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In a previous post, Part 139 Airport Certification, I explained what defines an airport as Part 139 by the Federal Aviation Administration. This post will elaborate on Section 305 of FAR Part 139, which entails pavement management. The condition of taxiways and runways is of the utmost importance to the safety of passengers. For this reason, Airport Operations employees inspect these surfaces several times daily for discrepancies. This is one of the most important aspects of a job in Airport Operations and one that is taken very seriously. Every year, the FAA audits all Part 139 airports to ensure the airport is taking every step possible to maximize safety by staying on top of holes, cracks and other pavement variations.
The NTSB came to the conclusion yesterday that glass cockpits are not safer than conventional steam instruments. The study began more than a year ago to determine whether light fixed-wing aircraft equipped with glass cockpits such as the Garmin G1000 and Avidyne PFD4000 were actually safer, but the results found steam instruments have less of a fatality rate than the flat panel display systems.
The study, which looked at the accident rates of 8,000+ light piston-powered fixed-wing aircraft manufactured between 2002 and 2006, discovered that ones equipped with glass panel cockpits had a higher fatality rate then similar aircraft with conventional steam gauges. These accidents can be caused by any number of things, such as the pilot instilling too much faith in the autopilot system, distraction, or not adequetely trained on the device, etc. If a pilot flies various types of aircraft this can lead to a problem of proficiency with each one, since each may vary greatly.
When you were little, your mother may have told you to tie your shoes and watch your step before stepping onto an escalator. She was right because in my experience at the airport, escalators seem to have gotten the best of many causing minor to serious injuries, including death. Most incidents are caused by loss of balance, slippery surfaces from spilled liquids, and articles of clothing becoming caught in the grating. If you encounter someone that is injured, the first thing you should do is stop the escalator by depressing the red emergency stop button and calling for help. Last weekend, I got a call from AVCOM stating an elderly man had fallen on an escalator and was suffering from severe injuries. When I arrived at the scene, it was a blood bath. The man had fallen forward and struck his head on the edge of one of the moving steps. The grating and sharpness of these steps are very dangerous. It caused a six inch laceration on his forehead that was very deep. ARFF and paramedics arrived and rushed him to the hospital. Later in the week I heard the man required several stitches and treatment.