SR 111: information update
Zurich, October 8, 1998 - Swissair and the Canadian team investigating the loss of Swissair flight SR 111 held press conferences today in Zurich and Halifax, respectively. They provided a summary of the operations surrounding the investigation.
The lead investigator for the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB), Vic Gerden, summarised the investigation. His comments were transmitted via satellite to a media briefing in Zurich that was organised by Swissair. Among the information mentioned by Gerden was the following:
No statement can be made regarding the cause of the accident. Studies of data retrieved from the flight data recorder (FDR), cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and full authority digital engine controller (FADEC) continue and will not be concluded for some time.
The analyses of these devices has proved valuable although there is no information on either the FDR or CVR relating to the last six minutes of the flight. Roughly 90 seconds before it ceased functioning the FDR recorded a sequence of fault codes or anomalous data in about 30-to-40 parameters.
The flight recorder has revealed that the reason for the diversion to Halifax was because the crew smelled smoke and then noted visible smoke in the cockpit. In this phase the First Officer was flying the aircraft and communicating with the air traffic control station while the Captain proceeded with emergency checklist items, attempting to localise the problem.
A small number of wreckage pieces from the vicinity of the cockpit area show signs of possible heat distress although it is not clear whether the heat distress was caused before or during impact.
The MD-11 that was lost off Halifax was delivered to Swissair installed with metalised Mylar insulation blankets, a very common insulation material used in aircraft around the world. The evidence analysed so far has not allowed investigators to reach any meaningful conclusions that would implicate metalised Mylar as a cause factor. The metalised Mylar material recovered to date shows no signs of heat distress.
All accessible human remains have been recovered. In order to recover the remaining wreckage and remains, a "heavy lift" operation will begin this weekend. This will include the deployment of the "Sea Sorceress", a barge outfitted with a crane that is capable of lifting large amounts of wreckage in a short period. With the winter storm season for Halifax approaching at the end of October, any recovery operations will become increasingly difficult. Storms will likely scatter wreckage widely and divers cannot de deployed.
SAirGroup CEO Philippe Bruggisser also commented on the status of the situation at the media briefing in Zurich: Swissair currently has 15 people aiding the investigation team in Canada. These specialists from the areas of Flight Operations and Technical Services will help investigators evaluate information from the data recorders and identify recovered wreckage.
The caring for the victims' loved ones remains high priority. The Care Team currently has between 10-and-15 people on duty daily, two-or-three of whom are located in Halifax. They offer support to the bereaved, answering any questions they can and attempting to maintain running contact with the relatives. 78 victims have been positively identified until today, including the Pilot and First Officer. 145 families have taken advantage of Swissair's offer for immediate financial aid of USD 20,000 or CHF 30,000. Swissair has paid out a total of CHF 4.35 million in these payments so far. Over the next two-to-three weeks Swiss plans to contact the victims' families to offer a further payment of up to 100,000 Special Drawing Rights (approximately CHF 195,000). This secondary payment would be minus any immediate aid already paid out.
Swissair CEO Jeffrey Katz pointed out that investigations of this nature generally take as long as one year to acomplete. It could conceivably be months before any additional substantial information is known.