2017 Myanmar Air Force Shaanxi Y-8 crash

On 7 June 2017, a Shaanxi Y-8 aircraft of the Myanmar Air Force crashed on a flight from Myeik to Yangon, killing all 122 people on board. Debris from the aircraft was found in the Andaman Sea, 118 nautical miles (218 km) off Dawei by Myanmar Navy ships. It is the deadliest aviation accident in Myanmar's history.

2017 Myanmar Air Force Shaanxi Y-8 Crash

A Shaanxi Y-8 of the Myanmar Air Force, similar to the aircraft involved in the crash
Accident
Date	7 June 2017
Summary	Stall due to atmospheric icing, wind updraft[1]
Site	Andaman Sea, near Dawei, Myanmar
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Shaanxi Y-8F-200
Operator	Myanmar Air Force
Registration	5820
Flight origin	Myeik Airport, Myeik
Destination	Yangon International Airport, Yangon
Occupants	122
Passengers	108
Crew	14
Fatalities	122
Survivors	0

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a Shaanxi Y-8F-200 of the Myanmar Air Force,[2] serial number 5820.[3] It had been delivered in March 2016 and had flown for over 800 hours at the time of the crash.[2]

Passengers and crew

Crew

The aircraft's captain was Lt-Col Nyein Chan and the co-pilots were Lt-Col Soe Thu Win and Maj Thant Zin Htay. The aircraft had 14 crew members.[4]

Passengers

108 military staff members and their families, including 15 children, were on board when the plane lost communication with Dawei airbase. Six officers and 29 other military personnel were on board.[4]

Disappearance

Myeik

Contact lost

Yangon

A map showing the locations of the Myeik Airport; Yangon International Airport, and where communication was lost.

The aircraft had departed from Myeik for Yangon at 13:06 local time (06:36 UTC).[5] At 13:35, communication was lost with the aircraft when it was 20 nautical miles (37 km) west of Dawei (13°48′N 98°02′E).[6] The aircraft was flying at 18,000 feet (5,500 m) at the time. A search and rescue operation was launched in the Andaman Sea.[2][7] An unidentified spokesman said that weather was not thought to be a factor in the aircraft's disappearance.[8] No mayday call had been received from the aircraft.[9]

Search

Nine Myanmar Navy ships,[10] and three military aircraft and helicopters were sent to assist in the search.[5][11] On 7 June, debris from the aircraft was reported to have been found 118 nautical miles (218 km) off Dawei by a Myanmar Navy ship.[2] On 8 June, it was reported that 29 bodies had been found.[12][13]

The wreckage was scattered over a wide area, indicating that the aircraft might have disintegrated in flight at altitude.[9] Storms in the area hindered the search. By 9 June, hopes of finding survivors were fading.[14] It was later reported that there were no survivors.[6] Instead, bodies and debris have been found scattered in the Andaman Sea, and some washed ashore.[15]

This was the deadliest aviation accident to occur in Myanmar,[16] surpassing the crash of a Fokker F27 Friendship 500 in 1987, which killed 49 people.[17]

On 15 June, a fishing boat helping with the search found the tail of the aircraft off Myinkhwar Aww Bay.[18] The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder were recovered on 18 June.[19]

Investigation and cause

Investigators found the pilot had lost control after entering thick storm cloud. Ice had formed on the wings and sudden crosswinds had led the plane to stall, state media say.

Although it was monsoon season in Myanmar (also called Burma), there were no reports of bad weather at the time. Communication with the flight was lost half an hour into the short, routine trip.

"The accident occurred due to loss of control after experiencing adverse weather that caused the plane to stall... resulting in a nosedive," state media said.

After studying black box data, investigators decided the crash was "not from any act of sabotage, explosion or engine failure".

The plane was flying from Myeik to Yangon and the debris was found in the sea off the coastal town of Dawei.

It remains unclear why the pilot flew into the storm, given that weather radar normally allows such clouds to be avoided.

References

1. "Myanmar plane: Bad weather blamed for Andaman Sea crash". BBC. Retrieved 19 July 2017.
2. "Debris Of Myanmar Plane With Over 100 On Board Found In Sea: Reports". NDTV. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
3. @MayWongCNA (7 June 2017). "(untitled)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
4. "Three Bodies, Debris Found in Search for Missing Military Plane". The Irrawaddy News Magazine. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
5. "Military aircraft with 120 people on board goes missing off Myanmar". Sky News. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
6. "5820 Accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
7. "Burma military plane disappears with more than 100 on board, army says". The Independent. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
8. "Debris found in hunt for missing Myanmar plane with 105 people on board". Metro. Associated Newspapers Ltd. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
9. "Myanmar plane: Debris and bodies found after search". BBC News Online. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
10. "Wreckage of missing Myanmar military plane found". CNN. 8 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
11. "Burmese military plane vanishes". BBC News Online. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
12. "Wreckage and bodies found in Myanmar missing plane search". Sky News. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
13. Tin Htet Paing (8 June 2017). "Crashed Military Aircraft Carried 9 Officers Transferring for Medical Treatment". 8 June 2017. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
14. Htay, Hla-Hla. "Storms hinder desperate search for Myanmar plane wreck". Yahoo News. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
15. Connor, Neil. "Children among the dead as bodies pulled from the sea after Myanmar plane crashes with 120 on board". The Telegraph. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
16. "ASN Aviation Safety Database". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
17. "Accident Description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
18. "Fishing boat hooks tail of crashed Myanmar plane". News24. 15 June 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
19. "Black box from crashed Myanmar army plane retrieved". Reuters. Retrieved 18 June 2017.