11 Injured As Air Senegal Boeing 737-300 Veers Off Runway

A TransAir Boeing 737-300 operating a flight for Air Senegal came off the runway at Dakar Blaise Diagne International Airport (DSS) during takeoff. The aircraft was substantially damaged, with at least 11 people onboard suffering injuries. The airport was temporarily closed following the incident.

Veering off the runway

Senegal’s Ministry of Infrastructure and Land and Air Transport reported that the incident occurred on May 9, 2024, at about 01:14 local time. There were 85 people onboard the aircraft, including 79 passengers, four cabin crew members, and two pilots. Meanwhile, the airport reported that there were 78 passengers onboard. The aircraft was operating flight HC301 from Dakar to Bamako, Mali.

According to the Aviation Herald, the Boeing 737 was accelerating down runway 01 when the crew rejected takeoff due to a hydraulic defect but veered left off the runway. Images and videos shared on X show that the aircraft caught fire during the incident. It came to a stop on the grass close to the runway next to the Presidential Pavilion. All passengers were forced to evacuate the aircraft on the slides.

Airport emergency services immediately reported to the scene to evacuate the passengers. At least 11 people, including one of the pilots, were injured in the incident. Up to four injuries were reported to be severe. The Ministry stated that “arrangements have been made for the care of the injured.” The Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis (BEA) has opened an investigation to determine the cause of the incident.

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Flight disruptions at Dakar Airport

Blaise Diagne International was temporarily closed following the incident. It is Senegal’s largest and busiest airport, handling over 90% of all scheduled commercial flights. Flightradar24 shows that a few flights were diverted around the time of the incident, while other flights landed later than scheduled.

A Turkish Airlines Airbus A330 operating Flight TK501 from Istanbul to Dakar diverted to Banjul International Airport (BJL) in the Gambia. The flight departed Istanbul at 01:15 local time and was scheduled to arrive in Dakar at 05:35. It landed in Banjul around 05:30. An ASKY Boeing 737 MAX operating flight KP53 was also diverted to Banjul. At 11:11, Aéroport Dakar Blaise Diagne said on its X page,

The aircraft involved in the incident is registered as 6V-AJE. It took its first flight in October 1994 before being delivered to Romanian flag carrier TAROM. It joined TransAir’s fleet in December 2023. ATDB.aero now lists it as “destroyed.”

Four serious incidents in the past week

The TransAir 737 is the fourth serious incident to make headlines in Africa over the last seven days. Another 737, operated by Serve Air Cargo, was involved in a runway excursion in Kinshasa on May 5, 2024. While no injuries were reported, the aircraft was substantially damaged, with the right-hand engine missing. Similarly, the incident resulted in the temporary closure of the airport.

Earlier that day, a Fokker 50 operated by the Comoros’ R’Komor came off the runway in Mohéli, the Comoros. Like the Air Senegal incident, the crew rejected takeoff and overshot the runway. The aircraft came to a stop in nearby bushes with the right main landing gear collapsed. Out of the 52 people onboard, several passengers reportedly received injuries.

A fatal accident took place in Windhoek, Namibia, on May 3, 2024. A Westair Cessna 406 crashed in a residential area shortly after takeoff from Eros Airport (ERS). Three people, including two pilots and one engineer, died in the crash. They were all employees of Westair, which owns 60% of FlyNamibia.

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