[Peetwo]

St Hooded Canary blesses aerial work and military aviators - 

Two days ago the Patron Saint of Australian aviation top cover investigations gave his blessing and acknowledgement to the aerial work aviators safely flying many thousands of successful sorties in response to the very testing Aussie 2019-20 Summer of natural disasters:
 

Doing it safely in a time of crisis


With the devastating fires and floods affecting many areas across Australia in recent months, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) acknowledges the valuable contribution by many aviation operators who have safely supported communities in their times of need.

With unprecedented bushfires burning since September 2019, and more recently areas of severe flooding after a week-long down pour of welcoming rain, a high tempo of civil and military aviation activity has provided vital support during these natural disasters.
ATSB Chief Commissioner Greg Hood said pilots from a range of specialist sectors have helped assist impacted areas across the country to get back on their feet.

“I would like to acknowledge the continued safe work being done by so many people in the aviation industry – both civil and military – who have worked together during this unprecedented summer,” Chief Commissioner Hood said. “Flying in the adverse conditions that we’ve seen predominately along our east coast, whether it’s fighting the fires or supporting communities from the floods, is very challenging and with elevated levels of risk.

“As we all mourn the loss of three American aircrew who were tragically killed in late January when their C-130 Hercules collided with terrain at Peak View near Cooma, NSW, it is important for all of us in aviation to continue to safely serve our nation during this period of natural disasters.”

Australians are no strangers to bushfires and floods. The Australian aviation industry has been a part of the national fabric for many years, safely serving the people in rural and regional Australia, as well as those who live in the cities, safely in their times of need.
February 2020 marks the first anniversary of the Far North and North Queensland monsoonal floods, which caused devastation to cattle farmers across rural and regional Queensland.

“Aerial musterers play a vital role in the day to day operations of cattle stations across the top end of Australia,” Chief Commissioner Hood said. “During the floods last February in the northern parts of Queensland, a group of a dozen helicopter pilots from rural and regional Queensland safely supported farmers through this disaster for over a fortnight, even contributing to some of the costs from their own pockets. This is the true Australian spirit to help those in need during a time of crisis, and we are seeing this spirit reflected today.

“It is important to acknowledge the safe flying culture which is instilled in the Australian aviation industry. While the bushfire season is far from over, I would like to remind all pilots to continue to fly within the limits of their aircraft and themselves.”

 

“As we all mourn the loss of three American aircrew who were tragically killed in late January when their C-130 Hercules collided with terrain at Peak View near Cooma, NSW, it is important for all of us in aviation to continue to safely serve our nation during this period of natural disasters.” 

Speaking of which where's the prelim report? 

Collision with terrain involving Lockheed Martin EC-130Q, N134CG, near Peak View, New South Wales, on 23 January 2020


From my calculations it is approaching a week overdue already?

Perhaps HC should forego waltzing around (for no apparent reason) with our useless self-serving NFI Minister...

Michael McCormack dismisses safety concerns about track where train derailed in Victoria



Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack speaks to the media during a press conference at the scene of an XPT train derailment in Wallan North. Source: AAP

...and help his TSI's to get both their investigations and interim/reports completed in accordance with the principles and international obligations as documented in ICAO Annex 13. Maybe he should consider actually doing his job and addressing the findings within both the final report of the 2017 ICAO audit...

AIG: Fully implement the ATSB’s action plan to ensure that all accident and incident investigation reports are completed within the established timelines.

...and the ANAO audit report (ref: https://www.anao.gov.au/work/performance...ccurrences ).

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I'm still Gobsmacked!

All day, torn between laughing out loud at the unbelievable ‘clap-trap’ spouted about a train wreck and deep despair for where this once proud nation is heading. The train wreck has me beat hollow.  There are only three possible scenarios: (i) The wheels fell off the train; (ii) the driver was suicidal, or: (iii) the on going ‘problems’ with the line caused the prang. For a minister to stand in front of the wreckage and declare ‘no blame’ on the line beggars logic.

If a relatively simple event like ‘the reason the inevitable happened’ causes such a rush to a press conference, dragging his ‘chief commissioner’ along behind gives him the nervous Nellie’s what the hell is he going to do about a report like – THIS -? He does realise the 'deep' implications - don't he?

There were four killed just a ‘country mile’ away in a mid air collision – but no ministerial (with suitably attired mutt in tow) to say to the media ‘the track was fine’.

Mendacious obfuscation ? Or is this the new measure of our political power house. Perhaps, maybe, it’s just some fool wanting to grab a headline, any headline – to cover a useless system of ‘safety – on –a-budget’. “Your safety is our prime concern” – BOLLOCKS. Puerile BIPARTINSANE BULLSHIT.

Mental bantamweights in action. Gods save us.

Thor preliminary report finally out - 

From Ironsider, via the Oz:

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No cockpit voice recorder audio of fatal bushfire air tanker crash

ROBYN IRONSIDE
Follow @ironsider


The crash site of a C-130 Hercules firefighting aircraft that killed three American men in Australia to help battle bushfires. Picture: NSW Police/ATSB

• 12:33PM FEBRUARY 28, 2020
  
  
• 11 COMMENTS
  

The C-130 water tanker that crashed while helping to battle bushfires in the Snowy Mountains killing three American men on board, had recorded no audio on its cockpit voice recorder since arriving in Australia two months before the fatal mission.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has released its preliminary report on the crash on January 23, about 50km northeast of the Cooma-Snowy Mountains Airport.

No distress calls were made before the crash, and the report said the CVR recovered from the crash site was found to contain no audio from the C-130’s final flight.

The last recording was from a flight undertaken in the US, before the C-130’s deployment to Australia.

The report said after leaving the Richmond RAAF base, the aircraft was tasked to drop retardant on the Adaminaby Complex bushfire, but was unable to carry out the drop and was sent to the Good Good fire instead.



Witnesses reported seeing the aircraft complete a number of circuits before completing the drop, at about 200 feet above ground level with a drop time of two seconds.



READ MORE:Bushfire air crash investigation continues|New footage shows crash that killed firefighters



Following the drop, the C-130 was seen to bank left before becoming obscured by smoke. After 15-seconds, the aircraft was seen “flying at a very low height above the ground in a left wing attitude”, the report said.



“Shortly after, at about 1.16pm, the aircraft collided with terrain and a post-impact fuel-fed fire ensued. The three crew were fatal injured and the aircraft was destroyed,” the report said.



At the time, visibility was down to 2000m, and there was severe turbulence below 5000 ft above ground level.
ATSB chief commissioner Greg Hood said the question of why the CVR did not record any audio, would form part of the investigation.


The catastrophic crash of the C-130 Hercules killed three US crewmen. Picture: NSW Police / ATSB



“Audio from cockpit voice recorders often play an important role in aircraft accident investigations, however, our investigators do have a range of other evidence, including witness videos, at their disposal in building a comprehensive understanding of the accident sequence,” Mr Hood said.



Initial examinations of the site, damage to surrounding vegetation and ground markings, indicated that the aircraft initially impacted a tree in a left wing down attitude, before colliding with the ground, he said.



The ongoing investigation would consider environmental influences, the crew’s qualifications, experience and medical information, the nature of aerial firefighting operations and operating policies and procedures.



“An investigation of this nature and complexity may take more than 18 months to complete,” Mr Hood said.

“However, should any safety critical information be discovered at any time during the investigation, we will immediately notify operators and regulators, and make that publicly known.”



The men killed included captain Ian McBeth, first officer Paul Clyde Hudson and flight engineer Rick deMorgan Jr.



A statement from Coulson Aviation which was operating the aircraft under contract to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service, welcomed the preliminary report.



CEO Wayne Coulson said it provided some understanding of the events leading up to the crash.



“We are continuing to work with the ATSB, and we are providing every assistance to them as part of the investigations. It’s important for us, for our team and for the families of those we’ve lost, to understand what happened that day,” he said.


“We recognise that this preliminary report is just the start and further review of the information available will help form a better picture of what occurred, and what can be learned from this tragedy.”

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And via the Hooded Canary's ATCB:

ATSB releases C-130 large air tanker accident preliminary report


The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has released the preliminary report from its ongoing investigation into the collision with terrain of a Lockheed C-130 large air tanker during aerial firefighting operations north-east of Cooma, NSW on 23 January 2020, in which three aircrew were fatally injured.

The preliminary report details basic factual information established in the investigation’s early evidence collection phase, including the accident’s sequence of events, wreckage and impact information, and weather details. The preliminary report also confirms that ATSB data recovery analysts were able to successfully download the C-130’s cockpit voice recorder (CVR).

“Although the recorder assembly was damaged in the accident, ATSB investigators were able to successfully recover all the data from the CVR’s crash protected memory module,” said ATSB Chief Commissioner Greg Hood.

“However, unfortunately the CVR had not recorded any audio from the accident flight. Instead, all recovered audio was from a previous flight when the aircraft was operating in the United States.”

The aircraft had been in Australia since November 2019, and why the CVR did not record the accident flight will be considered as part of the ongoing investigation.

“Audio from cockpit voice recorders often play an important role in aircraft accident investigations, however, our investigators do have a range of other evidence, including witness videos, at their disposal in building a comprehensive understanding of the accident sequence,” Chief Commissioner Hood said.

As the investigation continues, the ATSB will complete its teardown and inspection of the aircraft’s engines and propellers; review the aircraft’s maintenance history, and performance and handling characteristics; analyse witness reports; and develop a more comprehensive understanding of the accident impact sequence with the use of 3D drone mapping and video analysis of witness videos.

“The ATSB’s on-site examination of the wreckage, damage to the surrounding vegetation, and ground markings indicated that the aircraft initially impacted a tree in a left wing down attitude, before colliding with the ground,” Mr Hood said.

The investigation will also consider environmental influences; the crew’s qualifications, experience and medical information; the nature of aerial fire-fighting operations; and operating policies and procedures.

“ATSB preliminary reports do not contain findings, identify contributing factors or outline safety issues and actions, which will be detailed in an investigation’s final and any interim reports,” Mr Hood said.



“An investigation of this nature and complexity may take more than 18 months to complete.

“However, should any safety critical information be discovered at any time during the investigation, we will immediately notify operators and regulators, and make that publicly known.”

Mr Hood again extended his sympathies to those affected by this accident.

“On behalf of the ATSB, I convey our sympathies to the families and friends of the three aircrew who lost their lives in this accident in the service of others,” Mr Hood said.

“The ATSB would also like to acknowledge the support of the NSW Police Force, the NSW Rural Fire Service, NSW Fire and Rescue, the Australian Defence Force in facilitating safe access to an active fire ground and supporting our on-site investigation team. We also acknowledge and thank the warm-hearted support of the communities of Peak View and Cooma during the ATSB’s extensive on-site deployment.”

Read the preliminary report AO-2020-007: Collision with terrain involving Lockheed EC130Q, N134CG, 50 km north-east of Cooma-Snowy Mountains Airport (near Peak View), NSW, on 23 January 2020

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