Accident
On 25 February 2009, Turkish Airlines Flight 1951, a Boeing 737-800 with registration TC-JGE, crashed during landing at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands. The flight originated from Istanbul, Turkey. At 09:26 UTC (10:26 CET), the aircraft struck the ground about 1.5 km north of the Polderbaan runway (18R), prior to crossing the A9 motorway. The impact broke the fuselage into three sections; the wreckage did not catch fire. Both engines separated and came to rest 100 m from the fuselage.
Aircraft and Crew
The 7-year-old Boeing 737-800 series model 8F2, named "Tekirdağ," was operated by Turkish Airlines. On board were 128 passengers and seven crew members. The cockpit crew comprised instructor captain Hasan Tahsin Arısan (aged 54, former Turkish Air Force pilot), safety pilot Olgay Özgür (aged 28, seated in the center jump seat), and co-pilot Murat Sezer (aged 42, under line training). All three pilots died in the crash. The cabin crew consisted of Figen Eren, Perihan Özden, Ulvi Murat Eskin, and Yasemin Vural.
Emergency Response
Emergency services arrived at the scene; some survivors and witnesses reported a 20- to 30-minute delay, while others stated a quick response. Approximately 60 ambulances, at least three LifeLiner air ambulances (Eurocopter EC135), and a fleet of fire engines responded. An unconfirmed report indicated firefighters were initially given the wrong location, delaying their arrival. Lanes of the A4 and A9 motorways were closed to allow emergency access. The bodies of the three pilots were the last to be removed from the wreckage, around 20:00. Turkish Airlines arranged transportation for relatives of the passengers to Amsterdam.
Investigation Findings
The crash was caused primarily by the aircraft's automated reaction, triggered by a faulty radio altimeter. This caused the autothrottle to decrease engine power to idle during approach. The crew noticed this too late to take appropriate action to increase thrust and recover the aircraft before it stalled and crashed. Boeing subsequently issued a bulletin to remind pilots of all 737 series and BBJ aircraft to monitor airspeed and altitude and advised against using autopilot or autothrottle during landing in cases of radio altimeter discrepancies.
A 2020 investigation by The New York Times claimed that the Dutch investigation into the crash either excluded or played down criticisms of Boeing following pressure from Boeing and US federal safety officials, who instead emphasized pilot error as a factor rather than design flaws.