The black box from the 757 Boeing aircraft that crashed off the coast of Puerto Plata on 6 February, killing all 189 passengers, was retrieved from the sea bed on Wednesday, 28 February and taken to Washington to be examined by aviation agencies from the United States, the Dominican Republic and Germany. Preliminary findings have led investigators to believe that a faulty air-speed indicator led the pilots into believing they were flying faster than the plane’s actual speed. As the aircraft lost velocity the crew was unaware of the problem until it was too late.
The Dominican Department of Civil Aviation told the Listin Diario newspaper that the black box recorded the conversation between members of the flight crew in which the accuracy of the air-speed indicator was discussed before and after takeoff. At an altitude of 7,300 feet, the altitude-loss alarm sounded, and 84 seconds later the craft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. At the time of the accident the air-speed indicator was showing a speed of 335 knots. “Other data obtained from the recordings of the conversations with air-traffic controllers and another recording of the dialogue between the crew confirm the problem of low air speed and the activation of the stall alarm,” reads part of the press release. Civil Aviation also says that there were no adverse weather conditions that could have affected the flight of the aircraft.
As the investigation into the recordings of the black box continues in Washington, the ship “Marion CII” is in the area where the accident occurred in order to find key components of the aircraft which could lead to the absolute determination of the crash’s precise cause.
8-14 March 1996