|
On 22 November 2003, shortly after takeoff from Baghdad, Iraq, an Airbus A300B4-200F cargo plane owned by European Air Transport (doing business as DHL Express) was struck on the left wing tip by a surface-to-air missile. Severe wing damage resulted in a fire and complete loss of hydraulic flight control systems. Because outboard left wing fuel tank 1A was full at takeoff, there was no fuel-air vapour explosion. Liquid jet fuel dropped away as 1A disintegrated. Inboard fuel tank 1 was pierced and leaking.〔(Great escape )〕 Returning to Baghdad, the three-man crew made an injury-free landing of the crippled aircraft, using differential engine thrust as the only pilot input. This is despite major damage to a wing, total loss of hydraulic control, a faster than safe landing speed and a ground path which veered off the runway surface and onto unprepared ground.〔"Air Crash Investigators"〕 ''Paris Match'' reporter Claudine Vernier-Palliez accompanied a Fedayeen commando unit on their strike mission against the DHL aircraft.〔"Voici le commando qui a touché l'Airbus", Claudine Vernier-Palliez, Paris Match, N° 2845 – 27 Novembre 2003〕 Sara Daniel, a French weekly newsmagazine journalist claimed receipt, from an unknown source, of a video that showed insurgents, faces concealed, firing a missile at the DHL A300.〔(Tape purports to show missile attack on cargo jet )〕〔Daniel, Sara. ''Voyage to a Stricken Land''. Arcade Publishing, 2006, ISBN 1559707852, pg. 77〕 Daniel was researching a feature about Iraqi resistance groups but she disclaimed any specific knowledge of the people who carried out the attack, despite being present at the moment of attack.〔 ==Background== The aircraft took off from Baghdad International Airport en route to Bahrain International Airport at 06:30 UTC with an experienced crew of three: two Belgians, 38-year-old Captain Éric Gennotte and 29-year-old First Officer Steeve Michielsen, and a Scot, 54-year-old flight engineer Mario Rofail. The captain was a relatively experienced pilot with 3,300 total flight hours. More than half of his hours had been logged in the A300. The first officer had 1,275 hours of flight experience and the flight engineer had 13,423 hours of flight experience.〔https://web.archive.org/web/20050625095108/http://asasi.org/2004_PPTs/Malinge_Airbus%20Bagdhad_ISASI04_PPT.pdf〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「2003 Baghdad DHL attempted shootdown incident」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|