Indigo suffers 4 tailstrikes in 3 months. What is a tailstrike and why is it dangerous?
IndiGo flight suffers tail strike on landing on Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Photo: Representative, Twitter/Indigo6e
An IndiGo flight crew has been taken off the roster after the flight from Bengaluru suffered a tailstrike upon landing in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The incident took place on Thursday, June 15. No passengers were injured in the incident.
Tailstrikes can happen during takeoff or landing due to various issues. While it is rare for tailstrikes to cause serious accidents when the incident takes place, the faults can show up years later in the aircraft in fatal ways.
The Thursday incident is IndiGo's fourth tailstrike in just the last 3 months. And in fact, just days earlier on Sunday, June 13, an IndiGo flight from Kolkata to Delhi suffered a tailstrike while landing at Delhi's IGI airport.
IndiGo flight 6E6595, operating from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad experienced a tail strike while landing in Ahmedabad. The aircraft was declared grounded at Ahmedabad airport for necessary assessment and repairs. The incident is under investigation by relevant authorities: IndiGo's… https://t.co/fj8rUAlGHN pic.twitter.com/NDGB8a0sOS
— ANI (@ANI) June 15, 2023
The aircraft have been grounded for repairs and the flight crews have been taken off the roster at the direction of the DGCA.
What is a tailstrike?
- A tailstrike occurs when the tail of an aircraft skids through or hits the ground or an object during takeoff or landing.
- There are various reasons why this could occur, but mostly it is due to a "high attack angle" during takeoff or landing.
- Boeing in a study of tailstrikes noted that some models of their aircraft can be susceptible to tailstrikes, but blamed most such incidents on pilot error and pilot experience.
- The Boeing study said that tailstrikes may occur among pilots with even the most experience with an aircraft model, with those transitioning from one model to another, or have less than 100 hours of flight time with a new aircraft.
- In IndiGo's case, the aircraft affected have been Airbus A321 neos.
- While there are no specific recurring incidents of tailstrikes in the A320 families, there have been a few incidents.
Airbus A321 and tailstrikes
- In 2016, the first A321 neo on a test flight suffered a tailstrike and was sent for repairs.
- In 2022, there was an incident with a British Airways Airbus A321neo aircraft that nearly overturned on the runway while landing at London Heathrow Airport due to a tailstrike. It made a successful and safe landing on the second attempt.
Why are tailstrikes a serious issue?
There are a few tailstrike accidents that serve as a grim reminder of what can go wrong:
- In August of 1985, a domestic Japan Airlines Flight 123 crashed killing 520 passengers and crew. There were only 4 survivors. It has become the single-deadliest single aircraft accident in the history of aviation.
🗓 | #𝗢𝗧𝗗 𝗶𝗻 𝟭𝟵𝟴𝟱: The deadliest single-aircraft accident in aviation history: Japan Airlines Flight 123 (Boeing 747SR) crashes into Mount Takamagahara after losing all hydraulics and control due to improper repairs in an earlier tailstrike. 520 of the 524 on board die. pic.twitter.com/FnNN42DkMI
— Air Crash Investigation (@AirCrash_) August 12, 2022
- The crash was later attributed to faulty repairs done by Boeing technicians following a tailstrike on the aircraft seven years before the accident.
- The flight incurred severe structural failure and decompression resulting in the crash.
- China Airlines Flight 611 from Taiwan to Hong Kong crashed in May 2002 killing all 225 passengers and crew on board.
🗓 | 𝗢𝗻 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘆 (𝟮𝟬𝟬𝟮): China Airlines Flight 611 disintegrates over the Taiwan Sea, all 225 on board die. A faulty repair to the lower rear skin of the plane following a tail strike on landing in February 1980 had caused the entire tail section to weaken and fail. pic.twitter.com/rrNGS43zoO
— Air Crash Investigation (@AirCrash_) May 25, 2023
- The flight crashed over faulty repairs carried out on its Boeing 747 aircraft following a tailstrike 22 years before the incident.
- A tailstrike can weaken the airframe of aircraft and cause other serious damage to the aircraft. If these issues are not repaired properly, then they can cause serious disasters many years down the line.
With regards to IndiGo, nearly half a dozen planes seem to have been hit by tailstrikes in the past year alone. IndiGo is busy inducting new planes from Airbus and Boeing.