Accident Prevention June 1997

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Accident Prevention June 1997













F L I G H T S A F E T Y F O U N D A T I O N
Accident Prevention
Vol. 54 No. 6
For Everyone Concerned with the Safety of Flight
June 1997
Automatic Deployment of DC-9 Ground
Spoilers During Final Approach Results in a
Hard Landing Short of the Runway
According to the official U.S. accident report, failure of the cockpit voice
recorder to retain conversations during the initial approach, landing and
go-around impeded the investigation.
FSF Editorial Staff
The ValuJet Airlines Inc. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 was on short final landing approach to Runway2R at the Nashville (Tennessee, U.S.) InternationalAirport (BNA). As the DC-9 descended through 30.5meters (100 feet) above ground level (AGL), theaircrafts ground spoilers automatically deployed,and the aircraft began to descend at an excessiverate. The first officer, who was the pilot flying, pulledback on the control column and added full power.
The excessive sink rate continued. The aircrafts tailstruck the runway-approach system lights, and thelanding gear contacted the ground. The flight crewexecuted a go-around, circled the airport and landedwithout further incident on Runway 31. The aircraft came to astop on the runway. Because there was no fire or otheremergency, the aircraft was not immediately evacuated; thepassengers were transported to the airport terminal 20 minuteslater.
One flight attendant and four passengers reported receivingminor injuries in the Jan. 7, 1996, accident. The aircraft receivedsubstantial damage to its tail section, nosegear, aft fuselage, slats,flaps and both engines. Two runway-approach system lights,two runway-threshold lights and the runway were damaged.
The accident occurred at dusk, in visual meteorologicalconditions (VMC).
The final accident investigation report of the U.S.National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) saidthat the probable cause of the accident was the flightcrews improper procedures and actions (failing tocontact syste