Regulatory & Other Items

On the taxi out 26 February 2007, after starting the right engine, the flight crew of the United Airlines B777 at Heathrow heard a low “growling” noise from below. What they didn’t know was that the unusual sound was of electrical arcing. The arcing dripped molten...

Withholding from the public information on wildlife strikes on aircraft would “deny independent researchers the ability to examine all available factors in the database and would make valid comparisons among airports and among some other entities impossible,” said the...

An urgent safety recommendation has been issued after two airliners had their engines starved of fuel because of ice in the fuel supply lines. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recommended 11 March 2009 to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)...

When it comes to the 24 March crash of the Federal Express MD-11F in Tokyo, the expression “three strikes and you’re out” comes to mind. The MD-11 has an unfortunate history of landing accidents, and two previous wipe out’s featured the airplane striking hard on the...

Obviously proud of it, the Federal Aviation Administrations (FAA) posted the Special Certification Review (SCR) of the Eclipse EA-500 aircraft prominently on its website. The document basically said the agency’s approval of the design was entirely proper. One has to...

Obviously proud of it, the Federal Aviation Administrations (FAA) posted the Special Certification Review (SCR) of the Eclipse EA-500 aircraft prominently on its website. The document basically said the agency’s approval of the design was entirely proper. One has to...

By Lyn Romano (Wife of Ray Romano, killed in the crash, and founder of the International Aviation Safety Association) Lyn and Ray Romano, obviously taken before Ray’s fatal flight. Nearly one decade ago, on 2 September 1998, Swissair Flight 111 crashed into the waters...

Date: 8 July 2008 To: House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure From: Gabriel D. Bruno Subject: Rebuilding the FAA The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure under Rep. [James] Oberstar’s [D-MN] leadership has created a rare window of...

Congress has stepped in and taken action to upgrade standards by which emergency medical service (EMS) helicopters are operated. The Congressional legislation goes a long way toward ending the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shilly-shallying over National...

When the airliner pulled up to the gate, the first indication that something was amiss came from a shock felt by the crew that ran through the plane at the same instant that a sign on the terminal wall illuminated the message “STOP.” As soon as the engines shut down,...