Scheduled Revenue Flight

On 22 October the pilot concerned got up at 05.00 and drove towards the airport at about 05.30. After preparing the aircraft, with registration PJ-SUN, he piloted two return flights from Curaçao International Airport (hereinafter to be referred to as Hato airport) to Bonaire International Airport (hereinafter to be referred to as Flamingo airport). No problems occurred during these four flights. The departure for the next flight, “DVR014”, was planned at 09.30. The nine passengers booked for this flight, who had already had their luggage weighed, had to wait before they could board because the pilot had ordered the aircraft to be refuelled prior to this flight. The refuelling invoice of flight DVR014 specifies that fuel was taken up between 09.28 and 09.38. The luggage of these passengers and some additional cargo consisting of a few boxes had already been loaded on to the aircraft. The passengers were welcomed by the pilot when they boarded. The pilot informed them they should keep their waist belts fastened during the flight and that the safety cards were located in the seat pockets. From the passenger statements it can be deduced that these instructions were not heard by all of the passengers. The pilot and the passenger seated next to him fastened their waist and shoulder belts. Approximately ten minutes after the estimated time of departure, after having received the required approval from the Hato Tower air traffic control tower (hereinafter to be referred to as Hato Tower) via the on-board radio the engines were started without any problems. The flight manual engine ground checks were not extensively performed because these are part of the first flight of the day engine checks in accordance with the General Operating Manual. Around 09.47 the PJ-SUN took off for a flight with visual flight rules (VFR) to Bonaire. After take-off the aircraft climbed to flight level 035 (FL035). Some of the passengers had flown for some years, several times in a week with Divi Divi Air. From the passenger statements it can be deduced that the pilot brought the aircraft into level flight at FL035 and reduced the power from climb power to cruise power. The passenger next to the pilot stated that engine power ceased the moment that the pilot was adjusting (one of) the levers on the throttle quadrant. Some passengers reported they felt a jolt that moment. Some passengers reported the engine sputtered shortly before it ceased. No sound from which a mechanical problem was heard and no smoke was detected. Passengers stated that the pilot increased the left engine power, feathered the right propeller and trimmed away the forces to the rudder pedals due to the failure of the right engine. They also reported that the pilot attempted to restart the right engine two or three times but to no avail. Around 09.52 the pilot reported to the Hato Tower controller: Divi 014 requesting to switch to Flamingo, priority landing with Flamingo, have lost one of the engines. The controller acknowledged this message. The pilot continued the flight to Bonaire flying with the left engine running and contacted Flamingo Tower air traffic control (hereinafter to be referred to as Flamingo Tower) at 09.57 and reported: 014, Islander inbound from Curaçao, showing, I got one engine out, so we are landing with one engine, no emergency at this stage, I’m maintaining altitude at, 3000 feet, we request priority to landing runway 10, currently 24 miles out, estimating at, 18. The Flamingo Tower controller authorized the approach to runway 10. The air traffic controller requested the pilot to report when he left 3000 feet altitude, which he immediately did. The radar data shows that the PJ-SUN descended approximately 140 feet per minute on average from the moment the engine failed up to the emergency landing. According to the statements of a few of the passengers, the aircraft pitch attitude increased during the descent of the aircraft and it was higher than usual. The indicated airspeed on the airspeed indicator was lower than when flying with two working engines. The pilot did not inform the passengers regarding the failure of the right engine or his intentions. A few passengers were concerned and started to put on the life jackets having retrieved them from under their seats. The passenger next to the pilot could not find his life jacket, while others had some trouble opening the plastic bags of the life jackets. They also agreed on a course of action for leaving the aircraft in case of an emergency landing in the water. At 10.08 the pilot informed the Flamingo Tower that he was approaching and was ten nautical miles away, flying at 1000 feet and expected to land in ten minutes. At 10.12 the pilot reported the distance to be eight nautical miles and that he was having trouble with the altitude which was 600 feet at that moment. The traffic controller authorized the landing. At 10.14 the pilot reported to be six nautical miles away and flying at an altitude of 300 feet. During the last radio contact at 10.15 the pilot indicated to be at five nautical miles distance flying at 200 feet and that he was still losing altitude. The pilot was going to perform an emergency landing near Klein Bonaire. The aircraft subsequently turned a little to the left towards Klein Bonaire. According to a few passengers, the pilot turned around towards them and indicated with hand signals that the aircraft was about to land and he gave a thumbs-up signal to ask whether everyone was ready for the approaching emergency landing. There were life jackets for all people on-board. The pilot, the passenger seated next to him and two passengers seated in the back row did not have their life jackets on. The passengers in rows two through to four had put on their life jackets. One passenger had put on his life jacket back to front. According to the statements of the passengers, the stall warning (loud tone) was activated on and off during this last part of the flight. A short time before the emergency landing until the moment of impact with the water the stall warning was continuously audible. From the statements of the passengers it follows the all cabin doors were closed throughout the descent and the landing. The passenger’ statements differ in describing the last part of the flight until the impact of the aircraft with the water surface. One passenger stated that the aircraft fell down from a low height and impacted the water with a blow. Other passengers mentioned a high or low aircraft pitch attitude during impact. Most of the passengers stated that during impact the left wing was slightly down. The aircraft hit the water at 10.17 at a distance of approximately 0.7 nautical miles from Klein Bonaire and 3.5 nautical miles west of Bonaire. The left front door broke off from the cabin and other parts of the aircraft on impact. The aircraft was lying horizontally in the water. The height of the waves was estimated 0.5 meter by one of the passengers. The cabin soon filled with water because the left front door had broken off and the windscreen had shattered. The passenger behind the pilot was trapped, but was able to free herself from this position. All nine passengers were able to leave the aircraft without assistance using the left front door opening and the emergency exits. A few passengers sat for a short time on the wings before the aircraft sank. The passengers formed a circle in the water. The passengers who were not wearing life jackets kept afloat by holding onto the other passengers. One passenger reported that the pilot hit his head on the vertical door/window frame in the cockpit or the instrument panel at impact causing him to lose consciousness and may even have been wounded. The attempts of one or two passengers to free the pilot from his seat were unsuccessful. A few minutes after the accident, the aircraft sank with the pilot still on-board. Approximately five minutes after the emergency landing, two boats with recreational divers who were nearby arrived on the scene. Divers from the first boat tried to localise the sunken aircraft based on indications from the passengers. The people on the other boat took nine passengers out of the water and set course to Kralendijk where they arrived at approximately 10.37. The police and other emergency services personnel were awaiting the passengers on the quay. Six passengers were transported to the hospital where they were discharged after an examination. The other three went their own way.

Upon landing at the Kwamalasamutu Airstrip, the twin engine aircraft went out of control, lost its undercarriage and came to rest. Three passengers were slightly injured while the captain was seriously injured. All four other occupants escaped unhurt. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

During the takeoff roll from Zarafshon Airport, the undercarriage were prematurely retracted by the crew. The aircraft sank on its belly and slid for few dozen metres before coming to rest. There were no injuries but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. The exact date of the mishap remains unknown, somewhere in August 2009.

The single engine aircraft departed Los Roques Airport at 0734LT on a schedule service to Porlamar, carrying 11 passengers and two pilots. At 0804LT, while cruising at an altitude of 11,500 feet, the engine exploded the vibrated. The crew shut down the engine, declared an emergency and reduced his altitude. Ten minutes later, in a 30° flaps down configuration, the crew ditched the aircraft at low speed about 7,4 km north of La Tortuga Island. All 13 occupants were quickly rescued and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

On 11 August 2009, a de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft, registered P2-MCB, with two pilots and 11 passengers, was being operated on a scheduled regular public transport service from Port Moresby to Kokoda Airstrip, Papua New Guinea (PNG). At about 1113, the aircraft impacted terrain on the eastern slope of the Kokoda Gap at about 5,780 ft above mean sea level in heavily-timbered jungle about 11 km south-east of Kokoda Airstrip. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces. There were no survivors. Prior to the accident the crew were manoeuvring the aircraft within the Kokoda Gap, probably in an attempt to maintain visual flight in reported cloudy conditions. The investigation concluded that the accident was probably the result of controlled flight into terrain: that is, an otherwise airworthy aircraft was unintentionally flown into terrain, with little or no awareness by the crew of the impending collision.

Following an uneventful flight from Krabi, the crew started the approach to Koh Samui Airport. Conditions at destination were marginal with stormy weather, winds and turbulences. Upon landing on runway 35, the aircraft bounced then landed a second time. It deviated from the centerline to the left, veered off runway, rolled through a grassy area and eventually collided with the concrete structure of the airport tower. The captain was killed and the copilot was seriously injured as the cockpit area was destroyed upon impact. 26 other people were injured.

Shortly after take off from Ahwaz Airport, while in initial climb, the engine n°2 suffered an uncontained failure. The crew informed ATC about the situation and was cleared for an immediate return. The aircraft landed safely 10 minutes later and was stopped on the main runway. All 174 occupants were rescued, among them two passengers were slightly injured. The aircraft was considered as damaged beyond repair as n°1 engine and the left wing were also damaged due to debris from the n°2 engine's compressor.

On the morning of Sunday, 2 August 2009, a de Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft, registered PK-NVC, operated by PT. Merpati Nusantara Airlines as flight number MZ-7960D, departed from Sentani Airport, Jayapura for Oksibil Airport. The flight was planned in accordance with the visual flight rules (VFR). There were 15 persons on board; two pilots, one engineer, 10 adult passengers and two infants. The estimated flight time was 50 minutes. The fuel on board was sufficient for 2 hours and 50 minutes flight time. About 15 minutes prior to the estimated time of arrival at Oksibil the crew of another aircraft informed the Twin Otter crew that the weather in the Oksibil area was partly cloudy. There were no further reports of radio transmissions from the Twin Otter, and it did not arrive at Oksibil. A search was initiated at the time the aircraft would have run out of fuel. On the morning of 4 August 2009, searchers located the wreckage of the Twin Otter at an elevation of about 9,300 feet about 6 Nm from Oksibil. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces, and all of the occupants were fatally injured.

At July 24, 2009, Ilyushin aircraft, model IL-62M of DETA Airline with registration, UP-I6208 and flight IRX1525 of Aria Airline flight with 169 passengers from Mehrabad International Airport/ Tehran, and it has landed at 18:05 local time on RWY 13 L in Mashhad International Airport; then it has run off from end of the runway, without considerable reduction in aircraft speed and it collided with wall of the airport and it was stopped after approximately 185 m. The mentioned aircraft has been leased by Aria Airline as ACMI, according to contract No. 002/IL-62M/ACMI. Subsequently, the ground safety unit of the airport has attended in place of occurring accident, by breaking protective fences and barbed wires of the airport, and then they evacuated passengers and extinguished fire outside of aircraft by carrying out necessary actions. 16 people were killed, 11 crew members and five passengers. All other occupants were rescued, among them 30 were injured. Accident site inspection revealed that the aircraft position had coordinates N 36,218º E 59,666º, at a road in the vicinity of the aerodrome, 1km away from the RWY-31R threshold (130º MH or 133, 5º TH) of the Mashhad airport with the azimuth of 125º (true). Power line along the road was destroyed by the right aircraft wing. Wing fuel tanks of the right wing were damaged evidenced by fuel leaking. Main and emergency exits were open. An inflatable slide was dropped down from the port side. No evidences of fire on board and at the accident site were found. First tracks of intensive braking (black tire tracks) were found at the concrete at a distance of 550 m from the departure threshold of RWY31R. The track of the main gear wheels was going along the RWY in its left part, and diverging further to the right beyond the departure threshold. At about 100m away from the threshold at the end portion of the braking way, a net barrier was found (textile aerodrome emergency braking unit).The aircraft ran over the RWY when moving along the right side of the stop way, 300m long. Beyond the end of the RWY landing gear wheels track could be clearly seen passing over a rough partly grassed surface, and crossing a dirt road. At a distance of 100m from the RWY end, where the right gear crossed the road, a destroyed tire tube was found, which presumably belonged to the right gear front wheel. At a distance of 160m from the RWY end smashed approach lights were found, and after that point the gear wheel track started to diverge to the left from the RWY centerline. The front gear wheel track further merged with the left gear wheel track and extended joining the forward airframe track. At a distance of 320 m from the RWY end another line of broken approach lights were found. Airframe structures were found before the approach lights (along the aircraft way). From that point small aircraft structure pieces were found along the whole aircraft path. 40m past the destroyed approach lights line a ditch of 0,5…1m in depth was found (with an underground pipeline) which was crossing this area from the south to the north. The south-eastern part of the aerodrome was fenced with a brick wall of 2,5m high and 0,4m thick with a concrete strip foundation. It went along the RWY there. The aircraft collided with the fence at a distance of 820m from the departure threshold (520m past the stop way end) with a heading of 105 degrees. The fence was destroyed throughout 70m. Debris of the nose part of the airframe, cockpit, passenger seats, aircraft cabin parts were found behind the fence. Earlier aerodrome employees, police and medical services found at the site and evacuated crew bodies, as well as killed and injured passengers. After the collision with the fence the aircraft kept moving for 160 m with a heading of 105 degrees and came to a stop at the road.

The three engine aircraft departed Tehran-Imam Khomeiny Airport at 1117LT on a regular schedule flight to Yerevan, carrying 158 passengers and 10 crew members. Sixteen minutes after takeoff, while cruising over Qazvin at FL340, the aircraft suddenly changed its heading to 270° and then entered a rapid descent, losing 20,000 feet in 90 seconds. In a near vertical attitude, the aircraft crashed in an open field, causing a large crater. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 168 occupants were killed.