Indigo tyre burst: Plane could have caught fire

HYDERABAD: Expressing shock over the preliminary findings of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), in the recent Indigo aircraft tyre burst incident, aviation experts said that the “lapse” could have had serious ramifications – the aircraft could have turned turtle or even caught fire.
Reportedly, AAIB has so far found that the four tyres of the ATR aircraft from Tirupati to Hyderabad, on March 28, burst as the pilots accidentally engaged the hydraulic parking brake during the flight.



“Not only is it a rare occurrence, it is also very serious. At such a high speed, there is always the fear of the plane skidding off the runway, turning upside down or even going up in flames,” said a senior pilot. Explaining the technicality in plain words, he said: “When the tyres burst, the steel part of the landing gear touches the ground. This results in friction that can cause sparks or a bigger fire. The fire can then pass on to the belly of the aircraft and engulf the entire body.”

Considering that an improper landing like this can also lead to the leakage of hydraulic oil, experts said that it too could aggravate the situation and literally add fuel to a minor spark/fire.

“But what, perhaps, averted a massive tragedy is the fact that the it was an ATR aircraft,” said another pilot highlighting the relatively reduced speed at which these smaller planes land.

While higher capacity aircraft, like the Airbus 320 and above, land at a speed of anywhere upwards of 140 knots (nautical miles per hour), an ATR’s average speed is about 110 knots. This, experts say, lowered the impact of the technical fault.

“At 140 knots and more, and given the overall weight of a larger aircraft, the consequences could be very damaging. Also, if one looks at the photographs closely, all the tyres of the ATR did not burst completely; but were only partially burnt. Before they could entirely wear out, the aircraft came to a halt,” said a Mumbaibased expert, citing it as another probable reason for the safe de-planing of passengers.

But experts refrained from blaming the pilots entirely, just yet. “Let’s wait for the final report. It could have been the pilots’ oversight, but it could also be that the mechanism failed by itself. We shouldn’t jump the gun,” a pilot said.