Airplane And Engines Were Beyond Service Life

Ugandan authorities have revealed that the navigator aboard a Russian Ilyushin which went down in Lake Victoria last year had a forged license, and that the airplane and its engines were beyond their normal service life.

The Ugandan site New Vision reports that the Ukrainian national who was the navigator on the flight was using the First Class Navigator's License that was issued to another person in 1996. The investigators said it appeared to Ukrainian authorities that some elements of the license, including the photograph, had been altered.

All 11 people aboard were killed when the plane went down on a flight to deliver relief supplies to the African Peace Keeping mission in Mogadishu.

The report indicates that the Ugandan Civil Aviation Authority does not have sufficient personnel to oversee aircraft built by the former Soviet Union, and there are other issues involved as well. “With regards to such aircraft, CAA experiences difficulties ascertaining the authenticity of the submitted documents,” said the report.

“Also, CAA encounters difficulties with the interpretation and understanding of the aircraft manuals. Furthermore, there are external forces that influence the CAA approval process.”

There was no distress call from the aircraft prior to the accident. Ground radar was reportedly out of service for maintenance. The report indicated that it could not establish any probable cause because much of the wreckage was not recovered, nor were the flight data or cockpit voice recorders. But among the possibilities cited in the report are any one or a combination of factors including loss of engine power, crew impairment, malfunctioning flight controls, inattentiveness to altitude, or improper airmanship.

FMI: www.caa.co.ug