An easyJet plane comes dangerously close to Lake Geneva before landing

For reasons still unclear, the Airbus A320 Neo registered G-UZLO, which was flying from Edinburgh, Scotland to Geneva, came to rest about 230 meters (about 750 feet) above the surface of the water where it would be at altitude. Should be more than three times, daily suggests.

“During the approach to runway 22, the aircraft descended significantly below the glideslope and the flight crew initiated a go-around,” confirmed the Swiss Safety Investigation Service (SESE) – the authority responsible for conducting investigations into accidents and incidents particularly in the field of civil aviation. – In a very brief so-called First Information Report published on January 16.

Easyjet is a low-cost airline founded in 1995 and has never experienced a crash. Geneva Airport is one of the main hubs for the company, which is Europe’s second low-cost airline, behind Ryanair.

“human error”

According to the Tribune de Genève, the control tower at Geneva Cointrin Airport alerted the crew at the same time as they were also warned about the altitude being too low by the on-board warning system.

Arguing that the investigation is ongoing, easyJet did not want to go into details, but indicated that “we can therefore only confirm that the pilots of the flight from Edinburgh to Geneva on November 5, 2023 followed the safety procedures, and the flight was then safe.” got off the way. »

For the moment, there is no explanation for the fact that the plane was flying too low, but a pilot and former air traffic controller, who wished to remain anonymous and was interviewed by the newspaper, points to human error. “I don’t know what happened in the cockpit that day, but that’s where the key to the explanation should lie,” analyzed the pilot interviewed by the Tribune de Genève.

The geographical peculiarities of Geneva and the approach attributed to the aircraft coming from Scotland may have played a role in the incident, as it asked the crew to start a rapid descent after passing Jura, the daily underlined. The company indicated to our colleagues that the pilots were temporarily suspended from their duties, “which is in line with Easyjet practices and procedures”.