British Airways Flight BA431 Suffers Double Tail Strike at Heathrow: Lands Safely on Second Attempt, Jet Taken Out of Service
A British Airways Airbus A321neo suffered a double tail strike while attempting to land at London Heathrow Airport on the morning of November 12. The pilots performed a go-around and landed safely on the second attempt. Passengers deplaned normally and no one was injured.
The aircraft, registered G-TNEB, was operating flight BA431 from Amsterdam Schiphol to London Heathrow. Footage from the airport livestream channel Big Jet TV showed the jet touching down in an abnormal attitude, its tail striking the runway surface twice before the crew abandoned the landing, climbed away and circled back for a second, uneventful approach.
A British Airways spokesperson said: "The aircraft landed safely, and we're assisting the AAIB with its investigation and are legally unable to comment further at this stage." Investigators from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch have been called in.
The aircraft has been taken out of service for maintenance inspections. British Airways has tentatively scheduled it to return to service on November 14, subject to the extent of the damage found.
(Source: British Airways)
Source: British Airways
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：英国航空空客 A321neo 客机（资料图，同型机）。Simon Butler 摄，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: A British Airways Airbus A321neo (file photo, same aircraft type). Photo by Simon Butler, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
