Post by Don Gieseke on May 21, 2018 13:17:07 GMT -6
Several ex-employees blame Global Air for Cubana Air crash
The crash of the Cubana Air’s airliner XA-UHZ on May 18, 2018, in Havana resulted in deaths of 110 victims, leaving three survivors who are now being treated for heavy injuries. The cockpit voice recorder of the aircraft have been recovered and the investigation has started to identify what caused the accident.
Soon after taking off from Jose Marti International Airport (MAHA) in Havana, Cuba, the Boeing 737-200 lost height and turned sharply right before crashing, according to eyewitnesses. Flight 972 was on a domestic route to Holguin, in eastern Cuba.
The plane was operated by the national carrier Cubana de Aviacion. However, it was wet-leased from the Mexican private company Global Air, along with its flight crew. It was in service since 1979 and the last maintenance revision was made in November 2017.
The victims were identified as 99 Cuban passengers, six Mexican crew members, two Sahrawi residing in Cuba and three tourists including a Mexican and a couple from Argentina, according to the Cuban Minister of Transportation Adel Yzquierdo. The three survivors - all in critical condition - are reportedly Cuban women, according to local media Juventud Rebelde.
A former pilot of the company Global Air, Marco Aurelio Hernandez, blames irregularities in the maintenance for the crash of the airliner, Mexican newspaper Milenio reports. Hernandez worked for Global Air between 2005 and 2013. During the time, he flew three different Boeing 737s, including the 39 years old one that crashed. Hernandez also worked for two months together with Jorge Luis Nunez - the captain of the fatal flight 972 - whom he described as “a very capable partner, very experienced and serious”.
In October 2013, Hernandez filed a complaint against his former employer Global Air. He reported flying with flat tires, nightflying without radar and pointed at the lack of spare parts for aircraft repairs.
Following his complaint, Global Air was fined $1 million by the Mexican National Civil Aviation Authority, after irregularities were found during aircraft inspection. However, the airline maintained operations.
Another retired pilot, who used to work for Cubana de Aviacion, claims in a Facebook post that reliability of Global Air came into question approximately 8 years ago. Back then, one of its planes dropped off radar over Santa Clara, Cuba. A captain and its co-pilot were suspended for “serious technical knowledge issues” and Cubana was advised by authorities to discontinue renting aircraft from the Mexican airline..
In May 2017, the Boeing XA-UHZ was banned from Guyana airspace after it was reported that the crew was overloading it with luggage. Guyanese Civil Aviation Director Egbert Field told the Associated Press that inspectors even found suitcases stocked in the toilet cubicle. Cuban citizens do not require a visa to travel to Guyana. It is common practice that they buy goods in the small Southern America country to cope with the trade sanctions imposed on Cuba.
Boeing informed that one of its technical teams was “ready to assist as permitted under U.S. law and at the direction of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and Cuban authorities”. The Cuban government accepted the offer.
The Cuban Ministry of Transport announced that one of the black boxes, containing the cockpit voice recorder, was retrieved in “good condition”. The flight data will now be analyzed. The government of Cuba declared two days of national mourning between May 18 and May 20, 2018.
From Aero Time News Hub
The crash of the Cubana Air’s airliner XA-UHZ on May 18, 2018, in Havana resulted in deaths of 110 victims, leaving three survivors who are now being treated for heavy injuries. The cockpit voice recorder of the aircraft have been recovered and the investigation has started to identify what caused the accident.
Soon after taking off from Jose Marti International Airport (MAHA) in Havana, Cuba, the Boeing 737-200 lost height and turned sharply right before crashing, according to eyewitnesses. Flight 972 was on a domestic route to Holguin, in eastern Cuba.
The plane was operated by the national carrier Cubana de Aviacion. However, it was wet-leased from the Mexican private company Global Air, along with its flight crew. It was in service since 1979 and the last maintenance revision was made in November 2017.
The victims were identified as 99 Cuban passengers, six Mexican crew members, two Sahrawi residing in Cuba and three tourists including a Mexican and a couple from Argentina, according to the Cuban Minister of Transportation Adel Yzquierdo. The three survivors - all in critical condition - are reportedly Cuban women, according to local media Juventud Rebelde.
A former pilot of the company Global Air, Marco Aurelio Hernandez, blames irregularities in the maintenance for the crash of the airliner, Mexican newspaper Milenio reports. Hernandez worked for Global Air between 2005 and 2013. During the time, he flew three different Boeing 737s, including the 39 years old one that crashed. Hernandez also worked for two months together with Jorge Luis Nunez - the captain of the fatal flight 972 - whom he described as “a very capable partner, very experienced and serious”.
In October 2013, Hernandez filed a complaint against his former employer Global Air. He reported flying with flat tires, nightflying without radar and pointed at the lack of spare parts for aircraft repairs.
Following his complaint, Global Air was fined $1 million by the Mexican National Civil Aviation Authority, after irregularities were found during aircraft inspection. However, the airline maintained operations.
Another retired pilot, who used to work for Cubana de Aviacion, claims in a Facebook post that reliability of Global Air came into question approximately 8 years ago. Back then, one of its planes dropped off radar over Santa Clara, Cuba. A captain and its co-pilot were suspended for “serious technical knowledge issues” and Cubana was advised by authorities to discontinue renting aircraft from the Mexican airline..
In May 2017, the Boeing XA-UHZ was banned from Guyana airspace after it was reported that the crew was overloading it with luggage. Guyanese Civil Aviation Director Egbert Field told the Associated Press that inspectors even found suitcases stocked in the toilet cubicle. Cuban citizens do not require a visa to travel to Guyana. It is common practice that they buy goods in the small Southern America country to cope with the trade sanctions imposed on Cuba.
Boeing informed that one of its technical teams was “ready to assist as permitted under U.S. law and at the direction of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and Cuban authorities”. The Cuban government accepted the offer.
The Cuban Ministry of Transport announced that one of the black boxes, containing the cockpit voice recorder, was retrieved in “good condition”. The flight data will now be analyzed. The government of Cuba declared two days of national mourning between May 18 and May 20, 2018.
From Aero Time News Hub