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Asiana 214: Plane evacuated 90 seconds after crash Asiana 214: Plane evacuated 90 seconds after crash
(about 2 hours later)
The evacuation of Asiana flight 214, which crash-landed on Saturday in San Francisco, was delayed because the pilots initially said passengers should stay put, a safety official has said.The evacuation of Asiana flight 214, which crash-landed on Saturday in San Francisco, was delayed because the pilots initially said passengers should stay put, a safety official has said.
The evacuation began 90 seconds after the Boeing 777 skidded to a stop - and only after a flight attendant spotted fire outside, the official said.The evacuation began 90 seconds after the Boeing 777 skidded to a stop - and only after a flight attendant spotted fire outside, the official said.
She called the failure to order the evacuation immediately "unusual". She called the failure to immediately order the evacuation "unusual".
The crash killed two passengers and injured about 180.The crash killed two passengers and injured about 180.
At a press conference on Wednesday, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chairman Deborah Hersman said the pilots were in contact with air traffic controllers in the seconds after the plane crashed, and told flight attendants not to order passengers to evacuate.At a press conference on Wednesday, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chairman Deborah Hersman said the pilots were in contact with air traffic controllers in the seconds after the plane crashed, and told flight attendants not to order passengers to evacuate.
Laser flash?
"It seems a little unusual that the crew would not announce an order to evacuate after a plane crash," Ms Hersman said."It seems a little unusual that the crew would not announce an order to evacuate after a plane crash," Ms Hersman said.
"We don't know what the pilots were thinking.""We don't know what the pilots were thinking."
Ms Hersman also confirmed some of the evacuation slides had inflated inside the aircraft as it bounced along the ground, injuring a flight attendant and possibly hindering passengers' escape.Ms Hersman also confirmed some of the evacuation slides had inflated inside the aircraft as it bounced along the ground, injuring a flight attendant and possibly hindering passengers' escape.
It has been revealed that the trainee pilot at the controls when the plane crashed was landing a Boeing 777 at San Francisco's airport for the first time, while the instructor pilot beside him was in that role also for the first time.It has been revealed that the trainee pilot at the controls when the plane crashed was landing a Boeing 777 at San Francisco's airport for the first time, while the instructor pilot beside him was in that role also for the first time.
Laser flash? The plane came in much too shallowly and under the airspeed necessary to keep it aloft, say investigators.
Ms Hersman said the pilot who landed the plane later told investigators he was blinded by a light at about 500ft (150m) - which would have been about 34 seconds before impact and the point when the Boeing began to slow down.Ms Hersman said the pilot who landed the plane later told investigators he was blinded by a light at about 500ft (150m) - which would have been about 34 seconds before impact and the point when the Boeing began to slow down.
The possibility that the flash was caused by a laser was not being ruled out, Ms Hersman added.The possibility that the flash was caused by a laser was not being ruled out, Ms Hersman added.
Aside from the pilot's relative inexperience in a Boeing 777, it has also emerged that the instructor pilot reported noticing seconds before the crash that the auto-throttle was not maintaining the correct airspeed. 'Severely burned'
US investigators are continuing to review flight data and video footage, and have interviewed all four pilots and half of the flight attendants.
The additional attendants remain in hospital, among them three who were ejected from the rear of the aircraft when the tail ripped off on impact.
As Asiana 214, bound from Incheon in South Korea, approached San Francisco after its 11-hour journey across the Pacific Ocean, three out of four pilots aboard were in the cockpit.
Killed by vehicle?
The plane came in much too shallowly and under the airspeed necessary to keep it aloft, say investigators.
The main landing gear struck a seawall well short of the end of the runway, and the aircraft's tail was ripped off.
It then went into a 360-degree spin before coming to rest.
The first airport emergency crews arrived about 30 seconds after the passengers began evacuating.The first airport emergency crews arrived about 30 seconds after the passengers began evacuating.
But recordings of emergency calls from surviving passengers suggest they waited longer before help arrived.
In a 911 call released late on Wednesday by the California Highway Patrol, one woman can be heard saying: "We've been on the ground, I don't know, 20 minutes, a half hour.
"There are people laying on the tarmac with critical injuries, head injuries. We're almost losing a woman here. We're trying to keep her alive."
Another caller can be heard telling the dispatcher about an injured woman: "She is severely burned. She will probably die soon if we don't get help."
Officials have said the ambulances were not able to approach the plane immediately out of concerns it would explode.
At least 30 surviving passengers remain in San Francisco hospitals, many with serious spinal injuries.At least 30 surviving passengers remain in San Francisco hospitals, many with serious spinal injuries.
The two passengers killed were Chinese teenagers Ye Mengyuan and Wang Linjia. They had been sitting in the rear of the plane, where many of the most seriously injured passengers were seated, but their bodies were found on the tarmac. They include three flight attendants who were ejected from the rear of the aircraft when the tail ripped off on impact.
The two passengers killed were Chinese teenagers Ye Mengyuan and Wang Linjia.
They had been sitting in the rear of the plane, where many of the most seriously injured passengers were seated, but their bodies were found on the tarmac.
Police are investigating whether one of them survived the crash only to be run over by an emergency vehicle.Police are investigating whether one of them survived the crash only to be run over by an emergency vehicle.