The Factual Data Report of TransAsia Airways Flight 235 was released July 2 by the Aviation Safety Council, shedding light on the probable causes of the Taipei City plane crash that killed 43 and injured 17.
Taking off at 10:52 a.m., Feb. 4, from Taipei Songshan Airport, GE235 was carrying 53 passengers and five crewmembers bound for outlying Kinmen County. Five minutes into the flight, the plane lurched over Nanyang Bridge, clipping the structure and a taxi with its left wing before breaking into two and plunging into the Keelung River.
According to the report based on cockpit voice recordings, prior to lifting off from TSA, the pilot was alerted by the co-pilot that the ATR-72 twin-engine turboprop’s automatic takeoff power control system was not operating.
After GE235 had climbed through 1,200 feet, a master alarm sounded, with the engine and warning display showing engine No.2 had flamed out. The pilot disengaged autopilot while the flight continued to ascend to 1,300 feet.
The pilot then began throttling back engine No. 1 from a power lever angle of 75 to 49 degrees. Seven seconds later, a stall warning sounded with stick shakers activated. In the following 1 minute and 14 seconds, the pilots attempted to maneuver the plane, with two unsuccessful attempts made to re-engage the autopilot.
The pilot then discovered they had lost both engines. Eight seconds before the crash, he realized the wrong engine had been throttled back.
According to the ASC, it will conduct further analysis into the crash and propose recommendations in four months. The final report is to be published in April 2016. (SFC-JSM)
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