Envoy Air flight AA-4680 had to return and make an emergency landing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on January 14th.
The Embraer ERJ-145 plane took off for Ottawa, Canada, but had to turn back after the crew received indication of an engine problem.
The plane landed safely. All fifty people aboard remained unharmed.
Pictured: interior of a Cathay Pacific Airways Airbus A330-343X
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer Simon Mok
What: Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 en route from Riyadh Saudi Arabia to Hong Kong
Where: Mumbai
When: Nov 17th 2009
Who: 278 passengers
Why: While en route, all ten toilets on the flight became clogged, and the flight had to divert to Mumbai. Apparently, Cathay Pacific has had this problem on other Airbus A340-300s, as passengers dispose of everything from medicine bottles to stuffed animals in the airline toilets. They have requested assistance from Airbus to help come up with a solution.
Vueling flight VY-7574 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Malaga, Spain, on June 11th.
The Airbus A320-200, heading from Barcelona, Spain, to Banjul, Gambia, was diverted after the crew reported a hydraulic failure.
The plane landed uneventfully. All 110 passengers remained safe.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Lukas Bluth
What: Lufthansa Airbus A330-300 en route from Frankfurt to Kolkata, India
Where: Hyderabad
When: Jun 8th 2009
Who: 225 passengers
Why: When the pilot spotted a hole in the runway, strong winds prevented it from landing at the other runway, so the approach was aborted. The airbus circled, then diverted to Hyderabad where it landed safely.
After the runway was repaired, the plane returned with 174 passengers.
George’s Point of View
I’ve talked about Aircraft maintenance before, but not that much about airport maintenance. It’s obviously important that runways be kept in tip-top shape. Taking them for granted results in accidents like the the TAM disaster.
Lufthansa is to be commended for NOT having an accident–in spite of the Kolkata airport’s disrepair.
United Express Flight 4912 had to make an emergency landing at Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kansas, on February 25.
Airport authorities said the flight, operated by Republic Airlines, was heading from Denver to Kansas City when it had to declare emergency due to a landing gear issue.
The plane was then diverted to Eisenhower Airport where it landed uneventfully. None of the 67 passengers and 4 crew members was hurt.
The Bombardier Q-400 aircraft was taken for inspection while the passengers and crew members were taken to Kansas City via a bus.
Volotea flight V7-1368 had to return and make an emergency landing at Venice Marco Polo Airport, Venice, Italy, on July 27th.
The Boeing 717-200 flying to Preveza, Greece, had to return due to some issue with its right engine.
The plane landed safely.
All 95 people aboard remained safe.
Southwest Airlines flight WN-1486 had to return and make an emergency landing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on November 14th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Fort Myers, Florida, but had to turn back due to multiple bird strikes.
The plane landed back safely.
