During the start, the pilot of the passenger plane British Airways confused his left and right hand, leading to the interruption of the start and brake fire. The flames were quickly extinguished and no one of almost 350 people on board were suffered. The incident was described by the British commission dealing with air accidents.
Key facts:
- The incident occurred a year ago at Gatwick, the second busy airport in Great Britain.
- The second pilot confused his arms and pulled behind the wrong lever, which began to brake the plane during the start.
- According to investigators, the pilot was experienced and could not explain his mistake.
On Thursday, Air Accides Investigation Branch (AAIB), a British state commission dealing with air accidents, published a report on the incident that occurred at the Gatwick airport on June 28, 2024. The document describes how Boeing 777 pilots with 334 passengers on board were preparing for the start.
The pilot confused left with the right
When they were accelerating on the starting road, after reaching the right speed, he ordered the machine to rise. Then the second pilot should remove his left hand from the throttle lever, responsible for regulating the power of the engines, and with his right hand pull to the Wolant, which allows you to pick the nose of the machine. However, the second pilot confused his left and right hand, and with his left hand he pulled the device held in it. By pulling the throttle lever, he “unintentional” reduced the power of the engines.
As established, the second pilot immediately realized his mistake and immediately pushed the lever forward, increasing the power of the engines again, but the start of the aircraft had to be interrupted. The aircraft “stopped at a distance before the end of the runway”, but rapid braking at the huge speed led to overheating and the brakes inflicted in the right Boeing chassis.
The airport fire brigade was immediately called to the place, which extinguished the flames. None of the passengers or 13 crew members were injured.
“Surprised” pilot
Aaib said in the report that the second pilot had over 6,100 hours of time, “expressed surprise” with his mistake and “could not indicate his cause.” For the last time before this incident he flew two weeks earlier. The Gatwick airport, located about 50 km south of London, is the second most busy airport in Great Britain. About 60,000 people use it a day.
Author/author: wac // mm
Source: BBC, tvn24.pl
Source of the main photo: Rich Higgins / Shutterstock.com