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B738, Kingston Jamaica, 2009 (HF RE)
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| Summary | |
| On 22 December 2009 a Boeing 737-823, operated by American Airlines, ran off the eastern end of runway 12 on landing at Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston, Jamaica, having made a late touchdown on the wet runway in the presence of a significant tailwind component. | |
 | |
| Event Details | |
|---|---|
| When | December 2009 |
| Event Type | HF, RE |
| Day/Night | Night |
| Flight Conditions | On Ground - Normal Visibility |
| Flight Details | |
|---|---|
| Aircraft | BOEING 737-800 |
| Operator | American Airlines |
| Domicile | United States |
| Type of Flight | Public Transport (Passenger) |
| Origin | Miami |
| Intended Destination | Kingston/Norman Manley |
| Flight Phase | Landing |
| LDG | |
| Location - Airport | |
|---|---|
| Airport | Kingston/Norman Manley |
| HF | |
|---|---|
| Tag(s) | Ineffective Monitoring Inappropriate crew response - skills deficiency |
| RE | |
|---|---|
| Tag(s) | Overrun on Landing Late Touchdown Significant Tailwind Component |
| EPR | |
|---|---|
| Tag(s) | Emergency Evacuation |
| Outcome | |
|---|---|
| Damage or injury | Yes |
| Aircraft damage | Hull loss |
| Non-aircraft damage | Yes |
| Injuries | Many occupants |
| Investigation Type | |
|---|---|
| Type | Independent |
Description
On 22 December 2009 a Boeing 737-823, operated by American Airlines, ran off the eastern end of runway 12 during a night landing off an ILS approach at Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston, Jamaica, having made a late touchdown in the presence of a significant tailwind component.
Interim Statement
The following statement was released by the Jamaican CAA on 6 January 2010:
"The Boeing 737-823 aircraft, registration N977AN, operated by American Airlines Inc. as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 121 international scheduled passenger flight from Miami, Florida, to Kingston, Jamaica, originated at Miami International Airport at about 8:22 pm eastern standard time (EST) on December 22, 2009. At about 10:22 pm EST the aircraft ran off the eastern end of Runway 12 while landing at the Norman Manley International Airport (MKJP), Kingston.
Instrument Meteorological Conditions prevailed in the area and heavy rain was reported at the airport at the time of the accident. The aircraft was flying on an Instrument Flight Rules Flight Plan.
There were 154 persons on board the aircraft, including the pilot, copilot and four flight attendants. There were no fatalities, but numerous injuries were reported.
According to the Norman Manley Tower Controller, as the aircraft was approaching Jamaica the Automatic Terminal Information Service (ATIS) for MKJP, which relays recorded airport and weather information, was broadcasting Runway 12 as the runway designated for arrivals.
The crew contacted Jamaican Air Traffic Control and requested the Instrument Landing System (ILS) approach for Runway 12. The controller advised the crew of tailwind conditions on Runway 12 and offered them a circling approach for landing on Runway 30. The crew repeated their request for Runway 12 and were subsequently cleared to land on that runway, with the controller further advising the crew that the runway was wet. The Captain, who was the pilot flying, reported that he used the Heads Up Display (HUD) during the approach and landing.
The crew reported that after descending through the cloud cover, they made visual contact with the runway at between 1000 ft304.8 m and 700 ft above ground level. According to the Flight Data Recorder (FDR), the aircraft was traveling at the Vref (landing) airspeed of 148 knots, with a groundspeed of 162 knots, i.e. with a tailwind component of 14 knots, when the wheels made initial contact at about 4,000 feet down the 8,900-foot runway. The FDR further indicated that the aircraft bounced once, then settled onto the runway; the autobrakes then engaged, and reverse thrust and the spoilers were deployed.
The crew reported that at that point they felt that the aircraft did not decelerate normally, and they subsequently applied maximum manual (pedal) braking. The FDR indicates that the aircraft decelerated normally for an autobrake 3 setting.
The FDR indicates that during the landing rollout the aircraft veered to the left of centerline and departed the end of the runway at a groundspeed of 63 knots116.676 km/h
32.382 m/s. Examination of the crash site indicates that the aircraft then exited the runway, went through the perimeter fence, crossed a road, and came to rest on a rock-strewn beach about 175 feet beyond the departure end of Runway 12 and about 40 feet from the water line.
The aircraft’s fuselage was broken into three major pieces. The right engine, right inboard aft trailing edge flap and the right main landing gear separated from the aircraft during the accident sequence. The left winglet was almost broken off the wing. The FDR did not indicate any anomalies or malfunctions with the operation of the brakes, spoilers or thrust reversers. The FDR indicates the rate of deceleration appears normal for a wet runway.
An evaluation of the runway surface conditions at the time of landing is in progress, to determine the effect of this on the braking forces. To this point in the investigation, no mechanical problems have been found with any aspect of the aircraft. The ground-based navigation and landing aids were evaluated by a check aircraft after the accident, and were determined to be functioning normally.
The flight plan designated Grand Cayman as the alternate airport and the aircraft had sufficient fuel on board to reach that destination.
The aircraft was slightly below the maximum permitted landing weight when it landed in Kingston.
The wreckage of the aircraft remains under the control of the JCAA, through the NTSB, and will be shipped to the USA. There it will be kept in a secure facility and be available for further examination, until such time as it is no longer required for the investigation.
The JCAA continues its investigation of this event, and will provide additional updates as progress is made."
The METAR issued 20 minutes before the accident:
METAR MKJP 230300Z 32008KT 33000 +SHRA BKN014 FEW016CB SCT030 BKN100 21/20 Q1014 RETSRA
was followed by the following SPECI imediately after the accident:
SPECI MKJP 230325Z 32011KT 22000 +SHRA BKN014 FEW016CB SCT030 BKN100 21/19 Q1014 RETSRA
The investigation is ongoing.
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