Incident Overview
On 30 July 2001 at 0100Z, a Cessna 402C registered ZS-LXY operated a commercial international cargo flight from FAJS (Johannesburg International Airport) to Harare, Zimbabwe. The aircraft carried one person on board. The weather was fine. No injuries or fatalities were reported.
Sequence of Events
The pilot took off from FAJS and, upon opting to retract the landing gear, experienced airframe buffet and a gear warning light. The pilot elected to return for an immediate landing and advised air traffic control (ATC). ATC cleared the pilot to land on Runway 21. The pilot then focused on flying the aircraft and verifying that the landing gear was down and locked.
Turning onto final approach, the pilot noticed the runway lights were slightly dim and requested ATC to increase the brightness. Close to the threshold and concentrating on landing, the pilot re-checked the gear was down. The lights did not improve significantly but were deemed sufficient. After landing and during the rollout, ATC advised the pilot that he had approached and landed on the wrong runway. The pilot then requested taxi to Delta 1.
A NOTAM (A1060/2001) issued on 10 July 2001 had notified pilots of the closure of Runway 03L/21R for maintenance. The pilot landed on the closed runway (21R) after being cleared to land on runway 21L.
Probable Cause
The pilot was placed under pressure when his landing gear failed to retract after rotation and landed on the closed runway (runway 21R) after being cleared by ATC to land on runway 21L. A NOTAM (A1060/2001) was issued on 10 July 2001, which notified pilots of the closure of Runway 03L/21R for maintenance.