A "missed approach" SYD last night (1/12/11)

[Warks]

Last night on QF551 (BNE-SYD) 767 we came into land on the old East-West runway, our wheels touched down, and then we launched back into the air to the tune of nervous groans all over the plane. We went back up to about 800 metres and did another circuit of the city. The pilot came on and said we'd experienced a "missed approach" (at least that's what I think he said). He said that we'd suffered a large gust of wind just before landing which had forced the plane to "land long". Again I think that's what he said although my powers of recall are not 100%. I assume that meant we were pushed too far down the runway to safely pull up in time at the other end.
Anyway we circled and landed without incident on the main north-south runway (what I call 'international'). The skies looked very busy but I'm glad we managed a slot back so quickly. With all the fuel used to get back up again I can't imagine there's a lot of margin for error.

My only similar experience was a flight with BA from LAX-LHR in the late 90s where we were just about to land then took off again (no wheel touch) and then circled for another 45 minutes. That wasn't welcome after a flight of that duration I can tell you - the bloke opposite was obviously a chronic smoker and had been holding a smoke in his mouth for about 30 minutes before the initial landing attempt!
The pilot came on and said we'd had to go around because a fire engine had charged across the runway as we approached!

The fun and games of flying.

We've probably had threads on this before but I was wondering about other recent experiences. It's worrying at the time but not panic. The concern is that it could be something like the front wheel failing to engage but once informed of the situation (provided it's not that!) it's all okay.

 

[Pushka]

I have been on a few of them, the most recent being a Virgin flight into Brisbane. just as we were about to land a thunderstorm ripped through and there was flooding on the tarmac and they didn't think they could ground the flight.

Typical Virgin pilot came on and joked that they were just about to land in Coolangatta then realised their error and decided to head north for Brisbane. But it wasn't a big deal really, most people I know who fly a lot have experienced a few of them.

 

[reductionist]

Very interesting. Thanks for reporting. JB747 would be able to clarify some of the terminology used here. Good to hear you made it to the ground safely.

From what I understand missed approaches are not particularly uncommon and are a very well rehearsed/practised procedure.

 

[nlagalle]

Very interesting. Thanks for reporting. JB747 would be able to clarify some of the terminology used here. Good to hear you made it to the ground safely.

From what I understand missed approaches are not particularly uncommon and are a very well rehearsed/practised procedure.

Go arounds are nothing unusual for a pilot, I remember doing plenty when getting my licence! They are always practised.

 

[jacfin]

Missed Approach? - Twice for me.
First time, approach into Broome, light aircraft in the way(there's loads of them in that airspace) .

Second, on approach into SYD when - the pilot announced, did I detect some glee??? - a DJ aircraft in the way.

Both occasions, you could have determined what the cabin manager had for breakfast, they were so frightened!

As for moi, it was sorta,what happened ???? back there?????

Jac

 

[moa999]

Never been on a plane thats done one but seen one as we were #1 in the queue to take-off at BKK - major wind gusts and big changes in the wing angle.
We then trundled down the whole length of the runway turned around and took-off in the opposite direction from where we had been originally lined up

 

[markis10]

I average one to two a year for a variety of reasons. As already stated they are quite common and air traffic controllers expect every approach to be a go around when it comes to traffic planning.

 

[Stephen65]

Had one last week at MEL on the A330 from PER. The pilot did a go-around just before the wheels touched and later announced it was due to windshear. That's the first one I have experienced for a long time.

 

[MatF]

I've only had one, a commute flight from Perth to Argyle Diamond Mine in a 737 in ~ 2000. We were on approach in a severe tropical storm, and did a go around because the pilot "couldn't see the runway any more" (isn't that what instruments are for? )

Unsure how close we were to the ground when he gunned it.

 

[markis10]

Zero vis approaches are not available in Australia, at some point the runway must be visually sighted by the crew and kept in sight form that point.

 

[el_rooto]

A few years ago, I was a tad pissed on a JQ flight to byron (for schoolies) and sitting in the front row I asked if the FA's had ever done a go-around before. They hadn't, until we did one then....

 

[docjames]

BA 747 in the mid 1980s landing into SYD when a "small aircraft" (captain's words) failed to clear the (main) runway.

I was too young to know what the problem was, however a lot on board were mighty cheesed as we'd already spent the whole day waiting in MEL after being diverted in the morning arrival due to fog. Still, better than the alternative (trying to land on a "small aircraft".....)

At least we were in J seats (essentially open seating for the MEL-SYD leg once the booked customers had been seated - ISTR in those days BA had a tag flight SYD-MEL and vv so they seated everyone who was booked on the afternoon's flight ex-MEL to SYD then SIN, and let everyone else waiting to return to SYD from the AM flight virtually first in choose a seat. Pretty cool and the first time i'd ever been in J)

~ 8 hours in MEL international, unable to leave, with 2 small children - I appreciate now why my parents were so upset with BA when they kept delaying departure.

 

[Greggsy]

I had two on the same flight to Perth early this year, very windy. Thankfully, we got down third time lucky are some holding circles to wait for the storm to clear.

 

[Awesom Andy]

Pretty standard procedures... earlier this year, I had a couple of hours watching planes taking off/landing at AKL, and they had 2 missed within 30mins and the weather's perfectly fine... 1st one was when a landed aircraft didn't get itself out of the way quick enough, and the 2nd one was a slow SQ aircraft sitting at the start of the runway for a bit too long - in that case, the take-off didn't go ahead, and the incoming went missed.

I've only had 1 missed approach as a pax... a QF 743 attempting a possible crash-landing in the middle of a storm in NRT. Thankfully, nothing touched the tarmac, and the pilots didn't turn back for another attempt and diverted to KIX.

Have to admit, there were times when I wish they didn't try to land it... I was on a JQ flight about a year ago... the wind was pretty bad... landing on the east/west runway in SYD... and on landing, I think it landed a bit long, and it felt like the A320 bounced on the runway, pulling up just a few hundred feet from the end of the runway, reverse thrust and all.

 

[Stephen65]

The worst windy landing I have experienced in a commercial airliner was landing in Christchurch about 15 years ago when it took us three attempts to land.

I'm not sure how many go-arounds I have experienced in a day but I suspect quite a few: my father was a check captain for the then DCA and as a boy I sometimes got to ride along in the jump seat while they were training. I remember doing series of go-arounds.

 

[strance]

my experience with missed approach was in the late 90's on a qantaslink BA 146-200 BNE-ROK.

evening flight . flaps would not retract/extend and it took 2 go rounds and a fairly long approach before we touched down.

think pax were a little concerned to see the first officer come back and shine a torch out the window!

 

[UP4014]

The fun and games of flying.

We've probably had threads on this before but I was wondering about other recent experiences. It's worrying at the time but not panic. The concern is that it could be something like the front wheel failing to engage but once informed of the situation (provided it's not that!) it's all okay.

Always nice to go around, some airlines to our north would have the pilot stomp on the brakes and try to save the fuel needed for going around or kill everyone trying.

Matt
PS, I don't remember ever having had to go around again on a commercial flight.

 

[markis10]

If you go to Webtrak Sydney for the 20th Nov at 11.15AM you get a good "radar" view of an SQ380 doing one!

WebTrak: Sydney International Airport

 

[Berlin]

I will never forget the first time I experienced one of these because it was the first time in my life that I touched Australian soil- for two seconds to be exact: It was about 15 years ago, back on KLM when they still went into Sydney. Back then I was very young and not an experienced flyer at all and after this hellish long flight (-in cattle class :shock we tried to land into Sydney but the weather was everything but my naive image of Australia (kangaruus and koalas frolicking in the sun, you know the one...) and a heavy storm must have hit the 747 just as the wheels hit the runway. We pulled through again and did one of those nice long circles over the National Park, I was scared to death and so happy to finally arrive. I vaguely recall immigration being as bad of a mess as it is nowadays but didn't really care as I was at least alive.

The day after, the weather turned around, stayed around 35 degrees and sunny for the entire 5 weeks and I totally fell in love with this country

 

[harvyk]

One in WLG... I was flying AKL-WLG-CHC and the first plane we where meant to be on "broke down" and thus they had to get another plane. We finally took off nearly 2 hours late, coming into WLG just before we where about to touch down and the engines roared back into life... Don't know the reason why as the pilot simply said "As you've probably noticed we're not on the ground, we need to circle around and go again, this will probably take 15 minutes"

I was more pissed off than anything as it meant I had completely missed my original WLG-CHC flight.