Wasp incident on EY

[wild goose]

Planeinsight has tweeted something about an incident with an EY aircraft involving wasps.
Aircraft coming out of Brisbane.
The link is apparently overwhelmed.
Anyone know anything?

[west lakes]

Incident: Etihad A332 at Brisbane on Nov 21st 2013, "we lost our airspeed" (http://avherald.com/h?article=46bd994d&opt=0)

A little search would have found it!

[wild goose]

Indeed.
The initial impression was of something different...
Thanks

[Herod]

Being pedantic, they lost airspeed INDICATION. If they had lost airspeed, it would be a different story. ;)

[kcockayne]

west lakes

Can you mention that airline ?

[belfrybat]

The title is a bit of an exaggeration:
Passenger jet grounded by two-hour insect attack ? The Register (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/28/internet_of_things_new_enemy_hordes_of_angry_wasps/)

[Smudger]

If this crew did indeed suffer a genuine airspeed indication failure then they did a superb job getting back on the ground safely. Looks like they knew their pitch/power numbers and saved the day. Think how many instances there have been where this situation has proved fatal.

[Superpilot]

Defies belief how such a failure (airspeed disagree) doesn't require maintenance to check tubes, but always assume some kind of computer fault. :confused:

[bvcu]

only a few inches of tube to check on a modern aircraft !

[mary meagher]

Mud dauber wasps are famously active in the US, and elsewhere; the simple precaution of the red flagged cover over the pitot tube must be difficult to practice if the first officer has to climb up a ladder to Remove Before Flight....

Recent National Geographic broadcast on Captain's ASI malfunction that led to Captain's confusion and loss of the aircraft traced the disaster to the humble mud dauber, the crew in this case did well to return to base. Not enough runway to abort, evidently.

[wild goose]

The Birgenair 757 off Puerto Rico comes to mind

[Updraft]

J0357/14 notamn
q) ybbb/qfaxx/iv/nbo/a/000/999/2723s15307e
a) ybbn
b) 1402130551 c) 1403130500 est
d) hj
e) significant increase of wasp activity on ad
affecting pitot tubes on acft

[holdingagain]

Both the aircraft targeted by the wasps were on the ground less than an hour
Something like 54 minutes and 57 minutes only

[Linktrained]

Much faster fault finding, nowadays !
We took 48 hours, but needed an Engineer sent from base because we did not know what our problem was... back in 1969.


( See " 100kt RTO for Airbus" 20 Jul 2013 #17 )


An engineering modification might blow the bugs out... but needs thought. (Access to Pitots may need ladders.)

[QF22]

The same thing happened nearly 10 years ago to SQ in Brisbane.
The wasps nest in the Aerobridges and its just a short trip for them out to the pitot tubes.
BACL was supposed to fumigate the aerobridges to erradicate the wasps.
I guess somebody forgot about it, or cost cutting stopped the pest exterminator?

[misd-agin]

"Thrust set"
Mentally - speed, speed, speed (4th speed if HUD equipped)
Verify all 3/4 airspeed indications agree.

"80 kts". Verified but already checked.

It's done very quickly and before 80 kts(approaching autobrake RTO trigger speed)

[lookoutbelow]

Very similar incident occurred on a B752 out of Accra, Ghana in 2009 (bugs blocked pitot):

http://www.skybrary.aero/bookshelf/books/1022.pdf

Very nasty, good job, well done guys..

[Perrin]

This reminds me of the mud wasps during our time in Guam during the 60's we had all kinds of airspeed problems but putting covers on the pitot tubes sorted that but then the little pests started on the PT2 probes in the inlets of our 8 engine B-52's it was common to have to depanel cowlings and blow out lines on many many a/c remember we flew 30 at a time with 8 engines then 30 KC135's with 4 it was a nightmare. So the battle goes on but covers do help on the pitot tubes.:ok:

[Linktrained]

Both EY aircraft appear to have been on the ground for less than an hour, which makes the fitting and removal of Pitot covers less practical, if Mud Daubner wasps are eager to make a " home".

I am no expert in their choices (someone may be). Whether they prefer or reject certain colours or smells could be factor in choosing to "paint" the front of a Pitot tube with that colour. Or a special shade, might be relevant.


( Birgenair had been without Pitot covers for some days in 1996. My Britannia had had both Pitots covered for our 24 hour stay in KIN in 1969.)_

( Swarming honey bees are somewhat choosy about where to settle. And when settled, can be gathered in a skep !)

[Centaurus]

Air Nauru had a take off problem at night on Nauru in the 1980's. Both PT2 inlet probes were blocked by a combination of insects and phosphate dust. This resulted in erroneous over-reading of the take off EPR gauge needles.
While this problem had occurred on previous occasions to one engine and was easily spotted from EPR readings, the incident described occurred to both engines simultaneously.

When toward the end of the take off roll it became obvious the 737-200 was not going to get airborne before the end of the runway, and the erroneous EPR was not suspected during the take off roll, the captain immediately fire-walled both thrust levers and was able to get airborne at VR minus 15 knots. With the end of the runway only 15 metres from a cliff, rubble from phosphate rock deposits on the cliff top, was blown back over the runway.

It was a close shave and a black hole climb-out and the captain did a good job of firewalling the engines with no harm to the engines, as it turned out.

[misd-agin]

EPR's lie, N1's don't.

[chksix]

Wouldn't it prevent nesting if the heat was kept on during turn arounds?

[NeoFit]

Hi
My ten cents contribution for this serious incident.

The data recording begins a few minutes after take-off:
the air speed seems to be 200 kts and and the altitude of the plane is about 1500 feet.
The recorded crazy parameters duration is 53 minutes.

http://i.imgur.com/SW3TVlo.gif

[Master Caution]

Wasps are a well known problem at BNE Int'l. For years my airline has put the covers on on all turnarounds over 60 mins.
Good job by the crew though.

[glbtrtr]

Wouldn't it prevent nesting if the heat was kept on during turn arounds?

It would do for sure .
But probes anti-ice is not designed for that use .

[Yancey Slide]

Quote:
Wouldn't it prevent nesting if the heat was kept on during turn arounds?
It would do for sure .
But probes anti-ice is not designed for that use .

Probes are cooled by airflow. Sitting on the ground they'd overheat and burn out the core (assuming they're not outright inhibited by squat switch or something).

[glbtrtr]

Quoting me that way suggests that I wrote something wrong .:=
Just saying that probes supplied with 115v on ground will keep the bugs away ...
For sure there will be some collateral damage :rolleyes:

[pigboat]

The emergency pressurization vent on the G1 was a narrow funnel-shaped opening below the RH cockpit sliding window. There is a little plug that can be installed to block it, but I've never heard of anyone using the thing, on overnight stays anyway. Part of the walk around involves peering into the opening with a flashlight to see if it is obstructed. One morning in Hot Springs VA there was another G1 parked beside ours, and the other F/O and I were doing our walk arounds at the same time. Suddenly there was a loud yell and much foul language from the direction of the other aircraft. Seems the other walk arounder had peered into the vent, saw something moving and without giving it too much thought stuck a forefinger into the hole. Overnight a little mud dauber had decided to build her nest in the vent and took umbrage at the invader. :D

[Anti Skid On]

I am a humble C152 driver, but here is a thought - put a length of cord on the end of the pitot tube cover, enough to reach just about the ground; install cover when at the gate, no ladder needed when you depart; the pilot doing the preflight inspection removes them by pulling the cord.