Posted on 07/25/2008 12:59:54 PM PDT by null and void
A GAPING hole which ripped through the belly of a jumbo jet mid-flight may have been caused by an explosive device or a damaged fuselage, aviation experts say.
The packed Quantas Boeing 747 was forced to make an emergency landing in the Philippines today after the hole ripped through the plane’s belly.
Some passengers were so terrified they vomited when oxygen masks has to be used as the Melbourne-bound flight touched down.
Air expert David Learmount said: “It’s possible there was some kind of explosive device in the suitcases. There’s a hole where there shouldn’t be.”
But Mr Learmount, who is Safety Editor at Flight International Magazine, stressed the hole could also have been caused by a weakened hull, causing the belly of the plane to give way.
Of the luggage exposed by the hole, he said: "It's interesting to see them - how else could that be if not an explosion?
"Bags are moved about quite roughly in the hold and the plane was built in 1991 so it has seen a lot of action. If damage was done to the fuselage over a period of time a crack could have developed...weakening to the point where it was blown out."
The US Transportation Security Administration said initial reports show the incident was not related to terrorism.
Aviation expert Chris Yates said: “From the pictures coming in from Manila it’s quite evident that a section of the fuselage gave way in flight.
Tear ... plane is tattered
“As a consequence of this the aircraft experienced rapid decompression. Fast action from the pilot and co-pilot ensured that all those aboard remained safe.”
He went on: “Australian air accident investigators will examine closely the fracture points evident on the skin of the aircraft to determine whether metal fatigue or manufacturing defect caused the panel to be ripped away from the remainder of the fuselage in flight.
“This is not an uncommon occurrence, every year there are reports of panels being lost from aircraft in flight and these instances are rarely, if ever, fatal.”
Passengers spoke of hearing a loud bang and debris flying into the first class cabin as the plane’s flooring gave way, part of the ceiling collapsed and the plane reportedly plunged 20,000ft.
The aircraft touched down safely in Manila at 11.15am local time and amazingly all 346 passengers and 19 crew disembarked normally.
Manila airport operations officer Ding Lima told local radio the plane lost cabin pressure shortly after take-off on the Hong Kong to Melbourne leg of its journey and the pilot radioed for an emergency landing.
Terrifying
He said: “There is a big hole in the belly of the aircraft near the right wing, about three metres in diameter.
“Upon disembarkation, there were some passengers who vomited. You can see in their faces that they were really scared.”
Brit Owen Tudor said passengers feared for their lives as the plane rapidly lost altitude.
“There was an almighty crack and you could hear something happening,” he said.
“Then the oxygen masks fell down and you started dropping down, ears popping, that sort of thing.”
And Phil Restall said passengers were relieved to have landed safely, not realising the severity of the damage to the plane until they got off.
“You see the hole and you realise we were very lucky,” he said.
“Seeing the hole caused a lot of emotion. People were physically shaking. Many realised how close they were to their own mortality.”
English passenger Robin McGeechan said it was a scary moment when the oxygen masks fell down.
“We were told a door had popped,” he said.
“We only realised that there was a great big hole in the plane after we landed.”
Debra Manchester, a housewife from Buckinghamshire, was sitting in first class when the incident began.
She said: “Newspapers and what looked like part of the ceiling flew past me. We didn’t know what was happening to the plane. After a while, things calmed down and there was a deadly silence.
“There was still debris all around our feet but we all started to feel a bit safer when we could take our masks off.”
Mrs Manchester said luggage was “hanging out” of the hole where the hold had been, and the emergency door above appeared to have come loose.
She claimed that 20 minutes after the plane first took off from Heathrow, she heard a loud bang near one of the doors.
“You have to wonder if that explosion could have caused the second one,” she said.
George Kierans said: "For three or four minutes it was very scary stuff. I actually thought it was an engine blew originally. The plane seemed to tilt considerably to one side.
"Obviously when the masks shoot down in front of you, you do realise you’re definitely in a very dangerous situation.”
Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon said the airline was sending an investigation team, including Qantas engineering personnel, to Manila tonight.
A replacement Boeing 747 to take passengers on to Australia is understood to have departed Manila today and will arrive in Melbourne tomorrow morning.
Peter Gibson, from Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority, told ABC Radio that initial reports indicated a problem with air pressure in the cabin.
He said: “The pilot has some pressurisation warnings about a door on the left-hand side of the aircraft, but exactly what went wrong is still being determined.”
Initial inspections revealed the aircraft sustained a hole in its fuselage, and it was being inspected by engineers.
INVESTIGATORS should be able to quickly pinpoint the basic reason behind the Qantas plane’s emergency landing in the Philippines, aviation experts said today.
But they warned that a full understanding of the terrifying incident may take much longer.
Although there has been no immediate evidence that terrorism played a part in the incident, investigators will want to look at anything that points towards a deliberately-planted explosive device.
The probe will also concentrate on whether there was a non-criminal explosion of some kind or whether the incident was sparked by something breaking on the plane.
“It should become apparent fairly quickly if something exploded or something broke,” said Kieran Daly, editor of internet news service Air Transport Intelligence.
“When things like this happen there is always the thought that it might be a criminal case. Investigators will also want to see if something like a gas cylinder exploded or that something broke for whatever reason.
“There may also have been some form of structural failure. Sometimes with accidents, the essential gist of the cause is very quickly known, but then it can take a much longer period of time to know exactly what happened.”
Mr Daly cited the case of the British Airways Boeing 777 crash-land drama at Heathrow in January. UK air accident investigators quickly worked out that there was a fuel-supply problem and have already issued four reports.
However, it is likely to be some time before there is a final report in which the investigators will be able to say exactly why power was lost.
747.
"Passengers spoke of hearing a loud bang and debris flying into the first class cabin as the plane’s flooring gave way,"
"the incident was not related to terrorism."
Nothing to see here, move along....Lockerbie anyone?
Metal fatigue at the wing root.
Really!!!
interesting that the United States was not even involved, yet the TSA felt compelled to chime in that it wasn’t terrorism, practically before the plane had stopped rolling.
Most likely.
Of course, a sudden depressurization of the cargo compartment wouldn’t blow debris INTO the first class cabin, would it?
Yeah. Good thing they’re not protesthing too much isn’t it?
Over pressurization of the luggage area? The forensic people will check for residue if it was an explosion....
Yep. It’s a clean tear, not a jagged hole leftover from an explosion.
Don’t know if the cargo area is pressurized. Once the hole opened the wind might be considerable in there.
But you feel safer now. Mission Accomplished!
The US Transportation Security Administration said initial reports show the incident was not related to terrorism.
Could be metal fatigue...
I don't know either, but I have seen enough crash test/simulation footage that shows the flooring collapsing into the cargo area when said cargo area is abruptly depressurized to think it likely.
Besides, structurally, what holds pressure better, a perfect cylinder, or a cylinder with a big flat floor for one side?
CC&E
Could be a lot of things. Smart money is on metal fatigue.
Me too. My arms get so tired...
The metal starts missing at the rivet line...not something one sees from an explosion.
Yes, it's pressurized. That's why Itchy and Scratchy can ride down there and not be dead when you get to your destination.
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