A large explosion rocked the international arrivals hall at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport (DME) earlier today, January 24, 2011. Local officials say that the blast, which was caused by a suicide bomber, killed at least 35 people and left more than 100 injured.
Air traffic at DME was disrupted immediately after the bombing. Some flights were diverted to Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport, or to St. Petersburg. Other en route flights returned to their departure cities.
Here is a news video about the incident, posted on YouTube by Russia Today:
Today, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced proposed civil penalties (i.e, fines) against SkyWest Airlines, Inc. The FAA proposed fines totaling $359,000 for three separate alleged violations of Federal Aviation Regulations.
The FAA press release explains:
The FAA proposed a penalty of $220,000 for alleged failure to document heavy checked bags, motorized mobility aids and a heavy shipment carried in the cargo compartment of the company’s passenger aircraft. As a result, the company operated the aircraft on five flights between April 21 and May 25, 2010 with incorrect weight and balance data. The FAA alleges the violations occurred because the carrier’s employees failed to follow required procedures for documenting cargo carried on revenue passenger flights.
The other two proposed civil penalties are for allegedly operating two Bombardier Regional Jet aircraft when they were not in compliance with Federal Aviation Regulations.
In the first case, a proposed civil penalty of $70,500, the FAA alleges SkyWest employees failed to follow the company’s Continuous Airworthiness Maintenance Program (CAMP) and the Bombardier maintenance and inspection manual during five attempts by mechanics to correct an avionics system cooling problem on one aircraft. SkyWest operated the aircraft on at least five revenue passenger flights between July 15 and 21, 2009 when it was not in compliance.
In the second case, the FAA is proposing a civil penalty of $68,500, alleging SkyWest operated another Bombardier jet on eight revenue passenger flights between May 30 and June 1, 2010 when it was not in compliance with regulations. The FAA alleges SkyWest mechanics failed to follow procedures required in the airline’s CAMP when replacing the right air conditioning pack’s pressure-regulating and shutoff valve.
SkyWest, which is headquartered in St. George, Utah, has 30 days to respond to the FAA.
Tomorrow is the second anniversary of the historic, successful ditching of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River. Now retired, Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, who was in command of that Airbus A320 on January 15, 2009, reflects on what he calls the "experience of a lifetime."
Big news today: Delta Air Lines plans to acquire hundreds of new aircraft. According to a Bloombergarticle about the planned aircraft purchase, Delta "plans to order 100 to 200 narrow-body jets and seek options for 200 more, a possible record purchase."
Presumably the new planes will replace Delta's older DC-9, Boeing 757-200, and Airbus A320 aircraft. The new planes would be used on domestic routes.
From the Bloomberg article:
Delta will consider “large, medium and small” narrow-body jets, Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson said yesterday in a separate weekly recorded message to employees.
“It’s important we take a very long-term view of our fleet,” Anderson said.
Speculation is that Boeing, Airbus, and Bombardier all may be asked to submit proposals for the order. This could be the largest single aircraft purchase to date by any commercial airline.
An Iran Air Boeing 727-200 aircraft (registration EP-IRP) has crashed in northwestern Iran, in Azerbaijan province, killing more than 70 of those on board, including all crew members. Iran Air Flight IR 277 from Tehran-Mehrabad (THR) reportedly crashed into mountainous terrain following a missed approach at Urmia (Orumiyeh) Airport (OMH). The accident happened on January 9, 2011 at about 19:45 local time.
The exact number of people on board Flight IR 277 is unclear. An accident post on the Aviation Safety Network website says, "ISNA quotes the Roads and Transportation Secretary stating there were 94 passengers and eleven crew members on board. Fars News Agency reports 93 passengers and twelve crew members."
Iran's Transport Ministry said, that there was no emergency. According to tower tapes the pilot aborted the approach when he could not establish visual contact with the runway at decision height and went around indicating they wanted to return to Tehran. 33 people have been taken to hospitals, 73 have perished.
