Alaska B734 near San Jose on Aug 8th 2012, loss of cabin pressure, electric failure

Last Update: August 9, 2012 / 17:05:27 GMT/Zulu time

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Incident Facts

Date of incident
Aug 8, 2012

Classification
Incident

Flight number
AS-539

Aircraft Registration
N797AS

Aircraft Type
Boeing 737-400

ICAO Type Designator
B734

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-400, registration N797AS performing flight AS-539 from Ontario,CA to Seattle,WA (USA) with 136 passengers and 5 crew, was enroute at FL280 about 170nm southeast of San Jose,CA when the aircraft experienced a loss of cabin pressure and a "catastrophic electrical failure" including the loss of transponders. The aircraft performed an emergency descent to 8000 feet and diverted to San Jose, the crew remaining in radio contact with air traffic control but remaining invisible on radar (FAA radar data and secondary radar). On approach the crew indicated they were okay and continued for a safe landing on runway 30L about 36 minutes later.

Airport fire fighters reported their initial information indicated the aircraft had experienced a catastrophic electrical failure and the loss of cabin pressure, the electrical problems turned out minor later on.

The airline confirmed the aircraft diverted to San Jose due to a serious electrical problem. The aircraft has been removed from service and will not be permitted to re-enter service before a very detailed examination has identified the cause of the electrical issue.

The airline subsequently added that a malfunction of the air/ground switch, indicating that the aircraft was on the ground although enroute, caused the loss of cabin pressure and several systems including autoflight systems to drop offline. The passenger oxygen masks did not need to deploy.
Incident Facts

Date of incident
Aug 8, 2012

Classification
Incident

Flight number
AS-539

Aircraft Registration
N797AS

Aircraft Type
Boeing 737-400

ICAO Type Designator
B734

This article is published under license from Avherald.com. © of text by Avherald.com.
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