Gaps in ‘Double Six’ crash report, claims pilot’s son

 

Nizam Gandhi, the son of the pilot in the “Double Six” plane crash, has claimed that there were many discrepancies and loopholes in the federal investigation report of the 1976 incident.

He alleged that there were many incorrect assertions and findings listed in the report, which led to his father, Gandhi Nathan, being blamed for the crash.

“Does it make any sense that an incompetent pilot was allowed to fly, more so the chief minister and VIPs?” questioned Nizam, quoted by The Star.

The report’s investigating team's conclusion is that the most probable cause of the accident was the plane's centre of gravity being off balance.

Based on baggage recovered from the wreckage, the report estimated that there was a load of 325lbs (147.4kg) in the aft baggage compartment, exceeding the permissible load of 198lbs (89.8 kg).

Vital information

Thus, while the plane's calculated take-off weight was 435lbs (197.3kg) below the maximum limit, the centre of gravity was shifted too far to the rear.

According to Nizam, no pilots would have flown the plane until the problem was corrected if they were made aware of this issue.

“The pilot was not made aware of this. If the company had made the proper weight and balance available in the form of a load sheet to the pilot – which is their responsibility to issue to the flight commander – this would not have happened.

“This piece of vital information was not presented to the commander. If the pilot had known that his plane was not loaded properly, he would not have made the flight until the changes were done for a safe flight,” he said.

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READ MORE: Declassified: No sabotage in Double Six Crash, plane was off-balance

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The lack of balance had the tendency to push the aircraft’s nose position upward, which had to be compensated by adjusting the tailplane’s trim setting beyond what is typical, and pushing the flight controls forward, according to the report.

Meanwhile, the report also pointed fingers at Gandhi - whom it painted as having a poor track record.

Bigger responsibility

The report noted that the pilot's original flying log book was allegedly burnt in June 1969, and a replacement log book was stolen in November 1975.

For his final flight, he failed to prepare the load sheet (paperwork detailing the weight of an aircraft’s passengers, cargo, and distribution), the passenger manifest, and some of his flight plans.

It also stated that at the time of the accident, Gandhi was working 67 minutes past his 10-hour duty period.

However, Nizam said that his father should not have been solely blamed for the incident.

He said that the airline company has the bigger responsibility of making sure the loading of the aircraft was in accordance with the guidelines.

Near impossible

Nizam, who is a retired pilot himself, questioned why did the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) pass him and issue his father a licence if the latter was truly not qualified to fly.

He also questioned why the Australian Air Traffic Safety Board was not involved in the investigation as it is an independent body in charge of all transport safety.

Only two Australian Transport Department officials were in the seven-member investigation team.

Nizam said that it was near impossible to now verify the accuracy of the investigative methods employed and the integrity of the investigators, as the report was released almost five decades after the incident.

“Remember, this was in 1976. It’s a fair assumption that Malaysians would not have had the adequate expertise to conduct aviation crash investigation without Australia’s help,” he said, adding that investigators from the Australian Transport Department could not possibly have been independent since aircraft manufacturer GAF was government-owned.

He added the Australian report on the crash was also unlikely to provide much in terms of answers as it was done by its government.

On March 8, the High Court in Kota Kinabalu ordered the government to make the report public by June 8, but the issue looked set to drag on further when the government appealed the decision.

However, the situation changed when Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced on April 5 that the report will be declassified. - Mkini