Flight 604 from Flash Airlines crashed into the Red Sea shortly after takeoff from Sharm El Sheikh International Airport, killing all 154 people on board. The Egyptian investigation found technical failures led to pilot disorientation, while the NTSB concluded no airplane failures occurred and the crash was due to the captain's spatial disorientation and the first officer's failure to take control. Investigators from different countries disagreed on the probable cause due to the complexity of the accident.

1. Flash Airlines Flight 604

2. On 3 January 2004, a Boeing 737-300
operated by Flash Airlines of Egypt
departed from Sharm El Sheikh
International airport at night.
The aircraft took off and climbed normally
and began a left hand turn as scheduled to
stop over in Cairo International airport
before heading to Charles De Gaulle Int’l
airport Paris, France.

3. But the turn slowly reversed to
the right and the aircraft rolled
and rapidly lost height and
crashed into the red sea 3
minutes after take off killing all
148 passengers mostly French
tourists and all 6 crew members.

4. The Ministry of civil aviation (MCA)
investigated the accident with assistance
from the American National Transportation
Safety Board (NTSB) and French Civil
Aviation Ministry’s Bureau of Investigation.
The findings of the crash investigation are
controversial, with accident investigators
from different countries.

5. Accident investigators dismissed terrorism
when they discovered that the aircraft
crashed in one piece.

6. The MCA released its final report into the accident on March
25, 2006.
The report did not conclude with a probable cause, listing
instead Possible Causes:
technical failure, which then led to pilot "disorientation", caused the
crash.
The lead Egyptian investigator, Shaker Kelada, said that
the automatic pilot system had not functioned properly,
and that the pilot subsequently suffered from "spatial
disorientation" when the plane crashed.

7. The NTSB have replied to this report and
concluded that:
“ The evidence collected during this investigation
strongly supports the conclusions that no airplane-
related failure caused the accident and that the
accident can be explained by the captain’s spatial
disorientation and the first officer’s failure to
assume timely control of the airplane."

8. Chief of the French civil aviation ministry's
bureau of investigation blamed pilot "spatial
disorientation" for the Boeing's plunge into
the sea. Also stating that both officers were
insufficiently trained.
“The plane remained pilotable at all times, and we
consider that pilot spatial disorientation led the
plane to go right instead of left”

9. It has to be stated that the dispute between the
investigators is still unresolved due to the
complexity of the accident and the differences
of interpretation.
The Flash Airlines charter company that ran the
doomed flight has since declared bankruptcy.
* Flight 604's death toll is the highest of any
aviation accident in Egypt. It is also the
highest of any accident involving a Boeing
737-300.