NTSB Hearings in Final day

Thursday, the final day of the hearings at the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) that is looking into the cause of the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 near Buffalo, New York, Feb. 12, brought out more experts on the issues of pilot fatigue and the sterile cockpit concept.

Dr. Robert Key Dismukes, research scientist for NASA Ames, testified that CALSPAN tests, which are well respected in the airline industry, have shown that pilots don’t recover as well from nose-high upsets as they do from other upset types.  Evidence from the NTSB indicates that Flight 3407 experienced a nose-high upset that led to its crash.  Dismukes also said that the FAA’s one-second and three-second pilot response times to upsets, as used during certification to demonstrate that airplanes are recoverable after upsets, might be OK for some pilots such as flight test pilots, but are not adequate for other pilots.  Dismukes testified that it is important for pilots to be proactive and not merely react to what is occurring during a flight and in the cockpit.  Dismukes said pilots should do this by anticipating what will happen, based upon their alertness and training.  The adequacy of training of the pilot and co-pilot of Flight 3407 has been called into serious question during the hearings.

The issue of stick shakers and stick pushers, devices that are supposed to warn pilots when a plane is several seconds away from entering a stall and then assist in the recognition of and recovery from stall, respectively, was again questioned as not giving pilots enough time to prevent stalls and crashes.  NTSB Member Debbie Hersman pointed out, and Dismukes agreed, that a low airspeed alerter system with visual and aural warnings well prior to the stick shaker would give pilots more advance warning time of an impending stall and might have=2 0prevented the crash of Flight 3407.  Robert Clifford has discussed the need for low airspeed alerter systems in an article he wrote May 3 for the Jamestown, New York Post-Journal, as well as letters he wrote to the FAA and NTSB on May 7.

Captain Rory Kay, Executive Air Safety Chairman for the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA), testified about his concern for airlines cutting back to “bare minimums” on training programs as a result of the economic issues facing airlines after 9/11 and the recent economic depression.  Kay indicated that Colgan Air joined ALPA just six weeks prior to the crash of Flight 3407, but has not yet established many of the safety-related ALPA groups that take months or more to establish after joining ALPA.

Kay further testified on the subject of flight duty times, fatigue, and pilot responsibility to manage their time to avoid fatigue.  Kay said pilots should fly in the day before a trip if necessary to assure adequate rest, and that if they can’t afford lodging of their own at their base, they should consider renting such lodging with groups of pilots to share the cost.  Kay also stated that many airlines offer designated sleeping quarters at their bases to help deal with these issues.  Colga n does not.

Kay testified that he believes the current FAA flight duty time standards are “archaic” and in dire need of revision to assure flight safety. Kay said the FAA has tried to change these standards 21 times but has met industry resistance and fa iled to effect any changes.

NTSB member Kitty Higgins said that passengers buy a ticket for a major airline such as Continental, they see the colors of the major airline on the planes they board, but they don’t often know that another carrier such as Colgan Air, who often have lesser pilot experience and possibly different safety standards than the major carrier they fly for, actually operate the airplanes.  Here, Colgan Air operated Continental Connection Flight 3407.  Kay testified that although the level of safety is not the same on all airlines, that it should be, and that the airline industry should share information and “best practices” to help bring about equivalence in levels of safety between smaller regional airlines and large national and international airlines.

For further information, please contact Clifford Law Offices Communications Partner Pamela Menaker at 847-721-0909.