DHL Cargo Airbus A300B4-203F plane is shot down
Baghdad, Iraq
Updated on
The aircraft was on a cargo flight from Baghdad to Bahrein. It was impacted by a surface-to-air missile shortly after takeoff from the Baghdad International Airport (Irak). The wing and wing devices are seriously damaged. All the three hydraulic circuit are lost: the moveable parts of the plane (ailerons, rudder, elevator …) are frozen. Many warnings are triggered. The aircraft is uncontrollable and fly by its own.
The crew discovered that the aircraft attitude can be managed by adjusting the thrust on the engines. It allowed them to successfully return to Baghdad and landed the Airbus A300 despite the serious damages. 25 minutes after the impact, the aircraft came to a stop in the dirt off Baghdad International's main runway. All the 3 crew members escaped safely the aircraft and they only sustained minor injuries.
Download the video of this event here: Video DHL crash in Irak.
Since year 2000, 7 commercial or transport planes have been voluntary or mistakenly shot by missiles. Watch here the list of those airplanes shot by missiles since year 2000.
Photos of the crash of DHL Cargo (22nd November, 2003)
Click on a photo of the accident to enlarge it
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