Incident Overview

Description
The aircraft had left Mombasa, Kenya for Masai Mara to drop off passengers at Kichwa Tembo airstrip in the Masai-Mara game reserve. The flight then continued to Voyager in order refuel. Leaving Voyager, the aircraft was flown to Musiara to pick up eighteen passengers bound for Mombasa. The passengers were already at the airstrip and waiting by the time the aircraft landed at Musiara airstrip. The crew switched off one engine leaving the other running and the co-pilot proceeded to board the passengers. He also gave the passenger briefing informing his passengers about flight times as well as the expected weather en-route. After the passenger briefing, the crew went ahead with preparations for takeoff. The captain gave his co-pilot a briefing on how they would use the water methanol system for takeoff, then went ahead with the takeoff. The aircraft successfully lifted off the ground and the landing gear and flaps were selected up. Forty-five seconds into the flight, the no. 1 engine stopped. The crew identified the failed engine, and proceeded to attempt a restart. They made one failed attempt and elected to make a landing in the next suitable airstrip where they would figure out a suitable way to address the problem. The closest airstrip was Ol Kiombo, which was 18 kilometers along the aircraft flight path and three kilometers to the right of the flight path. By the time the crew identified the airstrip, it was already too late to make a direct landing on runway 09. The aircraft was also loosing altitude. The crew then attempted to line up the aircraft for a landing on the opposite runway but lost height and made a crash landing straight ahead. The aircraft impacted the ground in flat attitude, dragged along, hit an anthill and turned one hundred and eighty degrees, finally settling astride a stream. The co-pilot was thrown out of the aircraft and critically injured and died shortly thereafter. The aircraft suffered extensive damage and the captain and the passengers suffered serious injuries. An investigation of the engine did not reveal any damage. The cause of the engine stop could not be determined. CAUSE: “The most likely cause of the accident was the inability of the crew to manage the emergency brought about by the failure of the left engine. Failure of the engine as well as the lack of methodical approach to the failure contributed to the accident. “
Primary Cause
The failure of the left engine, coupled with a lack of systematic approach to the failure, led to the loss of altitude and ultimately a crash landing.The failure of the left engine, coupled with a lack of systematic approach to the failure, led to the loss of altitude and ultimately a crash landing.Share on: