Official Report: Series of Pilot Errors Led to Crash of Ethiopian Plane

The pilot of an Ethiopian plane that crashed into the sea minutes after taking off from Beirut in stormy weather two years ago made 15 mistakes in three minutes, An Nahar daily reported Saturday.

The newspaper quoted the official investigation report into the accident as saying that the pilot “moved from one mistake to another until the plane’s equipment were incapable of responding to his instructions.”

But Public Works Minister Ghazi Aridi refused to make any comment to An Nahar, saying he would unveil the official report before the end of the two year period during which the families of victims should file lawsuits to receive compensation from insurance companies.

Flight ET409, a Boeing 737-800, heading for Addis Ababa, disappeared off the radar some five minutes after taking off on January 25, 2010 during a thunderstorm and rough seas, killing all 83 passengers and seven crew.

A Mauritanian website said last week that authorities in Mauritania have exposed a major Israeli spy network comprising a member involved in the “bombing” of the Ethiopian plane.

An Arab businessman heads the alleged Mossad network, elhourriya.net said.