You have to realize that thunderstorms in the tropics are somewhat different than those in our world. They are very short-lived and sometimes quite strong. You then get the slippery runway if heavy rainfall is present.

I never found it very difficult to handle but if you do something wrong, you can easily get into trouble.

Also turboprops are somewhat more difficult to handle in crosswind, as are tail engine driven aircraft (remember One Two Go in HKT). You have to reduce reverse aggressivly, if go around is not possible anymore.

I don't say that this was the case here as we have to get more information, I just say that this weather could be the cause for the accident.

Dani

Check your METAR times...last observation is 2 hours prior to the incident. And it's monsoon season in the Pacific ITCZ, so a lot can happen. AeroThai doesn't show any later updates or scaremets or updated sigmets.

Nationalitites?
 

Does anyone have a list of the nationalities of the passengers? (Before I get heat, I don't mean the possibly deceased, I mean the passengers.) Thank you,.

Accident is reported to have occurred at about 1400 local (0800 UTC), therefore the 1300 local (0700 UTC) METAR is the one to use, is it not?

Best thing to is either hold or divert if rain around this area. As mentioned it does not last long.

No monsoons in Samui sir

No "moonson" maybe, but a very rainy season for sure
 

...and it's now.

Picture taken by someone living close to the airport. Not as close-up as others that can be found on various media, but gives a good overall view of the scene.
(credit: posted by a member of the aforementioned Thaivisa forum)
http://i28.tinypic.com/25r30cm.jpg

Video on the 6 pm news here shows the nose buried deep into the base of the control tower in a nose down attitude, as shown above.
Captain reported dead. Many pax injuries, mainly broken legs.
68 pob, mixed nationalities, mainly tourists.
More later.

Monsson or not?
 

I donno how you want to call it but whole Thailand is within the tropical zone of the South East Asia, where you get half a year South East wind and half a year North East, where you get a very rainy season and sometimes a dry.

That's the definition of Monsoon. Monsoon doesn't mean that you get lots of winds necessarily, but two distinctive seasons.

If you know more (and other) details please let me know.

Hmmmm.

Thunderstorms in vicinity......driving rain and/or strong cross-winds..........wet, possibly contaminated (?) runway........ATR 72.......narrow track undercarriage.......runway excursion.

No mystery here, sad nonetheless.

Weary

According to Google Earth the contol tower is within 50 metres of, and a few metres below, the runway. Time for repositioning in subsequent re-build?

WP

More pics!


http://images.temppic.com/04-08-2009...0.75506000.jpg

http://images.temppic.com/04-08-2009...0.15351400.jpg

http://images.temppic.com/04-08-2009...0.60846500.jpg

Not good at all.

:sad:

TAF for said location
 

TAF VTSM 040330Z 0406/0506 27010KT 9999 SCT020 TEMPO 0407/0411 27015KT 5000 -SHRA SCT016 BKN110 BECMG 0413/0415 00000KT FEW023 BKN120=METAR VTSM 040700Z 29015KT 9000 FEW020TCU SCT120 BKN300 31/25 Q1007 A2974 TCU-NW= METAR suggested towering Cu to the northwest of the airfield at 0700z..the last official METAR before the accident.

We live just across the channel from Koh Samui on the beach at Koh Pha-Ngan, about 18Km from Samui airport with a clear view of aircraft approaching from north and north west directions.

Just before 2pm, a very dark-looking front begun rolling in from the West. A few minutes later it hit us with gusts of approx 30-40 knots. Rain was falling horizontally, and coconut tree branches were being thrown about like feathers.

Looking at the ThaiVisa forum pic, I can see that the aircraft approached the runway from the southern end. With strong westerly gusty crosswinds forcing the pilot to land at a steep angle to the runway's orientation, it's my opinion (as a non-pilot) that as the plane touched down it could not straighten fast enough and consequently veered off across the grass strip into the old fire station near the control tower.

0412448550 11458 72804 10280 20244 30057 40064 60082 71022 82876 333 10325 58001 70078=
1200z Synop report for Koi Samui gives 8mm(1/3rd of an inch) of rain over the preceding 12 hours...(the 6 group)

Agreed!

SYNOPS from 48550, Ko Samui (Thailand) 0412448550 11458 72804 10280 20244 30057 40064 60082 71022 82876 333 10325 58001 70078= 0409448550 21458 60000 10270 20256 30054 40061 71061 82846 333 59005 60085= 0406448550 32560 42705 10320 20249 30070 40077 82245 333 58010 70097=
Synoptic weather reports for station suggests 32c 90F at 0600z, dropping to 27c 81F at 0900z after showers. Max temp of the day was 32.5c(1 group on the 1200z synoptic weather report).

I seem to recall ....
 

...that the new tower was built because the old one was located (very) close to the runway. Maybe the old one should have been demolished once they's occupied the new one? bm

Is the building part demolished by the port wing the Fire Station? Very close to the action if it is.

Very sad day indeed
 

Never land in a thunderstorm! Maybe a microburst? These microbursts a terrible, just as bad as a small tornado. Seems like this plane just got pushed of the runway. Why do these things happen so often here in Southeast Asia? I am sure the pilots here now this type weather very well.