Incident Overview

Date: Tuesday 1 November 2011
Aircraft Type: Boeing 767-35DER
Owner/operator: LOT Polskie Linie Lotnicze
Registration Number: SP-LPC
Location: Warszawa-Fr‚d‚ric Chopin Airport (WAW) – ÿ Poland
Phase of Flight: Landing
Status: Substantial, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 231
Component Affected: Hydraulic hose connecting the hydraulic system on the right leg of the main landing gear with the center hydraulic systemHydraulic hose connecting the hydraulic system on the right leg of the main landing gear with the center hydraulic system
Investigating Agency: SCAAISCAAI
Category: Accident
A Polish Airlines Boeing 767-35DER, SP-LPC, experienced a forced landing at Warsaw-Fr‚d‚ric Chopin Airport (WAW) due to a hydraulic system failure during a flight from Newark, NJ, U.S.A. The aircraft entered a holding pattern at 2750 feet and was unable to deploy its gear due to the failure of the undercarriage. A pair of Polish Air Force F-16 fighters were deployed to visually confirm the landing gear issue, and they were able to identify a problem with the landing gear rather than the annunciators. The crew initiated a gear-up landing on runway 33 at 14:35, resulting in a central hydraulic system failure. The incident was attributed to a combination of factors including a faulty hydraulic hose, an open C829 circuit breaker, and inadequate crew procedures.A Polish Airlines Boeing 767-35DER, SP-LPC, experienced a forced landing at Warsaw-Fr‚d‚ric Chopin Airport (WAW) due to a hydraulic system failure during a flight from Newark, NJ, U.S.A. The aircraft entered a holding pattern at 2750 feet and was unable to deploy its gear due to the failure of the undercarriage. A pair of Polish Air Force F-16 fighters were deployed to visually confirm the landing gear issue, and they were able to identify a problem with the landing gear rather than the annunciators. The crew initiated a gear-up landing on runway 33 at 14:35, resulting in a central hydraulic system failure. The incident was attributed to a combination of factors including a faulty hydraulic hose, an open C829 circuit breaker, and inadequate crew procedures.

Description

A LOT Polish Airlines Boeing 767-35DER, SP-LPC, carried out a gear-up forced landing at Warsaw-Fr‚d‚ric Chopin Airport (WAW), Poland. No one was injured. Flight LO16 operated on a flight from Newark, NJ, U.S.A. During the flight the airplane suffered a central hydraulic system failure. About 13:16, while on approach to Warsaw’s runway 33, the crew managed to deploy the flaps for landing but the undercarriage could not be lowered. The airplane entered a holding pattern at 2750 feet but the gear could not be deployed. In the meantime a pair of Polish Air Force F-16 fighters was deployed and their pilots were able to visually confirm that it was indeed a problem with the landing gear rather than a problem with the annunciators. The crew then decided to carry out a gear-up landing on runway 33 at 14:35. Causes of the accident 1. Failure of the hydraulic hose connecting the hydraulic system on the right leg of the main landing gear with the center hydraulic system, which initiated the occurrence. 2. Open C829 BAT BUS DISTR circuit breaker in the power supply circuit of the alternate landing gear extension system in the situation when the center hydraulic system was inoperative. 3. The crew’s failure to detect the open C829 circuit breaker during approach to landing, after detecting that the landing gear could not be extended with the alternate system. Factors contributing to the occurrence were as follow: 1. Lack of guards protecting the circuit breakers on P6-1 panel against inadvertent mechanical opening; from 863 production line the guards have been mounted in the manufacturing process (SP-LPC was 659 production line). 2. C829 location on panel P6-1 (extremely low position), impeding observation of its setting and favoring its inadvertent mechanical opening. 3. Lack of effective procedures at the Operator’s Operations Centre, which impeded specialist support for the crew. 4. Operator’s failure to incorporate Service Bulletin 767-32-0162.

Primary Cause

Failure of the hydraulic hose connecting the hydraulic system on the right leg of the main landing gear with the center hydraulic system, initiating the occurrence.Failure of the hydraulic hose connecting the hydraulic system on the right leg of the main landing gear with the center hydraulic system, initiating the occurrence.

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