Emegency at STN on Friday 23...
 

There was a full emergency at STN on Friday 23rd March. Timing was about 2100.... bet that kept ATC busy with two emergencies at the same time into two major London airports.
Anybody got news on what happened at STN. Just interested as it delayed our crew transport from the hotel :rolleyes:

Edited to relect YachtNo1s comment re the correct date... at least it wasn't Friday 13th:-)

I heard it was something to do with an Atlantic Airlines L188 Electra coming in with 3 (yes 3!!) engines shut down!!
Not confirmed though, just what I heard.

TP

"I heard it was something to do with an Atlantic Airlines L188 Electra coming in with 3 (yes 3!!) engines shut down!!
Not confirmed though, just what I heard."

Not sure about this as I was on the Alpha stands when the Electra taxied past and it had more than one engine running at the time...even my top of the range ear defenders are no match for that old beast :p
It was turned around pretty quickly and off again with Royal Mail on board. Would have thought after a full emergency that it would have had a few spanners look at it prior to despatch.

I would imagine that it was the number 3 shutdown, and not 3 engines shutdown.

Without turning this thread into something bigger than it should be and diversing from original question but would a four engine aircraft with one engine shut down warrant a full emergency at STN?

was told it was something to do with 'pitch-lock' on 3 engines, so they were shut down before the props wound themselves off, the RMP's were going nuts!!
After landing the CB was pulled and thus cured the problem in the short term, so the aircraft could get looked at while at STN, where the fault was found and sorted.

Again, this is only what I've heard.

TP

Think the aircraft can only be ferried on less than 4 engines, rather than dispatched on a commercial flight - so I imagine the problems must have bee sorted before it was sent out again.

It is correct that the Atlantic Airlines L-188's engines were not rotating in sync and DID come in 3 engines DOWN!! The rudder was full over and yet somehow, the Electra still managed to land :D I've heard that after hearing the contents of the Tech log, other skippers where amazed that a) the crew were still alive and b) that the aircraft landed safely.
The aircraft was back in service for the royal mail operation the following night

Err Friday was the 23rd ..:rolleyes:

Anyone got further info on this?
Did they actually have 3 engines pitch lock - or are we talking a SYNCH-PHASE fault so being back in K1 which results in some big RPM changes with power lever movement. .... ... and as for only 1 engine running if true its been done before on the electra by other companies. Anyhow sounds like another fairly typical night on the lobotomiser.

Pan @ LGW
 

Hi all,

the TOM had fluctuation in power on no.1 engine. from 80% down to 20% then back to 70% power. A/T disengage and held at timba for 15 min.

Flap 15 precautionary landing performed a heavyish landing but within limits and held for RFS on taxi J before going to the allocated stand as said 135.

259:ok:

Three engines pitch locked !!!!!!! If this is so the cockpit workload would have been very high !

That is the time when you need a flight engineer!!!!

History book time
 

With this type, it would be worth the historians amongst us getting out their history books. I seem to remember that it has had problems that sound like this in the past. There can't be many in the UK, are there?

Why need a flight engineer? Think they managed to land safely without recourse to a cup of tea!

Sounds like just another day at the office if you are an Atlantic Pilot..:p

What is wrong? The landing safely without a flight engineer? Tell me of a single incident with the Electra two crew that has been down to lack of a flight engineer?

Credit where it's due...this crew obviously done good!! As we would expect from whence they came.... one of the last producers of real AVIATORS in the industry.:D

Having not flown a two crew Electra I can't comment on the exact number of inccidents that happened because of a two crew policy, however with over 2000 hours on the type as both pilot and flight engineer I can assure you that the workload when things go wrong with the props is very high and approaching levels that could well overload the crew.

Unfortunatly the "happenings" that did not turn into problems because the flight engineer had them sorted before they became problems will never be recorded.

The makers built the aircraft for three crew and I for one (with my pilot hat on) think that flying the aircraft with two crew is at the very least errodes the margins of safety. It is for those who fly the aircraft short of one crew member to judge the safety issues, but the other two UK companys that opperated the type would have flown it two crew if the accountants had won the day, but the view in these companys was that the advantage of having a Flight Engineer was worth the cost.

Cant recall...whats the available horsepower with a pitch-locked eng...1200?? and must be e-handled below what airspeed/resultant rpm to prevent 5th-10th stage bleeds from opening and roasting the whole eng??

Indeed:
http://aviation-safety.net/database/...0714-1&lang=en