Safety Recommendation
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau recommends that the Civil
Aviation Safety Authority examine the circumstances surrounding
this incident where Saab 340 aircraft can stall without warning in
icing conditions and take appropriate action to ensure the safety
of the Saab 340 fleet operating within Australia.
CASA will observe any developments by the aircraft manufacturer
or other aviation regulatory authorities towards mandatory
modification of Saab 340 aircraft to provide enhanced stall warning
in icing conditions.
The Authority understands that Transport Canada requires enhanced
stall warning in Saab 340 aircraft registered in Canada. However,
CASA is not aware of any Service Bulletin or similar document
offering this enhanced stall warning system for general
availability.
In order to ensure that Saab 340 aircraft operators are aware of
circumstances surrounding the incident, the Authority's airline
offices will write to their Saab 340 operators advising that they
review the Bureau's report and note the recommendations.
CASA is satisfied that both Rex and Hazelton have taken appropriate
measures to address the deficiencies identified in the 'Local
Safety Actions' at Section 4.2 of the report. For the information
of the Bureau, CASA will determine if the specific issues
identified in 'Local Safety Actions' have been applied by Macair
during its next audit of the operator.
In addition, CASA plans to publish a series of articles on icing
related issues in a future edition of Flight Safety Australia.
