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Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268

January 01, 1970

Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 was an Airbus A300, registration AP-BCP, which crashed while approaching Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport on 28 September 1992. All 167 people on board were killed. Flight 268 is the worst crash of Pakistan International Airlines, and the worst ever to occur in Nepal.[1][2]

Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268
Wreckage of AP-BCP's tail section
Accident
Date28 September 1992 (1992-09-28)
SummaryControlled flight into terrain
SiteBhattedanda, Nepal
27°31′58″N 85°17′05″E / 27.53278°N 85.28472°E / 27.53278; 85.28472
Aircraft
Aircraft typeAirbus A300B4-103
OperatorPakistan International Airlines
IATA flight No.PK268
ICAO flight No.PIA268
Call signPAKISTAN 268
RegistrationAP-BCP
Flight originJinnah International Airport
DestinationTribhuvan International Airport
Occupants167
Passengers155
Crew12
Fatalities167
Survivors0

Aircraft and crew edit

 
AP-BCP, the aircraft involved in the accident about 7 months before the incident.

The aircraft involved was a 16-year-old Airbus A300B4-103 registered as AP-BCP (serial number 025). The aircraft was built in 1976 and flew its maiden flight on 23 March the same year. On 2 May 1977, the aircraft was delivered to Bavaria Germanair, and was registered as D-AMAZ. About a week later, it was leased to Egyptair. The aircraft was re-registered as SU-AZY and subsequently sold to Hapag-Lloyd Flug after its merger with Bavaria Germanair. The aircraft was then re-registered as D-AHLZ and leased to the following airlines:

On 21 April 1986, the aircraft was delivered to Pakistan International Airlines, and was re-registered as AP-BCP. The aircraft had a total of 39,045 flying hours and 19,172 landings at the time of the crash.[1]

The captain was 49-year-old Iftikhar Janjua, who had 13,192 flight hours, including 6,260 hours on the Airbus A300. The first officer was 38-year-old Hassan Akhtar, who had 5,849 flight hours, with 1,469 of them on the Airbus A300.

There were two flight engineers on board: one operating and the other observing. The operating flight engineer was an unnamed 40-year-old male who had 5,289 flight hours, with 2,516 of them on the Airbus A300. The observing flight engineer, 42-year-old Muhammad Ashraf, had 8,220 flight hours, including 4,503 hours on the Airbus A300.[3]

Accident edit

Flight 268 departed Karachi at 11:13 AM Pakistan Standard Time for Kathmandu. Upon contacting Nepalese air traffic control, the aircraft was cleared for an approach from the south called the Sierra approach. An aircraft cleared to use this approach was at the time directed to pass over a reporting point called "Romeo" located 41 nautical miles (76 km) south of the Kathmandu VOR (or at 41 DME) at an altitude of 15,000 feet. The aircraft was to then descend in seven steps to 5,800 feet, passing over a reporting point known as "Sierra" located at 10 DME at an altitude of 9,500 feet, before landing at Kathmandu. This approach allowed aircraft to pass over the Mahabharat Range directly south of Kathmandu (the crest of which is located just north of the Sierra reporting point) at a safe altitude.

Shortly after reporting at 10 DME, at 2.30 pm the aircraft crashed at approximately 7,300 feet (2,200 m) into the side of the 8,250 ft (2,524 m) mountain at Bhattedanda, disintegrating on impact, instantly killing all aboard; the tail fin separated and fell into the forest at the base of the mountainside.[1][4][5]

This accident occurred 59 days after Thai Airways International Flight 311 crashed north of Kathmandu.[6]

Victims edit

Nationality Passengers Crew Total
United Kingdom 36 - 36
Nepal 30 - 30
Spain 30 - 30
Pakistan 11 12 23
Netherlands 14 - 14
Other Europeans 14 - 14
Bangladesh 4 - 4
United States 3 - 3
Canada 2 - 2
Unknown 2 - 2
Japan 1 - 1
New Zealand 1 - 1
Total 155 12 167[5]

Investigation and causes edit

After the crash, the Nepali Military assisted with investigators to find the aircraft's black box. The investigation was handled by Andrew Robinson from the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB). The black box was initially sent to Paris for decoding.[7]

At the time of impact, eye witnesses near the accident site confirmed that there was little to no wind, rain, and no thunderstorms in the area. Investigators found no technical problems documented for the A300 and, after considering it as a cause, subsequently ruled out terrorism.[7]

Although no pertinent flight deck conversation was recovered from Flight 268's cockpit voice recorder by investigators with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB), which assisted with the investigation, data recovered from the flight data recorder by the TSB showed that the aircraft initiated each step of its descent one step too early.[4] At 16 DME the aircraft was a full 1,000 feet below its cleared altitude; at 10 DME (the Sierra reporting point) it was 1,300 feet below its cleared altitude. The aircraft approached the Mahabharat Range at an insufficient altitude and crashed into the south slope.[1] Although the pilots of Flight 268 reported their aircraft's altitude accurately to air traffic control, controllers did nothing to warn them of their inappropriate altitude until seconds before the accident.[4]

Investigators determined that the accident had been caused mainly by pilot error. Visibility was poor due to overcast conditions and the ground proximity warning system would not have been triggered in time because of the steep terrain.[4] The approach plates for Kathmandu issued to PIA pilots were also determined to be unclear,[1][4] and Nepalese air traffic controllers were judged timid and reluctant to intervene in what they saw as piloting matters such as terrain separation.[8] The report recommended that ICAO review navigational charts and encourage their standardisation, and that the approach to Kathmandu Airport be changed to be less complex.[4]

Memorials edit

PIA paid for - and maintains - the Lele PIA Memorial Park at Lele, at the foot of a mountain about 10 km north of the crash site.[9][10]

The Wilkins Memorial Trust, a UK charitable organisation that provides aid to Nepal, was established in memory of a family killed in the crash.[11]

In popular culture edit

The accident is featured in the first episode of Season 20 of Mayday, also known as Air Crash Investigation. The episode is titled "Kathmandu Descent".[12]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
  2. ^ Ranter, Harro. "Nepal air safety profile". aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  3. ^ "Human Factors: Pakistan International Airlines Flight Pk 268". smhusain1's Blog. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Gero, David (2000). Aviation Disasters: The World's Major Civil Airliner Crashes since 1950 (3rd ed.). Sparkford, nr. Yeovil, Somerset: Patrick Stephens (Haynes). p. 232. ISBN 9781852606022.
  5. ^ a b McGirk, Tim; Wolmar, Christian (1 October 1992). "Hunt goes on for black box in Airbus wreckage". The Independent. London. from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  6. ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Airbus A310-304 HS-TID Kathmandu-Tribhuvan Airport (KTM)". aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Pakistan International Airlines, Flight PK 268, an unknown mystery". Aviation Nepal. 28 July 2020.
  8. ^ "Airbus crash blamed on pilot error". The Independent. 30 September 1992. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  9. ^ Khaliq, Fazal (17 October 2015). "PIA memorial park in Nepal honours 1992 air crash victims". Dawn.
  10. ^ "Air crash relatives arrive in Nepal". The Independent. 2 October 1992. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  11. ^ (PDF). WMT News (pdf). Autumn 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
  12. ^ Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 at IMDb  

Further reading edit

January 01, 1970
pakistan, international, airlines, flight, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, . This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 news newspapers books scholar JSTOR July 2009 Learn how and when to remove this message Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 was an Airbus A300 registration AP BCP which crashed while approaching Kathmandu s Tribhuvan International Airport on 28 September 1992 All 167 people on board were killed Flight 268 is the worst crash of Pakistan International Airlines and the worst ever to occur in Nepal 1 2 Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268Wreckage of AP BCP s tail sectionAccidentDate28 September 1992 1992 09 28 SummaryControlled flight into terrainSiteBhattedanda Nepal 27 31 58 N 85 17 05 E 27 53278 N 85 28472 E 27 53278 85 28472AircraftAircraft typeAirbus A300B4 103OperatorPakistan International AirlinesIATA flight No PK268ICAO flight No PIA268Call signPAKISTAN 268RegistrationAP BCPFlight originJinnah International AirportDestinationTribhuvan International AirportOccupants167Passengers155Crew12Fatalities167Survivors0 Contents 1 Aircraft and crew 2 Accident 3 Victims 4 Investigation and causes 5 Memorials 6 In popular culture 7 See also 8 References 9 Further readingAircraft and crew edit nbsp AP BCP the aircraft involved in the accident about 7 months before the incident The aircraft involved was a 16 year old Airbus A300B4 103 registered as AP BCP serial number 025 The aircraft was built in 1976 and flew its maiden flight on 23 March the same year On 2 May 1977 the aircraft was delivered to Bavaria Germanair and was registered as D AMAZ About a week later it was leased to Egyptair The aircraft was re registered as SU AZY and subsequently sold to Hapag Lloyd Flug after its merger with Bavaria Germanair The aircraft was then re registered as D AHLZ and leased to the following airlines Egyptair January 1979 October 1982 Kuwait Airways April July 1983 Capitol Air June October 1984 Air Jamaica February April 1985 Condor Flugdienst May November 1985 On 21 April 1986 the aircraft was delivered to Pakistan International Airlines and was re registered as AP BCP The aircraft had a total of 39 045 flying hours and 19 172 landings at the time of the crash 1 The captain was 49 year old Iftikhar Janjua who had 13 192 flight hours including 6 260 hours on the Airbus A300 The first officer was 38 year old Hassan Akhtar who had 5 849 flight hours with 1 469 of them on the Airbus A300 There were two flight engineers on board one operating and the other observing The operating flight engineer was an unnamed 40 year old male who had 5 289 flight hours with 2 516 of them on the Airbus A300 The observing flight engineer 42 year old Muhammad Ashraf had 8 220 flight hours including 4 503 hours on the Airbus A300 3 Accident editFlight 268 departed Karachi at 11 13 AM Pakistan Standard Time for Kathmandu Upon contacting Nepalese air traffic control the aircraft was cleared for an approach from the south called the Sierra approach An aircraft cleared to use this approach was at the time directed to pass over a reporting point called Romeo located 41 nautical miles 76 km south of the Kathmandu VOR or at 41 DME at an altitude of 15 000 feet The aircraft was to then descend in seven steps to 5 800 feet passing over a reporting point known as Sierra located at 10 DME at an altitude of 9 500 feet before landing at Kathmandu This approach allowed aircraft to pass over the Mahabharat Range directly south of Kathmandu the crest of which is located just north of the Sierra reporting point at a safe altitude Shortly after reporting at 10 DME at 2 30 pm the aircraft crashed at approximately 7 300 feet 2 200 m into the side of the 8 250 ft 2 524 m mountain at Bhattedanda disintegrating on impact instantly killing all aboard the tail fin separated and fell into the forest at the base of the mountainside 1 4 5 This accident occurred 59 days after Thai Airways International Flight 311 crashed north of Kathmandu 6 Victims editNationality Passengers Crew Total United Kingdom 36 36 Nepal 30 30 Spain 30 30 Pakistan 11 12 23 Netherlands 14 14 Other Europeans 14 14 Bangladesh 4 4 United States 3 3 Canada 2 2 Unknown 2 2 Japan 1 1 New Zealand 1 1 Total 155 12 167 5 Investigation and causes editAfter the crash the Nepali Military assisted with investigators to find the aircraft s black box The investigation was handled by Andrew Robinson from the Air Accident Investigation Branch AAIB The black box was initially sent to Paris for decoding 7 At the time of impact eye witnesses near the accident site confirmed that there was little to no wind rain and no thunderstorms in the area Investigators found no technical problems documented for the A300 and after considering it as a cause subsequently ruled out terrorism 7 Although no pertinent flight deck conversation was recovered from Flight 268 s cockpit voice recorder by investigators with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada TSB which assisted with the investigation data recovered from the flight data recorder by the TSB showed that the aircraft initiated each step of its descent one step too early 4 At 16 DME the aircraft was a full 1 000 feet below its cleared altitude at 10 DME the Sierra reporting point it was 1 300 feet below its cleared altitude The aircraft approached the Mahabharat Range at an insufficient altitude and crashed into the south slope 1 Although the pilots of Flight 268 reported their aircraft s altitude accurately to air traffic control controllers did nothing to warn them of their inappropriate altitude until seconds before the accident 4 Investigators determined that the accident had been caused mainly by pilot error Visibility was poor due to overcast conditions and the ground proximity warning system would not have been triggered in time because of the steep terrain 4 The approach plates for Kathmandu issued to PIA pilots were also determined to be unclear 1 4 and Nepalese air traffic controllers were judged timid and reluctant to intervene in what they saw as piloting matters such as terrain separation 8 The report recommended that ICAO review navigational charts and encourage their standardisation and that the approach to Kathmandu Airport be changed to be less complex 4 Memorials editPIA paid for and maintains the Lele PIA Memorial Park at Lele at the foot of a mountain about 10 km north of the crash site 9 10 The Wilkins Memorial Trust a UK charitable organisation that provides aid to Nepal was established in memory of a family killed in the crash 11 In popular culture editThe accident is featured in the first episode of Season 20 of Mayday also known as Air Crash Investigation The episode is titled Kathmandu Descent 12 See also editList of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft Thai Airways International Flight 311 Garuda Indonesia Flight 152 List of airplane accidents in Nepal Off by one errorReferences edit a b c d e Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network Ranter Harro Nepal air safety profile aviation safety net Aviation Safety Network Retrieved 11 February 2019 Human Factors Pakistan International Airlines Flight Pk 268 smhusain1 s Blog 24 May 2018 Retrieved 17 October 2019 a b c d e f Gero David 2000 Aviation Disasters The World s Major Civil Airliner Crashes since 1950 3rd ed Sparkford nr Yeovil Somerset Patrick Stephens Haynes p 232 ISBN 9781852606022 a b McGirk Tim Wolmar Christian 1 October 1992 Hunt goes on for black box in Airbus wreckage The Independent London Archived from the original on 15 July 2015 Retrieved 17 September 2020 Ranter Harro ASN Aircraft accident Airbus A310 304 HS TID Kathmandu Tribhuvan Airport KTM aviation safety net Aviation Safety Network Retrieved 11 February 2019 a b Pakistan International Airlines Flight PK 268 an unknown mystery Aviation Nepal 28 July 2020 Airbus crash blamed on pilot error The Independent 30 September 1992 Archived from the original on 24 May 2022 Retrieved 10 February 2018 Khaliq Fazal 17 October 2015 PIA memorial park in Nepal honours 1992 air crash victims Dawn Air crash relatives arrive in Nepal The Independent 2 October 1992 Archived from the original on 24 May 2022 Retrieved 10 February 2018 WMT PDF WMT News pdf Autumn 2007 Archived from the original PDF on 10 May 2017 Retrieved 10 February 2016 Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 at IMDb nbsp Further reading editJob Macarthur 1998 Air Disaster Vol 3 Aerospace Publications Pty Ltd Australia pp 98 115 ISBN 1 875671 34 X Portals nbsp Nepal nbsp Pakistan nbsp Aviation nbsp Modern history Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Pakistan International Airlines Flight 268 amp oldid 1223719846, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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