Libyan airliner crashes in Tripoli

Libya plane crash ‘not technical fault’

BBC News

A plane crash in Libya that killed 103 people on 12 May was not caused by mechanical failure, according to a preliminary inquiry.

The “black box” recorders indicated that the Afriqiyah Airways plane had enough fuel and made no call for help.

Don’t believe it was a go around. Reports from an Alitalia pilot holding for departure on runway 09 state that the plane hit nose first at about a 20* angle.

From that report it looks like they still haven’t decided which runway they were attempting to land on?

Revised ASN report.

http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20100512-0

You’re right. I am now looking at the correct airfield. Not many buildings on the approach.

I plotted the reported impact point on Google Earth. It seems that the plane ploughed through some buildings, if that is correct. The image is a bit small – the impact point of 980 yards before the runway is left of the blue colored buildings.

Unless the plane diverted, you are looking at the wrong airfield. You’re looking at the military airbase. The commercial airport is some 25 kilometers to the south of Tripoli.

ah i stand corrected, thanks.

@27vet: I don’t think there are any reports that suggest the aircraft hit any buildings.

On news24 this morning.

Ploughed through trees, buildings, vehicles

According to Wolmarans, 36, an operations manager at Global Aviation’s office in Tripoli, he was waiting for a colleague, Cathrine Tillett, who was on the flight.

Tillett, 44, an aviation training officer at Global Aviation in Johannesburg, died along with two former colleagues who retired recently, Norbert Taferner and his wife, Paula.

“The plane hit the ground about a kilometre from runway number 9. Then it ploughed through trees, several buildings and some vehicles,” said Wolmarans.

He said the weather was very bad.

“Visibility was poor. When I got to the scene, the tail of the Airbus was the only part that was still recognisable. Pieces of wreckage lay everywhere. It was gruesome.”

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/A-loud-crash-then-bodies-everywhere-20100512

@27vet: I don’t think there are any reports that suggest the aircraft hit any buildings.

Aren’t the onboard computers and automated landing systems supposed to prevent this sort of thing??

my thoughts exactly.

I plotted the reported impact point on Google Earth. It seems that the plane ploughed through some buildings, if that is correct. The image is a bit small – the impact point of 980 yards before the runway is left of the blue colored buildings.

missed approach theory does sit in, the inquiry is now under way.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8679254.stm

Good weather..brand new aircraft..terrorism??

Mohammed Ali Zidan, Libyan minister of transport, ruled out the possibility of terrorists being involved in the crash, the Associated Press has reported.

It would appear that the aircraft had done a missed approach, so conditions were less than ideal.

See my previous post about a possible false localizer.

Aren’t the onboard computers and automated landing systems supposed to prevent this sort of thing??

If reported time correct, accident happened one minute before sea level sunrise. With airport slightly higher, the approach would have involved transitioning between sunlit and shaded airspace. Visibility reports suggest dusty/hazy conditions rather than fog (it is the middle of the sandstorm season), with nighttime visibility 6000-5000m, dropping to 2000m (and staying there) after sunrise. Sunlit dust may produce whiteout conditions, even if reported ground visibility may have been 5000m, the sunlit part of the approach would have been flown virtually blind, at that time these conditions would have persisted almost till touchdown.

Would suggest that the weather was not ideal?:confused:

Good weather..brand new aircraft..terrorism??

Not if you’re a drug dealer

not denying that…but clearly the crash news is more important than ‘fungus hits Afghan poppies’? 😎

Political changes are more topical at the moment for the majority of people!;)

Just got up and trying to get myself updated on the crash and it seems its off almost all major websites such as BBC, or is in some corner as news. :confused:

stunning!