Anyone see it on the news last night?

https://uk.screen.yahoo.com/video/playlist/amazing-planes/two-passengers-almost-collided-barcelona-023530014.html?vp=1

At c1.30 you can see the plane ‘waggle’ – struggling to get enough power to pull up/without stalling? 😯

Was it a ATC mistake?

Shades of the Tenerife disaster (fog though?)

Saw this posted yesterday. Certainly looks like an ATC (ground traffic) mistake or the pilot of the Argentinian plane (on the ground) not following instructions. Smart work by the pilot coming into to land.

The foreshortening effect is huge in the video though – the plane on the ground is around 1.5km away from the landing aircraft.
Going around is no big drama, all you have to do is press the TOGA button and the plane does it all for you.

Worryingly I don’t think this kind of event is that uncommon, it’s just rare to get it on video. I’ve been on at least one flight where we’ve gone around due to someone being on the runway.

I find some of the comments I’ve read about that video online highly entertaining.

There’s loads of stuff around the great job the landing pilot did and how lucky it was that he was so alert/quick to react.

WTF???

He’s bringing a bloody passenger jet in to land and there’s a huge plane on the runway he wants to land on…why on earth wouldn’t he have noticed it or taken evasive action? Do they mean it’s lucky he wasn’t playing Angry Birds at the time? What sort of pilot would decide to land anyway?

The best comments are the ones that point out that it’s the hand of god that saved them all. Brilliant 🙂

The foreshortening effect is huge in the video though

First thing I thought was, I’d love to see that from a different angle.

The worst disaster ever was similar, albeit one taking off while the other was taxiing across it’s path.
Also under Spanish jurisdiction, lots of mitigating factors though so not really comparable.

As Rockhopper said foreshortening makes it look much worse than it is.

Many possible reasons for the incident, don’t be so quick to blame ATC until you know the full facts.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vh5kZ4uIUC0&feature=kp[/video]

It’s not really out of the ordinary though for an inbound aircraft to have to go around due to someone else being on the runway, usually an aircraft that’s been slow to clear after landing. It happens every day at most busy airports.

Looking a that video I’m sure the landing aircraft is still a fair distance away but the perspective is skewed due to the camera lens.

Near mIss? Or near hit?

re: foreshortening, the landing plane hardly looked tiny and even at landing speeds- how much distance is it covering per second?

Also – how easy is it to pull out of (a flattening) curve with enough thrust without other issues (stall)?

They aren’t nimble Hawk jets after all. I wonder how many such incidents happen in the UK that aren’t video’d by a plane spotter?

Malaysian airlines (or was it the haulage arm)? Has been caught three times for running lower than permissible fuel over central London.

A bird strike just when the Russian plane needed power would have made it interesting.

Also – how easy is it to pull out of (a flattening) curve with enough thrust without other issues (stall)?

It’s obviously not that much of an issue as it’s such a regular occurrence. I’m sure that the engineers who design these things take this into account when designing said aircraft.

For a large jet, you can work on about 50 foot of height loss from initiating the go-around.

If it can happen in broad daylight, it can happen on a foggy night…

It’s not unusual to have to go around due to another aircraft still on the runway, but generally that’s because the previous aircraft is tardy about vacating. This is altogether more serious.

Not a good idea to assign blame as generally everyone involved on the ground can claim a bit of responsibility – but Barcelona ATC is particularly chaotic and the taxi layout can be confusing.

Also – how easy is it to pull out of (a flattening) curve with enough thrust without other issues (stall)?

Not difficult at all. Even from idle thrust the engines will develop full rated power within about six seconds and a missed approach can be initiated at any point before the thrust reversers are deployed.

Obviously, if you’re at idle thrust and you start the go-around at 10 feet you’ll probably touch the ground in the process, but that’s the worst of it.

re: foreshortening, the landing plane hardly looked tiny and even at landing speeds- how much distance is it covering per second?

Also – how easy is it to pull out of (a flattening) curve with enough thrust without other issues (stall)?

Approach speed is circa 200mph, don’t know how far he was from crossing aircraft though, so difficult to say. Easy for them to pull up, they constantly practice during pilot training near where we stay. Commercial aircraft engines can go from approach idle to take off thrust – generally around 60000lbs – in around 3-4 seconds. The FADEC system also has it as a feature, and vast majority of engines are now FADEC.

It’s not really out of the ordinary though for an inbound aircraft to have to go around due to someone else being on the runway, usually an aircraft that’s been slow to clear after landing. It happens every day at most busy airports.

This. I’m not a particularly frequent flyer, but I’ve experienced the swoop. I don’t think the nervous woman besides me appreciated my imaginary machine gun strafeing the plane taxiing off the runway below us 😀

AR pilot not checking traffic from his right – tut tut

A UTair pilot aborted his landing at Barcelona’s El Prat Airport

That made me smile.

Do you think if it was Ryanair they’d have had enough fuel for a go around?!?!? 🙂

I’ve seen from the tower this exact scenario. Aircraft was confused about taxi instructions and ventured into active runway. Inbound was given go around and confused pilot was reissued a clearance back on to the taxiway. Paperwork ensued.

We have a beeper sounds if a go around is given. Just like when someone drops a plate in the canteen, it’s usually greeted with a sarcastic muffled cheer.

Also from yesterday- anyone see that Turkish low-fly F16 at an airshow?

Hang on..

Factors like fog meaning the aircraft couldn’t see each other (I’m not sure “mitigating” is the right word), and the other aircraft was taxiing down the runway the first one tried to take off on, not across it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenerife_airport_disaster

Flying with Ryan Air.
We had to go back round at Manchester airport the other year because ‘a large piece of aluminium is on the runway’.Pilot had a sense of humour & the plane had enough fuel.Plane was shaking a bit though!

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGNoupIF5SU[/video]

I’m always impressed that whatever the topic discussed, someone on STW is a legitimate actual professional in the field (apart from matters of the heart).

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEj04VqVD-Y&feature=youtu.be[/video]

Gives an idea of just how late the decision to go around can be made.

Go arounds happen quite often at Manchester due to departing aircraft having to cross 23R To get onto 23L. Had a go around on the way back from Rhodes in 2011.
As someone has said it’s all automatic, Landing is done by computer till about a 1000ft. Same with take offs autopilot is engaged more or less straight away .

Landing speed is roughly 150mph, sometimes as low as 130mph dependent on flap settings etc.