The NTSB Releases 8 Amazing Photos of the Asiana Airline’s Crash

I think the real unsung heroes here (or maybe they are sung, and I just haven’t heard about it) are the flight attendants. Imagine coming to the end of a 12-hour shift, and being tired and jetlagged, and then being alert and acute enough to escort nearly 300 passengers to safety out of a burning airplane.

I know it’s what they’re trained for, but it’s still amazing. Bravo.

There is no such thing as pilot error.
Design error; Management error; ATC error; HR error; Maintenance error – YES
Pilot erroe – NO.

On January 23, 2013, the Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre (JACDEC) announced that Korean Airlines had the fifth worst safety record among 60 international airlines that were reviewed.

On January 06, 2007 – Korean Air Lines Flight 769 from Seoul to Akita, Japan, landed on an unoccupied taxiway instead of the intended runway 10, which was the airport’s only runway. The Boeing 737-900 aircraft with 124 passengers and 9 crew landed without any injury or damage.

On April 15, 1999 Korean Air Cargo Flight 6316 (McDonnell Douglas MD-11) from Shanghai to Seoul took off despite the Korean co-pilot”s repeated misunderstanding and miscommunication with the tower and the pilot. The aircraft climbed to 1,500 meters and the captain, after receiving two wrong affirmative answers from the first officer that the required altitude should be 500 meters, thought that the aircraft was 1,000 meters too high. The captain then pushed the control column abruptly forward causing the aircraft to start a rapid descent. Neither was able to recover from the dive. The airplane plummeted into an industrial development zone 10 kilometers southwest of Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport. The plane plunged to the ground, hitting housing for migrant workers, and exploded.

On March 15, 1999 — Korean Air Flight 1533 (McDonnell Douglas MD-83) from Seoul to Pohang departed for Pohang. Weather at Pohang was poor with degraded visibility and gusty 25 knot winds. The pilot failed at the first attempt to land. After the second approach the plane touched down, but overran the runway. The aircraft skidded through 10 antennas, a reinforced barbed wire fence and came to rest against an embankment. The landing snapped the fuselage in half.

On August 05, 1998 — Korean Air Flight 8702 (Boeing 747-400) from Tokyo to Seoul. The flight departed Tokyo at 16:50 for a flight to Seoul, scheduled to arrive there at 19:20. Inclement weather at Seoul forced the flight crew to divert to Jeju. The aircraft took off from Cheju at 21:07 bound for Seoul. On landing in Seoul, the 747 bounced multiple times and slid 100 meters off the runway before coming to a stop in a grassy area.

On August 06 1997 — Korean Air Flight 801 (Boeing 747-3B5) from Seoul to Agana, Guam, The crew attempted a night-time approach to Guam runway 06L. Flight 801 had descended 250 meters below the prescribed altitude, struck the 225 meters Nimitz Hill at a height of 200 meters and crashed in a jungle valley, breaking up and bursting into flames. Subsequent investigation found that the captain’s failure to adequately brief and execute the non-precision approach and the first officer’s and flight engineer’s failure to effectively monitor and cross-check the captain’s execution of the approach were directly responsible for the crash. It was the first fatal crash of the Boeing 747-300. Contributing factors were the captain’s fatigue and Korean Air’s inadequate flight crew training.

On September 22 1994 — Korean Air Flight 916F (Boeing 747) from Zurich to Busan. Eight days prior, the aircraft had encountered a severe hailstorm over Elba, Italy which led to a near miss incident. The aircraft sustained severe damage to the radome, cockpit windows and engines but managed to reach Zurich safely. Some repair work was done, but the aircraft needed to be ferried to Busan for final repairs. Boeing released the aircraft with some take-off performance changes, which included a limited gross weight by 70,000 pounds and increased takeoff speeds for V1, V2 and VR by 15, 17 and 14 knots respectively. The aircraft was cleared for a Runway 14 takeoff and ZUE 5P departure. After a long take-off run, the aircraft lifted off the runway at the very end and climbed slowly. At 900 meters beyond the runway end the aircraft cleared some adjacent buildings at fewer than 50 meters. Subsequent investigation found that despite clear instructions to reduce weight, the crew had overloaded the aircraft by 86,700 pounds

On August 10 1994 — Korean Air Flight 2033 (Airbus A300) from Seoul to Jeju, the flight approached faster than usual to avoid potential wind-shear. 15 meters above the runway the co-pilot, who was not flying the aircraft, decided that there was insufficient runway left to land and tried to perform a go-around against the captain’s wishes. The aircraft touched down 1,773 meters beyond the runway threshold. The aircraft could not be stopped on the remaining 1,227 meters of runway and overran at a speed of 104 knots. After striking the airport wall and a guard post at 30 knots, the aircraft burst into flames and was incinerated. The cabin crew was credited with safely evacuating all passengers although only half of the aircraft’s emergency exits were usable

On June 13 1991 — Korean Air (Boeing 727) from Jeju to Daegu, the aircraft performed an unexpected gear-up landing at Daegu. The crew failed to read out the landing procedure checklist and therefore didn’t select the gear down option. Subsequent investigation revealed that the pilot instructed the co-pilot to pull the fuse from the warning system because the repeated warnings that the landing gear was not deployed were, “irritating and distracting,” him as he attempted to land. With the warning horn disabled, the Korean pilot brought the plane in and slid down the length of the runway on the central structural rib in the belly of the aircraft
On July 27 1989 — Korean Air Flight 803 (McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30) from Jeddah to Tripoli. The aircraft initially departed Seoul on a flight to Tripoli with intermediate stops at Bangkok and Jeddah. Visibility was varying between 100—800 feet and the runway 27 ILS had been reported unserviceable. On final approach to runway 27 the aircraft crashed short of the runway, striking 4 houses and a number of cars.
December 23, 1983 – Korean Air Cargo Flight 084 (McDonnell Douglas DC-10) from Anchorage to Los Angeles, while taxiing out in fog, the Korean crew became disoriented and ended up on the wrong runway. During the takeoff run, the aircraft collided head-on with Southcentral Air Flight 59, a Piper Pa-31 which was taking off from runway 6L-24R for a flight to Kenai. The nine occupants of the South Central Air flight were injured. The DC-10 overran the runway by 1,434 feet and came to rest 40 feet right of the extended centerline. Federal Investigators determined that the Korean pilot had failed to follow accepted procedures during taxi – causing disorientation while selecting the runway. The pilot also failed to use the compass to confirm his position. Ultimately the pilot”s decision to proceed with takeoff without ever knowing if he was on the correct runway caused the impact.

On September 01, 1983 – Korean Air Flight 007 (Boeing 747-230B) departed from New York City for Seoul via Anchorage. At 5:00 AM the flight was cleared directly to the Bethel VOR beacon and then on to the Romeo 20 route. The pilot mistakenly diverted from its intended course and passed 12 miles north of the Bethel beacon. While approaching the Kamchatka peninsula, six Soviet MiG-23 fighters were scrambled. Because a U.S. Air Force Boeing RC-135 intelligence plane was flying in the area east off Kamchatka, the Soviets may have assumed the 747 radar echo to be the RC-135. The flight left Soviet airspace over the Sea of Okhotsk and the fighters returned to their base. Passing abeam the Nippi beacon (four hours after take-off), the aircraft was 185 miles off course and headed for Sakhalin. Two Soviet Su-15 ‘Flagon’ fighters were scrambled from the Dolinsk-Sokol airbase. At 18:16 UTC, flight 007 re-entered Soviet airspace. At 18:22, for the second time, Soviet command ordered destruction of the target. Two air-to-air missiles were launched by one of the fighters and one struck the Boeing at 18:26. Cabin pressure was lost and the aircraft suffered control problems, causing the plane, after a 12 minute flight, to spiral into the sea near Moneron Island. The event was denounced by the US Reagan Administration as a deliberate and wanton act of murder by an “evil empire.

On April 20, 1978 — Korean Air Flight 902 (Boeing 707) departed from Paris for Anchorage and flew to within 780 km of the North Pole when Canadian officials alerted the crew they were off course. They changed course, but worsened the situation by setting a course directly across the Barents Sea and Soviet airspace. The plane was initially recognized by Soviet anti-aircraft defense radars as a Boeing 747. Sukhoi Su-15TM jets were sent to intercept. When both jets were flying next to the Korean airliner, the Korean captain claimed he slowed the plane and initiated landing lights. Nevertheless the Su-15 crews were ordered to shoot down the plane. According to US intelligence sources the Soviet pilot tried for several minutes to convince his superiors to cancel the attack on the civilian airliner. After an additional order two P-60 rockets were launched. The first missed but the second severely damaged the left wing and shrapnel punctured the fuselage, causing rapid decompression that killed two passengers. The Korean pilot initiated an emergency descent to 5,000 feet and entered clouds. Both Soviet jets lost the Korean plane in the clouds. The aircraft continued at low altitude, crossing the Kola Peninsula while searching for a landing opportunity. With night quickly coming on, several unsuccessful attempts were made before the plane landed on the ice of Lake Korpijà¤rvi, near Kem, USSR. All occupants were rescued by Soviet helicopters. Damage— severe, Injuries— multiple, Deaths- 2 (two of 197 passengers)
On August 02 1976 — Korean Air (Boeing 707) cargo flight departed from Tehran for Seoul when, on takeoff from runway 29, the aircraft inexplicably deviated from the Standard Instrument Departure (SID) procedure and drifted to the right instead of performing a left turnout. It continued and struck mountains at an altitude of 2,020 meters