| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 10 June 2008 |
| Type | Possibly caused bad weather, and still under investigation |
| Site | Khartoum |
| Passengers | 203[1] |
| Crew | 11[1] |
| Injuries | Unknown |
| Fatalities | 30 confirmed, 6 missing[1] |
| Survivors | 168 passengers, 10 crew, 178 total[1] |
| Aircraft type | Airbus A310-324 |
| Operator | Sudan Airways |
| Tail number | ST-ATN |
| Flight origin | Queen Alia International Airport, Amman, Jordan |
| Stopover | Damascus International Airport, Damascus, Syria |
| Last stopover | Port Sudan |
| Destination | Khartoum International Airport, Khartoum, Sudan |
Sudan Airways Flight 109[2] was a scheduled flight from Amman, Jordan, to Khartoum International Airport, Sudan, by way of Damascus, Syria.[3] At approximately 17:00 UTC on 10 June 2008 it crashed on landing in Khartoum.[4]
The Airbus A310 broke apart and subsequently caught fire. The flight had previously diverted to Port Sudan due to weather at Khartoum. This was the second plane crash in Sudan in two months; in May 2008, a plane crash in the southern part of the country killed 24 people, including members of the autonomous Southern Sudanese government.[5]
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The police chief in the area attributed the accident to bad weather. He said the weather "caused the plane to crash land, split into two and catch fire." [6] BBC News reported that there was a sandstorm in the area at the time of the crash, however, other sources say the plane landed safely, but the right engine exploded ten seconds after landing, before it had come to a full stop.[4]
Many of the casualties were reported to be children with disabilities and seniors returning from treatment in Amman.[7]
A death toll of 120 given earlier by officials was later said to be incorrect. Major-General Mohamed Osman Mahjoub told Reuters that authorities had so far counted 123 survivors from 217 people on board the plane[3] and that 28 bodies were in the local mortuary. That would leave 66 people unaccounted for.[8]
This assessment rose to "at least 28" dead, while 171 passengers survived, and 14 still were missing according to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesman Abdel Hafiz Abdel Rahim.[9][10] Earlier reports indicated 13 crew survivors and one crew missing.
By June 11, the CAA assessed that there were thirty dead, including one hostess, while the 178 known survivors included ten crew. Six passengers remained unaccounted for.[1]
Airbus A310-324 hull number 548 was built in 1990 and first flew on 23 August of that year under test registration F-WWCV. It served with Singapore Airlines from 1990 until 2001 under registration 9V-STU.[11][12] It was then re-registered to Air India as VT-EVF from 2001 until 2007.[13] It was again re-registered to Sudan Airways as ST-ATN from 14 September 2007.[14] It was delivered to Sudan Airways on 1 December 2007.[12]
The aircraft carried $16 million in insurance on its hull.[15]