French investigators are probing an ATR 72-500 incident which led to passengers being redistributed after trim problems on take-off.
The aircraft, operated by regional carrier Chalair, had departed runway 31 at Caen-Carpiquet airport on 21 September.
Investigation authority BEA says the flying pilot felt a “heaviness in the controls” during rotation, adding that the crew then noticed an “unexpected trim position”.
The crew subsequently contacted its operations personnel to check the aircraft’s loadsheet.
“During the approach to the destination, following a message from [operations], the controller transmitted instructions to the crew for a new distribution of passengers,” says BEA.
The aircraft, bound for Kerry in Ireland, landed without further problems. BEA has not reached final conclusions over the reason for the occurrence.
It identifies the airframe involved as F-HBCM, originally delivered to Indian carrier Air Deccan in 2006, and operated by carriers including Air Europa Express before being transferred to Chalair this year.
Based in Caen, Chalair operates a mix turboprop fleet which also includes ATR 42s.
