What happened
On October 4, 2020, an Airbus A320-214, registration N740AV, was performing a scheduled passenger flight from Pasto (SKPS) to Bogotá (SKBO). During the takeoff roll from runway 02 at Antonio Nariño Airport, the application of engine power caused sections of the asphalt surface to detach and strike the aircraft.
The crew did not immediately notice the impact during the departure. However, upon arrival in Bogotá, the flight crew experienced a loss of directional control while taxiing toward the apron during a left turn. After stopping the aircraft and restarting the taxi, control of the nose wheel was recovered. A subsequent maintenance inspection revealed that various sizes of asphalt debris had struck and perforated both sides of the horizontal stabilizer, causing significant structural damage to the skin, access panels, and internal ribs.
The investigation
The GRIAA investigation focused on the runway conditions and recent maintenance activities at Antonio Nari andño Airport. Investigators examined the pavement structure and found that a failure in adhesion existed between the asphalt layers. The investigation established that during a previous repair, the installation of a reinforcing geomembrane was deficient because it lacked the necessary emulsion to bond the layers together, creating a failure plane.
Furthermore, the investigation reviewed the oversight of the contractor and the inspection agency (interventoría) responsible for the runway rehabilitation works. It was noted that while there were previous reports of FOD in the movement area, the infrastructure risk management was insufficient to detect the deteriorating pavement surface before the detachment occurred.