Pilot thought building was runway

A charter flight carrying more than 100 passengers went off course on landing at Dublin Airport after lights from a near-by building were mistaken for the runway, it emerged today.

The plane was on approach at 11.34pm on August 16 when it deviated from its course and dipped below the Minimum Descent Altitude (MDA), without the runway in view.

Air Traffic Control (ATC) ordered the aircraft, which was en route to Ireland from Lisbon, to change direction and climb to a safe altitude.

The flight, carrying 112 passengers and five crew members, subsequently landed safely.

Preliminary findings from the Department of Transport’s Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU) found that lights from a near-by 16-storey building at Santry Cross appeared, at night, to resemble the red and white lights of runway approach.

The building is equipped with four fixed red obstacle lights on its roof.

Following a meeting between investigators and the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), it was agreed pilots and operators would be made aware of the building.

A review into the suitability of the obstacle lights will also be carried out by the IAA.