What happened
On the scheduled domestic flight from Cape Town International Airport to George Airport, an aircraft carrying 32 passengers and three crew members was performing an instrument landing system approach for runway 11. The weather conditions at the time were characterized by light rain and overcast skies. During the landing, the aircraft touched down between the third and fourth landing markers.
Following the touchdown, the aircraft failed to exit the runway via the left-hand taxiway as intended. Instead, the plane veered toward the right, resulting in a runway overrun that continued past the ILS localiser. During the excursion, the aircraft struck eleven approach lights and breached the aerodrome's perimeter fence. The sequence ended when the plane came to a stop in a nose-down position on the R404 public road.
Motorists on the nearby road assisted with the evacuation of passengers through the right-front service door and the left mid-fuselage emergency exit. While the passengers were able to exit quickly, the cockpit crew required assistance from aerodrome fire and rescue personnel to escape the cockpit. Following the incident, ten occupants were transported to a local hospital for medical evaluation, but all were released after several hours. No serious injuries were reported among the 35 people on board.
Findings
- The aircraft failed to vacate the runway at the designated left-hand exit.
- The aircraft's path involved a rightward veer and an overrun of the runway surface.