An unusual and terrifying incident occurred recently at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport when the pilots of American Airlines (AA) Flight AA2822, an Airbus A319 carrying up to 132 passengers, apparently forgot one of the most fundamental procedures in flight: lowering the landing gear.
The flight, which departed Austin, Texas, was on final descent and perfectly lined up on the runway when aircraft spotters noticed that something was amiss. At this stage of the descent, the landing gear is normally extended as part of the standard pre-landing checklist. In this case, though, the A319 continued its approach with the wheels still tucked away.
This dramatic moment was captured on video by ThePlaneSpotter on YouTube, showing the A319 approaching with its gear up. Within a few seconds, the cockpit warning system likely warned the crew of the unsafe condition. Soon after, the pilots were able to deploy the gear, but by this point, the approach was no longer stable.
Go Around
Startled but composed, the crew executed a go-around, a maneuver designed to abandon the landing attempt and circle around for another try. Their radio exchange with air traffic control was noticeably subdued, with the pilots saying: “Uh, it wasn’t configured in the appropriate manner.”
After circling Phoenix, the Airbus A319 returned for another approach, this time with the gear properly extended, and landed safely without incident. While passengers were spared from any real danger thanks to multiple layers of safety, the incident raises some serious questions about checklist discipline and cockpit workload management at American Airlines.
How Such Errors Occur?
Modern aircraft like the A319 incorporate a number of layers of protection against approach misconfiguration. These include:
- Landing Gear Warning System: Alerts pilots when the gear is not down when the aircraft slows below certain speeds.
- Callouts and Checklists: SOPs require the crew to verbally call “gear down” as part of landing checks.
- Autoflight Protections: Some aircraft incorporate “reject if not configured” logic in autoflight to prevent inadvertent descent with no gear.
In this case, the system appears to have done its job, which was issuing warnings that ultimately forced the crew to correct the error. Rather than risking a gear-up landing, the pilots opted for the safer alternative of going around.
The Decision: Go-Around Over Forced Landing
Going around in those conditions is textbook procedure. Rather than attempting to proceed with an unsafe landing configuration, aborting the approach allows the crew to re-establish systems, redo checklists, and configure for a proper landing. While the error may raise eyebrows, going around prevented what could have become a serious incident from escalating.
American pilots handled the error calmly and professionally. That the gear was retracted momentarily and only extended after warnings indicates a near-miss scenario rather than a system failure.
Historical Lessons: Gear Omissions in Aviation
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that crews have begun an approach to a runway with gear retracted. One of the more tragic examples was in May 2020, when a Pakistan International Airlines A320 crashed after attempting to land with the gear retracted. The pilots had been distracted and only initiated a go-around after the engines struck the runway. The resulting damage led to engine failure and the fatal outcome.
While modern checklists and warning systems render such errors less probable, human factors, including complacency, distraction, and fatigue, remain a consideration in aviation safety.
What This Means for American and Passenger Confidence?
For American Airlines, this occurrence is not only a safety concern but also a public relations concern. While no one was hurt and the flight landed safely, such lapses erode public trust. Passengers presume that every safety protocol is being adhered to rigorously, especially for a major U.S. carrier.
Airlines continuously train crews to adhere to checklists and recover gracefully from errors. These events are reviewed in pilot training programs as cautionary tales of how quickly things can fall apart when even one step is skipped.
Bottom Line
The AA2822 incident is a stark reminder: even experienced pilots forget critical steps. But the aviation system has multiple layers of protection designed in, from warnings to go-around procedures to trap such oversights before they end in catastrophe.
While the video of the mistake makes gripping watching, the real tale is that checks, warnings, and pilot professionalism together prevented any disaster.
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Source: PYOK
