Square Pegs....Round Holes (JAL B744 eats baggage container)

[notmyC150v2]

From today's Brisbane Times Brisbane Times - Brisbane News, Queensland News & World News (http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au)

Flight grounded after engine sucks up object


May 12, 2009 - 11:30AM
A Japan Airlines jetliner preparing to depart Los Angeles was grounded after one of the plane's jet engines apparently sucked up a cargo container, officials said.

Television footage showed the large object wedged into an engine as the plane sat on the tarmac at Los Angeles International Airport.

JAL Flight 61 had been leaving the gate at around 1:30pm (2030 GMT) when the unidentified object blocked one of the engines, according to Los Angeles World Airports, the agency which operates the airport.

The 245 passengers on board were transported back to the airport's Tom Bradley International Terminal. No one was injured.

An investigation was underway.

Link to story with photo is here Flight grounded after engine sucks up object (http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/world/flight-grounded-after-engine-sucks-up-object-20090512-b16o.html)

Any ideas as to how this happened? Apprentice baggage handler perhaps????:E

[Flight Detent]

Quote:

JAL Flight 61 had been leaving the gate at around 1:30pm

Unquote.

That looks to me though the airplane is well and truely out on the taxiway!

No wonder all the pax were transported back to the TB terminal!

Q: I haven't been there for a couple of years, do the 747s still need to be pushed back all the way to the taxiway from the TB terminal, before they can start the engines?

FD

[Lightning6]

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45763000/jpg/_45763090_plane_afp226b.jpg

Image from the BBC.

[ReverseFlight]

Aerial video from CNN:
Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com (http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2009/05/11/vo.ca.plane.engine.trouble.kcal)

[aussiepax]

Was just thru there recently, yes we had to be pulled in and pushed out with engines off. Quite a tight fit around that TBI terminal !

[Lightning6]

So what was a container doing on the taxiway? assuming engines idle at pushback to the taxiway.

[Cyberfriend]

Wonder how this could happen? First time seeing this.


Japan flight grounded as engine sucks up object (http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Asia/Story/A1Story20090512-140795.html)

[hapzim]

shows why ground personnel need to be very wary around aircraft with running engines as those engines do not discriminate when it comes to ingesting objects large or small.

[Sonic Bam]

You'd be surprised how light a ULD is when empty, have seen unsecured ULDs sliding across the tarmac in the breeze several times. Maybe it was windy at LAX at the time?

[FirstAde]

I'll be much more careful where I leave my C172 in future:eek:

[aseanaero]

Imagine the captains face and what he said when he looked over at the engine with a ULD stuck in the intake
" たわごと ! "
Is ritual suicide with the crash axe or plastic butter knife part of JALs SOPs ?

[JohnPits]

The Press Association: 747 engine 'eats up' baggage cart (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5iX2kDacZd24uZWarCdnOX2Hp8DJA)

Anyone else see this on the news? How on earth did that happen!!

[hetfield]

http://www.spiegel.de/img/0,1020,1519835,00.jpg


Ouuuuch........

[Chaffinch]

Link to BBC article.........

BBC NEWS | Americas | Japan jet engine sucks up object (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8045086.stm)

[Cubbie]

Doesn't surprise me a few years ago taxiing for rwy25 at LA, a baggage container was running backwards across the taxiway, having detached itself from the back of a train of them. The driver was still going oblivious to his last container now sitting on the center of the taxiway!

[PositiveRate876]

Anyone else see this on the news? How on earth did that happen!!

176 lb container (if empty), and an engine that produces 100 times that at idle.

[Union Jack]

Wonderfully apt title for this thread, although I remain perplexed as to just how exactly this is in the Non Airline Transport Stuff forum when it concerns an incident involving a major aircraft from a major airline at a major airport!:confused:

Jack

PS And yes, I have read the forum's raison d'etre ...

[deltayankee]

I remain perplexed as to just how exactly this is in the Non Airline Transport Stuff forum when it concerns an incident involving a major aircraft from a major airline at a major airport

Could be just a mousian slip but more likely it is because the incident was caused by an error in the handling of containers rather than an issue with the aircraft or its crew.

[M100S2]

Took a trip from Heathrow around the bay of Biscay on Concorde with my dad about 20 years ago. It was a very windy day and before we boarded we were allowed to wander round the aircraft to take pictures. Sudden gust of wind and a ULD that was sat along with a few others on the apron tipped up, briefly flew a few yards and then dropped on its top. A few seconds earlier and it would have dropped onto half a dozen passengers.

[KRH270/12]

Not the first time, not the last time...

If seen these containers beeing blown over ramp areas during strong wind conditions or by jetblast... and if they come close to a running jet engine, they become a perfect plug :eek:

[Cyberstreak]

Here's a nice clip

YouTube - Cart stuck in plane engine-5-11-2009 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=picE8ZvknpA)

CS

[old-timer]

oops ! - maybe if it got wedged at low idle & didn't get in as far as the fan it'll be just a blade / core inspection & cowl repair - (unlikely I know but optimistic is my middle name !)

[Max noise]

Hey - whats the problem? It seems to be a LA baggage cart in a JL engine. All part of the same OW alliance...

[Dairyground]

If seen these containers beeing blown over ramp areas during strong wind conditions or by jetblast... and if they come close to a running jet engine, they become a perfect plug

Not so much a perfect plug as a square peg in a round hole.

[LA318]

Some pictures...

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/9292/picfrommyphone026d.jpg

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/5047/jlpic1l.th.jpg (http://img15.imageshack.us/my.php?image=jlpic1l.jpg)


-------------
Flight: JL061
Date: 11MAY
A/C Reg: JA8922
Place: LAX
Time: Around 1340L
Taxiway: On " C "
Occurred: Pass " C10 " before " P "

Aircraft clear to push back from gate 101 into taxiway " C " with tail East.
Tower instructed for taxi on " C " and turn right on " P "

PIC 1
One "LAN" container sucked into JL number one engine after JL passed " C10 "

PIC 2
JL061 under tow and was instructed left turn on " Q1 "
Mechanic forgot to insert nose gear pin := and breaks the tow-bar. Passengers deplane on taxiway " P "

[silverelise]

The papers I read today are reporting the incident as a "mistake by the captain who didn't realise there was a problem until state troopers chased the aircraft down the taxiway and stopped it". :oh:

[keel beam]

I am surprised the engine did not surge and spit the container out. Must be well and truly wedged in!

[TurningFinals]

You'd be surprised at how light those ULD's are. In a breeze they are like sails if they are not secured.

[OutOfRunWay]

Hmm, never done a "sucked up baggage container" situation in the sim..

CF-6 dont use EPR as primary indication, do they? I wonder what the display on the flight deck would show, severely reduced N1 and a very high EGT, providing the containter is not actually stuck in the fan, and the fan can still rotate?

Probably good luck it got stuck at an angle and did not get sucked up cleanly, there would have been large bits of container going through the engine.

[leewan]

Kinda of late, but when they were towing this a/c back to the terminal, the towing crew forgot to put in the bypass pin and causing the towbar to shear and the damage the NLG and a wheel to be cut. Imagine the a/c would have :{