Narrative:
Jet2 flight 271, a Boeing 757-200, suffered a tail strike accident on landing at Alicante Airport in Spain.
The aircraft originated from Leeds/Bradford Airport, U.K. at 08:13 UTC (09:13 LT). The crew consisted of the line supervising captain, the copilot and a line training captain, sitting in the observation seat, to evaluate the copilot for his completion of line training.
The copilot was the aircraft's pilot flying (PF) during the whole route. The flight went smoothly and the crew carried out the final ILS Z approach manoeuvre for runway 10 at the Alicante-Elche Airport maintaining stabilized approach parameters as described in the operator's manual. Nine seconds after starting the landing flare manoeuvre, touchdown was made with a pitch attitude of 5°, a calibrated speed of 119 kt and a vertical descent speed of 240 fpm. There was a vertical acceleration of 1.45 G corresponding to a firm impact. The flare manoeuvre was considered slow, which the manufacturer identifies as a risk factor for tail strike.
The position of the control column was slackened slightly after touchdown was made, but the pitch attitude tendency continued to increase until it reached a value of 10.2°, reaching a 1.14 G vertical acceleration value. This attitude was maintained for one second, causing the rear of the aircraft to strike the runway surface.
After the tail area had struck the runway, the captain took control of the aircraft and continued the landing manoeuvre, completing it without any additional problems.
The flight crew were unaware that the aircraft's tail area had touched the runway until they were informed at the parking area by one of the cabin crew that they had heard an unusual noise when landing. The aircraft suffered damage to the lower part of the tail cone. All the people on board disembarked normally without any medical attention being required.
Causes / Contributing factors:
The investigation has determined that the cause of the accident was incorrect pitch position control during landing.
As a contributing factor, the fact that the aircraft captain (PM) could have intervened before the accident to correct the situation is highlighted.
Runway mishap
LEAL 101000Z 09006KT 050V150 9999 FEW020 18/10 Q1026 NOSIG
11:00 UTC / 13:00 local time:
LEAL 101100Z 09006KT 050V150 9999 FEW020 18/10 Q1026 NOSIG
accident date: 10-04-2017
type: Boeing 757-21B
registration: G-LSAI
| Status: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
| Date: | Monday 10 April 2017 |
| Time: | 12:39 |
| Type: |  Boeing 757-21B |
| Operator: | Jet2 |
| Registration: | G-LSAI |
| MSN: | 24016/150 |
| First flight: | 1987-10-08 (29 years 6 months) |
| Total airframe hrs: | 68901 |
| Cycles: | 36628 |
| Engines: | 2 Rolls-Royce RB211-535E4 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 8 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 230 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 238 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Aircraft fate: | Repaired |
| Location: | Alicante Airport (ALC) ( Spain)
|
| Phase: | Landing (LDG) |
| Nature: | International Scheduled Passenger |
| Departure airport: | Leeds/Bradford Airport (LBA/EGNM), United Kingdom |
| Alicante Airport (ALC/LEAL), Spain | |
| Flightnumber: | LS271 |
Jet2 flight 271, a Boeing 757-200, suffered a tail strike accident on landing at Alicante Airport in Spain.
The aircraft originated from Leeds/Bradford Airport, U.K. at 08:13 UTC (09:13 LT). The crew consisted of the line supervising captain, the copilot and a line training captain, sitting in the observation seat, to evaluate the copilot for his completion of line training.
The copilot was the aircraft's pilot flying (PF) during the whole route. The flight went smoothly and the crew carried out the final ILS Z approach manoeuvre for runway 10 at the Alicante-Elche Airport maintaining stabilized approach parameters as described in the operator's manual. Nine seconds after starting the landing flare manoeuvre, touchdown was made with a pitch attitude of 5°, a calibrated speed of 119 kt and a vertical descent speed of 240 fpm. There was a vertical acceleration of 1.45 G corresponding to a firm impact. The flare manoeuvre was considered slow, which the manufacturer identifies as a risk factor for tail strike.
The position of the control column was slackened slightly after touchdown was made, but the pitch attitude tendency continued to increase until it reached a value of 10.2°, reaching a 1.14 G vertical acceleration value. This attitude was maintained for one second, causing the rear of the aircraft to strike the runway surface.
After the tail area had struck the runway, the captain took control of the aircraft and continued the landing manoeuvre, completing it without any additional problems.
The flight crew were unaware that the aircraft's tail area had touched the runway until they were informed at the parking area by one of the cabin crew that they had heard an unusual noise when landing. The aircraft suffered damage to the lower part of the tail cone. All the people on board disembarked normally without any medical attention being required.
Probable Cause:
Causes / Contributing factors:
The investigation has determined that the cause of the accident was incorrect pitch position control during landing.
As a contributing factor, the fact that the aircraft captain (PM) could have intervened before the accident to correct the situation is highlighted.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Classification:
TailstrikeRunway mishap
Sources:
» CIAIACMETAR Weather report:
10:00 UTC / 12:00 local time:LEAL 101000Z 09006KT 050V150 9999 FEW020 18/10 Q1026 NOSIG
11:00 UTC / 13:00 local time:
LEAL 101100Z 09006KT 050V150 9999 FEW020 18/10 Q1026 NOSIG
Photos
accident date: 10-04-2017
type: Boeing 757-21B
registration: G-LSAI
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Leeds/Bradford Airport to Alicante Airport as the crow flies is 1722 km (1076 miles).
Accident location: Approximate; accuracy within a few kilometers.
Distance from Leeds/Bradford Airport to Alicante Airport as the crow flies is 1722 km (1076 miles).
Accident location: Approximate; accuracy within a few kilometers.
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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