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Dash 8-400 at Guernsey floated long before overrun due to pilot errors
A Dash 8-400 wet-leased by Aurigny from Luxwing floated excessively during landing at Guernsey, leading to an overrun driven by crew misjudgment and poor cockpit communication.
The gist
Dash 8-400 crew at Guernsey overran after floating too far during landing, hampered by crew inexperience and failure to initiate go-around.
A De Havilland Dash 8-400, operated by Luxwing under wet-lease to Aurigny, landed at Guernsey airport on 23 April 2024 only to overrun the runway after floating for nearly two-thirds of its length before touchdown. Three pilots were on board: a captain conducting line-training for a new first officer, and a second first officer serving as safety pilot. The incident draws attention to cockpit dynamics and decision-making under pressure, according to the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB).
The aircraft approached runway 27 and passed the threshold before the captain initiated the flare, attempting a gentle touchdown that inadvertently caused the plane to float about 620 meters down the 1,463-meter runway. The gently downward sloped runway (approximately 1%) contributed to the sensation of floating, but the crew underestimated how far the aircraft had travelled without touching down. For approximately 10 seconds, the Dash 8-400 maintained an altitude below 10 feet at 120 knots ground speed.
Testimony revealed that neither the first officer undergoing training nor the safety pilot realized the prolonged float distance, resulting in no warnings or calls for a go-around. The captain himself reported uncertainty about how far along the runway they had floated. After a brief bounce upon main gear touchdown, manual braking was applied, but peak brake pressure was not reached until 10 seconds later. Throttle levers were reduced to enable aerodynamic propeller braking.
The aircraft's nose gear touched down roughly 520 meters from the runway’s end. It continued at about 25 knots ground speed before veering off the paved surface and stopping approximately 30 meters beyond the runway boundary. Despite all pilots acknowledging that the runway slope impaired visual perspective, the AAIB highlighted that the crew should have realized the extended time over the runway exceeded normal expectations, particularly given the runway's relatively short landing distance.
The inquiry pointed out the crew’s awareness that runway length was critical to their approach strategy, motivating the captain to remain the handling pilot during this wet-lease operation. The failure to initiate a go-around after missing the touchdown zone was therefore a significant lapse. The report also discussed the impact of junior pilots' inexperience and the hierarchical cockpit environment that may have suppressed challenges to the captain’s decisions.
Following the overrun, the captain attempted to taxi the aircraft off the rough ground back to the runway but was unsuccessful. Air traffic control directed the crew to remain stationary. The AAIB noted that the crew delayed shutting down the engines for about six minutes, conducting shutdown procedures without reference to checklists. This lapse raised concerns about potential overlooked systems or safety considerations, although no damage or injuries occurred, and all 68 occupants were safe.
Aurigny responded by requiring cockpit observation of crews operating wet-leased aircraft by one of its own training captains during the introduction of new wet-lease arrangements. This mandate aims to improve oversight and reduce risks linked to unfamiliar crew combinations. The incident highlights both human factors and operational challenges involved in wet-lease arrangements on short runways like Guernsey's runway 27.
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