Nok Air plane nearly hits hospital building

[Pilotman]

Yet one more civil pilot who thinks he is better than he is, pushes too far and nearly kills his passengers. Luck is no replacement for good judgement.

[sawadee1947]

I read somewhere that NOK is numer one in Asia. No 1 of the most dangerous airlines.... q.e.d.

[dotpoom]

Like wise, well done to the pilot, but something really has to be done about the farm burning (the said cause of the smog in this instance)...this is too serious now.

[ratcatcher]

@Neversure - It would appear that that Mae Sot airport does not have glide slope indicators by looking at the Google Earth of the runway. Nothing on either end of the runway. That is a very small airport. Also, the only beacons shown are DVOR-DME and no ILS shows in the tables. Also this site shows the same but with the inclusion of NDB (non directional beacons) so appears it is a VFR only field (World Aero Data). As for ground proximity detection, the aircraft is a Bombardier Q400 turbo prop and appears to support EPGWS (Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System).

In other words, that airport appears to have very limited instrumentation support.

Capture.JPG

But! Didn't this airport just rate itself as one of, if not THE best airports in the world? Why would they lay claim to this if the failed to have what to me would be standardized flight safety equipment.

I find your post somewhat confusing. When did Mae Sot rate itself one of the best airports in the world?

Here are the best airports in the world. No mention of sweet little Mae Sot tho'

http://www.worldairportawards.com/awards/world_airport_rating.html

[jerome2]

Typical ...the thais think they know better than the law or the rule in that case... just like minibus drivers

and what about yabaa test the pilots?

[sappersrest]

It is not just a Thai infastructure thing, believe it or not the Gold Coast airport in Australia .Coolangata OOL does not have ILS in place yet.They have international flights land there.

Edited February 11, 2016 by sappersrest

[impulse]

Well done the pilot, but I suppose if you are going to be in a crashing plane, best to hit a hospital.

I'd say it's better to hit any building but the hospital that I'd soon be hauled off to for treatment. I'd want it to be in tip-top shape.

[nonresident]

Modern gpws are linked to the transponder, GPS and a global topographical database AND the landing gear. When the aircraft, in landing configuration, nears the ground at a location where the database says there is no runway an alarm will be triggered. Something like TERRAIN PULL UP.

FYI if Air NZ had this gear (not invented then) the Eribus accident probably wouldn't have happened as this new gear (not that new - about 15 years) takes into account terrain ahead and the aircraft's ability to outclimb it at current weight etc

[joboss]

I work on the assumption that the Air Traffic Controllers in Thailand are as professional as the Royal Thai Police, The Justice System, The immigration Department, The Bus Companies, the Railways Department etc. etc.

I mean really, why should we assume the ATC people are any better? Or the pilots come to that.

So I never fly on a Thai air company. I always fly Emirates and whenever entering or leaving Thai air space, I'm shitting bricks, re-reading the safety card, and timing my run to the closest exit.

In most other countries I sleep through the landings and take-offs.

You sleep through the landings?

Is that an indication of how excited you are to be landing in another country.

Landing in Thailand ups your adrenaline levels. Personally I like excitements and a bit of edging.

[louse1953]

I work on the assumption that the Air Traffic Controllers in Thailand are as professional as the Royal Thai Police, The Justice System, The immigration Department, The Bus Companies, the Railways Department etc. etc.

I mean really, why should we assume the ATC people are any better? Or the pilots come to that.

So I never fly on a Thai air company. I always fly Emirates and whenever entering or leaving Thai air space, I'm shitting bricks, re-reading the safety card, and timing my run to the closest exit.

In most other countries I sleep through the landings and take-offs.

Hundreds of planes in the Bangkok area daily and no mid air collisons,so your paranoia is unjustified.You keep collecting those bricks as i relax with everybody else.

[sappersrest]

Typical ...the thais think they know better than the law or the rule in that case... just like minibus drivers

and what about yabaa test the pilots?

Pilots routinely go through random tests for drink and drugs. Just remember they do not want to die especially after spending over a $100,000 plus of their own money on training.

[CNXBKKMAN]

Well the aircraft is less than a year old and still fresh from the factory in Canada. The cockpit will have all the modern equipment installed. Maesot airport is very basic and sometimes can go long periods with no airline serving it. Kan Air don't seem to fly there anymore. Phuket Air used to fly there. Nok Air are giving it a go now.

I am only guessing but to fly into such a basic airport at such a low altitude to almost hit a building and have no view of the runway is evidence of poor pilots. I am guessing also that Nok Air has a whole bunch of procedures to follow when visibility is poor like diverting, abandoning the approach if the airport can't be seen at 2000 feet altitude. You follow the rules everything is 100% safe. I wouldn't like to be these pilots with this incident on their CV's.

[steven100]

I work on the assumption that the Air Traffic Controllers in Thailand are as professional as the Royal Thai Police, The Justice System, The immigration Department, The Bus Companies, the Railways Department etc. etc.

I mean really, why should we assume the ATC people are any better? Or the pilots come to that.

So I never fly on a Thai air company. I always fly Emirates and whenever entering or leaving Thai air space, I'm shitting bricks, re-reading the safety card, and timing my run to the closest exit.

In most other countries I sleep through the landings and take-offs.

sorry to hear about your condition .... I wish you well and hope you can get appropriate treatment.

[Amusements]

I was just thinking.....I have 4 flights on Nok Air over the next week. If I don't post that I am OK by the 18th, Can someone on TV please delete my username.

Thanks....

[ianf]

Sounds morbid i know but perhaps if there had been a disaster the Authorities would have been forced into doing more about the smog problem from unnecessary burning. All they do at the moment is talk.

I've been here in Chiang Mai for 7 years. The smog question recurs every year like a bad dream. Off course the authorities will do nothing. Even the local Government workers are engaged in burning. Rather than clear the grass and debris from the road side verges, they burn it with the resulting pollution intensified with the burning of the discarded plastic. Getting a bit fed up with this. There is really no need for it.

[spectrumisgreen]

Of course the runways and planes have instrument landing equipment. They couldn't operate year around if they didn't. That doesn't mean the pilots were paying any attention or had a clue what they were doing. Obviously he was way off the glideslope and out of sync with the ILS (instrument landing system) but...

If the plane was working properly he would have had alarms going off such as the Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS).

"In the late 1960s, a series of controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) accidents took the lives of hundreds of people. A CFIT accident is one where a properly functioning airplane under the control of a fully qualified and certified crew is flown into terrain, water or obstacles with no apparent awareness on the part of the crew.

Beginning in the early 1970s, a number of studies examined the occurrence of CFIT accidents. Findings from these studies indicated that many such accidents could have been avoided if a warning device called a ground proximity warning system (GPWS) had been used."

Cheers.

Nicely Put, Mister Acronym, I am impressed! (NPMAIAI)

[Maesotthailand]

I have been up here for many years and first we had pucket air crash and run off the runway then solar air and terbulance that nearly took the plane down and now Nok air.

The airport is very basic and they have been saying it will be upgraded for the past 10 years to take jets. However I had some guests who wanted to take a small private jet up here and could not as no night landing along with all sorts of other systems missing thus they could only go to suhkothai and car the rest of the way. They were also not willing to take Nok air. Their company policy banned that airline due to safety concerns and that was before the report about Nok.

I often drive and take my time rather than get all stressed about the flight although of course flying is safer and the first 80 km out of Mae sot is death highway with all sorts of drivers on the road.

I hope this cause an immediate tightening for everyone's safety. Good it's all over the news .... Forces them hopefully to do something. Unlike the solar air which was covered up. Of course the Pucket air flight you can search online but that must have been 6 years ago or somewhere along those lines.

[ableguy]

Of course the runways and planes have instrument landing equipment. They couldn't operate year around if they didn't. That doesn't mean the pilots were paying any attention or had a clue what they were doing. Obviously he was way off the glideslope and out of sync with the ILS (instrument landing system) but...

If the plane was working properly he would have had alarms going off such as the Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS).

"In the late 1960s, a series of controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) accidents took the lives of hundreds of people. A CFIT accident is one where a properly functioning airplane under the control of a fully qualified and certified crew is flown into terrain, water or obstacles with no apparent awareness on the part of the crew.

Beginning in the early 1970s, a number of studies examined the occurrence of CFIT accidents. Findings from these studies indicated that many such accidents could have been avoided if a warning device called a ground proximity warning system (GPWS) had been used."

Cheers.

You forget the vasi light system which is located at the far end of the runway which gives you your glide slope for a vfr landing, red on white dead on site white on red go ahead.

Any pilot will understand that, and if you cannot see the lights on a vfr (visual flight rules ) landing abort go ifr instrument flight rules.

[Hawk]

" causing passengers on board to go panic."

[Michael8511]

The visibility was bad due to smog and the pilot did what he was supposed to do and everything went well. These things happens all over the world and the beer judges are not aware of that so now when it happen in Thailand of course all beer bars goes wild in criticizing Thai airliners and Thailand again. Maybe it safer for you guys to move back home again.

[spectrumisgreen]

Sounds morbid i know but perhaps if there had been a disaster the Authorities would have been forced into doing more about the smog problem from unnecessary burning. All they do at the moment is talk.

So..let's have people die, yeah? (sounds morbid, I know.. er, sick?).. so that a lesson could be learned, the 'Authorities' would suddenly want to fix (or 'have been forced into doing more') about the 'smog' problem.. and, presumably, some unnecessary burning could then be averted.. just a pity about those folks lost in the disaster, and their families and friends, no? 'Sounds morbid, I know', but ho hum, my throat tickles occasionally from the smoke!!!

[Saastrajaa]

^^^ My apologies. I've never heard of an airline being allowed to make scheduled flights under visual flight rules (VFR).

So at a minimum he was flying with visibility below what was legal for VFR, and didn't have or ignored the GPWS built into the plane.

I must learn to expect such "surprises" from Thailand. A scheduled airline flying VFR???

Cheers.

Didn't you know? Thai airspace is different. International rules do not apply. Of course, no person who is not a Thai could understand this. Kind of like Thai electricity being different, which is why you don't need to ground the wiring when you're building a house in Thailand.

[Maesotthailand]

Forgot to mention. Hospital vs runway. The only hospital under construction is Mae sot hospital. Look at that on google map then look at airport and runway. It's scary. Finally today the weather was hazy and yes there was a little more smog than usual but no way near as much as I have seen them land in. If it's bad they will resort to pilok airport. I really find today's close call a scary one that should have never happened. Most likely new pilot and not familiar. Irresponsible if that's the case....,

[CoreanoOzzie]

I work on the assumption that the Air Traffic Controllers in Thailand are as professional as the Royal Thai Police, The Justice System, The immigration Department, The Bus Companies, the Railways Department etc. etc.

I mean really, why should we assume the ATC people are any better? Or the pilots come to that.

So I never fly on a Thai air company. I always fly Emirates and whenever entering or leaving Thai air space, I'm shitting bricks, re-reading the safety card, and timing my run to the closest exit.

In most other countries I sleep through the landings and take-offs.

.....and you're still in Thailand because......?

[Tywais]

It would appear that that Mae Sot airport does not have glide slope indicators by looking at the Google Earth of the runway.

Appears I was partially wrong after looking more closely. It doesn't have VASI (visual approach slope indicators), which is what I was looking for, but it does have PAPI (precision approach path indicator). Hard to see on Google Maps but they are there. 1st image is Google Earth showing them, the 2nd image is a landing approach to Mae Sot showing them more clearly. And YouTube showing how PAPI looks on approach to landing (not Mae Sot). As thick as the smoke was, they would probably have been difficult to see far out.

[Chicog]

These Asian bucket airlines are a bloody nightmare.

[Echo Tango]

^^^ My apologies. I've never heard of an airline being allowed to make scheduled flights under visual flight rules (VFR).

So at a minimum he was flying with visibility below what was legal for VFR, and didn't have or ignored the GPWS built into the plane.

I must learn to expect such "surprises" from Thailand. A scheduled airline flying VFR???

Cheers.

Airlines can operate into VFR airfields if it is specified in that airlines Operational Specifications, and approved by the country's aviation authority.

[NovaBlue05]

I've flown Nok a number of times and never came close to hitting a building.....as far as I know.

[swerver]

Navy pilot here...

Thai pilots as far as I know don't descend to minimum, they descent until the see something. then they'll do whatever they want... land, go around , or crash.

usually pilot should start their watch from the outer marker which is 5 to 8 Miles from the airport, that give them an estimated time to execute a go around in case no runway in sight. going below minimum descend altitude with no runway in sight is a crime punishable by ICAO.

always consider that the ILS could fail during the approach and all you have left are your watch and your compass.

worked for me for years.

Yes these were the days.

We learned to fly in a J3 Cup and practiced spin control till it became a natural, pull off the power, 3-turns and then full rudder to stop the turning then gradually pull back on the stick to get the plane back at straight and level.

Yes these were the days.

After graduating from the J3 Cup it was to the coffee can Cessna 120 with the Collings coffee grinder radio and ADF, flying the A-B beam and at nighttime the Henry Ford Light beam towers.

Yes these were the days.

Then after 120-hours of this practicing, Gov. examinations (Written, Oral, Flying) and when passed issuing of the VFR Commercial pilot license single engine land.

Next Instrument flight training for the instrument flying (IFR) rating.

Then cam Multi Engine Land (MEL) rating.

By then you were allowed to go fly copilot commercial, like the single ax autopilot DC3. cruising speed 140MPH max altitude 10,000 feet.

Yes those were the says.

But that was in the olden days.

Now they learn flying in the computer game cafes. Join the military to get free pilot training, free clothing, free room and board and a monthly stipend. - not like the above - for starter spin control is not part of the curriculum, neither is the 120.

Yes these ARE the days.

And that is the reason I will not fly any commercial airline today because I started to see all the boners they are making.

I'm no newbie in aviation, possess all FAA licenses/ratings from Ground Instructor - Advanced - instrument thru ATP, FEJ, A&P.

LOL

[Melyn]

Of course the runways and planes have instrument landing equipment. They couldn't operate year around if they didn't. That doesn't mean the pilots were paying any attention or had a clue what they were doing. Obviously he was way off the glideslope and out of sync with the ILS (instrument landing system) but...

If the plane was working properly he would have had alarms going off such as the Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS).

"In the late 1960s, a series of controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) accidents took the lives of hundreds of people. A CFIT accident is one where a properly functioning airplane under the control of a fully qualified and certified crew is flown into terrain, water or obstacles with no apparent awareness on the part of the crew.

Beginning in the early 1970s, a number of studies examined the occurrence of CFIT accidents. Findings from these studies indicated that many such accidents could have been avoided if a warning device called a ground proximity warning system (GPWS) had been used."

Cheers.

If you can provide something to back up the existence of ILS then I'll go eat some humble pie. But I think you are wrong