After waiting for Korean counterparts to arrive in San Francisco, national investigators will today interview the four pilots that were manning the Boeing 777 that crashed at the city’s airport on July 6.
At the same time, investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board have pinpointed just how much slower than usual the plane was approaching the runway. The target speed is 137 knots as the plane crosses the threshold of the runway; about three seconds prior to impact, the plane was traveling at its lowerst speed of 103 knots, and as early as 200 feet in the air–about 16 seconds prior to impact–the speed had dipped to 118 knots.
Also, one of the two captains, although he has extensive experience overall, was working on getting initial operating experience on the 777. The plane had four pilots, including two captains, because of the lengthy flight from China to San Francisco.
Now that officials from the Korean Aviation and Rail Accident Investigation Board, the U.S. board’s counterpart, and Asiana Airlines have arrived in San Francisco, investigators will interview the four pilots to explore what happened in the minutes, hours, and even days leading up to the crash.
“We want to understand what they were doing and we want to understand why they were doing it,” said Deborah Hersman, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, at a July 8 press conference. The pilots will also be asked about automation and who was flying the airplane as it descended.
Speaking to reporters a day earlier, Hersman indicated that although the investigation is still in preliminary stages, crew members could be at fault in the crash, which killed two and injured almost 200 others.
In investigations, “We’re often looking for things that might affect human performance, like fatigue, like medication,” she said.
Other aspects of the investigation include looking at the way the landing gear separated from the plane and how the plane broke up upon impact.
“All of these lessons learned can help all of us in the aviation community plow what we’ve learned back into aircraft design,” said Hersman. Another update on the crash from the board will come tomorrow.
