Flight Safety Information - October 3, 2024 No. 197 In This Issue : Incident: United B752 at Denver on Oct 2nd 2024, hydraulic failure : Incident: Firefly AT72 at Kuala Lumpur on Oct 3rd 2024, smoke in cabin : Incident: Ryanair B38M at Milan on Oct 1st 2024, all main tyres damaged on landing : The FAA cleared United Airlines after a major review into a slew of incidents, including a plane losing a tire as it took off : Southwest flight to Denver forced to return to Sacramento airport after reported malfunction : Ryanair Boeing jet evacuated after flames shoot out of engine before taking off : USACRC launches new mishap prevention tool for aviation safety officers : FAA Flags Non-Conforming Leap-1A Seals For Replacement : Cebu Pacific finalises order for 70 Airbus A321neo aircraft : This September, let's end childhood cancer. Together. : Calendar of Events Incident: United B752 at Denver on Oct 2nd 2024, hydraulic failure A United Boeing 757-200, registration N12125 performing flight UA-2307 from Denver,CO to Lihue,HI (USA), was climbing through about FL280 out of Denver when the crew decided to return to Denver due to a hydraulic failure. The aircraft landed safely back on Denver's runway 34R about 40 minutes after departure. A passenger reported the captain announced they had a hydraulic failure associated with a number of other failures including some autopilot functions. https://avherald.com/h?article=51e79513&opt=0 Incident: Firefly AT72 at Kuala Lumpur on Oct 3rd 2024, smoke in cabin A Firefly Avions de Transport Regional ATR-72-212A, registration 9M-FYG performing flight FY-1424 from Kuala Lumpur to Penang (Malaysia), was climbing out of Kuala Lumpur's runway 15 when the crew stopped the climb at about 4300 feet reporting smoke in the cabin. The aircraft returned to Kuala Lumpur for a safe landing on runway 15 about 20 minutes after departure. The airline reported an extraction fan failure caused the air conditioning system to overheat which produced the smoke in the cabin. https://avherald.com/h?article=51e791c1&opt=0 Incident: Ryanair B38M at Milan on Oct 1st 2024, all main tyres damaged on landing A Ryanair Boeing 737-8 MAX, registration EI-IGI performing flight FR-846 from Barcelona,SP (Spain) to Milan Bergamo (Italy), landed on Bergamo's runway 28 but burst a number of main tyres causing damage to all main tyres. The aircraft came to a stop on the runway and was disabled. According to emergency services the runway was damaged over a distance of 450 meters/1500 feet, too. https://avherald.com/h?article=51e63eb4&opt=0 The FAA cleared United Airlines after a major review into a slew of incidents, including a plane losing a tire as it took off The FAA found no "significant safety issues" after a six-month safety review into United Airlines. The review followed several safety incidents like a tire falling off a `Boeing 777 during takeoff. It had resulted in United delaying the opening of new routes. United Airlines has received the green light from regulators after a six-month safety review. "The FAA finished its Certificate Holder Evaluation Program (CHEP) of United Airlines. The review did not identify any significant safety issues," the FAA said in a statement shared with Business Insider. It had started scrutinizing United Airlines after a string of safety incidents. In March, a Boeing 777 lost a tire shortly after takeoff, as captured in a video by a plane spotter. A car in the parking lot below was crushed. The next day, a United Boeing 737 Max rolled off the runway and onto the grass at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport. And the week after, a 737 landed in Oregon when it was found to be missing an external panel. Later that month, a memo was sent to United employees noting that the FAA would review "some of our work processes, manuals, and facilities." Sasha Johnson, a vice president of corporate safety at United, added: "As part of this effort, the FAA will also pause a variety of certification activities for a period of time." Bloomberg reported that the FAA was also considering more drastic actions like preventing United from adding new flight routes. Amid the safety probe, United delayed the start of two new international routes in April, Reuters reported. The United incidents occurred not long after January's Alaska Airlines blowout, when a Boeing 737 Max lost a door plug in midair — sparking concerns about quality control at the planemaker. Given that United is one of Boeing's biggest customers, the safety incidents mostly involved Boeing jets and, therefore, prompted broader media coverage. However, all were older jets — unlike the Alaska incident that involved a plane delivered just 66 days earlier — pointing to maintenance problems rather than manufacturing defects. Aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia told Business Insider's Taylor Rains in March, "If it's an older jet like a 737NG, it's very definitely a maintenance issue." "There's still a possible reputational impact to Boeing, but maintenance is up to airlines and third-party providers," he added. United Airlines declined to comment when reached by BI. https://www.yahoo.com/news/faa-cleared-united-airlines-major-105948992.html Southwest flight to Denver forced to return to Sacramento airport after reported malfunction A Southwest Airlines flight on its way to Denver Tuesday morning was forced to return to Sacramento for a reported nosewheel steering malfunction on the passenger plane. Southwest Flight 4687 departed from the Sacramento International Airport at 9:09 a.m. on its way to Denver International Airport, according to FlightAware. Soon after, a reported nose gear issue forced the Boeing 737 jet, tail number N969WN, to turn around over Somerset in El Dorado County, according to FlightRadar24. The plane returned and landed in Sacramento about 40 minutes after departure. Scott Johnson, a spokesman for the county’s airport system, confirmed the plane landed safely without any further problems. He said crews were checking out the plane. Ashley Bain, a Southwest Airlines spokesperson, said Flight 4687 returned safely to Sacramento after receiving a maintenance indication. Bain said the airplane was taken out of service, and passengers boarded onto another plane Tuesday to their destination in Denver. Southwest Flight 4687 was now scheduled to depart Sacramento at 11:47 a.m. Tuesday for its two hour and 35 minute flight to Denver, according FlightAware. https://www.yahoo.com/news/southwest-flight-denver-forced-return-174610823.html Ryanair Boeing jet evacuated after flames shoot out of engine before taking off A Boeing jet with nearly 200 people onboard was evacuated in Italy early Thursday after flames were seen shooting from an engine. Firefighters were called to Brindisi Airport as fumes were spotted outside the Ryanair plane just before takeoff, with photos showing flames around the left engine. All 184 passengers on the Boeing 737 were evacuated from the smoking plane safely, the airline said. A Boeing jet with nearly 200 people onboard was evacuated in Italy early Thursday after flames were seen shooting from an engine. “Flight FR8826 from Brindisi to Turin was delayed this morning after cabin crew observed fumes on the outside of the aircraft,” Ryanair said in a statement. Ryanair plane tires explode during landing at Milan airport: ‘You could smell the burning rubber’ A man in a wheelchair alongside a man in a suit Airline forces disabled war correspondent to crawl to bathroom on plane because it bans wheelchairs “Passengers were disembarked without incident and returned to the terminal by bus.” Brindisi Airport, located in the southeastern region of Puglia, closed for some time after the incident but had reopened by late morning. All 184 passengers on the Boeing 737 were evacuated from the smoking plane safely, the airline said. Ryanair said it planned to use a spare aircraft to fly affected passengers to Turin. In a statement to Italian media, the airport said the closure was “necessary” for the safety of travelers. “The problem, which occurred when the aircraft was already aligned at the head for take-off, required the evacuation of passengers via emergency slides,” the airport said. “The problem, which occurred when the aircraft was already aligned at the head for take-off, required the evacuation of passengers via emergency slides," the airport said. “The problem, which occurred when the aircraft was already aligned at the head for take-off, required the evacuation of passengers via emergency slides,” the airport said. “All operations were carried out with maximum safety for passengers and crew.” The terrifying incident comes two days after the tires of a Ryanair plane exploded as the aircraft landed in Milan. Passengers could smell the burnt rubber as the plane encountered a bumpy landing, but no one was injured. https://nypost.com/2024/10/03/world-news/ryanair-boeing-jet-evacuated-after-flames-shoot-out-of-engine-before-taking-off/ USACRC launches new mishap prevention tool for aviation safety officers FORT NOVOSEL, Ala. -- The U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center launched a new tool today to help aviation safety officers (ASOs) prevent mishaps by providing an Aviation Analytics Dashboard that provides timely, comprehensive information to ASOs at all levels. The USACRC Aviation Analytics Dashboard is available to all ASOs from the brigade level to the company level to help them manage their safety programs by accessing mishap prevention data within their units, according to Lt. Col. Sean M. O’Connell, USACRC division chief of Aviation Analysis and Prevention. The dashboard uses an emerging technology to break down relevant information from Class A-C aviation mishaps from over the past few decades in a user-friendly format that allows users to drill down into statistics to identify trends by airframe, unit, location, time frame, causes, events and more, O’Connell said. While ASOs have access to Army Safety Management Information System (ASMIS) mishap reports already, the process of breaking it down to what is relevant to their missions requires a great deal of effort, he said. The dashboard turns a project that might take hours or days into a matter of just a few clicks. “This new approach shares information on these mishaps in a visual format that is easy to understand and use. The ASO can tailor their searches by selecting multiple parameters and viewing the results before exporting that information for reports,” O’Connell said. “Users can choose multiple aviation data points, as the dashboard correlates the mishap data to easily identify where mishaps are occurring and trending. Further, the dashboard will sort and filter mishap events from highest occurrence to lowest, displaying where they need to focus risk-mitigation measures. ASOs can access the latest and most accurate mishap data (counts and rate calculations) to brief in their safety standardization council meetings to their commanders to identify risks and apply resources to mitigating them.” The intent is to empower ASOs with a tool to perform early analysis for mishap prevention and provide commanders a common operating picture where they can see timely stats and mishap details, just as the USACRC staff is able to see throughout the Army, according to Dana R. Brewer, analyst in Directorate of Analysis and Prevention (DAP) Aviation. “We use it daily here at the USACRC to answer internal and external RFIs from the field, and we feel that ASOs will benefit greatly from having it available to them. “We’ve already done the (necessary) analysis to interpret the data,” he said. “And now, we are able to share that knowledge with the end user. The USACRC will provide ASOs access through a private MS Teams channel, which will afford them access to this dashboard tool.” The USACRC Aviation Analytics Dashboard leverages Microsoft Power BI to display the information for ASOs in an easily understandable format, Brewer added. Once it is launched, ASOs need to visit the Aviation section of the CRC website at https://safety.army.mil/ON-DUTY/Aviation to gain access to the new tool. Once their credentials are verified, they will be able to access the dashboard through an MS Teams channel. “We’ve even created a mobile application that provides the user an option to view the dashboard from anywhere through a secure Power BI mobile application, using Windows, iOS, or Android GFE phones,” he said. “The data in the system is sanitized to comply with the use, sharing and release of safety information as prescribed in Department of Defense Instruction 6055.07.” Even though the application is user friendly, there will be support available from the USACRC Training and Education Directorate to train new ASOs. Those already in the position will have access to a training video and user tips to help to navigate the application and find the mishap analytics summary, Brewer said. USACRC leadership is excited to make the Aviation Analytics Dashboard available to ASOs and feels it is a valuable tool in preventing mishaps in Army Aviation. “It’s a huge leap forward in the way that we deliver analytics – it hasn’t been done before,” Brewer said. “It is going to be incredibly beneficial to ASOs in their efforts to preserve readiness and prevent loss of equipment and personnel through mishap prevention.” https://www.army.mil/article/280153/usacrc_launches_new_mishap_prevention_tool_for_aviation_safety_officers FAA Flags Non-Conforming Leap-1A Seals For Replacement A 2022 CFM Leap-1A in-flight engine shutdown traced to non-conforming parts has prompted the FAA to plan mandatory replacements of the affected components based on the manufacturer’s recommendations. The agency’s proposed fix is replacing the affected parts, high pressure turbine (HPT) rotor interstage seals, at the next engine shop visit, a draft rule published Oct. 2 said. A “shop visit” involves separating “major mating engine flanges” for maintenance, the FAA said. The draft directive is based on a CFM service bulletin issue in June. The swaps must be done before the parts reach their design limits of 11,100 cycles since new for commercial operators, or 9,700 cycles since new for engines on corporate jets. CFM’s recommended fix does not reduce the life limits. “We expect the vast majority of the seals to be replaced during already-planned shop visits, minimizing disruption for our customers,” CFM said in a statement. The company said about 500 seals are affected and about 25% have been removed from service. The problem was discovered during the probe of a May 19, 2022, in-flight engine shutdown involving an Air India Airbus A320neo near Mumbai. A final Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) report on the incident published in late 2023 said CFM narrowed down the non-conformance to “inadequate peen coverage” during the shot-peening process used to make metal parts more resistant to cracking and fatigue. “While CFM determined the root cause to be specific to a single supplier of this part, the company has implemented corrective actions with all suppliers of this part,” the company’s statement said. Information in the DCGA report refers to the supplier as “Paradigm.” The incident engine had accumulated 6,596 cycles since new and 3,242 since its most recent shop visit when the seal failed, the DGCA report said. The issue only affects Leap-1As that power some A320neo-family aircraft. The FAA draft rule said the seal failed due to a combination of two issues: the part’s non-conforming surface and friction-related stress. “Ground inspection following the event found that several low-pressure turbine blades had broken and metal had entered the exhaust,” the draft rule said. “A manufacturer investigation later determined that the aft arm of the HPT rotor interstage seal had failed due to a non-conforming surface condition in the fillet area coupled with higher-than-expected operating stress due to friction.” https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/safety-ops-regulation/faa-flags-non-conforming-leap-1a-seals-replacement Cebu Pacific finalises order for 70 Airbus A321neo aircraft Cebu Pacific has finalised an order for 70 A321neos initially announced in July Cebu Pacific, the Philippines' leading airline, has placed a firm order with Airbus for 70 A321neo aircraft, finalising a memorandum of understanding (MoU) initially announced in July. The purchase agreement was signed in Manila by Mike Szucs, CEO of Cebu Pacific and Benoît de Saint-Exupéry, Executive Vice President of Sales at Airbus' Commercial Aircraft division. Cebu Pacific currently operates 61 A320-family aircraft across its extensive regional network. Additionally, the airline flies nine A330 wide-body aircraft on high-density routes within the region and to destinations in the Middle East. Following this latest order, Cebu Pacific's backlog with Airbus now includes 94 A320neo-family aircraft and seven A330neo. The A321neo is the largest member of Airbus' A320neo family, providing unmatched range and performance. Equipped with new-generation engines and Sharklets, the A321neo delivers a 50% reduction in noise and more than 20% savings in fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions compared to previous-generation single-aisle aircraft. It also offers enhanced passenger comfort, featuring the widest single-aisle cabin in the sky. https://avitrader.com/2024/10/03/cebu-pacific-finalises-order-for-70-airbus-a321neo-aircraft/ CALENDAR OF EVENTS • DEFENCE AVIATION SAFETY 2024 - 2 OCTOBER - 3 OCTOBER 2024 - LONDON • International Congress of Aerospace Medicine ICAM 2024 in Lisbon, Portugal, 3 - 5 October 2024 • Aviation Health Conference back on Monday 7th and Tuesday 8th October 2024 • Safeskies Australia Conference, Canberra Australia - 16th and 17th of October 2024 - www.safeskiesaustralia.org • 2024 NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition - Oct. 22-24 (Vegas) • Sixth Edition of International Accident Investigation Forum, 21 to 23 May 2025, Singapore Curt Lewis