Plane crash reported off Ivory Coast
 

Heard off BBC, Aircraft crashes into sea off Ivory Coast shortly after taking off from Abidjan in a storm

Antonov An-26 crashed off Ivory coast shortly after takeoff

http://www.airlive.net/wp-content/up...2e094422_1.jpg

AVHerald

https://preview.ibb.co/hN3ziw/IMG_0268.jpg

More here,

https://www.timesofmalta.com/article...y-coast.660377

Further pics and survivors being treated on the beach..

Crash d'un avion cargo militaire dans la mer en Côte-d'Ivoire | La Provence

From the Pics it looks like number 2 was still developing power, the forward bent props are consistent with a water impact whilst power is being developed, how much is the question....

It would appear to be Moldovian registered An-26, ER-AVB, of VALAN International Cargo.

I see they used 21 with a slight tailwind which should be fine (although there is some TS reported) but I remember from my flights in that part of Africa (in the distant past) that there is usually also a low level inversion with associated shear. Any locals to comment?

Aircraft was not taking off. Later reports confirm it was trying to land in bad weather and landed short of the runway, in the Ocean, killing half of those on board.

Over run after aborted takeoff. Some reports say landing short of the runway so some confusion - time will clarify.
Ancient Russian type operated in Africa by a "lowest bidder" freight charter operator - no surprises here. This sort of thing happens regularly in Africa where nobody learns from history.
Gross overloading and probable vodka involvement would by par for the course for these operations but we have no evidence yet so innocent until proven guilty. As usual we will probably never see a proper accident investigation report.

Avherald report landing short for 03 after a flight from Burkina Faso.Weather apparently poor with thunderstorms.

It astonishes me that the French government would be using sketchy Eastern European cargo operators for moving their military equipment and personnel around. I have friends that have flown extensively in Africa. The number of Antonovs littering the landscape is huge.

It’s not unusual for the cargo to go on the cheapest fly by night operator, whilst personnel go by a different, fully audited western standard company.

There are many contract companies around operating to the book which pass regular inspections from competent civil aviation authorities and independent auditors, they just happen to be a lot more expensive.

The UN is one of the worst factors, any UN funded operations MUST go to the lowest bidder.
There is nothing wrong with Antonovs, they are excellent aircraft, built like a brick khazi and very safe but any aircraft in the hands of cowboy operators will rapidly turn into a can of worms.

That's not correct. UN procurement guidelines stipulate best value for money and the guidance specifically states that does not mean the lowest initial cost. Before you post information like that you really should make sure you know what you are talking about.

There's plenty of US military equipment and personnel gets lifted around Africa and the Middle East in E European /ex Sov aircraft and helicopters. Antonovs, Ilyushin and MIL make aircraft that are solid, easily maintained, cheap, robust, widely available and discreet. All useful qualities in both aid and military support ops.

As for this whole 'vodka swilling Russian pilot' trope that seems so popular here - (a) most of the Russian, Ukrainian, Moldovan, Georgian and other aircrew I've flown with over the years have been highly competent and professional. Audacious, yes, and sometimes prepared to fly in conditions that would make your average 'western' ATPL call in sick; and (b) dubiously sober aircrew is not a nationality issue - I've come across Saffer and US and Aussie aircrew who cane it in the bar all night then stagger across to the airfield, kick the tyres and wobble off into the sunrise. I've seen the old WW2 fighter pilot hangover cure - a long hard suck on the 02 just after wheels-up - more than once.

BUD LEON
Be that as it may.. During my time operating in DRC I witnessed many questionable operations by outfits from ex USSR countries. Old poorely maintained a/c. Smelling alcohol on the breath of pilots. Cargo a/c selling space to locals probably to subsidize the miserable pay of the pilots (it was common following the crash of a 'cargo' a/c to hear that 20+ bodies had been recovered).

Watching an Antonov 12 or whatever struggling to get airborne then seemingly relying on the curvature of the earth to gain altitude was an amusing pastime while waiting around on the ramp. It was obvious that A/c were so heavily overloaded that a 4 eng transport didn't need to lose an engine, just one engine not producing max power would put the plane in jeopardy.

I don't ever recall our outfit being ramp checked by a UN representative though I'm aware of one Ukrainian operation that was closed down following an accident, I had the chance ro look into the sea container that represented their 'parts store', it was comparable to what one might expect going to a scrap yard looking for car parts. Nothing labled just old bits lying on shelves or on the floor. Of course not all of these outfits are operating on UN contracts.

So who did they arrest and why?
Ivory Coast crash: Four die when cargo plane plunges into sea - BBC News

Following the break up of the Soviet Union, there were plenty of aircraft and crews floating around looking for work. With a lower cost base and staff willing to accept pay and conditions below what a western operator would need to offer, there was no difficulty in undercutting established operators.

Corruption is not totally new in Russia and Africa or with some of those signing contracts. Once the correct backhanders are being paid the operation is left alone.

Overloading and breaking flight and duty time limits is taken for granted. Add in anything else you can think of; forged documentation, highly questionable maintenance, breaking minimums, flying under the influence of alcohol etc and the results aren’t surprising.

I’ve seen operations in Africa that in a first world country would have been instantly grounded and the people involved facing charges.