AAIU Reports

SYNOPSIS

Shortly after touchdown at a local military airfield, the right main gear started to collapse. The commander then applied full power and pushed the control wheel to the left to level the aircraft. After lift-off the crew noted that the right main gear light had gone out and that the red warning light (“gear unsafe”) had come on. Recycling the undercarriage, and attempting to drop it using the emergency extension system, did not change this condition.  The military personnel on the ground confirmed that the right main undercarriage appeared to them to be half retracted and after some time the commander decided to divert to RWY 11 at Dublin Airport.  An emergency was then declared.  The commander managed to hold the wing up off the ground until late in the landing run.  As the lift on the starboard wing decreased the undercarriage on that side collapsed outwards.  The aircraft slid to the right and stopped on the runway edge.  The crew were uninjured and exited through the right hand door.

SYNOPSIS

The aircraft took off from Tullamore at 12.35 hours. The pilot noted that the flaps were slow to operate and that the main undercarriage did not appear to retract. At 12.50 he landed at Abbeyshrule Airfield. During the landing roll the aircraft pitched down, the nose undercarriage collapsed and the propeller struck the runway surface.  The aircraft came to a halt further down the runway.  The pilot exited the aircraft in the normal way and there were no injuries.

SYNOPSIS

The First Officer, who was the handling pilot, carried out a normal landing on Runway 16. Shortly thereafter the local air traffic controller gave this instruction “vacate at the end onto Echo 1, then a right turn up to Stand 60” The pilot realized that he was near the runway end, there was a sharp sound of braking (audible on the ATC tape as the pilots transmit button was pressed) and the aircraft stopped with its nose wheel in the grass area.  As a result of this runway excursion the airport was closed to traffic from 0123 to 0230 hours.  One diversion to Belfast occurred.the aircraft stopped with its nose wheel in the grass area. 

SYNOPSIS

The circumstances leading to this serious incident were numerous.   The first link in the chain of events was initiated by the Commander of AIH 065 (A330) requesting a westbound clearance for the oceanic entry point SOMAX for a time which was one hour later than actuality, his 1145 hrs request should have been 1045 hrs.  This one hour error was not picked up by the Scottish Oceanic Control Area (OCA) based at Prestwick, whose callsign is Shanwick. OCA processed and approved  the pilots requested clearance for 1145 hrs at Flight Level (FL) 370 at SOMAX, on North Atlantic Track (NAT) ECHO.  AFR 3671 (B747), which was on an eastbound track at FL 370 also, estimated SOMAX at 1109 hrs.  Thus, there were two aircraft on reciprocal tracks approaching the same Reporting Point, SOMAX,  and at the same Flight Level, 370. AIH 065 entered Shannon Oceanic Transition Area (SOTA) and came under Shannon Radar control on handover from UK ATC (Appendix A).   The Sector Controllers in Shannon, in turn, did not pick up on the one hour error and gave Shanwick a revised estimate of 1148 hrs, which was plus three minutes on the original estimate for AIH 065 at SOMAX.   Shanwick queried this new estimate and it was only then that the one hour error in the AIH 065 estimate and its significance was fully realised by both the Shannon and Shanwick Controllers respectively. Flight level separation instructions were then initiated by Shanwick.
Contemporaneous to these unfolding events  the pilots of AFR 3671 and AIH 065 later reported observing, on their onboard anti-collision device, the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), Traffic Advisories (TAs), as AIH 065 was descended by Shanwick to FL 350.   The general area of the incident is West of 15º West, at approximately 50°N 1630° W, and is therefore outside the area of responsibility of Shannon ATC. It is also outside the area of coverage of Shannon Radar.  In this non-radar environment over the North Atlantic the surveillance element of ATC relies on pilots "position reporting". 

SYNOPSIS

While attempting to land at Weston Aerodrome, the aircraft overran the end of Runway (RWY) 07, penetrated the boundary hedgerow and came to a halt on a local minor public road. The aircraft experienced significant damage.  However, neither the pilot nor the passenger, were injured.

SYNOPSIS

The aircraft departed from Dublin Airport (EIDW) for Donegal International Airport (EIDL) at Carrickfin, Co. Donegal at 12.23 hrs.  At 2700 ft Above Sea Level (ASL), during the descent to land, the aircraft experienced severe turbulence.  One of the crew and two passengers were reported injured during this event.  The aircraft landed, as intended, on Runway (RWY) 21.  The passengers and crew disembarked and a medical doctor attended the injured.

SYNOPSIS

While carrying out an instructional practice approach and landing onto a beach, the helicopter impacted the ground heavily causing extensive damage to the tail-boom, tail rotor and main rotor blades. There were no injuries.

SYNOPSIS

The accident was notified to AAIU of the Department of Public Enterprise by the duty Watch Manager, Dublin ATC. The accident investigation was carried out under S.I. No. 205 of 1997, Air Navigation (Notification and Investigation of Accident and Incidents) Regulations, 1997. Under the provisions of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Annex 13, Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation, the USA, as the State of Manufacturer, was invited to participate in the investigation. Mr Ron Price, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was the accredited representative. Mr Richard Sanford, the UK representative of the Robinson Helicopter Company, supplied additional technical information.

The pilot was availing of a partially free flight offered by the Operator on the successful completion of his Private Pilot’s Licence (PPL) – (Rotorcraft) in June 1999. He had undergone his R22 flight training with the Operator, who presented the pilot with his completed Flight Exercise Report at the end of his course.  He planned to fly from Weston Aerodrome, Co. Kildare to Sligo Airport. While overflying Co. Longford, between the villages of Moyne and Ballinamuck, several eyewitnesses subsequently stated that they saw the helicopter at a relatively low altitude, 200-300 feet, with pieces falling from it. Almost immediately after the last reported sighting the helicopter crashed into the middle of an open field.  The aircraft was destroyed. There was post-impact fire. There were no survivors.

SYNOPSIS

While transitioning out of Birr Airfield during a solo navigational exercise, the student pilot observed that he was not climbing as normal and felt that the helicopter was suffering from a lack of power. Fearful of imminent impact with a number of obstructions ahead of his position the pilot decided to carry out an emergency landing in a field adjacent to the airfield. During the final phase of the run-on landing, the helicopter started to drift to the right and subsequently rolled over onto its right-hand side just prior to coming to a halt. The pilot evacuated the helicopter without injury.

SYNOPSIS

The Aircraft was dispatched from Stand 25 and was pushed back and proceeded along the South apron taxiway. During routine checks the crew of the aircraft noted a light on in the cockpit to indicate that the aircraft cargo door was open. The aircraft was halted and a dispatch technician sought. As the technician was returning from adjusting the door he was caught by the No.2 engine jetblast and knocked to the ground. He later discovered, that in falling, he had fractured his wrist.