Flight nearly lost control during landing; captain takes extended vacation to relieve stress.
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A British Airways captain has recently applied for deferred leave after handling a serious in-flight emergency. The incident occurred during the landing of an Airbus A320 at London Heathrow Airport, and the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) is currently investigating.
Aviation experts say this is one of the most serious near-misses in British commercial aviation in recent years.
The incident occurred on July 6th on British Airways flight BA919, en route from Düsseldorf, Germany to London Heathrow.
During the approach phase, the aircraft's Air Data Reference System (ADR) malfunctioned.
This system provides pilots and onboard computers with critical flight data such as airspeed and altitude. A malfunction can distort flight data, requiring pilots to strictly adhere to specific emergency procedures.
At the time of the malfunction, the flight was being piloted by the first officer. The aircraft experienced a sudden drop in speed while approaching central London, triggering a stall warning while flying over Canary Wharf.
Flight data showed that the aircraft's altitude plummeted from approximately 6,000 feet to below 4,000 feet. The stall warning indicated that the aircraft was approaching a critical angle of attack and was at risk of stalling at any moment, requiring immediate corrective action from the pilots.
After the incident, the captain immediately took control of the aircraft, successfully stabilizing the out-of-control aircraft and subsequently climbing back to approximately 8,000 feet.
The crew then replanned the approach route and attempted a second landing, ultimately landing safely at Heathrow Airport.
Commercial airline crew training typically focuses on teamwork and adherence to standardized procedures; such an emergency takeover and resolution of a major flight emergency by the captain is extremely rare.
No injuries were reported to crew or passengers, and the aircraft landed safely. However, given the severity of the incident, the AAIB has launched a formal investigation.
The AAIB confirmed that the incident was triggered by an ADR system malfunction, causing the aircraft to switch to the Alternate Law and triggering the stall warning.
Further investigations will examine the crew's emergency response procedures and other operational factors.
British Airways stated that it will fully cooperate with the official investigation and will not comment further until the investigation results are released.
It is understood that the captain involved has already begun taking stress leave.
Aviation industry insiders stated that it is common for crew members to apply for stress leave after experiencing high-intensity, high-traumatic flight emergencies.
Even if the emergency is ultimately resolved without causing an accident, pilots may still experience severe psychological stress after handling such emergencies with significant catastrophic risks.
