O’Hare – Chicago

O’Hare Airport Chicago

  • O’Hare NOTAM Safety issues Critical Mass

    It is a good thing that the FAA is in a constant state of flux, always looking out for the next hazard. The next one (now) is revamping air field condition notification procedures. This because of a series of close calls at O’Hare’s runway project which is in mid-process of being rebuilt.

    ignorance of a (notice) concerning work in progress reducing runway length.
    This because of a FED EX flight which had been routed to a shortened runway (by 4000 feet less than the pilots thought.) The Fed Ex pilots barely made it over the fence but there was damage. Boeing pilots in July 2007 had the same issue, ignorance of a shortened runway.

    The problem is pilots being uninformed about disruptions due to expansion, barricades, increased maintenance vehicle traffic. A mass of NOTAM “notices to airmen” handed out as a stack of pages is not efficient. Crucial notices are mixed in with irrelevant or nonoperational data. Prioritizing crucial alerts would go a long way in making construction zones safer.


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    American Airlines Flight Struck by Lightning

    What: American Airlines Boeing 737-800 en route from Chicago to Reno
    Where: Chicago
    When: Sept 2, 2010
    Who: One-hundred-sixty passengers and five crew members
    Why: After being struck by lightning, American Airlines Flight 1487 returned to Chicago where it was examined by maintenance.

    Passengers were provided an alternative plane that had not been struck by lightning.

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    LOT Brake Fire in Chicago


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Nigel Harris

    What: LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 767-300 en route from Warsaw to Chicago
    Where: Chicago
    When: Jul 17th 2010
    Why: The flight made a safe landing in Chicago. However, after landing, the left brakes and tires were smoking and on fire. The captain told passengers that the brakes had fractured and caused damage to the hydraulic lines leading to the fire.

    Emergency services put out the fire while on the runway–it is not mentioned if passengers disembarked, before, during or after emergency services were deployed.

    Although the left tire and brake were replaced, on return to Warsaw on the 18th, the same plane suffered another brake fire on landing.

    George’s Point of View

    I know I’m being a back seat driver again, because it’s impossible to know from my armchair in California what’s happening on the ground in Chicago and Warsaw, but it seems to me that there is obviously something going on.

    Either the wrong brakes were replaced, or the brakes were not replaced, or the pilot consistently lands too fast, or the wrong (i.e. flammable) grease lubricating the brakes caught fire, or the thrust reverser is flawed or something else is going on that caused the brake fire to repeat on the return flight. Let’s hope LOT’s home base in Warsaw will get to the bottom of it before the plane has to land on a tabletop runway like Mangalore, or an unsurfaced runway like TAM Airlines Flight 3054 at Congonhas-São Paulo International Airport.

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    Chicago Bird Strike


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Joey Collura

    What: United Airlines Boeing 757-200 en route from Sacramento to Chicago
    Where: Chicago
    When: Mar 8th 2010
    Why: On final approach, there was a bird strike. After a safe landing, the plane was grounded for inspection. Specific damage might be out there published somewhere, but I didn’t see it. The next flight was cancelled.

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    American Airlines Emergency Landing in Phoenix


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Ivan Voukadinov – BGspotters

    What: American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83 en route from San Diego CA to Chicago
    Where: Phoenix
    When: Feb 9th 2010
    Why: While en route, on board indicators detected a hydraulic leak. The flight diverted to Phoenix AZ where it made a safe landing. Passengers were provided alternative flights.

    Another American Airlines maintenance issue?

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    McDonnell Douglas Litters Chicago Midway


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Shaun Edelstein

    What: Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-90-30 en route from Atlanta, GA to Chicago Midway
    Where: diverted to Cincinnati,KY and concluded in Chicago
    When: May 26th 2009
    Who: Not Listed.
    Why: “DELTA AIRLINES FLIGHT 2090 MCDONNELL DOUGLAS 90-30 AIRCRAFT AFTER LANDING, INSPECTION REVEALED A PIECE OF THE AIRCRAFT FELL ONTO THE RUNWA. NO INJURIES REPORTED, CHICAGO, IL”

    George’s Point of View

    As you see, the FAA report indicates that the plane lost a piece of itself on landing. I don’t know what’s more curious–what exactly fell off the MD-90 when it landed (generally I don’t think of external plane parts as optional); or if the dropped item was related to the plane’s delay in Cincinnati.

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    United Hydraulics Failure over Pittsburgh

    What: United Flight 615 en route from Washington DC to Chicago O’Hare
    Where: Pittsburgh
    When: landed at 12:51 May 22, 2009
    Who: 119 on board including Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.), Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and White House Social Secretary Desiree Rogers
    Why: After a hydraulic system failure was announced, the crew announced there would be an emergency landing. There had been “loud bang” at take-off, then the noise and vibration increased.

    The landing was safe; and United was providing another plane for passengers to complete the flight to Chicago.

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    United successful Belly Landing at O’Hare

    What: The United Express flight 7164, en route from O’Hare bound for South Bend
    Where: O’Hare Airport
    When: Monday night Dec 15
    Who: 28 passengers and 4 crew members
    Why: The plane was about to land in South Bend but instead, circled the airport and returned to Chicago because of a landing gear problem. When the plane hit the tarmac, the left wing shot sparks. The belly landing as the plane slid down the runway, half on its belly.

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    Queasy Stomachs Land at O’Hare

    What: United Airlines Flight 167 en route to Los Angeles from Boston

    Where: diverted to O’Hare International Airport

    When: Wednesday 8:37 p.m

    Who: 138 people were on board.

    Why: When about a dozen passengers became sick during a flight, the flight was diverted to O’Hare and an EMS Plan 2 was called which sends at least 10 ambulances to the scene. Some passengers became sick from the smell of vomit on the plane. Those who fell ill were reportedly part of the same tour group of about 40. One among them reported feeling sick prior to takeoff. Four were hospitalized at Lutheran General Hospital. Fourteen declined to be hospitalized when examined by paramedics though the entire tour group was examined by paramedics. No food was served on the flight.

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    Queasy Stomachs Land at O’Hare

    What: United Airlines Flight 167 en route to Los Angeles from Boston
    Where: diverted to O’Hare International Airport
    When: Wednesday 8:37 p.m
    Who: 138 people were on board.
    Why: When about a dozen passengers became sick during a flight, the flight was diverted to O’Hare and an EMS Plan 2 was called which sent at least 10 ambulances to the scene.

    Some passengers became sick from the smell of vomit on the plane. Those who fell ill were reportedly part of the same tour group of about 40. One among them reported feeling sick prior to takeoff. Four were hospitalized at Lutheran General Hospital. Fourteen declined to be hospitalized when examined by paramedics though the entire tour group was examined by paramedics.

    No food was served on the flight.

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    British Airways Emergency Landing at Chicago

    What: British Airways Flight 195 from London to Houston
    Where: Emergency landing at Chicago’s largest airport.
    When: 1.20pm local time (7.20pm Irish time) An EMS Plan 1 and Level 1 HazMat was called on an O’Hare runway at 2 p.m. as an electrical precautionary measure
    Who: 90 passengers and 15 crew members were aboard. Passengers were de-planed onto the tarmac and taken by bus to Terminal 5
    Why: The pilot reported an “electrical burning smell” and diverted the plane as a precaution. Crews investigated a potential “flammable” in the cargo hold, but after inspection, found the smell had been caused by a fault with an in-flight TV screen.

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    American Airlines Flight 268 Emergency Landing in Chicago

    What: American Airlines Flight 268, Boeing 757 en route from Seattle to Kennedy International in New York
    Where: emergency landing in Chicago–O’Hare Airport Runway 22 Right
    When: Monday 1:42 p.m.
    Who: 185 Passengers and crew
    Why: Pilot reported electronic problems. An indicator light came on in the cockpit. The plane’s instrument landing system was non-functional, and the pilots had to come in faster than normal, being unable to rely on instrumentation. On landing, the plane blew a tire and slightly overshot the runway. (A traffic controller is quoted as saying “He ran out of concrete before he ran out of speed.” ) Passengers deplaned at 2:05 p.m. on an over-run area off the runway.

    Looks like disaster averted. Go AA. Yee ha!

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    Hong Kong flight Grounded In Chicago


    What: United Airlines Flight 895 Boeing 747 bound for Hong Kong
    Where: emergency landing at O’Hare International Airport
    When: Saturday 5:27 p.m
    Who: 323 passengers and 18 crew members
    Why: One hour into the flight to Hong Kong, the pilot experienced unspecified problems with a temperature probe, and rerouted it back to O’Hare.