Malagent’s Domain

Unless you’ve been sleeping or more likely simply had something better to do, you’ve most likely seen a news story or blog post about the plane loosing an engine during take off. No? Well don’t worry, I shall explain it in a nutshell:

A Nationwide Airlines Boeing 737 takes of in South Africa only to have it’s right engine fall off moments later. The plane lands safely and hours later the blogs suddenly have something to write about. But that’s all new news, I’m writing about old news here. Some of it very old in fact.

Let’s start with the rather eventful year 1953. In which Joseph Stalin suffers a stroke and later dies, Ohio is admitted to the Union and on March 19th and The LA Times reports that a jet Bomber lands safely after an engine fell off.

Later on Mar 7, 1965 the Washington post reported “NEW YORK, March 6 (AP) The right outboard engine of an Eastern Airlines DC8 Jet fell Off last night after The airliner landed on a runway at Kennedy …”

Then according to the Fresno Bee on April 9, 1968, another plane apparently lands safely after the passengers watched the left inner engine fall of in flight.

Aside from a few minor engine losses airplanes seemed to remain mostly intact until February 1, 1981 when an engine housing from a Northwest Airlines DC10 fell off in a ball of fire and shower of sparks amid homes. On October 28, 1984 a DC10 engine falls apart over a residential neighborhood and lands safely shortly after takeoff. America Airlines loses their first engine in 1985 when a Boeing 727 engine falls off after takeoff from Dallas Fort Worth Int. Airport. Doylestown, PA from the Daily Intelligencer - December 6, 1987 “plane lands safely after engine falls off USAir Boeing 737 jetliner five minutes after takeoff.
This seems to be a recurring theme:

• January 21, 1989, AP, Elyria, Ohio “The right ENGINE on A Boeing 737 jetliner fell off shortly after takeoff today …”
• Feb 7, 1989 - San Jose Mercury News - “New York-bound Pan American jet with 269 people aboard made A QUICK RETURN landing today AFTER part of its ENGINE COVER fell OFF, officials said”
• Jan 5, 1990 - Beacon Journal - “JETLINER LANDS SAFELY AFTER ENGINE FALLS OFF”
• Oct 6, 1990 - The Gazette - “an Engine fell off An Air Force B-1B bomber Thursday night, forcing it to make An emergency landing in Pueblo.”
• Jan 31, 1991 - Daily News of Los Angeles - “A section of a jet engine exhaust fell off a USAF B-2 stealth … ‘We don’t want pieces OF the aircraft to fall off,’”
• Apr 18, 1991 - Atlanta Journal/The Atlanta Constitution - “Engine cover from Delta jet falls into Ford lot” “Several people on the expressway saw it fall”
• Jan 8, 1992 - Boston Globe - “GRAPEVINE, TEXAS, An Engine fell off A Delta Air Lines jetliner yesterday shortly after it took OFF with 44 persons aboard, authorities said.”
• November 2, 1992 - Deseret News “ENGINE FALLS OFF 747 TRANSPORT PLANE”
• April 1, 1993 - Wichita Eagle - “747 LOSES ENGINE IN ALASKA - the badly mangled engine landed between an apartment building and a shopping mall in a densely populated part of the city” “Witnesses in three F-15 fighter planes said they watched the engine and part of the left wing’s flaps fall”
• Aug 15, 1996 - Atlanta Journal - “Delta 727 makes emergency landing after engine trouble” “…He looked up to see A piece of metal fall from The sky, bounce off his neighbor’s house”
• Aug 16, 1996 - Buffalo News “HOT JET ENGINE PARTS FALL ON QUEENS”
• Aug 17, 1996 - New York Times “For 2d Time In a Week, Jet Piece Falls Over Queens”
• Aug 20, 1998 - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “Milwaukee pilot touches down safely in Wausau after propeller falls…” “a variety of engine parts were found in yards and nearby fields,” “Airplanes don’t just fall out of the sky…”
• September 13, 1999 - AP “Jet engine casing falls off plane before emergency landing” “200-pound piece of engine casing from A Continental Airlines Jet landed on empty street”
• Jan 21, 2000 - Airline Industry Information “Airtours flight diverted when engine case falls off on takeoff”
• Nov 13, 2001 - Atlanta Journal “Investigation Focuses on Why Engine Fell Off in American Airlines”
• Feb 13, 2003 - Portland Press Herald “ENGINE PANEL FALLS OFF JET LEAVING JETPORT”
• Sometimes they don’t even know it happened: Oct 22, 2004 “747 crew lands to check engine only to find it gone”

• Jan 31, 2007 - DenverPost.com “Jet engine falls apart mid-flight over Colo.”

It seems that other parts also have a disturbing tendency to free fall as well:

• May 20, 1994 - St. Paul Pioneer Press “WHEEL FALLS OFF, BUT PILOT AND TEACHER LAND PLANE” “it was almost like the aircraft engine was missing. … the left wheel, the flyers learned, had fallen off”
• Jul 11, 1995 - Washington Post “Attendant Saved After Door Falls Off Airplane” “the Door blew off and she yelled, … she grabbed onto my arm so she wouldn’t be blown out the Door.”
• Jul 11, 1995 - Fort Wayne News Sentinel “DOOR THAT BLEW OFF PLANE FOUND IN RIVER” “Federal investigators have recovered the the main cabin door that blew off American Eagle flight 4127″
• Sep 12, 1996 - Denver Post “Airplane parts dislodged in more than 500 cases” “several times a year, pieces of engine cowling, flaps, hatch covers and fueling doors fall off planes, according to FAA”
• Mar 11, 1997 - Fort Worth Star-Telegram “Wheel falls off cargo jet” “Airplane parts - from wheels to entire engines - do occasionally fall off in flight”
• Dec 4, 2002 - Liverpool Echo “Concorde scare as rudder part falls off”
• Feb 27, 2003 - Airline Industry Information “Engine hood falls off Air India aircraft”

Now don’t be discouraged, after all air travel is safe. I’m sure someone is out there to reassure us that it’s rare for engines to fall off planes. Right?

See, Capt. Bob Miller at UPS says “There’s not a scenario where the engine falls off the airplane,” - so there’s nothing to worry about.

Oh yes, I could have gone on for hours and hours. But I’m sure if you’ve read this far you’re glad I didn’t.