What: Cape Air Cessna 402
Where: Barnstable Municipal Airport
When: September 17, 2009
Who: nine people onboard
Why: When the left engine failed, the pilot made an emergency landing at Barnstable on one engine.
Pictured: An Air Canada Airbus A319 in flight
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Nino Buda
What: Air Canada Airbus A319-100 en route from Calgary to Toronto
Where: Winnipeg
When: Thursday Sept 17 12:03 pm
Who: 121 passengers
Why: While en route, the pilot experienced problems with the left engine and had an indicator light indicating further problems. After declaring an emergency situation, the pilot idled the left engine, and landed safely in Winnipeg a little over half an hour after declaring an emergency.
What: Chartered King Air en route from Ruidoso N.M to Vernal
Where: Ruidoso N.M
When: Sept 6
Who: Bob Williams, Mikki Ramussen, Cindy Thomson, AudieWilliams, Kaye Williams, Linda Conde, Juan Carlos Sanchez.
Why: After the pilot determined there was a problem with the landing gear, he was directed to return to Ruidoso to make an emergency landing.
Instead of 3 landing gear, only one was down. Eventually all 3 of them were down when the plane landed; however on landing the gear collapsed, forcing the plane to a belly landing.
No one was injured but the plane was totaled. The Charter company provided a replacement flight the next day.
What: Twin-engine Beechcraft King Air en route from Hayward Executive Airport to San Carlos
Where: HAYWARD, Calif.
When: Sept 16 12:25 p.m
Who: Pilot
Why: Witness say after a sputtering take-off, the plane plane’s right wing got low, and the plane had barely got off the runway when it clipped the back of a commercial building just off the airfield. Coming down, the plane was described as a “70 foot fireball”. The pilot was the only one aboard, and he walked away.
Contact Photographer Steve Nation
What: Schweizer SGS 1-34
Where: Skylark Field Lake Elsinore, California
When: 12-SEP-2009 2:50 pm
Who: William R. Klesse
Why: While being towed, the glider pilot lost control, and received received serious injuries.
The pilot was transported to Inland Valley Medical Center and died within hours.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Bernd Sturm
What: ContactAir Fokker 100/Lufthansa en route from from Berlin Tegel to Stuttgart
Where: Stuttgart
When: Sep 14th 2009
Who: 73 passengers including Franz Muentefering and 5 crew (6 injury/issues)
Why:
Update:
According to news releases quoting Lufthansa, the Stuttgart emergency landing on Sept. 14 was “probably caused by a valve part that came loose and blocked the landing gear’s hydraulic system.”
“Part of a valve came loose internally and blocked a hydraulic line…It worked like a stopper.”
George’s Point of View
Maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. It’s a 14 year old plane. Should I repeat “maintenance” 14 times? It’s not as if the plane were self-aware and could tighten or replace its own valves.
The plane’s last inspection was in August, prior to Contact Air acquiring the plane. Even if Contact Air is not legally required to perform a post-purchase inspection, it seems like it would be a reasonable thing for a new owner to do.
If this were a used car purchase, would we take it for an inspection with our own mechanics, and to get tags?
See archives:
George’s Point of View
New technology is coming in 2013 that will replace pilots current “see and avoid” avoidance system over the Hudson, where pilots rely on listening to a traffic frequency to keep them out of harm’s way. Obviously, this is proving inadequate over the Hudson River where the helicopter and plane collided last August killing nine. All those buildings to avoid–and all those planes and helicopters too.
Until 2013, more regulations will be in place regarding what vehicle flies at which altitude. The new system will involve GPS tracking on visible receiver screens carried on planes and helicopters, a new take on old radar technology.
It’s never too late to save lives. Though one wonders if pilots can’t see a whole plane coming, (or conversely, a helicopter at nine o’clock, or right in front of them) if a blip on a screen is going to be more effective. Given the heavy traffic over the Hudson, it just might look like Space Invaders and how much good will that do?
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Ole Simon
What: Iberia Airbus A340-600 en route from San Jose to Madrid
Where: Santo Domingo
When: Sep 14th 2009
Who: passenger identified as Maurer David Charles experienced a medical emergency
Why: In flight, the passenger became ill, necessitating an emergency landing, and immediate trip to the hospital where it was found by ex ray that he had swallowed bags of drugs.
The passenger is facing criminal charges.
George’s Point of View
What is it that they say…Crime doesn’t pay? They’re right.
Bombardier is promising their new C series planes will “cut greenhouse gas emissions, ensure substantial fuel savings and be four times quieter .”
Let’s hope all these cuts don’t also sacrifice safety along with heavier materials. As far as safety is concerned, will the new planes made of “lightweight composite and aluminum lithium materials, built to accommodate stricter environmental standards and” well-built airplane(s) … capable of withstanding turbulence” be sacrificing the safety of sturdier construction and time-tested safety features to reach optimistically green standards?
How will these new lighter planes fare when subjected to unexpected turbulence, which is commonplace in realistic day to day flying conditions? I have no answers, only questions.
Pictured: A Kingfisher Airlines Airbus
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Steve Brimley
What: Kingfisher Airlines Airbus A320-200 en route from Mumbai to Bangalore
Where: Mumbai
When: Sep 15th 2009
Who: 98 passengers
Why: Shortly after takeoff from Mumbai, the gear failed to retract. The plane returned to the airport for a safe landing, where passengers debarked–also safely–to board alternative transportation.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Bernd Sturm
What: ContactAir Fokker 100/Lufthansa en route from from Berlin Tegel to Stuttgart
Where: Stuttgart
When: Sep 14th 2009
Who: 73 passengers including Franz Muentefering and 5 crew (6 injury/issues)
Why: After lowering the gear on approach to Stuttgart, the plane indicated an unsafe gear indication. The main gear would not lower; and after a holding pattern and attempts to resolve the issue, the plane made a belly landing on foam. Passengers debarked via slides.
Franz Muentefering, chairman of Germany’s Social Democratic Party was on board, en route to an election rally.
Five passengers were treated for shock, one flight attendant was hospitalized, but only one passenger was injured.
Video in German
Pictured: An Air Europa Boeing over Barcelona
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Rui Miguel
What: Air Europa Lineas Aereas Boeing 737-800 en route from Barcelona to Madrid
Where: El Prat airport, Barcelona
When: Sep 13th 2009 12.35
Why: After takeoff, the indicator light for engine failure lit, a noise was heard and the plane experienced what is described by passengers as a “tremor.” After the safe landing at El Prat, the airport of origin, passengers continued on another plane to Madrid.
What: Beech A-30 Bonanza en route from Asheville Regional Airport
Where: crashed into Kenmure subdivision, a gated golf community
When: September 10, 2009
Who: 1 fatality: pilot Larry Youngblood
Why: In foggy conditions, the plane apparently hit several trees, and landed between two house with its wings torn off. The NTSB is investigating.
What: private Cirrus SR22 en route from South Carolina to Teterboro, N.J
Where: Rock Hill airport property just off S.C. 161 in South Carolina just across the state line from Charlotte
When: 7:15 a.m. Friday
Who: Pilot and co-owner of the Charlotte Bobcats 49-year-old William “Skipper” Beck of Charlotte, N.C
Why: Shortly after takeoff, the plane returned, but when attempting to land, crashed and caught on fire. Debris remained at the north end of the runway. Rock Hill airport doesn’t record radio transmissions so there’s no record of whether or not Beck made radio transmissions prior to the crash.
Beck had 390 flight hours, and the plane had 93 hours in the air.
Luke Schiada is the lead ntsb investigator assigned to the crash.
Contact Photographer Shimizu Brothers
What: Gifu Prefecture Bell 412 EP Ambulance/Rescue helicopter en route from Gifu Airbase.
Where: Takayama, about 240 kilometers west of Tokyo.
When: Sept 11 2009, 3:30pm (0630 GMT
Who: four people (5 crew on board but at least one was on the mountain in the process of the rescue)
Why: During an emergency rescue of a climber who collapsed with cardiopulmonary arrest while mountain climbing, the helicopter’s tail rotor hit the mountain; and it fell 400 meters into a ravine. 5 crew were originally on board, 2 crew off from the helicopter rappelling down.
The climber and the three aboard the helicopter were pronounced dead at the scene.
Please excuse the bad translation below but it is pretty much indecipherable unless we get names:
Disaster Asakura Hitoshi County (57) (Kakamigahara, Gifu Prefecture), Miyoshi Hideho mechanic (47) (same), vice captain Gotou Atsushi (34) (Kasamatsu-cho, Hyogo Prefecture ) confirmed dead.
George’s Point of View
Fast food.
Maybe you don’t ever go to a drive through, but I admit, sometimes in my life, I have. I make no excuses for it. But there is one time that sticks in my brain.
I was at an undesignated drive through in an undesignated city, and I pulled up to make my undesignated order, and after 2 seconds of talking to a speaker, realized I was being quizzed by a recording. Although it was working perfectly and in English, we didn’t speak the same language. And to make it even more aggravating, this is one of those driveways it is impossible to exit until the end. So I was forced to wait all the way around; and when I did, I did not get food; but I did make a formal complaint, which I followed through both indoors and in a letter to the undesignated franchise. Maybe it’s stupid, but I felt offended; and I did not return to that particular franchise until that impersonal protocol was removed.
And this was just fast food. My life was not at immediate risk.
Recordings don’t cut it. Sometimes you JUST NEED PEOPLE to communicate.
I’m betting that there are some French Aer Lingus passengers who feel the same way. Friday, somebody in the cabin of an Aer Lingus Dublin to Paris flight pushed the wrong button and subjected the French passengers to the wrong pre-recorded message…the emergency landing message. This put them all in fear of their lives. That same pain and suffering people feel when they’re actually about to crash–that’s what these French passengers were going through. The non-French were fine, since they didn’t get that message that they were about to crash.
I’ve been on planes that made emergency landings and in both instances we heard directly from a live human in the flight deck who explained the problem and urged us not to worry.
Where do they come off with stupid recordings like this? The airline should refund the full fare to these passengers for the grief they unnecessarily went through, even if only for a few minutes and airline operator should be happy they got off that cheaply.
There’s no excuse.
What: Armada de Mexico helicopter Russian-built MI-17 chopper en route from Veracruz to Mexico City
Where: border between Veracruz and Puebla
When: 10-SEP-2009
Who: 2 fatalities, 3 injuries. The two dead are a lieutenant and a mechanic
Why: No reason is given for the crash. The weather at the time was rainy and foggy with limited visibility. Survivors were taken to hospitalization facilities in Jalapa and Perote
What: Colgan Air /US Airways Saab SF-340B en route from Hyannis to Nantucket
Where: Hyannis
When: Sep 10th 2009
Who: 3 crew on board
Why: The crew reported a problem with the engine compressor and returned to the airport
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Tom Turner
What: Colgan Air Saab 340B
Where: Washington Dulles
When: Sep 7th 2009
Who: 20 passengers and 3 crew
Why: The flight rejected takeoff when a warning light came on in the cockpit. The flight was cancelled while maintenance repaired (presumably) a sensor.
George’s Point of View
There is no indication that both incidents were the same plane; but that Chicago plane doesn’t much look like a UA plane, does it? So, 2 different planes and both times maintenance to the rescue. But then we should rethink this…maintenance needs to try to catch this stuff before take-off. Has Colgan Air cut its maintenance budget lately?
What: Armada de Mexico Mi-8MTV-1 AMHT-208 en route from Veracruz to Mexico City
Where: border between the states of Veracruz and Puebla
When: Sept 10, 2009
Who: 5 on board, 2 fatalities
Why: Crashed close to the kilometer 27 of the Perote-Los Humeros road. Pilot Daniel Cabrera Ruiz and Aviation Mechanic Irineo González Jerónimo were killed. The three survivors were taken to Jalapa and Perote, in Veracruz. The crash is under investigation by Aviation authorities and the Armada de Mexico.
Pictured: A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Chris Heaton
What: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 en route from Phoenix to Burbank
Where: LAX
When: Sep 8th 2009
Why: When a problem with the wing flaps was detected, the flight diverted from Burbank to LAX to take advantage of the longer runways.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Miguel Nobrega
What: Aer Lingus Airbus A320-200 en route from Dublin to London
Where: Dublin
When: Sep 9th 2009
Who: 120 passengers
Why: 25 minutes into the flight, the plane indicated a hydraulics problem. The flight crew returned to London where mechanics confirmed the hydraulic problem. The landing was safe, with no reported injuries.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Thomas Ernst
What: An Air India Airbus A330-200 flight en route from Tokyo Narita to Delhi
Where: Delhi
When: Sep 10th 2009 4:55
Who: 122 people on board 111 passengers and 11 crew
Why: The pilot made a precautionary landing in Delhi when ten minutes prior to scheduled landing he had faulty readings of the plane’s hydraulics. The plane landed safely 25 minutes later, and was taxied safely. No injuries were reported.
George’s Point of View
No follow-up yet on this hydraulics issue. Was it the instrumentation? Was there a leak caused by lack of maintenance or too many flight hours squeezed in between maintenance checks? I’m sure Air India passengers would like to know.
What: Delta Boeing 767-300 en route from Atlanta to Paris, France.
Where: GSP Airport
When: September 10, 2009
Who: h 213 passengers and 11 crew
Why: Nearly an hour into the flight, the plane had problems with the on board generator. The plane landed at GSP airport without event, and passengers debarked at 2:30 am. No injuries were reported; fire and emergency crews were on standby.
George’s Point of View
This is a generator. Why is this something the pilot lucked into in mid-flight? This is what maintenance crews are for. When do they get serviced, only after they stop working?
What: Delta Boeing 757 en route from Atlanta
Where: Tampa International Airport.
When: 09/07/2009
Who: 150 passengers and crew
Why: The pilot reported a fuel problem prior to making a safe landing at TIA. Fire crews were waiting, but the flight landed without further incident.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact Photographer Gerry Stegmeier
What: Bulgaria Air Boeing 737-300 en route from Varna Bulgaria to Moscow
Where: Varna Bulgaria
When: Sep 6th 2009
Who: 106 passengers
Why: Just after takeoff, the cockpit window cracked. The plane landed safely back at the airport about an hour after takeoff, at 4:30 pm. Passengers were provided an alternative flight.
