Air Namibia’s Boeing joins international safety club

AIR Namibia’s flagship aircraft, the Boeing 747-400 Combi, has been fitted with a new cockpit door in line with new international aviation regulations aimed at improving the safety of passengers.

Most airlines have already complied with this regulation which became mandatory last year, but a backlog in the production of new doors at the Boeing company meant that Air Namibia’s jumbo jet could only be modified on Thursday. The deadline for complying with the regulation was the end of last month.Following the plane hijackings in the United States on September 11, European and American international aviation authorities took a decision that all aircraft flying to these destinations needed to have a special bullet-proof door between the cockpit and the cabin.The door, fitted by the Engineering and Maintenance Division of the Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM) in Amsterdam, contains a peep hole.Entry can only be gained from within the cockpit or by punching in a code on a keypad fitted on the outside.One of the world’s biggest jumbo jet operators in the world, all maintenance work on Air Namibia’s Boeing Combi is carried out by KLM which provides a range of services for more than 100 aircraft from numerous airlines.Air Namibia’s Senior Manager Wimpie van Vuuren, who oversees the company’s European operations, said initially it was thought Namibia would be exempted from complying with the regulation because it currently only operates one route to Europe.The Air Namibia Boeing 747-400 flies between Windhoek and Frankfurt four times a week.Van Vuuren told members of the Namibian media, who witnessed the door being fitted, that generally southern Africa was considered a safe destination by European travellers, but noted that under no circumstances could its passengers’ safety be compromised.”There is a perception that when business is not going too well safety is compromised,” he said.European passengers flying the Windhoek-Frankfurt route contribute about 70 per cent to the airline’s total passenger revenue.Air Namibia intends to re-introduce a flight to London from July.KLM’s Engineering and Maintenance Account Manager, Bart Ackermans, told journalists who visited their headquarters on Thursday that other in-flight safety measures had been proposed since the September 11 attacks but with the exception of the fitting of new cockpit doors, none required modifications to existing aircraft.According to Ackermans, KLM flight crew have refused to carry weapons, but some of their flights do carry sky marshals.The door on the Air Namibia plane was fitted during a routine maintenance check on the aircraft.This is carried out on a two- to three-monthly basis and lasts a day.However, this time around the service lasted three days as one of the Combi’s four engines had to be refitted.During a similar maintenance check in January, a crack was detected on the plane’s outer left engine and was temporarily replaced by one from KLM’s spares pool.KLM’s Engineering and Maintenance Project Manager Jan Lubach said it was the first time since the plane was bought, four and half year’s ago, that an original engine on Air Namibia’s jumbo jet had required a complete overhaul.Lubach said it was normal for wear and tear to show at this stage of the plane’s life.When the crack was detected, the plane had clocked about 15 500 flying hours.Repair work of this nature – engine work being the most expensive on an aircraft – can cost about US$10 million.However, as a result of Air Namibia’s commitment to contributing to a reserve fund, which includes access to pool parts, the work was carried out at no cost to the airline.At present the Jumbo travels between 500 and 600 flying hours a month.The Combi flew it’s first flight with the new security enforcement on Saturday night – on the return trip to Windhoek.The deadline for complying with the regulation was the end of last month.Following the plane hijackings in the United States on September 11, European and American international aviation authorities took a decision that all aircraft flying to these destinations needed to have a special bullet-proof door between the cockpit and the cabin.The door, fitted by the Engineering and Maintenance Division of the Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM) in Amsterdam, contains a peep hole.Entry can only be gained from within the cockpit or by punching in a code on a keypad fitted on the outside.One of the world’s biggest jumbo jet operators in the world, all maintenance work on Air Namibia’s Boeing Combi is carried out by KLM which provides a range of services for more than 100 aircraft from numerous airlines.Air Namibia’s Senior Manager Wimpie van Vuuren, who oversees the company’s European operations, said initially it was thought Namibia would be exempted from complying with the regulation because it currently only operates one route to Europe.The Air Namibia Boeing 747-400 flies between Windhoek and Frankfurt four times a week.Van Vuuren told members of the Namibian media, who witnessed the door being fitted, that generally southern Africa was considered a safe destination by European travellers, but noted that under no circumstances could its passengers’ safety be compromised.”There is a perception that when business is not going too well safety is compromised,” he said.European passengers flying the Windhoek-Frankfurt route contribute about 70 per cent to the airline’s total passenger revenue.Air Namibia intends to re-introduce a flight to London from July.KLM’s Engineering and Maintenance Account Manager, Bart Ackermans, told journalists who visited their headquarters on Thursday that other in-flight safety measures had been proposed since the September 11 attacks but with the exception of the fitting of new cockpit doors, none required modifications to existing aircraft.According to Ackermans, KLM flight crew have refused to carry weapons, but some of their flights do carry sky marshals.The door on the Air Namibia plane was fitted during a routine maintenance check on the aircraft.This is carried out on a two- to three-monthly basis and lasts a day.However, this time around the service lasted three days as one of the Combi’s four engines had to be refitted.During a similar maintenance check in January, a crack was detected on the plane’s outer left engine and was temporarily replaced by one from KLM’s spares pool.KLM’s Engineering and Maintenance Project Manager Jan Lubach said it was the first time since the plane was bought, four and half year’s ago, that an original engine on Air Namibia’s jumbo jet had required a complete overhaul.Lubach said it was normal for wear and tear to show at this stage of the plane’s life.When the crack was detected, the plane had clocked about 15 500 flying hours.Repair work of this nature – engine work being the most expensive on an aircraft – can cost about US$10 million.However, as a result of Air Namibia’s commitment to contributing to a reserve fund, which includes access to pool parts, the work was carried out at no cost to the airline.At present the Jumbo travels between 500 and 600 flying hours a month.The Combi flew it’s first flight with the new security enforcement on Saturday night – on the return trip to Windhoek.