Taiwanese flight 52on boa4d hit expressway bridge and sank into Kee Long river

[Mirage]

One passenger's life-saving switch - and a stranger's helping hand

Divers describe grisly scene in the submerged wreckage of flight GE235

PUBLISHED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 3:16am
UPDATED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 3:16am

Lawrence Chung in Taipei [email protected]

Relatives of victims of the TransAsia Airways crash pray on the banks of the Keelung River near the plane's wreckage yesterday. Photo: AP

An uncanny premonition saved the life of TransAsia Airways passenger Chen Ming-chung.

The 50-year-old property broker - one of 15 people rescued from flight GE235 on Wednesday - had an "uneasy feeling" before he boarded the plane and insisted that he change seats.

Chen's wife, Shih Chiu-mei, said he told her that he switched seats to the right-hand side of the ATR72-600 propeller aircraft. It was a move that saved his life.

His original seat was on the side to first hit the water when the plane banked and crashed into Taipei's muddy Keelung River, killing at least 31 people.

"His life was really saved because of that," Shih said yesterday at the Taipei hospital where her husband was being treated for a broken arm.

The aircraft left Taipei Songshan Airport at 10.52am on Wednesday bound for Taiwan's former defence outpost of Quemoy. It crash four minutes later.

"My husband saw a stewardess thrown to the ceiling of the cabin while strapped in her seat, and there was constant screaming," Shih said.

"Some passengers were hit by debris while the bodies of others were pierced by sharp metal. It was like a bloodbath in a movie."

Shih said her husband told her that after the crash the left side of the plane was filled with muddy water and a crack had opened in the tail, letting in light.

"Some passengers started to shout, 'Quickly climb towards the crack' as water flowed in," she quoted her husband as saying.

She said Chen could not unlock his seatbelt to scramble to safety, but he shouted for help and a man came to his aid.

"My husband said he must find that man and thank him personally," she said, adding that she had read in reports that retired physician Huang Chin-shun, 71, had helped free others from their seatbelts and reach safety.

The Taipei Fire Department said the plane broke into three sections, with the overturned tail and fuselage half-submerged in the water and the nose buried three metres into the river's m&d.

Rescuers said they faced a major struggle yesterday as they continued their search for survivors and bodies. Twelve of the 58 passengers and crew are missing.

Divers search waters near the crash site yesterday. Photo: Reuters

Rescuers said visibility in the river was almost zero and they had to feel their way through the wreckage. They also described the horror of the scene inside the crashed plane.

Chen Po-yung, one of the divers sent to look for survivors on Wednesday, said it was very dark inside the cabin but what he saw was like a killing field, with some of the passengers upside down, still strapped in their seats.

"Even with the torch light, I could only see dimly the inside of the cabin because it was filled with fallen objects," Chen said.

"I tried to reach out to one passenger only to find that I had pulled out an arm."

An aviation official yesterday confirmed the authenticity of a recording of one of the pilots of the stricken aircraft saying, "Mayday, mayday, engine flameout" moments before the plane crashed.

TransAsia said it would offer NT$1.2 million (HK$295,000) in "consolation money" to the family of each person killed and NT$200,000 to each person injured in the crash.

 

[Mirage]

Heartbroken relatives arrive to take their loved ones home

Scenes of grief at funeral parlour as relatives view photos to identify bodies

PUBLISHED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 3:16am
UPDATED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 3:16am

Andrea Chen [email protected]

A man consoles two women at the funeral for victims of the TransAsia Airways plane crash. Photo: EPA

Many of the relatives of the 31 mainland passengers on TransAsia Airways flight GE235 fought back tears as they arrived in Taiwan yesterday.

Out of respect for the deceased, the injured and their families, a scheduled meeting between the mainland's Taiwan affairs head, Zhang Zhijun, and his Taiwanese counterpart, Wang Yu-chi, was postponed to a later date yet to be decided, a Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman said yesterday afternoon.

The two were due to meet this weekend during Zhang's official visit to Quemoy, also the destination of the TransAsia flight.

The spokesperson also said the mainland's civil aviation authority would send a team to work with Taiwanese experts investigating the crash.

The 31 mainland passengers were part of two tour groups flying from Taipei to Quemoy on Wednesday morning on the last day of their six-day trip to Taiwan.

By last night, 21 had been confirmed dead, three had survived and the rest were missing.

Among the dozens of relatives flying in to Taipei's Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon was Tang Ke, the fiancée of tour guide Wang Qinghuo.

Wang, 27, was one of the mainlanders killed in the incident, and he and Tang were due to get married this weekend.

Xiamen Daily reported that Wang, who was from Jiangxi province, died in hospital, despite receiving emergency treatment.

Some relatives fought back tears on arrival at the airport, saying they hoped to get to the crash scene as soon as possible. Many wept on their way from the airport to the bus arranged by the airline.

There were emotional scenes at a funeral parlour last night where relatives viewed photos to identify their loved ones.

Three relatives visited Huang Liping, 38, one of three mainlanders confirmed to have survived the crash, in hospital, Central News Agency said. Huang was in stable condition, with several fractured bones. But Huang's wife did not survive.

Flying Tours, a Taiwanese agency that jointly hosted one of the mainland groups, told CNA that an insurance company would pay the families of each deceased victim NT$2 million (HK$490,000) in compensation, while each of the injured would receive NT$200,000.

 

[xebay11]

Looking at the clip reminds me of our own military Paya Lebar airbase .

I always remind my friends not to look for properties along the pathway of these military jets and jumbo Hercules cC30.

You never know if one day a pilot misjudge and land some 400 metres short.

They should re-locate the airfield sooner and not wait for another 30 years..

Please lah, the whole of Singapore is so small that the whole country is like a runway, similar to an aircraft carrier, there is no far or near airport, you obviously have never taken a plane before and seen Singapore on approach, the aeroplane usually has to keep banking and making sharp turns just to line up with the runway, hard to even approach Singapore and land in one heading.

 

[eatshitndie]

Please lah, the whole of Singapore is so small that the whole country is like a runway, similar to an aircraft carrier, there is no far or near airport, you obviously have never taken a plane before and seen Singapore on approach, the aeroplane usually has to keep banking and making sharp turns just to line up with the runway, hard to even approach Singapore and land in one heading.

you can't fault the plane and the pilot for making sharp turns. that's because the island keeps moving all the time. :p

 

[Rogue Trader]

Forth high profile air disaster within a year.... on another forum, the angmors are laughing at Asians, drawing parallels to our inability to drive :(

 

[Mirage]

Taxi driver in plane crash video literally did not know what hit him

2015/02/05 17:53:45

Photo courtesy of the public

Taipei, Feb. 5 (CNA) "When it happened, my mind was a complete blank," said the driver of the taxi clipped by TransAsia Airways (復興航空) Flight 235 before it plunged into a Taipei river Wednesday morning, killing at least 31 of the 58 people on board.

Chou Hsi-tung (周錫東), who local media said is 52 years old, was driving his mini-van taxi along an elevated road in Taipei's Nangang District at 10:53 a.m. when the unthinkable happened.

The ATR 72 turboprop plane cleared several buildings after it began losing altitude, turning on its side just before its wing struck Chou's car and then the nearly empty expressway.

The roof of his car was dented inward, the windshield completely smashed, and the hood crushed in, but the driver and his 26-year-old passenger luckily made it out alive.

While the nation was transfixed by sensational video footage of the crash taken by another motorist, Chou himself literally did not know what hit him at first.

"I didn't even see there was a plane flying there," he reportedly told his company, Crown Taxi (皇冠大車隊), before being brought to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a concussion and vision problems in his right eye, which was apparently hit by broken glass.

"It just felt like a darkness, like black clouds, and then suddenly a huge white object appeared right in front of my eyes," said Chou, who is not receiving media personnel while he recovers. "I only realized it was a plane after I got out of my car!" he said, according to the company.

His passenger, identified by her surname Wang (汪), was reportedly in stable condition with minor injuries.

Crown Taxi confirmed that the car has most likely been totaled after being grazed by the plane's wing.

The company has already received a caller asking to buy the "miracle car" that survived a plane crash but turned it down.

In a statement, Crown Taxi said that Chou is grateful for everyone's concern but is unable to take visitors or interview requests. It added that people should focus on offering sympathies and prayers to those who were onboard the plane.

The Civil Aeronautics Administration said that as of 4 p.m. Thursday, 31 people onboard the plane including the pilot and copilot were confirmed dead, 15 were being treated for injuries, and 12 were still missing.

On Thursday, a recording of Chou's call to Crown following the accident was made public, instantly earning him praise for his collected demeanor despite having been hit by an airplane.

A full translation of the first call follows:

Crown: Hello, this is Crown Taxi.

Chou: Hello, this is No. 1098. A small plane just fell down and hit my car. The... the... the plane fell into the Keelung River. I'm on Huandong Boulevard. Please call me an ambulance.

Crown: No. 1098, you, you, you... uh... You're on Huandong? Wait a second, wait a second!

(The call is transferred)

Crown: Hello.

Chou: Hello, I'm No. 1098. I just got onto Huandong -- I just brought a passenger up unto Huandong, and as I was getting on (the expressway), a plane flew by and hit me.

Crown: A remote-controlled model plane?

Chou: My car is completely wrecked.

Crown: A remote-controlled model plane?

Chou: Not a remote-controlled plane, a small manned plane.

Crown: Huh? Uh... Are there any casualties?

Chou: The whole thing fell into the Keelung River.

Crown: Really? Are there any casualties?

Chou: Huh?

Crown: Are there any casualties? Is anyone hurt?

Chou: My passenger can't get out of the vehicle. My car's wrecked. Call me an ambulance as fast as possible.

Crown: You're No. 1098, right?

Chou: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

Crown: Where are you right now?

Chou: Nangang. We just got on Huandong Boulevard.

Crown: Huandong Boulevard. OK, I'll give your phone number to the other side (119).

Chou: Uh.

Crown: OK, got it, bye.

(By Wesley Holzer)

 

[blissquek]

Please lah, the whole of Singapore is so small that the whole country is like a runway, similar to an aircraft carrier, there is no far or near airport, you obviously have never taken a plane before and seen Singapore on approach, the aeroplane usually has to keep banking and making sharp turns just to line up with the runway, hard to even approach Singapore and land in one heading.

We can use Pulau Tekong to house the airbase there.

Further, they can look to HKIA which is built on Chek Lap Kok island after a massive reclamation project.

 

[blissquek]

Forth high profile air disaster within a year.... on another forum, the angmors are laughing at Asians, drawing parallels to our inability to drive :(

Yes I hope the civil aviation authorities set stringent standards for private jets..especially those from Chinki land.

Garuda is barred from certain European countries because their safety standards are not at par.

I once took a domestic flight in China in the early 80's ...

Guess what happened,,??? The gave me a hand-fan at the tarmac when boarding and that amazed me initially. I thought they learnt a thing or two about marketing.

But to my surprise, it is meant for me to use during take-off when they have to shut off the air-con to save power for the jet to take off..

 

[Mirage]

Four more bodies in Taiwan plane crash retrieved; pilot was found in cockpit 'still clutching controls'

Eight people still missing; TransAsia banned from applying new routes for one year

PUBLISHED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 2:24pm
UPDATED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 2:46pm

Laura Zhou and Agence France-Presse

Members of a search-and-rescue team near the wreckage of the aircraft. Photo: AFP

The pilot of the crashed TransAsia plane was still clutching the joystick when his body was found in the cockpit, after he battled to avoid populated areas, it was revealed today, as the bodies of four more victims were found.

The remains were discovered this morning as the search area was extended along the Keelung River. Eight people are still missing.

Pilot Liao Chien-tsung, 41, has been hailed as a hero for apparently making a last-ditch attempt to steer the turboprop plane away from built-up areas during its steep descent, avoiding more deaths and damage.

Thirty-five people are now known to have died in Wednesday's crash after a TransAsia Airways plane clipped a bridge shortly after take-off from the city's domestic airport and plunged into the river.

His body was found in the cockpit still holding the joystick with both hands, and with his legs badly fractured, the Taipei-based China Times newspaper said.

“He struggled to hold onto the joystick till the last moment before the plane plunged into the river, in an attempt to control its direction and to reduce casualties,” the report said, citing unnamed prosecutors investigating the case.

Details were not given of where the bodies were found this morning.

Three helicopters started patrolling further along the Keelung River today amid fears that some of the missing may have been washed further downstream towards the larger Tamsui River.

A total of 300 rescuers, including 50 divers, are searching six different stretches of water in cases survivors may be trapped in mudflats in bends in the river, a fire brigade spokesman told local media.

The Coast Guard will also carry out search operations at the mouth of the Tamsui River where it meets the sea.

Relatives of victims of the crash from mainland China visited the scene of the disaster on Friday morning, Radio Taiwan International reported.

Many of the victims were from Xiamen in Fujian province and officials from the city have also arrived in Taipei.

Staff from Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council were due to meet representatives from TransAsia Airways and the Civil Aeronautics Administration this morning and may release details of their findings into the crash later today.

An aviation official also confirmed on Thursday the authenticity of a recording of one of the pilots of the stricken aircraft saying "Mayday, mayday, engine flameout" moments before it banked sharply and crashed.

The aircraft - carrying 53 passengers, including four children, and five crew members - was seen to lurch between buildings, then clip the bridge with one of its wings before crashing upside down in the shallow river at about 10.55am on Wednesday, shortly after taking off from Taipei's Songshan International Airport.

Video images of the plane's final moments in the air captured on car dashboard cameras appear to show the left engine's propeller at standstill as the aircraft turned sharply over Taipei, with its wings going vertical and clipping a highway bridge before plunging into the Keelung River.

Authorities have also banned the airline from applying for new routes for one year in the wake of the latest incident.

Wednesday’s accident, which occurred on a domestic route to the island of Kinmen, was the second fatal crash for TransAsia after a July disaster that left 48 people dead.

“We have imposed a one-year ban on TransAsia from applying for new routes as a penalty,” said Civil Aeronautics Administration director Lin Tyh-ming.

Taiwanese media said the authorities were looking into allegations against the airline including labour shortages and insufficient training which could have affected safety standards.

“There is a manpower shortage of pilots... TransAsia has to recruit pilots with less experience from other companies after more than 20 of it pilots went to two newer airlines,” the Apple Daily said, citing unnamed sources.

Calls were also mounting from politicians for TransAsia to suspend its operations.

“This is a serious issue that two crashes occurred in just seven months. The company must immediately adopt an in-depth review of its management regarding problems such as workload and salaries,” lawmaker Lin Teh-fu of the ruling Kuomintang party told AFP.

 

[Mirage]

TransAsia crash survivors say last-minute seat change, strangers' help saved their lives

Divers describe grisly scene in the submerged wreckage of flight GE235

PUBLISHED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 3:16am
UPDATED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 2:43pm

Lawrence Chung in Taipei [email protected]

Relatives of victims of the TransAsia Airways crash pray on the banks of the Keelung River near the plane's wreckage yesterday. Photo: AP

An uncanny premonition saved the life of TransAsia Airways passenger Chen Ming-chung.

The 50-year-old property broker - one of 15 people rescued from flight GE235 on Wednesday - had an "uneasy feeling" before he boarded the plane and insisted that he change seats.

Chen's wife, Shih Chiu-mei, said he told her that he switched seats to the right-hand side of the ATR72-600 propeller aircraft. It was a move that saved his life.

His original seat was on the side to first hit the water when the plane banked and crashed into Taipei's muddy Keelung River, killing at least 31 people.

"His life was really saved because of that," Shih said yesterday at the Taipei hospital where her husband was being treated for a broken arm.

The aircraft left Taipei Songshan Airport at 10.52am on Wednesday bound for Taiwan's former defence outpost of Quemoy. It crash four minutes later.

"My husband saw a stewardess thrown to the ceiling of the cabin while strapped in her seat, and there was constant screaming," Shih said.

"Some passengers were hit by debris while the bodies of others were pierced by sharp metal. It was like a bloodbath in a movie."

Shih said her husband told her that after the crash the left side of the plane was filled with muddy water and a crack had opened in the tail, letting in light.

Watch: The moment TransAsia GE235 hits bridge and crashes in Taiwan

"Some passengers started to shout, 'Quickly climb towards the crack' as water flowed in," she quoted her husband as saying.

She said Chen could not unlock his seatbelt to scramble to safety, but he shouted for help and a man came to his aid.

"My husband said he must find that man and thank him personally," she said, adding that she had read in reports that retired physician Huang Chin-shun, 71, had helped free others from their seatbelts and reach safety.

The Taipei Fire Department said the plane broke into three sections, with the overturned tail and fuselage half-submerged in the water and the nose buried three metres into the river's m&d.

Rescuers said they faced a major struggle yesterday as they continued their search for survivors and bodies. Twelve of the 58 passengers and crew are missing.

Divers search waters near the crash site yesterday. Photo: Reuters

Rescuers said visibility in the river was almost zero and they had to feel their way through the wreckage. They also described the horror of the scene inside the crashed plane.

Chen Po-yung, one of the divers sent to look for survivors on Wednesday, said it was very dark inside the cabin but what he saw was like a killing field, with some of the passengers upside down, still strapped in their seats.

"Even with the torch light, I could only see dimly the inside of the cabin because it was filled with fallen objects," Chen said.

"I tried to reach out to one passenger only to find that I had pulled out an arm."

An aviation official yesterday confirmed the authenticity of a recording of one of the pilots of the stricken aircraft saying, "Mayday, mayday, engine flameout" moments before the plane crashed.

TransAsia said it would offer NT$1.2 million (HK$295,000) in "consolation money" to the family of each person killed and NT$200,000 to each person injured in the crash.

 

[TeamDrifter]

Lucky indeed to be alive but very unlucky to be hit by the wingtip of a flying plane

 

[Mirage]

Accident investigators say main cause of Taipei air crash was engine failure

Eight people still missing after the TransAsia airliner crashed into a river in northern Taiwan on Wednesday

PUBLISHED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 2:24pm
UPDATED : Friday, 06 February, 2015, 7:48pm

Lawrence Chung, Laura Zhou and Agence France-Presse

Workers carry a body away from the crash site. Photo: AFP

Accident investigators have said the main cause of the Taipei air crash that killed at least 35 people was engine failure.

The Taiwan Aviation Safety Council said an initital investigation showed that one of the engines on the TransAsia plane malfunctioned.

[video=youtube;TdmNE7rPU_A]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdmNE7rPU_A[/video]

The report said a warning was flashed in the cockpit, but one of the crew then shut down the aircraft's other engine.

The report did not state that human error directly caused the crash, but the crew's actions did cause the aircraft to lose speed.

The details came after it was revealed that the pilot of the crashed TransAsia plane was still clutching the aircraft's joystick when his body was found in the cockpit after he battled to avoid populated areas.

Pilot Liao Chien-tsung, 41, has been hailed as a hero for apparently making a last-ditch attempt to steer the turboprop plane away from built-up areas during its steep descent, avoiding more deaths and damage.

Thirty-five people are now known to have died in Wednesday's crash after the plane clipped a bridge shortly after take-off from the city's domestic airport and plunged into the river.

Liao's body was found in the cockpit still holding the joystick with both hands, and with his legs badly fractured, the Taipei-based China Times newspaper said.

Relatives of victims from mainland China watch as divers recover bodies at the crash site. Photo: AP

“He struggled to hold onto the joystick till the last moment before the plane plunged into the river in an attempt to control its direction and to reduce casualties,” the report said, citing unnamed prosecutors investigating the case.

The bodies of four more victims of the crash were found this morning.

The remains were discovered as the search area was extended along the Keelung River. Eight people are still missing.

Among the bodies found this morning were those of two boys who were still strapped into their seats. They were discovered in the river about 50 metres from the crash site.

The body of an elderly woman was found about 100 metres downstream from the scene of the accident, while the remains of a middle-aged man were discovered nearby, the Central News Agency reported.

Three helicopters started patrolling further along the Keelung River today amid fears that some of the missing may have been washed further downstream towards the larger Tamsui River.

A total of 300 rescuers, including 50 divers, are searching six different stretches of water in cases survivors may be trapped in mudflats in bends in the river, a fire brigade spokesman told local media.

The coastguard will also carry out search operations at the mouth of the Tamsui River where it meets the sea.

Relatives of victims of the crash from mainland China visited the scene of the disaster on Friday morning, Radio Taiwan International reported.

Search and rescue divers recover two bodies from the site. Photo: AP

Many of the victims were from Xiamen in Fujian province and officials from the city have also arrived in Taipei.

Staff from Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council were due to meet representatives from TransAsia Airways and the Civil Aeronautics Administration this morning before releasing details of their findings.

An aviation official confirmed on Thursday the authenticity of a recording of one of the pilots of the stricken aircraft saying "Mayday, mayday, engine flameout" moments before it banked sharply and crashed.

The aircraft - carrying 53 passengers, including four children, and five crew members - was seen to lurch between buildings, then clip the bridge with one of its wings before crashing upside down in the shallow river at about 10.55am on Wednesday, shortly after taking off from Taipei's Songshan International Airport.

Video images of the plane's final moments in the air captured on car dashboard cameras appear to show the left engine's propeller at standstill as the aircraft turned sharply over Taipei, with its wings going vertical and clipping a highway bridge before plunging into the Keelung River.

The authorities have also banned the airline from applying for new routes for one year in the wake of the latest incident.

Wednesday’s accident, which occurred on a domestic flight to the island of Kinmen, was the second fatal crash for TransAsia after a July disaster that left 48 people dead.

Search and rescue divers seek eight more passengers who are still missing. The search was widened after some other bodies were found further down the river. Photo: AP

“We have imposed a one-year ban on TransAsia from applying for new routes as a penalty,” said Civil Aeronautics Administration director Lin Tyh-ming.

Taiwanese media said the authorities were looking into allegations against the airline including staff shortages and insufficient training which could have affected safety standards.

“There is a manpower shortage of pilots ...TransAsia had to recruit pilots with less experience from other companies after more than 20 of it pilots went to two newer airlines,” the Apple Daily newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources.

Calls were also mounting from politicians for TransAsia to suspend its operations.

“This is a serious issue that two crashes occurred in just seven months. The company must immediately adopt an in-depth review of its management regarding problems such as workload and salaries,” lawmaker Lin Teh-fu of the ruling Kuomintang party told the Agence France-Presse news agency.

Members of a search-and-rescue team near the wreckage of the aircraft. Photo: AFP

 

[Mirage]

TransAsia pilots hailed as heroes for avoiding populated areas

Staff Reporter
2015-02-06

Liao Chien-tsung, center. (Internet photo)

A rescue team searches for missing passengers. (Photo/CNA)

Liao Chien-tsung, the pilot of crashed TransAsia flight GE235, co-pilot Liu Tzu-chung and flight engineer Hung Ping-chung have been praised for their efforts to avoid densely-populated areas and attempts to save the passengers on board by landing the plane into Keelung river, reports our Chinese-language sister paper China Daily.

Footage captured by a vehicle dashboard camera showed that, as the plane plummeted from the sky, the pilots turned the plane left on its side to avoid high buildings, clipping an elevated expressway before crashing vertically into the river. Air traffic control heard a male voice shout "Mayday! Mayday! Engine flameout!" before the crash. The plane took off from Taipei Songshan Airport bound for the outlying Kinmen archipelago at 10:52am Thursday but crashed into the river at 10:54am.

The death toll stood at 31 as of 10am on Friday, with 15 survivors hospitalized, leaving 12 people still unaccounted for, according to the Civil Aeronautics Administration. The taxi driver who narrowly escaped death when his vehicle was struck by the plane wing has been taken to hospital with a concussion and injuries to one of his eyes but his passenger was unharmed.

Colonel Steve Ganyard, a contributor to US news network ABC, said the pilots held the plane's nose up to avoid buildings and the bridge and they did whatever they could to land the plane in the river to give the passengers the best chance of survival.

Senior pilots in Taiwan praised the courage of the pilots, saying that it is difficult to find a river in which to land a plane in the densely-populated capital city. Residents living near the crash site also expressed their gratitude to the pilots since the incident could have caused many more injuries and deaths. A family member of three survivors of the crash thanked the pilots for minimizing the damage. The three survivors say they heard the engines cut out 30 seconds after take off, then they felt the plane veer to the left. The pilots then tried to pull the plane up, but it climbed only slightly before crashing into the river.

A businessman surnamed Su from Taichung has decided to contribute to the tuition fees of Liao's nine-year-old son until he graduates from college. Su, who has TV panel factories in Guangzhou, Henan and Shaoxing, said his two children are about the same age and he was deeply touched by Liao's heroic move. Su has decided to donate NT$500,000 to Liao's family and open a bank account to pay the tuition fees of Liao's son.

 

[Mirage]

Both engines of TransAsia Airways plane failed before Taipei crash: official

CNA
2015-02-06

Wang Hsing-chung during a press conference on the crash in Taipei, Feb. 6. (Photo/CNA)

Data from the two black boxes retrieved from a TransAsia Airways plane that crashed into a river in Taipei showed that both of the turboprop aircraft's engines failed before the crash, the Aviation Safety Council (ASC) said Friday.

Neither engine had any power during the last minute and 7 seconds before the aircraft plunged into the Keelung River, ASC managing director Wang Hsing-chung said at a news conference in Taipei.

A warning first went off for engine No. 2 when the plane reached an altitude of about 1,200 feet, according to the flight data recorder, he said.

Forty-six seconds later, power to engine No. 1 was cut off and then turned back on a full 56 seconds after that, just six seconds before the plane hit the ground, Wang said in presenting the timeline of what happened.

He did not give any explanation for why engine No. 1 was turned off.

TransAsia Airways flight 235 crashed three minutes and 23 seconds after getting clearance at 10:51:13 to take off Wednesday morning from Songshan Airport in northern Taipei en route to Kinmen.

Fifteen of the 58 people on board survived the accident while 35 have been confirmed dead and another eight remain unaccounted for.

The ATR72-600 aircraft was less than a year old but had experienced engine problems before.

Representatives from the French Land Transport Accident Investigation Bureau, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, the plane's manufacturer ATR and engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Canada in Taiwan also attended the press conference.

 

[Mirage]

Cockpit voice recorder for crashed TransAsia Airways flight GE235 made public

CNA
2015-02-06

A press conference held by Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council on the TransAsia Airways crash, Feb. 6. (Photo/CNA)

Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council on Friday released the information on the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder on board the TransAsia Airways passenger plane that crashed two days earlier.

The following is the timeline of the incident according to data registered on the cockpit voice recorder:

10:51:13 Flight GE235 is cleared for take-off

10:52:38.3 Main alarm goes off in cockpit for engine No. 2

10:52:43.0 Pilots mention easing power [pulling back the throttle] for engine No. 1

10:53:00 Pilots discuss procedure for handling engine flameout

10:53:06.4 Pilots again mention pullback of throttle for engine No. 1 and confirm flameout of engine No. 2

10:53:12.6 to 10:53:18.8 Alarm for loss of speed goes off for first time in cockpit

10:53:19.6 Pilots mention engine No. 1 propeller is auto-feathering and power to that engine has been cut off. Alarm for loss of speed goes off again two seconds later

10:53:34.9 Pilots issue first mayday and notify tower of engine flameout

10:54:09.2 Pilots repeatedly call for re-ignition of engine No. 1

10:54:34.4 Main alarm goes off for second time in cockpit Unknown noise recorded 0.4 seconds later

10:54:36.6 Cockpit voice recorder stops

 

[Mirage]

25 Chinese killed, 3 injured and 3 missing in plane crash

2015/02/06 23:09:53

Taipei, Feb. 6 (CNA) Twenty-five of the 31 Chinese nationals on board the crashed TransAsia Airways plane have been confirmed dead, while three others were injured and another three unaccounted for, Chou Jih-shine (周繼祥), vice chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation, said Friday.

A TransAsia Airways (復興航空) ATR 72 turboprop plane carrying 53 passengers and five crew members crashed into a river in Taipei shortly after taking off on Wednesday, killing 35 people and injuring 15, with eight others unaccounted for as of 4 p.m. Friday.

Chou told CNA that he had notified the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits, SEF's Chinese counterpart, of the latest information.

The 31 Chinese nationals, who were in two tour groups coming from Xiamen, southeast China's Fujian province, plus four independent tourists, were mostly traveling with their families.

(By Chou Yi-ling, Kao Chao-fen and Kuo Chung-han)

 

[ByTheWay]

By the way Huat Ah !

 

[Mirage]

TransAsia pilots may have shut down wrong engine, say experts

Date February 7, 2015 - 4:44PM

At least 35 people on board the TransAsia flight were killed in the crash. Photo: AP

Taipei: The TransAsia Airways plane that crashed in Taiwan sounded a warning from one engine before fuel was manually cut to the other, investigators said.

Analysis of the ATR 72's flight-data recorder showed that the right-hand, or No. 2, engine, was automatically idled when the alarm went off, even though it was functioning normally. The No. 1 engine, on the left, was also running as usual before fuel was cut seconds later, Thomas Wang, managing director of Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council, said at a briefing in Taipei.

Mr Wang declined to draw conclusions about the warning or the actions of the crew, saying the investigation was still in its preliminary stages.

The pilots had discussed an engine flameout 35 seconds before sounding a "May-day" distress call. Photo: Reuters

The safety council said it would continue to investigate the cause of the loss of power to both engines. But aviation experts said the engine data suggested the pilots had misidentified which engine had malfunctioned.

"They had a misconception about which engine failed, and they shut down the good one," said David Learmount, the operations and safety editor at Flightglobal, an online publication that covers the aviation industry.

Friday's disclosures provide the first indications of what happened to Flight 235 in the four minutes between takeoff and its descent into the Keelung River. At least 35 of the 58 people aboard the domestic flight between Taipei and the island of Kinmen, near mainland China, are confirmed dead. Eight people were still unaccounted for on Friday.

The pilots had discussed an engine flameout 35 seconds before sounding a "May-day" distress call, Mr Wang said. Both engines were intact when investigators recovered them, he said.

Rescuers widened their search to more than 30 kilometres of rive from the crash site in downtown Taipei, with the coastguard patrolling 10 nautical miles out to sea.

Both pilot Liao Jian-zong and co-pilot Liu Zi-zhong died in the accident.

Pilot Liao had 4914 hours of flying experience and his co-pilot had 6922 hours, TransAsia said. There was also an observer on board, Hong Bing-zhong, who had 16,121 hours of experience.

The flight had departed Taipei's Songshan Airport for an hour-long flight to Kinmen. Footage from a dashboard-mounted camera in a car showed the plane's wings tilted at a steep angle as it swerved over an elevated highway, with one tip clipping a taxi and the railing before the plane plunged into the river.

Bloomberg

 

[Mirage]

TransAsia pilots undergo proficiency tests following crash

By RALPH JENNINGS
Feb. 7, 2015 6:58 AM EST

A ground mechanic works on the engine area of a TransAsia Airways ATR airplane at the Songshan Airport in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015. All 71 pilots who operate the airline's ATR propeller-jets began proficiency tests on Saturday, three days after one of the carrier's ATRs crashed into a river. (AP Photo/Wally Santana)

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The dozens of pilots who operate TransAsia Airways' ATR propeller-jets began proficiency tests on Saturday, three days after one of the carrier's ATRs crashed into a river, killing at least 40 people.

The airline said it had canceled 90 flights over the next three days to accommodate the requirement by Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration that all 71 of its ATR pilots be retested.

Preliminary investigations indicate the pilots of Wednesday's doomed flight shut off a running engine of the ATR 72 after its other engine went idle, a move that aviation experts said was an error.

"It's a mistake," said John M. Cox, a former US Airways pilot and now head of a safety-consulting company. "There are procedures that pilots go through — safeguards — when you're going to shut down an engine, particularly close to the ground. Why that didn't occur here, I don't know."

Local prosecutors have said they will look into the possibility of "professional error."

Thomas Wang, head of Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council, said Saturday that it was too early to reach conclusions about any pilot error.

Pratt & Whitney Canada, the plane's engine maker, and the safety council have begun to examine both of the aircraft's engines, a process that can take four months, Wang said.

The crash into the muddy Keelung River in Taipei minutes after takeoff killed at least 40 of the 58 people who were aboard the plane, with rescuers recovering five more bodies on Saturday, according to the Taipei City Fire Department. Three people remain missing.

Fifteen people were rescued with injuries after the accident, which was captured in a dramatic dashboard camera video that showed the aircraft banking steeply and scraping a highway overpass before it hurtled into the water.

With warmer temperatures, divers on Saturday were able to retrieve more bodies, which were found hundreds of meters downriver from the crash site.

One body turned up near the shore, and others were submerged in m&d, said You Chia-yi, a command post chief with the fire department.

Family members of those still missing have given up hope, said Lee Hung Shu-ying, a Tzu Chi Foundation volunteer who talked to numerous relatives Saturday.

"They know it's not possible (to survive) with the weather being so cold," she said. "They just hope the bodies can be found."

 

[singveld]

Siao ah, they switch off fuel to the working engine. Big mistake.
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Taiwanese airline TransAsia Airways says it is cancelling 90 flights so that its pilots can attend training, after one of its planes crashed on Wednesday.

Flight GE235 plunged into a river in the capital Taipei, killing at least 40 of the 58 people on board.

Officials are probing why both plane engines were off during the crash.

Data suggests that the pilots, who are among the dead, may have shut one engine off after the other lost power.

Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) has ordered retraining for all TransAsia pilots flying its ATR fleet.

"All 71 ATR pilots will take part in proficiency tests carried out by the CAA and third-party professionals for an estimated four days," TransAsia Airways said in a statement (in Chinese).

The aviation regulator has also ordered engine and fuel system checks on the remaining 22 ATR-manufactured planes currently in active service on the island.