Pilots forced to land plane 'blind' after hail storm smashes windows and rips off nose
Pilots were once forced to land a plane ‘blind’ after being caught up in a brutal storm.
And no, it wasn’t that those flying the plane had suddenly just lost their eyesight but rather the aircraft itself had.
Unless you’ve been blessed on all of your travels, it’s fair to say we’ve all probably experienced a landing that wasn’t totally smooth.
Perhaps the plane has felt like it’s gone over 30 speed bumps in a row as it got onto the runway or maybe it spent what seemed like forever circling the airport from above waiting to land.
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And let’s not even think about those landing almost on the streets outside as they brush over tourist’s heads beforehand.
But Austrian Airlines flight 0S434 had a whole other challenge to overcome when it flew into a hailstorm before getting into Vienna International Airport yesterday (9 June).
At around 18,000 feet, the hailstones absolutely smashed up the cockpit windows and ripped off the plane’s nose.
Pilots hasn’t been able to spot the storm of the Airbus A320’s weather radar (found under the nose).
And Austrian Wings magazine reported that the shattered windows left the pilots essentially flying ‘blind’ as they ended up declaring an emergency.
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Although, despite these rather mad conditions, the pilots were able to safely make an emergency landing at the airport using the instrument landing system.
Plus, it wasn’t until emergency services met them on the runway and passengers got off that they realised the absolute damage to the plane.
Emmeley Oakley was one of the people on the plane and told ABC News she thinks they were about 20 minutes away from landing when they ‘got into a cloud of hail and thunderstorm and the turbulence started.
“We could definitely feel the hail coming down on the plane and it was quite loud and of course super rocky for a minute,” she said, adding that ‘phones and cups’ bounced about inside.
“It wasn’t until we exited that we saw the nose was missing. The pilots really did an excellent job keeping things as smooth and safe as they could.”
No one was injured in this destructive storm incident but unsurprisingly, the airplane is expected to be out of service for at least several weeks.
Austrian Wings reckon it’s not yet clear if it can even be repaired as there is estimated to be hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of damage caused.
Austrian Airlines told LADbible in a statement: "We confirm that on yesterday’s flight OS434 from Palma de Mallorca to Vienna, an Airbus A320 aircraft was damaged by hail.
"The aircraft encountered a thunderstorm cell during approach to Vienna, which according to the cockpit crew, was not visible on the weather radar.
"As of now, the hail has damaged the two front cockpit windows, the aircraft nose (radome), and some coverings. Due to the damage, a Mayday distress call was made. The aircraft was able to land safely at Vienna-Schwechat Airport. All passengers on the flight were unharmed. The Austrian Airlines technical team is already tasked with assessing the specific damage to the aircraft. The safety of our passengers and crews is the top priority for Austrian Airlines."
Jess Battison