How A British Airways Flight To Jakarta Survived Volcanic Ash And Failure Of All Four Engines

It remains one of aviation's most astonishing survival stories. In 1982, British Airways Flight 9 lost all four engines mid-flight and still managed to land safely without any loss of life. The man at the controls was Captain Eric Moody, who was commanding a Boeing 747 at the time. He safely landed the aircraft in Jakarta, ensuring that everyone on board survived.

In a post shared on X, user Superastar Raj described the incident in detail. He wrote, "On the night of June 24, 1982, British Airways Flight 9 was cruising at 37,000 feet over the Indian Ocean when all four engines on its Boeing 747 died, one by one, in under two minutes. Nobody on board knew why. The aircraft was now a 170-ton glider in the middle of the night with 263 people on board."

That was when Captain Moody made the passenger announcement that is etched as 'the greatest passenger announcement in aviation history'. He said, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We have a small problem. All four engines have stopped. We are doing our damnedest to get them going again. I trust you are not in too much distress.”

How A British Airways Flight Survived Volcanic Ash, All-Engine Failure In 1982

The flight remained airborne for nearly 15 minutes before it began descending toward the mountains of Java. Moody decided that if the engines had not restarted by 12,000 feet, they would have to ditch in the ocean. Fortunately, engine four roared back to life at 13,500 feet, followed by the others. However, the damage had already been done.

The windscreen was nearly opaque due to volcanic ash from the eruption of Mount Galunggung. The pilots were left virtually blind, and the ash cloud had made the aircraft undetectable by weather radar.

"Moody landed the 747 in Jakarta using a tiny clear strip at the edge of the windscreen, flying the approach almost entirely on instruments. Every single person on board survived. It was the first time in history a commercial jet had encountered volcanic ash at altitude," the post added.

On the night of June 24, 1982, British Airways Flight 9 was cruising at 37,000 feet over the Indian Ocean when all four engines on its Boeing 747 died, one by one, in under two minutes. Nobody on board knew why. The aircraft was now a 170-ton glider in the middle of the night… pic.twitter.com/yEdBtIn8fE

— Superastar Raj ???????? (@NagpurKaRajini) February 20, 2026

The incident changed aviation forever and later became a standard case study in pilot training manuals around the world. Captain Moody set an example for pilots across the industry. He died in March 2024 at the age of 82.

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