The National Transportation Safety Board based in Washington DC is an independent federal agency which is responsible for investigation of transportation accidents. The agency reports and investigates on highway crashes, marine accidents, hazardous materials safety, aviation accidents, pipeline incidents and railroad accidents (Dismukes, 2017).
According to NTSB, one major cause of this accident could be human performance. In 2002 the total number of aviation accidents was 1,715 and 345 fatalities. Minor injuries were 448, 297 serious injuries and 581 fatalities. The number had increased from 6% in comparison to 3% of fatalities in year 2001.Majority of aircraft accidents are mainly caused by human error. This is attributed mainly due to lack of vigilance, lack of conscientiousness, lack of skill and inadequate training. Of the 1,397 aircraft accidents in 2002 were as a result of human performance. 70% was a factor of aircraft handling and control, 37% planning and decision making, 11% related to use of aircraft equipment and 40% related to personnel qualification. According to NTSB, the 19 major US aircraft accidents since 1991 to 2000 were as a result of flight crew error (Dismukes, 2017). These factors could have contributed to the Kegworth Air plane crash.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Other than human performance, this accident could also have been caused by hazards posed by weather. 10% of aircrafts accidents are caused by bad weather. Wind conditions, icing, precipitation and convective weather have a major effect on aircraft. Wind effects such as tailwind, crosswind and gusts are environmental factors which could shows a high percentage of resulting to the accident. In addition, fog, clouds and low ceilings could have caused reduced visibility thus resulting to the aircraft accident ( Erjavac , 2018).
Equipment failures could have been the cause of the accident. According to NTSB, 20% of aircraft accidents are as a result of equipment failures. The aircraft’s engine could have suffered from catastrophic failures. About 10% of air accidents are as a result of sabotage. The aircraft could have been attacked by saboteurs. Malcontents penetrate the security and end up bringing an aircraft down. I am in total agreement with the causes given by NTSB because an aircraft cannot crash because of a single issue. For example, a technical problem will result to pilots mishandling the aircraft which could subsequently trigger crushing.
Pilot fatigue is one of the biggest threats to air safety (Jain, 2019). This could have been the underlying cause of the accident. Eye witnesses say they saw the plane moving slowly through the air before crushing. Tiredness could have resulted to the pilot’s failure to respond to cockpit warnings of the plane’s slow movement. Therefore, the crew could have failed to respond quickly to the plane’s loss of speed.
To prevent aircraft accidents, if the aircraft experiences a mechanical issue such as an Aerodynamic stall the pilot should direct the aircraft’s nose down thus lowering the angle of attack. This establishes lift giving the pilot a chance to control a roll. Similarly, the pilot can engage “envelope protection”. Also, in icing conditions, caravans should be prohibited from flying to prevent loss-of-control accidents. Also, the flight crew should always maintain visual contact to prevent missed approach ( Vuorio, 2018).
To prevent sabotage, security should be increased including a cockpit door system which isolates pilots from passengers. Also, police officers should be allowed to fly for free so as to ensure security. Similarly, one plainclothes federal sky marshal should be made available on every flight. Finally, the NTSB should ensure that pilots are assertive, initiative, unselfish and always portray professionalism traits.
References
Vuorio, A., Budowle, B., Sajantila, A., Laukkala, T., Junttila, I., Kravik, S., & Griffiths, R. (2018). Duty of Notification and Aviation Safety—A Study of Fatal Aviation Accidents in the United States in 2015. International journal of environmental research and public health , 15 (6), 1258.
Erjavac, A. J., Iammartino, R., & Fossaceca, J. M. (2018). Evaluation of preconditions affecting symptomatic human error in general aviation and air carrier aviation accidents. Reliability Engineering & System Safety , 178 , 156-163.
Jain, H., & Vishwas, K. (2019). Review of the Major Causes of Aviation Fatal Accidents under AIB Investigation from 2008-2018 (No. 2019-01-1356). SAE Technical Paper.
Dismukes, R. K., Berman, B. A., & Loukopoulos, L. (2017). The limits of expertise: Rethinking pilot error and the causes of airline accidents . Routledge.
