MD-11 Louisville accident Nov 4, 2025, versus Chicago DC-10 accident May 25, 1979

The tragic accident of the Louisville MD-11 on take off which killed the crew and 11persons on the ground reminds many people familiar with both MD-11 and DC-10 aircraft of the accident with a DC-10-10 at Chicago O'Hare on May 25 1979. The DC-10 accident is referenced in the MD-11 preliminary report on page 11 (document at the bottom of this article). There are certain commonalities between the two accidents, but the totality of circumstances and extent of investigation (so f

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Jan 165 min read

Metal fatigue and damage tolerance in aircraft structure simplified and abbreviated

This article is not meant to be a scientific dissertation about the subject of metal fatigue but just scratching the surface for...

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Mar 4, 20248 min read

The Birth of a Maintenance Program with MSG-3

This article covers a lot of known ground for Service Engineers but it may be interesting for new hires or people that are interested in...

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Oct 12, 20237 min read

Alaska 737 damaged by hard landing? Not so fast! Final report added (fatigue damage in trunnion pin)

Above picture credit to Airguide.info On 21-Aug an Alaska Airlines landing at Santa Ana CA. Airport (also know as John Wayne) from Seattle WA. suffered damage to the left main landing gear. As the landing was made in turbulent conditions during the aftermath of an hurricane, many people, including from the Aviation community jumped to conclusions that the damage was a result of a hard landing and placed blame squarely on the crew. The landing was recorded on video by a passen

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Sep 12, 20233 min read

What is Haddon Cave and why is it highly recommended reading for every Aviation Professional

In 2006, the Afghan war against insurgents was in full swing. A multi nation force was active in the country. The British forces used...

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Dec 7, 20228 min read

Secondary Flight Deck Barrier; safety or politics?

In June 2021 The US government DOT, Headed by Steve Buttigieg, developed the US DOT Spring Regulatory agenda. Four sections: Safer and...

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Aug 3, 20223 min read

Disaster averted; work to be done (CS-TNV incident Copenhagen) UPDATE FINAL REPORT

Credit to website avherald.com and its owner Simon Hradecky UPDATE 29-Feb-2024 The final investigation report has been published by the...

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Apr 29, 20224 min read

EU and EASA go political (and BCAA)

Unfortunately public agencies are increasingly under political influence these days and EASA is no exception. This web site is 100% anti...

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Mar 22, 20222 min read

Why do transitions go wrong and how to do it right

In recent years the number of aircraft transitions have skyrocketed; many leased airliners have been repossessed and are assigned to new...

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Mar 18, 20227 min read

Cessna Citation Tamarack Winglets Safety; a loose screw?

In the Aviation world there are many engineering activities going on that improve existing certified aircraft types or optimise them to a...

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Nov 17, 20219 min read

Quick tip for reactivation of B737's

There are currently many aircraft of several types being transitioned into operation after prolonged storage. The storage activities are...

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Sep 13, 20212 min read

UK CAA as independent Aviation Authority, Technical Implementation Procedures and more

Since beginning 2021 the separation of the UK from EU has become fact, a good number of arrangements have come in place. UK CAA is now an...

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Jun 10, 20211 min read

Embraer 190 accident Nov 2018

On 2-October-2018 a Aruba registered Embraer 190, operated by Air Astana was inducted into a well reputable and large MRO in Alverca do...

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Jun 7, 20213 min read

Space weather: Effects on Aviation

Recently EASA published two excellent Safety Information Bulletins which are a revision up from May-2012. SIB 2012-09R1 describes the 11...

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May 4, 20212 min read

Commercial gas turbine engines fan blade failures and certification code

After the most recent spectacular engine failure with United flight 328 from Denver to Honolulu, a prior incident with a sister ship with...

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Mar 4, 20216 min read

B777-200 fan blade failure 20-Feb-2021 (amended 8-Mar-2021)

Graphic picture and video's have been circulating on the internet of an incident with a Boeing 777-200 which showed a partially...

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Feb 23, 20215 min read

ICAO Annex 8 (Airworthiness) and regulators

Before World War 2, aviation safety regulation was, to a certain extent, left up to local councils, and regulators were seriously lacking...

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Feb 8, 20214 min read

Regulators and safety culture

In December the US Congress Commerce Committee issued a investigation report concerning to Aviation Safety oversight. The investigation...

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Jan 4, 20215 min read

Brexit Aviation regulatory transition arrangements

On 1-Jan-2021 Britain will be leaving the EU and also (regrettably) will leave the EASA union. This will have profound consequences in...

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Dec 28, 20202 min read

Royal Dutch Navy NH 90 accident and helicopter aerodynamics

On July 19, 2020 a NH90 Dutch Navy helicopter ditched in the sea near her base vessel located near the island of Aruba. The accident...

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Dec 16, 20207 min read

EASA EPAS 2020-2024

EPAS; EUROPEAN PLAN FOR AVIATION SAFETY PUBLISHED BY EASA

20-JAN-2020, EASA published the new EPAS. This document is interesting as it contains a look into the future of EASA rule making. The area of initial and continuing airworthiness forms an important part of the document. Chapter 9 and 10 of the document cover the airworthiness issue that will be subject to change in the coming 4 years.
Subjects like Class D cargo compartment fire protection, HP rotor integrity, AMC-20 update, airworthiness review processes and technical records requirements are expected to be updated. The document contains NPA numbers and organisations are encouraged to consult the document in order to be prepared for the future

EPAS 2020-2024