After an extensive eight-month and three-day investigation, the inquiry commission, led by former secretary Nagendra Prasad Ghimire, definitively attributes last year’s plane crash of Yeti Airlines in Pokhara to human error.
Today, the Commission submitted its comprehensive report to Sudan Kirati, the Minister of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation.
In response to the tragic incident in Pokhara on January 15, the government formed a five-member commission of inquiry under the skilled coordination of former secretary Ghimire.
Upon reviewing the report, Minister Kirati instructed subordinate agencies to diligently implement the recommendations provided by the Commission.
The conclusive findings shed light on the critical role of human error in the unfortunate Yeti Airlines plane crash which killed 72 people onboard, emphasizing the importance of implementing preventive measures to enhance aviation safety in the future.
What led to the crash?
As per the preliminary report, the Yeti Airlines flight experienced a loss of thrust and descended when the propellers of an engine entered a feathered position.
Investigation details:
The recovered black boxes from the crash site were dispatched to Singapore for an in-depth investigation into the crash’s causes. Gyanendra Bhul, the information officer at the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), confirmed that adverse weather conditions were not the issue; instead, ‘technical reasons’ were responsible for the fatal crash.
Despite initial attributions of the crash to Himalayan weather conditions, an official statement from the preliminary probe suggests potential human error.
Possibly, did the pilots inadvertently cut power to the engines?
The aircraft crashed just ’10 to 20 seconds’ before landing. The investigation report reveals that the pilot in control handed over the controls to the pilot monitoring just before the crash.
Analysis of the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder indicated that the propellers of both engines entered a “feathered position” during the base leg of descent.
However, investigators noted that it is uncommon for the propellers of both engines to be feathered. This observation is also documented in the 14-page preliminary report available on the website of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Civil Aviation of Nepal.
“The prevailing visibility during the crash was 6 km, and the sky was mostly clear with only a few clouds,” highlights the preliminary report, dismissing the possibility of bad weather and low visibility as factors contributing to the crash.
Experts suggest that the pilots unintentionally pulled the condition levers, causing the engines to shut down and the propellers to feather. Each lever manages the start and stop of the fuel supply and controls the idle speed for its respective engine.
“We are awaiting a detailed report. We cannot determine what happened before that,” stated a probe committee member.
Buddhi Sagar Lamichhane, Joint Secretary at the Tourism Ministry and a senior member of the probe committee, mentioned concerns about the delayed extension of flaps and the non-adherence to routine checklists. He was quoted by The Kathmandu Post newspaper saying, “Yes, there is also the issue of flaps. There are questions about why the pilots delayed extending the flaps. The routine checklists were not followed. There are many factors to look at.”
The plane had two captains on board: Captain Anju Khatiwada, who was in the process of acquiring aerodrome familiarization for operations in Pokhara, and Captain Kamal KC, who served as the instructor pilot during this training flight.
