What happened
On 12 September 2021, an ERJ 190-400 operating at Berlin Brandenburg Airport experienced a significant performance discrepancy during its departure. The flight crew initiated the take-off from runway 25R via intersection L5. However, the performance calculations used for the departure were based on intersection K5, a location that provides a longer available runway length. As the aircraft rotated and climbed, the crew realized that the actual remaining runway length was insufficient for the parameters they had calculated.
The investigation
The Dutch Safety Board has launched an investigation into this occurrence, a task delegated to them by the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU). The investigation focuses on the discrepancy between the intended take-off performance and the actual runway configuration used during the departure.
Findings
The crew used incorrect intersection data for their take-off performance calculations, leading to a mismatch between the calculated and available runway length. This error resulted in a serious incident where the aircraft's performance capabilities were not properly aligned with the physical constraints of the chosen intersection.