City plane crash due to fuel pump defect

A FUEL pump problem has been identified as the cause of a plane crash in which two French and two American tourists were injured in Windhoek in May last year.

The official report on the investigation of the crash, which took place shortly after a Cessna 210 aircraft carrying five occupants had taken off from Windhoek’s Eros Airport on the morning on May 9 last year, was released by the Ministry of Works and Transport yesterday.In the report, compiled by Ericksson Nengola, the Director of Aircraft Accident Investigations in the Ministry, a defect in the fuel pump of the aircraft is pinpointed as the key factor that led to the crash. The four visitors to Namibia and a 22-year-old South African pilot were supposed to be flying from Eros Airport to Mokuti Lodge near the Etosha National Park when their Cessna 210 aeroplane crashed just after take-off.The aircraft, which belonged to Scenic Air, was between 150 and 200 feet above the ground when the pilot noticed that the plane’s engine was not developing enough power to sustain the flight, it is stated in the report.When the pilot noticed that the aircraft was beginning to lose height, he decided to carry out an emergency landing. He chose an open gravel area at TransNamib’s Gammams Training Centre north of the airport to carry out the landing.The landing did not turn out as planned, though, as the aircraft hit a treetop and a power line and made a crash landing.The pilot and three of the passengers were lightly injured. The fourth passenger sustained serious injuries. The plane had gone through its annual inspection only the day before the crash.As part of the investigation, the engine of the aircraft was tested by being started and being run at various power settings for a considerable period of time, it is stated in the report. No defects were found with the engine, and no abnormalities were found either when the engine was stripped for further detailed investigations, the report indicates.When the fuel of the aircraft was analysed, no water or other contamination was detected either.It was only when the fuel pump of the aeroplane was inspected in South Africa that it was noticed that there was a defect in the pump that created a gap that allowed fuel to pass through, it is recorded in the report. This defect resulted in a substantial loss of fuel pressure and a subsequent loss of fuel flow during take-off and the initial climb of the aircraft, it is reported.