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تاريخ الخبر: الإثنين 14-07-2014

أشارت التحقيقات في حادثة تحطم طائرة بجمهورية الكونغو الديمقراطية إلى أن تمساحًا يقف وراء الحادثة، وذلك بعد أن تسبب بإرعاب المسافرين وأجبرهم على الهروب إلى قمرة القيادة، ليختل توازن الطائرة وتهوي باتجاه الأرض مخلفةً 18 قتيل من بينهم طاقم الطائرة.
وأفادت بعض الشهادات بأن التمساح ظهر أثناء الرحلة بين مقاعد الركاب ودبت حالة من الرعب والفزع بينهم، وتراكضوا إلى قمرة القيادة وتجمعوا فيها في محاولة للاحتماء من الحيوان المفترس.
وذكرت صحيفة نيويورك دايلي نيوز الأمريكية، أن شخصًا واحدًا نجا من حادثة تحطم الطائرة، إضافة إلى التمساح الذي أجهز عليه عمال الإنقاذ بالمناجل أثناء محاولة البحث عن ناجين بين حطام الطائرة.
وبينت التحقيقات التي أجرتها السلطات البريطانية أن أحد الركاب اصطحب التمساح معه على متن الطائرة داخل حقيبة رياضية في محاول لبيعه، ومن بين الضحايا مساعد القبطان وهو من الجنسية البريطانية ويدعى كريس ويلسون.
وأكد والد كريس أن هناك تسجيل فيديو يثبت أن التمساح كان على متن الطائرة قبل تحطمها، ومنعت زيادة الوزن التي نتجت عن تجمع الركاب في الجزء الأمامي منها طاقم الطائرة من التحكم بها بشكل جيد، وأدى ذلك إلى هذه المأساة المفجعة.
وعلى الرغم من إلقاء المسئولية على التمساح في حادثة تحطم الطائرة، إلا أن المحققين لم يستبعدوا أسبابًا أخرى مثل تعطل المحرك أو نقص الوقود، ولا يزال التحقيق جاريًا للتوصل إلى النتيجة النهاية.

Escaped crocodile may have caused Congo plane crash, coroner hears

JULY 12, 2014
A PLANE crash that killed a British pilot in the Democratic Republic of Congo may have been caused by a crocodile escaping in the cabin, a coroner’s court was told.

Chris Wilson, 39, from Cheltenham, was copilot on the flight, which crashed into a house close to Bandundu airport on August 25, 2010. Seventeen passengers and the Belgian pilot, Danny Philemotte, 62, who owned the airline, were also killed.

An inquest in Gloucester was told that the disaster may have been caused by passengers running to the front of the small plane to get away from an escaped crocodile. The only surviving passenger told officials that another traveller had brought a crocodile measuring between two and three feet on to the flight in a sports bag.

David Dooley, the assistant coroner, read out an email from Mr Wilson’s father, Rob, who recounted a conversation with Congolese officials.

“The original investigator on the site ... said that there was a gentleman who came up with a story about a crocodile. There is apparently a video of the crocodile being taken out of the plane.

“They think it may have frightened the cabin crew member and she ran forward, with the other passengers following. The weight shift caused by the panic may have affected the plane, causing it to nosedive or stall.”

The inquest was told that it was common for passengers to bring animals on to planes and for them to be “used like a taxi in this regard”.

Mr Wilson, who was first officer on the day of the crash, had moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo earlier in 2010 after leaving his job as a flight attendant with a British airline to pursue his dream of becoming a commercial pilot. He was required to fly 1,000 hours for his licence and started work for Filair, despite concerns about the flying abilities of Mr Philemotte.

In a statement read to the hearing, Mr Wilson’s brother, Martin, said his brother had told him that Mr Philemotte was unable to read the instruments on an aircraft and that he was surprised that he was “still alive, his flying was so bad”.

The assistant coroner said a number of explanations had been suggested for the sudden crash, including a fuel shortage, the overloading of the plane, pilot error, engine failure, maintenance issues, and a surge of passengers to the front of the plane.

Timothy Atkinson, an air accident investigator, said that he had reviewed the evidence given to him by Congolese authorities but was unable to draw definitive conclusions because the black box had not been handed over.

“The aircraft struck a mud and brick building with a straw roof and it came to a rest against another one on the ground,” he said. “The most likely explanation is that the aircraft stalled and/or was in a spin prior to impact.”

“There is no evidence suggesting an engine failure, or a nosedive, although I cannot be sure without looking at the plane. It would reinforce the idea that the accident appears to have the hallmarks of a stall and spin, which may have been from a variety of causes.

“Essentially, it fell out of the sky.”

Recording an open verdict, Mr Dooley said that there was not sufficient evidence to conclude that any one factor had caused the crash