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Contact photographer Jose Lopez
What: Air Canada Airbus A319-100 en route from Denver to Montreal
Where: Montreal
When: Jul 2nd 2010
Why: On landing, the plane developed steering issues. The plane landed safely but had to be towed.
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Contact photographer Stefan Hofmann
What: Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-100 en route from Cartagena, Colombia to Fort Lauderdale
Where: Palm Beach International Airport
When: Oct 25, 2012
Who: 54 aboard
Why: As pilots were flying from Cartagena, Colombia to Fort Lauderdale, the plane developed problems and the pilots had to divert the flight. According to one source, one of the engines developed problems and was shut down. (Reports vary on the exact nature of the issue behind the diversion.)
Pilots diverted to Palm Beach International Airport where they made a safe landing.
Pictured: A Delta Connection (Comair) Canadair CL-600-2C10 Regional Jet CRJ-700 at Omaha – Eppley
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Contact photographer Justin Idle
What: Delta/ Comair Canadair CRJ-700 en route from Omaha to Detroit
Where: Eppley, Omaha
When: Dec 3rd 2009
Who: 72 people aboard
Why: Just after takeoff, the jet flew through a flock of birds and sustained numerous bird strikes. The pilot returned to the airport for a safe landing. Passengers were rebooked.
Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-80 had to return and make an emergency landing in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 2nd.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Baku, Azerbaijan, but had to turn back due to a bird strike.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Emirates Airlines flight EK-9 made an emergency landing at Gatwick Airport, England, on September 8th.
The Airbus A380-800 plane was flying from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, when the crew declared emergency due to indication of a flat nose wheel tire.
The plane landed uneventfully. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
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Contact photographer David Field
What: Lufthansa Airbus A340-600 en route from Frankfurt/Main to Vancouver
Where: Vancouver,BC
When: Sep 30th 2009
Who: 1 injury
Why: After landing, a piece of the galley fell on someone causing an injury.
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Contact photographer Paul Carlotti
What: Air Canada Airbus A319-100 en route from Toronto to Winnipeg
Where: Sault Ste Marie
When: Mar 8 2011
Who: 125 aboard
Why: While en route, the plane was over Canada when the displays quit. The loss of the displays is being attributed to an electronic power failure. (Wonder if there was a short or if it was something else?) The displays were only offline for less than a minute, and subsequently began flashing error messages. Pilots continued on to Winnipeg and managed to land safely. The plane was taken out of commission in order to have an Airbus inspection to determine what exactly was going on.
Flying an Airbus without electronic displays is, I think, tantamount to suicide. I am surprised they didn’t divert somewhere and land immediately. Is it not somewhat risky to continue flying an airbus when the display connections are flakey? This same sort of thing happened on a BMI Airbus A321. Apparently catastrophic failure in rough conditions is not unheard of. In fact, rough conditions are not required to cause the need for a reboot. The term for “rebooting” an airbus that has lost its electronics is called “recycling,” a common enough thing that there is recognizable pilot humor regarding it.
