AN INVESTIGATION into why a QantasLink Dash-8’s warning system showed crew members the aircraft was in “icing conditions” while travelling between Tamworth and Sydney in March last year has concluded.
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A report, released by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, said the plane left Tamworth Airport on March 1, 2011, and its stickshaker activated at a speed 10 knots higher than normal for conditions.
The report said the aircraft’s stall-warning
system incorrectly computed the engine stalling on the basis the plane was “icing”.
As a result, the crew had to make various changes to the aircraft’s descent into Sydney, to maintain a normal approach to the runway.
“On a number of occasions during the approach, the autopilot pitched the aircraft nose up, to capture an assigned altitude sat by the pilot flying. The operator undertook a number of safety actions to minimise the risk of reoccurrence,” the report said.
The report suggested the actions of the crew be commended and that an outline of what they did be used in future
scenario-based crew resource-management training programs.
