Morning:
19°c
It’s amazing to learn they did any research at all — unless it was into farting and foreskins
Teenager becomes the first person to die of swine flu in London and the fourth in the country
More...
Record of fires on 777 jets
Last updated at 16:56pm on 18.01.08A British Airways pilot was hailed a hero last night after avoiding a major disaster by successfully crash-landing his stricken plane at Heathrow.
Flight BA 38, carrying 150 passengers and crew, suffered a catastrophic double engine failure on its final approach to the world's busiest airport.
Last night investigators were probing whether the catastrophe was caused by a bird striking the plane.
Just 20 seconds from landing, Captain Peter Burkill suddenly found he had no power.
Scroll down for more ...
The dramatic scene at Heathrow yesterday after a BA Boeing 777 suffered engine failure and crash landed
Wounded beast: Emergency crews swarm around the crashed plane, the twisted metal of its broken wing clearly visible behind one of the emergency chutes
He fought desperately to keep the Boeing 777 on course and high enough to miss nearby houses and the busy road beside the airport.
As drivers watched in horror, the jet cleared the airport's perimeter fence by just a few feet and smashed onto grass hundreds of yards short of the runway.
The impact tore off part of its landing gear and the plane skidded across the grass on its belly, gouging deep tracks, as the rain-softened soil helped slow it down.
Scroll down for more...
Both wings and an engine were badly damaged before it finally slid to a halt on the very tip of the runway.
As fire engines raced to the scene, then smothered the shattered plane with foam, cabin crew deployed the emergency evacuation chutes and passengers slid to safety.
Incredibly, just 13 of those on board were hurt, only one seriously.
Last night, as the fuselage of BA 38 still lay across Heathrow's south runway, Capt Burkhill and his crew were praised for their calmness, expertise and bravery.
One passenger on the flight from Beijing said it was a miracle everyone had escaped with their lives.
Scroll down for more....
Freewheeling: Landing gear was torn off on impact
Moment of terror: Passengers slide down the escape chute fearing an explosion
Another told of the terror as screaming passengers ran through a smoke- filled cabin, fearing they would die before they reached the emergency exits.
He said: "People started screaming, kids were crying, we thought we were going to die. We thought the plane was going to blow up."
The drama caused major disruption at Heathrow with nearly 100 flights, most short haul, being cancelled and dozens diverted to other airports.
A plane carrying Prime Minister Gordon Brown on a five-day visit to China and India was also delayed.
It was on the tarmac, waiting to take off, when the BA flight came down a few hundred yards away.
Last night the investigation of the 12.40pm drama was considering the possibility that a flock of Canada geese had been sucked into the jet's engines.
Scroll down for more...
So close to disaster: The stricken plane rests on its belly, its broken wing tilting upwards and the remains of its torn-off landing gear in the foreground
So sudden and dramatic was the emergency that Captain Burkhill did not have time to put out a radio alert or even warn his 136 passengers to assume the 'brace' position.
One airport worker said the captain, who has been with the airline for nearly 20 years, told him he had lost all power.
"He told me the aircraft shut down," the worker said, "He glided it across and managed to get the nose up. It happened very close to coming into land. He managed to get it into the airport and it skidded on to the grass.
"Everything was normal and there was no warning or anything and then suddenly 'boom', the power's gone, everything shut down.
Scroll down for more...
Crash landing: Deep tracks gouged in the grass show where the Boeing 777 hit the ground and skidded before coming to a halt at the start of the runway
Emergency: Firemen douse the plane
"Its a miracle, this man deserves a medal as big as a frying pan. He's done a fantastic job, he really has."
One passenger said the pilot had "looked very pale" after leaving the plane.
Neil Jones, who has a pilot's licence, said he had seen the plane making a "very, very unusual approach" to Heathrow.
He said: "The engine noise sounded louder than normal and it was that that first attracted my attention.
"The aircraft was banking to the left and it was coming in very low over the surrounding houses. The plane was significantly lower than it would normally be.
Scroll down for more...
The front wheels of the airliner are seen strewn across the grass bordering the runway
"You could see the pilot was desperate, trying to get the plane down. The aircraft hit the grass and there was a lot of dirt. The pilot was struggling to keep the plane straight. I think he did a great job."
Taxi driver John Rowland said: "It looked as though it was just missing the roof of my cab...so low you would think you could lean out the window and touch it.
"It passed over the perimeter fence at 15 feet before it crashed. Debris was flying everywhere, there was an enormous bang and it skidded sideways.
Scroll down for more...
The plane's wing appears to be partially ripped from the body (click to enlarge)
"It hit the grass and the undercarriage went into the wings and the wings tilted up."
British Airways chief executive Willie Walsh praised the flight crew but refused to speculate on what happened.
He said: "I would like to pay tribute to the crew of the BA38 led by Captain Peter Burkill.
"The flight crew showed great courage and professionalism in landing the aircraft safely.
"All of the crew did a fantastic job evacuating the passengers. They are all heroes and everyone at British Airways is very proud of them."
The 13 injured, including four crew, were treated at Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge. One had a broken leg, but the others had only minor injuries, mostly whiplash.
Seven of the group are British and three Chinese. The nationalities of the other three were not known last night.
The investigation by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch will question all those involved and check the plane's 'black box' flight data and cockpit voice recorders.
Scroll down for more...
Engine failure: Firefighters attend to the plane wreck beside a smashed engine
The Boeing 777 was launched in June 1995 and is considered an extremely reliable aircraft with an almost impeccable safety record.
It is powered by two Rolls Royce engines but should still fly if one fails.
Its landing gear is the largest of any commercial aircraft.
BA has 43 777s and there are 667 in operation around the world.
Reader views (36)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
I also ask why are they not grounding ALL 777.
I am in eloctronics and am not happy flying were electronics has my life in it's hands.
We have all had to reboot our Computers at one time and Computers are flying the planes.
If the reports are correct the engines never shut down and that says they had fuel.
Take a Cell phone that is in use and bring it close to your Computer. That is what could have happened.
Today we have so many radio signals from so many different things that we are just asking for things like this to happen.
- John, Oxford USA
Hmm,
The scenario sounds hauntingly like the 2000 Concorde 'incident'. Plane with an impeccable safety record has bizarre failure while a Prime Minister is in another plane at the other end of the runway at the very same moment. Ya gotta wonder.
- Kim, Australia
Why are the results of the accident cause not released. If the cause of the engine failure is not known all Boeing 777's should be grounded. Safety first.
- Sydney Lawrence, Brisbane. Australia.
I have flown all over the world for many years, including dozens of landings at Heathrow, some in a 777. Let's not rush to judgment. The crew did a fantastic job safely getting the plane down. Let's give the investigators time to determine what really happened. If there is a flaw somewhere, I am confident it will be fixed.
- Jim, Rochester, NY USA
Surely the pilot would have warning over low fuel.
Strangely, I was on an Airbus that had a total electrical shutdown as it touched down at Doha- the engines just died and the cabin was in darkness apart from emergency lights. Could the Boeing suffer some form of electrical system failure?
- Will, London
The findings of the accident investigation authorities are going to be sorely needed soon. For the pilot to indicate "complete loss of a/c systems" to an airport worker is serious. Bird strikes wouldn't cause this to happen. I am an avionics designer-engineer. We design a/c with multiple redundant systems to prevent this exact type of event. We design them according to these types of scenarios - to survive bird strikes, etc.
Speculation of course, but initially, there seems to me to be either 1 of 2 possibilities for this event. 1-sabotage. 2-design flaw. This is why the findings of the accident investigators is going to be crucial. If it is sabotage, governments will cover it up so the public doesn't get scared.
Lastly, pilot error or not, the captain and f/o deserve a hearty congratulations. To have this happen when it did, the probabilities are slim that it would have made it down the way it did without any loss of life. Bravo.
- Bill, London
I hope this draws attention to how crazy it is for the flight path into Heathrow to run over huge swathes of London. It is madness.
- Oli, London
A hundred yards shorter and there would have been a real disaster.
This exposes the foolishness of having airports and urban areas next door to each other.
And yet BAA/BA are lobbying hard for another runway (with more flights!) at Heathrow.
Wake up, Government!
- R.Mckenna, London
Did it run out of fuel?
- Rob, London
A great relief that nobody was seriously injured. But before all this talk of heroism, shouldn't we wait for the results of a full inquiry - just in case the cause turns out to be pilot error?
- Sam Webster, London
Confused, the 777 probably exceeded the total number of hours Concorde flew withing a few years of introduction and still has never suffered a total hull loss accident.
- Md, London
Confused England: There have been no recorded 777 losses...the aircraft has an impeccable safety record. Do try to keep up.
- Mark, London
Alex, the emergency chutes convert to life rafts if you ditch in the sea, hence the bright yellow colour so they can be found by rescuers.
- Francis, Camberley, England
In a follow-up to Craig's comments, I hope that no worms suffered on the turf that was torn up by the big metal bird in the sky's feet.
- Steve, London
Bird strike - almost certainly - there can be few other scenario's that would shut both engines down.
- Tarquin, Caernarfon UK
I am shocked that the landing gear snapped and that the injuries were so minor. It's a miracle. The down forces needed to snap those wheels has to be massive although, I suspect, the soft soil combined with the forward motion of the craft to put the needed stress on them. Amazing luck for all that he got that nose up. God was with him. I hope he takes some time off! Can't imagine barely saving my own life, much less having 100+ souls on board.
- Riva, Los Angeles, USA
It will be interesting to hear the cause of this, but a huge pat on the back to the pilots for managing what could have been a tragic incident.
The photo where you say "The plane's wing appears to be partially ripped from the body" actually looks like the left undercarriage has been forced up through the wing. Any tearing force to rip it off would rip the front mostly and it looks completely intact.
- Andy, Auckland, New Zealand
Very impressive landing. A true professional team at work.
- Anon, Leamington Spa, UK
I used to frequently travel internationally and always felt safer on a BA flight. The British literally taught the rest of the world the proper way to conduct commercial air travel operations. Bravo to the captain and his crew!
- Bob Merhige, Virginia Beach, USA
Those videos always show us yellow emergency chutes... what's the deal?
- Alex, Montreal, Canada
What, no grounding of the aircraft, no fingers pointing at the extremely poor safety record that this aircraft now has...I mean, is this at present not now one of the most unsafe planes in the world, given its short lifespan? Concorde deserved better yet look at her fate.
- Confused, England
Passengers should have their airport tax refunded as they did not actually use the runway ...
- Thierry, London, UK
Well done crew!
- Rachel Wells Crew Ek, London
Bravo BA crew...there are none better.
- Maurice Fairweather, Kino Bay Mexico
Sounds like equipment failure and if so Boeing must be very concerned. Could be fuel starvation. Could be incorrect flat settings or speed allowed to drop below stalling speed. Whatever the cause all can be thankful a tragedy was averted.
- Sydney Lawrence, Brisbane. Australia.
A close shave. But your report does, at least, give loss of power as the cause of the crash while television speculates on a hundred and one possibilities and investigations.
The pilot's final communication with the control tower should help and, before that, his contact with the approach controller at West Drayton when, presumably, he or she still had full power?
But the airport's ILS (Instrument Landing System) would have been no remedy for engine failure so the whole business does concentrate the mind.
- Peter Seekings-Foster, Muildenhall, Suffolk
Amazing, thank goodness. What an amazing escape from a dreadful crash.
- Ernie, LPC France
I know for sure the pilot would be ill at ease with any allusions to heroism. Firstly he was only fulfilling the terms of the contract with his passengers to get them back on the ground safely. There are people who daily put themselves in positions way beyond the call of duty and are more deserving of hero status. What did you expect the pilot to do?
- Sean Martin, Ramsgate, Kent
This shows that it's total madness to consider building a third runway north of the present two at Heathrow. Total total madness. If this plane had lost power even seconds sooner, it could have killed a large number of people on the ground. If it had lost power on the main approach just south of the Thames in central London, thousands might have been killed. Brown and his crew have to stop their madness, and look for a nice quite spot in the country -- where a plane crashing on approach will only affect those on the plane itself.
- Phil Jones, London UK
Seems like a case of much maligned old fashioned true Brit grit. Well done to the pilot and thank you to mistress Fortune. And perhaps the politicians will think again about their new runway, then again, they are only interested in short term, usually illusory gain...
- Helen, Norwich
Thankfully everyone is alive and OK.
I hope there were no animals or pets in the cargo hold.
- Craig, UK
Another good reason to close Heathrow, sell all the land for housing and build a decent 21st century airport in the Thames Estuary with the profits.
- Al , Richmond upon Thames
We can count our lucky stars that the Prime Minister escaped unscathed then?
- Roger, London
This is why I fly BA - best pilots around, well done on landing and getting every one off safely.
- Kay, London
Oooops. Hope it wasn't that 19 year old pilot mentioned a couple days ago ....
- Marianne, SW France
Hope the driver was insured.
- Twoboats, Manchester
