This just makes my blood boil! The media are on a witch hunt now and will publicise the least little problem with any of the Quantas fleet.

It’s their turn in the barrel. next week it will be somebody else.
“kwantarse jet runs out of tooth picks, passengers scream in terror!!”
The O2 bottle letting go (if it was that) was just one of thouse things that happens in aviation. It was unuseual but if that had happened to another airline, would it have had the same media interest?

Rgds Cking

Was it really the wind? All those people out there who know about by-pass pins, could of been the lack of one of them inserted, while the tug and tow bar are connected?

Naaa!!! If you don’t have a by-pass pin installed when the hydraulics are switched on the tow bar shear pin will shear.
Must have given the head set bloke a shock when the aircraf started to move towards him!

Rgds Cking

It’s a shame sometimes, so young with a whole career infront which has been ruined by some do-gooders going by the book. Why not keep it in house and amongst “so called” friends, deal with it and take it as a good wake up call. If proven, she will never get to fly again, which is a big kick in the teeth when it was what you set out to do many years before you got the job. I know some people will say”do the crime – pay the time” but whatever happened to a bit of compassion and a good stern warning. I hope who ever gave her in can sleep easy at night.:(

Well said jetset. Whilst I don’t condone drinking at work or working drunk, there must be more to this story. I do hope that the person involved gets through this ok.
Mind you I’d have to have a skin full to deal with the traveling public!

Rgds Cking (hic! back to work on the 20th before you ask!)

Not today mate, day off today (well if you call instructing a day off), this in MAN?

Yes I was around stand 52 when a Q400’s APU made an odd “phutting” noise and went all quiet.
I went over to see if any passengers were screaming in terror and found a very young pilot radioing for a GPU. I was most disapointed not to see him wrestling with the controls. Using all my experience I said “Sounds like your APU’s broke mate” Without a trace of fear he said “compleatly dead mate!” I am now trying to sell my story to the highest bidder. The Sale and Altrincham messenger has offered me £2.50.

Rgds Cking

Once I saw the picture that Tridentman posted it reminded me that this fairing is held on by loads of screws of different lengths. It is possible to put an incorrect length one into the fairing and for the tail of the screw to come into contact with the pressure hull and damage it. Boeing have issued several safety alerts warning of this saying that this could cause a fatigue failure in this area. The 737 has the same problem and I have seen several aircraft with a warning painted onto the fairing to this effect.

Rgds Cking

Holy c**P!!!!!!!!!!
Given our “Panels off aeroplanes” history Steve I had better say This IS very bad straight off!
On top of the many scary things about this, the reports of the cabin floor colapsing raises an eyebrow too. There are blow in panels dotted about the cabin foor and side walls to stop that happening. This was brought in after the two DC-10 rear cargo door seperations back in the seventies.
Glad to see that everyone walked away from this one. Well done to the lads and lasses at Boeing for building a tough old bird!

Rgds Cking

We have had a rash of three holes in recently
RAF Tristar
Omni DC-10
World airways(?) MD-11
and last night a Portuguese Tristar came down from Scotland to do a Tommy cook flight.
Pity we havn’t had the weather to photograph them!
Get your pictures of the Fedex flights whils you can. The word on the street is that they are pulling out of MAN soon

Rgds Cking

Also, isn’t it physically impossible to open a door inflight becuase of the pressure difference?

Yes. I found these on Utube. As you can see almost the first movement of the doors is inward. You will have the full effect of cabin pressure holding the door in the aperture, you won’t shift it. My concern is with the drunk swinging of the handle what damage is he doing to the opening mechanism.
747

767

Rgds Cking