X-Message-Number: 29992
From: Mark Plus <>
Subject: Airlines risking your safety to conserve fuel?
Date: Tue, 6 Nov 2007 21:12:33 -0800

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=5747236

Airlines risking your safety to conserve fuel?

Eyewitness News Exclusive
Eyewitness News' Jim Hoffer


(New York - WABC, November 6, 2007) - Eyewitness News has a disturbing report 
about airlines cutting back on their cushion of extra fuel all in an attempt to 
save money.


The Investigators spent months looking into this and found some commercial 
pilots are now under increasing pressure to fly with minimum fuel. At least at 
one airport in our area, it has led to an increase in emergency landings. 


Underlying this entire investigation is this simple fact: In the past 20 months,
the cost of jet fuel has skyrocketed by 38 percent. 


So, cash-strapped airlines are doing whatever they can to cut back on fuel. But 
our investigation has found this could be putting passengers at risk. 


A commercial plane entering New York airspace contacts air traffic control to 
tell them they're running low on fuel:

Pilot: "We are minimum fuel sir."

Air Traffic Control: "You're declaring emergency at this time, time is 22:57 ...
I need souls on board and when you arrive."
Pilot: "157 souls on board, we have exactly 38 minutes of fuel remaining."
ATC: "38 minutes of fuel ... that is an emergency." 


Controllers gave the plane priority landing last April. It safely touched down 
with just minutes of fuel remaining. 


Our examination of thousands of airport operational logs, air traffic tapes and 
interviews with pilots and controllers reveal airlines may be pushing the margin
of safety by cutting back on the amount of fuel per flight, possibly putting 
passengers at risk. 


Take the case of Newark Liberty International, where in a six month period in 
2005 just five flights landed under minimum or low fuel conditions. Compare that
to a similar period in 2007 in which 73 flights came into Newark with minimum 
fuel. 


Perhaps most disturbing, an additional 10 flights had to declare the more 
serious emergency fuel situation -- meaning they needed to land immediately or 
they risked running out of gas. 


"I had one just last week that happened," Air traffic controller Ray Adams said.


Adams says in the past two years he's noticed an astounding increase in the 
number of flights coming into Newark under minimum or emergency fuel conditions.


"When aircraft come into our airport ... with minimum fuel state they become a 
priority for us and it's an extra focus of attention on that aircraft which 
increases the complexity of your already complex operation," Adams said. 


The FAA requires airlines to carry additional fuel in case of unexpected delays.
But pilots we spoke to say some airlines are putting pressure on them to cut 
back on this fuel safety cushion to save money. 


Jim Hoffer: "At one point you were called on the carpet for carrying too much 
fuel?"

Bruce Meyer, pilot: "I was specifically called in and asked why I was adding 
fuel as many times as I had been adding which I had to explain the reasons which
were air traffic control delays that I knew about every morning." 


Veteran commercial airline pilot Bruce Meyer retired last year. He says the 
competing pressures to carry less fuel at a time when there are more and more 
in-flight delays forced him to fudge the numbers to maintain safety. 


"I had to use different rouses to make the paperwork or hide the fact that I was
putting fuel on board but my responsibility as captain is to my passengers, my 
aircraft, my crew and to the safety of that flight," Meyer said. 


Captain Meyer's case is hardly isolated. Anonymous reports we've obtained from 
NASA's aviation safety reporting system shows pilots all around the country 
concerned that pressure to conserve fuel is compromising safety. 


One pilot says his airline's "fuel saving program takes preference over safety."
Another writes, "It's a case of dice rolling at its most dangerous." 


"They're taking away the margin of safety," said former NTSB Chairman James 
Hall. 


James Hall, who spent seven years as head of the National Transportation Safety 
Board, says our investigation should not be ignored. 


"Seeing numbers like that the FAA administrators should be calling the airlines 
in on the carpet and find out what's going on," Hall said. 


The FAA declined an interview for this story. In a statement to us, the agency 
said it only tracks emergency fuel landings, not minimum fuel. 


The agency representing airlines also declined an interview, but did say it has 
confidence in the FAA's fuel reserve standards. 


If you have a tip about this or any other investigative story, give our tipline 
a call at 1-877-TIP-NEWS. 
(Copyright 2007 WABC-TV) 



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