Human error caused Emirates near-miss

Investigators said on Friday that human error was to blame for the botched take-off of an Emirates Airline plane from Melbourne in 2009. A final report by Australian authorities said incorrect entry of take-off weight data resulted in the tailstrike and runway overrun of the Emirates Airbus A340 aircraft, adding that it was not a unique event. Similar events continue to occur throughout the world, according to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) in a statement. "These sorts of errors have potentially serious safety consequences," said ATSB chief commissioner Martin Dolan. "It is encouraging to see the significant safety action that is occurring as a result of the ATSB's investigation." Dolan was speaking on publication of the ATSB's final report of its investigation into a 20 March 2009 accident, when flight EK407, with 18 crew and 257 passengers, sustained a tailstrike and overran the runway end on departure from Melbourne Airport. The ATSB found that the accident resulted from the use by the crew of incorrect take-off performance parameters. An Emirates spokesperson was not immediately available for comment on the final report, The airline said at the time of the Melbourne event that it was "being treated very seriously and with the highest priority at the most senior level in the company". The initial error was likely due to mistyping, when a weight of 262.9 tonnes, instead of the intended 362.9 tonnes, was entered into a laptop computer  to calculate the aircraft's take-off settings, the report said. The error passed through several subsequent checks without detection, it added. "We now understand what caused the error and why it wasn't picked up," Dolan said. "We also know there have been a number of other accidents and incidents that involved similar errors in a range of different aircraft operated by different airlines around the world." He added: "A lot of work is being done to minimise the risk of similar events in future. "This includes developing technological aids to assist flight crew in recognising both when take-off parameters are inappropriate and when take-off performance is degraded below a safe level" noted Dolan. "The aviation industry as a whole realises the seriousness of these issues and is working towards a solution." To stress that further action is still needed with technological aids, the ATSB has issued a safety recommendation to the United States Federal Aviation Administration.