Incident Overview
On March 9, 2014, an Airbus A321-111, registration HB-IOC, operated by a Swiss airline, experienced a tailstrike during a go-around after landing at Geneva Airport (LSGG). The Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (STSB) investigated the serious incident.
Flight Crew
The pilot flying was the copilot, a female pilot with relatively low experience on the Airbus A321. The pilot monitoring was the commander, who had more experience. The crew did not detect the excessive pitch attitude during the go-around.
Sequence of Events
The aircraft landed on runway 05 at Geneva Airport. After the wheels touched down, the pilot flying initiated a go-around. Believing the aircraft had bounced on landing, she made a sudden and full aft pull on the sidestick. This caused the aircraft to pitch up excessively, resulting in the tail striking the runway surface.
Cause and Contributing Factors
The STSB determined that the serious incident was caused by a tailstrike resulting from a sudden full aft sidestick input by the pilot flying during the go-around.
Contributing factors identified were:
- The pilot flying's low experience led her to incorrectly believe the aircraft had bounced.
- The lack of tactile feedback between the two sidesticks prevented the pilot monitoring from detecting the abrupt stick movement in time.
- The flight crew failed to monitor and recognize the excessive pitch attitude.
Safety Gap
Although not related to the cause, the investigation revealed a safety gap: the air navigation service did not inform the flight crew that a tailstrike had been observed during the go-around.