Aviation

Airlines say sorry for flying passenger 3,000 miles in wrong direction.

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The United Airlines has been forced to apologise after accidentally flying a passenger 3,000 miles in the wrong direction.
The passenger, Lucie Bahetoukilae, who speaks no English, was intending to catch a plane to Paris and was horrified when she landed in San Francisco, United States of America.
United Airlines has said sorry for the ‘horrible failure’ to correctly check Ms Bahetoukilae’s boarding pass.
It took Ms Bahetoukilae 28 hours to reach her intended destination.
Her niece, Diane Miantsoko told ABC: “If they would have made the announcement in French, she would she have moved gates. Of course, because she speaks French she would’ve moved to another gate.”
Ms Miantsoko added: ‘They didn’t pay attention. My aunt could have been anyone. She could have been a terrorist and killed people on that flight, and they didn’t know they didn’t catch it.”
A United Airlines spokesperson said:”We deeply apologise to Ms. Bahetoukilae for this unacceptable experience.

“When she arrived in San Francisco we ensured she got on the next flight to Paris and refunded her ticket.
“Our customer care team has reached out to her directly to ensure we make this right.
“We are also working with our team in Newark to prevent this from happening again.”

United Airlines has settled a confidential lawsuit after the mix up on April 24.

Aviation

Lost Tool Found in Qantas A380 After 34 Flights

An Australian Transportation Safety Bureau (ATSB) investigation recently revealed that a Qantas A380 operated 34 flights with a 1.25-meter nylon tool lodged in one of its engines.

This turning tool, used during borescope inspections to rotate the intermediate-pressure compressor, was left behind during scheduled maintenance at Los Angeles on December 6, 2023. It remained inside the engine until it was discovered by maintenance staff during a subsequent check at Los Angeles on January 1, 2024.

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The ATSB report highlights two critical lapses. First, maintenance engineers failed to notice the tool during final checks for foreign objects after the borescope inspection. Second, the lost tool procedure was not activated when the tool was identified as missing.

The certifying engineer ultimately cleared the aircraft for service without accounting for the misplaced tool. During the time qantas films the tool was inside, the A380 completed 34 flight cycles, accumulating nearly 294 hours without any noticeable effect on engine performance.

Although the tool was deformed by high-energy airflow within the engine, there was no reported damage to the engine itself. ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell commented.

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“This incident underscores the importance of following established maintenance protocols. Engineers missed the tool during foreign object checks, and the required lost tool procedure wasn’t started after realizing the tool was missing.”

Following the investigation, the airline issued a safety directive, urging all engineering and tool storage teams to adhere strictly to these protocols to prevent similar incidents in the future.

A qantas spokesperson stated, “While the tool didn’t impact engine performance, we take this incident very seriously. It is critical to follow the correct lost tool procedures.”