At least 5 Thais dead in Laos plane crash: 44 total dead.

[GirlDrinkDrunk]

RIP to all concerned. Some western passengers on board also. I posted a link before with a list of passengers names, it has since been removed. Just as well I suppose until families have been informed.

the list is still very much there.

[AlphMichaels]

A sad event. Yes, the weather today was horrific and no doubt at least partly the cause. To the poster who talked about a cover up, I'm glad another stepped in and sent a message of condemnation for the statements. In reality and regardless of what anyone here or elsewhere says, this terrible tragedy will be investigated in a thorough and exhaustive manner.

Sincere condolences to those who lost loved ones....., souls from all over our world.

[Hugh Jarse]

You can try and avoid these smaller airlines, but even the bigger airlines have crashes from time to time. It's mostly about luck of the draw.

When your time is up, your times up! R.I.P. but, what a terrible way to go.

[SantiSuk]

RT@nikorn_ntv : จำนวนผูเสียชีวิตเครื่ิองบินลาวตกปากเซLao. 17

Aus. 5

Kor. 3

Tha. 5

Fra. 7

Chn. 1

Twn. 1

Can. 1

Mys. 1

Vnm. 2

Whoever scribbled the summary in the picture you took this from clearly omitted the fact there was also one American on the passenger list! Audit reconciliation skills lacking!

[balo]

I arrived Vientiane today with Thai Airways. We experienced a lot of turbulence during landing.

Around the same time when we landed or maybe 30 minutes later the plane from Lao airways took off.

It was heavy rain and it just got worse here in Vientiane with strong winds . So the passengers on this plane must have experienced some terrible minutes before the crash .

RIP to all the victims.

Edited October 16, 2013 by balo

[mtimmu]

this is always so sad to read ..
RIP

[Hugh Jarse]

You can try and avoid these smaller airlines, but even the bigger airlines have crashes from time to time. It's mostly about luck of the draw.

So nothing to do with poor airmanship or shoddy maintenance then?

Wait for the insurers investigations before jumping to conclusions! You may end up with egg on your face pc!

Edited October 16, 2013 by Hugh Jarse

[pgardiner]

I flew on a Laos airlines flight from Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang about 8 years ago. It was a cheap flight but after the flight I swore I would never fly Laos again, frightening. So loud in the plane, everybody was scared to the point of embaressed laughing. Found out after it had been blacklisted internationally as not to travel on!

[DGIE]

we do not know our fate or what happen to us in the next hour or day.

Only God knows

[Tomtomtom69]

I was at Pakse Airport 2 weeks ago during a torrential rainstorm waiting for my Lao Airlines flight out to BKK via Suvannaket. The ATR aircraft could take off from Pakse during the heavy rain but none could land. At the transit stop at Suvannaket, three Lao Airlines flights to Pakse were delayed as they could not land at Pakse due to rain low cloud and poor visibilty. My guess is that this doomed flight took a risk or a freak storm event happened during approach.

According to a Thai language news report, the Cambodian pilot decided to take the risk to go ahead and land anyway, despite these conditions and concerns from the cabin crew. Perhaps going back to Savannakhet or even choosing Ubon Ratchathani as an alternate should have been considered (assuming better visibility and weather conditions there) but well, it's too little too late now. Let's see what the outcome of the accident investigation yields so we'll know more. Anyway, a very tragic accident and whatever the exact cause(s) was/were, there are a couple of past crashes from various airlines that sound similar to this one, based on the initial information at hand.

[ekkamai]

How can you permit publishing this list, knowing that relatives might not yet have been informed?

[3SoiDogNight]

This really hits close to home for me. I was going to take a flight earlier this year that crashed in Laos.
I've been wanting to do some intra-Laos flights since it's right next door. I'm really surprised to read about one of their brand new ATR-72s crashing.

The Lao Air Twin Otter that crashed in April I was supposed to be on that flight.

Luckily I drank too mach the night before and missed the flight.

This was the flight I missed.

http://www.vientianetimes.org.la/FreeContent/FreeConten_Lao_air.htm

[Tomtomtom69]

Very sad - have always had doubts about flying Laos domestic and this sadly has confirmed them. Here is one of Laos Airways ATR-72's in action.

Yes - I agree with you. Even though air crashes are very rare and Lao Airlines hasn't had any (that I know of) for years until this one occurred, bad turbulence due to poor weather conditions would put me off flying domestically in Laos altogether during the rainy season (except on the few flights operated by A320 aircraft). Bad turbulence is in itself scary and is what causes me much more anxiety than the thought of crashing, which is thankfully so rare. During the dry season, most of these concerns are greatly reduced due to much better visibility (except when it's foggy in the north during cool winter mornings) and generally less turbulence.

However, I have never flown domestically in Laos as I can't get myself to take any other transport than my own car (or self-driven rental car). I love driving myself and I don't hide that fact - Laos is a beautiful country to drive in and by passing through Thailand to get from Vientiane to Pakse, you can make the journey in something like 8 hours, which isn't bad at all. I like being in control myself and given my extensive driving experience in Asia, Laos and Vietnam included (along with nearly every other country in the region) it is in my opinion the only way to travel in Laos and I would never travel any other way again other than driving myself.

[ekkamai]

I was at Pakse Airport 2 weeks ago during a torrential rainstorm waiting for my Lao Airlines flight out to BKK via Suvannaket. The ATR aircraft could take off from Pakse during the heavy rain but none could land. At the transit stop at Suvannaket, three Lao Airlines flights to Pakse were delayed as they could not land at Pakse due to rain low cloud and poor visibilty. My guess is that this doomed flight took a risk or a freak storm event happened during approach.

According to a Thai language news report, the Cambodian pilot decided to take the risk to go ahead and land anyway, despite these conditions and concerns from the cabin crew. Perhaps going back to Savannakhet or even choosing Ubon Ratchathani as an alternate should have been considered (assuming better visibility and weather conditions there) but well, it's too little too late now. Let's see what the outcome of the accident investigation yields so we'll know more. Anyway, a very tragic accident and whatever the exact cause(s) was/were, there are a couple of past crashes from various airlines that sound similar to this one, based on the initial information at hand.

Once airborne the pilot has to land somewhere. Weather conditions in the entire area within reach of this aircraft might have been unacceptable. Should it have taken of in the first place?

[Tomtomtom69]

How can you permit publishing this list, knowing that relatives might not yet have been informed?

The poster didn't publish this list, some news source probably did, so he/she is simply reposting it. I don't see anything wrong with publishing pictures/passenger manifests etc., besides, it gives us a more human picture of what happened and besides, this is what happens in this part of the world, so get used to it. On Thai TV you'll constantly see people's ID cards with full address etc. visible, especially in relation to criminals that were just apprehended. It's just the way it is here, nothing you can do about it.

[Tomtomtom69]

What a tradgedy !

My condoleances to the relitives who losed their loved ones !

It,s a tradgedy, for all the Laos people.

Don,t care, who are on board !

Thai or Laos people, or Japanese.

The safety record of the ATR 72 are quite high, and lets wait for the investigation.

Hopefully Laos can handle this.

As we know there are severe weather in the area since many days, whit VERY high wind and wind shear.

And heavy rain, who can bring down a big airliner, if they don,t have high enough, and power setting not on idle.

Lets wait and se.

Rest In Peace.

Yes, that's true - this typhoon has caused, directly or indirectly quite a few serious events in the last few days. My own flight from eastern Australia to Bangkok was re-routed westwards more along the normal southbound route prior to the typhoon making landfall over Vietnam and many other flights from Guangzhou/Hong Kong to Australia, amongst others, also routed themselves around the storm as can clearly be seen from their flight paths. My flight on a B747-400 was already quite turbulent and this was along the edge of the typhoon over Indonesian/Singaporean/Malaysian airspace - I can't imagine how bad it would have been to be on a turboprop like that one, where turbulence is felt much more greatly than on a large aircraft and of course let's not even talk about the horrific final moments. It's all so tragic but personally, if I had been booked on that flight I would have naturally rescheduled myself to fly on another day knowing the weather conditions prior to the flight. I always check the weather along the entire route before any flight and if I'm not totally satisfied, then I would reschedule my flight. Generally speaking this is unnecessary for most flights or weather conditions, since very severe weather conditions would likely be enough for most airlines to reschedule/cancel their flights at that time anyway, but in the case of this flight it was not the case perhaps because the prevailing weather conditions weren't considered severe enough. Without speculating further, the conditions could have worsened at the wrong time but as mentioned already, for me a typhoon turned tropical depression and a turboprop plane in a developing country like Laos would mean = don't fly.

[kkup]

RIP

[Tomtomtom69]

I was at Pakse Airport 2 weeks ago during a torrential rainstorm waiting for my Lao Airlines flight out to BKK via Suvannaket. The ATR aircraft could take off from Pakse during the heavy rain but none could land. At the transit stop at Suvannaket, three Lao Airlines flights to Pakse were delayed as they could not land at Pakse due to rain low cloud and poor visibilty. My guess is that this doomed flight took a risk or a freak storm event happened during approach.

According to a Thai language news report, the Cambodian pilot decided to take the risk to go ahead and land anyway, despite these conditions and concerns from the cabin crew. Perhaps going back to Savannakhet or even choosing Ubon Ratchathani as an alternate should have been considered (assuming better visibility and weather conditions there) but well, it's too little too late now. Let's see what the outcome of the accident investigation yields so we'll know more. Anyway, a very tragic accident and whatever the exact cause(s) was/were, there are a couple of past crashes from various airlines that sound similar to this one, based on the initial information at hand.

Once airborne the pilot has to land somewhere. Weather conditions in the entire area within reach of this aircraft might have been unacceptable. Should it have taken of in the first place?

Yes that's the thing - perhaps it would have been better not to have taken off at all until the conditions have improved. But well, we'll have to wait and see what the circumstances were leading to the decisions that were made rather than just giving our opinions. But my hunch is that apart from a few updates in the next few days, like every other accident investigation, including those that seem very clear cut from the beginning (such as mid air collisions) this one will take many months, but more likely even a couple of years to completely resolve before a final report is issued. This means a long time to wait before we have all the facts and by then the majority of us will likely not bother following up, many will have even forgotten the accident happened altogether. As a bit of an enthusiast, I won't, but the majority of people out there will treat this like any other tragic news event - it's dramatic for a few days or so, but over time the dramatic nature of the event will slowly start to fade away.

[lee b]

Shocking story, this is a reason i hate to fly. I feel so sorry for all the people killed and all the familys involved. And im not saying its not safe to fly, as the roads and train networks are.....well you know

[bluejersey]

I see there was an infant on board as well. God bless and RIP little one. Very sad.

[wooloomooloo]

My wife and I flew Lao Airlines two years ago. Vientiane to Luang Prabang, then a few days later Luang Prabang to Chiang Mai. The second leg was on an ATR-72 and was a clean and comfortable aircraft. I thought the interior was excellent and plenty of leg room for my 6'3" frame.

According to Reuters, Lao Airlines has a fleet of just 14 aircraft:

http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/10/16/laos-plane-crash-idINDEE99F07H20131016

[jojodontyouknow]

RIP

[Lonewolf77]

Something was wrong with the manifest Australia media are reporting 6 aust dead. Very sad RIP to all

[MrWorldwide]

Yep - 6 Australians reported among the casualties, but no names (identifying the Aussies from the others in the list published earlier) released at this point.

http://www.news.com.au/world-news/six-aussies-feared-dead-in-plane-crash-laos/story-fndir2ev-1226741301706

-----------------------------------

A passenger list released by the airline included five from Thailand, five from Australia, three from Korea, seven from France, one from the US, one from China, one from Taiwan, one from Canada and two from Vietnam.

But the Department of Foreign Affairs in Canberra says six Australians are thought to have been aboard flight QV301.

-----------------------------

The Australian media - notoriously quick to publish personal details when it smells a story - does show restraint when it comes to publishing the names of people killed in accidents. Personally, I'm not a fan of the manifest being published earlier in this thread.

-----------------------------

An official at the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos told AFP on condition of anonymity that all on board the plane had been killed.

Edited October 16, 2013 by MrWorldwide

[wooloomooloo]

The Australian media - notoriously quick to publish personal details when it smells a story - does show restraint when it comes to publishing the names of people killed in accidents. Personally, I'm not a fan of the manifest being published earlier in this thread.

You can bet your arse that if available, there'll be footage on SE Asian TV news of bodies being fished out of the water let alone publishing the flight list.

It's nothing personal and always been that way.

The tragedy is the crash.

[Foxxster]

The manifest is correct. I noticed there is a Ms J Rhodes listed as a Lao national however there are also 2 Rhodes listed as Australians. I am assuming that Ms Rhodes is a dual national and used her Lao identify to board the aircraft but was married to an Australian.

[webfact]

UPDATE:
5 Thais among 49 killed as Lao Airlines plane crashes into Mekong
The Nation


File photo : EPA

VIENTIANE: -- FIVE THAIS were among 49 passengers and crew killed when a twin-engine Lao Airlines plane plunged into the Mekong River yesterday as it attempted to land at an international airport in Laos' Champasak province, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee said.

Some of the five Thais killed on the flight from Vientiane were reportedly employees of the Petroleum Authority of Thailand travelling to Champasak on a working visit, according to a senior PTT official.

Flight QV301 was scheduled to land at Pakse International Airport at 4pm. A well-informed source said the aviation control tower at Pakse Airport recommended the pilots not land at the airport because of the poor visibility caused by Typhoon Nari.

The storm has brought severe weather to Thailand, Laos and Vietnam.

Despite the warning, the pilots insisted on attempting to land, but failed to do so because strong winds buffeted the aircraft. The pilots tried to raise the nose of the aircraft but were blown off course and crashed into a rocky island in the middle of the Mekong River about eight kilometres from the airport.

The aircraft broke into two parts on impact and sank into the river in Ponethong district of Champasak, which is opposite Thailand's Ubon Ratchathani province.


-- The Nation 2013-10-17

[webfact]

AVIATION ACCIDENT
Lao Airlines express condolences over Champasak accident

BANGKOK: -- Lao Airlines yesterday issued a statement of condolences over the accident of its flight in Laos' Champasak province that killed all 49 on board.

The airline’s statement was posted in its FB page Wednesday night.

Announcement

The President of Lao Airline State Enterprise and on a behalf of all Lao Airlines staffs, we express our condolences to family, friends colleagues, and relatives on the unexpected turn of event for passengers Flight QV301.

Lao Airlines Flight QV301, onboard with 44 passengers and 5 crews is travelling from Vientiane to Pakse on October 16, 2013, leaving at 14.45 local time and expected to arrive at Pakse Airport at 15.55. Upon preparing to land at Pakse Airport the aircraft ran into extreme bad weather conditions and was reportedly crashed into the Mekong River. There were no news of survivors at this time.

Lao Airlines is taking all necessary steps to coordinate and dispatch all resuce units to the accident site in the hope of finding survivors and at the same time informing relative of the passengers.

We are doining our best to investigate the cause of the crash and we hope to disclose findings by Thursday, October 17, 2013. Once again please accept our deepest sympathy to the passengers of flight QV301.


-- The Nation 2013-10-17

[chooka]

Sydney family killed in Laos plane crash

By Martin Zavan, ninemsn

10:02am October 17, 2013

A young Sydney family has been killed after the aircraft they were travelling in crashed as it approached an airport in the south of Laos, a member of the family has confirmed in a press release

Tax consultant Gavin Rhodes, his wife Phoumalaysy and their two children Manfred, 17 months and Jadesuda, 3, were among 49 passengers and crew killed when the plane crashed in the Mekong River at Pakse last night.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have confirmed that six Australians were listed as boarding the flight from Vientiane en route to Paske, with Lao officials alerting Australian consular staff in the country there were not expected to be any survivors.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/2013/10/17/10/02/sydney-family-killed-in-laos-plane-crash

[fareastguy]

The post stated that the aircraft crashed in poor weather conditions, obviously the airline didn't have the foresight to check how bad the "tail-end" of storm front Nari would have on flying conditions & safety.

It's the pilots duty to check the weather charts before planning his/her flight route, maybe their error in judgement for taking the flight up, or pressure from the airline to keep to schedule?

Same result I'm afraid to say, these are not accidents because as with most things they are avoidable!

I know hind sight is a wonderful thing, but it is something we can all learn from!

Condolences to families & friends concerned.