A Ryanair airplane flying over northern France on September 27, 2018. — Reuters
A man was nearly ejected from a Ryanair flight when it suddenly detached mid-air en route to Germany, according to witnesses and officials on Friday. Other passengers managed to pull him back inside.
The individual, identified as a tourist from Serbia traveling from Thessaloniki, Greece, to Memmingen, Germany, was hospitalized with friction burns but remains in stable condition, authorities reported.
“Most of us had fallen asleep, eyes closed. Then came a loud bang, like a tire blowing out,” one passenger told Radio Thessaloniki.
“Right after, we realized there was a decompression. There were screams… For a moment, I thought someone had accidentally opened the emergency door,” she added.
“The oxygen masks dropped, and there was a strong smell. One passenger’s head and shoulders were outside the window. Luckily, he hadn’t unbuckled his seatbelt,” she explained.
Other travelers nearby helped pull him back into the cabin. Greek media reports indicated the incident occurred over North Macedonia and that the window was broken by a piece of debris that separated from one of the plane’s engines.
Ryanair issued a statement saying the flight returned to Thessaloniki shortly after takeoff after a passenger window detached. The plane landed normally, and passengers disembarked at the terminal.
A replacement aircraft was provided to carry the remaining passengers to Memmingen, the airline confirmed.
A flight at Denver International Airport was forced to cancel its takeoff late on Friday after hitting a person on the runway, with at least one passenger sustaining injuries, according to the airport and U.S. media reports.
Denver International Airport issued a statement confirming that “Frontier Flight 4345 reported hitting a pedestrian during takeoff” around 11:19 p.m. local time.
An unidentified official told ABC News that the individual struck “was at least partially consumed by one of the engines.” The person’s current condition remains unknown.
The airport reported that “a brief engine fire occurred, which was quickly put out by the Denver Fire Department.”
A pilot communicated to air traffic control via audio from ATC.com, saying, “We’re stopped on the runway, we just hit somebody, we have an engine fire… A person was walking across the runway.”
Emergency responders arrived at the scene and transported the passengers to the terminal. The airport also stated on X that at least one passenger had minor injuries.
Frontier Airlines explained that the Airbus A321 was preparing for a flight to Los Angeles International Airport when the incident happened. They added, “Smoke was observed inside the cabin, leading pilots to abort the takeoff. Passengers were then safely evacuated using slides as a precaution.”
The aircraft was carrying 224 passengers and seven crew members. The airline said they are investigating the event and collaborating with airport officials and safety authorities to gather more details. They expressed their regret over the incident.
The National Transportation Safety Board has been notified, and runway 17L at Denver International remains closed during the investigation.
A Swiss Airlines plane is preparing to land at Brussels International Airport amidst concerns of a potential jet fuel shortage across Europe, in Zaventem, Belgium. — Reuters/File
Passengers were injured during an emergency evacuation.
A special task force has been established to investigate the incident.
The airport declared an emergency following the event.
Swiss International Airlines confirmed that a flight from Delhi to Zurich was forced to abort its takeoff early Sunday due to engine problems. Four passengers and one crew member sustained injuries.
Details remain limited from the airline, but reports from the Economic Times indicated that one of the aircraft’s engines ignited while accelerating on the runway, prompting an emergency evacuation that resulted in passenger injuries.
The airline stated, “Shortly after 1 a.m. local time on April 26, an engine issue occurred during the takeoff of flight LX147 from Delhi. The crew aborted the takeoff, evaluated the situation, and decided as a safety measure to evacuate the plane.”
A task force has been assigned to investigate the cause of the incident. The injured passengers were transported to the hospital, and a crew member sustained a sprained ankle. Initially, Swiss reported that six passengers were hurt, but later revised that number.
Onboard the Airbus A330 were 228 passengers—including four infants—and 13 crew members. Following the incident, Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport declared an emergency; however, operations on the runway have since resumed, according to an anonymous source familiar with the matter.
A Russian An-26 military transport aircraft crashed into a cliff in Crimea, resulting in the deaths of all 29 people on board. The incident was likely caused by a technical failure, according to Russia’s defense ministry. Early Wednesday, news agencies reported that communication with the aircraft was lost around 6 p.m. local time (3 p.m. GMT) during a scheduled flight over Crimea, a region annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014, characterized by rugged mountains descending to the Black Sea coast.
A search operation uncovered the crash site, confirming the fatalities of six crew members and 23 passengers, though official details about the total number aboard remain unconfirmed. The aircraft, a light tactical military transport used for cargo and up to 40 passengers over short and medium routes, was reportedly unaffected by external impacts such as missiles, drones, or birds.
Russia’s defense officials have indicated that the crash’s initial cause points to a technical malfunction, with a military commission investigating the site. No immediate comment was provided by the defense ministry outside of typical working hours.
The An-26 has been operational since the late 1960s, serving both military and commercial purposes, though it has experienced several deadly accidents over the past decade. In 2022, a Ukrainian An-26 crashed during a technical flight in southeastern Zaporizhzhia, killing one person. Another accident in northeastern Ukraine in 2020 resulted in the deaths of 26 people. Similarly, in 2017, an An-26 crash in Ivory Coast claimed four lives, and in 2020, a crash in South Sudan killed eight people, including five Russians.
A Satena Airlines aircraft traveling the Bogotá-Caracas route is pictured upon arrival at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Venezuela, on November 9, 2022. – AFP
BOGOTÁ: Colombian authorities announced on Wednesday that they have located a missing aircraft in the northeast of the country, which carried 15 people—unfortunately, with no survivors found, according to a military source and local media reports.
The plane, which included a lawmaker among its passengers, disappeared near Colombia’s volatile border with Venezuela. The incident involved the national airline Satena, alongside aerospace officials.
The aircraft, with 13 passengers and two crew members onboard, departed from the border town of Cúcuta and lost contact with radar control just before it was scheduled to land at Ocaña. The region is characterized by rugged mountains, unpredictable weather, and areas controlled by Colombia’s largest guerrilla group, the National Liberation Army (ELN).
The flight was expected to arrive around 12:05 p.m., according to a statement from the airline. Security and search efforts are underway, as confirmed by aviation authorities.
Authorities suspect that one lawmaker and one legislative candidate might have been on board.
“We are deeply concerned about the reports of the aviation accident,” said Wilmer Carrillo, a local legislator. “My colleagues Diogenes Quintero, Carlos Salcedo, and their teams were traveling at the time.”
Quintero is a member of Colombia’s House of Deputies, and Salcedo is a candidate in upcoming elections.
“We ask for patience and are waiting for an official statement from the appropriate authorities,” Carrillo added.
The aircraft in question is a Beechcraft 1900 twin-engine propeller plane operated by the private charter company SEARCA.
An Air India Boeing 777-300ER aircraft was towed at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, on November 30, 2018, according to Reuters.
In recent developments, pilots shut down one engine, and the aircraft safely landed in Delhi. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered an investigation into the incident involving the Air India Boeing 777. The regulator stated that the engine oil pressure dropped to zero shortly after takeoff.
The incident occurred when an Air India Boeing 777 had to abort its flight after experiencing a drop in oil pressure, which prompted pilots to deactivate one of the engines. The plane was en route to Mumbai but returned safely to Delhi. The DGCA highlighted that modern aircraft are capable of flying and landing safely on a single engine if necessary.
Amid ongoing scrutiny following the June 12 crash of a Boeing Dreamliner that resulted in 260 fatalities, the DGCA has identified multiple safety lapses within Air India, which was government-owned until 2022. An internal investigation uncovered systemic failures, including the airline’s admission of needing better compliance measures.
On Monday, the crew observed abnormally low engine oil pressure during flap retraction after takeoff. The pressure soon fell to zero, leading the pilots to shut down the engine and return to Delhi as per standard procedures.
An Air India spokesperson expressed regret over the inconvenience caused, stating that the aircraft is currently undergoing necessary inspections. The aircraft involved is 15 years old and has previously operated flights to Vienna, Vancouver, and Chicago, according to Flightradar24. Boeing has not yet provided a comment regarding the incident.
Europe’s Airbus announced an immediate software update requirement for a significant number of its bestselling A320 family aircraft. Industry insiders estimate this will impact up to half of the global fleet, totaling thousands of jets. This update must be completed before the aircraft’s next scheduled flight, potentially causing cancellations or delays during one of the busiest travel weekends in the U.S. and worldwide.
Airbus explained that recent incidents involving an A320 aircraft have uncovered that severe solar radiation could corrupt critical flight control data. They acknowledged that implementing the fix could lead to operational disruptions for airlines and passengers.
Sources indicated that the trigger for this urgent repair was a JetBlue flight from Cancun to Newark on October 30, during which several passengers sustained injuries following a sudden altitude loss. The flight made an emergency landing in Tampa due to a flight control issue and a rapid, uncommanded descent, prompting an FAA probe. Neither JetBlue nor the FAA responded immediately.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency plans to issue an emergency directive requiring the software fix.
For approximately two-thirds of the affected airplanes, the recall will involve a quick software rollback, with airlines returning to an earlier version. However, this will coincide with high demand on maintenance facilities, which are already struggling with capacity issues and long waits for engine repairs or inspections. Some aircraft may also need hardware replacements, significantly extending ground times.
Currently, around 3,000 A320-family jets are operational worldwide. American Airlines and Wizz Air already indicated which fleet members require the software update. United Airlines reported no impact.
American Airlines noted that about 340 of its 480 A320s need the software update. The airline expects most of these to be completed within a day or two, with roughly two hours required per aircraft.
The A320 series, introduced in 1987, remains among Airbus’s most significant models, especially after surpassing Boeing’s 737 in recent delivery numbers. The aircraft features fly-by-wire controls, marking a major technological milestone.
The problem stems from the ELAC (Elevator and Aileron Computer), which transmits pilot commands from the side-stick to rear elevators, managing the aircraft’s pitch. Thales, the French manufacturer of this system, confirmed that the computer meets Airbus specifications and stated that the current issue involves software not under Thales’s responsibility.
This power bank is impressively compact. It delivers 22.5W of power. Ideal for Apple devices, it’s travel-friendly. TSA approval ensures it’s flight-ready. Despite its size, it offers quick charging. It’s perfect for travelers needing a fast charge.
It can charge three devices at once. Capacity is 10,000mAh. An LED indicator shows battery life. It’s designed to be flight-safe. This makes it a reliable travel accessory.
The INIU power bank boasts 20,000mAh. It supports Power Delivery for fast charging. The design is sleek and carry-on friendly. A smart chip ensures safe charging. It’s permitted on flights.
It has a capacity of 20,000mAh. It can charge multiple devices simultaneously. The USB-C PD port provides quick charging. It’s certified for flight travel. This power bank is a solid choice for long journeys.
Nimble’s Champ has a capacity of 10,000mAh. It has a portable feature and is made from recycled materials. This power bank suits environmentally aware travelers.
Anker Prime features a sleek design. It has a capacity of 20,000mAh. The USB-C connector is foldable for protection. It’s a compact power bank for travelers.
The Nestout charger is lightweight and portable. It has a 15,000mAh capacity. PD charging support is included. TSA approval makes it flight-friendly. It’s an excellent choice for travelers.
The Powerstation Pro XL has the largest capacity here. It boasts 25,000mAh. It’s flight-certified and charges multiple devices. This power bank is suitable for extended travel times. It ensures your devices stay charged.
These power banks are all flight-certified, offering a blend of portability, capacity, and quick charging. They are perfect companions for keeping your devices charged during your travels. Always check with your airline for specific regulations regarding power banks.
Is It safe to take PowerBank on a Flight?
Yes, it is safe. However one must check lithium battery regulations for the particular airline.
Is a 20,000mAh power bank allowed in flight?
Yes, a 20,000mAh power bank is allowed on flights.
What is the best flight-certified power bank?
The best flight-certified power bank depends on individual needs, but options like the Anker Nano can be an excellent choice.
Is a 30,000mAh power bank allowed in flight?
Yes, most of the time the 30,000mAh power bank is allowed on flights. However one must cross-check the specific airline’s watt-hour restrictions.
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