Investigation launched into burst Airbus tires

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) set up on Monday an investigation into why a Vietnam Airlines’ Airbus 320 burst two rear tires upon landing in HCM City last Friday.
The inspection team, comprised of CAAV officials, will be led by Ho Minh Tan, head of the authority’s flight safety section.
Results are expected to be available by this weekend, VnExpress newswire reported Monday.
The newswire cited an anonymous airport source saying authorities had detected a bird carcass and some blood smattering on the craft when it was towed away from the airstrip.
A collision with a bird could have affected a sensor near the wheels that sends signals to the cockpit’s control system, the source said.
On Friday, two rear tires of the national carrier’s (VNA) plane burst during an emergency braking as it landed at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCMC.
All 164 passengers and crew members of flight VNA-302 from Nha Trang Town in Khanh Hoa Province were safe and left the aircraft within minutes after landing.
The crew had discovered abnormalities in the craft’s undercarriage hydraulic system when landing at 2:45 p.m., forcing the pilot to use the emergency brake.
The plane was piloted by Captain Jual Ruiz of Peru with Vietnamese Nguyen Khanh Thanh as his co-pilot. Ruiz has logged 17,500 flying hours while Thanh has nearly 3,000 hours.
The Airbus 320 has been used by VNA since 1996 and has undergone all scheduled maintenance and checks.