Chuuk undershoot ditching update - 
Via the Oz:
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Via the Oz:
Quote:Death a blow to reputation
ROBYN IRONSIDE
Air Niugini’s reputation as a safe carrier has been left in tatters after Friday’s crash claimed the life of a passenger.
Air Niugini’s reputation as a safe carrier has been left in tatters after Friday’s crash at Chuuk in Micronesia, which claimed the life of a passenger.
The Indonesian man was declared missing on Saturday, a day after the airline announced all 47 passengers and crew survived the crash into water short of the runway at Chuuk International Airport. Two Australians on board the flight from Pohnpei to Port Moresby via Chuuk, were confirmed as safe.
Late Monday, a further statement revealed the body of a man had been found by divers searching in and around the submerged Boeing 737. Aviation experts described the sequence of events as “extraordinary” and said it served to highlight the poor response by crew to the crash. Australian aviation consultant Randal McFarlane said it was a “catastrophic accident” for Air Niugini.
“It would appear that the crew was more intent on getting off the aeroplane and getting away from it than they were accounting for everybody,” Mr McFarlane said.
“Unless the captain or first officer were injured, they should’ve gone back and done a final check to be clear everybody was off, even if there’s water pouring in.”
Papua New Guinea authorities have indicated they will investigate the crash, as it involves the country’s national carrier. But responsibility for the investigation lies with the Federated States of Micronesia.
Aussie hero of Air Niugini crash
ROBYN IRONSIDE
A passenger on the fatal Air Niugini crash in Micronesia said there were insufficient lifejackets on board.
A passenger on the fatal Air Niugini crash in Micronesia said there were insufficient lifejackets on board and it was left to passengers to inflate a liferaft and open the door of the aircraft.
US citizen Bill Jaynes, who has lived in Pohnpei for 18-years, said an Australian passenger he knew as Adam played a central role in the aeroplane’s evacuation after it crashed into water well short of the runway at Chuuk last Friday.
Mr Jaynes said Adam’s composure was “amazing” as he guided people off the stricken jet to the safety of boats and liferafts in water up to 30m deep.
“He was extremely calm and he helped things along,” he said of the Australian.
Others were not so calm as cabin crew “panicked” and passengers jostled to escape the aircraft. “One person was trying to push the crowd forward and I had to turn around and grab him by the shoulders, look him in the eye and tell him ‘Please calm down, we’ll get out’,” Mr Jaynes said.
“Some other passengers were climbing over seats and trying to get their carry on out of the overhead compartments.”
The flight from Pohnpei was carrying 35 passengers and 12 crew. Although Air Niugini initially said all survived the crash, days later the body of a male passenger was found by divers searching the submerged Boeing 737 and surrounds.
Mr Jaynes said he was left with a very poor impression of the cabin crew.
“If you fly United Airlines, they always brief the passengers sitting in the exit row on how to open the door and make sure they are willing to take on that responsibility,” he said.
“The Air Niugini safety information said, ‘Our crew members will open the exit doors in the event of an emergency’. Well, the crew members were running around pushing people.
“They didn’t open the door, it was a passenger. He’s also the one who put the raft out the door and inflated it. He was from PNG and a civilian.”
Another source of alarm was the lack of lifejackets, which were “not where they were supposed to be”, Mr Jaynes said.
“I checked three other seats and I ended up going out the door without a lifejacket,” he said.
Air Niugini yesterday failed to respond to questions from The Australian about the incident, which is under investigation by the Federated States of Micronesia Division of Civil Aviation.
An update released yesterday said divers had recovered the flight data recorder and were continuing to search for the cockpit voice recorder. “The recorders will be transported to the PNG Aircraft Incident Commission laboratory in Port Moresby accompanied by FSM investigators for data downloading and analysis to determine the cause of the accident,” the update said.
Mr Jaynes said it was the first time he had flown Air Niugini and he would not be in a hurry to repeat the experience.
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