English Task - Joshua Ma (17)

Reasons for the crash

1. Bad weather conditions : Tropical storm Xangsan was approaching Taiwan, with winds up to 144kph and heavy rain. This caused poor visibility

1. Low visibility : It was caused by the bad weather conditions and could have led to the pilots being unable to see the lights on the barrier of concrete blocks on the closed runway.

1. Unused runway under repair was not completely cordoned off : It was frequently used for taxi-ing aircraft and also to prevent serious delays for planes lining up for departure.

1. Airport not sufficiently equipped : Lacked a ground radar so the control tower could not visually check if the plane was on the right runway, the one not under repair, due to low visibility.

1. Lack of communication with the pilots : The 'black box' cockpit recorder indicated that the control tower did not warn the pilots about the closed runway.

Were the pilots at fault?

I think the pilots were partially at fault. This is because I feel that although they are put under pressure to meet deadlines, they should have been more conscious of the safety aspect of the flight. Furthermore, since they had the decision whether to take off or not, they probably should have delayed the flight rather than attempt it.

Joshua Ma