Afriqiyah crash investigation focusing on faulty landing aids, sunlight
By Geoffrey Thomas | May 14, 2010
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Investigators examining the Afriqiyah Airways A330-200 crash are expected to focus on faulty landing aids and the pilots being blinded by the sun as possible causes.
Flight 8U771, en route from Johannesburg, was attempting to land at Tripoli International at about 6 a.m. local time Wednesday when it crashed about 900 m. short of the runway, killing all but one of the 104 passengers and crew aboard (ATWOnline, May 13). The only survivor was an 8-year-old Dutch boy. The Netherlands announced yesterday that 70 of the passengers were Dutch citizens.
ATWOnline has learned that Runway 09, to which the aircraft was headed, does not have an ILS and the VOR navigational aid was suffering from interference. Pilots were warned in a NOTAM that "interference from signal being experienced during current airport development work. VOR should be used with caution."
The aircraft was landing to the east and crashed just as the sun was rising, leading to suspicions that the pilots may have been blinded by sunlight to possible errors in their approach and height caused by problems with the landing aids. The aircraft's flight data and cockpit voice recorders both have been recovered.
Libyan Transport Minister Mohammed Ali Zidan told media that the A330-200 was acquired by the airline last September and first flew on Aug. 12. Its latest maintenance check was done under contract by Lufthansa Technik in Milan on March 5. It had flown only 1,600 hr. and performed 420 landings.
By Geoffrey Thomas | May 14, 2010
0
Share
Investigators examining the Afriqiyah Airways A330-200 crash are expected to focus on faulty landing aids and the pilots being blinded by the sun as possible causes.
Flight 8U771, en route from Johannesburg, was attempting to land at Tripoli International at about 6 a.m. local time Wednesday when it crashed about 900 m. short of the runway, killing all but one of the 104 passengers and crew aboard (ATWOnline, May 13). The only survivor was an 8-year-old Dutch boy. The Netherlands announced yesterday that 70 of the passengers were Dutch citizens.
ATWOnline has learned that Runway 09, to which the aircraft was headed, does not have an ILS and the VOR navigational aid was suffering from interference. Pilots were warned in a NOTAM that "interference from signal being experienced during current airport development work. VOR should be used with caution."
The aircraft was landing to the east and crashed just as the sun was rising, leading to suspicions that the pilots may have been blinded by sunlight to possible errors in their approach and height caused by problems with the landing aids. The aircraft's flight data and cockpit voice recorders both have been recovered.
Libyan Transport Minister Mohammed Ali Zidan told media that the A330-200 was acquired by the airline last September and first flew on Aug. 12. Its latest maintenance check was done under contract by Lufthansa Technik in Milan on March 5. It had flown only 1,600 hr. and performed 420 landings.
