An ATSB investigation has found that fatigue cracking in an XPT axle led to a minor derailment of an XPT passenger service from Melbourne to Sydney on 9 February 2006 at Harden. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigation into the derailment concluded that train ST22 derailed as a result of the axle completely fracturing and eventually derailing one wheel. Subsequent examinations by RailCorp, the train operator, led to the discovery of thirteen other XPT power car axles with surface defects, or cracks initiated by surface defects, in highly stressed areas. The ATSBs examination of…

The final report on the Whyalla Airlines Piper Chieftain VH-MZK accident on 31 May 2000, in which all eight occupants died, was released today by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau. ATSB Executive Director, Kym Bills, made the following statement: "The VH-MZK accident occurred after mechanical failures involving both engines forced the pilot to ditch the aircraft in Spencer Gulf, about 26km from Whyalla, on a dark, cloudy and moonless night. Based on careful analysis of the engine failures and recorded radar and audio data, it is likely that the left…

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has found that an engine room fire that occurred on board the Antarctic resupply ship LAstrolabe, on 11 November 2006, was the result of a fuel leak on the starboard main engine. On 5 November 2006, the Antarctic supply ship LAstrolabe sailed from the French Antarctic base at Dumont dUrville, bound for Hobart, Tasmania. On 7 November, the engineers discovered that the starboard main engines main fuel pump was leaking. They blanked off the main fuel pump and ran the engine using another fuel pump. At about 0530 on 11 November, while the ship was…

ATSB has received a large number of media calls referring to the article on page 1 of today's Sydney Morning Herald. The article incorrectly reflects the current status of ATSB's investigation and needs to be clarified. The ATSB's Executive Director has written a letter to the editor of the newspaper in the following terms: Editor Today's page 1 article "Ansett beats threat to shut it down" includes a number of statements purporting to reflect the current status of ATSB's investigation that are incorrect. ATSB's safety deficiency investigation was formally commenced on 11January2001 and…

Colmar Bruton have advised the ATSB that they experienced problems with their survey website, which meant returns were not accepted between Friday 25 May and Wednesday 30 May, although the site appeared to function correctly. The problem has been rectified and the site is ready to receive your comments at http://surveys.cbr.com.au/atsb "CLOSED" The ATSB values your views and invites you to have your say about its reports. If you previously participated in the survey, we extend a special invitation to resubmit your response, and thank you for your patience…

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau today released its report on the Qantas B747-400 runway overrun accident at Bangkok International Airport on 23 September 1999. The ATSB investigation was undertaken under a delegation from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Committee of Thailand given on 18 November1999. ATSB Executive Director Kym Bills said: "The Qantas Bangkok runway overrun was a serious accident that fortunately did not result in fatalities and serious injuries. It was a wake-up call to Qantas who may have been lulled into a false sense of…

The mate of the container ship Bunga Teratai Satu allowed it to ground on Sudbury Reef off Cairns on 2 November 2000 because he was distracted by his wife's telephone conversation while in charge of the watch. This was the principal finding of a report into the accident released by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) today. The mate had called his wife to the bridge wing while within mobile telephone range of the shore for her to speak to her mother and their children in Karachi. The mate was distracted from his duties while establishing the…

The ATSB wishes to thank the many people who have participated in our readership survey over the last week. If you have not yet participated, but wish to, you only have a few more days. The survey concludes this Sunday 10 June. Please follow this link to have your say about ATSB reports: http://surveys.cbr.com.au/atsb "CLOSED" We encourage you to take this opportunity to provide us with your valuable feedback. If you have any questions about the survey, please contact the ATSB on 1800 020 616.

If you have read an Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) investigation, research, or statistical report in the past 12 months the ATSB wants to hear from you. The ATSB is an operationally independent bureau within the Australian Government Department of Transport and Regional Services and is Australia prime agency for transport safety investigations. It is entirely separate from transport regulators and service providers; The Bureau investigates and produces reports and statistics on all modes of transport: rail…

Today the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) released its report on the contaminated aviation gasoline (Avgas) investigation that followed the grounding of thousands of piston engine aircraft across eastern Australia in January 2000. The investigation found that a very small amount of an anti-corrosion chemical that was not removed in Mobil's avgas refining process in late 1999, and not detected by the usual tests, led to the safety problem. The ATSB has made 24 separate recommendations that include recommended safety actions for Mobil Oil…