2007 Dash 8 landing gear incidents
Encyclopedia
In September 2007, two separate incidents of similar landing gear failures occurred within four days of each other on Bombardier
Dash 8-Q400 aircraft, all operated by Scandinavian Airlines (SAS). A third incident, again with an SAS aircraft, occurred in October 2007, leading to the withdrawal of the type from the airline's fleet.
Scandinavian Airlines Flight 1209, a de Havilland Canada
Dash-8-400 (LN-RDK), took off from Copenhagen Airport
, Denmark, on September 9, 2007. It was headed to Aalborg Airport
, Denmark. SK1209 is a code-shared flight with Spanair
flight JK9101, BMI
flight BD3923 and Lufthansa
flight LH6002.
Prior to landing, the right main landing gear failed to lock and the crew circled for an hour before attempting a prepared emergency landing. Upon touchdown, the right landing gear collapsed, the right wing touched ground, and a fire broke out. The fire went out before the aircraft came to rest and all passengers and crew were evacuated. Five people suffered minor injuries, some from propeller parts entering the cabin and others from the evacuation.
When the handle for lowering the landing gear was activated, the indicator showed two green and one red light. The red light indicated that the right main gear was not locked in position. The landing was aborted. Attempts at lowering the gear manually were also unsuccessful. Investigation into the cause of the failure to deploy revealed that the right main gear hydraulics
actuator
top eyebolt was separated from the actuator. A further analysis of the actuator showed corrosion
on the inside leading to reduced mechanical strength of the actuator and eventual failure.
On September 19, 2007, the prosecutor
of Stockholm
commenced a preliminary investigation regarding suspicion of creating danger to another person.
began an investigation of the accident, it brought renewed focus on SAS maintenance procedures. Only two weeks previously, Swedish authorities had levelled a scathing critique at the airline after an aircraft of the same model nearly crashed because its engine accelerated unexpectedly during landing. The airline reportedly made 2,300 flights in which safety equipment was not up to standard, although the airline has denied this.
Radio Sweden International reports that a security analyst for the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority has sent a warning to other Scandinavian aviation bureaus concerning sub-standard SAS maintenance procedures, including one instance where an aircraft took off after the pilot reported a fuel leak. This warning, while just publicized, was apparently written before the recent spate of SAS accidents.
Dash-8-400 (LN-RDS), took off from Copenhagen Airport
, Denmark, on September 12, 2007. It was headed to Palanga
, Lithuania
, but was diverted to Vilnius Airport
when landing gear problems were discovered before landing. Upon touchdown, the right landing gear collapsed. All passengers and crew were evacuated safely. The local officials at the Vilnius International Airport
noted that this was the most serious incident in recent years.
flight SK2867 from Bergen
, Norway, with 40 passengers and 4 crew members was enroute to Copenhagen
, Denmark, when problems with the main landing gear were discovered. After waiting about two hours in the air to burn fuel and troubleshoot, the pilots attempted a prepared emergency landing. The pilots were forced to land the aircraft with the right main landing gear up. The right engine was shut off for the landing, because in the previous landings the propeller had hit the ground and shards of it ripped into the fuselage. This was not on the emergency checklist, rather it was the pilots making a safety based decision. The aircraft stopped on the runway with the right wing touching the runway at 16.53 local time. It did not catch fire and the passengers and the crew were evacuated quickly. There were no serious injuries. The aircraft in question was one of six that had been cleared to fly just a month before, following the grounding of the entire Scandinavian Airlines Dash 8-400 fleet due to similar landing gear issues. The entire fleet was grounded again following the incident.
The preliminary Danish investigation determined this latest Q400 incident is unrelated to the airline's earlier corrosion problems, in this particular case caused by a misplaced O-ring
found blocking the orifice in the restrictor valve
. Accordingly EASA announced that "...the Scandinavian airworthiness authorities will reissue the Certificates of Airworthiness relevant to this aircraft type in the coming days."
recommended that all the Dash-8-400 aircraft with more than 10,000 flights stay grounded until further notice, affecting about 60 of the 160 Q400 aircraft used worldwide. As a result, several hundred flights were cancelled around the world. Horizon Airlines
grounded 19 of their aircraft and Austrian Airlines
grounded eight.
On September 13, 2007, Transport Canada
issued an Airworthiness Directive
applicable to Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft instructing all Q400 aircraft operators to conduct a general visual inspection of the left and right main landing gear system and main landing gear retract actuator jam nut
. This effectively grounded all Q400 aircraft until the inspection had been carried out.
On September 14, 2007, Bombardier issued an All-Operators Message (AOM) recommending new procedures concerning the landing gear inspection for all aircraft with more than 8,000 flights. Bombardier acknowledged the likelihood of corrosion
developing inside the retract actuator
.
Previous maintenance procedures mandated checking this component after 15,000 landings. The new maintenance schedule affects about 85 of the 165 Q400 aircraft worldwide. Some operators have found that spare parts for this unexpected actuator replacement program are not available, grounding their aircraft indefinitely.
Skandinavisk Tilsynskontor investigators detected corrosion inside the actuator on 25 of 27 aircraft they checked. Accordingly, SAS decided to continue the grounding of its Dash-8-400 fleet until all the affected parts have been replaced.
On October 28, 2007, SAS announced that it will remove all Dash-8-Q400 aircraft from service permanently.
On March 10, 2008, a multi-party agreement was announced, attempting to finalize the roles of maintenance and manufacture in causing the SAS incidents; as settlement the airline and its partners ordered a replacement set of short-haul planes from Bombardier, and in turn received a US $164 million discount.
It has been speculated that a November 2007 shakeup of Bombardier management has been spurred by the Dash-8-Q400 issues.
Bombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aerospace is a division of Bombardier Inc. and is the third-largest airplane manufacturer in the world. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada.- History :...
Dash 8-Q400 aircraft, all operated by Scandinavian Airlines (SAS). A third incident, again with an SAS aircraft, occurred in October 2007, leading to the withdrawal of the type from the airline's fleet.
Scandinavian Airlines Flight 1209
De Havilland Canada
The de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. company was an aircraft manufacturer with facilities based in what is now the Downsview area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
Dash-8-400 (LN-RDK), took off from Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen Airport is the main international airport serving Copenhagen, Denmark and the Oresund Region. It is located on the island of Amager, south of Copenhagen city centre, and west of Malmö city centre on the other side of the Oresund Bridge. The airport lies mainly in the municipality...
, Denmark, on September 9, 2007. It was headed to Aalborg Airport
Aalborg Airport
Aalborg Airport is a dual-use airport located in Nørresundby, Denmark, which is northwest of Aalborg. Aalborg Airport is the third largest airport in Denmark with approximately 1.4 million travellers per year.-Duty Free Shopping:...
, Denmark. SK1209 is a code-shared flight with Spanair
Spanair
Spanair is a Spanish airline, with its head office in the Spanair Building in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, near Barcelona. It was, until 2009, a subsidiary of Scandinavian Airlines, which now holds slightly under 20% of the company. Spanair provides a scheduled passenger network within Spain and...
flight JK9101, BMI
Bmi (airline)
British Midland Airways Limited , is an airline based at Donington Hall in Castle Donington in the United Kingdom, close to East Midlands Airport, and a fully owned subsidiary of Lufthansa...
flight BD3923 and Lufthansa
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...
flight LH6002.
Prior to landing, the right main landing gear failed to lock and the crew circled for an hour before attempting a prepared emergency landing. Upon touchdown, the right landing gear collapsed, the right wing touched ground, and a fire broke out. The fire went out before the aircraft came to rest and all passengers and crew were evacuated. Five people suffered minor injuries, some from propeller parts entering the cabin and others from the evacuation.
Investigation
Hydraulics
Hydraulics is a topic in applied science and engineering dealing with the mechanical properties of liquids. Fluid mechanics provides the theoretical foundation for hydraulics, which focuses on the engineering uses of fluid properties. In fluid power, hydraulics is used for the generation, control,...
actuator
Hydraulic cylinder
A Hydraulic cylinder is a mechanical actuator that is used to give a unidirectional force through a unidirectional stroke. It has many applications, notably in engineering vehicles.- Operation :...
top eyebolt was separated from the actuator. A further analysis of the actuator showed corrosion
Corrosion
Corrosion is the disintegration of an engineered material into its constituent atoms due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the most common use of the word, this means electrochemical oxidation of metals in reaction with an oxidant such as oxygen...
on the inside leading to reduced mechanical strength of the actuator and eventual failure.
On September 19, 2007, the prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
of Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
commenced a preliminary investigation regarding suspicion of creating danger to another person.
Maintenance procedures
Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) has been accused of cutting corners for maintenance. As the Swedish Civil Aviation AuthoritySwedish Civil Aviation Administration
The Swedish Civil Aviation Administration, or Luftfartsverket was the Swedish Government agency which regulated and oversaw all aspects of aviation in Sweden until 2005...
began an investigation of the accident, it brought renewed focus on SAS maintenance procedures. Only two weeks previously, Swedish authorities had levelled a scathing critique at the airline after an aircraft of the same model nearly crashed because its engine accelerated unexpectedly during landing. The airline reportedly made 2,300 flights in which safety equipment was not up to standard, although the airline has denied this.
Radio Sweden International reports that a security analyst for the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority has sent a warning to other Scandinavian aviation bureaus concerning sub-standard SAS maintenance procedures, including one instance where an aircraft took off after the pilot reported a fuel leak. This warning, while just publicized, was apparently written before the recent spate of SAS accidents.
Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2748
Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2748, a de Havilland CanadaDe Havilland Canada
The de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. company was an aircraft manufacturer with facilities based in what is now the Downsview area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
Dash-8-400 (LN-RDS), took off from Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen Airport is the main international airport serving Copenhagen, Denmark and the Oresund Region. It is located on the island of Amager, south of Copenhagen city centre, and west of Malmö city centre on the other side of the Oresund Bridge. The airport lies mainly in the municipality...
, Denmark, on September 12, 2007. It was headed to Palanga
Palanga
Palanga and beautiful sand dunes. Officially Palanga has the status of a city municipality and includes Šventoji, Nemirseta, Būtingė and other settlements, which are considered as part of the city of Palanga.-Legend:...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, but was diverted to Vilnius Airport
Vilnius International Airport
Vilnius International Airport is the largest civil airport in Lithuania. It is located south of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. It began operations in 1944. The old terminal was built in 1954.- History:...
when landing gear problems were discovered before landing. Upon touchdown, the right landing gear collapsed. All passengers and crew were evacuated safely. The local officials at the Vilnius International Airport
Vilnius International Airport
Vilnius International Airport is the largest civil airport in Lithuania. It is located south of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. It began operations in 1944. The old terminal was built in 1954.- History:...
noted that this was the most serious incident in recent years.
Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2867
On October 27, 2007, a Dash 8-400 (LN-RDI), SASScandinavian Airlines System
Scandinavian Airlines or SAS, previously Scandinavian Airlines System, is the flag carrier of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and the largest airline in Scandinavia....
flight SK2867 from Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Norway, with 40 passengers and 4 crew members was enroute to Copenhagen
Copenhagen Airport
Copenhagen Airport is the main international airport serving Copenhagen, Denmark and the Oresund Region. It is located on the island of Amager, south of Copenhagen city centre, and west of Malmö city centre on the other side of the Oresund Bridge. The airport lies mainly in the municipality...
, Denmark, when problems with the main landing gear were discovered. After waiting about two hours in the air to burn fuel and troubleshoot, the pilots attempted a prepared emergency landing. The pilots were forced to land the aircraft with the right main landing gear up. The right engine was shut off for the landing, because in the previous landings the propeller had hit the ground and shards of it ripped into the fuselage. This was not on the emergency checklist, rather it was the pilots making a safety based decision. The aircraft stopped on the runway with the right wing touching the runway at 16.53 local time. It did not catch fire and the passengers and the crew were evacuated quickly. There were no serious injuries. The aircraft in question was one of six that had been cleared to fly just a month before, following the grounding of the entire Scandinavian Airlines Dash 8-400 fleet due to similar landing gear issues. The entire fleet was grounded again following the incident.
The preliminary Danish investigation determined this latest Q400 incident is unrelated to the airline's earlier corrosion problems, in this particular case caused by a misplaced O-ring
O-ring
An O-ring, also known as a packing, or a toric joint, is a mechanical gasket in the shape of a torus; it is a loop of elastomer with a disc-shaped cross-section, designed to be seated in a groove and compressed during assembly between two or more parts, creating a seal at the interface.The O-ring...
found blocking the orifice in the restrictor valve
Valve
A valve is a device that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically pipe fittings, but are usually discussed as a separate category...
. Accordingly EASA announced that "...the Scandinavian airworthiness authorities will reissue the Certificates of Airworthiness relevant to this aircraft type in the coming days."
Aftermath
After the second incident, Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) grounded their entire Dash-8-400 fleet consisting of 27 aircraft, and a few hours later the manufacturer Bombardier AerospaceBombardier Aerospace
Bombardier Aerospace is a division of Bombardier Inc. and is the third-largest airplane manufacturer in the world. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada.- History :...
recommended that all the Dash-8-400 aircraft with more than 10,000 flights stay grounded until further notice, affecting about 60 of the 160 Q400 aircraft used worldwide. As a result, several hundred flights were cancelled around the world. Horizon Airlines
Horizon Airlines
Horizon Airlines may refer to:*Horizon Airlines *Horizon Air...
grounded 19 of their aircraft and Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines is the flag carrier airline of Austria, headquartered in Office Park 2 on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat, Wien-Umgebung and a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Together with regional subsidiary Tyrolean Airways and charter arm Lauda Air, it operates...
grounded eight.
On September 13, 2007, Transport Canada
Transport Canada
Transport Canada is the department within the government of Canada which is responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities portfolio...
issued an Airworthiness Directive
Airworthiness Directive
An Airworthiness Directive is a notification to owners and operators of certified aircraft that a known safety deficiency with a particular model of aircraft, engine, avionics or other system exists and must be corrected....
applicable to Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft instructing all Q400 aircraft operators to conduct a general visual inspection of the left and right main landing gear system and main landing gear retract actuator jam nut
Jam nut
A jam nut is a low profile type of nut, typically half as tall as a standard nut. It is commonly used as a type of locknut, where it is "jammed" up against a standard nut to lock the two in place...
. This effectively grounded all Q400 aircraft until the inspection had been carried out.
On September 14, 2007, Bombardier issued an All-Operators Message (AOM) recommending new procedures concerning the landing gear inspection for all aircraft with more than 8,000 flights. Bombardier acknowledged the likelihood of corrosion
Corrosion
Corrosion is the disintegration of an engineered material into its constituent atoms due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the most common use of the word, this means electrochemical oxidation of metals in reaction with an oxidant such as oxygen...
developing inside the retract actuator
Hydraulic cylinder
A Hydraulic cylinder is a mechanical actuator that is used to give a unidirectional force through a unidirectional stroke. It has many applications, notably in engineering vehicles.- Operation :...
.
Previous maintenance procedures mandated checking this component after 15,000 landings. The new maintenance schedule affects about 85 of the 165 Q400 aircraft worldwide. Some operators have found that spare parts for this unexpected actuator replacement program are not available, grounding their aircraft indefinitely.
Skandinavisk Tilsynskontor investigators detected corrosion inside the actuator on 25 of 27 aircraft they checked. Accordingly, SAS decided to continue the grounding of its Dash-8-400 fleet until all the affected parts have been replaced.
On October 28, 2007, SAS announced that it will remove all Dash-8-Q400 aircraft from service permanently.
On March 10, 2008, a multi-party agreement was announced, attempting to finalize the roles of maintenance and manufacture in causing the SAS incidents; as settlement the airline and its partners ordered a replacement set of short-haul planes from Bombardier, and in turn received a US $164 million discount.
It has been speculated that a November 2007 shakeup of Bombardier management has been spurred by the Dash-8-Q400 issues.
Similar incidents with Dash 8s
- On 9 June 1995, Ansett New Zealand Flight 703Ansett New Zealand Flight 703Ansett New Zealand Flight 703 was an Ansett New Zealand scheduled passenger transport flight from Auckland Airport to Palmerston North. On 9 June 1995, the Dash 8 aircraft flying this route crashed west of the Tararua Ranges and 16 km east of Palmerston North airport, during an instrument...
from Auckland Airport to Palmerston NorthPalmerston NorthPalmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...
crashed west of the Tararua Ranges and 16 km east of Palmerston North airport during an instrument approach in inclement weather. A landing gear failure distracted the pilot and co-pilot, failing to notice the aircraft had descended into danger. This was complicated by a ground proximity warning not sounding until immediately before the crash. Four people were killed and most other passengers injured. The official investigation by Air Transport regulators found that the pilot and co-pilot should have abandoned the approach and dealt with the gear failure before attempting a new approach. - 17 April 2005 Tobago ExpressTobago ExpressTobago Express was a scheduled passenger airline based in Trinidad and Tobago. It operated as a sister airline of Caribbean Airlines. Caribbean Airlines is now the main airline which operates the essential "air-bridge" between the Crown Point International Airport located in Tobago and Piarco...
534 made an emergency landing at Piarco International AirportPiarco International AirportPiarco International Airport is the main airport serving Trinidad and Tobago located in Piarco, a town in northern Trinidad, about east of the capital city, Port of Spain. It is one of two international airports serving the twin isle republic. The other is located on the island of Tobago, A.N.R...
Trinidad following a failure of the nose gear. - On 28 January 2002, a wheel detached from the starboard side of the undercarriage at an aircraft owned by Tyrolean Airways while taxiing before takeoff from Frankfurt AirportFrankfurt AirportFrankfurt Airport may refer to:Airports of Frankfurt, Germany:*Frankfurt Airport , the largest airport in Germany*Frankfurt Egelsbach Airport, a general aviation airport*Frankfurt-Hahn Airport , a converted U.S...
. The missing wheel was detected by visual inspection of the aircraft after landing in Salzburg AirportSalzburg AirportSalzburg Airport or W. A. Mozart Airport is the second largest airport in Austria.Salzburg Airport presents itself as a modern regional airport, which creates jobs and plays an ever increasing role as a strong investor in the economy and the tourist industry...
, and the wheel was later recovered. A probable cause was a displaced outer bearing grease seal, causing overheating. - On 13 March 2007, All Nippon Airways Flight 1603, a Q400 nose-landed safely at Kōchi Ryōma Airport after the front wheel of the aircraft failed to deploy. Bombardier advised all operators to inspect the nose landing-gear mechanism of the aircraft. On November 11, it was reported that the Japanese Transport Ministry is preparing to blame Bombardier for improper assembly procedures, in this case forgetting a necessary bolt. In Japan, this incident was followed only a week later when a Dash-8-100 made an emergency landing at Kumamoto AirportKumamoto Airport, also known as , is an airport in Mashiki, Kumamoto, Japan.A planned merger of municipalities will be implemented around March 31, 2010; the City of Kumamoto will be merged with the Shimomashiki District town of Jonan and Mashiki. When the merger is completed the airport will be within the City of...
after extending its gear manually. See also: All Nippon Airways Incidents. - 20 April 2007: a Dash 8 operated by BahamasairBahamasairBahamasair Holdings Limited, operating as Bahamasair, is an airline based in the Bahamasair House in Nassau, Bahamas. It is the national airline and operates domestic scheduled services to 15 destinations and regional scheduled services to Havana and four cities in Florida. Its main base is Lynden...
suffered a port side landing gear collapse on landing at Governor's Harbour Airport, Bahamas; no injuries were reported but inquiries continue. The aircraft suffered left wing and propeller damage, and was dismantled and shipped off-site. - On 12 August 2007, at 9:37 local time, a Dash 8 Q400 aircraft skidded off the runway at Gimhae International AirportGimhae International AirportGimhae International Airport is located on the western end of Busan, South Korea. It opened in 1976. A new international terminal opened on October 31, 2007. Gimhae International Airport is the main hub for Air Busan...
, BusanBusanBusan , formerly spelled Pusan is South Korea's second largest metropolis after Seoul, with a population of around 3.6 million. The Metropolitan area population is 4,399,515 as of 2010. It is the largest port city in South Korea and the fifth largest port in the world...
, South KoreaSouth KoreaThe Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, injuring 6 people and damaging the aircraft, particularly the left propeller. - On September 21, 2007, Lufthansa Flight LH4076 (tail number D-ADHA) with 68 passengers and four crew members was on flight to FlorencePeretola AirportPeretola Airport, Florence Airport or Amerigo Vespucci Airport is an airport located close to Florence, Italy, but administratively located within the territory of Sesto Fiorentino...
, Italy when problems with the front landing gear were identified. The pilots were forced to make an emergency landing at Munich AirportMunich International AirportMunich Airport , is located northeast of Munich, Germany, and is a hub for Lufthansa and Star Alliance partner airlines. It lies nearby the old city of Freising and is named in memory of politician Franz Josef Strauss...
. The aircraft landed with its front landing gear up. There were no injuries. The aircraft is owned by Augsburg AirwaysAugsburg AirwaysAugsburg Airways GmbH is a regional airline based in Hallbergmoos, Germany. It is part of the Lufthansa Regional group and operates domestic and international services on behalf of Lufthansa out of Munich International Airport.- History :...
. - 10 October 2007: A SAS Denmark Q400 headed for Poland returned to Copenhagen when the pilots got problems with the indicator lights of the front landing gear. The pilots got a yellow indication that the front landing gear hatch didn't close after taking off. Then they heard the hatch closing, then opening and closing again.
- On 12 October 2007, a Scandinavian Airlines flight scheduled for Copenhagen returns to WarsawWarsawWarsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
due to problems with the landing gear. - On 16 November 2008, Flight 4551, a Dash 8-300 operated by Piedmont AirlinesPiedmont AirlinesPiedmont Airlines is an American regional airline operating for US Airways Express. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the US Airways Group, headquartered in unincorporated Wicomico County, Maryland, near the city of Salisbury, it conducts flight operations using De Havilland Canada Dash 8 aircraft...
landed at Philadelphia International AirportPhiladelphia International AirportPhiladelphia International Airport is a major airport in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, and is the largest airport in the Delaware Valley region and in Pennsylvania...
without its nosegear. There were no reported injuries. - On 13 February 2009, Austrian AirlinesAustrian AirlinesAustrian Airlines is the flag carrier airline of Austria, headquartered in Office Park 2 on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat, Wien-Umgebung and a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Together with regional subsidiary Tyrolean Airways and charter arm Lauda Air, it operates...
Flight OS780, operated by Tyrolean Airways, a scheduled flight from SkopjeSkopjeSkopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre...
to ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
failed to retract landing gear after take-off and performed an emergency landing on Skopje AirportSkopje AirportSkopje Airport , or Skopje "Alexander the Great" Airport is the larger and busier of the two international airports in the Republic of Macedonia...
. http://derstandard.at/?url=/?id=1234507062719 - On 12 May 2009, Colgan AirColgan AirColgan Air, Inc. is an American certificated regional airline subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corp. The headquarters of Colgan Air are located in Memphis, Tennessee....
Flight 3268 reported tyre detachment after landing at Buffalo Niagara International AirportBuffalo Niagara International AirportBuffalo Niagara International Airport is an airport located in Cheektowaga CDP, Town of Cheektowaga, in Erie County, New York, USA. It is named after the Buffalo – Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The airport serves Buffalo, New York as well as Southern Ontario, Canada...
. It was discovered that a wheel bearing overheated and snapped, leading to the detachment. - On 30 September 2010, Air New ZealandAir New ZealandAir New Zealand Limited is the national airline and flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 26 domestic destinations and 24 international destinations in 15 countries across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania, and is...
subsidiary Air NelsonAir NelsonAir Nelson, a subsidiary of Air New Zealand is a regional airline based in Nelson, New Zealand. It operates services on provincial routes under the Air New Zealand Link brand. Its main base is Nelson Airport, with hubs at Auckland, Napier, New Plymouth, Wellington, Tauranga and Christchurch.The...
Flight 8841 was flying from Wellington International AirportWellington International AirportWellington International Airport is an international airport located in the suburb of Rongotai in Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. It is a secondary hub and focus city for Air New Zealand and its subsidiaries...
to Nelson AirportNelson Airport (New Zealand)Nelson Airport is an airport in Nelson, New Zealand. Approximately 1.2 million passengers and visitors are said to use the airport terminal annually. Total passenger numbers for the 2011 financial year were 758,250. This represents passenger growth of approximately 11% on the previous...
but was diverted to Blenheim due to bad weather in Nelson, New ZealandNelson, New ZealandNelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....
. On landing, the nosegear on the Dash 8 Series 300 collapsed. No passengers or crew were injured. - On 9 February 2011, an Air New Zealand Bombardier Q300 Dash 8 aircraft - Flight NZ8309, operated by the subsidiary Air Nelson again suffered a nose wheel failure upon landing at Blenheim AirportWoodbourne AirportWoodbourne Aerodrome is a small, controlled aerodrome located 3NM west of Blenheim in the South Island of New Zealand, on State Highway Six, Middle Renwick Road.-History:Woodbourne was one of the first airports in New Zealand...
. It had been scheduled to fly from HamiltonHamilton, New ZealandHamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...
to WellingtonWellingtonWellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
(in the North Island), but was diverted to Blenheim after crew reported a problem with the undercarriage. After circling the airport four times, the aircraft landed with the nose gear undeployed coming to a stop approximately two thirds along the length of the runway. No injuries were sustained. A Transport Accident Investigation Commission report is pending (#11-002), is unlikely to be released after October, 2011. - On 4 March 2011, a wheel fell off a Bombardier Q400 operating a FlybeFlybeFlybe Group PLC is a British low-cost regional airline headquartered at the Jack Walker House at Exeter International Airport in Devon, England...
flight from Exeter to Newcastle. The aircraft returned to Exeter and made an emergency landing, no one was injured. The AAIB report said the wheel bearing had seized and allowed the wheel to detach. - On 7 March 2011, an Air Iceland Bombadier Q100 Dash 8 aircraft suffered a collapsed right landing gear whilst landing at Nuuk AirportNuuk AirportNuuk Airport is an airport in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. The airport is a technical base and focus city for Air Greenland, the flag-carrier airline of Greenland, linking the capital with several towns in western and south-western part of the country, including the airline hub at Kangerlussuaq...
, GreenlandGreenlandGreenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. Several of the 31 Passengers on board reported a severe crosswind gust immediately prior to the main gear touching down, which resulted in the aircraft drifting over and subsequently making contact with snow banks alongside the runway, causing the right gear to collapse.