Cargo

During the takeoff roll from runway 02, at a speed of about 100 km/h, the aircraft became unstable. The pilot-in-command elected to takeoff twice but the aircraft failed to respond. Twelve seconds later, the captain decided to abandon the takeoff procedure but this decision was taken too late as the remaining distance was 300 metres only. Unable to stop, the aircraft crossed the boundary fence then a motorway where it collided with several vehicles before coming to rest, bursting into flames. All three crew members were killed as well as seven people on the ground. Ten other people on the ground were seriously injured.

The crew was completing a cargo flight from Bombay to Madras with an intermediate stop in Bangalore. On final approach to Madras Airport, the aircraft nosed down and landed nose first. Upon impact, the nose gear collapsed and the aircraft slid on its nose for few dozen metres before coming to rest. A fire erupted but was quickly extinguished. Both pilots escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

The Black Sheep Aviation and Cattle Company de Havilland DHC-3T Turbo Otter (registration C-GZCW, serial number 447) had been loaded with a cargo of lumber at Mayo, Yukon. The aircraft was taxied to the threshold of Runway 06 and the pilot began the take-off roll at 1755 Pacific daylight time. At lift-off, the aircraft entered an extreme nose-up attitude and began to rotate to the right. Shortly thereafter, the aircraft struck the airport ramp. The pilot, who was the sole occupant of the aircraft, was fatally injured. A small post-impact fire was extinguished by first responders.

The captain was making a VFR landing approach to a remote mining airstrip in a modified Douglas DC-4 airplane at the end of a cross-country nonscheduled cargo flight. The modified airplane had a raised cockpit above the fuselage to accommodate an upward swinging nose door. During the landing flare/touchdown, the airplane undershot the runway threshold, and right main landing gear struck the lip of the runway. The right main landing gear was torn off, which allowed the nose and right wing to collide with the runway surface. The right wing was torn off the fuselage and caught fire. The fuselage, containing the cargo of fuel bladders, slid to a stop and rolled about 90 degrees to the left. The pilot indicated that due to the additional cockpit height of the modified airplane, versus a standard Douglas DC-4 airplane, the airplane was lower than he perceived.

The twin engine aircraft was performing a cargo flight from Walikale to Goma, carrying one passenger, two pilots and a load consisting of two tons of minerals (cassiterite). Three minutes after it departed a 700 metres long dirt road, one of the engine caught fire. The crew elected to return for an emergency landing when the aircraft went out of control and crashed in a wooded area. All 3 occupants were killed.

During the initial climb after takeoff, just after the aircraft passed 400 feet above ground level (agl), the pilot shut off the fuel boost pumps in preparation for the en route climb. Soon thereafter, one of the engines lost power without warning, and because he was carrying a heavy load, he immediately feathered the propeller and started looking for a place to put the aircraft down. Because there was rising terrain and scattered houses south of the airport, he had to maneuver to get to an open area. During the forced landing on the uneven terrain, one of the landing gear legs collapsed, and the aircraft impacted the terrain and slid into a power pole. A post-accident teardown inspection of the engine and the aircraft systems did not reveal any anomalies that would have resulted in the failure of the engine that lost power.

The aircraft was refueled with 640 litres (L) of Jet-A1 (AVTUR) in preparation for an early morning departure to Hoskins, New Britain, on 30 March. On 30 March, the crew lodged a flight plan, which stated that the total fuel on board was 2,100 pounds (lbs) (1,208 L). The first sector of the planned route was from Port Moresby to Hoskins. The pilot-in-command (PIC) obtained an area forecast for the flight, which indicated that there were areas of rain and scattered cloud from 1500-5000 feet (ft), with deteriorating conditions forecast for the period between 0400-0800 hours (hrs); for their arrival at Hoskins. The forecast required 30 minutes holding fuel in addition to the flight and statutory fuel requirements. These conditions were normal for their destination at this time of the year.The aircraft departed Port Moresby at 0402, as flight number ND304 for Hoskins. It initially climbed to the planned Flight Level (FL) 140 (14,000 ft), which was 300 ft above the lowest safe altitude (LSA) on the initial RNC track between Port Moresby and Girua, an Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) reporting point on the north coast of the PNG mainland. The LSA for the sector between Girua and the en-route reporting point Maran was 3,300 ft, and the PIC had planned to cruise at 9,000 ft. The sector between Maran and Hoskins was planned at 9,000 ft, with a LSA of 8,300 ft. The purpose of the flight was to transport newspapers and general freight to Hoskins and Rabaul. Flight Information Area (FIA) communications with Nadzab Flight Service used High Frequency (HF) radio, and a Very High Frequency (127.1 MHz) repeater transceiver located near the township of Popondetta. This service was usually monitored by Nadzab Flight Service during their normal hours of operation, for aircraft operating on the Girua to Hoskins track. One of the functions of the Nadzab Flight Service Unit was to record all transmissions received via the Girua repeater site. The crew made a position report, intercepted by Port Moresby Flight Service, advising that they were overhead Maran at 0506, cruising at FL 110 (11,000 ft), and gave an estimated time of arrival (ETA) Hoskins at 0540. That was 2,000 ft higher than the planned level. The position report was received by Port Moresby Flight Service, because Nadzab Flight Service had not commenced operations. It subsequently commenced operations for the day at 0540. Because Nadzab was responsible for the airspace in which ALU was operating, Port Moresby Flight Service advised Nadzab of ALU’s position report, once Nadzab opened. The Maran position report was the last recorded radio contact with the aircraft. No transmission declaring the intention to descend below FL110 was heard from the crew of ALU. No MAYDAY transmission was reported by ATS or other aircrew. When the crew of ALU failed to report their arrival at Hoskins, a search was commenced of the Hoskins aerodrome. At 0650 a DISTRESFA Search and Rescue Phase (SAR) was declared indicating the degree of apprehension held for the safety of the aircraft and its occupants. Later that morning verbal reports were received from a coastal logging company in an area east of Kandrian, that an aircraft had crashed. The wreckage of ALU was found 27 km east of Kandrian, at an elevation of 780 ft above sea level. Both crew members had not survived the impact. The wreckage was located at position 06° 11′ 39.8′′ S, 149° 52′ 58.9′′ E, and was dispersed along a 500 m wreckage trail after colliding with numerous trees and impacting the terrain. The investigation estimated the time of the accident to be about 0523.

The single engine aircraft was completing a cargo flight from La Paragua to a mining area, carrying a load of food. Shortly after liftoff, the aircraft encountered difficulties to gain height, rolled to the left and crashed upside down. The pilot, sole on board, was slightly injured and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

On final approach, while flying at an altitude of 120 metres at 3 kilometres from the runway threshold, the aircraft was hit by an RPG, probably fired by rebels from a boat. The projectile hit the left main gear and a fire erupted. The aircraft landed safely and all 15 occupants escaped uninjured. It took about one hour for the only fire-fighting truck available at the airport to reach the plane as it had no fuel. Eventually, the aircraft was damaged beyond repair and cannibalized. One week later, some technicians of the Belarus operator returned to Mogadishu to recover pieces and material from the aircraft. On departure, another II-76 from the same operator was hit by a missile and destroyed.

Owned by United Arabian Airlines, the four engine aircraft departed Khartoum on a cargo flight to Geneina on behalf of AZZA Air Transport. After touchdown, the aircraft was unable to stop within the remaining distance, overran and came to rest in a sandy area. There were no injuries but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair after the undercarriage were torn off and the left wing tip was sheared off. Witnesses interviewed by the Panel stated that the majority of the passengers were military personnel. In addition to the passengers there were two D-22 type 122 mm artillery howitzers and 40 to 50 wooden boxes painted olive drab, suspected to contain arms and ammunition. The cargo was offloaded during the days following the crash under the supervision of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) who continued to guard the aircraft throughout the following week. In an official report published at the end of April 2007, UNO criticized the Sudanese authorities for not respecting the various points of resolution 1591 which stipulates that Sudan is not authorized to deliver military equipment to the Darfur region.