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Air Algérie Flight 5017

Air Algérie Flight 5017 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, to Algiers, Algeria, which crashed near Gossi, Mali, on 24 July 2014. The McDonnell Douglas MD-83 twinjet with 110 passengers and 6 crew on board, operated by Swiftair for Air Algérie, disappeared from radar about fifty minutes after take-off. There were no survivors.

Air Algérie Flight 5017
EC-LTV, the aircraft involved, photographed in January 2013
Accident
Date24 July 2014
SummaryCrashed after high altitude stall in icing conditions
SiteNear Hombori, Mali
15°08′08″N 01°04′49″W / 15.13556°N 1.08028°W / 15.13556; -1.08028
Aircraft
Aircraft typeMcDonnell Douglas MD-83
OperatorSwiftair for Air Algérie
IATA flight No.AH5017
ICAO flight No.DAH5017
Call signAIR ALGERIE 5017
RegistrationEC-LTV
Flight originOuagadougou Airport, Burkina Faso
DestinationHouari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria
Occupants116
Passengers110
Crew6
Fatalities116
Survivors0

The French Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA), assisting the Malian authorities, published an investigation report in April 2016, concluding that, while the aircraft was cruising on autopilot, ice accretion on the engines caused a reduction of thrust that led to a high-altitude stall. The crew was unable to recover from the stall, and the aircraft crashed to the ground. The BEA issued several recommendations to Air Algérie, the US Federal Aviation Administration, and the Governments of Burkina Faso and Mali. Until the fatality total for the 2023 crash of an Il-76 in Gao is confirmed, the crash of Flight 5017 remains the deadliest accident in Malian aviation history.

Accident edit

 
 
Ouagadougou Airport
 
Crash site
class=notpageimage|
The crash site in Mali with the departure airport

Flight 5017 departed from Ouagadougou Airport at 1:15 local time (UTC) on 24 July 2014.[1] It was scheduled to land at Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, at 5:10 local time (4:10 UTC).[2]

The aircraft reached cruise altitude, flight level 310 (31,000 feet (9,400 m)), 22 minutes after departure and attained its target speed of 280 knots (520 km/h; 320 mph) (IAS). About two minutes later, it began to gradually lose speed, and, though the speed did eventually drop to 200 knots (370 km/h; 230 mph), the aircraft maintained FL310. After an unspecified length of time had passed, the aircraft began to descend, and the speed dropped to about 160 knots (300 km/h; 180 mph). Afterwards, the aircraft entered a left-hand turn and began to lose altitude more rapidly, thus spiralling down. The flight data recording stopped at 1:47; at the time, the aircraft was at an altitude of 1,600 feet (490 m) and a speed of 380 knots (700 km/h; 440 mph).[1] It crashed into the ground at 270 metres (890 ft) above sea level about a second later.[3][4]

On 28 July, it was revealed that the flight crew had asked to return to Burkina Faso, after first requesting to deviate from course because of bad weather.[5] There was a mesoscale convective system in the area at the time,[6] and the aircraft had deviated to the left of its course to avoid it.[3] Satellite images apparently identifying the light flare from the aircraft impact at the margins of the storm were captured.[7]

Initially there were conflicting reports of the location of the crash. The aircraft's flight route took it over Mali, and it was reported to have disappeared between Gao and Tessalit.[8] French forces reported detecting wreckage of the aircraft in an area between Gao and Kidal, in a desert region that is difficult to access.[9] France sent a military unit to secure the wreckage of the Air Algérie plane.[10] Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta said wreckage had been found in the country's northern desert, between Aguelhok and Kidal.[11] There were also reports of wreckage being found near the town of Tilemsi in Mali, with officials from Algeria, Burkina Faso, and France having issued conflicting details.[12] A memorial stele was erected at the crash site.[clarification needed]

Aircraft edit

 
The accident aircraft in Austral Líneas Aéreas livery in March 2008

The aircraft involved in the accident was a McDonnell Douglas MD-83, MSN 53190, line number 2148. It was powered by two Pratt & Whitney JT8D engines and first flew in June 1996 and was 18 years old at the time of the accident.[2]

The aircraft was acquired by Swiftair, a charter flight operator, and re-registered EC-LTV in 2012 after being used by several airlines such as Flash Airlines and Avianca since it was delivered in 1996.[13] It was wet-leased to Air Algérie in June 2014 to provide additional capacity during the summer 2014 season.[2][13][14][15]

At the time of its loss, EC-LTV had flown 32,000 cycles.[a] The director of the Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC) of France, Patrick Gandil, said the plane had been checked in France "two or three days ago" and that it was "in good condition".[16]

Passengers and crew edit

People on board by nationality (Air Algérie count)[17]
Country Persons
Algeria 6
Belgium 1
Burkina Faso 28
Cameroon 1
Canada 5
Egypt 1
France 52
Germany 4
Lebanon 6
Luxembourg 2
Mali 1
Nigeria 1
Spain 6
Switzerland 1
United Kingdom 1
 Total 116

There were 110 passengers on the plane; of those, 52 were French citizens, at least 33 of whom were French military personnel serving in Africa including three senior intelligence officials.[18][19] A senior Hezbollah leader who had been posing as a businessman in Senegal and Burkina Faso was also on board.[18][19][20] Others came from Burkina Faso, Lebanon, Algeria, Spain, Canada, Germany and Luxembourg.[17] An Air Algérie representative in Burkina Faso, Kara Terki, told a news conference that all passengers were in transit to Europe, the Middle East, or Canada.[21] The number of persons holding multiple citizenship onboard was apparently high. The Lebanese embassy in Abidjan estimated the number of Lebanese citizens on the flight, some of whom had dual nationality, was at least 20.[22] One Chilean had French nationality.[23] There was initial uncertainty about the exact number of French citizens and number of passengers on board.[24][25]

On 25 July, French President François Hollande stated that there were no survivors.[26] All of the victims had been identified by 19 November, nearly 4 months after the accident.[27][28]

The crew members of Flight 5017 were Captain Agustín Comerón Mogio (47), First Officer Isabel Gost Caimari (42), and four flight attendants; all six were Spanish.[29][30]

Captain Comerón Mogio had accumulated a total flying experience of 12,988 flying hours, including 8,689 as a captain, in which 10,007 flying hours were on the type. From 1989 to 1994, he became a co-pilot on a McDonnell Douglas MD-80 with Centennial. From 1997 to 2012, he became a co-pilot, and subsequently promoted to a captain on an MD-80 in Spanair. He finally joined Swiftair as a captain on an MD-80. He also had served for the UN mission in Africa based in Khartoum, Sudan. He had flown an aircraft to various places in Africa including to Ouagadougou. From the start of his operations with Air Algerie on 20 June 2014, Captain Mogio had carried out 45 flights and 100 flying hours.[31]: 11–12 

First Officer Gost Caimari had accumulated a total flying experience of 7,016 flying hours including 6,180 flying hours as a co-pilot on MD-80. Since 20 June 2014, date of the start of operations with Air Algerie, First Officer Gost had carried out 43 flights and 93 flying hours. From 1995 to 1998, she became a dispatcher at Spanair; From 1998 to 2012, as a co-pilot on an MD-80 in Spanair, and on 1 June 2013 she joined Swiftair S.A. as a co-pilot on an MD-80. Between 1998 and 2012, as a co-pilot with Spanair, she had flown to various aerodromes in Africa, including the one at Ouagadougou.[31]: 12–13 

Aftermath edit

Search effort edit

The wreckage was found southeast of Gossi, Mali, and United Nations personnel moved to secure the crash site on 25 July.[32] French television showed images of the wreckage site taken by a soldier from Burkina Faso. The brief footage showed a desolate area with scattered debris that was unrecognizable. There were bits of twisted metal but no identifiable parts such as the fuselage or tail, or victims' bodies. Scrubby vegetation could be seen scattered in the background. A French Reaper drone based in Niger spotted the wreckage after getting alerts from Burkina Faso and Malian soldiers. French soldiers were the first to reach the site.[contradictory] Burkina Faso's prime minister, Luc Adolphe Tiao, reviewed videos of the wreckage site and said that identifying the victims would be challenging.[33]

Reactions edit

Because most of those on board were French citizens, France declared three days of national mourning following the crash.[34] Flags flew at half mast on every public building from 28 July for three days. Algeria also declared a three-day mourning period.[34]

Burkina Faso also began two days of mourning over the crash which killed 28 Burkina Faso citizens. During the mourning period, flags in Burkina Faso flew at half mast while all public celebrations were cancelled. The Burkinabé Minister for National Security assured the families of victims that the government would do all it can to shed light on the circumstances leading to the crash.[35][36]

During October 2014, Air Algerie officially retired flight numbers AH5016 and AH5017 to honor the lives of those lost in the crash.[37] On 24 July 2015, one year after the crash, a vigil and memorial to the victims was held in Ouagadougou. Relatives of the crash laid flowers and candles at a cemetery, and it was stated that the remains of unidentified victims of the crash would be buried in Bamako, the capital of Mali.[38]

Investigation edit

The Malian authorities opened an investigation, with the President of the Mali Commission of Inquiry (French: Président de la Commission d'enquête du Mali) as the director, and the French Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA) provided technical assistance.[39]

On 27 July, BEA investigators arrived at the crash site to collect evidence.[32] Both black boxes were recovered,[40] and data from the flight data recorder (FDR) was read out. The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) had been damaged in the impact and repaired, but "the recordings that [the magnetic tape] contains are unusable, due apparently to a recorder malfunction, with no link to the damage that resulted from the accident".[1] As a result, the investigation prioritized alternative sources, like records of air-traffic transmissions.[3]

On 7 August, the investigation team held a press conference at BEA's headquarters in Paris. They outlined the team structure (three international working groups assigned to the "aircraft", "systems" and "operations" each) and presented an abridged timeline and a reconstruction of the aircraft's flight path. An interim report was scheduled to be published mid-September.[1] Following the conference, Gérard Feldzer, an aviation expert, told BFMTV that the aircraft trajectory recorded by the FDR strongly suggested the plane had stalled in bad weather.[41]

On 20 September, the BEA released an interim report into the crash. The report contained data extracted from the FDR, as well as an explanation why the CVR is mostly unusable: the CVR did record the cockpit noises and conversations on the magnetic tape, but without erasing the existing content first, so that the record is a mix of numerous hours of recording on a 32-minute tape. Parts of the radio exchanges with ATC could be made out, but it is not known whether the remainder of the cockpit conversations, for which no external recording exists, will be able to be determined.[4]

On 2 April 2015, the BEA announced that a consensus had emerged that erratic and erroneous values of the engine pressure ratio (EPR) appeared for both engines two to three minutes after levelling off at an altitude of 31,000 feet (9,400 m). The EPR is the main parameter for engine power management, and is derived from pressure sensors at the engine inlets. The sensors had probably become clogged with ice in this case. Such icing is normally prevented by a hot-air system, which probably was not activated by the aircrew during climb and cruise, according to BEA "analysis of the available data". The faulty EPR values caused the engine controllers to limit the thrust to much less than required to maintain sufficient airspeed for stability at the altitude that the autopilot tried to maintain by increasing the angle of attack until stall occurred. Twenty seconds after the initial stall, the plane suddenly rolled sharply left to almost full inversion as the autopilot disengaged, and pitched nose down to near vertical. The BEA notes that "the recorded parameters indicate that there were no stall recovery manoeuvres by the crew", while the flight control surface deflections remained those that would normally intend nose-up and right-roll. The BEA noted two previous similar incidents involving MD-82 and MD-83 aircraft, where the aircrews were alert enough to notice the loss of airspeed and intervene before loss of control. The first one was Spirit Airlines Flight 970. The aircraft involved, registered as N823NK, was an MD-82 flying in mid day in June 2002 when it suffered a loss of thrust on both engines, in cruise at an altitude of 33,000 feet (10,000 m). The two pressure sensors, located on the engine nose bullets, were blocked by ice crystals, leading to incorrect indications and over-estimation of the EPR. The crew noticed the drop in speed and the precursor indications of a stall just before disengagement of the autopilot and putting the aeroplane into a descent. They had not activated the engine anti-ice systems. The second one involved was an MD-83 operated by Swiftair that occurred in June 2014. The crew was aware of the drop of their airspeed and successfully recovered.[42]

Logbook analysis edit

French BEA revealed that there were several technical defects on the plane, several of which were on the EPR system. On 21 July 2013, BEA noted that there was intermittent failures on the autothrottle that led to the replacement of the EPR transmitter on No.2 engine. On 19 October 2013, the No.1 engine EPR indicator was faulty (no display of values) and the display was replaced. On 2 March 2014, the autothrottle actuator was replaced. During the recommissioning process, the "EPR LH" failure message was displayed. The left-hand EPR transmitter was therefore also replaced. Additionally, on 27 June 2014, an engine surge resulted in a rejected take off, at about 80 knots (150 km/h; 92 mph). Due to this, No.1 engine was replaced.[31]: 20–21 

Sequence of events based on FDR analysis edit

The following was the sequence of events based on the FDR analysis: The crew had been prepared to fly to Algiers from Ouagadougou. As the crew would fly to Algiers, they should know the weather condition in the area. The crew had arrived in Ouagadougou one hour earlier, and knew about the weather in the region. Therefore, they had already known the risks of turbulence and icing while flying in the region. After handling the ground clearance, AH5017 finally took off from Ouagadougou at 01:15 local time (same time as UTC). There were no incidents in its initial climb.[31]: 14, 116 

13 minutes after takeoff, while climbing through flight level 215 (21,500 feet (6,600 m), AH5017 slightly deviated to the left to avoid a storm in the area. They reported this to Ouagadougou ACC. However, even though they knew that a storm had occurred in the area, the flight crews did not activate the engine anti-icing system. At the time, the temperature in the area indicated a high risk of icing. According to the procedures, the engine anti-ice system should have been activated. Even though ice crystals were likely to form due to the temperature and weather in the area, the airframe seemed to be not affected by icing. This was also what happened to the windshield. The probable absence of icing on the airframe (in particular on the windshield wipers), the possible lack of clear signs of ice crystals (which may be difficult to visually detect especially at night, and are usually not detectable on the weather radar), plus the absence of significant turbulence, probably did not encourage the crew to activate the engine anti-icing system.[31]: 116–117 

The plane then levelled off at 01:37 local time. Flight crews then engaged the autopilot and the autothrottle. Two minutes after leveling off, the speed of the plane increased. The crew then selected the cruise thrust regime on the TRP (Thrust Rating Panel).

Shortly after, the EPR (Engine Pressure Ratio) values of the right engine became incorrect, probably due to the obstruction of the pressure sensor of this engine by ice crystals. The autothrottle then adjusted the thrust to prevent the erroneous values from exceeding the EPR limit in cruise setting. The thrust delivered by the engines was then lower than the thrust required for level flight, and the speed of the plane continued to decrease. For about one minute, the gap between the EPR values of the left and right engines gradually increased and then stabilized between 0.2 and 0.3 and the autothrottle switched to MACH ATL mode three times.[31]: 117–118  55 seconds after the anomaly of the right engine, the left engine's EPR values also became erroneous and started to increase. Due to these erroneous readings, the crew became aware that an anomaly had occurred on AH5017. Five seconds later, and for four seconds, this increase was interrupted by a decrease in both engines' RPM. This decrease could have resulted from the crew reducing the Mach target, or from manual decrease in engine RPM by over-riding the autothrottle. However, even though there were many anomalies occurred in the engine, the speed of the plane was still near at normal speed cruising, causing the crew to not activate the engine anti-icing system. They did not know that there was an insufficient thrust to the plane's engine due to blockage in the pressure sensors.[31]: 117–118  The engine RPM then increased again until the erroneous left EPR values reached EPR limit. The thrust delivered by the engines remained lower than the thrust required in this phase of flight and the plane continued to decelerate. The gap between the right EPR and the left EPR became closer with the typical EPR values while in cruise. The N1 values were slightly lower than the typical cruise values (77% instead of 80 – 85%). The inconsistency between the EPR values and N1 values was therefore hardly noticeable by the crew, more so since documentation they had did not have a table of correct actions between EPR and N1 and they had not been trained to observe the correct action between these two parameters. Additionally, the crews were still busy to avoid a storm system nearby and trying to contact Niamey.[31]: 117–118 

AH5017's speed then decreased further until 210 knots (390 km/h; 240 mph), nearly at its stall speed. The Mach indicator needle was close to vertical, such reading should have been noticed by the flight crews and they should have put the plane into a descent. However, they only made an input on the thrust lever. This was the correct action when there was a problem with the EPR system. However, this action alone does not correspond to the reaction expected of a crew in an approach to stall. They should have put the aircraft into a descent. They did notice that there was a problem in AH5017's EPR. The autothrottle then disengaged, at the speed of 203 knots (376 km/h; 234 mph). The "SPEED LOW" warning then appeared on the cockpit screen. However, because the flight crews were handling the contact with Niamey ACC, they reacted slowly with the warning. At this point, the autopilot was still engaged.[31]: 118–119 

When the speed reached 200 knots (370 km/h; 230 mph), the stick shaker triggered, followed three seconds later by the triggering of the stall warning. From this time onwards, Captain Comerón Mogio's side loudspeaker only broadcast the "STALL" warning, while that on First Officer Gost Caimari's side alternated the "STALL" warning with the other warnings that were active. When a stall happens, the crew should disconnect the autopilot and execute the stall recovery procedure. Neither actions were done by the crew, indicating that they did not know that a stall had happened in-flight.[31]: 118–119  In order to maintain altitude, the autopilot then commanded a continuous nose-up movement of the trimmable horizontal stabilizer and the elevators. This resulted in an increase in the angle of attack of up to 24°, or 13° above the stall angle of attack in the event conditions, as well as the broadcast of several "STABILIZER MOTION" warnings. Both engines suffered a surge probably due to the plane's high angle of attack. Both engines RPM then decreased to values close to idle. This surge may have been noticed by the crew.[31]: 119–122  There was no sign of a reaction by the crew other than the throttle movements, until the disconnection of the autopilot which occurred 25 seconds after the triggering of the stick shaker. The speed was then 162 knots (300 km/h; 186 mph), the altitude had decreased by about 1,150 feet (350 m). The plane was banking to the left and its pitch decreasing. The crew applied input mainly to roll to the right to bring the wings level. At the same time, they applied mainly nose up inputs, contrary to the inputs required to recover the stall and continued to do so until Flight 5017 touched the ground.[31]: 119–122 

Conclusion edit

On 22 April 2016, the BEA finally concluded the cause of the crash as follows: "The aeroplane speed, piloted by the autothrottle, decreased due to the obstruction of the pressure sensors located on the engine nose cones, probably caused by ice crystals. The autopilot then gradually increased the angle of attack to maintain altitude until the aeroplane stalled. The stall was not recovered. The aeroplane retained a pitch-down attitude and left bank angle down to the ground, while the control surfaces remained mainly deflected pitch up and in the direction of a bank to the right. The aeroplane hit the ground at high speed."[31]: 125 

Contributing factors:

  • the non-activation of the engine anti-icing systems
  • the obstruction of the Pt2 pressure sensors, probably by ice crystals, generating erroneous EPR values that caused the autothrottle to limit the thrust produced by the engines to a level below that required to maintain the aeroplane at FL310.
  • the crew's late reaction to the decrease in speed and to the erroneous EPR values, possibly linked to the work load associated with avoiding the convective zone and communication difficulties with air traffic control.
  • the crew's lack of reaction to the appearance of buffet, the stickshaker and the stall warning.
  • the lack of appropriate inputs on the flight controls to recover from a stall situation.
  • The FCOM procedure relating to the activation of the anti-icing systems that was not adapted to Pt2 pressure sensor obstruction by ice crystals
  • Insufficient information for operators on the consequences of a blockage of the Pt2 pressure sensor by icing
  • The stickshaker and the stall warning triggering logic that led these devices to be triggered belatedly in relation to the aeroplane stall in cruise;
  • the autopilot logic that enables it to continue to give pitch-up commands beyond the stall angle, thereby aggravating the stall situation and increasing the crew's difficulties in recovery.[31]: 125–126 

The BEA issued more than 20 recommendations in response to the crash, several of them noted on past aviation accidents, including West Caribbean Airways Flight 708, Air France Flight 447, and a serious incident onboard Spirit Airlines Flight 970.[43] Some of the recommendations were based on Search and Rescue operations, CVR malfunctions, and an "urgent" recommendation to the FAA about icing on aircraft.[31]: 127–131 

Legal actions edit

Prosecutors in Paris opened a preliminary "involuntary homicide" investigation. Several inquiries had been launched in France, Burkina Faso, Spain, Montreal and San Francisco.[44][failed verification] Relatives of Canadian victims filed a lawsuit, at the Montreal Courthouse, to Air Algérie in response to the crash. The lawsuit alleges that Swiftair pilots intentionally chose a flight path that passed through the eye of a tropical storm. It also alleges the pilots failed to perform necessary measures to try to fly the plane to safety, including activating the plane's de-icing mechanisms. Victims' relatives were claiming moral, psychological and traumatic damages, as well as financial loss and the "loss of a loved one".[45][46][needs update]

French newspaper Le Figaro cited a judicial probe that the crash of Flight 5017 was caused due to a series of errors, caused by the failure of the de-icing equipment on the plane.[47] Based on the probe, the failure led to sensors on the engines becoming clogged with ice and reporting back false data to the pilots. As such, when the engine began to lose thrust, the pilots were unaware of it. The situation would have been compounded when the pilot attempted to regain altitude by pulling back on the joystick, indicating pilot error. The flight simulator system used to train the crew was not exactly the same as the actual plane, the MD-83. The pilots did not have any experience at flying in Africa's meteorological conditions.[48] In the latter, it stated that both pilots had only one African flight experience. The crew also had outdated information on the weather conditions on the route they were flying, having received their last update 2½ hours before takeoff, while the plane's crews had trouble communicating with ground staff.[49]

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ A pressurisation cycle, usually equating to a flight

References edit

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  12. ^ Willsher, Kim; Mark, Monica (24 July 2014). "Air Algérie flight AH5017 wreckage 'found in Mali'". The Guardian. from the original on 24 July 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
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  27. ^ (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
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  39. ^ "Presentation of Information on the accident to the McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registered EC-LTV, on 24 July 2014 in theregion of Gao (Mali)" (). Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety. Retrieved 23 August 2014. French version ().
  40. ^ . Voice of America. 27 July 2014. Archived from the original on 29 July 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
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External links edit

  • Republic of Mali Commission of Inquiry
    • Final Report ()
    • "Interim Report Accident on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gossi in Mali to the MD-83 registered EC-LTV operated by Swiftair S.A." ()
    • "Description of engine thrust control" ()
    • "Information on the accident that occurred in the region of Gossi (Mali) on 24 July 2014 to the McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD 83), registered EC-LTV, operated by Swiftair SA as flight AH 5017" ()
    • "Safety recommendations issued to the FAA and the EASA on 10 July, 2015 by the President of the Mali Commission of Inquiry and the BEA" ()
  • Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety
    • "Accident to the McDonnell Douglas MD-83, registered EC-LTV, on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gao (Mali)"
    • "Accident survenu dans la région de Gossi (Mali) le 24 juillet 2014 à l'avion McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83), immatriculé EC-LTV , exploité par Swiftair SA, vol AH 5017." (in French)
  • Información Incidente Aéreo / Aviation Incident Information (). Swiftair. (in Spanish)
  • "Condoléances" (). Air Algérie. (in French)

algérie, flight, 5017, scheduled, international, passenger, flight, from, ouagadougou, burkina, faso, algiers, algeria, which, crashed, near, gossi, mali, july, 2014, mcdonnell, douglas, twinjet, with, passengers, crew, board, operated, swiftair, algérie, disa. Air Algerie Flight 5017 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Ouagadougou Burkina Faso to Algiers Algeria which crashed near Gossi Mali on 24 July 2014 The McDonnell Douglas MD 83 twinjet with 110 passengers and 6 crew on board operated by Swiftair for Air Algerie disappeared from radar about fifty minutes after take off There were no survivors Air Algerie Flight 5017EC LTV the aircraft involved photographed in January 2013AccidentDate24 July 2014SummaryCrashed after high altitude stall in icing conditionsSiteNear Hombori Mali 15 08 08 N 01 04 49 W 15 13556 N 1 08028 W 15 13556 1 08028AircraftAircraft typeMcDonnell Douglas MD 83OperatorSwiftair for Air AlgerieIATA flight No AH5017ICAO flight No DAH5017Call signAIR ALGERIE 5017RegistrationEC LTVFlight originOuagadougou Airport Burkina FasoDestinationHouari Boumediene Airport Algiers AlgeriaOccupants116Passengers110Crew6Fatalities116Survivors0 The French Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety BEA assisting the Malian authorities published an investigation report in April 2016 concluding that while the aircraft was cruising on autopilot ice accretion on the engines caused a reduction of thrust that led to a high altitude stall The crew was unable to recover from the stall and the aircraft crashed to the ground The BEA issued several recommendations to Air Algerie the US Federal Aviation Administration and the Governments of Burkina Faso and Mali Until the fatality total for the 2023 crash of an Il 76 in Gao is confirmed the crash of Flight 5017 remains the deadliest accident in Malian aviation history Contents 1 Accident 2 Aircraft 3 Passengers and crew 4 Aftermath 4 1 Search effort 4 2 Reactions 5 Investigation 5 1 Logbook analysis 5 2 Sequence of events based on FDR analysis 5 3 Conclusion 6 Legal actions 7 See also 8 Notes 9 References 10 External linksAccident edit nbsp nbsp Ouagadougou Airport nbsp Crash siteclass notpageimage The crash site in Mali with the departure airport Flight 5017 departed from Ouagadougou Airport at 1 15 local time UTC on 24 July 2014 1 It was scheduled to land at Houari Boumediene Airport Algiers at 5 10 local time 4 10 UTC 2 The aircraft reached cruise altitude flight level 310 31 000 feet 9 400 m 22 minutes after departure and attained its target speed of 280 knots 520 km h 320 mph IAS About two minutes later it began to gradually lose speed and though the speed did eventually drop to 200 knots 370 km h 230 mph the aircraft maintained FL310 After an unspecified length of time had passed the aircraft began to descend and the speed dropped to about 160 knots 300 km h 180 mph Afterwards the aircraft entered a left hand turn and began to lose altitude more rapidly thus spiralling down The flight data recording stopped at 1 47 at the time the aircraft was at an altitude of 1 600 feet 490 m and a speed of 380 knots 700 km h 440 mph 1 It crashed into the ground at 270 metres 890 ft above sea level about a second later 3 4 On 28 July it was revealed that the flight crew had asked to return to Burkina Faso after first requesting to deviate from course because of bad weather 5 There was a mesoscale convective system in the area at the time 6 and the aircraft had deviated to the left of its course to avoid it 3 Satellite images apparently identifying the light flare from the aircraft impact at the margins of the storm were captured 7 Initially there were conflicting reports of the location of the crash The aircraft s flight route took it over Mali and it was reported to have disappeared between Gao and Tessalit 8 French forces reported detecting wreckage of the aircraft in an area between Gao and Kidal in a desert region that is difficult to access 9 France sent a military unit to secure the wreckage of the Air Algerie plane 10 Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita said wreckage had been found in the country s northern desert between Aguelhok and Kidal 11 There were also reports of wreckage being found near the town of Tilemsi in Mali with officials from Algeria Burkina Faso and France having issued conflicting details 12 A memorial stele was erected at the crash site clarification needed Aircraft edit nbsp The accident aircraft in Austral Lineas Aereas livery in March 2008 The aircraft involved in the accident was a McDonnell Douglas MD 83 MSN 53190 line number 2148 It was powered by two Pratt amp Whitney JT8D engines and first flew in June 1996 and was 18 years old at the time of the accident 2 The aircraft was acquired by Swiftair a charter flight operator and re registered EC LTV in 2012 after being used by several airlines such as Flash Airlines and Avianca since it was delivered in 1996 13 It was wet leased to Air Algerie in June 2014 to provide additional capacity during the summer 2014 season 2 13 14 15 At the time of its loss EC LTV had flown 32 000 cycles a The director of the Directorate General for Civil Aviation DGAC of France Patrick Gandil said the plane had been checked in France two or three days ago and that it was in good condition 16 Passengers and crew editPeople on board by nationality Air Algerie count 17 Country Persons Algeria 6 Belgium 1 Burkina Faso 28 Cameroon 1 Canada 5 Egypt 1 France 52 Germany 4 Lebanon 6 Luxembourg 2 Mali 1 Nigeria 1 Spain 6 Switzerland 1 United Kingdom 1 Total 116 There were 110 passengers on the plane of those 52 were French citizens at least 33 of whom were French military personnel serving in Africa including three senior intelligence officials 18 19 A senior Hezbollah leader who had been posing as a businessman in Senegal and Burkina Faso was also on board 18 19 20 Others came from Burkina Faso Lebanon Algeria Spain Canada Germany and Luxembourg 17 An Air Algerie representative in Burkina Faso Kara Terki told a news conference that all passengers were in transit to Europe the Middle East or Canada 21 The number of persons holding multiple citizenship onboard was apparently high The Lebanese embassy in Abidjan estimated the number of Lebanese citizens on the flight some of whom had dual nationality was at least 20 22 One Chilean had French nationality 23 There was initial uncertainty about the exact number of French citizens and number of passengers on board 24 25 On 25 July French President Francois Hollande stated that there were no survivors 26 All of the victims had been identified by 19 November nearly 4 months after the accident 27 28 The crew members of Flight 5017 were Captain Agustin Comeron Mogio 47 First Officer Isabel Gost Caimari 42 and four flight attendants all six were Spanish 29 30 Captain Comeron Mogio had accumulated a total flying experience of 12 988 flying hours including 8 689 as a captain in which 10 007 flying hours were on the type From 1989 to 1994 he became a co pilot on a McDonnell Douglas MD 80 with Centennial From 1997 to 2012 he became a co pilot and subsequently promoted to a captain on an MD 80 in Spanair He finally joined Swiftair as a captain on an MD 80 He also had served for the UN mission in Africa based in Khartoum Sudan He had flown an aircraft to various places in Africa including to Ouagadougou From the start of his operations with Air Algerie on 20 June 2014 Captain Mogio had carried out 45 flights and 100 flying hours 31 11 12 First Officer Gost Caimari had accumulated a total flying experience of 7 016 flying hours including 6 180 flying hours as a co pilot on MD 80 Since 20 June 2014 date of the start of operations with Air Algerie First Officer Gost had carried out 43 flights and 93 flying hours From 1995 to 1998 she became a dispatcher at Spanair From 1998 to 2012 as a co pilot on an MD 80 in Spanair and on 1 June 2013 she joined Swiftair S A as a co pilot on an MD 80 Between 1998 and 2012 as a co pilot with Spanair she had flown to various aerodromes in Africa including the one at Ouagadougou 31 12 13 Aftermath editSearch effort edit The wreckage was found southeast of Gossi Mali and United Nations personnel moved to secure the crash site on 25 July 32 French television showed images of the wreckage site taken by a soldier from Burkina Faso The brief footage showed a desolate area with scattered debris that was unrecognizable There were bits of twisted metal but no identifiable parts such as the fuselage or tail or victims bodies Scrubby vegetation could be seen scattered in the background A French Reaper drone based in Niger spotted the wreckage after getting alerts from Burkina Faso and Malian soldiers French soldiers were the first to reach the site contradictory Burkina Faso s prime minister Luc Adolphe Tiao reviewed videos of the wreckage site and said that identifying the victims would be challenging 33 Reactions edit Because most of those on board were French citizens France declared three days of national mourning following the crash 34 Flags flew at half mast on every public building from 28 July for three days Algeria also declared a three day mourning period 34 Burkina Faso also began two days of mourning over the crash which killed 28 Burkina Faso citizens During the mourning period flags in Burkina Faso flew at half mast while all public celebrations were cancelled The Burkinabe Minister for National Security assured the families of victims that the government would do all it can to shed light on the circumstances leading to the crash 35 36 During October 2014 Air Algerie officially retired flight numbers AH5016 and AH5017 to honor the lives of those lost in the crash 37 On 24 July 2015 one year after the crash a vigil and memorial to the victims was held in Ouagadougou Relatives of the crash laid flowers and candles at a cemetery and it was stated that the remains of unidentified victims of the crash would be buried in Bamako the capital of Mali 38 Investigation editThe Malian authorities opened an investigation with the President of the Mali Commission of Inquiry French President de la Commission d enquete du Mali as the director and the French Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety BEA provided technical assistance 39 On 27 July BEA investigators arrived at the crash site to collect evidence 32 Both black boxes were recovered 40 and data from the flight data recorder FDR was read out The cockpit voice recorder CVR had been damaged in the impact and repaired but the recordings that the magnetic tape contains are unusable due apparently to a recorder malfunction with no link to the damage that resulted from the accident 1 As a result the investigation prioritized alternative sources like records of air traffic transmissions 3 On 7 August the investigation team held a press conference at BEA s headquarters in Paris They outlined the team structure three international working groups assigned to the aircraft systems and operations each and presented an abridged timeline and a reconstruction of the aircraft s flight path An interim report was scheduled to be published mid September 1 Following the conference Gerard Feldzer an aviation expert told BFMTV that the aircraft trajectory recorded by the FDR strongly suggested the plane had stalled in bad weather 41 On 20 September the BEA released an interim report into the crash The report contained data extracted from the FDR as well as an explanation why the CVR is mostly unusable the CVR did record the cockpit noises and conversations on the magnetic tape but without erasing the existing content first so that the record is a mix of numerous hours of recording on a 32 minute tape Parts of the radio exchanges with ATC could be made out but it is not known whether the remainder of the cockpit conversations for which no external recording exists will be able to be determined 4 On 2 April 2015 the BEA announced that a consensus had emerged that erratic and erroneous values of the engine pressure ratio EPR appeared for both engines two to three minutes after levelling off at an altitude of 31 000 feet 9 400 m The EPR is the main parameter for engine power management and is derived from pressure sensors at the engine inlets The sensors had probably become clogged with ice in this case Such icing is normally prevented by a hot air system which probably was not activated by the aircrew during climb and cruise according to BEA analysis of the available data The faulty EPR values caused the engine controllers to limit the thrust to much less than required to maintain sufficient airspeed for stability at the altitude that the autopilot tried to maintain by increasing the angle of attack until stall occurred Twenty seconds after the initial stall the plane suddenly rolled sharply left to almost full inversion as the autopilot disengaged and pitched nose down to near vertical The BEA notes that the recorded parameters indicate that there were no stall recovery manoeuvres by the crew while the flight control surface deflections remained those that would normally intend nose up and right roll The BEA noted two previous similar incidents involving MD 82 and MD 83 aircraft where the aircrews were alert enough to notice the loss of airspeed and intervene before loss of control The first one was Spirit Airlines Flight 970 The aircraft involved registered as N823NK was an MD 82 flying in mid day in June 2002 when it suffered a loss of thrust on both engines in cruise at an altitude of 33 000 feet 10 000 m The two pressure sensors located on the engine nose bullets were blocked by ice crystals leading to incorrect indications and over estimation of the EPR The crew noticed the drop in speed and the precursor indications of a stall just before disengagement of the autopilot and putting the aeroplane into a descent They had not activated the engine anti ice systems The second one involved was an MD 83 operated by Swiftair that occurred in June 2014 The crew was aware of the drop of their airspeed and successfully recovered 42 Logbook analysis edit French BEA revealed that there were several technical defects on the plane several of which were on the EPR system On 21 July 2013 BEA noted that there was intermittent failures on the autothrottle that led to the replacement of the EPR transmitter on No 2 engine On 19 October 2013 the No 1 engine EPR indicator was faulty no display of values and the display was replaced On 2 March 2014 the autothrottle actuator was replaced During the recommissioning process the EPR LH failure message was displayed The left hand EPR transmitter was therefore also replaced Additionally on 27 June 2014 an engine surge resulted in a rejected take off at about 80 knots 150 km h 92 mph Due to this No 1 engine was replaced 31 20 21 Sequence of events based on FDR analysis edit The following was the sequence of events based on the FDR analysis The crew had been prepared to fly to Algiers from Ouagadougou As the crew would fly to Algiers they should know the weather condition in the area The crew had arrived in Ouagadougou one hour earlier and knew about the weather in the region Therefore they had already known the risks of turbulence and icing while flying in the region After handling the ground clearance AH5017 finally took off from Ouagadougou at 01 15 local time same time as UTC There were no incidents in its initial climb 31 14 116 13 minutes after takeoff while climbing through flight level 215 21 500 feet 6 600 m AH5017 slightly deviated to the left to avoid a storm in the area They reported this to Ouagadougou ACC However even though they knew that a storm had occurred in the area the flight crews did not activate the engine anti icing system At the time the temperature in the area indicated a high risk of icing According to the procedures the engine anti ice system should have been activated Even though ice crystals were likely to form due to the temperature and weather in the area the airframe seemed to be not affected by icing This was also what happened to the windshield The probable absence of icing on the airframe in particular on the windshield wipers the possible lack of clear signs of ice crystals which may be difficult to visually detect especially at night and are usually not detectable on the weather radar plus the absence of significant turbulence probably did not encourage the crew to activate the engine anti icing system 31 116 117 The plane then levelled off at 01 37 local time Flight crews then engaged the autopilot and the autothrottle Two minutes after leveling off the speed of the plane increased The crew then selected the cruise thrust regime on the TRP Thrust Rating Panel Shortly after the EPR Engine Pressure Ratio values of the right engine became incorrect probably due to the obstruction of the pressure sensor of this engine by ice crystals The autothrottle then adjusted the thrust to prevent the erroneous values from exceeding the EPR limit in cruise setting The thrust delivered by the engines was then lower than the thrust required for level flight and the speed of the plane continued to decrease For about one minute the gap between the EPR values of the left and right engines gradually increased and then stabilized between 0 2 and 0 3 and the autothrottle switched to MACH ATL mode three times 31 117 118 55 seconds after the anomaly of the right engine the left engine s EPR values also became erroneous and started to increase Due to these erroneous readings the crew became aware that an anomaly had occurred on AH5017 Five seconds later and for four seconds this increase was interrupted by a decrease in both engines RPM This decrease could have resulted from the crew reducing the Mach target or from manual decrease in engine RPM by over riding the autothrottle However even though there were many anomalies occurred in the engine the speed of the plane was still near at normal speed cruising causing the crew to not activate the engine anti icing system They did not know that there was an insufficient thrust to the plane s engine due to blockage in the pressure sensors 31 117 118 The engine RPM then increased again until the erroneous left EPR values reached EPR limit The thrust delivered by the engines remained lower than the thrust required in this phase of flight and the plane continued to decelerate The gap between the right EPR and the left EPR became closer with the typical EPR values while in cruise The N1 values were slightly lower than the typical cruise values 77 instead of 80 85 The inconsistency between the EPR values and N1 values was therefore hardly noticeable by the crew more so since documentation they had did not have a table of correct actions between EPR and N1 and they had not been trained to observe the correct action between these two parameters Additionally the crews were still busy to avoid a storm system nearby and trying to contact Niamey 31 117 118 AH5017 s speed then decreased further until 210 knots 390 km h 240 mph nearly at its stall speed The Mach indicator needle was close to vertical such reading should have been noticed by the flight crews and they should have put the plane into a descent However they only made an input on the thrust lever This was the correct action when there was a problem with the EPR system However this action alone does not correspond to the reaction expected of a crew in an approach to stall They should have put the aircraft into a descent They did notice that there was a problem in AH5017 s EPR The autothrottle then disengaged at the speed of 203 knots 376 km h 234 mph The SPEED LOW warning then appeared on the cockpit screen However because the flight crews were handling the contact with Niamey ACC they reacted slowly with the warning At this point the autopilot was still engaged 31 118 119 When the speed reached 200 knots 370 km h 230 mph the stick shaker triggered followed three seconds later by the triggering of the stall warning From this time onwards Captain Comeron Mogio s side loudspeaker only broadcast the STALL warning while that on First Officer Gost Caimari s side alternated the STALL warning with the other warnings that were active When a stall happens the crew should disconnect the autopilot and execute the stall recovery procedure Neither actions were done by the crew indicating that they did not know that a stall had happened in flight 31 118 119 In order to maintain altitude the autopilot then commanded a continuous nose up movement of the trimmable horizontal stabilizer and the elevators This resulted in an increase in the angle of attack of up to 24 or 13 above the stall angle of attack in the event conditions as well as the broadcast of several STABILIZER MOTION warnings Both engines suffered a surge probably due to the plane s high angle of attack Both engines RPM then decreased to values close to idle This surge may have been noticed by the crew 31 119 122 There was no sign of a reaction by the crew other than the throttle movements until the disconnection of the autopilot which occurred 25 seconds after the triggering of the stick shaker The speed was then 162 knots 300 km h 186 mph the altitude had decreased by about 1 150 feet 350 m The plane was banking to the left and its pitch decreasing The crew applied input mainly to roll to the right to bring the wings level At the same time they applied mainly nose up inputs contrary to the inputs required to recover the stall and continued to do so until Flight 5017 touched the ground 31 119 122 Conclusion edit On 22 April 2016 the BEA finally concluded the cause of the crash as follows The aeroplane speed piloted by the autothrottle decreased due to the obstruction of the pressure sensors located on the engine nose cones probably caused by ice crystals The autopilot then gradually increased the angle of attack to maintain altitude until the aeroplane stalled The stall was not recovered The aeroplane retained a pitch down attitude and left bank angle down to the ground while the control surfaces remained mainly deflected pitch up and in the direction of a bank to the right The aeroplane hit the ground at high speed 31 125 Contributing factors the non activation of the engine anti icing systems the obstruction of the Pt2 pressure sensors probably by ice crystals generating erroneous EPR values that caused the autothrottle to limit the thrust produced by the engines to a level below that required to maintain the aeroplane at FL310 the crew s late reaction to the decrease in speed and to the erroneous EPR values possibly linked to the work load associated with avoiding the convective zone and communication difficulties with air traffic control the crew s lack of reaction to the appearance of buffet the stickshaker and the stall warning the lack of appropriate inputs on the flight controls to recover from a stall situation The FCOM procedure relating to the activation of the anti icing systems that was not adapted to Pt2 pressure sensor obstruction by ice crystals Insufficient information for operators on the consequences of a blockage of the Pt2 pressure sensor by icing The stickshaker and the stall warning triggering logic that led these devices to be triggered belatedly in relation to the aeroplane stall in cruise the autopilot logic that enables it to continue to give pitch up commands beyond the stall angle thereby aggravating the stall situation and increasing the crew s difficulties in recovery 31 125 126 The BEA issued more than 20 recommendations in response to the crash several of them noted on past aviation accidents including West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 Air France Flight 447 and a serious incident onboard Spirit Airlines Flight 970 43 Some of the recommendations were based on Search and Rescue operations CVR malfunctions and an urgent recommendation to the FAA about icing on aircraft 31 127 131 Legal actions editProsecutors in Paris opened a preliminary involuntary homicide investigation Several inquiries had been launched in France Burkina Faso Spain Montreal and San Francisco 44 failed verification Relatives of Canadian victims filed a lawsuit at the Montreal Courthouse to Air Algerie in response to the crash The lawsuit alleges that Swiftair pilots intentionally chose a flight path that passed through the eye of a tropical storm It also alleges the pilots failed to perform necessary measures to try to fly the plane to safety including activating the plane s de icing mechanisms Victims relatives were claiming moral psychological and traumatic damages as well as financial loss and the loss of a loved one 45 46 needs update French newspaper Le Figaro cited a judicial probe that the crash of Flight 5017 was caused due to a series of errors caused by the failure of the de icing equipment on the plane 47 Based on the probe the failure led to sensors on the engines becoming clogged with ice and reporting back false data to the pilots As such when the engine began to lose thrust the pilots were unaware of it The situation would have been compounded when the pilot attempted to regain altitude by pulling back on the joystick indicating pilot error The flight simulator system used to train the crew was not exactly the same as the actual plane the MD 83 The pilots did not have any experience at flying in Africa s meteorological conditions 48 In the latter it stated that both pilots had only one African flight experience The crew also had outdated information on the weather conditions on the route they were flying having received their last update 2 hours before takeoff while the plane s crews had trouble communicating with ground staff 49 See also editAgence Nationale de l Aviation Civile du Mali Atmospheric icing Ice protection system List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft List of aircraft accidents and incidents resulting in at least 50 fatalities Similar incidents 2000 Marsa Brega Shorts 360 crash Air Florida Flight 90 Air Ontario Flight 1363 American Eagle Flight 4184 Comair Flight 3272 West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 USAir Flight 405 Air France Flight 447Notes edit A pressurisation cycle usually equating to a flightReferences edit a b c d Accident to the McDonnell Douglas MD 83 registered EC LTV on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gao Mali bea aero Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety 7 August 2014 Archived from the original on 1 December 2021 Retrieved 7 August 2014 a b c Kaminski Morrow David Swiftair MD 83 operating missing Air Algerie service Flightglobal London Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 a b c Kaminski Morrow David 7 August 2014 Swiftair MD 83 lost speed before rapid spiral descent Flightglobal Retrieved 7 August 2014 a b INTERIM REPORT Accident on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gossi in Mali to the MD 83 registered EC LTV operated by Swiftair S A PDF Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety Archived from the original PDF on 24 February 2015 Retrieved 10 October 2014 Air Algerie AH5017 Pilots asked to turn back BBC News 28 July 2014 Retrieved 29 July 2014 Avion perdu en Afrique gros orages sur le Burkina Faso in French La Chaine Meteo 24 July 2014 Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Air Algerie Plane Crash in Mali University of Wisconsin Madison Space Science and Engineering Center CIMSS Satellite Blog 28 July 2014 Retrieved 7 August 2014 Algeria airliner missing on Sahara route from Burkina Faso BBC News 24 July 2014 Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Smith Spark Laura 24 July 2014 Air Algerie says missing plane apparently crashed in Mali CNN Retrieved 24 July 2014 France No Survivors of Air Algerie Crash in Mali Voice of America Archived from the original on 28 December 2014 Retrieved 25 July 2014 Mali president says wreckage of Air Algerie flight spotted in north Reuters Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Willsher Kim Mark Monica 24 July 2014 Air Algerie flight AH5017 wreckage found in Mali The Guardian Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 a b EC LTV preliminary Aviation Safety Network Retrieved 24 July 2014 Air Algerie leasing a Swiftair MD 83 for summer ch aviation 2 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Flottau Jens Svitak Amy 25 July 2014 MD 83 Wreckage Found in Mali Aviation Week Retrieved 1 August 2014 Air Algerie flight crashes in Mali Herald Retrieved 26 July 2014 a b Communique No 04 PDF Air Algerie in French Archived from the original PDF on 28 July 2014 a b Stuart Winer 27 July 2014 Senior Hezbollah man reported killed in Air Algerie crash The Times of Israel Associated Press a b Vasudevan Sridharan 26 July 2014 Air Algerie AH5017 Hezbollah Leader and French Troops were on Board Flight Air Algerie AH5017 crash Tawhid and Djihad battalion stationed near the crash site Echorouk Online 27 June 2014 Missing Air Algerie plane has crashed Algerian aviation official Dawn Agencies Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Hamid Ould Ahmed 24 July 2014 French warplanes search Mali desert for crashed Air Algerie plane Reuters The Lebanese Foreign Ministry said its embassy in Abidjan estimated the number of Lebanese citizens on the flight was at least 20 Some of these may have had dual nationality Familia confirma presencia de chilena en avion caido en Africa 24 Horas Chile 24 July 2014 No Fidel Castro s Niece Wasn t on That Algerian Plane Time 26 July 2014 Retrieved 26 July 2014 Air Algerie Crash Disintegrated plane found in Mali CNN 30 July 2014 Retrieved 30 July 2014 Air Algerie AH5017 No survivors from crash in Mali BBC News 25 July 2014 Retrieved 25 July 2014 Comunicado Swiftair PDF Archived from the original PDF on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 31 August 2014 All Air Algeria crash victims identified Luxemburger Wort Archived from the original on 2 June 2015 Retrieved 23 December 2014 ITAR TASS World Air Algerie plane crashes in Niger Algerian TV Information Telegraph Agency of Russia 24 July 2014 Archived from the original on 25 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Missing Air Algerie flight Live updates as plane vanishes off radar with 116 on board 24 July 2014 Archived from the original on 24 July 2014 Retrieved 24 July 2014 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o FINAL REPORT Accident on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gossi in Mali to the MD 83 registered EC LTV operated by Swiftair S A PDF Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety 22 April 2016 Archived from the original PDF on 10 June 2016 Retrieved 20 May 2016 a b Hradecky Simon 25 July 2014 Crash Swiftair MD83 over Mali on Jul 24th 2014 aircraft lost altitude The Aviation Herald Retrieved 25 July 2014 Flight AH5017 No survivors in Air Algerie crash one black box found Global News Retrieved 30 July 2014 a b Air Algerie AH5017 Hollande vows to bring bodies to France BBC News 26 July 2014 Retrieved 2 June 2015 France declares three day national mourning over Air Algerie crash AZERBAIJAN STATE NEWS AGENCY Retrieved 29 July 2014 Burkina Faso mourns citizens killed Air Algerie plane crash Daily Nation Retrieved 29 July 2014 airlinerroute net Archived from the original on 16 April 2015 Retrieved 27 August 2015 Victims of the 2014 Air Algerie plane crash in Mali remembered in solemn ceremonies Australian Broadcasting Corporation 24 July 2015 Presentation of Information on the accident to the McDonnell Douglas MD 83 registered EC LTV on 24 July 2014 in theregion of Gao Mali Archive Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety Retrieved 23 August 2014 French version Archive Second Black Box Found at Mali Crash Site Voice of America 27 July 2014 Archived from the original on 29 July 2014 Retrieved 27 July 2014 Samuel Henry 7 August 2014 Air Algerie crash victims had no time to suffer experts insist The Telegraph Retrieved 7 August 2014 Press Release Accident to the McDonnell Douglas MD 83 registered EC LTV on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gossi Mali Press release Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety 2 April 2015 Archived from the original on 10 August 2014 Retrieved 16 April 2015 Ranter Harro ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas DC 9 82 MD 82 N823NK Wichita KS aviation safety net Aviation Safety Network Archived from the original on 7 February 2006 Retrieved 25 June 2017 Hollande pledges full efforts to locate Air Algerie flight Xinhuanet Archived from the original on 29 July 2014 Retrieved 26 July 2014 Air Algerie crash class action suit filed in Quebec court Canadian Broadcasting Corporation 3 July 2015 Lawsuit on AH5017 s crash 2 July 2015 Series of errors caused Air Algerie crash Daily Star Archived from the original on 10 October 2016 Retrieved 9 October 2016 Series of tragic errors caused Air Algerie crash Report The Times of India Archived from the original on 5 January 2017 Retrieved 9 October 2016 Air Algerie crash caused by series of errors France 24 3 July 2015 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Air Algerie Flight 5017 Republic of Mali Commission of Inquiry Final Report Archive Interim Report Accident on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gossi in Mali to the MD 83 registered EC LTV operated by Swiftair S A Archive Description of engine thrust control Archive Information on the accident that occurred in the region of Gossi Mali on 24 July 2014 to the McDonnell Douglas DC 9 83 MD 83 registered EC LTV operated by Swiftair SA as flight AH 5017 Archive Safety recommendations issued to the FAA and the EASA on 10 July 2015 by the President of the Mali Commission of Inquiry and the BEA Archive Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety Accident to the McDonnell Douglas MD 83 registered EC LTV on 24 July 2014 in the region of Gao Mali Accident survenu dans la region de Gossi Mali le 24 juillet 2014 a l avion McDonnell Douglas DC 9 83 MD 83 immatricule EC LTV exploite par Swiftair SA vol AH 5017 in French Informacion Incidente Aereo Aviation Incident Information Archive Swiftair in Spanish Condoleances Archive Air Algerie in French Portals nbsp Aviation nbsp Mali nbsp Algeria nbsp France 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