UPS Airlines Flight 6

UPS Airlines Flight 6

N571UP, the aircraft involved, seen in Dubai in November 2008.
Accident summary
Date	3 September 2010
Type	In-flight cargo fire
Site	Nad Al Sheba Military camp, Dubai, United Arab Emirates 25°05′53″N 55°21′36″E / 25.098°N 55.360°E / 25.098; 55.360[1]
Passengers	0
Crew	2
Injuries	0
Fatalities	2
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	Boeing 747-44AF/SCD
Operator	UPS Airlines
Tail number	N571UP
Flight origin	Dubai International Airport
Destination	Cologne Bonn Airport

UPS Airlines Flight 6 was a cargo flight operated by UPS Airlines. On 3 September 2010, a Boeing 747-400 flying the route between Dubai International Airport and Cologne Bonn Airport crashed close to Dubai airport, killing the two crew members.^[2][3] The aircraft had departed Dubai International earlier, but returned after reporting smoke in the cockpit. It was the first fatal air crash for UPS Airlines.^[4] The crash caused an examination of safety procedures protecting airliners from cockpit smoke.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved in the accident was a Boeing 747-400F, registered N571UP and was delivered to UPS Airlines in 2007.^[5] It had flown for a total of 9,977 hours, and had a major inspection performed in June 2010.^[6] Before the crash, it was among the newest (#1,393 of 1,418; the 26th from the last)^[7] Boeing 747-400s built.

Crash

Flight 6 departed from Dubai International at 14:53 UTC and at 15:15 the crew reported a fire in the cockpit when the aircraft was around 120 nautical miles (220 km) west-northwest of Dubai, and declared an emergency.^[8] The pilots were under the control of Bahrain's air traffic control, and they could not initially contact Dubai air traffic control due to a radio failure.^[9] Although they were offered a diversion to Doha, Qatar,^[10] the pilots returned to Dubai, and were instructed to land on the airport's runway 12L.^[8] The aircraft was too high on the approach and passed over the airport before making a tight turn; radar contact was lost shortly thereafter at 15:42 UTC. The aircraft crashed in an unpopulated area between the Emirates Road and Al Ain Highway.^[11]

The captain, 48-year old Doug Lampe of Louisville, Kentucky, and the first officer, 38-year old Matthew Bell from Sanford, Florida, died.^[12] Both crew members were based in UPS's Anchorage, Alaska pilot base.^[13] The accident was the first fatal accident involving UPS Airlines.^[14]

Investigation

The National Transportation Safety Board announced that it would dispatch an aviation investigator to assist the United Arab Emirates General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) in its investigation of the crash.^[15] Boeing offered to send a team to the United Arab Emirates to provide technical assistance in the investigation process.^[16]

Following the recovery of the cockpit voice recorder, the GCAA issued a preliminary report on the September 5, 2010.^[11] On September 7, the authorities discovered the flight data recorder. The government of Bahrain decided to conduct its own investigation into the accident.^[17] UPS also sent its own investigation team.^[13] The flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder were sent to the United States for analysis by the National Transportation Safety Board on September 10, 2010.^[10]

As of September 8, 2010, the GCAA and UPS did not comment on the progress of the investigation.^[18] According to Associated Press sources, people familiar with the investigation said that the fire may have started in the cargo compartment. The investigators are checking the cargo to determine what was loaded on the aircraft.^[19] On September 8, 2010 the head of the GCAA, director general Saif al Suwaidi, said that it was too early to determine exactly what the cause of the crash was.^[20]

The investigation revived safety concerns about the effects of smoke in the cockpit. The crash also revived concerns over whether smoke hoods should be allowed in the cockpit.^[21] Prior to the crash of UPS Flight 6, debate over whether manufacturers and regulators had been doing enough to prevent airborne fires had occurred.^[22] Around the time of the crash, the National Transportation Safety Board had asked the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to install automatic fire extinguisher systems in the holds of cargo aircraft. UPS Airlines followed FAA regulations, which stated that pilots should depressurize the main cabin and climb to an altitude of at least 20,000 feet (6,100 m) upon detection of a fire so as to deprive the flames of oxygen.^[23]

On September 23, 2010, the GCAA reported that 100% of the material contained in the Cockpit Voice Recorder and Flight Data Recorder was successfully downloaded by the NTSB and that the data was being analyzed. ^[24] In October 2010, Boeing announced that fire indication checklists were to be modified to instruct pilots that at least one of the three air conditioning systems must be left in operation in order to prevent excessive smoke accumulation on the flight deck.^[25]

In November 2010, a U.S. government official said that investigators so far have not found any connections to terrorism in regards to the crash.^[26] On November 5, 2010, Al Qaeda's Yemen wing, the Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, took responsibility for Flight 6's crash as part of the 2010 cargo plane bomb plot.^[27]

FAA Reaction

In October 2010, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a Safety Alert For Operators highlighting the fact that the cargo on board Flight 6 contained a large quantity of lithium batteries and that Halon 1301 was inefficient in fighting fires involving them.^[8] The FAA issued a restriction on the carrying of lithium batteries in bulk on passenger flights.^[28]

See also

	Dubai portal
	United States portal
	Aviation portal
	Fire portal

• Boeing 747 hull losses
• South African Airways Flight 295
• Air Canada Flight 797
• Swissair Flight 111
• Singapore Airlines Flight 006 - Another the aviation accident involving another Boeing 747-400 with the same flight number. It is also the Boeing 747-400 fatal accident prior to UPS Airlines Flight 6.
• 2010 cargo plane bomb plot
• Asiana Airlines Flight 991

References

1. ^ http://avherald.com/h?article=4307772e&opt=0 location of crash site
2. ^ "Cargo plane crashes near Dubai motorway killing two". BBC News. 2007-03-12. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11183476. Retrieved 2010-09-03. 
3. ^ Tom Bonnett. "Dubai: Plane Crashes Onto Motorway Setting Fire To Cars - Crew Missing". Sky News. http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Dubai-Plane-Crashes-Onto-Motorway-Setting-Fire-To-Cars---Crew-Missing/Article/201009115713065. Retrieved 2010-09-03. 
4. ^ Cummins, Chip (4 September 2010). "UPS Cargo Plane Crashes Near Dubai". The Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703946504575469830201125788.html. Retrieved 6 September 2010. 
5. ^ "UPS confirms Dubai 747-400 crash". Flightglobal.com. 3 September 2010. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/09/03/346996/ups-confirms-dubai-747-400-crash.html. Retrieved 4 September 2010. 
6. ^ "UPS: Crashed 747 was three years old". Flightglobal.com. 5 September 2010. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/09/05/347003/ups-crashed-747-was-three-years-old.html. Retrieved 6 September 2010. 
7. ^ Timo Jäger (20 August 2010). "Photograph showing serial number information". Airliners.net. http://www.airliners.net/photo/United-Parcel-Service/Boeing-747-44AF-SCD/1768840/&sid=9c6df7a00c1efc237ff51311f81f7d29. 
8. ^ ^{a b c} "Crash: UPS B744 at Dubai on Sep 3rd 2010, fire in cockpit". The Aviation Herald. 3 September 2010. http://avherald.com/h?article=4307772e&opt=0. Retrieved 4 September 2010. 
9. ^ "UPS freighter had radio failure and fire before fatal crash." Arabian Aerospace. September 9, 2010. Retrieved on September 9, 2010.
10. ^ ^{a b} Kaminski-Morrow, David. "Ill-fated UPS crew offered Doha alternate after fire alarm". Flight International. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/09/15/347339/ill-fated-ups-crew-offered-doha-alternate-after-fire.html. Retrieved 15 September 2010. 
11. ^ ^{a b} "GCAA Announces the Preliminary Report on the accident involving UPS6 Boeing 747 – 400 on 3rd September, 2010" (Press release). UAE General Civil Aviation Authority. 5 September 2010. http://www.gcaa.ae/en/Pages/NewsDetails.aspx?NewsID=187. Retrieved 5 September 2010. 
12. ^ "UPS flight crashes in Dubai". Business First. 3 September 2010. http://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/stories/2010/08/30/daily47.html?jst=pn_pn_lk. Retrieved 7 November 2010. 
13. ^ ^{a b} "UAE: UPS 747 had smoke in cockpit before crash." Associated Press at Las Vegas Sun. Saturday September 11, 2010. Retrieved on September 11, 2010.
14. ^ Constantine, Zoi (4 September 2010). "Voice recorder of crashed cargo plane found". Dubai: The National. http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100905/NATIONAL/709049846/0/SPORT. Retrieved 5 September 2010. ^{[dead link]}
15. ^ "NTSB assists Government of the United Arab Emirates in aviation accident" (Press release). National Transportation Safety Board. September 3, 2010. http://www.ntsb.gov/Pressrel/2010/100903.html. Retrieved 3 September 2010. 
16. ^ "Boeing Statement on UPS Accident at Dubai" (Press release). Boeing. September 3, 2010. http://boeing.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=1402. Retrieved 3 September 2010. 
17. ^ Singh, Mandeep. "Bahrain probes crash..." Gulf Daily News. Monday September 6, 2010. Retrieved on September 9, 2010.
18. ^ Pazstor, Andy. "Cargo Fire Seen Emerging as Likely Cause of UPS Jet Crash." Wall Street Journal. September 8, 2010. September 9, 2010.
19. ^ Lowy, Joan. "AP sources: Fire may have erupted on UPS plane." Associated Press at Yahoo! News. Tuesday September 7, 2010. Retrieved on September 8, 2010.
20. ^ Constantine, Zoi. "UPS crash: ‘Too early’ to blame cargo area fire." The National. September 9, 2010. Retrieved on September 9, 2010.
21. ^ Malas, Nour and Andy Pasztor. "UPS Crash Puts Focus on Smoke in Cockpit." The Wall Street Journal. September 7, 2010. Retrieved on September 8, 2010.
22. ^ Cummins, Chip and Andy Pasztor. "UPS Cargo Plane Crashes Near Dubai." The Wall Street Journal. September 4, 2010. Retrieved on September 8, 2010.
23. ^ Downs, Jere. "NTSB has been seeking fire fighting equipment on cargo planes." The Courier-Journal. September 9, 2010. 1. Retrieved on September 9, 2010.
24. ^ "GCAA reveals more details regarding the Crash of UPS Boeing 747 - 400 Cargo investigation.”" (Press release). UAE General Civil Aviation Authority. September 23rd, 2010. http://www.gcaa.ae/en/Pages/NewsDetails.aspx?NewsID=192. Retrieved September 23rd, 2010. 
25. ^ Hradecky, Simon. "Crash: UPS B744 at Dubai on Sep 3rd 2010, fire in cockpit". Aviation Herald. http://avherald.com/h?article=4307772e&opt=0. Retrieved 17 October 2010. 
26. ^ Ahlers, Mike M. "No terror link so far in UPS crash in Dubai, official says." CNN. November 2, 2010. Retrieved on November 2, 2010.
27. ^ "Al Qaeda Yemen wing claims parcel plot, UPS crash." Reuters. Friday November 5, 2010.
28. ^ Hradecky, Simon. "The risks of lithium batteries in aircraft cargo". Aviation Herald. http://avherald.com/h?article=431f0863&opt=0. Retrieved 8 October 2010. 

External links

• General Civil Aviation Authority
  • Preliminary Report.
  • "GCAA : No evidence of an onboard explosion related to Al Qaeda claims on the Crash of UPS Boeing 747 - 400 Cargo." November 7, 2010.
  • "GCAA eliminates the possibility of an onboard explosion regarding the crash of UPS Boeing 747 - 400 Cargo investigation." October 31, 2010. (Alt)
  • "GCAA reveals more details regarding the crash of UPS Boeing 747 - 400 Cargo investigation." October 20, 2010
  • "GCAA reveals more details regarding the Crash of UPS Boeing 747 - 400 Cargo investigation." - September 23, 2010
  • "GCAA Announces the recovery of Digital Flight Data Recorder From UPS6 Boeing 747 – 400." - September 13, 2010.
  • "GCAA Announces the Preliminary Report on the ACCIDENT INVOLVING UPS6 Boeing 747 – 400 on 3rd September, 2010." - September 5, 2010
• "B744 Freighter crash after onboard fire indication, Dubai, 3 Sep 10 – Preliminary Report Issued" - SKYbrary

• "Statement on Aircraft Accident." (Archive) - United Parcel Service