What happened
On June 22, 2018, a commercial flight operated by a Maltese company arrived at Hamburg Airport from Pulkovo, Russian Federation, carrying three passengers and two crew members. The flight was performing an instrument approach to runway 23 using the ILS.
During the approach, the pilot flying (PF) transitioned from autopilot to manual flight because the autopilot was not maintaining the localizer effectively due to wind conditions. While the aircraft was on final approach, the crew received wind updates indicating a significant crosswind component. Shortly before touchdown, the aircraft's Crew Alerting System reported a failure of one yaw damper; however, the redundant system immediately took over, and the landing phase continued with active yaw damping.
As the aircraft approached the runway surface, a sudden wind gust caused the left wing to dip. The left outer slat made contact with the runway surface. The pilot was able to correct the roll using opposite aileron input. The aircraft landed and taxied to its parking position, where the crew discovered the damage to the slat.
The investigation
The BFU examined the flight data from the Quick Access Recorder (QAR) and the aircraft's maintenance records. The investigation analyzed the wind conditions using data from the German Weather Service (DWD) anemometers, which recorded wind speeds of approximately 19 knots with gusts up to 32 knots. The investigation also reviewed the airline's operational manuals, which specified a maximum bank angle of 3 degrees during landing and outlined procedures for crosswind landings, including the use of simultaneous rudder and opposite aileron to maintain wings level.
Findings
- The primary cause of the wing contact was a wind gust that induced a sudden roll to the left just before touchdown.
- The aircraft's left outer slat sustained a small area of damage (approximately 12.3 cm long and 4.2 cm wide).
- The aircraft was operating within the airline's established wind limits, but the sudden nature of the gust exceeded the pilot's ability to maintain the required bank angle.
- There were no injuries to the passengers or crew, and no third-party damage was reported.