Description

On 25 May 2002, a China Airlines Boeing 747-200 broke up in mid air, over Penghu Island Taiwan, following structural failure as a result of an improper repair in 1980, which had not been detected by subsequent inspections.

Synopsis

This is an extract from the Aviation Occurrence Report published by the Aviation Safety Council (Taiwan):

"On May 25 2002, 1529 Taipei local time (Coordinated Universal Time, UTC 0729), China Airlines (CAL) Flight CI611, a Boeing 747-200 (bearing ROC Registration Number B-18255), crashed into the Taiwan Strait approximately 23 nautical miles northeast of Makung, Penghu Islands of Taiwan, Republic of China (ROC). Radar data indicated that the aircraft experienced an in-flight breakup at an altitude of 34,900 ft, before reached its cruising altitude of 35,000 feet. The aircraft was on a scheduled passenger flight from Chiang Kai-Shek (CKS) International Airport, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC to Chek Lap Kok International Airport, Hong Kong, China…

…the final report does not directly state the “Probable Causes and Contributing Factors”, rather, it will present the findings in three categories: Findings related to the probable causes of the accident, findings related to risks, and other relevant findings…

Findings Related to Probable Causes: