A Singapore Airlines jet yesterday took a wrong turn across a parking apron, knocking down equipment and incurring minor damage to its wing at CKS International Airport, according to officials.
Singapore's flight SQ29, a Boeing 747-400 with 364 passengers and 22 crew aboard, was able to continue its flight, taking off at around 7:10am and landing safely at Singapore's Changi Airport at 11:15am, according to the airline.
A senior CKS airport officials blamed the incident on the crew of the Singaporean plane, alleging that the company's pilots aren't familiar enough with the airport's layout.
This is the second time in just over a month Singapore Airlines crew have had trouble navigating the taxiways at CKS airport, according to another aviation official in Taiwan.
A Singapore Airlines spokesperson declined to comment on these statements.
"Flight SQ29 went down the wrong taxiway. It should have gone down the SS taxiway and turned right onto S5 taxiway ... instead the crew turned prematurely into a remote parking apron," said the official, who requested anonymity.
"It was broad daylight and clear; no other airline made such a mistake. How did the Singapore Airlines crew make this error?" the official said.
Air traffic controllers observed the wrong turn onto the parking apron -- which measures 57.4m across compared to the 64.5m width of the 747 -- and informed the flight's crew, who acknowledged their mistake.
Unbeknownst to both pilots and air controllers, while passing through the parking apron the aircraft knocked over two light metal tail stands used for supporting the tail of a plane during maintenance work and loading, the official said.
Only after the plane had taken off did groundcrew discover the overturned equipment and inform the control tower.
Roughly seven minutes after takeoff the crew was contacted by the controllers who informed them of the collision and advised they monitor the aircraft's operation for damage and return for a thorough inspection, according to the official.
But according to a statement by Singapore Airlines, which is considered one of the world's safest carriers, "After conducting checks inflight, the captain found no abnormalities with the aircraft's performance and decided to continue to Singapore."
"On arrival in Singapore, the aircraft was inspected. Some minor damage to a wing panel was detected," the statement said.
The incident drew widespread local media coverage, coming 21 months after a Singapore Airlines jet slammed into construction equipment while attempting to takeoff from a closed runway during a fierce typhoon, killing 83 people on board.
The fatal accident opened a rift between Taiwan aviation investigators -- who blamed the airline's crew -- and the carrier's management and the Singapore government, which said the verdict ignored deficiencies at the airport.
While the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) in Taiwan said it will launch an investigation into the cause of yesterday's incident, the senior CKS airport official was quick to point the finger of blame at the Singapore Airlines crew.
"Singapore Airlines pilots simply aren't familiar enough with the layout of our airport's taxiways and runways. Before takeoff they should consider the route to which they will take to the runway," the official said.
The official said that all the instructions from the air traffic controllers were consistent with procedure and accurate.
Singapore Airlines' flight operations management and investigators from Singapore's Ministry of Transport are also launching a probe into the incident.
According to Kay Yong (
Singapore Airlines lodged a complaint with the CAA about deficient signage, which the airline also said was a major factor in the fatal accident in 2000.
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