Investigation in Austria Crew member dies one week after Swiss emergency landing
One week after the emergency landing of a Swiss jet in Graz, a crew member has died. Meanwhile, the public prosecutor's office in Austria is investigating.
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- A week ago, a Swiss plane on its way from Bucharest to Zurich had to make an emergency landing in Graz.
- One cabin crew member was injured and has now died.
- Meanwhile, the public prosecutor's office in Austria has opened an investigation into the case.
- A flight expert is to clarify how such a strong smoke development occurred during the flight that the flight had to be aborted.
This article was last updated at 22:47.
One week after the emergency landing of a Swiss Airbus in Graz, Austria, a crew member died on Monday, the airline announced. The flight from Bucharest to Zurich with 74 passengers experienced engine problems and smoke in the cockpit and cabin.
"Deeply shocked"
Out of respect for the relatives, Swiss said on Monday evening that it did not want to give any details about the cause of death of the young man, who was part of the cabin crew of flight LX1885 in an Airbus A220 from the Romanian capital to Zurich. He had been in intensive care at the hospital in Graz since the emergency landing on Monday last week. A second crew member, who had also initially been treated at Graz University Hospital, was able to leave the hospital.
Jens Fehlinger, CEO of Swiss, said in a statement: "We are all deeply shocked by the death of our esteemed colleague. The news leaves us deeply saddened and stunned. Our thoughts are with the young man's relatives, whose pain must be immeasurable. On behalf of the entire Swiss workforce, I would like to express our deepest condolences to the bereaved family. We are doing everything in our power to stand by them in these extremely difficult hours."
Exact cause still unclear
No information has yet been released about the exact cause of the problems during the flight. Based on initial findings, a technical defect in one of the engines is likely to be the cause, Swiss merely stated. According to the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation (Bazl), the aircraft and engine manufacturers have been informed. From a technical point of view, no measures were required immediately after the incident, according to the Bazl.
The Airbus A220 is a safe aircraft and the Pratt & Whitney engines have accumulated over 36 million flight hours worldwide since entering service, emphasized Swiss. It has confidence in these engines and will continue to operate flights with the A220.
However, the aircraft type had repeatedly exhibited engine problems in the past. In some incidents, parts of the engine were ejected outwards due to a malfunction. The incidents led to temporary groundings, which also affected Swiss.
Investigation into bodily injury
In the meantime, the public prosecutor's office in Graz has opened an investigation into possible negligent bodily injury. The investigation serves to clarify the cause of the accident, as a spokesperson for the public prosecutor's office in Graz told the APA news agency on Monday when asked.
According to the statement, an aviation expert is to determine why the aircraft, which took off from Bucharest, produced so much smoke that the flight had to be aborted. The investigation is currently being conducted into negligent bodily harm, whereby the final criminal assessment depends largely on the results of the expert's report, said the spokesperson for the authorities.
