Safety

By David Learmount in London

US safety board wants FAA to develop training aids to help crew spot wing icing

Pilots should be given mandatory training in crew resource management and the recognition of wing contamination, the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says following the November 2004 Bombardier Challenger 601 fatal crash at Montrose, Colorado.

In new recommendations it also says full details about the owner and operator of all chartered flights should to be made available to the customer and passengers (Flight International, 27 June-3 July).

The accident happened when the aircraft went out of control just after take-off because of ice contamination of the wing upper surface, says the NTSB. Since this type of accident has happened several times in the past five years, the NTSB has recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration "develop visual and tactile training aids to accurately depict small amounts of upper wing surface contamination and require all commercial aeroplane operators to incorporate these training aids into their initial and recurrent training". The NTSB also wants the FAA to make crew resource management training compulsory "for all Part 135 on-demand charter operators that conduct dual pilot operations".

In its initial report on the Mon­trose accident, the NTSB says the Challenger "was registered to Hop-a-Jet, and operated by Air Castle Corporation doing business as Global Aviation Glo-Air Flight 73". After criticising the FAA's oversight of this business aviation sector, the NTSB is now calling for full disclosure to the customer and passengers - at the time a flight is chartered and when any subsequent changes occur - of "the name of the company with operational control of the flight, including any 'doing business as' names contained in the operations specifications, the name of the aircraft owner, and the names of any brokers involved in arranging the flight".

■ The Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada has ruled in favour of upholding Transport Canada's decision to cancel NexJet Aviation air operator's certificate. Transport Canada says: "The decision followed a review of the company's records relating to a number of suspensions and notices of suspension, regulatory offences and the company's inability to demonstrate operational control, including proper record keeping and aircraft maintenance."