Adam Air Flight 172

Adam Air Flight 172

Adam Air Flight 172 after impact on the runway.
Accident summary
Date	21 February 2007
Summary	Structural failure upon landing due to pilot error
Site	Juanda International Airport
Passengers	143
Crew	6
Fatalities	0
Injuries (non-fatal)	Minor
Survivors	149 (all)
Aircraft type	Boeing 737-33A
Operator	Adam Air
Registration	PK-KKV
Flight origin	Soekarno–Hatta International Airport, Jakarta, Java
Destination	Juanda International Airport, Surabaya, East Java

Adam Air Flight 172 refers to an accident suffered by a Boeing 737-300, when it landed in Surabaya at the end of a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Soekarno–Hatta International Airport to Juanda Airport. On 21 February 2007, the plane bent on landing, with the fuselage cracking in the middle of the passenger section. All six of Adam Air's remaining 737s were immediately grounded, and five of them were back in regular service later that year. This incident caused further concerns regarding the safety of flights operated by Adam Air, which had received much criticism after the 1 January 2007 crash of Flight 574.

The aircraft, a Boeing 737-33A, registration PK-KKV, was acquired by Adam Air in January 2007, having previously been operated by Brazilian operator Varig. The aircraft was manufactured in 1994.

The plane bent upon landing at Juanda International Airport, with the fuselage breaking in the middle of the passenger section. The landing was particularly hard, with baggage being ejected from cabin lockers into the cabin space. The tail section of the plane was bent down compared to the rest of the plane. Subsequent flights to the airport were diverted to alternate airports. Adam Air's fleet of Boeing 737-300s were grounded for safety inspections in the interim. Immediately after the accident, Adam Air repainted the aircraft, covering the original orange livery with a plain white exterior. This is legally permissible, so long as no evidence is destroyed. Also in the immediate aftermath, a large number of passengers cancelled their flights with Adam Air, saying they had "lost faith" in the airline. They were all refunded in full.

As a result of the incident, all six remaining Adam Air 737s were immediately grounded awaiting safety checks. Vice-President of Indonesia, Jusuf Kalla, said that all Boeing 737-300s should be checked. He eventually decided the entire Indonesian fleet of 737s should be checked, but did not ground any more aircraft. There were also suggestions that Adam Air should be suspended from all operations until the entire fleet could be checked, with MP Abdul Hakim saying "It will be good for the company and the government ... until the flight authorities can determine if Adam Air is still worthy as national aircraft company".