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| Date: | Sunday 13 June 1999 |
| Time: | 05:50 |
| Type: |  Boeing 737-4Y0 |
| Owner/operator: | British Midland |
| Registration: | G-OBMM |
| MSN: | 25177/2176 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1991 |
| Engine model: | CFMI CFM56-3 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 42 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor, repaired |
| Category: | Incident |
| Location: | London-Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL) -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Standing |
| Nature: | Passenger - Scheduled |
| Departure airport: | London-Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL) |
| Investigating agency: | AAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The aircraft was parked on its stand and the passengers had started to embark as the crew were
carrying out their pre-departure checks. The first officer had started the auxiliary power unit (APU)
and, after it had run for about two minutes, he switched on one of the air conditioning packs. After
a further two minutes, he selected the APU to supply electrical power to the aircraft busses. At
about the same time, cabin crew members in the aft cabin noticed a whining sound being emitted
from behind the rear ovens. About one minute after the selection of aircraft electrical power from
the APU, it dropped off line.
The commander immediately reinstated ground power and at the same time noticed that the exhaust
temperature of the APU was decreasing rapidly. Almost immediately the APU fire warning
activated and the ground engineer, outside the aircraft, indicated to the first officer that there was
smoke and fire coming from the APU exhaust. The APU fire drill was executed, the Airfield Fire
Service (AFS) alerted and the senior cabin attendant instructed to immediately disembark those
passengers, who had already boarded, through the forward left exit.
The commander then left the flight deck and went outside to look for signs of fire around the APU
area. As the AFS arrived at that time, he also briefed their personnel on the incident. The first
officer, who had remained on the flight deck, observed that the APU fire warning light remained
illuminated for 2 to 3 minutes after the fire extinguisher had been discharged. When the warning
eventually extinguished, he informed the commander outside the aircraft. The APU suffered substantial damage.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422f221e5274a13170003df/dft_avsafety_pdf_501482.pdf
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/6105231 (Photo)
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 23 February 1995 | G-OBMM | British Midland | 0 | near Daventry, Northamptonshire | |
non |
| 4 March 1995 | G-OBMM | British Midland | 0 | near Tenerife-South Airport (TFS/GCTS) |  |
min |
| Engine failure | ||||||
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-Apr-2025 07:29 | Justanormalperson | Added |
| 04-Apr-2025 07:30 | ASN | Updated [Damage, Accident report, ] |
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