Report on Helios air crash handed to Cypriot Authorities

Akrivos Tsolakis, who led the investigation into the Helios air crash in Athens on August 14, 2005, handed on Tuesday to Cypriot Authorities the final report into the cause of the accident that killed all 121 people aboard.

Tsolakis presented a 198-page report to Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos and to Minister of Communications and Works Haris Thrasou, saying that the report closes the 14 months investigation.

The report has concluded that the aircraft crashed because warnings that things were wrong had not been identified, the cabin pressurization selector was in the manual position, the crew was incapacitated because of lack of oxygen and the aircraft ran out of fuel.

The report also points to deficiencies in the quality, management and safety procedures followed by the operator; long- term inadequacy on the part of the regulatory authority to meet its safety responsibilities; the manufacturer's inability to take effective measures to rectify previous pressurization incidents; and inadequate application of principles relating to crew resource management.

The Boeing 737 was on its way to Prague via Athens, when it crashed into the mountain side north of the Greek capital, killing 121 passengers and crew aboard, most of them Cypriots going on holiday.

The airliner came down as two Greek F-16 jets were accompanying it after it failed to respond to calls from Athens' control tower.

Source: Xinhua