VS27 16/04/2012 - Emergency Landing at LGW.

Heard Steve Ridgeway on BBC 5 live just now, kudos to him for answering rediculous questioning in a sane way...

Media!!!!

no doubt the GLA-MCO will still be used by the other A333 but replacement Vs27/28 may be used by 3 class config A333?

Don't forget the man-mco 333 service.

Yip meant to include MAN too Steve.

Just got home and seen this thread :0 So glad everyone ok and so glad I am on a 747 to MCO on Friday......... I will be the one studying my safety card very studiously and nervously |:)

How do you know which aircraft it will be though???


Sunshine 8D

I am in Upper class on the VS15 so should be a 747 to MCO

8D

no doubt the GLA-MCO will still be used by the other A333 but replacement Vs27/28 may be used by 3 class config A333?

Don't forget the man-mco 333 service.

I would have thought the GLA flights will be operated by a 747, rather than change the daily VS75/76 flight.

Neil, A333 has been doing the GLA-MCO (Sat-Mon) runs for the past 3 weekends and is scheduled to do so until 16th June when it reverts to a 744.

They may now as you say just start it on a 744 from this weekend but the A333 was not more than 75% full so a 744 would be even emptier.

Nightmare which I am glad not to have to make a call on!!!

Just got home and seen this thread :0 So glad everyone ok and so glad I am on a 747 to MCO on Friday......... I will be the one studying my safety card very studiously and nervously |:)

How do you know which aircraft it will be though???


Sunshine 8D

I am in Upper class on the VS15 so should be a 747 to MCO

8D

I'm UC on the 27 to MCO. Who knows what'll happen ?|

Not sure why people think having an a330 out of action will mess up the schedule,plenty more aircraft on the ground, 2 in the hangar that VA decided not to use for their own reasons.
The incident could have happened to any aircraft. It was not type specific and there was nothing wrong with the a330. Lots of publicity around scaring people off using a330s for travelling... Winding this normally very happy worker up!!

Glad everything seems to have ended safely (strange coincidence that one of the latest air crash investigation was about a hold fire! Albeit with a much graver ending)

It will be interesting to see how many pay attention to the safety briefings now.

David

[Neil]

Not sure why people think having an a330 out of action will mess up the schedule,plenty more aircraft on the ground, 2 in the hangar that VA decided not to use for their own reasons.
The incident could have happened to any aircraft. It was not type specific and there was nothing wrong with the a330. Lots of publicity around scaring people off using a330s for travelling... Winding this normally very happy worker up!!

The issue with it being an A330 is that VS only operate two of these a/c, so don't have any option to just sub it to an identical a/c. The LGW fleet is worked hard as it is, with no spare a/c just sat around, so they can't just pull a 747 out of the hangar and swap it on to the A330 flights.

What will probably have to happen, is that an LHR 747 will have to help cover some of the LGW 747 routes (BGI/LAS are the most likely choices), with an LGW 747 covering the A330 flights, but then that means having to put an A346 on some of the LHR 747 flights. Of course it isn't just that simple, because they have to look at both cabin and overall flight loads, as all the a/c have different seats both per cabin and overall.

That's not forgetting they have to operate an extra fight tomorrow to MCO just to get back on track.

Neil

ISTBC but from previous posts I think SHG works at an airport (LHR/LGW?) and may even be a VS employee, so he or she may know things we don't about availability of aircraft.

SHG would you care to comment - in as far as you are permitted to?

Martin

Makes you wonder how many people would haven't have wanted to get back on another plane after what they'd been through.

[Darren Wheeler]

I bet tomorrow will see a lot more attention being paid to the safety briefing.

[Neil]

And that's exactly what we did we turned ST round in record time ready to slot into the schedule. The company decided not to fly the 27. Makes you wonder how many people would haven't have wanted to get back on another plane after what they'd been through.

So are you saying todays 27 has just been cancelled? What about the pax from todays 28? I assume a fair % of the 27 pax will still want to go on their holiday, so will they just be filtered on to other flights?

It is interesting that tomorrows 15 has already been delayed until 6pm - surely that isn't going to help the schedules?

[buns]

Just got home and seen this thread :0 So glad everyone ok and so glad I am on a 747 to MCO on Friday......... I will be the one studying my safety card very studiously and nervously |:)

Sunshine 8D

A timely reminder to all of us to follow the safety briefing Every time we fly and not engross ourselves in the newspaper, book etc

All credit to the crew and I do hope everybody on board is able to put this all behind them

buns

And that's exactly what we did we turned ST round in record time ready to slot into the schedule. The company decided not to fly the 27. Makes you wonder how many people would haven't have wanted to get back on another plane after what they'd been through.

So are you saying todays 27 has just been cancelled? What about the pax from todays 28? I assume a fair % of the 27 pax will still want to go on their holiday, so will they just be filtered on to other flights?

It is interesting that tomorrows 15 has already been delayed until 6pm - surely that isn't going to help the schedules?

Today's VS27 is now operating tomorrow as the VS127, with a scheduled departure of 14:00, and today's VS28 is now the VS128, departing tomorrow at 21:30.

The fuel dump system is an airline option, VS apparently chose not to take that option on the A330s - i.e., they are unable to dump fuel.

Not a particular issue, as all planes are designed such that they can land at the maximum takeoff weight...

The A330-300 doesn't need the fuel dumping option as it can meet the FAR 25.119 requirement. The A340 and 747-400 usually can't make this requirement so have fuel dumping systems.

I would just want to point this out in case there are any journalists reading this thread thinking VS purposefully didn't order the fuel dump option.

Also, given that the instruments indicated a fire, is it normal procedure to then release a mist of aviation fuel?

Seems a bit silly to me....

A huge well done to the entire crew for landing and completing what seems by all accounts to have been a text book evacuation. Superb and I really wish those involved all the best oo) oo)

In terms of the schedules now, this will cause a real headache but one which most won't mind in the circumstances especially with knock on delays. I do know that a LHR 744 is coming across to LGW from 30.04.12 to take up duty on the BGI route so maybe one could come across earlier to help out a little.....

Jon

IIRC this is only the second major incident for a VS aircraft (major being slides deployed) the other being the 343 emergency landing in around 1997 at LHR.

B) Hey, no fair that it's only consider it major when the slides are deployed.

I was on the VS201 (November 2006) when it had sparks flying out of engine 4 on take off. Was quite dramatic on board as first officer was running up and down the cabin, which was in darkness, to look back at the engine twice. We weren't told anything for what seemed like ages. It was an A346 and we spent over an hour dumping fuel. I can't believe I remained calm enough when I can be quite a nervous flyer. May have been all the pre-take off champagne. We landed normally and no slides were called for. It was major to me but I guess no slides meant there was no serious enough danger. Got 10,000 miles and £150 compensation. Wonder how much you get for a major... anyone know?

A huge well done to the entire crew for landing and completing what seems by all accounts to have been a text book evacuation. Superb and I really wish those involved all the best oo)
Jon

I echo your sentiments Jon. Good job VS ^)

A huge well done to the entire crew for landing and completing what seems by all accounts to have been a text book evacuation. Superb and I really wish those involved all the best oo) oo)

In terms of the schedules now, this will cause a real headache but one which most won't mind in the circumstances especially with knock on delays. I do know that a LHR 744 is coming across to LGW from 30.04.12 to take up duty on the BGI route so maybe one could come across earlier to help out a little.....

Jon

Echoed totally, some people would have been petrified on there! Great work. I saw the itv report on the ten o clock news and I'm sorry that people got injured but when you are piling 300 people off a plane in,what, less than 2 minutes, that's always a risk! Shame they are trying to paint the airline badly, IMHO.


OT, but do we know how long an LHR 747 is running BGI for (and for the 35 as well as 29)?

May I join the chorus of praise for the crew on this flight. I am aghast as some of the nonsense I have heard in the media.

One passenger on the radio earlier was a bit moany that the chutes were quite hard and there was no-one at the bottom to catch passengers!!! Oh come on! what you do expect, a bouncy castle experience? Everyone lived, and it was potentially life threatening event.

On my last flight with VS there was a medical emergency on board, prompting what felt like a prioritised landing at LHR and crew were first class at handling the entire situation.

I saw some tweets saying "never gonna fly virgin again". Frankly the professional way the pilots & crew dealt with it makes me feel safer travelling Virgin, but I do worry that sales might get hit.

Just got home and seen this thread :0 So glad everyone ok and so glad I am on a 747 to MCO on Friday......... I will be the one studying my safety card very studiously and nervously |:)

And so will I

We landed normally and no slides were called for. It was major to me but I guess no slides meant there was no serious enough danger. Got 10,000 miles and £150 compensation. Wonder how much you get for a major... anyone know?

Er... I was wondering that too :w

I saw some tweets saying "never gonna fly virgin again". Frankly the professional way the pilots & crew dealt with it makes me feel safer travelling Virgin, but I do worry that sales might get hit.

I really don't mean to sound flip - cos seriously, I'm not - but if sales are affected, could that mean a 'proper' flight sale perhaps maybe???? i)

VS would do well to get some positive PR out on the incident, the crew doing what they are trained to do and doing it well.
More so explaining to the daily mail masses the importance of a quick exit. CC screaming at pax... Well yes! Sorry if you left your hand bag behind---get off now!
Yes they were likely panicking----they were potentially responsible for saving your life!