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UA 179 (EWR-HKG) 19 Jan 2019 diverted YYR , passengers stuck on board for 13 hours

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UA 179 (EWR-HKG) 19 Jan 2019 diverted YYR , passengers stuck on board for 13 hours

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Old Jan 20, 2019, 11:55 am
  #16  
 
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Originally Posted by j2simpso
Heck where I was from, when the weather hit -10 it was a near guarantee the power windows would stop working!
What plane was that on, exactly?

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Old Jan 20, 2019, 11:57 am
  #17  
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It took DL 11 hours to get a relief aircraft to SYA on Dec. 24. Some Delta passengers are going to spend Christmas near the North Pole

The fact that this all went wrong late at night made things much more complicated.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:06 pm
  #18  
 
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I am sure Canadian Customs did not assist since Canada is facing a government shutdown and the officers do not want to work without pay...oh wait
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:07 pm
  #19  
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Originally Posted by Often1
As the report makes clear, the reason the passengers were refused offloading was that Canadian Customs (CBSA?) officers were not available and would not permit the passengers to be offloaded.

Unfortunate, but not appropriately either a UA issue or one for which UA is blameworthy.
They were stuck on the ground for 13 hours due to a mechanical issue. Is CBSA now maintaining UA aircraft?

Originally Posted by j2simpso
You can't entirely blame UA on this issue. I doubt the latches on a 777 are designed to withstand -30 degree blasts.
I think you should read up on the 777 certification before making such claims.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:11 pm
  #20  
 
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Originally Posted by mduell
They were stuck on the ground for 13 hours due to a mechanical issue.
Wait, so they couldn't open the doors?
What happened to the poor guy/gal with the seizures resulting in the diversion in the first place?
That doesn't sound right.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:15 pm
  #21  
 
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Originally Posted by narvik
What plane was that on, exactly?

2013 Mazda 3. It didn’t have a Rolls Royce engine hence the reason I had normal ETOPS

Originally Posted by mduell
They were stuck on the ground for 13 hours due to a mechanical issue. Is CBSA now maintaining UA aircraft?



I think you should read up on the 777 certification before making such claims.
Not CBSAs fault but airports. There is no customs/immigration requirement for Canada for pax in transit. That’s an American thing!

As for the 777 I can only speculate since I haven’t worked on them in such extreme conditions. Hopefully there’s a tech on the forum who can comment!
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:17 pm
  #22  
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Originally Posted by j2simpso
You can't entirely blame UA on this issue. I doubt the latches on a 777 are designed to withstand -30 degree blasts. Airlines that fly up North typically have specially designed aircraft to deal with these harsh weather conditions. Heck where I was from, when the weather hit -10 it was a near guarantee the power windows would stop working!

-James
The latches were designed and certified to be fully operational at -40, and survive temperatures much lower.

You also seem misinformed about needing special aircraft for aircraft in the North.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:19 pm
  #23  
 
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Originally Posted by j2simpso
You can't entirely blame UA on this issue. I doubt the latches on a 777 are designed to withstand -30 degree blasts. Airlines that fly up North typically have specially designed aircraft to deal with these harsh weather conditions. Heck where I was from, when the weather hit -10 it was a near guarantee the power windows would stop working!

-James
so when they are cruising at FL 35 and the air temp is -30-40C the latches are OK?
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:22 pm
  #24  
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Originally Posted by mduell
They were stuck on the ground for 13 hours due to a mechanical issue. Is CBSA now maintaining UA aircraft?



I think you should read up on the 777 certification before making such claims.
No, CBSA is not responsible for the mechanical fault.

The implicit complaint in the thread title is not that the passengers were delayed by 13 hours, but that they were "stuck onboard." Aircraft go tech all the time. 13 hour delays happen.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:24 pm
  #25  
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Originally Posted by narvik
Wait, so they couldn't open the doors?
What happened to the poor guy/gal with the seizures resulting in the diversion in the first place?
That doesn't sound right.
Apparently, the problem was resealing the door after the pax was offloaded.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:34 pm
  #26  
 
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Originally Posted by narvik
Wait, so they couldn't open the doors?
What happened to the poor guy/gal with the seizures resulting in the diversion in the first place?
That doesn't sound right.
They could open the door they couldn’t get it to close. A minor requirement for departing from foreign airports these days!

I should also point out that the customs non sense didn’t apply to the emergency passenger. They deplaned them promptly and got them assistance right away! Why couldn’t a similar courtesy have been applied to passengers? When is enough, enough? 3 hours? 6 hours? Evidently not 12 hours!
Originally Posted by jgsx


The latches were designed and certified to be fully operational at -40.
Good to hear a tech chime in with their experience on these latches! I thought they would be designed for cool weather but didn’t think for weather this cold! That being said -30 is cutting it awfully close to the limit and given some unknown extenuating circumstances it could still malfunction. To say UA was being cheap and skimping on maintenance when the environment may have been the culprit is just wrong!

-James

Originally Posted by prestonh
so when they are cruising at FL 35 and the air temp is -30-40C the latches are OK?
You are assuming the latch and seal mechanism are exposed to those conditions. I suspect they are not and remain heated to the cabin temperature although I’ll let the tech chime in with details here.

-James
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Last edited by WineCountryUA; Jan 20, 2019 at 1:04 pm Reason: merging consecutive posts by same member
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:37 pm
  #27  
 
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Originally Posted by prestonh
It may have been an ETOPs rule violation if they could not get the pax and crew off the plane into adequate shelter in that harsh environment.
ETOPS certification has zero to do with airport operator and customs refusing to let people off the airplane.
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:46 pm
  #28  
 
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Originally Posted by cv11nyc


ETOPS certification has zero to do with airport operator and customs refusing to let people off the airplane.
It kind of does! The airline is supposed to file diversion airports along their route and have a diversion plan in place for each airport. Presumably such a plan would have contingencies for being left stranded for one hour, 5 hours or 3 days! Perhaps staying onboard if delay is under a day is part of that plan.

i would also think DOT and UA Tarmac policies would also dictate that given they were in Goose Bay, USA (immigration wise)

-James
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:51 pm
  #29  
 
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Originally Posted by cv11nyc


ETOPS certification has zero to do with airport operator and customs refusing to let people off the airplane.
if the notam says the airport has limited services then it probably is not a suitable diversion point. ETOPS requires adequate passenger recovery plan for each individual diversion station in the areas where the operator is not normally an operator. #s3gt_translate_tooltip_mini { display: none !important; }
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Old Jan 20, 2019, 12:56 pm
  #30  
 
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Originally Posted by j2simpso

You are assuming the latch and seal mechanism are exposed to those conditions. I suspect they are not and remain heated to the cabin temperature although I’ll let the tech chime in with details here.

-James
you mentioned the latch, nothing about the seal. but obviously the seal touches the frame and is exposed to frigid air on at least one side by definition. Did it get damaged on the ground? Does it require warmer temps to seal? All of those are different questions than what you initially posed when you posited about latches.

Originally Posted by j2simpso

It kind of does! The airline is supposed to file diversion airports along their route and have a diversion plan in place for each airport. Presumably such a plan would have contingencies for being left stranded for one hour, 5 hours or 3 days! Perhaps staying onboard if delay is under a day is part of that plan.

i would also think DOT and UA Tarmac policies would also dictate that given they were in Goose Bay, USA (immigration wise)

-James
but if staying onboard was the plan for goose bay, then they had to provide adequate shelter and food. Comments indicated they were cold and hungry for much of the time because they couldn't keep the plane warm and they wouldn't let them inside the building and took them 10 hours to get additional food.

Last edited by WineCountryUA; Jan 20, 2019 at 1:10 pm Reason: merging consecutive posts by same member
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