Air France incident in Belgrade

Arriving with a bang

Only a few weeks after the fatal Air France Airbus A330-200 accident on flight AF447 from Rio De Janeiro to Paris, another incident involving an Air France Airbus aircraft has occurred this time in Belgrade. As the Air France A319 aircraft landed yesterday at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport at 11.30 and taxied to the gate, the aircraft’s left wing hit an aerobridge, at gate A2, causing an engine failure. The accident was most probably caused due to the pilot who did not follow the markings on the taxiway. However, the pilot has since claimed that the accident was caused due to the lack of direction by Nikola Tesla Airport ground staff. The exact cause of the incident will be determined by the Serbian Civil Aviation Directorate which has begun an investigation. There were a total of 70 passengers onboard. The return Air France flight from Belgrade to Paris Charles De Gaulle which was due to depart at 12.40 was cancelled and passengers have been transferred onto other flights. A spokesperson at Nikola Tesla Airport said that this was not a major incident and that, although the aircraft was damaged, passengers were never at risk. The only inconvenience passengers endured was the long time it took to disembark the aircraft and the 60 minute wait for their luggage. The spokesperson also said that the aerobridge in question, gate A2, has had minor damage and should in operation again soon.

It was a bad day for the Airbus aircraft manufacturer yesterday with many incidents involving its aircraft. First an Airbus A330-200 operated by Jetstar International from Japan to Australia had to make an emergency landing in Guam due to a fire which broke out in the cockpit. On the other side of the world, an Iberworld A320-200 from Las Palmas to Oslo with 180 passengers and 9 crew, returned to Las Palmas' Gran Canaria Airport after one of the engines failed emitting loud bangs, sparks andflames. The airplane landed safely 10 minutes after departure. The incident in Belgrade is the fifth Airbus incident in the last 5 days.