Qantas Depressurisation at 36,000 ft
 

Reported on Channel 9, Australia:
The Boeing 737 was cruising at 36,000ft when the cabin suddenly depressurised, Qantas told Nine News reporter Chloe Bugelly.
The plane was forced to drop to 10,000ft, Qantas said.

Nothing really meaningful in the initial report - typical reporter and passenger-type comments. The report does not say specifically when it happened, but it seems it was this morning (26 Jan '11) and was flying from Adelaide to Melbourne:
Qantas passenger jet drops 26,000 feet

and

Gold Coast Breaking News :: News | goldcoast.com.au | Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

I guess "Qantas passenger jet descends 26,000 feet" doesn't work for them...and I guess I'm "a member of the media," as an aviation writer.

Depressurization
 

It should come as no surprise that passenger comments will be picked up by the media. The reason for the loss of pressurization will be found. No doubt we will learn, in time, whether it was a rapid depressurization or a slow leak which was not detected until the Cabin Altitude warning was seen/heard. Either way the descent was required to be expeditious and, apparently, was not able to be executed in time to prevent the "rubber jungle" appearing as the cabin altitude reached about 14000'. I am sure the crew did everything in an orderly manner and spoke to the pax at the appropriate time.

26th, Are you sure about that?

No, make that the 25th :ok: - finger trouble (I'm not into predicting the future)

Wouldn't it be a better place if there was more reasoned reporting and headlines.

In the Australian:

Headline "Passengers grab oxygen masks as Qantas jet makes emergency descent"

From the story: "Oxygen masks deployed in the main cabin and the pilots made a “rapid but controlled descent” to 10,000ft after a fault developed with the plane's air conditioning system as it flew between Adelaide and Melbourne."

Passengers grab oxygen masks as Qantas jet makes an emergency descent | The Australian

Colleague of mine was on the flight - he reported all pretty calm.

I swear they said on the radio here in Melbourne that the aircraft had dropped 26000ft in 30 seconds, did anyone else here them say that?

I think that someone on that radio show needs to get a common sense transplant.

52,000 ft per minute, hmm. A quick mental calculation makes that around 550kts vertically down. Now unless Qantas have started to transport their pax in F16s I very much doubt it. :ugh:

The only thing missing from the news.com.au report was... "Passengers Scream In Terror!! - as QANTAS Aircraft FALLS 26,000 FEET!! - Whilst Captain Fights To Regain Control!!"... :ugh:

Every single time I put up a worthy comment on a crap piece of journalism, such as this... news.com.au refuses to post it. They obviously think I'm a Qantas stooge, or I have an axe to grind.

Of course, the news.com.au mob would know all about that axe-grinding technique... :D

Notice the particular emphasis, on... "the incident is the latest in a shocking run for the national carrier..." :ugh:

Qantas plane drops 26,000 feet during Melbourne-bound flight | News.com.au

Never fear, the pom news seems to have got it about right for you. The mail today has:

Hi Stepwilk

Maybe you can satisfy my curiosity then as an aviation writer.

What is it about Qantas that makes journos rub their hands with glee about reporting any/every incident that occurs with them?

Elevenplus,

Possibly this sort of stuff that was getting wall-to-wall coverage a few weeks ago.

Qantas A380 Airbus emergency is third scare for superjumbo - Telegraph

As an humble SLF, I am amused by the indignation the "professionals" on here express when the reptiles go to town on an airline story.

There is no mileage in a headline that acknowledges the professional job the flight and cabin crew did by delivering their passengers safely to the destination.

"Shock, Horror, Probe" sells "news". Cuddly and fluffy doesn't.

I don't buy newspapers anymore and I can sniff out TV news b/s at 20 feet.

How about this headline on AOL:

Qantas Flight Loses Pressure, Plummets 26,000 Feet

Oxygen masks were deployed and passengers were panicked after a Qantas flight traveling from Adelaide to Melbourne suddenly lost pressure and dropped 26,000 feet on Tuesday.

A spokesman for the airline tells AFP an air conditioning problem is the likely cause behind the depressurization, which prompted the jet to drop from its cruising altitude of 36,000 feet to 10,000 feet.

"There are two air conditioning systems on the aircraft -- one of them failed at the cruising altitude, that's when they started to descend," says the spokesman.

"The other one subsequently failed because it was overloaded, so they then went into a more rapid descent, still obviously controlled, down to 10,000 feet."

The Boeing 737-400 flight carrying 99 passengers was approximately a half hour from its destination when the incident occurred.

The plane landed without incident and no one was injured. Some passengers, however, told local media the malfunction caused quite a fright inside the plane.

"There was a little bit of panic down the back of the plane and some of the passengers needed to be comforted by the hostesses," one passenger tells Fairfax radio. "One lady in particular was fairly panicked."

Qantas has had a dramatic couple of months: In November, a flight from Singapore to Sydney was forced to make an emergency landing after one of the plane's engines exploded, causing the airline to ground all A380s. Just last week, a plane bound for New York was diverted to Fiji after a 747 experienced a fuel valve problem


and of course the photo for the story is an A380. :ugh:


Half an hour from it's destination? Hey, it's time to plummet .... oh sorry ... I mean descend anyway isn't it?