Vibration

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    Jet Blue-Missing Cowling


    Pictured: A JetBlue Airways Embraer ERJ-190-100IGW 190AR
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer John E. Jauchler

    What: Jetblue Embraer ERJ-190 en route from New York to Nashville
    Where: New York
    When: Jan 6th 201
    Who: not available
    Why: After takeoff, the plane developed vibration. The pilot turned around; some runways were unavailable due to wind conditions; another flight circled so this flight could make a safe landing. The fight was cancelled. Maintenance discovered the engine cowling was missing.

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    Easyjet Airbus Hydraulic Emergency


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Gerry Hill

    What: Easyjet Airbus A319-100 en route from Liverpool to Madrid
    Where: Bay of Biscay
    When: Dec 29th 2009
    Who: 155 passengers and 7 crew
    Why: While en route, the crew reported a hydraulics failure and air frame vibrations. The flight diverted to Bordeaux and made a safe landing. Another jet was provided.

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    JAT Emergency Landing in Sofia


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Yvan Panas

    What: JAT Airways Boeing 737-300 en route from Istanbul Ataturk to Belgrade
    Where: Sofia
    When: Dec 20th 2009
    Who: 56 passengers
    Why: While en route, the right engine developed vibration. It is not noted whether or not the engine was shut down, but the flight diverted successfully to Sofia and made an emergency landing.

    There’s no indication what accommodations were made for passengers.

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    Airbus Vibration Leaving Rochester


    Pictured: A JetBlue Airways Airbus A320-232
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer John R. Beckman

    What: Jetblue Airbus A320-200 en route from Rochester, NY to New York,NY
    Where: Rochester
    When: Dec 6th 2009
    Who: 147 passengers and 5 crew
    Why: After takeoff, the flight suffered severe vibration during flap retraction. The Airbus returned to Rochester and made a safe landing, and an alternative flight was provided in less than 5 hours.

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    Engine Vibration Aborts Airbus Flight


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact Photographer Frank Robitaille

    What: Air Canada Airbus A319-100 en route from Toronto to Liberia Costa Rica
    Where: south of Pittsburgh
    When: Aug 29th 2009
    Why: Forty minutes into the flight, the left engine developed vibration. The flight returned to Toronto and safely performed an “overweight” landing. Passengers debarked and transferred to a replacement Airbus.

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    Thomas Cook Airlines Airbus Grounded for Engine Vibration


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact Photographer Karl Nixon

    What: Thomas Cook Airlines Airbus A330-200 en route from Belfast to Orlando
    Where: Norfolk
    When: Jul 10th 2009
    Who: 265
    Why: En route, an engine started vibrating and had to be shut down. The crew decided to divert to Norfolk,VA

    George’s Point of View

    Another Airbus.

    Shutting down the engine is standard operating procedure, and at the same time, it is a near fatality because the pilot had to shut down that vibrating engine while the plane was still over the Atlantic Ocean, 60 miles from land. Can you imagine what was going through this Airbus pilot’s head as he made the decision to shut down that engine? No doubt he was thinking about last month’s two latest Airbus tragedies: Air France flight 447, or perhaps the Yemenia Airlines Airbus.

    I know how overdramatic this sounds. Pilots shut down engines all of the time. it’s the very reason they fly with more than one. Just in case. Pilot training covers how to fly on the remaining engines. But this is just July 2009. Even the most well -trained Airbus pilot has last month’s story of Air France flight 447 in his mind, especially when he’s flying something that fails over the ocean.

    This Thomas Cook Flight wasn’t experiencing a subtle problem. It wasn’t some subtle, quiet control panel error that could be handled as passengers flew along blissfully unaware and uninformed. In interviews of passengers, they are quoted as describing the engine as “vibrating” or “clackity.” No doubt there were 530 sweaty palms on that plane.

    This was one of at least 5 airbus events we heard about today–and it is not in fact, even a complete listing. Hopefully at least the pilot gets serious credit for getting these people safely on the ground.

    Who in the world is going to intercede and demand that Airbuses (every model) get checked from A-Z BEFORE they take off ‘in every part of the globe’? Vero?

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    Airbus Doubles Back Twice in Rome

    What: Windjet Airbus A320-200 en route from Catania to Rome Fiumicino (Italy)
    Where: Catania
    When: May 4th 2009
    Who: 111 passengers
    Why: This plane returned to Catiana not once but twice. First, an unsafe gear indication turned them back for repairs; on the second try, retraction of the gears resulted in vibrations of the airframe, so they returned to Catiana a second time. The flight left for Rome seven hours later–on a different plane.

    George’s Point of View

    Can’t you just feel the response of the passengers? Not just the anxiety the first time around, but imagine the second attempt when those gears went up and that anxiety was topped off by terror when the plane started vibrating. There’s not a person on board that plane who wasn’t relieved when that plane made it safely to the runway.

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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.