A Tense Landing at Newark Airport

[alp227]

Source: A.G. Sulzberger and Nate Schweber, The New York Times

The plane was well into its final descent toward Newark Liberty International Airport on Sunday morning when it began a sudden and unmistakable climb.

There was “a little problem,” the pilot told the 48 passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 634. Only two of the three landing wheels had opened successfully, and after repeated attempts to fix the problem had failed, those aboard were instructed to prepare for a crash landing.

A passenger, Paul Lasiuk, 46, of Chicago, described himself as more shocked than scared. “You have no choice,” he said. “You’re going to go through this.”

That Mr. Lasiuk and his fellow passengers were able to describe their emotions — as well as the fairly graceful landing with only two landing wheels in place — was testament to the abilities of the five-person crew, they said later.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/11/nyregion/11plane.html

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Yet another incident at Newark Airport, just days after that security breach. Newark Airport seems to be making the headlines a lot these days; back in August it for hours while he was filming My Name is Khan.

[Faygo Kid]

1. Thank goodness they made it. Previous incidents are unrelated.

As a regular visitor to Metro Airport in Detroit, I no more relate your incidents any more to relating the recent terrorism attempt to the fact that Metro was prominently featured in "Up in the Air."

[SkyDaddy7]

5. Maybe you need to read what was written again...

All the incidents are related in the manner said...READ AGAIN!

[donco6]

13. ?? I read it - I don't see any relation.

They all happened in Newark. Yeah. Ok.

[Submariner]

2. I used to always look inside the cockpit when boarding a plane

I like to glance at the Captain's seat and hope to see a slightly graying Vietnam era combat pilot.

Nowadays when I try to do that there always seems to be a flight attendant standing in the cockpit doorway. And when I look, and then glance at them, I get the look like I've just become a person of interest to be watched. The paranoia is just exquisite. :scared:

[cloudbase]

3. You can still ask

to see the licenses and medical certificates of the pilots, as well as the current airworthiness certificate for the aircraft. You can really draw attention to yourself that way.

[Aviation Pro]

7. Yes indeedy...

...if I remember correctly 14 CFR 91.203 sub-paragraph 2(b) implicitly states that the airworthiness certificate must be visible at the cabin door for pax and crew. Aircraft operating under Part 121, again IIRC, must comply with all Part 91 requirements.

[a la izquierda]

8. My brother in law is a pilot...

he's about 43, but looks very young. He's about the only person I'm confident to fly with. He used to fly KC135s and was a pilot instructor in the Air Force.
He can fly the hell out of anything he gets behind.
ETA: I know exactly how you feel, though.

[naaman fletcher]

14. And now he works for Fedex?

[a la izquierda]

16. no, southwest.

[naaman fletcher]

22. oh ok...

I know a guy with exact same story from your same state who went to Fedex.

[a la izquierda]

24. He was going to go to UPS...

but Southwest came calling.

[OI812]

23. If you do manage a peek into the cockpit chances are you will see

a couple of pimple-faced adolescents who fly airplanes just like they fly Flight Simulator. Virtually no contemporary pilots, if they're younger than about 40, know anything about flying an airplane...they know how to do video games. And they usually manage to avoid catastrophe thanks to the technology that got them the job in the first place. Autopilots are amazing gizmos.

[truthisfreedom]

4. Amazing story. Excellent work!

Nice!

[Peace Patriot]

6. A two-wheeled landing! Wonderful! Kudos & laurel wreaths to pilots and crew! nt

[Historic NY]

9. Try flying regional airlines, the crew looks like its in high school.

[Robb]

11. True that.

I'll admit a preference for a little snow on the roof of my pilots, but it's probably an unreasonable thing.

[LuckyLib]

12. And if you knew the difference between their logged hours when they were hired

as opposed to what it was even 10 years ago, YOUR hair would go white.

[Aviation Pro]

15. Before anyone gets all up and riled over regional pilots....

...know this, I've trained a couple hundred ab initio students and nearly all of them were hired by a regional carrier because they demonstrated the appropriate competencies necessary to fly in the right seat of a CRJ, ERJ or ATR. The bogus bullshit put out by ALPA has an agenda that you could cut through with a knife. For those who believe that 1500 hours and an ATP is any barrier toward the prevention of accidents ask and answer the following question: name one Part 121 accident that didn't have an ATP certificated pilot with thousands of hours as PIC.

[alcibiades_mystery]

17. Once flew a mid-winter hop from Minneapolis to Houghton, Michigan

The pilot looked like he was in junior high school.

:-)

[Blue_Tires]

10. remarkable skill...

how did the engine not catch fire scraping on the runway? and how did the plane keep straight and not veer off?

and what caused the landing gear to fail in the first place??

[47of74]

18. I wonder if any right wing whack-jobs out there

I wonder if any right wing whack-jobs out there will try to somehow say the stuck landing gear is the President's fault.

[damntexdem]

21. Well, note that it was the right wing whose landing gear didn't deploy.

;-)

[Tracer]

19. Worst landing I ever had:

This was back a few years when airlines actually fed you.

I was flying into Ft. Lauderdale and as we approached, we ran into some big thunderstorms.

When we crashed (er, I mean landed HARD with screeching brakes and roaring engines), the doors to the lunch tray storage area in the back, burst open and all the trays (with remains of lunch) FLEW down the center aisle -- knee deep.

Passengers were shocked into silence until a wag said "Anyone for seconds?"

[damntexdem]

20. Holding the ankles, head between the knees, kissing you-know-what goodbye.

Luckily, and due to the training and competence of the crew, the passengers got to kiss and tell.

;-)