Delta MD-88 Skids Off Runway & Crashes Into Fence, Suspending All Flights at LGA

What Happened to Delta 1086? In the aftermath of Thursday’s accident involving a Delta MD-88 that skidded off of Runway 13, many aviation observers, myself included, jumped to the initial conclusion that the airplane was traveling too fast and therefore skidded off the end. But a closer look at photos, ATC recordings and other evidence in the aftermath of the crash reveals that the airplane did not skid off the end of a slippery runway, but actually departed the left side of the runway about two-thirds down the runway length between taxiways L and M. http://imageserver.fltplan.com/merge/merge1503/Single/00289AD.PDF Emerging information compels us to reject the notion that Delta 1086 did not crash because of a slippery surface and an inability to stop, but that it lost directional control for some other reason. My hypothesis, for the time being, is that snowbanks may be to blame. Here’s why: Visibility at the time of the accident was fairly poor, varying between one quarter to one half mile in snow and blowing snow. Plows had recently serviced Runway 13, but in dynamic snow conditions airport plows don’t always plow the entire 150 width of the runway. Out of necessity, plows sometimes only clear 100 to 120 feet width, leaving snowbanks remaining within the normal runway surface area. In this case, local notices to airmen at LaGuardia near the time of the accident stated that there were three-foot snow banks adjacent to all runway and taxiway surfaces. Even more worrying, sometimes this area that the plows clear is not even necessarily centered on the runway centerline, since the centerline is buried and is hard to see during the plowing operations. Finally, blowing snow has a tendency to bury runway lights that line the runway edges, especially on the upwind side of those lights. Runway 13 did have a slight tailwind at the time, which means that snow would be blowing on the side of the runways lights facing the pilots. When you combine off-centered plowing with snowbanks and runway lights that are hard to see, a much different scenario emerges than simply sliding off the end of a slippery runway. With all of this information in mind, I would not be surprised to hear that the Delta flight, struggling to find the runway centerline on landing, actually struck a snowbank on the left side of Runway 13 and veered out of control. If the pilots saw centerline lights that were not centered in the cleared area, this would be a very real possibility. Likewise, if the pilots mistook other runway lights for the centerline lights, such as touchdown zone lighting, then they could also find themselves perilously close to the plowed snowbanks. At the point in the landing sequence where trouble started, less than halfway down the 7000 foot runway, the airplane was likely traveling over 100 mph. Hitting snow at that speed with one wing or one wheel could quickly drag the airplane dangerously off-course. As some of us know from winter driving, hitting deep snow at high speed can be like quicksand, and this phenomena would explain why the airplane’s direction when it came to rest was almost ninety degrees from the direction of the runway. http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Travel-LaGuardia-Plan_News.jpg Of course, there could also be mechanical explanations for the loss of directional control, such as braking or thrust reverser issues. I will be interested to hear more information as this investigation progresses. In the meantime, fly safely!