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2008 Polish Air Force C-295 crash

Coordinates: 53°22′48″N 16°06′39″E / 53.38000°N 16.11083°E / 53.38000; 16.11083
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2008 Polish Air Force C-295 crash
A Polish Air Force CASA C-295, similar to the aircraft involved in the accident
Accident
Date23 January 2008 (2008-01-23)
SummaryControlled flight into terrain in poor weather conditions
SiteMirosławiec, Poland
53°22′48″N 16°06′39″E / 53.38000°N 16.11083°E / 53.38000; 16.11083
Aircraft
Aircraft typeEADS CASA C-295
Operator Polish Air Force
Registration019
Flight originWarsaw Frederic Chopin Airport, Poland]
Destination12th Air Base, Mirosławiec, Poland
Occupants20
Passengers16
Crew4
Fatalities20
Survivors0
State funeral of the crash victims
Memorial at crash site

On 23 January 2008, a Polish Air Force EADS CASA C-295 military transport plane, flying from Warsaw, crashed in Mirosławiec as it was attempting to land at the 12th Air Base, killing all 20 passengers and crew. The 20 victims on board included high-ranking Polish air force officers.[1][2]

This was the first fatal accident involving a CASA C-295. Subsequently, all Polish C-295s were grounded until further notice.[3] In the subsequent investigations the primary cause of the accident was determined to be an inadvertent loss of spatial and situational awareness by the aircraft crew during the landing approach in poor weather conditions, with a low cloud ceiling and little visibility.[4] A number of secondary causes and contributing factors were also found by the investigation after the accident, including deficiencies in the air traffic controllers' skills and methods of directing and controlling the landing.[5] Military experts had qualified it as "the safest plane of the Polish air force".[6]

The Polish defence minister Bogdan Klich dismissed five air force personnel after the accident investigation concluded that multiple failings contributed to the crash.[7]

Among the fatalities was Brig. Gen. Andrzej Andrzejewski, commander of an air brigade based in Świdwin.[8]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ "Polish army plane in fatal crash". BBC News. 24 January 2008. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  2. ^ "Katastrofa samolotu wojskowego na Pomorzu Zachodnim" (in Polish). Trojmiasto.pl. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  3. ^ "Poland grounds C-295 transports after 20 killed in crash". Flight Global. 25 January 2008.
  4. ^ "ASN Aircraft accident CASA C-295M 019 Miroslawiec AB". Aviation-safety.net. 23 January 2008. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  5. ^ PROTOKÓŁ badania zdarzenia lotniczego nr 127/2008/2 – wypadku ciężkiego (katastrofy lotniczej) samolotu CASA C-295M numer 019, zaistniałego w 13 eskadrze lotnictwa transportowego z Krakowa, dnia 23 stycznia 2008 r., w środę., o godz. 19.07, w nocy IFR, Komisja Badania Wypadków Lotniczych Lotnictwa Państwowego, Warszawa, 20 marca 2008, pages 27-35
  6. ^ "Veinte muertos en Polonia al estrellarse un avión militar fabricado por la española CASA | elmundo.es".
  7. ^ "Polish air force dismisses five personnel following C-295 crash report". Flight Global. 14 April 2008.
  8. ^ "Twenty killed in Polish military plane crash". CTVNews. 24 January 2008. Retrieved 19 July 2017.
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