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THE BLACK BOX of the San Francisco crash aeroplane has already been recovered and examined by investigators at the National Transport Safety Board in the US.
The data recorders were sent to a Washington DC lab for examination as the team tries to figure out what caused the Asiana Airlines Flight 214 to crash and catch fire. They showed that as the Boeing 777 approached the runway its pilots were warned that the aircraft was likely to stall and asked to abort the landing.
Seconds later, the plane struck the ground, tearing off the tail, landing gear and one of its engines, and bursting into flames.
A number of eye-witness accounts have suggested that the plane was flying too low as it approached the runway, while investigators have said it was going slower than the recommended landing speeds.
Chairwoman Deborah Hersman said the request to abort the landing was captured on the cockpit voice recorder 1.5 seconds before the plane crashed.
The plane was landing at a speed well below the recommended 137 knots, she added.
We are not talking about a few knots here or there. We’re talking about a significant amount of speed below 137.
Two teenage girls were killed in Saturday’s accident, while another 182 were injured – many seriously. There have been reports that one of the victims may have been run over by an airport fire engine rushing to the scene.
“As it possibly could have happened, based on the injuries sustained, it could have been one of our vehicles that added to the injuries, or another vehicle,” Hayes-White told the San Francisco Chronicle.
That could have been something that happened in the chaos. It will be part of our investigation.
The initial findings come as the airline confirmed that the 46-year-old pilot Lee Kang-Kuk, had clocked up 9,000 hours flying time but was still undergoing training as he only had 43 hours of 777 experience.
“It’s true that Lee was on transition training for the Boeing 777,” an Asiana spokeswoman told AFP on Monday. However, he was accompanied by an experienced trainer, who acted as co-pilot.
The Federal Aviation Administration is also investigating the incident, with the FBI is offering assistance.
The NTSB, which investigates accidents in aviation, highway, marine, rail and pipelines across the country, has appointed senior official Bill English as investigator-in-charge. Once its probe is complete, the body can make recommendations to improve transportation safety for everyone.
The NTSB has been posting pictures of its work at the site of the partially burnt-out plane on Twitter:
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Looking at the pics it’s unbelievable how there is not more fatalities!!!
To find out that your daughter was run over by a rescue truck or ambulance must be harrowing.
And to know she possibly could have got out of this wreck alive and still not get home must be horrible. So sad. RIP
Especially after surviving a plane crash!
As passengers when purchasing a ticket should be guaranteed that the person at anytime in control of the aircraft be an experienced pilot with a minimum amount of hours on type. If this was to change we should be notified before the flight with an option of compensation , be it a hotel or the next available flight. We understand the need for training but recently we have seen an Air France inexperienced crew unable to know and react to a stall resulting in a total loss of life. This SF 777 accident is again another event calling for a total reassessment of assigning the correct balance of crew to aircraft types. It seems that aircraft have become so sophisticated the crews are system managers and the basic skills of keeping an aircraft in the air is being overlooked.
Bang up a set of L plates.
Yes but how do you get *experienced* pilots without allowing them to fly?
No one knows if this was pilot error yet. You are jumping the gun with that assumption.
If every pilot on every flight was to be experienced as you demand, how do you think a supply of pilots in the future would be possible?
The Air France crash beggared belief. I’m not a pilot and I know that if a plane is stalling you point the nose down, they pointed it UP!!
(Sorry in advance) Typical French attitude!!!!!
Try an empty plane knuckle head.
@simonjblake Try what in an empty plane?
Practicing.
Do you also demand that your bus/train/taxi drivers have a minimum number of hours logged?
@ Alan. Are you actually that simple in the head?
It’s a fair point to make. Given the countless hours that are put in on simulators and smaller craft I would trust my life to anyone who has qualified to be a pilot of a large carrier. Accidents happen but I would never question the training or ability of these men and women.
@simonjblake Hilarious calling people “knuckle head” when you clearly don’t have the first clue about pilot training, aviation or the aviation business itself. The PF reportedly had 9,000 hours logged, and would have been required to undertake significant training in a 777 FMS before even getting in the cockpit of an actual 777. Educate yourself even on the most basic facts before trying to insult people.
@ David. Get a copy of flight simulator for your birthday did you? Have you ever in flown a plane or are you one of those bores who reads up on it but is a failed wannabe?
@simonjblake Neither man. Listen I don’t involve myself with people who are just about able to form their words into sentences. You should learn to debate things without coming across as the uneducated imbecile that you clearly are. Good evening to you.
Simon your comments portray a complete ignorance of aviation. Next time try to form an educated opinion before making yourself look like a fool.
@ David. Did you actually call me “man” as an attempt to be sublimely cool? Go get your fixie and your hollister Tshirt and try and impress someone else when your not waiting tables son.
Alan. Thanks for the advice from Mr Google. I’ll bear it in mind. And my advice is a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
That’s very easy to say, but it’s like anything, you have to train for every job, unfortunately that has to include real flight hours, you can only do so much in a simulator!
Anyway, I think it’s more complicated than what meets the eye! The pilot was obviously very experienced, yet he didn’t see a problem until a few seconds before impact! Like everything, we’re looking for someone to blame, and due to the first officers lack of hours in a 777 this must be the problem! Remember, he has previously made hundreds if not thousands of landings in other aircraft type, it’s not like he only had 40 odd hours experience in his career and was then told to land a 777 with 300 passengers aboard!
William,
In fairness to the pilots, the air speed indicator was faulty. It was too badly iced over and failed to give an accurate reading.
Even still there were errors made by the pilots, chief of which was failing to inform the captain on his arrival back in the cockpit about what was happening until it was too late.
In order for someone to fly a passeger jet they will have to complete theory exams and a flight test in which they get a private pilots licence.
After this they can go for the 14 ATPL exams which when passed means they can build flying hours towards getting the commercial pilots licence after another flight test.
Once they get the commercial licence they do another flight test for the multi engine licence/rating which leaves them to the final test which is the Instrument Rating,
Once they complete all off the above a pilot would have about 250 hours total time which means tbey can apply to an airline,while training with the airline there does be a training pilot along with the cadet and a safety pilot monitoring the cadet.
If as people say that they should not let inexperienced pilots fly untill they have experience then there would be hardly any flights taking place, Also pilots are limited to flying 900 hours a year.
Substantially correct, but you’ve put the cart before the horse a few times in your “timeline”.
Please enlighten me on how I put the cart before the horse
have your say