Singapore Airlines Crash: 79 Die in Taipei Collision

Singapore Airlines Flight 006, a Boeing 747-400 carrying 159 passengers and 20 crew members, attempted to take off from the wrong runway at Taipei's Chiang Kai-shek International Airport during Typhoon Xangsane on October 31, 2000, and collided with construction equipment parked on the closed runway. The aircraft broke apart and burst into flames, killing 83 of the 179 people on board in the deadliest accident in Singapore Airlines' history. The flight was bound for Los Angeles with a scheduled stop in Taipei. Heavy rain and poor visibility from the typhoon reduced visibility to less than 600 meters at the time of departure. The crew was cleared to take off from Runway 05L but instead taxied onto Runway 05R, which was closed for construction and partially blocked by concrete barriers, excavation equipment, and other obstacles. The captain, a veteran with more than 11,000 flying hours, apparently confused the two parallel runways. Runway markings were partially obscured by standing water, and the airport's ground radar was not functioning. When the aircraft reached rotation speed and lifted off, its landing gear and engines struck the construction equipment. The impact tore open the fuselage, and the aircraft disintegrated in a fireball that scattered wreckage across the runway. Survivors described a scene of chaos: the cabin filled with smoke and flames within seconds of impact, and passengers scrambled to escape through holes torn in the fuselage. Rescue operations were hampered by the typhoon conditions, with heavy rain and wind complicating firefighting and evacuation. Of the 96 survivors, dozens suffered severe burns and injuries. Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council investigation determined that the probable cause was the flight crew's failure to use the correct runway, combined with the lack of adequate safeguards to prevent runway incursions. The report noted that neither the tower controllers nor the cockpit crew recognized the error before it was too late. The accident prompted a global reassessment of runway safety procedures, including improved signage, enhanced ground radar requirements, and stricter protocols for operations during reduced visibility. Singapore Airlines retired the flight number permanently.