Brakes seized as plane came to land at Newquay Airport, report says

The brakes seized and mainwheel tyres deflated during the landing of a Beech 400A

A lack of warning that a plane's parking brake was on may have contributed to an accident at Newquay Airport, a report has said.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report said the brakes of a small jet seized and its tyres deflated during the flight on 7 October 2023.

The plane, carrying two crew members and one passenger, was evacuated.

Investigators said there was no "visual warning" the parking brake had been left on during take-off.

The crew of the flight from East Midlands Airport noticed deceleration was "greater than normal" upon touchdown at Newquay, investigators said.

It said rapid deceleration was caused by either the mainwheel tyres having already deflated due to the fuse plugs having melted, the brakes seizing, or a combination of both.

Rising smoke

The AAIB said the brakes became overheated during the take-off run because the parking brake was left on.

Smoke was seen rising from the mainwheel tyres of the Beech 400A jet as it landed at Newquay, it said.

The airport fire service attended the scene but found no fire and there were no injuries.

The AAIB recommended a checklist completed by pilots before take-off be amended to include removing the parking brake.

"The lack of a light or caption to indicate that the parking brake is on, or an aural or visual warning that the parking brake is on when take-off power is applied, may have contributed to the incident, as may have the lack of a 'release parking brake' item in the before take-off checklist," the report said.

It said adding an item to the checklist was a "less effective solution" than modification, but there was "no scope" for future modification due to the aircraft no longer being manufactured.