BIRD-BRAINED
DISASTER was narrowly avoided as a Ryanair jet slammed into a runway after a flock of birds were sucked into the engines.
The terrifying incident happened as the Irish-registered flight was approaching Ciampino Airport in Rome.
Pilots fought to save the Boeing 737, along with its 166 passengers and six crew, when it rapidly lost power after being hit by dozens of starlings.
Italian air accident investigators found the airport did not have adequate prevention measures against bird strikes.
Their report, which took 10 years to complete after the incident at 6.55am on
November 10, 2008, said: “The accident has been caused by an unexpected loss of both engines’ thrust as a consequence of a massive bird strike during the go-around manoeuvre.
“The loss of thrust has prevented the aircrew from performing a successful go-around and has led the aircraft to an unstabilised runway contact.”
The report added the following two factors contributed to the incident:
■ The inadequate effectiveness of bird control and dispersal measures put in place by the airport operator at the time of the accident, and
■ The captain’s decision to perform a go-around when the aircraft was at approximately seven seconds from touchdown.
The incident happened just nine miles from landing after the aircraft had travelled from Frankfurt to Rome. The aircraft suddenly struck a “thick flock of birds, later identified as starlings” and immediately lost power.
The pilots attempted to launch a go-around to save the plane but the engines had been badly damaged by the 86 separate bird impacts.
The 737 could not climb away and “rapidly lost speed and height, hitting the runway heavily in proximity of the taxiway AC”.
The report said on first touching the runway “the main left landing gear detached from its anchoring and the lower part of the left engine nacelle came into contact with the runway”.
The aircraft came to a complete stop and the fire service rushed to the scene. Slides were deployed as foam was spread around the engines to prevent a fire.
The report found: “Two members of the crew and six passengers received minor injuries [back pain]. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.”
One key finding was the pilot decided to attempt a go-around due to “the lack of instructions to flight crew concerning the most suitable procedures to adopt in the case of single or multiple bird strikes in the landing phase”.
It also highlighted “the absence of specific training in the management, by the flight crew, of the surprise and startle effects in critical phases of the flight”.
The Irish Mirror contacted a Ryanair spokesman for a comment on the report.