Crash Lion-ding

Last updated: April 13, 2013

Lion Air flight crashes while landing in Bali.

Lion Air Flight JT960 from Bandung crashed at 15:10 this afternoon while landing at Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport.

Early reports suggest it overshot the end of the runway, before coming to rest in the adjacent shallow sea. All 108 passengers and crew survived; a small proportion were later admitted to local hospitals with minor injuries.

While people’s thoughts will soon turn to the cause of the accident, the following are definitely not to blame:

1. An old plane: The aircraft, a Boeing 737-800, is reportedly only one year old.
2. Inadequate runway length/run-off area: While the accident does have some similarities with the 2007 Garuda GA200 crash in Yogyakarta, the runway at Ngurai Rai Airport is much longer. Larger aircraft e.g. Boeing 747-400 can land/take off there.
3. Inclement Weather: The airport operator has reported the weather was not an issue at the time.

Any clients who are concerned about their upcoming Lion Air flight should contact us via the usual email address.

One Comment on “Crash Lion-ding”

1. Chris says:

   April 14, 2013 at 11:32 pm

   I would also like to take the opportunity to correct some of the many half-truths that are currently doing the rounds:

   HALF-TRUTH #1. LION AIR WAS BANNED FROM EUROPEAN AIRSPACE IN 2007
   Actually, all 51 Indonesian airlines were banned from EU airspace in 2007, not just Lion Air. Some airlines are now permitted, most notably Garuda Indonesia. You can see which airlines are now permitted to fly in EU airspace here.

   HALF-TRUTH #2. FIVE LION AIR PILOTS WERE FOUND TO BE TAKING DRUGS, NOTHING HAPPENED TO THE AIRLINE
   Not true. Five flight crew (including some stewardesses) were arrested for possession or being under the influence of methamphetamine over a period of one year. They were all sacked, the pilots had their pilot’s licences cancelled and one pilot went to prison for a year. There was also an investigation into whether the airline was involved in drug smuggling or its employees were being overworked; the results were negative, but the airline received an official “sanction” (slap on the wrist) from the Indonesian Dept of Civil Aviation, which also started random drug testing of flight crew soon thereafter. More information here.

   HALF-TRUTH #3. THE SAME THING HAS HAPPENED BEFORE WITH LION AIR
   Yes, but it was nine years ago with a different type of aircraft at a smaller airport in pouring rain – more information here. Landing in heavy rain is difficult for any airline, including Air France and Qantas.