Cyprus plane crash engineer living in fear

NICOSIA - A British engineer who cleared the takeoff of a Cypriot airliner which crashed in Greece, killing 121 people, fears for his safety and refuses to return to Cyprus for questioning.

The engineer, who worked for the private carrier Helios Airways, signed off the Boeing 737-300 for departure from Cyprus' Larnaca airport for Prague on August 14, the day of the crash -- the worst air disaster in Greek or Cypriot history.

It has since been disclosed that the aircraft had had a decompression problem last year, and Greek crash investigators are focusing on this as a possible cause of the disaster.

Investigators now plan to go to London to interview the engineer, believed to be the last person who had radio contact with the aircraft's German pilot.

"He is refusing to come to Cyprus for safety reasons," said Cypriot Transport Minister Harris Thrassou.

The engineer had been on a temporary contract with Helios, a spokesman for the airline said.

"He decided on his own accord to go back to the UK once his name was released to the press," the spokesman said.

The jet crashed into mountains close to Athens after flying on autopilot for more than 2-1/2 hours, killing all 115 passengers and six crew, most of them Cypriots.

Greek investigators are trying to establish what happened to make the pilot and co-pilot lose consciousness, leaving a flight attendant, with only rudimentary pilot training and an emergency oxygen kit, wrestling with the controls.

The engineer was one of three who serviced the aircraft before takeoff. Excerpts from his final maintenance log have been leaked to the media along with a description of his final conversation with the pilot.

"He is not refusing to testify. Arrangements are being made for the Greek team to go to London to get a statement," Thrassou said. The Helios spokesman said it was likely in the "next couple of days".

Helios, a subsidiary of Britain's Libra Holidays Group, has defended its maintenance record but revealed the Boeing had to descend rapidly to 11,000 feet from 34,000 feet after losing cabin pressure on a flight from Warsaw to Larnaca last December.

Air decompression reduces the oxygen supply and can lead rapidly to loss of consciousness.

- REUTERS