“TERRAIN AHEAD, PULL UP,” blared the terrain awareness and warning system (TAWS). This was the first warning to the pilots of a Sukhoi RRJ-95B (Superjet) on the afternoon of May 9, 2012. They were on a demonstration flight that had just left Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport in Jakarta, Indonesia. Six “AVOID TERRAIN” warnings followed. The pilots apparently looked out and saw only clouds. They were not aware of any mountainous terrain and so turned off the TAWS. Minutes later, the airplane crashed into Mount Salak at 6,000 ft. All 45 people on board were killed (ASW, 3/13).
Why did this state-of-the-art airplane with experienced pilots at the controls fly into a mountain? The investigation found that the pilots didn’t have the correct aeronautical charts and that they should have heeded the TAWS aural alerts and warnings. But had they been able to see the terrain features, surely…
