B738, vicinity Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 2023

B738, vicinity Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 2023

Summary

On 27 August 2023, a Boeing 737-800 was subjected to significant ATC delay whilst en route from Glasgow to Palma de Mallorca after adverse weather affected all three Balearic Islands. After multiple ATC errors, a MAYDAY was declared for low fuel before a landing with less than Final Reserve Fuel despite extra fuel having been carried. Confused ATC flight handling in both French and Spanish airspace was attributed to an excessive workload, which resulted in no pre-tactical measures taken and subsequent errors in the implementation of the tactical response, which then led to use of reserve fuel.

Description

On 27 August 2023, the crew of a Boeing 737-800 (G-DRTW) operated by Jet2 on a scheduled international passenger flight from Glasgow, Scotland, to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, had anticipated the possibility of delay due to destination weather, and they loaded additional fuel. However, the flight was held for an extended time in both Bordeaux and Barcelona Area Control Centre (ACC) airspace. After the crew realized a landing with less than Final Reserve Fuel was likely, a ‘MAYDAY FUEL’ declaration was made. As anticipated, the eventual landing was made with remaining fuel below the minimum, although by only a small amount.

The full content of this page is available to registered users only.
Please Log in or Register

SKYbrary Partners:

Safety knowledge contributed by: