Wuhan Airlines Flight 343 - Misplaced Pages

2000 passenger plane crash in Wuhan, Hubei province, China

Wuhan Airlines Flight 343
Accident
A Wuhan Airlines Y-7, similar to the aircraft involved
Date	22 June 2000 (2000-06-22)
Summary	Crashed in adverse weather conditions
Site	Hanyang District, Wuhan, China 30°36′N 114°18′E / 30.6°N 114.3°E / 30.6; 114.3
Total fatalities	49
Total survivors	0
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Xian Y-7
Operator	Wuhan Airlines
IATA flight No.	WU343
ICAO flight No.	CWU343
Registration	B-3479
Flight origin	Enshi Airport
Destination	Wuhan Tianhe International Airport
Occupants	42
Passengers	38
Crew	4
Fatalities	42
Survivors	0
Ground casualties
Ground fatalities	7

Wuhan Airlines Flight 343 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight between Enshi Airport and Wuhan Tianhe International Airport, both in Hubei province, Central China. On 22 June 2000, the Wuhan Airlines Xian Y-7, registration B-3479, flying the route crashed after encountering an area of adverse weather; the aircraft was struck by lightning and encountered windshear.

Immediately after the accident, China ordered all of Wuhan Airlines' Xian Y-7 aircraft be grounded. One month after the accident, they were allowed to resume service.

The accident remains the deadliest involving a Xian Y-7 aircraft.

Accident

The Wuhan Airlines Xian Y-7 aircraft departed Enshi Airport, on 22 June 2000, for a flight to Wuhan. As the aircraft approached Wuhan, the flight crew were informed of adverse weather conditions in the area of the airport. The flight crew circled the airport for approximately 30 minutes, waiting for the weather to improve; during this time they debated whether to divert to another airport, but the pilot decided to continue to try and land at Wuhan.

Weather stations recorded 451 thunderclaps in ten minutes during the 30 minute period the aircraft was circling above the airport. At approximately 15:00 local time, the aircraft was impacted by windshear and struck by lightning, before it crashed in Sitai Village, Yongfeng Township. The fuselage came down between 20 kilometres (12 mi; 11 nmi) and 30 kilometres (19 mi; 16 nmi) from Wuhan in two sections; half of the aircraft fell on a dike on the Han River, the other half impacted with a farmhouse. All 40 passengers and four crew were killed, along with seven people on the ground.

Aftermath

In the aftermath of the accident, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) ordered all Wuhan Airlines' six other Xian Y-7 aircraft be grounded until the cause of the crash was determined. In July they were permitted to return to service after safety inspections were carried out and flight crews received more training. The CAAC ordered all Xian Y-7 aircraft be removed from scheduled passenger service by 1 June 2001.

Cause

The cause was determined to be the adverse weather the aircraft encountered, specifically the lightning strike. Other causes were the flight crew and air traffic control both violating standard operating procedures for severe weather, and incorrect decision making by the captain.

References

External image
Image gallery of crash site of B-3479

^ Ranter, Harro. "Accident description". aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
"Air Crash Killing 42 in Central China's Wuhan". People's Daily. 23 June 2000. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
"42 die after lightning strikes Chinese plane". The Independent. 22 June 2000. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
"武航空难共有四十九人死亡" [Forty-nine people died in Wuhan Airlines crash]. China News Service (in Chinese). 24 June 2000. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
"Accident details". PlaneCrashInfo.com. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
"武汉航空公司Y7-100/B3479号飞机"6.22"空难事故的调查分析" [Investigation and Analysis of Wuhan Airlines Y7-100/B3479 Aircraft "6.22" Air Crash]. hbsafety.cn (in Chinese). 22 December 2006. Archived from the original on 18 September 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
"武汉"6.22"空难为重大责任事故" [Wuhan "6.22" air crash is a major liability accident]. news.enorth.com.cn (in Chinese). North.com-News Center. 15 April 2001. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
"武汉航空公司"6.22"特大飞行事故案例分析_交通运输案例_风险管理世界网" [Wuhan Airlines "6.22" Extraordinary Flight Accident Case Analysis_Transportation Case_Risk Management World Network]. www.riskmw.com (in Chinese). 10 August 2010. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in China
Before 1950	Beijing-Han Airlines crash (March 1922) Jinan air crash (November 1931) Kweilin Incident (August 1938) Chungking Incident (October 1940) Beiping (Beijing) C-46 crash (October 1945) United States Air Force C-47 crash at Yan'an (April 1946) Miss Macao (July 1948)
1950s– 1970s	Cathay Pacific Douglas DC-4 shootdown (July 1954) Lin Biao incident (September 1971)
1980s	CAAC Flight 3303 (April 1982) CAAC Flight 2311 (December 1982) CAAC Flight 296 (May 1983) Guilin Airport collision (September 1983) CAAC Flight 5109 (January 1985) Aeroflot Flight 101/435 (December 1985) China Airlines Flight 334 (May 1986) China Southwest Airlines Flight 4146 (January 1988) China Eastern Airlines Flight 5510 (August 1989)
1990s	Guangzhou Baiyun airport collisions (October 1990) China General Aviation Flight 7552 (July 1992) China Southern Airlines Flight 3943 (November 1992) China Northwest Airlines Flight 2119 (July 1993) China Eastern Airlines Flight 5398 (October 1993) China Northern Airlines Flight 6901 (November 1993) China Northwest Airlines Flight 2303 (June 1994) China Southern Airlines Flight 3456 (May 1997) China Southwest Airlines Flight 4509 (February 1999) Korean Air Cargo Flight 6316 (April 1999)
2000s	Wuhan Airlines Flight 343 (June 2000) Hainan Island incident (April 2001) China Northern Airlines Flight 6136 (May 2002) China Eastern Airlines Flight 5210 (November 2004) PLAAF KJ-200 crash (June 2006) Avient Aviation Flight 324 (November 2009)
2010s	Henan Airlines Flight 8387 (August 2010) Tianjin Airlines Flight 7554 (June 2012) Sichuan Airlines Flight 8633 (May 2018)
2020s	China Eastern Airlines Flight 5735 (March 2022) Tibet Airlines Flight 9833 (May 2022)
Accidents and incidents in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan are not included.

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in 2000 (2000)
Jan 10 Crossair Flight 498Jan 13 Marsa Brega Short 360 crashJan 30 Kenya Airways Flight 431Jan 31 Alaska Airlines Flight 261Feb 8 Zion mid-air collisionFeb 16 Emery Worldwide Airlines Flight 17Mar 5 Southwest Airlines Flight 1455Apr 8 Marana V-22 crashApr 19 Air Philippines Flight 541May 21 Pennsylvania BAe Jetstream 3101 crashMay 25 Philippine Airlines Flight 812May 31 Whyalla Airlines Flight 904Jun 22 Wuhan Airlines Flight 343Jul 4 Malév Flight 262Jul 8 Aerocaribe Flight 7831Jul 12 Hapag-Lloyd Flight 3378Jul 17 Alliance Air Flight 7412Jul 24 Marlborough helicopter crashJul 25 Air France Flight 4590Jul 27 Royal Nepal Airlines crashAug 7 Skerjafjörður plane crashAug 11 Southwest Airlines Flight 1763Aug 23 Gulf Air Flight 072Sep 4 Australia Beechcraft King Air crashSep 16 SLAF Mi-17 CrashOct 19 Lao Aviation Flight 703Oct 31 Singapore Airlines Flight 006Nov 15 ASA Pesada An-24 crashNov 18 Dirgantara Air Service Flight 3130Dec 4 Sabena Flight 877Dec 29 British Airways Flight 2069
1999 ◄ ► 2001

Aviation accidents and incidents in 2000 (2000)

Jan 10 Crossair Flight 498Jan 13 Marsa Brega Short 360 crashJan 30 Kenya Airways Flight 431Jan 31 Alaska Airlines Flight 261Feb 8 Zion mid-air collisionFeb 16 Emery Worldwide Airlines Flight 17Mar 5 Southwest Airlines Flight 1455Apr 8 Marana V-22 crashApr 19 Air Philippines Flight 541May 21 Pennsylvania BAe Jetstream 3101 crashMay 25 Philippine Airlines Flight 812May 31 Whyalla Airlines Flight 904Jun 22 Wuhan Airlines Flight 343Jul 4 Malév Flight 262Jul 8 Aerocaribe Flight 7831Jul 12 Hapag-Lloyd Flight 3378Jul 17 Alliance Air Flight 7412Jul 24 Marlborough helicopter crashJul 25 Air France Flight 4590Jul 27 Royal Nepal Airlines crashAug 7 Skerjafjörður plane crashAug 11 Southwest Airlines Flight 1763Aug 23 Gulf Air Flight 072Sep 4 Australia Beechcraft King Air crashSep 16 SLAF Mi-17 CrashOct 19 Lao Aviation Flight 703Oct 31 Singapore Airlines Flight 006Nov 15 ASA Pesada An-24 crashNov 18 Dirgantara Air Service Flight 3130Dec 4 Sabena Flight 877Dec 29 British Airways Flight 2069

1999 ◄ ► 2001

Categories:

Accident

Aftermath

Cause

See also

References