What happened
A maritime patrol mission departing from Labuan Airport ended in tragedy when the aircraft impacted the ocean surface while flying at a low altitude. The flight was conducting surveillance over the South China Sea with a total of eleven people on board, consisting of ten crew members and one police officer.
Following the impact, search efforts located various pieces of wreckage and personal belongings belonging to the crew floating in the sea. This debris field was discovered approximately 450 km north of Labuan. The accident resulted in 11 fatalities, with no survivors reported.
Findings
Investigations into the crash highlighted several contributing factors related to flight operations and environmental conditions. It is believed that the crew experienced a misperception of the water's surface due to its crystalline appearance, which led to an error in judging the actual distance between the aircraft and the sea.
Additional operational concerns were noted regarding the flight crew's recent experience levels. The captain had not performed low-altitude missions for a significant period prior to the accident. Furthermore, the co-pilot lacked recent experience operating this specific aircraft type, having only recently transitioned to the Shackleton from a Short Sunderland.