A British Airways flight from Gatwick to Vancouver was forced to abort take-off after the co-pilot mistakenly confused his left and right controls.
Gatekeepers News reports that Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) revealed that this led to the aircraft’s brakes catching fire.
The incident resulted in a 50-minute runway closure and the cancellation of 23 flights at the West Sussex airport.
According to AAIB reports; the co-pilot instead of moving a lever to his right, inadvently moved a lever to his right.
The mistake reduced the Boeing 777 aircraft’s thrust when the aircraft’s commander instructed that the plane start pulling up. The co-pilot momentarily sped up again before abandoning take-off.
Emergency services responded to extinguish a fire that broke out on the right landing gear.
No injuries were reported among the 334 passengers and 13 crew members on board.
