Accident Embraer EMB-110P1 Bandeirante P2-ALU,

ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 321975

Date:	Friday 30 March 2007
Time:	05:23
Type:	Embraer EMB-110P1 Bandeirante
Owner/operator:	Airlink
Registration:	P2-ALU
MSN:	110232
Year of manufacture:	1979
Total airframe hrs:	39962 hours
Cycles:	43756 flights
Engine model:	Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed, written off
Category:	Accident
Location:	27 km E of Kandrian - Papua New Guinea
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Cargo
Departure airport:	Port Moresby-Jackson Field (POM/AYPY)
Destination airport:	Hoskins Airport (HKN/AYHK)
Investigating agency:	PNG AIC
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
An Embraer 110 Bandeirante was destroyed when it impacted terrain near Kandrian, Papua New Guinea. Both pilots were killed.
The airplane, registered P2-ALU, departed Jacksons Airport, Port Moresby, at 04:02 on a freight run with newspapers and general cargo. The flight was due to land at Hoskins and Rabaul. An area forecast for the flight indicated that there were areas of rain and scattered cloud from 1500-5000 feet with deteriorating conditions forecast for the period between 0400-0800 hours.
Last radio contact with the flight was at 05:06 when the crew advised Port Moresby Flight Service that they were overhead Maran.
The airplane was declared missing when it failed to arrive at Hoskins and the wreckage was located later that day in a wooded area at an elevation of 238 m.
An investigation revealed that the right engine had been shut down and the fire extinguisher for the engine had been activated. However, there was no evidence of in-flight fire in the engine. The airplane descended below the en-route lowest safe altitude of 8,300 feet. At some point the undercarriage was extended. In total darkness, at 05:23, the airplane struck tree tops on gentle sloping terrain. The right wing broke off and the aircraft slid for another 300 m before coming to rest.

The reason the crew were unable to maintain level flight above the en-route lowest safe altitude with one engine inoperative, and subsequently impacted terrain, could not be determined.

Accident investigation: