Another Alaska Airlines incident

The wheel was already off the plane. The mechanics didn't deflated the tire, so when they loosen the assembly it "exploded". Very said and not plane specific issue.

 

Jet tires are inflated to around 200 psi.

 

Some more information on the original incident that started this thread (the Alaska Airlines panel blowout). The chief mechanic that normally installs this panel was on vacation during the time period (two days) that this particular panel was installed. A trainee filled in for him and screwed it up. The trainee's previous experience was KFC and Taco Bell (I kid you not), and not in their door panel departments.

Having said that, I will say that this is not an uncommon issue with union workshops. If someone knows something (a better way of doing something, for example), they often keep it to themselves to make themselves more valuable. When I worked with union chemical plant workers, they would not let me watch them go through a procedure to clear a pump so I could write a better and more detailed procedure for doing the same job on a new plant we were building. It was bizarre and frustrating. And those union workers were more on the cooperative end of the scale compared to most.

A key Boeing mechanic who worked on 737 Max doors was on vacation on 2 critical days before the Alaska Airlines blowout

 

Boeing's next problem? A possible strike by 32,000 workers. Probably includes the guy who knows how to bolt the panels on the 737's.

Boeing’s next big problem could be a strike by 32,000 workers

 

Eh, that doesn’t apply within unions (between workers) in my experience. What you were experiencing was union job preservation. Our guys work with us and I wouldnt see something like you’re describing. Some unions are just more difficult to work with though or perhaps they’ve experienced union busting in your field before?

 

The fact is that there was apparently only one person in the entire company fully qualified to do that particular job. When someone else tried to do it, the plane fell apart. Something had to be missing from the training program, or the program to certify people to perform specific jobs, etc.

 

Another problem with Alaska Airlines and a 737, but is not the airline's or Boeing's fault. Nashville "International" Airport's air traffic control directed a Southwest Airlines plane to cross the runway that the Alaska Airlines plane was using to take off. The pilot of the 737 braked so hard that the tires were blown. The incident is being blamed on a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers, the job nobody wants. New technology was installed in April to prevent this kind of problem (with Nashville being one of only four airports that has it), but it is not known if the system was working at the time or not. It seems possible to me that the air traffic controller might have gotten complacent with this technology in place and not verified that the crossing was safe.

Boeing 737 Max Blows Tires Braking Hard To Avoid Takeoff Collision With Another Plane

 

A Delta Boeing 737-900ER airplane flying from Salt Lake City to Portland has a depressurization incident, causing an emergency landing and sending ten to the hospital with bloody noses and ears.

Sudden drop in cabin pressure leaves passengers with bleeding eardrums and noses mid-flight

 

Boeing goes into a "Death Spiral". Employees hate management, and the company has nothing but problems. Management appears to be incompetent. About 33,000 union workers are on strike.

Boeing 'In A Death Spiral Of Their Own Making' According To A Consultant As 'Employees Already Have A Dim View Of Management'

 

I strongly suggest watching this episode of John Oliver's Last Week Tonight in which the focus was Boeing. Although the show is comedic in nature it's probably the best presentation of how the culture of Boeing changed following its merger with McDonnell Douglas from an emphasis on quality including safety to maximizing shareholder value. The irony is that in the end has the reputation of the company suffered as the result of "money saving shortcuts" so has its image as an investment.

 

This strike by Boeing employees may go on for a while. Workers are trying to get their lifetime pensions restored (eliminated ten years ago during budget cuts for the company), and that does not look like it is economically feasible for the struggling corporation.

Boeing union members are angry they lost their pension plan. They’re not likely to get it back

 

Here is a story you don't see every day. A Chinese military aircraft collided in mid-air with a Russian military aircraft. Over Los Angeles. Bet you weren't expecting that. Both planes were vintage planes: a Nanchang CJ-6, and a Yakovlev Yak-52. One pilot was killed. The location of the wreckage was the city of Lancaster, in Los Angeles County. More strange: somehow one of the planes was identified as a Cessna aircraft, which is not Chinese or Russian (or a military aircraft).

One dead after planes collide mid-air outside Los Angeles

 

who are we to tell a fixed wing aircraft what it must be identified as?

 

American Airlines has some 737 trouble of their own on a flight from Dallas to Minneapolis. I don't believe I've ever heard of a plane flooding in mid-air. It was only an inch of water in the cabin, but apparently the plane either doesn't have a way to turn the water off to a leaking bathroom faucet, or the flight attendants were not trained on how to do it. Some passengers claimed to be afraid of drowning at 30,000 feet. Fortunately, it was a water leak and not a sewage leak.

Passengers panic as American Airlines flight ‘floods’ in midair: ‘New fear unlocked’

 

i would be more concerned about weight balance and shifting, but im crazy like that

just returned from over the pond. the lounges are upping their game. The BA lounge at LHR was nice, and roomy, and well stocked. if one liked to drink, some of the free pour bars there and in Paris would be an attractive target. Need more quality sushi..Miami is...Miamuh

 

I was impressed by the size and amenities of the Changi airport in Singapore. That thing is huge.

 

My new favorite lounge is run by Air Canada in Toronto. They actually have two business class lounges almost next to each other (within 30'). One is a standard one, and the other an invitation-only lounge. Somehow, before my first Air Canada flight, I got an invitation last year when I checked in on a business class flight. The lounge itself wasn't especially impressive, but they had a sit-down restaurant with a menu that was fantastic. Incredible food. They also had a snack bar with drinks, etc. And it wasn't very crowded. The only downside was that I had to fly Air Canada to use it. My 8:00 p.m. flight had delays at the gate, and a stoppage halfway to the runway, and finally turned around and returned to gate (faulty rear stabilizer) at 1:30 a.m. The only good thing about that, other than the free hotel room, was that I got another invitation to the lounge the next day. I didn't get to my hotel in India until 6:00 p.m. on a Sunday, with business meetings first thing on Monday morning.

I used the British Airways lounge in LHR on the way back on that trip. I found the lounge (and the entire airport, for that matter) to be very crowded, like the airport had been expanded multiple times without making the walkways bigger. It seemed like a bigger sea of humanity than Atlanta (although, the security lines in Atlanta are unbelievably long).

 

I was there last year as well. Did you see the waterfall?

 

It’s a very nice airport. I’ve been there a couple times as my company built portions of a few buildings out there including the Marina Bay Sands.

Not the same airport but I really enjoyed the Qatar business class lounge in Doha. A couple restaurants, bars, numerous work spaces, its own waterfall, showers, etc.