2011-05 · NASA ASRS report 946489
Tower Controller distracted when updating the IDS system failed to note a Cessna missing a runway turn off point resulting in an air carrier landing with traffic still on the runway.
A C172 was cleared to land Runway 05 and crossing the threshold when a MD88 checked in and was cleared to land Runway 05. The C172 slowed to taxi speed and was instructed to turn right on Runway 32; right on Alpha; and to taxi to the ramp and remain on my frequency. The Cessna read back the instructions and looked like it was starting its turn onto Runway 32 so I moved over to the IDS computer to go over the requirements for the next ATIS. I checked the MD88's position on the Clearance Delivery Tower Display Workstation (short final) and scanned the runway a final time. I didn't notice the aircraft at first because the lights were dim and I didn't expect it to be there; but the C172 was still on the runway about to pass taxiway Golf. I told the Cessna to turn left immediately and exit the runway. The C172 read back the instructions but continued taxing down the runway. The MD88 was about to touch down when I told him about the aircraft on the runway. The pilot responded that he saw the aircraft. The C172 exited the runway at Echo and the MD88 had landed; slowed to taxi speed; and was instructed to exit the runway. Recommendation; it was a poor decision to turn my attention away from the aircraft. I should have watched the Cessna continuously until it taxied onto the ramp. In the future; I will not allow myself to become distracted with other duties until it is clear the aircraft has no chance of getting lost on the airfield.
Cleared for Visual Approach Runway 05. Cleared to land Runway 05. On landing roll; Tower advised us that an aircraft was still on the runway. A single engine Cessna was on the runway. I took command of the airplane and stopped well short of the other plane; not requiring any evasive maneuvering/stopping. We never saw or heard the other plane in question until we were told the plane was still on the runway after we landed.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.
Loading the flight search…
Pick an aircraft model — Boeing 737, Airbus A320, A380, Boeing 787 Dreamliner and more — enter your origin airport, and FlightFinder shows every route that plane flies from there with live fares.
We support Boeing 737/747/757/767/777/787, the full Airbus A220/A319/A320/A321/A330/A340/A350/A380 family, Embraer E170/E175/E190/E195, Bombardier CRJ and Dash 8, and the ATR 42/72 turboprops.
Search and schedules are free. Pro ($4.99/month, $39/year, or $99 one-time lifetime) unlocks the enriched flight card — on-time stats, CO₂ per passenger, amenities, live gate & weather — plus My Trips with push alerts.
Live schedules come from Amadeus, AeroDataBox and Travelpayouts. Observed routes (which aircraft actually flew a given city pair) are crowdsourced from adsb.lol ADS-B data under the Open Database License.