Pilot in Beirut jet crash ignored advice

THE pilot of an Ethiopian Airlines plane that crashed flew in the opposite direction from the path recommended by the control tower after taking off from Beirut in thunderstorms, Lebanon’s transportation minister said yesterday.

All 90 people on board were feared dead after the plane bound for the Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, went down in flames minutes after takeoff at about 2.30am on Monday.

Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi said the pilot initially followed the tower’s guidance, but then abruptly changed course and went in the opposite direction.

“They asked him to correct his path but he did a very fast and strange turn before disappearing completely from the radar,” said Aridi.

The Boeing 737 is equipped with its own onboard weather radar, which the pilot may have used to avoid flying into thunderheads rather than following the flight tower’s recommendation.

“Nobody is saying the pilot is to blame for not heeding orders,” Aridi said, adding: “There could have been many reasons for what happened. ... Only the black box can tell.”

Ethiopian Airlines Chief Executive Girma Wake said the Lebanese minister’s comments were premature.

“Rushing remarks, I don’t think that helps anybody,” Wake said in Addis Ababa.

Lebanese officials have said there is no indication of terrorism or “sabotage”.