PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Body found in landing gear bay on BA B744 @ LAX
Old 29th Jan 2007, 17:15
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TheOddOne
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Down at the sharp pointy end, where all the weather is made.
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We had a spate of these at LGW a few years ago - 3 in fact, do things really go in threes?

2 were dangling from noselegs - bad enough for me who had to attend but worst I think for the ground crew meeting the aircraft to be confronted with the body as the a/c taxies on to stand. The 3rd was found on the runway, obviously falling out as the gear doors recycled on departure. Particularly rotten for our staff who only had it reported to them as debris on the runway. It was even worse as it was Christmas Day.

The one that got to me was a 12-yr old boy from Nairobi; having young children myeslf. A Police Inspector from Gatwick went out to Nairobi to try and get information and ensure the next-of-kin were informed but was given no help at all from the Kenyan authorities; just another death amongst so many, it seems.

There needs to be a world-wide education campaign telling everyone that this doesn't work; you will die, most probably from being crushed as the gear retracts. There looks to be heaps of room with the gear down but it all disappears on retraction. If that doesn't get you, hypoxia and hypothermia will.

TheOddOne
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