An unfamiliar instruction from the captain prompted passengers in exit rows to initiate the emergency evacuation of an Airbus A320 via its overwing escape slides instead of joining in an orderly but speedy disembarkation through the doors, as the captain intended, according to a report by the Air Accident Investigation Unit of Ireland (AAIU).
No one was injured in the evacuation at the parking stand (gate) at Cork Airport, although one passenger reported feeling “unwell” and was taken to a hospital after the Nov. 2, 2017, event, which followed a diversion caused by fumes in the cockpit, the AAIU said in its final report on the event. The airplane incurred minor damage — the hatches from the overwing exits were damaged when they were tossed onto the wings and the ground. The fumes later were determined to have been caused by a worn bearing in a fan in the avionics bay.
Most of the six crewmembers and 143 passengers exited the aircraft as the captain intended, using the front…
