10 mysterious airplane crashes

10 mystery flights - aircraft crashes

A330 Air Bus

The final report, released at a news conference on 5 July 2012, stated that the aircraft crashed after temporary inconsistencies between the airspeed measurements  likely due to the aircraft’s pitot tubes being obstructed by ice crystals  caused the autopilot to disconnect, after which it stalled and could not recover.

Flight 990

Two weeks after the crash, based the two investigations done by the FBI and National Transportation Safety Board, it was found the crash was caused by deliberate action of the Relief First Officer Gameel Al-Batouti the Egypt Civil Aviation Authority found the crash was caused by mechanical failure of the airplane’s elevator control system.

Flight 571

Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, also known as the Andes flight was a chartered flight carrying 45 people, including a rugby union team, their friends, family and associates, that crashed in the Andes on 13 October 1972. More than a quarter of the passengers died in the crash and several others quickly succumbed to cold and injury. Of the 27 who were alive a few days after the accident, another eight were killed by an avalanche that swept over their shelter in the wreckage. The last survivors were rescued on 23 December 1972, more than two months after the crash.

BSAA Star Ariel

On 21 December 1949 the report of the inquiry was issued by the Chief Inspector of Accidents, Air Commodore Vernon Brown, in it he stated that “through lack of evidence due to no wreckage having been found, the cause of the accident is unknown.”

Flight 191

While maintenance issues and not the actual design of the aircraft were ultimately found responsible for the crash, the accident and subsequent grounding of all DC-10s by the Federal Aviation Administration added to an already unfavourable reputation of the DC-10 aircraft in the eyes of the public caused by several other incidents and accidents involving the type. The investigation also revealed other DC-10s with damage caused by the same faulty maintenance procedure.

BSAA Star Tiger

There was no evidence to suggest that radio failure or navigational error were responsible for the disaster. During the inquiry it was suggested that the Star Tiger had been sabotaged. It also claimed that Prime Minister Clement Attlee had ordered all inquiries into the incidents to be abandoned. In regard to the loss of the Star Tiger, a 2009 theory is that the loss of fuel could have contributed to the plane’s disaster.

Star Dust

The last Morse code message sent by Star Dust was “ETA SANTIAGO 17.45 HRS STENDEC”. The Chilean Air Force radio operator at the Santiago airport described this transmission as coming in “loud and clear” but very fast; as he did not recognize the last word, he requested clarification and heard “STENDEC” repeated twice in succession before contact with the aircraft was lost. In the absence of new clues, the meaning of STENDEC is likely to remain a mystery.

Flight 19

500 pages report was released few months later the plane went missing. This report was subsequently amended “cause unknown” by the Navy after Taylor’s mother contended that the Navy was unfairly blaming her son for the loss of five aircraft and 14 men, when the Navy had neither the bodies nor the aircraft as evidence.

UC 64 – Norseman

The disappearance of Miller was classified as missing in action. There are theories about what happened to Miller’s plane, including the suggestion that he might have been hit by Royal Air Force bombs after an abortive raid on Siegen, Germany. The logbooks of Royal Air Force navigator Fred Shaw recorded that he saw a small, single-engine monoplane spiraling out of control and crashing into the water. However, the actual story of what happened still remains a mystery.

Lockhead Electra 10E

Many researchers believe the Electra ran out of fuel and that Earhart and Noonan ditched at sea. Navigator and aeronautical engineer Elgen Long and his wife Marie K. Long devoted 35 years of exhaustive research to the “crash and sink” theory, which is the most widely accepted explanation for the disappearance. But what happened to her flight is still unknown.

References: Article , Plane Crash Info, Creately Infographics

www.transaustralianairlines.com

www.garnerbarro.com

www.ntas.com.au

Tropical cyclones explained

Tropical cyclones explained

Updated Mon 11 Nov 2013, 10:59am AEDT 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-02-01/tropical-cyclones-explained/1926870

INFOGRAPHIC: ABC News Online looks inside a cyclone. (Tim Madden)

MAP: Australia

How do cyclones form?

Cyclones form with a combination of very warm sea surface temperatures and the right type of outflow. Imagine a tall chimney where all the energy comes into the base and gets sucked up to the top.

A lot of energy gathers in one place, which often results in thunderstorms. In the right part of the ocean, the system can start circulating and release all that energy into the upper part of the atmosphere. The energy created from the thunderstorms can then add to the whole system and a tropical cyclone will form.

Cyclones rely on the circulation of the Earth, so they form away from the equator. The effect of the earth spinning helps the whole system rotate.

Sea temperatures of 26.5 degrees Celsius or above, along with a group of thunderstorms or pre-existing conditions, create ideal weather conditions for a cyclone to form.

Hurricane Katrina, which hit New Orleans in 2005, formed in sea temperatures around 32C or warmer. Temperatures of 31 to 32C were measured off the Western Australian coast in early 2011 as Cyclone Rusty formed.

The Madden-Julian Oscillation, a pattern that comes across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, can help spin cyclones along. A new high pressure cell with a new surge of winds can also contribute.

What is the eye of a cyclone like?

The pressure is very deep inside the eye of a cyclone and there are very light winds, which can give a false sense of security. There is also an eerie sensation, as 200 kilometre per hour winds can suddenly go calm. The winds can return to being just as strong as the cyclone continues to move over.

How destructive can cyclones be?

It depends how quickly they are moving and how deep they are. If you have ventral pressure that continues to be created within the tropical cyclone down to about 850 hectopascals, they can be incredibly destructive.

The storm surge is a massive wall of water, akin to a tsunami, that can come out of the cyclone. The damage is caused not just by flooding and strong winds, but also by the actual force of the water moving at very high speeds.

Cyclone Larry made landfall in far north Queensland in 2006 with wind gusts reaching 240 kilometres per hour, damaging more than half the homes in Innisfail and leaving a repair bill of $1.5 billion.

Category four Cyclone Tracy hit Darwin on Christmas Eve in 1974 with winds of up to 217 kilometres per hour and killed 71 people. Tracy caused more than $800 million in damage and destroyed about 80 per cent of homes.

Cyclone Yasi hit north Queensland in February 2011, with wind gusts reaching 285 kilometres per hour. It left a repair bill of about $800 million after destroying homes, shredding crops and smashing marinas and island resorts. One man died from asphyxiation while sheltering in his home.

PHOTO: Cyclone Yasi destroyed Greville Blank's home in Tullly Heads as it tore across north Queensland in 2011.(Dave Hunt: AAP)

Does Australia have more cyclones than any other country?

No. There are other parts of the world such as the Philippines, the Gulf of Mexico, Florida and New Orleans that would be subject to more. However, Australia seems to be getting more intense tropical cyclones since the 1970s. There has been a 100 per cent increase in categories four and five cyclones globally, but there has not been an increase in the number of cyclones.

The El Nino phenomenon, which occurs every three to seven years, usually sees a lower number of tropical cyclones, mostly confined to north-western WA. In contrast, La Nina years tend to see more cyclones, particularly around the northern and eastern Australian coast.

The coast between Broome and Exmouth in WA is the most cyclone-prone part of Australia's coastline, and the region most prone to severe cyclone impacts. Since 1910 there have been 49 cyclones that have caused gale-force winds at Port Hedland. They come about once every two years, and about half have an impact equivalent to a category 1 cyclone. The strongest wind gust recorded at Port Hedland during a cyclone is 208 km/h during Joan in 1975.

In general, cyclones near Australia have more erratic paths than cyclones in other parts of the world.

The Federal Government lists cyclone severity and potential damage they may cause as follows:

Category	Wind Gusts	Ocean Swells	Damage
1 Tropical Cyclone	Up to 125kph  (Gales)	1.2 - 1.6m	Slight damage. Trees and farmland damaged.
2 Tropical Cyclone	126 - 164kph (Destructive)	1.7 - 2.5m	Significant Damage. Minor house damage. Severe damage to signs and trees. Heavy damage to crops
3 Severe Tropical Cyclone	165 - 224kph (Very Destructive)	2.6 - 3.7m	Structural damage. House roofs and most likely power failures
4 Severe Tropical Cyclone	225 - 279kph (Very Destructive)	3.8 - 5.4m	Significant roofing and structural damage. Airborne debris, widespread power failure
5 Severe Tropical Cyclone	Winds above 280kph  (Very Destructive)	More than 5.5m	Almost total destruction and extremely dangerous. Houses flattened, cars over turned

PHOTO: Tropical cyclones tracked across Australia, 1970 to 2006. (Bureau of Meteorology)

Is climate change a contributor to that?

Climate change would suggest warmer sea temperatures in some parts of the world, and warm sea temperatures create ideal conditions for cyclones to form.

The weather bureau says it is difficult to sort out natural trends, such as those caused by El Nino events, from the effects of global warming. Some studies cited by the bureau have predicted more severe storms by the middle of the 21st century, and storms that extend further towards the north and south poles. One study predicts more long-lived cyclones off the eastern coast of Australia and fewer long-lived cyclones off WA.

How do cyclones differ from tornados, hurricanes and typhoons?

Hurricanes and typhoons are regional names for severe tropical cyclones, or storms with sustained winds of more than 118 kilometres per hour. The word "hurricane" is used for storms in the north Atlantic, the north-east Pacific, and the south-east Pacific. "Typhoons" are found in the north-west of the Pacific Ocean. Storm systems turn anti-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.

Tornados are born out of thunderstorms and are tiny by comparison - generally only about 100 metres across.

How are cyclone names chosen?

There is a committee at the World Meteorological Organisation in Geneva that decides the names many years in advance. They have a list of names for each region in the world that is responsible for identifying and classifying a tropical cyclone.

Importantly they never use the names of previous cyclones again in case some members of the public think Cyclone Tracy or Hurricane Katrina, for example, have come back. That is impossible, of course, but some may fear a cyclone with the same name might have the same impact.

Topics: cyclone, disasters-and-accidents, cyclones, weather, australia, qld

First posted Tue 1 Feb 2011, 3:46pm AEDT