Air France A330 shot at twice during Congo rescue mission

[NutLoose]

Shot at by an Airport police constable, one shot pierced the hull.

I couldn’t find any reference to it on here, more details see

https://www.fr24news.com/a/2020/04/air-france-airbus-a330-shot-down-twice-after-landing-in-congo.html

[sarah737]

Fake news!! Probably something got lost in translation.
Two, possibly intoxicated, policemen had an argument, one wanted to shoot in the air but the bullets hit the Air France aircraft.

(«Apparemment» l'incident est «lié à une altercation et à un désaccord entre un agent de la DGST (Direction générale de la sécurité du territoire) et son chef. L'agent qui a tiré était sous l'emprise de l'alcool. C'était un tir à la Kalash en l'air qui a touché l'avion», a indiqué une source proche du dossier sous couvert de l'anonymat.)
https://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-eco/un-avion-d-air-france-endommage-par-des-tirs-au-congo-brazzaville-20200412

[Herod]

One indication of fakery is the repeated use of the phrase "shot down twice". You can only get shot down once.

[VentureGo]

Air France Airbus A330 Shot At Twice After Landing In The Congohttps://simpleflying.com/air-france-a330-shot-at/

Extracted from above link (Seems an almost exact copy of above article by fr24 news):
On Saturday April 11th, an Air France Airbus A330-200 was shot at twice after landing in Point-Noire in the Republic of Congo. The plane, operating the flight AF4145 from Paris Charles De Gaulle to Pointe-Noire, was on a rescue mission to repatriate some 100 French nationals from the Central African nation. The plane was then set to continue onto Bangui in the Central African Republic to pick up 120 more passengers.

[ATC Watcher]

Fake news!!
Two, probably intoxicated, policemen had an argument, one shot at the other one but missed, the bullet hit the Air France aircraft.
The fact that the aircraft was hit by bullets is real but that it was deliberately targeted is indeed fake . It was just an altercation between 2 drunks border police guards ending at one shooting at the other an 2 bullets hits the 330, one scratched it , one perforated it.
Aircraft has to be checked before flying again, the border guard is in jail. End of story . Welcome to Africa...
.

[Euclideanplane]

the border guard is in jail.

And will after release likely be ordered some extra sessions at the shooting range, no doubt.

[.Scott]

According to the report, only one bullet (of two shot) struck the plane - a shallow hit to the belly.

[Airbubba]

From the Associated Press:

Air France flight stopped in Republic of Congo after gunshotBy Louis Okamba | AP

April 12, 2020 at 9:53 a.m. EDT

BRAZZAVILLE, Republic of Congo —

Air France confirms that it had to postpone a flight from the Republic of Congo after the jet was damaged on Sunday by a bullet fired by a gendarme.

The incident happened at the airport in Pointe Noire, the country’s second largest city, said Air France in a statement. An Airbus A330 was damaged and was unable to make a flight repatriating French citizens because of the outbreak of COVID-19.

The flight was postponed for 24 hours so that a replacement airplane can arrive to carry out the flight, said the airline.

The gendarme who fired a shot that pierced the sheet metal of the plane, was arrested and it being held in custody, according to an airport official who insisted on anonymity because of lack of authorization to speak about the incident.


Some pictures from the Brazza News:

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/960x540/evzv40hx0aav03i_20943ae784fff9b9e17318456f5f1675c2934cec.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/607x1080/evzaisjx0aanovs_e44609536980e34a6537f9bf3133f8466d931e45.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/607x1080/evzaisixgae0tyt_83cb9ae27fc00be33af0093a85caf16445d647b1.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/759x456/air_france_a330_involved_in_shooting_1_759x456_f6abb767ace5e 12245c86e0bd39ace9bd606478e.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/810x456/evzyxn6woaenahb_70e38661b33767a0f0734211183db6065ebd6dea.jpg

[Airbubba]

Looks like they put some speed tape on the bullet holes and F-GZCK is on the way back to CDG.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1271x1100/af382v_34ec1010cc50edbf16ac658ee5718143703b532b.jpg

[cats_five]

One indication of fakery is the repeated use of the phrase "shot down twice". You can only get shot down once.

I don't think you can get 'shot down' when on the ground

[cobol]

I guess it was shot up if it took off later?

[Airbubba]

Not the first time an inebriate has been accused of shooting at a rescue aircraft.

Man Accused of Shooting at Rescue Helicopter During Katrina Goes on Trial June 22, 2006 at 12:15 PM CDT - Updated July 2 at 2:05 AM (WWL-TV) -- A man on trial for allegedly shooting at a rescue helicopter during Hurricane Katrina was found guilty of possessing a firearm Wednesday, but a jury will further debate whether he fired at the helicopter.

During the storm it became a huge concern as reports circulated that snipers were scaring off rescuers.

"Once they started shooting at us, they shut down the operation," said one hospital worker.

Bailey faces federal charges for trying to shoot down an aircraft.

Agents said they caught him in the act, and that he claimed to have told officers at the time that the choppers "won't be back now.

The jury has been handed the case at federal court.

Investigators said that just because Bailey was the only person charged does not mean more people didn't shoot at the helicopters. Police said they simply may not have been able to find them in the chaos.


It appears that the evacuated pax were probably put on a 777 with a stopover in Bangui on the way back to Paris.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1559x1102/bangui_05bd0c14f1a76fe8eb525535448d68b03a45e524.jpg

[lomapaseo]

That sure is an odd looking hole for the shape of the bullet shown

[Less Hair]

A Kalashnikov magazine? And that bullet? Not really just another drunk pistol shooting hitting someone else it seems? What happened to the other picture showing a hit in the lower fuselage from below?

[cashash]

Thats a composite wing to body fairing - you could shoot that with a catapult and put a hole in it (our loaders never had a problem damaging them) so if it was hit by a bullet then it must have been from a toy gun.

Looks like panel number 198EB

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/678x561/screenshot_from_2020_04_13_14_48_26_7ded133d52c8abba2248f67d db055846a61ccfc4.png

[Less Hair]

There is another hit in the lower belly. Check the video above please. Some actual hit having penetrated the aircraft's skin.

[ATC Watcher]

That could be the exit side. look just below the hole, looks like outward small split , but I am not a ballistic expert

[cashash]

Thats also a composite fairing. If the aircraft returned to France within 24 hours as the Flightradar pic suggests then there cannot have been any damage to pressure skin. Quick bit of speedtape over the damaged panels, DD in the log book and away it goes.

[Less Hair]

You obviously haven't watched the video.

[Checklist Charlie]

The 'bullet' in post #8 does not appear to have been expended.

CC

[procede]

Thats also a composite fairing. If the aircraft returned to France within 24 hours as the Flightradar pic suggests then there cannot have been any damage to pressure skin. Quick bit of speedtape over the damaged panels, DD in the log book and away it goes.
Carbon fibre is to brittle to really slow down a bullit, so there is probably also a hole in the pressure vessel underneath, unless the bullit hit something else first, like the AC packs.
A hole this size shouldn't really be an issue in any case. Especilly if you reduce the cabin altitude during flight.

[cashash]

Carbon fibre is to brittle to really slow down a bullit, so there is probably also a hole in the pressure vessel underneath, unless the bullit hit something else first, like the AC packs.
A hole this size shouldn't really be an issue in any case. Especilly if you reduce the cabin altitude during flight.


If a bullet had impacted the pressure skin then it would take longer to repair and get flying than the 12 hours we saw in this instance. The other option is to fly the aircraft back to Paris unpressurised, but as it flew back at 40,000ft I think we can all agree that there was no damage to pressure skin.

[lomapaseo]

Carbon fibre is to brittle to really slow down a bullit, so there is probably also a hole in the pressure vessel underneath, unless the bullit hit something else first, like the AC packs.
A hole this size shouldn't really be an issue in any case. Especilly if you reduce the cabin altitude during flight.


Brittleness is only a characteristic after you expend the energy during impact (either it gets stopped or penetrates through). I do like the crack stopping ability of carbon fibre though

[Pugilistic Animus]

One indication of fakery is the repeated use of the phrase "shot down twice". You can only get shot down once.

You can be shot down twice, dual shot downs are in the QRH for the Congo:}

[Airbubba]

One indication of fakery is the repeated use of the phrase "shot down twice". You can only get shot down once.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1080x901/ff3hhsds9ks41_beb264037ad6300fa4d1effcfefe95134326ab74.jpg

[Spooky 2]

Saw several cases of bullet holes in various B707s, DC8s, during the Vietnam war. For the most part they were scab patched and then went on their way.

[Airbubba]

Saw several cases of bullet holes in various B707s, DC8s, during the Vietnam war. For the most part they were scab patched and then went on their way.

Years ago I saw a Pan Am 727-200 in MIA with what appeared to be patched bullet holes in the side. It was during the era of Iran-Contra operations in the late 1980's. The rumor was that the plane had been shot up during a management charter south of the border carrying 55 gallon drums of fuel with rifles inside destined for the Contra rebels.

[Old King Coal]

I was in Pointe-Noir two days ago. Customers (pax on our aircraft) told us that Air France sent another (larger) B777 to rescue the situation and that some of their group had travelled out on that one. It was also reported (by our handling agent there) that the altercation occurred when an airport gendarme (whom apparently was intoxicated) approached the parked Air France aircraft but was told to "piss off" (or words to that effect) by independent security contractors whom had been tasked with guarding it. Somewhat aggrieved at being rebuffed, monsieur gendarme then lost the plot, fired off some rounds, the result of which can be seen in the pictures.

[jolihokistix]

The first post mentions 'un Kalash', and in post#8 you can see them taking bullets from the magazine.