SQ 317 Diverted to Baku

[sabian]

Why is that whenever that loud noise from the A380 door is brought up, inevitably, Airbus' "it's ok to fly with the door like that" excuse will be used?

I went through that loud noise before. It sounded like a hairdryer going on full blast just next to your ear. It has always bothered me that a "state of the art" jet flies a lot noisier that an A320 emex. I was told there is nothing to worry about when I asked about the door.

And now this.

They have operated the A380 for many years now. Does SQ think it's acceptable to keep flying with this cacophony, even though in my case there was probably no danger, from Heathrow to Changi?

[kt74]

it still puzzles me and we'd possibly never know why they turned back and went to Baku at that, rather than continue eastwards to say Delhi or better, Dubai or one of the SQ stations, where passenger handling would be easier and there'd be a shorter distance for any replacement craft to travel to

I'm no expert, but I'd hazard a guess that flying at 10,000ft over the Himalayas, Afghanistan or Iran is not to be recommended...

[Mbyrne01]

The speculation from Baku was that we were about to hit some high mountains and if the plane could not get down to 10,000 feet quickly due to the mountains we would be in triuble, so the route we took avoided anything over that height.

[FlyBoy]

Not a particularly nice time for SQ380's. SKH operating 228 today suffered hydraulic leak and is AOG in MEL. A 772 has been despatched and is on the way down now to operate 228D as a one class service run

Indeed had a friend on that flight from MEL... SKH is still stuck in MEL too!

Just as SKH breaks down, 9V-SKE is flying again (the plane that operated the flight in this thread)

She flew SIN-LHR yesterday and is currently flying LHR-SIN !

[SQ228]

The speculation from Baku was that we were about to hit some high mountains and if the plane could not get down to 10,000 feet quickly due to the mountains we would be in triuble, so the route we took avoided anything over that height.

Ahh, I think that answers for me what was the most puzzling question of such an obvious and long backtracking.

And while DEL also seems like such an attractive option, geographic obstructions aside, it has quite a few other negative factors, the most concerning of which is that the visiblility in the seasonal fog at night during January is so bad, that if you check SQ's flight schedules for Decemeber and January, they actually shift flight times for this period to remove night time landings. An emergency landing of an A380 at 1 or 2 am could pose issues that if able to be avoided probably should be.

[MAN Flyer]

Hello folks,

Thanks for all the detailed information here - really interesting.

I have a slightly different perspective as I was in the plane in seat 52A so about five meters from the broken door.

Welcome to SQTalk, Michael. What a stonking first post.

[yflyer]

Hello folks,

Thanks for all the detailed information here - really interesting.

I have a slightly different perspective as I was in the plane in seat 52A so about five meters from the broken door. I have a couple of engineering degrees so will try and provide as much perspective there as I can.

[snip]

Thanks, Mbyrne01, for sharing your story with us. Apart from the technical investigation, SQ should really look at what can be done in future incidents to minimise the emotional stress and trauma that you and the other passengers must have gone through. Take good care!

[boing]

If my memory serves me right, remember reading the book QF32 and the crew of that flight were in a far more stressful state than SQ 317. Yet I believe the flight crew on that flight initially called the chief purser to explain to him the situation, who in turn, briefed the pax over the PA. Sometime later, the Capt personally addressed the pax.

This is something the crew of SQ 317 could learn from in terms of CRM.

And about the choice of airports, SQ, other airlines flying this route, have very detailed decompression procedures for such an event over this terrain challenged area. There is a waypoint along the route. Whether the decompression occurs before or after this waypoint dictates which airport they'll be landing at.

The other alternate airport is Ashgabat. (wherever that is)

[SQ228]

And about the choice of airports, SQ, other airlines flying this route, have very detailed decompression procedures for such an event over this terrain challenged area. There is a waypoint along the route. Whether the decompression occurs before or after this waypoint dictates which airport they'll be landing at.

The other alternate airport is Ashgabat. (wherever that is)

Ashgabat is the capital of Turkmenistan. If you draw a straight line between Kabul and Baku, Ashgabat lies exactly in the centre. In terms of airport capacity, facilities and which other partner airlines fly there, it seems about the same. From what I can tell according to travel advice I have, the main difference, other being closer to Kabul, is that they would be far more difficult to deal with over emergency visas for passengers.

[Mbyrne01]

The other alternate airport is Ashgabat. (wherever that is)

That's exactly where we were originally heading for. We were never told why this changed.

[gumption]

Do the pilots get to consult with operations in Singapore before deciding to land in Baku?

On the flight to SIN from Baku, did they provide standard meal services etc?

[Mbyrne01]

Do the pilots get to consult with operations in Singapore before deciding to land in Baku?

On the flight to SIN from Baku, did they provide standard meal services etc?

Yes, in both cases. The pilot made it clear that central opswere determining where to land,how to lose fuel, etc.

The rescue flight was absolutely by the rule book and I have never seen a flight so according to the book. There was no extras, so everyone got exactly the prescribed number of drinks, meals, etc.

[SQFM]

Passing through LHR tonight 19 January and no sign of SQ aircraft on the tarmac. A check on SQ website found SQ318 SIN-LHR is expected to arrive 2350h instead of scheduled 1905h. SQ321 LHR-SIN is shown to depart 0120h, that is optimistic. Wonder what was the technical issue on this A380?

[757]

I have a friend on that flight. Being told that there is a "leak" somewhere. He was still posting from the ground an hour ago. He must be jinxed, as he was on the Baku flight the other week!!! These last 3 380 incidents must be costing SIA a fortune.

[Mbyrne01]

Anyone know if this is the same aircraft?