What happened
On 2 April 2004, a BAe 146-300, registration G-JEBA, was conducting a scheduled passenger service from Birmingham to Paris. While operating approximately 40 nm northwest of Paris, the First Officer, who was the pilot flying, detected an electrical odour on the flight deck. Although the Captain could not visually confirm the presence of smoke, the First Officer observed a light haze visible against the sunlight on his side of the cockpit.
In response to the situation, a MAYDAY was declared, and air traffic control provided radar vectors to Runway 02R at Paris. During the descent, cabin crew reported that the smoke was dissipating quickly. As the odour became nearly imperceptible to the Captain, the decision was made that oxygen masks were not necessary for the passengers or the crew. The aircraft landed without further incident, and passengers disembarked the aircraft at the stand as normal.
The investigation
Following the event, the operator's engineering department conducted an inspection of the aircraft. This investigation focused on identifying the source of the smoke and the electrical smell noted by the crew.
Findings
- The investigation identified two distinct sources for the observed phenomena: an oil leak from the number one air-conditioning pack and a smoky oven located in the galley.
- The leak in the air-conditioning pack was traced to a failure of an APU oil seal.
- There were no injuries to the 5 crew members or 95 passengers on board.
- Following the removal of the suspect APU for overhaul, no further occurrences of this nature have been reported.