Category: Accident Reports – Page 23
The High Altitude Stall of AirAsia QZ8501
On the 28th of December 2014, Indonesia Air Asia flight QZ8501 disappeared mid-flight on a routine journey from Surabaya, Indonesia to Singapore. On the 1st of December 2015, the Komite Nasional Keselamatan Transportasi (KNKT), the Indonesian ministry in charge of aviation investigations in Indonesia, released a report of over 200 pages regarding the accident. The…
Read more… 11 Dec 15
Which Way is Up? John F Kennedy Jr plane crash
John F. Kennedy Jr. died on the 16th of July 1999, when his aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts. He was piloting the airplane; his wife and her sister were in the back. This 16-year-old accident came up in the comments recently (and if you aren’t reading the…
Read more… 20 Nov 15
Glasgow helicopter crash mystery: 76kg of fuel in tank
Today the British Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) released their report on the Eurocopter EC135 which crashed into Glasgow city centre two years ago. On the 29th of November 2013, the helicopter crashed through the roof of the Clutha Vaults Bar while there were over a hundred people on the premises. The crash killed the…
Read more… 23 Oct 15
83ft above the sea at night and no investigation?
I’m often asked about government cover-ups and the “real story” behind well-known commercial incidents. Generally, it’s easy to give an optimistic answer. Most investigations carried out by most of the accident investigation bureaus are top class: thorough and honest and with a detailed report which allows us, the outsiders, to check their work. This case,…
Read more… 25 Sep 15
Just a little slip: a tragedy of errors for G-EUOE
The AAIB have released their report on the incident involving Airbus A319-131 G-EUOE at London Heathrow Airport on 24 May 2013. This is one of those reports where I find I’m clenching my teeth as it becomes clear how much has gone wrong. This incident begins the night before on the 23rd of May. The…
Read more… 7 Aug 15
Shocking CRM led to that Abandoned Tupolev at Moscow Airport
This story started, as so many do, with an interesting photograph posted to Reddit. I was curious, and decided to investigate the accident. The sequence of events that led to the wreck was a lot more fascinating than I expected. The airline was initially set up as the Makhachkala division of Aeroflot in 1927. In…
Read more… 10 Jul 15
Accident Reports
Wings Over Dallas: How Poor Systems Led to Mid-Air Collision
On the 12th of November 2022, a Bell P-63F Kingcobra fighter flew into a Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress bomber during the Wings Over Dallas airshow. All six crew members in…
"Totally a visibility issue."
On Sunday, the 27th of November 2022, a single-engine aircraft made national US news when it crashed through power lines in Gaithersburg, Maryland, coming to rest on a lattice tower.…
Demystifying
How to tell an F-16 Fighting Falcon from a Eurofighter Typhoon
There are a number of reasons why you might need to quickly point out the differences between a General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon and a Eurofighter EF2000 Typhoon. You might…
Extreme Turbulence in Singapore Airlines flight 321
A few days ago (21st of May 2024), Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 encountered heavy turbulence on a passenger flight from London-Heathrow to Singapore. There were 229 on board, including eighteen…
History
Gladys Ingle Inflight Wheel Change: Emergency Action or Stunt?
This video of a mid-air wheel exchange goes viral once a year or so, but I never get tired of watching it. Last week, it showed up on Reddit and…
The Disappearance of the Hawaii Clipper May Not Be as Mysterious as Was Thought
This week, we have a guest post by J.B. Rivard who wrote an article for the American Aviation Historical Society (AAHS) and used one of my articles as a reference.…
Fun Stuff
Terminally Early: The Berlin Viewing Platform
Mistakes were made. All of them were mine. Before I left for Dresden, I planned out my full itinerary. Berlin is a much busier airport than Tallinn, so I needed…
A Few Good Stories
I’m in Dresden at the moment and I’m afraid I haven’t had a free moment to write you a new article. Luckily, lots of other people are on the internet…
Gene on Wishing you an easy glide into 2025That's some cool artwork! The guest posts are a nice break from the usual, every so often, but I really…
CHip on Wings Over Dallas: How Poor Systems Led to Mid-Air CollisionGood points -- I hadn't known that this airboss was once competent (although ATC are trained to keep planes safely…
Minz on Wings Over Dallas: How Poor Systems Led to Mid-Air CollisionGotta say, running an air show display without a pre-briefed plan is mind-boggling to me. Talk about setting yourself up…
Mendel on Wings Over Dallas: How Poor Systems Led to Mid-Air CollisionI was quite surprised when I learned that this air boss had in fact worked as an air traffic controller…
Mike Scirocco on Wings Over Dallas: How Poor Systems Led to Mid-Air CollisionWell said.