What happened
On 27 December 1999, a Royal Jordanian Airlines Airbus A310-300, registration JY-AGK, was conducting a scheduled flight from Amman to Shannon, with a subsequent leg to Chicago. During the approach to Runway 06 at Shannon, the aircraft encountered turbulence and light wind shear. The flight crew failed to maintain a stabilized approach, with the aircraft experiencing significant fluctuations in speed, vertical load, and glide slope maintenance.
As the aircraft neared the ground, the rate of descent was approximately 965 ft/minute, and the speed reached 156 kts. The pilot initiated a flare at 18 ft, but the initial touchdown was hard, causing the aircraft to bounce. During this bounce, the ground spoilers retracted because the throttles had been advanced above flight idle. The crew then applied a nose-down elevator input, which caused the aircraft to pitch forward and strike the ground heavily on the nose wheel. This second impact caused extensive distortion to the fuselage frames and skin in the nose area.
The investigation
The AAIU investigation examined the flight data, meteorological records, and the physical damage to the aircraft. Investigators analyzed the aircraft's flight path, noting that the approach was unstable due to high speed, excessive descent rates, and inconsistent power settings. The investigation also reviewed Shannon Airport's anemometer data, which showed light winds and no evidence of the severe wind shear initially reported by the crew during the landing roll.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was an unstabilized approach characterized by high speed, a late flare, and increased engine power just before touchdown.
- The initial hard landing triggered a bounce that was worsened by the retraction of the ground spoilers.
- An inappropriate nose-down elevator input during the bounce led to the heavy nose-wheel impact.
- While light turbulence and wind shear were present, they were not severe enough to prevent a successful landing if standard procedures had been followed.
- The crew's report of a 47-knot headwind during the rollout was determined to be erroneous, resulting from damage to the Inertial Reference System (IRS) caused by the high G-load of the landing.
Safety action
- The operator was advised to review the effectiveness of its Crew Resource Management (CRM) program, specifically focusing on maintaining standard procedures following a change in pilot roles during an approach.