Air India Flight 855 was a scheduled passenger flight from Bombay, India, to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. On 1 January 1978, the Boeing 747 operating the flight crashed about 3 km off the coast of Bandra, less than two minutes after take-off. All 213 passengers and crew on board died. An investigation into the crash determined the most likely probable cause was the captain becoming spatially disoriented and losing control of the aircraft after the failure of one of the flight instruments. It was the deadliest air accident both in Air India's and India's history until Flight 182 in 1985 and then Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision in 1996.
VT-EBD, the aircraft involved, seen at Paris Orly Airport in 1976
Spatial disorientation is the inability to determine position or relative motion, commonly occurring during periods of challenging visibility, since vision is the dominant sense for orientation. The auditory system, vestibular system, and proprioceptive system collectively work to coordinate movement with balance, and can also create illusory nonvisual sensations, resulting in spatial disorientation in the absence of strong visual cues.
Equilibrium test being administered to prospective pilot, via Bárány chair
Inner ear with semicircular canals shown, likening them to the roll, pitch and yaw axis of an aircraft
