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| Date: | Tuesday 1 September 1998 |
| Time: | 05:21 |
| Type: |  Boeing 767-322ER |
| Owner/operator: | United Airlines |
| Registration: | N662UA |
| MSN: | 27159/513 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1993 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Location: | London-Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL) -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Passenger - Scheduled |
| Departure airport: | Washington-Dulles International Airport, DC (IAD/KIAD) |
| London-Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL) | |
| Investigating agency: | AAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The aircraft was arriving on a scheduled passenger flight from Washington Dulles (USA) and
contacted the Heathrow Tower Controller at 0518 hrs while on final approach to Runway 09L.
Shortly after this, another aircraft which had just landed on Runway 09L reported sighting a flock
of geese to the right side of the runway which were flying towards Runway 09R (ie heading
southbound). Another aircraft on final approach to Runway 09R was advised of this report. A
Boeing 747 was next in sequence to land on Runway 09L and this aircraft landed without incident
and vacated the runway. N662UA was then cleared to land on Runway 09L at 0520 hrs, when the
surface wind was reported as being from 090° at 8kt.
The commander reported that when the aircraft was about 50 feet above the runway, a flock of
geese flew into the aircraft's path from right to left (ie heading northbound). This particular flock of
geese had not been sighted by anyone until that time, although the pilot had heard the transmissions
about the flock of geese heading southbound.
When the birdstrikes occurred the engines were at idle power and the aircraft was only one or two
seconds from touchdown. Towards the end of the landing roll the commander reported the bird
strike, and the fact that that there was bird debris on the runway, to the Tower controller. As there
were no immediate indications of engine damage, the aircraft was taxied normally to Stand K16.
After the birdstrike had been reported, the Tower controller requested the Airport Operations bird
control patrol vehicle to go and check the threshold of Runway 09L. When he got there the driver
reported that there was bird debris on the runway which would need to be cleared and a subsequent
approaching aircraft was instructed to go-around while this was in progress. The driver also
reported seeing a flock of about 40 geese heading northbound across the Airport as he was
approaching the area in which the birdstrikes had occurred. This information was relayed to another
aircraft which was approaching Runway 09R at that time, and it completed its landing without
incident.
Runway 09L was closed for about one hour until the debris from what was believed to be some 25
to 30 geese was removed from the area of Blocks 113 and 114. The aircraft suffered substantial damage.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422f8faed915d137100070f/dft_avsafety_pdf_500040.pdf
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/31311 (Photo)
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 15 March 2007 | N662UA | United Airlines | 0 | near Chicago O'Hare Intn'l Airport, IL (ORD) |  |
sub |
| Bird strike | ||||||
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 12-Apr-2025 14:12 | Justanormalperson | Added |
| 12-Apr-2025 14:13 | ASN | Updated [Accident report, ] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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