Officials continue investigating to determine the cause of Saturday’s fatal plane crash at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). Asiana Flight 214 crashed on landing, killing two and critically injuring dozens more. The NTSB refuses to state a likely cause so early in the investigation, but as of now mechanical issues don’t seem be the cause, as investigators focus on human error.
Asiana Flight 214 pilot still in training on Boeing 777
Flight 214 was in the air for nearly 11 hours before arriving in San Francisco from Seoul. Up until a half a minute before impact, the Boeing 777’s descent was normal, but it lost speed, and an attempt to abort the landing at the last moment failed. On touchdown, smoke billowed from the aircraft as it skidded down the runway, then crashed into the sea wall and caught on fire. Two teenagers visiting the U.S. on summer vacation were killed, one of whom may have been run over by a rescue vehicle on the scene. More than 180 others were taken to the hospital; 50 were treated for critical injuries.
It has been widely reported that one of the two pilots at the controls during the landing, Lee Kang-guk, had just 43 hours of flying time in a 777 and had never landed one at SFO before. (For comparison, a pilot is considered fully trained after 60 hours and 10 flights on a new type of plane.) He had, however, landed 777s previously at other airports, and had over 9,700 miles logged flying other kinds of aircraft in his 19 years as a pilot. While still in training on the unfamiliar plane, he was in the cockpit with pilots who had more experience flying 777s. The other pilot at the controls, Lee Jeong-min, had logged 3,220 hours in 777s, and was responsible for overseeing Lee Kang-guk.
Saturday’s crash may lead to improved safety regulations for airlines in South Korea, which have had a spotty safety record.
NTSB investigates possible causes of crash
The National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation began shortly after the July 6th crash occurred. The NTSB has been keeping the public informed of its findings, even tweeting its progress (though a full report takes several months). It will use data retrieved from the flight data recorder (the “black box”), the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), videotape analysis, and witness interviews to figure out what went wrong. Possible causes of the accident include:
- Over reliance on technology. American pilots routinely “hand-fly” the plane upon landing, switching off autopilot. But pilots from Asia may be less likely to “hand-fly,” and less practiced at it, preferring to rely on the systems to guide and land the plane. The pilots on Asiana 214 did land using a visual approach, after having turned autopilot off at 1,600 feet. Also, the pilots supposedly knew that SFO’s glide slope indicator (a visual aid for landing) was not working that day, but that might have played a role, too.
- Failure to communicate in the cockpit. Did the experienced pilots not realize that speed upon approach was too low, or did they just not say anything? The strict hierarchical nature of Korean culture was considered a factor in a 1999 Korean Air crash, when a member of the flight crew did not indicate that there was a problem. Something similar might have happened on Saturday’s flight: Three of the four pilots were captains – an unusual situation – and perhaps the unclear chain of command led to a reluctance to speak up at the warning signs.
- Pilot fatigue. Though it was morning in San Francisco, it was the middle of the night in Seoul. Pilot fatigue is a major cause of plane crashes.
Investigation has been slow going, in part due to the need for translation services for the pilot interviews and transcription of the CVR material. NTSB Chairman Deorah Hersman is principle spokesman and hopes to have more information Tuesday.
