Indian Airlines Flight 171
Indian Airlines Flight 171 was a domestic passenger service that tragically crashed during an attempted emergency landing at Bombay Airport (currently known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport) on 12 October 1976. The accident occurred following an uncontained failure of one of its engines, resulting in the death of all 95 individuals aboard. The failure originated from metal fatigue in the tenth stage high-pressure compressor disk of the No. 2 engine, which disintegrated.[1] Fragments from this failure ruptured fuel lines, igniting a fire that damaged critical control surfaces and ultimately caused loss of aircraft control.
Accident
Flight 171 was operating on a route between Bombay (now Mumbai) and Madras (now Chennai). Although initially planned to be flown by a Boeing aircraft, it was substituted with a Sud Aviation Caravelle due to prior engine complications.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name Shortly after departing from runway 27, the No. 2 engine experienced a catastrophic failure. The flight crew elected to return for an emergency landing on runway 09. With the landing gear extended and approximately from the runway threshold at an altitude of , the aircraft lost control and crashed, resulting in no survivors.[1]Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name
Cause
The root cause was identified as a fatigue-induced crack in the compressor disc's tenth stage, which precipitated the engine failure. This led to the rupture of the compressor casing and severance of fuel lines, causing a severe fire within the engine compartment. The conflagration likely consumed the hydraulic fluid necessary for flight control, leading to loss of command over the aircraft.
Notable victims
- R. Ponnappan Nadar (born 1921/1923) – distinguished politician and lawyer affiliated with the Indian National Congress, who served as a Member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, representing the Vilavancode constituency.
- Rani Chandra (born 1949) – well-known actress and model in Malayalam and Tamil cinema.
External links
- Pages with reference errors
- Articles with short description
- 1976 in India
- Aviation accidents and incidents in 1976
- Airliner accidents and incidents caused by in-flight fires
- Airliner accidents and incidents caused by mechanical failure
- Aviation accidents and incidents in India
- Accidents and incidents involving the Sud Aviation Caravelle
- Indian (airline) accidents and incidents
- October 1976 in Asia
- Airliner accidents and incidents involving uncontained engine failure
- Airliner accidents and incidents caused by engine failure