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Students Treated for Skin Irritation After Apparent Fuel-Dump From Plane Over School
About 20 students were treated by firefighter Tuesday after a plane that was approaching Los Angeles International Airport dumped fuel over a nearby community. (www.nbclosangeles.com) Más...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
My opinion is this issue is more than unapproved dumping over a populated area. Hopefully, more information on the flight will be forthcoming. I do think the crew was overwhelmed. If this was a long range overwater flight there should have been 3 or 4 pilots in the cockpit for takeoff. A report of stressed radio comm was mentioned. So who was talking to ATC? It has been almost 20 years since I retired off the 777 so I broke out my OPMAN to go over the issues for the initial problem of compressor stall on one engine and return to the airport.
I see several procedures involved...all on separate pages of the OPMAN. Likely the EiCAS system is easier to access the procedures and I understand now you can plug in your laptop to the a/c system.
The procedures that needed to be completed seem to include COMPRESSOR STALL, 1 ENG APPROACH AND LANDING, OVER WT LANDING, FUEL DUMP, FA BRIEF. These are not Red Box items in the 20 year old manual I have.
Where was #1 FA during this time and did the Cabin have enough time to prepare for landing?
Fuel dump seemed to be rushed for landing and over a populated area.
During 35 years my flights only had 3 engine shutdowns. Two were no engine oil and one fire warning (high pressure, High Temp bleed leak). Aircraft are reliable even on one engine. No big rush unless you are burning or pieces are departing the a/c.
Could automation and less than routine manual flying be an issue that added to this flight event?
Likely, #1 FA got her brief on the flight deck. That gets into being careful with the brief. Returning from HNL on a 747 we lost oil in an engine and shut it down. We had 3 pilots and one FE plus #1 on the flight deck. I turned to the CA and said we had to go down (decend due to high fuel flow and Mach). #1 left the flight deck. A few minutes later the back cabin called up and wanted to know about the impending ditching.
Anyway, this flight could be more than just dumping fuel over LA schools.
I see several procedures involved...all on separate pages of the OPMAN. Likely the EiCAS system is easier to access the procedures and I understand now you can plug in your laptop to the a/c system.
The procedures that needed to be completed seem to include COMPRESSOR STALL, 1 ENG APPROACH AND LANDING, OVER WT LANDING, FUEL DUMP, FA BRIEF. These are not Red Box items in the 20 year old manual I have.
Where was #1 FA during this time and did the Cabin have enough time to prepare for landing?
Fuel dump seemed to be rushed for landing and over a populated area.
During 35 years my flights only had 3 engine shutdowns. Two were no engine oil and one fire warning (high pressure, High Temp bleed leak). Aircraft are reliable even on one engine. No big rush unless you are burning or pieces are departing the a/c.
Could automation and less than routine manual flying be an issue that added to this flight event?
Likely, #1 FA got her brief on the flight deck. That gets into being careful with the brief. Returning from HNL on a 747 we lost oil in an engine and shut it down. We had 3 pilots and one FE plus #1 on the flight deck. I turned to the CA and said we had to go down (decend due to high fuel flow and Mach). #1 left the flight deck. A few minutes later the back cabin called up and wanted to know about the impending ditching.
Anyway, this flight could be more than just dumping fuel over LA schools.
pilot is in charge... in an emergency pilot makes the decisions... ATC clears everything out of the way giving priority to the emergency... got no problem with this pilot's decision... until we know the scope of the emergency we can't and shouldn't judge... can fly for hours on one engine?? out over the Pacific may be necessary... dump over unpopulated area? if possible OK.... heavy airplane just after takeoff?? dump and land...
To me this was an example of glaring poor airmanship. The pilots got unjustifiedly nervous, instead of requesting vectors for runway 25R and rushing to the airport (I listened the recordings and they were doing 350 knots on downwind leg) they should have requested permission for dumping fuel and vectors to the appropriate área but they never told ATC about fuel dumping over a heavily populated área for they would have been denied to do that. The crew must be doing the sombrero dance before their superiors shortly as this was a violation of existing rules and bad publicity for Delta.
In other news, the Park Avenue elementary school lice outbreak has been cured....
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Last time my nose did a sniff test Jet-A smelled VERY different from Auto Gas.
Where do I sign up for my share of the money?