Passengers revolt after being told to fly on jet with its wing tip missing

The Daily Mail (U.K.) ^ | November 3, 2007 | DANIEL BOFFEY

[Stoat]

Passengers revolt after being told to fly on jet with its wing tip missing

By DANIEL BOFFEY - More by this author » Last updated at 21:43pm on 3rd November 2007

  An airline crew faced a rebellion when they told passengers they were going to fly on a jet that had lost its wing tip in a runway crash.

 

The SriLankan Airlines customers had been on the Airbus A340 a day earlier when it sliced through a wing of a stationary British Airways 747 at Heathrow, delaying departure by 24 hours.

So they were amazed to be boarding the same plane next day for the ten-hour flight to Colombo.

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Wreckage: Part of one of the wing tips lies on the runway

When cabin crew then admitted there was still a 5ft wing tip missing, there was "a minor revolt" as seven passengers demanded to be let off the aircraft.

A further two-hour delay followed as their baggage was removed before the aircraft could take off.

Club-class passenger Ian McKie, 54, from Loughton, Essex, said: "We were put up in hotels the night of the crash and next morning we were told we would be on a different plane that day.

"We only realised that we were actually going on the same aircraft when we got to the Club lounge and saw the plane but without its wing tip."

The former policeman, who was jetting off for a two-week holiday with his partner Gill Stone, 52, added: "On board, the cabin crew admitted that it was the same one as last time and that the tip had been ripped off.

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A closer view shows the broken wing on the BA 747

"They assured us it didn't matter but a number of the passengers insisted that they would rather get on the next flight."

The collision happened shortly after 10pm two weeks ago when the BA011 flight to Singapore was waiting on a runway, followed by the SriLankan Airbus.

The SriLankan aircraft wing ripped through the BA flight's wing, tearing off a huge chunk and resulting in the BA jumbo being grounded.

SriLankan Airlines insisted there was no danger in flying without a wing tip.

It added: "They are purely for aerodynamics and to keep fuel costs to a minimum. There is no impact on safety at all. Safety is our absolute priority."

[bill1952]

>but safety should not have been compromised.

Rather famous last words, I would say.

[bill1952]

>747’s flew for years without those wing tips.

Yes, but they weren’t torn off by other aircraft kissing wings, were they?

I would not have flown on that AC, either.

[dalereed]

I had a Saratoga until I totaled it in Mexico!

[Scotsman will be Free]

I got my license in a Cessna 150 as it had a VOR. The Tri Pacer did not. My wife had a Sukhoi 29 for a few years. What a screamer that bad boy was.
A couple that I was friendly with had a Commanche. I gave them crap about flying a low wing. I can’t recall. Does the Commanche have a metal wing? The Tri Pacer was fabric.

[Revolting cat!]

All right, Revolting Passengers!

[19th LA Inf]

One of the surviving Ford Trimotors, N414H, has to my knowledge been flying for at least 34 years with its original round wingtip on one wing, and a square wingtip from a Grumman TBM on the other side. I was told back in 1973 that the odd tip came off a TBM spray plane down in Central America.

Another example of wingtip assymetry is the Italian built Trecker Gull, a twin engine amphibian which was designed and built with one tip about 6 inches longer than the other, supposedly to offset propeller torque. So, what difference would it make for the Airbus to fly with one "cosmetic" tip missing anyway?

[jiggyboy]

If it had been a United flight out of Denver, the response would have been more like “WHATEVER! Take off already!”

[wrench]

"What the hell kind of airline flies passengers on a damaged airplane"

They ALL do! There are items that are not on the MEL (minimum equipment list) that can be broken,inop, or missing and the plane can still carry passengers.

There are emergency air worthiness directives that are issued to address known safety problems, but the airline has days or months (carrying passengers) before they have to make the repairs.

There are also broken or inop items that are deferred till it is convenient for the airline to fix it.

A broken tip sail would be similar to a missing gear door as to its impact on the flight characteristics of the airplane.

Flying on third world airliners is risky for a number of reasons. The broken plane is just the tip of the iceburg.

[Scotsman will be Free]

Admit nothing. The FAA is everywhere. LOL.

[MARTIAL MONK]

I would not have flown on that AC, either.

No sense of adventure. If you lived through it, you would have a good story to tell.

[diogenes ghost]

Winglets are not part of a wing's structure, they are an add-on to most aircraft that have them, and are designed into others.

Their purpose is to decrease drag, thereby extending range.Taking them off changes no other performance characteristics.

[Temple Owl]

ping

[wrench]

The airplane that Dick Rutan flew around the world non-stop (Voyager) was built with winglets. But they were torn off on their takeoff run when they dragged along the runway.

I was on a Navy LPD half way between Hawaii and California when I saw a lone nav becon overfly us. Thought it odd there were no nav lights (wing tip position lights). When I finally saw the news again, I learned that the nav lights were attached to the winglets, which were left on the runway.

The Voyager trip was sucessful.

[bill1952]

I’ve had enough “adventure” in aircraft for one life. :)

[bill1952]

Yes, all of the Commanches are metal low wings.

Fast and long range with the 90 gallon tank option.

[battlegearboat]

I fly a starship across the Universe divide

And when I reach the other side

I'll find a place to rest my spirit if I can

Perhaps I may become a highwayman again

Or I may be a single drop of rain

But I will remain

And I'll be back again, and again and again and again and again...

[Cementjungle]

I flew on one a week ago with a broken fuel gauage. We had a 2 hour delay while they pumped out all the fuel and put it back in so they could get a count of the exact amount of fuel onboard. That was an Alaska Air flight from Boston to Seattle. All went well and we didn’t run out of fuel!

[wrench]

Itazuke Tower, this is Air Force 801
I’m turning on the downwind leg, my prop is overrun
My coolants overheated, the gauge says one-two-one
You better get the crash crew out and get ‘em on the run

Air Force 801, this is Itazuke Tower
I cannot call the crash crew out, this is their coffee hour
You’re not cleared in the pattern, now that is plain to see
So take it on around again; you ain’t no VIP

[gitmo]

Let see. You made it 2/3 of the way to your destination. If we prorate your fare, we owe your estate a rebate of $121.17.

[NonValueAdded]

It added: "They are purely for aerodynamics"

Yeah, thank Heaven it wasn't there for cosmetic purposes - that would be serious. LOL