Flight Safety Information July 6, 2013 - No. 135 In This Issue Plane crash at San Francisco airport, 2 dead Asiana Airlines Plane Tore Off Tail, Caught Fire, At Least 40 Hurt, 10 Critical NTSB to Work With Korean Counterparts to Investigate Plane Crash Updated - Preliminary Information Videos Plane crash at San Francisco airport, 2 dead SAN FRANCISCO An Asiana Airlines flight from Seoul, South Korea, with more than 300 people aboard crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport on Saturday, littering the runway with debris, and forcing passengers to jump down the emergency inflatable slides to safety. San Francisco Fire Department told CBS News that two people were killed. At least 73 people have been taken to area hospitals for injuries, some critically. San Francisco General said they have received 10 of the critically injured, including two children. A spokesperson for San Francisco General said most, if not all, of the passengers taken to the hospital are Korean-speaking. We are working to get interpreters for them," she said, "but they are quite critically injured so there is not a lot of discussion with them at this time." Early reports indicate that Asiana Airlines Flight 214 made a hard landing, with the tail of the plane striking the runway and breaking off. The resulting fire sent black smoke billowing into the air, visible for miles. "The plane started coming in at an odd angle, there was a huge bang and you could see the cloud of huge black smoke," Kate Belding, who was jogging near the airport at the time of the crash, told KPIX. "It was a horrible thud," said Kelly Thompson, who observed the crash a hotel parking lot at the airport. She said the plane bounced, then slid on the runway. Rescue vehicles were on the scene immediately afterwards, with fire trucks spraying a white fire retardant on the wreckage. Spokesperson Lt. Cdr. Shawn Lansing told CBS News that the U.S. Coast Guard flew two people with burns from the triage center via helicopter to Stanford University Hospital. The severity of the burns is unknown. The airport was closed for several hours, with flights diverted to Oakland, Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Jose and Seattle. At about 3:30 p.m. PT, the airport announced that two runways have reopened. The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team of investigators to San Francisco to probe the crash. NTSB spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said Saturday that NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman would head the team. Arnold Barnett, an aviation expert at MIT, told KCBS it was possible the plane could have experienced a power shortage that caused the pilot to lose control. He said a similar incident occurred involving a Boeing 777 at London's Heathrow Airport in 2008. Asiana plane crash echoes '08 British Airways incident David Eun, a Samsung executive who was on board the plane, posted a photo online showing passengers leaving the wreckage. Asiana is a South Korean airline, second in size to national carrier Korean Air. It has recently tried to expand its presence in the United States, and joined the Star Alliance, which is anchored in the U.S. by United Airlines. The 777-200 is a long-range plane from Boeing. The twin-engine aircraft is one of the world's most popular long-distance planes, often used for flights of 12 hours or more, from one continent to another. The airline's website says its 777s can carry between 246 to 300 passengers. The last time a large U.S. airline lost a plane in a fatal crash was an American Airlines Airbus A300 taking off from JFK in 2001. Smaller airlines have had crashes since then. The last fatal U.S. crash was a Continental Express flight operated by Colgan Air, which crashed into a house near Buffalo, N.Y. on Feb. 12, 2009. The crash killed all 49 people on board and one man in a house. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57592529/plane-crash-at-san-francisco- airport/ Back to Top Asiana Airlines Plane Tore Off Tail, Caught Fire, At Least 40 Hurt, 10 Critical An Asiana Airlines passenger jet carrying more than 300 people crashed at San Francicso International Airport today, tore off its tail and burst into flames. Initial reports are that at least 40 people were injured, including 10 who are in critical condition. Asiana flight 214, a Boeing 777, was traveling from Seoul, South Korea, to San Francisco when it crash landed on the runway, the FAA confirmed. The flight was carrying 291 passengers, including an infant, plus at least 16 crew members, according to the airline. Get Live Updates with ABC News' Live Blog of the Plane Crash at San Francisco Airport Stephanie Turner saw the Asiana Airlines flight crash and she was sure that she "had just seen a lot of people die." Turner said that when she saw a plane preparing to land on the runway, it looked as if it was approaching at a strange angle. "As we saw the approaching Asiana flight coming in, I noticed right away that the angle was wrong, that it was tilted too far back," she said. "The angle didn't manage to straighten out and the tail broke off." "It looked like the plane had completely broken apart," Turner said. "The flames and smoke were just billowing." Aerials of the crash, provided by ABC's San Francisco station KGO-TV, showed the plane's tail severed from its body, as well as the majority of the aircraft's roof completely charred away. One of the plane's wings appears to have snapped upon impact. Debris from the crash landing was scattered across the airport's runway 28. The San Francisco International Airport closed at approximately 1:10 p.m. as a result of the crash, according to the FAA website. Some of the injured were taken to San Francisco General Hospital where 10 were in critical condition. "We have burns, fractures and internal injuries," said hospital spokeswoman Rachel Kagan. She said other non-crash patients whose treatment was completed were being discharged to make room for more crash victims. "We know we have 10. We may have more," Kagan said. She said the hospital had also put out a call for its Korean speaking staff and translators to come to work. A video posted on YouTube showed gray smoke billowing from the plane, which was lying on the runway on its fuselage. Chutes had been deployed from the plane's emergency exits. Law enforcement officials told ABC News that the crash appeared to be an accident, but that they were investigating. The National Transportation Safety Board immediately sent a team of investigators to the crash site. Once investigators got on scene at the San Francisco Airport, they plan to collect the cockpit voice and data recorders from the plane, NTSB Chairwoman Deborah Hersman said at a news conference. Hersman said the NTSB is working with Boeing, the FAA, as well as the Korean Air and Accident Investigation Board to investigate the crash. A witness described to ABC News what he saw when the plane was landing. "The nose of the plane was higher than usual for a plane coming in to land and I thought that was odd," Stephen Dear said. "It got closer and closer. I saw the back tail hit the ground." Dear said the plane then "caught fire immediately." Dominic Garcia, who also witnessed the crash, told ABC News that when the plane hit the runway, he saw what appeared to be "a huge mushroom cloud." "Within 15 seconds it was just black smoke," he said. "It looked like an explosion." The Boeing 777 is one of the safest airplanes in use, ABC News aviation analyst John Nance said. "These airplanes are over the water, over the ocean all the time and Asiana has been running them for many years very successfully," Nance said. Boeing issued a statement to ABCNews.com on the news of the crash. "Boeing extends its concern for the safety of those on board Asiana Airlines Flight 214," the company said. "Boeing is preparing to provide technical assistance to the National Transportation Safety Board as it investigates the accident." The last Boeing 777 to crash was a British Airways jet en route from Beijing to London's Heathrow airport, which crash landed short of the runway in January 2008. There were no fatalities, but 47 people on board sustained injuries. http://abcnews.go.com/US/boeing-777-crashes-runway-san-francisco- airport/story?id=19595641#.UdijSVAo6Uk Back to Top NTSB to Work With Korean Counterparts to Investigate Plane Crash The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board says it will work with its Korean counterparts in investigating today's crash of a Boeing 777 operated by Asiana Airlines Inc. (020560) from Seoul at San Francisco International Airport. Deborah Hersman, the NTSB chairman, said Washington-based investigators would join three investigators from the Los Angeles area at the airport later today to begin work. Hersman said Boeing Co. (BA), which made the aircraft, would be a part of the investigation. "We have not determined what the focus of this investigation is," Hersman said. When asked if the cause might be pilot http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-07-06/ntsb-to-work-with-korean- counterparts-to-investigate-plane-crash Back to Top Updated - Preliminary Information Status: Preliminary Date: 06 JUL 2013 Time: 11:28 Type: Boeing 777-28EER Operator: Asiana Airlines Registration: HL7742 C/n / msn: 29171/553 First flight: 2005-02-25 (8 years 4 months) Engines: 2 Pratt & Whitney PW4090 Crew: Fatalities: / Occupants: 12 Passengers: Fatalities: / Occupants: 291 Total: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 303 Airplane damage: Destroyed Airplane fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair) Location: San Francisco International Airport, CA (SFO) (United States of America) Phase: Landing (LDG) Nature: International Scheduled Passenger Departure airport: Seoul-Incheon International Airport (ICN/RKSI), South Korea Destination airport: San Francisco International Airport, CA (SFO/KSFO), United States of America Flightnumber: 214 Narrative: A Boeing 777-200 operated by Asiana Airlines crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport, CA (SFO). Flight OZ-214 originated in Seoul-Incheon International Airport (ICN), South Korea. There were 291 passengers and 12 crew members on board. The airplane impacted the ground while attempting to land on runway 28L. Photos and videos from the accident scene show debris including pieces of the empennage before the runway threshold. The tail separated, along with the main undercarriage and both engines before the plane came to rest next to the runway. A fire erupted. Preliminary reports indicate that two occupants died and 61 were injured. Weather at the time of the accident (11:28 LT / 18:28 Z) was repored as: KSFO 061756Z 21006KT 10SM FEW016 18/10 A2982 RMK AO2 SLP097 T01780100 10183 20128 51005 [10:56 LT: Wind 210 degrees at 6 knots; Visibility: 10 or more miles; few clouds at 1600 feet AGL; Temperature: 18°C, Dew point: 10°C; Pressure 1010 mb] KSFO 061856Z 21007KT 170V240 10SM FEW016 18/10 A2982 RMK AO2 SLP098 T01830100 [11:56 LT: Wind 210 degrees at 7 knots, varying in direction between 170 and 240 degrees; Visibility: 10 or more miles; few clouds at 1600 feet AGL; Temperature: 18°C, Dew point: 10°C; Pressure 1010 mb] www.aviation-safety.net Back to Top VIDEOS: Close up San Francisco 777 crash July 6 2013 SFO Asiana Airlines flight 214 Boeing 777 crash-lands and catches fire at San Francisco intl airport Plane crash at San Francisco Airport July 6 / Asiana Airlines San Francisco Plane crash Boeing 777 Curt Lewis