What happened
On 16 July 2016, a Germania Airbus A321-211, registration D-ASTP, was performing a scheduled international passenger flight from Düsseldorf to Fuerteventura. During the ILS approach to runway 01, the flight crew—consisting of a captain and a copilot—decided to operate the aircraft without the use of automatic flight systems, managing both attitude and thrust manually.
As the aircraft approached the runway, the flight path became unstable due to a drop in airspeed and the aircraft descending below the glide slope. Although the captain attempted to correct the descent, the vertical speed increased significantly. The crew initiated a go-around shortly before touchdown, but the aircraft impacted the runway with a high vertical descent rate. The impact generated a peak vertical acceleration of 3.32 g.
Following the impact, the aircraft performed a visual traffic pattern and landed a second time, this time using automatic systems, before taxiing to the stand. The crew conducted an external inspection and found no visible damage or leaks. Due to a lack of local maintenance support and uncertainty regarding the aircraft's condition, the crew decided to proceed with the return flight to Düsseldorf with 215 passengers and 7 crew on board.
The investigation
The CIAIAC investigation examined the flight data from the Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR) and the cockpit voice recorder. The analysis revealed that the high load factor during the landing caused structural damage to the landing gear. Specifically, the left main landing gear leg, its strut, and the right leg strut required replacement according to manufacturer instructions.
The investigation also scrutinized the communication between the flight crew and the airline's Maintenance Operations Center (MOC) in Germany. While the aircraft had automatically transmitted an A15 hard-landing report via ACARS, the MOC personnel were unable to correctly interpret the encoded data in the report. This lack of reliable information contributed to the crew's decision to continue the flight.
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was an unstabilized final approach characterized by decreasing airspeed and a descent below the glide slope, compounded by a late decision to execute a go-around.
- The maneuver was performed without automatic systems engaged to control the aircraft's trajectory or thrust, increasing the pilot workload.
- The decision to operate the return flight with passengers was unsafe and resulted from an incorrect assessment of the severity of the hard landing.
- The airline's MOC failed to provide the crew with the necessary technical data or valid criteria to evaluate the aircraft's airworthiness following the event.
Safety action
- REC 55/2017: It is recommended that the operator, Germania, establish a training program for its MOC personnel to ensure they provide accurate technical support and reliable decision-making assistance to flight crews at all aerodromes.