Indian Airlines Flight 605 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Bombay to Bangalore. On 14 February 1990, an Airbus A320-231 registered as VT-EPN, crashed onto a golf course while attempting to land at Bangalore, killing 92 of 146 people on board. The Indian investigative team ruled that the probable cause was the pilots selecting the "Open descent/flight idle" control mode rather than "Glideslope capture", allowing the aircraft to sink far below the correct flight path. They further failed to advance the throttles or pull up even after the radio altitude call-outs, as the aircraft approached landing. The report stated that the crew of Flight 605 weren't aware of the situation and the danger they were facing at the time, resulting in delayed reaction during the descent. After the crash, the Indian investigation committee issued 62 recommendations to the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), including a time recording on the air traffic control (ATC) tapes and the formation of several investigative committees specializing in several aviation operational issues. Included in the recommendation was the addition of a crash siren in Bangalore, evaluation of the evacuation doors and slides in Airbus airplanes, and a design change on their instrument knob. The report also urged the government to evaluate every airport in India to prevent similar incidents from occurring. The crash drew criticism among the Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA) which claimed that the Airbus A320 had severe flaws. They claimed that the aircraft's systems were too confusing and that the crew of Flight 605 was struggling to avert the crash. Another A320 accident less than two years later (which occurred under similar circumstances) led to design improvements to the flight control unit and numerous safety recommendations.
== Aircraft == The aircraft involved was an Airbus A320-231, registered as VT-EPN, serial number 79 and was around 5 months old. The aircraft had logged around 370 flight hours over 302 flights and was equipped with two IAE V2500-A1 engines.
== Flight ==
=== Take-off and approach === Flight 605 took off from Bombay Airport at 11:58 local time after an hour delay. Prior to this, the aircraft was used for two other flights on the day of the accident, operating as Flight 669 and Flight 670, flying from Bombay to Goa and back. The aircraft was carrying 139 passengers and 7 crew members, including 4 infants. The aircraft's assigned route was on route W17 from Bombay to Belgaum via Karad and W56 from Belgaum to Bangalore. The take-off phase and en route phase proceeded normally. At 12:53 local time, Flight 605's radar plot appeared on Bangalore's radar. Flight 605 was asked by Bangalore Radar to turn right and make a visual approach to Runway 09. The crew disengaged the autopilot and later changed to the Bangalore Tower after being transferred by Bangalore Radar.
=== Crash === While Flight 605 was attempting to land, the pilots flew far below the glideslope, and the landing gear touched down on the grounds of the Karnataka Golf Association, approximately 2,800 ft (850 m) from the airport. Most people on the aircraft, including some crew members, thought that the aircraft had touched down on the runway as it was similar to its normal landing. Flight 605 then bounced and shortly later impacted the ground for the second time. The impact caused several people's seat belts to fail, leading people to be thrown from their seats and hit the aircraft's floor. Flight 605 later struck a 12 ft (3.7 m) embankment. Both the engines and landing gear detached from the aircraft. The aircraft then flew over a road and crashed into a grassy, rocky area near the airport.
=== Search and rescue === After the crash, a post-impact fire started and the survivors began to escape from the burning wreckage. Several people managed to get out of the plane from an opening in the aircraft's fuselage. The surviving cabin crew opened…