The Phuket-tragedy

“Wind shear alert was down

Officials say system not crucial for landing”

I just read an article of the Bangkok Post reporters with above mentioned heading. (no comment)

“Systems to detect dangerous winds at Phuket international airport have emerged as a new factor possibility linked to the horrendous crash of the One-Two-Go flight on Sunday.

Wuttichai Singmanee, director of air safety at the Civil Aviation Department, said three of the six wind shear alert systems at the airport had problems.

“Three out of six low-level wind shear alert sustems were not working at the time,”Mr. Wuttichai said in a report by the AP.

An official at Phuket airport who declined to be named told the Bangkok Post that the system run by the Meteorological Department had not functioned for months.

The systems detect sudden strong winds, also known as wind shear, which could cause trouble for a plane landing at the airport.

Officials responsible for the system would normally alert air traffic controllers to warn pilots about the situation on the ground.

These systems are installed at all international airports in Thailand. They are located in areas around the airport.

With investigators still trying to determine the cause of the tragedy, it was unclear yesterday whether the accident, which left 89 people dead and 41 injured, was due to pilot error or weather conditions.

But Mr. Wuttichai said even though the wind shear detection system was not fully functional, this would not necessarily lead to an accident.

The airport at Phuket was also equipped with its own, separate wind detecting system and could inform incoming and outgoing planes of the situation the official said.

“The wind shear alert system is not a requirement for an international aviation standard,” he said.

A pilot of Thai Airways International (THAI), who asked not to be named, agreed with Mr. Wuttichai, saying the wind shear detection system was not crucial for landing or take-off.

Most passenger aircraft nowadays were equipped with their own wind detection equipment, which the pilot could refer to, he said.

Transport permanent secretary Chaisawat Kittipornpaiboon, who is heading the inquiry into the disaster, said wind shear had not been ruled out and it had been the cause of several major airline accidents.”……………..

………………”Khanit Promsathit, a THAI pilot, said Phuket airport is a difficult place to land especially at night or in bad weather.

Two critically injured passengers were yesterday flown to a hospital in Bangkok for intensive burn treatment”………………

Extract of an article in Bangkok Post – Thailand 19-7-2007
Collected by Antoni P. Uni