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Status Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date Wednesday 14 February 1990
Time 13:03
Type Silhouette image of generic A320 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Airbus A320-231
Operator Indian Airlines
Registration VT-EPN
MSN 079
Year of manufature 1989
Engines IAE V2500-A1
Crew Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 7
Passengers Fatalities: 88 / Occupants: 139
Total occupants Fatalities: 92 / Occupants: 146
Aircraft damage Destroyed, written off
Aircraft fate w/o
Location 0,7 km W of Bangalore-Hindustan Airport (BLR)   India
Phase Approach
Nature Passenger - Scheduled
Departure Airport Mumbai (Bombay) Airport (BOM/VABB)
Destination Airport Bangalore-Hindustan Airport (BLR/VOBG)
Narrative Indian Airlines Flight 605, an Airbus A320, crashed while on approach to Bangalore-Hindustan Airport, India , killing 92 occupants; 54 survived the accident.

Flight 605 took off from Mumbai, India, at 11:58 for a domestic flight to Bangalore. At 12:25 Bangalore approach was contacted and prevailing weather was passed on to the crew (wind variable 5 knots, visibility 10 km, clouds 2 octa 2000 feet, temperature 27 degrees C, QNH 1018). At 12:44 the aircraft was cleared to descend to FL110. Reaching FL110, vectors were given for a visual runway 09 approach. On final approach, the aircraft descended well below the normal approach profile and kept descending until it struck the boundaries of the Karnataka Golf Club (2300 feet short of the runway and 200 feet right of the extended centerline. The aircraft rolled for 80 feet and lifted off again for about 230 feet and came down again on the 17th green of the golf course. The landing gear wheels dug into the ground and the aircraft impacted a 12 feet high embankment, causing the gears and engines to be sheared off. The aircraft continued over the embankment and came to rest in a grassy, marshy and rocky area.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "Failure of the pilots to realize the gravity of the situation and respond immediately towards proper action of moving the throttles, even after the radio altitude call-outs of "Four hundred", "Three hundred" and "Two hundred" feet, in spite of knowing that the plane was in idle/open descent mode. However, identification of the cause for the engagement of idle/open descent mode in short final approach during the crucial period of the flight is not possible."

sources

ICAO Circular 263-AN/157

ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION

Final report

Investigating agency: CoI India

Report nr:

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