Latest news with #Flight1006
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
After an American Airlines plane caught fire, the National Transportation Safety Board finds engine parts installed backward
On March 13, an American Airlines flight was diverted from its destination after the flight crew reported engine vibrations, and its engine caught fire once it landed. The National Transportation Safety Board said in a report this week the engine leaked fuel because of loose and improperly installed parts. Despite numerous reported aviation safety incidents, air travel is safer than it was decades ago, experts say. An American Airlines engine that burst into flames after its aircraft was diverted in March was found to have fuel leaks and improperly installed parts, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a report released Thursday. The NTSB identified a damaged fan blade on the right side of the two-engine jet, as well as a loose airflow control component that was installed backward and a loose rod end that caused fuel to leak from the fitting. The report did not give a reason for the fire, as the NTSB has not yet finished its investigation on the incident. The purpose of the document is to find the root cause of the incident, not assign blame for it. On March 13, Flight 1006 en route from the Colorado Springs Airport to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport diverted to Denver International Airport after the flight crew reported engine vibrations. The Boeing 737-823 aircraft caught fire while taxiing to the gate, incurring 'substantial damage,' according to the report. 'They thought they had what we would call the degraded engine,' Cary Grant, an associate professor of aeronautical science at Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University, told Fortune. 'It wasn't performing. It wasn't a failed engine, but it wasn't providing all the thrust and capability that it could produce.' The jet was carrying two flight crew members, four cabin crew members, and 172 passengers, 12 of whom were hospitalized for minor injuries. According to the report, gate ramp personnel extinguished the fire on the right side of the plane one minute after it began. Passengers evacuated the aircraft onto the left overwing and a slide from the jet's right door. NTSB's photos of the evacuated aircraft show burn marks and damage from the jet's right wing, main landing gear, and landing gear wheel well. 'The safety of our customers and team members is our top priority, and we are cooperating with the National Transportation Safety Board in its investigation of American Airlines flight 1006,' an American Airlines spokesperson told Fortune in a statement. The March flight diversion was one of several highly scrutinized aviation safety incidents early in the year. In January, an American Airlines jet collided with an Army helicopter in Washington, D.C., killing 67 people. Later that month, a small, private plane crashed in Northeast Philadelphia, resulting in multiple deaths. Most recently, Newark Liberty International Airport experienced a series of radio outages, which resulted in a slew of flight delays and cancellations. These incidents can have financial repercussions for airlines. American Airlines reported in its first-quarter earnings challenges to resuscitate its corporate travel business as a result of 'economic uncertainty that pressured domestic leisure demand and the tragic accident of American Eagle Flight 5342,' referring to the January incident. Despite the multiple safety blunders, aviation experts maintain it is still safe to fly. Boeing—though it has struggled in the past couple of years with safety concerns—reported a significant decline in fatalities in 2024, saying there has been a 40% decline in total accident rates and 65% decline in fatal accident rates in the past 20 years, while the number of flights has increased 20% in that same time period. Grant said the engine issues with Flight 1006 are rare, speaking to the dependability of its CFM56-7B engine. 'The engine is extremely reliable,' he said. 'The fact that we don't see situations like this occurring frequently is testament to the reliability of the motors. It's an extremely reliable part.' He maintains the flight crew did what was 'reasonably expected' of them, given the information they had at the time—especially since they had to evacuate passengers from the jet when it was taxiing at a gate, a situation that usually necessitates deplaning procedures. Combined with statistics that aviation accidents have actually decreased, the rarity of the engine degradation points to the continued security of air travel, Grant said. 'If we go back and look from the '50s on to where we're at today, the accident trend is very, very small compared to the hundreds of thousands, millions of hours of flight time that are being flown every year,' he said. 'The data does not support that air travel is riskier. It's actually just the opposite.' This story was originally featured on
CBS News
02-04-2025
- General
- CBS News
Lawsuit filed after American Airlines airplane fire at Denver International Airport
According to a new lawsuit, it claims American Airlines was negligent during the fire of Flight 1006 at Denver International Airport for "failing to orderly evacuate" and "failing to timely request emergency assistance." On March 13, videos shared on social media captured the chaotic evacuation of the American Airlines airplane fire at DIA. "I was screaming, 'Get the doors open, the doors,'" explained Terri Prager, a former flight attendant, in an interview with CBS News Colorado. Once in the terminal, passengers immediately raised concerns. "We did not see any crew," traveler Magdy Abdeltay from London told CBS News. "American 1006, just to verify, you're not an emergency still, correct?" air traffic control was recorded calling out the day of the fire. The lawsuit also claims extreme and outrageous conduct by the airline for "choosing to taxi with improperly functioning engine." "Why not have trucks follow you in? Why not say to DIA, 'We are coming in with a vibration, just want to have ARFF follow us in. Maybe can we taxi clear? Maybe don't go to a gate right where there are many other airplanes,'" attorney Joseph LoRusso said. LoRusso, the director of Aviation for Ramos Law, and Jessica McBryant, director of complex litigation, are two of the attorneys behind the complaint. Their client was forced to use the emergency slide and inhaled both smoke and fire retardant. "They suffered a range of damages from both physical and emotional and mental," McBryant said. McBryant says they have several other clients from Flight 1006, all who have lost trust in the airline. "What we are doing with these lawsuits is just to make sure that we can try and make things safer for people moving forward," McBryant said.
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘I thought we were going to die': Tampa woman recalls escaping burning plane in Denver
DENVER, Colo. (WFLA) — A terrifying scene unfolded as an American Airlines flight erupted in flames after landing in Denver. A Tampa Bay woman who was on board American Airlines flight 1006 from Colorado Springs to Dallas described the chaos, fear and the desperate fight to escape. Spring break travel: Tampa International Airport expects a record 3.3 million passengers 'I was extremely nervous and scared, and I really thought that the plane was going to blow up and we were going to die,' passenger Marisol Cohen said the plane was already in the air when the flight attendant made an alarming announcement.'We were having some rattling in the engine,' Cohen said. 'So they were going to divert the flight to Denver so that they can get a new plane or fix the rattling.'But as soon as the plane touched down, chaos erupted. 'Someone in the plane screamed fire, which was the worst thing that could have happened because everybody lost control,' Cohen said. In seconds, thick smoke-filled cabin. 'We're trapped there as we see the flames just billowing and the windows are melting, we're trapped,' Cohen recalled. Many passengers scrambled to the emergency exit, but Cohen felt some seated in that row weren't prepared to act.'The regulations that they have to sit an emergency exit, I think we really need to rethink that,' she said flight attendants did their best for the back and front of the plane. But in the middle, where she was, people were stuck. She managed to get to the wing, then a stranger on the ground offered to help. 'It was a tall gentleman that just looked up at us and said, 'Jump, I got you,' and we jumped,' Cohen Airlines issued the following statement on the incident: After landing safely and taxiing to the gate at Denver International Airport (DEN), American Airlines Flight 1006 experienced an engine-related issue. The 172 customers and six crew members deplaned and are being relocated to the terminal. We thank our crew members, DEN team and first responders for their quick and decisive action with the safety of everyone on board and on the ground as the priority. American Airlines Cohen suffered a minor cut while jumping from the wing, but she said the emotional scars from this flight will last much longer. She hopes this experience leads to changes in emergency procedures, especially for those seated in emergency exit rows. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
American Airlines passengers were told there was a problem before plane landed at DIA and fire started
DENVER (KDVR) — An announcement was made on American Flight 1006 before it made an unscheduled landing at Denver International Airport on Thursday. American Airlines passengers were told there was a problem before the plane landed at DIA, and a fire started. Once the plane was at the gate, around 5:15 pm, smoke and fire could be seen coming from under the aircraft. Cell phone video was captured of hectic moments as passengers evacuated the jet, which had left Colorado Springs and was headed to Dallas-Fort Worth. 12 taken to hospital after fire seen under American Airlines plane at DIA Pamela Watson was on the plane with her sister and her 75-year-old mother. 'They came on the speaker and said they had vibrations, so we were going to have to slow the plane down and divert it back to Denver,' Watson said. Watson was sitting behind the right wing but did not see any fire while in the air. She had no idea there was a possible serious, life-threatening problem until the plane had come to a complete stop. 'It was just a mess. No one realized the plane was on fire from the wing forward, so they were just getting their luggage like a normal exiting of a plane. When my window started melting, I started screaming the plane is on fire! Get off the plane!' Watson said. Watson temporarily lost contact with her sister and 75-year-old mother as she evacuated on to the wing and to safety amid the fire and smoke. FOX31 Aviation Expert, Steve Cowell, said he has seen nothing to indicate the fire started in the engine. Cowell said it's possible the fire could have been caused by some kind of leak. The fire seemed to have caught many people by surprise in the terminal, too. Erik Moon took pictures and video. 'I think the thing that was most surprising to me was little awareness there in the B concourse that anything was happening over there,' Moon said. The airline said the pilot landed safely and taxied to the gate when the plane experienced an engine-related issue. Joshua Sunberg, who lives near Fort Collins, was at the airport and couldn't believe what he was seeing. 'All of a sudden, I look over, and I watch a plane come in and didn't think much of it. It comes in, and once it gets in the bay, it just boom starts on fire,' Sunberg said. 4 cited during Denver street racing enforcement: Police 12 people were taken to hospitals. The NTSB said it had no new updates on Friday. A preliminary report is expected in 30 days On Friday afternoon, Pamela Watson was still trying to fly out of Denver back to Oklahoma. 'This is the most traumatic experience I've ever been through,' Watson said. She's thankful she, her sister and her mother are okay. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Yahoo
Passengers Break Silence on 'Surreal' Fiery Airplane Escape
Passengers aboard the fiery plane that made an emergency landing in Denver are finally speaking out after arriving at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport nearly 12 hours later. CBS News Texas spoke to several of the passengers aboard American Airlines Flight 1006 when the plane landed safely Friday morning, and they described the scene as "chaotic" and "surreal." Michele Woods spoke to the outlet after arriving in Dallas. She had been in Colorado for a trade show. She said the takeoff went just fine, but things got bumpy once they were in the air, after passengers noticed one of the engines was making a loud noise. "[The plane] landed, everything was fine but then there was smoke filling the cabin," she said. When passengers noticed the smoke, Woods said people started screaming, pushing and jumping. Another passenger, Ingrid Hibbit, said she missed her connecting flight in Dallas. Her family was on her way to a wedding in Argentina. Hibbit says she saw flames out of her window, which was melting. "Getting off the plane was a challenge, didn't go smoothly," she told the outlet. "Grateful to be here."Flight 1006 and its 178 passengers took off from Colorado Springs Airport on Thursday but was diverted to Denver International Airport for an emergency landing. Video quickly began spreading on social media, which showed passengers evacuating by climbing onto a wing and coming down emergency slides. Officials say 12 passengers needed to be treated for minor injuries at a local hospital. "After landing safely and taxiing to the gate at Denver International Airport (DEN), American Airlines Flight 1006 experienced an engine-related issue," an airline spokesperson said in a statement. "The 172 customers and six crew members deplaned and are being relocated to the terminal. We thank our crew members, DEN team and first responders for their quick and decisive action with the safety of everyone on board and on the ground as the priority.' This latest scary plane incident is not likely to calm the ongoing fear of flying anxiety that is impacting airline company's bottom line.
