Ethiopian Airlines flight with 157 believed aboard crashes minutes after takeoff; all passengers reported dead
Associated Press,
by
Staff
Original Article
Posted By: LittleHoodedMonk,
3/10/2019 7:49:59 AM
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - An Ethiopian Airlines flight with 157 people thought to be on board crashed shortly after takeoff Sunday morning from Ethiopia´s capital while headed to Nairobi, the airline said. Ethiopia´s state broadcaster said all passengers were dead, adding that they included 33 nationalities. The airline´s statement said 149 passengers and eight crew members were thought to be on the Boeing 737, which crashed six minutes after departing Addis Ababa on its way to Kenya´s capital. There were no immediate details on what caused the crash. The state-owned Ethiopian Airlines, widely considered the best-
Reply 1 - Posted by:
varkdriver 3/10/2019 9:45:00 AM (No. 8)
I do not know what caused this mishap, but it seems that basic aviation skills are on the wane. Yes, the 737 and other large aircraft have flight-director systems that can guide the aircraft to the desired altitude/heading/airspeed most efficiently, but when something unusual happens, the basic concept of "Maintain Aircraft Control" does not happen.
RIP to all those unfortunate souls. I hope they find what the cause actually was and, if there was a mechanical cause, they can fix the fleet quickly.
23 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
bpl40 3/10/2019 11:21:09 AM (No. 2)
Indonesia, Ethiopia..How is it that only Third World airlines are invlolved? This should be a criteria included in the investigations.
15 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
citizen 3/10/2019 12:35:42 PM (No. 9)
FTA- The Lion Air cockpit data recorder showed that the jet´s airspeed indicator had malfunctioned on its last four flights.
Thought they had the problem solved. Sad.
11 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
ControlFreak 3/10/2019 12:54:54 PM (No. 5)
Eight Americans on board. Sad news all around.
13 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
GO3 3/10/2019 1:03:48 PM (No. 1)
Operative phrase: "widely considered the best-managed airline in Africa..."
16 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
DVC 3/10/2019 1:53:31 PM (No. 4)
I used to fly on Aeroflot a good bit, and not without aprehension. But, the State Dept forbade us from flying on about two dozen other Rooskie "airlines", which was inconvenient at times, requiring long, moderately unpleasant train rides, but I was never even slightly tempted to ´cheat´ and fly on one of the forbidden airlines.
Not a chance I would ever fly in Ethiopian Airlines. Sad for the dead, but many of these 3rd world airlines are horrifically unsafe.
13 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 3/10/2019 4:08:19 PM (No. 7)
Re #6. My brother flew extensively in Russia on business. He said it was terrifying especially in the winter. Aging aircraft and somewhat loose flight rules.
Not flying any African airline either.
12 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
poliposter 3/10/2019 6:12:47 PM (No. 3)
Yeah, #6 and #7, but this was a brand new state of the art came out in 2017 airplane, not some rickety 40 year old hunk of metal. Either something malfunctioned or pilot training is the problem. Very sad.
17 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
DVC 3/11/2019 1:27:29 AM (No. 6)
#8, the airspeed indicator had been giving trouble for many flights, highly likely it was not properly repaired. This is an ABSOLUTE safety of flight, required equipment item, not negotiable, not waivable on any even remotely sane airline.
With bad airspeed data, some aircraft and some pilots can do OK in good daylight visibility. The autopilot will not work properly and critical instruments will be inop.
Taking off with a bum airspeed, and the pilot had probably been told (incorrectly) that it was fixed, is a suicide mission.
Piloting skills are often thin in the 3rd world, and more important many times, aircraft maintenance skills are in very short supply. A 737 is not a like fixing a motor scooter, probably the last thing their mechanics worked on before getting a job with the airlines.
As to Russia, I flew on a very new 737 which the cabin heat was jammed wide open, got up to about 110F or better inside. The passengers, mostly Russians, first asked and then TOLD the flight attendants to get the temperature down. Finally, the threatened them, and they hid out behind the curtains in first class.
All aircraft need maintenance and repairs, when incompetents and drunks (often the problem in Russia) do the work, watch out.
14 people like this.
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Both sad and startling news to wake up to in the AM. God, have mercy on their souls and comfort the families.