Latest news with #Dulles
Yahoo
04-08-2025
- General
- Yahoo
A United Airlines flight made an emergency landing last week at Dulles after the pilot reported engine failure
A United Airlines flight traveling from Washington Dulles International Airport made an emergency landing last week after the pilot declared a mayday call shortly after takeoff due to suspected engine failure. United flight 108, bound for Munich, Germany, was forced to return to Dulles on July 25 'to address a mechanical issue,' the airline told CNN. The plane, a Boeing 787, was carrying 219 passengers and 11 crew members, the airline said. Minutes into its ascent and at nearly 5,000 feet, the pilot told air traffic control, 'Engine failure, left engine, United 108 declaring an emergency. Mayday, mayday, mayday,' according to recorded air traffic control audio. Mayday calls signal distress or urgency when an issue has happened aboard an aircraft. An air traffic controller asked the pilot, 'Are you able to make your way back to the field at this time' by turning right. 'There's nobody between you and the field,' the controller said. Data from flight tracking site Flightradar 24 showed the flight took off at 8 p.m. before it circled back and landed safely at Dulles about 30 minutes later. In a statement to CNN, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said the plane was checked by Airports Authority Fire and Rescue personnel, then towed to a gate. 'There was no disruption to other flights,' MWAA said. 'The plane landed safely, and all passengers deplaned normally at the gate. The flight was subsequently canceled and we arranged alternate travel arrangements to take customers to their destination as soon as possible,' United said in its statement. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
04-08-2025
- General
- Yahoo
United Airlines Pilot Issues ‘Mayday' After Reported Engine Failure Over Washington
A United Airlines flight carrying 230 people declared an emergency moments after taking off from Washington's Dulles International Airport, with an audio recording capturing the pilot's repeated 'mayday' call to air traffic control. Flight 108 was only moments into its June 25 ascent to Germany's Munich International Airport when its pilot reported an engine failure, according to a tower recording. 'Failure. Engine failure. Left Engine, United 108. Declaring an emergency. Mayday, mayday, mayday,' the pilot is heard saying in the recording obtained and published on YouTube by You Can See ATC. Air traffic control and the pilot discussed preparations for returning to the airport, including the need to dump fuel to adjust for the proper weight needed for landing, according to the audio. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner landed safely shortly after, with 'all passengers deplaned normally at the gate,' a spokesperson for United said in a statement Monday. 'The flight was subsequently canceled and we arranged alternate travel arrangements to take customers to their destination as soon as possible,' they said, while blaming the situation on a 'mechanical issue.' There were no disruptions to other flights, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in an email. The Federal Aviation Administration acknowledged the crew's report of possible engine issues in an email to HuffPost and said it is investigating. Related... NTSB Finds Army Chopper Was Flying Too High When It Collided With Plane Delta Pilot Arrested By Federal Agents After Landing Plane In San Francisco Passenger Plane Crashes In Russia's Far East Killing All 48 On Board SkyWest Plane Does 'Aggressive Maneuver' To Avoid Mid-Air Collision With B-52, Pilot Says
Forbes
04-08-2025
- General
- Forbes
United Airlines Pilot Declared ‘Mayday' On Recent Flight—Nothing Unusual, Say Experts
A United Airlines pilot issued a mayday distress call after the Boeing 787 he was flying experienced engine failure shortly after taking off from Washington's Dulles airport for Munich on July 25, though 'mayday' calls are not unusual in aviation—letting air traffic controllers know when a flight needs priority handling. A United Airlines Boeing 737 airplane like this one suffered engine failure last month after taking off from Washington DC's Dulles airport. (Photo by Robert Alexander) Getty Images The flight 'returned to Washington Dulles shortly after takeoff to address a mechanical issue,' United Airlines confirmed in a statement shared with Forbes, adding that the plane landed safely, all passengers deplaned normally and the flight was subsequently canceled. 'Mayday' when repeated three times 'indicates imminent and grave danger and that immediate assistance is requested,' according to the Pilot/Controller Glossary published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). 'That's by the book, exactly how it's to be done,' John Cox, aviation safety expert and retired commercial airline pilot, told Forbes of the United incident, adding that giving the mayday call tells air traffic controllers 'you need priority and to start moving airplanes away from you.' United Airlines flight 108 from Washington to Munich was operating a Boeing 787 with 219 passengers and 11 crew members on board, when one of the aircraft's two engines failed. 'Can the airplane fly just fine on a single engine? Yes, but that is something where you want to divert and get back on the ground,' Chad Kendall, an associate professor and FAA chief instructor in the Department of Aviation and Aerospace Science at Metropolitan State University of Denver, told Forbes. Pilots train repeatedly throughout their career for engine failure, multiple veteran pilots told Forbes. Air traffic controllers are used to 'mayday' calls, Cox told Forbes. 'And it's even more normal outside the U.S.' How Often Do Commercial Pilots Declare 'mayday'? 'Most of the public has probably seen a movie where there is a pilot in very dire straits using 'mayday, mayday, mayday,' but in terms of pilot training this is a phrase to convey the type of handling and resources from air traffic control that they need in a situation,' Kendall told Forbes. At least one other United Airlines flight issued a 'mayday' distress call last month, when a Boeing 737 on its way from Chicago O'Hare airport to Sarasota, Florida, on July 17 turned around after experiencing a mechanical issue, according to tower audio captured by Flight Follower. 375,000. That's the number of hours of operation per average turbine engine failure, according to the FAA. That translates to roughly one engine failure every 43 years of continuous flight. What Other Distress Calls Do Pilots Use? 'PAN-PAN,' repeated three times, 'indicates uncertainty or alert followed by the nature of the urgency,' according to the FAA's Pilot/Controller Glossary. 'PAN PAN is used in a lesser event, often for a mechanical issue that does not require urgency,' Kendall said. For example, in May, shortly after takeoff from New York's John F. Kennedy airport, a Lufthansa Airbus A340 crew reported that one of the aircraft's four engines failed while over the Atlantic, approximately 120 miles southeast of Boston. The pilot issued a 'PAN-PAN' distress call and requested to return to JFK, where it landed safely. Surprising Fact 'Mayday' comes from 'm'aidez,' which means 'help me' in French. The term 'PAN-PAN' originates from another French word, "panne,' which means "breakdown" or "failure." Both distress calls were adopted internationally in 1927. Further Reading Nervous About Flying? Here's How Aviation Safety Experts Mitigate Their Own Air Traffic Concerns (Forbes)
CNN
04-08-2025
- General
- CNN
United Airlines flight makes emergency landing at Dulles after pilot declares mayday
Air travel safety Aviation news Airplane crashesFacebookTweetLink Follow A United Airlines flight traveling from Washington Dulles International Airport made an emergency landing last month after the pilot declared a mayday call shortly after takeoff due to suspected engine failure. United flight 108, bound for Munich, Germany, was forced to return to Dulles on July 25 'to address a mechanical issue,' the airline told CNN. The plane, a Boeing 787, was carrying 219 passengers and 11 crew members, the airline said. Minutes into its ascent and at nearly 5,000 feet, the pilot told air traffic control, 'Engine failure, left engine, United 108 declaring an emergency. Mayday, mayday, mayday,' according to recorded air traffic control audio. An air traffic controller asked the pilot, 'Are you able to make your way back to the field at this time' by turning right. 'There's nobody between you and the field,' the controller said. Data from flight tracking site Flightradar 24 showed the flight departed around 6:11 p.m. ET before it circled back and landed safely at Dulles around two hours later. In a statement to CNN, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said the plane was checked by Airports Authority Fire and Rescue personnel, then towed to a gate. 'There was no disruption to other flights,' MWAA said. 'The plane landed safely, and all passengers deplaned normally at the gate. The flight was subsequently canceled and we arranged alternate travel arrangements to take customers to their destination as soon as possible,' United said in its statement.
CNN
04-08-2025
- General
- CNN
United Airlines flight makes emergency landing at Dulles after pilot declares mayday
A United Airlines flight traveling from Washington Dulles International Airport made an emergency landing last month after the pilot declared a mayday call shortly after takeoff due to suspected engine failure. United flight 108, bound for Munich, Germany, was forced to return to Dulles on July 25 'to address a mechanical issue,' the airline told CNN. The plane, a Boeing 787, was carrying 219 passengers and 11 crew members, the airline said. Minutes into its ascent and at nearly 5,000 feet, the pilot told air traffic control, 'Engine failure, left engine, United 108 declaring an emergency. Mayday, mayday, mayday,' according to recorded air traffic control audio. An air traffic controller asked the pilot, 'Are you able to make your way back to the field at this time' by turning right. 'There's nobody between you and the field,' the controller said. Data from flight tracking site Flightradar 24 showed the flight departed around 6:11 p.m. ET before it circled back and landed safely at Dulles around two hours later. In a statement to CNN, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said the plane was checked by Airports Authority Fire and Rescue personnel, then towed to a gate. 'There was no disruption to other flights,' MWAA said. 'The plane landed safely, and all passengers deplaned normally at the gate. The flight was subsequently canceled and we arranged alternate travel arrangements to take customers to their destination as soon as possible,' United said in its statement.
