Ceiling panel falls down at takeoff
Sep 10, 2013, 9:41 am
#16
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I seriously hope the FA didn't call during the takeoff roll. While good CRM includes all members of the crew and an FA shouldn't hesitate to alert the cockpit of something major during the takeoff (although almost anything that would cause an abort would alert in the cockpit) something like a ceiling panel can wait until 10Kft.
Take-off abort would be a much bigger safety issue than some plastic being out of place.
Sep 10, 2013, 9:49 am
#17
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I was on DL10 today (767-300ER), and as we were building speed to take off, a 10 foot long ceiling panel fell down over the left hand aisle in economy, just behind Economy Comfort. A flight attendant called the pilot to abort, but we were going too fast to stop. We continued our ascent, and once we got to 10,000 feet, the pilot and copilot each came out to ensure there was no external damage. They weren't able to fix it, but after contacting ATL, decided to continue flying to LHR. Luckily, we didn't lose pressure or have to return to ATL. The crew handled the situation very well, other than the pilot being a little too jovial while making a passenger announcement. I'm glad he's a better pilot than PR person. :-)
Sep 10, 2013, 2:32 pm
#18
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I know the panel is nothing structural, but at the moment we didn't know if there was further damage. I'm glad the flight attendant alerted the cockpit as soon as it happened. And yes, the pilot and copilot took turns flying the pane while the other one checked out the situation. I don't know where they stored the panel during the flight, but it was cool to look up and see all the wiring and such (once we knew it was nothing structural).
Sep 10, 2013, 2:34 pm
#19
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Sep 10, 2013, 2:50 pm
#21
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Sep 10, 2013, 3:20 pm
#22
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I seriously hope the FA didn't call during the takeoff roll. While good CRM includes all members of the crew and an FA shouldn't hesitate to alert the cockpit of something major during the takeoff (although almost anything that would cause an abort would alert in the cockpit) something like a ceiling panel can wait until 10Kft.
Sep 10, 2013, 5:57 pm
#24
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Sep 10, 2013, 6:09 pm
#25
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This thread reminds me of the CR9s F Lav door. They pop out every once in a while and although they are nice to have, they don't really impact anything to do with the airworthiness of an aircraft. I honestly wonder what the pilots did if they answered that call on the takeoff roll. I can't envision a panel falling out until close to rotation at which point by the time the pilots answered the call the plane was probably already starting to lift off.
Sep 10, 2013, 9:51 pm
#26
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Perhaps a pilot or FA can comment....
BUT lets keep in mind that when it happened the FA had no idea of knowing it was JUST a plastic panel. From their jump seat they saw a TEN FOOT section of the interior of the aircraft fall down (presumably on passengers' heads). The FA had no idea if there was structural damage or if the TEN FOOT plastic panel posed a danger to people within the cabin in flight.
It makes perfect sense to have the plane stop if it can safely do so.
As a side note...on military transports where they don't care about ascetics it looks like this....
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/...52_634x471.jpg
(Given the ample space you think they could space the rows out better!)
BUT lets keep in mind that when it happened the FA had no idea of knowing it was JUST a plastic panel. From their jump seat they saw a TEN FOOT section of the interior of the aircraft fall down (presumably on passengers' heads). The FA had no idea if there was structural damage or if the TEN FOOT plastic panel posed a danger to people within the cabin in flight.
It makes perfect sense to have the plane stop if it can safely do so.
As a side note...on military transports where they don't care about ascetics it looks like this....
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/...52_634x471.jpg
(Given the ample space you think they could space the rows out better!)
Last edited by Burj; Sep 11, 2013 at 12:46 am
Sep 10, 2013, 10:41 pm
#28
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At best the FA alerted the captain to the sitch with something like "we have a loose panel in the forward part of the cabin."
And Unless the plane had any major warnings to pilots compromising the integrity of the cabin its wheels up lets go. Engines are at 90-95% thrust. Can't just call it quits that easily.
Sep 10, 2013, 10:43 pm
#29
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Interesting flight!
As everyone has stated, the panel is only cosmetic. No danger of the planes's ability to take off, though someone could have been injured. It is something that doesn't happen everyday and can rattle people. I've seen a few panels fall at takeoff in my career.
Now, talking to the cockpit during takeoff. You don't break sterile cockpit with the exception of an emergency. I've done it twice. The first, DC10, heart attack at just the start of roll. The Captain did abort takeoff. Had he not have the time or distance he would have continued the takeoff. It's one of the times pilots are trained to make decisions for. We did stop and were able to get the ill passenger off the plane and then takeoff. The Captain thanked me for saving a passengers life and to be able to save the company big bucks for not having to dump fuel and then having to start again.
The second time, another DC10, taking off out of BOS. I was sitting at 4R for takeoff. On the roll, the door opened. Did I call the cockpit? HELL YEAH! Did we stop? No. To late, we had reached the point of no return and took off. As soon as I was able, I went into the cockpit. Long story shorter, the pressurization sealed the door and we continued. The same thing happened upon landing in LAX. 1R opened and then closed. Experience taught me that to keep an eye on it and notify the cockpit after sterile cockpit.
We are trained to respond to emergencies, not "react" to them. However, being human and thus imperfect, who knows how we'll respond in the face of danger. The FA on this plane didn't respond well, but probably hadn't experienced something like it before. From my experience, the Captain probably took some time to explain the situation to the FA. It won't happen to that FA again. On the job training. Some things can't be taught in school.
Soooo, everything turned out fine on the OP's flight and the flight continued on it's way.
NWAFA
As everyone has stated, the panel is only cosmetic. No danger of the planes's ability to take off, though someone could have been injured. It is something that doesn't happen everyday and can rattle people. I've seen a few panels fall at takeoff in my career.
Now, talking to the cockpit during takeoff. You don't break sterile cockpit with the exception of an emergency. I've done it twice. The first, DC10, heart attack at just the start of roll. The Captain did abort takeoff. Had he not have the time or distance he would have continued the takeoff. It's one of the times pilots are trained to make decisions for. We did stop and were able to get the ill passenger off the plane and then takeoff. The Captain thanked me for saving a passengers life and to be able to save the company big bucks for not having to dump fuel and then having to start again.
The second time, another DC10, taking off out of BOS. I was sitting at 4R for takeoff. On the roll, the door opened. Did I call the cockpit? HELL YEAH! Did we stop? No. To late, we had reached the point of no return and took off. As soon as I was able, I went into the cockpit. Long story shorter, the pressurization sealed the door and we continued. The same thing happened upon landing in LAX. 1R opened and then closed. Experience taught me that to keep an eye on it and notify the cockpit after sterile cockpit.
We are trained to respond to emergencies, not "react" to them. However, being human and thus imperfect, who knows how we'll respond in the face of danger. The FA on this plane didn't respond well, but probably hadn't experienced something like it before. From my experience, the Captain probably took some time to explain the situation to the FA. It won't happen to that FA again. On the job training. Some things can't be taught in school.
Soooo, everything turned out fine on the OP's flight and the flight continued on it's way.
NWAFA
Sep 10, 2013, 11:14 pm
#30
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AFAIK, the panel is polyurethane and not very heavy. Still, it is good that no one got cut or otherwise injured. I, too, am surprised that the FA apparently over-reacted.