What happened
On 17 September 2005, an ATR 72-212A, registration D-ANFH, was conducting a non-scheduled passenger flight from Düsseldorf to Guernsey Airport. During the approach to Runway 27, the co-pilot, acting as the pilot flying, intentionally maneuvered the aircraft below the glideslope. The co-pilot believed the runway was shorter than usual and sought to adjust the approach accordingly.
As the aircraft neared the ground, the approach became unstable. Just before touchdown, the aircraft's pitch increased significantly, resulting in a heavy landing and a subsequent bounce. During this impact, the lower rear section of the fuselage struck the runway surface. While there were no fatalities and no injuries among the 4 crew members or 63 passengers, the aircraft sustained structural damage to the fuselage skin.
The investigation
Investigators examined the aircraft's flight data and cockpit voice recordings, which revealed that the aircraft's airspeed had fluctuated throughout the approach. The flight data recorder showed that the aircraft's pitch attitude reached 6.5 degrees at the moment of touchdown, with a vertical acceleration of 2.7g.
An inspection of the runway identified a significant scrape mark approximately 95 to 100 meters beyond the start of the paved area. Examination of the aircraft revealed that the fuselage skin beneath the rear cabin door had been abraded. The investigation also looked into the aircraft's tail skid, a device designed to prevent fuselage contact during high-pitch landings. The impact was severe enough to fully compress the skid's shock damper and cause the fuselage to make contact with the runway.
Findings
- The primary cause of the damage was the excessive pitch attitude during the landing, which led to the fuselage striking the runway.
- The co-pilot's decision to deliberately deviate below the glideslope contributed to the unstable approach.
- The co-pilot's relative lack of experience with the shorter runway at Guernsey influenced the decision to use an incorrect landing technique.
- Although the commander's response to the co-pilot's intention suggested the maneuver had been briefed, the investigation could not confirm this due to inaudible audio caused by a cabin crew announcement.
- The aircraft's landing performance and available runway length were more than adequate for a standard, stabilized approach.