Narrative:
Flight Air Freight 1 was a scheduled night freight flight between Palmerston North, Auckland and Christchurch. The crew consisted of a training captain and two new co-pilots who were to fly alternate legs as co-pilot and observer. The co-pilots ADI of the Convair CV-580 in question had a known intermittent defect, but had been retained in service. The aircrafts MEL however did not permit this flight to be undertaken with an unserviceable ADI. The aircraft nevertheless departed Palmerston North and arrived at Auckland at about 20:30. It was unloaded and reloaded with 11 pallets of cargo. On the next leg, to Christchurch, the handling pilot was to be the other co-pilot. Although she had completed her type rating on the Convair 580 this was her first line flight as a crew member. The flight was cleared to taxi to runway 23 for departure. Takeoff was commenced at 21:59. The aircraft climbed to a height of approx. 400 feet when it pitched down. It entered a gradual descent until it contacted the ground 387 m beyond the end of runway 23 and 91 m left of the extended centreline. The aircraft then crashed and broke up in the tidal waters of Manukau Harbour.
PROBABLE CAUSE: "The probable cause of this accident was the training captains failure to monitor the aircrafts climb flightpath during the critical stage of the climb after take-off."
Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) - Water
» ICAO Adrep Summary 6/91 (#8)
accident date: 31-07-1989
type: Convair CV-580
registration: ZK-FTB
accident date: 31-07-1989
type: Convair CV-580
registration: N14278
| Status: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
| Date: | Monday 31 July 1989 |
| Time: | 22:00 |
| Type: |  Convair CV-580 |
| Operator: | Air Freight NZ |
| Registration: | ZK-FTB |
| MSN: | 180 |
| First flight: | 1954 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 29999 |
| Engines: | 2 Allison 501-D13D |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 3 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Aircraft fate: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | Auckland International Airport (AKL) ( New Zealand)
|
| Crash site elevation: | 7 m (23 feet) amsl |
| Phase: | Initial climb (ICL) |
| Nature: | Cargo |
| Departure airport: | Auckland International Airport (AKL/NZAA), New Zealand |
| Christchurch International Airport (CHC/NZCH), New Zealand | |
| Flightnumber: | 1 |
Flight Air Freight 1 was a scheduled night freight flight between Palmerston North, Auckland and Christchurch. The crew consisted of a training captain and two new co-pilots who were to fly alternate legs as co-pilot and observer. The co-pilots ADI of the Convair CV-580 in question had a known intermittent defect, but had been retained in service. The aircrafts MEL however did not permit this flight to be undertaken with an unserviceable ADI. The aircraft nevertheless departed Palmerston North and arrived at Auckland at about 20:30. It was unloaded and reloaded with 11 pallets of cargo. On the next leg, to Christchurch, the handling pilot was to be the other co-pilot. Although she had completed her type rating on the Convair 580 this was her first line flight as a crew member. The flight was cleared to taxi to runway 23 for departure. Takeoff was commenced at 21:59. The aircraft climbed to a height of approx. 400 feet when it pitched down. It entered a gradual descent until it contacted the ground 387 m beyond the end of runway 23 and 91 m left of the extended centreline. The aircraft then crashed and broke up in the tidal waters of Manukau Harbour.
Probable Cause:
PROBABLE CAUSE: "The probable cause of this accident was the training captains failure to monitor the aircrafts climb flightpath during the critical stage of the climb after take-off."
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Classification:
ADI issues Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) - Water
Sources:
» Aircraft Accident Report No. 89-064» ICAO Adrep Summary 6/91 (#8)
Follow-up / safety actions
TAIC issued 8 Safety Recommendations
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Photos
accident date: 31-07-1989
type: Convair CV-580
registration: ZK-FTB
accident date: 31-07-1989
type: Convair CV-580
registration: N14278
Aircraft history
| date | registration | operator | remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 May 1954 | N73154 | United Air Lines | delivered |
| 19 Jan. 1955 | N73154 | United Air Lines | substantial damage in emergency landing near Dexter, IA |
| 1 March 1968 | N73154 | Tex Johnston | bought |
| Nov. 1968 | N73154 | Tex Johnston | converted to CV-580 |
| August 1969 | N73154 | Aero Spacelines | |
| Oct. 1972 | N73154 | Armstrong Cork Company | |
| June 1973 | N14278 | Armstrong Cork Company | new registration |
| March 1984 | N14278 | Hubbard Broadcasting Inc | |
| Oct. 1988 | N14278 | AHW Inc. | |
| 17 May 1989 | C-FEDO | Kelowna Flightcraft Charter | |
| 18 July 1989 | ZK-FTB | Fieldair | registered |
| 31 July 1989 | ZK-FTB | Fieldair | Crashed at Auckland |
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Auckland International Airport to Christchurch International Airport as the crow flies is 744 km (465 miles).
Accident location: Exact; as reported in the official accident report.
Distance from Auckland International Airport to Christchurch International Airport as the crow flies is 744 km (465 miles).
Accident location: Exact; as reported in the official accident report.
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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