Taiwan’s Aviation Safety Council (ASC) released its latest report on the fatal crash of a TransAsia Airways ATR on Thursday, revealing some potentially troubling problems with the country’s pilot training programs.
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A source with direct knowledge of the report told Reuters on Wednesday the working engine had been shut off.
TransAsia officials didn’t comment on the findings at a press conference Thursday but said that following the crash they had stepped up pilot training and brought in new safety experts, local media reported.
According to investigators, the Tapei harbor crash could have been averted, when one of the engines suddenly cut out upon take off, had one of the two pilots not turned off the wrong engine.
The recordings taken from the plane showed what appeared to be confusion in the cockpit as the captains attempted to regain control of the aircraft after one engine lost power. Out of the 58 people on board, only 15 survived this crash.
Although an irregularity was detected in the number two engine, it was recorded that the number one engine was shut down manually, the ASC report shows.
The report didn’t assign any blame for the crash.
Since the crash, Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration has put all 55 of TransAsia’s ATR pilots through oral proficiency tests on how to handle an aircraft during engine failure.
The pilot, a ex- Taiwan Air Force flyer, failed a flight simulator test in May 2014, but retook it and passed a month later, investors said.
“That is why the focus of the investigation has been narrowed to the pilots and pilot training at TransAsia“, the source added.
The lone failure was demoted in rank to vice captain from captain. The aviation authority of Taiwan said that the pilots mistakenly shut down the wrong engine due to the inaccurate information.
Jon Beatty, CEO of the US-based non-profit Flight Safety Foundation, has been invited to sit on TransAsia’s aviation committee and give guidance, and all 61 ATR aircraft pilots have passed an “appropriateness examination”, the company said in a statement.
Huang Jin-sun said: “There was some sound next to me”.
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A final report is expected in April 2016.
