Japan Air Lines Flight 715 Explained

Japan Air Lines Flight 715
日本航空クアラルンプール墜落事故
Image Upright:1.15
Occurrence Type:Occurrence
Date:27 September 1977
Summary:Controlled flight into terrain due to pilot error
Site:Elmina Estate, near Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, Subang, Malaysia
Aircraft Type:McDonnell Douglas DC-8-62H
Operator:Japan Air Lines
Tail Number:JA8051
Origin:Tokyo International Airport, Tokyo, Japan
Stopover0:Kai Tak Airport, Hong Kong
Last Stopover:Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, Subang, Malaysia
Destination:Singapore International Airport, Singapore
Passengers:69
Crew:10
Fatalities:34
Injuries:45
Survivors:45

was an airplane that crashed in Malaysia on 27 September 1977.[1] It was a McDonnell Douglas DC-8, registration JA8051, on a flight from Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan, to Singapore International Airport in Singapore, with stopovers at Kai Tak Airport in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong, and Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang, Malaysia. Ten crew and 69 passengers were on board. It was the second-deadliest aviation disaster to occur in Malaysia at the time.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a McDonnell Douglas DC-8-62H (serial number 46152 and factory 550), manufactured in 1971, and delivered to Japan Air Lines on 23 August. It was registered as JA8051. The aircraft was powered by four Pratt & Whitney JT3D-3B turbofan engines.[2]

Accident

Two hours into the flight, air traffic control at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport told flight 715 to start its approach and land on runway 15. The flight crew started their approach, putting the landing gear down and extending the flaps. The aircraft descended below minimum descent altitude of 750feet, then at 300feet, it crashed into the side of a hill 4miles from the airport, near an estate called Elmina Estate.[3] The aircraft broke on impact, and a fire erupted, which was extinguished by airport rescue and firefighting.[4]

The accident killed 34 people: eight of the 10 crew and 26 of the 69 passengers. Forty-five survivors, among the passengers and crew, were taken to a hospital.[5] The remains from the crash could be found in the soil surrounding the estate until 2011. Most of the land now is being converted to developments.[6]

A memorial was built in the Japanese cemetery in Kuala Lumpur.[7]

The crash was the second-deadliest aviation disaster to occur in Malaysia until the crash of Malaysian Airline System Flight 653, two months later, with 100 fatalities.[8]

Investigation

The Malaysian Department of Civil Aviation investigated the accident. At the time of the crash, the weather around the airport was poor and the aircraft was on a VOR approach. The investigation determined that the cause of the accident was the captain descending below the minimum descent altitude without having the runway in sight, and continuing the descent, causing the aircraft to crash before reaching the airport. The flight crew loss of sight of the airport due to bad weather, which also contributed to the accident. In addition, the first officer did not challenge the captain for violating the regulations.[9]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: A body part of the Japan Airlines 715 is seen a day after the crash.... 2022-01-16. Getty Images. 8 January 2019 . en-us.
  2. Web site: JA8051 Japan Airlines Douglas DC-8-62H - cn 46152 / ln 550 . 2014-05-17 . Planespotters.net . 14 July 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140714133607/http://www.planespotters.net/Production_List/Douglas/DC-8/46152,JA8051-Japan-Airlines.php . dead .
  3. News: Nadeswaran. R.. 2020-09-27. NST175: Japan Airlines crash changed my life. 2021-03-12. New Straits Times.
  4. News: Thuraisingam. K.. 2017-10-15. Malaysian Civil Defence officer remembers the JAL plane crash of 1977. The Star. 2021-03-12.
  5. News: 1977-09-27. 45 Survive Fiery Malaysia Jet Crash. 2021-03-12. Desert Sun. California Digital Newspaper Collection.
  6. Web site: Accidents JAL has caused other than Flight 123 Accident. 2014-05-17. JAPAN AIRLINES Corporate Information.
  7. Web site: マレーシア日本人墓地を訪ねて. www.eva.hi-ho.ne.jp. Japanese. Visit a Japanese cemetery in Malaysia. 2019-09-06.
  8. Web site: ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas DC-8-62H JA8051 Kuala Lumpur Subang International Airport (KUL). Ranter. Harro. aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. 2014-05-17.
  9. Web site: Aircraft Accident Report No. 1/77 - Chief Inspector of Accidents & Department of Civil Aviation, Malaysia. - McDonnell Douglas DC-8 (Super 62) - JA8051 - Report on the Accident Near Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Subang, Selangor on 27th September, 1977 . Ministry of Transport Malaysia.