Austrian Airlines A320neo suffers tailstrike on landing at Heathrow

An Austrian Airlines Airbus A320neo struck its tail on the runway while landing at London Heathrow, the airline confirmed. The aircraft, registered OE-LZN, was operating flight OS333 from Vienna. The landing occurred on a Saturday, according to the airline's account.

The planned return flight to Vienna was cancelled, and the aircraft remains in London with damage.

A spokesperson said the tail touched the runway on landing at Heathrow on 19 September 2026, and that investigations began immediately, as is standard after such an event. Technicians from Austrian are working on the aircraft with colleagues from Swiss, coordinated with Airbus. The airline expects OE-LZN to return to Vienna as a ferry flight in the coming days.

The A320neo is four years old and was the first delivered to Austrian Airlines. The carrier has six A320neos, with a seventh due in October to replace outgoing Embraer 190s.

The source also notes long grounding periods for repairs within the fleet: OE-LZP spent a year on the apron at Vienna airport due to a lack of replacement engines, and OE-LZQ was out of service after a collision. No injuries were reported in the Heathrow landing.