Naim 6 Report post Posted July 6, 2009 Page last updated at 13:42 GMT, Monday, 6 July 2009 14:42 UK Passenger fixes faulty airliner Holidaymakers avoided a long delay to their flight home when a passenger fixed a mechanical problem with their plane. Passengers on Thomas Cook flight TCX9641 from Menorca were told to expect an eight-hour wait while an engineer was flown out from the UK. One passenger then identified himself as a qualified aircraft engineer and offered to try to remedy the fault. He was successful, and the plane landed in Glasgow only 35 minutes late. A spokeswoman for Thomas Cook said the company followed strict procedures to ensure the man was qualified to work on the aircraft, a Boeing 757-200, during the incident on Saturday. The passenger worked for another airline, Thomsonfly, which has a reciprocal maintenance agreement with Thomas Cook. “ It was reassuring to know the person who had fixed it was still on the aeroplane ” Keith Lomax "When they announced there was a technical problem he came forward and said who he was, " she said. "We checked his licence and verified he was who he said he was, and he was able to fix the problem to avoid the delay. "We are very grateful that he was on the flight that day." Holidaymaker Keith Lomax, from Stirling, was travelling home from a week's break with his wife when the plane's captain announced the expected delay. "We were in the plane, ready for take-off, when he announced there was a technical problem and that an engineer might have to be flown out from Manchester to fix it," he said. "Then a stewardess told us there was an engineer on board and they were checking out to see if he could work on it. He was obviously successful. When he came back onto the plane there was a round of applause from the back of the aircraft. "It was reassuring to know the person who had fixed it was still on the aeroplane. What are the odds of something like that happening?" Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/8136193.stm Published: 2009/07/06 13:42:15 GMT Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Li Ren 2 Report post Posted July 6, 2009 The LAE became a hero suddenly Wonder did he get any free tickets as reward Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ja Singh 2 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 cool,thanks for sharing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Denny Yen 0 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 Plane lucky ... holiday jet was stuck in Menorca until engineer stepped up By GEORGE MAIR Published: Today RELIEVED tourists were spared a gruelling eight-hour delay on their journey home — when their faulty plane was fixed by a PASSENGER. Trippers on board the packed Menorca to Glasgow flight were left groaning when the captain announced there was a “technical problem” just before take-off. They were told to expect the lengthy hold-up while an engineer was flown out to the sun-kissed Spanish isle from MANCHESTER. But a hero Scot saved the day when he identified himself as a qualified aircraft engineer and offered to repair the glitch.The mystery man had Saturday’s Thomas Cook flight TXC9641 ready for take-off after only 40 minutes. And grateful passengers hailed him with “rapturous applause”. Fellow passenger Keith Lomax, 62, said: “It was an ordinary chap returning from his holiday but he worked a miracle.” Police driving instructor Mr Lomax, of Stirling, added: “We were told the delay could be six to eight hours. “But a man from further forward in the plane put his hand up and told cabin crew he could fix it. Within about 40 minutes the pilot came on the Tannoy and said, ‘Thanks to a friendly engineer, we can leave now’. “We caught up time and we were only half an hour late into Glasgow.” Another passenger said: “The man came to our rescue and really deserved the applause he got.” A Thomas Cook spokeswoman said the firm followed strict rules to ensure the engineer — who works for Thomsonfly — was qualified to work on the Boeing 757-200. She said: “We’re very grateful that he was on the flight.” Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BC Tam 2 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 Maybe I have not searched, but no where is it mentioned what the “technical problem” was “It was reassuring to know the person who had fixed it was still on the aeroplane” - this I find difficult to comprehend Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mohd Suhaimi Fariz 2 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 That's pretty lucky! What are the chances of a LAE qualified to work on that type of aircraft being on board when a technical fault occurs? Not high.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Naim 6 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 (edited) Maybe I have not searched, but no where is it mentioned what the "technical problem" was Hehehe .... maybe a quick 'reset' of something. "It was reassuring to know the person who had fixed it was still on the aeroplane" - this I find difficult to comprehend Ya lah, the repairman was so confident of his work that he had no problem flying on it, so others were reassured. Anyway what seems odd is that, the plane did not carry an engineer on board, in case something like this happened at a place with no ground engineer. Edited July 7, 2009 by Naim Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Denny Yen 0 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 I wonder if a passenger will be willing to help if the problem concerns a/c's toilet plumbing or blue ice leakage. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BC Tam 2 Report post Posted July 7, 2009 Hehehe .... maybe a quick 'reset' of something. Yeah, I was reminded of that pic someone posted some time back of a cockpit scene where all the displays showed that all familiar MS Windows 'serious error, need to restart' message on the blue background 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aaron Goh 1 Report post Posted July 8, 2009 It seems odd that Thomas Cook didnt have engineer or at the said airport? Then who signed off the Tech Log? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
C.Foo 3 Report post Posted July 8, 2009 Any free tickets, refund of ticket or miles any word Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pieter C. 5 Report post Posted July 8, 2009 Very sporty of the Thomsonfly technician to help competitor Thomas Cook... (guess, he wanted to be home on time too) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LeeTZ 1 Report post Posted July 9, 2009 Good Job to the Passenger aka Technician Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
