Global Aviator May 2018 / Vol. 10 / No. 5 15
Aviation Administration) certified
stall speed will be 144 KIAS. When the
speed at which the stall occurs is higher
than the FAA certified stall speed, it is
described as the actual stall speed.
Most jet transport airplanes are
equipped with a stick shaker – this
is a warning device to alert the pilot
that the airplane is approaching a
stall. In the DC-8, the stick shaker is
activated by a sensing mechanism
in the wing leading edge.
Ice build up on the leading edge or
upper of an airplane wing will result
in an increase in the stalling speed,
decrease in the stall angle of attack and
a rapid increase near the stall. Because
ice contamination results in a lower
than normal stall angle of attack, the
stall warning systems, such as installed
in the DC-8, might not give pilots a
warning before the stall happens. The
first officer probably pulled the nose
back trying to get the plane in the air,
but what he didn’t realize was that he
was sealing their fate – with the plane
already on the verge of a stall, pulling
the nose up, only made things worse.
With flight 1285 it was established
that the stall occurred at no more than
125 feet above the runway, and the
flight path angle at impact at an angle
attack of 21 degrees, well beyond the
normal stall angle of attack. Even
though ice contamination played a
role in all of the above mentioned
elements, there were still some people
that believed otherwise and that it
was in fact an in-flight fire that caused
the crash. After the crash, the Islamic
Jihad – a Shiite Muslim extremist group
claimed responsibility for the crash.
The investigation takes a drastic
turn, and portions of the wreckage
is sent away to be tested for bomb
residue – but no traces were found.
If the airplane did explode before
it hit the trees, one would expect
something to come off the aircraft,
but investigators did not find any
evidence and can positively say that
when the plane 0hit the trees it was
intact. US Army officials also denied
that there was any unreported or
classified cargo on board Arrow Air
flight 1285. But according to them,
since there was no cargo manifest,
the claim could be doubted. Yes of
course a variety of military weapons
and weapon components were
found scattered throughout the
crash site, but there was no evidence
found of any explosive device.
Moving on there was the eyewitness
reports of a yellow/orange glow that
could be seen as an explosion or fire.
All of them were travelling along the
Trans-Canada highway and explained
that the glow seemed to be coming from
the right-hand side or the bottom of
the plane. But why did the air traffic
controller on duty not observe anything
consistent with a glow or fire? Apart
from these there was also the fact that
all the passengers had high levels
of carbon monoxide in their blood –
something consistent with a fire.Which of the
investigators were correct?
To end all the speculation,
investigators knew that they would
have to scientifically prove their theory
that ice and extra weight brought the
plane down. They believed there was
no indication that terrorism played
a role, but that tere was a possibility
that there was an aircraft performance
problem as well as icing. As part of
the investigation, a series of simulator
tests were conducted using a DC-8-
training simulator. The aim of the tests
was to duplicate the situation faced
by the crew. But every attempt to fly
the simulator with the exact same
parameters as flight 1285 ended the
same way – with a stall and a crash.
As for witnesses accounts of
seeing a glow/fire – there was an
explanation. Often you will havea flame coming out of the engine
because of compression stall and
surges. In fact these compressor surges
accompanied by flames have been
observed in other DC-8 accidents,
where the angle of attack was achieved
at or beyond the stall. The extreme
intensity of the fire could also have
caused the abnormally high levels of
carbon monoxide in the victims’ blood.
In the end this was a very difficult
investigation. Who knows, maybe if
there was just ice with no extra weight,
there wouldn’t have been a crash.
Perhaps if there was extra weight but
no ice contamination, there wouldn’t
have been a crash. But ice together
with the extra weight is a deadly
combination and you will have a crash.
Still a lot of people
have a hard time
believing that a little bit of ice on a
large airplane wing can have such a
big effect – but the truth is that it does.
The fact that there was such a lot of
controversy around the crash, was
very unfortunate, because basically
the safety message wasn’t heard –
and that is the fact that airplanes are
very vulnerable to ice contamination.
If things were different and the
message was heard, then maybe the
accident could have been prevented.
In memory to all those who lost
their lives on 12 December 1985,
there is a memorial at the crash
site that overlooks Gander lake.
Gary Collin’s also wrote the very
popular book “Where Eagles Lie
Fallen”, a solemn tribute to those who
lost their lives on board Arrow Air.
There is still much to dispute
over what really happened that
fateful day in Gander. There is also
a saying that goes as follow:“An investigation is not an
emotional issue,
it’s a scientific issue”right: The “silent witness” memorial
in memory of all the victims
of Arrow Air Flight 1285.If things were different and
the message was heard, then
maybe the accident of
Arrow Air Flight 1285
could have been prevented