Aloha Airlines No. 1 flight attendant retires after 50 years

Patti Smart, the Number One flight attendant at Aloha Airlines, is retiring -- reluctantly -- after more than 50 years of service. The woman nicknamed the 'Queen of Aloha' will retire this coming Friday, but she says, "There will be sparks flying from my feet as they drag me down the runway."

Ms. Smart, whose hire date was Jan. 28, 1957, reminisced about her early flying days in an article in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin:

A lot has changed since the old days, when people dressed up in hats and bow ties to fly on propeller-powered planes across the Pacific.

"You're supposed to have the same niceness, the same warmth, the same caring. But it's faster now," Smart said. "In the older days, the flights were longer so you had more time to be intimate with passengers and you got to be very good friends with them."

While she must have a million good stories to tell from those 50-plus years of flying, she did share this funny one with the newspaper reporter.

As she was serving pineapple juice to passengers, she spilled it all over her uniform. She changed into a pair of pants and washed out her skirt in the lavatory. When she tried to air-dry the skirt by letting it flap out the window in the cockpit, one of the two pilots snatched it and let it fly out the window.

"I wanted to kill those two. I wanted to get their two heads together and whack them. They were laughing and laughing," she said.

The joke didn't stop there. Another pilot on the next flight out radioed her plane and said he had caught the skirt as it went flying by.

Perhaps that incident happened while she was working on a DC-3 early in her career. She certainly has seen a lot of changes to the airline industry since then -- including the introduction of jet aircraft.

Congratulations and aloha to Patti Smart as her long career in the air comes to a close.

Click here to watch a KITV News Video about Patti Smart's final flight on Aloha Airlines.


Click here for many more photos of Patti Smart, the Queen of Aloha.

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New pilot contract in place, ASA is hiring

Pilots at Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) have voted to ratify a new labor contract. With the new agreement firmly in place, the airline is aggressively hiring more pilots for its Atlanta hub.

According to the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), the union representing ASA's pilots, 81% of the 1,239 ASA pilots who were eligible to vote did so, 83.45% of the ballots cast were in favor of the agreement.

The new collective bargaining agreement is the culmination of five years of negotiations between the union and the airline's management. ALPA announced that the terms of the new contract reflect improvements in wages, work rules, job protections, and scheduling.

Expressing his approval of the new agreement, Capt. Dave Nieuwenhuis, chairman of the ASA ALPA unit, said, "Despite many obstacles over the past five years, our pilots persevered and achieved a contract that further secures their jobs and provides overdue increases to their compensation. While we enjoyed invaluable assistance from the 41 other pilot groups in our international union and its professional staff, I cannot begin to describe the impact of the resolve and professionalism demonstrated by each and every ASA pilot."

ASA, a wholly owned subsidiary of SkyWest, Inc., operates as a Delta Connection carrier. The airline's fleet includes both 50- and 70-seat Canadair Regional Jets (CRJ) and the ATR-72.

ASA is actively recruiting pilots at the present time, hiring about 40 per month. ASA pilots are based in Atlanta and fly Delta Connection and SkyTeam codeshare flights.

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Airbus A330 depressurizes during pre-delivery test flight

Just five days after a pre-delivery accident destroyed an Airbus A340-600 on the ground at the Airbus facility in Toulouse, an Airbus A330-200 suddenly depressurized during a pre-delivery test flight. Seven of the 10 people on board were injured during the incident, including two who needed to be hospitalized.

The twin-engine aircraft, about to be delivered to Air Mauritius, decompressed during cruise. Following an emergency descent, the aircraft landed safely at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport.

The reason for the rapid depressurization is under investigation. The altitude at which the incident occurred has not been made public.

News reports quoted an Airbus official who said that three of the 10 people on board were on the flight deck, while the other seven were up and moving about the aircraft cabin at the time of the incident. "Those standing couldn't reach the masks and fell unconscious because of a lack of oxygen," the official said.

Pilots' view of UA/DL merger rumors

Airline merger rumors have been running rampant over the past several days after a series of news articles suggested that 'consolidation' talks were underway between United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. It has been widely reported that hedge fund Pardus Capital Management, a shareholder in both United and Delta, has been pitching the consolidation idea to the carriers. The airlines have denied that they are in direct talks at this time, nevertheless the news headlines were enough to set off alarm bells in employee groups at both companies.

Pilots at both United and Delta are represented by the same union, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) . The ALPA Master Executive Councils (MECs) for both airline groups have issued statements addressing the merger rumors.

Captain Lee Moak, chairman of the Delta MEC, presented his organization's view in a news release:

"The Delta pilots’ union is aware of the recent overtures made by Pardus and other hedge fund managers who see value in the ‘financial transaction’ aspect of a consolidating event such as a merger, often without regard for the long-term consequences to the corporations, the employees, the traveling public, or the communities we serve.

"Many analysts have suggested that airline industry consolidation is inevitable. The Delta pilots are not opposed to a rational and sensible consolidation scenario. The ‘right’ merger opportunity could draw our support and result in a successful merger. However, we are not interested in a transaction just for transaction’s sake.

"It is crucial that all parties involved understand this very important point: that the Delta pilots will be critical participants from the beginning in any consolidation discussion and potential resultant event, not an afterthought to be considered at a later date. Any consolidating event that involves the Delta pilots will not happen without our active participation and consent."

The statement issued by the United MEC took on a similar tone. Chairman Captain Mark Bathurst said:

"The United pilots have made a significant investment in the future of our airline and have made it abundantly clear to management that we will be opposed to any transaction that does not fully recognize our sacrifices and contributions.

"We will protect the interests and the future of United pilots. All interested parties should understand that any plans to merge or consolidate with Delta or any other carrier will not be met with a rubber stamp from this pilot group.

"We also remind management – and Wall Street – that it is the pilots and other employees who have suffered under this management group. Interested parties need to recognize that the true assets of this corporation are the pilots and other employees and we will not sacrifice again to facilitate consolidation."

At least both pilot groups are represented by the same union, and both groups appear to be on the same page. One would think that should facilitate consolidation of the two pilot groups if a merger were to materialize -- or would that be asking too much?

New A340-600 in ground accident at Toulouse

A brand new Airbus A340-600 aircraft was badly damaged when it ran through a blast barrier at the Airbus Saint-Martin facility at Toulouse, France. There were no fatalities, but five people were injured. The accident happened late on the afternoon of November 15, 2007.

The aircraft, which was painted in Etihad Airways livery, was undergoing pre-delivery tests on the ground at the Airbus facility at the time of the accident. According to a news release issued today by Airbus, engine-run-ups were being carried out on the A340-600, MSN 856, which was due to be delivered to Etihad in just a few days.

At the time of the accident, there were nine people on board the aircraft, including two Airbus staff, and seven employees of Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies (ADAT). Five of those nine people were injured, but as of today only the two Airbus employees and one ADAT employee remained hospitalized. None of their injuries are reported to be life-threatening.

Etihad Airways confirms that there were no Etihad staff involved in the accident.

Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies is a maintenance service provider to Etihad Airways. ADAT was formerly known as GAMCO.

Click here to view a brief news video (French language) about the accident, from the TF1 network in France.

Best wishes to those injured for a speedy and complete recovery.

UPDATE November 19, 2007: FlightGlobal.com is reporting that the A340-600 "had completed its engine test-runs and was exiting the test area at the time of the accident." The same article also mentions confirmation from Etihad that the aircraft was a write-off.

Encounter Restaurant reopens at LAX landmark

The Encounter Restaurant has reopened at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The restaurant, located in the Theme Building -- the familiar LAX landmark with the space age appearance -- had been closed since March. Now refurbished, the Encounter Restaurant resumed service this past Monday, November 12.

The Theme Building, with its 135-foot high parabolic arches, has been the most recognizable landmark at LAX since its opening in 1961. In 1992, the Los Angeles City Council designated the Theme Building a City Cultural and Historical Monument. Situated near the center of the airport terminal area, the building itself is still undergoing repairs.

The Theme Building and the Encounter Restaurant are on the land side of airport security at LAX. The restaurant can be reached on foot from the arrivals level of the airport terminals.

According to the Encounter Restaurant website, the operating hours are:

• Lunch: from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM, 7 days a week
• Dinner: Friday and Saturday ONLY, 4:00 PM to 9:30 PM

Valet parking is available. For more information and reservations, call 310-215-5151, or visit EncounterLAX.com.

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Emergency Airworthiness Directive issued for Boeing 737-200 by South African CAA

In the aftermath of the incident last week in which an engine of a Nationwide Airlines Boeing 737-200 separated from a wing as the aircraft took off, the South African Civil Aviation Authority has issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (EAD) for that type of aircraft operating in South Africa. The EAD, issued on November 9, 2007, requires that all Boeing 737-200 aircraft fitted with Pratt and Whitney JT8D series engines remain grounded until "an acceptable level of safety can be demonstrated."

Compliance with the EAD entails several types of inspections of all the structures that attach the engines to the airframe, as well as to "all the engine controls, including and specific to the thrust reversers." The EAD states that all positive and negative findings must be reported in writing, and all required maintenance performed before the aircraft are certified safe for flight.

For more details, see the full South African CAA Emergency Airworthiness Directive: RSA AD No 07-002 Revision 1 ( 4 page 'pdf' file).

Taxiway collision at Opa-locka Airport

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued a preliminary report on the collision between two cargo aircraft on a taxiway at Opa-locka, FL (OPF) last week. No one was injured in the accident, but both aircraft sustained substantial damage. The accident occurred shortly before noon on November 6, 2007.

The aircraft involved in the accident were a twin-engine Beech E-18s, and a Cessna 208 Caravan "Cargomaster", a single engine turbo-prop. Both were operating as cargo flights under Part 135 rules. Here is an excerpt from the NTSB report, describing what happened:

The Cessna 208 flight originated from North Eleuthera, Bahamas, on November 6, 2007 at 1015, the Beech E18S, was taxiing to a fuel farm prior to departure for Nassau, Bahamas, when the collision occurred.

According to the pilot of the Cessna 208, following his landing on runway 9L, he was cleared to taxiway "Charley" to Customs and to remain on the tower frequency. After crossing taxiway "Papa", out of the corner of his eye to the left he saw the Beech E18S and tried to pull away by turning hard right, but was impacted. They egressed the airplane without injury.

According to the pilot of the Beech E18S, he did a preflight inspection of his airplane and contacted ground control for taxi instructions from the east ramp to the fuel farm. He was told to taxi on "Papa" "Echo" "Tango" to the fuel farm. After that he taxied at a slow speed because he was in a tail wheel airplane.

He never heard any instructions to hold short of any taxiways. He never heard any ground instructions to the Cessna 208.

He crossed taxiway "Charley" and then felt a large bump, he was struck on the right side of the airplane which spun it around, and he saw the Cessna 208 moving towards him. He shut both engines down, turned the magnetos off and exited the airplane thought the aft cargo door. He reported no injuries. [NTSB ID: MIA08LA014B]

According to the NTSB record, the Beech was registered to Aircap Management Company, Inc., and operated by Island Air Service. The Cessna was registered to RJR Transport Logistics LLC, and operated by Florida Air Cargo, Inc.

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