GATINEAU, QC, Feb. 28, 2013 /CNW/ - The Transportation Safety Board of
Canada (TSB) today released its final air investigation report
(A11O0031) into the 13 March 2011 return after take-off of a Sunwing
Airlines flight at Toronto-Lester B. Pearson International Airport.
The Sunwing flight was bound for Cozumel, Mexico, with 189 passengers
and a crew of 7. During the early morning take-off run, the aircraft's
autothrottle disengaged because of the failure of the airspeed
monitoring equipment. The pilot continued the take-off but encountered
additional problems on the climb-out. The pilot then informed air
traffic control that the aircraft would be returning to the airport.
The aircraft returned and landed uneventfully. There were no injuries
or damage to the aircraft.
The investigation determined that a failure in the pitot-static system,
a system used to determine the aircraft's airspeed, resulted in
inaccurate airspeed indications, stall warnings, and, for unknown
reasons, misleading commands being displayed on the aircraft flight
instruments. The investigation also found that the operator delayed
reporting the incident to the TSB because it did not recognize this
event as a reportable aviation occurrence. The delay meant that
valuable information on the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice
recorder was lost.
The faulty equipment was replaced and the aircraft was returned to
service. Sunwing has updated its safety management system to include a
review of TSB criteria for reportable accidents and incidents. This is
intended to facilitate timely reporting of occurrences.
The TSB is an independent agency that investigates marine, pipeline,
railway and aviation transportation occurrences. Its sole aim is the
advancement of transportation safety. It is not the function of the
Board to assign fault or determine civil or criminal liability.
SOURCE: Transportation Safety Board of Canada
