ABOARD JUST A FEW
YEARS AGO, FLOWN BY A DIFFERENT
COMPANY IN CALIFORNIA'S BAY
AREA, AND THE PLANE SUSTAINED
SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.
GINA MANGIERI IS ALWAYS
INVESTIGATING AND HAS DETAILS
AND A SURVIVOR'S ACCOUNT.
GINA:
SAM, I SPOKE WITH A SURVIVOR OF
THE 2016 INCIDENT WHO HAD TO
BAIL OUT AT MORE THAN 12,000
FEET AS PARTS OF THE PLANE CAME
APART. HE SAYS HE AND OTHERS
ABOARD STILL LIVE WITH
THE SHOCK OF THEIR CLOSE CALL.
HE ASKS HOW THAT SAME PLANE
COULD FLY AGAIN. I ASKED THE
SAME OF FEDERAL REGULATORS.
JULY 23, 2016 --
14 PASSENGERS TAKE TO THE AIR
ABOVE CALIFORNIA'S BAY AREA FOR
A SKY DIVING ADVENTURE. THIS IS
THE SAME PLANE THAT CAME TO
BE OPERATED BY OAHU PARACHUTE
CENTER IN HAWAII YEARS LATER. AS
THE PLANE NEARS THE BAY AREA
JUMP ZONE, IT BEGINS ROLLING AND
SPINNING.
"STAY PUT STAY PUT STAY
PUT...GET THE DOOR OPEN, GET THE
DOOR OPEN"
THE PILOT EVACUATES THE PLANE...
"GET OUT GET OUT, GET OUT OF THE
F-ING PLANE"
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"IT WAS
SCARY, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT LIFE
ENDING."
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"YOU'RE IN
A PLANE WHICH IS IN A NOSEDIVE,
AND YOU CANNOT MOVE YOUR HANDS
BECAUSE OF
THE CENTRIFUGAL FORCES. IT'S
SCARY.
THERE ARE A COUPLE OF PEOPLE WHO
ACTUALLY GET STUCK ON THE DOOR
AND THERE ARE OTHER SKYDIVERS
WHO ARE JUMPING
OVER THEM.
IT'S CHAOS AND PEOPLE ARE TRYING
TO SURVIVE."
AS THE SKYDIVERS PARACHUTE DOWN,
THE EARTH. ALL PASSENGERS AND
THE PILOT SURVIVED.
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"OVERALL
THAT EXPERIENCE TRAUMATIZED A
LOT OF US FOR A GOOD NUMBER OF
ASAWA SAYS HE'S SHOCKED AND
SADDENED TO HEAR THE PLANE WENT
BACK INTO SERVICE HERE IN HAWAII
-- THE SAME PLANE IN
FRIDAY'S DEADLY CRASH IN
MOKULEIA.
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"I'M
EXTREMELY UPSET THAT THIS
HAPPENED, AND IT'S JUST
ASTONISHING THAT THE SERVICE
RECORDS WITH THE NTSB THE PLANE
WAS STILL QUALIFIED AS JUMPABLE,
AS A FLY PLANE." ACCORDING TO
NTSB REPORTS ON THE 2016
INCIDENT:
WHEN LINING UP FOR THE DROP ZONE
THE PLANE "ABRUPTLY STALLED,
ROTATED NOSE-DOWN, AND BARREL
ROLLED DOWNWARD
TWICE. A JUMPER HEARD A "LOUD
BANG" , AND SPIN-RECOVERY
EFFORTS FAILED THROUGH 9
ROTATIONS. AFTER PASSENGERS
MUSCLED THROUGH INCREDIBLE
G-FORCES TO GET OUT, THE PILOT
REMARKABLY GOT THE PLANE TO THE
GROUND. AIRPLANE PARTS WERE
FOUND SCATTERED IN A FIELD MILES
AWAY.
I ASKED FEDERAL REGULATORS HOW
IS IT POSSIBLE FOR THAT PLANE TO
BE BACK IN COMMERCIAL SERVICE?
AN FAA SPOKESMAN TOLD ME "THE
PLANE'S MAINTENANCE/REPAIR
HISTORY WILL BE PART OF THE
INVESTIGATION."
HE ADDED ALL COMMERCIAL
"AIRCRAFT MUST UNDERGO
INSPECTIONS ANNUALLY OR EVERY
100 FLIGHT HOURS, WHICHEVER
COMES FIRST. ADDITIONALLY,
VARIOUS AIRCRAFT PARTS MUST BE
REPLACED AT CERTAIN INTERVALS."
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"THERE HAS
TO BE MORE ACCOUNTABILITY ON
SOMEONE'S PART. THE PLANE SHOULD
NOT BE
IN OPERATION, AND IF IT WAS THEN
EVERYTHING ABOUT THE PLANE
SHOULD BE IN OPERATIONAL MODE.
THERE SHOULDN'T BE ANY PART OR
ANYTHING ON THE PLANE WHICH IS
WRONG."
IN THE 2016 INCIDENT, NONE OF
THE 14 DIVERS ABOARD WERE
INJURED, HAVING GOTTEN OUT AT A
HIGH ENOUGH ALTITUDE FOR A SAFE
PARACHUTE LANDING.
WITNESS ACCOUNTS OF THE MOKULEIA
FLIGHT'S TAKEOFF SAY IT CIRCLED
BACK LOW AND SHORTLY AFTER
TAKEOFF. THERE WAS
UNLIKELY TIME OR ALTITUDE FOR A
SAFE ESCAPE
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"ANYTHING
BELOW 1,500 FEET IS USUALLY
CONSIDERED DANGER."
ASAWA CONTINUES TO SKYDIVE
TODAY BUT HAS THIS ADVICE BEFORE
STEPPING FOOT ON ANY
RECREATIONAL AIRPLANE
ACHAL ASAWA, SURVIVOR-"THEY
SHOULD LOOK UP SAFETY RECORDS OF
THE DROP ZONE AND BE MORE
INFORMED.
RESPONSIBILITY OF ENSURING THAT
PEOPLE WHO ARE ENGAGED IN
SKYDIVING, PEOPLE WHO ARE
ENGAGED IN ANY SORT OF AERIAL
ACTIVITY ARE DOING SO IN A
FASHION WHICH IS WELL CONTROLLED
AND AS CONTROLLED AS POSSIBLE
AND ON PLANES WHICH ARE WELL
MAINTAINED."
GINA:
THE NTSB ITSELF JUST RECENTLY
CALLED FOR MORE SAFETY MEASURES
FOR SMALL-CRAFT COMMERCIAL
OPERATIONS AFTER A SPATE OF
DEADLY INCIDENTS IN HAWAII
INCLUDING THE KAILUA
HELICOPTER CRASH IN APRIL, AND
RECENT PLANE FATALITIES IN
ALASKA. A ROUNDTABLE IN
ANCHORAGE IS COMING UP THIS
FALL.
THE NTSB WANTS SMALLER OPERATORS
TO ADOPT -- AND WANTS THE F-A-A
TO MANDATE --
THINGS MAJOR PASSENGER AIRLINES
ALREADY DO, LIKE SAFETY
RECORDING AND ANALYZING FLIGHT
DATA, AND MORE PILOT TRAINING.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE
OUTCOME OF THIS FATAL FLIGHT'S
FEDERAL INVESTIGATION.
BACK TO YOU.