obongtunji: I couldn't hold myself from crying as I type this. So the Pilot really battled with the plane, I wonder how the passengers will be reacting moment before the crash, looking at death knocking. May their soul rest in peace.......lop

muffins99:

As you said, your comment is one of ignorance. Planes are machines and anything can go wrong, including dual engine failure. All you need is a series of events which on their own will not result in major problems but when combined will result in devastating consequences. Although very rare, dual engine failure can happen if the jet runs out of fuel, the pipes are blocked or the fuel pump is faulty. However, as Jakumo said, the plane can continue to fly (or glide) albeit at slower speed and lower altitude, depending on the glide ratio e.g for every mile of altitude, it can glide x amount of miles/km. The only thing a plane needs to fly is airspeed but without engines, speed is usually maintained at lower altitude so in this case, the plane will have descended to maintain speed and also to line up with the runway. The plane's glide ratio probably fell short of the runway and it's uunfortunate that there were tall buildings in the area because otherwise, the plane could have landed on a flat piece of land, probably the worst result is that the tires will snap, the plane skids and passangers are thrown around and will be badly bruised.

floriana: Is Jakumo an aviator, an aeronautics engineer or what?

Abdul Adam56: It has happened what are they confirmin?Dat is how God want it,may there soul rest in peace.

youngies: "Good day!” These were the last two words the courageous pilot told air traffic controllers before the Dana Air flight 0992 crashed into a residential building in Iju-Ishaga, Lagos, killing all the 153 people on board and 10 people on ground on Sunday, June 3, 2012.

The transcription of the last conversation between the air traffic controller and the crew revealed that the pilots did everything to land the aircraft safely on Runway 18 Right of the Murtala Muhammed Airport.

The recording, a copy of which was obtained exclusively from a top official of the Ministry of Aviation on Monday by our correspondent, showed that the flight crew did not lose hope even up till the last second before the aircraft crashed.

The crew had believed the aircraft would make it to Runway 18R of the Lagos airport.

The transcription revealed that the aircraft had indeed lost its two engines, shortly after which the pilot declared an emergency.

This revelation is, however, contrary to the view of Dana Air’s Director of Flight Operations, Captain Oscar Wason, who had said it would be premature to conclude that aircraft lost its two engines.

Wason claimed that there was nothing to indicate that the pilot told the air traffic controller that the two engines of the aircraft had been lost.

The transcription revealed that the pilot told the controller he had “dual engine failure.”

Apart from having dual engine failure, the pilot also told the air traffic controller that he had “negative response from the throttle.”

Overall, the transcription revealed that the airplane was in a very devastating condition.

This explains why it was said to have descended very fast shortly after the pilot declared emergency, saying, “May Day, May Day”

Air traffic controllers, who spoke to our correspondent under condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to comment on the matter, confirmed that the aircraft descended very fast.

The video recording of the radar also revealed that the aircraft pilot declared emergency at about 5,000 feet above the sea level.

It further revealed that the ill-fated Boeing McDonell Douglass-83 plane disappeared from the radar at about 800 feet above the sea level.

The recording, however, confirmed Wason’s claim that the pilot of the ill-fated plane never spoke with air traffic controllers in the Control Tower.

Rather, the pilot spoke with ATCs in the radar control room of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, which is also located at the airport.

The recording also revealed that the pilot was handed over to the ATCs in the Control Tower, but he never had a chance to speak with them before the crash.
From the recording, the last words the pilot told the radar control unit was, “1181, good day,” in response to some information he had received from the ATC on duty.

The ATC had told him to contact the Control Tower on frequency 1181. The pilot, who had declared emergency to the ATCs in the radar control room, replied, “1181 good day,” meaning he had got the information.

According to ATCs, “good day” is the usual parlance they and pilots use in signing off from a conversation.

From his accent, it was obvious he was the Indian co-pilot, Mr. Mahendra Roathore, who spoke with the ATCs during the last minutes of the tragic flight.

The pilot, an American, Captain Peter Waxtan, was said to have been busy, struggling to keep the aircraft in flight, while the co-pilot spoke with the ATCs.

Below is the word-for-word account of the conversation between the crew of the ill-fated plane and the ATC on duty.

Co-pilot: “Lagos Tower, Dana code 0992!”

ATC: “Dana Code 0992, this is Lagos radar, go ahead!”

Co-pilot: “May Day! May Day! May Day! Dana code 0992 Five November Romeo Alpha Mike! (5N-RAM) dual engine failure!”

ATC: “Dana Code 0992, read me?”

Co-pilot: “I read you five by five! Dual engine failure! Negative response from throttle! Requesting for direct straight approach!”

ATC: “Alright, position it one mile to touch down, Runway 18R! Contact tower now on 1181!”

Co-pilot: “1181 Good day!”

Unfortunately, the crew never spoke with the control tower. The aircraft crashed into the residential building a few seconds after this discussion.

More: http://channelkoos.com/index.php/news/1753-dana-air-pilots-last-conversations-with-air-traffic-controller

Jakumo: Dual engine failure does indeed mean BOTH engines "flamed out", or stopped running, as the aircraft descended through 5 thousand feet, about a mile above ground. Aircraft of the MD80 family are notorious for being overly sensitive to excessive throttle inputs, such as "fire-walling" the levers to full 95% N1 throttle power so much as a moment too early during takeoff, which could EASILY trigger dual compressor stall and engine failure at dangerously low altitudes. Compounding that flaw, the tail-heavy nature of all jets with tail-mounted engines greatly reduces their un-powered glide capabilities, and they will drop like a brick from the sky at airspeeds still capable of keeping aloft jets with wing-mounted engines.

In the catastrophic instance of simultaneous left and right engine failures , the jet becomes an un-powered glider, that can ONLY then make a safe landing IF the airport runway lies within range of the very steep descent path that will be taken by the pilot, so as to maintain airspeed and prevent a stall. If the destination airport lies BEYOND the distance that the un-powered jet can glide, there will be a crash at some point before the runway threshold, the severity of which will vary with the terrain encountered, the speed at impact, and the attitude of the aircraft at impact.

buzugee: thats how i know the pilot was not nigerian. if the pilot was nigerian his last words to air traffick control will be ' mogbeooooooooooooo egbamiiiiiiiiii ooooooooooooooo motikerannnnnnnnn yeapaaaaaaaaaaripaaaaaaa. mokuoooooooooo heleppppp me pleaseeeee ejoooooooooooo '

they are all in a better place at rest ( ecclesiastes 12 vs 7 )

buzugee: thats how i know the pilot was not nigerian. if the pilot was nigerian his last words to air traffick control will be ' mogbeooooooooooooo egbamiiiiiiiiii ooooooooooooooo motikerannnnnnnnn yeapaaaaaaaaaaripaaaaaaa. mokuoooooooooo heleppppp me pleaseeeee ejoooooooooooo '

they are all in a better place at rest ( ecclesiastes 12 vs 7 )

buzugee: thats how i know the pilot was not nigerian. if the pilot was nigerian his last words to air traffick control will be ' mogbeooooooooooooo egbamiiiiiiiiii ooooooooooooooo motikerannnnnnnnn yeapaaaaaaaaaaripaaaaaaa. mokuoooooooooo heleppppp me pleaseeeee ejoooooooooooo '

they are all in a better place at rest ( ecclesiastes 12 vs 7 )

zylla: Some questions need to be asked: Why is it that it was the radar ATC that the pilot could talk to and why not the control tower's ATC?
I hope we get some answers to this and other pertinent questions...

buzugee: thats how i know the pilot was not nigerian. if the pilot was nigerian his last words to air traffick control will be ' mogbeooooooooooooo egbamiiiiiiiiii ooooooooooooooo motikerannnnnnnnn yeapaaaaaaaaaaripaaaaaaa. mokuoooooooooo heleppppp me pleaseeeee ejoooooooooooo '

they are all in a better place at rest ( ecclesiastes 12 vs 7 )

Abdul Adam56: It has happened what are they confirmin? DAT IS HOW GOD WANT IT,may there soul rest in peace.

neyyo:

Aircrafts can reach Radar frequency anywhere within the Nigerian Airspace(thxs to the just deployed Radar coverage by the ministry of Aviation; which means the days of missing Aircrafts in our airspace maybe over) but can only reach Lagos ATC or any other state's ATC only when within the that ATC's airspace(coverage area)! So the pilot had to be handed over or switched to the Lagos ATC by the radar ATC when they felt he was within range. Understood?

true2god: Pls always simplify ur explanation for a layman to understand. We r not in aeronautic school. Maybe u can give a clearer and better xplanattn to dis.

Nasri100: Co-pilot: “I read you five by five! Dual engine failure! Negative response from throttle! Requesting for direct straight approach!”

can somebody explain the line Requesting for direct straight approach??

buzugee: thats how i know the pilot was not nigerian. if the pilot was nigerian his last words to air traffick control will be ' mogbeooooooooooooo egbamiiiiiiiiii ooooooooooooooo motikerannnnnnnnn yeapaaaaaaaaaaripaaaaaaa. mokuoooooooooo heleppppp me pleaseeeee ejoooooooooooo '

they are all in a better place at rest ( ecclesiastes 12 vs 7 )

hardleyC: May their departed souls rest in perfect peace.

***thinking aloud****
like a poster rightly said, i can only imagine what went on in their minds:
the commotion,mother clinging tightly to her children,husband holding wife
and saying their last prayers,atheist wishing he had believed GOD,chics & babes forgetting their "tushness" and crying,screaming! OMG! Lord have mercy! what a horible terrible way to die!

God knows best.

Abdul Adam56: It has happened what are they confirmin?Dat is how God want it,may there soul rest in peace.

mart2k: muslim mentality

mbulela: is it not unethical to release such a sensitive info at this time of the investigation?

vanstanzy:

This's a plane in distress why the handing-over ceremony? It was obvious to the ATC that this plane had lost all its engines in the air and was going to plunge to the ground. What were they hoping that miraculously some angels would suspend the plane in the air? Why did the radar ATC or so, handle this emergency issue? People could have been saved if only they had taken up that responsibility then.

Gbyte: Though I know nothing about flying plane and landing one, but one thing I know is that, this report id probably a cover up, I'd ask some questions here, what time did the plane take off from Abuja, what time did it crash? The time frame would determine what really happened, I heard a rumor about our private jet delaying all planes for 2hrs before landing[/size][size=8pt], if this is so, then the person in the jet should face trial[/size][size=8pt]. If a plane could make it all the way from Abuja to Iju, then it would definitely make it into the airport and land anyhow but would not have crashed the way it did.

vanstanzy:

This's a plane in distress why the handing-over ceremony? It was obvious to the ATC that this plane had lost all its engines in the air and was going to plunge to the ground. What were they hoping that miraculously some angels would suspend the plane in the air? Why did the radar ATC or so, handle this emergency issue? People could have been saved if only they had taken up that responsibility then.

madjune: Buzugee, you are so funny. LWKMD too. In as much as the situation looks grim, i think the ministry of aviation will do well by making sure every air passenger aboard our local planes is given a parachute and taught how to jump off a plane using one. It's clear that we can have 100% confidence in the plane engines okayed by Indians nor the pilots who are mere humans like the rest of us. God bless Nigeria.

vanstanzy:

This's a plane in distress why the handing-over ceremony? It was obvious to the ATC that this plane had lost all its engines in the air and was going to plunge to the ground. What were they hoping that miraculously some angels would suspend the plane in the air? Why did the radar ATC or so, handle this emergency issue? People could have been saved if only they had taken up that responsibility then.