What happened
On January 15, 2001, at 11:13 local time, an EVA Air Dash-8-300, registration B-15235, was performing a scheduled passenger flight from Tainan Airport to Kinmen Shangyi Airport. During the approach to runway 06, the aircraft encountered several instances of unstable air. Specifically, as the aircraft descended below 250 feet, it encountered three separate downdrafts, each causing a change in descent rate exceeding 500 feet per minute.
Approximately two seconds before touchdown, the aircraft encountered another significant downdraft. Although the pilot attempted to correct the flight path by applying elevator input, the aircraft continued to descend at a rate of 28 feet per second. The aircraft struck the runway approximately 200 feet from the threshold, with the nose gear, both main gears, and the fuselage belly making contact. The impact caused the right gear door to detach. The aircraft subsequently struck the runway again at the 1,300-foot mark, before the rear underside of the fuselage dragged along the runway until the aircraft came to a stop at 3,380 feet. The incident resulted in no fatalities or injuries, though the aircraft sustained significant damage, including broken main landing gear and structural deformation to the rear fuselage skin and longerons.
The investigation
The Taiwan Transportation Safety Board (TTSB) examined the flight data recorder (FDR) and radar information, which confirmed that the aircraft encountered significant wind shear and downdrafts. The investigation also looked into the crew's response, the airline's training protocols, and the operational environment at Kinmen Shangyi Airport. Investigators noted that while the pilot's manual flight inputs were within normal parameters for the conditions, the intensity of the downdraft at 43 feet prevented an effective recovery. The investigation also identified secondary issues, such as a lack of communication regarding smoke in the cabin during the post-landing phase and various infrastructure concerns at the airport.