ÿþJACDEC SAFETY NEWS 2008 20.12.2008 US Federal Aviation Authority FAA downgrades the Safety Category of Israel from 1 to the less safe Category 2, meaning no additional services from Israel to the US. The FAA found deficiencies in terms of safety oversight of the governmental institutions providing a less safe environment for civilian air traffic in the country. / FAA 18.12.2008 The government of Indonesia (Ministry of Transport) imposed a new aviation safety regulation law which incorporates tighter regulations for civilian air operations and technical standards. It is understood the new law aimes to encourage the EU to lift its ban on indonesian air-carriers which was implemented in 2007. / travelmole 13.12.2008 The Airline Operating Certificate (AOC) of Air Tanzania was suspended by Tanzanian Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) after numerous operational deficiencies were found. A re-assessment of the airline´s operational safety is due to take place within the next weeks until all neccessary documents where handed over to the TCAA. / TCAA 04.12.2008 Vietnam´s Aviation Safety System was praised by ICAO President R. Gonzalez during a recent visit to the country / thanhniennews 21.11.2008 Airbus was granted to certify special inflatable airbags on every seat to reduce potential head injuries in case of an accident. / flightglobal 21.11.2008 South Korea pushes forward an aviation safety pact with EU memberstates in an effort to boost exports of the local aviation supply industry to gain certification with EASA authority more easily. / AsiaNews 19.11.2008 The Federal Aviation Administration (US) is likely to downgrade Israel from category 1 in its International Aviation Safety Assessments (IASA) Program to the less safer category 2 after signifiacant security shortcomings were revelaed during recent checks. / Haaretz 14.11.2008 EU Commission published another update of the Black List in which all air-carriers are listed which are not allowed to land in EU states because of safety concerns. New on the list is cambodia´s Siem Reap Airways and all angolan airlines are banned. / European Commission 12.11.2008 The UK Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) has pledged to collaborate with Nigeria to help improving the country´s aviation safety record by better determing the causes of aircraft accidents. / NigeriaGuardian 07.11.2008 Northwest Airlines grounded 27 of its 65 Boeing 757s for a couple of hours after an internal audit revealed inconsistencies with current FAA airworthiness directives (ADs) on the main landing gear. / ASN 30.10.2008 European Aviation Safety authority EASA released an airworthiness directive concerning the take-off preparations in MD-80 aircraft. EASA is to make a mandatory requirement before each flight to check the take-off configuaration warning system in order to prevent a take-off in a unsafe flap/slat setting in the wake of the Spanair crash in August. / flightglobal 22.10.2008 Newly founded Mokulele Arlines of Haiwaii shut down its entire operations for 3 hours because the FAA ordered all cabin attendants a re-training in the use of live preservers and fire extinguishers. FAA members discovered during a routine inspection that the inter-island airline failed to provide adequate training to their cabin staff. / Forbes 15.10.2008 Indonesia´s Ministry of transport has revoked operating licences of four domestic airlines after they failed to pass a regular safety audit. The companies Atlas Deltasatya, Dabi Air Nusantara, Sampuerna Air Nusantara, Pua Wisata Beruna were affected. They all are smaller regional airlines providing air taaxy and charter operatons. / SACAA 10.10.2008 According to the Civil Aviation Authority of South Africa (SACAA), the Federal Aviation Administration reconfirms South Africa´s general safety category 1. The results of the latest safety audit have shown that all safety requirements are fulfilled. / SACAA 04.10.2008 Italian accident investigation agency ANSV published a report about an emergency landing of a Meridiana MD-80 at Cagliary, Sardinia on May 5th 2008 due to low fuel state. / Aviation Herald 04.10.2008 Australian Civil Aviation Authority suspends operations of regional Aero-Tropics due to serious safety risks for passengers. The airline was closely monitored by authorities after deficiencies were found in September 2007. / CASA-MediaRelease 25.09.2008 Russian aviation authority suspends all 737 flights after recent crash at Perm has shown pilot training deficiencies. Operations can only resume after additional training is proven. Today, 107 737s are currently operated by russian airlines. / UKPress 25.09.2008 US Federal Aviation administration (FAA) global safety asessment finds Croatia not complying with international standards. Consequently Croatia is downgraded to the less safer category 2. / FAA 23.09.2008 Thailand´s Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) extended the grounding of domestic low-cost carrier One-Two-Go Airlines by another 30 days. THis is the 3rd extension of the initial grounding issued on July 22nd. DCA said that safety standards are not yet sufficient to let the airline fly again. / flightglobal 12.09.2008 The far-east asian country of Papua New Guinea is about to establish an Air Accident Investigation Commission (AIC). The AIC will investigate all civil aviartion accidents in the country according to ICAO Annex 13. / ASN + PNG civil Aviation Rules(pdf) 09.09.2008 The EU commission lifts a ban on all Bulgarian airlines to operate flights without limitation between all EU memberstates. The EU imposed tha ban last December because of safety and staff problems. / finchannel 05.09.2008 After recent fatal overrun of a TACA A320 at Tegucigalpa, Honduras, the runway will now be extended by another 300 meters providing a total lengh of 2160 meters. Presently, only smaller aircraft are allowed to land. As an interim measure, all international flights will move to Palmerola Airbase. / AviationHerald 01.09.2008 Australian´s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) critisized QANTAS for its deficient maintenance system. The australian flag carrier is in the focus of a safety audit after a series of safety related incidents have occured in recent months. / ChannelNewsAsia 27.08.2008 Thai air-carrier One-Two-Go was grounded for a 2nd time for non-comliance with its pilot training standards. In September 2007, the airline lost a MD-80 in a fatal landing accident at Phuket. One-Two-Go is restricted from flying for the next two months. / BangkokPost 18.08.2008 Six commuter planes of AA subsidiary American Eagle sustained damage during routine safety inspection at Chicago O´Hare Airport. A TSA safety inspector climbed on top of the aircraft using an improper technique which caused damage to outboard sensors. / ChicagoTribune 15.08.2008 US Federal Aviation Authority FAA announced a 7,1 mio USD penaly against American Airlines for deferring maintenance on safety-related equipment and deficiencies with its durg and alcohol program. Also there were shortcomings of exit lightning inspections. / Dallas Morning News 04.08.2008 Scottish low-cost airline Flyglobespan has been fined 5.000 pounds for flying a 757 over the Atlantic Ocean with known technical defects in June last year. / TTG Live 24.07.2008 The European Commission published another update of its blacklist of banned airlines. Iranian airline Mahan Air still no longer appears on the list. New countries with safety concerns are Gabon, Cambodia and the Philippines. / EU_Press Release 08.07.2008 For the second time this year the FAA issued an airworthiness directive for all MD-80 aircraft after cracks were found in the overwing frames. All affected airlines will have 24 months for checks and repairs. / FAA + USA Today 02.07.2008 Due to continous safety concerns, the indonesian ministry of transport grounded Tri-MG Airlines, Acso Nusa Air, Dirgantara AS, Helizona and SMAC. The carriers will now have 3 months to rectify their deficiencies or face their AOC revoked permanently. / Reuters 01.07.2008 Following a series of fatal accidents, the preisdent of Sudan imposed a ban on all Antonov and Ilyushin transport planes until an independent investigation proved they are safe to fly. / timesonline 24.06.2008 Indonesian civil aviation authority (DGCA) cancelled the air operator´s certificate (AOC) of Adam Air. This step marks the final end of alte airline after a series of accidents and safety violations in past years. / flightglobal 22.06.2008 US Federal Aviation Administration FAA is raising its safety rating for Bulgaria after a reassessment of the country´s civil aviation authority in January 2008. Bulgaria is now listed a the No 1 safety category, meaning its aircraft are allowed to enter US airspace. / FAA 12.06.2008 Mexican domestic carrier Magnicharters was temporarily grounded by authorities after irregularities were found in aircraft maintenance and staff training. / flightglobal 04.06.2008 Flight Safety Foundation and AviAssist combine efforts to boost safety in southern and eastern africa. / flightsafety.org 27.05.2008 UK aviation authority CAA prosecutes Flyglobespan over repeated alledged safety breaches in 2007. / holidayextras 23.05.2008 Nigeria is upgrading security measures at its airports. The national airport authority FAAN is preparing to pass the the ICAO security audit in June 2008. / allafrica 07.05.2008 The goverment of Kyrgyzstan bans all aircraft older than 40 years. Maximum age of aircraft registered in the country is 30 years. All aircraft from Kyrgyzstan are banned from flying to EU member states. / flightglobal 05.05.2008 The US Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed a fine against United Airlines for repeatedly violatingg workplace safety standards. The fine would be as high as $ 215.000 USD./ Chicago Sun-Times 11.04.2008 The European Commission published another update of its blacklist of banned airlines. The ukrainian airline Ukraine Cargo Airline together with congolese carrier Hewa Bora are new on the list. Angolan TAAG together with Mahan Air from Iran and Garuda from Indonesia remained on the list./ EU_Press Release 08.04.2008 For a second time within two weeks, American Airlines was forced to re-ground its entire fleet of MD-80s causing huge flight cancellations and delays. The FAA again need to check wether wire bundles are properly secured./ NYDailynews 02.04.2008 United Airlines was forced to temporary ground its entire fleet of 52 Boeing 777s in a FAA review of compliance of airworthiness directives. / flightglobal 01.04.2008 The ICAO has published the results of its global air safety programme USOAP. Six memberstates choose not to have their results published. / flightglobal 26.03.2008 About 80 MD-80s were grounded by American Airlines after FAA expressed concern about the correct installation and safety of wire bundles. / MSNBC 18.03.2008 Indonesian authorities revoked operational specification of Adam Air after continued safety violations were found in recent inspections. THe airline will now have 3 months to rectify the problems. / AFP 11.03.2008 US aviation authority FAA is mandating to improve flight data and cockpit voice recorders calling for the installation of digital technology instead of using a magnetic tape. / networkWorld 07.03.2008 Southwest Airlines is facing 10.2 million penalty for violation of safety regulations, according to FAA. Allegedly, the airline operated 46 aircraft without mandatory airframe checks. / cnn 06.03.2008 Safety concerns prompted US authorities to recommend immediate fan blade inspections of Canadair Regional Jets equipped with GE CF-34 engines. / flightglobal 06.03.2008 A near collision between a Ryanair 737 and a Flightline MD-83 last September was attributed to communication breakdown between two air traffic controllers, irish safety investigators revealed. / flightglobal 27.02.2008 Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) will be getting new optical safety system that warns pilot not to cross an active runway. LAX is the airport with the highest number of runway incursions in the USA. / CNN-Travel 25.02.2008 The chief pilot of Cathay Pacific´s 777 fleet was fired after he performed a low fly-by on a delivery flight at Everett, Wa, USA. / flightglobal 21.02.2008 FAA investigates wether two pilots of regional carrier Go! Airlines fell asleep on a flight from Honolulu to Hilo. Both pilots in question have been fired. / KITV 20.02.2008 Australian safety authority ATSB found cracks in 14 of its 30 747s belonging to flag carrier QANTAS. Checks were made following an electrical power loss incident on Jan. 8th at Bangkok. / SydneyMorningHerald 17.02.2008 Princess Juliana Airport of carribbean resort St. Maarten was forced to shut down operations after runway edge lighting failed, leaving hundreds of passsengers stranded. / DailyHerald 12.02.2008 Multinational african air safety organization (CASSOA) approves activities to improve safety in eastern african states. / African Press Organization 11.02.2008 To improve aviation safety standards, India is likely to adopt new safety managing system by early 2009. / Travelbizmonitor 08.02.2008 Air Jamaica is facing a 42 million USD lawsuit for a series of safety violations commited in the United States. / Radiojamaica 30.01.2008 The Philippine Government approved the creation of a civil aviation authority (CAA) as part of an effort to improve the country´s aviation safety standards. / Pacificnewscenter 29.01.2008 The transport minister of Israel ordered to adopt chances recommended in the recent Lapidot Report to improve the overall safety standard in the country´s civil aviation system. / Haarez 24.01.2008 In 63 percent of all DHC-8 of SAS problems were found in a gear valves leading to last year´s chain of accidents. / flightglobal 21.01.2008 Indonesia still has not made enough progress improving its aviation safety standards. EU ban not lifted yet. / signonsandiego 15.01.2008 Russian budget airline SkyExpress scrutinized after unscheduled inspections revealed safety deficiencies in its operations. / flightglobal 04.01.2008 FAA´s safety asessment programme (IASA) downgrades the Philippines from category one to the less safer category two. / ABS-CBN 02.01.2008 UK´s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) intruduces a new online reporting system for birdstrikes. / CAA © Jacdec, 2008 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------