Incident Overview
On August 28, 1998, a British Aerospace BAe 146-300 experienced a serious incident while conducting a visual landing approach on Runway 27 at Hof Airport. During the flare maneuver, the aircraft's tail struck the runway surface. This contact caused significant damage to approximately three meters of the fuselage underside. Fortunately, no occupants were injured, and there was no third-party damage.
Flight Data Analysis
The investigation relied heavily on Flight Data Recorder (FDR) data, as the Cockpit Voice Recorder had exceeded its 30-minute retention limit. The FDR captured the final 54 seconds of the approach. At t=-50 seconds, the aircraft crossed the approach baseline from the southeast at approximately 2,500 feet MSL with a heading error of about 30 degrees. By t=-22 seconds, the aircraft was on the centerline but remained above the standard 3.5-degree ILS glide path.
Approach Dynamics
The FDR indicated an average descent rate of roughly 1,000 feet per minute during the final phase, suggesting a steeper-than-normal approach angle of approximately 4 degrees. Five seconds before touchdown, the pilot briefly pushed the elevator down to -1 degree to correct the high altitude, which increased the sink rate. Immediately following this, the pilot pulled back on the controls to arrest the descent, rotating the aircraft from -1 degree to +7 degrees pitch within two seconds.
Contributing Factors
The rapid rotation exceeded the maximum allowable pitch angle of approximately +5 degrees for this aircraft type before tail strike occurs. The investigation noted that the approach was short and unstable, preventing the establishment of a stable landing configuration. It is suggested that the second pilot may have been overwhelmed by the steep visual approach or had limited visibility from their seat position, leading to a late realization of the aircraft's deviation from the glide path.
Conclusion
The German Federal Aviation Office (BFU) concluded that the primary cause was an uncontrolled, short, and steep visual approach. Weather conditions were deemed sufficient for a visual flight rules operation and were excluded as a contributing factor.