Emirates incident EK650 16.12.10: Engine failure?

[ChiefT]

An Emirates Boeing 777-300, flight EK-650 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to Colombo (Sri Lanka), was in the initial climb out of Dubai when the crew decided to return to Dubai for a safe landing about 20 minutes after departure.

The airline reported the crew returned to Dubai due to some technical problems.

Passengers reported the crew announced they had an engine failure.

A replacement Boeing 777-300 registration A6-EBX reached Colombo with a delay of 5 hours.

[Mike-Bracknell]

....and in other 'news', I woke up this morning, scratched my bum, farted and then got out of bed.

[ChiefT]

Well, it is the news section, isn't it?

I am happy for you that your digestion works... ;-D

[SKS777FLYER]

Well, you see ChiefT, since jet engine failures on trans-oceanic twin engine heavy jets are so commonplace (sarcasm) some folks would just as well not hear about them. Nothing to see there, move along. Nothing interesting enough to cause one to stop momentarily, other mundane things when a dumbo-jet is rumoured the loss of a mere 50% of available motive force.

Heck, probably if it happened, the flight crew barely noticed. (sarcasm)

[EGGW]

High Engine vibration, declared Pan, and after checklists complete, returned for a safe landing. Engine NOT shutdown, as per Checklist. No drama. A6-EBV, 777-300ER.

EGGW

[SKS777FLYER]

Spectators balcony surely the proper place for this if indeed an Emirates EK 650 of 16 DEC 2010 Boeing 777 suffered an inflight engine failure.
Track Flight Status for (EK) Emirates 650
Emirates Engine Failure; Flight Returns to Dubai | George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster

Emirates operates B777 200 and B777 300 jets powered by Rolls Royce Trent engines.

Emirates also operates B777-200LR and B777-300ER jets powered by GE 90 engines.

[Okidoki2010]

I was on this flight: Excellent Pilot and Crew - Emirates is the worst though!

I was actually on board of this plane with my family. I believe that the statement of Emirates was not correct at all!

The only good thing was the fact that we had an excellent pilot who managed to bring us back safely to the airport. What happened was, according to the announcement of the pilot and what we as passengers could tell: there was a loud bang and vibration after take-off, followed by heavy vibration. After a little while some passengers shouted that the engine was on fire and we could see the orange glow on the left side through the window. Basically, the captain explained later, a bird must have hit the engine, for it to fail after a little while. All of the passengers actually thought we would not make it back alive! One of the stewardesses said that she did not want to go down on her birthday! This was serious!

Fortunately the pilot managed to land the plane comfortably and safe and explained the situation to the passengers, saying that we would be taken care of at the airport and people would be waiting for us. Also refreshments would be there. So compliments to the crew and the captain for betting us back safely. All the passengers were applauding when we had landed, some shouting "God bless Emirates". Little did we all know, that the quality of Emirates was still to be demonstrated...

Having landed fire engines, police, and other safety personnel was waiting for the plane to be inspected for about 15 minutes before we carried on taxiing to the gate. There buses were waiting and took us back to the gate, where some staff told us to move upstairs to the departure lounge. And then, ... nothing!

There was not a single member of staff for 30 minutes. About 300 economy class travellers were left without any kind of support or refreshments. People were crying and upset and Emirates did nothing. When passengers started stopping emirates personnel to ask what was happening, they did not seem to know anything. After 30 minutes, we were told by some staff member to go to the Burger King, there we would hear more and get refreshments. This was not announced, but just told by an emirate staff member who was asked. We still had no single point of contact, and definitely no manager or crises manager who seemed responsible. Getting close to Burger King, we were sent to place upstairs, called Food Court. Once all had gathered there, we still did not get any information or refreshments and were sent away again to gate 241, I believe. By now we were back in the departure lounge for more than one hour. By now all passengers were no longer upset, but especially the European travellers were getting angry. This is the total opposite of what one expects from Emirates, especially after a traumatic experience, where we all thought we would die!
By now there still was no manager, but 'someone in charge'. When confronting him with the situation - we wanted to know what was happening and our children of 3 and 6 to get to a bed at this time - he just walked out on us!

Once at the gate more people got upset, and this same person (I will file a complaint against him) told someone to "shut your face". Besides this he was constantly smiling, not seeming to take this situation seriously at all.

At this point it felt that they were not treating this as a near crash with people having had traumatic experiences, but as a regular delay.

A new person 'in charge' arrived and basically said that another plane was made ready for all passengers to get into to take of to Colombo.

Myself and some other passengers from the Netherlands heavily protested against this. We were not going on another plan right now! Amongst these passengers was a lady who had only flown a few times before; she had sat next to the engine and had witnessed the whole thing and was in shock. Another male passenger was crying. And still there was no support by Emirates and no support was offered even. Still there was no manager. We were treated without any respect. They basically sorted out the first and business class people and left the rest on their own, with not even refreshments by this time, about 3 hours after we returned to the departure area!

All the passengers were told to walk through to the boarding area, where they got refreshments, a carton drink and a piece of cake. Ten of us - all from the Netherlands - stayed and demanded a hotel and a reschedule. Initially they said they are happy to reschedule, but the hotel would be at our own costs - CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS ??? Obviously we did not accept and the person 'in charge' went back to management - which in the end never showed up - and managed to get us 1 night at the hotel and a flight on the 17th at 9:40am.

From that moment until we got into the hotel room, it took us another 2 hours! Still no manager, no ownership, we were constantly left by ourself to find out the next step. We were with to kids who needed sleep as well as 4 pieces of hand luggage - and no support whatsoever!

I really thought Emirates was one of the best airlines to fly with. This was the worst experience of our lives and it was made even worse by Emirates. They just do not take their (economy class) passengers at all!

[ImPlaneCrazy]

Although the experience may have seemed to be extremely frightening for yourselves and your family as well as the numerous amounts of other passengers that were also on-board your flight, bird strikes are actually pretty common within the aviation industry. Therefore, it is EXTREMELY unlikely that there would be any type of 'Crisis Manager' present and I would even be suprised to see any sort of manager present unless they were Supervising EK ground staff within the terminal. The reason that refreshments were offered was due to the delay that you suffered and nothing to do with the trauma of the incident.

Although someone should have made themselves available to you to answer questions within those first 30 minutes, it is unlikely they would have had any idea what was going on anyway. There are a number of factors that needed to be considered; length of delay (attained through engineers assessment if maintenance to be carried out), availability of replacement aircraft etc. Until these factors are known EK cannot make a judgement on what compensation to issue, for example in your case the original flight departed 5 hours later in which compensation to the amount of light refreshments was provided and is acceptable. However, if there was to be a 24 hour delay then obviously hotel accomodation would need to be sourced and issued. Within the first 30 minutes it is highly unlikely that all of this information could have been attained and an assessment made. I would say that you were lucky to be offered a paid for hotel anyway, as the original flight was not delayed substantially and operated out 5 hours late...

I completely understand from a passenger perspective how an incident such as this can be seen as a 'near-crash' however aircraft are designed for incidents such as this and the crew will also have been trained for events such as this; and the aircraft returned safely to DXB.

[Monarch Man]

I'm afraid to say Okidoki2010, you are a victim of our pre-occupation that everything is a near catastrophe/disaster/near death experience.
Yes I'm sure it was an unsettling experience, something that most passengers never have a desire to experience, however, it is certainly not the case that you should require counseling nor support for your trauma..because the problem was resolved and you were able to continue your journey within a reasonable time.
You were certainly not close to death, merely a participant in a series of events that were less likely to injure or kill you..than your drive to the airport.
Unfortunately Lay people have a habit of misrepresenting the perceived risk/danger of a situation based upon Hollywood movies and their own fears.
The crew it would appear handled this problem in an exemplary fashion, the ground staff a little less so, but thats really all.
Asking for a hotel for the night so as to calm your nerves is just taking the p1ss in my opinion.
Next thing you'll be suing Emirates for emotional distress I bet

[Load Toad]

30 minutes with out a beefburger, 2 hours to a hotel - oh come on the culture of complaint and perceived entitlement sometimes are pathetic.

[SNS3Guppy]

I really thought Emirates was one of the best airlines to fly with. This was the worst experience of our lives and it was made even worse by Emirates. They just do not take their (economy class) passengers at all!

I can't comment on Emirates ranking, but I flew out on a 777-300ER on the same day, from the same location (different destination). I was also in economy class. While it was a long ride (16 hours), it was pleasant, the food was good, service good, and the flight uneventful (save for a go-around at the destination, apparently at the direction of air traffic control).

The airplane was clean, the staff professional. There was nothing remarkable about the flight; it was not a hallowed experience, it was not an unpleasant experience. It was what one expects of a flight, nothing more, nothing less.

There buses were waiting and took us back to the gate, where some staff told us to move upstairs to the departure lounge. And then, ... nothing!

Respectfully, what would you have preferred to have taken place? What would you have the airline do?

After 30 minutes, we were told by some staff member to go to the Burger King, there we would hear more and get refreshments. This was not announced, but just told by an emirate staff member who was asked. We still had no single point of contact, and definitely no manager or crises manager who seemed responsible. Getting close to Burger King, we were sent to place upstairs, called Food Court. Once all had gathered there, we still did not get any information or refreshments and were sent away again to gate 241, I believe.

I ate at that same Burger King before my flight departed, too. I had to pay for my meal, as did everyone else eating there. You were directed to the food court where you could purchase food. Apparently you elected not to do so. Emirates was giving you the opportunity to go get a bite to eat and wind down while they addressed the problem.

Emirates doesn't own the Burger King. Crisis workers aren't employed there, either. Crisis management isn't conducted at a public space around a burger king.

Then again, one wouldn't necessarily expect a critical incident stress debriefing team to show up after an uneventful return to land, either.

We were treated without any respect. They basically sorted out the first and business class people and left the rest on their own, with not even refreshments by this time, about 3 hours after we returned to the departure area!

What kind of "respect" would you have preferred? I'm having a really hard time envisioning management arriving to pat you on the back and say "You're a brave one, you are. That must have been really scaaary." Perhaps it could happen, but I'm just not seeing it. As far as refreshments; you were sent to the food court to go get something to eat. You decided not to do that. Were you hoping that Achmed's Catering would arrive with plates for each passenger from it's "Engine Sucked a Bird" special menu?

You had a flight delay. You had a safe landing. You were offered some cool-down time and a chance to go get food while you waited for repairs or an aircraft replacement. You were put on a flight to your destination with several hours delay. You apparently arrived safely.

All the passengers were told to walk through to the boarding area, where they got refreshments, a carton drink and a piece of cake.

Previously, you asserted that you received no refreshments; it was one of your chief complaints. You were given refreshments, however, including cake and milk. No inconsistencies here, are there?

Ten of us - all from the Netherlands - stayed and demanded a hotel and a reschedule. Initially they said they are happy to reschedule, but the hotel would be at our own costs - CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS ??? Obviously we did not accept and the person 'in charge' went back to management - which in the end never showed up - and managed to get us 1 night at the hotel and a flight on the 17th at 9:40am.

The airline had a delay for maintenance reasons. They were not required to allow you to defer to the next day. From your description, they didn't charge you a penalty for changing your flight to the next day, which is a generosity on their part. Perhaps fairness in this case. One would reasonably expect the airline to pay your overnight costs if you were forced to remain overnight, but it was your choice to do so. The airline made a flight available for you on the same day. It was you that elected to overnight, and that puts it on you. Never the less, you appear to be stating that the airline paid for your hotel, anyway. The airline wasn't required to rebook you without charge for the flight on the following day, and the airline wasn't obligated to get you a hotel room. You appear to have stated that the airline did both, at no cost to you.

And you're complaining. Interesting.

From that moment until we got into the hotel room, it took us another 2 hours!

Perhaps the teleporter was broken, or in use with a star trek episode. Let's not forget that the airline was neither obligated to rebook you the following day without charge, nor were they required to get you a hotel room. Having done both, you're not only upset, but upset that the airline didn't do it fast enough for your tastes, and that the airline didn't procure a manager to escort you, or carry your bags.

The two children and four pieces of luggage of course, are your concern, your property, and your burden to bear. The airline exists to transport you to your destination, not to babysit your children, nor to valet your luggage.

[White Knight]

Well said Guppy - the guy's a fruitcake And your reply gave me a chuckle

[apriest]

I was beside you

I'm the English guy beside you. Jawad smiled a lot which is just his nature but didn't know much, he was trying to help with limited information. better than nothing!

I think the comment "shut your mouth" was basically a differnece in culture. I advised him not to speak like that to Europeans. Likewise the passenger who swore at him, he could of ended up in jail.

The lack of communication and concern for distressed passengers could have been handled better. Especially the lady who had been in a crash the last time she flew.

I hope you all got to where you wanted to be safely.

Adrian

[Flight650]

Emirates flight EK650 catches fire after take off from Dubai airport

@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } I was on board this terrifying flight and all I could see was this large ball of fire streaking across the entire left side windows! Later I found out that an engine had caught fire. What made it worse was a little girl shouting “Fire! Fire!” at regular intervals and shrieking. It was a horrible. The stewardesses were also clueless and just seated glued to their seats.
What was even more terrible was that there were no officials once the flight landed back at the Dubai airport and for almost 3 hours no one in the airport was told about this or what to do next. So the passengers on flight 650 were just wandering about. The “refreshments” which the pilot mentioned when the plane was landing turned out to be a packet of juice and a cookie by a young boy at the gate much later, just before boarding. My mother was once in a BA flight that had technical trouble on the tarmac, the plane didn’t take off unlike ours, and she said how well they were taken care of back at the airport. Good luck with flying Emirates everyone.
I tried to go to the Emirates site to see who I can complain about this to, guess what, no one. There are only four or 5 questions you can complain about but for a flight that has caught fire and where the passengers had a terrible time in the air, no one to talk to at the airport, or once you come back home. Great service Emirates.

[Flight650]

Emirates Flight EK650 engine catches fire in mid air and is forced to return to Dubai

@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } I was on board this terrifying flight and all I could see was this large ball of fire streaking across the entire left side windows! Later I found out that an engine had caught fire. What made it worse was a little girl shouting “Fire! Fire!” at regular intervals and shrieking. It was a horrible. The stewardesses were also clueless and just seated glued to their seats.
What was even more terrible was that there were no officials once the flight landed back at the Dubai airport and for almost 3 hours no one in the airport was told about this or what to do next. So the passengers on flight 650 were just wandering about. The “refreshments” which the pilot mentioned when the plane was landing turned out to be a packet of juice and a cookie by a young boy at the gate much later, just before boarding. My mother was once in a BA flight that had technical trouble on the tarmac, the plane didn’t take off unlike ours, and she said how well they were taken care of back at the airport. Good luck with flying Emirates everyone.
I am sure if this happened at the JFK or Changi airports it would be handled much better.

I tried to go to the Emirates site to see who I can complain about this to, guess what, no one. There are only four or 5 questions you can complain about but for a flight that has caught fire and where the passengers had a terrible time in the air, no one to talk to at the airport, or once you come back home. Great service Emirates.

[Flight650]

I have photos and video on this

I was on this terrible flight where the Emirates flight engine caught fire and all the passengers could see the fire streaking across their window! I have photos of this and will post it soon. It was terrible.

[RingwaySam]

Flight650 see YouTube - Boeing 757-200 from Thomsonfly at Ringway/Manchester Intl Airport by Simon Lowe - You can't blame the cabin crew for being clueless, there not in the cockpit so they only know as much as you.

[omaneagle]

are you the navy man who offered support? please contact a lady.