Status: | Information verified through authorities or other official sources. |
Date: | Thursday 22 June 2000 |
Time: | 14:51 |
Type: | Xian Yunshuji Y-7-100C |
Operator: | Wuhan Airlines |
Registration: | B-3479 |
MSN: | 06708 |
First flight: | 1988 |
Total airframe hrs: | 13900 |
Cycles: | 11800 |
Engines: | 2 Harbin WJ-5A-1 |
Crew: | Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4 |
Passengers: | Fatalities: 38 / Occupants: 38 |
Total: | Fatalities: 42 / Occupants: 42 |
Ground casualties: | Fatalities: 7 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Aircraft fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
Location: | ca 25 km from Wuhan ( China)
|
Phase: | Approach (APR) |
Nature: | Domestic Scheduled Passenger |
Departure airport: | Enshi Airport (ENH/ZHES), China |
Destination airport: | Wuhan Tianhe International Airport (WUH/ZHHH), China |
Flightnumber: | 343 |
Narrative:Wuhan Airlines flight 343 departed Enshi for a flight to Wuhan. The aircraft entered an area of poor weather; rain and thunderstorm with associated windshear. The crew reportedly circled Wuhan for about 30 minutes to wait for the storm to pass. Wuhan's weather bureau recorded 451 thunderclaps in a 10-minute period as the plane circled. During the approach the first officer proposed to land at an alternate airport, but the captain decided to continue to Wuhan.
The plane was caught by windshear and crashed near Sitai Village, Yongfeng Township. Half of the plane plunged into a farmhouse and the other half came to rest on a dike of the Han River. Sitai is located about 20 to 30 kilometers (12 to 18 miles) from Wuhan. Seven workers who were installing generators on a vessel were killed when the plane hit.
The Yun-7 airliner had recorded 13,811 safe flight hours and completed 11,724 takeoffs and landings by the end of May, finishing two-thirds of its lifespan.
Classification:
Windshear/downdraft
Loss of control
Sources:
» China Central Television
» China Daily
» ICAO Adrep Summary 3/2001 (#40)
» Xinhua
Follow-up / safety actions
"In accordance with the requirements of the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China, all of Wuhan Airlines' six other Yun-7 planes will be suspended from service until the cause of the crash is determined" (Xinhua)
"Six Yun-7 airplanes belonging to Wuhan Airlines (...) resumed service July 16 (....), having passed a tight safety inspection and extra training of crew members." (Xinhua)
The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has ordered all Yunshuji and Tupolev aircraft to be taken out of scheduled passenger service by June 1, 2001.
Photos
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does
not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Enshi Airport to Wuhan Tianhe International Airport as the crow flies is 452 km (283 miles).
Accident location: Global; accuracy within tens or hundreds of kilometers.
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.