TAP Air Portugal flight TP-72 had to return and make an emergency landing at Rio de Janeiro–Galeão International Airport, Brazil, on March 9.
The Airbus A340-300, en-route to Lisbon, Portugal, had to return after facing issue with one of its flaps.
The plane landed safely.
No one was injured.
Tam Airlines admits a thrust reverser had been deactivated during maintenance checks.
Tam Airlines insists the deactivation was in accordance with accepted procedures. Thrust reversers assist jets to slow down on landing.
The Tam Airlines’ Airbus 320 overshot the runway at Sao Paulo’s Congonhas airport, hit buildings and exploded. Speculation continues but there is no confirmation on the crash’s cause. The same plane had problems landing at Congonhas a day prior the crash when it had barely managed to stop at the limit of the runway. The report said that the pilot told air traffic controllers it was very slippery.
The right thrust reverser was “deactivated” at the time of the accident “in conditions stipulated by the maintenance of the manufacturer Airbus and approved by [Brazil’s] National Civil Aviation Agency” according to Tam Airlines. The Airbus’s manual says an inspection can be done up to 10 days after it is first detected and that the plane can continue to operate in the meantime.
The crash occurred in wet conditions runway that has been criticized as being too short, and whose new surface had not yet been properly surfaced to handle rain.
Video footage shows a few final moments of the Tam Airlines flight, and a similar plane that had arrived earlier. The Tam plane appears to be traveling at a higher than normal speed.The first aircraft apparently takes eleven seconds to travel along the visible section, while the plane that crashed covers the same distance in three. The Airbus 320 jet appears to continue speeding along the runway without slowing, before disappearing out of view. The flash of an explosion is then seen.
The Brazilian air force believes the footage shows the plane was traveling at excessive speed, according to Globo TV. One theory speculates that the pilot tried to take off again. Instead, the aircraft crossed the road and ploughed into a Tam Airlines building.
Brig Jorge Kersul Filho, director of the Air Force’s Centre for Investigation and Prevention of Air Accidents, said, “”That he jumped over the avenue was an indication he tried to take off. If he didn’t [try to take off] he would have gone nose down at the end of the runway.”
United Airlines flight UA-962 made an emergency landing at Berlin Tegel Airport, Germany, on January 8th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane flying from Newark, New Jersey, was on approach to Berlin when the crew reported an issue with the flaps.
The plane subsequently made a safe landing. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
Condor Airlines flight DE-2114 had to divert and make an emergency landing in St. Louis, Missouri, on March 15th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane heading from Frankfurt, Germany, to Cancun, Mexico, was diverted after the crew suspected a fuel leak.
The plane landed safely. All 182 passengers and 10 crew members remained unharmed.
Air France flight AF-32 made an emergency landing at Paris Orly Airport, France, on February 9th.
The Boeing 777-200 plane took off for John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, but had to turn back after the ground crew noticed pieces of carbon on the departure runway.
The plane landed back safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Neos flight NO-279 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Delhi, India, on April 18th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane heading from Phuket, Thailand, to Milan, Italy, was diverted due to an issue with the cabin temperature controller.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
A Cessna C150 made an emergency landing on Route 23 near Doremus and Paradise roads in West Milford, New Jersey, shortly before 1 p.m. on January 29.
The plane, flying from Orange County Airport in New York to Lincoln Park airport in Morris County, New Jersey, had to land in emergency after it developed some mechanical issues.
The single-engine aircraft made an uneventful landing. The pilot Christopher Okechukwu, 51, of Paramus, remained unharmed. The authorities confirmed that he was the only one aboard at the time.
No vehicles were damaged during the landing.
The incident is under investigation.
