Air Crash Investigation: The Crash of Air France Flight 358


Book Description

On August 2, 2005 Air France Flight 358, an Airbus A340, departed Paris, on a flight to Toronto, Canada, with 297 passengers and 12 crew members on board. On final approach, the aircraft's weather radar was displaying heavy precipitation encroaching on the runway from the northwest. The aircraft touched down 3800 feet down the runway, and was not able to stop before the end of it. The aircraft stopped in a ravine and caught fire. All passengers and crew members were able to evacuate the aircraft on time. Only 2 crew members and 10 passengers were seriously injured during the crash and the evacuation.




AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS - IN-FLIGHT ENGINE FAILURE - The Crash of Air Algerie Flight 6289


Book Description

During takeoff from runway 02 at Tamanrasset Aguenar aerodrome in Southern Algeria, on Thursday 6 March 2003, the left engine of a Boeing 737-200 from Air Algerie suffered a contained burst. The airplane swung to the left. The Captain took over the controls. The airplane lost speed progressively, stalled and crashed, with the landing gear still extended, about one thousand six hundred and forty-five meters from the takeoff point, to the left of the runway extended centerline. The crew of six and 96 of the 97 passengers were killed in the accident. The accident was caused by the loss of an engine during a critical phase of flight, the non-retraction of the landing gear after the engine failure, and the Captain, the PNF, taking over control of the airplane before having clearly identified the problem.




AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS - CRACKED SOLDER JOINT - The Crash of Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501


Book Description

On 28 December 2014 an Airbus A320-216 aircraft registered as PK-AXC was cruising at 32,000 feet on a flight from Juanda Airport, Surabaya, Indonesia to Changi Airport, Singapore with total occupants of 162 persons. The Pilot in Command (PIC) acted as Pilot Monitoring (PM) and the Second in Command (SIC) acted as Pilot Flying (PF). The Flight Data Recorder (FDR) recorded that many master cautions activated following the failure of the Rudder Travel Limiter which triggered Electronic Centralized Aircraft Monitoring (ECAM) message of AUTO FLT RUD TRV LIM SYS. The crew tried repeatedly to reset the computers but the autopilot and auto-thrust disengaged and the flight control reverted to Alternate Law. The investigation showed that the loss of electricity and the RTLU failure were caused by a cracked solder joint. All occupants of the plane were killed in the accident.




AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS - Loss of Cargo Door - The Near Crash of United Airlines Flight 811


Book Description

On February 24, 1989, United Airlines flight 811, a Boeing 747-122, lost a cargo door as it was climbing between 22,000 and 23,000 feet after taking off from Honolulu, Hawaii, en route to Sydney, Australia with 355 persons aboard. As a result of the incident nine of the passengers were ejected from the airplane and lost at sea. The cargo door was recovered in two pieces from the ocean floor at a depth of 14,200 feet on September 26 and October 1, 1990. The probable cause of this accident was a faulty switch or wiring in the door control system. Contributing to the cause of the accident was a deficiency in the design of the cargo door locking mechanisms. Also contributing to the accident was a lack of timely corrective actions by Boeing and the FAA following a 1987 cargo door opening incident on a Pan Am B-747.




AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS FATIGUE? The Crash of Federal Express Flight 1478


Book Description

On July 26, 2002, about 0537 eastern daylight time, Federal Express flight 1478, a Boeing 727-232F, on its way from Memphis International Airport to Tallahassee Regional airport, struck trees on short final approach and crashed short of runway 9 at the Tallahassee Regional Airport, Florida. The flight was operating as a scheduled cargo flight from Memphis, to Tallahassee. The captain, first officer, and flight engineer were seriously injured, and the airplane was destroyed by impact and resulting fire. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated on an instrument flight rules flight plan. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the accident was the crew's failure to establish and maintain a proper glidepath during the night visual approach to landing. Contributing to the accident was a combination of the captain's and first officer's fatigue, the crew's failure to monitor the approach, and the first officer's color vision deficiency.




AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS GHOSTS? The Crash of Eastern Air Lines Flight 401


Book Description

On December 29, 1972 an Eastern Air Lines' Lockheed L-1011, as Flight 401 on its way from John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, to Miami International Airport, Miami, Florida, crashed at 2342 eastern standard time in the Everglades, approximately 18 miles west northwest of Miami International Airport. The aircraft was destroyed. There were 163 passengers and a crew of 13 aboard the aircraft, 99 people died in the crash. The flight was diverted because of problems with the nose landing gear The aircraft climbed to 2,000 feet while the crew attempted to correct the problem. Surviving passengers and crewmembers stated that the flight was routine and operated normally before impact with the ground. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident, was preoccupation with a malfunction of the nose landing gear position indicating system distracted the crew's attention from the instruments and allowed the descent to go unnoticed.




Air Crash Investigations


Book Description

On July 19, 1989, an United Airlines' DC-10-10, on its way from Denver to Chicago, experienced a catastrophic failure of the No. 2 tail-mounted engine during cruise flight. The airplane subsequently crashed during an attempted landing at Sioux Gateway Airport, Iowa. Of the 296 people on board 111 were killed.




AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS CAPTAIN IN PANIC The Crash of Armavia Flight 967


Book Description

On 2 May 2006 Armavia Flight RNV 967, an Airbus A320, was on its way from Zvartnots (Yerevan, Armenia) to Adler (Sochi, Russia). There were 113 occupants on board: 105 passengers (including 5 children and 1 baby), 2 pilots,1 aircraft engineer and 5 flight attendants. Upon approaching Sochi there was confusion in regard to the weather for the scheduled landing. Finally the captain decided to return to Zvartnots, a short while later he reconsidered his decision and started the approach to Sochi after all. Just before final landing air traffic control told the captain to abort the landing. At 22:13 the aircraft struck the water, it broke up on impact, killing all aboard. The investigation concluded that the crash of Armavia Flight 967 was a Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT), specifically water, while conducting a climbing manoeuvre, after an aborted approach, along with inadequate control inputs from the Captain to Sochi airport at night with weather conditions below landing minimums for runway 06.




Air Crash Investigations


Book Description

On May 25, 1979, American Airlines Flight 191, a McDonnell-Douglas DC-10-10 aircraft, on its way from Chicago to Los Angeles, crashed just after take-off near Chicago-O'Hare International Airport, Illinois. During the take off the left engine and pylon assembly and about 3 ft of the leading edge of the left wing separated from the aircraft and fell to the runway. Flight 191 crashed killing two hundred and seventy one persons on board and two persons on the ground. The accident remains the deadliest airliner accident to occur on United States soil.




Air Crash Investigations: The End of the Concorde Era, the Crash of Air France Flight 4590


Book Description

On Tuesday 25 July 2000 Air France Flight AFR 4590, a Concorde registered F-BTSC, took off from Paris Charles de Gaulle, to undertake a charter flight to New York with nine crew members and one hundred passengers on board. During takeoff from runway 26 right at Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, a tyre was damaged. A major fire broke out. The aircraft was unable to gain height or speed and crashed onto a hotel, killing all 109 people on board and 4 on the ground. The crash would become the end of the Concorde era.