BREAKING NEWS:
CAA BREAKTHROUGH
FOR DIABETES
New Zealand’s Civil Aviation
Authority (CAA) has just granted
its first medical certificate to an
applicant with type 1 diabetes.
More information about the new
CAA approach will follow in the
January/February issue of Uplink.
Meantime, the United States
Federation Aviation Administration
(FAA) is making it potentially possible
for airline transport or commercial
pilots with insulin-treated diabetes
mellitus to receive a special-issuance
medication certification.
The FAA says applicants must provide
comprehensive medical and overall
health history, including reports from
their treating physicians, such as
their endocrinologist. They also need
to provide evidence of monitoring
and controlling their diabetes using
the latest technology and treatment
methods.
The FAA says it developed the new
protocol based on the reliability of
the advancements in technology and
treatment being made in the medical
standard of care for diabetes, and on
advice from medical experts.
Read more HERE.
CATHAY FLYING AIRBUS A350-1000
AIRCRAFT TO NEW ZEALAND
One of the newest and largest
members of the Airbus fleet made
its first scheduled visit to Auckland
in October, according to a NZ Herald
report. The Cathay Pacific Airbus
A350-1000 will now be a regular
visitor here, flying the Hong Kong-
Auckland route.
It wasn’t the first time an A350-1000
has been here, as Airbus brought one
of the aircraft to Auckland last year as
part of a global sales effort.
The Cathay Pacific aircraft will carry
334 passengers – 256 of them in
economy. This is 54 more passengers
than Cathay’s A350-900 aircraft, which
it flies into Christchurch.
Read more HERE.
Singapore Airlines is replacing its
Boeing 777s on the Wellington-
Melbourne-Singapore route with
Airbus A350-900 aircraft.
Read more HERE.
LUXON SELECTED FOR BOTANY
Former Air New Zealand Chief
Executive Christopher Luxon has
been selected as the National Party
candidate for the Botany electorate in
next year’s general election.
He will contest the seat held by Jami-Lee Ross, who is now an independent
member of Parliament after quitting
the National Party last year.
RNZ reports that the Botany
electorate has elected a National
Party candidate by a large majority
each election since the electorate was
established in 2008.
Christopher Luxon quit Air New
Zealand in September and the airline
recently announced his successor,
who will take up the new role early
next year.
Read more HERE.
PILOT LOSES
APPEAL AGAINST
CONVICTION
A pilot who dismissed
passengers’ concerns about
ice on his aircraft’s wings,
then crashed shortly after
take-off, has lost a High Court
appeal against his conviction
for operating the aircraft in a
manner that caused unnecessary
danger to its passengers.
Stuff reports that the pilot,
Yannick Chatachvilly, aged 34,
crashed the light single-engine,
high-wing Cessna 177 aircraft in
August 2017 shortly after taking
off from Queenstown Airport.
While other pilots de-iced a
different aircraft, Chatachvilly
did not de-ice the aircraft he
was using and went to collect
his passengers. When two of the
passengers pointed out ice or
frost on the wing, he said it would
“blow off” after they took off.
The engine failed after take-off
and the aircraft crashed onto the
grass at the side of the runway.
Three passengers were injured.
Chatachvilly pleaded guilty
to the charges. The judge
rejected an application for
him to be discharged without
conviction and fined him $2,600.
Chatachvilly then appealed his
conviction and sentence as
“manifestly excessive”, with his
lawyer arguing the crash was
caused by engine failure and
that the reasons for that were
speculative. He also argued that
a conviction could have career
implications for Chatachvilly,
which the High Court judge
considered was not an “unjust
consequence.”
The earlier conviction and
sentence of a fine were
upheld.
Read more HERE.
FINAL REPORT OF FATAL MICROLIGHT CRASH
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has
identified four key factors that led to
the fatal crash of a microlight flying
between Taieri and Omarama in
June 2017.
The Safety Investigation Report
highlighted:
• The pilot let the passenger (who was
also a microlight pilot) fly the aircraft
• The passenger was not familiar
with the ergonomic layout of the
Rans Aircraft S-19
• The sensitivity of the electric trim
buttons may cause unintentional
activation of the trim system, and
• The out of trim control stick forces
can be significant.
The pilot was killed in the crash and
the passenger was seriously injured.
CAA identified two safety messages:
• There are risks associated
with allowing someone who is
not appropriately qualified to
manipulate the controls of an
aircraft, and
• Using flight following services can
reduce time spent searching for a
missing aircraft
Read more HERE.
WORRYING DROP IN
NUMBER OF FLIGHT
INSTRUCTORS
A 13 per cent drop in the number of
New Zealand flight instructors in just
two years is worrying the Civil Aviation
Authority (CAA) and others in the
industry.
The number of pilots trained in New
Zealand has dropped substantially in
the last decade, and there is a global
shortage of pilots, according to an
RNZ report published on Stuff.
Flying New Zealand, which represents
aero clubs, has described the
situation as a crisis, with President
Tony Page saying the loss of the most
experienced instructors meant their
skills would not be passed on.
The CAA says it is watching the
situation closely.
The Stuff article also reports CAA
noting that instructor inexperience
had played a role in recent incidents
during training where pilots did not
follow proper flying procedures, and
NZALPA’s Tim Robinson saying that as
long as less experienced trainers are
properly supervised the risk can be
managed.
Read more HERE.
Read the CAA report HERE.
DIRECT FLIGHTS
CHRISTCHURCH
TO LA – AMERICAN
AIRLINES
American Airlines has announced it
will offer a nonstop service between
Christchurch and Los Angeles from
next October.
The service will be provided using a
Boeing 787-8 and will run three times
a week, according to a report on Stuff.
American says it will also offer a direct
Dallas to Auckland service and that
both of these new services are a
direct result of its recently approved
joint business with Qantas.
Read more HERE.
EREBUS PODCASTS
Stuff and Radio New Zealand produced
a six part podcast series marking the
anniversary of the Erebus disaster.
The White Silence series can be
accessed HERE,
and also via Apple Podcasts, Spotify
or Stitcher.
The NZ Herald has video episodes and
a 10-part podcast series, Erebus Flight
901: Litany of Lies? which can be
accessed HERE.
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