Shut down on the cross-strip at JFK in a B747 last Tuesday afternoon!
Did anybody notice me, with all engines shut-down, in a B747 Classic, on the cross-strip at JFK, last Tuesday?
All white, with a green v/stab.
What a story, got the airways clearance OK prior to push, started and taxiied towards the edge of the ramp area.
When we changed to 'ground', to get taxi clearance to the departure runway, we were told that our flight plan had been cleared off the computer, ie, no departure!
The flight was planned for about 10 hours, so we had a 'little' fuel to spare, but not enough to sit around for 'some time' to wait for a refile.
So, with the OK from 'ground', we just shut-down, and waited for our agent to come thru, of course, he never did, so the boys in JFK ATC did a great job in 'constructing' a replacement from details we supplied re the original plan.
When we restarted and taxiied to the departure runway, we didn't have to much fuel to play with, and were wanting to get airborne asap, and after only a relatively short wait, being about 3rd in line, lined up for take-off, and then noticed about 13 airplanes lined up on the taxi-way behind us, for departure!!
If we had been involved in that lot, we would have most certainly been forced to return to the gate for more fuel, with all the hassles that go with that, not the least of which is flight time limits!
A big THANK YOU to the JFK ATC guys for a job well done!!
We're gonna try it all again this Tuesday, just to see if we can get it right!
Cheers