CAA A320 at Kisangani on Jan 8th 2015, bird strike

Last Update: January 14, 2016 / 16:06:33 GMT/Zulu time

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Incident Facts

Date of incident
Jan 8, 2015

Classification
Incident

Flight number
FPY-441

Aircraft Registration
9Q-CAT

Aircraft Type
Airbus A320

ICAO Type Designator
A320

A CAA Compagnie Africaine Aviation Airbus A320-200, registration 9Q-CAT performing flight FPY-441 from Kisangani to Goma (Democratic Republic of Congo) with 126 people on board, ingested a bird into the left hand engine (CFM56) on departure from Kisangani's runway 13. The crew stopped the climb at 4000 feet and returned to Kisangani for a safe landing on runway 13 about 15 minutes after departure.

The French BEA reported in their weekly bulletin: "Ingestion of a bird by engine #1", the aircraft received minor damage. The Accident Investigation Board of DR Congo rated the occurrence a serious incident however and opened an investigation.

On Jan 14th 2016 the French BEA released the final report in French on behalf of the Accident Investigation Board of DR Congo (AIBDRC) concluding the probable cause of the serious incident was:

The presence of birds on the runway and in the immediate proximity around Kisangani's Bangboka Airport as result of lack of bird control devices.

The AIBDRC reported that the aircraft was to depart Kisangani's runway 13 with the instruction to maintain runway heading until 3500 feet MSL, then turn left towards Goma. The aircraft accelerated on runway 13 and reached rotation speed when the crew heard an unusual sound from the outside of the aircraft near the #1 engine. The crew subsequently informed tower about the unusual sound and requested to return to Kisangani. The crew stopped the climb at 4000 feet and returned for a safe landing.

The engine received damage to 25 of 36 fan blades and a few dents at the engine inlet.

The AIBDRC analysed that the previous sector flown by the aircraft, FPY-440 from Kinshasa to Kisangani, went without any problem or technical problem, there was no technical issue prior to the impact of birds. The emergency return to Kisangani in good weather conditions was "well applied" by the crew.

The AIBDRC concluded analysis stating, that DR Congo's Transportation Board has not yet implemented a wildlife monitoring programme and had no devices to scare birds/wildlife away on any of the country's airports.

The AIBDRC consequently recommended to the Transportation Board as well as to the Civil Aviation Authority to:

- implement an effective wildlife monitoring and control programme for all airports of the country
- ensure that the vicinity of aerodromes is kept clear of waste dumps and deposits of food attracting wildlife
Incident Facts

Date of incident
Jan 8, 2015

Classification
Incident

Flight number
FPY-441

Aircraft Registration
9Q-CAT

Aircraft Type
Airbus A320

ICAO Type Designator
A320

This article is published under license from Avherald.com. © of text by Avherald.com.
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