B738, Sint Maarten Eastern Caribbean, 2017

B738, Sint Maarten Eastern Caribbean, 2017

Summary

On 7 March 2017, a Boeing 737-800 crew making a daylight non-precision approach at Sint Maarten continued it without having established the required visual reference to continue beyond the missed approach point and then only realised that they had visually  identified a building as the runway when visibility ahead suddenly improved. At this point the approach ground track was corrected but the premature descent which had inadvertently been allowed to occur was not noticed and only after the second of two EGPWS Alerts was a go-around initiated at 40 feet above the sea.

Description

On 7 March 2017, a Boeing 737-800, (C-GWSV) being operated by WestJet on a scheduled international passenger flight from Toronto to Sint Maarten as WJA2652 descended below the prescribed vertical profile on approach at destination after visibility had deteriorated and the crew did not initiate a go around until the aircraft had almost reached the sea surface. A subsequent approach after awaiting an improvement in visibility was uneventful.

Investigation

Commencement of an Investigation by the Canadian TSB was delayed because WestJet originally assessed the event as “non-reportable” notwithstanding the fact that the Company “monitors and addresses operational risk using a Transport Canada-approved Safety Management System”. Although data was successfully recovered from the QAR, relevant data on the FDR and CVR was overwritten as a result of the delayed awareness of the event. Data stored on the NVM from the aircraft TAWS was recovered and was important in helping to establish what had occurred.

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