On Sunday, March 29 at 12:30 local time, early in the morning, an Air Canada flight enroute from Toronto, Ontario (CYYZ) to Halifax-Stanfield airport in Nova Scotia crash landed in Halifax (CYHZ). It hit an antenna array on the runway threshold which ripped off the landing gear. 25 people were injured in the crash. The Airbus A320 133 passengers and 5 crew members.
The landing gear of the Airbus A320 hit the orange antenna ray, which is part of the airports instrument landing system (ILS) 335 meters (1100 feet) short of the runway as it landed on Sunday morning. It skidded for another 300 meters or so before coming to a stop.
The collision with the antenna caused the main landing gear to rip off and separate from the aircraft. The aircraft then climbed the embankment up to the runway level, skidded on its belly and stopped.
The aircraft, registered CFTAJ was circling the airport for half an hour at 9000 feet before attempting to land, and investigators are investigating if this had in any way contributed to the accident. Though stormy, the weather was within limits and suitable for a safe landing at the time of the accident. One of the main questions in the investigation is why the aircraft was in such a low approach.
The damage to the plane is extensive. The planes nose detached as well as the port side engine, and a wing was severely damaged. All three landing gear had detached. The photos show the considerable damage to Flight 624.
It is unbelievable and very lucky that no one was seriously injured in this accident. Every one on board was fortunate to have survived this crash landing.
