1972 Adana Turkish Airlines DC-9 crash
{{Short description|1972 aviation accident in Turkey}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox Aircraft accident
| Date = {{Start date|1972|01|21|df=y}}
| Type = Controlled flight into terrain
| occurrence_type = Accident
| name = 1972 Adana Turkish Airlines DC-9 crash
| image = McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32, TC-JAC, Turkish Airlines (cropped).jpg
| image_upright = 1.15
| caption = TC-JAC, the aircraft involved in the accident, photographed in 1970
| Site = Near Adana Airport, Turkey
| Coordinates = {{coord|37.014|N|35.230|E|display=title}}
| aircraft_type = Douglas DC-9-32
| tail_number = TC-JAC
| Ship name = Marmara
| Operator = Turkish Airlines
| Origin = Kandara Airport,
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| Stopover = Damascus Airport, Damascus, Syria
| Destination = Ankara Esenboğa Airport, Ankara, Turkey
| Occupants = 5
| Fatalities = 1
| Injuries = 3
| Survivors = 4
| Passengers = 0
| Crew = 5
}}
On 21 January 1972, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 registered as TC-JAC operated by Turkish Airlines crashed on approach while trying to make an emergency landing at Adana Airport. The aircraft was en-route from Kandara Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to Ankara Esenboğa Airport with a stopover at Damascus Airport with only five crew members on board after carrying passengers to Hajj the day before.
After taking off from Damascus for the second leg of the flight, the plane had a cabin pressurization problem and attempted to divert to Adana. The aircraft had a go-around in its first landing attempt due to poor visibility. During the second attempt, the plane flew too low and crashed in a field {{convert|6|km|mi}} away from the airport, and subsequently caught fire. One of the five crew members died in the flames, while three others were injured.
Background
= Aircraft =
The aircraft was a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32, registered as TC-JAC, and named Marmara; it was manufactured in 1968.{{Cite web|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19720121-0|title=TC-JAC {{!}} ASN accident description|access-date=26 August 2022|website=Aviation Safety Network|archive-date=1 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701134048/https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19720121-0|url-status=live}} Two days prior to the accident, on 19 January, the plane carried the 13th Prime Minister of Turkey Nihat Erim and a delegation from Ankara to France, and was due to bring them back later on the accident day. Before the prime minister boarded the McDonnell Douglas DC-9, it underwent an "extensive technical control" and its interior was searched for explosives with detectors.{{Cite news|date=22 January 1972|url=https://gazetearsivi.milliyet.com.tr/liste?tarih=1972.01.22|title=Bir Uçak Adana'da Düştü|language=Turkish|trans-title=A Plane Crashed in Adana|pages=1|work=Milliyet|url-access=registration}}
= Crew =
On board the flight deck were Captain Mahzar İpek, aged 46, and First Officer Celâlettin Yeprem, aged 51. Both had been flying with the airline for 15 years, after leaving the Turkish Air Force in 1957.{{Cite news|date=22 January 1972|url=https://gazetearsivi.milliyet.com.tr/liste?tarih=1972.01.22|title=Bir Uçak Adana'da Düştü|language=Turkish|trans-title=A Plane Crashed in Adana|pages=8|work=Milliyet|url-access=registration}} There were three cabin crew members: Nilgün Dener, Selva Aksöyek and Hülya Maviler. Maviler had also been a crew member on a Turkish Airlines flight that was hijacked to Sofia in September 1969.
Accident
The aircraft was returning without passengers from Jeddah after carrying people to Hajj. The aircraft took off from Damascus and headed for Ankara. The pilots reported to controllers that they were having problems with cabin pressurization and diverted to Adana Airport for an emergency landing. It was snowing at the time of the accident, a condition which was rare for Adana.{{Sfn|Gök|2018|p=72}} Due to the poor visibility, the pilots initiated a go-around after failing to see the runway. During the second approach, the aircraft was too low on altitude and struck the ground at 4:24 local time, {{convert|6|km|mi}} away from the airport.{{Cite web|url=https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-douglas-dc-9-32-adana-1-killed|title=Crash of a Douglas DC-9-32 in Adana: 1 Killed|access-date=26 August 2022|website=Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives|archive-date=18 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211018002256/https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-douglas-dc-9-32-adana-1-killed|url-status=live}} The plane lost its landing gear and slid a short distance before catching fire.
Wreckage and recovery
The wreckage was located in a field near the Sarıhuğlar village close to the airport. Cabin crew member Hülya Maviler was killed in the fire that started after impact, while co-pilot Celâlettin Yeprem was taken out of the aircraft in a critical condition. Nilgün Dener, located at the rear of the aircraft, survived without any injuries and helped fellow crew members near the cockpit to evacuate. Maviler was seated at the center of the cabin and could not be reached by first responders. She was trying to escape to the rear of the aircraft but was surrounded by the smoke; her burnt body was removed from between seats.{{Cite news|date=9 April 1999|title=1972'deki kazanın kopyası|trans-title=Replica of the accident in 1972|url=https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/1972deki-kazanin-kopyasi-39072330|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220826152143/https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/1972deki-kazanin-kopyasi-39072330|archive-date=26 August 2022|access-date=26 August 2022|work=Hürriyet|language=tr}} Her funeral was held in Istanbul the day after the crash.{{Cite news|date=23 January 1972|url=https://gazetearsivi.milliyet.com.tr/liste?tarih=1972.01.23|title=Maviler Toprağa Verildi|language=Turkish|trans-title=Maviler was Buried|pages=1|work=Milliyet|url-access=registration}} The crash is the sole fatal McDonnell Douglas DC-9 accident involving Turkish Airlines.{{Sfn|Gök|2018|p=72}}
Cause and aftermath
While being treated at the hospital, captain Mahzar İpek said that they had lost all communications with the airport and that they decided to make an emergency landing in an area that seemed to be flat.
In 1975, Gündüz Sevilgen, a member of the 15th Parliament of Turkey from the National Salvation Party, wrote several questions to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey related to Turkish Airlines, including the causes of accidents.{{Sfn|TBMM|1975|p=106}} He received a response from the Minister of Transport, Sabahattin Özbek, on 18 March. The response included a short list of causes of all Turkish Airlines crashes to date.{{Sfn|TBMM|1975|p=110}} The cause for the Adana crash in the response was:
{{Blockquote|Not adhering to IFR limits by attempting to approach and land visually in a misty and cloudy weather.{{Sfn|TBMM|1975|p=110}}}}
According to a Hürriyet article from 1999, the pressurization failure was due to a wiring malfunction. In 2020, Sözcü reported that they could not find any record of the pilots being prosecuted over the death of Hülya Maviler.{{Cite news|last=Demir|first=Yusuf|date=10 February 2020|title=Türkiye'nin gündemine oturan pilot SÖZCÜ'ye konuştu: O mücadeleyi kazandık|trans-title=The pilot, who is on Turkey's agenda, spoke to SÖZCÜ: We won that fight|url=https://www.sozcu.com.tr/2020/gundem/turkiye-havacilik-tarihinde-bir-ilk-yasanirken-o-pilottan-sozcuye-kritik-aciklamalar-5615970/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210725104635/https://www.sozcu.com.tr/2020/gundem/turkiye-havacilik-tarihinde-bir-ilk-yasanirken-o-pilottan-sozcuye-kritik-aciklamalar-5615970/|archive-date=25 July 2021|access-date=30 September 2022|work=Sözcü|language=Turkish}}
References
= Citations =
{{Reflist}}
= Bibliography =
{{refbegin}}
- {{Cite journal|author=TBMM|date=March 1975|title=Manisa Milletvekili M. Gündüz Sevilgen'in, Türk Hava Yollan Genel Müdürlüğü Teşkilâtı Personeline ve Uçak Kazalarına İlişkin Sorusu ve Ulaştırma Bakanı Sabahattin Özbek'in Yazılı Cevabı|trans-title=Manisa Deputy M. Gündüz Sevilgen's Question Regarding Turkish Airlines General Directorate Organization Personnel and Aircraft Accidents and Written Answer of the Minister of Transport Sabahattin Özbek|url=https://www5.tbmm.gov.tr/tutanaklar/TUTANAK/MM__/d04/c011/mm__04011052.pdf|journal=National Assembly Minutes Journal|access-date=19 August 2022|archive-date=23 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120523012345/https://www5.tbmm.gov.tr/tutanaklar/TUTANAK/MM__/d04/c011/mm__04011052.pdf|publisher=Grand National Assembly of Turkey|url-status=live|volume=11|pages=106–111|language=Turkish}}
- {{cite book|last=Gök|first=Kerem|date=2018|title=Uçak Kazaları: Türk Sivil Havacılık Tarihine Damgasını Vuran Kazalar|trans-title=Aircraft Accidents: Accidents That Left Their Mark on Turkish Civil Aviation History|publisher=Kanon Kitap|location=Ankara|edition=First|isbn=9786056864414|language=Turkish}}
{{refend}}
External links
- {{ASN accident|id=19720121-0}}
{{McDonnell Douglas DC-9 family}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 1972}}
{{Turkish Airlines}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in Turkey}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Turkish Airlines Adana, 1972}}
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1972
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in Turkey
Category:Turkish Airlines accidents and incidents