What happened
On September 9, 2003, at approximately 19:30 hours, an Air Tractor AT-802, registration EC-GOS, was performing a landing on runway 24 at Ibiza Airport. The aircraft had been conducting a firefighting surveillance flight contracted by the government of the Balearic Islands.
As the aircraft traveled approximately 80 to 100 meters along the runway, it began to drift toward the right side of the pavement. In an attempt to correct this deviation, the pilot applied the left brake. This action resulted in the burst of the left tire. Following the burst, the aircraft experienced a sudden deceleration and began a 180-degree turn around the left landing gear. During this maneuver, the tail assembly lifted off the ground and subsequently struck the pavement with enough force to break the tail skid structure. The aircraft eventually came to a halt approximately 850 meters from the runway threshold, facing the opposite direction of its original landing heading. The pilot was uninjured and evacuated the aircraft independently.
The investigation
The investigation examined the sequence of events following the tire failure and the environmental conditions at the time of the accident. Investigators analyzed the impact of wind conditions on the aircraft's trajectory and the mechanical consequences of the pilot's corrective actions. The investigation also assessed the damage to the aircraft's landing gear and tail structure, as well as the resulting marks left on the runway surface.
Findings
- The aircraft's drift to the right was likely caused by a 15-knot wind gust acting nearly perpendicular to the aircraft's path from the left.
- The application of the left brake to counteract the wind-induced drift led directly to the burst of the left tire.
- The sudden braking force following the tire burst caused the tail assembly to lift and then impact the ground, causing structural damage to the tail skid.
- The loss of the left tire's integrity caused the aircraft to pivot around the left gear, resulting in the 180-degree ground loop.