You can contribute by submitting additional or updated information.
| Date: | Sunday 27 July 2003 |
| Time: | c. 14:39 LT |
| Type: |  Boeing 757-230 |
| Owner/operator: | Condor Flugdienst |
| Registration: | D-ABNS |
| MSN: | 26435/537 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1993 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Category: | Serious incident |
| Location: | Frankfurt International Airport (FRA/EDDF) -
 Germany
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Passenger - Scheduled |
| Departure airport: | Santa Cruz-La Palma Airport (SPC/GCLA) |
| Leipzig Airport (LEJ/EDDP) | |
| Investigating agency: | BFU |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities |
The aircraft, with 224 people on board, was en route from Las Palmas to Leipzig. During the flight, at the request of the cabin crew, the cockpit crew increased the temperature in the forward cabin area. Shortly afterward (around 11:00 UTC), a crew member noticed a burning smell in the forward galley area and informed the cockpit crew. An investigation of the galley for possible causes was unsuccessful. At that time, the aircraft was at flight level (FL) 360, near the en-route navigation point PATEL, close to the border between Spain and France over the Atlantic Ocean.
The cockpit crew adjusted the temperature back down, but this did not bring any improvement. A short time later, the smell of burning was also noticeable in the cockpit.
A check of the air conditioning system's displays showed a temperature increase within the system.
The crew then decided to work through the checklist provided for this case. After the cooling fans of the electrical equipment were switched off, the smell of burning noticeably decreased. After switching off the left air conditioning unit, the cabin air quality was almost restored to normal.
A faint electrical burning smell lingered in the cockpit. In consultation with the responsible air traffic control unit, the crew initiated a descent from FL 360 to FL 340. The captain and co-pilot took turns briefly using their oxygen masks. Some time later, with the aircraft now over Paris, the cockpit crew noticed the message "STBY INVERTER" on one of the screens (EICAS status page). They then opened the circuit breaker "INV PWR BAT" to disconnect the standby static inverter and decided to make an intermediate landing in Frankfurt.
During the approach to runway 25L, the center autopilot disengaged automatically upon receiving the localizer signal. Simultaneously, various warning messages appeared on the cockpit monitors ("YAW DAMPER," "RUDDER RATIO," "L IRS ON DC," and "SPOILER"), which then disappeared shortly afterward. The center autopilot could not be re-engaged, so the right autopilot was used initially. The captain flew the landing manually. At an altitude of approximately 500 ft above ground, the co-pilot noticed smoke emanating from the front of the cockpit. At approximately 300 ft above ground, a warning message appeared indicating insufficient cooling of the electrical equipment ("EQUIPMENT COOLING"). The captain continued the approach, landed at 2:39 p.m., and exited the runway via taxiway H. During taxiing, the smoke became increasingly dense. The captain stopped the aircraft on the taxiway. The captain and co-pilot used their breathing apparatus, and the co-pilot issued a distress call. Both then began the on-ground emergency procedure. After the captain, during the course of the procedure, determined that the cabin was also filling with dense smoke, the evacuation of all persons via the emergency slides was carried out.
Sources:
https://www.bfu-web.de/DE/Publikationen/Bulletins/2003/Bulletin07-2003.pdf?__blob=publicationFile
5X007-0/03
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/129389 (Photo)
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 24 June 2012 | RA-73018 | Vim-Avia Airlines | 0 | Novosibirsk |  |
unk |
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Sep-2024 08:14 | ASN | Added |
| 30-Oct-2025 21:35 | Justanormalperson | Updated [Time, Cn, Operator, Location, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, ] |
| 31-Oct-2025 06:42 | Justanormalperson | Updated [Registration, Source, ] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2025 Flight Safety Foundation