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"On A Wing & A Prayer"

On The Scene At Baghdad

Feature Date: Jan, 2004

Event Date: Nov. 22, 2003

The 2004 Nightmare Winner

Countryman & McDaniel

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On The Scene -- at Baghdad !

 A 2004 Countryman & McDaniel

Cargo Nightmare Prize Contender

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"Ship-To-Shore-Onto Ship" - Nov. 2007

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"On A Wing & A Prayer" - Jan. 2004

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The Cargo Letter Photo Gallery of Transport Loss

 

"On A Wing & A Prayer"

On The Scene At Baghdad

Angels Under The Wing?

The 2004 Nightmare Winner

Nov. 22 2003

A Cargo Nightmare Prize Winner

The Time: Morning

The Date: Sat, Nov. 22 2003

The Place: Baghdad Int'l Airport

The DHL Flight Almost Didn't Make It - Baghdad Takeoff

DHL Airbus A300B4

Overall Length - 177ft 5in 54 -10m

Cabin Length - 133ft 6in 40 - 70m

Fuselage Diameter - 18ft 6in - 564m

Max. Cabin Width - 17ft 4in - 5,28m

Height - 54ft 4in 16 - 54m

Wheelbase - 61ft 1in - 18,62m

Track - 31ft 6in - 9,60m

Wing Span (geometric) - 147ft 1in - 44,84m

Wing Area (reference) - 2800ft2 - 260m2

Sweep (25% chord) - 28 degrees  

Range (max. pax)- 4 050 (4 150)nm - 7,500 km

Max. Ramp Weight - 165,9 tons (172,6)

Max. Take-off Weight - 165,0 tons (171,7)

Max. Landing Weight - 138,0 tons (140)

Max. Zero fuel Weight - 286,6 tons (130)

Max. fuel Capacity - 16 380 USg - 62 000 Liters

Powerplants - 2 CF6-80C2 or PW 4000

Thrust Range - 56 000-61 500 lb slst

Typical Passenger Seating (two class) - 266

Max. Operating Mach N°. (Mmo) - 0,82Mo

Containers Underfloor - Standard/Option 22/23

Pallets Underfloor - 4

PROLOG >> On Sat. Nov. 23 2003, The Cargo Letter broadcast the following news story of one very lucky air frieghter.

The story was next published in our "Singles Only" feature -- reproduced below. At the time - we had no idea how bad this incident really was.

DHL Airlines - On Time - On Target - Nov. 2003
 
The Cargo Letter >> ALERT>> Civilian DHL freighter landed at Baghdad Int'l Airport Nov. 22 with wing on fire -- trailing thick smoke & part of wingtip missing as it uplifted & overflew Baghdad's Mahmoudiya district prior to touch down -- pilot declared in-flight emergency -- not known whether flames caused by technical malfunction, or ground fire. All DHL crew safe. (Sun. 23 Nov. 2003 PM)
ABOVE: Still photos from a terrorist video showing masked men firing the missile that hit a DHL civilian Airbus-300 freighter<<webfeature, over Baghdad on Nov. 22 (LT), setting its engine ablaze in the first successful hit on a plane of Operation Iraqi Freedom<<webfeature.

Video was delivered to a French journalist & shown to AFP newservice<<webfeature.

NOTE: Those are FLAMES on the port wing of the Airbus-300 freighter in picture #4. CHEERS FOR Three VERY LUCKY CARGO PILOTS!

The missile launcher is an SA-14 Gremlin<<webfeature, not an SA-7 Grail<<webfeature, as initially reported by the U.S. military. Both made by Russian firm Strela <<webfeature, (Arrow) but the Gremlin is heavier, weighing in at 16 km. (35 pounds), compared with the 9.15 km. (20 pounds) of the Grail. The SA-14 has a range of 2,000 meters when used against an approaching jet, although this is extended to 4,500 meters when used against a helicopter or propellor-driven aircraft.

The shoulder-launched missile is seen (above) shooting up into the sky after being fired by one of the cell & then homing in on the DHL freighter. The vapor trail makes a sharp U-turn as the missile homes in on the infrared signature of the scheduled "Baghdad to Dubai courier flight". Terrorists are then seen making their getaway in a car. The 11th terrorist who presumably shot the footage films his own lap in his haste to get into the vehicle.

No injuries in the Nov. 22 missile strike after a miraculous emergency landing at Baghdad airport but the hit prompted suspension by the U.S. military of all commercial civilian flights into the Iraqi capital. (Sun. 23 Nov. 2003 PM)

TODAY'S FEATURE (below) >> Back on Nov. 23, 2003 we did not have the details. We did not know the damage extent. We did not know that a modern air freither could fly on just one wing !! -- from a height of over 8,000 feet !! Geez, who landed this plane?
Indeed -- we could not have known that this flight, or any other flight -- could be truly --

"On A Wing & A Prayer"

BELOW: Our anonymous source contributes a true on-scene report from an eye witness - an aircraft support vendor employee - come to service the Airbus A300B4.
The eye witness, aircraft support vendor employee reports --
"After take-off from Baghdad, the aircraft was hit at 8,000 FT -- lost ALL hydraulics & therefore had no flight controls, actually did a missed approach using only engine thrust & eventually (after about 16 minutes) landed heavily on runway 33L at Baghdad. This was fortunate because with no steering the aircraft veered of the runway to the left. Had they landed on 33R, veering to the left would have taken them straight into the fire station."

"The aircraft then traveled about 600 meters through soft sand taking out a razor wire fence in the process came to rest almost at the bottom of the sloping area between the runway & a taxiway."

"All 3 crew evacuated safely down the 2nd slide, the first one tore on the razor wire."

"I flew in with a team on Tuesday (Nov. 25) in one of our Metros<<Webfeature, & some special equipment we'd had made locally in Bahrain and some provided by Airbus.

"Using a USAF D-9 Caterpillar pulling a 100 meter cable fitted to the back end of each bogie & a nice new aircraft pushback tug with a towbar on the nose gear, we were able to remove the aircraft just on dusk on Tuesday night (Nov. 25) & towed it to an Iraqi Airways graveyard on one side ofthe terminal.

"We stayed overnight in the USAF camp on the airport and went back to the aircraft on Wednesday morning to allow the insurance survey to be completed and then secure the aircraft."

"The point of (missle) entry pics show where a projectile entered Tank 1A, which was full of fuel, and, after it ignited, proceeded to burn away at the spar. The fuel tank ribs in the area directly in front of the O/B flap are burnt almost 50% through."

"The aircraft then traveled about 600 meters through soft sand taking out a razor wire fence in the process, and came to rest almost at the bottom of the sloping area between the runway & a taxiway."

"Basically, LH engine rotates in a fashion, has ingested lots of razor wire & is knackered. RH engine has seized, probably from ingesting loads of sand at maximum reverse thrust and inlet cowl has unacceptable lip damage, probably from hitting the razor wire fence posts."
"Using a USAF D-9 Caterpillar pulling a 100 meter cable fitted to the back end of each bogie & a nice new aircraft pushback tug with a towbar on the nose gear, we were able to remove the aircraft just on dusk on Tuesday night (Nov. 25) & towed it to an Iraqi Airways graveyard on one side ofthe terminal.

"The No 8 axle appears to be cracked as the wheel sits at an odd angle. The bulk of the damage is the LH wing. About 3 meters of rear spar is missing in front of the outboard flap, the wing has bulged upwards & downwards where the initial explosion appears to have occurred, one O/B flap track is hanging in the breeze & one has a small piece of flap still attached, the rest of the flap is nonexistent."

"The crew obviously did a fantastic job in getting the aircraft back on to the ground and one can only assume that it was most fortunate that they were not aware of the state of the wing as they could not see it from the cockpit.

"The pics show the huge crack that has occurred to the rear spar inboard of where the spar has burnt away, possibly from loads on the wing during the landing process. The front spar appears to be intact."

"The crew obviously did a fantastic job in getting the aircraft back on to the ground & one can only assume that it was most fortunate that they were not aware of the state of the wing as they could not see it from the cockpit."

"About 3 meters of rear spar is missing in front of the outboard flap, the wing has bulged upwards & downwards where the initial explosion appears to have occurred, one O/B flap track is hanging in the breeze & one has a small piece of flap still attached, the rest of the flap is nonexistent."

"On A Wing & A Prayer"

That Used To Be A "Wing" -- A Pratt Whitney Engine Used To Hang From That Spar.

"The worst part for us was the airport was shut down on Wednesday (Nov. 26) and we had to be driven in an armor-plated Landcruiser Troop Carrier from Baghdad to Balad, 60 miles to the north, from where we flew back to Bahrain in our Metro<<Webfeature, again.
"I trust you will all appreciate just how lucky these guys were."
Anonymous, Nov. 2003
"On A Wing & A Prayer"

How Lucky Were These Baghdad DHL Pilots?

Would You Call That A Wing? Or A Prayer?

Airbuss 300B4 Baghdad Score:
DHL Airways: 1

Terrorists: 0

Wings Left: 1

Our Nerves: Frazzled

Were Angels Under That DHL Wing? -

Or at least our hearts can pause for a moment to -

Consider this "one wing" plane, navigating at 8,000 feet.

Consider That These Pilots Made History Alone -

- Or Maybe There was Some Help -

"On A Wing & A Prayer"


SPECIAL NOTE: The historic dangers of carriage by sea continue to be quite real. Shippers must be encouraged to purchase high quality marine cargo insurance from their freight forwarder or customs brokerIt's dangerous out there.


INDEX TO OUR "On A Wing & A Prayer" PAGE SPECIAL FEATURES:

"Angel Fire" -- by coincidence -- the same day as this near DHL disaster -- we published the "Angel Fire" feature which reported new measures to be taken for the protection of civilian airliners from rocket attack with the ALQ-156 Defensive System -- Read More.

Airbus

A300 Flight Deck

Map Download of Baghdad -- from National Geographic


SPECIAL NOTE: The historic dangers of carriage by sea continue to be quite real. Shippers must be encouraged to purchase high quality marine cargo insurance from their freight forwarder or customs broker.  It's dangerous out there.


Contributors To Our "On A Wing & A Prayer" Feature

Our Contributors for this feature are:
*Anonymous

*Our "Doctor" - also an anonymous source - but "THE" reliable contributor over ther years.

Aaron White, Southwest Airlines, Customer Relations, Headquarters Executive Offices, Dallas, TX.

 Thanks to our contributors >> Without These Guys, We Would Not Be On-Line.
McD


NOTE: Please Provide Us With Your Additional Information For This Loss.


EDITOR'S NOTE FOR SURVEYORS, ATTORNEYS & MARINE ADJUSTERS: The Internet edition effort of The Cargo Letter now celebrates it's 8th Year of Service -- making us quite senior in this segment of the industry. We once estimated container underway losses at about 1,500 per year. Lloyd's put that figure at about 10,000 earlier this year. Quite obviously, the reporting mechanism for these massive losses is not supported by the lines. News of these events is not posted to the maritime community. Our new project is to call upon you -- those handling the claims -- to let us know of each container loss at sea-- in confidentiality. Many of you survey on behalf of cargo interests with no need for confidentiality. Others work for the lines & need to be protected. As a respected Int'l publication, The Cargo Letter enjoys full press privileges & cannot be forced to disclose our sources of information. No successful attempt has ever been made. If a personal notation for your report is desired -- each contributor will be given a "hot link" to your company Website in each & every report. Please take moment & report your "overside" containers to us. If you do not wish attribution, your entry will be "anonymous." This will will benefit our industry -- for obvious reasons! McD


NOTE: The Cargo Letter wants you to know that by keeping the identity of our contributors 100% Confidential, you are able to view our continuing series of "Cargo Disasters." Our friends send us materials which benefit the industry. The materials are provided to our news publication with complete and enforceable confidentiality for the sender. In turn, we provide these materials to you.  

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To those of you who are wondering what happened to the DHL A300B4 coming out of Baghdad last Saturday, take a look.

Aircraft was hit at 8000 FT, lost ALL hydraulics and therefore had no flight controls, actually did a missed approach using only engine thrust and eventually (after about 16 mins) landed heavily on runway 33L at Baghdad. This was fortunate because with no steering the aircraft veered of the runway to the left, had they landed on 33R veering to the left would have taken them straight into the fire station.

The aircraft then travelled about 600 metres through soft sand taking out a razor wire fence in the process, see LH engine pic, and came to rest almost at the bottom of the sloping area between the runway and a taxiway.

All three crew evacuated safely down the second slide, the first one tore on the razor wire.

I flew in with a team on Tuesday in one of our Metros and some special equipment we'd had made locally in Bahrain and some provided by Airbus.

Using a USAF D9 Caterpillar pulling a 100 metre cable fitted to the back end of each bogie and a nice new aircraft pushback tug with a towbar on the nose gear, we were able to remove the aircraft just on dusk on Tuesday night and towed it to an Iraqi Airways graveyard on one side ofthe terminal.

We stayed overnight in the USAF camp on the airport and went back to the aircraft on Wednesday morning to allow the insurance survey to be completed and then secure the aircraft.

Basically, LH engine rotates in a fashion, has ingested lots of razor wire and is knackered. RH engine has seized, probably from ingesting loads of sand at maximum reverse thrust and inlet cowl has unacceptable lip damage, probably from hitting the razor wire fence posts.

The No 8 axle appears to be cracked as the wheel sits at an odd angle. The bulk of the damage is the LH wing. About 3 metres of rear spar is missing in front of the outboard flap, the wing has bulged upwards and downwards where the initial explosion appears to have occurred, one O/B flap track is hanging in the breeze and one has a small piece of flap still attached, the rest of the flap is nonexistent. The pics show the huge crack that has occurred to the rear spar inboard of where the spar has burnt away, possibly from loads on the wing during the landing process. The front spar appears to be intact.

The point of entry pics show where a projectile entered Tank 1A, which was full of fuel, and, after it ignited, proceeded to burn away at the spar. The fuel tank ribs in the area directly in front of the O/B flap are burnt almost 50% through.

The crew obviously did a fantastic job in getting the aircraft back on to the ground and one can only assume that it was most fortunate that they were not aware of the state of the wing as they could not see it from the cockpit.

It also says a lot for the structure of the aircraft that it withstood the impact of the (whatever is finally determined to have hit it).

I'm sure there will be lots of other photos and videos flying around the net, but at least these ones are genuine.

The worst part for us was the airport was shut down on Wednesday and we had to be driven in an armour-plated Landcruiser Troop Carrier from Baghdad to Balad, 60 miles to the north, from where we flew back to Bahrain in our Metro again.

I trust you will all appreciate just how lucky these guys were.