Continental 757 mishaps

[Pieter C. 5]

US Investigates Jets Using Wrong Runways

 

November 2, 2006

Safety investigators are looking into three incidents involving commercial jets at US airports in recent days, including two cases when aircraft used the wrong runway, officials said on Wednesday.

 

The National Transportation Safety Board said two of the incidents occurred at Newark Airport in New Jersey and the third at Seattle-Tacoma Airport. One resulted in a slight accident in which no one was hurt. Two incidents involved Continental Airlines aircraft.

 

Although runway mishaps occur hundreds of times a year without major accidents, two big jets using incorrect runways over such a short period is considered unusual.

 

Investigators are particularly sensitive to the issue now that they are investigating the August 27 crash of a Comair regional jet in Lexington, Kentucky, that killed 49 passengers and crew. That plane attempted its predawn takeoff from the wrong runway, one that was shorter than the runway it was cleared to use.

 

The first incident prompting this week's safety board review occurred on Saturday at Newark when Continental Flight 1883, a Boeing 757, landed on a taxi-way instead of the parallel runway it was assigned to use after a flight from Orlando.

 

On Monday, Alaska Airlines Flight 61 took off from Runway 34 Right instead of Runway 34 Center at Sea-Tac. The Boeing 737 completed its flight to Juneau, Alaska, without further incident.

 

On Tuesday night, the left wing tip of a Lufthansa jumbo jet taxiing to the runway struck the right wing tip of a Continental 757 that was being towed at Newark. There were 313 people aboard Lufthansa Flight 403 bound for Frankfurt and no injuries reported. The 747's wing was slightly damaged. There were no passengers on the Continental plane.

 

(Reuters)

 

[Andrew Ong 1]

I thought the Alaska Airlines 737 plane landed on the taxi-way and the Continental Airlines 757 plane took-off on the wrong assigned runway .

[S V Choong 4]

Oh do we have "poor training" here? :lol:

[Sandeep G 1]

Oh do we have "poor training" here? :lol:

 

hehehe are you making "conclusions" S V? hehehe Maybe the US jets will need a GPS voice warning system. TK was explaining to me a few weeks ago about the system installed on MAS 777s (IIRC)... is it PathProx?? What it does is annunciate the runway the aircraft is approaching, on or nearby thereby eliminating the chances of incorrect runway usage.

Edited November 4, 2006 by Sandeep G

[Teoh Z Yao 0]

Oh do we have "poor training" here? :lol:

Or maybe the pilots just wanted some thrill...

[S V Choong 4]

hehehe are you making "conclusions" S V?

 

Or maybe the pilots just wanted some thrill...

 

Yup, just straight to conclusion eventhough I know jack s#1t about it.

[Seth K 3]

Ah, Alaskan issue is jmore like a careless mistake-from my point of view, if s/he's not sure which runway, he still can see the runway number printed on the runway. Obviously, The CO pilots must be ignorence or lack of comparing taxiway and runway, where is the ATC that time?

Edited November 5, 2006 by Seth K

[Teoh Z Yao 0]

Worn away runway markings could be the culprit for ignorance, if ignorance was indeed the cause. I notice most US airports have worn off markings and if pilots are too accustomed with worn off markings, a taxiway is easily mistaken for a runway for ignorance issue. Even with the yellow markings, it could be too late for a go-around by the time the pilots realize "it's not a runway!"

 

Does that make sense? I'm just speculating.

 

In the case of the Alaskan, I think it must be mere careless mistake as Seth mentioned and his reasons.