An aircraft’s brakes burst into flames after landing at Manchester Airport last year, a report has found.
The incident happened onboard a Ryanair flight on March 17, 2022. The Boeing 737-8AS was carrying 167 passengers at the time.
Crew at Manchester Airport were alerted to the situation with a request for the fire service to meet an aircraft with “brakes on fire.”
An Air Accident Investigations Branch report has referred to the fire as a “serious incident”.
The aircraft was taxiing into the airport’s Terminal Three when flames were spotted.
Upon landing, Ryanair crew thought the plane had a flat tyre due to it needing more force than usual to manage the standard taxi speed.
However, after hearing the call asking for fire teams to attend, the aircraft’s crew realised it was about their plane.
As a result, they “immediately completed the parking procedure and shut down the engines,” the AAIB report outlines.
“A ‘standby’ call was made to the cabin crew and the situation was monitored,” the report continues, adding: “The fire service arrived and extinguished the fire, which had broken out around the left main landing gear wheels.”
Because the fire was put out quickly, there was no emergency evacuation needed, so passengers were able to disembark the plane as normal.
The AAIB summarised that a “fatigue crack” had led to the wheel failure and subsequent fire.
It was also noted the aircraft’s “approach and landing were normal” and the “brake application was as expected.”
“The wheel failure caused a hydraulic leak from the brake piston and the heat generated by the misaligned wheel caused the hydraulic fluid to combust, resulting in a fire,” the report states.
The aircraft’s wheel manufacturer has since introduced an ultrasonic inspection technique to inspect for cracks in the wheel hub, which Ryanair has added to its Boeing 737-8AS aircraft fleet.
A Ryanair spokesperson told The Independent :“Ryanair fully participated in this AAIB investigation and we welcome the report in which there are no safety recommendations for Ryanair.”
