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Pics: 3 month old A330 gouged by service truck, may be totaled

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Several pictures from several angles, nice long gouge under the nose. Poor driver. (imgur.com) More...

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risom
risom 13
The paint job (new American livery) may be 3 months old, but US Airways took delivery of N288AY in August 2013. (Still, pretty darn new).
Ron271
Ron271 12
Totaled?! No way!! A few rolls of speed tape and she'll be as good as new......
joelwiley
joel wiley 4
As long as they keep it under FL140, eh?
paultrubits
paul trubits 2
At $700 a roll, it might still be totaled.
lynx318
lynx318 1
http://www.shop3m.com/3m-high-temperature-aluminum-foil-glass-cloth-tape-363-silver-2-in-x-36-yd-7-3-mil.html?WT.z_bynt=1

$295us 2"x36yard roll.
paultrubits
paul trubits 2
Going to need the Cosco size roll.
pilot62
Scott Campbell 12
Truck driver's new resume: "responsible for $30M project expansion."
kevind
Kevin Delaney 1
Airbus 2014 price list shows A330-200 valued at $221,000,000.00.

So a bit more than $30M if it's totalled. Which isn't likely as everything from the engines to toilet paper holders is usable.
elroy85750
elroy85750 9
'Tis but a flesh wound
onceastudentpilot
tim mitchell -1
see Jeremy Kudlick's post
jkudlick
That's a reference to the Black Knight from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." King Arthur cuts an arm off, and he says, "'Tis but a scratch." He loses another arm and says "It's only a flesh wound." Then loses one leg, then another, still insisting that he can win the fight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhRUe-gz690
augerin
Dave Mathes 3
Come back here and I'll bite your ankle you pansey....
preacher1
preacher1 1
Kinda hard to bite an ankle with both legs gone. LOL
joelwiley
joel wiley 1
Gotta wait until they're in range, then nail 'em.
onceastudentpilot
tim mitchell 1
I was referring to JAL 123 but that line is also said by Mercutio in the movie Shakesperes Romeo and Juliet
supchingoo
supchingoo 5
now it s a groundbus, no biggie..
dpyett
David Pyett 5
Mates, Airag at Bankstown in Sydney Australia can fix that, no worries!! Just bring it in and we will have it back in no time!! Nice bit of English wheel work, and a few rivets???
joelwiley
joel wiley 2
Do they make house calls?
adambear8
adambear8 1
Getting it there will be the only issue.
gruntusmc
Nah, slap an o2 mask on and stay below FL140. No sweat.
dtw757
mike SUT 5
Wonder how the truck is? :-)
onceastudentpilot
tim mitchell 8
Since it happened at CLT just write it off and roll it over to the museum and park it beside Sully's plane..lol
devsfan
ken young -3
Charlotte?!!! Ok, within 40 miles of CLT there are plenty of "Redneck engineers" fully supplied with bubble gum, bailing wire and gauze pads. Fix 'er right up for ya
joelwiley
joel wiley 1
Got a shade tree tall enough to park it under?
dherman
Doug Herman 4
That'll buff right out.
KSjetfixr
"Tis but a flesh wound......."
mjhasten
mjhasten 1
+100 for the reference
devsfan
ken young 0
you silly sod, your arm's off
christoperj
Its N288AY, USAirways/American Airlines Group
lynx318
lynx318 3
Just take it down to Elite Chop Shop, they'll fix it easy. Need directions? Just ask Axel Foley.
vanstaalduinenj
Pilot comment was joke I pretty sure
jrgarcia
Well....Just post "Experimental" over the door and go with it!
ryan1549
Ryan Carson 3
Its Crazy cause I took these pictures of 288 like a month before it happened..
http://flightaware.com/photos/view/2895689-b4ad551f7da9e147e71e4d4435587c8e170c32cf/user/ryan1549/sort/votes/page/2
TorstenHoff
Torsten Hoff 3
The side of the truck says American Airlines. Who owns/operates that Airbus?
Cactus732
Cactus732 2
Technically US Airways for now, but it's already been painted into the American livery as part of the merger.
Dubslow
Dubslow 2
Probably American. It has a one world symbol next to the main door, and there's a US Airways A320 in the background of one of the pics.
clabo
"you break it, you bought it.", so maybe the driver does, now. :D
jimquinndallas
Jim Quinn 3
I'm sure a few days revenue from ridiculous baggage fees, etc. will cover the repair bill...
usad
usad 3
I wonder if the root cause of the problem has been addressed. Find a better way to locate/identify parked aircraft. Surely there is Apple App for that!?!
OleEskildsen
Ole Eskildsen 5
Clearly pilot error for parking his aircraft where he did, too close to the service road ;-)
joelwiley
joel wiley 3
From: http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=172788 Accident date Dec 1, 2014

An American Airlines cleaning truck #FR062 driven by a cleaning lead, entered the hard stand across from the Base maintenance hangar at Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) with the intent of locating a specific aircraft (A321, N507AY) to conduct a scheduled clean.
As was the station norm during night operations the driver angled towards the nose gear as they approached each aircraft to use the headlights to illuminate the aircraft number. After identifying N288AY, they accelerated towards the next aircraft but failed to clear the aircraft. Significant structural damage to the aircraft occurred when the right hand rail on the stationary platform cut through the aircraft fuselage aft of the radome and the box of the truck struck the radome. No employees were injured.

I wonder what the driver is cleaning this month.
lynx318
lynx318 5
His locker.....OUT!
gruntusmc
LOL......
OleEskildsen
Ole Eskildsen 2
Toilets for the next 10 years and because he becomes to proficient at it, they may extend it for the rest of his working life. Poor guy, all because he had been up late playing poker the night before.
preacher1
preacher1 1
Everything else is; this might as well be too. LOL
ohange
ohange 5
Other forums where aircraft engineer/mechanics have posted have said this is totally fixable. Not cheap, but when the $repair < $whole airplane, they will repair it.

Likely:

The ramp worker will have to take a drug test -- this will determine if the insurance company can get out of paying the claim or not. Then, will be likely fired.

Next, they will have to check the airframe to ensure it's true. The reports are that the cockpit door and main cabin door don't close properly. That indicates the frame is torqued somehow. They'll have to get that all back in alignment.

Then they will have to repair the pressure bulkhead (if that's what they call it when it's on the nose, rather than aft). These are not cheap, but they are possible to repair.

After those physical repairs are done, they'll have to check to make sure no hydraulics or avionics were affected... In that part of the plane, more likely avionics than hydraulics/control systems, but I'm not the expert there.

Lastly, patch the sheet metal that was ripped open.

All in all, it's a pricey repair, but not a write off.
preacher1
preacher1 3
Probably not a write off under normal standards but a big part will depend on how much it is insured for. In most cases, 60% of total value gets you a total.
ohange
ohange 2
True - but look at it this way. Plane's "new" price is $222M. About half of that is in the engines alone. That leaves $110M or so in the airframe. A repair like this is probably a 8 figure sum.

If they would have to pay out of pocket for more than they would make selling it for scrap, then yes, they'd scrap it for parts and move on.

Just a guess though. We'll wait and see what happens - will take a few weeks to sort out.
kiwipop
Geoff Arkley 1
Hi there Airbus Sales Guy. We've got a couple or REAL low hour engines here. How much would you charge to put them in a new airframe?
canuck44
canuck44 1
We don't have the details as to whether is is owned or was used as collateral along the way by USAir. There will be more to this than just the repair cost vs return on parting out plus insurance. If the truck was American owned and operated that is going to come up with the insurance company as well.

It will however be fun to follow this...I have some stock in American so it will be in the annual report.
captainjman
Jason Feldman 1
"that should buff right out...." -Del Griffith

I am surprised the tail didn't fall off actually! LOL
linbb
linbb 1
While some may say fix it they like you have no idea what is involved fixing the area damaged. If you notice, by the way that thing that is kind of concave in front is the forward pressure bulkhead a major component of the fuselage. the way that the sheet metal that is torn and where that attaches is all very critical to the structure of the AC. Boeing did a repair on a rear pressure bulkhead some years ago and it corroded finally giving up killing everyone on board. Now with that being said I think let the experts deal with it and if it involves parting the AC out so be it. Any one involved in a repair is on the hook for it until they retire the AC.
ohange
ohange 4
You're right, but if you're thinking of the same incident I'm recalling, that repair job wasn't done according to the Boeing specs. The Boeing specs called for a single piece of metal, with 3 rows of rivets. The repair was done with materials that didn't meet that spec.

But, in the end, I agree - if there's a chance of it not being repaired correctly, sell the parts and run away with what you can.
jkudlick
JAL123 on 12 August 1985 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Airlines_Flight_123#Aftermath_and_legacy includes a rendering of how the repair should have been made compared to the actual repair.
KSjetfixr
".....maintenance manager......killed himself to apologize....."

Too bad the idiots on Wall Street and in DC don't have the same honor system/policy.

"Idiocracy" was a documentary.
nicholasweber
Yes but the repair "was" done by Boeing!!!
Paul1davis
Paul Davis 3
I'm an Engineer working for a Major Airline. About 10 to 12 years ago we carried out a very similar repair to the one required here, but on a 747, after it rear ended a 777, new fwd pressure bulkhead & several new fuselage skins, this is perfectly do able. Our repair was successful and the aircraft has only just retired. Oh and by the way, tug driver was sacked on that occasion, after proving positive for alcohol.
jstring
jstring -1
Difference is Boeing vs Airbus. Quality vs crap. Not surprised this would be a scrap job.
Paul1davis
Paul Davis 2
Yeah, thanks for bringing up that old chestnut, thought I'd not heard it for a couple of minutes. Regardless of your opinion of either Boeing or Airbus, by the way I do prefer Boeing but probably for different reasons to your good self. I was referring to the capability of a group of qualified aircraft engineers carrying out a SAFE and legal repair that works.
KSjetfixr
Corroded? As I recall, it was because the Boeing guys riveted the repair in with a single row of rivets (should be double row in a pressurized area.)

A&P School/Structures 101 stuff. Engineers who drew up the repair should have known better, and the mechs that did the job should have said "WTF"?
vanstaalduinenj
The part market on this will be very strong
Engines will be low cycle, along with landing gear etc....
Harvest it. Replace with a 787, which is what AMERICAN AIRLINES and US AIR should be buying anyway.
ADXbear
ADXbear 1
Most aircraft engines are leased from Delta and other very large MRO vendors.. they would not be part of this situation...
LarryGirard
Larry Girard 2
I think AC # 604 that put down on her nose out of fuel in Gimli might have been worse off and it lasted another 25 years....
evbutler
Ev Butler 2
How did they value this at $30 million> That crate new costs over $100 million. Maybe the insurance carier has depreciated it considerably. If it is only 3 months old, maybe the air carriers should buy all their planes used.
nicholasweber
It's just like buying a brand new car. Drive it onto the road from the dealer's forecourt and it instantly looses 30% of its value!
lynx318
lynx318 1
50% after 1 year.
preacher1
preacher1 2
And I would guess that is what puts the repair near total.
KSjetfixr
As things go, this isn't exactly a difficult fix. I'm guessing that the cockpit plugs into the rest of the fuselage forward of the cabin door. So you order a new Cockpit plug from Airbus; maybe even with Wire harnesses/plumbing/etc installed (as new as the airplane is, there shouldn't be any problems with different configurations of equipment)

Remove the cockpit plug, then make sure the fuselage is straight (I've seen several airplanes that were "twisted" at the start of the repair, but straightened out when the damaged parts were removed.......and this is why you want aluminum airplanes, and not composite ones)

Aluminum airframe parts are cheap, compared to the engines/avionics/accessories
kevind
Kevin Delaney 2
Airplane will be back in service in March 2015.
sriley0110
Steve Riley 2
A little JB Weld will fix it right up!!
DTBMF
Daniel Gless 1
Liquid Steel!
mjhasten
mjhasten 2
Heck, I'll trade them my 2007 Chevy Trailblazer SS, straight up. Not sure what I'd do with a 'banged up' A330 - maybe make a house out of it and move my family in.
josiahjulin
Josiah Julin 3
It would have one heck of a draft in the master bedroom. Isn't that where the bedroom belongs, in the cockpit?
ad8916
I bet that would make a cool house.
shootandfly
It would make a pretty nice deer blind.
alan75035
alan75035 2
Duct tape fix everything!
vanstaalduinenj
Not sure about the truck
But I will ask the driver later today at lunch at McDonald's.
Yes, yes I would like fries with that, thank you.
joelwiley
joel wiley 3
Looks like a great source for lightly used almost new parts.
jayeton
John Wright 2
That person should go in front of a firing squad.....How can someone be driving that close to an aeroplane.
joelwiley
joel wiley 2
Too close, from the looks of it.
preacher1
preacher1 2
Careless and don't care; our Y generation
preacher1
preacher1 4
Ramp rats hit the category of burger flippers for pay purposes, maybe less, but you get what you pay for.
milkwood
milkwood 1
I resemble that remark
OleEskildsen
Ole Eskildsen 2
Dictionary:
"Resemble: To exhibit similarity or likeness."

Which one do you resemble, Dave, the "ramp rat" or the "burger flipper"?
spankmaster5
spud man 1
Usairways outsourced this work to jet stream in CLT. As usual its all about the bottom line with them. Instead of paying their seasoned career ramp and utilities personnel a living wage, you know, the ones who actually know their aircraft types understand their equipment and surroundings in the AOA. Educated people who really valued the job they did and the people they served. They outsourced everything they could get away with to the lowest bidder. After all anyone can throw bags or clean a plane right? What they refused to add to the bottom line is the cost of constant turn over, poor attitudes, non existent work ethic, damaged equipment, pilfered and damaged bags, delays, pax claims and diminished customer perception. A knowledgeable Ramper would never have pulled up to this A330 in the first place when they were looking for A321 let alone accelerate while clearing an aircraft, with no guide yet. The "Lead agent" jet streams finest, promptly left the scene and his job.I really cant blame him, For what he makes and knowing he was going to to abused,humiliated and fired anyway.
fpk2
the lack of good labor these days is huge. anybody is hired to drive around multi million dollar ´assets (planes)!!! probably the "harvard graduated" truck driver was texting his "burro" or "mama" down in Chihuauha!!!
bradcraigmitchell
Brad Mitchell 1
Can totally confirm that! One of my colleagues brags about dealing drugs and bringing guns into the country when he was 18 yet he has airside security access!
onceastudentpilot
tim mitchell 2
and now you're an accessory
roseney
Splice a new nose section on it. A lot of work but cant be as costly as totaling the aircraft.
nicholasweber
Unfortunately the truck punctured the pressure dome. That will be quite a few million to rebuild.
KSjetfixr
Doubt it. They will just buy a new nose assembly, and ferry it to $5/hour BF Egypt to do the R&R.
LloydAviationInc
Brian Lloyd 1
Duct tape!
jlday1256
Jim Day 1
This is going on his permanent record....
ad8916
Wow! I wonder if they carry enough insurance to cover replacing an A-330!
PhoenixAF24
Brian Hankey 1
I wonder if AA/US will be changing their operating procedures

"As was the station norm during night operations the driver angled towards the nose gear as they approached each aircraft to use the headlights to illuminate the aircraft number. After identifying N288AY, they accelerated towards the next aircraft but failed to clear the aircraft."
preacher1
preacher1 6
It does look like they could afford a spotlight, even a portable hand held.
lynx318
lynx318 1
You & me think alike.
OleEskildsen
Ole Eskildsen 1
I know where you can buy some good torches in China...
lynx318
lynx318 3
Maybe they should invest in a handheld spotlight, instead of aiming a truck at an airplane.
preacher1
preacher1 4
Well, if they aim the truck, they should stop while they look.
lynx318
lynx318 1
As they say, can't stop time is money.
preacher1
preacher1 1
People look and think it's not much but there is much more to an aircraft surface tha is talked about at times. I remember as a teenager and one of my earliest flights; Friend invited me for a flight in his C150 out of a local pasture. He opened the door to the T hangar and naturally, I wanted to help get it out. He sensed this and said "Don't touch nothing". After we got airborne, he started explaining some of it to me and I started understanding, but it was kinda like, "REALLY?"
paultrubits
paul trubits 4
Since this was Charlotte, my guess is they learned that trick hunting deer.
joelwiley
joel wiley 1
Extract from older management memo:
"... and such portable units as you suggest would be at an unacceptable risk for theft, making it economically inadvisable. For the above reasons your suggestion-box submission to purchase hand-held lights for nighttime location of aircraft identification numbers is rejected. The vehicles in use are equipped with headlights and are sufficient for the task."
KSjetfixr
LMAO.......US American management in action......how the hell did we win WWII?

When I worked at one of the Wichita OEMs, the "TQM" program was in full swing. we soon found out that your TQM Team's report went to the round file, if it recommended that the company spend any money.

My buddy (a manager/supervisor) worked a team on "employee retention" They called several hundred people and interviewed them on their reasons for leaving.

The answers were:

1) Money
2) Money
3) Money
4) Benefits

Needless to say, the report and it's recommendations disappeared into a black hole.
lynx318
lynx318 1
Bet they regret it now!
jpep04
jpepp pepp 1
One of those people are getting fired
Haha!
vanstaalduinenj
Great question
Guess that won't quite buff right out
But 3 month old plane written off?????
ChadG
ChadG 6
The Imgur user actually got it wrong, it's actually 1.5 years old.
http://www.planespotters.net/Production_List/Airbus/A330/1441,N288AY-American-Airlines.php
patpylot
patrick baker 1
I just ran the N number on tracking at flightaware, and this plane is in revenue service.It is revenue service today, and is in Frankfurt. Like to know how much it took to repair this one. There was never going to be a total writeoff, so congrats to the repair guys/gals.
preacher1
preacher1 1
It does seem minor in relation to the total cost but I expect that decision is up to the insurance company.
seanbell
sean bell 1
where did this happen?
spankmaster5
spud man 1
Quidnon
Quidnon 1
Charlotte
Ivan8501
Ivan Travnya 1
Yeah, that's never going back into service.
joewhoo
Joe Boll 1
The $30 Million probably includes the scheduled revenue flights in the damage. But that's what you get for outsourcing a whole department and employees to go with, Don't train the new people the way they should be trained.Don't blame the driver, Get the Supervisors Ass. And the Company thinks they are saving Money.
spankmaster5
spud man 1
Amen brother
Flightdog
Roger Curtiss 1
If it is a total loss, that will be a whole lot of spare parts availablefor use and or resale. Done properly, the airline and/or insurer could possibly make a profit.
shootandfly
Bring it to a NASCAR pit crew. They have her airworthy in 30 seconds. Vroom vroom.
gruntusmc
A little bondo and some grinding and it'll be good as new. They will have to stuff something in that gaping hole though!
bradcraigmitchell
Brad Mitchell 1
What a disaster! At least no-one was injured. A plane can be replaced albeit for millions!
mercops
mercops 1
That's ok, he'll just get a job at McDonald's...it's inside work, warm and pays better than working at the airlines!!!
spankmaster5
spud man 1
with health insurance !
btweston
btweston 1
Well that sucks.

Gotta be more than $30 million though, right?
arerecich
arerecich 1
Meh. Beat to fit, paint to match. Definitely not totaled. I've seen worse damage get repaired.
DTBMF
Daniel Gless 1
Bondo will do wonders. A lil Bondo, a lil sanding and some paint VIOLA!
vulcancruiser
schadenfreude seems to abound in these cases...........
bobhirst
Robert Hirst 1
Gotta call Maaco!
SHUSSBAR
Stay calm. Nobody got hurt.
stevooz
steve rogers 1
expensive nose job !
jmilleratp
jmilleratp 1
My knowledge of aircraft construction isn't great! But, might there be a joining place for the nose of the aircraft? Could you get a new nose and join it up, then salvage all of the flight deck components from the damaged nose and reuse them down the line?
Viperguy46
Jesse Carroll 1
Pepper, those Ford Diesels Have a lot of power!
christianmaharajz0413
'Who park that basted plane there'
smithy46
Mike Smith 1
Surely in this modern era a clearance proximity alarm can be fitted to all service vehicles.
Let's do this PRO ACTIVELY rather than REACTIVELY after lives are lost.
ADXbear
ADXbear 1
I guess, I don't understand.. couldn't this plane have the front end stripped to the bare structure and replace the pressure bulk head there? Or is it cost prohibitive ? such a shame..
smithy46
Mike Smith 1
Surely in this day & age a clearance proximity alarm can be fitted to all service vehicles.
spankmaster5
spud man 1
they have one, its called a guide person. But you have to deploy it.
SmokedChops
SmokedChops 1
"Dammit Carl, you don't even have a license to operate the truck, let alone know how to drive..."

[This poster has been suspended.]

THRUSTT
THRUSTT 1
Yeah awesome one, he will...
kdog1839
david kuhn 1
Call BOEING A.O.G! . . . They can make it "Airworthy" again.
Neggytive
Neg Ative 1
"my Dad's a TV repairman......" ouch!
birddog67
Lewis Eason 1
Not a total loss. Still have salvageable motors,avionics, seats, wings, trucks, and all things aft of the nose.
jhmackeyll
JOHN MACKEY 1
Ouch!
sgbelverta
sharon bias 1
Sort of forgot that basic concept...Look up...
sailsomsen
Hugh Somsen 1
Oops
preacher1
preacher1 1
I expect he said more than that, or at least somebody did.
devsfan
ken young 0
Ahhh......
A movie reference comes to mind......
From "Biloxi Blues".......Christopher Walken as Sergeant Toomey
"Deep s**t Epstein"....
preacher1
preacher1 1
gabby188
Larry Mechem 0
I can't believe that can't be repaired. Oh, that's right it is an Airbus.
hansint
Johan Intgroen -1
Really Ole Eskildsen? Pilot error? What an ignorant comment. The plane was parked at the gate with the jetbridge attached which means the plane was properly parked. Then a truck hits the plane and now its the pilots fault? Really?...
alan75035
alan75035 2
It's called "humor"...
hansint
Yes Thanks Alan. I missed the ;-) and apologized to Ole.
OleEskildsen
Ole Eskildsen 1
Hi Johan, no offence taken!

I always thought that Dutchmen are not quite as easygoing as we Danes. And not the least, those of us who grew up in a slum area (back then 70 years ago) of Copenhagen called Christianshavn.

And of course it isn't pilot error. How could it be, if the aircraft was stationary as the damage pattern clearly shows. Most unfortunate, as we all know, it is hard to justify ground collisions.

Ole the Viking (or decendent of...)
sailsomsen
Hugh Somsen 1
Plane attcks defenseless truck

[This comment has been downvoted. Show anyway.]

PhoenixAF24
Brian Hankey 3
Mike - has nothing to do with merger issues. This was simply a case of inattention on the part of the driver of the vehicle.
Moviela
Ric Wernicke -4
That plane is done. Keep in mind that the actual sales price is but a fraction of what the airframer says is the public list price. The insurance carrier will know the actual price paid, and will have an accurate price range for the repair. If the range is to wide, they will write a check and take the chassis for salvage.

Parker would do well to order a replacement that flies faster and higher, and has a greater return on investment. Boeing is the only place he can do that.
Moviela
Ric Wernicke 0
Nice to see you guys in the EADS PR department read my musings and vote down any comment that might be seen by anyone shopping for an airplane.
joelwiley
joel wiley 0
Therein may be part of the write-off decision.
AP2099
I believe that it is simply that the Company
dose not won't to spend the money.

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