We just returned from a couple of weeks in Europe. I booked the trip around a Princess cruise, which started in Naples, Italy and ended in Athens, Greece. I used AA miles and surprisingly, I was able to find a great deal (28,000 miles per ticket each way). But it looks like we got really lucky with our return because American Airlines is flying an old 777-200 on this route and they’ve canceled it the last two days due to engine problems.
According to FlightDrama: “An American Airlines Boeing 777-200ER flying from Athens to New York was forced to divert to Bangor, Maine, after pilots shut down one of its engines over the Atlantic. Flight AA333 was cruising at 38,000 feet when the crew detected a fuel imbalance—later traced to a broken fuel tube. After running through emergency procedures, they shut down the right Rolls-Royce Trent 800 engine and diverted to Bangor International, landing safely just after 1 AM local time. The aircraft remained grounded while mechanics replaced the faulty part. It has since returned to service.
There were no injuries and passengers continued their journey after a delay.
This is the second serious 777 issue for American Airlines this year. Back in April, a Dallas–London flight diverted to Memphis after smoke was reported in the cabin. That aircraft spent two days out of rotation while crews investigated. In both cases, crews avoided escalation but the incidents add fresh attention to aging widebodies and mid-flight engine responses.
The FAA has not yet commented on the Bangor diversion.”
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When I checked the Flighty App to see all the details for our flight, I noticed that it was an old plane (25 years old), which didn’t make me feel too excited. I knew it was going to be safe but I also realized that with older planes, the chances of mechanical problems increase. And we obviously got lucky because this flight not only canceled the last two days but according to FlightAware.com, they also canceled it on June 17 as well. So that’s three times in the last nine days and it looks like the same thing happened three weeks ago, according to this Reddit post.
American 777; Athens to JFK 1 engine out and an alleged fuel leak
byu/TotalJaded467 inflightradar24
Our 10-hour flight was, for the most part, uneventful, although I did run into a friend on the flight. We had to board from a remote gate, which entails being bused and walking up the plane stairs, and then we were delayed for a short time on the ground because of ATC.
We were in row 19, which is the last row of Main Cabin Extra. It’s the third row in economy and supposedly had four more inches of legroom but it sure didn’t feel like it.
The flight attendants served two meals. Chicken or pasta (above) right after takeoff and then something like a Hot Pocket (below) an hour before touchdown.
In between, they also came by with mini containers of vanilla ice cream with a spoon under the cover.
What’s crazy is that when I originally booked these tickets, the only cheap deal was for this flight so I booked it. I didn’t really want to spend four nights in Athens but I couldn’t pass up the deal. Fortunately, I kept checking and eventually, AA lowered the price for two days earlier. I’m also happy I didn’t take American’s $850 travel voucher bait to give up our seats since the flight was oversold because they probably would’ve put us on the flight that ended up being diverted since Tuesday’s was also oversold.
If your flight is canceled, always check the airline’s app to see if they rebooked you on another one. If not, do some research and call the airline and kindly ask to be put on the flight you would like. Also, don’t forget to claim your EU compensation (EU Regulation 261/2004) since you should be entitled to 600 Euros ($640) for them canceling (or significantly delaying) your flight from the European Union.
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–Travel hack: How to use your wireless headphones to watch in-flight movies
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