Turkish Airlines Aircraft
Turkish Airlines Aircraft
Turkish Airlines officials admitted days after the tragic crash of its Boeing 737-800 in Amsterdam that the passenger jet had been grounded for repairs on Feb. 23 after the crew detected a problem with the “Master Caution Light” just before takeoff, according to media reports.
Although the problem reportedly was worked on and the plane made eight subsequent flights before the deadly crash, the chief investigator working on finding out the cause said that engine trouble may have been one of the reasons for the crash, according to reports.
The aircraft had undergone routine maintenance on Feb. 19 and a part on the plane’s left wing also was replaced on Oct. 28, 2008, according to international media reports.
The investigation has revealed that the aircraft suddenly lost speed, fell 300 feet and smashed tail-first into a field next to houses, just 220 yards from the runway at Schiphol airport.
Flight 1951 from Istanbul had 135 passengers and crew. Forty investigators worked at the site where the plane had broken into three pieces, and the plane’s cockpit data recordings were analyzed in Paris, France. Some survivors crawled out of the wreckage.