On 11 March 2018, a Bombardier Challenger 604 private jet, owned by Turkish group Başaran Holding, crashed in the Zagros Mountains near Shahr-e Kord, Iran, while returning to Istanbul from Sharjah. All three crew members and eight passengers on board were killed.[1][2][3]
.jpg) TC-TRB, the aircraft involved, photographed in February 2016 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 11 March 2018 |
| Summary | Loss of control in cruise |
| Site | Zagros Mountains, near Shahr-e Kord, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, Iran |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Bombardier Challenger 604 |
| Operator | Başaran Holding |
| Registration | TC-TRB |
| Flight origin | Sharjah International Airport, United Arab Emirates |
| Destination | Istanbul Atatürk Airport, Turkey |
| Occupants | 11 |
| Passengers | 8 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 11 |
| Survivors | 0 |
History
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The aircraft, registered TC-TRB, departed from Sharjah International Airport, United Arab Emirates, at around 17:11 local time (13:11 UTC), bound for Istanbul Atatürk Airport. The flight crew consisted of two pilots and a cabin attendant. The captain, 36-year-old Beril Gebeş, had flown for Turkish Airlines in the past, while the First Officer, 40-year-old Melike Kuvvet, had a military aviation background, and had been one of the first female pilots in the Turkish armed forces.[4][5]
The aircraft reached a cruising altitude of just over 35,000 ft (11,000 m).[2] At around 18:01 IRST local time (14:31 UTC), shortly before contact was lost, the crew reported technical problems and requested clearance from air traffic control to descend to a lower altitude.[4][6] The jet began to climb before abruptly losing altitude, and at 18:09,[7] hit the Zagros Mountains near Shahre Kord, some 370 km (230 mi) south of Tehran, Iran.[6] All eleven occupants were killed.[2][4][6] One witness reportedly saw the aircraft on fire before the crash.[7]
Victims
editThe jet was carrying a group of eight friends returning from a bachelorette party in Dubai. Among them was Mina Başaran, daughter of the head of Başaran Holding, Hüseyin Başaran, and member of the company's board of directors.[4][6]
Recovery operations
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Local villagers saw a plume of smoke rising from the wreckage, and were the first to arrive at the scene.[6] Iranian search-and-rescue teams arrived afterwards and found the burned bodies of ten victims. Bad weather conditions at the crash site made the operation difficult. One victim has yet to be found.[8] The recovered bodies were transported to Tehran by helicopter. Turkey then sent emergency personnel via a military jet for assistance.[6] Identification of the bodies required DNA testing.[4]
After identification by the Iranian authorities, the bodies of ten victims were flown to Istanbul by the Turkish military and then handed over to the victims' families. Iranian Legal Medicine Organization stated that the remains of the captain were not among the recovered bodies in the eleven body bags from the wreckage.[9]
Investigation
editThe aircraft's two flight recorders (the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder) were recovered for analysis.[6][10]
In September 2018, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board of the Iranian civil aviation authority published a preliminary report indicating that, shortly before reaching cruise altitude, a discrepancy between the airspeed indications shown to the two pilots became apparent, with one indicating an overspeed condition. Engine power was reduced, and shortly after the stick-shaker activated. The aircraft subsequently stalled and entered a steep descent during which both engines flamed out. Control was not regained and the aircraft eventually struck a mountainside.[11] In March 2020, the AAIB issued its final report, concluding that the accident was caused by insufficient training for airspeed indication failure and poor crew resource management.[12]
References
edit- ^ "Who was Mina Basaran, the Turkish bride whose Sharjah-Istanbul plane crashed?". The National. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
- ^ a b c "Private jet flying from UAE to Turkey crashes in Iran, killing 11". CBS News. 2018-03-11. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
- ^ "Canadair Challenger Statistics". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
- ^ a b c d e Erdbrink, Thomas (2018-03-11). "Turkish Plane Crashes in Iran, Killing Heiress and 7 Friends". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
- ^ "Başaran Holding'e ait özel uçak düştü: 11 kişiden kurtulan olmadı" [Private plane belonging to Başaran Holding crashed: 11 people did not survive]. BBC Türkçe (in Turkish). 11 March 2018. Archived from the original on 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Bodies of all 11 women recovered from private Turkish jet crash in Iran". Hürriyet Daily News. 2018-03-11. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
- ^ a b "Caixa-preta de avião turco que caiu com noiva e amigas no Irã é recuperada" [Black box of Turkish plane that crashed with fiancee and friends in Iran recovered]. Globo.com G1 (in Portuguese). 12 March 2018. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
- ^ "Body of one jet crash victim claimed to be missing in Iran". Hürriyet Daily News. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ^ "Bodies of women killed in plane crash in Iran returned". Daily Sabah. Retrieved 2018-03-15.
- ^ "Sharjah-Istanbul plane crash crew named as black box recovered in Iran". Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ^ Preliminary Report on Aircraft Accident Challenger 604, TC-TRB (PDF) (Report). Islamic Republic of Iran Civil Aviation Organization − Aircraft Accident Investigation Board. 30 September 2018. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
- ^ Final Report on Aircraft Accident Challenger 604, TC-TRB (PDF) (Report). Islamic Republic of Iran Civil Aviation Organization − Aircraft Accident Investigation Board. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2021.