2007 Dash 8 landing gear incidents

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**Scandinavian Airlines Flight 1209**
Summary
Date	September 9, 2007
Type	Landing gear failure
Site	Aalborg, Denmark
Passengers	69
Crew	4
Injuries	5
Fatalities	0
Survivors	73
Aircraft type	Dash 8-400 (Q400)
Aircraft name	Ingrid Viking
Operator	Scandinavian Airlines (SAS)
Tail number	LN-RDK
Flight origin	Copenhagen Airport
Destination	Aalborg Airport

**Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2748**
Summary
Date	September 12, 2007
Type	Landing gear failure
Site	Vilnius Airport, Lithuania
Passengers	48
Crew	4
Injuries	0
Fatalities	0
Survivors	52
Aircraft type	Dash 8-400 (Q400)
Aircraft name	Göte Viking
Operator	Scandinavian Airlines (SAS)
Tail number	LN-RDS
Flight origin	Copenhagen Airport
Destination	Palanga International Airport

**Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2867**
Summary
Date	October 27, 2007
Type	Landing gear failure
Site	Copenhagen Airport, Denmark
Passengers	40
Crew	4
Injuries	0
Fatalities	0
Survivors	44
Aircraft type	Dash 8-400 (Q400)
Aircraft name	Asta Viking
Operator	Scandinavian Airlines (SAS)
Tail number	LN-RDI
Flight origin	Bergen Airport, Norway
Destination	Copenhagen Airport, Denmark

SAS Dash 8-400 (Q400)

In September 2007, two separate incidents of similar landing gear failures occurred within four days of each other on SAS Dash 8-Q400 aircraft. A third incident occurred in October 2007, leading to the withdrawal of the type from the airline's fleet.

1 Scandinavian Airlines Flight 1209
- 1.1 Investigation
- 1.2 Maintenance procedures
2 Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2748
3 Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2867
4 Aftermath
5 Similar incidents with Dash 8
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Scandinavian Airlines Flight 1209

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 and the right wing touched ground and a fire broke out. The fire was extinguished by airport emergency teams and all passengers and crew were evacuated. Five people suffered minor injuries, some from propeller parts entering the cabin and others from the evacuation.

[edit] Investigation

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.^[1]

On September 19, 2007 the prosecutor of Stockholm commenced a preliminary investigation regarding suspicion of creating danger to another person.^[2]

[edit] Maintenance procedures

Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) has been accused of cutting corners for maintenance. As the Swedish Civil Aviation Authority 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.^[3]

Radio Sweden International reports that a security analyst for the Norweigian 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.^[4]

[edit] Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2748

Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2748, a de Havilland Canada 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.^[5] The local officials at the Vilnius International Airport noted that this was the most serious incident in recent years.^[6]

[edit] Scandinavian Airlines Flight 2867

On October 27, 2007, a Dash 8-400 (LN-RDI), SAS 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, the pilots attempted a prepared emergency landing. The pilots were forced to land the aircraft with the left main landing gear up. The aircraft stopped on the runaway 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.^[7]^[8]^[9]

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.^[10]^[11] Accordingly EASA announced that "...the Scandinavian airworthiness authorities will reissue the Certificates of Airworthiness relevant to this aircraft type in the coming days." ^[11]

[edit] 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 Bombardier recommended that all the Dash-8-400 aircraft with more than 10,000 flights stay grounded until further notice,^[12] 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.^[13]

On 13 September 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.^[14]^[15]^[16]

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.^[16]

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.^[17]

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.^[18]

On October 28, 2007 SAS announced that it will remove all Dash-8-Q400 aircraft from service permanently.^[19]

It has been speculated that a November 2007 shakeup of Bombardier management has been spurred by the Dash-8-Q400 issues.^[20]

On March 10, 2008 a multi-party settlement agreement was announced in which SAS and partners received a US $164 million discount on a new order for 27 aircraft from Bombardier.^[21]

[edit] Similar incidents with Dash 8

Wikinews has related news:

Scandinavian Airlines System landing gear failures prompt grounding of Bombardier Q400s

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 Airport. The missing wheel was detected by visual inspection of the aircraft after landing in Salzburg Airport, and the wheel was later recovered. A probable cause was a displaced outer bearing grease seal, causing overheating.^[22]^[23]
In 2004, an All Nippon Airways flight made an emergency landing with a failure of the right landing gear at Kōchi Ryōma Airport.
On 9 June 1995, Ansett New Zealand Flight 703 from Auckland Airport to Palmerston North 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.^[24]
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 Airport after extending its gear manually. See also: All Nippon Airways Incidents.^[25]^[26]
In August 2007 A previously repaired Dash-8 had to return to Copenhagen 10 minutes after departure due to problems with the indicator lights of the landing gear.^{[citation needed]}
On September 12, 2007, SAS flight SK2748 with 48 passengers and four crew members was on flight to Palanga, Lithuania when problems with the main landing gear was identified. The pilots were forced to make an emergency landing at Vilnius Airport. After landing the right gear collapsed.
On September 21, 2007, Lufthansa Flight LH4076 (tail number D-ADHA) with 68 passengers and four crew members was on flight to Florence, Italy when problems with the front landing gear were identified. The pilots were forced to make an emergency landing at Munich Airport. The aircraft landed with its front landing gear up. There were no injuries. The aircraft is owned by Augsburg Airways.^[27]^[28]
20 April 2007: a Dash 8 operated by Bahamasair 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.^[29]
12 August 2007, at 9:37 local time, a Dash 8 Q400 aircraft skidded off the runway at Gimhae International Airport, Busan, South Korea, injuring 6 people and damaging the aircraft, particularly the left propeller.^[30]^[31]
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.^[32]^[33]
On 12 October 2007, a Scandinavian Airlines flight scheduled for Copenhagen returns to Warsaw due to problems with the landing gear.^[34]