AAIB to Alliance Air: Strengthen Simulator Training After Bhubaneswar Runway Undershoot
New Delhi: The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has asked Alliance Air to strengthen simulator training requirements for its flight crew by incorporating advanced scenarios involving heavy rain, low-visibility approaches and rapidly deteriorating weather conditions.
The recommendation is part of the AAIB's final report into a serious incident on October 8, 2024, when an Alliance Air ATR aircraft (registration VT-RKF) undershot the runway at Bhubaneswar while landing in severe rain. According to the report, the aircraft made ground contact approximately 100 metres before the runway threshold.
There were 47 people on board the flight from Rourkela — 43 passengers and four crew members. No one was injured, and there was no fire on the aircraft.
The report records that, after landing, the pilot-in-command informed air traffic control that the aircraft had landed on Runway 51 instead of Runway 14. The AAIB attributed this to possible nervousness, stress and confusion following the serious incident, indicating a temporary lapse in situational awareness.
Among the contributory factors listed by the investigation is coordination between the two pilots. The report states that inadequate communication, cross-checking, mutual intervention and challenge-response coordination contributed to the ineffective management of deteriorating approach conditions and to the failure to initiate a timely go-around.
The AAIB also cited severe convective weather — heavy rain, turbulence, downdrafts and low visibility in the runway environment — as well as significant low-level wind shear, characterised by a rapid transition from headwind to tailwind close to the ground.
Beyond the simulator training recommendation, the bureau has asked Alliance Air to place special emphasis on pilots who have recorded operational exceedances within a six-month period. This would involve mandatory recurrent simulator sessions and targeted remedial training aimed at improving decision-making, situational awareness and adherence to standard operating procedures during adverse weather operations.
The findings place the spotlight on a widely recognised challenge in regional aviation: the decision to abandon an approach and go around. A go-around is a standard, safety-first manoeuvre, but it must be initiated early enough for the aircraft to climb safely. When weather changes quickly close to the ground — particularly when a headwind turns into a tailwind — an aircraft can lose lift and sink faster than expected, leaving crews with very little time to act.
Undershooting, where an aircraft touches down before the paved runway begins, is treated as a serious incident because of the risk of damage to the aircraft and injury to those on board. In this case, the outcome was without harm, but investigators examine such events closely for lessons that could prevent a worse result elsewhere.
The AAIB is the country's designated body for investigating accidents and serious incidents involving civil aircraft. Its mandate is to establish the circumstances and causes of an occurrence and to recommend safety improvements, rather than to apportion blame or determine liability. Its recommendations are directed at operators, regulators and other agencies so that identified risks can be addressed.
Alliance Air, a government-owned regional carrier, operates a fleet of ATR turboprop aircraft on routes connecting smaller cities. Simulator training for crews handling adverse weather is a standard part of airline safety management, and the AAIB's recommendations seek to sharpen that training for conditions of the kind encountered at Bhubaneswar.
The report does not suggest that any single factor caused the incident. Instead, it points to a combination of demanding weather and gaps in crew coordination, and it proposes training measures intended to reduce the likelihood of a repeat.
