Unstabilised Approach, Low-Altitude Stall Caused 2023 Mumbai Learjet Crash: AAIB Report

Mumbai: The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has identified the flight crew's decision to continue an unstabilised approach under marginal weather conditions and improper aircraft handling as the probable cause behind the crash of a VSR Ventures Learjet 45XR at the Mumbai airport in September 2023.

According to the final report released by AAIB on Saturday, the handling lapses resulted in an aerodynamic stall at low altitude, leading to the accident on September 14, 2023.

The aircraft, operating a non-scheduled passenger charter flight from Visakhapatnam to Mumbai, was carrying eight people on board, including a Pilot-in-Command (ATPL holder), a co-pilot (CPL holder), one flight attendant, and five passengers.

The AAIB noted several critical contributory factors, including the crew's failure to monitor airspeed, a delayed go-around decision, adverse weather conditions with strong tailwinds and poor visibility, and an undue commitment by the cockpit crew to complete the landing before the onset of Mumbai airport’s scheduled restricted operational hours.

The investigation was conducted under the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017, in coordination with the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and technical advisers from the aircraft manufacturer in compliance with ICAO Annex 13 standards.

In its safety recommendations, the AAIB urged the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to review recurrent pilot training requirements—specifically emphasizing stall recovery in landing configuration—and conduct a one-time audit of training records of fixed-wing pilots working with non-scheduled and general aviation operators.

The bureau also recommended stricter enforcement of go-around procedures during unstabilised approaches, enhanced crew resource management training, stronger internal audits and verification of operator manuals.

Furthermore, the report called for improved checklist compliance by VSR Ventures, proper maintenance of aircraft logbooks and adherence to wake turbulence separation norms by AAI air traffic controllers.

On September 14, 2023, a Learjet 45XR operated by VSR Ventures crash-landed at Mumbai Airport during heavy rain and low visibility on a flight from Visakhapatnam. During the landing approach, the aircraft became unstable, veered off course, and triggered stall and ground-proximity cockpit warnings before coming down off the runway and catching fire.

All eight people on board were evacuated and hospitalized with injuries. Emergency crews extinguished the fire, and an official investigation was launched by Indian aviation authorities alongside the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to determine the cause of the accident. 

(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)

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