Two airplanes carrying numerous passengers narrowly avoided construction workers by a mere 14 feet, according to a recent report. The incident involved a Malaysia Airlines Airbus A330 that exceeded the runway at Melbourne Airport on its way to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, passing by work vehicles by approximately seven feet during takeoff.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) report revealed that the runway had been temporarily shortened for resurfacing activities, leading to a risky situation. Subsequently, a Bambooo Airways Boeing 787 also overshot the same runway while departing for Hanoi, Vietnam, just 11 days later, passing construction works by less than five feet. The ATSB emphasized that both instances resulted in jet blast affecting the work area where personnel and equipment were present.
Fortunately, no physical injuries were reported in either incident, although one worker experienced a stress-related injury during the second occurrence. The report highlighted that the runway had been reduced from 12,000 feet to approximately 6,853 feet for the construction works. Both airline crews were reportedly informed of the change before their flights, as per the ATSB.
ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell commented on the situation, noting that neither flight crew acknowledged the significantly shortened runway despite receiving relevant information in their flight briefings. The crews were aware of the shortened runway in the weather information but failed to communicate the reduced length to air traffic control.
The ATSB report noted that the temporary runway length had been considered by the airlines’ flight dispatchers before takeoff, although this detail was not explicitly emphasized in the pre-flight briefings. Following the incidents, Airservices Australia and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority have implemented procedural changes to ensure essential aerodrome information related to reduced runway lengths due to works is provided.
Efforts to obtain comments from Malaysia Airlines and Bamboo Airways regarding the incidents are currently ongoing.