Ju-52 ulykken i _Sveits i 2018 - Flygerne får skylden - Curt Lewis

 

Report: 'High-risk piloting' caused fatal JU-52 accident, Switzerland   Status: Final Date:    Saturday 4 August 2018 Time:   16:56 Type:   Junkers Ju-52/3mg4e Operator:         Ju-Air Registration:    HB-HOT C/n / msn:        6595 First flight:       1939 Total airframe hrs:       10189 Cycles:            8783 Engines:          3 BMW 132A3 Crew:   Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 Passengers:    Fatalities: 17 / Occupants: 17 Total:   Fatalities: 20 / Occupants: 20 Aircraft damage:          Destroyed Aircraft fate:    Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location:         1,2 km (0.8 mls) SW of Piz Segnas (  Switzerland) Crash site elevation:    2540 m (8333 feet) amsl Phase: En route (ENR) Nature:            Domestic Non Scheduled Passenger Departure airport:        Locarno Air Base (LSMO), Switzerland Destination airport:      Dübendorf Air Base (LSMD), Switzerland Narrative: A Junkers Ju-52/3m aircraft, operated by Ju-Air, was destroyed in an accident in a mountainous area in Switzerland. The aircraft crashed into the western slope of Piz Segnas at an elevation of 2540 m. All 17 passengers and three crew members were killed. The aircraft had departed Locarno, Switzerland, at 16:10 on a flight to it's home base at Dübendorf. The aircraft flew on a northeasterly course into the basin southwest of Piz Segnas. Towards the north end of the basin, it began a left turn, which developed into a descending spiral trajectory. A short time later, the aircraft collided with the ground almost vertically and at high speed. Following the crash, all Swiss Junkers Ju-52 aircraft were grounded. Ju-Air was allowed to restart operations on August 17 with the two remaining aircraft of the same type. Since there were no indications of general technical defects at this time, the FOCA had approved the resumption of flight operations in compliance with precautionary measures. On November 20, the Swiss TSB published an interim report. There was still no evidence that a serious technical problem led to the accident. The investigation of the wreck, however, revealed severe structural damage in the form of cracks and corrosion on the main spar, the supporting element of the aircraft wing, and other parts of the aircraft. This damage was hidden during normal inspections and maintenance and could only be determined from the debris. Since the two Ju-52 HB-HOP and HB-HOS stationed in Dübendorf correspond in age as well as in hours of operation to the crashed aircraft, the Swiss authorities temporarily grounded both aircraft for inspections. Probable Cause:   Direct cause: The accident is attributable to the fact that after losing control of the aircraft there was insufficient space to regain control, thus the aircraft collided with the terrain.   The investigation identified the following direct causal factors of the accident: - The flight crew piloted the aircraft in a very high-risk manner by navigating it into a narrow valley at low altitude and with no possibility of an alternative flight path. - The flight crew chose a dangerously low airspeed as regard to the flight path. Both factors meant that the turbulence which was to be expected in such circumstances was able to lead not only to a short-term stall with loss of control but also to an unrectifiable situation.   Directly contributory factors The investigation identified the following factors as directly contributing to the accident: - The flight crew was accustomed to not complying with recognised rules for safe flight operations and taking high risks. - The aircraft involved in the accident was operated with a centre of gravity position that was beyond the rear limit. This situation facilitated the loss of control.   Systemic cause The investigation identified the following systemic cause of the accident: - The requirements for operating the aircraft in commercial air transport operations with regard to the legal basis applicable at the time of the accident were not met.   Systemically contributory factors The investigation identified the following factors as systemically contributing to the accident: - Due to the air operator’s inadequate working equipment, it was not possible to calculate the accurate mass and centre of gravity of its Ju 52 aircraft. - In particular, the air operator’s flight crews who were trained as Air Force pilots seemed to be accustomed to systematically failing to comply with generally recognised aviation rules and to taking high risks when flying Ju 52 aircraft. - The air operator failed to identify or prevent both the deficits and risks which occurred during operations and the frequent violation of rules by its flight crews. - Numerous incidents, including several serious incidents, were not reported to the competent bodies and authorities. This meant that they were unable to take measures to improve safety - The supervisory authority failed to some extent to identify the numerous operational shortcomings and risks or to take effective, corrective action. Accident investigation: cover   Investigating agency: STSB Switzerland  Status: Investigation completed Duration:         2 years and 6 months Accident number:        Np. 2370 Download report:        Final report   https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20180804-0

 

 

Pilots' risky flying blamed in Swiss vintage plane crash   BERLIN (AP) — Swiss investigators said Thursday that “high-risk flying” by the pilots of a vintage propeller plane led to a 2018 crash in the Alps that killed all 20 people on board.   The 79-year-old Junkers Ju-52 operated by local airline Ju-Air crashed in southeastern Switzerland on Aug. 4, 2018.   The airplane, which was carrying 17 passengers and three crew members, slammed near-vertically into a mountain. It was flying back from Locarno in southern Switzerland to its base near Zurich.   The Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board said in its final report that “the pilots’ high-risk flying was a direct cause of the accident.”   As they entered a narrow mountain valley, “the flight crew piloted the aircraft at low altitude, with no possibility of an alternative flight path and at an airspeed that was dangerously low for the circumstances,” investigators said.   As the plane hit turbulence in the valley, “the high-risk manner of flying through these not unusual turbulences caused the pilots to lose control of the aircraft,” they added. The plane was flying too low to have enough space to recover.   The report also found that the aircraft's center of gravity was too far to the rear during the doomed flight, a “dangerous situation (that) was caused by inadequate flight preparation and errors in the Ju-Air software.”   It said that the pilots “had become accustomed ... to not complying with rules for safe flight operations and taking high risks even with passengers on board,” and that Ju-Air failed to recognize the risks or to prevent them from violating the rules.   The report also faulted Switzerland's Federal Office of Civil Aviation for failing to identify “numerous safety problems” at Ju-Air or being ineffective in dealing with them.   That office in March 2019 revoked Ju-Air's commercial flight license after reviewing the risks of passenger flights with vintage planes, but said it could, if it fulfilled various conditions, continue private flights for registered members.   Ju-Air said in a statement Thursday that it “will do everything to learn from the crash.”   It said it is “glad that the direct causes of the accident could be shown clearly” and is analyzing the issue of a problem with the center of gravity. Evaluations suggest that issue first arose 35 years before the crash, but had caused no problems in the intervening time and hadn't been noticed by Ju-Air or regulators, the company said.   It added that issues that led to pilots' risky behavior going undiscovered will be addressed in the future selection, training and oversight of pilots.   https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/pilots-risky-flying-blamed-swiss-112220038.html