Holiday jet returns to airport after tail hits ground on take-off

Report reveals how co-pilot 'rotated the aircraft too rapidly'

- PAUL BRITTON

A TUI holiday jet with 178 passengers and eight crew on board was forced to return to Manchester Airport after the plane's tail struck the runway on take-off, a report reveals.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report revealed a trainee co-pilot 'rotated the aircraft too rapidly!

It said he 'experienced several delays during his training, which would have made it harder to learn the correct technique' - said to have been down to 'public health restrictions' as part of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Cabin crew reported hearing 'a very big bang' and the flight to Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands returned immediately to the airport in March. The Boing 737 - which was being flown by the co-pilot at the time as part of a 'training flight' - touched down without event, said the now-published report.

It stopped on the runway and was met by the airport's fire service, but taxied to stand 'without further incident. The incident caused 'minor damage to the tail skid!