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Suggest pagesAnsett New Zealand Flight 703
Coordinates: 40°20′00″S 175°48′00″E / 40.333352°S 175.800079°E
 The Dash 8 wreckage on 10 June 1995 |
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| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 9 June 1995 |
| Type | Controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | Tararua Ranges, New Zealand |
| Passengers | 18 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Injuries | 17 |
| Fatalities | 4 |
| Survivors | 17 |
| Aircraft type | de Havilland Canada DHC-8-102[1] |
| Operator | Ansett New Zealand |
| Tail number | ZK-NEY |
| Flight origin | Auckland Airport |
| Destination | Palmerston North International Airport |
Ansett New Zealand Flight 703 was an Ansett New Zealand scheduled passenger transport flight from Auckland Airport to Palmerston North. On 9 June 1995, the Dash 8 aircraft flying this route crashed west of the Tararua Ranges and 16 km east of Palmerston North airport, during an instrument approach in bad weather. The aircraft was carrying 18 passengers and three crew members. All passengers were New Zealand citizens except for one United States citizen.
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[edit] Incident
During the approach to a right turn which would place the aircraft on final approach to runway 25, the right landing gear failed to fully extend so the co-pilot began to manually extend it using a hydraulic pump. The aircraft's power settings had already been reduced to Flight Idle which was normal, but the aircraft was inadvertently allowed to descend too low[2] toward the undulating terrain leading into Palmerston North.
Although Ansett New Zealand Flight 703's Ground Proximity Warning System sounded an alarm four seconds before the aircraft hit the ground, the crew was unable to avoid the accident. According to the Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) report an audio alarm of "Terrain! Terrain! <whoop> <whoop> Pull up!" should have sounded 17 seconds before impact, but the GPWS malfunctioned, for reasons which have never been determined. There was an investigation by the New Zealand Police in 2001[3] into whether or not a mobile phone call from the aircraft may have interfered with the system. The official crash report[2] does mention the following on page 69:
"The aircraft manufacturer’s avionics representative advised that there was no likelihood that the operation of a computer, other electronic device or a cell phone would have affected the aircraft’s flight instruments."
Captain Sotheran's defence was that 4.5 seconds before impact the radio altimeter display flipped 1000 feet in altitude as he watched.
[edit] Crash site
Flight 703 pancaked onto a hilltop and broke up as it slid along the ground, killing a flight attendant instantly. Passenger Reginald John Dixon tried to free two others trapped near the wing root as the wreckage caught fire. He failed to free them and a flash fire critically burned him. He died from his injuries two weeks later. Thus three passengers also died and many others sustained injuries.
For his bravery in a dangerous situation, Dixon was awarded the New Zealand Cross, New Zealand's highest award for civilian bravery.[4]
[edit] Aircraft
The aircraft, ZK-NEY, a de Havilland Canada DHC-8, was manufactured in Canada.
[edit] Coverup allegation
Later study of Ansett NZ Flt 703's GPWS indicated its antennas had been painted and this possibly reduced its ability to provide a timely alarm, although later comments by TAIC insisted the paint did not block or reflect signals [5] This antenna is clearly embossed with the words, do not paint, a warning that was not heeded. In addition the antenna is in a location that could easily be seen during a visual inspection by either maintenance or flight personnel. Bench testing of the radio altimeter proved the unit was still functioning perfectly after its recovery from the wreckage.
[edit] See also
- List of accidents and incidents on commercial airliners
- Air New Zealand Flight 901
- New Zealand National Airways Corporation Flight 441
- Ground Proximity Warning System
[edit] References
- Dash 8 Down: the Inside Story of Ansett Flight 703. ISBN 1-86941-489-6. Guerin, Michael; 2001; Random House; 186pp; Paperback;
- ^ Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
- ^ a b "Occurrence Report Details - Investigation 95-011". Transport Accident Investigation Commission. http://www.taic.org.nz/AviationReports/tabid/78/ctl/Detail/mid/482/InvNumber/1995-011/Page/14/Default.aspx.
- ^ "Ansett Plane Crash Cellphone Call". TV3 News. 15 June 2001. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/NM0106/S00069.htm.
- ^ "Recipients of the New Zealand Cross". New Zealand Defence Force. http://medals.nzdf.mil.nz/category/d/d2recipients.html#dixon. Retrieved 2007-07-28.
- ^ "New Zealand officials examine delayed crash warning". Flightglobal. 20 August 1997. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/1997/08/20/14462/new-zealand-officials-examine-delayed-crash-warning.html.
[edit] External links
- "de Havilland DHC-8 ZK-NEY, controlled flight into terrain, near Palmerston North, 9 June 1995" - Transport Accident Investigation Commission
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