The Plane Patricia Ezell was on

THE SWISSAIR CRASH - ONE YEAR LATER
by Kelly Ryan

It's beginning.
I turned on my radio this morning and heard their voices again - the reporters, the police, the navy captain on board his ship telling the fishermen what to do.
It's almost a year since the plane went down off the waters of Peggy's Cove. The anniversary memorials are already on the airwaves and in the newspapers.
Not that I mind - after all, I'm doing them too. And I think it's important to remember those people who died.
But it's surprising to me how hard it hits. How the sadness wells up again. How the images of that night come back like flashes off a movie screen.
More Coverage
Forever Changed:
A CBC Radio documentary on the people affected by the crash
The National's feature reports on the Swissair disaster
CBC Morning's Norma Lee MacLeod talks to reporter Rob Gordon about the night the plane went down.
Swissair Tragedy: an indepth look from CBC News Online
I was asleep when the call came in. The editor of CBC Radio's World Report said a plane had gone down off Blandford. I couldn't comprehend it. He said it again. More than two hundred on board.
It's dark along the coast of Nova Scotia at night. There are no streetlights in the rural communities at midnight. The only lights on the beach were lights from tv cameras, ambulances and firetrucks.
The scene was a frenzy.
People desperate to do something, to know something. Was anybody alive? Could anybody survive that kind of impact?
I asked a firefighter what he knew, He snapped at me. He wasn't allowed to talk he said. We had "words" as they say. I told him rescue workers had said the same thing at Westray - the mining disaster where 26 men had died in 1992. The truth hadn't been known there for months. A few minutes later we passed each other again. We stopped and both said we were sorry. We just felt overwrought. He pointed at a firetruck slick with the heavy mist of the night. "There's a man with a scanner there," he said. "Ask if you can listen with him."
I heard voices that night that, for me, are still the voices of this tragedy.
There were the fishermen who ran from their homes and into their boats to search for survivors; the one fishermen whose voice broke as he told the others he'd found the body of a woman and was bringing her on board his boat.
There was the captain of the navy ship Preserver directing the spontaneous search and rescue squad as best he could amongst the cries for more body bags.
One fisherman, Robert Conrad, has described that night as a time when we looked into the souls of "our unrehearsed selves." There was no planning. No time. Fishermen acted on instinct to help. Television crews decided not to shoot video of the carnage out of respect.
Our "unrehearsed selves" showed some courage and some grace that night.
The hours and days that followed are filled with images of light in the darkness. A helicopter searchlight over the black waters of the Atlantic; a woman carrying a single sunflower over the grey rocks of Peggy's Cove in memory of a loved one; the sun on the water as another boat loaded with debris from the crash pulls into the dock.
It's a year later now.
There still aren't any answers why Flight 111 went down.
Now, some of the families of those killed are coming back to Nova Scotia to witness the burial of the unidentified remains and the dedication of the granite memorial that looks out at the crash site.
A picture one of the family members gave me is still on my wall.
It shows her - Lyn Romano - with her husband Ray.
Ray died on board Swissair Flight 111.
She gave the picture to me so I would never forget that it's not 229 people who died that night - but one and one and one and one.... I remember, Lyn.
I think we all do.
 
Copyright © 1999 CBC All Rights Reserved

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UP TO DATE INFORMATION
 
According to the Mobile Register
March 19, 2000, Sunday:

Investigation probing the 1998 crash of Swissair plane off Nova Scotia say a pilot's map light in the cockpit ceiling of the MD-11 could have been a source of ignition, The New York Times reported Saturday. Canadian investigators were sorting through the debris of Swissair Flight 111 to ty to find the map light from that plane, Jim Harris, spokesman for the Canadian Transportation Safety Board, told the Times, The cause of the crash that killed 229 people has yet to be determined.
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MORE INFORMATION FOUND:

Swissair crew reported smells on earlier flight Pilots of doomed plane complained about dense smoke Associated Press
ZURICH - Less than a month before a Swissair jet crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Nova Scotia, killing all 229 people aboard, crew members on the same plane reported strange smells in the cabin, a Swissair official said yesterday.  A steward on the MD-11 noticed an odour shortly after the plane took off from Zurich bound for Hong Kong on Aug. 10. The smell became stronger during the flight, prompting the chief steward to file a report to the airline, said Urs Peter Naef, spokesman for Swissair. No problems were found and the report was never published. Only 25 days later, the same plane took off from New York enroute to Geneva. The pilots mentioned a strange smell and then complained of dense smoke.
Flight 111 was headed for an emergency landing in Halifax, but fell short and plunged into the sea near Peggy's Cove, N.S. The crew's original report was passed on to Canadian investigators after the crash, said Mr. Naef, confirming an article in the Swiss magazine Facts.
Investigators still have not identified the cause of the fire that sent the smoke into the cockpit, although attention has focused on electrical-wiring problems. The odour report is one of millions of documents investigators and Swissair staff are analyzing, the airline said.
Crew members from the previous Hong Kong flight were flown to Halifax for questioning by the Canadian Transportation Safety Board and given different sample odours to smell, including those of burning wires but there was nothing conclusive and the report was shelved. Beatrice Tschanz, spokeswoman for Swissair, said the report is not believed to be connected to the crash. "This report was investigated, and it was proven that it had nothing to do with the cause of the crash," she said.
Subsequent inspections of other MD-11s found some had cracked and chafed wiring around forward cabin doors and the wall separating the cockpit from the forward galley.
Swissair faces a total of $16-billion (US) in claims from families of U.S. victims suing on grounds of gross negligence. The company said it has reached out-of-court settlements with relatives of five victims in France.
A pre-trial conference in Philadelphia later this week will sort out procedural technicalities of the suits against Swissair and other defendants, the airline said.
The other defendants include Boeing, which owns the company that manufactured the plane; Delta Air Lines, which had a ticket-sharing deal with Swissair; and Inflight Technologies, which provided the plane's electronic entertainment system.
Philippe Bruggisser, chief executive of the airline's parent company SAirGroup, has said Swissair has already paid about $135,000 (US) in compensation for each victim.
 
 
MD-11 Cabin InteriorCommentary
If it ain't broke, don't fix it?
Reading this report you cannot help but reflect upon the fact that also "less than a month" before SR111 crashed, that MD11 had its bus-tie sensing relay changed. Because of a fire that had occurred in Bangkok on 03 Aug Swissair maintenance decided to swap-out all the MD-11 bus-tie relays on 4 Aug 98.
The technician installing the new relay in HB-IWF made an error and when it was powered up it shorted out. A short in Kapton wiring is no small thing. Faults can be induced both up and downstream in wiring bundles and components. You have to wonder just how extensively the associated wiring was checked out after the short circuit. You can read the original Swissair version here and here. It's difficult to be persuaded that the installation fault was simply rectified and all was then guaranteed to be as new.
In Zurich, during the installation of the new DC tie bus sensing relay in the SR111 aircraft, HB-IWF, the mechanic discovered that he had incorrectly installed the part after a short circuit - not a fire - occurred. The DC tie bus sensing relay was then installed correctly and subsequent function controls confirmed that the relay functioned properly.
If someone reports a bad smell, just how do you go about checking that out? Do you think to yourself  "Well they wouldn't have reported it if there hadn't been a significant odour? We'd better look until we find something".  Do you then tear the lining out and really go for it with conviction. Or do you just power up the systems, turn off the circulation and do a sniff check? If you don't smell anything it's as easy as a "No fault found" write-up. Engineering just cannot justify chasing will-o-the-wisps when the aircraft isn't scheduled for any maintenance down-time.
You have to wonder what the McDD MD11 maintenance manual says specifically about chasing down reported smells. What's the betting that it doesn't say anything?
Why would you get a bad smell six days after the bus-tie relay swap-out and then why would it go away of its own accord? Aircraft in flight are subjected to a myriad of forces. There's the high-frequency vibration of its aerodynamic passage (as varied by the engines' resonant notes). You can see that by simply holding a glass of liquid and allowing it to gently touch the window. You'll see concentric ripples of small amplitude all very close together. That's the vibration that causes wire chafing over very long periods (it contributes to the wiring insulation's aging characteristics). If you then hit turbulence you'll have some very low freq but high amplitude vibration. That, together with fuselage and wing flexing, can cause whole wire bundles to reposition (albeit just a few mms). And of course you've got the additional "turbulence" of landing forces as transmitted through the airframe. You also have the operation of systems and the opening and closure of doors that can impinge upon wiring bundles. You only need to achieve a conjunction (i.e. make & break) over a few millimetres between insulation-damaged wires in order to initiate arcing. Once the initial smelly damage has occurred, vibration may then move the wires apart and the arcing may cease. However damage has been done and the next time that they are moved back into close conjunction the process starts anew (and the damage spreads). Because of the forced air circulation both above and beneath the cabin lining,  localising it is a real task requiring great thoroughness. I'd like to know precisely what the response was to this report of smoke. Was it nominal or was it very thorough? How thorough is very thorough? Is that sufficiently thorough? Is not a bad smell a sufficient prompt for great thoroughness. Obviously it would be now (but was it ever thus?). Read an example here of just how you can be caught out. It was sheer Luck in this instance that they found this fire damage before the aircraft flew again. In order to re-dispatch the aircraft as soon as possible in accordance with the Minimum Equipment List (MEL), the maintenance crew manually closed the exhaust valve and fitted a 'shorting link' to remove the EICAS message. However, despite this action the warning message persisted. As part of the ensuing troubleshooting process the valve, in addition to the ECS card and an associated relay, were all replaced; however the problem persisted. By this time crew duty time limitations had intervened and so the aircraft remained overnight at LHR, enabling the maintenance crew to further investigate the problem. Wiring continuity checks were carried out and eventually an area of damaged wires was found close to, and associated with, the exhaust valve. These damaged wires had been hidden from view by having been previously installed, incorrectly, beneath the bilge thermal insulation blanket and next to the fuselage skin. It was evident that a localised fire had occurred between the outer film of the blanket and the fuselage structure.
(VH-OJD QANTAS B747-400)
What has the Boeing approach been to this question of reported smells? Is it now changed? When did it change? Does it accord sufficient priority to the reports of "bad smells". Should Flight attendants be expected to start ripping into cabin linings in flight after the flight-crew secures the air-con circulation? Or would that be too upsetting for the passengers?
But we needn't concern ourselves because: Beatrice Tschanz, spokeswoman for Swissair, said the report is not believed to be connected to the crash. "This report was investigated, and it was proven that it had nothing to do with the cause of the crash," she said.
 

OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS WHO DIED IN PAST YEARS, STILL REMEMBERED

John William Stewart Lawrence- born April 23,1891 Date of Death Aug.12,1939, time 9:10 A.M. age 49 years, 3 months and 19 days The principal cause of death and related causes of importance in order of onset were as follow: CHRONIC STRESS Contributory causes of importance not related to principal cause: NEPHRITIS (Inflammation of the kidneys) confirmed by AUTOPSY ----------------------------------------------   George Andrew Randell Lawrence- born March 01,1858 He passed away a little before midnight,July 11,1907 and was buried the next day that evening. He died of LOCOMOTOR ATAXIA, as stated by the FairHope Courier Paper   July 12,1907, This disease according to the dictionary is a- degenerative disease of the spinal cord, marked by loss of control over walking and certain other movements. The family Traced his trouble to extreme exposure, in a great freeze of Feb.1899,while releasing his schooner from the ice and saving her from wreck. His age was approximately 49 years old at time of death. ---------------------------------------------- John Hampton Dickens- born Oct.17,1870   Date of Death May 29,1940 time 8:10 P.M. age 69 years 7 months 12 days  Immediate cause of death- CARCINOMATOSIS (Due to Prostate Cancer )  Duration of cancer 2 years. (No AUTOPSY) ---------------------------------------------- Carrie May ( Cameron ) Dickens- born March 10,1870 Mississippi  Date of Death November 29,1916 time 5:50 P.M. age 47 years 08 months 18 days   The CAUSE OF DEATH* was as follows: CARCINOMA of BREAST (cancer) Please NOTE her Uncle on mothers side was severely crippled with Arthritis at time of his death. ---------------------------------------------- Leonard Weston Cameron- born June 08,1842 New BedFord Mass.   Date of Death Dec.02,1930 time 6:15 P.M.   age 89 The principal cause of death and related causes of importance in order of onset were as follows: NEPHRITIS (inflammation of the Kidneys) contributory cause "Senility" ---------------------------------------------- Nora (Dickens) Mullaney- born Feb.07,1884, Mosspoint Mississippi   Date of Death Feb.01,1967, Mobile age 72 Death was cause by : MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION, acute,probable Due to: ARTERIOSCLEROTIC HEART DISEASE   Other significant conditions contributing to death but not related to terminal disease: CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE ---------------------------------------------- Jessie Dickens (Lawrence) Kelms- born April 21,1898 Mosspoint Mississippi   Date of Death November 11,1988 time 8:45 P.M. age 90- years old Death Due to:   CRONIC RESPIRATORY ARREST Place of Death- Heritage Nursing Home/ 954 Navco Rd. Mobile Ala.  Social Security Number 420-90-0226  Dr. John C. Jennings M. D. ---------------------------------------------- Alice M. Jaeger--Daughter of Nora (Dickens) Mullaney Alice M. Jaeger- born November 27,1916 Mobile Ala.   Date of Death- March 04,1992   time 7:30 P.M. Burial Place Forest Lawn / Beaumont Texas--Soc. Security 465-01-4516   Died of-- LUNG CARCINOMA (Cancer ) Cause Due to-- Spinal Metastasas ---------------------------------------------- Esther Steel (Ezell) Green- born April 18,1900 Baldwin County Date of Death December 03,1984 Pensacola, Florida Cause of death-- Hemorrhage of Blood Vessel in Head ---------------------------------------------- Isaac Steele-- born November 1854 Baldwin County Date of Death- Sept. 12,1932   time 11:00 P.M. Robersdale Alabama   The principal cause of death and related cause of importance in order of onset were as follows: BRIGHT'S DISEASE NEPHRITIS (inflammation of the kidneys) a kidney disease characterized by (albumin) in the urine. ---------------------------------------------- Doris Ezell-- Sister of William Eugene Ezell Doris Ezell- born April 17,1924   Cause of death- Lung Hemorrhage Due to--(CANCER) ---------------------------------------------- JoAnn (Ezell) DeTiege - born June 10,1954, Date of Death February 22,1991, time 10:55 P.M. age 36   The principal cause of death- LACERATION, RIGHT VENTRICLE Contributory cause-- Motor Vehicle Crash- car struck the rear of a flatbed trailer truck. ( the accident happened at 10:10 P.M.) ---------------------------------------------- OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS Who Died In The Past, STILL REMEMBERED JoAnn Ezell ( DeTiege ) R. Nathan Lawrence Esther B. Steele ( Ezell ) ( Green ) Hazel Ezell Doris H. Louise Ezell ( Lawrence ) ( Busby ) Gladys Dickens ( Dixon ) Jessie M. Dickens ( Lawrence ) ( Kelms )

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