Posted on 08/03/2005 8:15:20 PM PDT by SmithL
ORONTO, Canada -- Toronto's airport was under "red alert" because of the threat of lightning when an Air France jetliner landed in a fierce rainstorm despite having enough fuel to reach another airport — a decision that was made by the pilot, airport authorities said Wednesday.
Investigators searching the wreckage of the Airbus A340 found the flight data and voice recorders — the so-called "black boxes," said Steve Shaw, spokesman for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority. Officials hope the recorders will provide clues to what caused the aircraft to skid off a runway Tuesday at Lester B. Pearson International Airport and burst into flames.
All 309 passengers and crew escaped alive in an evacuation that took less than two minutes. Air France said 22 people were injured, while airport officials said 43 were hurt. The wreckage of the jetliner — torn into three pieces — still smoldered Wednesday.
Brian Lackey, vice president of operations for the Greater Toronto Airport Authority, said Wednesday the jetliner had enough fuel to divert to Montreal or another airport where the weather was better, but "that's the pilot's decision."
The airport was under a "red alert," which indicates potential for lightning but does not prevent planes from landing or taking off, officials said.
Real Levasseur, lead investigator for Canada's Transportation Safety Board, said the decision to land during a "red alert" would be investigated.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Well, duh! Any flight has to have a reserve fuel requirement that varies according to the flight conditions and time.
> ... landed in a fierce rainstorm despite having
> enough fuel to reach another airport ...
Another piece of the puzzle.
I was wondering if there was an issue with fuel reserve
to reach alternate, that had influenced the decision
to make another approach.
It might still be a factor. Possibly doing a hold until
the cell cleared off would have dipped into the alt-res,
forcing a diversion rather than a hold. Instead we got
another approach during the storm.
And if there was a lightning strike at touchdown, that
would just be a classic touch in the "chain of unlikely
events" that characterise contemporary major crashes.
Before dissing the pilot, I'd like to ask:
How many choices did the pilot have?
How much fuel did he have left?
Would the weather getting to the next closest airport have been just as bad?
How many times has that pilot landed at that airport in Toronto? A couple of times, or did he know it like we know our daily commute to work?
Just like it's supposed to happen. These folks helped to create their own good luck, getting off before the ship was immersed in flames.
> How much fuel did he have left?
Last I knew (many years ago), reserve requirements
covered one missed approach at primary destination,
then a diversion to the alternate, plus 45 minutes.
> Would the weather getting to the next closest
> airport have been just as bad?
Doubtful. The news channels put up the radar loops for
the period, and it appeared that Toronto had one nasty
rogue cell all to itself.
The pilot's decisions are clearly going to be called
into question here (as they always are in accidents),
but so far it doesn't look inspiring, even if he wasn't
actually landing the second time, and had the go-around
aborted by a lightning strike.
Niagara Falls is about 30 miles away amd Buffalo is about 60.
Several planes lamded there while the Toronto airport wsa closed.
I'm not dissing anybody, yet. Let's see what the investigation comes up with.
Okay; I will. It was either an inept French flight crew trying a landing beyond their skills, or it was a poorly built French aircraft that suffered some sort of failure when they were landing high and hot. I'll never wait until the investigation's through if it means missing a chance to dis some frogs.
If it ain't Boeing, I'm not going!
They will put the blame on the Crew as usual, however this time they survived and can at least tell their side FWIW.
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