Xian MA60

The MA60 has a short fatal record and a long list of damaged aircraft. Up to 7 October 2026 our data holds one fatal accident, Merpati Nusantara flight 8968 in 2011, in about 750,000 estimated passenger flights. Eight airframes have been destroyed or written offHull lossAn accident in which an aircraft is destroyed or damaged beyond economic repair. People may or may not be hurt.More in the glossary, most of them in landing accidents. With so few flights, the type's rate is uncertain, and the score leans on the record of other classic turboprops.

What the MA60 is

Xi'an Aircraft built the MA60 ("Modern Ark 60") from the Y-7, China's licensed version of the Antonov An-24. It first flew on 25 February 2000 and entered service with Sichuan Airlines that August. Compared with the Y-7 it has Pratt & Whitney Canada PW127 engines and Western avionics. It seats about 50 to 60 passengers. We class it with the classic turboprops because the airframe design goes back to the An-24, the same rule we use for the Jetstream 31.

About 110 had been built by March 2013, and few since. Many went abroad, to airlines in Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, Zimbabwe and other countries in Asia, Africa and the Pacific. Air forces and government users in China, Laos, Zambia, Bolivia and elsewhere flew others. By January 2016 at least 26 of the 57 exported aircraft were parked. We estimate that only about 40 still carry airline passengers, mostly with small carriers.

The fatal record

Our data lists one fatal MA60 event, and it counts. On 7 May 2011 the Merpati crew tried a visual approach to Kaimana in rain with about 2 km visibility. They lost sight of the runway and broke off the approach at about 250 feet. While they retracted the flaps and landing gear, the bank to the left grew to 38 degrees and the aircraft descended into the sea. All 25 people on board died. Indonesia's investigators (NTSC) listed the unsuitable visual approach, the missing checklist and briefing, poor situational awareness and both pilots' low experience on the type, and questioned the training programme. Our methodology explains what counts.

Landing accidents and what they show

The non-fatal record is worse than the fatal one. Zest Airways lost two MA60s at the short Caticlan strip in 2009, one after undershooting and one after landing long with a tailwind. Myanma Airways lost two in 2013, at Mong Hsat after a fast touchdown and power levers left above ground idle, and at Kawthaung. Joy Air had a heavy landing and runway excursionRunway excursionWhen an aircraft leaves the runway surface during take-off or landing, either off the end (an overrun) or off the side (a veer-off).More in the glossary at Fuzhou in 2015.

The Kupang accident of 10 June 2013 is the one closest to the aircraft. Merpati's procedure was to open the power lever lock during approach. The first officer moved the levers past flight idle at about 100 feet, the propellers went into reverse pitch, and the MA60 hit the runway so hard that the wing broke away. Five people were seriously hurt. Investigators said the airline had adopted the procedure without assessing its risks, and that the pilots had not noticed the mechanical stop being lifted.

Most of these operators were small, fast-growing or short of experienced crews, which matters as much as the airframe. Compare the ATR 72, which flies similar routes with far larger, better-supported fleets.

How to tell if you are on one

Flight trackers show the ICAO code MA60. Outside, look for the long, narrow An-24-style fuselage, the high wing with engines hanging under it and a single tall fin. If your booking shows an MA60 in a region with weak oversight, the airline matters more than the type.