Doomed Cypriot airliner ‘had suffered earlier decompression problem’

Peter Woodman

In Cyprus, a former chief mechanic for Helios told Greek state television the plane had pressurisation problems during a flight to Warsaw, Poland, in December 2004 that caused the oxygen masks to deploy.

Kyriakos Pilavakis, who said he resigned in January, spoke after giving a six-hour statement to a prosecutor. “Shortly before landing at Larnaca airport, the plane had a problem with depressurising in the cabin. The emergency procedures were followed. The oxygen masks were released and the plane landed at Larnaca,” he said.