An associate popped into my office yesterday afternoon at around 4:20 to alert me to the spectacular images of a commercial jumbo jet engulfed in flames on the TV in one of our conference rooms. I immediately joined others who were watching with macabre anticipation for accounts of the dead.
We soon learned that it was an Airbus A340 flying as Air France Flight 358 from Paris to Toronto. The plane had crashed upon landing amid a severe thunderstorm and torrential rain. Apparently, it hydroplaned over standing water on the runway and skidded into a ravine at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport where it exploded in flames.
Initial reports fueled our morbid thoughts that all on board had suffered a fiery death. And, prompt second guessing by a gaggle of (standby) armchair pilots – mostly criticizing the decision to land in weather conditions that forced the closing of the airport and grounding of all Air Canada flights – only added to our perverse interest.
Then the mood – on TV and in the room – changed: Suddenly the excited and breathless reporting on this apparently fatal crash transitioned into subdued and measured speculation about sightings of passengers being taken away from the scene – by the bus loads. And, reflexively, a pall of disappointment (unspoken) came over the room when we realized that the terrific disaster that was anticipated might turn out to be just another “miracle” of survival.
Breaking News? All those flames? And, no dead? What a waste of my time….
Thankfully (really), the speculation turned out to be far more accurate than the initial reporting on this fantastic accident: All 297 passengers and 12-member crew had, in fact, survived with only a few minor injuries.
Flight attendants are trained to evacuate a full A340 of 335 passengers within 90 seconds in emergencies. And, in this case, they performed superbly by all accounts. Therefore, remember this episode the next time you condescend to treat one as nothing more than a glorified usher or waitress in the sky.
Yesterday marked the first crash of an Airbus A340 since the plane went into service in 1991. And, even this one seems the fault of human error as opposed to mechanical failure. Clearly a record Airbus can be very proud of indeed!
We should take heart that none of us feels compelled to offer impersonal condolences today. But those of us who travel routinely should take a moment to celebrate and marvel at the fact that – with hundreds of thousands of commercial flights taking off and landing daily (in all kinds of weather) – such crashes are so rare. Indeed, let’s take this opportunity to affirm that airplanes remain the safest and most convenient means of mass transportation. (Last year, almost 700 million people took to the skies and only 428 did not have a safe landing.)
So, here’s to the bravery of the passengers and crew of AF358…Welcome to Toronto!
News and Politics
Anonymous says
Truly remarkable!! All I could think of when hearing of the safe evacuation of all passengers and crew, was the fear and panic that must have gripped them all during those frightful minutes. All credit indeed to the crew for using their training under severe stress to ensure the safety of more than 300 people.
Anonymous says
I appreciate your gallows humor because I felt the same way.