October 4, 1992
Amsterdam, Netherlands
El Al, Flight 1862
Boeing B-747-258F
4X-AXG
Shortly after taking off from Schiphol Airport, while climbing through 6,500 feet, the No. 3 engine separated with its pylon from the aircraft and damaged the leading edge of the right wing. The No. 3 engine separated in such a way that the No. 4 engine and pylon also separated from the wing. During an attempted return to the airport, the aircraft crashed into a 11 story building in the Bijlmermeer residential district. The design and certification of the B-747 pylon was found to be inadequate to provide the required level of safety. The system to ensure structural integrity by inspection failed. The separation of the No. 3 engine was initiated by fatigue (corrosion) in the inboard midspar fuse pin. This led to loss of the No. 4 engine and pylon and damage to several systems which ultimately led to loss of control of the aircraft.
El Al 1862: | El Al one eight six two, Mayday! Mayday! We have an emergency. |
CONTROLLER: | El Al one eight six two, roger. Break, KLM 237, turn left heading 090. |
CONTROLLER: | One eight six two, do you wish to return to Schiphol? |
El Al 1862: | Affirmative, Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! |
CONTROLLER: | Turn right heading two six zero, field eh... behind you, eh.... in your - to the west, eh ....distance one eight miles. |
El Al 1862: | Roger, we have fire on engine number three, we have fire on engine number three. |
CONTROLLER: | Roger, heading two seven zero for downwind. |
El Al 1862: | Two seven zero downwind. |
El Al 1862: | El Al one eight six two, lost number three and number four engine, number three and number four engine |
CONTROLLER: | Roger, one eight six two. |
LATER IN RECORDING | |
CONTROLLER: | El Al one eight six two, continue descent one thousand five hundred feet...one thousand five hundred. |
El Al 1862: | Fifteen hundred, and we have a controlling problem. |
CONTROLLER: | You have a controlling problem as well, roger. |
El Al 1862: | [In the background, in Hebrew] - Raise all the flaps, all the flaps raise. |
El Al 1862: | [In the background] - Ohhhhh! |
El Al 1862: | [In the background, in Hebrew] - Lower the gear. |
El Al 1862: | Going down...eh...one eight six two, going down, going down, copied going down. |
FEMALE CONTROLLER: | [In Dutch] - It has happened. |
CONTROLLER: | One eight six two, your heading, |
FEMALE CONTROLLER | [In Dutch] Forget it Henk, (controller’s name), he crashed. |
CONTROLLER: | [In Dutch] - Do you see it? |
FEMALE CONTROLLER: | [In Dutch] - I see one big fire above the city. |
CONTROLLER: | [In Dutch] - Jesus, just at Whisky Papa Yosite (an intersection over a heavily populated area) |