First Emergency

[Final 3 Greens]

Well it was a long time coming (31 years), but climbing out of a major European airport, we had heavy smoke in the rear cabin and all the fire alarms going off.

After a few minutes (which seemed more like a few hours), the cause of the smoke was identified as excess sauce from economy meals, running out of the food containers into hot ovens and burning off, without a fire.

The emergency return to base was cancelled and after a while in the hold, whilst the crew talked things over with the ground staff, off we went to destination.

I was impressed with the professionalism of the cabin crew, in dealing with what could have been a very serious incident and took the time to talk with them later, to say so, which was appreciated. They were 'rattled' post event, which I thought was completely understandable (so was I), but during the incident, they were calm, positive and pulled together.

I won't name the airline, but will say that it was not Air Malta (as some readers will know I fly with them regularly.)

What surprised me the most, was the apparent lack of recognition by many pax that anything out of the ordinary was happening, despite the frequent 'boinging' sounds (which I guess was the rear lav smoke detection alarm) and the obvious immediate change of attitude from climb to descent and sharpish turns back towards the airport.

From seat 1D (A320), the red alarm lights on the control panel above the CC station were obvious, as was the smoke by the rear lavs.

I hope that's all for the next 31 years, I like boring flights :ok:

[raffele]

I would have hated to be in your position - and hopefully, touch wood, I never will be.

I'm guessing the lack of recognition of a serious event occurring was probably by those who don't bother to pay attention to the safety brief. Would have been interesting, if it had turned into an emergency landing, to see whether these same people held everything up in the evacuation...

Who knew that sauce could cause such a big problem!

[Scumbag O'Riley]

Had one of those. Cabin crew running around with fire extinguishers like headless chickens. They looked scared stiff and I don't blame them, so was I. One of the last things you must need at 30 something thousand feet over ocean is a fire. Some tw@t smoking in toilet, had somebody taken him to one side I would have looked the other way.

[Munnyspinner]

F3G,

i does sometimes take an incident to remind us all to listen to the safety breif and pay attention. I'm pleased to hear that the source of the smoke was quickly identified and further harm averted.

It is interesting that you note that many pax simply didn't know anything was wrong. Some years ago I was on route to LBA from EDI on a SD360. Due to a high temp warning the crew had to shut down the starboard engine and return to EDI. We were only 10 minutes into the flight.

I was sitting next to a Frenchman who was very concerned at boarding to make sure that the flight was bound for LBA - his english wasn't great. Before feathering the prop the crew announced that they would be sutting down the stb engine and makeing a precuationary return to Edinburgh. ATC clearance had been obtained for an immediate return etc. Not to panic but to follow CC guidance.

We duly arrived back at EDI and had an uneventful and safe landing. As we taxied back to the stand we had just left the French bloke turned to me and said in heavily accented pigeon english - Leeds Bradford?

Perhaps it is standard operating procedure in France to shut down an engine after take off or he just didn't notice the stationary prop sitting about 6 feet from the window - either way, he didn't realise what we had been through.

[bondim]

CC here, hope you don't mind if I add my twopence worth...

I think we all have stories on how pax did not realize something was happening, I had two medicals occuring exactly at the same moment in flight once, poor lady fainted next to the trolley and as she fell she pulled hot water pot right on another woman's chest, who then was screaming and was really badly burnt. With 4 CC to deal with them, we were running around like headless chickens, grabbing medical kits, oxygen bottles, stowing trollies, making PAs for medics, etc.

A group of three ladies (on a hen do I think) had tried to stop me several times during this event, each time I told them I would have to come back later. When we finally resumed service this woman asked for my name complaining what a diabolical service I had povided, all she wanted is for me to chill them some champagne but that i always had "somrthing more important to do than dealing with her".

When I kindly (and only with a hint of sarcasm0 explained to her what had happened she and her friends were really embarrassed and apologized, apparently they had no clue as to what was happening 5 rows in front of them, despite several PAs for medical assistance, one woman screaming and another on the recovery position on the aisle 5 rows in front of them!

Are we expecting too much of our pax or is ithe difference only that we are trained to be "situationally aware" and they are not? As I always say, while safety will be on the back of pax minds when on a plane, for CC and FC safety is always at the forefront of theirs.I think that explains a lot of these stories and why pax sometimes find it hard to appreciate why they have to follow "silly" safety rules, such as putting seatback upright, stowing bags, etc.

B

[bealine]

Firstly, Final Three Greens, may I say how delighted I am that you are able to tell us your story yourself! - Pprune would be a sadder place without you!

Secondly, for my twopence worth, I'd say it was a blessing that passengers didn't realise anything too much was amiss. Obviously, it is that much easier for the crew to go into their well-rehearsed routine if there aren't too many stressed and panicky people on board!

............and I wholeheartedly concur - Boring Flights are Best! :ok:


(It's a shame, though, that you can't mention the airline. The crew oibviously did everything right! Perhaps a private email to the customer service department of the airline concerned might ensure they get the recognition they obviously deserve!)

[Desert Diner]

What surprised me the most, was the apparent lack of recognition by many pax that anything out of the ordinary was happening, despite the frequent 'boinging' sounds (which I guess was the rear lav smoke detection alarm) and the obvious immediate change of attitude from climb to descent and sharpish turns back towards the airport.


I must assume that to the other passengers, they may have been suprised at your apparent laco of recognition to what was happening. Unless of course, you were stoping the CC to ask as to what was happening.

It would be better to commend the other pax for acting calm, not panicking
and causing a real disaster.

I'm guessing the lack of recognition of a serious event occurring was probably by those who don't bother to pay attention to the safety brief.

I think pax recognize serious events, and by now know what to do in the event of an emergency without having to study the safety brief for the umpteenth time.

[Final 3 Greens]

Desert Diner

Most of the other pax did n't realise, I have psychology qualifications/experience which allow me to be pretty confident in my observations that this was the case.

Obviously those with smoke swirling near them were and I felt vey sorry for them, it must have been terrifying - yes, hats off to their self control.

Bealine sums it up

Secondly, for my twopence worth, I'd say it was a blessing that passengers didn't realise anything too much was amiss. Obviously, it is that much easier for the crew to go into their well-rehearsed routine if there aren't too many stressed and panicky people on board!

It was a blessing. For me, once I saw the fire alarm lights and turned around to see heavy smoke, I had to force myself to stay calm and quiet, there was nothing else helpful that I could do.

[1DC]

Wonder if the guy who was generous with the sauce ever received any feedback.A simple mistake could have had grim results.....

[Donalk]

Are we expecting too much of our pax or is ithe difference only that we are trained to be "situationally aware" and they are not? As I always say, while safety will be on the back of pax minds when on a plane, for CC and FC safety is always at the forefront of theirs.

I believe you could be expecting too much. Pax state of mind and awareness whilst travelling on an aircraft will quite naturally differ from yours. You are doing your job and in that respect your senses are heightened. You are also, (one would hope), in a position to respond immediately to any real or potential emergency situation, utilising your training to ensure the safety, comfort and security of your passengers.

An individuals personal safety is always of paramount importance to that individual. On an aircraft they delegate some of that responsibility to the crew in order to comply with the requirements of collective safety.

In short, they trust the crew to be responsible, well trained and to do their duty. This is not an unreasonable expectation.

[GGR]

Good to hear all nicely sorted.......must have been OK sauce.
GGR

[Tmbstory]

Final 3 Greens:

Welcome to the Club, it certainly gets your attention !.

Tmb

[bondim]

Donalk, that is exactly what I mean to say. I have been a pax before I started flying professionally and I tell you I didn't have a clue! Now, however, after several safety trainings on ships and planes, I do (along with many colleagues) occasionally make the mistake of expecting "regular" people to be as aware and familiar onboard as I am.

Sorry, won't happen again...:)

Happy flying.

[Munnyspinner]

Good point Bondim,

Far to easy to take safety for granted. Pax not being aware of a crisis is perhaps a tribute to management by the crew as panic can set in very quickly.

When ever I board any flight I familiarise myself with A/c type ( and model!) check emergency exists ( number and location ) and work out which is the nearest and count the seat rows to each - I assume a smoke filled cabin at night ( so that I can work out where I need to get to.)

Like you I have received full training in various guises and have a background in aviation. If necessary, I can recite the safety brief in the case of most in flight emergencies. On take off I watch the time from application of TOGA power and visually check flap settings - although I don't know what I would do if I had found the crew had made the wrong selection!

During the flight I am usually anticipating top of climb and top of descent and therefore don't get spooked by a change in engine sound /attitude. On approach, I am waiting for the usual noises , ( flaps, u/c) as we manoeuvre to land. And, generally the way the finals are flown will determine the hardness of braking after landing.

All of the above is done subconsciuosly. It is unrealistic to expect every passenger to understand what is going on and what to do in an emergency. However, those that sit like sacks of potatoes, reading their newspapers during the safety procedures and equipment brief are either complacent or stupid. In an emergency, ignorance is as likley to kill you than anything else.

However, there is a balance to be struck and the reality is that air travel is safe. So, it is ironic that it is mainly those who have been trained and understand the risks who consider personal safety a priority.

[bunkrest]

It's one of the toughest aspects of the job to stay calm when you are fully aware of an emergency. It does amaze me though how far into denial some pax can sink though - a friend of mine had a 'slow' decompresson on a shorthaul flight a number of years ago - masks dropped, crew sat down and strapped in, emergency descent - while on portable O2 checking passengers one particular gentelman asked her when he could have another cup of coffee and at what time 'service' would resume!!!:ugh:

[gdiphil]

Welcome to the club F3G. I fortunately have only had one wake up, sit up and pay attention moment in 47 years being SLF. It was early Sept 1978 on a midnight takeoff on a classic BA 747 from Muscat, Oman. A very full aircraft. We had flown from Singapore some 8 hours, an hour on the aircraft on the ground and a change of crew. On the take off run just before rotation I noticed lights coming out of the left hand inboard engine. Then I realised it was flames, the aircraft rotated and I suppose was flying very shortly afterwards when there was a huge bang. Everyone seemed to sit up straight and there seemed to be a sharp intake of breath followed by the old Australian lady sitting next to me shouting very loudly "What the f***ing hell is that?" There seemed to be a dipping of the nose and a very shallow climb out. Nothing was said by the crew for some 40 minutes. Eventually the cabin crew were allowed to move about the cabin but they looked white as sheets. We went to Bahrain for a couple of days. Fortunately flying has been very boring ever since but I still pay attention to the safety briefing, you never know.

[fat'n'grey]

Well gdiphil, that takes me back!

I was off duty - ATC (came off evening shift) and was about to retire for the night. Heard the Birdseed 747 rolling then "Bang" and a "WWWHhhizzzzzzzz" increasing in frequency then fading away. Saw the acft momentarily dip a wing but climb was continuous. Out on balcony watching by then. The acft held O/H for quite some time before a diversion and landing at Bahrain (better engineering facs there in those days).

All well handled, esp by the operating crew as Muscat (OOMS) very often suffers from a land breeze at night with dramatically increasing temps (low 30's increasing very quickly to low 40's in summer at night!) and temp inversions too boot. The Tower used to sway and creak as the temp rose at night which was often a clue to ask Met for a Speci to check what the temp was doing. I once had a Birdseed taxi for RWY 08, then 26, halfway back to 08 before the wind steadied and a RWY 26 was the obvious choice for departure. The crew made some very unparliamentary comments to me (but v. humerous and tongue in cheek) and were greatful for the added safeguard of "local knowledge" as their flights were very temp/payload limited.

Oh dear!

[eliptic]

This sounds like a unreal happening, is it wild west?



The crew of an Aerogal Boeing 727-200, registration HC-CDJ performing flight 2K-32 from Guayaquil to Galapagos Island (Ecuador), declared emergency and returned to Guayaquil after a technical problem was discovered by the crew about 20 minutes into the flight. The airplane landed safely back to Guayaquil.

A passenger on board of the flight originating in Quito (Ecuador) reported, that the airplane, scheduled departure 8:20am local, had departed with a 4:10 hours delay due to the late arrival of the inbound aircraft. The airplane quickly turned around and performed an eventless flight to Guayaquil. Transit passengers to Galapagos were kept on board while the aircraft was prepared for the next leg. During the climb from Guayaquil, approximately 20 minutes into the flight and shortly before reaching cruise altitude, the captain announced, that something was wrong with the airplane and they needed to return to Guayaquil for an emergency landing. The airplane landed safely with three crash vehicles in attendance, the passengers were kept on board, while the captain exited the airplane for a quick walk around. When he returned, he announced, that the problem had been fixed already, the airpane was refueled with passengers on board and fire trucks still in attendance. When the airplane began to taxi out, a fellow passenger noticed a fuel puddle on the ground, 10 or more feet (3 meters) in diameter being cleaned up by firefighters. The airplane continued to draw a trail of fuel as it was moving, fuel appeared to be dripping off the underside of the right hand wing near the wing tip (possibly from the fuel surge tank). Several passengers banged the cockpit door prompting the crew to return to the terminal however a different parking position now. Once again the passengers were told, that the problem was fixed and they'd take off shortly again. About half of the passengers refused to continue on this airplane and exited the aircraft despite threats, that their booked cruise would be cancelled.

Incident: Aerogal B722 near Guayaquil on May 17th 2009, technical trouble then fuel spill (http://avherald.com/h?article=41afaad7&opt=4096)

[gdiphil]

fat'n'grey - thanks very much for that. Very interesting to hear what it all looked and sounded like from the outside. I have often wondered if my perceptions were right. I must say the flight deck were very understated in a very British way when eventually the captain told us that, and I still remember the words, "We have a slight problem with one of our engines." It is fair to say my thoughts were somewhat unparliamentary when he said that but I did appreciate humour.
Once again, many thanks for your post.
gdiphil

[strake]

F3G,

My son joined your "club" yesterday when the A320 he was on over Siberia (incident described in Spectators Balcony) suffered a cracked flight deck windscreen causing a slow depressurisation. Like me, he is a PPL and commercially pretty well traveled but as they descended ("smartly" in his words) to under 10,000ft he said his attention became somewhat concentrated.

[Final 3 Greens]

Strake

Glad he's okay.