The ATSB has today released a new YouTube video highlighting the risks and hazards of working on rail, as part of Rail Safety Week.
The ATSB has today released a new YouTube video highlighting the risks and hazards of working on rail, as part of Rail Safety Week.
The video features animation from a fatal accident where a passenger train collided with an excavator near Newbridge, NSW.
ATSB Chief Commissioner Martin Dolan said safe work on rail is a top priority for the ATSB and is an issue that needs heightened attention from the rail industry.
“The ATSB has investigated several accidents that have occurred when maintenance work was being carried out around railway tracks,” Mr Dolan said. “These accidents were primarily the result of safe working rules and procedures not being correctly implemented.
“We think more can be done to improve the safety of rail workers, particularly in the areas of good work practices, coordination and communication.
“The accident highlighted on this video provides a powerful reminder of the importance of following rules and procedures.”
The ATSB has just released a new aviation bulletin containing nine investigation reports. The Aviation Short Investigation Bulletin Issue 21 covers short, office-based investigations.
The bulletin covers incidents, serious incidents and accidents involving turboprop and piston aircraft. No one was injured in any of the incidents; however, some of the aircraft were damaged.
Short investigations cover incidents and accidents where the associated factors are usually well-understood and do not require more detailed investigations. Nonetheless, each investigation has the potential to produce important Safety Messages for pilots, operators and others in the aviation industry. The investigations also help the ATSB identify statistics and trends in air safety.
The TSB of Canada will conduct an independent external review of the ATSB’s investigation processes and publish the results.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) will conduct an independent external review of the ATSB’s investigation processes and publish the results. The review was announced today by TSB Chair, Wendy A. Tadros and ATSB Chief Commissioner, Martin Dolan.
The review, to begin with an initial visit by the TSB team this month, will provide an independent and objective assessment of the ATSB’s investigation methodology and processes.
The review team will benchmark TSB investigation methodologies with the ATSB’s and compare them with international standards. The review will also examine how ATSB methodologies and processes have been applied to ATSB investigations and compare them with TSB approaches.
Mr Dolan said the review is a new step in the ATSB’s continuing close cooperation with other international investigation agencies. It will provide both organisations with a significant learning opportunity.
“I invited the TSB to conduct the review because we are always looking to improve our investigation systems and approaches,” Mr Dolan said. “I’m grateful that our Canadian colleagues have agreed”.
“The review will identify best practices from both organisations that we can adopt to improve how we investigate accidents and occurrences and improve transport safety.
“The TSB is well placed to conduct this review as they have a similar legislative framework to the ATSB and a long-standing commitment to systemic investigation to improve safety.”
It is anticipated that the TSB will produce a final report early in the northern spring of 2014. The report will be published by the TSB and available on the TSB website.
Any questions about the TSB review should be directed to the ATSB on 1800 020 616.
The ATSB has just released the first in a series of short YouTube videos highlighting areas where more can be done to improve transport safety in Australia.
The ATSB has just released the first in a series of short YouTube videos highlighting areas where more can be done to improve transport safety in Australia.
The first video focuses on the recurring dangers facing general aviation pilots, particularly around low-level flying, striking power lines, fuel management and flying into bad weather.
ATSB Chief Commissioner, Martin Dolan, said the videos are part of the ATSB’s efforts to increase awareness of the recurrent risks that need to be managed in the aviation, maritime and rail communities.
The ATSB will release eight videos over the coming weeks.
“We’re finding through our investigations that many accidents, even fatal ones, are avoidable through better planning and execution,” Mr Dolan said.
“We’ve produced these videos to help the transport industry give heightened attention to these areas of safety concern.
“The videos contain case studies of accidents and incidents along with advice from the ATSB’s own investigators. They send a powerful message from the people who are in the best position to understand the consequences when things go wrong.”
The ATSB will release eight videos over the coming weeks. The other topics that will feature in the series include safe work on rail, safety around non-towered aerodromes, maritime pilotage, data input errors, handling approach to land, under reporting of occurrences, and marine work practices.
A new ATSB report reveals that there is no significant difference in competency and proficiency of low-hour airline pilots who undertake cadet pathway programs when compared with their direct entry and high-hour peers.
The issue of pilot cadet pilot training programs has been the subject of significant debate and concern within the aviation industry. Cadets are pilots who, generally, have received limited or no prior flight training before starting their cadetship. Instead, they are trained specifically for an airline at a flight training organisation. After training, these pilots enter the airline as a second or first officer, depending on the airline and its requirements.
These pilots, with their comparatively low hours of experience, are sometimes perceived to be less competent than those who have taken more traditional routes. Traditional routes involve the accumulation of flight hours either with the Defence Force, in general aviation or other (often smaller) airlines, before the pilots enter a major airline as a second or first officer.
The research revealed that overall performance of cadets and low-hour pilots matched that of their direct entry and high-hour peers.
This issue was highlighted after two high-profile international aviation accidents in 2009, one involving a Bombardier DHC-8 at Buffalo, New York, and the other, an Airbus A330 operating as Air France flight 447 (AF447), en-route from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Paris, France. In response to the DHC-8 accident, the United States Congress enacted legislation to increase the amount of flying experience that first officers would need, in order to enter an airline, to 1,500 hours.
Despite the debate and regulations, there has been very little research on the differences between pilots with different training backgrounds. For the research report, Pilot experience and performance in an airline environment, the ATSB gathered data from three airlines to explore the issue of pilot performance as a function of both flight hour experience, and entry pathway. Entry pathway analysis compared cadet pilots (who generally had not accumulated prior flight hours or experience) to those pilots who entered an airline after accumulating flight hours in other areas of the aviation industry.
The research revealed that overall performance of cadets and low-hour pilots matched that of their direct entry and high-hour peers. All pilots were marked as proficient at the completion of the check flights, with the only differences between the groups being a function of how many exceeded the required standard.
The evidence in this report indicates that despite industry concerns, the cadet pathway for low-hour pilots is a valid option for airlines. There was no evidence to suggest that cadets or low-hour pilots within the airlines studied were any less competent or proficient than their direct entry and high-hour peers.
The ATSB has released a new aviation bulletin containing 10 investigation reports. The Aviation Short Investigation Bulletin Issue 20 covers short, office-based investigations.
The ATSB has released a new aviation bulletin containing 10 investigation reports. The Aviation Short Investigation Bulletin Issue 20 covers short, office-based investigations.
The bulletin covers incidents, serious incidents and accidents involving turboprop, piston aircraft and helicopters. Only one of the incidents involved injury, however, some of the aircraft suffered substantial damage.
Short investigations cover incidents and accidents where the associated factors are usually well-understood and do not require more detailed investigations. Nonetheless, each investigation has the potential to produce important Safety Messages for pilots, operators and others in the aviation industry. The investigations also help the ATSB identify statistics and trends in air safety.
The ATSB today released the final report of its investigation into the uncontained engine failure involving a Qantas Airbus A380 over Batam Island, Indonesia on 4 November 2010.
The accident occurred shortly after the aircraft took off from Singapore. At about 7,000 ft above Batam Island, one of the aircraft’s Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines failed, sending debris into the aircraft’s left wing and fuselage, and onto Batam Island. There was significant damage to the aircraft’s electrical, hydraulic and other systems. The crew managed the multitude of system failures before safely returning and landing the aircraft.
The ATSB found that the engine failure was the result of a fatigue crack in an oil feed pipe. The crack allowed the release of oil that resulted in an internal oil fire. The oil fire led to one of the engine’s turbine discs separating from the drive shaft. The disc then over-accelerated and broke apart, bursting through the engine casing and releasing other high energy debris.
The ATSB also found that the oil pipe, together with a number of similar pipes in other engines, had been made with a thin wall section and did not comply with the design specifications. The thin wall substantially increased the likelihood of fatigue cracking.
This investigation has been one of the more complex undertaken by the ATSB in recent years and has involved a large commitment of resources. As well as understanding how the engine failed, the investigation had to review why quality assurance did not adequately manage the oil pipe problem and what were the implications of the damage to the aircraft.
The ATSB worked closely with international regulators, Rolls-Royce and Airbus to ensure the continued safety of Trent 900-powered A380s. Early in the investigation, the ATSB issued a recommendation to Rolls-Royce about the manufacture of the oil feed stub pipes. As part of its final report, the ATSB issued recommendations to the European and US regulators so that lessons learned from this accident would be incorporated into aircraft certification advisory material designed to minimise hazards from uncontained engine failures.
As a result of the ATSB’s investigation, regulatory authorities and operators around the world took steps to ensure that engines with non-conforming oil feed stub pipes were identified and managed appropriately. Rolls-Royce also made changes to their quality assurance system to improve the way they manage non-conforming parts.
The ATSB and CASA have agreed a policy statement on accident and incident notifications received from the aviation industry.
The ATSB and CASA have agreed a policy statement for further consultation on accident and incident notifications received from the aviation industry. The policy relates to the disclosure and use of information for safety purposes and follows consultation on this issue in 2012.
You can read the statement by clicking on the link below.
The ATSB has just released a new aviation bulletin containing 9 investigation reports. The Aviation Short Investigation Bulletin Issue 19 covers short, office-based investigations.
The bulletin covers incidents, serious incidents and accidents involving jet, turboprop and piston aircraft and helicopters. None of the accidents were fatal; however, some of the aircraft suffered substantial damage and in some occurrences, people suffered injuries.
Short investigations cover incidents and accidents where the associated factors are usually well-understood and do not require more detailed investigations. Nonetheless, each investigation has the potential to produce important Safety Messages for pilots, operators and others in the aviation industry. The investigations also help the ATSB identify statistics and trends in air safety.
A new ATSB report examines the effectiveness of emergency locator transmitters (ELTs) and reveals how pilots can increase their chances of being rescued after an aviation accident.
A new ATSB report examines the effectiveness of emergency locator transmitters (ELTs) and reveals how pilots can increase their chances of being rescued after an aviation accident.
ELTs are radio beacons carried in most aircraft to help search and rescue authorities quickly locate an aircraft following an accident. However, data from the ATSB occurrence database shows that ELTs are only functioning as intended in about 40 to 60 per cent of accidents.
The report reveals that pilots and operators of general aviation and low-capacity aircraft cannot rely on a fixed fuselage-mounted ELT to activate when required. Also, carrying a personal locator beacon will most likely only be beneficial to safety if it is carried on the person, rather than being fixed or stowed elsewhere in the aircraft. Additionally, the effectiveness of ELTs in increasing occupant safety and assisting search and rescue authorities' efforts may be enhanced by:
using a GPS-enabled ELT
using an ELT with a newer 3-axis g-switch
ensuring the ELT is installed correctly
ensuring the beacon is registered with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA)
pre-emptively activating the beacon if a forced landing or ditching is imminent.
Despite these concerns, the report shows data from the AMSA Search and Rescue incident database, indicating that ELT activations have been directly responsible for saving an average of four lives per year.
