Cause of Sukhoi-30 crash unclear
Preliminary inspections suggest there was problem with the plane’s fly-by-wire system
By : parth satam
Update: 2014-10-19 04:29 GMT
Mumbai: The Sukhoi-30 crash in Pune on Tuesday is suspected to have been caused by a problem with the plane’s fly-by-wire (FBW) system, based on preliminary inspections. Officials, however, clarified that the finding is not final as the court of inquiry (CoI) has just begun its investigation. The FBW replaces the mechanical controls from the joystick that moderated the wings of the plane, with an electrical interface.
“The flight data recorder has yet not indicated an engine failure or a ‘flame out’ in the crash. Therefore the possibility of the malfunction of a FBW switch inside the cockpit seems likely at
this stage,” said a source from the Lohegaon Air Force Station in Pune. Apparently, this is the second Su-30 crash from the same air force station with the first one having occurred on December 13, 2011.
In the latest crash, the plane manned by a pilot and a weapons system operator (WSO) identified as wing commander S. Munje and flying officer Anup Singh, crashed while attempting to land at a distance of 22 km from the airfield. However, both had ejected safely, landing at Talekarwadi in Theur, around 30 km from Pune, without causing any damage to civilian life and property. Though the main body of the fighter was largely intact, the damage caused to it indicate a hard landing.
The theory is supported by former air chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne’s admission during a visit to the Lohegaon AFS on August 2012 where he said the FBW problem identified by the IAF was in the process of being communicated to the design agency. “The electronic systems in the FBW can cause problems. Otherwise I have flown the plane myself and there is no question about its airworthiness,” ACM Browne had then said.
The agency could either be the original Russian firm, Sukhoi Aviation Corporation or the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which builds the plane under licence but it is still uncertain which of the two had manufactured the plane. “Problems with the FBW have also occurred with American planes like the F-22 Raptor, operated by US Air Force, which apparently lost one jet to FBW failure,” said and IAF pilot.
The Lohegaon AFS has two squadrons, squadron 20 (Lightnings) and squadron 30 (Rhinos), of the Su-30MKI. In the December 2011 crash, wing commander G.S. Sohal and flight lieutenant U Nautiyal had to eject with the plane going down and it had completely disintegrated by crashing at Wade Bolai village in Wagholi.