Myrish Airways Flight 3

Myrish Airways Flight 3 was a scheduled flight between Jaliyah International Airport in Jaliyah, Haksarad and its base at Denkev International Airport in Denkev, Gladomyr. On the 24th of February 2010, the third Myrish Airways 777-200ER operating the route between Jaliyah and Denkev crashed just short of runway 25C while landing. There was 1 fatality caused indirectly from the crash. Of the 353 passengers onboard, 187 sustained injuries, 3 of which were serious. It was the first time an Alutran 777 of this type was declared a hull loss and subsequently written off.

The accident was investigated by the Myrish Air Accident Investigation Branch (MAAIB) and a final report was published in September of 2012. A combination of a bird-strike and icy conditions were blamed as the cause of the incident, the ice crystals resulting in freezing pitot tubes and giving incorrect information following a dual-engine bird-strike by a flock of. The MAAIB concluded that no individual was to blame for the crash, and the flight crew handled the situation well.

Accident
Myrish Airways Flight 3 is a scheduled flight between Jaliyah International Airport in Haksarad and Denkev International Airport in Gladomyr. Previously, the route had been operated by a Boeing 777-300LR, however the aircraft was swapped earlier that month in favor of a more fuel efficient system. The route between the two airports is around 7,905 kilometers with an approximate flight time of 10 hours and 30 minutes. The aircraft involved in the accident was a 150-tonne Boeing 777-236ER, registration GD-UNUN, powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent 895-17 engines. The aircraft's maiden voyage was on May 29th, 2000 and was delivered to Myrish Airways in November of 2000. It had seating capacity for 370 passengers. On-board were 20 crew members and 333 passengers. The crew consisted of Captain Håkon Holmsen (38), Senior First Officer Harald Granum (57), First Officer Ruben Norgard (27), Flight Engineer Lan Cornec (40), and 16 cabin crew members including 12 flight attendants and 4 cooks. The captain had 11,843 flight hours with 8,993 in the Boeing 777-236ER, the senior first officer had 10,432 flight hours with 7,110 in the Boeing 777-236ER, and the first officer had 5,342 flight hours with 2,540 in the Boeing 777-236ER.

Flight 3 departed Jaliyah at 01:32 local time following a 20 minute delay for de-icing. It flew over Esharat, Ventora, Velorenkya, Ecoralia, and Edury before starting its descent over Gladomyr. The aircraft flew at a cruising altitude varying between 32,000 feet and 38,000 feet (FL320-FL380) at temperatures down to −65 °C (−85 °F) and −74 °C (−101 °F). Aware of the cold conditions outside, the crew closely monitored the fuel temperature and used anti-ice measures accordingly, however the fuel temperature never dipped below freezing. Meanwhile over the capital of Gladomyr, a thunderstorm had moved over Denkev and its airport, creating difficult landing conditions and thick cloud layers. The crew of Flight 3 had already been aware of this storm before they even departed Jaliyah, meaning they were prepared for whatever steps they may have needed to undertake.

The first symptoms of unreliable instruments occured at an altitude of 2,500 feet before landing at Denkev. Ice crystals had formed on the pitot tubes, creating untrue measurements of the aircraft's speed and altitude. Unknown to the crew, the aicraft's speed had dropped dangerously low. During the crew's transmission to the air traffic control about their situation, the crew had been focusing so much on the unreliable information as well as the crosswind that they didnt notice the flock of Canadian Geese right on the glideslope. The flock of geese impacted the windshield, as well as both engine 1 and 2. Both engines immediately failed and the aircraft began stalling significantly. Senior First Officer Granum declared an emergency while Captain Holmsen instructed First Officer Norgard to reduce the flaps to improve the drag of the plane. This proved life saving as the Boeing 777 managed to glide over the interstate instead of impacting it.

The aircraft then crash landed just short of the runway and was greeted by fire-crews who had been on stand-by. Upon the crash, the right main landing gear was detached from the fuselage and the left main landing gear punctured the wing and fuel compartment. Although there was a fuel leak, there was no fire. Flight attendants evacuated the aircraft and there were initially zero fatalities. Approximately 2 hours after the crash, Flight Engineer Cornec suffered a major heart-attack and died at the Denkev Central Hospital. This was concluded to have been a result of the crash. 13 crew members and 174 passengers had suffered injuries, 3 of which were serious (broken leg, concussion, broken arm, broken ribs, broken back) and 1 fatality (Flight Engineer Cornec). Additionally, 2 ramp workers were struck by flying debris of the accident, injuring both.

Aftermath
Denkev Amulance Services (DAS) reported that a total of 38 ambulances, 21 police cars, and 3 emergency helicopters responded to the event. Most casualties were taken to either the nearby Denkev Central Hospital or the Venou Hilltop Hospital. Other casualties were taken as far as Pärhula City Hospital 250 kilometers away, and even to Monstad City Hospital in the neighboring country of Ecoralia for the most severe injury.

Chairman and CEO of Myrish Airways, Eamon Clague, released a statement the same day, in which he "Commend[s] [the] heroic actions of the flight crew for evacuating every last passenger and crew from the aircraft safely without incident … You must remember that we at Myrish Airways train exactly for this event, and we have ever since the company was founded, and we will for the rest of the company's life." He also praised the fire-crew, ambulances, air traffic control, and airport staff for handling the situation.

All flights in and out of Denkev were halted for several hours after the crash, only opening up for selected in-bound long haul flights, and all out-bound flights were cancelled entirely. 44 flights in total were diverted to Cadiou Airport, Pärhula Post Airport, or King Gwenneg Lautna Airport. In an attempt to minimize further travel disruptions, Denkev Airport received dispensation from the Department for Transport to operate some night flights. Even so, the following day (25 February) a total of 113 short-haul flights were cancelled due to crews and aircraft being out of position.

On the morning of 25 February, the aircraft was picked up by two cranes away from its resting place and placed on an aircraft transportation truck, eventually being unloaded in one of Denkev Airport's hangars for further inspection. The runway on which the accident took place, 25C, was also inspected and cleaned for 10 hours to guarantee that no debris still remained to ensure that there would be no further accidents on the runway. After inspection from Myrish Airways, it was deemed impossible to repair the aircraft within economic reason and was written-off, the first Alutran 777 to have been. It was broken up and scrapped the following year by several scrap companies.

The day following the accident, Captain Venec Holmsen denied releasing too much detail about the accident in a press-conference while the MAAIB was investigating the accident. He revealed that he was flying the aircraft while Senior First Officer Granum was handling radio transmissions. He also revealed that First Officer Norgard and Flight Engineer Cornec were also present in the flight deck at the time of impact. While Senior First Officer Granum refused to make a statement, First Officer Norgard was more transparent in his statement, stating "As we were on final approach, I looked over my colleague's shoulder … I could see clearly that all the indications were incorrect … We called my him [Flight Engineer Cornec] into the cockpit to look around, and right when all of our noses were trained on the faulty instruments, a huge bang ricocheted of the windshield … There was no thrust in our engines. I knew probably what was going to happen so I followed the captain's instructions very closely and made sure to pray. I was a little bit scared, but I think the adrenaline helped my decision making. I am very thankful for my colleagues."

Holmsen and Granum were grounded for a month following the incident while they were assessed for any illnesses or injuries caused by the crash, in particular or PTSD. Norgard re-entered service again the next week, his first flight being from Denkev to Grana. Norgard stated that he was "...Still haunted by what happened that day. Sometimes I see it during my sleep, or other times I hear the grinding sound of the metal against the runway when everything else is silent. Sometimes I listen to music just so I don't have to hear it any more." Norgard has also stated that he struggled often with. Captain Holmsen re-entered service in April of 2010, still flying the 777 and 737. Holmsen stated in an interview after resuming service; "I am delighted to keep flying these aircraft for Myrish Airways. I love my job, and a silly accident like this most recent one would never kill my love for aviation." His first flight back was from Denkev to Ushteyghoo in the Boeing 737-900, his most-flied aircraft. Holmsen has also stated that he struggles with survivor guilt and PTSD. Senior First Officer Granum retired after the accident at the age of 57. Granum died of heart complications in November of 2020 at the age of 68. Before his death, Granum was famously silent about the accident, only giving his "[Condolences] to the family of Cornec and to [the] injured passengers on my flight."

All 20 crew were awarded the Myrish Airways Platinum Medal, the highest honor of Myrish Airways, only given to those who have saved lives in the name of Myrish Airways. All 20 crew were also awared with the Royal Medal of Honor from the Myrish Royal Family. In addition to the Royal Medal of Honor, the crew was also knighted.

Initial speculations
Initial reports labelled the sole reason of the accident being the bird-strike, information of the ice crystals on the pitot tube only being revealed months after the incident.

Speculations began following First Officer Norgard's statement about faulty instruments. Some claimed that the aircraft had been struck by lighting, creating an electric interference with the systems. This was soon discredited as the instruments would not react like that to a sudden burst of electricity.

Speculation that radio interference from the Prime Minister's motorcade, which was leaving Denkev Airport after dropping the Prime Minister off for a flight to Haksarad, was responsible for the accident was also eliminated as a cause.

Initial analysis from Kilien Morvan, an Aircraft International editor, was that "The aircraft had either a total or severe power loss and this occurred very late in the final approach because the pilot did not have time to tell air traffic control or passengers." Morvan went on to say that to land in just 350–400 metres (1,150–1,310 ft), the aircraft must have been near stalling when it touched down. The captain also reported the aircraft's stall warning system had sounded. This would reveal that the speed of the aircraft had already significantly dropped before the birdstrike.

Some other reports stated that there was not a birdstrike at all, and instead the fuel had frozen following extremely cold temperatures. Although closer than the other guesses, this was eliminated as a possibility.

Investigation
The Department for Transport's Myrish Air Accidents Investigation Branch (MAAIB) investigated the accident, with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Boeing, and Rolls-Royce also participating. The investigation took two years to complete, and the MAAIB published its final report on 5 September 2012. Three preliminary reports and eighteen safety recommendations were issued during the course of the investigation.

The flight data recorder (FDR) and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), along with the quick access recorder (QAR), were recovered from the aircraft within hours of the accident, and they were transported to the MAAIB's Venou headquarters, some thirty miles from Denkev Airport. The information downloaded from these devices confirmed what the crew had already told the investigators, that the engines had not responded when the throttles were advanced during final approach.

The Special Bulletin of 18 March, stated that there was "no evidence of a mechanical defect or ingestion of ice", that there was "no evidence of fuel contamination or unusual levels of water content" within the fuel. Some small foreign bodies were detected in the fuel tanks, although it was later concluded that these had no bearing on the accident.

The Bulletin also stated that there was no evidence of wake turbulence or wind shear being the cause of the crash.

Probable cause
The MAAIB issued a full report on 5 September 2012. It concluded:
 * The investigation identified that the reduction in thrust was due to ingestion of birds in both engines.
 * The investigation identified the incorrect instrument systems were due to faulty anti-ice systems and build-up of ice crystals on pitot tubes.

The MAAIB also studied the crashworthiness of the aircraft during the accident sequence. It observed that the main attachment point for the main landing gear (MLG) was the rear spar of the aircraft's wing; because this spar also formed the rear wall of the main fuel tanks, the crash landing caused the tanks to rupture. It was recommended that Boeing redesign the landing gear attachment to reduce the likelihood of fuel loss in similar circumstances.

Similar incidents
Two years prior to the accident, Chiba Airlines Flight 943, an Airtram A330 en route from Bellard to Pirami also suffered from a faulty anti-ice, resulting in a necessary emergency landing in Kenije, although the aircraft did not suffer from a bird strike as well. Grete Fosberg, the lead investigator of MA3, also investigated this incident. In a press conference, Fosberg stated that "Both incidents were eerily similar. Luckily for one of the set of crews, there are less birds in Koranel than Gladomyr."

The fact that both Airtram and Boeing aircraft had had the same incident discounted the theory that Boeing was at fault for the accident.

In popular culture
The incident was reported on Aircraft Accident Investigation, a Television series centered around investigating plane crashes.