More carmakers caught in headlights of VW engine-rigging scandal

More carmakers caught in headlights of VW engine-rigging scandal
Volkswagen has admitted it installed illegal software into 11 million 2.0 liter and 3.0 liter diesel engines worldwide (AFP Photo/Josh Edelson)

Volkswagen emissions scandal

Iran's 'catastrophic mistake': Speculation, pressure, then admission

Iran's 'catastrophic mistake': Speculation, pressure, then admission
Analsyts say it is irresponsible to link the crash of a Ukraine International Airline Boeing 737-800 to the 737 MAX accidents (AFP Photo/INA FASSBENDER)

Missing MH370 likely to have disintegrated mid-flight: experts

Missing MH370 likely to have disintegrated mid-flight: experts
A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 commercial jet.

QZ8501 (AirAsia)

Leaders see horror of French Alps crash as probe gathers pace

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …

Friday, December 31, 2010

Semarang to Build Bicycle Lanes

Tempo Interactive, Thursday,30 December, 2010

TEMPO Interactive, Semarang:Semarang will build special bicycle lanes in 2011, Semarang Mayor Soemarmo Hadi Saputro told Tempo yesterday.

The initial stage of the 7.5 kilometer-long bicycle lane will cover Simpang Lima, Pahlawan, Diponegoro streets and Diponegoro Park. "Later, we will extend them to all major roads," said Soemarno.

The lanes are being built to encourage healthy living in the city and reduce traffic congestion. “There are now many bike-to-work communities," he said.

The government has budgeted Rp150 million for the construction of the new bicycle lanes.

Chief of the Semarang Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) Commission B, Ari Purbono, has suggested that bicycle lanes also be extended to Majapahit, Kaligawe and Mangkang streets. Cyclists already use these streets every morning and evening, he said. “Cyclists have the right to enjoy the street safely,”said Widodo, a cyclist himself.

SOHIRIN

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Minister hands new Puma helicopter to air force


Antara News, Thursday, December 30, 2010

Bogor, West Java (ANTARA News) - Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro handed over a NAS-332 Super Puma helicopter made by PT Dirgantara Indonesia to the Indonesian Air Force at Atang Sendjaja airbase, Bogor, West Java, on Thursday.

"Our plan is for the Air Force to have nine helicopters. Now it already has seven units, including the one we handed over today. Two other units are still being manfactured by PT DI," the ministers said.

Purnomo said six units had been made earlier by PT DI, four of which were used for SAR operations and the two others for VVIP service.

He said he had cooperated with PT DI for the production of the helicopters because he wished to use domestic products for strengthening the country`s defense.

He said the procurement of the Super Puma was for increasing the defense capability. Even in 2010 a blueprint (the minimum essential force-MEF) has been formulated regarding the country`s needs for defense equipment until 2024 including "the strength of operational units, weaponry and the budget."

"Therefore in the leadership meeting to be held on January 6, 2011 I would ask the TNI (defense forces) to conduct a review again so that no item would be left unnoticed," he said.

Squadron 8 at Atang Sandjaja has eight SA-330 Puma helicopters and based on the MEF plan it would be strengthened with 16 units more of Helicopter EC-725.

NAS-332 Super Puma is capable of carriying two crew and 18 to 24 passengers and is 16.9 meter long and weighs 4,460 kilograms. It has a maximum speed of 278 kilometers per hour and may fly at altitude of more than 7,200 meters high or 19,750 feet.

Ka-Sat net-dedicated spacecraft lifts off


BBC News,  By Jonathan Amos, Science correspondent, 27 December 2010 

Related stories 

The second European satellite dedicated to delivering broadband internet connections has launched successfully.

The Proton climbs into the pre-dawn sky
The six-tonne Ka-Sat lifted off atop a Proton rocket from Baikonur in Kazakhstan at 0351 local time on Monday (2151 GMT on Sunday).

The flight to orbit lasted nine hours and 12 minutes.

The Eutelsat-operated spacecraft will concentrate its services on the estimated tens of millions of European homes in so-called "not-spots".

These are places where consumers cannot get a decent terrestrial connection.

The spacecraft follows the Hylas-1 platform into orbit. This satellite, operated by Avanti Communications of London, was launched just last month.

Ka-Sat, however, is considerably bigger, and has a notional capacity to serve up to two million households compared with Hylas's 300,000.

Nevertheless, such is the scale of the under-served market in Europe that both platforms should be very profitable ventures, the two companies believe.

"As many as 30 million households in Europe are not served at all or get high mediocrity of service," said Eutelsat CEO Michel de Rosen.

"These could be people in the countryside or in the mountains, sometimes not very far from large cities. Ka-Sat is an answer to that problem," he told BBC News.

Paris-based Eutelsat is one of the world's big three Fixed Satellite Services (FSS) companies, and transmits thousands of TV channels across its fleet of spacecraft.

It already provides some internet capability on its existing platforms, but Ka-Sat is its first broadband-dedicated endeavour.

High throughput

Ka-Sat will sit about 36,000km above the equator at nine degrees East. 

Ka-Sat was prepared in the UK
Its communications payload, structure and propulsion system were prepared by EADS Astrium at its UK facilities in Stevenage and Portsmouth.

Final testing of the spacecraft took place at Astrium's factory in Toulouse, France, before shipment to Baikonur.

Ka-Sat has a total throughput of some 70Gbps.

This will be channelled via 82 spot beams on to different market areas stretching from North Africa to southern Scandinavia. A very small segment of the Middle East will also be reached.

Eutelsat has signed about 70 deals with distributors across the satellite's "footprint", and more would be signed over the next year, said Mr de Rosen.

"It takes normally a few weeks for a satellite to become operational after launch," he explained.

"In this case, it is more likely to be a few months. Expect Ka-Sat to be operational in the second half of the second quarter of 2011."

The satellite will need to undertake some firings of its own propulsion system to circularise its final orbit. Ground controllers will also need a period of time to check out and commission all onboard systems.

Previous failure

Ka-Sat's Proton rocket was under the spotlight for this flight.

The Russian vehicle had failed on its previous outing, dumping three Glonass satellite-navigation spacecraft in the Pacific Ocean.

An inquiry found the Proton's new Block DM-03 upper-stage had been over-fuelled, making it too heavy to achieve its required performance.

International Launch Services (ILS), which runs the commercial operations of the Proton vehicle, used a different upper-stage for the Ka-Sat mission.

This Breeze M stage has a good recent record.

It was the eighth and last ILS-organised Proton mission of 2010.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Medvedev fires space chiefs after satellite failure

RNW, 29 December 2010

President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday fired two top space officials and reprimanded the head of Russia's space agency after the failed launch of three vital communications satellites, the Kremlin said.

Medvedev fired Vyacheslav Filin, vice president of the Energia Rocket and SpaceCorporation, and Viktor Remishevsky, the deputy head of Russia's Roskosmos space agency, news agencies quoted a Kremlin statement as saying.

The Russian president also reprimanded Roskosmos chief Anatoly Perminov, the statement added.

"On the Russian president's instructions, Roskosmos will undertake additional measures to strengthen its performance discipline," the Kremlin statement said.

A Russian Proton-M rocket failed to reach its initial orbit during the December 5 launch, causing it to dump the three high-tech Glonass-M satellites near the Hawaii Islands.

It marked an embarrassing setback to Russia's much-publicised attempts to introduce a global rival to the US Global Positioning System (GPS), a programme that was first begun by the Soviet Union in 1976.

Related Articles:

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

50 train accidents in 2010: Safety commission

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 12/28/2010

The National Transportation Safety Commission (KNKT) on Tuesday announced that there had been 50 train accidents in Indonesia this year, down from the 82 cases in 2009.

“In 2010,train accidents killed 60 people and injured 189,” KNKT chairman Tatang Kurniadi said in Jakarta, adding that technical matters were the main causes of the accidents.

Of the 50 cases, KNKT had only investigated ten, which were classified as severe accidents, Tatang said.

“For these cases we issued 11 recommendations to the directorate general of trains at the Transportation Ministry and to state railway company PT KA.” He said.

Monday, December 27, 2010

Merpati suffers Rp 40b in losses this year

NaniAfrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 12/27/2010

The ailing Merpati Airlines estimates it will have Rp 40 billion (US$44.4 million) in losses this year, mainly due to high spending on restructuring and maintenance.

“We had to do that to improve our services to passengers,” Merpati finance director Farid Lutfi said Monday.

Farid said Merpati reaped Rp 16.6 billion in net profit last year thanks to a capital injection from the sale of Merpati’s offices.

The airline earned Rp 1.7 trillion in revenue this year, a decrease from the Rp 1.8 trillion for 2009, he said.

He said he was optimistic the company would be profitable again next year, as Merpati will have six new aircrafts in operation by April of next year.

“We expect to raise our revenue by 20 percent next year,” he said.

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Rocket with Indian satellite explodes after launch

The Jakarta Post, Associated Press, New Delhi | Sat, 12/25/2010

A rocket carrying an Indian communication satellite has exploded just after its launch in southern India.

Television images Saturday showed the rocket exploding in the first stage of lift off from the Sriharikota space center. It was carrying a GSAT-5P satellite into orbit.

There was no immediate comment by state-run Indian Space Research Organization.

It was the space agency's second launch failure this year. A rocket on a developmental flight in April plunged into the Bay of Bengal.


India's launch of its latest communication satellite failed Saturday afternoon after the rocket GSLV-F06 carrying it developed a technical snag soon after its take-off from the southern spaceport of Sriharikota, Dec. 25, 2010. (Xinhua/AFP Photo)

Related Articles:

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Ryanair captain reports UFO sighting!

Easier Travel, 22nd December 2010



Ryanair today confirmed that the Captain of flight FR1397 from Olso Rygge to London Gatwick reported an Unidentified Flying Object to Aviation Authorities after passengers released shocking images taken onboard the aircraft some 200km south of Oslo.

Aviation experts confirmed that they had received a number of similar reports andconfirm that such sightings are not uncommon in the region at this time of year, with an increasing number of sightings reported right up to 25th December.

Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara said

“Ryanair confirms that the Captain of flight FR 1397 officially reported an unidentified flying object some 200km south of Oslo. The crew became aware of the object after passengers spotted it and begun to photograph it.

“Ryanair has passed the image to Aviation Authorities throughout Europe in a bid to ensure further sightings can be reported. Ryanair does not comment on rumour or speculation and will not be drawn on passenger claims that the UFO was a test flight ahead of 24th December. This is now a matter for the authorities.”

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

TNI detains Malaysian plane at Juanda airport

Antara News, Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) has detained a Malaysian aircraft numbered BAE 146-200 for having entered the country`s territory illegally.

The plane with 81 passengers on board including crew members landed illegally at Djuanda international airport in Surabaya from Dili, Timor Leste, at 12.45 hours, TNI spokesman Commodore Iskandar Sitompul said here on Tuesday.

When asked to confirm about the incident by ANTARA, Sitompul said of the 81 passengers six including a Malaysian official had departed to Malaysia aboard a commercial plane.

"The plane and the other passengers meanwhile are still being held at the local immigration office waiting for security clearance from the Indonesian government and military," he said.

Iskandar said the security clearance was issued by BAIS (military intellgience agency) and coordination was now still being made with the foreign ministry for it.

"It is hoped it could be issued tonight so that the plane could immediately be returned to Malaysia," he said.

Iskandar said the Malaysian aircraft had violated the country`s territory and sovereignty because it carried no official permit from the Indonesian authorities.


Related Article:

World's 5 biggest airlines now from Asia, LatAm

The Jakarta Post, Frank Jordans, Associated Press, Geneva | Tue, 12/14/2010

The world's five biggest airlines now hail from Asia and Latin America, highlighting the industry's shift away from the US and Europe to higher-growth countries, the International Air Transport Association said Tuesday.

Air China is twice the size of either Delta in the US or Germany's Lufthansa. But despite emerging markets' strength and a broad earnings rebound this year, weak economic conditions in Europe and low margins are acting as a drag on profits, the group warned.

"The world is changing in aviation, and it's changing very, very quickly," IATA Chief Executive Giovanni Bisignani told a news conference in Geneva. "Rapidly deveping markets are shifting the industry's center of gravity to the East."

Air China has a market capitalization of US$20 billion, followed by Singapore airlines with $14 billion and Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific with $12 billion.

China Southern has a market cap of $11 billion, as does LATAM, the Latinmerican airline recently created from the merger of Chile's LAN and TAM of Brazil. U.S. carrier Delta and Germany's Lufthansa follow with market capitalizations of $10 billion each.

IATA said strong growth in developing countries and a rebound in North America are largely responsible for the industry's recvery this year.

Airlines will see net profits of $15.1 billion in 2010, IATA said. This marks a massive turnaround from the $10 billion industry loss in 2009 and $16 billion loss in 2008.

Asian carriers will contribute $7.7 billion to the global total, while North American airlines will earn $5.1 billon. Europe, with estimated net profits of $400 million, lags behind the Middle East ($700 million) and Latin America ($1.2 billion). African carriers will earn $100 million this year, IATA said.

The full-year estimate is a significant jump from IATA's prediction in September for an $8.9 billion industry prfit in 2010.

"2011 is going to be a much more challenging period," said IATA chief economist Brian Pearce, noting that heavy debts and new taxes will weigh on consumer travel spending in Europe and North America.

IATA forecasts net profits of $9.1 billion for the industry next year.

Bisignani warned that profit margins remain "pathetically low" and pose a threat to the industry in case of another economic shock.

Recently introduced air travel taxes in Britain, Germany and Austria, and efforts to introduce a regional carbon emissions trading market harm Europe's competitiveness, he said, noting that these further squeeze profit margins for the continent's carriers.

Fuel price rises are also expected to hurt profits in 2011, further driving the industry to reduce aircraft fuel consumption and find viable renewable alternatives.

Still, the Geneva-based group representing some 230 carriers and 93 percent of scheduled air traffic said the outlook is bright for Asia.

A rapidly expanding middle class in Asia and growing demand for air links between the continent's 15 mega-cities, with over 10 million inhabitants each, promise strong industry profits in the region, Bisignani said.

If "archaic ownership rules" in the United States were changed the industry might soon see the first takeover of a U.S. carrier by an Asian airline, he added.

The Italian, who has been at the helm of IATA for nine years, will be succeeded by Cathay Pacific CEO Tony Tyler next year.

Full-body airport scanner flaws exposed

News.com.au, by KateSchneider, December 14, 2010
  • Full-bodyairport scanners 'flawed'
  • Guns,explosives may be invisible to devices
  • Warningcomes from US scientists

US scientists have found flaws in full-body airport scanners they say could let terrorists smuggle guns and explosives onto planes, renewing calls for authorities to consider using alternative screening devices.

Scientists have revealed flaws in the controversial
full body-scanners / supplied
Parts of the human body and other benign objects create “noise” that can interfere with the machine’s signals, the research published in the Journal of Transportation Security says.


While scanner operators may be able to spot some of the items, many others such could go unnoticed.

“They (the scanners) are ineffective for thin objects such as blades when they are aligned close to the beam direction,” the report says.

“An object such as a wire or a box-cutter blade, taped to the side of the body, or even a small gun in the same location, will be invisible.”

The study comes from leading University of California physicists Leon Kaufman and JosephW. Carlson - who spearheaded the development of today’s medical imaging technology.

The authors even demonstrated how 40g of explosives could fit inside a “pancake” shape taped to the abdomen that would be "virtually invisible" to the technology.

They also studied a widely-published image of a woman using the device and found that a gun taped to her side is only visible because her arms are lowered next to it.

Travellers must raise their arms when going through the scanners - meaning the item would be invisible.

The scanners, which produce revealing images and have been likened to a virtual strip search, are used in hundreds of airport around the world and are planned to be rolled out across Australian airports next year.

They have been attacked on privacy and health grounds - with the radiation given off potentially increasing the risk of skin cancer.

Last month the world’s largest pilot’s association, the Allied Pilot’s Association,boycotted the scanners over health fears, with authorities bowing to pressuring and allowing pilots to skip the screenings.

Meanwhile an Australian company has released the trial results of a full-body security screening system that doesn't involve pat downs or images of travellers that reveal anatomical details.

Oz Tech Distributors carried out trials of its Gen 2 Passive Millimetre Wave Screening System at Kuala Lumpur airport, Malaysia and Ninoy Aquino airport, Manila.

The device spicked up 600 items not detected by the conventional screening machines including drugs, scissors and bottles.

The Transport and Security Administration is yet to comment on the latest findings.


Related Articles:

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Authorities say teen likely fell from plane


The Jakarta Post, The Associated Press, Boston | Sat, 12/11/2010

A Massachusetts prosecutor said Friday it's likely that a North Carolina teen whose mutilated body was found in a Boston suburb fell from the sky after stowing away in an airplane wheel well.

Norfolk District Attorney William Keating said police searched the area Friday in Milton where the body of Delvonte Tisdale, 16, was found last month, and they found sneakers and a shirt matching clothing Tisdale's family said he'd worn.

The items were found along a path a Boston-bound plane would have taken while approaching the city, he said.

Authorities decided to go public with their evidence that Tisdale was a stowaway because the apparent breach of airport security was such a serious public safety issue, Keating said. He said he'd informed the Transportation Security Administration, and expected them to thoroughly investigate.

"It's a terrible tragedy what happened to this young man," Keating said. "But if that was someone with a different motive, if that was a terrorist, that could be a bomb planted on there undetected."

Tisdale's body was found by a group of college students less than 24 hours after he was last seen in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Tisdale was a member of the Air Force ROTC program at North Mecklenburg High School near Charlotte. His father, Anthony, said the family had moved from Greensboro to Charlotte in the summer just so the teen could join that program. Anthony Tisdale said his son was happy in Charlotte and stayed out of trouble.

But the Delvonte Tisdale's brother, Anthony Tisdale Jr., said his brother was unhappy in North Carolina and had never wanted to leave Baltimore, where he had lived earlier.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Angkasa Pura II finds plus 20,000 illegal businesses, Soekarno airport

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 12/09/2010

State airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II overseeing Soekarno Hatta International Airport in Jakarta revealed that per August, the company found 23,116 cases related to illegal businesses at Soekarno Hatta.

The cases for instance were ticket touts (2,537 cases), illegal taxis (8,452 cases), scavengers (332 cases), hawkers (9,282 cases) and shoeshiners (1,191 cases).

The company also noted that several illegal businesses attracted more people to join.

For example, the number of ticket touts per August this year jumped by 52 percent compared from 1,663 cases the previous year.

Meanwhile, the number of scavengers also rose by 45 percent from 228 cases in 2009.

“We will try to curb this illegal businesses and ensure the airport becomes more comfortable for passengers,” Angkasa Pura President director Tri Sunoko said in Jakarta on Thursday.

Saudi with Snakes Flying in from Jakarta Arrested at UAE Airport


Kompas.com, Rabu, 8 Desember 2010 | 12:18 WIB

An Etihad Airways passenger jet flies over houses as it prepares to land at
Heathrow Airport in west London on April 21, 2010. (Reuters)

ABU DHABI, KOMPAS.com - A Saudi who flew in from Jakarta with snakes, parrots and a squirrel in his hand luggage has been arrested at Abu Dhabi airport, Emirati dailies reported on Tuesday.

“The man was just about to board a plane at the capital’s airport when a member of staff noticed that something was moving inside a box he was carrying,” said an English-language paper, 7Days.

“The passenger was taken to one side and asked to open up his luggage, and inside were four snakes, two parrots and a squirrel, all alive and separated in different compartments inside the box,” it added.

The National said the Saudi, booked on Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways and whose final destination was another unspecified Arab country, “was caught at the first security checkpoint” after landing in the Emirati capital on Thursday.

“Carrying animals on board is strictly prohibited. In this case, other passengers’ safety was at risk,” Khamis al-Marar, Abu Dhabi’s acting chief of security affairs and ports, was quoted as saying.

He told 7Days that “the passenger had no certificates or documentation for the animals. And we didn’t know if they were rare animals or if they could have had diseases.”

Licensed animals have to travel in specially designed boxes, stored in the aircraft’s hold, he said in The National, also an English-language daily.

Monday, December 6, 2010

Russian satellites off course, crash into Pacific – Ria


Antara News, Monday, December 6, 2010 05:49 WIB

Moscow (ANTARA News/Reuters) - Three Russian satellites, being sent into orbit to complete Russia`s GLONASS navigation system, fell off course on Sunday and crashed into the Pacific Ocean not far from the Hawaii Islands, Ria News Agency reported.

A spokesman for Russia`s space agency Roscosmos told Reuters the satellites had strayed from their course and caused an "un-planned situation." He did not confirm that they had crashed.

The satellites were being carried by the "Proton-M" rocket carrier, which blasted off early on Sunday from the Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Antonov crashes into Twin Otter at Sentani airport


Antara News, Thursday, December 2, 2010 20:54 WIB

Sentani, Jayapura (ANTARA News) - An Antonov 26 airplane belonging to State Logistics Agency (Bulog) crashed into a Twin Otter DCH 6 of Trigana Airlines at 8.15 am Eastern Indonesian time on Thursday at the Sentani airport`s runway.

In the collision, two propellers of the Twin Otter plane were broken but nobody was hurt, according to Bustomi, area manager of Trigana Air at Sentani airport.

Due to the incident, the Trigana Air flight from Sentani to Dekai in Yahokimo district was canceled and so were flights of several other airlines.

Bustomi said the Twin Otter was in a parked position when it was hit by the Anonov piloted by a foreigner named Olaks Toghy. After the collission, the Antonoc returned to its parking lot.

"We are not yet sure what caused the incident but the National Committee for Transportation Safety (KNKT) has temporarily barred the two airplanes from flying," he said.

Trigana Air was now waiting for the arrival of a National Committee for Transportation Safety (KNKT) team from Jakarta that would conduct an investigation to determine the main cause of the incident.

Due to the incident, flights of other airlines serving routes in Papua were suspended to the disappointment of many locals preparing to meet their needs ahead of the 2010 Christmas holidays.

Bustomi said the grounding of Trigana Air`s Twin Otter would mean a great fianancial loss to the company although it was all cobered by insurance.

"Based on a rough calculation, the plane can fly up to six hours a day and thereby generate an income of 200 US dollars per hour," he said.

The Antonov 26 plane which was chartered by Manunggal Air for cargo shipment to Wamena in Jaya WIjaya district also stood to suffer a financial loss due to the incident.

Monday, November 29, 2010

Mt. Bromo forces Malang flight cancellations

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 11/29/2010

The government ordered flights to and from Malang cancelled on Monday after smoke from nearby Mount Bromo covered the East Java city.

Transportation Ministry spokesman Bambang Ervan said the cancellation of flight service began at 10 a.m. Monday and would last for five days.

Passengers were advised to use Juanda International Airport in Surabaya in lieu of Abdurrahman Saleh airport in Malang, as reported by news portal kompas.com,

There have been several minor eruptions from Mt. Bromo recently.


Related Article:

Sunday, November 28, 2010

18 killed as cargo plane crashes in residential area in Karachi, Pakistan


English.news.cn   2010-11-28 


Pakistani volunteers struggle to extinguish the fire at the site of a plane crash in southern Pakistani port city of Karachi on Nov. 28, 2010. At least 18 people including 10 on the ground were killed as a Russian-made IL 76 cargo plane crashed in a residential area near the Karachi airport in southern Pakistan early Sunday morning. (Xinhua/Arshad)
  
ISLAMABAD, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least 18 people were killed as a Russian-made IL76 cargo plane crashed in a residential area near the Karachi airport in southern Pakistan early Sunday morning, reported local TV channel Express.

According to the report, there were eight people on board when the plane crashed two minutes after it took off from the Karachi airport at 1:45 am (local time) Sunday morning. The plane was on its way to Sudan, said the report.

Though only eight people were said to be on board, the casualties could be larger than imagined as the plane crashed in a residential area named Gulshan-E-Jamal near the Karachi airport, the report said.

Four buildings have reportedly been destroyed as the plane crashed in the afore-said residential area.

Six people on board are said to be Pakistanis while the pilot and co-pilot are foreigners, whose nationality is yet to be determined.

A loud explosion was heard as the plane crashed, said a report, adding that huge fire and smoke are seen on the crash site.

The rescue team has been dispatched to the crash site shortly after the tragedy took place and so far at least one body has been recovered from the crash site.

Sunday's plane crash is the third of its kind over the last four months in Pakistan. On July 28, an Airbus passenger plane crashed in the Margalla Hills of Pakistan's capital Islamabad, killing all the 152 people on board. This is the largest aviation disaster ever reported in the country over the past 18 years.

In October, a small passenger plane carrying over 20 people crashed near the Karachi airport due to the engine failure. None of the people on board survived in the plane crash.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

RI urgently needs flight safety council


Antara News, Thursday, November 25, 2010 18:11 WIB

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia urgently needs an independent flight safety council in an effort to increase the flight safety in the country, an official said.

"The presence of an independent flight safety council will help reduce flight transportation accidents," Head of Research and Development (Litbang) of the Ministry of Transportation Denny L Siahaan said here on Thursday.

He said that the country`s urgent need for such a council was raised and become a conclusion of a round-table discussion organized the ministry`s Litbang this week.

Denny said the participants in the discussion agreed that the tasks of the council should included recommending, deciding and evaluating policies, regulations and national flight safety procedures that should be accepted as an indicator of performance achievements.

The discussion also raised the issue on the need for eliminating flight disturbances of kites, birds and wild animals around the airports in an effort to increase flight safety, Denny said.

"Competent operators, inspectors and technicians are also needed," he said.

The participants of the round-table discussion included officials from the ministry of transportation, state-owned firms, flight safety observers and experts, pilot organizations` representatives, operators and other stakeholders.

"In essence the discussion was held to collect the latest inputs for increasing the safety of flights," he added.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Govt to shake up railway firm`s management


Antara News, Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government will soon change the boards of directors and commissioners of state-owned railway company PT Kreta Api (PTKA) because some of them have already completed their terms of office, a deputy minister said.

"Replacement will be carried out soon but it will all depend on the final assessment team (TPA). We have prepared a fit-and-proper test the result of which will be left to the TPA," Deputy Minister for State-owned Firms (BUMN) on infrastructure and Logistics Sumaryanto said here on Tuesday.

He said that besides the completion of their terms of office, the other reason for the replacement was to improve the quality of PTKA services and its financial performance.

He said that selections would be made to fill in the posts of finance director and business development director.

But he was reluctant to explain whether or not the present president director, Ignasius Jonan, would also be replaced. "It will depend on the shareholders," he said.

5,000 hajj pilgrims stranded in Saudi due to Garuda cancellations

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 11/23/2010 10:26 AM

A technical glitch in national airline Garuda Indonesia's new IT system has stranded thousands of passengers in airports across the country, and more than 5,000 Indonesian hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.

Three travel agencies that specialize in hajj packages, Maktour, Safari Suci and Khalifah, reported cancellations of a total of 12 Garuda flights.

Hajj and Umrah Association head Syarqowie Ghozali said Garuda was not sufficiently compensating the stranded passengers.

Garuda gave each of its ticket holders at the Saudi Arabia airport 180 riyal (US$ 48),which was less than the 300 riyal (US$ 80) room rate charged by the cheapest airport hotel there.

Separately,Garuda Pilot Association chairman Stephanus Gerrardus dismissed rumors the cancellations were caused by a pilot strike.

Garuda Workers Union member Tomy Tampatty said there was tension between the workers and the board of directors.

“But there is no strike,” he said.

Garuda announced it would not take ticket orders until Wednesday while it resolved the computer problem.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Garuda says cancellation due to tech glitch

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sun, 11/21/2010 10:05 PM

Flagship carrier Garuda Indonesia has denied rumors that the cancellation of numerous flights on Sunday was not caused by a strike of its workers but was due to a technological glitch.

“We have implemented a new IT system for the integration of the management of flights, crew and passengers. The new system has been up and running for three days, but now we’ve had a glitch,” Garuda vice president Pudjobroto told The Jakarta Post.

Pudjobroto apologized on behalf of Garuda and promised that passengers would be compensated for their grief, and those left stranded at airports had been given free accommodations until new flights were available.

“This new system monitors a huge operation. We are operating 81 jet airlines, 580 pilots and 2,000 cabin crew and 2,000 flights per week. The system is still working and we are fixing the bugs,” Pudjobroto said.

Pudjo said the main problem behind today’s cancellations -- at least six in Jakarta and one each in Aceh, Denpasar, Surabaya, Semarang and Pangkalpinang — was a mix up in the scheduling of cabin crew.

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Garuda Indonesia to join SkyTeam

Rangga D.Fadillah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 11/19/2010 8:58 PM

National flag carrier Garuda Indonesia sets to officially join international airline alliance SkyTeam in a bid to reach its target to become one of the top ten best airlines in the world.

The carrier will meet delegates from SkyTeam partner airlines on Nov. 23 in Jakarta to sign an official agreement and discuss detailed practical matters.

The president director of Garuda Indonesia, Emirsyah Satar, said Thursday that after officially joining the alliance, his carrier could fly passengers from the alliance's partner airlines and vice versa, so the flight frequency of his carrier could be added.

“It means that our passengers can fly anywhere with one ticket only,” he said as quoted by Gatra magazine.

He continued that joining SkyTeam was one of Garuda Indonesia's efforts to provide traveling convenience and more choices for its passengers.

Currently,13 airlines – Aerosoft, Aeromexico, Air Europa, Air France, Alitalia, ChinaSouthern, Czeh Airlines, Delta Airlines, Kenya Airways, KLM, Korean Air, TAROM,and Vietnam Airlines – have joined the alliance. SkyTeam member-airlines travel to 841 destination cities in 162 countries servicing 16,409 flights per day.

Cancer surviving flight attendant forced to remove prosthetic breast during pat-down

wbtv.com, By MollyGrantham – bio, Posted: Nov 19, 2010

CHARLOTTE,NC (WBTV) - A Charlotte-area flight attendant and cancer survivor contacted WBTV after she says she was forced toshow her prosthetic breast during a pat-down.

Cathy Bossi lives in south Charlotte and has been a flight attendant for the past 32 years, working the past 28 for U.S. Airways.

She reluctantly agreed. As a 3-year breast cancer survivor she says she didn't want the added radiation through her body. But, Bossi says she did agree.

"The T.S.A. Agent told me to put my I.D. on my back," she said. "When I got out of there she said because my I.D. was on my back, I had to go to a personal screening area."

She says two female Charlotte T.S.A. agents took her to a private room and began what she calls an aggressive pat down. Shesays they stopped when they got around to feeling her right breast… the one where she'd had surgery.


"She put her full hand on my breast and said, 'What is this?'. And I said, 'It's my prosthesis because I've had breast cancer.' And she said, 'Well, you'll need to show me that'."

Cathy was asked to show her prosthetic breast, removing it from her bra.

"I did not take the name of the person at the time because it was just so horrific of an experience, I couldn't believe someone had done that to me. I'm a flight attendant. I was just trying to get to work."

Since then, Cathy has contacted the Legislative Affairs Team, a group through the flight attendant union. She says she wants tosee a crackdown on these personal pat downs.

"There are blowers and there are dogs out there that can sniff out bombs," she says. "There's no reason to have somebody's hands touching your body parts."

A T.S.A. representative says agents aren't supposed to remove any prosthetics, but are allowed to ask to see and touch any passenger's prosthetic.

T.S.A. says it will review this matter.



Transportation Security Administration administrator John Pistole testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, before the Senate commerce committee hearing to examine the TSA. (Harry Hamburg/Associated Press)


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