Incident Overview
An aircraft en route to Khartoum experienced a technical issue on engine number one. The pilot notified air traffic control of the situation and the aircraft's position, deciding to return to Cairo-Almaza Airport. Shortly thereafter, the crew was forced to shut down engine number one and feather the propeller. The aircraft subsequently performed a belly landing at Almaza Airport, coming to rest on runway 36. All 38 occupants were evacuated safely, while the aircraft sustained damage beyond repair.
Sequence of Events
During the flight, a technical issue arose with engine number one. The pilot promptly informed ATC and elected to return to Cairo-Almaza Airport. However, the situation worsened, necessitating the shutdown of engine one and the feathering of its propeller. The crew then executed a belly landing, with the aircraft coming to rest on runway 36. Emergency services responded, and all passengers and crew evacuated without injury. The aircraft was assessed as damaged beyond repair.
Probable Cause
The exact cause of the failure of engine number one could not be determined with certainty. However, it would appear that the pilot showed poor knowledge of the airplane, especially on the following items: the fire warning system had not operated nor had the automatic extinguishers, indicating that the nacelle temperature could not have risen appreciably; the extinguisher had been manually operated. Additionally, the pilot should not have restarted the defective motor after a fire and with almost a full load. Furthermore, if the main undercarriage systems had failed to function, the pilot should have operated the first and second emergency systems.