The 229 people on board Swissair Flight 111 were doomed as soon as fire began in the jet's cockpit, according to the final report into the accident.

"Even if the pilots could have foreseen the eventual deterioration due to the fire, because of the rapid progression of the fire they would not have been able to complete a safe landing in Halifax," said Vic Gerden, the lead investigator for the Transportation Safety Board.

Vic Gerden displays insulation
Vic Gerden displays insulation

The TSB released its final report and a list of recommendations in Halifax Thursday.

Investigators have spent four and a half years and $57 million looking into the crash off Peggy's Cove on Sept. 2, 1998.

They say the fire started in a hidden area in the ceiling on the right side of the cockpit.

Investigators concluded that a spark in the wiring of the in-flight entertainment system probably started the fire that led to the crash. The sparks ignited metallized plastic sheets covering thermal-acoustic insulation blankets in the area.

"It is important to emphasize here that without the presence of this and other flammable material, this accident would not have happened," Gerden says.

The report says the crew didn't know about the fire until it was too late.

The TSB has issued 23 safety recommendations, including nine new ones on Thursday. Among them:

  • reduce the risk associated with the use of insulation covered with metallized plastic
  • develop more rigorous flammability testing for all materials
  • prevent the use of any materials that help fires start or continue burning
The 330-page report brings to an end the largest and most complex air crash investigation in Canada's history.