What happened
A flight departing Dublin for Birmingham, carrying 22 passengers and three crew members, encountered a critical situation during the cruise phase of flight. While maintaining an altitude of approximately 5,000 feet, the aircraft experienced a simultaneous loss of power in both engines.
In response to the engine failure, the crew initiated an emergency descent to perform a forced landing. The aircraft type came to rest in a field situated in Spernall. During the incident, all occupants were evacuated from the wreckage; however, while the 22 passengers and two crew members escaped without harm, the co-pilot sustained one injury. The aircraft was determined to be a total loss due to the extent of the damage.
Findings
The investigation into the dual engine failure identified that the primary factor was fuel starvation. The inquiry determined that both engines had been inadvertently set to draw fuel from the same tank, specifically the port engine's connection to the right main tank.
Several contributing factors prevented a successful recovery during the flight:
- A lack of coordinated troubleshooting between the captain and the first officer following the power loss.
- An erroneous belief by the crew that both engines were drawing from their respective, independent main tanks.
- The presence of low cloud cover and poor forward visibility at the time of the landing.
- Unfavorable terrain conditions during the emergency approach.