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Metrojet Rules Out Technical Failure or Human Error for Crash in Sinai Peninsula Mystery Deepens Over Russian Airliner Crash in Egypt
(about 2 hours later)
MOSCOW — Senior officials at Metrojet, the charter airline company whose Airbus passenger plane crashed in Egypt over the weekend and killed all 224 people aboard on Monday ruled out any technical failure or human error on the part of the airline in the catastrophe. MOSCOW — The mystery deepened Monday over the weekend crash of a Russian charter plane on the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt that killed all 224 aboard, with company executives ruling out technical or human error only to be upbraided by aviation officials who called such assertions premature.
“We absolutely exclude the technical failure of the plane, and we absolutely exclude pilot error or a human factor,” Aleksandr A. Smirnov, a former pilot and the airline’s deputy director for aviation, said at a packed news conference in Moscow. As representatives from at least four countries joined the investigation of Saturday’s Airbus jetliner crash, new questions also arose about the aircraft’s repair history and the possibility that it had been felled by a terrorist act.
The Metrojet flight full of mostly Russian vacationers, bound for St. Petersburg from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, crashed after reaching cruising altitude, scattering in chunks and bits across Sinai. The lack of information has combined with unsubstantiated claims by the Islamic State that its militants destroyed the aircraft to avenge Russia’s immersion into the Syria war.
Senior officials at Metrojet, the charter company that operated the aircraft, sounded definitive in their insistence that the plane and crew were faultless. They spoke at a packed news conference in Moscow.
“We absolutely exclude the technical failure of the plane, and we absolutely exclude pilot error or a human factor,” Aleksandr A. Smirnov, a former pilot and the airline’s deputy director for aviation, said.
Mr. Smirnov said that the crash could have been caused by “an external impact on the plane,” although he did not endorse the theory of a terrorist attack either, saying that the investigation would have to determine the cause.Mr. Smirnov said that the crash could have been caused by “an external impact on the plane,” although he did not endorse the theory of a terrorist attack either, saying that the investigation would have to determine the cause.
Company officials used only assertive statements to support their position, and they did not provide any documentation to back up their claim that both the plane and its personnel were in top flying condition.Company officials used only assertive statements to support their position, and they did not provide any documentation to back up their claim that both the plane and its personnel were in top flying condition.
The news conference came as the remains of 144 victims were flown overnight to St. Petersburg from Cairo, their bodies taken from a Russian aircraft to the main morgue in a long white truck. More remains were due to arrive from Egypt later Monday. Hours after the Metrojet news conference, the Russian government contradicted the company’s assertions.
“Such a statement is premature and is not based on any real facts,” Alexander Neradko, the head of the Federal Air Transportation Agency, said on the Rossiya-24 news channel. “Much more work will have to be done on a detailed study of the plane’s constructive elements; flight recorders will have to be deciphered and analyzed.”
Mr. Neradko also said Egypt was keeping tight control over data from the flight recorders and other instruments. Investigators from Russia and elsewhere in Europe, where the Airbus was manufactured, flew to Egypt to assist in the inquiry.
“The Egyptian commission is conducting the investigation, and is giving no records and transcripts, be it of the flight recorders or on-ground recorders or radar data, to anyone,” he said.
Metrojet officials also dismissed claims by the Islamic State that its operatives had felled the plane. They said a blurry video purporting to show a missile strike on the plane appeared to be fake.
American intelligence officials, as well, have expressed skepticism about the assertion by the Islamic State. James R. Clapper Jr., the director of national intelligence, and Nicholas J. Rasmussen, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, separately told a security conference in Washington on Monday that American spy and security agencies so far have no evidence that points to terrorism as the cause of the Russian airliner crash.
But other analysts have not discounted the possibility that a bomb was brought on board or stowed in the luggage. A bomb in the hold of a Pan Am Boeing 747 en route to New York from London exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, in December 1988, bringing down the plane in a terrorist attack that was attributed to Libya.
The statements and lack of definitive facts only served to further muddle what was known about the Metrojet crash, the latest in a string of disasters to befall Egypt’s troubled tourism industry.
The remains of 144 victims were flown overnight to St. Petersburg from Cairo, their bodies taken from a Russian aircraft to the main morgue in a long white truck. More remains arrived from Egypt later Monday.
Morgue officials began working to identify the victims with the help of DNA samples and relatives.Morgue officials began working to identify the victims with the help of DNA samples and relatives.
President Vladimir V. Putin, who established an investigative committee after the crash, spoke for the first time about the accident on Monday, calling it a “huge tragedy.” President Vladimir V. Putin, who established an investigative committee after the crash, on Monday spoke for the first time about the crash, calling it a “huge tragedy.”
In a meeting with Maxim Sokolov, the minister of transportation who had just returned from Egypt, the president repeated his call for a “thorough inquiry.” In a meeting with Maxim Sokolov, the minister of transportation, who had just returned from Egypt, the president repeated his call for a “thorough inquiry.”
A senior Russian aviation official said that Egypt was keeping tight control over data from the flight recorders and other instruments. Investigators from Russia and elsewhere in Europe, where the Airbus was manufactured, flew to Egypt to assist in the inquiry. Metrojet officials told the news conference that the pilots had given no indication that the plane was in trouble and did not send any type of distress call.
“The Egyptian commission is conducting the investigation, and is giving no records and transcripts, be it of the flight recorders or on-ground recorders or radar data, to anyone,” Alexander Neradko, the head of Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency, said on the Rossiya-24 news channel. The commission had yet to begin sifting through the data, he said. Mr. Smirnov, Metrojet’s deputy director of aviation, asserted, again without indicating his source, that the plane’s airspeed had slowed significantly and that it suddenly dropped 5,000 feet in altitude one minute before it crashed. Wild fluctuations in the plane’s altitude and airspeed in its final 20 seconds could indicate that the pilots were struggling to control the Airbus 321-200, he added.
The Metrojet officials said that the pilots gave no indication that the plane was in trouble and did not send any type of distress call. He also suggested that the sudden decompression of the plane as it broke apart likely incapacitated all on board immediately.
The plane’s speed dropped to about 186 miles per hour and fell about 5,000 feet one minute before it crashed, Mr. Smirnov said, adding that the brief irregular flight path probably indicated that the pilots were struggling to control the Airbus 321-200.
He suggested that the sudden decompression of the plane as it broke apart likely incapacitated all on board immediately.
Aviation experts expressed disbelief that airline officials presented such strong assertions ruling out technical or human error even as the investigation was barely starting.Aviation experts expressed disbelief that airline officials presented such strong assertions ruling out technical or human error even as the investigation was barely starting.
“I am surprised that an airline manager, at the point that we are at in this investigation, would make a statement like that,” said Robert T. Francis, a former vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board in the United States.“I am surprised that an airline manager, at the point that we are at in this investigation, would make a statement like that,” said Robert T. Francis, a former vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board in the United States.
“Without the flight recorders having been read, and without more investigation of the fuselage, which is spread all over the place, I don’t think you can rule out anything.”“Without the flight recorders having been read, and without more investigation of the fuselage, which is spread all over the place, I don’t think you can rule out anything.”
At the news conference, the airline, founded as Kogalymavia but flying under the name Metrojet, rejected criticism that the airplane was too old to fly. It also rejected the possibility that a tail strike in 2001 during a landing in Cairo, when the aircraft was operated by a different airline, might have left fatal structural flaws.At the news conference, the airline, founded as Kogalymavia but flying under the name Metrojet, rejected criticism that the airplane was too old to fly. It also rejected the possibility that a tail strike in 2001 during a landing in Cairo, when the aircraft was operated by a different airline, might have left fatal structural flaws.
Andrei B. Averianov, Metrojet’s deputy director for engineering, ruled out both as possible factors during the hourlong news conference at the company’s headquarters in an office park in Moscow.Andrei B. Averianov, Metrojet’s deputy director for engineering, ruled out both as possible factors during the hourlong news conference at the company’s headquarters in an office park in Moscow.
The 18-year-old Airbus A321-200 had flown just under 60,000 hours of its 120,000-hour life span, he said, adding that was not an “extraordinary” age compared to other European and Russian fleets. He also dismissed the tail strike as an issue. The 18-year-old Airbus A321-200 had flown just under 60,000 hours of its 120,000-hour life span, Mr. Averianov said, adding that was not an “extraordinary” age compared to other European and Russian fleets. He also dismissed the tail strike as an issue.
“I am absolutely confident that this incident could not be the reason for what has happened because the plane was repaired by its manufacturer,” Mr. Averianov said, “Airbus has developed special technology for such repairs which guarantees the usage of such an airplane.” “I am absolutely confident that this incident could not be the reason for what has happened because the plane was repaired by its manufacturer,” Mr. Averianov said. “Airbus has developed special technology for such repairs which guarantees the usage of such an airplane.”
He said the tail was checked every 24 months and any cracks or metal fatigue would have been discovered because such cracks develop slowly. He said the tail was checked every 24 months and any cracks or metal fatigue would have been discovered because such issues develop slowly.
There have been at least two previous cases in which airplanes broke apart long after similar tail repairs were done. A spokeswoman for Airbus could not immediately confirm the airline’s claim that it had conducted the repair. A spokeswoman for AerCap, the Netherlands-based company that owned the aircraft and had leased it to MetroJet, did not immediately return calls requesting information.
There have been at least two previous cases in which airplanes either broke apart or became unmanageable long after similar tail repairs were done.
A China Airlines Boeing 747 en route to Hong Kong from Taiwan in May 2002 broke into several pieces as it was climbing to 35,000 feet, killing all 225 people on board. The repairs made 22 years earlier on the tail failed, causing a sudden and explosive decompression, according to the analysis by the Taiwanese government.A China Airlines Boeing 747 en route to Hong Kong from Taiwan in May 2002 broke into several pieces as it was climbing to 35,000 feet, killing all 225 people on board. The repairs made 22 years earlier on the tail failed, causing a sudden and explosive decompression, according to the analysis by the Taiwanese government.
A Japan Airlines 747 suffered a similar failure in 1985, seven years after a tail strike had been repaired. The crew struggled to control the plane for some 46 minutes after takeoff before it crashed, killing all but four of the 524 people on board.A Japan Airlines 747 suffered a similar failure in 1985, seven years after a tail strike had been repaired. The crew struggled to control the plane for some 46 minutes after takeoff before it crashed, killing all but four of the 524 people on board.
In a different spectacular crash, involving a spark in a fuel tank, a TWA jumbo jet broke apart as it was ascending off Long Island in July 1996, killing all 230 on board.
Responding to accusations that the co-pilot had complained to his family about the technical state of the plane soon before the plane left, Mr. Averianov said there were no recent remarks in the logbook, and he said that the plane departed on schedule from Sharm el-Sheikh, indicating it had not been held up by technical issues.Responding to accusations that the co-pilot had complained to his family about the technical state of the plane soon before the plane left, Mr. Averianov said there were no recent remarks in the logbook, and he said that the plane departed on schedule from Sharm el-Sheikh, indicating it had not been held up by technical issues.
The airplane officials said they had provided documents to the Investigate Committee, which is looking into any possible negligence of Russian law, to bolster its case. The airplane officials said they had provided documents to the Investigative Committee, which is looking into any possible negligence of Russian law, to bolster its case.
But he repeated what senior transportation officials said a day earlier: The widely scattered debris field, almost 8 square miles, indicated that the plane had broken apart at a great height. But he repeated what senior transportation officials said a day earlier: The widely scattered debris field, almost eight square miles, indicated that the plane had broken apart at a great height.
The Metrojet official was also dismissive about the claim by the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, that it brought down the plane. “Judging by the video they put out, it seems that it is fake,” Mr. Smirnov said, referring to a blurry clip that that purported to show a missile strike on a plane that then erupts in a cloud of black smoke. Russia has long been concerned with Islamic militant attacks against it. The Russians have fought a long-running Islamic insurgency in Chechnya, where two women armed with hand grenades destroyed two separate domestic flights in 2004.
But other analysts have not discounted the possibility that a bomb was brought on board or stowed in the luggage. A bomb in the hold of a Pan Am Boeing 747 en route to New York from London exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, in December 1988, bringing down the plane in a terrorist attack that was attributed to Libya.
Russia has fought a long-running Islamic insurgency in Chechnya, where two women armed with hand grenades destroyed two separate domestic flights in 2004.
More important, Russia recently deployed its armed forces in Syria to defend the rule of President Bashar al-Assad and to attack his opponents, including the Islamic State. That prompted calls for a global jihad against Russia.More important, Russia recently deployed its armed forces in Syria to defend the rule of President Bashar al-Assad and to attack his opponents, including the Islamic State. That prompted calls for a global jihad against Russia.
The company said about 20 people had canceled their trips to Egypt immediately after the crash and were fully compensated, but that passengers were not abandoning trips in large numbers.The company said about 20 people had canceled their trips to Egypt immediately after the crash and were fully compensated, but that passengers were not abandoning trips in large numbers.
In St. Petersburg, where most of the passengers had lived, forensic medical experts began on Sunday the process of identifying bodies after a first cargo airplane from Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations carrying human remains arrived in the city overnight.
Footage released by the ministry showed the cargo plane returning to Pulkovo Airport, where the vacationers had been scheduled to arrive on Saturday, landing in a light rain. A motorcade brought the bodies to the morgue.
Some bodies would be shown to relatives at a city morgue, and by midday, 15 had been readied for identification, the ministry said.
Relatives waited in a hotel near the airport for word of when they would be called to the morgue. Larisa Y. Pulyanova and Anatoly L. Pulyanov waited to identify their only son, Roman A. Pulyanov, 29, who had been on vacation with his girlfriend.
Tears welling in her eyes, Ms. Pulyanova remembered her son as “young and tall and handsome.”
He had picked out Egypt, she said, because it was affordable at a price of 36,000 rubles, or $560, for two people for a week, and the couple did not want to spend more as they were saving money for their wedding.
“The saddest is that he was our only son,” she said.
Mr. Pulyanov said either terrorism or a mechanical problem appeared to be probable causes of the crash. He was too bereaved to be angry at anyone at the moment, he said.
Even if it were proven to be an act of terrorism related to Russia’s military action in Syria, he said, that would only justify the Kremlin’s decision to fight the Islamic State.
“But what difference does it make, I don’t have a son,” he said. “Now, that is how I feel. Maybe in a week, I will gather my thoughts and look at things differently.”