2001 Linate Airport runway collision
{{Short description|Aircraft accident in Milan, Italy}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Expand Italian|topic=transp|date=October 2018}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
| name = 2001 Linate Airport runway collision
{{nobold|{{small|Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 686{{·}}Air Evex D-IEVX}}}}
| image = Linate Airport disaster map en.gif
| alt =
| caption = A map of Linate Airport. The blue line marks the path of the MD-87. The green line marks the intended path of the Cessna, while the red line shows its actual one.
| occurrence_type = Accident
| date = {{date and age|2001|10|8|df=y}}
| summary = Runway collision in poor visibility, inadequate taxiway signage, and disabled airport motion sensors
| site = Linate Airport, Milan, Italy
| coordinates = {{coord|45|26|54|N|009|16|36|E|region:IT-MI_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
| total_fatalities = 118
| total_injuries = 4
| ground_fatalities = 4
| ground_injuries = 4
| plane1_image = McDonnell Douglas MD-87 (DC-9-87), Scandinavian Airlines - SAS AN0193728.jpg
| plane1_caption = Lage Viking, the MD-87 involved, seen at Zurich Airport, in 1999
| plane1_type = McDonnell Douglas MD-87
| plane1_name = Lage Viking
| plane1_operator = Scandinavian Airlines System
| plane1_IATA = SK686
| plane1_ICAO = SAS686
| plane1_callsign = SCANDINAVIAN 686
| plane1_tailnum = SE-DMA
| plane1_origin = Linate Airport
Milan, Italy
| plane1_destination = Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen, Denmark
| plane1_occupants = 110
| plane1_passengers = 104
| plane1_crew = 6
| plane1_fatalities = 110
| plane1_survivors = 0
| plane2_image = Cessna 525a citationjet cj2 g-ocjz arp.jpg
| plane2_caption = A Cessna Citation CJ2
similar to the one involved
| plane2_type = Cessna Citation CJ2
| plane2_name =
| plane2_operator = Air Evex{{Rp|174}}{{cite web |url=http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/all/Status%20del%20volo.pdf |title=ANSV final report, appendix I |publisher=ANSV |date=20 January 2004 |access-date=8 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055107/http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/all/Status%20del%20volo.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead }}
| plane2_IATA =
| plane2_ICAO =
| plane2_callsign = DELTA INDIA ECHO VICTOR X-RAY
| plane2_tailnum = D-IEVX
| plane2_origin = Linate Airport
Milan, Italy
| plane2_destination = Le Bourget Airport
Paris, France
| plane2_occupants = 4
| plane2_passengers = 2
| plane2_crew = 2
| plane2_fatalities = 4
| plane2_survivors = 0
}}
Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 686, a McDonnell Douglas MD-87 airliner carrying 110 people bound for Copenhagen, Denmark, collided on take-off with a Cessna Citation CJ2{{Cite web|date=20 January 2004|title=Accident Boeing MD-87 SE-DMA Cessna 525-A D-IEVX Milano Linate airport October 8, 2001|url=https://www.havkom.se/assets/reports/Swedish/FINALREPORTA-1-04Linate.pdf|access-date=8 July 2011|publisher=National Agency for the Safety of Flight|id=A-1-04|archive-date=23 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170523101005/http://www.havkom.se/assets/reports/Swedish/FINALREPORTA-1-04Linate.pdf|url-status=dead}}{{Rp|1}} business jet carrying four people bound for Paris, France, on 8 October 2001 at Linate Airport in Milan, Italy. All 114 people on both aircraft were killed, as well as four people on the ground.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Uj0jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yewDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6610%2C3360451 |work=Deseret News |location=(Salt Lake City, Utah, USA) |agency=Associated Press |title=114 die when jet hits plane, then rams building in Milan |date=8 October 2001 |page=A2}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VlFWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_OsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4433%2C1991886 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |location=(Oregon, USA) |agency=Associated Press |title=Planes collide on Italian runway; 114 are killed |date=9 October 2001 |page=10A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Uz0jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yewDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2147%2C3741945 |work=Deseret News |location=(Salt Lake City, Utah, USA) |agency=Associated Press |title=Wrong turn by Cessna likely caused Italy crash |date=9 October 2001 |page=A4}}
The subsequent investigation determined that the collision was caused by several nonfunctioning and nonconforming safety systems, standards, and procedures at the airport.{{Rp|125}} It remains the deadliest accident in Italian aviation history.
Aircraft and crew
The collision involved two airlines; SAS and Air Evex. The larger of the two aircraft was a McDonnell-Douglas MD-87. The cockpit crew consisted of Captain Joakim Gustafsson and First Officer Anders Hyllander, both aged 36. Gustafsson had been hired by SAS in 1990 and had more than 5,800 hours of flight time. He had logged approximately 230 hours in the MD-87. Hyllander was hired by the airline in 1997. At the time of the accident, he had more than 4,300 total flying hours. He was more experienced in the aircraft type than his captain, having logged 2,000 hours of flight time in the MD-87.{{Rp|125}} The four Cabin Crew consisted of Purser Lise Lotte Anderson (57) with 30 years' service at SAS, Flight Attendants Olaf Jakobsson (49) with 29 years' service, Eiler Danielson (27) with 2 years' service, and Janne Penttinen (30) with 1 years' service.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvZPVmF1fJ4&feature=youtu.be |title=Crew Tribute: Tenerife Airport Disaster |date=2025-02-09 |last=Airline Chronicles |access-date=2025-04-30 |via=YouTube}}
The second aircraft was a Cessna Citation 525-A. There were two German pilots aboard. The captain, 36-year-old Horst Königsmann, had approximately 5,000 total flight hours logged, of which roughly 2,400 were accumulated in the Citation. The first officer, 64-year-old Martin Schneider, had approximately 12,000 flight hours' experience, of which 2,000 hours were in the Citation.{{Rp|125}} One of the passengers was Luca Fossati, chairman of Star – Stabilimento Alimentare S.p.A. and owner of the Citation.{{Cite news|last=Henneberger|first=Melinda|date=2001-10-09|title=Small Plane Collides With Jet on Milan Runway; 118 Die|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/09/world/small-plane-collides-with-jet-on-milan-runway-118-die.html|access-date=2020-01-23|issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web|last=Boudreaux|first=Richard|date=2001-10-10|title=Italy Probe Points to Cessna Pilot|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-oct-10-mn-55531-story.html|access-date=2021-09-04|website=Los Angeles Times}}
Accident
The accident occurred in thick fog, with visibility reduced to less than {{convert|200|m|-1}}. The Cessna Citation was instructed to taxi from the western apron along the northern taxiway (taxiway R5),{{Rp|22}} and then via the northern apron to the main taxiway which runs parallel to Runway 36R,{{Rp|24}} a route that would have kept it clear of 36R. Instead, the pilot taxied along the southern taxi route (taxiway R6),{{Rp|23}} crossing Runway 36R towards the main taxiway which lay beyond it (see diagram).{{Rp|24}}
At 08:09:28, the MD-87 was given clearance by a different controller to take off from Runway 36R.{{Rp|24–25}} Fifty-three seconds later, the MD-87 aircraft, travelling at about {{convert|150|kn|km/h mph}}, collided with the Cessna. One of the four people in the Cessna was killed on impact; the remaining three initially survived the crash but died from burn injuries. The MD-87 lost its right engine; the pilot, Joakim Gustafsson, attempted to take off, reaching an altitude of approximately {{convert|12|m|ft|-1}}. The remaining engine lost some thrust due to debris ingestion, and the plane having lost the right landing gear, came down. It impacted the ground with its right wing, causing it to separate and fire to spill out from its place as the MD-87 skidded. Gustafsson applied thrust reverser and brakes and tried to guide the plane through its control surfaces. This was insufficient to halt the jet's momentum, and it crashed into a luggage hangar located near the runway's end, at a speed of approximately {{convert|136|kn|km/h mph}}. In the impact, all the MD-87's crew and passengers were killed. The crash and subsequent fire killed four Italian ground personnel in the hangar and injured four more.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JnVIHbdF1B8C&q=58+were+italian+17+swedish+16+danish+6+finnish&pg=PA440|title=Forensic Anthropology and Medicine: Complementary Sciences From Recovery to Cause of Death|last1=Schmitt|first1=Aurore|last2=Cunha|first2=Eugenia|last3=Pinheiro|first3=João|date=2007-11-09|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-1-59745-099-7|pages=440}}
Of the occupants of the MD-87, 54 (46%), mainly in the back of the aircraft, suffered severe burns; their bodies were identified using forensic dentistry or DNA records. Those in the front of the aircraft suffered severe blunt trauma. All of the occupants of the MD-87 were killed by impact, not fire.{{Rp|75}}
Causes
The accident occurred less than a month after the September 11 attacks and the day after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan began, but the Italian government was quick to rule out a terrorist attack as the cause.{{Cite news |date=2001-10-08 |title=Jets collide on Milan runway; 118 killed |work=USA Today |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2001/10/08/milan.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011107091920/https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2001/10/08/milan.htm |archive-date=2001-11-07}}{{Cite news |date=2001-10-08 |title=Scores die in runway blaze |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1586126.stm |access-date=2023-11-16}}{{Cite news |date=2001-10-09 |title=Broken radar was factor in Italian crash |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1587991.stm |access-date=2023-11-16}}{{Cite news |date=2001-10-09 |title=SAS backs Linate over safety |url=https://www.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/10/09/linate.safety/index.html |access-date=2023-11-16 |work=CNN}} This was subsequently confirmed by the investigations that followed.{{Rp|125}}
The accident was investigated by the National Agency for the Safety of Flight (ANSV). The ANSV's final report was published on 20 January 2004 and concluded that the "immediate cause" of the accident was the incursion of the Cessna aircraft onto the active runway. However, the ANSV stopped short of placing the blame entirely on the Cessna pilots, who had become lost in the fog. Their report identified deficiencies in the airport layout and procedures.{{Cite web |date= |title=Final accident report |url=http://www.ansv.it/En/Detail.asp?ID=177 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131217221640/http://www.ansv.it/En/Detail.asp?ID=177 |archive-date=2013-12-17 |access-date=2023-11-16 |website= |publisher=National Agency for the Safety of Flight}}[http://www.comitato8ottobre.com/download/pubblicazioni/it/tesi_de_simoni.pdf Italian Report on the disaster] {{in lang|it}}.
Linate Airport was operating without a functioning ground radar system at the time, despite having had a new system approved on 30 March 1995. The previous system had been decommissioned on 29 November 1999, but the replacement had not been fully installed.{{Rp||pages=45–46}} The new system came online a few months later. Guidance signs along the taxiways were obscured, or badly worn, and were later found not to meet regulations. After the pilots mistakenly turned onto the R6 taxiway that led to the runway, there were no signs by which they could recognize where they were. When they stopped at a taxiway stop-marking, and correctly reported its identifier, S4, the ground controller disregarded this identification because it was not on his maps and was unknown to him. Motion sensing runway incursion alarms were present, but had been deactivated to prevent false alarms from ground vehicles or animals. The ground controller's verbal directions used terminology to designate aprons, taxiways, and runways, which did not match their on-the-ground signage and labels. Lastly, neither pilot of the Cessna was certified for landings with visibility less than {{convert|500|m}}, but had landed at the airport an hour before the disaster with a visibility reported by air traffic control of {{convert|100|m}}.{{Rp|125}}
Aftermath
On 16 April 2004, a Milan court found four people guilty for the disaster. Airport director Vincenzo Fusco and air-traffic controller Paolo Zacchetti were both sentenced to eight years in prison. Francesco Federico, former head of the airport, and Sandro Gualano, former head of the air traffic control agency, received sentences of six and a half years.{{cite web|url=http://www.comitato8ottobre.com/download/processo/it/86Sentenza%20LINATE%2015.7.04.doc|title=Motivi Della Decisione|trans-title=Reasons for the Decision|language=it|format=DOC|access-date=28 December 2023}} The pardon law issued by the Italian Parliament on 29 July 2006 reduced all convictions by three years. On 7 July 2006, Fusco and Federico were acquitted by the Milan Appeals Court. The controller Zacchetti's sentence was reduced to three years. In addition three more people were sentenced for multiple manslaughter and negligent disaster: former ENAV director general Fabio Marzocca to four years and four months, and former SEA airports agency officials Antonio Cavanna and Lorenzo Grecchi each to three years and three months. On 20 February 2008 the Supreme Court of Cassation upheld the acquittal of Fusco and Federico and confirmed five convictions.{{Cite news|last=Landucci|first=Roberto|date=2008-02-20|title=Court upholds 5 convictions in Italian air crash|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/italy-crash-idUSL2044808920080220|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816155546/https://www.reuters.com/article/italy-crash-idUSL2044808920080220|archive-date=2021-08-16}} (Initially, in late 2002, eleven officials and functionaries had been charged with manslaughter.){{cite news |date=December 28, 2002 |title=Air Controllers Facing Charges in Milan Crash That Killed 118 |page=A9 |work=The New York Times |agency= |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/28/world/air-controllers-facing-charges-in-milan-crash-that-killed-118.html |issn=0362-4331}}
The initial eight-year sentence for Zacchetti prompted outrage among air traffic controllers.{{cite web |title=ATC body blasts Linate verdicts |url=https://www.flightglobal.com/atc-body-blasts-linate-verdicts/54188.article |website=FlightGlobal |date=27 April 2004}} His sentence has been questioned in aviation safety law commentary.{{cite book |last1=Pellegrino |first1=Francesca |title=The Just Culture Principles in Aviation Law: Towards a Safety-Oriented Approach |date=9 September 2019 |publisher=Springer Nature |location=Cham, Switzerland |isbn=978-3-030-23177-4 |pages=86–88 |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23178-1 |chapter=4.1.1: Just Culture vs Blame Culture in Aviation - the Linate Disaster"|series=Legal Studies in International, European and Comparative Criminal Law |volume=3 |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-23178-1 |s2cid=203112177 }}
Victims
Victims of the crash included nationals of nine different countries.{{Cite news |date=10 October 2001 |title=British plane crash victims named |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1591060.stm |url-status=live |access-date=20 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141124042218/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1591060.stm |archive-date=24 November 2014}}{{Cite press release |title=Passenger and Crew List Scandinavian Airlines Flight SK 686 |date=8 October 2001 |publisher=Scandinavian Airlines |access-date=12 May 2010 |url=http://feed.ne.cision.com/wpyfs/00/00/00/00/00/02/2D/36/bit0001.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204191507/http://feed.ne.cision.com/wpyfs/00/00/00/00/00/02/2D/36/bit0001.pdf |archive-date=4 February 2016}}{{Cite press release |title=SK686 Update: Nationality Distribution |date=10 October 2001 |publisher=Scandinavian Airlines |url=http://feed.ne.cision.com/wpyfs/00/00/00/00/00/02/2E/6E/bit0001.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204191507/http://feed.ne.cision.com/wpyfs/00/00/00/00/00/02/2E/6E/bit0001.pdf |archive-date=4 February 2016 |access-date=12 May 2010}} Most of the victims were Italian and Scandinavian.
Four memorial services were held in honour of the SAS MD-87 victims. On 12 October, three separate ceremonies were held, with one in Denmark, one in Norway, and one in Sweden. On 13 October, a fourth ceremony was held in Italy.{{Cite press release |title=Memorial Service for the Causalities in Milan |date=11 October 2001 |publisher=Scandinavian Airlines |url=http://feed.ne.cision.com/wpyfs/00/00/00/00/00/02/2F/1E/bit0001.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204191508/http://feed.ne.cision.com/wpyfs/00/00/00/00/00/02/2F/1E/bit0001.pdf |archive-date=4 February 2016 |access-date=12 May 2010}}
In March 2002, a forest containing 118 beech trees called Beech Forest ({{Langx|it|Bosco dei Faggi}}) was inaugurated as a memorial to the victims in the Forlanini Park near the airport.{{Cite web |title=Inaugurazione del Bosco dei Faggi |url=https://www.comitato8ottobre.com/it/news/207/inaugurazione-del-bosco-dei-faggi.html |access-date=2025-02-19 |website=www.comitato8ottobre.com}} A sculpture by the Swedish artist Christer Bording donated by SAS, called Infinity Pain, was placed in the centre of the forest.{{cite web |title=Comitato 8 Ottobre per non dimenticare |url=http://www.comitato8ottobre.com/news.asp?tipo=comitato&id=368 |website=www.comitato8ottobre.com |access-date=17 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140415102316/http://www.comitato8ottobre.com/news.asp?tipo=comitato&id=368 |archive-date=15 April 2014 |language=it |date=14 Feb 2008 |url-status=dead}}
The disaster devastated the Swedish go-kart community as some of the country's most promising young drivers were on the flight after attending an event in Parma. After the disaster, the Swedish national motorsports club started a memorial fund together with some of the relatives. The fund awards annual stipends to promising Swedish youth in go-kart.{{Cite web |title=Välkommen till Anecto Racing Minnesfond |trans-title=Welcome to the Anecto Racing Memorial Fund |url=http://www.anectoracing.se/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223113802/http://www.anectoracing.se/ |archive-date=23 February 2014 |access-date=9 February 2009 |website=Anecto Racing |publisher=Anecto Racing Memorial fund |language=sv}}
Dramatization
In 2012 the accident was featured on the 11th season of the Discovery Channel Canada / National Geographic TV series Mayday, in an episode entitled "The Invisible Plane". The episode featured interviews with accident investigators, and a dramatization of the crash and investigation.{{Cite episode |title=The Invisible Plane|series=Mayday|network=Discovery Channel Canada / National Geographic Channel|season=11|year=2012}}
See also
- List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft
- Tenerife airport disaster, Madrid runway disaster, 1983 Anchorage runway collision, 1990 Wayne County Airport runway collision — other runway incursions that occurred in fog
References
{{reflist|33em}}
- ANSV final report: {{cite web|url=http://www.havkom.se/assets/reports/Swedish/FINALREPORTA-1-04Linate.pdf|title=Accident Boeing MD-87 SE-DMA Cessna 525-A D-IEVX Milano Linate airport October 8, 2001|publisher=National Agency for the Safety of Flight|id=A-1-04|date=20 January 2004|access-date=8 July 2011}}
External links
=National Agency for the Safety of Flight=
- [https://ansv.it/en/milano-linate-airport-boeing-md-87-registered-se-dma-and-cessna-525-a-registered-d-ievx/ Milano Linate, ground collision between Boeing MD-87, registration SE-DMA and Cessna 525-A, registration D-IEVX] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20131217221640/http://www.ansv.it/En/Detail.asp?ID=177 Archive])
- [https://shk.se/download/18.2d6f089b18faca29dc817b20/1698926574981/FINALREPORTA-1-04Linate.pdf Final report] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170523101005/http://www.havkom.se/assets/reports/Swedish/FINALREPORTA-1-04Linate.pdf |date=23 May 2017 }} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110721175411/http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/eng/FINAL%20REPORT%20A-1-04.pdf Archive])
- [https://ansv.it/milano-linate-collisione-a-terra-tra-boeing-md-87-marche-se-dma-e-cessna-525-a-marche-d-ievx/ Milano Linate, collisione a terra tra Boeing MD-87, marche SE-DMA e Cessna 525-A, marche D-IEVX] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20050207191531/http://ansv.it/It/Detail.asp?ID=177 Archive]) {{in lang|it}} – the Italian version is the report of record.
- [http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/ita/RELAZIONE%20DINCHIESTA%20A-1-04.pdf Final report] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20110721175511/http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/ita/RELAZIONE%20DINCHIESTA%20A-1-04.pdf Archive]) {{in lang|it}}
- [http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/all/TRASCRIZIONI%20CVR.pdf CVR Transcript] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20131217231403/http://www.ansv.it/cgi-bin/all/TRASCRIZIONI%20CVR.pdf Archive])
=Other=
- [https://tailstrike.com/database/08-october-2001-scandinavian-airlines-686/ Cockpit Voice Recorder transcript and accident summary]
- {{ASN accident|id=20011008-0|title=Scandinavian Airlines Flight 686}}
- {{ASN accident|id=20011008-1|title=Cessna 525A}}
- [http://www.iasa.com.au/folders/Safety_Issues/RiskManagement/Linatelookingback.html Looking back at Linate] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051120181603/http://www.iasa.com.au/folders/Safety_Issues/RiskManagement/Linatelookingback.html |date=20 November 2005 }}
- {{YouTube|id=xkrd3XFHDsc|title=Analyst of incident and review of the ANSV Final Report by a commercial aircraft pilot and training captain}}
{{Citation family}}
{{Aviation incidents and accidents in 2001}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in Italy}}
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Category:2001 disasters in Italy
Category:Airliner accidents and incidents involving ground collisions
Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by pilot error
Category:Airliner accidents and incidents involving fog
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 2001
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in Italy
Category:History of the Italian Republic
Category:Scandinavian Airlines accidents and incidents
Category:Accidents and incidents involving the McDonnell Douglas MD-87
Category:Accidents and incidents involving the Cessna Citation family
Category:Aviation accidents and incidents caused by air traffic controller error
Category:October 2001 in Europe