One of Greatest Emergency Landing: Hero Virgin Atlantic pilot lands 747 jumbo jet broken landing gear
Crying passengers on board a transatlantic flight have hailed a 'hero pilot' after he was forced to perform an emergency landing on broken landing gear.
The Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 with up to 400 people on board was meant to go to Las Vegas but was forced to return to London for an emergency landing after developing a technical fault shortly after take-off.
For several hours the jumbo jet circled the airport and made several low-altitude passes so engineers could inspect the landing gear problem, leaving some passengers distraught as they were forced to adopt the brace position.
The plane landed with only three quarters of its landing gear down after a set of wheels on the starboard wing refused to drop.
Passenger Dan Crane, 24, from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, said the mood before the landing was 'anxious'. He said: 'A lot were worried, some crying. They said it was an emergency landing and we had to brace on impact.'
But the terrified passengers then cheered and applauded the hero pilot after he landed the jumbo jet safely.
Terrified passengers who had endured a nerve-racking few hours circling above the south coast after the problem was identified spoke of their relief as the pilot of Flight VS43 managed a 'textbook' landing despite one of the plane's five sets of landing gear not deploying.
Passengers, many heading for a New Year break in Las Vegas, adopted the brace position and emergency services were on standby as the giant aircraft, packed with 447 passengers and 15 crew, came into land.
And there was spontaneous applause as the pilot pulled off the delicate landing without a hitch and the jet rolled safely to a stop.
Describing the mood on the plane, Dan Crane, 24, from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, said it was 'anxious, a lot were worried, some crying. The mood was quiet and (we were) just waiting for the captain's next announcement.'
Mr Crane, who was with family and friends, said the crew kept everyone informed, adding: 'They said it was an emergency landing and we had to brace on impact.'
The jet appeared to be flying with only three quarters of its landing gear down after a set of wheels on the starboard wing refused to drop, but the pilot still managed to land it safely.
The plane had to turn back towards London over the Devon coast less than 30 minutes after taking off for America at just before midday today.
The jet landed at Gatwick at 3.45pm today and is stood on the runway surrounded by the emergency services.
Passengers on board were asked to adopt the brace position as the plane came in to land.
Mike Kaufman, who was on the plane, said it would go down as one of the 'greatest emergencies in history'.
He said: 'When we landed you can imagine the relief.
'We were told the plane had a hydraulic problem but were not told that it was the wheels.
'We were told about the brace position around two hours before we landed and ran through it several times before we landed. The crew were calm and that made us calm.
'The landing was smoother than others I've had. It was probably less dramatic on board than it was watching it on TV.
'It is going to go down as one of the greatest emergency landings in history'.
The Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 with up to 400 people on board was meant to go to Las Vegas but was forced to return to London for an emergency landing after developing a technical fault shortly after take-off.
For several hours the jumbo jet circled the airport and made several low-altitude passes so engineers could inspect the landing gear problem, leaving some passengers distraught as they were forced to adopt the brace position.
The plane landed with only three quarters of its landing gear down after a set of wheels on the starboard wing refused to drop.
Passenger Dan Crane, 24, from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, said the mood before the landing was 'anxious'. He said: 'A lot were worried, some crying. They said it was an emergency landing and we had to brace on impact.'
But the terrified passengers then cheered and applauded the hero pilot after he landed the jumbo jet safely.
Terrified passengers who had endured a nerve-racking few hours circling above the south coast after the problem was identified spoke of their relief as the pilot of Flight VS43 managed a 'textbook' landing despite one of the plane's five sets of landing gear not deploying.
Passengers, many heading for a New Year break in Las Vegas, adopted the brace position and emergency services were on standby as the giant aircraft, packed with 447 passengers and 15 crew, came into land.
And there was spontaneous applause as the pilot pulled off the delicate landing without a hitch and the jet rolled safely to a stop.
Describing the mood on the plane, Dan Crane, 24, from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, said it was 'anxious, a lot were worried, some crying. The mood was quiet and (we were) just waiting for the captain's next announcement.'
Mr Crane, who was with family and friends, said the crew kept everyone informed, adding: 'They said it was an emergency landing and we had to brace on impact.'
The jet appeared to be flying with only three quarters of its landing gear down after a set of wheels on the starboard wing refused to drop, but the pilot still managed to land it safely.
The plane had to turn back towards London over the Devon coast less than 30 minutes after taking off for America at just before midday today.
The jet landed at Gatwick at 3.45pm today and is stood on the runway surrounded by the emergency services.
Passengers on board were asked to adopt the brace position as the plane came in to land.
Mike Kaufman, who was on the plane, said it would go down as one of the 'greatest emergencies in history'.
He said: 'When we landed you can imagine the relief.
'We were told the plane had a hydraulic problem but were not told that it was the wheels.
'We were told about the brace position around two hours before we landed and ran through it several times before we landed. The crew were calm and that made us calm.
'The landing was smoother than others I've had. It was probably less dramatic on board than it was watching it on TV.
'It is going to go down as one of the greatest emergency landings in history'.
Source: SkyNews, DailyMail , BBC
Comments
Post a Comment