  |
Monarch flight crew lost visual contact with runway at Gibraltar, says official report
|
A Monarch flight from Luton to Gibraltar faced problems when about to land at Gibraltar. The flight crew lost visual contact with the runway and did not follow the correct missed approach procedures. Air traffic control provided effective heading control to avoid the Boeing 757-3T7 hitting high ground. The incident happened on 17 March 2006, and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch, of the UK department of Transport, has now issued its report.
The report says that following a surveillance radar approach to
Runway 09 at Gibraltar Airport, the flight crew lost visual
contact w th the runway after passing the Visual Decision
Point (VDP). During the subsequent go-around, the crew
did not follow the correct missed approach procedures
but ATC provided effective heading control to avoid the
high ground. The lowest altitude of the aircraft when
over the land was 2,100 ft. The highest point on the
land, just south of the airfield, is 1,420 ft.
Following the incident, ATC and the aircraft operating
company made changes to procedures to reduce the
chances of a similar occurrence. Additionally, it was
considered that the airport lighting should be improved
and a recommendation has been made to that effect.
|
|
|
|
