Flight OG269: At Least 88 Bodies Found At Phuket Airport Crash Site

[Mid]

If you were driving a car from Rangsit to Silom and you had a crash at Central, Lat Phrao; where did the crash happen - Lat Phrao or Silom? If a plane is en route to HKT and crashes on the approach to HKT, where did the crash happen?

The information suggests that the plane was on final approach. Whilst I admit to having little knowledge of aviation other than sitting on planes, the use of the words "final approach: suggest close proximity to the airport. Either way, it really doesn't matter, but why come out with a clear statement that nothing has never happened when people may start to question the authenticy of the statement? My point, is that by using denial on so many things, not just on this incident harldy installs confidence in the investigation. In the end, the main thing is that I hope that the famalies of the deceased get the true answers of the cause of the crash, and not one that is convenient for business interests.

ACCIDENT DETAILS

Date: August 31, 1987

Time: 15:36

Location: Off Ko Phuket, Thiland

Operator: Thai Airways

Flight #: 365

Route: Hat Yai - Phuket

AC Type: Boeing B-737-2P5

Registration: HS-TBC

cn / ln: 22267/685

Aboard: 83 (passengers:74 crew:9)

Fatalities: 83 (passengers:74 crew:9)

Ground: 0

Summary: The aircraft stalled and crashed into the ocean after the crew's attention was diverted to concern over another aircraft. Failure of the crew to monitor their airspeed. The pilot added power and raised the gear after the stick shaker activated but did not execute a recovery before hitting the sea.

planecrashinfo.com

[Mid]

Phuket International Airport.

geoeye.com

[simon43]

FYI, that plane crash into the sea in 1987 occured close to the beach which adjoins the runway. So I think it's quite fair to say that the crash occured at Phuket Airport.

In that Geoeye view, my hotel is sitting along the bottom edge of the photo, by the white 'dot' just right of the 'm' of 'com'. It's about 600 metres from the airport, so I knew about this crash pretty quickly.

Simon

[mr_hippo]

OK, Mid, seeing you are so knowledgeable about the crash of HS-TBC:-

How far off-shore was the crash?

When were the wheels put down?

What altitude was he at?

Was he heading for 09 or 27?

How much traffic was ahead of him or behind him?

Was he over the threshold?

When was he handed over to Phuket ATC?

Was he in contact with HKT approach or HKT tower at the time?

What were weather conditions like?

[Mid]

OK, Mid, seeing you are so knowledgeable about the crash of HS-TBC:-

How far off-shore was the crash?

When were the wheels put down?

What altitude was he at?

Was he heading for 09 or 27?

How much traffic was ahead of him or behind him?

Was he over the threshold?

When was he handed over to Phuket ATC?

Was he in contact with HKT approach or HKT tower at the time?

What were weather conditions like?

nah , I'm with you ,

wasn't in the car park either .......................

[ChiangMaiAmerican]

Meanwhile, another One-Two-Go flight from Bangkok to Hat Yai yesterday had a minor crash landing, but the pilot managed to control the aircraft.

One of the plane's lights and air-conditioning control panels fell on top of a passenger and oxygen masks also dropped down, airport officials said.

One passenger suffered bruising.

AND:

On long-term measures to cope with emergencies at the airport, he said the airport needed better quality foam to extinguish fires. The foam used to douse the fire last week was not good enough to put the fire out completely, Sqn-Ldr Pornchai said.

AND:

Adm Bannawit said improvements must be made to the airport's rescue capability.

He said the airport still lacked an efficient rescue team and there were no rescue helicopters available.

Full story here:

http://bangkokpost.com/News/23Sep2007_news03.php

Edited September 23, 2007 by ChiangMaiAmerican

[jeebusjones]

He said the airport still lacked an efficient rescue team and there were no rescue helicopters available.

That's interesting, because they had rescue helicopters available for their little make-believe "rescue" drill just a few days before the crash. I guess those helicopters were only available for show, and not for real emergencies.

Rescue helicopters arrived to airlift “victims” to hospital.

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/index.as...yes&Id=5949

[Crossy]

Also from this article http://bangkokpost.com/News/23Sep2007_news03.php[/url]

As for the data recorders which were sent to the United States, he said, the information on the cause of the crash should be made available in a month.

So now it's a month before we'll see any information from the CVR and FDR. What next six months? By which time most people will have conveniently forgotten about his tragedy.

Now a similar hard landing incident at Hat Yai, IMHO it's time to ground this airline until they employ some pilots!

[Mid]

Pilot sent "mayday" before Phuket crash

The pilot of the One-Two-Go budget airline that crashed in Phuket a week ago, killing 89 people, issued a distress signal to the airport tower before skidding off the runway, news reports said Sunday.

"The chief pilot shouted 'mayday' repeatedly to ask for help until he lost contact with the control tower," Pornchai Ua-aree, director of Phuket International Airport, told the Bangkok Post.

Controllers also received information from the pilot that although the aircraft's wheels were out they had not touched the ground, Porchai said.

On September 16, One-Two-Go flight OG269 landed at Phuket International Airport, 640 kilometres south of Bangkok, during a tropical rain storm and skidded off the runway into an embankment where it broke in two and burst into flames.

snip

digitaljournal.com

landing..

[Mid]

Pilot sent 'mayday' to tower

Second One-Two-Go plane has crash landing

By Achadtaya Chuenniran and Thai News Agency

Sunday September 23, 2007

The chief pilot of the ill-fated One-Two-Go airliner sent a distress signal to the control tower just before it crash-landed last Sunday, said Pornchai Ua-aree, director of Phuket international airport.

The pilot used a ''mayday'' signal to ask for help just before the plane veered off the runway and crashed into an earth embankment.

snip

bangkokpost.com

[jeebusjones]

The pilot used a ''mayday'' signal to ask for help just before the plane veered off the runway and crashed into an earth embankment.

snip

That is deeply disturbing. It also indicates that the emergency teams should have had at least some warning to prepare for the plane even before it crashed.

Edited September 23, 2007 by jeebusjones

[Mid]

That is deeply disturbing. It also indicates that the emergency teams should have had at least some warning to prepare for the plane even before it crashed.

that's only the beginning .................

all reports up to now indicated that landing was the last word .

Edited September 23, 2007 by Mid

[Mid]

Pilot sent “mayday” before Phuket crash

(DPA)

23 September 2007

BANGKOK - The pilot of the One-Two-Go budget airline that crashed in Phuket a week ago, killing 89 people, issued a distress signal to the airport tower before skidding off the runway, news reports said on Sunday.

snip

khaleejtimes.com

[mrtoad]

If that is the case, then it may be more difficult to scapegoat the "foreign pilot", which initially appeared to be the suggestion.

I suppose we will just have to wait until the flight recorders are decoded before making any further assumptions, but I sadly smell a cover up.

[sbk]

Air crash survivors to be discharged soon

PHUKET - Foreign survivors still in hospital following last Sunday's air crash at this southern resort are expected to be released within two weeks. Thirty National Legislative Assembly members Saturday visited and presented bouquets to injured air crash victims at a hospital here.

Seventeen injured passengers including 12 foreigners and five Thais are still receiving treatment here.

Continued here at the Bangkok Post

[simon43]

Rescue helicopters arrived to airlift “victims” to hospital.

[\quote]

I don't this is an accurate statement. I saw/heard no helicopters until about 1 hour after the acccident, at which point a single helicopter flew overhead going towards the airport. I did not see it return...

Simon

[Crossy]

Rescue helicopters arrived to airlift “victims” to hospital.

I don't this is an accurate statement. I saw/heard no helicopters until about 1 hour after the acccident, at which point a single helicopter flew overhead going towards the airport. I did not see it return...

Simon

That quote is referring the the drill that was performed a few days before the accident (post #699) which is why the word 'victims' is in quotes. Evacuation choppers were definately not available on sunday

I find it amazing that Phuket airport are admitting that they don't have adequate equipment to deal with this type of accident. They also seem to have been very slow in deploying the fire control equipment, looks like they took at least 3 minutes to arrive. I doubt they could have saved my mate (his wife says he took a serious blow to the back of the neck) but I'm sure they could have got many more out.

Wonder if there is any mileage available in suing the airport authorities of their lack of facilities.

[keemapoot]

If that is the case, then it may be more difficult to scapegoat the "foreign pilot", which initially appeared to be the suggestion.

I suppose we will just have to wait until the flight recorders are decoded before making any further assumptions, but I sadly smell a cover up.

Well, this information about a repeated "mayday" does get more interesting. The reason for such a mayday could be an equipment failure, as the pilot should have been able to pull up. There would be no reason to cover up an equipment failure unless it was due to poor maintenance, and in that case, the airline would be the one with the motive.

[Tywais]

If that is the case, then it may be more difficult to scapegoat the "foreign pilot", which initially appeared to be the suggestion.

I suppose we will just have to wait until the flight recorders are decoded before making any further assumptions, but I sadly smell a cover up.

If it is true that a 'mayday' was broadcast by the pilot it would be on the control tower tapes which I believe the local authorities have. Would have thought that rather important detail would have been mentioned when they announced part of the recording before.

[mr_hippo]

The reason for such a mayday could be an equipment failure, as the pilot should have been able to pull up.

What do you base that statement on?

[lost_in_space]

If a pilot repeatedly calls mayday, it's hard to imagine he's doing that with seconds to land.

Seems reasonable to me what keemapoot infers.

[Aussietraveller]

The thing that i find disturbing in all of this is the media hype that surrounded the simulated emergency response drill carried out at the airport on Sept 6.

Phuket Gazette story on Simulation

Pictures in the above story showed teams of workers in matching orange overalls, fire proof gloves, hard hats.

Other teams were all dressed in silver fire retardant suits and breathing apparatus.

Not a pickup to be seen.

No cars parked all over the runway.

Once safely stopped on the tarmac, the aircraft was quickly doused by fire trucks and firemen on the ground in high-heat-resistant firefighting suits.

Rescue helicopters arrived to airlift “victims” to hospital.

Reporting response times, K. Pornchai said that ambulances from Thalang Hospital, Phuket International Hospital, Bangkok Phuket Hospital and Patong Hospital had all arrived on the scene within 15 minutes.

These are vastly different images than the ones on the news last week unfortunately.

[mrtoad]

The thing that i find disturbing in all of this is the media hype that surrounded the simulated emergency response drill carried out at the airport on Sept 6.

Phuket Gazette story on Simulation

Pictures in the above story showed teams of workers in matching orange overalls, fire proof gloves, hard hats.

Other teams were all dressed in silver fire retardant suits and breathing apparatus.

Not a pickup to be seen.

No cars parked all over the runway.

Once safely stopped on the tarmac, the aircraft was quickly doused by fire trucks and firemen on the ground in high-heat-resistant firefighting suits.

Rescue helicopters arrived to airlift “victims” to hospital.

Reporting response times, K. Pornchai said that ambulances from Thalang Hospital, Phuket International Hospital, Bangkok Phuket Hospital and Patong Hospital had all arrived on the scene within 15 minutes.

These are vastly different images than the ones on the news last week unfortunately.

I fail to see how any roadbound vehicle can get from Patong Hospital or even from Bangkok Phuket in 15 minutes., which leads me to suspect that the impact upon the tourist industry rather than the truth about exactly what happened is at the forefront of some peoples motives. I hope that I am wrong, but maybe it wasn't such a well conducted rescue operation as first published?

[Maestro]

If a pilot repeatedly calls mayday, it's hard to imagine he's doing that with seconds to land.

I, on the other hand, can imagine it quite easily. The pilot tells the tower that he is going to land. When already close to the runway he sees that it is impossible, decides to abort the landing (go around). This fails, the rear of the plane hits the runway, the pilot calls repeatedly “mayday” in quick sucession.

I am not saying this is what happened. The transcription of the tower’s tapes and of the voice recorder in the blackbox should make it possible to create an accurate timeline. We just have to wait for that.

--

Maestro

[Mid]

I am not saying this is what happened. The transcription of the tower’s tapes and of the voice recorder in the blackbox should make it possible to create an accurate timeline. We just have to wait for that.

what we do know is that there are TWO different stories out there ,

so far ....................

[sibeymai]

I'd like to hear from some pilots how long does it take for an MD-82 to effect a "go-around" (ie. achieve positive rate of climb) ?

I understand that the engines are in a throttle position to effect descent and when a go-around is necessary there is a delay in achieving a positive rate of climb because the engines have to spool up.

It seems from the information given so far that the decision to abort the landing was made in sufficent time for the landing gear to retract before the plane hit the runway. Could this be 10 seconds before impact ? How long does it take for the MD-82's undercarriage to retract ?

If 10 seconds is ballpark for the gear to retract could the plane have achieved a positive rate of climb in that time under normal conditions ? Could weather conditions at the time have extended the time taken to achieve positive climb beyond the time to impact ?

The flight recrder data will be very interesting in determining the timing and sequence of events. I just think it is curious that there was enough time to retract the gear, assuming the gear was initially deployed (reports from passengers indicate it was) yet the plane did not achieve a positive rate of climb.

Some passengers reported that the plane did appear to climb momentarily before dropping onto the runway. Did the aircraft stall due to too much nose up before the engines had reach full power ?

Again, the flight data recorders will tell the story.

Edited September 23, 2007 by sibeymai

[Mid]

post # 654

[sibeymai]

post # 654

Well, that's what got me thinking. Isn't 100 feet above the runway a little late to abort ? In fact, could the landing gear retract in that time (100 feet to touchdown) ?

Seems to me that a pilot would abort a landing at such a late stage only in the most absolutely necessary of circumstances....such as adverse mechanical or weather effect on the plane's alignment with the runway or aircraft trim, and no time to correct before touchdown.

Flight recorder data will be interesting.

[Mid]

Flight recorder data will be interesting.

very much doubt what we see will be ...........................................

[Maestro]

There have been many news reports, some of them conflicting, but some basic facts that should have been easily available to reporters are missing, or perhaps I have missed them.

In what direction did the pilot attempt to land? East or West?

At what end of the runway did the plane wreck end up? East or West?

--

Maestro