Daallo Airlines A321 Lands With Hole In Fuselage

KarelXWB · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:33 pm

Something has punched a hole through the fuselage of a Daallo Airlines A321.

Quote:
An Airbus A321-111 operated by Daallo Airlines as flight D3 159 was involved in an occurrence after takeoff from Mogadishu Airport, Somalia. Two passengers are said to have been injured. Somali media report that locals from Dhiiqaley near Bal'ad town are said to have seen a severely burnt body fallen from a plane.

Photos show the A321 with an apparent hole in the fuselage on the right hand side, just behind the R2 door after it returned to Mogadishu.

Source
http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=184136

[Edited 2016-02-02 05:37:49]

tortugamon · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:40 pm

That does not look like an uncontained engine failure to me. Its hard to tell from the pictures which direction the metal is twisted. Hope its not outward as we know what that might mean.

Either way, impressive for the A321 to get back to the airport after suffering such damage. Solid design and aircraft and no-doubt piloting.

tortugamon

scbriml · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:43 pm

I appreciate it's only one picture, but I see little evidence of an engine fire and even less of an uncontained engine failure. Zero damage on the wing fairing.

The hole in the fuselage looks to be blown 'out' rather than 'in'.

speedbored · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:45 pm

Quoting tortugamon (Reply 1):
That does not look like an uncontained engine failure to me.

Nor me. The way the metal is twisted on the close-up image on the Horseed Media link definitely looks like the force of the explosion was heading out of the fuselage, not in.

Buyantukhaa · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:46 pm

Also, uncontained engine failure would have debris exiting through the roof again, should just about be visible still from this angle, and I see none.

Note the sooting behind the hole... I'd say something blew up there.

Ab345 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:47 pm

Just to offer some statistics...this frame is leased from Hermes Airlines and using a Greek registration number SX-BHS.

It's MSN 642 with first flight occuring on January 6th 1997 which makes it a bit over 19 years old. It's one of the latest A321-100 produced.

https://www.planespotters.net/airframe/Airbus/A321/642/SX-BHS-Daallo-Airlines

SpaceshipDC10 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:52 pm

I don't think the engine cowling would look that way had there been an uncontained engine failure.

CRJ900 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 12:55 pm

Reminds me of the movie "Airport" (1970), where Mr Guerrero has a bomb in his briefcase that he keeps on his lap and is planning to detonate it when appropriate. Perhaps someone saw that movie and decided to try it out...

SpaceshipDC10 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:04 pm

I see the first picture has been changed and it clearly shows the outward burst.

Flaps · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:23 pm

Depending upon the altitude at the time an inward impact could still show some outward bending due to the forces of decompression. That said however it certainly does not look to be the case here. The engine nacelle and wing as indicated above show no signs whatsoever of an uncontained failure. In fact both seem to be completely intact. I also agree that there appears to be some sooting inside the cabin.

Revelation · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:27 pm

Quoting KarelXWB (Thread starter):
Locals report seeing a body fall from plane.

Quoting scbriml (Reply 2):
The hole in the fuselage looks to be blown 'out' rather than 'in'.

Quoting speedbored (Reply 3):
the explosion was heading out of the fuselage, not in.

Suicide bomber?

Quote:
Somali media report that locals from Dhiiqaley near Bal'ad town are said to have seen a severely burnt body fallen from a plane.

Yet the interior of the cabin doesn't look too damaged.

Fly-K · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:30 pm

If whatever blew up, had blown up in mid-air, the outcome would have been very different...

Buyantukhaa · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:31 pm

With the updated pic it is even more clear now. Strange though that the damage in the cabin seems so limited compared to the mangled materials outside.

tortugamon · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:34 pm

Quoting Fly-K (Reply 11):
If whatever blew up, had blown up in mid-air, the outcome would have been very different...

The article says that it happened after takeoff....

tortugamon

Revelation · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:34 pm

Quoting Fly-K (Reply 11):
If whatever blew up, had blown up in mid-air, the outcome would have been very different...

Yet we read "An Airbus A321-111 operated by Daallo Airlines as flight D3 159 was involved in an occurrence after takeoff from Mogadishu Airport, Somalia." so it was at least airborne, if not "mid-air".

Fly-K · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:36 pm

Quoting Revelation (Reply 14):
Yet we read "An Airbus A321-111 operated by Daallo Airlines as flight D3 159 was involved in an occurrence after takeoff from Mogadishu Airport, Somalia." so it was at least airborne, if not "mid-air".

OK to be more precise, at an altitude that would lead to rapid decompression and possible further structural failure - different to what happened at lower altitude after takeoff.

AIR MALTA · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:43 pm

Could this be another terror attempt like the one that happened to MetroJet?

Francoflier · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:51 pm

Outward blown and shredded metal, scorch marks, coming from the passenger compartment, on an airplane taking-off from Somalia...

I know where my money is.

Toni_ · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:51 pm

Quoting Revelation (Reply 10):
Quote:
Somali media report that locals from Dhiiqaley near Bal'ad town are said to have seen a severely burnt body fallen from a plane.

It could fit the graphic image. A bit morbid, but the red stains just aft of the hole could well be caused by an injured body.

I know we have to wait for more news to come out, but it does look as if explosives were used here.

thegoldenargosy · Tue Feb 02, 2016 1:57 pm

Looks similar to the bombing of TWA 840 in 1986.

Toni_ · Tue Feb 02, 2016 2:01 pm

Quoting francoflier (Reply 17):
Outward blown and shredded metal, scorch marks, coming from the passenger compartment, on an airplane taking-off from Somalia...

I know where my money is.

This tend to be a "1+1... +1+1+1=5" indeed.

IF this is the work of a suicide bomber that managed to detonate an explosion on an airplane and only injure himself, the other passengers were extremely lucky to have survived this. As Fly-K mentioned, if he'd waited 30 minutes things could've ended much worse.

pvjin · Tue Feb 02, 2016 2:12 pm

Definitely looks like a bomb to me. The aircraft is 19 years old so I doubt metal fatigue could have been the cause, even if the maintenance hadn't been always top notch.

Now, the question is whether it was a suicide bombing or a bomb hidden in cabin like in the Metrojet case? Either way, survivors are very lucky that it didn't happen at later stage of the flight.

If it wasn't a suicide bomber it would be interesting to know whether the flight was delayed from scheduled departure time.

[Edited 2016-02-02 06:12:22]

WIederling · Tue Feb 02, 2016 2:19 pm

Quoting Toni_ (Reply 20):

Bit of a pressure differential helps with this.

non splinter bomb in bag held close to the window,
person pressed against the bomb.
person provides mass for the explosion to work against taking window and parts of the fuselage out.
higher pressure in the fuselage helps to expel to free air and contain the explosion on the inside.

marosbts · Tue Feb 02, 2016 2:30 pm

Damn, this definetly does not bode well for the safety of flying. And it pretty much could be very simmilar to what happened to Metrojet, although here it seems it could have happened at a much lower height, so not triggering an explosive decompression. The scary thing is, that if they now managed to bypass the security twice, then they most likely will be able to do so again. It is also crucial to find out how this happened - if it was that the device has been smuggled into the plane or if it was not detected during security checks.

With this in mind, are we to see airlines pulling out of airports/countries which will not be able to guarantee security checks are properly enforced?

tp1040 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 2:54 pm

ASN reporting this:

An Airbus A321-111 operated by Daallo Airlines as flight D3 159 was involved in an occurrence after takeoff from Mogadishu Airport, Somalia. Two passengers are said to have been injured. Somali media report that locals from Dhiiqaley near Bal'ad town are said to have seen a severely burnt body fallen from a plane.

N14AZ · Tue Feb 02, 2016 3:04 pm

Hmmm, so far nothing on The Aviation Herald...

JetBuddy · Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:01 pm

Looks like an explosion from the inside and out for sure. My guess would be a bomb in someone's lap, perhaps in a suitcase. Something goes wrong when trying to manually arm it, and the result is a small fire and explosion. Fits well with someone describing a sooted body falling from the plane.

Quoting francoflier (Reply 17):

Outward blown and shredded metal, scorch marks, coming from the passenger compartment, on an airplane taking-off from Somalia...

I know where my money is.

Exactly.

Nice job by the crew getting back on the ground safely. Good thing they weren't higher, or the pressure difference might have ripped a larger hole in the fuselage from the explosion.

readytotaxi · Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:42 pm

It does seem strange that an aircraft has a hole blown out of it and I can find no coverage on CNN BBC or Skye News.

sandyb123 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:50 pm

Quoting readytotaxi (Reply 27):
It does seem strange that an aircraft has a hole blown out of it and I can find no coverage on CNN BBC or Skye News.

Quoting N14AZ (Reply 25):
Hmmm, so far nothing on The Aviation Herald...

Hmmm this is strange. 4 hours after this thread appeared and nothing in the mainstream media? What gives?

It's on the airline's Facebook page so it is real. https://www.facebook.com/DAALLO.D3/

Sandyb123

[Edited 2016-02-02 08:53:40]

DolphinAir747 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:55 pm

Quoting sandyb123 (Reply 28):

Most people who read the mainstream media don't even know where Somalia is so it doesn't have the scare factor of something happening on a tourist flight to a resort destination in Egypt.

sandyb123 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 4:56 pm

Quoting DolphinAir747 (Reply 29):
Most people who read the mainstream media don't even know where Somalia is so it doesn't have the scare factor of something happening on a tourist flight to a resort destination in Egypt.

I respectfully disagree. Anyway a bomb on a civilian airliner anywhere is big news.

Sandyb123

DolphinAir747 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:01 pm

Quoting sandyb123 (Reply 30):
Anyway a bomb on a civilian airliner anywhere is big news.

Yes but two injuries is not the same as everyone on board dying obviously.

Polot · Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:07 pm

Quoting sandyb123 (Reply 30):
I respectfully disagree. Anyway a bomb on a civilian airliner anywhere is big news.

It is an unknown airline based in and flying to a country nobody has heard of (Djibouti) from a place that most people think of as dangerous and war torn (Somalia) with no confirmed deaths. A bombing hasn't even been confirmed, although looks likely based on the damage.

roseflyer · Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:13 pm

I know most seem to be jumping to the bomb conclusion, but I personally wonder if it could have been a burst riser duct. I don't know the A321 air conditioning system very well, but that does look like it could be right where the air conditioning ducts go up the side of the fuselage above the air conditioning packs. I have heard of riser ducts bursting and causing the sidewall panel to be ruptured. If a duct failed and took out the window then you could end up with a decompression that looked like the pictures.

The burnt body falling from the airplane does make it sound more like a bomb, but I wouldn't completely rule out a riser duct failure if that is where the duct actually is on an A321. Maybe someone can take a look at the maintenance manual to see if that is where it is.

dc10lover · Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:43 pm

Daalo In-flight Explosion: Shades of 1986

http://twitter.com/AvWeekJC/status/694522994832609280/photo/1

n729pa · Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:50 pm

It makes me think of PR434 and TW840 (picture above very similar in many ways), both where bombs left on the plane by a previous passenger, under or in the seat.

It's also close to the fuel tank too, so if it was a bomb that could have been an intented affect - we will see, shouldn't take too long to establish one way or the other, its a matter of whether the means to do so are available in Mogadishu

steex · Tue Feb 02, 2016 5:56 pm

Well, here's a twist - someone has already posted a video taken from aboard the aircraft immediately after the incident while the plane is still airborne.

http://www.facebook.com/akullane/vid...4/1027315734027220/?type=2&theater

D L X · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:07 pm

Quoting steex (Reply 36):

Well, here's a twist - someone has already posted a video taken from aboard the aircraft immediately after the incident while the plane is still airborne.

http://www.facebook.com/akullane/vid...4/1027315734027220/?type=2&theater

Is it me, or do people on board not look particularly phased?

Talk about calm!

litz · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:07 pm

well it was clearly pressurized enough for all the masks to drop when the hole blew out ...

readytotaxi · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:11 pm

Quoting D L X (Reply 37):

The face book link appears to have been pulled.?

seabosdca · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:15 pm

Is there an oxygen tank in this area of the A321? I thought immediately of the Qantas 747 that had a hole blown in it by a ruptured oxygen tank.

Otherwise, I tend to agree this looks like a bomb.

readytotaxi · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:21 pm

Quoting seabosdca (Reply 40):
Otherwise, I tend to agree this looks like a bomb.

Agreed, with the report of a burnt body.

SyeaphanR · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:25 pm

BBC link;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-35474747

The last line but one is interesting....

[Edited 2016-02-02 10:27:07]

cschleic · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:29 pm

Quoting readytotaxi (Reply 39):
The face book link appears to have been pulled.?

It still works, from the first post that had the link.

Assuming it's the same plane, interesting that passengers are grouped in the front and back, unless that was after they moved away from the hole. Looks like not all the masks came down?

zeke · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:31 pm

Quoting seabosdca (Reply 40):

Is there an oxygen tank in this area of the A321?

no

marosbts · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:33 pm

Quoting SyeaphanR (Reply 42):
BBC link;

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-35474747

The last line but one is interesting....

Am I too early to call bull...t on that statement? A fuselage failure of this kind at 10 000ft?

SpaceshipDC10 · Tue Feb 02, 2016 6:39 pm

Quoting SyeaphanR (Reply 42):
The last line but one is interesting....

Indeed.

Quoting marosbts (Reply 45):
Am I too early to call bull...t on that statement? A fuselage failure of this kind at 10 000ft?

If there indeed was a fire of some sort, why? Was it strong enough to weaken the skin? Was the skin already weakened before?

gzm · Tue Feb 02, 2016 7:00 pm

I think the window gave out, that's all. When TW 840 happened, that was the pilot's first thought.

MD88CLE · Tue Feb 02, 2016 7:13 pm

The aircraft in question was involved in an overrun in Lyon before, though there was no gear collapse and damage was supposedly minor.

Quoting roseflyer (Reply 33):
I know most seem to be jumping to the bomb conclusion, but I personally wonder if it could have been a burst riser duct. I don't know the A321 air conditioning system very well, but that does look like it could be right where the air conditioning ducts go up the side of the fuselage above the air conditioning packs. I have heard of riser ducts bursting and causing the sidewall panel to be ruptured. If a duct failed and took out the window then you could end up with a decompression that looked like the pictures.

Quoting gzm (Reply 47):
I think the window gave out, that's all. When TW 840 happened, that was the pilot's first thought.

The only thing with those theories would be if the person who was ejected was indeed on fire, and if there is indeed soot. An explosion due to pressure isn't going to do that.

readytotaxi · Tue Feb 02, 2016 7:14 pm

Confusion, a badly burnt body on the ground, only two people injured on the plane?
Passenger count?

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