Thai Airways International Flight 261

The aircraft with registration HS-TIA was an Airbus A310-204, c/n 415, previously registered as F-WWBI for flight testing with Airbus. Given the name Phitsanulok, HS-TIA was first flown on 3 March 1986 and delivered to Thai Airways on 29 April 1986.[5][6]

Flight 261 was carrying 132 passengers and 14 crew members. There were 25 foreigners on board the flight including nationalities from Austria, Australia, Britain, Finland, Germany, Israel, Japan, Norway, and the United States. The rest of the passengers were Thais. Among the passengers were Siriwan, the sister of Thai Transport and Communications Minister Suthep Thaugsuban, Thai actor and singer Ruangsak Loychusak and Thawat Wichaidit, a Member of Parliament from Surat Thani.[7][8]

The captain, identified as Captain Pinit Vechasilp, had 10,167 flight hours, including 3,000 hours on the Airbus A300-600/A310. Although the A300 and A310 are separate aircraft, the -600 variant of the A300 has a nearly identical cockpit design as the A310.[6][9][10]

The first officer (unknown), has been reported to have 2,839 flight hours, with 983 of them on the Airbus A300-600/A310.[6]

Flight TG261 departed from Bangkok's Don Mueang International Airport with 132 passengers and 14 crew members at 17:40 local time to Surat Thani, a gateway city for popular resort island of Koh Samui in Thailand. It was cleared to fly at flight level 310. The estimated flight time was one hour and 55 minutes. At the time, Thailand was hosting the 1998 Asian Games and many schools had been closed due to the event. Many Thais had headed to holiday resorts.[1]

At 18:26 local time, the co-pilot contacted Surat Thani controller for approach. The aircraft, at the time, was located at 70 nautical miles from the airport. Surat Thani Airport cleared the flight for an approach under the Instrument Flight Rules. The weather at Surat Thani Airport was in good condition with good visibility and calm wind.[1]

At 18:39 local time, the co-pilot contacted Surat Thani to report Fligh 261's position. Surat Thani controller then stated that the Precision Approach Path Indicator on the right side of the runway 22 was not functional and the indicator on the left side was in use. Two minutes later, Flight 261 was cleared to land. The flight crews were cautioned of slippery runway due to deteriorating weather condition.[1]

At 18:42 local time, the runway was sighted and the pilots attempted to land the aircraft. They then decided to go-around for a second approach. The flight was cleared for its second landing attempt. This time, however, the pilots could not see the runway and opted for another go-around.[1]

At 19:05 local time, the flight crews were informed on the weather in the area, which was acknowledged by the crew members. The weather in the area deteriorated and the visibility was reduced from 1,500 meters to 1,000 meters. The pilots informed the passengers on the deteriorating weather condition and announced that they would attempt another landing for the third time and stated that if they failed again they would divert the flight back to Bangkok.[11]

During its go-around, the nose of the aircraft gradually increased from 18 degrees to 48 degrees. The speed of the aircraft began to decay and the aircraft began to shake. It entered an aerodynamic stall. As it began to shake, surviving flight attendants recounted that passengers began to scream and stay out of their seats, with luggage reportedly "flying around everywhere".[12][13]

The Airbus A310 crashed onto a swampy ground near a flooded rubber plantation and exploded, bursting into flames. The crash site was located 760 yards from the runway. Many of the occupants were drowned by the waist-deep water, while the remaining survivors had to crawl to escape from the wreckage. Local residents immediately rushed to the crash site to rescue the survivors. Search and rescue operation was hampered by the location of the crash, which was on a swamp. Rescuers reported that most of the survivors were seated at the front portion of the aircraft.[14][15][12][16]

More than 400 soldiers and police were deployed to assist in the rescue operation.[17] By 12 December, rescuers managed to retrieve 100 bodies from the crash site. Overstretch on the resources caused the set up of makeshift morgue in Surat Thani International Airport. The bodies were laid on the main lobby and the body bags were opened in view of queuing passengers. Many of the bodies were burnt beyond recognition, causing difficulties on the identification process. Identification of the victims was also hampered by the fact that passengers were not required to fill a form for a domestic flight.[18][9][19]

Search operation was suspended on 13 December after the last victim was recovered. In total, 101 passengers and crews, including both the pilot and the co-pilot, were killed in the crash. Forty-five people survived, with 30 people suffered serious injuries. Among the survivors were 12 foreigners (three Australians, three Japanese, three Germans, two Israelis and one Britain[10]) and Thai actor and singer Ruangsak Loychusak. Siriwan, the sister of Thai Minister of Transport and Communications of Thailand Suthep Thaugsuban, and Thawat Wichaidit, Member of Parliament from Surat Thani, were among those killed.[1][20]

Search on the flight's black boxes was immediately conducted. The search was initially hampered due to the watery environment of the crash site, added with muddy and murky water condition. Both the flight data recorder (FDR) and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) were eventually found by the search and rescue team and were taken from the crash site for further investigation.[21] Both recorders were sent to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in the United States for readout analysis.[6]^:8 Pieces of the wreckage were recovered and were taken to a site for further inspection by Thai investigators. Airbus, the aircraft manufacturer, announced that they would send a team of specialists to assist Thai authorities in the crash investigation.[6]

In the initial aftermath of the accident, many believed that the weather played a major factor in the disaster. Heavy rainstorm was reportedly present prior to Flight 261's landing. Several survivors and victims' relatives questioned the pilots' decision to land at the airport even though the weather was not in acceptable condition for landing. Airline officials had told crew members to fly according to the company's procedures, in which pilots should not land if the meteorological condition in the area was inclement. Investigators stated that bad weather was the probable cause of the accident, without ruling out pilot error. Other possible causes were also being investigated.[22][10]

Reports emerged that the runway in Surat Thani Airport was lacking an essential navigation system. While airport officials only commented that the radio navigation system was working normally and declined to comment further on the issue, Thai officials confirmed that a part of the navigation system, called as the Instrument landing system (ILS), had to be taken off due to an expansion program at the airport. The system was planned to be put back on to the runway, however the subsequent 1997 Asian financial crisis caused it to be postponed. A Thai air force pilot stated that due to the removal of the Instrument landing system (ILS), pilots had to use a radio navigation system which was less accurate.[23][22]

In the same year, Thai Airways International began reducing the number of its foreign pilots. Vice-president of the company Chamlong Poompuang stated that pilots were trained to exercise high caution. At the same time, he recognized that the airline had taken fuel-saving measures due to the economic downturn, but it should not be considered contrary to safety. Thai Airways International chairman, Thamnoon Wanglee emphasized, "Safety is our highest priority. What our policy is and what happened are two different things."[8]

Thai Airways International offered compensation payment to the families affected by the crash. Chairman Wanglee stated in a news conference that each relative of the 101 victims of the crash would receive a compensation payment of US$100,000, while the 45 injured survivors would receive a compensation of 200,000 baht (US$5,600) each. The airline would pay their medical expenses.[23]

• Modernine TV discussed Thai Airways International Flight 261 on TimeLine, 30 May 2016, in "Flight 261 Disaster".[24]

• One-Two-GO Airlines Flight 269

• Cockpit Voice Recorder transcript and accident summary