A Fly Always aircraft transporting passengers from Guyana to Suriname on Monday morning was forced to return to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) following the loss of pressure in one its engines, Head of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Retired Colonel Egbert Field confirmed.
No one was injured and all passengers were transported to their original destination after the airline sent another aircraft while the defective plane was repaired and returned to Suriname for further mechanical and other inspections.
Field told Stabroek News that according to a formal report to the GCAA, the plane, bearing registration PZ-TFB, had taken off from CJIA when at about 20,000 feet the pilot realized that the oil pressure from one of the engines was dropping. As such he placed it in idle mode, and “throttled back to the airport.”
The Guyana Fire Service in a statement said that it had received an alert at around 11:12 am and dispatched firefighters to the airport to await an emergency landing of the aircraft. It, too, stated that the plane was at a height of 20,000 feet when the oil pressure in the starboard engine dropped below the required limit, causing pressure loss, resulting in the pilot putting the failed engine in idle mode.
“Ten ranks immediately took up their positions and were on standby as a precautionary measure in preparation for any eventuality that could have occurred due to the failed engine. Ranks remained on standby until the aircraft landed safely and all souls on board were evacuated,” the Fire Service reported.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill who holds responsibility for aviation, told this newspaper that after the incident the “plane went to Suriname where it originated and a plane from Suriname came to Guyana and took passengers to their final destination.”
