Buddha Air Crash Nepal

[BUSHJEPPY]

yeah yeah, there was tense fog when it hit the hill, how can you have a witness seing it coming down on fire

Read this blog:

East West | Travel Blog by Kunda Dixit | Nepali Times | nepalitimes.com » Blog Archive » Once is not enough?

[westhawk]

Thank you for the link BUSHJEPPY.

I found the article "Once is not enough?" to be most interesting. I'm favorably impressed with Mr. Dixit's article and look forward to reading more of his work. I have bookmarked the Nepali Times for future reference and will refer to it for matters of interest to me in Nepal. Thanks again.

[sunday driver]

Sister aircraft

FYI, 3 pics from 2004

033_33 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

[Swiss Cheese]

If the Beech was GPWS equipped?

Since the GPWS is the last line of defence in CFIT circumstances, is anyone willing to hazard whether it did work as designed?

Also of note with these Operations, (like Agni Air last year), is that they only buy $20,000 per passenger insurance. They forget to tell you that beforehand...

[The Ancient Geek]

In mountainous terrain like Nepal GPWS is going to produce far too many nuisance alerts to be of much use for typical local flights.

[safetypee]

TAG, if you look at the details of Enhanced GPWS (ICAO mandate), then with sufficient database coverage the system should work very well.
A quick check of the Honeywell system suggests that all of Nepal, and specifically Kathmandu are in the latest database updates.

[aterpster]

Greek:

In mountainous terrain like Nepal GPWS is going to produce far too many nuisance alerts to be of much use for typical local flights.

Not if the TAWS database is refined for airport-vicinity ops and particularly with a good synthetic vision display that is integrated with the TAWS.

[fdr]

"certified"

For about $2,000 you can fit a synthetic vision-look ahead multi function display, but of course at that price it isn't certified. Would it save your life? yep, as would a $600 Garmin aera. Again, great for VFR...

Perhaps where safety is enhanced by the use of these items, then their uptake should be supported by the regulators, not roadblocked.

(I use the Aera in a Navajo, C-337 and helicopter for terrain awareness, as an "adjunct & non interference" to the standard 6 pack/ Garmin 430 etc... )

[ATC Watcher]

Again, great for VFR...

All sighsteeing flights in Nepal are operated VFR. This one included.
True, the latest Garmin 796 gadget (*) at 2500 USD would have been enough in this case here if desorientation and going into IMC was the real reason.

(*) but you cannot get it before December at least , such is the demand )

[rigpiggy]

I don't see an EGPWS in the panel there, have they put in a sandel 3400? or equivalent

[himalaya]

Keep it simple: If VFR follow the rule.

Technology is a tool which must be used as and when necessary. However, no matter how advanced technology is, it will not be able to prevent accidents from happening. Those who can prevent accidents are the humans. I would look at the crew, ATC and the safety culture in the airline and in the Aviation community as a whole. Investigation report, when it is out would probably determine the probable causes and the contributing factors. But there are few simple steps that can be taken to avoid such accidents from taking place in the future.

1. Improving the safety culture of the airline and the Aviation community to make them realize that 'safety' is the main goal of a flight not profit.
2. Whether VFR or IFR, following the applicable flight rules religiously.

Kathmandu is one airport where aircraft have crashed in the hills/mountains surrounding the valley in all 4 directions. Three of the accidents (under VFR) were of similar nature; Necon Air (HS-748) on the west, Skyline (DHC-6) on the south and the recent Buddha Air (BE-1900D) on the south east.

[The Ancient Geek]

Nepal is not an easy place to fly, there is simply too much geography and too much weather for the normal rules to be 100% reliable.

Nepal is a very demanding place to fly, precision navigation is essential and the slightest mistake can be fatal.

There are no easy answers.

[aterpster]

The Ancient Greek:

Nepal is not an easy place to fly, there is simply too much geography and too much weather for the normal rules to be 100% reliable.

Nepal is a very demanding place to fly, precision navigation is essential and the slightest mistake can be fatal.

There are no easy answers.

Some mountainous areas are just plain high risk, especially where there are the weather factors such as those that exist in Nepal.

Related to this is that some "experts" saw RNP AR in high-end birds as a panacea for mountainous terrain airports. Not so; there still has to be a reasonable terrain environment to make it all fit.