Asiana ulykken - Flygerne mener teknisk feil var årsaken

Asiana Pilots Raise Throttle Malfunction Crash Investigators Haven't Found Electrical or Mechanical Problems in Preliminary Probe By ANDY PASZTOR CONNECT Pilots of an Asiana Airlines Inc. jet that crashed while trying to land in San Francisco are offering an account that differs from the preliminary findings of U.S. investigators, people familiar with the investigation said. The pilots have told the National Transportation Safety Board that an in-flight malfunction of an automated speed-control system was a major factor in the fatal accident on July 6, these people said. So far safety-board investigators haven't uncovered any mechanical or electrical problems with the twin-engine jet prior to impact, these people said. Instead, the NTSB is focused on why the three pilots in the cockpit didn't adequately monitor the approach and failed to check airspeed until it was too late. The pilots, according to these people, have told U.S. investigators they believe an automated speed-control system, called auto-throttles, disconnected on its own, allegedly without any warning to the crew, shortly before the Boeing 777 slowed dangerously then slammed into a sea wall in front of a runway at San Francisco International Airport and broke apart. NTSB officials previously said the cockpit crew "assumed the auto-throttle was maintaining speed," but investigators also suggested the pilots may have failed to activate it correctly.