[simpits-chat] Fwd: Fw: Flight Safety Information (06JAN03-006) (fwd)

Gene Buckle simpits-chat@simpits.org
Mon, 6 Jan 2003 10:08:16 -0800 (PST)


>Flight Safety Information (06JAN03-006)
>_________________________________
>
>*Stolen Plane Circling Over German City
>*German military jets circle Frankfurt over hijack
>*Stolen Plane Lands at Frankfurt Airport
>*Airliner Flew Close to Condo
>*Hawaiians: Jet Flew 30 Feet From Condo
>*Boeing 737, C404 collide over Namibia, land safely
>*Seattle Airport Concourses Evacuated
>*Sleeping screener forces evacuations at Sea-Tac
>*New Baggage Rules Create Few Problems
>*Today in History
>***********************************************
>
>Stolen Plane Circling Over German City
>
>FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - An armed man stole a small airplane from an
>airfield in western Germany Sunday, and police said he was threatening
to
>crash it in the city of Frankfurt.
>
>Several skyscrapers in the country's financial capital were evacuated as
a
>precaution, and streets cleared in the city. A helicopter was pursuing
the
>aircraft and trying to force it away from the city, Frankfurt police
said.
>
>The plane was stolen Sunday afternoon from an airfield at Babenhausen,
just
>to the southeast of Frankfurt, said Axel Raab, a spokesman for the
German
>air safety agency.
>
>The man threatened the pilot of the plane with a weapon, then took over
the
>controls and took off, Raab said.
>
>Frankfurt airport, continental Europe's largest airport, was running
>normally, although authorities were considering restricting traffic.
Raab
>said the man was seeking contact with CNN.
>*****************
>
>German military jets circle Frankfurt over hijack
>
>FRANKFURT, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Two German military jets circled the
financial
>capital Frankfurt on Sunday after an armed man hijacked a light aircraft
and
>threatened to crash into the tower of the European Central Bank,
witnesses
>said.
>
>A Reuters correspondent on the scene said the two jets were circling
over
>the city centre while the hijacked plane swooped among the city's
tallest
>buildings.
>
>A spokesman for air traffic control said the armed man forced a pilot to
>take off from Frankfurt's Babenhausen airfield at 2:55 p.m. (1355 GMT)
and
>had taken up contact with the Frankfurt airport tower, demanding to
speak to
>CNN television.
>
>CNN said it was a single-engine Cessna plane.
>*****************
>
>Stolen Plane Lands at Frankfurt Airport
>
>FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - A man who stole a small plane and threatened
to
>crash it into the European Central Bank in Frankfurt landed safely at
the
>city's airport, authorities said.
>
>Military jets had been scrambled after the small singel-engined plane
began
>circling over the center of the city, its red and white lights blinking
on
>and off in the darkness several hundred meters above the skyscrapers in
>Germany's financial capital.
>
>Earlier, in a call from his plane to news channel n-tv, the man had said
he
>didn't want to harm anyone, but intended to commit suicide once his fuel
ran
>out in about two hours.
>
>The main railway station and several skyscrapers in the country's
financial
>capital were evacuated as a precaution, and streets cleared in the
downtown
>area of the city.
>
>Police sent up a helicopter to try to force the plane away from the
city,
>while two military jets were seen roaring back and forward across the
>evening sky.
>
>The plane was stolen Sunday afternoon from an airfield at Babenhausen,
just
>to the southeast of Frankfurt, Axel Raab, a spokesman for the German air
>safety agency.
>
>The man threatened the pilot of the plane with a weapon, then took over
the
>controls and took off, Raab said.
>
>Frankfurt airport, continental Europe's largest, resumed flights
interrupted
>while the stolen plan was in the air. Air traffic controllers had been
in
>contact with the pilot.
>
>N-tv said the man had said he wanted to draw attention to the death of
an
>astronaut killed aboard the doomed U.S. space shuttle Challenger in
1986.
>*****************
>
>Airliner Flew Close to Condo
>
>(AP) Residents of a high-rise told federal authorities a China Airlines
>jumbo jet flew dangerously close to the side of their 41-story building.
>
>Ana Marie Vaisanen said she could see passengers inside the Boeing 747
as it
>swept past her 12th-floor condominium at Century Center Saturday
morning.
>
>"This roar became louder and louder and louder ... and I look out and
there
>is a 747," Vaisanen said.
>
>Some residents told television station KITV the plane came within 30
feet of
>the building and that one of its wings passed over the fourth-floor
>recreation deck.
>
>Building resident Sylvia Thomas was walking her dog when she looked up
and
>saw the jet.
>
>"It went behind the building and came out the other side," she said.
>
>Tweet Coleman, the Federal Aviation Administration's Pacific
representative,
>would only confirm witnesses reported a China Airlines 747 was involved.
>
>"We're doing an investigation on it, so I really don't have any
specifics at
>this time," Coleman said Saturday night.
>
>A call placed to the airline's office at Honolulu International Airport
>seeking comment went unanswered.
>
>At 350 feet, Century Center, a mixed retail-office-residential
condominium
>building, is one of the tallest structures in Hawaii.
>******************
>
>Hawaiians: Jet Flew 30 Feet From Condo
>
>HONOLULU (AP) - Federal aviation officials said a jumbo jet was slightly
>off-course when it approached Honolulu's airport but not enough to
>substantiate claims by high-rise residents that it flew dangerously
close to
>their building.
>
>The China Airlines Boeing 747 was less than a mile off course Saturday
>morning, said Allen Kenitzer, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation
>Administration.
>
>He said the plane flew over land when its normal course to Honolulu
>International Airport would have kept it over the ocean, but would not
>speculate why.
>
>There was no immediate response to calls seeking comment from the
airline's
>office at the airport. A recording said Flight 18 from Taiwan and Tokyo
>lands at the airport at 7:05 a.m. Saturdays.
>
>Kenitzer said the FAA's preliminary findings didn't match up with claims
by
>residents of a 41-story building near Waikiki that the airplane was
>dangerously close.
>
>Ana Marie Vaisanen said she could see passengers inside the 747 as it
swept
>past her 12th-floor condominium at Century Center at about 7 a.m.
>
>``This roar became louder and louder and louder ... and I look out and
there
>is a 747,'' Vaisanen said.
>
>Some residents told KITV-TV the plane came within 30 feet of the
building.
>
>Kenitzer said a full investigation, including an examination of air
traffic
>data, would likely take several weeks.
>
>At 350 feet, Century Center, a mixed retail-office-residential
condominium
>building, is one of Hawaii's tallest.
>*****************
>
>Boeing 737, C404 collide over Namibia, land safely
>
>(The Sunday Times) - Windhoek, Namibia -- A major midair disaster was
>narrowly avoided when an Angolan Boeing 737 passenger jet anda
twin-engine
>aircraft collided at 11 500ft near Windhoek the day after Christmas.
>Aviation experts say it is a miracle that the two aircraft did not
crash,
>killing all passengers and crew.
>
>The wing of a TAAG Boeing 737-200, with nearly 50 passengers and crew on
>board, sliced through the tail section of the 10-seater Cessna 404 after
>taking off and climbing out from Windhoek International Airport bound
for
>the Angolan capital, Luanda. The Cessna had earlier taken off from
>Windhoek's Eros municipal airport and was heading for Tsumkwe in the
>northwest of Namibia to collect a film crew. The pilot of the Westair
>Aviation Cessna, who was alone in the aircraft, managed to land safely
at
>Eros although 40% of the tail fin and rudder had been lost, with the
>right-hand elevator and tailplane suffering extensive damage. The wing
of
>the Boeing, which seats up to 128 passengers, was also damaged but it is
not
>known to what extent. Aviation authorities in South Africa have for
years
>been warning about the parlous state of air traffic control and
equipment in
>sub-Saharan Africa and the potential for a midair collision.
>
>In September 1997 two military transport aircraft, one American and the
>other German, collided at 35 000ft off the coast of Namibia, killing 33
>passengers and crew. Several foreign airlines fly to Windhoek, including
>SAA, SA Express, BA/Comair and SA Airlink. But what has shocked and
stunned
>the aviation industry is that the captain of the Angolan B737 continued
on
>his journey, landing at Lubango in Angola - about an hour's flying time
away
>- without returning to Windhoek to inspect the damage done to his
aircraft.
>"This verges on the criminal," said an SAA pilot who flies 737s. "The
>captain had no idea of the extent of the damage to his aircraft." The
>president of the Airline Pilots' Association of South Africa, Captain
Deryck
>Leathers, said this week that the actions of the TAAG crew were
tantamount
>to fleeing the scene of a crime. "The crew were irresponsible in not
>immediately returning to Windhoek to check the status of their damaged
>aircraft to ensure the safety of their passengers," Leathers said,
adding
>that the association's warnings of a looming disaster in Africa more
than
>five years ago had largely fallen on deaf ears. "What we need to do now
is
>get on with the inquiry into the collision and take the necessary action
to
>remedy the causes." The pilot of the Cessna, Rolf Traupe, described his
>experience this week: "I saw a flash of orange [the Boeing's nose
section]
>out of the corner of my eye. "I did not feel any impact and thought the
jet
>had just missed me. But then I heard the Angolan pilots complaining
about
>damage to their wing. I knew then they had hit me." Traupe said he felt
the
>turbulence of the Boeing buffet his aircraft, which began to vibrate. "I
>reduced speed to maintain control of the aircraft, and because I could
not
>see the extent of the damage, I thought it was minor as the aircraft was
>flying quite normally." However on returning to Eros, Traupe was stunned
>when controllers informed him that "there's nothing left of your tail".
>Westair chief executive Wolfgang Grellmann said it was a miracle that no
one
>was killed. "This was as close as anyone can get to a tragedy without
>costing lives," Grellmann said. "It is an extremely cheap lesson for our
>aviation authorities.
>
>For years there have been calls to authorities to upgrade infrastructure
but
>nothing happens. This could so easily have been a 737 and a 747."
Grellmann
>said faulty radio equipment in the tower at Windhoek, which is not
equipped
>with radar, might have been part of the problem. "I know that Rolf
called
>them several times asking them to change frequency as he was only
hearing
>every third word or so, but the tower did not comply, for whatever
reason."
>He added that the TAAG crew might have had similar problems. "The Boeing
was
>climbing through 11 500ft and both pilots must have been looking down at
>their instruments not to have seen the Cessna. I can only assume
therefore
>that they did not know it was in the vicinity." Grellmann added that
Westair
>had heard nothing from TAAG. "I received a call this week from Luanda
from a
>man claiming to be a military pilot wanting to know the fate of the
Cessna.
>He would not leave a name or number. I think he might have been a crew
>member on the 737." An inquiry has been launched by the Accident
>Investigation Branch of Namibia's Ministry of Transport. Tapes of
>conversations between air traffic controllers and the pilots concerned
have
>been impounded.
>**************
>
>Seattle Airport Concourses Evacuated
>
>SEATAC, Wash. (AP) - Four of the five concourses at Seattle-Tacoma
>International Airport were evacuated Sunday, delaying thousands of
>post-holiday travelers, because a security screener fell asleep at his
post.
>
>Security personnel checked the concourses, some with explosive-sniffing
>dogs, said Bob Blunk, Transportation Security Administration director
for
>the airport.
>
>``There's no indication anything happened. It's just that somebody fell
>asleep,'' airport spokesman Bob Parker said.
>
>The screener, discovered napping at about 6 a.m., apparently was asleep
for
>eight to 30 minutes, Parker said. The concourses were reopened about
8:10
>a.m.
>
>The screener was stationed at the exit from one of the stations on the
>underground train system linking the terminals.
>
>No decision had been made on action against the employee, Blunk said.
>
>Twenty-three incoming flights were delayed, Parker said. Sea-Tac
averages
>about 80,000 passengers a day during the holidays, he said.
>*****************
>
>Sleeping screener forces evacuations at Sea-Tac
>
>SEATAC -- Thousands of post-holiday travelers were delayed Sunday at
>Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after a screener for the
Transportation
>Security Administration was discovered asleep at his post.
>
>"There's no indication anything happened. It's just that somebody fell
>asleep," airport spokesman Bob Parker said.
>
>The federal TSA decided to evacuate all but one of the airport's five
>concourses in case there had been a breech while the screener slept.
>Security personnel checked the concourses, some with explosive-sniffing
>dogs, said Bob Blunk, TSA director for the airport.
>
>The screener -- discovered napping at about 6 a.m. -- apparently was
asleep
>for between eight and 30 minutes, Parker said. Shut-down concourses were
>reopened about 8:10 a.m.
>
>As for the employee who fell asleep, Blunk said there will be an
>investigation before any decision is made on repercussions.
>
>"It's a very serious matter," he said.
>
>About 23 incoming flights from 19 cities were delayed -- placed in
holding
>patterns before they were allowed to land, Parker said. The airport
averages
>about 80,000 passengers a day during the Christmas-New Year's holidays,
he
>said.
>
>The delay's biggest impact was on passengers trying to make a connecting
>flight at another airport -- passengers like attorney Tim Acker, headed
home
>to Mexico. Once Acker realized he was going to miss his connecting
flight
>from Los Angeles to Mazatlan, he decided to spend another night in
Seattle.
>
>Acker believes courtesy at airports is suffering because of security. "I
>think the whole U.S. security system needs to take a lesson in manners,"
he
>said.
>
>Sea-Tac's B concourse, which is separated from other airport concourses,
>remained open during the security check. As a result, Parker said, the
>airport was able to get some flights out and some flights in during the
>evacuation.
>
>The screener was found asleep at the exit from the airport's north
satellite
>train station. Underground trains link the airport's "satellite"
terminals.
>
>The delay caused everything from resignation to frustration among
passengers
>as they herded back through security checkpoints.
>
>"They need to streamline the security procedure," said Tim Goldstein of
>Kirkland. "I hope this never happens again."
>
>Gene Matt, who was seeing his daughter off to Dartmouth University in
New
>Hampshire, said he got trapped in a crowd and could not move.
>
>"The polite folks got stuck," he said.
>
>Airport workers with megaphones directed passengers to various lines,
some
>trying to mollify the anxious crowd with humor. "Please don't kill me in
the
>rush," said one worker. "I'm only a small one."
>
>Terry Sinclair, who was seeing his daughter off to Boston and travels a
lot
>himself, shrugged off complaints about the delay.
>
>"It's one of the better organized airports," he said. "We in Seattle
don't
>realize how good we have it."
>******************
>
>New Baggage Rules Create Few Problems
>
>CHICAGO (AP) - Knowing holiday travelers would be putting the country's
new
>airport baggage-screening system to its first big test, Robert Chesniak
gave
>himself 90 minutes to check his luggage Sunday at O'Hare International
>Airport.
>
>That was about 85 minutes more than he needed.
>
>``That wasn't bad at all,'' said Chesniak, 53, after a security worker
wiped
>his bags with a sheet of material designed to pick up traces of
explosive
>chemicals for analysis in a detector device.
>
>Around the country, air travelers had much the same impression on what
was
>expected to be the heaviest travel day since Jan. 1, when a
Congressional
>order went into effect requiring that every checked bag at more than 400
of
>the nation's commercial airports be screened for explosives.
>
>``It wasn't nearly as bad as we were led to believe it was going to
be,''
>said Roger Burlingame, who was traveling from Chicago to Phoenix. ``A
piece
>of cake,'' said his wife, Marni.
>
>Spot checks Sunday at several of the nation's airports showed no major
>delays caused by the new security measures.
>
>``It's about the same as before,'' said Richard Blackwell of
Gainesville,
>Ga., who watched as screeners at Atlanta Hartsfield International
Airport
>opened and inspected a sealed box of stereo equipment before a flight to
>Florida.
>
>At the international terminal for Northwest Airlines at John F. Kennedy
>International Airport in New York, passengers waited up to 30 minutes
longer
>than usual while their bags were sent through giant screening machines
and
>workers ripped open taped boxes and rifled through their contents before
>closing them up again.
>
>The Transportation Security Administration, in charge of the screening
>process, said it was braced for a busy day, helping things to run
smoothly.
>
>``We were prepared for it. We have been getting prepared for it for
several
>months,'' TSA director of communications Robert Johnson said. ``The work
all
>came together.''
>
>The TSA hired 56,000 employees to man the airports, including 23,000
baggage
>screeners and 33,000 passenger screeners, Johnson said.
>
>Most travelers simply accepted the intensified screening, developed
since
>the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
>
>Before the attacks, only 5 percent of the roughly 2 million bags checked
>each day were screened for bombs. The federal government put an
additional
>23,000 screeners into airports to implement the new order that no
checked
>bag be allowed through without verification that it contains no
explosives.
>
>``It may add a few minutes, but I think it's worth it,'' said Trina
>Frandsen, who checked a cardboard box and large suitcase at Kennedy for
a
>flight home to Salt Lake City.
>
>``Maybe they could send me through that and I could get rid of that MRI
>appointment I have,'' Linda Johnson joked as she watched her luggage
roll
>slowly into the bomb-detection machine at O'Hare before her flight to
Los
>Angeles. The machine checks the density and chemical makeup of items
inside
>each bag and alerts to anything unusual.
>
>Jack Dunnigan, of Natick, Mass., watched his daughter check in for a
flight
>from Boston's Logan Airport to Florida.
>
>``The more they (inspectors) do, the better I feel,'' he said.
>
>Sonny Salgatar, a 23-year-old college student flying home to San Diego
from
>O'Hare, watched as security workers sent his bags through a bomb
detection
>machine twice - the second time because they'd put the wrong tags on
them
>the first time.
>
>After that second pass, a screener told Salgatar one of his bags was
>``hot,'' meaning there was something he couldn't identify and he wanted
to
>open the bag for an inspection.
>
>The ``hot'' item turned out to be Salgatar's clothing iron.
>
>``Listen, anything they want to do for security is OK with me,''
Salgatar
>said.
>
>On the Net:
>
>Transportation Security Administration: http://www.tsatraveltips.us
>*****************
>
>Today in History:
>
>Date of Accident: 06 January 1972
>Airline: SAESA
>Aircraft: Hawker Siddeley HS-748
>Location: Chetuma, Mexico
>Registration: XA-SEV
>Fatalities: 23:23
>MSN: 1598
>Accident Description: The aircraft crashed after the pilots reported an
>inflight fire.
>*****
>
>Date of Accident: 06 January 1969
>Airline: Allegheny Airlines
>Aircraft: Convair CV-440
>Location: Bradford, Pennsylvania
>Registration: N5825
>Flight Number: 737
>Fatalities: 11:28
>MSN: 386
>Accident Description: The aircraft crashed during a low visibility
>non-precision approach due to an improper altimeter setting.