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Contact photographer Jan Jorgensen
What: SAS Norge Boeing 737-800 en route from Oslo Gardermoen to Tromsø Norway
Where: Tromsø Norway
When: Feb 5th 2009
Who: Number of passengers not released
Why: While descending for landing approach, the flight encountered “clear air turbulence.” Apparently the seat belt lights were already on, and the only one injured was a flight attendant who was knocked off her feet and broke her ankle.
Subsequent to the event, it was determined that although the flight crew had no inkling of it, that turbulence had been forecast by Significant Meteorological Information (SIGMET).
George’s Point of View
The incident may call for some kind of update of the on board warning system(s).
What: Boeing 777 flight BA 82, en route London from the Nigerian capital
Where: Nigeria
When: Sat Jan 24
Who: 155 passengers and 14 crew
Why: Smoke had first been detected in the cockpit early on Saturday and the problem was supposedly fixed. An hour into the flight, pilots detected fumes /smoke in the cockpit., they requested the emergency landing in Kano. Passengers were promised a speedy replacement flight, and the 777 underwent another inspection.
The Nigerian media reported that one of the engines was in flames.
“Weather vaning where a strong crosswind pushes a plane’s tail and turns the aircraft’s nose into the wind, much like it turns a weather vane” is being considered as one of the causes of the Denver Crash. At the time, gusts of 37 mph were recorded. So far, the National Transportation Safety Board has cleared the plane’s brakes and engines of fault. Other possible mechanical failure could still be a possibility. Other experts say a crosswind of that mph is not strong enough to have caused a problem unless ice on the runway was also a factor.
What: Continental Airlines Boeing 737 flight 1404 Denver to Houston Registration N18611
Where: Denver International Airport on runway 34 Right
When: 20 DEC 2008 18:18 local time
Who: 107 passengers 5 crew (at least 38 injured, nothing life-threatening) Ten passengers were taken to Denver Health. 15 passengers were taken to the Medical Center of Aurora. University Hospital in Aurora took in eight. Four passengers were taken to Swedish Hospital
Why: The plane suffered a runway excursion at runway 34R during takeoff, slid into a ditch and caught fire after the crash. The #1 engine separated from the wing and the undercarriage collapsed. There was a 31 knot (36 mph) crosswind.
Passengers debarked on emergency slides as the plane burned. 38 people were taken to 4 Denver hospitals with injuries ranging from broken bones to bumps and bruises. Fire burned the right side of the plane. Two patients at University of Colorado Hospital initially listed in fair condition were downgraded to critical condition with fractures.
By the time the passengers had evacuated, the fire had spread inside and started melting the luggage compartments.
Debris remained on the runway, with the plane about 200 yards away and its landing gear and left engine shorn off.
The plane’s first flight was 1994-05-31.It has 2 CFMI CFM56-3C1 engines.
NTSB Preliminary Report: Identification: DCA09MA021
Scheduled 14 CFR Part 121: Air Carrier operation of CONTINENTAL AIRLINES INC
Accident occurred Saturday, December 20, 2008 in Denver, CO
Aircraft: BOEING 737, registration: N18611
Injuries: 5 Serious, 27 Minor, 83 Uninjured.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.
On December 20, 2008, at 1818 mountain standard time, Continental flight 1404, a Boeing 737-500 (registration N18611), equipped with CFM56-3B1 engines, departed the left side of runway 34R during takeoff from Denver International Airport (DEN). The scheduled, domestic passenger flight, operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 121, was enroute to George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Houston, Texas. There were 37 injuries among the passengers and crew, and no fatalities. The airplane was substantially damaged and experienced post-crash fire. The weather observation in effect nearest the time of the accident was reported to be winds at 290 and 24 knots with gusts to 32 knots, visibility of 10 miles, a few clouds at 4000 feet and scattered clouds at 10,000 feet. The temperature was reported as -4 degrees Celsius.
What: DELTA AIRLINES FLIGHT 55 BOEING 777
Where: ATLANTA Georgia
When: 01/02/2009
Who: The number of passengers on board is not known at this time.
Why: Engine malfunctioned during take-off. The plane taxied to the gate. DAMAGE REPORTED TO RIGHT ENGINE FAN AND COWLING
What: Fully fueled American Airlines Boeing 737 flight 924 en route from Rionegro to to Miami
Where: emergency landing at Rionegro airport (Jose Maria Cordoba) near MedellÃn
When: 9:50 AM flight
Who: 148 passengers
Why: Passengers heard an explosion, after which the crew was concerned that the full plane would not make it over the mountains. They turned back with a fire in one engine, and the crippled plane not climbing as it should.
The plane circled the airport for half of an hour prior to the successful emergency landing. Though successful, the landing was not uneventful as the heat from braking actually fused the brakes, leaving the plane immobile on the runway. The passengers were successfully deplaned on site via stairs and ported from the runway to the terminal by bus.
No cause has been given for the initial engine problem, but the American Airlines crew is to be commended for a near-miraculous safe-guardianship of the welfare of the passengers.
The plane was carrying thousands of pounds of fuel.
By the time the passengers had evacuated, the fire had spread inside and started melting the luggage compartments.
Debris remained on the runway, with the plane about 200 yards away and its landing gear and left engine shorn off.
The plane’s first flight was 1994-05-31.It has 2 CFMI CFM56-3C1 engines.
NTSB Advisory
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
December 18, 2008
NTSB INVESTIGATING LOSS OF ENGINE POWER ON DELTA AIR LINES BOEING 777
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating an incident in which a Delta Air Lines Boeing 777 experienced an uncommanded engine rollback in the cruise phase of an intercontinental flight.
On November 26, 2008, at about 12:30 pm MST, in the vicinity of Great Falls, Montana, a 777-200ER (N862DA), operated by Delta Air Lines as Flight 18, en route from Shanghai to Atlanta, experienced an uncommanded rollback of the right (number 2) Rolls-Royce Trent 895 engine while at 39,000 feet in the cruise phase of flight. The crew executed applicable flight manual procedures and descended to 31,000 feet. The engine recovered and responded normally thereafter. The flight continued to Atlanta where it landed without further incident. None of the crew of 15 or 232 passengers was injured.
Flight data recorders and other applicable data and components were retrieved from the airplane for testing and evaluation. Both of the pilots have been interviewed. This event is preceded by another airline’s 777 equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent 895 engines, which experienced an uncommanded dual engine rollback while on final approach to London’s Heathrow International Airport on January 17, 2008, crashing short of the runway on airport property. The United Kingdom’s Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) is investigating that accident.
NTSB Senior Air Safety Investigator Bill English, who is serving as the U.S. Accredited Representative in the Heathrow accident investigation, is the Investigator in Charge of the Delta incident.
The AAIB, which has assigned an Accredited Representative to the Delta incident, is working closely with the NTSB to determine if there are issues common to both events. Parties to the investigation are: the Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Eaton-Argotech, Delta Air Lines, and the Air Line Pilots Association.
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NTSB Media Contact: Peter Knudson (202) 314-6100 peter.knudson@ntsb.gov
Regarding the Gol jet that collided over the Amazon rain forest with an Embraer Legacy 600 executive jet owned by ExcelAire Service Inc. of New York: The GOL InvestigatIon has determined that the pilots of a New York-based executive jet had placed the transponder and collision avoidance system on standby before colliding with the Boeing 737 operated by GOL Linhaus Aereas Inteligentes SA on Sept. 29, 2006.
The Legacy landed safely but everyone on the GOL jet died.
Flight controllers failed to alert pilots that they were on a collision course and also did not notice the transponder was off.
The on duty flight controllers and the two U.S. pilots – Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino have been indicted. They could get up to three years in prison.The pilots deny turning off the transponder. They claim to have been flying at the altitude designated by the air controllers.
ExcelAire says that “the transponder issue is a distraction from the true cause of the accident, which is an air traffic control system that put two airplanes on a collision course for about an hour.”
What: Delta Air Lines a Flight 18 BOEING 777-200ER, registration: N862DA
Where: en route
When: Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Why: The plane experienced a rollback of the right (number 2) Rolls Royce Trent 895 engine during cruise flight at FL390 (approximately 39,000 feet). The flight was a regularly scheduled flight from Pudong Airport, Shanghai, China to Atlanta-Hartsfield International The plane descended, executed flight manual procedures and the engine recovered and continued to Atlanta
What: Qantas Boeing 767 en route from Melbourne Airport bound for Sydney,
Where: Flight 434 left Melbourne at 1.30pm (AEDT) and landed back at Tullamarine at 2.15pm.
When: shortly after 2:00pm (AEDT)
Why: After the pilot discovered a fault with landing gear indicators, he returned to the airport where passengers deplaned and took another flight. Passengers were delayed more than two hours.
What: SAS Boeing 737
Where: Vasteras Airport in Sweden
When: Friday
Who: 97 passengers and six crew were evacuated down the slides
Why: smoke was detected in the cabin while the plane was on its way to Stockholm from Oslo in Norway, and was then diverted to Vasteras Airport, some 40 nautical miles west of Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport. Smoke was thick, and passengers were wearing oxygen masks when the plane landed.
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What: Frankfurt-based XL Airways Boeing 737-800 flight G1-614 en route from Frankfurt Germany to Antalya Turkey registration D-AXLF
Where: emergency landing at Belgrade’s Nikola Tesla Airport
When: on Saturday Oct 18 7:47 a.m. (0547 GMT)
Who: 163 passengers and six crew (official release said 183 passengers and 6 crew)
Why: The pilot reported engine failure, and requested an emergency landing with five minutes to manoeuvre and land the plane at the nearest airport. Smoke was seen coming from one of the plane’s two engines and the emergency crew doused said engine with foam. The official report denies fire, and says only “unspecified “engine problems” instigated the emergency landing
What: United Airlines 757 en route from Boston to San Francisco.
Where: Hancock Airport
When: 10/16/08
Who: 155 passengers
Why:smoke detector in a bathroom went off. No injuries on landing.
What: Norwegian Air Boeing 737-8Q8 en route from Rygge Airport to Barcelona
Where: Rygge Airport
When: 10/17/2007 Friday
Who: 163 passengers 7 crew
Why: 20 minutes into the flight, an alarm warned of fire in one of the wings. Smoke was reported in the cabin.The aircraft was breaking very hard, and used half the runway to stop. On return to the airport, passengers deplaned via emergency slides, but there was apparently no external wing fire. There was a minor injury on the slide disembarkment.
What: Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200 en route to Amsterdam from Cincinnati
Where: emergency landing at Halifax Stanfield International Airport
When: early Sunday
Who: 151 people on board
Why: Smoke in the cockpit caused by faulty air-conditioning fan. The pilot circled back to Nova Scotia to land
What: British Airways Flight BA 341 Boeing 757, en route from France
Where: priority landing at Heathrow airport
When: British Summer Time (BST) 063 Sunday
Who: 137 passengers
Why: Fumes were detected in the passenger cabin, instigating an emergency landing. There were no injuries.
What: London-bound Air India Boeing 777-300 flight AI-111 en route from Delhi
Where: Delhi
When: Saturday. The flight took off at 6:50 am. Emergency was declared at the airport at 7:50 am and it was withdrawn at 8:25 am after a safe landing.
Who: 115 passengers and 15 crew members, all safe
Why: After flying for 30 minutes, the alarm sounded, the pilot detected smoke in the cabin. and returned to the airport under Emergency conditions.
Contact photographer Ivan P. Nesbit
Update
Aircraft mechanic Edwin David Hernandez came home today for the last time. He was one of the casualties of Ecuador, leaving behind his wife, Dilma, and two children. Hernandez was one of three crash victims retrieved by members of the Civil defense and the Red Cross of Ecuador. One of the plane’s black boxes was also found.
The two Venezuelan victims were identified as Pedro Menderi (pilot) and Gerald Rangel (copilot).
Licensing is still under investigation. There appear to be irregularities regarding the plane’s registration, as well as 39 licenses for technicians, pilots and Venezuelan and Peruvian air hostesses. The maintenance plan must be supervised by the supervising body of the country of origin of the airplane’s owner.
Masry & Vititoe has been retained on behalf of family members.
What: Conviasa Boeing 737-291 advanced (reg. YV-102T) en route from (Simón BolÃvar International Airport,) Maiquetia, Venezuela to Latacunga, Ecuador
Where: Illiniza Volcano elevation approx. 17000 feet) Toacaso, Ecuador
When: August 30, 2008
Who: 3 crew members, no survivors
Why: The plane was being delivered to a new owner after being in storage. The flight crew lost lost radio and radar contact with Ecuadorian air control at 02:56Z on beginning descent to Latacunga. The wreckage location (near the LOTOA waypoint (LOTOA at 0° 46′ 23S 78° 52′ 20W) at an altitude of approximately 4000 meters )suggests the airplane flew into the side of the Iliniza Volcano and was completely destroyed on impact. The wreckage was spread 400 meters.
Hondorus states attorney opened an investigation against “Atlantic Airlines de Honduras.” It has yet to be established, whether the airplane was operating under a Honduran license and if all requirements for legal use were met.
Atlantic Airlines had operated the airplane until March 31st 2007.
As of Sept 3rd, both flight recorders (flight data and cockpit voice recorder) have been recovered and will be sent to the USA for analysis
