the crew
and the aircraft safe. If crews create their own procedures they run a risk
of going into unknown situations, for which they do not have training or
QRH checklists, that could have serious consequences.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f382ded/0000
20080319074451:20070503000000
Incident: Air New Zealand B737 at Ohakea on May 3rd 2007, electrical smoke in cockpit
A coffee spilt 4 hours earlier was the reason for the electrical smoke,
the Transport Accident Investigation Commission determined. Sugar in the
coffee provides enough conductivity to cause a slow electrical break down.

The TAIC Report is available at:

The findings listed are:

3 Findings

Findings are listed in order of development and not in order of priority.

3.1 An earlier coffee spill by a previous flight crew member onto an avionics
module in the cockpit control pedestal led to electrical short circuiting,
spurious light indications, and burning of electrical components causing
fumes in the cockpit and cabin.

3.2 Once the electrical burning became evident, the crewís decision to immediately
divert to the nearest suitable aerodrome for a precautionary landing complied
with standard procedures.

3.3 Proper management of fluids in the cockpit is necessary to prevent spills
and avoid the potential adverse consequences of such spills, which was covered
by the operatorís standard procedures.

3.4 Following standard procedures is important for the safe conduct of a
flight, and by exercising their judgement the crewís use of the emergency
procedures during this incident mitigated many of the potential risks. Nevertheless,
by not completing the landing gear extension checklist they did not know
for certain that the landing gear was locked down for landing.

3.5 This incident highlighted the importance of making full use of all resources,
including those beyond the cockpit. In this case, the off-duty pilot seated
in the cabin could have assisted the flight crew by confirming that the
main landing gear was down and locked.

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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f382ded
20070504064034:20070503000000
Incident: Air New Zealand B737 at Ohakea on May 3rd 2007, electrical smoke in cockpit
A B737 of Air New Zealand, flight 746 from Wellington to Auckland with 122
passengers including New Zealands communication minister David Cunliffe,
had to make an emergency landing at Ohakea Air Force Base after electrical
smoke developed in the cockpit.

Reportedly the airplane landed on its second approach attempt only, as the
crew wasn’t sure about the gear being down and locked. Other sources report,
that the tower advised the crew, that the gear wasn’t down.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f352ded
20070430081406:20070429000000
Incident: Thomsonfly B757 at Manchester on Apr 29th 2007, bird strikes on takeoff, engine on fire
A Thomsonfly B757, registration G-BYAW enroute to Lanzarote with 221 passengers,
suffered the strikes of two herons into the right engine, shortly after
takeoff from runway 06L. The engine started to pulse with flames and smoke
and was shut down as the aircraft climbed out. The aircraft returned safely
to runway 06R after being airborne for about 45 minutes (crew declared Mayday
immediately after bird strike).

A spokesman for the airport later told press, it was not the engine on fire,
but the birds …
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f2d5a35
20070420092122:20070419000000
Incident: TUIFly B738 at Paris on Apr 19th 2007, smoke in cabine
A B737-800 of TUIFly (former Hapag Lloyd), flight HF409 from Dusseldorf
to Tenerife with 117 passengers and 6 crew, had to divert to Paris Orly
after smoke appeared in the cabine. Passengers disembarked via stairs and
were later brought to their destination with a replacement aircraft.

The smoke was produced by damaged electronics.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f2cb474
20070419131540:20070419000000
Incident: Lufthansa B744 at Cologne on Apr 19th 2007, electrical smoke in cockpit
A B747-400 of Lufthansa, registration DABTF, operating flight LH431 from
Chicago O’Hare to Frankfurt, had to divert to Cologne after electrical smoke
appeared in the cockpit. The airplane landed safely early in the morning.

Lufthansa however had to endure another hardship later, when an A340, operating
flight LH434 from Munich to Chicago, had to turn around over the Channel
and divert to Brussels due to a medical emergency.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=4081f16a
20080612131638:20070411000000
Report: Australian Air Express DH8C at Wagga Wagga on Apr 11th 2007, engine failure
An Australian Air Express de Havilland Dash 8-300, registration VH-TQY performing
flight EAK2226 from Wagga Wagga,NS to Sydney,NS (Australia), was climbing
through 3800 feet after takeoff from Wagga Wagga, when the crew noticed
an unusual popping sound followed by a vibration through the power levers.
The crew noticed a significant drop in torque of the left hand engine with
continuing popping sounds. The crew shut the engine down and returned to
Wagga Wagga.

Passengers reported, that they saw the engine shuddering and believed to
see smoke and sparks prior to the engine being shut down.

The Australian Transportation Safety Board (ATSB) stated in their findings:

Instability of the number-5 bearing rollers within their cage pockets resulted
in elongation of the cage pockets, skewing and seizure of rollers, and roller
cage failure.

The roller cage failure resulted in turbine blade tip rubbing and vibration,
which led to high pressure turbine stub-shaft overload failure.

Other safety factors determined were:

The precursors to roller instability could not be identified.

Early identification of number-5 bearing distress can reduce the likelihood
of an in-flight engine failure.

Both failed bearings had consecutive serial numbers and were possibly from
the same manufacturing batch.

The full report by the ATSB is available at:
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http://avherald.com/h?article=43e9ebf7
20110623170041:20070409000000
Report: Alitalia A321 at Naples on Apr 9th 2007, brakes failure after landing, runway excursion, "roundtrip" over taxiways and stop on opposite runway
The faulty welding (Photo: ANSV)An Alitalia Airbus A321-100, registration
I-BIXK performing flight AZ-1295 from Milan Malpensa to Naples (Italy) with
182 passengers and 6 crew, had just touched down on Naples’ runway 24 in
night conditions when the crew found insufficient deceleration despite manual
brakes and maximum reverse thrust and declared Mayday. The captain subsequently
steered the aircraft left off the runway over soft ground onto the last
taxiway A “chasing” a helicopter on taxiway B away, turned left onto the
parallel taxiway, found the taxiway blocked by another aircraft just past
taxiway B, turned left onto taxiway B and turned right onto runway 06 coming
to a stop on its landing runway in opposite direction soon after.

Italy’s ANSV released their final report in Italian concluding the probable
cause was:

The event was triggered by a malfunction of the Brakes and Steering Control
Unit (BSCU) caused by an unusual damage to both BSCU channels in temporal
sequence. The resulting complex operating scenario produced the loss of
alternate braking.

Contributing/Noteworthy factors were:

– the diction of the procedure “RESET BSCU” could mislead flight crews to
not consider necessary to retract the landing gear before initiating the
RESET.

– although automatic brakes were not activated for the landing, the systems
reported the failure of the autobrakes immediately after touch down requiring
intervention by the crew

– instrument readings of brakes pressure confirmed transition from normal
to alternate braking three times

– the failure of the crew to apply memory procedures “LOSS OF BRAKING”.

All these factors have produced a situation not covered by the operating
manuals requiring the crew to make decisions using a logical deductive personal
procedure.

The ANSV reported that the aircraft was scheduled to fly 4 sectors that
day: London-Milan Malpensa-Naples-Malpensa-Naples. The crew flying the first
two sectors received a “BRAKE SYS #1 FAULT” message during the first sector
indicating channel #1 of the BSCU had failed. The message was duely reported,
maintenance replaced the BSCU #1 as result. On the next sector to Naples
the same crew received another fault message on the new BSCU but now channel
2: “BRAKE SYS #2 FAULT”. Maintenance in Naples did not have parts available
to replace the BSCU and released the aircraft under MEL requirements with
the BSCU #2 channel inoperative (replacement of the BSCU was required within
10 days according to manufacturer’s manual). The aircraft returned to Malpensa
without further incident. A new crew accepted the aircraft to fly AZ-1295
to Naples acknowledging channel #2 of the BSCU was inoperative.

When the aircraft taxied out for departure, all brakes and steering commands
were executed properly by the BSCU, no system anomaly was apparent until
approach to Naples’ runway 24. The airplane was being configured for landing
at about 2500 feet, the airplane had already slowed with first stages of
flaps extended. When the crew selected the gear down the crew immediately
received two ECAM messages: on the upper ECAM “BRAKE SYS #1 FAULT”, and
on the lower ECAM showing the gear page with the word “steering” in amber.
An aural alert to signal “CAT 3 SINGLE” (instead of normal autopilot operation
“CAT 3 DUAL”) was heard. An additional message appeared indicating that
due to the loss of nose wheel steering no CAT III landing could be performed
because of the loss of roll out guidance. Almost at the same time the crew
received landing clearance indicating calm winds.

The captain ordered the first officer to perform the RESET BSCU procedure.
At about that time tower asked the crew to vacate the runway via (highspeed)
turnoff BC if possible. The first officer applied the RESET BSCU procedure
– the manual listing various options on ground and in flight stating: “In
flight, with landing gear retracted, by switching A/SKID & N/W STRG selector
off then on. If necessary re-arm autobrakes.” – by selecting A/SKID and
N/W STRG selectors off and back on, at the same time the captain ordering
the further extension of flaps. The ECAM messages disappeared, the announciators
indicated “CAT 3 DUAL” indicating normal autoland operation was possible
again. The commander considering the landing near maximum landing weight
and the length of the runway decided that they would land using maximum
reverse thrust without the use of automatic brakes, instead the crew would
apply manual braking with proper caution and had the first officer radio
the tower about applying maximum reverse thrust.

Descending through 300 feet AGL, with no indication of any anomaly, the
commander disengaged the autopilot and continued manually. Immediately after
touch down a chime sounded and a message appeared indicating the failure
of automatic brakes although the system had not been activated. The first
officer saw three brakes pressure indications – the brakes pressure gauge
in normal operation would remain at zero irrespective of the brake pedal
pressure and would show the brakes pressure only in alternate braking with
the yellow hydraulic system activated. The captain felt no significant deceleration
and radioed “we can not slow down, tower, we can not stop, 1295”. Tower
assuming that the crew signalled they could not vacate by turnoff BC therefore
radioed “Go on, then it will be Alpha”. The captain realized at that point
that tower had not understood the gravity of the situation and radioed “we
can not stop, Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, need fire services”. The commander
said in later interviews he considered applying “LOSS OF BRAKING” memory
checklist however decided to delay application because that procedure would
activate the yellow hydraulic system which was already in operation anyway,
de-activation of A/SKID and N/W STRG (to reach alternate braking) would
also mean loss of directional control he considered crucial in avoiding
possible obstacles. While still rolling down the runway and nearing the
end of the runway the captain called “Brace for impact” warning the cabin.
The first officer, seeing the left side of the runway clear of obstacles
suggested to turn left, the captain using the nose wheel steering followed
the recommendation cutting the edge onto taxiway A rolling over soft ground
at about 40-50 knots with the right hand engine ingesting earth and grass
causing the engine to emit sparks and smoke, the pilot of a helicopter stationary
on taxiway B sensed the possible direction of the A321 and lifted off while
another aircraft taxiing for departure from runway 06 stopped on the apron
just short of taxiway B. The A321 continued turning left onto taxiway B
towards the runway again and then turned right onto runway 06 at very low
speed before coming to a stop. The captain shut down both engines, the first
officer inquired with tower about the outside situation, the tower reporting
seeing flames, the helicopter pilot reporting seeing no flames and the fire
trucks arriving at the scene reporting seeing no major anomaly suggesting
to keep the passengers on board. The captain assessed the situation based
on indications on board and informations received via radio and decided
to not evacuate. The passengers later disembarked via stairs and were taken
to the terminal.

The ANSV annotated that the BSCU reset procedure did not make clear that
the reset procedure would clear the fault messages however the self test
of the system would only be performed upon gear extension. The crew performed
the RESET BSCU procedure with the landing gear extended, the fault messages
therefore were cleared but the BSCU did not test itsself thus preventing
the re-appearance of possible fault messages.

Laboratory examination identified a faulty welding on the X-connector between
the so called CTP and PSM components (no further explanation given, but
the description hints the components belong to the power supply of the BSCU)
causing abnormal variations of the voltage and an intermittent failure of
the BSCU. The replacement of the old BSCU with the new one only masked but
did not remove the fault.
Trajectory of aircraft (Graphics: ANSV):
Map based on ANSV trajectory (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
Excerpt Aerodrome Chart (Graphics: AIP Italy):

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http://avherald.com/h?article=3f1392de
20070317063057:20070316000000
Incident: SAS MD-82 over Manchester on Mar 16th 2007, smoke in the cockpit, diverted to Manchester
An SAS airplane, supposedly a MD-80 (type unknown), diverted to Manchester
24R after calling Mayday overhead Manchester because of smoke on the flight
deck. The airplane managed to land safely.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f0bff36/0023
20070309090845:20070307000000
Crash: Garuda B734 at Yogyakarta on Mar 7th 2007, overran runway and burst into flames
Australian media report, that the captain is still too traumatised to be
interviewed. He was hanging upside down after the plane crash landed and
fell consciousless for some time, until a flight attendant came to help
him out.

According to investigators the nose gear collapsed upon landing, so their
initial focus is on the question why the nose gear snapped. The brake mechanism
is under investigation as well.

Cockpit voice and flight data recorder have been brought to Canberra and
are being read out.

Passengers in the front left side had no chance to escape the blaze, NTSB
investigators aiding the investigation said, the front left door failed
to open as its hinges were broken during impact with the embankment. Smoke
presumable entered through the front right side.

Investigation is expected to take up to a year, though first data are expected
to be released coming Monday.

Indonesian Vice President Kalla said, Indonesia is embarrassed with the
many accidents (3 airplane accidents in as many months, 2 ferry disasters)
and will replace top officials of the transport ministry.

As pictures of the airplane show, that emergency slides were not used, professionals
in Indonesia asked flight attendants on the plane. Flight attendants reported,
that they saw hazard to the slides, which might even cause them to inflame,
so disarmed them before initiating the evacuation without the slides – in
accordance with their flight manuals.

Those professionals repeat, that airside witnesses at the airport saw spoilers
and thrust reversers deployed, sparks coming from the nose gear.

The head of pilot association in Indonesia talked to the captain, 45 years
of age, 22 years of experience and 5 years captain with Garuda, and summarised
his conversation, that the approach was completely normal until 1000 feet
AGL. At that point something was wrong with the flaps, flaps would not extend
normally. A flap asymmetry however is ruled out. A hydraulics problem is
ruled out, too.

Media are speculating about a flaps asymmetry – which however stands in
contrast to previous reporting, that a flap problem was resolved before
commencing the approach.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f0bff36/0010
20070307230517:20070307000000
Crash: Garuda B734 at Yogyakarta on Mar 7th 2007, overran runway and burst into flames
Black Boxes have been recovered from the airplane. NTSB is sending a team
to aid investigation.

Skidmarks on the runway show, that the airplane bounced and touched down
again, hitting the runway nose first, the nosegear tires burst – skidmarks
show metal to concrete contact. The skidmarks of the main wheels indicate
maximum braking, the wheels however were skidding and thus produced only
about 30% of normal braking action.

The airplane remained intact until hitting the embankment, then the cockpit
was broken off the fuselage, the right engine separated, the outer right
wing separated and flinged over the fuselage to the left, the spilling fuel
started the fire.

The cockpit, albeit separated from the fuselage, basically remained intact,
so both flight crew made it out of the airplane. Passengers, who couldn’t
make it out of the airplane were still buckled into their seats, apparently
knocked consciousless by the forces produced by hitting the embankment.
This also applies to FA1 (the crew member, who perished).

It is unclear, who was the flying pilot on this leg. F/O records are under
investigation. Spoilers were deployed.

There was no fire prior to hitting the runway, the bursting tire and metal
on concrete produced sparks. Due to the narrow gap between actual temperature
and dew point wing vortex produced “clouds” which may be confused with smoke.

There were no gusts, turbulences or windshear, wind was calm. However, locals
confirm some mild bumps due to terrain and early morning (as I explained
in my personal remarks earlier already, however lesser temperature difference
between roads and rice fields due to the early morning hours around 7am
local time).

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f0bff36/0009
20070307133024:20070307000000
Crash: Garuda B734 at Yogyakarta on Mar 7th 2007, overran runway and burst into flames
From an Indonesian aviation professional, who observed the accident and
who had a collegue in the Gardua plane.

the airplane was landing on runway 09 (ILS equipped), the airplane was higher
and faster than normal, touched down about 1/3 down the runway.

The collegue (who survived) reported, that the airplane was faster and higher
than usual, two very hard touch downs, possibly nose gear first. Once he
saw the terminal passing by, he braced for impact. He can’t recall how many
impacts the airplane suffered, all appearing to come from the right. After
the plane came to a rest, smoke was apparent and fire started from the left.

The airplane actually left the airport perimeter, crashing through the fence,
across a road and through another fence, then up an embankment and up to
another fenced area containing the approach lights, where it stopped.

Garuda in the meantime reported on their website, that 21 passengers and
one flight crew (according to a Dutch paper the captain) perished in the
accident, while all others have survived.

The professional also reports, that there nearly was another crash in the
last 24 hours due to poor ATC vectoring, where GPWS saved another Garuda
Boeing 737-200 from flying into a mountain near Medan.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f0bff36/0007
20070307130100:20070307000000
Crash: Garuda B734 at Yogyakarta on Mar 7th 2007, overran runway and burst into flames
An Indonesian police officer, criminologist, was on the plane and reported,
that the plane was arriving too high and too fast. He sensed the danger
before touch down, then the airplane hit the ground very hard, bounced back
into the air shortly, hit again and started to shake violently, the officer
reported.

Then there was some smoke, “then the fire flew over our heads”, the officer
continued, who was sitting in an aisle seat 4 rows from an exit. He escaped
the plane already engulfed in flames burning his arms, face and hair.

Garuda states 22 fatalities as of current, Austrian TV and German News TV
N24 report 23 fatalities.

In another report an Italian journalist employed by RAI reported, that the
flight went perfectly normal until arrival, when the airplane approached
the runway without slowing down. After touchdown the airplane bounced, but
still didn’t slow down. The reporter, who was sitting in the back of the
airplane, reported, that a fire broke out 3-4 seat rows ahead of him.

Australian media report, that Indonesian authorities have begun an investigation
into the accident with special attention to “non-technical” causes – which
Australian media interprete as possible sabotage.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f0bff36/0000
20070307072947:20070307000000
Crash: Garuda B734 at Yogyakarta on Mar 7th 2007, overran runway and burst into flames
According to officials in Yogyakarta 49 people perished in the accident,
many seriously injured and only a few escaped with minor injuries, Austrian
TV reports. The airplane, flight GA 200 from Jakarta to Yogyakarta, carried
140 people on board (133 passengers and 7 crew), including 10 Australian
diplomats and journalists.

Associated Press reports, that the airplane shook violently before touch
down and smoke appeared in the front of the cabine coming backwards before
the airplane landed according to reports by survivors.

Reuters reports 49 casualties and 92 survivors confirmed by official sources.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f2c136d/0000
20090416171248:20070226000000
Accident: United B772 at Heathrow on Feb 26th 2007, smoke from right electrical bus during taxi
Burned power panel (Photo: AAIB) The AAIB have released their final
report into the accident concluding, that an internal fault of the right
generator circuit breaker or right bus tie breaker contactor resulted in
severe internal arcing and short circuits, which melted the contactor casings.
The root cause of the internal fault could not be identified. The droplets
of the molten metal from the casing dropped onto an insulation blanket and
ignited the material. The electrical system was not designed to detect and
rapidly remove power from a contactor suffering from severe arching and
short circuits. The contactor had internal design features that probably
contributed to the uncontained failures. Five safety recommendations were
submitted as result of the investigation.

After the airplane had been pushed back from the stand, the crew started
both engines in rapid succession. The engine start appeared normal until
the Integrated Drive Generator (IDG) would come online. At that point the
cockpit instruments flickered and a low pitched intermittent growling noise
came from the aft right side of the cockpit. A few seconds later cockpit
indications appeared indicating, that the right main AC bus had failed and
the electrical power had been disconnected from the right IDG.

About 40 seconds after both engines had stabilized in ground idle, the smoke
detector inside the main equipment center (MEC) detected smoke, the cooling
fans ran down and at the same time the crew commented, that the entire right
main bus had failed.

The crew executed the “ELEC AC BUS R” irregular procedures checklist and
turned the right IDG off and on again according to the first item of the
checklist. About 2.5 minutes after the electrical failure the crew became
aware of a faint electrical burning smell and noticed the “EQUIP COOLING
OVRD” message. The commander ordered the first officer to shut the right
hand engine down.

The ground crew observed smoke emanating from the MEC vent and alerted the
flight crew. Another two minutes later the tower controller advised, that
smoke has been seen coming from the aircraft and the emergency services
had been called in. The aircraft was taxied to a nearby stand with the left
hand engine, then the left hand engine and the APU were shut down. At that
time smoke appeared in the flight deck. About 12.5 minutes after the initial
electrical failure the batteries were shut off and the passengers and crew
disembarked via stairs brought to the airplane.

Emergency services found the MEC filled with smoke however no fire. The
forward cargo compartment was opened and two cargo pallets were removed
in order to detect the fire, however no fire was found. Once the smoke had
cleared in the MEC the fire damage in the MEC became obvious.

Extensive damage was found the fire retardant insulation blankets behind
the power panel and beneath the panel under the floor. Nearby components
showed substantial heat damage and required replacement.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f2c136d
20090416171221:20070226000000
Accident: United B772 at Heathrow on Feb 26th 2007, smoke from right electrical bus during taxi
The crew of a United Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N786UA performing
flight UA-955 from London Heathrow,EN (UK) to San Francisco,CA (USA) with
185 passengers and 20 crew, had to shut down the right hand engine and taxi
onto a stand with the left hand engine only after the crew noticed a complete
failure of the right hand electrical bus immediately after engine start
at a point, where the generators would come online. About 2 minutes later
smoke started to develop, prompting the crew to shut down #2. Smoke was
visible from the tower as well, fire engines rushed towards the aircraft.
The passengers could leave the aircraft via stairs.

Significant damage was noticed to the power panel of the airplane, see the
preliminary report by AAIB including pictures:

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41fc9e43
20090915060046:20070220000000
Report: Cityjet B462 at London on Feb 20th 2007, runway excursion

EI-CZO in final position (Photo: AAIB) A Cityjet British Aerospace
BAe146-200, registration EI-CZO performing flight WX-5026 from Paris Charles
de Gaulle (France) to London City,EN (UK) with 55 passengers and 5 crew,
blew all 4 main gear tyres during landing roll out on runway 10 at London’s
City Airport. The airplane came to a full stop past the runway threshold
but on the paved surface of the runway overrun area. The passengers disembarked
via stairs brought to the airplane.

The UK Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) released their final report
(1.4MB) concluding the casual factors were:

“1. The incorrect determination of the approach reference speed (Vref )
as 119 kt, resulted in the aircraft landing faster than was necessary.

2. The data suggested that the control columns may have been positioned
forward of their customary position after touchdown, which could have contributed
to a reduction of the aircraftís weight applied to the main wheels during
the first part of the landing roll.

3. Despite the commanderís recollection that he moved the airbrake/lift
spoiler lever to the ëlift spoilerí position, the lift spoilers did not
deploy, although the system was determined to have been serviceable.

4. The non-deployment of the lift spoiler surfaces after touchdown did not
enable the timely transfer of the aircraftís weight from the wing to the
main wheels, and hence the effectiveness of the wheel brakes during the
early part of the landing roll was not maximised.

5. The commanderís perception of brake system failure led him to select
the emergency braking system which removed the anti-skid protection.

6. The lack of any positive force required to hold the lift spoiler lever
at the lift spoiler activation position probably resulted in the lever moving
away from the point of activation before the conditions required to satisfy
the lift spoiler deployment logic could be met.”

Three safety recommendations were released as result of the investigation.

The loadsheet specified the takeoff weight to be 34.2 tons, the estimated
landing weight was 32 tons. That landing weight results in a Vref of 112
KIAS according to the aircraft operators manual.

Visibility at London City was beyond 10km, clouds of 1-2 octas at 600 feet
and 5 to 7 octas at 1300 feet, winds were varying between 140 and 220 degrees
(main 170 degrees) at 5 knots, temperature at 10 degrees Centigrade and
dew point at 8 degrees Centigrade. The runway was described wet in its entire
length.

According to company procedures requiring the captain to fly approaches
into London City Airport the captain was pilot flying for the leg to London
City.

During landing preparation the copilot computed the landing weight showing
a zero fuel weight of 29.4 tons and a remaining fuel weight of 3.7 tons
resulting in 33.1 tons landing weight. Using a weight of 34 tons the copilot
determined the Vref for flaps 33 to be 114 KIAS, however noted down 119
KIAS. The crew prepared for an ILS approach runway 10 followed by a manual
landing.

The green hydraulics system was selected for brakes and tested satisfactorily.
The landing clearance gave a wind from 170 degrees at 6 knots. The crew
got visual contact to the runway at 1000 feet AGL well before the decision
altitude and saw two white two red indications at the PAPI all the way down.
By 500 feet AGL the airplane was fully configured for the landing with flaps
at 33 degrees, gear down and airbrake fully out. At 200 feet AGL the commander
briefly increased thrust to about 60% N1 on all 4 engines before retarding
the thrust levers to idle. The airplane touched down at 119 KIAS with about
0 degrees pitch attitude. The commander selected the throttles to idle and
the airbrake/lift spoiler lever to lift spoilers before pressing the brake
pedals. The copilot confirmed ground idle had been selected and was about
to check spoiler positions and brake pressures, when the captain perceived
the brakes were not having any effect and called “No Brakes”. Believing,
the green hydraulics system had failed, he selected the yellow hydraulics
system, however still felt not deceleration. The captain therefore selected
the yellow emergency brake system after which the airplane seemed to decelerate
slowly.

The tower controller noticed smoke from the landing gear near the end of
the landing roll and alerted the airport’s rescue and fire services. The
airplane came to a full stop with the nose about 50 meters past the runway
threshold and about 160 meters before the dock edge. The airplane had turned
about 30 degrees in the last part of the ground roll. During the roll out
all 4 main wheels had locked and all 4 tyres burst. The crew was not aware
of the tyre bursts. Arriving emergency services checked the brakes finding
a maximum temperature of 63 degrees Centigrade.

Mobile stairs were brought to the airplane and passengers disembarked normally.

Neither pilot saw any abnormal indication during the landing roll out, the
copilot remembered seeing brakes pressure on the according gauges.

The aircraft received minor damage to the tyres and main wheel hubs.

The flight data recorder showed, that the airplane descended through 620
feet AGL at 136 KIAS at a sinkrate of 1250 feet/min. The airplane subsequently
slowed and touched down at 119 KIAS in a flat attitude (pitch 0 degrees)
and 1.25G vertical acceleration, bounced and touched down a second time
again with 1.25G 2.5 seconds after the first touch down. There were no indications
of green or yellow lift spoiler deployment throughout the roll out. In the
first phase of the landing rollout the speed reduced to 96 knots over a
period of 7 seconds, subsequently the deceleration reduced over the next
14 seconds (phase 2). In the final phase 3 emergency brakes were applied
at a speed of 43 knots, the airplane slowed to a stop in the next 10 seconds.
The FDR did not record brake parameters so that the specific use of the
brakes could not be determined.

The FDR showed, that the airplane showed less pitch then usual for landings
at London City. In the previous landings the airplane showed an attitude
of about -1.7 degrees during the landing rollout, however during the serious
incident flight the pitch attitude was recorded at -3 degrees during initial
landing roll out gradually increasing to -1.7 degrees 21 seconds after touch
down.

British Aerospace determined, that even with the actual approach speed
and spoilers inoperative the landing distance available at runway 10 was
sufficient to stop the airplane before the runway threshold, so that non-deployment
of spoilers should be absorbed within the 1.67 safety margin of the landing
distance figures provided that maximum braking is applied and maintained
throughout the landing roll.

The operators required all instrument approaches to be stabilised 1000 feet
above MDA and all visual approaches at 500 feet above airfield level. The
AAIB annotated, that the airplane was doing 138 KIAS well above an airspeed
suitable for a stabilized approach while descending through 700 feet AGL
and reached a suitable speed of 124 KIAS only while descending through 400
feet AGL.

Engineering analysis revealed no defects with the aircraft, it was however
noted, that just nudging the lever in the lift spoiler detent caused the
deployed lift spoiler to retract. It was very easy to move the spoiler lever
from lift spoiler to full airbrake due to lack of friction. It is therefore
possible, that the lever was placed in the lift spoiler detent however was
nudged/vibrated out of the selection.

British Aerospace had released a non-mandatory service bulletin addressing
the spoiler lever friction issue increasing the friction to 12lbs, the modification
had not been applied to EI-CZO however.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3f006026
20070220070234:20070219000000
Incident: British Airways B744 near Bali on Feb 19th 2007, diverted to Bali after smoke in the cabine
A British Airways B747-400, flight BA 009 enroute from Bangkok to Sydney,
had to divert to Bali after smoke occured in the cockpit from the captain’s
air venting fan. Passengers were brought to Sydney today with another BA
B744.

Flightcrew while talking to Brisbane on HF was on oxygen during the diversion
and landing.

Engineers are currently dismantling the left hand side of the cockpit to
find the cause of the smoke – it was not the fan itsself.

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3ee6425d
20070118135236:20070117000000
Incident: BritAir CRJ100 at Southhampton on Jan 17th 2007, overran runway on landing
A BritAir CRJ100, operating Air France Flight AF5869 from Paris CDG to Southhampton
with 44 passengers and crew on board, overran the runway at Southhampton
at around 21:45 local time (=GMT). Smoke was reported to come from the wheels
after the airplane stopped in the grass, but emergency services were asked
to stand down.

The airport was closed from the incident to today around 6:00 GMT. Several
flights diverted to Bournemouth.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=41b20c1e
20090613203531:20061022000000
Report: Thomsonfly B752 over North Sea on Oct 22nd 2006, smoke in cabin
A Thomsonfly Boeing 757-200, registration G-BYAO performing flight BY-2807
from Newcastle,EN (UK) to Larnaca (Cyprus) with 160 passengers and 7 crew,
was enroute overhead the North Sea, when a blue haze entered the cabin about
5 minutes after the airplane had levelled at FL370. The haze appeared to
be worse in the rear and was hardly noticeable at the front galley. After
the captain inspected the cabin and saw a fine blue-grey haze, the flight
crew declared PAN and performed a precautionary diversion to London Stansted,EN
(UK), which was 100nm away. The flight crew did not initially use the smoke
goggles and oxygen masks, as no haze was apparent on the flight deck. While
descending through FL200, cabin crew advised that the haze had worsened
and passengers started to feel unwell. Fumes were now detected on the flight
deck as well prompting the crew to don the oxygen masks and declare “Mayday”.
The airplane was vectored onto a 8nm final to Stansted’s runway 23, where
the airplane touched down safely, taxied off the runway and stopped. As
no air stairs were readily available and the haze was still present, the
commander decided to evacuate the airplane via slides.

A flight attendant in the front open the L1 door. The flight attendant in
the rear however could not move the L4 and subsequently R4 doors. After
returning to the L4 door and pushing it “really hard”, she managed to open
the door, the slide deployed, subsequently she also opened the R4 door.
The slides of all opened doors deployed satisfactorily. The passengers disembarked
through L1, L4 and R4 doors.

Initial inspection could not reveal the cause of the haze despite visual
and boroscopic inspection of the engines and ground runs of the engines
up to 1.14 EPR. The inspection of the L4 and R4 doors did not reveal any
reason, why the forces to open the door would be higher than expected.

The operator subsequently ordered a proving flight. During the takeoff smoke
appeared on the flight deck, so that the crew rejected takeoff at 121 KIAS.
Smoke was also visible close to the L3 and R3 doors. With the engines running
at idle no further smoke developed.

Another inspection now involved ground runs of the engines at higher power
settings than previously resulting in smoke development. It was determined,
that the right hand engine was the source of the smoke. It was subsequently
found, that the engine oil level indication for #2 was significantly lower
than for #1.

The #2 engine was removed and dismantled. After removal of the low pressure
shaft the #1 bearing floating seal ring was found broken in two places allowing
oil to escape. Examination by the manufacturer found tensile fracture with
a possible fatigue mechanism at the origin.

The AAIB concluded, that the fractured floating seal ring in the low pressure
shaft of engine #2 had allowed oil to leak into the compressor airflow path
resulting in the haze prompting the diversion and the smoke prompting the
rejected takeoff.

Two safety recommendations were issued as result of the investigation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=446fc4a1
20111201204049:20060913000000
Report: BritAir F100 at Frankfurt on Sep 13th 2006, vibrations during roll out
A BritAir Fokker 100 on behalf of Air France, registration F-GPXD performing
flight AF-2418 from Paris Charles de Gaulle (France) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
with 86 passengers and 5 crew, touched down smoothly on Frankfurt’s runway
25L at about 130 KIAS. While slowing through 100 KIAS vibrations of about
medium intensity were felt in the aircraft prompting the crew to assume
a tyre had burst. The captain (44, ATPL, 12,500 hours total, 2,300 hours
on type) instructed the first officer, pilot flying (44, ATPL, 3,800 hours
total, 1,310 hours on type), to stop the aircraft via emergency reverse
and took control of the aircraft at 60 KIAS. The aircraft stopped on the
centerline about abeam taxiway Hto. The tower reported he had briefly seen
smoke in the area of the main gear.

The German Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU) rated the occurrence
an accident and released their final report concluding the probable cause
of the accident was:

The accident is caused by an incorrectly mounted o-ring and contamination
of the hydraulic fluid which affected the shimmy damperís function. This
resulted in a failure of the damping on the main landing gear and a forced
rupture of the torque link.

The BFU reported that following coming to a stop near taxiway Hto cabin
crew was instructed to prepare for a possible evacuation, the aircraft then
vacated the runway onto taxiway Hto and stopped short of taxiway C. The
passengers disembarked there normally.

Frankfurt’s tower controller requested a runway inspection, which found
4 pieces of metal belonging to the aircraft’s left main gear on the runway.
It was determined that the left main gear strut’s upper torque link lug
was broken. Parts of the lug were found between the bolt and the upper torque
link. The air/ground switches were torn off. The hydraulic oil in the shimmy
damper reservoir was 3mm away from the refill marks, the entire area of
the shimmy damper was wet with hydraulic oil. The left main gear was removed
and taken to the BFU for further examination.

The BFU reported the flight data recorder showed vertical accelerations
between 1.15G and 0.83G, the ground spoilers deployed and the thrust reversers
activated. About two seconds after touchdown lateral acceleration of up
to +/-0.8G and heading changes were recorded for the next 40 seconds until
full stop. The cockpit voice recordings revealed the vibrations started
2 seconds after touch down at a frequency of 15 Hz, that later reduced.
Examination of the shimmy damper, that had been overhauled and installed
only 49 flight cycles earlier and had completed a total of 11,543 cycles,
revealed a leakage between damper housing and reservoir. Upon disassembly
it was found the O-ring between damper housing and cap was not installed
in the groove inside th cap but had been clamped between housing and cap.

A jelly substance was found in the hydraulic fluid as well as around the
shimmy damper. A metallic particle of 2mm in size was found near a piston.

The BFU analysed that the fracture of the upper torque link lug was a forced
rupture. Contamination with the jelly substance and the metallic chip in
connection with the incorrectly installed O-ring caused the failure of the
dampening and in sequence the fracture of the torque link. It was likely
that the contamination occurred during the overhaul.

The BFU annotated that it was impossible to determine whether the maintenance
organisation had conducted a required flow test, the written documentation
of the organisation did not contain the current requirements by the manufacturer.
The cap with the incorrectly installed O-ring (Photo: BFU):
The broken torque link (Photo: BFU):

———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=403c26e2
20080319105541:20060912000000
Final Report: New Zealand B733 at Auckland on Sep 12th 2006, electrical failure, smoke, evacuation
An Air New Zealand B737-300, registration ZK-NGJ performing flight NZ503
from Auckland to Christchurch with 96 passengers and 5 crew, suffered the
failure of a relais resulting in loss of battery bus power during the takeoff
run. During climb out the crew identified an increasing number of malfunctions
and decided to return to Auckland. After landing the aircraft started to
fill with smoke, so that the commander ordered the evacuation of the aircraft.
No injuries occured.

The New Zealand TAIC has released the final report at:

3 Findings

Findings are listed in order of development and not in order of priority.

3.1 The aircraft was serviceable and correctly crewed for the flight.

3.2 The flight and cabin crews were appropriately qualified, fit and rested
for the flight.

3.3 An R1 electrical relay failure caused the loss of power to the battery
bus, which in turn caused a loss of power to numerous items of equipment
and indications.

3.4 The failure of the electrical relay occurred during the take-off when
the flight crew did not have time to identify the fault immediately.

3.5 The timing of the escalating failures at a critical phase of flight,
during take-off and while under radar control, created a high workload for
the pilots which made troubleshooting the failures more difficult.

3.6 The pilotsí actions in abandoning the flight and returning to land as
soon as possible were appropriate.

3.7 The indications noticed by the pilots following departure were indicative
of an electrical failure of some sort. A better first-hand knowledge of
the contents of the QRH should have directed the pilots to the battery bus
failure checklist, which would have resolved the emergency at an early stage
of the flight.

3.8 The aircraft was capable of safe flight even with the loss of battery
bus power.

3.9 The evidence suggested that the failure of the electrical relay was
caused by its contacts releasing through a combination of vibration and
low holding force.

3.10 The evidence available pointed to the relay failure having its origins
at manufacture, which led to its condition progressively deteriorating over
time.

3.11 The relay manufacturing fault appeared to be isolated.

3.12 Given the number of known and unknown causes of R1 relay failures,
confidence in the performance of the relay needs to be supported by statistical
data.

3.13 The smoke that entered the aircraft were from residue oil and other
material that overheated in the air conditioning system, which reduced as
soon as the aircraft engines were shut down.

3.14 Although in hindsight the use of only 3 slides was adequate for this
evacuation, without the knowledge of what was causing the smoke, the crew
should have followed standard operating procedures and used all available
or suitable exits.

3.15 The evacuation time could have been reduced by:
ï the reallocation of resources, including the repositioning of cabin crew;
ï the use of all the exits; and
ï a more urgent initial approach to the evacuation.

3.16 Unable to identify the cause of the in-flight emergency and then confronted
with smoke appearing in the aircraft after landing, the crew would have
been wise to initiate an immediate and rapid evacuation.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3e49e255
20060628153232:20060628000000
Incident: Cirrus EMB145 at N¸rnberg on June 28th 2006, overran runway after return because of smoke in cockpit
A Cirrus Airlines Embraer 145, registration HB-JAT (formerly flying for
Swiss), with 49 passengers and 3 crew bound for Z¸rich returned to N¸rnberg,
after the crew reported smoke in the cockpit. The airplane overshot or departed
the runway during the emergency landing. None of the occupants was injured,
all could leave the airplane via the stairs.

The airport was closed for an hour. The passengers needed to continue their
journey via other transportation means.

Cirrus operated the flight on behalf of Swiss.
———————————–
http://avherald.com/h?article=3e3ea005
20060613151335:20060612000000
Incident: American Airlines B777 near Dublin on June 12th, smell of smoke in the cockpit triggers diversion to Dublin
An American Airlines B777-200 from London Heathrow to New York JFK carrying
151 passengers diverted to Dublin after the smell of smoke was noticed in
the cockpit and performed a safe landing.

Technicians carrying out an inspection found an oven in the galley as the
cause of that smell.

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http://avherald.com/h?article=3dfcf3cb
20060314103916:20060308000000
Incident: RyanAir B737 at Shannon on March 8th 2006, aircraft filled with smoke after landing, wheelchair pax left behind
A RyanAir B737 arriving from Malaga into Shannon is reported by its passengers
to have touched down very hard, the cabine then instantly filling with smoke.
The aircraft was stopped on the runway and an evacuation via the chutes
performed.

Passengers complained, that they then had to wait for 25 minutes in bitter
cold (without coats etc.) until they were brought to the terminal due to
break down of two busses.

The main complaint however has been, that a disabled 76 years old passenger
was left behind on board of the dark, smoke filled airplane for over 30
minutes until firemen arrived on the scene and brought him out of the airplane.
It is understood, that two flight attendants tried to get him out of the
seat, but failed to move him, and had to get off the plane.

The incident became known only today after Limerickpost published an article
(see the link above) about the passenger complaints.

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http://avherald.com/h?article=3de5911f
20060208134126:20060208000000
Accident: UPS DC-8 at Philadelphia on Feb 8th 2006, smoke in cargo hold, developed into full fire after landing
A DC-8-70 of United Parcel Services, flight UP 1307 from Atlanta to Philadelphia,
performed an emergency landing to Philadelphia today at around 5:45 GMT
(0:45 ET) after intense smoke appeared in the cargo hold. After landing
the aircraft burst into flames. Fire fighters needed more than 4 hours to
extinguish the fire.

The crew of 3 was able to get out of the airplane without injuries, the
airplane is assumed a total loss.

NTSB has launched a full investigation.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3dc7e710
20051228163850:20051228000000
Incident: British Airways B747 at Cardiff on Dec 28th 2005, smoke in the cockpit, only 2 passengers on board
A British Airways B747 with 2 passengers and 17 crew, en route from New
York (JFK) to London (LHR), had to make an emergency landing at Cardiff
due to smoke in the cockpit at around 12:30 GMT today.

This was the second incident within 24 hours surrounding the airplane, which
had suffered a bird strike on approach to New York, causing a 6 hours delay
for engine inspection. As a result, all but 2 passengers booked onto the
flight were sent onto other flights.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3dc1bdd9/0007
20051222173310:20051219000000
Crash: Chalk Ocean Airways Mallard off Miami on December 19th 2005, airplane on fire crashes into sea
NTSB reported in a press conference just about 30 minutes ago, that the
cockpit voice recorder did not contain any information, stating that the
recording was unreadable. The airplane was not equipped with a flight data
recorder.

About 95% of the airplane have been recovered and moved into a secure facility.

Both engines were operating at the time of impact, there is no indication
of fire in either engine (including the right hand engine, which detached
together with the wing while in flight). Parts of the right wing were charred
however.

22 witnesses have been interviewed, all of them reporting smoke from the
right side of the airplane.

The investigation is now focussing on the cracks in the spar, that are visible
with the naked eye. The cracks even tell, where the break up started and
how it continued. The cracks occured close to where the spar connects to
the fuselage. The investigators however assume, the crack did not develop
just because of age, but stress must have been added.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3dc1bdd9/0000
20051220003951:20051219000000
Crash: Chalk Ocean Airways Mallard off Miami on December 19th 2005, airplane on fire crashes into sea
CNN (US domestic) is showing a still photo by an amateur photographer showing
the aircraft in a nosedive and in flames, trailing a plume of black smoke,
about to enter the water.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=411f1506
20081218223827:20050819000000
Report: Northwest B742 at Guam on Aug 19th 2005, landed without nosegear, crew unaware
The crew of a Northwest Airlines Boeing 747-200, registration N627US performing
flight NW-74 from Tokyo Narita (Japan) to Guam (Guam) with 318 passengers
and 16 crew, noticed problems with the nose gear while on approach to Guam’s
runway 06L, went around and entered a hold to sort the problem out. The
crew checked the various gear indications and satisfied themselves, that
all gear was down and locked due to the alternate gear indications. Subsequently
the airplane approached Guam’s runway 06L again, but the nose gear was not
extended. Only after touch down the tower noticed the missing nose gear
and ordered an immediate go-around, however it was too late. The airplane
came to a stop suffering substantial damages. Smoke appeared inside the
cabin prompting the evacuation of the airplane. Two passengers received
minor injuries in the evacuation.

The NTSB have today released their factual report via

The factual report states, that the flight was cleared for a visual approach
to runway 06L and subsequently cleared to land. The captain, pilot flying,
asked for gear down and flaps 20, to which the first officer replied immediately
“gear down”. 40 seconds later the captain requested flaps 25, 3 seconds
later the landing gear warning horn activated. One crew member remarked
“we didn’t get a gear”, the captain ordered the flaps back to 20 degrees
followed by the second officer stating one red gear light. The captain initiated
a go-around, the airplane subsequently entered a holding.

The captain handed controls over to the first officer and ran the according
checklists with the second officer. After checking, whether the gear lever
was firm in the down detent, the landing gear primary announciator switch
was pressed. The second officer stated all gear down, then corrected himself
“gear down not illuminated”.

The captain then established, that all gear struts showed green in the alternate
display. While the captain and second officer were discussing the possibility
of recycling the gear, the first officer interrupted asking, what the red
light would be for and whether the gear doors would be okay. After a short
discussion thereafter the second officer stated, that it looks all good.
The second officer then read from the flight crew operating manual, that
the gear can be considered down and locked, if it is shown green in primary
or alternate indicator. Upon another query by the captain, the second officer
repeated “it’s all down and locked”.

Six minutes after the go-around the crew reported, they had sorted their
problems and requested another approach to runway 06L. Cleared for a visual
approach to runway 06L the captain ordered the second officer to pull (the
circuit breaker of and thus deactivating) the gear horn.

The airplane touched down and thrust reversers were deployed. The second
officer stated thrust reversers normal. 3 seconds later the tower radioed
“Northwest 74 go around, Uh, negative, uh, nosewheel”. The engines accelerated,
the second officer stated 70%, both first and second officers stated multiple
times “go around”. 12 seconds after the first call the tower queried “Northwest
74, tower” to which the first officer replied “We are unable”. 14 seconds
later the cockpit voice recorder recorded a sound similiar to an impact,
the captain ordered stand by with the evacuation checklist. One minute later
the captain informed the passengers via the public audio, that the nose
gear had collapsed.

A flight attendant reported to the flight deck, that smoke appeared in the
forward cabin area. The captain advised FO and SO to secure the cockpit
and went to assess the situation. The passengers from the upper deck were
moved to the lower deck. As the smoke got worse however, the captain ordered
the evacuation of the airplane.

The airplane had suffered substantial damages resulting in the airplane
being written off. The nose gear was found retracted with gear doors closed.
Severe abrasions were found along the fuselage skin due to contact with
the runway, the cooling equipment duct was found destroyed due to contact
with the runway. The units in the E-1, E-2 and E-3 racks suffered damage
from heat and soot, the E-2 inertial reference system shelf sustained severe
fire damage. Wire bundles between E-2 and E-3 showed heat and fire damage.

The nose landing gear door actuator, the nose gear-operated door sequence
valve, and the nose/body landing gear selector valve were removed from the
airplane for further testing. 25 hydraulic gear cycles were completed without
any problem, 2 more alternate cycles using electrical motors also completed
with no failure.

The nose gear landing door actuator was tested, but failed the lock and
unlock test, although appearing to be within operational limits.

After disassembly of the actuator it was found, that one of the lock keys
had been installed 180 degrees backward, several strands of metallic material
was found in several areas of the actuator, the manual override crank gland
was found lightly torqued with safety wire installed, the lock ram and lock
ring were found damaged, and the piston rod seal was installed with nonstandard
backup rings.

The airplane had another gear issue on August 9th, during which the nose
gear was not shown down and locked. The first officer thought, the gear
lever was not firmly in the down position, the gear was recycled, and all
gear deployed properly. As the crew thought, it was due to the gear lever
not in the down detent, there was no entry in the aircraft logs.

Boeing changed the abnormal gear checklists, the changes were incorporated
into the Northwest procedures, Northwest emphasising “five (5) gear light
indications”. Northwest released a bulletin to all 747-200 pilots reviewing
the logic, operation and indications of the landing gear system.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3d6860c6/0000
20050816131648:20050816000000
Crash: West Caribbean Airways MD82 in Venezuela on Aug 16th 2005, aircraft stalled at FL330 and was not recovered
In the meantime live coverage from the Panama TV reports, that first groups
of local police have reached the forestry crash site near Machiques at around
13:00 GMT, the site only accessible by foot walk.

The first impression by those policemen is very grim, they don’t see any
sign of survivors. Helicopters overflying the site report smoke and fire.
Policemen just working through the area report, that wreckage is spread
at least 300 meters around the location of the fuselage.

Latest news are, that the airplane carried 151 people including 8 crew.
The crew was from Colombia, the passengers are all residents of Martinique
with French nationality. The passengers were returning from a holiday trip
to Panama.

Further updates say, that the crew reported an engine failure while cruising
at FL330 still within Colombia and reporting at the same time, that they
also experienced trouble with their second engine, declaring a full emergency
and requesting landing at Maracaibo Airport in Venezuela.
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http://avherald.com/h?article=3d66d941/0042
20050817153759:20050814000000
Crash: Helios Airways B737 near Athens on Aug 14th 2005, both pilots consciousless
A coroner reported today, that a boy aged 5 has survived even impact with
ground. His body was found burned, autopsy revealed that he had inhaled
soot, so must have been alive even after impact and breathed smoke. He died
of severe head injuries however.

Austrian TV reports in their teletext, that Greek States Attorneys have
filed charged of negligent manslaughter against the airline.

A cypriot pilot said, that the flight attendant trying to take control of
the airplane was probably Andreas Prodromou, who had completed his PPL at
Oxford Air Training Center last year, was aiming to get an ATPL and had
around 20-40 hours on the B737-400 simulator.

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http://avherald.com/h?article=4549cfaf
20120821135210:20030306000000
Report: Lufthansa Cargo B742 near Sharjah on Mar 6th 2003, cable fire on board
A Lufthansa Cargo Boeing 747-200 freighter, registration D-ABZA performing
a freight flight from Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) to Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
with 3 crew, had just reached FL310 after climbing out of Sharjah when autopilot
B, autothrottle and electrical power supply for the galley dropped offline
by themselves, altimeter #2 changed to stand by mode, and circuit breakers
for galley power control, trailing edge flaps asymmetry and fail, alternate
leading edge flaps drive #1 and #4, alternate inboard trailing edge flap
drive and inboard flap control tripped. The crew was able to re-engage autopilot,
autothrottle and altimeter #2, but did not attempt to reset the circuit
breakers. A slight smell of burnt wires was noticed in the cockpit, the
flight engineer noticed a stronger smell in the galley of the main deck,
however, no indications of smoke or fire were noticed. As no further systems
were affected the crew decided to continue the flight but checked the galley
every 15 minutes. On approach to Frankfurt slats #1 and #3 could not be
extended, the trailing edge inboard flap indicators remained in the position
retracted even though the flaps did extend. The crew used an approach speed
25 knots higher than normal and managed a safe landing at Frankfurt.

Germany’s Bureau for Aviation Accident Investigation (BFU) released their
final report concluding the causes of the serious incident were:

The cause for the cable fire was an insufficient distance between the dado
vent box at STA 780 and the wire bundle running behind it. The short circuit
and cable fire were caused by the continued chafing of a bolt of the dado
vent box with a wire bundle for the power supply for the galley. The faulty
re-assembly of the dado vent box in connection with the wire bundle running
behind it probably occurred during a D Check in Singapore in 2002.

The non-existent separation of supply lines with other lines caused the
partial failure of the flaps.

The air circulation between the main and lower deck through the dado vent
boxes probably aided the extension of the fire.

The BFU reported that after landing and unloading of the cargo the wall
panels in the lower cargo compartment were removed. The whole area of the
oxygen bottles showed partially scorched insulation. Further removal showed
the aluminium structure of the dado vent box STA 780 close to the cargo
deck had received a hole of about 5 by 10 centimeters/2 x 4 inches as result
of fire. Two wire bundles running behind the box and the insulation showed
signs of severe fire damage. Smoke and heat traces were found within the
pressurized fuselage structure. Underneath the vent box an area of one square
meter of insulation was scorched. The oxygen bottles for the flight crew
remained undamaged.

The BFU reported the damaged wire bundles contained the power supply for
the upper galley (up to 150kVA, 3 phases at 115V), one other contained 80
wires for various aircraft systems like flap and slat control, ice protection
and cargo handling.

When the other dado boxes were checked a number were found chafing against
the cables behind them. The wire bundles had been installed in 1985, the
boxes were later added in 1992 during reconstruction.

The BFU reported that the dado boxes were several inches wider than the
original. In addition, contrary to the delivery status, the supply line
for the upper galley was connected with the wire bundle for flap control
through a plastic cable tie. This practise was not compliant with the manufacturer’s
standard design practises.

The BFU reported the reconstruction was carried out by Bedek Aviation Group
in Israel. Two more aircraft of the operator had been reconstructed by this
organisation, checks of these two aircraft showed that the wires behind
the dado vent boxes were extra insulated.

The BFU analysed the damage indicated a cable fire with open flames had
occurred, the flames extinguished by themselves. The primary power supply
to the upper galley was found damaged in a way that caused a short circuit.
This caused damage to the parallel wire bundle and tripped several circuit
breakers causing the flap indication to be faulty and the malfunction of
parts of slats.

The cable fire was likely caused by chafing of one of the dado vent box’s
bolts with the wire bundle containing the power supply lines for the upper
galley.

In 2002 a D check of the aircraft had been conducted. The BFU assumes that
the dado boxes were removed and the wire bundles loosened as is common during
such checks. It is likely that during re-installation the necessary distance
between box and wire bundles was not adhered to.

The wire and insulation damage (Photo: BFU):
The dado vent box (Photo: BFU):
The side wall (Photo: BFU):

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toxin free travel on toxin free aircraft