Event Details


Title:Runway excursion during landing, Southwest Airlines Flight 2066, Boeing 737-300, N343SW, Amarillo, Texas, May 24, 2003
Micro summary:This Boeing 737-300 left the runway on landing, returned to it, and the nosewheel gear collapsed.
Event Time:2003-05-24 at 2136 CDT
File Name:2003-05-24-US.pdf
Publishing Agency:National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
Publishing Country:USA
Report number:FTW03MA160
Pages:35
Site of event:Amarillo International Airport, runway 4
Departure:McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Destination:Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport, Amarillo, Texas, USA
Airplane Type(s):Boeing 737-300
Flight Phase:Landing
Registration(s):N343SW
Operator(s):Southwest Airlines
Type of flight:Revenue
Occupants:68
Fatalities:0
Serious Injuries:0
Minor/Non-Injured:68
Other Injuries:0
Executive Summary:On May 24, 2003, about 2136 central daylight time,1 a Boeing 737-300 (737), N343SW, registered to and operated by Southwest Airlines Company (Southwest) as flight 2066, veered off the left side of runway 4 during landing at Amarillo International Airport (AMA), Amarillo, Texas. The flight crew steered the airplane back toward the runway, the nose landing gear collapsed, and the airplane came to a stop on the runway. The 63 passengers and 5 crewmembers were not injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The scheduled domestic air carrier flight was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 121 with an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan filed; visual meteorological conditions prevailed with thunderstorms in the vicinity of the airport. The flight originated from McCarran International Airport (LAS), Las Vegas, Nevada, about 1945.

The probable cause of this accident was the flight crew’s failure to align the airplane’s ground track with the runway centerline before touchdown and the flight crew’s failure to maintain directional control of the airplane after touchdown. Contributing to the accident was the flight crew’s decision to continue the approach and to land with a thunderstorm (with associated gusty and variable winds) reported at the airport and the heavy rain, which reduced the flight crew’s visibility on short final.
Learning Keywords:Operations - Runway Excursion
Operations - Upset - Uncommanded or excessive Yaw
Operations - Whiteout or Poor Visibility from Cockpit
Systems - Landing Gear
Systems - Landing Gear - Nose Gear Collapse

 




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