A runway excursion is a runway safety incident in which an aircraft makes an inappropriate exit from the runway. Runway excursions include runway overruns, which occur when an aircraft is unable to stop before it reaches the end of the runway. Runway excursions can happen because of pilot error, poor weather, or a fault with the aircraft.[1]
According to the Flight Safety Foundation, as of 2008, runway excursions were the most frequent type of landing accident, slightly ahead of runway incursion.[2] For runway accidents recorded between 1995 and 2007, 96% of runway accidents and 80% of accidents with fatalities involved runway excursions.
Efforts to address runway excursion either focus on preventing runway excursions, or on minimizing the amount of damage or injury caused by a runway excursion. In the latter category, aviation safety regulators may establish standards such as minimum runway safety areas intended to allow adequate time and distance for an aircraft to stop in the event of a runway excursion.
A key aspect of preventing runway excursions is providing runways of sufficient length and width to accommodate the aircraft used at an airport. In the 1960s, the advent of jet airliners such as the Boeing 707, which operate at faster speeds including at takeoff and landing relative to earlier propeller-driven airliners, required longer runways. In the mid-1960s, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed increasing minimum runway length requirements by 800feet at all U.S. airports with jet airliner service, extending to 1200feet feet in rain or snow conditions. However, these requirements would have necessitated building extending runways or even building new airports in some cities. After strong industry response, the FAA withdrew the proposal and instead only mandated a fifteen per cent increase to minimum runway length during wet or slippery landing conditions.[3]
Preventing runway excursions can necessitate building new airports, when there is not room to expand existing runways. In July 1965, Continental Airlines Flight 12 (a Boeing 707) overran the runway while landing in rain and high winds at Kansas City Municipal Airport. Investigators ruled out pilot error, and determined it would have been impossible to stop the aircraft in the available runway length. Extending the 7000foot runway was not possible due to space limitations surrounding the urban airport, and construction on Kansas City International Airport north of the city was approved the next year, opening in 1972 with runways 9500feet and 9000feet in length.
See main article: Engineered materials arrestor system. Airports such as LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York, may lack adequate space to meet runway safety area standards. As a result, in the 1990s, the FAA began conducting research on new technology to rapidly stop aircraft in less than 1000feet in the event of a runway overrun.[4]
The engineered materials arrestor system (EMAS) was developed as a high energy absorbing material that could be installed as a surface beyond the end of runways, which was designed to collapse under the weight of an aircraft (absorbing energy and slowing the plane in the process) in the event of an overrun. EMAS was installed at LaGuardia Airport starting in 2005 and ending in 2015.[4] In October 2016, a Boeing 737 aircraft with 37 persons aboard, including Republican vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence, overran the runway while landing at LaGuardia. EMAS was credited with bringing the plane to a stop safely and with no serious damage or casualties.[5] [6] [7]
, EMAS has been installed at more than 100 runway end locations at more than 50 commercial airports in the United States, and has safely stopped 15 aircraft involved in runway overruns.[8]
Airbus is developing the Runway Overrun Prevention System, a flight systems technology intended to prevent runway overruns by increasing pilots' situational awareness and enhancing automation during landings.[4]
Takeoff and Landing Performance Assessment (TALPA) was introduced in 2016, whereby airport operators report Runway Condition Codes (RWYCC) for take-off and landing.
The following list includes runway excursions, which are notable because they resulted in fatalities, aircraft destruction, or substantial aviation safety changes or improvements.
| Event | Year | Location | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| British European Airways Flight 609 | 1958 | Munich-Riem Airport, Munich, West Germany | The Airspeed Ambassador crashed on its third attempt to take off at Munich-Riem Airport due to runway slush. The flight was carrying the Manchester United football team back home, along with supporters and journalists, from a European Cup match in Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia). There were 44 people on board, 20 of whom died at the scene. Three more injured died at hospital, resulting in 23 fatalities with 21 survivors. | |
| TAP Air Portugal Flight 425 | 1977 |  Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport, Portugal | A Boeing 727 operating the service overran the airport's runway before crashing onto the nearby beach and exploding, killing 131 of the 164 people on board. It remains TAP's only fatal accident in its history. [9] [10] The runway was 1,600 m (5,249 ft) long at the time of the crash. It would be extended in 1986 to 1,800 m (5,906 ft) and again in 2000 to 2,781 m (9,124 ft). | |
| Aeroservicios Ecuatorianos Flight 767-103 | 1984 |  Mariscal Sucre International Airport, Quito, Ecuador | The DC-8 cargo flight to Guayaquil failed to take off at Quito Airport, hitting an Instrument Landing System (ILS) antenna at the end of the runway and then striking several houses. All four crew and 49 people on the ground were killed. | |
| China Airlines Flight 605 | 1993 | Kai Tak Airport, Hong Kong | To avoid a runway overrun and collision with the approach light system, the captain of a Boeing 747-400 deliberately veered the plane off the left side of the runway and into Victoria Harbour. No one was killed, but the plane was written off. | |
| Philippine Airlines Flight 137 | 1998 |  Bacolod City Domestic Airport, Bacolod, Philippines | The Airbus A320-214 overran the runway due to pilot error and crashed into a residential area. There were no fatalities out of the 130 passengers and crew on board the aircraft, but three people on the ground were killed, and there were many injuries. The aircraft was written off as a loss.[11] | |
| Cubana de Aviación Flight 389 | 1998 | Mariscal Sucre International Airport, Quito, Ecuador | The Tupolev Tu-154 with 91 occupants overran the runway after aborting takeoff due to pilot error. It hit an ILS tower and crashed into a residential area after hitting the airport perimeter wall. Seventy people on board the aircraft were killed, plus ten on the ground were killed, with several people injured. The aircraft was destroyed. | |
| LAPA Flight 3142 | 1999 | Aeroparque Jorge Newbery, Buenos Aires, Argentina | A Boeing 737-204C overran the runway after the pilots accidentally attempted to take off with the flaps retracted. The plane sped across a highway, striking a car, before smashing into construction equipment and bursting into flames, killing 63 of the 100 people aboard, as well as 2 people on the ground, and injuring 3 on the ground as well. | |
| American Airlines Flight 1420 | 1999 |  Little Rock National Airport, Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. | A McDonnell Douglas MD-82 overran the runway, crashed into an approach lighting structure, and broke apart, killing 11 of the 145 occupants. | |
| Southwest Airlines Flight 1455 | 2000 | Bob Hope Airport, Burbank, California, U.S. | A Boeing 737-300 landed too fast to stop on a wet runway, crashed through a perimeter wall and came to a stop near a gas station. Everyone survived, but due to structural damage the aircraft was written off. | |
| Lion Air Flight 538 | 2004 |  Adisumarmo International Airport, Surakarta, Indonesia | While landing in wet weather, the McDonnell Douglas MD-82 overran the runway due to hydroplaning and poor aircraft braking performance. After leaving the runway, the aircraft struck an embankment and split into two sections. 25 of the 153 people on board were killed. | |
| Southwest Airlines Flight 1248 | 2005 | Midway International Airport, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | A Boeing 737-700 overran the runway while landing in a snowstorm and crashed into automobile traffic, killing one person on the ground. | |
| Air France Flight 358 | 2005 |  Toronto Pearson International Airport, Toronto, Canada | An Airbus A340 overran the end of the runway and came to rest in a ravine. 43 people were injured, and the aircraft was destroyed by a post-crash fire. | |
| S7 Airlines Flight 778 | 2006 | Irkutsk International Airport, Irkutsk, Russia | The Airbus A310 overshot the runway and struck a concrete barrier at high speed, causing the aircraft to break apart and igniting a massive fire. 125 of the 203 occupants were killed. | |
| Garuda Indonesia Flight 200 | 2007 | Adisutjipto International Airport, Yogyakarta, Indonesia | During landing, the Boeing 737-400 departed the runway, crashed into a rice field and burst into flames. Of the 140 occupants, 21 were killed. | |
| TAM Airlines Flight 3054 | 2007 |  São Paulo–Congonhas Airport, São Paulo, Brazil | An Airbus A320 overran the runway while landing in rain, and crashed into a warehouse. All 187 people on board, and 12 people on the ground, were killed. | |
| Sriwijaya Air Flight 62 | 2008 | Sultan Thaha Airport, Jambi | The Boeing 737-200 overran the runway due to a hydraulics malfunction and crashed into a house. There were no fatalities out of the 130 passengers and crew on board the aircraft, but one person inside the house was killed. The aircraft received substantial damage and was written off. [12] | |
| American Airlines Flight 331 | 2009 |  Norman Manley International Airport, Kingston, Jamaica | A Boeing 737-800 landing in rain and a tailwind touched down more than 4,000 feet from the start of the runway. Unable to stop in the remaining distance, it broke apart on rocks near the shoreline. No one was killed, but 85 people were injured and the plane was destroyed. | |
| Air India Express Flight 812 | 2010 |  Mangalore International Airport, Mangalore, India | The Boeing 737-800 overshot the end of the runway, went through a 300feet sand arrestor bed meant as excursion protection, then slid down a steep hillside. 158 of the 166 occupants were killed. | |
| Caribbean Airlines Flight 523 | 2011 |  Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Georgetown, Guyana | A Boeing 737-800 overran the runway while attempting to land in rainy weather. All occupants survived, but the aircraft was irreparably damaged and seven people were injured. | |
| Red Wings Airlines Flight 9268 | 2012 | Vnukovo International Airport, Moscow, Russia | A Tupolev TU-204-100 overran the runway while landing due to a braking system failure and pilot error running into a ditch and highway structures. The aircraft was destroyed, and five out of the eight aboard were killed. This accident was the first fatal accident of the TU-204 since its introduction in 1989. | |
| Congo A310 crash | 2015 | Mbuji-Mayi Airport, Mbuji-Mayi, DRC | The A310 operating a cargo flight for the Congolese company Services Air overran the runway at Mbuji-Mayi Airport. None of the 5 people on board were killed or injured but 8 people were killed on the ground. | |
| Ameristar Charters Flight 9363 | 2017 | , Willow Run Airport, Ypsilanti, Michigan, U.S. | The McDonnell Douglas MD-83 operating Flight 9363 registered N786TW suffered a runway excursion at Willow Run Airport, Michigan. All 110 passengers and 6 crew members survived, however one was injured. The aircraft was subsequently written off. | |
| Pegasus Airlines Flight 8622 | 2018 |  Trabzon Airport, Trabzon, Turkey | A Boeing 737-800 ran off the left side of the runway during landing and slid down a cliff, stopping short of the water. No one was killed, but the aircraft was destroyed. | |
| Sky Lease Cargo Flight 4854 | 2018 | Halifax Stanfield International Airport, Nova Scotia, Canada | A Boeing 747-400F overran Runway 14 while attempting a landing. Three crew members were injured, and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. As of May 2024, this is the most recent 747 hull loss. | |
| Saha Airlines crash | 2019 | Fath Air Base, Karaj, Alborz Province, Iran | The last Boeing 707 in commercial use overran the runway after the flight crew mistook the Fath Air Base runway for the much longer one at Payam International Airport. 15 of the 16 people on board were killed. | |
| PenAir Flight 3296 | 2019 | Unalaska Airport, Alaska, U.S. | A Saab 2000 of PenAir operating as Alaska Airlines Flight 3296 registered N686PA suffered a runway excursion at Unalaska Airport after it landed at its destination airport. Of the 42 occupants, 1 passenger died and 11 more suffered injuries. The aircraft was subsequently written off. | |
| Pegasus Airlines Flight 2193 | 2020 | Sabiha Gökçen International Airport, Istanbul, Turkey | A Boeing 737-800 overran the runway while landing in heavy rain and high winds and broke into several pieces, killing three of the 183 people aboard. | |
| Air India Express Flight 1344 | 2020 | Calicut International Airport, Kerala, India | A Boeing 737-800 overran the tabletop runway, skidding off the end of the runway and crashing into a gorge. The aircraft was carrying 190 people including 6 crew members. A total of 21 people, including both pilots, were killed in the crash. | |
| Korean Air Flight 631 | 2022 | Mactan–Cebu International Airport, Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, Philippines | An Airbus A330-322 overran the runway while landing because of a hydraulic failure. Despite what reports described as a "terrifying close call," all 173 passengers and crew members survived without injuries. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair and written off. | |
| P-8 Poseidon runway overrun | 2023 | Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, U.S. | A Boeing P-8A Poseidon overran the runway and subsequently ditched in Kāneʻohe Bay while landing. All nine crew on board survived and the accident is currently under investigation. | |
| Air Serbia Flight 324 | 2024 | Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, Belgrade, Serbia | An Embraer 195 overran on takeoff and struck runway lights before becoming airborne. All 111 passengers and crew members survived without injuries. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair and written off and was to be dismantled. |