Canhestros / Fª Alentejo: Wear and cracks caused the plane crash Pilatus PC-6.
Plane disintegrated with paratroopers in Alentejo, that will take off the airfield Canhestros, in Ferreira do Alentejo, showed wear and cracks.
The investigation into the crash of the Pilatus PC-6 aircraft, which disintegrated in Alentejo in June 2016 with paratroopers, killing the Belgian pilot, It concluded that there was wear and cracks in critical mechanical component of the aircraft.
The final report of the Office for Accident Prevention and Investigation Aircraft and Railway Accidents (GPIAAF), that the Lusa had access, indicates that, “fixture after fracture, The horizontal stabilizer was released, without control and entered into vibration, causing the fracture of the left horizontal stabilizer”, this being pointed out by researchers as the likely cause of the accident.
The manufacturer (Pilatus) assume, a service bulletin issued after the accident, “been reported that wear and cracks in the stabilizer trim fixing and relevant structural components” some of these aircraft, including this aircraft, which disintegrated in flight to 19 June 2016, after take off from the airfield Canhestros, Ferreira do Alentejo county.
The GPIAAF account the observations of this fixture “They showed that both fractured surfaces showed significant cracking Fatigue”, and that “the fatigue cracks started at various points, which means that there is a single origin of the crack”, having no inspection established methods been effective to identify the appearance and propagation of cracks over time. The GPIAAF report makes recommendations to the lifetime limitation of the component and its inspection regime.
On the afternoon of 19 June 2016, one Pilatus PC-6 aircraft, German registration and operated by Seven Air Group, holder Skydiving company organizing heels, took off from the airfield Canhestros, district of Beja, for his 17th start of paratroopers that day.
This flight followed 8 people on board: 1 pilot, 5 and paratroopers 2 Passengers jumped in 'tandem’ [coupled] with two of paratroopers. The accident occurred about six kilometers from the airport.
The final report states that the accident, according to the account of some of the paratroopers of the group, “there was a sound like from / tearing of the metal frame” and that, “suddenly, the entire rear part of the structure disintegrated”.
“Some occupants were designed against the structure of the aircraft before being thrown out. In a few seconds, the paratroopers who did not suffer serious injuries managed to jump from the plane and trigger their having parachute, two of them, suffered serious injuries before they leave the aircraft, It is triggered emergency parachute opening barometric”, The document describes.
The accident caused the death to the rider, of 27 year old, Belgian nationality, serious injuries in two paratroopers, one of the occupants was slightly injured and four were unharmed.
“Due to the disintegration of the aircraft in flight and the place where it was found the body of the pilot it is assumed that the pilot tried to leave the cabin of the aircraft after all the paratroopers had jumped, but due to flight instability have hit his head and lost consciousness, unable to open your parachute”, reports the GPIAAF report.
The document indicates that the pilot made over 900 flight hours on Pilatus PC-6 Porter and had a total flight time of more than 1.400 hours.
The seat which followed was equipped with seat belts (incorporating belts at the waist and shoulders) and the pilot was also equipped with a manual opening parachute.
“The pilot parachute did not open because it was not equipped with the security system that the parachute of the other occupants had”, explains the final report of the investigation.
Through the database of various safety investigation authorities, namely the Belgian, the GPIAAF researched occurrences of accidents involving paratroopers starting flights and found that between 1987 and 2014 there have been 46 accidents, including two in Portugal involving multiple aircraft.
