Category: Accidents and Incidents –  Page 15

Airbus Flying Too Close To The Ground

On the 23rd of May 2022, an Airbus A320, registration 9H-EMU, departed Stockholm Arlanda airport bound for Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport as flight NSZ 4311. There were six crew and 172 passengers on board. The captain was the Pilot Flying and the first officer was the Pilot Monitoring. The initial flight was uneventful. The flight…

Read more… 15 Jul 22

Preliminary Details of a Helicopter Crash in New Jersey

I don’t normally write an article based on a preliminary report; however, this one made me sit back in my chair. On the 4th of June 2022, a Bell 407GXP helicopter, registration N98ZA, crashed near Fairfield, New Jersey. The Bell 407 is a single-engine helicopter with a four-blade “soft-in-plane” design rotor, which means that it…

Read more… 17 Jun 22

Bird Opens Cargo Door on A320

On the 20th of June in 2011, an Airbus A320-212, registration CS-TKJ, taxied to runway 05 at Aeroporto de Madeira for a scheduled morning flight from Funchal to Copenhagen with seven crew members and 105 passengers on board. A plane spotter taking photographs of aircraft at the threshold of runway 05 took a photograph of…

Read more… 10 Jun 22

Passenger In Control

Everyone is talking about the passenger who safely landed a Cessna 208 Caravan at Palm Beach International Airport after the pilot slumped over the controls, incapacitated. The Cessna Caravan is a single-engine high-wing aircraft first produced in 1984. This one, registration N333LD, was recently listed as for sale on Aircraft.com, which gives us a bit…

Read more… 13 May 22

Alitalia flight 404: The result of a dozen small decisions

Last week, we looked at the key events that led to the Alitalia flight 404 crash. A few points from the previous post: Maintenance replaced both radio receivers in the aircraft and the crew were aware they needed testing. On approach, the two receivers gave conflicting results. At least one of the receivers appears to…

Read more… 15 Apr 22

Alitalia Flight 404: “Catch the glide!”

On the 14th of November 1990, Alitalia flight AZ404 crashed into high ground upon approach to Zürich. The accident was investigated by the Federal Aircraft Accidents Inquiry Board in Switzerland and was supported by the United States National Transport and Safety Board. One aspect that makes it interesting is that the two boards came to…

Read more… 8 Apr 22

Accident Reports

Challenger 300 Fatal Upset Wasn't Turbulence

On the 3rd of March 2023, a passenger in a private jet died after severe injuries in the cabin, which were originally reported as caused by severe turbulence. This was…

Fowl Play in South Africa

On the 19th of January 2025, a Robinson R44 Raven II helicopter registered as ZS-RJC departed Chief Dawid Stuurman Aerodrome (formerly Port Elizabeth Airport) in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province.…

Demystifying

How to tell a Russian Su-27 from a British Typhoon

This is not an article that I ever thought I would feel compelled to write! However, given the confusion over a photograph chosen in a regional English paper, apparently it’s…

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…

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

Friday Lightness: A Short Respite from Crash Reports

It seems a good time for something a bit more lighthearted. After weeks of analyzing serious incidents and technical failures, I thought I could a moment to appreciate aviation humuor…

Flights of Fantasy: Aviation April Fools Worth Celebrating

I’m going to admit that I’m not a great fan of April Fools’ pranks, especially not attempts to trick people into believing something and then pulling the rug out from…