A Boeing 737 freighter exceeded the stable approach maximum descent rate four times in the last 500 ft of an approach to Exeter Airport in Devon, England, and then touched down in a hard landing that caused extensive damage to the airplane, the U.K. Air Accidents Investigation ranch (AAIB) says.
The two pilots, the only people in the West Atlantic 737-400, were uninjured in the Jan. 19, 2021, accident. The airplane was damaged beyond economical repair, the AAIB said.
In its final report on the accident, released May 19, the AAIB concluded that the hard landing resulted from “the approach being continued after it became unstable after the aircraft had [passed] the point where the crew had declared the approach stable and continued.”
The report noted that the flight crew had observed the high rates of decent, along with associated alerts, and continued their final approach to land.
“Had the approach been discontinued and a GA [go-around] flown, even at a low height, whi…
