An Air Arabia Maroc Airbus A320 came dangerously close to crashing into the sea shortly after take-off from Catania Airport, Italy, on 20 September 2025. The final investigation report by Italy’s National Flight Safety Agency (ANSV) reveals a series of cockpit errors that brought the aircraft to just 41 feet (12.5 metres) above the water.
The aircraft, registration CN-NML, was operating flight MAC991 to Amman without passengers, carrying two pilots and four cabin crew members. Investigators found that essential take-off speeds had not been correctly entered into the flight management system. Despite noticing missing flight indications during the take-off roll, the captain continued the departure.
After lifting off, the aircraft climbed to approximately 383 feet before entering a steep descent. The ground proximity warning system issued “SINK RATE” and “PULL UP” alerts. At only 162 feet, the captain applied maximum thrust and pulled back on the controls, allowing the aircraft to recover and continue to Amman.
Investigators considered whether the captain may have experienced a somatogravic illusion, in which acceleration and darkness can distort a pilot’s perception of the aircraft’s attitude. However, this could not be conclusively established. The investigation also highlighted concerns about cockpit monitoring and the first officer’s ability to intervene, although the cockpit voice recording was no longer available.
The report found no evidence of an aircraft malfunction. It also noted that the A320’s older flight management software did not provide an additional warning about missing take-off speeds. ANSV recommended that EASA consider measures to introduce the improved software standard across the A320 family.
Air Arabia Maroc subsequently terminated the contracts of both pilots and introduced additional training and software upgrades.
Sources: Italian National Flight Safety Agency (ANSV), final investigation report CN-NML; Hespress; Sky TG24; AeroCorner.
This post was published on 9 November 2026 19:35
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