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Southwest just reported that El Paso-Phoenix jet that landed at 9:30 p.m. in Phoenix with one engine did so because of an engine exhaust problem. Good for them for catching it.
This was certainly less of an issue that the April 1 2011 surprise, the fuselage rupture in the roof of the Southwest Phoenex-Sacramento flight. That fifteen year old plane lost pressure (kind of a given, one would think, with a huge hole in the roof) and had to make an emergency landing in Yuma, 150 miles southwest of Phoenix. There were no injuries except to Southwest’s reputation.
On April 4, the FAA sent out a letter mandating operators of specific early Boeing 737 models to conduct initial and repetitive electromagnetic inspections for fatigue damage.
The NTSB is investigating. And all of the onus is not on Southwest–it’s also on Boeing, as they examine that
Southwest is a busy airline operator. The stats of take offs and landing every 24 hours must be staggering. Their 737s are renowned workhorses that don’t tire, but they have to be taking a beating.
Let’s not wait for something terrible to happen. Let’s double on maintenance. Let’s do the footwork to prevent another metal fatigue occurrence to happen again, busting a hole in the fuselage at 36,000 feet.
What: (new) Avera Careflight helicopter Where: S Dakota When: November 2, 2009 Who: Pilot Craig Hilzendager and EMT Terry Willis Why: While en route, the new helicopter had a bird strike (specifically duck) that shattered the helicopter cockpit window, and injured the EMT.
The landing was simplified by night vision goggles which made it possible for the pilot and EMT to be able to see the ground.
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What: BMI British Midland Airbus A319-100 en route from London Heathrow to Edinburgh Where: London When: Jun 21st 2009 Who: 126 passengers, Why: After the scent of smoke was detected in the cabin, the plane returned to London. The plane was replaced, but no source of smoke or fire was ever found.
George’s Point of View
When I read of accounts like this one, sometimes I wonder if someone snuck a smoke in the bathroom. Not that I would defend such a thing, but if that were the case, it would be better than there being an on-going problem with the electrics.
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Condor Airlines flight DE-2115 made an emergency landing in Frankfurt, Germany, on January 30th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane flying from Cancun, Mexico, was on final approach to Frankfurt when the crew reported an issue with the flaps and went around.
The plane subsequently landed safely on second approach. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
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