LOT B787 grounded over missing parts.
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DaveReidUK
I have a feeling that the reason the panel hasn't been found yet is that it's on a shelf in the corner of the hangar ...
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Dimitris -
My (un)favorite is when people became "human resources". I imagined us bar-coded and lined up on the shelves along with cartons of copy-machine paper and janitorial supplies.
SLF-Flyer and Fenland,
maybe add to the list of problems the fact that 'planes' are referred to as 'products'?
Can someone older than me remember when manufacturers started making 'products' instead of planes, cars, jet engines, mobile phones etc etc...?
maybe add to the list of problems the fact that 'planes' are referred to as 'products'?
Can someone older than me remember when manufacturers started making 'products' instead of planes, cars, jet engines, mobile phones etc etc...?
Anyone near that aircraft in DEL pre-departure would have noticed a 8x4 hole in the fuselage....!?!
An access panel that had torn itself out, for example during a hard landing, would not do so without leaving some residual airframe damage which in all likelihood would have made fitting a replacement panel more than simply a plug-and-play exercise.
Was the previous departure per chance before sunrise? A lot easier to miss something like that after dark.
The apparent lack of secondary damage suggests that the missing panel was either:
a) Not installed, or
b) Loosely installed by only a few fasteners.
Either of which would imply maintenance error.
The apparent lack of secondary damage suggests that the missing panel was either:
a) Not installed, or
b) Loosely installed by only a few fasteners.
Either of which would imply maintenance error.
Just out of curiosity, what kind of increase in fuel burn would we be talking about with that panel missing? Would the crew notice? And if so would they just put it down to unfavourable winds or worse than forecast temps?
Last edited by Una Due Tfc; 16th Oct 2013 at 00:25.
Just out of curiosity, what kind of increase in fuel burn would we be talking about with that panel missing? Would the crew notice? And if so would they just put it down to unfavourable winds or worse than forecast temps?
I saw a report today that they found the panel on the runway - but after some of the other published information (such as the panel being hinged and held in place by rivets) I'm pretty skeptical of anything that gets published.....
I saw a report today that they found the panel on the runway - but after some of the other published information (such as the panel being hinged and held in place by rivets) I'm pretty skeptical of anything that gets published
According to this report:
Mid-air scare as Dreamliner panel falls off - The New Indian Express
The panel not only fell off in "mid-air", but in doing so scared those on board (how?) and "created a hole in the cargo hold". Hmmm.
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A little bit of better news:
The Boeing Company : Fuselage panel falls from Boeing 787 Dreamliner in flight | 4-Traders
Most interesting bit:
Again, if a 8x4ft panel would be missing pre-departure at that spot...
The Boeing Company : Fuselage panel falls from Boeing 787 Dreamliner in flight | 4-Traders
Most interesting bit:
"It was the mid-underwing-to-body fairing located on the belly of the airplane on the right side," Boeing spokesman Doug Alder said. The part "provides a more aerodynamic surface in flight."
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Another vote for in-flight separation
Body panel falls off Boeing 787 Dreamliner in flight - Yahoo Finance The Reuters article says
The eight feet by four feet (2.4 metres by 1.2 metres) piece of fuselage fell from the underside of the jet and landed within the perimeter at India's Bangalore airport, officials said.
If indeed the panel "landed within the perimeter at India's Bangalore airport" it's very strange that we haven't seen any photos of it yet.
Not to mention those pulled rivets.
Not to mention those pulled rivets.
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it's very strange that we haven't seen any photos of it yet.
Not to mention those pulled rivets.
Not to mention those pulled rivets.
it's very strange that we haven't seen any photos of it yet.
If it fell off in mid flight, someone in some village has a new patch for their roof. Just in time for the next monsoon season.
Unless its in a maintenance shop somewhere, forgotten to be replaced before flight. And now a major embarrassment to someone.
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Looking through the comments, and the images a few things come to mind...
One, I am with everyone on the panel never being installed, even a few fasteneres, it would rip off and take something with it. It is interesting to note that there was no warning in the flightdeck about this...(sortof amazing the insulation held intact)
Second, the reference to the pilot walking around the aircraft. I have been on many domestic, validation , and obs assessment flights, and the pilots enter the aircraft down the chute like everyone else. I have yet to notice a pilot do a walkaround on an aircraft, nor one on the tarmac... Where is this coming from?
Edit: as far as pictures, probably the last thing you want to show in India is a removable panel that seats 4 comfortably...
(just thinking...if you had the panel in your hand back at the shop, what would you do with it...hmmmm....)
One, I am with everyone on the panel never being installed, even a few fasteneres, it would rip off and take something with it. It is interesting to note that there was no warning in the flightdeck about this...(sortof amazing the insulation held intact)
Second, the reference to the pilot walking around the aircraft. I have been on many domestic, validation , and obs assessment flights, and the pilots enter the aircraft down the chute like everyone else. I have yet to notice a pilot do a walkaround on an aircraft, nor one on the tarmac... Where is this coming from?
Edit: as far as pictures, probably the last thing you want to show in India is a removable panel that seats 4 comfortably...
(just thinking...if you had the panel in your hand back at the shop, what would you do with it...hmmmm....)
Last edited by underfire; 16th Oct 2013 at 20:57.
Quote from underfire:
Second, the reference to the pilot walking around the aircraft. I have been on many domestic, validation , and obs assessment flights, and the pilots enter the aircraft down the chute like everyone else. I have yet to notice a pilot do a walkaround on an aircraft, nor one on the tarmac... Where is this coming from?
Not sure where and what you mean by being on "domestic, validation and obs assessment flights"? It is common practice in airlines for the complete flightcrew to start off by entering the a/c, often using the same route as the passengers will be using. Personal effects need to be stowed, cockpit safety checks performed (I'm not referring to the full cockpit checks), and it is useful to consult the Tech Log to ascertain the current status of the a/c before one crew member commences the external check. AFAIK, all airline ops involve an external check by a member of the flight crew.
Second, the reference to the pilot walking around the aircraft. I have been on many domestic, validation , and obs assessment flights, and the pilots enter the aircraft down the chute like everyone else. I have yet to notice a pilot do a walkaround on an aircraft, nor one on the tarmac... Where is this coming from?
Not sure where and what you mean by being on "domestic, validation and obs assessment flights"? It is common practice in airlines for the complete flightcrew to start off by entering the a/c, often using the same route as the passengers will be using. Personal effects need to be stowed, cockpit safety checks performed (I'm not referring to the full cockpit checks), and it is useful to consult the Tech Log to ascertain the current status of the a/c before one crew member commences the external check. AFAIK, all airline ops involve an external check by a member of the flight crew.
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Not lost in flight
Found on runway after a ' hard' lanbding.
(Reuters) - A body panel fell off a Boeing (BA.N) 787 Dreamliner operated by Air India AIRID.UL as it came into land on Saturday, the latest glitch for the high-tech jet that has suffered a string of mishaps since its introduction two years ago.
The eight feet by four feet piece of fuselage fell from the underside of the jet and landed within the perimeter at India's Bangalore airport, officials said.
The pilots of the plane, carrying 148 passengers and crew from Delhi to Bangalore, did not realize the panel was missing until the flight landed, The Times of India reported. . . .
(Reuters) - A body panel fell off a Boeing (BA.N) 787 Dreamliner operated by Air India AIRID.UL as it came into land on Saturday, the latest glitch for the high-tech jet that has suffered a string of mishaps since its introduction two years ago.
The eight feet by four feet piece of fuselage fell from the underside of the jet and landed within the perimeter at India's Bangalore airport, officials said.
The pilots of the plane, carrying 148 passengers and crew from Delhi to Bangalore, did not realize the panel was missing until the flight landed, The Times of India reported. . . .
Not lost in flight (2)
The eight feet by four feet piece of fuselage fell from the underside of the jet and landed within the perimeter at India's Bangalore airport, officials said
I say again, if the panel has been found, why have we not seen any photos of it ?
This latest "news" has all the hallmarks of a face-saving/damage limitation (no pun intended) exercise.
If, as is being suggested, the aircraft left DEL with the panel attached, albeit with only a few of the fasteners engaged (there are around 30 altogether), then there is no way that they could have pulled through and allowed the panel to detach without collateral damage to the airframe, damage which must then have been ignored when fitting the replacement panel to get the aircraft flying again.
Sorry, but I don't buy that.