Serious incident Airbus A330-243 OD-MEA,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 237730
 
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Date:Sunday 21 August 2011
Time:03:15 UTC
Type:Silhouette image of generic A332 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Airbus A330-243
Owner/operator:MEA - Middle East Airlines
Registration: OD-MEA
MSN: 984
Year of manufacture:2009
Engine model:Rolls-Royce Trent 772-B60
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 245
Aircraft damage: None
Category:Serious incident
Location:Abidjan-Felix Houphouet Boigny Airport (ABJ/DIAP) -   Cote d'Ivoire
Phase: Landing
Nature:Passenger - Scheduled
Departure airport:Beirut International Airport (BEY/OLBA)
Destination airport:Abidjan-Felix Houphouet Boigny Airport (ABJ/DIAP)
Investigating agency: BEA Côte d’Ivoire
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The crew performed an ILS approach for a landing on Runway 21 at Abidjan Airport.
On final, the pilot-in-command (PF) after having signalled the runway in sight was cleared to land and continued his descent. When the first officer (PNF) observed that the aircraft was approaching the runway on his side, suddenly asked the PF to turn left. The PF then acted accordingly.
At the time of touchdown, the PF applied the go-around. The main gear went off the left side of the runway. and rolled down the embankment outside the confines of runway 21. The PF then advised the tower controller that visibility was zero on the runway.
The crew, after a 14-minute wait at an altitude of 2700 ft, was informed that the weather conditions were not improving. The PF then decided to do a diversion to Accra (Ghana) and obtained authorization from the Tower Controller.


CAUSE OF OCCURRENCE
The Board of Inquiry concluded that the serious incident involving the Airbus A330-243, registered OD-MEA, on 21 August 2011 at Abidjan airfield was due to the late decision of the Captain to abort the landing when visual references on the left side of the cockpit were lost.
In addition, the Board of Inquiry found that the following factors contributed to this serious incident:
- The failure to provide the crew with an updated visibility value when the one transmitted at the beginning of the approach no longer reflected the weather conditions at the aerodrome at the time of landing.
- The lack of transmission of the runway visual range value to the crew during the approach.
- The absence of information to the crews on the unavailability of the Abidjan airport transmissometer.
- The lack of visibility of the ground markings indicating the runway edges on a large part of the runway at the time of the occurrence.
- The lack of visibility of the ground markings indicating the runway centreline.
- The absence of runway centreline lights on the Abidjan aerodrome.
- The Captain's brief error on the nature of the left lighting line.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: BEA Côte d’Ivoire
Report number: 
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 11 months
Download report: Final report

Sources:

https://bea.ci/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Rapport-Final-Pdf-OD-MEA-A330-21-aout-2011.pdf

History of this aircraft

Other occurrences involving this aircraft
17 December 2010 OD-MEA Middle East Airlines - MEA 0 Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG sub
29 July 2020 OD-MEA Middle East Airlines - MEA 0 Lagos Murtala Mohammed International Airport min
Collision with other aircraft on apron

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
08-Jul-2020 10:06 harro Added
08-Jul-2020 11:57 harro Updated [Narrative, Accident report, ]

Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description

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