Just found Posterous.com

Hey Folks, just found Posterous.com, a new blogging site. Not bad .. worth a look ..

Posted via web from aviationpros's posterous

Clark Aviation Skulks away .. Have a look at how they moved their airplanes ..

Well, the saga of Clark Aviation continues. I have remained quiet about this embarrassment to the Philippine Aviation Community up until now.

Apart from having promised over 100 cadets an MPL License and rides in an A320 to complete their license, there are still many cadets who are a long way from seeing any kind of license. In fact, I know of a few cadets who are paying out of their own pockets to get their Commercial/IR at another Philippine Aviation School, just to show that they have something for their more than three year association with Clark Aviation.

Clark Aviation has a reputation for not paying their bills, not delivering on the courses they promise, they treat their staff abysmally and are incapable of showing any kind of professionalism towards their day to day operations, the aviation community and their own cadets.

The following photos speak for them selves, the alphas being loaded up onto a low bed to be hauled away to some hidden location. More than likely, the useful bits will be removed and sold and there will only be useless hulks remaining ..

A warning to all considering purchase of these aircraft, they were imported tax and duty free and have been subject to continuous parts removal by CA who refused to buy the correct spare parts.

Anyone who knows anything about aircraft will shudder at the way these aircraft were loaded ...

Let the photos speak for them selves .. (Taken before lunch today .. These are of the third aircraft, the first one nearly fell off whilst loading it on the low bed, unfortunately I did not get a photo of it)

(Oh, I forgot to mention, they took the wings off yesterday whilst it was raining, they were left sitting in the rain on the ground)

India remains at FAA Cat 1 status, can the CAAP get their act together?

India in compliance with United States FAA safety audit recommendations

Remains in Category 1 of IASA

According to a PIB release, India has been found to be fully compliant with the international safety standards by an audit done by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States of America. Before permitting a foreign airline to operate in USA, FAA of US, backed by the US legislation conducts an audit of the concerned country’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)/ DGCA to ensure its capability for providing safety certification and continuing oversight on its international carriers. The audit is conducted under an ‘International Aviation Safety Assessment Programme’ (IASA) and focuses on the country's ability to adhere to standards and recommended practices of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for aircraft operations and maintenance.

Under the IASA programme, FAA in the year 1997 had conducted an audit of DGCA India and had awarded Category 1 status to India. In March this year, FAA, based on the report of an audit conducted by ICAO in October 2006, conducted a reassessment of DGCA. While the FAA’s IASA team found India to be compliant in areas of aviation legislation, operating regulations, civil aviation structure and safety oversight functions, and licensing and certification obligations, it raised concerns in the areas of adequate technical guidance for DGCA inspectors, hiring and retaining technical personnel in DGCA, establishment of an on-going surveillance programme of air operators and the resolution of identified safety issues.

DGCA was required to rectify the concerns in the identified areas in a short time frame of about five months. Repercussions of non-action could have resulted in India being downgraded to Category 2 status from the Category 1, which has been held by India since 1997. Under Category 2, no expansion/ changes to the services of Indian air carriers would have been permitted by USA and the existing operations would have been subjected to ‘heightened FAA surveillance’. Such a downgrade would not only have resulted to an economic impact to the nation but would also have been a setback to India’s image worldwide in ICAO, EU, USA and in the international aviation community.

The FAA IASA team revisited DGCA yesterday to confirm and validate the action taken on the concerns since the audit in March 2009. The visit was also made to ascertain the information which was provided to FAA by DGCA from time to time in the previous few months on the progress made to make good the deficiencies. During the discussions, the FAA team confirmed the action taken by DGCA to make good the identified concerns of the earlier March 2009 audit.

• The team confirmed DGCA meeting the international standards in the area of aviation law and regulations and confirmed that the powers of Director General were well laid down in the various parts of the Aircraft Act, 1934 and Aircraft Rules, 1937 and the regulations were available to all users. In the area of CAA Structure and safety oversight functions, the team acknowledged that lack of financial resources is not a constraint for DGCA and that there has been an eight-fold increase in the annual budget for DGCA this year. In 2009-10, DGCA has 40 crore under plan and Rs 22 crore under non-plan. FAA was informed by DGCA that a feasibility study for establishment of Civil Aviation Authority has been commissioned and will commence in October 2009. The FAA team was shown the technical guidance, which was prepared in areas of operations, airworthiness and enforcement for the guidance and use of safety inspectors of DGCA for day-to-day functioning including the training provided to the inspectors on their use.

• The availability of an increased number of flight operations inspectors on board with DGCA which now includes 14 full time Government Flight Operations Inspectors (FOI) and 18 FOIs on secondment from industry was shown to the FAA team as against the previous of only four FOIs in March 2009. It was emphasised to the team that current increased salary levels based on the Sixth Pay Commission has increased the attractiveness of government positions and retention has improved.

Indian government has approved and revised about 560 technical positions and 150 non-technical positions in addition to existing 160 technical and 177 non-technical positions. Aggressive action plan for recruitment is underway. About 72 technical officers are being hired in September – October on short term contract. Higher level of financial delegation given to the DGCA by Government of India. DGCA has in turn delegated financial powers to regional offices. DGCA now has 13 directorates as against exiting nine. Four new directorates have been added. A DGCA wide internal and external training programme has been developed. Further, a big project of IT led solutions in DGCA is in advanced stage of action.

• DGCA India fulfils all international standards regarding Licensing and Certification Obligations.

• The DGCA-wide surveillance programme was shared with the team and it was emphasised that all airlines including foreign airlines are included in the surveillance programme which is under aggressive implementation. The programme of surveillance includes Indian registered as well as aircraft taken by Indian operators on wet lease. The current programme for 2009 includes 4,327 surveillance activities, of which 2,545 have been conducted till August 2009. The system for addressing deficiencies arising out of the surveillance was discussed. The team was informed of setting up of Surveillance and Enforcement Division (SMED) and the Board for Aviation Safety (BFAS) in headquarters for monthly monitoring of identified Level I deficiencies and progress of other deficiencies. Also 87 enforcement actions have been taken against personnel and operators. In addition to the surveillance programme, DGCA has put in a system of quality check of foreign flying training facilities used by Indian students for obtaining pilot licenses. DGCA officers recently conducted an inspection of foreign flying institute in Philippines in consultation with their civil aviation authority. A system of recently introduced financial surveillance of airlines was also discussed based on the current economic slowdown and consequent pressures on the airlines.

• The revised Schedule VI of the Aircraft Rules 1937 on Penalties was shared with the team where substantial increase in financial penalty for non-adherence to regulations has been addressed. DGCA Enforcement Policy and Procedures Manual were provided to the team which was issued on May 20, 2009 and effective from June 15, 2009. The Manual establishes and publicises internal deadlines for taking action, appeal actions, and monitoring compliance with enforcement decisions throughout the regions, and implements an effective internal staff process to ensure timely action. The DGCA Officers at headquarters and in the regions have been trained on the manual. Stakeholders are aware that they are subject to enforcement, and the programme constitutes an effective deterrent.

FAA team was satisfied with the amount of work accomplished by DGCA India. FAA stated that complete action and correction of concerns raised by FAA was done in the available time space which is considered rare in the history of IASA. FAA also acknowledged the commitment and support of Ministry of Civil Aviation and Government of India. Based on the discussions held and the information shared, FAA at the close of the discussion informed DGCA of being in compliance with international standards for aviation safety and reported India to continue to be maintained in Category 1. This determination will be made public under FAA public disclosure policy.

Pilots call for ban on air shipments of lithium batteries

WASHINGTON (CNN) — The nation’s largest pilots’ union is asking the government to ban shipments of lithium batteries on all passenger and cargo planes, saying the batteries appeared to have erupted in smoke or flames on three planes in the last two months.But the union is not recommending that passengers be prohibited from boarding planes with the batteries, which are commonly found in laptop computers, cell phones, cameras and other electronic devices.The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) said it was prompted to call for a ban on shipments of lithium batteries by incidents onboard recent flights in Minnesota, Hawaii and the Dominican Republic. The union did not release details of the incidents, including whether the incidents occurred on passenger or cargo flights.ALPA President John Prater said he wants an “immediate ban” on lithium battery shipments until safety regulations are in place and can be enforced.“If we are not able to secure these protections for the traveling public through swift regulatory action, we will ask Congress to immediately intervene,” he said.

Unqualified Immigrants Fixing American Planes?

I found this gem It has some relevant issues for OFWs from the Philipines .. especially those working in Aviation Maintenance ....

==================================

Calls to investigate the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are growing after media outlets revealed that immigrants with inadequate certifications may be working on American airplanes. In many cases, according to reports, mechanics who don’t even speak English are replacing qualified American workers.

"We just have to bring them before Congress and ask them what they're doing,” said Texas Rep. Ted Poe of Houston. “I will ask Congressman Oberstar of the Aviation Committee to hold hearings with the FAA regarding this whole situation."

WFAA-TV in Dallas and Fort Worth exposed the problems with an investigation in early July. “Reporters found that aliens are being brought into the country so that they can be paid less than American workers,” the TV station noted on its website. The investigation also charged that the immigrants' experience and credentials may be in question. Quoting insiders, the station claims “the companies that are importing the mechanics are so eager to save money, they’re overstating their qualifications. The result may be a threat to safety, abetted by lax enforcement of immigration law.”

The foreign mechanics working at San Antonio International Airport were mostly here on temporary permits called TN visas, a provision of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) designed to allow licensed professionals to work in other countries. Citing documents obtained from Mexican mechanics, the report found that many were not licensed anywhere, though they may have attended airplane repair school in Mexico. Other workers came from places like the Philippines, Chile, and a variety of other Asian and Latin American countries.

"The more experienced mechanics, we would get paired up with either one or two of these guys,” said a former mechanic with San Antonio Aerospace who was laid off. “They would watch us for a month or so. And that’s how they would get their training.” According to a former administrator, as soon as the American employees were let go, the foreign workers would arrive.

"They’ve employed over 200 since I left,” alleged Jada Williams, a former employee of Aircraft Workers Worldwide. The contracting company provided workers for companies owned by Singapore Technologies (ST) Aerospace, the largest aircraft repair company in the world. "And I know we had over a hundred when I was in there, just in Mobile,” she added, referring to Mobile Aerospace Engineering in Alabama, which like San Antonio Aerospace is controlled by ST Aerospace.

But Chye Kiat Ang, the president of the Singapore-based company, defended the firms’ actions. “They are as good as any American worker,” he said, explaining that between 10 percent and 15 percent of the employees were immigrants. “No one is working in a situation where they are forced to accept a lower wage,” Ang noted, adding that the company had found it difficult to recruit qualified Americans, who are required to be certified by an FAA-approved company.

The foreign workers also defended the companies. One of the Mexicans working at the San Antonio airport explained that mechanics in Mexico learn in English using English manuals. Another, Ruben Ramirez, said, “I can prove my skills with my documents.” The director of quality for San Antonio Aerospace added that the workers were very skilled and professional.

A spokesperson for the FAA, which is in charge of regulating the industry and frequently inspects the San Antonio facility, said the firm is not currently under investigation. But a former employee at the company alleges that before inspectors arrived they were given a one-hour warning. “A lot of guys who were not able to read English, they would hide those guys or send them home for the evening," he said.

Many of the foreign workers apply for Social Security numbers under their visas and stay longer than they are allowed to — sometimes forever. NAFTA has created a myriad of problems and hazards for the United States, and this is simply another example. NAFTA should be abolished so the United States can set its own responsible policies. And if it turns out that unqualified mechanics are really fixing our planes, there should be severe consequences for those responsible.

‘Beyond crisis, Philippine Aviation Sector can grow’

WITHIN the next 10 to 20 years, there will be a demand for 100,000 pilots worldwide and more than 1 million in associated jobs such as aircraft mechanics and cabin crew to service between 35,000 and 40,000 aircraft.
The Philippines would be in a position to grab a bigger percentage of this work force if the government and the civilian-aviation sector would this early unite and plan a course of action that would ignite interest in aviation among the populace.
Avelino Zapanta, Zest Air CEO who is also lead organizer of the new group Aviation Society of the Philippines (ASP), disclosed this, saying “statistics have indicated” such a situation, in his opening remarks at the first conference of the group at the Air Force Museum in Villamor Air Base over the weekend.
Despite the gloomy economic outlook at present, airlines around the world have already given their orders for new aircraft to either Boeing and Airbus, the world’s largest aircraft manufacturers, Zapanta said.
“That’s why we have to rally those aviation institutions, like in education such as the Philippine Aviation Training Schools and others, because they need to expand,” he said, adding that local flying schools can hardly turn out 150 pilots a year.
“I don’t think we’re producing more than 150 pilots a year. We have to create more flying schools, and the government should dip its finger into it. They are the No. 1 beneficiary,” said Zapanta.
There is also a need to interest the public in the sector if the needed students are to be had, he added.
The president of ASP, Danilo Augusto Francia, concurrent manager of the Cebu-Mactan International Airport, said it is the duty of the new organization to help the government spread the virtues of modern aviation, noting the lack of local interest in this sector.
The guest speaker, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, said, “In the aviation industry, competition is the name of the game. We must avoid the pwede na [that’s good enough] mentality; many accidents have happened because of this attitude, and I think it’s time that the Philippines shed, throw away and consign perpetually to the dustbin that kind of attitude.”
He added the ASP can be a forum to espouse excellence in the aviation industry.
Zapanta’s estimate is in accord with the forecast of Boeing that there is a $3.2-trillion market for new commercial airplanes over the next 20 years, taking into account the industry’s near-term realities, including a global economic recession, declining passenger and cargo traffic and unpredictable fuel prices.
The Boeing 2009 Current Market Outlook released in London in June foresees a market for 29,000 new commercial passenger and freighter airplanes by 2028.
The rest of the aircraft requirement worldwide is supplied by Airbus of the European Union, and smaller aircraft manufacturers in China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
The report, now on its 45th year of public release and widely regarded as the most comprehensive and respected analysis of the commercial aviation market, reflects the extremely dynamic situation the industry is facing today.
“While the commercial aviation industry is facing a significant downturn, it is cyclic and has a long history of declines and upturns,” said Randy Tinseth, Boeing vice president marketing. “Over the past 30 years, through both tough and good times, traffic growth has averaged more than 5 percent per year, demonstrating the resilience of the market. The long-term outlook points to the next 20 years as being a time in which we see fundamental underlying factors supporting a strong need for new airplanes.”
Boeing expects passenger traffic to grow at an average rate of 4.9 percent each year for the next 20 years. Demand globally remains strong for new, more efficient commercial airplanes in response to high fuel prices, aging fleets and environmental concerns.
Boeing predicts that airlines will grow by responding to their passengers’ preference for more flight choices, lower fares and direct access to a wider range of destinations. This means they will focus on offering more flights using more efficient airplanes, rather than on using significantly larger airplanes.

Phlippines DMIA posts 21% increase in passenger volume in 5 months

The Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) continues to attract more passengers as the airport posted a 21-percent increase in international passenger volume in the first five months of 2009 despite the global downturn in the aviation industry caused by the economic slowdown.
Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) President and CEO Victor Jose I. Luciano made the announcement during the eight leg of the 2009 DMIA Product Update held at the CAMP-John Hay Trade and Cultural Center in Camp John Hay, Baguio City on Tuesday.
Luciano said that the DMIA posted a 21-percent increase in international passenger volume from the period January and May this year compared to the figures posted in 2008 in the same period.
Based on a report by the CIAC Corporate Planning Department, 251,719 international passengers passed through the DMIA from January to May this year compared to 208,858 in 2008 in the same period, or a difference of 42,861 passengers.
The report also showed a significant increase of passenger volume in the month of January alone by as much as 27 percent with 53, 068 compared to the 41,944 January 2008 figure proving that DMIA is one of the busiest airport in the country.
“I am happy to report to you that despite a 16-percent slump in the first five months of 2009 in the entire aviation industry in the Asia Pacific Region caused by the global economic recession and more recently the A (H1N1), the DMIA posted a 21-percent growth over the first five months of 2009,” Luciano told some 200 participants of the DMIA product update.
Luciano stressed that DMIA being the Premier International Gateway of the Philippines have remained strong and continues to attract passengers saying that “the CIAC Road Show is a big boost to the airport’s thrusts in the promotion of international flights especially in the North Luzon.”
“We are here to invite you, the leaders of the travel agencies, the hotel industry, the chambers of commerce, the Rotary Club and the Jaycees, among others, to come to and fly in and out of Clark,” Luciano stressed.
“People of Northern Luzon, Baguio and Central Luzon this is your airport, Clark is your airport.”
“We want Baguio to be the focal point of the growth of DMIA,” Luciano added.
The road show had covered the provinces of Pampanga, Bulacan, Zambales, Tarlac, Nueva Ecija, and the Northern Luzon area such as Pangasinan, Ilocos Norte, and the summer capital of Baguio City in Benguet Province.
DMIA is hosts to foreign and local carriers such as Tiger Airways that flies via Clark-Singapore, Air Asia via Clark-Kuala Lumpur and Kotakinabalu, Asiana Airlines via Clark-Incheon in South Korea with connecting flights of the US, China and Japan. Local carrier Cebu Pacific Air also flies via Clark-Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, and Bangkok, South East Asian Airlines (Seair) and Zest Air via Clark-Caticlan to the world famous Boracay Beach.

Philippines - Albay solon wants immediate probe on CAAP ‘militarization’

A legislator is seeking a congressional inquiry into the “militarization” of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) due to a big number of retired military officials and personnel allegedly hired as consultants by the agency.
In House Resolution 1181, Nacionalista Party Rep. Al Francis Bichara of Albay warned the country might not regain Category 1 status from the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) if the CAAP could not address the organizational problem and “demoralization” among its rank and file.
The demoralization, Bichara said, jeopardizes efforts by the Philippine government to pass the FAA audit slated at the end of the year. “Confounding the situation is the hiring by the agency of several retired military personnel as consultants. This has resulted in demoralization of the CAAP employees,” Bichara said.

Bichara said the presence of several retired military personnel at the CAAP has created an impression that it is under “militarization.” He said the failure of the agency to approve the staffing pattern and plantilla positions has made it difficult for management to recruit and hire qualified technical civil-aviation personnel. “The delay in the approval of the staffing pattern and plantilla positions had caused widespread unrest at the agency,” Bichara said. “If CAAP management will fail to solve the problem, there is a strong possibility that it will not be able to comply with the proscription of the FAA for it to regain its Category 1 status,” he added.
Bichara said Republic Act 9497 establishes the CAAP principally to address the deficiencies of the Air Transportation Office, its predecessor.
Bichara said the main objective of the measure is to carry out the comprehensive reorganization of the aviation sector to include training of technical personnel, appointing inspectors and pilots, hiring new qualified officials and computerization of some departments, especially the documents pertaining to issuances or requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization

THE HOUSE of Representatives has been asked to probe retired military appointees in the newly created civil aviation authority in light of complaints among the regulator’s employees.
House Resolution (HR) 1181, filed by Albay Rep. Al Francis C. Bichara (2nd district), directed the committee on good government to probe the management and operation of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).
In a statement yesterday, Mr. Bichara said he sought the probe in response to a letter sent to the House on June 2 signed by 63 officials and employees from CAAP’s flight standards inspectorate service department.
CAAP officials were unavailable for comment.
"According to the complainants, CAAP chief and former Air Force Gen. Ruben Ciron brought along some of his trusted people, friends and military classmates to join him in the CAAP," he said in a separate telephone interview.

PROPOSED FAA REGULATION (NPRM)

No pilot or pilots, or person or persons acting on the direction, or suggestion, or supervision, of any pilot or pilots, may try, attempt to try, or make or make any attempt to try, to comprehend or understand, any or all, in whole or in part, of the herein mentioned Federal Aviation Regulations, except as authorized by the Administrator or an agent appointed by, or under the supervision of, the Administrator.

If any pilot, or group of associated pilots, becomes aware of, or realizes, or detects, or discovers, or finds, that he, or she, or they, are, or have been beginning to, or are about to, understand the Federal Aviation Regulations or any of its provisions, (he) (she) (they) must immediately, within three (3) days of such discovery or awareness notify, in writing, the Administrator.

Upon receipt of any such above notice of impending comprehension, the Administrator shall promptly cause said Federal Aviation Regulations to be rewritten in such a form and manner as to completely and totally eliminate any further possibility of comprehension by any pilot or pilots.

The Administrator may, at his or her option, require any pilot, or pilots, who commit(s), or attempt(s) to commit, or exhibit(s) any propensity to commit, the offense of understanding or comprehending the Federal Aviation Regulations, or any part thereof, to attend courses of remedial instruction in said Regulations, until such time as said pilot, or pilots, demonstrate that they are no longer capable of exhibiting any comprehension or understanding of anything.

The Administrator

Philippines Airport Caticlan (Boracay) gets new Air Traffic Rules

Landings and takeoffs at the Philippines' Caticlan airport have been restricted pending the lengthening of its runway and the flattening of a hill that obstructs one of is approaches.

Aircraft can only use runway 06 for landing and runway 24 for taking off, says the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.

The move comes after a Xian Aircraft MA60 turboprop operated by Zest Airways overshot the runway while trying to land on runway 24. Nobody was hurt in the accident.

Jose Saplan, chief of the aircraft accidents investigations board at the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, tells ATI there are plans to lengthen the runway by 100m and flatten the mountain obstructing runway 24.

He says the landing and takeoff restrictions will remain until the expansion project is complete.

The project has been tendered, but negotiations are still necessary with land owners who may be affected by the plan, he adds.

Caticlan airport sits across a narrow strait of water from the resort island of Boracay.

Sustainable Bio-Fuel Aviation Performs

The Boeing Company and a team from across the aviation industry just released high-level elements of a June 2009 study that shows that sustainable biofuels analyzed in a series of pioneering test flights performed favorably in comparison to petroleum-based fuel.

According to the study, Bio-SPK, a series of laboratory, ground and flight tests conducted between 2006 and 2009 indicated the test fuels performed as well as or better than typical petroleum-based Jet A. The testing included several commercial airplane engine types using blends of up to 50 percent petroleum-based Jet A/Jet A-1 fuel and 50 percent sustainable biofuels.

Read more ...

This is the most AMAZING Demonstration of Radio Controlled Flying I have ever seen

You have to watch this, absolutely amazing ....
Publish Post

The ‘Mustangs’ of the Philippine Air Force

On Wednesday, July 1, the Philippine Air Force led by Lt. Gen. Oscar H. Rabena, marks its 62nd founding anniversary. It was in July 1947 that the Philippine Army Air Corps was renamed the Philippine Air Force (PAF) and elevated to the status of a separate major command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Col. Pelagio A. Cruz, at age 37, became the youngest Filipino Air Force officer to rise to one-star rank as commanding general of the PAF.

Although the PAF is officially 62 years old, its seeds were sown way back in March 1917 when Governor General Francis Burton Harrison approved the creation of the Philippine National Guard. The legislation provided for an air unit composed initially of 15 officers and 135 enlisted personnel. The group included Lt. Leoncio Malinao of Cebu. He would become the first Filipino military pilot flying solo for the first time in a Jenny N-4 biplane in April 1920.

One of the early priorities of Colonel Cruz as PAF chief was the establishment of a fighter base for the new command. When the US government turned over Floridablanca Army Air Base to the Philippine government, Cruz immediately set in motion the development of what today is Basa Air Base. Built by the US Army Air Corps before World War II, it was improved and used by the Japanese during their occupation and later lengthened by the US Air Force as a bomber base in 1945. Floridablanca Air Base would be renamed Basa Air Base in honor of Lt. Cesar Basa, the first Filipino pilot to die in aerial combat against Japanese fighter aircraft. Basa Air Base would serve as the home of the fighter units of the PAF.

The Sixth Fighter Squadron was organized under Lt. Lucio Java, followed a few days later by the activation of the Seventh Fighter Squadron led by Capt. Fidel T. Reyes. Both units came under the Fifth Fighter Group commanded by Maj. Benito Ebuen.

The Air Force by then had a fighter base and a fighter group, and in the autumn of 1947, the first three P-51s (Mustangs) arrived from Clark, ferried by Lieutenants Jesus Singson, Eulalio Nierva and Constantino Completo. US Air Force (USAF) records indicate that at least 31 P-51s were transferred to the PAF, but the actual total may be higher. Philippine sources claim that only 18 Mustangs were on hand with possibly the balance stored in reserve at Clark. But with so few pilots then available, there were enough planes for everyone. Incidentally, “Mustang” comes from the Spanish “Mesteño,” a wild horse of the American western plains, directly descended from horses brought to the United States by the Spaniards, possibly in the 16th century.

Throughout the Mustang’s career in the PAF, it would be used primarily as a fighter-bomber. Air-to-air combat training was also part of its role but this was not one that was taken seriously, for three reasons: first, there was a lack of potential enemies; second, the PAF had no effective fighter control organization (there was no aircraft control through radar equipment); and third, the USAF at Clark in effect took care of air defense for the Philippines. Nevertheless, the PAF Mustangs at times trained with USAF units as well as those from Thailand and Taiwan.

The increasing number of available pilots led to the creation of a third fighter squadron, and the Eighth Fighter Squadron was activated under Capt. Julian Yutuc. The Fifth Fighter Group became the Fifth Fighter Wing.

The original batch of Mustangs dwindled due to accidents and there was need for additional aircraft. In 1950, a delivery of 50 P-51s was made, bringing up the units to full strength with 12 to 15 pilots assigned to each squadron. Each pilot had a “personal” aircraft assigned to him, with others held in reserve. Their planes were marked with names like “Shark of Zambales,” “Chinita,” “Red Knight,” and “Cannonball.”

The Mustangs participated in anti-Huk operations, particularly in the Sierra Madre ranges. In 1952, Operation Four Roses was launched, with the Mustangs flying 68 sorties against Huk camps. In 1954, the Sulu Air Task Group (or SATAG) was formed to assist Army units operating in Sulu against Haji Kamlon. The main armaments of the Mustang, in addition to six .50-caliber machineguns, were 250-lb fragmentation bombs and 300-lb GP (general purpose) bombs. Napalm was also used at certain times, but only with permission from headquarters in each specific case.*

With the end of the Korean War, the USAF resumed the delivery of Mustangs to the PAF and in 1955, the last 24 planes were turned over to the Philippine government. This was the high point in the Mustang’s career in the PAF. Aircraft and pilots were plentiful and in 1956, the Fifth Fighter Wing was able to put up 74 Mustangs for the Independence Day flypast.

The Blue Diamonds acrobatic team of the PAF started out with Mustangs. The team leader was Lt. Jose Gonzales, with members Lieutenants Isidro Agunod, Ricardo Singson, Pascual Servida and Cesar Raval. The team’s last appearance using Mustangs was at the Philippine Aviation Week celebration in December 1954.

In 1959, after a crash in which the pilot was killed, PAF headquarters retired the Mustang. The number of fatal crashes involving Mustangs was most likely about 30. “Two squadrons’ worth of pilots killed” was how Brig. Gen. Emmanuel Casabar expressed it. A final flypast with four aircraft was hastily arranged. Lt. Romeo Reinoso, Class 1958, had the privilege of making the last Mustang landing in the PAF.

Just to add a personal note to this column—the Mustang fighter pilot will continue to remain close to my heart. The first pilot who showed me the world from an upside down position was then-Lt. Juan Estoesta, fresh from a stint with the fighter unit in Basa. A number of fighter pilots were transferred to Fernando Air Base to serve as instructor pilots in the flying school. In a PT-13 open cockpit biplane, Estoesta allowed me to break away from the bonds of the earth and soar into the wild blue yonder on my own.

Lt. Marcelo (Lito) Barbero, another Mustang fighter pilot, would check me out in the T-6 advanced trainer. Normally he would be shouting at me, “Sanamagan, Farolan, you’ll get us both killed with your stupidity!” Then one morning, after a series of takeoffs and landings, he stepped out of the cockpit with his parachute and above the roar of the engine, he shouted, “Sanamagan, Mon, you’re on your own! Report to me after landing.”

There are so many other names that should have been included in this article—all Mustang fighter pilots who gave the PAF much to be proud of. On the occasion of the PAF anniversary, we salute them with assurances of our respect and affection.

Hmmm - Philippine Aviation Authority to spend P14 million for Bible study???

The Plot Thickens .....

MANILA, Philippines – The newly created Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) is currently spending more than P14 million for a “values education” and “purpose driven life” seminar for all its employees.

Employees of the CAAP, who requested anonymity, told The STAR that retired Philippine Air Force (PAF) general Ruben Ciron, CAAP director general, has allotted a budget of P14,819,080 for a supposed “Spiritual Advancement Values Education” (SAVE) program that started in September 2008.

The program reportedly entails an employee attending “multi-level” 25-hour values education and “purpose-driven life” seminars supervised by Ciron’s consultant, Bishop Ernesto Sacro who, like the CAAP chief, is a retired military general or a Philippine Navy commodore.

So-called “organic” CAAP employees, or those that have been absorbed from its forerunner, the Air Transportation Office (ATO), characterized the SAVE program as a highly suspicious and unnecessary undertaking that uses up much of the agency’s funds and even diverts its focus as it tries to regain a Category I status with the United States’ Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) that it lost in December 2007.

“We should be focusing our resources and our energies towards satisfying the US FAA requirements so that we can regain Category I status which is the main reason why the CAAP was created,” a source told The STAR.

“But with this Bible study program of the CAAP leadership, we have wasted our funds as well as the precious time of our employees,” the source added.

The CAAP was formed upon signing into law of Republic Act 9497, otherwise known as the CAAP Law, in March 2008.

The passage of the CAAP Law was rushed as the country scrambled to regain Category I status with the US FAA.

The Philippines’ downgrade to Category II status particularly hit the country’s leading carrier, Philippine Airlines, since it was prevented from opening more routes to and from the United States and from upgrading its aircraft on these routes.

Organic CAAP employees had earlier aired dissatisfaction with Ciron’s appointment of numerous fellow retired military officials to key CAAP positions without the requisite civil aviation technical expertise and training.

To avoid questions on the appointment of these unqualified retired military officers, Ciron hired them as “consultants,” the sources said.

Cheaper AirAsia tickets; it scraps administration fee

It stands to lose up to RM400mil in revenue yearly

KUALA LUMPUR: AirAsia Bhd stands to lose up to RM400mil a year at the group level with the abolishment of its administration fee from its fare structure but the airline says it will replace lost revenue with income from higher passenger growth and its ancillary business.

“Reducing the cost of fares is the only way to get people to travel. We believe this will help increase our load factor and make us even more competitive,” group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes said.

There are also other ways of generating income, such as hotel, food (onboard) operations and priority booking, he added.

From left: AirAsia X CEO Azran Osman-Rani, Datuk Aziz Bakar (middle), regional head of commercial Kathleen Tan and Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes at the media conference

Speaking at a news conference yesterday to announce the administration fee abolishment – a first for a major airline – Fernandes said scrapping the charges would create savings for passengers who now only have to pay the seat fare and airport taxes.

The administration fees range from RM22.50 to about RM43 per route (one way).

“We scrapped fuel surcharges last year and still managed to make record profits. We feel the same way about this ,” he said

AirAsia Bhd returned to the black with a net profit of RM203.15mil in the first quarter of 2009, after two consecutive quarterly losses previously.

Revenue increased 33% to RM714.2mil due to better ancillary income and stronger passenger growth.

“The past six months were tough for airlines all over and AirAsia has only grown stronger.

“None of our targets have been changed despite the economic conditions and outbreak of the A(H1NI), we are not affected by the recent flu scare; we are doing well and growing our capacity,” Fernandes said.

“Next week, we are expected to let go of all of our 16 Boeing 737s.

“We will then focus on a brand new A320 fleet which will help lower fuel costs,” he said. Currently, the carrier has 62 A320s.

He added that AirAsia was on target to fly more than 20 million passengers this year against about 18 million last year.

Fernandes also urged airports worldwide to reduce charges to further encourage air travel.

“The only other charge that is not controlled by us is the airport charge,” he said.

Meanwhile, AirAsia chairman Datuk Aziz Bakar said the carrier was withholding the RM65mil arrears in airport tax owed to Malaysia Airport Holdings Bhd as discussions over the settlement of the airport tax debt between the parties were still ongoing.

Currently, passengers pay RM6 in airport tax for domestic flights and up to RM51 for international flights.

Fernandes said the RM6 airport tax for domestic flights was “all right”.

However, he said the RM51 for international flight at the low-cost carrier terminal should be reduced to RM10.

Photo of Zest Air Overshoot at Caticlan Philippines

Zest Air plane overshoots runway in Caticlan (Again ....)

Philippines - ILOILO - A Zest Air (formerly Asian Spirit) plane overshot the runway at Caticlan Airport in Malay, Aklan past 7 a.m. Thursday.

The plane exceeded runway 6 of the airport, but no one was injured, officials said.As of posting, it was not yet clear why the plane overshot the runway.The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said the Zest Air plane had 54 passengers, one flight mechanic, and four crew.

Meanwhile, CAAP ordered the cancellation of all flights to Caticlan airport until 6 p.m. Thursday while they are investigating the cause of the incident.Over thirty flights will be affected by the cancellation.

Philippines - Officials dismissed on graft cases

PRESIDENT GLORIA Macapagal-Arroyo has sacked a Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) assistant regional director and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) provincial director for graft and corruption. She also suspended five other officials, including an assistant secretary of the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), for less serious offenses upon the recommendation of the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC). "

The President has dismissed DAR Bicol region assistant director Louise Cynthia Matza and DTI Sorsogon Provincial Director Leah Pagao. We found them guilty and President Arroyo has approved of our recommendation to have them dismissed," PAGC Chairman Constancia de Guzman said. The President also suspended NAPC assistant secretary Dolores de Quiros-Castillo; Commission on Higher Education Region 10 director Eloisa Paderanga; Bureau of Corrections director Joselito Fajardo; Department of Interior and Local Government director Rodolfo Feraren; and Bureau of Internal Revenue director Alfredo Vasquez Misajon. Ms. de Guzman said the latest incident brought to 134 the number of sanctioned officials.

Philippines - DND buying P3-B helicopters

THE Department of National Defense is acquiring combat/utility helicopters for the Air Force at an estimated cost of P3 billion though negotiated purchase after the failure of two biddings.

The helicopter acquisition is part of the Philippine Defense Reform Program, which was put forward by Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro

Philippines - CAAP - Ciron denies P14M for seminars

THE Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) on Tuesday strongly denied having spent P14 million for “values education and purpose- driven life” seminars for its employees.

Director General Ruben Ciron said not a single centavo was spent in the seminars held at the central office and eight major airports for about 2,000 participants.

He added the program remains unfunded to date and that the program is yet to be submitted to the CAAP board for approval and allocation of a budget.

Ciron said that the former Air Transport Office officials are now facing graft and corruption charges and that some of them are resorting to disinformation campaigns to malign the CAAP and its efforts to professionalize the agency.

As part of its defense against such “dirty tactics” and its priority to restore the Naia to Category 1 status as well as turn the agency into a highly professional world-class aviation body, Ciron said it has held the seminars after weeding out undesirables and replacing them with personnel qualified under the international set of standards.

RP, UK panels to hold talks next month to amend air-services deal

THE Philippine air panel will hold bilateral negotiation with its counterpart in the United Kingdom next month to amend the air services agreement (ASA) between the two countries, the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) on Monday said.

“The air talks will be held July 7 to 9. Basically, the main issue in the upcoming air talks is to be able to update the agreement and hopefully include the European Union Community clause in the updated agreement,” said CAB Deputy Executive Director Porvenir Porciuncula in a phone interview on Monday.

Under the existing air pact between the Philippines and the UK, each country is authorized to field seven flights a week for airlines using bigger aircraft such as the Boeing 747, and maximum of 10 weekly flights for smaller aircraft.

“Even if there is no demand, we are open still to discussions to possibly amend the ASA. If there will be proposals to operate the UK-Manila route, then why not? Right now, there is no Philippine carrier mounting flights to UK and vice versa,” added the CAB official.

The Philippine air panel was supposed to hold similar talks with Cambodia this month. “But we did not get any confirmation from them so it would be postponed,” added Porciuncula.

The CAB is a member of the Philippine air panel. The other members are composed of officials from the Departments of Transportation and Communications, of Foreign Affairs, and of Tourism; Clark International Airport Corp.; and representatives from local airline companies.

They are set to hold bilateral negotiations to amend the existing ASA with China, Italy, Iceland and Korea soon, said Porciuncula.

In May, the Philippines and Spain sealed a new ASA, fielding 28-weekly flights for each country. From Manila to Madrid and Barcelona, there were seven flights per week awarded to the Philippines. To Madrid and Barcelona from Clark’s Diosdado Macapagal International Airport, 14 weekly flights were allocated.

Other points in the country, except Manila and Clark, were allotted seven flights a week. The same goes for Spain in which daily flights were also made available, except for Mardid and Barcelona.

Also, Manila was granted rights to service 200 tons of cargo per week while Clark got 300 tons per week. “For cargo, seven flights per week were also granted,” said CAB Executive Director Carmelo Arcilla.

This was the eighth air pact sealed by the Philippine air panel since the start of the year. Last month a new deal with Singapore was finalized.

ASAs were sealed with Brunei and Australia last March; Kuwait and Bahrain in February; and Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in January.

Zest Airways orders Airbus A320

LE BOURGET - Philippine budget carrier Zest Airways has placed a firm order for a medium-range Airbus A320 airliner, Airbus announced at the air show here on Wednesday.

The airline already operates two of these aircraft which it bought on the market for used aircraft.

Airbus did not give the value of the order, but the catalog price for the aircraft is about $77 million (55.4 million euros).

Asian, low-cost airlines boost Airbus at air show

LE BOURGET, France (AP) — Asian and low-cost airlines defied worries about the global recession and placed dozens of orders with Airbus at the Paris Air Show on Tuesday, in sharp contrast to rival Boeing, which reported no new sales.

Planemakers at the world's biggest air show are trying to coax airlines and governments to open their pocketbooks and buy more aircraft despite plunging passenger loads and revenues.

Airbus CEO Tom Enders declared that Tuesday's sunny skies — after pelting rain on Monday's opening day — boded well for business.

Airbus announced two firm orders from Vietnam Airlines and the Philippines low-cost airline Cebu Pacific worth $1.8 billion on Tuesday. Vietnam Airlines ordered 16 Airbus A321 single-aisle jets worth $1.4 billion and pledged to buy two more A350-XWB planes.

The airline made a deposit and signed a memorandum of understanding for the two A350 planes, which falls short of a firm sale and means Airbus does not count the order in its overall tally.

Cebu Pacific made a firm order for five single-aisle A320s worth a total of $385 million at list prices. Airlines often negotiate substantial discounts to catalog prices, particularly in tough economic times.

Kuala Lumpur low-cost airline Air Asia ordered 10 A350-900 jets and placed options for five more. The list price for the 10 jets would be $2.4 billion.

Boeing's vice president for international corporate communications, Charlie Miller, shrugged off the Airbus announcements.

"Airbus and Boeing approach air shows in a different way. Boeing doesn't save up orders to announce at air shows. That has been our policy for years. Our policy is to announce orders as soon as they are firm. And the tally is updated weekly," he said.

Boeing has sought to concentrate on its military programs. The head of its air refueling tanker programs expressed confidence in the U.S. jet manufacturer's chances to win the rematch with Airbus' parent EADS for a multibillion-dollar contract with the U.S. Air Force.

Boeing Vice President Dave Bowman said his team is "pumped and ready to rock" when the Air Force issues its request for offers in the coming weeks.

Both rivals sought to minimize expectations this year amid worries about credit markets, the global economy and the unexplained crash of Air France Flight 447.

"This is not the time to expect huge orders, but there are still orders coming in because the situation is different from region to region" and company to company, Airbus' Enders told a news conference. "What counts for our numbers, our financial health, is not orders but turning our backlog into delivery."

He also sought to reassure the company's thousands of workers amid cutbacks across the aviation industry.

"We are very much interested in keeping stable the most important asset we have in our company ... our skilled workforce," he said.

Russia's Sukhoi won attention and domestic orders in a bid to revive the country's civilian aircraft industry. Sukhoi notched up 28 more orders for its new Superjet 100 regional airliner, a day after signing a letter of intent with Hungarian national carrier Malev for 30 aircraft.

Moscow-based Avia leasing company placed a firm order on Tuesday for 24 of the planes, while Spain's Gadair European Airlines ordered two jets with an option for two more. The value of the deals were not released.

SuperJet International is a joint venture between Italy's Alenia Aeronautica and Russian jet maker Sukhoi Civil Aircraft.

French regional aircraft maker ATR and the Spanish carrier Air Nostrum signed a contract for the purchase of 10 ATR 72-600s, plus options for 10 additional aircraft. The deal, announced on the occasion of the Paris Air Show, is worth some $425 million, including options.

Toulouse-based ATR says it's the world leader in the 50- to 74-seat turboprop market.

Gulf airline Etihad Airways announced orders Tuesday for 239 engines for its Airbus and Boeing planes worth up to $7 billion, from GE, Engine Alliance, IAE and Rolls-Royce.

So far this year, Boeing — which is cutting 10,000 jobs — has taken orders for 73 planes, but with cancellations of 66, the net order intake is only 7 jets.

The industry gathering has been shaken by Air France Flight 447's still-unexplained May 31 crash into the Atlantic Ocean while en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris.

Investigators have only two more weeks to find the flight data and cockpit voice recorders from the Airbus A330 jet before the signals emitted by small beacons on the black boxes start to fade. Without them, the cause of the crash that killed all 228 on board may never be fully known.

The Paris Air Show is marking its 100th anniversary. It opened to industry on Monday, and then to the public Friday to Sunday

Cebu Pacific to double fleet with add'l Airbus orders

MANILA - Gokongwei-owned Cebu Pacific or CEB is more than doubling its current capacity with the addition of new aircraft that could bring its Airbus A320 orders to 20.

Cebu Pacific now operates brand new Airbus fleet with 21 Airbus (10 A319 and 11 A320) and seven ATR 72-500 aircraft.In a press release, Asia’s 3rd largest low-cost airline said it increased its orders from 10 to 15 and is thinking of buying five more.

At 20 aircraft, the total investment required would reach $1.3 billion. Delivery of the 180-seat aircraft will be from October 2010 to November 2013.CEB president and CEO Lance Gokongwei said the additional orders are needed because of the airline’s expanding domestic and international operations."

This expansion will more than doubles passenger capacity and enable us to provide our trademark low fares for new domestic and international destinations. We expect to increase our passenger numbers from nine million this year to 15 million in 2013," Gokongwei said.

"The global economic downturn notwithstanding, we are experiencing a surge in the number of passengers flying Cebu Pacific mainly because of our low fares. We expect this growth to continue, hence our decision to further expand our fleet," he said.Cebu Pacific carried 6.7 million passengers last year and expects to carry nine million this year. From 2010 onwards, the numbers should continue to grow as more aircraft are deployed to serve more destinations.

Altogether, CEB has now placed firm orders of 27 A320 Family aircraft with 12 already delivered. “We currently operate 21 aircraft from the A320 family, including nine leased aircraft, with an average age of just 1.9 years.” Lance Gokongwei emphasized.The new A320s will be powered by CFM International’s CFM56-5B engines (worth $140 million) which are very efficient and have better fuel consumption. The engine also meets the latest environmental protection standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization for its low carbon dioxide emission.

The airline had earlier signed a $100-million OnPoint solution agreement with GE Aviation’s services business. The 12-year service contract includes general maintenance and repairs, parts procurement, technology upgrades, engine leasing, and overhaul of the CFM56-5B engines.CEB operates flights to 15 cities in Asia and 32 domestic destinations

Cebu Pacific Expands CFM56-5B-Powered Airbus Fleet; Places $155 Million Engine Order

Cebu Pacific has selected CFM International's CFM56-5B engine to power 10 new Airbus A320 aircraft in a firm engine order valued at approximately $155 million U.S., including spare engines. The airline is scheduled to take its first aircraft in October 2010, with deliveries continuing through November 2013.

CEB, the leading low cost airline in the Philippines and the third largest LCC in Asia, operates flights to 46 domestic and international destinations. It also offers the most flights to the ASEAN region from the Philippines with operational hubs in Manila, Cebu and Clark. CEB continues to show leadership in innovation and technology. It was the first local airline to introduce E-ticketing, pre-paid excess baggage, and seat selection in the Philippines.

By selecting the CFM56-5B Tech Insertion configuration, Cebu Pacific continues to take steps in reducing its operating costs. Over the engine's life cycle, CFM56 Tech Insertion will provide the airline better specific fuel consumption, which translates to better fuel burn and, as a result, lower CO2 emissions. The engine also meets the new International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Committee of Aviation Environmental Protection standards (CAEP /6) that took effect in early 2008

Philippine Gas Prices to Rise Again

MANILA, Philippines -- (UPDATE 3) Four oil firms will raise oil prices effective Tuesday, officials said on Monday.

Effective 12:01 a.m., Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. will raise gasoline and diesel prices by P0.50 per liter and kerosene price by P1 per liter, said vice president for communications Bobby Kanapi.

Read More ..

Qantas changes Direction, moving Maintenence from Philippines back to Australia

Qantas has shelved projects to float engineering, pilot training, freight and Frequent Flyer units as separate businesses, citing the poor economic environment.

Ceo Alan Joyce said some of the units could not make money - and their only customer was Qantas.

Joyce also has canned a freight strategy of buying assets like Star Track Express, to build up the business and spin it off in an initial public offering as well as a joint-venture engineering facility in Malaysia for the Airbus A380. Qantas also is moving Airbus A330 maintenance from the Philippines to Australia and in-house engineering and maintenance functions are being stepped up.

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Global air carriers urged to resize amid crisis

MANILA - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called for a major resizing and reshaping of the entire air transport value chain as airlines battle the ongoing global economic crisis.

Airlines are expected to post losses of $9 billion this year with an unprecedented 15 percent revenue drop that will see industry revenues shrink by $80 billion to $448 billion.

“I am a realist and I don’t see facts to support optimism. The industry is in survival mode. Whether this crisis is long or short, the world is changing. Travel budgets have been slashed and consumers will need to reduce their debt. It will not be business as usual in the post-crisis world. Governments, partners and airlines must use this crisis as an opportunity to build a stronger industry. That means resizing and reshaping,” IATA director general and CEO Giovanni Bisignani told top industry leaders gathered in Kuala Lumpur for the 65th IATA Annual General Meeting and World Air Transport Summit.

The international gathering was also attended by leaders of the Philippine air transport industry.

IATA’s Simplifying the Business Program has given the industry a headstart on cost cutting. In 2008, $4 billion in cost savings were achieved with 100 percent e-ticketing and the deployment of common use self-service (CUSS) kiosks.

“This was only the beginning. We have our eyes set on another $10 billion in savings by improving baggage management, travel processes and with e-freight,” Bisignani said.

Bisignani noted that the burden of change must be shared across the industry value chain. “Resizing and reshaping is not just a problem for airlines. Everyone in the value chain lives off our revenues. All must contribute to industry change,” he added.

He also urged a resizing and reshaping of the relationship between airlines and governments. “Our relationship with governments must move from punitive micro-regulation to joint problem solving,” he said, citing four areas for enhanced cooperation.

To make aviation greener, aviation’s emissions will fall by seven percent in 2009 – five percent from the fall in demand and two percent as a direct result of the industry’s united four-pillar strategy to address climate change.

“Airlines have taken a monumental decision. Today we have committed to achieving carbon-neutral growth by 2020,” Bisignani said. Airlines have set three important sequential goals: first, 1.5 percent annual improvement in fuel efficiency until 2020; second, carbon-neutral growth in 2020 and third, a 50 percent reduction in emissions by 2050.

To protect citizens, Bisignani said: “We must spend the $5.9 billion that airlines and their passengers pay for security more wisely by focusing on the threats, rather than the 99.9 percent of travelers who are not a risk.”

He also noted that airlines are investing billions in new avionics to fly more efficiently, reduce delays and improve environmental performance.

“Air transport is a responsible industry – in good times and in crisis. Today’s situation is unprecedented – the most difficult ever. Governments and partners must understand that we are struggling to survive in a new and harsh reality. We are, however, resilient and capable of great change. Together we must turn challenges into opportunities to be safer, greener and profitable,” he said.

Forty-Seven year-old crash remains mystery: shootdown, sabotage, or something else?

Forty-Seven years ago an airliner vanished over the Pacific. It just evaporated. To this day, just what happened to it is unknown, but speculation is rife – speculation still fueled by the eyewitness reports of those aboard a tanker who saw the craft’s destruction.

March 15, 1962 a Flying Tiger Line L1049H Super Constellation, bound from Agana Naval Air Station in Guam to Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines simply ceased to exist. N 6921C, Flying Tiger Flight 739/14, disappeared at 13º13’ North Latitude, 140º00’ East Longitude – over an all but bottomless patch of the Pacific, an abyss called the Mariana Trench. This deepest of all depressions in the Earth’s crust is an astonishing 6.78 miles deep. It is--at the bottom of the world--that fractured, frigid waters enfold the remains of “21 Charlie.”

21 Charlie, operating as a charter flight for the Military Air Transport Service, was ferrying American Army personnel from Travis Air Force Base, California to Saigon, to a country we once called South Vietnam. There were 107 people on board that airplane. One of them was my stepfather. He was the co-pilot.

Bob Gazzaway was a pugnacious, plucky sort of guy who’d survived all that life could dish out – and that included being a Naval aviator during World War 11. In command of the Connie (the nickname of the Super Constellation), was Captain Gregory P. Thomas, one of Flying Tigers’ most experienced pilots.

21 Charlie’s path across the Pacific was placid. An Aircraft Accident Report obtained by thisExaminer.com reporter from the Civil Aeronautics Board (the predecessor of the National Transportation Safety Board) says the weather that night was good – broken cumulus clouds, no turbulence, and moonlit visibility of 15 miles – the kind of night airmen relish.

At 22 minutes after midnight, 21 Charlie radioed its position. It was the last the outside world would hear from the crew. About an hour later the crew of the S/S T L Lenzen, a Standard Oil tanker, spotted an explosion in the sky. According to the CAB report, the crew spotted “a vapor trail, or some phenomenon resembling a vapor trail overhead…As this vapor trail passed behind a cloud, there occurred an explosion which was described by the witnesses as intensely luminous, with a white nucleus surrounded by a reddish-orange periphery with radial lines of identically colored lights.”

What happened? The CAB said it couldn’t determine a probable cause.

In the absence of hard physical evidence, rumors ran rampant: engine problems, sabotage, even the accidental shoot down of the Connie by an American missile, an inadvertent act that scuttlebutt said was covered up by an embarrassed Pentagon at the beginning of what would mutate into the most unpopular war in American history.

Lending at least anecdotal credence to the shootdown and sabotage theories is a statement by Captain Duilio Bona. The late award-winning investigative reporter David Morrissey and I obtained a copy of his declaration after filing a Freedom of Information request with the United States government. In his declaration, Captain Bona said some fascinating things. Among the more intriguing: the witnesses aboard the Lenzen were “convinced [that the craft they saw explode was “a U.S. Airplane…on [military] exercise flights.”

One of Bona’s crewmembers, a lookout named Scarfi said, “he saw a jet vapor track,” according to the captain. 21Charlie was a piston-engine airliner. Shortly after the vapor trial, Bona said Scarfi recalled, “a bright light illuminated, as a lightning, the bridge [of the ship].”

Lenzen’s radio operator said there were no distress signals from the aircraft, a statement that led the CAB to conclude in its Accident Report “It can be reasonably assumed” that whatever befell 21 Charlie “happened suddenly and without warning.”

Captain Bona said Lenzen's radio operator of tried “repeatedly” to contact Naval radio stations in Guam, Manila, Okinawa, and Iwo Jima – all to no avail. And that led to Bona’s conclusion “that what we saw was a troubled secret operation.”

Troubled by what, or by whom, Bona never said. A missile? Sabotage perhaps? Again, this was the Cold War, and Vietnam was heating up. In its report, the CAB said when 21 Charlie was parked at Honolulu, Wake Island, and Guam just about anyone could access the aircraft “without challenge…the aircraft was left unattended in a dimly lighted area for a period of time while at Guam.”

In a letter on the disaster the Federal Bureau of Investigation concluded the Bureau “did not anticipate [launching an investigation] unless substantial evidence of willful destruction is developed.”

Then there’s a more mundane theory: engine problems. Three days before it disappeared, 21 Charlie had to return to Honolulu when number four engine developed “a significant power loss.”

Shootdown, sabotage or something else? Were the 107 souls on board--96 of them soldiers--the first mass casualties of the Vietnam war? The odds are we’ll never know. 21 Charlie carried no flight data recorder, no cockpit voice recorder. The United States government says evidence of “willful destruction” was never recovered – this despite one of the most massive sea searches in history, a quest covering 144,000 square miles of ocean that employed 1,300 people, 48 aircraft, and 8 surface vessels. “Despite the thoroughness of the search,” concluded the Civil Aeronautics Board, “nothing was found which could conceivably be linked to the missing aircraft or its occupants.”

And so it is, 47 years after the fact, that the fate of the 21 Charlie remains perhaps the most persistent mystery in the annals of aviation – a mystery the answers to which are shrouded by a sea seven miles deep.