Investigation Summary
The flight was a domestic executive operation carrying several high-ranking Democratic Republic of the Congo officials, including the Finance Minister and the Governor of South Kivu. The flight originated in Kinshasa and made an intermediate stop in Goma to refuel and enplane additional passengers before proceeding to Bukavu. During the approach to Bukavu-Kavumu Airport, the crew was reportedly not focused on landing procedures, resulting in the aircraft being significantly higher than the standard glide path. Despite the excessive height and speed, the crew continued the landing rather than initiating a go-around. The Gulfstream touched down approximately 1,200 meters (3,937 feet) down the 2,000-meter (6,561-foot) runway. Although the pilots activated the thrust reversers on both Rolls-Royce Tay engines, they did not deploy the ground spoilers, which are critical for dumping lift and increasing wheel braking effectiveness. With only 800 meters of runway remaining, the aircraft could not be stopped. It exited the runway surface, struck two people on the ground, and fell into a ravine. While there was no post-crash fire, the impact forces were fatal to four occupants and two bystanders.
Final Conclusions
The accident was caused by the flight crew's failure to maintain a stabilized approach, leading to a touchdown far beyond the safe landing zone. Contributing factors included the crew's lack of focus during the approach, the failure to deploy ground spoilers upon touchdown, and the decision to continue the landing instead of performing a go-around when it became clear the aircraft would not stop within the available runway length.
Photographic Evidence (1)
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Airframe & Maintenance
Systems & Failure Modes
Ground Spoilers
Aerodynamic surfaces on the wing that deploy upon touchdown to dump lift and transfer aircraft weight to the wheels for effective braking; these were not used during the accident sequence.
Thrust Reversers
Systems on the Rolls-Royce Tay 610-8 engines that redirect exhaust flow forward to assist in deceleration; these were confirmed to be activated during the overrun.
Interesting Facts
- 01The runway at Bukavu-Kavumu Airport is 2,000 meters long.
- 02The aircraft touched down with only 40% of the runway length remaining.
- 03Two people on the ground were killed in addition to four occupants of the aircraft.
- 04Post-accident photos confirmed that thrust reversers were deployed but flaps were in the landing position without spoiler extension.
- 05The aircraft was operated by Katanga Express and leased from Trident Aviation Services.
- 06The aircraft (MSN 1104) was manufactured in 1989.
- 07While ASN and Wikipedia confirm 12 souls on board (2 crew and 10 passengers), BAAA reports a lower count of 9 (2 crew and 7 passengers).
Safety Actions & Advisories
License Suspension
Source ↗Following the accident, the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo suspended the operating license of Katanga Express while Congolese and American teams investigated the crash.
EU Air Carrier Ban
Source ↗In December 2012, ten months after the accident, Katanga Express was added to the list of air carriers banned from operating within the European Union.