UPS Airlines Flight 6

UPS Airlines Flight 6

N571UP, the aircraft involved, seen on approach in Dubai in November 2008
Accident summary
Date	September 3, 2010
Summary	In-flight uncontained cargo fire caused by lithium ion batteries
Site	Nad Al Sheba Military camp, Dubai, United Arab Emirates 25°05′53″N 55°21′36″E / 25.098°N 55.360°E / 25.098; 55.360Coordinates: 25°05′53″N 55°21′36″E / 25.098°N 55.360°E / 25.098; 55.360
Passengers	0
Crew	2
Fatalities	2 (all)
Injuries (non-fatal)	0
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	Boeing 747-44AF/SCD
Operator	UPS Airlines
Registration	N571UP
Flight origin	Dubai International Airport
Destination	Cologne Bonn Airport

UPS Airlines Flight 6 was a cargo flight operated by UPS Airlines. On September 3, 2010, a Boeing 747-400F flying the route between Dubai International Airport and Cologne Bonn Airport developed an in-flight fire, with the fumes and subsequent crash resulting in the death of the two crew members. The aircraft had departed Dubai International earlier, but returned after reporting smoke in the cockpit. It was the first fatal air crash for UPS Airlines. The crash caused an examination of safety procedures protecting airliners from cockpit smoke.

The aircraft involved in the accident was a Boeing 747-400F, registered N571UP and was delivered to UPS Airlines in 2007. It had flown for more than 10,000 hours, and had a major inspection performed in June 2010. Before the crash, it was among the newest (#1,393 of 1,418; the 26th from the last) Boeing 747s built before 747-8 series.

The captain was 48-year-old Douglas Lampe of Louisville, Kentucky, and the first officer, 38-year-old Matthew Bell from Sanford, Florida. Both crew members were based in UPS's Anchorage, Alaska pilot base.

Flight 6 departed from Dubai International at 14:53 UTC and at 15:15 the crew reported a fire in the cockpit when the aircraft was around 120 nautical miles (220 km) west-northwest of Dubai, and an emergency was declared shortly afterwards. The pilots were under the control of Bahrain's air traffic control, and they could not initially contact Dubai air traffic control due to the thick smoke in the cockpit. Although they were offered a diversion to Doha, Qatar, the captain made the decision to return to Dubai. Captain Lampe's oxygen mask failed and he left his seat to get a spare oxygen mask—from that point he was never heard on the CVR again. It was believed that the fire had also cut off the oxygen supply to the spare oxygen mask, leaving Captain Lampe with no oxygen left to return to the pilot seat and fly the plane. The co-pilot was instructed to land on the airport's runway 12L. The aircraft was too high on the approach and the gear did not extend. The aircraft passed over the airport before making a tight turn. Bell attempted to turn towards Sharjah International Airport but unknowingly turned in the wrong direction. Radar contact was lost shortly thereafter at 15:42 UTC. The aircraft finally slammed into the ground at a shallow angle and at high speed in an unpopulated area between the Emirates Road and Al Ain Highway, barely missing Dubai Silicon Oasis. The aircraft hit right wing first and skidded a few meters, and exploded in a fireball, killing both pilots. Other than ATC, many initial reports came from pilots working for Emirates who were living in the community.