QF30 Emergency Landing in MNL after door "Popped"

[maninblack]

Yep definitely agree here. My view is the sheet metal expands & slowly separates, the rivets gradually wears out and eventually breaks, the separation of metal causes a small hole to form which leads to a massive decompression reaction.

The metal is designed to break up in smaller controlled segments however given the size of a 747 there is alot of cabin air that expels and thus rips off a larger part of the fuselage than normal.

Thanks to Air Crash Investigations




Yes

Aloha Airlines Flight 243 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Maybe. But we are all still speculating on the cause of the QF30 damage. I was also referring to the position of the damage. The Aloha aircraft had completed an incredible 89,000 cycles, way more than OJK.

What is of concern are all the reports that the corrosion damage to the plane was known. Was it in the area of the aircraft where the damage occurred and what rectification works were done I wonder???

More speculation I know, but given OJK is nearly 18 years old (which is not genuinely that old, but hardly new) and now may be a suspect airframe, and given QF is probably going to retire some 744's soonish, will it be heading for the scrapheap?

 

[ANstar]

More speculation I know, but given OJK is nearly 18 years old (which is not genuinely that old, but hardly new) and now may be a suspect airframe, and given QF is probably going to retire some 744's soonish, will it be heading for the scrapheap?

My guess is it will go. If it took 2-3 months to repair... is it worth that investment for a frame that could be retired earlier given the 380 arrivals?

 

[v8Statesman]

My guess is it will go. If it took 2-3 months to repair... is it worth that investment for a frame that could be retired earlier given the 380 arrivals?

Yes, but I think they are short on long haul fleet at the momet, or am I wrong? Maybe they can "rent" a 744 from a struggling US carrier for a while

 

[oz_mark]

I would be guessing that it will be patched up, unless something comes to light about the condition of the aircraft in that area.

 

[Mal]

Good old News Ltd Hyperbole:

Somehow, the pilot managed to safely land the Boeing 747, en route from London to Melbourne, despite the ``gigantic'' hole in the belly of the plane, near the wing.

Yep, somehow :shock: Perhaps the design of aircrafts, the training that pilots have and the skill of the crew had just a small part to play.

 

[SeaWolf]

Not likely. A journalist would have used a headline like:
"Terror at 29000 feet" .
Hang on a minute! That's exactly the headline used in "The West Australian" today!

Yes, but you can't call anyone who works for the The West Australian a journalist.

 

[maninblack]

Yes, but I think they are short on long haul fleet at the momet, or am I wrong? Maybe they can "rent" a 744 from a struggling US carrier for a while

Not as short as they were, given the route cuts and service reductions. They will actually have 4 new international configured LR aircraft by year end, 3 x A380 and 1 x A332. So they would be 3 up on now. (discounting the 743's which are currently only used as fill ins internationally)

I still reckon the proposed Buenos Aires service is a Crock though QF insist it will be going ahead.

 

[MelUser]

Now that Qantas is down one 747 - I presume this one will take a month or two to get fixed, does anyone expect flow on effects to schedules or does QF have enough spare 747s for one to be removed without affecting operations?

 

[straitman]

Partially on and partially off topic.

Qantas' 'never lost a jet' claim may be in jeopardy :!:

Qantas' 'never lost a jet' claim may be in jeopardy - Today in the Sky - USATODAY.com

 

[Mal]

Partially on and partially off topic.

Qantas' 'never lost a jet' claim may be in jeopardy :!:

I'm sure that 717 is up and flying again, so the article is incorrect. I think Serfty has the details.

 

[Danger]

Not likely. A journalist would have used a headline like:

"Terror at 29000 feet" .

Hang on a minute! That's exactly the headline used in "The West Australian" today!

And very similar to the headlines in the Sun Herald. It's a wonderful indictment of the Australian media when the first seven pages of a major daily are all about an unexpected yet very well controlled (by all accounts, so far) semi-emergency in the air.

Such words as "the heroic captain" just go to show what the Australian tabloid media is all about.

 

[Mal]

Such words as "the heroic captain" just go to show what the Australian tabloid media is all about.

The media are just upset that the plane didn't crash killing hundreds. Instead they have to make up stories that make things sound *really, really bad* instead so that readers can see how they could have been killed if they were on that flight. It's all about getting the sales.

I heard a rumour yesterday from a friend of a friend's baker that that aircraft last week had rats in the fuselage. Perhaps they caused the incident by gnawing through the structural insulation. *

* Yep, this is a false statement, but hey, it's bait for the media in Australia.

 

[Maca44]

Reading the articles you would think that the descent from 29000 ft to 10000 ft was an uncontrolled plunge, rather than noting that's what pilots are trained to do

And, I think this was mentioned in a thread a long time ago that pilots have to descend very quickly to 10000 ft the emergency air tanks (when the masks are activated) only last for about 15 minutes so they have to get down quickly. From memory, there was a route over the alps that QF used and I think it was called the Silk Route, but they stopped using it because if something did happen the pilots could not descend to the required 10000 ft.

 

[Harpoon]

Just an offside comment...

There's not much fire being aimed at Qantas from anyone in this thread which I find interesting. Their current flagship aircraft, "the mighty 747-400", just had a major incident and it seems like all people care about are the lies from the media (which are a given anyway and rather boring).

Obviously until they discover the actual cause of the problem it's hard to fling mud at QF just yet. I guess I'm just surprised there's not much discussion around offshore maintenance, job cuts, union battles etc.

 

[Mal]

Obviously until they discover the actual cause of the problem it's hard to fling mud at QF just yet. I guess I'm just surprised there's not much discussion around offshore maintenance, job cuts, union battles etc.

Maybe that's because people in this forum (as opposed to the general public and those with union agendas to push) see that this is just an incident that happened, and are waiting for more information as to why it occured. There is speculation in this thread and different comments, but I don't see agendas being pushed like the media and unions do so quickly.

 

[Harpoon]

Maybe that's because people in this forum (as opposed to the general public and those with union agendas to push) see that this is just an incident that happened, and are waiting for more information as to why it occured. There is speculation in this thread and different comments, but I don't see agendas being pushed like the media and unions do so quickly.

I guess my point is that there's no "if this was missed during maintenance checks..." type comments which to me is a bit odd.

Maybe I should be a journo!

 

[Evan]

In additional to QF and CASA i am sure Boeing and the ASTB will also take a keen interest in this... its not as if there is not a whole lot of 744's that age flying around.

Of course until we see a preliminary report i guess its all conjecture as to what happened.

All i know is that everybody should be thankful that no lives lost etc, i am sure all would agree regardless of cause this was a close call for sure.

D check was only recent along with 2 x C checks and the refit issues when they added PE so i am sure any issues would have been looked at very closely at the time.

E

 

[oz_mark]

I'm sure that 717 is up and flying again, so the article is incorrect. I think Serfty has the details.

Yes, was discussed recently of FT. That 717 has been flying around.

 

[Commuter]

In additional to QF and CASA i am sure Boeing and the ASTB will also take a keen interest in this... its not as if there is not a whole lot of 744's that age flying around.

I read somewhere (I think it was BBC?) that the ATSB are sending four investigators in. I would hazard a guess that the NTSB would send some in too.

 

[serfty]

I guess my point is that there's no "if this was missed during maintenance checks..." type comments which to me is a bit odd. ...

Not ODD at all; the Union can't use this to push their bandwagon (Exploding oxygen tank one theory of QF30):

... Qantas head of engineering David Cox said all of the plane's servicing was undertaken in Australia ...

So the question re servicing was, indeed, asked of Qantas. (Guessing by a Journo)

No O/S servicing for this l'il 744 ... so no barrow to push = silence.