Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT)Ĭontrolled flight into terrain, or CFIT, accidents occur when a pilot unintentionally flies an airworthy aircraft into the ground, a body of water, a building, mountain, or other obstacle resulting in a plane crash. Whenever possible, give the controller enough advance notice that they can work with you to resolve the situation before it becomes critical. Also, be proactive when advising ATC about situations like impending low fuel. If there is a language barrier or a controller just doesn’t seem to be understanding the urgency of the matter, reiterate it.Īdvise them you are unable to comply if they issue directions that will put your aircraft at risk. Do not downplay the severity of your situation. The Avianca pilot called a missed approach, but he lacked fuel reserves to make another approach.Īlthough the pilot instructed the first officer to tell Air Traffic Control they had a fuel emergency, the first officer worded the transmission as “we’re running out of fuel.” Based on this less critical sounding message, the controller instructed Flight 52 to climb and began setting the plane up for another approach.įlight 52 was 15 miles out from the airport when the fuel ran dry, all four engines cut out, and the aircraft crashed into a residential neighborhood killing 8 of the 9 crew members and 65 of the 149 passengers on board. The controller cleared Flight 52 for an immediate landing, but the plane almost crashed due to windshear when flying the ILS approach. The first officer said the plane had just 5 minutes of hold time available and no longer had sufficient fuel reserves to divert to their backup airport in Boston. Fog was limiting JFK’s capacity for arrivals and departures, so Flight 52 was instructed to remain in the holding pattern for more than an hour.Īfter seventy-seven minutes of holding, air traffic control JFK checked in with Flight 52 to ask how long they could continue to hold. In 1990, Avianca Flight 52 had flown from Bogota, Colombia to New York City, in the United States, and was waiting to land at JKF. Avianca Flight 52 (By National Transportation Safety Board/Junta Nacional de Seguridad del Transporte -, Public Domain, ) Also, never simply assume you know the location of other nearby aircraft that could be a factor in your flightpath. If you receive an ATC instruction or clearance that is nonspecific, ask for clarification.
Remember to always use and listen for standard phrases like “cleared for takeoff, cleared for taxi, cleared for landing, hold short, etc.” Standard aviation phraseology was implemented because of the Tenerife disaster. With a combined total of 583 deaths, this remains the worst accident in aviation history. There were 61 survivors from the PanAm aircraft. The KLM pilot was just beyond V1 speed, so he attempted to rotate but skimmed the top of the Pan Am flight before crashing and bursting into flames farther down the runway.Īll 248 people on board KLM 4805 died in the plane crash along with 335 people on board PanAm 1736. In fact, the Pan Am pilot was still taxiing toward the KLM plane on the same runway looking for a suitable exit.ĭue to dense fog, the pilots didn’t see each other until it was too late. The KLM pilot who was taking off misunderstood the tower controller, and the pilot believed he was cleared for takeoff.
#Body helios airways flight 522 series#
The incident involved KLM Flight 4805 and Pan Am Flight 1736, both of which were due to take off from Tenerife, Canary Islands.Ī series of unusual events caused a single runaway to be used by a PanAm aircraft taxiing from one end as well as a KLM plane starting its takeoff run on the opposite end. One of the most well-known preventable airplane disasters took place in 1977. (By Unknown uploaded to commons by User:Mr.Nostalgic in light of a donation by the Dutch National Archives - file here, CC0, ) Here are a couple examples of comms failures between pilots and ATC: KLM Flight 4805 and Pan Am Flight 1736 Radio MiscommunicationĬommunication is vital in the cockpit, and communications breakdowns are one of the main causes of preventable airplane crashes and close calls. Ready to honor the memory of those who were lost by learning from their experiences? Let’s get started. Checklist Failures and Overlooking Little Details.
Today we will share case studies highlighting eight types of human-error induced aviation disasters and the learning lessons we can take from each. Since 50-75% of aviation accidents are caused by human error, the answer is a resounding “yes.” When we ask, “what is the most common cause of plane crashes?” the sad answer is “human error.” So, are most plane crashes avoidable?
The more we study and review what went wrong on other flights, the better prepared we will be to manage or avoid similar dangers on our own flights. Learning from the fatal mistakes of others is unfortunately a reality in the aviation world.
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