Man killed at work named
‘Serious danger’ for billionaire after engine of plane failed in mid-air Mr Mcmanus disembarked safely and no injuries were reported to investigation
A PRIVATE jet owned by JP Mcmanus made an emergency landing and was “in serious danger” after one of its engines failed mid-air, a report has found.
The Irish billionaire’s Gulfstream G650 landed safely at Shannon Airport after the right engine “unexpectedly shut down” during a flight bound for Farnborough Airport on July 7 last year.
Mr Mcmanus was the sole passenger along with one cabin crew member and two pilots, the Air Accident Investigation report published yesterday.
The left engine of the €55million aircraft failed 15 minutes after departing Shannon as it was climbing at approximately 2,000 ft per minute and was at an indicated airspeed of around 300 knots (555 kmh).
The co-pilot initiated the “engine securing/failure in flight/intentional shut down” checklist and the Commander declared a PAN standard transmission call that there was a degree of urgency on board, but no immediate danger.
However, during the jet’s descent the Commander “upgraded to a MAYDAY7, the international call for help used with voice radio transmission when an aircraft is in serious danger”.
The report stated the flight crew had wished to discuss the unfolding situation with the aircraft manufacturer in order to inform the Commander’s decisions regarding a re-start of the left-hand engine and attempting to restore the right-hand engine back to its primary control mode. At this time, the aircraft satellite phone was not working due to loss of cabin power, however, communication was achieved by relaying messages through the Operator’s engineering team via VHF radio.
The Commander decided “the best course of action was to land the aircraft as soon as possible”, the report stated.
During an initial approach to Shannon, a “L-R main gear door open” caution message was illuminated in the cockpit, forcing the flight crew to discontinue the approach.
A “normal landing” was performed on a second approach and Mr Mcmanus and crew “disembarked normally”.
The report stated: “No injuries were reported to the investigation.”
The mid-air drama unfolded over Co Waterford shortly before 4.45pm. Emergency procedures were put in place on the ground at Shannon after the mayday call was received.
Airport fire and rescue crews were deployed to designated holding points along the main runway, supported by units of the local authority fire service.
The jet – featuring the initials of Mr Mcmanus’ children John, Sue Ann and Kieran – was chaperoned along the runway by emergency vehicles to a hangar where the horseracing magnate was observed exiting and walking to his private helicopter which then flew him to his home in Martinstown, Co Limerick.
The cause of the engine shutdown was a “system track check fault”.
Mcmanus heads to helicopter after landing
A MAN in his 30s who died in a workplace accident has been named as MJ Malone.
The incident happened at a construction site outside Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, on Thursday morning.
It is understood Mr Malone suffered the fatal injury when he was struck by building material at about 8.30am.
The dad of one’s body was taken to University Hospital Waterford for a postmortem.
REPORT INTO INCIDENT LAST YEAR