Claims Pilot Descended Below Minimums

A report profiling a Crossair crash near Zurich, two years ago that killed 24 people, says serious pilot errors were to blame for the accident. 
 
Switzerland's Air Accident Investigation Bureau also criticized shortcomings of the aircraft operator, Crossair. The Federal Prosecutor's Office said on Tuesday that it had opened a criminal investigation into possible negligent homicide and grievous bodily harm by negligence.

The accident report confirmed that the pilot of the Avro RJ-100 (file photo, below) descended below minimums, ignoring automatic alarm signals. The jet, which was flying from Berlin to Zurich on the night of November 24, 2001, crashed into woodland just short of the runway, killing 24 of the 33 people on board.

The report said the 57-year-old pilot of Crossair flight LX3579 was much too tired to be able to concentrate fully or make crucial decisions during the approach. The pilot had been working for more than 13 hours when the crash occurred and had also exceeded maximum duty times in the two days before the accident.

The Air Accident Investigation Bureau concluded that the pilot's "ability to concentrate and take appropriate decisions, as well as his ability to analyze complex processes were adversely affected by fatigue". It also blamed the co-pilot for not taking action to rectify the pilot's error during the instrument approach.

The report also criticized a lack of safety controls and poor pilot training at Crossair, which formed the backbone of the new national carrier, Swiss. It added that senior managers should have identified that the pilot was not in a fit state to fly.

Officials said training deficiencies unearthed by the crash investigation were not isolated. "We know of about at least 40 similar cases," the report said.

Investigators noted that the range of hills over which the plane flew was not marked on navigational charts. The Federal Office for Civil Aviation (FOCA) was also singled out for failing to supervise Crossair's training program.

In addition, the Swiss air traffic control agency, Skyguide, was criticized for only having one person on duty at the time of the accident instead of the usual four.

Even though Swiss admitted that the pilot was to blame for the crash, it defended its safety record, saying it had always met all national and international safety requirements. Swiss said it was not sure why the "highly experienced" captain had dropped below the minimum height.

The carrier pointed out that since the accident it had introduced a new flight safety program covering recruitment, training, checks, workflow and procedures throughout its operations. The company has also taken the unusual measure of creating its own Flight Safety Advisory Board. All the recommendations made by the investigators had already been put into practice, the company said.

Swiss said it had paid compensation to the families of the victims but was still facing lawsuits in Switzerland, Germany and Israel.

The investigation into another Crossair plane crash, this time in January 2000 in which ten people died, has also identified pilot error as the cause of the accident.

FMI:  www.swiss.com