An El Al flight preparing for a landing in Ben-Gurion International Airport, carrying 300 passengers, almost crashed in the Jerusalem Hills three months ago.
The plane dropped to an altitude below the permitted level, and the copilot realized the aircraft was heading for a mountain. He and another member of the cockpit crew took swift corrective action, thereby averting a disaster, making a safe touchdown in Ben-Gurion.
The incident occurred at the end of November 2008, involving a Boeing 767, traveling from a European country to Israel. It dropped to a landing altitude and began making an approach in the Modi’in – Maccabim-Re’ut area. Traveling at about 200 meters, the copilot realized the plane was heading straight into the side of a mountain. El Al was giving serious thought to dismissing the pilot, but backed down in response to staunch opposition from the El Al and national pilot unions. The captain was grounded for several weeks.
A mutual agreement was reached between management and the pilot, and he took a reduction in rank for four months and returned to flight school to review many of the required skills. It was agreed that only after completing the courses successfully would he be reinstated to his former rank and position.
El Al stresses that at no time was there any danger to passengers.
The Israel Civil Aviation Association is presently conducting tests involving landing with the plane’s auto pilot computer system in place of manual landings, evaluating the performance. The auto pilot system is designed to take security restrictions into account pertaining to planes coming in for a landing from the east. Some of the restrictions involve the implemented recommendations of the Lapidot Commission and the recent downgrading of Israel’s international airport standing to 2, a third world rating, by the American Federal Aviation Commission.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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7 Responses
all i can say after reading this is chasdei hashem. that area is fully populated.
It would interesting to know if people on that flight had said Tefillas HaDerech. In any case, it should give us all chizuk to say it on any trip with good kavana.
“the copilot realized the aircraft was heading for a mountain”
“El Al stresses that at no time was there any danger to passengers”.
I presume the mountains are just fake, are they?
“El Al stresses that at no time was there any danger to passengers.” Flying into a mountain isn’t a danger to passengers!?!?!? How silly of me to think it might be!
What Hogwash!Fire the Pilot.
“El Al stresses that at no time was there any danger to passengers.”
Of course there was danger. If the co-pilot had to pull up to avoid a mountain then not doing so would mean the plane would have crashed into the mountain.
And good reason to reprimand the Captain. Obviosly the Captain was preoccupied with something else at the most critical time of a flight of a plane.
“A mutual agreement was reached between management and the pilot,”
That’s right – the Pilots Labor Union is more interested in protecting the livelihood of an incompetent pilot than the lives of all the passengers and crew.
Let’s find out the name of the pilot – and you make a decision whether you want to have him flying your next El-Al flight.
Not a lot different than being a passenger in a car with a driver who is a known drunk. You gotta be nuts to get in the car with him.
You state that “The plane almost crashed in to the mountain”; then you state “at no time was there any danger to passengers”. I’m confused. are you?
El Al stresses that at no time was there any danger to passengers.
Are they for real?