Hawaiian Islands Unaffected by Volcano Activity

IN response to increased volcanic activity and a new flow of lava that began on May 3 from Kīlauea volcano on the island of Hawai'i, state and county government agencies are keeping residents safe, while assuring travelers the impact is limited to a remote region on the east side far away from the rest of the Hawaiian Islands.

The closest resort areas, in Kona and the Kohala Coast on the island of Hawai'i's west side, are more than 100 miles away from where the lava flow is occurring and shielded by the massive mountains of Maunakea and Maunaloa. Resort areas located on O'ahu and Kaua'i, and in Maui County, are located hundreds of miles from Kīlauea volcano.

Kīlauea has been an active volcano since 1983 and is one of Hawai'i's most popular attractions, with residents and visitors drawn to the wonder of seeing nature at work in the creation of new land via helicopter and ground tours or visits to Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.

Due to the volcanic activity there is a no-fly zone over Kīlauea volcano. In addition, Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park was closed on May 4 until further notice because of damage caused by earthquakes and aftershocks in the area.

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Egypt to beef up security in bid to lure Brits back

IN an attempt to assure British tourists about the safety of #Sharm el-Sheikh as a holiday destination, #Egypt has employed a British firm to deliver an aviation security programme covering the country’s airports. 

Restrata, which has experience of working with airports across the world, will advise Egyptian private security firm, Falcon Group International, which have been tasked by the Ministry of Civil Aviation to provide security at the country’s airports.

Using its experience of working with airports across the world, including London Heathrow, Restrata and Falcon will train 7,000 security staff over the next six months.

The announcement follows the recent decision by the German government to lift its ban on flights to Sharm el-Sheikh.

The partnership was commended by the British Ambassador to Egypt and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, as further progress in re-building travel between Britain and Egypt.

Britain’s ambassador in Cairo, John Casson, said: ‘Nothing is more important than the safety of British and Egyptian people as they travel between our countries. I’m proud that Britain is Egypt’s leading and most active partner on the road to a world -class airport security system that could be a model for the world.’


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2015 the ‘safest’ year for aviation

THE AVIATION industry recorded its best ever year in terms of safety in 2015, with a global fatal accident rate of just one in five million flights. 

While the year was marked by the losses of the Germanwings and Metrojet flights, commercial airlines safely operated more than 40 million flights and carried in excess of 3.5 billion passengers across the world in 2015.

There were four major accidents involving large Western-built jets operated by commercial airlines, which resulted in a total of 374 fatalities.

Commenting on the industry’s safety performance, Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines said: ‘Flying today is extraordinarily safe, and aircraft accidents are now increasingly rare events. The 2015 accident rate is the lowest ever recorded, but we can never afford to be complacent.’

While aviation safety has hit the headlines in recent years, with incidents including the two Malaysia Airlines losses and the AirAsia crash in December 2014, it is worth noting that over the last five years, the global rate of major accidents has more than halved.

‘Public perceptions of aviation safety are, understandably, still strongly influenced by reactions to particular events, rather than statistical trends. The challenge is to recognize the importance of both dimensions when reviewing the aviation industry’s safety performance,” said Mr Herdman.

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Up in the air . . .

THE LATEST annual report by AirlineRatings.com – which monitors the safety records of 407 carriers – confirms that Qantas has once again topped the list, having not had a serious safety incident in 2015. The Australian carrier’s record since the dawn of the jet era has been fatality-free.

Of the 407 airlines surveyed, 148 have the top seven-star safety ranking, with Air New Zealand, Alaska Airlines, ANA, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad Airways, EVA Air, Finnair, Hawaiian Airlines, Japan Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa, SAS, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia completing the top 20.

The report added, however, that almost 50 airlines have a rating of three stars or less, and there are 10 airlines with only one star, including carriers from Indonesia, Nepal, and Surinam.

‘Our top safest airlines are always at the forefront of safety innovation, operational excellence, and the launching of new, more advanced aircraft,’ said AirlineRatings.com’s editor, Geoffrey Thomas. ‘These airlines are always at the forefront for excellence in the safety space. However, there is no question among the editors that Qantas remains a stand-out in safety enhancements and best practice.’

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Airlines warned over danger from Russian air missiles

AIRLINES have been warned that flights over parts of the Middle East are in danger from Russian cruise missiles. Airlines including Air France and British Airlines have been sent a safety bulletin by the International Civil Aviation Authority and the European Aviation Safety Agency. 

The bulletin came after Russia began launching air strikes into Syria, with several airlines which operate routes from Europe flying over strike areas such as Iran, Iraq, and the Caspian Sea. Russia’s missile routes from warships in the Caspian Sea are cutting across busy air corridors, the Daily Telegraph reports.

Air France has started to alter its routes to avoid the area. British Airways declined to say whether it was changing routes for flights in the region, but said it would ‘never fly in airspace unless we were satisfied that it was safe to do so’.

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