French pilot: 6 months suspended sentence in accident case

A French pilot was received a six months suspended sentence for causing an accident in Pau, France that killed one man on the ground.

On January 25, 2007 a Fokker 100 passenger jet, operated by French carrier Régional, overshot the end of the runway at Pau following an aborted takeoff. Upon crossing a road, the left main landing gear struck the cabin of a truck, killing the driver.

The BEA investigation concluded that “the accident resulted from a loss of control caused by the presence of ice contamination on the surface of the wings associated with insufficient consideration of the weather during the stopover, and by the rapid rotation pitch, a reflex reaction to a flight of birds.” BEA also noted as one of the contributing factors, that there was “limited awareness within the [French] aviation community regarding the risks associated with the icing on the ground and changes in the performance of the aircraft involved in this phenomenon”.

The pilot in command of the flight was being charged with  homicide and unintentional injuries. A criminal court in Pau decided on a six months suspended sentence and a 20.000 Euro fine for the airline.

Source: Sud-Ouest (3-1-2012)

More information:

• ASN Accident description

CAA-NZ lays charges against airline pilot for unnecessary endangerment

The New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has laid charges against a the pilot-in-command of Pacific Blue flight 89 from Queenstown to Sydney in 2010.

Two charges have been laid under the Civil Aviation Act, including one under s44 for causing unnecessary endangerment. The action is the result of an extensive investigation by the CAA into the departure of a Boeing 737-800 aircraft from Queenstown on 22 June 2010.

The airline has not been charged. “I am satisfied that Pacific Blue had the appropriate procedures in place for operations conducted at Queenstown”, said Steve Douglas, Director of Civil Aviation. “The investigation concluded that the airline’s procedures and operating conditions were breached in this take off event in June 2010, and that safety was compromised as a result.”

Pacific Blue said its internal procedure states aircraft at Queenstown should take off no later than 30 minutes before evening twilight. It said on this occasion the plane took off about 26 minutes before twilight. “After take-off the aircraft climbed at a safe and legal height in accordance with the weather conditions at the time and followed the prescribed visual departure procedure to continue its course to Sydney,” Pacific Blue said in a statement in 2010.

The matter is now sub judice and will be heard in the Queenstown District Court.

More information:

• CAA media release

Report: Pilot’s non-adherence to procedures causes fatal USAF C-17 crash

The USAF Accident Investigation Board reported that the July 2010 accident involving a C-17 Globemaster III was caused by “pilot error”.

The McDonnell Douglas C-17A Globemaster III transport plane was operated by the US Air Force 517AS/3rd Wing and was going to practice maneuvers for the upcoming  Arctic Thunder Air Show at Anchorage-Elmendorf AFB, AK (EDF).

The airplane executed a takeoff from runway 06. After the initial climb out and left turn, the pilot executed an aggressive right turn. As the aircraft banked, the stall warning system activated to alert the crew of an impending stall. Instead of implementing stall recovery procedures, the pilot continued the turn as planned, and the aircraft entered a stall from which recovery was not possible. Although the pilot eventually attempted to recover the aircraft, he employed incorrect procedures, and there was not sufficient altitude to regain controlled flight.The aircraft impacted wooded terrain northwest of the airfield, damaged a portion of the Alaskan Railroad, and was destroyed.

The board president found clear and convincing evidence that the cause of the mishap was pilot error. The pilot violated regulatory provisions and multiple flight manual procedures, placing the aircraft outside established flight parameters at an attitude and altitude where recovery was not possible. Furthermore, the copilot and safety observer did not realize the developing dangerous situation and failed to make appropriate inputs. In addition to multiple procedural errors, the board president found sufficient evidence that the crew on the flight deck ignored cautions and warnings and failed to respond to various challenge and reply items. The board also found channelized attention, overconfidence, expectancy, misplaced motivation, procedural guidance, and program oversight substantially contributed to the mishap.

Japan: Skymark Airlines reprimanded for overruling captain’s safety concerns

The Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism reprimanded Skymark Airlines for replacing a captain who refused to take off over safety concerns, The Mainichi Daily News reported.

In a press release, the Ministry reported that the captain of Skymark Airlines flight BC017 asked the company’s headquarters on February 5, 2010 to replace the chief cabin attendant who he judged unable to deal with a possible emergency during the flight. The chief cabin attendant reportedly suffered from a cold. The flight was due to depart Tokyo-Haneda Airport (HND/RJTT) on a domestic flight to Fukuoka Airport (FUK/RJFF).

Company officials ordered the captain to accomplish the flight without changing the chief cabin attendant, but he refused to do so. Skymark then ordered another captain on standby to take over the flight and fired the original captain the same day.

Skymark was given a written reprimand by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism on March 9, 2010.

Flight BC017 was carried out by a Boeing 737-86N, registered JA737K.

Iran: Russian pilots have to leave in two months

Russian commercial pilots flying for Iranian airlines have to leave the country within two months, according Fars News Agency.

“Upon an order from President [Mahmoud Ahmadinejad], the Road and Transport Ministry has set a two-month deadline, after which all Russian pilots must leave the country,” the Iranian Minister of Roads and Transportation Hamid Behbahani said.

The order was issued by the Iranian President after the accident involving an Ilyushin Il-62 in July 2009. The airplane, flown by a Russian captain, suffered a runway excursion accident after landing at high speed at Mashhad Airport. Sixteen were killed in the accident.

Thirteen years on invalid licence – Swedish pilot arrested

A Swedish pilot has been arrested by Dutch police at Amsterdam-Schiphol International Airport (AMS/EHAM) for flying commercial aircraft for 13 years with a fake licence.

The 41-year-old pilot was about to fly a Corendon Airlines Boeing 737 from Amsterdam, the Netherlands to Ankara-Esenboga Airport (ESB/LTAC), Turkey with 101 passengers on board when he was arrested. Dutch police were notified about the pilot by Swedish authorities.

Flight CAI202 was scheduled to leave Amsterdam at 23:30 on March 2 and departed 01:20 the same night after a relief pilot took over. The airplane involved was Boeing 737-4Q8 TC-TJC.

The pilot confessed he had been flying for 13 years on a false licence, accumulating at least 10,000 hours flying hours. The man did have a pilot’s licence, but it was no longer valid for passenger aircraft, so he had falsified it.
He had worked for airlines in Belgium, Great Britain and Italy. A lawyer for Corendon Airlines commented that the pilot had worked for the airline for the last two years and had “expertly misled the company with his false papers”.

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