On 24 June 1982 , British Airways Flight 9 en route to Perth , Australia , flew into a volcanic ash cloud over the Indian Ocean . The Boeing 747-200B suffered engine surges in all four engines until they all failed . The passengers and crew could see a phenomenon known as St. Elmo 's fire around the plane . Flight 9 dived down until it exited the cloud allowing the airborne ash to clear the engines , which were then restarted . The cockpit windshield was badly pitted by the ash particles but the aircraft landed safely
British Airways Flight 9
British Airways Flight 9
Foreign object damage