Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer Rudy Chiarello
What: American Airlines Boeing 737-800 en route from Miami,FL to Washington National,DC
Where: Washington
When: Mar 22nd 2011
Who: 97 people on board
Why: On approach to Washington National, the crew found themselves without feedback from ATC. They declared the airport uncontrolled. The tower frequency was declared an advisory frequency and landed safely without clearance.
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer Frank C. Duarte Jr.
What: EgyptAir Boeing 767-366ER en route from New York to Cairo
Where: Atlantic Ocean
When: October 31, 1999
Who: 4 flight crewmembers, 10 flight attendants, and 203 passengers
Why: On October 31, 1999, the EgyptAir Boeing 767-366ER crashed into the Atlantic Ocean 60 miles south of Nantucket. It was en route from New York, to Cairo International Airport, Cairo, Egypt. The flight departed JFK about 0120, with 4 flight crewmembers, 10 flight attendants, and 203 passengers. All 217 people on board were killed.?Visual meteorological conditions prevailed , which operated on an instrument flight rules flight plan. NTSB determined probable cause to be the airplane’s departure from normal cruise flight and subsequent impact with the Atlantic Ocean as a result of the relief first officer’s flight control inputs. The reason for his actions was not determined.
Yamal Airlines flight YC-145 had to return and make an emergency landing in Tyumen, Ural Federal District, Russia, on March 9.
The Boeing 737-400, heading from Tyumen to Novy Urengoy, Russia, had to return shortly afterwards after one of its main wheels was reported missing.
The plane landed uneventfully.
All 155 people aboard remained unhurt.
The incident is under investigation.
July 2, 2013, a Korean Air Boeing 777 with 273 passengers aboard was en route from Chicago to Seoul when it had a drop in pressure as jet fuel was being pumped into the engine. The left engine broke down. After the malfunction, the pilots dumped fuel and diverted to Anadyr airport in Russia, where they made an emergency landing.
Passengers had to wait inside the plane until the replacement jet arrived, so that with ten hours on the ground made a 13 hour flight almost 24 hours long for passengers.
The malfunctioning jet was grounded in Russia pending inspection.
As Anadyr airport is not one we have visited, we wonder if there is no Customs facility at Anadyr airport for individuals without visas to get some relief from the plane, which had to be exceedingly uncomfortable. Certainly there must be some humane way to abide by international law.
This excessive time stretches some IATA standards of passenger accommodation from both airline and airport. The question isn’t whether passengers are entitled to some kind of compensation for their time and trouble, but rather how the airline and airport are going to recompense the passengers.
American Airlines flight 550 had to make an emergency landing at Syracuse Hancock International Airport, New York, on October 5.
The co-pilot of the Airbus A320, en-route from Phoenix to Boston, diverted to Syracuse after the the pilot, Capt. Michael Johnston, 57, of Utah, suffered a heart attack and passed away mid-air.
The plane landed safely. There were 147 passengers aboard at the time; all of them remained unhurt.
The airline said in a statement, “Unfortunately, our pilot passed away…We are incredibly saddened by this event, and we are focused on caring for our pilot’s family and colleagues.”
Pictured: An EasyJet Airline Airbus A319-111
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer Daniel Villa
What: Easyjet Airbus 319 en route from Gatwick to Lanzarote
Where: Nantes
When: Sunday November 29, 8.30am.
Who: 136 passengers
Why: After a takeoff during stormy weather, the plane was struck by lightning. The plane returned to London and made a safe landing. After landing, the plane was checked out and deemed safe, and went on to make the flight to Lanzarote.
A passenger describes the experience.
“There was a huge flash and a loud bang. The plane shuddered and there was quite a lot of turbulence, the worst I’ve ever experienced. Then the aircraft suddenly dropped dramatically and some people were quite scared. As we landed back in Gatwick, we had fire-engines chasing us down the runway.”
United Airlines flight UA-51 had to return and make an emergency landing in Newark, New Jersey, on October 13th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane took off for Madrid, Spain, but had to return shortly afterwards due to a cracked windshield.
The plane landed safely. All 221 people aboard remained unharmed.
