NTSB chair says media reports on Air India crash are speculative, premature
(Reuters) -The United States National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said on Friday that recent media reports on the crash of an Air India Boeing Dreamliner that killed 260 people were premature and speculative.
A preliminary investigation released last week by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau found confusion in the cockpit shortly before the June 12 crash, and raised fresh questions over the position of the critical engine fuel cutoff switches.
A cockpit recording of dialogue between the two pilots of the flight supports the view that the captain cut the flow of fuel to the plane's engines, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a source familiar with U.S. officials' early assessment of evidence.
GE Aerospace, Boeing, Air India, India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation and AAIB did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Homendy said investigations of this magnitude take time, and that the NTSB will continue to support AAIB's ongoing probe.
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Investigation into South Korea's Jeju Air crash hints at pilot error, angering families
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The initial results of an investigation into December's devastating Jeju Air crash in South Korea showed that, while the plane's both engines sustained bird strikes, its pilots turned off the less-damaged one just before its crash-landing. The finding, which implied human errors, drew quick, vehement protests from bereaved families and fellow pilots who accuse authorities of trying to shift responsibility for the disaster to the dead pilots. South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board initially planned to publicize the results of an investigation of the plane's engines on Saturday. But it was forced to cancel its press briefing in the face of strong protests by relatives of crash victims who were informed of the findings earlier in the day, according to government officials and bereaved families. 'If they want to say their investigation was done in a reliable, independent manner, they should have come up with evidence that backs up their explanation,' said Kim Yu-jin, head of an association of bereaved families. 'None of us resent the pilots.' The Boeing 737-800 operated by Jeju Air landed on its belly without its land gear deployed at South Korea's southern Muan International Airport on Dec. 29. It overshoot a runaway, slammed into a concrete structure and burst into flames. It was the deadliest disaster in South Korea's aviation history in decades, killing all but two of the 181 people on board. Investigation signals pilots turned off a wrong engine According to a copy of an unpublished briefing report obtained by The Associated Press, a South Korean-led multilateral investigation team said it found no defects in the plane's engines built by France's Safran and GE. The report said thorough examinations of the engines found the plane's right engine suffered more serious internal damage following bird strikes as it was engulfed with big fires and black smoke. But the pilots switched off the plane's left engine, the report said citing probes on the cockpit voice recorder, the flight data recorder and the engines examinations. Officials earlier said the black boxes of the Boeing jetliner stopped recording about four minutes before the accident, complicating investigations into the cause of the disaster. The cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder cited in the briefing report refers to data stored before the recording stopped. The report didn't say why the pilots shut off the less-damaged engine and stopped short of saying whether it was an error by the pilots. Bereaved families, fellow pilots slam the probe Bereaved families and pilots at Jeju Air and other airlines lambasted the investigation findings, saying authorities must disclose the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. 'We, the 6,500 pilots at civilian airlines, can't contain our seething anger against the preposterous argument by the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board that lost neutrality,' the Korean Pilot Unions Alliance said in a statement Tuesday. Unionized pilots at Jeju Air also issued a statement urging authorities to present scientific evidence to show the plane should have landed normally if it flew with the less-damaged engine. The latest report focused only on engine issues and didn't mention other factors that could also be blamed for the crash. Among them is the concrete structure the plane crashed into. It housed a set of antennas called localizers designed to guide aircraft safely during landings, and many analysts say it should have been made with more easily breakable materials. Some pilots say they suspect the government wouldn't want to mainly and prominently blame the localizers or bird strikes for mass deaths as the Muan airport is under direct management of the Transport Ministry. The Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board and the Transport Ministry have offered no public response to the criticism. They said they also won't publicly discuss the engine investigation to respect demands by bereaved families. A person familiar with the investigation told the AP that authorities are looking at the localizers and other issues like whether air traffic controllers relayed the danger of bird strikes to the pilots swiftly enough and what emergency training Jeju Air offered to pilots. The person, who requested anonymity citing the sensitive nature of the investigation, said authorities earlier planned to publicize the results of probes after reviewing various issues, but changed the plan and tried to release the outcome of engine investigation at the request of bereaved families. He said authorities don't intend to lay the responsibility for the disaster to the pilots. Authorities aim to publish the investigation's final results by next June, the person said. Kwon Bo Hun, dean of Aeronautics College at the Far East University in South Korea, called the engine investigation report 'clumsy' because it didn't disclose evidence that supported its finding on the pilots. He said it only irritated 'emotional parts of us" as the investigation raised suspicions that it puts the whole blame on the dead pilots. A former Transport Ministry-turned-university professor reached by the AP said the engine investigation report must be 'reliable' as it's based on an analysis of cockpit voice and flight data recorders that 'don't lie.' He spoke on condition of anonymity citing the delicate nature of the issue. Hyung-jin Kim, The Associated Press
Yahoo
3 hours ago
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We tried Singapore's worst-rated char kway teow
It's been a while since our last dive into the 'worst-rated' series. This time, I'm bringing it back with a dish close to my heart — char kway teow. According to Google reviews, the title of Singapore's worst-rated CKT currently goes to Feng Ji Char Kway Teow at Beauty World Food Centre, sitting at a 2.5/5 star rating from 90 reviews (at the time of writing). Beauty World is my hood, so I was surprised (maybe even slightly offended) when my colleague Aaron asked if I'd heard of the stall and its shaky reputation. I've eaten from Feng Ji a few times as a kid, thanks to my parents' weekend dabao runs. Yet, I don't recall it ever being bad, let alone the worst-rated in SG. A quick scan of the reviews revealed 2 recurring complaints: portions too small for the S$5 price tag and a distinct lack of . Still, it's char kway teow — one of my all-time favourite hawker dishes, and in my neighbourhood hawker centre, no less. I had to see (and taste) for myself if things had really gone downhill. What I tried at Feng Ji Char Kway Teow Feng Ji sells just one dish: Char Kway Teow, in S$5 and S$6 portions. I went with the S$5 version, which I received after a 15-minute wait, just enough time for me to get my usual yuan yang fix. At first glance, the portion looked noticeably small — but upon pushing the noodles toward the centre of the plate, it looked a little more respectable. I dug into the dish, hunting for ingredients like they were gold — and unfortunately, they kind of were. It was a sparse affair here… I counted exactly 3 skinny slices of lap cheong (Chinese sausage) and 3bpieces of the quintessential CKT topping, hum (cockles). The lap cheong was pretty decent — slightly sweet, with lightly charred edges that added a faint smokiness (ironically, more than the noodles, but I'll get to that). With only 3 meagre slices, it didn't do much to elevate the dish, so I would've loved a few more just to bulk up the bite. As for the hum, they were briny to the point of being almost overpowering, almost as though I had accidentally swallowed a mouthful of seawater. Not exactly unpleasant if you enjoy hum, but in a dish that was otherwise mild and restrained, it stood out in a slightly jarring way. Char Kway Teow Showdown: Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee vs Hill Street Fried Kway Teow Now, tackling the second most common complaint in the reviews — lack of wok hei. I wish I could rebut it, but I have to agree. That signature smoky, charred aroma that gives char kway teow its addictive depth was very mild, almost nowhere to be found. While the noodles were evenly coated in a dark soy sauce and had a pleasant sweetness to them, they lacked the richness and intensity I'd hoped for. Not bad, but not quite memorable either. Feng Ji's version felt like it was playing it a bit too safe. It leaned on the lighter side, which could be a plus for some, but not what I'm looking for when I order char kway teow. I want grease. I want guilt. And I want to feel my arteries clogging just a little bit. That said, it wasn't all disappointing. I especially enjoyed the bits of fried egg that had absorbed the dark soy sauce beautifully, becoming little pockets of sweet and savoury goodness that I looked forward to in every bite. It added a much-needed richness to the plate that somewhat redeemed the lack of wok hei, if even just a bit. Final Thoughts Seeing as to how I completely wiped out this plate, I think it's safe to say that Feng Ji Char Kway Teow isn't deserving of the 'worst-rated' title, though it doesn't do quite enough to stand out. The portion size is suitable for those with a smaller appetite, and the flavours are decent. But it felt more like a safe, toned-down version of a dish that's meant to be bold and indulgent; the kind that requires me to down a litre of water afterwards. Sparse ingredients, mild wok hei, and a general lack of oomph hold it back. If you're already at Beauty World Food Centre, it's not the worst choice. But I likely wouldn't make a detour for this CKT if I wasn't in the area. Expected damage: S$5 – S$6 per pax We tried Singapore's worst-rated satay The post We tried Singapore's worst-rated char kway teow appeared first on
Yahoo
6 hours ago
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Initial probe into South Korea's Jeju Air crash hints at pilot error, angering families
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The initial results of an investigation into December's devastating Jeju Air crash in South Korea showed that, while the plane's both engines sustained bird strikes, its pilots turned off the less-damaged one just before its crash-landing. The finding, which implied human errors, drew quick, vehement protests from bereaved families and fellow pilots who accuse authorities of trying to shift responsibility for the disaster to the dead pilots. South Korea's Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board initially planned to publicize the results of an investigation of the plane's engines on Saturday. But it was forced to cancel its press briefing in the face of strong protests by relatives of crash victims who were informed of the findings earlier in the day, according to government officials and bereaved families. 'If they want to say their investigation was done in a reliable, independent manner, they should have come up with evidence that backs up their explanation,' said Kim Yu-jin, head of an association of bereaved families. 'None of us resent the pilots.' The Boeing 737-800 operated by Jeju Air landed on its belly without its land gear deployed at South Korea's southern Muan International Airport on Dec. 29. It overshoot a runaway, slammed into a concrete structure and burst into flames. It was the deadliest disaster in South Korea's aviation history in decades, killing all but two of the 181 people on board. Investigation signals pilots turned off a wrong engine According to a copy of an unpublished briefing report obtained by The Associated Press, a South Korean-led multilateral investigation team said it found no defects in the plane's engines built by France's Safran and GE. The report said thorough examinations of the engines found the plane's right engine suffered more serious internal damage following bird strikes as it was engulfed with big fires and black smoke. But the pilots switched off the plane's left engine, the report said citing probes on the cockpit voice recorder, the flight data recorder and the engines examinations. Officials earlier said the black boxes of the Boeing jetliner stopped recording about four minutes before the accident, complicating investigations into the cause of the disaster. The cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder cited in the briefing report refers to data stored before the recording stopped. The report didn't say why the pilots shut off the less-damaged engine and stopped short of saying whether it was an error by the pilots. Bereaved families, fellow pilots slam the probe Bereaved families and pilots at Jeju Air and other airlines lambasted the investigation findings, saying authorities must disclose the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. 'We, the 6,500 pilots at civilian airlines, can't contain our seething anger against the preposterous argument by the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board that lost neutrality,' the Korean Pilot Unions Alliance said in a statement Tuesday. Unionized pilots at Jeju Air also issued a statement urging authorities to present scientific evidence to show the plane should have landed normally if it flew with the less-damaged engine. The latest report focused only on engine issues and didn't mention other factors that could also be blamed for the crash. Among them is the concrete structure the plane crashed into. It housed a set of antennas called localizers designed to guide aircraft safely during landings, and many analysts say it should have been made with more easily breakable materials. Some pilots say they suspect the government wouldn't want to mainly and prominently blame the localizers or bird strikes for mass deaths as the Muan airport is under direct management of the Transport Ministry. The Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board and the Transport Ministry have offered no public response to the criticism. They said they also won't publicly discuss the engine investigations to respect demands by bereaved families. A person familiar with the investigation told the AP that authorities are looking at the localizers and other issues like whether air traffic controllers relayed the danger of bird strikes to the pilots swiftly enough and what emergency training Jeju Air offered to pilots. The person, who requested anonymity citing the sensitive nature of the investigation, said authorities earlier planned to publicize the results of probes after reviewing various issues, but changed the plan and tried to release the outcome of engine investigations at the request of bereaved families. He said authorities don't intend to lay the responsibility for the disaster to the pilots. Authorities aim to publish the investigation's final results by next June, the person said. But Kwon Bo Hun, dean of Aeronautics College at the Far East University in South Korea, called the government's planned announcement 'clumsy' because it didn't disclose evidence that supported its finding on the pilots. He said it only irritated 'emotional parts of us that the investigation puts the whole blame on dead people.' A former Transport Ministry-turned-university professor reached by the AP said the engine investigation report must be 'reliable' as it's based on an analysis of cockpit voice and flight data recorders that 'don't lie.' He spoke on condition of anonymity citing the delicate nature of the issue.
