LIMPOPO – An investigation is currently ongoing after an Airlink aircraft carrying 58 passengers struck three impalas while landing at Eastgate Airport near Hoedspruit on December 3 last year.
The incident occurred as the plane was arriving from Cape Town.
According to a report by the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA), the aircraft encountered a herd of over ten impalas that crossed the runway during its final approach.
The Airlink safety officer said that, as part of standard procedure, the flight crew had reported their estimated time of arrival (ETA) to the control tower. The tower attempted to dispatch its inspection vehicle to inspect the runway for hazards, a routine safety check, but the vehicle’s radio was not functioning.
As a result, the flight crew took it upon themselves to visually scan the runway.
“At 500 and 200 feet above ground level during descent, the crew could not see any wildlife,” the report stated. However, during touchdown, the crew suddenly saw the herd of impalas crossing the runway. The aircraft struck approximately three of them, which were left lying near a taxiway. Minor damage was later found on the lower engine cowling of the plane.
Sisa Majola, SACAA’s communications manager, explained that upon seeing the animals, the captain immediately disengaged the aircraft’s automatic braking system and applied full manual braking to stop the aircraft.
“The impalas initially froze in the path of the approaching plane. As the aircraft got closer, the herd scattered to the right side of the runway, but three impalas were struck by the right main landing gear roughly 500 metres from the touchdown point,” Majola said.
The collision resulted in the deaths of the three impalas, while the remaining animals fled into the nearby bush. Their carcasses were later found near the taxiway.
Following the incident, the flight crew noticed the wildlife monitoring vehicle parked on the left side of the runway, as per usual protocol. During taxiing, the captain overheard the control tower asking the vehicle crew whether they had experienced any radio issues, as no wildlife alert had been communicated before the landing.
Once the aircraft came to a complete stop, the crew disembarked to inspect for damage. The aircraft had only sustained minor damage to the lower engine cowling and remained fully operational. No passengers or crew members were injured during the incident.
