FenLandK

So, today's high winds and inclement weather have caused problems across Yurp, and I arrived at T5 today fully expecting some sort of delay on my 910 to FRA. But no! According to the iPhone app it was on time! Great, I thought. Dropped my bag - even security was light. This is going too well - get to the lounge - busy but could still find a quiet quarter to sit with a colleague. Then it started...

10 minute delay, then 20 minutes. Eventually "Go to gate" is shown. So I bid farewell to my colleague who was on the hour later flight and make my way to A23. First on to the aircraft apart from an elderly lady and her family who needed some extra time to board (^ BA for handling that perfectly).

By the time we were due to depart, by my estimation less than half the pax were on board. Eventually the doors were closed. Great, we're off! Not quite. The captain's PA gave us the news that we had missed slots at both ends, and that they were expecting a further 40 minute delay before we would leave. However, he would turn off the seatbelt signs and we could move around and use our mobiles. We were given a glass of water each in CE and we settled in for the wait. Then came the bit I had never experienced before, certainly at LHR.

The captain came back on the PA to say that the Company needed the stand, and that we were off to somewhere unspecified to wait for our slot. So, seatbelts on, push back and off we trundled eastwards. After the majority of the length of the southern runway we came to a halt (at LOKKI after having looked it up on the charts). Engines off, APU on (well, other way round I guess), seatbelt off, feet up and we waited. Nuts all round (including Y) and even a drinks round for Y! The FO went for a wander down the aisle, people started chatting to each other - it was almost a party atmosphere (apart from the fact that we weren't making much progress to FRA).

Eventually, at 17.05, the engines were fired up and off we set for 27R.

Is this normal operating procedure in such a case as this? I have to admit I have never come across it before myself.

In the end, both the 910 and 912 arrived within 10 minutes of each other at FRA, and they shoved the bags out on the same belt. Somewhat ominously, they made an announcement about some pax still awaiting bags from the 910, but luckily for me I had mine by then. Quite eventful, all-in-all!

dddc

A few years ago I was on a midweek, mid morning flight LHR-AMS. We pushed back on time and then we were told because of runway works in Amsterdam we were going to be parked at Heathrow for an hour. The captain apologised saying we had to depart the stand as it was needed by other aircraft.

It was very odd to be parked on the side, watching all the other traffic pass us by. The crew came round with drinks and nibbles to their credit. In the end we only waited 45 mins and then took off. Crew apologised again on landing for the delay, which in fairness wasn't their fault, but must be frustrating for those who had appointments upon landing.

Skipcool3

Yep, A319 flight to Vienna, very similar..... still rates as well handled by BA in my Book!

FenLandK

Actually, I don't really have any criticism of BA in this case. The weather is the weather - that's outside of BA's control. And they did look after us quite well. (Actually a hot drink might have been nice during the wait, but that's just being picky ;-))

adrianjc32

It is fairly normal, although it happens less now than it used to. Stand congestion can be a real issue at LHR so if the slots are later it makes sense to push and hold.

HilFly

In days of yore, aircraft used to be moved away from the gate for baggage to be offloaded when there was baggage checked but the passenger did not board. It used to take ages to find and remove it.

I don't know if this was done for security reasons or to free up a gate.

KenJohn

AA do this to avoid pax from trying to off-load themselves to catch an alternative flight necessitating the need to find their luggage and remove it from the plane.

Experienced this once with AA at LAX on a flight to EWR. There were storms in EWR so air traffic control were delaying all flights.

BingBongBoy

I experienced this quite a few times on Short Haul, for me, more at outstations than at LHR, but once or twice at base.

Hoch

Interesting that you mention this happening from LHR to FRA because it happened to me a few years ago but in reverse. We sat near the far runway at FRA for a good 30 minutes.

H

Betteronacamel

A few years ago now, when we had the 'liquid bomb' scare, after our flight to EWR evetually boarded we then taxied off to a remote area and sat there for over 4 hours.

It was my first flight with BA's new AVOD system (on a 767). Luckily they turned the IFE on and served some drinks so it wasn't too bad but at no time were we given any certainty that we were going or when. Amazing to think all these years later that there are still some crates out there with the looped GMIS system.

Last year at IST we were parked up, for about 3 or 4 hours waiting to get away in a snow blizzard. We just got away inside the crew maximum hours with 20 minutes to spare. Quite boring on an A320.

corporate-wage-slave

Which is why there are now DOT regulations in the US that allow people to offload themselves after 3 hours. Regulations with unintended consequences, I feel, since it often ends up that a aircraft that is 2.5 hours late is a cancelled aircraft. The penalties for transgressions make the European regulations look like chicken feed.

I had a clear example of this at Washington Reagan with AA to JFK, when we left the stand to sit at the end of the runway, waiting for weather and congestion to clear. Progress was being made but the captain calculated it would take 3.5 hours, so after 2.5 hour we were pulled back to stand and the flight was cancelled. I was nearly 6 hours late as a result of rebooking, and ended up on the same aircraft and the same crew as the first attempt.

At LHR it's not as common as it used to be but I had it twice last week, though for relatively short periods since ATC allowed us to go sooner than the original slot. Water and juice was offered throughout. Geordie behind me "Can I have a beer instead?", SCCM: "I'm sorry madam, not while we are on ground", Geordie: "Well get flying then man".

TravellerFrequently

Going to IST in January, we were delayed by 2 to 3 hours due to heavy snow in IST and delays in de-icing there.

We boarded on time, IIRC, but were sent off to some remote place for the delay, where we had the full meal service on the ground.

Luckily, the SH 767 had been substituted with a LH version, so those of us in CE had the beds!

Genius1

I had the whole pushback from stand and wait in a remote area thing going to FRA a couple of years ago. We got a drinks round in CE on the ground.

Littlegirl

This happens quite often during weather or ATC delays.

We sometimes serve the whole meal service on the ground while waiting, if the passengers are hungry!

It does seem to be happening more and more but it allows inbound aircraft to go on stand and therefore later departures to get away, so it has to be good for all.

dubbin

On the day of the fluid bomb scare in 2006, I spent 6 hours on a VS plane, pushed back and parked in the furthest armpit of LHR.

We actually pushed back twice - the first time, we made it to the runway before the pilot announced that we were imbalanced because of the way the baggage had been loaded and the large number of PAX that hadn't made it to the plane. We then returned to the gate, which apparently counts as disembarking even though the doors never opened... then after the second pushback, the 6 hour delay while the US authorities re-cleared our passenger manifest to make sure there were no foreign-sounding names on board. Not a fun day, especially in Y