Baggage handler locked in hold on US-bound flight

A baggage handler at Dublin airport was locked into the cargo hold of a transatlantic aircraft as it taxied down the runway.

The 55-year-old man, who had worked with Aer Lingus for 16 years and had been promoted to shift leader, got stuck in the hold when he went to retrieve a bag that should have been on a flight to Los Angeles rather than New York.

A report into the incident, in late 2005, said it was "fortunate" that the man had a mobile phone, which he used to call the base supervisor's officer, who then alerted air traffic control and the pilots to the emergency.

The man was supervising two crews who were loading bags on to flight EI105 from Dublin to New York when they were told that a man who had six bags on the flight might not be allowed to fly.

When they were later informed that the man might after all be able to travel, they decided to check the loading cards used to identify the location of all passengers' bags in case there was another change of mind.

It was then they discovered that a bag destined for Los Angeles was on the flight and the shift leader had gone into the hold to retrieve it. Another baggage handler, who failed to realise that his colleague was inside the aircraft, gave the "thumbs up" sign to a colleague to closed up the hold door with the man still inside.

As the light was still on in the hold - it is usually turned off when the bulk doors are closed - the man inside did not initially notice that the aircraft had left its stand and was pushing back for take-off.

The incident happened on an Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to New York on December 28th, 2005. The Airbus 330-300 had a complement of 325 passengers and 12 crew on board.

Air Accident Investigation Unit investigator John Hughes said it was a "serious incident" and Aer Lingus's Air Safety Office had now drawn attention to it in the loading training programme it gives to baggage-handling staff.

Mr Hughes blamed the incident on a communications breakdown that took place between loaders and he said there was a need for written procedures relating to the closing-up of aircraft and the late removal of baggage items.

However, Mr Hughes said the incident would not have been "life-threatening" for the man even if the aircraft had taken off as the hold is fully pressurised in conditions similar to those experienced by the passengers.

"He would have sufficient oxygen, but it would be a frightening experience. Some years ago, a loader was locked in a hold on a two-hour flight from Philadelphia to Chicago. It was a traumatic event for that person."