View source for China Airlines Flight 642

{{short description|August 1999 plane crash in Hong Kong}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2014}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
| occurrence_type = Accident
| name            = China Airlines Flight 642
| image           = Mandarin Airlines - McDonnell Douglas MD-11 - B-150 - Hong Kong International.jpg
| alt             = 
| caption         = B-150, the aircraft involved in the accident in 1998 while still in service with [[Mandarin Airlines]]
| date            = 22 August 1999
| type            = Crashed on landing due to strong winds
| site            = [[Hong Kong International Airport]]
| coordinates     = {{coord|22.305|N|113.922|E|type:airport_region:HK|display=inline,title}}
| aircraft_type   = [[McDonnell Douglas MD-11]]
| origin          = [[Don Mueang International Airport]]
| stopover        = [[Hong Kong International Airport]]
| stopover0       = 
| last_stopover   = 
| destination     = [[Taoyuan International Airport|Chiang Kai-shek International Airport]]
| aircraft_name   = 
| operator        = [[China Airlines]]
| tail_number     = B-150
| IATA            = CI642
| ICAO            = CAL642
| callsign        = DYNASTY 642
| occupants       = 315
| passengers      = 300
| crew            = 15
| fatalities      = 3
| survivors       = 312
| injuries        = 208
}}

'''China Airlines Flight 642''' was a flight that crashed at [[Hong Kong International Airport|Hong Kong (Chek Lap Kok) International Airport]] on 22 August 1999. It was operating from [[Bangkok]] (Bangkok International Airport, now renamed as [[Don Mueang International Airport]]) to [[Taipei]] with a stopover in Hong Kong.<ref name="arandard">{{Cite news|last=Murphy|first=Colum|url=https://www.thestandard.com.hk/stdn/std/Metro/GB05Ak01.html|title=Pilot error blamed for typhoon crash|date=5 February 2005|work=[[The Standard (Hong Kong)|The Standard]]|access-date=28 May 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327141134/http://www.thestandard.com.hk/stdn/std/Metro/GB05Ak01.html|archive-date=27 March 2009}}</ref>

The plane, a [[McDonnell Douglas MD-11]] ([[Aircraft registration|registration]] {{Airreg|B|150|)}}, touched down hard during landing, flipped over and caught fire. Of the 315 people on board, 312 survived and three were killed.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas MD-11 B-150 Hong Kong-Chek Lap Kok International Airport (HKG)|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19990822-0|access-date=2019-07-10|website=aviation-safety.net|publisher=[[Aviation Safety Network]]}}</ref> It was the first fatal accident to occur at the new Hong Kong International airport since it opened in July 1998.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1999-08-22|title=Sunday's Hong Kong crash fourth accident in past decade|work=CNN|agency=Reuters|url=http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/asiapcf/9908/22/crash.hong.kong.accidents/index.html|access-date=2020-03-01}}</ref>

Flight 642 was one of only two hull losses of MD-11s with passenger configuration, the other being [[Swissair Flight 111]], which crashed in 1998 with 229 fatalities. All other hull losses of MD-11s have been when the aircraft has been serving as a cargo aircraft.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Ranter|first=Harro|title=MD-11 hull losses|url=http://aviation-safety.net/database/dblist.php?field=typecode&var=353%25&cat=%251&sorteer=datekey&page=1|access-date=2019-07-10|website=aviation-safety.net|publisher=Aviation Safety Network}}</ref>

== Aircraft and crew ==
[[File:Seating plan China Airlines Flight 642 (en).svg|thumb|Seating plan]]
The aircraft was a McDonnell Douglas MD-11 registered as B-150, which had been delivered to China Airlines in October 1992. The aircraft was powered by three Pratt & Whitney [[Pratt & Whitney PW4000|PW4460]] turbofan engines.<ref name="cad" />{{Reference page|pages=13–19}} B-150 had been involved in an earlier unrelated incident as CAL012 on 7 December 1992 when [[Turbulence|moderate turbulence]] led to the aircraft departing normal flight, leading to it sustaining damage to its outboard elevator skin assemblies, some of which broke off from the aircraft.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas MD-11 B-150 Kushimoto |url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19921207-0 |access-date=2023-01-05 |website=aviation-safety.net}}</ref><ref name="AAR-94-02 Final Report">{{Cite web |date=1994-02-15 |title=In-flight turbulence encounter and loss of portions of the elevators, China Airlines Flight CI-012, McDonnell Douglas MD-11-P, Taiwan registration B-150, About 20 miles east of Japan, December 7, 1992 |url=https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR9402.pdf |access-date=2023-01-05 |publisher=[[National Transportation Safety Board]] |id=NTSB/AAR-94/02}}</ref> B-150 was then delivered to China Airlines's subsidiary Mandarin Airlines in July 1993. It was then returned to China Airlines in March 1999.{{Cn|date=September 2024}}

The captain was 57-year-old Gerardo Lettich, an Italian national who had joined China Airlines in 1997, and had previously flown for a major European airline. He had 17,900 flight hours, including 3,260 hours on the MD-11. The first officer was 36-year-old Liu Cheng-hsi{{efn|{{Lang-zh|first=t|t=劉成熙|s=刘成熙|p=Liú Chéngxī}}}}, a Taiwanese national who had been with the Airline since 1989 and had logged 4,630 flight hours, with 2,780 of them on the MD-11.<ref name="cad" />{{Reference page|pages=9–13}}<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Lee|first1=Ella|url=https://www.scmp.com/article/294446/pilots-urged-attend-meeting-taiwan-aviation-heads|title=Pilots urged to attend meeting with Taiwan aviation heads|date=1999-09-22|work=South China Morning Post|access-date=2020-03-01|last2=Lee|first2=Stella}}</ref>

== Summary ==
 
At about 6:43 P.M. local time (10:43 UTC) on 22 August 1999, the MD-11 was making its [[final approach (aviation)|final approach]] to runway 25L when [[Tropical Storm Sam (1999)|Tropical Storm Sam]] was {{Convert|50|km|mi nmi|abbr=}} NE of the airport. At an altitude of {{convert|700|ft|m|abbr=}} prior to touchdown, a wind check was reported to the crew, which included winds gusting 320 deg/{{convert|28|knots|km/h mph|abbr=}} to {{convert|36|knots|km/h mph|abbr=}}. This resulted in a crosswind vector of {{convert|26|knots|km/h mph|abbr=}} gusting to {{convert|33|knots|km/h mph|abbr=}}, while the tested limit for the aircraft was {{convert|35|knots|km/h mph|abbr=}}.

During the final flare to land, the plane rolled to the right, landed hard on its right main gear and the No. 3 engine touched the runway. The right wing separated from the fuselage. The aircraft continued to roll over and skidded off the runway in flames. When it stopped, it was on its back and the rear of the plane was on fire, coming to rest on a grass area next to the runway, {{convert|3500|ft|m|abbr=off}} from the runway threshold. The right wing was found on a taxiway {{convert|280|ft|m|abbr=}} from the nose of the plane.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/199909/17/0917301.htm|title=Accident Bulletin on China Airlines|website=www.info.gov.hk|access-date=2016-05-31}}</ref> As shown in photos of the aircraft at rest, the fire caused significant damage to the rear section of the aircraft but was quickly extinguished due to the heavy rain and quick response from rescue teams in the airport.

Rescue vehicles quickly arrived on the scene and suppressed the fire on and in the vicinity of the aeroplane, allowing rescue of the passengers and crew to progress in very difficult conditions. Two passengers rescued from the wreckage were certified dead on arrival at hospital and one passenger died five days later in hospital.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/asiapcf/9908/22/china.air.crash.05/|title=2 die, more than 200 hurt in Hong Kong jet crash|date=1999-08-22|work=CNN|access-date=2020-03-01}}</ref> A total of 219 people, including crewmembers, were admitted to hospital, of whom 50 were seriously injured and 153 sustained minor injuries. All 15 crew members survived.<ref name="cad" />{{Reference page|page=7}}

== Investigation ==
The final report of the accident blamed it mainly on pilot error, specifically the inability to arrest the high rate of descent existing at {{convert|50|ft|m|abbr=}} altitude on the [[radar altimeter]]. The descent rate at touch down was {{convert|18–20|ft/s|m/s|abbr=}}.{{Cns||date=October 2024}}

The flight data stored in the [[volatile memory]] of the aircraft's [[Quick access recorder|Quick Access Recorder]] (QAR) during the last {{convert|500|ft|m|abbr=}} of the approach could not be recovered due to the interruption of the power supply at impact. Probable wind variations and the loss of headwind component, together with the early retardation of thrust levers, led to a {{convert|20|knots|km/h mph|abbr=}} loss in [[indicated airspeed]] just prior to touchdown.<ref name="cad">{{Cite web|url=http://www.cad.gov.hk/reports/main1.pdf|title=Report on the accident to Boeing MD11 B-150 at Hong Kong International Airport on 22 August 1999|date=December 2004|website=www.cad.gov.hk|publisher=Civil Aviation Department|location=Hong Kong|access-date=2016-05-31}}</ref>

Due to the severe weather conditions forecast for Hong Kong, the flight crew had prepared to divert the flight to Taipei if the situation at Hong Kong was deemed unsuitable for landing. Extra fuel was carried for this possibility, resulting in a landing weight of {{convert|429557|lb|kg|abbr=on}}, 99.897% of its [[maximum landing weight]] of {{convert|430,000|lb|kg|abbr=on}}. Based on the initial weather and wind check which was passed along to the crew from Hong Kong during the flight, they believed they could land there and decided against a diversion to Taipei. However, four earlier flights had carried out missed approaches at Hong Kong and five had diverted.{{Cns||date=October 2024}}

During the final approach, the plane descended along the [[Instrument landing system|Instrument Landing System]] (ILS) glideslope until at about {{convert|700|ft|m|abbr=}}, the crew visually acquired the runway. They disengaged the [[autopilot]] but left the autothrottle on. During the flare, the rate of descent was not arrested, the plane landed with the right wing slightly lower. The right landing gear touched down first, the right engine impacted the runway and the right wing was detached from the [[fuselage]]. Since the left wing was still attached, the lift from that wing rolled the fuselage onto its right side, and the plane came to rest inverted in the grass strip next to the runway. The spilled fuel caught fire.<ref name="cad" />

Several suggestions were given to China Airlines concerning its training.<ref name="cad" /> However, China Airlines disputed the report's findings on the flight crews' actions, citing the weather conditions at the time of the accident and claimed that the aircraft flew into a [[Downburst|microburst]] just before landing, causing it to crash.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.defensedaily.com/china-airlines-disputes-official-finding-of-pilot-error/uncategorized/|title=China Airlines Disputes Official Finding of Pilot Error|website=www.defensedaily.com|date=14 February 2005|publisher=Defense Daily|access-date=2020-03-01}}</ref>

== Media ==
The landing and crash of Flight 642 was recorded by nearby occupants in a car which also captured their reactions from the witnesses.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.airdisaster.com/download/ci611.shtml|title=Airdisaster.com video of China Airlines Flight 642|website=Airdisaster.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031209112950/http://www.airdisaster.com/download/ci611.shtml|archive-date=9 December 2003|url-status=usurped|access-date=2020-03-01}}</ref>{{Bsn|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:NOTRS]]).|date=October 2024}}

A photo showing a Mandarin Airlines MD-11 taxiing past the remains of Flight 642 was circulated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/a-difficult-cabin-announcement/|title=A Difficult Cabin Announcement|website=Snopes.com|date=11 January 2005 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-03-01}}</ref>

The crash was mentioned in Episode 7 of the first Season [[Extreme Engineering]], despite many details being incorrect in the episode such as the flight number being misnamed as Flight 233.<ref>''Extreme Engineering, Building Hong Kong's Airport (2003) - Discovery Channel''</ref>

This disaster was also aired on [[RTHK]]'s ''Elite Brigade II'' Episode 2 in 2012.{{Cn|date=October 2024}}

== See also ==
{{Portal|Hong Kong|Taiwan|Aviation|1990s}}
*[[Delta Air Lines Flight 191]] – a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar that crashed on approach under similar weather conditions in 1985
* [[Martinair Flight 495]] – a DC-10 that broke up after a hard landing under similar weather conditions in 1992
* [[Lufthansa Cargo Flight 8460]] – an MD-11 that bounced and broke up on landing in 2010
* [[FedEx Express Flight 80]] – an MD-11 that bounced and flipped on landing in 2009
* [[FedEx Express Flight 14]] – an MD-11 that bounced and flipped on landing in 1997
* [[List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{notelist}}

== External links ==
{{external media |float=right |width= |image1=[http://www.airliners.net/search?registrationActual=B-150&display=detail Pre-crash photos of B-150]}}
* [[Civil Aviation Department (Hong Kong)|Civil Aviation Department]]
** [https://www.cad.gov.hk/english/n1.html Aircraft Accident Report 1/2004 on China Airlines Flight CI642 (Civil Aviation Department, Hong Kong)]
***[https://www.cad.gov.hk/reports/main1.pdf Final Report]
***[https://www.cad.gov.hk/reports/app1.pdf Appendices]
* {{in lang|en}} {{YouTube|title=Video of the incident|id=JuoeYaR4MP4}}
* {{in lang|es}} {{YouTube|title=Video of the incident|id=9cRP1-CzyC0}}
* {{cite web|last=Li|first=Alex Fu-hing|url=http://www.hku.hk/hkgcsb/csn/csn46eng/csn5.htm|title=Air crash rescuers praised for courage and gallantry|publisher=[[Civil Service Bureau]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001204225300/http://www.hku.hk/hkgcsb/csn/csn46eng/csn5.htm|archive-date=4 December 2000}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in Hong Kong}}
{{Aviation incidents and accidents in 1999}}
{{China Airlines}}
<br />

[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1999]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by weather]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by pilot error]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Accidents and incidents involving the McDonnell Douglas MD-11]]
[[Category:Filmed deaths during aviation accidents and incidents]]
[[Category:China Airlines accidents and incidents|642]]
[[Category:Hong Kong International Airport]]
[[Category:1999 in Hong Kong]]
[[Category:1999 meteorology]]
[[Category:August 1999 in China]]