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Thousands Delayed After Incredible Emergency Landing by Virgin Atlantic 747 (+video)

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Photo Credit: Virgin.com

Photo Credit: Virgin.com

At least 10,000 passengers flying to and from Gatwick had their flights cancelled when the airport’s single runway closed following an emergency landing. A Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 returned to the Sussex airport for a “non-standard landing procedure”.

The Jumbo jet, flight number VS43, had taken off at 11.44am for the 5,200-mile flight to Las Vegas, with an estimated 450 passengers on board. The flight crew became aware of a problem with the landing gear soon after take-off. The aircraft flew circuits over southern England while burning fuel to reduce its weight, and made two low-altitude passes over Gatwick for visual inspection of the undercarriage.

The aircraft landed safely shortly before 4pm, with emergency vehicles in attendance. Nick Hughes, a passenger on the aircraft, told BBC Radio 5 Live: “Initially they didn’t reveal everything to the passengers. After we’d circled a few times you got the sense things weren’t quite right. They gave every opportunity for the landing gear to open, but unfortunately it never did.

“The actual landing was one of the softest landings I’d ever had. The crew were exemplary.”

The aircraft remained on the runway for more than three hours after the landing, closing the airport to arrivals and departures. (Read more about the incredible emergency landing HERE)

Another Mystery Airline Disappearance; Search Continues for Missing Airbus A320 Carrying 162

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Asia MournersBy Bart Jansen and John Bacon. Southeast Asia was mourning its third airline catastrophe of the year Sunday after an AirAsia jet with 162 people aboard vanished in violent weather and was believed to be at the bottom of an Indonesian sea.

The fate of Flight 8501 remained a mystery almost a full day after it vanished. . .

The Airbus A320 was bound for Singapore from Surabaya, Indonesia, when it lost contact with air-traffic control Sunday at about 7:24a.m. Singapore time, the airline said.

“We have no idea at the moment what went wrong,” said Tony Fernandes, CEO of the regional, low-cost carrier. “Let’s not speculate at the moment”. . .

The tragedy marks the third commercial air disaster involving airlines in the region this year. Mystery still shrouds Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared without a trace en route to Beijing on March 8 with 239 people aboard. On July 17, another Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down over rebel-controlled eastern Ukraine while on a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, killing all 298 people on board. (Read more about this mystery airline disappearance HERE)
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Anek Ferry BurningHundreds of passengers endure freezing 24 hours on burning ferry in Adriatic

By Barbie Nadeau. Hundreds of desperate passengers are enduring freezing conditions on a stricken ferry that has been burning in the Adriatic Sea for 24 hours.

Helicopters with night vision equipment have been working through the night to pull them off, one by one.

On Monday morning, the Italian Navy announced that 265 people had beenAnek Ferry Rescue rescued from the Norman Atlantic, which was traveling between the Greek port of Igoumenitsa and the Italian port of Ancona when fire broke out deep in the parking bay.

Authorities said 213 remained on board, including the captain, who was helping to coordinate the rescues.

After waiting hours in rough conditions, one Greek man told Italian state broadcaster RAI TV that passengers were “dying of cold and suffocating from the smoke,” and that their feet were “burning” from the heat of the flames. (Read more from this story HERE)

Phantom Phone Calls Haunt Families of Vanished Malaysia Airlines Flight

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Photo Credit: Washington Post For three days, relatives awaiting word on the vanished Malaysia Airlines jet have endured a cruel roller coaster of emotions.

First came the shock. Then, with each development that has emerged, they have careened between hope and despair. But by Monday, the predominant emotion was anger.

Gathered at a hotel in northeast Beijing, many still resented Malaysia Airlines for having sent no one to explain anything during the first 15 hours after the plane’s disappearance. They blamed the Chinese government for not even meeting with them until Monday, three days into the crisis.

More than 100 of them signed a petition demanding answers and government assistance. Representatives selected from the families brought their protests to the Malaysian Embassy in Beijing.

And Monday afternoon, when Malaysia Airlines officials returned for yet another briefing with little more to offer, some relatives threw water bottles at them in frustration. The question-and-answer session Monday eventually devolved into crying and shouted demands: “All you have to say is empty talk!”

Read more this story HERE.

U.S. Airlines Complying with China’s New Airspace Demands

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Photo Credit: AP via Kyodo NewsU.S. airline officials say they are complying with new State Department guidance urging carriers to alert China before any flights pass through that country’s new self-declared air-defense zone.

Airline officials said Saturday that compliance would not disrupt travel to Asia, since they already communicate with any government when crossing through or over foreign territory.

“U.S. airlines’ flights are operating normally,” said Katie Connell, a spokeswoman for Airlines for America, an industry trade group. “We are in communication with both U.S. and Chinese civil aviation authorities and continue to follow standard international flight notification protocol and procedures.”

Although the U.S. has not recognized China’s new claim, the State Department on Friday said it had advised U.S. airlines to comply with China’s demand for advance notification of any flights through a new “air defense identification zone,” which Chinese officials first declared on Nov. 23.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said U.S. air carriers were being advised to take all steps they consider necessary to operate safely in the East China Sea region.

Read more from this story HERE.

U.S. Airways Kicks Off Blind Man And His Guide Dog; Other Passengers Witnessing It De-plane In Protest

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Photo Credit: Opposing Views In a show of solidarity, passengers on a U.S. Airways Express flight exited the plane because a flight attendant kicked a blind man and his guide dog off the flight.

Albert Rizzi, 49, a legally blind resident of Long Island, says he is considering legal action against the airline.

Rizzi told 1010 WINS that the flight attendant was angry that his guide dog Doxy wouldn’t stay underneath his seat. Rizzi said the flight from Philadelphia to Long Island’s MacArthur Airport was delayed and Doxy grew restless and agitated. She was curled up under Rizzi’s legs, but the flight attendant said that wasn’t enough. Doxy had to be “stowed under the seat.”

“I took offense to that,” Rizzi said. “My dog is not to be stowed, he’s not an inanimate object. This woman just did not want to understand that sitting on a plane for an hour and a half for any human is uncomfortable. The dog was just antsy and wanted to get comfortable.”

Rizzi, sitting on the back of plane, didn’t have room under his seat.

Read more from this story HERE.

Southwest Airlines Plane Plummets In Mid-Air

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Photo Credit: andynash/flickrThe pilot of a Southwest Airlines flight headed to Raleigh/Durham International Airport (“RDU”) went on the loudspeaker and told passengers their plane was going down, according to a woman on board the flight.

“He said, we’re going down. And everyone is looking around like, is this a joke? Is he serious? And then you felt the nosedive,” passenger Shelley Wills said.

Wills told ABC11 the Tuesday night flight from Tampa took a nosedive thousands of feet in the air while they were about 100 miles away from RDU.

Wills is a nurse and tried helping the first-time flier seated next to her who was clutching her chest.

“I’m thinking oh my God, she’s going to scare herself into a heart attack,” Wills said.

Read more from this story HERE.

Delta Warns ObamaCare Will Drive $100 Million Spike in Health Care Costs

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Photo Credit: Fox News

Photo Credit: Fox News

Delta Air Lines has issued an urgent warning about the impact of ObamaCare, claiming the law’s implementation will contribute to a roughly $100 million increase in health care costs next year alone.

The astonishing figure was included in a letter from Delta executive Robert Kight to officials in the Obama administration. The website RedState.com was the first to obtain and publish the letter earlier this week.

A representative with Delta confirmed the authenticity of the letter to FoxNews.com.

“Like many large companies, Delta faces significantly increased healthcare costs in 2014 and beyond,” the company said in a statement on Friday. “Delta will absorb the vast majority of those increased costs so that we can continue providing a high value, high quality health plan. Consistent with our culture, Delta will always keep the best interests of our people in mind in connection with the healthcare and other benefits we provide.”

In the original letter, Kight disputes the notion that the law — the biggest parts of which take effect at the start of 2014 — will mean “business as usual” for big employers. A combination of factors, he claimed, will “mean that the cost of providing health care to our employees will increase by nearly $100,000,000 next year.”

Read more from this story HERE.

Southwest Flight Crash-Lands At New York’s LaGuardia Airport (+video)

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Ten injured as plane crash lands without after nose landing gear COLLAPSES as it lands at New York’s LaGuardia Airport

By Michael Zennie. A jetliner has crash-landed at New York’s LaGuardia Airport after its nose landing gear collapsed as it touched down on the tarmac this evening.

Ten people aboard the Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 were hurt. Six had to be taken to a local hospital. The rest were treated at the scene. The extent of their injuries were not known, though they are believed to have been minor. Four passengers also suffered panic attacks after the landing.

Southwest Flight 345 was bound for New York City from Nashville, Tennessee. It was carrying 144 passengers – including a baby – and six crew members.

Aviation officials halted all takeoffs and landings at LaGuardia after the crash about 5.45pm on Monday. The Federal Aviation Administration said held all flights to LaGuardia for over an hour – delaying thousands of fliers.

Read more from this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: Reuters NYC Public Advocate threatens to prevent Saudi Arabian Airlines from landing at JFK

By Fox News. New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio tells FoxNews.com that he’ll work to prevent Saudi Arabian Airlines from landing at JFK and other American airports if the carrier does not change its policy of barring Israelis from flying — even when passengers are simply looking to transfer in Saudi Arabia to another country.

“When Saudi Airlines flies from our airports, it needs to follow our laws. Discrimination based on national origin is illegal. We’re going to take steps to see Saudi Airlines’ lease at JFK pulled until it respects the rights of Israeli nationals,” said de Blasio, a mayoral candidate who first helped expose the airline’s practices.

Federal law says an “air carrier or foreign air carrier may not subject a person in air transportation to discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex or ancestry.” Conditions of the airline’s leases and agreements to operate at airports, such as JFK, could be terminated if the law is broken.

For its part, Saudi Arabian Airlines is citing lack of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Israel for the airline barring Israeli passengers. Read more from this story HERE.

World Trade Center Owners in Court Trying to Collect Billions from Airline Companies

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Photo Credit: cliff1066™One of the last lawsuits tied to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks kicks off in a Manhattan courtroom tomorrow where Massport faces “billions” in potential damages.

The anticipated three-day federal bench trial is being held to decide whether World Trade Center Properties, owner of the World Trade Center towers brought down by terrorists, can seek more compensation from airlines and the Massachusetts Port Authority than the $4.9 billion insurance payouts they’ve already received. The attack destroyed a third building as well.

“You’re talking about billions (of dollars) in this lawsuit,” said retired Federal Aviation Administration Special Agent Brian Sullivan, who pointed out security holes at Logan International Airport prior to the attacks. The two planes that brought down the twin towers left from Logan.

The suit alleges the airlines and other aviation-related companies were negligent, allowing terrorists to board airplanes and overtake their crews before plunging the planes into the trade center complex.

Read more from this story HERE.

Lasers a Growing Concern for Aircraft Pilots (+video)

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Photo Credit: Getty ImagesThe pilot in the Asiana Airlines crash complaining of being temporarily blinded by a bright flash in the cockpit has revived concerns about the risks from people pointing lasers at aircraft.

Deborah Hersman, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said it wasn’t clear what could have caused the pilot’s problem when the plane was 500 feet in the air. Asked specifically whether it could have been a laser pointed from the ground, Hersman said she couldn’t say what caused it.

“We need to understand exactly what that is,” Hersman said. “It was a temporary issue.”

Whether at fault in the crash Saturday in San Francisco, lasers have been a persistent, growing concern for pilots, airlines and federal regulators. While they look relatively harmless, lasers pointed at a cockpit can temporarily blind pilots and distract them while they are taking off or landing a plane.

In 2012, there were 3,482 laser incidents, slightly down from the 3,591 the year before but a stark contrast to the 1,527 incidents in 2009, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The 2012 figure was roughly the same as the total number of reports from 2006 through 2009.

Read more from this story HERE.