KAL 007: Inside the Cockpit
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedia's deletion policy. Please share your thoughts on the matter at this article's entry on the Articles for deletion page. Feel free to edit the article, but the article must not be blanked, and this notice must not be removed, until the discussion is closed. For more information, particularly on merging or moving the article during the discussion, read the guide to deletion. Steps to list an article for deletion: 1. {{subst:afd}} 2. {{subst:afd2|pg=KAL 007: Inside the Cockpit|cat=|text=}} ~~~~ (categories) 3. {{subst:afd3|pg=Stalk of KAL 007}} (add to top of list) 4. Please consider notifying the author(s) by placing {{subst:adw|KAL 007: Inside the Cockpit|Stalk of KAL 007}} ~~~~ on their talk page(s). |
 |
This page is a candidate to be copied to Wikisource. If the page can be edited into an encyclopedic article, rather than merely a copy of the source text, please do so and remove this message. Otherwise, you can help by formatting it per the Wikisource guidelines in preparation for being imported to Wikisource by a Wikisource admin. Note that if this source text is not in English, it will have to be copied using the transwiki process. |
On Sept. 1, 1983, and intercepter Sukhoi -15 piloted by Maj. Gennadie Osipovich, launched two Anab R-98 medium range air to air missiles damaging Korean Air Lines Flight 007 carrying 269 passengers and crew causing it to come down in the Tatar Straits in the vicinity Moneron Island just west of Sakhalin Island. It was thought that in the subsequent search operations the Cockpit Voice Recorder and the Digital Flight Data Recorder , both components of the "Black Box", were unrecovered, thought suspicion at various times was directed at the both the U.SD. and the Soviet Union. But it was the Soviet Union that recovered them, concealing this fact until in 1992 they were handed over to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) of the U.N. and deciphered. The following is the combined and coordinated tapes from both recorders, and provide a composite understanding what went on in the cockpit of KAL 007 from the time of missile detonation at 18:26:02 GMT until one minute and 44 seconds later - the extent of the tapes returned with the Black |Box to ICAO . The following transcripts include the following:
Every word spoken by Pilot-in-Command, Chun Byung-In, Co-Pilot and First Officer, Son Dong-Hui, and Flight Engineer, Kim Eui-Dong, recorded by the Cockpit Voice Recorder. The condition of sixteen parameters picked up by sensors reporting the different functions of the aircraft recorded for us by the Digital Flight Data Recorder. For this discussion, refer to the two graphs, Plot 1 [1] and Plot 2 [2] (prepared by Laboratoire BEA, Paris, a subcontract for ICAO). The times (inserted) appear in four-second intervals at the bottom of each chart.
Transcripts are from the International Civil Aviation Committee report of 1993 Subject 14. Subjects relating to Air Navigation, Report of the Completion of the Fact-Finding Investigation Regardomg tje Sjpptomng Down of Korean Air Lines Boeing 747 (KE007) On 31 Aug. 1983". Council - 139th Session
At 18:26:02 (06:26:02 Sakhalin time), Maj. Osipovich's ANAB radar-guided air-to-air missile explodes 50 meters behind and slightly to the right of KAL 007's tail.
KAL 007's nose begins to pitch up immediately (Plot 1, line 2) to be followed by a more gradual increase in altitude (Plot 1, line 1). These changes appear on the crew's instruments. They may also have sensed them. Immediately upon missile detonation, the jumbo jet begins to experience buffeting (yawing) as the dual channel yaw damper is damaged (Plot 2, line 6). Yawing would not have occurred if either No. 1 or No. 2 hydraulic systems were fully operational. What does not happen that should have happened is that the control column (Plot 1, line 3) does not thrust forward upon impact (it should have done so, as the plane was on autopilot -- plot 2, line 8 -- to bring down the plane to its former altitude of 35,000 feet). This failure of the autopilot to correct the rise in altitude indicates that hydraulic system No. 3, which operates the autopilot actuator, a system controlling the plane's elevators, was damaged or out. KAL 007's airspeed (Plot 1, line 4) and acceleration rate (Plot 1, line 5) both begin to decrease as the plane begins to climb.
At 18:26:06, Capt. Chun yells out, "What happened?" First Officer Son responds, "What?" Two seconds later, Chun yells, "Retard throttles." Son responds, "Engines normal, sir." (This indicates that Maj. Osipovich's heat seeking missile has missed its mark.) KAL 007 continues its climb (it will do so until it reaches 38,250 ft. in altitude -- Plot 1, line 1) when at twenty seconds after missile detonation a click is heard in the cabin -- which is identified as the "automatic pilot disconnect warning" sound. Pilot or co-pilot has disconnected the autopilot and is now manually thrusting the control column forward (Plot 1, line 3) in order to bring down the plane. But we see that though the autopilot has been turned "off" (Plot 2, line 8), manual mode will not kick in for another twenty seconds (Plot 2, line 9). This failure of manual to engage upon being commanded indicates again, failure in hydraulic systems No. 1 and No. 2. But there is progress, of sorts! Though still rising in altitude, with the thrusting forward of the control column, KAL 007's nose begins to come down. That is, pitch is being corrected (Plot 1, line 2). Nevertheless, Capt. Chun absorbed with the danger of the rising altitude, calls out, "Altitude is going up!... Altitude is going up!" (18:26:22 and 18:26:24) But immediately another problem presents itself.
Chun (18:26:25): Speed brake is coming out!
Son (18:26:26): What? What?
Chun (18:26:29): Check it out!
But, according to the DFDR, the speed brake was not coming out. The pilots immediately return to the main problem.
Son (18:26:33): I am not able to drop altitude -- now unable.
Chun (18:26:38): Altitude is going up.
Chun (18:26:40): This is not working. This is not working.
And here, appparently, a change takes place.
At 18:26:41, Capt. Chun apparently orders First Officer Son to again disengage the autopilot "manually." Son appears to do so at the same time he despairingly says, "cannot do manually" (18:26:42) and a second later reiterates, "not working manually also." But, at that moment two things happen. The sound of the autopilot disconnect warning is heard once again (CVR) and the autopilot kicks in to the desired manual mode (Plot 2, line 9). Capt. Chun is once again in control.
At 18:26:45, First Officer Son again reports, "Engines are normal, sir." Once again, there is confirmation that the heat-seeking missile failed to hit its mark.
Though Capt. Chun does not move the control column any more forward than it already is (Plot 1, line 3), the altitude (Plot 1, line 1) begins to come down and is now in line with the pitch (Plot 1, line 2). Both airspeed (Plot 1, line 4) and acceleration (Plot 1, line 5) increase rapidly as KAL 007 begins a quick descent.
Still in descent, Capt. Chun and Flight Engineer, Kim Eui-Dong blurt out (one second apart):
Kim (18:36:50): Is it power compression?
Chun (18:36:51): Is that right?
Kim (18:36:52): All or both.
Chun (18:36:53): Is that right?
For the next nine seconds there is silence, but Capt. Chun will be at the height of activity. As KAL 007 reaches its peak of acceleration and descends to slightly under pre-missile altitude, Capt. Chun brings the nose up for about 10 seconds (Plot 1, line 2), acceleration decreases markedly and then levels out at pre-missile rate.
Prior to the 10 -second pull-up, First Officer Son is on the High Frequency Radio No. 1 calling Tokyo Air Traffic Control Center (Plot 2, line 7):
Son (18:26:57): Tokyo Radio, Korean Air Zero Zero Seven
Tokyo (18:27:02): Korean Air Zero Zero Seven, Tokyo
Son (18:27:04): Roger, Korean Air Zero Zero Seven... (unreadable) Ah, we (are experiencing)...
Chun, interjecting (18:27:09): ALL COMPRESSION
Son (18:27:10): Rapid compressions. Descend to one zero thousand.
As First Officer Son's call to Tokyo concludes, Capt. Chun begins his gradual descent.
Though yawing has continued through to the end of the tape and, presumably, to the end of the flight, all the other major parameters indicate that KAL 007 exhibits a good measure of airworthiness and control. The dive has been stopped and the jumbo jet is in a slight descent. Pitch is in line with the angle of descent. "Indicated Air Speed" (IAS, Plot 1, line 4) has returned almost exactly to what it was prior to missile detonation (310 knots), after rapid acceleration in dive, and rapid deceleration at the end of the eight-second pull-up, KAL 007 is now at steady, normal (zero) acceleration -- as it was prior to missile detonation -- and the autopilot, now in the command position off, is operating as it should with Capt. Chun in manual control. But there is work to do at hand. From the flight deck (the transcript does not identify the voices):
18:27:20: Now... We have to set this
18:27:23: speed
18:27:26: Stand by, stand by, stand by, set!
