Boeing 737-2P5 – HS-TBC – Air Crash Data

Incident Overview

Date: Monday 31 August 1987

Aircraft Type: Boeing 737-2P5

Owner/operator: Thai Airways

Registration Number: HS-TBC

Location: 15 km E off Phuket International Airport (HKT) – ÿ Thailand

Phase of Flight: Approach

Status: Destroyed, written off

Casualties: Fatalities: 83 / Occupants: 83

Component Affected: Aircraft Control System (specifically, the stall and subsequent control system activation).Aircraft Control System (specifically, the stall and subsequent control system activation).

Category: Accident

On Phuket VOR/DME, Thai Airways Flight 365 and Dragon Air Flight 203 approached simultaneously. Thai 365 was flying at 3000 feet and Dragonair 203 was approaching at 2500 feet, with Dragonair 203 initiating a turn right at 12 DME and intending to turn inbound for finals for runway 27. The Thai crew reported a false position report, arriving at 8 DME inbound, and requested visual approach. Phuket Approach immediately granted Thai 365 landing priority due to the conflicting traffic. The Dragonair crew, flying IFR, immediately warned of a potential landing priority and requested visual approach, but hadn’t reached 8 DME. The Thai pilot, concerned about potential landing priority, slowed the aircraft and stalled, resulting in a crash into the sea. The pilot?s actions were a result of worrying about whether he could make the first landing, and the other aircraft?s warning of a potential landing priority caused the Thai crew to initiate a rapid descent.On Phuket VOR/DME, Thai Airways Flight 365 and Dragon Air Flight 203 approached simultaneously. Thai 365 was flying at 3000 feet and Dragonair 203 was approaching at 2500 feet, with Dragonair 203 initiating a turn right at 12 DME and intending to turn inbound for finals for runway 27. The Thai crew reported a false position report, arriving at 8 DME inbound, and requested visual approach. Phuket Approach immediately granted Thai 365 landing priority due to the conflicting traffic. The Dragonair crew, flying IFR, immediately warned of a potential landing priority and requested visual approach, but hadn’t reached 8 DME. The Thai pilot, concerned about potential landing priority, slowed the aircraft and stalled, resulting in a crash into the sea. The pilot?s actions were a result of worrying about whether he could make the first landing, and the other aircraft?s warning of a potential landing priority caused the Thai crew to initiate a rapid descent.

Description

Thai Airways Flight 365 was approaching Phuket VOR/DME on radial 119 after a flight from Hat Yai. At the same time Dragon Air Flight 203 (a Boeing 737 registered VR-HYL, carrying 62 occupants) also approached Phuket VOR/DME on radial 090. At 08:34 UTC Dragonair 203 reported at 2500 feet with Thai 365 in sight in front of them. The Thai Boeing was flying at 3000 feet at the time, and was 13 miles from Phuket VOR/DME. Dragonair 203, first priority in approach sequence, then turned right at 12 DME and was going to turn inbound for finals for runway 27. The Thai crew surmised that the other crew were making a false position report to gain landing priority and reported hurriedly that they were at 8 DME inbound and requested visual approach, though they hadn’t reached 8 DME yet. This forced Phuket Approach to give Thai 365 landing priority at 08:35. The Dragonair crew (flying IFR) immediately warned that the Thai plane couldn’t descend through their flight level. Concentrating on the conflicting traffic the speed decayed to 163 knots until the stick shaker activated. The Thai crew then applied power and raised the landing gear, but the aircraft entered a stall crashed into the sea, disintegrating on impact. PROBABLE CAUSE: “The pilot slowed the aircraft and it stalled while the pilot prepared to be number one on landing as advised by Phuket approach control. It appears that he was worrying and not sure whether he could make number one landing because the pilot if number two aircraft in sequence gave warning that the number one aircraft ahead was above him and could not descend passing through his level. The pilot added power and raised the gear after stick shaker activated but didn’t execute a recovery before hitting the sea.”

Primary Cause

Conflicting traffic and pilot error ? the pilot?s actions of slowing and stalling, coupled with the incorrect assumption of a false position report, led to the stall and subsequent crash.Conflicting traffic and pilot error ? the pilot?s actions of slowing and stalling, coupled with the incorrect assumption of a false position report, led to the stall and subsequent crash.

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