Incident Overview
On August 24, 2024, An-An Aviation Training Center flight AFA62, a DA-40NG aircraft registered as B-88003, departed Taitung Airport at 07:35 local time for an instrument cross-country training flight. The crew comprised a flight instructor, a student pilot, and an observer. The planned route included Tainan Airport and Taipei Songshan Airport before returning to Taitung. The crew intended to conduct a touch-and-go landing on Runway 36R at Tainan Airport using a VOR instrument approach.
Flight Sequence
After requesting and receiving weather information, the crew was radar-vectored to intercept the final approach for Runway 36R. During the approach, at approximately 2,000 feet, cloud cover hindered visual contact. The crew alternated between GPS and VOR navigation. After emerging from clouds at 700–800 feet, they visually acquired a runway ahead and transitioned to visual flight. At 08:31:54, Tainan Tower approved a touch-and-go on Runway 36R. The aircraft touched down and performed a touch-and-go at 08:34. Upon climb-out at about 100 feet and 54 knots, the controller informed the crew that they had landed on Runway 36L instead. The aircraft continued to Songshan and returned to Taitung, landing at 11:41 without further incident.
Probable Cause Findings
The investigation identified three findings related to the probable cause:
1. The VOR instrument approach for Runway 36R was a non-precision approach with lower navigation accuracy. When the crew transitioned to visual, the aircraft was not aligned with the assigned Runway 36R but was closer to Runway 36L.
2. The crew lacked operational experience landing at airports with parallel runways and had insufficient risk awareness and situational alertness to the possibility of runway misidentification. When visually acquiring Runway 36L ahead, they assumed it was the assigned Runway 36R without proper verification.
3. During the approach and landing, the crew likely experienced attention fixation due to focus on landing operations, failing to notice that the runway markings did not indicate "36R" and disregarding visual aids indicating the runway was closed. Consequently, they performed a touch-and-go on the closed Runway 36L, which was under construction.
Safety Actions
The initial draft report proposed safety recommendations to An-An Aviation Training Center and to the Air Force Command, which operates Tainan Tower. However, both entities provided evidence of corrective actions already taken, so the final report did not issue formal recommendations.