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Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771

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Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771
An Airbus A330-200, similar to the plane involved in the accident
Accident
Date12 May 2010
SiteOn approach to runway 09 at Tripoli International Airport
Aircraft
Aircraft typeAirbus A330-202
OperatorAfriqiyah Airways
Registration5A-ONG
Flight originOR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa
DestinationTripoli International Airport, Tripoli, Libya
Passengers93
Crew11
Fatalities103
Injuries1
Survivors1

Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771 was a scheduled international passenger flight which crashed on 12 May 2010 at about 06:10 local time (04:10 UTC) on approach to Tripoli International Airport.[1][2] There are reports that the sole survivor was a Dutch boy.[3][4][5]

Aircraft involved

The aircraft was an Airbus A330-202, registration 5A-ONG and manufacturer's serial number (MSN) 1024. It was delivered in September 2009 and at the time of the accident it had approximately 1,600 hours total time and about 420 cycles. The aircraft was powered by General Electric CF6-80E1 engines.[6][7] It was configured for a capacity of 253 passengers.[8][9] The aircraft carried 93 passengers and 11 crew, mostly Dutch and Libyan but also some British, South African,[2] nationals.[5] An airport official stated that 22 Libyans, both passengers and crew, had lost their lives in the crash.[10]

Accident flight

The flight originated at OR Tambo International Airport, serving Johannesburg, South Africa. It was scheduled to land at Tripoli International Airport, Libya and proceed to its final destination of Gatwick Airport serving London.[11] The aircraft crashed short of runway 09, and came to rest within the perimeter of the airfield. It was reported that there was no post-crash fire. The crash was reported to have occurred just one metre from the airport runway.[12] The METAR in force at the time of the crash was HLLT 120350Z VRB01KT 6000 NSC 19/17 Q1008.[13][A] The main runway of the airport is 3,600 meters long. The airport does not have a precision approach system that directs the airplanes down to the runway but has two other simplified systems that are also used throughout the world.[14] Security officials stated that the plane exploded on landing before disintegrating but Zidan has ruled out terrorism as a cause.[15]

At the time, the accident was the second deadliest involving an Airbus A330, and the third deadliest accident to have happened in Libya.[8] Airbus has stated that it will provide full technical assistance to the authorities investigating the crash.[16] The South African Civil Aviation Authority is sending a team to assist with the investigation.[17] The French BEA is also assisting in the investigation.[18]

Reactions

Afriqiyah Airways issued a statement that relatives of the victims who wished to visit Libya will be transported and accommodated at Afriqiyah's expense. The Libyan Authorities would relax certain passport restrictions and guaranteed the granting of visas.[19]

Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands expressed her shock at hearing the news.[18]

Passengers and crew

Those aboard Flight 771 were of various nationalities.[2][5]

Nationality Passengers Crew Survivors Total
United Kingdom British –
Netherlands Dutch 62 – 1 62
Libya Libyan 11 11 0 22
South Africa South African –
Total 93 11 1 104

The boy who survived was found still in his seat. Due to the force of the impact, his clothes were ripped off completely. After rescuers found the boy, he was taken to the hospital in Tripoli to undergo surgery for his injuries, including broken bones. Dutch Foreign Ministry spokesman Ad Meijer said he has no life-threatening injuries.[20]

Of the passengers, 42 were continuing to Düsseldorf, Germany, 32 were continuing to Brussels, Belgium, 7 were continuing to London, and 1 was continuing to Paris, France. 11 of the passengers had Libya as their final destination.[21]

See also

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Notes

  • A ^ Translation: METAR for Tripoli International Airport, issued at 03:50 UTC on the 12th of the month. Winds variable in direction at 1 knot (1.9 km/h), visibility 6,000 metres (3.7 miles), no significant cloud cover, temperature 19 °C, dewpoint 17 °C, altimeter setting 1008 hPa

References

  1. ^ "Afriqiyah Flight 771 crash". Afriqiyah Airways. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  2. ^ a b c "Plane crash in Libya 'kills more than 100 on board'". BBC News. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  3. ^ "Libya plane crash 'kills all 104 on board'". MSNBC. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  4. ^ "Mogelijk Nederlanders aan boord crash Tripoli" (in Dutch). NOS. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  5. ^ a b c "61 Nederlanders dood bij crash Tripoli". De Telegraaf (in Dutch). Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  6. ^ "Afriqiyah Airways flight 8U771 accident in Tripoli, Libya (ISSUE 2)". EADS. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  7. ^ Kaminski-Morrow, David. "Afriqiyah identifies crashed A330-200". Flight Global. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  8. ^ a b "Accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 12 May 2010. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ "Jet With 104 Aboard Crashes in Libya". The New York Times. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  10. ^ "Libya plane crash kills 103, Dutch child survives". Reuters. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  11. ^ Jeffrey Fleishman (12 May 2010). "Dutch boy believed to be sole survivor when plane carrying 104 crashes". LA Times. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  12. ^ "Scores dead in Libya plane crash". Al Jazeera. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  13. ^ Hradecky, Simon. "Crash: Afriqiyah A332 at Tripoli on May 12th 2010". Aviation Herald. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  14. ^ "Libyan jet carrying 104 crashes on approach to Tripoli; Dutch boy is sole known survivor". Chicago Tribune. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  15. ^ "Terrorism Ruled Out In Tripoli Plane Crash". Sky News. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  16. ^ "Airbus To Provide Technical Help In Libya Crash Investigation". Wall Street Journal. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.(registration required)
  17. ^ "CAA team to travel to Libya to assist in crash investigation". Business Day. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  18. ^ a b "61 Nederlanders dood bij vliegtuigcrash Libië" (in Dutch). NRC Handelsblad. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  19. ^ "Afriqiyah Flight 771 crash release 3 11:00 UTC". Afriqiyah Airways. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
  20. ^ BBC NEWS SITE "[1]." BBC. 12 May 2010. Retrieved on 12 May 2010.
  21. ^ CNN Wire Staff. "'Child' survives as 100 feared dead in Libya plane crash." CNN. 12 May 2010. Retrieved on 12 May 2010.
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