A B757 Captain completed the ALL FLAPS UP LANDING Checklist with only a Trailing Edge Flap asymmetry EICAS resulting in a higher landing speed than needed. An emergency was declared.

Date: 2009-12 · Aircraft: B757-200 · Phase: approach

Anomalies: aircraft-equipment-problem-critical|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy

Synopsis

A B757 Captain completed the ALL FLAPS UP LANDING Checklist with only a Trailing Edge Flap asymmetry EICAS resulting in a higher landing speed than needed. An emergency was declared.

Narrative

On descent when flaps 1 selected TE FLAP ASYM EICAS message and TRAILING EDGE light displayed. Ran TRAILING EDGE FLAP ASYMMETRY checklist. Then mistakenly accomplished the ALL FLAPS AND SLATS UP LANDING checklist which resulted in us landing at VREF 30+50 instead of the correct speed of VREF 30+40. At the end of the TRAILING EDGE FLAP ASYMMETRY checklist it directs 'if the 'LE' SLAT ASYM or 'LE' SLAT DISAGREE message appears: Accomplish the ALL FLAPS AND SLATS UP LANDING checklist'. I failed to notice the checklist was referring to a LE SLAT ASYM when in fact all I had was a TE FLAP ASYM. In retrospect I was expecting this checklist to deal with only the TE FLAP problem and my expectation bias was toward this problem. This seems to me a very likely mistake one could make in the heat of the moment; when an abbreviated format is used. In order to prevent such a mistake from being made in the future this line in the checklist might be highlighted and or underlined to read LE (LEADING EDGE) SLAT ASYM/DISAGREE. The lesson I learned was to take my time with the checklist especially when abbreviations are being used.

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Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.