NTSB to Release Asiana Airlines Flight 214 Crash Investigation Findings

The National Transportation Safety Board will tell the world on Tuesday what it found while investigating last summer’s Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash at San Francisco International Airport.

The NTSB is scheduled to release the official cause of the accident Tuesday morning.

There were no apparent mechanical problems with the airliner, so the report is expected to focus on potential problems with the automated systems of the plane and possible pilot error.

The report is also expected to address the San Francisco Fire Department’s role in the death of one of the victims. After the crash, one of the passengers was run over by a San Francisco fire truck. She and two other teens were killed in the July 6 crash.

The Boeing 777 was on approach to runway 28L at SFO when it struck the seawall at the end of the runway. Three of the 291 passengers on board flight 214 died and over 180 other passengers and crewmembers were injured.

At a hearing back in December, a number of issues were discussed as possible contributing factors, including the skill level of the pilots, and their awareness of Boeing’s automated throttle system. Bloomberg News is reporting that Boeing could face scrutiny in the report for the design of that system.

As for the pilot, he had eight years of experience with the airline, but was new to the 777. Testimony revealed that there was confusion between the pilot and co-pilots about the operation of those automated controls. That is also expected to be addressed in the report.

The report is also expected to make recommendations for the aviation industry to prevent such crashes in the future.

NBC Bay Area’s Stephen Stock will be at Tuesday’s NTSB meeting in Washington, DC. He'll have live updates on NBC Bay Area News throughout the day.

A link to a webcast of the meeting be available at this link shortly before the start of the meeting, which isscheduled to begin about 6:30 a.m. PT: 

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