Wuhan Airlines Flight 343 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight between Enshi Airport and

Wuhan Wangjiadun Airport Hankow Airfield (Chinese: 王家墩机场), also known as Wuhan Wangjiadun Airport, was an airfield in Wangjiadun, Hankow City, Hubei, China that closed in 2007. Constructed in 1931, it was a busy military airfield during the Second Sino-Japan ...

, both in

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...

province,

Central China Central China () is a geographical and a loosely defined cultural region that includes the provinces of Henan, Hubei and Hunan. Jiangxi is sometimes also regarded to be part of this region. Central China is now officially part of South Central ...

. On June 22, 2000, the

Wuhan Airlines Wuhan Airlines (S: 武汉航空, T: 武漢航空, P: ''Wǔhàn Hángkōng'') was an airline based in Wuhan of the People's Republic of China. In 2003, it merged into China Eastern Airlines. Historical Fleet *4 Avia 14 Registration #: B-4209, B ...

Xian Y-7 The Xian Y-7 () is a twin turboprop transport/passenger aircraft built in China. It is based on the Soviet-designed Antonov An-24 series. Development China imported the Antonov An-24 from early in its production run and also negotiated licenses ...

registration Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), th ...

''B-3479'', flying the route crashed after encountering an area of adverse weather; the aircraft was struck by

lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...

and encountered

windshear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizontal ...

. Immediately after the accident, China ordered all of Wuhan Airlines' Xian Y-7 aircraft be grounded. One month after the accident, they were allowed to resume service. The accident remains the deadliest involving a Xian Y-7 aircraft, and is today the 12th deadliest aviation accident in the history of China.

History

The

aircraft departed Enshi Airport, on June 22, 2000, for a flight to Wuhan Wangjiadun Airport. As the aircraft approached Wuhan, the flight crew were informed of adverse weather conditions in the area of the airport. The flight crew circled the airport for approximately 30 minutes, waiting for the weather to improve; during this time they debated whether to divert to another airport, but the pilot decided to continue to try and land at Wuhan. Weather stations recorded 451 thunderclaps in ten minutes during the 30 minute period the aircraft was circling above the airport. At approximately 15:00 local time, the aircraft was impacted by

and struck by

, before it crashed in Sitai Village, Yongfeng Township. The fuselage came down between and from Wuhan in two sections; half of the aircraft fell on a dike on the Han River, the other half impacted with a farmhouse. All 40 passengers and four crew were killed, along with seven people on the ground.

Grounding of Xian Y-7 aircraft

In the aftermath of the accident, the

Civil Aviation Administration of China The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC; ) is the Chinese civil aviation authority under the Ministry of Transport. It oversees civil aviation and investigates aviation accidents and incidents. As the aviation authority responsible f ...

(CAAC) ordered all Wuhan Airlines' six other Xian Y-7 aircraft be grounded until the cause of the crash was determined. In July they were permitted to return to service after safety inspections were carried out and flight crews received more training. The CAAC ordered all Xian Y-7 aircraft be removed from scheduled passenger service by June 1, 2001.

Cause

The cause was determined to be the adverse weather the aircraft encountered, specifically the lightning strike. Other causes were the flight crew and air traffic control both violating standard operating procedures for severe weather, and incorrect decision making by the captain.

References

{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 2000 Aviation accidents and incidents in 2000 Aviation accidents and incidents in China 2000 disasters in China History of Wuhan Airliner accidents and incidents caused by lightning strikes 2000 meteorology June 2000 events in China Airliner accidents and incidents caused by pilot error Aviation accidents and incidents caused by air traffic controller error Airliner accidents and incidents caused by microbursts

History

Grounding of Xian Y-7 aircraft

Cause

See also

References