Number 15 – 22 February 2021

As severe criticism mounts on the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA), so too does the speculation of its own Cessna Citation ZS CAR crash. Sputla Lekalakala is miserable, because more than a year after losing his wife in a plane crash, the SACAA has no final accident report; largely because the Cessna was the regulator’s own plane. Lekalakala and others affected must now wait for the verdict of an Ethiopian forensic team. Although the interim report that was published within the mandatory 30 days of the accident clearly indicated that the pilot flying the plane suffered from special disorientation and he entered a typical graveyard spiral dive. This report was the outcome of the investigation by the French Accident Authority that produced the flight path taken from the aircraft’s Flight Data Recorder, which survived the accident.

There is much more to this accident, whilst questions about the qualifications of the ‘captain’ and his suitability to be conducting airport calibration flights have been asked. However, at this stage I will refrain from making statements, until such time as the Ethiopian Accident Investigation is complete.

The February edition of African Pilot is complete and has also been completely distributed. This edition features Piston engine aircraft over 650 Kg as well as the piston engines and propellers that drive piston aircraft. At 280 pages, the February 2021 edition has set a new record for aviation publishing not only in South Africa, but for the entire world. As you examine the varied content, beautiful pictures and outstanding layout, you will also appreciate that there is no other aviation publication that supplies as much to its readers anywhere. This edition also includes the most recent aviation news from all over the world as well as historical aviation features. 

The feature of the March edition will be Turboprop aircraft, turboprop engines and propellers. This feature will also include information about the many aftermarket enhancements available for turboprop aircraft types. As you will notice with ALL editions of African Pilot, we publish important aviation news, historical aviation features as well as news from the Experimental and Space sectors. There is no other African Aviation or International Aviation publication that provides as much information together with superb pictures to its audience.

The April edition will feature Business Jets, FBOs and Jet engines worldwide. We will also feature those companies involved in the Charter and Maintenance of Business Jets not just in southern Africa, but throughout the world. In the past, advertisers have reported excellent reaction resulting in sales due to the African Pilot aircraft features, since the magazine provides genuine information, not just cover to cover advertising with little editorial content. We are offering all Business Jet and Jet Engine sales representatives the advertising opportunities to accompany this specific feature.

Wallpaper calendar for the months of January and February

Since we are not printing the paper magazine any longer, African Pilot is making digital calendars available to all its readers. We will be releasing a new one each month. Examples  are January and February to download, print or use as your computer’s background wallpaper. Go to our website to download the calendars in three different resolutions.

There is no doubt that African Pilot provides the finest overall aviation media reach in Africa.
We are positioned to provide professional video and stills photography, website development, social media platforms, company newsletters as well as several other important media services to our customers.

The monthly magazine is available as a digital edition where ALL advertisers enjoy the direct routing to their websites at a touch on a smart phone or tablet as well as a click of the mouse on a computer screen or tap on any smart phone device. 

Then of course this APAnews service has been part of African Pilot’s line-up since the inception of the magazine 20 years ago.

Website: www.africanpilot.co.za
Facebook: facebook.com/AfricanPilot
Twitter: twitter.com/africanpilot
Instagram: www.instagram.com/african_pilot_/

Over the past few weeks, I have received several e-mails asking for my assistance to place aviation friends in contact with service providers or to supply important information to assist them with answers within aviation. Understandably, I am not an expert in many aviation subjects, but via African Pilot’s considerable media reach including APAnews, I can assist to provide people with answers as who to contact for the respective inquiries. Please note that this is yet another FREE service to anyone in aviation and all you need to do is contact me via e-mail: editor@africanpilot.co.za.

Wouter Botes’ E-book on Flight to Nowhere is available by visiting www.africanpilot.co.za and click on the button provided on the home page. We have provided an option for payment of R60 per download on the page.

Date: Thursday, 25 February 2020

Time: 19h00

The Covid-19 pandemic has been with us for more than a year and 2021 started off with more aircraft accidents than in the past. Now is the time to discuss ways to prevent accidents and to ensure mental fitness prior to taking flight, ensuring all safety measures are in place for your flight. The 2020 / 2021 theme for Safety First Aviator Campaign is Prop Clear with this webinar’s focus on COVID-19 creating a ‘Perfect Storm’ leading to aircraft accidents.

It brought about a lot of uncertainty, stress, anxiety, and fatigue during lock down, as well as a lack in competencies, aircraft on the ground, maintenance and support issues. Everything is a bit rusty. So, what now? How do we as pilots make a difference? Resilience through compliance!

Join us for this informative webinar where Cobus Toerien (ALPA-SA), Santjie White (South African Search and Rescue), Lauren Smith (South African Weather Service) and Keith Cunningham (MayDay-SA) will delve into the challenges, solutions to give pilots guidance for Safety and Compliance during these uncertain times. Franz Smit, from Pilot Insure will moderate the webinar.

Some points that will be discussed:

• My Safety Culture
• My ‘Rules and Regulations’ for Safe Flight
• Mental fitness and Wellbeing during and after the Perfect Storm
• ARCC Tips for combatting the Covid-19 storm
• What is resilience for aviators
• How I can build/improve my own resilience (eight steps)  

FREE WEBINAR REGISTER NOW

Marlene Bosch: Marlene.bosch@za.messefrankfurt.com or 084 622 3931

Annelie Reynolds: Annelie.reynolds@za.messefrankfurt.com or 083 308 1251

The AeCSA Centenary Yearbook is now available to purchase from the online shop. Please visit www.aeroclub.org.za/shop.

The following report crossed my desk this past week:

Plans to convert Heidelberg aerodrome to an Airport City kicked off when the aerodrome was officially handed over to MTP Aviation Solutions on 12 February. Executive mayor of Lesedi Local Municipality (LLM) Councillor Lerato Maloka opened the proceedings and said that LLM is proud to partner with MTP Aviation Solutions who comes with a vast amount of experience in developing aviation solutions.

The project worth approximately R7-billion was labelled the biggest investment in the Sedibeng District.

“Lesedi is a town of potential and the airport development is part of the emerging focus of LLM to take the municipality forward and to create job opportunities, specifically for the people in Sedibeng and Lesedi,” Maloka said. This year is marked phase one of the project and will mostly involve planning. It is expected that phase two will continue to 2025. The development of the airport includes a runway, passenger terminals, cargo solutions, Category 9 H and S Tower and a trade zone aimed at import and export through cargo. Sedibeng and the West Rand were marked as growth areas of the future.

Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition Fikile Majola also attended the event and spoke about the importance of winning the fight against COVID-19. “When the project commences, we must be healthy and ready to appoint people from our local community,” Majola said.

“The Heidelberg Airport project is a top-class infrastructure development to invest in the economy of Heidelberg and is committed to local job creation.”

Petko Atanassov, chief executive officer at MTP Aviation Solutions, presented to guests the proposed plans and phases of the project and confirmed that the current private aviation management will continue to form part of the airport. During a media briefing, he was asked about the BBE status of the company and he answered that MTP Aviation Solutions is not a BBE company due to the number of international investors.

“We are proud to partner with the Heidelberg community and come with years of executive experience in aviation projects and solutions. We are committed to recruiting local people for the duration of the project. The Heidelberg Airport will secure local job creation for at least 20 years, especially during these times”, Atanassov concluded.

Lesedi Municipality ’acted on its own’ to award R7bn aerodrome tender

The Gauteng provincial government has assured provincial political parties that it had no role in the awarding of the R7 billion Aerodrome Project, saying the Lesedi Local Municipality ignored treasury regulations and allegedly invited competitive bidders to apply for the project, which had no business plan. This was the shocking revelation made by Oupa Seabe – chief executive of the Gauteng Infrastructure Financing Agency (Gifa) under the provincial Ministry of Finance.

Seabe also said that the action of the Lesedi Local Municipality’s officials ‘was irregular’ and the Gifa did not want to be part of that project because they knew it would result in a bad product. Reacting to Seabe’s revelation, Gauteng DA’s spokesperson on finance, Adriana Randall, said it was concerning as it meant that the entire Aerodrome Project was illegal, considering the Lesedi Local Municipality decided to defy the council resolution on the Memorandum of Understanding with the Gifa. “In addition, the municipality did not follow the Public Private Partnership regulations as set out by the National Treasury. No transaction adviser was appointed or registered for the project with the National Treasury. The views of the National Treasury were also not solicited for this project.

“No feasibility studies as required have been conducted for this project, but a 60-year lease has already been awarded to MTP Aviation Solutions, who received a letter via WhatsApp to inform them that they have been successful in tendering for this project,” Randall said. She said if the project was ‘disposed of’ via the Municipal Transfer Regulation process, then the process was just as flawed, since only seven of the eight requirements of these regulations’ requirements have been met thus far, yet the project was already handed over to MTP during a function last Friday (February 12). “For any municipal property transfer contract exceeding 10-years, a Notarial Contract is required, and the council must approve of such draft agreement. To date no such draft agreement has been served before council either.

Editor comments

Clearly once again the ANC government at ALL levels does not appear to understand its own rules and regulations especially with respect to ‘good governance’. Some years ago, a similar project was announced when some consortium was going to develop an airfield near Delmas, but nothing came of this plan. The fundamental issue is that cargo must be flown from hub to hub or from hub to a point. Cargo arrives at OR Tambo International Airport and is then flown in the bellies of passenger aircraft to points all over South Africa. The reverse happens when cargo is flown from points (the smaller towns and cities) back to OR Tambo and on to the international destinations. Of course, Cape Town and Durban are the other hubs in South Africa, but I cannot see Heidelberg working as a cargo or passenger terminal ever. For some years Airlink tried to use Wonderboom for its Pretoria to Cape Town direct flights, but this also failed mainly because Wonderboom is not a major hub.

The South African government has short-listed three potential strategic equity partners (SEPs) for South African Airways (SAA). The decision will be made next month or so to select the preferred partner,” according to public enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan. Gordhan told Bloomberg TV that the newly appointed interim board of SAA was engaging with the bidders before the government would make its decision. As per CH-aviation, DPE has engaged Rand Merchant Bank as the transaction advisor after receiving about 30 expressions of interest. SEP could be expected by March this year, following the expected conclusion of the business rescue process by the end of February.

SAA has been in administration since December 2019. It has not flown commercially since South Africa went into COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020. Few news reports have named Fairfax Africa Holdings, Ethiopian Airlines as interested parties. However, Ethiopian’s CEO Tewolde GebreMariam said the airline was not interested in taking on SAA’s debt, or in injecting cash into the airline.

Meanwhile, SAA’s administrators have confirmed to ch-aviation that they have to date received R7.8 billion ($540.7 million) of the R10.5 billion ($727.2 million) in state aid to implement SAA’s rescue plan. Of this, they received R5 billion ($346.6 million) on 12 February. The business rescue process has been delayed by legal battles as trade unions NUMSA, SACCA and SAAPA cumulatively launched at least four applications against the administrators over the past year.

6 & 7 March
Sport Aerobatic Club Judges Trophy Venue TBA 
Contact Annie Boon E-mail: chunge@mweb.co.za

12 & 13 March
Bethlehem Aero Club event TBA
Contact Stephan Fourie E-mail: fouriesj1491@gmail.com Cell: 072 344 9678

16 March
Aero Club of South Africa AGM venue TBA
Contact Rob Jonkers E-mail: rob@aerosud.co.za Cell: 082 804 7032

19 and 20 March
FASHKOSH airshow at Stellenbosch airfield
Contact: Anton Theart E-mail: gm@stelfly.co.za Cell: 079 873 4567
Postponed indefinitely

22 to 25 March
HAI Helicopter Association International La Nouvelle New Orleans Los Angeles USA
Contact E-mail: rotor@rotor.org
Cancelled for 2021 – rescheduled for 2022

24 April
EAA South Africa at Middelburg Airfield AGM details to be announced

24 & 27 April
Aero Club Airweek at Middelburg Airfield
Contact Rob Jonkers E-mail: rob@aerosud.co.za Cell: 082 804 7032

27 to 29 April
MRO Americas, Orlando Convention Center, Orlando, USA.
Website: www.mroamericas.aviationweek.com
Contact Jennifer Roberts +1.917.699.6231
E-mail: Jennifer.roberts@aviationweek.com

27 April
SAPFA Middelburg Speed Rally at Middelburg Airfield
Contact Jonty Esser E-mail: jonty@promptroofing.co.za Cell: 082 855 9435

Air Côte d’Ivoire, Ivory Coast’s flagship carrier based in Abidjan, has taken delivery of its first A320neo, becoming the first operator of the type in the West-African region. This latest generation aircraft will join Air Côte d’Ivoire’s existing Airbus fleet of six aircraft. This new aircraft will be deployed on Air Côte d’Ivoire’s regional network to serve Senegal, Gabon and Cameroon. Destinations like South Africa will be added at a later stage, highlighting the operational flexibility of the A320neo. Powered by CFM Leap-1A engines, the aircraft is configured in a comfortable two-class layout with 16 seats in Business and 132 seats in Economy Class. The aircraft took off from Toulouse carrying one ton of humanitarian goods including medical equipment and toys. In partnership with Aviation sans Frontières and the Airbus Foundation, the mission is part of Air Côte d’Ivoire’s corporate social responsibility initiative. The transported goods will serve local NGOs in Abidjan, thus supporting the education and health sector in the country. Air Cote d’Ivoire has a fleet of ten aircraft, including three A319s and three A320s, serving 25 domestic and regional destinations in West and Central Africa.

On 16 February Safomar Aviation said a second group of pilots from the Botswana Police Service Air Support Branch have arrived in South Africa for their Enstrom 480B Helicopter Pilot Type Conversion Training course. They are flying Enstrom 480B registration BPS-12, the second of three helicopters to be delivered to the Botswana Police Air Support Branch. The first (BPS-11) was delivered in November 2020 and is already in operation in Botswana. The pilot training for this project is being facilitated by Safomar Aviation Operations along with aircraft maintenance engineer training which was facilitated by Mega Aero Training Academy. Both training companies are members of the Safomar Aviation Group of Companies.  The new helicopters have been customised to the Botswana Police Service specifications and include navigation and communication equipment, cargo slinging and light emergency medical systems. Apart from specialist police duties, the aircraft can be quickly configured for the passenger role and carry three to five people.

On Saturday 20 February debris from the right engine rained down over a square mile of Denver after its engine exploded of a United Airlines Boeing 777 that took off from Denver destined for Honolulu. Local police said they were ‘staggered’ no one on the ground was injured or even dead. Local investigators arrived at different addresses to see huge metal objects strewn across lawns, whilst some of the debris landed on houses. The Boeing 777-200, which was carrying 231 passengers and 10 crew, diverted back to Denver and a ‘textbook’ emergency landing back at Denver followed. Audio of the pilot’s distress mayday call to air traffic control was released on Saturday afternoon: “Three twenty-eight, heavy, experienced engine failure. We need to turn,” the pilot is heard saying in distress call calling Mayday several times, whilst he asked air traffic control for permission to turn the aircraft around towards the left immediately. The engine exploded at 15,000 feet as the plane was climbing and terrified passengers watched a fire rage below the aircraft’s wing. The image above was taken by a passenger on board. It shows the damaged engine as seen from inside the cabin. In recent years, several United Airlines flights needed to be diverted due to mishaps and maintenance malfunctions. United Airlines, the third largest airline in the world, employs some 86,800 employees that operate 721 aircraft. In a statement, United Airlines said that the cowlings of the engine were the pieces that fell off. ‘Our pilots followed all necessary protocols to safely land the aircraft. The aircraft taxied to the gate and passengers deplaned normally.’

Another bad week for helicopter accidents in South Africa. On Thursday 18 February Gazelle helicopter ZU RLD had a take-off accident at Lichtenberg. From at least two videos posted of this helicopter lifting off from a trailer, it appears that the pilot rushed the entire process and he was not comfortable flying this machine which appeared to be always ahead of him. Although seriously damaged with the tail rotor sliced off, fortunately the pilot was not injured in this take-off sequence.

Apparently as a result of an engine failure, the pilot performed an autorotation, but the hard landing caused the main rotor to sever the tail of the helicopter. Fortunately, there was no fire and the pilot walked away from this accident. Well done to the pilot, because the outcome could have been much worse.

On Tuesday 16 February an Air Tractor crop sprayer appeared to have a forced landing in a cultivated field in the Kroonstad region. Although the aircraft is pretty smashed up, fortunately it came to rest upright and the pilot was not hurt. 

A pilot and his co-pilot escaped serious injuries when their light aircraft crashed through the roof of a building in Union Park, Alberton on Sunday afternoon. Shortly after 14h00, paramedics from ER24, Gauteng Provincial EMS as well as other rescuers attended the scene. Upon their arrival, they found the light aircraft hanging nose down through the roof of a building. Both occupants were still inside of the aircraft. Fire and rescue services used a forklift and a cage to bring the two men to the ground. Both managed to climb out of the aircraft through a window. The two were assessed on scene and found to have sustained no serious injuries. They were later transported to a nearby hospital by ER24 and Gauteng Provincial EMS respectively. The exact circumstances surrounding the incident is not yet known. It is understood that the men were flying from Bloemfontein when the incident occurred. Local authorities attended the scene and will investigate.

Officials have confirmed that a fifth person on the manifest for a helicopter flight over St. Thomas was not aboard the aircraft when it crashed on Monday afternoon, killing the pilot and three passengers. The crash occurred at around 15h15 on Monday in Botany Bay and emergency responders from a variety of local and federal agencies were on the scene within minutes. Eyewitnesses said the helicopter dropped quickly and crashed into the bush and rescuers fought through dense brush to reach the downed aircraft.

While territorial officials have not yet released the names of the four victims, their identities were becoming widely known as the community mourned their loss on Tuesday. Rodriguez was extensively familiar with the aircraft, area, and flight-related conditions. In 2017, Rodriguez, the co-owner of Caribbean Buzz Helicopters and Caribbean Buzz Management, was named Helicopter Association International’s Appareo Pilot of the Year in recognition for her contributions to relief efforts following hurricanes Irma and Maria. She was the first woman in at least a decade to win the award. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transport Safety Board are investigating the crash.

A patrol of two Dassault Rafale fighter jets belonging to the 4th Fighter Squadron of the French Air Force took off from Saint-Dizier Air Base for a low-altitude flight training. As they flew by the village of Castellet, east of the French Riviera, one of the aircraft cut three medium voltage lines. The cables started a fire which was quickly extinguished by local firemen. However, the incident resulted in a power outage that lasted for about four hours. The aircraft involved in the collision carried out an emergency landing at the nearby Orange-Caritat Air Base. No injury or other damage than the cables were reported. An investigation was opened by the French Air Force to determine the causes of the incident, which it deemed ‘very rare.’

On 9 January 2019, two Mirage 2000D fighter jets of the Fighter Squadron 1/3 Navarre took off from Nancy-Ochey 133 Air Base, in the east of France, for a low altitude flight training mission over the Jura Mountains. Ten minutes into their training, one of the fighters hit the ground near the village of Mignovillard. The pilot attempted to eject, but too late. Both he and the navigator were killed on impact. The investigation concluded the crash was due to the spatial disorientation of the crew.

After suffering an in-flight hydraulic failure an Air India Express Boeing 737 made an emergency landing at Trivandrum International Airport (TRV), India. The incident occurred on 19 February 2021. Air India Boeing 737, registered as VT-AXX, was operating a regular flight from Sharjah (SHJ), the United Arab Emirates to Kozhikode (CCJ), India. The Boeing 737, which had 104 passengers on board, when the flight crew made an instant decision to land at Trivandrum International Airport (TRV). Once the Boeing 737 landed and switched off its engines, the passengers were transported to the security hold area of the airport. Meanwhile, the jet has been parked in the remote bay for maintenance engineers to check. The passengers were ferried from TRV airport to the final destination at Kozhikode airport a few hours later by another Air India Express jet.

On Thursday, the NASA rover streaked through the orange Martian sky and landed on the planet, accomplishing the riskiest step yet in a quest to bring back rocks that could answer whether life ever existed on Mars. Ground controllers at the space agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, leaped to their feet, thrust their arms in the air and cheered in both triumph and relief on receiving confirmation that the six-wheeled Perseverance had touched down on the red planet, long a death-trap for incoming spacecraft. “Now the amazing science starts,” a jubilant Thomas Zurbuchen, NASA’s science mission chief, said at a news conference, where he theatrically ripped up the contingency plan in the event of a failure and threw the document over his shoulders.

The landing marks the third visit to Mars in just over a week. Two spacecraft from the United Arab Emirates and China swung into orbit around Mars on successive days last week. All three missions lifted off in July to take advantage of the close alignment of Earth and Mars, journeying some 300 million miles in nearly seven months. Perseverance, the largest and most advanced rover ever sent by NASA, became the ninth spacecraft since the 1970s to successfully land on Mars, every one of them from the US. The car-size, plutonium-powered vehicle arrived at Jezero Crater, hitting NASA’s smallest and trickiest target yet: a five X four-mile strip on an ancient river delta full of pits, cliffs and rocks. Scientists believe that if life ever flourished on Mars, it would have happened three billion to four billion years ago, when water still flowed on the planet.

The six-wheeled vehicle came to rest about two kilometres from towering cliffs at the foot of a remnant fan-shaped river delta etched into a corner of the crater billions of years ago and considered a prime spot for geo-biological study on Mars. The robotic vehicle sailed through space for nearly seven months, covering 293 million miles (472 million km) before piercing the Martian atmosphere at 12,000 miles per hour (19,000 km per hour) to begin its descent to the planet’s surface.

Moments after touchdown, Perseverance beamed back its first black-and-white images from the Martian surface, one of them showing the rover’s shadow cast on the desolate, rocky landing site.

Because it takes radio waves 11 minutes to travel from Mars to Earth, the SUV-sized rover had already reached Martian soil by the time its arrival was confirmed by signals relayed to Earth from one of several satellites orbiting Mars. The spacecraft’s self-guided descent and landing during a complex series of manoeuvres that NASA dubbed ‘the seven minutes of terror’ stands as the most elaborate and challenging feat in the annals of robotic spaceflight.

The landing represented the riskiest part of two-year, $2.7 billion endeavour whose primary aim is to search for possible fossilised signs of microbes that may have flourished on Mars some three billion years ago, when the fourth planet from the sun was warmer, wetter and potentially hospitable to life.

Scientists hope to find biosignatures embedded in samples of ancient sediments that Perseverance is designed to extract from Martian rock for future analysis back on Earth, the first such specimens ever collected by humankind from another planet. Two subsequent Mars missions are planned to retrieve the samples and return them to NASA in the next decade, in collaboration with the European Space Agency.

On Thursday aerospace giant Airbus announced a loss of Euro 1.1 billion for 2020 and warned that the industry cannot recover from the disruption caused by the epidemic for two to four years, as new virus variants travel around the world. The world’s largest plane maker ended its dividend for the second straight year and the company’s chief executive, Gilliam Fourie, said the levelling in delivery of its popular commercial jet had stopped. “As of today, we only expect the market to recover between 2023 and 2025,” Mr Fourie said. “The pace of recovery will depend not only on the rate of epidemics and vaccination, but also on the decision of governments, if they choose to tighten the epidemic situation or, as I expect, restore independence,” he said.

Airbus delivered 566 aircraft to airlines in 2020, 40 percent less than before the epidemic. In an indication of how badly the air travel was affected, some airlines avoided answering Airbus’ calls to inform them of the new aircraft they had ordered before the epidemic was ready, Mr. Fourie said. Given the uncertainty, Airbus will not deliver the aircraft this year, but plans to deliver the same type of aircraft as it did in 2020. Airbus factories have about 100 ready-made jets sitting on demand. Down from a peak of around 145 last year. Investors were not happy with the update. Airbus shares fell three percent in early trade.

Despite disappointingly short-term forecasts, Mr. Fourie said the company would continue to ramp up for substantial changes in future business based on a new generation of carbon neutral airlines, which it is designing and sometime in this decade Hopes to unveil. Weighing on the company’s finances were a 1.2 billion Euro charge associated with more than 11,000 layoffs made last year, as well as 385 million euros in costs associated with the termination of its A380 Super Jumbo Jet.

Boeing is emptying out its Renton corporate campus at the former Longacres horse-racing track, preparing it for sale. This is the headquarters of the local Commercial Airplanes division. The emptying out of the headquarters, where more than 1,000 people worked before the pandemic, is a clear sign that Boeing is preparing the site for sale. The 215-acre complex in Renton, built 30 years ago on the site of the former Longacres horse-racing track, has two major buildings with 855,000 square feet of office space, set in a spacious landscape of trees and manicured lawns.

In the latest blow to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner programme, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is set to publish an Airworthiness Directive (AD) that would mandate checks on over 200 Boeing 787 aircraft. Following ‘reports of multiple incidents’, the FAA will mandate ‘repetitive inspections’ of the forward and aft cargo areas of the 787 belly, according to a yet-to-be-published AD, first seen by Cirium. Operators will have to check for disengaged or torn decompression panels. If any damage would be found by airlines, the panels will need to be replaced or reinstalled. According to the administration, if the decompression panels are disengaged or torn, they pose a safety risk. If a fire breaks out in either of the cargo areas, a leak in the bilge could result in insufficient Halon, which is a gas used to extinguish fires, concertation to prevent a significant fire outbreak. Inspections of the decompression panels will cost operators $56,610 per inspection and would need to be done by the end of March 2021. Inspections would need to be repeated within 120 days. The latest AD would add to significant issues the Boeing 787 programme has faced throughout 2020. “Based on what we know today, we anticipate that we will unwind the vast majority of these aircraft during 2021 and are working with our customers to facilitate this,” commented Greg Smith, the Chief Financial Officer at Boeing, during the company’s 2020 results earnings call.

The Russian Air Force intercepted a flight group of three military aircraft from the French Air Force over the Black Sea on 17 February 2021. “Two Su-27 fighters from the Southern military district took off on alert to identify ‘aerial targets’ and prevent a violation of the Russian state border,” announced the Russian Defence Ministry. “The Russian fighter crews identified the air targets as being a group of French Air Force planes, made up of a KC-135 tanker and two Mirage 2000 tactical planes.” The three aircraft did not enter the airspace of the Russian Federation.

On Tuesday, a man who attacked and threatened to kill a flight attendant last year was ordered by a federal court to repay the nearly $50,000 it cost to divert the plane to Anchorage and accommodate more than 200 passengers on board. Seksan Kumtong (52) had been acting strangely since boarding a United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Narita, Japan, in February 2020, Brenden Ryan, an FBI special agent in Anchorage, wrote in an affidavit supporting a criminal complaint. Crew members decided to cut him off from receiving alcoholic beverages and he fell asleep in his seat for a period of the flight, the affidavit said. After he awoke, he became agitated when he was denied another drink, according to the affidavit. The agitation gave way to violence and the affidavit said Kumtong struck a flight attendant in the face and pulled her to the ground. “I will kill you,” he shouted at the flight attendant, along with other obscenities, the affidavit said.

Kumtong, who is from North Hollywood, California, has suffered from uncontrolled diabetes for years, his attorney, assistant federal defender Sam Eilers, said in a sentencing memorandum. When combined with alcohol consumption, that can lead to “severe hypoglycemia and consequent combativeness,” Eilers wrote. He said the reaction in this case was not an excuse but does partially explain why Kumtong acted so violently.

The flight was diverted to Anchorage and vouchers were provided for meals and hotel stays to the airplane staff and 214 passengers on board, according to a sentencing memorandum filed by Assistant US Attorney Charisse Arce. In total, the diversion cost $49,793. During a sentencing hearing on Tuesday morning, Judge Timothy Burgess said that “this is more than just an expensive inconvenience to everybody on that flight, but there is actually a real victim in this case that has suffered physical consequences for his conduct.” The flight attendant has lasting medical conditions as a result of the assault, he said. Kumtong pleaded guilty in November to a charge of interference with flight crew members and attendants. As Burgess sentenced Kumtong to the five years of probation, he acknowledged the role the pandemic played in the decision: Kumtong is especially vulnerable to COVID-19 because of his diabetes and serving a sentence in a prison would put him at risk because the virus spreads rapidly in congregate facilities and Alaska’s correctional facilities have been hit hard by the pandemic. Kumtong will also pay back the $49,793 in restitution.

NASA has given the University of California, San Diego $5.8 million to help develop electric-powered flying taxis, a form of ride sharing that has been envisioned for decades but is struggling to get beyond the concept stage. UCSD will lead a group of universities and companies in creating software tools to design small fleets of vertical takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft that are quieter, safer, cleaner and more efficient and affordable than helicopters. Customers would go to conveniently located taxi stands, where they could hail a ride with a smartphone app and join other passengers in getting quickly transported significant distances in areas where ground traffic is often congested. Some taxis might be pilotless, flying automated, preset routes.

Air taxis also could shuttle riders between places like San Diego International Airport and such outlying cities as Oceanside and Escondido. A “90-minute ground commute to a downtown workplace could be reduced to a 15-minute air taxi flight,” said John Hwang, a UCSD mechanical and aerospace engineering, said in a statement. Hwang is leading the research team, which includes UCSD engineer Shirley Meng, one of the USA’s foremost battery experts, as well as collaborators from San Diego State University, UC Davis, Brigham Young University, Aurora Flight Sciences and M4 Engineering. UCSD’s new NASA grant expresses a different outlook, saying that engineers are going to have to do everything from improve eVTOL battery technology to make the taxis quieter than helicopters and ensure that they will not suffer catastrophic problems while flying over urban areas

The New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority is welcoming the conviction on 18 February of a recreational drone pilot at the Manukau District Court over a ‘deceptively dangerous’ 2018 mid-air collision between his drone and a trainee paraglider at Karioitahi Beach near Waiuku. The conviction follows Judge Mina Wharepouri finding the man guilty in October 2020 on two charges under the Civil Aviation Act 1990 over his drone being used in a manner causing unnecessary endangerment and for failing to keep clear of a manned aircraft. In his judgement, Judge Wharepouri found the drone operator had been overly reliant on the view from his drone’s camera and failed to maintain visual line of sight of the drone when he hit the paraglider about 100 metres above the ground. The CAA’s Deputy Chief Executive Aviation Safety, Dean Winter, says it is fortunate the paraglider pilot was not killed or seriously injured in the collision and he hopes this case serves as a wake-up call to other drone users. This prosecution was the first in New Zealand over a collision between a drone and manned aircraft. It demonstrates the CAA’s commitment to take occurrences involving the dangerous use of drones seriously, particularly when there is a threat to other aircraft or people on the ground below. The drone pilot was convicted and fined $1000 on two charges:

• Operating a drone in a manner that caused unnecessary endangerment pursuant to s44 of the Civil Aviation Act 1990.
• While operating the drone, failed to give way and keep clear of a manned aircraft as required by Civil Aviation Rule 101.213(a).

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Until Thursday, please be ‘Serious about flying’.

Athol Franz (Editor)