Scrutiny of Gulfstream Intensifies

tonyw

Well-Known Member
This is one of the top stories at wsj.com

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124329348135552551.html#mod=rss_US_News

Kenny Edwards, then a captain with Gulfstream International Airlines, noticed that the collision-avoidance system on the Beech 1900 turboprop he was scheduled to fly was malfunctioning.

The system had helped the commuter aircraft narrowly avoid a midair collision with a private plane on the leg he had completed just hours earlier, from the Bahamas to West Palm Beach, Fla. He says he told airline management he wasn't "comfortable" flying another leg in and out of clouds at dusk if the equipment wasn't working properly, particularly at low altitudes, which are often crowded with small aircraft.

He was fired on the spot for insubordination. In a termination letter dated the following day and viewed by The Wall Street Journal, the airline's chief pilot at the time said the plane had been legal to operate and that the pilot's refusal to fly it delayed the departure for more than two hours "and inconvenienced our customers without just cause."

The details of that incident -- as alleged in a lawsuit and a Federal Aviation Administration "whistle-blower" complaint, both filed by Capt. Edwards -- are adding to the scrutiny of Gulfstream, a regional airline that operates out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Gulfstream operates flights for Continental Airlines Inc. and other carriers, serving primarily Florida and the Bahamas.

I'm not familiar with whether a B1900 is legal to fly without TCAS but it sure doesn't sound like a good idea to me.

But I could be wrong. Someone who has experience in that airplane educate me.
 
People need to forward all of this crap straight to the media. Get the information out there during this short period of time anyone is paying attention.
 
People need to forward all of this crap straight to the media. Get the information out there during this short period of time anyone is paying attention.

As with anything else, I'm curious as to all sides of the story. All of it needs to get out.
 
People need to forward all of this crap straight to the media. Get the information out there during this short period of time anyone is paying attention.

maybe they should forward it to the Wall Street Journal, too..... ;):sarcasm:
 
I'm biased because I've never had the luxury of TCAS. Was it safe to fly without, yes. Should the guy have been fired, probably not.
 
I'm biased because I've never had the luxury of TCAS. Was it safe to fly without, yes. Should the guy have been fired, probably not.

Ask a more definitive question. Was it safe to fly without it? Possibly. Was it safe to fly in a crowded, uncontrolled airspace as is the case with many islands in the Bahamas? No, it was not. The pilot said it prevented a midair collison. He gets the benefit of the doubt in my eyes.
 
You can differ the TCAS. It's just silly the guy would be fired for something like this. In my opinion, flying in and out of uncontrolled fields without TCAS with passengers in something like a 1900 is a little silly. Trade the thing out for another airplane with a working TCAS and put the broke one on the TLH-TPA runs. Of course we need to hear all sides but this sure looks bad for gulfstream.
 
I'm sure TCAS is awesome, but if you can MEL it, it's legal to fly without it. Refusing a legal airplane seems like a pretty good reason for disciplinary action to me. Firing seems a little extreme.
 
I'm sure TCAS is awesome, but if you can MEL it, it's legal to fly without it. Refusing a legal airplane seems like a pretty good reason for disciplinary action to me. Firing seems a little extreme.

I'd say south Florida in a tprop without TCAS, even legally MEL'd could be a serious safety (based on judgement) no-no, purely based on the number of lower altitude mid-airs...

Of course, IMHHAO....
 
Parachutes have saved some people more than once, but we don't requre them for every flight . . .

;)

I'd love to see you and kingairer diving out the DV windows at 15,000!!!!

You should have heard the unrelenting "twinkie and grease" jokes at J31 recurrent time when the "big-boned" boys tried to squeeze a bit out the windows.....
 
Kenny Edwards, then a captain with Gulfstream International Airlines, noticed that the collision-avoidance system on the Beech 1900 turboprop he was scheduled to fly was malfunctioning.

He was fired on the spot for insubordination. In a termination letter dated the following day and viewed by The Wall Street Journal, the airline's chief pilot at the time said the plane had been legal to operate and that the pilot's refusal to fly it delayed the departure for more than two hours "and inconvenienced our customers without just cause."

This was debated when it happened about a year ago.

It's a legit reason to terminate a pilot. Despite the fact that TCAS clearly adds a greater margin of safety.

However, this plus the A/C compressors from auto zone, and the falsified flight time records shows how management cuts corners.
 
I hate to get on a high horse here.

/gets on high horse

I told my company to swap airplanes for me when they wanted me to fly a MEL'ed TCAS to MSL and back. MSL is uncontrolled and some of the CFI's flight training down there take more time to talk to their buddies on the radio than for me to get a god damned word in edgewise.

Give the MEL'ed TCAS to someone who is going to stay controlled the whole time. The company had exactly NO PROBLEM with me doing that. Gulfstream did. Big surprise.

/off high horse

maybe there were some circumstances the captain was concerned for that lead him to the conclusion the flight was jeopardizing safety. Anyway, I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt before backing up Gulfstream any day.
 
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