Fixing stuffs right on the B777!

AIR ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION BRANCH OF U.K RECCOMENDS THAT THE SEAT BACK TELEVISION SETS OF B 777 SHOULD BE FIXED MORE SECURELY

By David Millward: 09 Feb 2010

It was discovered that ice had accumulated at the face of the Fuel Oil Heat Exchanger- where oil is cooled down and fuel warmed up.

The danger was disclosed by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch in its latest report into the British Airways Boeing 777 which crash landed at Heathrow in January 2008.

Investigators confirmed their previous conclusions that the accumulation of ice in the fuel supply was responsible for the aircraft losing power on its descent to the airport.

In this report they turned their attention to the crash worthiness of the plane itself, after examining the wreckage following the incident in which 34 passengers and 12 cabin crew suffered minor injuries.

They discovered that nine out of 32 televisions in the premium economy cabin detached from the seat as a result of the impact when the plane, carrying 136 passengers, landed on the grass ahead of the runway having just cleared the perimeter fence.

Although nobody was injured as a result of being hit by a television set, investigators concluded that they could cause head injuries and also obstruct passengers during an emergency evacuation.

Investigators also called for modifications to the design on cabin lighting on the Boeing 777 - of which there are around 1,000 currently in service.

This followed evidence from passengers who said that there was a fog of particles in the air after the lighting shattered.

Testing showed that it was possible to break the tubes, leaving those on board running the risk of being injured by broken glass.

The AAIB said Federal Aviation Administration in the United States and the European Aviation Safety Agency should order Boeing to take steps to avoid this by, for example, installing covers over the light tubes themselves.

Investigators also voiced concern about the landing gear which failed to completely detach itself from the fuselage on impact as should have happened to prevent part of the equipment puncturing the fuel tank.

They recommended Boeing redesign the landing gear to prevent it puncturing the fuel tank - which could lead to an explosion - in the event of another crash landing.

In this case the pilot was unable to reach the runway at the end of a flight from Beijing because first the right and then the left engine failed, because of a blockage in the fuel system.

It was discovered that ice had accumulated at the face of the Fuel Oil Heat Exchanger - where oil is cooled down and fuel warmed up.

The ice had accumulated from water which occurred naturally in the fuel during the flight.

But, according to the AAIB, plane safety requirements at the time did not take into account the risk of ice accumulating in fuel was not considered.

Source : http://www.telegraph.co.uk

Now that Boeing is there...how can Airbus be left behind!
Airbus changes order platform for unauthorized design changes

Feb. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Airbus SAS has been banned since September by European aerospace safety authorities from delivering commercial aircraft with seats made by a Japanese contractor embroiled in a probe of unauthorized design changes.

The Cologne-based European Aviation Safety Agency withdrew its production organization approval for Koito Industries Ltd. last year, saying the Yokohama-based company was no longer a trustworthy manufacturer and wasn't sharing enough information with European clients, EASA spokesman Daniel Holtgen said.

"Our withdrawal of the POA is what I would describe as an emergency measure," Holtgen said today in a telephone interview. EASA's directive applies to all Airbus planes, even if they are flown outside Europe, Holtgen said.

Koito will have to fix about 150,000 passenger seats in some 1,000 commercial airliners owned by 32 airlines after the company falsified test results and made unauthorized design changes, Japan's transport ministry said today.

Neither EASA nor U.S. Federal Aviation Administration have issued rulings directing airlines to take action. Japan's transport ministry doesn't have authority to order carriers in the U.S. or Europe to make changes to existing planes without airworthiness authorities in those regions backing up the order.

Working with Japan

The FAA is aware of the issue and is working closely with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau to determine any impact on the U.S. fleet, spokeswoman Laura Brown said in an e-mail.

Airbus said five aircraft set to be handed over have been affected by the EASA directive. Four are awaiting seats from manufacturers other than Koito. Singapore Airlines Ltd., which has an A380 held up, is waiting for resolution of the issue and hasn't sought seats from other makers, the airline said.

Airbus informed customers last year whose delivery schedules were directly affected by the ban, and the Toulouse, France-based company is working with the carriers to find alternative solutions, spokesman Stefan Schaffrath said.

Airline fleets worldwide include 130 Airbus aircraft with Koito seats, equal to just more than 2 percent of the manufacturer's entire fleet, according to the company.

"We're working very closely with the JCAB and the FAA and our customers to make sure that seats are fully compliant to JCAB and FAA regulations," said Beverly Holland, a spokeswoman for manufacturing and quality at Boeing Co. Holland said she didn't immediately have available numbers on how many Boeing planes are flying today with seats furnished by Koito.

Neither Airbus nor Boeing released names of airlines that fly with Koito seats or that have suffered delays. All Nippon Airways Co. was forced to push back introduction of new Boeing 777 aircraft on its Narita-New York route because of the Koito.

Japan's transport ministry gave an oral warning to Koito last year after Japan Airlines Corp. received seats covered in a material that wasn't certified by the authorities. Seat material is important to help prevent the spread of fires in aircraft.

EASA said in a statement yesterday that it is "concerned about irregularities" at Koito, and that it is evaluating evidence from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau.

Source: http://www.businessweek.com