Lightning strikes

[Skyfan]

Hey folks,

A recent lightning strike on a 737 out of Manchester got me wondering. Does the captain of the flight in that circumstance have an absolute right to return to the airfield or is there a process involved? I'm asking purely out of interest as someone that lives very close to Manchester airport, and not to spark any kind of sensationalist debate.

[raffele]

The captain returned to Manchester as a precaution, a "just in case", not simply because the plane had been hit.

At the end of the day, the person who is in charge of the plane is the guy in the left hand seat - if he needs to land, he will land!

[G SXTY]

Does the captain of the flight in that circumstance have an absolute right to return to the airfield or is there a process involved?

In simple terms, the captain can do whatever he or she wants to in order to maintain safety. End of. If that means an immediate return or diversion, then so be it. For non-emergencies (such as this one) it would not be unusual for the flight crew to discuss options with their company by radio before deciding on a course of action, but ultimately it's up to the skipper. And quite right too.

[Skyfan]

Makes a lot of sense. :ok:

Never really given it much thought but I'm assuming it gets just a bit loud. Bet that's not funny at 07:30. :eek:

[Paper Lad]

Skyfan,

It went something like this:

Passing FL90 (9000 feet), climbing to FL140 and on a heading to avoid weather there was a loud bang and a flash. The sound was similar to the aircraft being struck by a mallet and the flash appeared to originate close to the First Officer's windscreen.

At the very moment of the strike the Captain was transmitting to ATC (the transmit button is on the glareshield) and he received a nasty electric shock. The pilot flying at the time was the First Officer.

The aircraft was levelled off and a systems and control check carried out, plus, the APU was started. All seemed satis. A discussion with the other crew-members, including cabin crew, took place and the decision was made to retun to Manch. The decision was based on the possibility of unknown damage to the aircraft and the 'belt' that the skipper had received.

A 'pan' call was made to ATC and a request for radar vectors to the ILS 23R. An uneventful approach and landing was made.

The only minor injury was to the skipper who received medical attention once the passengers had disembarked.

No drama, just a slightly unusual day at work:hmm: but you're quite right, not funny at 07.30.

PL

PS. If we're talking about the same event it was an EMB145 and not a 737 as pictured by the beeb.

[Skyfan]

Hey Paper Lad,

I'm not sure if it was the same event, but as you say the local press reported it as a 737. It occured in the last ten days or so - I believe it was a friday AM but the report seems to have been removed from my local news site.

No matter, a very interesting account regardless. The report did not mention any injuries to crew so if my light-hearted remark in the previous post caused any offence I apologise. Thanks for posting. :ok:

[Paper Lad]

Here are two of the links for the news reports. It happend on Thursday 30th.



Plane damaged as storm strikes - News - Manchester Evening News (http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1128913_plane_damaged_as_storm_strikes)

BBC NEWS | UK | England | Manchester | Aircraft hit by lightning strike (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/8177166.stm)

Absolutely no offence taken:ok:

PL