quarta-feira, 27 de abril de 2022

EGYPTAIR FLIGHT 804 CRASH - The pilot's lit cigarette combined with leaked oxygen

 



EgyptAir flight from Paris to Cairo crashed in 2016, killing all 66 people on board.

April 26, 2022

When the Airbus A320 disappears the first thought is to a terrorist attack.

Airbus A320, registered SU-GCC, died when it crashed into the Mediterranean Sea. Egyptian authorities have never published a final report into the crash. 

French air accident investigators from the BEA stated on July 6, 2018 that they considered “the most likely hypothesis is that a fire broke out in the cockpit while the airplane was flying at its cruise altitude and that the fire spread rapidly resulting in the loss of control of the airplane.” 

The captain or first officer had been smoking at 37,000ft shortly before the crash.

In a 134-page official report, which was sent to the Court of Appeal in Paris last month, investigators said the fire may have broken out in the cockpit due a combination of a lit cigarette and the escape of oxygen from the co-pilot’s mask.

The fire started after the pilot's lit cigarette combined with leaked oxygen, the report said.




A 134-page document submitted to the Court of Appeals in Paris last month said investigators determined that the burning cigarette combined with escaping oxygen from the co-pilot's mask and caused a fire on board Flight 804.

The French air accident investigation agency had said previously that a cockpit fire likely caused the crash; Egyptian authorities initially claimed it was a terrorist bombing. 

The French BEA air accident investigation agency has previously said the crash was probably caused by a cockpit fire, contradicting an earlier suggestion by Egyptian authorities that a bomb may have been the cause.

It also said that authorities in Egypt had apparently not followed up calls for further investigations. {ID:L8N1U306X]

The two experts commissioned by French judges in charge of the dossier highlighted some twenty warnings pointing to recurring faults during the plane's five flights before the crash.

Before disappearing from radar — and shortly after leaving Greek airspace — flight MS804 signals through the automatic system the presence of smoke in the front bathroom and in the lower part of the nose. Pilots do not launch any may days. The Airbus A320 is one of the most used and safe aircraft in the world. Thousands fly every day. But six years after that tragedy, the Egyptian authorities — leading the investigation by jurisdiction — have never produced any final investigation report, as advocated by international treaties. And not even preliminary.

Above Italy

At 00.11 on May 19, the jet enters Italian airspace over Livigno, a few minutes later it leaves the country from Veneto, then skirts all the Balkans and proceeds further and further south. At 01.24 — reconstruct the tracks of the specialized site Flightradar24 — he enters Greek airspace, but an hour later neither the Greek controller nor the Egyptian one manage to get in touch. At 2.30 am the Airbus disappears from the radars of both area control centers after turning a couple of times first to the left, then immediately to the right.

The seven signals

Shortly before sinking, it turns out later, the plane sent seven "dispatches" in just two seconds through the "Acars", a data communication system with the ground stations: they signal problems with the anti-icing sensors, the windows of the cockpit, the presence of smoke in the front bathroom and in the avionics compartment (under the cockpit), the stop to the operation of two computer systems crucial for flight and the one that maneuvers the wings. Neither the commander nor the first officer mentions it or asks for assistance.

The start of the investigation

Relations with the Egyptians are immediately problematic. The incident, for Cairo, is an act of terrorism and for this reason the investigation requires the acts to be secreted. The transalpine authorities find it difficult to support these theses. The dynamics of the recovered debris around the impact area, according to Western experts, excludes the explosion at altitude. The truth lies in the two black boxes, found and analyzed in the laboratories near Paris of the investigative body French Bea. But the intergovernmental agreement provides that Bea cannot disclose the information because it is not responsible for the investigation. A search warrant from the French judiciary is needed to obtain the data of the black boxes that remain known only to very few people. "From the Egyptians we received only the ritual condolences and the remains of our loved ones. Then the silence,"

The counter-investigation

A 76-page document, prepared between 2018 and 2019 by two French experts, claims that in the five previous flights that aircraft recorded about twenty warnings for more or less important technical problems – from the air intake system into the engines to the smoke detection sensors on board – "which, however, were not reported by the pilots and therefore not analyzed by EgyptAir maintenance", it reads. Egyptian civil aviation denies the existence of technical problems. "Before its penultimate flight (from Cairo to Paris, ed) the plane should not have taken off without extensive control," the two experts write. However, they conclude that it is not possible to identify a root cause.

The French version

A spokesman for Bea explains that the official position of the investigative body French remains that of July 6, 2018. With a press note – at times very harsh – the agency claims that "the most likely hypothesis of the accident is that it was caused by a fire that broke out in the cockpit during the cruise phase, which spread quickly leading to the loss of control of the aircraft". Bea also points out that "it is necessary to have a final report of the incident in order to be able to present the differences of opinion to the Egyptians as established by international norms". Having this document also serves to improve safety in the sector as it always happens after every tragedy of the skies.

Without effective cooperation from Egypt, without being able to hear the people involved in the maintenance, it becomes almost impossible to get to the bottom of this story."

Traces of oxygen

Separating the sound tracks of one of the black boxes, the "Cockpit voice recorder", the experts discover two rustles at 2.25 and 24 seconds and at 2.25 and 29 that come from the microphone embedded in the oxygen mask of the co-pilot who at that moment is in his compartment. Then two more blows, at 2.26 and 11 and at 2.26 and 24. Oxygen itself is not flammable, but promotes combustion. For this reason, immediately afterwards there is a principle of fire unleashed "by a spark or a flame". The finger is pointed at a lit cigarette, the umpteenth in that aircraft if it is true that two months earlier in the cockpit the ashtrays were replaced because they were now too used. The document cannot determine whether the pilots used a fire extinguisher or not.

The checks envisaged

"When we enter the cockpit among the various preliminary checks before taking off there is also that of controlling the flow of oxygen in the side masks", explains Daniele Veronelli, commander of A320 and member of the technical department of Anpac (National Association of Commercial Aviation Pilots) to the Courier. "You raise a door and test the air flow by pressing a button that pops out of the compartment. By operating the intercom you can feel the oxygen flowing because each mask is equipped with a microphone». If the crew is the first to set foot in the plane that day - he continues - "then this type of test is also carried out. If, on the other hand, you take over from your colleagues, the control is not provided, but nothing detracts from the fact that this is performed the same, it takes a few seconds».

 

Alarms

Are there oxygen signals on board? "When the levels drop, in one of the screens in front of the pilots the indication of the amount of oxygen is colored orange. If you are on the ground you do not take off, if you are in flight you have to decide whether to continue or divert to the nearest airport». The masks have a minimum of 15 minutes of autonomy. "There is a lever: if it is in the normal position the flow of oxygen is on demand. If, on the other hand, it is in the "emergency" position then it releases the air at a greater pressure to throw out of the mask the fumes that could enter in case of fire or smoke on board.

The tiredness of the pilots

In the document, among many things, there is a passage about pilots. Between 1.01 and 1.46 at night — when the aircraft passes between the coast of Croatia and over Athens, Greece — the technicians note, hearing the black boxes, that the commander and first officer show signs of fatigue. "A yawn is clearly audible at 1.01 and 53 seconds," it reads. Twelve minutes later "pilot and co-pilot clearly express that both feel tired from this night flight and lack of sleep." Same concept repeated at 1.46. But the documents compiled, the experts explain, "indicate that the rest times for both have been respected".

ICAO, the UN civil aviation agency, explains that it has not received any final report from Cairo. Bea, the investigative agency French, confirms the position expressed in 2018: for them the most likely hypothesis remains "a fire that broke out in the cockpit during the cruise phase that led to the loss of control of the jet".





sexta-feira, 15 de abril de 2022

NAVIGATING AROUND OTHER COUNTRIES THAT MAINTAIN BANS ON RUSSIAN FLIGHTS

 



Russian Roundabout: a long way to go for some expelled diplomats

Rotatória russa: um longo caminho a percorrer para alguns diplomatas expulsos

Source: FlightRadar24

 

ENGLISH

PORTUGUÊS

Earlier this week Spain and Greece expelled Russian diplomats from their capitals and Russia sent an aircraft to retrieve them. While Spain and Greece made a one-time exception for the aircraft to enter their airspace, the flights navigated around other countries that maintain bans on Russian flights. The total length of the flights was 15,163 km, just shy of the current world’s longest flight between Singapore and New York.

No início desta semana, Espanha e Grécia expulsaram diplomatas russos de suas capitais e a Rússia enviou um avião para recuperá-los. Enquanto Espanha e Grécia fizeram uma exceção única para a aeronave entrar em seu espaço aéreo, os voos navegaram ao redor de outros países que mantêm proibições de voos russos. A duração total dos voos foi de 15.163 km, pouco menos do voo mais longo do mundo entre Cingapura e Nova York.

 

 Moscow to Madrid

ENGLISH

PORTUGUÊS

The first leg of the journey took the aircraft from Moscow to Spain the very long way around. The flight needed to remain in international airspace except for its entry into Spain, more than doubling the great circle distance between the two cities.

 

A primeira parte da viagem levou a aeronave de Moscou para a Espanha no caminho muito longo. O voo precisava permanecer no espaço aéreo internacional, exceto por sua entrada na Espanha, mais do que dobrar a grande distância do círculo entre as duas cidades.

              Moscow—Madrid great circle distance

3,409 km

Moscow—Madrid actual distance

7,086 km

Madrid to Athens

 

ENGLISH

PORTUGUÊS

Departing Madrid, the Russian plane flew a direct course out of Spanish airspace and skirted North Africa and the Mediterranean coast, avoiding Maltese and Italian airspace. After crossing Libya in to Egypt, the flight turned north for an approach to Athens.

Partindo de Madri, o avião russo voou direto para fora do espaço aéreo espanhol e contornou o norte da África e a costa do Mediterrâneo, evitando o espaço aéreo maltês e italiano. Depois de cruzar a Líbia para o Egito, o voo virou para o norte para uma aproximação a Atenas.

 

Madrid—Athens great circle distance

2,383 km

Madrid—Athens actual distance

3,729 km

  

Athens to Moscow

 

ENGLISH

PORTUGUÊS

The flight home from Athens took the aircraft through mostly friendly airspace. Turkey has continued to allow Russian aircraft access, including commercial flights to Turkish destinations. Once out of Turkish airspace the flight continued east, avoiding the area of Russian airspace near Ukraine that has been off limits to most flights since the Russian invasion began at the end of February.

O voo de volta de Atenas levou a aeronave através do espaço aéreo mais amigável. A Turquia continuou a permitir o acesso de aeronaves russas, incluindo voos comerciais para destinos turcos. Uma vez fora do espaço aéreo turco, o voo continuou para o leste, evitando a área do espaço aéreo russo perto da Ucrânia que está fora dos limites para a maioria dos voos desde que a invasão russa começou no final de fevereiro.

 

             Athens—Moscow great circle distance

2,203 km

Athens—Moscow actual distance

4,348 km

ENGLISH

PORTUGUÊS

Additional countries have stated that Russian diplomats either will or could be expelled, so it is possible that we’ll see even more circuitous flights by Russia.

Outros países afirmaram que diplomatas russos ou irão ou podem ser expulsos, por isso é possível que vejamos voos ainda mais tortuosos pela Rússia.


domingo, 3 de abril de 2022

MU-5735 China Eastern Airlines - Demotion of five-star captain as first-officer or only as check airman flight

 



FLIGHT MU5735 China Eastern Airlines

by Winnie Han

 

Many aviation experts called the incident odd.

 

So far, there has been no official explanation for Zhang Zhengping’s demotion or why he was on that flight as a first officer.

Everything appeared normal except for the rank designation of the flight crew, mainly the first officer.

 

Gao Fei is a Chinese-American pilot with 26 years of flying experience and has a deep understanding of the culture and management in China’s aviation industry. He has piloted Boeing aircraft in both China and the United States, including the same model as the one that crashed.

 

On March 21, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) confirmed a China Eastern Airlines flight MU5735 carrying 132 people crashed in Wuzhou, Guangxi—southeast China. Five days later, on March 26, the Chinese authorities said that all 123 passengers and nine crew members were killed in the crash and that the two “black box” recorders were recovered on March 23 and 27, respectively, but in severely damaged condition.

 

Benjamin Berman

A former National Transportation Safety Board investigator.

He said that the 737-800 is designed so that it will normally not dive at such steep angles.

 

Yang Hongda, the captain of the crashed plane, was 32 years old with a total flight time of 6,709 hours, while Zhang Zhengping, the first officer, was 59 years old with a total flight time of over 32,500 hours. Zhang was also a five-star captain and a recipient of the Chinese pilot’s Medal of Honor.

 

The culture of the Chinese aviation industry, it is highly unusual for Zhang to still be ranked as a first officer when he has flown over 32,500 hours and worked for the same company his entire life. Furthermore, Yang was a student of Zhang.

 

December 2018

Zhang’s career, he was 40-year veteran pilot and a mentor to young pilots. Zhang is one of the few veteran pilots of China Eastern Yunnan Airlines and has piloted four different types of aircraft.

 

Zhang is a “CAAC designated check airman,” one of the highest positions to be given to a pilot.

 

Li Ming, an old apprentice of Zhang, said he was shocked and also saddened when he saw Zhang listed as a first officer on the crew manifest.

Somehow Zhang was demoted to a first officer, losing his decorated status and taking a significant hit on his salary,” Gao said, suggesting a potential cause for emotional distress and a safety hazard for the airline.

 

According to public information, the average annual salary of a captain or a check airman in China was at least $120,000, while a co-pilot’s average annual salary was about $46,000, a drastic difference.

 

All information regarding Zhang has now been removed from the official site.

 

Zhang was a senior pilot of the former Yunnan Airlines, which was later forced into a merger with China Eastern Airlines. After the merger, the former employees of Yunnan Airlines, including Zhang, had a highly complex relationship with the upper management of China Eastern Airlines.

 

Conflict between China Eastern Airlines and the Yunnan Branch

Government-forced merger in 2002

 

Merging a profitable company with a loss-making company was unprecedented.

 

Yunnan Airlines used to be one of China’s most profitable airline companies, and its pilots were fairly well-treated. However, the pilots have reportedly experienced significant salary cuts and poor treatment after the merger.

 

From March 31 to April 1, 2008, pilots of the former Yunnan Airlines launched a protest against the newly merged company. Many pilots refused to land at their destinations upon arrival, citing “bad weather,” and flew their planes back to their origins. After 21 flights refused to land, the company punished 13 pilots and grounded one captain. The report did not mention whether the company has improved its treatment of employees after the protest.

 

PSYCHOLOGIC CREW STATUS - DISTRESS

Demotion of a decorated pilot without a reasonable cause could seriously affect the pilot’s mental state and pose a safety hazard.

 

“In a free world, with Zhang’s qualifications, any airline will offer him a high salary. In the United States, pilots can easily change jobs, but job changes in China are highly restricted and usually coupled with huge fines,” said Gao.

 

Chinese pilots who apply for job changes usually have to go through a lengthy litigation process without guarantee of success or are forced to hand back a massive portion of their compensation.

 

In November 2014, 42 airlines in China signed the “Convention on the Orderly Flow of Airline Pilots,” a pact that stipulates that the outflow rate of pilots from each company should not exceed 1 percent.

 

In 2017, (name preserved) a former pilot of China Eastern Airlines’ Yunnan Branch, was sued by China Eastern Airlines for $864,000 due to his resignation request. In June 2019, the court ordered him to compensate China Eastern Airlines $604,800.

 

“The pilot’s mental state is an important aspect of the incident investigation. I analyzed it from the perspective of the [flight] crew’s designation. I hope the Chinese authorities can disclose the real investigation results and provide a reasonable explanation instead of [covering up facts],” Gao added.