From the Cyprus Mail online edition of 9 April:
Why were organs destroyed in Helios probe?
By Elias Hazou
IN A MORBID twist to investigations into last August’s air disaster, Greek authorities are now puzzling over why and how organs belonging to the late co-pilot Pambos Charalambous – possibly vital clues to determining the cause of the accident – have vanished.
The heart condition of the doomed plane’s aviators became a subject of much controversy last September, when post-mortem findings showed severe infractions in the coronary arteries of both Charalambous and chief pilot Hans Juergen-Merten. That immediately rose questions as to whether the two men were fit to fly.
At the time, the findings – released by Greece’s chief coroner Philippos Koutsaftis – were angrily dismissed by Charalambous’ family back in Cyprus. Charalambous’ wife Sofia insisted her late husband was in good health and even engaged in hunting. She attributed the reports to a malicious effort by some quarters to exonerate the airline and shift attention to the pilots instead.
And Charalambous’ personal physician, a neuro-pathologist, had produced electrocardiograms (EKGs) indicating no health problems. However, other physicians commented that EKGs do not provide a clear picture of a person’s health, as they cannot detect constrictions in arteries.
And experts suggested the pilots may have passed out a lot quicker in the event of lack of oxygen, as happened on flight ZU 522.
To dispel the rumours, Charalambous asked through their lawyer for a second analysis of the heart. But according to Philelefheros, in late February Koutsaftis replied that this was not possible because the organ had in the meantime been “destroyed” by the examining scientist.
In a letter addressed to the lawyer, Koutsaftis informed the family that procedures dictated the destruction of organs within three months of their examination.
This apparently came as a shock to Charalambous’ relatives, who claim they had previously received assurances that the organs would be preserved until the end of the legal investigation or for a period of at least three years.
Moreover, looking at the dates, the family say the heart was destroyyed even before Koutsaftis had completed and submitted the report, and wonder why that is so.
Meanwhile in Athens senior public prosecutor Panayiotis Poulios is looking into the allegations. Poulios, regarded in legal circles as a “tough cookie”, is the supervisor of the police investigation into the causes of the August 14 crash.
He is also known for his involvement in the case of the 14 British and Dutch plane-spotters in Greece in 2001. A Greek court found the group guilty of illegally gathering state secrets.
Chief accident investigator Akrivos Tsolakis yesterday declined any comment on the press reports, saying he could only speak about his area of expertise, which did not include medical issues.
But he did confirm that Greek authorities were investigating the matter.
Tsolakis was speaking to the Mail shortly before departing from Cyprus. Though he could not say for certain whether or when he would be returning to the island, he guessed that would “probably not be necessary”.
He said the probe on the air crash was on track and should be wrapped up by early summer.
“We are proceeding very rapidly, and will have completed the investigation in little under a year – a record amount of time, considering that similar inquiries elsewhere usually take up to two years.”
The predominant theory on the plane crash is that a sequence of mishaps and oversights lead to gradual loss of cabin pressure, which caused hypoxemia, or reduced oxygen in the blood, rendering the crew unconscious.
Much has been said of the decompression switch, which was left on manual by ground crew during pre-flight checks, while it should have been set to automatic. The wrong configuration was not noticed by the pilots, partly because they were confused by an alarm that went off for another component that emitted the same sound as the warning for decompression.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2006