Date & Time:
Jul 22, 2020 at 1520 LT
Type of aircraft:
Boeing 777-200
Operator:
Registration:
ET-ARH
Flight Phase:
Parking
Flight Type:
Cargo
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Shanghai – Addis Ababa – São Paulo – Santiago de Chile
MSN:
42031/1242
YOM:
2014
Flight number:
ET3739
Country:
China
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
0
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
0
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
0
Captain / Total hours on type:
3000
Copilot / Total hours on type:
1000
Aircraft flight hours:
26740
Aircraft flight cycles:
4286
Circumstances:
Parked at position 306 at Shanghai-Pudong Airport, the aircraft was prepared for a cargo service (flight ET3739) to Santiago de Chile with intermediate stops in Addis Ababa and São Paulo. At 1520LT, while being loaded, the crew contacted ground on the frequency and sent a mayday message, saying that a fire erupted in the cargo compartment. Fire brigade arrived quickly on the scene but the airplane was partially destroyed by fire and damaged beyond repair. Both pilots evacuated safely.
Probable cause:
The investigation team determined that the fire originated in the area of the aircraft's main cargo hold station STA1790-STA2129; the fire origin was at the right side of the main cargo hold at stations STA1916-STA2048 (main cargo hold PR position), with the most likely cause of the fire being the spontaneous combustion of chlorine dioxide disinfection tablets loaded in the main cargo hold under high-temperature and humid conditions, leading to the fire.
Final Report:
ET-ARH.pdf4.28 MB
