Emergency

Under FAA JAA IKO rulings, it is mandated that if and when an emergency is declared by an airborne plane, ATC immediately diverts all incoming traffic and gives priority to the emergency situation. Most, if not all, of the events we have described as emergency are official emergencies. However, sometimes they are incorrectly reported as emergencies by our sources, have been downgraded from official emergency status, or are believed to be emergencies by passengers in fear for their lives.

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    Jetlite Diverts due to Engine trouble.


    Pictured: An eleven year old JetLite Boeing 737-81Q
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Vinish DSouza

    What: Jetlite Boeing 737-800 en route from Port Blair to Delhi
    Where: NSC Bose international airport in Kolkata
    When: 2.55 pm
    Who: 187 passengers
    Why: While en route, the Jetlite plane developed problems with its right engine, and diverted to the NSC Bose International Airport. The plane made a safe landing.

    Jetlite defined the problem as “technical trouble” and said that the plane was being repaired in a parking bay.

    * Kolkata was a scheduled stop. Passengers who were planning to continue on to Delhi were booked on other planes.

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    Cessna Nails Emergency Landing on Florida Highway

    What: single engine C172 en route from Gainesville to Destin
    Where: U.S. Highway 98
    When: Monday, Nov. 8, 2010, 8 pm
    Who: Pilot Michael Dustin Phillips
    Why: While en route, the engine began running rough. The pilot diverted to Tallahassee, but did not reach the airport. The pilot had to make an emergency landing on the highway due to a “mechanical failure” using car headlights to orient the landing. The plane model is described as “172, P172, R172, Skyhawk, Hawk XP, Cutla”

    Manufacturer: CESSNA
    Model: 172A
    N-Number: 7595T
    Engine: CONT MOTOR 0-300 SER
    Serial number: 47195
    Mode s Code: 52437221
    Airworthiness Date: 1959-12-24
    Last Activity Date: 2005-04-18
    Year: 1959
    Certification: Standard
    Issuance date: 2008-09-27

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    Jetstar Airbus A330-200 Autopilot Fails


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer John Richard Thomson

    What: Jetstar Airways Airbus A330-200 en route from Phuket (Thailand) to Sydney,NS
    Where: Changi Airport, Singapore
    When: Nov 1 2010
    Who: 288 passengers
    Why: While en route, the autopilot failed. The pilots diverted to Singapore where they made a safe landing with emergency services on standby.

    Alternative arrangements have been made for the affected passengers, who were booked onto other flights and offered accommodation in Singapore.

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    Lionair Overrun in Indonesia


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer M Radzi Desa

    What: Lionair Boeing 737-400 en route from Jakarta to Pontianak
    Where: West Kalimantan, Indonesia
    When: Nov 2 2010
    Who: 167 passengers, 7 crew
    Why: While landing at Pontianak’s Supadio Airport during a heavy rain, the plane overran the end of the runway. Its nose and main undercarriage collapsed and it stopped mired in a field beyond the end of the runway. There were no injuries.

    A passenger reported that the plane shook (or vibrated) about a quarter of an hour before landing; and no announcements were made by the pilot or crew during the vibration, or during the landing. The airline said no announcement was made because the seatbelt light was on.

    Passengers panicked and evacuated through an emergency exit. Military personnel at the airport assisted.

    Where were the crew while terrified passengers were jumping off the plane?

    They are saying the plane’s inability to stop was not due to weather, a wet runway, that the plane was well maintained and that it was a normal landing. So. If this is all true, why did it overrun?

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    Zurich Bird Strike


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

    What: Swiss International Airlines Airbus A321 en route from Zurich to London
    Where: Zurich
    When: Oct 31st 2010
    Who: 194 passengers
    Why: After takeoff, the plane suffered a bird strike.

    The pilot returned to Zurich where they made a safe landing. The plane was taken out of service to be inspected for damage, and passengers were provided alternative transportation. No description of the amount of damage or the unfortunate bird has been provided.

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    Delta Africa Flight Cut Short in NY


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Mattia Vichi

    What: Delta Airlines Boeing 767-300 en route from New York JFK,NY to Accra
    Where: over the Atlantic
    When: Oct 29 2010
    Why: While en route 300 miles out of New York, the plane developed an internal leak in the right engine, and smoke collected in the cabin.

    The pilot descended to a lower altitude and made a safe landing at JFK with rescue services on standby. Passengers did not disembark for nearly two hours.

    Maintenance determined that the oil leak or smoke from an oil leak got into the air conditioning.

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    Meridiana Emergency Landing


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Federico Buonanno

    What: McDonnell Douglas MD-82 en route from Naples to Cagliari
    Where: Naples
    When: Oct 31 2010
    Who: 33 passenger
    Why: After takeoff, the plane developed problems in the right engine and had to shut it down. The pilot returned to Naples and made a safe landing with rescue services standing by.

    Passengers were provided accommodations until a replacement flight came in the next day.

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    Turkey: Galley Smokes Cabin


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

    What: Azerbaijan Airlines Boeing 757-200 en route from Istanbul Turkey to Baku Azerbaijan
    Where: Istanbul
    When: October 30
    Who: 221 aboard
    Why: After takeoff, the cabin filled with smoke coming from a galley oven.

    The plane returned to the Istanbul airport and made a safe landing. No replacement was provided. The plane received maintenance, and continued some hours later.

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    Kochi: Air Arabia Bird Strike


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Steve Brimley

    What: Air Arabia Airbus A320-200 en route from Kochi to Sharjah
    Where: Cochin International Airport
    When: October 29, 2010 8:15 pm
    Who: 154 passengers, 6 crew
    Why: After takeoff, the flight suffered a problem, and according to officials a bird strike “was not ruled out”. It took fifteen minutes to return to the airport to make a safe landing after the bird strike.

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    Oil Fire Smokes Air Greenland Lavatory


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Stefan Sonnenberg

    What: Air Greenland de Havilland Dash 8-200 en route from Nuuk to Paamiut
    Where: Nuuk
    When: Oct 25th 2010
    Who: 11 passengers and 3 crew
    Why: While en route, a fire was reported in the lavatory. Smoke was detected in the cabin. The crew returned to Nuuk where they made a safe landing.

    Maintenance found an oil leak in the bleed air system.

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    Hull Breach in American Airlines Flight


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    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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    Maintenance, Smoke Grounds UA Flight to Shanghai

    What: United Airlines Boeing 777 en route from Chicago to Shanghai
    Where: Winnipeg
    When: Oct 25, 2010 1:40 pm
    Who: 194 passengers
    Why: While en route, the plane developed smoke in the cabin. The nearest place to land a 777 (requiring a long runway) was Winnipeg, so the pilot diverted to Winnipeg and made a safe landing with emergency crews on standby on the tarmac. Monday afternoon, a UA crew was assessing the plane; but a replacement plan is scheduled to arrive Tuesday to take the passengers to Shanghai.

    George’s Point of View

    Sometimes it seems as if it takes an emergency for a plane to get maintenance.

    Airliners never stop; they land, unload passengers, cleanup, fuel up, load more passengers and they are off again.

    When do planes get maintenance? After they see smoke?

    It’s not just United.

    Look at our posts: Engine failures, engine fires, cracked windshields, no oil pressure, low air pressure, breaking landing gear, non-working nose gear, shredding tires, smokey cabins…

    When do they stop a plane long enough for it to truly get a little TLC?

    I knew a former navy mechanic who said he would never fly on a commercial plane. Before AND After every flight, the crew checks every plane from nose to tail, ensuring everything is in perfect working order. It seems like a commercial plane only gets a good once over once it’s too late.

    We don’t do that with our cars. You know once the car’s warning light comes on, it’s already too late, and damage has already happened. So we get timely oil changes, and basic care because every dollar spent on maintenance is a hundred dollars not spent on repair.

    Sure, flight 835 plane is getting a once over now, but for that to happen, a plane full of passengers had to be put at risk.

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    Emergency Landing Kuwait City


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Christopher Schneider

    What: Kuwait Airways Airbus A300-600 en route from Kuwait City to Dhaka
    Where: Kuwait
    When: Oct 23rd 2010
    Why: After takeoff, the windshield developed a crack. The pilot returned to Kuwait and made a safe landing.

    Conflicting reports:
    According to Mohammed Bursali, Public Relations Director of Kuwait Airways, The windshield was replaced and the flight resumed an hour later. However, a replacement jet arrived four hours later to resume the flight.

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    Chaos on Aero Contractors in Lagos


    Not the 500. Pictured: Boeing 737-322 exAero Contractors Nigeria lease
    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    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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    Fog Diverts Delhi Flight to Patna

    What: Go Airways en route from Lucknow to Delhi
    Where: Patna
    When: October 22, 2010
    Why: While en route, weather (fog) developed in Delhi, and the flight diverted to Patna where it made a safe landing. There were no injuries. However the passengers were upset, as they pressured for information about when they would be able to continue to Delhi.

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    Unruly Passenger Hauled off by Mounties and Fined $28,000 Canadian


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

    What: Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747-400 en route from Orlando,FL (USA) to Manchester
    Where: Gander
    When: Oct 21 2010
    Who: 451 passengers and 17 crew
    Why: While underway, a drunken passenger got into a brawl with his wife and father in law. The pilot diverted to Gander where the disruptive passenger, UK citizen Roy Anthony Heaps, was escorted out of the airport by Mounties.

    The court ordered Heaps to pay a fine of $15,000 for charges of assault, uttering threats, mischief and interfering with an air crew; and restitution to the airline along the lines of 13,000 Canadian Dollars.

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    Kingfisher Emergency Landing in Mumbai

    What: Kingfisher Airbus A320-200 en route from Hyderabad to Mumbai
    Where: Mumbai, India
    When: Oct 21 2010
    Who: 136 aboard
    Why: On final approach to Mumbai, the plane incurred a bird strike which struck the landing gear. The plane made a safe landing at Mumbai, although there was some damage to the plane. Everyone made it safely off the plane.

    Newspapers reported “bird was trapped inside the wheels of the plane.”

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    Sydney: Jetstar Airbus Lands on One Engine


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Jonathan Rankin

    What: Jetstar Airbus A320-200 en route from Christchurch to Sydney
    Where: Sydney
    When: Oct 19th 2010
    Who: 118 passengers
    Why: While en route, passengers reported hearing a bang and seeing black smoke coming from an engine.

    The pilot shut down that engine, and made a safe landing in Sydney. Maintenance confirmed that the engine seized.

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    North Cariboo Lands in Peace River on One Engine


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Ivan Kresanek

    What: North Cariboo Flying Service de Havilland Dash 8-100 en route from Edmonton to Fort Nelson
    Where: Peace River, Canada
    When: Oct 19th 2010
    Who: 28 passengers and 3 crew
    Why: While en route, the plane developed low oil pressure in the left engine. The crew shut down the engine and diverted to Peace River where they made a safe landing.

    George’s Point of View

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    Air Canada Airbus Hydraulics Issue in Calgary

    What: Air Canada Airbus A320 en route from Calgary to Toronto
    Where: Calgary
    When: October 14, 2010
    Who: 158 passengers
    Why: While en route, instruments indicated that the plane developed problems with its hydraulics. The pilot returned to Calgary where they made a safe landing. Firefighting crews and 13 ambulances were on standby. The plane was towed off the runway to maintenance for observation and assessment.

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    Pilot Lost in Qatar Flight


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Manuel Ladinig

    What: Qatar Airways Airbus A330-300 en route from Manila Philippines to Doha Qatar
    Where: Kuala Lumpur
    When: Oct 13 2010
    Who: pilot
    Why: While en route to Doha, the 42 year old pilot died of a heart attack.

    The co-pilot diverted to Kuala Lumpur, where he made a safe landing at 11.30am. A replacement crew completed the journey for the passengers about five hours later.

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    Entebbe Bird Strike


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

    What: KLM Airbus A330-200 en route from Entebbe to Amsterdam
    Where: Entebbe
    When: Oct 10th 2010 9:57pm
    Who: 220 passengers
    Why: After takeoff, the plane’s right engine digested a crane. The plane returned to the airport and made a safe landing; however the flight was cancelled. Passengers were booked into Entebbe hotels while others took Ethiopian Airlines and British Airlines flights.

    Makerere University Vice Chancellor Venansius Baryamureeba, Presidential Advisor on agriculture Dr John Otim and leading Mathematician Edith Mugamba were aboard the flight.

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    Westjet Emergency Landing in Winnipeg


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Randall Johnson

    What: Westjet Boeing 737-700 en route from Montreal to Calgary
    Where: Winnipeg
    When: Oct 6 2010
    Who: 105 aboard
    Why: While en route, the plane emitted an alert, and subsequently made an emergency descent and landing. Although they received an emergency indicator engaged, there were no problems with the landing. Emergency services were on standby.

    Maintenance determined that the problem was due to a faulty sensor, and replaced same.