Easy Jet Lose panel

[Vfrpilotpb]

Good Morning Ppruners,
just a little tale , Easy Jet A/c from EGGP this AM lost a panel from the A/C whilst taking off, but don't know where it fell the pilot asked ATC at EGGP to have field and surroundings searched for help to find it. is this a rare or regular occurrence?
Timed at 0900hrs :eek:

[Yak Hunt]

What do you think!!! :rolleyes:

[The Flying Helmet]

I suppose as long as it wasn't an engine, then that's the main thing!!! :D

[Vfrpilotpb]

Hey Y-H, you must be from the pool with a handle like that, thats what they all say down there!!! :cool: :p

[Yak Hunt]

Fraid not!! But lot's of happy times!! just wondering how the pilot knew a panel had come off? Hopefully it was nothing as our friends the press haven't said anything.

[Vfrpilotpb]

Y-K,
you could be right, it sounded like a request from a returning pilot to the Twr, obviously not critical, wonder if they found it? :cool:

[cheer up]

Had an indication in the flight deck - part was found and replaced - no performance penalties. :)

[stator vane]

had it happen to me while i was operatiing as captain. actually a passenger told us after parking at LHR that a small panel came off during takeoff at BRU. went back and sure enough, an inspection panel came off the left engine pylon just in front of the wing. looked quite large actually.

called mx and they said it happens often and they put shiny tape over it. looked sad, but they laughed and left.

just a week before another captain had lost one on takeoff in BRU and was told about it in BCN!

would like to know what the passengers are thinking. must not be a big deal since they never said anything until landing. maybe they had "get-there-itis" themselves.

[ 28 July 2001: Message edited by: stator vane ]

[NorthernSky]

An indication in the flight deck?

Other than having looked out of the window (which I suppose would give an 'indication') or losing a door, what 'indication' would that be??

Do we know which panel, btw?

Isn't it odd, that easyJet's preference for capitalising their 'J' but not their 'e' is never, ever, picked up by those writing about them, whether in the press or elsewhere.....
:D :D

[ 29 July 2001: Message edited by: NorthernSky ]

[PA38]

With it being LPL they where lucky to get the panel back!!!!!! :D

[Vfrpilotpb]

PA 38,
That could be whay A/c are never left alone at EGGP!!
Stator Vane, this may sound a little odd but who is responsible for all the hatches and isnp panels on a big bird, for mostly when I have been a Pax on any of them the Capn and No1 always seem to be fixed tight into thier flight deck and never seem to leave before flight to check anything, is it all done by a responsible ground crew Captn?

[1/2pv2s]

trust a thick manc to lower the tone, especially coming from a city with a much higher rate of crime. fact.
:cool:

[ 29 July 2001: Message edited by: 1/2pv2s ]

[BALOO]

Vfrpilotpb - to answer your question about inspections:
A visual inspection of all the accessible panels, hatches, doors, wheels and all sorts of other 'bits and pieces' will always be carried out by a member of the flight deck before every flight. (SOP at easyJet)
Normally, this is done before passengers embark which is why you've not seen them! If at a home base an inspection is also carried out by the ground based engineer. Naturally, some doors are open during this 'check' so not only do we have warning captions for doors and 'hatches', but prior to start and push we also check with the dispatcher "Confirm all doors and hatches are closed and secure". He/she also has a responsibility to check them as well. So you can see that an aircraft should never get airborne with an open door or hatch! However......... you can't see every screw/bolt/nut on a walkround and like everything mechanical, failures can occur
Hope it helps :)

[Vfrpilotpb]

Good morning Baloo,

Thank you for the explanation, with all the various hatch's and small panels do have individual warnings, or are the warnings zoned ie, port Rear or starboard front , that sort of thing.
My Regards
:)

[ 30 July 2001: Message edited by: Vfrpilotpb ]

[dwlpl]

1/2pv2s you would have thought that he, PA38 and an ambulance person to boot, would have known better coming from their!!!!

[ 30 July 2001: Message edited by: dwlpl ]

[Lefthanddown]

Vfrpilotb
I am amazed at your clairvoyancy. You say the event happened this AM timed at 09:00 and yet your post is timed at 08:06.

Will you go far in this world?

[Lemoncake]

08:06 Zulu I would presume.

[EGGPOPS]

Hatch actually found at 06:40 on standard runway inspection
Aircraft called on way back to lpl and was reunited with the flap at 09:15 :eek:

[Vfrpilotpb]

Good Morning Pruner's

LHD, A little Bit O Gypsy in me, plus of course my glass balls

Lemon, Spot on, its auto on Pprune.

Eggpops, Hi, I love your handle, must be close down there to know that, thank you

My Regards, to all who have replied to this little item
:D :D

[stator vane]

not ALL inspection panels have lights, bells and whistles. admittedly the FO did the walk around, but in the early am and still a bit dark, one must run his/her hand over the top of the wing to be sure that all the panels are actually secured with the press down screw latches. i probably would have missed it myself. we also are to walk into the cabin and check the upper surface of the wing, but there again, the walk around was delegated to the FO. and not to blame him at all. after all i was the captain and will take the hit if any is to be had.

really to look back at the history of accidents, to be really safe, the captain him/herself must check inside all luggage in the cabin as well as the cargo holds, must open all boxes and check each item, must check fuel for contaminants, raise engine cowls and check internal, maybe even bore scope the engine, and visually and physically check every inspection panel on the aircraft, and only after everyone else is 50 yards away from the aircraft just before closing and pushing.

and in BRU, one must watch for attack trucks armed with machine guns while taxiing. that is why EL AL is escorted every time they come to BRU. it happened to them once.

easy to get paranoid if one had the inclination to.

with 20/20 hindsight, we might should have seen the panel, but after mx told me that it happens often, i didn't go jump off the nearest cliff into the ocean. (would have been at least an hour drive anyway)

aircraft had been in hangar before the flight and mx should have secured the panel before signing off logbook. but we are all human and make mistakes and oversights.

as they say, "no blood, no foul"

[Vfrpilotpb]

Hi Stator Vane,

I hope your not wound up by my quick report to the forum, I just felt it was an interesting occurrance, and as my new super dooper aerial has increased my listening range I picked you up when I had just turned the old Pprune on, no harm done anyway
My regards :D :D

[stator vane]

not wound up at all.

i was a bit em-bare-assed to have it happen to me though.

i also had a bit of a tiff with the station manager in LHR who wanted to start boarding pax while mx were taping the hole with their shinny tape. i refused. what would pax think to board with two mechanics putting tape onto the "engine" near where it attaches to the wing??

at least by waiting to board, only the ones who noticed the tape asked themselves the question, "how long has that been there? and will it hold the engine on??"

really em-bare-assed. and i stayed in the cockpit for sure then.

[bakerloo]

Sator Vane
Can we the draw the conclusion that you were a memeber of the easy jet crew.

[cheer up]

Aicraft went from LPL to AMS. Stator Vane was at LHR. Your shout! :)

[ 31 July 2001: Message edited by: cheer up ]

[emtee]

Panel wasfound. So many aircraft getting airborne around that time - could have been any ones. Don't the pilots check the aircraft. By the way we don't knick everything that isn't glued down but if it's found lying on the ground then it's finders keepers! :rolleyes:

[Vfrpilotpb]

Emtee Hi good morn,

By your profile you seem to be one of the voices at EGGP,as a local Heli man in and out of EGNH and EGGP I salute you and your pals you are always most friendly and helpful, makes a lot of difference when as a lowly PPL(H) you are comming in with the large stuff, alway enjoy transit through your area when heading of down to the South, much safer with you chaps than through the LLC.
My Regards

[stator vane]

bakerloo;

no. i fly the B737's with a slight red tint based in BRU.

wish i was based in the UK where i could practice my english other than in front of the mirror, asking myself "why are you still here?" the things we will do for money!

[bakerloo]

Thanks Stator Vane for your reply.

I was just interested in how you know it was the F.O that did the walk around (or are you refering to your previous post ;) )

Emtee
pilots do check the aircraft, and they check it very carefully. The panel wich came of was located on the engine pylon and was in place before departure. The panel is located approximatly 13 feet high, and 4 feet from the leading edge. There are 2 ways to get a good look at this panel, 1) is to get a ladder and walk along the wing or 2)open the over wing emergency exit and walk along the wing.
You don`t see many pilots wing walking these days.
If you read Stator Vanes post it is a carbon copy of this occurence
cheer`s B

[Den_Dennis]

Quite often the walk around is conducted while the aircraft is still being prepared. That is when you have to trust the ramp pilots to close everything I guess.
I am told that the panel that is most often left open is the one that the ground crew use to connect their comms to the a/c
Apparently it makes a hell of a noise at cruise speed.

: DD :

[stator vane]

bakerloo;

my reply was about one of my flights that had a panel come off BRU to LHR. i was captain of that flight. that's how i know who did the walk around on my flight.

don't know anything about the easyjet flight other than it is easy for it to happen.

[Orly one mike]

Which panel is it please?