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Aviation History
1997
1997 - 2854.PDF
AH* TRANSPORT FAA rethinks fuel-tank approval RAMON LOPEZ/WASHINGTON DC IN AN APPARENT change of heart, the US Federal Aviation Administration is considering the case for changing the way it certificates commercial-aviation fuel tanks, say senior officials close to the year-long investigations into the mid-air explosion of a Trans World Airlines Boeing 747-100. Accident investigators have yet to pinpoint die source of the igni tion which caused an explosion in die aircraft's fuel tank in July 1996, but the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has already recommended action to reduce the risk of future explosions. These include potential instal lation of nitrogen-inerting systems, more insulation between heat-gen erating components and tanks, and revised fuelling procedures. The proposals, however, pro voked immediate complaints from the airline industry over die poten tial massive cost and safety implica tions. One US airline executive claims that requiring nitrogen- inerting would cost US airlines alone Si9 billion, as well as intro ducing new risks and being opera tionally impractical. Long-standing FA \ certification standards are designed to ensure diat the ignition of fuel vapour by lightning strike, hot components, or component/systems failure is pre cluded. The administration initial ly appeared to join with airlines and aircraft manufacturers in main taining that this remained the bet ter solution, saying that it was not possible to keep potentially explo sive fuel vapour from the tanks. While the airline industry stands firm, Ronald Wojnar, manager of the FAA's Transport Aircraft Di rectorate, now says that the NTSB may have a point. "Our minds are much more open now," says Wojnar, who chaired a three-day FAA and Society of Automotive Engineers Transport Fuel Flam- mability Conference. "There is no way we can assure ourselves that all ignition sources will ever be eliminated. What I don't want to see is a reflexive action by industry that leads to our recommendations being rejected out of hand," says NTSB chairman Jim Hall. The safety board, due to hold a public hearing into the TWA Flight 800 crash on 8 December, is still pressing to see its proposals adopt ed. "Regardless of what we find to be die ignition source of diat blast, we must do all we can to render diese fuel tanks non-explosive," says 1 Iall. The airline industry, meanwhile, has launched the Aircraft Fuel Systems Safety Programme, a pro ject designed to head off die NTS B proposals. Some 2,000 airliners will be inspected over the next three years for fuel system defects. The hope is to confirm the safety of both die fuel systems and the design phi losophy which created them. Wojnar calls the initiative "a step in the right direction", but warns that the FAA may have to check more aircraft. About 12,000 Western-built transport aircraft are in service, including 8,000 air craft built by Boeing and Airbus. He says that a sampling of 2,000 aircraft may not be adequate, and all Boeing 747-100s may need to be inspected. The FAA has yet to decide on its next step, but Wojnar says diat air worthiness directives or rulemak ing are still possibilities, and a pub lic meeting may be conducted to get specific comments on proposals. "Anything we do must be universal ly applied by make and model...It appears we will go beyond the air line initiative," he says. The FAA says diat a requirement for nitrogen-inerting systems on civil transports is not out of the question, "...but there is no off- the-shelf inerting system available for immediate installation on com mercial aircraft,"it adds. J Airkenya doubles Dash fleet AIRKENYA IS ABOUT TO INTRODUCE iTS SECOND de Havilland Canada Dash 7 turbo prop. The aircraft are replacing Douglas DC-3s, providing much-needed extra capacity on services into remote dirt airstrips which are not suitable for use by Airkenya's other large turboprops - a Fokker F27 and a Shorts 360. Airkenya's first Dash 7 - originally operated by US regional Atlantic Southeast Airlines - was displayed at the 1997 Nairobi air show at the company's base, Wislon Airport, Nairobi, during September. MARKETPLACE ++ CS Aviation Services has placed an ex-Alitalia Airbus A300B4 freighter with the Dutch general sales agents Jet Link Holland. Delivery is scheduled for February following conversion by BAe Aviation Services. ++ New Argentinian airline AeroVIP has leased three Jetstream 32EPs from British Aerospace Asset Management - Turboprops, for delivery by the end of November. Aero-VIP plans feeder services to hubs at Cordoba and Buenos Aires' downtown airport. ++ Air Canada is to lease an additional Airbus A340-300 from International Lease Finance (ILFC) from May 1998, and extend the leases on two A340-300s scheduled for return to ILFC in June 1998, to pro vide interim capacity until deliveries of three A340-300S and five A330s ordered recently, begin in 1999. ++ Kenya Airways has taken delivery of the second of three Boeing 737- 300s, which have replaced leased 737200s on its regional routes. ++ Lufthansa has exercised optionsfortwo747-400s valued at $330 million. ++ Iran Asseman Airlines is planning to add two 260-seat Airbus A310s to its fleet during 1998. ++ Channel Express has purchased a third A300B4 (ex-Continental) for con version to freighter, and the aircraft has been delivered to Daimler-Benz Aerospace (Dasa) Airbus' plant at Dresden for modification. Mean while, the conversion of Channel's second A300 freighter is nearing completion at the Dasa plant. ++ Finnair has completed the sale and lease back of four Boeing MD- 80s to specialist finance compa nies, in a deal valued at 43 million Finnish marks. The aircraft will be returned to the lessors when the airline's new A320s are delivered. ++ Malev is adding two ex- Alitalia/Avianova Fokker 70s which will boost its fleet to five, on lease from Debis AirFinance. ++ Ghana Airways has introduced the first of two McDonnell Douglas DC-9-51s purchased from Avensa, Venezuela. The first aircraft was bought for $7.65 million, and the second will be introduced this month. ++ CityFlyer Express has ordered a fourth AI(R) Avro RJ100, for delivery in June 1998. 14 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 29 October - 4 November 1997
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