British Airways plane nose hits ground after landing gear error at Heathrow

There was a report on the British Airways landing gear failure.

The nose of the plane hit the ground after it tipped forward, causing significant damage.

The jet was being prepared for a cargo flight to Germany when the incident occurred.

The report found that a pin inserted in the wrong place caused the landing gear under the plane's nose to come undone.

A member of the cargo loading crew and the co-pilot were injured in the incident.

The impact caused some passenger oxygen masks to fall and the overhead baggage compartment doors to be opened.

Lock pins were fitted to the landing gear to prevent it from sliding. The NLG withdrew when UP was selected.

Significant damage was done to the lower front section of the aircraft as a result of the nose hitting the ground. The co-pilot and one of the loading team were injured.

An opportunity for error was created when the nose landing gear locking pin was inserted.

Guidance on how to avoid the mistake had been published, but action hadn't yet been taken with the plane involved. There is a deadline for compliance.

A British Airways spokesman said: "Safety is always our priority and we have put a number of stringent measures in place to help mitigate the chance of an incident like this occurring again in the future."