Originally Posted by
LostProperty
Although it was probably authored by a
PR flak, there is an interesting rebuttal of Bailey's statements by Rex's John Sharp in Friday's "Australian". Unfortunately the article is behind an online paywall so I'm not posting the link but if you have a sub or the paper itself it's worth a look.
Here's the article;
Passengers, industry full of praise for Rex crew after mishaps
JOHN SHARP The Australian 12:00AM April 7, 2017
I have been associated with Regional Express (Rex) since its launch in 2004 and would like to respond to some of the claims made in this section last week.
Rex has an excellent safety record, having flown a million hours without a single flight-related injury. Rex’s aircraft are much more reliable than all other regional operations of the major carriers in Australia. This is demonstrated in its on-time performance being the best for more than a decade.
Further, with proper maintenance, age is not a root cause for safety incidents. The only other recorded similar event to that of Flight ZL768 (when the propeller separated) was in 1991, when US carrier Comair’s aircraft also landed safely after a separation of its propeller. The Comair aircraft was only two years old. Similarly, the Qantas A380 involved in a near catastrophic accident in 2010 was only two years old.
In last week’s article, (‘‘Rex pilots narrowly avoided air disaster’’, 31/3), Byron Bailey said “the pilots took quick action to shut down an overheating engine”. Mr Bailey said the crew was shutting down the engine because gearbox problems were causing the temperature to rise.
Rex can confirm the engine was not overheating at any stage. Nor was its gearbox its “weak link”, as Mr Bailey said. This allegation is the view of an individual who is not a subject matter expert. There are no statistics to support such a view.
The allegation about the engine overcoming the drag inside the gearbox is also a figment of imagination. The General Electric engine fitted to the Saab 340 is a free power turbine and, as such, the engine and gearbox have no mechanical connection.
Further, I challenge Mr Bailey’s statement that, had the pilots not taken action to shut it down, the propeller would have “been spinning faster and it could have impacted the fuselage”. This allegation is emotive and unfounded. The propeller separated only when the first officer selected fuel off, which also feathers the propeller.
We wish to set the record straight on allegations on the industrial relations with the crew. Rex pilots are paid in accordance with an enterprise agreement and are rostered in accordance with Civil Aviation Order flight and duty time limitations. Overnight allowances have always been paid to Rex pilots in accordance with the EA.
Finally, Rex did not suffer three incidents during March. Rex experienced two unrelated events. The first was the propeller separation on Flight ZL768 on March 17. The second was engine failure on Flight ZL821 on March 23. In the third incident, the crew initiated an air return because they believed they could hear an air noise associated with the ground communications hatch. The flight did not have any other apparent issues. Engineers carried out a thorough inspection including ground runs and no fault was found. The aircraft returned to service.
In summary, every carrier in Australia and in the world suffers from similar safety events occasionally as this is an inevitable part of flying, no different from driving. What is important is the in-built redundancy of the aircraft, which allows safe operations despite component failures. These safety features have resulted in flying being much safer than driving in terms of injuries per kilometre travelled.
The Saab 340 is designed to be able to climb, cruise and land safely on only one of its two engines. This was demonstrated in the events cited in the article to the extent that many passengers said they did not feel any difference when the aircraft landed uneventfully after the propeller separation.
The other important contributor to flight safety is crew flying standards. The two events demonstrate the high quality of training of Rex crew such that normal landings are achieved even under rare and challenging circumstances. Rex has received universal praise from the aviation world for the calm, professional and effective actions of the crew after the separation of the propeller.
John Sharp is deputy chairman of Rex and a former federal transport minister.