Problem on the wings may cause Elmina aircraft crash - Ahmad Samsuri

KUALA TERENGGANU - The crash of the light aircraft in Bandar Elmina, Shah Alam, Selangor yesterday could have been caused by the problem on the wings, Menteri Besar Terengganu Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, who is also an aerospace expert.

In his Facebook post, the former head of the Aerospace Department of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) said that based on visual evidence available to the public, the problem might be caused by either the aileron failure or a combination of both rudder and elevator failure.

"Looking from the visual evidence alone (in the form of dashboard cam footage which has other limitations too) that is available to all of us, I would incline to believe the issue at hand would be more on the "flight control” - more towards problem on the wings, possibly either on the aileron failure or combination of both rudder and elevator,” he said.

Nevertheless, he said the aircraft failures could also originate from various problems or a single issue such as maintenance issues, plane structural integrity failures (structural stress and cyclic fatigue), engine failures, flight control issues, avionics problems and human factors.

However, more information is needed in finding the cause of the incident including the crash site investigation, parts and debris micro and macro inspection, and flight black box analysis.

Ahmad Samsuri also conveyed his condolences to the families of the victims who perished in the crash.

"Heartfelt condolences to the victims’ families from all of us in Terengganu. May their souls be blessed by Allah SWT,” he said.

The Beechcraft Model 390 (Premier 1) light business jet aircraft flying from Langkawi to the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang crashed at about 2.50pm yesterday, killing all six passengers and two crew on board.

The other two victims were civilians, each being a motorcyclist and a car driver who happened to be passing by at the scene. - BERNAMA