Halifax Stanfield International Airport Developments

[fenwick16]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

It apparently hit the ILS antenna tower as well. Not a good day for AC. Mixed reports on how HIAA handled it all as well. Conflicting reports on whether the plane hitting the power line made the lights go out or if that happened before, and contributed to the incident. Hard to believe they do not have UPS protection for flight systems at the airfield. Passengers were unhappy with being left out in the snow for an hour after evacuating the aircraft. But they should be glad they are still living - they were very close to augering in and being a statistic in a major tragedy. Plane lost all its landing gear and one engine detached.

Yes it sounds like this could have been much worse. Based on the pictures (below) and if what I believe I am seeing is correct, then it appears as though it took the power lines down along Old Guyborough Road around here - https://www.google.com/maps/@44.863709,-...Q7iQNpHS7LNMNV5w636Ziw!2e0!5m1!1e4?hl=en. If so, then they just barely made it onto the runway instead of plowing into the high bank next to Guysborough Road.


(source: https://twitter.com/Brett_CBC/status/582244266400956416/photo/1 )


(source: https://twitter.com/Brett_CBC/status/582241605882683392/photo/1)

[q12]

Source: Global Halifax


The Canadian Press

TSB investigator says the plane touched down 1,100 feet short of the runway.

The snow on the ground may have soften the impact on landing, ironic since the blizzard was a likely factor in the accident.

[fenwick16]

Originally Posted by q12

Source: Global Halifax
.
.

I think these images show just how lucky they were to have all survived. It also gives me a another perspective view of this image -https://twitter.com/Brett_CBC/status/582244266400956416/photo/1

[Keith P.]

It sounds like they almost touched down on the Old Guysborough Road itself. Sounds like significant pilot error.

[scooby074]

I was at the Timmys by the airport around 10Pm last nite. I couldnt believe they were still flying. Most flights were still "on time" too. Visibility was already significantly reduced at that time.

They landed 1100' short. Thats a pretty significant error! Its a miracle that there was no loss of life. Lots of talk over on PPRUNE (Professional Pilots forum) about this one, including the usability of Halifax's runways in bad weather (by pilots who've flown into here) and AC's equipment installed in their aircraft. Some good reading, and it makes you wonder that for all the "bragging" about survey scores and spending going on at Stanfield for terminal upgrades, are they overlooking updating all their runways to the highest standard? Its not as sexy as a new glass curtain wall on a new terminal, but given the weather at YHZ over the years, perhaps it might be a better use of those "Airport Improvement" charges we all love to pay regardless of NavCanada.

http://www.pprune.org/rumours-news/558968-air-canada-a320-accident-halifax-6.html

[alps]

The MK Airlines crash in 2004 also took out the power lines on Old Guysborough Road:

1.10.2 Airport Electrical Power Supply

Just before impact, the aircraft severed a power cable and several telephone cables supplying the airport. Four diesel generators with auto-start capability, available to provide backup power to the airport power grid, started when the power cable was cut. Three of the generators supplied power to the airport grid; however, a circuit breaker tripped due to a power surge when the aircraft cut through power lines adjacent to the main crash site, preventing the fourth generator from supplying power. Approximately one hour after the accident, power from the fourth generator was restored when technical personnel manually reset the main circuit breaker. The control tower at Halifax International Airport was equipped with a separate stationary uninterruptible power unit and an independent backup power generator; consequently, there was no loss of electrical power to the tower.

The Halifax International Airport fire hall normally would receive backup power from two of the four generators mentioned above. The generator with the tripped circuit breaker should have powered a relay to permit operation of the following fire hall systems: bunkroom lights, vehicle bay lights, and the automatic opening of the vehicle bay doors. Because these systems were not powered, the firefighters had to respond in a darkened environment, and the vehicle bay doors had to be opened by pushing the manual door-open button at each bay. Because the door motors were powered by an operating generator, the doors then opened. (source)

[beyeas]

It reminds me a bit of the Air Canada crash in Fredericton back in the '90s (although that turned out to be ice on the wings that decreased lift, and prevented the aborted landing). The flat I was renting backed onto the road that led to the airport, and I was watching ambulance after ambulance head down the road and thought "oh this can't be good".

This time they apparently were left standing there for an extended period in the snow waiting for help. In the Fredericton case it was even worse, because this was just after the government had closed the ground control centres at many airports, and there was no one actually at the airport who had noticed the crash! The people had to walk through the snow back to the airport and try and find someone to tell that there had been a crash.

[Keith P.]

HIAA looks very bad in all of this. Generators failed to work, emergency response (excepting fire crews) non-existent for nearly an hour, and then Sunday the entire airport was a disaster for arriving passengers with bad information reported and huge delays. Award-winning airport, my azz. Seems they spent their money on bright shiny things instead of necessary infrastructure and services.

[MonctonRad]

One thing they need to do for damned sure is move vital power lines away from the foot of the runway!!!

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

One thing they need to do for damned sure is move vital power lines away from the foot of the runway!!!

Well, the power line in question is actually off their property and is below the level of the runway. That airplane was way off track to come in contact with it. It should never have been that low. Look at the next power line you see on the street - the aircraft was low enough to hit that. We're not talking high-tension towers here. It was barely above the Old Guysborough Road.

This was a disaster that we barely escaped. The more likely result of it should have been a full crash into the berm around the airport and a resultant fire with considerable loss of life. The snowfall probably saved it. The airplane apparently rode up a snow-covered hill, taking out landing lights and antenna towers, before finally encountering the runway.

[halifaxboyns]

It's odd that the power line would be located in that spot, although I seem to recall that there had been plans to develop some of that land into an industrial building.
Probably not a wise idea in light of 2 accidents that hit the power line and that general area. The power pole is a typical height of a standard street light power pole - so it's not that high up.

I wonder if this could have been a sudden down draft during the landing that pushed the aircraft down?

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

Well, the power line in question is actually off their property and is below the level of the runway. That airplane was way off track to come in contact with it. It should never have been that low. Look at the next power line you see on the street - the aircraft was low enough to hit that. We're not talking high-tension towers here. It was barely above the Old Guysborough Road.

This was a disaster that we barely escaped. The more likely result of it should have been a full crash into the berm around the airport and a resultant fire with considerable loss of life. The snowfall probably saved it. The airplane apparently rode up a snow-covered hill, taking out landing lights and antenna towers, before finally encountering the runway.

Yeah, I think Keith has pretty much nailed it. Here is the view from Google Maps that was posted above by fenwick16:

https://www.google.com/maps/@44.863709,-...Q7iQNpHS7LNMNV5w636Ziw!2e0!5m1!1e4?hl=en



You can see that those power lines are well off where a plane should ever be. The only thing they could do to prevent incidental damage due to low flying aircraft on a crash course with the ground is perhaps bury them along the stretch adjacent to the airport.

However, as power failure can result from any kind of problem on the grid, the more sensible solution is to make sure the airport's backup power system is always ready to go and has the potential "glitches" removed from the system. Sounds like they also might want to re-evaluate their protocols to let them tend to potential crash survivors more effectively as well.

[Colin May]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

HIAA looks very bad in all of this. Generators failed to work, emergency response (excepting fire crews) non-existent for nearly an hour, and then Sunday the entire airport was a disaster for arriving passengers with bad information reported and huge delays. Award-winning airport, my azz. Seems they spent their money on bright shiny things instead of necessary infrastructure and services.

Only luck saved Halifax from an Anderson Cooper visit.
On Sunday evening I was thinking about ILS and wondering if the TSB will troll through the HIAA Board minutes and staff reports to find the details of the past 10 years of Capex and thereby understand where the priorities of HIAA lay.
Read the annual reports here : http://hiaa.ca/airport-authority/financial-reports/annual-reports/

"Hard landing"
"Exited the runway"
The chairman should be asked some very tough questions.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Colin May

Only luck saved Halifax from an Anderson Cooper visit.
On Sunday evening I was thinking about ILS and wondering if the TSB will troll through the HIAA Board minutes and staff reports to find the details of the past 10 years of Capex and thereby understand where the priorities of HIAA lay.
Read the annual reports here : http://hiaa.ca/airport-authority/financial-reports/annual-reports/

"Hard landing"
"Exited the runway"
The chairman should be asked some very tough questions.

The Board's biggest issue was probably one of believing everything management told them about having plans for events like this.

Having said that, looking at the composition of the Board it is not a very strong group. Wadih Fares is the current chair but I suspect he is too busy to give it much attention. Then you have a bunch of political friends like Rob Batherson, Marie Mullally, Stephen Dempsey, Tom Traves, Jim Cowan, etc... not likely to ask very many tough questions. I would question just how engaged many of these people are as Directors.

There are some very well-paid execs there whose main interest the last few years seemed to be turning it into a retail hub real estate play rather than an airport that could handle issues like this. Apparently the navigational aids are pretty antiquated and they lack a lot of tech found elsewhere. Disaster planning obviously was not a priority either. Heads should roll.

[Ziobrop]

Its easy to blame the airport, but I would expect that NAV Canada would tell the airport authority what equipment is needed, and where.

The MK Crash, the Same ILS Antenna was taken out, however then it was on a berm. the airport in the last few years extended the runway, so the space between the berm and the end of the runway was filled in.
note the Alignment of Runway 05 and taxiway J in 2007:

Here is the current chart.


Photos by Me, Also at http://blog.halifaxshippingnews.ca/



they got lucky, thats for sure. the power lines were cut, but the phone lines were fine, and the 2 poles were untouched. NSP since reported that when the lines were severed, it tripped something at the substation, causing the power to go out. Perhaps NSP could bury the lines for the few hundred feet at either end of the runways.. i also suspect the deep snow offered alot of cushioning on the initial hit.



For Comparison, here is a normal landing:

[Colin May]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

The Board's biggest issue was probably one of believing everything management told them about having plans for events like this.

Having said that, looking at the composition of the Board it is not a very strong group. Wadih Fares is the current chair but I suspect he is too busy to give it much attention. Then you have a bunch of political friends like Rob Batherson, Marie Mullally, Stephen Dempsey, Tom Traves, Jim Cowan, etc... not likely to ask very many tough questions. I would question just how engaged many of these people are as Directors.

There are some very well-paid execs there whose main interest the last few years seemed to be turning it into a retail hub real estate play rather than an airport that could handle issues like this. Apparently the navigational aids are pretty antiquated and they lack a lot of tech found elsewhere. Disaster planning obviously was not a priority either. Heads should roll.

It's a lot more complicated issue. The forum linked earlier by another poster provides an excellent explanation of the issues : http://www.pprune.org/rumours-news/558968-air-canada-a320-accident-halifax-10.html

If people think flying into Halifax is bumpy they haven't been to St John's.

[terrynorthend]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

It sounds like they almost touched down on the Old Guysborough Road itself. Sounds like significant pilot error.

Looking at the pilot-forum thread Scooby posted, it looks like they actually touched down briefly in the brush across OGR from the end of the runway well below the grade of the runway, probably boucing up a bit as they took out the power line, antennae, and then riding up that berm. Freaking scary; I would not want to have been driving that stretch of road at that moment!

Astounding this was not a greater tragedy. Not to judge whether the pilot had anything to do with the incident, or contrarily controlling the plane to a safe stop, but its right up there with US Airways 1549 that landed in the Hudson as far as miracles go.

[OldDartmouthMark]

From this photo, it looks like they took out wires but didn't damage the poles, presumably the landing gear caught the wires?



Source

Ziobrop's photo above shows clear indentations in the top of the snow, possibly from an engine and landing gear.

Yes, they were damn lucky that plane didn't lose a mere 20 - 30' in altitude or we would be reading about multiple fatalities. Wow.

[scooby074]

There are some recent photos on PPRUNE showing the snow covered area leading to the runway on the other side of OGR, past the downed wires. It appears that the wires were the first and likely only thing contacted in the OGR area on that side.

Should those wires be buried? IMHO yes. While no aircraft should ever contact these wires in normal operations (they are well below the threshold) in the event of a crash, they can and have come into play. It could mean the difference between having landing gear or not. Granted there is a big wall o'rock leading up to the runway, so the wires might be the least of your concerns, but for the relatively low cost of burying these lines, it would seem prudent to do so. Not only would it prevent an outage, but it could prevent an ignition or as in this case, removal of landing gear.

This is also the second time that the airport's electrical backups have failed in a critical situation. This is completely unacceptable.

On my previous point about upgrading the ILS on ALL YHZ runways, it appears that the media has begun to investigate it.

" “They are spending tens of millions of dollars on our (non-operational) side of the terminal building, on parkades, hotels and new roadways and all that,” the pilot, who wants to remain anonymous, said Monday.

“That’s the sort of thing we can see.”"

"“It can lead to disaster because they don’t have it,” said the pilot, who retired seven years ago. “It’s an international airport, they should have that component (ILS), preferably on both runways that don’t have it — but particularly 05.”"

http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/...f-crash?from=most_read&most_read=1277705

[q12]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tsbcanada/sets/72157651565742766/

Best photos so far (aerial) from TSB flickr.