Safety improvements from three aviation disasters: Aloha, American, and British Airways flights

¶ … Manufacturing as a Result of Aviation Disasters

In aviation the study of different accidents helps to provide insights as to why a crash or a series of crashes are occurring with a particular airplane. This information can then be used by investigators to identify the various flaws in a particular make and model. At which point, increased safety guidelines can be updated within the industry, most commonly issued as an Airworthiness Directive (AD) or Service Bulletin (SB). These different directives / guidelines are designed to help prevent the most common problems that contributed to airplane disasters. To fully understand how accidents have been used to improve safety standards requires examining three different airplane crashes to include: Aloha Airlines flight 243, American Airlines flight 587 and British Overseas Airways flight 781. Where, the main causes of the accident, the contributing factors, the recommendations made by investigators and the changes to the industry because of what was under covered; will highlight how air safety standards improved. It is through examining these different elements in the backdrop of the three different accidents; that will provide the greatest insights, as to how investigators are able to learn from the issues that contributed to all of the different accidents.

Aloha Airlines Flight 243

On April 28, 1988, Aloha Airlines flight 243 was taking off from Hilo, Hawaii bound for Honolulu. Where, the Boeing 737 would encounter a rupture; on the roof of the left side of the aircraft, at 24,000 feet. This would tear a large hole within the first class cabin of the plane, as it the crew was forced to make an emergency landing in Maui. During the decent, the plan lost cabin pressure because of the large hole that was running from behind the cockpit of the aircraft into the back of the first class cabin. The main causes of the accident were a weak seal at the manufacturer, with the epoxy used to hold the outer metal strips together subject to the elements of a tropical climate near the ocean (humid / salty conditions). The high amounts of moisture in the air and the salt would work its way through the epoxy over the course of time. This would eat away at the bolts and the metal of the aircraft, as the increased water / salt would cause oxidation to occur. A second cause was the age of the aircraft, where the plane was 19 years old, having far more take offs and landings at (89,090) than the plane was originally designed for (75,000). These two factors are important because the constant compression and decompression that was occurring would place pressure on the structure of the aircraft. ("Aloha Airline Flight 243," 1988)

The contributing factors to the accident would be the fact that Maui did not have any kind of emergency disaster plan. This is problematic because it would cause the severity of the incident to be more extreme, as the overall role of first responders was conflicting. Then, there were questions as to how well the ground crew would inspect the body of the aircraft for cracks. ("Aloha Airline Flight 243," 1988)

The investigators made a number of different recommendations the most notable would include: better training of airline maintenance personnel in identifying structural weaknesses on the aircraft, develop a corrosion control program for the airlines, revise national safety inspection program teams / the organization and evaluate FAA monitoring programs. Investigators issued an AD to all airlines, where they were required have the cables of the Boeing 737 checked for corrosion. ("Aloha Airline Flight 243," 1988)

The accident brought about significant changes to airline industry. This is because it would highlight an issue that was facing a number of different airlines around the country (aging fleets). As a result, Congress passed the Aviation Safety and Research Act of 1988. This commands the FAA to spend 15% of their budget investigating issues surrounding an aging fleet / other errors that contribute to accident to include: the maintenance of an older fleet, human factors, fire safety issues and incidents involving air traffic control. This is significant because it forced the agency to examine what causes aircraft disasters, so that they can be prevented in the future. As a result, the accident has helped improve the age and safety of fleet within airline industry. ("Aviation Safety Research Act," 2010)

British Overseas Airways Flight 781

On January 10, 1954, British Overseas Airways flight 781 took off from Rome and was destined for London's Heathrow Airport. During the flight, the De Havilland Comet had sudden explosion that caused a total decompression of the cabin, as the plane would crash into the Mediterranean Sea. The subsequent investigation revealed that the two main causes were: a sharp reduction in cabin pressure caused by the fiberglass window. This was because the manufacturer had used punch hole rivets to secure the windows instead of epoxy. The problem with using punch hole rivets is: that they leave tiny air pockets. Over the course of time, the pockets will become more severe, where it means that at some point the support for the windows will weaken. ("BOAC Flight 781," 2005)

The contributing factors of the accident were the fact that the design of windows would highlight a significant weakness within the cabin. This is because the shape would not allow for the maximum amount of support of the cabin at higher altitudes. As a result, this would help contribute to the crash by providing weakened support because the widows were square. ("BOAC Flight 781," 2005)

Investigators recommended that the airplane manufacturers redesign the windows used on all airplanes. They also recommended that the use of punch hole rivets near the windows, to be replaced with the use of epoxy or drill riveting, to prevent air pockets from developing near the cabin. ("BOAC Flight 781," 2005)

The accident changed the industry, by allowing for window designs that were more rounded. This is significant because such a design would provide greater support to the cabin during flight. As a result, these windows have become standard in all jet and propeller driven aircraft. What this shows is that the lessons learned from the accident, mainly the windows and the rivets were used to improve the overall quality of designs of aircraft for the better. ("BOAC Flight 781," 2005)

Clearly, the three different incidents highlight specific issues that helped contribute to each accident. Where, all of them have helped improve designs, training and inspections standards. This is important because investigators can use this information to improve the overall quality of safety standards within the industry. At which point, the overall amounts of accidents will decrease, because the same mistakes are not constantly being repeated.