Although the pitot probes fitted to A330/A340 aircraft met relevant design specifications, these specifications were not sufficient to prevent the probes from being obstructed with ice during some types of environmental conditions that the aircraft could encounter.
Given the comprehensive scope of the BEA investigation, there is no need for the ATSB to make any additional recommendations regarding this safety issue.
In its second Interim Report on the investigation into the Air France A330-200 accident on 1 June 2009, the French Bureau d’Enquêtes et d’Analyses pour la sécurité de l’aviation civile (BEA) issued the following recommendations to the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA):
1. undertake studies to determine with appropriate precision the composition of cloud masses at high altitude, and
2. in coordination with the other regulatory authorities, based on the results obtained, modify the certification criteria.
Given the comprehensive scope of the BEA investigation, there is no need for the ATSB to make any additional recommendations regarding this safety issue.
