Australian passenger aids jet rescue
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Australian passenger aids jet rescue
Australian aids jet rescue
David Braithwaite
April 17, 2006 - 3:38PM
The Age newspaper (Melbourne)
An Australian passenger, stranded in Kazakhstan after an emergency landing, translated instructions from ground control to the pilots of several aircraft sent to rescue more than 370 passengers and flight crew.
The man's girlfriend said communication problems between the crew of a British Airways 747, forced to set down en route from Sydney to London, and airport staff had caused difficulties but her Russian-speaking boyfriend, Michael, had stepped in to help, allowing the rescue planes to safely take off.
Michael was on board British Airways flight BA10, which left Sydney airport on Friday afternoon. After a stop-over in Bangkok, the flight crew noticed a fire warning light in the cockpit.
The jet, carrying 354 passengers and 18 crew, was forced to request an emergency landing at the airport of Uralsk, a city in northern Kazakhstan near the border with Russia, the Kazakhstan Emergency Situations Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
The jet landed safely with no injuries and the warning was found to be a false alarm.
However, the jet could not take off again because the runway was too short for the heavily laden Boeing 747.
"I found out the flight didn't fly direct to London on Saturday afternoon when I was checking the live flight information on BA website," the man's girlfiend, who wished only to be known as Jacquie, said.
"I called British Airways and his friend in London straight away. Then I spent the most unrestful 24 hours in my life afterwards, until I received his email yesterday afternoon, telling me that he is being well in London."
British Airways was forced to send three smaller passenger jets to Uralsk to ferry the passengers to London.
After arriving in Uralsk, passengers were forced to jump "about two feet from the aircraft door" onto a staircase to get off the plane, according to a report on the Professional Pilots Rumour Network website, an online forum for pilots and airline industry workers.
"Spoke to a friend on this flight; she said it was scary," said a forum correspondent named Dakar.
"She went [on] to say a lot of children [were] on the flight, with no change of clothing and becoming restless.
"She also said the aircraft drew a lot of attention whilst on the ground. Police, Army, the Mayor all coming on board, the local press was there."
However there had been communication difficulties between the British Airways crew and airport staff, Jacquie said.
"My boyfriend said to me that when they were in Kazakhstan, the pilots and stewards had difficulties communicating with the local authority and he had worked as an interpreter.
"My boyfriend's parents were from Russia and he speaks Russian, too. He also translated those instructions from the control centre to the pilots when the planes were taking off.
"He was helping all the way out for 16 hours in the airport and took the last flight to London.
"I am so proud of him that he is a warm-hearted and responsible Australian young man."
When the smaller planes finally arrived, passengers were forced to board by stepping onto the roof of an airport vehicle and then onto a stairway, Britain's Press Association news agency reported, quoting a British Airways spokeswoman.
It was initially thought a cargo of bees had caused the emergency by setting off fire sensors. However, the bees were found in their original packing, the spokeswoman said.
All passengers arrived safely in London.
The landing had been a "precautionary diversion", British Airways regional general manager Don Clark said in Sydney.
"Safety is our first concern, so we diverted the aircraft to make sure everybody was safe and the fault could be looked at," he said.
"Our people in London reported that everyone was in praise of the crew and no-one on board had any major concerns.
"The flight landed in Uralsk about midday Sydney time and the last people would have left about 20 hours later."
The passenger quoted on the PPRN website "could not praise the crew enough", according to Dakar.
"After first and club had been transferred to the first relief aircraft, the cabin crew allowed the remaining passengers to use both club and first cabins to sleep."
Another correspondent, Flightrider, said: "The runway [at Uralsk] is probably one of the bumpiest in living memory. [The] surface particularly at one end . . . is quite poor.
"I can imagine that a 747-400 landing here would create an absolutely huge stir."
David Braithwaite
April 17, 2006 - 3:38PM
The Age newspaper (Melbourne)
An Australian passenger, stranded in Kazakhstan after an emergency landing, translated instructions from ground control to the pilots of several aircraft sent to rescue more than 370 passengers and flight crew.
The man's girlfriend said communication problems between the crew of a British Airways 747, forced to set down en route from Sydney to London, and airport staff had caused difficulties but her Russian-speaking boyfriend, Michael, had stepped in to help, allowing the rescue planes to safely take off.
Michael was on board British Airways flight BA10, which left Sydney airport on Friday afternoon. After a stop-over in Bangkok, the flight crew noticed a fire warning light in the cockpit.
The jet, carrying 354 passengers and 18 crew, was forced to request an emergency landing at the airport of Uralsk, a city in northern Kazakhstan near the border with Russia, the Kazakhstan Emergency Situations Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
The jet landed safely with no injuries and the warning was found to be a false alarm.
However, the jet could not take off again because the runway was too short for the heavily laden Boeing 747.
"I found out the flight didn't fly direct to London on Saturday afternoon when I was checking the live flight information on BA website," the man's girlfiend, who wished only to be known as Jacquie, said.
"I called British Airways and his friend in London straight away. Then I spent the most unrestful 24 hours in my life afterwards, until I received his email yesterday afternoon, telling me that he is being well in London."
British Airways was forced to send three smaller passenger jets to Uralsk to ferry the passengers to London.
After arriving in Uralsk, passengers were forced to jump "about two feet from the aircraft door" onto a staircase to get off the plane, according to a report on the Professional Pilots Rumour Network website, an online forum for pilots and airline industry workers.
"Spoke to a friend on this flight; she said it was scary," said a forum correspondent named Dakar.
"She went [on] to say a lot of children [were] on the flight, with no change of clothing and becoming restless.
"She also said the aircraft drew a lot of attention whilst on the ground. Police, Army, the Mayor all coming on board, the local press was there."
However there had been communication difficulties between the British Airways crew and airport staff, Jacquie said.
"My boyfriend said to me that when they were in Kazakhstan, the pilots and stewards had difficulties communicating with the local authority and he had worked as an interpreter.
"My boyfriend's parents were from Russia and he speaks Russian, too. He also translated those instructions from the control centre to the pilots when the planes were taking off.
"He was helping all the way out for 16 hours in the airport and took the last flight to London.
"I am so proud of him that he is a warm-hearted and responsible Australian young man."
When the smaller planes finally arrived, passengers were forced to board by stepping onto the roof of an airport vehicle and then onto a stairway, Britain's Press Association news agency reported, quoting a British Airways spokeswoman.
It was initially thought a cargo of bees had caused the emergency by setting off fire sensors. However, the bees were found in their original packing, the spokeswoman said.
All passengers arrived safely in London.
The landing had been a "precautionary diversion", British Airways regional general manager Don Clark said in Sydney.
"Safety is our first concern, so we diverted the aircraft to make sure everybody was safe and the fault could be looked at," he said.
"Our people in London reported that everyone was in praise of the crew and no-one on board had any major concerns.
"The flight landed in Uralsk about midday Sydney time and the last people would have left about 20 hours later."
The passenger quoted on the PPRN website "could not praise the crew enough", according to Dakar.
"After first and club had been transferred to the first relief aircraft, the cabin crew allowed the remaining passengers to use both club and first cabins to sleep."
Another correspondent, Flightrider, said: "The runway [at Uralsk] is probably one of the bumpiest in living memory. [The] surface particularly at one end . . . is quite poor.
"I can imagine that a 747-400 landing here would create an absolutely huge stir."
