Adam Air Flight 172
Encyclopedia
Adam Air Flight 172 was a serious incident
involving a Boeing 737-300
, registered PK-KKV, flying on a scheduled domestic passenger flight
in Indonesia
between Jakarta
and Surabaya
. Officials stated the aircraft passed safety checks prior to its departure. On 21 February 2007, the plane bent on landing, with the fuselage
cracking in the middle of the passenger section. All six of Adam Air's remaining 737s were immediately grounded, but five of them were back in regular service later that year. This incident has caused further concerns regarding the safety of flights operated by Adam Air
, which has received much criticism after the 1 January 2007 crash of Flight 574
. The cause of the February 2007 incident is still under investigation.
ian operator Varig
. The aircraft was manufactured in 1994.
, with the fuselage cracking in the middle of the passenger section. It was reported that the landing itself was particularly hard
, with baggage being ejected from cabin lockers into the cabin space. The tail section of the plane was bent down compared to the rest of the plane. Subsequent flights to the airport were diverted to alternate airports. The investigation into the cause of this accident is continuing, with Adam Air's fleet of Boeing 737-300s grounded for safety inspections in the interim. Immediately after the incident, Adam Air repainted the aircraft, covering the original orange livery with a plain white exterior. This is legally permissible, so long as no evidence is destroyed. Also in the immediate aftermath, a large number of passengers cancelled their flights with Adam Air, saying they had "lost faith" in the airline. They were all refunded in full.
, Jusuf Kalla
, has said that all Boeing 737-300s should be checked. He eventually decided the entire Indonesian fleet of 737s should be checked, but did not ground any more aircraft. There were also suggestions that Adam Air should be suspended from all operations until the entire fleet could be checked, with MP Abdul Hakim saying "It will be good for the company and the government ... until the flight authorities can determine if Adam Air is still worthy as national aircraft company".
The Indonesian Transport Ministry has said that if the aircraft show signs of problems, the checks will be expanded to cover all 737s currently operating in Indonesia. On 5 March it was reported that five of the six aircraft have returned to normal operations, but the sixth is still undergoing a full maintenance overhaul at a maintenance, repair and overhaul firm GMF AeroAsia
facility. Adam Air had resumed a complete normal schedule by 9 March 2007.
center in Surabaya
in an attempt to determine the cause, and have also interviewed the pilot. Officials state the aircraft did pass safety checks prior to its departure. Boeing
has announced that they will also be providing technical assistance to both the authorities and the airline during the course of the investigation.
. Adam Air has reportedly bribed pilots to fly planes they knew were unsafe. Pilots have reported repeated and deliberate breaches of international safety regulations, and aircraft being flown in non-airworthy states for months at a time. They claim that there have been such incidents as requests to sign documents to allow an aircraft to fly, while not having the authority to, and while knowing the plane to be not airworthy, flying a plane for several months with a damaged door handle, swapping parts between aircraft to avoid mandatory replacement deadlines, being ordered to fly aircraft after exceeding the take-off limit of five times per pilot per day, flying an aircraft with a damaged window, using spare parts from other aircraft to keep planes in the air and ignorance of pilot's requests not to take off due to unsafe aircraft. The Associated Press
quotes one pilot as saying that "Every time you flew, you had to fight with the ground staff and the management about all the regulations you had to violate." They also claim that if pilots confronted their seniors in the airline, they were grounded or docked pay.
s according to their safety
record, with a level one ranking meaning the airline has no serious issues, a level two ranking meaning the airline must fix problems, and a level three rating forcing the airline to be shut down.
Aviation accidents and incidents
An aviation accident is defined in the Convention on International Civil Aviation Annex 13 as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft which takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and all such persons have disembarked, in which a...
involving a Boeing 737-300
Boeing 737 Classic
The Boeing 737 Classic is the name given to the -300/-400/-500 series of the Boeing 737 following the introduction of the -600/-700/-800/-900 series. They are short- to medium- range, narrow-body jet airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The Classic series was introduced as the 'new...
, registered PK-KKV, flying on a scheduled domestic passenger flight
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
between Jakarta
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
and Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
. Officials stated the aircraft passed safety checks prior to its departure. On 21 February 2007, the plane bent on landing, with the fuselage
Fuselage
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...
cracking in the middle of the passenger section. All six of Adam Air's remaining 737s were immediately grounded, but five of them were back in regular service later that year. This incident has caused further concerns regarding the safety of flights operated by Adam Air
Adam Air
Adam Air was a privately owned airline based in West Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia. It operated scheduled domestic services to over 20 cities and international services to Penang and Singapore...
, which has received much criticism after the 1 January 2007 crash of Flight 574
Adam Air Flight 574
Adam Air Flight 574 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by Adam Air between the Indonesian cities of Surabaya and Manado that disappeared near Polewali in Sulawesi on 1 January 2007. The plane, a Boeing 737-4Q8, was ultimately determined to have crashed into the ocean, from...
. The cause of the February 2007 incident is still under investigation.
Aircraft
The aircraft, a Boeing 737-33A, registration PK-KKV, was acquired by Adam Air (the 10th airline to own the plane) in early-December 2006, having previously been owned by BrazilBrazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian operator Varig
Varig
VARIG was the first airline founded in Brazil, in 1927. From 1965 until 1990 it was Brazil's leading and almost only international airline...
. The aircraft was manufactured in 1994.
Incident
The plane bent upon landing at Juanda International AirportJuanda International Airport
Juanda International Airport , is an airport located in Sidoarjo, a small town near Surabaya, East Java. This airport serves Surabaya and surrounding areas. Juanda International Airport is operated by PT Angkasa Pura I. The airport takes its name after Djuanda Kartawidjaja, the last Prime Minister...
, with the fuselage cracking in the middle of the passenger section. It was reported that the landing itself was particularly hard
Hard landing
In aviation a hard landing is an especially rapid or steep descent.Landing is the final phase in flight where the vehicle returns to the ground. A hard landing occurs when the vehicle impacts the ground with a greater vertical speed and force than in a normal landing. The average vertical speed in...
, with baggage being ejected from cabin lockers into the cabin space. The tail section of the plane was bent down compared to the rest of the plane. Subsequent flights to the airport were diverted to alternate airports. The investigation into the cause of this accident is continuing, with Adam Air's fleet of Boeing 737-300s grounded for safety inspections in the interim. Immediately after the incident, Adam Air repainted the aircraft, covering the original orange livery with a plain white exterior. This is legally permissible, so long as no evidence is destroyed. Also in the immediate aftermath, a large number of passengers cancelled their flights with Adam Air, saying they had "lost faith" in the airline. They were all refunded in full.
Grounding of Adam Air's 737s
As a result, all six remaining Adam Air 737s were immediately grounded awaiting safety checks. Adam Air described this as "harsh punishment" for an accident it blames on poor weather conditions causing a momentary loss of control, but the Vice President of IndonesiaVice President of Indonesia
The Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia is the first in the line of succession in the Republic of Indonesia.-History of the office:The Indonesian Vice Presidency was established during the formulation of the 1945 constitution by the Researching Body for the Preparation of the Indonesian...
, Jusuf Kalla
Jusuf Kalla
is an Indonesian politician who was the 10th Vice President of Indonesia from 2004 to 2009 and Chairman of the Golkar Party during the same period. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the 2009 presidential election.-Early life:...
, has said that all Boeing 737-300s should be checked. He eventually decided the entire Indonesian fleet of 737s should be checked, but did not ground any more aircraft. There were also suggestions that Adam Air should be suspended from all operations until the entire fleet could be checked, with MP Abdul Hakim saying "It will be good for the company and the government ... until the flight authorities can determine if Adam Air is still worthy as national aircraft company".
The Indonesian Transport Ministry has said that if the aircraft show signs of problems, the checks will be expanded to cover all 737s currently operating in Indonesia. On 5 March it was reported that five of the six aircraft have returned to normal operations, but the sixth is still undergoing a full maintenance overhaul at a maintenance, repair and overhaul firm GMF AeroAsia
GMF AeroAsia
GMF AeroAsia is an international company that employs 2,500 employees based in Jakarta, Indonesia. It services airplanes of many types and is one of the largest aircraft maintenance facility in Asia.-Before 2000 :...
facility. Adam Air had resumed a complete normal schedule by 9 March 2007.
Investigation
The incident is presently under investigation by the Indonesian National Transportation Safety Commission (INTSC). Investigators are currently compiling data from the Indonesian weather agency and from the air traffic controlAir traffic control
Air traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...
center in Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
in an attempt to determine the cause, and have also interviewed the pilot. Officials state the aircraft did pass safety checks prior to its departure. Boeing
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
has announced that they will also be providing technical assistance to both the authorities and the airline during the course of the investigation.
Maintenance concerns
The safety record of Adam Air has been heavily criticized, especially in the aftermath of Flight 574Adam Air Flight 574
Adam Air Flight 574 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by Adam Air between the Indonesian cities of Surabaya and Manado that disappeared near Polewali in Sulawesi on 1 January 2007. The plane, a Boeing 737-4Q8, was ultimately determined to have crashed into the ocean, from...
. Adam Air has reportedly bribed pilots to fly planes they knew were unsafe. Pilots have reported repeated and deliberate breaches of international safety regulations, and aircraft being flown in non-airworthy states for months at a time. They claim that there have been such incidents as requests to sign documents to allow an aircraft to fly, while not having the authority to, and while knowing the plane to be not airworthy, flying a plane for several months with a damaged door handle, swapping parts between aircraft to avoid mandatory replacement deadlines, being ordered to fly aircraft after exceeding the take-off limit of five times per pilot per day, flying an aircraft with a damaged window, using spare parts from other aircraft to keep planes in the air and ignorance of pilot's requests not to take off due to unsafe aircraft. The Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
quotes one pilot as saying that "Every time you flew, you had to fight with the ground staff and the management about all the regulations you had to violate." They also claim that if pilots confronted their seniors in the airline, they were grounded or docked pay.
Aftermath
Even though the accident remains under investigation, the Indonesian government announced plans immediately after the accident to ban jets over ten years of age for any commercial purpose. The age limit is currently 35 years or 70,000 landings. Although this is in response to a large number of aircraft accidents, it is mainly in response to this accident and the loss of Flight 574. Indonesia has also announced plans to reshuffle the Transportation Ministry in response to this incident, Flight 574 and the loss of the ferries and . Among those to be replaced are the directors of air and sea transports and the chairman of the National Committee for Transportation Safety. Indonesia also intends to introduce a new system of ranking airlineAirline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
s according to their safety
Air safety
Air safety is a term encompassing the theory, investigation and categorization of flight failures, and the prevention of such failures through regulation, education and training. It can also be applied in the context of campaigns that inform the public as to the safety of air travel.-United...
record, with a level one ranking meaning the airline has no serious issues, a level two ranking meaning the airline must fix problems, and a level three rating forcing the airline to be shut down.
See also
- Garuda Indonesia Flight 200Garuda Indonesia Flight 200Garuda Indonesia Flight 200 was the scheduled domestic passenger flight of a Boeing 737-497 operated by Garuda Indonesia between Jakarta and Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The aircraft crashed and burst into flames while landing at Adisucipto International Airport on March 7, 2007...
- Ground effect in aircraft
- List of notable accidents and incidents on commercial aircraft