Passenger accidentally activates ejector seat

The Telegraph report a story on a tricky and not uncommon design problem - that of a safety-critical control that needs to be very quick and easy to access, without it ever being activated acidentally. A novice aviator took off for a joyride with an experienced pilot from South Africa's Silver Falcons air display team, and got a free parachute ride. During an aerobatic manoeuvre, the flier accidentally pulled on the black and yellow emergency handle between his legs, activating two rockets attached to the back of the seat. The seat and occupant were sent through the jet's perspex canopy and 100 metres into the sky. The lever is fitted as standard in the Pilatus PC-7 Mk II jets. The man floated back down to Earth on a parachute as the South African Airforce bosses scrambled a helicopter to pick up the passenger near Langebaanweg airfield, 80 miles north of Cape Town. Source: Telegraph, 1 November 2009. tinyurl.com/yk76k95

Report highlights Chicago air traffic controller fatigue

Air traffic controllers at Chicago O'Hare International Airport have too little time off between shifts, according to a federal audit released Thursday. The report by the U.S. Department of Transportation criticised the Federal Aviation Administration for not acting sooner to alleviate air traffic controller fatigue at three of the country's busiest air traffic control facilities and recommended immediate changes. The audit showed most controllers at the three Chicago ATC facilities have had fewer than 10 hours rest between some shifts, progressively earlier start times on consecutive shifts and increased overtime hours. "This type of work schedule offers minimal opportunity for sleep when the time required for commuting, eating and other necessary daily activities is taken into account," the report said. The report stated that the FAA has failed to act on earlier National Transportation Safety Board recommendations on controller fatigue and that the agency "does not consistently address human factors issues, such as fatigue and situational awareness" in incident investigations. Source: Associated Press, 2 July 2009. tinyurl.com/neesfg

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Naked safety video aims to get attention

Human factors research has shown that passengers often fail to watch airline safety demonstrations because they feel they have seen them before. Well, Air New Zealand have a video that is unlikely to have the same turn-off effect, featuring a pilot and cabin crew dressed only in body paint made to resemble their normal uniforms. The video is upbeat and perky, with crews' private parts obscured by carefully positioned oxygen masks, life jackets, seat belts and luggage. According to the Telegraph, the "Bare essentials of safety" clip and a similar television advertisement introduced six weeks ago, have had passengers glued to their mini television sets. A copy of the au naturel briefing has been posted on YouTube, attracting over 3.8 million hits to date. It would be interesting to see the retention rate and emergency performance among flyers, compared to that of flyers after viewing a more staid production. Source: Telegraph, 2 July 2009. tinyurl.com/kuoc4k

Human factors 'emerge as trend' in air crashes

Reuters report that Bill Voss, president of the U.S.-based Flight Safety Foundation, has stated that "human factors are emerging as a worrisome trend in global air crashes and other incidents as fatigue, complex flight systems, inconsistent training and regulation pose new challenges to airlines". Voss reportedly told industry and government officials that 2009 could be the worst year in a decade for major commercial aviation accidents. There have been 12 crashes this year through June and carriers globally are on pace to equal the 10-year high of 24 crashes in 1999, according to safety foundation figures. "We've seen an increase in loss of control," Voss said of reported in-flight mishaps linked to turbulence or other unexpected situations that usually do not result in crashes. "We're back in the human factors business," according to Voss. Source: Reuters, 30 June 2009. tinyurl.com/nb255j

From input error to near disaster at Melbourne airport

An Emirates flight EK-407 from Melbourne to Dubai narrowly avoided disaster, with 275 people on the Airbus jet. On the flight deck, the first officer and the captain fed routine information, including the plane's weight and fuel load, into a computer. The procedure was for them to check each other's work to avoid mistakes. The first officer opened the throttles and headed down runway. As the first officer tried to ease the aircraft off the runway, the jet stayed grounded. On a second attempt, the nose came up — but the jet's rear repeatedly hit and dragged along runway, puncturing the skin of the jet, tearing off a panel and breaching the air pressurisation. Eventually, at the end of the runway, the jet began climbing. But it was still too low, hitting a runway light, then antenna equipment on the ground, and scraping the grass. With seconds to spare, the jet climbed and finally reached a safe height. The pilots dumped most of their fuel over the bay and, with smoke in the cabin, the plane was given emergency clearance to land. When the pilots checked their instruments they spotted the potentially fatal mistake. Before take-off, their fuelled-up jet weighed 362 tonnes. But they had accidentally keyed in 262 tonnes, resulting in too little engine power. Only the captain's rapid reactions averted a disaster. Source: Sydney Morning Herald, 01 May 2009. tinyurl.com/kjd3r2
Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/storm-crypt/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

How to survive a plane crash

Two experts offer some tips. Ed Calea, Professor of mathematical modelling at the University of Greenwich in London: keep your footwear on during climb and descent; sit close to an exit; sit by the aisle; seat your family together; practise releasing your seat belt; know where the exit is; and practise the brace position. According to Amanda Ripley, author of 'The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes – And Why': take the lead - don't just sit there; listen to the safety briefing; near the exit, take responsibility and prepare to throw the exit door out; educate yourself on why the safety procedures are life-saving; and realise accidents are survivable, and that what you do can make the difference - an active, engaged, confident outlook about your role in the situation is very powerful. Source: Guardian. http://tinyurl.com/bnewa2

Aviation safety still on course

The Turkish Airlines crash is thankfully a rare occurrence in Europe. The European Aviation and Safety Agency report three in 2007, and six in 2006, with a decade average of six fatal air accidents per year, against a trend of increasing traffic. Only five per cent of worldwide fatal air accidents involved European carriers last year. "Take a million flights and the likelihood of being involved in a fatal accident anywhere in the world is still just 0.79 per cent." Source: Times. http://tinyurl.com/d67tp6
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