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Britannia Airways Flight BY226A was an international charter
flight from Cardiff, Wales, which crashed on landing at
Girona Airport in Spain on 14 September 1999 and broke apart.
Of the 236 passengers and 9 crew on board, there were no
fatalities but two were seriously injured and 42 sustained
minor injuries. The Boeing 757-204 aircraft, registration G-BYAG,
was damaged beyond economic repair and scrapped.
The
holiday charter flight was landing at night, through
thunderstorms with heavy rain at 23:47 local time. Several
preceding flights had diverted to Barcelona and this was
planned as BY226A’s alternate. The crew initially executed
the VOR/DME non-precision instrument approach procedure to
runway 02. Upon becoming visual, the crew determined that the
aircraft was not adequately aligned with the runway and
initiated a missed approach. A change in wind direction now
favoured the opposite runway, so the aircraft was positioned
for an ILS (Instrument Landing System) approach to runway 20.
The aircraft descended below cloud and became visual with the
runway at around 500 feet above ground level. At a late stage
in the final approach, the airfield lighting failed for a few
seconds. The aircraft touched down hard, bounced and made a
second, heavier touchdown causing substantial damage to the
nosewheel and its supports. This caused further damage to the
aircraft systems, including loss of electrical power,
interference with controls and an uncommanded increase in
thrust.
The
Boeing left the runway at high speed, approximately 1,000m
from the second touchdown point. It then ran 343m across flat
grassland beside the runway, before going diagonally over a
substantial earth mound adjacent to the airport boundary,
becoming semi-airborne as a result. Beyond the mound it hit a
number of medium sized trees and the right engine struck the
boundary fence. The aircraft then passed through the fence,
re-landed in a filed and both main landing gears collapsed.
It finally stopped after a 244m slide across the field, 1,900m
from the second touchdown. Damage was substantial - the
fuselage was fractured in two places and the landing gear and
both engines detached. Despite considerable damage to the
cabin, the crew evacuated the aircraft efficiently. However,
3 of the 8 emergency exits couldn’t be opened and several
escape slides did not inflate (though with the fuselage
sitting on the ground this was not a great problem).
The tower
controller, aware shortly after touchdown that something was
amiss, activated the emergency alarm. However, the emergency
bell didn’t ring. Fire crews were alerted by a dedicated
phone line and went to the threshold of runway 20 and drove
along the runway looking for the aircraft, without success.
The search spread to the sides of the runway and the overshoot
area. The wreckage was eventually located 18 minutes after
the accident. There was a further 14 minutes delay while the
fire crews tried to gain access to the site. In all, transfer
of passengers to the terminal building was not completed for
one hour ten minutes.
Remarkably, there were no immediate fatalities and the
injuries were few. However, one passenger, who had been
admitted to hospital with apparently minor injuries and
discharged the following day, died five days later from
unsuspected internal injuries.
Airport
authorities were criticised after the accident, particularly
for the fact it took rescue crews more than an hour to reach
and evacuate the scene. Indeed, at least one passenger
actually walked across the airfield to the terminal to seek
help.
The
accident was investigated by the Spanish Comisión de
Investigación de Accidentes e Incidentes de Aviación Civil (CIAIAC).
In its final report, it found that the most probable cause of
the accident was the destabilisation of the approach below
decision height with loss of external visual references and
automatic height callouts immediately before landing,
resulting in touchdown with excessive descent rate in a nose
down attitude. |
