cabin pressure

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    Midwest Airlines Boeing Emergency Landing in Estonia


    The former Romanian low cost carrier Blue Air EI-EOP was delivered from Shannon to Cairo on December 17 and registered SU-MWF
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographerTrevor Mulkerrins

    What: Midwest Airlines Boeing 737-800 en route from Sharm el Sheikh Egypt to Tallinn Estonia
    Where: Sharm el Sheikh
    When: Jan 15th 2011
    Who: 180 passengers
    Why: While en route, the plane developed pressurization problems that caused passengers significant distress, including ear pain.

    Pilots returned the plane to Tallinn where it made a safe landing and the pressurization problems were worked on by maintenance crews.

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    Qantas Airbus False Alarm


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    Contact photographer Mark H

    What: Qantas Airbus A330-200 en route from Sydney to Jakarta
    Where: Sydney
    When: Jan 1st 2011
    Why: On takeoff, the cabin pressurization set off an indicator. The crew returned to Sydney where they made a safe landing after being in the air a half hour. On inspection, the problem was not the pressurization but an alarm error. The flight continued as scheduled.

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    City Airline Emergency Landing in Sweden

    What: City Airline Embraer ERJ-145 en route from Gothenburg to Umea
    Where: Umea
    When: Jan 3rd 2011
    Who: 18 passengers, 3 crew
    Why: While en route, the plane lost cabin pressure for an undetermined reason.

    Oxygen masks were deployed, and the plane descended to a lower altitude at which they continued to fly until they landed safely at Umea.

    There were injuries reported of nose and earbleeds related to the pressure problems.

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    Eva Air Emergency Diversion to the Ukraine


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    Contact photographer Tamas Vekony

    What: Eva Air Airbus A330-200 en route from Bangkok Thailand to Vienna Austria with 66 passengers and 12 crew
    Where: Simferopol Ukraine
    When: Dec 29 2010
    Who: 66 passengers including one infant, and 12 crew
    Why: While en route, oxygen masks were deployed when the flight developed low cabin pressure issues. The crew descended from 40,000 to 11,000 feet, and diverted to Simferopol Ukraine where they made a safe landing two hours before their anticipated arrival time in Vienna. Although Eva Air sent a technical crew to examine the plane to determine if the problem existed or was an alert malfunction, Taiwan defined the problem as due to an engine bleed air problem.

    Passengers (including 21 Austrians, 19 Sweden, a New Zealander, two Americans, twelve Czechs, three Spaniards, a Hungarian, six Thais and Taiwanese) were marooned at the Simferopol airport for nearly 24 hours, then moved to a city hotel, and offered buses to Odessa where they might be able to catch another airline’s flight to Vienna. An Austrian publication published that two employees of Eva Air were due at 4:00 pm in Simferopol to organize a flight on an alternative airline. The return flight is listed as cancelled.

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    Emergency Landing: Beijing

    What: Turkish Government plane en route from Japan to Turkey
    Where: Beijing China
    When: Sunday 26, December 2010
    Who: Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz and delegation
    Why: After holding talks in Japan, the plane developed cabin pressure problems and made an emergency landing in Beijing. The plane landed safely. The passengers return to Turkey is scheduled on Turkish Airlines.

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    Lufthansa Airbus Flight Cancelled over Cabin Pressure


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    Contact photographer Mario Aurich

    What: Lufthansa Airbus A319-100 en route from LH-2557 from Tbilisi to Munich
    Where: Tbilisi Georgia
    When: Dec 6th 2010
    Who: 66 passengers
    Why: While en route, the pilots found the cabin pressure was inconsistent. They returned to Tbilisi and made a safe landing. Passengers were provided alternative transportation.

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    Air Baltic Flight Cancelled


    Pictured: An Air Baltic De Havilland Canada DHC-8-402Q Dash 8 at Dusseldorf – International (
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    Contact photographer Rainer Bexten

    What: Air Baltic de Havilland Dash 8-400 en route from Riga Latvia to Brussels
    Where: Riga
    When: Nov 29th 2010
    Who: 73 passengers and 4 crew
    Why: Before takeoff, the flight was delayed due reportedly to overweight baggage. Then en route, the Dash 8 developed cabin pressure problems. The flight circled for an hour to burn fuel, then the flight returned to Riga to make a safe landing. Passengers were provided ( 1.50 lats, about $2.78 US) meal vouchers and provided a replacement jet. Krišj?nis Kari?š and Sandra Kalniete (European Parliament members) were aboard the flight.

    * A lat is equal to 1.85259 dollars.

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    Cathay Pacific Diverts to Karaganda


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    Contact photographer Co van den Heuvel

    What: Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400 en route from Amsterdam to Hong Kong
    Where: Karaganda
    When: Nov 28 2010
    Who: 306 passengers and 20 crew
    Why: While en route, the cabin suffered a loss of pressure. Oxygen masks were released and the crew descended to a lower altitude as they diverted to Karaganda Kazakhstan. The plane landed at the nearest airport, and were served breakfast aboard the plane while “emergency visa exemptions” were secured for the passengers. Hours later, passengers were taken to hotels to await the arrival of another flight.

    Cathay Pacific confirmed the air pressure problem related to outflow valve assemblies they are replacing on their fleet.

    George’s Point of View

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    Emergency: Air India Hard Landing at Thiruvananthapuram

    What: Air India A-330 en route from Thiruvananthapuram to Dammam Saudi Arabia
    Where: Thiruvananthapuram
    When: Nov 10, 2010, 6 pm
    Who: 82 passengers including two infants
    Why: The flight had a normal takeoff, but forty minutes into the route, the pilot received a sensor warning about the plane’s doors. The jet returned to the airport, circled to burn off fuel, and made a hard landing during which a tire burst and the brakes jammed. The plane was stuck on the runway for four hours.

    Passengers were rebooked on a Thursday morning flight out and provided overnight hotel accommodations.

    Officials of the Director General of Civil Aviation have arrived to begin the official inquiry.

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    Hull Breach in American Airlines Flight


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    Contact photographer

    What: American Airlines Boeing 757-200 from Miami,FL to Boston,MA
    Where: Miami
    When: Oct 26th 2010
    Who: 154 passengers and 6 crew
    Why: A half hour after takeoff, the plane developed rapid decompression at 31,000 feet requiring oxygen masks, an emergency descent and a return to Miami.

    Maintenance found a one by two foot hole in the hull.

    George’s Point of View

    Maintenance, Maintenance, Maintenance!

    Even with AD Directives issued, this was still missed. Was there telltale evidence prior to this event that could have prevented endangering 154 passengers and six crew?

    The hole in the hull is not unprecedented. Sixteen months prior to flight AA-1640, Southwest Airlines (SWA) flight 2294, (another Boeing suffering a hole in the hull in July 13, 2009), the FAA has already issued Airworthiness Directive 2010-01-09 mandating inspection requirements. At that time, they ascribed the hull failure to a design fault: Fuselage skin failure due to preexisting fatigue at a chemically milled step.

    It’s an easy enough thing to visualize-picture slightly squeezing an empty cola can, then blowing into it; and repeating the process, over and over. In a soda can, it would not take the 20 years this plane has been flying for the stressed areas to develop a crease, and eventually crack.

    Not that a soda can is expected to sustain the significant pressures at 10,000+ feet, nor does it have the design flaw of chemical milling, nor is its skin made of single and double bonded layers. If it were, one could theoretically presume and anticipate metal fatigue to occur at the weakest location–the edges of where the metal is double-bonded.

    In the Southwest Airlines event, it was observed that the progression of metal fatigue tends to be higher at the borders between chemically milled and non-chemically milled bays.

    The inspection requirements in SB 737-53A1301 require inspections to detect cracks in the vulnerable areas (the chem-mill step) to avoid sudden fracture and failure of the fuselage skin panels.

    Did this plane undergo “repetitive external non-destructive inspections to detect cracks in the fuselage skin“?

    Carriers out there, when there are directives which indicate potential problems, pay attention!

    If not for the stellar performance of this flight crew, this plane would have been a statistic.

    Thank you, John D King for sending the links.

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    Chaos on Aero Contractors in Lagos


    Not the 500. Pictured: Boeing 737-322 exAero Contractors Nigeria lease
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    Contact photographer JayDeeKay

    What: Aero Contractors Boeing 737-500 en route from Port Harcourt to Lagos
    Where: Nigeria
    When: Oct 24 2010
    Who: 84 passengers, 15 injuries
    Why: Passengers were complaining of pressure problems resulting in ear pain. Passengers reportedly “ran amuck” in the cabin when they saw smoke, apparently resulting in injury.

    Officially, ten minutes before arrival in Lagos, a smoke problem in the cabin was reported to ATC. The crew reported the smoke, and made a safe landing at Murtala Muhammed International Airport with emergency on standby at 6:30 pm. Passengers evacuated, resulting in fifteen injuries. Passenger’s luggage was not released until 8:30 pm

    According to maintenance, the smoke problem was mist and condensation from the air conditioning which had been switched to manual.

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    Emergency Landing in Malta

    What: Smartlynx Airbus A320-200 en route from Tenerife to Antalya
    Where: Malta
    When: Oct 22 2010
    Why: While en route, the flight suffered a loss of cabin pressure. The pilot diverted to Malta where they made a safe landing. In less than 24 hours, the plane was en route again. Disposition of the passengers is unknown.

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    Southwest Emergency Landing in Fort Myers


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    Contact photographer Finn Yannick Piskol

    What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 en route from Fort Lauderdale (1: 42 to Austin,TX
    Where: Fort Myers,FL (@ 2:23
    When: Sep 14th 2010
    Who: 92 passengers
    Why: While en route north of Fort Myers, the crew reported a cabin altitude alert, and loss of cabin pressure and diverted to Fort Myers where they made a safe landing. Several passengers sought medical assistance for problems such as headaches and ear aches. 10 were injured, 3 went to the hospital.

    A replacement flight was provided.

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    Gimpy Plane Delays Spicejet Flight 2x

    What: Spicejet Boeing 737-800 en route from Kolkata to Delhi
    Where: Kolkata
    When: Sep 8th 2010
    Who: 136 passengers
    Why: On taxi (or during takeoff) which was already an hour late, the Spicejet’s left engine was smoking.

    The pilot noticed the smoke, aborted the flight and returned the plane to the gate where maintenance worked on repairing the problem.

    After another delayed departure, the Spicejet was again en route. When the cabin did not pressurize a quarter of an hour later into the flight, the pilot turned back and made an emergency landing in Kolkata.

    At 10:20pm, passengers were flown out in a replacement plane.

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    Delta Airlines Cautionary Landing in Miami

    What: Delta Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-88 en route from Miami to New York City
    Where: Miami
    When: Aug 30 2010
    Who: 142 passengers, 5 crew
    Why: After takeoff, the cabin lost pressure. The flight returned to Miami, made a safe landing, and passengers were booked on an alternative flight.

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    Air Canada Aborts Flight in Vancouver


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    Contact photographer Manuel Wenger

    What: Air Canada Boeing 767-300 en route from Vancouver to Shanghai
    Where: Vancouver International Airport
    When: August 21, 2010
    Who: 166 passengers and 9 crew
    Why: Twenty minutes after leaving, the pilot returned to Vancouver after detecting a whistling sound from a cockpit window. The flight entered a holding pattern, then made a safe landing.

    Passengers were provided an alternative plane while this plane was scheduled for maintenance.

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    Andes Lineas Aereas Lands Safely with Load of Brazilian Tourists


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    Contact photographer

    What: Chartered Andes Lineas Aereas McDonnel Douglas MD-82 (also reported as -83) en route from Bariloche Argentina to Buenos Aires
    Where: Neuquen Argentina
    When: August 17 2010
    Who: 152 Brazilian tourists
    Why: While the chartered jet was transporting Brazilian tourists home from a skiing trip, the plane suffered sudden depressurization. Oxygen masks were deployed, and the plane made an emergency landing in Neuquen.

    The pilot made a safe landing in Neuquen. The incident occurred shortly after takeoff. Passengers were provided two replacement planes by the carrier.

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    Brussels Airlines Flight Diverts to Luxembourg


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    Contact photographer Klaus Ecker

    What: Brussels Airlines Avro RJ-85 EN ROUTE from Milan to Brussels
    Where: Basel Switzerland
    When: Aug 2nd 2010
    Why: While en route, the flight developed cabin pressurization problems. The crew decided to divert to Luxembourg where they made a safe landing. No indication is provided as to the source of the issue.

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    China Southern 737 Loses Air Pressure

    What: China Southern Boeing 737-300 en route from Kunming to Zhengzhou
    Where: en route
    When: Jul 17th 2010
    Who: 130 passengers
    Why: After takeoff and reaching cruise level, cabin pressure was lost. Oxygen masks were deployed, and the flight returned to Kunming where it made a safe landing. Twenty passengers were hospitalized with ear pain.

    A replacement flight was provided six hours later.

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    Delta Diversion to Goose Bay


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    Contact photographer Bruno Bevivino – Roma Spotters Club

    What: Delta Airlines Airbus A330-200 en route from Portland, OR to Amsterdam
    Where: Atlantic Ocean
    When: Jul 6th 2010
    Who: 236 passengers
    Why: While en route south of Greenland, the plane’s pressurization system developed problems, and the pilot decided to divert to Goose Bay, landing safely at Goose Bay about an hour before their scheduled landing in Amsterdam. A replacement jet (Boeing) was provided for the passengers so that 22 hours later, they arrived in Amsterdam safely. The original Airbus was relegated to maintenance and repaired.

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    Continental Airlines Emergency Landing in San Antonio


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    Contact photographer Orlando G. Rivera Rivera – SJU Aviation Photography

    What: Continental Airlines Boeing 737-900 en from Houston,TX to Puerto Vallarta
    Where: San Antonio
    When: Jun 25 2010 6:34 p.m
    Who: 172 people on board
    Why: After experiencing air pressurization problems while en route, the oxygen masks were deployed. Unable to handle the problem, the pilot diverted to San Antonio where it made a safe landing. A replacement jet was provided Saturday which left at 7:45 a.m. Passengers were provided hotel accommodations in the meantime.

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    Southwest Flight loses Pressure


    Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 over Islip – Long Island MacArthur
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Gerard Isaacson

    What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300 en route from Islip Long Island to Chicago
    Where: Buffalo-Niagara International Airport
    When: May 07, 2010
    Who: 120 passengers
    Why: While en route, the plane developed a cabin air pressurization problem. The pilot decided to divert to Buffalo, and made a safe landing. Passengers disembarked and boarded an alternative flight to Chicago.

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    Poland: Lot’s Emergency Landing


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    Contact photographer Michal Raczynski

    What: Eurolot Polish Airlines Eurolot ATR 72 en route from Krakaw to Warsaw
    Where: John Paul II Balice International Airport, Warsaw Poland
    When: April 29 2010
    Who: 27 passengers and 4 crew
    Why: In mid flight, the pilot detected cabin pressure problems, and had inconsistent readings. He reduced his altitude to handle the cabin pressure, and told ATC he would be crash-landing; however, the landing was normal.

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    Dublin: Continental Airlines Emergency Landing


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    Contact photographer Ben Wang

    What: Continental Airlines Boeing 757-200 en route from Dublin to Newark
    Where: Dublin
    When: Mar 18 2010
    Who: 162 passengers
    Why: After takeoff, the transatlantic flight developed a pressurization problem; and after burning off fuel, on return to Dublin, the flight ran into wind shear (strong crosswinds) resulting in a couple of go-arounds. They were back on the ground about 2 hours after takeoff. The flight was not cancelled until the 19th, and by that time, most passengers had already rebooked. Some passengers aboard that flight have expressed dissatisfaction in their situation, although hotel accommodations were provided.

    The Irish equivalent of the NTSB (AAIU) said the problems were due to a failed Pressure Regulating and Shut Off valve in the right engine’s bleed air system.