Chinook ZD576 (Hansard, 10 June 2002)

§ Angus Robertson
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the parameters provided to Boeing for its simulation of the final five seconds of Chinook ZD576. [60391]

§ Mr. Ingram
Boeing was provided with data extracted from navigation equipment on the aircraft, data from the report of the Air Accidents investigation Board report, and information about the aircraft and its load.

§ Mr. Menzies Campbell
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he estimates that the heading and track of Chinook ZD576 was represented with complete accuracy in the simulation conducted by Boeing; and if he will make a statement. [60503]

§ Mr. Ingram
The Boeing simulation assumed a straight flight path at an angle of 20 degrees climb and with 30 degrees nose up pitch altitude.

§ Mr. Menzies Campbell
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's estimate is of the speed and rate of climb of Chinook ZD576(a) 30 seconds prior to the initial point of impact, (b) five seconds prior to impact and (c) at the point of impact; and if he will make a statement. [60501]

§ Mr. Ingram
The Board of Inquiry considered data extracted from the aircraft's systems, the AAIB technical report, the flight path simulations from Boeing Helicopters and a separate investigation from the Defence Research Agency Bedford, together with witness evidence. The board concluded that it was most likely that while approaching the Mull of Kintyre the aircraft was established in a steady climb, with a ground speed of between 160 and 275 kts, until approximately four seconds before impact. The aircraft then flared to an attitude of 30 degrees nose up, and finally impacted with a ground speed of 147 kts.

§ Mr. Menzies Campbell
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he estimates that the all-up weight of Chinook ZD576, including variables, was represented with complete accuracy in the simulation conducted by Boeing; and if he will make a statement; [60502]
(2) what his Department's estimate is of the all-up weight of Chinook ZD576, including variables and passengers, baggage and fuel, at (a) 30 seconds prior to 752W the initial point of impact, (b) five seconds prior to impact and (c) at the point of impact; and if he will make a statement. [60504]

§ Mr. Ingram
The estimated all-up weight of Chinook ZD576 at take off was 38,720 lbs, which included fuel weighing 6,776 lbs. At impact the estimated all-up weight of the aircraft was 37,620 lbs. The weight of the aircraft at any given point during the flight reflects the amount of fuel used by that point. Boeing conducted their simulation of the last five seconds of flight against a gross aircraft weight figure of 37,700 lbs at this point.

§ Mr. Menzies Campbell
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's estimate is of the heading and track of Chinook ZD576(a) 30 seconds prior to the initial point of impact, (b) five seconds prior to impact and (c) at the point of impact; and if he will make a statement. [60500]

§ Mr. Ingram
The flight plan indicated a route to the Mull of Kintyre lighthouse and then a course change to port on a track following the western shore of the Mull. The first waypoint or landmark the pilots entered on the on-board navigation computer was the Mull of Kintyre lighthouse. At 0.95 nautical miles, or about 20 seconds from impact the crew released the computer from the fix on the lighthouse and set it to indicate the bearing and distance to the next waypoint at Conan 87 miles to the north. The preserved data held by the navigation system indicated that the aircraft was very close to the direct track from RAF Aldergrove to the lighthouse when the waypoint change was made. There is no evidence of any significant change of course before the impact.

§ Mr. Gray
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement setting out the reasons why a simulation was commissioned for the investigation into the final flight of Chinook ZD576. [60103]

§ Mr. Ingram
As part of the investigations into the crash of Chinook ZD576, Boeing the aircraft manufacturers were asked to conduct simulations to model the likely flightpath profiles during the final seconds prior to impact. The House of Lords Select Committee was critical of certain aspects of these simulations, which did not include full FADEC parameters. As part of our promised full response to the Select Committee's report, Boeing have been tasked to revisit their original analysis to include a full FADEC simulation.

§ Mr. Gray
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will publish the information, other than the parameters issuing from the AAIB technical report, that was provided to Boeing for the purposes of the simulation of the final seconds of the flight of ZD576; [60102]
(2) what level of accuracy Boeing stated it achieved in its simulation of the manoeuvres of the final five seconds of flight of Chinook ZD576, in the outline report Boeing presented to his Department to accompany the simulation results; [60106]
(3) if he will place in the Library copies of the information that was provided to Boeing by the (a) MOD, (b) RAF Board of Inquiry and (c) AAIB for the purposes of constructing a simulation of the final seconds of the flight of Chinook ZD576; [60101]
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(4) what values were used by Boeing for matching to the final aircraft attitude in its simulation of the final five seconds of the flight of Chinook ZD576; and if he will list the values established as 100 per cent. verifiable from the wreckage of the aircraft in respect of (a) rotor speed, (b) rotor torque, (c) rudder pedal and (d) initial rate of climb set by the pilots. [60105]

§ Mr. Ingram
I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

§ Mr. Gray
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence who commissioned the original Boeing simulation of the final seconds of the flight of ZD576. [60104]

§ Mr. Ingram
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch for the RAF Board of Inquiry.