By Jim Timm
JANUARY 2013
I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and a safe Happy New Year. The new year is going to be filled with a lot of new challenges for all of us and the Arizona Pilots Association. One of the challenges for me will be to find more time for flying my airplane and meeting other APA members around the state. We all need to get out there and aviate, taking advantage of the great smooth dense air we now have before we have to start thinking about the summer hibernation. There are a lot of fun flying events coming up.
MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS
Luke AFB announced they will be having an air show on March 15 and 16. The Air Force’s Thunderbirds precision demonstration team will be here along with an expansive display of military aircraft. Luke’s latest aircraft, the F35 Lightening II is expected to be on static display. Be sure to put the dates on your calendar.
Aviation safety needs to be a concern for all of us. From the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) records, there were three accidents occurring in Arizona that were reported in this last reporting period. In the previous reporting period there was an accident reported that did not contain a formal preliminary report. A final report for that accident with probable cause has been issued this month and is included in this month’s report. The accident had occurred on October 12, 2013.
Of this month’s reported accidents, one accident resulted in two serious injuries and one minor injury. The other two accidents did not result in any injuries. We need to take a careful look at what has happened in these accidents, take note, and do what we can to prevent something similar from happening to one of us. See my January Aviation Accident Report for the details of these accidents.
Many pilots are surprised to learn that there is no requirement to call the FAA following an accident or incident. The relevant reporting rules are in 49 CFR Part 830 and they specify what needs to be reported to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and when, not the FAA. And certainly, not every mishap qualifies for a report. Making an unnecessary report to the FAA or NTSB may produce unwanted scrutiny. For example, as traumatic and expensive as they can be, gear up landings rarely meet the damage or injury requirements for an NTSB report. But, by the same token there are also some occurrences such as loss of more than 50% of an aircraft’s cockpit display known as; Electronic Flight Information System (EFIS) display or Engine Information and Crew Alerting System (EICAS) display is required reporting. A review of the current Part 830 requirements might be a good idea.
We continue to work with airports around the state providing the general aviation user perspective in the process of updating their Airport Master Plans. We are presently working on the up dating of the Bagdad Airport, Nogales International Airport, and the Gila Bend Municipal Airport Master plans and an update of the Phoenix Sky Harbor FAA Part 150 Noise Study.
THINGS TO DO - PLACES TO GO FOR BREAKFAST:
The first Saturday of the month, is a fly in breakfast at Coolidge Municipal Airport (P08).
Time: 8:00 to 11:00 am.
The last Saturday of the month there is a fly in breakfast at Casa Grande Municipal Airport (CGZ)
(Both of these fly in breakfasts are put on by a service group in their respective communities to raise funds for community service projects.)
The third Saturday of the month there is a fly in breakfast at Benson (E95) @ Southwest Aviation
(Rumor has it that there may be special fuel prices for breakfast attendees.)
Check the APA Calendar for our Getaway Flights program for weekend places to fly.