J1230s
I cannot make any comment on this specific incident, as I know nothing about it. However I would like to address your concerns by providing some factual information and will try and attempt to put yours and your wifes minds at rest.
When ever an event happens on an aircraft be it serious or minor, it is important for the crew to be aware that there are passengers sat in the cabin who need to be kept in the communication loop. How and when information is communicated will depend on time being available to carry out the task. As you will appreciate the flight deck crew must make as their primary task the flying of the aircraft. They must deal with any problems that arise and once addressed they need to communicate with each other generally, and then with air traffic control. The Captain will then communicate with the Cabin crew, usually through the senior Cabin crew member. Having prioritized in this manner the Captain will normally speak to the passengers and let them know what is happening. Obviously the Captain should give a reassuring and easily understood explanation of events, together with a brief summary of the next course of action and when any further information will be forthcoming. Cabin crew will normally have been briefed, and should be able to answer any general questions that passengers may have.
Having said this, it may take some considerable time for the primary situation to be properly resolved, and since time may not always allow all of these procedures to be accomplished, it follows that not of all of the niceties can be carried out if a situation dictates otherwise.
On the B757 the pilots have a forward window in front of each of them. At the side of each of them are two side windows. The most forward of these
side windows are able to be opened by the use of a locking lever and a crank handle which is subsequently used for rolling the window backwards or forwards. When the window is closed and locked there is a red painted line on the window locking arm that should be aligned with the window frame. In fact it is not a perfect system and you have to wonder why the manufacturer didn't incorporate an electronic warning that displays on the pilots instrument screen ( EICAS) as they indeed provide for all the passenger doors. In any event they don't and part of the pilots ordinary scanning checks are to make sure the windows are closed and properly locked. It often happens that prior to engine start up the window may need to be opened to check something visually, or even to shout at people on the ground, and it is incumbent on the pilot to ensure the window is properly closed and locked again. However it can sometimes ( albeit rarely) happen that the window is closed but not properly locked. If this happens then left unchecked what will happen is you get to a certain speed on the take off roll and
Surprise the window blows back (open). Because it is a side window there is not a great deal ( but some) aerodynamic pressure on the forward part of the window itself. If the speed is low enough the take off would be discontinued. However, though alarming, it is not in itself an especially serious event and at higher speeds the proper course of action would be to get airborne and close it quickly, but nevertheless as time allows. It is a fairly simple procedure to close, you simply crank the window lever forwards to close the window, and then rotate the locking lever forward ( as you should of done in the first place ) ! The aircraft will then pressurise and the flight would normally continue. Of course if the window had failed to lock due to some mechanical deficiency then the proper course of action would be to divert or return to to the departure airfield. In any event the course of action is ultimately down to the Commander.
In any situation where the flight deck crew need to communicate with the Cabin crew because of an unusual event they would make a call over the PA system in the manner you describe. I appreciate that this may have sounded "panicky", but in actual fact it is the use of only one defined sentence. There may be a sense of imperative or urgency in the delivery but that should not be confused with panic. The latter being very unlikely. Although you don't say, it sounds as though you were told the reason for the situation and I am presuming this was by the Captain by way of an address either in flight or on the ground. You should understand that the Captain needs to call the senior crew member to the flight deck not necessarily to "help" them directly, although this might be the case, but also to tell them what is happening, what they are then going to do, how long it will take to sort the problem out or return to an airport, and any special items the Captain wants carried out or imparting to the other crewmembers and or passengers.
I can understand how frightening this might have seemed and indeed been for your wife and yourself. It is all very well for us as crew to know what is happening, and what we are doing about it. For the pasengers as spectators to such an event, it can seem a long and frustrating time, not knowing what is happening or the degree of seriousness. Unfortunetaly and even with the best of intentions this is not always easy to overcome for the reasons I have already stated.
In my experience, passengers who are kept informed are usually reasonably relaxed even in difficult or frustrating situations. As crew we need to be aware and vigilant of that. Of course we also need to properly prioritize our actions and sometimes the relevant communication suffers as a result.
In your case the aircraft returned to the airfield for an uneventful landing, as indeed I would expect. It is a shame you didn't decide to continue the flight back to the UK, although I do appreciate your concerns. I would have thought the explanation given would have addressed your concerns but of course in this case it didn't. You say you spoke with others who came home on the flight so I suppose the explanation met with a greater degree of acceptance ? Complimentary drinks might have been welcome
but they are a commercial decision for either the company or the commander based on various criteria. Those criteria vary from company to company and provision may be difficult or inappropriate for whatever reason.
The company would not normally contact you in the situation where you had effectively decided to break your contract with them. I understand your point of view, but having decided to take the train home, the company no longer had any responsibilty for your travel arrangements. If you write to them with your concerns, I am sure they will respond. I don't think there is any relevance to the flight waiting an hour to disembark the passengers when it ultimetaly arrived at its destination. I waited 45 minutes to disembark last week, because the ground handling company didn't have enough staff and or equipment to deal with multiple arrivals at the same time. Of course, it is sods law that when you really dont want to cause any more inconvenience to your customers, life decides to bite you in the ass ! some days you just can't win !
As has already been said, an Air safety report would have been filed for this event, whatever the cause. If it was a technical deficiency it would be addressed. If it was the sort of human failing that we are all occaisionally prone to, then the person concerned would have subjected themselves to an admonishment more than ever could be imposed. In addition they would be required to provide an explanation to their management which would also compound their discomfort. It would be very unlikely or appropriate to go beyond this.
I am glad you and your wife are getting over the fright of this event. It is not something to be taken lightly and it is good to remind us as professionals of the importance of effective communication. I am not for one minute suggesting this was not carried out on your flight, but it raises a general point of interest. I hope this response will also help to set your mind at ease from the safety aspect if not the annoyance factor. Sometimes these things happen for whatever reason, and a better understanding of the factors is only something that might happen at a later date.
