AirAsia Flight 8501: Pilots Cut Power To Critical Computers Shortly Before Crash: Report

The pilots of AirAsia Flight 8501 cut power to a critical computer system designed to prevent the aircraft going out of control a short time before the plane crashed in the Java sea Dec. 28, according to people with direct knowledge of the investigation into the crash, cited in a Bloomberg report.

The decision to cut power to the computers was reportedly a factor in causing the crash. The sources said that the pilots were attempting to address alerts from other flight control computers, and subsequently cut power to the entire system, which comprises two separate computers that back each other up.

An aviation safety consultant told Bloomberg that Airbus, the manufacturer of the aircraft in question, an A320, discourages pilots from cutting power to systems, as the aircraft is highly dependent on its computer systems, and one component of the system can affect others.

Questions about the flight's final moments still remain, but significant information about those last seconds has come to light in recent days.

Yesterday it was revealed that that Flight 8501's relatively inexperienced first officer was at the aircraft's controls when it made what investigators described as an “unbelievably” steep climb, ascending 5,000 feet in just 30 seconds.

Such a rate of climb is outside the performance envelope of the A320. It is believed that the climb may have slowed the aircraft to the extent that its wings ceased to generate lift.

"It is not normal to climb like that. It's very rare for commercial planes, which normally climb just 1,000 to 2,000 feet per minute," Indonesia's transport minister, Ignasius Jonan, told the BBC. "It can only be done by a fighter jet," he added.

The first officer, Rémi-Emmanuel Plesel, had just over 2,200 hours of logged flight experience, while captain Iriyanto had more than 20,000 hours.

Data from the aircraft's black box recorders has given investigators a “pretty clear picture” of what happened in its final moments, according to Reuters.

Indonesian search and rescue teams recently suspended an operation that was attempting to lift the aircraft's fuselage from the sea floor using balloons. The wreckage is reportedly too fragile to be lifted and authorities believe that no bodies remain inside.

http://www.ibtimes.com/airasia-flight-8501-pilots-cut-power-critical-computers-shortly-crash-report-1799964

Structure of the Lead：

   WHO-The pilots of AirAsia Flight 8501

   WHEN-Dec. 28

   WHAT- cut power to a critical computer system

   WHY- the pilots were attempting to address alerts from other flight control computers

   WHERE-Java sea

   HOW- the plane crashed

Keywords：

   1. logged : 登陸

   2. fuselage : 機身

Taiwan 'Gutter Oil' Scandal: Hundreds Of Products Banned By Health Officials

A tainted-oil scandal in Taiwan could result in a shortage of groceries, and could even affect large international companies including Starbucks. Taiwan’s Food and Drug Administration has announced it will pull all products linked to the Chang Guann Co, effective Saturday morning.

Earlier this week, the company was found to be selling lard-based oil, normally used for industrial products, as a foodstuff. According to Want China Times, a Taiwanese newspaper, Chang Guann purchased the oil from a Hong Kong trading company, Globalway Corp.

According to the South China Morning Post of Hong Kong, 14 of the listed products are also items that have been sold overseas, in places like Brazil, France, Hong Kong, mainland China, Macau, New Zealand, Singapore and the United States. In addition, more than 1,000 companies are reported to have been affected by the substandard oil, including global retail chains like Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) and 7-Eleven. Local health bureaus across Taiwan will reportedly be sending inspectors to ensure all listed products have been removed. The Taiwan FDA announced that stores continuing to sell such products would face a fines up to 3 million Taiwanese dollars, which is equivalent to just under $100,000 U.S. 

In an effort to clear shelves of compromised food supplies, Taiwan’s FDA deputy director-general Chiang Yu-mei said an initial list of 249 food products affected by the tainted oil supply will be pulled from grocery shelves.

According to the health authority, the comprehensive recall of all Chang Guann-related products could lead to a temporary shortage of some food supplies in Taiwanese groceries as stocks are replaced with safe food.

Chang Guann reportedly imported a total of 87 tons of oil that was illegally relabeled to be fit for human consumption. Branded as Chuan Tung Fragrant Lard Oil, the product, which is a combination of recycled kitchen waste oil and lard, was sold to roughly 1,256 retail businesses.

Chang Guann’s vice president Tai Chin-chuan is being investigated for his alleged role in the tainted oil supply, but was released on Thursday on bail as the probe continues. On the same day, Chang Guann’s president, Yeh Wen-hsiang, held a press conference, where he apologized for the scandal and drank a cup of the oil to prove it was not harmful to humans. Chang Guann is maintaining that they were unaware that the oil supply provided by Globalway was not suitable for human consumption.  

http://www.ibtimes.com/taiwan-gutter-oil-scandal-hundreds-products-banned-health-officials-1687104

Structure of the Lead：

   WHO- Chang Guann Co

   WHEN- Saturday morning

   WHAT- A tainted-oil scandal

   WHY- not given

   WHERE- Taiwan

   HOW- sell overseas

Keywords：

   1. lard : 豬油

   2. Macau : 澳門

   3. substandard : 標準以下的

Japan Mount Ontake volcano: Death toll reaches 47

Rescue workers in Japan have recovered more bodies from Mount Ontake, bringing to 47 the number of those killed by Saturday's volcanic eruption. The search resumed despite fears of toxic gases and another eruption. The number of those unaccounted for is unknown but estimates say hundreds were at the summit at the time. Dozens were injured by falling debris.

Since then, volcanic tremors have been continuously detected with smoke still coming out of the volcano. Police had earlier put the latest death toll at 48 but then revised it down by one. The majority of bodies found near the summit on Wednesday were hikers, according to local police. Helicopters have been used to bring the dead down from Mount Ontake.

Around 1,000 troops, police and fire fighters are involved in rescue operations. The relatives of the dead and missing are waiting for news in a town hall in the nearby area of Kiso. Danger continues Experts have warned that the eruption is ongoing. Seismologists had noticed increased seismic activity on Mount Ontake ahead of the eruption, but were still unprepared for what ensued.

The mountain, which is about 200km (125 miles) west of Tokyo, is one of Japan's 110 active volcanoes.

Its eruption on Saturday is the worst volcanic disaster in Japan for 90 years.

not given

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-29440982

Structure of the Lead：
WHO- not given
WHEN- Saturday           

WHAT- volcanic eruption           
WHY- not given           
WHERE- Tokyo,Japan
HOW- volcanic tremors have been continuously detected with smoke still coming out of the volcano.

Keywords：

   1. Seismologists : 地震學家

Taiwan gas explosion kills dozens

At least 24 people have been killed and 271 others injured when several underground gas explosions ripped through Taiwan's second-largest city overnight, hurling concrete through the air and blasting long trenches in the streets.

The series of explosions about midnight Thursday and early Friday struck a district where several petrochemical plans operate pipelines alongside the sewer system of Kaohsiung, a south-western port with 2.8 million people.

The fires were believed to have been caused by a leak of propene, a petrochemical material not intended for public use, but the source of the gas was not immediately clear, officials said.

Video from the TVBS broadcaster showed residents searching for victims in shattered storefronts and rescuers pulling injured people from the rubble of a road and placing them on stretchers while passersby helped other victims on a sidewalk. Broadcaster ETTV showed rows of large fires sending smoke into the night sky.

Four firefighters were among the 24 dead and 271 people were injured, the National Fire Agency said. The firefighters had been at the scene investigating reports of a gas leak when the explosions occurred, Taiwan's Central News Agency reported.

At least five blasts shook the city, said Taiwan's Premier Jiang Yi-huah.

Hundreds more injured as streets of Kaohsiung are ripped open by petrochemical pipeline blast

Chang Jia-juch, the director of the Central Disaster Emergency Operation Center, said the leaking gas was most likely to be propene, meaning that the resulting fires could not be extinguished by water. He said emergency workers would have to wait until the gas was burnt away.

The source of the leak was unknown. Chang said, however, that propene was not for public use and that it was a petrochemical material.

The Kaohsiung mayor, Chen Chu, said several petrochemical companies had pipelines built along the sewage system in Chian-Chen district, which has both factories and residential buildings. "Our priority is to save people now. We ask citizens living along the pipelines to evacuate," Chen told TVBS television.

Power was cut off in the area, making it difficult for firefighters to search for others who might be buried in rubble.

Channel NewsAsia said the local fire department received reports from residents of gas leakage at about 8.46pm and explosions started around midnight.

Closed-circuit television showed an explosion rippling through the floor of a motorcycle parking area, hurling concrete and other debris through the air. Mobile phone video captured the sound of an explosion as flames leapt at least nine metres (30ft) into the air.

One of the explosions left a large trench running down the center of a road, edged with piles of concrete slabs torn apart by the force of the blast. A damaged motorcycle lay in the crater and TVBS showed cars flipped over. The force of the initial blast also felled trees lining the street.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/31/taiwan-city-kaohsiung-gas-explosion

Structure of the Lead：

   WHO-At least 24 people and 271 others

   WHEN-about midnight Thursday

   WHAT-underground gas explosions 

   WHY-have been caused by a leak of propene

   WHERE-Taiwan's second-largest city, Kaohsiung

   HOW-not given

Keywords：

  1. hurling:投

  2. concrete:具體的

  3. trenches:溝渠

  4. propene:丙烯

  5. petrochemical material:石油化工原料

  6. storefronts:店面

  7. rubble:瓦礫

TransAsia Airways plane crashes in typhoon-hit Taiwan, killing 47

BY FAITH HUNG AND MICHAEL GOLD

TAIPEI Wed Jul 23, 2014 6:39pm EDT

(Reuters) - A TransAsia Airways turboprop plane crashed on its second attempt at landing during a thunderstorm on an island off Taiwan on Wednesday, killing 47 people and setting buildings on fire, officials said.

The plane, a 70-seat ATR 72, crashed near the runway on the island of Penghu, west of the mainland, with 54 passengers and four crew on board, they said. No one was killed or hurt in the buildings.

Eleven injured people on the plane were taken to hospital, the government said.

The aircraft took off from Taiwan's southern city of Kaohsiung, headed for the island of Makong, but crash-landed in Huxi township of Penghu County, the main island of the chain also known as the Pescadores.

"It was thunderstorm conditions during the crash," said Hsi Wen-guang, a spokesman for the Penghu County Government Fire Bureau.

"From the crash site we sent 11 people to hospital with injuries. A few empty apartment buildings adjacent to the runway caught fire, but no one was inside at the time and the fire was extinguished." About 100 firefighters were sent to the scene, as well as 152 military personnel and 255 police, he added.

According to an official at the Civil Aeronautics Administration, air traffic control reported that the inclement weather at the time of the crash did not exceed international regulations for landing.

Visibility was 1,600 meters and the cloud cover was as low as 600 meters, added the official, who declined to be identified.

Television networks aired footage of TransAsia's president, Chooi Yee-choong, bowing in apology.

"We express our deepest apologies to everyone for this unfortunate event."

Typhoon Matmo hit Taiwan on Wednesday, bringing heavy rain and strong winds, shutting financial markets and schools. It passed the island and headed into China, downgraded from typhoon to tropical storm.

TransAsia Airways is a Taiwan-based airline with a fleet of around 23 Airbus and ATR aircraft, operating chiefly short-haul flights on domestic routes as well as to mainland China, Japan, Thailand and Cambodia, among its Asian destinations.

(Writing by Nick Macfie; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/23/us-taiwan-crash-idUSKBN0FS1EK20140723

Structure of the Lead：

  WHO- not given

  WHEN- on Wednesday

        WHAT- a TransAsia Airways turboprop plane killed 47 people and setting buildings on fire.

  WHY- landing during a thunderstorm on an island off

  WHERE- in Huxi township of Penghu County

  HOW- crashed near the runway on the island of Penghu

Keywords：

   1. Pescadores：澎湖群島

   2. adjacent：鄰近的

   3. Aeronautics：航空學

Police: Robin Williams’ Death Due to Hanging

Comedian Robin Williams died of hanging on Monday morning, said Marin County sheriffs.

Lieutenant Keith Boyd made the announcement at a Tuesday press conference at the Marin County Sheriff’s Office in San Rafael, Calif.

Boyd said that Williams, 63, was suspended with a belt around his neck. He was clothed and rigor mortis had set in. Police said the actor was found by his assistant in a seated position in his home in Tiburon, just north of San Francisco.

There were also superficial wounds found on one of his wrists, said Boyd, indicating that Williams may have tried to slash his wrist before the hanging. A pocket knife was also found nearby the scene.

An investigation is ongoing into his death, which was due to asphyxia. His publicist noted that the actor had been struggling with depression as of late, and recently entered a 12-step rehab for drug abuse.

Williams was last seen alive by his wife on Sunday night.

The investigation is ongoing. A toxicology report will be conducted but will take two to six weeks to be completed.

http://variety.com/2014/film/news/robin-williams-death-due-to-hanging-1201281095/

Structure of the Lead：

WHO- Robin Williams

WHEN- on Monday morning

WHAT- Death Due to Hanging

WHY- the actor had been struggling with depression as of late, and recently entered a 12 step rehab for drug abuse.

WHERE- in his home in Tiburon, just north of San Francisco.

HOW- Williams was suspended with a belt around his neck, and tried to slash his wrist before the hanging.

Keywords：

1. rigor mortis : 死後僵硬

2. asphyxia : 窒息

3. ongoing : 不斷的

4. toxicology : 毒藥學

South Korea ferry disaster: prosecutors seek death penalty for captain

Prosecution tells court Lee Joon-seok should be sentenced to death after more than 300 killed in capsized ferry

South Korea prosecutors demanded the death penalty for Lee Joon-seok, captain of the Sewol ferry that sank in April with the loss of more than 300 lives.

South Korean prosecutors have sought the death penalty for the captain of a ferry that capsized in April, leaving 304 people, most of them schoolchildren, dead or missing.

Lee Joon-seok, 68, has been charged with homicide. The prosecution told the court he should be sentenced to death for failing to carry out his duty, before resting its case in a trial that has taken place amid intense public anger towards the crew.

Lee was among 15 accused of abandoning the sharply listing ferry after telling the passengers to stay put in their cabins. Four, including the captain, face homicide charges.

The rest face lesser charges, including negligence. A three-judge panel is expected to announce its verdicts in November. No formal pleas have been made but Lee has denied intent to kill.

There have been no executions in South Korea since 1997 despite several death sentences in recent years.

“Lee supplied the cause of the sinking of the Sewol … he has the heaviest responsibility for the accident,”said lead prosecutor Park Jae-eok. “We ask that the court sentence him to death.”

The prosecutors sought life sentences for the other three charged with homicide, and prison terms varying from 15 to 30 years for the rest.

The Sewol capsized and sank on a routine voyage on 16 April, triggering an outpouring of nationwide grief and sharp criticism of the government of President Park Geun-hye for its handling of the rescue operation. The crew members on trial have said they thought it was the coastguard’s job to evacuate passengers.

 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/27/south-korea-ferry-disaster-prosecutors-death-penalty-for-captain

Structure of the Lead：

 WHO- Lee Joon-seok

 WHEN- April sixteenth

 WHAT- Lee Joon-seok should be sentenced to death

 WHY- caused more than 300 killed in capsized ferry

 WHERE- South Korea

 HOW- not given

Keywords：

1. prosecutor :起訴人

2. capsized : 翻船

3. homicide : 殺人

4. negligence : 疏忽

5. verdict : 判決書

6. triggering : 觸發