Unfortunate in inheriting the surname "coward".
But his heorics have gone a long way to fix that :D

Ben, South , UK

Large Aero Engines take some time to respond to a demand for more power. In the short time to possible impact this wait can seem even longer. A report said the engines were "roaring loudly" before impact. Was the power applied too late? Lets not be too hasty to praise before all the facts are known, the probability of two independent systems failing at the same time is very low.

Raymond Garnham, Damiatte,

Absolutely Outstanding!!! To all the crew especially, to First Officer Coward, Capt. Birkill and Senior Cabin Crew Member Sharron Oeaton-Mercer: Well done! Hats off! Three Cheers!!!

It bespeaks to the outstanding intrinsic character of all the crew and their superior training. No lives lost and only one broken leg.

They should receive some public recognition but definitely NOT an O.B.E. It was most certainly by their efforts alone that it all ended well.


David B. Monier-Williams Scottsdale AZ USA

David B. Monier-Williams, Scottsdale, US Arizona

A stable approach in visual conditions means the engines must be at working power(NOT IDLE, as it takes some seconds for a jet engine to spin up ), speed stable at landing spd +5knots, flaps and LDG gear in LDG configuration, all by 3 miles and 1000ft. If this was a stable approach the engines should have been spun up to at least 60% RPM power and the aircraft at landing speed +5knots. On a stable approach at 2 miles and 600' in reasonable weather conditions a safe landing on the runway should have been possible EVEN if both engines failed to respond to further inputs! If it was not a stable approach and the engines were at idle power and maybe the speed was too fast or too slow then this was clearly an unstable approach and a go around should have been instigated even before this point was reached. Either way the pilots have to face the fact they may have some culpability in what could have so easily been a catastrophic event. Its certainly very premature to be talking about medals!

chris, london, UK

when something goes wrong with an aircraft so close to landing it is extremely difficult to regain control in time to avert catastrophe. i should imagine the investigation will identify several contributing factors that lead to the loss of power. however, even if it emerges that the flight crew could have acted differently during the build up to the engine failure, the fact remains that their reaction once the problem hit was absolutely first class. everybody got off that plane in one piece and that is due only to the phenomenal actions of the pilot in extreme circumstances. the plaudits are for getting the passengers down safely and they are entirely warranted whatever the eventual outcome of the investigation.

Phil P, london,

The initial comment, from Neil of Cheltenham, represents all that is not acceptable in the UK at this time. You must BLAME SOMEONE culture.

Neil is not only ill advised. He is not worthy of airspace.

John T. Osborne, La Palme, France

It's impressive how many experts come out to criticize and decide what went wrong or who is guilty, without ever being informed of actual flight data. The AAIB needs weeks to establish causes and factors after collecting a huge amount of evidence.

I wonder if any of those "experts" has ever been in an airplane cockpit, not to say flying an aircraft.

Whatever caused the accident, the crew did an excellent job to a safe outcome. They deserve credit.

Sergio, Mexico City, Mexico

Read the AAIB prelim. report. It doesn't say the engines failed; it doesn't say the engines stopped. It just says the engines failed to respond to an autopilot command to increase power to maintain the glideslope and then also failed to respond to the pilots movement of the throttles to try to achieve the same thing. From the pictures of the engines, looks to me like they were still running when the A/C hit.
My money is on a software or electrical problem in the A/C computers.

Peter Jackson, Cowbridge, UK

Peter Jackson, Cowbridge, UK

Flight simulator training can prepare you - but when push comes to shove, it's down to skill, experience, rapid thinking and sheer nerve.

Jolly good show, chaps.

Sue, San Antonio, USA/Texas

Whatever the root cause of the loss of power, even pilot error, it seems that both pilots did the right things when the final problem manifested itself, training seems to have worked.

Its to his great credit that the captain didn't grab the controls, despite every natural instinct screaming for him to do so - the captain is the manager, he needs to take a step back and think about systems - that is CRM. (cockpit resource management) so although First officer actually had hands on it was definately a joint thing. They knew what to do and did it - and looked ashen faced in their photos. I'm betting these guys changed trousers prior to the press conference!

150 lives saved, well done! This is why we have live people not computers flying planes.

IGJ, Miri, Sarawak

People say modern commercial aircraft practically fly themselves, so it's okay that pilots make so little money. No, Virginia, they do NOT fly themselves. It's precisely in instances like this -- pilots ready after who knows how many long hours of routine to jump in and react with agility and calm in an emergency -- that makes these people worth more than they're paid.

Jim Houghton, Los Angeles, CA, USA

As a pilot who carefully follows the root causes of crashes, the odds are quite high that they ran out of fuel. That's why both engines died and there was no fire. Lets hold the heroics until we find out what happened here.

michael Sheridan, Washington, DC, US

Such a close call, the "good" outcome could well have been helped by landing on grass and an absence of sparking that could very well have started a fire, as well as the strong deceleration and softened impacts to the airframe that would have been produced by soggy ground. Well done to the pilot for keeping its attitude and direction OK in those last desperate seconds. What worries me is that (reading the associated reports) that the avionics systems could well have either software or electrical failure modes that prevent the pilots from taking manual control when they go wrong. Thank goodness that we still have people on flight decks in spite of the fact that some have automatic control systems could (in theory anyway) fly - and land aircraft. I still marvel at the ingenuity of that flight crew back in 1989 that managed to fly - and almost get away with landing that DC10 aircraft at Sioux City airport when they had lost all control of the flight surfaces.
Well done guys.

Peter Low, Basildon, England

Shouldn't we await the outcome of the full Inquiry before handing out plaudits. Who knows, human error on the part of a crew member might have caused the problem in the first place.

Neil, Cheltenham, England

Surely they would of had a beer or two with their curry. Why isn't that reported? Or something like "the two pilots swill down a couple stiff drinks with their quiet curry".
Well done!

Chris, Nevada City, California

Give credit where credit is due. The crew performed splendidly and should be applauded. What they accomplished in a matter of seconds far exceeds the exploits of entire career of athletes or entertainer. However, I hope more attention is paid to the cause of the problem rather than who is to blame. One follows the other in the end. Let's hope that a similar incident can be prevented.

Colin Coghlan , Ramsey, NJ USA

'Now look here, men, I've got a pretty good idea what went wrong here, but I'm leaving it to the Johnnies at Accident Investigation to take a look; meanwhile Sergeant Wilson and I rejoice at the happy outcome; as I said before, I'm putting this pilot chappie up for an entry in the Guinness Book of Records for the shortest ever "safe" landing of a 777.' ( with apologies)
Mark, London, - I think it's called tempting Providence, and why not when you're on a roll? : )

MikeM, St. Albans, England

It used to be a cup of tea. Now it is a quiet curry. Don't think my bowels would want any stimulation.!!
Well done- all of you

Vernon Cooper, Yeovil, United Kingdom

Did they run out of fuel?

gordon mann, mexico, mexico

It seems a little premature to be lionizing the pilots for saving passengers lives, when we don't yet know how responsible they were for endangering them in the first place. More often than not it's pilots that kill passengers, not planes.

Richard, London,

Did the crew need a curry after that I am sure I wouldnt have!! Obviously made of sterner stuff well done.

Mark, London,

It certainly proves the point that Heathrow is in the wrong place ! (Thank God for skilful pilots such as our heroes of the hour.)

H D, WsM,

Fair enough they did good but they were only doing their job. A job they are well trained and well paid for. We shouldn't expect any less from them. Talk of medals is ridiculous and I suspect they would be the first to agree with me.

Tony Hockley, Bristol, England

This would seem to be yet further confirmation of the unreliability of BBC reports because it is unrecognisable compared to the eye witness reports that were broadcast from Heathrow immediately after the accident; other than the actual landing. Two points which were mentioned by more than one eye witness were that the aircraft seemed to bank steeply and that the engines were roaring very loudly at one point.

Henry Percy, London, UK

My lord what a close shave. This could have been such a different story.

Well done to the pilots, they did their job well, but what on earth went wrong?

Worrying

David, St Albans, UK

I agree these crew should all recieve some honour or medal. They assesed the situation fast, avoiding a major disaster. Conratulations to Peter Burkill, John Coward and especially to Senior Cabin Crew: Sharron Eaton-Mercer. Hope You Return To Flying xxxx

James Postlethwaite, Derbyshire, United Kingdom

leading theory today seems to be water in the fuel. This should not be a new failure mode. I wonder if the Standard Operating Procedures see both engines being fed from the same fuel tank ? Equally are there any sensors onboard for water in the fuel ? Surely there are some checks & balances for this ...

andy johnson, bristol, uk

OUTSTANDING Crew, Aircraft and Write Up!

Chuck, Honolulu, hawaii

To all the crew "Well Done"

Ken, Wollongong, Australia

A real measure of the stature of captain Burkill to congratulate Coward and the Cabin crew in their part in helping to avert disaster.

He should be knighted.

Hassan Azam, Banbury, Oxfordshire, England

OK, great cover story - but what is the real story here?
A 777 just doesn't lose power like that.....

Peter Henley, Washington, DC, USA

Phenomenal!! Absolutely Phenomenal!!

Astounding! Absolutely Astounding!

This flight crew did a near magical thing.

This incident could have been so, so much worse.

Congratulations to them and their passengers.

Now, somebody check the fuel quality from their departure point.

Coffee Can, MARIETTA,GA, USA

A Qantas Boeing 747 had an identical complete loss of power on approach to Bangkok airport only last week. The aircraft was not as close to the runway as BA038 so the crew had time to switch to battery back up and therfore regain control of the engines and flight controls. It turned out that a cracked drip tray allowed water to get inot the aircrafts electrical generators causing a loss of all electrical power and control.

John Conlon, Melbourne , Australia

Good work Mr. Coward and good split decision on the part of
Mr. Birkill. Ms. 0eaton-mercer for keeping her head in such a
situation.
Wonderful reactions on the part of all.

Jerry Scroggin, Phoenix, Arizona/USA

Next time, fill the fuel tank. The engines can't run without it.

Ben MacGowen, Naples, Florida, USA

The first question that needs to be asked is whether the crash could have been caused by sabotage.

H.Thornton, Victoria, Canada