Iranian investigators are probing a serious incident involving an Iran Aseman Airlines ATR 72-500 which suffered damage while landing in a storm at Tehran Mehrabad, after a diversion proposal was rejected.
The incident involved flight EP845 from Rasht to Tehran on 11 June, states the Iranian Civil Aviation Organisation.
Its preliminary findings into the event state that the 19-year old aircraft (EP-ATX) had departed Rasht with 62 passengers and six crew members.
Meteorological information from Mehrabad at the scheduled arrival time indicates thunderstorm activity, cumulonimbus clouds at 3,500ft, impending heavy rain and strong wind gusts ultimately rising to 40-60kt.
The inquiry says weather data also warned of icing and turbulence at 15,000ft.
While the first officer proposed diverting to the alternate airport at Isfahan, the ATR maintained its course to Mehrabad and conducted an approach to runway 29L.
The aircraft suffered foreign object damage during the approach and the enhanced ground-proximity warning system issued cautions on sink rate.
Investigators state that the ATR was also exposed to "extreme" wind gusts and that the pilots found the turboprop "difficult to control" – although the aircraft did not suffer a hard landing or runway excursion.
Damage was recorded, however, to the aircraft's windows, external probes and the undercarriage. The inquiry is to examine the conduct of the flight to determine whether the crew followed required procedures.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
