KLM Flies A 9 Hour Flight To Nowhere

KLM A330-303 PH-AKE (CN 1381)      File Photo

A Brazil-bound KLM flight spent over nine hours in the air yesterday, only to land back in Amsterdam, from where it had departed that morning. The reason for the diversion was said to be a cracked windshield on the Boeing 787 operating the flight. KLM flight KL705 is a scheduled service between Amsterdam Schipol (AMS) and Rio de Janeiro/Galeão International Airport (GIG). The flight generally operates with a frequency of five services a week. According to FlightRadar24.com, the Dutch flag carrier utilizes either Boeing 777 or 787 ‘Dreamliner’ aircraft on this route. It is scheduled to depart Amsterdam at 10:25 local time. Arrival in Rio de Janeiro is timed for 18:20 local time, giving a scheduled flight time of 11 hours and 55 minutes. 

Many hours in the air 

On the 26th December flight KL705 took off from Schipol’s runway 24, known as the ‘Kaagbaan.’ It departed slightly behind schedule, at 10:41 local time. However, over a flight of nearly 12 hours, one would have expected that this 16-minute delay would easily be overcome, resulting in a punctual arrival in Brazil. Unfortunately, this was not the case. According to The Aviation Herald, the aircraft suffered a cracked windshield, specifically constituting a cracked outer pane on the right-hand side. The fact that only one layer cracked meant that damage was minimal. However, it still resulted in a loud bang which could be heard in the passenger cabin. The incident occurred over the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately 620 NM (1,150 km) south of the Azores, and 590 NM (1,090 km) west-southwest of the Canary Islands. The crew elected to return to Amsterdam following the incident. It had occurred at an altitude of 36,000 feet, and the aircraft maintained this height for the majority of its cruise back to the Netherlands. The flight landed back at Schipol on runway 18R, known as the ‘Polderbaan.’ This is the airport’s newest runway, having opened in 2003. Touchdown occurred at 19:53 local time, 9 hours and 12 minutes after flight KL705’s initial departure.

IMAGE TAKEN FROM FLIGHTRADAR24.COM

The aircraft involved

KL705 was operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner bearing the registration PH-BHD (CN 38763). According to Planespotters.net, KLM took delivery of this aircraft, which bears the name Bougainvillaea / Bougainville, in February 2016. It has not flown since the incident, however, data from FlightRadar24.com shows that it operated flight KL835 from Amsterdam to Singapore yesterday. The replacement flight  for KL705 was operated by another Boeing 787-9. This aircraft beared the registration PH-BHO (CN 42509), and the name Orchid / Orchidee. KLM took delivery of this particular Dreamliner in March 2018.

Story sourced from here

KLM Flies A 9 Hour Flight To Nowhere After 787 Windshield Cracks - Simple Flying