Firefighters from the Port of Seattle transport a simulated casualty during the airport’s recent triennial disaster drill
The FAA requires airports to conduct a comprehensive disaster drill every three years. On July 12, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) did its thing, and it was quite a sight.
Volunteer “victims” hung out in a comfortable hangar, waiting for the drill to begin
Volunteer victims included employees of the airport, several airlines, airfield support companies, the FAA, and the TSA. They received elaborate makeup at a remote hangar in order to maximize the realism of the drill.
An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-900ER landing at LAX – Photo: Carlos Ever | Flickr CC
On Monday, an Alaska Airlines flight from Newark bound for Seattle had to divert to Buffalo for an emergency landing because of smoke reported in the passenger cabin.
According to a statement from the airline, a malfunctioning credit card reader on board Flight 17, operated by a Boeing 737-900ER, started producing the smoke. A flight attendant took it to the back galley, placed the the device into a trash bin to contain it, and used a fire extinguisher to suppress any possible fire, while the flight crew declared an emergency and prepared to divert. There were no flames from the device, and the plane landed without incident at 8:15am EDT with 181 passengers and six crew members on board.
No injuries or fire damage to the aircraft were reported, though fire and emergency vehicles met the aircraft on the runway as a precaution, due to landing overweight from to a full cabin and fuel tanks for the transcontinental flight. A passenger on board the flight posted details of the diversion as it was happening on Flyertalk, an online forum for the frequent flyer community. User “autumnmist” reported that the “[f]light attendants and pilot handled it well,” and also lamented, “[s]o much for getting a solid nap in before landing in Seattle!”
We reached out to autumnmist, who asked to be identified as “J,” for more information. J, seated in Row 13, stated that the passengers were calm, mostly dozing because of the early hour and some not realizing that anything had happened until the descent started. The cabin crew announced that all passengers should be seated and prepared for landing. The captain came onto the PA system to announce that there was a small incident and that they would be landing at Buffalo out of an abundance of caution, touching down in about 17-18 minutes.
Big photo shows a photo taken by Mark Hsiung showing the fuel dump of the Boeing 777 and the inset shows a passenger photo of the dump.
NYCAviation wrote up a blog talking about a Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777-200ER having to make an emergency landing at JFK, after having gear issues after landing. In their comments, a passenger posted pictures of the fuel dump from the inside, giving a unique perspective.
After take off, the left rear landing gear door was still open (as seen in the photo). The pilot declared an emergency and for safety and weight issues, the aircraft dumped its fuel, reportedly circling twice, before landing.
The aircraft landed safely and no one on board was injured.
See more photos from the inside
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British Airways Boeing 777
One person fainting on a plane is bad enough, but six? British Airways flight BA184 from Newark to London’s Heathrow airport has six passengers faint during flight. Once the Boeing 777 landed in Heathrow, the plane was boarded by emergency personal in protective gear. All the passengers were treated onboard, no one had to go to the hospital, nothing was found hazardous, and all 216 passengers that were allowed to continue with their travels.
At this point, investigators do not know the cause of the fainting. Food and gases have been ruled out. At this time police are saying the incident is not suspicious.
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Source: Gadling Image: Eric Begin
American Airlines Boeing 757
Last Friday, American Airlines flight 414 from San Diego, CA to Dallas, TX made an emergency landing at LAX after passengers reported hearing odd noises and seeing pieces of the right wing falling off. The emergency was declared after the aircraft had already reached 29,000 feet.
The Boeing 757 safely landed at LAX. The ground crew found that lamination on the wing had come off. The 194 passengers aboard were placed on another flight and no injuries were reported.
Image: AV8NLVR