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[Neil]

This British Airways Jumbo 747 took off from London Heathrow an hour ago (13.35) heading for Denver, Colorado and has for the past 30 - 40 minutes circling over the Trough of Bowland and just south of the lakes and into Morecambe bay and now on it's 4th loop heading north.


Are there any aviation aficionados that might know what she is doing.


I can only surmise that there is either a mechanical emergency or a medical emergency on board and they are dumping fuel over the Morecambe bay before heading for Manchester to land...god bless them all on board, for this is quite scary when you live directly under the flight paths from London and Europe to the USA/Canada and other points west.

[Neil]

and she was flying low at between 19 - 15,000 feet at 320 knots……….well below what she would have been on a routine flight 30 minutes into her journey.

[raflaunches]

Does sound like there is an issue and they are burning off fuel- as far as I’m aware civilian airliners can’t dump fuel so they have to spend a while burning it off- the lower the altitude the more fuel you use.

[Netleyned]

Coming back South again.
Should have dumped her fuel
On the Frackers.
Ned

[Colin Bishop]

BA are flagging the flight as 'significantly delayed'. to 15:20
Medical emergency would seem to be a strong possibility.

Colin

[gingyer]

it's not a terrorist threat or an urgent medical, if it was then it would have gone to Prestwick,


Prestwick is the northern diversionary airport.

[Colin Bishop]

Apparently the 747 does have fuel dumping capability. Not all commercial airliners do.

Colin

[derekwarner]

Contingencies such as medivac's or terror related, still have to attain a safe landing weight.......


I understood all commercially built aerofleet planes were capable of dumping fuel



The airborne dumping of fuel it is more common  than we are told

[Neil]

she has landed safely at Heathrow, at 14.33 hours...……


I rang British Airways AT 13.50 and was told that "a press release would be issued later once the aircraft was safely down"


very interesting

[Neil]

this was taken by a spotter at Heathrow as she landed, and a release says it was a "technical " issue" and her estimated time of departure is now 18.00 hours....….


I wouldn't want to be getting back on board, lol.


either that or I'd be getting laced up on Southern Comfort, lol.  or in Dereks case..gud ol' Bundaberg, hic.

[Neil]

got to say though, they are beautiful old faithful aeroplanes.

[Neil]

For those with YOUTUBE and interested she certainly made news this afternoon......here she is landing safely, thank god.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJIoq7MiZBc

[Baldrick]

Well, all the engines and wheels still seem to be attached.   Depending on which approach is operating one glide path into Heathrow is close to us.  Often wonder if one day I will find an undercarriage in the veg patch.

[Arrow5]

   How about blue ice?  Seems it is organic , good for garden

[Baldrick]

   How about blue ice?  Seems it is organic , good for garden

   A friend, who has a smallholding a few miles from Gatwick  on the southern approach used to find the sheep in his field had a very strong smell of aviation fuel on their wool .

[derekwarner]

I think this link will explain quite a lot...also a valid reason why Aviation Fuel is measured as a weight in kilograms over a volume in litres.........


However this itself is a conundrum    [the fuel is pumped onboard in a volume measured in liters, the specific gravity and temperature of the fuel is inputted manually and the computers then display the fuel capacity in kilograms]


I have learned a few things.....it really boils down to the plane must be able to land above terminal speed and before the runway converts to a swamp patch 

Derek


https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C2CHBF_en-GBAU813AU813&q=do+jet+liners+dump+fuel+before+landing&nfpr=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwju8J-14rPeAhULiHAKHb4mC14QvgUIKigB


There is also a tale in the Book by the Qantas Captain Richard deCrespigny when his A380 lost an engine and requested an emergency landing back in Singapore ...

[Neil]

There is also a tale in the Book by the Qantas Captain Richard deCrespignywhen his A380 lost an engine and requested an emergency landing back in Singapore ...

the question is, Derek…….was he granted permission or did he have to  fill out forms in triplicate before he was allowed, lol

[derekwarner]

True, it was a would like the script from Are You Being Served 


' deCrespigny......Shanghi,,,,,,,this Qantas QF2 ...request permission to make emergency return & landing at Shanghai........

Shanghai radio.........why would you want to return so soon....brand new A 380 aircraft ...the Flagship of the  Qantas fleet

Shanghai radio.....this is deCrespigny.......one of the brand new Rolls Royce engines has just fallen off '


So there was an issue in jettisoning fuel to get the weight down so the A380 wouldn't overrun the length of main runway at Shanghai into the ditch 

[Martin (Admin)]

YouTube - Fuel Dump: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9oqi6HteJg

[BrianB6]

At least this pilot did not get on the aircraft!
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-46062122

[Neil]

heard about that one earlier...….he should be jailed for that...…...any car driver would...…..


I wonder if his  co pilot or flight engineer would have let him loose at the controls, as it seems that those on the crew bus weren't willing to stop him...….absolutely appalling

[g4yvm]

Fuel is measured in kilos because the energy is per kilo not litre.  Litre is a volume, so varies with temperature.  Kilo is always a kilo.  We burn kilos per hour to get the thrust, not litres.  It is sold in litres but measured onboard in kilos.


Not all airliners can dump because they dont need to.  Airbus for example, certainly the 320/21 series can land at any weight they can take off at, so no need to dump at all...so they cant.


Blue ice is caused by leaking rackosan fluid from the toilets.  It is neither nice nor normal...it suggests a leak.  Airbus no longer use that system for toilets anyway and id be a bit surprised if Boeing did.


Sheep covered in fuel is simply not right.  The stuff evaporates before it hits earth and anyway, dumping is not done over built up areas and certqinly not on finals...we arent daft you know. They.might whiff of exhaust fumes but i doubt that. Probably just psychological on the part of the farmer


David


Airline pilot

[malcolmfrary]

heard about that one earlier...….he should be jailed for that...…...any car driver would...…..


I wonder if his  co pilot or flight engineer would have let him loose at the controls, as it seems that those on the crew bus weren't willing to stop him...….absolutely appalling

From actually reading the article in the link -

The first officer pleaded guilty to exceeding the alcohol limit at Uxbridge Magistrates' Court on Thursday.


Japanese broadcaster NHK reported that police were alerted by the driver of a crew bus who smelled alcohol on the pilot.

It would appear that he was to have been one of the pilots, rather than THE pilot, and he was spotted on the bus and reported by probably the one person on the bus who knew who to report him to.

[ballastanksian]

Contingencies such as medivac's or terror related, still have to attain a safe landing weight.......


I understood all commercially built aerofleet planes were capable of dumping fuel




The airborne dumping of fuel it is more common  than we are told


My Father used to work in the downs on forestry work and often smelt the kerosene from liners dumping excess on their way into the London airports.

[aeronut]

Aircraft aren't allowed to dump fuel anywhere, except in a real emergency.  There are designated fuel dumping areas, which are normally over water.