50 SKY SHADES - World aviation news

Warning: Boeing 767 slides may deploy spontaneously and land in your front yard

Download: Printable PDF Date: 01 Apr 2016 07:18 (UTC) categories:
Publisher:
Warning: Boeing 767 slides may deploy spontaneously and land in your front yard - Airlines publisher
Dana Ermolenko
Aircraft: Airplanes
Source: Mashable

An emergency slide deployed from an airplane — while it was in the air — and landed in a front yard in Mesa, Arizona, on Wednesday afternoon.

No injuries were reported and the only damage was to a tree.

"It was just a loud bang and then the house actually shook," homeowner Andrea Self told local television station AZ Family. She said smelled something like "sulfur burning" immediately after.

A neighbor called 911 and said they had seen an object falling from an airplane. A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told Mashable that the slide came from a Boeing 767.

The aircraft, operated by cargo and passenger charter airline Atlas Air, was flying at 2,800 feet and about to land at Sky Harbor Airport when the right over-the-wing emergency slide deployed. The crew members got a cockpit message saying the slide had deployed, and reported the it to local police upon landing.

In December of last year, the FAA proposed a fix to more than 300 of Boeing's 767s after “multiple reports of uncommanded escape slide inflation.”

According to FAA reports, certain valves on the Boeing 767 needed to be replaced that could cause spontaneous deployment resulting in “injury to passengers and crew, damage to equipment, and the slide becoming unusable in an emergency evacuation.”

The agency gave airlines four years to make the fixes.

Only crew was on board the Atlas Air flight.

"It's definitely a blessing that the damage is a tree and not a person," Self said.

oeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment.





Recommended

Safran, MTU and Avio Aero welcome EU support for SHARP project focusing on technologies for next-gen helicopter engines

European Commission decided to support Safran Helicopter Engines, MTU Aero Engines and Avio Aero in their technological research project known as SHARP (Sovereign High-performance Architecture for Rot...

Deutsche Aircraft and INERATEC demonstrate fuel-to-flight concept at ILA Berlin

Deutsche Aircraft and INERATEC are advancing their collaboration to demonstrate a fully integrated fuel-to-flight solution for sustainable and resilient aviation at ILA Berlin. At the centre...

Gulfstream G300 and G400 make their European debut in Farnborough

Gulfstream Aerospace marked the European debut of the Gulfstream G300 and Gulfstream G400, bringing two of the company’s newest next-generation aircraft to customers and industry leaders at its...

airBaltic recognized for best Wi-Fi in Europe by APEX

airBaltic has been awarded Best Wi-Fi in Europe for 2026 by APEX – one of the world’s largest international airline associations. The award is based on passenger r...

Android Apps development in Riga, Latvia