American Airlines Flips Winglet Enroute To TX | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-06.02.25

Airborne-NextGen-06.03.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.04.25

Airborne-AffordableFlyers-06.05.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.06.25

Sat, May 07, 2022

American Airlines Flips Winglet Enroute To TX

What A Drag! American Airlines Flight from SC To TX Diverts After Losing A Winglet Aloft

On the evening of 03 May 2022, an American Airlines (AA) Flight from Charleston (KCHS) to Dallas-Fort Worth (KDFW) apparently lost a winglet during severe turbulence in flight and took an unplanned tour of the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (KBHM), just past the halfway mark of its planned route.

Envoy, the regional carrier was the operator for that segment of the flight landed at KBHM just after 7pm, following which the crew observed the absence of the winglet.

To the uninitiated, the winglets are those upward pointing extensions, or sometimes split scimitar (where a portion points down and up) at the tips of the aircraft wing that minimize the comingling of airflow from the upper and lower surfaces of the wings, thereby reducing drag, and subsequently improving the ‘fuel efficiency’ of the aircraft. While the aircraft could limp along to its destination without winglets, the loss of one may have created an imbalance around the vertical axis, which at the usual cruise speed might become exhausting to manage for the rest of the flight. Perhaps it comes as no surprise that the fuel trucks and other ground vehicles seem to take a liking to the downward pointing winglets!

As stated by one of the passengers who was grading the landing, it was a smooth one and without incident.  American Airlines billed it as a ‘mechanical issue’, nothing to make a fuss about, the aircraft was mostly intact, it could still fly, and there were no injuries. It’s been said that it’s better to be on the ground wishing you were up there, rather than in the air wishing you were on the ground.

FMI: https://envoyair.com, https://aa.com

Advertisement

More News

Citation Operators Get Another Flight Data Connection for QA

LinxUs System Adds Capabilities for Data-Driven Operators Textron Aviation announced another option for operators processing their post-flight data, adding interoperability with GE>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (06.01.25)

Aero Linx: The de Havilland Moth Club Ltd The de Havilland Moth Club evolved from a belief that an association of owners and operators of Moth aeroplanes should be formed to create>[...]

NTSB Final Report: Bellanca 8GCBC

(Pilot) Inadvertently Applied Excessive Braking Action, And The Airplane Nosed Over Analysis: The pilot reported that, while landing at a remote, rough and uneven airstrip in a tai>[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (06.01.25)

“MCADT is committed to rapidly integrating armed first-person view drones into the FMF, enhancing small-unit lethality and providing organic capabilities that warfighters cur>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: High-Speed Match-up - Venom and GE Rebirth A Legend

From 2017 (YouTube Edition): Major Engine Supplier Joins Forces With Small Aircraft Manufacturer… GE recently made an agreement with Venom Aircraft to supply engines for the>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC