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Tag: Transportation safety

  • Staffing shortages cause more US flight delays as government shutdown reaches 7th day

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    Staffing shortages led to more flight delays at airports across the U.S. on Tuesday as the federal government shutdown stretched into a seventh day, while union leaders for air traffic controllers and airport security screeners warned the situation was likely to get worse.The Federal Aviation Administration reported staffing issues at airports in Nashville, Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia, and at its air traffic control centers in Atlanta, Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The agency temporarily slowed takeoffs of planes headed to the first three cities.Flight disruptions a day earlier also were tied to insufficient staffing during the shutdown, which began Oct. 1. The FAA reported issues on Monday at the airports in Burbank, California; Newark, New Jersey; and Denver.Despite the traffic snags, about 92% of the more than 23,600 flights departing from U.S. airports as of Tuesday afternoon took off on time, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.But the risk of wider impacts to the U.S. aviation system “is growing by the day” as federal workers whose jobs are deemed critical continue working without pay, travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt said. The longer the shutdown drags on, the more likely it is to affect holiday travel plans in November, he said.”I’m gravely concerned that if the government remains shut down then, that it could disrupt, and possibly ruin, millions of Americans’ Thanksgiving holidays,” Harteveldt said in a statement.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Monday that there has already been an uptick in air traffic controllers calling out sick at a few locations. When there aren’t enough controllers, the FAA must reduce the number of takeoffs and landings to maintain safety, which in turn causes flight delays and possible cancellations.That’s what happened Monday afternoon, when the control tower at Southern California’s Hollywood Burbank Airport shut down for several hours, leading to average delays of two-and-a-half hours.When a pilot preparing for takeoff radioed the tower, according to communications recorded by LiveATC.net, he was told: “The tower is closed due to staffing.” Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said the shutdown highlighted some issues his union’s members already face on a regular basis due to a national airspace system that is critically understaffed and relies on outdated equipment that tends to fail.A couple of controllers missing work can have a big impact at a small airport already operating with limited tower staffing, he said.”It’s not like we have other controllers that can suddenly come to that facility and staff them. There’s not enough people there,” Daniels said Tuesday. “There’s no overtime, and you have to be certified in that facility.”Air travel complications are likely to expand once a regularly scheduled payday arrives next week and air traffic controllers and TSA officers don’t receive any money, the union leader said. If the impasse between Republican and Democratic lawmakers on reopening the government persists, the workers will come under more pressure as their personal bills come due, Daniels said.”It’s completely unfair that an air traffic controller is the one that holds the burden of ‘see how long you can hang in there in order to allow this political process to play out,’” he said. Johnny Jones, secretary-treasurer of the American Federation of Government Employees chapter that represents TSA workers, said he was hearing concerns from members about how they will be able to pay bills, including child support and mortgage payments, and if they’re at risk for termination if they have to miss work during the shutdown.”The employees are struggling. They’re assessing what they need to do and they’re assessing how this is all going to work out,” said Jones, who has worked as a screener since the TSA was established.Some TSA officers have already called in sick, but Jones said he did not think the numbers were big enough to cause significant problems and delays at airports.Aviation unions and U.S. airlines have called for the shutdown to end as soon as possible.The unions are also making appeals to food banks, grocery chains and airports to secure support for workers during the shutdown. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was offering federal workers $15 food vouchers and allowing them to park in the terminal, according to Jones.John Tiliacos, the chief operating officer of Florida’s Tampa International Airport, said the facility started preparing for the shutdown well before it began.Nicknamed “Operation Bald Eagle 2″ among airport staff, the efforts center around pulling together resources for the roughly 11,000 federal employees who are working at the airport without pay, including security screeners and air traffic controllers.Tiliacos said the help would include a food pantry, free bus rides to work and a program with the local utility provider to keep the lights on at the homes of the workers.”Whatever we can do to make life a little easier for these federal employees that allows them to continue coming to work and focus on keeping our airport operational, that’s what we’re prepared to do,” he said.

    Staffing shortages led to more flight delays at airports across the U.S. on Tuesday as the federal government shutdown stretched into a seventh day, while union leaders for air traffic controllers and airport security screeners warned the situation was likely to get worse.

    The Federal Aviation Administration reported staffing issues at airports in Nashville, Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia, and at its air traffic control centers in Atlanta, Houston and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The agency temporarily slowed takeoffs of planes headed to the first three cities.

    Flight disruptions a day earlier also were tied to insufficient staffing during the shutdown, which began Oct. 1. The FAA reported issues on Monday at the airports in Burbank, California; Newark, New Jersey; and Denver.

    Despite the traffic snags, about 92% of the more than 23,600 flights departing from U.S. airports as of Tuesday afternoon took off on time, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.

    But the risk of wider impacts to the U.S. aviation system “is growing by the day” as federal workers whose jobs are deemed critical continue working without pay, travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt said. The longer the shutdown drags on, the more likely it is to affect holiday travel plans in November, he said.

    “I’m gravely concerned that if the government remains shut down then, that it could disrupt, and possibly ruin, millions of Americans’ Thanksgiving holidays,” Harteveldt said in a statement.

    Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Monday that there has already been an uptick in air traffic controllers calling out sick at a few locations. When there aren’t enough controllers, the FAA must reduce the number of takeoffs and landings to maintain safety, which in turn causes flight delays and possible cancellations.

    That’s what happened Monday afternoon, when the control tower at Southern California’s Hollywood Burbank Airport shut down for several hours, leading to average delays of two-and-a-half hours.

    When a pilot preparing for takeoff radioed the tower, according to communications recorded by LiveATC.net, he was told: “The tower is closed due to staffing.”

    Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said the shutdown highlighted some issues his union’s members already face on a regular basis due to a national airspace system that is critically understaffed and relies on outdated equipment that tends to fail.

    A couple of controllers missing work can have a big impact at a small airport already operating with limited tower staffing, he said.

    “It’s not like we have other controllers that can suddenly come to that facility and staff them. There’s not enough people there,” Daniels said Tuesday. “There’s no overtime, and you have to be certified in that facility.”

    Air travel complications are likely to expand once a regularly scheduled payday arrives next week and air traffic controllers and TSA officers don’t receive any money, the union leader said. If the impasse between Republican and Democratic lawmakers on reopening the government persists, the workers will come under more pressure as their personal bills come due, Daniels said.

    “It’s completely unfair that an air traffic controller is the one that holds the burden of ‘see how long you can hang in there in order to allow this political process to play out,’” he said.

    Johnny Jones, secretary-treasurer of the American Federation of Government Employees chapter that represents TSA workers, said he was hearing concerns from members about how they will be able to pay bills, including child support and mortgage payments, and if they’re at risk for termination if they have to miss work during the shutdown.

    “The employees are struggling. They’re assessing what they need to do and they’re assessing how this is all going to work out,” said Jones, who has worked as a screener since the TSA was established.

    Some TSA officers have already called in sick, but Jones said he did not think the numbers were big enough to cause significant problems and delays at airports.

    Aviation unions and U.S. airlines have called for the shutdown to end as soon as possible.

    The unions are also making appeals to food banks, grocery chains and airports to secure support for workers during the shutdown. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was offering federal workers $15 food vouchers and allowing them to park in the terminal, according to Jones.

    John Tiliacos, the chief operating officer of Florida’s Tampa International Airport, said the facility started preparing for the shutdown well before it began.

    Nicknamed “Operation Bald Eagle 2” among airport staff, the efforts center around pulling together resources for the roughly 11,000 federal employees who are working at the airport without pay, including security screeners and air traffic controllers.

    Tiliacos said the help would include a food pantry, free bus rides to work and a program with the local utility provider to keep the lights on at the homes of the workers.

    “Whatever we can do to make life a little easier for these federal employees that allows them to continue coming to work and focus on keeping our airport operational, that’s what we’re prepared to do,” he said.

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  • Plane hits vehicle on runway, catches fire at Lima’s airport

    Plane hits vehicle on runway, catches fire at Lima’s airport

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    LIMA, Peru — A LATAM Airlines plane taking off from Lima’s international airport struck a firetruck on the runway and caught fire Friday. Authorities said the plane’s passengers and crew were all safe, but two firefighters in the truck were killed.

    Lima Airport Partners, the company that operates Jorge Chávez airport, said in a tweet that operations at the facility had been suspended. There were 102 passengers and six crew members aboard the Airbus A320neo.

    “Our teams are providing the necessary care to all passengers, who are in good condition,” the company said.

    Luis Ponce La Jara, general commander of the fire department, said two firefighters were killed and one was injured when the truck they were in was struck by the plane. Both the plane and the firetruck were in motion when they collided.

    Flight LA2213 was taking off from Lima’s main airport en route to the Peruvian city of Juliaca.

    Videos on social media showed smoke coming from a large plane on the runway.

    According to the fire department, the incident was registered at 3:25 p.m. and four rescue units were mobilized.

    Fire department chief Mario Casaretto told local media that “we do not yet know technically what happened.”

    The Prosecutor’s Office in Callao, where the airport is located, said an investigation into the cause of the accident had been opened.

    Aviation authorities said operations at Jorge Chávez International Airport were suspended until 1 p.m. local time Saturday. Flights would be direct to other airports in the meantime.

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  • Some recent fatal crashes involving vintage aircraft

    Some recent fatal crashes involving vintage aircraft

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    Saturday’s collision between two World War II-era military planes at a Dallas air show was the latest in a long list of crashes involving vintage planes used or designed for military purposes. Some recent fatal crashes in the U.S. and abroad:

    — Oct. 2, 2019: A four-engine, propeller-driven B-17G Flying Fortress bomber with 13 people aboard crashed at Bradley International Airport, north of Hartford, Connecticut, during a traveling vintage aircraft show. Seven people were killed and six were hurt. The National Transportation Safety Board found that pilot error was the probable cause, with inadequate maintenance a contributing factor.

    — Nov. 17, 2018: A privately owned vintage World War II Mustang fighter airport plane crashed into the parking lot of an apartment complex in Fredericksburg, Texas, killing the pilot and a passenger. The P-51D Mustang was returning after performing a flyover during a living history show at the national Museum of the Pacific War. The aircraft was destroyed, and several vehicles in the parking lot were damaged.

    — Aug. 4, 2018: A 79-year-old Junkers Ju-52 plane operated by the Swiss company Ju-Air plunged into the Piz Segnas mountain near the Flims ski resort in eastern Switzerland, killing all 20 on board. Retired from Switzerland’s air force in 1981, the German-built plane was carrying tourists who wanted to take “adventure flights” to experience the country’s landscape in vintage planes. Swiss investigators said that “high-risk flying” by the pilots led to the crash.

    — May 30, 2018: A small vintage airplane that was part of a GEICO stunt team with five other planes crashed in a wooded residential area in Melville, New York, killing the pilot. The World War II-era SNJ-2 aircraft, known as a North American T-6 Texan, had departed from a nearby airport and was heading to Maryland when it crashed.

    — July 16, 2017: A pilot and an airport manager were killed in Cummings, Kansas, after their World War II-era P-51D Mustang “Baby Duck” crashed into a field. Authorities say the pilot was re-creating a stunt he had performed on the prior day at the Amelia Earhart Festival.

    — Jan. 26, 2017: A World War II-era Grumman G-73 Mallard flying boat stalled and nosedived into the Swan River in Perth, Australia, during Australia Day celebrations. Both the pilot and his passenger died.

    — Aug. 27, 2016 — A pilot from Alaska was killed when his 450 Stearman biplane, a World War II-era plane often used for military training, crashed during the Airshow of the Cascades in Madras, Oregon.

    — July 17, 2016 — A T-28 Trojan, used by the U.S. military as a training aircraft beginning in the 1950s and also as a counterinsurgency aircraft during the Vietnam War, crashed at the Cold Lake Air Show in Alberta, killing the pilot. Thousands of spectators witnessed the accident.

    — Aug. 22, 2015 — A 1950s-era Hawker Hunter T7 jet crashed into a busy highway near West Sussex, England, killing 11 and injuring more than a dozen others. Investigators said the pilot, who survived, was flying too low and slowly to successfully complete a loop-the-loop. He was charged with 11 counts of manslaughter but ultimately was cleared.

    — June 22, 2013 — A pilot and a wing-walker were killed when their World War II-era Boeing-Stearman IB75A biplane crashed into the ground and burst into flames during a performance at the Vectren Dayton Air Show in Vandalia, Ohio. Thousands of spectators saw the crash, which federal safety investigators said was likely caused by pilot error.

    — Sept. 16, 2011 — The pilot of a 70-year-old modified P-51D Mustang called the Galloping Ghost lost control of the aircraft at the National Championship Air Races and Air Show in Reno, Nevada, and crashed into spectators, killing 10 and injuring more than 60. The pilot also died. Federal investigators blamed the crash on worn parts and speed.

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  • Concerns rise as Russia resumes grain blockade of Ukraine

    Concerns rise as Russia resumes grain blockade of Ukraine

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    KYIV, Ukraine — Russia resumed its blockade of Ukrainian ports on Sunday, cutting off urgently needed grain exports to hungry parts of the world in what U.S. President Joe Biden called a “really outrageous” act.

    Biden warned that global hunger could increase because of Russia’s suspension of a U.N.-brokered deal to allow safe passage of ships carrying grain from Ukraine, one of the world’s breadbaskets.

    “It’s really outrageous,” Biden said Saturday in Wilmington, Delaware. “There’s no merit to what they’re doing. The U.N. negotiated that deal and that should be the end of it.”

    Biden spoke hours after Russia announced it would immediately halt participation in the grain deal, alleging that Ukraine staged a drone attack Saturday against Russia’s Black Sea Fleet off the coast of occupied Crimea. Ukraine has denied the attack, saying that Russia mishandled its own weapons.

    Ukraine’s Infrastructure Ministry reported Sunday that 218 ships involved in grain exports have been blocked — 22 loaded and stuck at ports, 95 loaded and departed from ports, and 101 awaiting inspections.

    One of the blocked ships, carrying 40,000 tons of wheat for Ethiopia under a U.N. aid program, could not leave Ukraine on Sunday as a result of Russia’s “blockage of the grain corridor,” Oleksandr Kubrakov, Ukraine’s minister of infrastructure, said on Twitter. The ship, Ikaria Angel, was stuck in the Black Sea port of Chornomorsk.

    The Istanbul-based UN center coordinating the ship passages later said the Ikaria Angel was among six vessels that began moving out but hadn’t yet entered a humanitarian corridor. The center reported on plans to move and inspect other ships on Monday but it wasn’t clear whether Russia would agree.

    The grain initiative — an example of rare wartime cooperation between Ukraine and Russia — has allowed more than 9 million tons of grain in 397 ships to safely leave Ukrainian ports since it was signed in July. U.N. chief António Guterres had urged Russia and Ukraine on Friday to renew the deal when it expires Nov. 19. The grain agreement has brought down global food prices about 15% from their peak in March, according to the U.N.

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskky expressed outrage at Russia’s decision. Referring to the Ikaria Angel, he said in his nightly video address Sunday, “This bulk ship with wheat for the U.N. food program and other vessels with agricultural products are forced to wait, because Russia is blackmailing the world with hunger.”

    Two initiatives to revive the grain deal were reported Sunday.

    Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar was in talks with his counterparts to “solve the problem and to continue the grain initiative,” his agency said, adding that no more grain ships would leave Ukraine but those already waiting near Istanbul would be inspected on Sunday or Monday.

    At the United Nations in New York, Guterres delayed a trip by a day to engage in talks aimed at ending Russia’s suspension of the grain export deal. Russia also requested a meeting Monday of the U.N. Security Council to discuss the topic.

    Analysts say Russia’s withdrawal shows that it sees the grain deal as another way to pressure Ukraine.

    “By leaving the deal now and putting the blame on Ukraine, it aims to slow Ukrainian attacks around the Black Sea,” said Mario Bikarski, a Economist Intelligence Unit analyst. Russia could be hoping that Ukraine’s Western allies might ask it to focus its forces elsewhere to save the grain deal, he said.

    More conflicting details emerged Sunday about the alleged attack on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

    The city council of Mariupol, a Ukrainian port now controlled by Russia, claimed on Telegram that Ukrainian special services had destroyed at least three Russian warships near the city of Sevastopol on the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

    But an adviser to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry claimed that the Russians’ “careless handling of explosives” had caused blasts on four Russian warships. Anton Gerashchenko wrote on Telegram that the vessels included a frigate, a landing ship and a ship that carried cruise missiles.

    Reports have surfaced for months of Ukrainian sabotage of Russian warplanes and ammunition depots on Crimea and Zelenskky has vowed repeatedly to recapture the strategic Black Sea peninsula that Russia annexed in 2014.

    Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed Sunday that one Ukrainian drone that reportedly attacked Sevastopol appeared to emanate from a civilian ship carrying agricultural products from Ukraine. The ministry claimed an inspection of the wreckage showed the drones used Canadian-made navigation and their launch point was the Ukrainian coast near the port of Odesa.

    Independent verification of each side’s claims was not possible.

    Ukraine appears to have targeted the Black Sea Fleet and other Russian military infrastructure on Crimea — far from the front lines but a critical launching pad for attacks against Ukraine — since the spring, although it often doesn’t confirm its responsibility.

    On the battlefront, Russian missile attacks kept pounding key front-line hot spots in Ukraine. The Russians shelled seven Ukrainian regions over the past 24 hours, killing at least five civilians and wounding nine more, Ukraine’s presidential office said.

    In the eastern Donetsk region, where the fighting is ongoing near the cities of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, eight cities and villages were shelled.

    In areas that Ukraine has recaptured, residents are still recovering bodies of killed civilians, Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

    “Over the past 24 hours alone, in three de-occupied towns and villages, we found abandoned bodies of Ukrainian civilians,” Kyrylenko said.

    Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy said Sunday that Russian forces were mining territories they leave behind twice as densely as during the first months of the war.

    Power outages were reported Sunday in the occupied Ukrainian city of Enerhodar, home to the closed Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s largest. Ukrainian and Russian officials traded blame for the shelling that caused the blackout.

    ———

    Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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  • Concerns rise as Russia resumes grain blockade of Ukraine

    Concerns rise as Russia resumes grain blockade of Ukraine

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    KYIV, Ukraine — Russia resumed its blockade of Ukrainian ports on Sunday, cutting off urgently needed grain exports to hungry parts of the world in what U.S. President Joe Biden called a “really outrageous” act.

    Biden — speaking in Wilmington, Delaware — warned that global hunger could increase because of Russia’s suspension of a U.N.-brokered deal to allow safe passage of ships carrying grain from Ukraine, one of the world’s breadbaskets.

    “It’s really outrageous,” Biden said Saturday. “There’s no merit to what they’re doing. The U.N. negotiated that deal and that should be the end of it.”

    Biden spoke hours after Russia announced it would immediately halt participation in the grain deal, alleging that Ukraine staged a drone attack Saturday against Russia’s Black Sea Fleet off the coast of occupied Crimea. Ukraine has denied the attack, saying that Russia mishandled its own weapons.

    A ship carrying 40,000 tons of grain bound for Ethiopia under the United Nations aid program could not leave Ukraine on Sunday as a result of Russia’s “blockage of the grain corridor,” Oleksandr Kubrakov, Ukraine’s minister of infrastructure, said on Twitter. He didn’t specify from which Ukrainian port the ship, the Ikraia Angel, had been scheduled to depart.

    The grain initiative has allowed more than 9 million tons of grain in 397 ships to safely leave Ukrainian ports since it was signed in July. U.N. chief António Guterres had urged Russia and Ukraine on Friday to renew the deal when it expires Nov. 19. The grain agreement has succeeded in bringing down global food prices about 15% from their peak in March, according to the U.N., which has listed Ethiopia as one of the countries most at risk for food shortages.

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that 176 ships loaded with grain for more than 7 million consumers are being blocked.

    “Why is it that a handful of people somewhere in the Kremlin can decide whether there will be food on the tables of people in Egypt or Bangladesh?” he said Saturday in his nightly video address.

    Turkey’s Defense Ministry said Sunday that no more ships would depart from Ukraine but those already waiting near Istanbul would be inspected on Sunday or Monday. The statement said Defense Minister Hulusi Akar was in talks with his counterparts to “solve the problem and to continue the grain initiative.”

    Russia requested a meeting Monday of the U.N. Security Council to discuss the alleged attack and the security of the Black Sea grain corridor. Guterres delayed a trip to Algiers by a day to engage in talks aimed at ending Russia’s suspension of the grain export deal.

    Analysts say Russia pulling out of the deal signals that it sees the agreement as a way to exert pressure on Ukraine.

    “By leaving the deal now and putting the blame on Ukraine, it aims to slow Ukrainian attacks around the Black Sea,” said Mario Bikarski, Europe’s analyst at the Economist Intelligence Unit. Russia could be hoping that Ukraine’s Western allies might ask it to focus its forces elsewhere in order to preserve the grain deal, he said.

    More conflicting details emerged Sunday about the alleged attack on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

    The city council of Mariupol, a Ukrainian port captured by Russia on the Azov Sea, said on Telegram that Ukrainian special services had destroyed at least three Russian warships near the city of Sevastopol on the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

    An adviser to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry claimed that the Russians’ “careless handling of explosives” had caused blasts on four Russian warships. Anton Gerashchenko wrote on Telegram that the vessels included a frigate, a landing ship and a ship that carried cruise missiles.

    Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed Sunday that one of the drones that attacked Sevastopol could have been launched from a civilian ship carrying agricultural products from Ukraine. The ministry claimed an inspection of the wreckage showed the drones used Canadian-made navigation technology and that the launch point was the Ukrainian coast near the port of Odesa. The ministry claimed the ships that were attacked had helped secure the safety of the Black Sea grain corridor.

    Independent verification of each side’s claims was not possible.

    Russia’s action is facing international condemnation over the grain deal suspension. In a tweet Sunday, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell urged Russia to reverse its decision.

    Russia had been angling to withdraw from the deal for some time, said the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.

    On the diplomatic front, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any peace talks between Russia and Ukraine should be held with Washington, which Russia views as Kyiv’s “mastermind.”

    “Obviously, the deciding vote belongs to Washington … It is impossible to talk about something, for example, with Kyiv,” Peskov said on Russian state television.

    Ukraine and the United States are unlikely to agree to such a demand.

    On the battlefront, Russian missile attacks kept pounding key front-line hot spots in Ukraine. The Russians shelled seven Ukrainian regions over the past 24 hours, killing at least five civilians and wounding nine more, Ukraine’s presidential office said.

    In the eastern Donetsk region, where the fighting is ongoing near the cities of Bakhmut and Avdiivka, eight cities and villages were shelled.

    Earlier this month, Moscow intensified its missile and drone strikes on Ukraine’s power stations, waterworks and other key infrastructure, damaging 40% of Ukraine’s electric system and forcing the government to implement rolling blackouts. Kyiv’s mayor said the Ukrainian capital’s power system was operating in “emergency mode.”

    In addition, in areas that Ukraine has recaptured, residents are still recovering bodies of killed civilians, Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said.

    “Over the past 24 hours alone, in three de-occupied towns and villages, we found abandoned bodies of Ukrainian civilians,” Kyrylenko said. “The Russians are ignoring all principles of war. Every week we discover either individual or mass graves of civilians.”

    Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy said Sunday that Russian forces were mining territories they leave behind twice as densely as during the first months of the war.

    “Virtually everything in the recently de-occupied territories has been mined,” Monastyrskiy told Ukrainian television.

    Power outages were reported Sunday in the occupied Ukrainian city of Enerhodar, home to the closed Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s largest. Ukrainian and Russian officials traded blame for the shelling that caused the blackout.

    ———

    Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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  • Private plane makes safe emergency landing on Dallas roadway

    Private plane makes safe emergency landing on Dallas roadway

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    DALLAS — A small airplane experiencing technical problems made an emergency landing on a road in a Dallas neighborhood Saturday afternoon.

    Engine problems forced the plane to land on West Kiest Boulevard around 3 p.m., WFAA-TV reported.

    The unnamed husband and wife who were operating the airplane escaped injuries and there were no injuries on the ground, Dallas Fire-Rescue officials said.

    The Federal Aviation Administration said the multi-engine DA-622 landed about 2 miles from Dallas Executive Airport. The plane was en route to the airport from Winston Field in Snyder, Texas, about 250 miles (402 kilometers) west of Dallas, WFAA reported.

    There was no fire or leaked fuel at the landing site, but some power lines were knocked down and a speed limit sign was struck, Dallas Fire-Rescue said.

    Electric utility Oncor said only one customer lost service due to the contact with power lines, WFAA reported.

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  • NASCAR holds 2nd driver safety meeting, vows more

    NASCAR holds 2nd driver safety meeting, vows more

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    LAS VEGAS — NASCAR held a second consecutive meeting with its Cup drivers to discuss their safety concerns with the new Next Gen car and promised to continue the sessions for the remaining month of the season.

    Saturday’s meeting at Las Vegas Motor Speedway lasted 75 minutes, the same length as last week’s contentious session at Charlotte Motor Speedway. NASCAR had a lengthy slide presentation for the drivers since the one at Charlotte was halted when the meeting deteriorated into an emotional confrontation between drivers and NASCAR leadership.

    Several drivers last week likened the Charlotte meeting to an episode of “Seinfeld” as it became “an airing of grievances.” The Las Vegas meeting was much calmer and NASCAR was able to complete presentation, which was expanded to include information from questions raised by the drivers at Charlotte.

    Although the Las Vegas meeting was optional, NASCAR said it was well-attended despite “some notables” who were not present. The Associated Press confirmed that Kevin Harvick, one of the most outspoken drivers about the Next Gen, was present for the Las Vegas meeting.

    “I’m still standing,” a smiling Brad Keselowski said as he exited the meeting room Saturday.

    Kurt Busch and Alex Bowman both suffered concussions in what should have been routine crashes. Both drivers were injured when the rear of their car hit the wall.

    Because the Next Gen was built to be durable, drivers have complained the rear is way too stiff and the drivers are absorbing far too much energy from impacts. Bowman has missed two races already and said he’ll be out at least the next three, while Busch said Saturday after missing 13 consecutive races he will be stepping away from full time racing.

    NASCAR thinks it has a fix for the rigidness of the rear of the Next Gen, with changes possible by the start of next season.

    Corey LaJoie, who has sided with NASCAR in its development of the Next Gen, said NASCAR told the drivers at Charlotte that design changes it tested “takes about 50% of the G-load away on a rear impact.”

    “You can always say we should have done it faster,” LaJoie said on his podcast “Stacking Pennies.”

    “But this stuff takes time. It’s not like NASCAR is just sitting on its hands, waiting for another guy to get hurt. Nobody is at more of a risk or detriments to seeing their competitors hurt than NASCAR is. When we were designing this car, safety was above and beyond every other checkpoint.”

    There are four races remaining this season with the Next Gen — including Sunday at Las Vegas to open the third round of the playoffs.

    ———

    More AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Airbus, Air France face criminal trial over Rio-Paris crash

    Airbus, Air France face criminal trial over Rio-Paris crash

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    FILE – Workers unload debris, belonging to the crashed Air France flight AF447, from the Brazilian Navy’s Constitution Frigate in the port of Recife, northeast of Brazil, June 14, 2009. It was the worst plane crash in Air France history, killing people of 33 nationalities and having lasting impact. It led to changes in air safety regulations, how pilots are trained and the use of airspeed sensors. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres, File)

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  • Families seek truth as Airbus, Air France face crash trial

    Families seek truth as Airbus, Air France face crash trial

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    PARIS — Nicolas Toulliou had just proposed marriage to his girlfriend. Nelson Marinho Jr. was heading off on a new oil exploration job. Eric Lamy was about to celebrate his 38th birthday.

    They were among 228 people killed in 2009 when their storm-tossed Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris slammed into the Atlantic. After more than a decade of legal battles, their families have a chance at justice in a courtroom.

    Aviation industry heavyweights Airbus and Air France are charged with manslaughter in a trial that opens Monday over the crash of Flight 447 on June 1, 2009. The worst plane crash in Air France history killed people of 33 nationalities and had lasting impact, leading to changes in air safety regulations, how pilots are trained and the use of airspeed sensors.

    But it almost didn’t come to trial. The companies insist they are not criminally responsible, and Air France has already compensated families. Investigators argued for dropping the case, but unusually, judges overruled them and sent the case to court.

    “We made a promise to our loved ones to have the truth for them and to ensure that they didn’t die for nothing,” Ophelie Toulliou, whose 27-year-old brother Nicolas was killed, told The Associated Press. “But we are also fighting for collective security, in fact, for all those who board an Airbus every day, or Air France, every day.”

    She said the companies present themselves as “untouchable,” and that Airbus made no effort to address families’ concerns. “For them, we are nothing. They did not lose 228 people. They lost a plane.”

    Few families in Brazil, which lost 59 citizens in the crash, can afford to travel to France for the trial. Some feel the French justice system has been too soft on Airbus and Air France — two industrial giants in which the French government has an ownership stake.

    The trial is expected to focus on two key factors: the icing over of external sensors called pitot tubes, and pilot error.

    The Airbus A330-200 disappeared from radars over the Atlantic Ocean between Brazil and Senegal with 216 passengers and 12 crew members aboard. The first debris was only spotted at sea five days later. And it wasn’t until 2011 that the plane — and its black box recorders — were located on the ocean floor, in an unprecedented search effort at depths of more than 13,000 feet.

    France’s air accident investigation agency BEA found that the accident involved a cascading series of events, with no single cause.

    As a storm buffeted the plane, ice crystals present at high altitudes disabled the pitot tubes, blocking speed and altitude information. The autopilot disconnected.

    The crew resumed manual piloting, but with erroneous navigation data. The plane went into an aerodynamic stall, its nose pitched upward. And then it plunged.

    The pilots ”did not understand what was happening to them. A difficulty of interpretation, in an all-digital aircraft like all the aircraft in the world today — well, it’s easy to be wrong,” said Gerard Feldzer, a former pilot and pilot trainer for Air France.

    He said he and pilots around the world asked themselves afterward “if it had been me, would I have acted in the same way? It has been a very difficult question to answer.”

    No one risks prison in this case; only the companies are on trial. Each faces potential fines of up to 225,000 euros — a fraction of their annual revenues — but they could suffer reputational damage if found criminally responsible.

    Nelson Marinho, whose son Nelson Jr was killed, is angry that no company executives will be tried.

    “They have changed various directors, both at Airbus and Air France, so who will they arrest? No one. There won’t be justice. That’s sadly the truth,” Marinho, a retired mechanic who leads a support group for victims’ families, told The AP.

    Air France is accused of not having implemented training in the event of icing of the pitot probes despite the risks.

    In a statement, the company said it would demonstrate in court “that it has not committed a criminal fault at the origin of the accident” and plead for acquittal.

    Air France has since changed its training manuals and simulations. It also provided compensation to families, who had to agree not to disclose the sums.

    Airbus is accused of having known that the model of pitot tubes on Flight 447 was faulty, and not doing enough to urgently inform airlines and their crews about it and to ensure training to mitigate the resulting risk.

    An AP investigation at the time found that Airbus had known since at least 2002 about problems with pitots, but failed to replace them until after the crash. The model in question — a Thales AA pitot — was subsequently banned and replaced.

    Airbus blames pilot error, and told investigators that icing over is a problem inherent to all such sensors.

    “They knew and they did nothing,” said Danièle Lamy, president of an association of victims’ families that pushed for a trial. “The pilots should never have found themselves in such a situation, they never understood the cause of the breakdown and the plane had become unpilotable.”

    Lamy lost her son Eric a few days before his 38th birthday. She has struggled ever since to find out the truth.

    “The plane had sent messages to the ground about the problem but had not warned the pilots. It’s as if you were driving a car at 130 (kph, about 80 mph), your brakes were no longer working but the car sent the alert to the mechanic and not to the driver,” Lamy told the AP.

    She is among 489 civil parties to the trial, which is scheduled to last through December.

    The crash forced Airbus and Air France to be more transparent and reactive, Feldzer said, noting that the trial will be important for the aviation industry as well as for families.

    “The history of aviation security is made from this, from accidents,” Feldzer said.

    ———

    This story corrects the type of plane to A330-200 and corrects the spelling of Toulliou’s last name.

    ———

    Vaux-Montagny reported from Lyon, France. David Biller in Rio de Janeiro and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed.

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  • Families seek truth as Airbus, Air France face crash trial

    Families seek truth as Airbus, Air France face crash trial

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    PARIS — Nicolas Toulliou had just proposed marriage to his girlfriend. Nelson Marinho Jr. was heading off on a new oil exploration job. Eric Lamy was about to celebrate his 38th birthday.

    They were among 228 people killed in 2009 when their storm-tossed Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris slammed into the Atlantic. After more than a decade of legal battles, their families at last have a chance at justice.

    Aviation industry heavyweights Airbus and Air France are charged with manslaughter in a trial that opens Monday over the crash of Flight 447 on June 1, 2009. The worst plane crash in Air France history killed people of 33 nationalities and had lasting impact, leading to changes in air safety regulations, how pilots are trained and the use of airspeed sensors.

    But it almost didn’t come to trial. The companies insist they are not criminally responsible, and Air France has already compensated families. Investigators argued for dropping the case, but unusually, judges overruled them and sent the case to court.

    “We made a promise to our loved ones to have the truth for them and to ensure that they didn’t die for nothing,” Ophelie Toulliou, whose 27-year-old brother Nicolas was killed, told The Associated Press. “But we are also fighting for collective security, in fact, for all those who board an Airbus every day, or Air France, every day.”

    She said the companies present themselves as “untouchable,” and that Airbus made no effort to address families’ concerns. “For them, we are nothing. They did not lose 228 people. They lost a plane.”

    Few families in Brazil, which lost 59 citizens in the crash, can afford to travel to France for the trial. Some feel the French justice system has been too soft on Airbus and Air France — two industrial giants in which the French government has an ownership stake.

    The trial is expected to focus on two key factors: the icing over of external sensors called pitot tubes, and pilot error.

    The Airbus A300-200 disappeared from radars over the Atlantic Ocean between Brazil and Senegal with 216 passengers and 12 crew members aboard. The first debris was only spotted at sea five days later. And it wasn’t until 2011 that the plane — and its black box recorders — were located on the ocean floor, in an unprecedented search effort at depths of more than 13,000 feet.

    France’s air accident investigation agency BEA found that the accident involved a cascading series of events, with no single cause.

    As a storm buffeted the plane, ice crystals present at high altitudes disabled the pitot tubes, blocking speed and altitude information. The autopilot disconnected.

    The crew resumed manual piloting, but with erroneous navigation data. The plane went into an aerodynamic stall, its nose pitched upward. And then it plunged.

    The pilots ”did not understand what was happening to them. A difficulty of interpretation, in an all-digital aircraft like all the aircraft in the world today — well, it’s easy to be wrong,” said Gerard Feldzer, a former pilot and pilot trainer for Air France.

    He said he and pilots around the world asked themselves afterward “if it had been me, would I have acted in the same way? It has been a very difficult question to answer.”

    No one risks prison in this case; only the companies are on trial. Each faces potential fines of up to 225,000 euros — a fraction of their annual revenues — but they could suffer reputational damage if found criminally responsible.

    Nelson Marinho, whose son Nelson Jr was killed, is angry that no company executives will be tried.

    “They have changed various directors, both at Airbus and Air France, so who will they arrest? No one. There won’t be justice. That’s sadly the truth,” Marinho, a retired mechanic who leads a support group for victims’ families, told The AP.

    Air France is accused of not having implemented training in the event of icing of the pitot probes despite the risks.

    In a statement, the company said it would demonstrate in court “that it has not committed a criminal fault at the origin of the accident” and plead for acquittal.

    Air France has since changed its training manuals and simulations. It also provided compensation to families, who had to agree not to disclose the sums.

    Airbus is accused of having known that the model of pitot tubes on Flight 447 was faulty, and not doing enough to urgently inform airlines and their crews about it and to ensure training to mitigate the resulting risk.

    An AP investigation at the time found that Airbus had known since at least 2002 about problems with pitots, but failed to replace them until after the crash. The model in question — a Thales AA pitot — was subsequently banned and replaced.

    Airbus blames pilot error, and told investigators that icing over is a problem inherent to all such sensors.

    “They knew and they did nothing,” said Danièle Lamy, president of an association of victims’ families that pushed for a trial. “The pilots should never have found themselves in such a situation, they never understood the cause of the breakdown and the plane had become unpilotable.”

    Lamy lost her son Eric a few days before his 38th birthday. She has struggled ever since to find out the truth.

    “The plane had sent messages to the ground about the problem but had not warned the pilots. It’s as if you were driving a car at 130 (kph, about 80 mph), your brakes were no longer working but the car sent the alert to the mechanic and not to the driver,” Lamy told the AP.

    She is among 489 civil parties to the trial, which is scheduled to last through December.

    The crash forced Airbus and Air France to be more transparent and reactive, Feldzer said, noting that the trial will be important for the aviation industry as well as for families.

    “The history of aviation security is made from this, from accidents,” Feldzer said.

    ———

    This story corrects the spelling of Toulliou’s last name.

    ———

    Vaux-Montagny reported from Lyon, France. David Biller in Rio de Janeiro and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed.

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  • FBI: Jetliner evacuated in Albuquerque after security threat

    FBI: Jetliner evacuated in Albuquerque after security threat

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    ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — An American Airlines flight from Texas to New Mexico was evacuated Sunday after landing at the Albuquerque airport because of a security threat, authorities said.

    All 179 people aboard Flight 928 from Dallas-Fort Worth were taken off the jet in the morning at Albuquerque International Sunport and were bused to the terminal, airport officials said. No injuries were reported.

    FBI officials in Albuquerque did not disclose the nature of the security threat but said that the matter was being investigated and that no other information was available.

    American Airlines passengers flying out of the airport were expected to see flight delays while the episode is investigated, airport officials said.

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  • Malaysia aims to add US flights after safety rating boost

    Malaysia aims to add US flights after safety rating boost

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    KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has upgraded Malaysia’s air safety rating to Category 1, allowing the country’s carriers to expand flights to the United States after a three-year hiatus, Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong said Saturday.

    Wee said the move will bolster tourism and economic growth in Malaysia, which opened up from pandemic shutdowns in April.

    “With the return to Category 1, our airlines can now mount new flights to the U.S. and have code sharing with American carriers. There is no more barrier now,” said Wee, who was in Montreal for an ICAO assembly. “This is good news after the COVID-19 pandemic.”

    Riad Asmat, CEO of low-cost carrier AirAsia Malaysia, said it was a “very good start.” He said AirAsia, currently the only Malaysian carrier that flies to the United States — from Kuala Lumpur to Honolulu — will seek opportunities to expand in the U.S.

    The FAA lowered Malaysia’s rating in November 2019 to Category 2 due to non-compliance with safety standards. The FAA identified deficiencies in areas including technical expertise, record keeping and inspection procedures.

    Under the FAA system, countries are listed either as Category 1, which meets International Civil Aviation Organization standards, or Category 2, which doesn’t meet standards.

    Wee told an online news conference that the downgrade prompted Malaysia to restructure its Civil Aviation Authority and make various efforts to strengthen its aviation workforce, documentation processes and inspection methods to ensure effective safety oversight.

    He said the FAA was satisfied the issues identified in 2019 had been rectified, but found 29 new problems in its December assessment. Those issues were swiftly rectified in the first half this year, he said, and the FAA has restored Malaysia’s Category 1 rating.

    Malaysia Airlines CEO Izham Ismail said the national carrier will resume flight plans with its partners, especially American Airlines, but didn’t elaborate.

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