Summary
On 11 August 2017, a Ryanair Boeing 737-800 (B738) operating a flight from Dublin (EIDW) to Bydgoszcz (EPBY) diverted to Poznań (EPPO) after weather conditions at the destination fell below landing minima. The aircraft landed at 21:10 UTC, during local noise restriction hours (21:00–05:00 UTC). No injuries were reported.
Flight Details
The flight was scheduled to arrive in Bydgoszcz at 19:13 UTC. While holding near Bydgoszcz due to unfavorable weather, the captain decided to divert to Poznań. Air traffic services in both cities coordinated the diversion and modified the flight plan accordingly.
Decision to Divert
The captain made the decision to change the destination after waiting for weather improvement. The aircraft landed in Poznań at 21:10 UTC, which fell within the local noise restriction period (21:00–05:00 UTC) as published in AIP Polska 2.21.4.
Noise Restriction Issue
Upon learning of the unscheduled arrival, the airport operations officer (DOPL) informed the tower that no landing slots were available between 22:00 and 06:00 local time (LT), as this would have been the 13th operation for the night, exceeding the 12-slot limit. The tower controller then contacted the approach controller to ask the flight crew about remaining fuel. The crew reported 4 tonnes of fuel (approximately 20 minutes of additional flight) and a maximum endurance of 1 hour 50 minutes. Based on this information, the tower relayed the fuel status to the operations officer, and a decision was made to allow the landing.
Weather and Cause
Weather conditions at Bydgoszcz were below landing minima at the time of the intended arrival. The official cause of the incident was: weather conditions below minima for landing at Bydgoszcz (EPBY). The weather was noted as having an influence on the event.