The pilots of a Boeing 747-400 were probably so focused on adjusting the airplane’s lateral flight path that they failed to notice the 747’s descent path was “too low to be appropriate,” which prompted an emergency go-around “to avoid [crashing] into the ground,” the Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB) says.
The JTSB said, in its final report on the April 11, 2018, serious incident, issued in late July, that Thai Airways Flight 660 descended to 261 ft above ground level during its approach to Runway 16L at Tokyo Haneda International Airport. The flight crew then conducted a go-around and landed the 747 on Runway 22 just after midnight local time on April 12.
None of the 384 people in the airplane was injured, and the airplane was not damaged in the incident, which occurred just before midnight in visual meteorological conditions with visibility of at least 10 km (0.6 mi).
“It is probable that coming close to the ground was caused by the PIC’s [pilot-in-command…
