airline ops

Airport worker killed in “freak accident”

By Dave English

The Daily Express newspaper reports today that an airport worker was killed in a “freak accident.” He was sucked into a jet engine. Or as human factors professionals calls it, a “normal accident”. An Air India official told The Hindustan Times: At the moment, we are absolutely clueless on how this person was near the aircraft. Only an inquiry can establish whose negligence it was and whether the engine should have been switched on at that time.   Comforting to know the negligence witch-hunt has started. Someone must be at fault. Wonder if any management or regulatory people will get blamed for … Continue reading Airport worker killed in “freak accident”

“We’ll get that straight when we get airborne”

By Dave English

It’s better to look a little stupid now, than a lot stupid later. The US NTSB has released full investigative notes on last year’s crash of US Airways flight 1702, an A320 taking off from Philadelphia International airport. We can learn a lot from this crash of a fully airworthy Airbus. It actually got into the air, and then the captain decided to force it back onto the runway. There was substantial damage. It departed the runway. I’m glad all 149 passengers and 5 crew exited the aircraft via emergency exits with no serious injuries. But the jet didn’t look good: Airline … Continue reading “We’ll get that straight when we get airborne”

Do you wear a watch?

By Dave English

Airplane owners always say “safety is number one,” but how many encourage us to not wear a watch? Captain Richard de Crespigny is a former military pilot, and was PIC of QF32, the A380 that suffered massive damage after engine #2 exploded. The quote is from his fantastic book, QF32.

Something about not using superior skills?

By Dave English

Theres’s an old saying that truly superior pilots are those who use their superior judgment to avoid those situations where they might have to use their superior skills. It’s a good saying. On 19 August 2013 a Buffalo Airways DC-3 with 21 passengers on board took off from the Yellowknife airport in Canada. Almost immediately the right engine burst into flames. The propellor didn’t fully feather, dragging the plane down. The pilot used great stick and rudder skills to circle the big tailwheel airliner around the pattern (circuit) and land. Landing was hard, the gear was still up, and they were 100 … Continue reading Something about not using superior skills?

Flying both the Boeing 747 & Edge 540

By Dave English

The essence of Inner Art of Airmanship is finding the core principles that makes good pilots great. Learning the techniques that are universal when flying a Piper Cub, an Airbus, or a helicopter. Paul Bonhomme is uniquely qualified to understand these issues, as he flies an Edge 540 in the Red Bull Air Races and a ‘day job’ at British Airways as a Boeing 747-400 captain. And it just so happens that they let him film three minutes of really cool video talking about their similarities: “There are lots of skills of flying both that are transferable. Mainly the managing … Continue reading Flying both the Boeing 747 & Edge 540