Commission Takes Testimony; New Developments

A Boeing 737 aircraft of the Cypriot airline Helios Airways crashed at Grammatikos near Athens on August 14th, killing the 121 passengers and crew aboard the machine.

Akrivos Tsolakis, chairman of Greece's Investigating Commission of Air Accidents and Incidents, indicated last week in Cyprus that the commission has reached a tentative conclusion and is now filling in the blanks.

"We know where we are going and I can say that we know where we will end," the executive told reporters at Larnaca Airport. He was visiting Cyprus to take testimony from 20 people, 14 of whom had already given initial statements.

Among his interviews were the pilots' aviation medical examiners, Helios workers at Larnaca, air traffic controllers of the Department of Civil Aviation, and workers at several airport businesses that dealt with Helios or serviced its aircraft in some way.

While he was doing that, four Commission experts were at Boeing Commercial Airplane Company's plant in Washington, examining components of the accident machine that had been taken to Seattle for analysis by Boeing experts.

One of the last pieces of the puzzle, assuming nothing changed during Tsolakis's visit to Cyprus, is the toxicology reports on the crash victims. These reports have been promised to the Commission by November 10th.

In the meantime, Tsolakis has received unsolicited advice from an American law firm, apparently advancing causation theories and offering its advice. The Greek official bristled at what he called the "unacceptable" letter that "suggested how we should do our job." He sent back a communication explaining the legal provisions under which the Commission operates. (Greek law in this matter is similar to ICAO standard and provides for the independence of the commission).

Tsolakis has also asked relatives of crash victims to wait for the official investigation before filing suit. It's unknown whether the American law firm has clients or is just soliciting at this point.

Akrivos Tsolakis has had a hard time keeping the lid on his commission. 
The Greek press on the mainland and on Cyprus has been clamoring for information, and the press has been full of leaks and rumors. But the problem is that both the leaks and rumors are identified as leaks, so, until the Commission speaks, press reports must be approached with caution.

The most recent claimed "leak" suggests that the aircraft did not depressurize -- it was never pressurized in the first place. A vital cabin pressure valve's control was left, according to this claim, in manual mode. Normally pressure valves are under automatic control. If a valve was open and under manual control, it would have to have been closed manually for the aircraft to be pressurized. But this is not routine procedure.

You could call that a leak about a leak. Is it a real leak, or more speculation? It looks like we'll have a definitive answer before very long.

FMI: www.flyhelios.com