The 2000 Marsa Brega Short 360 crash occurred on 13 January 2000 when a Swiss-registered Short 360 leased by Avisto ditched into the sea near Marsa Brega in Libya. The aircraft was chartered by Sirte Oil Company to transport oil workers to the city. It was carrying 41 people (38 passengers and three crew). Most of the passengers were foreigners. As both engines failed in mid-flight, the crew chose to ditch the aircraft. A total of 21 people died in the crash.
An official investigation concluded that the de-icing device on the aircraft was not activated. The aircraft flew into an adverse weather condition and an icing condition occurred in mid-flight. The ice melted and flooded the engine, causing both engines to fail. The pilots were distracted by conversations unrelated to the flight and were not aware of the condition of the aircraft until it was already too late.
Background
To transport its employees and their families between facilities, Sirte Oil Company operates a number of aircraft. The company normally operates Fokker F28 for flights to and from Tripoli, while Short and Twin Otter are used for short routes and desert airstrips, even though Short are occasionally used for flights between Marsa Brega and Tripoli due to high volumes of passengers. Flights with Short are usually operated by two captains rather than a captain and a first officer. This is due to the lack of first officers in the company. That being said, the flight crew are conditioned with this issue.
The aircraft's short range of travel and the unpressurized condition of the flight makes it an unsuitable choice for high altitude flights. The flight crew usually choose to fly a shortcut route to Marsa Brega to avoid a long trip and the aircraft sometimes fly up to from the coast line. The minimum altitude for flying to Marsa Brega is at and the area near and around Marsa Brega typically does not have heavy traffic.
Passengers and crew
At least 38 passengers and 3 crew were on board the flight, including three children and one infant. The British ambassador in Tripoli, Richard Dalton, confirmed that there were 13 Britons on board. Other nationalities on board included 14 Libyans, three Indians, two Canadians, two Croatians, three Filipinos, and one person each from Tunisia and Pakistan.
The captain was a 42-year-old Libyan citizen with total flying experience of 8,814 hours, of which 3,840 hours were on the Shorts 360. The first officer was a 49-year-old Libyan citizen with total flying experience of 10,422 hours, of which 1,950 were on the type. The Swiss firm Avisto, which owned the aircraft, said that both pilots were "senior and very experienced".
Aircraft
The aircraft involved in the crash was a Shorts 360, a commuter turbo-prop airliner that was manufactured in Belfast, United Kingdom. The aircraft was registered in Switzerland as HB-AAM. The Shorts 360 has a good safety record as a commuter aircraft. The aircraft had 7,138 flying hours. It was equipped with two engines from Pratt & Whitney Canada and two propellers from Hartzell Propeller.
Flight
The aircraft took off from Tripoli International Airport at 09:29 UTC with two flight crew, one cabin crew and 38 passengers to Marsa Brega, a city known for its oil refinery. The aircraft was leased from Avisto Air Service, a firm based in Zurich, Switzerland, which focused on aircraft maintenance and repair, to Sirte Oil Company. The crew had noticed a fuel imbalance prior to the flight, making a log entry and cross-feeding fuel before the flight. The aircraft started its descent at 11:25 UTC. At 11:36 UTC the left engine flamed out. The Captain then told the First Officer: "We just had an engine failure". The First Officer then stated that the oil pressure decreased. The Captain then ordered the first officer to raise the landing gear and flaps, then asked him to confirm if they just had an engine failure. He later ordered to shut down the engine:
11:36:58 Captain : "We just had an engine failure" 11:37:00 First Officer: "You are not kidding" 11:37:01 First Officer: "Oil pressure going low" 11:37:03 Captain : "Power" 11:37:04 First Officer: "OK" 11:37:05 Captain : "Ok, power on the right engine" 11:37:11 First Officer: "OK, checked" 11:37:12 [Warning sound] 11:37:21 Captain : "OK gears and, flaps are up" 11:37:23 First Officer: "Yes" 11:37:25 Captain : "Confirm left engine failure" 11:37:26 First Officer: "Confirmed" 11:37:27 Captain : "Shut down left engine"