TAIPEI — Engines of a TransAsia plane that crashed into a river in Taipei killing 35 people failed to produce enough thrust to the propellers for two minutes after take-off, authorities said on Friday, revealing attempts to turn off and restart one engine. Flight GE235 was carrying 58 passengers and crew when it lurched nose-up between buildings, clipped an overpass and a taxi with one of its wings and then crashed upside down into a shallow river on Wednesday. Fifteen people survived. The blackbox data and voice recorders of the two-engined aircraft showed that problems with the right engine were followed by problems with the left and the plane warned five times of stalling before the crash in the center of Taipei, Aviation Safety Council officials told a news briefing. The pilot, hailed as a hero for his actions in the final moments, was still holding the joystick in the cockpit when his body was found. – Reuters
