1977 Dan-Air Boeing 707 Crash - Investigation

Investigation

A full investigation was launched by the Zambian authorities and the investigation was then delegated to the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch. The conclusions made by that investigation are as follows:

It was determined that the structure of the right horizontal stabilizer failed due to metal fatigue in the rear spar structure, and due to the lack of an adequate failsafe structure or device should such an event occur. The investigation also identified deficiencies in the assessment of aircraft designs and their certification and in the way aircraft were inspected.