Ryanair co-pilot made ‘improper and unsafe’ decision to reject take-off

AN investigation into an incident involving a Ryanair plane at a Dutch airport last year concluded that the co-pilot made a decision which only a captain is allowed to make and that the decision was improper and unsafe.

The Dutch Safety Board has published the findings of its investigation into the “serious incident” which occurred at Eindhoven Airport on June 4, 2010.

Ryanair flight FR-7412 was taking off from Eindhoven en-route to Faro, Portugal, when the first officer (co-pilot), who was flying the aircraft, rejected take-off at high speed, believing the aircraft was “unsafe to fly”.

The first officer rejected the take-off after the take-off decision speed reached V1 and nosewheel had lifted off the ground. The speed V1 is used during take-off to aid the pilot’s decision-making process in the event of an engine failure or other significant problem.

Attempting to stop above V1 is considered hazardous due to the possibility of overrunning the end of the runway.

After initiating the rejected take-off, the Boeing 737-800 came to a stop approximately 500 metres from the end of the runway and sustained no damage. None of the 158 passengers or six crew were injured.

The first officer told investigators he had difficulty keeping the aircraft on the centre line during take-off and when it reached the V1 speed, the control column was moving without the application of force.

The first officer said he experienced back pressure from the column and then had the feeling the aircraft was unsafe to fly and pulled back the thrust levers.

The investigation decided that during the take-off, the first officer perceived two control issues and one speed anomaly, which was likely related to an outside atmospheric phenomenon.

The safety board said there is no specific guidance from the operator or manufacturer on dealing with control issues at the time of rotating the aircraft.

Specific guidance on rejecting a take-off exist in case of engine failure, but 75% of the reasons to reject take-off are not trained for.