AVIATION NEWS BRIEFS

*A crushable concrete arresting pad installed at Teterboro Airport snagged a Gulfstream IV-SP that overran the runway at the New York's business Airport during a landing in rainy, windy weather on October 1. None of the passengers or crew were injured. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, operator of the Airport, installed the bed in 2006 in the wake of a 2005 crash of a Bombardier Challenger 601 that had aborted a takeoff on the same runway, crossing a street, crashing into a building and burning. According to the senior regional director of Zodiac subsidiary Engineered Arresting Systems, which makes the pad, the large-cabin Gulfstream travelled about 24m into the 76m bed, which is set back 11m from the end of Runway 6. He said there were a couple of hundred feet of skid marks leading up to the pad. The snag makes for 7 out of 7 saves for the crushable concrete systems since the first installation in 1999. The company has installed 55 of the arrestor beds, the most recent in Key West, Florida.

*The families of 5 of the people onboard COLGAN AIR Flight 3407 when it went down on February 12, 2009, in Clarence Center, New York, have reached settlements with the Airline. Terms of the agreements were kept confidential. All 49 passengers and crew onboard the Dash 8-400 were killed when the aircraft went down on approach to Buffalo, New York. Attorneys say 39 lawsuits were filed in connection with the accident and that they expect more settlements before the case goes to trial in March 2012. The Airlines named, CONTINENTAL CONNECTION, PINNACLE AIRLINES and its Colgan Air subsidiary, are fighting a move to have the CVR recordings released. A ruling from a federal judge could come on that issue in November.

*KINGFISHER Flight 331, on Domestic A320 Service from Mumbai to Delhi, India, with 120 passengers and crew onboard, had to make an emergency return, after suffering a bird strike on its initial climb, today, October 8. The A320 landed without incident and was removed from service for a damage assessment.

*AIR CANADA Flight 1150, on Domestic A320 Service from Calgary to Toronto, Canada, with 154 passengers and crew onboard, had to make an emergency return, yesterday, October 7. The crew halted their climb out of Calgary at 7000 feet, reporting a hydraulics failure. After circling to burn off fuel, the A320 landed back at Calgary without incident, about 50 minutes after its initial departure. The aircraft had to be towed off the runway and was later removed from service for repairs.

*US AIRWAYS Flight 5, on Domestic A320 Service from Phoenix, Arizona, to Chicago OHare,with 150 passengers and crew onboard, had to make an emergency diversion, yesterday, October 7. While inflight at 35000 feet, and near Kansas City, Missouri, the crew declared an emergency, reporting a hydraulics failure. The A320 was diverted to Kansas City and landed there 20 minutes later with Emergency Services in attendance. The aircraft had to be towed off the runway and was later removed from service for repairs.

*RYANAIR Flight 4633, on International Boeing 737 Service from Milan, Italy, to Zaragoza, Spain, had to return to Milan, yesterday, October 7. The crew returned to Milan due to unspecified technical problems with instruments. The 737 was repaired and returned to service later in the day.

*GARUDA INDONESIA Flight 170, on Domestic Boeing 737 Service from Jakarta to Pekanbaru, Indonesia, had to make an emergency return, yesterday, October 7. The 737 returned to Jakarta 15 minutes after taking off due to unspecified technical problems. The aircraft was removed from service for a full inspection.

*AMERICAN EAGLE Flight 4885, on International ATR72 Service from San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, with 17 passengers and crew onboard, had to make an emergency diversion, on Tuesday, October 5. While inflight near Saint Kitts and Nevis, the crew reported that the aircraft had been struck by lightning. The ATR was diverted to Saint Kitts' Golden Rock Airport, where they landed without incident. Post flight inspection revealed damage to the tail of the ATR, thus it was removed from service. The aircraft has since been ferried to San Juan for repairs.

*EGYPT AIR Flight 829, on International A321 Service from Cairo, Egypt, to Tipoli, Libya, had to make an emergency diversion, on Tuesday, October 5. The crew diverted to Benghazi, Libya, after reporting a hydraulics failure. The aircraft was removed from service for repairs.