Further details emerged yesterday on the confusion surrounding the vital last minutes of the Russian passenger aircraft and the DHL cargo plane that collided 36,000 feet over southern Germany last week, killing all 71 people on board both planes.
German investigators disclosed yesterday that Swiss air traffic controllers ordered the pilot of the Russian Tupolev to descend just one second after the plane's anti-collision computer ordered the pilot to climb.
By following controller's order and ignoring his own computer, the pilot put his plane on a collision course with an oncoming DHL cargo plane, which had also begun to dive.
German air traffic controllers spotted the impending collision two minutes before impact and tried to warn their Swiss colleagues, investigators confirmed. But three of the four telephone lines were out of order and the only free line was engaged.
Meanwhile, 33 of the young Russian victims of the crash were laid to rest in a ceremony attended by over 1,000 people in Ufa, capital of the Russian republic of Bashkortostan. The rest of the bodies will be released by the end of the week.
German air accident investigators who listened to the two flight recorders said both aircrafts' TCAS anti-collision computers warned of an oncoming plane one minute before collision, issuing the automated voice command "Traffic, Traffic".
Some 15 seconds later the Boeing TCAS gave the order to descend and the Tupolev TCAS gave the order "Climb, Climb".
The air-traffic controller can be heard a split second later giving a contradictory order to the Tupolev: "Descend level 350, expedite descent." After getting no response, the controller repeated the instruction 14 seconds later, at which point the Tupolev pilot began to dive.
In the intervening seconds the pilot of the DHL Boeing obeyed the TCAS "descend" order, putting the planes on a collision course.
Bashkirian Airlines, owner of the Tupolev, has accused Swiss air traffic controllers of trying to smear its dead pilots.
"The fact is that our pilots could not imagine what a dangerous situation they were already in.
"Nothing in the voice of the air traffic controller indicated an emergency situation," said Mr Viner Schakirov, the company's executive director.
He asked why the Tupolev was asked to descend when it is normal procedure for a cargo plane to take safe evasive action.
"A cargo plane can change course abruptly without endangering or frightening passengers," he said.
