Turkish Airlines Flight 278
Encyclopedia
Turkish Airlines
Flight 278, operated by a Boeing 737-4Y0
registered TC-JES and named Mersin, was a domestic scheduled flight from Ankara Esenboğa Airport
to Van Ferit Melen Airport
in eastern Turkey
that crashed on 29 December 1994 during its final approach
to land in driving snow. Five of the seven crew and 52 of the 69 passengers lost their lives, two crew members and 17 passengers survived with heavy injuries.
(13:30 UTC
), TK278 struck a hill near Edremit district of Van Province
at 5700 ft (1,737.4 m) AMSL
around 4 km (2.2 nmi) from Van Airport while on a third VOR
-DME
approach to the Runway 03 in bad weather despite a warning from air traffic control
not to attempt any more approach in a snowstorm. The visibility was 900 m (2,952.8 ft) reducing to 300 m (984.3 ft) in heavy driving snow.
It was the worst aviation accident involving a Boeing 737-400 at that time. It was subsequently surpassed by Adam Air Flight 574
which crashed on January 1, 2007 with 102 fatalities, and fourth worst aircraft accident in Turkey at that time.
with two CFMI CFM56-3C1 jet engine
s, was built by Boeing
with manufacturer serial number 26074/2376,
and made its first flight on September 25, 1992.
Turkish Airlines
Turkish Airlines is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey, headquartered in the Turkish Airlines General Management Building on the grounds of Atatürk Airport in Yeşilköy, Bakirköy district, Istanbul...
Flight 278, operated by a Boeing 737-4Y0
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
registered TC-JES and named Mersin, was a domestic scheduled flight from Ankara Esenboğa Airport
Esenboga International Airport
Esenboğa International Airport , is an airport located northeast of Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. It has been operating since 1955. The name of the airport comes from the village of Esenboğa , which literally means "flying bull"....
to Van Ferit Melen Airport
Van Ferit Melen Airport
Van Ferit Melen Airport is an airport in Van, the city in eastern region of Turkey. It is named after the Turkish politician and former prime minister Ferit Melen .-Airlines and destinations:- Traffic Statistics :Source: DHMI.gov.tr...
in eastern Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
that crashed on 29 December 1994 during its final approach
Final approach (aviation)
A final approach is the last leg in an aircraft's approach to landing. In aviation radio terminology, it is often shortened to "final".In a standard airport landing pattern, which is usually used under visual meteorological conditions , aircraft turn from base leg to final within one to two miles...
to land in driving snow. Five of the seven crew and 52 of the 69 passengers lost their lives, two crew members and 17 passengers survived with heavy injuries.
Crash
At 15:30 EETEastern European Time
Eastern European Time is one of the names of UTC+02:00 time zone, 2 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. It is used in some European countries that also use Eastern European Summer Time as a summer daylight saving time.- Usage :...
(13:30 UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
), TK278 struck a hill near Edremit district of Van Province
Van Province
Van Province is a province in eastern Turkey, between Lake Van and the Iranian border. It is 19,069 km2 in area and had a population of 1,035,418 at the end of 2010....
at 5700 ft (1,737.4 m) AMSL
Above mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
around 4 km (2.2 nmi) from Van Airport while on a third VOR
VHF omnidirectional range
VOR, short for VHF omnidirectional radio range, is a type of radio navigation system for aircraft. A VOR ground station broadcasts a VHF radio composite signal including the station's identifier, voice , and navigation signal. The identifier is typically a two- or three-letter string in Morse code...
-DME
Distance Measuring Equipment
Distance measuring equipment is a transponder-based radio navigation technology that measures distance by timing the propagation delay of VHF or UHF radio signals....
approach to the Runway 03 in bad weather despite a warning from air traffic control
Air 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...
not to attempt any more approach in a snowstorm. The visibility was 900 m (2,952.8 ft) reducing to 300 m (984.3 ft) in heavy driving snow.
It was the worst aviation accident involving a Boeing 737-400 at that time. It was subsequently surpassed by Adam Air 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...
which crashed on January 1, 2007 with 102 fatalities, and fourth worst aircraft accident in Turkey at that time.
Crew and passengers
The aircraft had a crew of 7 and 69 passengers including two babies. Two of the crew and 17 passengers survived the crash with serious injuries.Aircraft
The aircraft, a Boeing 737-4Y0Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
with two CFMI CFM56-3C1 jet engine
Jet engine
A jet engine is a reaction engine that discharges a fast moving jet to generate thrust by jet propulsion and in accordance with Newton's laws of motion. This broad definition of jet engines includes turbojets, turbofans, rockets, ramjets, pulse jets...
s, was built by 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...
with manufacturer serial number 26074/2376,
and made its first flight on September 25, 1992.