ACCIDENTS & INCIDENTS

(6 July – 12 July 2008)

Airline, Corporate, & AeroMedevac

Date/

Location

Aircraft/Reg

Narrative

Casualties

Comments

6 July

Copenhagen, DENMARK

Norwegian Air-operated Boeing 737-300

Air Shuttle made an emergency landing after one of its engines malfunctioned.

120 Uninjured

Norwegian Air Shuttle spokeswoman Anne Grete Ellingsen says there was an indication of high oil temperature in the engine.

6 July

Ben-Gurion, ISRAEL

Israir-operated Airbus A320

The airplane had taken off from Israel to Berlin when the pilots informed supervisors of pressure loss in one of the engines. The plane was directed back for landing and a state of alert was announced in the airport.

178 Uninjured

In April, a Continental Airlines plane also made an emergency landing at Ben-Gurion Airport after engine failure caused the pilot to change route and head back to the Israeli airport shortly after takeoff.

6 July

Jeddah, SAUDI ARABIA

Phuket Airlines-operated Boeing 747-300

Engine failed about half way down the runway, with the airplane supposedly above decision speed. Immediately after takeoff, the crew declared an emergency, dumped fuel and returned to Jeddah.

>100 Uninjured

Although sparks were observed emitting off of the faulty engine during takeoff, the plane continued its ascent. Parts of the compressor and the thrust reverser were found on the departure runway.

6 July

Tampa, FL

Northwest Airlines-operated Boeing 757

A spokeswoman at the Tampa airport initially told The Associated Press that a bird was to blame, but Federal Aviation Administration officials ruled out that cause 7 July. Pilots heard a bang when the plane was at 18,000 feet during its descent into Tampa.

182 Uninjured

6 July

Monterrey, MEXICO

USA Jet Airlines-operated DC-9-15

Reg: N704CK

The crash occurred at 2:15 a.m. as the freighter approached the airport in Saltillo, Mexico, carrying a load of auto parts, said the vice president of USA Jet Airlines.  No further information was released.

1 Fatal, 1 Serious

The NTSB has sent a team of investigators to assist the Mexican government in its probe of the incident.  The pilot was killed and the co-pilot was severely burned; both were American citizens.

7 July

Bogota, COLOMBIA

Kalitta Air-operated Boeing 747

U.S. cargo plane carrying flowers crashed after reporting a fire in one engine.

2 Fatal, 4 Serious, 4 Uninjured

One of several Kalitta Air accidents in the past few years. 

7 July

St. Louis, MO

Midwest-operated MD-81

Reg: N804ME

Aircraft, which was carrying Senator Barack Obama, made an uneventful precautionary landing due to inflation of the escape slide in the tailcone. Control stiffness and strong elevator control forces were felt by the crew, alerting them to the problem.

48 Uninjured

This isn't the first time this problem has occurred - just the first time it has occurred with the national news media on-board. In fact, that same aircraft has five reports of problems with the tailcone escape slide. Still, it wouldn’t besurprising if  some "intern" or media representaive pulled the handle (half way) leaving the lavatory ... then thought better of it.

8 July

Little Rock, AK

American Airlines-operated MD-80

An American Airlines flight heading to Dallas from Indianapolis made an emergency landing Tuesday afternoon in Little Rock after a pilot saw smoke in the cockpit.

127 Uninjured

Flight 1257 landed safely at Little Rock, AK. 

9 July

Dallas, TX

American Airlines operated MD-80

Flight was forced to return to DFW when the pilot encountered a problem with the plane’s stabilization equipment and declared an emergency shortly after takeoff.

123 Uninjured

This was the second American Airlines emergency landing this week.

11 July

New York, NY

Delta-operated Boeing 747

Two airborne planes — one landing and the other taking off — came within a half-mile of colliding at JFK. The pilot of Delta Flight 123 decided to abort his landing and execute a "go-around.” That caused the Delta flight to intersect with the flight path of Comair Flight 1520, a regional jet that was taking off on another runway.

>300 Uninjured

The FAA has prided itself on “quickly” moving to change takeoff and landing procedures at JFK on perpendicular runways after this incident. But this is the second near-collision at this airport in the past week.  An FAA spokeswoman stated, "We've had two events recently and I think we want to make sure the appropriate safety margins are in place." Apparently, one isn’t enough to get the FAA’s attention.

11 July

New York, NY

Comair-operated Bombardier CRJ9

See above.

General Aviation and Helicopter

Date/

Location

Aircraft/Reg

Narrative

Casualties

Comments

6 July

East Carbon, UT

Piper PA-28-140

Reg: N7360J

Flying with insufficient fuel and “heavily loaded with camping equipment,” the plane could not maintained altitude and was damaged during landing.

2 Uninjured

This seemingly preventable accident occurred most likely because of rushed or faulty pre-flight procedures, according to the pilot.

6 July

Point Lookout, MO

Cessna 337

Reg: N53661

As the airplane rotated for takeoff and the main landing gear lifted off the runway, the front engine lost power.  Although the pilot tried to abort, the plane would not stop and went over a steep embankment.

2 Minor, 2 Uninjured

The pilot stated his preflight, engine run-up, and magneto check were normal.

8 July

Kalispell, MT

Cessna 150F

Reg: N8647G

Aircraft experienced a loss of engine power during initial climb from runway. During subsequent forced landing, it descended into a livestock corral.

2 Serious

The airplane's fuselage was substantially damaged during ground impact, and thereafter was consumed by fire.

9 July

Moorpark, CA

Cessna 172RG

Reg: N9627B

Aircraft experienced a partial loss of engine power and the pilot made a forced landing on a hillside's upsloping terrain. During the landing rollout, the airplane impacted the ground and nosed over.

2 Minor

During the subsequent interview with the NTSB investigator, the CFI (Certified Flight Instructor) opined that the throttle control was dysfunctional, since it moved too freely, and it was obviously "disconnected" from the engine's carburetor.

9 July

Teterboro, NJ

Cessna 172

Reg: N316AS

3 Uninjured

The incident occurred during the day shift with a front line manager and two air traffic control specialists on position. The ground controller had been on position for 40 minutes and was responsible for five aircraft. The FAA reported the closest proximity between the two planes was 1,200 feet.

9 July

Teterboro, NJ

Dessault Falcon 200

Reg: N277QS

10 July

Camarillo, CA

Piper PA-18

1 Minor

It was the third mishap involving a small airplane in Ventura County in the past eight days.

10 July

Puerto Montt, CHILE

Aerocord-operated Beechcraft 99A

The two engine aircraft burst into flames shortly after takeoff and plunge to the ground.

9 Fatal

The crash was the second in that region of Chile in eight days. On 2 July, three air force officers were killed when their Twin Otter plane crashed after touching some power lines during an instruction flight

11 July

Hood River, OR

Erik Jonnson Sonerai

Reg: N8050R

During flight the control stick unexpectedly began buffeting, and the pilot noticed that the left aileron was becoming detached at the outboard hinge, so he immediately headed for nearest airport runway. Aircraft nosed over during emergency landing.

1 Uninjured

As he was about to touch down for emergency landing, the pilot noticed another airplane was landing in the opposite direction on the same runway, so he tried to land on the right side of the runway. The other airplane was able to exit the runway and maintain separation.

12 July

Kenai, AK

Iversen Glastar SH-4

Reg: N212DR

The amphibious plane was destroyed when it collided with terrain.

3 Fatal

Little is currently known as to the cause of the crash, since the majority of the plane was destroyed by the post-impact fire.

Military

Date

Aircraft Type

Narrative

Casualties

Comments

10 July

Islamabad, PAKISTAN

Pakistani Air Force T-37 aircraft

The T-37 aircraft was on a training mission when it went down in Sakhakot area at around midday, PAF spokesman Wing Commander Aamir Zaheer said.

According to the spokesman, initial reports suggested that the trainee pilots parachuted to safety.

4 Uninjured

The American-made T-37 aircraft, acquired by Pakistan in the early 1960s, are the mainstay basic training jets of the PAF. The air force co-developed a more advanced jet with China in 1990, but only a limited number of aircraft have been inducted in the inventory.

11 July

Eastern MALAYSIA

SK 16A Nuri

Royal Malaysian Air Force helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing after encountering a technical problem.

2 Uninjured

Sources said the emergency landing was due to a problem with the main rotor blade.

All entries are preliminary and subject to confirmation/correction by formal accident reports.