What happened
On 12 January 2014, a BN2A Mk.III-2 Trislander, registration G-RLON, was performing a commercial passenger flight from Guernsey to Alderney Airport. During the final stages of the approach, the aircraft encountered intensifying rain and a strong, gusting southerly crosswind.
As the aircraft was on its landing roll, a significant gust of wind from the left side caused the right main landing gear to lose traction while traversing a large area of standing water. This resulted in the aircraft veering to the right, exiting the asphalt runway surface and onto the adjacent grass. While the pilot managed to steer the aircraft back onto the paved section, the excursion resulted in the destruction of three runway edge lights. There were no injuries to the five passengers or the pilot, and the aircraft sustained no damage.
The investigation
The investigation examined the meteorological conditions and the runway configuration at Alderney Airport. At the time of the incident, the airport was experiencing heavy rain with winds gusting up to 30 knots. A NOTAM was in effect at the time, indicating that the usable width of Runway 26/08 had been reduced to 18 metres due to surface conditions.
The investigation established that the runway consisted of an 18-metre asphalt centre section flanked by 2.5 metres of grass on either side. The edge lighting was positioned just outside this declared width. The loss of control was attributed to the combination of a powerful wind gust and the presence of standing water on the runway surface.
Findings
- The aircraft encountered heavy rainfall and a strong crosswind gust during the landing phase.
- A strong wind gust and loss of grip in standing water caused the aircraft to deviate from the asphalt surface.
- The excursion onto the grass resulted in damage to three runway edge lights.