US embassy cable - 05ATHENS2151

UNCLAS ATHENS 002151 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON, EAIR, CASC, GR 
SUBJECT: GOG WORKS TO RESPOND TO CRASH OF CYPRIOT AIRCRAFT 
 
 
1.  (U) Summary:  The GoG has swung into action to cope with 
the crash of Cypriot airliner Helios Flight 522.  The 
Hellenic Air Accident Investigation Board has taken charge of 
the investigation.  A National Transportation Safety Board 
team has arrived, along with Boeing technical experts, to 
provide assistance.  At this time the investigation is in the 
most preliminary of stages, and no findings have been made. 
The flight data and cockpit voice recorders have been 
recovered and sent to labs in Paris for evaluation. End 
Summary. 
 
2.  (U) The Sunday, August 14th crash of Helios flight 522, a 
Cypriot airliner en route from Larnaca to Athens, was the 
worst civil aviation accident in Greek history.  Although the 
country was at a virtual standstill because of a local 
holiday, the Greek disaster response was swift.  Police, 
emergency medical and fire teams responded immediately to the 
site.  Although there were no survivors, the fires caused by 
the accident were contained, and access to the site was 
secured, ensuring integrity of the crash debris.  Captain 
Akrivos Tsolakis, the Chairman of the Hellenic National Air 
Accident Investigation and Safety Board (AISB), has been 
appointed the investigator in charge, and is receiving the 
cooperation of the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of 
Transportation, and Greek Air Force in carrying out the 
accident investigation.  He has indicated his full 
cooperation with all interested parties according to Annex 13 
of the International Civil Aviation Organization Convention. 
 
3.  (U) The first action taken by the AISB was to locate and 
secure the remains of the victims of Flight 522 and secure 
the site for investigatory purposes.  The bodies were 
transported to morgues throughout the Athens metropolitan 
area for autopsies.  Tsolakis was aware of the importance of 
obtaining post-mortem evidence, but was also clear that the 
Greek government wanted to assist in the positive 
identification and repatriation of the remains as swiftly as 
possible.  Cypriot families have already begun arriving in 
Greece to identify and claim the bodies of the victims. 
According to Tsolakis, all but three bodies have been 
recovered.  It is not clear at this time if those unaccounted 
for are truly missing or if there are errors or discrepancies 
in the passenger and crew manifest. 
 
4.  (U) Four NTSB and one FAA expert arrived on Monday, 
August 16th, and were joined later in the day by 
representatives of Boeing Corporation and Helios Airlines. 
French experts, representing the manufacturer of the engines, 
have also arrived.  The U.S. team has fully integrated with 
the Greek authorities, and are helping to preserve 
information from the accident; overseeing and assisting in 
the transportation of wreckage of the aircraft to a more 
controlled site.  The flight data recorder and cockpit voice 
recorder were both been recovered and sent to France for 
examination before the arrival of the NTSB team.  Tsolakis 
invited NTSB to designate a representative to be present in 
France to observe the reading of the recorder data. 
 
5.  (U) Local press reports have largely mirrored 
international reports, ranging from informed to speculative, 
but so far have been devoid of wild conspiracy theories.  The 
NTSB team has been mentioned in local press, but apart from 
minor misunderstandings of ICAO Annex 13 rights and 
obligations, there has been no derogatory speculation about 
their presence or their role. 
 
6.  (U) On August 16, Ambassador met with the family of Amcit 
Sofocleous, so far the only Amcit confirmed killed in the 
accident, upon their arrival at Athens Airport, to offer 
condolences, and the Embassy consular section will continue 
to assist the family as needed 
 
7.  (U) Comment:  The Embassy will continue to provide full 
support to the NTSB team, as well as to the GoG in dealing 
with the situation and its aftermath.  The Greek AISB is an 
exceedingly small organization, and while competent, has no 
experience in dealing with a disaster or investigation of 
this magnitude.  The NTSB has offered additional personnel 
assistance if requested, an offer that it is likely to be 
taken up. End Comment. 
RIES