Category: Accidents and Incidents –  Page 19

Initial Information on China Eastern Airlines flight 5735

On Monday, the 21st of March 2022, China Eastern Airlines flight 5735 crashed into mountainous terrain during a scheduled passenger flight from Kunming to Guangzhou in the People’s Republic of China. There were 132 souls onboard with no survivors. The search for life continues in difficult terrain but after five days, it seems unlikely. The…

Read more… 25 Mar 22

Can You See What I See?

ASPEN AIRPORT (ASE, also known as Sardy Field) is known among pilots as one of the most challenging approaches in the US. The single runway is at an elevation of 7,820 feet (2,383 metres) and surrounded by mountains. The minimum decision altitude (MDA) is 10,200 feet and incoming aircraft must make staggered steep descents to…

Read more… 11 Mar 22

The aftermath of the An-12 crash on approach to Lviv

Last week, we discussed the Antonov An-12 crash on approach to Lviv. I’m going to assume you’ve read that article (and the comments, which highlight some of the key aspects that jumped out at other readers). This means we can pick up the sequence from the final report again at the point when the Antonov…

Read more… 11 Feb 22

Antonov An-12 crash on approach to Lviv

On the 4th of October in 2019, an Antonov An-12 crashed 1,117 metres from the runway threshold at Lviv Aerodrome in Ukraine, killing five of the eight crew on board. The Antonov An-12 is a four-engine turboprop transport aircraft, the military version of the An-10 although a little bit smaller (and a lot smaller than…

Read more… 4 Feb 22

Cessna 172 Struck by Train

This video of a pilot who has used at least two of his nine lives was released by the Los Angeles Police Department on Monday. Note that if you are reading this on the email list, you may need to click through to the post to watch the videos. Foothill Division Officers displayed heroism and…

Read more… 14 Jan 22

Super DC-3 Belly Landing at Merrill Field, Alaska

Last Wednesday, the 8th of December 2021, a 69-year-old Super DC-3 landed wheels-up at Anchorage airport in Alaska. Everyone cheered. The Super DC-3 is a later version of the DC-3 with a longer fuselage, increased stabiliser surfaces and more powerful engines. The first flight of the Super DC-3 took place in 1949. This Super DC-3,…

Read more… 10 Dec 21

Accident Reports

Bomber 139's Third Run: What the Investigation Found

In order to follow this analysis, you’ll need to have the details of the flight and the crash from last week’s article about the flight. When we last saw Bomber…

Bomber 139's Third Run: Downhill to Disaster

On the 6th of February 2023, a Boeing 737-3H4 Large Air Tanker crashed into a ridge line of 222 feet elevation in Fitzgerald River National Park in Western Australia. There…

Demystifying

Another quick round of questions and answers

It’s time for another Questions and Answers session. I started this series a few years back, when a reader asked if there was a way to pose aviation questions outside…

Durga Puja Pandal Shows Air India Flight 171 Crash

The following video from a religious festival in West Bengal, India, has caught a lot of social media attention. It shows a detailed representation of an Air India Boeing Dreamliner…

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

The Mystery of the Caged Tyres and the Porcupine Who Flew Home

This photograph was posted to r/shittyaskflying, a subreddit dedicated to asking silly questions and giving silly answers. In this case, the photograph is enough to make one wonder what’s going…

Songs About Failed Spacecraft and Space Disasters

This week, I’m handing over Fear of Landing to my friend Jack Keller who promised me a playlist of music relating to my interests. All of the titles except one…