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Contact photographer Andrew Hunt
What: Hong Kong Airlines Airbus A330-200 en route from Hong Kong to Beijing
Where: Changsa
When: Mar 9th 2012
Why: While en route, the flight developed a loss of cabin pressure.
Oxygen masks were deployed.
Pilots diverted to Changsa where they made a safe landing.
What: American Airlines Dallas to Chicago
Where: Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
When: March 9 2012
Who: 1 flight attendant
Why: While American Airlines Flight 2332 was on the runway, a flight attendant gave a fifteen minute rambling dialogue on the public address system just before she had a meltdown, and started screeching about the plane crashing. (see passenger’s raw video youtube below.) The fight attendant is apparently bi-polar and had not taken her medication.
Among other things, she said, “We are not taking off. We’re having technical difficulties. We are heading back to the gate.”
Passengers and crew cooperated in restraining her.
Wisely the pilot did not take off with her aboard but returned to the gate and dropped her where she was detained by police. Two flight attendants were injured and hospitalized. (Reports do not say if this number included the bipolar attendant.)
The 8:25 flight did not take off till 10:00.
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Contact photographer Mehdi Nazarinia
What: Qantas Airbus A330-200 en route from Sydney to Melbourne
Where: Sydney
When: Mar 6th 2012
Why: The flight was taking off when the plane suffered a bird strike. Passengers inside the plane heard a “bang” and an engine began vibrating.
Pilots the plane safely in Sydney, where passengers disembarked and waited less than three hours for a replacement plane.
Passengers commended the Qantas crew for handling the situation efficiently.
One gets the impression that a Qantas flight crew emergency response is the direct opposite of the chaotic endangerment response of the Costa Concordia (cruise) crew. Not at all the same situation, and yet, in many ways, similar. In both situations, the lives of the passengers are dependent on the efficiency and emergency response of the captain and crew.
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Contact photographer Robert Kolek – Lojza
What: Aeroflot Airbus A321-200 en route from Moscow Sheremetyevo to Sochi
Where: Sochi
When: Mar 7th 2012
Who: 148 passengers
Why: The flight was on approach to Sochi when it was struck by lightning.
Pilots made a safe landing in Sochi, with visible damage to the plane.
What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300 en route from Phoenix to Fort Lauderdale
Where: Austin
When: Mar 6th 2012
Who: 134 passengers, 5 crew
Why: While en route, the right engine developed problems. The Southwest Airlines crew shut down the right engine and diverted to Austin Texas where they made a safe landing with emergency services on standby.
Passengers were provided alternative transportation.
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Contact photographer Phil Debski
What: British Airways Boeing 767-300 en route from London Heathrow to Calgary
Where: Calgary
When: Mar 5th
Why: On approach to Calgary, the crew of British Airways Boeing G-BNWY lost most of their instruments. The data stream loss appears to have been related to the pitot tubes.
With assistance from ATC, the pilots made a safe landing.
What: Vueling A320 en route from Amsterdam to Bilbao
Where: Amsterdam
When: Mar 8 2012
Who: not available
Why: The flight was en route when it developed problems with the hydraulics. A “3-VOC” message was sent out from Schiphol Airport.
Pilots returned to Amsterdam and made a safe landing with emergency services on standby. Local television was already interviewing passengers before the plane stopped on the runway.
Lt. Lance Leone, the co-pilot aboard Coast Guard helicopter 6017 on July 7, 2010 when it struck some wires between the mainland and an island near La Push, Washington, was charged with negligent homicide and destruction of government property, and dereliction of duty.
Those charges have been dropped.
The crash killed the chopper’s pilot, Lt. Sean Krueger, along with Aviation Maintenance Technicians Brett Banks and Adam Hoke. The charges had been levied in accordance with the strict culture of discipline and accountability. The inherent danger of Coast Guard operations is a given, but the three fatalities warranted a full investigation.
Lt. Lance Leone hopes to be in retraining soon in accordance with the Coast Guard mission, pass retraining, and securing a new Coast Guard assignment flying and rescuing.
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Contact photographer Waiping
What: Silkair Airbus A319-100 en route from Singapore to Solo Indonesia
Where: Solo
When: Mar 6th 2012
Who: 124 passengers and 7 crew
Why: On landing at Solo, the plane touched down with the left main gear afire.
Passengers evacuated by way of emergency slides. There were no injuries reported.
The cause of the gear fire is under investigation although SilkAir says the smoke originated in overheated breaks and that there was no fire.
A dozen Augusta Westland helicopters Ontario purchased for $144 million have problems with tail rotors falling off.
EASA issued an air worthiness directive for the AW139. A directive from the European agency last Aug. 19 ordered helicopter owners to replace the tail rotors after 600 hours of flight following a fatal accident “possibly caused by cracks in a TR (tail rotor) blade.” A Feb. 17 directive called for inspections and maintenance of the tail rotors every 25 hours in the air.
In Ontario, Augusta Westland helicopters are in use as air ambulance helicopters. Ornge Founder Dr. Chris Mazza was fired, and an investigation is underway.
ORNGE helicopters are forbidden from entering U.S. airspace and must land at the border and use land ambulances. Issues relate to ORNGE’s new AgustaWestland helicopters, not the old fleet. A ground protocol exists for transporting burn unit or neurology bed patients. Former deputy minister of government services Ron McKerlie is now interim CEO of ORNGE, now non-profit.
The Philadelphia International Airport is open again after a drunk was chased on to airport property at 10 am. In his SUV, Kenneth Richard Mazik drove through a fence and two runways. He was charged with driving under the influence, simple and aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, defiant trespass and criminal mischief. U.S. Airways Flight 3137 nearly landed on him, but ATC had the pilot abort the landing. No explosives were found aboard the Jeep. The airport was open by 4 pm.
What: SkyWest en route from Houston to Toronto
Where: East Texas Regional Airport in Gregg County
When: March 6, 2012, 10:02 PM,
Who: 58 passengers, 2 pilots, 2 flight attendants
Why: While en route, a small fire in a cockpit printer sent the smell of smoke though the flight deck. The fire was reported to ATC and the plane made an emergency landing at East Texas Regional Airport in Gregg County.
The 58 passengers disembarked without emergency, and were bussed to Dallas where another plane was scheduled to take them the last leg of their journey.
AP reported this as a United Express jet. SkyWest operates the flight as a codeshare with United Airlines and Continental.
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Contact photographer Nikiforov Konstantin
What: UTAir Boeing 757-200 en route from Krasnodar to Hurghada
Where: Krasnodar
When: Mar 6th 2012
Who: 235 aboard
Why: The pilots aboard the UTAir Boeing 757-200 were about to take off when they received an error message and aborted the takeoff.
The flight was apparently cancelled.
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Contact photographer
What: Air China Boeing 737-800 en route from Sanya to Beijing (China)
Where: Nanning
When: Mar 6th 2012
Why: When a passenger found a string of fire crackers and turned them over to the flight attendants, the plane divert to Nanning where everyone disembarked with their luggage, and had to go through scans again. Everyone then re-entered the plane, and it continued to make a safe landing in Beijing.
One does wonder how the fire-crackers made it aboard to begin with.
What: Iowa State Patrol en route from Sioux City to Atlantic
Where: Denison airport
When: Mar 6 2012
Who: Pilot Trooper Scott Pigsley
Why: Scott Pigsley was returning from searching for a woman when his plane struck geese. At the time, he knew something had happened, but wasn’t sure what it was until after he landed and saw the damage to the single engine Cessna he was flying. The goose or geese left dents on the wings, a broken wheel cover and blood on the Cessna, but the problems Pigsley had encountered involved the engine.
Read more: http://www.kcci.com/news/30621488/detail.html#ixzz1oRKeY6S8
The missing woman had already been found.
What: US Airways/Air Wisconsin Canadair CRJ-200 en route from Cleveland,OH to Philadelphia,PA
Where: Philadelphia
When: Mar 3rd 2012
Who: 1 injury
Why: On approach to Philadelphia, a flight attendant was injured by turbulence.
On landing, the flight attendent was transported to the hospital.
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Contact photographer Vik S
What: American Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-82 en route from Dallas to Memphis
Where: Little Rock Arkansas
When: Mar 5, 2012
Who: 129 passengers, 5 crew
Why: While en route, one of the plane’s engines developed an oil pressure issue. Pilots diverted to Little Rock and made a safe landing there. Another plane took passengers from Little Rock to Memphis.
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Contact photographer Kazuchika Naya
What: ANA All Nippon Airways Airbus A320-200 en route from Oita to Tokyo
Where: Oita Japan
When: Mar 2 2012
Who: 85 passengers, 6 crew
Why: The All Nippon Airways flight had taken off when the anti-ice system on the left engine failed.
The pilots returned to the airport.
Passengers were provided an alternative flight to Tokyo.
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Contact photographer Luis carlos vieira
What: Transavia Boeing 737-700 en route from Rotterdam to Malaga, Spain
Where: Rotterdam
When: Mar 4th 2012
Who: 62 passengers
Why: Over France,Transavia Flight HV-5023 developed engine and hydraulic problems.
The crew returned to Rotterdam where they made a safe landing.
A replacement flight was provided.
What: Spice Jet en route from Srinagar to Jammu
Where: Srinagar
When: Mar 3, 2012
Why: The Spice Jet flight took off, but immediately after lift-off, the flight developed a problem. The plane failed to gain height near Banihal and descended ‘dangerously.’ The on board crew returned successfully to the Srinager Airport and made a safe landing.
Passengers included state ministers, government officials, Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, Minister of State for Home Nasir Aslam Wani.
Officials disembarked and took a later flight.
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Contact photographer Rafael Alvarez Cacho
What: British Airways Airbus A321-200 en route from London to Amsterdam
Where: Amsterdam
When: Mar 2nd 2012
Why: While landing in Amsterdam, communications became disrupted between two landing pilots.
The crew of the British Airways flight made a cautious safe landing ten minutes after radio problems began.
The plane was able to perform the return flight as scheduled.
An Aero Hein plane in flight.
What: Aerohein Piper PA-31-325 Navajo en route from Melinka to Quellón
Where: Quellón Chile
When: Mar 1 2012
Who: 8 aboard, 7 fatalities
Why: On a 20 minute flight, ATC lost contact with the plane six minutes into the flight. Air Force and Navy planes searched where the emergency signal beacon issued a single alarm before the aircraft crashed into the sea.
The plane’s wreckage was located by passengers in a boat in the Gulf of Corcovado off Chiloe island on Piedra Blanca at the mountain’s base. Occupants of the stricken plane included a businessman, his son and company divers and pilot Ricardo Hein. The list of dead includes Richard Hein, Genaro Barrientos Barria, Christopher Barria, Carlos Muñoz, Juan Gonzalez de La Fuente, Onofre Uribe Soto, and Pablo Briceño.
Five of those aboard have been found.
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Contact photographer Samuel Dupont
What: AirAsia X Airbus A340-300 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Paris France
Where: Paris
When: Mar 1st 2012
Why: On landing in Paris, a main gear tire burst.
Passengers for the return flight were provided overnight accommodations as a couple of tires and other parts were replaced.
What: Asia Today Ltd. Cessna 750 Citation X en route from Linz Airport to Egelsbach
Where: Egelsbach Airport Germany
When: March 1, 2012
Who: 4 fatalities
Why: The flight was approaching the runway when it crashed in the woods and started a fire. Reports conflict whether there were three or six aboard. Three bodies were found initially and a fourth was found later. There were no survivors. Local police say there was heavy fog.
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Contact photographer Tiago Palla – Portugal Spotters
What: TAAG Angola Airlines Boeing 777-300 en route from Lisbon (Portugal) to Luanda (Angola)
Where: Lisbon
When: Feb 27th 2012
Who: 197 passengers
Why: On departure from Lisbon, ATC said that the frequency was blocked. The pilots began responding to Lisbon on the wrong frequency, squawking loss of communication.
Communication was restored, then was lost again, intermittently. ATC directed that the other radio be turned off and changed to the correct frequency. The radio began blocking frequencies again, and pilots returned to Lisbon for a safe landing.
Eighty minutes after departure (ten minutes after the safe landing) the airport resumed normal operations.
All airlines out of Angola are on the EU banned list, banned from flying in the European union, with the exception of 3 Boeing 777-200s, 2 Boeing 777-300 and 4 Boeing 737-700s of TAAG Angola Airlines.
