What happened
On February 25, 2018, a Jet Time Boeing 737-740, registration OY-JTY, was operating a scheduled international passenger flight from Aalborg, Denmark, to Tenerife South, Spain. During the flight, the aircraft encountered significant operational challenges due to a highly active Atlantic weather front moving across the Canary Islands.
As the aircraft approached the archipelago, several airports experienced severe weather degradation. Tenerife North (TFN) was used for holding patterns, and the aircraft's primary destination, Tenerife South (GCTS), eventually closed due to heavy rain, low visibility, and runway contamination. The aircraft's crew initially requested diversions to Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, but due to the saturation of those airports' parking stands by other diverted traffic, the crew ultimately requested a diversion to Gran Canaria (GCLP).
While en route to Gran Canaria, the crew was informed of a 40-minute holding delay at the MADAS waypoint. Realizing that the aircraft did not have sufficient fuel to sustain such a long wait, the crew declared a MAYDAY to obtain priority. The aircraft landed at Gran Canaria at 16:04 UTC, having exhausted its fuel to a level 33 kg below the mandatory final reserve fuel requirement.
The investigation
The CIAIAC investigation examined the meteorological conditions, the aircraft's fuel planning, and the air traffic management response. The investigation found that the weather conditions across the islands deteriorated rapidly, leading to the closure of several runways and the saturation of available parking stands at the remaining operational airports.
Investigators reviewed the fuel management and the decisions made by air traffic control. The investigation confirmed that the aircraft's fuel consumption increased due to the necessity of holding and the complexity of the arrival procedures during the weather event. The investigation also noted that while the crew and air traffic controllers managed the situation, the widespread airport closures and the high volume of diverted traffic created an operational environment that made it impossible to avoid the fuel depletion below the regulatory minimum.
Findings
Investigators concluded that the primary cause of the incident was the simultaneous impact of severe weather on multiple airports within the region, which led to a cascade of diversions and the saturation of the available ground capacity at the remaining operational airports. The investigation also noted that the aircraft was forced into holding patterns, which significantly increased fuel consumption beyond the planned reserves.