Incident Overview
On 14 September 2013, a Boeing 737-800, registration UR-PSA, operated by Air Ukraine International, experienced a serious incident at Dubai International Airport. The aircraft had departed from Boryspil International Airport, Ukraine, and suffered a tire damage during takeoff. The crew continued the flight. Upon landing on runway 12L at Dubai, the two port main landing gear tires burst, causing the aircraft to drift left and become disabled on the runway.
Sequence of Events
The aircraft took off from runway 36R at Boryspil at approximately 1727 UTC. During takeoff, a tire was damaged, but the crew could not identify which tire. They elected to proceed to Dubai. The landing occurred at about 2331 UTC. As the aircraft touched down, both left main landing gear tires failed, producing vibration and a left drift. The aircraft decelerated and vacated the runway via high-speed exit Mike 09. It stopped with the nose gear on the taxiway centerline and the tail overhanging runway 12L, blocking it.
Aircraft and Operator
The aircraft was a Boeing 737-800 with two CFMI CFM56-7B26 engines, serial number 29658. It was owned and operated by Air Ukraine International. There were 173 persons on board; no injuries were reported.
Investigation Findings
The investigation determined that the causes of the prolonged runway closure were the destruction of the two port main landing gear tires, the inadequate disabled aircraft recovery plan, and the lack of training and insufficient decision-making of the Airside Operations Duty Manager (ODMA) and the disabled aircraft recovery team. Contributing factors included the insufficient communication network among the departure airport, operations control center, maintenance control center, and the aircraft, as well as the lack of cockpit tire pressure indications which prevented the crew from identifying the damaged tire and devising a mitigating landing technique.
After the incident, the recovery team attempted to jack the aircraft and replace the tires but initially failed. The aircraft was moved forward on the taxiway, and the team succeeded in jacking it using bedding platforms. Approximately 10 hours elapsed before the aircraft was moved to a stand for evaluation and repairs.
Probable Cause
The investigation found that the causes of the prolonged runway closure were the destruction of the two port main landing gear tires, the inadequate disabled aircraft recovery plan, and the lack of training and insufficient decision-making of the ODMA and the disabled aircraft recovery team.