Boeing 727 Went Down In July, More Than 70 People Fatally Injured

A report published Thursday which has been confirmed by the transportation ministry of the Democratic Republic of Congo cites pilot error as the likely cause of an accident in which more than 70 people lost their lives and several dozen more were injured.

B 727 File Photo

"The accident and its consequences were due to human error by the pilot, captain of the aircraft, who misjudged the weather conditions although he had not only been informed of them but flown through them," said an interim report from a government commission.

The aircraft, which belonged to Hewa Bora Airways (HBA), went down July 8th during a landing attempt in the town of Kisangani in Orientale province. The French news service AFP indicates that the report also says that the pilot of the airplane was given "erroneous" weather information for the airport. Controllers reportedly told the pilot it was "raining lightly," while the country's weather service said there were heavy rainstorms in the area at the time of the accident.

The interim report will be updated when the flight data and cockpit voice recorders are analyzed. HBA  had its licence to operate revoked by the ministry of transport in mid-July. All airlines from the DR Congo are prohibited from flying in European Union airspace due to frequent accidents.

FMI: http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/list_en.htm