Avis Amur AN12 near Magadan on Aug 9th 2011, engine fire
Last Update: April 25, 2012 / 15:39:57 GMT/Zulu time
Incident Facts
Date of incident
Aug 9, 2011
Cause
Engine fire
Aircraft Type
Antonov An-12
ICAO Type Designator
AN12
following the inflight shut down of engine #1 (outboard left hand) and feathering of the #1 propeller the longitudinal (roll) control of the aircraft was lost due to load-bearing properties of the left wing and possible damage to the left hand aileron control wiring resulting in the aircraft's uncontrolled excessive roll to the left and subsequent impact with terrain.
The fire started in the tail section of the #1 engine nacelle and spread forward and onto the wing.
The fire was most likely fed by fuel leaking from a fuel line connection to the low pressure fuel pump at engine #1, the fuel most likely ignited due to contact with hot engine parts. Due to the disintegration of the aircraft and fire damage it was not possible to establish the location of fuel leaks and the cause with certainty.
The inability of the fire suppression system to extinguish such a fire in its early stages as well as the lack of checklists/guidelines in the aircraft's flight manual for fuel leaks inside the engine nacelle contributed to the delay of more than 2 minutes to shut the engine down.
The mountaineous terrain underneath the aircraft, low level overcast cloud and lack of time due to continued fire did not permit the crew to select a proper site for an emergency landing.
The aircraft departed Magadan with a fuel load of 8500kg/18700lbs and a takeoff weight of 61970kg/136500lbs (maximum takeoff weight 64000kg/140970lbs), the center of gravity was at 24.5% MAC all within limits.
The aircraft was enroute about 40 minutes into the flight at 7500 meters/FL246 when the crew requested and was approved to climb to 8100 meters/FL266. While climbing, about 3 minutes later, the crew requested a descent to 6600 meters/FL216, 50 seconds later they reported a fuel leak in engine #4 (the MAK annotated, in fact erroneously as they had shut down engine #1) and requested vectors back to Magadan. Another 80 seconds later the crew confirmed the engine had been feathered and were setting course to Magadan. The crew subsequently reported they had fuel for about 3 hours, requested emergency services to stand by at Magadan, advised they had a sustained engine fire and requested an emergency descent. The crew acknowledged to descend to 3000 meters/FL098, which proved to be their last transmission.
Search aircraft were unable to locate an ELT signal, although spurious ELT signal transmissions were picked up and were checked. A search helicopter finally located the wreckage about 27 hours after radio contact was lost at position N61.9927 E154.5366. The aircraft had impacted the slope of a mountain and had been destroyed by impact forces and fire, there were no survivors. The MAK stated: "As a result of the collision with a mountain slope and the subsequent explosion due to detonation of aviation fuel in the tanks, the aircraft was completely destroyed. On land there have been short-term local pockets of fire."
The crew comprised the captain (53, ATPL, 15,297 hours total, 6,263 hours on type) and a check captain (56, ATPL, 16,456 hours total, 8,272 hours as instructor on type), a first officer (34, ATPL, 3,939 hours total, 3,838 hours on type) and a flight engineer (54, 15,120 hours total, 4,813 hours on type).
Laboratory examination of the badly damaged remains of the cockpit voice recorder showed that the main tape was missing and the fragments present belonged to the backup/spare system leaving the investigation without onboard sound recordings.
The flight data recorder was also found badly damaged with one tape missing, in this case the backup tape was missing, the damaged tape proved the main tape that became readable after restoration work.
Autopsies of the bodies of occupants concluded that all occupants died instantly upon impact of the aircraft with the ground as result of impact forces causing deformation and damage to all organs of the bodies.
The MAK reported the work had been conducted on the fuel tanks in February 2011 as well as replacement of fuel hoses at both wings and fuselage.
The MAK analysed that the decision by the crew to return to Magadan was reasonable, although there was an aerodrome at Omsukchan about 45nm from their position. The aerodrome of Omsukchan was not suitable for the AN-12 however. Due to loss of controllability as result of fire damage to control rods the aircraft was unable to sustain flight despite attempts by the crew to retain control of the aircraft.
Incident Facts
Date of incident
Aug 9, 2011
Cause
Engine fire
Aircraft Type
Antonov An-12
ICAO Type Designator
AN12
This article is published under license from Avherald.com. © of text by Avherald.com.
Article source
You can read 2 more free articles without a subscription.
Subscribe now and continue reading without any limits!
Read unlimited articles and receive our daily update briefing. Gain better insights into what is happening in commercial aviation safety.
Send tip
Support AeroInside by sending a small tip amount.
Related articles
AeroInside Monthly Aviation Safety Review August 2024
August 2024 was a busy month in aviation safety. Please find our summary below.All in all, 99 new articles have been published during last month. Out…
Careers in Aviation: How Education Shapes Sky Professionals
Image by jcomp on Freepik Aren’t we all dreaming about an aviation career as children? To be honest, not really. Some of us have a fear of…
AeroInside Monthly Aviation Safety Review July 2024
July 2024 was a busy month in aviation safety. Please find our summary below.All in all, 94 new articles have been published during last month. Out…
Celebrities Who Rent Planes: Inside the Luxurious World of Private Aviation
For celebrities whose schedules are packed with events, appearances, and commitments worldwide, the ability to travel swiftly and comfortably is…
How to Become an Airline Pilot
Have you had a dream as a child? Almost all of us had dreams, but only some had enough courage and passion to follow their dreams in adulthood. One…
Newest articles
DAP DH8D at Puerto Williams on Sep 9th 2024, tail strike on landing
An Aerovias DAP de Havilland Dash 8-400, registration CC-DHT performing flight V5-420 from Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams (Chile), landed on Puerto…
Fleet type match
Scoot B789 near Guangzhou on Sep 7th 2024, turbulence injures 7
A Scoot Boeing 787-9, registration 9V-OJI performing flight TR-100 from Singapore (Singapore) to Guangzhou (China), was descending through FL200…
Subscribe today
Are you researching aviation incidents? Get access to AeroInside Insights, unlimited read access and receive the daily newsletter.
Pick your plan and subscribePartner
A new way to document and demonstrate airworthiness compliance and aircraft value. Find out more.
ELITE Simulation Solutions is a leading global provider of Flight Simulation Training Devices, IFR training software as well as flight controls and related services. Find out more.
Your regulation partner, specialists in aviation safety and compliance; providing training, auditing, and consultancy services. Find out more.
AeroInside Blog
Popular aircraft
Airbus A320Boeing 737-800
Boeing 737-800 MAX
Popular airlines
American AirlinesUnited
Delta
Air Canada
Lufthansa
British Airways