Breaking News - A380 Hits Building at Suvarnabhumi Airport

[britmaveric]

A380 wing hits building while taxiing

(BangkokPost.com) - A tip of an Airbus A380's wing scraped a repair building of the Suvarnabhumi Airport during its test fly on Saturday morning.

Airbus let Thai Airways International (THAI) use the world's largest passenger plane in the trial flight from Bangkok to Chiang Mai.

The plane - which arrived in Thailand on Friday as part of an Asian tour to promote sales - carried 150 VIP guests, businessmen and reporters. It was scheduled to leave the airport at 9.45am.

Its tip hit the building when it was on the taxiway, officials said.

There were no reports of injuries.

THAI president Apinan Sumanaseni said minor damage occurred to the wing and it was expected to take an hour to fix the damage.

The pilots were not blamed for the damage. Mr Apinan said the accident occurred because the jet is so large, needing more space on the taxiway.

THAI has ordered six A380 airbuses to be delivered in the next two years.

[Thetyim]

The pilots were not blamed for the damage. Mr Apinan said the accident occurred because the jet is so large, needing more space on the taxiway.

Great.
So it wasn't the pilots fault and it wasn't because the building was put in the wrong place it was the fucking airplanes fault.

[obsidian]

The pilots were not blamed for the damage.

why not?!

beat me to it -- green for you thetyim.

woops --software wont allow it.

[Mid]

we got this story tight yet ??

started as a bus via local media and changed to a hanger via aus media ,

saw something on local TV but her indoors ain't sure bus v's hanger ...........

[Thetyim]

So Airbus SAS will be paying for the damage because it is their fault for building a plane too big.

[tayto]

Bloody buildings should not be on runways, they keep getting in the way.
Also auto pilot should not function on the ground and then there would be no accidents.

[Bluecat]

THAI president Apinan Sumanaseni said minor damage occurred to the wing and it was expected to take an hour to fix the damage

One hour to fix the damage?
Was there any damage?

[peterpan]

obviously fixed with a bit of a cut and polish

[Mid]

Airbus collides with coach at Bangkok airport
www.chinaview.cn 2007-09-01 11:59:54 Print


BANGKOK, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- An Airbus aircraft 380 collided with a building and a coach parked nearby at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport on Saturday morning, local media reported.

The aircraft, which is scheduled to fly to Thai northern city of Chiang Mai for its Asia Fight Show, was moving backward while colliding with an airport building and a coach.
One wing of the plane was slightly damaged. However, the engineers said the engines were not affected and the wing could be repaired in several hours, Thai Traffic Radio reported.
There were no casualties reported. The Suvarnabhumi International Airport, locates some 50 kilometer from central Bangkok, suffered many zigzags since it was firstly raised as an airport project nearly half century ago. Soon after it was put into use late 2006, dozens of cracks were found on its runways and taxiways, forcing some parts of the airport to stop service until now.

Editor: Xia Xiaopeng

[Bluecat]

It was moving backwards, i.e. not piloted anymore but pushed back by the Thai ground staff.
I guess they forgot the plane was bigger than usual...

[kingwilly]

fixed how? with duct tape ?

[thailightzone]

The pilots were not blamed for the damage. Mr Apinan said the accident occurred because the jet is so large, needing more space on the taxiway.

Great.
So it wasn't the pilots fault and it wasn't because the building was put in the wrong place it was the fucking airplanes fault.

Reminds me of an excuse I heard a few years back, after an especially bad landing. The pilot said over the intercom: Sorry about the rough landing, it wasn't our fault... It wasn't the plane's fault either. It was the asphalt.

[forreachingme]

fly to Thai northern city of Chiang Mai for its Asia Fight Show,




Where can we place the bets ?

[watterinja]

I reckon that once the locals begin sending up their welcoming balloons, that the new airport & Thai efficiency will become the laughing stock of the international aviation industry.

Won't be long & Thai authorities will make it compulsory for all pilots to wear crash-helmets & safety gear.

[dirtydog]

Suvarnabhumi International Airport engineers check the damages of an Airbus A380 plane after it hit into hangar's gate Saturday morning. The plane later resumed its flight to Chiang Mai at 1 pm. No injuies were reported in the accident.

The Nation
Jumpol Nopthip

[thaibook]

THAI has ordered six A380 airbuses to be delivered in the next two years.

First test drive went well I see - why not order 6 more? Love the logic here...

[Mr Earl]

Sounds like the accident really was a non-event.

I wonder if they'll use the A-380 for direct BKK-LAX flights?

Singapore Airlines is flying their A-380s direct SIN-LAX...18 hour flight!

[peterpan]

You see the A-380 saga on Discovery, what a bloody cockup from start to finish, I bet Boing Boing wet their pants laughing all the way thru it.

[watterinja]

I disagree, to be honest. Airbus seemed to be pretty open with their development process - good & bad. Boeing keeps that kind of stuff under wraps - & only shows the good side.

Personally, I think the A-380 may be the last Titanic of the skies - it seems way too cumbersome & huge. Smaller aircraft may have been the better way to go - kudos to Boeing on that one.

[keda]

Can't imagine what possessed them to release one into the custody of our hosts, but it's only a matter of time for the airbus to be superseded by things so large it'll seem quaint, with air accidents casualties running into the thousands if not more.

Whatever happened to the flying wing they were crowing about a decade or more ago?

[William]

after a very thorough investigation

Superjumbo welcome at Suvarnabhumi

New Agencies

Human error caused the Airbus 380 wing tip to scrape a hangar gate last Saturday, said the president of Thai Airways International. The facilities at Suvarnabhumi airport are totally suited for the superjumbo airliner.
The plane's left wing suffered minor damage that delayed its planned demonstration flight to the northern city of Chiang Mai from Suvarnabhumi airport.

THAI president Apinan Sumanaseni said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press that there was a "miscommunication" between ground staffers when a truck was used to tow the Airbus _ parked outside a hangar _ before it headed to a taxiway to prepare for takeoff.

There had initially been speculation that the accident occurred because the facilities at Suvarnabhumi could not accommodate an A380, the world's largest passenger jet, but Apinan dismissed the idea.

Thai Airways has ordered six A380s, which are expected to be delivered in 2010.

"The hangar was designed (specifically) for the A380," he said. "We do not need to adjust the accommodation but will have to train the staff be more cautious when handling the plane at the hangar."

A Singapore-based independent aviation expert, Richard Pinkham, said an incident is common in any airport.

"The tarmac of a major airport can be an almost chaotic place and an aircraft can clip the wing of another plane or run into stationary equipment anywhere. The situation could be compounded by the airport staff not being familiar with the aircraft," said Pinkham, Southeast Asian regional director for the Center for Asia Pacific Aviation.

Since opening in September last year, $3.8 billion Suvarnabhumi - intended to be Southeast Asia's leading air transportation hub - has been plagued by a host of widely publicised problems, including cracks in taxiways, a shortage of toilets, dozens of design flaws and a long list of corruption allegations.

In Saturday's mishap, the plane's left winglet was damaged, and engineers removed both the winglets before the delayed flight took off for Chiang Mai. A winglet tips up and back from the end of a wing, improving aerodynamic efficiency, but is not essential.

From Bangkok the plane went to Hanoi, and then to Hong Kong, where it was displayed for an air show Monday.

Airbus Chief Commercial Officer John Leahy said at a press conference at the air show that a new set of winglets had been shipped to Hong Kong and were to be installed before another demonstration flight today.

Leahy said that the plane was being towed with its engines shut off when the accident occurred in Thailand and that the plane's pilots weren't to blame.

The plane will fly to South Korea on Wednesday to complete its Asian tour, and then return to Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France.

In a press release last month, Airbus said its demonstration tours are meant to help prepare the A380 "for a smooth entry into service."

"Operating under typical airline conditions, (the) aircraft will undergo airport compatibility checks, ground handling and maintenance procedures to confirm its readiness to enter service," the company said.

Airbus has said 14 customers have either placed orders for or have committed to buying 173 A380s, with clients including Singapore Airlines, Emirates Airlines, Qantas and Thai Airways International.

Airbus is scheduled to deliver its first A380 to Singapore Airlines on Oct 15, a delay of more than a year due to production problems.

[watterinja]

Anything larger than a tuk-tuk is too much for a Thai to manage.

[keda]

considering it was under tow, difficult to be anything other than monkey error.

"The hangar was designed (specifically) for the A380," he said. "We do not need to adjust the accommodation but will have to train the staff be more cautious when handling the plane at the hangar."

hehe...did nobody teach them that the A380 is bigger than an MD, are they effin blind, is Thai Air going to widen their hangars anyway, or shorten the airbus wingspan?

[watterinja]

They will need to glue the auto rubbers that the Koreans use on their cars, to each wing-tip. After that, a nudge here & a wink there will remain between friends.

[William]

^^nah, they'll just put someone on the wings and make them flap their arms if they break them again. Hell, we may even get to our destination quicker going by the standard of THAI last time I travelled with them