http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-31143710
Wednesday 4 February 2015:- the pilot in TransAsia Airways Flight 235, flying out of Taipei, Taiwan, said “mayday, mayday, engine flameout” shortly after that propjet took off from the down-town airport whilst carrying 58 passengers & crew. Immediately, the plane began to fall out of the air.
Here is the moment at about 10:55am local time, just before that plane hit a taxi travelling on an elevated section of express-way next to the Keelung River:
(see bottom for an even more amazing picture immediately after hitting that taxi)
The astonishing feature is that both the 52-year old taxi driver, Mr Zhou, and his female passenger, survived the impact, although viewing all these photos plus the dash-cam footage will cause you to be certain that everyone involved must have been killed:
Somehow the pilot managed to miss crashing into the motorway (although the edge of the bottom wing also struck the bridge parapet after hitting Mr Zhou’s taxi). Aircraft experts have stated that the aircraft would have been in a stall state as it passed over the motorway and, because of that, the pilot would have had zero control over his machine. Flight 235 ended up in the Keelung River, almost entirely submerged. The astonishing fact is that 15 passengers (plus Mr Zhou + his passenger) survived, although 31 are confirmed dead & a further 12 people are currently missing. Sadly, whilst the plane’s black-box has been found, neither of the pilot’s bodies has yet been recovered.
The extreme end of the plane’s wing hit the roof of Mr Zhou’s taxi, sliced towards the front, then across the bonnet. Although injured & greatly shocked, Mr Zhou was able to retain sufficient composure to contact his office. This is the transcript of his conversation:
Mr Zhou: I’ve been hit by a plane, and I need some help
Taxi Operator: Is it a model plane?
Mr Zhou: No. It’s a real one.
After finishing his call, Mr Zhou fainted!
This next photo is the frame from the dashcam in the vehicle behind Mr Zhou, shot immediately after the plane hit his taxi, and just before it hit the parapet. It is, surely, one of the most amazing photos ever shot:
--------- Alex Kemp