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Indian pilot forgets to load enough fuel for his flight
Let me open by saying that the details of the incident I'm about to write about are sketchy at best. The report comes from an Indian news site, and appears to be translated quite poorly, it's still interesting enough to write about, but I highly recommend reading the source article for a real chuckle.
Apparently, the captain of Kingfisher flight IT335 was preparing for his Mumbai to Delhi flight, but failed to check his fuel loads. Of course, when you do this in your car, you get a "ping" and an orange light comes on, but on a fully loaded jet, things are a little more complicated.
To make matters worse, the jet encountered poor visibility upon its approach to Indira Ghandi Airport and the captain was not certified for those conditions.
Eventually, the plane managed to reach the airport, presumably running on fumes with a pilot not trained or certified for the weather conditions.
The story then recommends people to check with the captain that enough fuel was loaded. I'm sure that will go quite well, and I certainly plan to ask the flight attendant on my next flight to confirm with the captain that he loaded enough gas.
My next report will probably be about how the federal air marshal Tasered me and dragged me off the plane for demanding to check the fuel gauge in the cockpit.
Other "troublemakers of the sky":
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Doug Jan 9th 2009 1:57AM
Hmmm, What do I expect from a shit hole scab airline like Continental???
CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!...Something that it seems ALL other US airlines seem to be lacking these days. Flying to the cities I need to go to at the times I need to fly at the competitive prices I can pay (and understand!! Apples to Apples). Free meals during flights during meal times. Free soft drinks. Free pillows and blankets. If I bring my own head sets, free movie. if not, costs only $1 for headset and I KEEP the headset for next flight. Flight Attendants and Pilots whom don't treat customers as "marks" to fleece them for every nickle and time.
NO, I DON'T work for Continental, nor does any one in my family work for the Airline industry. I do fly a lot. The word SCAB left Continental when Frank Lorenzo left the company. YOU are part of the current problem at your airline. Whatever leftover unionized luggage crap you still got left over in your head you need a through cleaning out of due to today's economics or you will find yourself in the same position as your ex-colleagues at Eastern.....with NO job and out of the industry they loved.
jhowej3 Jan 8th 2009 6:18PM
My dear ignorant flyer, and I mean that in a nice way... You undoubtedly know nothing about the Airline Industry. I don't work for Continental, I retired after 32 years with British Airways in 2004. Eastern was put out of business on purpose to build up Continental by stripping Eastern of it's assets. I don't blame the Pilots, Mechanics and Flight Attendants at Eastern for trying to stop the stripping of the Airlines assets with intent to liquidate it. It wasn't the workers who put Eastern out of Business, it was the management. And for Continental, did you know that a Federal Grand Jury in New York filed a 60 Count criminal indictment against Continental Airlines for flying aircraft around the country, with nice paying customers like yourself, without "Doing the Required Maintenance on Aircraft". It was the Mechanics at Continental that went to the District Attorney in New York, and leveled the charges.
Upon investigation by a Federal Grand Jury, Continental was indicted and fined (with the help of the FAA) over $50 Million Dollars for not following proper maintenance procedures and timetables to repair aircraft.... the biggest fine in aviation history. Yeah, Continental is a great airline all right.... it is Eastern Airlines without the Eastern name or employees. Continental went from the 14th largest in size to the 5th largest in size by stripping and destroying Eastern Airlines.... Oh, another thing, Continental has been in Bankruptcy Court more times than any other airline, shafting the workers, vendors, suppliers, manufactures and banks, that they deal with. You want to fly Continental, go ahead. Anyone who knows something about the Airline Industry stays clear of Continental. It's a "Crash" waiting to happen. Whenever I fly in the United States, I fly on Delta, even though British Airways has a flight program set up with American for it's retirees. I know who to fly and who not to fly. I will never fly Continental. the next time you get on a Continental Airplane, say your prayers... they just crashed another one out in Denver...last week.... a 737.
eerie quark doll Jan 8th 2009 10:44AM
Similar to AC143 in 1983, except it was the ground crew who mis-loaded based on kg-lb conversions.
Bill Jan 8th 2009 3:10PM
It happens all the time. I once helped a Cesna pilot who arrived in Haiti without funds and no gas. I provided repatriation funds, but he did not use it all. left assuring me he had enough gas, but ran out near Cuban territorial waters. The Cubans rescued him from the sharks. It would probably have been better for the gene pool to have left him to his fate! Also, when there was a crisis and no commercial flights would enter Haiti, a money hungry pilot chartered a DC-3, loaded up with those desperate to leave and the mail. Ran out of fuel over the Bahamas, did a beautiful crash landing in shallow water, everybody happy sitting on the partly submerged wings or nearby island. They and mail promptly rescued, and everybody happy except recipients of water logged mail. There are crazy, or incompetent pilots everywhere.
ROB Jan 8th 2009 12:19PM
John Denver died after his aircraft ran out of gas and crashed in the ocean
bonnie Jan 8th 2009 2:24PM
that would be a Lake.
Lolita66722 Jan 8th 2009 3:50PM
john denver crashed into a tree downhill skiing to fast.
junior Jan 8th 2009 5:12PM
Actually that was Sonny Bono. Denver died in a plane crash.
tommy Jan 8th 2009 5:19PM
Yes, sad about John Denver...still a couple of my all time favorite songs....all lost over fuel :(
P.S. are there really "fuel gauges" in the cockpits ??
Lee Jan 8th 2009 6:19PM
It was a glider plane...it didn't need fuel
foxxydrummer Jan 8th 2009 12:33PM
But I'll bet the Slurpee machine was full!
Dtjump Jan 8th 2009 12:36PM
Basically, you don't trust the fuel gauges, you look at the fuel level. If its a bottom loader like most jets, then you follow-up with the ground crew on how much fuel they put into the a/c and then you check you gauges to make sure that you have adequate fuel for flight to your destination + 45 minutes reserve.
Sounds like that guy wasn't instrument rated. In the US, that would never happen. If you have an ATP rating, you also have an instrument rating and you have a commercial rating.
Billy Jan 8th 2009 1:32PM
It doesn't mean he wasn't rated to fly by instruments, it means the pilot may not have received training for this specific aircraft. A pilot can be dual rated for different aircraft, and there are different category approaches that bring you down to lower ceilings and visibility. I am rated for category 3 approaches but I am not rated for cat 2 or cat 1 approaches, until next week when I go through the FAA approved training course for the comapny I fly for, and for the specific plane I fly.
Jan Jan 8th 2009 12:48PM
Dear John Denvers music had killed him years before
Tim Jan 8th 2009 1:05PM
John Denver had already had his license taken away for flying drunk. He should have never been up there.
ROB Jan 8th 2009 1:19PM
I like Denvers music, he was one of the most popular artists in the world
Joe Jan 8th 2009 1:02PM
John Denver is alive and well and living in Boulder, Colorado smoking dried aspen leaves and getting a "Rocky Mountain High"
John Jan 8th 2009 1:16PM
Does not surprise me in the least!!!
refresh Jan 8th 2009 1:32PM
"with a pilot not trained or certified for the weather conditions"
a pilot not trained or certified for the weather conditions? then the situation was more than that of a shotage of gas. seemingly, there were crowded needs there as stipulated in the excerpt. tell it what it is, fatal.
bob Jan 8th 2009 1:36PM
He is not flying my plane.