What happened
On the date of the accident, a TACA Airlines Airbus A320, registered as EI-TAF, was performing a landing at Tegucigalpa. The aircraft was carrying 135 passengers and crew members. Before the arrival, air traffic control notified the crew that the runway was wet and reported wind conditions of 190 degrees at 10 knots. The aircraft was cleared to land on runway 02.
During the approach, the aircraft was configured with flaps and slats fully extended, landing gear down, and ground spoilers armed, with the autobrake set to the medium setting. The aircraft touched down on runway 02 at an indicated airspeed of 139 knots and a ground speed of 159 knots. Data analysis indicates a tailwind of approximately 12 knots was present at the time of touchdown. The touchdown occurred roughly 400 meters from the displaced threshold.
Following the main landing gear contact, the crew activated maximum reverse thrust, and the ground spoilers deployed as expected. The nosewheel made contact with the runway seven seconds after the main gear. Although the crew applied manual braking, the aircraft failed to stop before the end of the runway. At a speed of 70 knots, the pilot non-flying member called out the speed, at which point the pilot flying reduced the reverse thrust to idle. The aircraft exited the runway at 54 knots, overran the end, and descended down a 20-meter embankment. The accident resulted in five fatalities, including three individuals on board and two people on the ground.
Findings
An investigation involving authorities from Honduras, El Salvador, France, the United States, and Ireland analyzed the flight recorders. The investigation confirmed that the aircraft had no deferred maintenance items at the time of dispatch. The landing performance analysis indicated that the crew's actions and the aircraft's performance were consistent with the existing runway conditions. The primary factor contributing to the overrun was the high ground speed resulting from a significant tailwind during the landing phase.