In a near-catastrophic event, a plane landed on runway 26 under construction at Boa Vista International Airport (BVB) in northern Brazil, almost impacting a maintenance van.

The Incident

A video has been shared through the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, about an incident at Boa Vista International Airport. An Embraer EMB-110 aircraft landed on a part of the runway under construction, and the plane narrowly avoided colliding with a nearby maintenance van operating.

There is still no official confirmation, but the aircraft was probably in an emergency and had to land immediately, neglecting the published Notice to Air Missions (NOTAMs) that indicated the partial closure of the runway due to maintenance work. The maintenance team removed the van from the aircraft’s path, swiftly preventing the incident that could have happened.

The exact cause of the landing is yet to be determined through investigations. The aircraft involved is hard to recognize, considering the low quality of the footage; however, it looks similar to the PT-SFS registration equipment from an air taxi company that operates flights in that region. Boa Vista Airport remains under operation during this period, with the section under construction duly signposted. Over the past few months, the site has repeatedly suspended operations to resume the runway pavement maintenance.

In addition to this informatic procedure, the air traffic controllers will also actively inform pilots about runway closures during radio communication concerning an approach or landing at the airport. Also, there exist visual signs indicating the closure of a runway, such as barriers, maintenance vehicles, the presence of the staff, and symbols drawn on the runway for the pilots. However, in an emergency, the pilots would not be able to avoid the landing according to the risk of the situation, even when they are aware that the runway is under construction and partially closed.

Previous Closed Runway Incidents

On October 31, 2000, a Singapore Airlines Boeing 747 pushed back from stand B5 at Taipei Airport (CSK). Weather conditions on that day were challenging due to heavy rain and the typhoon passing overhead of the airport. The flight clearance to take off on runway 05L had been given for the operation. There were two runways in the airport which ran parallel to each other. Runway 05L and 05R.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Taiwan issued a NOTAM on August 31, 2000, indicating a section of runway 05R was under construction and closed between September 13 and November 22. Upon reaching the end of runway 05L, the captain turned 705 feet (205 meters) too soon and lined up with 05R. The crew was unaware they had turned too soon and were about to take off from the wrong runway onward flight to Los Angeles.

Around 41 seconds into the takeoff roll, the aircraft hit concrete barriers and other equipment placed overnight on the runway. In low visibility conditions in heavy rain, the crew was low on observation abilities and did not realize the line of construction equipment in front of them.

The plane failed to get airborne and crashed back onto the runway. The aircraft broke up and burst into flames. The wreck also collided with the construction equipment as it slid down the runway. There were 179 passengers and crew onboard SQ006; 83 were killed, two of them from the crew, 39 with serious injuries, 32 with minor injuries, and 25 remained uninjured.

Tragic accidents, such as the Singapore Airlines accident on October 31, 2000, indicate the importance of observation skills for a runway under construction. They also portray how they can be limited due to some external conditions. Even though the footage indicates some details about the incident, some details are yet to be confirmed, and the situation is under investigation.