Chunk of Wing Falls off Plane During Take-Off

Speaking of things to be afraid of during travel, a six-foot section of a wing fell of a plane taking off from London City Airport today.

According to the Telegraph, there was a loud bang and a large section of the wing fell off:

Cole Moreton, a features writer at The Telegraph, was on board the flight and described the confusion as passengers told cabin crew, who appeared to alert the pilot.

“The bang made people jump and was alarming then we sat there thinking this isn’t right, surely?†he said.

“Does the pilot know? But we didn’t appear to be crashing. So there was a tense few minutes while we circled and waited for an announcement.

“Relief to get back on the ground, seriousness sunk in when we saw emergency services scrambled and lights flashing.â€

The article doesn’t say what happened, but did say the wing and part of the aircraft looked badly burned.  Fuel is often stored in the wings, so it might have had something to do with that (given the burns).

Here’s a shot of the wing from the air:

 

About Jeanne Marie Hoffman

Former bartender, still a geek. One equal part each cookies, liberty, football, music, travel, libations. Stir vigorously. +Jeanne Marie Hoffman Jeanne on Twitter

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5 comments

  1. It didn’t fall off, and nothing burned. Most likely, the only issue with that part (a non-structural actuator cover) actually falling off would be the potential to strike the tail/elevator.

    • Jeanne Marie Hoffman

      That’s good to know! It’s hard to tell the truth in a story when the news team were the ones live tweeting from the flight. (Making a bigger story out of it?)

  2. Wow that’s an Avro RJ

    • Jeanne Marie Hoffman

      Yeah! I almost highlighted that part too and was like, ok, I’m getting obscure here 😉 Cool plane

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