 TC-JAC, the aircraft involved in the accident, photographed in 1970 | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 21 January 1972 (1972-01-21) |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain |
| Site | |
 | |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Douglas DC-9-32 |
| Aircraft name | Marmara |
| Operator | Turkish Airlines |
| Registration | TC-JAC |
| Flight origin | Kandara Airport, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
| Stopover | Damascus Airport, Damascus, Syria |
| Destination | Ankara Esenboğa Airport, Ankara, Turkey |
| Occupants | 5 |
| Passengers | 0 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 1 |
| Injuries | 3 |
| Survivors | 4 |
On 21 January 1972, aMcDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 registered as TC-JAC operated byTurkish Airlines crashed on approach while trying to make an emergency landing atAdana Airport. The aircraft was en-route fromKandara Airport inJeddah, Saudi Arabia, toAnkara Esenboğa Airport with a stopover atDamascus Airport with only five crew members on board after carrying passengers toHajj the day before.
After taking off from Damascus for the second leg of the flight, the plane had acabin pressurization problem and attempted to divert to Adana. The aircraft had ago-around in its first landing attempt due to poor visibility. During the second attempt, the plane flew too low and crashed in a field 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) away from the airport, and subsequently caught fire. One of the five crew members died in the flames, while three others were injured.
The aircraft was aMcDonnell Douglas DC-9-32,registered as TC-JAC, and namedMarmara; it was manufactured in 1968.[1] Two days prior to the accident, on 19 January, the plane carried the13th Prime Minister of TurkeyNihat Erim and a delegation fromAnkara toFrance, and was due to bring them back later on the accident day. Before the prime minister boarded the McDonnell Douglas DC-9, it underwent an "extensive technical control" and its interior was searched for explosives with detectors.[2]
On board the flight deck wereCaptain Mahzar İpek, aged 46, andFirst Officer Celâlettin Yeprem, aged 51. Both had been flying with the airline for 15 years, after leaving theTurkish Air Force in 1957.[3] There were three cabin crew members: Nilgün Dener, Selva Aksöyek and Hülya Maviler. Maviler had also been a crew member on aTurkish Airlines flight that was hijacked toSofia in September 1969.[2]
The aircraft was returning without passengers from Jeddah after carrying people toHajj.[2] The aircraft took off fromDamascus and headed for Ankara. The pilots reported to controllers that they were having problems withcabin pressurization and diverted toAdana Airport for an emergency landing. It was snowing at the time of the accident, a condition which was rare forAdana.[4] Due to the poor visibility, the pilots initiated ago-around after failing to see the runway. During the second approach, the aircraft was too low on altitude and struck the ground at 4:24 local time, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) away from the airport.[2][5] The plane lost itslanding gear and slid a short distance before catching fire.[5]
The wreckage was located in a field near theSarıhuğlar village close to the airport. Cabin crew member Hülya Maviler was killed in the fire that started after impact, while co-pilot Celâlettin Yeprem was taken out of the aircraft in a critical condition.[2] Nilgün Dener, located at the rear of the aircraft, survived without any injuries and helped fellow crew members near the cockpit to evacuate. Maviler was seated at the center of the cabin and could not be reached by first responders. She was trying to escape to the rear of the aircraft but was surrounded by the smoke; her burnt body was removed from between seats.[3][6] Her funeral was held inIstanbul the day after the crash.[7] The crash is the sole fatal McDonnell Douglas DC-9 accident involving Turkish Airlines.[4]
While being treated at the hospital, captain Mahzar İpek said that they had lost all communications with the airport and that they decided to make an emergency landing in an area that seemed to be flat.[6]
In 1975, Gündüz Sevilgen, a member of the15th Parliament of Turkey from theNational Salvation Party, wrote several questions to theGrand National Assembly of Turkey related to Turkish Airlines, including the causes of accidents.[8] He received a response from the Minister of Transport,Sabahattin Özbek, on 18 March. The response included a short list of causes of all Turkish Airlines crashes to date.[9] The cause for the Adana crash in the response was:
Not adhering toIFR limits by attempting to approach and landvisually in a misty and cloudy weather.[9]
According to aHürriyet article from 1999, the pressurization failure was due to a wiring malfunction.[6] In 2020,Sözcü reported that they could not find any record of the pilots being prosecuted over the death of Hülya Maviler.[10]
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