ASCE Critical Infrastructure

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – July 23, 2008

Emergency landing forces congressmen to miss aviation vote

A Houston-Washington Continental Airlines B737 carrying seven Texas congressmen among its 128 passengers made an emergency landing Tuesday (7/22) in New Orleans after the jet lost cabin pressure. The congressmen were trying to make it back to Washington in time to vote on an aviation safety bill. The vote was scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Oxygen masks deployed and the plane did a steep dive to compensate for lost pressurization. The plane landed safely at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, and the congressmen missed the vote.

The emergency landing was the third time in two days a plane was diverted over cabin pressure issues. A US Airways flight and a Northwest Airlines flight were diverted to airports in Kentucky and Wisconsin on Monday over cabin pressure issues. AP

Buncefield incident report and recommendations issued in UK

The Buncefield Major Incident Investigation Board (MIIB) in the UK on July 15, 2008, issued its recommendations on land use planning around major hazard sites (non-nuclear), with a report that calls for the system to be updated in order to get the balance right between the need for strategic facilities such as large scale oil storage sites and the need for off-site social and economic development. Arthur Rabjohn

Buncefield fuel depot is a huge petroleum storage and distribution facility near London. It was the main source of aviation fuel for London Heathrow International Airport. It was largely destroyed by an accidental fire and explosion in December 2005. Its loss threatened to cripple operations at the world’s busiest international airport, requiring the temporary rationing of fuel to airlines and the use of tanker trucks instead of in-ground pipelines. It is generally believed that the accident at Buncefield inspired the alleged terrorist plot to destroy the fuel depot at JFK International Airport and the jet fuel pipeline linking Linden, NJ, to JFK in 2007. Buncefield’s legacy has been a reexamination and revision of security plans for nearly all airports’ fuel systems and the realization that an airport can be crippled by actions outside its fences.

Airliner makes emergency landing in middle of Dayton air show

A Northwest B757 with 166 passengers on board made a single-engine emergency landing at Dayton International Airport Sunday during the annual Dayton Air Show. The Tampa-Detroit flight was diverted when an engine-control computer malfunctioned and shut down one engine. The crowd assembled for the air show applauded. (One assumes the passengers on the plane did, too.) AP

B52 bomber crashes off Guam

An USAF B52 bomber with six crewmembers aboard crashed Sunday about 30 miles off Guam. It reportedly was preparing to perform a fly-by for an air show. This is the second Air Force bomber crash near Guam in the past year. The previous crash was a B2 bomber with a crew of two, both of whom survived. AP

3-airliner collision in Baton Rouge maintenance facility

A three-plane ground crash at the Baton Rouge Metro Airport could have become an explosive disaster. It happened at the new regional maintenance hangar for Atlantic Southeast Airlines, or ASA. The total value to the three CRJ commuter jets is $100 million and it looks like the most expensive one is a total loss. The entire incident reportedly took five seconds. A young mechanic pressed a starter switch to spin the compressor blades slowly for cleaning. Instead, her action sent the engine to immediate takeoff power, hurling the fragile aircraft at 90 degree angles. Witnesses say it's a wonder the entire hangar wasn't sent up in flames, not to mention injury or death to the 14 ASA mechanics and cleaning crew members working inside. WAFB

Northwest jet makes safe emergency landing in Wisconsin

A Northwest Airlines DC9 jetliner made a safe emergency landing in Madison on Monday (7/21) after the pilot reported a pressurization problem at 29,000 feet. The plane’s pressurization system suddenly gave a reading for 10,000 feet, less than the 14,000-foot trigger for oxygen mask deployment. The flight was diverted to Dane County Regional Airport as a precaution, and no one was hurt. The 116 passengers were bused to Chicago. Star-Tribune

Fresno airport gets record solar installation

Fresno-Yosemite International has blanketed 9.5 acres of its undeveloped land -- the equivalent of seven football fields -- with solar panels that will generate about 40% of its annual electrical needs while reducing fossil fuel consumption by 170,000 barrels a year, saving an estimated $11 million per year. DailyTech

USDOT Secretary op-ed urges demand-based landing fees to reduce NYC air traffic delays

See Tuesday's New York Times.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – July 19, 2008

Plane crash lands in Nigeria; no casualties

A B737 passenger airplane overshot a runway while landing in Nigeria and crashed nearby. An airport official who requested anonymity because he is not allowed to speak to the press said no one was hurt and that there was no structural damage to the aircraft. AP

Report of smoke odor returns plane to Logan

A Delta MD88 flying from Boston to New York LaGuardia was forced to return to Logan International Airport Friday night after a passenger reported smelling smoke, officials from the Massachusetts Port Authority and the FAA said. The emergency landing was uneventful.Boston Herald

Oberstar to introduce Aviation Safety Bill

Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James L. Oberstar, D-Minn., will introduce an aviation safety bill Tuesday. The bipartisan bill is co-sponsored by ranking member John L. Mica, R-Fla., and Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Jerry F. Costello, D-Ill. Representative Oberstar's office said the bill is intended to push the Federal Aviation Administration away from what critics call a too cozy relationship with the airlines it regulates. The legislation follows from testimony delivered by FAA whistleblowers and others at the T&I Committee's April 3 hearing. Traffic World

Fuel costs continue to punish airlines

U.S. passenger airlines saw first-quarter 2008 costs grow at 31%, which is the fastest pace since the second quarter of 1980, according to the Air Transport Association of America. The cost increase is less than the 38.1% increase in the price for finished energy goods reported Tuesday by the U.S. Commerce Department for the first six months of the year, perhaps indicating that cost-containment measures by the airlines are helping somewhat. Fuel was, of course, the largest component of the index. The average price paid for fuel increased 50.8 percent and it accounted for 29.4 percent of first-quarter operating costs. Labor made up 20.9 percent of first quarter costs. Transport-related expenses were another 14 percent of the index. Traffic World

Soccer staffers subdue naked passenger at 30,000 feet

On an American flight bound from Boston to Los Angeles, three New England Revolution soccer team staffers subdued a disturbed man as he moved to possibly open an emergency exit at 30,000 feet. The flight was diverted to Oklahoma City, where the passenger was taken off the plane.
The unidentified passenger, who was reportedly crying in his seat, went to the restroom and emerged naked. Flight attendants covered the man with a blanket and escorted him back to his seat. He started to get dressed again, but then stood up and walked up the aisle. It appeared he was returning to the restroom until he swerved at the last minute and approached one of the doors, putting a hand on the emergency handle. At that moment, three Revolution staffers and another man wrestled him away from the door. The flight attendants then manacled him with plastic restraints. Goal.com

Airport continuity of operations papers published

Your attention is invited to a series of papers in the Journal of Emergency Management on the subject “Maintaining the functionality of airports during disaster responses.” The first paper, published in JEM’s November-December 2007 (vol. 5, no. 6), dealt with airports during responses to natural disasters and pandemics. The second paper, published this week (May-June 2008, vol. 6, no. 3), deals with airports during humanitarian responses to manmade disasters (wars, terrorism, civil wars, and riots) when the airport itself may be threatened. The final paper is scheduled for publication in the July-August 2008 (vol. 6, no. 4) issue of JEM. It will offer proposals for solutions to the problems analyzed in the case studies in the first two papers. The keys throughout depend on close coordination and cooperation between airports and emergency management agencies/multiagency coordination entities. The authors of the three papers are Sandy Waggoner, Arthur Rabjohn, Avi Bachar, and your blogger.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – July 9, 2008

Two American Airlines flights make emergency landings

An American Airlines MD80 bound for Palm Springs, California, returned to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on Wednesday (7/9) when the pilot declared an emergency after noticing a problem with equipment that helps keep the plane stable. None of the 123 passengers were injured. It was the second emergency landing for an American Airlines flight this week. An American Airlines flight heading to DFW from Indianapolis had to make an emergency landing in Little Rock on Tuesday (7/8) after a pilot saw smoke in the cockpit. That flight landed safely at Little Rock National Airport. Houston Chronicle

MD80s subject of new FAA advisory

The FAA is ordering U.S. airlines to conduct safety inspections to look for cracking on overwing frames on 670 MD-80 series (MD-81, 82, 83, 87 and 88) aircraft registered in the United States. American Airlines has 212 MD-82s and 86 MD-83s, while Delta Air Lines Inc. has 117 MD-88s. Inspections and all corrective actions must be completed within two years or before the accumulation of 20,000 total flight cycles. Repeat inspections will be required thereafter at regular intervals. The directive resulted from reports of cracked overwing frames, which could sever the frame, increase the loading of adjacent frames, and result in damage to adjacent structures and loss of overall structural integrity of the airplane. WSTB

Air traffic screens lose labels, paralyze Dublin Airport

Dublin airport cancelled dozens of flights today after problems with the air traffic control system. The Irish Aviation Authority said a malfunction in the radar system meant air traffic controllers were unable to identify incoming aircraft, forcing the closure of runways to all arrivals from 2 pm to 3:30 pm. Many departing planes were also grounded. Flights were being diverted to other airports in Ireland. Dublin airport handles around 600 flights every day and at peak times a plane lands or takes off every 90 seconds. Controllers could not read the individual aircraft labels on their screens. This is part of a continuing problem with a system installed in 2003. The Guardian

High-speed trains seize short-haul market as fuel cost cripples the airlines

In Europe, high-speed trains are fast eating into short-haul airline business. Traffic growth on Eurostar, which runs from London’s St. Pancras Station to Paris and Brussels, increased by 21% in the first quarter of 2008, compared with the same period in 2007, and revenues are up by 25%. The train now carries 70% of passengers between London and Paris. For trips of 600 miles or less, a train traveling at 190 mph beats an airplane for city center to city center travel, and trains such as the Eurostar, France’s TGV, and others can travel that fast. Besides time, the railroads have avoided much of the escalating fuel costs as they run on electricity, which means they are also not subject to inclusion in the European Union's Emissions Trading System.

In France, Air France has watched over the past decade as SNCF's Train à Grande Vitesse (TGV) eroded its domestic business. Air services between Paris and Lyons and between Paris and Brussels have been suspended. The train is dominating traffic to Marseilles and Geneva, and the new line east to Strasbourg will quickly extinguish air links. In preparation for 2010 when all European high speed railroads will be opened to competing train operators, Air France is reportedly working on its own fleet of high-speed trains to bring passengers from France and surrounding countries to the new TGV terminal at Charles de Gaulle airport. This could give Air France a huge competitive advantage over British Airways and other airlines for attracting high profit long-haul business and pleasure travelers. Times of London

U.S.airlines balk at emissions trading

See item immediately above about one European consequence of the carbon dioxide emissions trading policy of European Union.

The Air Transport Association of America said the measure passed by the European Parliament Tuesday "is not only bad policy, it is illegal." The Parliament added aviation into the European Emissions Trading Scheme requiring payment for mileage traveled to or from Europe. Nominally, the payments would offset the carbon footprint of air traffic. However, the European plan does not mandate a definite reinvestment in any environmental improvement. The legislation violates the treaty governing international aviation, as well as other international laws, said ATA. On Tuesday, the International Air Transport Association leveled the same criticism against the new law. Six months ago, all non-EU countries that are members of the International Civil Aviation Organization, the United Nations body that regulates international aviation, stated their opposition to the proposal on legal and policy grounds. Traffic World

ATA points out major improvements in aircraft efficiency since 1978, but those improvements haven’t prevented the increase in total carbon dioxide emissions from aircraft and airport operations when the total number of flights today is considered.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – July 7, 2008

Sudan orders Antonov, Ilyushin aircraft ban

Sudan's president has ordered a ban on all Antonov and Ilyushin passenger and cargo aircraft following the latest crash near Khartoum, but the ban does not apply to military planes. President Omar al-Bashir also sacked the head of the country's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and ordered an investigation into recent crashes. Sudan's rebel groups often accuse the military of using Antonov planes to drop bombs on villages in war-zones. Soviet-era aircraft are commonly used to transport goods and passengers in many African countries, as they are far cheaper than newer models. BBC

Of the four crashes in Sudan thus far in 2008, three have been Antonovs and one was an Ilyushin. According to Wikipedia (usual cautions), the Sudanese Air Force began 2008 with five AN-24s and one AN-26 (rumored to be the improvised bomber). I couldn’t find information of the number of ANs and ILs in use by civilian companies in Sudan.

Kalitta B747 crashes in Colombia

A Kalitta Air cargo plane carrying a load of cut flowers from Bogota to Miami crashed into a house Monday in Colombia. Reports say three occupants of the house near the town of Madrid were killed on impact. However, eight crewmembers survived and were being treated at local hospitals. The cause of the crash is not yet known. Traffic World

Air Freighter Crashes in Mexico

NTSB is assisting Mexico in the investigation of the crash of a USA Jet DC-9 cargo plane in Mexico on Sunday (7/6) that killed the pilot and seriously injured the co-pilot. The plane crashed while on approach to land at the Ramos Arizpe airport some 200 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border shortly after 2 a.m. Sunday. It had picked up a load of auto parts at Hamilton, Ont., and flown to Shreveport, La., where it cleared customs before continuing to its destination in Saltillo, Mexico, near Monterrey. Traffic World

French court to try U.S. airline over Concorde crash

A French judge has ordered U.S. carrier Continental Airlines and five individuals to stand trial over the July 25, 2000, crash of an Air France Concorde that killed 109 persons onboard the plane and four in a hotel on the ground. The judge said the defendants would be charged with involuntary manslaughter. The official crash investigation report found that the crash was caused by improper maintenance by Continental that caused a titanium strip from a DC-10 to fall onto the runway where it burst a tire on the Concorde, sending debris through a fuel tank and starting the fatal fire and crash. The report also blamed a known design flaw in the Concorde involving shock protection to the fuel tanks. Continental has denied any responsibility for the crash and has said it would fight any charges. Reuters

ABX Air freighter burns at SFO

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a fire that burned an ABX Air B767 freighter last week (6/27) on the ground at the San FranciscoInternational Airport. The aircraft was fully loaded but parked when smoke and fire appeared just behind the cockpit about 10 p.m.  PDT. Both flight crewmembers fled the plane through the cockpit window and one suffered minor injuries and was hospitalized. The fire burned a hole through the roof of the aircraft near the front of the fuselage before it was extinguished by airport firefighters. The 22-year-old aircraft was converted from passenger to freight configuration two years ago by Israel Aerospace Industries, a world leader in aircraft conversion and modernization programs. Air Cargo World

ABX had been threatened before the fire. Traffic World

Newark Airport renovation costs rise

With a year and a half to go before completion, the price tag for expanding Terminal B at Newark Liberty International Airport has swollen from $279 million to $325 million, due largely to increased costs for raw materials. Prices for steel, concrete and Sheetrock have risen 27% since the project was approved 3 years ago, leading some policymakers to question why such purchases were not locked in from the beginning. NJ.com/The Star-Ledger (Newark, N.J.)

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – June 30, 2008

United States, Brazil expand air services

The United States and Brazil have signed an agreement to increase passenger flights to 154 per week by 2010, nearly double weekly scheduled cargo flights (from 24 to 42) within two years, increase the number of chartered cargo flights, and eliminate restrictions on the number of airlines that can provide U.S.-Brazil air service. The agreement also allows cargo companies to transfer cargo from their own planes to their trucks for delivery. The agreement will allow any number of airlines to participate. Currently, only four are permitted from each country. From the U.S. side, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines now provide service between the United States and Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. Under the agreement, U.S. carriers may serve five new cities in Brazil - Fortaleza, Curitiba and three others to be selected by the United States. The agreement also allows, for the first time, U.S. and Brazilian carriers to provide certain types of service on a code-share basis with their partner airlines from third-countries. Traffic World

This US-Brazil agreement is less sweeping than the US-EU Open Skies Treaty that went into effect on March 30, 2008. It does, however, reflect the growing importance of US-Brazil economic interactions. Fortaleza has 3.4 million inhabitants and is in the extreme northeast of Brazil. Curitiba has 1.8 million inhabitants and is in the southern Brazilian state of Parana. Other large Brazilian cities that might become the three cities “to be named later” include Salvador, Brasilia, Belo Horizonte, Manaus, Porto Allegre, Recife, and Belem. Interest is driven by commerce, tourism, and offshore oil development.

Two more crashes in Sudan

An An-12 cargo plane belonging to Juba Cargo company crashed mid-flight in Sudan on Friday (6/27) killing seven crew members, including five foreigners, in the third fatal aviation accident to blight the African country in the past two months. A Sudanese Civil Aviation Authority spokesman said that the crashed an hour and 10 minutes after take off from Khartoum, bound for the southern Sudanese capital Juba, apparently owing to bad weather. There was one survivor. Agence France Press

An Ilyushin 76 cargo plane belonging to the private Sudanese company Abadiel crashed shortly after takeoff Monday from Khartoum's airport, killing all four Russian crew members aboard. The plane hit an electricity pole shortly after takeoff and then crashed into an empty field, bursting into flames. The cause of the crash was not immediately clear. The plane was headed for the south Sudanese capital of Juba. Its cargo was not immediately known. AP

Sudan has a poor aviation record and these crashes were the third and fourth fatal aviation accidents in Africa's biggest country since May. The Khartoum government said the Sudanese air fleet was growing old as it was unable to buy spare parts for its US-made aircraft due to economic sanctions imposed by Washington. However, Washington, which has placed Khartoum on a blacklist of countries supporting terrorism, says the sanctions do not prevent the delivery of spare parts for aircraft if they are requested. None of the four major 2008 crashes in Sudan involved US-manufactured airplanes.

CNN notes 9 medical helicopter crashes in US in 2008

Sea-Tac's new runway nears completion after years of controversy

After almost two decades of political wrangling, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is nearing the opening of its new, 8,500-foot runway. Over the years the cost swelled from $430 million to $1.2 billion, as the port authority was forced to transport 13 million cubic yards of fill from Canada, erect retaining walls up to 130 feet high and build two dedicated off-ramps to handle the constant flow of truck traffic on local highways. The News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.)

Note on small plane crashes

This blog doesn’t report on small plane crashes (planes smaller than the 14 CFR Part 124 criteria) unless there is something unusual about the crash. This, however, doesn’t mean that small aircraft aren’t important to critical infrastructure.

Just how many small aircraft crashes are there? In the latest data set I could find, in June 2003 in the US there were 68 small aircraft crashes investigated by the FAA. Aviation Attorneys

Top 100 commercial crashes that happened in June

6/3/1962 – Air France B707 at Villeneuve-le-Roi, France, 130 killed (91^st worst crash)

6/6/1994 – China Northwest Tu-154 at Xi-an, China, 160 killed (52^nd worst)

6/7/1989 – Surinam Airways DC8 at Paramaribo, Surinam, 176 killed (40^th worst)

6/8/1982 – VASP B727 at Sierra de Pacatuba, Brazil, 137 killed (81^st worst)

6/23/1985 – Air India B747 into Atlantic Ocean west of Ireland, 329 killed (6^th worst)

6/28/1982 – Aeroflot YAK42 in Southern Belarus, USSR, 132 killed (86^th worst)

6/30/1956 – United DC7 / TWA Lockheed 1049, over Grand Canyon, 128 killed (95^th worst)

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – June 27, 2008

Military crash in Indonesia; plane was testing digital mapping camera

An Indonesian military Casa C-212 plane with 18 people on board, including three foreigners, crashed Thursday (6/26) in West Java in the Curug Nangka tourist resort at the foot of Mt Salak, Sukajadi village, Tamansari subdistrict, Bogor regency, an air force spokesman said on Friday. "We lost contact with the plane. We assume it crashed but we are still searching for it," said Chaerudin Ray. SAR teams had not at latest report reached the crash site. The plane was flying from the capital Jakarta to Bogor, in West Java, with 12 military personnel and six civilians on board, he said, including one Briton, one Singaporean, and one person thought to be Indian. The plane had set out to test a digital mapping camera, he said. Antara

Indonesian air carriers have been hit by several crashes and safety incidents in recent years, and the country's airlines are currently banned by the European Union; however, this was a military plane.

Kenya legislators blast aviation regulator

Angry Kenyan National Assembly parliamentarians demanded Wednesday (6/25) an explanation over the tragic 10 June plane crash that claimed the lives of two cabinet ministers. Questioning the safety of Kenyan airspace, the spotlight fell on the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) with members questioning its competence. The government was hard pressed to explain the cause of the accident. An attempt by the aviation minister to blame the crash on a possible human or mechanical error fell on deaf ears as the members, some professional pilots, accused the authority of incompetence, corruption and vested interest. The MPs wondered why the plane crash was detected by a private organization, Africa Medical Research Foundation (AMREF), which operates air ambulances. AMREF was the first to notify aviation authorities about the crash. Under normal circumstances, it is the aviation authority that should have detec ed the crash site, using modern navigation and aviation equipment. Afrique en Ligne

Airports 'vulnerable' to attack

A terrorism expert has warned that UK airports are still vulnerable, one year on from the attack on Glasgow Airport. Security consultant Chris Yates said many of the changes put in place at Glasgow had been copied at other airports around the world but said that although some "weak points" in airport security had been addressed, others remained. “We have a long way to go before airports here in the UK are secure enough to prevent the prospect of another terrorist attack…we don't know which direction the threats are coming from," he said. Mr Yates said that in his opinion, the UK was not taking the threat of "aviation terrorism seriously enough". BBC

ICAO unveils CO2 calculator for cargo shipments

In support of the UN’s Climate Neutral Initiative, the International Civil Aviation Organization has approved a Web-based tool for calculating the amount of carbon dioxide emissions from a given flight. Air Cargo World

The ICAO Carbon Calculator, an impartial and internationallyapproved  web-based tool to identify the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from a given flight for use in carbon-offsetting programmes, is available on the Organization’s website (www.icao.int).

ICAO previously had a calculator that let an individual passenger compute his or her carbon footprint for the trip. See ICAO Passenger Carbon Calculator.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – June 24, 2008

2007 crash at unlicensed Indonesian commercial airport?

Indonesia's Jogjakarta airport was operating without a license because of safety issues when a Garuda plane crashed last year, killing 21 people, an Australian air safety firm said yesterday. Flight Safety Pty Ltd, which audited the airport after a request from an unnamed client, said authorities had failed to implement five conditions for a license, including extending the runway and safety area. Five Australians were killed when a Garuda Boeing 737 carrying 140 people skidded off the runway in Jogjakarta, Central Java in March 2007. An Indonesian safety official denied the airport was functioning without a license. Herald Sun

Today’s featured recertification drill

Tel-Aviv’s Ben-Gurion International Airportwill hold its ICAO-mandated recertification disaster drill Wednesday (6/25) to test readiness to handle the crash of a wide-bodied jet on the runway. Ben-Gurion chief Ze'ev Sarig said a large contingent of firefighters, ambulances, police and Israel Defense Force soldiers will be taking part in the exercise, with IDF soldiers pretending to be injured passengers and with mannequins simulating casualties. The last such drill took place in 2004. A plane purchased from El Al for exercises will be set ablaze and firefighters will have to extinguish it within two minutes. An exercise was held yesterday at Terminal 1 to test emergency procedures for countering a variety of scenarios involving terrorist attacks. Haaretzl

Homeland Security seeks comments on infrastructure security

The Department of Homeland Security has taken the unusual step of seeking public comment on proposed changes to the National Infrastructure Protection Plan. "We're hoping to get inputs from across the country and from everyone concerned with critical infrastructure protection," says an NIPP spokesman. Among the questions the NIPP will address: whether to stress deterrence and protection of infrastructure assets over resilience and recovery. Secrecy News

If you wish to read the current (2006) edition of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP), you can access it at http://www.dhs.gov/xprevprot/programs/editorial_0827.shtm. The deadline for comments is July 7, 2008.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – June 23, 2008

Dubai building world's largest airport on desert sands

Dubai, home to many of the world's engineering and construction superlatives, is about to add another record to its list: a $10 billion, 54-square-mile (140 square kilometers) airport larger than London's Heathrow and Chicago's O'Hare combined. Some 20,000 workers under the direction of 600 engineers have already completed the first of six parallel runways, and the first commercial flight is scheduled for next year. Several developments are being built around the airport, which could eventually handle 120 million annual passengers and 12 million tons of cargo. MarketWatch

The Wikipedia entry, which may or may not be reliable, says that the new airport will have 30% more passenger capacity than Atlanta and three times the cargo capacity of Memphis, the two current world leaders. The six parallel runways will allow up to four simultaneous landings or takeoffs. The land area of the new airport (140 square kilometers) makes it the 4^th largest in the world after King Faud International (780 square kilometers), Montreal-Mirabel (392 square kilometers), and Riyadh International (225 square kilometers). Denver’s area is 120 square kilometers, and Dallas-Fort Worth’s is 73 square kilometers. The stated goal of the new Dubai World Central International Airport (JXB), which will formally be known as Al Maktoum International Airport, is to make it the major hub connecting Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia in order to create a long-term economic engine for the United Arab Emirates. Dubai International Airport is expected to remain active even after JXB becomes operational.

Continental to join Star Alliance, cooperate with United

On Thursday (6/19) Continental announced plans to cooperate with United Airlines, linking networks and services worldwide to deliver new benefits to customers. In addition, Continental intends to transition into the Star Alliance from the SkyTeam Alliance as a result of a review that was conducted following the Delta-Northwest merger announcement. The transition period will last at least a year, and many regulatory and other approvals are required before we can implement our plans. www.continental.com

This is part of the shifting pattern of US and global alliances being driven by the Delta-Northwest merger and by fuel costs.

China Airlines appoints president

The board of China Airlines approved Friday the appointment of Sun Huang-Hsiang as president. Sun currently serves as chairman of the mainland Chinese cargo venture Yangtze River Express Airlines. Taipei,Taiwan-based China Airlines owns 25 percent of the Shanghai, China-based company. Sun will succeed Ringo Chao, who currently serves as chairman and president of China Airlines. Traffic World Online

This is yet another indicator of the increasing economic and logistical integration of Taiwan with China.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – June 19, 2008

Fuel puts airlines in red

USDOT report shows operating loss margin hit 5.2 percent in first quarter. Fuel had an enormous impact on the results, however, eating up 29.4 percent of the airlines' operating expenses in the first quarter compared to 13.8 percent in the same quarter five years ago. The airlines are also seeking restrictions on speculation in petroleum futures, saying that it threatens the viability of aviation critical infrastructure. Traffic World

FAA, DayJet start transitioning Florida to NextGen technology

DayJet has signed an agreement with the FAA to start implementing NextGen technologies throughout Florida, writes John Johnston in the Boca Raton News. Dr. Bruce Holmes, a former NASA chief strategist who now works for DayJet, said NextGen will replace ground-based radars with satellite technology for navigation. The transition will mean fewer large planes and more smaller jets, he said. DayJet has signed a memorandum of agreement with the FAA to begin a five-year, phased implementation of so-called “NextGen technologies” throughout Florida.  Holmes said the collaboration also includes the Florida Department of Transportation Aviation Office and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.Boca Raton News (Fla.)

Even if DayJet’s planes are small (“very light jets,” or VLJ’s), this development represents a huge step forward towards decentralized air traffic control. NextGen is the next generation of air traffic control that will be based in part on plane-mounted global positioning systems. Note, however, the five-year time frame. NextGen is supposed to be the answer to the ATC crisis in the US and globally today.

Lizards cause delays at New Delhi

More than 100 flights were delayed Wednesday (6/18) at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, after monitor lizards were spotted on the runway and taxiway this morning. The first lizard was spotted by a pilot at the secondary runway 27 at around 9:30 am, following which the apron control and the air traffic control were alerted. Because of the lizards, the bird movement above the airport also increased which forced the airport authorities to keep the runway closed for nearly 20 minutes from 10:00 am. However operations were segregated all day with flights landing on runway 27 and taking off from 28. “The first monitor lizard was spotted on the runway. When our teams reached there we found that there were more in the vicinity. We found four more lizards from the taxiway and the approach area to the runway,” said Tandrali of the Wildlife SOS team. The team was stationed all day at IGI to rescue more monitor lizards from the area. The wildlife experts claim that the long grass and a nullah [same as a wadi, a vegetated stream in a ravine] close to the runway is an ideal habitat for the monitor lizard. “We will soon release them in the wild, perhaps in Asola Bhatti sanctuary or any other place depending on the instructions from the wildlife department,” Tandrali added. (Courtesy Arthur Rabjohn)

Blackwater CEO wants plane crash lawsuit dismissed

Erik Prince, the head of security company Blackwater, is defending its sister company, Presidential Airways’, request to have a federal lawsuit over a plane crash dismissed, saying that because the crash happened in Afghanistan, Islamic law should apply. Presidential Airways has been sued by the widows of three American soldiers killed in the crash. Three crew members also died. Joseph Schmitz, Prince's general counsel, said Presidential Airways has asked the federal judge to dismiss the case because the women's attorneys failed to meet the standards for a claim under applicable law. US courts have applied other countries' laws to resolve damages that occurred overseas, Schmitz said. When asked to justify having a case involving an American company working for the US government decided by Afghan law, Prince said: "Where did the crash occur? Afghanistan." In a motion filed in April, Blackwater attorneys said "the policy interest of Afghanistan must be considered as it is undisputed that is the place where the injuries occurred. Further, the alleged negligent conduct, from the planning and scheduling of the accident mission to the alleged operation errors, took place in Afghanistan." If the judge applied Afghanistan's Islamic Sharia law, the lawsuit would be dismissed, Schmitz said. Sharia law does not hold a company responsible for the actions of employees performed as part of their work. Lawyers for the women say the case was properly filed in Florida because that is where the defendants did business at the time of the crash. Presidential Airways was based in Melbourne, FL at the time. Presidential Airways earlier had argued the lawsuit should be dismissed under the legal doctrine that soldiers cannot sue the government. Presidential Airways was under contract with the US military to fly cargo and personnel around Afghanistan. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta refused to dismiss the lawsuit on that basis in October. The National Transportation Safety Board has blamed the crash on Presidential Airways, saying it failed to ensure that its crews followed company policy and Pentagon and Federal Aviation Administration safety regulations and for its "failure to require its flight crews to file and fly a defined route." Bradenton Herald

New Indianapolis airport nearing completion

Airport officials in Indianapolis gave reporters a glimpse on Monday of the city's new midfield terminal. The main terminal's Civic Plaza will feature a skylight 200 feet in diameter, plus in-floor heating and cooling. Each concourse will have 20 gates -- a gain of six over the current facility -- and parallel runways will shave eight to ten minutes of taxiing time off each flight. The Indianapolis Star 

The new IND terminal is dramatic in appearance and reminds this editor of Saarinen's TWA terminal at JFK.

Aviation emergencies, disasters, and infrastructure alert – June 11, 2008

Sudan plane burns after landing; many killed

A Sudan Airways A310 airliner arriving at Khartoum International Airport from Damascus, Syria, via Amman, Jordan, and Port Sudan, with 214 people on board, landed amid thunderstorms and was taxiing on the runway on Tuesday (6/10) when an engine exploded in flames. The plane burned but at least 103 passengers and 11 crewmembers escaped. There is some confusion about the death toll, with initial reports saying up to 100 killed. Other reports, however, say around 30 people have been confirmed dead and more than 50 others are still unaccounted for. TV footage showed the plane consumed by flames as emergency crews tried to battle the fire in the darkness. Belfast Telegraph and CNN

There has not yet been any suggestion of terrorist involvement.

Sudan has a poor aviation safety record. In May, a plane crash in a remote area of southern Sudan killed 24 people, including key members of the southern Sudanese government. In July 2003, a Sudan Airways B737 en route from Port Sudan to Khartoum crashed soon after takeoff, killing all 115 people on board. After that crash, Sudanese officials blamed sanctions for restricting vital aircraft parts. The U.S. State Department said there was no ban on equipment needed for aviation safety. In 1997, then President Clinton issued an executive order barring the export of goods and technology to Sudan because of the country’s “support for international terrorism, ongoing efforts to destabilize neighboring governments, and the prevalence of human rights violations.” World Review News (Note: The latest crash was an A310 built in Europe.)

Not just Part 139 airports do emergency drills

14 CFR Part 139 requires triennial recertification emergency drills at the 400+ airports with commercial service or that can handle scheduled or unscheduled flights using planes over a certain size. However, there are a great many general aviation airports, which are locally important and potentially important in disaster or catastrophe response, that also do safety drills.

Van Nuys Airport Practices Emergency Response in Full-Scale Simulated Aircraft Accident. The Van Nuys Airport will conduct a full-scale emergency exercise today (6/11) in an effort to test and evaluate the airport's emergency procedures.  Although VNY is not regulated under CFR, Part 139, VNY remains dedicated to emergency preparation and will periodically conduct a full-scale emergency exercise every three to four years. Participants will be Los Angeles Fire Department, Los Angeles Police Department, FAA, TSA, NTSB, and several Van Nuys Airport Divisions (Airfield Operations, Airport Police, Construction and Maintenance, Public Relations, LAWA Emergency Preparedness). LAWA Press Release

Van Nuys Airport (VNY) is fascinating. It is one of four airports belonging to Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), the authority that also owns and operates LAX, Ontario, and Palmdale airports. VNY is the world’s busiest general aviation airport with about 400,000 take-offs and landings annually. More than 100 businesses are located on the 730-acre airport in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley. The airport is landlocked and has extensive community-relations and community-service programs to maintain good relationships with its residential neighbors.