Andalusia

Brand new, the aircraft just came out from the manufacturer in Seville and was engaged in its first post assembly test flight. After take off from Seville-San Pablo Airport Runway 09 at 1254LT, the crew completed a 90° turn to the left bound to the north. Shortly later, three of the four engines (engines n°1, 2 and 3) got stuck at high power. The crew attempted to control the power setting to the normal mode but those three engines failed to respond. The crew reduced the engine power after selecting the thrust levers to idle. The regime of those three engines remained blocked in idle so the crew decided to return to the airport for an emergency landing. On approach, the aircraft collided with power lines, stalled and crashed in an open field located 1,6 km north of the airport, bursting into flames. Two crew members were rescued while four others were killed. The aircraft was totally destroyed by a post crash fire. The aircraft was following a test program prior to its delivery to the Turkish Air Force (Türk Hava Kuvvetleri).

The aircraft started taking off from runway 27 threshold. Upon reaching a speed deemed proper by the pilot for rotation, the pilot noticed that the aircraft was not taking off, so he decided to abort the takeoff. While trying to stop the aircraft, it exited via the left side of the runway near the end, breaking through the fence that surrounds the aerodrome before coming to rest in trees. While all ten occupants were uninjured, the aircraft was damaged beyond repair with both wings sheared off.

The Britten Norman “Islander” aircraft, registration G-CHES, had flown on the morning of 17 October 2007 over various points of the Sierra Morena and the north part of the province of Seville. Its mission had been to scout the various flight fields which would be available to the aircraft in future operations. The purpose of that day’s flight was to land at a temporary runway in the town of Guadalcanal, in the province of Seville on the border with the province of Badajoz. This runway, used by airplanes on agricultural flights, is some five kilometers SW of the town. The pilot, however, mistakenly landed at another temporary field, with the same bearing and approximately halfway between the town and the other runway on Guadalcanal. The runway on which it landed, called Los Tomillares (after the name of the ranch on which it is located), is considerably shorter. The distance available was sufficient for the airplane’s sole pilot to land normally. In order to be able to depart from that strip, which measured only 400 m in length, the pilot telephoned for help and guidance in order to make the short four-kilometer flight from that strip to the runway in Guadalcanal, his original destination. In response to his call for help, a pilot with experience on that type of airplane reported to the strip early in the afternoon and joined the pilot as a crew advisor on the aircraft in order to aid the pilot in command. Two other persons on the ground provided assistance loading fuel in the main tanks. The gasoline was taken to the aerodrome in 50-liter plastic drums, which were placed inside the aircraft once emptied, since they were operating between runways in which there was no refueling service. A total of 250 liters of AV100LL fuel was deposited in the main tanks. Both pilots walked the length of the field at Los Tomillares to check its condition and dimensions. They determined its length by counting their steps. They also determined its gradient. Although the surface was made of uncompacted dirt, they calculated that it was sufficient for takeoff, which they decided to do toward the southeast to take advantage of the favorable negative slope. Specifically, they planned to depart on a SE heading, turn 90° right, and continue flying south until they were lined up with the Guadalcanal runway. They planned to land on a NW course. They postponed the operation until late in the afternoon, before sunset, so as to avoid glare from the setting sun while landing at Guadalcanal. According to eyewitness accounts, the pilot in command did the pre-flight check and dismissed the ground assistants, who left before the airplane took off. A few minutes later, at 19:30, half an hour prior to sunset, the aircraft headed for the runway threshold. Shortly thereafter it started its takeoff, gaining speed and becoming airborne prior to reaching the opposite threshold. The right engine then started to fail partially, causing the airplane to yaw hard to the right. The pilot in command, seated to the left, was flying the airplane. According to the statement of the accompanying pilot, who was seated in the RH seat, when the engine failed, the pilot asked him to take the flight controls while he attempted to restore power to the right engine. After lowering the nose, they started to descend slightly, managing to correct the right yaw by applying left rudder. They had practically managed to regain directional control of the aircraft when the right engine started to run at full power once more, propelling the aircraft, which caused it to veer left, toward higher ground. They were unable to avoid the impact. The aircraft’s left wingtip impacted first, hitting some bushes on the hillside. A few meters later the left gear wheel made contact. After crossing a small river bed, the aircraft’s left wing and forward fuselage impacted, with the airplane coming to a stop after traveling along the ground for a few meters. The impact site was on the runway centerline extension and some 400 m from the southeast threshold, which they had overflown a few seconds earlier when taking off. The aircraft was seriously damaged and was essentially destroyed. There was no fire after the impact.

Shortly after takeoff from Sevilla-San Pablo Airport runway 27, while in initial climb, the twin engine aircraft suffered a right engine failure. It rolled to the right then lost height and crashed 1,500 metres from the runway end, bursting into flames. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire and all three occupants were killed.

Following an uneventful flight from Melilla, the crew was cleared to descend to Málaga-Pablo Ruiz Picasso Airport. On final approach to runway 32, the crew encountered an unexpected situation when the engine fire warning light came on in the cockpit panel, indicating a fire on the left engine. The copilot informed ATC and after he declared an emergency, was cleared to land on runway 32. On short final, both engines stopped. The aircraft stalled and crashed 538 metres short of runway threshold and came to rest against the embankment of a motorway. The captain and three passengers were killed while all other occupants were injured, some of them seriously. The aircraft was destroyed.

The aircraft departed Málaga-Pablo Ruiz Picasso Airport at 0543LT on a positioning flight to Córdoba. On board were two pilots who were flying to Córdoba to pick up a medical team for a transplantation mission. Fifteen minutes after takeoff, the crew started the descent but encountered poor visibility due to the night and foggy conditions. At that moment, the horizontal visibility was 300 metres and the vertical visibility about 500 feet. As Córdoba Airport was not equipped with an ILS system, the crew decided to attempt an approach via a GPS system. On final approach, the aircraft was too low, struck a utility pole then crashed onto a uninhabited house located 1,500 metres short of runway 21. The aircraft was destroyed, one pilot was killed and the second was seriously injured.

The twin engine aircraft departed Madrid-Barajas Airport at 0020LT on a charter flight to Málaga, carrying three passengers and one pilot. After descending from FL080, the pilot was cleared to initiate a visual approach in preparation for a landing at Málaga-Pablo Ruiz Picasso Runway 14. After passing the altitude of 3,000 feet, about 12 NM north of Málaga VOR, the pilot started a turn to the left when the aircraft struck the slope of a rocky mountain (850 metres high) located near Villanueva del Rosario. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all four occupants were killed. The wreckage was found few metres below the summit. At the time of the accident, the visibility was good with few clouds (1-4 octas) at 1,800 feet.

Seven minutes after takeoff from Seville-San Pablo Airport, while climbing, the crew reported technical problems and elected to return. Few minutes later, the situation worsened, the crew declared an emergency and started a rapid descent. The aircraft landed on runway 27 at an excessive speed. Upon touchdown, the right main gear collapsed. The aircraft rolled for about 2 km then veered off runway to the right and came to rest. All 10 occupants escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

The pilot, sole on board, was completing a ferry flight from Melilla to Málaga. While on approach to Málaga-Pablo Ruiz Picasso Airport runway 32, both engines stopped simultaneously. The pilot reduced his altitude and ditched the aircraft 80 metres offshore. The pilot was quickly rescued while the aircraft sank.

The crew completed the approach to runway 09 with a tailwind component of 11 knots. The aircraft landed hard 50 metres past the runway threshold, bounced and landed hard a second time 360 metres further. All tires burst and the fuselage broke in two between sections 756 and 760. The aircraft came to rest and all 99 occupants were evacuated, among them 26 were injured, four seriously. A positive acceleration of 4,49 g was recorded on the first impact and 4,79 g on the second impact.