News / Local
Air Zimbabwe explains mid-air raw sewage mishap
09 Dec 2015 at 01:55hrs | Views
Air Zimbabwe yesterday played down a mid-air mishap which happened on Sunday where raw effluent reportedly gushed out of its Johannesburg-bound plane's toilet bowl and spilled into the cabin. Passangers aboard the Air Zimbabwe Boeing 767 on a flight from Harare to Johannesburg on Sunday were left disgusted after liquid waste seeped into the cabin from the toilet.
In a statement, Air Zimbabwe spokesperson Shingai Dhliwayo described the incident as "a minor fault", saying "water overflowed from the handwash basin and overflowed onto the lavatory floor and subsequently into the cabin aisle during descent into Johannesburg."
Dhliwayo came guns blazing saying passengers were exaggerating the problem. "We refer to sensational and exaggerated media reports that claim that raw effluent was discharged in the cabin on the Air Zimbabwe flight from Harare to Johannesburg. On 6th of December 2015 our B767 which operated our UM647 had a minor fault in the lavatory system of the aircraft," said Dhliwayo.
"The online reports which suggest that sewer was flowing into the cabin are not true because it is technically impossible for sewer to flow back as the B767 aircraft uses a vacuum source to a collector tank."
She said the lavatory is different from those used in homes to allow effluent into air plane's cabin. "This system which is different from those used at home is actually one of best of waste disposal systems and is in use in most new generation air planes. The middle right lavatory hand wash basin overflowed as water faucet was left running," she said.
Dhliwayo said as a result of over flow, water spilled onto the lavatory's floor and made it to the plane's cabin. She said Air Zimbabwe was still dedicated to offering the best service to its customers.
"The perceived raw effluent in the cabin being depicted in the social media is an effect of light glare. Air Zimbabwe is committed to offering excellent service to its customers and ensuring safety and comfort aboard our aircraft," she said.
Following the incident, social media has been awash with posts from passengers who were disgruntled with Air Zimbabwe's customer relations. Some of them were even posting pictures of what looks like human waste.
In a statement, Air Zimbabwe spokesperson Shingai Dhliwayo described the incident as "a minor fault", saying "water overflowed from the handwash basin and overflowed onto the lavatory floor and subsequently into the cabin aisle during descent into Johannesburg."
Dhliwayo came guns blazing saying passengers were exaggerating the problem. "We refer to sensational and exaggerated media reports that claim that raw effluent was discharged in the cabin on the Air Zimbabwe flight from Harare to Johannesburg. On 6th of December 2015 our B767 which operated our UM647 had a minor fault in the lavatory system of the aircraft," said Dhliwayo.
"The online reports which suggest that sewer was flowing into the cabin are not true because it is technically impossible for sewer to flow back as the B767 aircraft uses a vacuum source to a collector tank."
Dhliwayo said as a result of over flow, water spilled onto the lavatory's floor and made it to the plane's cabin. She said Air Zimbabwe was still dedicated to offering the best service to its customers.
"The perceived raw effluent in the cabin being depicted in the social media is an effect of light glare. Air Zimbabwe is committed to offering excellent service to its customers and ensuring safety and comfort aboard our aircraft," she said.
Following the incident, social media has been awash with posts from passengers who were disgruntled with Air Zimbabwe's customer relations. Some of them were even posting pictures of what looks like human waste.
Source - chronicle
