Air NZ plane’s cargo door opens midair

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Link submitted by New Zealand Blogger TEAA

Air New Zealand plane’s cargo door opens midair, forces emergency landing.

Air New Zealand Eagle Air plane on a flight from Auckland to Wangarei this morning was forced into an emergency landing minutes after take off after the plane’s cargo door blew open at an altitude of about 200m.

Air New Zealand has reportedly apologized to the passengers, some of who may well have experienced heart attack type pains in their chests, and soiled their pants from fear.

Air NZ spokesperson said the passengers had been re-booked on other services to Wangarei, according to a report.

Related Links:

• Top 10 Most Dangerous Airlines in 2009/2010

• Air NZ in another emergency landing scare [Posted on February 4, 2010]
• Air New Zealand Plane in Emergency Runway Stop [Posted on February 2, 2010]

• Air New Zealand: Another ‘Close Call’ [25 January 2010]
• Air New Zealand Jet Windscreen Cracked Midflight [Posted on January 11, 2010]

• An Air New Zealand flight was forced to make an emergency landing at Palmerston North airport after an engine failed 10 minutes into a flight.
• Jet makes emergency landing in Hawke’s Bay
• Pilot Error Downed Air New Zealand Airbus!

Air New Zealand: Another ‘Close Call’

Air New Zealand in another ‘Close Call,’ Airbus in Emergency Landing and Landing-Gear Fire that Injured 42

Our thanks to blogger TEAA for the information on the two ‘Close Calls’ in New Zealand airspace.

An Air New Zealand Double Tragedy Waiting to Happen

Air New Zealand had a “close call” as two passenger aircraft over Queenstown’s Lake Wakatipu came close enough to spark an automatic warning to the two pilots, the Otago Daily Times reported.

“CAA spokeswoman Emma Peel said yesterday an Air New Zealand Boeing 737 was approaching Queenstown Airport’s runway last Saturday when it was warned by its “terrain collision avoidance system” another aircraft was in the area.” The report said.

Emergency Landing at Auckland International Airport

Another Emergency Landing at Auckland International Airport

An  Airbus A340-200, 60 minutes into its flight from Auckland to Buenos Aires, reported the shutdown of its No. 1 engine, and returned to Auckland, scaring the living daylight out of its passengers. Fortunately for the 229 tourists onboard,  the plane landed without incident at about 10.25pm,  a report said.

Plane catches fire in Iran, injures 42 of 157 passengers

Some 42 passengers were injured when an aircraft caught fire as it landed in northeastern Iran on Sunday, Reuters reported state radio as saying.

“About 42 passengers, out of 157 aboard, were injured when the plane was landing at Mashhad city’s airport,” said head of Iran’s emergency medical services.

“In the worst plane crash in Iran in the past six years, a Tupolev aircraft crashed in 2009 in Iran on its way to Armenia, after catching fire mid-air and crashing into farmland killing all 168 people on board.” Report said.

Related Links:

• Top 10 Most Dangerous Airlines in 2009/2010

What Exactly Airlines Doing to You? Take 2

Come Have a Drink With Our Pilots:  United

United Airlines suspends alleged “drunken” pilot

United Airlines said it has suspended the allegedly drunken pilot who was about to fly the Boeing 767-300, flight UA 949,  from London (Heathrow) to Chicago (O’Hare) airport with 124 passengers and 11 crew members on Monday.

United Airlines Boeing 767-300 (N644UA) lands at London Heathrow Airport, England, May 2009. Credit: Adrian Ringstone.

Senior pilot Erwin Vermont Washington, 51, of Lakewood, Colorado, was reportedly arrested on Monday after colleagues realized that he was tipsy. He was reported to the authorities, and was arrested by the airport police after he failed a breath test.

“The departure to Chicago was “imminent”, with 124 passengers on board and 11 members of crew, when police arrived at the airport.” UK’s Daily Telegraph reported.

“The incident is the second time in the past six months that a pilot set to fly from London to Chicago has been arrested for allegedly being drunk.”

United Airlines is the 5th unsafest airline on FEWW Airline Safety List.

Related Links:

• What Exactly Airlines Doing to You?
• Premature births caused by Virgin Blue airline food
• Airlines & Aviation Industry, Airline Safety, Air Travel …
• The Most Dangerous Airlines for 2009/2010
• What Exactly Airlines Doing to You?
• Thank God men cannot as yet fly and lay waste the sky as well as the earth!

Another Airbus Caught Fire?

Airbus Engine Catches Fire in Orly, Paris

Eight people were injured when 165 passengers on an Airbus 310 stampeded toward the emergency exists after an engine suddenly caught fire as the plane prepared for takeoff.

Vueling Flight 9127, was preparing to take off from Orly Airport in Paris, France, heading toward Alicante in southeastern Spain when the engine caught fire at 10:36 am, on Wednesday.

“Before getting out, everybody was panicking inside the plane. When people heard about the incident, everybody was pushing each other to get out and eventually everybody went down the emergency slides,” a passenger told Associated Press.

“Jose Luis Casado, a representative of the Spanish carrier Iberia, which owns nearly half of Vueling, said that a ground employee spotted liquid leaking from one of the engines as it was starting. The employee sounded an alert, but the fire broke out soon after.”

The management decided to use the emergency slides to evacuate the passengers, Casado said.

“Of course, it is a very spectacular procedure because we use the emergency slides, we make the usual announcements, asking people to take off their shoes and leave their luggage on board the plane. It’s quite a traumatic experience for the passengers.”

For a list of most recent air crashes and Airbus near misses click on the link below.

Related Links:

• Links index: Airlines & Aviation Industry, Airline Safety, Air Travel …

Qantas pilots nix flight as cabin loses pressure

Qantas pilots land plane as cabin pressure falls at 7,000 m

Following a spate of mishaps that have plagued Qantas flights in recent weeks, including incidents of lightening strikes,  a flight was canceled today after plane lost cabin pressure.

Pilots of a Qantas plane abandoned flight to Brisbane today after a mechanical fault led to loss of cabin pressure following take-off from Auckland, New Zealand. (July 25, 2009, 4:58 pm). Image: Yahoo News. Image may be subject to copyright.

The pilots of a Qantas passenger jet abandoned flight to Brisbane today after a mechanical fault led to the loss of cabin pressure within minutes of take-off from Auckland, New Zealand.

The plane had climbed to 7000 meters when the pilots noticed it was losing cabin pressure. However the landed the plane carrying 91 passengers safely. A report said.

Related Links:

• Links index: Airlines & Aviation Industry, Airline Safety, Air Travel …

• Qantas jet hit by lightning… again
• Lightning strikes another Qantas plane
• Travel plans disrupted after flights cancelled
• Qantas flight emergency in NZ
• Kiwi’s suck at flying

Airbus Crashes in Comoros

Yemenia Airbus A310 with 153 People Crashes in Comoros

A Yemen Airways (Yemenia) Airbus A310 with 153 people onboard crashed in the Indian Ocean near the archipelago of Comoros earlier today, according to an airline official.

Most of the 142 passengers  (total of 153 people onboard) were Comoran or French. There are no report of  survivors.

Yemenia Airbus A310. Source:  aviationexplorer.com. Image may be subject to copyright.

The downed Yemenia Airbus A310 passenger jet was flying from Sanaa, Yemen,  to Moroni, in the Comoros, carrying also a 11-strong crew, Reuters reported an official as saying.

The Comoros (Population of 800,000), which consists of four small volcanic islands (Anjouan, Grande Comore, Moheli and Mayotte) in the Mozambique channel, about 300 kilometers northwest of Madagascar, is not believed to have any sea rescue capabilities.

Map of the Comoros Islands. Original map: UN.

“We still do not have information about the reason behind the crash or survivors,” the deputy general manager for Yemenia operations, said.

“The weather conditions were rough; strong wind and high seas. The wind speed recorded on land at the airport was 61 kilometers an hour. There could be other factors.”

“Two French military aircraft have left from the islands of Mayotte and Reunion to search the identified zone, and a French vessel has left Mayotte,”the director general of Moroni International Airport was reported as saying.

“The plane has crashed and we still don’t know exactly where. We think it’s in the area of Mitsamiouli,” Comoros Vice-President Idi Nadhoim told Reuters.

“We think the crash is somewhere along its landing approach,” Mr Kassim a representative from regional air security body ASECNA said. “The weather is really not very favorable. The sea is very rough.”

Reuters sketch showing the flight path of downed Yemenia Airbus. Image may be subject to copyright.

Who owns Yemenia?

Yemenia is 51 percent owned by the Yemeni government and 49 percent by the Saudi Arabian government. Yemenia’s fleet includes four Airbus A310-300s, two Airbus A330-200s and four Boeing 737-800s, according to the airline site.

Airbus Crash Stats

If you really have to fly because your life depends on it [sic,] and if you are flying an Airbus, then fly on odd days of the month because the Airbus is statistically twice more likely to crash on even days!

The Next Airbus Crash?

The probability that the next major air disaster would involve an Air New Zealand Airbus has now increased to 0.78.

Related Links:

• Links index: Airlines & Aviation Industry, Airline Safety, Air Travel …

Cockpit Fire Forces Airbus A330 to Land

Cockpit Fire Forces Jetstar Passenger Airbus A330 to Make Emergency Landing in Guam

A Jetstar Airbus A330-200  with 203 people on board was forced into an emergency landing after a fire broke out in the cockpit.

Airbus A330-200 flight from Osaka, Japan to Queensland, Australia operated by budget airline Jetstar was forced into an emergency landing after a fire broke out in its cockpit. Photo: AFP. Image may be subject to copyright.

The Jetstar Airbus A330-200, a similar model to the Air France Airbus flight 447 that crashed last week, was flying from Osaka, Japan to Australia when the cockpit caught fire.

The pilots put out the fire which broke out about four hours into the flight from Osaka to the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, before landing the plane in Guam, Jetstar was reported as saying, adding that all on board were unharmed.

“Smoke became evident in the cockpit and one of our pilots was required to use an extinguisher,” a Jetstar spokesman told Australia’s ABC News.

“We conducted an emergency diversion to Guam international airport where the aircraft landed without incident.”

He said the plane, which is two years old, would be held in Guam until the cause of the fire was established.

Flight JQ 20 left Kansai International Airport (OSAKA) about 21:00 Wednesday  bound for Perth with  186 adult passengers, four babies and a crew of 13 including 4 pilots. Most of the passengers were Japanese nationals, a report said.

Jetstar is a budget airline based in Australia and Singapore, and is part-owned by Australia’s national carrier, Qantas.

The Moderators have been expecting another Air New Zealand Airbus A320 to plunge into the sea (again), based on the airline’s safety statistics, but Air France beat the kiwis to it!

The probability remains that the next major air disaster would occur as a result of an Air New Zealand Airbus crashing into the sea [with a certainty of 0.74] —Airbus Must Come Clean

Related Links:

• Airbus Catastrophic Failure a Fatal Design Flaw
• Airbus Must Come Clean
• Second Airbus Plunges into Water
• Air New Zealand Flying Coffin Crashes in the Mediterranean
• US Airways Plane Goes Down in Hudson River

Second Airbus Plunges into Water

Second Airbus  in less than 50 days plunges into the water

Flying an Airbus? Don’t fly on even days!

A US Airways Airbus with 155 passengers and crew  plunged into the Hudson River in New York City.

The US Airways Airbus A320 crashed less than a minute after taking off from New York LaGuardia Airport heading for Charlotte, North Carolina. All 150 passengers, three flight crew and two pilots were reportedly rescued, however, some passengers were later treated for undisclosed injuries.

The aircraft sank minutes after the rescue operation had ended.

Airbus A320 becomes a submarine. Passengers are rescued in an inflatable raft from a US Airways Airbus 320 aircraft that went down in the Hudson River in NYC on Thursday. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews). Image may be subject to copyright.

On November 28, 2008, an Air New Zealand Airbus A320 crashed into the Mediterranean off Perpignan, southeastern France, killing all seven pilots and airline employees. There were no passengers on board.

Flying, Airbus safe?

Fearsome Flying Facts:
Did you know that on a flight from New York to Charlotte, North Carolina [flight duration of 1 hour 47 mins.,] each passenger produces about 1,000 lbs. of   carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) greenhouse gasses?  That is the equivalent of driving a mid-size car for a month!

Airbus Crash Stats:
If you really have to fly because your life depends on it [sic,] and if you are flying an Airbus, then fly on odd days of the month because the Airbus is statistically twice more likely to crash on even days!

Gremlins’ Slant: “Will keep the trend constant for the next 10 years; will let the odds even out!”

A list of Airbus A-320 crashes in recent years

• November 28, 2008 – Air New Zealand Airbus A320 crashed into the Mediterranean off Perpignan, southeastern France, killing all seven pilots and airline employees. There were no passengers on board.

• October 7 – Qantas Flight 72 an Airbus A330-300 made an emergency landing in Exmouth, Australia after a rapid descent that left about 70 people injured, 14 of them seriously.

• June 10, 2008 – Sudan Airways Flight 109, an Airbus A310, crashed at Khartoum International Airport, catching fire as it broke apart, killing 30 people [another 6 are listed as missing.]

• May 30, 2008 – TACA Airlines Flight 390, an Airbus A320, overruns the runway at Toncontín International Airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, killing five (including two on ground).

• January 10, 2008 – Air Canada Flight 190, an Airbus A319, experienced turbulence over the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Ten of  the 88 people on board were injured, and the plane was  forced to divert and make an emergency landing at Calgary International Airport.

• July 17, 2007 – TAM Airlines Flight 3054, an Airbus A320, crashed in São Paulo, Brazil, killing all 187 on board and 12 people on the ground.

• July 9, 2006 – S7 Airlines Flight 778, an Airbus A310, crashed into a barricade and caught fire on landing in Irkutsk, Russia, killing 128 of the 203 people on board.

• May 3, 2006 – An Armenian A320 Airbus plunged into the Black Sea moments after starting its descent into the Russian resort of Sochi, killing all 113 passengers and crew.

• September 21,2005 – JetBlue Airways Flight 292, an Airbus A320, made an emergency landing in Los Angeles because of landing gear steering failure. No injuries were reported.

• August 2, 2005 – Air France Flight 358, an Airbus A340, skids off a runway in Toronto, Ontario, while landing and catches fire; all 309 on board escape without fatalities or serious injuries, but the aircraft is completely destroyed by the fire.

• November 12, 2001 – American Airlines Flight 587, an Airbus A300, crashes into a Queens neighborhood in New York City when the plane’s vertical tail fin snaps just after takeoff. All 251 passengers and nine crew members on board are killed as well as five people on the ground.

• On August 23, 2000. The Gulf Air Airbus A320, on a flight from Cairo, crashed into shallow waters in the gulf as it was attempting to land in Bahrain, killing a 143 passengers and 8 crew on board.

• January 30, 2000 – Kenya Airways Flight 431, an Airbus A310, carrying 169 passengers and 10 crew members, crashes into the Atlantic Ocean off Côte d’Ivoire after takeoff from Abidjan. Only ten people survive.

• December 11, 1998 – Thai Airways Flight 261, an Airbus A310, crashes during poor weather near Surat Thani, Thailand. Of the 146 people on board, 102 are killed.

• March 22, 1998 – Philippine Airlines Flight 137, an Airbus A320, overshoots the end of the runway while landing at Bacolod City in the Philippines, plowing through several houses. None of the passengers were harmed, but three people on the ground were killed and several more injured.

• February 16, 1998 – China Airlines Flight 676, an Airbus A300, crashes into a residential area while attempting to land in Taipei, Taiwan. All 196 people on board are killed, in addition to six on the ground.

• September 26, 1997 – Garuda Indonesia Flight 152, an Airbus A300, crashes into a mountain near Buah Nabar, Indonesia killing all 234 on board.

• March 31 1995 – Tarom Flight 371, an Airbus A310, crashed near Baloteşti, Romania killing all 60 people on board.

• April 26, 1994 – China Airlines Flight 140, an Airbus A300, crashed during landing at Nagoya, Japan killing 264 of the 271 people on board.

• March 23, 1994 – Aeroflot Flight 593, an Airbus A310, crashed into a hillside in Siberia killing all 75 passengers and crew.

• September 14, 1993 – Lufthansa Flight 2904, an Airbus A320, crashed after overrunning the runway in Warsaw, Poland, killing 2 and injuring 68 of the 72 people on board.

• September 28, 1992 – Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268, an Airbus A300, crashes near Kathmandu, Nepal, killing all 12 crew and 155 passengers.

• February 14, 1990 – Indian Airlines Flight 605, an Airbus A320, crashed on its final approach to Bangalore airport killing 92 out of 146 people on board .

• June 26, 1988 – Air France Flight 296, an Airbus A320, made a low pass over Mulhouse-Habsheim Airport in landing configuration during an air show and crashed into trees at the end of the runway, killing 3 of the 130 passengers on board. [Source Wikipedia and others]

Related Links:

• Air New Zealand Flying Coffin Crashes in the Mediterranean
• US Airways Plane Goes Down in Hudson River