Indian Airlines Flight 503

Indian Airlines Flight 503

A Dornier 228 similar to the one involved in the accident
Occurrence
Date	30 July 1998 (1998-07-30)
Summary	Uncommanded pitch-up and stall due to horizontal stabiliser failure caused by improper maintenance
Site	Near Kochi, Kerala, India
Total fatalities	9
Total injuries	6 (on ground)
Aircraft
Aircraft type	HAL Dornier 228
Operator	Indian Airlines
IATA flight No.	IC503
ICAO flight No.	IAC503
Call sign	INDAIR 503
Registration	VT-EJW
Flight origin	Agatti Airport, Agatti, Lakshadweep
Stopover	Willingdon Island Airport, Kochi, Kerala
Destination	Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
Passengers	3
Crew	3
Fatalities	6
Survivors	0
Ground casualties
Ground fatalities	3
Ground injuries	6

Indian Airlines Flight 503 was a scheduled flight operated by Indian Airlines between Agatti and Thiruvananthapuram, with a stopover in Kochi. On 30 July 1998, the Dornier 228 aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Kochi killing all six people onboard and three people on the ground. ^[1]

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a 13-year-old Dornier 228, manufactured in 1986 by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on licence from Dornier, registered as VT-EJW. The aircraft had previously operated for Vayudoot, however was transferred to Indian Airlines in 1993 to operate the Agatti-Kochi-Thiruvananthapuram route. It had an airworthiness certificate valid until 1999. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Flight information

The flight originated in Agatti, Lakshadweep and was headed for Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala after a stopover at Kochi as Indian Airlines flight 503. ^[3] Kochi had a naval airport where the Airports Authority of India operated a civil enclave. ^[5]

The flight was commanded by Captain Shiv Raj Singh with Captain Manish Sharma as co-pilot. The captain had 5,000 hours of flight time on the Dornier while the co-pilot had over 2,000 hours. The only other crew member on board the aircraft was the flight purser, Sajid. There were only three passengers on board the sixteen-seater aircraft, none of whom survived. Three people on the ground were also killed, while six others suffered injuries. ^[2] The passengers, crew and victims on the ground were all admitted to INHS Sanjivani for treatment. ^[3]

The aircraft took off from runway 17 of the airport at 11:04am local time. After reaching about 400 feet (122 metres) in its initial climb, it pitched up steeply and entered a stall before banking right, entering an uncontrolled descent and crashing into a workshop building near the naval hangar. ^{[6] [7]} The aircraft burst into flames on impact and was destroyed. ^[8] Crash tenders responded swiftly and four of the victims, alive but critically injured, were moved to a hospital within 15 minutes of the crash. ^[2]

Investigation

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation ordered an investigation into the accident and a three-member Committee of Inquiry headed by Air Marshal P. Raj Kumar was constituted under the Aircraft Rules, 1937. ^[9] The Committee in its report made 49 findings and 7 recommendations and stated that "poor aircraft maintenance practices at Short Haul Operations Department had contributed to the accident". ^[10] It found that the aircraft had pitched up uncontrollably after takeoff and that this was the result of a "sudden uncommanded downward movement of the Trimmable Horizontal Stabilizer leading edge. This was due to partial detachment of its actuator forward bearing support fitting due to non-installation of required hi-lok fasteners." ^{[11] [12]} Consequently, the aircraft "stalled, fell to its right and crashed." ^[12]

Indian Airlines paid ₹76.87 lakh (7,687,000, roughly US$195,000) as compensation to the victims and received ₹5 crore (50,000,000, US$1.27 million) from its insurers towards loss of the aircraft. ^[13]

References

1. "Chronology of Air crashes in India". Hindustan Times. 21 May 2003. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
2. STATEMENT BY MINISTER Accident of an Indian Airlines Dornier Aircraft at Kochi on 30th July, 1998 (PDF). New Delhi: Rajya Sabha, Parliament of India. 3 August 1998. pp. 132–151. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
3. "Rediff On The NeT: Nine killed as IA plane crashes into naval workshop". m.rediff.com. 30 July 1998. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
4. "Dornier Do228 production list". rzjets.net. Archived from the original on 4 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
5. "Lok Sabha Debates: Made a statement regarding the accident of Indian Airlines Dornier Aircraft at Cochin on 30 July, 1998". Indian Kanoon. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
6. "Major air crashes in India in two decades". The New Indian Express. 22 May 2010. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
7. Belcastro, Christine; Newman, Richard. "Aircraft Loss of Control: Problem Analysis for the Development and Validation of Technology Solutions" (PDF). NASA Technical Reports Server. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 December 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
8. "DORNIER 228, VT-EJW, KOCHI AERODROME, INDIA, 30-JUL-1998". www.fire.tc.faa.gov. CSRTG Aircraft Accident Database. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
9. "Report of the Committee of Inquiry investigating the accident involving Indian Airlines Dornier aircraft VTEJW at Kochi on 30th July, 1998". www.dgca.gov.in. Directorate General of Civil Aviation. 14 November 1998. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
10. "FINDINGS OF THE COMMITTEE ON DORNIER AIRCRAFT CRASH". archive.pib.gov.in. Press Information Bureau. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
11. "UNSTARRED QUESTION NO:5087" (PDF). Lok Sabha, Parliament of India. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
12. "CIVIL AVIATION AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT SUMMARY FOR THE YEAR 1998". Directorate General of Civil Aviation. Archived from the original on 5 December 2022. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
13. "UNSTARRED QUESTION NO:4329" (PDF). Lok Sabha, Parliament of India. Retrieved 3 June 2023.