A Boeing 747-8 operated by German carrier Lufthansa reportedly suffered mechanical issues while inflight on Monday. The aircraft was flying to Miami, Florida, from Frankfurt, Germany.
After being airborne for nearly five hours, the incident caused the widebody jet to return to Frankfurt for inspection. Since the aircraft was too heavy to land in Frankfurt, pilots had to dump fuel.
Details of the incident
The 747, D-ABYG, was operating as Lufthansa flight 462. According to data from Flightradar 24, the flight pushed back from the gate 35 minutes late at 11:25 en route to Miami. The plane departed on runway 07C and banked to the north, eventually heading west. D-ABYG reached an altitude of 32,000 feet as it crossed over the UK and climbed to 34,000 feet right after passing Ireland.
According to The Aviation Herald, the aircraft was about to enter Oceanic Airspace about 220 nautical miles (253 miles) northwest of Shannon, Ireland, when the crew decided to return to Frankfurt Airport due to a hydraulic problem, prompting air traffic controllers to issue a revised flight plan for the crew.
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Dumping fuel, landing safely
Nearly two hours into the flight, the jet was headed east and climbed to 35,000 feet, but the crew advised ATC that they needed to dump fuel because the aircraft was too heavy to land in Frankfurt. Since the pilots reportedly wanted to dump the fuel sooner than later, D-ABYG turned south before making back over Ireland and descended to 31,000 feet to dump fuel.
After completing the fuel dump, the aircraft turned again around 45 minutes after the crew decided to return and headed directly east toward Frankfurt. The jet began its descent four hours and three minutes into the flight. D-ABYG landed back on runway 07C with open gear doors about 2:40 hours after the decision to return to Frankfurt, according to The Aviation Herald.
Lufthansa reportedly said that the passengers continued to Miami on another flight on Monday.
The hydraulic problem was likely minor, as mechanics were able to fix the aircraft quickly. D-ABYG is scheduled to fly a nearly 12-hour flight from Frankfurt to Los Angeles on Tuesday as Lufthansa flight 456.
A common problem for the 747-8?
Hydraulic issues have been somewhat common among the 747-8. Last year, a similar incident occurred involving a Polar Air Cargo 747-8F flying from Cincinnati to Tokyo. The cargo plane was reportedly about to descend about 40 minutes before landing when the crew reported a hydraulic failure. The aircraft landed safely with the gear doors still open and had to be towed off the runway.
In September 2020, a Qatar Airways Cargo 747-8F experienced a hydraulic failure in the aircraft’s hydraulic system 1. The incident caused the hydraulic fluid to be completely depleted from the system. The aircraft safely landed at Hamad International Airport in Doha, but it had to be towed off the runway, which caused the airport to be temporarily closed. After further inspection, mechanics determined that the GEnx engine #1 needed to be replaced.
Compared to the 747-400, the -8 variant reportedly has a revised environmental control system (ECS) and has changes to the electrical and hydraulic systems. Liebherr Group’s Liebherr-Aerospace Toulouse division supplies the ECS, which takes its air from the GEnx engines, according to FlightGlobal.
Sources: Aviation Herald (1), (2), FlightGlobal
