26 plane crashes in year 2009

The Boeing 737-800 operated by American Airlines operated on a passenger flight from Washington, USA, DC, to Kingston, Jamaica, with an intermediate stop at Miami, USA, Florida. 148 passengers and six crew members were onboard. The plane overshot the runway on landing at Kingston-Norman Manley International Airport. Everybody onboard survived, but the plane sustained substantial damage. The Boeing 737 was approaching Kingston-Norman Manley International Airport runway 12 in bad weather conditions. Heavy rain prevailed at the moment of the accident, and the pilot even warned the passengers of strong turbulence just before landing. The airplane landed far down the runway threshold: it landed approximately 4,000 feet (1200 meters) down the 8,900 foot (2700 meters) runway, cutting the available landing distance by almost half. The aircraft wasn’t able to brake before the end of the runway, at overshot it. The plane skidded across a road and came to rest on a beach at the edge of the Caribbean Sea. The plane came to a halt about 10 to 15 feet (3 to 5 meters) from the Sea. The plane's fuselage was cracked, its right engine broke off from the impact and the left main landing gear collapsed. Passengers and crew managed to escape the plane and were taken to hospitals with injuries ranging from broken bones to back pain. Most of the injuries were cuts and bruises, and none were life threatening. However, four people were seriously hurt.

The Mc Donnell Douglas MD-11F cargo plane, operated by Zimbabwe-based Avient Aviation, took off from Shanghai, China, bound for Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan. Seven crewmembers were onboard to perform this cargo flight. The plane crashed during take-off. Three crew members were fatally injured and four survived the accident. The cargo plane accelerated on the runway to take off. When it started to lift off, the aircraft's tail struck the ground. The plane veered off the runway, smashed into a storage building, and burst into flames. Several firemen were needed to overcome the dense black smoke and the fire.

A Lockeed KC-130J Hercules transport and tanker aircraft, operated by the Italian Air Force, took off from Pisa, Italy, for a training flight. Five crewmembers were onboard. The plane crashed immediately after take-off, and burst into flames. The five people onboard were killed. The aircraft took off from Pisa's Galileo Galilei international airport for a military flight, but immediately after lift off, the airplane failed to gain altitude, came down on a railway line, broke up and caught fire. The KC-130 has been completely destroyed.

The Ilyushin 76, owned by the Russian Ministry of Interior, took off from Mirny, Russia, on a positioning flight to Irkutsk, Russia. 4 passengers and 7 crewmembers were onboard. The plane was destroyed when it crashed immediately after takeoff, killing the 11 people onboard. The Ilyushin 76 transport plane took off from Mirny Airport. The airplane climbed to a height of 20-30 metres. It banked right and crashed about 1,5 km from the runway.

The United States Coast Guard Hercules HC-130H took off from Sacramento, California, United States of America, for a search mission, and was supposed then to come back to Sacramento. But the plane was missing after a reported mid-air collision between the HC-130 and a US Marine Corps Bell AH-1 Super Cobra. 9 people perished in the accident: the 7 occupants of the HC-130 died, as well as the two occupants of the helicopter. The HC-130 mission was part of a search for a 12-foot vessel that had been missing for two days.The Cobra helicopter was heading to San Clemente island on a training mission out of Camp Pendleton with two crew. Both aircraft collided in flight. The wreckage of the HC-130 and the Cobra helicopter were found a few days after the accident, but no signs of crash victims.

The British Aerospace BAe-125 departed Moskva-Vnukovo Airport, Russia bound for Minsk, Belarus. 2 passengers and 3 crewmembers were onboard the executive jet. The plane crashed while on approach to Minsk, killing all onboard. The plane crashed in a forest at about three kilometres away from the runway it was approaching. The aircraft broke up upon impact and caught fire. Weather conditions were bad, with low visibility (3500 meters) in light drizzle, and overcast clouds with a ceiling of 200 ft (around 60 meters). The ILS (Instrument Landing System) glide and localizer of the runway the aircraft was approaching were unserviceable. ILS localizer is used to guide the aircraft on the horizontal plan to approach the runway. The ILS glide is used to guide the plane on the vertical plan.

The Boeing 707-330C cargo plane, owned by Azza Transport and operated by Sudan Airways, was on a cargo flight from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, bound for Khartoum, Sudan. Six crewmembers were onboard. The plane was destroyed when it crashed in a desert area immediately after takeoff, killing everyone onboard. The images from an airport surveillance camera show the Boeing 707 apparently departing normally to Khartoum. But within 15 seconds two frames of the footage show an unidentified object apparently dropping to the ground and, another 15 seconds later, the aircraft rapidly descending, in a steep bank, to the right of the departure path, and crashed. The plane crashed near the Emirates Road, broke up and exploded. Meteorological data at the time of the accident shows no evidence of adverse weather conditions.

The CASA C-212 Aviocar 200 operated by the United Nation (UN) took off from Port-au-Prince Airport, Haiti, for border patrol mission along the Haiti/Dominican Republic border. 11 peacekeepers were onboard. The plane crashed in mountainous terrain during its mission, killing everyone onboard. The plane went down in a remote area near the border with the Dominican Republic 28 miles (45 kilometres) from the capital Port-au-Prince, and 12 miles (20 kilometres) west of Fond Verrettes. Rescue teams had to reach the crash site by foot because there were no roads nearby and found no survivors. The victims were Uruguayian and Jordanian military personnel serving as part of a 9,000 strong UN peacekeeping force which has been in Haiti since 2004.

The British Aerospace Jetstream 41 was on a positioning flight from Durban International Airport, South Africa, to Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Three crewmembers were onboard. The planes crashed moments after taking off into an empty school grounds. The three crewmembers were seriously injured, and the captain died few days after the accident. The plane has struck a municipal worker on the ground who was cleaning the street. The ground worker was injured. The aircraft suffered an engine failure seconds after taking off and the crew declared an emergency. The aircraft then crashed onto a vacant lot, narrowly missing houses, and slid into primary school grounds approximately 400 meters from the runway and broke up.

The Ilyushin 76-MD belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) was destroyed in an accident in the village of Vali Abad, Iran, near the capital Tehran. All 7 people onboard were killed. The report said the crash took place in Qarchak, an area close to where an army parade was taking place. First reports said that the Iranian warplane had crashed in Qarchak during an aerial maneuver carried out to celebrate the national Sacred Defense Week. But this was then denied by the IRIAF, which stated that the crash of the plane during training in Qarchak had no links with the aerial maneuver. The Ilyushin 76-MD that crashed is a militarised IL-76, with a radar installed on the top of the fuselage. The aircraft is used in military operation as a flying radar.

The Aero Fret Business Antonov 12 cargo plane departed Pointe Noire, Congo, bound for Brazzaville, Congo. The aircraft was destroyed when it crashed at Nganga Lingolo, Congo, killing all six on board. The cargo plane was loaded with food, a minibus and three cars. Five crewmembers were onboard, as well as one passenger (who was not on the manifest). About one hour after takeoff, the airplane was approaching Brazzaville runway 05 when it crashed in a cemetery, some 11 km (6 NM) short of the runway threshold. The airplane came down near the Final Approach Point. The airplane should have started its final approach at that point, from an altitude of 1970 feet above ground level.

The ATR 72 operated by Bangkok Airways was on Domestic Scheduled Passenger from Krabi airport, Thailand, bound for Koh Samui airport, Thailand. 68 passengers and 4 crewmembers were onboard. The plane crashed on landing at Koh Samui airport. The pilot was killed. The weather at the time of the accident was bad, with heavy rain and strong winds reported. The plane landed on the runway, but then skidded off the runway and crashed into a former control tower on the side of the runway, which had been converted into a fire station. The pilot was killed in the accident, and five people were badly injured, including four passengers and the co-pilot, who was trapped in the cockpit for more than two hours. Two passengers were slightly injured. The ATR-72 was substantially damaged.

The Merpati Nusantara Airlines DHC-6 Twin Otter passenger plane was reported missing when it failed to arrive at Oksibil Airport, Indonesia, after a domestic flight from Jayapura, Indonesia. The wreckage was found a few days later. 13 passengers and 3 crewmembers were onboard. There is no survivor. The plane took off normally from Jayapura for a 50-minute flight headed to Oksibil, about 175 miles (280 km) to the south. 13 minutes after takeoff, contact with the DHC-6 was lost. The Twin Otter came down in bad weather as it flew over the Papua region in eastern Indonesia. The rescue plane spotted the wreckage of the airplane 42 kilometres (26 miles) North of Oksibil Airport, on a mountainside at an elevation of 9300 feet, in a remote area.

The Aria Air Ilyushin 62M arrived at Mashhad, Iran, following a domestic flight from Tehran, Iran. 153 passengers and crewmembers were onboard. The plane crash-landed when it landed at Mashhad. Among those onboard, 16 people were killed and 31 were wounded. The airplane flew too fast during the approach and landing. The usual landing speed for an Il-62 would have been between 125 and 145 kts, yet the plane landed at a speed of 170 kts. In addition, the plane touched down halfway on the 12500 feet (3800 m) long asphalt runway, meaning that the remaining distance available was clearly not enough to stop the plane before the end of the runway. The IL-62M overshot the runway and collided with a wall located more than 1100 meters from runway. Weather conditions at the time of the accident showed the plane made a cross-wind landing, with moderate winds reported. Photos of the crash scene show the plane resting on its tail next to a field, the nose section completely ripped off. Further to this accident, the licence of Aria Airlines had been revoked.

The Caspian Airlines Tupolev 154M passenger plane was destroyed when it struck terrain near Qazvin, Iran, 16 minutes after takeoff. The airplane was en route from Tehran, Iran to Yerevan, Armenia. 153 passengers and 15 crewmembers were onboard. All 168 people aboard were killed. A few minutes after takeoff, the plane reached the altitude of 34000 feet (around 10000 m). The Tupolev 154 was in normal operation at that altitude. Three minutes before the crash, the plane suddenly turned 270 degrees and entered a rapid descent to 14000 feet (around 4200 m) in just 90 seconds. Air traffic controllers attempted to contact the flight, but there was no response. They asked two planes that were in the area to contact the doomed plane, but these attempts failed too. It crashed about 16 minutes after takeoff near the village of Jannat Abad outside the city of Qazvin, around 75 miles (120 km) northwest of Tehran. The airplane exploded on impact and disintegrated. The impact gouged a deep trench in the dirt field (a 10 meters deep crater), which was littered with smoking wreckage and body parts. Much of the wreckage was in small shreds. The plane suffered technical problem and was trying to find a place to land, when it crashed. Witnesses reported that the tail and at least one of the tail engines were on fire as the plane plummeted.

The Airbus A310-304 owned by International Lease Finance Corporation and operated by Yemenia Airways was on a passenger flight from Sana'a, Yemen, to Moroni, Comoros. The plane was carrying 142 passengers and 11 crewmembers. It crashed into the ocean as it approached the Indian Ocean archipelago of Comoros in bad weather.

The Air France Airbus A330-200 went missing on transatlantic flight from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to Paris, France. The airplane carried 12 crew members and 216 passengers. The plane crashed in the Atlantic Ocean, killing all onboard. Flight AF447 departed Rio de Janeiro heading toward Paris. Three hours later, while the plane was flying over the Atlantic Ocean, the aircraft reportedly went through a thunderstorm with strong turbulence. A few minutes later, Air France received an automatic message from the A330 indicating electrical circuits malfunction. It was the last information received from AF447. Six minutes later, Brazilian Air Force said plane failed to make previously scheduled radio contact with Brazil. Last radio contact with the flight was at 01:33 UTC. The crew was in contact with the Atlantic Area Control Centre (CINDACTA III) when the flight reported over the INTOL waypoint, estimating TASIL at 02:20 UTC. INTOL is an RNAV waypoint located in the Atlantic Ocean, 565 km from Natal, Brazil. The TASIL waypoint is located 1228 kilometers from Natal. Over a time span of four minutes, starting at 02:10 UTC, a series of ACARS messages were sent -automatically- from the plane. Indication was that the autopilot had disengaged and the fly by wire system had changed to alternate law (mode allowing the flight control to work properly while some inputs parameters are not available or detected as erroneous). Between 02:11Z and 02:13Z a flurry of messages indicating failure of navigation and air data systems arrived. At 02:13Z flight control system faults were indicated, at 02:14Z the last message received was an advisory regarding cabin vertical speed. An analysis of meteorological information shows that AF447 crossed through three key thunderstorm clusters: a small one around 01:51 UTC, a new rapidly growing one at about 01:59 UTC, and finally a large multicell convective system (MCS) around 02:05-02:16 UTC.

The British Aerospace BAe-146-300 belonging to Aviastar Mandiri departed Jayapura, Indonesia, for a cargo flight to Wamena, Indonesia. 6 crewmembers were onboard. The plane crashed into Gunung Pike Mountain while on approach to Wamena, killing all the people onboard. The BAe-146 was carrying food and building supplies from the provincial capital, Jayapura, to the nearby district of Wamena, in the mountainous central region. It is not clear what caused the accident, but the plane would have attempted a first approach, that ended by a go-around. Then, the airplane entered clouds, struck the side of Gunung Pike Mountain and burst into flames.

The Indonesian Air Force Fokker F-27 Friendship 400M was returning to Bandung, Indonesia, from a parachuting exercise. Six crew, an instructor and 17 special forces trainees were onboard the aircraft. On landing the airplane hit a hangar near the runway threshold. None of the 24 on board survived. There were no other casualties on the ground. The Fokker 27 plane was returning from a regular training flight. It was supposed to land in Bandung, 110km southeast of Jakarta. The crash occurred as the pilot was trying to land in a heavy storm. There was a 20-knot crosswind at the time of the accident. The plane appeared to be shaking before diving to the ground and crashed on a hangar. The plane blew apart inside the hangar, which had several airplanes and helicopters inside.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-11F operated by FedEx departed Guangzhou, China on a cargo flight to Tokyo-Narita, Japan. The MD-11 landed in high winds. Two crewmembers were onboard (the captain and the first officer). The plane crashed on landing at Tokyo airport, killing both crewmembers. While landing on runway 16R/34L, the airplane bounced on first touchdown, then dropped from 50-100 ft onto the nosewheel at which point, the plane rapidly banked to the left. The port wing impacted the ground and a fire erupted. The MD-11 rolled further onto its back and slid off the runway. A bright orange fireball and black billowing smoke engulfed the plane as it flipped and skidded off the runway. Firefighters sprayed foam onto the broken remains of the plane with its wheels in the air. Strong winds gusts up to 75 km/h (40 kts) were lashing the airport area at the time of the crash, and that it had warned airlines of wind shear (sudden change in wind direction that can destabilize a plane). It is probable the plane encountered a wind-shear that caused the MD-11 to dive just before touching down, then hit violently the runway, bounced, and destabilized the plane.

The Ilyushin IL-76 cargo plane owned by the Russian-based Aerolift international cargo company was chartered by Dynacorp to transport tents and water purification equipment for the African Peace Mission to Somalia. 7 passengers and 4 crewmembers were onboard. The plane took off from Entebbe Airport, Uganda, bound for Mogadishu International Airport, Somalia. The IL-76 crashed into Lake Victoria shortly after takeoff, killing all the people onboard.

The Boeing 737-800 operated by Turkish airline Türk Hava Yollari was on a passenger flight from Istanbul, Turkey, to Amsterdam, Netherlands. 128 passengers and 7 crewmembers were onboard. The plane crashed on landing at Amsterdam, killing nine people. The plane was scheduled to land at Amsterdam-Schiphol International Airport, but the Boeing crashed about two miles (three kilometers) short of the runway in a muddy field - near a motorway - and broke into three pieces on impact. The fuselage split in two, close to the cockpit, and the tail broke off. One engine lay almost intact near the wreckage. The other was some 200 yards (about 200 meters) from the plane and heavily damaged. No fire erupted. Nine people were killed, among whom were both pilots, and about 85 were injured, many seriously. The fact that the plane landed in a muddy, plowed field may have contributed to making the accident less deadly by absorbing much of the force of the hard impact. As there was no fire, it helped keep the number of fatalities low.

Continental Connection Flight, operated by Colgan Air, departed Newark-Liberty International Airport, NJ on a domestic flight to Buffalo Airport, NY. 44 passengers and 5 crewmembers were onboard. The airplane, a DHC-8, crashed into a neighborhood six miles short of the Buffalo Niagara International Airport. It struck a house in Clarence Center, starting a huge fire. All the people onboard were killed. There is also one casualty on ground. After a seemingly routine flight, the Dash 8 Q400 turboprop plane endured a 26-second plunge before smashing into a house. The commuter plane was on approach to runway 23. The plane slowed to an unsafe speed as it approached the airport, causing an automatic stall warning. The pilot pulled back sharply on the plane's controls and added power instead of following the proper procedure of pushing forward to lower the plane's nose to regain speed. He held the controls there, locking the airplane into a deadly stall. The plane altitude was too low to exit the stall. The weather conditions at the time of the accidents were not so bad, but icing conditions were prevailing. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the captain's inappropriate response to the activation of the stick shaker, which led to an aerodynamic stall from which the airplane did not recover. Contributing to the accident were: The flight crew's failure to monitor airspeed in relation to the rising position of the low-speed cue, The flight crew's failure to adhere to sterile cockpit procedures, The captain's failure to effectively manage the flight, and Colgan Air's inadequate procedures for airspeed selection and management during approaches in icing conditions.

The Embraer EMB-110P1 operated by Manaus Aerotáxi departed the Brazilian Amazon city of Coari on a domestic flight to the inland Brazilian Amazon basin's largest city, Manaus. 26 passengers and 2 crewmembers were onboard. Moments before reaching Manaus, the captain decided to return to Coari due to weather conditions prevailing en-route. The plane crashed shortly afterward, killing 24 people onboard. The pilot contacted Manaus ATC about one hour after takeoff. He stated his intentions of returning to Coari due to heavy rainfall en route. Contact with the flight was lost shortly afterward. It is suspected the plane suffered an engine failure and it was forced to make an emergency landing. Authorities suspect the plane tried to make an emergency landing at the Panamacapuru airport but went down instead in the River Manacapuru (between Santo Antonio and the island of Montecristo, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) from Manaus). Rescue personnel found four passengers alive. 22 people including both crewmembers were killed.

The Airbus A320 operated by US Airways jet en route to Charlotte, N.C, USA, from New York City, USA, crashed into the Hudson River off the west side of Manhattan with 150 passengers and five crew members. All of the people on board had managed to escape alive. Within three minutes of take-off the plane was in trouble. A loud bang came from close to the wings on both sides as it hit a flock of geese, and smoke and fire began to appear from the engines. The plane's pilot reported a bird strike and declared an emergency. As the Airbus A320 quickly banked south, the plane lost power and rapidly dropped altitude, heading towards the icy waters of the Hudson river. The crew attempted a ditching. It was a slow contact with the water, and the plane remained in one part, and rapidly stopped in the water. The A320 was then rapidly submerged in the icy waters up to the windows. Rescue crews pulled passengers in yellow life vests from the plane. Several boats surrounded the scene.