airliners.net

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    Emergency Landing and Changeover in Tallahassee


    Contact photographer Ben Wang
    What: American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82 en route from Tampa to the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport
    Where: emergency landing in Tallahassee Florida
    When: Saturday Apr 25th 2009
    Who: 147 people
    Why: After discovering that the plane was experiencing mechanical problems involving the fuel tanks, it took twenty minutes to land. Passengers boarded a MD-83 and reached Dallas nine and a half hours later. The MD-82 with fuel system issues is under examination.

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    Turbulence: When the Light is ON, SIT.


    Contact photographer Alex G.-Denicourt
    What: Continental Airlines Boeing 737-700 en route from Houston,TX to McAllen,TX
    Where: McAllen, TX
    When: Apr 18th 2009
    Who: 104 passengers and 5 crew
    Why: First, severe thunderstorms delayed takeoff. Then, en route, fasten seat belt signs were on. The plane experienced turbulence while a woman was in the bathroom; she hit the ceiling and sustained serious back injuries. A flight attendant and another passenger also were injured. On landing, the seriously injured women was ported to the hospital and underwent (2?) neck surgery/ies. It is not known if the severely injured passenger will be permanently paraplegic.

    George’s Point of View

    Do not think the seatbelt sign does not apply to you. You’re not someone exempt from turbulence. The seatbelt sign applies to everyone.

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    Royal Air Maroc Boeing 767-300


    Contact photographer Agustin Anaya
    What: Royal Air Maroc Boeing 767-30 en route from Casablanca (Morocco) to New York John F. Kennedy Airport
    Where: JFK
    When: Apr 20th 2009
    Why: Wake turbulence was such that the landing was hard. Complaints about the hard landing prompted plane inspection which turned up wrinkles found in the fuselage. The plane was grounded for repairs and further inspection.

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    Depressurized Airbus Lands in London


    Contact photographer Bruce Leibowitz
    What: Turkish Airlines Airbus A340-300, en route from New York JFK,NY to Istanbul Ataturk
    Where: divert to London Heathrow
    When: Apr 16th 2009 6:30 local
    Who: 185 passengers and 15 crew
    Why: The cabin depressurized en route, and the flight was diverted to Heathrow for a safe landing. Although passengers experienced shortness of breath and ear pain, oxygen masks never did deploy.

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    Wilmington Emergency Landing: Medical


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Michael Durning
    What: Air Transat Airbus A-310 en route from Nova Scotia to Cuba
    Where: Wilmington International Airport
    When: Thursday night
    Who: a passenger went into shock and passed out.
    Why: Fortunately for the passenger, a doctor on board stabilized the patient. After landing, the 40-year-old passenger was transported to New Hanover Regional Medical Center and the flight continued on as scheduled to Cuba.

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    Business as Usual: JAL Engine flameout a matter of course


    Pictured: Japan Airlines A300B4-622R
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Christian Waser
    What: Japan Airlines Airbus A300-600 en route from Aomori to Tokyo Haneda
    Where: Haneda Airport
    When: Apr 17th 2009
    Who: 120 people
    Why: After touchdown at Haneda Airport, the engine started smoking; flames were shooting out of the exhaust. The crew engaged the ” engine fire suppression system.” Passengers did NOT debark via emergency procedures.

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    Saipan: Windshield Cracked too Late and Missed the Party


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Dan Hornseth
    What: Northwest Airlines Boeing 757-200 en route from Guam to Tokyo Narita Japan
    Where: Saipan
    When: Wednesday April 15 between 4 and 5
    Who: 170 + passengers
    Why: When a “minor” crack was discovered on the plane’s windshield. A delay of between 16 and 17 hours is anticipated.

    George’s Point of View

    Irony of the day: The plane’s emergency arrival just missed Disaster Drill day at Saipan International Airport.

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    Airbus Loses Control in Montreal


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Mark Kryst – YXUphoto
    What: Air Canada Airbus A320-200 en route from Montreal Trudeau Canada to Fort Lauderdale, FL
    Where: Montreal
    When: Apr 14th 2009
    Why: After reporting problems to air traffic control and returning to Montreal, on final approach to runway 06L the crew experienced “severe mechanical turbulence” and momentarily lost control of the plane. However, the plane landed safely; and shortly afterwards, the passengers were off to their destination–on board another Airbus.

    *Mechanical turbulence is turbulence around buildings, wind eddies not caused by thermal means.

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    Ill Alitalia Pilot Down in Shannon


    Pictured: an Alitalia Boeing-767-3S1
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Josh May
    What: Alitalia Boeing 767, travelling from Milan in Italy to New York’s JFK
    Where: Shannon Airport
    When: Wednesday April 15 2009 5 PM
    Who: 168 passengers and eleven crew
    Why: When the pilot became ill, the flight landed at Shannon Airport. The pilot was hospitalized in Limerick and the passengers were treated to an overnight hotel stay and will continue to JFK on Thursday. Rumor on the pilot network is that the pilot had a heart attack.

    iLVolo.it says it in Italian

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    Alaska Airlines Quick Fix


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Michael Carter
    What: Alaska Airline Boeing 737 Phoenix to Seattle
    Where: Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
    When: emergency landing around 6:40 a.m
    Who: 113 passengers
    Why: After an emergency with an overheating hydraulic pump, the flight landed back at the Phoenix airport after 15 minutes; and (after 45 minutes of maintenance) was back in the air 1.5 hours behind schedule, but successfully en route to Seattle

    George’s Point of View

    Maintenance Maintenance Maintenance…

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    Airbus Diverts to Athens


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Paul Markman
    What: Easyjet Airbus A320-200 en route from Heraklion (Greece) to London Gatwick,EN (UK)
    Where: Athens International Airport
    When: Apr 14th 2009 15.02 local time
    Who: 137 passengers and 7 crew
    Why: Pressurization. After observing problems with pressurization, the crew burned off ten minutes worth of fuel and landed on runway 21R. The problem turned out to be in the air conditioning. Easyjet’s press release terms this not an emergency but “merely a precautionary technical diversion.”

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    Passenger Lands Plane when Pilot Dies


    What: 1982 King Air 55 owned by White Equipment Leasing flying en route from Marco Island to Jackson Mississippi
    Where: Fort Myers Southwest Florida International Airport
    When: Sunday April 12
    Who: 6
    Why: When the pilot passed out midflight, a passenger took the controls and safely landed the plane. The pilot died of cardiac arrest prior to landing.

    Landing safely was a group effort. The on board passenger who landed the plane had a pilot’s license but was not certified to fly a high-performance turboprop and had no experience flying this type of aircraft. The Fort Myers air traffic controller who talked the pilot down was getting HIS direction from a Connecticut pilot reading the landing checklist from a King Air manual.

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    Bolivia: Cessna 210 fatality


    Pictured: A Cessna 210M in Bolivia
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact Photographer Giovanni Francisco Rodriguez Bravo

    What: Cessna 210M en route from Concepcion to El Trompillo Airport
    Where: Concepcion, Bolivia
    When: April 11, 2009
    Who: Pilot and 3 passengers
    Why: The cessna impacted terrain shortly after taking off from Concepcion Airport Concepcion, Bolivia.

    The certificated commercial pilot and three passengers, all Bolivian citizens, were fatally injured. Night visual conditions prevailed. The flight was operating on a visual flight rules flight plan from Concepcion to El Trompillo Airport (SLET), Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

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    Plane Crashes Mountain; 6 Fatalities


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Jim Groom
    What: Aviastar Mandiri British Aerospace BAe146-300 en route from Jayapura to Wamena Indonesia
    Where: Mount Pike
    When: Apr 9th 2009
    Who: 6 crew: captain, co-pilot, engineer, loadmaster and two flight attendants
    Why: The plane was approaching runway 15 at Wamena Airport in foggy conditions, turned and air traffic control lost contact. The controller observed smoke coming from side of Gunung Pike Mountain. When search crews went to the source of the smoke, there were no survivors.

    Reportedly, the plane had been carrying rice and flour and 9 tons of Aviation Turbine Fuel. The airport is surrounded by mountains.

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    Afterword: American Airlines flight 1400

    See George’s Point of View here


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Art Brett
    What: American Airlines MD-82 aircraft en route from Lambert to Chicago
    Where: Lambert
    When: Sept. 28, 2007
    Who: 138 passengers, 3 flight attendants, two pilots
    Why: When the fight experienced an emergency (engine fire) and the MD-82 returned to land at the airport of origin, the nose landing gear failed. After a go-around, the plane conducted an emergency landing and everyone debarked on to the runway.

    The reason that this is in the news now is that the problems involved have been under investigation. The procedure that mechanics used to manually start one of the engines is held to be responsible for the fire. However the captain was also faulted for poor division of labor, resulting in inefficiency which is judged to have exacerbated the emergency.

    NTSB Identification: DCA07MA310
    Scheduled 14 CFR Part 121: Air Carrier operation of AMERICAN AIRLINES
    Accident occurred Friday, September 28, 2007 in St. Louis, MO
    Aircraft: McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82 (MD-82), registration: N454AA
    Injuries: 143 Uninjured.

    This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

    On September 28, 2007, at 1316 central daylight time, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82 (MD-82), N454AA, operated by American Airlines as flight 1400, executed an emergeny landing at Lambert-St Louis International Airport (STL), St. Louis, Missouri, after the flight crew received a left engine fire warning during departure climb from the airport. The airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and an instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 121 scheduled domestic flight. After landing, the 2 flight crew, 3 flight attendants, and 138 passengers deplaned via airstairs and no occupant injuries were reported. The intended destination of the flight was Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago, Illinois.

    Upon receiving the left engine fire warning during climb, the flight crew discharged the aircraft engine fire bottles into the affected engine. During the visual return and single-engine approach to the airport, the nose landing gear did not extend. The flight crew then extended the nose landing gear using the emergency landing gear extension procedure. The airplane returned and then landed on runway 30L (11,019 feet by 200 feet, grooved concrete) and was met by STL Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Vehicles

    The NTSB identification number for this investigation was administratively changed from CHI07MA310 to DCA07MA310 on April 2, 2008.

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    Boeing Depressurizes over Moscow


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Oleg Revin
    What: Yakutia Airlines Boeing 757 en route from Vnukovo airport to Yakutsk.
    Where: Vnukovo airport in the Russian capital of Moscow
    When: Apr 7th 2009
    Who: 174 passengers and nine crew members
    Why: After takeoff, the pilot experienced technical problems. The cabin depressurized; and the pilot decided to return to the airport of origin to land; however, before landing, the plane circled the airport for three and a half hours to burn off excess fuel.

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    Turbulence in Reno flight


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Ryan Coulter
    What: Horizon Air flight 2246 de Havilland Dash 8-400 en route from LA to Reno
    Where: Sacramento
    When: 7:10 p.m. April 7
    Who: 5 passengers (out of 40) plus one flight attendant.
    Why: When several passengers reported injuries resulting from turbulence experienced over Yosemite. Turbulence was so severe that Individuals not buckled in literally bumped into plane’s ceiling. The plane diverted to make an emergency landing at Sacramento International Airport so that the six affected individuals could be examined.

    George’s Point of View

    Wear Your Seatbelt.

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    24 Casualties in Indonesia Crash

    What: 32 year old Tentara Nasional Indonesia-AU (Air Force) Fokker 27 registration A-2703
    Where: Bandung-Husein Sastranegara International Airport, Western Indonesia
    When: 06 APR 2009 1 p.m. Monday local time
    Who: Six crew members, one trainer and 17 military skydiving students. All 24 people on board died.
    Why: While landing during a regular training flight, the plane crashed and burst into flames at 1:05 pm (0605 GMT) in Bandung, 110 kilometres (74 miles) southeast of Jakarta. No one on the ground was injured. The weather is said to have been wet; and the plane is said to have been undermaintained due to funding problems. The plane is said to have been shaking–possibly encountering a 20-knot crosswind at the time of the accident– before it crashed in an air craft hanger and burst into flames.

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    Southwest Emergency Landing at Islip NY


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Sheldon Johns
    What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 Flight 195 en route from Islip,NY to to Fort Myers, Fla
    Where: returned to New York’s Long Island MacArthur Airport
    When: landed safely at 10:24 a.m
    Who: 127 passengers aboard and 5 crew members
    Why: The 737 experienced engine trouble which forced them to shut down the left hand engine; they returned to MacArthur Airport for a safe landing. Contrary to rumor, lightning did not cause an engine fire.

    George’s Point of View

    The addendum to this is that mechanics are now looking over this 737. Maybe they should have had this inspection before it took off. D’ya think?

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    Vibrating Boeing in Russia

    What: A Skyexpress Boeing 737-500 en route from Moscow Vnukovo to Sochi (Russia)
    Where: Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport
    When: Apr 4th 2009
    Who: 69 passengers and 6 crew
    Why: When instrumentation revealed unacceptable (dangerous) vibration of the left hand engine, the pilot shut down the left engine down, and burn off fuel before landing back at the airport of origin an hour after takeoff. There were no injuries.

    George’s Point of View

    Maintenance.
    Maintenance.
    Maintenance.

    —- nuff said.

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    Flat Tire Tornado Diverts Airbus to Spain


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Paul Markman
    What: British Airways Airbus A319-100 en route from London Gatwick to Gibraltar.
    Where: Malaga Spain
    When: Apr 3rd 2009
    Who:
    Why: Airbus passengers got a little extra traveling in when the runway at their Gibraltar destination airport was blocked by a Tornado fighter with burst tires after its brakes overheated on landing.

    The British Airways jet flew on to Malaga Spain where the runway was thankfully NOT blocked; and the plane was able to land safely, and allow passengers to take a bus ride back to Gibraltar, their actual destination.

    And for those individuals left planeless at the Gibraltar gate, eventually the Tornado was moved off the runway; and the Airbus was able to land and pick up those passengers.

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    Continental Safely Lands Hot Plane


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Mark Kryst
    What: Continental Airlines Colgan Air de Havilland Dash 8-400 en route from Newark to Montreal .
    Where: Burlington,VT
    When: Apr 3rd 2009
    Who: 33 passengers and 4 crew
    Why: The pilot and crew reported high temperatures, requesting diversion to Albany, NY. They shut down the left engine but decided against Albany because of weather (severe precipitation), and landed instead at Burlington,VT.

    George’s Point of View

    Emergency landings are always a cause for concern. The pilot who responds with a cool head and skill in an emergency situation is to be commended.

    What about the maintenance of the plane? Who chose to fly instead of maintain, or to maintain in half-measures? Someone needs to look into this–