View source for China Airlines Flight 006

{{short description|1985 aviation accident}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
| occurrence_type = Accident
| name            = China Airlines Flight 006
| image           = Damaged empennage of China Airlines Flight 006-N4522V.JPG
| alt             = 
| caption         = Damage to the plane's horizontal stabilizers
| date            = {{start date|1985|2|19|mf=y}}
| type            = High-altitude upset and [[spiral dive|dive]] due to [[spatial disorientation]] after [[Turbine engine failure|engine failure]]
| site            = [[Pacific Ocean]], near [[San Francisco]], [[California]], United States
| coordinates     = 
| occupants       = 274
| passengers      = 251
| crew            = 23
| fatalities      = 0
| injuries        = 24 (2 serious)
| survivors       = 274
| aircraft_type   = [[Boeing 747SP|Boeing 747SP-09]]
| tail_number     = [http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19850219-0 N4522V]
| operator        = [[China Airlines]]
| origin          = [[Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport|Chiang Kai Shek Int'l Airport]]
| destination     = [[Los Angeles International Airport]]
| IATA            = CI006
| ICAO            = CAL006
| callsign        = DYNASTY 006
}}

'''China Airlines Flight 006''' ([[call sign]] "Dynasty 006") was a daily non-stop flight from [[Taipei]] to [[Los Angeles International Airport]]. On February 19, 1985, the [[Boeing 747SP]] operating the flight was involved in an [[Aircraft upset|aircraft upset accident]], following the failure of the No. 4 engine, while cruising at {{convert|41000|ft|m|-2|abbr=on}}. The plane rolled over and plunged {{convert|30000|ft|m|-2|abbr=on}}, experiencing high speeds and [[g-force]]s (as high as 5g) before the captain was able to recover from the dive, and then to divert to [[San Francisco International Airport]].<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report">{{Cite web|url=https://ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR8603.pdf|title=Aircraft accident report : China Airlines Boeing 747-SP, N4522V, 300 nautical miles northwest of San Francisco, California, February 19, 1985|date=March 29, 1986|publisher=[[National Transportation Safety Board]]|id=NTSB/AAR-86/03|access-date=2019-04-30|df=mdy}}</ref>

==Accident==
[[File:Boeing 747SP-09, China Airlines AN1158210.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|N4522V, the aircraft involved, seen at [[Kai Tak Airport]] in 1991]]
The aircraft had departed from Taipei at 16:22 [[China Standard Time]]. The accident occurred 10 hours into the flight. The [[Boeing 747SP-09]] was {{convert|350|mi|km}} northwest of San Francisco, cruising at an altitude of {{convert|41000|ft|m|-2|abbr=on}}. The cockpit crew consisted of Captain Min-Yuan Ho, age 55; First Officer Ju-Yue Chang, age 53; Flight Engineer Kuo-Pin Wei, age 55; Relief Captain Chien-Yuan Liao, age 53; and Relief Flight Engineer Shih-Lung Su, age 41. The captain had approximately 15,500 flight hours, including 3,748 hours on the Boeing 747. The first officer had more than 7,700 hours with 4,553 of them on the Boeing 747, and the flight engineer had approximately 15,500 hours of flight time, including 4,363 hours on the Boeing 747.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" /> The accident occurred while the main crew was on duty.

The sequence began with a loss of thrust in the No.&nbsp;4 engine. That engine had failed twice during previous flights (while cruising at [[Flight level|FL]]&nbsp;410 and 430). In each of those cases the engine was restarted after descending to a lower altitude. The maintenance response to the logbook entries that noted the attempted solutions included engine inspection; fuel filter drainage and replacement; vane controller inspection and replacement; water drainage from Mach probes; and other filter replacements. None of those acts fixed the recurrent problem with the No.&nbsp;4 engine.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" /><ref name="747sp.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.747sp.com/History.asp?22805|title=Production List|work=Boeing 747SP Website|accessdate=February 9, 2015|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120604020601/http://www.747sp.com/History.asp?22805|archivedate=June 4, 2012|df=mdy}}</ref>

[[File:747-CA006-1.png|thumb|Aircraft roll and pitch attitudes and time]]
The flight engineer attempted to restore power to the engine but did not close the [[bleed air|bleed valve]] as required by the checklist procedure.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|26}} After the flight engineer announced the engine had [[flameout|flamed out]], the captain instructed him to restart it and ordered the first officer to request clearance for a descent from {{convert|41000|ft|m|-2}}. According to the flight manual, engine restart is unlikely to succeed above {{convert|30000|ft|m|-2}}.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|2}}

Meanwhile, as the airspeed decreased, the autopilot rolled the control wheel to the maximum left limit of 23 degrees while maintaining level flight. As the speed decreased even further the aircraft began to roll to the right even though the autopilot was maintaining the maximum left roll limit. By the time the captain disconnected the autopilot the aircraft had rolled over 60 degrees to the right and the nose had begun to drop. [[Ailerons]] and flight spoilers were the only means available to the autopilot to keep the wings level as the autopilot does not connect to the [[rudder]] during normal flight. To counteract the asymmetrical forces created by the loss of thrust from the No.&nbsp;4 engine, it was essential for the pilot to manually use the left floor pedal to push the rudder to the left. However, the captain failed to use any rudder inputs at all, before or after disconnecting the autopilot.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|10–11}}

As the aircraft descended through clouds, the captain's attention was drawn to the [[attitude indicator]], which displayed excessive bank and pitch indications. Because such an attitude is highly irregular, the captain incorrectly assumed the indicators to be faulty.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|3}} Without any visual reference because of [[cloud cover]] and having rejected the information from the attitude indicators, the captain and first officer became [[Spatial disorientation|spatially disoriented]].<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|31}}

Only after breaking through the bottom of the clouds at {{convert|11000|ft|m|-2}} was the captain able to reorient himself and bring the aircraft under control, leveling out at {{convert|9600|ft|m|-2}}. The aircraft had descended {{convert|30000|ft|m|-2|abbr=on}} in under two-and-a-half minutes, while all onboard experienced [[g-force]]s as high as 5&nbsp;g.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|12}} At that point, the crew believed that all four engines had flamed out, but the [[National Transportation Safety Board]] found that only engine No.&nbsp;4 had failed.

After leveling out, the three remaining engines continued supplying normal thrust. Another restart attempt brought engine No.&nbsp;4 back into use. The aircraft began climbing. The crew reported "condition normal now" to [[air traffic control]], along with the intention of continuing on to Los Angeles. They then noticed that the inboard main landing gear was down and one of the hydraulic systems was empty. With the drag added by the deployed landing gear the aircraft had insufficient fuel to reach Los Angeles. An emergency was declared and the aircraft diverted to [[San Francisco International Airport]].<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />{{rp|5}}

==Aftermath==
There were two serious injuries on board: a fracture and laceration of a foot, and an acute back strain requiring two days of hospitalization. The aircraft was significantly damaged by the excessive G-forces. The wings were permanently bent upwards by {{convert|2|in|cm|0}}, the inboard main landing gear lost two actuator doors, and the two inboard main gear struts were left dangling. Most affected was the tail, where large outer parts of the [[horizontal stabilizer]] had been ripped off. The entire left outboard [[Elevator (aircraft)|elevator]] had been lost along with its [[actuator]], which had been powered by the hydraulic system that ruptured and drained.<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" /><ref name="NTSB">{{Cite web |title=China Airlines B747SP Loss of Power and Inflight Upset |url=http://www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de/publications/Incidents/DOCS/ComAndRep/ChinaAir/AAR8603.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051217133601/http://www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de/publications/Incidents/DOCS/ComAndRep/ChinaAir/AAR8603.html |archive-date=2005-12-17 |access-date=2023-07-25 |website=www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de}}</ref>
[[File:Global Peace Ambassadors Boeing 747SP Gupta.jpg|alt=N4522V now owned by Global Peace Ambassadors in May 2003|thumb|N4522V now owned by [[K._A._Paul#Global_Peace_One|Global Peace Initiative]] in May 2003]]
After repairs were made to the plane, it returned to flight status on April 25, 1985. It continued in service for nearly 12 years until it was leased to China Airlines' sister company, [[Mandarin Airlines]], in January 1997, and was in daily service for the remainder of that year before it was withdrawn from service and placed in a [[Aircraft boneyard|boneyard]] in Nevada. In April 2002, the aircraft was acquired by Indian evangelist and humanitarian [[K.A. Paul]], and dubbed "Global Peace One". Beginning in February 2004, the aircraft was used to deliver disaster aid to countries such as Ethiopia, India, Iran, and Jordan; however, by July 2005 the FAA had revoked Global Peace Ambassadors' operating certificate due to poor maintenance of the aircraft, effectively grounding it at [[Thunder Bay International Airport]] in [[Ontario, Canada]]. In December 2005, a [[Ferry flying#Ferry permit|ferry permit]] was issued and N4522V was flown to [[Tijuana International Airport]], where the aircraft remained parked as of 2024 with the possibility of it being scrapped.<ref>{{Cite web|title=N4522V: The end is near for Global Peace One (747SP c/n: 22805) |url=https://www.747sp.com/end-is-near-for-global-peace-one/|access-date=2023-02-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221210094954/https://www.747sp.com/end-is-near-for-global-peace-one/ |archive-date= 10 December 2022|website=747sp.com|date=June 10, 2020 |language=en}}</ref>

In its final report, the US NTSB stated "The Safety Board can only conclude that the captain was distracted first by the evaluation of the engine malfunction and second by his attempts to arrest the decreasing airspeed, and that, because of these distractions, he was unable to assess properly and promptly the approaching loss of airplane control. The Safety Board also concludes that the captain over-relied on the autopilot and that this was also causal to the accident since the autopilot effectively masked the approaching onset of the loss of control of the airplane."<ref name="AAR-86-03 Final Report" />  The NTSB report ended with No Recommendations intended to prevent similar problems in the future.

China Airlines continued operating one of its scheduled Taipei–Los Angeles services as Dynasty 006 until 2018, utilizing the [[Boeing 747-400]] until late 2014, when the [[Boeing 777|Boeing 777-300ER]] replaced it.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://flightaware.com/live/flight/CAL6|title=China Airlines (CI) #6 ✈ FlightAware|website=FlightAware|access-date=June 19, 2016}}</ref> In March 2018, due to fleet shortage and financial stress, the flight number was retired and replaced by flight 008;<ref>{{Cite web |title=華航台北─安大略航線2018三月底正式開航 |trans-title=China Airlines' Taipei-Ontario route officially launched at the end of March 2018 |url=https://travelhito.com/%E8%8F%AF%E8%88%AA%E5%8F%B0%E5%8C%97%E2%94%80%E5%AE%89%E5%A4%A7%E7%95%A5%E8%88%AA%E7%B7%9A2018%E4%B8%89%E6%9C%88%E5%BA%95%E6%AD%A3%E5%BC%8F%E9%96%8B%E8%88%AA/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105200120/https://travelhito.com/%E8%8F%AF%E8%88%AA%E5%8F%B0%E5%8C%97%E2%94%80%E5%AE%89%E5%A4%A7%E7%95%A5%E8%88%AA%E7%B7%9A2018%E4%B8%89%E6%9C%88%E5%BA%95%E6%AD%A3%E5%BC%8F%E9%96%8B%E8%88%AA/ |archive-date=2020-11-05 |access-date=2018-08-09 |language=zh}}</ref> however, the use of flight number 006 was resumed in June 2019 after the increased requirement of more Taipei–Los Angeles flights.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/284947/china-airlines-w19-operation-changes-as-of-18jun19/|title=China Airlines W19 operation changes as of 18JUN19|publisher=Routes Online|date=2019-06-19|access-date=2020-08-07|archive-date=2021-01-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128134952/https://www.routesonline.com/news/38/airlineroute/284947/china-airlines-w19-operation-changes-as-of-18jun19/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
*The [[Discovery Channel Canada]] / [[National Geographic Society|National Geographic]] TV series ''[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Mayday]]'' (also called ''Air Crash Investigation'' or ''Air Emergency'') dramatized the accident in a 2007 episode titled ''Panic Over the Pacific''.<ref name="Mayday Panic Over the Pacific">{{Cite episode |title=Panic Over the Pacific|series=[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Mayday]]|network=[[Discovery Channel Canada]] / [[National Geographic Channel]]|season=4|year=2007}}</ref>
*The flight was documented on an episode of the [[The Weather Channel|Weather Channel]] television program ''[[Why Planes Crash]]'' titled "Who's Flying".

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20001214X35672&key=1 Accident Brief] by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board.
*[https://ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR8603.pdf Full Accident Report] by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board. 
**([http://www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de/publications/Incidents/DOCS/ComAndRep/ChinaAir/AAR8603.html Alternate HTML copy] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051217133601/http://www.rvs.uni-bielefeld.de/publications/Incidents/DOCS/ComAndRep/ChinaAir/AAR8603.html|df=mdy|date=December 17, 2005}}) report courtesy of University of Bielefeld – Faculty of technology html version by Hiroshi Sogame Safety Promotion Comt. All Nippon Airways)
**[https://libraryonline.erau.edu/online-full-text/ntsb/aircraft-accident-reports/AAR86-03.pdf PDF copy at] [[Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University]]
*[http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/3.79.html Summary and comments] in Risks Digest.
*[[Amy Wilentz|Wilentz, Amy]] (March 4, 1985). [https://web.archive.org/web/20070310233329/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,961948,00.html "Diving From the Heavens"]. ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20101222222628/http://einestages.spiegel.de/static/topicalbumbackground/18641/sturzflug_mit_dem_jumbo_jet.html German article with pictures of the damaged airplane after landing] in ''Der Spiegel''

{{Aviation incidents and accidents in 1985}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in the 1980s}}
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[[Category:Accidents and incidents involving the Boeing 747]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by pilot error]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1985]]
[[Category:China Airlines accidents and incidents|006]]
[[Category:1985 in California]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents in California]]
[[Category:February 1985 events in the United States]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by engine failure]]