Virgin VS76 - Orlando - Manchester 3rd / 4th Nov
Discussion
Had an interesting return flight home last night.
All was well until we were c4 hours from MAN when the plane did what could only be described as a "tankslapper" during a level cruise. Shortly after the power was reduced, and we descended from FL39 to FL33.
After a while the winglet lights were put on and then out after 10 mins.
For the remainder of the flight until sunrise at 0630, the engines were set at what seemed minimal power, cycling up and down to maintain c450mph ground speed.
As a seasoned TATL flyer it was apparent all was not well!
About 30 mins out of Shannon the flight map on the AVOD system then changed our destination to Shannon instead of Manchester. After which the Captain came onto the comms to announce that a spoiler on the left wing had deployed, and that as we had used excessive fuel we then needed to divert to Shannon.
After what seemed an age routing into SNN we finally landed with full honours from the Fire and Rescue services!
Currently holed up in a hotel local to Shannon waiting for the plane to be repaired for our onward flight home tomorrow.
Got the feeling that things have been understated so far and that without the skills of the air crew we at not have made land...or am I over reacting? Perhaps some of our resident pilots could advise?
All was well until we were c4 hours from MAN when the plane did what could only be described as a "tankslapper" during a level cruise. Shortly after the power was reduced, and we descended from FL39 to FL33.
After a while the winglet lights were put on and then out after 10 mins.
For the remainder of the flight until sunrise at 0630, the engines were set at what seemed minimal power, cycling up and down to maintain c450mph ground speed.
As a seasoned TATL flyer it was apparent all was not well!
About 30 mins out of Shannon the flight map on the AVOD system then changed our destination to Shannon instead of Manchester. After which the Captain came onto the comms to announce that a spoiler on the left wing had deployed, and that as we had used excessive fuel we then needed to divert to Shannon.
After what seemed an age routing into SNN we finally landed with full honours from the Fire and Rescue services!
Currently holed up in a hotel local to Shannon waiting for the plane to be repaired for our onward flight home tomorrow.
Got the feeling that things have been understated so far and that without the skills of the air crew we at not have made land...or am I over reacting? Perhaps some of our resident pilots could advise?
There's a report here: http://avherald.com/h?article=45881893&opt=0
Can't see anything obviously wrong with the spoilers though? More importantly, if the crew thought there was a potential of asymmetric deployment (through damage) why where they deployed?
Surely, a potential problem could of had them off the black stuff!
Surely, a potential problem could of had them off the black stuff!
Edited by mrloudly on Sunday 4th November 19:06
mrloudly said:
Can't see anything obviously wrong with the spoilers though? More importantly, if the crew thought there was a potential of asymmetric deployment (through damage) why where they deployed?
Surely, a potential problem could of had them off the black stuff!
OMG! you should contact Virgin and Airbus and tell them exactly what you've noticed!Surely, a potential problem could of had them off the black stuff!
el stovey said:
mrloudly said:
Can't see anything obviously wrong with the spoilers though? More importantly, if the crew thought there was a potential of asymmetric deployment (through damage) why where they deployed?
Surely, a potential problem could of had them off the black stuff!
OMG! you should contact Virgin and Airbus and tell them exactly what you've noticed!Surely, a potential problem could of had them off the black stuff!
Non-normal situations over the Atlantic. like the one you encountered, do require considerable co-ordination between crew members and the guys on the ground.
Understated? Not sure about that - essentially, the crew were doing exactly what they were trained to do - and this would be a classic example of something we train for quite regularly in the simulator every six months. i.e. - a technical fault with the aircraft, requiring problem solving in airspace that is not covered by radar or normal VHF communications, in the middle of the night, which is affecting your fuel burn etc etc. You could probably add weather avoidance into that equation too, as I was over the Atlantic the same night and spent half the crossing dodging bad weather. . .
It's the first I've heard of the incident, but from how you describe it, it seems like they've done a good job in getting the aircraft on the ground safely, which is ultimately why we (and the rest of the crew) are there.
Understated? Not sure about that - essentially, the crew were doing exactly what they were trained to do - and this would be a classic example of something we train for quite regularly in the simulator every six months. i.e. - a technical fault with the aircraft, requiring problem solving in airspace that is not covered by radar or normal VHF communications, in the middle of the night, which is affecting your fuel burn etc etc. You could probably add weather avoidance into that equation too, as I was over the Atlantic the same night and spent half the crossing dodging bad weather. . .
It's the first I've heard of the incident, but from how you describe it, it seems like they've done a good job in getting the aircraft on the ground safely, which is ultimately why we (and the rest of the crew) are there.
VFlyer has amazing detail on their aircraft movement - we used it when we were the first flight out to the US after the ash-cloud ban was lifted. We could see they'd flown an aircraft to Manchester the evening before, ready to fly. They didn't actually tell us we were good to go until 2AM, so the heads up was useful as we could pack (we'd given up all hope until we saw the plane movement).
http://v-flyer.com/the-toolbox/status-updates
http://v-flyer.com/the-toolbox/status-updates
5150 said:
Non-normal situations over the Atlantic. like the one you encountered, do require considerable co-ordination between crew members and the guys on the ground.
Understated? Not sure about that - essentially, the crew were doing exactly what they were trained to do - and this would be a classic example of something we train for quite regularly in the simulator every six months. i.e. - a technical fault with the aircraft, requiring problem solving in airspace that is not covered by radar or normal VHF communications, in the middle of the night, which is affecting your fuel burn etc etc. You could probably add weather avoidance into that equation too, as I was over the Atlantic the same night and spent half the crossing dodging bad weather. . .
It's the first I've heard of the incident, but from how you describe it, it seems like they've done a good job in getting the aircraft on the ground safely, which is ultimately why we (and the rest of the crew) are there.
Agreed, and I would be the first to applaud their efforts!Understated? Not sure about that - essentially, the crew were doing exactly what they were trained to do - and this would be a classic example of something we train for quite regularly in the simulator every six months. i.e. - a technical fault with the aircraft, requiring problem solving in airspace that is not covered by radar or normal VHF communications, in the middle of the night, which is affecting your fuel burn etc etc. You could probably add weather avoidance into that equation too, as I was over the Atlantic the same night and spent half the crossing dodging bad weather. . .
It's the first I've heard of the incident, but from how you describe it, it seems like they've done a good job in getting the aircraft on the ground safely, which is ultimately why we (and the rest of the crew) are there.
Edited by wobert on Thursday 8th November 08:24
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