A, nearly, 25-year-old Boeing 737-476(SF), powered by two CFM International CFM 56-3 C1 engines, was scheduled to operate a cargo flight from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (France) to Bergamo Orio Al Serio Airport (Italy). On board a crew of two pilots.
The aircraft lying on the highway (Source www.baaa.acro.com © Unknown)
At 02:54 lt (local time) the aircraft lifted off from Charles de Gaulle Airport and set course for the ~700 kilometre (378 Nauticla mile) flight to Bergamo. Around 04.00 lt the aircraft was cleared by ATC for an ILS approach to runway 28. The weather report at 03:50 lt was recorded as follows;
Wind - 260º at 11 knots, gusting 23 knots - Variable between 220º and 310º
Visibility - >10 km
Clouds - Cumulonimbus at 4000 feet AGL - Broken at 8000 feet AGL - Thunderstorms in the vicinity
Temperature - 23ºC
Dewpoint - 16ºC
When ATC cleared the aircraft to land they passed the latest wind information (wind 310º at 15 knots) and stated that the runway condition was wet, At approximately 04:07 lt the aircraft passed the threshold for runway 28 at 140 feet AGL at a speed of 156 knots. The aircraft was flared, but didn't touch down, It floated in ground effect for 14 seconds 20 to 30 feet above the runway, finally touching down 2000 metres from the threshold of the 2807 metres (9209 feet) long runway. The remaining runway was insufficient to stop and the aircraft left the paved area of the runway at a speed of 109 knots. The aircraft crossed two roads, a parking lot and a part of a highway before coming to a stop.
The aircraft lying on the highway (Source www.baaa.acro.com © Unknown)
The damage to the aircraft was extensive, and the airframe and engines were written off as damaged beyond repair.
The accident was reported to and investigated by the ANSV (Agenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza del Volo - Italian national flight safety agency).
In their report (which served as a source for this blog) they concluded that the causes for the accident were mainly human factor related. A loss of situational awareness was partly caused by the delayed touchdown. Contributing factors were, amongst others;
The prior decision to not carry out a go-around.
Inadequate monitoring of flight parameters in the final landing phase.
Failure of the crew to disconnect the autothrottle before landing
Environmental factors caused by meteorological conditions.
Lack of assertiveness by the co-pilot
Fatigue and tiredness might have influenced the crew's cognitive processes, in particular those of the captain, interfering with his correct decision-making.
The wreckage in its final position (Source www.baaa.acro.com © Unknown)
The ANSV report (in Italian) is available for the reader's reference by clicking on the .pdf file below;
** Editorial note **
V2 Aviation - Training & Maintenance has not been able to obtain an investigation report in English on this accident. This blog is therefore based on a translation of the original report. Should there be inconsistencies in the blog don't hesitate to get in touch with us. There are two possibilities to do that, via the comments function at the bottom of this page or the contact page of the website.
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