THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Two major contradictory findings during the inspection of the Air India Express aircraft, which crashed in Kozhikode last week, have left experts perplexed.
While the Air India Express plane's cockpit throttle was found to be in the forward position, the spoilers on the wings were partially open. The throttle's forward position indicates the aircraft could have been trying to take off while the position of the spoilers indicates the aircraft was in a braking mode when the accident happened.
Once the engine is put into forward throttle position, the wing spoilers close automatically. The spoilers, which are opened fully when an aircraft touches the runway, are used to slow down the aircraft.
"In the case of the aircraft that met with the accident, the cockpit throttle was in the forward position and, at the same time, the spoilers on the wings were partially open. Chances are there that rescue workers might have held on to various cockpit devices. But one can't change the position of cockpit throttle as it gets jammed in hydraulic pressure soon after the accident," said an Airports Authority of India official. Whether the impact of the crash led to the opening of the spoilers is another question.
Only the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder (black box) retrieved from the accident site can answer these questions. The airport officials also confirmed that the cockpit throttle was in the forward position while the spoiler flaps were also partially opened. They also said the air traffic control department at the airport did not receive any emergency request or distress signal from the cockpit to lift the aircraft and go around.
The New Indian Express had reported that the speed of the aircraft while approaching the runway was beyond the permissible speed limit of 120-140 knots. As many as 18 people, including two pilots, were killed when the Air India Express Boeing 737 carrying 191 passengers overshot the runway and plunged into a road 35 feet below the tabletop runway at the Kozhikode airport.