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Delayed due to”pressurization”?

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Old May 9, 2018 | 6:31 pm
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Delayed due to”pressurization”?

UA483. ORD-PHX. That is exactly what the FA said. Crew left so they could pressurize the plane. Exact quote.

Currently 40 minutes at least. Crew left with zero sense of urgency.
Can anyone translate what might be going on? Maybe “testing” the pressurization.

A big sign at our gate says “#1 in on-time departures. We’re so predictable.”

Last edited by milepig; May 9, 2018 at 6:57 pm
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Old May 9, 2018 | 7:01 pm
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I'd take it at face value, they're doing a pressure test on the plane to diagnose or confirm resolution of a pressurization issue. Probably on the inflow or outflow side, rather than a hull issue.
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Old May 9, 2018 | 7:52 pm
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Greetings from a real, live airline mechanic!
When we have to do this at the gate, it's usually the result of a crew writing up a door squeal (air leaking out), or similar thing.
Otherwise, if a component went bad in flight (outflow valve, or control module), it will also require an operational check before flight is allowed.

Fortunately, it doesn't usually take very long. But then there's paperwork, so........
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Old May 9, 2018 | 8:16 pm
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Originally Posted by Legend717
Greetings from a real, live airline mechanic!
When we have to do this at the gate, it's usually the result of a crew writing up a door squeal (air leaking out), or similar thing.
Otherwise, if a component went bad in flight (outflow valve, or control module), it will also require an operational check before flight is allowed.

Fortunately, it doesn't usually take very long. But then there's paperwork, so........
Finally left the gate ~60 late. We’ve now moved from B9 to off B2 abd are stuck in an endless ground delay. Sigh.
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Old May 9, 2018 | 8:18 pm
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Originally Posted by Legend717
Greetings from a real, live airline mechanic!
When we have to do this at the gate, it's usually the result of a crew writing up a door squeal
You nailed it. The inbound flight had a window squeal in the write up, requiring the ground pressurization.
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Old May 9, 2018 | 8:19 pm
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Whenever I'm delayed for a mechanical repair, I consider how fortunate I am to have been on an airline that was able to catch any such issue before it blew up into something potentially much worse. Think about the alternative scenario to having waited to fix a mechanical problem at the gate, and you'll soon see the bright side to your delay.
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Old May 9, 2018 | 8:19 pm
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Better than a permanent delay if the aircraft did in fact have a leaky seal (cockpit window perhaps?) and that caused an inflight emergency which could not be controlled.

The reason why commercial aviation is so safe in this country is that there is zero tolerance for what even remotely might be a problem. I'll take OP's delay any day of the week over a slapdash effort focusing too much on schedule.
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Old May 9, 2018 | 9:09 pm
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Originally Posted by transportprof
Whenever I'm delayed for a mechanical repair, I consider how fortunate I am to have been on an airline that was able to catch any such issue before it blew up into something potentially much worse. Think about the alternative scenario to having waited to fix a mechanical problem at the gate, and you'll soon see the bright side to your delay.
Originally Posted by Often1
Better than a permanent delay if the aircraft did in fact have a leaky seal (cockpit window perhaps?) and that caused an inflight emergency which could not be controlled.

The reason why commercial aviation is so safe in this country is that there is zero tolerance for what even remotely might be a problem. I'll take OP's delay any day of the week over a slapdash effort focusing too much on schedule.
Less than a month after WN1380, if a crew member mentioned they were checking or fixing the pressurization system, I would expect every passenger to say, “take all the time you need!” Actually I feel that way about any mechanical delay or crew rest issue, no matter how inconvenient.
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Old May 10, 2018 | 12:20 am
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Originally Posted by princeville




Less than a month after WN1380, if a crew member mentioned they were checking or fixing the pressurization system, I would expect every passenger to say, “take all the time you need!” Actually I feel that way about any mechanical delay or crew rest issue, no matter how inconvenient.
I get all of the above. What I don’t get at this very tired moment is why we’ve finally arrived in PHX and am now cooling our heels since UA didn’t have a ramp crew ready to bring us in.
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Old May 10, 2018 | 12:38 am
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Originally Posted by milepig


I get all of the above. What I don’t get at this very tired moment is why we’ve finally arrived in PHX and am now cooling our heels since UA didn’t have a ramp crew ready to bring us in.
I hope the ORD mechanics fixed it right; I'm flying out of PHX on that bird in the morning...
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