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Thursday 11 July 2013

Asiana flight 214

On Saturday afternoon, an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 smashed onto the runway
when it was attempting to land at San Francisco International Airport,
killing two teenage Chinese girls and injuring more than 160 passengers seriously
before the heavily damaged aircraft was engulfed in smoke and flames.
What was so shocking about this accident was that,
Asiana Airline was considered one of the safest airlines in the world
while their flight 214 was the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 777,
which was well-known as a high-technology and safe plane,
since it entered service in 1995.
The accident has become a hot topic in aviation sector today.

The flight, which originated in Shanghai
before stopping in Seoul en-route to San Fransicso,
was carrying 61 U.S citizens, 77 South Koreans and 141 Chinese.
The cause of the crash has not been determined but the FBI has ruled out terrorism.
The plane appeared to have touched down tail-first and short of the runway.
Investigators said the plane was flying "significantly below" its target speed 
during the approach and the plane may have stalled 
when the crew tried to abort the landing just about two seconds 
before the tail of the plane hit a sea wall separating the airport from the bay.
Passenger Janghyung Lee told USA TODAY
that the aircraft rattled wildly before landing.
Thus, attention is increasingly being focused on the actions of the pilots 
but investigators have refused to speculate on the cause of the crash
since they were still in the process of investigation and interviewing the pilots.

Latest news: 
According to USA TODAY, the investigators revealed Wednesday that
the pilot told them that he was temporarily blinded by a bright light 
when 500ft above the ground. The pilots also recognised that 
the plane was going too low and not aligned with the runway centerline.
They continued making adjustments on the approach until
they initiated a go-around or "aborted landing" but it's too late.
How or why they got themselves in this situation,
and why they did not abandon the landing sooner, remains unknown.

It's certainly understandable that some people might be afraid of flying.
Fear is very powerful, especially after we get to know the facts
or rumours from the social media which are yet to be verified
but please be reassured that air crashes are still a rare event.
Every day, people in the aviation industry are working hard,
trying to make the machines better and more accurate, 
strengthening the air rules and revising their policies, 
to make air transportation safer. 
The number of deaths on highways in a year 
might still be much higher than the entire number of people 
who have died in a commercial airplane over the past half century.

References:
abcnews

Now you know how important airmenship and decision making are
Edison! : )

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