ValuJet flight 592
| ValuJet flight 592 | |
|---|---|
 The aircraft involved in the accident in 1995 |
|
| Accident summary | |
| Accident type | Loss of control after fire |
| place | 30 km NW of Miami Airport |
| date | May 11, 1996 |
| Fatalities | 110 |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Injured | 0 |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Douglas DC-9-32 |
| operator | ValuJet Airlines |
| Mark | N904VJ |
| Departure airport | Miami International Airport |
| Destination airport | Hartsfield – Jackson Atlanta International Airport |
| Passengers | 105 |
| crew | 5 |
| Lists of aviation accidents | |
On May 11, 1996, a Douglas DC-9-32 crashed on ValuJet Flight 592 as a result of a fire in the forward underfloor hold . The plane crashed into the Everglades ten minutes after taking off from Miami International Airport . All 110 occupants were killed in the accident.
Plane and crew
The 27-year-old Douglas DC-9-32 had completed its maiden flight on April 18, 1969 and was delivered to Delta Air Lines on May 27, 1969 with the registration number N1281L . In December 1992, Delta Air Lines traded the aircraft to the manufacturer McDonnell Douglas , who sold it to ValuJet in 1993 . The machine had had more than 68,000 flight hours behind it before the accident.
The flight was conducted by Captain Candalyn Kubeck (with more than 9,000 flight hours experience) and First Officer Richard Hazen (with more than 11,800 flight hours).
the accident
Due to mechanical problems, the Douglas DC-9 of ValuJet Airlines only started 64 minutes late at 2:04 p.m. local time in Miami on a scheduled flight to Atlanta . After taking off from runway 09L (now 08R), the aircraft turned on a north-westerly course. During the climb, the pilots heard a popping noise at 14:10:03, which was also recorded by the cockpit voice recorder (CVR). At this point the machine was at an altitude of approximately 3,550 meters (10,634 feet). The on-board electronics failed within the next 15 seconds. At the same time smoke penetrated the passenger cabin . The CVR recorded the calls for help from several passengers (“ fire ” and “ we're on fire ”).
The crew decided to return to Miami and reported this to air traffic control at 14:10:31. The air traffic controller immediately gave permission and clearance to descend to 2,300 meters (7,000 feet). The machine then turned on a southern course. Meanwhile, the smoke in the cabin continued to increase. At 14:11:38, the pilots asked to be allowed to approach the next airfield (“ Critter five ninety two we need the closest airport available ”). At 14:12:11 the CVR recorded the exclamation of a flight attendant that there was a fire in the passenger cabin (" completely on fire "). Immediately afterwards, the CVR's recordings ended because the fire had probably destroyed the electrical lines to the device. All communication systems also failed at 14:12 , so that the crew could no longer hear and / or answer the radio messages from the air traffic controller.
At 2:12:58 p.m., the aircraft changed course to the east, possibly to head for Opa Locka Airport in that direction , and immediately afterwards went into a steep dive. The average rate of descent was approximately 4,000 meters per minute (12,000 feet). Shortly before the impact, the crew succeeded in reducing the angle of the dive slightly. The last transponder signal from the machine was received by air traffic control at a height of approx. 300 meters (900 feet). At 14:13:42 hrs, the Douglas DC-9 hit the Everglades about 30 kilometers (17 NM ) northwest of Miami Airport with a slight right incline .
Cause of accident
In Miami, five boxes with so-called oxygen candles were loaded into the front underfloor cargo hold to be transported to Atlanta. The candles came from McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft and were used to supply oxygen to passengers in the event of a pressure drop in the cabin . During the release of oxygen, the containers heat up very strongly as a result of the chemical reaction . The Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA ) therefore classified filled oxygen candles as dangerous goods . They were only allowed to be transported in secured cargo areas that were equipped with a fire alarm . For emptied containers of this type, less stringent regulations applied, which enabled them to be transported in conventional cargo holds.
SabreTech was responsible for the packaging and labeling of the oxygen candles . According to the company's shipping documents, they were empty oxygen containers ( oxy cannister - empty ). In fact, the oxygen generators were (partially) full and only their consumption periods were exceeded ( expired ). In addition, the SabreTech employees only secured the valves of the pressure vessels with adhesive tape instead of using suitable valve caps. It was not until five minutes before the pushing back of the machine from the gate , these were packaged in cardboard containers along with three aircraft tires as a proprietary load or COMAT ( c ompany- o WNED mat brought erial) on board and subjected to further control.
The investigators assumed that at least one oxygen candle leaked after take-off and the heat generated caused the fire in the cargo hold. This initially went unnoticed by the crew because the Douglas DC-9 had no fire alarms in the corresponding area. The bang the pilots heard at 2:10 p.m. was probably caused by one of the loaded tires that burst in the fire. At the same time, the fire spread to the lines running in the cargo hold, causing several flight-related systems to fail and the pilots likely to lose control of the aircraft. In addition, the investigators did not rule out that the crew became unconscious from inhaling the fire gases .
consequences
The transport of oxygen generators as cargo was completely banned after the crash in passenger aircraft, only the devices for emergency supply were allowed in the passenger cabin. Where there are no pure cargo planes, these oxygen generators must also be transported by airlines as land / sea freight.
Similar cases
- Air Canada Flight 797 - 1983 a Douglas DC-9 had to make an emergency landing due to a cabin fire.
- Asiana Airlines Flight 991-2011 , a Boeing 747 crashed in a cargo fire.
- Eastern Airlines Flight 401 - 1972, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar crashed in the Everglades near the crash of Flight 592.
- Nigeria Airways Flight 2120-1991, a Douglas DC-8 crashes due to a blown tire and the resulting cabin fire.
- South African Airways Flight 295 - The Boeing 747 crashed in a fire in the Indian Ocean in 1987.
- Swissair Flight 111 - A McDonnell Douglas MD-11 that crashed into the sea after a cable fire.
- UPS Airlines Flight 6 - A Boeing 747 freighter that crashed in 2010 due to a cargo fire
- VARIG Flight 820 - A Boeing 707 that had to make an emergency landing in 1973 as a result of a cabin fire in a field in Saulx-les-Chartreux .
Media processing
In the 12th season of the Canadian documentary series " Mayday - Alarm im Cockpit " , the accident is taken up in episode 02 "Inferno in the Everglades" (original title: "Fire in the Hold" ). The US series " Seconds Before the Disaster " also addresses the events of the third season with the episode "Crash in the Everglades" (original title: "Florida Swamp Air Crash" ).
Web links
- Aircraft accident data and report in the Aviation Safety Network (English)
- List of all passengers and crew members
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Aircraft Accident Report, In-Flight Fire And Impact With Terrain, ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 (PDF)
- ↑ Flight Safety Foundation, Chemical Oxygen Generator Activates in Cargo Compartment of DC-9 Causes Intense Fire and Results in Collision with Terrain (PDF)
- ^ Dangerous Goods Advisory Bulletin , FAA, August 21, 2007
Coordinates: 25 ° 54 ′ 47 " N , 80 ° 34 ′ 41" W.