Solent Hoegh Osaka Car Carrier Accident The Singapore registered 180m, 51,770 gross tonnage ‘pure car and truck carrier’ (PCTC) MV Hoegh Osaka, managed by Wallem Shipmanagement Pte Ltd, developed a significant starboard list when turning to port while departing Southampton on 3 January 2015. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) say in their recent report: As the list increased […]
Solent Hoegh Osaka Car Carrier Accident Read Post »
Marine Pilot Transfer Winching Accident (Brim Aviation AW109SP N361CR) During a night Marine Pilot Transfer (MPT) helicopter winching / hoist operation on 21 April 2014, the marine pilot being transferred, was injured. The marine pilot was being transferred from an outgoing ship to a container vessel, inbound to Astoria, Oregon, the 222 m, 27,437 gross ton MV Northern
Marine Pilot Transfer Winching Accident Read Post »
AAIB Report on 2013 Sumburgh Helicopter Accident (CHC Scotia AS332L2 G-WNSB) The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has published its report into the 23 August 2013 accident were CHC Scotia Airbus Helicopters AS332L2 Super Puma G-WNSB impacted the sea on approach to Sumburgh Airport in the Shetland Islands. The AAIB report is 266 pages long. This article is
AAIB Report on 2013 Sumburgh Helicopter Accident (CHC Scotia AS332L2 G-WNSB) Read Post »
Germanwings: Psychiatry, Suicide and Safety The French Bureau d’Enquêtes et d’Analyses (BEA) has issued their report into the loss of Germanwings Airbus A320 D-AIPX and 150 lives in the French Alps on 24 March 2015, which was due to the actions of the Co-Pilot. Below we focus on the highlights from the 110 page report. The Co-Pilot
Germanwings: Psychiatry, Suicide and Safety Read Post »
On 12 Mar 2009 17 people lost their lives in a preventable accident when the failure of an oil filter stud highlighted a known fatal flaw in the type’s design.
2009 Newfoundland S-92A C-GZCH Accident: A Failure of Design and Certification Read Post »
Step Change in Safety: Helicopter Safety Update 2016 Step Change in Safety held a webinar on North Sea helicopter safety (covering CA-EBS, emergency egress, FCOMs and airworthiness matters) on 9 March 2016 (following on from a March 2015 event we have previously covered). Introduction Step Change is a tripartite UK offshore health and safety organisation combining companies,
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Shell Pernis 11.2t Ethylene Oxide Leak The Dutch Safety Board has reported (in Dutch) on the leak of 11.2 tonnes of ethylene oxide from a overhead pipe at the 550 hectare Shell Pernis oil refinery on 30 December 2013. The leak was detected by a site worker at what is Europe’s largest refinery, surrounded by 500,000 inhabitants. Ethylene oxide is
Shell Pernis 11.2t Ethylene Oxide Leak Read Post »
Forgotten Fasteners – Serious Incidents We examine three incidents where fasteners were forgotten during maintenance. It two cases these maintenance errors resulted in parts falling from the aircraft. In a third, a massive fuel leak occurred. Incident 1 – Twin Otter Mission Pod The Irish Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) has recently reported on a
Forgotten Fasteners – Serious Incidents Read Post »
Heli-Expo 2016 Photo Report News from HAI Heli-Expo 2016 in Louisville, Kentucky (1-3 March 2016): Airbus Helicopters H215 Airbus Helicopters had on show the newly designated H215, formerly the AS332C1e (i.e. an enhanced, short fuselage Super Puma) and AS332L1e (the long fuselage version), to be built in Romania and aimed at aerial work, disaster relief and other
Heli-Expo 2016 Photo Report Read Post »
Misrouted Engine Fuel Control Cable Hawker 800XP In Issue 4/2015 of TP 6980 – Canadian Aviation Service Difficulty Reports – Feedback an maintenance error involving a Hawker 800XP fuel control cable is reported: During a planned major structural inspection, the technician noticed that the no.1 engine high-pressure fuel lever cable was trapped under the cover of the electrical junction
Misrouted Engine Fuel Control Cable Hawker 800XP Read Post »
Pitot Punctures Floats in Icelandic SAR Ditching The ditching of Icelandic Coast Guard Aérospatiale SA365N Dauphin TF-SIF in the Atlantic off Reykjavik on 16 July 2007 highlights the importance of avoiding protuberances that can puncture emergency flotation systems, careful configuration management and establishing emergency drills. The Icelandic Transportation Safety Board (ITSB), the RNF, issued their report in
Pitot Punctures Floats in Icelandic SAR Ditching Read Post »
Falcon 7X LOC-I Due To Solder Defect On 25 May 2011, Dassault Falcon 7X business jet, HB-JFN, operated by Jet-Link, suffered a pitch trim runaway that caused a 40° pitch up, rapid climb and temporary Loss of Control Inflight (LOC-I) over Malaysia. First flown in 2005 and certified in April 2007, after a 590 flight, 1600 flying hour test programme,
Falcon 7X LOC-I Due To Solder Defect Read Post »
UK CAA CAP1145 North Sea Helicopter Safety Two Years On Not long after the fatal loss of Eurocopter AS332L2 G-WNSB of Sumburgh Airport, Shetland Islands on 23 August 2013 with 4 fatalities (AAIB Special Bulletin), the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) launched an rapid review on offshore helicopter safety. That CAA Review resulted in the CAP1145 report (‘Safety review of
UK CAA CAP1145 North Sea Helicopter Safety Two Years On Read Post »
US Helicopter Accident Rate Analysis Aerossurance recently looked at US Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) accident data for the last 10 years and has also examined accident rates in Gulf of Mexico (GOM) oil and gas operations. We thought we would also look at published accident rates for all US helicopters and demonstrate the effects of choosing different start
US Helicopter Accident Rate Analysis Read Post »
First Eleven: RAeS Guidance for Design Organisations on Maintenance Human Performance The Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) Human Factors Group: Engineering (HFG:E) has published a short guidance document on 11 steps an aviation Design Organisation (DO) can take to “deliver safer, more effective and reliable aircraft through improved design for maintenance”. The RAeS say: Aircraft safety
First Eleven: Guidance for Designers on Maintenance Human Performance Read Post »
There is a danger that data that can give insight into safety is not combined because it is in multiple databases but there is a great potential opportunity.
Safety Data Silo Danger – Data Analytics Opportunity Read Post »
A maintenance error installing a TRDS bearing resulted in an EC130B4 LOC-I. An excellent AIBN report highlights the value of Independent Inspections.
EC130B4 Accident: Incorrect TRDS Bearing Installation Read Post »
Troublesome Tiedowns The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recently reported on two cases in October 2015 were helicopters offshore suffered accidents after the tie-downs were not fully removed: Fish Spotting Helicopter, Pacific Ocean (B206, N1060C) On 21 October 2015 Bell 206B N1060C was being prepared for take-off from the 74m Fishing Vessel Majestic Sun off Christmas Island,
Troublesome Tiedowns Read Post »
EASA and Ejection Seat Certification The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have issued a series of Certification Review Items (CRIs) for proposed Special Conditions and Equivalent Levels of Safety for a Part 23 ejection seat equipped tandem two-seat trainer aircraft to be certified in the Normal and Acrobatic categories. The CRIs consist of: CRI 102 Special
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Takata have been the centre of fatal air bag failures and millions of vehicle recalls. We look at the recommendations of a US panel reviewing their quality.
Airbag Explosions: Independent Takata Corp QA Panel (‘Skinner Panel’) Reports Read Post »
Inadequate preflight inspection of an un-refuelled aircraft resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion and a dramatic emergency landing.
Fuel Exhaustion Causes EMB-110 Emergency Landing Read Post »
US HEMS Accident Rates 2006-2015 The safety of US Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) operations has been a topic we have discussed previously. With HeliExpo approaching, when 10 years of the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST) will be marked and with US NTSB Board Member Robert Sumwalt just publishing a HEMS article in Professional Pilot,
US HEMS Accident Rates 2006-2015 Read Post »
An ATSB report on a fatal man overboard incident questions if blindly valuing compliance may create a culture that actually undermines safety.
Culpable Culture of Compliance? Read Post »
Machining Defect Cause of V2500 Failure On 18 September 2014 JetBlue Airways Airbus A320-232 N656JB experienced a Number 2 IAE V2527-A5 engine failure and under-cowl fire during initial climb out from Long Beach, California. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) say in their report: The flightcrew shutdown the No. 2 engine, discharged both fire bottles, and
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Ignoring Corrosive Environment Brings Down B206 Helicopter An operator that ignored the Rolls-Royce M250-C20 Series Engine Operation and Maintenance Manual classification of their entire island operating location as a “severe corrosion operating environment” and failed to do the associated maintenance requirements suffered the loss of the their Bell 206B3. Emerald Pacific Airlines B206B3 B-31019 was hovering at
Ignoring Corrosive Environment Brings Down B206 Helicopter Read Post »
