Emirates Flight 521

Emirates Flight 521 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Thiruvananthapuram, India, to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, operated by Emirates using a Boeing 777. On 3 August 2016, the aircraft, carrying 282 passengers and 18 crew, crashed while landing at Dubai International Airport.

All 300 people on board survived the accident; 32 occupants were injured and 4 occupants were seriously injured. An airport firefighter died during the rescue operation; another seven firefighters were injured. The accident is the first hull loss involving an Emirates aircraft.

Flight

On 3 August 2016, Flight EK521 took off from Trivandrum International Airport (TRV) at 10:34 IST (05:04 UTC), 29 minutes after its scheduled departure time. It was scheduled to land at Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 12:24 GST (08:24 UTC).

The approach and landing were normal from the air traffic control (ATC) point of view, with no emergency declared, according to ATC recordings at the time. The crew reported that they were going around, after which the tower instructed them to climb to 4,000 ft, which was acknowledged by the crew. Shortly after, the tower instructed the next flight to go around and alerted emergency services. Wind shear and an ambient temperature of 48 C were reported.

The accident occurred at 12:37 GST (08:37 UTC). Significant wind shear affected the aircraft's airspeed through late final approach, and the aircraft touched down onto the 4351 m runway 12L at a point about 1100 m beyond the threshold, at a speed of 162 kn. Two seconds later, the cockpit RAAS issued a "LONG LANDING" warning and the crew initiated a go-around. Six seconds after main-wheel touchdown, and with the nose-wheel still off the runway, the aircraft became airborne again after rotating to climb attitude. The flap setting was reduced to 20°, and the undercarriage was selected to retract, but the engine throttle remained unchanged because activation of go-around automation is inhibited after touchdown. The aircraft attained a maximum height above the runway of 85 ft with its indicated airspeed decreasing, before commencing to settle back towards the ground. Twelve seconds after becoming airborne, the crew manually advanced the throttles to maximum, but the aircraft continued to sink, and it impacted the runway with its undercarriage in a partially retracted state 3 seconds later.

The aircraft first impacted with the underside of its rear fuselage and skidded about 800 m along runway 12L with its landing gear partly retracted as it turned to the right about 120°. As the aircraft skidded down the runway, the number-2 (starboard or right) engine detached and slid along the wing's leading edge toward the wingtip. Firefighting appliances were at the aircraft less than 90 seconds after it came to rest (which was 33 seconds after the initial impact) and started to fight fires at several locations, as all 300 passengers and crew were safely evacuated. Videos from inside the aircraft, taken on passengers' cellphone cameras, showed the passengers failing to evacuate, instead giving priority to carry-on luggage, resulting in an overly long evacuation and heavy criticism. Nine minutes after the aircraft came to a stop, with only the aircraft captain and the senior flight attendant still on board (checking for any remaining passengers), an explosion occurred as flames reached the aircraft's center fuel tank. The explosion resulted in the death of a firefighter, a Ras al-Khaimah resident named Jassim al-Balooshi. Thirty-two of the aircraft's occupants were injured, including the captain and the senior flight attendant, who evacuated after the explosion; the senior flight attendant was the only person among the passengers and crew seriously injured, suffering from smoke inhalation. In addition, seven firefighters were injured, several of them suffering from heat stroke. The explosion spread the fire to the aircraft's cabin; firefighters needed 16 hours to bring the fire under control. The airport was closed during and following the accident, which resulted in many diverted flights.