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Aviation History
1997
1997 - 0036.PDF
FOitSQIkim Safety DAVID LEARMOUNT/LONDON APOOR YEAR FOR civil-aircraft acci dents in 1996 has helped to pave the way for further international pressure to be applied during 1997 on those areas of the world where air-safety standards are seen to be in need of improvement. The argument is that the law of diminishing returns dictates that safe airlines/nations can make only small improvements in safety by employing progressively more sophisticated methods. Those nations which suffer a dispro portionate number of serious accidents relative to their air-transport activities, could make far greater improvements by the application of rel atively simple measures. Momentum towards this is now developing as individual pressure groups at national and international level recognise that their efforts, Ariane 5 is set for a July launch often aimed at specific areas of weakness, are together reaching a critical mass. This year is likely to see the combination become an irre sistible force, even if its target will remain an immovable object for longer than a year. This need, long recognised but ignored for lack of a strategy, has been accentuated by 1996 accident figures: the number of commercial air transport accident fatalities is about double the annual average for the last decade. The pressure to force safety improvement on the low achievers began in 1992 with the US Federal Aviation Administration International Aviation Safety Assessment Programme (IASA). Europe is now following suit, although its incipient programme looks likely to focus on operators directly, while the IASA targets states and their national safety-oversight systems. The operators will not be the sole targets of this new effort. In October 1996, the Inter national Federation of Airline Pilots As sociations published a devastating report, which obtained widespread publicity, documenting in Space TIM FURNISS/LONDON THE SPACE INDUSTRY IS guaranteed to make headlines again in 1997. The sec ond attempted launch of the European Space Agency's Ariane 5 booster is certain to count as one of the most closely followed media events of the year. It will now take place in July, just a little over a year after the spectacular explosion of the the first attempt—flight 501 — in June 1996. Another failure would be a major blow to the agency and to Europe's space prestige in gener al, not to mention a commercial disaster for Arianespace, which plans to take delivery of the launcher for commercial operations from 1998. Another media highlight will be the explo ration of Mars which follows 1996's much-pub licised speculation that diere may be some form of life on die planet. On 4 July, fiie US Mars Pathfinder is due to land on the Red Planet and to deploy a mini- rover, which may finally add some facts to die "life on Mars" debate. It will be followed by the Man Global Surveyor, which arrives in its orbit in September. By November, assembly will also finally begin on the long-delayed International Space Station project, with the launch of the Russian FGB module. A US Node connector and other equipment will be added by the Space Shuttle STS88 Endeavour mission in December. After that, things may slow down, because of delays to further Russian modules and equip ment. The Russian Mir 1 space station will con tinue to feature in events, however, housing a series of international crews as it nears the end of its operational life. • detail die "dangerous" state of en route air-traf fic-control (ATC) services over three-quarters of the African continent. The publication was designed to send a wake- up call to African states and international agen cies, arguing diat the lack of mid-air collisions has had less to do with ATC than with die region's relatively empty skies, a situation which has already changed following South Africa's re- emergence on die world stage. Finally, there have been calls from Capt Amjad Faizi of Pakistan International Airways, a respected observer of aviation safety in third- world and developing nations, who has com piled a comprehensive list of the collective shortcomings of many such countries. He observes that die countries in need of a better safety culture are not going to be able to change overnight, and they cannot do it individually. Faizi recommends regional action, with guid ance from diose with the necessary means and expertise, provided preferably through the International Civil Aviation Organisation. • 12 January STS81/Atlantis Flies the fifth Shuttle Mir Mission (SMM). delivering another US astronaut. Jerry Linenger, to the station and returning John Blaha. 4 February Soyuz TM25 Three-man crew to the Mir, including German astronaut on commercial mission. TM 24 crew returns. 13 February STS82/0/scovery The second Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission. including four spacewalks. 27 March STS83/Co/umWa Flight of the Microgravity Science Laboratory. May STS84/Manf/s UK-born Mike Foale to be delivered to the Mir 1 on the SMM 6 mission, which will return Linenger. June Soyuz TM26 Replacement crew for the Mir. TM25 crew returns. July STS85/D/scovery Satellite deployment-retrieval and science mission. September STS86//Want/s SMM 7 delivers Wendy Lawrence to the Mir and returns Foale, while Vladimir Titov and Scott Parazinsky will perform the first US-Russian spacewalk. October STS87/ Columbia Satellite deployment-retrieval and science mission, featuring Ukrainian Leonid Kadenuk and the spacewalks which were cancelled during the recent STS80 mission. December STS88/ Endeavour The first Space Shuttle assembly mission for the International Space Station. December Soyuz TM27 Replacement crew for the Mir 1. TM26 crew returns. 34 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 1 - 7 January 1997
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