What happened
On the early morning of 6 June 1998, a B737-448, registration EI-BXC, was operating a scheduled charter flight from Faro, Portugal, to Cork Airport. The arrival took place during challenging weather conditions characterized by mist, fog, and low cloud cover.
As the aircraft was performing its landing roll on Runway 17, the flight crew observed a mechanical digger moving across the runway from the right-hand side, positioned approximately 250 feet ahead of the aircraft. Additionally, a van remained stationary on the runway. To avoid a collision, the crew applied maximum reverse thrust and overrode the auto-brake system to achieve the necessary deceleration, eventually bringing the aircraft to a halt short of the van. There were no injuries to the 146 passengers or 6 crew members, and no damage was sustained by the aircraft.
The investigation
The AAIU investigation focused on why construction equipment and personnel were still on the active runway during an arrival. The investigation established that earlier that night, construction work involving cable ducting had resulted in accidental damage to the runway edge light cables. This necessitated emergency repairs by electricians.
Investigators examined the communication chain between the Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower, the rescue services, and the construction teams. It was found that while the rescue vehicle (Rescue 5) had performed a runway clearance check and reported the area as clear, several construction vehicles and workers remained near the runway. The investigation also looked into the management of the construction site, noting that the primary engineering supervision had been delegated to a radio-van driver whose responsibilities exceeded his training.
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was a breakdown in communication and a series of incorrect assumptions by various parties.
- The construction foreman and crew operated under the mistaken belief that no aircraft would land because the runway edge lights were unserviceable due to the damaged cables.
- The driver of the radio-van reported the runway as clear to the tower, despite the presence of construction vehicles, and failed to notify ATC of remaining traffic when informed of an approaching aircraft.
- The driver of the rescue vehicle reported the runways and taxiways as clear after performing checks, even though construction vehicles were still visible on the runway.
- There was a lack of adequate radio equipment for the construction crew, as the contractor had not been provided with radios tuned to ATC or fire service frequencies.
- The level of supervision provided to the construction works was inadequate, with the responsibility for overseeing the site being placed on a radio-van operative who lacked the necessary training for such oversight.