Pilots, engineers to blame for Fokker crash, NA told

[Abbas Ali]

By Sohail Khan

ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday admitted that inexperienced pilots and negligence on the part of PIA engineering staff was the main cause of the Fokker F-27 crash that happened last year in Multan. All 45 people on board were killed in the crash.

Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Major (retd) Syed Tanveer Hussain informed the National Assembly that inexperienced pilots of the aircraft and carelessness shown by the engineers had caused the PIA Fokker plane to crash.

Hussain, while responding to a call-attention notice raised by the opposition’s Naseem Chaudhry, informed the House that the Ministry of Defence has recently received a full inquiry report on the Fokker crash and its recommendations have been sent to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz.

He said that the main crux of the inquiry report was that both the pilots were inexperienced while the engineering staff of the only national flag carrier had made severe negligence.Pervez Malik of PML-N informed the House that as the chairman of NA Standing Committee on Defence, he had asked for the inquiry report to find out who was responsible for the crash and who was punished. However, he said, the findings of the inquiry report had not been provided to him yet.

At this, the parliamentary secretary for Defence informed the House that the Defence Ministry has received the inquiry report a week ago and it would be soon presented in the House. Speaker Chaudhry Ameer Hussain asked the parliamentary secretary to present the report before May 15 in the House.

Source: The News

Related Topics:

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Topic: Minister knows what caused Multan Fokker crash

Topic: CAA says airports properly calibrated

Topic: Combination of errors cited for Fokker crash

Topic: PIA Fokker (AP-BAL) crash investigation thread

Topic: PIA Fokker F-27 fleet flight cycles details

[Abbas Ali]

Fokker crash due to technical failure, inexperienced pilots, NA told

ISLAMABAD: Inexperienced pilots and technical failure were responsible for the crash of a PIA Fokker plane in Multan in 2006 in which 46 people were killed, Parliamentary Defence Secretary Major (r) Tanvir Hussain Syed told the National Assembly on Wednesday. Syed told the house that it was an international safety practice for junior pilots to be teamed up with experienced pilots, but both pilots of the Fokker plane were relatively new with few flying hours under their belt. He said the black box of the plane revealed a conversation between the pilots as the plane started on the runway. The pilot asked the co-pilot if the thrust in the right engine was depleting, to which the co-pilot responded, “Yes”. An experienced pilot would have stopped the plane before it took off, but the Fokker pilots decided to continue with one engine, which also had some problems, Syed said. He said that according to the inquiry report, certain parts in that engine were fitted manually, rather than through specialised machinery as required by international safety standards, and as a result there was a fault in the turbine. The plane crashed a few seconds after take off. The NA speaker directed the parliamentary secretary to submit the inquiry report in the house by May 15 and inform the assembly what action the government was taking against those responsible for the crash. Mehnaz Rafi of the PML and others moved a call-attention notice on the procurement of sub-standard spare parts by PIA through un-renowned firms. staff report

Source: Daily Times

[mohammed younis]

''The pilot asked the co-pilot if the thrust in the right engine was depleting, to which the co-pilot responded, “Yes”. An experienced pilot would have stopped the plane before it took off, but the Fokker pilots decided to continue with one engine''

It's quite possiblle the pilots had crossed the v1 point on the runway therefor had no choice but to take off.

I really do belive the engineers who are responcible for the crash should be punished!

[ConnieMan]

What i believe is in declaring the full voice recorder and black box's transcripts to be made public in order for people to know what was the conversation between both pilots at what time/second of the whole takeoff roll, rotation and few seconds of flight!!...

I don't believe what has been reported as (''The pilot asked the co-pilot if the thrust in the right engine was depleting, to which the co-pilot responded, “Yes”) this is the only time when some kind of conversation has been disclosed between the pilots without anything stating at what point it was in this whole inquiry of this crash.

-What was the total number of soles that were onboard?, 45 or 46??

-Now what does this means?, "He said that according to the inquiry report, certain parts in that engine were fitted manually, rather than through specialized machinery as required by international safety standards, and as a result there was a fault in the turbine"

My question is, why was this aircraft even allowed to fly that day when it wasn't maintained in airworthy condition!!...

Was this a planned sabotage attempt for some reason??

or

Was this shear stupidity on PIA's engineering department for releasing this aircraft to operate when it wasn't airworthy condition according to international safety standards!!!, as it seems the case of engineering department then it wasn't fault of pilots as they did not knew the internal condition of both engines!!, plus its no wonder EU banned PIA due to Safety reasons, this is clear case of international safety standards violence in which it just didn't endangered passengers and crews lives but passengers and crew also lost there lives..

[Abbas Ali]

-What was the total number of soles that were onboard?, 45 or 46??

45 people aboard the aircraft + 1 ground casualty = 46

[FMC]

There is a 'Sher Shah' or 'Bilal Ganj' of aviation somewhere on this planet. I think it is the 'repairs abroad' desk of PIA Engineering.

[Abbas Ali]

Report: Pilots of Crashed Pakistani Plane Knew of Engine Malfunction Before Take-Off
Thursday May 10, 11:53 am ET
By Matthew Pennington, Associated Press Writer

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) -- Pilots of a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) plane that crashed last year, killing all 45 people on board, took off despite knowing the right engine was not working properly, a senior government official told Parliament.

Parliamentary secretary for defense, Tanvir Hussain, also said PIA engineers had "virtually used (a) hammer and chisel" -- not tools designed for the job -- to fit a bearing in a plane turbine that malfunctioned.

Hussain concluded that poor maintenance and inexperienced pilots had caused the Fokker F-27 turboprop plane to crash soon after takeoff on a domestic flight from the eastern city of Multan on July 10, 2006. Forty-one passengers and four crew members were killed.

Hussain's comments, made late Wednesday to the National Assembly, were reported by the state-run news agency, the Associated Press of Pakistan or APP. He was citing an inquiry into the crash conducted by a senior Pakistan air force official.

PIA spokesman Nasir Jamal said Thursday the airline had not received the report and was not in a position to comment on it. He referred questions to the Defense Ministry.

In recent years, the once-respected national carrier has been beset by worries over plane safety and its finances. In March, PIA temporarily slashed its flights to Europe by nearly 50 percent after the European Union barred most of its planes due to safety concerns.

According to APP, Hussain told lawmakers that the plane's pilots "had not completed enough flying hours and were relatively inexperienced."

He said the voice recorder recovered from the wreckage revealed that before take-off, one of the pilots had asked the other if there was a "depleting thrust of the right engine," and had received an affirmative reply.

Hussain said the pilots should not have flown the plane, but still took off.

There were also serious concerns over the plane's airworthiness.

Hussain said there were holes in one of the plane's turbines, which prevented the plane from ascending more than 50 feet. He said engineers had fitted a bearing in the turbine manually instead of using special equipment needed for the purpose.

"They virtually used hammer and chisel to put that bearing into the turbine (and) as a result it started to wobble," Hussain was quoted as saying.

Hussain said the findings of the crash inquiry would be forwarded to the prime minister, who would order "punishment for those responsible for the crash."

Source: Yahoo News

[ConnieMan]

There were also serious concerns over the plane's airworthiness.

Hussain said there were holes in one of the plane's turbines, which prevented the plane from ascending more than 50 feet. He said engineers had fitted a bearing in the turbine manually instead of using special equipment needed for the purpose.

"They virtually used hammer and chisel to put that bearing into the turbine (and) as a result it started to wobble," Hussain was quoted as saying.

I hope EU team coming to recheck PIA's status doesn't see this BS or hell will/could broke lose for PIA globally!!

If there were concerns about that aircraft's airworthness then why was it allowed to Operate in the first place is not making sense to me, why were they playing with lives of those onboard knowingly about the poor condition of that particular aircraft!!, rest alone what pilots did or did not do is secondary, i just hope people responsible behind those murders sort to say have pretty good viable explanation for the world to believe on......

[AP-BGJ]

true i agree with u connie man aaaaaaaaa seriously i feel this report as nothing but BULLSHIT!!!!!

the most easiest thing is to blame on pilots or someone else.....if the pilots were ot experieced then how can a pilot who is captain of fokker must have gone through all the aircrafts as first officer so he being inexperieced nahhhh!!! sorry cant but this report

[Abbas Ali]

Multan crash was avoidable: report

By Baqir Sajjad Syed

ISLAMABAD, May 10: The crash of a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft in Multan last year was avoidable, but the crew failed to follow standard procedures, says a report prepared by the manufacturers, Fokker.

The Fokker F-27, on a flight from Multan to Lahore, crashed on July 10, killing all the 45 passengers and the crew.

Specialists from the Fokker Services had participated in the probe carried out by the Civil Aviation Authority, whose findings are yet to be made public.

The Fokker report says a sequence of events leading to the crash and the loss of lives has been developed on the basis of available investigation results and analysed data.

It claims that no evidence had been found indicating that the aircraft or its systems had any bearing on the accident.

Discussing the chain of events leading to the crash, the report says the right-hand engine had failed early during take-off, but the aircraft should have been able to obtain a climb gradient of 3.3% had the landing gear been raised at an altitude of 35 feet and proper techniques been applied. With the landing gear down, the climb gradient is reduced to 1.7%, it says.

Moreover, the report says during the lift-off, the flight crew did not adequately correct the heading and roll deviations, resulting in additional loss of climb performance.

Referring to the data retrieved from the flight data recorder, it says the crew was able to recover the heading and roll deviations occasionally, which meant the aircraft was “controllable”.

The report, however, stays short of saying what caused the engine failure. It rather says the issue of engine failure was studied by Roll Royce, the manufacturers of the Dart engines fitted to the turbo-prop aircraft, and that it had got nothing to do with the engine design.

It is learnt that the CAA’s official probe, which has not been made public yet, also concluded that a combination of on-ground and in-air errors caused the crash.

Source: DAWN

[ConnieMan]

Multan crash was avoidable: report

By Baqir Sajjad Syed

ISLAMABAD, May 10: The crash of a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft in Multan last year was avoidable, but the crew failed to follow standard procedures, says a report prepared by the manufacturers, Fokker.

The Fokker F-27, on a flight from Multan to Lahore, crashed on July 10, killing all the 45 passengers and the crew.

Specialists from the Fokker Services had participated in the probe carried out by the Civil Aviation Authority, whose findings are yet to be made public.

The Fokker report says a sequence of events leading to the crash and the loss of lives has been developed on the basis of available investigation results and analysed data.

It claims that no evidence had been found indicating that the aircraft or its systems had any bearing on the accident.

Discussing the chain of events leading to the crash, the report says the right-hand engine had failed early during take-off, but the aircraft should have been able to obtain a climb gradient of 3.3% had the landing gear been raised at an altitude of 35 feet and proper techniques been applied. With the landing gear down, the climb gradient is reduced to 1.7%, it says.

Moreover, the report says during the lift-off, the flight crew did not adequately correct the heading and roll deviations, resulting in additional loss of climb performance.

Referring to the data retrieved from the flight data recorder, it says the crew was able to recover the heading and roll deviations occasionally, which meant the aircraft was “controllable”.

The report, however, stays short of saying what caused the engine failure. It rather says the issue of engine failure was studied by Roll Royce, the manufacturers of the Dart engines fitted to the turbo-prop aircraft, and that it had got nothing to do with the engine design.

It is learnt that the CAA’s official probe, which has not been made public yet, also concluded that a combination of on-ground and in-air errors caused the crash.

Source: DAWN

Sure now its very easy to blame the flight deck crew of that ill fated flight as they are not around to defend themselves anymore!!, this is the most easiest and common practice in this field to pass on the blame!! , I don't believe what is in this last post, is primary bases of the crash, its obvious from the past posts that problem started with engineering department, had they not released this aircraft or would have done there job according with standards required #2 engine wouldn't had failed and aircraft would have made emergency landing as it seems the failure of the engine happened past V1 speed and there was no way to stop the aircraft with in safe distance on the runway....

But its true that this crash took place due to chain of events starting from negligence of engineering department, ground staff and then flight deck crew!....

[AN]

what isnt stated here is the cause of the engine to failure, which according to the voice recorder is due to the water methanol injection, and its selection.

The facts will emerge slowly.

[ConnieMan]

There were also serious concerns over the plane's airworthiness.

Hussain said there were holes in one of the plane's turbines, which prevented the plane from ascending more than 50 feet. He said engineers had fitted a bearing in the turbine manually instead of using special equipment needed for the purpose.

"They virtually used hammer and chisel to put that bearing into the turbine (and) as a result it started to wobble," Hussain was quoted as saying.

AN,

Read the bold and underlined, i think that statement tells enough why engine failed!!!, don't you think being in the industry as probable cause of failure!!....

[AN]

Connieman

thats hearsay

once the entire report is open, it will be very obvious.

regardless, it is poor to argue over this tragic event, and there is no sense guessing and listening to peoples whims about what happend.

hold your say till the facts are available. trust me you wont have anything left to say then.

[Blackbird]

Blaming deceased pilots after a crash is always easier since they obviously cant defend themselves and have already paid with their life.