Doomed UTA Flight 141 May Have Been Stolen Angolan Boeing 727

Naharnet Online ^ | 12-31-03

[Arkie2]

Some info on the owner here plus speculation on the cause( overloading). Ownership in Africa is deliberately vague for the very good reason that unscrupulous operators don't want to take responsibility for their crimes.

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I felt very soory for those who lost thier life in Africa on Board the B727.
All reports indicate that the aircraft hit the building at the end of the runway while the Landing Gears still down and that they suspected that the aircraft was over weight.

This Aircraft was previously planned to go on Labanese registeration and the application was rejected due to safety concern (Maintenance History) and that aircraft was not brought up todate by the owner who is based in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
The owner is known for his reputation attitude toward maintenance and compliance with regulations.......

This give a clear indication that this owner is not only cutting corners in sfaety and maintenance but intentially harming people on board and should face the consequences.

It is a sad things to see people like that in Aviation.............
And it is time for Authorities to step and take sever action against those people specially in The UAE where many charters arlines are based thier using it as a base for maintenance while the aircraft is registered in Non accountable Authorities like New Guinee, Swaziland< Kinshasa, Sudan and many others.....

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Rodiano,
You have some very accurate background on the owner of this aircraft. He is based in Sharjah, but he is originally from Palestine and holds a US passport. His home is in Miami and he hides under the name J Taylor Investments.
I hate to say this but I saw something like this coming when on 7 Nov I made a post about his Dangerous B747 operation flying pilgrims out of Tripoli to Jedah. I contacted the authorities in the countries where he is operating his aircraft and where it is registered with no response.
I believe the cockpit crew was from Syria-not sure. He focuses on crews that are "Down and Out in Aviation" and are willing to work for cheap wages. They are more willing to take his bullying and will accept an aircraft that is overweight and not on the "UP and Up" when it comes to maintenance.
I am very sorry to see the loss of life that this man has caused and I hope he is unable to sleep at night and is unable to look at himself in the mirror every morning.

The Plumber

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Overloading blamed for air crash
Lebanon says overloading may have caused Thursday's plane crash in Benin that killed over 130 people, many of them Lebanese residents of West Africa.
After returning to Beirut with 15 survivors, Lebanon's Foreign Minister Jean Obeid said there seemed to have been too many people and bags on board.

Fifteen Bangladeshi UN peacekeepers were among those who died in the crash.

The Beirut-bound plane plunged into the sea shortly after taking off from Cotonou, the main city in Benin.

Twenty-two people survived, including the Lebanese pilot of the Boeing 727, which was carrying 161 people.

Most of those on board the plane were Lebanese nationals returning to Lebanon during the Christmas holiday. Cotonou has a large Lebanese community.

Mr Obeid said there should be an investigation in Lebanon, in addition to one already launched in Benin.

"It appears that the number of passengers exceeds the normal number, in addition to the load, which it appears was very much in excess," he told reporters in Beirut.

[angkor]

Thanks for that post, very interesting.

I ran across a news story that said this plane (or maybe it was the entire "fleet" of UTA) was technically not authorized to land in Lebanon due to (IIRC) certain missing mechanical certifications (?).

It went on to say that an air transport agreement between Guinea and Lebanon overrode the specific problems with UTA.

I also read somewhere that some of these "retired" AA 727-223's were sold for less than $1 million, so yes, I'm sure they were trying to recoup the investment by avoiding maint and overloading and running unscheduled "charters" (which this particular flight was).

A little off-topic, but I've seen a lot of funny business while working in SE Asia, though a good friend with 10+ years in Africa confirms that it's even more bizarre, if that's possible.

[angkor]

Well that confirms much, though not why GIH comes up with Indonesian reg in one version of the ICAO database.

In the above post where I mention the air transport agreement between Guinea and Lebanon (which was said in the news story to trump the missing maint certifications), its now pretty obvious that some $$ changed hands to put that "agreement" in place.

Whatever the $$$ amount, it clearly was less costly than servicing the airplanes.

This is how biz works in Africa and Lebanon and elsewhere, yes?

[dighton]

Maxime Coffin, head of training and technical surveillance at France's civil aviation authority DGAC, identified problems such as obsolete fleets, pilots willing to work to lower standards and a lack of aircraft maintenance.

But Coffin insisted that flying is still the safest way to travel through Africa and denied some planes are just flying rustbuckets.

Very well, flying coffins.

[Arkie2]

Ouch! I missed that name when posting. Black humor indeed!

[aculeus]

Despite pressure from the Beirut government, there was still no official word on exactly how many people were on the plane – allegedly overloaded by some nine tons in humans and also exotic fruit.

"Tons of humans" bump.

[windchime]

Thanks for the info, angkor. From reading the posts, it looks like the Angola plane remains a mystery.

[verity]

may OR MAY NOT have been a Boeing 727 that was stolen from Luanda airport in Angola in May, or a U.S.-registered aircraft that had undergone ...

Geez!

[AnAmericanMother]

Never ascribe an incident to evil intent when sheer stupidity will account for it.

Especially in Africa. When I used to fly in the Caribbean (back in the 60s and 70s) there was lots of stuff done on the cheap in the smaller islands and places like Haiti. You could get yourself killed in a hurry flying on some of those no-name "airlines" and charters. The unofficial motto of Mackey International Airlines (actually one of the better small lines working the Caribbean routes) was "Fly Mackey - No Come Backey". When I was at Providenciales (Turks and Caicos) airport one time, the inboard port engine of a DC-6B wouldn't start. The pilot unloaded all the passengers, went out to the end of the coral strip, stood on the brakes while he revved the other three engines up, and then blasted down the strip and managed to "prop" the dead engine into life. Then (like a buncha fools) we all got on and continued our flight . . . he kept that engine running all the way back to Florida (three stops IIRC).

The stupid things we participate in when young . . .

[Alas Babylon!]

Well, on that same thread, here's what I said....

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To: TomGuy

Not a 747. That has four engines, two on each wing. Looks like a 727. Wasn't one stolen months ago in Africa?

44 posted on 12/25/2003 10:12:46 AM CST by Alas Babylon!

[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]

[Alas Babylon!]

Not a 747. That has four engines, two on each wing. Looks like a 727. Wasn't one stolen months ago in Africa?

[Coop]

Bump for later reading

[general_re]

"Tons of humans" bump.

"Attention all passengers - the white zone is for loading and unloading only..."

[TexKat]

Hi windchime. Yes I did exchange post with Brenda Padilla on FR some months ago. I will see if I can find it if no one else has yet. I am going to read this thread and then I'll see if I can find it.

[TexKat]

It's pretty clear ( to me anyway ) that the theft of the plane in Angola was merely a "repossesion".

Okay if one buys that then where is Mr. Padilla?

[ABrit]

From FBI most wanted

On May 25, 2003, at approximately 6 p.m. local time, an airplane took off from DeFevereiro International Airport in Luanda, Angola, with neither clearance nor a flight plan, and has not been seen since. The plane is described as a 200 series advanced 727 jet with a tail number of N844AA, and a serial number of 20985. It is unpainted silver in color with a stripe of blue, white, and blue. The plane was formerly in the air fleet of a major airline, but all of the passenger seats have been removed. It is outfitted to carry diesel fuel.

Law enforcement officials believe that Ben Charles Padilla may have been on board the plane at the time it disappeared. The FBI is interested in locating Padilla, as he may have information as to the whereabouts of the plane

[ABrit]

Jose Padilla is the focus of great speculation by Americans today. How can the U.S intelligence agencies have known that Padilla was plotting to detonate one of the most sinister types of weapons of mass destruction? Is it because these agencies had received reports, as John Ashcroft claims, that Padilla and his accomplices had been meeting and gathering information on how to build these deadly devices? Or because these agencies have known of him all along, and had chosen to simply wait for his return to the United States?

http://www.glennbeck.com/news/06132002.shtml

[ABrit]

Padilla's whereabouts are unknown from 1994 to 1998. In all likelihood, he was still living somewhere in Florida and could have been involved with some of the Middle Eastern terrorist organizations that have possible ties to the Oklahoma City bombings.

[ABrit]

According to Padilla's family in Florida, he was hired to repossess the jet after Air Angola failed to make lease payments.

His sister, Benita Padilla-Kirkland, told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel she feared the plane crashed or the 51-year-old Padilla was being held against his will.

[Nick Danger]

Thousands of Lebanese expatriates in Africa provide the upkeep for relatives at home

Here's how badly it sucks in Lebanon: people go from there to Benin to find a job.

[padilla1956]

Yes,
I am Joseph B. Padilla, SR.
My sister's name isn't Brenda Padilla.
It is Benita Padilla-Kirkland.
I contacted the FBI on 12-26-2003 about the plane that crashed on christams day in Africa.
I had told the FBI that a reporter from London called me to ask me if i had heard about the plane crash.
He said that he had spoken to the co-pilot of the plane which survived the crash and that the plane was the same plane that my brother Ben Charles Padilla, Jr. was hi-jacked from.
So far, the FBI has not contacted me to let me know if it was the same plane or not.
My e-mail address incase anyone has any new information is,
padilla1956@cox.net
Please e-mail me if any one hears any information.
My phone number is - 850-944-9688.
I live in Pensacola, FL.
Thank you,
Joseph B. Padilla, SR.