Pilot error
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aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...
, pilot error generally refers to an action or decision made by a
pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
that is a substantial contributing factor leading to an aviation accident. It also includes a pilot's failure to make a correct decision or take proper action. Errors are intentional actions that fail to achieve their intended outcomes. The
Chicago Convention The Convention on International Civil Aviation, also known as the Chicago Convention, established the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a specialized agency of the United Nations charged with coordinating international air trav ...
defines the term "accident" as "an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft ..in which ..a person is fatally or seriously injured ..''except when the injuries are ..inflicted by other persons."'' Hence the definition of "pilot error" does not include deliberate crashing (and such crashes are not classified as accidents). The causes of pilot error include psychological and physiological human limitations. Various forms of threat and error management have been implemented into pilot training programs to teach crew members how to deal with impending situations that arise throughout the course of a flight. Accounting for the way
human factors Ergonomics, also known as human factors or human factors engineering (HFE), is the application of psychological and physiological principles to the engineering and design of products, processes, and systems. Primary goals of human factors eng ...
influence the actions of pilots is now considered standard practice by accident investigators when examining the chain of events that led to an accident.


Description

Modern accident investigators avoid the words "pilot error", as the scope of their work is to determine the cause of an accident, rather than to apportion blame. Furthermore, any attempt to incriminate the pilots does not consider that they are part of a broader system, which in turn may be accountable for their fatigue, work pressure, or lack of training. The
International Civil Aviation Organization The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sch ...
(ICAO), and its member states, therefore adopted James Reason's model of causation in 1993 in an effort to better understand the role of human factors in aviation accidents. Pilot error is nevertheless a major cause of air accidents. In 2004, it was identified as the primary reason for 78.6% of disastrous general aviation (GA) accidents, and as the major cause of 75.5% of GA accidents in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. There are multiple factors that can cause pilot error; mistakes in the decision-making process can be due to habitual tendencies, biases, as well as a breakdown in the processing of the information coming in. For aircraft pilots, in extreme circumstances these errors are highly likely to result in fatalities.


Causes of pilot error

Pilots work in complex environments and are routinely exposed to high amounts of situational stress in the workplace, inducing pilot error which may result in a threat to flight safety. While aircraft accidents are infrequent, they are highly visible and often involve significant numbers of fatalities. For this reason, research on causal factors and methodologies of mitigating risk associated with pilot error is exhaustive. Pilot error results from physiological and psychological limitations inherent in humans. "Causes of error include
fatigue Fatigue is a state of tiredness (which is not sleepiness), exhaustion or loss of energy. It is a signs and symptoms, symptom of any of various diseases; it is not a disease in itself. Fatigue (in the medical sense) is sometimes associated wit ...
, workload, and fear as well as cognitive overload, poor
interpersonal communication Interpersonal communication is an exchange of information between two or more people. It is also an area of research that seeks to understand how humans use verbal and nonverbal cues to accomplish several personal and relational goals. Communica ...
s, imperfect
information processing In cognitive psychology, information processing is an approach to the goal of understanding human thinking that treats cognition as essentially Computing, computational in nature, with the mind being the ''software'' and the brain being the ''hard ...
, and flawed decision making." Throughout the course of every flight, crews are intrinsically subjected to a variety of external threats and commit a range of errors that have the potential to negatively impact the safety of the aircraft.


Threats

The term "threat" is defined as any event "external to
flight crew Aircrew are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose. Commercial aviation Flight deck positions In commercial aviation, ...
's influence which can increase the operational complexity of a flight." Threats may further be broken down into environmental threats and airline threats. Environmental threats are ultimately out of the hands of crew members and the airline, as they hold no influence on "adverse weather conditions,
air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled air ...
shortcomings, bird strikes, and high terrain." Conversely, airline threats are not manageable by the flight crew, but may be controlled by the airline's management. These threats include "aircraft malfunctions, cabin interruptions, operational pressure, ground/ramp errors/events, cabin events and interruptions, ground maintenance errors, and inadequacies of manuals and charts."


Errors

The term "error" is defined as any action or inaction leading to deviation from team or organizational intentions. Error stems from physiological and psychological human limitations such as illness, medication, stress, alcohol/drug abuse, fatigue, emotion, etc. Error is inevitable in humans and is primarily related to operational and behavioral mishaps. Errors can vary from incorrect
altimeter setting Altimeter setting is the value of the atmospheric pressure used to adjust the scale of a pressure altimeter so that it indicates the height of an aircraft above a known reference surface. This reference can be the mean sea level pressure ( QNH), ...
and deviations from flight course, to more severe errors such as exceeding maximum structural speeds or forgetting to put down landing or takeoff flaps.


Decision making

Reasons for negative reporting of accidents include staff being too busy, confusing data entry forms, lack of training and less education, lack of feedback to staff on reported data and punitive organizational cultures. Wiegmann and Shappell invented three cognitive models to analyze approximately 4,000 pilot factors associated with more than 2,000 U.S. Navy aviation mishaps. Although the three cognitive models have slight differences in the types of errors, all three lead to the same conclusion: errors in judgment. The three steps are decision-making, goal-setting, and strategy-selection errors, all of which were highly related to primary accidents.Wiegmann, D.A., & Shappell, S.A. (2001).
Human error Human error is an action that has been done but that was "not intended by the actor; not desired by a set of rules or an external observer; or that led the task or system outside its acceptable limits".Senders, J.W. and Moray, N.P. (1991) Human Er ...
perspectives in aviation. The International Journal of Aviation Psychology, 11(4), 341–357.
For example, on 28 December 2014, AirAsia Flight 8501, which was carrying seven crew members and 155 passengers, crashed into the Java Sea due to several fatal mistakes made by the captain in the poor weather conditions. In this case, the captain chose to exceed the maximum climb rate for a commercial aircraft, which caused a critical stall from which he was unable to recover.


Threat and error management (TEM)

TEM involves the effective detection and response to internal or external factors that have the potential to degrade the safety of an aircraft's operations. Methods of teaching TEM stress replicability, or reliability of performance across recurring situations. TEM aims to prepare crews with the "coordinative and cognitive ability to handle both routine and unforeseen surprises and anomalies." The desired outcome of TEM training is the development of 'resilience'. Resilience, in this context, is the ability to recognize and act adaptively to disruptions which may be encountered during flight operations. TEM training occurs in various forms, with varying levels of success. Some of these training methods include data collection using the ''line operations safety audit'' (LOSA), implementation of crew resource management (CRM), cockpit task management (CTM), and the integrated use of checklists in both
commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...
and
general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...
. Some other resources built into most modern aircraft that help minimize risk and manage threat and error are airborne collision and avoidance systems (ACAS) and
ground proximity warning system A Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) is a system designed to alert pilots if their aircraft is in immediate danger of flying into the ground or an obstacle. The United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) defines GPWS as a type of ...
s (GPWS). With the consolidation of onboard computer systems and the implementation of proper pilot training, airlines and crew members look to mitigate the inherent risks associated with human factors.


Line operations safety audit (LOSA)

LOSA is a structured observational program designed to collect data for the development and improvement of countermeasures to operational errors. Through the audit process, trained observers are able to collect information regarding the normal procedures, protocol, and decision making processes flight crews undertake when faced with threats and errors during normal operation. This data driven analysis of threat and error management is useful for examining pilot behavior in relation to situational analysis. It provides a basis for further implementation of safety procedures or training to help mitigate errors and risks. Observers on flights which are being audited typically observe the following: * Potential threats to safety * How the threats are addressed by the crew members * The errors the threats generate * How crew members manage these errors (action or inaction) * Specific behaviors known to be associated with aviation accidents and incidents LOSA was developed to assist crew resource management practices in reducing human error in complex flight operations. LOSA produces beneficial data that reveals how many errors or threats are encountered per flight, the number of errors which could have resulted in a serious threat to safety, and correctness of crew action or inaction. This data has proven to be useful in the development of CRM techniques and identification of what issues need to be addressed in training.


Crew resource management (CRM)

CRM is the "effective use of all available resources by individuals and crews to safely and effectively accomplish a mission or task, as well as identifying and managing the conditions that lead to error." CRM training has been integrated and mandatory for most pilot training programs, and has been the accepted standard for developing human factors skills for air crews and airlines. Although there is no universal CRM program, airlines usually customize their training to best suit the needs of the organization. The principles of each program are usually closely aligned. According to the U.S. Navy, there are seven critical CRM skills: *
Decision making In psychology, decision-making (also spelled decision making and decisionmaking) is regarded as the cognitive process resulting in the selection of a belief or a course of action among several possible alternative options. It could be either ra ...
– the use of logic and judgement to make decisions based on available information *
Assertiveness Assertiveness is the quality of being self-assured and confident without being aggressive to defend a right point of view or a relevant statement. In the field of psychology and psychotherapy, it is a skill that can be learned and a mode of communi ...
– willingness to participate and state a given position until convinced by facts that another option is more correct * Mission analysis – ability to develop short and long term contingency plans *
Communication Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...
– clear and accurate sending and receiving of information, instructions, commands and useful feedback *
Leadership Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
– ability to direct and coordinate activities of pilots & crew members *
Adaptability Adaptability ( "fit to, adjust") is a feature of a system or of a process. This word has been put to use as a specialised term in different disciplines and in business operations. Word definitions of adaptability as a specialised term differ littl ...
/flexibility – ability to alter course of action due to changing situations or availability of new information *
Situational awareness Situational awareness or situation awareness, often abbreviated as SA is the understanding of an environment, its elements, and how it changes with respect to time or other factors. It is also defined as the perception of the elements in the envi ...
– ability to perceive the environment within time and space, and comprehend its meaning These seven skills comprise the critical foundation for effective aircrew coordination. With the development and use of these core skills, flight crews "highlight the importance of identifying human factors and team dynamics to reduce human errors that lead to aviation mishaps."


Application and effectiveness of CRM

Since the implementation of CRM circa 1979, following the need for increased research on resource management by
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
, the aviation industry has seen tremendous evolution of the application of CRM training procedures. The applications of CRM has been developed in a series of generations: * First generation: emphasized individual psychology and testing, where corrections could be made to behavior. * Second generation: featured a shift in focus to cockpit group dynamics. * Third evolution: diversification of scope and an emphasis on training crews in how they must function both in and out of the cockpit. * Fourth generation: CRM integrated procedure into training, allowing organizations to tailor training to their needs. * Fifth generation (current): acknowledges that human error is inevitable and provides information to improve safety standards. Today, CRM is implemented through pilot and crew training sessions, simulations, and through interactions with senior ranked personnel and flight instructors such as briefing and debriefing flights. Although it is difficult to measure the success of CRM programs, studies have been conclusive that there is a correlation between CRM programs and better risk management.


Cockpit task management (CTM)

Cockpit task management (CTM) is the "management level activity pilots perform as they initiate, monitor, prioritize, and terminate cockpit tasks." A 'task' is defined as a process performed to achieve a goal (i.e. fly to a waypoint, descend to a desired altitude). CTM training focuses on teaching crew members how to handle concurrent tasks which compete for their attention. This includes the following processes: * Task initiation – when appropriate conditions exist * Task monitoring – assessment of task progress and status * Task prioritization – relative to the importance and urgency for safety * Resource allocation – assignment of human and machine resources to tasks which need completion * Task interruption – suspension of lower priority tasks for resources to be allocated to higher priority tasks * Task resumption – continuing previously interrupted tasks * Task termination – the completion or incompletion of tasks The need for CTM training is a result of the capacity of human attentional facilities and the limitations of working memory. Crew members may devote more mental or physical resources to a particular task which demands priority or requires the immediate safety of the aircraft. CTM has been integrated to pilot training and goes hand in hand with CRM. Some aircraft operating systems have made progress in aiding CTM by combining instrument gauges into one screen. An example of this is a digital attitude indicator, which simultaneously shows the pilot the heading, airspeed, descent or ascent rate and a plethora of other pertinent information. Implementations such as these allow crews to gather multiple sources of information quickly and accurately, which frees up mental capacity to be focused on other, more prominent tasks.


Checklists

The use of checklists before, during and after flights has established a strong presence in all types of aviation as a means of managing error and reducing the possibility of risk. Checklists are highly regulated and consist of protocols and procedures for the majority of the actions required during a flight. The objectives of checklists include "memory recall, standardization and regulation of processes or methodologies." The use of checklists in aviation has become an industry standard practice, and the completion of checklists from memory is considered a violation of protocol and pilot error. Studies have shown that increased errors in judgement and cognitive function of the brain, along with changes in memory function are a few of the effects of stress and fatigue. Both of these are inevitable human factors encountered in the commercial aviation industry. The use of checklists in emergency situations also contributes to troubleshooting and reverse examining the chain of events which may have led to the particular incident or crash. Apart from checklists issued by regulatory bodies such as the FAA or
ICAO The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sch ...
, or checklists made by aircraft manufacturers, pilots also have personal qualitative checklists aimed to ensure their fitness and ability to fly the aircraft. An example is the ''IM SAFE'' checklist (illness, medication, stress, alcohol, fatigue/food, emotion) and a number of other qualitative assessments which pilots may perform before or during a flight to ensure the safety of the aircraft and passengers. These checklists, along with a number of other redundancies integrated into most modern aircraft operation systems, ensure the pilot remains vigilant, and in turn, aims to reduce the risk of pilot error.


Notable examples

One of the most famous examples of an aircraft disaster that was attributed to pilot error was the night-time crash of
Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was a scheduled flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York, United States, to Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, United States. Shortly before midnight on December 29, 1972, the ...
near
Miami, Florida Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
on 29 December 1972. The captain, first officer, and flight engineer had become fixated on a faulty landing gear light and had failed to realize that one of the crew had accidentally bumped the flight controls, altering the
autopilot An autopilot is a system used to control the path of a vehicle without requiring constant manual control by a human operator. Autopilots do not replace human operators. Instead, the autopilot assists the operator's control of the vehicle, allow ...
settings from level flight to a slow descent. Told by ATC to hold over a sparsely populated area away from the airport while they dealt with the problem (with, as a result, very few lights visible on the ground to act as an external reference), the distracted flight crew did not notice the plane losing height and the aircraft eventually struck the ground in the
Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of flooded grasslands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the K ...
, killing 101 of the 176 passengers and crew. The subsequent
National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inci ...
(NTSB) report on the incident blamed the flight crew for failing to monitor the aircraft's instruments properly. Details of the incident are now frequently used as a case study in training exercises by aircrews and air traffic controllers. During 2004 in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, pilot error was listed as the primary cause of 78.6% of fatal
general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...
accidents, and as the primary cause of 75.5% of general aviation accidents overall. For
scheduled air transport An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in wh ...
, pilot error typically accounts for just over half of worldwide accidents with a known cause. * 28 July 1945 – A United States Army Air Forces B-25 bomber bound for
Newark Airport Newark Liberty International Airport is a major international airport serving the New York metropolitan area. The airport straddles the boundary between the cities of Newark in Essex County and Elizabeth in Union County, in the U.S. stat ...
crashed into the 79th floor of the
Empire State Building The Empire State Building is a 102-story, Art Deco-style supertall skyscraper in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building was designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and built from 1930 to 1931. Its n ...
after the pilot became lost in a heavy fog bank over
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
. All three crewmen were killed as well as eleven office workers in the building. * 24 December 1958 –
BOAC British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned national airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the ...
Bristol Britannia The Bristol Type 175 Britannia is a retired United Kingdom, British flight length, medium-to-long-range airliner built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in 1952 to meet British civilian aviation needs. During development two prototypes were lo ...
312, registration G-AOVD, crashed as a result of a controlled flight into terrain (
CFIT In aviation, a controlled flight into terrain (CFIT; usually ) is an accident in which an airworthy aircraft, fully under pilot control, is unintentionally flown into the ground, a body of water or other obstacle. In a typical CFIT scenario, th ...
), near Winkton, England, while on a test flight. The crash was caused by a combination of bad weather and a failure on the part of both pilots to read the altimeter correctly. The first officer and two other people survived the crash. * 3 January 1961 –
Aero Flight 311 Aero Flight 311, often referred to as the Kvevlax air disaster, was a scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by Aero O/Y (now Finnair) between Kronoby and Vaasa in Finland. The aircraft, a Douglas DC-3, crashed in the municipality Kvevlax ...
crashed near
Kvevlax Kvevlax () is a church village in the municipality of Korsholm, Finland. It is located approximately north of the city of Vaasa. Kvevlax became an independent parish in 1857. Until 1 January 1973 it was an independent municipality. Kvevlax has ...
,
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
. All twenty-five occupants were killed in the accident, which was the deadliest in Finnish history. An investigation later determined that both pilots were intoxicated during the flight, and may have been interrupted by a passenger at the time of the crash. * 28 February 1966 –
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...
astronauts An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...
Elliot See Elliot McKay See Jr. (July 23, 1927 – February 28, 1966) was an American engineer, United States naval aviator, naval aviator, test pilot and NASA astronaut. See received an appointment to the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1945. H ...
and
Charles Bassett Charles Arthur "Charlie" Bassett II (December 30, 1931 – February 28, 1966) (Major, USAF) was an American electrical engineer and United States Air Force test pilot. He went to Ohio State University for two years and later graduated from Tex ...
were killed when their
T-38 Talon The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twinjet supersonic jet trainer designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Northrop Corporation. It was the world's first supersonic trainer as well as the most produced. The T-38 can be tra ...
crashed into a building at
Lambert–St. Louis International Airport St. Louis Lambert International Airport is the primary international airport serving Greater St. Louis, metropolitan St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Commonly referred to as Lambert Field or simply Lambert, it is the largest and List of t ...
during bad weather. A
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
investigation concluded that See had been flying too low on his landing approach. * 5 May 1972 –
Alitalia Flight 112 Alitalia Flight 112 was a scheduled flight from Leonardo da Vinci Airport, in Rome, Italy, to Palermo International Airport in Palermo, Italy, with 115 on board. On 5 May 1972, it crashed into Mount Longa, about southwest of Palermo while on ...
crashed into Mount Longa after the flight crew did not adhere to approach procedures established by ATC. All 115 occupants perished. This is the worst single-aircraft disaster in Italian history. * 29 December 1972 –
Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 was a scheduled flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York, United States, to Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, United States. Shortly before midnight on December 29, 1972, the ...
crashed into the
Florida Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of flooded grasslands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the Ki ...
after the flight crew failed to notice the deactivation of the plane's
autopilot An autopilot is a system used to control the path of a vehicle without requiring constant manual control by a human operator. Autopilots do not replace human operators. Instead, the autopilot assists the operator's control of the vehicle, allow ...
, having been distracted by their own attempts to solve a problem with the landing gear. Out of 176 occupants, 75 survived the crash. * 27 March 1977 – The
Tenerife airport disaster The Tenerife airport disaster occurred on 27 March 1977, when two Boeing 747 passenger jets collided on the runway at Tenerife North–Ciudad de La Laguna Airport, Los Rodeos Airport (now Tenerife North–Ciudad de La Laguna Airport) on the Spa ...
: a senior
KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, or simply KLM (an abbreviation for their official name Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. , ),
pilot failed to hear, understand or follow instructions from the control tower, causing two
Boeing 747 The Boeing 747 is a long-range wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2023. After the introduction of the Boeing 707, 707 in October 1958, Pan Am ...
s to collide on the runway at
Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...
. A total of 583 people were killed in the deadliest aviation accident in history. *28 December 1978 – United Airlines Flight 173: a
flight simulator A flight simulator is a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and the environment in which it flies, for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they rea ...
instructor captain allowed his
Douglas DC-8 The Douglas DC-8 (sometimes McDonnell Douglas DC-8) is an early long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body jetliner designed and produced by the American Douglas Aircraft Company. Work began in 1952 towards the United States Air Force's (USA ...
to run out of fuel while investigating a landing gear problem, causing a crash that killed ten of those on board. United Airlines subsequently changed their policy to disallow "simulator instructor time" in calculating a pilot's "total flight time". It was thought that a contributory factor to the accident is that an instructor can control the amount of fuel in simulator training so that it never runs out. *13 January 1982 –
Air Florida Flight 90 Air Florida Flight 90 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight operated from Washington National Airport (now Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport) to Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport, with an intermediate stopover at T ...
, a
Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retained the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating ...
with 79 passengers and crew, crashed into the 14th Street Bridge and careened into the
Potomac River The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...
shortly after taking off from
Washington National Airport Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport in Arlington County, Virginia, United States, from Washington, D.C. The closest airport to the nation's capital, it is one of two airports owned by the federal government and ope ...
, killing 75 passengers and crew, and four motorists on the bridge. The NTSB report blamed the flight crew for not properly employing the plane's
de-icing De-icing is the process of removing snow, ice or frost from a surface. Anti-icing is the application of chemicals that not only de-ice but also remain on a surface and continue to delay the reformation of ice for a certain period of time, or pr ...
system. * 19 February 1985 – The crew of
China Airlines Flight 006 China Airlines Flight 006 was a daily non-stop international passenger flight from Taipei to Los Angeles International Airport. On February 19, 1985, the Boeing 747SP operating the flight was involved in an aircraft upset accident, following ...
lost control of their
Boeing 747SP The Boeing 747SP (for ''Special Performance'') is a shortened version of the Boeing 747 wide-body airliner, designed for a longer range. It is the highest flying subsonic passenger airliner, with a service ceiling of . Boeing needed a small ...
over the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
, after the No. 4 engine flamed out. The aircraft descended 30,000 feet in two-and-a-half minutes before control was regained. There were no fatalities but there were several injuries, and the aircraft was badly damaged. * 16 August 1987 – The crew of
Northwest Airlines Flight 255 On August 16, 1987, a McDonnell Douglas MD-80#MD-82, McDonnell Douglas MD-82, operating as Northwest Airlines Flight 255, crashed shortly after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, about 8:46 pm Eastern Time Zone, EDT (00:46 UTC Augu ...
omitted their taxi checklist and failed to deploy the aircraft's flaps and slats. Subsequently, the
McDonnell Douglas MD-82 The McDonnell Douglas MD-80 is a series of five-abreast single-aisle airliners developed by McDonnell Douglas. It was produced by the developer company until August 1997 and then by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The MD-80 was the second gener ...
did not gain enough lift on takeoff and crashed into the ground, killing all but one of the 155 people on board, as well as two people on the ground. The sole survivor was a four-year-old girl named Cecelia Cichan, who was seriously injured. * 28 August 1988 – The
Ramstein air show disaster The Ramstein air show disaster occurred on Sunday, 28 August 1988 during the ''Flugtag '88'' airshow at USAF Ramstein Air Base near Kaiserslautern, West Germany. Three aircraft of the Italian Air Force display team collided during their displa ...
: a member of an Italian aerobatic team misjudged a maneuver, causing a mid-air collision. Three pilots and 67 spectators on the ground were killed. * 31 August 1988 – Delta Air Lines Flight 1141 crashed on takeoff after the crew forgot to deploy the flaps for increased lift. Of the 108 passengers and crew on board, fourteen were killed. * 8 January 1989 – In the
Kegworth air disaster The Kegworth air disaster occurred when British Midland Airways Flight 092, a Boeing 737-400, crashed onto the motorway embankment between the M1 motorway and A453 road near Kegworth, Leicestershire, England, while attempting to make an emerge ...
, a fan blade broke off in the left engine of a new
Boeing 737-400 The Boeing 737 Classic is a series of narrow-body airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the second generation of the Boeing 737 series of aircraft. Development began in 1979 and the first variant, the 737-300, first flew in Febru ...
, but the pilots mistakenly shut down the right engine. The left engine eventually failed completely and the crew were unable to restart the right engine before the aircraft crashed. Instrumentation on the 737-400 was different from earlier models, but no flight simulator for the new model was available in Britain. * 3 September 1989 – The crew of Varig Flight 254 made a series of mistakes so that their
Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the t ...
ran out of fuel hundreds of miles off-course above the Amazon jungle. Thirteen died in the ensuing crash landing. * 21 October 1989 – TAN-SAHSA Flight 414 crashed into a hill near Toncontin International Airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, because of a bad landing procedure by the pilot, killing 131 of the 146 passengers and crew. * 14 February 1990 – Indian Airlines Flight 605 crashed into a golf course short of the runway near Hindustan Airport, Bangalore, India. The flight crew failed to pull up after radio callouts of how close they were into the ground. The plane struck a golf course and an embankment, bursting into flames. Of the 146 occupants on the plane, 92 died, including both flight crew. 54 occupants survived the crash. * 24 November 1992 – China Southern Airlines Flight 3943 departed Guangzhou on a 55-minute flight to Guilin. During the descent towards Guilin, at an altitude of , the captain attempted to level off the plane by raising the nose and the plane's auto-throttle was engaged for descent. However, the crew failed to notice that the number 2 power lever was at idle, which led to an asymmetrical power condition. The plane crashed on descent to Guilin Airport, killing all 141 on board. * 23 March 1994 – Aeroflot Flight 593, an
Airbus A310-300 The Airbus A310 is a wide-body aircraft, designed and manufactured by Airbus Industrie GIE, then a consortium of European aerospace manufacturers. Airbus had identified a demand for an aircraft smaller than the A300, the first twin-jet wid ...
, crashed on its way to
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
. The captain, Yaroslav Kudrinsky, invited his two children into the cockpit, and permitted them to sit at the controls, against airline regulations. His sixteen-year-old son, Eldar Kudrinsky, accidentally disconnected the autopilot, causing the plane to bank to the right before diving. The co-pilot brought up the plane too far, causing it to stall and start a flat spin. The pilots eventually recovered the plane, but it crashed into a forest, killing all 75 people on board. * 24 June 1994 – B-52 crashes in Fairchild Air Force Base. The crash was largely attributed to the personality and behavior of Lt Col Arthur "Bud" Holland, the pilot in command, and delayed reactions to the earlier incidents involving this pilot. After past histories, Lt Col Mark McGeehan, a USAF squadron commander, refused to allow any of his squadron members to fly with Holland unless he (McGeehan) was also on the aircraft. This crash is now used in military and civilian aviation environments as a case study in teaching crew resource management. * 30 June 1994 – Airbus Industrie Flight 129, a certification test flight of the
Airbus A330-300 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...
, crashed at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport. While simulating an engine-out emergency just after takeoff with an extreme
center of gravity In physics, the center of mass of a distribution of mass in space (sometimes referred to as the barycenter or balance point) is the unique point at any given time where the weighted relative position of the distributed mass sums to zero. For ...
location, the pilots chose improper manual settings which rendered the autopilot incapable of keeping the plane in the air, and by the time the captain regained manual control, it was too late. The aircraft was destroyed, killing the flight crew, a test engineer, and four passengers. The investigative board concluded that the captain was overworked from earlier flight testing that day, and was unable to devote sufficient time to the preflight briefing. As a result, Airbus had to revise the engine-out emergency procedures. * 2 July 1994 – USAir Flight 1016 crashed into a residential house due to spatial disorientation. 37 passengers were killed and the airplane was destroyed. * 20 December 1995 –
American Airlines Flight 965 American Airlines Flight 965 was a regularly scheduled flight from Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, to Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia. On December 20, 1995, the Boeing 757-200 flying this route ...
, a
Boeing 757-200 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the trijet 727, received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its maiden ...
with 155 passengers and eight crew members, departed Miami approximately two hours behind schedule at 1835 Eastern Standard Time (EST). The investigators believe that the pilot's unfamiliarity with the modern technology installed in the Boeing 757-200 may have played a role. The pilots did not know their location in relation to a radio beacon in Tulua. The aircraft was equipped to provide that information electronically, but according to sources familiar with the investigation, the pilot apparently did not know how to access the information. The captain input the wrong coordinates, and the aircraft crashed into the mountains, killing 159 of the 163 people on board. * 8 May 1997 –
China Southern Airlines Flight 3456 China Southern Airlines Flight 3456 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport to Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport, Shenzhen Huangtian Airport (now Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport). On 8 May ...
crashed into the runway at Shenzhen Huangtian Airport during the crew's second go-around attempt, killing 35 of the 74 people on board. The crew had unknowingly violated landing procedures, due to heavy weather. * 6 August 1997 –
Korean Air Flight 801 Korean Air Flight 801 (KE801, KAL801) was a scheduled international passenger flight operated by Korean Air, from Gimpo International Airport, Seoul to Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport, Guam. On August 6, 1997, the Boeing 747-300 operatin ...
, a
Boeing 747-300 The Boeing 747 is a long-range wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2023. After the introduction of the Boeing 707, 707 in October 1958, Pan Am ...
, crashed into Nimitz Hill, three miles from Guam International Airport, killing 228 of the 254 people on board. The captain's failure to properly conduct a non-precision approach contributed to the accident. The
NTSB The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inc ...
said
pilot fatigue The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) defines fatigue as "A physiological state of reduced mental or physical performance capability resulting from sleep loss or extended wakefulness, circadian phase, or workload." The phenomenon p ...
was a possible factor. * 26 September 1997 –
Garuda Indonesia Flight 152 Garuda Indonesia Flight 152 (GA152/GIA152) was a scheduled domestic flight operated by Garuda Indonesia from Soekarno–Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, Indonesia, to Polonia International Airport, Medan, Indonesia. On 26 September 1997, t ...
, an
Airbus A300 The Airbus A300 is Airbus' first production aircraft and the world's first Twinjet, twin-engine, double-aisle Wide-body aircraft, (wide-body) airliner. It was developed by ''Airbus Industrie GIE'', now merged into Airbus SE, and manufactured f ...
, crashed into a ravine, killing all 234 people on board. The
NTSC NTSC (from National Television System Committee) is the first American standard for analog television, published and adopted in 1941. In 1961, it was assigned the designation System M. It is also known as EIA standard 170. In 1953, a second ...
concluded that the crash was caused when the pilots turned the aircraft in the wrong direction, along with ATC error. Low visibility and failure of the GPWS to activate were cited as contributing factors to the accident. * 12 October 1997 – Singer
John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American Country music, country and Folk music, folk singer, songwriter, and actor. He was one of the most popular acoustic m ...
died when his newly-acquired
Rutan Long-EZ The Rutan Model 61 Long-EZ is a tandem 2-seater homebuilt aircraft designed by Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites. The Long-EZ has a canard layout, a swept wing with wingtip rudders, and a pusher engine and propeller. The tricycle landing gear ha ...
home-built aircraft crashed into the Pacific Ocean off
Pacific Grove, California Pacific Grove is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city had a population of 15,090 at the 2020 census. Pacific Grove is a popular tourist destination on ...
. The NTSB indicated that Denver lost control of the aircraft while attempting to manipulate the fuel selector handle, which had been placed in an inaccessible position by the aircraft's builder. The NTSB cited Denver's unfamiliarity with the aircraft's design as a cause of the crash. * 16 February 1998 –
China Airlines Flight 676 China Airlines Flight 676 was a scheduled international passenger flight. On 16 February 1998, the Airbus A300 jet airliner operating the flight crashed into a road and residential area in Tayuan, Taoyuan County (now Taoyuan City), near Chian ...
was attempting to land at
Chiang Kai-Shek International Airport Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (Traditional Chinese: 臺灣桃園國際機場) is the main international airport serving Taiwan, particularly the northern region and Taipei. Located in Dayuan District, Dayuan, Taoyuan, Taiwan, Taoyuan, ...
but had initiated a go-around due to the bad weather conditions. However, the pilots accidentally disengaged the autopilot and did not notice for 11 seconds. When they did notice, the
Airbus A300 The Airbus A300 is Airbus' first production aircraft and the world's first Twinjet, twin-engine, double-aisle Wide-body aircraft, (wide-body) airliner. It was developed by ''Airbus Industrie GIE'', now merged into Airbus SE, and manufactured f ...
had entered a stall. The aircraft crashed into a highway and residential area, and exploded, killing all 196 people on board, as well as six people on the ground. * 16 July 1999 –
John F. Kennedy Jr. John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. (November 25, 1960 – July 16, 1999), often referred to as John-John or JFK Jr., was an American socialite, attorney, magazine publisher, and journalist. He was a son of 35th United States president John F. K ...
died Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sho ...
when his plane, a
Piper Saratoga The Piper PA-32R is a six-seat (or seven-seat), high-performance, single engine, all-metal, fixed-wing aircraft produced by Piper Aircraft of Vero Beach, Florida. The design began life as the Piper Lance, a retractable-gear version of the Piper C ...
, crashed into the
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
off the coast of
Martha's Vineyard Martha's Vineyard, often simply called the Vineyard, is an island in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, lying just south of Cape Cod. It is known for being a popular, affluent summer colony, and includes the smaller peninsula Chappaquiddick Isla ...
,
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
. The NTSB officially declared that the crash was caused by "the pilot's failure to maintain control of his airplane during a descent over water at night, which was a result of
spatial disorientation Spatial disorientation is the inability to determine position or relative motion, commonly occurring during periods of challenging visibility, since visual system, vision is the dominant sense for orientation. The auditory system, vestibular system ...
". Kennedy did not hold a certification for
IFR In aviation, instrument flight rules (IFR) is one of two sets of regulations governing all aspects of civil aviation aircraft operations; the other is visual flight rules (VFR). The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) ''Instrument Fly ...
flight, but did continue to fly after weather conditions obscured visual landmarks. * 31 August 1999 – Lineas Aéreas Privadas Argentinas (LAPA) flight 3142 crashed after an attempted take-off with the flaps retracted, killing 63 of the 100 occupants on the plane as well as two people on the ground. * 31 October 2000 –
Singapore Airlines Flight 006 Singapore Airlines Flight 006 was an international scheduled Airline, passenger flight from Changi Airport, Singapore Changi Airport to Los Angeles International Airport via Chiang Kai-shek International Airport (now known as Taoyuan Internation ...
was a Boeing 747-412 that took off from the wrong runway at the then Chiang Kai-Shek International Airport. It collided with construction equipment on the runway, bursting into flames and killing 83 of its 179 occupants. * 12 November 2001 –
American Airlines Flight 587 American Airlines Flight 587 was a regularly scheduled international passenger flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, to Las Américas International Airport, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. On November 12, 2001, t ...
encountered heavy turbulence and the co-pilot over-applied the rudder pedal, turning the
Airbus A300 The Airbus A300 is Airbus' first production aircraft and the world's first Twinjet, twin-engine, double-aisle Wide-body aircraft, (wide-body) airliner. It was developed by ''Airbus Industrie GIE'', now merged into Airbus SE, and manufactured f ...
from side to side. The excessive stress caused the rudder to fail. The A300 spun and hit a residential area, crushing five houses and killing 265 people. Contributing factors included
wake turbulence Wake turbulence is a disturbance in the Atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere that forms behind an aircraft as it passes through the air. It includes several components, the most significant of which are wingtip vortices and jet-wash, the rapidly moving ...
and
pilot training Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...
. * 24 November 2001 –
Crossair Flight 3597 Crossair Flight 3597 was a scheduled flight from Berlin Tegel Airport, Germany, to Zurich Airport, Switzerland. On 24 November 2001, the Crossair Avro RJ100 operating the route, registered as crashed into a wooded range of hills near Bass ...
crashed into a forest on approach to runway 28 at
Zurich Airport Zurich Airport is the largest international airport of Switzerland and the airline hub, principal hub of Swiss International Air Lines. It serves Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland, and, with its surface transport links, much of the rest o ...
. This was caused by Captain Lutz descending below the minimum safe altitude of 2400 feet on approach to the runway. * 15 April 2002 – Air China Flight 129, a
Boeing 767-200 The Boeing 767 is an American wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The aircraft was launched as the 7X7 program on July 14, 1978, the prototype first flew on September 26, 1981, and it was certified ...
, crashed near
Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
,
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
killing 128 of the 166 people on board. The pilot and co-pilot had been flying too low. * 25 October 2002 – Eight people, including
U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
Paul Wellstone Paul David Wellstone (July 21, 1944 – October 25, 2002) was an American academic, author, and politician who represented Minnesota in the United States Senate from 1991 until he was killed in a plane crash near Eveleth, Minnesota, in 2002. A m ...
, were killed in a crash near
Eveleth, Minnesota Eveleth is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,493 at the 2020 census. Eveleth is part of the Quad Cities, with Virginia, Gilbert, and Mountain Iron. U.S. Highway 53 and State Highway 37 (MN 37) are ...
. The NTSB concluded that "the flight crew did not monitor and maintain minimum speed. * 3 January 2004 –
Flash Airlines Flight 604 Flash Airlines Flight 604 was a charter flight from Sharm El Sheikh International Airport in Egypt to Charles de Gaulle International Airport in Paris, France, with a stop-over at Cairo International Airport, provided by Egyptian private ch ...
dived into the
Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...
shortly after takeoff, killing all 148 people on board. The captain had been experiencing
vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...
and had not noticed that his control column was slanted to the right. The Boeing 737 banked until it was no longer able to stay in the air. However, the investigation report was disputed. * 26 February 2004 – A Beech 200 carrying
Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Macedonia * Mac ...
President
Boris Trajkovski Boris Trajkovski ( GCMG; , pronounced ; 25 June 1956 – 26 February 2004) was a Macedonian politician who served as the President of Macedonia from 1999 until his death in 2004 in a plane crash. Early life Trajkovski was born on 25 June 195 ...
crashed, killing the president and eight other passengers. The crash investigation ruled that the accident was caused by "procedural mistakes by the crew" during the landing approach. * 14 August 2005 – The pilots of
Helios Airways Flight 522 Helios Airways Flight 522 was a scheduled passenger flight from Larnaca, Cyprus, to Prague, Czech Republic, with a stopover in Athens, Greece, operated by a Boeing 737-300. Shortly after takeoff on 14 August 2005, Nicosia air traffic control (AT ...
lost consciousness, most likely due to hypoxia caused by failure to switch the cabin pressurization to "Auto" during the pre-flight preparations. The
Boeing 737-300 The Boeing 737 Classic is a series of narrow-body airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the second generation of the Boeing 737 series of aircraft. Development began in 1979 and the first variant, the 737-300, first flew in Febru ...
crashed after running out of fuel, killing all on board. * 16 August 2005 – The crew of
West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 was a charter flight that crashed in northwest Venezuela in the early hours of 16 August 2005, killing all 160 passengers and crew on board. The plane, a McDonnell Douglas MD-80, McDonnell Douglas MD-82, registra ...
unknowingly (and dangerously) decreased the speed of the
McDonnell Douglas MD-82 The McDonnell Douglas MD-80 is a series of five-abreast single-aisle airliners developed by McDonnell Douglas. It was produced by the developer company until August 1997 and then by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The MD-80 was the second gener ...
, causing it to enter a stall. The situation was incorrectly handled by the crew, with the captain believing that the engines had flamed out, while the first officer, who was aware of the stall, attempted to correct him. The aircraft crashed into the ground near
Machiques Machiques is a city in Zulia State, Venezuela, located in the northwest portion of the country. It is close to the border with Colombia, and the area's main economic activity is cattle raising. On 16 August 2005 West Caribbean Airways Flight 70 ...
,
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
, killing all 160 people on board. * 3 May 2006 – Armavia Flight 967 lost control and crashed into the Black Sea while approaching Sochi-Adler Airport in Russia, killing all 113 people on board. The pilots were fatigued and flying under stressful conditions. Their stress levels were pushed over the limit, causing them to lose their situational awareness. * 27 August 2006 –
Comair Flight 5191 Comair Flight 5191 was a scheduled United States domestic passenger flight from Lexington, Kentucky, to Atlanta, Georgia. On the morning of August 27, 2006, at around 06:07 EDT (10:07 UTC), the Bombardier CRJ100ER crashed while attempting to ta ...
failed to become airborne and crashed at
Blue Grass Airport Blue Grass Airport is a public airport in Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County, Kentucky, United States, 6 miles west of downtown Lexington, Kentucky, Lexington. Located among horse farms and situated directly across from Keeneland Race Cou ...
, after the flight crew mistakenly attempted to take off from a secondary runway that was much shorter than the intended takeoff runway. All but one of the 50 people on board the plane died, including the 47 passengers. The sole survivor was the flight's first officer, James Polhinke. * 1 January 2007 – The crew of
Adam Air Flight 574 Adam Air Flight 574 (KI574 or DHI574) was a scheduled domestic Airline, passenger flight operated by Adam Air between the Indonesia, Indonesian cities of Soekarno–Hatta International Airport, Jakarta, Juanda International Airport, Surabaya, an ...
were preoccupied with a malfunction of the
inertial reference system An inertial navigation system (INS; also inertial guidance system, inertial instrument) is a navigation device that uses motion sensors (accelerometers), rotation sensors ( gyroscopes) and a computer to continuously calculate by dead reckoning ...
, which diverted their attention from the flight instruments, allowing the increasing descent and bank angle to go unnoticed. Appearing to have become spatially disoriented, the pilots did not detect and appropriately arrest the descent soon enough to prevent loss of control. This caused the aircraft to break up in mid air and crash into the water, killing all 102 people on board. Aircraft Accident Investigation Report of Indonesian's National Transportation Safety Committee * 7 March 2007 –
Garuda Indonesia Flight 200 Garuda Indonesia Flight 200 (GA200/GIA200) was a scheduled domestic passenger flight of a Boeing 737-400 operated by Garuda Indonesia between Jakarta and Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The aircraft overran the runway, crashed into a rice field and burst ...
: poor crew resource management and the failure to extend the flaps led the aircraft to land at an "unimaginable" speed and run off the end of the runway after landing. Of the 140 occupants, 22 were killed. * 17 July 2007 –
TAM Airlines Flight 3054 TAM Airlines Flight 3054 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by LATAM Brasil, TAM Airlines from Porto Alegre to São Paulo, Brazil. On the evening of July 17, 2007, the Airbus A320 family, Airbus A320-233 serving the flig ...
: the thrust reverser on the right engine of the
Airbus A320 The Airbus A320 family is a series of narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus. The A320 was launched in March 1984, Maiden flight, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air France. The first membe ...
was jammed. Although both crew members were aware, the captain used an outdated braking procedure, and the aircraft overshot the runway and crashed into a building, killing all 187 people on board, as well as 12 people on the ground. * 20 August 2008 – The crew of
Spanair Flight 5022 Spanair Flight 5022 (JK5022/JKK5022) was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Barcelona–El Prat Airport to Gran Canaria Airport, Spain, with a stopover in Madrid–Barajas Airport that crashed just after take-off from runway 36L at ...
failed to deploy the MD-82's flaps and slats. The flight crashed after takeoff, killing 154 out of the 172 passengers and crew on board. * 12 February 2009 –
Colgan Air Flight 3407 Colgan Air Flight 3407 was a scheduled passenger flight from Newark, New Jersey, to Buffalo, New York, on February 12, 2009. Approaching Buffalo, the aircraft, a Bombardier Q400, entered an aerodynamic stall from which it did not recover and ...
(flying as Continental Connection) entered a stall and crashed into a house in Clarence Center, New York, due to lack of situational awareness of air speed by the captain and first officer and the captain's improper reaction to the plane's stick-shaker stall warning system. All 49 people on board the plane died, as well as one person inside the house. * 1 June 2009 –
Air France Flight 447 Air France Flight 447 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Rio de Janeiro/Galeão International Airport, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris, France. On 1 June 2009, inconsistent airspeed indications and mi ...
entered a stall and crashed into the
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
following
pitot tube A pitot tube ( ; also pitot probe) measures fluid flow velocity. It was invented by French engineer Henri Pitot during his work with aqueducts and published in 1732, and modified to its modern form in 1858 by Henry Darcy. It is widely use ...
failures and improper control inputs by the first officer. All 216 passengers and twelve crew members died. * 10 April 2010 –
2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash On 10 April 2010, a Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft operating Polish Air Force Flight 101 crashed near the Russian city of Smolensk, killing List of casualties of the Smolensk air disaster, all 96 people on board. Among the victims were the president ...
: during a descent towards Russia's Smolensk North Airport, the flight crew of the Polish presidential jet ignored automatic warnings and attempted a risky landing in heavy fog. The Tupolev Tu-154M descended too low and crashed into a nearby forest; all of the occupants were killed, including Polish president Lech Kaczynski, his wife Maria Kaczynska, and numerous government and military officials. * 12 May 2010 –
Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771 Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771 was a scheduled international Afriqiyah Airways passenger flight from Johannesburg, South Africa to Tripoli, Libya. On 12 May 2010 at about 06:01 UTC+2, local time (04:01 coordinated universal time, UTC) while on ap ...
The aircraft crashed about short of Runway 09, outside the perimeter of Tripoli International Airport, killing all but one of the 104 people on board. The sole survivor was a 9-year-old boy named Ruben Van Assouw. On 28 February 2013, the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority announced that the crash was caused by pilot error. Factors that contributed to the crash were lacking/insufficient crew resource management, sensory illusions, and the first officer's inputs to the aircraft side stick; fatigue could also have played a role in the accident. The final report cited the following causes: the pilots' lack of a common action plan during the approach, the final approach being continued below the Minimum Decision Altitude without ground visual reference being acquired; the inappropriate application of flight control inputs during the go-around and after the Terrain Awareness and Warning System had been activated; and the flight crew's failure to monitor and control the flight path. * 22 May 2010 –
Air India Express Flight 812 Air India Express Flight 812 was a scheduled international flight from Dubai International Airport, Dubai to Mangalore International Airport, Mangalore. On 22 May 2010, the Boeing 737-800 passenger jet operating the flight crashed on landing a ...
overshot the runway at
Mangalore Airport Mangalore International Airport (also known as Mangaluru International Airport) is an international airport serving the coastal city of Mangalore in the state of Karnataka, India. It is one of only two international airports in the state, t ...
, killing 158 people. The plane touched down from the usual touchdown point after a steep descent. CVR recordings showed that the captain had been sleeping and had woken up just minutes before the landing. His lack of alertness made the plane land very quickly and steeply and it ran off the end of the tabletop runway. * 28 July 2010 – The captain of
Airblue Flight 202 Airblue Flight 202 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight departing from Karachi—a sprawling coastal metropolis in southern Pakistan and the nation's largest city—en route to Islamabad, the country's capital city located in the northern ...
became confused with the heading knob and thought that he had carried out the correct action to turn the plane. However, due to his failure to pull the heading knob, the turn was not executed. The Airbus A321 went astray and slammed into the Margalla Hills, killing all 152 people on board. * 20 June 2011 –
RusAir Flight 9605 RusAir Flight 9605 (operating as RusLine Flight 243) was a passenger flight which crashed near Petrozavodsk in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, on 20 June 2011 while attempting to land in thick fog. The aircraft involved, a Tupolev Tu-134, was op ...
crashed onto a motorway while on its final approach to
Petrozavodsk Airport Petrozavodsk Airport (, , ; ; ex: Besovets, Petrozavodsk-2) is a joint civil-military airport in Russia located northwest of Petrozavodsk in Besovets, Shuya Rural Settlement (Subdivisions of Russia#Municipal divisions, municipality). It servic ...
in western
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, after the intoxicated navigator encouraged the captain to land in heavy fog. Only five of the 52 people on board the plane survived the crash. * 6 July 2013 –
Asiana Airlines Flight 214 Asiana Airlines Flight 214 was a scheduled Transpacific flight, transpacific passenger flight originating from Incheon International Airport near Seoul, South Korea, to San Francisco International Airport near San Francisco, California, United ...
tail struck the seawall short of runway 28L at
San Francisco International Airport San Francisco International Airport is the primary international airport for the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. Owned and operated by the City and County of San Francisco, the airport has a San Francisco mailing ...
. Of the 307 passengers and crew, three people died and 187 were injured when the aircraft slid down the runway. Investigators said the accident was caused by the Captain misreading the runway, leading to an incident. * 23 July 2014 – TransAsia Airways Flight 222 brushed trees and crashed into six houses in a residential area in Xixi Village, Penghu Island, Taiwan. Of the 58 people on board the flight, only ten people survived the crash. The captain was overconfident with his skill and intentionally descended and rolled the plane to the left. Crew members did not realize that they were at a dangerously low altitude and the plane was about to impact terrain until two seconds before the crash. * 28 December 2014 –
Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501 Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501 was a scheduled international passenger flight operated by Indonesia AirAsia from Surabaya, Java, Indonesia, to Singapore. On 28 December 2014, the Airbus A320-216 flying the route crashed into the Java Sea, kill ...
crashed into the Java Sea as a result of an
aerodynamic stall In fluid dynamics, a stall is a reduction in the lift coefficient generated by a foil as angle of attack exceeds its critical value.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', p. 486. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. ...
due to pilot error. The aircraft exceeded the climb rate, way beyond its operational limits. All 155 passengers and 7 crew members on board were killed. * 6 February 2015 –
TransAsia Airways Flight 235 TransAsia Airways Flight 235 was a domestic flight from Taipei to Kinmen, Taiwan. On , the aircraft serving the flight, a 10-month-old ATR 72-600, crashed into the Keelung River around from Taipei Songshan Airport, where the aircraft had jus ...
: one of the ATR 72's engines experienced a flameout. As airplanes are able to fly on one engine alone, the pilot then shut down one of the engines. However, he accidentally shut off the engine that was functioning correctly and left the plane powerless, at which point he unsuccessfully tried to restart both engines. The plane then clipped a bridge and plummeted into the Keelung river as the pilot tried to avoid city terrain, killing 43 of the 58 on board.


See also

*
Airmanship Airmanship is skill and knowledge applied to Air navigation, aerial navigation, similar to seamanship in maritime navigation. Airmanship covers a broad range of desirable behaviors and abilities in an aviator. It is not simply a measure of skill ...
*
Controlled flight into terrain In aviation, a controlled flight into terrain (CFIT; usually ) is an aviation accidents and incidents, accident in which an airworthy aircraft, fully under pilot control, is unintentionally flown into the ground, a body of water or other obstac ...
* Environmental causes of aviation stress * Human factors in aviation safety *
Human reliability In the field of human factors and ergonomics, human reliability (also known as human performance or HU) is the probability that a human performs a task to a sufficient standard. Reliability of humans can be affected by many factors such as age, ...
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Jet lag Jet lag is a temporary physiological condition that occurs when a person's circadian rhythm is out of sync with the time zone they are in, and is a typical result from travelling rapidly across multiple time zones (east–west or west–east). ...
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Pilot fatigue The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) defines fatigue as "A physiological state of reduced mental or physical performance capability resulting from sleep loss or extended wakefulness, circadian phase, or workload." The phenomenon p ...
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Sensory illusions in aviation Human senses are not naturally geared for the in-flight environment. Pilots may experience disorientation and loss of perspective, creating illusions that range from false horizons to sensory conflict with instrument readings or the misjudging ...
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Spatial disorientation Spatial disorientation is the inability to determine position or relative motion, commonly occurring during periods of challenging visibility, since visual system, vision is the dominant sense for orientation. The auditory system, vestibular system ...
* Stress in the aviation industry * Threat and error management * User error * Kenya Airways Flight 507


References

{{reflist, 30em Aviation risks