This article is from page 6 of the 2011-07-19 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
AN INVESTIGATION has been launched after tragedy was narrowly averted at Shannon Airport on Sunday morning, when a plane slid from the runway after landing in heavy winds.
The plane, which was carrying 21 passengers and four crew members at the time, was badly damaged in the incident but no-one was injured in the accident.
Investigators are believed to be focusing on the landing gear in the nose section of the plane, which is believed to have malfunctioned on landing.
After landing, the plane veered off the runway and crashed into a number of signs on the side of the runway, causing extensive damage to the plane.
The aircraft, which is operated by Aer Arann, was covering the scheduled Aer Lingus Manchester to Shannon flight when the accident took place.
The incident forced the closure of Shannon Airport for more than five hours on Sunday, with normal service suspended from 10.30am to 4pm.
A spokesperson from Aer Arann confirmed to The Clare People yesterday that an issue with the planes front landing gear is currently being investigated.
“As the aircraft landed on its second approach at around 10.30am, it experienced a suspected failure of the nose wheel landing gear and veered off the runway onto the grass,” said the spokesperson.
“Aer Arann cannot speculate as to the cause of the incident and the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU), branch of the Department of Transport have been informed.”
A number of flights, both entering and leaving the airport, were either delayed or diverted but no flights were cancelled as a result of the incident.
The Air Accident Investigation Unit is currently investigating the incident but cannot confirm the likely cause of the accident until that investigation is complete.
The plane is understood to have skidded along the runway for more than 100 metres before it veered off the runway and came to a stop.
Wind speeds in the area were gusting as high as 35 miles per hour at the time and the plane had been experiencing extreme turbulence.
Fire brigades from Shannon and Ennis as well as a number of ambulances from Limerick and Ennis were sent to the scene, and all passengers and staff were evacuated without incident.