What happened
On July 10, 2002, a Saab 2000 operating a scheduled flight from Basel to Hamburg was forced to divert due to rapidly developing severe weather. While attempting to land at Berlin-Tegel, the crew encountered intense thunderstorms that made landing at Tegel, or other nearby airports like Tempelhof or Schöne and Schönefeld, impossible.
As fuel reserves became critically low, the crew sought an alternative landing site at the Werneuchen airfield. During the final approach to the runway, the crew failed to recognize that the threshold for runway 08 had been shifted approximately 900 meters from its original position. Consequently, the aircraft touched down on a concrete section of the runway that was not part of the authorized landing area. Upon landing, the aircraft struck an earthen embankment, which caused the collapse of all three landing gear legs. The accident resulted in one passenger sustained minor injuries, while the aircraft was heavily damaged.
The investigation
The BFU investigation focused on the crew's decision-making process, the meteorological conditions, and the physical characteristics of the Werneuchen airfield. Investigators examined the aircraft's flight data and cockpit voice recordings, which revealed communications between air traffic controllers and the crew regarding the runway layout. The investigation also reviewed the accuracy of aeronautical charts and the visibility of runway markings at the secondary airfield.
Findings
The investigation identified several contributing factors to the accident:
- The extreme intensity and rapid development of the thunderstorm front created a high-pressure situation with limited landing alternatives.
- The crew's reactive decision-making led to a loss of alternative landing options as time and fuel pressure increased.
- A critical lack of situational awareness regarding the airfield's layout, specifically the failure to recognize the shifted runway threshold and the presence of the earthen embankment.
- Inadequate information regarding the airfield's operational surfaces due to unclear aeronautical charts and misleading or absent communication.
- Poorly maintained or eroded runway markings, which made the boundaries of the usable runway difficult to distinguish from the non-operational sections.