What happened
During a local training session conducted at Nairobi-Embakasi Airport, the crew of a three-engine aircraft initiated a procedure to simulate an engine failure. As the flight was on approach, the instructor opted to shut down one engine to mimic the emergency scenario. However, during this process, the wrong propeller was feathered by mistake.
This error caused the aircraft to lose necessary airspeed, leading to a stall. The plane impacted the ground before reaching the runway threshold. Following the initial impact, the aircraft bounced and traveled approximately 1.5 miles before catching fire. Although the three crew members managed to evacuate the aircraft, the plane was completely destroyed by the resulting flames.
Findings
- The accident was triggered by a manual error during an engine failure simulation.
- The instructor feathered the incorrect propeller, which directly led to the loss of airspeed and the subsequent stall.