I would like to write about a recent incident with the national carrier, Oman Air, that is not only embarrassing, but also a major safety risk.
(A Letter to MuscatDaily Editor)
I was on flight WY0406 from Cairo to Muscat on Thursday, April 14, when it was forced to make an emergency landing in Al Ain, UAE, because it ran out of fuel (according to an announcement made by the captain).
We waited on the ground for around one hour to get refuelled and then managed to arrive in Muscat shortly after.What’s confusing is that fuel is probably the first thing to check before taking off, so how could there not be enough? In a conversation with a stewardess, I was given three correlated reasons.
First, the incoming flight from Muscat to Cairo was late, so there was not enough time to refuel before returning to Muscat.
Secondly, the airplane was already too heavy with the luggage and passengers to take any more fuel.
Oman Air issues clarification on aircraft running out of fuel
Thirdly, because of turbulence, the pilot tried to move the airplane left and right, which used up more fuel.
Sadly, while these reasons may be true, none of them as I said, are excusable.
If it’s a matter of delaying a flight in order to completely refuel it, isn’t that worth it? What’s the benefit of being on time if you run out of fuel half way?
Isn’t it better to fly with enough fuel than to cause inconvenience to passengers? The airline could probably have come up with another way of getting the excess luggage delivered to the destination.
While the amount of turbulence may be unpredictable, isn’t turbulence itself something every flight should be prepared for? And the amount of turbulence on that flight was not something extraordinary.
Now, while we did make the emergency landing in Al Ain, did we have enough fuel for Muscat? Maybe. Was the pilot just taking a precaution in case there were any delays in the Muscat descent, rightly so? Only he knows. But either way, you should always land with extra fuel in the tank, so the fact that we had to land at all is still inexcusable.
Moreover, we were fortunate that there was an airport nearby. What would the solution have been had there not been an airport? What if it was busy?
In order to get more clarity, it would be nice to have an explanation from Oman Air, and I hope that by looking into this the airline will improve its operations in the future.
(Name Withheld)
Source: MuscatDaily