What: Air France Airbus A340-300 en route from Boston,MA to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport Where: Boston’s Logan Airport When: Jul 22nd 2009 (returned at 2 am) Who: 125 people Why: During or immediately after takeoff, the number 4 engine caught afire. The crew shut down the engine, put out the fire, and dumped fuel before safely landing at the airport, where emergency crews remained on standby for “hot brakes.”
George’s Point of View
Emergency procedures move like clockwork. 125 lives saved.
What: Northwest/Pinnacle Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 en route from La Crosse WI to Detroit. Where: La Crosse When: Jul 18th 2009 Why: When the control panel indicated nose gear issues, the pilot opted to return to La Crosse, where they made a safe landing.
What: New Plymouth Aero Club Cessna 152 en route from North Shore to New Plymouth. Where: Waikato, near Te Kuiti New Zealand When: 21 JUL 2009 1930 Who: 1 Why: Missing plane; circumstances largely unknown.
At 7:30, the plane’s distress beacon was heard, and though the pilot’s last communication indicated an anticipated landing at New Plymouth by 7.50 pm, the plane never arrived at its intended destination. Search was dispached in the vicinity of the beacon 35 miles west of Te Kuiti, but weather (tornados forecast), low cloud cover, and difficult terrain proved an obstacle to the search.
What: Transavia Boeing 737-700 en route from Amsterdam to Ibiza Spain Where: Amsterdam When: Jul 20th 2009 Who: 148 passengers Why: During takeoff, the flight struck a bird; it took about twenty minutes to land back at the airport where the plane was assessed to be undamaged; however, when it took off after a two hour inspection, the anti-ice system turned out to be damaged, and the plane returned to Amsterdam where the passengers were provided an alternative flight.
George’s Point of View
I wonder what exactly was wrong with the icing system, and why it was missed on the ground.
What: United Airlines Boeing 767-300 en route from London Heathrow to Chicago O’hare Where: Keflavik, Iceland When: 2:51 p.m. CDT Monday Who: 200 passengers (178 passengers reported also ) Why: Just over three hours after takeoff, the flight landed at Keflavic, diverting because of smoke in the cockpit. There were no injuries; and passengers safely debarked onto the taxiway.
George’s Point of View
Online, the wife of a passenger aboard this flight said the following:
There was an electrical problem in the cockpit. You could smell it.The stewards took us through the emergency landing procedure. I was sitting in the exit row, so the steward went over it with me again. I knew it was serious when I saw the steward take out his passport and wallet from the overhead and put it on him. I got mine out and did the same. (So our bodies would be ID’d if we crashed.) We were flying at altitude and then we slowly descended to about 500 feet above the water. We didn’t hear anything from the pilot during this whole time. But you could see Iceland ahead. When we landed I gave a thumb’s up to a flight attendant. She smiled and said, everything’s fine, as if it we were never in danger. But then I saw her close her eyes and silently say a prayer. We exited the plane to ambulances and emergency equipment.
I called United customer service to ask about them getting me on another flight out of there. They said “we don’t fly to Iceland.”
I said, now you do!
What: Lufthansa A346 en route from Newark, NJ to Munich Where: Newark NJ When: Jul 19th 2009 Why: Near Boston, the plane developed electrical problems; and the crew decided to return to Newark. The passengers debarked and were only delayed two and a half hours before being permitted to continue their flight.
What: Beechcraft BE-36 Bonanza en route from Miami to Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais Where: Venezuela When: 6 p.m. Brasilia time on July 11 Who: Mauricio Lustosa de Castro, CEO of Magnesita Refratorios SA Why: Mauricio Lustosa de Castro’s private plane was last heard from in a distress call in Bolivar. Following the distress call a search and rescue began around July 13, though the incident was deemed a fatal crash on July 11.
What: Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400 en route from Hong Kong China to Sapporo Japan Where: Fukuoka When: Jul 19th 2009 Who: 398 on board Why: After smoke filled the cabin, the flight diverted to Fukuoka Japan. The smoke was attributed to an air conditioning leak which was repaired so that the flight was continued less than four hours later.
What: Lion Air Boeing 737-300, en route from Jakarta to Mongonsidi airport, South East Sulawesi Where: Sultan Hasanuddin airport in Makassar When: 5 pm Jul 18th 2009 Who: 132 passengers 6 crew members Why: The plane made an emergency landing because of a “crack on the glass of its cockpit window,” according to information released by Lion Air.
What: Air Canada Airbus A320-200 en route from Vancouver, BC to Calgary Where: Vancouver When: Jul 16th 2009 Why: After takeoff, the plane experienced engine failure, and the airbus returned to Vancouver after being in the air for less than half an hour.
What: Germanwings Airbus A319-100 en route from Pula Croatia to Berlin Where: Schoenefeld Airport When: Jul 16th 2009 Why: The airbus landed at Schoenefeld with gear issues and had to be towed off the runway.
What: PSA/ US Airways Canadair Regional Jet CRJ-200 en route from Milwaukee to Charlotte NC Where: Mitchell International Airport When: Thursday July 16 Who: 45 passengers Why: While en route, the pilot received an indication that his plane was overheating, and returned to Mitchell. Passengers debarked on the runway and were shuttled to the terminal.
What: An Iranian Caspian Airlines Russian-made Tupolev passenger jet en route from Tehran (Iran) to Yerevan Where: near Jannatabad village 75 miles northwest of Tehran When: July 15 2009, crashed 11:30 am, 16 minutes after takeoff Who: 153 passengers and 15 crew including eight members of Iran’s youth judo team and two trainers. Another report said simply there were “over 150” aboard. Why: After the pilot complained of technical problems, witnesses reported that the plane caught on fire while still in the air, then smashed up when it hit the ground.
Update:
The Russian-made plane’s Russian-made black boxes have been found. They are badly burned; however, and may be sent to Russia for assistance in data recovery. There is already a Russian team on the way to help investigate. An Iranian Insurance company promises $58,000 to the families of victims.
The 22-year-old TU-154M has not been produced since 1996. Most of the passengers were Iranian; seven were Armenians or Georgians. One Canadian woman and her son (Nana Antasyam and her son, Edward Khachik ) were reportedly also on board, as well as a pair of Australian siblings who may have had dual citizenship.
What: Beechcraft 36 Bonanza en route from Hawthorne Municipal Airport Where: Los Angeles (3901 W. Jack Northrop Ave) When: 4:20 p.m. Who: 3 people on board including a flight instructor Why: After takeoff, the pilot experienced mechanical difficulties and crashed in a parking lot, killing everyone aboard.
The plane is registered to CARPET PROS INC, LOS ANGELES
What: Air Canada Airbus A319-100 en route from Toronto to Bridgetown Where: Over the Atlantic Ocean… When: Jul 15th 2009 Who: Why: En route to Barbados, a fuel leak was discovered; the flight returned to Toronto where passengers debarked safely and were eventually provided another Airbus.
What: Bank Air Learjet Where: Chippewa Valley Regional Airport When: 5:30 p.m. Wednesday July 15 Who: pilot, co-pilot and two passengers Why: After takeoff, th landing gear indicator light presented problems. After dumping fuel, the plane was able to land safely about 20 minutes after takeoff.
View Qazvin, Iran in a larger map What: An Iranian Caspian Airlines Russian-made Tupolev passenger jet en route from Tehran (Iran) to Yerevan Where: near Jannatabad village 75 miles northwest of Tehran When: July 15 2009, crashed 11:30 am, 16 minutes after takeoff Who: 153 passengers and 15 crew including eight members of Iran’s youth judo team and two trainers. Another report said simply there were “over 150” aboard. Why: After the pilot complained of technical problems, witnesses reported that the plane caught on fire while still in the air, then smashed up when it hit the ground.
As it flew overhead, burning pieces of the plane were falling to the ground, setting of fires as they hit the ground,
Other sources say that after one engine caught on fire, the pilot attempted a landing in a wheat field. A witness Abul-Fazel Idaji made statements released on the internet explaining that just before the plane hit the ground, “its wheels were out and there was fire coming from the lower parts.” An eighteen year old farmer said “I was driving my tractor when I saw a big fire in the sky.” Another witness said the plane circled as if looking for a place to land, before it crashed. The sound it made is described as being like an earthquake, and some people thought that they had been bombed. The impact with the ground created a 10 meters deep crater. No survivors. Local villagers had carried off parts of the plane. Nothing identifiable remained of the passengers who reportedly were Armenian or Georgian.
Most public statements attempt to blame the crash on US sanctions; however, the TU-154 is a Russian made plane with Russian made components, and a very old, noisy and rickety one, at that, and banned from European airspace.
What: R44 Astro Helicopter en route to Nelson in rural Butte County Where: Near Yuba River, Marysville, California When: 07/13/2009 at 1700 hrs Who: 3 crew members aboard Why: N244HP, A ROBINSON R44 ROTORCRAFT, STRUCK A POWERLINE AND FORCE LANDED on its side 10 MILES FROM MARYSVILLE, CA on the bank of the South Yuba River.
What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300 en route from St. Louis to Orlando Where: Orlando When: Jul 14th 2009 Who: 134 passengers Why: On approach to Orlando, an APU fire was indicated; however, after the passengers debarked, there was no trace of fire of heat or found by the fire crew.
We have found conflicting reports whether or not there was an actual fire within the apu that resisted being put out, or a control panel indication of a fire that did not exist.
What: US Airways Airbus A320-200 en route from Phoenix to Oakland Where: San Francisco International When: Jul 13th 2009 Who: 147 passengers Why: Nose gear steering of the US Airways Airbus failed on approach to Oakland. The flight was diverted to San Francisco, where nose gear operation apparently was recovered prior to landing.
What: Southwest Airlines 737 en route from Nashville to Baltimore Where: Charleston’s Yeager Airport When: 6:30 p.m Monday July 13 Who: 126 passengers and five crew Why: While en route, the cabin depressurized when a hole (metal fatigue?) approximately the size of a football appeared in the fuselage. The plane managed to land safely in Charleston West Virginia. The NTSB is investigating.
(News photos don’t look football sized, but it is sure big enough to see plenty of daylight through.)
George’s Point of View
The 737 is a true workhorse, built to land and takeoff almost without too much delay except to load and unload passengers.
I fly Southwest to Las Vegas all the time. It’s a short hop.
I must admit, that every time I fly in one of these planes I have begun to worry about the age and/or the fatigue of the structure. A trip like one from LA to Vegas, most times, is a beating on the passengers and the plane itself. My guess is that 4 out of 5 of these short trips encounter turbulence, sometimes bad turbulence. This beats up the plane. In this case, the plane being beaten up was manufactured in 1994. That’s a lot of years of turbulence abuse. Metal fatigue in these conditions is not surprising, and neither is it completely unexpected. An inspection on this plane last January revealed eight cracks in the frame that required repairs.
I’m just glad it was a BOEING, and that the pilot remained in control of the aircraft. And of course, it’s a good thing that Southwest is now inspecting all of their planes for fatigue. Last year Southwest was fined $7.5 million for overdue inspections. I hope this is not going to be a repeat of last year. All the timely inspections in the world aren’t going to make this plane any younger. Maybe it’s time to put this particular plane out to pasture.
What: Air India A319-100 en route from Mumbai to Kolkata Where: near Aurangabad When: Jul 11th 2009 7:08 pm Who: 88 passengers 6 crew Why: After takeoff, one engine failed, and the crew decided to return to Mumbai rather than fly without a backup engine. After three hours, the passengers were provided a replacement plane.
What: Air France Airbus A320-200 en route from Rome Fiumicino (Italy) to Paris Where: en route When: Jul 13th 2009 Who: n/a Why: While en route, the Airbus A320 flew for a minute without speed indications;in fact, all data related indications, autopilot and autothrust systems went offline simultaneously. The Airbus had updated Thales pitot tubes, and was experiencing a “weather” situation. Thales tubes were the brand of pitot tube on Air France Flight 447, albeit an updated model.
George’s Point of View
More questions: is it the tubes alone which are faulty, or is it also the software? Why is there not a setting to automatically shift to Analog systems if digital fails?
What: Philippine Airlines A343 en route from Manila to Vancouver, BC Where: Vancouver BC When: Jul 9th 2009 Why: While over the Pacific, the pilot shut down one of the engines for an unspecified reason. They landed under emergency circumstances without assistance in Vancouver. No injuries were reported.
