What happened
On 18 January 2016, an Embraer EMB 120 ER cargo aircraft, registered EC-JBD, departed from runway 24 at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol bound for London Stansted. During the takeoff roll, the aircraft's nose landing gear struck several runway edge lights, causing them to become dislodged. The aircraft continued its flight to London, but upon arrival, ground crews discovered significant damage, including holes in the right-hand side of the fuselage and a metal wire embedded in one of the propeller blades.
The investigation
The Dutch Safety Board (OVV) determined that the incident was the result of a misaligned takeoff. The investigation found that the flight crew had incorrectly identified the runway edge lights as the runway centerline lights. This error led the aircraft to be positioned off-center during the takeoff roll. Subsequent inspections of the airfield revealed that seven runway edge lights had been destroyed during the event.
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was the pilots' misinterpretation of runway edge lights as centerline lights.
- The physical damage to the Embraer EMB 120 ER was caused by the nose landing gear striking displaced lighting infrastructure.
- The lack of continuous taxiway centerline markings at the intersection contributed to the difficulty in maintaining proper alignment.
Safety action
Following the investigation, several safety measures were addressed:
- Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AAS) and Air Traffic Control the Netherlands (LVNL) extended the taxiway centerline to the center of runway 24 to improve guidance.
However, the OVV noted that a recommendation to ICAO to standardize runway edge lights was only partially met, as no new standards were initiated. Additionally, a recommendation for LVNL to restrict takeoff access to specific intersections during non-daylight hours was deemed inadequate, as the decision was not implemented due to airport capacity concerns.