The Government Aviation Regulator in the USA has mandated that all foreign airlines - and that includes Qantas - must use their automatic landing aids when on approach to San Francisco International Airport after the fatal landing accident a few weeks ago of an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 that crashed after the pilots turned off the auto-pilot and relied on visual clues to land

"The FAA said that it would assign 'alternate instrument approaches' - including the use of global positioning systems (GPS) - to foreign airlines on approach into San Francisco"


Airlines owned and operated by USA companies will not be affected by this new ruling

The pilot and passenger - in what appears to be a pilot training exercise - escaped uninjured after an apparent engine failure

"...the pilot conducted a forced landing ..The occupants were uninjured and the helicopter sustained substantial damage"