Jet Airways- 7 approaches - lands with 270kg fuel

[A pumps]

Just seen on avhearld that a Jet Airways B737 landed with approx only around 10 minutes fuel in tanks !!

6 missed approaches - landed on the 7th attempt

I really hope the concerned pilots are never are left near an aircraft again .

http://avherald.com/h?article=48b217ed&opt=0

[jack11111]

That's only 88 Gallons US.
.

[jack11111]

I just really want to read the CVR transcript!!
.

[underfire]

The FDR data will be most interesting....

[Capn Bloggs]

What a bunch of ratbags you lot are. Pilots spearing pilots! How about getting the facts first. := :*

As for "The DGCA reported they are looking into the airline's fueling policy as well as into the weather reports and why the crew diverted to Trivandrum" it's pretty flippin' obvious why they diverted.

[Metro man]

Two missed approaches MAXIMUM and you divert unless the conditions have improved significantly. When you decide to divert make sure you alternate is going to allow you to land.

In mitigation I would point out that weather forecasting in India leaves a bit to be desired and they may have been caught out with unforcast fog at VOTV, a similar incident occurred in Australia a while back where two aircraft diverted to Mildura which then became fog bound.

The avherald report also list VOTV as being south of Kochi, which would put in in the ocean as Kochi is on the southern tip of India.

[peekay4]

Cochin isn't right at the tip; Trivandrum is closer to the tip by 200km.

Nothing should be taken as obvious.

The approaches to Cochin from flightradar24 (http://www.flightradar24.com/data/flights/9w555/#7267945):

https://s3.amazonaws.com/org.barkah.misc/9W555.jpg

[LeadSled]

Folks,
I must second the Metro Man comments on weather forecasting and reporting in India, indeed the forecasting is about on a par with Australia.
Tootle pip!!

[speedbird787]

Just landed at trivandrum ...ILS not available due equipment to be replaced from 17 th to 25 th... Only vor approach available ....may be the crew thought ils is available and diverted only to find out otherwise later.
Feel bad for the crew that they had to go through this....we all make mistake.....fortunately no injuries...

[parkfell]

As ever, it is easy to be wise after the event.

What is important is that junior birdmen study the circumstances surrounding this flight and learn from it.

Probably bring it up during the next MCC/JOC ground school prior to the intrepid aviators stepping into the -800 sim. ;)

The crew will certainty learn a lot from it.

[_Phoenix]

What a bunch of ratbags you lot are. Pilots spearing pilots! How about getting the facts first

We'll said... I don't know, I wasn't there!
Maybe they were below minimums with no runway lights in sight.

[peekay4]

More to the story...


We have suspended both the pilots of that flight, 9W 555, operated on a Boeing 737-800 (VT-JFA). We are reviewing the fuel uplift policy of Jet Airways to check that right amount of fuel is filled on aircraft and that there are no cuts being made on that front
...
The DGCA is investigating that the diversion airport for the Doha-Kochi flight was listed as Bengaluru and so why did it go to Thiruvananthapuram.

METAR for Bengaluru at the time:

VOBL 180100Z 00000KT 6000 FEW010 25/25 Q1014 NOSIG
VOBL 180000Z VRB02KT 6000 SCT010 SCT080 25/25 Q1014 NOSIG

DGCA suspends two Jet pilots who landed in seventh attempt with fuel running dangerously low - The Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/DGCA-suspends-two-Jet-pilots-who-landed-in-seventh-attempt-with-fuel-running-dangerously-low/articleshow/48579284.cms)

[Gordomac]

Some outfits will try to convince you that under all of the circumstances.................that is acceptable. Press on.

[FullWings]

I don’t think there is enough information about the actual circumstances to draw much in the way of conclusions about this particular flight.

Purely as general observation, there is a chance (low but finite) that at a certain point in a flight you have committed to landing below minima at your destination or an alternate but don’t know it yet. You can dispatch and conduct everything according to the regulations thereafter but statistics say that one day all the problems will line up. The art, I suppose, is catching a developing situation early and making sure that if you are going to break the rules, you do it in the way that has the best chance of a safe outcome.

[Two's in]

Some conclusions are obvious. If you end up landing with less than 20% of your minimum fuel reserves there were some major planning discrepencies. If your alternate has the same weather as your destination, it was probably never a good alternate. The fuel you used doing 7 approaches would have been better used heading over to somewhere with less challenging weather. If your weather forecasting infrastructure is that unreliable, maybe that should factor in your initial fuel planning, not on your 6th GA. I'm all for the causal chain of events, but the need for solid airmanship and captaincy are a constant, not a variable.

[FullWings]

If you end up landing with less than 20% of your minimum fuel reserves there were some major planning discrepencies.
Well, it certainly means you were having a bad day but the planning may have been fine - I’m not privy to what information and fuel they started with. Until we have more detail it’s hard to say whether they were unwise or unlucky. At least they didn’t run out of gas and crash trying for an 8th approach.

Reserve fuel is there for a reason: the unexpected. It is very rare to get to the point of having to use any of it as normal procedures cover almost all eventualities but if we never ever expected to dip into it we wouldn’t carry it.

I can easily envisage a situation where the destination and alternate are forecast to be above minima but you take some extra just in case. You get to destination and it’s hovering around minima so you shoot a few approaches then divert just as your alternate does the same (unforecast) as the destination. By then you are committed to one or the other. The dilemma is whether to set off for your alternate hoping the weather improves or to stay where you are which gives you more chances to complete a successful approach.

[jack11111]

" At least they didn’t run out of gas and crash trying for an 8th approach."

I'm thinking they knew there was no 8th approach in the cards.

[megan]

It happens, though rarely thankfully

https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/4172363/ao-2013-100_prelim.pdf

[parabellum]

What a bunch of ratbags you lot are. Pilots spearing pilots! How about getting the facts firstCapt Bloggs methinks you may be awarding pilot's wings to people who have never flown anything more than a FlightSim ! ;) (possibly never flown anything!).

Used to operate BAH - Trivandrum, our diversion was Madras/Chennai, morning mist was considered quite common.

[rsoman]

Rumours going around that both pilots have been cleared to fly again already.

Guess everything that happened was by the book. So what really happened???

[Black Pudding]

Accident: Air India A320 at Jaipur on Jan 5th 2014, runway excursion on emergency landing (http://avherald.com/h?article=46e20f3a)

[oliver2002]

Weather conditions in S. India during monsoon season are vicious, weird that they didn't carry more fuel from Doha.

@Black Pudding: that was because of fog in DEL, which is a thing of the past for better equipped/crewed aircraft, that A320 probably didn't have the required IIIb equipment or crew on board.

[LLuCCiFeR]

Always take minimum fuel! The office 'pilots' will be proud of you, and will fondly remember you with a big smirk on their faces whilst counting their bonus! :ok: :D :ugh: :=

[NotoriousREV]

weird that they didn't carry more fuel from Doha.


How many approaches should they have planned for, at how many airports?

[oliver2002]

Enough to divert to Chennai?

[Piltdown Man]

I'll be generous. The weather as reported by Aviation Herald was unremarkable at both locations. But this crew didn't see enough to land. Idiots land when they can't see enough; proper pilots go-around. So what was the real weather?

PM

[VNAV PATH]

Indian "media" relaying India DGCA told they had Bangalore as the planned alternate (flight plan and ad-hoc fuel on board)

Look at a map, Chennai is rather further than Bangalore from Kochin.

[Timmy Tomkins]

I am reluctant to condemn these guys without having the full story.

Having experienced a bad night I know how things can build up. We landed on the fumes once after en route winds, general weather forecast plus fog forecasts were all wrong (over Europe). The landing was off approach number 2 at an airport forecast to be out but wasn't when our destination and alternates, which were forecast to be OK, were all out.

We also had a major technical problem during go around from approach no1 and after some frantic activity, and increased pulse rate, landed on limits, but it clamped seconds later and we needed a follow me to exit the runway area.

We followed the rules but it was one of those nights; I'm glad they got away with it.