What happened
On 7 October 2005, at approximately 13:00 UTC, a BAe 146-RJ100, registration G-BZAT, was positioned at Stand 3 of Birmingham Airport. The aircraft was engaged in a passenger transport operation. During the process of loading the rear baggage hold, the motorized baggage loading belt made contact with the forward edge of the hold aperture. The force of the impact caused the aircraft skin to be pulled away from the door frame structure and resulted in the skin being torn in two separate locations.
There were no crew or passengers on board the aircraft at the time of the incident, and no injuries were reported. The damage was significant enough that the aircraft required repairs before it could return to service.
The investigation
The investigation was based on the aircraft accident report form provided by the pilot. Investigators examined the condition of the loading equipment and the aircraft's structure. The inspection confirmed that the motorized belt was fully serviceable at the time the incident occurred. The damage was localized to the area around the baggage hold aperture.