Passengers were left “terrified” as a pilot aborted take-off after he reportedly mistook the taxiway for the runway.
SAS flight SK2590, scheduled to depart from Brussels in Belgium to Copenhagen, Denmark, was cancelled yesterday evening (5 Feb).
The Airbus A320neo with 165 people onboard attempted to depart from the taxiway, used for ground manoeuvring and not take-offs or landings.
It was running about an hour and 15 minutes behind schedule.
According to Air Live, the plane reached a maximum speed of around 125mph before abruptly aborting the take-off.
The crew could see they were quickly running out of tarmac as the taxiway is shorter.
The plane ended up partially on a grassed area with overheated brakes.
Simon Berneblad Mandegård was on board the flight at the time.
He told Need To Know: “The airport was under heavy pressure because of snow and delays, and everything felt quite intense.
“We taxied out as normal, lined up, and suddenly began accelerating like a regular take-off.
“But after gaining quite a lot of speed, something clearly wasn’t right.
“The pilot suddenly slammed on the brakes, extremely hard, and the whole cabin felt the force immediately.
“There was a sharp manoeuvre to keep the aircraft on the paved surface, and you could feel how close we were to running out of space.
“It was a very dramatic moment.”
Simon added that emergency services arrived on the scene quickly.
According to him, the pilot told passengers that he had never experienced anything like it in 28 years of flying, suggesting possible miscommunication with the control tower.
The passenger added: “Thankfully everyone was safe, but it was definitely one of the most intense situations I’ve ever experienced on a plane.”
Other travellers described the aborted take-off as “terrifying”.
No one was reported as injured and the flight was cancelled.
SAS confirmed that an “irregularity” occurred and passengers were evacuated from the plane just before midnight.
Alternative flights to Copenhagen were offered to passengers.
The airline added: “Safety is our absolute priority. We are currently conducting a thorough internal investigation together with local authorities to understand the sequence of events.”
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