What happened
On March 31, 2012, a Japan Airlines Boeing 777-200, registered JA701J, was arriving at Tokyo International Airport from Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport. During the approach to Runway 34L, the aircraft encountered fluctuating wind conditions, including reported wind shear.
Upon touchdown, the aircraft experienced a bounce. The pilot-in-command (PIC), perceiving the risk of a hard landing, decided to initiate a go-around. During this transition, the aircraft's pitch-up attitude was maintained while the engines were still spooling up. Because the reverse thrust levers had been raised to the interlock position, there was a delay in the increase of engine thrust. Consequently, the aircraft continued to roll with a high pitch angle, leading to the lower part of the aft fuselage making contact with the runway. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to the airframe, though there were no injuries among the 308 people on board.
The investigation
The Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB) examined flight data from the digital flight data recorder (DFDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR), as well as interviews with the crew. The investigation focused on the sequence of events following touchdown, specifically the interaction between the pilot flying (PF) and the pilot monitoring (PM). Investigators analyzed the mechanical state of the thrust levers and the timing of the crew's commands regarding flap settings and landing gear retraction. The investigation also looked into the division of duties between the captain, acting as PM, and the first officer, acting as PF.
Findings
- The primary cause of the tail strike was that the aircraft continued to roll with a pitch-up attitude after touchdown.
- The delay in engine thrust recovery was exacerbated because the PIC had to first return the reverse thrust levers to the full down position before advancing the thrust levers.
- The PIC initiated a takeover of flight controls without clearly declaring the change in command, which led to a momentary lack of clarity regarding the sharing of duties between the PF and PM.
- The monitoring of critical flight parameters, such as pitch angle and airspeed, was not performed adequately by the pilot monitoring during the critical phase of the go-around.