Air Transat Flight 961

Last updated
Air Transat Flight 961
Airbus A310-308, Air Transat JP317426.jpg
C-GPAT, the aircraft involved in 2004
Accident
DateMarch 6, 2005 (2005-03-06)
Summary Structural failure of the rudder in flight due to a stress fracture
Site Juan Gualberto Gomez Airport, Cuba
Aircraft
Aircraft type Airbus A310-308
Operator Air Transat
IATA flight No.TS961
ICAO flight No.TSC961
Call signTRANSAT 961
Registration C-GPAT [1]
Flight origin Juan Gualberto Gomez Airport, Varadero, Cuba
Destination Jean Lesage Airport, Quebec, Quebec, Canada
Occupants271
Passengers262
Crew9
Fatalities0
Injuries2
Survivors271

Air Transat Flight 961 was an Air Transat flight from Varadero, Cuba to Quebec City, Canada on March 6, 2005. The aircraft experienced a structural failure in which the rudder detached in flight. The flight crew were able to regain enough control of the aircraft to return safely to Varadero. As of March 2020, the Airbus A310-308 is no longer in service. [2] [3]

Contents

The investigation that followed determined that the manufacturer's inspection procedure for the composite rudder was not adequate. [4] Inspection procedures for composite structures on airliners were changed because of this accident.

Event

The tail of Air Transat Flight 961 Air Transat Flight 961 Tail.png
The tail of Air Transat Flight 961

Flight 961 was a routine scheduled commercial flight carrying 262 passengers and 9 crew from Varadero, Cuba to Quebec City on March 6, 2005. At 2:48 am EST, flight 961 took off from Cuba. The flight climbed to its initial cruising altitude of 35,000 feet (11,000 m) and the flight attendants began the inflight service. Then, suddenly, at 3:02 am, the aircraft began a dutch roll after a bang shuddered the aircraft violently. The plane climbed until the crew overcame the aircraft upset by descending. The crew attempted to divert to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport but Air Transat operations told the crew that returning to Varadero would be the more prudent option. There were no warnings on the flightdeck indicating a rudder problem or a yaw damper problem. The plane landed safely at 4:19 am. Upon parking at the gate, the crew did another walk around inspection to narrow down the cause of the accident. The inspection revealed that the entire rudder had broken away from the vertical stabilizer of the aircraft. [4]

Cause

Although most of the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were erased due to the long span of time in which the accident occurred, there were several findings as to the cause of the accident. The aircraft probably had a stress fracture in the tail that went unnoticed for several flights prior to the accident flight and the A310 does not have a mechanism in the tail that suspends the growth of the fracture(s). [4]

The Transportation Safety Board found that inspection program of composite rudders was inadequate. [5] In particular, the durability of the rudder was questioned. Air Transat Flight 961 provided new insights into rudder problems on Airbus A300-600, Airbus A300-600R, and Airbus A310 aircraft. [6]

Aftermath

The aircraft was repaired and operated until its ultimate retirement. The accident aircraft, fin number 303, is currently retired by Air Transat. The dated aircraft was replaced by the airline with the more modern and efficient Airbus A321neo. All Airbus A310 aircraft were retired from Air Transat as of March 31, 2020.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A300</span> Worlds first twin-engine widebody jet airliner

The Airbus A300 is Airbus's first production aircraft and the world's first twin-engine, double-aisle wide-body airliner, developed and manufactured by Airbus from 1971 to 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Airlines Flight 587</span> November 2001 aviation accident in New York, US

American Airlines Flight 587 was a regularly scheduled international passenger flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City to Las Américas International Airport, Santo Domingo. On November 12, 2001, the Airbus A300B4-605R flying the route crashed into the neighborhood of Belle Harbor on the Rockaway Peninsula of Queens, New York City, shortly after takeoff, killing all 260 people aboard, as well as 5 people on the ground. It is the second-deadliest aviation accident in U.S. history, behind the crash of American Airlines Flight 191 in 1979, and the second-deadliest aviation incident involving an Airbus A300, after Iran Air Flight 655.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airbus A310</span> Short-fuselage derivative of the Airbus A300 airliner

The Airbus A310 is a wide-body aircraft, designed and manufactured by Airbus Industrie, then a consortium of European aerospace manufacturers. Airbus had identified a demand for an aircraft smaller than the A300, the first twin-jet wide-body. On 7 July 1978, the A310 was launched with orders from Swissair and Lufthansa. On 3 April 1982, the first prototype conducted its maiden flight, and the A310 received its type certificate on 11 March 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Transat</span> Airline in Canada

Air Transat is a Canadian airline based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1986, it operates scheduled and charter flights serving 60 destinations in 25 countries. Air Transat is owned and operated by Transat A.T. Inc., with 37 aircraft registered with Transport Canada as of September 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pratt & Whitney PW4000</span> High-bypass turbofan aircraft engine

The Pratt & Whitney PW4000 is a family of dual-spool, axial-flow, high-bypass turbofan aircraft engines produced by Pratt & Whitney as the successor to the JT9D. It was first run in April 1984, was FAA certified in July 1986, and was introduced in June 1987. With thrust ranging from 50,000 to 99,040 lbf, it is used on many wide-body aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutch roll</span> Aircraft motion combining rolling and yawing

Dutch roll is an aircraft motion consisting of an out-of-phase combination of "tail-wagging" (yaw) and rocking from side to side (roll). This yaw-roll coupling is one of the basic flight dynamic modes. This motion is normally well damped in most light aircraft, though some aircraft with well-damped Dutch roll modes can experience a degradation in damping as airspeed decreases and altitude increases. Dutch roll stability can be artificially increased by the installation of a yaw damper. Wings placed well above the center of gravity, swept wings, and dihedral wings tend to increase the roll restoring force, and therefore increase the Dutch roll tendencies; this is why high-winged aircraft often are slightly anhedral, and transport-category swept-wing aircraft are equipped with yaw dampers. A similar phenomenon can happen in a trailer pulled by a car.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Transat Flight 236</span> 2001 aircraft emergency incident

Air Transat Flight 236 was a transatlantic flight bound for Lisbon, Portugal, from Toronto, Canada, that lost all engine power while flying over the Atlantic Ocean on August 24, 2001. The Airbus A330 ran out of fuel because of a fuel leak caused by improper maintenance. Captain Robert Piché, 48, an experienced glider pilot, and First Officer Dirk DeJager, 28, glided the plane to a successful emergency landing in the Azores, saving all 306 people on board. Most of the passengers on the flight were Canadians visiting Europe or Portuguese expatriates returning to visit family in Portugal. This was also the longest passenger aircraft glide without engines, gliding for nearly 75 miles. Following this unusual aviation accident, this aircraft was nicknamed the "Azores Glider".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">China Airlines Flight 676</span> 1998 airplane landing crash in present-day Taoyuan City, Taiwan

China Airlines Flight 676 was a scheduled international passenger flight. On Monday, 16 February 1998, the Airbus A300 jet airliner operating the flight crashed into a road and residential area in Tayuan, Taoyuan County, near Chiang Kai-shek International Airport, Taiwan.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TMA Cargo</span> Inactive cargo airline in Lebanon

Trans Mediterranean Airways SAL, styled as TMA Cargo, was a cargo airline based in Beirut, Lebanon. The airline restarted operations in 2010, following a six-year hiatus. It suspended operations once again in September 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">China Airlines Flight 140</span> April 1994 aviation accident in Nagoya, Japan

China Airlines Flight 140 was a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Chiang Kai-shek International Airport to Nagoya Airport in Nagoya, Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAROM Flight 371</span> 1995 passenger plane crash in Balotești, România

TAROM Flight 371 was a scheduled international passenger flight, with an Airbus A310 from Otopeni International Airport in Romania's capital Bucharest to Brussels Airport in Brussels, Belgium. The flight was operated by TAROM, the flag carrier of Romania. On 31 March 1995, the Airbus A310-324, registered as YR-LCC, entered a nose-down dive after takeoff and crashed near Balotești in Romania, killing all 60 people on board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aeroflot Flight 593</span> 1994 passenger plane crash in Mezhdurechensk, Russia

Aeroflot Flight 593 was a passenger flight from Sheremetyevo International Airport, Moscow, Russia, to Kai Tak Airport in Hong Kong. On 23 March 1994, the aircraft operating the route, an Airbus A310-304 flown by Aeroflot, crashed into the Kuznetsk Alatau mountain range in Kemerovo Oblast, killing all sixty-three passengers and twelve crew members on board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juan Gualberto Gómez Airport</span> Airport in Matanzas Province, Cuba

Juan Gualberto Gómez Airport, formerly known as Varadero Airport, is an international airport serving Varadero, Cuba, and the province of Matanzas. The airport is located 5 km from the village of Carbonera, closer to the city of Matanzas than to Varadero. The closest airport to Varadero is Kawama Airport. In 2009, the airport handled 1.28 million passengers, making it the second busiest airport in Cuba after José Martí International Airport in Havana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S7 Airlines Flight 778</span> 2006 aviation accident

S7 Airlines Flight 778(S7778/SBI778) was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Moscow to Irkutsk, Russia. On 9 July 2006, at 06:44 local time, the Airbus A310-324 aircraft operating the route overran the runway during its landing in Irkutsk. The aircraft failed to stop and crashed through the airport's concrete perimeter fence, struck rows of private garages and burst into flames, killing 125 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garuda Indonesia Flight 152</span> Aviation accident in Sibolangit, Indonesia, killing 234

Garuda Indonesia Flight 152 (GA152/GIA152) was a scheduled domestic flight operated by Garuda Indonesia from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, to Polonia International Airport, Medan, in Indonesia. On 26 September 1997, the aircraft flying the route crashed into mountainous woodlands near the village of Buah Nabar, Sibolangit, killing all 222 passengers and 12 crew members on board. It is the deadliest aviation disaster in Indonesia's history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thai Airways International Flight 261</span> Fatal airliner crash in 1998

Thai Airways International Flight 261 (TG261/THA261) was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Bangkok's Don Mueang International Airport to Surat Thani International Airport in Surat Thani, Thailand. The flight was operated by Thai Airways International, the flag carrier of Thailand. On 11 December 1998, the aircraft, an Airbus A310-204 registered in Thailand as HS-TIA, stalled and crashed into a swamp during its landing attempt at Surat Thani Airport. A total of 101 people were killed in the crash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yemenia Flight 626</span> 2009 aviation accident near Comoros

Yemenia Flight 626 was an Airbus A310-324 twin-engine jet airliner operated by Yemenia that was flying a scheduled international service, from Sana'a in Yemen to Moroni in Comoros, when it crashed on 30 June 2009 at around 1:50 am local time while on approach to Prince Said Ibrahim International Airport, killing all but one of the 153 passengers and crew on board. The sole survivor, 12-year-old girl Bahia Bakari, was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for thirteen hours. Bakari was discharged from the hospital on 23 July 2009.

Throughout a normal flight, a pilot controls an aircraft through the use of flight controls including maintaining straight and level flight, as well as turns, climbing, and descending. Some controls, such as a "yoke" or "stick" move and adjust the control surfaces which affects the aircraft's attitude in the three axes of pitch, roll, and yaw. Other controls include those for adjusting wing characteristics and those that control the power or thrust of the propulsion systems. The loss of primary control systems in any phase of flight is an emergency. Aircraft are not designed to be flown under such circumstances; however, some pilots faced with such an emergency have had limited success flying and landing aircraft with disabled controls.

A rudder travel limiter, or rudder limiter, is a controlling device in an aircraft used to mechanically limit the maximum rudder deflection.

References

  1. "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register (C-GPAT)". Transport Canada.
  2. "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Aircraft History Details". Transport Canada. 2009-11-18. Retrieved 2017-01-17.
  3. "Flight Activity History (C-GPAT)". FlightAware.com. 2017-01-17. Retrieved 2017-01-17.
  4. 1 2 3 "Aviation Investigation Report A05F0047, Loss of Rudder in Flight, Air Transat Airbus A310-308 C-GPAT, Miami, Florida, 90 nm S, 06 March 2005" (PDF). Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB). 2007-11-22. A05F0047. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
  5. "Airbus inspection program inadequate at time of incident: Board". Toronto Star . November 23, 2007.
  6. "A310 Loses Rudder, Prompts Fleetwide Inspections, Inquiry". Aviation Today. March 21, 2005. Archived from the original on August 13, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2016.