كعادته شهما شجاعا وفي لحظاته الاخيرة محمد علي يبعد الطائرة عن المناطق الماهولة

Quote: Crash inquiry focuses on old engines Loveday Morris Last Updated: October 24. 2009 12:35AM UAE / October 23. 2009 8:35PM GMT http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20...4/NATIONAL/710239770... ABU DHABI // The investigation into the Sharjah aeroplane crash that killed six crew members will focus on the cargo plane’s four turbofan engines, which were at least 24 years old, an official revealed yesterday. Engine difficulties are now thought to have caused the crash of the Boeing 707-330C shortly after take-off on Wednesday afternoon, Saif al Suwaidi, the director of the General Civil Aviation Authority, told The National yesterday. The remains of at least one of the aircraft’s engines will be sent overseas for analysis. “We are mainly thinking the problem was with the engine, but it doesn’t mean that we aren’t looking at other potential causes like the flight control system,” Mr al Suwaidi said. It is not clear how many of the engines will be analysed or where they will be sent. “If we suspect that only one is the cause, then we will just send that one,” he said. He said it was too early to speculate on what kind of engine problem might have caused the crash. The investigation will continue with the help of experts from the US, including representatives from Boeing and the National Transportation Safety Board. The part of the plane seen falling from the sky just seconds before the crash was a piece of engine cover, Mr al Suwaidi said yesterday, and it has been recovered. The cockpit voice recorder was also recovered yesterday and will be sent abroad for analysis, most likely to the UK, along with the plane’s data recorders, which were found on Thursday. The voice recorder, known as the “black box”, records conversations between pilots and air traffic controllers and can provide vital information in investigations into the cause of accidents. The time it takes to analyse the recorders will depend on their condition, he said, but because the recorders and engines must be sent abroad, the investigation may take months to complete. A surveillance video from the airport shows the plane, which was leased by Sudan Airways from Azza Air Transport and had been in operation since 1969, take off and fly out of sight before an object can be seen falling from the sky. The aircraft then comes back into view, pitching sharply sideways before crashing into the ground and exploding. All six crew members were killed. Although the falling engine cover may not have caused the crash, an engine problem is the most likely reason the cargo plane struggled after take-off, almost flipping over before hitting the ground, Mr al Suwaidi said. “There was a piece that fell. It’s the outer cover of the engine, not the engine itself. But it doesn’t necessarily mean it was the cause of the crash,” he said. Internet discussion boards have been rife with speculation on what caused the accident. On one pilot forum, a poster claimed a pilot who witnessed the crash saw smoke coming from one engine before the aircraft began banking to the right. Capt Phil Smith, an air safety expert and chairman of the UK’s Royal Aeronautical Society’s Flight Operations Group, examined footage of the crash and said it could have been caused by engine failure. An accident investigator inspects one of the aircrafts burnt out engines at the crash site in Sharjah. Stephen Lock / The “On an aircraft with the engine situated out on the wings, like the 707, if an engine fails on one side, you’ll have more power on one side than the other. If it’s not corrected by the pilot, the aircraft will roll,” he said. However, piloting a plane with a failed engine is one of the most common emergency procedures practised in training, and a pilot should be able to handle the plane even with a failed engine, he said. A failure in the control system could also have caused the plane to veer, he said. If the engine casing fell off, it is more likely to be the result of a more serious problem with the engine rather than the reason for the crash itself, Capt Smith said. “I’d say it’s unlikely that an engine panel falling off would be the cause of the crash. It’s more likely that it’s the effect of another issue with the engine rather than the cause of problem. “It’s conceivable that if some high-pressured pipe in the aircraft engine broke, for example, it could cause a panel to fall off. It’s rare for a panel to fall off, but it’s much rarer for a panel to fall off and cause a problem.” According to the Aviation Safety Network database, the plane had four Pratt & Whitney JT3D-3B engines. They were manufactured between 1959 and 1985. Their use is steadily decreasing as planes are refitted with newer models that are quieter and more powerful. Boeing 707s are banned from flying in many western countries because of their noise levels. The model that crashed in Sharjah was using older engines without a noise-suppressing “hush kit”. “It’s a fairly standard engine,” Capt Smith said. “It’s extremely unlikely that the engines are also 40 years old and haven’t been refitted at some point.” Another website contributor claimed the person who fuelled his plane in Sharjah on the day of the crash had also fuelled the Boeing 707 and said it was “leaking fuel from several places on the wing”. “Saw the Azza 707 taxi out while we were being driven to our aircraft. It looked pretty nice. Of course a nice paint job doesn’t say much about the technical status …”, the poster said. Mr al Suwaidi declined to comment on the rumour of a fuel leak. “I haven’t got any information on that,” he said. According to Capt Smith, a fuel leak would not necessarily pose a danger, aside from meaning the plane would run out of fuel more quickly. The post also claimed “quite a few aircraft parts” were found on the runway and the airfield was closed while they were collected. However, Mr al Suwaidi said only one aircraft part, the engine cover, was recovered outside the crash site. Investigators have ruled out the plane being overloaded as the cause of the crash. It was carrying six tonnes less than its capacity of 37 tonnes. The age of the plane was not a problem as long as it was properly looked after, Capt Smith said. “The fact that the plane is 40 years old is not necessarily an issue, as long as the aircraft is properly maintained,” he said. “In fact, chances are, on older aircraft the checks are particularly thorough.” [email protected] Please log in to post a comment Have your say