U.S. AIR FORCE INVESTIGATING CHEATING BY AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS.

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CBCSNEWS : August 8, 2014

The United States Air Force is conducting an investigation to explore recent allegations of cheating from its base in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The Air Force has administered new proficiency tests to its air traffic controllers at the base.

CBS News has learned that as many as 28 air traffic controllers from the 319th Operation Support Squadron have been identified as possibly being involved with cheating on their air traffic controller proficiency exam.

The Grand Forks Air Force base is home to 2,100 air force personnel, and 82 are air traffic controllers. The base also carries 12 active-duty Air Force aircrafts.

According to an official press release stated late this afternoon, an air traffic controller "possessed images of the test materials" and then sent the document to fellow Airmen.

The base has since administered an updated version of the proficiency test. Those who fail the test are "subject to the standing procedures for failing a proficiency test, to include re-training and re-testing according to Air Force Instructions."

"It is important to note that at no time was safety, security or effectiveness of the air traffic control mission ever in jeopardy," said spokesperson Lt. James Fisher. "However, as a prudent measure, those Airmen allegedly involved in the incident are not being scheduled for ATC-related duties at this time."

The news comes as the latest of several military cheating scandals in 2014. In January, more than 90 officers at the Malstrom Air Force base in Montana were suspended after many of the staff were caught cheating on their monthly nuclear program proficiency tests, resulting in the termination of nine overseeing commanders. In February, 30 sailors at the Navy's nuclear propulsion school in Charleston, SC were also accused of cheating on their written certification tests.

Due to the demanding nature of this job, Yahoo Finance has ranked air traffic control, or ATC, as the 8th most stressful occupation in the United States. According to Lt. Fisher, to become an ATC, hopeful candidates must achieve and maintain a Federal Aviation Administration ATC Specialist Certificate as well as score at least a 55 on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery Test.

WILDLIFE FESTIVAL IN SANDAKAN OCT 3-4.

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BorneoPost : Aug 28, 2014

SANDAKAN: The first Borneo Rhythms of Rimba Wildlife Festival (ROR) will come alive on October 3 and 4 in the nature destination town of Sandakan.

The venue for the outdoor festival will be the Rainforest Discovery Centre in Sepilok that is well known internationally for the Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre and the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre.

Within the lush 4,294 hectares (10,610 acres) of tropical forest at Sepilok, the programme will feature presentations from the government, conservation and academic organisations such as Sabah Forestry Department, Land Empowerment Animals People (LEAP), Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA), Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre (BSBCC), HUTAN, Danau Girang Field Centre (DGFC), University of St Andrew’s Scotland, University Malaysia Sabah, Reef Guardian, and many more.

Their collective work covers the gamut of Borneo’s forest habitats, elephants, rhinoceros, orang utans, sun bears, pangolins, whales, dolphins and other marine life forms.

Intertwined with the above would be music performances by Amir Yussof, Jason Lo, Pink Tan, Carburettor Dung, Guba, Jin Se and many more.

Numerous arts and craft workshops, zumba, yoga and contemporary dance presentations will also make up the colourful, wildlife and nature-centric vibes of the festival.

The festival aims to present a mosaic of the amazing tapestry of our biodiversity, and evolve it into an annual celebration of Borneo’s animals and forests, reaching out to an international and family-centric audience.

The ROR fest is organised by the not-for-profit society, Future Alam Borneo (FAB).

The festival is proudly supported by the Sabah Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment, Sabah Forestry Department, the Embassy of the United States of America in Kuala Lumpur, numerous corporate entities and the passionate contributions of countless wildlife-loving friends.

For further enquiries, please contact info@futurealamborneo.org or call Anton Ngui at 012 2071044.

AIRASIA CONFIRMS BOMB THREAT DURING THAI FLIGHT.

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TheStar : Thursday August 28, 2014

PETALING JAYA: Air Asia has confirmed that there was a bomb threat made against one of its planes travelling from Bangkok to Phuket on Tuesday.

“We confirm there was a bomb threat against AirAsia Flight FD3003 on 26th August as reported and we have fully-co-operated with the Airport Authority of Thailand (AoT) who handled the case,” Air Asia said in an emailed statement to The Star Online on Thursday.  

The flight landed safely at the Phuket International Airport (HKT) at 12.15pm, Tuesday.   

The AoT said in a statement that HKT received a phone call of a bomb threat against AirAsia Flight FD 3003 after its departure from the Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok.

Upon receiving the threat, AoT confirmed that the Airbus A320-200 with 167 passengers, 4 crew members and 2 pilots, had departed at 10.55am from the airport.

“AoT then proceeded to enact its emergency procedures by designating an Isolated Parking Area for the flight and dispatching relevant agents to receive the aircraft,” said the statement.  

A commanding officer at the scene led an Explosives Ordinance Division (EOD) unit and other related officers to inspect the plane’s luggage as per emergency protocols. 

According to the AoT, the inspection did not turn up any suspicious objects as detailed in the threat. 

It added that the airline and passengers of the flight were cooperative throughout the process and the plane was allowed to depart from HKT at 3.08pm.

It touched down at the Don Mueang Airport at 4.28pm.

“Initial checks have led authorities to believe the bomb threat was intended to stir confusion and harass travellers. 

"The AoT has launched a full investigation into the matter,” said the statement.

According to a report on The Nation, the Thai national soccer players were among passengers on the flight.

They were scheduled to play warm-up matches against Myanmar, the Phuket Football Club and Qatar in preparation for the upcoming Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

PENANG-BOUND MALINDO AIR FLIGHT DELAYED DUE TO BOMB THREAT.

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Bernama | Updated: August 27, 2014

Read more at: http://english.astroawani.com/news/show/penang-bound-malindo-air-flight-delayed-due-to-bomb-threat-42643?cp

KUALA LUMPUR: A Malindo Air flight OD1158 bound for Penang with 37 passengers and crew on board was delayed for several hours after the plane was halted due to a bomb threat before take-off at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang, Tuesday.
 

Malindo Public Relations and Communications director Raja Sa'adi Raja Amrin said the flight captain was alerted of a possible bomb threat during boarding and as per standard operating procedures, the airline alerted the control tower and the authorities.
 

He said the plane, which was scheduled to depart for Penang at 3.40pm, was taxied to a remote bay to disembark the passengers safely and they (passengers) were quarantined as part of the safety procedures.
 

"The Bomb Disposal Unit conducted a thorough search of the aircraft and the passengers' luggage and later gave clearance that the aircraft is safe," Raja Sa'adi said in a statement here Tuesday night.
 

He said the passengers, including one infant were provided with meals, and had been transferred on another flight which departed for Penang at 9.30pm.
 

Assuring that the situation was dealt professionally, Malindo Air stressed that the airline took such threats to the wellbeing and safety of passengers very seriously.
 

Meanwhile, Petaling Jaya police chief ACP Azmi Abu Kassim, when met at the airport, said the flight had to be delayed after one of the passengers uttered the word 'bomb' to one of the crew during the inspection of boarding passes.
 

He said during the inspection, the man showed his boarding pass to the crew and asked: "Kenapa nak periksa sekali lagi, bukan ada bom pun," (Why do you need to check again, it's not like there is a bomb here,")
 

Azmi said the man was probably unaware that the word 'bomb' was a very sensitive word in the aviation industry which involved the safety of passengers and crew members.
 

"After being alerted by the airline, our Canine Unit and Bomb Squad were rushed to the scene to carry out thorough inspection on the plane, but found nothing.
 

"The Malindo Airline crew concerned who was asked to identify the passenger who uttered the word also failed to remember," he said, adding that the police were still carrying out thorough probe on the incident to prevent untoward incidents.

Read more at: http://english.astroawani.com/news/show/penang-bound-malindo-air-flight-delayed-due-to-bomb-threat-42643?cp

MAS DEBUNKS EMPTY FLIGHT REPORT BY AUSSIE NEWS PORTAL.

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TheStar :  Friday August 29, 2014

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Airlines has de­­bunked a report by an Australian news portal that described one of its planes as nearly empty, saying that the London-KL flight was actually over 90% full.

The portal — news.com.au — had alleged that the airline was “burning through its cash reserves” to stay afloat and used pictures in social media by passengers showing empty seats and check-in lines.

One photograph used by the portal was by MasterChef UK 2014 winner Catherine Chin Wan Ping Coombes, who later defended MAS, saying that Flight MH01 was full and that families with children boarded first.

In an e-mail to The Star, MAS said it appreciated the support given by Chin.

“The MH01 flight carried 464 passengers. MAS is touched by the ongoing support of its loyal guests and it strives to provide world-class service to all its passengers,” it said.

Malaysians, who have been on MAS flights after the MH17 incident on July 17, have also come out to defend the airline.

Communications student Carmen Teoh, who took a MAS flight to London, said her flights to and from the British capital were all full.

“The Caucasian lady next to me seemed nervous and even stopped a steward to ask why the flight route seemed to have deviated but it was all okay in the end,” said the 23-year-old.

“If we Malaysians do not stand by our national carrier, then who will?” she said.

IT consultant Johari Yusof, 36, said his flight back to Malaysia from London three days ago was about 80% full.

“When there was turbulence, some could afford to laugh. There were also more foreign passengers than Malaysians,” he said.

Senior manager Elly Yusof, 40, intentionally chose MAS for all her destinations to support the airline after the MH370 incident and will be flying MAS to Cambodia this Sunday.

“Rather than ‘abandoning’ or bad-mouthing our national airline in its time of difficulty, we should try to support it instead,” she said.

Daniel Wa, 26, who recently flew to Cambodia via MAS, said he felt that the flight attendants were even more caring towards passengers after the MH17 incident.

“They were more polite and explained to the passengers whenever there was turbulence to assure us that we were safe,” he said.

Law student Lisa J. Ariffin said those afraid to fly on MAS were “missing out on the experience” as the cabin crew were the friendliest she had ever encountered.

Khazanah Nasional will announce today its restructuring plan for MAS.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MALAYSIA 2014

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We thought this is nice "Merdeka" video by Petronas.



Till then and see ya~

COMMUNAL WORK @ DCA SANDAKAN

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Attached are photos taken during the "Gotong Royong' session at DCA Sandakan which was held on Aug 23, 2014.

Till then and see ya~

PPKTU A29 : ATTACHMENT

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Introducing our new attachment staff at DCA Sandakan, Mr Khairul Izwan who will be posted to DCA Sandakan for a month.

Wish you the best in your career and hope to see you soon at KLIA. 

Till then, see ya~

MH17 : THE DAY OF MOURNING

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Attached are photos taken from GoogleImages during the Aug 22, 2014 : Day of Mourning.  White hearses arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport's Bunga Raya Complex at 7.30am Friday as the nation prepares to receive the remains of 20 victims of the ill-fated flight MH17.

Family members, dignitaries and media personnel, dressed in black or dull colors, converged at the site from as early as 5.45am in anticipation of the arrival of the special flight.

Till then, see ya~

SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDIL FITRI 2014

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DCA Sandakan staff would like to wish everyone Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri, Maaf Zahir dan Batin and Happy Holidays.

Till then and see ya~

SEA CURFEW IN SABAH 2014

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The curfew which earlier announced to be started from 19 July until 2nd august was extended again until further advise. 7pm up to 5am. The curfew order covers six districts - Sandakan, Kinabatangan, Lahad Datu, Semporna, Kunak and Tawau.

 Tujuan Perintah Berkurung

• Membasmi kemasukan pengganas Sulu di Perairan Sabah.

Senarai Lokasi Perintah Berkurung Di Sabah 2014

• Perairan/ Pantai Sandakan, Kinabatangan, Lahad Datu, Semporna, Kunak, dan Tawau.

Tarikh Perintah Berkurung Di Sabah 2014

• Mulai 19 Julai 2014 sehingga 2 Ogos 2014

Masa Perintah Berkurung

• 6 Petang hingga 6 Pagi

Panduan Orang Ramai Ketika Perintah Berkurung

• Orang awam dilarang untuk memasuki zon larangan pada waktu yang telah ditetapkan. Sepanjang tempoh perintah berkurung, tiada sebarang aktiviti termasuk menangkap ikan dibenarkan di kawasan terbabit.

Orang Awam Ingkar Perintah Berkurung Boleh Disabitkan Kesalahan

• Sesiapa yang dijumpai di kawasan perintah berkurung adalah melakukan kesalahan dan boleh ditangkap tanpa waran di bawah Seksyen 3 (2) Akta Polis 1967 serta dituduh di mahkamah dan dihukum mengikut Seksyen 94 Akta Polis 1967.

• atau hukuman denda tidak melebihi RM500 atau penjara tidak melebihi enam bulan.