Ground Accident Probe to Focus on HumanFactors

The Safety In­ves­ti­ga­tion Au­thor­ity, Fin­land “ The airplane, that was just out of maintenance, was being prepared for departure. After removal of the wheel chocks, with the engines running at idle, it began to move forward, traveled approximately nine meters, and hit a ground power unit. The on-site examination revealed that the airplane’s parking brake was not set, ” explains investigator-in-charge Janne Kotiranta.

“ The airplane, that was just out of maintenance, was being prepared for departure. After removal of the wheel chocks, with the engines running at idle, it began to move forward, traveled approximately nine meters, and hit a ground power unit. The on-site examination revealed that the airplane’s parking brake was not set, ” explains investigator-in-charge Janne Kotiranta.

“ Similar accidents have occurred worldwide, and some have resulted in injuries to persons. Luckily, this time, no-one was injured, even though the airplane and equipment sustained substantial damage. A ground handling agent, seeing the airplane coming toward him, had to make a quick dash to avoid being hit, so we definitely had a close call here. Propeller fragments were found at a distance of nearly 30 meters from the airplane, which shows that the situation could have had real dire consequences, ” Kotiranta continues.

“There is one thing that needs to be explained. Images from the accident site show the apron covered by white firefighting foam. This is because the rescue service suspected that harmful composite dust had released from the disintegrated propeller, and the rescuers wanted to suppress any dust for the safety of those who were still working around the plane*. The passengers were not exposed to a fire hazard, nor were any fuel leaks detected,” Kotiranta states.

The on-site examination was completed during the evening of August 16. The investigators removed the airplane’s flight data recorder (FDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR) for downloading and analysis.

The SIAF has set up an investigation team to proceed with gathering of evidence and material and with conducting interviews. The investigation will focus on the role of human factors in aviation accidents.

The purpose of a safety investigation is to promote general safety and prevent accidents and incidents. A safety investigation is not conducted in order to allocate legal liability.

The duration of a safety investigation is approximately 9 to 12 months.

*Correction on 11 September 2025: The sentence corrected to the above form. The foam was used after passanger embarkation.