Poor condition of runway surfaces as a cause of plane crashes

[DonMashiro]

Hello everyone !
I am currently writing my master's thesis about construction and design of runways. In my thesis, I want to add a chapter about plane crashes and accidents caused by the poor condition of runway surfaces or their damage, or where the condition of the runway had an impact on the accident, but unfortunately I cannot find information about such incidents. That's why I'm asking here if you have heard or know about such cases. I'm mostly interested in accidents where:
- there were cracks and holes in the runway that caused an accident or problems with the landing or take-off of the plane.
- the runway is too wet and slippery or snow-covered
- the runway was too short or too narrow.

Thanks in advance for your answers.

[goingnowherefast]

There are tons of accidents and incidents related to runway condition. Unfortunately I don't think they are easily sorted this way. Go to the TSB and NTSB websites and just start searching through reports.

[NovemberPapa]

Check out the report of that accident that came out a few weeks ago:
Runway was covered in snow (6 to 8in deep), but the main factor was apparently miscommunication between the flight crew and the airport manager.
https://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/enquetes-inve ... O0155.html

[pelmet]

There are tons of accidents and incidents related to runway condition. Unfortunately I don't think they are easily sorted this way. Go to the TSB and NTSB websites and just start searching through reports.

I guess that just proves that my "Threads" on this forum organizing accidents by type(such as Long Landing Thread) can be useful to anyone looking for accidents with a common trait(someone claimed it was ruining the board).

However, there is not one for this particular subject. Off the top of my head, the original poster could look up several accidents in Halifax such as the 747, Westjet 737, and Air Canada 767.

[nine sixteenths]

I guess that just proves that my "Threads" on this forum organizing accidents by type(such as Long Landing Thread) can be useful to anyone looking for accidents with a common trait(someone claimed it was ruining the board).

[/quote]

As a masters thesis is intended as an exercise and demonstration of research skills, sharing some of the resources you use to find the accidents you populate those threads with could help the OP.


OP- a resource I’d direct you towards is aviation-safety.net. It’s a reasonably well populated accident database that often has links to original source material that you could use for reference in your paper.

I don’t know that you’ll have great success in the “runway too short or narrow” category as that’s pilot error, not a runway fault. Proper flight planning means knowing that the runway you’re choosing as your destination is suitable for your aircraft. Yes, contamination or false representation of that runway size for various reasons are another story and could cause it to then be “too narrow”, however that’s not a runway design element really that’s introducing a human factor of bad/lack of reporting or maintenance.

[rookiepilot]

There have certainly been accidents due to poor design of taxiways intersecting with runways, causing confusion….

[BTD]

Skybrary.aero accident browser is also a good resource.

Usually it will be listed as a contributing factor. There have been a few in Ottawa on 07/25. WestJet,and a couple Erj 145s. Not directly related but in 2015 delta md 88 in LaGuardia,

Indonesia and the Caribbean have some as well. Again usually a contributing factor, not directly casual, but due to the heavy rains and standing water it will sometime show up in those cases when there is a excursion.

[Roar]

Here is one for you.
https://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/rapports-repo ... o0127.html

[Rooster69]

Of course never one factor in any accident. Runways too short, too narrow? Runway conditions? It always comes down to decision maker at the controls on whether or not to use any runway. Operators up north fly thousand of flights a year in to gravel runways. Our company operated twin turbines on to gravel runways. Snow covered, muddy, x-wind, short. There were no runway reports. If after it snowed then we knew it was snow covered. The PIC is responsible. Full stop.

Never heard of cracks causing an accident.

[goingnowherefast]

I have heard of innaccurate RSC info causing an accident. If the decision maker is told the runway consition is one thing, and it turn out to be wrong, not really the decision makers fault for being given crap info.