British Airways mishap incurs £100,000 (CAD 175,000) slide deployment cost
An Airbus A321 was grounded, and the flight from London Heathrow to Brussels was delayed after a crew error. Astonishingly, the British Airways crew accidentally deployed the emergency slide. "It’s a minimum £100,000 (CAD 175,000) mistake," report British media.
Although the British Airways crew is trained to avoid such errors, incidents unfortunately occur. The airline now faces financial and reputational consequences.
Costly mistake by British Airways crew
Passengers flying from London to Brussels were not pleased when they realized what had happened. One of the British Airways cabin crew members activated the emergency slide, rendering the plane unusable. Finding another aircraft to complete the connection, reloading luggage, and moving passengers resulted in a several-hour delay.
Airline representatives state that the emergency slide was deployed accidentally. However, this mistake comes with a hefty price tag. "It’s a minimum £100,000 mistake (approximately $175,000 CAD)", British media report.
British Airways representatives apologized to passengers for the delay caused.
"I'm a former flight attendant. I believe they should fire that employee," was written in a comment under one of the articles on this topic in British media. Other commenters also criticize the irresponsible behaviour of the airline employee.
Recurring incidents
This is not the first time the British Airways crew has made such a mistake. Last year, a similar situation occurred before a flight to Bucharest. In 2024, a young steward accidentally deployed the slide during taxiing, causing a four-hour delay.
